Planning for a holiday

 

If I am ever asked about my idea of a perfect travel plan, I am sure to answer in the negative, if the choice is of just lazying in the sun or in the five star comfort of a hotel. I do love beaches but spending a day there, relaxing on the beach, would be the longest, I would opt for. Any extended holiday on a beach or in a five or four star resort, would not enthuse me at all. Someone mentioned recently to me that I love to visit temples. Well! That is true to an extent. I do love to visit temples, but to qualify for my visit, it has to be at least 500 years old and preferably in ruins and without an idol. However, visiting old temples, is not my only choice. I also love to visit museums and old ruins. Here are some of my top favourites.

If anyone opts for a holiday in east Asia, the temple ruins of Siem Reap, Cambodia, are the most visit worthy temple ruins on earth, according to me. There are number of temples here, but the best from the angle of fine workmanship, is undoubtedly the smallest temple of the lot, Banteay Strei. I have never seen before, such exquisite and dainty carvings on stone. The bass reliefs at other places are carved in such way that a two dimensional picture materializes in your front. In Angkor Wat temple for example, some of the bass reliefs, have three or even four depth levels, to make carvings appear more realistic. However, the carvings in Banteay Strei are almost three dimensional. A flower or a sea shell, appears as if the real thing has been pasted on the stone. In this temple ruin, lintels on the doors and the windows, each tell a story from Hindu mythological scriptures. Since I had read most of the stories in the past, it was fun for me to see the carvings in details. However a person unknown to Hindu Mythological stories, can easily follow them from excellent guide books available. 

 

Going to the west and beyond the Arabian sea, a treasure world of ruins opens if one opts for Red Sea Holidays. In addition to a huge variety of historical treasures such as the Sphinx, the iconic Pyramids of Giza, which can be seen with Cairo as your base, there are stunning beach resorts for a lazy day in the sun. Sharm el Sheikh beach resort offers a perfect base for scuba diving enthusiasts, who want to explore aquatic treasures of red sea. Other beach resorts which are popular are at Taba and Hurghada. The icing on the cake for an Egypt holiday however, at least according to me, is the Egyptian museum at Cairo. With over 120000 artifacts in stock, this museum is a treasure house for people interested in history. You can see here King Tutankhamen's Golden Mask, and Ramses' mummy on display in only one place.

Talking of museums, the best and perhaps the most accessible museum in India, is New Delhi's National Museum. The ancient civilizations wing on the ground floor is a wonder world of ancient Indian history. Small statues, clay toys, ornaments and personal effects from a period of 3000BC to 1500BC from the Indus valley sites such as Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, Dholavira and Lothal are well displayed here. 

What surprised me very much that many present day things of daily use have their origins here. Even the humble bullock cart used by farmers in rural India has a design today. Which is very similar to the one used by Indus valley civilization people. There are two more museums in the Indian subcontinent, which I can never hope to see. One is in Lahore and other in Peshawar. Both these museums have great frescos and panels from Gandhar era. 

 

Coming down to south India, the ruins at Hampi are perhaps the best in India. From fourteenth to sixteenth century AD, Vijayanagara kings had created, some of the most wonderful temples here. Hazari Ram temple and Vitthala temple,which is without doubt the best, still stands here with all the glory of the past. My holiday at Hampi was so memorable that I shall cherish it for my life. 

 

I always find a visit to such old temple ruins or to a museum deeply satisfying. To learn about history is actually to learn about our past follies and mistakes. I think that if everyone decides to learn from history and vows not to repeat the misdeeds, the world can be a far safer and happier place.

28 January 2012

A tourist destination par excellence!

As the schools close for summer holidays, there is a great rush everywhere in the world to travel. People in the western world, rush to beaches, whereas Indians prefer cool destinations like Shimla, Manali in Himalayas and obviously Kashmir. A new trend has appeared in tourism industry since last 2 or 3 decades. Most of the people now prefer packaged tours, in which a travel company takes care of all the requirements and needs of individual travellers. Since they are travelling in a group, the costs also come down.

What are the most preferred destinations of Indians for summer travel? Kashmir would be the first choice for everyone, who has not been there. Its pristine beauty is so overpowering that the memories are almost unforgettable. After Kashmir come many other destinations in the states of Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim. Kingdom of Bhutan and North eastern states including Arunachal Pradesh. Many people also want to travel to Ladakh, the northern most region of India, where ordinary citizens are freely allowed to travel.

However if you ask a real connoisseur today about his choice of a tourist destination, he is likely to brush off most of the places I have listed above because there is a new tourist destination that has just opened up its doors to tourists. Its virgin, awe inspiring beauty, unspoiled by any kind of human interference is simply breath taking. There is absolutely nothing similar to this wonderland anywhere else in the world. By now, many of you must have guessed the name correctly. It is the southernmost continent of Antarctica. But a tour to Antarctica does not come cheap; it will lighten your pocket by Rs. 1,80,000 (US$ 3000) per person for a tour by a plane that directly lands on the icy continent and lasts just about 5 hours. Or if you prefer the conventional way, you can travel by ship to the continent. This is likely to set you off by Rs. 4,00,000 (US$6000)to Rs.8,00,000 (US$ 12000) for every person.

Why do people want to travel to Antarctica? The popular tourist guide 'Lonely Planet' gives this reason: Many people come just for the wildlife: the penguins, seals, whales and seabirds are beautiful and unafraid of humans. Others want the thrill of crossing an often-heaving ocean to a remote land where people are mere visitors. Some just want to be able to attain their seventh and last continent.

Environment of Antarctica is protected by Treaty of the Antarctic and the Madrid Protocol, which bans almost all economic activities like mineral extraction on this white continent. Fortunately, Tourism is one of the few economic activities that are allowed by this Treaty. As a result, more than 35,350 people are likely to visit Antarctica this year. This figure is higher by about 1,000 from figure of last season and 8,000 more than in 2011-2012, according to the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators.

How do these tours operate? Let us first see the shorter one day/two day tour by air. These tours start from Punta Arenas in the south of Chile, from where Antarctica is just 2 hours flying time away. The aircraft lands on hard ice and then Tourists trudging in single file line move on. The tourists can either visit the island of King George, in the South Shetlands archipelago and the neighboring Russian station of Bellingshausen with its out-of-place Orthodox church or tour Half Moon Island, a habitat of seals and penguins that is home to the Argentine base of Teniente Camara. There they can sip a hot cup of coffee, send a postcard and get their passport stamped with a picture of a krill, a kind of small shrimp that is the symbol of the baseHowever to reach starting point of the tour, Punta Arenas, one needs to take a flight from Chilean capital Santiago or take a cruise ship. Following is the tour itinerary of a tour operator aeroviasdap

Day Program :

- Transfer from hotel to Punta Arenas Airport to board the DAP plane with destination to King George Island (Antarctica)
- At your arrival, you will be welcomed by our Antarctica-expert tour guide, who will take you on a tour visiting the following venues:
- 'Villa Las Estrellas' (First settlement inhabited by civilians)
- Visit to the Drake Passage area, where we will observe a colony of different seals along
the beach.
- Lunch or a snack depending on the place and time of arrival.
-Navigation on a zodiac boat to Ardley Island to visit some penguin colonies.
-Navigation to Collins glacier.
-Return to Punta Arenas after a 5-hour tour (depending on weather conditions).

The two day itinerary goes on something like this:

- Passengers will be taken on a caterpillar truck to the Ice Camp based on Collins glacier, located about 10 km. (6 miles) from the runway. Where you will stay overnight.

-Visit to the Collins glacier and scientific bases the next day.

-Walk to the "Elefanteras" (sea elephant colony)

-It is also possible to visit other tourist attractions, depending on the weather conditions, before returning to Punta Arenas.

For tourists who have more money to spare and time, they can travel by ship. Ninety percent of the tourists from around the world who come to Antarctica leave from Ushuaia. The cruises last an average of 11 days. The cruise ships cross Drake Passage in the Southern Ocean, which has some of the world’s worst weather, setting off from either Ushuaia in southern Argentina or from Punta Arenas in Chile. On this tour your transportation, meals and accommodation are all arranged on board of the ship so that no infrastructure is required to be built ashore in Antarctica's delicate environment.

The tour mostly consists of shore landings using rigid inflatable craft powered by outboard engines, known as Zodiacs. The tourists visit penguin rookeries, scientific research stations and historic sites - and also go on cruises through fields of beautiful icebergs. Lectures are also arranged on the ship about the continent and its wildlife.

There can be no doubt that visiting Antarctica can be once in a lifetime experience. People usually plan for years to visit here. But the travel may be well worth the efforts and the money spent.

22^nd April 2014

Travels, ruins and museums

If I am ever asked about my idea of a perfect travel plan, I am sure to answer in the negative, if the choice is of just lazying in the sun or in the five star comfort of a hotel. I do love beaches but spending a day there, relaxing on the beach, would be the longest, I would opt for. Any extended holiday on a beach or in a five or four star resort, would not enthuse me at all. Someone mentioned recently to me that I love to visit temples. Well! That is true to an extent. I do love to visit temples, but to qualify for my visit, it has to be at least 500 years old and preferably in ruins and without an idol. However, visiting old temples, is not my only choice. I also love to visit museums and old ruins. Here are some of my top favourites.

If anyone opts for a holiday in east Asia, the temple ruins of Siem Reap, Cambodia, are the most visit worthy temple ruins on earth, according to me. There are number of temples here, but the best from the angle of fine workmanship, is undoubtedly the smallest temple of the lot, Banteay Strei. I have never seen before, such exquisite and dainty carvings on stone. The bass reliefs at other places are carved in such way that a two dimensional picture materializes in your front. In Angkor Wat temple for example, some of the bass reliefs, have three or even four depth levels, to make carvings appear more realistic. However, the carvings in Banteay Strei are almost three dimensional. A flower or a sea shell, appears as if the real thing has been pasted on the stone. In this temple ruin, lintels on the doors and the windows, each tell a story from Hindu mythological scriptures. Since I had read most of the stories in the past, it was fun for me to see the carvings in details. However a person unknown to Hindu Mythological stories, can easily follow them from excellent guide books available. 

 

Going to the west and beyond the Arabian sea, a treasure world of ruins opens if one opts for Red Sea Holidays. In addition to a huge variety of historical treasures such as the Sphinx, the iconic Pyramids of Giza, which can be seen with Cairo as your base, there are stunning beach resorts for a lazy day in the sun. Sharm el Sheikh beach resort offers a perfect base for scuba diving enthusiasts, who want to explore aquatic treasures of red sea. Other beach resorts which are popular are at Taba and Hurghada. The icing on the cake for an Egypt holiday however, at least according to me, is the Egyptian museum at Cairo. With over 120000 artifacts in stock, this museum is a treasure house for people interested in history. You can see here King Tutankhamen's Golden Mask, and Ramses' mummy on display in only one place.

Holiday in Goa- Part I

You can reach Goa from the north, in two possible ways. The first and the simplest, at least on the map, is to hit the Mumbai-Goa highway, which starts at Panvel, some 50 Km south of Mumbai. This road goes straight to Goa. There are no mountain passes or Ghats, as we call them here. Yet there is a catch. This road in most parts, is just a two lane road. Considering the volume of traffic on this road, and the trucks that ply on it, I think that it is best to avoid this road as far are possible. The other alternative is to take Mumbai-Pune expressway and then bypassing Pune city, take the National Highway No. 4 to Bengluru. This road is fairly wide (4 lanes) and in general one can have a pleasant journey. Since I started my journey from Pune, my choice was limited to latter, any way.

We had planned to leave Pune city early in the morning, have lunch at Kolhapur and then proceed to Goa. We managed to leave Pune, well in time, after having sumptuous breakfast of Idli's and other south Indian snacks, joined the Bengluru highway early morning. At a distance of 8 to 10 Km from the city, we had to cross the first mountain pass at Katraj. I had some apprehensions about this pass because of the heavy traffic, which I had experienced previously. I had somehow forgotten that it is no longer necessary to cross the Katraj pass as a new tunnel has been built. This tunnel, which removes the necessity of climbing a narrow mountain road , has made the travel much easier and before we knew it, we were already speeding towards Satara. Our  holidays to Goa had truly began. Kolhapur city is about 200 Km south of Pune and we managed to reach there in about three and half hours after breaking for a cup of tea at Karad.