 The ancient diamond-shaped
country of India, the largest
part of the Indian
Subcontinent,
extends from the Himalayan
Mountains in the north, south
into the tropical reaches
of the Indian Ocean. It's the
second most populous country
on the planet, and
certainly one of the most
intriguing.
This diverse and fertile
country, which
once included the lands we
now call Bangladesh and
Pakistan, was plundered over
eons of time.
It was subsequently colonized
and controlled by Britain
during much
of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Then, in 1947, India declared
independence and
formed
its own country.It's home to
some of the most significant
natural and man-made
wonders on the planet, and
thus, a powerful exotic
tourism magnet. The modern
open-door
policies of India have put the
tourist industry here on the
fast-track, as
luxury hotels and beach
resorts are constantly under
construction.
With numerous major
languages (hundreds of
dialects), dozens and dozens of
large cities and over 700,000
villages - somehow India
works, both in the classic,
traditional methods of its
many cultures, and in the fast-
moving world of the
21st century.
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