My Little Log Book

There are fewer things grander in European Architecture than the Palace at Versailles .  The Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles Like Louis the XIV,s motto "nec pluribus impar", the Versailles Palace is more than a match for anything of the era.  It fascinated me during my lectures on Landscape Architecture not just for its scale and grandeur, but also the ingenuity of some of the features. The kings of France took quite a bit of flak for the construction and maintenance of the Palace which eventually crippled their economy and lead to the French Revolution. But what a dream the Palace was! What started as a simple chateau and a Hunting Lodge in the forests for King Louis XIII, got transformed to one of the most grand Royal Courts in the world, that literally crippled a country in its maintenance.  The Versailles Palace reinforced the glamour and lavish architecture inside and outside with the varied and colourful court life of the Royal entourage, the French Nobility a...

 The morning of my third day at Fort William, I started for Ben Nevis. Ben Nevis is the highest peak in the British Isles and a favourite with trek lovers. It is a one day trek and one can easily reach the top if one plans accordingly. The walk from the B & B to the mountains was a distance of 3 kms. Not being an early waker, I reached the spot around 10 am. The beautiful walk had a curling field on the way. Curling was a popular old sport in the highlands which combined the raw strength of the Highlanders with strategy and skills. One has to slide huge round stones from one end of the play area to the other to reach its destination. It is called curling as the stones take a curvilinear path to reach the circle at the other end! Curling Field, Ben Nevis Reaching the foothills of the Nevis opened up a sight of a series of hills so breathtaking in beauty as only something so far up on the hemisphere can have. A stream bubbled along the foothills (River Nevis actually) and one had...

The excting day is almost here. We are soon going to Sanya and Kunming in China. While I was initially not too enthusiastic about the trip, I find I am look forward to it quite a lot now! The trip will be a short one with 2 days at Kunming and 3 days at Sanya. What I am having trouble planning is what to do with the luggage after checking out from the hotel. Hotels checkout seems to be at 12 pm. Our flights are mostly late evening. We can dump it in a cab while we take a final cruise around the city I guess. Are the cabs reliable? No idea. Is the luggage dispensable? I guess so! Easy way to dispose of 15 kgs of clothes I guess ... Will miss the suitcase of course :) But thats running away on a randon thought. The thing about trips is that, every trip is different! We have no idea at all what to expect from China. Having been there before with a much larger group a few years back, the trip was entirely different. We had submitted ourselves to a travel agent and every minute was pl...

At Paro International airport on the way back to India after an eventful trip. Checked in, security cleared, now waiting for the flight, which is almost 2 hours away, with a fresh brew of the Himalayan Java. Nothing moves without a Java. Quite like this airport. Nice to see an airport that still retains its old world charm. Otherwise all airports look the same these days ... sterile and uniform. The roof has what I call the Bhutanese motto. The checked tiles. The take off was breathtaking. In a fairy tale kind of way. The land of Dragons and the Yeti seen from the sky. Would love to come here in different climates. And explore the ancient country more. Airport Toilets.. the Paro toilet was squeaky clean. Now coming to India. Why can't we have Indian type toilets? Western toilets are being used by most urban householders and they are the target customers for airlines. But can't we have simple India style toilets that many ladies are still comfortable using? Every time I see a...

Camera - checked Cash - checked Comfortable shoes and dual purpose sandals - checked Medicine - general Sunscreen / face cream Mosquito repellent Pee Safe Tissues Sufficient Winter clothes since I don't wish to spend my nights shivering Chargers Socks Sufficient pairs of jeans tees undergarments Lip gloss, ear studs and other wee accessories Passport And again sufficient cash and cards So goes a checklist before my journey. All packed and ready to start. Despite the longish looking checklist. I pack quite light (or so I think). It's International Women's Day. Don't know why only one day should be women's Day or various other days... but somehow fitting to be starting off on a car rally to Bhutan on this day!

The planning for the trip is well under way. The flag off from Kolkata to Siliguri has started. Though we will join at a later date at Siliguri, our vehicle, an Ecosport has already gone ahead. We will be flying to Siliguri, driving from there to Thimpu and then again flying back home because to a real constraint of time. It is Time Speed Distance Rally. So a bit apprehensive that might not be able to soak in the sights. Anyways... that can happen on another trip!

Here I was sitting in the movie hall a few hours back, when I get a phone call. Not sure if it was Bajaj Finance or whoever, I text back asking them to connect later. The caller was persistent and the number didn't look like a mass marketing number. I took the call in the middle of an intense scene (Haha I am joking, the movie was Sonu ka Tittoo Ka Sweety) and the caller said she was Sridevi from Kolkata. It was interesting enough for me to text back, apologising for not being able to take the call. Well turned out it was Sridevi, an acquaintance I had made when I was doing the TSD Rally at Kolkata. She gave me some rambling explanation, the gist of which was she needed a navigator for a TSD car rally to Thimpu from Siliguri. Really? I like to think I am not one to jump into situations. And I take calm considered decisions. So a few phone calls - to the organizers, to my employers -  and I am ready for Bhutan. In a calm considered manner. So there's an upcoming car ra...

Aa Ka Ma Boi, Paana Gua Thoi, Paana Gua Toro, Masaka Dharama Moro This incantation reverberates on the banks of River Mahanadi on the day of Kartik Purnima as thousands of people descend to the banks to sail paper, straw and bamboo boats celebrating the history of Bali Jatra. The sailing of boats heralds Odisha biggest festival after Rath Yatra - the Bali Yatra at Cuttack. At the turn of the last millennium, Odisha, or Kalinga as it was known then, was a major sea faring nation and controlled many of the sea routes for trading in South East Asia. Its influence spread far and wide, from Sri Lanka to the Malay peninsula, Bali, Sumatra, Cambodia. One can still witness the many similarites of culture and architecture in Bali and Cambodia with Kalinga. One spectacular result of this confluence of cultures is the World-renowned Angkor Wat temple at Cambodia. A model of Angkor Wat in Cambodia As one gets off a bus and looks onto the grand Angkor Wat temple near Siam Rep in C...

This promises to be an interesting trip! We are off to Krabi for the Chinese New Year. By train - and mini van - and ferry and maybe foot too... Whatever, however inconvenient and crowded travelling during CNY may be - I cant wait to sample Thai food, get those Thai massages and do some haggling and shopping. Must do this time - the kids must ride an elephant! Sorry, I still dont know the technicalities of how we are reaching Krabi or the route we are taking. Wonder how Thailand will be like after the floods, political unrest...But it is not easy to destroy beauty or the innate hospitality of the people.

These 5 places to visit in Phuket are definitely not the only places/things to see in Phuket. They just make up some of what we managed in out short and sweet trip to Phuket - made even sweeter by our tour guide Ellie. Fantasea, Phuket - This is a MUST MUST watch show - showing the history of Thailan with some incredible dramatics, theatre, amazing acrobatics, magic, etc. Watch out for the moment when all the livestock run across the stage! The fairground (the setting for the show) and its atmosphere make it really a 2-in-1 outing. Phi Phi Islands - The coves, the emerald water, the snorkeling experience - wow. Includes the pristine beaches including the famous Maya Beach where the Leonardo di Caprio starrer, The Beach, was shot. Our trip included an additional attraction(???) of a hair raising speed boat ride! The trip is definitely not to be missed even if you can do without the speed boat ride... Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island - James Bond island was made famous in the...