Discover Hampi

I had been longing to explore the ruins of Hampi for a long time and I was able to do so with the help of one of my cousin – Arun. We planned a month earlier and decided to head off during a long weekend in August where the festivals of Ramzan and Ganesh Chathurthi fell on consecutive days.

We decided to travel by my cousin’s Maruti Suzuki Swift VXI. It was just the two of us at the beginning. Later, my classmate Ashish decided to join us the next day. He was returning from his internship studies in Uttarakhand. Me and my cousin packed our bags and decided to hit the highway before the first rays of the sun. We decided to take wheels after 100kms on an average. The weather was awesome and it was drizzling.

We had booked one of the homestays near Hampi Bazaar area. We decided to take Bangalore – Chitradurga – Hospet – Hampi route. Somehow, we missed the turning at Chitradurga and we reached Davangere outskirts. The locals asked us to take alternative route to Harihar and proceed to Hospet. There are no proper signboards. So, we decided to proceed slowly and cautiously, not to miss any important deviations.

We managed to catch the deviation which led to Harihar. After much difficulty and a long route, we reached Hampi. We checked-in the room and headed off to one of the sunset points. What a beautiful view of the sunset we had. There are many foreigners who visit Hampi – UNESCO World Heritage Center. There are local guides available, who charge anywhere between 500 to 800 bucks per day to show you around Hampi. Else, the best is to buy a small handbook which has the map of Hampi and the details about the places.

We decided to go for the latter. Later that night, Ashish arrived at Kamalapur and I picked him from the bus stop to our room. We finished our dinner and planned for the next day’s tour in Hampi. We rented TVS XL SUPER bikes – 2 nos (available for rent at Hampi Bazaar for about 300 bucks excl fuel) and set off with the hand book. Virupaksha temple was near our homestay. So, we covered that first.

We managed to cover quite a few places with the help of the hand book the first day and I had a merry time taking photographs of the ruins. There are quite a few places in Hampi, which I hardly can remember to jot it down here. But the most prominent ones are the Virupaksha Temple, Vijaya Vittala Temple, Narasimha Swamy statue, Badavara Linga, Kadalekai Ganesha, & Sasivekalu Ganesha.

Food around Hampi are mostly vegetarian. There are no liquor shops in Hampi. Food is affordable and tasty at few places. Do wear caps or hats as the sun gets nasty during noon. Carry some sun screen lotion if visiting during Summer season. Water is an important asset for any traveller here. Carry sufficient amount of drinking water along. Carry a camera along to capture the picturesque views and rusty ruins.

There are very few internet centres in Hampi. Mobile phone network is bad around Hampi Bazaar. But, once you are on the move, you get full network in Hampi. The next day, we took our car to visit the remaining important places in Hampi.

For any archaeological enthusiast, spending about 3-4 days in Hampi is worth it. For a normal tourist, a day or two is sufficient. The history of Vijayanagar kingdom is amazing. It was known as the Golden Era of South due to the richness which prevailed in the kingdom. We missed out on a few places across the river because no coracles were playing. The reason was strong water currents due to rains a day ago.

We left Hampi the next day early morning to reach Bangalore in the exact same route that we took. We reached Bangalore by 3:00PM.

Do check out the website: HAMPI.in for detailed information on Hampi. We did, and it paid off. We are planning for a continuation of the circuit which extends to Badami – Aihole – Pattadakal. Waiting for the right opportunity to head to the mentioned sites.

I’ve posted the photos on Picasa. Click on HAMPI to view the snaps. There are about 400 odd photos. But, they are worth it. Let me know when you visit Hampi and your experience there. You can send an email to aravindparakash@aol.in

Bon Voyage

Jungle Lodges & Resorts Ltd, Bandipur

Date: 04 August 2010
I left early this morning, around 5:30AM on my Royal Enfield. The purpose of my visit to Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR), Bandipur was to study the operations of the site and also learn how wildlife is being conserved. Also to know how the customers are being educated about the importance of the wilderness.
I had filled up my bike previous day itself. The Mysore road is unquestionably superb. The weather was awesome. No sunshine, chill air and heavy wind. This reduces the strain of travel.
I had just one ruck sack loaded. Was heavy since I carried my camera and my laptop along with clothes, toiletries, and medicines. But pretty much manageable.
The route I chose was Vidyaranyapura – BEL Circle – Yeswanthpur Jn – Ring Road to Mysore rd – Kengeri – Maddur – Mandya – Mysore ring road – Nanjangud – Gundlupet – Bandipur.
I stopped for breakfast at Kamat Upachar, Maddur. Had very light breakfast – Idly Vada and strong coffee. Relaxed for about 15 mins before proceeding. The next stop I made was at Mysore ring road to fuel up my bike, just in case. Hardly 5 litres were consumed.
I had another small stop at Mysore – Nanjangud highway for a tea. I then proceeded without any further stops and reached Bandipur at around 11AM. Rode the bike at an average speed of 70kmph.
I met the resort manager, Mr. Rangaswamy. He arranged for accomodation for me in one of the rooms. No guests at this moment and tomorrow as well. No pics taken until now. But will upload once they are taken. JLR - A nice place to be. Very calm. The last petrol bunk(s) I found was at Gundlupet town. There are quite a few ATMs too. Few are SBI, SBM & Karnataka Bank, that I managed to notice.
Full network of Airtel Mobile service here. Glad, cause I have two numbers and both are Airtel :)
A little tired after a long journey on bike. Will update more details after lunch.
04 August 2010 02:45PM
I had a satisfying lunch. Since I’m a veggie, I had 2 rotis,dal. plain rice with dal, sambar, and curd. Now during my lunch, something weird caught my attention. Two guys came in a Scorpio. Looked like they were regulars, to me. The way they were conversing with the staff members, it did look like that. When I enquired with one of the staff members, he said the person who was driving is a movie actor. I don’t have much knowledge about small time movie actors.
Anyways, the weirdest part is that the “actor” has recently purchased 150 acres of land right behind the lodge. And I heard that the land purchased includes a part of the forest and a small hillock!!! I mean talk about conserving nature and this person is constructing, what I suppose, a resort. Come on government!!! No more acquisition of forest land!!! Enough of deforestation has taken place already.
Any ways, I came back to my room and outside my room I saw a very unique insect. Managed to capture it on my camera.

 

At around 3PM, I got ready to go to Gopalaswamy Betta, 13km from here. While I was taking out my bike, I met Mr.Nataraj, Naturalist. I showed him the photos above, and he confirmed it was a worm in its natural state. He promised me a book which I could refer for finding more information about the insect. But, he did confirm to me that this insect was used in ayurvedic medicines for a certain skin ailment. I was amazed that an insect can be used for a medicinal purpose.
I then proceeded slowly towards G.Betta. Only 4 km was good road. After taking a deviation at an arch, the roads were in bad condition. It started drizzling. I proceeded with my cam placed in a bag, hanging on my back. I reached the checkpost. But no one was there to open it. I was in a confused state if the entry was closed early due to the rains. my questions were answered pretty soon. Towards the left hand side was the checkpost building. The guard had picked up a fight with a group of Malayalee youth. Neither could understand each other. Enter Aravind!!! I conversed with the guard and asked him what the issue was while I spoke in English with the Mal youths to stay quiet for sometime.
The guard said that the youths did not stop their car and whizzed past the gate while it was open. Apparently they were carrying liquor. While the youths had to come down the same route, the guard waylaid them and asked them to pullover. He had informed his superior over the phone about the issue. I explained the same to the youths. They were trying to get away by just paying the entry fees. But they had to be fined as they were carrying liquor and it is prohibited. I asked them to wait and speak to the superior officer. Meanwhile, I was allowed to pass.
Slowly i started ascending the hill. The wind grew stronger, the rain harder and the visibility, nearly nil. There was fog. I managed to reach the top and managed to park my bike. quickly went to take cover in the shrine, cause the rain had got bad. I was totally drenched. I managed to save my camera from getting wet. I had a good darshan of Lord Krishna. I even got to eat puliyogare (a delicacy of Iyengars) and it was awesome. I had a tough time wearing my shoes back on, as it was wet and so were my socks.
I then took shelter in a small area. Managed to take a picture of a saint. Here is the picture:

I also managed to take few pictures from outside the temple. Here they are:

On my way down, I managed to click these scenic views:

I reached JLR at around 5:30PM. Changed my dress, as I was drenched. Had a cup of coffee and relaxed for sometime. Waiting for Mr. Nataraj or Mr. Basavanna to come as I could borrow few books for study.
8:30PM 04 August 2010
I had a long chat with one of the staff member. He was a good company. Otherwise I could not imagine killing time!! :) We were switching topics every 15 minutes. And the time just flew. Met another naturalist Mr. Basavanna. He informed that there would be 10 guests arriving tomorrow. So, I would get to learn something tomorrow. My back is still recovering from the jolts of Nanjangud road and Gopalaswamy Betta road. Bikers…heads up. Make sure your bikes shocks are good and the tyres have a good road grip. During monsoon, its a bad scene.
Day 1 ends.
05 August 2010
I had a good sleep last night. The body aches have reduced. Thanks to Crocin Pain Relief. I freshened up myself and wanted to have a cup of coffee. Kitchen cleaning under progress as guests are arriving. I had to wait for sometime before I could have my breakfast and coffee.
Meanwhile I strolled around the campus and took some snaps. There are several cottages and all these are booked for the weekend. Its going to be houseful during this weekend. It usually is a busy time for the staff during the weekend.

    

Waiting for the guests to arrive today.
Around 11AM, I set off with one of the staff members Mr. Ramesh, on my bike for a ride till the Karnataka border check post. Within just 15 minutes of our journey, we saw a baby tusker elephant. wandering in the forest. Too bad I did not have my cam with me :(
When I came back to the JLR site, no sooner I parked the bike, a snake slithered its way less than 10 feet away. Another staff member got shit scared. I shouted aloud “Haavu” (Snake in Kannada). Mr. Basavanna, a naturalist and a snake catcher, rushed to catch the snake, but it slipped away real quick. Mr. Basavanna is very keen in snakes and caught almost all snake species, including cobra. His dream…to touch a King. Now that’s what I like. I started speaking about Romulus Whittaker, and Mr. Basavanna said that he has met Mr. Whittaker. He is planning to go during January to Agumbe, where the Kings mark their boundaries.
Mr. Basavanna was sharing his experiences of catching snakes and how at times it was the other way round….LOL. I have the right naturalist to guide me in my report. Hoping to spend some value time during the evening.
I had my lunch at around 2PM. It was a buffet system. Food was good. By that time 4 guests had arrived. One naturalist, Mr. Guru Dutt came to the dining area and informed that around 3:45PM coffee/tea will be served. After which we would leave for safari. Hoping for some more sightings this time. I don’t want deer!!! Give me leopards or tigers this time. Even a sloth bear would do. Or I may be lucky to find the Indian Wild Dog pack – DHOL.
I was sitting lame and I just took out my diary in which I had entered my expenses and the kilometer readings. I was taken back, because my bike’s mileage calculated  in city was 23kmpl, but this one clocked 32kmpl!!! Heehaw!!! Not a bad mileage for a Standard 350cc ‘98 model :)
4:30PM 05 August 2010
I got ready for the jeep safari. Along with naturalist Mr. Nataraj, were two wildlife photographers from Bangalore and a couple. I was in the front seat next to the driver Mr. Ramesh. We head to the Bandipur safari point first to make the entry. And later proceeded inside the forest. At first, we saw a few birds species. We came across a striped neck mongoose and it was not reluctant after seeing us. In fact it was posing for our cameras.

 

We then came across pea hen and a spotted bill duck. After which was a long drive with no sightings for about an hour. We stopped at a place where there were a couple of grown elephants in the bushes, but hardly visible. Without wasting any time we proceeded further, with a notion of spotting a cat.
Another long hour went by with no spotting, and it was getting darker as the sun was setting. Our naturalist had mentioned earlier that there were sightings of Dhol and tigers last week. We reached the highway, but without taking deviation, proceeded to the other side of the forest. With just a few metres ahead, two Chitals (spotted deers) crossed out path. After which was  an amazing sight!!! A Dhol right in the middle of the road. And beside it was a Chital gasping for its last breath. Just a while before we arrived, the Dhol along with another had attacked the Chital.
 

We were just about 20 feet from the Dhol. Me snapping away to glory with my 18-55mm lens. Sufficient for me though. The photographers had a ball of time, taking snaps of the wild dog with their telescopic lens. It looked for a while as though the Dhol was waiting for its team members to join in. They always are in a pack. But none arrived. The Dhol lost patience and started feeding on the deer. We were again taking snaps like crazy. Our driver decided to move a little closer and started the engine. We moved a little closer, but the Dhol was in no hurry. It was more keen in filling its stomach. 
  
So, there we were, just about 10 feet away from the Dhol. We heard noises amongst the bushes toward our right side. Driver and the naturalist agreed with each other that a herd of elephants were there. And since it as getting late, the entry points would be locked by the forest officials. So, after a long session of photography, we decided to head back to JLR. By the time we reached, it was 7PM, but it was totally worth it. I was not disappointed at all.
At 7:30PM a wildlife documentary movie was scheduled at the conference hall. And what more could fit in more, than the Wild Dogs Diary!! This documentary was an hour duration and was filmed by Mr. Krupakar, with the help of a tribe chief and the forest officials. It was very informative as it covered the life of Dhol – The Wild Dog.
I had my dinner at 9PM. Headed back to my room to ensure this memory is captured in the blog.
Day 2 ends. Tomorrow, we are heading for an early morning safari at 6:30AM.
06 August 2010
Got up at 5:45AM and freshened up. All set to go for another safari. I headed to the restaurant for a cup of coffee. And later set off at 6:30AM with the photographers from Bangalore. When we reached the Bandipur safari point for entry, another person got into our jeep. HIs name is Mr. Shaktiprasad. He is a wildlife artist. He paints animals. He had a Canon DSLR with a telescopic lens.
We proceeded into the forest. Sightings are very less during the mornings is what I was told. During the safari we sighted a lone elephant, a lone Gaur (bison), herd of deer, and few birds including peacock. No cats sightings yet. We came back to JLR by 9AM. Headed for breakfast. I was wondering what to do next. As no other programs are scheduled until 4:30PM.

 

At lunch I met a few guests. Mr.Rohit and Mr.Bose were from Bangalore – Photography Enthusiasts,. And one Mr. Sunil, P.Hd student specializing in the study of Nilgiri Langurs. I spent my afternoon talking to them. Then we set off to evening safari. A group of guests were members from INW (India Nature Watch) and another big group were from Sandisk. THe group from Sandisk, three people who I met, me, Mr. Gurudutt - Naturalist set off in the mini bus. The INW group along with the two photographers i had met earlier with naturalist Mr. Nataraj set off in jeep.
We entered the forest in the same route as morning safari. We sighted Bull Gaurs, Cow Gaur with calf, herd of Sambar deer, herd of elephants, and few birds. The bus was half filled with guys holding camera with huge lenses. I was seated in the front with my puny lens. But I’m not cribbing about it. My time will come.
  

    


While our way back to JLR, we met Mr. Nataraj, who informed that MC Resorts guests had spotted a tiger near the forest entrance we had taken earlier. Damn!!! We weren’t that lucky. Maybe next time I’ll get to spot a big cat. I packed my bags as I had decided to check out the next morning.
07 August 2010
I left Bandipur at 6:30AM and stopped for refuel (just to be on the safer side) at Nanjangud. I stopped for breakfast at Mandya at around 9AM. Travelling with the baggage strapped to the back in a ruck sack sure had my back craving for relief. I had to make a small stop at Bidadi Cafe Coffee Day. I reached home at around 11:45AM.
A nice trip it was with the hospitality received by JLR staff members, met few guests at the JLR site, and my stay was made really comfortable for the three days.
I’ll be back to this place again soon. Well, that’s that for this trip. Hoping to visit JLR, Kabini  in a week or two.

All the photos can be viewed better on Picasa Web Album. Click on JLR Bandipur Online Album

A Sneak Peek of Kerala – Part 2

As promised, I’m sharing my experience in Kerala. Read on.

REPORT ON STUDY TOUR TO KERALA

We, the students of MTA II-Semester of AIMS undertook a study tour as a part of our curriculum. The places we had planned as per our budget and time were Kodanadu, Athirapalli Falls, Munnar and Cochin. The tour was conducted in order for us to get an experience of Kerala as a destination, which is known for sustainable tourism.

We had contacted a travel agent, ISLAND GETAWAYS, who had agreed to give us a package which worked out on lower cost and at the same time cover the places of interest. The budget for the tour was Rs. 4000/- per head. The itinerary given by the travel agent worked out to be Rs. 2500/- per head which included Accommodation, Food and travel in Kerala.

We had to arrange transportation to and fro Ernakulam. We managed to book the tickets by Airavat (KSRTC A/C VOLVO) which worked out 1214/- per head to and fro. The date of departure from Bangalore was to be 5^th April 2010 from Mysore Road Satellite terminal and the date of arrival to Bangalore was 9^th April 2010 at Majestic Bus Terminal.

The entire class strength (12) was present for the tour and the lecturer accompanying us was Mrs. Sheetal.

Explained below is the day-wise detail of the tour and the pros and cons of each destination visited:

Day 1 (6^th April 2010)

We reached Ernakulam at 8:30AM. We got down at the Kalamaserry Stop where we were received by our tour guide Arun. We were transported to our lodging area, Malabar Lodge in Ernakulam. We were allocated 4 rooms. One room was allocated for the 5 ladies, and three rooms to be shared by 8 gents.

We got freshened up and finished breakfast by 11:30AM. We set off to Kodanadu, our first destination of the tour. Few websites claim Kodanadu to be the largest elephant training camp in Asia. But, that did not turn up as said. It is a pretty small area by the river Periyar and had just about 4 elephants which were all tied up by chains. Not so excited, we proceeded to go by the riverside. Fortunately it had been raining since three days, so we could see a decent water level in the river.

There were people washing clothes in the river water and buffaloes enjoying the sun and water. So, pretty much not so clean river. The area around the camp was littered with many plastic covers and plastic bottles. This is due to a small shop which is setup in the camp which sells eatables and beverages. This could be kept under strict vigilance, but the authorities were quite negligent.

The positive point of this place was that the entrance ticket to this place was made of recycled paper. It had just plain prints. This contributes a lot to the environment as recycling paper helps save many trees. The greenery around this place was quite dense with tropical rainforest. If the place is better maintained, then chances are that the wildlife here will evolve for a long time to come, else 10 years down the lane, the nature here may not exist the way it is today.

We then proceeded to Athirapalli falls. We reached the falls at around 4:30PM. As soon as we reached the destination, it started raining. Because the destination is at a high altitude, the rainfall was heavy. We cautiously had to proceed towards the falls area. We had to climb down a stone path which led us to the best view of the falls.

The weather was in our favour as we climbed down. It was just drizzling lightly and we did not have any issues in getting to the destination. Now this place is a plastic free zone and it has been maintained the same way. Thanks to the authorities’ vigilance here, we also were supportive as to not litter the place.

There was a Tourism Police check post. The first one I’ve ever come across, which is a good thing. Security of the tourists has been kept in mind and this sort of arrangement has been made. The shops here also maintained cleanliness so as to not litter the zone. This destination is a perfect illustration for sustainable tourism. The vegetation here was quite dense with varieties of trees and plants. We did not find any negative area in this destination.

After considerable time spent, we started to Ernakulam at about 5:30PM. On our way, we also went to Vazhachal Falls. This place was hardly populated as it started raining again. We had the best view of tropical vegetation in this area.

We then reached Ernakulam at around 8PM. Our day ended after our dinner.

Day 2 (7^th April 2010)

A new day began with all of them quite excited. We were all ready by 6:30AM to set off to Munnar, which was a hill station. It took us about 3 hours to reach Munnar view point. This view point is also called as Karadi Para (Bear Hill). It had the best view of Munnar.

After this we proceeded to Pallivasal, where our accommodation was arranged at Sun Mount View resorts. We had our lunch at the restaurant and after which we proceeded to Munnar town.

We stopped at few tea estates and enjoyed the view of the nature.

We first reached Munnar Dam which also had boating facility. The ticket price for 13 people in a fibre motor boat was Rs. 700/- and we hired an entire boat for ourselves. We had to wait for about half an hour before we could go to the boating. There were no facilities in this destination. No proper restrooms, no place to eat and were hardly maintained. The boat uses Kerosene which makes a lot of noise and also emits smoke.

This contributes to the noise and air pollution. This place was not littered by the road side, but all the waste was dumped into the water which was right behind the shops present here. Thereby this place is clearly against sustainable tourism.

We then reached Echo point. Now this place is absolutely commercialized with too many shops and was hardly maintained. Absolutely no cleanliness was visible here. We spent less time here after which we left to another dam called Setuparvatipuram Dam. This place was hardly populated as it started raining during the evening. But the view of the dam during the rain was absolutely amazing. We had a nice time here amongst eucalyptus trees. The shops here were closed as it was raining. We then left back to our stay at Pallivasal, Munnar.

Day 2 ended with celebration of two of our classmates’ birthday at the resort. We had campfire and music being played. There was a strict rule that the music had to be turned off at 10PM sharp due to restriction from the local police. So, we had our dinner and retired for the day.

Day 3 (8^th April 2010)

Yet again, the next day, we had to leave early to reach Ernakulam. After our breakfast, we set off to Ernakulam. Took us three hours to reach Ernakulam, but without any stops, we proceeded directly to Mattanchery at Cochin.

At Mattanchery, there is a Dutch Palace with historical importance. This is the first occupancy of the Europeans in India. This is also a museum which houses the paintings and belongings of the Royal family of Cochin.

After visiting this, we proceeded to Jewish Synagogue through the market place of Mattanchery. But to our bad luck, the church was closed until 3PM. Since we did not have much time, we just took a stroll through the market place and then left to Cherai Beach in Cochin.

We reached Cherai Beach at around 4:30PM. And thanks to the rain Gods it started raining while we were at the beach. The streaks of lightning across the cloudy sky added a joy to our celebration to our last day of the tour. This place was moderately maintained. There are many hotels by the roadside and also a public bathroom for taking bath after entering the sea. No proper maintenance at the public bathroom. But it was tolerable. After which we had to leave to the Ernakulam Bus Terminal to board the bus to Bangalore.

After some delay, the bus finally arrived at Ernakulam and we reached Bangalore at around 8:30AM.

Thus, we can find differences in the contribution of Kerala to Sustainable Tourism within its state. Yet, it has been successful in sustainability at most of the destinations. No wonder it is called “God’s own country”.

Rajasthan & Amritsar - The destination of many

Me and my friend Chetan wanted a break from work. So, we were pondering over the topic as to which destination will be the one which we need to cover this time. After much of consideration, we pinned Rajasthan on the map of India.

We had the trip planned for 10 days covering mostly Rajasthan, Amritsar and New Delhi. We took the Jaipur Express from Bangalore City. The journey takes about 2 and half days.

We chose to travel in AC two tier coach, wherever possible. But also kept in mind about the budget

constrains. We carried along a book, which was the best thing Chetan suggested. Lonely Planets' - India.

It has all the information one would require to go on a tour, and helps a lot to economical trave

lers. Even foreigners carry this book around. Travels agents, please excuse.

We reached Jaipur and took a room, just to freshen up and keep our luggages. We were approached by an auto driver at the station itself, for the local sight seeing. We chose to travel by the same. One can finish the sight seeing of Jaipur in less than a day. We booked bus tickets for Udaipur (no trains available from here on). Each city is about 6 hours journey away.

We visited the prominent spots of Jaipur like Hawa Mahal, few museums, Birla temple, and so on. We then reached our room in the evening for a nice siesta. Then in the evening, we took off to Udaipur.

Udaipur was a wonderful place. We got a room close by to the bus stand, which was pretty much fitting our budget. And the place was pretty good. We were right behind the Udaipur Palace and

near the market area. We had also planned for a horse safari through the villages near Udaipur (which most Indians don't, in fact we were the first Indians to do this in Udaipur).

We visited the Udaipur palace with the help of a guide who explains you every aspect of the palace very clearly. If you do not need a guide, you also get audio guides or text guides which is available on rental basis. Choose what fits your taste. After finishing the visit of the palace, we decided to book tickets from here for our journey further on.

Our plan was to leave the next evening to Jaisalmer, by changing two buses (total of 12 hours journey). We took a stroll down the market area in the evening. Then had our dinner and retired for the day. Next day early morning, we set off to horse safari. Was a day long activity and wa

s good. While our safari, we also came across a pet hospital for the abandoned and hurt animals. This was run by foreign nationals. They were very nice people. And the job they chose to do is definitely not an easy one as the funds came only from donations.

After our lunch at the end of safari, we took rest at our room. Evening, we visited the Narayan temple nearby and had our dinner and set off to catch our bus to Jaisalmer. We reached Jaisalmer the next mid-day. We had already booked our hotel at Jaisalmer, which was very near to the Jaisalmer fort. Though it was September, it was quite hot. Imagine how it would be in April or May!!!

We then got the desert safari arranged from the hotel manager. We set off for local sight seeing of Jaisalmer. We got to see many Havelis (mansions), Jain temples and also shopped a little. Evening was the best. We went to see the Jaisalmer fort, which is occupied by residents even today. Many hotels have been set up. Out of which we chose to go to "Little Tibet". We ordered a pasta and schezwan fried and had a mug of beer each. With the view of the city from the fort in the night, and few Indian Air Force officers were visitors to this hotel. The experience was awesome and cannot be explained with mere words. One has to be there to experience it.

The next morning we set off to desert safari and most of it was to be done on a camel.

We chose to go a sand dune area which was not populated. We wanted a typical desert, and not a market. The safari was about 5-10km. At first, the camel ride was joyful. Later on, you'd be in a situation wherein you neither can walk nor can sit on the camel. LOL.

We stopped midway for lunch. Our guide had all the supplies for preparing food, water, fruits, etc. We had nice lunch and throughout the journey, we clicked many snaps. Very picturesque. We reached our camp area about 5PM. Perfect time to prepare ourselves for sunset in the dunes and watch the clear sky. Thanks to Vijay Mallya, we got few beer bottles and we just lied down on the cots watching the clear sky full of stars and many a times shooting stars too.

The dunes were so beautiful, that we did not feel like leaving the place the next day. But we had to move on. We reached Jaisalmer and had to take an overnight train to Delhi. We reached Delhi and had to wait for the Shatabdi train till evening. We reached Amritsar in the night about 10PM. Took a room close to the Golden Temple. Next morning, we got up early and got ready. Had our sumptuous breakfast at a local place and went to the Golden temple. After which we got back to our room, and got ready to visit the Wagah Border in the evening for an amazing experience of India and Pakistan hoisting the flags down with pride. A must visit in an Indian's lifetime.

We then took a train back to New Delhi in the night. We reached New Delhi in the morning about 8AM and took a room. A note to everyone - ID Card a must for each person who stays in the room. ID card includes Voter ID, Passport, or Driving Licence and does not include PAN Card. Please remember to carry any of the above for each of the person who is travelling with you to New Delhi.

We then finished local sight seeing of New Delhi and we chose to travel locally by Metro Rail. Trust me, this is the best means of travel here. We then took a plane back to Bangalore and reached Bangalore by 10PM.

The memories we carried with us was awesome. Year 2008's trip ended with a visit to the amazing Rajasthan, Amritsar and New Delhi.

D&G - It is not Dolce and Gabbana!!!

Well, one day my friends decided that we need to take off for a week long vacation. But we had no idea where we can go. Goa? That can wait. Assam, it was friggin raining there. "Let us head to Darjeeling & Gangtok", said my friend Deepak (CD). Almost everyone agreed, except of course me. "Financial crisis dude!!!", I cried out. They somehow got me caved in.

"The Culprits" - (from left to right)
1) Veeresh - commonly known as "Lambu Da" throughout West Bengal. He is tall, trust me.

2) Suraj - common dialogue throughout"Maga, Gaadi swalpa sidege haaku". Means "Dude, please pull over for sometime". I am not going to brief you why he said that. But, we know why.

3) Chetan - The dude who loves to get into argument and call it formal discussion later.

4) Deepak - One dude who adjusts with whatever happens during the trip. But cannot tolerate meaningless argument due to misunderstanding.




So, we reached Kolkata by Simply Fly Deccan. Trust me, Kingfisher has improved the flight experience of Deccan. So, we got a Scorpio for traveling locally. We went to places like Victoria Memorial, Birla temple, Kali Ghat, Park Street, Dakshineshwar, Howrah bridge, Vidya Sagar Bridge, and also to Sonar Gachi (WE DID NOT GET "NAUGHTY" OF COURSE). Haldiram's food place is something you do not want to miss. It is awesome!!! If you wanna go pubbing or something, visit park street. You've got loads of pubs.



The next evening, we set off to Darjeeling by train. We arrived Siliguri, NJP. The toy train we had booked was canceled due to unforeseen weather conditions. The railways of course refunded our money, but we missed the experience of traveling in India's only steam engine driven train (The one in Ooty now runs on Bio-Diesel).



Yet again, another Scorpio to the rescue. We took off to Indo-Nepal border, Pashupathi market. En route, it was amazing scenery. Me and Suri were a bit nausea. We chose to sit by window, you know, just in case. We reached pashupathi and most of them shopped till they dropped. After which we set off to Darjeeling directly. One of my team leader was from this place and made some arrangements for the stay. After which we arranged for Tavera for local sight seeing. Night we went pubbing to this place - BUZZ. It has a very good atmosphere and they had a band who were playing big time Aerosmith songs. Chetan seemed to enjoy every moment there.



Early morn we set off to Tiger Hill. Here, if you are lucky that is, you get to see sunrise amongst the Kanchenjunga mountain ranges. Most of the times, it is foggy. So, you need to cross your fingers and luck is something you need. Here if you are lucky, you may also see some group of chicks from Delhi University....lol....we did!!!! And some dumb couples. After this, Suri chose to rest due to hangover. Meanwhile, we went to places locally. Later in the afternoon a refreshed Suri joined us. We went to a tea estate, had some tea. Some of them bought tea powder. We then decided to shop during the evening in the bazaar area.

The next day we visited Japanese Peace Pagoda, Buddhist Monastery, Himalayan Mountaineering Institute and Padmaja Naidu Zoological park in Darjeeling. We got there a little late. So the animals were sent to their cages. Fortunately we met this guy who decided to show the tigers in their cages. We paid him like 50 bucks. We captured some amazing moment with the cat. One of them is what i have posted below.

We also visited the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute. The museum here has amazing information and details displayed about the people (quite famous) who have ventured to climb Mt. Everest. Some of them succeeded, while others didn't. Nice place to visit, if you are an adventure freak. An also you can enroll for training as well, which is approximately 3 months. You will definitely enjoy the training. I personally have not enrolled for the same as I am not keen in mountaineering.






The Zoological park and the HMI are in the same premises. So, make sure you visit the zoo and HMI before closing hours. Should you happen to get enrolled in HMI, please share your experience on this blog. Your views are welcome.




We then took off to a tea estate in Darjeeling. Darjeeling is famous for its tea. Trust me, there ain't just tea, there are varieties of flavor for it too. For example, Chocolate flavored tea, orange flavored, Masala tea and so on. Make sure you bargain with the direct marketing of tea packets in the estate. The product seems to be genuine, but the pricing seems to be a little to much. So, do not get conned by the "SALES REPRESENTATIVE" here.

So, we finish the tour of Darjeeling here. Next morning, we set off to Gangtok through small town to Loleygaon. We actually headed to a forest guest house here. This was just the day before my birthday. We enjoyed many scenic beauties on our way here. Luckily, since this was off-season, we got the entire guest house to our self. Those buggers had planned something for me. I didn't even get a hunch of what they were up to. We decided to drink this night. We had to go downtown and get the required "ITEMS". We were back to the guest house in less time anticipated.

All the arrangements were made by the caretaker of the guest house. I was still not happy that no one was talking about my birthday celebration. We begun our sessions at around 10:30PM. The hallway of the guest was awesome. Very nice ambiance. All of a sudden the buggers got into a meaningless argument, into which I certainly was not welcome. I was not interested anyways :)

Five minutes to strike twelve. My close friend and colleague - Tim calls up at just one minute before the clock stuck twelve and wishes me. Then all the buggers bought out a surprise. There was a cake hid in the hallway without my knowledge, all throughout our sessions. My happiest moments arrived. I cut the cake, and as usual, i did not want any cream on my face. I was stern about this. But, ended up with little cream on my face. Continued driking a little and then had dinner and dozed off.

The next morning, we had some photo shoots in the backyard, we had our breakfast and left the place to continue to Gangtok. Gangtok itself is a very commercialized place. But there are amazing place to discover, but you need to sought the permission of the Army. These place are very secure and there is a reason why. I will not bore you more with my dozing off stories. But just in brief about the places we visited in Gangtok:

• Indo-China border (14,420 Ft above Sea level) - a must visit.
• Yamathong - Nice scenic place.
• Gurudong - (17,000 Ft above sea level) - we missed it.
• Baba Mandir - A place you can get inspired about the Indian Army.
• World's highest Golf course - It has entered Guinness Book of World Records.
• World's highest Cybercafe and eat out.

DO NOT MISS THESE PLACE. It is once in a lifetime visit. My friends have made me realize this. And I know how true it is indeed. I am thankful for the full support of my friends, without who I am no one. I maybe exaggerating, but it is true to the best of my knowledge.

This blog is dedicated to my father - who allowed me to go off on a week long tour. I also dedicate this to my friends who were supportive with me throughout the trip - Deepak, Chethan, Suraj and Veeresh. I will cherish this tour for a long time to come. Thanks guys :)