34 ESCAPE SUNDAY FEBRUARY 7 2016 ESCAPE.COM.AU

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“W ELCOME to the City ofJoy.” My enthusiasticyoung guide

Mohammad Jay escorts me through the thick, fragrant night air.

As I’m whisked through the streets,I can’t help wonder if Jay’s reference to Dominique Lapierre’s novel is a cruel poke at the four million inhabitants.

Once the centre of modern Indianeducation, science, culture and politics, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) is a patchwork of unfinished tower blocks, badly painted shop fronts and decrepit colonial buildings criss-crossed with wires and advertising.

Bright blue, red and yellow paint peels from every wall, forests of ferns flourish in every crack – it’s as if no one has touched it in 70 years and nature is slowly reclaiming the land. Every corner, every nook, every hole is occupied by young children, men and old women. Vendors sit on blankets on the dust-covered ground with polished apples laid out in military precision. Men sleep in doorways, on rooftops and on trucks, oblivious to the constantring of car horns.

Decades of economic stagnation are now firmly etched on the faces and the facades. But when you look closer, you realise you’re acknowledged by nearly every person with a nod of the head, a namaste, a smile and the most you are ever asked for is your name.

Nowhere do you feel more warmthand love than Mother Teresa’s house. In a tiny backstreet off A.J.C. Bose Road, it is a well-washed sanctuary from the dust, pollution and over-population. Even though the Nobel Peace Prize winner died in 1997, more than 70 sisters continue the work in hername. Here they believe the greatest poverty is not a lack of money, it’s being unloved and unwanted.

As we wander past Mother Teresa’stomb and up the external staircase to the sparsely decorated bedroom where she slept for 44 years, I learn those who do volunteer usually cry twice – on the

first day of work and on the last. “For me, that statement was true,” Marissa Turner writes. “The first tears were tears of shock and disbelief, fear, sorrow and helplessness. The final ones were those of thanksgiving, beauty, friendship, parting and love.”

Whenever we take to the shorelineon our seven-day cruise on the lower Ganges we’re accompanied by a local guide and one or two APT staff.

Nowhere do you appreciate it morethan wandering through the colourful and chaotic flower market, Mullik Ghat. The 24-hour flower market is not for the faint-hearted but the rewards are great – every stall is an explosion of colour – from fiery strings of yellow and orange marigolds to overflowing baskets of sunflowers, roses and lilies.

The beauty of the tour is that you are on shore and out exploring for no more than two or three hours at a time. The heat and humidity and pure “sensory overload” – to quote one of my fellow passengers – can be quite exhausting. But between trips we are ferried back to the Ganges Voyager – to climate control, luxury monsoon-style showers, spa treatments and a chance

to reflect over a glass of rose in the Governor’s Lounge.

The Ganges Voyager is the first Indian ship for APT, whose luxury river cruises run through Europe, Africa, Canada, Vietnam, the Americas and the Antarctic. Every inch has been painstakingly polished, painted and carefully decorated with solid British colonial-style furniture.

The boutique ship has 28 rooms andaccommodates 56 guests. Every suite is positioned on the outside of the vessel and features a panoramic balcony, offering private views of the riverbank.

For early risers, the staff serve coffee, tea, freshly baked croissants and cakes in the Governor’s Lounge. It’s a beautiful time of day on the Ganges as a humid haze hangs in the air and the rising sun creates a silver reflection on the water.

The time between tours is dividedinto on-board talks, cooking lessons and “me” time. The few hours you do get to relax and reflect, and watch life go by, helps you appreciate the importance of Mother Ganges to India. From its source in the northern Himalayas all the way to the Bay of

Bengal, the 2525km river is a lifeline to the millions of people who live along the banks. Everything the villagers do revolves around it: from farming to fishing to washing to entertainment to religious ceremonies.

For me, there will be no forgettingthe rickety yellow horse-drawn cart with sack-covered seats through the pot-holed city of Murshidabad, or the rickshaw ride through the dusty town centre of Kalna, my young, enthusiastic driver had me clinging on for dear life as he narrowly missed deep roadside gutters, langur monkeys, goats, trucks and other rickshaws. The Kansari artisan workshops were another highlight – where pots, plates, bangles and animal ornaments were crafted out of recycled metals. It was truly humbling to see so much beauty created from so little.

There is no doubting India is a spicebox of experiences and it’s the places in between – the bustling cities and towns, the working artisans, the vibrant bazaars and markets and the primitive riverbank villages and farms – that make the journey enriching, inspiring and truly unforgettable.

INDIAGETTING THERECruise aboard the Ganges Voyager as part of APT’s 15-day Spirit of India luxury land journey and river cruise. This all-inclusive trip includes three nights in Delhi, a night in Agra and three nights in Jaipur staying at five-star hotels before a seven-night river cruise. The journey is priced from $13,695 a person, twin share. Book now for the September 15, 2016, departure and receive free return international flights in India, including taxes. Offer ends February 29, 2016. Ph 1300 196 420 or see aptouring.com.au

TIPSYou must obtain a visa before travelling to India. http://indianvisaonline.gov.in

INTERNETThe Ganges Voyager has intermittent wi-fi, depending on its proximity to towns and cities, and most Australian mobile phone companies have roaming agreements in India.

ETIQUETTEEven if you are left-handed, always use your right hand for eating and handing over money or goods.

HEALTHSee your doctor at least eight weeks before departure. it is essential to have up-to-date boosters for diphtheria, polio and tetanus. Other recommended vaccinations include typhoid, hepatitis A, meningitis and cholera. Malaria risk varies with area and season.

ESCAPE ROUTE

Namaste, IndiaCruising the Ganges is an intoxicating way to explore West Bengal in all its sensory-overloading beauty, writes Abi Weeks

CITY OF JOY: (clockwise from main)The sun rises over the Ganges River;

the luxury Maharaja Suite on theGanges Voyager has spa bath and

butler service; the incrediblearchitecture of the Kalna temples.

Pictures: Abi Weeks, iStock

INDIA What’s your favourite river cruise experience? Share it with us on Instagram @escapesnaps