Traveling is good
Then panda took us to Anand Bazar area of temple and went away to collect Mahaprasad for us. It was offered to each of us on pattals i.e banana leaves. A huge variety was there but I think children will not like this as it consists of rice, daal and several other items most of which is not liked by children. At last we were offered Rabri, which was very tasty indeed and satisfied our taste buds.
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We left our home at around 11.20 p.m. and our first stop was “Mardeshwar Temple†, Palikhanda, a place  located adjacent to high way itself. We decided to take blessings of “Lord Shiva†to start the journey. It was around 1.15 pm we left for our next planned stop “Shamlaji Templeâ€. We were at “Shamlaji†around 2.50 pm. After having darshan in the temple, we took a bit longer break here for some refreshment. I am avoiding writing historical details of this two temples as authentic information is easily available on web and there is no point writing it again. We left shamlaji at around 3.30 curiously waiting to reach our final destination.
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The events that preceded her journey to Spiti gives any solo woman traveler a sense of deja vu where families restrict and discourage solo travel owing to the many infamous incidents known to them.
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When in Doubt, ask again. Ask someone else if you feel that the shmuck you just asked for directions was an inebriated nincompoop. I believe that even now, in the age of GPS and other bond gadgetry, the ultimate GPS is still the roadside paan wallah. Such is the level of accuracy & dependability, that i think they should be hired to proofread the local Google maps data.
You stop by a tapri/ khokha (as referred to in mumbai), light up a smoke, order a sweet paan, strike up a light conversation about how good or bad the weather is, and that’s it. Camaraderie set. The paan wallah will now easily divulge even the most complex info about the routes to take, routes to avoid, probable shortcuts & other awesome places to see in between. Screw you, GMaps !! I got my own local wiki/GPS/navigator/tour-guide.
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The streets of Mahabalipuram are a photographer’s delight. The city is famous for stone sculptures. You can get your sculpture done within 3 months and get it delivered to your place just by giving your photograph and your measurements. The murals of deities, elephants, bhuddha’s are a very common sight. It is an eye feast to look at the workmen at work, carving intricate designs on the stones. I got to speak to one such person, Surya , who was diligently making a Ganesh idol. It took him 3 months so far to make the below idol and it would fetch him 35,000 INR. These idols are made  using the machinery as well as traditional hammer and chisel. It gives altogether a different experience to stand among numerous idols which are going to make it temples where we are not allowed to go even 5 steps nearer. After a brief visit to the workshops we headed to the Arjuna’s penance.
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The slate cutting factory with the old rusty machinery al around. Slates were used for roofing, fencing etc. and was big business then. The factory was eventually closed down in the 1969 and now serves as a National Slate Museum.
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Dubai is synonymous to “Opulenceâ€, very place is grand be it malls, beaches, roads, deserts, buildings or architecture. Our trip to this exotic location was planned for the last week of February The weather during this time around is pleasant with occasional showers. We travelled by Indigo Airlines which gives an option of getting the visa issued incase round journey is booked by them.
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Andaman and Nicobar islands are home to some of the most beautiful beaches. Picking a spa hotel or a beach resort in one of the many islands such as Havelock Island or Neil Island will ensure your wedding is conducted in the silky smooth sands of the Bay of Bengal beaches, witnessed by the golden red rays of the setting sun with the promise of a wonderful future together.
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Pattaya in Thailand is famous for adult fun and is not usually considered for family travel. However, it offers great experience to all kinds of travellers.
Come visit Pattaya with Vrinda (Kuhu). Vrinda is 8 years old. In this video she shares with you her top 5 tips on Pattaya, Thailand .
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Driving through Rishikesh in darkness, we could not see much except the twinkling diyas after Arti on the banks of Ganga. Though it was pitch dark, it was impossible to miss well lit billboard of the Bull’s Retreat ahead of Shivpuri village and we were warmly greeted by courteous Mohinder and staff of Retreat who shifted quickly our baggage to two rooms alloted to us.
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We booked a resort called “Sanman Beach Resort” in Alibag which is a little away from main town right on Varsoli beach. The resort has a sister restaurant in main town which I had visited 4-5 years back and had liked it very much. The only lunch I had there was still reminiscent in my memory and relishing their seafood delicacies was one more reason for me to tilt towards Alibag. The resort is quite reasonable with AC deluxe rooms at Rs. 2600 per night. They also have cottage accommodation at Rs 2200 per night and we stayed in both over two days.
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Harihreshwar and Divegar are two very beautiful beaches in the south of Raigad district. Instead of Alibaug why not visit them next time which is 41/2 – 5 hours drive from Mumbai. For the extended weekend in the month of February we wanted to cover a part of western coast. Between Ganpatipule and Harihreshwar we finalized the latter. Our itinerary included 2 nights in Harihreshwar and one night in Divegar. The way the western coast stretches to the south of Alibaug is Divegar, Srivardhan, Harihreshwar and little ahead is Velas. People do the first three as triangle but we included Velas instead of Srivardhan which I will clarify in the latter part.
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