The forecast said there is a 30% chance of rain. We expected that there will be some showers in the afternoon and that’s it. It started raining at 1:00 AM at night and it never stopped. The mountains have their own rules. No weather forecast can predict what goes on in their minds. The ground … Continue reading The Mountain Rulez
We started the next day to a place called Litham. From there, was our base camp to the Buran pass. Buran pass is the highest point of our trek where we cross the mountain. On the way to Litham The camp in Litham was supposed to be on the snow. However we camped a little … Continue reading Snow rain snow rain
The trek started at 830 AM. We were told that it’s a moderate trail with ups and downs. We walked through dense forests and saw various varieties of trees. View of the mountains Swaroopa was grilling the guide on various questions. What grows here? What do you grow in summers, winters? What is the name … Continue reading Himalayan Pastures
We traveled almost for almost 8 hours from Shimla to this small village named Janglik. On the way, we ate a Himachali dish called Siddu. It is a wheat bun stuffed with KhusKhus and later steamed. It tasted like a variant of Kadubu or Kozhakattai. The travel Pabri river We travelled across various terrains. But … Continue reading Silent Himalayan village
We reached Shimla and went for a LONG walk on a 45 degree incline from our hotel to Mall Road. Mall Road is the main shopping/eating area in Shimla. The roads were very clean, I must say. The roads were fairly empty. Suddenly we saw a group of people. A large group of people. Curious … Continue reading Shimla Shooting
We reached Delhi. We had to take a bus to Shimla but had around 4 hours to spend in Delhi. So we decided to visit India Gate like any other tourist. Got out of the airport, there was a prepaid taxi stand run by the government. Told the guy at the counter, “India Gate”. He … Continue reading Delhi me only CashPe
Me and my wife arrived at the Bangalore airport to proceed to the trek. We had one trekking backpack and one small handbag each. We checked-in the trekking bag and proceeded for security check. Our handbags had barely anything. Just power-banks and wallets. Security check at Bangalore airport Our bags got flagged and the guy … Continue reading Lead or Graphite
It’s been many years since I went on a trek. Starting of this year my friend Deepak asked me if I wanted to join him on a trek. I said yes assuming it would not materialise anyways. To my surprise it did materialise. And here it is. I worked on getting more fit last few … Continue reading Let’s trek
I was reading something and stumbled upon an interesting fact. The fastest growing language in the US is Telugu. Yes. Not Spanish. Not Arabic not Hindi. It’s Telugu. To check my facts I did a bit of googling and it’s indeed true. See the BBC report on this. The most popular languages in terms of … Continue reading Fastest growing language in America
#dailylearning Whenever we say our stomach is big, or we have stomach pain we hold the middle of our abdominal area. But the stomach isn’t there really. Its to the left behind the end of the rib cage. Key new learning’s Stomach is way above where I thought it was The place where we hold … Continue reading Size of the stomach
After more than a month of solo travel across parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan, these are my takeaways. My constant companion during my travel Learnings I tried to think about the best and worst things that I felt about solo travel. Good 1. Decide anything anytime You want leave town now? You can. You want … Continue reading Good Bad & Ugly – Solo Trip
As I travelled across parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan I could feel the type and taste of food slowly change. I saw a broad pattern and this post is about that. Sweet Gujjus Fafda - Bhuj,Gujarat Khova - Bhuj, Gujarat Most of the items that I got served in Gujarat were sweet in taste. Some … Continue reading Food’s Journey
I was sitting at a hostel room and a girl there showed an earring and said she made it herself. Intrigued, I asked her where she learnt making jewellery and she said there are jewellery making classes in Pushkar. Thrilled, I got the details. The next day, I was in the class. My silversmith table. … Continue reading I learnt to make Silver Jewellery
Did you know that the Jains believe that the earth is flat and not a sphere? I am not making this up. I visited a Jain temple called Soni Ji Ki Nasiya temple in Ajmer and when I saw what was written there I was surprised. A model of the Earth Explanation of the universe … Continue reading Jains are Flat Earthers
Pushkar is a temple town. Apart from Pushkar lake which is considered extremely holy, it houses various ancient temples. One is the oldest is the Brahma temple. It is believed to be have been built by Sage Vishwamitra. Brahma Temple - Pushkar The whole town is just around the lake. The place is surrounded by … Continue reading Temple tour in temple town
While at Pushkar, I understood the details of the place and why there is a Brahma temple only in Pushkar and nowhere else. Vishnu and Shiva temples are in every village may be! The reason was that Brahma the creator was cursed by his own wife, Savitri. Pushkar Lake I have always felt that the … Continue reading Creator cursed
There is a person called Aaloo Baba. He has a small place near Pushkar called the Aaloo Baba ashram. Don’t be worried. He has no major cult following of sorts. He is a simple man living a very simple life. Aaloo Baba - Pushkar I went to visit him. Why is he called Aaloo Baba? … Continue reading Aaloo Baba
I wanted to visit the Khwaja Gharib Nawaz Dargah in Ajmer from a long time. And finally got a chance to go there. The place definitely has something in it that is powerful and has a different vibe. वही अजमेर जाते हैं, जिन्हें ख्वाजा बुलाते हैं! Khwaja Gharib Nawaz Dargah - Ajmer Anyone whom I … Continue reading Khwaja mere Khwaja
After travelling for about a month in Rajasthan I have gotten tired of forts and palaces. I call this Royal fatigue. Various forts and palaces. All the forts and palaces have a pattern to them. 1. Gates There will be a series of gates (Prol or Pol) leading to the fort. One of them will … Continue reading Royal fatigue
In the land of Kings there is a fort everywhere. And I visited a lot of them. This time it was the Mehrangarh fort in Jodhpur. Fort Entrance - Mehrangarh fort The walk up to the fort is EXTREMELY steep. I stayed in a hostel close the fort and the walking distance was hardly 1km. … Continue reading Another Fort visit
Endless thoughts 