YaatraTales

24/11/2024

When I planned a trip to 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧, a country less visited by Indian tourists, I was met with a lot of apprehensions from friends and family members - Why visit the war zone? Isn’t it risky? 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 is not a safe country etc. etc.

But contrary to negative perceptions, I found this 𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐠𝐞𝐦 an incredibly safe, secure and tourist-friendly country. The country shares its borders with 𝐈𝐬𝐫𝐚𝐞𝐥, 𝐏𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞, 𝐒𝐲𝐫𝐢𝐚, 𝐈𝐫𝐚𝐪 & 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐢 𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐚. And at no point in time I felt unsafe thanks to the warm hospitality of the 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬. I could walk early in the morning or even late at night on the streets of 𝐀𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐧 or 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚, without any fear. I could easily sight 𝐈𝐬𝐫𝐚𝐞𝐥𝐢 towns from 𝐀𝐪𝐚𝐛𝐚 (𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐚) area, 𝐉𝐞𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐦 & 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤 (Palestine) from the 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐚 area.

One must visit 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 for 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚'𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫, 𝐖𝐚𝐝𝐢 𝐑𝐮𝐦'𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐚'𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 , 𝐀𝐪𝐚𝐛𝐚 (𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐚) 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐯𝐢𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐟𝐬, 𝐀𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐧'𝐬 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐦, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐉𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐡'𝐬 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐬. Hollywood movies like 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐞, 𝐋𝐚𝐰𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐚, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧, 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐬, 𝐃𝐮𝐧𝐞 etc., have been filmed at 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚 & 𝐖𝐚𝐝𝐢 𝐑𝐮𝐦. The locals love to speak in Hindi, who adore 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐡𝐫𝐮𝐤𝐡 𝐊𝐡𝐚𝐧 & 𝐀𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐡 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧.

I was impressed by the superb road infrastructure, smooth multi lane highways, extremely disciplined traffic in the cities (no honking), free wi-fi connectivity at public places including Tourist buses and clean toilets at all tourist sites or on highways. Something that we have to learn from 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧. The 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐦𝐬 (Turkish Bath), that rejuvenates our entire body, is not to be missed especially after a long walking tour of 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚. The 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧 cuisine is a delectable mix of Mediterranean, Lebanese and local Bedouin flavours.

The “𝐋𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚” - One of the “𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐖𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝” was on my wish-list for a long time and I am glad I fulfilled the wish at a time when Tourists are giving this country a miss. I realised it is better to get first hand experience than rely on negative media reports. I hope more and more Indians visit this incredible country and enjoy the beauty of 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 by reliving 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚 or 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬, which will gradually dry up by 2050.

I wish to thank @𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐭𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐋𝐭𝐝 for organising my trip to 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 very professionally, making the journey extremely memorable and enjoyable 👍🏻

10/10/2024

Today Thursday 10th October is dedicated to Maha Gauri. The 8th day of Navratri or Durga Puja celebrations is known as Durga Ashtami, also known as Maha-ashtami 🙏🏻

Maha Gauri is the form of Goddess Parvati when she did penance to get Lord Shiva as her husband. It is believed that due to intense Tapas performed by her without moving caused soil and dust to collect on her body. Lord Shiva cleaned her with water from Ganga which made her shine as white as a pearl and she got the name as Maha Gauri. She has got four arms and the fairest complexion of all the DurgaShaktis. She holds a drum and a trident and is often depicted riding a bull.

On Navaratri (9th day) the last among the nine forms of Maa Shakti - Goddess Siddhidatri is worshiped. ‘Siddhi’ is a Sanskrit term which means ‘perfection’. Goddess Siddhidatri sits on Lotus and rides on the lion. She is depicted with four hands. She has Gada (mace) in the one right hand, Chakra in the other right hand, lotus flower in the one left hand and Shankh in the other left hand.

She is the Goddess who possesses and bestows all type of Siddhis to her devotees. Even Lord Shiva got all Siddhis by grace of Goddess Siddhidatri. She is worshipped by not only humans but also by Deva, Gandharva, Asura, Yaksha and Siddha. Lord Shiva got the title of Ardha-Narishwar when Goddess Siddhidatri appeared from his left half.

In the pictures, Sharada Devi in the form of Goddess Durga on Navaratri day ..... notice the Veena has given way to the Mace in her right hand and Lion at her feet)

PC: GSB Samaj, Dwarakanath Bhavan, Basavanagudi, Bangalore

नमस्ते शारदे देवी काश्मीरपुरवासिनि ॥
त्वामहं प्रार्थये नित्यं विद्यादानं च देहि मे ॥

Salutations to Devi Sharada, who resides in the abode of Kashmir,
To You, O Devi, I always pray (for Knowledge); Please bestow on me the gift of Knowledge (which illuminates everything from within) 🙏🏻

23/06/2024

26/01/2024

Sharing memories from our trip to 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐚 & 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐧𝐚𝐦 (𝟏𝟓𝐭𝐡 𝐉𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝟐𝟑𝐫𝐝 𝐉𝐚𝐧)

𝐒𝐢𝐞𝐦 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐩 in 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐚: 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐭, the largest religious monument in the world spread across 400 acres - one of the wonders of the ancient world - originally built as a Hindu Temple by Raja Suryavarman II in the 1st half of the 12th century
Also visited The River of Thousand Lingas, Angkor Thom, Floating village at Tonle Sap Lake Island and the enchanting Apsara dance show in the evening.

𝐁𝐚 𝐍𝐚 𝐇𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐃𝐚 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐧𝐚𝐦: A French colonial hill station - the cable car ride to Ba Na Hills is the longest nonstop single track ride in the world at a height of over 5,800 metres - It’s most famous attraction is the Golden Bridge (“Hand Bridge”), a 500-foot long arched pedestrian bridge that appears to be held up over the world by 2 giant stone hands.

𝐇𝐨𝐢 𝐀𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐃𝐚 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐧𝐚𝐦: Well preserved ancient sea port and now a UNESCO World Heritage centre - Coconut village mangrove forest a must-go destination for travellers.

𝐇𝐚 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐧𝐚𝐦: UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ha Long Bay is well-known for its many limestone mountains, pristine beaches, mysterious caves and grottos, explored through the luxurious Hal Long Bay luxury cruise

𝐇𝐚 𝐍𝐨𝐢 - 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐧𝐚𝐦: Famous for the Water Puppet Theatre, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Pagodas, Trishaw cycle ride and shopping at Old Quarter

People in both countries were extremely friendly and their hospitality was simply outstanding ... they love Indians 🇮🇳 The infra and facilities were world class though Cambodia is a poor country and Vietnam is a developing nation. Clean Toilets everywhere, no cheating by shopkeepers or hawkers and their local cuisine is amazing though we had food in Indian restaurants on most of the days. Thanks to Chariot World Tours for organising this tour for us👍

24/09/2023

The Western Ghats in monsoon is a delight to watch - green landscape and lovely waterfalls - Charmadi Ghat 👌

24/09/2023

The "Delta Point" located at an estuary where the Swarna River meets the Arabian Sea at Kodi Bengre Beach 👌

24/09/2023

The Whitehouse at Hoode Beach near Udupi (Karnataka) - just metres away from the Arabian Sea shore👌

17/07/2023

Kenya is known as the world’s best safari destination, with 50 National Parks and Reserves that are home to diverse wildlife, including the Big Five – Lions, Leopards, Elephants, Rhinos and Wild Buffaloes.

The Wildebeest Migration at Masai Mara Game Reserve, is one of the '7 New Wonders of the World' and also known as The World Cup of Wildlife. Heralded as one of the Earth’s most remarkable natural spectacles, this perpetual procession of 1.5 million wildebeest, zebras and antelopes, escorted by prowling assortment of big cats - lions and cheetahs, is nearly impossible to describe.

The tour started with a night’s stay at the beautiful capital city of Nairobi. This was followed by a visit to the Aberdare region, a mountain range in the central highlands of Kenya (4,000 meters above sea level), spread over 1,300 acres of wildlife reserve hosting animals like giraffes and zebras. From here we visited the stunning 'The Ark' (2,300 meters above sea level) in the heart of the Aberdare National Park. The Lodge overlooks a floodlit waterhole and salt lick, that attracts animals like elephants, wild buffaloes, antelopes, warthogs etc.

Crossing the Equator to visit the savannahs of Lake Naivasha, is a must on the itinerary. At the Crescent Island, we spotted hippos, giraffes, zebras and a host of other animals and birds. Movies like Out of Africa and Tomb Raiders were shot here.

The Kenyan game reserves are home to tallest, fastest, strongest, heaviest animals in the world. Animals like giraffes, zebras, hyenas, Thomson’s gazelles, hartebeest, dik-dik, topis, hippopotamus, Nile crocodiles etc cannot be missed. And a wide variety of birds like the ostriches, rollers, vultures, hornbills, bustards and many more.

Discovering the unique culture and customs of one of the famous African tribes – the Masai tribes, through a walking trail to their village, is a major draw.

And finally what better way to experience the Masai Mara than to take a hot air balloon safari, gliding silently over the savannah at a height of 1,000 feet with spectacular 360 deg. view of herds of elephants, giraffes, wildebeests, wild buffaloes and other animals.

Lot of myths surrounding the country were busted after the visit. The roads and infrastructure is comparable to western countries; disciplined traffic and no honking; the toilets at pit-stops and tourist attractions are s**c and span; literacy level is high; education is free; local people speak English fluently; generally I found the people to be friendly and they love Indians. At some places we could taste Dosa, Idli and Poha for breakfast and Indian cuisine is widely popular👍

No wonder people who visit Kenya once, make regular trips thereafter ….