Palakkad, Kerala, my Home-town Palakkad (or Palghat as it was called earlier) is a small town in Kerala state of Southern India. It is a non-descript town with no pretensions to grandeur or historical significance. Naturally beautiful and simple, it boasts of a quiet, simple, laid-back life. It is my home town. And I love it. My...
Pondicherry or Puducherry is popular for its beaches and pretty french colonies. Not far away from Puducherry is the experimental community of Auroville. People from all over the world live here in harmony. This township thus is a perfect example of human unity. Mira Alfassa - the spiritual companion of Sri Aurobindo founded Auroville in...
The houseboat experience in Kerala is chief among the many attractions in Kerala, God’s Own Country. A few of these attractions are nature at its greenest, mountains, lakes, beaches, Ayurveda, culture and traditions… Oh, and food… Let me start by talking of the backwaters of Kerala. Where a houseboat experience is simply a must-do. The backwaters...
The second largest Tibetan settlement in the world outside Tibet is in Bylakuppe. The largest being in Dharmshala in Himachal Pradesh. Bylakuppe is located in the city of Kushalnagar and at a 2 hour drive away from Coorg. Setup in 1960, there are over 70,000 Tibetans here in Bylakuppe. The Tibetans earn their living by...
Give me a choice between Bengaluru and Mysore, and I will choose Mysore - the City of Palaces! It's just because Mysore has so much history to rewind upon. The heritage sites around Srirangapatna can keep one busy for an entire day. Mysore has a flavor of everything, be it heritage, wildlife, palaces, temples, churches...
Coorg is a popular hill station in the southern state of Karnataka. This place is famous for its coffee and coffee plantations. Coorg accounts for 40% of the country's coffee produce. Called as the 'Scotland of India', this place has a little bit of everything. This includes lush green landscapes, waterfalls, mountains, flora and fauna....
Andaman and Nicobar Islands comprise of 572 islands , forming an archipelago at the juncture of Bay of Bengal and Andaman sea. Currently only 37 islands are inhabited. Pristine beaches, marine life, great underwater sports option, an intriguing ancient settlement , Andaman islands will tick all the boxes for an ideal vacation. Did you know...
As I kid I remember playing table tennis with my friends (Balaji and Govinda) who were twins. It was quite baffling and irritating to face an identical opponent after defeating one of them. To make it worse, apart from looking similar they wore the same outfit which added to the confusion. I have grown up watching...
I had been to Badami close to four years back. We drove down from Bengaluru to participate in the Go Heritage Run there. I had heard a lot about the Rock Cut Cave Temples of Badami but never visited it. To make best use of our trip, we visited Bijapur and Pattadakal too. Badami is located...
Every time I happen to visit Chennai, I make it a point to cover the ancient temples. A few years back I covered a few namely Kapaleeswarar temple, Parthasarathy temple and Santhome Cathedral Basilica. The Kapaleeswarar temple is a massive temple and an ancient one too. The belief is that the goddess of this temple...
