Many of us have heard about the Loch Ness monster. For those who haven’t, the Loch Ness Monster (or ‘Nessie’, as it is locally called) is one of the most intriguing news piece that is said to be sighted every now and then in Loch Ness in Scotland (Loch is Scottish for Lake). Some argue it to be a jurassic age dinosaur that has escaped extinction and some call it a one-of-its kind species that has chosen Ness as its habitat. But most people now believe that the monster is just the creation of the mist-filled, windy conditions on the lake that create illusions and also the mind-work of some publicity starved researchers and locals. Whatever the truth, the monster ensured that my mind was filled with excitement while visiting Loch Ness on our trip to Scotland from London.
Loch Ness is right in the middle of the Scottish highlands. It is possible to visit the lake as a day-trip from the Scottish capital of Edinburgh, but for those with a little more time on hand, I suggest they make the city of Inverness to the north of the lake as their base for exploring the highlands.
I had some work at Nainital so it was not really a pleasure trip but I did stroll on the Mall for quite a while and probably discovered things worth sharing. So first things first. Started early morning from Delhi on Oct 14 and took NH24-Moradabad-Bazpur-Kaladhungi-Haldwani-Naukuchiatal and had lunch at Lake View Resort. Good food, decent prices, no bar (trying to create the setting). Had some work, finished, reached Naini by 4.30 odd via Bhowali and checked-in in Classic Hotel (05942-235173), its right on the mall, fairly decent hotel, nice and clean. There wasn’t much competition and we took the bait for a double at Rs 2100 (which has a rack rate of Rs 3500) with complimentary breakfast. So far so good, some TV and we (me and wife Smita) were out on Mall.
The mall was not crowded. I have been to Naini before and Smita has been to this place umpteen times (when she was young their fav summer vacation joint was Naini Mall, the only other way their preference was different from other Delhites was that the other set goes to Mussorrie, that are THE two places Delhites go, summer-winter and in all other months), so coming back, it was really vacant. Very very few people. (more…)
Holidays on tuesdays/thursdays –and wednessdays if you are gutsy ;-) , are devices to convert weekends into treks. This year we paid tribute to Bapu by walking 36 kms on his birthday. Sabarmati to Dandi translated to Sankhri to Har ki dhun.
We didn’t do much homework, or should I say the literature available on Har ki dhun was too little and misleading. Ideal trek for a first timer. Unless you want to temper a first timer to know trekking is serious business, it is far from ideal. I suppose since there are Forest rest house and GMVN on all stops on this trek is why it is considered easy. Another extreme factor for us was the drive. Factors like scurrying with work deadlines on Friday, lack of homework on finding the shortest route, trying to avoid the Kalsi- Chakrata gate and bad road condition, spirit of adventure trying to discover a new route, and the lure of Rajgarh waterfalls worked against us so that a drive of 540 kms thru Delhi-Solan- Rajgarh, Nauradhar-Haripurdhar-Raunhat-Tiuni took 21 hours. There is NO road after Nauradhar. It was virtually like making our own map. Don’t laugh if I tell you return journey was only 12 hours via “Via Minas”. Peculiar that it is, via-minas, as one word, is locally a very common way in Tiuni, to mean the route from Minas-Shillai-Satuan-Paonta Sahib-Pipli to Delhi. Another good route to delhi is via Mori-Purola -Naugaon-Damta-Yamuna pul–Musorrie… (more…)
As winter approaches, Delhi is one place I am definitely going to miss while I am out here in UK. For me, early winter (late-October and November) and late winter (February) are absolutely the best times in the Capital. Especially around Diwali, the city is so festive and yes although we all complain about the huge traffic snarls, I still simply quite like it at that time.
Last winter, we decided to do a novel thing on a sunny winter sunday morning. We decided to take advantage of the Delhi Metro for the first time ever, and fulfill our need for the family’s favourite activity, food!
I would consider myself one the fortunate few who have had the chance to sample true Delhi street food. And that’s available no where but in the very heart of Old-Delhi. My mother grew up there, so she knows the nooks and crannies where truly and distinctly characteristic savouries are available in Old-Delhi, all on the street and gali-corners.
Parking our car at Central Secretariat, we took the metro to Chawri Bazaar, where one suddenly ascends from the depth of a modern underground station into one of the most chaotic and crowded of Old-Delhi’s main markets. The contrast is really overwhelming, esp for someone new to these areas. But our attention was not really on the rickshaw and cart-pullers and loads and loads of pedestrians. There is a small Chat shop called Kedara’s chatwala on the Chawri Bazaar main road, and I have craved for his aloo mutter chat ever since I can remember. So this is where we started our food tour in Old Delhi. The chat here is prepared using “proprietary” masala which this guy even sells in packets now. One must remember to tell him to put little or no chilly in the chat, if one is not habitual of “death by fire” experiences.
Having started on a great note, we walked through the streets of Ballimaaran onto Nayi Sarak. Here, on a little stretch somewhere in the middle, there are a lot of cheap Sari shops lined up side by side. In front of one of them, is a Matra Kulcha hawker, who sells matra (not chhole, as many of the likes of Haldiram). Again, the preparation has a taste of its own much better than anywhere I have tasted in West or South Delhi. So having a taste of this next, we stopped by (of-course) at the Sari shops where my mother did her mandatory shopping, managing to strike mind-blowing bargains all the while.
Nayi Sarak, by the way, has many shops selling second-hand books for all kinds of Curriculums. Going ahead on Nayi Sarak, we turned right towards Kinaari Bazaar, at the corner of which sits a Kachauri hawker. Now this guy is the locals’ favorite, makes extremely crisp fresh Kachauris all the time which he serves with Aloo sabzi and chutney made of methidana(fenugreek seeds) and pickled kachaloo (a variant of potatoes). Thoroughly recommended fare. Kinaari Bazaar, by the way, sells all shiny and shimmering things, to be put on gaudy dresses that women in our country usually wear only on special occasions, fortunately. :-)
Right down the lane is the famous paranthe-wali gali. The paranthas here are actually deep-fried in ghee or oil, and are a health freak’s biggest nightmare. We had already been eating so much, so we decided to take it easy and just shared 2 paranthas between the four of us, much to the raised eyebrows and disgust of the irritably loud shopkeeper.
From paranthe-wali gali, one emerges onto Chandni Chowk, where upon crossing the main road to the other side is a popular Dahi-vada hawker. Amazingly soft, juicy vadas in dahi with authentic tasting chutneys, this was a perfect sweet ending to our food tour. I guess there is good Kulfi available at the same spot, but even though the spirit was willing, the belly was full.
From here, we just strolled to the Old-Delhi metro station down the corner, and went back into the humdrum and monotony of the Sagar-ratnas and Moti Mahals of this world.
We were not able to visit Karim’s near Jama Masjid, which is an absolute delight for the non-vegetarian. It has been rated as the top North Indian eatery in Delhi by Times, and that does feel justified, even though one must forget about cholestorol and calories while eating there.
Disclaimer : The fact that I have grown up liking the taste of the old-delhi fare doesn’t mean it will suit everyone’s palate. Even though one may not want to sample all the food, a walk through the absolute chaos of old-delhi exploring the jewellery, book, and cloth shops may well worth be the effort itself. Note the words “absolute chaos”, so you stand warned :-)
