What happens in Vegas....

Well you must have gone through various articles, reviews about the magical place in the state of Nevada in the US.
This is just another add on to those articles.
I recently visited this magical city and I will give one word to it "BEAUTIFUL". The city is beautiful though man made but it is definitely pretty to look at.

We were there for 4 days and had booked our hotel in advance. If you are planning to visit Vegas, you must have figured out by now that the best place to stay is definitely "The Strip".
Yeah , its actually called that !! It is actually a long road with sky high hotels on both its sides. You have all range hotels , in case you are wondering.

High End Budget	Mid Range	Low Range
Venetian	Mirage	Linq
The Palazzo	Treasure Island	Paris
Bellagio	New York New York
Caeser’s Palace	Encore

Day 1

We reached the city by 4 pm in the evening as we had driven from Salt lake City, Utah which took around 6 hours in total. So we actually started our day late by 6 pm in the evening. 
High Roller is a good place to start with. It gives you a bird eye view of the city in the evening time with its light in full swing. The tickets can cost around $20-$30 per person. You can find good deals on group on as well.

High Roller

Bird eye View from the High Roller

We then went to have a nice dinner with drinks at Margaritaville. Its a bar with great options in the menu. Sadly it has got long waiting ,but definitely worth it.
As we had driven all day, we were actually too tired to go ahead with casinos and all, so we simply call the day off!! ( I know its lame , but couldn't help it)


Day 2

We started our day with a delicious breakfast at Mon Ami Gabi. Its a french restaurant with awesome view and seating. Try getting a table on the porch. There are some great french options for breakfast.
Now the time came to visit the man made tall, beautiful buildings( I mean hotels , if you haven't got it !!)
Since Mon Ami Gabi is just in front of Bellagio, we started from it. I would restrict myself from commenting or reviewing hotels as every person has a different eye when it comes to art!
It took round an hour to look at the huge place.

Caeser's Palace is just next to Bellagio , so that was next on the list. It is equally huge in size with beautiful shopping zones inside.

Once we were over with the two hotels, we were hungry again and had a light lunch at some local place.
We had booked tickets for Madame Tussaud and thus it was next on the list. It is not as good as the one in London or New York, but I still liked it.


Day 3

Since we had our car along with us , we headed to Red Rock Canyon which is just 40 min drive from the strip.
It's beautiful canyon with varied color rocks. Its a huge area and requires 2-3 hours to cover all.
If you don't have a vehicle , you can try renting one or booking a cab.

Red Rock Canyon

Panoramic view of Red Rock

It was almost lunch time when we got out of the canyon. We headed to Freemont street experience afterwards. Though this place is more for the evening time, but we had a good time in the daylight as well.
If you are an adventure lover, take the Zipline. Take a look online to get an idea, what it is. It is very affordable and costs about $20-$25 a person.

We covered New York New York and Paris in the evening and were in need of a good drink by the end of it. So we headed to our hotel, played some games at the casino, drank couple of drinks and had a fun evening(Ok, I admit, more than couple drinks !!)
Look out for free Volcano show at Mirage and Fountain Show at Bellagio.

Day 4

This was a beautiful and romantic day. We started by visiting the The Venetian and I have to comment on this one. It is a beautiful hotel and gives a feel of the European cities.
One has an option to have a romantic Gandola ride in the artificial river with a rower singing along the way. Should be on your list if you have someone with you to share the romantic ride with.
After this, we headed to The Stratosphere towers and had a good lunch on the revolving hotel on the 110th floor.
One tip: Instead of buying the ticket for the top view, go for the restaurant and have a meal with the view. It is cheaper !

We headed for our last evening in Vegas and gambled and had a great evening time.

This article is just for reference if you feel like doing something extra than the usual Vegas stuff like... (you know what I mean!!)

P.S. Do try the Fat Tuesday while in Vegas. Its a must and my fav are mango and strawberry mix. So have some fun and more fun and more :)

"Happy Anniversary" among the Pink, Blue and Golden cities

Here comes another travelogue (though it is very much delayed), this time it’s the "Land of Kings": Rajasthan

The moment one thinks about this state, all that comes to mind is sand, desert, colors, forts and yes FOOD!!

That’s what our trip actually comprised of. It was full of color, lot of forts to look around, sand-dunes, desert ride and yummiest of foods. 

As Rajasthan is a big state in India so our trip just included visiting a part of it: Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer. I was very excited to begin this journey as we had planned this on our wedding anniversary (Yes, we have successfully completed a year together!!).

The plan was to visit these 3 cities in 5 days(Thanks to the IT industry, I got only few leaves approved)and it involved lot of travelling  by all  means. The air connectivity from Bangalore to Jaipur was good so we chose to start from Jaipur

Day 1- Bangalore to Jaipur - Pink city

We reached Jaipur bit late in the evening as we had some flight delays. We had chosen tried and tested Ginger hotel in Jaipur. We just rushed ourselves in to the hotel and got fresh to see this place named "Chowki Dhani".

It’s a very famous tourist place near Jaipur. A 40 min drive from the city. It opens at 4 o’ clock in the evening till 11:30 at night. I had heard a lot about this place that it brings together the heritage of Rajasthan culture at one place.so we reached the place by 9 in the night.

There are camel rides, folk dancers, handicrafts, magicians and not to forget the Rajasthani meal. The entire ambience is very colorful with female dressed in Rajasthani traditional lehenga chunris and males in turbans and dhoti kurta. The small food stalls include warm flavored milk, puffed rice snacks etc. The major attraction is the meal that includes various delicacies form different parts of Rajasthan. They make you sit down and serve you the food with warm smiles on their faces. Well I would like to add that food was below my expectations but still all the other things makes a must visit.

One of the food stalls inside Chowki Dhani

Jaipur was our starting as well as end city. After coming back from Jaipur we had almost a day with us before flying back. So we also visited the famous Hawa Mahal. It’s a very pretty Mahal with lots and lots of small windows through which wind passes and that’s why it is named so.

We didn’t go the famous forts of Jaipur as we were very tired but Amer fort, Jaigarh fort are few of them.

Day 2- Jaipur to Jodhpur- Blue city

So our journey to Jodhpur was via road. We actually travelled by bus (comfortable AC bus) which took us 7 hours to reach. Jodhpur is famous for all the forts of Maharajas around the city. Since we had just 1 day for Jodhpur, we went to the most famous one: Mehrangarh Fort

To be honest, we didn’t see much of the fort; instead we got to know about this adventure group “Flying fox” who organizes zipping event. So we just saw a bit of the fort and rest of the view was seen during the action. It was one of the most amazing experiences I have had so far. They took around INR 1500 per person for 6 stretches. If you are an adventure loving person, try it for sure.

View from the Mehrangarh fort during sunset

The fort is at peak of its beauty during sunset and we got an amazing view of it while zipping.

Day 3- Jodhpur to Jaisalmer - Golden City

After Jodhpur, it was time for the golden city- Jaisalmer. We took train from Jodhpur which again took 7-8 hours to reach Jaisalmer.

The day we reached Jaisalmer was our Anniversary so we had made plans for a decent lunch in the hotel and safari in the evening. Hotels in Jaisalmer are beautiful and each one of them is unique in its architecture.

We stayed at Rang Mahal "http://www.hotelrangmahal.com/" and I must say it was a beautiful hotel with entire look of a Mahal.

Hotel Rang Mahal

 It actually made us feel like living in a fort. A Standard room range from INR 4000- 4500 per night including breakfast. The hotel staff can arrange for a night safari in sand-dunes on extra charges. We had booked us the same. This night safari includes camel rides in the desert and u can enjoy Rajasthani meal along with the famous dances. It’s must to have this experience.

 The next day we planned to visit the Raj Mahal and local market. To our delight, it was a beautiful fort and each brick of this place was golden. I felt like I was in some different world. There are some local shops of handicrafts inside the fort which makes the complete look of the place very colorful.

After the fort we had lunch at a very ordinary and not so very famous restaurant as we wanted to try the local food. We had the famous 'kadi',’gatte ki sabzi’ and 'ker sangri' and I must admit it was better than any famous restaurants.

With this meal we ended our time in Jaisalmer and headed back to Jaipur via train for our flight back home.

P.S. Fort visit require lot of walking so it is better to carry comfortable shoes.

 

Most precious day of your life...went by in a wink

From the day a girl is born, she dreams of her being a bride one day. No matter how tom-boyish, ambitious, fat, average looking or for that matter a typical feminist she might be ; the hope of finding her dream man who would understand her and love her no matter how she looks or talks or walks, is alive in her heart. 

A girl's own wedding is not only about her dream boy or her soul-mate,its also very much about the perfect dress, beautiful jewelry, gorgeous makeup and her breathtaking darker than the darkest "mehendi"  laden hands. With all these things in her mind, a girl dreams of all the moments she will spend during that one beautiful day of her life. In her mind, she has rehearsed all events of that day so many times, pictured her different bridal looks and finally also chosen the one look she wants. 

And as the days passed and countdown came to an end, one day before the wedding, she dreamed as to how she is walking all dressed the way she had pictured herself. All eyes are stuck on her and everybody around her is awestruck with her beauty. She can hear the whispers and murmurs of  admiration around her. And then she sees her man waiting for her with his eyes twinkling and his hand out to hold hers. She gives her hand in his and can feel the trembling of nervousness.

That one moment has come, the moment she waited for so long, the moment she pictured till now. She knows inside that all this is a dream which is about to come true. With loved ones around she takes the seven vows of togetherness with him and promises to be there for him always. She knows that now she belongs to someone; someone she is madly in love with. 

That moment her eyes open and she realizes it wasn't a dream she thought she was dreaming. It was that one day of her life she had always dreamed of , that one day which she had rehearsed infinite times, that one most precious day of life ...which just went by in a wink.


P.S. That is actually how I felt after few days of my wedding. The day went by too fast. Wish it could have been little slow in its pace.

Goa - Indian Beach & Beer Land

The travel tales continue to the city of beaches in India, "Goa".Well I would rather be honest in telling my experience of the city. So the moment one think of Goa, the images of beaches , alcohol and sand flashes. But with same images when I lived in the city, the experience was different.
As I stay in Bangalore, it is an overnight journey from here. So we opted to go by Volvo buses than taking a flight.We didn't want the trip to be too organized as our earlier trip to Mauritius was.
We took an overnight Volvo from http://www.ksrtc.in/site/ and the buses were really good and clean and worth the price.It is very easy to book tickets online too.

We stayed in a hotel "Bella Rosa (http://www.tripadvisor.in/Hotel_Review-g306992-d1116845-Reviews-Hotel_Bella_Rosa-Anjuna_Bardez_Goa.html)" in North Goa and it was very near to the beaches.The best mode of transport in Goa is actully a two- wheeler vehicle (obviously if you have a license to drive!!)and it is very easy to get one.
The places to visit include beaches and forts. The popular ones are :
Vagator Beach
Anjuna Beach
Calangute Beach
Baga Beach

Shack on Anjuna Beach

Also a flea market on Thursday at shores (almost!!) of Anjuna Beach to just shop around is a good option. All sort of funky jewelry, clothes etc.Though being an Indian, u'll not find it anything different.
Agora Fort near Vagator Beach is an awesome place. The view from the top is breathtaking specially at sunset.

And last but not the least, the most famous spot in Goa is  Tito's Lane. Its a great Bar & Restaurant which opens all night with great music, food and alcohol.

And I would definitely end my post with P.S. as always
So here you go!!!

P.S.  If you have are in a group while visting Goa then superrr else beware of time as found it really deserted at night. Specially if your hotel is lil away from the beaches. ( This P.S. dedciated to all girls having plans to visit GOA!!!)
 

Mauritius: Land of sea, fun, sun tan and love

As the wedding got over, inline came the honeymoon trip and hence the Mauritian diary pages were set to be written. As every other girl, I was super excited to begin the journey. We boarded the flight and reached “Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport” (I know, the name is a hard bit!!). It was bit humid but manageable.  It was 3rd week of December and thus weather was pleasant with humidity a bit high. Out trip was organized by Cox and Kings and I must say it was really well organized.

Day 1

As we reached “ La Plantation” (Our Resort) by afternoon, the day was free for us to relax, take a spa, a swim in the pool or anything that we liked. We were welcomed with Welcome Drinks and our room (A Sea Side View room) was a clean large room with great view. So we relaxed, had great food, strolled around the resort and slept like a baby.

Our Room's Balcony 

View from the balcony

Day 2, 3

Next two days included all sightseeing. Few locations that can be visited:

1. Seven colored Earth: Well it is a sight where due to earlier volcanic eruptions certain chemicals were released which resulted in giving different colors to earth. Its green surroundings make it a beautiful location.

2. Ship Factory: Handmade models of different type of ships. It’s just another factory loaded with lots of wood and ships stuff. One can buy any size and model of ships for gifting etc. I would add that they are kind of overpriced, but that’s a personal view.

3.  Caudan Waterfront: This is the famous market/mall area where lot of Bollywood movies gets its locations from.  Kuch Kuch Hota hai had a scene where SRK meets his daughter at a bridge; the bridge is very much present here. Just nearby the waterfront is the local market or the street market. One can probably taste the local food here. If beer is your other love, then do not forget to taste the famous sugarcane beer at the Waterfront.

Apart from these, a Church, an old fort and a dead volcano were also part of the tour.

The famous Sugarcane Beer

Day 4

I and my husband are adventure lovers, so we opted for water sports which included, paragliding, banana ride, Under sea Walk on a clean island somewhere in the middle of the sea. The day was fun filled which excitement level increasing every minute. I must say that all safety precautions were duly followed and thus we had a great day. The total cost for all such sports was around $70 per person.

PS:  There are other options like safari Ride if that interests you more.

Day 5

This day was our favorite day as we took a Catmaran Cruise ride.It was not a personal cruise but yet it was lot of fun. About 1.5 hours sail to an island with unlimited drinks and food on board. With Mauritian music playing, it was bright day amidst the sea. We got to sea flying fish, dolphins (I think so, though not sure!!). It cost us around $45 per person.

Well as our trip was 6 days, last day was busy in packing and such formalities.

Few things you must not forget to carry: 

1. SPF 50 and above Waterproof Sunscreen

2. Flip Flops (As your heels might just flow in water)

3. Shades/Goggles

4.Swim Suit

Best Time To Visit: Weather is almost same throughout the year.

Recommended Resorts: La Plantation, Moven Pick, Oberoi's, Le Meridian, .

PS: Despite carrying the strongest of Sunscreens, tanning will not leave you. There will be a Mauritian  memory in the form of sun-tan that will stay with you for a while

Rise of Creativity This Valentine's

It’s really a blessing to have someone you love by your side each day you wake up. This beautiful feeling makes the day very special. The concept of Valentine’s Day is just another way to name the feeling. My special day began with the same feeling of love I always had for my valentine with flowers and candles all around me.  The small bunch of roses and that sweet little heart shaped cake brought a child like smile on my face.

This love has made me creative person (which I thought that I can never become in this birth at least!!!). I actually search new ideas to do and the best part is that I do implement them.  Well to be honest I have ample time these days, maybe that’s the reason too. But honestly, I am in love with this small rise of creativity inside me.

The Golden Phase

Last one month has been like a dream for me. I have just entered, as they say , " The Golden Phase" of my life after marriage. Celebrating the first month of my marriage with glass of wine in my hand and merrily looking at the "Empire State Building" lit in the color of love, I felt on top of the world. As the year began, along came the time I had never thought of. Traveling to the city of dreams "New York" , roaming in and out of the streets of Manhattan , shopping till death from the top brands and spending the evenings with love of my life . I mean what else a girl could ask for.
I remember, sometime back, somebody saying that marriage brings out a different you, but never believed it. Being a strong individual I always thought that one who changes is never real, but little had I known that it's not you who change but it’s the change that knocks at your door and you gladly and happily let it enter. I am not saying that the change is big( I still like the color i used to like!!!!) , but its just that u start liking other colors too.

                                        

Being a strong headed Arian, I never believed in concept of others controlling my life but as I left the category of "Single" I felt the definition of "control" changing. I realized how good it feels when somebody gladly takes the responsibility of ur life and takes care of it. I remember my married friends used to tell me that marriage comes with lot of responsibilities and changes but I am a person who tries to see the half glass full rather than the empty part. I would just say they forgot to add that along comes the love, care and pampering too.

P.S. I know its too early to comment on married life, but I thought its neither too late to begin with.

Wish The Courtship Continues....

Well, I had always heard people talking and discussing about the changes that occur when one gets married but never gave it a thought and ignored all of it thinking that it isn't for me. Little did I realize that it would be of not much but some use at a later stage of life. Well that later stage is right at my doorstep.
I am a single girl ( for just another month) who has recently got engaged and is going through  her courtship period and I must say that it is the best time of my life so far. Knowing the fact that there is someone waiting for u , caring for u, loving u is a great feeling. 
                                                                 
Time these days is flying with lots of phone calls to attend (I know , i know what u r thinking!!!) and lots of discussions to do. Basically as I am starting a new life in a new city , its altogether a different experience and with my fiance and I being in different cities and 2,217.7 kms apart ( ahem ahem, u tend to find such data wen away from ur love !!!), we have to discuss many things on phone calls. Thanks to Graham Bell whose invention led to further invention of mobile phones.
Finding a new house, searching for maids, setting up the kitchen and many such chores are in the to do list of my loving fiance. I must say that he is doing a wonderful job all alone so that when I go there I have all things available.

                                            
 It might sound boring to single people but trust me all these small things brings a lot of joy between the two of us. I know, right now it is joyous to me, as he is the one who is taking all the pain and I am simply here to tell him my ideas, but I am sure after I go there the roles will be reversed.
The days are also full of shopping and roaming around the markets to buy and bargain for things that are beyond mentioning here( the list is too long to even talk about!!). Shopping is a girl's best time pass and we actually do spend major chunk of our salaries on buying stuff that we might already be having in our lost or forgotten cupboard area!!! But lately, its been too much and no longer catches my interest. I have mentioned it to my fiance that I do not want to shop for another year maybe on which he gave me a sarcastic laugh . Actually he is rite , this is not possible!!! A year is too much for a girl to live without shopping.
From the lehenga to the latkans on the dupatta, from the nail paint to the hair pin, from the trips to the tailors and beauty salons, from new parents to new relatives, from "paeri pauna" to "love u" and from "Shaireen" to "shona" the journey is beautiful with love all around. 

सूरज की रौशनी हो या हो रात का अँधेरा ...

दुनिया  का  दस्तूर  कुछ  अनोखा  है ,कहीं  बारिश  तो  कहीं  सूखा  है 

उस  गीली   मिट्टी  की  खुशबु  में  खो  ना  जाना , सच  नहीं  वो  तो  एक  धोखा  है 

सपनों  की  दुनिया  से  निकल  बाहर ,परछाई  से  आगे  चलना  भी  सीख  ज़रा 

दिन  की  रौशनी  में  ही  साथ  देती  है  ये , अँधेरे  का  लुत्फ़  भी  उठा  ज़रा 

पड़ती  है  जब  सूरज  की  रौशनी  ,छिपता  ना  तब  कोई  राज़  है 

पर  जो  खुद  ही  छिप  जाता  है  कुछ  पल  में , ईमान  पर  तो  उसके  भी  सवाल  है 

रख  इतना  भरोसा  खुद  पर  ऐ  बन्दे ,की  मिसाल  बन  जाए  दूसरों  के  लिए 

पर  इस  गुमां  में  ना  भूल  जाना  की  कुछ  अपने  भी  हैं   खड़े  यहाँ  तेरे  लिए  

सुख -दुःख  हो  या  हो  बारिश -सूखा , रहता  कुछ  नहीं   है  सदा  के  लिए 

ये  तो  बस  वो  कुछ  खास  अपने  हैं , जो  ना  रह कर  भी  रह  जाते  हैं  ज़िन्दगी  भर  के  लिए 

माना  अकेला  आया  था  इस  ज़मीन  पर  तू , और  जाएगा  भी  अकेला  ही  तू  

पर  अपने  हमसफ़र  से  मिले  बिना  , कैसे  कहेगा  कि  ज़िन्दगी  जी कर  आया  है  तू 

Twin-headed Geminarian...

As time is passing and I am growing both by age and thinking, I have done a strange realization. I considered myself to be a strong Arian with typical characteristics and traits of the planet.
An Arian is bound to lead, to be the initiator , to be strong headed with great decision making powers. Along with that an Arian is a carefree bird with a dont care atttitude towards society ( i know it sounds good )!!!!
Well I am one of such kind and one can easily identify the above mentioned tratits in me .But lately I have realized that I am changing. I have started liking things i never liked before.Be it the food I prefer to eat or be it my favorite color.My moon sign - Gemini is having its strong influence on me. I always have two voices inside me. One is obviously the contradictory of second and thus a strong headed , decision maker arian transforms into a confused dual minded gemini with two thoughts hanging inside and thus making me feel lika a see-saw.
Is it the influence of planets on me?? Is it my growing age?? or Is it just me??
Things around me are not what I want but the irony is I dont know what I want? Yes, thats the confused Geminarian I have become. I was always the agony aunt to such confused people around me but now I need one for myself.
I am supposed to be the carefree girl who does what pleases her with no thought to its consequences. One who belives in-"fly now and pay later". One who cannot plan for future and lives in the present moment. 

But yes, I can feel the different me these days . I worry about future, I try to plan( although fail badly at it!!!), I think about the consquences and questions myself regularly which generally begins with "what if?".
I so want to be the level headed girl I was .With no offences to the Gemini's I still loved the Arian me and want it back. Oh Lord Mars, outshine on me!!!


P.S. Well Arian's do have some negative characteristics also. I just forgot to pen them down :P