Bihar Tourism: Things to do in Bodhgaya

Inhabited for more than 3000 years, Bodhgaya is one of the oldest established places of the world. Bodhgaya has many places and monuments of historical importance. Also, there are many regions that hold importance from various religions’ point of view. There are places important for religions like Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam and Hinduism among others.

A Stroll Around the Town of Gaya

Travel tourism in Bodhgaya is widening with every passing day. As the tourists realize the importance of historical places, Bodhgaya travel and tourism is flourishing with increasing International travelers are planning Bodhgaya travel trips. As stated by Bihar government, the state is witnessing more Foreign travelers than the most popular tourist destination – Goa. In a recent survey, Bodhgaya travel trips have been listed among the top ten most picked holiday trips in India while Bihar is enlisted at number seventh amidst the most popular tourist destinations in India.

Tourists-in-Bodhgaya

With umpteen pilgrimages, excavations, monuments, fort, fairs and festivals, Bodhgaya in Bihar attracts tourists with all its might. The art and culture of Bodhgaya is admired by hundreds and thousands of tourists coming every year to the state of Bihar. To cater to the traditional and cultural needs of tourists, Bodhgaya caters to them with Madhubani paintings, stone pottery, vegetarian cuisines and folk music and dances. Tourists in Bihar enjoy exploring new cultures and traditions, while they are very fond of the paintings, handicrafts, pottery, etc. available in various Indian states.

Bodhgaya in Bihar at Large!

Bhodhgaya, Nalanda, Vaishali, Kushinagar, Pawapuri, Rajgir and Patna among others are some of the famous Bihar tourists Attractions. Bodhgaya is the famous tourist destination known as the birthplace of Buddhist preacher Lord Buddha. Every year thousands of International travelers in Bihar swarm this place to learn and enrich their lives with Buddhist lessons. There is a unique serenity in the environment of Bodhgaya, which is why many Bihar travel guides recommend a visit here for seekers of inner peace. Bodhgaya has many monasteries, some of which were built by people from Japan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand and other nations. Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya has been felicitated with the title of being a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Bodhgaya and Nalanda are located in the southern part of Bihar. Nalanda has the Nalanda Archeological museum, Nalanda University, which considered as one of the greatest centers for Buddhist teachings, Hiuen Tsang Memorial Hall, the Surya Mandir, etc. find place in its vicinity.

Mahabodhi-Temple-in-Bodhgaya

Vaishali has religious importance for Jainism as well as Buddhism in its name. This is the place where Lord Buddha took his last sermon while Lord Mahaveera (24th Teerthankara in Jainism) was born in a village in Vaishali. There are many Jain and Buddha structures situated in Vaishali while other Bihar tourists Attractions include Ashoka Pillars and Vishwa Shanti Stupa.

Vaishali–World’s-first-republics

Kushinagar is the place where Buddha attained liberation from life and death cycle. Located at about 53 Km away from Gorakhpur, Kushinagar is the place where Buddha was cremated. Similar is the importance of Pawapuri, where Lord Mahavira attained Nirvana.

Vishva-Shanti-Stupa

Rajgir is also important for followers of Jainism as well as Buddhism. Lord Buddha spent almost 12 years in this region, while Lord Mahaveera also spent a considerable time in the area.

Travel tourism Bihar is a journey through the religious places of various religions in India. For Sikhism, there are many Gurudwaras like the Gurudwara Handi Sahib, Gurudwara Pakki Sangat, Gurudwara Gobind Ghat, Gurudwara Guru ka Bhag, Gurudwara Taksali Sangat, etc. in the state of Bodhgaya. For Islam, there is Sararam, Maner Sharif, Bodhgaya Sharif and Phulwari Sharif.

Takht-Sri-Patna-Sahib–the-birthplace-of-Guru-Gobind-SinghJi

The historical museums in Bihar travel guide include Nalanda Museum, Bodhgaya Museum, Vikramshila Museum and Vaishali Museum. Chhath pooja is one of the most famous festivals in all over Bodhgaya. The inhabitants of Bodhgaya, no matter where they are staying in the country, reach their hometowns in Bodhgaya in participate in this auspicious event. Visiting the state during the time of Chhath is one of the Bihar travel tips recommended by tour planners. Rajgir Mahotsava, Sonepur Fair and Patna Film Festival are some of other Bihar tourists Attractions. Forts in Bihar to be visited include Rohtasgarh Fort, Palamu Fort, Maner Fort, Jalalgarh Fort, Rajmahal and many more.

Nalanda-Museum

Patna, the capital city of Bihar, also showcases many places to Foreign travelers in Bihar from tourists’ point of view. Hanuman Mandir, Takht Shri Harmandir Sahib, Jadughar, Golghar, Qila House, Gandhi Setu and Kumhrar are few of them. Patna is important from Sikh perspective as it is the birth place of their tenth guru Guru Gobind Singh.

Takht-Sri-Patna-Sahib–the-birthplace-of-Guru-Gobind-SinghJi

As per the lifestyle of Bihar, moviegoers and entertainment seekers constitute a major part of culture. Most of the movies are released in the native language of the state called Bhojpuri.

Not only historical and religious places, Bihar travel offers a treat for wildlife lovers. There are many wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks in Bihar for the tourist to enjoy viewing and observing the other living beings on the planet. Rajgir Wildlife Sanctuary, Bhimbandh Sanctuary, Hazaribagh Sanctuary, Lawalong Sanctuary, Dalma Sanctuary, Dolphin Sanctuary among others offers such opportunities. Also, Bihar entreats birdwatchers with various species of birds in Kabar Lake Bird Sanctuary. There are waterfalls like Kakolat, Telhar, Karkat waterfalls in Bodhgaya that are enjoyed by many tourists visiting the state.

Dalma-Wildlife-Sanctuary

Bihar travel tips include some of the scientific Museums like Patna Planetarium, which is one of the largest in Asia as well as Srikrishan Science Centre.

Srikrishna-Science-Centre, Patna

There are various travel packages offered for tourists visiting Bihar. Every package has different deals to reach and accommodate in the state of Bodhgaya. There are ways through air, rail and road to reach the important tourist destinations.

Therefore, Bihar offers a range of place, fairs, festivals, culture and tradition to fill the tourism senses of the Foreign Travelers in Bihar. Bihar and Bodhgaya, together with their unique cultures and traditions, exhibits various points of interest to the travelers reaching the state in large numbers. Government of Bihar records an increasing footfall on the various tourist spots each year.

Bodhgaya-in-night

A tourist, once aware about the importance of Bihar and different tourism spots that Bodhgaya in Bihar offers them, cannot resist visiting the place atleast once. People from all over the world swarm to Bodhgaya to experience the religious heat of Jainism and Buddhism.

Indian Cuisine: Best cuisine of east India

We look at the best cuisine of east India and the delicious dishes you should sample in Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal and Sikkim.

Three common threads connect the cuisine of the eastern states of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. The first is the use of opium, or rather poppy seeds. The seeds are considered highly nutritious, and the paste of white poppy seeds is added for thickness, texture and a unique flavour.

East-Indian-Food-Thali

Bengal makes the alu posto made with potatoes and gourd. A paste of posto made with ground seeds seasoned with mustard oil, green chili and salt is also had with hot steamed rice. Orissa has jahni alu posta (a potato and gourd dish), and Bihar loves postaa-dana kaa halwa, a sweet pudding made of poppy seeds.

The second common thread is the use of the strong and pungent mustard oil as a cooking medium.

The third is the use of paanch phoron (literally ‘five seeds’ – aniseed, mustard seed, fenugreek, carrom, and nigella seeds). Beyond this, the cuisine of Orissa and Bengal overlap quite a bit with both states laying claim to inventing several famous foods (like the rosogolla, a famous sweet made of cheese).

Bihar

The cuisine of Bihar is a mixture of North and Eastern Indian cuisine. Chickpea flour is used in a variety of ways including the popular litti (baked and stuffed bread made of roasted chickpea flour, pictured below) served with chokha (potato, tomato and brinjal mash), sattu parathas stuffed with chickpea flour and the sattu drink, used in summers to cool down and get quick energy. The sattu along with Bihari kebabs are two signature dishes of Bihar that are popular outside the state as well.

Litti-From-Bihar

Orissa

Orissa, though famous for its food, often gets overshadowed by Bengal. It is believed that most of Bengal’s famous cooks came from Orissa, and quite a few Bengali dishes are derivatives of Oriya cuisine. Dalma is a unique and famous dish prepared in Orissa with vegetables and dal. All meals have a khatta – a sweet and sour dish. The famous khattas are dahi baingan, tomatoes khatta and amba khatta. During scorching summers, the cooling pakhal (pictured below),  made of rice, water, and yogurt fermented overnight, prevents heat strokes.

Pakhala from Orissa

Bengal

Bengal loves fish and no meal is complete without ‘maachher jhol and bhaat’ (fish curry and rice). If you have a sweet tooth, you will be spoilt for choice here as Bengalis are famous for their sweet concoctions (pictured below) – fried, steamed and baked.

Mishti doi, rosogolla and sandesh from Bengal

Try the mishti doi (sweet curd), rosogolla and sandesh (both made from cottage cheese).

The city of Kolkata has its own special cuisine, different from the rest of Bengal. It is influenced by the passage of conquerors and immigrants the city has witnessed over centuries. Street food like kathi kebabs and rolls are influenced by the Mughals. The footprint of the Brits can be seen in the varieties of cutlets including the kabiraji cutlet, the Jews gave alu makallah, the khaw suey came from the Burmese, and the Chinese contributed chowmein and noodles. A signature dish of Kolkata, the Chingri Malai Curry, has Malaysian roots.

Sikkim

Further up from Bengal, towards the Himalayas is the state of Sikkim, which has its own distinctive culinary style influenced by neighbouring Tibet, Bhutan and Nepal. A popular food is the momo (pictured below) – a dumpling stuffed with chicken, pork, beef or vegetables.

Sikkimese people love noodle-based soups with or without meat to keep the chill out. Thukpa, thanthu, gyathuk, and fakthu are one-pot soup meals.

Sha-phaleys are fried patties filled with minced meat had as a snack. Chhurpi is a local cheese made from cow or yak’s milk, commonly used by mountaineers who chew it to maintain salivation.

Momo from Sikkim

Sikkimese use a lot of fermented foods – like kinema, a fermented soybean with a high protein content, and the sel roti made with fermented rice. Gundruk soup (prepared using leaves of mustard, radish and cauliflower) is a great option for vegetarians. So is Sinki made from roots of the radish.

Rice isn’t the only grain, Sikkim uses a wide variety – finger millet, wheat, buckwheat and barley. When the Himalayan chill gets to you, try the local drink chhang, a millet beer served in bamboo tankards, sure to warm you up.

No matter where you travel you’ll find the cuisine of east India offers plenty of variety to get the mouth watering and taste buds tingling!