Unknown Tracks

Kabini: Yet Again

2011-10-31T17:39:00.003+05:30

What can one write about Kabini JLR that is not alreadywritten? I personally believe that it’s the most beautiful property amongthe ones that I have visited. The staff here is amazing and ensures you have acomfortable stay. The naturalists are patient and are always ready to answerquestions thrown at them. Most being: how many leopards or tigers have you seen? Have you seen a tiger kill? Will the leopard attack us?There was also a question where someone wanted to know if the Crested SerpentEagle would attack the jeep. Of course they answered all with a smile eventhough I am sure they have answered these a million times.

So this time I thought I will write about my most memorablesightings and observations.

There is always an expectation of seeing wildcats when in Kabini, the sighting is purely a matter of luck. This time around lady luck was kind to me, I got to see leopards in two out of the 4 safari I went on. While the first was a fleeting glimpse during the jeep safari; the second was on a boat safari, where I was running fromone end of the boat to the other to get pictures. The second sightingis more memorable just because of the people involved. While the safari started most of us were lost in our own thoughts, some looked at the birds whileother asked about the lone tuskers on the banks. Suddenly on the way back,someone shouted leopard and everybody on the boat was alive and looking out.Once we saw him the cameras were out, fortunately or unfortunately my camerahad a slightly better zoom. Soon everyone was making way for me to get atleastone decent shot. Once done e-mail IDs were exchanges and copies of the picture wasrequested for. But this also helped make new friends and the evening was spentnarrating the leopard sighting.

The other exciting sighting for me was to watch the Ospreyfish. While the bird was too far away to take pictures, the whole episode will remain in my memory forever.

Seeing an otter pup was the other highlight. We were on the jeepsafari along the backwater and had stopped to observe an elephant and wenoticed there were 4 otters on the bank. Looking through the binoculars we noticed the group had pup. It was about half the size of the adult and keptfollowing the group. When the group got into water one adult stayed on the bankwaited till the rest went in and followed them. They swam close to the shoreand soon went out of sight.

While I looked forward to the safaris, time spent betweenthe safaris turned out to be quite interesting as well. Since JLR had 100%occupancy on both days, there were a lot of people around.

The group I observed the most were a bunch of 5th graders froma school in Bangalore. It was amazing to listen to them talk. The girls mostly spoke about mid-night party they had, while the boys spokeof different things the saw during the day. One particular conversation I remember is about stopping Tiger Poaching.

The 2 boys were having dinner, they had just come back fromthe video screening at JLR. From the conversation I assumed that the topic ofpoaching was touched upon. One of the boys wanted to have electrical fencearound the forest so that poachers would not be able to get in, on hearing thisthe other boy dismissed the idea saying the tiger’s coat could also get burnt by the ectrical fence and hence they needed a better plan. They finallydecided that they would build walls around the forest. This way the tiger couldjump over and cross when it needed to and the poacher would not get across.Even if the tiger crashed against the wall since it’s big and strong it willsurvive and a human would break his bones. The smile on my face must havegiven me away because the boys realized I had eve’s dropping and changed table.

The other quote that I heard as we waited for the safarijeep was “ I am not perfect but I can run”

Nature walks were another place where I got to interact withpeople specially kids. There was one who wanted me to name animal he had justseen. When he finally found his animal and pointed it to me it was a pill bug.The kid was so excited when I touched it and it curled up. But he didn’t wantme to hold it as he thought it will bite me. It was fun answering his questionsand clarifying things.

Then there was a couple fascinated by the kingfisher. Everytime we saw the bird we would stop so that they could get a picture.They kept calling it the blue bird

I also met a couple whose interests were so different, whilethe wife loved outdoor and nature; the husband loved to sit indoors and takeoffice calls or play games. It was interesting to watch both. While one was excited about birds and spiders, the other wanted only the wild cats.

Kabini JLR has never failed to impress me and it lived up tomy expectation but this trip also gave me a insight into people and theirthoughts.

A Sip of Wine at Channapatna

2011-09-13T15:25:00.000+05:30

TOI on 27^th Jul 2011, mentioned Winery Visit in one of its pages. Since Dad makes wines as a hobby it caught my attention. A quick call to them and we had the needed information.

It was decided that we will visit the place on Saturday and understand the process of wine making a little better.

The place is located close to Channapatna and is open to public between 11 and 4. The directions were very clear. We had to take the left just before Kadambam on Bangalore- Mysore Highway. There was also a sign board indicating the same. We had to drive about 4 kms more from here.

Though we took the left turn, what we didn’t know was that there was another left to be taken after 2 kms. The Yellow stone board had some alphabets missing and we passed it without noticing it. Another call to the winery and after asking around in the village close by, we were direct to the right place. A kilometer ride on a mud road led us to the winery. Suddenly in between the fields and mango groves, we found a huge, newly constructed structure.

We were first taken to the Guest House and shown a video on wine types and wine making. This is a video for about 15 mins and if you already know about wines then slightly boring. After that comes the winery visit. While the company currently makes only fortified wine (port wine), manufacturing of table wines are underway. The plan to release this in the markets in the next 6 months.

We went back to the guest house after this for wine tasting. We tasted the port wines and the red wine that they are yet to launch in the market. The wine tatsed so much better here than the ones we had bought in the retail shop and consumed. The secret we were informed was in date of manufacture. Though wines manufactured in

India

have a validity of 1 year, contrary to the popular belief of older the wine better it is, these need to be consumed as fresh as possible.

Tasting done we were ready to leave. We bought a bottle of wine and headed back to Bangalore. A stop at Kamat Lokaruchi for Lunch and our trip was complete.

A brief about the process

The wine manufacture here right now is forfeited wines. Grapes are bought in from Devanahalli and Chickabellapur region. It is then put in a crusher and stems are separated. We were told the grapes are not washed as the skin has yeast like deposits that help fermentation. The quality control team ensures that chemical is not used while growing grapes.

After t e crushing S2O (2-3 mpp per ton) is added and its sent off to ferment in huge stainless steel tanks. Its left undisturbed for 2-3 weeks, where the seeds and skin separate from the juice. The tank is hot to touch on the outside. This is due to the ongoing gases released during the fermentation process. From here the juice is tested and decision is made on the amount of sugar and alcohol (2-3%) that needs to be added. Post that its sent for filtration and then off it goes to be bottled, label and transported to distributors.

Kabini Explored

2011-08-23T15:33:00.006+05:30

As always the case, it had been a while since my visit to the Jungles, my last trip there being the Brahmagiri Trek. So when a trip to Kabini JLR was suggested I quickly agreed. Luckily since it was a weekday the tents were available.

Left at 6 from Bangalore and other than for breakfast there were no stops or breaks in the journey. The last 12 Kms stretch to JLR was a nightmare to drive as the roads are very badly maintained.

But once I reached JLR itself all that was quickly forgotten and I was excited to be there. I had vague memories of Kabini JLR, from my visit here in my teens, but the property looked prettier than what I remembered.

Since I was hungry, quickly dumped my bags and headed for lunch. The food like in all JLR properties was awesome, simple and tasty. After tucking in more than the usual amount of food, I was ready to explore JLR.

The gardens were in bloom and this gave me a chance to capture butterflies, spiders and bees.

Time seemed to have passed really quickly and soon it was safari time.

With great expectation we boarded the jeeps. Of course the hope is always there that we get to see the cats, but I had also requested for stops when any bird was spotted. I didn’t know then that the naturalist in the jeep (Shivanand) was a great spotter and knew names of birds and animals.

Encounters with wildlife started right in JLR, the gardeners handed over snakes in a bottle to be left in the forest. Shivanand pointed out birds as the jeep drove past them

Once in the reserve Spotted Deer/Chitals and Langurs were plenty, there was a lone guar near a watering hole who posed for a while. Then there was an elephant that crossed the road. As we drove along, another jeep from the forest department mentioned spotting a Leopard going for a drink at GK bunk. We quickly headed in that direction, drove around for sometime, but with no luck. The other spotting that evening was another lone female elephant and sambar.

Back in the resort, hot pakodas and coffee gave me company as I read a book. Dinner was again very good and I ate more than my share.

The safari next day started at 6:15, initial sightings were only birds, but as we got closer to water we got to see some elephants and strip necked mongoose.

The highlight of that safari was seeing the Crested Hawk Eagle at close quarters. It was a beautiful bird that let us watch him for good 5 mins. The other bird I was excited about was the pygmy woodpecker. It was so small it mistook it was a warbler till Shivanand pointed it out.

Back from the safari took a short boat ride and once done with breakfast, I was ready to leave. Since the sun was out there were a lot of butterflies around so spent time chasing them. And then I was back on the road to Bangalore. So ended a peaceful trip into the wild.

Most Memorable from Ladhak

2011-07-28T20:19:00.007+05:30

Though the whole trip is unforgettable, these will continue to be the some of the most memorable events.

Ever Changing Landscapes

Right from the beginning of the trip the landscapes keep changing. Every 20 Kms or so, there is something new to look out for. Be it the shape of the mountains, the sudden change in colours, snow-capped mountains, the plains, cultivation between barren mountains, view of rivers, sand dunes. It’s hard to put down the camera. This is one of the reasons that the drive doesn’t get boring. My personal favourites drives are the Pangong to Hanley, Darchu to Sarachu, Leh to Nubra Valley

The Feel of Snow

For the first time in my life I experienced snow at Kardungla. Trying to get flakes on my hand and feel snow was fun. The Black tea served by the Army helped warm me up in that cold hour. It was also interesting to see the design formed by ice on the older snow piles

Tsokar Lake

The mountains surrounding it, the color of water, salt on the shore, gentle waves created by the wind, almost no people around, all this make it truly awesome. The other reason that I like this lake is due to the number of bird calls I heard. Though the final decision was against over night stay, after seeing the place I wished I had stayed. There are other lakes around Leh but this one has very few places to stay at and therefore the crowd is lesser.

People

When I travelled to Ladhak, I was not sure what to expect from the people here. Would this place be like the other tourist places where people are out to make money or will I have experiences that will truly touch my heart

I had a share of both, more of the latter. 4 people who really made a difference are

Mr Akbar (nabilay@yahoo.com), he was someone who helped us get permits and organized our trip in Leh. He ensure that we go a good place to stay at and our trip was memorable. The rates for taxi and hotels were lots cheaper than what others had offered us. While most people hadn’t heard of places like Warli and Hanley. He ensured we got permits to go there.

Our driver during the journey around Ladhak. He was someone who knew the place well, never complained when asked to stop zillion times to take pictures and was giving us advice that helped us avoid being hungry and thirsty during our long drives. I missed him during our trip to Srinagar as that driver was cranky and painful.

My hosts at Rainbow Guest House. This is a family run guest house, with clean and reasonable rooms. Fresh, home-cooked vegetarian food is served based on order. What makes this special is the ladies who run the place. They are always smiling and welcoming. Even though there were restaurants close by at the end of the day I would be back here for my meals.

Mr. Shaban, owner of Shera Palace Houseboat in Srinagar. Though I initially met him to stay in his boathouse, on request he ensure my whole trip in Srinagar was taken care off. When I didn’t find an auto on the first day, he was willing to come and pick me up. Very rarely I have come across people willing to go that extent.

War Memorials

Since the region borders with 2 other nations and our relations with them aren’t the best, there are many war memorials around (Chushul War Memorial, Rezang La War Memorial, Zozila War Memorial and Kargil War Memorial). Each tell a story of bravery and sacrifice by our soldiers, the extreme conditions in which the war was fought. While each one is worth a visit to pay respect to the brave men,

Kargil War Memorial gives one details of the war, how the battle was won, weapons used, names of the soldiers and extract from their dairies. I found this to be a humbling experience. Nothing I have done so far come close to the sacrifice these men did.

Shera Palace Houseboat

This is boat house on Dal Lake (Sulehman Ghat, Nehru Park) in Srinagar. This was the first time on a houseboat for me. Riding the Shikar for the first time was scary as it wobbled. I was sure my luggage and I would be in the lake before I got to the houseboat (I was convinced otherwise after a demo by the boat man). Coming back to the boat house, It truly looked like a palace. Carpeted all the way, chandeliers hanging in most rooms and antique looking furniture it was beautiful. The old caretaker (Chacha I called him) added to the charm. He made some awesome Kashmiri Gustaba and Kawa. I could spend days sitting at the deck and watching the shikara going by.

Srinagar Airport

When I was trying to identify travel agents to help plan my Leh trip, one of them suggested that I reach the airport 2 hours early. I thought he was joking, but then everybody else gave me the same suggestion. It was only when I got there I realized why. Since Kashmir is a sensitive region the security check are 4 folds. The baggage goes through 3 rounds of checking. Since it’s a small airport and all flights take off around the same time it gets very crowded. With all the security checks and people breaking the lines it gets disorganized. I stood in queue for 45 mins just to get into the airport and another queue for 15 mins just to get a seal on my camera bag. Thanks to all the advice received I didn’t miss my flight

Welcoming Monsoons in Kemmangundi

2011-06-08T15:42:00.005+05:30

It’s a known fact among friends that I don’t like monsoon treks due to the increase in leech population and the fact that I believe if I have walked all the way to the top of a mountain or hill I should be able to see a view and not cloud cover.

So when Kemmangundi trek was announced in office I was eager to go and for this I was willing to for-go attending a wedding in Coorg (to be read as good food and pandi curry).

30 people on the trek meant a nightmare when it comes to coordination, by the time everyone assembled and the briefing was done it was close to 12. Though the first few hours were spent playing antakshari slowly heads started nodding and soon almost everybody had dozed off.

The next time I open my eyes we were at Kalhatti Falls, the starting point for our trek. As the day was just breaking, one could hear the Malabar Whistling Thrush at a distance and other birds chirping along, a perfect start for the day. While the experienced trekkers cooked breakfast, the rest of us walked around exploring the temples and the falls near by.

Since we didn’t have plates, leaves were used and breakfast was served on it. Soon after we were ready to start.

The initial trek was along a stream and through coffee estates

and if one kept a look out he could pick wild berries and fruits. Of course, one would think twice before waiting for long as there were leeches everywhere. We had light showers along the way but that didn't hamper our spirits. In about 2 hours we had reached the mid point for our trek, Manakiadhar Falls. The falls was a sight for sore eyes.

One could only imagine how it would look in peak monsoon. While some took a dip, rest sat around to regain energy. After a quick lunch of Chappati, jam, chutney pudi, pickle and mixture we were ready for the next stretch. This was an 85 degree climb and most of us struggled all the way. But when we reached the peak, we realized that the climb was worth it. The landscape was beautiful.

Clouds playing hide and seek, rain pouring down at the distance, paddy-fields elsewhere, sunlight on a distant hill, words can hardly describe the view.

After a short break, we headed to the anti poaching camp to pitch tents. (One has to take prior permission to camp here as it’s a part of Bhadra Reserve Forest. We didn’t know and had to pay a fine of Rs 200 per person) .

Once here while most of us lazed around the organizers and the experienced trekkers went about making tea and dinner.

Finally, we were done at 10 and tiring day meant that the night passed very quickly. While some of us had a peaceful night inside our sleeping bags, the rest found the night to be very cold and hadn’t slept.

The day started with some hot tea and Lemon rice. At about 10 am we were ready to head back. We scaled the hills a little more to reach the ridge.

After that it was a downhill walk towards Z point in Kemmangundi. The rain made the climb down slippery but most of us managed it with just one causality. It was late afternoon when we reached Kemmangundi and so the plan to visit Hebbe Falls was dropped. We ate lundin (Lunch and Dinner) at a Dabba near Kadur and headed back to Bangalore.

Pointers: This trek can be completed in a day and Hebbe Falls can be planned for the next day, but the stay on the top makes the whole experience more beautiful

More Pictures of the trek in the link below

https://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/Kemmangundi#

An Overnight at Srirangapatna Part 2

2011-04-27T16:42:00.005+05:30

The start of the morning turned out to be wet and cool due to the rains and very soon turned hot and humid. The day was reserved for exploring Off –beat places in Srirangapatna. After breakfast at Pegasus we checked out and went to meet Vinay , he is from Royal Mysore Walk and was taking us around.

We started with Paschima Vahini Ghat.

Though I had passed this place many times on the way to Coorg, this was the first time I had visited it. This is supposed to be the place where one of the tributaries of River Kaveri flows in a different direction as opposed to the main river. This is considered extremely auspicious and ashes of many great personalities like M.K Gandhi have been immersed here.

The next stop was the flag post close to the Mysore gate, this is the highest point in Srirangapatna and one gets a 360 view of the town from here.

This is also next to Tipu’s rocket manufacturing and testing unit which is now used as the sewage control unit for the town.

Vinay managed to connect different occurrences in history with what was happening in Srirangapatna and hence the narration became even more interesting. He also had old maps and pictures that made imagining the events easy.

From here we headed to the Chola temple situated behind the Lal Mahal.

It is said that since people climb the Gopura (Tower at the entrance of temples) of the temple and peeked into the palace, it was taken down.

The priest at the temple have been there for 10 generations and the records of Vijaynagar Empire contains instructions on the amount of groceries that needs to be provided to the priest here. One can find this detail written on a tablet in the temple. Photography is not allowed inside the temple and it closes at 10:30 am

A small drive from here was our next stop, old railway station office.

First look at it one is transformed to Malgudi Days. The pillars in this place are from the Mysore Palace. When the wooden palace was burned down the salvaged pillars and doors were donated. Since it was considered inauspicious to keep remains of a burnt palace, there were few takers and hence they landed up here. With the laying of double track between Bangalore and Mysore this building will soon disappear. I hope this time as well they are willing to donate the pillars; I would love to take 2

Close to the station is the weapon storage unit (Gun room) used by Tipu Sultan.

This is also something that will be gone when the tracks for Bangalore Mysore is laid.

After exploring this part of town we headed to the Obelisk.

This is situated close to dungeon and gives you a beautiful view of the river from the tip of the fort. The Obelisk is built in memory of the British Officers and units who died during the siege of Srirangapatna on 4th May 1799. There is also a theory that the breach of the fort happened here as opposed to near the water tank. Close to this place there is a wearhouse which used to be a hospital built by the British.

From here we headed to the water tank, the last stop for our 2 hours guided trip. This is close to the place where Tipu’s Body was found and one of the stories about the breach indicates that it happened here. The trip ended with Vinay talking about the dying Sultan and the end of an era.

Early breakfast meant that we were hungry by the time our tour ended. We headed to a roadside restaurant towards Mysore called Poojari’s Fishland. This is definitely a place I would recommend to fish lovers. The food was yummmm and really fresh. After stuffing ourselves, it was time to head back to Bangalore and it turned out to be about 5 hours journey.

Pictures

https://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/Srirangapatna#

An Overnight at Srirangapatna - Part 1

2011-04-27T16:19:00.010+05:30

It all started with plans for girls day out, friends planning to catch up sans husbands. But then the plan sounded so good that the hubbies joined in as well.

Long Weekend meant that we had very few places to choose from. After some failed attempts to find accommodation in the popular holiday destinations we decided to do an overnight at Srirangapatna.

We read about a place called Pegasus Art Bistro and decided to give it a try. (Of course beggars can’t be choosers).

Though we left at about 8:30 am, due to holiday traffic we took 5.5 hours to cover the distance of 120 Kms. Tired and hungry we finally reached Pegasus.

The rooms at Pegasus were nice looking and the creeprs growing on the roof and around gave it a pretty look.

The rooms had abstract painting done by the owner’s late husband and made it cozy.

While we settled our lunch was being cooked. Luckily the host is a good cook and we got some tasty European Food. The long journey and heavy lunch has made us sleep. While some wanted to rest, Akshata , Kavisha and me decided to visit Ranganatitu. By the time we got there it was almost closing time.

Unfortunately for us since it was the last ride for the day, the guide/boatman looked disinterested and didn’t point out birds.

Seeing us with bird book, binoculars and camera people on the boat, kept point birds and asking for names. Luckily for us they were the popular birds and we could easily identify them.

The only time he mentioned the bird was when we saw a Night Heron and started looking at the field guide to identify it. That’s when we realized that he knew the birds that were around. The ride was over in less than 10 mins and for a longer ride we were asked to book the 1000 Rs Boat Ride. We decided to do that some other day. After walking around the shore for a while we headed back to the home-stay

Just as we settled in at the home-stay the sky opened and we had a downpour that lasted through the night. The night’s stay was uncomfortable due to the leaks the rains caused. Everything around had a wet feeling. Though we were tired the night turned out to be a sleepless one.

The owner recognized this and charged us less for the stay. She mentioned that the leak was due the fact that the tiles had just been laid and they had not yet faced a rain to identify leaks

Pictures:

https://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/Srirangapatna#

Information:

The resort is situated on Mysore By Pass (Yelwal Road). The road is pretty bad especially the stretch close to KRS dam turn on.

The Bird Sanctuary opens at 7:00 am and one can hire a boat for 1000 Rs and get a 30 mins ride. If you are a birder I think that this would be a better option than the regular rides

List of Birds Seen

House Crow
Jungle Crow
Black Kite
Brahminy Kite
Black Ibis
Black Headed Ibis
Painted Stork
Open Billed Stock
Night Heron
Pond Heron
Rock Pigeon
Spotted Dove
Pied Wagtail
Jungle Babbler
White Cheeked Barbet
Rose Ringed Parakeet
Common Tailor Bird
Pale Billed Flower Pecker
Crimson Rumped Sunbird
Common Iora
Darter
Little commorents
Eurasian Spoon Bill
Common Flame Backed
White Browed Fantail
Spotted Owel
Red Vented Bulbul
Red Whiskered Bulbul
Indian Robin
Pied Bushchat
River Tern
White Breasted Kingfisher
Stock Billed Kingfisher
Pied Kingfisher
Common Myna
Jungle Myna
Hopper
Baya Weaver Bird
Little Minivet
Magpie Robin
Swallow (too far off to ID)

Brahmagiri Revisted

2011-03-03T13:54:00.005+05:30

Brahmagiri has always been close to my heart, maybe because it’s in my homeland. The last time I attempted this climb one of my friends got bitten by a snake. We had to return from Narimalla.

This time I was keeping my fingers crossed and hoping I would reach the peak. Based on the driver’s suggestion we decided to drive through Nagarhole Reserve Forset. This meant that we had to wait till 6 am for the forest gates to open. Since we reached there at 3, most of us caught up on our 40 winks. As it neared 6 vehicles started piling up.

Since we were the second vehicle to pass, we hoped to spot some wildlife.Unfortunately the only wildlife we saw other than cheetals

were some wild boars and a fox. The next stop was at the forest office in Srimangala to get permission. This took a while as we had to wait for the officers to come by. Our first meal for the day was supposed to be at this tiny restaurant/schack, but by the time we reached there we were told that all breakfast items were over. We had to make do with bread and coffee.

At Irrupu Falls our guide was waiting. He was the same person who was with us the last time we attempted the climb and remembered us only too well. We filled our water bottles at the falls and started the trek.

The initial 3 kms was through the forest and we didn’t feel the harsh rays of the sun on us. Since I was out of form, the climb was tiring and I took multiple breaks. Most of the streams along the way had dried, an indication of the summer creeping in. Once in the grassland, fortunately there was cloud cover and we didn’t get burnt.

By the time we reached the camp site (Narimalla, forest guest house) it was 12:30 pm. We decided to take an hour’s break for lunch and then head out again. Lunch was some yummy gojju and chappati. 30 mins of rest and we were on the move. Most of the trek was supposed to be

through flat grassland from here. Midway we spotted a bunch of Lion tail macaque and spent time taking pictures and observing them.

After about an hour of walking, we were at the base of Brahmagiri. The climb looked steep and once we started our ascend we realized how steep it was.

I had to use my hands as well to climb. This stretch of 1 kms took about 45 mins to climb. The view from the peak was breathtaking. How I wished that the hills were green instead of the brown though.

After some photo sessions we headed back. The descent was as tough as the climb, with some of us sliding down to avoid major fall.

As we neared narimalla, there was a sound of hoofs, before anyone could react we saw a Sambar running in fear. Excited we waited for a while to see what had caused the animal to run like that, but there were no signs of anything. Disappointed we continue walking.

By about 6 pm we were back at the campsite.

Some of us went to the stream nearby to freshen up, while I heard dogs bark, lucky few saw a pack wild dogs run across the stream. This was topic of discussion for sometime and kept occupied.

Soon the boys went about cooking dinner, while the girls learnt how to Jive from Abhi. It was 9 when we started the campfire and ate dinner (Upma and Payasm). We sat around for a while chatting and then decided to sleep. The other group, who were awake for longer, was noisy and at some point few from our gang had to go out and warn them. Other than that the night was uneventful.

The plan next day was to trek Narimalla, but by the time we got up and had breakfast, most of us didn’t want to climb, so we decided that we would head to the waterfall near by and spend some time there. After that we headed back to Irrupu Falls and from there to Bangalore.

As we drove through the national park again we saw, langurs, Gaur, cheetals and Malabar Squirrels. We stopped at Hunsur for a late lunch and reached Bangalore by 8 pm. With that my dream trek to Brahmagiri could be ticked off my list.

Ballakallu and Kodekallu

2011-02-03T15:32:00.005+05:30

Spending few minutes the middle of a forest fire was not my idea of a relaxed weekend trek, but that is how the weekend turned out to be.

The trek to Kanoor Kote had rekindled my love for long walks in the forest, so when this trek was proposed I was all set to go.

This trek was to 2 hills in Charmadi Ghats, Ballekallu and Kodekallu. Aravind had done some research about the place and had all the details that were required. We packed food at Kotigehara and after 15 minutes bus ride we were at Bidurtala village deviation the start point of our trek.

The deviation was blocked by 2 jeeps. We first thought they belonged to the forest guards but on closer look they looked like estate jeeps. When we spoke to them they mentioned that Bidurtala was attacked by elephants and they were waiting for forest guards to come by. They suggested we turned back and trekked elsewhere. After some discussion with-in the group, we decided to carry on and access situation once we got to the village.

The slightest sound as we walked had us jumping out of our skins; we approached each curve in the road with caution as we didn’t know what it had in stored. And then suddenly we heard the jeep. We thought it was the forest guards; imagine our surprise when we saw the jeep from earlier drive past with tourists in them. Our guess of the whole situation after that was maybe the guys we met earlier had promised an exclusive trek to these guys and didn’t want us there. Hence they tried scaring us off. The truth we will never know.

Once we realized there was no threat of elephants attacking us our pace was relaxed, we stopped every now and then to take pictures

and soon reached Bidurtala Village. We stopped by a stream to eat breakfast. The village had 5 houses, upon enquiry one of the villagers agreed to take us to the hills. The person was really old and could not hear well, but turned out that he knew the route pretty well.

The trek to Kodekallu was a short one, within 45 mins of walking we were there.

The scenery all through was beautiful. Kodekallu offered us respite from the heat and had enough place around to camp over night if one wished. Since none of us were tired we decided to carry on towards Ballekallu.

The walk to Ballekallu was mostly through open grassland.

The sun was merciless and some of us stopped constantly to drink water and rest

. When we were about a kilometer from the peak we stopped for a break and suddenly after about 5 mins we could hear crackling sounds. We looked up to see that our guide had set fire to the dry grass;

it took us a minute to realize that we were in the middle of man made forest fire. The fire was spreading fast but our guide didn’t seem bothered, he wanted to walk through it. After some argument, we decided to follow him. So we walked through the burnt section and crossed it to reach the peak. While we monitored the progress of the fire, we managed to rest for some time on the peak.

As it was getting hot and the fire was still spreading we decided to head back to the village.

Once at the village Aravind enquired about a waterfall he had heard about, the guide took us there. Since it was hot we decided to spend the afternoon by the waterfalls. At 3:30 pm we decided to head back to the main road and hitch a ride from there. It turned out none of the KSRTC buses stop; finally a kind-hearted jeep driver stopped and took us all the way to Kottigehara

From there we took a bus to Chikamagalur. Since our bus to Bangalore was only at 11pm we walked around the town, visted a local fair, played games and sat in giant wheel. Finally when we got into the Bangalore bus we were exhausted and within minutes fallen asleep.

More Pics: https://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/BallakalluAndKodekallu?authkey=Gv1sRgCJnAu7eu85WhjQE&feat=email#

Route Map- Horanadu Bus to Kottigehara – Bidurtala village stop (on route Dharmasthala) – 4 Kms hike to the village and then trek to the hills.

Kanoor Kote Conquered

2011-01-14T13:53:00.001+05:30

The plan to trek upto Kanoor Kote was made because my manager from Geneva was coming down and I had promised to show him the unexplored, little known parts of India.

After some discussion with my friends, we decided to do the trek with Sharavathi Valley Group.

As always we left on a Friday night and headed out towards Jog Falls. How could one visit the region and not stop at Jog.

While I didn’t expect Jog to be overflowing with water, the sight that I saw was disappointing. There was hardly any water and one could hardly hear the falls. The only thing in abundance here was tourists. After some hot cup of coffee we headed out to Kanoor.

When we reached there a hot breakfast of Idly , sambar and kasaya awaited us. We quickly freshened up and attacked the food.

Once satisfied, we were ready to scale the hills. The plan was to cover some waterfalls on day one and then do Kanoor Kote the next day.

We had to go through a steep descent to get to the falls. Some of the first time trekkers found it really hard and took a lot of time getting down. Once down, it’s a treat to all the five senses: sound of flowing water and birds singing, breathtaking waterfalls (Haaragere), sweet tasting water. Most of us were ready to spend the whole day there. While the swimmers took a dip here, some of us climbed to the next level of the falls and cooled our feet; this was supposed to be the place where we stopped for lunch.

The best thing about going with this group is the fact that you get freshly cooked, hot food. Eating rice and sambar with papad in between a dense forest is an awesome experience.

Post lunch, we walked along the stream towards Vasugatti Waterfalls.

Most of the walk involved hopping and skipping on rocks. The final climb was at an 80 degree angle from Vasugatti Falls and was the toughest. By the time we were done, we were hungry and could eat anything. Luckily for us we were serve hot bajjis and tea. The day ended with Hot bisibele bath, Chapati and Palya and Payasam.

Though the plan was to start early the next day, since we asked for Rice Rotis it took longer to make and we started at about 9 am. Though the trek upto Kanoor Kote was not a difficult one, it was mainly through flat road, paddy fields and small stretch of forest; it was a long one.

The fort suddenly appears out of now where and has creepers and plants growing all over. The complex has been looted by treasure hunters and is in a bad state.

With all this the fort and the temples in it still had a charm. It talks of an era thats bygone. There are some very pretty carvings around.

While some of us walked around the fort, the guide went looking for water to start cooking. Since the water source had dried up it was decided that we would head to a tribal hut close by and cook there. It was heavenly to eat freshly cooked food in the middle of a forest.

Soon after lunch we started off again as the walk back was long. Since we had some first time trekkers we were taking twice the amount of time to cover the distance. As the shadows got longer we started getting worried as the region was known for sloth bears. It was decided that Mike and the guide would walk ahead and bring the TT into the forest. When this happened it saved us walking 5 kms of the trek in the dark. By the time we reached back it was well past our departure time. After quickly freshening up we headed back to Bangalore.

Pictures in the link below:

https://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/KanoorKoteTrek?authkey=Gv1sRgCITBl9b68N3cHg

Lesser Know Hoysala Temple – Nuggehalli

2011-01-04T14:53:00.007+05:30

When visiting the famous Belur and Halebidu temples, I was told that there were other lesser known Hoysala Temples around Hassan and Bangalore. Then in 2010 a friend of mine visited about 17 of those and after looking at the pictures I was waiting for a chance to visit those places.So when Nuggehalli was suggested for a day trip, I was eager to go.

We decided to take the Magadi road to avoid traffic on the National Highway. This turned out to be a scenic drive and Sachin kept narrating interesting pieces of history as we passed couple of old temples and Magadi Fort. I spent time spotting birds and requesting for stops every time I saw some bird close enough to be photograph.

All the birding stops and 2 stops to eat meant that we took 5 hours to reach a destination that would ideally take max of 3 hours.

We reached Nuggehalli by 1 and headed straight to the Laxmi Narayana Temple. The first look of the temple was not impressive.

It looked just like other temples from more recent times but once you walk in you realise it beautiful. While we waited for the priest to come and open the main temple, we started exploring the sculptures on the outer walls. The carvings were similar to other Hoysala temples, with different rows of elephants, horses, people, mythological creatures and creepers.

Most of the bigger sculptures were of Lord Vishu in different forms, depicting stories associated with that form.

When the priest came we went in to take a look. Ceiling of the temple was beautifully decorated with different designs of lotus. The Idols inside was of Krishna, Narashima and Lakshmi. On the whole the temple was worth the visit.

Next stop was Sadashiva Temple.

Though this is a Hoysala Temple, the outer walls is not decorated with carvings like the others. The pillars are quite plain.

I felt the grandeur of Hoysala was missing. Since we could not find the priest we could not enter the main temple.

On talking to a local at the temple, he mentioned that we could try and visit other Hoysala Temples closed by. As we drove around looking for the temples, we spotted on top of the hill that looked promising.

After being misguided for sometime we finally managed to reach the foothill. From here it was a 20 mins climb to reach the temple. After we reached there we realized though the scenic view was good, there was not much of the old temple left. The village authority was renovating the temple. Disappointed we headed back.

By the time we descended the sun had set and our tummies had started making rumbling noise since we had missed lunch. The focus shifted to getting food. Stopped at Mayur for a quick dinner and headed back to Bangalore. We stopped on the way to look at the stars and Sachin pointed out the constellations. We decided to drive via Nellamangala this time and the new elevated flyover was a joy to drive through and provided a perfect end to the day.

Route Taken

In order to reach Nuggehalli one has to take the Hassan Road from Bangalore and take a right at Hiresave (near the Telephone Exchange).

More Picture

http://picasaweb.google.com/belliappaaishwarya/Nuggehalli?authkey=Gv1sRgCLDKysX9st_k7AE#

Lepakshi – A Place Lost in time

2010-12-06T17:37:00.003+05:30

Lepakshi was on my to-do list sincefor a long time. Since this place was only 175 kms from Bangalore, it was an ideal get away. Spur of the moment decision on a Friday was how this trip was planned.

Except the last 10 Kms the roads to Lepakshi is well laid and we were driving at a constant 100 kms/hr most of the time. The only drawback is that other than one Kamat Restaurant, there is no other place to stop for a quick bite.

Once we reached the temple each of us took our camera and walked in different directions. While I looked around for a guide, I found a group discussing about the temple and decided to join them. It was fun because along with history and details about the temple, they discussed mythological stories related to the sculptures.

The fascinating thing about the temple is the wall paintings on the ceilings. Each section depicted a different story, some mythological and some related to the people who built the temple. After I got back I realised I didnt have a single picture of the paintings

The other interesting bit is about the wall with blood stains from Virupaksha (the temple builder) gorging his eye out and throwing it on that wall to prove his innocence .

If one had a day to spare this definitely is a place to visit.

As we headed back, since we had time to spare, we decided to stop by at the birth place of Vishweshavraiah . There is a museum built here with collection of things like his Bharath Ratan and other awards, his pass book, his dairy etc. It is amazing to see the simple life style the great man lived and remember the great work he did for India.

We spent about an hour there and then we were ready to head back. The drive back was uneventful except for the slow moving traffic as we entered Bangalore.

The pictures are in the link below
http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/Lepakshi?locked=true#

Birding in My Backyard

2010-10-31T14:04:00.006+05:30

When my parents were contemplating the idea of travelling to North India for 2 weeks, I opted to work from home during that period so that I could keep an eye on things there.

While I was not working I was hoping to experiment with my newly purchased camera. After the initial bit of resting I was ready to explore. Having attended NTP and actively followed the posting by the group, my knowledge about birds was slightly better. Its been a week since I arrived and this my account of what I noticed.

The first day when I managed to get up early I was greeted by the cries/calls of woodpeckers. Though at that time I didn’t know the call, I followed the direction it cam from and was glad to find 2 pairs of Common Golden Backed Woodpecker

After I chased them for a while, I gave up and was walking back when I found a Rufos-Backed Shrike sitting close by

At a distance I noticed some jungle Myna

The evening had some more surprises stored for me. As I walked around the property,

calling continuously was an Indian Rufos Babbler.

As I went closer I also caught sight of spotted dove

During the week in between my calls I managed to catch a glimpse of the following among the flowers and fruit trees

While I spotted a lot of birds, I was at loss when I had to identify them. I had left my field guide back in Bangalore, and from experience know that my sketches weren’t of any use in some cases. Luckily mom had a copy of Feathered Jewels of Coorg by Dr. S.V Narashiman and this proved handy in most situations

While I am extremely excited about all this, I can’t help but wonder why I took so long to uncover the beautiful of the place I grew up in

More Pics here: http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/MyBackyard#

List of Birds so far

House Crow

Jungle Crow

Red Cheeked Bulbul

Red Vent Bulbul

White Breasted Kingfisher

Jungle Myna

Indian Rufos Babbler

Rofus Backed Shrike

Large Egret

Twany Eagle

Large Pied Wagtail

Grey Wagtail

Purple Sunbird

Black-Lored Yellow Tit

Great Tit

Pied Bush Chat

Indian Robin

Oriental Magpie Robin

Greenish Leaf Warbler

Asian Brown Flycatcher

Jerdon's Chloropsis

Black Drongo

Common Swallow

Common Golden Backed Woodpecker

Brown Headed Barbet

White Cheeked Barbet

Greater Coucal

Spotted Dove

Plum Headed Parakeet

Blue-winged Parakeet

Indian Pond Heron

Hanging Parrot

Velvet Throated Nuthatch

Eurasian Blackbird

Ashy Woodswallow

Chestnut Tailed Starling

Scarlet Minivet

Scimitar-Babbler

Scaly Thrush

Loten's Sunbird

Pale Billed Flowerpecker

Fleeting Glimpses of New York

2010-10-11T15:31:00.005+05:30

This was going to be my first trip out side of Asia and I was excited. Since the whole thing got finalized in the last minute I didn’t have much time to do research on places to see and had absolutely, no idea what I was going to do once I got to New York except seeing Statue of Liberty.

A colleague and long time friend of mine (Tylsley) offered to take me around and I was glad that I was seen the city with someone I knew.

Let me start off with the area where my office is. It is in the Heart of Time Squares. I was apprehensive about how I would find it and when I walked on to 7th Avenue 45th Street, amongst all the signage there it was the orange (Thomson Reuters Color). All I had to do was walk under it and I found the office. To know that my company is among the ones on Time Square make me feel proud

As for the evening there was no fixed plan I was going to take it as it came. By the time I finished work and wound up it was about 7 and so Tylsley suggested we started with the areas around office.

The first places that we walked by was Radio City, NBC Studios and Rockfeller Building (a tall building with a little history). A stop for peace and serenity at the St. Patrick Church; the walk then took us through Diamond District, Trump building, Tiffiny’s diamond store, Plaza Hotel and Central Park. We then took the a subway to Broadway, peeked in to the WTC site, walk by St Paul Church, past city hall, that bought us to Brooklyn Bridge. The walk on the Brooklyn Bridge was beautiful. It was amazing the see the city whiz past was we walked by enjoying the view. By then I was tired and since it was late I headed back for some sleep.

The next free evening I had I wanted to see Statue of Liberty, at least from a distance. The plan was to take the Stain Island Ferry. But before the ferry, Tylsley took me to the Pier 17. The place gave us a awesome view of the Brooklyn Bridge and the waterway. We spent great deal of time walking around and getting pictures. And then we walked to the ferry. This is a free ferry that gave a great view of Manhattan and New Jersey city line. The ferry took 10 mins and went right past the Statue. The view is breath taking and cameras clicked non stop.

Then we walked to Wall Street, I could not leave New York without seeing the Big Bull. So the path took us there and then to the Stock Exchange and Trinity Church. After that Tylsley had a surprise planned. We walked past the WTC, New Jersey Station and then a Shopping Mall and we were at a Dock. From this place we could see New Jersey and since it was not crowded it had a calming feel to it. Since it was late, that had to be the last place I visited in NY for site seeing.

The good thing about going with Tylsley was that he told me lot of the town. He was open to answering stupid questions about the lifestyles and habits. He knew the place for the best cheese cakes (Juniors, wish I ate more of that), the place that had awesome Mexican Food, the little Italian place. The Other thing was that he knew these small tucked away places that gave the best view of the city line. If it hadn’t been for him I think I would have covered about 10% of what I did.

Hidden Beauty - Devaramane

2010-08-06T14:26:00.007+05:30

Summer was just around the corner and I was dying to do a trek before all the water sources dried up and very thing turned brown instead of the usual green around the Malnad region.

Luckily for me I am part of the adventure club at office, so when decision had to be made between the popular trekking places and new places some of us managed to convince the group to explore a place called Devaramane.

An overnight journey from Bangalore bought us to a place called Mudigere. Dawn was just breaking when we go there and some of us who were awake staggered along with the driver to the only visible coffee shop. The warm coffee woke us up and while we waited for the coffee shop owner to pack breakfast for us we took short walk around. As the sun rose in the distant hills we were ready to head towards Devaramane. Since this was an unexplored place we had to stop time and again to get directions. Finally we were at a small village at the base of the hills. When we enquired about the trek routes in one of the houses, they promptly offered to send one of the estate workers to guide us.

To start out trek we had to drive another 5 kms more, initially through coffee estates and then through breath-taking landscape. The hills sprawled all around and the raising sun had given them a different gleam.

The trek was to start from a 300 year old Shiva temple. The sides of the door were decorated with terrifying demons carving. But the interiors were cool and calming. In front of the temple there was a huge lake and we decided to eat our breakfast here and then proceed.

During the initial part of the trek our guide pointed out different peaks. Some which were familiar and conquered; and some never heard of before. Slowly we started breaking up into groups, the fast walkers leading the way with the guide and the rest huffing and puffing far behind. As we walked we would come across places where the view became even more beautiful. We would stop and take pictures. The Guide would tell us story about each of the hill we walked on.

(He told us about a man who had taken a walk down a cave (considered impossible) that led him to wise man who had granted him a lot of gifts. On return he had given those gifts to different people. When the last of person came for his gift, he was given chew betel nuts. He threw them on the floor with disgust and cardamom sprouted in the places where these nuts fell. Once can still see the opening of cave the man walked through.
Another hill (Buntkallu) resembles the walking stick he used when he walked down the cave)

As the sun climbed the skies we walked closer to Minchkallu, our destination. We were still 3 kms away from the peak when we decided to take a detour and stop by at the stream to eat lunch. The stream was by a bunch of trees between the shola forest. Water was almost drying up here. Another 4 more weeks and I doubt there would be any water left. We filled our stomach with Chappati, Chutney Pudi, Pickle and Corn Mixture Roll. A strange combination but when one is hungry you hardly notice.

While we ate our lunch the guide suggested that we head to the Gavi (cave) nearby instead of the peak. Based on our current pace he feared that if we went to the peak, it would be well past sunset by the time we got back.

Though one could not go into the cave the spot by itself was beautiful. After speanding about 20 mins there we decided to head back. Finally just as the sun was going to set we reached the temple. After some rest and a quick shower we got ready to cook dinner. The boys took charge while the girls looked on. As night descended the girls were asked to build bon-fire and help set up the tents. Since some of the sticks in the tents were broken it took a lot of time to have them up. By the time we finished dinner was ready, we had lemon rice and curd rice for dinner.

After spending some time around the fire we soon retired to bed. Everybody was up early next morning. After another round of cooking and eating we were ready to head back. Since the tempo we came in refused to drive all the way up we had to walk 5 kms. Having walked on the hills this walk on tar road was boring. After 2 hours we were back at the base.

Since we still had rest of the day left we decided to visit a waterfall near by. But when we reached there we weren’t given permission and had to return disheartened. Our final destination Horranadu, after a quick darshan and delicious dinner, we were on our way back to Bangalore.

More Pictures can be found in this link :http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/Devaramane#

Georgia Sunshine Village

2010-08-02T16:08:00.007+05:30

Just completed 5 years in the company and the trip to Georgia Sunshine was almost like a celebration for this. It was a fun trip with friends from work and their families.

We had heard of the home-stay from a friend of ours and decided to give it a try since we were looking for a place somewhere close.

After a good breakfast at SLV in Banashankari 2nd Stage we headed out on Kanakapura Road at 9:30 a.m. Luckily for us the roads were good and we managed to reach Malavalli Junction by 11:30. The home-stay is about 10 kms from here.

We had to drive through a short stretch of gravel road to reach the place. Just as we got there, we found the road blocked by a tempo traveler. Since we could not find the driver anywhere, the men decided to push the TT to the side.

The home-stay is a quite tucked away place between 2 hills. The only sounds you can hear are peafowl and cuckoo cries at a distance. The bird watcher in me was excited about the prospect of spotting some. I decided to wake up early and go for a walk next day.

In the afternoon while the others slept I explored one of the hills. Remembering sessions from the NTP program, I watched out for signs of birds and insects. Watched some red cheeked bulbuls and jungle myna hop between shrubs. The sun birds and peafowl could be heard at a distance. The sight on the top was beautiful and I cursed myself for not carrying a camera and notebook. As just as I headed back to my cottage I saw a spotted owl, he was sizing me up and we looked at each other for a while. Then he got bored and flew away and I went to narrate my experience to my friends

Rest of the day was spent swimming, playing Table Tennis, Foozball, Pictionary, eating and drinking. For the priced charged the food was not great. I enjoyed my desserts but the rest of the food wasn’t something I would remember. We retired to bed by about 1 am.

Next morning some of us were up and about early. We decided to visit the canal nearby. It was a short walkand since it was early we managed to spot birds like Gery Horn Bill, Rose Ringed Parakeets, Owl Copper Smith Barbet and regulars like sun bird, myna and crows.

The other interesting sight was the butterflies. We saw some pretty ones and managed to capture some on camera (yeah finally). While we were not watching the butterflies some of us tried swinging on the Banyan roots, it bought back memories on childhood. After an hour of walking we headed back for breakfast. And before we knew it it was time to head back to civilisation

More Pics in the link : http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/GeorgiaSunshineShivanasamudra#

A day on Meruthi Parvatha

2010-07-22T14:01:00.010+05:30

The start of monsoon brought back the familiar trek itch. Since it was going to be a one day trek it fit well with other plans that I had for the weekend

We left at about 10 p.m from Bangalore. Since it was a hectic week I was tired and dozed off immediately. Only when I heard the bus conductor scream Basrikatte Stop did I get up. That was at 6 in the morning. Quickly gathered the luggage and jumped of the bus, luckily the bus to the next destination was just leaving. We managed to board it and find seats.

Basrikatte is a small village in between the hills. Since it was still very early in the morning of the 3 food joints in the village only 1 was open(Hotel Lakshmi Bhavan). The hungry lot that we were we pounced on the first thing we could find. While the hotel prepared the dishes for the day we kept eating these. Finally after dozens of idly, vada, upma and coffee we were a satisfied lot. After packing lemon rice for lunch from here we were ready to start.

The initial part of the trek is though Tata Tea Plantations (Merthi KhanPlantations) therefore we had to stop by at the manager’s office and take permission. The morning sun and mist gave a beautiful effect to the whole plantations. We walked in a relaxed pace talking about tea and coffee stopping now and then to take pictures.

Soon the plantations disappeared and the path became steeper. There was barely any conversation except people asking Arun for directions. As we huffed and puffed we could hear Arun hum some old hindi songs. This synced well with the birds singing at a distance.

As we got closer to the peak the tree cover disappeared and the sun was harsh but the scenary got better. We could see range of hills and clouds forming beautiful shadows on them. As the path got steeper, based on the speed of walking small groups started to form. As we climbed 3 hills to reach the peak the distance between the groups increased significant. Some of us who reached the peak earlier found a comfortable spot and went to sleep while we waited for others to join. This turned out to be a bad idea, most of us ended up with bad sun burns. Once the rest joined us we ate lunch, spent time discussing and started our descend.

This was a longer route (about 12 Kms) but was mainly on jeep track and turned out to be very boring. Along the way we met some locals who were kind enough to offer water and juice. Just as we neared our final destination (Honnavar) the boys stopped at small waterfall to freshen up while I walked ahead to find a lodge. By the time we met again and finished our coffee it was time for the evening puja at the temple. Then after a quick and tasty dinner at the temple we were ready to head back to Bangalore. As soon as the bus started to move all of us dozed off bring the trekking trip to an end.

Naturalist Training Program by Jungle Lodges and Resorts

2010-04-22T16:54:00.007+05:30

Recently based on recommendation from my friends I decided to register for the Naturalist Training Program conducted by the Jungle Lodges and Resort. Since the course was popular I was advised to call them immediately and confirm my participation.

Until I went for the session I would always wonder why my friends during all our treks would keep running behind birds, after all what can you see that you didn’t see the first time or at a distance. It wasn’t that I didn’t look at birds or notice them, but what would I keep looking at them for? I was hoping for NTP would help me understand that better.

The session was for 3 days and hence had to take off from work on a Friday and I was looking forward to a good break from work.

Having reached a little earlier had enough time to relax and talk to the other early birds (Sandip, Ganesh and Shafi). Karthik our trainer and the Chief Naturalist for JLR was already there and spent time with us while we waited for the others. Soon the rest of them arrived and it was time to start.

The ice breaker session was very different; we had to give our selves names of animals starting with the same alphabet as our names. It was fun and tied in beautifully to the remaining session.

The course was designed to have some sessions indoor and some outdoor ones. Though the indoor sessions were informative and interactive I preferred the outdoor ones more. Not that the indoor session was bad, it was interesting with anecdotes and beautiful photographs by Karthik but the outdoor sessions were more practical.

Though the session touched upon various aspects of Nature and what it meant to be a Naturalist, the focus was on birds. During 8 hours of outdoor session (nature walks) collectively we identified about 80 species of birds.

It started off by us making notes of the features we noticed (beak, chest color, rump color, tail shape). Until we had the details on our notebooks we were not allowed to mention names of the bird. While I could easily spot birds, had a tough time recognizing them, I always missed the most critical features. Guys with Bazooka would capture the birds beautifully in their cameras and this was used as reference points when in doubt about a bird.

Karthik is a walking encyclopedia on any topic related to nature. He could look at a silhouette or listen to a call and tell which bird it was. Listening to his encounters with wildlife it seemed like the sanctuary was in the site next to his house. Most of the pictures were of animals, reptiles, insects and birds around his house.

When not in class we would be sitting around talking, considering we had a mix of people like a doctor, lawyer, Techies, Chef, Entrepreneurs and Coffee Planter the conversations were always interesting. I was always found around the group that was discussing food. Along with birds I discovered new places to eat biryani.

I didn’t realize how the 3 days went by. Getting back to civilization and work didn’t seem appealing but that’s the life I lead and had to return.
Now that I am back from the session there some changes in the way I do things. Earlier when I spoke to someone I would look at the person’s face, now if I am outdoor I tend to look out for birds, some movement somewhere and not at the person.
Instead of looking out for autos and bikes I look for feathered bi-pied. While walking I will stop suddenly in the middle of the road and look at the tree (a bird) and the people around wonder what I am upto. But I have no complaints, for I have realized that I don’t need to go to the jungle to look for wildlife, I am surrounded by it.

PS: Names as I recall them – Antelope Aishwarya, Ant Ashwini, Vulture Vikram, Kingfisher Kanchuki, Rabbit Rohit, Civet Chandramouli, Seal Serisha, Snake Sameer, Robin Rajlakshmi, Viper Vinay, Vampir (Bat) Vivek, Gaur Ganesh, Sambar Shaif, Nilgai Naveen, Shikra Saandip

When the Hunter was hunted

2010-04-09T14:18:00.011+05:30

In a general conversation it came up that a trip to the wildlife sanctuary was due, especially since it was the season to spot the Big Cats. A quick call to JLR confirmed that they had few vacant rooms and thus the trip to Bandipur National Park materialized.

Since the road to Bandipur was in good condition, the distance of 220 Kms was covered in 5 hours. This included a stop at Kadambam for some yummy South Indian breakfast.

Since we had arrived early, I decided to catch up on sleep before lunch. The lunch was simple buffet that served South Indian food (We had similar food through out our stay). After lunch we had sometime before the evening safari started. Spent this time sitting in a hammock under a fig tree. The spot was ideal to watch birds as the figs attracted a wide variety of them. We spotted Koel, Lesser Coucal, Copper Smith Barbet, Purple Sunbird, Grey Hornbill, Ashy Drongo, Brahminy Starling, Pale Billed and the Jungle Crows.

Soon it was time for the safari and the expectation was to stop atleast one of the big cats. The conversation in the jeep was around stories of earlier spotting of cats; people didn’t pay much attention to the spotted deers that grazed along the road. Once we entered the jungles the conversations died, everybody was on the look out. Luckily the jeep we were in had some bird watchers. We would stop now and then to look at birds; for me the highlights were the Red Muniya, Crested Serpent Eagle, Honey Buzzard and White Bellied Wood Pecker.

30 minutes into the drive the jeep came to a halt, the sight that greeted us was 2 Male Sambar fighting and at a distance there was a female. With the jeep engine switched off, one could hear the antlers clash loud and clear. After watching them for sometime we carried on with our hunt for the Cats and as time went by we started hoping we would atleast see some gaur or elephants. As the safari was coming to a end our wish was granted we saw some elephants, but that was the end of it.

Back in JLR we exchanged notes and realized no one else had seen much that day. One could see disappointed faces everywhere. Early dinner and we retired to bed. We had to get up early for another Safari

6.15 a.m the next day everybody was ready to go. This time we had requested our naturalist to stop even when he spotted birds and not just for animals. 20 mins into the safari we came across a pack of wild dogs resting by a water hole. There were 29 of them including puppies. While we watched and followed them around they tried hunting a deer. Some of the she-dogs suckled their young. These were sights that I hadn’t seen before and thrilled to have witnessed this. But I was still hoping for a Cat.

Just as we gave up hope, the driver received a call; a sleeping tiger was spotted on the other side. He quickly reversed and headed there. All this while I think we were driving at a speed of 40/kms suddenly it was upto 80/Kms. Our fingers were crossed; in our excitement we ignored the bumpy road and kept praying that the Tiger would continue to sleep. The first exit gate was closed, we had to drive another 2 kms before the next gate, our prayers continued, and finally we were there but didn’t see the tiger. “Did he walk away, did we miss him?” These were the first thought and then a closer look into the bushes and there he was. We were hardly about 20 feet away, watched his every move without batting an eyelid. Suddenly he decided to move and what a sight it was to see him walk. He took 3 steps and settled closer. These 3 steps he took towards us made us realize that this might be as close as we could get near a Tiger in the wild. After watching him for some more time we decided to leave him in peace.

The conversation on the way back was about how each felt, what we liked about him. At the breakfast tables we could hear tiger mentioned after every 2 words. The excitement was evident. Since the check out time was at 11 we quickly finished breakfast and started back to Bangalore. I don’t have to specify what the conversation all the way was about.

More Pics in the link below
http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/Bandipur#

Beautiful Thailand: Krabi Day 3 - Kayaking and more swimming

2010-02-16T16:32:00.005+05:30

Noticed posters advertising Kayaking while exploring the streets of Krabi during one of the window shopping sessions. The posters looked really interesting and the places looked exotic. Considering there was one more day to spend in Krabi, half a day kayaking trip was booked.

The plan was to leave early and be back by 12:30 pm. As always the start was late, 2 of my friends who had gone for a walk in the morning had lost their way and by the time they came back and got ready, the pick up van was already waiting for 45 mins.

The start point for Kayaking was about 30 Kms from the hotel. On arrival coffee was served and the group was asked to select a kayak and start off. It was surprising since there was no instruction given, no guidelines and no life jackets. The water in the beginning was shallow and the kayak got stuck in between. My friends later told me that it was a hilarious sight to watch me pull the kayak will the other 2 just sat on it. It took a while to master the art of rowing and in the meanwhile, the rest of the group had gone ahead. Finally caught up with the group just as they entered the Mangrove Forest, the silence there was calming but it was broken often with the Guide singing ‘No Monkey No Cry’.

Kayaking back was more challenging as it was upstream and by the end of the trip my shoulders were hurting really bad. Once on the shore coffee and fresh fruits were served. And after some photo sessions it was time to leave.

Once back in the resort, it was time to vacate and move to a different one. This one was in the outskirts and hence away from the hustle and bustle. While some of my friends slept, the rest of us took a dip in the pool and explore the neighbourhood. One of the discoveries was a tiny shack on the beach that played retro music and had rustic ambience. In this background I watched the sunset. It felt like a perfect ending to my stay in Krabi.

Beautiful Thailand: Krabi Day 2 - Scuba Diving

2010-02-09T12:39:00.008+05:30

The Plan for day 2 in Krabi was Scuba Diving and chilling out.

Though the reporting time was 8:45 am , being girls we were late. The people from Diving camp “Scuba addicts” came looking and found us hogging a huge breakfast. After some more delay we were ready to discover the underwater world by 9:30. On the way to the Local Island our dive destination, the instructions and some basic hand signals were demonstrated by the instructors. And thus I was ready for my first dive. The scariest part of the experience was jumping of the boat into the sea. The instructions were to look right ahead and walk from the boat into the sea. For someone who has just started swim it took sometime to do. With that jump I was in the middle of the sea ready to discover a whole new world. As we approached the coral reefs there were schools of different fishes swimming so close I could almost touch them. Slowly the descent started and underwater world became more beautiful. After some meters my ears started to hurt due to pressure and nothing seemed to reduce the pain. Since this could be dangerous it was decided that I would go back to the surface.

Back on the boat they served homemade Thai food. It was simple but very tasty. The other irresistible dish on the boat was the fruit bowl. It was regular watermelon and pineapple but they were sweet and juicy, you could not stop at one.

The second dive was scheduled after lunch. After some convincing I decided to try again, 4 meters into the sea and my ears started to hurt again and unlike last time I was alone on the surface this time. The boat we travelled in was no where in sight and there I was in the open sea alone, no where to go if something happened. This was one of those times I wished I knew to swim well and had learnt some survival techniques. After what seemed like forever the divers and boat were back and finally I was out of the sea. The coverstaion on the way back to the mainland was centered around the sighting by the divers and I could not help bad about what I had missed.

Since 3 different hotels were booked for each day of our stay, when were back on the mainland we took our luggage and dragged it all the way to Ao nang Villa, the most expensive resort for the trip. One look at the rooms it was evident that money was well spent. It had a beautiful pool and the afternoon was spent in and around it. The evening was spent walking on the artist's street admiring paintings (some original, some replicas) and some more hogging in a resturant called Bernie's Place. The day ended with a customary Thai Massage

Beautiful Thailand- Krabi Day1

2010-01-06T23:38:00.007+05:30

After a week of working hard and partying harder with my colleagues in the Bangkok Office I was ready for a break. I had taken a week off to explore some bits of Thailand.

I was meeting my friends in Krabi, a coast in the southern tip of Thailand. After a night long journey I arrived at Krabi to be greeted by a sleepy, mist covered small town. There were taxi drivers offering rides to the beach destinations near by at exuberant rates (500 Bath). Based on suggestions from a colleague I looked around for a van/tuk tuk that would take me to Aonang Beach at a nominal cost (50 Bath). The ride in the tuk tuk was short and in 30 mins I was in Aonang beach.

Luckily I could check-in to the hotel (Warner's Place/ Andaman Sunset) earlier and after a quick breakfast I was out exploring Aonang. As I walked on the beach I came across a path that seemed to disappear into the hill. As I was meeting my friends much later in the day I decided to walk on. The walk turned out to be rewarding as I was treated to beautiful sights of the beach from the top and I also walked into a private beach that was not as crowded as the main beach. Though I would have loved to spend more time there rain played spoil-sport and after about 15 mins it started to drizzle hard.

To avoid getting drenced I decided to get a Thai massage in one of the many places set up along the beach. It was 1 hour of absolute bliss. By then the rain had stopped and as I walked along I found company called Scuba Addicts, they offered the cheapest session so I booked myself for a scuba diving session next day.

Just as I was done with this I found my friends and joined them for the rest of the trip. Spent rest of the day window bargaining and shopping. Dinner was at a small place called Blue Orchids. And soon after that headed by to the hotel to catch some sleep.

More Pictures can be found here: http://picasaweb.google.com/aishwarya.belliappa/BangkokTheVacation#

Days of Nostalgia

2009-12-08T16:51:00.002+05:30

The month of October bought with it the festival of lights. Though I don’t celebrate Deepavali, I always make it a point to sit on my terrace and watch the firecrackers.

For me fire crackers remind me of Huthari, a harvest festival celebrated back home. As a kid since I didn’t get to burst crackers during Deepavali I would wait for Huthari. Dad would take me and my siblings to the shop give us a budget and let us buy what we wanted. Then it was a wait till 8 pm, that was when we were allowed to burst them. Friends from houses near by would join us and along with crackers one could hear laughter and shrieks of children.

Huthari was also a time to show off ones courage. The one who lit the biggest and the nosiest cracker without flinching was considered the most courageous. I am proud to say that there were few times I got the title

And as we finished our stock of crackers elders would carry oil lamps and head to the fields to bring home the first harvest for the year. This done everybody would wait for payasam made along with the first harvest to be served and then head back to their respective homes.

This year as I sat in a quite corner of the water tank and watched the skies light up it brought back memories of the good old days of fun.

Another weekend another destination - Pavagada Fort

2009-09-28T17:31:00.004+05:30

When Krishna mentioned Pavagada all I could think of was the famous Shaneshwara temple. As usual the plan was to meet at Aravind's house and leave from there. Before we started we gobbled hot idlies that Aravind’s mom served and left at 8 am.

As we hit the NICE road our drive turned eventful, we noticed some test cars, we chased the cars for some distance till we got close enough to take some pictures.

As we passed them we kept guessing their make and company. Based on recent news we all decided that this could be the new hatch-back from Ford.

After the initial excitement the drive got boring with bad roads and not many birds spotted.

Just as we neared Madhugiri the sight of the sunflowers against the backdrop of the second largest monolithical rock prompted us to stopped and take pictures.

After this our next stop was Pavagada. Since it was Saturday the town was crowded with devotees. However very few people knew about the fort. Finally with some directions we managed to reach the base of the fort.

The start was through open drainage and filth. As we moved up the path was covered with animal dung. The place though of great significance in history is deteriorating and badly kept.

(Pavagada Fort is located in the northeastern part of Tumkur District in Karnataka. It was built in 1405 by a Vijayanagar chieftain. This hill fort witnessed a historic battle between the English and Tipu Sultan.)

The fort has entrance at each level.

Halfway up there is a Hanuman Temple and a little further there is a water tank. Our assumption was that this might have been used to stored water for the entire fort. Krishna commented that the pattern of the fort was similar to the one at Madhugiri. The fort is also guarded by huge boulders. Finally after 50 mins we were on top of one of the watch towers. This is supposed to be the tower where the king sat (not sure if that is true). The view from here was very pretty. We also noticed that there were buildings on the other side. We decided to explore them. As we walked around we realised that there was nothing much one could infer about their use by walking around. We also chanced upon a flight of stairs and this lead to what looked like rooms. For a change it didn't have the musty smell. Since there was nothing much to do after that we started our descent. It was faster than my expectation and we reached back in about 15 mins.

By now our breakfast was digested and we were ready for lunch. As we hunted for a place to eat we decided to try the one that looked better than the rest. But when the food was served we realized that we had made a mistake. We barely ate anything and quickly left. Our only consolation was that we could stop at Kamat Restaurant on the way back and eat good food.

Finally after losing our way couple of times more and making a stop at Kamat we reached Bangalore at 7 pm. Though not one of my most memorable trips it was definitely worth it.

Gulakamane Lake

2009-08-22T18:42:00.002+05:30

When Krishna sent me the write up about this place (which was relatively less) I was sure I had not heard of this place and was eager to explore.

The only direction that we had got was that the lake was close to the Art Of Living Campus. Since it was Ganesh Weekend we decided this was an ideal short trip and we could be back before 10:00 am.

After being misguided once we finally managed to take the right road. One had to go past the Art of Living campus and take a left at the main junction of the next village, after that take the left at Gulakamane village. One can even ask for TK falls and will be guided to this place. (TK Falls is 2 Kms from the Lake)

The whole intention of this trip was to bird watch. When we got there initially except for the beautiful lake, we didn’t see any birds and we were disappointed. But as we walked around the lake we observed folks of muniya, ducks, kites, weaver bird building its nest, white browed bulbul, parakeets, cuckoo, myna, laughing dove, ashley premia, kingfisher, coucal to name a few.

We spent about 2 hours here and then it was time to leave. Though this heaven for bird watchers is close to Bangalore it still remains known to a selected few.

Magnificent Water Falls Dudhsagar, Gokak and Godchinmalaki

2009-08-01T15:07:00.001+05:30

It was a long gap after Amedikal Trek and fortunately Dudhsagar happened at the right time.

After waiting in the railway station for 2 hours the train (Vasco) finally arrived at 8:30 pm and we were off to Dudhsagar. This was going to be my first full fledge railway track trek and I was looking forward to it.

The plan initially was to alight at Castel Rock Station and walk towards Dudhsagar. When we were told that the train would stop for 2 minutes at Dudhsagar Station, we decided to take that option to save time.

But as we crossed Castle Rock the view turned beautiful, with waterfalls at every turn and green hills everywhere. So when the train stopped at a signal we hopped off it and started walking. We walked through 6 tunnels both long and short and we managed to do this without a single torch. We were later told that it could have been dangerous to walk without torch as the tunnels were sometimes home for snakes. The sights during the walk were beautiful and worth every minute we spent.

After 2 hours (8 kms) of walking we finally arrived at the breath taking Dughsagar Waterfall. It is so beautiful that one can watch forever and still not have enough. Since we were told the train back to Castle Rock was only at 5 pm we decided to walk a little further, here laid the most beautiful tunnel passage. 2 tunnels separated by a small waterfall. The water fell from the openings of the tunnels and the bright sunlight made the water drops sparkle. Since there was no one there we had a chance to experiment with our camera. Another 10 mins of walking we were opposite Dudhsagar waterfalls and it looked lot more majestic from here.

Though reluctant we walked back to Dudhsagar Station to board the only train back to civilization. Luckily the train was going all the way to our next destination Belgum.

The day activities had worn us out so after a delicious dinner we went to bed.

The plan next day was to visit Gokak falls and Godchinmalaki falls. We took a bus to Gokak and from there hired an auto for the day. This was not a good idea as the auto driver wanted to get back in a hurry and kept nagging us through the journey.

We decided to visit Godchinmalaki falls first. This is about 16 Kms from Gokak Falls and 20 Kms from the main Gokak town. We had to walk some distance before we could see the waterfalls. Though the view took our breath away the place was so crowded and dirty that we didn’t feel like spending more than 5 minutes here.

The next destination was Gokak falls. Having seen pictures of the falls before we had high expectation but when we got here, there were more people than water. Just as we were giving up hope we spotted nature at work; a rainbow started to form around the falls and stayed for about 5 minutes. It was truly an amazing sight.We spent some time admiring this and as it disappeared we decided to head back. The rainbow remained the topic of discussion all the way back.

This trip had good share of breath taking moments and disappointing ones but at the end it’s definitely one to remember.

A much deserved break – Coonur (Part 2)

2009-07-22T17:23:00.000+05:30

We had big plans for today. We were to visit Dolphin’s Nose, I was told that the view from here was superb.

While we waited for our Uncle, we decided to visit Sim’s Park again. And this time Akshaya managed to find the Rudraksh Tree, unfortunately we didn’t find any seeds.

Just as we finished walking around Uncle called to say he was ready to take us to Dolphin's Nose.

The drive through tea estates and forest was beautiful. But as we near the actual destination all there was to see was mist. We waited a while, drank some tea but the situation was still the same, finally decided to head back home.

On the journey back we discussed the type of tea, tea-flowers etc.

Another delicious lunch and we were ready to explore again. Considering our interest in tea cultivation Uncle decided to take us to his Estate. The Famous Catherine Waterfalls is situated amidst the plantation. The ride turned out to be an exciting one. Not only did we get treated to beautiful scenery, we also spotted a herd of Bison amidst tea plantation. As I watched them I felt that this was their way of reclaiming the forest that men keep encroaching.

By the time we returned it was dinner time. The plan was to go to Wellington Club. Wellington is the place where army officers are sent for education so that they can be eligible for promotions. The club looked like an old British Bungalow. This place also had a collection of old pictures, guns and stuffed animals. Once can easily spend 2 hours looking around. Though the food was not so great, the visit was worth it.

Since we had to leave early next day when we got back we quickly packed and went to bed.

Journey back was another adventure. The drive in the ghat section was beautiful and I kept cursing myself for not driving down. Due to heavy rains some bridges were submerged. The bus had to go through villages and bad roads to reach Mysore. From there it was a smooth drive on the highway. It also meant a end to a lovely weekend.

A much deserved break – Coonur

2009-07-21T23:41:00.011+05:30

Coonur has been on my to-do list for 16 years now. My Uncle and Aunt stay there and the last time I visited them was 16 years back. Ever since they have been inviting me over and some how the trip never happened till 19th Jul 2009.

It was an impromptu trip. Decided last minute, called and confirmed with my aunt, booked tickets and I was off. My sisters were coming with me so I expected to have a good time. While Ashraya was travelling with me, Akshaya would join us in Ooty a little later

Though we had heard about roads being blocked due to heavy rains, our journey was uneventful till Ooty. About 8 kms from Coonur a fallen tree lead to the road being blocked for an hour. Eventually we reached Coonur by 8:30 am.

We were greeted with sumptuous breakfast of Appam, Stew, Egg Bhurji and Toast. We quickly polished off most things on the table. We then decided to rest for a while. Restless souls that we are, within 30 mins the urge to do something started to nag us. We decided to explore Sims Park. This turned out to be a wise decision. The park has some exotic trees, botanical names of which I can’t pronounce. We also spotted lots of birds that I had not seen before. The main attraction for us was the Rudraksh Tree; we searched the whole park for it and but couldn't find it. Finally by lunch time we gave up and headed back.
Lunch again was delicious spread. Must say my aunt is a terrific cook. The plan after that was to drive to Ooty to pick Akshaya up. Since we arrived early we decided to explore the Wax Museum that a friend of mine Akshata had mentioned. All I can say is that it’s a good attempt. Next stop was the Thread Garden opposite the Ooty Lake. I was amazed how they could make it look so real and that too by just using thread, very impressive.

Once we picked Akshaya up we shopped for some Ooty chocolates at King Star (Oldies in the business) and headed back.

The dinner was another memorable experience. We went to a place called Blue Hills, the signature dish here is Wellington Parota (a must try). Having stuffed our selves here decided we had done enough for the day so headed home for some good night’s sleep.

Day 2 – to be continued…

Glorious Karnataka

2009-07-09T01:12:00.004+05:30

When you have the passion to travel, you would normally start by exploring places closest to you. I guess that kind of explains why I travelled so much within Karnataka.

Having born and bought in Coorg I got to see the Scotland of India. I climbed hills, walked through coffee plantations, drove through dense forests and took dips in the rivers. And every time I went visiting one of my aunts I discovered another side of this beautiful place.

Mysore was the closest destination when we wanted to go on one day fun trips as kids. And even now when I visit Mysore I remember time when I was awed by 3-D paintings in the place, excited by the animals in the zoo and enjoyed the ride up Chamundi hill. Dassera here is again something that I always remember.

Doing my graduation in Bangalore fuelled my passion for travel. It was here I made friends with people who shared the same interest. Whenever we got a chance we would go and explore places close by.

One of the first places we went as a group was Sravanabelagola, Belur and Halebid. The workmanship in the temples is unmatched. The huge Mahaveer, The attention paid to details, effects achieved without any high tech gadgets, the perfect measurements, I continue to visit these places every now and then and they still mesmerize me. Since it’s so close to Bangalore I normally advise people to take sometime and go here. And if I have the time I go along.

But this in not the only place where once gets to look at the past, Hampi is another destination that’s a must visit. Music from the pillars, the pinhole camera effect, and the amazing food one gets here just add to the feel. In one of my three day trip here I also stopped by at Badami, Patadkal and Aihole. Though they are all sculptures from the past each one is different from the other. I could spend days here going back in time.

Again the thing about Karnataka is that one is not limited to historical places. An overnight drive can take one to places waiting to be explored. I have been on many trips like this and seen the scenic side. Discovered hidden water falls, trekked up many a peaks, walked through dense forests and wildlife sanctuaries, sighted rare birds and camped at backwaters.

And that is not all, when I think I need a little more of sun and sand I head to costal Karnataka. I could eat seafood all day and lay in the beach, some well-known and some virgin ones. I also make these trips to costal Karnataka for religious reasons. Some of the oldest and well known temples are located here. My fun trips tend to be extension of the religious ones.

Though I have travelled through Karnataka extensively I still feel there is lot more to see and I will continue making trips to explore the beautiful State.

The Good Old Nandi Hills

2009-07-07T00:13:00.005+05:30

It was very early in the morning that Sunday. I still hadn't slept as I was at my friends place partying. Just as everybody started find a place to sleep, someone suggested we drive upto Nandi Hills. It seemed like a good idea to me. Having been in Bangalore for 10 years I had not once visited this place.
After quickly freshening up we got into our cars and headed to Nandi Hills. Just 2 people knew the way. So we decided to follow those cars. The tough part of our journey was not finding the way but keeping awake.

Since we started at 5.00 am we missed watching the sunrise from the hill. Stopped at the base to take some shots. It was a pretty sight, the vineyard and the golden sun.

When we reached the top a group of monkeys greeted us. One could see monkeys every where and they were creating a havoc.

Just to stay awake and get some energy we decided to first get some coffee and then walk around. There are lot of vendor selling cappuccino there. After gulping some hot coffee each of us headed in different direction to explore the place. I went with some bird watcher friends of mine. We found lots of different birds and spent time chasing them.

We then visited the old temple and walked over to Tippu’s drop. The view from here is superb. The temple itself is a small one and does't have too many carvings on it. Another thing that’s memorable about this place is the flowers ones finds all over. Some wild and some home-grown ones. They give a different charm to the whole place.

After spending some time here we decided to head back but not before eating some hot Maggie.

Remembering Forgotten Cultures and Traditions - Janapada Lok

2009-07-02T23:53:00.001+05:30

Every time we stopped at Lok Rucchi for breakfast I have wanted to visit this place. If one travelled on the Mysore Bangalore Road he would notice sign boards saying Janapada Lok. I had seen it too and wondered what was special about the place.

So this time when we stopped at Lok Rucchi I decided to visit this place. After all it was literally next door.

After paying an entry fee of Rs. 10 at the entrance I walked towards the museum. I guess it was my lucky day; I was the first visitor for the day. As I walked in to the museum the care taker walked in and he was quite happy to give me a guided tour.

The first part of the museum stored items that are used in day to day life, the only difference was that these items were really old. The Founder of the place had collected it when he visited rural Karnataka. There was also written information about the all articles that were displayed.

The next building was filled with pictures of different tribes, their culture, festivals and ceremonies. Since we showed interest the caretaker took time to explain each one in detail.

The next building had musical instruments and things used in rural Karnataka for entertainment (leather puppets, life size dolls, games etc). The open space next to this place has sculptures recovered from some villages.

The last part that I visited was the livelihood section. Here one will find potter making pots, old jaggery moulds, equipments used by blacksmith, fisherman, farmer etc

The place is a good attempt to capture the fast fading charm of rural life and culture. It can take about 2 hours to really see the place and personally I think its time well spent.

Kanwa Reservoir

2009-07-01T21:48:00.007+05:30

It had been a while since I had gone on a long drive. The travel itch had started again. I had to get out of the city and spend time away from the hustle and bustle.So I decided to drive to a destination called Kanwa Reservoir along with few of my friends.

I was told that it was a beautiful place about 70 Kms from Bangalore. The plan was to start at 6:30 am. We intended to reach there before it got too hot. But by the time the group got together it was almost 7:00. To save time we decided to take some short cuts only to find the roads blocked. Finally!! after navigating through barely existent roads we reached the Bangalore-Mysore Highway.
The journey from there was smooth; We drove along side children riding to school in cycles. We managed to reach our destination by 8:45 am. Beautiful sights greeted us as we drove towards Kanwa, lush green hills and tons of birds like bee-eaters, kingfishers, Indian roller, spotted dove to name a few.

As we stood watching the reservoir, an old villager offered us some tea made of jaggery. We decided to try it. It was very different from the normal tea one is used to. This had a strong flavour of jaggery and was very sweet. Given a choice I would not drink it again.

As it started getting hot we decided to leave but not before making plans to visit the place to watch the sunset. And when that happens I dont intend to forget my camera like I did this time.

Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary and the Stone Bridge

2009-06-04T11:57:00.010+05:30

I was really exited about the trip that I was taking with 3 friends of mine. Arvind had mentioned about a submerged bridge somewhere near Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary. The bridge could be seen only when the water level reduced at Bhadra Reservoir. The plan also included a visit to the Wildlife Sanctuary and based on the blogs I had read I expected to spot atleast one of the cats.

The journey started early, the first pit-stop at Kamat on Tumkur Road for breakfast. After that

it was a long drive with another break near a lotus lake. The break was supposed to be a 5 mins one but after looking at the birds around the lake it extended to about 20 mins.

Finally at about 12:30 pm we reached the backwaters of Bhadra Reservoir. The view was breath taking; Even now I think that the cameras didn’t do justice to the place.

After couple of shots began our hunt for the bridge, we looked everywhere but could not find it. All we could see was line of tree tops. We decided to walk around a bit and investigate.

After walking 1.5 kms Arvind decided to call his friend and check if we were at the right place. Turned out that we were at the right place but the water levels were high. Later a local told us that the bridge was not seen for the last 2 years.

Disappointed we decided to head to the home-stay we had booked. The website had promised lots of things. As we drove through the coffee estate and arrived at the place we realised we had made a bad choice. The place looked crowded and the place was a resort and not a home-stay. The service was bad and our room even worse. After complaining for a while decided to make good with what was there. The view around the resort was beautiful. One could see the part of the western ghats.
Tried fishing at the pond, played badminton, ate dinner and went to bed hoping the next day would be better.

Having spoken to the resort manager, we decided to drive to the wildlife sanctuary.

By the time we reached there the first safari had already left. Since the authorities refused to let us hire a jeep we had to wait till the first group returned. As the time went by our excitement started to dip. When our turn finally came all we saw in our trip were some barking deer, spotted deer and peacocks.

We headed back to the resort lazed around and left after lunch. On the whole it was one of those trips which didn't live up to my expectations. I am now looking forward to my next trip.

Fond Memories of MP - Bhimbetka

2009-05-15T17:51:00.006+05:30

We arrived at Bhimbetka pretty early in the morning. Looking at the parking lot we didn’t expect too many people at the rock shelters. The first task for the day was to find a guide. This was one place where we made a mistake of not enquiring about it in the MPSTDC Office. We took the first person who approached us.

This turned out to be a big mistake. The so called guide didn’t know much except the obvious details. We ended up interpreting drawings on our own or listening to other guides who seemed slightly better.

The place as such is scenic. One can see amazing rock formation

along with ancient drawings. The paintings are said to be spread across 10 acres in different caves but 14 caves are cordoned off for the visiting tourists.

There is a good attempt made to preserve Bhimbettka, but there is no education among tourists about preserving this. While we were there a group of students were trying to chip of the rock corners. Worse still was the fact that their lecture joined them instead of preventing from doing any damage. And the so called guard just looked away. Considering the importance of the place I only wish they would be a lot stricter.

We were done with out sight seeing or should I say cave exploration by 2 hours and were ready to head to the next destination.

Tips: Stop at the MPTDC highway restaurant to get information about guides.

Siddarbetta and Blackbuck Sanctuary

2009-04-18T17:17:00.009+05:30

Krishna took the initiative of planning for one day trek during the long Good Friday weekend. After looking at some options we finally agreed on Siddarbetta. Since it was just 4 of us we decided to take one car. Again it was Krishna who was getting the car (Balli ka bakara). Anyways he claims to love driving so I don’t think he minded.

We started at 6:30 from my place. The car that Krishan was driving was given by the TATA service centre since his car was under repair. It showed signs of over use. We had bald tyres.

The journey was smooth. We stopped at KAMAT on Tumukur for breakfast only to realise that we had missed the deviation that we had to take. Once we hit the state highway the bird watchers stopped every now and then to take pictures. The drive was beautiful, everywhere we looked we found trees that were in bloom.

We reached Siddarbetta by 10:30am. I was disappointed to see steps made all the way up. As it was Sunday there was lot of people visiting the temple at the peak. Our ascent was slow. Krishna was impatient with the pace we maintained. I was cursing my laziness to do exercise.

When we reached the top we hired the Bhel Puri seller to take us to the caves. Our first stop was of course the shrine. Just in front of the idol there is a water source which according to locals doesn’t dry up. We filled our bottle with this water and started with our cave exploration. There were some interesting

sights here like the grave of a saint, living quarters of another saint and wild grape veins formations. After crawling and doing duck walk for about an hour we reached where we stated. We walked around for some more time and started our descent.

Our next programme was to have lunch at Madugiri (a slightly bigger village) and proceed to Maidanahalli (Black Buck Sanctuary).

About 4 kms from Madugiri we had a flat tire. The spare tyre had its metal showing. We decided to use it, and proceed till Madhugiri. Fixing the tyre took us nearly 2 hours by then it was 5:30. We decided to take a chance and visit the sanctuary.

There are no proper directions or boards to this place. We stopped every 5 kms to ask directions. Finally we managed to find the mud road that lead to the Sanctuary.

As we drove we started spotting the animals. They were very gracefully and pretty. The place is poorly guarded and maintained. But this is a place that I would classify as a must visit.

We headed to Bangalore at 7:00 pm. At that time little did we know what was instored for us. We asked for directions at a village and that guy directed us to the longest route to Bangalore. The road took us all the way to Dodbellapur and back. The roads were bad and never ending. The only good bit about taking this road was that Krishna spotted a Leopard. And just as we entered Bangalore we had a flat tyre again. Since we had used the spare one already we were in a fix. We deciced to drop the car at a friend's place and head home. It was 1:30 am by the time i slept. Over all a tiring but good trip

Fond Memories of MP - Bhojpur

2009-04-09T00:04:00.004+05:30

When we arrived at Bhojpur early in the morning, through the mist we saw this half constructed temple. It was a lone structure amidst fields and rocks.

Bhojpur was a place that Sharan was determined to go. Every time we went to Shiva temple during our Madhya Pradesh trip he would say wait till you see one at Bhojpur.

It looked like we were the first people to visit for the day. It was quite and peaceful. As the sun rose we walked around to get our perfect shot. As I walked closer to the Linga (idol), I realised how huge it was. It was 4 times my height. And the Linga was made of one single rock. It was really amazing to see it.

The temple itself was half constructed and some parts of it had fallen off over the years. ASI was trying to build back the fallen pieces.

As we finished walking around the temple we remembered that the blue prints of the temple structure were said to be on stones near by. We walked around and could not find it initially. Just as were about to give up we saw a watchman walking up to the temple. We approached him to enquire and he turned out to be quite helpful. He took us to the spot and explained the drawings to us.

Just as we were about to leave he mentioned to us about an old Jain temple that was situated near by. This place had a tall statue and is said to be over 300 years old. Other than that the place didn’t offer much. We spent 10 mins there and headed to our next destination. On the whole Bhojpur lived up to the hype that Sharan had created

Fond Memories of MP - Ujjain

2009-03-19T18:23:00.001+05:30

Ujjain was the only holy destination in our whole MP trip. After a heavy breakfast in Indore, we headed towards Ujjain at 8:30 PM. We covered 56 KMS in about one and half hours.

When we entered Ujjain it looked like there was a fair taking place. There were people everywhere. Looking at the crowd I was sure the queue for Darashan at Mahakaleshwar temple would be long. The thought of it was not appealing.

We started the day at Ujjain by booking our train tickets to Bhopal. Having seen the crowd when we enetered we didn't want to take any chances. We finished doing this pretty quickly and moved on.

From experience we knew that the MPSTC would have information about guides. So our next step was to look for MPSTC office. Only in Ujjain this turned out to be a bad idea. The people at MPSTC didn’t help much. So we decided to follow Rough Guide (a book like Lonely Planet) and see places on our own.

One temple that was a must on our list was the Kal Bhairav temple. The offering made here include alcohol along with the usual coconut, flowers and incense sticks. There was crowd at this place too. We were later told that it was new moon day and that since it was on a Saturday it was a special day for Shiva.

According to Akshata this was scariest of all idols she had seen so far. The stone idol had 2 sockets that looked like eyes and a crescent shaped mouth. Half bottle of the liquor offering is poured through this opening and the rest is given back to the devotee. The locals say the liquor that’s poured into the idol doesn’t flow out and just disappears. We never investigated that bit of information. Close by there was a cave that one had to crawl into to get darshan of another idol, but looking at the crowd we decided to give that a skip.

From Kal Bhairav our next destination was a village called Bhairavghad. We had read that 'Batik', a cloth dying art, originated here. It was very close to the Kal Bhairav temple so we didn’t have to travel too much. We went to Anwar Bhai's factory, the most popular according to the people. As we drove through the village we realised that almost all houses had ‘Batik’ cloth hung for drying. At Anwar Bhai's factory we were shown the process used for Batik design making. Luckily or unluckily for us he had some stock that was ready for sale and he volunteered to courier our purchases to Bangalore. We spent the next one hour shopping.

Our next stop was Sandheepini Ashram, this is supposed to be the place where Krishna, Balaram and Sudhama (Hindu Gods and their friend) received their education. There is a Shiva temple at this place and one can find Nandi in a standing position. This is not found anywhere else. We hardly spent about 15 mins here.

By the time we had completed all this it was time for lunch. Rough Guide suggested a place called New Raj Kumar .We went all around Ujjain looking for this place. People were so helpful that even though they didn’t know where we had to go they would guide us. Finally after about an hour we found the place. We were disappointed to find out that this place did not serve local dishes but only punjabi food. Since we were hungry we decided to eat here. The food was good. We had Makki ki Roti and Sarso ka Saag (Corn Bread and Mustard Gravy). Akshata and Sharan drank lassi (Beaten Yogurt) and I gave that a skip.

Post lunch I was keen to visit Mahakaleshwara Temple. This is one of the twelve Jyothirlings and is considered special because it is a Swayambhu (risen from the ground) ling. Another speciality is that it is south facing. Hence a lot of Tantriks (wizards) visit this place for worshipping.
Akshata and Me went looking for a special darshan ticket so that I could skip the queue and finish the visit fast. With the ticket I was able to come out in 30 mins. Though the temple is a really old one, it has been modernised and no longer had the charm of the ancient times.

From here we went to Ved Shala (Observatory). This place was built by Jai Singh. It is a very interesting place to visit and one can learn about calculations of time, occurances of eclipses, degree of the Sun etc. Since it was after 4 by the time we got here some of the instruments could not be used. We had an interesting guide by name Jagadish. He was an employee there and was passionate about sharing his knowledge of the place and astronomy. Since we showed some interest he spent lot of time with us.

From here we went to Chintamani Ganesh temple. This again is considered to be the biggest Swayambhu Ganesh idol. There was a huge crowd here as well. Sharan and Akshata decided to wait outside while I went in and came back. I managed to get out in 15 mins.

By now we had enough of temples and sight seeing. So we decided to go to Shipra (MPSTC Hotel) for some snacks. We relaxed for about 2 hours before boarding the train to Bhopal. This marked the end of our Western MP trip.

Amedikallu

2009-03-12T17:17:00.000+05:30

I had heard about Amedikallu when I first started trekking. People had told me that the best of trekkers had given up and this was one of the toughest treks in Karnataka. Once before the plan to trek there had failed and when the group suggested we do this I was excited. All our planning was done through mails. Everyone was advised to carry 4 litres of water (a must); ready to eat meals, sleeping bags and sleeping mat. Aravind had taken on the responsibility to call the Guide (Chenappa- 9379081785). This turned out to be a difficult task, till two days before the trip we had not been able to get through to the guide. When Aravind finally managed to talk to the guide , he agreed to organize for breakfast and packed lunch from Vishnu Gokhale’s house. This was a good thing as we got some yummy food.
Our bus was scheduled to leave for Dharmasthala at 9:15 PM. 2 people were supposed to join us at Dharmastala as they were coming from Mysore. The trip till Dharmastala was uneventful except for bad roads. At Dharmastala we were to take a bus or jeep to Kokkada. We decided to take the bus. The conductor convinced us that he would drop us at the right stop. The distance, we were told, was about 7 - 10 Kms (its actually 15). But it felt like we had been in the bus for long. Aravind walked up to and checked with the Driver as well and he said the stop had not yet come. Finally after 15 more minutes the conductor realized he had passed Kokkada. He said it was just around the corner and asked to get down. Just around the corner turned out to be one and a half K.M walk.
At Kokkada we were told that since road construction was on we had to take a different route to Shisila (the village where the trek was to start). Decision was made to hire a jeep as the bus ride would take longer. 11 of us stuffed ourselves into a jeep that can seat 7. The driver was almost sitting out of the jeep and driving. Dhimoy was standing on the footboard at the back and was covered with red soil by the time we reached Shisila.We were dropped off at the beginning of the village since the road was under construction. Luckily Vishnu Gokhale’s house was hardly .5 KM away. He saw us walking and called out to us.

While we waited for our guide we were served yummy Idlies and tea. For someone who hates Idly I took second helping. We were also given our packed lunch
We started off from there at about 9:30 am. A jeep had been organised to drop us at the starting point.
The initial trek was through bamboo growth and then the forest starts. The humidity and heat got to some of us. We took lots of breaks along the way. Our first major stop was to be the waterpoint, the only one in the whole trek at this time of the year. It was a welcome break. We open the packed lunch (Chitranna) and finished it in a jiffy. After that we filled all our bottles and carried on. After this came the tough part, a steep climb and that too in the grasslands. There is no forest cover. The sun was beating down on us mercilessly. The only shade was between the rocks. I kept looking out for them and taking short naps wherever possible.
After the grassland came one more walk through the forest and then the rock climbing. By now mist had started to form and we could see clouds at a distance but not the camp site. Finally the first team made it to the camp site. By now our hopes of seeing a sunset had vanished. We hoped the clouds would clear out in the night and we could see the stars.We sat around for some time and decided we can eat at 8. The guide started the camp fire and Aravind became the cook. He boiled water for our entire ready to eats.Dinner done, each of us were fighting for a place to sleep. Most decided to sleep in the open. Just as we settled it started to drizzle. We didn’t know where to go for cover. The place around where the guide slept was already occupied. Some of us decided to brave the drizzle and take action only if it rained. Good decision coz later in the night the skies cleared and it was a beautiful display of stars.
We were woken at 6 to continue our climb to the peak and see the sunrise. This was a scary climb but well managed by our Guide. And guess what… the clouds were at it again. All we could see was clouds. We waited for a while only to be disappointed and we climbed down to get ready to leave. Just then, the sun came out and we saw an ocean of clouds. The hills at a distance were slowly becoming visible. After a photo session we started our climb down
For breakfast we were back at the water point and we cooked noodles. We quickly finished and started out decent. By 1:30 pm we were at the starting point. Initially since we could not get through to the jeep driver some of us took a ride on the Dumper Lorry that was working on road construction.We reached the village, had some tender coconut and walked to Vishnu Gokhale’s house. Hot lunch (Rice, Sambar, Jackfruits Palya and yummy Payasam) was served. After that all of us took bath, slept for some time and set out to Dharmastala stuffed in a jeep again.In Dharmastala some of us went to the temple and the rest loitered around. Dinner was at the temple. This was the fastest dinner i had eaten. In 10 mins after we had entered dinner was done.Took the local shuttle to go to the new bus stand, boarded our bus and was asleep. And next thing I knew we were in Bangalore. All in all it was a good trek after a long time. The only disappointment was that we didn’t get to see the Charmudi range from the peak.

Fond Memories of MP - Maheshwar and Indore

2009-03-03T15:14:00.000+05:30

The night at Mandu seemed to have passed really quickly, in no time the alarm was ringing and it was time for us to leave. To save time we paid our bills the previous day. We had to dig last bit of our money as we had underestimated how much we could drink and eat.

Having done all that to save time we reached rcar and found the driver sleeping peacefully. He had not set his alarm. It was half an hour delay before we started.

Originally we had planned to skip Maheshwar, but the guide had convinced us that it was must see. This place has the largest ghat for River Narmada. He told us that there was a short cut that we can use. Said the road was bad but manage able.

Little did we realise how bad it was… after a point there was no road. It was an abrupt end and the car had to get off the concrete platform to a path of just stones and mud. There was not a single soul around to ask if we were on the right track. Finally after an hour we managed to get to the main road and head towards Maheshwar.
At Maheshwar we asked the driver to stop at some place which served poha. He promised to take us to the best. We stopped at a small roadside shop. Our breakfast was going to be poha and jeelabis. Being a sweets freak I was hoping to eat only jeelabis for breakfast, but I was disappointed the jeelabis didn’t live up to the hype. The poha was good, AK who loves poha approved it.

From here we headed to the Ghat, wanted to be there before the crowd. Almost managed it. We walked around in our own pace taking pictures. It was peaceful. There were some temples and a fort to explore. But decided to do it after a short boat ride. Though we thought 100 Rs was too much for a short ride, we enjoyed it. It helped us get some good shots of the place.

The next bit was tiring. We had to go up the stairs to Ahilya bhai’s palace/ temple (She is worshipped in this region). The view from the top is nice. The palace itself was a disappointment. I expected more I guess.

But the best bit of the climb was that we saw a handloom factory and showroom called REWA. They manufactured Maheswari cotton and silk. We got permission to walk around the factory. It was an awesome experience. Both ladies, AK (non shopoholic) and me (the other extreme) went mad shopping when the guy confirmed that they accepted credit card. But when we finished and time came to make payment the cards wouldn’t work. After couple of tries he said we could try the ATM. The only ATM in this town and in the neighbour town wouldn’t work. So finally the people at the factory suggested that we make payment in Indore at their show room (Rarely you get to see ppl trust someone like this).

After a quick cup of tea in Laboo’s café (a café and hotel by the local prince) we were off to Indore.

The journey to Indore was dusty and tiring. We took short cut through villages and bad roads and finally we reached Indore. In Indore we did a quick stop at the Lal Bhag Palace and then checked into the hotel. The hotel was a good surprise. All of us were very excited about our rooms.

Quickly changed and headed to Chapan Dukhan (56 Shops). This was mentioned as a must visit for good food and sweets. It was a disappointment. Only thing that we liked was the shop that sold smoke work (a kind of embroidery). While we shopped Sharan went and paid at the REWA showroom closeby for our purchase in the morning.

From here we went to Rajwada Market. We had to walk, walk and walk. Suggestion would be to take an auto from Chatri. Only saving grace was Shikanli (drink like badam milk ) that we had. It was yummy and AK, who belongs to I hate sweets club liked it and drank a whole glass. The shopping complex is large and you have people at every 2 steps inviting you to their shop and willing to help. Shopped again and one more hole in our pockets.

We headed back to the hotel by now we had a better car; the one we used earlier had broken down because of the bad roads I think.

After some rest we were to head to the food street called Sarafa Market. AK backed out as her back was hurting. Sharan and I were off at 10:30 pm. This place is a paradise for junk food eaters. We started with Kachori and Samosa at the first shop. This place also had Garod (Tapioca) marinated, fried and serve with spices sprinkled a local delight and awesome tasting.

After we ate that we went looking for Bhutte ka kees (This is a dish made of grated corn). We were directed to a shop which was the best and featured on Times Now. Having tasted it we packed some for AK as well. The shop’s dahi ballas were also popular, Sharan tried it. As we walked we found sweets like Gajak, Malpua, Kulfi, Badam Milk, Jamoon, Icecream, all of which we ate. I am sure I weigh 5 kgs more after that.

Having stuffed ourselves we headed back to the hotel and went to sleep. Had another long day coming up.

Fond Memories of MP - Mandu

2009-03-02T15:01:00.000+05:30

When I started the Madhya Pradesh Trip I didn’t expect it to be a adventure. We had everything planned and booked well in advance. Bags packed we started on our 11 days vacation. We were 3 in the group, Akshata, Sharan and me. Our adventure started with us almost missing our flight thanks to 2 people; the taxi driver who wouldn't go faster than 30KM/hour and the Chief Minister of Karnataka who was travelling and traffic was blocked to give way for him. Luckily KF was kind enough to accommodate us.
The flight itself was uneventful, met some locals from Indore who spoke about the must see in MP and also the local food that we had to try. Got some good information from them. The best one was on hiring taxi, we managed to get a good deal thanks to tips from them and good negotiating skills of Sharan. Of course, how can I forget charming smiles from AK and me.
Trip to Mandu, our first destination was uneventful except for our driver (Nitin) not knowing the way and having to stop every now and then to ensure we were on the right track. We stopped for lunch at a highway. After lunch the only thing we knew was what happened in our dreams.

As Mandu neared we started spotting ruins everywhere. Later we were told that it was the 2nd largest ruins site in India after Hampi. Our resort as promised online was on the banks of a lake. Clean decent accommodation at a relatively low cost. Food was not so good though but manageable.
Quick round of freshening up and we were off to see the sunset. As the sun went down life in Mandu went to sleep. Deserted streets, no restaurants except the MP tourism ones and one more local one. After a quick hunt by Sharan for local liquor (Mahuwa) which we finally managed to get thanks to our driver we headed to the hotel. We were fast asleep by 9 pm (unimaginable) it might be that awful local drink (cant explain how it tasted).

Next day started early, managed to go to some old ruins near by and watch some birds as well. The guide arrived as promised at 8:30 am. This name was Vishnu Tiwari, he is the most sought after guide and we found him thanks to MP Tourism Office. We had hired him for the day and asked him to give us detailed history of the place. He did a good job. Showing us the places like mid wife's palace ,Roopmathi’s Pavilion where one can see Narmada, the Taj Mahal of Mandu, the pleasure place of Baz Bahadur , the shop of Gada Shah and all other hotspots in Mandu. He also told us about the local stories, about river Narmada, and about the local tamarind bought there from Afghanistan.
We had some good pan at the guide’s shop while we waited for him to get his set of rechargeable batteries for Sharan. Sharan the professional photographer for the trip had taken so many shots in the morning that by noon his camera cells were out of charge. He was disappointed that he could not take as many pictures as he would have like.
By the end of the day we were too tired to do anything other than eat and sleep (no wonder there is no night life here ppl must be tired after walking around the ruins ) . Dinner was going to be local dish Dal Phaniya. Our guide had suggested this and said it was something one should not miss. He also said his wife made the best Dal Phaniya but refused to take the hint and invite us home. The dish was different. It was like South Indian idlies made of corn and then roasted on fire, served with dal curry. Along with this we also go jeera rice, papad and rava ladoo. This dinner is not served by the hotel, it is from the dabha outside just outside the hotel. A must try!!
Dinner done and our stomachs full we hit the bed and were dead to the world till 5:30 am next morning.