In Delhi, Agra, and Kathmandu, sustainability editor Juliet Kinsman travels with G Adventures and sees some lesser-known initiatives.

Our mentor Asif points to the sacred images grouted onto the walls of a narrow lane in the Paharganj neighborhood of central Delhi. Our adolescent guide says that the pictures of Shiva, Ganesh, Jesus, Mary, and Allah are there to prevent people from relieving themselves. It functions. One of the young people leading alternative inner-city tours for the Salaam Baalak Trust is Asif, a former pickpocket and street kid. After becoming an orphan at age 8, he joined a gang, started using marijuana, and snorted glue. The NGO gave people access to education and a secure place to sleep after being found with money made from Mira Nair's 1988 film Salaam Bombay! Now, Asif's persuasive narration has us enthralled as we stand under tangled nests of exposed electricity lines.

I've been to Asia with G Adventures to see the beneficial effects of travel. The Planeterra Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the Toronto-based company, in addition to offering culturally immersive group tours, supports numerous social enterprises by integrating underserved communities into the sustainable tourism industry, enhancing education, and creating jobs. In a time when every choice to fly needs to be carefully thought out, it makes sense to make sure that what you do on the ground helps the communities around you.

In collaboration with the Trust, Planeterra contributes to the funding of street children's shelters and places them on the path to fulfilling work. A four-hour coach ride from the capital to Agra is part of our hurried visit to Delhi, where we get a taste of the city's public transportation. We got a taste of true Delhi transportation by being crammed into retro Morris-style Ambassador cabs, then into bell-ringing rickshaws to take us to the Metro. It is a more realistic experience than I'd experienced on prior visits.

India's Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal is a wonder that can be seen in Agra. The most unforgettable trip experience is offered by an ordinary wayside location nearby. We are greeted by women who have facial deformities as we enter Sheroes Hangout, a cafe founded by a journalist to aid acid attack victims. We hear stories that are both heartbreaking and heartwarming about people who have been able to overcome stigma as a result of our effort. The first day of college was when Madhu Kashyap, then 39, "faced the acid assault"; a man whose mocking approaches she had turned down flung acid at her. "After that, when employers saw my face, I couldn't obtain a job." The survivors have gained a new lease on life by joining this network of change-makers and spreading awareness of this cruel assault, which is mainly committed by males against women who have rejected them. Instead of serving a standard menu, customers are invited to donate to the restaurant's cause. Travelers are certain to come across social entrepreneurs on almost every tour offered by G Adventures.

We go to Nepal after an early-morning excursion to the Taj Mahal (a hard 4 a.m. start, but it ensures we miss the throng). 24 hours later, as we climb through the hills of Panauti, a region recognized by UNESCO south of the city, we forget about the record-breaking levels of paperwork that visa-on-arrival forms require. We're here to learn about the Community Homestay project, which began in 2012 with just a few hosts inviting tourists into their homes, as well as to get a taste of Himalayan climbing. Before, it was impossible to spend much time in this little, ancient town; currently, this type of lodging is becoming more and more common throughout Nepal. A former G Adventures guide and a local organization, Community Homestay, were the driving forces behind this project. 15 families have opened their homes to welcome visitors looking for authentically genuine Nepalese experiences.

Sheroes

Rural Nepalese women emerged from their kitchens to participate in language classes that included instruction on the need for greater hygiene and running a tourist business. By allowing outsiders to visit their homes, Nepal's overcrowded tourist centers are relieved, and income is distributed directly. On their way to lessons when the first ladies of Panauti began learning English, they would pass the guys outside the tea shop who would jeer them. Now the men appear embarrassed as they pass while accompanying their visitors and speaking in English. Behind her husband's store is where our host, Binu Amatya, lives in a modest home. One has the rare opportunity to experience real Nepali living on single beds stacked with pillows and hand-loomed blankets. We prepare market-purchased meat and veggies and share our meals. Her vivacious daughter Cyarina informs us that charming home visitors have arrived from Holland, France, and Italy. Although her mother didn't finish high school, she wants to attend college.

Personal accounts like this serve as evidence of the value of travel and true interaction with the people we encounter. There aren't many hotels in Panauti, so as you walk its winding lanes, the only other people you'll see are Nepalese families going about their everyday lives and local sellers. You arrive at pagoda-roofed temples via small, low-rise brick structures that are quite beautiful in their brickwork. Panauti is one of the oldest cities in the Kathmandu Valley, and its primary temple was built in the thirteenth century.

Homestay in Nepal

It's more fascinating to learn about the underlying worth of the initiatives we participate with, in this example, the advantages of empowering Nepalese women than merely halting in various cinematic locations. We've visited different cities and landscapes in just a week, but more importantly, we've sensed personally how travel can spur constructive social change. We had the luxury of not having to worry about petty details (check-in, tickets, signing invoices), which allowed us to focus on the broader issue.

Syanja sirubari community homestay which is first homestay in Nepal. Conducting cultural program.. pic.twitter.com/3n4SWLDu8j

— puspa katwal (@rajkatwal) January 26, 2020