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The famous writer and traveller, Mark Twain, wrote after his journey through India in 1896 :

"So far as I am able to judge, nothing has been left undone either by man or nature, to make India the most extraordinary country that sun visits on its rounds. Nothing seems to have been forgotten, nothing overlooked."

No wonder, he called India the "Land of Wonders".

India is baffling to anyone with its myriad faces of splendour and despair, of opulence and destitution, of majestic modernity and primitive superstition. The sight of the erotic temple structures and holy men sitting naked in the foothills of the freezing Himalayas would defy logic. How does a nation where sensuality and sex are so widely paraded accept the rigid norms of Victorian morality in daily life? Nuclear scientists may start the day in this country offering puja (prayer) to the sun, the Ganges and an anthromorphic god! That's India, contradictory, confusing, elusive and mysterious, beyond easy description and analysis.

India is a country of 3,287,263 sq. kms.

Bound within her frontiers is a topography that is as varied as the land- the mighty Himalayas with its perennial snow covered slopes and breathtaking valleys, gurgling mountain streams, tropical rain forests, miles of undulating sand dunes and mangrove deltaic swamps which abound in wild animals and birds. And the 6,000 kms of shoreline offers some of the world's best tropical beaches. The adventurous tourist can choose to play golf, skydive, surf, water sport, trek, bird watch or embark on a safari through the jungles.

India's wealth lies in its people. People, with their mind boggling variety in culture, tradition and beliefs. Every region exudes its own flavour. Each has its own music and dance, crafts, festivals, and a unique cuisine.

Thousands of years of heritage has left behind monuments that speak of beauty, valour, opulence and splendour. Every conquest and influence has left its own touch and has been assimilated into the Indian subconscious. The Rajput forts and palaces, the Moghul gardens and monuments, the princely estates, the exquisitely carved temples, all speak of the riches and the grandeur of the past.