Tag Archives: must see

Heritage villas with shaded courtyards turned to hotels and restaurants, catholic churches of immaculate conception dotting the lanes, unending beach strip with sand the color of silver and alcohol available at prices lower than rest of India: well, that could be the tourist giant and party haven, Goa. But lack of shacks by the water or people drinking in public and absence of sun bathing European vacationers or jet skiing Indian weekenders makes it the intimate and cosy, authentic and honest, Pondicherry. It amazes me what Pondicherry could have been – the decadent French speaking town, smugged at its history of having served a colonial power thats not English and a popular beachside getaway close to a big city; much like its alter ego on the other coast of India. But its not. Its better. The roads are not clogged with SUVs driving down from Mumbai, the prices don’t shoot up here on the drop of a hat; the locals are shy but polite and the food has both taste and character. The city was divided into two parts on racial terms: one, the French designed, ocean front “white” town and then on the other side of a giant canal, the Tamil quarter. On either side you see sites emblematic of two cultures very diverse but yet influencing each other. While, the French part feels like small island of history, an open air museum with an air of abandonment and nostalgia of era gone by, the town on the other side continues to move at the speed of any other regular Indian town. The street names are in French, the police still wear French caps called kepis, restaurants serve French cuisine making Pondicherry the easiest place to find croissant in India. However, there is no denying that beyond the white …

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Listed as the Wonder of the Nature, Halong Bay figure as a must do on all itineraries for travel around Vietnam. However, Empty Rucksack Travelers claim that a greater wonder and adventure is in store for you in the by lanes of Hanoi's old quarter where everyone will happily sell you a trip to Halong Bay. Read their review of Halong Bay and reasons for opting for a day trip.

A two hour ride upstream on the Mekong will bring you at the foot of Pak Ou cave set in limestone cliff, twenty five kilometers away from Luang Prabang. The ride to and fro will cost you around 100,000 kip (roughly $9/INR 900) and may keep you wondering if it is a bit too much you paid. But as soon as you take a seat the long wooden boats, your doubts will be put to rest. Over the next two hours, the boat driver will navigate the rapids on the giant Mekong, gently moving in the direction of the caves. You will pass by serene views of green countryside, b and petrol bunker on the way and then as the two hours will pass by you will see a white hollow in the face of a giant cliff approach. You have arrived, your boat driver will say and you already know it was worth the time and the money. The quiet ride on the Mekong had already put you in the ideal state of calm necessary before visit to a religious site that has been used for meditation as well. As you climb the flight of stairs you pay an entry fees of 20,ooo kip ( roughly $3/INR 180) and make your way to the lower level of caves. Over four thousand Buddhas have been placed in this cave over a period of hundred years. With each Buddha representing the faith of an individual, you feel a sense of spirituality pervading the cave. After a few moments you make you way up to the upper level caves, where a giant statue of Lao Buddha meets you on the entrance. You go inside and look up your flashlight because the upper cave is absolutely dark. You imagine the cave lit up …

Kuang si are the spectacular waterfalls about 30 kilometers from Luang Prabang. Jump into a tuk tuk for a shared ride at 35,000 kip or sign up for a minivan at 40,000 kip that your hotel can arrange for you or you could find one waiting along the Sisavangvong road. The falls are multi-tiered and their turquoise blue or sometimes emerald green pools are a sight to both behold and jump in. We decided to trek all the way up to the top of the falls in the true spirit of exploration. And we were rewarded with the breathtaking top view of the falls and multiple tiny lakes. The climb although not too long is not so straightforward either. It is both adventurous and a little daunting because many a times you will be guessing if you are heading the right way. We were often left guessing wondering if we were the only ones heading up but a lot of people make the effort to climb up the top. So if you find the company of others and the waterfall symphony missing for too long, you know you are going the wrong way. The hike up is slippery, through wild woods, underneath the green canopy and definitely not for everybody. To navigate your way across the water pool at the top stepping over the moss covered rocks to get to the other side needs caution. If you slip, there is nothing to hold you back except for a railing of bamboo. But to put your feet on the black stones smothered by the time and water gushing down brings a feeling of peace to your nerves as you are panicking with both thrill and horror. To walk down is more challenging. But each step is a wonderful surprise. We stepped down a …

A weekend in Aurangabad We love Aurangabad, because we are from Auranagbad. So, it is highly important for us, that you love it too. And, here is our list of things that one must do in Aurangabad to get the full flavour of the city. Hire a car: First and foremost, you will need a car to check out all the major sites in the city and to do a day trip to Ajanta caves. Start Early: On day 1, Wake up early in the morning. Yes, no lingering around or sleeping in. Our monuments get hot and crowded very early in the day. So be sure to be out by seven at the latest. Plan your day: Start with a hike up to the top of Daulatabad fort. Then move over to the Ellora caves. Remember, you cannot see all the caves, so pick a sample of caves based on a little booklet on sale outside the Ellora caves and aim at covering those. Added attractions: Finally check out the Grishneshwar temple which is further ahead of Ellora on the same road. On your way back into Aurangabad, at stop Aurangzeb’s tomb at Khuldabad. All these attractions are along one highway that goes in and out of Aurangabad so finding them will not be a problem. You can also buy fresh fruits along the highway. When back in the city, enjoy a glass of juice at Lucky Juice center or Pakeezah if you are here in the summers. Have a meal of Rajasthani thali at Bhoj or Eklavya. And wrap up the day with paan at Tara pan center On Day 2 you can explore the Ajanta caves, which are 108 kilometers from the city. It is possible to visit the caves and return the same day back to …

The tomb of the last great Moghul stands in all humility inside the little town juxtaposed to the city of named after him. Khuldabad is the last stop on the Mughal Trail where rests Aurangzeb. It was once called ‘Rauza’ which means garden of paradise.    22 kms from Aurangabad and four kilometers from Ellora caves, the town itself is surrounded by a wall constructed by Aurangzeb with seven gates built around the city.   Here lies the valley of saints where several sufi saints chose to reside in 14th century. Zar Zari Zar Baksh migrated to Khuldabad in 14th century on the orders of his teacher Nizamuddin Auliya.  It is said that in this town rest 1500 Sufi saints in their graves. Referred to as the the abode of eternity many in the history including Malik Ambar who is referred to as the architect of Aurangabad, Azam Shah who constructed Bibi ka Maqbara found their resting ground beneath the soil of this little town.Aurangzeb died in Ahmednagar on 20 February 1707 at the age of 88. Today he lies in the courtyard of the Sufi saint Shaikh Burham-u’d-din Gharib’s dargah. His grave lacks any embellishments, a sharp contrast against the elaborate burials that has brought Moghul dynasty much fame around the world. His grave is covered by a simple cloth next to his teacher’s as per his last wish. On the other end of the courtyard behind metallic door and heavy locks is placed a robe of Prophet Mohammad and a single strand of hair from his beard. The robe ‘Pairhaan-e-mubarak’ is said to be historically important. It is said that the robe was presented to Prophet by Allah on his trip to heaven. 

Two days after our wedding, and a day after my arrival as a new bride in the city that is now second only to Delhi in my heart, I could not resist my long held desire to see the Daulatabad fort that figured so often in my long talks with my husband in our courtship days. As I was falling in love with him, I also fell in love with this fort that he described to me in the murmurs over the phone in the stillness of night. He told me how high the summit of the fort was and he wondered how the king got to his palace at the top. He told me about the many gates, giant and small to the building to be used as defense in case of attack, the steep slopes around the fort with just a single point of entry, about a moat that surrounds the fort which at a time swarmed with crocodiles with just a small bridge connecting the fort entrance to the outside world. He told me about the hathi hauz, the elephant tank, about the bats that housed themselves in the now empty staircases and dark passageways where not a ray of day light can creep in, the mendi tope, goat headed canon that is stationed in the fort overlooking the views of the barren landscapes.  I could see through his voice his childlike excitement over what sounded like an incredible place to which he must have gone first as a child. As a child, I myself had read in my text books about Devagiri which was the capital of the Yadavs and I thought wasn’t Delhi always supposed to be the capital of everything in India and I wondered which this other place that rivalled Delhi’s position is. Daulatabad, I …

It is not as old or as historic as its rivaling ‘Hagia Sophia’ but like the grand building it stands facing, Sultan Ahmet mosque popularly called ‘the blue mosque’ is the dream of an emperor, his highest aspiration, standing out like the solitaire bedecked in a ring amongst its contemporaries. Its victory stroke is that it is not dead yet. Its spacious halls, glistening ceramics and chandeliers hanging from sky high ceilings are all alive with the prayers of many believers that knock on its doors and kneel on its floors. While outsiders to the faith queue infront of its majestic doors, waiting for their turn in its grand courtyard examining its galleries. When the clock bids and the devotees depart, the vistors enter eagerly. Failing to mimic the order of the believers, the visitors totter around in deference holding their shoes in plastic bags, admiring the mosque and appreciating the delicate carving at the mihrab from a distance. After a few minutes of silence, pictures and videos, visitors make a quiet exit into the courtyard. There are six elegant minarets from where the call for prayers is made five times a day, nine mighty domes that reverberate with devotion, the 260 windows that let in the light and 20,000 blue tiles fitted on its ceilings – all tell the story of four hundred years that it has been standing for. The mosque stands proudly in the center of Istanbul adjacent to the ancient Hippodrome. Commissioned by Sultan Ahmet, it was to be his response to Justinian’s Hagia Sophia. The ambitious sultan demolished the last few remnants of the Great Palace of Byzantine to make place for his ambitious project at the chosen spot. Although built in seven years, even after four centuries the mosque is by no means an old building. It is constantly restored to its old glory.

So often you just stumble upon great things without much research. After an idle day in Zermatt and comparing how the area fell short of Bernese Oberland, I wondered what else to do. I decided to the cable car to the top of the Klein Matterhorn – To Matterhorn Glacier Paradise Views from the top The Klein Matterhorn (Little Matterhorn) is the highest point in the Zermatt-Cervinia ski area in Switzerland. It is also the highest cable car serviced summit in Europe. Cross at the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise The cable car to the top of the Matterhorn is the highest cable car in Europe.  Sheets of ice cover the mountain top The peak is at 3,883 metres with the cable car terminal at 3,820 metres. There are three stages in the journey to the top of the summit with journey time of 50 mins on each side. From the top you can get views of Italy. On a clear day even Mont Blanc – the tallest mountain in Alps is visible. The day I went was not that day. It costs about CHF 64 to get to the top or CHF 32 if you hold a Swiss pass, but the money charged is worth every penny.