Indian Oasis

it sounds like you might enjoy Rishikesh. You can get general info and see some photos on Wikipedia. Just make sure that you go north out of town and cross the Ganges on one of the two footbridges, that's the area to hang out.

go south to Kerala... enjoy the backwaters...

you can check out the somatheeram resort, they have yoga packages... but tad expensive though.

go to wayanad, to coorg, to dehradun or Sikkim.... pretty bful.

Cehck out goa, Arambol/manderem/Palolem/agounda are peaceful and offer yoga at the beach...

Bhakthi Kutir is a good place at Palolem to stay/try/learn yoga.. prices arent really bad either...

go to rajasthan, get lost in the sand dunes and find 'your' solitude

in my opinion rishikesh is crowded and dirty....

Cheers

Head south. Southern India is cleaner and friendlier and we felt safer. The backwaters are great.
Like anywhere in the world - the urban areas are the dirtiest.

Hi
the cities of india can be a bit much.if you are in Rajasthan hop across the border to MP /central India and chill out at Mandu.take a train from Kota to Indore and then take a bus to mandu.it 's scenic and full of old ruins from the 1400's .
Orchcha in MP is a good place just to slow down and relax.
In Himachal Pradesh there is much natural beauty and Dalhousie,Chamba Valley and the Kullu valley are all very peaceful &
scenic.
In the south the backwaters of kerala are so soothing I would not write India off just yet.

Try Rural areas of Kerala,Backwaters,Hillstations,etc.

All the Best

Paul vandy

No flyingtoucan,

I'm afraid that that the country is filthy from one end to the other. There is simply no escape.

I just returned from India and felt very much the same way you seem to at the beginning of my trip. However, my views changed. It could have just been me getting accustomed to the dirtiness and clamor of the culture, but I think there are areas where it is much easier to be. I'm sure time helps as well. I spent a couple weeks in Nepal and it was beautiful there. The weather was great, the people were friendlier, it seemed cleaner, I stayed in Chitwan National Park, and found it to be beautiful and peaceful. You can get a visa into Nepal at the border for USD $30. But, staying in India, I would recommend the northeast. I loved Darjeeling, although it was a bit chilly (no snow!), and I also found Kolkata to be a bit easier and more enjoyable than some of the other parts of north India. From there, the south was quite pleasant. I stayed in Pondicherry and Kochin and both were a warm welcome from the north. The weather was nice and the streets were cleaner. People also seemed to be less fascinated by my white skin, making the streets easier to walk down. There are beautiful places all over the country, I think it just takes a little bit of getting used to. Good luck, and I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip!

1) Backwaters of Kerala - Kumarakom (do a google image search to know how it looks) - also do at least an overnighter on a house boat - it is an out of the world extremely soothing experience

2) Himachal pradesh - esp. Mc Leod Ganj and Dalhoosie

3) If you are a each lover, try Ganpati phule (Maharashtra) or Kovalam (Kerala)

"in my opinion rishikesh is crowded and dirty...."

Oliveskin, did you make it north of Rishikesh town to the area on the opposite side of the Ganges? Probably the cleanest and mellowest place I've been to in 8 months of travelling in India. If you just mean the main part of town then I agree with you, there's nothing much to see or do there other than get off the bus and then head over one of the bridges. I'm there now and it's sweet, especially since it's a little chilly now and most of the tourists have headed south for the winter. Just bring some warm clothes if you head up here, you'll definitely want to bundle up.