07 Jul

Trip to Auli-Joshimath-Badrinath-Mana

By

We hired a car to drop us to the ‘MANA VILLAGE’, 3 kms from badrinath then it was a walking distance of 1km to reach for ‘Vyas gufa’ where it is believed that ‘Vyas ji’ wrote ‘Mahabharata’. Walking more, made us reach a hill in the shape of a book, VYAS POTHI where ved vyas ji worked on the 17 ‘adhyaya’ and finding himself not so satisfied, created the 18th one there walking more, took us to the ‘Bheempul’ where Bheem kept a large stone on the ‘Saraswati nadi’ to help Draupadi cross the river. Saraswati river is really scary the sound of the flowing water was a roar with the help of some snacks, chilled water, our stomachs were not starving.

Read More

Himachal – Spiti Valley – Kaza, Kibber

By

At Kibber we stayed at Tashi Zom guest house which was just before the village separate from the rest of the village. It was really sunny, windy and chilly outside so most of the time we stayed indoor. I went out a little to take a walk around the guest house and inside the village. This is a proper village with a school and a game of volleyball was going on. There are other guest houses and this village witness some tourists. Here I met Mr. Anurag Jately and his assistant. He is ex-NGC, ex-Fox Traveller head of programming for them and he was shooting night sky in timelapse, phew!! I was just awestruck listening to his anecdotes and watching some of his work on his laptop.

Read More

Pachmarhi in Madhya Pradesh- Central India’s only hill Station

By

It was raining heavinly so we moved quickly and covered the place from different angles. To avoid rains I devised a trick and used my cowboy and raincoat hats as one person would hold the cap while second will hold the device right under it and click photos. The trick worked really nice and we managed to get good shots even in heavy downpour without any damage to our cameras.

Read More

Himachal – Kalpa, Nako, Tabo, Dhankar

By

We next stopped near Khab where Sutlej river coming from Shikpila pass towards the east meets Spiti river from north. Spiti has much cleaner water and it can be seen distinctly at the confluence. Shipkila which is a pass to Tibet/China is only around 40 km from here. One of the high peaks of Kinnaur district Reo Purgyil (6800+ mts) is also situated here.

Read More

Motorcycle Diaries. Road to Ladakh…Leh – the land of monasteries…

By

First thing first – True’s care! Our RE Team Leader Aakash had announced last evening that the bikes should get serviced, if needed, early on this day. True was cruising all fine and needed no service. However, eight days of grime, dirt and dips in water forced True to take a bath! So, I initiated the hunt for a bike/car wash center nearby. However, it being Sunday, Leh was largely shut and I had to drive 8kms on Manali Highway, all the way to the hamlet of Chogalmasar Jamba, where across the bridge exists an old acquaintance’s garage; a person whom was meeting after good six years! But, just like all other people from the hills, he was extremely warm and forthcoming. So, True was given special preference in queue.

Read More

Delhi to Gangotri, peace at Gaumukh

By

You are covered by Mountains on either side and from front Gangotri Glacier. We spent close to 1 hrs. at Gaumukh.After taking chilly holy dip at Gaumukh we decided to return. On this stretch, returning too is tough because for many kms. You have to walk on pointed heavy stones.

Read More

Badrinath Temple – One of the Holiest Dham in India

By

Holy Badrinath Temple, one of the Char (four) Dham (pilgrimage centre) in India, is the temple of Lord Vishnu in Uttarakhand. Nestled in the lap of Himalayan mountain ranges, this colourful temple stands with the river Alakananda flowing on its front and the magnificent peak Neelkantha, also known as ‘Garhwal Queen’ on its back. Just imagine, there you are, at one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in India, the Badrinath Temple!

Read More

Mesmerising Melbourne

By

Though Melbourne doesn’t have any iconic claim to fame, its ‘liveability’ is one of its greatest attractions. It’s a laid-back city with an endearing mix of old and new-world charm… an easy-going, yet sophisticated style. It’s not a place where you need to do something to feel you’re experiencing the city. So you needn’t wander around Melbourne just to tick off ‘must-see’ items on your list!

Read More
Himachal – Kalpa, Shimla

Himachal – Kalpa, Shimla

By

I have lived in Shimla long back in early 90s when my father was posted here. I used to come in summers for 2 months for 3 years, so I was keen on visiting places where I had lived and visited during that time. We lived in a suburb of Shimla there called Kelti. The route to it is from Ridge to Longwood and then towards Kelston and then bifurcate at one point towards Kelti. It was nostalgic to walk on the same road which I used to frequent 20 years back as child. To my surprise, road was just like what it used to be. Same road barriers painted green and white, the rain shelters where I took refuge many times in rains, the ascent, descent. The final leg to Kelti was still unpaved like it was at that time. Though this time saw more people crossing me with phones in their hands, hoardings and presence of vehicles.

Read More

Kolkata-Sikkim-Darjeeling trip

By

After all this, the last thing on our list was a visit to some tea estate in Darjeeling. To go there was one part of the pleasure and the next best part was to sip a hot n nice cup of tea there! It was really a divine experience and I had about 3-4 cups of tea- each of a different variety!

Read More