Friday, January 18, 2013

The tea culture in India


There are many stories that unfold and friendships forged over a cup of tea. The tea culture in India provides a strong foundation for casual chats with complete strangers on your travels.
Local-Chai-ki-Thaddi
Local-Chai-ki-Thaddi
The Indian landscape is dotted with small tea shops across the nation – this one peculiarly does not have a regional flavour to it. It’s amazing how inhibitions are lost when you are offered a cup of tea by a local and how people in India take it upon themselves to guide and suggest you the ‘appropriate’ thing to do when you are passing through their city. So enjoy the warm hospitality mixed in a piping hot cup of tea while in India.
Very-Hot-Tea
Very-Hot-Tea
While social nuances are built on this affable beverage, surely the culture must have started with the widespread cultivation of the same. The neat rows of tea plants are spread across the country from Assam in the North East and the mild hills of Nilgiris. Many tea plantations are rapidly becoming travelling hubs due with great places to stay and charming landscapes attached to these. New favourites for travellers include Munnar, Nilgiris, Assam, parts of Nagaland, Siliguri, Darjeeling and Wayanad. You can also have tea tasting sessions with experts in these plantation factories.
Chai-Ke-Baagan
Chai-Ke-Baagan

Try a cup of tea from any of these places to understand the cultural diversity in India:

The mud ‘kulhads’

Mud cups or ‘kulhads’ in the Indian trains used to be very famous. Bio degradable and clean, the taste of tea from these was truly inimitable. These cups are fast fading in the progress and advent of plastic, but still hold a heart warming charm to them.
Kulhad-wali-Chai
Kulhad-wali-Chai

Tea Lounges

The concept of tea lounges is not new in India. Many plantations had a section for tea tasting which have been expanded as lounges these days. Some of the better tea lounges can be found in the Nilgiris and even in cities. Try Tranquilitea and Infinitea both based out of Coonoor and Bangalore respectively.

The Narrow Streets of Varanasi

As much is the place famous for its ghats and spiritual connections, the tea shops of Varanasi make a common ground of hundreds of travellers meeting over a warm cup. Tea shop owners busy themselves with meter long pouring techniques as shops fill up with visitors in the mornings and evenings. This scenario can be found throughout India.
Chai-in-Narrow Streets of Varanasi
Chai-in-Narrow Streets of Varanasi

Cycle Walahs

If you head out in a city early in the morning, you can find tea cups being doled out in plenty by cycle vendors precariously balancing a huge container of tea and coffee by the side of the road.
Kadak-Chai-Dena
Kadak-Chai-Dena

Enjoy the variety of settings , tastes and company with each cup of tea that you encounter in India.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Uttrakhand Tourism: Things to do in Nighlat


A Hidden Treasure in Uttrakhand

For travellers looking to get off the beaten track and find a remote and unexplored destination is the small town of Nighlat, tucked away in the rolling hills of Uttrakhand is just waiting to be discovered and is one of the top places near Nainital to extend a holiday there.
Trekking-in-Nighlat
Trekking-in-Nighlat

Close to Nainital and Bhimtal discover things to do in this secret location where you can appreciate the soothing calm of the mountains. Here are are top seven things to do in Nighlat.

Hikes

Alpine forests hide the curvaceous trails amidst the mild and tough slopes of the mountains. Explore your own paths or follow a local shepherd for day long hikes which are exciting and yet do not fall in the ‘experts’ bracket. Ensure that you carry some food and water in a light backpack. Plenty of streams and vast meadows make for good picnic spots. Mild treks to Macchli Diggi and Gaggar are also fascinating.
View-of-beautiful-Nighlat
View-of-beautiful-Nighlat

Explore local gardens

Many homes in Niglahat have a penchant for gardening and keeping immaculate green patches. The weather is conducive to growing fresh vegetables and various varieties of flowers and keen gardeners will find plenty of like minded locals to share tips with.

Adventure activities

Bhimtal, being only a short distance away, has plenty of options for activities like rappling, trekking and camping with experts. You can make Niglahat your base camp and head out for treks to places like Pine Riviera, Munsiyari, Lilam, Mukteshwar and Ramgarh. Please note that some of the tougher treks will require a degree of fitness and experience.
Beautiful-Nighlat-Lake
Beautiful-Nighlat-Lake

Enjoy the various ‘taals’ of the region

The region is very famous for lakes in places like Nainital, Bhimtal, Saat Tal and Nachiketa Taal.

Visit the fruit orchards

Khairna, which is famous for its lush orchards in the backdrop of the Himalayan peaks, is a short drive of about 11 kilometres from Niglahat.

Visit an Ashram

A famous Ashram for Neem Karori Baba very close to the Niglahat. The ashram is filled with visitors from all walks of life and many nations. Stop here to have a look at the temples inside the ashram; the most famous of them is known as the ‘Kenchi’ Temple. Neem Karori Babaji is said to be one of the avataars of Hanuman, the monkey God.
Neem Karori Baba-Ashram
Neem Karori Baba-Ashram

Just relax

Enjoy the serene company of mountains and enjoy your stay amongst the lush green landscape with only the sounds of the birds chirping!

Gujarat Tourism: Places of Tourist Interest in Gujarat


Gujarat, the growth engine of India and the land of legends is located in western part of the country along with Arabian Sea with the longest coastline of India. Gujarat is one of the major tourist regions of India and known for its scenic beauty of mountain ranges, coastline beaches and the Great Rann of Kutch. It offers wide range of tourism in terms of Cultural, Wildlife, Religious and Business.

Local Villages and Tribes of Gujarat

Villages of Gujarat are more advance then any other villages of India, These small towns and villages are awarded for best gram panchayat like Punsri and Chikhli. Kutch villages,Gir sanctuary villages and coastal villages are tribal villages and primarily sheepherders and known for their unique culture and traditions. Tribes Gowala,Bharwad,Garacia,Rabari and Banjara are few important tribes of the region.

Local-Tribes-in-Gujrat
Local-Tribes-in-Gujrat

Culture and Food

Gujarat has very vibrant and colorful culture,people, Languages and food. The traditional Gujrati thali is one of the best way to know the Gujarati cuisine. During the famous festival such as Navaratri and Uttarayan, the true culture and tradition of Gujarat come into the picture along with special food items, most famous Gujarati dishes are dhokla, fafda, khandvi, basundi and chivda.
Dhokla
Dhokla

Temples and Pilgrimages

The state is well famous as the devotional center for Hindu and Jain Pilgrimage  along with other religions. Famous temples in Gujarat are Dwarka -one of the major four centers of Hindu,Somnath temple -one of the 12 jyotirlinga of Lord Shiva, Ambaji-one of the 51 Shakti Peethas, Pavagadh, Sun Temple Modhera and Akshardham of Gandhinagar. It also host many Jain temples, includes Mahudi Jain Tirth,Palitana temples,Taranga Girnar and one of the biggest and oldest mosques of India, Jami Masjid of Ahmedabad.

Somnath-Temple
Somnath-Temple

Major Cities and Towns of Gujarat

Gujarat is also home to big Sea port, sardar sarovar dam – one of the biggest dam of India in Narmada river, India’s first Canal-top Solar Power Project and some of the India’s fastest developing cities like Ahmedabad, Surat-the city of flyovers, Gandhinagar -green city of India and Jamnagar, the Oil City of India. Other major cities are Anand -the Milk Capital of India,Vadodara,Rajkot, and Godhra-the spirit of India.
Surat-city-diamond-city-of-india
Surat-city-diamond-city-of-india

Fairs and Festivals

It celebrates unique festival and fairs such as Garba during the Navratri, Kite Festival in Makar Sankranti or Uttarayana, Modhera Dance Festival and world famous Rann Utsav in November–December at Kutch. The major fairs includes Tarnetar Fair and Vautha Mela along with many other religious fairs at respective temple. Rann Utsav is one of the most popular festival and a cultural extravaganza to display the real and traditional flavor of area and Vibrant Gujarat.
Kai-Po-Che-Flying-Kite-High-in-Gujarat
Kai-Po-Che-Flying-Kite-High-in-Gujarat

Fort & palaces

Gujarat has wide variety of great historic forts,grand palaces, beautiful temples and other historical monuments.These Forts and Palaces have very impressive Architecture and the historical background of Maharaja. Major forts are Taranga Fort,The Upperkot fort,Tera Fort and Pavagadh, known for a famous Mahakali temple. The Palaces of Vadodara know as Laxmi Vilas Palace is one of the Grand palace of India and a major popular tourist sites in Gujarat.
Laxmi-Vilas-Palace
Laxmi-Vilas-Palace

Historical sites and Monuments & Museums

The land has a rich Heritage and Historical places that dates back from Indus Valley Civilization to Mahabharata. Major Heritage spots are Kirti Mandir,Pavagadh and Vadnagar,famous for its torans and Hatkeshwar Temple. World heritage sites like Lothal, Dholavira and Champaner are major attraction of Vibrant Gujarat along with Monuments Amrutvarshni Vav,Ancient Masjid,Ancient Step Well and Navlakha Temple.
Lothal-historical-site
Lothal-historical-site

Apart from the above Historical places Gujarat offers splendid historical spots like Hriday Kunj,Sabarmati Ashram,Fateh Singh Museum and famous Calico Museum of Textiles. The city also has unique Kite Museum at Ahmedabad,Takhteshwar Temple,bhadreshwar temple,Pratap Vilas Palace and famous six times destroyed Somnath Temple.
Calico-Textile-Museum-in-Gujarat
Calico-Textile-Museum-in-Gujarat

Lakes and Waterfalls

The water bodies of Gujarat are very famous and major attractions, like Ranmal Lake,Hamirsar Lake Vastrapur Lake and Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary. It also have important rivers Narmada river,Sabarmati river and Tapti river along with famous waterfall such as Gira Falls, Girmal Falls and Ninai Waterfall.
Gira-falls in Gujrat
Gira-falls in Gujrat

Beaches and Islands

The longest coastline of Gujarat offers some of the most beautiful Indian Beaches and Sea island such as Mandvi Beach, Gopnath Beach,Dumas Beach,Dwarka Beach, Porbandar Beach and islands are Pirotan and Narala Island and Diu. Pirotan Island is located in the Marine National Park, only its kind of national park in India situated in the Gulf of Kutch. The Marine Sanctuary offers home to Corals, Fish, Crabs, Prawns, Molluscs, Sea snakes and Turtles along with sea birds.
Mandvi-Beach
Mandvi-Beach

Mountains and Hills

Gujarat host four major mountain ranges of India, including Aravalli, Sahyadri,Vindhya and Satpura along with hills Girnar Hill,Saputara hills and famous Wilson Hills. These collection of mountains and hills offers habitat for Indian Lion, the only place in the wild with 411 Asiatic lions in the Gir forest. The Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is the fully protected area for diverse flora and fauna and Dangs district has largest forest cover area under the Saputara range.
Wilson-Hill-in-Gujarat
Wilson-Hill-in-Gujarat

Wildlife of Gujarat

Habitat of Gujarat provides shelter to rare and unique species of Flora and Fauna, which includes The Asiatic Lions, Blackbuck, Wild Ass,Dolphins,Whale Shark and The Avifauna are Great Horned Owl,majestic eagles and fascinating buzzards along with migratory Birds like Pelican,Flamingos and cranes. The major national park, wildlife Sanctuaries and Bird Sanctuary of Gujarat are famous Gir National Park,unique Marine National Park,Porbandar Bird Sanctuary, Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary,Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary and Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary of the Little Rann of Kutch.
Resting-Lioness-in-Gir-National-Park
Resting-Lioness-in-Gir-National-Park



Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Kumbh Mela 2013 - Photos

Millions of Hindus gathered at Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers, yesterday for Makar Sankranti and first the day of the Maha Kumbh Mela, in Allahabad, India.

The Maha Kumbh Mela, believed to be the largest religious gathering on earth, is held every 12 years on the banks of Sangam
Ganga Arti Blessings - Haridwar - Maha Kumbh

Ganga Arti - Haridwar - Maha Kumbh

Devotees arriving for Kumbh Mela 2013

Young gun's of India enjoying Maha Kumbh bath in Ganges - Maha Kumbh Mela 2013

Sadhu ganges dip at Maha Kumbh Mela 2013

Naga Baba's arriving at Maha Kumbh Mela 2013

Naga Baba's first dip in Maha Kumbh - Kumbh Mela 2013

Devotees paying respect to Ma Gange - Maha Kumbh Mela 2013

Baba Ramdev arriving at Maha Kumbh - Kumbh Mela 2013

Har Har Gange -- Naga babas jumping for holy dip in Ganges - Kumbh Mela 2013

Naga Baba smooking Ganja - Kumbh Mela 2013

Naga baba's chanting "Har Har gange" and taking a Holy Dip - Kumbh Mela 2013

Another one at Maha Kumbh 2013

Woman's praying to Ma Gange and taking Holy Dip during Maha Kumbh 

Sadhu walking to Ganges for Holy Dip - Kumbh Mela 2013

Sadhu's at Maha Kumbh 2013

Woman's drying cloths after Holy dip in Ganges - Kumbh Mela 2013

Couple's enjoying Holy Dip together during Maha Kumbh - 2013