At pizza hut in white town or french pondicherry... as a friend says, probably the only pizza hut with beer on the menu!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Postcard from pondicherry
At pizza hut in white town or french pondicherry... as a friend says, probably the only pizza hut with beer on the menu!
Friday, November 17, 2006
danza con mí, mi querido
Before you start looking it upon babelfish, it means "dance with me, my darling"...
Yes. This post is inspired after an hour of salsa in havana. For the uninitiated, havana is a pub with a dance floor in Raintree ( a star hotel in alwarpet). And these guys play jive and salsa music every wednesday. And more importantly, you find a regular crowd which throngs these places to spend an evening moving to the cuban tunes.
We ( as in my salsa classmates) had made quite a few plans to hit havana, and for some reasons it didnt happen. Last wednesday i mustered the enthu ( am telling u - i have become an old women after moving back with my parents!!!) and spent an hour over here and it felt really good. There were couple of my "class mates" and a few from the same school i go to ( academy of mordern dance). While dancing in class is fun, "fun" gets a new definition when you are doing it under disco lights and on a sooper smooth floor! Even watching others do some neat twists ans sexy twirls was damn good!
For the record, platinum on Aruna inn also has jive and salsa nights on saturday... yet to check that one out.
Yes. This post is inspired after an hour of salsa in havana. For the uninitiated, havana is a pub with a dance floor in Raintree ( a star hotel in alwarpet). And these guys play jive and salsa music every wednesday. And more importantly, you find a regular crowd which throngs these places to spend an evening moving to the cuban tunes.
We ( as in my salsa classmates) had made quite a few plans to hit havana, and for some reasons it didnt happen. Last wednesday i mustered the enthu ( am telling u - i have become an old women after moving back with my parents!!!) and spent an hour over here and it felt really good. There were couple of my "class mates" and a few from the same school i go to ( academy of mordern dance). While dancing in class is fun, "fun" gets a new definition when you are doing it under disco lights and on a sooper smooth floor! Even watching others do some neat twists ans sexy twirls was damn good!
For the record, platinum on Aruna inn also has jive and salsa nights on saturday... yet to check that one out.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Tagged : 8 things about me...
I've been tagged again and this time , its 8 things about me... and like 'she-who-tagged-me' i shall try and write things related to travelling ...
Rules of this Tag:
1. Name the person who tagged you.
2. 8 things about you.
3. Tag 6 people.
Name of the Person : Mridula
I wonder where she comes up with the enthu to be a part of so many blogs and contribute actively to all!
8 things about me
1. However hard I try, anytime I have to write about myself or something i am involved with , I always make even the worst sound cute and center the narratives around me - sort of like casting myself in the lead. Its not intentional - it's just an inherent bias i cannot seem to eliminate. So - you know what to expect of next 7 points.
2. The toughest challenge (for me) when I am making a trip, is to constantly remember that my interest need not necessarily match others interests too. I find it very difficult, especially when I start feeling panicky about not getting to do something i had been looking forward to. But I manage - and so far, have managed to do a lot of trips where more or less all people involved found common ground and have enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.
3. I found the reason why my most recent trips have been more fulfilling than a lot of others to more exotic locations - I got to plan it. Researching, planning ang organizing is half the fun :) - makes me feel more involved - and all this stems from a more basic need to be in control ! always.
4. I HATE it when anyone tells me that something (something being anything i want to do) isn't possible - I prefer 'dificult' over 'impossible'.
5. I find more pleasure in beautifully beaded words than pictures. And no, i dont think all pictures speak a thousand words.
6. It took me 6 months to put a sitemeter on this blog for the fear of what i might find.
7. I like to listen to sound of silence when i am in a forest - something my friends found totally contrasting to my usually 'loud self' (on my latest trip) and ofcourse took my life for it.
8. I cant stand anyone who tells me that they dont like Chennai or they find it unfriendly without really giving the city a chance. Having said that, I think Chennai and TamilNadu could do with better marketing and more investment from the tourism department!
I tag :
Tarun, Meera, Rags, Kay, Raul, Sriram, Tanu, Mama,
Rules of this Tag:
1. Name the person who tagged you.
2. 8 things about you.
3. Tag 6 people.
Name of the Person : Mridula
I wonder where she comes up with the enthu to be a part of so many blogs and contribute actively to all!
8 things about me
1. However hard I try, anytime I have to write about myself or something i am involved with , I always make even the worst sound cute and center the narratives around me - sort of like casting myself in the lead. Its not intentional - it's just an inherent bias i cannot seem to eliminate. So - you know what to expect of next 7 points.
2. The toughest challenge (for me) when I am making a trip, is to constantly remember that my interest need not necessarily match others interests too. I find it very difficult, especially when I start feeling panicky about not getting to do something i had been looking forward to. But I manage - and so far, have managed to do a lot of trips where more or less all people involved found common ground and have enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.
3. I found the reason why my most recent trips have been more fulfilling than a lot of others to more exotic locations - I got to plan it. Researching, planning ang organizing is half the fun :) - makes me feel more involved - and all this stems from a more basic need to be in control ! always.
4. I HATE it when anyone tells me that something (something being anything i want to do) isn't possible - I prefer 'dificult' over 'impossible'.
5. I find more pleasure in beautifully beaded words than pictures. And no, i dont think all pictures speak a thousand words.
6. It took me 6 months to put a sitemeter on this blog for the fear of what i might find.
7. I like to listen to sound of silence when i am in a forest - something my friends found totally contrasting to my usually 'loud self' (on my latest trip) and ofcourse took my life for it.
8. I cant stand anyone who tells me that they dont like Chennai or they find it unfriendly without really giving the city a chance. Having said that, I think Chennai and TamilNadu could do with better marketing and more investment from the tourism department!
I tag :
Tarun, Meera, Rags, Kay, Raul, Sriram, Tanu, Mama,
Titbits DandeliGokarna
Just wanted to post some vital info on dandeli and gokarna as promised.
Dandeli
-By far, Kulg(0828-4231585) is a much better place to stay than Jungle lodge Resorts. JLR has too much cement and doesnt give an adequate enough feeling of being with nature.Also, kulgi is closer to the dandeli wild life sanctuary itself.
-But the logistics can be a pain. From the central town, JLR is about 1-2 km, whereas kulgi is about 10-12km. And the only way to get to-from kulgi is through the local sumos (a crowded one!) which are quite infrequent. Kulgi supposedly runs its own van , but this wasnt available when we made our trip.
- Neither kulgi nor JLR are by the kali river rafting point. If you stay at kulgi, you will be asked to call Imam (09448331729) for arranging rafting. He, however takes you to JLR and you raft with John and mohammad from JLR only. From JLR to the point of rafting is about 20 km and JLR has jeeps to take you to and back from the river.
-Bison, the other place to stay is by the 'beautiful' green stretch of kali - and we saw one of their tree houses while on the raft. If I had the money to splurge, then bison it would be.
Accomodation at Dandeli
Gokarna
-There is no way to directly hit the beach - you can trek about 3km from the town or take an auto for about 125 bucks to a point close to the beach ... ou will find steps or a dirt road leading to the beach.
- though sunset cafe or namaste cafe(09448153643/08386257313) wouldnt accept reservations, try and push them for booking. Though i havent seen namaste cafe myself, it sounds like a better option than sunset.
- there is a 'Sugama' travels that offers bus service to bangalore and they had seats available when i landed in Gokarna. So, incase KSRTC is all booked, you can try these guys.
- By the way, did you know KSRTC offers booking from outside karnataka? I didnt and i was breaking my head over how to book the last lag of my journey - and finally one nice ksrtc guy said that it was possible to book gokarna to bangalore tickets from chennai!
Dandeli
-By far, Kulg(0828-4231585) is a much better place to stay than Jungle lodge Resorts. JLR has too much cement and doesnt give an adequate enough feeling of being with nature.Also, kulgi is closer to the dandeli wild life sanctuary itself.
-But the logistics can be a pain. From the central town, JLR is about 1-2 km, whereas kulgi is about 10-12km. And the only way to get to-from kulgi is through the local sumos (a crowded one!) which are quite infrequent. Kulgi supposedly runs its own van , but this wasnt available when we made our trip.
- Neither kulgi nor JLR are by the kali river rafting point. If you stay at kulgi, you will be asked to call Imam (09448331729) for arranging rafting. He, however takes you to JLR and you raft with John and mohammad from JLR only. From JLR to the point of rafting is about 20 km and JLR has jeeps to take you to and back from the river.
-Bison, the other place to stay is by the 'beautiful' green stretch of kali - and we saw one of their tree houses while on the raft. If I had the money to splurge, then bison it would be.
Accomodation at Dandeli
Gokarna
-There is no way to directly hit the beach - you can trek about 3km from the town or take an auto for about 125 bucks to a point close to the beach ... ou will find steps or a dirt road leading to the beach.
- though sunset cafe or namaste cafe(09448153643/08386257313) wouldnt accept reservations, try and push them for booking. Though i havent seen namaste cafe myself, it sounds like a better option than sunset.
- there is a 'Sugama' travels that offers bus service to bangalore and they had seats available when i landed in Gokarna. So, incase KSRTC is all booked, you can try these guys.
- By the way, did you know KSRTC offers booking from outside karnataka? I didnt and i was breaking my head over how to book the last lag of my journey - and finally one nice ksrtc guy said that it was possible to book gokarna to bangalore tickets from chennai!
Monday, October 16, 2006
East Coast to the West
Chennai- bangalore- Hubli - Darwad- Dandeli (2 day stop) – Ankola –Gokarna ( a day stop) – Gokarna road – Hubli- bangalore – Chennai
That was my itenary for a 4-day vacation to Gokarna and Dandeli – and not all of it was intentional and quite a lot of it was done alone. And to make it to all these places, I took 5 trains, 3 buses, sumo rides, autos – well, a flight figured in too except it got cancelled (thanks to AirDeccan).
Initially, while we were sounding out suggestions for this whole trip, I was the one who kept harping on Gokarna, and Dandeli – And when I realise I needed to almost travel about 20 hours (one way) alone to meet up with the others, I was kicking mysef for not having worked out the logistics before getting other people to join me. The other thing was that , not too many people seemed to have combined gokrna and Dandeli and till the actual trip we didn’t figure out how to get between the points. There was so much planning, trying to figure out the closest spot, the times, the distances – I don’t think ive taxed my brain and google more for any other trip …and co-ordinatin between 4 people with just mail and conflicting suggestions and lot of crazy jokes in between was enough to drive us all mad.
So it is with great pleasure I introduce you to the people who actually made it sane and safe – the I-banker from mumbai, the lucknowi lady and udaipur duo from hyd and urs truly ms.n from Chennai. Except for the I-banker, all of us travelled almost 14-16 hours by train and another 2 hours by bus from Dharwar to Dandeli and a sumo ride to the camp...
This is going to be one detailed write-up ... so i have broken it down into 2 more posts...
Rafting in the Garden of Eden - Dandeli
Sunset on the West Coast - Gokarna
I have always wondered if i would go on a trip where i would "figure it out" along the way - and this one certainly was like that. But I have to say, that the weather certainly made the 'figuring out' process smoother and the company made all teh difference. Ofcourse, one just missed out on couple of spare days for uncertainities!
The last post is on some details and phone numbers - but probably will post it over the weekend!
That was my itenary for a 4-day vacation to Gokarna and Dandeli – and not all of it was intentional and quite a lot of it was done alone. And to make it to all these places, I took 5 trains, 3 buses, sumo rides, autos – well, a flight figured in too except it got cancelled (thanks to AirDeccan).
Initially, while we were sounding out suggestions for this whole trip, I was the one who kept harping on Gokarna, and Dandeli – And when I realise I needed to almost travel about 20 hours (one way) alone to meet up with the others, I was kicking mysef for not having worked out the logistics before getting other people to join me. The other thing was that , not too many people seemed to have combined gokrna and Dandeli and till the actual trip we didn’t figure out how to get between the points. There was so much planning, trying to figure out the closest spot, the times, the distances – I don’t think ive taxed my brain and google more for any other trip …and co-ordinatin between 4 people with just mail and conflicting suggestions and lot of crazy jokes in between was enough to drive us all mad.
So it is with great pleasure I introduce you to the people who actually made it sane and safe – the I-banker from mumbai, the lucknowi lady and udaipur duo from hyd and urs truly ms.n from Chennai. Except for the I-banker, all of us travelled almost 14-16 hours by train and another 2 hours by bus from Dharwar to Dandeli and a sumo ride to the camp...
This is going to be one detailed write-up ... so i have broken it down into 2 more posts...
Rafting in the Garden of Eden - Dandeli
Sunset on the West Coast - Gokarna
I have always wondered if i would go on a trip where i would "figure it out" along the way - and this one certainly was like that. But I have to say, that the weather certainly made the 'figuring out' process smoother and the company made all teh difference. Ofcourse, one just missed out on couple of spare days for uncertainities!
The last post is on some details and phone numbers - but probably will post it over the weekend!
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