Off the beaten track

Travel – the very word conjures images of never-before seen places, the sun beaming its rays on scenic landscapes, exotic food, a vast array of local eateries, a diverse crowd, currency notes of different denominations, and maybe the odd map.

Whatever it may be, and whether you choose a comfy Boeing, a humbler bus, or that perennial fixture – the rail - the excitement that builds up while making preps to set on a journey (and I mean purely one for pleasure), is unparalleled. Even my otherwise preferred pursuit of retail therapy takes a beating when it comes to travel.

Right from choosing the suitcase in which you stash your favourite faded jeans and orange-tee, to checking that your wallet has ample currency, to setting the alarm for the next day, to making arrangements for your stopover, to checking that you’ve included your phone charger / iPod / cam charger into your knapsack - is thrilling, to say the least.

So, when I change my pace tomorrow, and get out of the daily grind, and fly to be re-united with TOOMA, it sure is gonna be an exquisite, extended weekend.

Now if only I could get paid to travel. That would solve my wanderlust and ennui with one shot.

Are STA Travel and Isango listening?

Jaipur Jaunt

With the blistering heat wave hovering revoltingly over the heads of Delhiites, anyone who heard that we were going outstation for the weekend nodded in understanding.

Until they heard the destination we were headed for.

'Jaipur???' Hearing that was enough to raise perfectly-arched eyebrows, followed by ‘Are you feakin' kiddin?’ incredulous comments and accompanying eye-popping looks.

Now our middle names are ‘Determination’ and ‘Grit,’ and it is easier to shake off a leech stuck to your uhmm B_ _ (spoiler – rhymes with previous word) than to shake our resolve, so when Saturday morning dawned bright, clear, and sunny (Oh yes, sunniest), we set our for the Pink City.

Four hours later and after numerous toll-tax paying breaks, TOOMA and I drove into an otherwise beautiful city, had we been able to see it under all that dust, that is.

The wedding was beautiful though, and was probably the only consolation. Besides the picturesque highway, dotted with lazily ambling camels, cattle, and the odd elephant.

The riot of colors on prominent display, and the song-and-dance routine that is de-rigueur at Indian marriages, more than made up for the heat that had done its bit in roasting us, making us look like the BBBB (Badly Burnt Baked Beans) I am famous for tossing up.

But in retrospect, the trip was memorable.

After all, the first outstation road trip you share with your better half, always is...

(Image - The heritage haveli we stayed at)

Awesome Amritsar

So seven of us girls decided that Amritsar could do with some girl power over the weekend.

Which is why we paid a visit there this weekend.

After a six hour train journey, pouring rain and an army jeep welcomed us at the small Amritsar station.

Sights and smells beckoned us from all angles; however, journey fatigue persuaded us to do otherwise and head for the army guest house, which was to be our residence for the next two days.

Braving the rain, we ran towards the vehicle, hopping pell-mell into its open warmth.

Our prayers to the Rain Gods did not go in vain, and soon enough, the clouds gave way to clear blue skies, and a merry wind which decided to ruffle our hairthroughout the rest of the day.

After a hearty meal, the Wagah border was our intended destination, where with much fanfare and national fervour, we, accompanied by over a thousand people had decided to see the beating retreat between Indian and Pakistani soldiers.

Slogans reverberated in the air, cameras saw some of their busiest action till date,
throats went hoarse, flags were brandished with gay abandon, inhibitions were dropped and there were some very enthusiastic dancing to the pulsating music that boomed from the loudspeakers…the works

After two hours of shouting ourselves hoarse, we made our way to a roadside dhaba, where we thankfully gulped down piping hot tea

The evening sped by, and the next morning dawned too soon

Soon it was time to see the breathtakingly beautiful Golden Temple – where a multitude of approximately 70,000 devotees braved it out on the hot, humid day, in a queue that could only best be described as moving at a snail's pace

The next stop was Jallianwala Bagh – where we sobered up, the bullet-ridden walls that bore testimony to that sad day making us walk right into the books of our school history books.

Ambling down the busy streets, we wove our way to the most famous dhaba in all of Amritsar, where an hour later, we emerged like trussed-up turkeys.

Except that thankfully no Christmas knife lay ready to carve us for the dinner table.

And then it was time to catch the train back home.

The journey back was the exact opposite of the previous day's, in which we had riotously kept all our co-passengers awake, what with our endless chatter, and leg-pulling routine.

Within minutes of the train starting on its return journey, seven heads plopped to
sleep, exhaustion writ in bold letters on their faces

And to think that we didn't even do our gender proud by what we are second best at – shop, I can only say that the trip was too short…

Oh well, maybe another trip to Amritsar (this time with TOOMA) might materialise sometime…

A girl can dream, can't she?

Amritsar Ahoy!

After an extremely eventful, nope, actually call it blissful last week, this week looks pretty much mundane...no TOOMA, all five days of work, no holidays making their presence felt on my desk calendar, not even nice weather to give me company.

The only thing that is keeping me going however, is my trip with six gal pals to Amritsar this weekend.

Promises to be loads of fun...

After all, what else can you expect when you have seven women, jabbering nineteen-to-the-dozen, out on a trip, where they get to see the border of the country, complete with the Beating Retreat Ceremony and smartly-dressed soldiers, proudly marching with their boots held high?

That we will we staying in the army area only adds to the fun...

Smiles ahead of the trip

Atta Gurls!!

The swirling sands of Jaisalmer

After incessant questions from people who thought we were plain dotty to tour the desert in the month of July or that we were both on lookouts for exotic places to get married(no no, not to each other, stooopid), my friend, Radhika (let’s call her R) and I valiantly set out for our much-awaited trip to the Golden City, Jaisalmer.

And might I say, we were not disappointed.

Though the train journey of around 20 hours dampened our initial enthusiasm, books, those best friends, kept us sane. Add to that, incessant cups of tea, entertaining tourists in our coach, chattering, standing at the foot of the train step (guaranteed to give my Mom an acute case of alarming hiccups), and you get the picture, dontcha…

The next day, we descended at Jaisalmer station - a picturesque fort-looking structure (on our way to the hotel, we soon gathered that most official buildings, banks, post offices etc were shaped like forts, and it was difficult to distinguish one building from the other – thanks to the same sandstone used).

The hotel turned out to be a lovely haveli which had been converted into a boutique hotel. We were whisked to see our room, and discovered that every room was done up in a particular vivid shade. After ensconcing ourselves in the lavender colored room, we grinned at each other. We had made it to Jaisalmer. All those days of looking forward to the place could not equal the satisfaction we felt when we peeped out from behind the lavender curtains in the hotel room, and caught yet another breathtaking view of the Jaisalmer fort. Perched on a hillock, it looked fantastic, to say the least.

Bargain shopping was fun. But the most fun was going to where the Thar desert began by an open-roof jeep, and then getting onto camels. Yes, the desert safari was indeed something. While the camels gallantly plodded through the sand, we couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by the vast expanse of vacant land around us. Seeing the forts, temples, lake, and havelis in the morning, had made us feel as if we had been thrown back into time. However, now in the midst of the desert, where not even a bird fluttered, and a shrub bravely put up its head from amongst the sand, we felt in the middle of nowhere.

The sight from the top of the sand dunes was breathtaking, to say the least. The orange sun which was slowly setting, made for a sight that I won’t forget in a hurry. And when the camp people proceeded to break off some twigs, and make some fresh tea for us, the aroma that wafted towards us was lip-smacking. The sandstorm the previous day had ensured that the day was pleasant, with the sun not beating upon us mercilessly, but graciously giving way to a gentle drizzle.

The over one hour drive back from the desert was peppered with excited chatter, but after a while, we drifted off into an exhausted slumber land. The trip was rapidly coming to an end, and we knew it. Yet the eyes could scarcely stay open.

The next morning dawned with a fierce sun, which seemed intent to show us what a desert actually was. Slathering ourselves with triple layers of sun block, we made our way one last time to the market and fort, soaking in more than the sun – soaking in memories, before we made our way back home.

My only regret – I wish I had made the trip with him…Walking among the sand dunes barefeet, I was engulfed by an inordinate yearning for his footprints matching mine in the sand…

A Room with a view...

Hate crowded hotels?

Guard your privacy jealously?

The very idea of hob-nobbing with the common herd in hotel lobbies, corridors, and elevators, makes you curl your upper lip in distaste?

Well then, look no further than the Everland Hotel.

Perched atop the Palais De Tokyo (Paris), this mobile hotel offers a direct view at the Eiffel Tower.

Ohh, and did I mention, it has only one room to let out to guests?

There,…. your privacy gets a solid tick.

The brainchild of Swiss artists Sabina Lang and Daniel Baumann, Hotel Everland was originally conceived for Expo 2002. It has been exhibited in Yverdon (Switerland), and Leipzig (Germany), and since last year October, it sits pretty atop the contemporary art museum, the Palais De Tokyo, overlooking the Eiffel Tower.

People can visit it during the day, or reserve it for the night, after the museum closes. You have uptil December 31, 2008 to book yourself there, after which it will be moved to a yet-undisclosed location.

Of course, a night-out there doesn’t come cheap.

The Four Star cube-shaped hotel, which can comfortably lodge a couple, comprises a deluxe rest room, a king-sized bed, and a lounge; and would set you back by €333 for a weekday, and €444 if you choose a weekend night.

The hotel staff urges you to steal the golden embroidered bath towels as a souvenir.

Online bookings can be made at the Hotel’s website.

This one is sure one well-traveled hotel (pun intended).

A thing of beauty is a joy forever - Taj Mahal

It is said that familiarity breeds contempt.

I respectfully disagree.

Even if I were residing in Agra, and were to walk past the Taj Mahal every day of my life, I am certain that even a fleeting glimpse of the towering white-marbled structure would be enough to take my breath away.

Upon my mother’s insistence on a girlie trip to the most romantic structure in the country, she and I made our way last weekend, bleary-eyed to the station, where a languorous locomotive would chug-chug to life, and speed us away to our intended destination. So a little over a couple of hours later, we embarked at the city that houses the spectacularly gorgeous masterpiece.

Another half hour and we stood in front of the lofty domed mausoleum. Even though it was only a little over a year since I had last seen it, I couldn’t help but stare at it, stunned the same way as I had on the previous two occasions I had seen it.
Mom was agape. Pure silence followed for the next two minutes.

The early morning sun, which had decided to beam relentlessly upon all men, was duly forgotten by us. As we walked past the impeccably-tended lawns and fountains, we couldn’t help but be staggered by the very beauty of the structure that loomed before us.

Truly a place worth visiting, it is small wonder that this universally acclaimed structure of eternal love sees a steady throng of tourists, who flock to it from all parts of the globe.

After a day well-spent in Agra, we made our way back.

I couldn’t help but think about when I would see it again...

Guess I can't get enough of it :-)

The Taj

Back on Blogger after a hiatus.

What with a one-day visit to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort last Thursday, last minute shopping for my best friend's wedding this weekend, and then the actual marriage itself, my hands were full.

Office trip to Agra was fab.

The Taj obviously doesn't need any frivolous introduction.

Having seen it before, I was not really expecting my breath to be taken away.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

The milky white monument literally made all my colleagues draw in their breaths sharply - that deep was the impact.

Our well-informed(and read) guide did a great job in making us revisit Shah Jahan's golden days.

A colleague took this pic - the monument of love, understandably among the Seven Wonders of the World, stands tall, bearing testimony to a glorious past.