Ed Salvato on Sirius/XM Radio

 

Photo: courtesy Derek and Romaine, Sirius/XM OutQ

Our editor, Ed Salvato (below right), was a guest of Derek and Romaine on their eponymous show on Sirius OutQ (Sirius 109; XM 98).

It was a lively 45 minutes with lots of calls from listeners. They discussed a wide range of travel topics from an assortment of Sirius OutQ listeners: gay men, lesbians, singles and couples  Here are a few topics they touched upon:

• Travel to India and Sri Lanka
• Washington, D.C. hotels
• San Juan, Puerto Rico gay scene
• Gay-friendly Istanbul
• Punta del Este, Uruguay for an older lesbian
• Best getaway for New Year's, where to go for Thanksgiving and much more!

Click here to listen to the show. (It's in four parts)

Download 01 Track 01

Download 02 Track 02

Download 03 Track 03

Download 04 Track 04

Aman, amen! India made easy

Story by Ed Salvato; photos by Ed Salvato except bottom courtesy of Aman.

India is a country renowned for its sights, sounds, colors and aromas. It's also known to be challenging and difficult -- a chaotic environment with snarled traffic jams, endless noise, dust and smog, impossibly crowded trains, cows wondering the roads and many more obstacles to an easy vacation.

But these difficulties shouldn't prevent you from exploring this amazing country, where almost all visitors come away a different, more aware person than when they arrived. It's worth pausing and considering this phenomenon. How many vacations actually help you become more self aware? How many trips have you taken that challenge or reaffirm your innermost beliefs?

It's a special place that can accomplish that. India should be a must on your list of dream trips. Here's one way to discover the best of India in a way that minimizes the stresses of journeying here. First, book your air on Jet Airways, which offers an economical business class option Called Premiere Class, with private sleeping pods at surprisingly low prices. This class of service includes delicious meals (frequently with both Indian and Western-style options) and, when available, an attendant who meets you at the plane door, whisks you through customs and immigration and onto your transfer or awaiting transportation. Jet Airways works with Jet Lite for domestic connections. Jet Lite is incredibly inexpensive.

Aman Resorts, which boasts three stunning hotel properties in varied locales in India, offers a specially  priced deal which is a perfect way to discover India in pampered style with all transfers included. Dubbed, Aman India Journey, the special ($3,650 double occupancy through April 30, 2010; $3,840 Oct 1, 2010 through April 30, 2011) includes a minimum of two nights in each of the following properties. Also included is breakfast and transfers between the properties and one activity per stay. And let's not forget the addictive lemon-scented cold towel compress that meets you at every juncture both cooling and sweetening your stay.

Aman New Delhi is Aman's newest property. It's also it's first true urban hotel and the largest in terms of number of rooms. The sleek, modern lines, masculine subdued palette and abundant green spots are a truly welcome oasis of peace in the heart of India's bustling capital city. Each spacious unit comes with its own butler and a plunge pool. The gym is gigantic and modern and is maintained by fitness trainers who are happy to help you burn off the calories you'll acquire at the hotel's fine restaurants.

Amanbagh is one of Aman's true jewels. Located in a remote valley in Rajasthan surrounded by palm trees and lost-in-time villages and monumental ruins, the property is almost entirely self sufficient with its own water treatment facility, organic garden, restaurant and bakery. It also boasts a 150-foot long pool as its dramatic centerpiece. Surrounding it are the accommodations which are huge and private and elegantly appointed with locally-quarried marble as well as a small but serviceable gym and a spa.

Aman-i-Khas is Aman's tented resort, also located in the state of Rajasthan but in an even more remote location along side the Ranthambore National Park. This is where you'll enjoy open-top vehicle safaris in search of India's elusive tigers and other wildlife by day and luxurious tented accommodations at night.

Golly! Cliff Divers of Galle, Sri Lanke

Photos and video by Ed Salvato

Just a quick update from the road. Sri Lanka's an amazingly beautiful tropical island paradise, shaped like a tear drop, located to the south of India. Very close to the equator it has a tropical climate with palm trees, dramatic beaches and vivid sunsets most everyday. It's primarily a Buddhist nation so though it feels like a Caribbean island it really is different from any other island I've been to.

More later but for now enjoy the image above, which is of three members of a four-member team of cliff divers who jump off the cliff where they are posing here into the water at least 30 feet below. You get three jumps for 500 Sri Lankan rupees, which is just over $4.00.

The video below shows one of the cliff divers running and jumping into the water.

India Videos: Sights and Sounds

Story, videos and photo by Ed Salvato

The image above shows local Rajasthani boys in the Bhangarh complex, a restored 17th-century city in Rajasthan.

Below is a video from the Aman New Delhi showing a local woman singing and stringing together marigolds into a floral necklace.

The following video shows the welcome song at the Amanbagh in Rajasthan, where you are made to feel right at home instantly.

The final video is a very noisy street scene near Jaipur at the cattle market.

New Yorker loves his Delhis, old and new

Story and photos by Ed Salvato, seen here at Humayan Tomb

Only recently arrived in India via the fabulous Jet Airways (more below), I've been instantly confronted with the (in)famous sights, sounds, of smells of the nation's capital city. There are two parts to Delhi: New Delhi is a bustling metropolis with skyscrapers, traffic jams, construction sites everywhere (the Commonwealth Games will be here in 2010; there's an extension being created for the Delhi Metro) and an expanding airport. Old Delhi is a labyrinthine series of alleys, dilapidated-looking storefronts, and a upturned-bowl-of-spaghetti system of electrical wires with an extraordinary hustle and bustle of pedestrians, rickshaws (really pedicabs), stray dogs, goats, taxis and small trucks all competing for a few feet of turf at a time. At the very bottom of this post, I've included a brief video from an exhilarating pedi-cab tour of Old Delhi.

This city of 14 million souls isn't necessarily high up on the tourist to-do lists of most Americans but it should be. Both old and new, there's a lot to keep visitors occupied. The conquest by the Moguls left many impressive monuments to discover. And slowly but surely Delhi's beginning to emerge as an important world city. India, which I will be exploring over the next week, is a fascinating, absorbing, and -- so far anyway -- a demanding destination to experience. Like most things requiring an effort, the rewards will also surely be great.

For those who may have some reluctance to jump into the Indian fray with all its cacophony and movement, my suggestion is to do it in style and comfort. There's nothing quite like a welcome dose of pampering at the end of a day exploring dusty monuments, haggling over purchases and interacting with a few persistent locals.

My method included a trip on Jet Airways, a relatively new (approximately 16 years old in India and operating two years internationally) private Indian airlines. With two classes of service, Jet offers a very modern fleet of aircraft, a young, attractive and attentive staff of flight attendants, a fairly extensive network of flights considering how new it is to the world scene and, in Premiere (business class), private sleeping modules. (That's me in my sleeping pod.)

Prices are incredibly reasonable right now. And with connections in Brussels it's also a good way to get to Europe inexpensively and in style even if India's not on your travel agenda this time. Premiere class travelers also are escorted from the arrival of the flight (from the exit door actually!) to and through customs and immigration. International arrivals just don''t get easier than that.

For a pampering, peaceful (literally, it's in the name: Aman translates as serenity or peace) and secure way to stay, check out the Aman Resorts. Known for their exclusive, small, ultra luxurious resorts, many in remote destinations, Aman opened its first truly urban resort hotel in New Delhi, the Aman New Delhi. It's also the largest of the hotel collection's properties. Just a handful of the many luxe features include huge, airy, modern rooms with private plunge pools, a contemporary Western/Indian restaurant, a tapas restaurant, a 150 foot long lap pool, a state-of-the-art gym open 24 hours, and free wireless throughout the property. Staff is super attentive. The hotel's rates includes pick up and drop off at the airport and a small fleet of hotel cars that can drop you off and pick you up most anywhere in the city. But its key attribute is the calm oasis it affords visitors amidst the seemingly never-ending motion of Delhi.

Today I head out of town to Jaipur. Check back for my next update! First, here's the video of our roller-coaster rickshaw tour of Old Delhi. As a fellow traveler said to me, I experienced more in that 30 minute rickshaw tour as I did in the first 20 years of my life.