Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Let's Mal'Dive'!!

Maldives.



We did a combination of Srilanka and Maldives for a week, too much of green and too much of blue. Maldives looks best during all times of the year, it was December for us and the choice came in handy. There were rains every now and then, but it only added more charm to the ever-scintillating Maldives. Here, we have numerous resorts, each of it is an island by itself and almost every island has so much to offer - all kinds of water sports/activities, vivacious colors, and enthralling nightlife. 




Maldives cannot be described best without photographs, this photoblog will do the job and a guest post from Guiri Karuppan, my dear uncle who has lived in this lovely place (he makes sure he works and lives in all exotic places, wait - Pondicherry, Goa, Maldives, and Mussoorie!!??) could give you a conducive picture on this island nation. Photos are mine, words from Guiri, there you go! 


Nature in all its splendor doesn't mean only the mountains, rivers, forests, wetlands, zoos and national parks. There's a different world inside this world, under the water. While there are thousands of islands amidst the various oceans of the world, not all are considered blessed.

The Maldives is truly a blessed place for tourists and nature aficionados alike.



The landing in Hulule, the airport island of Maldives, is by itself an amazing experience. The wheels of the flight touch the ground just in time to clear the sea and stop shy of the sea on the other end. There has never been an accident in all these years - please note.



Normally from Hulule, dhoni (sail) boats or other higher-end boats are used to transfer the passengers from one island to the other, traversing the high seas for as less as 15 minutes and going up to about 2 and a half hours at times - depending on the destination.

The world beneath the surface comprises of corals, reefs, fishes big and small and its millions of other sea creatures. The colors hit us the first and leave an everlasting impression on the psyche. The various shades of color that the water reflects depending on its cleanliness, underwater life, time of the day, our relevant location and many more combinations make sure that we rarely get to see the same color twice in a day. Having lived there, it appears that the vast expanse of sea sometimes even reflects my own moods!!!!!



Some really quick pointers ()-
  • Absolutely safe country for tourists/foreigners. literally, no place for the bad elements to run as even the largest island wouldn't stand a full throttle of a bike.
  • Seafood is fresh and quite literally picked off the sea and cooked
  • Fresh vegetables are imported, and hence are of super high quality (making it costly, incredibly)
  • Drinking water for the entire country is the desalinated variety + the imported, bottled variety - both ways they remain safe to consume
  • As most of the wastages/sewerage end up in the sea (after proper measures), hygiene is pretty high
  • Some islands (read as hotels) have mosquito problems and fumigation is done regularly
  • Beaches, lagoons and reefs are synonymous with Maldives
  • So beautiful a place, that even the unromantic will turn ballads, poets and what not


  • The variety of water-based sports and underwater-based sports and activities is many
  • Fishing, big game fishing, whale hunting (!), scuba diving and the entire spread of activities and island hopping are a few of the recreational possibilities
  • Watch schools of fishes in various sizes, shapes, myriad colours - LIVE - and discover the creative source of Finding Nemo and Dory, amongst others
  • After all the above mentioned are exhausted, take the whale submarine
  • The hotels are very well maintained especially because it (tourism) is the primary source of income for the entire country.

  • The police are very responsive and sometimes even go overboard if the request for help is genuine
  • Crime rates range from low crime to no crime
  • Off-season discounts, especially for a seasoned traveler, are overwhelmingly inviting. know it and make use of it.
  • The Maldives is infested with Malayalis (no, they are not noun and adjective forms). For good. Befriending a malayalee will bring in discounts from unknown corners and will open previously hidden doors. cultivate befriending them as a hobby. :)

Hope you enjoyed this raw, unedited, edifying, chatty, straight-from-the-heart (and, what not??) guest post to give you a local-feel of Maldives. See you all in Srilanka next :)

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Ya Allah! Kashmir!

We know Kashmir is wholesomely beautiful. But, is Kashmir safe for tourism? :)


You can see policemen everywhere with AK47 and rifles, BSF (Border Security Force) and CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) armed personals and their army camps all over Kashmir, but it is definitely not a sign of any kind of unrest. There will be multiple rounds of security checks when you visit temples, mosques, and the place where the Chief Minister’s office is (near Hazratbal) and when you move in and out of Kashmir. There were a couple of incidents – killings and protests in remote parts of the state while we were there, but most of the instances of terror we know of Kashmir are blown out of proportion by the media. Travelers clog the place from all over the world; tourism is their main source of income. One tip is that the topic of terrorism or India-Pakistan relationship is definitely more sensitive here, it is better that we don’t discuss this with locals or among ourselves while we are there. We are there for tourism and let us do just that, rightly said my dad. Kashmir and its people are warm and friendly; Ah yes we are definitely in India :)



‘Ya Allah!’ the sound of hope resonates in our ears the moment we step into Kashmir. The words are written at the back/front of most of the public and private transports and every other person you see (the taxiwala or the hotel manager) will utter the two words; it is a part of their lives. I am finding it hard to describe my thoughts on Kashmir. I have travelled to many northern and north-eastern hill sides, each has its own beauty but Kashmir is something. It is like you put all of nature’s beauty in one place. Flowers, parks, lakes, rivers, hills, snow, desert!! And all that you ever want to see. Kashmir is white! From people to roads to silver-roofed/coated buildings to snow-covered mountains to foamy rivers, there is some ‘brightness’ about the place.




Let us start from Srinagar – the capital city bustling with activity and this is from where you will take trips to the rest of Kashmir. The first thing you will do here is, visit Dal Lake. One of the largest fresh water lakes of the world, it has shrunk from the original 75 sq km to around 12 sq km and the depth has reduced from 45 feet to 4 feet. The inflow is from Jhelum River. The water area has been lost due to lotus and nedumboo cultivation. Fishing, water plant harvesting are also major commercial operations here.


When you wade through the waters in your grand Shikara, you will find shops on the lake, people selling fruits, vegetables, imitation jewelry, pearls on boats. You can wear the place’s traditional suits and pose for the camera with a charge of 20 bucks. The boatmen have tie-ups with the shops – shawl, tea shops that are in the lake market, they will in evidently take you to one of those shops and convince you to buy souvenirs. But wait till you see the other places. One/two nights halt in house boats can be a refreshing experience, choice of good house boat is important.





Shalimar Bagh, Nishath Bagh and Chashme shahi are well groomed gardens in Srinagar. The Chashme Shahi being the smallest is believed to carry waters that have medicinal properties and the water reflects like a mirror and is pure to that extent. The tulip gardens were closed for us, the best time to visit would be July, and we were there during the second week of May. The temperature loomed low to 12 degrees Celsius during the nights and during day it was a moderate 18-20 degrees Celsius.



The other must see places in and around Srinagar include Hazratbal shrine (was closed for renovation due to local disputes and attacks), Kheer Bhavani temple (heavy security and is a little far off from Srinagar), Jamia Masjid (old and very calm with fountains and manicured gardens. Women will be asked to cover their heads while entering) and Hari Parbat. Lal chowk - old and new are markets for fruits, vegetables and daily necessities.


Shankaracharya Temple which dates back 200 BC was a big surprise. The temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple rests on a hill 1000ft high facing the city of Srinagar. It was visited by Adi Sankara periyava and the name got associated with the temple, ever since. The divinity that the place holds, the height and the breeze and the view and.. Wow!! :D



On our way to Pahalgam were the Awanthipur ruins. Awantipura temple (a UNESCO world heritage site) built during the 9th Century A.D. has two deities – Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. The temple has undergone an era of changes but the architectural marvel of the place is intact. There was a Sikh tourist guide, who voluntarily summarized the history of the temple, collected 50 bucks forcibly from my hands. The location is a photographer’s delight; Kashmir itself is one, as such. The travel was pleasant with dry fruit shops and saffron farms lined up on both the sides. The picturesque snow-capped mountains will be there for you on every twist and turn.





Pahalgam is visited by tourists as just-a-few-hours spot. But I would strongly recommend a night’s stay in the hills of Pahalgam. It houses some of the fantabulous valleys such as the Chandanwari, Betaab Valley (the Hindi film Betaab was shot here) and Aru valley. Baisaran or 'Mini Switzerland' – if you have ever wanted to experience ‘being in heaven’, be here! Local taxies can be hired to reach these places but they can take you only to the point where the roads end. The mountainous path has to be taken to reach and feel the glory of the peaks, ponies will take you. Keep bargaining, they will start at 1500 per person, if you are good you can bring that down to 500.




The pony ride – an experience for a life time. It scared the.., whatever, out of me and now I am quite not worried about heights or mountain climbing. It was scary; no doubt, the ponies will take you through corners of the deepest valleys and treacherous rivers. Hold on to them and sing songs, pretend like you are okay and they will be good to you :D My brother’s pony was too good to him, preferred to take him away privately from the entire pony crowd. He stopped screaming after he got used to its behavior. These ponies are trained in such a way; you give a ‘hai’ sound and they will run on the hills! :O Be careful not to push them off the slides when you feel scary. Just ‘keep calm and love ponies’!



'Mini Switzerland' has a tea shop, vast lush green meadows, and snow-pecked hills, ponies, a market and the Jhelum River flowing through quietly. There were multicolored pebbles that glittered in the purest water, I have brought home some of the weird ones. We spoke to a few locals on their way of living and took pictures with their heirs and sheep. We would have stayed there forever, if only we had a choice! We went for sledge ride on the Betaab valley. We got the necessary accessories in a shop nearby (the shoes, coats); there was ankle-deep snow. Oooo it was too much, you will be made to sit on the sledge, and the guy who will be in-charge of the sledge would pull you through the snow with a rope, shouting ‘Ya Allah!’. He stops at a good altitude, good enough for you to fall deep down :D we will have to sit behind him and hold on to the sledge, he skids the sledge, and it starts skating down the ice!! The moment I thought ‘I should not fall off’, I flew and hit the soft-ice, hard!! :D:D I got on the sledge again and continued down screaming on the top of my voice till I reached the tea shop where my dad and brother waited after their rides! It was awe-so-matic :D we had some hot tea, chips and travelled down. Traveling down on the ponies was even more terrific! :p



Gulmarg, now, was full of snow again. There were two sets of mountains. The first set was green, grassy and lots of trees. The second set, higher in altitude and behind the green set, stood the white ones, too much snow in mid-May that the oxygen levels went so low; they did not let us up till there. You can reach both these ranges through Gondola rides, you will need to do advance booking for Gondola rides in advance in Srinagar or online, otherwise you will be subject to longest queues (times longer than our ration queues) in the strongest weather! To book for Gondola rides online - click here.

The new experience here was the ice-katti-mazhai :D (Solid ice rain). From nowhere small pebble-shaped solid ice started hitting our heads and we were searching hard for a shelter (too crowded) even before we realized it was just a common type of rain, there. All the solid-ice-pebbles were mysteriously of the same size! Ya Allah!



The tourists choose Gulmarg for stay, but the place we stayed was Tangmarg, in 5-10Kms radius from Gulmarg. The fog and mist covered green mountains that I missed with seeing only white-mountains all through; Tangmarg treated me with these scenic feasts. Only later, after we came back to Chennai, my dad told me a story of terrorist invasion in Tangmarg a year before we were there, and that more than 10 terrorist and civilians were killed in the shoot! I can imagine why no one chose Tangmarg for stay :p But the place is ‘beautiful’, literally!! We stayed in J&K tourism hotels, they were of such good quality and it was like a homestay, with specially prepared food and warm service of the staff. Located 2,740 m above sea level and meaning ‘Meadow of Gold', Sonamarg is a place for trekkers, we had ponies there again, and we did a bit of shopping.

Oh I am tired just to have done the write-up on Kashmir, imagine, you would have so many things to do there. Souvenirs from the Kashmir can be dry fruits and saffron, hand-woven carpets and Pashmina shawls & Wood-crafted items. We had stayed there for 9days and it was not enough at all! We still have Kargil, Leh, Ladakh and Jammu left to be seen in the state. Plan for a leisure travel; it requires one complete month to explore the ‘kaśyapamēruḥ’- a dreamland, a dream that unites you with the ‘One’.
 

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Cast away - The Mini Minicoy! Laccadive Islands aka Lakshadweep

Minicoy Island?

Minicoy is a part of Lakshadweep Islands of the Indian sub-continent. Lakshadweep Islands have more than 15 uninhabited islands. Minicoy is one of the few inhabited ones and of those a few that allow foreign tourists. Transportation to Minicoy is through sea, nearest airport is Cochin. Only Agatti has a civilian air base while others have aircrafts/helipads for Defence purpose only.




Compact with one shopping place, a couple of mosques, a school and a hospital, Minicoy has a tropical savanna climate throughout the year.

Hospital here, offers service free of cost to the islanders. All of them are home owners, no tenants. A 100% Islam following population with a high literacy rate, way higher than mainland India, about ~84%. Every home is internet lit and almost every home has a mariner on duty. If a man has to marry a woman from this island, he has to provide a certificate from their local hospital that he hasn't contracted AIDS! Guy when married, lives in his mom's or wife's home, a matrilineal society. Remarriages of women and men are equally accepted and alcohol is a big no-no here, no liquor shops, no bar.



'Maldives is so close that you can just swim across!' That's what a local would tell you. But, commutation across was banned as early as 1956. Maldives is just around 200 or so kilometers away and people at Minicoy have close cultural ties with this island nation. Mahl(a dialect of Malayalam) and Dhivehi are widely spoken, like in Maldives.



Is Minicoy an attractive tourist location?
Well, that depends on your view. It is a very-very small place. Holds a population of about ~10,000, like 10 streets of a metro city put together. Rich coconut tree plantation, water sports with glass-floored boat, kayaks, scuba-diving and a decent sea-side resort are all that you will see. But that's pretty much other island destinations can also offer, isn't it? Here, it is just smaller in scale. Tourist spots include an age-old light house and a Juma Masjid.

You can include Kadmat, Kalpeni, Kavaretti, Agatti along with the Mini-Minicoy alias Maliku. All of them own awesome-fresh underwater life. Make sure to experience the helicopter ride from Agatti to Kavaretti. No luxury resorts/spa/nightlife and no, I do not guarantee an exotic holiday, but definitely a nice private one, it would be. 




Tuesday, August 18, 2015

India-Japan - An exchange of culture. 日本への旅.

I visited Tokyo and a prefecture in Japan for a cultural exchange program of students and youths. I was joined by 6 others from various parts of Tamilnadu and 120 others from all-over India. We were separated into 6 small groups. 8.5 hours journey from Delhi to Tokyo and the time just flew. We landed at the Narita International airport. Time difference is 3.5 hours and I had to tune my time forward!:) Tokyo, the capital city of Japan holds 10% of Japan’s population and you will never feel it is crowded. I was too excited that I kept clicking pictures of lorries, trucks and even ordinary buildings for the first few hours! :)




Hospitality is the first thing that pats you in Japan. People are polite beyond words, self-dependent, responsible and are pure workaholics. Japan has its own rules. Private transportation includes cycles and cars. Virtually no bikes!! Well-connected public transports include trains, buses and taxis. I found no one obese and people are very health conscious. Roads are pollution-free and everything is too much clean ;) It was supposed to be summer and the temperature recorded just 24 degrees Celsius! Buddhism and Christianity exist but Japan has its own ways of praying like thanking the farmers and parents before and after every meal! And not to forget, the city is busy all day but there is no noise! :o

Japan is divided into 47 prefectures such as Hyogo, Hiroshima, Ibaraki, Hokkaido, Niigata, Miyazaki etc., I visited Hyogo and Kobe, port city. The ride in the Shinkansen (bullet train) was superb, swift, punctual and comfortable. We managed to click snaps of Mount Fuji (worshipped by Japanese people as God). It is the tallest mountain covered with snow streaks and it is beautiful! While Tokyo was buildings, Kobe was the country side. The bay with no waves and mountains at the background stun you instantly! Getting on top of the port tower and looking at the entire city from that height makes you feel like God!

 
Food! They eat everything and they eat it raw!!!! And yes, Japanese people have the longest lifespan  Beef is too expensive and too tasty (heard so ;)). Cows are bathed in Sake (Japanese wine) and are fed apples!! Sushi, tempura and udong are the three Japanese delicacies that I personally tasted, purely vegetarian specially made by my host mother on my insistence :)

 
Home-stay was a part of my ten day program when each one of us had to live separately with a Japanese family for three days and two nights. There were five members in my family excluding two pups Den and Dick (Golden retrievers!). Youngsters in Japan are more into learning English and American culture and that includes my 18 year host sister too :) My host family lived in a remote place near Osaka named Mikishi. We had to change 3 trains to reach there from Kobe. Mikishi was too quiet and serene. Since it was a cultural exchange program I had to take note of the cultural similarities and differences between India and Japan. They also celebrate Diwali under the name Hanabi (Only sparkles. No crackers, no noise).

 
As for the dress, it is western everywhere. Kimono is their traditional dress which is worn only on special occasions and the summer kimono is called yukata. People mostly take bath in the night (not in the morning! :p), they eat very less but healthy food (fruits, fish and yogurt included in every meal), give importance to cleanliness (like using a hot napkin before every meal to wipe hands, wearing separate pair of slippers for outdoor, indoor and bathroom), too much importance to punctuality and work, less importance to relaxation and enjoyment, eat with chop-sticks and they give respect to everything in existence! 

And yes that's our Super Star Rajanikanth in Japan! A movie poster of Arunachalam in a local restaurant made my day!

 Technological advancement is put to best use! “Mottainai” is their motto which means “waste nothing” and they recycle everything. This includes space, food, water and garbage. All buildings are closely spaced and are built with wood and earthquake resistant rubber material which absorbs the effect of the quake. Environment is given godly respect.

Despite sky-scrapers scaling the skies, you see greenery everywhere in Japan. Cost of living is quite high, money is equally distributed and people are rich. And their ability to rebound is amazing! Be it the second world-war or the earthquakes, Japanese’ spirit soars high! Except for their robotic life and their superstitions (13th floor was missing in the two major hotels I stayed ;)) everything is positive in Japan!! My little heart still lives in Mikishi! :);)

Gangtok, Sikkim - 'Small is beautiful'

Capital of the Indian state of Sikkim. A hill station and a famous Buddhist Pilgrimage site. There is more!

I spent 7 days and 6 nights on the foothills of the Himalayas! The Nepalis, Bhutias, Lepchas & the Tibetans term Gangtok as “The abode of Gods!”. Gangtok literally means ‘Hilltop’ located approximately 5500 feet above sea level. Well-maintained roads, pavements & tourist locations and well-connected taxi services add to the already existing attractions of Gangtok. Indian Government spends lavishly for the development of the North-Eastern states and it clearly is reflected in Gangtok where children are offered free education and complimentary uniforms too! I found no beggars on the streets! (Not even one!!). 

Temperature in the place during summer is completely bearable and during winter is completely unbearable! Moving in & around Gangtok can be either through walk or a taxi. You will find drug rehabilitation centres and hoardings for the prevention of AIDS in every alternative building! Hindi and Nepali are widely spoken.


Natula! ‘The Natula pass’ is the border between India and Tibet and you will need to obtain prior permission to visit the place. Two passport size photographs & photo identity cards are required for the process. It is a 4 hour drive from Gangtok . It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Mid-may is the time our soldiers reach the Natula border and they have to stay there for two and a half years!!! The exclamation is because of the climate! May17th noon (peak summer) I was there and the temperature recorded -2 degree Celsius! Imagine in winter! Soft and tidy snow, amazing scenery, hot buns and the coffee shop named 14,000 are the highlights of the place. The Natula pass is located 14,350 feet (approx) above sea level! (omg! I was there!). There are a lot of shops that offer fur-coats and boots to enable you withstand the temperature of the Natula.


The view of Tsmogo Lake is breathtaking!! Yak there, takes us around the lake for sirf 350 bucks and it is worth the ride!
I happened to meet the little monks in a Buddhist monastery. They are supposed to eat raw fruits & vegetables and survive without sweaters, shawls & their parents for months together! I met a granny in Ganeshtok temple wearing a typical Tibetan dress and I wanted to take a snap of her. Guess what?! She told me she can pose only if I give her 500 bucks!! Unethically, I had to take a long shot of her without her knowledge!




 

Unique bright-coloured flowers are found all over Gangtok. M.G.Marg (Mahatma Gandhi Marg) is the central shopping zone of Gangtok and it is a “spit-free, litter-free" zone which for its successful maintenance deserves a big round of applause. Aritar Lake is another fascinating location and not many people know the place. A day or two spent in the DOK bungalow there can be a chilling experience! The Banjhakri falls are not to be forgotten.


 

Altogether, snow-perched peaks, ultimate & unmatched scenery, foggy & sweet-smelling streets, dark fresh-water lakes, orchid nurseries and cute kids make you feel like you live in a fairyland!

                       


Nearest airport is Bagdodra. Gangtok is a 4 hour drive from there with the Teesta River accompanying you all along. Pre-paid and post-paid taxis are available right from the airport. Nearest railway station is New Jalpaiguri. The drive to Gangtok through Siliguri is quite amusing exclusively because of the funny and interesting hoardings and sign-boards that read:

“IF YOU SLEEP, YOUR FAMILY WILL WEEP”,
“WELCOME TO SERENE SULTRY SIKKIM”,
“DRIVE LIKE HELL AND YOU WILL BE THERE”,
“ANYTIME IS SAFETY TIME” etc.