Shopper's Paradise - Mumbai

I had little though of shopping while flying to Mumbai from Bangalore as carrying a 9 month old baby, shopping was definitely not on my mind. Well I had equipped myself with a baby carrier just in case if I had will and energy to go around shopping carrying her. My initial attempt to fight boredom was to do window shopping and to an extent I was successful. I was not keen on doing any mall kind of shopping rather was eager to explore the less visited and above all value for money shopping.

Malad
Inordbit Mall: The biggest mall of mumbai, located in Malad has numerous branded shops.

Natraj Market or New Muncipal Market: This market is at a walk able distance from the station. This is about 488 shops selling party wear sarees and salwars. I was enchanted seeing those glittering sarees which are draped at the entrance of the shops.
• Hastmelaf Collection, Shop No. 32/33: Has kids wear mainly for girls below 10 years.
• Rajesh Saree Centre, Shop No. 30: This shop has lot of nice party wear sarees and is very reasonable in his pricing. No scope to bargain.
• Sree Mahalaxmi Jewellery, Shop No. 20, Vasant Plaza Shopping Centre, and Opp Natraj Market: This shop has good combination of antique and fancy jewelry, they are nominally priced. No bargaining will work!
• Anjali Collection: Has exclusive party wear salwar kameez, good anarkali ones too. I purchased two anarkali chudidaars (grand ones) for Rs 700 each. I did some research before buying here and many shops just quoted double for the similar ones. You need to bargain hard.

Bandra
Linking Road: A very famous shopping place in Mumbai where one can find local and international brands, inexpensive Chinese makes and fakes too. There are plenty of shops selling salwars, footwear and bags.
• Primona Art Gallery, Shop No. 533: I had been to a boutique way back in 2006 and had picked up a nice skirt for 150 bucks. Incidentally this time the auto guy stopped me at the same place and I remembered having visited this shop earlier. The lady owner of the shop was very friendly and offered to look after my baby while I tried out few tunics. The shop has wide range of tunics, skirts, shirts and is of export quality. Most of them were available for 325/- bucks. The lady also suggested me to pick some baby clothes at Tan-Zeb.
• Tan-zeb, Shop No. 504: It is one stop shop for all the baby products and accessories. I was looking for baby tights and I got two of them for just 300 bucks.

Andheri (W) Station
A small lane opposite to McDonalds is a busy area most of the time. There are number of shops lined next to one another selling bags, tops, footwear and jewelry. Interestingly everyone quotes a same price for same item and there is no scope to bargaining. A footwear shop at the dead end has few unique pieces of footwear and you should bargain.

Powai (W)
Galleria, Hiranandani Gardens: I did no research on any of the shopping places in Mumbai. I was told by someone saying Hiranandani Mall has lot of small shops and is a must visit place, so I set off to visit this place one day. Auto guy was confused with the ‘Mall’ and he dropped me off at City Park near Hiranandani Gardens. I was impressed with the buildings as they seemed to be unique with domes and regal arches. Few yards away from the City Park is the Central Avenue. Westside store on the first floor of Central Avenue is cramped and small; it was a sheer waste of time. Galleria Shopping Centre is just across the Central Avenue.
• Leather Galleria, First Floor F-195: Has good collection of trendy leather bags. He also has few branded ones like Levi’s which he sells out for a lesser price. Bargain hard!

Vile Parle (W)
Alfa Market: Five sets of shops form Alfa and the area is called Irla. Alfa 1 has imported baby accessories, imported toiletries, imported electronic products and dryfruits. They sell most of the products at a reasonably lesser price. Alfa 2 has few shops that sells clothe and bags, Kurtis are must buy as they are cheap and trendy. Alfa 3 has a gifting items, household accessories and electronic stuff and bags. Alfa 4 sells electronic gadgets.
SOGO Collection, Alfa 2: Sogo has few nice collections of tunics, leggings and skirts.

Lokhandwala
Kamdhenu Shopping Centre: This shopping complex located in Lokhandwala area has many shops mainly selling clothes and jewelry.
• C K Collection, Shop No 74: The owner ‘Tiwari’ is very friendly and is really good at marketing skills. He has few export quality tops and tunics like Papaya and George. I liked the fabric and the colors. He has few good party wear halter neck gowns and frocks. I am damn sure one won’t go empty handed the moment they land at this shop. Typically sells the tops for 150 bucks. Good thing is that he has clothes for plus size.
B K Garment, 14/B, Bon-Bon Lane: This shop too has good tops and tunics. The shop is cramped so you don’t get to see all the varieties displayed. Need to bargain.
Soft Tot, Bon-Bon Lane: Great party wear frocks for girls below 10 years. He has amazingly good quality party wear frocks in the range of 600-700 bucks. I quite did not like the attitude of the owner, so on my first visit did not pick the frock that I fell in love with. Next time when I went the same frock was out of stock but the staff helped me deliver the same frock in a span of a week’s time. That was something very commendable. No scope to bargain.
Aby Baby, Bon-Bon Lane: This shop has good options for picking the B’day frocks for girls. I wanted a real good one for my daughter’s first b’day party and I found one which is too good for 700 bucks. The similar ones on Westside or Shoppers Stop cost about 1200 bucks. No scope to bargain.

Colaba
Fashion Street: I had a glimpse of the fashion street from a zooming cab during my first visit. The thought of not having visited kept lingering on my mind, so I gave a visit during my second visit to Mumbai. FS is about a kilometer wide and has around 150 shops and is more popular among the younger crowd and tourist. All kinds of trendy tops and kurties (mainly petite size) are available for a cheaper price. Plus size kurties or tops are rare thing to find. Apart from clothing, there are shops selling shoe, jewelry and bags.

Victoria Terminus
Manish Market: It has around 50 shops which are not more than 4*4 feet in dimension and they mainly sells cell phones, watches and toys (mainly Chinese fake brands). For a person like me who is not into gadgets it was waste of time. It was hard for me to make my way out as it was jam packed with males all around.
Mangaldas Market: This market is indoor and is exclusively for clothes and jewelry. It has around 100 shops selling chaniya cholies, sarees, salwar kameez materials, suitings and shirtings. I quite did not like the attitude of the shop vendors as many did not show any interest in selling. They were more interested in making an export deal.
Luggage Plaza, Baria Building, Opp Crawford Market: This shop has imported (from Dubai) leather bags and trolleys. Need to bargain.

Goregoan(E)
The Hub: This mall has departmental store, few restaurants, and a multiplex. There is a shop for the little ones called ‘Little Planet’. Not a must see mall.
The Oberoi Mall: Probably a well designed mall according to me as it is very spacious. Caters to your shopping and entertainment needs. I had the best shopping experience.

Magnificent Mansions of Chettinad

Chettinad, once a land of Chettiars has about 75 villages in southern part of Tamil Nadu state. It is famous for the palatial house built in the 19th Century by Chettiars. Many of them migrated to Burma, Singapore, Malaysia and Ceylon for trading and left behind wives and their children in huge mansions. Their trading collapsed after World War II and they returned back to their homeland and sold their furniture and fitting. As per tradition, Chettiars not only accumulated wealth, but also spent it in three ways: they built their mansions, donated for charity, and threw lavish parties marking weddings, important birthdays and anniversaries. Well, the last one is still being followed in most of the Chettiar families. We choose to stay in one such mansion called Chettinadu Mansion in Kanadukathan. This is about 16Kms from Karaikudi.

How we reached: We left B’lore and stayed over night at karur. Next day we reached Kanadukathan via Tirchi.
Bangalore – Hosur – Krishnagiri – Dharmapuri – Salem – Karur (approx 220Kms)
Karur – Tiruchirapalli – Kiranur – Pudukottai - Thirumayam - Kanadukathan (approx 190Kms)

Accommodation: Chettinadu Mansion was built in 1902 till 1912 by Mr. Chandramouli’s grandfather and has about 100 rooms out of which 7 rooms are given for the guests. Entrance to his mansion is through a huge marriage hall with black and white Italian marbles, copper plated celing from England and the pillars of shining black marbles. The giant portraits of the Ancestors on the walls of this hall don’t go unnoticed. This hall is now converted for reception and dining purposes. On the either side of this hall is an identical dining area which reminds me of Bowling Alleys. One of them is now converted to museum and the other as a conference room. What really amazed me were the curtains to the huge windows. An old Chettinad sari was used as curtains but it still looked so elegant on those windows. After the marriage hall is first courtyard with iron pillars supporting the rooms on the first floor. Beautiful Athangudi tiles are seen in the inner courtyard floors.

All the 7 rooms are named after different persons in their family. We were given a room called 'Valli' which is supposed to be the best room available. It had a terrace, which gives a view of the other mansions surrounding. The hand painted wall inside the room looked like a tile and having a AC was just a bliss as the temperature was soaring. The bathroom was spacious and you will not miss observing a stool with a designed tile embedded in it. This royal home stay was restored by Mr. Chandramouli after his retirement. We got to meet his daughter Solai who is temporarily looking after the mansion as he is out of country. She was very friendly and gave us an overview of the mansion and has her own blog on Chettinad cookery (solaiachiskitchen.blogspot.com). We took her permission to see the remaining portion of the mansion where the access to guests is limited.

Tariff: Rs 5000 per couple for one night including breakfast.

Food: They serve Chettinad cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I really felt they should have included more cuisines in breakfast and lunch as they charge exorbitantly high (Rs 500 for lunch per person). Alternatively there is ‘Saffron’ a veg restaurant in Hotel Subalakshmi Palace in Karaikudi.

Bookings: They have their website and the staff is very friendly. Surprisingly they did not ask for an advance payment.
Tel: +91 484 2321518, 2317052
Mob: +91 098463 44305
Mail: info@deshadan.com


Activities: A ten minute documentary on Chettinadu Mansion is also shown to the guests. There are photo albums available showing the beauty of the mansion. Chettinadu Mansion has a indoor museum, which we could visit at any hour.


Bullock Cart Ride: There is also a bullock cart ride for an extra 100 bucks which goes around the village. It was nice to see few mansions in good condition.














Raja Palace: Another huge mansion behind Chettinad Mansion is more famous among tourist called ‘Raja Palace’ and was build by Dr. Annamali Chettiar. The last courtyard of this palace is magnificent and the artifacts are displayed in the main hall. Open at 9 am and Closes by 4 pm.



Visit to another mansion: This mansion is on the lane before Chettinadu Mansion and is badly maintained. The only uniqueness about this mansion is the richly carved teak main door. Some local folks are appointed to take care and it was really painful to see the state of the mansion.

Visit to Karaikudi: There are few antique shops and one could even pick Chettinadu sarees. It was unfortunate that we happened to land there on Sunday and most of the shops were closed. There is a mansion consisting of 1000 windows. As it is located in residential area, one could easily miss it.

Enchanting hills of Nilgiris - Red Hills

Red Hills located 28 km from Ooty is great place to explore unexplored parts of Nilgiris. Red hill area has few amazing lakes called Emerald/Avalanche/Parson's Valley and Porthimund.

How we reached: We left K Gudi at 10.30am and drove through Masinagudi. Few stretches from Gundlupet to Bandipur had major pot holes. Masinagudi to Ooty is 34 km with ghat section. Driving on the ghat section (36 hair-pin-bends) can be tedious as the roads are narrow and there are vehicles constantly approach in the opposite direction. It was 1.30 pm when we reached Ooty. One has to pass through places called M Palada, Ithalar and Emerald village to reach red hills. Everything is written only in Tamil and it is very easy to get lost. We took about 2 hrs to reach red hills as we lost our way after Emerald. Getting to red hills can be tiresome and frustrating. Every fork that you encounter needs to be cross verified with the locals.

K. Gudi--->Chamarajnagar--->Gundlupet--->Bandipur--->Madhumalai--->Masinagudi--->Ooty--->Red Hills
Red Hills is around 310 km from Bangalore.

The ghat section(Ooty-Masinagudi Rd) which is shorter and better road to drive back to Bangalore is one way on weekends i.e. Vehicles are allowed to enter Ooty via this ghat. Outgoing vehicles have to take Gudalur road which is pathetic. Alternatively one can avoid Gudalur road by taking deviation to Kalhatti village and join the Ooty-Masinagudi Rd just before 11th hair-pin-bend. There are further no checkpoints beyond Ooty. On weekdays it is converted back to two ways.

Accommodation: Red Hill Nature Resort

This resort located at 7000ft above sea level in red hills surrounded by tea garden, offers a splendid view of Emerald Lake. Mr. Vijay and Mrs. Bhanu are the proud owners of this beautiful place. This colonial styled bungalow was purchased by Mr. Vijay's dad in 1937. The resort has 9 furnished rooms with red oxide floor and log fireplaces. There are two rooms adjacent to the main bungalow, three rooms within the bungalow and four rooms behind the bungalow. We choose a room that was outside the main bungalow facing the Emerald Lake. I was excited to see a beautiful garden with atleast 50 different variety of flowering plants. The walls in the living room are decorated with huge paintings and artifacts. Taxidermied Sambar deer on the walls captivate the visitors. Morning breakfast and lunch is served in the open backyard which has a well maintained lawn. Dinner is served inside the bungalow as temperature drastically drops in the night.

Tariff: 4000 per couple for one night. Includes breakfast/lunch and dinner. The resort is closed for three months (June/July/Aug) in monsoon each year.

Food: Home grown vegetables are used in cooking. The local tea plantation workers are trained in cooking and they make some great Italian/Chinese/Indian food.

Booking: Bookings can be made directly by calling Mr. Vijay at (0423)-2595754-55 or 09842259554.

Activities:

Organised Trek: Morning trek after breakfast is good way to burn few calories gained and to get better view of Emerald and Avalanche Lake. This peak of red hill is the 4th tallest peak in Nilgiris. The uphill trek has steep ascent in the beginning and can be exhaustive to the core. Blacky (Mr. Vijay's pet), a friendly dog was the only inspiration for me to reach the summit. At the summit one gets to see Emerald and Avalanche dam, few barren mountains of Mukurthi. Downhill trek was rather easy and we got to walk through woods and tea plantation.

Walk to Emerald Lake: There are some paths in the tea plantations that leads to Emerald Lake. It is better to take a resort guide as many tea plantations are fenced and there are more chances of taking wrong path.

Places Around:

Parson's Valley Lake (8 Km from Red Hills): Parson's valley lake surrounding red hill area has a small reservoir that supplies drinking water to near by villages and Ooty. The road that leads to this lake from Red Hills has hair-bin-bends and there is hardly any vehicle movement on the roads.

Mukurthi National Park (18 Km from Red Hill): The other guests at the resort were praising about Mukurthi National Park the previous night. So we skipped a visit to Porthimund Lake and headed towards the national park. Entry to this park was rather tough as we did not have prior permission from the forest department. We were told that it normally takes 3 days for an approval. The resort staff who accompanied us was helpful in getting us entry. He knew the forest guard and tipping him got us entry. The topography was breathtaking, never seen such huge barren mountains. Our guide would spot a Sambar deer few miles away from the road. It is easier to spot animals as the area is dry land with dispersed bushes. There were few trekking trails and rest houses being made inside the national park. On the way back, got a glimpse of a huge Sambar deer which accidentally came on road.

There are couple of more places that we could not go. Trout hatchery at Avalanche, hydroelectric power stations at Emerald and Avalanche, Upper Bhavani reservoir.

Magical snow mountains of Manali

A visit to Manali was long pending from our honeymoon days. It was all because of FlightRaja offering free return ticket and a tempting package tour of Himachal offered by 'Journey Partner' that fetched us a trip to Manali.

How we reached: We drove from Delhi at 11 am passing through several towns and villages of Haryana and Punjab. We stopped at Sukhdev Vaishno Dhaba at Murthal which is famous for veg dhaba's. The road through Panipat is narrower because of flyover construction and there is every possibility of traffic jam. It took about an hour to get out of Panipat. It was interesting to see bunch of shops lined on the highway selling locally made Phenoyl and Soaps at Rajapura (Punjab) village. The road from Rupnagar to Kiratpur is below average. A cement plant at Barmana is the reason for lot of lorries to ply on the ghat section from Swarghat. It was around 2.30 am when we reached Manali.

Delhi--->Panipat---->Karnal--->Ambala--->Rajapura--->Kiratpur--->Barmana--->Sundernagar--->Mandi--->Pandoh--->Kullu--->Manali

Accommodation @ Apple Country Resorts: Located at the highest point in Manali, Apple Country Resorts is a great place to unwind. It is a well equipped 4 star hotel with 24 furnished rooms and 15 suites. Also has a gym, discotheque, veg restaurant, Ayurvedic spa and a well maintained garden with swings. I have two things to complain about this hotel. The discotheque needed some immediate soundproofing and the rooms required carpet.

There are other good luxury hotels available in log-hut area like Banon Resorts (4*), Snow Valley Resorts (3*), Orchard Greens (4*), Manali Heights (3*) and Snowcrest Manor (4*).

Food: The package included morning breakfast and a dinner at the hotel. The food was nothing extra-ordinary. The food served was well-presented but my taste buds were more sensitive than ever before, so felt that it lacked any flavor, taste or texture. I fell in love with Pachranga achar though!


Places to Visit:

Hadimba Temple: Located inside Dhungari Van Vihar is the four-storied wooden temple dedicated to goddess Hadimba. There is a natural cave inside the temple which has a foot-print of goddess Hadimba. The temple is surrounded by many deodar trees. Must be bliss when it snows! You could borrow a Himachali outfits for 20 bucks and take a photo of yourself. Also if you like the idea of holding a rare pet for a minute, then borrow Angora Rabbits. Obviously you got to pay for it! Angora rabbits are bred for its long, soft fur which is used in making shawls.

Vashist Hot Sulphur Water Spring: Vashist a village 3 Kms away from Manali is famous for sulphur springs and a temple for sage Vashist. There are separate bathing complex for men and women inside the temple. It is believed that these medicinal springs can ward off aliments. Anyways I did not dare to dip even my feet inside the fuming tank. Not that it was hot but it seemed so dirty with whole lot of tourists flocking to the place and dipping their feet.

Manu Temple: This temple located in old Manali is believed to be the only temple for the sage Manu in India. Manali got its name from Manu and Alya meaning the abode of Rishi Manu. On the way to this temple, one gets to see the chalet styled homes and locals in their traditional outfits.

Van Vihar: This park is located in front of Tibetan market on the mall road. It offers some activities like boating and river crossing. The park is totally engulfed with tall deodar trees and is cooler and cozier.

Mall Road: The most happening place in Manali and the only shopping place around. One can shop for locally made fruit wines, jams, squashes. Try out pastries at German Bakery on mall road.

Around Manali:

Rohtang Pass ( 51 Kms from Manali ): This is the only reason why one should go to Manali. A mountain pass situated at 3978 meters connects Kullu valley with Spiti valley and is open only for 4 months (June - Sep) in a year. The road to Leh was accessible from May 12 this year. It is advisable to leave early in the morning to avoid traffic jams (by trucks) and to get a convenient parking space. It takes about 2 hours to reach from Manali. There are many shops on the way that rent out snow coats and boots for visitors. We were comfortable with our jackets and woolen gloves.
On the way we passed thru Nehru Kund, Kothi village that is supposed to offer some breathtaking views of snow clad mountains but it wasn’t breathtaking. We got to see frozen version of Rahala falls. Beas Kund looks amazingly beautiful from Rani Nallah. Marrhi village has some shops where you could stop to sip in hot tea. Rohtang offers whole lot of activities for visitors like Skiing, Snow bikes, Snow sledge chair, Sliding tubes. The base point of Rohtang was extremely crowded so we walked up towards 'Zero point' which offered breathtaking view of snow capped mountains. I remained awestruck by the magnificent array of snow-clad mountains of Himalayas.

There is also an option to Paraglide from Rani Nullah. The take-off point is really scary with sharp rocks lined up and few yards below the cliff is the road where constant traffic movement happens. My first attempt was a total disaster as I tripped off and rolled on the ground. However the second attempt was successful with good take-off and bad landing. It is a short flight of 90 seconds but it was truly amazing. They video the entire take-off and landing and burn it in a CD with extra cost of 150 bucks. I would not recommend this for beginners like me.


Naggar: Located at about 12 Kms from Manali is the beautiful village Naggar. The drive from Manali to Naggar is very scenic with Peach orchards on either side of the road. Naggar has a Roerich Art Gallery and Naggar Castle.
Roerich Art Gallery: Nicholas Roerich an artist/traveller from Russia purchased the Hall Estate from the King of Mandi in 1929. The Hall Estate now has a art gallery on the ground floor which possess paintings of the majestic himalayas and few portraits of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi. There are few portraits of yesteryears heroine Devika Rani painted by Svetoslav Roerich(son of Nicholas). The first floor on Hall Estate has a house in which Svetoslav and Devika Rani stayed for few years. The balcony around the house on first floor is the only area accessible for visitors. However visitors can view the well furnished office, bedroom, living areas of the house through window on first floor. We went all the way up to Urusvati Himalayan Folk Art Museum but was closed for lunch. It is about 200 meters uphill from art gallery and there are benches placed beside the path for relaxing.
Entry Ticket: 10 per person

Naggar Castle: The castle built in 16th century by Raja Sidhi Singh offers a beautiful view of Kullu valley. The wood carvings inside the castle and the central courtyard were really amazing. This castle was later converted into a heritage hotel by HPTDC. The upper courtyard of castle has a beautiful Jagtipat temple. The balcony on the first floor is now used as restaurant. The service at the restaurant is awfully slow.
Entry Ticket: 10 per person

Solang Valley: Located at about 13 Kms from Manali is yet another destination which offers snow-clad mountains. There are lot of activities (Paragliding, Horse ride, Zorbing, Skiing (only in winter)) to keep yourself occupied while you are at Solang valley. We did not visit a Shiv temple which was located on top of a small mountain as every bone in my body was aching because of the royal fall that I had on previous day at Rohtang. Cable car options may start sometime this year to Shiv temple.

Manikaran ( 85 Kms from Manali): Manikaran, a place situated in Parvati Valley is famous for its hot springs, a temple and a gurudwara. The drive from Bhuntar to Manikaran is scenic. It is at this place where you get a 'Picture Perfect' shot with tall deodar trees on the bank of a Parvati river flowing by and a snow peaked mountain behind. There are lots of blind curve so a cautious driving is needed. The Gurudwara and the temple are located side by side and there is a hot spring bathing complex inside Gurudwara. Inside the Ram temple there are small pools of boiling hot springs where dal and rice gets cooked for langar. I even noticed few pilgrims dipping cloth pouches containing peas inside the fuming pool.

Kullu: Kullu located at about 45 Kms from Manali offers white water rafting, shawl shops and a beautiful temple of Vaishno Devi. We did not opt for white water rafting as there was hardly any water on Beas River. I would call it more of a boating and less of rafting. Vaishno Devi temple is 5 Kms from Kullu on Kullu-Manali highway. An idol of goddess Durga is enshrined in the naturally formed cave. Leather items (purse, wallets, belts), Hand bags, Camera, Cell Phones are not allowed inside the temple premises.

Jannat I call - Mahabaleshwar

Mahabaleshwar is a popular hill station in Western India. Serene lakes and mystifying hills makes this place a paradise. Overlooking the Koyna and Krishna valleys Mahabaleshwar is truly a ultimate getaway from city life.

How we reached :

It took 3 hrs by car to reach Mahabaleshwar from Kolhapur. The drive was simply amazing with almost no traffic. Needless to say the highway was too good without any potholes. We stopped at Satara to pick few bakalwadi’s and chiwda.

Accomodations :

There are number of good hotels/resorts available in Mahabaleshwar accommodating both budget and big wallet tourists. To name a few....Lake View, Sherwood

Resorts, Ramsukh Resorts, Surya Retreat are few popular ones. Please avoid Hotel Anand Van Bhuvan if you are particular having clean rooms. The very sight of this hotel was not appealing but I must admit that this is located in a very scenic place overlooking valleys.

Places to visit :

Venna Lake - Attracts major tourists offering an unforgetable boating experience. Spread over by 25 acres and surrounded by greenery is a must visit destination in Mahabaleshwar.

Kate’s Point - Offers splendid view of Krisha valley and Dhom dam.

Lodwick Point and Elephant’s Head Point - Named after General Lodwick who was the first european to visit Mahabaleshwar. These points are located 1Km away from parking area. Visitors have option to either walk or take horse.

Arthur’s Seat - The view offers a geographical distinction between Konkan and Deccan territories of Mahabaleshwar. We weren’t so lucky to get the entire view of this valley as it was covered with fog. We waited for couple of hours for the fog to clear up but hard luck. I convinced myself saying that it was like any other point, but down deep I know that it is unique.

Connaught Peak - The view from this peak was nothing great. Moreover the entire area was stinking.

Shopping :

Mahabaleshwar is famous for Strawberry farms. Fresh strawberries are available during summer and winter; people visiting during monsoon should be satisfied with squash, crush and jams.

Around Mahabaleshwar :

Mapro Garden - Located on Mahabaleshwar-Panchgani road. Interested visitors can see the packaging unit of Mapro. Above all one gets to taste squash, sherbaths before actually buying them. Seeing a lady juggle with tiny glasses meeting all the demands of customers (who wanted to taste before buying them) was quite a Challenging job! Must buy from Mapro are Strawberry and Kiwi crush.

Tapola

Tapola is 25Kms from Mahabaleshwar and it takes hour and half to reach there. The drive on the high hill ranges with two rivers flowing by is truly an unforgettable experience. Tapola is also known as "The Mini Kashmir" of the west.
Boating club on the banks of Koyna offers a speed boat ride to three places - Triveni Sangam(where Kyona, Solashi and Kandati meet), Island Point and Datta Mandir. For those who have never seen Kyona River before can see it from Google earth. Arial view of this river looks simply amazing.

Pratapgarh Fort


– This fort was build by Shivaji and is located 24Km from Mahabaleshwar.
Uniqueness about this fort is that the two walls at the entrance were strategically built very close, so that an enemy standing at a distance would never know the entrance to the fort. I was pleasantly surprised to hear clarion blown during pooja at Bhavani temple.


Panchgani

- Panchgani is 20Km from Mahabaleshwar. This place offers a marvelous view of Krishna river on one side and the costal palins on the other side. We stopped at Parsi Point on the way back to Pune to get beautiful view of Krishna Valley.

I leave Mahabaleshwar with a promise to re-visit again.

Adventure never stops at Dandeli

Dandeli is a picturesque city located at the bank of river Kali in Uttara Kannada district in Karnataka. It is about 480Kms from both Bangalore and Pune.

Offlate Dandeli has become popular tourist destination offering adventure activities. Dandeli is also famous for its wildlife sanctuary and is a home to big cats such as Leopards, Tigers and Black Panthers.

How we reached :

Boarded a K.S.R.T.C ’Rajahamsa’ bus from Bangalore which leaves Bangalore at 8.30pm and reaches Dandeli at 9.00am next morning. Rajahamsa leaves Dandeli at 5.30pm in the evening and reaches

Bangalore at 6.30am next morning.

There are plenty of local buses running from Hubli to Dandeli.

Accomodations :

Bison River Resort - It has rooms with a panoramic view of the fascinating river Kali.

Hornbill Resorts - This offers tree houses, rock houses and tents.

Kali Wilderness and Adventure Resorts - This has 9 tents facing Kali river and 11 rooms with huge reception and dining hall.

Our stay at Kali Wilderness and Adventure Resorts managed by Jungle Lodges Group was a good experience. They charged 1400 Rupees per person for a day, this includes breakfast, lunch and dinner, wildlife jeep safari, Coracle ride, Drive to Syntheri rocks and Kavala caves. The resorts managed by Jungle Lodges normally do not have off-season rates as they have tourists all the year.


Adventure Activities :

White Water Rafting : We were taken in a jeep to a place called Ganeshnagudi which is 30 Km from Dandeli. The rafting boats can accomodate 6 people with one professional rafter. We were given 15 minute introductory lessons on white water rafting. Children below 12 yrs of age are not allowed to do rafting. We opted for a 9km run lasting 2.5 hrs with 9 rapids. Among 9 rapids, 1/6/9th rapid was really great. There is small stretch after 7th rapid where swimmers are allowed to swim. This is a must-do activity at Dandeli.

Note: You don’t have to be a swimmer to experience the white water rafting as each one on a boat is secured with life jackets and helmets.

Off-Season Rate: 1100 per person

Season Rate: 1350 per person

Wildlife Safari : Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary is located 20Km away from the city. Summer is the best season to spot tigers and panthers. We were able to spot few Deer’s, Langur’s, an injured Fox, Peacocks and rare Great Pied Hornbill.

Coracle Ride : Coracle ride on the river Kali is another must-do at Dandeli. If you are lucky, you might just spot a crocodile lazing on small islands. We were able to spot a crocodile which was 2 ft below water and was moving against the current. Indeed crocodiles are great swimmers!

We ran out of time so could not venture into other activities like Kayaking, Canyoning, and Mountain Biking.

Places to Visit :

Kavala Caves :


These limestone caves are situated at a distance of 25Km from Dandeli. We had to descend 375 steps to reach the cave entrance. One has to crawl 40 ft deep to see the naturally formed Shivalinga. Candles are available outside the cave but do not forget to carry a torch. It is said that these caves have been inhabited since prehistoric times. We were also told that this cave was home to many snakes and bats. Now that sounds scary isn’t it? Carry lot of water and glucose as you are sure to get exhausted climbing back those 375 steps.

Syntheri Rock :

Deep inside Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary stands a 300 ft tall granite monolith on the bank of river Kaneri. Erosion has resulted in large number of nooks and cracks and is a home for rock bees and pigeons. It takes about an hour to reach by jeep and is located 30km away from Dandeli.

Shiroli Peak : It is the highest point in Uttara Kannada district. Also called as Sunset Viewpoint, offers fantastic view of the peaks of Western Ghats. This is located 25Km from Dandeli within Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary.

Supa Reservoir : This dam is located 25Km from Dandeli and is used to produce Electrical Power. Unfortunately this is closed for visitors because of security reasons.

Traditional City of South India - Chennai

This was my third visit to Chennai so thought of penning down my experience. It is also called Detroit of South Asia as it is the automobile capital of India. Offlate it has become famous for silent swindlers.....yes the auto drivers. Tamil is a must-know language for survival.

How we reached:

We left Bangalore at 1.30 pm in the afternoon and took 2 hrs to reach Hosur. I was wondering how bad Bangalore traffic can get. The highway was simply good without any potholes. We reached Chennai at 6.30pm in the evening. Bumpy ride on Poonamalee high road was little disappointing to me.

Accommodations:

There are plenty of star hotels in Chennai. Will list out few of them....

1. Chola Sheraton - 5 star - Located on Cathedral road

2. Taj Connemara - 5 star - Located on Binny Road

3. Hotel Green Park - 4 star

- Located in Vadapalani, it has conference halls, gym, health spa, coffee shop, multi cuisine restaurant. Recently all rooms are upgraded to provide 24hr internet facility for free. Have no complaints against this hotel. Enjoyed the stay!


Shopping:

Chennai has been one of my favourite cities when it comes to shopping. Pondy Bazar/Spencer Plaza/Chennai Central Mall are ideal place for shopping. Saravanan Stores in T.Nagar reminds me of Mustafa Shopping Center of Singapore. Jhilmil in Pondy Bazar has good lot of fancy jewellery. I almost ended up buying couple of them. I was given a flower and bill almost pained in yellow (I guess it was soaked in turmeric and dried) for my purchases. Guess why? Coz I was the first customer of the day! Indeed Chennai has not lost its traditional touch over the years.

Places to Visit:

Arulmigu Kapaleeshwar Temple - Located in Mylapore, this temple is dedicated to Lord Siva. This temple has beautifully pained gopurams and has a reasonably big and clean tank. Uniqueness of this temple is that you will find the images of 63 Saivaite saints (Nayanmars) in the outer courtyard. Temple celebrates its Brahmotsavam in March-April every year for ten days during which all the 63 bronze idols are taken in a colorful procession through the streets of Mylapore. Like many other temples only Hindus get the darshana.

Government Museum - The museum is located on Pantheon Road between Egmore and Anna Salai. The building originally belonged to Pantheon Committee, who were responsible for improvising the social life of British in Madras. The museum contains exhibits of pre-historic era. Bronze gallery was beautifully lit and was amazed to see huge sculptures of "Nataraja". The Amaravati gallery with its invaluable collection of Buddhist, Jain and other sculptures offers a real treat to your eyes. There is also a section for zoology, geology and anthropology. This place is really worth a visit.

Snake Park - This park located in Guindy, is home to lot of snakes, crocodiles and turtles. The entrance fee is Rs 5 but the car parking is Rs 15 ...sounds funny isn’t it? It was sad to notice that 20 huge crocs were dumped in a 300 sq ft(approx) area. The park hosts a demonstration of venom extraction and provide interesting information on the Snake habitat.

Vivekanandar Illam - This building facing Marina beach was built in 1842 by Mr.Tudor to store Ice bars imported from US. Swami Vivekananda stayed in this building during his visit to Chennai in 1897. Building was taken over by govt in 1930 and in 1963 it was renamed to Vivekanandar Illam.

Marina Beach - This 13 Kms long beach is said to be second longest beach in the world. A stroll along the Marina during sunset is another must-do activity. Anna square and MGR memorial are serene place on the northern end of Marina facing sea.

Madras Lighthouse and Fort St George are drive past places in Chennai as visitors are not allowed.

Entertainment:

Go-Karting - Two places that I know of go-karting are "Kart Beat" on Arcot road and "Kart Attack" on ECR road.

Prarthana Beach Drive-in Theatre - This theatre claims to be World’s first open-air beach drive in theatre. They mainly screen Tamil movie.

Mayajaal - Located on ECR road, this multiplex has six screens. Their web-site claimed having modern seating, sound and projection systems, but I was rather disappointed. It was no where in par with PVR’s or Inox of Bangalore.

VGP Universal Kingdom - Located on ECR road, it provides good entertainment for kids and adults.

Eat-Outs:

Like Bangalore, Chennai is never short of restaurants.

Dhaba Express - This is located on Cenotaph Road and serves authentic Punjabi food. This restaurant has open dining area with "Khattiyas" and the food is served in thali and water is brass tumblers. Sweet Lassi is a must-try. It is reasonably priced.

Karaikudi - Located on Dr.Radhakrishana Salai serves Chettinad food. It has chain of restaurants all over Chennai. They have reasonably priced menu. The male staff is traditionally dressed in dhoti. They have maintained same food consistency across all the other outlets. Overall nice place to have lunch/dinner.

Palki - This is located on Cathedral road and serves North Indian veg and non-veg food. I was lured by the nice name and a beautiful board outside but the food was simply horrible. Expensive place to dine!

Murugan Idli Shop - Located in T.Nagar, this is a small restaurant (serves only south indian veg delicacies) with bare minimum facilities (table and chair to sit). Everything is served on plantain leaf (no spoons or forks). They serve atleast 4-5 different chutneys and they all tasted so different! Sweet pongal was so yummy! Their rates are much cheaper when compared to Sarvana Bhavan. We went in peak hour so had to sit with unknown people facing us. Anyways it doesn’t matter as long you are relishing the food.

Little Italy - Located in Nugambakkam, it serves Italian food but purely veg. Pastas tasted little too salty otherwise the starters were great. Expensive place to dine though.

ECR Dhaba - Located on ECR road, serves Indian, Tandoor and Chinese. The food was okay-dokey. The entire atmosphere did not appeal to me. It was dimly lit (hardly could read the menu) and they took long to serve. Above all, there was no water in the wash room.

Places around Chennai:

Pondicherry - Pondicherry is 162Km from Chennai and takes approx 2-3 hrs to reach. The drive on silky smooth ECR road is breath taking. It is a popular weekend getaway for Chennaites.

Mahabalipuram - Mahabalipuram is 58Km from Chennai and takes an hour to reach. Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram, famous for its shore temples, rock carvings and monolith sculptures was capital of Pallava kings.

Kancheepuram - Kancheepuram is 75Km from Chennai. This place is globally famous for silk sarees and temples.