"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

I might be in love with you..

While growing up and moving from childhood to teenage, life goes through lot of changes. From choices to likes and dislikes, everything changes. Barbie dolls are replaced by nail enamel shades, kitchen sets are replaced by slam books and discussion on games are changed to discussion on boys.

Yes I said boys and yes girls discuss a lot about boys!!! (A much known fact). So all the girls would agree that from the time they enter in teenage to the time they get married, they come across different categories of boys.

Categories would basically be:

1) Really attractive guys who u think are "out of your league"

2) The average guy who u "sort of" like but still don’t LIKE ( U know what I mean!!!)

3) The guy who runs behind you like a dog with his tongue hanging out but u think "you are out of his league"

4) The one for whom u r just a friend or probably the shoulder to cry on when his girlfriend dumps him

5) The nerds and the geeks who r "Not Eligible" ( I know I am sounding rude but dat's how it is!!)

6) The extra arrogant guy who carries lot of attitude with them and u just pray that u never get to be with one such kind

7) And "The one" who u think would be perfect for u but he never even looks at you or for that matter any girl (Not because he has different preferences but because his life is already full of fun and he  doesn't need a  relationship to make it complicated)

Phewwwww.. I can add more to the list but I think it covers majority.

So, many of us would have been approached by boys belonging to either category, with their different "desires" (Yes I actually used Desires!!!) to be with a girl. Girls would turn down or rather reject the proposal for some or the other reason. But sometimes it is really difficult for a girl to turn down a proposal and also explain him the reason for doing so. For instance, when a good friend (mind it just good friend) approaches u and expresses that he feels for u, all a girl gets in her mind is that she doesn’t feel for him as he does, at least not for now and who knows what's going to happen in future.

Another would be when a guy whose is just another "gunda" of the town, start irritating you with his gestures. What would people call a "gunda's" girlfriend? No No, a strict no again. Now comes the turn of the arrogant guy, he is the one who will never approach a girl coz he thinks he has the "charm" and "charisma" that would attract any girl to him. So he will not show u good gestures, instead would start "showing" you that he is ignoring you .But we girls are smart enough to understand this and thus show a bigger attitude to the arrogant male.

That brings us down to serious thinking now, as the guy who stands top in the category list will never approach us, and the left one is the one we think is perfect for us.

But at the end it all comes down to the question "who is the one I love?" This question is very difficult when the choices are a bit too much (I am just being flattery dats all!!)

I might be in love with the nerd as he is smart, intelligent and thus would give me the required space as he has to devote his time to the hard earned intelligence also. I might also be in love with the attractive, handsome guy as he has that charisma which attracts me and thus I will be happy. But what about the good friend who has just got his heart broken by a bitch and thus has realized how good I am with him. He will treasure me and would treat as the only queen of his heart. So, if I try I might just like him otherwise too. So when a girl has so many choices with her, how can she decide who to go with and who does she actually love?

P.S. Well girls, just listen to ur heart as its says all!! It’s Ok if u like the nerd.. Just dont bother about what ur friends will think. And yes you may add on the list of categories above. Suggestions are welcome .