I travel a lot with work and I always say that it's like sampling the menu. I don't get much time in a place but I get a taste. I haven't really been able to stay on at a location after filming, so only Cannes feels really familiar because I was on the jury there last year. On the drive to Cannes from Nice I know where I am. I do intend to spend more time in filming locations in the future though. Ideally I'd like to backpack and travel extensively, but there is a lifetime for that.

India itself is extremely fascinating and I don't feel I've travelled enough there. It's a really diverse country, even for an Indian. We have it all: mountains, deserts, beaches, lush greenery. Culturally, the north is very different to the south, the east very different to the west and there is a lot to discover: fashion; textiles; cuisine; languages; art forms. Whenever I'm working there I do try to sneak out with a couple of the unit hands and maybe a driver to explore, but it can be tough if people find out you're there and you have to scurry right back into your car.

We filmed Bride and Prejudice in Amritsar, Mumbai and Goa, as well as LA and Britain. It was actually my first time in Amritsar. We filmed at the Golden Temple, which is beautiful. I made sure I went there early one morning just before sunrise for the prayer meeting and I saw the temple by night and as it turned into day. It was stunning.

Goa was an absolute blast. That's the thing about Goa, it's a holiday place. Every time I've been there, there is something about the sun and the warmth, it is really relaxing and calm. Mumbai is home for me and it was good to be filming there for a week. For a lot of the UK cast members Mumbai was the place because, if you have friends or know people there, then you can really have a good time. It's not visually very attractive, but it has a great spirit and it's a buzzing city with some great places to go out. When I come back from making a movie my friends say, 'Where have you been, girl? There's this new place that has just opened up.' It's always changing. At the end of filming the whole cast said that India had been the best part and for many of them it had been an entirely new experience.

When I was a kid I went on short holidays near Mumbai, but I got out of India and went further afield when I sailed with my father who was a marine engineer. We flew out and joined Daddy in Japan and went to Tokyo and Nagoia, then sailed to China. A couple of my Indian movies were dubbed into Japanese and I've been invited back recently. I want to see the cherry blossom in April.

I remember we also sailed to Vancouver. The islands that you pass as you approach are stunning with the autumn leaves and snowy mountains of British Columbia behind. We anchored away from Vancouver and took a little boat to the small islands and had barbecues. It was really nice. I have the fondest memories of that trip.

I was in Namibia for a couple of days recently filming an advert with Tarsem Singh who had used the desert there when he'd filmed The Cell. We stayed in little tents with really basic amenities which was fun and we were flown out to a saltpan in the middle of nowhere to film. It is just such an incredible place. The dunes are something else. I think they're the tallest in the world. I'd really like to go back and go on safari.

I think travelling is great. I've had the good fortune to travel a lot and I really treasure that. People say I'm just always zipping around and, yes, it is hard work and, yes, I travel extensively, but I travel a lot more than I would have been able to do otherwise.

· Bride and Prejudice is on general release