If there is one defining image of India that is recognizable worldwide then it would be that of The Taj Mahal. Identified by epitaphs such as “The Monument of Love”, “7th New Wonder of the world’ and so on, this marble marvel is often the #1 item on the bucket list of Indian tourism. An estimated 7 to 8 million (!) people visit Agra every year to see the Taj Mahal. And while the mausoleum…
The Review The Awakening is the story of Edna Pontellier, a terribly bored housewife. She has unquestioningly followed the path defined for her sex. She married young, had two beautiful children and at the ripe young age of twenty-eight, she discovered she has nothing to live for. That is until she meets Robert LeBraun, the handsome and kind son of their lodge owner at Grand Isle. She begins to feel the hints of infatuation which…
Before I visit someplace I find reading something about it through travel guides, history books or simply novels really useful. You get a good sense of the historical and cultural context which deepens your travel experience. For a trip to Istanbul, my personal recommendations are- Fodor’s Istanbul’s 25 Best – A short travel guide that gives you the highlights on what to do Istanbul. Carry this along and you don’t really need your own itinerary.…
Why this trip? Back in the day, when we used to call St. Louis our home, winters were long and painful. Being from a tropical country like India, it takes a little time to get used to six-month winters. Well, it was almost March, and I had had it with sitting at home and staring at the cold, forlorn streets. I needed to get out. Since we only had a weekend and we wanted to…
“Are we there yet?” That dreaded question that parents fear the most on road trips! A question that leads to other questions – ‘How much longer? Can I watch more videos? I am bored, what do I do? ’ Let’s face it, you can’t really blame your kids for their impatience. Long road trips are hard – sitting in one position, in a small confined space with fast-flying views (which they don’t really care about)…
Once you get over the shock of crowds, the humidity and the tangy sea breeze mixed with the smell of dead fish and sewage that permeates this megapolis, it is easier to open your mind to what Mumbai offers. To make sense of this vast throbbing mass of life you have to get to know it from the ground up and like all great cities of the world, the best way to discover Mumbai’s neighborhoods…
This is the 2nd part of 3 post-series on our experiences in Bhutan. The other two posts cover our time in Thimpu and Paro! Highlights: Dochula Pass, The Temple of Fertility, The Punakha Dzong, The Wangdiphodrang Dzong and Namgay Monastery At Dochula Pass Heading to Dochula Pass We managed to head out of Thimpu late afternoon and were on the road by 3.00 PM for the next leg of our trip. The terrain from Punakha…
This post is the last part of 3 post-series on our experiences in Bhutan. The first two posts talks about our experiences in Thimpu and Punakha valley respectively Planned Highlights : National Museum – Taktsang Monastery – Paro Dzong – Cheri Lang Monastery Reality Check We had grand plans for Paro, but we barely made through any of them. Travel exhaustion finally hit us on this leg of our journey. I don’t know if it…
