Trivia: Stamped Moments

Kaziranga National Park: With a sprawling 430 sq km area under the national park, Kaziranga is one of the largest national parks in India, and perhaps the finest, certainly for me. The sheer variety of wildlife and the high chance of witnessing them, makes the park most worthy of a visit. Add to that the spectacular landscape with beautiful elephant grassland crisscrossed by 4 rivers including Brahmaputra, and you have a feast for the traveler spirit. It is a host to more than 4000 one-horned Indian Rhinos (70% of the world population) and has one of the largest concentration of the royal Bengal Tiger and a large number of swamp buffalos, deer and variety of birds. The national park was first established in 1905 as a Reserve Forest which was converted into a Wildlife sanctuary in 1950 and was declared as a National Park in 1974. With increasing tiger population, Kaziranga was also declared as a Tiger Reserve in 2006. The UNESCO declared it as a World Heritage Site in 1985 for its uniqu

The spatial dilemma: Goa has so many beaches and other amazing places that visitors often wonder where to go! And visitors who have been there once, and want to revisit, have a dilemma: how to choose the base location. In my experience, south Goa beaches are more beautiful, and pristine. Then why are north Goa beaches more popular? If you are planning for Goa, it's wise to your destination carefully. If you want more recreation, choose north Goa. North Goa beaches are closer to the airport, offer bustling market places with various options for party, shopping and food options, and a lot of fun activities. And if you want more visual pleasure and peace of mind, choose south Goa.  However, if you are a first time traveler, and want to have all sorts of experiences, choose Colva as your base location; it's centrally located, the first major beach in south Goa and located relatively close to the airport and railway station. You can easily visit both north and south Goa from here.  

  Among the large number of stepwells that still exist in India, some are absolutely spectacular and worth visiting. Here is a list of 9 of the most wonderful stepwells in India one must visit. Though I love all of them, I have tried to make the list in a descending order of how I would rank them from an architectural/ aesthetic point of view.        1. Rani Ki Vav, Patan: Built in the 11th century by Queen Udayamati in memory of her husband King Bhima I of the Chaulukya dynasty, Rani Ki Vav is a masterpiece in architecture. The sheer size, intricate sculptures and magnificent structure are absolutely awe-inspiring! There are more than 1500 sculptures depicting religious, mythological stories and other themes like portraying everyday life of people. In course of time due to severe floods, the step well was buried under the earth. It has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014.  2. Chand Baori, Abhaneri One of the deepest and largest stepwells in India, Chand Baori was b

Festivals are integral part of a culture, and a way of coming together as a society and celebrating life in general. India celebrates festivals through out the year; some of the festivals are common all over India, and some festivals are unique to particular places. I lived in Gujarat for more than a decade and loved its unique way of celebrating some of the festivals. Though there are many important festivals, the two quintessential festivals that define Gujarat are Uttarayan and Navratri. The authentic Gujarati traditions come to life during these times. Uttarayan: Makar Sankranti (winter solstice) is celebrated across India on 14 th January, and is called differently in different parts of India- Makar Sankranti in most parts, Bihu in Assam, Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Maghi in Punjab, and Uttarayan in Gujarat. It’s perhaps celebrated the most enthusiastically in Gujarat. Kite flying is the most important part of the celebrations in Gujarat. When I was in Ahmedabad, just before my fir

The region of south Gujarat can be explored in 4 to 5 days; I am suggesting a five-day trip. Vadodara is the gateway to south Gujarat, and is well connected with rest of the country via airways and railways.  Day-1: Vadodara If you reach in Vadodara in the morning, start exploring the city in the afternoon. The major attraction in the city is the Laxmi vilas palace.  Built in the 1890 by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad of the Maratha empire, the palace is one of the most beautiful palaces in India. Major Charles Mant designed it in Indo-Saracenic revival architectural style. With a campus of more than 500 acres and floor space four times larger than the Buckingham palace, it's huge. It will take good part of the afternoon to explore. Have a ride around the MSW University (lovely medieval buildings) and Kamati baug before it is dark.  Vadodara is famous for the traditional Garba during Navratri; so, it's always advisable to plan your trip during Navratri. There are quite a number of