national geographic traveller december 2013 india

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NAVIGATE ~48Homs

Bargain is a word rarely uttered here, but that doesn't mean there aren't any. Provision a picnic at the daily open-air Condamine Market on Place d'Armes, near the pedestrian-only shopping street Rue de la Princesse Caroline. Locals have been coming to the market since 1880 to buy bread, wine, fruit, and cheese.

Champagne may be Monaco's elixir of choice, but the local beer is worth a try. Founded in 1905, the Brasserie de Monaco

shut down for over 30 years before being resurrected in 2008 at the encouragement of Prince Albert II. Reserve ahead for a brewery tour and souvenir glass.

Rising 200 feet above the sea and jutting between Port Hercule and Fontvieille is the Rock, crowned by Monaco-Ville and the Prince's Palace. The Grimaldi family have ruled from this fortress since Fran<_;ois Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, captured it in 1297. Watch the changing of the guard each morning at 11:55 and from June to October tour the royal courtyard as well as several interior state rooms (entry €8/ ~680). The Monte Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra performs during July and August evenings in the courtyard of the palace. Coveted tickets go on sale in early June.

The narrow streets of Monaco-Ville amble toward the Cathedral of Monaco,

celebrating its lOOth year this summer. Princess Grace and Prince Rainier III wed here and are now interred behind the altar alongside other Monegasque sovereigns.

The site of their son's wedding dinner and ball is the grandiose Oceanographic

Museum, built a century ago by Prince Albert I and home to marine curiosities, including a reassembled skeleton of a baleen whale and an aquarium with 90 tanks filled with 4,000 fish. The terrace boasts a photoworthy view (entry €14/~1,186for entry to museum and Prince's Palace).

WHERETO EAT

Monaco's restaurant scene is rife with big-name chefs and boasts an impressive eight Michelin stars. Dinner can be budgetsavaging, but prix-fixe lunch menus dish up starry cuisine at affordable prices. At French super-chef Joel Robuchon's Japanese restaurant Yoshi, inside the tony Hotel Metropole, sample traditional sushi and sashimi and sip sake or tea in the interior Japanese garden. The bento menu is €29

(~2,460) for three courses. On a neighbourhood street above Monte

Carlo, Polpetta (2 Rue Paradis) is a local favourite, known for their handmade pasta and fresh fish prepared tableside.

Just steps from the palace on a narrow street of Monaco-Ville, the family-run U Cavagnetu (14 Rue Comte Felix Gastaldi) has been serving traditional Monegasque cuisine, which is influenced by nearby Italy and Provence, for 40 years. Try steamed salmon with dill sauce or pissaladiere, a tomato-less pizza topped with onions, anchovies, olives, and garlic. •

Yachts dock alongside the Port Palace Hotel, which also boasts a Michelin-starred restaurant.

30 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA I DECEMBER 2013

AWALKIN FONTVIEILLE

Escape Monte Carlds bustle in this quieter neighbourhood

This annexed hundred-acre land west of the Rock was reclaimed from the sea during the 1970s and today harbours one of Monaco's most treasured gardens, a

rare car collection, and a restaurantlined port that's more low-key hangout than hip.

1 H.S.H. The Prince of Monaco's Vintage car collection Motorcar buffs drool over this collection of vintage and rare automobiles, including the Rolls-Royce Princess Grace used on her wedding day. Breezy posters (above) capture a golden age of motoring.

2 Princess Grace rose garden This peaceful green spot tucked into Fontvieille Park is scented with over 4,000 rosebushes.

3 Columbus brasserie For more than just a croissant to start the day, head to this popular breakfast spot for eggs Benedict or a full breakfast of eggs, sausage, tomatoes, and toast.

4 Fontvieille flea market Juxtaposed against Monaco's luxe boutiques, this small Saturday morning market of old books, cutlery, and knick-knacks is fun to sift through before settling into one of the busy cafes along Fontvieille's port.

5 The sculpture path The curvy pedestrian lanes of Fontvieille Park reveal about a hundred sculptures from contemporary international artists such as Fernando Botero.

6 Louis 11 stadium The 18,000-seat stadium is home to the AS Monaco soccer team, but sprawling under the ground is a vast sporting complex, including an Olympic-size freshwater heated pool that's open to the public and used for international competitions.

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NAVIGATE

~HiddenGem

A SLEEPY VILLAGE IN KARNATAKA GETS A FLURRY OF VISITORS EVERY NOVEMBER

By ANITA RAO KASHI

Spot-billed pelicans and painted storks (pictured) are known to nest in proximity. Both species are near-threatened though their numbers in India have increased in the last few years. The birds have 21 nesting sites in the country, most of which are in south India.

he winding road was a bit bumpy in places, but I didn't mind. The uneven path only heightened my expectations of what lay ahead. I was about 70 km

from Bengaluru, flanked by parrot-green sugarcane fields, looking for the sleepy hamlet of Kokkarebellur. The village is named after its migratory bird population (kokkare is stork), which arrive in the months following the monsoon.

For centuries now, legions of spot-billed pelicans and painted storks have descended upon this otherwise nondescript piece of Karnataka, filling the verdurous landscape with flecks of white.

The birds surprise me. I was expecting large numbers, but I wasn't prepared for their ease with the villagers. Most migratory populations tend to flock away from human activity but these birds were squawking about in the heart of Kokkarebellur, indifferent to the residents. The people too, went about their day unperturbed by the large, white creatures. Some were perched on ficus trees; others swooped from the roofs of houses to tamarind trees, where they fussed about their nests. They fed on fish from the River Shimsha, which was

about a kilometre away, but returned to Kokkarebellur every day.

Over the years, a unique relationship has developed between the villagers and birds. The residents consider the birds harbingers of good luck, and even tend to orphaned fledglings that occasionally fall out of their lofty homes. They use the bird's urea-rich droppings as fertiliser for their crop.

I watched the birds that were clustered in groups of ten or fifteen. The stoic pelicans, with their long, pink, and slightly intimidating beaks, devoted all their attention to feeding their cackling hatchlings. They were beautiful, but I was fascinated by the low-flying painted storks. At first, I was startled by their sheer size. They reminded me of pteranodon, the winged dinosaurs from Jurassic Park and I instinctively ducked when a bird close by took off. But the sheer elegance of their flight across the spotless blue sky mesmerised me. The massive birds have a wing span of over seven feet.

Some villagers told me they flew in from other parts of India; others claimed they travelled from Southeast Asia. The birds visit in November every year and stay until


early May. During their stay, they mate, lay eggs, and tend to their hatchlings until they are strong enough to make the flight back.

Silhouettes of the storks and pelicans dominated the village landscape but I also saw other birds: flocks of cormorants, egrets, herons, and black ibis. There were crows too. But the otherwise boisterous birds were pecking around the larger birds, steering clear of their path, as if suffering from an inferiority complex. I spent an hour wandering around identifying different birds, until I finally settled down on a stone bench under a sprawling tamarind tree at the entrance to the village. As I sat enveloped by the raucous sound of the birds, periodically interrupted by the muscular flapping of wings and the swoosh of them taking off, I knew this was going to be my most enduring memory. •

THE VITALS

Orientation Kokkarebellur is in Maddur taluka of Mandya district, Karnataka. It is 80 km southwest of Bengaluru. When to visit The birds generally arrive in November and stay until May. Route Head out of Bengaluru on Mysore Road, past Ramanagaram and Channapatna. About 5 km before the town of Maddur, take a left at Rudrakshipura village, near a large Karnataka Tourism hoarding indicating a "pelicanry". Kokkarebellur is 12 km from the turnoff. The road is winding and peppered with signs, and people are happy to help with directions. Getting there Taxis from Bengaluru charge ~2.500 for a roundtrip. KSRTC has services to Maddur, but departure times are unreliable. From Maddur, there are bus and cab services (~750 for half-day) that transport visitors to Kokkarebellur. Need to know There are no eateries in the village, only tender coconut stalls. Kamat Lokaruchi, outside Ramanagaram, is the nearest restaurant. There are also places to eat in Maddur. It is best to pack a light lunch and picnic under the trees in the village, but take care not to litter.

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Coffee Brewing is of two categories. Filter and Espresso. Here is the process of extraction to brew an excellent coffee.

There are different ways of obtaining flavour from filter coffee depending on the taste. In India, the most commonly used filter coffee is what is known as South Indian Filter Coffee.

• Add 2og ( 4tsp) of fresh roasted coffee powder to the brew basket.

• Pour 200 ml of freshly boiled water over the coffee powder and close the brew basket.

• Allow it to brew for 4-6 minutes. • Wait for the brewing cycle to complete. • Pour the brew into the cup. • Add fresh, hot milk and sugar to the brew

(Optional)

The tasteful, stress reliever Filter Coffee is ready for serving.

This is a liquid coffee extracted very fast under both high pressure and temperature. A 30 ml of Espresso coffee can be extracted from about 7 to 10 gm of coffee powder within 30 seconds.

The extraction takes very little time. The Espresso coffee has to be consumed immediately after brewing to get that taste.

Coffee connoisseurs consume Espresso directly without mixing it with either milk or sugar.

Espresso coffee blends itself excellently to creating a large number of Espresso based coffee preparations such as Cafe Latte, Cafe Mocha and Cappuccino, to name a few.

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NAVIGATE ~HiddenGem

reasure AN OPEN-AIR MUSEUM OFFERS AN INSIGHT INTO CENTRAL INDWS

LITTLE-KNOWN CRAFTS

Text & Photograph by ANURAG MALLICK AND PRIYA GANAPATHY

n army of metal warriors and terracotta statues stands under the blazing sun. We're at Purkhauti Muktangan (literally, ''heritage in

an open courtyard"), the compound walls of which are inked with godna or tattoo designs. The interior walls have been transformed into storybooks, bearing murals of folk tales and a 3D relief depicting children on a swing. Inside, there are crafts such as dhokra figurines crafted with the 4,000-year-old lost wax technique.

The 200-acre, open-air museum, located 19 km from Chhattisgarh's capital Raipur, gives a glimpse into the state's diverse cultural heritage, from Surguja in the north to Bastar in the south. In a departure from the traditional "museum" as a repository of relics in glass cases, most installations at Purkhauti Muktangan are

open to the elements. Visitors can also interact with the craftsmen.

The museum was conceived by the Chhattisgarh Tourism Board and the state's Department of Culture and Archaeology. Its value lies in the underlying stories. Window lattices, or diwal bitti, created by Sonabai Rajwar of Puhphutara village, in the northern part of the state, relate the heart-rending tale of a woman whose husband locked her away in their home for 15 years, starting in 1953. During that time she only interacted with her husband and young son, the guide tells us. To keep herself distracted, Rajwar made clay dolls using mud from the courtyard. Sticks and hay became toy frames, and ground spices and minerals served as paint. She also devised a bamboo lattice screen door, embellished with clay animal figurines, to cool her home

~---------- THEVITALS ---------~

Orientation Purkhauti Muktangan is in Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh. Getting there From Raipur, drive 19 km southeast onto SH2 to reach Purkhauti Muktangan at Uparwara in Naya Raipur. Raipur is connected to major cities by air and train. Guided tour Chhattisgarh Tourism's Culture Department organises a two-hour guided tour in English or Hindi on prior notice (0771-253 7404).

and to filter light from the courtyard. This technique later came to be known as the Surguji style of architectural ornamentation. The artist was discovered by Bhopal's Bharat Bhavan scouts in 1983, when they came across her home in Surguja. Rajwar was honoured with the President's Award two years later, and went on to hold sculpting workshops at international platforms, before she passed away in 2007.

Visitors can also see exquisite carved wooden combs, which are tokens of affection that Muria boys offer their love interests, sacred memorial pillars for the dead that are usually erected in front of Bastar tribal homes, intricate jalis, carved totem poles, and much more. Time your visit to coincide with Lokprasang, a threeday cultural festival usually held in March, April, September, and December. •

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NAVIGATE ~Culture

Paithani saris can take upto a year to weave, and cost between <5,000 to (5,00,000.

• ine COULD THE PAITHANI DATE BACK TO THE SECOND CENTURY?

By NEHA SUMITRAN

ou can't escape the Paithani in Aurangabad. The sari is everywhere. On hoardings, tourist pamphlets, and bus stops sharing space with misspelt

graffiti and Bollywood heart-throbs. If the advertising is to be believed, the local weave is second only to Banarasi silk, and "only because the holy city has better marketing;' a textile merchant told me as he unfurled a sari the colour of brooding amethyst.

Made from thick, heavy silk, the weave is identified by its geometric animal motifs, and liberal use of gold. A modest Paithani weighs about 1.5 kg-a heavy Kanjivaram sari is 500 gm lighter. Though I couldn't afford one, the store owner was happy showing off his collection. As the textile parade continued, I began to recognise some of the motifs. The peacocks and flowers were remarkably similar to those I had seen in Ajanta Caves. I was intrigued. I knew that Paithanis were originally made with fine muslin, which would explain the translucent drapes of Buddhist apsaras in Ajanta's frescoes. And they were both from around the second century. Could the drapes

in Ajanta's murals actually be Paithani saris? I figured the best way to find out was to

visit Paithan, 50 km north of Aurangabad. The town is filled with chai shops, stores selling cheap plastic toys, and jalebicoloured homes in various states of disrepair-a far cry from its illustrious past. In the second century, the town was called Pratishtana and was briefly the capital of the ancient Satavahana Empire, whose rulers were known for their patronage of the arts. It was under their rule that Buddhist monks began carving Ajanta's masterpieces.

Pratishtana was a thriving trade centre, and finds mention in Greco-Roman texts dating back to the 1st century A.D. Ptolemy's records mention a "Baithana", while Arrian, another famous Greek historian, writes of the region's beads, coins, and jewellery. But the ancient city's most valued exports were onyx, and intricately woven textiles, which fetched a high price, if not royal favour.

It was hard to believe the squat, characterless building before me was one of few centres in the country preserving the venerable art of Paithani weaving.


The only people in the store were three, bored-looking cashiers. A few feet away, two mannequins draped in Paithani saris were frozen mid-namaste.

The looms-over a 100 of them-were in a large room behind the store. There, groups of women quietly worked to the muted strains of a wheezing transistor radio. Deepa, a shy but giggly weaver, told me that Maharashtrian mothers would save for decades so their daughter could wear a Paithani on her wedding day. To be married into a house with more than one Paithani-a rarity, Deepa assured me-is considered a matter of pride. Like the 200-odd weavers here, she spends her days weaving these saris but doesn't own one herself.

On returning to Aurangabad, I visited Mr. Subramanyam at the Archaeology Society of India, about the Buddhist connection that spurred my visit to Paithan. Although there is no way of knowing whether Paithani saris actually feature in Ajanta's frescoes, he says, generations of weavers have sought inspiration from the cave paintings. Centuries-old saris in museums, feature the Buddha sitting on a lotus-the only human or god to appear on these pieces.

Mustard yellow, unabashedly loud greens, and purples-the saris I saw at the weaving centre were so luxurious, I couldn't imagine wearing one. I was content just looking-until I spotted a black sari at the far end. It had the glossy darkness of raven feathers and a pallu featuring a single, blood-red flower in different stages of bloom. And just like that I wanted one too. To swathe myself in luscious silk, hear it rustle as I walk, and feel the woven petals under my fingertips. •

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eno TROPICAL INDOOR GARDENS THRIVE THOUGH IT'S FREEZING OUTSIDE

rom the air, the Eden Project in Cornwall, U.K., looks like a set of gigantic golf balls. Some even compare the bubble-like structures

to alien spaceships. But the steel and thermoplastic domes-spread across 37 acres of an abandoned quarry-are actually greenhouses that recreate two kinds of biomes (ecosystems): Mediterranean and Rainforest. More than 5,000 plants grow inside the eco-amusement park that was opened to public view in 2001.

In July this year, the park went to the next level, adding an aerial walkway to the Rainforest biome, in one of the biggest conservatories on Earth. The park introduced an elevated treetop pathway through a snazzy parkour video on its website. The walkway allows visitors to look at rainforest canopies without getting a crick in the neck. Close your eyes, take in the heady comingling of orchid, cocoa, and

By RANJABATI DAS

coffee aromas, and you can nearly see Marty, Alex, Gloria, and Melman, the quartet from Madagascar, in your mind's eye.

Several pit stops along the aerial route attempt to offer viewers a glimpse into life in the rainforest. At the Baka Camp, children and adults can explore how Baka huntergatherers interact with the forests of the Cameroon, the Congo basin, and Gabon, and how rapid deforestation now threatens their existence. Canopy Camp is "an aerial laboratory and campsite" where scientists teach young visitors about the importance of rainforests and their ecological impact on the rest of the planet. And the Nest Platform attempts to demystify the complex internal life of temperate flora in "nature's design studio". The park hopes to extend the elevated path in forthcoming years, to include a Weather Station.

The temperature inside each of the biomes rests at a comfortable 18 °


to 35°C (Rainforest) or 9°C to 25°C (Mediterranean), presenting a sharp contrast to the chill outside. At the Mediterranean biome, the fragrance of citrus trees lingers. The vineyard is a popular draw along with the Indian subcontinent's Dorset N aga chilli, considered one of the hottest in the world. (It's fun to reach out and touch the grapes, but it is perhaps best to keep the chillies at arm's length, as they can cause burns.)

But if plants and veggies don't inspire you, plan a visit timed around Eden Sessions, the annual music and comedy festival. Past headliners have included Snow Patrol, Paolo Nutini, and Mumford & Sons. Aside from evening gigs, there are workshops, and a fair-trade food market. For the more adventurous, the Eden Project also has the world's fastest and longest zip-wire ride (www.edenproject.com; 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; tickets £23.50ft2,376 for adults). •

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NAVIGATE ~Thelcon

era ouse HERE'S WHYTHEAUSTRALIAN ARTS CENTRE GETS SIX MILLION VISITORS EVERYYEAR

he billowing Opera House was a gamble when it started. Literally. Costs were estimated at $ 7 million, but the building's final price tag

came to $102 million (over ~604 crore), with the money coming mostly from the State Lottery. And the punters who paid for it had to wait to hear the fat lady sing-the construction, estimated to take four years when it began in 1959, took 14. The final result was worth waiting for. Today, millions of tourists flock to the Opera House annually, photographing its gleaming roof (the shape of full sails enhanced by 10,56,006 white ceramic tiles) and marvelling at the wonder Down Under.

NICE PIPES

The Opera House was conceptualised by Danish architect J0rn Utzon, who won an open design competition conducted by the South Wales government. Judge Eero Saarinen described his plans as "genius". The building's grand organ has 10,154 pipes.

By ANDREW NELSON

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

The Aborigines called the promontory on which the Opera House was built Tubowgule, or "meeting of the waters". The settlers called it Bennelong Point in honour ofWoollarawarre Bennelong, one of the first indigenous Australians to visit England.

REPEAT ENGAGEMENT

Queen Elizabeth dedicated the building on 20 October 1973, and has since visited four times.

PUMPEDmON

In 1980 Arnold Schwarzenegger won the "Mr. Olympia" bodybuilding contest held in the Concert Hall.

SEVEN HEAVEN

The Opera House hosts around 1,800 performances a year at seven venues. The Concert Hall, with its grand organ, is renowned for its acoustics.


CABLE STABLE

Construction included laying 349 kilometres of cable. Placed end to end, the cable would stretch to the capital city of Canberra.

LIGHTEN UP

Some 15,500 light bulbs are changed annually. Workers are gradually replacing old bulbs with more eco-friendly versions that consume less power.

CROON WITH A VIEW

African-American opera singer Paul Robeson was the first person to perform at the Sydney Opera House. In 1960, the baritone got up on the scaffolding and sang "01' Man River" to the construction workers on their lunch hour.

WHODUNNIT?

The Opera House is the setting of the mystery novel Helga's Web, by Jon Cleary. He put a body in the basement. •

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Discover t e o u ence o Oman Majestic mountain ranges tower over teeming coral reefs, where red desert sands mysteriously shift as they whisper tales of a bygone era. Age-old traditions merge seamlessly with modern five-star service and Oman's world renowned Arabian hospitality. It's the perfect destination for your next holiday.

Beauty has an address For more information, please contact: Oman Tourist Office - India, Vaman Centre, Maro! Makwana Road, Off. Andheri - Kurla Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai - 400 059, India.

Tel: +9122 2925 6965, Fax: +91222925 6967, Email: [email protected], Web: www.omantourism.gov.om, Visit our FB page: Facebook/Oman Tourism India

SULTANATE OF

om an Ministry of Tourism

NAVIGATE ~National Park

SOAK IN THE LANDSCAPE THAT INSPIRED RUDYARD KIPLING

By NEHA SUMITRAN I Photographs by DHRITIMAN MUKHERJEE

Unlike tigers, which hunt in the day, leopards restrict their predatory excursions to the night. They are expert climbers and often spend their days snoozing on branches of trees.

anha has spectacular sunsets. From Bamni Dadar, the reserve's highest point, herds of sambar and gaur are reduced to delicate silhouettes.

Pools of water and the grasslands become golden, the skies turn a moody purple, and then an inky black. Deer huddle together to find safety in numbers, as packs of jackals begin to howl, giving the plains a sinister air.

Decades after Kanha's landscape stirred Rudyard Kipling to write the timeless tale of Mowgli, the region's vast wilderness is still awe-inspiring. The national park in southern Madhya Pradesh is spread over 940 sq km and has marshes, thickets of

bamboo, sal forests, and grasslands. Tourists visit in droves hoping to see Kanha's large tiger population, but numerous other animals also inhabit the region. Spend at least two or three days in the park so that you can dedicate one expedition to tigerspotting and the rest to observing Kanha's other inhabitants at leisure.

EXPLORE

Park authorities track the big cat's sightings and relay the information to guides with walkie-talkies. This vastly increases the chances of a tiger sighting, but it also means that numerous jeeps will flock to the spot within minutes of a tiger being


spotted, diminishing the magic of observing the animal in solitary splendour. There are jeeps and canter safaris (~3,300-~3,800) in open buses, which can be booked at the Forest Office, or through the resorts. Only a limited number of vehicles are permitted to enter the reserve each day so it is best to book safaris in advance. The national park is closed on Wednesdays.

BIRD LIFE

In addition to the drivers, who are fairly knowledgeable, visitors can also have a naturalist accompany them on jungle safaris. This is highly recommended if you want to identify Kanha's reptilian life and its

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Like Baloo in The Jungle Book, the sloth bear's (top left) necessities include a diet of plump bugs, ants, and other insects, which they pick using their sickle-shaped claws; Barasingha deer (top right) are named after their large antlers, which have twelve (hara) tines or branches (singha); The Royal Bengal tiger (bottom right) and leopard are among the most threatened species in Kanha National Park, but numbers of other predators, like jungle cats (bottom left) and.fishing cats, are also dwindling.

orchestra of birds. About 200 bird species live in the reserve. By shallow water bodies, storks, teals, pintails, pond herons, egrets,

and kingfishers are often spotted. Peacocks

are a common sight, as are spur fowls, ring

doves, spotted parakeets, green pigeons,

bee-eaters, drongos, warblers, and owls.

ANIMAL LIFE

In addition to the park's natural water sources, Kanha has pipe-fed ponds to ensure that animals survive the harsh Madhya Pradesh summer. The watering holes are popular with barasingha or

swamp deer, a species that Kanha's authorities take credit for saving from extinction. The trees are favoured by striped palm squirrels, langurs, snakes,

and leopards, while the meadows are the playground of chital, four-horned

antelope, and black buck. India's four most poisonous snakes-Russell's viper, saw

scaled viper, cobra, and common krait

can be found here.

SEASONS

Kanha National Park is open from 15

October to 30 June. In summer (March to


LOCAL ICON

This May, the Corbett Foundation established a tribal museum at the

park headquarters in Kanha village. The museum features exhibits about the

ecosystem, as well as information about the Baiga and Gond tribes, the region's indigenous people. There are illustrative

panels and artefacts such as kitchen utensils, to give visitors an understanding

of tribal culture. Buy local handicrafts from the museum shop (7 a.m. -6 p.m.).

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May), the grasslands are parched. The days are long, sweaty, and dehydrating. However, the searing heat guarantees sightings as animals flock to water bodies to drink and cool off. Temperatures range between 23.9°C and 40.6°C. Winters (Nov-

Feb) are much more pleasant. Big cats are harder to sight but a host of migratory bird species flock to the reserve. The forest is green, days are cool, and nights are chilly enough to require light layers. Day temperatures are in the mid-20s, and the

mercury drops about ten degrees after sunset. From mid-June to October, the region receives heavy rainfall.

GETTING THERE

Kanha National Park is spread over the districts of Mandla and Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh. The reserve has two entrance gates: Khatia in the Mandla District and Mukki gate (also known as the Khisli gate) in Balaghat district. Jabalpur (160 km/2.5 hours) is equidistant to both park entrances; it is also the closest airport. There are taxis (~3,000) and frequent buses between Jabalpur and Kanha. The closest railway stations are Gondia (145 km/3 hours) and Jabalpur.

STAY There are many accommodation options on the periphery of Kanha National Park, ranging from eco-lodges and budget hotels to plush resorts and five-star properties. Package deals usually include park entry fees, and one jeep safari. It is best to make reservations at least a few weeks in advance as Kanha is crowded in the winter season. •

Gaurs (top) are the largest species of wild cattle on the planet and roam in temporary herds, often led by an oldfemale. They are the main prey of the tiger but have, on occasion, killed solitary predators by banding together; Kanha's openjeep safaris (bottom) give visitors the opportunity to photograph a variety of wildlife, ranging.from colourful li%ards and birds to big cats and herds of swamp deer.


NAVIGATE ~Urban Renewal

MANHATTAN'S LIVELY BOROUGH IS CELEBRATING ITS PAST

early a century after Langston Hugh es and Billie Holiday turned Manhattan's cultural landscape upside down, Harlem is again seeing rebirth. "You

can smell the creative edge in the air;' says Helena Greene, whose Swing boutique sells European fashions alongside locally crafted jewellery and art. Rather than obscure the neighbourhood's history, newcomers appear dedicated to reviving its past. A few blocks from the famed Apollo Theater-the stage

By JACKIE CARADONIO

that launched Ella Fitzgerald and Jam es Brown-MIST Harlem pulses with film and live performances, ranging from jazz and comedy to documentaries set on the streets of New York. Throwback hangouts offer 2lstcentury interpretations of basement clubs and soda shops, such as the vinyl-and-tile Harlem Shake burger spot and 67 Orange Street, inspired by an 1840s dance hall that was one of the city's first black-owned bars. Harlem's premier beer garden, Bier


International, serves Sugar Hill golden ale, a riff on an old recipe brewed here during the Harlem Renaissance. With new condos rising, some locals fear the loss of the neighbourhood's ''heart and soul;' Greene says-but for now, its heritage is

proving strong. •

Tip: Skip the bus tours and instead take the number 2 or 3 subway line to 125th street station; then explore on foot.

Enduring Value

Scan & join us on www.facebook.com/Classmate

Email us at [email protected] or call 1800 425 3242 BECAUSE YOU ARE ONE OF A KIND

...-...r~~

NAVIGATE

~Smart Traveller

• nsi THE FRENCH CAPITAL IS THE HUB OF LUXURY, BUT IT HAS BARGAINS

IF YOU KNOWWHERE TO LOOK.

legant Paris is among the world's most popular tourist destinations. With its reputation for luxury chic, it can often feel overpriced and overdone. But on

the flip side, Paris has always welcomed students, artists, and freeloaders. It remains a captivating city full of affordable, enjoyable activities. As any Parisian will tell you, style is an attitude-and it's free. Pick a street-facing cafe table, order a glass of wine, slow down, and watch the world go by. Voila!

THE MUSEUM ROUND

For the culture buff, the Paris Museum

Pass offers a speedy entry to over 60 prime institutions. But those planning to visit only a few museums should try visiting on days when entry is free. All museums are free on the first Sunday of the month, but these can get crowded, so look out for "nocturnes", or late closing days, when many institutions stay open until 10 p.m. Or just skip the big

By NAYANTARA MAYA OBEROI

guns for one of the city's 14 free museums,

like the Musee Carnavalet, which focuses on the history of Paris. Located in a pair of opulent 16th- and 17th-century mansions, the exhibits trace the city's evolution from prehistory to modern times. Whatever museums or tourist attractions you do choose, it's best to book and print out tickets ahead of time, so that you can sail past the lines ( www.parismuseumpass.com).

HIT THE HIGH NOTE

Paris boasts two world-class opera houses and thousands of theatres. Early birds can get spots from €5 /~ 423 at the modern Opera Bastille, and €10/~846 at the more sumptuous Opera Garnier

(www.operadeparis.fr/en). With a little perseverance, same-day tickets can be found for as little as €5/~423, generally an hour-and-a-half before starting time. (The spectacularly baroque, gilt-heavy facade of the Garnier itself makes waiting


The Opera Garnier (left) was the settingfor Gaston Leroux 's classic novel, The Phantom of the Opera; Even.free museums in Paris have art collections that include greats such as Van Gogh (top), Monet, Manet, and Picasso.

around outside worthwhile.) At the Comedie-Fran~aise, ordinary tickets start at €20 /~1,692 but discounted seats go for about €5/~423 if you line up on the day of the show. However, many of these have reduced visibility, sometimes from behind pillars. To amp up your culture-vulture credentials, go to Villette Sonique ( www. villettesonique.com), an open-air festival of rock, pop, and electronic music that takes place every year in the Pare de la Villette.

To find a free Wi-Fi spot-there are many all over Paris, including several in public parks

visit www.wifi.paris.fr.

FLEA MARKET FINDS

The flea markets of Paris are justly renowned: They sell everything from

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House Boat Haritha Coconut Country Resort

The call of the birds. The lull of the waters. And the verdant landscapes. Welcome to Andhra Pradesh. A land full of irresistible wonders. Where nature is at its awe inspiring best. Where your every step transports you to a new dimension of nature's beauty and grandeur. Enjoy your stay in Andhra Pradesh at Haritha Resort. Where your every need and comfort are taken care of. It's always better here in Andhra Pradesh.

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Coconut groves

Toll Free: 1800-42-545454 Email: [email protected]

www.aptdc.gov.in

NAVIGATE ~Smart Traveller

Studentsfrequent the small bookstores along the Seine (left) and then park along the city's many little canals to spend time with their purchases; The banks of St. Martin~ canal (right) are especially popular with young crowds who flock here on summer days.

statuary to sewing machines, birdcages to Baccarat crystal. The city's most famous marche (market), the Puces de Saint Ouen,

consists ofl4 huge markets, and it can be a little overwhelming. If you're not feeling up to negotiating what can feel like an entire city, and high-end antiques are a little out of your budget, head to the more manageable (and more disorganised) Marche de Vanves

in the south of Paris. Look for signs that say "Les Puces", or "the Fleas". Making it there before 11 a.m. on Saturday or Sunday will guarantee bargains: My last trip yielded two art deco pendants from the 1920s, a heap of second-hand books, and a typewriter made in 1913. Puces de Saint Ouen 140 Rue des Rosiers, 93400 Saint Ouen Sat-Mon 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Marche de Porte de Vanves near Porte de Vanves Metro. Sat-Sun 7 a.m.-1 p.m.

BROWSE BOOKSTORES

The English-language bookshop Shakespeare and Co is deservedly famous, but it's hard to appreciate its charms when you have to elbow past tourists at every turn, and more people are taking Instagram selfies than reading. A far better bet for those seeking English-language books is the delightful Abbey Bookshop just around the corner. While their organising policy can best be described as anarchic, the store's tiny aisles, sliding shelves and basement full of political and social science titles are a goldmine. The shop is best approached with an open mind. You may or may not find the book you came in to buy, but a

book-perhaps the book you didn't know you were looking for-will find you. If you're really set on a particular title, owner Brian Spencer and the staff somehow know where everything is and can pull it out. If you linger for a chat they'll off er you some Canadian-style hot coffee sweetened with maple syrup.

You can also find (mostly) Frenchlanguage books at the city's flea markets and at the bouquinistes: The used-book sellers along the Seine around Notre Dame who have been there since the mid-1500s. Their characteristic green boxes are filled with old books, posters, postcards, art prints, and stamps. Skip the Eiffel Tower aprons and baguette keyrings, because a quayside browse can often lead you to a real first edition, or a second-hand gem. The Abbey Bookshop 29 Rue de la Parcheminerie, 75005 ( +33-1-4633 1624); Mon-Sat 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

PICNIC IN STYLE

When in Paris, picnic like a Parisian: on the banks of the Seine, or in one of the many beautiful parks. Choose from the Jardins

de Luxembourg, the Place des Vosges, the Pare des Buttes Chaumont or the lush Bois

de Boulogne, where you can work up an appetite by rowing around the lake. Or head east to the Canal Saint-Martin, to mingle with Paris's hip hobos (bourgeois-bohemian, or standard-issue hipster), lining the quays and footbridges, spilling out of the bars and restaurants and playing petanque, the French version of lawn bowling.


SHOP AT A LOCAL MARKET

You can stock up for your picnic at any of the city's traditional outdoor markets. The Marche d'Aligre offers everything from cheese to socks to something that smells suspiciously in between the two. The organic market along the Boulevard

Raspail, the Rue Montorgueil, the Marais's

Marche des Enfants Rouges, and the stalls at Place Monge are other great bets. Start with wine: A crisp, cold white or rose for summer, and a cheerful, nottoo-ponderous red for winter. Add fresh, warm bread, some cheese, sliced cured charcuterie, pate, olives, quiche, fingerfriendly fruit and veggies, and anything else that catches your fancy a,t the marche. Don't forget dessert! For a list of neighbourhood markets see marches.equipements.paris.fr/

Got no room for dessert? Short on cash? Or just can't choose? Ask for a cafe gourmand.

One of France's best-ever idees, the cafe gourmand usually comprises an espresso plus

mini portions of three or more desserts-a lovely way to try several sweet nothings at

once, with no apprehensive rumblings in either your stomach or wallet.

CLOTHES BY THE KILO

The super-hip neighbourhood of Marais is awash with vintage and thrift stores, many

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of which are clustered around the Rue du Roi de Sicile. At the Kilo Shop (which has several locations around the city), secondhand and vintage clothing and accessories are priced according to weight-so much more exciting than your daily vegetable shop. Scales placed around the shop tell you how much your chosen shoes, scarf or jeans weigh, and what you'll pay. Hunting through the polyester and rather-toodistressed shoes takes time, but there are real gems among the clutter. I'll have 400 gm of jeans, 400gm of chiffon skirts, and 1 kg of winter coat. Kilo Shop 69-71 rue de la Verrerie, 75004 ( +33-9-6713 7954); Daily 11 a.m.-8.30 p.m.

FILMS UNDER THE NIGHT SKY

There's nothing quite as magical as watching a film under the stars. Open-air screenings take place through the summer at locations like the Pare de la Villette. Take a blanket and a picnic basket and settle down to watch the evening's film projected onto a giant, inflatable screen just after sunset. When it gets colder, check what's playing at La

Pagode, a cinema built in 1895 to resemble a full-scale Japanese pagoda as a present for the wife of Bon Marche department store founder Fran~ois-Emile Morin. Pare de la VilletteAvenue Corentin Cariou, 75019. La Pagode 57 bis, Rue de Babylone, 75007 ( +33-1-4555 4848).

HAVE YOUR GATEAU AND EAT ITTOO

The luxurious, inventive flavours of Pierre Herme's macaroon, the Japanese-French fusion of Sadaharu Aoki's yuzu tartlet, the classic patisserie of Jacques Genin

(best sampled at its tea salon), or the space-age whimsy of La Patisserie des

Reves? Or new kid on the block, L'eclair de Genie's spectacular (and pricey) €5 /~ 423 eclairs? Pace yourself well, and you won't have to choose. Don't forget to grab a little bouchee (a "mouthful") of exquisite chocolate treats to go, from any of the master chocolatiers around the city, like Un Dimanche a Paris, La Maison du

Chocolat or Patrick Roger.

Pierre Herme 72 rue Bonaparte, 75006 ( +33-1-4354 4777; pierreherme.com). Jacques Genin 133 rue de Turenne, 75003 ( +33-1-4577 2901). Sadaharu Aoki 56 boulevard de PortRoyal, 75005 ( +33-1-4535 3680) and 35 rue de Vaugirard, 75006 (1454 44890). La Patisserie des Reves See www. lapatisseriedesreves.com for locations. , L'Eclair De Genie: 14 rue Pavee, 75004 ( +33-1-4277 8511). Un Dimanche a Paris 4-8 Gour du Commerce Saint Andre, 75006 ( +33-1-56811818 ). La Maison du Chocolat See www. lamaisonduchocolat.com for locations. Patrick Roger See www.patrickroger.com for locations.•

Paris is knownfor its buskers, (left) who play at parks, metro stations, and on crowded streets lined with cafes. The canal bridges of Notre Dame and the square outside Centre Pompidou are especially popular with street musicians; Among the many, sinful desserts that the French are known for, is the delicate, airy, pop art-coloured macaroon (right).

LOCAL FAVOURITES If you really want to blend in, order an espresso and watch the world go by at a pavement cafe. Pro tip: If you're not planning to linger, drinking

your coffee at the bar ("au comptoir") often costs only a euro.

Look out for a copy of LYLO (Les Yeux Les Oreilles, or The Eyes, The Ears), an impressively

detailed weekly that lists concerts and performances by genre and neighbourhood.

The tiny Korean eatery Jules et Shim, with its tongue-in-cheek nod to Truffaut, epitomises

the new wave of restaurants along the St. Martin canal. The eponymous owners serve up a different bibimbap every day, featuring spicy pork, marinated beef, chicken, prawn curry, or

veggies. Grab a Korean beer and take yours out

to the canal for an impromptu diner en plein air. 22 Rue des Vinaigriers, 75010(+33-1-58201791).

DECEMBER 2013 I NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA 53

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NAVIGATE ~Checking In

The lcehotel in Sweden, the largest of its kind in the world, is reconstructed in winter each year. Visitors are provided cold weather sleeping bags and reindeer skins to sleep on.

• • ere l in RESERVE EARLY FOR THESE POPULAR ICE HOTELS THAT PROVIDE HEART-WARMING

COMFORTS IN FRIGID CLIMES

HOTEL DE GLACE

Quebec, Canada

Hotel de Glace, the only ice hotel in North America, is made ofl5,000 tons of snow and 500 tons of ice. It has 19-foot ceilings and furniture carved out of ice blocks. The hotel will likely attract 1,40,000 visitors this year with its 36 handcrafted, themed guest rooms. An ice candelabra lit by fibre optics hangs in the lobby. In the cafe, guests sit on ice chairs cushioned with fur and sip hot chocolate ( www.hoteldeglace-canada.com; packagesfrom CAD 498ft30,000).

SORRISNIVA IGLOO HOTEL

Alta, Norway

Built every year along the banks of the Alta River, this ice hotel offers a cold, crisp taste of Norway. The world's northernmost

By DANIEL BORTZ

ice hotel boasts an ice chapel with frozen benches draped in animal skins, an ice bar that serves bright blue vodka in ice glasses, and huskies for dogsledding. Beds in the 32 guest rooms are covered with reindeer hide. Glimpse the beauty of the fjords' icy waters aboard a snowmobile (www.sorrisniva.no; packages from NOK 2,150ft20,000 ).

IGLOO VILLAGE

Engelberg, Switzerland

Sweeping views of the Swiss Alps and of dark night skies glittering with stars are some of what make the Igloo Village special. A standard igloo can hold up to six guests. The village rests peacefully in Engelberg, a popular mountain resort town in central Switzerland. It was built by Iglu-Dorf, a company with similar igloo villages across

the country, as well as in France and Austria (www.iglu-dorf.com;from CHF 150ftl 0,950 ).

ICEHOTEL

Lapland, Sweden

First built nearly 20 years ago, the largest ice hotel in the world is constructed from 30,000 tons of"snis;' a mixture of snow and ice, in Jukkasjarvi, Sweden, a small village outside Kiruna with around 900 inhabitants and a thousand dogs. Each year more than 50,000 guests flock to Icehotel to stay in rooms with elaborate interiors carved from Tome River ice. A night time dogsledding tour through the city may off er views of the northern lights (www.icehotel.com;from SEK 2,350ft22,300 per head). •


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56 INDIA

A BEVY OF REASONS TO EMBRACE WINTER

~ IN PRAISE OF WINTER

68 PHOTO ESSAY

CHILLING TRANSFORMATIONS IN EASTERN LADAKH

72 UNITED KINGDOM CHRISTMAS MARKETS BRING OUT

THE SEASON'S BEST

80 FINLAND

CELEBRATING THE FINE ART OF FREEZING

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THERE'S A BEVY OF BEAUTIFUL REASONS TO EMBRACE WINTER

ININDIA BY TUSHAR ABHICHANDANI

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IN FOCUS ~In Praise of Winter

If you know where to look, chilly weather can bring warm cheer had spent six years living in Mumbai, periodically scoffing at Mumbaikars who pulled on sweaters

the moment the temperature dropped below 18°C. This isn't winter, I'd claim with Dilliwala arrogance, recalling the sweet

smell of the kadamb flower that wafts through the capital's streets early in winter, the sight of the watchman huddled around his tiny bonfire late at night, the afternoon picnics, the evening barbecues, the warmth of a cup of coffee in my hand.


When I finally moved back to Delhi in 2011, I wasn't prepared for karmic revenge. In the last week of October the weather was pleasant, but November snuck up on me with the full brunt of winter arriving, almost overnight. I chased sunbeams

around my house, trying to stay in the warmth as much as possible. I was soon digging in old, forgotten trunks to salvage woollen clothing unused for six years, and drinking dozens of cups of piping-hot coffee, tea, and soup to defrost my bones.

It was one of Delhi's coldest winters in years. Darkness descended by 5 p.m., chilly winds always managed to find the gaps in the doors, and the windows fogged up when I cooked. Living in a corner of Gurgaon, I rarely left the house. This was not the winter I had craved.

When March reared its sunny head, my husband and I took a break from the city and headed to the hills. We plotted a journey through the back roads of Shimla district, stopping at small towns and smaller settlements. We saw greenhouses full of mushrooms in Solan, and the buds that had just begun to show on the apple trees of Rajgarh. The mountains seemed to be shrugging off the cloak of winter, and tiny rivulets carried melting snow and ice down the slopes. I soaked up the sun sitting on the back of our motor-

•

cycle as we rode through

towns like Dibber, Sainj, and Kotkhai.

Our destination was a tiny, three-lane town called

Kharapathar that I'd randomly selected for its location in the orchard-draped Pabbar Valley, and because it had an HPTDC hotel.

But as we gained altitude, the warmth slowly slid away. The higher reaches were still firmly in the clutches of an extended winter. Tiny banks of snow began to appear by the side of the road. Cars struggled on the slushy ice. The biting chill made me hide behind my husband for protection on the motorcycle. As we rolled into Kharapathar, the sun seemed to completely give up and was little more than a distant, pale orange circle. The town itself was so tiny, its few shops still shuttered, that we might have missed it altogether if it wasn't for the sight of the Giri Ganga Resort, whose staff was rather surprised to have visitors in this weather. The

hotel hadn't yet opened up

as winter was still in the air, but a

room was quickly prepared for us. The staff advised us to have a quick bath before the evening chill set in, and buckets were filled for the morning because the pipes were likely to freeze overnight.

I was shivering and not very happy. Sensing my distress, the friendly hotel manager set about making me comfortable. Placing a sofa in front of a large window, he brought a giant pot of ginger tea and some steaming pakoras. As the cold edged out of my body, I began to see the magic of a cold winter evening in the mountains. A stillness filled the valley before me as the fog lifted into the folds of the mountains, wrapping itself around the tops of the deodar trees. Dispersed lights twinkled in the distance, and when I leaned to look closely, my breath fogged up the glass, making them disappear altogether. A spicy rum toddy followed. Snuggling up, my husband and I sipped the warming liquid and watched the trees and the valley disappear in the moonlit fog. Winter was suddenly attractive.

~India

The pipes didn't freeze that night. And although the morning was frosty and crisp, the manager talked us into hiking up to the Giri Ganga temple. A little picnic lunch was packed and we set off on the trail. Pine needles covered the path, crunching softly under our feet. A troop of monkeys eyed us curiously. Halfway up, soft snow began appearing on the trail and soon it was completely covered with a white blanket. Dramatic icicles hung from exposed roots of trees and somewhere below, I could hear the rush of a noisy river. The temple complex was covered in snow, with nary a soul in sight. All around us it was silent and still, sacrosanct without the summer crowds. Bright red flags and old, grey stone cut a dramatic picture against the dazzling brilliance of the snow. We clambered up the hillside to the source of the Giri Ganga river, filling our bottle with the cold, sweet water.

On the way down, we slid and rolled, shrieking with delight as the snow got into our hair and jackets. Being outdoors and active in the icy weather was invigorating, especially since we knew we would return to mugs of delicious ginger tea. Over the next two days, in the unexpected sharpness of frosty mornings and the stillness of chilly evenings, I rediscovered my love for winter.

-By Neha Dara



BEYOND THE ORDINARY Offbeat experiences to escape your comfort zone

During winter, when passes close due to heavy snow, walking on the.frozen Zanskar River is the only way to reach Padum, the main town of the Zanskar region. This route has become the famous and arduous Chadar trek. A road connecting Darcha in Lahaul and Padum, which is due to open in 2015, will completely transform this region.


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~India

India~ longest cave system, the 25-km-long Krem Liat Prah, was discovered in Meghalaya's Jaintia Hil"ls in 2006.

TREKTOSANDAKPHU The trail to Sandakphu, the highest peak on the Singalila Ridge, is one of Darjeeling's toughest trekking routes. Located on the edge of the Singalila National Park, the 3,780-metre-high peak is famous for its panoramic view of the Himalayas. Four of the five highest peaks in the world-Everest, Kanchenjunga, Lhotse, and Makalu-are visible along the trail. The trekking season lasts from October to May, but for those looking to experience the extremes of winter, December to February is the time to go. Many trekkers tend to camp overnight around Sandakphu to catch the early morning view of the four peaks.

LAZEATKHAJnAR This meadow in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district is surrounded by dense pine forests. It features a buttonshaped plateau with a lake that has an island at the centre. This combination of three alpine features has led to it being christened "Mini Switzerland". Though there are brief spells of snowfall, winters here aren't as harsh as in the rest of Himachal Pradesh. Hike through the Kalatop Khajjiar Sanctuary that surrounds the meadow. Visit the Khajji Nag temple, famous for the wooden images of the Pandavas and Kauravas hanging from its ceiling. The main reason for Khajjiar's popularity is that it affords travellers a tranquil,

isolated winter experience without having to travel to extreme altitudes or locations.

WALK ON THE FROZEN ZAN SKAR The Zanskar river has some of the most thrilling white-water rafting routes in the world. But during the winter, it gives way to a whole new adventure sport- trekking on ice. The sole route connecting the villages in the Zanskar Valley to the rest of Ladakh is known to travellers as the Chadar trek. The nine-day journey through the canyon goes past Buddhist monasteries and frozen waterfalls. It is considered one of the most difficult routes in the world because of altitudes that go as high as 3,850 m and

temperatures that can drop to -35°C. The ice can be thin in some areas, so it is important to hire guides.

CAVING IN MEGHALAYA Meghalaya is home to some of the deepest and longest caves in the subcontinent, some of which are still unexplored. Negotiating the caves can be a challenge even for experts, but a good option for beginners is the 7-km-long Krem Mawmluh cave near Cherrapunji. The hike involves walking through water pools past dramatic stalactites and stalagmites, while avoiding run-ins with the occasional bat. The ideal time to visit is between December and March when the region's rivers are at their shallowest.


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SLALOMING THROUGH THE HIMALAYAS Five frosty skiing destinations that offer a great workout

A range of slopes that suit different skill levels and one of the highest cable cars in the world, have made Gulmarg India:, most popular skiing destination.


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Beginners can learn skiing at Solang Valley,just 14 km from Manali.

NARKANDA, HIMACHAL PRADESH N arkanda is one of India's oldest skiing destinations. Located 64 km northeast of Shimla, it has numerous slopes, from gentle inclines for beginners to steep tracks for experts. The Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation offers ski packages with courses, equipment, and accommodation. The best time to visit is between December and March, when there is plenty of snowfall.

GULMARG, JAMMU & KASHMIR One of Gulmarg's most prominent attractions is the Gulmarg Gondola, the highest ski lift in the world. The first phase goes to Kongdori station, located at an altitude of 3,099

metres. The second goes all the way to Apharwat peak, at a height of 4,200 m. Apharwat has some of the most difficult skiing routes in the country. Another recently-added attraction is heli-skiing: expert skiers are flown to a peak in a helicopter so that they can ski back down. Apart from the regular routes, Gulmarg also has several routes that experienced skiers can explore with the help of guides. A bonus: It has one of the longest skiing seasons in the country, from December to mid-April.

SOLANG VAI.I.EY, HIMACHAL PRADESH In February, hordes of skiing enthusiasts, both amateur and professional, head to Solang Valley for the Alpine Premier League-one of India's biggest

skiing competitions. Thanks to infrastructure projects in recent years, like the Solang ropeway, it has become a major skiing destination. While Solang does not have many extreme or unexplored slopes, there are several ski routes suitable for both beginners and experts. The Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports conducts certificate courses in skiing here. Several private instructors and guides are available. The best time to visit is between January and February, when snowfall is at its peak.

PHUNL SIKKIM Located near the Yumthang Valley of Sikkim at a height of 3,500 metres, Phuni has some of the world's highest ski routes. However, since it's one

~India

of the country's newest skiing destinations, infrastructure is still rudimentary. When planning a trip, it is advisable to organise guides and instructors well in advance. The closest available accommodation is in Lachung village, which is about an hour's drive away.

AULLUTTARAKHAND The ski slopes of Auli rise from 2,500 to 3,050 metres above sea level. They offer a panoramic view of some of the highest peaks of the Himalayas, including Nanda Devi, Kam et, Mana Parvat, and Dunagiri. Auli can be accessed via road or a 4 km-long ropeway from Joshimath. It also has a ski-lift connecting the lower and upper slopes, making it easier to do multiple ski runs.


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ESCAPE TO THE WOODS From the Little Rann of Kutch to Arunachal Pradesh, these wildlife parks come alive in cold weather

Snow leopards in the Himalayas generally hunt bharal (blue sheep) and ibex. While resting, the leopard uses its tail like a mu.filer, wrapping it around its neck and face.


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The Wild Ass Sanctuary in the Little Rann of Kutch has the added attraction of winged visitors like flamingoes, pelicans, and cranes in the winter months.

NAMDAPHANATIONAL PARK,ARUNACHAL PRADESH The lowest point in the N amdapha National Park is 200 metres above sea level, while the highest is 4,571 metres. This dramatic range of altitudes gives N amdapha the rare distinction of having tropical, temperate, and alpine forests within its area. As a result, its residents include 60 per cent of the species found in any checklist of Indian mammals. It is one of the few places in the world that has four species of big cats-snow leopard, clouded leopard, common leopard, and the tiger. It also has over 500 species of birds, including some that are only found in northeast India. Jeep and elephant safaris are available in the park, while

trekking is also an option for those who want to head into less-visited territory. There are government-run lodges inside the park and camping accommodations are also available.

POBITORA Wll.DLIFE SANCTUARY, ASSAM An hour's drive from Guwahati, Pobitora is a relatively small sanctuary. Large parts of it are covered by marshland, making it the perfect habitat for the one-horned rhinoceros and thousands of birds. Between November and March, several species of migratory birds visit the sanctuary. They include the greylag goose, grey heron, great egret, and large-billed crow. Visitors can take jeep and elephant safaris. Though accommodation is available

within and around the sanctuary, most people tend to visit Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary as a daytrip from the city of Guwahati.

WILD ASS SANCTUARY, GUJARAT Deserts and salt flats might not be the first things to come to mind when you think of sanctuaries, but the Wild Ass Sanctuary in the Little Rann of Kutch is an interesting exception. Spread over 5,000

sq km, it is the only place in the country where the Indian wild ass survives. During the winter, the sanctuary is home to hundreds of kinds of birds, including migratory species such as the ceraneous vulture, demoiselle crane, blue-tailed bee-eater, and houbara bustard. Camel and jeep safaris are

available from the nearby towns of Dhrangadhra, Patdi and Zainabad.

NEORA VALLEYNATIONAL PARK, WEST BENGAL Rising to an altitude of 3 ,000

metres, Neora Valley National Park is a region with extreme biodiversity. The national park has leopards, clouded leopards, Himalayan tahrs, black bears, civets, and the adorable red panda. It also has one of the most diverse bird populations in India. Rare species that have been spotted here include the satyr tragopan, rufous-throated partridge, and pygmy wren-babbler. The only way to explore the park is to trek through it. A number of camping trips are organised by private operators between November and March.


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JOIN THE FESTIVITIES Events and celebrations that warm the spirit and put local culture in the spotlight

The Hornbill Festival's open-air show area hosts tribal peeformances by day and rock concerts by local bands at night.


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Elaborate sand sculptures are created during the annual Puri Beach festival.

HORNBJI.L FESTIVAL, KOHIMA, NAGALAND Every December, the tribes ofNagaland come together to showcase their cultural diversity at the Hornbill Festival. Arts, crafts, music, and culture from the region are on display during the ten-day event. One of the biggest draws is the Horn bill National Rock Concert, which attracts bands from all over India.

PURI BEACH FESTIVAL, PURI, ODISHA In November, the coastal town of Puri showcases the varied talents of the region. For five days, there are classical and folk performances, along with fashion shows and concerts. The biggest draws are the sand-sculpting competition on the beach and the fireworks displays at night.

KOLAYAT CATTLE FAIR, BIKANER, RAJASTHAN Held at the start of winter

every year-usually early November-the Kolayat Cattle Fair is an interesting mix of religion and commerce. It attracts pilgrims eager to take a dip in the holy Kolayat Lake during Kartik Poornima, as well as people looking to sell or buy cattle. The animals are decked up and auctioned during the festival.

COCIDN CARNIVAL,KOCID, KERALA A reminder of Kochi's Portuguese past, the Cochin Carnival is held over the last ten days of December. Events take place across the city,BM and include a tug-ofwar, beach volleyball, bicycle racing, concerts, classical performances, and parades.

KILA RAIPUR SPORTS FESTIVAL, KILA RAIPUR, PUNJAB Held in February every year, the Kila Raipur Sports Festival is often called the rural Olympics

of India. It is a festival that tests the limits of rural athletes and their animals. There are dog races, camel races, and tractor races, though the most fanfare is reserved for the bullock-cart race. Some truly oddball competitions include lifting bicycles with the teeth and racing on bicycles with burning tyres.

JAISALMER DESERT FESTIVAL, JAISALMER, RAJASTHAN The J aisalmer Desert Festival showcases Rajasthan's traditional desert life. Held for three days in February each year (12-14 Feb in 2014),

the festival has a number of events involving camels, including camel decorating, camel-fur cutting, and camel polo. Non-competitive events include gymnastics on camels and camel formation dancing accompanied by a band. There are also music and cultural events for those looking to

spend time away from the humped creatures.

THE GREAT ELEPHANT MARCH, KERALA Every January, a number of elephants are decked up and paraded from Thrissur to Thiruvananthapuram as part of The Great Elephant March. The parade is accompanied by religious and cultural activities at each stop of this three-day f es ti val.

HAMPI UTSAV, HAMPL KARNATAKA This festival showcases the cultural traditions of the Vijayanagara Empire (starting 10-13 Jan 2014). Dances, dramas, and puppet shows, along with popular instruments of the time are used to recreate the era. Elephants, horses, and men are dressed in the attire of the Vijayanagara period and a marketplace is set up to showcase traditional markets of the time.


IN FOCUS -----~In P1aise of Winter

Text & Photographs By Sankar Sridhar

• NorbuLa, a pass at an •= altitudeof16,000feet, offers a grand view of the Tso Moriri Lake. According to Changpa "legend, the great lakes of Ladakh don't freeze gradu.ally. They.freeze overnight during cold snaps, when the temperature can drop by more than 10°C in a matter of minutes.

• PagalNallah, a stream on •= the way to Pangong Tso, lies in winter's grip. Like at the lake of Tso Kar, when the water freezes, the marshes in the middle of the stream become accessible, offering untouched reservoirs of grassfor herbivores in the season of scarcity.


• A herd of kiang, Tibetan •= wild ass, makes its way across thefar bank ofTso Kar. During winter, the anima"ls are perpetually on the move in search of patches of grass and shrub in the.frozen landscape.

• Carnivores and scavengers •= such as the redfox don't mind winter too much. Pika, the tailless rodents that don't hibernate and spend most of their waking hours basking in the sun, make easy pickingsfor the red fox.

I

By Slueya Sen-Handley

~United Kingdom


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We were on tiptoe, craning to get a better look. Around us thousands jostled for the best view of the dazzling Christmas tableau on the

first storey of Anson's, the biggest department store in prosperous 1980s Manila. It was the most important time of year for devout Roman Catholic Philippines and there were church bells pealing everywhere.

But as this was a country that knew how to have fun too, there was much glitz and bonhomie. A visit to see Anson's automated Christmas display was part of our family's annual ritual. In the middle of the crush, one balmy evening in 1983, were three Indians-my mother, four-year-old sister, and me. We watched in wonder as nimble elves danced to the rousing sounds of an illuminated choir of angels, in a swirl of fake snow. Then a cheer went up as a blur of red and gold jingled into the midst of the tableau. Santa had arrived-rotund, rubicund, and jolly-with his retinue of frolicking reindeer. It was exciting for us little girls and for our mother, but the day was waning and with a festive dinner waiting for us at home, we had no choice but to tear ourselves away from that magical spectacle:'

I interrupted my story as my children's attention was momentarily caught by a vendor in elf costume rolling a trolley full of seasonal goodies past us. On a frosty morning in early December, we were on the Christmas Special train from Nottingham to Lincoln for the biggest Christmas fair in Europe. A month ago we had decided to take

our kids there to enjoy a truly classic British Christmas. The togged-up train put us in the Yuletide mood, and my story of Christmases past reinforced the festive feeling. "Tell us more;' said my young son.

"We got home to the delights of a traditional Filipino Christmas dinner-honey and cinnamon-glazed ham, chicken adobo, cuts of lechon (roast suckling pig) and sticky-sweet coconut lumpias. Gathered around our modest but twinkling tree after dinner, my parents caught up on their reading while my sister and I kept a close eye on the gifts beneath the tree:'

Glimpsing the soaring spires of Lincoln Cathedral, I pushed ahead with my story. 'i\. few years later we returned to Calcutta where, despite my mother's best efforts, recreating those fabulous Filipino Christmases proved impossible. We would scour Gariahat unsuccessfully for Christmas trees and baubles as New Market felt a tad distant. And while Park Street was very merry come Christmas, the rest of Calcutta didn't necessarily follow suit. Still, my mother was a great believer in festive fun, whatever its antecedents, so Christmas in our home

Hogmanay is a three-day-long Scottish New Year celebration that kicks off with a Viking torchlight procession. Over 25,000 people take part, creating a "river of fire" through Edinburgh~ streets.


~United Kingdom

continued to be celebrated with delicious cooing over the children all the while. And food, good company, and even carol singing. But the splendour was missing and so was Santa with his capering crew. I felt like I might never ever experience a perfect Christmas again:'

I wrapped up my account as we walked into Lincoln's central square. Though their brows had furrowed at my story, the children were instantly swept up in the thrill of the Christmas fete. The fair swamped the city of Lincoln. Its cynosure is its ancient cathedral with Tudor luminaries

We got home to the delights of a traditional Filipino

Christmas dinner-honey and cinnamon-glazed ham, chicken adobo, cuts oflechon

(roast suckling pig) and stickysweet coconut lumpias

then our little girl spotted the most magical carousel shimmering at the end of the street. She was awestruck by the antique carriages, each of which was a red-and-gold sleigh.

The following weekend we found ourselves at majestic Chatsworth

House in the Derbyshire Dales. The Duke of Devonshire's estate is considered the grandest in Britain, perfectly placed in green, rolling Derbyshire. It is also believed to be the mansion

buried within. Parliament was held there in the 14th century, and The Da Vinci Code was filmed in its halls. Just across the cobbled square was Lincoln Castle, a drab museum with a magnificent facade. Walking past the ruined abbey and rows of pastel-coloured homes, we stopped for a one-sided natter with the statue of Lincoln's favourite son, Victorian poet Tennyson. But the kids were quick to remind us why we were there. So we plunged into the packed heart of the fair, dipping into festive stalls, picking up Swedish baubles, German cake, and quick gulps of Irish cream (hot cocoa for the kids) to keep warm on the icy day. In a narrow snicket, we were ambushed by ladies in Regency dress, who arm-twisted us into buying their cinnamon-spiced nuts,

on which Jane Austen based Darcy's estate Pemberley. With its extensive gardens,

immense orangery bursting with every kind of flora, Elizabethan hunting lodge, and ornate Italian fountains (their waters frozen into sparkling crystal shards on that bright winter's day), it was dazzling. Four and a half centuries ago, Mary Queen of Scots was incarcerated here by her jailor and lover, the Earl of Shrewsbury. Our own Warren Hastings' Chatsworth connection is evident in the rooms full of purloined Oriental treasure.

In the spectacular entrance hall stood a massive, magnificent Christmas tree. The red-carpeted stairs had glittering tinsel and holly around each balustrade. Chatsworth was celebrating a Georgian Christmas and everything from furnishings to festive decor, to

Edinburgh:, wet and windy winters don't discourage locals and tourists from being part of one of the biggest Christmas and New Year:, celebrations in the UK.



the sheets of music at the grand piano was so elaborate they looked like art. Up the hill in keeping with the theme. Even the dinner laid out in the vast dining hall was Georgian.

In the farm shop, there were festal favourites on sale-cranberry sauce and chestnuts, sage and sausage stuffing for the Christmas turkey, fruity festive cake and mince pies, bottles of eggnog and mulled wine. And to the children's delight, shelf upon shelf of elf-, snowman- and Santa-shaped chocolates. Returning to the car with

Returning to the car with more goodies than we could

consume in one Christmas, we found ourselves embroiled in a snowball.fight with a group of children, ducking and diving

behindfrost-laced bushes

to the quiet family church there was a joyful trail of traditional decorations. The freezing winter wind loped up the hill with us, ringing the bells in the trees, rocking the little wooden

sleighs that led to the church door. We found Santa in the Victorian sta

bles, smelling of damp and hay. Yet, so warm were Father Christmas and his helpers with their genial chatter and thoughtful presents, that the odour

and bone-rattling cold were quickly more goodies than we could consume in one Christmas, we found ourselves embroiled in a snowball fight with a group of children, ducking and diving behind the frost-laced bushes of the icy parking lot. Relieved to have held on to our wobbling pile of luscious purchases through the boisterous snow battle, we went home dripping but delighted with our hoard.

But Christmas isn't complete for kids without a session with Santa. For this, we travelled to the splendidly shabby Calke Abbey in Leicestershire. That year, they were playing on their gone-to-seed wartime look. The intriguingly melancholy dining room was arranged to look as if a bombing raid had sent the family scurrying to the cellars, leaving their festive dinner untouched. The dust-covered furniture was askew, the shutters off their hinges and the walls had damp patches

forgotten. We all agreed that Calke Abbey with its heart-warming conviviality easily out

did grander places in festive cheer. However, no Yuletide outing can finish without food, so we braved

more mud and biting wind to join the bustle in the large barn. Alongside handcrafted wreaths, spirits and chatter were tables piled high with Calke's famous reindeer pies. Finding a warm corner, we were ready to tuck in when we noticed our children's reluctance. "Is Santa's reindeer in there?" our son asked anxiously. Despite our reassurance that these were made from farm-reared reindeer and that Santa's squad with its gift-transporting duties was far too important to ever become pie, they were clearly not convinced.

We couldn't let the festivities end on that sombre note, so we

Parts of Chatsworth House in the Derbyshire Dales have been remodelled to bring to life the world of"The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" from C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles ofNarnia.


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plumped for an impromptu trip to Edinburgh to see the year out. Edinburgh is an elegant city with grand old architecture, mouthwatering seafood and the wettest, windiest weather in the British Isles. In the depth of winter, we knew it would not be comfortable but the annual Christmas market and Hogmanay festival did promise colour, excitement and the perfect end to our classic British Christmas. Bundled up in our warmest woollies, we jostled with thousands for a safe perch on Edinburgh Castle's medieval walls just as the torchlight procession began. To the beat of drums and pipes marched Vikings, Romans, and men in Tartan kilts, the national costume of Scotland. There were even a few "Bravehearts" in blue face paint. As night fell, Edinburgh lit up like an enormous firecracker. In fact, there were colossal crackers going off everywhere, the noise mingling with the cacophonous warbling of drunken revellers. Manoeuvring our way out of the crowd, we returned to our room where a scrumptious dinner and bottle of bubbly were waiting.

Just before midnight, with the kids asleep, my husband and I stood at the Victorian sash windows and listened to the countdown from the square, clinking glasses as the clock struck 12 and the cheer went up. I knew then that I had found the perfect Christmas I had been looking for since I left the Philippines. •

Shreya Sen-Handley is a former journalist and television producer who now writes and illustrates for British and Indian media, when she's not tending to two toddlers, a husband, and a home in Sherwood Forest, Nottingham.

~United Kingdom

Delicate, glass tree ornaments are solil at Christmas stalls across Europe. Pine cones, reindeer, snowflakes, and minia-ture nutcrackers are especially popular.

Built by the Romans, Lincoln~ Steep Hill is a vibrant street.full of pubs, restaurants, and shops. It leads up to Lincoln Cathedral, which is the backdrop for the city's Christmas festivities.



Stolkn, the German Christmas cake (top left) covered with marnpan and icing sugar, is said t;o represent baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes; Visitors buy heart-shaped gingerbread

(top right) and Santa chocolates (bottom left), and sip on mulkd wine (middle right) and

eggnog at Europe~ outdoor winter markets; At a traditional English Christmas dinner, a whol,e roasted turkey is the centrepiece (bottom right).

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C1.Ass1c BRmsH CHRIS GUIDE LINCOLN CHRISTMAS MARKET The Vitals 5-8 December; hours vary; entry free; lincoln-christmasmarket.co.uk

Getting there Finding parking in Lincoln city centre during the Christmas Market is difficult. It's convenient to take one of the special trains that are organised from most U.K. cities to Lincoln during the fair. Or use the Christmas Market park-and-ride service at £12/~l.210 per car, which operates from the Lincolnshire Showground on the A15 just north of Lincoln. There is a dedicated parkand-ride service for people with disabilities.

CHATSWORTH The Vitals From 9 November-23 December; hours vary; house and garden entry for adults £16/~1.613, senior citizens and students £14/ ~1.411, children £10/~1.008, family (2 adults and up to 3 children) £47/~4.739; www chatsworth.org Getting there Chatsworth is in rural Derbyshire, a 30-minute drive from the nearest town Chesterfield. When tickets to the house are booked online, car parking is free, otherwise it costs £3/~302. There are a number of buses to the estate, including direct ones from Chesterfield and Sheffield, and National Express or Transpeak services from London and Manchester. Note Additional activities like the Narnia Tour (£19.50/~l.968), three-course winter lunch (£24/~2.422), nativity performance and dinner (£12/~1.210), wreath-making session

(£40/~4.036), etc. cost extra.

CALKEABBEY The Vitals From 5-22 December; house and grounds entry for adults £10.68/~l.078,

children £5.38/~543, family £26.74/~2.700; www.nationaltrust.org. uk/calke-abbey Gettingthere There are no direct buses so it's best to drive down or take a train from the nearest city of Derby or the closest town of Burton-on-Trent. Note Regular house tours may not be available from 5-8 December, during Christmas celebrations. Additional activities like a visit to Father Christmas in his grotto (£4/~403 including present), Christmas craft fair (adult £4/~403, child £2.50/~252, family £12/ ~1.210 plus park admission), and Christmas concert (£25/~2.522) cost extra.

EDINBURGH HOGMANAY STREET PARTY The Vitals From 31 December, stages live from 9 p.m.-1 a.m., no entry after 11 p.m.;

entry £20/~2.020 plus £2.10/~212 booking fee; www.edinburghfestivals.eo.uk/events/ edinburghs-hogmanay-street-party 3 Getting there Scotland's capital is a major travel hub and there are night coaches from major U.K. cities as well as many trains to Edinburgh's Waverley Station.

Note The party takes place at Princess Street and surrounding streets, against the backdrop of the Edinburgh castle. There are live bands, DJs, giant screens, outdoor bars, and fireworks.

CHRISTMAS IN LONDON Kew Garden Illuminated Trail Walk on a magical Christmas trail through the gardens. The Christmas Village and market are free, but only open on Illuminated Trail days. Santa's Woodland Grotto, Victorian Carousel, and rides cost extra. The Vitals From 28 November-4 January; open 4.30-10 p.m.; entry for adults £12.50/ ~1.267, children £8/~811 (free under 5 years), family £38/~3.852;

www.kew.org

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland Entry to this wellknown and muchloved attraction is free but visitors need to purchase tickets for the rides. Entry to popular attractions like the Ice Rink, Magical Ice Kingdom, and Giant Wheel can be booked online. The Vitals From 22 November-5 January; open 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; entry free; hydeparkwinterwon

derland.com

Tudor Christmas at Hampton Court Palace

year, but a large groups can book a private tour (£1,000/~l.Ol,800 for up to 35 people;

roughly ~2.800 per head). The Vitals From 7-8 December, 27 December-1 January; open 10 a.m.-4.30 p.m.; entry for adults £17.60/~l.783; children between 5-16 years £8.80/~891; family £45.10/~4.570; www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace/WhatsOn/tudorcookery

The Snowman by Birmingham Repertory Soak in the Christmas magic watching this stage production of the famous children's book by Raymond Briggs at the Peacock Theatre on Portugal Street. The Vitals Playing until 5 January; shows at 11 a.m., 2.30 p.m. and 7 p.m.; duration 1 hour 45 minutes, including 15-minute interval; tickets from £37/~3.747 per head; www.london-theatreland.co. u k/theatres/ peacock-theatre/the-snowman.php Note Family ticket prices apply for two adults and up to three children (under 16 years).

Food archaeologists revive Tudor kitchens of Henry Vlll's court with traditional recipes. The popular Ghost Tours are sold out for this

The aromas ofhot,freshly roasted chestnuts and other baked goods are hard to resist at Christmas markets.


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~In Praise of Winter

~Finland

• •

~In Praise of Winter

The toilet is right in front of me, and I'm dying to go, but it's too cold to pull my pants down.

For the record, it's an attractive toilet, one of the prettiest I've seen. It's located in the middle of a remote wilderness in the Harne region in interior Finland, on a densely forested isthmus between lakes Pyha and Nasi. The loo itself is a tiny but charming hut built of wooden planks, painted red, and with a heart-shaped window in the door, the perfect place for private affairs. The latrine compartment is open at the back where the dirty business falls down, so that any foul smell is swept away by winds, disappearing into the Finnish wilds, possibly scaring off lurking polar bears.

I'm on holiday, and I've borrowed a friend's cottage as far away from civilisation as possible. However, I can't quite relax. On this lovely evening, the temperature hovers around zero degrees Celsius but it feels much colder this far away from the comfort of electric lights. The outdoorsy toilet has neither running water nor heating. The candle in my handheld lantern flickers.

I try to fight the cold by telling myself that feeling frozen is nothing but a state of mind and that people hereabouts have been using similar eco-friendly toilets for ages. Even in the heart of winter, when temperatures go down to minus 25°C-and that's in the daytime.

Night temperatures dipping as low as minus 50°C have been recorded in the Lapland Province at Salla, a small northern Finnish municipality. It markets itself as a tourist destination with the intriguing slogan "In The Middle ofNowhere" and where one of the main annual events is the "Nothing Will Happen Week". Finnish humour aside, Salla was where one of the decisive battles of the Winter War, featuring Finns on skis against the mighty Soviet Army, was fought in the winter


• ofl939-40. And boy, those soldiers must have frozen their butts off!

I finally do my business as a matter of national pride. I was born here, in the nearby tiny Finnish township of Forssa, and repeating this fact to my disobedient genes convinces them that using this loo is therefore my birthright and duty.

My native Finland is a smallish country with a population of five million people scattered around an area of 3,04,623 sq km of heavily forested land. Approximately 75 per cent of it is covered in trees, a westerly extension of the Russian taiga. Besides, one-third of Finland lies north of the Arctic Circle. If I had lost my way while getting to the forest loo, there's a good chance I'd never meet another human again.

However, should you ever meet Finns, you'll discover they are a hardy people descended from an ancient Uralic tribe, speaking a language that is thought to have structural likeness to the Japanese and Dravidian tongues. The Finns stick to their traditions: laconic manner, sentimental tango music reflecting the melancholic Finnish post-World War mentality, steam baths, severe alcoholism, and high suicide rates.

There's an oft-repeated anecdote of two Finnish men meeting to have a good time. As they uncork their vodka bottles, one says, "Cheers, then:' The other replies, '~e we going to talk or drink?" The gloomy autumns and long, lonely winters are supposedly the cause of this introverted manner.

I've returned to Finland, and more specifically the small town of Forssa, to poke around at my own roots after decades spent in the tropics. I've come to look at the hospital where I was born and to walk through the dark forests where I spent my childhood years being scared of trolls and other supernatural creatures, and to see if I can remember anything else of those long ago days.

~Finland

Reindeer ( top) grazing in the northern province of Lapland are one of the main reasons why tourists visit theArctic Circle; Helsinki is the capital of Finland and the main harbour (below) on the south coast for both cargo shipping and passenger traffic.


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During winter, when roads are blocketf by snow, residents have to rely Of

traditional means of transport such aa sleds pulled by hardy husky dogs.

Initially, everything felt really nice: cool weather, fresh air, and the amazing natural spectacle of the onset of winter. Maple, oak, and birch trees become naked, gnarled skeletons standing out against the thick carpet of yellow, red, and golden brown leaves.

As the days grow darker it is easy to believe in magical beings like trolls or Santa Claus.

Midwinter, there is feeble sunlight only for an hour or two. At the end of September, the nights become longer than the days, and a few weeks later, in October, snow begins to fall. It goes on falling until March, sometimes into May if it's a freaky year.

The snow adds beauty in the darkness, covering everything with a shimmering whiteness. It's a miraculous material from a child's point of view. Snowmen, snow castles, and snow balls to throw at friends and enemies alike make for creative fun.

But the one thing that I had managed to forget, and suddenly remembered now, was how cold it gets as soon as autumn starts to turn into winter.

Winters can be a formidable enemy of humans. One's snot freezes. Icicles and snow fall off sloping roofs, killing people-in fact a rooftop avalanche almost smashed me once, long ago. It is no wonder, therefore, that those who survive this hostile weather love that generous bringer of gifts, Santa Claus. Santa is known among Finns as Joulupukki or the Goat of Christmas, suggesting that he was worshipped here in a pagan form before Saint Nicholas, or Claus for short, became the object of Christian winter feasts.

The typical Santa figure-bearded man clad in homespun clothes and knitted red cap-is based on the folksy tonttu, a dwarfish gnomelike spirit living under peoples' houses. If you're good to it and put out a bowl of porridge every Christmas, it'll act like a watchdog, keeping evil at bay and looting your neighbour's larder to fill your fridge with

~Finland

free food and beer. Neglect it and it'll ignore you too, and won't bother to wake you up if your house catches fire.

The modern avatar of the tonttu remains the only supernatural entity Finns take seriously. It is said that Santa's top-secret James Bond-style workshop, where toys for kids are made, is hidden inside the 1,630-

foot high Korvatunturi Mountain right at the border with Russia. According to my GPS, that is 800 km from where I am right now, but as we all know, Santa-just like James Bond-operates globally.

Santa gets 7,00,000 request letters a year, which means that the Finnish postal department virtually lives off Santa's fame in these days when post offices elsewhere are shutting down due to lack of business. The postal department maintains an official webpage at www.santaclaus.posti.fi with guidelines for those who want to become Santa's pen pals. Tourists can even stay at the official Santa Claus Village near the Arctic town of Rovaniemi, where Santa's mailroom, incidentally, is located next to the airport (santaclausvillage.info).

It sounds like a fairy tale, doesn't it? I too was a staunch believer in Santa as a child, but I couldn't help noticing one curious thing: every Christmas, just before Santa was expected to drop by, my dad would have to go to the loo. Year after year he missed Santa's visits, which irked me a lot, until I put one and one together. My dad was leading a double life ... Santa and my dad must be one and the same!

The other thing that keeps Finns alive during those long, cold winters is the sauna. An estimated two and a half million saunas cater to five million Finns. Even if the entire population takes a bath at the same time, visitors needn't be afraid of ever being left without a seat.

In theory, Finnish saunas are a distant relative of Turkish hamams, but are actually nothing like the spacious architectural structures in Istanbul. Nor are they similar to the clinical saunas found at international spas. The Finnish sauna is usually a small wood-panelled cabin,

For the Finns, saunas are akin to cafes in winter. They are the place where they meet friends, sip a beverage, and generally have a good time.


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almost pitch dark, lit by a single candle and a wood-fired stove. In the old days saunas were set at a safe distance from the main house-just in case the sauna caught fire, your home wouldn't burn down with it. The best saunas are usually by a lake, so that you can take a dip in cold water when the sauna gets too hot. However, modern saunas tend to run on electricity and have a thermostat to control the heat, so nowadays you also find them in basements of apartment buildings. But this particular sauna I'm talking about, in the forest north of Forssa, is where I used to bathe as a kid.

And yes, let me assure you that a sauna remains the best cure for wintertime blues. Thoroughly frozen after my visit to the loo, I hit the sauna to thaw my bones. The heat makes my curdled blood flow again. The main challenge was to undress outside in the ice-cold night.

The typical sauna has a three-level set of wooden bleachers: first timers are advised to occupy the bottom one because the higher you go the more mind-blasting the heat gets.

Among men, it is a popular sport to throw ladles of water at the kiuas, a wood-heated stove stacked with hot rocks, and create loyly, hissing clouds of steam. It may seem like torture, but this is the way men befriend each other here. Women go to the sauna separately, so I'm not sure if they also do the loyly one-upmanship thing.

Inside, the temperature can easily cross 90°C, which means that the difference between outside and inside temperatures is around 100°C, if not more. After a while in the sauna, I can't breathe anymore and scoot out to cool off. If there was snow on the ground, I would have happily rolled in it. Instead I fumble about in the dark outside the sauna, trying to locate the cans of Finnish beer I had picked up at the supermarket on my way to the forest, and greedily suck down the icecold Lapin Kulta.

This is how the Finns do it. First you purify yourself on the outside

with hot steam, and then you wash your insides with cold beer. After one beer, the sauna suddenly seems attractive again and it's time to go indoors for the next round of loyly. •

Zac O'Yeah lives in Bengaluru, India and has worked as a travel writer for over two decades. This was his first return to his roots, to write about the country of his birth. His last book in English was Mr. Majestic! The tout of Bengaluru (Hachette 2012).

SAUNA MATTERS

In Finland every hotel, public bathhouse, home, and cottage has a sauna, so finding one is never a problem. Having a sauna bath is a social custom and a good way to get to know Finns. However, as ladies and gents usually bathe separately, you will not get to know any Finnish ladies in the sauna if you are a gent. Avoid big meals and hard liquor before a sauna, as this can precipitate a heart attack. Finns usually steam before dinner and only have beer during breaks. At public bathhouse saunas, visitors must shower before going in. Place a towel on the wooden bleacher before sitting, to avoid scorching your privates. If being nude makes you uncomfortable wrap yourself in a towel. However, this will make you feel hotter. A first-time visitor should sit as far away from the stove as possible, since the hot steam can cause burns. If somebody offers to whip you with birch twigs (vihta), this isn't anything more than common practice to make the skin breathe. Finns usually steam for 10-15 minutes, take a break, and return for another round or two. Newbies can spend as long or as short a time as they like. The finishing touch is to wash with soap, usually outside the sauna in the outdoors, or in an attached washing chamber.

Finland is al,so known by the sobriquet "The Country of a Thousand Lakes". In many lakes the water is so clean and fresh that it can be used for drinking without.filtering.


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1 In Finland, you're never too far .from a lake-should you need a cooling bath or just to sit and write poetry or meditate. ·> To meet Santa Claus in his home, visitors must travel to his base camp at the Arctic Circle, near the town of Rovaniemi. Dog lovers

can volunteer at husky fa s, helping train and look after puppies. if Finland has a national dish, it would be

the humble pirog. This pie lly has a.filling of mashed potato or carrot

mash. It is sold by the kilo in bakeries and supe arkets, and is best eaten

slightly heated with a dollop of butter. Despite the long winter, Finns are

kno to enjoy their beer. Here a pub in He"lsinki, named after the iconic

fo er president Urho Kekkonen, has elevated him to a patron saint of beer

drinkers. Ii Brightly lit Christmas trees and a cheery snowman enliven

the Finnish winter. Finns a"lso believe in the Goat of Christmas, a pagan

version of the jolly Santa Claus, which brings joy to the icy landscape.


THE GUIDE ORIENTATION Finland is located in northern Europe. Most of its main cities, including the capital Helsinki, are concentrated in the south and along the coast. Forssa is a town in Harne region in the south. It is 116 km northwest of the capital Helsinki. The towns of Salla and Rovaniemi are located in Lapland, Finland's northernmost region. Rovaniemi is 835 km north of Helsinki. Sparsely populated Lapland falls above the Arctic Circle-but is a popular place to see the aurora borealis (Northern Lights), visible on winter nights.

GETTING THERE Finnair has direct flights thrice weekly between New Delhi and Vantaa International Airport near Helsinki. The flight takes under eight hours. Travel via other airlines can take up to 27 hours with layovers. If the transfers are not in a Schengen country, you may need an additional transit visa.

VISA Finland is part of the Schengen area so a Schengen visa is valid

here unless it has travel restrictions. Otherwise the visa fee is €60/~5.105, payable to the Embassy of Finland in New Delhi, where visa applications are handled: read instructions on www. finland.org.in. (011-4149 7570)

GETTING AROUND The most flexible way for internal travel is to rent a car. Note that there is the danger of colliding with wildlife, big animals such as moose and bear, or sliding off icy road surfaces. There are good long-distance bus services; the main carrier Matkahuolto (www. matkahuo/to.fi/en) offers a variety of tickets including unlimited travel passes for between one and two weeks priced at €149-249/~12,677-21,193. Trains are only convenient between main cities in the south or for a long overnight ride between the capital Helsinki and the Arctic Circle up north. Finnair flies to major cities including Rovaniemi if you want to visit the Santa Claus Village situated a few km from Rovaniemi Airport. Cruising by ferry lines through the archipelago to the remote Ahvenanmaa Islands is reasonably priced and fun.

May-September (Occasional thunderstorms)

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October-April (Snow)

MAX: 27°C, MIN: l0°C MAX: -0° to -20°C, MIN: -25°TO -50°C

During spring and summer the weather is pleasant. Visitors can go boating or canoeing, and enjoy outdoor entertainment such as concerts/theatre in parks. From June to July, the sun barely sets. The drawback is the abundance of insects, including ferocious mosquitoes.

Winters get colder the further north you go and the snowy season may continue into April-May. Low temperatures require you to have the right layered clothing. Finns suggest you eat vitamin C tablets to keep healthy in the cold.

Camping Most towns maintain a camping

site, often by a lake. Guests are expected

to bring their own tents, but the ticket fee

includes facilities such as toilets and hot

showers. Generally only open in summers;

from €15/~1.276. Go to www.camping.fi

Camping in the wild According to an ancient

custom, a traveller may pitch a tent in any

forest as long as no trees are damaged, no

fires lit, or garbage left. You are not allowed

to put up a tent within sight of any habita

tion. If in doubt, ask at the nearest farm for

advice about where to camp.

STAY

Rent a cottage Basic cottages and posh

log cabins are available all over the country.

The best are situated by lakes, but even

the simplest have a sauna and a kitchen

where you can cook. Guests are expected to do the cleaning or pay extra cleaning

charges, and might need a car to access

remote cottages. Depending on facilities,

a week costs €200 to 1,000 (~17,000-85,000); expect higher rates in summer,

the peak holiday season. Book through www.

finlandcottagerenta/s.com or www.lomaren

gas.fi/en or go to the Visit Finland website

www.visitfinland.com/directory and click

"Where to Sleep".


Igloo Village Kakslauttanen is situated in

the northern fells of Lapland and offers accommodation in igloos, a kota (an indig

enous tepee), or log cabins. It gets

cold but you're provided with a sleeping

bag, woollen socks, and other necessities

( +358-16667100; www.kakslauttanen.fi/en;

from €110/~9.356).

Rovaniemi Arctic Snow Hotel is built of ice

and snow and even has a snow sauna. It is open only from end-Dec to March (+358-407690395; www.arcticsnowhotel.fi; from

€125/~10,632 with breakfast).

90 KENYA

UP-CLOSE AND PERSONAL IN THE MAASAI MARA

HIGHLIGHTS

102 MONGOLIA

ON THE STEPPE, WARMED BY THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS

108 TO ANTARCTICA

TEN WEEKS AND 16,000 KM ON A BUS, TO REALISE A DREAM

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he animal world strides on to the plains of the Maasai Mara like the grand opening of a theatre production, each species vociferously announcing its role. On this

stage, no actor has a minor part, from the male ostrich in his pink slender tights seducing his rather dull female with the clumsy grace of a novice ballerina, to the raucous vulture preying on a carcass, and the half-smiling villainous hyena watching from the sidelines. If you are a tourist from India, used to trundling around the jungle for hours hoping to catch a glimpse of an animal, the open savannah of the Maasai Mara rewards you within minutes of your arrival.

But there's a downside to being in a place that's so spectacular. In July and August, when thousands of wildebeest make their way from Serengeti to Mara, the game reserve gets choked with tourists and their vehicles, as everyone wants to catch a glimpse of the Grand Migration. To beat the tourists, I have signed up to stay in a conservancya community-owned piece of land outside the Mara. Conservancies are less crowded, the experience is far more intimate and the profits go directly to the community. It seemed like the more responsible thing to do.

When we land at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport, Kenya feels like an old friend. I was here ten years ago to work for an NGO, building overbridges for the colobus monkey, whose forest habitat had been sliced in two by a highway. In the decade since, the country hasn't changed much except that there are more cars and, I'm told, less crime. As we head out of the airport, the huge acacia trees seem to ache under the weight of large nests occupied by giant, glum-faced Marabou storks. They are the "ugliest birds" in Kenya, our guide declares. Still, I can't help but admire their nest-building abilities. As matatus (mini-vans) honk and hundreds of vendors and pedestrians jostle through Nairobi's streets, the birds sit stoically on their trees, oblivious to the chaos. Once in a while, they spread their wings to provide shade to the chicks in the nests. These grand storks are our first indicator that here in Kenya, it is possible to get very close to wild creatures.

We make our way down the road to the Wilson airport, our link to the African bush. Here, hundreds of small white planes are waiting to ferry tourists back and forth. My photographer-husband Vijay and I board an eight-seater Cessna. The planes are so small, they cannot fit big suitcases and since the photography equipment with us weighs 30 kilos, we are asked to leave our clothes behind in a locker. I stuff two shirts into my handbag; the thought of wearing the same clothes for the next four days is daunting.

As we take off I hear violins in my head as the savannah stretches out below us. It's a landscape of yellow and green, with the occasional white and black stripes of zebras. Then suddenly I see a spot of bright red-it's a Maasai man, a member of the community that have the original rights over this magical land. Forty minutes later, we land in the Mara and a group of red-shawled Maasai run towards the plane to


~Kenya

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Jomneys --------~ Into the Wild

help us with our luggage. Antony, our guide, drives us to our camp-a tent with no other barriers between us and the natural world.

Around midnight, when the lights are out and I am comfortably ensconced in my bed, I hear a scraping sound against the flap of the tent. I am glad I've zipped the tent flap right to the bottom, but I wake Vijay, who immediately wants to take photographs; but I won't let him step out. We hear some howls and grunts, before the animals move on. This may be a fun story to tell at breakfast the next morning, but for the moment I am a bit frightened. Later we hear that the sounds could have been hyenas or even a pride of lions prowling around in the dead of night. "But they will not harm you, so you had nothing to worry about", says Antony reassuringly.

During each safari, life follows a simple ritual. Every action, from what we eat to when we eat it, is centred on how to best experience the wilderness. At 5.30 a.m., a tray laden with tea and chocolate biscuits is slid into our cosy tent. I groan. I am on holiday, after all. Vijay has already packed his 600 mm lens, his still camera, his video camera, his 400 mm lens, his batteries, and his tripod. He urges me to hurry, easing the heavy backpack onto my shoulders, and marches outside with his own. Our Land Rovers are ready. Within minutes, we see zebras rolling in the dust, a pride of lions, and banded mongoose hiding in clumps of mud.

Every minute we're in the bush we see animals. In fact, there seems to be a new species to observe every day. But in that frenetic pace of zipping around trying to capture every single animal on camera, I feel that the magic of the moment is sometimes lost. It's probably best to put the camera away and simply soak in the landscape.

On one sun-glazed afternoon, we stop the Land Rover, and silently absorb the sights and sounds and smells of the bush. On our right is a herd of bachelor elephants, among them a young male we name One Tusk. He's presumably cracked his tusk in a fight. He spends a few minutes tearing down an acacia tree. As soon as the tree is down, the rest of the males move in for their share of the morning chomp. Within minutes, giraffes appear as well, bobbing their heads above the trees. Two male giraffes have their necks intertwined, giving them a Disneyesque comical look. From a distance it's so gentle I'm fooled into thinking it's a display of bonhomie. In fact the males are locked in this position for a while, trying to establish supremacy over the other.

Behind them, a male giraffe, bends its tall neck and sniffs at a female's genitals. Is she ready for some love? Could this be his lucky day? He follows her, his tongue hanging like a lovesick teenager, as the shy female gives him chase. Nature's soap opera is in live mode.

The next day, we travel from the conservancy to the actual reserve. 'i\.t the end of the day, tell me how many differences you can observe between the game reserve, and my land at the conservancy", Antony says to me.

Half an hour later, as we approach the gates of the Mara, we're greeted by a cloud of dust. Hundreds of vehicles are waiting to get in. Maasai women swarm around, in their bright red-and-yellow jewellery, urging us to buy a necklace here, a giraffe bowl there.

Once inside the reserve, we're hit by the scale of the Mara-it stretches out over 1,500 sq km. It has one of the highest concentrations of lions in the world. Over one million wildebeest, zebra, and Thomson gazelle migrate annually from the Serengeti plains in Tanzania to fresh pastures here in the Mara. But because it's so large, the animals are more dispersed, and it takes more time to sight them. It's quite a contrast from the close encounters we've had with animals in the conservancy.

Up ahead, we are told, there is a cheetah. It's lying quietly on a mound in the midday sun surrounded by a sea of yellow grass when


The topi are a very social, species of mid-med antel.opes that spend much of their time 'ID'ith other animals BUCh as .udebeest, sebras, and ostrich.

~ I NATIONAL GEOG LLER INDIA 97

Jomneys --------~ Into the Wild

we approach. Even before we can start clicking pictures, at least ten vehicles have surrounded the animals. We move on.

An hour of driving, and we get information that a herd of wildebeest may be crossing one of the rivers. Their dark grey silhouettes make their way, like children, towards the river. In the water, a crocodile is sun-basking with its mouth open and a herd of hippos lazing around. But most amusing is a troop of baboons, on their haunches at the edge of the river staring across it at another troop. There they sit, the leaders on either side of the water, making faces at each other like two army generals ready for war. Baring their canines, they screech, but because they're divided by the river, they can't get any closer.

The wildebeest disappoint us. Just short of the river, they decide not to cross today and start grazing on the plains, before dispersing. We head back, tired from being rattled around. The Mara has been fun, but the intimacy of the wildlife experience was far greater and richer in the conservancy. As if to make our evening even more special, we are told to be ready and stay close to our tents because there are lions ahead. We see the male first, with a gorgeous dark mane; he's just taking in the last rays of the sun. Behind him in the bush, are four cubs, gambolling, ignoring their grumpy father. He gives us one look, glances back at the cubs, and rolls over to sleep. We are told that the mother is probably out hunting. We spend almost half an hour watching the cubs playing. When the mother returns, the male continues to sleep.

We return to our camp. It's time for a sundowner and a chance to sit around the fire, surrounded by howling jackals and roaring lions. •

Bahar Dutt is a conservation biologist and environmental journalist based in New Delhi. Vijay Bedi is a wildlife filmmaker.

1 About.five lakh wiMebeest calves are born in February and March each year, at the start of the rainy season. 2 Maasai women weave intricate bead jewellery that is worn by members of the tribe to indicate their identity and position. Each colour holds a meaningwhitefor peace, redfor bravery, etc. 8 Cape buffalo, the largest species of African buff aw, is one of the Big Five animal attractions of the Maasai Mara. It is seldom spotted without its companion the redbilled oxpecker that spends most of its life on its hosts.

~Kenya

6

4 A distinctive feature of African elephants is their enormous ears, which radiate heat and help them stay cool on hot afternoons in the Maasai Mara. 5 Safari guides

.from the local Maasai community know the bush well and are able to quickly spot animal signs, call,s, and pugmarks. 6 An ostrich's wings might be uselessfor flying but useful as rudders to help change direction whik running at speeds of up to 70 kmph.


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The Maasai Mara National Reserve is a 1,500-square-kilometre protected wildlife area in southwestern Kenya, adjoining Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. It is famous for the Big Five-lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and buffalo-that roam its landscape, which varies from thick woodland to open plains. Conservancies are areas around the reserve boundaries that protect the park by providing buffer zones. They are run by the Maasai people and help to ensure that some of the benefits of tourism go back to local communities. The 01 Kinyei conservancy, which is 17,500 acres of communal land owned by 85 families, is one of the oldest in the Mara ecosystem and the wildlife here is both prolific and varied.

Getting there Kenya Airways operates direct flights from Mumbai (duration 6 hours) and Delhi (duration 7.5 hours) to the Kenyan capital Nairobi. Flights that are routed via Middle Eastern cities like Doha, Sharjah, or Dubai, take a total travel time of about 13 hours but tend to cost significantly less than the direct flights. To reach the Maasai Mara, visitors can take a 30-minute flight from Nairobi Wilson Airport to one of the smaller airstrips in the reserve. AirKenya flies to the Mara thrice daily during high- and midseason, and twice daily during the rest of the year. An economical option is to rent a vehicle for the 6-7 hour drive to one of the 5 gates leading into the reserve.

Visa To apply for a visa for Kenya, travellers require a visa application form, which can be downloaded online, and supporting financial documents. A single entry visa

~Kenya

--------- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------~

THE GUIDE ,'~\

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to Kenya costs $50/~2.600 and should be submitted via a bank draft in favour of the Kenya High Commission. Applications can be made directly at the commission's office in New Delhi or via a travel agent. The processing time is at least 24 hours (011-26146537; www.kenyahicom-delhi.com). Do get a yellow fever vaccine in time. The certificate may be required with the visa application and will definitely be demanded by Indian immigration officials when you return .

Seasons The Maasai Mara has a mild and damp climate throughout the year, with highs of 30°C during the day and night-time lows of 15°C. The rainy season is from Apr-May and in Nov, and during this time the road from Nairobi can become impassable rendering some parts of the reserve inaccessible. The dry season (Jul-Sept) is usually considered the best time to visit the reserve as it is easier to spot animals out in the grasslands. The wildebeest migration across the reserve and the crocodile-infested Mara River takes place between July and October.

Park fees Entry to each of the park's three sections is $80/~5.042 per day. Children below 3 years are free, and those between 3 and 18 years are charged $45/~2.836. There is a daily fee if you stay in a camp inside the reserve ($70/~4.412 for adults; $40/~2.521 for children). The conservancies charge separate fees.

Staying in a conservancy The conservancies are large tracts of land with very few camps and vehicles, which makes for plentiful animal sightings. This is

especially important during the migration season, when the main reserve is teeming with people and vehicles. However, if you want to see wildebeest you will have to join the melee. I went on game drives in the 01 Kinyei conservancy and stayed at Perini Camps, which is run by Gamewatchers Safari and has been awarded the "Most Responsible Tour Operator" by Kenya Wildlife Services. This is the only camp within the 01 Kinyei conservancy and hosts only 12 guests at a time. I liked that as soon as we arrived, we were advised to conserve water since it is scarce and told that the camp itself had no walls constructed to minimise human footprint. The camp seemed committed to sustainable tourism and had a clear policy on solid waste and garbage management and ran on solar power. This to my mind is low impact tourism at its best. (+254-774136523; www.porini.com; $350/~22,060 per person including stay, game and night drives, park fees, meals, and airstrip transfers.)

Booking a safari Using a reliable tour operator to book a safari is convenient as they bundle park fees, accommodation, game drive charges, Nairobi to Mara flights, etc. so you don't have to worry about the details or carry extra cash. The Internet is flooded with information on how to book your safari, which can leave you quite overwhelmed especially since the market caters more to a western clientele and follows a very fixed plan. I used an Indian travel company called Chalo Africa. One of the co-owners is Sangeetha Prasad, a trained biologist who had a number of ideas on where we could go to avoid the crowds, since we were travelling during peak season. It was on her suggestion that we went off the beaten track to travel up to Lake Bogoria to watch millions of flamingoes that descend on the lake in October.

------------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --


Journeys ~~~~~~~~

~Slice of Life

~Mongolia

Jomneys -----~Slice of Life

was tired and nauseated from six hours in Manault's beatup, blue Russian jeep, jostling on the rocky terrain of Central Mongolia. I hadn't showered in days and requested that we stop for the night at an official guesthouse. The official guest houses didn't have much in the way of accommodation

usually a series of gers, traditional tents made of hides, and a small restaurant but they did have toilet facilities, and taking a shower was a luxury after days along the dusty paths. But as usual, Bubu, my bubbly 18-year-old translator and guide, didn't seem to hear.

She had only recently taken a job with the tour operator and although she was Mongolian, she was from the capital city ofUlaanbaatar, where bus stops had Wi-Fi, and teens in popped-collar polos strutted streets filled with high-end cars. Her knowledge of the

rest of Mongolia was shaky at best. The other night I had caught her taking notes from Lonely Planet's guide to the country.

So when we stopped in the most rustic ger camp we'd ever seen, owned by a nomadic family, I was not pleased. My sick companion

The nomadic people (bottom right) of Mongolia have roamed the steppes for -two millennia; Archery, (left) wrestling, and bareback horse riding are coming of age skil"lsfor every nomadic boy; Karakorum was the old capital of Mongolia.from the 18th to the 15th centuries. Four of these gi,ant stone turtles (top right) once marked the corners of the city. Only -two remain, including this one outside the monastery's northern gate.

was groaning next to me, and bathrooms here were non-existent. When your stomach is sick, squatting on the steppe with no cover isn't the greatest option. The two Japanese girls we had caravanned with earlier on the trip had demurely used a large umbrella for cover on restroom stops, but here the flat countryside offered few opportunities for privacy.

The family had an extra tent covered in drying skins and bags of airag-fermented mare's milk-that did nothing to settle our stomachs. Bubu didn't understand why I was so angry until I explained it, my temper finally bursting after weeks of dealing with her lack of attention to our requests.

But I wasn't about to insult our hosts. The relationship between guest and host is all important in this most remote of countries, where you never know when you will be in need of housing. Determined to make the best of things, I brought out the great equaliseralcohol, in this case a few bottles of beer and Chinggis vodka-and headed to the camp where our host family was making dinner on an open fire. With that simple gesture, everything changed.

Maybe it was my obvious irritation, maybe it was the host family's inclusive sentiments, but Bubu immediately started translating everything, something that usually took multiple requests to get her to do. And silent Manault, always uncomfortable indoors, opened up,

~Mongolia

his face crinkling in pleasure in the afternoon sun. I squatted on the ground as the family passed me an intensely

flavourful bowl of rice and beef broth along with a huge femur bone. After my partner roused herself from her stupor, we took pictures of the kids and printed them on a mini-printer to hand to the family. We had heard that though gers were often equipped with TVs and satellite dishes, photographs were still highly prized. After letting out an almost girlish squeal, the mother issued marching orders and the kids were immediately cleaned and dressed for more pictures.

After the impromptu modelling session, while the men were still sucking marrow from bones with gusto, we left with the mother to pick wild strawberries on the slopes of the closest mountain. As we hiked up, she told us about the sacredness of the area. Wolves lived on the slopes and a shaman had recently climbed to the peak to perform a sanctification ceremony. The constant questions by a foreigner from the other side of the world didn't seem to faze her. In fact, with her sun-weathered face, piercing gaze, and rugged lifestyle amidst acres of isolation, I got the feeling that very little fazed her.

In this culture, the blue sky is worshipped and high places are held in reverence. Throughout the trip, we had passed ovoo, piles of rock (or wood in the north) that are ritualistically circumambulated clockwise. We had circled many. Sometimes, we added a rock

Bactrian or two-humped camel,s transport tents and supplies. They are sometimes usedfor wool, milk, and meat as well.

Jomneys -------~Slice of Life

or stone to the pile in respect to the sky. When we were too rushed to stop, Manault had honked, keeping the totems on his right as we passed them while driving. But while walking around them, Bubu would often get confused about the direction she was supposed to go.

By the time we returned to the camp, other relatives and friends had stopped by on horses and old motorcycles. Manault, perhaps relaxed from the vodka, but more likely because of the camaraderie of the steppe, taught me how to drink properly. When serving, I learnt to pour with my right hand supported by the left at the wrist. And to pour for everyone before I pour for myself. Bubu declined the drink, instead she dipped a finger lightly into the vodka, flicking it to the sky as an offering.

As the wolves from the mountains started howling, my drunken host wrapped his arm around my shoulders to lead me back to my tent for the night. He was overjoyed to discover that we were the same age. I looked at his family, his friends, his tents, and his slice of this wide, wild country and wondered at how similar in spirit we were-and how utterly different.

That night, the camp dogs awakened me, barking at attacking

wolves that had come down from the mountain. The growls I heard from the wolves were like nothing I had ever heard before; they went straight to my brain. Wide-awake, I heard the dogs fight back, driving the wolves away from the horses, the greatest treasure of any nomad. I fell asleep amidst the strange smells of drying skins and fermenting milk, wondering the next day whether the wolves-or even the past 24 hours-had been nothing more than a dream.

We took our leave the next day to an empty camp. The family had gone to tend their flock. But the dynamics in our group had changed subtly. Our driver was silent again as he revved up his jeep, and as the bright azure sky beckoned I remembered the clink of bottles and the words spoken the night before.

"Tocktoy!" Manault had exclaimed, his normally stoic face breaking out into a wide grin as he lifted his Chinggis vodka in cheers and benediction, "To blue skies, straight roads!" •

Biju Sukumaran is a travel writer currently based in Argentina, the latest stop on his slow travel through South America, living in each new place for 3-4 months.

The barely-there roads of the steppe are usually traversed in Russian 4x4s (top left), which are prone to breakdowns thanks to the terrain; Chinggis vodka (bottom left), which derives its name.from Genghis Khan, is Mongolia's most popul,ar vodka and a great way to break the ice with locals; The Mongolian Steppeforms a crescent to the north of the Gobi Desert (right).

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JOURNEYS ~Quest

but I do remember that I wished for Antarctica when I blew out the candles on my cake. Impossible dreams make good birthday wishes, and I used mine silently hoping that somehow, someday, I would make it to Earth's frozen continent. I had wanted to travel to Antarctica ever since I learned such a place existed. I craved the haphazard polar voyages of men before the era of airplanes and travel brochures. Those early travellers seemed so sincere as they set off for the bottom of the world with their optimism, simple dogsleds, and year's supply of stationery. In pursuit of my dream, I auditioned for scientific internships on research ships and applied for menial jobs on American polar bases. I wrote elaborate proposals for special grants that were never granted and made wild attempts to win Internet contests. None of those efforts bore fruit. So I decided to just go.

I traced an imaginary path on a map, from Washington, D.C., where I live, down to the seventh continent. Where there's a road there's a way, I figured, and much of the distance to Antarctica was


paved with roads. All I had to do was head south some 16,000 km until the road ended in Tierra del Fuego. From there it was less than a knuckle's width of mapped sea to Antarctica. The catch was to figure out an affordable way to travel. My research revealed there were public buses in every country I'd pass through to the frozen continent. If I made no reservations and had no daily itinerary, bus travel would approximate the journeys of early explorers. For the spots of water I'd cross-the Strait of Magellan and the Drake Passage-it looked like I'd have to forsake bus for boat.

I eagerly mapped out a rough ten-week plan, arranged to post entries to National Geographic's blog from the road, bought my first bus ticket-and embarked on my one-man polar expedition

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JOURNEYS ~Quest

Ironically, accidents and breakdowns offered new opportunitksfor dbJcoverg. When a coupk of:J t tyres occupkd our driver for hours, I took w~ llCl"oss the rockstrewn altiphlno, ga%ingup at the blu,est sides I've ever seen. from a sidewalk bus stop outside National Geographic's headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was New Year's Day, and all I carried was a backpack stuffed with clothes, a camera, and the National Geographic flag. I paid $1.35 to ride the S2 Metrobus down 16th Street past the White House. An hour later I boarded a Greyhound bus to Atlanta, nervously anticipating the long road ahead. The bus driver took my ticket and asked routinely, "Your final destination, sir?" '~ntarctica," I mumbled. Greyhound wouldn't get me all the way there, but it could take me at least a few thousand kilometres closer to my dream.

it: boat or plane. Taking a tip from noted adventurer Paul Theroux, who for his best-selling book The Old Patagonian Express chose a plane ride, I flew to Cartagena, Colombia. There I boarded the next bus and within hours was travelling through the beautiful, and steep, Colombian Andes. These eventually gave way to Ecuador's endless green banana fields. Then came a jungle road in Peru that turned into a desert track; I tasted the dust on my teeth. Bus by bus I motored on into Bolivia, where, halfway across, the road vanished; the bus just followed tyre tracks across the stratospherically high Uyuni plain.

Asphalt, smooth asphalt, returned in Argentina. Eager to catch my boat across the Drake Passage to Antarctica, I raced down these last 5,000 kilometres-the length of Argentina-in just seven days, watchingthelandscapetransitionfromC6rdoba'sflatgreenpampato

Patagonia's dry brown hills, to the snow-sifted mountains of glowing tip of his cigarette and some vague white · Tierra del Fuego (where we detoured briefly stars, the only light flickered from a pile of or- / f ' - (,_ ·h:,-.....TC'\ \.\ ., into Chile). The air cooled as we proceeded,

After three days of riding silver buses across the American South I found myself at a roadside rest stop in northern Mexico at midnight. While the other bus passengers slept, I ventured out into the cold, dry air and stretched my legs, kicking holes in the dust while the bus driver had a smoke. Aside from the

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squatted and shaped tortillas, pat-pat- .. .,/: ....... , MEXICO Hd NDURAS \ \ ..... ...._ When nights came, I tried to sleep by pat. I felt overwhelmed by the obscure ! , / ~1c.A.R1AGUA \ \ "\ folding my six-foot-four body into a

, f GUATEMALA-/ ;/ l PANAMA j \ \ scene and the utter darkness. I'd been to / .......... ; .... EL SALVADOR ... 7 ...... ~ ., .......................... ~ ..................... \ bus seat and dreaming of Antarctica. Mexico before, but not like this. The ... '{....... / cos~~~~~AMBIA ; \ \"" One night, somewhere in Colombia, bus had delivered me to an invisible ~ ! ECUADOR.....-- l J I was awakened by a loud crash, fol-

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I HOPPED FROM ONE BUS to the \ ' , , " " road. Nobody risked stepping out next over the coming days, grabbing any .. ~ , ,., to see what happened, fearing bandits.

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killed. As the sole passenger with a camera, I was enlisted to help document the carnage for

the police. the seats. A bus attendant hung from the · .................. ANTARCTl.CA • .. / _......- .......... .. open door with one hand and announced the des- ..... ~ .. ::· .... =:::_ .... ,,,. ........ ~ .... :.,:'.:::::.:··~._·.-.:, .. , .. ~· tination, Huehuetenango, by shouting "Hue, Hue! " to everyone waiting. Any spot where a person stood waving became a bus stop. A hundred heads bobbed in time with the road. When the bus cruised around mountain turns, our jam-packed bodies slid from side to side. Audio speakers blared a sound track for the jungle landscape, but the CD skipped every time we hit a bump, turning sappy Latin love songs into thumping Spanish rap and back again.

After Guatemala's hairpin-bend highways, the bus careening along the edge of every mountain, we trailed through El Salvador's smoky backyards and the hacienda-feeling countryside of Honduras. The giant volcano hovering in the distance marked Nicaragua. In Costa Rica, the road became all twisty and pimpled with gaping potholes. We crossed into Panama, then over its famous canal on the 1.6-km-long Bridge of the Americas. The next hurdle was the geographical difficulty between Panama and Colombia known as the Darien Gap, a swath of jungle and swamp that forms a tricky 160-km interruption in the Pan-American Highway. My options around


Ironically, accidents and breakdowns offered new opportunities for discovery. Cruising at 12,000 feet along

the Peruvian Andes, I 'd just noticed that my inflatable neck pillow had sprung a leak when the wheels on the bus went pop, pop, pop. The flat tyres occupied our driver for hours, which I spent taking walks across the rock-strewn altiplano, gazing up at the bluest skies I've ever seen.

Passenger participation was mandatory in Bolivia. Each time we got stuck in mud-a regular occurrence-the bus driver would fling open the door and motion out our mix of bleary-eyed backpackers and gold-toothed Aymara Indians. Together we built piles of rocks behind each tyre, then put shoulder to bumper and heaved. When we finally dislodged the bus, we sloshed through puddles to reboard.

Still, I can't think of a greater disappointment than rushing a first visit to Bolivia; it's like taking a kid to Disney World for the first time and telling him it closes in ten minutes-forever. During my week travelling through it, Bolivia delivered some of the most memorable landscapes on a journey through remarkable places.

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Eerie bluer-than-blue splinters of sea ice (top) drifting off the Antarctic coast and colonies of emperor penguins (below). ''Is this place beautiful? Oh yes. No land can compare," Evans posted.

~World


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The town of Uyuni, in southwestern Bolivia, for example, gives its name to the largest salt flat on Earth, which occupies a vast, driedup prehistoric lake. At 10,000 square km, 40 times larger than the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, Uyuni's arid salt flat gives the odd sensation of standing on a blank piece of paper-a wide-open feeling of nothingness that attracts thousands of sightseers yearly.

The surprise upon our arrival was that heavy seasonal rains had turned the salt flat into a saltwater flat. I found myself walking through six inches of lukewarm brine that crystallised up my leg on contact. Equally curious was the extraordinary way in which the sun reflected off the forever horizon of salt water-which burned my skin to a crisp.

Descending from high-altitude Bolivia into the desert hills of Argentina's Jujuy region proved another scenic highlight. Drab rock landscapes suddenly turned into pink-tinted rock formations, coloured sandstone swirls, twisting mountain streams, and saguarolike cacti. It felt as if we were driving through the arid reaches of southern Arizona-and it was HOT. How hot? My thermometer claimed the temperature was 48°C. Still, travelling in Argentina was a relief because everything was suddenly easy. Need a shower and nap before your next bus? There's a hotel with rooms for a few dollars an hour around the corner. Plus you can check your email and recharge any batteries.

MY LAST NIGHT, on the final bus, it snowed. I used the occasion to mark my progress with a marker on a tattered map, amazed at the distance I'd covered on wheels. Finally, we rolled

into a rainy parking lot in Ushuaia. This was it: the end of the road at the bottom of the continent. We stopped next to a dock for ships with reinforced hulls. On board one the next day I would spot my first icebergs.

Looking back now, I see my transcontinental ride as a road for which only I knew the directions. My bus fare from Washington, D.C., to Antarctica? A total of $1,102.60-half the price of a plane ticket for the same distance. The bus took longer, yes, but I got to see everything we miss out on when we choose to fly: The gradual changes from one place to another-and the real size of Earth. Before my trip, I only guessed at the planet's actual size. Now I've felt every inch of my 16,000-kilometre roller-coaster route in my lower back. I know the rhythm of so many landscapes from resting my forehead against countless bus windows.

On a bus, I can tell you, the world is measured in days. Earth is small-so much smaller than I once believed. Part of me wishes I could go back to the time when the planet felt huge and infinite. We accept intellectually that things don't become smaller, but secretly we may still wonder. Perhaps travel is the way we check our bearings, just to make sure. Are we getting bigger? Or is the world shrinking? What I do know is that my trip to Antarctica is no longer a dream. It's now a vivid memory. •

Andrew Evans is National Geographic's digital nomad-always travelling and always wired. He's constantly on the move sharing his adventures as he explores great destinations around the globe.

"It's just yards away!" Andrew Evans tweeted when he was almost there. "I'm looking right at Antarctica, and I'm beyond exuberant!" Evans posted.

"Antarctic landscapes are hypnotic. The moving floes of brash ice pull my gaze into their cold and shifting patterns. If I spent half a lifetime dreaming

of Antarctica before I arrived here, I will spend the other half plotting my return:·


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HIGHLIGHTS

116 WALKING HOLIDAY

SCALING PERSONAL HEIGHTS IN SIKKIM'S RHODODENDRON SANCTUARY

122 ADVENTURE

PONDICHERRY HOLDS DEEP SECRETS FOR SCUBA DIVERS

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~Sikkim

A TREK IN SIKKIM IS THE CHANCE TO BURN OFF YEARS OF ACCUMUIATED FAT I TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHS BY RISHAD SAAM MEHTA

On clear days, the sight of the Kanchenjunga peak is a constant companion on the trek (top left); The nearest road head is another hour's walk ahead of the beautiful exit gate of Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary at Uttarey (bottom left); Buddhist chortens and shrines are often found in the middle of the trail and trekkers must walk past respecifully keeping them on their right (right) .

'' am going to die here;' I thought, as I clung to a green sapling for dear life. We were trekking across the 4,150-metre-high

Darwa Pass in the Garhwal Himalaya, when a sudden thunderstorm completely washed away our guide's sense of direction. We were lost and struggling up a grassy incline. The slippery soles on my canvas shoes didn't help. As I clutched the sapling, precariously

close to the edge of the cliff, I found myself wishing that I'd eaten the super-stacked hamburger instead of the spindly chicken roll at Wimpy's in Delhi, four days earlier.

That was in September 1997, on my first trek ever. The guide managed to throw down a rope and haul me up to safety, so I've had plenty of hamburgers since then. The trek changed my life. The article I wrote about it landed me a job with an

automobile magazine, transforming me from a bored electronic engineer into a budding travel writer. The job brought lots of driving holidays but no treks.

But recently, as I stood on the scales, I wondered whether the the guide would have been able to haul me up if I was this heavy-both of us would most likely be sitting on a cloud somewhere playing harps. I bought a pair of fancy trekking boots off


GET GOING ~Walking Holiday

IT WAS mE MIDDLE OF APRIL, mE BEST TIME TO SEE THE RHODODENDRON

Once the sounds of pitching camp and settling in ebb away, little visitors drop by. At this campsite we saw a mongoose and a pair of woodpeckers.

Amazon, deciding that this would be a year of walking trips rather than driving jaunts.

That very day, I bumped into my old friend Piran Elavia, looking sunburnt and slim. When I'd seen him last, he was rotund and edging sideways through open doors. It turned out that he'd been leading treks in the Northeast. I signed up for the next one, in Sikkim, a month later.

The next time I saw Piran, he was in the middle of a mob of heckling taxi drivers outside Bagdogra airport. There were three people on this trek through Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary in West Sikkim and it took seven hours to drive the 165 km to the family-run Sherpa Lodge in the little village of Okhrey. Ploughing through a mountain of rice during dinner, Piran

briefed us on what to expect in the next few days-the distances, terrain, and campsites.

Roughly shaped like a butterfly, the 104-sq-km area was declared a sanctuary in 1996. We would enter through the Hilley Gate, on the bottom of the right wing, and spend five days trekking all the way across to exit at the Uttarey Gate, on the top of the left wing. It was the middle of April, the best time to see the rhododendrons bloom, but often a time of relentless rain. Thunder rolled ominously.

However, the next morning brought blue skies and butterflies. Since the 4-km trek from Sombaria to Barsey, the first campsite, was quite popular, the paved trail had a constant flow of walkers. Though there is a huge concentration of rhododendron trees


in the sanctuary, all don't bloom every year. But every once in a while, there is a mass flowering and the forest explodes in a riot of red, pink, and white. This was one of those extraordinary years and a number of people had come to enjoy the wonder.

At Barsey, camp was set up on a ridge looking out at Kanchenjunga but clouds had gathered, obscuring views of the snow-capped range. When I stepped out of my tent at dawn, my back in knots from sleeping on the ground and inside a sleeping bag for the first time in 15 years, I saw the magnificent peak stripped of cloud cover. After a quick breakfast of fried eggs, porridge, and toast, we set off. The camp staff would cook and pack lunch, break camp, and leave 40 minutes later and

~Sikkim

THE FOREST HAD EXPLODED IN A RIOT OF RED, PINK, AND WHITE

The staff packed up camp after we left, walkedfast, and had the tents pitched before we reached, singing cheerfully as they did all this (top left); Since the sanctuary is protected, evenfallen trees can't be cut though they may block the trail (bottom left); The water in the streams is so clean and clear that it is possible to drink directly .from them (right).

yet beat us to the lunch rendezvous. Over the next three days, we walked in

solitude. Most visitors usually trek only up to Barsey. To continue beyond, you need a knowledgeable guide as well as tents and provisions. On the second day, the trail was no longer a paved path. There were plenty of ascents and descents over terrain that varied from grassy trails to gnarled roots and scree, ensuring that muscles that had long been dormant were put to work.

Just as we approached Devlingali Dhap, a huge meadow, I heard a series of shouts. It was our staff-they hurtled past us and by the time we crossed the meadow, they had lunch set up. The crew was headed by Nar Bahadur Bhandari (who we called NB), a cattle-herder turned Him Rakshak

(mountain protector). He had been trained under a programme initiated by the World Wildlife Fund, The Mountain Institute India, and the Sikkim Forest Department that taught former herders and poachers to monitor wildlife and keep an eye out for traps and other poaching activities. Since they know the lay of the land and routes so well, they supplemented their income by working as trek captains.

The cook and three porters were cardamom farmers from villages along the Hee River. Sikkim was one of the largest cardamom producers in the world until an unidentified disease depleted most plantations in the last decade.

As we finished lunch, it started to drizzle. We pulled on waterproof shells and started

the three-hour climb to Joreybotey, our next camp. Dense clouds rolled in, reducing visibility. NB warned us that the weather was about to sour, and we barely managed to pitch the tents at our second campsite when it began to pour. At sunset, the rain turned to hail that drummed a staccato beat on the tent. Frost started to form on the walls of the tent. Though I was warm in my sleeping bag, I prayed that the tent's guy lines would hold. Bagdogra seemed like a memory from another lifetime.

Morning brought blue skies once again and I woke up to a porter's loud singing. Even though they couldn't carry a tune, the staff loved to sing and their songbook ranged from vintage Kishore Kumar to new-age jingles like "You're my pumpkin,


GET GOING ~Walking Holiday

THERE WERE PLENTY OF ASCENTS AND DESCENTS OVER VARIED TERRAIN

The highest point of the trek is a ridge that falls on the border be-tween India and Nepal. Lunch that day is shared with the sentries at the IndoNepal Border Police Post (top left); Badi elaichi or big cardamom is one of Sikkim's most profitable crops, though it is not used much in Sikkimese cooking (bottom left); Jaand, a local millet beer made by mixing a fermented millet-yeast preparation with hot water, gets stronger even as you sip it (right).

pumpkin ... " As we started the third day's climb, I realised that I wasn't as breathless as I had been the previous day. My muscles hurt, but it was the sweet pain one feels after a good workout. My shoes were proving their worth, and since my heart was no longer pounding in my ears, I could hear birdsong all around. I stopped often to identify birds and take in the stunning views. This was a new experience for me: on my driving trips the scenery was usually just a flashing blur.

Thulo Dhap, the third night's stop, was the quintessential Himalayan campsite with a stream running past and a wideangle view of the mountains. Snacking on freshly-steamed momos, Piran told me how he became fat boy slim. In 2007, he went

to Lachen in North Sikkim to volunteer and fell in love with the Northeast. He quit his job and started a travel company specialising in treks, wildlife, and homestays, working with local communities to give visitors a local experience.

The fourth day brought us to the trek's highest point. It was a ridge 10,500 feet high, with Nepal on the left and India on the right. A stone marker indicated the border. At the Chiwabhanjyang border post, we met people for the first time in three days. The roaring kitchen fire and the masala chai made by the Gujarati sentry provided respite from the rain. I returned the favour by talking to him in Gujarati, which he hadn't spoken in eight months.

From Chiwabhanjyang, we descended


2,000 feet over 600 uneven stone steps that led to the fourth and final campsite, Chittarey. It was locatedjust outside another border police camp and they allowed us the use of one of their luxuries-a clean and covered toilet. By now, though, I was quite at ease squatting in a grassy field, and comfortable changing my clothes kneeling down in the small tent, and sleeping on the hard ground in my sleeping bag.

On the last day of the trek, a pleasant three-hour walk to the Uttarey Gate, we met a steady stream of locals and soldiers, and a train of yaks carrying supplies to Chittarey. From the gate, we drove to the village of Darap, 43 km away. We checked into the idyllic Daragaon Homestay, run by

~Sikkim

MUSCLES THAT HAD LONG BEEN DORMANT WERE PUT TO WORK

The cook preparedfulfilling breakfasts of fried eggs and porridge that couldfortify trekkers until lunchtime (left); The grandmother at the window (top right) had clear memories ofWWII when the Japanese threat loomed at the border close by. She still works at a cardamomfarm and doesn't know how old she is; Two days of complete relaxation followed the trek (bottom right), providing a buffer between the austerity of the wilderness and the return to city routines.

Shiva and Radha Gurung, for three nights. It was set at the base of a hill and done up in traditional village style. This was a time to shower, launder, laze, and loosen up before plugging back into the grid.

On an early morning stroll through one of the villages perched on the hillside behind the homestay, a granny with a creased countenance enjoying her morning smoke beckoned me for a cup of tea. During the course of conversation, I told her that I cooked as a hobby. She handed me a fistful of big cardamom from her recent harvest and told me that it would add divine flavour to my cooking.

Sitting there, basking in the sun reflecting off the Kanchenjunga, I felt more alive than I had in years.•

DO THE TREK

DURATION 9 days, 8 nights

COST (24,500 per person Bagdogra to Bagdogra (99300 02412; www.kipepeo.in)

ORIENTATION Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary is in west Sikkim and part of it

forms the border with Nepal. The closest airport is Bagdogra (160 km/6 hours to Hilley) and the closest railway station is New Jalpaiguri (150 km/6 hours to Hilley). Okhrey is 9 km from Hilley.

SEASONS To see the rhododendrons in bloom, the best time to visit is from March through May. June to September is usually very wet. The second trekking season runs from October to December. At this time of year, the days are clear and there is little or no haze, so the Kanchenjunga and other snow-capped peaks and ranges are clearly visible. Though devoid of rhododendrons at this time, the sanctuary is quite pretty.


GET GOING ~Adventure

Preparing to dive at Temple Reef, a dive site at an artificial reef recently built by the Temp le Adventures team and the local.fishing community. The reef was made to boost the.fish population in the area, which had depleted due to over.fishing.

bout 17 metres underwater in the Bay of Bengal, a few hundred cardinal fish were working on a deep-sea version of Swan Lake. We were diving, nine nautical miles off the coast of Pondicherry. Thirty metres under,

when our descent was complete, I watched a pretty white dress floating past-it was a giant jelly fish. Dainty little damselfish danced, schools of surgeons swayed overhead, and sea plants quivered on the seabed, turning the ocean into an underwater Yash Chopra set.

My oceanic adventure in Pondicherry was only beginning. When I discovered that it was possible to scuba dive in

Pondicherry, I was delighted. I had spent a few days idling around beaches with a book and munching on croissants at the Auroville bakery. An evening stroll on the beach promenade amounted to an active day, and lunch with Spanish acquaintances warranted my Sunday best. Just when I was feeling the need to dial my visit up a notch, I saw a tiny poster glued to a lamp post during a visit to the botanical garden.

The Temple Adventures dive centre buzzed with divers of all levels. Wetsuits hung from a steel rod on the porch, where some people busied themselves cleaning the equipment. The atmosphere was decidedly international. One French instructor called out in Hindi, an Australian was giving directions in Tamil, while Stephen, who was also French, spoke English with a pronounced south Indian accent. Everybody at the dive centre, including the chef Elisa, shared a great love for diving and marine life. I half expected to see Rango the cat pulling on a scuba mask.


The dive centre is obviously popular with advanced divers. But beginners can pick the "Discover Scuba Diving" programme that allows even non-swimmers a glimpse of the world under water. My Advanced Open Water PADI certification, which I had obtained in August, meant that I could dive to a depth of 30 metres. At this depth, one can swim around wrecks and reefs.

The waters around India's east coast remain largely unexplored. Every now and then, a new dive site is discovered. In the centre's five years, Temple Adventures has found 21 new spots. As per tradition, dive sites are named after their discoverers. But occasionally, there is a lucky traveller on board after whom the site may be named. The spot where I was diving was one such exception. It was named "Sylviane's" after a cheerful 58-year-old lady from Toulouse, France.

Sylviane's was marked by bright red gorgonians (sea fan corals). I was admiring a great moray eel's double chin when I realised there was a giant emperor grouper, about a metre long, staring at me to my left. The most important lesson I've learnt from my dive expeditions is that sea creatures, like all other wildlife in the world, are shy. Just as I turned around to take a good look at him, the grouper swam away.

An hour later, as we prepared for our second dive at Sylvian e's, I felt my heart pounding in excitement. As we discussed the topography and the marine life we could expect to encounter, the vast blue sea stretched out before us. This, I thought, was perhaps how Columbus and other early explorers must have felt. In my own little way, I was ready for the next discovery. •

1 At Pondicherry, visitors can also learn.free-diving, which involves going deep underwater without any breathing equipment. 2 All diving courses start with some pool time when instructors run students through dril"ls on using scuba gear and signalsfor communicating underwater. 3 A school of yellow .fusiliers at the Ghost 18 dive site. Improving on the traditional practices of local.fishermen who throw trees in the sea to create temporary reefe, a number of artificial reefs have been built around Pondicherry to create new fish habitats. 4 Beautiful gorgonian or fan corals can be spotted at dive sites around Pondicherry at depths of about 30 metres, accessible only to advanced divers. 5 A diver prepares to go underwater at Shy Shark Reef, a popular dive spot for shark sightings.

GET GOING ~Adventure

ORIENTATION

Officially renamed Puducherry in 2006, Pondicherry is located on the eastern coast of India,

310 km southwest of Bengaluru and 160 km south of Chennai.

GETTING THERE

By Air Spicejet operates several flights from Bengaluru to Pondicherry (1 hour) during

the week. The airport is 6 km/30 mins from Beach Road (autorickshaws charge ~200). By Train There are many

trains between Chennai and Pondicherry, but they take much longer than the road journey. The Puducherry Express runs overnight between Bengaluru and Pondicherry every Friday. The station is 2 km/10 mins from Beach Road. By Road Pondicherry is 160

km/3 hours south of Chennai. The drive down the East Coast Road is rather scenic. Frequent buses leave from the bus station in Koyambedu (tickets ~190). Shared taxis are available at Chennai airport, and charge ~3.500 for four passengers for the one-way trip.

From Bengaluru, Pondicherry is a 310 km/6 hour-drive down NH66 (taxis charge ~7,000 each way). The 7-8 hour overnight bus journey from Bengaluru to Pondicherry is perhaps the cheapest and most efficient route. There are both government-run and privately operated buses, most starting from Madiwala or Shantinagar bus stand (www.ksrtc.in or www. redbus.in; tickets ~500-700).

GETTING AROUND

Pondicherry is fairly easy to get

around on foot but autos are also available for short distances (the unofficial minimum fare is ~50). You can rent bicycles ~50 per day) or motorcycles (~250 per day) at Mission Street.

SEASONS

Pondicherry's pleasant winters (Nov-Feb), when day

temperatures are a maximum

of 30°C, are the high season for tourists. Summer (Mar-Jul) is hot and humid, with highs of 40°C. The monsoon (Jul-Aug),

lowers temperatures and brings relief. Light showers continue

through Sept and Oct. Though you can dive all year round, the best visibility underwater is

from Nov to March.

STAY

BASIC Hotel Coramandal Heritage is a simple, heritage building located on Mission Street. The rooms are simple, yet comfortable and there's free Wi-Fi (0413-

2260269; www.hotelcoramandal. in; doubles ~900). Dumas Guest House is a charming guest house located close to Beach Road in the French Quarter. It is a convenient place to stay if you want to venture out on foot (0413-222

5726; dumasguesthouse.com; doubles ~2.500).

COMFORT Les Hibiscus is an old, colonial

house on Suffren Street that has been converted into a popular guest house. Rooms fill up quickly (0413-2227480; WWW.

leshibiscus.in; doubles from ~2.500).

Hotel de l'Orient is a Neemrana establishment, a magnificent mansion with colonial-style

interiors. Its restaurant serves Creole (Tamil-French) food


(0413-2343067; hotel-de-lorient. neemranahotels.com; doubles from ~4,000).

LUXURY La Villa Shanti is a hotel with contemporary design and facilities, attached to a 19th-century bungalow (0413-4200028; lavillashanti.com; doubles from ~7,000). Palais de Mahe is a brand new hotel on Rue De Bussy that manages to be luxurious without being fussy. It has a nice swimming pool for guests (0413- 2345611; www.cghearth. com/palaisdemahe; doubles from ~8,500).

GO SCUBA DIVING

Temple Adventures is the only dive centre in Pondicherry. It is located in the residential area between the railway station and Pondicherry

harbour, near the Indira Gandhi sports complex (99402 19449; templeadventures. com; 5, Veeramunivar street, Colas Nagar). It offers trips for qualified divers as well as certifications and courses, such as Discover Scuba, an introduction for beginners. Discover Scuba Diving: As the name suggests, this two-day programme provides a brief introduction to the activity by running participants through the hand gestures used for communication, and gives

them a basic understanding of scuba gear (SCUBA stands for Self Contained Under Water Breathing Apparatus). The following day, they are taken out to sea for an assisted dive to a depth of 12 metres (~6,500; two days; one dive).

Open Water Diver: This is the basic certification level for divers. The four-day course

teaches participants about the equipment and using it underwater independently.

This allows participants to dive anywhere in the world up to a depth of 18 metres (~23,000; four days, four dives).

Qualified Divers: You can simply opt to go on fun dives (~4,400; 1 day, 2 dives) or get a higher

certification like Advanced Open Water Diver, Enriched Air Diver, and more.

WBATTO EXPECT

Temple Adventures is run by a small team of friendly, helpful divers. Diving in Pondicherry isn't exactly what one would describe as resort diving. Compared to diving in Maldives, it is like trekking through a reserve forest. You may or may

not spot a manta ray or a shark while diving here, but will be sure to have an adventure.

FACILITIES

Diving gear can be rented at Temple Adventures for ~600 per day. They also have a dive

shop that sells protective rash vests, Scubapro wetsuits, masks, and more. Do remember to book lunch (~200) at the dive centre on the day you go underwater. Elisa, the chef, is one of the best in town. There is free Wi-Fi.

WBATTO BRING

Do not, under any circumstances, forget to bring your

sunscreen lotion and a hat. Sunglasses will help too. Bring towels and a change of clothes. It is very easy to get dehydrated when you are out on a boat, so always remember to drink plenty

of water.

126 FROM BE RU

DIAMONDS AND MEDIEVAL TREASURES IN GANDIKOTA

HIGHLIGHTS

130 FR M BAI BEYOND THE PILGRIM ROUTE

IN TRIMBAKESHWAR

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BUNDELKHAND'S ECOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL GEMS

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SBORTBREAKS ~From Bengaluru

• •

Finding medieval treasures inside a fort in Rayalaseema backcountry By ALIYEH RIZVI Photograph.s by NIRLEK DHULLA

hen intrepid traveller and gem merchant Jean-Baptiste

Tavernier, rode into Gandikota

in 1652, it had just become

Several dynasties and empires have passed through the portals of the Gandikota Fort. Since the 13th century, when it was built, it has been under the control of the Pemmasani Nayakas, the Qutub Shahis, the Kingdom of Mysore, and the British empire. part of Golconda territory. The Frenchman


was on a mission to sell pearls and precious

stones to Abdullah Qutub Shah, of the Qutub Shahi dynasty that had ruled the area for

over 150 years. But Tavernier had to first pass muster with the Nawab of Gandikota,

the powerful Persian, Mir Jumla. Tavernier's

description of the short meeting is colourful

he dined on fragrant pulao, inspected the

cannon-casting foundry, witnessed swift

executions, and received permission to

trade. The arduous journey to this isolated

12th-century fortress in the Deccan had been

dramatic. Centuries later, it still is.

Perched on a rocky precipice beyond

sunflower fields, dusty Kadapa stone mines,

windmills, and cement plants, Gandikota

Fort appears to be located in the middle of

nowhere. Low hills and thorny babul trees

stretch endlessly into the horizon while in

the valley, the river Pennar cuts a deep gorge

through the bedded sandstone layers of the

Erramala hills, and flows into the Mylavaram

Reservoir. This strategic location is why local

rulers bribed, poisoned, fought, and betrayed

each other for this gandi (gorge) kota (fort), a

600-year-old military stronghold and political

hotspot in the Deccan.

EXPLORE

GATEWAY TO THE PAST Solid, nail-spiked

gates embellished with a delicate, fringed

lotus motif are portals to another time ripe

with romantic history, political intrigue, and

prepossessing architecture. The massive fort

has 101 bastions located on a thick stone periphery that meanders through a large part

of the surrounding countryside. Built with

huge stone blocks that are wedged together

with loose mortar, it shuts out the world and

offers me a weekend of long, exploratory

walks through this now-forgotten citadel.

Keeping pace with me are many magnificent

ghosts from the past.

According to the District Gazetteer,

Cuddapah (published 1915), written by C.F.

The fort, guarded by thick iron doors (top left), is often compared to Hampifor its architectural and historical grandeur, though it has not drawn the same level of attention.from authorities or travellers. The fort complex has two tempks- Madhavraya andRaghunatha (top right). The latter offers a view of the Pennar gorge.

Brackenbury, the fort and the village inside

it were originally built around 1290 by the

early medieval king, Kaka Maharaju. Soon

after, dynasties gained control of and lost

Gandikota at dizzying speed.

The sturdy bastions inside the fort offer a

great vantage point from where I look down at

the rugged, boulder-strewn landscape. I can

almost see the mighty Qutub Shahi forces who camped there in the 16th century, during

the siege of Gandikota, when the Vijayanagar

ruler Venkata 11 forced them to retreat. They returned repeatedly, only to possess it a

century later in 1652 when Chinna Thimma Nayudu, last in line of the Telugu Pemmasani

Nayaks, lost it to Mir Jumla.

Another hundred years later in 1780, Hyder

Ali, the ruler of Mysore would stand on these

ramparts to evaluate its impregnability, after

wresting it from the Nawab of Cuddapah. Following the Third Anglo-Mysore War in 1791,

large portions of the fort, including the palace,

were knocked down when his son, Tipu

Sultan, had to cede it to the British, but many

of its original structures, including the pigeon

tower, jail, granary, and temples still remain

(open 24 hours; no entry fee).

ANCIENT CITADEL From the main gateway, I approach the almost 30-foot

high Qutub Shahi Charminar, also called

the Pigeon Tower, where doves gurgle and

parrots flutter through its fretted windows. A rusty cannon lies nearby, reminding me

that the fort once had a magazine and a

17th-century foundry, supervised by the

French gunner, Claude Maille, a European

adventurer who sought fame and fortune in

India. Past the Charminar is the jail, a grim

stone building with narrow doors. Explore this

one cautiously. Open doorways, steps without

handrails, and the absence of warning signs

UNIQUE EXPERIENCE

Go spelunking

An underground Karst cave system is a hop away from Gandikota at the prehistoric Belum Caves (60km/ l.5 hrs) in Kolimigundla. Clay vessels discovered here date the caves to around 4,500 B.C., but they were rediscovered around 1884, long after Jain monks are believed to have meditated here. A century later, German speleologist Herbert Daniel Gebauer pegged the length of the caves at 3.5 kilometres, but local guide Chandrashekhar Reddy is happy to introduce you to the predetermined 1.5-km route. Dramatic illumination and humidity-reducing blowers help you walk down more than 150 feet to what seems like the centre of the earth. Multiple rows of stalagmites, the Thousand Hoods meditation room, and Pataalganga, a subterranean stream, add to this surreal experience. Confront

can catapult you head first into the dark,

20-foot-deep prison pit. The tiny windows

located high above made fleeing impossible.

While walking within the fort precincts,

don't be surprised if you run into a goat or

are forced to dodge a motorbike or two. For Gandikota village's Telugu-speaking

claustrophobia and crawl through narrow passages and galleries filled with beautiful sculptural rock formations that are created when natural acid in groundwater dissolves soluble rock. Local guides speak only TeluguDakhni, but hiring one is advisable (open daily, 10.30 a.m.-5.30 p.m.; entry ~50; no cards).


SHORT BREAKS ~From Bengaluru

• .. •

The unfinished gopuram of the Rameswaraswami temple in Tadipatri, about 2.5 hours away.from Gandikota, is a mix of Chalukyan, Chola, and Vijayanagar styles.

inhabitants, the fort's past as a site of

hectic political and military activity is nearly

forgotten. Now, it is equally amenable to

afternoon naps as sessions of kavade aata, a

local dice game. Take a nap in the monument

yourself or wander through the narrow alleys,

paved with slate grey Kadapa stone and

flanked by bright, painted doors. The lanes

offer a peek into lime-daubed courtyards

where Andhra chillies roast in the sun.

JEWEL FOR GODS Further inside the

village, the gopuram of the Dravidian-style

Madhavaraya temple towers into the sky.

It's the colour of the famous Tavernier Blue

diamond, which the gem merchant procured

for the French crown. A strong breeze propels

me into the now deserted temple that was

built (according to a local guidebook) by the

kings who founded the Vijayangar empire in

1336. Local legend says it was constructed

following a visit from its principal deity Lord

Madhavaswami. Though the use of granite

made intricate carving difficult, the temple's

sacred iconography evidently fascinated

Tavernier enough for him to dub it the "2nd

Humpy", according to a board outside the

fort. Notice the Vijayanagar-style, pillared

porch (maha mantapa) with rearing horse

hippogryphs (ya/i) and beautifully carved stone

tree maidens (sa/abhanjikas) flanking the

temple entrance.

RAGHUNATHA TEMPLE is a ten-minute

walk away. It is built along similar lines but

compensates for the lack of a dramatic

gopuram with erotic stone etchings located

in a discreet corner on the northwestern wall.

Since I have all the time in the world, I walk

behind the Madhavaraya temple to the now

dry royal water tank, raya/acheruvu, and follow

traces of an ancient pipeline back to the Jamia

Masjid.

PEARL IN THE WILDERNESS Long before

he craftily chose to ally with Aurangzeb, Mir

Jumla began his career as apprentice to a

diamond merchant. He is rumoured to have

owned the famous Kollur mines in Golconda,

as well as the legendary Koh-i-noor. It is said

that he presented the Mughal Emperor Shah

Jahan with a similar stone, in return for royal

favours, and went on to become the Mughal

governor of West Bengal. This expertise with

jewels is visible in the delicate lustre of the

Jamia Masjid that he commissioned. Built

in the Qutub Shahi style, the mosque creates

a beautiful relationship between symmetry

and spirituality. It has no dome, but two

ornamented minarets adjacent to each other,


connected by a perforated parapet. Flat

pointed arches lead to a vaulted ceiling in

the prayer hall. Five arches were a metaphor

for the five sacred personalities (Panjatan

e-Paak) of the Shia Muslim faith the Qutub

Shahis followed; the mosque here has three,

representing Allah, Prophet Mohammed, and

his son-in-law Imam Ali.

Like the locals I eat a packed lunch sitting

under the fragrant Akash Ganga or Indian cork

tree in the mosque. Later I walk past a pond

called Kathula Koneru, where Telugu kings

are said to have washed their swords after

battle. Near it is Mir Jumla's stone granary,

inside which a high-vaulted ceiling, imposing

columns and a play of light and shade reflect a

long-forgotten ethos that merged beauty with

functionality. Its minimalistic, almost religious

austerity drives home the importance of food

in this siege-prone military stronghold.

GOLD-TINTED SUNSETS As the sky turns

a delicate pink, I pass the Raghunatha temple

once more and make my way across the rocks

to the high point of Gandikota. Red sandstone

cliffs straight out of a Hollywood Western

create a sharp, 300-feet drop to the Pennar

gorge and offer a breathtaking view, especially

at sunrise and sunset. The banks of the river

once had a 17th-century landscaped garden

called Parebagh, with a man-made waterfall.

Apparently, a Persian inscription on a boulder

still appears here when the river runs low in

the summer-although no one seems to know

what it says.

The stone steps on the northern fort wall at

Parebagh are rocky and precarious, but they

offer a way down from the fort's bastions to

the sandy banks of the Pennar. Though the

official viewing point is near a rock face called

Sudigoonda, I decide to sit here and throw

my voice across the river. Within seconds,

there are echoes, as if from a past that has

been lost forever on the edges of time.

STAY

Gandikota is not a full-fledged tourist destin

ation; it's more of an unconventional road trip.

APTDC Bart Guestbouse, ota

near the fort has clean, functional rooms

and a dormitory (99596 59353; doubles

from ~750; no cards).

The Mylavaram Dam and reservoir (above) is an important irrigation projectfor theAndhra Pradesh government. On a good day, the reservoir doubles up as a pretty picnic spot.

YSR Haritba Ho Kadapa (84 km/1.45

hours from Gandikota) offers basic but

reasonably comfortable accommodation

(0856-240533/240192; doubles from ~1,574;

no cards).

EAT (cost for two approximately ~200; meals

must be ordered in advance) while south

Indian cuisine is served at Navayuga Hills

in Jammalamadugu (13 km) and Sathyagiri

Lodge in Tadipatri (78 km).•

Orientation Gandikota is located in the YSR

(formerly Kadapa) district of the

Rayalaseema region in Andhra

Pradesh, northeast of Bengaluru

(283 km/5 hrs) and southeast

of Hyderabad (370 km/6.5 hrs)

via Kurnool.

Getting there Air The nearest airport is

Bengaluru, which is well

connected with the rest of the

country. Taxis charge around

~4.000 for the one-way journey.

Rail The closest railhead is

Kadapa (74 km). Taxis charge

around ~800 for the one-way

journey to Gandikota.

Road Direct buses ply from

Bengaluru to Kadapa, the

nearest interstate bus station

from Gandikota, and charge

approximately ~400-600 for

a one-way journey (7 hours).

From Kadapa (74 km/1.5

hrs), both private taxis and

The APTDC Haritha Guesthouse in

Gandikota offers simple, vegetarian meals

local buses are available to

Gandikota and Jammalamadugu

(taxis cost ~700). Autos from

Jammalamadugu (11 km/20

minutes) to Gandikota cost

around ~200-250 one-way. Local

buses are also available. Taking

your car is most convenient,

because the roads are in good

condition. If driving, take

NH7 out of Bengaluru via the

Devanahalli BIAL Airport road.

Hired taxis from Bengaluru cost

approximately ~8.000 for two

days, and charge ~10 per km for

side trips.

Getting around Gandikota has no public

transport, so you'll need to

explore everything on foot.

Seasons October-February, when

temperatures are between

21°-30°C, is humid, but a

pleasant time to visit. Summer,

between March

and June, is

hotter than

Andhra chillies

(30°-44°C) and

avoidable. There

is substantial

rain during the

monsoon (June

Oct) turning

the landscape

green and the

weather a little

more pleasant.

Need to lmow • Restaurants, shops, medical

facilities are non-existent in Gandikota and

• Erramala hills

• Bel.um caves

along the Bengaluru-Gandikota route. Pack water, snacks, and

all other essentials before leaving the city.

•Trekking down to the Pennar river bank is not advisable.

•There are no local guides and tourist information is not available. It is advisable to travel by day. • Plan your journey only after checking if the state's political

conditions are stable.


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SBORTBREAKS ~From Mumbai

Both pilgrims and casual visitors can look beyond the sacred in Trimbakeshwar By ANDRE MORRIS

Maharashtra has afew jyotirlingasTrimbakeshwar (below), close to Nashik city, Bhimashankar near Pune, Vaidyanath in Parli, and Grishneshwar atAurangabad.

ost visitors toTrimbakeshwar

are religious pilgrims. The city

is all about its temples, the

-- jyotirlinga, water tanks and flowing rivers, samadhis of poets and saints,


and of course, the Kumbh Mela, held here once

every twelve years. It is, after all, the source

of the Godavari, one of the holiest rivers for

Hindus. But for both pilgrim and casual visitor,

there is a chance to look beyond the sacred.

The area's verdant serenity probably tempted

the venerable sages and gurus to come and

settle here-why else would one find an almost

decrepit temple dedicated to Muktabai,

halfway up the hillside, surrounded by a

forest full of fruit trees and a lovely stone

mansion? A little way into the forest is a

stepwell that, even today, would have good,

clean drinking water if it weren't for the

garbage and litter that pilgrims deposit in and

around this sanctuary.

:.,'4 I LORE

RISE AND SHRINE The Trimbakeshwar temple is the area's biggest religious attraction.

The basalt stone temple was built by Peshwa

Nana Saheb upon losing a bet. It is one of the

twelve jyotirlingas (representation of Shiva)

around the country. For many devotees, Trim

bakeshwar's lingam is the most important one,

possibly because it is the only structure with

three faces-embodying the trinity of Brahma,

Vishnu, and Shiva (open 5.30 a.m.-9 p.m. daily).

Nivruti Nath temple is where the local saint

Nivruti, the elder brother of Sant Dnyaneshwar,

is believed to have taken samadhi (salvation

through meditation); a black basalt tombstone

and temple mark the spot. Visitors and pilgrims

can often be seen meditating here, but it is in

January, when there is ajatra (fair) that his

devotees converge in large numbers (open 5

a.m. -10 p.m. daily).

MONKEY BUSINESS Aside from religion,

Trimbakeshwar is full of intriguing geological

and mythological features. If you fancy a hike,

head up the Brahmagiri Hill, to the spot where

the Godavari is believed to originate. Another

temple and a spring will alert you to the spot.

This is a difficult walk (2 hours) so go

prepared. Make an early start: The climb will

be cooler and you will have the trail all to

yourself. The track starts just beyond the ta/ab,

or tank, behind the Nivruti Nath temple (just

above the MTDC Resort). There are several

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One of the deities at the Trimbakeshwar temple (top left) is believed to have been adorned with a neel mani, or blue diamond. Allegedly, the storied stone was appropriated by the British East India Company after the ThirdAnglo-Maratha War in 1818, and after a series of acquisitions, now rests in Connecticut, USA, as the Nassak Diamond; Millions of devotees (top right) converge at religi,ous spots in and around Trimbakeshwar. Women, however, are not allowed inside the main temple's sanctum; Pilgrim traffic is especially heavy during the Kumbh Mela (bottom left), held every 12 years; The mela- next in July 2015- is accompanied by the mushrooming of shops selling vermillion and other ritual accoutrements (bottom right).

tea stalls along the winding trail, which sell

cold drinks, fresh lime juice and other forms

of sustenance that your body will crave on the

trek uphill. My advice is to first get a walking

stick. They cost only ~10 (if you return it, you

get a refund of ~5.) The stick helps on the walk

up and down, but more importantly, it ensures

that the persistent, and sometimes aggressive,

monkeys are kept at bay. One actually climbed

onto my shoulders in an attempt to get at any

goodies in my daypack.

The first kilometre or so is along a well-used

trail and goes up gradually. Soon you will come

out onto a flat, thickly forested area, with plenty

of tall, shady trees and Karvi bushes. A couple

of hundred metres into the forest you come

across a dilapidated and seemingly abandoned

stone structure-this is the Muktabai temple (described later). The trail then flattens out

and is very pleasant, but don't drop your guard

INSIDER TIP

Most people visiting Trimbakeshwar come via the direct route from N ashik city, 28 km away, but there's an easier and more scenic route out. About 2-3

km out of Trimbakeshwar, turn right and head to Awarli, 26 km away. This is a nearly deserted road, when compared to the main road to N ashik, with fields and farms, majestic cliffs, and rock structures on either side. Stop and marvel at their stark beauty. From Awarli, take a right for Ghoti and Igatpuri (another 27 km). When you are a couple of kilometres from the main Nashik-Mumbai highway-you'll be able to see it-look

out for Ambali Wadi. There is a lovely government resthouse on top of a little hill here. If you're looking for a little more solitude before returning to the hectic pace of the city take a break here. However, to book either of the two suites you need to contact the rather elusive N ashik PWD in advance (doublesfrom ~800).

If you have your own mountain bike or even just a bicycle, you will love this route either to or from Trimbakeshwar. If you choose to go in to Trimbakeshwar via this route, take a left turn 1 km after crossing the toll plaza at Igatpuri, on the Mumbai-Nashik highway. And if you have the time, swing by Vaitarna Dam as well.


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SBORTBREAKS ~From Mumbai

Muktabai temple is wcated at Brahmagi,ri peak, adjacent to a serene stone mansion where visitors can rest awhile (left); In July this year, the Public Works Department cleared a proposal to convert the Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Road into afour-lane highway, lined with banyan and peepal trees (top right); Just past the source of the Godavari is a small, open shrine (bottom right) with ajyotirlinga, where devotees stop for a quick darshan.

yet, because the tough section is yet to come.

Soon you reach a flight of steps where a marble

plaque records the name of a donor who

funded the building and repair of the trail. From

this point till the top the way is steep and less

than two feet wide in some areas.

This is also the part of the trail where the

monkeys tend to accost you, especially if you

are carrying any visible food. Keep calm and

walk on. Even if they tug at your trousers, don't

panic-they are quite used to being shooed

away. There is no escape as you are on a steep

rock cliff and cannot jump aside anywhere ...

the monkeys have chosen their spot well. If

you've taken my advice and have a stick, just

wave it around and you'll be left alone instantly.

After huffing and puffing up the steep steps

you'll come out on to another open, flat, grassy

area from where it's a gentle climb to the top

of a ridge, and then a descent to the temple of

Brahmagiri and a spring. The spring water is

cold and refreshing-it is after all, the source

of the Godavari. The views are worth the trek:

One can see Anjaneri, one of the many places

believed to be the birth place of Hanuman,

Harihar, Fani Dongar, as well as a lake in the

distance. Looking towards Nashik, you will see

several other hills that appear to be cardboard

cut-outs. In the monsoons the entire area is

green and shrouded in mist. It's also a time

when several new waterfalls and streams

spring up. Bear that in mind when going up to

Brahmagiri during the rains.

FOREST HIDEAWAY I prefer to spend less

time on making it to the top of the hill and

more time around the temple of Muktabai,

Nivruti's sister who allegedly followed him

here to look after him. At first glance, the place

appears to be an overgrown jungle, but give it a

couple of hours. A little ahead of the temple is

a large two-storey stone mansion, the exteriors

of which blend in with the surroundings. Inside,

it is cool even on a hot day. Of course, rare is

the visitor that does not deface walls-here,

even the high ceilings are coated with the

names of their lovers. But there is still a charm

and appeal about the place. The walk up is not

too long or too tiring, and even in the monsoon

when the hills wear a misty cloak, the stone


hall offers shelter and warmth.

Sit under one of the many trees and give in

to the simple pleasures of hearing the birds

chirp and the wind gently rustling through the

leaves. Lost in my reverie, I suddenly noticed

that the trees are not wild, but carefully

planted guava, mango, lime, jackfruit, and

other fruit trees. I decided to wander around

a little and came upon a trail, nearly hidden

by the undergrowth. In a couple of minutes

I reach a large stepwell that is still in good

condition except for a part of the western

wall that is collapsing at the top. I find that

there is still plenty of water in the well but a

lot of garbage as well.

MYSTIC RIVER On the way down you may

want to traverse across the forest and make

your way to Gangadwar, this is where the

Godavari reappears after disappearing into the

hill at its source at Brahmagiri. As you reach

the temple of Muktabai, look for an obvious

trail on your left. This is an easy, flat walk and

has several spots under shady trees where

you can rest your weary legs while taking in an

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~ Trimbakeshwar

The Godavari, India's second-longest river that courses for 1,465 kilometres, is believed to originate in Trimbakeshwar,.from a gaumukh (mouth of a cow) like this one (top left); The Brahmagiri Hills accord a wonderful vista ofTrimbakeshwar (top right), especially during the monsoon.

aerial vista of Trimbakeshwar. Gangadwar is

also where the nondescript Gautami caves are.

There is a small temple at the point where the

Godavari emerges out of the hill. Note that this

is nothing but a little trickle; it's only faith that

brings people here. A little further away from

Gangadwar are another small set of caves the

locals call Machindranath caves, which they

claim have 180 lingams, although I did not

see them.

STAY&EAT

Trimbakeshwar has limited options for

accommodation. All the hotels and lodges

Orientation Trimbakeshwar is a city in the

Nashik district of Maharashtra.

It is 178 km northeast of

Mumbai.

Getting there Air Although Nashik is the

nearest airport it is not very well

connected with the rest of the

country. Flying to Mumbai (178

km/3.25 hours) is easier. Taxis

charge ~3.500-4,500 for a one

way trip from Mumbai.

Rail Many express trains

halt at Nashik (39 km/1 hour), the nearest railhead.

Taxis to Trimbakeshwar are

easily available at the station

(approximately ~240).

Road There is a frequent state

transport bus service between

Central Bus Stand, Nashik, and

Trimbakeshwar. If driving from

Mumbai, take NH3 (178 km)

or the Mumbai-Nashik

Expressway (203 km).

Getting around The best way to explore

Trimbakeshwar and the

surrounding trails up to

Brahmagiri and Muktabai

temple, is on foot.

Seasons The ideal time to travel to

Trimbakeshwar is between

October and March, when the

weather cools down. Summer

temperatures hover between

22-44°C, while in winter (Nov

Jan) it verges between 6-28°C.

Monsoon (June-Aug) is also

a really pleasant time to visit,

when several waterfalls and

streams sprout up along

the way.

within the temple complex are vegetarian.

Hotel Sahvadri offers both AC and non-AC

facilities and meals (94225 06534; doubles

from ~1.500). SanSmrtt Ho el used to be the MTDC resort,

and later Atithi International Hotel. It offers

basic amenities (97633 89545; doubles from

~1.500) .•

Godavari river

Brahmagiri h1Ds


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SBORTBREAKS ~Madhya Pradesh . - ~ (·-~ _,....~

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CHHATARPUR , f Saraiaf Toria ,

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,MADHYA PRADESH I

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Sarai at Toria celebrates Bundelkhand's ecological and historical treasures I By ANNIE M. MATHEWS

t's golden hour at the Sarai at Toria.

The long evening shadows slither

into the grass and hiss down to the

__ sparkling river Ken, which is ablush

in the slow burn of the setting sun. The

early birds swoop past with raucous cries,

leaving the skies open to the hoots of the

nocturnal ones.

Soon, the pathways between the tall

grasses come alight with solar lamps. Pre

dinner, around a fire and under the blazing

stars, hosts Raghu Chundawat and Joanna

van Gruisen, mingle with the guests. Over

a sundowner, they share their sightings

and insights of the day, with discussions

ranging from a roaring tiger startling a

herd of deer to the marvellous intricacies

of Khajuraho's sculptures. Because even

though the Sarai at Toria is a destination

in itself, its location in the heart of Madhya

Pradesh's Bundelkhand region makes it

an expedient caravan stop en route to

several places of historical and ecological

importance nearby.

ACCOMMODATION Spread over nine acres of field and jungle,

Sarai is a luxury resort, but don't expect

to find bathtubs with rose petals or infinity

pools. Chundawat and van Gruisen, a

wildlife scientist-photographer team, who

also spent several years working with

tigers in neighbouring Panna National

Park, have brought their sensibilities to

the property. Their keen dedication to

ecological matters informed their decision

to build their spacious, eco-friendly

thatched cottages in compressed mud

using the traditional local method.

The interiors of each of these eight

pastoral cottages, with private porches

and courtyards, have been finished in

different rustic oxide shades. The aesthetic

detailing, and meticulous attention to

comfort and service, ensures both pleasure

and repose. Meals are part of the package

and are gastronomic delights; the spread

ranging from Chundawat's Malwa family

recipes to Joanna's continental ones.


Walks are aplenty-within the property,

by the riverbanks, or through the

neighbouring fields to the village of Toria.

All routes are a birder's delights, so if

you'd like a guide, many of the local staff

members double up as naturalists. The

resort also offers a morning or evening

boat ride on the Ken.

If you're looking to explore further afield,

Sarai at Toria also organises more offbeat

road trips and day visits. Explore the ninth

century Ajaygarh Fort and plateau (45 km),

or the diverse architectural influences of

Panna town, located about half an hour

away. You can even choose to hop across

the Madhya Pradesh border into Uttar

Pradesh to view the fortress-city of Kalinjar

(73 km), or spend a soothing picnic day at

either the Pandav or Raneh falls close by

(doubles ~15,800, including meals and

on-site activities).•

THE VITALS

Sarai at Toria is located offNH75 in Madhya Pradesh, a short drive from Khajuraho (23 km/ 20 mins) airport and railway station. Visitors can also take a train to the busy Jhansi junction, 182 km/ 3.5 hrs away. The resort is open from 1 October to 15 April (0124-2356004/ 96852 93130; WWW.

saraiattoria.com) .

SHORT BREAKS ~ Uttarakhand

STAY

Be English at this Mussoorie manor I By DIVIYA MEHRA

riving through the crowded

twists and turns of the narrow

road leading up to Rokeby

Manor, I watched the scenes of

Landour Bazaar go by. Pine and deodars

punctuated a landscape of thatch-roofed

homes and antique shops. In the street,

pretty Tibetan girls sell knick-knacks in

the company of troops of monkeys, while

rosy-cheeked school children run down the

slope. All this, against the backdrop of a

lush, green valley. I stuck my nose to the car

window and tried to connect every scene

to my father's stories from his days at St.

George's College, Mussoorie.

Rokeby Manor-a bungalow with Raj-era

characteristics such as a slanting, red roof,

brick arches, and stone walls-sits on a

slight hill engulfed in clouds, overlooking the

Doon Valley. I discovered that the

manor, built in 1840 by a Captain

G.N. Cauthy, was inspired by

the writings of Scottish novelist

Sir Walter Scott, the author of

Ivanhoe. His narrative poem

Rokeby is about the battles

fought near the original

Rokeby Castle in England.

I had two days to tick off

my "Must-eat in Mussoorie" list: stick-jaw

candy and milkshake at Chic Chocolate,

pizza at the Clock Tower Cafe, and parathas,

memos, and Maggi at Chaar Dukaan. I

started early. Back at Rokeby, and two kilos

heavier, I contemplated cycling up the hill.

But I gave in to lethargy and instead strolled

toward St. Paul's Cathedral along a path

lined with pine trees and chirping birds.

Time ambles here and allows you pause

and reflection.

In his recent book, Landour Days, Ruskin

Bond wrote, "Landour itself is a magical

world, where every month has its own

flower, every walker his own style, and the

countryside is filled with a beauty, all its

own." Taking inspiration from the great

writer, I picked up a fallen flower and placed

it in my diary.

ACCOMMODATION

As I entered the big oak door, I was

transported to a different era: A wood

panelled living room with a fireplace

surrounded by plump, upholstered couches

and a bookshelf with leather-bound classics.

Two cloth dolls, hand-stitched by local

artisans, stared at me from a glass case

next to an antique wooden telephone. I felt

part of an old mystery novel.

The rooms at the Rokeby, have nature

themed names such as The Rhododendron,

Rose Suite, Acorn, and Pinecone. We were a

large group so we chose to stay at the cosy,

three-bedroom Log Cabin (from ~50,000

May-July; ~35,000 Aug-April; with breakfast).

The estate has cute, framed quotes

everywhere and a very English "Tea Garden",

which blooms with a variety of flowers.

The sun was setting and it started to

get cold. As the mist faded, the valley

which was a blur, just a few moments ago,

became visible. A little later, we sat in the

courtyard sipping tea and watched the

landscape of the town below glitter. The

following morning, Chintamani, the hotel's

friendly butler led us to the dining room

"Emily's", where the most scrumptious

breakfast awaited us: a spread of eggs,

bacon, pancakes, freshly baked breads, and

a variety of fruity jams and jelly. These

weren't even on my list-but I wasn't about

to start complaining.•

THE VITALS

Rokeby Manor is located at an altitude of 7,500 ft in the Landour Cantonment area ofMussoorie, Uttarakhand. The nearest airport is Jolly Grant, located 24 km from Dehradun. Mussoorie is 269 km from Delhi, and is well connected by a state transport shuttle service ( 6 hrs). Dehradun is the nearest railhead 34 km away (135-2635604/ 96344 43666; www.rokebymanor.com).


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BIGSBOT ~Contest

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA'S MONTHLY PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

. . . . . . .. ··· ·· ······

Cricket fever BY UDAYAN SANKAR PAL

Among the many things that amused me on my trip to Ladakh was the playful monks who I met there. Many of them were only young children themselves, priests in training. Here, I saw a group engrossed in a fast game of cricket. This particular shot was a six, and went on to win the game for the crew.

Photo Contest Next theme: In Praise of Winter

Send us pictures of your favourite winter moments. It can be about food, culture, or simply the way your neighbourhood looks in the cold. Submit a single photo, along with your caption (100 words).

DEADLINE

31 December 2013

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INSPIRE ~Japan


Wisteria Tunnel Kitakyushu, Japan

If there was ever a real-life version of walking into a surrealist, animated world, the Wisteria Tunnel in Kitakyushu, Japan would be it. Blanketed by flowers, the tunnel is a dry, twisted mass of vines throughout the year. But in spring it blooms to create a corridor of elegant pastel colours. The main attraction of the Kawachi Fuji Gardens in Kitakyushu on Kyushu Island in southwestern Japan, it consists of 150 wisteria plants of 20 different species. The wisteria has delicate, hanging flowers and elaborate branches that make it a popular element in ornamental gardens. Each variety is a distinct shade and is arranged to create varied patterns and designs on the tunnel walls. Every year between April and May during the Fuji Matsuri or the Wisteria Festival, thousands of people visit the gardens to catch the tunnel in full bloom.


INSPIRE ~Northern Ireland


The Dark Hedges Armoy, Northern Ireland

The Dark Hedges is a stretch of road in Northern Ireland that provides the perfect setting for a Gothic novel. The road is lined with beech trees that have, over the years, grown high enough for their branches to entangle, forming a continuous canopy. The trees were planted in the 18th century by the Stuart family, who wanted to impress visitors coming down the road to their mansion, Gracehill House. According to locals the stretch is haunted by the "Grey Lady", who glides over the road and disappears after passing the last tree. Some say she is a maid from a nearby house who died under mysterious circumstances, others say she is a spirit from an abandoned graveyard that was lost a long time ago. When photographed at night, the area's eerie beauty is clearly on display.


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INSPIRE


Tunnel of Love Klevan, Ukraine

The words Tunnel of Love don't usually conjure images of a railway line. But a threekilometre stretch of railway track in western Ukraine seems to have earned that moniker, purely by accident. When the private railway line was laid, the surrounding vegetation was left untouched. The line was used to transport wood three times a day to a fireboard factory. The daily movement of the train eventually moulded the adjoining trees into this tunnel. In the springtime, this arch stretches for three kilometres. In winter, it wears a fairytale look when heavy snow covers the trees creating a dreamlike, romantic landscape. Couples who want a few moments of solitude are often seen strolling through. It is believed that true lovers who cross the tunnel together are always granted their wishes. It has slowly turned into Klevan's biggest tourist attraction.


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THE COMEBACK ~Reis Magos Fort

An old Goa fort gets a new lease of life as a cultural centre BY KARANJEET KAUR

t different points in its 462-year history, Goa's Reis Magos Fort has served as a military outpost, a seminary, a jail, and

as inspiration to the famous cartoonist, Mario de Miranda. The artist, who passed away in December 2011, is also responsible for the fort's latest iteration-a cultural centre that hosts photography exhibitions and concerts. This transformation is the result of a tripartite agreement between the Goa government, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), and London's Helen Hamlyn Trust (HHT).

Until 1545, the village of Reis Magos ("Three Wise Men") was a Bijapur Sultanate outpost. The fort's construction began a few years after

Portuguese forces gained control of the area and was finally completed in 1551, under the viceroyalty of Afonso de N oronha. I ts location on a precipice overlooking the Mandovi river in the Bardez district, was strategic-it acted as a buffer for Old Goa, the capital of Portuguese Goa, nine kilometres inland. Over the years, a church and cemetery were added to the complex. By the time the 20th century rolled in, Reis Magos had lost its importance and was turned into a jail, especially useful for incarcerating freedom fighters. After the end of Portuguese rule in 1961, it continued to serve as a jail for independent India until 1993, when it fell into disuse for the next 17 years. In the intervening years, Miranda in his capacity as the convener of INTACH, approached the HHT to fund the complex's restoration, which began in 2007.

"The fort was completely intact, but the buildings inside the fort had been modified and changed so many times, that it didn't reflect what they were in the past;' said architect, Gerard da Cunha, who spearheaded the fort's refurbishment. The only sources that da Cunha and his team had were some sketches of the fort from 1862 and some photographs dating back to 1900. To renovate the floor, which

had sunk in several parts, the team drew from contemporaneous structures like the Bishop's Palace in Panaji.

The biggest challenge da Cunha and his team faced was recreating the military-style tapering roofs. "We used the methodology of that period, and worked with lime, mortar, and stone;' he said. The original roofs were built with interlocking Roman tiles that kept houses cool but were impracticable for heavy rains. The team scoured ruined or abandoned buildings for 1,00,000 such Roman tiles, that had slowly been replaced with Mangalore tiles in the last 100 years. In addition, they had to remove several structures, such as a kitchen and bathrooms that had been added when the fort was being used as a jail.

Ironically, the Goa Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act of 1978 did not allow the structure to be used for any other purpose than for which it was originally built. Spelled out, the restorers could not add electricity and water connections necessary to turn the fort into a cultural centre. Those troubles are now in the past (the Act was amended in 2012)-and perhaps the fort's wise new avatar will serve as the blueprint for our other heritage structures. •

national geographic traveller december 2013 india

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