International

Sections of the Inner enclosure

Trees Trounce Temple

By

What distinguishes this temple from other Angkor temples is the saddening spectacle of gigantic silk-cotton, banyan and strangler fig trees, some of them more than 40 metres high, swallowing up large sections of the temple. This is the only structure that has been left as it is by the French, – the École française d’Extrême-Orient – who were doing renovation work, to bear testimony to the wrath of nature against man-made objects.

Read More

Whirlwind Trip to Vancouver – Part 2

By

Stanley Park is an urban park surrounding the city, a two minute walk from my hotel in Canada Place. I spent an early morning taking a stroll, watching the runners practice for the upcoming half marathon, mommies walking around with their babies in strollers, and tourists walking excitedly with their cameras, posing and taking pictures of everything. In fact, two of my lab mates signed up to run the half-marathon the day after their conference presentations, and it was inspiring to see people travel across the coast to talk at conferences, and then change into their gym clothes from the formal suits and go about running miles all around the city. Hats off to their energy, although this gave me some more time to sleep late.

Stanley Park is huge, and when I say it is huge, I mean it. If you have been to Central Park in New York City, this is even bigger than that, a paved path running around its circumference. Lined with tall trees, lush greenery, and full of enthusiastic people jogging around, Stanley Park is ranked the 16th best park in the world and the 6th best in North America.

Read More

FLOATING VILLAGES OF CAMBODIA

By

The eco-system and habitat surrounding the Tonlé Sap Lake also pulsates with its seasonal flooding and draining. A great majority of the trees, plants and shrubs are deciduous. Instead of shedding their leaves during the dry season, they loose them when the lake deepens, when they are inundated. However, there are also several plant species that remain evergreen, despite being waterlogged for six to eight months, each year. They are laden with fruits and seeds, at the time of flooding.

Read More
A Trip to Bolivia – Part 2

A Trip to Bolivia – Part 2

By

We drove across the mountains, visited many Lagos, saw an active volcano, saw flamingos and other animals such as ostriches, lizards, emu’s etc. If you are not a big fan of dry lands, then maybe you could skip this tour because it’s a lot of travel by road. Especially on the mountains, you can hardly call them roads!! We had a roller coaster ride!

Read More
A trip to Bolivia – Part 1

A trip to Bolivia – Part 1

By

Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world. We left our hotel early morning around 7.30am since it as a long way to Lake Titicaca. We went by road for about an hour and then by boat for half an hour. We traveled again by road to the small island of Copacabana.

Read More

Self-Drive trip across Thailand (7 days, 2000 kms) : Part 6 – Chiang Mai

By

We also spend some time in a fantastic session called ‘Chat with Monks’. This particular wat, which is also a training facility for the young monks, offers tourists an opportunity to interact informally with the monks. There is a common area where the tourist group is met by one of the waiting monks. You can sit with him and discuss anything related to Monks/ Buddhism/ Thailand or any other topic of interest. Well, to answer the ‘why’ of it – such interactions enable the monks to practise spoken English as also widening their knowledge base and the tourists, of course gather valuable insight.

A good & handy source of drinking water is the vending machines placed at common areas. Though bottled water is available across Thailand costing B15 – B30 or more depending on when and where you buy them; these vending machines (working on coin system) offer you potable water @ B1 (one bhat) for a litre.

Read More

Johannesburg City Tour

By

Nelson Mandela Square is dominated by a massive , bronze tribute to the moral voice of South Africa’s struggle for freedom and reconciliation. The statue, nearly 20 feet tall, dominates one end of a square in Sandton, the posh white suburb of Johannesburg that has emerged as the nation’s post-apartheid business capital. Unveiled in March 2004, this is the first public statue of Mandela. But it doesn’t stand in the forecourt of a government agency. It marks the entrance to a fancy mall, built in the 1990s and renamed after Mandela in 2004.

Read More

Sterkfontein caves – Johannesburg

By

Sterkfontein caves are situated at the “Cradle of human kind – Maropeng” . “ Maropeng “ means “returning to place of origin” . Fossils discovered here are 03 million years old so it is considered to be the birth of Humanity.

Read More

Lion Park – Johannesburg

By

The carnivore camps, which currently house three prides of lions and a clan of hyena, are protected by barriers and fences to prevent the different prides from attacking one another. By nature, lions are protective of their territory and can become fierce and aggressive if other lions or prides enter their domain.

Most of the lions at the Park are the progeny of lions that were originally from Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Northern Gauteng and Botswana.
Lion park is having more than 80 lions, it includes cubs & white lions.

Read More

Revisit to Johannesburg

By

We checked in our rooms which were designed in the shape of Huts with African furnishing. The ambience of the room was stunning. Everything in the room was just perfectly done. Rooms were decorated with bright coloured African fabrics, artwork & handmade furniture. Our next four days program was well placed on the side table.

Read More

Sizzling Sydney

By

Though the view and ambience at Darling Harbour are nothing compared to Sydney Harbour, the former has one thing that the latter doesn’t – the Lindt Café at Cockle Bay Wharf. Here, the mouth-watering array of pastries, milk shakes, ice-creams, macaroons and other desserts prepared from Lindt chocolate is to die for! Yummm… sinful, did I hear someone say?

Read More

वाटरटन नेशनल पार्क और यु.एस. बोर्डर (भाग २)

By

पार्क की सुबह बहुत खूबसूरत थी. हिरण जैसे दो प्राणी घूम रहे थे. सुबह उठ कर एक चक्कर गांव का लगाता हूँ. एक दुकान खुली देख कर अंदर काफी लेने जाता हूँ, साथ ही खाने के लिए एक पेस्ट्री ले लेता हूँ. यह दुकान वाला बहुत सामान बेच रहा था. काफी, ब्रेड चोकलेट, और बहुत सा सामान. पेट्रोल पम्प भी इस दुकान वाले का ही था. साथ में साइकल भी किराये पर दे रहा था. एक साइकल का एक घंटे का किराया १० डॉलर, और हेल्मट के १० डॉलर अलग से. साथ में मोटर बाइक भी किराये के लिए थे.

Read More