Travelloholic Travel. Explore. Share.

February Issue

Ahmedabad Based 1st Travel e-mag

―The world is a book; those who don‘t travel read only pages.‖ Said by St. Augustine. Traveling is adding new flavors in life in the form of happiness, joy, enjoyment and fun‘‘. It is about discovering new culture, thoughts, language and colors of life. ‗We are traveling and so we are growing‘… Get connected with Travelloholic magazine and explore the unseen and seen places in a new way as never did before. Our tag line Says Travel. Explore. Share, so we would like you to be a part of our magazine, now you have chance to share any Travel Experience in form of Story, or any unseen place which is not famous and very little population know about it, but have a fantastic experience for one and can at least be visited once. We also have different flavors where your contribution will be accepted for upcoming issues of our magazine, i.e. ‗Travel Slap‘, ‗Naughty Traveler‘ and Anti-Traveler‘. Travel slap: any negative journey experiences where you were head with

difficulties and problems.

Naughty Traveler: any naughty experience of a trip.

Anti-Traveler: any experience of a satisfied Person who do not like to travel.

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Published by: Travelloholic Digital Media

Edited by: Manish Asnani

Designed by: Prashant Patil

Published by: Travelloholic Digital Media

Edited by: Manish Asnani

Designed by: Prashant Patil

Did you Missed January Issue of

Travelloholic Travel Magazine? Have some glimps here...

Japan The Land of Rising sun

Ages ahead in tourism freaks the place.

Tourist gets attracted from the beauty of technological world

Explore Indian Forest Adventure vs Nature. Are you ready ?

Heritage city

—uniquely Heritage

Second Best adventure

– Summit of Stok Kangri

If you are ready to read January issue

Surprise to get the chance

Meet the King

Interesting Stuff

Editor’s Note

Make out

In India, Tourism is the second oldest Industry after

Agriculture. The tourism industry is all about the

memories one take, No matter how many people visit the

ocean, the ocean is still the ocean, and no matter how

many people view a mountain, the mountain remains in

the place.

Would you like to have Tea or Coffee? Please feel surprise- Travel is talking and we listen to you. Ideally traditional way of traveling keeps travelers busy, So I feel technology should not replace human being; it triggers your memory if you are treated very specially by any human interface. The theme of memory should be that it remains for life

such as your school or college time photographs which brings smile on your face. You are one amongst the many as apple is not made for all.

After everything else A good spoon, A shinning Place, A Big smile, you do not

know when the ring will really bell in this fantasy world. There is lot to read and a lot to be excited over. Allow us to give you a way to explore the world.

Manish Asnani

Editor-in-chief

February

In this issue...

Destinitions

13 Matheran

The only hill station where vehicles are banned

23 Kerela

God‘s Own Land

Travel Stories

35 Mt. Abu

Ankit Shankar

41 Mumbai Shalini Shankar

43 Jaisalmer

Anjana Gaba

53 Saputara

Nirav Jadav

Chetan Panara

More Stuff

Travelloholic People 33

Travel Articles 55

Travel Toonz 57

Know Unknown 65

Captured Moments 69

Cover Story

01 Maldives Always Natural

P01 Maldives

P23 Kerela

P33 Zurich Zoo

Switzerland

P13 Matheran

Maldives Always Natural

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Experience a life of colours

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Travel to Maldives...

Travel to Maldives will give you the chance to come face-to-face with some of the most incredible beaches in the world.

In the ocean: white beaches, tall palm lean on towards the sea, crystalline white sand giving way to white water — gives reason to one of the paradise on the earth to be visited at least once. Rising from the deep blue of the

vast Indian Ocean are more than a thousand islands and thousand more reefs that forms Maldives

Add trip an interesting experience yacht. The Maldives has been long a meeting point for African, Arab, Malay and Indonesian.

Trip Maldives is known for Free Visa and Duty Free Shopping. Fish Market and Local Market are the best place ever you can experience in any country you visit Speedboats and Dhoni Services

are used to travel short distance as Dhonis are very slow and com-fortable to explore new places.

Make a Yacht experience possible Maldives Consists of 1190 Islands

Male „ The Capital

Male is the capital of Maldives.

Sights of the City

Hukuru Miskiiy

A Mosque built in 1667 Mulee –aage The Presidential Palace Theemuge The Palace Islamic Center Sultan Park and Museum Medhuziyaaraiy The Artificial Beach Most visited place Fish Market Exciting Place to be visited in Male City Local Market A little further to west of Fish Market

Tea Shops

Volleyball, Swimming Pool, Basket Ball are significant events in the national Sports Calendar

Shopping

Male is the commercial hub and serves each and every need of Traveler. The shops are open by 10:00 am and are open till 11:00 pm, Shops are closed for 15 minutes for prayer times.

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The luminous area of living

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Things to do

Diving Maldives is home to some of the most famous diverse marine fauna and flora in the world Surfing

The best known surf breaks are in the north and south Male

Excursions

Island hoping

Night fishing

Photo flights

Male Excursions

Spa

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Excursions

Island hoping

Night fishing

Photo flights

Male Excursions

Spa

What to pack

Maldives is warm throughout the year light cotton wear is ideal to wear. Pack lot of beachwear t-shirts and shorts which will make you comfortable while roaming around Also sandals are easy to wear to walk at the beaches Some essential items includes swimwear, sunglasses, sunscreen and a hat or a cap.

A mosquito repellent may become a handy if you plan to visit so many beaches around male

Colorful squids swimming

Long tailed lizard

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Trip: Maldives has only one international Airport is on Hulhule Island. If you are booked with any resort the transfer will be arranged prior to your arrival the options you have is speed boat and sea plane. Both of experience are the world most

travelling experience we suggest you to take a sea plane ride once in your trip. Apart from this You need to pay departure tax which is US $ 12

(usually included when you buy your air ticket)

Take off your dream destination

Matheran

The only hill station where the vehicles are banned

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Overview Matheran is a hill-station 80-km east of Mumbai in Alibag district. Matheran is one of the tiniest hill stations in the country as it is close to the nearby cities of Mumbai and Pune It makes it a favourite holiday attraction for the tourists from all parts of the nation.

Matheran is ideally suited for the weekend for the nearby cities. Matheran provides a break from the daily schedule. Balanced on top of a hill and covered with shady trees, One gets to breath fresh and natural air over here, as vehicles of any kind are not permitted in Matheran. This place is very quiet and still place. This ban on vehicles makes the journey to Matheran also an adventurous journey.The journey starts with an adventurous two-hour in a toy train. Matheran is also famous for

its train, which runs from Neral to Matheran. This small train covers the distance of 21 Kms in 2-2½ hrs and the journey is just unforgettable.The train goes through deep forest and one can see the beauty of jungle and various types of sharp turns and waterfalls.

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One can stand at top of the peaks and survey the wild landscape, and the reddish brown mountain ranges. The another visible thing is that you will find red soil everywhere on the streets of Matheran as there are no cemented roads. Matheran is a continuous path of shady, thickly wooded

paths of red mud and velvet moss, stretching endlessly. Other than this, the colourful & vibrant bazaar of Matheran, contains glass birds, hats, chappals, cane and the most famous among all is original leather items (bags, belts, shoes) sold at reasonable prices. If one has to visit the hill station but as the regular ones, then one should try the Matheran‘s Toy Train, the beauty, the mud, the stillness, and the most and important factor that this hill station has is that its totally pollution free(not even one single two wheeler is allowed). It is

the best hill station in Maharashtra State.

Not only this but there is one station also available during the journey where the trains stops for about 5 mins and one can step out and enjoy the real beauty of the Matheran, the cool breeze and have famous item of

Matheran i.e. chiiki There are a lot of nice walks in Matheran and points like Louisa Point, Panorama Point and Little Chouk Point. The view at every point

is special in its own self. Even the sunset point f r o m L o u i s a i s awesome. Many people also prefer to travel the distance on foot, enjoying the hil l station‘s scenery and beauty.

A holiday never before

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Trekking Some people also covers the journey between Neral and Matheran on foot. The trip though shady jungle, can be quite adven-turous, as the mount is sharp but can enjoy the scenic beauty on all

sides all.

Unique Features Vehicles of any type are not allowed in the Matheran Town. Which makes it a very Quiet, still Place. Ideal place for picnics, bonfires and get-togethers with friends.

Best Time The Best Time enjoy this place is between the months of November to June but the place is worth visiting any time during the year. But during the mon-soon the trails become very dirty

and the place virtually shuts down.

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Monkeys are one of the main attractions of Matheran

Smart Monkey: Have a look he is looking for expire date

You can not find internet in Matheran but Facebook follows you

Your transport when you want to roam around Matheran

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By Air Nearest airport is the Mumbai at 100-km. By Rail

Nearest railway station is Neral at 21-km.From Neral to Matheran – Toy Train

Local Transport Taxis are available from Neral to Matheran car park. One can also catch a bus or taxi from Neral to Matheran car park from where one will have to walk to Matheran or hire a horse or hand pulled rickshaw to the Matheran town. As vehicles are not allowed inside Matheran Town, Horses are favored as means of transport. Don't miss the train, which is run four times a day. During the monsoon, the service is restricted to one train a day and during heavy rain even this can be cancelled due to landslides.

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Kerela God‟s Own Land

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Fondly referred as ‗God‘s Own Country‘, Kerala is one of the most popular states of India. Wit the cool blue Arabian Sea on the west and the marvellous western ghats towering 500 – 2700 mtr on the east, Kerala offers everything to satisfy the urge of discerning

travellers. In fact, Kerala is a very beautiful relaxed place to simply sit back and enjoy the nature at its best. Literally meaning the ‗Land of coconuts‘, Kerala is covered all over with palm trees which provide cool

shade from the tropical sun. Here in Kerala, tranquil stretches of backwaters, green hill stations, exotic wildlife, ayurvedic health resorts, interesting art forms, colourful festivals, historic and cultural

monuments and delicious cuisines, altogether offers a unique experience to visitors. Due unparalleled charm, diverse geography and overwhelming greenery, Na t i o na l Geog raph i c Traveller has declared Kerala one of the ten ‗Paradises Found. Kerala is known for friendly people and rich culture. One can get a fine glimpse of Keralan culture in festivals of the state Onam, a

harvesting festival is the most important festival of Kerala.

Backwater of Kerala Backwaters are the highlights of Kerala and most of the state is dotted

with backwater stretches. A journey through Kerala backwaters in

traditional house boats is once in a lifetime experience. Equipped with

facilities of hotels, the houseboats provide a memorable journey amidst

the mother nature. Some of the famous backwaters of Kerala include

Alappuzha Backwaters, Kochi Backwaters, Kollam Backwaters, Kozhikode

Backwaters and Kumarakom Backwaters

Beaches of Kerala

Kerala's western coast is flanked by the cool blue Arabian sea and home to beautiful beaches. Dotted with palm grooves, the beaches of Kerala provide a welcome break to vacationers and adventure enthusiasts. You can enjoy sun bathing, swimming or go for ayurvedic treatment on Keralan beaches. Popular beaches of Kerala are Kovalam Beach, Bekal Beach, Alappuzha Beach and Varkala Beach.

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Popular Destinations in Kerala

Kochi (Cochin) : A city of historic importance, Kochi is called as commercial hub of Kerala. Kochi city is highly influenced by the

Portuguese culture and you can sense its Portuguese character during a wander through the city streets. The Spice markets, Chinese Fishing Nets, The Jewish Synagogue, The St. Francis Church and the Dutch Palace are prime attraction of Kochi. The Kathakali dance performances is an important feature of Kochi‘s cultural life. Munnar : Situated 130 kms east of Kochi, Munnar is a major centre of Kerala‘s tea industry. A famous hill station of South India, Munnar is

situated at an altitude of 1800 mts above sea level. Munnar is romantic destination known for its sublime greenery, cool air and pleasant climate throughout the year. Mattupetty lake is another major attraction of Munnar, noted for alpine setting with green fields. Munnar hills are also an ideal treat to those interested in trekking having beautiful valleys around. Thekkady : One of the largest sanctuaries of south India, Thekkady is located at distance of 200 kms from Kochi. Set at an altitude of around 1828 mts, Thekkady boasts of 300 square miles of lush tropical forest, in

result the climate remain cool throughout the year. Thekkady has a vast artificial lake in its centre, providing a natural habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Take a boat ride at the picturesque Periyar lake and if you looking for some adventure then go for a forest trek.

Kumarakom : Kumarakom lies 90 kms from Kochi on the Vembanad lake in a thick tangle of tropical waterway. The place is known for its tranquil backwaters which draws visitors round the year.

Travelling by houseboat along the backwaters is one of the highlights of Kerala. Highlights of Kumarakom include the bird sanctuary, known for migratory birds. In short, Kumarakom is a place to sit back and watch the mirror-still lagoon, to enjoy the rejuvenating Ayurvedic massages and a backwater ride over the tranquil waters. Alleppey : A small town Alleppey is also known as Allapuzzha located 64 kms north of Kochi. Build around an interesting maze of bridges and canals, Alleppey makes an ideal base for backwater boat rides.

Fondly referred to as the ‗Venice of the East‘, Alleppey is more known for Snake boar race held in the month of August. Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) : Thiruvananthapuram the capital of Kerala is a coastal city set on seven low hills. Thiruvananthapuram is fa-mous for the Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple, the Napier museum housing the 8th – 18th century South Indian Bronzes from Chola and Nayaka peri-ods. Referred as the commercial capital of Kerala, Trivandrum is home to

other attractions namely Shri Chitra Art Gallery, and schools specializing in the martial art Kalarippayat, Kathakali and Kutiyattam dance theatres.

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Kovalam : Situated 10 kms south of Thiruvananthapuram, Kovalam is a basically a beach destination. Kovalam beach comprise of four main stretches of beaches about 400 mts. Adventure seekers can indulge into the beach activities like snorkelling, s u r f i n g a n d w a t e r s k i i n g .

Kozhikode : Also called Calicut, Kozhikode is the city where Vasco-Da Gama first landed on Indian soil about 500 years ago. Koz-hikode is famous for shopping fab-ric clothes, sweets and the typical Keralanchips. Sightseeing in Kozhi-kode include Pazhassi Raja Museum, Krishnan Menon Museum and t he p i c t u r esque beach

Wayanad : Set at a distance of 60 kms from Calicut, Wayanad is rich is coffee and tea plantations. Literally meaning the land of paddy fields, Wayanad is also a paradise for trekkers. You can indulge yourself in adventure activities like rock climbing, trekking and birdwatching. The Chembra Peak, with the height of 2,100 mts is the highest peak in

Wayanad and poses a delightful challenge to hikers. Other place of interest in Wayanad are Edakkal caves, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Sultan Battery and the Jain Temple.

Ayurveda in Kerala

Kerala is the only destination in India, in fact world, where Ayurveda is practiced properly. The state has a number of resorts offeing 5,000 years old system of treatment to guests.

Every year only Ayurveda

itself attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world to Kerala. Ayurveda resorts in Kerala offer the ayurveda treatment under the guidance of expert doctors. Visit Kerala this vacation to enjoy the ayurveda treatment and get

rejuvenated.

Hill Stations in Kerala

The Western ghat range crossing Kerala is home to couple of beautiful hill stations. Situated about 2,000 mts above sea level,the hill stations of Kerala provide a welcome break from the hustle and bustle of cities.

Munnar Hill Staion and Deviku-lam hill station, two important

hill stations of Kerala attract tourists from far and near.

Must Not Miss

During August - September the boat races are also o r g a n i s e d i n Ke r a l a .

Nehru trophy boat festival, is one of the famous boat races of Kerala.

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Wildlife in Kerala A God gifted land, Kerala is covered with lush tropical forests all around. The forest cover in Kerala provides shelter to a wide variety of faunal species including the pachyderm Elephants. In fact, Elephants are essential part of Keralan people daily life. Besides elephant, you can see other wildanimals like tigers, gaur, wild boars, sambar, deer, wild dogs, lion tailed macaque, bonnet langur etc. Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad

Wildlife Sanctuary and Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary are the important wildlife sanctuaries of Kerala.

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Travel Story

Anticipation By the way Uncovers…

- Ankit Shankar Ti ti ti ti ti ti ti…… never had it happened that at 4 early in the morning, alarm broke the silence of our room , usually dead while sleeping, we

were all ready and on our toes by 4:30 AM , reason was a round trip to Mt. Abu. Some road trips are planned well in advance while others hit you smack upside the head with no warn-ings at all. This particular road trip was planned as well as unplanned, planned because at 2 A.M previous night we decided to go on this road trip. None of us had ever been to Abu, so obvi-ously we had no idea about the route, time to

reach, and the expenditure and hence this was unplanned.

Without thinking much, with our luggage in the back, we set for our journey to Mt. Abu. Unadulterated anticipation was already inside our veins, as all five of us were out together for the first time to a place which was new to all of us.

Driving almost 65 kilo meters we reached Himmat Nagar, and officially took our 1st halt to clear our sore throats with ginger tea. We had no doubt that it would be cold in Abu but somehow we got the idea in Himmat Nagar

itself that how cold it can be in Abu. Finishing our Parle-G and tea (famously known as cutting) and with few photo shoots under our belt we continued our journey.

Travel Story

We wanted to cover as much as possible before aberrant traffic and flamboyant sun takes over us. So we drove non-stop for next 70 kilo meters till a beautiful lake came across where we were made to stop by the charm spelled by the beauty of the lake. With the plush greenery surrounding it and a temple in between, not only stopped us but made our heart go ponder & wonder that how beautiful nature can be, we all were consumed by its serenity & beauty.

Anticipation is sweet if you are sure of outcome and it was indeed more than what we expected, but we wanted more and inside our hearts we knew that Abu won‘t disappoint us. With that we continued our journey. Abu made its presence felt soon as we crossed Ambaji, which we crossed after forty minutes. Ambaji is the Origin of the Supreme Cosmic Power of the Universe is one of the 51 ancient Shakti Piths Tirth in India. As the name suggest it is the original holy place of Mata Ambaji, where the piece

of the heart of the dead body of Devi Sati fell at the top of this holy hill of Gabbar as per the legend narrated in the "Tantra Chudamani". However we came to knew this history latter after we got the Prasad of ―Mohanthal‖. Than we began our further journey with all enthusiasm and energy in our hearts we finally managed to reach Mt. Abu after ample of stoppage and nature photography sessions, as we travelled around 50 km from Ambaji. The road to Abu was carved through the rocky plateaus of Aravallis Range, to mention Abu is the highest peak in Rajasthan. It‘s an engineering marvel, the way road has been cut out of rocks and it can be seen all throughout the ascent.

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The road is typical as it is in mountain travelling, though it quite well paved. The whirling zig-zag road gave us a chance to see the nature with different angles to feel it in full length. All the way, one can see monkey‘s , travelers and their car stopping by to feed them with food items and pulses, since the monkeys are use to traffic and people around them, they never looked dangerous anyway. The curtain raiser of Abu was Nakki Lake, surrounded by hills and lush greenery, looked as if it‘s in the lap of nature, A quaint aroma of pure har-mony and happiness is abroad the marvelous lake designed by years of change. It is a therapeutic retreat hidden from the world we entertain. A cool breeze sets up and refreshes the mind. It makes one forget the op-pressive heat of the Gujarat. We were all more than happy to be there.

The lake has boating facilities for the tourist. So we also took this Endeavour, and paddled our boat ourselves. Soft winds caressed our neck as one nears the outlying woods that surround this satisfaction achieved dwelling. We all were quite and may be because we felt it is mandatory to maintain the perfect cohesion with the outdoor temples. It looked like a

bird sanctuary with different birds flying across and taking dip in the lake. With this never ending rejuvenating experience we felt hungry for nature but our stomach felt more, so we decided to have lunch.

Abu is a perfect place for foodie. With typical Rajasthani ‗daal baati‘ to Chi-nese ‗hakka noodles‘, you will find it all. Post lunch, we included visit to the major shopping areas of this place owing to the versatility of the items and products being displayed. The varied choice of items found in the markets makes shopping in this Rajasthani city very interesting. From dress material to stone products, silver jewelry, ethnic pieces, paintings, handicrafts and more, everything is found in abundance in the shopping areas of Mount Abu. These areas are also famous for stone carved and marble products. Apart

from these, traditional items, carpets, fabrics of tie and dye are sold in the shops of Mount Abu. There are a number of shopping places in Mount Abu which are flocked by both locals and tourists. The variety of shops of Mount Abu is known for dealing with Rajasthani as well as Gujarati items. Though we did not buy anything but wandered around praising the art work. We charted out our plan in the market itself as we had 3 more hours to

spend in Abu. The priority listed Jain Dilwara Temple, Trevor‘s crocodile Park and Sunset Point. We started off with the nearest place i.e. Dilwara Jain Temple.

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The marble temples have an opulent entranceway, we were amused by the simplicity in architecture, somewhere it reflected Jain values. The temples are in the midst of a range of forested hills. A high wall shrouds the temple complex. Although the Jains built some

beautiful temples at other places in Rajasthan, some believe that none come close to these in terms of architectural perfection. The ornamental detail spreading over the minutely carved ceilings, doorways,

pillars and panels is simply marvelous, not to mention that we had a series of photography sessions, posing as if every photograph is going to be uploaded on FaceBook.

Our next stop was Trevor‘s crocodile Park, we chose this place because the former name sounded fascinating to us, and it was indeed. Trevor‘s Tank is a picturesque location just 5 kilometers from the main town of Mount Abu, and one of the Mount Abu region‘s most popular tourist destinations. It is a nature lover‘s paradise that is named after the British engineer who built it. This place is used to breed crocodiles but apart from it

B i r d w a t c h e r ‘ s f r o m throughout the world flock to Trevor‘s Tank because it is a dream location and there are

In fact we were able to catch glimpse of pigeons, peacocks and partridges. We didn‘t knew about partridges but with all national geographic and discovery channels in our heads we argued at few points regarding this new bird till a guide came to rescue and detailed us about this wonderful bird. After spending an hour in park we left for our final destination – The Sunset Point.

As the name suggest, the Sunset point was exactly the way we thought, the Sun was already on its way down the horizon. As it went down, the burning light of the Sun got dull and it looked like a huge disc of orange and yellow. The Sun‘s orange was mingling with the light blue color of the sky and it produced a vast contrast of different colors. The scene was truly exquisite and ravishing. The dull light of the sun somehow illuminated everything in a way I had never seen them before. Everything was almost

still and the effect of the light made the scene look like one in a painting. This was second time after Nakki Lake, we all were quite and thinking about the moments we had throughout the day and definitely we all felt one thing in common that life is sometimes made of the small moments of contentment, one often find in the quite corner of the day. It was time to adieu Mt. Abu. It was an experience of a lifetime and definitely these memories, which Abu gave us is going to last forever. Abu

also evoked emotions inside us, what was it, is still unknown. But whatever it was, it was indeed beautiful and it would be cherished by us all our lives. Thanks to ABU… J

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Travel Story

The city which never sleeps

- Shalini Shankar

My first trip to Mumbai(Bombay) - it was my childhood dream to visit Mumbai whenever I use to see Mumbai in films and tele serials. It seems that much awaited day has been come when I got the opportunity to visit

Mumbai and spend the quality time with my parents, we started our journey from Gandhidham to Mumbai by train we reached Dadar as we stayed at our relatives house .

A journey from station to home was so tired because there is a huge traffic and a huge crowd. I had heard from

my friends that Mumbai is so crowded, I didn‘t believed it before but when I saw it personally I come to know its really very crowded and fast. I feel everyone come here to make their dream come

true like me - may be a trip, a tour or a life, but the journey continuos...

Travel Story Day 1 Started with Mumbai Worli sea link it was amazing view of sea from the bridge and a visit to sidhi vinayak temple. Its was a mind pleas-ing arti of sidhi vinayak . Day 2 Gateway of India, its really a mind blowing experi-ence to see the gate way of

India and a colours which add to it is oberoi and taj hotel, more than the boating in sea wow enjoyed a lot. After that we went to haji ali mosque which is the middle of the sea .

Day 3 Hanging garden which was well maintained garden and a very photogenic view too, but the eye catcher was the boot house ,I only seen it in story books but it was amazing to see in real like I am in a fairy land . After that

went to juhu chowpatty had a heavy chowpatty bhel with the very famous chowpatty gulfi. Nareman point central business point along with sea facing. It was a very tiring day but a good memory with a small sadness to leave the city but a promise to come for other visit soon ,in the 3 – 4 days of Mumbai visit I observed the city heartily and want to give the tittle to

the city is ―The city which never sleeps‖

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Travel Story

A Night under the Sky of Jaisalmer

With Renok Adventure

- Anjana Gaba New year 2012 was around the corner, and as predicted by the

Nostradamus & the Mayan civilization, it to be the last year of Human civilization on this Planet, for once I decided ―Better to celebrate it in a grandeur manner‖. This conceded with the invitation from Renok Adventure to go for a Desert Safari Expedition, and I have to still discover Rajasthan beyond Jaipur and more importantly its rural & mystical roots. The Journey: I took every possible mode of public transportation to reach my destination Jaisalmer, an adventure covering 1300 + Km over the road & the Train. This is the time; you see the True Indian, Helpful, humble yet

noisy and at times rowdy. (Need to write, a blog on the road journey of Sole woman traveler in India) The Road: Jodhpur to Jaisalmer road is only barren land, though there are few eatery joints for the tourist. On the way, one can see some solar energy Panels and Jasialmer being the last town on the border; one cannot miss the army vehicles all the way of different regiments.

The First View: Slowly the barren lands changes into the golden dunes &

far in the dunes stand the fort of Jaisalmer. The fort reminded me of a

handsome, smart tall guy; it‘s difficult not to fall for his charm. I forget

about the tiredness & the long Journey, I wanted to discover the magic of

the Jaisalmer fort.

Surprise in the bag: My friend from Renok Adventures was on the bus stop

to receive me, as soon as I got down – I requested Kapil & Jai for the tour

of this magnificent fort. Jai & Kapil smile in tandem, and told me ―Lady,

you are staying in fort‖. I was jumping with excitement. We drove in 4X4

vehicle till the fort gate and walked into the pathways of this ancient fort.

My next surprise was the fort is a civilized town and home for the big

population of this small city. We saw many handicraft shops, many locals

dressed in the colorful cloths roaming around and then on the chowk of the

fort, I saw local traditional dance troop. My Journey to from the barren

land to the most happening place was just starting.

Travel Story

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I was escorted to a traditional hawali in the heart of the fort; this was small haweli in comparison to others but no less in its traditional look, rich carving on the walls and traditional furniture all over the place. This was first time; I was staying in a historical monument and prices weren‘t of five star. The budget & the family hotel were available.

It was still early morning, my stomach yearning for the food. I asked, what can I get fast and I was given option from the traditional Rajasthani to the English breakfast. . Thanks to the firangi crowd, Indian has got so much choice in breakfast, and I took my chances with the Pan Cake, The risk was well paid.

I took a leisurely bath and after some rest decided to discover the street of the Fort. The fort was full of accommodations for the tourist and people from all over the world were arriving in the city to celebrate the New Years.

Time for Desert: Before even I started my journey, people were asking where are you heading ―Sam or Kuri‖. Fortunately or unfortunately I didn‘t knew the name of the dunes I will be visiting, But one thing I was sure with Renok Adventure I will be visiting anything but commercial , In nutshell, The time I have known Jai & Kapil, they haven‘t planned or executed anything in a commercial place.

We started our journey to one of the village on the western end of the city. After some 50 miles or more, we reached our base village called Kanoi and greeted by Salim & Dau, in the terminology of Renok adventures they are our ―CEO‖- Chief experience officer. We were introduced to our camels with some basic instructions. I was allocated the camel called ―Papu‖

First ten minutes While I was never afraid of any beast, but haven‘t ridden anything but a pony. Well, as soon as camels got up, my heart started

beating fast and I shut my eyes tightly. Everyone had their laugh on me, it was another few more minutes and I got used to the camel, and Mr Papu got used to me, and then everything followed a pattern.

The way to Dunes: While we were on our way to the desert, our CEO Salim told us the places we will be covering in next 1 ½ days. On the way we crossed several villages , some populated some deserted and he told us the story about them , how sixty seven villages of the ―Paliwal‖ went away in the night to save the grace one of the village man‘s daughter, how some of them are cursed by some saint, He was a interesting story teller.

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Before we know, Day 1 was about to come to an end – We travelled more than 15 Km on this day, and reached the dunes and we reached our destination ―Mitiayala dunes‖. There was no one there, except eight of us - Few Indian and Few Firangis.

The sun about to set in another half an hour, needless to say the dunes were looking beautiful and we ran in them like a wild child. With our cameras around our neck and lil instruction from Jai, we started capturing in beautiful play of the light in desert.

In some time, one of our fellow traveler Podwal got the football from the pacaking, and there started an interesting game of hustle & bustle over the football , and this time no one minded pushed around. And when it was too dark to see the ball, we went back to the camp sight.

We were waited by a nice aroma of Tea and delicious pakoras by the bourn

fire. The desert was cold, and tea worked like magic drink giving us

warmth and energy.

The ice was already broken by the football game & odd incidents of day 1 , now was the time to share the experience of other journeys made by us, Firang like Raches (south Korean)were backpackers in country and they have been to more places in India , then any of us, before any of us knew the dinner was ready.

It was the after dinner time, we were joined by Salim & Dau , it was time to share their stories. These people usually cater to the foreign tourist only, and the full of quotes & anti quotes from them. They became camel rider in their childhood only, have never gone to school yet proficient in English better than the city people.

After everyone got over with their quotas of stories and incidents, Salim accompanied with Dau came with the dholak and turned from camel rider to a folk singer. We need only an excuse and we started dancing to folk tunes of Jaisalmer.

High on music & fun quotient, Jai & Kapil K decided to shoot a fraud video on ―how to find rum in desert‖…something of this was about to come true

very next day!!

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Day 2 : We were woke up by rising sun, Rache open the tent curtain to get the full view of rising sun. I saw Jai, Kapil, Kapil K, John and few others with their cameras and taking the beautiful pictures. On the other hand, I decided to laze around in the tent only, and finally got out for tea .

We packed our bag and started our journey for day two, it wasn‘t long we were riding our camels, rather than going in the caravan they started going in different direction and grazing on local plant. We got lil tensed but Salim told us not to worry and we releaxed on his words but at the same time he taught us the tricks & method on controlling our camels.

It was before noon, we reach a village called ―Lucknow‖ (not to be con-fused with Lucknow, capital of UP). The villagers invited us for cup of Tea and the woman chatted with us. The women of the village stood out because of their jewelry and clothing. The children village were playing with camels, and riding bare back. The village had a sparse population as we were nearing the no man land & border of India & Pakistan and also there was hardly any income in these villages.

The best view of this village was the walls covered with the mud and the camels with their beautiful covers.

From there we rode our camels to the well. There were almost 4-5 wells at this point, camel riders got busy in pulling the water, while we got busy in getting the Jujube (ber) from the trees, we were throwing sticks, stones and whatever came handy just to get few sweet bers. From there, we walked on to the next dune.

This dune is called ―Laxman ka Tila‖. We were on our camels, got down at the mid of the dune. We looked for a place with shadow, we got none and after some search , we got a patch of place shadowed by a higher pit of

sand. The boys were back with their football and 2 of us Rache & Me , we got to the chit chatting. Lunch was some time away, when we were graced by a visitor – MR Mishri. Mishri was from next village and was carrying a polybag and approached the men in the group and offered them beer. We were stunned, there was hardly anyone around and this man was going on foot to different place and offering beer and other liquor for a premium pricing. Men thirsted from sun & game of football agreed to buy few and joined us on chitai (floor mat for seating) and at this point Salim got us hot

snacks as well. After a leisurely lunch and belly full of lunch we decided to go ahead.

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We weren‘t far from our destination and the New Year‘s celebration. It was another 2 hours before we reached the final dune and this time we were greeted by the folk dancer (Kalbila) and singer (Mangania).

They helped us to settle the camp and once we got our refreshment, Manoranjan(Program) begins with the singing. While we started enjoying the music, slowly it got to the higher pitch and woman dancer started the dance.. It wasn‘t long, before all us started dancing with them.

It was after mid night we decided to call it a day, and while Manganiar & Kalbila went to their home, we went to our camp for a sleep.

That how, I welcomed 2012 dancing & singing surrounded by the sand dunes of Jaisalmer under the beautiful moonlit sky and wouldn‘t mind even if this is the last year of planet.

A memory always to cherish!! And lastly how can I forget to say thanks to

my friends at Renok Adventure – Thank you Jai & Kapil.

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Travel Story

Unforgettable Experience - The Journey

- Nirav Jadav and Chetan Panara

Last month we went to one of most attractive hill station of Gujarat, Saputara. It was really an exciting trip, as many interesting incidents had happened to us during the trip. At the time we reached Saputara there was a heavy rainfall and due to a technical problem our bus had stopped; still there was long way to reach the final destination. Secondly, there was a very heavy traffic on the road as two trees had fallen, so we sat in the bus for one and a half hour and then decided to reach Saputara by walking. It was exciting to have a walk & observe the

scenic beauty of Saputara which forced us to capture this beauty in our cameras.

Travel Story

We were aware that Saputara is a Hill Station so we thought we will see is hills, trees, etc. but it came to our amazement that Saputara also had Museum, Gardens, Boating, Ropeways, Waterfalls, Sunset Point, National Park. After getting up in the morning and visiting various places of Saputara, which included boating, face massage, museum, National Park. We had fun in boating as we had done it for the first time in our life. After visiting we had lunch & after lunch we had been to sunset point.

While we were waiting for sunset we had camel riding, horse riding & played games. The sun looks so beautiful when it sets. It had a feeling that Sun was falling into a sea. The feeling can‘t be expressed into words. It was an unforgettable experience for us which we will never forget in our life.

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Travel Article

Nathdwara “Shrinathji”

- Nidhi Jain

An archaic town with novel touch. It is a majestically place on the serener bank of river Banas and surrounded by winsome scenic beauty of arravali range of mountain. It is situated in southern part of Rajasthan and it is 48 km north from Udaipur. The name itself describe about this city. ‗Nath‘ means god and ‗dwara‘ means door. It is door way to meet lord Shrinathji. Shrinathji is one of the popular icon of lord krishana, So the place is built to remind us of Mathura; and as it is nearby river banas which is known as Shree yamunaji and surrounded by hills of Goverdhan which is the original home of shrinathji.

This city has an amazing history. According to the people, image of lord shrinathji was enshrined in vrindavan. In 17th century meera bai, a lady from mewar region was a great devotee of lord krishana. One day lord krishana was happy by her prayer and was indeed to make her wishes come true i.e to live with her for 400 hundred years, Now it has been past 375 years shreenathji is with meera bai.

A Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb was destroying the entire Hindu idol to protect the icon, Rana Raj Singh was only person who made efforts to resource the idol from Aurangzeb. It is said that when the icon was being shifted to Mewar at a particular place the wheel of cart sank deep down in mud and image was refuse to move further. So the escorting priest said that the lord Shrinathji has choose the place and thus a temple was built on the same place now it is said that lord Shrinathji is here only for 25 years.

The structure of this temple is simple, but the image of Shrinathji is worth seeing and feeling the beauty of god. In the statue, the lord is revealed with his left hand raised. The idol is carved out of a large black stone. Image of the cows, snake, a lion, two peacocks and a parrot by the god‘s head are imprinted on idol.

Nathdwara is a place which is not only famous for Shrinathji but also for pichwai painting, which is elaborate painting done on cloth depicting

various post times of the Shrinathji. There is hundreds of artist who use stone and gold paint to complete painting. There is a big business of silver artefact.

Travel Article

Beside the worship and arts the Nathdwara offer‘s much more to its

visitor‘s. It has a rich geographical location as well as has variety of flora

and fauna. It has a religious charisma with support of flouring nature

where one can experience the freshness and unspoiled nature. Some eye

catchy picnic sport is like:

Bageri ka naka dam: A newly made dam which is almost 30 km from Nathdwara and made to store water of aravali hills. And after that this water flow to Nandsamand dam and then to Rajsanmand Lake. Rajsanmand Lake was made by rana raj sing in 17th century. It is 17km north from Nathdwara. Near to side of the lake a Drarekadish temple is made on lake side and which is also known for Vashnavism. Ganesh Takhari: It is a big temple of Ganeshji suited on the top of hill

and made with fine marble. The scenic of the sunset, nandsamand dam view and aravali range mountain is always catching your eye and call you - come again and again. Lal Bagh Garden: A garden which is made by famous architecture of Mumbai- ―Hiranandani Group‖ . It is a part of five year development plane of Nathdwara. It has long walking path, big lawns, have lathing works. Haldighati: It is a place where battle between Maharana Pratap and

Mughal Emperor Akbar took place in 1576. It had a narrow road and have

both side heavy hills of soft yellow soil that why its name is Haldighati.

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Fly high in the sky: Journey

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Masoala is a huge enclosure in Zurich zoo where animals roam freely with the visitors

Photo story: Zurich Zoo Switzerland

69 Credit: Farhan Tauheed

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Contributors:

Manish - Edit

Prashant - Design

Nita Ahir - Travel Toonz

Nidhi Jain - Travel Toonz

Jay Ajudia - Know Unknown

Nirav Jadav - Know Unknown

Farhan Tauheed - Photo Story

Shalini Shanker - Mumbai Story

Mt. Abu Story - Ankit Shankar

Anajna Gaba - Jaisalmer Story

Nirav Jadav - Saputara Story

Nidhi Jain - Travel Article

Incredible India - Kerala

Farhan Tauheed - Maldivs Photos

Cheran Panara - Saputara Story

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