Chhavi and I went to Pokhara on a tennis trip. She was playing in two ITF qualifying tournaments at Pokhara Nepal. So we stayed for about 10 days. Tennis trips are different than vacations. We see the tournament venue more than anything else. She spends some time on court almost everyday and then is the emotional roller-coaster of winning, losing or getting a walkover in the matches. The highs are okay but the lows sometimes can really get low!

Still we said to each-other that we will try a new restaurant for every meal and try to make a bit of a holiday. It was Chhavi’s first time in Nepal where as I was going back to Pokhara alone for the third time.

All my previous trips to Pokhara were of 2 nights and the clouds ruled. I barely got a glimpse of Mt. Machapuchare or Mt. Fishtail. But it all changed when we stayed for around 10 days in Pokhara at November end and December beginning. If the weather favors you, Pokhara puts on its charm and Chhavi and I were smitten.

We stayed at the Trekker’s Inn hotel at Pokhara and this was the view right from our lift lobby! I was so excited to see it right there!

One day I was roaming around the lift lobby before sunrise looking for pictures. An employee walked by and told me to go to the terrace of the hotel and this was the view at sunrise from the terrace of the Trekkers Inn!

On my previous trips all I got was clouds around this beautiful mountain. This time it was cloudy for one and a half days. I didn’t mind it all. In fact I enjoyed the clouds too.

This was the view from the Shanti Stupa of Mt. Fishtail with flowers. I didn’t expect flowers at Pokhara in November one but there they were!

This was the view from the Rangshala where the tennis stadium was. I would go up to the balcony and enjoy both, a good game of tennis and the view from the tennis court. Part of the old airport was visible from the court.

This one is again clicked while going up to the Shanti Stupa and I was playing with the focus of my DSLR. You get fabulous view of Machapuchare from Shanti Stupa!

Another beautiful place to view Mt. Fishtail is from the sleepy town of Sarangkot, a 30 minutes drive from Pokhara. The views are divine! I have been there at Sunrise too on a previous trip.

My previous two short visits to Pokhara gave me no indication that it was such a charming place! This is once again the view from the Shanti Stupa.

However the best views that we got are from the last café before you walk into the premises of the Shanti Stupa. You can’t miss it as it is a multi story structure. I wish I had allocated more time to coffee and snacks with a fabulous view of the lake and the Annapurna range of mountains at Pokhara.

The post The Many Moods of Mt. Fishtail: Witnessing Beauty at Pokhara first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

Chhavi and I traveled to The Himalayan Shire near Fagu at the beginning of February for short non-tennis Holiday! And how we cherish that time spent in the beautiful surroundings of the Himalayan Shire in Himachal Pradesh. It is quite close to Shimla, Kufri and Fagu.

The Journey to the Himalayan Shire

The Himalayan Shire is a 7 room, tastefully done, luxury homestay owned by Rishabh Goel. He was there to greet us when we arrived at the property in the evening. We took the Kalka Shatabdi Express train till Chandigarh and then a taxi to The Himalayan Shire. The Chai and Pakora was a welcome site to us after the long journey. Refreshed we headed to the coolest part of the homestay.

The Attic

Above the second floor common area is the most charming corner of the homestay, you can take the stairs to the attic for the coolest view of the majestic mountains. My joy knew no bounds when they served us evening tea there. Chhavi and I would head up and lounge around to our hearts content at every opportunity. You have to check it out.

Deodar Suite

We stayed at the Deodar Suite at the Himalayan Shire. It is a huge room with a huge bathroom. I loved so many things about our room.

At the top of our list was the electric fireplace. In spite of traveling a good bit I never got to stay in a room with the fireplace! So, this was a first for both Chhavi and me. And we loved it. It was cold out there in February. There was still a bit of snow in the corners that didn’t get direct sunlight.

The electric blanket on the bed was the most used and useful feature! On the cold nights it was a lifesaver. After a while we would switch if off though. So even though the room was huge and the weather cold, we were always warm and cozy!

Chhavi loved the windows of the room, they were huge, they had a fabulous view and she could sit in them! We both loved it actually.

In the bathroom the amenities are kept in large bottles and refilled. When I mentioned this Rishabh, he said they try to reduce the consumption of single use plastic as much as they can. When you are there check out the bathroom tiles, they are gorgeous. Overall, we had a real beautiful room!

The Common Areas

The Himalayan Shire has many common areas to be enjoyed by the guests. TVs are in the common areas only. We don’t have TV at home so wee didn’t miss it at all. The second floor common area has table tennis and pool tables. I had a gala time playing TT with other guests. I can brag that I won all the games I payed!

We had the Sunday breakfast outdoors at the front lawn. The day was warm, perfect for outdoor activities. When Rishabh asked if we would like to go on a small hike later, I was really torn. I love walking but off late my knees give me immense trouble even on a regular day. I said yes to the hike with a lot of hesitation but I am glad I did it. But the details are going to be a separate post in itself.

The Food

The food is cooked fresh and they always ask your choice. We enjoyed all our meals. Chhavi gives a special shout out to pancakes. I really enjoyed breadrolls and parathas!

We had Manchurian and fried rice for one meal which was delicious. Otherwise, we enjoyed Indian meals. Chhavi is also giving a shout out to the Maggi she ate in the evening!

The View

We were sold out on the view from every corner! The view was fabulous was the room, the view was fabulous from the attic and it was still fabulous from the balconies and the front lawn. The property is away from the road, it was a blessing to my frayed city nerves.

Whenever I stay at such places I wonder why do we put up with the Delhi NCR pollution. My lungs always thank me when I visit such pristine places.

Overall Chhavi and I have beautiful memories of the Himalayan Shire. The above picture perfectly sums up over feelings about the trip. It was the last non-tennis travel we did and it did wonders for both of us. We would like to go back to the Himalayan Shire some day again.

PS. I was invited by the Himalayan Shire as a blogger.

The post The Himalayan Shire: Perfect blend of Tranquility and Modernity first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I recently visited Nepal as my daughter, Chhavi, was playing an ITF juniors tennis tournament there. It was a breath of fresh air for me, to be able to combine her tennis with my travels! This was my 4th trip to Nepal and surprisingly I never gave much thought to the views of the Himalayas on this route before! While doing the web check in it occurred to me that there might be view and I went with the A side window seat! And that is where the views are! If you wish to enjoy the views of the Himalayas on a Delhi Kathmandu flight choose the A side window seat. On the Kathmandu Delhi flight the views are on the F side.

Window Seat Wins

I know there is a huge debate on window vs. aisle seats but on this route, quite like the Delhi Leh one, window seat wins. There are no views from an aisle seat. What is surprising for me is that it took me 4 trips to realize that there are views on this route. I blame it on always going through a cloud cover on my previous trips! In fact this was one trip where I got fabulous views both at Kathmandu and Pokhara.

Flying in Summer vs Winter

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I have done two summer trips and two winter trips in Nepal. On three occasions I have spent some time in Pokhara (where we were headed on this trip) but surprisingly this was the first time I got the views! So, that was true for the flights as well, never got the kind of stunning views I got this time in winter from the A side seats and the F side seats.

Kathmandu Delhi Sunset Flight

While coming back I booked an evening flight (5.15 pm) from Kathmandu to Delhi. It was not by design, it was the cheapest flight available for my day of travel. And it was magic. I got the most clear view of the Himalayas at sunset for a long time. I have seen a lot of beautiful things in my life and this was up there too. As I said before, on the Kathmandu Delhi flight the views are on the F side.

I was not getting the window seat initially but I checked again 2 hours before the flight and I was able to change my seats to F side window seat. I got the window at the front of the plane but back of the plane is my favorite as I get to include the wing in the frame. I got the view for what felt like good 45 minutes though I did not time it by the watch.

To conclude Delhi Kathmandu Delhi flights also have incredible views of the Himalayas. It took me some time to realize it as the weather did not cooperate on my previous trips. But the views are there, on the A side on the Delhi Kathmandu flight and on the F side on the Kathmandu Delhi flight. And we have to take our chances to be blessed with the divine view!

The post Which Seat to Choose on a Delhi Kathmandu Flight for Best Views first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I am a big fan of clicking sunsets and city lights. Getting up to a high point does wonders for capturing them. Sometimes, I gain this height by painfully walking up a hill. But it is luxury when you can take a elevator to click the panoramic views of a city. I got that luxury when I went up to the Top of Hanoi Restaurant at the Lotte Hotel in Hanoi! All the credit for taking us to this beautiful spot went to our guide Hoan Lala.

During the day we did a lot of sightseeing within Hanoi and we were running a little behind schedule. And the sunset would not wait for anyone. In the end we just about made it to this beautiful view.

The restaurant offers a 360 degree view of the city and for quite some time I kept running from one corner to another! I also love that time when city lights are on and yet the sky has colors too!

The view was fabulous from every side. I have to admit I remember the view much more than the drink I had. I think I had a beer at this beautiful place but I am not sure.

If I go back to Hanoi again I would love to go to the restaurant with plenty of time, click a few pictures (I know it is not possible though) but have more time to remember the food and drinks too!

I have to make this a habit to go to rooftop restaurants in every city I visit. I have been to one such place in Dubai too. I clearly remember the view but rest of the details I have to dig up!

If I get to experience such a view of the city I consider my trip to be fabulous. The bonus was the evening light because photography at night has its own challenges but rewards too. Which is your favorite view, do let me know in the comments.

In the end here are all my favorite views in one video. It is this pause in my current travel is giving me the time to engage more with the huge amount of travel content I already have!

The post Stunning Views of Hanoi from the Top of Hanoi Restaurant first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

We adopted our daughter, Chhavi in October 2009. The initial part of the tale has already been documented. You can read it here.

My husband Seshadri and I always wanted to adopt, and both of us wanted a girl. If you ask me the reason, we don’t know why. So, we went ahead and simply did it! We both agree that it was the best decision of our life.

It has been 13 years and we would do it all over again! We celebrate her birthday twice, once on July 1, as that is the date on her birth certificate and then on October 9, when she came home. She loves ordering presents twice!

We adopted her through Haryana State Welfare Council and it was surprisingly fast. Through the years I have been asked many questions. I wish to talk about them today!

Q. Why are you so open about adoption?

Polite Asnswer- If I can inspire only one person through my story, I think my task is done.

Not so Polite Answer- Have I done a crime that I need to hide it?

Q. Does your child know she is adopted?

A. Yes from the very beginning in an age appropriate way! We always talked about when Chhavi came and not when she was born. Why did we tell her? Because someone else would have told her anyway!

Q. Why did you adopt?

A. Because we always wanted to, there is nothing more to it than that!

Q. Did you have any doubts?

A. For us the answer is surprisingly no, we had no doubts! We were absolutely sure we wanted to adopt a girl.

Q. Is she invited to birthday parties?

A. Yes she was invited to birthday parties regularly, till all the kids became teens and they stopped having birthday parties.

Q. Did adoption take a lot of time?

A. For us it was surprisingly fast, we put in our application in June 2009 and Chhavi was given to us in foster care on October 9 2009. Her adoption papers took a little more time, but there was never too much hassle involved. We contacted NGOs too but for us the state government was the fastest to act. One NGO responded after 2 years, by that time we already had Chhavi.

Q. What kind of checks to expect?

A. There is a police verification involved, much like passport. We visited the Haryana Welfare Council once and a lady from the adoption agency visited us once after Chhavi came in foster care. It was all reasonably done.

Q. Is it an open or closed adoption?

A. Ours is a closed adoption for the simple reason that nothing is known about her biological parents.

Q. Does she wants to know or asks questions?

A. Yes she does but we have been able to talk about it. I stick to the truth that nothing is really known, so we can keep guessing or that we can move ahead and go places! Most of the days nobody thinks about it. Till now it has never got overly complicated. I hope it remains like that.

Q. We wish to adopt but our parents won’t agree!

A. I really don’t have a good answer to this one, as our parents were okay with it. Once we adopted she quickly became the favorite of everyone in the family.

When we adopted, I remember a colleague saying – “I hope someone told you Mridula- Yashoda ka darza hamesha Devaki se bada hota hai!” I had not heard that, I didn’t need it but it was a nice thing to say. When someone pesters me too much, which happens rarely, I throw this back at them!

The post The Girl with Two Birthdays or My Thoughts on Adoption first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I loved photographing Budapest. I did some research before going which talked about the best vantage points in the city. Initially they were just names to me but I recognized them when I stood there. I was also lucky that I was staying for 7 nights, so I could go back to a few places to get a better shot! But let’s get on with the tips to take beautiful pictures of Budapest. My best tip is to find a vantage point for the panorama shots and there is no shortage of them in the city.

Gellert Hill

Gellert Hill offers sweeping vistas of the Budapest city both at day and night. I went there first during the day and then went back another evening to click the night shots. The top picture of this post, of the Buda Castle has been from the Gellert Hill.

Give yourself time at the top of the Gellert Hill, as you will find beautiful pictures whichever way you look! I love this shot of the Ferris Wheel with St. Stephen’s Basilica in the background along with the city.

Here is another shot of the beautiful Budapest City from the Gellert Hill at Night. As I said, give yourself time to click pictures. There is beauty everywhere. We (my sister Alka and I) came to the hill on the Hop on Hop Off bus but the bus went back quickly. We climbed down the hill using the footpath and reached the main road. We took a tram back to our hotel from there.

Buda Castle

Buda Castle offers beautiful views of the city too. It was closer to my hotel so I decided to catch the sunrise as well, along with some night shots from there.

I got the Chain Bridge along with its roundabout with traffic lights from the Buda Castle Balcony which is closer to the funicular. It is an excellent vantage point to capture the city.

If you do not wish to include the roundabout, you get this beautiful beautiful view of the Chain Bridge. I went in the first week of November so I got the bonus of fall colors in my pictures!

The Chain Bridge and the roundabout look great during the day too. So, all these clicks are from the Buda Castle Balconies above the funicular.

However, you get fabulous view of the sunrise from the balcony near this ‘rider on a horse’ statute in the Buda Castle. This gives another fabulous view of the city.

Here is another picture taken from the same balcony as above. I love how the chimney smoke caught the sunlight giving the illusion of fire!

This is the last one that I share, again taken from the same spot as the above two. Buda Castle offers many opportunities of photographing the city in all its beauty!

St. Stephen’s Basilica

The interiors of St. Stephen’s Basilica are grand, they completely mesmerized me. You can also go up the tower for a nominal fee and get another panoramic view of the city!

It was a pleasure for us to listen to the prayer service going in this grand hall. My pictures do only partial justice to the grandeur of the place!

You will be better off with a wide angle lens to capture the grand interiors. The Basilica has opening times, so do check it out before you go.

Here is a view of a beautiful Budapest street from the top of the tower of the St. Stephen’s Basilica. There is an entry fee to go to the top. There are stairs as well as an elevator. We took the elevator. In my opinion it is totally worth to go to the top.

The top of the Basilica gives a different perspective of the city, so make sure you get to see it. I got this view of Buda Castle only from the tower!

I got the best views of the rooftops from the top of the Basilica as well. The colors come out really well from there.

Next to the elevator are these stunning spiral staircase inside the Basilica. I had to wait a few minutes to get it empty but it was worth the wait.

Photographing Budapest from the Fisherman’s Bastian

The arches of Fisherman’s Bastian provide a beautiful frame to the city. Fisherman’s Bastian is a beautiful spot in itself and gets a lot of tourists.

This is just one example of using the arches to frame the city, there are many such sequences possible, in horizontal frame too. Just observe as you walk around and you will find these places.

I love this particular arch and the view of the Fisherman’s Bastian it provides. I went there during the day and early hours too. During the day it is impossible to get this shot without people. In the early morning I almost had the whole place to myself.

Margret Bridge

I quite like the view of the Parliament House and Buda Castle with Chain Bridge from the Margret Bridge. Initially I was disappointed that there were no colors in the sky but I eventually liked this moody view. I am sure other bridges of the city will provide beautiful vantage points to photograph Budapest.

River Cruise

One of the touristy thing to do in Budapest is to to go on a river cruise on Danube. And that provides an interesting perspective of the city from water, hence some beautiful pictures.

I took this picture of sunset from the evening boat cruise. And I am glad I got to see the city from the water too.

Finally here is a view of the Parliament House from the boat! Loved the show the sky put up for us! I really enjoyed my trip to Budapest and I hope it shows in my pictures.

I did not had time like a local for photographing Budapest but with a little research and by going back to a few places, I really got a lot of memorable pictures! If you have a tip to share, do drop it in the comment box.

The post Photographing Budapest from a Tourist’s Perspective first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

We all feel happier as travel has resumed post the COVID19 pandemic. So, if you are traveling abroad from India you might be looking to apply for a visa. A lot of countries use VFS global as their partner for visa application. Reaching VFS Global using the Delhi Metro is easy.

VFS Global is located within the same premises as the Shivaji Stadium Metro Station. So, you need to reach the Shivaji Stadium Metro stadium in order to reach VFS Global. Exit of the Shivaji Stadium Metro Station following the exit signs and then take the escalators up to the VFS Global. It is that easy to reach.

For the metro if you are on the airport line your task is easy, take the Airport line and get down at the Shivaji Stadium Metro Station.

I use the yellow line as my home base. So I start from HUDA City Center and go to New Delhi Metro Station. I change to the Airport Line (also known as orange line) after exiting New Delhi Metro Station. Shivaji Stadium is the first stop on the Airport Line of you are starting from New Delhi.

If you wish to figure out how to reach Shivaji Stadium from other metro routes I would recommend using the Delhi Metro Official Website and use their ‘plan your journey’ feature. I find it better than the Google Maps public transport feature.

I hope you find this information useful and I wish you the very best for your visa application.

The post How to Reach VFS Global Using Delhi Metro first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I recently stayed at the Novotel Vizag and I could see the Ramakrishna Beach right across the road from my room. The view of the Beach Road from the Novotel Rooftop was incredible too.

However, I could also see how crowded the beach would get in the evening. So, I decided to take a morning walk at the Ramakrishna Beach in Vizag.

In my daily life, I now get up really early almost every day due to my daughter’s tennis practice. But there was a time when I would hate getting up in the morning with some force! Not any longer. I am more resilient about early mornings now. And I was rewarded for my effort. Not only the beach was less crowded, the weather was nicer too.

There was agenda for this walk, I was ready to walk as much or as little as I wanted. And by my standards I remained on the ‘little’ side. My nephew tells me I travel only to click pictures and soon this walk too turned into a solo photowalk! I always knew we consider water sacred but I related it more to river or mountain lakes. But I saw people doing some kind of prayers by the sea too.

A lot of families were around and it is easy to spot who is the designated photographer of the group. I requested one such young girl to click a picture of mine.

I saw these girls on the beach and I wanted to click pictures. I did it from far and I walked a little further. While coming back the girls approached me and asked me to take their pictures and send it to them. None of them had a cell phone on the beach! They adopted me as their unofficial photographer. And we had a great time. As promised I send them the pictures, I hope they liked it.

There was a time when I used to walk with a vengeance and called it a holiday too. It has not happened in a while now. I did a short walk in both the directions and then walked back to the hotel looking for food!

The post The Tranquil Morning Walk at the Ramakrishna Beach, Vizag first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

Delhi Leh flight is known for its jaw dropping scenic views of the Ladakh Range of mountains if you choose the correct window seat. And the correct side to choose is the A side while going to Leh and the F side while coming back to Delhi. There I told you. But you can continue reading the post to learn more about the views while flying into Leh from Delhi. And I have been lucky to do it a few times. Also, keep in mind that the clouds can cover the view completely sometimes and you may see nothing.

Window vs Aisle

This is a classic debate but the aisle seat is clearly going to lose the battle on a Delhi Leh flight as it offers no views and the whole point of flying to Leh is to be able to enjoy the gorgeous scenery. That is possible only from the window seat. I have seen people who are unaware about the views scamper for the vacant window seats once the window seat passengers start going ooh and aah.

A side or F side Window Seat

While going the best views are on the A side window seats and while coming back the best views are on the F side of the plane. It is that simple.

Front of the Plane or Back of the Plane?

I would always choose the back of the plane because I like to include the wing of the plane in my photos and videos. Front of the plane would work too if you like to keep the wings out of the frame. Worst seats would be directly on the wings because then the wings obstruct the view and make it difficult to get a decent picture. One way out of this is to use zoom function to get out the obstructing wings out of the frame.

Sunrise or Sunset Flight

Unfortunately Leh Airport is a small and tricky one. The flights come in the morning and all of them leave by late afternoon. So there are no sunset flights in or out of Leh. You have to try and catch sunrise over the Ladakh Range of Mountains while flying in to Leh. I have been lucky once, in the month of October to catch the sunrise while I took the 5.30 am flight from Delhi. The above video is from that sunrise flight.

Summer Winter or Autumn View

I have also done it through seasons, in winter, summer and autumn. In summer the snow is less, so we get a lot of brown in our picture. Flying into Leh in winter is a pleasure. The mountains are white and there are hardly any tourists. But my best views came in autumn as I caught the sunrise over the mountains!

Flying over Leh is always gorgeous. I hope the information given above will help you in choosing a good seat and enjoying the magnificent views.

The post Which Seat to Choose on a Delhi Leh Flight for Best Views first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

Chhavi and I visited Hyderabad because she was playing a tennis tournament there. My elder Nephew works at Hyderabad, so after the matches we went and stayed with him. He is an avid cyclist and knows a lot of delicious food experiences in all price ranges across the city of Hyderabad. We were a group of three, though not a typical family. And we had loads of fun. I also feel sports tourism or tennis travel is going to be the way forward for me. But back to the food experiences in Hyderabad.

Huber & Holly- The Fantastic Ice Cream Shop

After walking for long at the KBR Park, Chhavi and Dilip went in search if ice cream. I was tagging behind 10 paces behind them as usual. Chhavi entered a shop and decided she wanted to try another one. I was tired, I wanted to sit, but the girl didn’t budge. So out we went in search for another ice cream shop.

And then we stumbled upon Huber & Holly and I am glad Chhavi didn’t settle for the first one. Their ice creams are fabulous. Chhavi took Litchi Charcoal, she gave me a little to taste. We both really liked it.

I went with a kulfi and I have to say I have not had such amazing kulfi in ages. Dilip was watching his calories so he only had black coffee, which he told was excellent again. We are going there again at the first opportunity. The prices are what you would expect with a premium place.

Chutneys for Lunch at Hyderabad

My nephew took us to the Chutneys for a late lunch one day. Chhavi wanted to go to a KFC. That led us to a discussion about chain restaurants vs local ones. We told her we were going to eat a lot of local food. To which she said she didn’t want only chutneys for lunch! We assured her there would be a lot more than chutneys to choose from.

When we went, there was a waiting time to get a table. The waiting area was air conditioned and had many chairs. So it was pleasant to wait but we didn’t wait for long. Dilip went with Guntur Idli and I with Rawa Dosa. Chhavi decided to eat noodles. Our stuff was of course yummy but the noodles were good too. Once again, a great experience thanks to Dilip. Overall the food was delicious and the prices reasonable.

Le Vantage for Dinner

Le Vantage has dining and bar. Dilip and Chhavi would run ahead to such places, only to be stopped by the bouncers, because Chhavi is clearly underage. I would reach 5 steps later and take charge. Once they would see me with them, we were always granted entry to the dining area. This happened to us at two places.

We only went to the dining area and not the bar because Chhavi is underage. The upstairs dining is comfortable. Chhavi ordered nachos, Dilip ordered pita bread and humus and I ordered pasta with beer. We all liked the our dishes. Le Vantage is a good place to sit, relax, chat and eat.

Eat Street

We ate a dinner at Eat Street near Hussain Sagar. It is a food court style place with many options. Chhavi ate spiral potatoes and immediately remembered Biograd because she ate a lot of spiral potatoes there. She also ate momos, and drank a big glass of juice and the chuski. And ask her to eat anything at home and she is not hungry! Dilip as usual ordered a low calorie meal and I ate falafals!

The food is decent but the view of the lake is priceless. The food is reasonably priced.

Kadak House near KBR Park

While we were walking near the KBR Park we stopped at the Kadak House for my evening tea. Dilip is a regular here on his cycling runs and I too liked the place. It is a roadside stall with not space to sit. But it serves good tea in a casual setting.

Nariyal Pani (Tender Coconut Water) by the Roadside

After a long walk on the hot days, nariyal pani is the thing you look out for. It is cheaper in Hyderabad than Delhi NCR. I don’t remember the exact price as Dilip was paying for almost everything.

Tiffin from Online Platforms

We ordered many meals at home too, particularly breakfast. There are a lot of tiffin services in Hyderabad that dish out superb local food. We ordered a lot of South Indian food from Tiffin depot and Varalakshmi Tiffins and both are good. I loved them. Chhavi wanted North Indian food so we went for puri aalo once for her and even that was good.

Raw Mango with Masala

But the best of all was the raw mango (see the top picture) with spices. It is a seasonal thing. It is simply raw mango that is not too tangy smeared with spices that perfectly balance sweet, sour and hot! We bought one plate and walked on for dinner. We walked a long way back to buy another plate but the guy had gone back home by the time we finished our dinner. His stuff was sold out!

We had so much fun trying different food at Hyderabad. I hope my nephew picks his next job close to a beach! And Chhavi has a match there too.

The post Delicious Food Experiences in Hyderabad for Family first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

My daughter has been playing tennis for many years now. But it is only recently we started to travel for matches and one of the stops was Hyderabad. And that is how we caught the beautiful glimpses of Hyderabad. I also feel we will travel a lot for tennis in the coming years, hence the tennis travel series. It helped immensely that my nephew Dilip, previously known as Brat 1 on this blog now works at Hyderabad. After the tournament we had a home to crash and enjoy the place with his expert guidance.

We did not do too much. Though we (Chhavi and I) walked a lot with wrong footwear and we ate a lot of good food! Dilip always wore the right footwear! We are eagerly waiting to go back to play another relevant tournament in Hyderabad so that we can stay back and enjoy again!

The first place we visited was Hussain Sagar Lake on a weekend. It is a beautiful place and that is why it attracts a lot of people particularly on the weekends! We quickly exited out of the boating area as the crowd was too hot to handle. We then went in search of food, which is going to be a separate post. We did find good food and a bit of adventure around it.

The second place we visited was the KBR National Park, on the next day. Dilip did ask us if we would go with casual footwear as we were visiting a park! Now I thought of a park as garden and not a national park! And we paid the price for not wearing shoes! Out feet complained a lot by the end of the day!

Dilip and Chhavi walk with a purpose! It is as if they are preparing to participate in an international walking event! I always lag four or five steps behind in spite of trying my best. And in casual footwear it was even more difficult for me to keep up with them. After half an hour, I reminded Dilip that he needs to trek with Youth Hostel Association of India (YHAI) again. Their moto is to enjoy the nature and not run from place A to B. I started sitting on the ample benches provided by the park and enjoying the nature. And there was a lot to enjoy!

The park was full of flowering gulmohar (delonix regia) trees which made for a pretty picture, provided these two would let me pause. If I stopped for a picture I was immediately 10 paces behind!

I have to say the park is really user friendly. A lot of people use it for walking and jogging. There are signposts all around. But much credit to them for providing RO Water all around the park. I can’t even remember how many times we refilled our steel bottle on that hot summer day!

Dilip moved out for work when Chhavi was really small. But these two bonded right from the beginning. It was lovely to see them enjoy some time together again! As our stroll around the park was coming to an end, we went out to look for food again!

When we left from Gurgaon, the weather was atrocious. Hyderabad scored a lot of points for having milder weather and much less pollution than the National Capital Region (NCR). We rally enjoyed the blue skies which remined me of the old movie, ‘Hyderabad Blues’.

We move to bigger cities often in search of better jobs and opportunities! And then we end up selling our soul to being stuck in traffic. The traffic in Hyderabad is increasing but I have to say it is still a lot better! As I said earlier in the post, we are waiting to go back and play a right tournament again. Because that would also mean staying back and exploring the city again!

The post Beautiful Glimpses of Hyderabad- The Tennis Travel Series first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I had the pleasure of staying at the Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun beach for my 50th birthday in May. It was a memorable stay. I was celebrating the occasion solo. I hardly ever take vacations where I just laze around but this was close to one such holiday. And I need to do it more.

I was staying in a suite at the sixth floor with the Ocean (Bay of Bengal) being my live TV. The rocking chair by the bed was my favorite corner of the room! My suite had a large living area too but I liked the view from the bedroom window more! The bed was comfortable leading to good sleep all around.

I could see the hotel swimming pool and the beach right from my room and those are the only two places I visited on my trip! I took many laps in the pool, as I was eating a lot of good food at Novotel Vizag.

As I knew the Ramakrishna Beach was really crowded in the evening, I went there in the morning. The morning weather was nice, the beach is right across road from Novotel Vizag and that is the farthest I ventured on this trip.

So, what did I do for the rest of the time? I ate a lot of good food at the various restaurants within the hotel. I went to the terrace to enjoy the view along the Beach Road. My room had a bath tub, so that was that! I loved the tea and coffee maker in the living room and used it a lot. But I sat on that rocking chair doing nothing for most of the time! Like every other trip, I arrived so tired but I got back home rejuvenated.

PS. The Novotel Visakhapatnam kindly hosted me as a blogger and I paid for my flight!

The post My Wonderful 50th Birthday Stay at Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach first appeared on Travel Tales from India and Abroad.

I love rooftops for the incredible photo opportunities they provide! Novotel Vizag has a wonderful rooftop restaurant, Infinity. In addition they have a running track on the top. At sunrise and sunset I would simply go to the rooftop and enjoy the view. I could see the many moods of the Beach Road Vizag and it was such a pleasure.

When I get to see such incredible view I wish to capture a lot of it in a single frame. GoPro comes in handy at such occasions.

The Beach Road looks good from any angle you view it. I so enjoyed watching its various moods during my stay.

The crowd you see was the weekend crowd. The RK Beach is more crowded in the evening. I was happy to stand at the top floor and enjoy the view from a distance.

Looking at the crowd I decided to go to the beach in the morning. The added advantage was the sunrise on the beach.

For a very long time, I was not the morning person. Then my daughter started playing tennis in the morning. Now, I can catch a few sunrises without groaning too much.

Even though the terrace view was superb, the view from my room was beautiful too. I went to Vizag on a short trip. Other than the beach I did not venture out anywhere. But I loved my stay at the Novotel Vizag. I need more vacations like these!

PS. The usual blogging disclosure- my stay at Novotel Vizag was complimentary. I paid for my flights.

Do you remember my post on ‘my relationship with food?’ It is still complicated but it is improving for sure. There were times at Novotel Vizag when I would go in with my old attitude, “let’s get done with it” and then check myself and ask- “what would Phil do?” And I tried to do likewise.

Wondering where should I start? Let me start at the beginning. I went down for lunch to The Square. The breakfast is also served there daily. It is the 24 hour restaurant.

The lunch buffet was lavish. There were many options, but I went with the local ones, rasam, sambar, biryani, curd rice, papad and such! And I liked it a lot. They also have a huge dessert table full of delicious stuff.

Breakfast has a wide variety as well. I would once again stick to idli, dosa, vada and the like. However, for the tea lover in me, the filter coffee at Novotel Vizag was the true find. It was really good.

I met the delicious Biryani again at the Zaffran which serves the regional cuisine. I had soup before and followed it up with some delicious kulfi! All of it was good.

I cannot leave out the melt in your mouth kulfi picture before I move on. Of all the ice creams in the world Kulfi is my absolute favorite and this one was ‘rica‘.

I met the filter coffee again after my lunch while sitting at the bakery Sugarr. For the rest of my stay I was a coffee person, which happened like never before!

My dinners were at the Infinity which is a rooftop restaurant and at the Harbour Vue Bar. Infinity has an amazing view of the city, however I failed to secure a table outside. They are known for their sizzlers.

But I would park myself at the rooftop at every sunrise and sunset and these are the views! Also, if you look near the pool, you can probably see the evening tea service happening by the pool.

The Harbour Vue Bar has a good ambience, nice cocktails and bar food! I had delicious eggs and mushrooms other than the cocktail.

I also loved the door of the bar, it has such beautiful boat decorations. Inside the sea and the boat theme continues.

Here is a picture that will give you an idea of what to expect when you go to the Harbour Vue bar. They also have seating outside.

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And when the mixologist/bartender is in the mood, they set the table on fire too! I had an enjoyable stay at the Novotel Vizag. And I ate a lot of delicious food too. There will be more on the blog about this trip.

PS. The usual blogging disclosure- my stay at Novotel Vizag was complimentary. I paid for my flights.

I recently turned 50, there I said it. For my 40th birthday, I trekked up to the Everest Base Camp, solo. And it feels like yesterday! Where did the decade go? Half of it has been spent on tennis courts after my daughter started playing, be it rain, sunshine or cold! And she is still going strong.

For my birthday I had two choices, take my daughter to her Asian U16 matches in Delhi, or go travel alone. We being a family of travelers, there was no hesitation in anybody’s mind what we would do. My husband took my daughter to her matches and I took a break alone. Hopefully that also answers the question for many people who asked me, “why solo for your birthday?” And believe me a lot of people asked me that. I did the same for my 40th birthday too, but didn’t face as many questions then!

My party started with my school friends as a lot of us are turning 50 this year! Manjaree with whom I started in KG was hosting a party for her 50th birthday which coincided with my 50th birthday!

It was close by at Roseate House at Aero City in Delhi. A bunch of school friends got together and had fun together! It was also convenient to catch my next early morning flight from there.

I continued to Vizag on my birthday, where I was staying at Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach for two nights. I had nothing else planned. The kind folks at Accor hosted me at hotel as a blogger.

So what has changed in these ten years? A lot and nothing. The biggest change is my daughter has started playing out of town tournaments. We went to Jalandhar and next stop would be Hyderabad. So another kind of traveling is about to start, one where we don’t know when to book the return flights or train tickets!

What has not changed at all is my love for travel! I do not see too many vacations happening, but I will surely take a few quality ones!

I still feel slightly dazed at turning 50, I don’t know why. I know this too is just a number. So, here is to looking forward to life in 50s!

It has been almost 10 years! I gifted Everest Base Camp Trek to myself on my 40th birthday. And 10 years have gone by in a flash. I am staring at my 50th birthday, somewhat dazed! We have never been big on birthdays but spending the 40th on the trek was special. I have been reminiscing about it these days.

While I was miserable and tired throughout the trek, but the memories are there for a lifetime. I only remember the good things, the beauty and the thrill. I was working full time when I went to EBC, my commute was long and my fitness low. But I am glad I went.

The good thing about traveling on birthdays is you can clearly remember what you did even after years. I was in South Africa on my birthday in 2013, in Barcelona in 2017 and Koh Samui in 2018. Other ones I have no clue what I did.

I trekked with Above the Himalayas and it was because of them I was able to complete this hike! Deepak was my trekking guide and he is a gem. He understood my pace, fatigue and nature perfectly. He got me going even though I doubted myself every day!

I survived the trek by taking one day at a time. I knew about the climb to Namche. But no one wrote about trek to Tengboche being an equally tough! It totally killed me. But I somehow managed to walk for just one more day, every day!

The best part of the trek are the lodges where we stay. They have washrooms and they save you from freezing in a tent. But best are communal kitchens. Not only they provide sustenance, they were also the source of great conversations. The climbers who attempt the summit and walk back also stay at the same lodges. That makes for great stories.

It was when I reached Lobuje that I started to feel hopeful. It was the first time I thought, to go back without reaching the Everest Base Camp would be a pity. I had come a long way from Lukla.

While I was trekking, I kept thinking why do I pay good money to get tortured? It was that difficult for me. However, after a few days of rest my opinion completely changed. Even today, after visiting 32 countries I consider this to be the trip of my lifetime!

To a traveler like me, it should be obvious that birthdays are meant for traveling. Corona also added a different dimension to life, it taught me not to take anything for granted!

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With the 50th coming up next month, even though it is not as grand as Everest Base Camp, I do plan to travel within the country! And think about life in the 50s!

As walked through the beautiful lobby of The Imperial, so many thoughts were jostling inside my head. To reach the hotel I took a Metro, first in more than two years. I was visiting the hotel to join in the Easter workshop for kids. I am glad I went, we had so much fun.

The Imperial New Delhi in association with Liszt Institute Hungarian Cultural Centre Delhi and Sree Art celebrated egg painting and cooking workshop with children from Tara Homes and other school kids. And I became a child with them for the two hours that I was there.

The event was held at the Daniell’s Tavern. I was on time but the kids were already painting the eggs! I too sat at a table with tea and watched others paint. Mine was a table full of adults with childlike enthusiasm. My drawing and painting skills have always been awful so I gave the egg painting a pass. I went around clicking pictures instead. The coordinators from Sree Arts kept encouraging everyone doing the painting and gave them helpful suggestions and ideas.

And then everyone got a surprise. Mr. Boman Irani who was shooting at the hotel, dropped in. He stayed for a while, talked to people, and agreed for a photo every time someone asked!

Then things became even more fun, Chef Prem along with Dr. Mariann Erdo from the Liszt Institute conducted the cooking class where we were making the Hungarian Isler.

Things were made easy for us, the cookies were already there, we dipped them in chocolate, applied jam on the other side and topped them up with nuts and there we were with Islers. This was the most fun for me. And even though I had desert at the high tea, I ate my cookies too!

All the kids got a certificate for their efforts, given away by Mr. Vijay Wanchoo, Senior Executive VP and the GM of the hotel and Dr. Mariann.

I learned a lot about Easter traditions at the event. Other than the common ones like fasting before the feast, egg hunts etc., in Hungary there is a tradition where boys sprinkle water or perfume over girls on Easter Monday. The event at the Imperial ended by breaking the giant chocolate Easter eggs on the table.

I went to an event at the after such a long time, it was lovely to meet Ruchi and Chef Prem again. The event was fun, both for the kids and the adults alike.

The pandemic has given me a new appreciation for all things related to travel and events. Never again I am going to take it for granted.

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I leave you with a reel to enjoy from the Easter Workshop at the Imperial New Delhi.

I recently moderated a virtual session on ‘Beyond Travel’, organized by Department of Management Studies (DMS), IIT Delhi. It was great fun to connect with my fellow panelists and discuss all things travel!

While you can watch a recording of the whole talk below, it is about 2 hours long. That is how much we can talk about travel!

The topics discussed in the video were suggested to us by the students organizing the event. It is what they were interested in and wanted to know more about! To be a moderator of this session was an easy task. Everyone had a lot to contribute, and everyone respected the time limits.

In these days of 15 second clips, I feel intimidated to share a 2 hour long video. As I type I am tempted to leave without sharing anything but then I do know how to go against the the flow!

For me the most fun section was on local fashion! All the panelists talked about their old clothes and how obsessed we are for saving money for travel! My down jacket is now 10 year old and I finally need to replace it! We talked about how we got into travel, culture shock, saving money to travel and a lot more!

I find it difficult to urge you all to go and listen to the 2 hour talk but no harm in trying, right?

I started an Instagram series, during the Covid times called going places. I started documenting all the 32 countries I have been to, through Instagram Reels. You can read the parts I II III IV V and VI from the respective links. Today I present Hungary, Cyprus and Russia.

26. Budapest, Hungary

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Budapest was a beautiful trip. My sister Alka and I traveled together after a long time and we enjoyed every minute of it. Our flight to Budapest was via Rome, which was a bonus. We roamed around Rome too!

27. Cyprus

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I visited Cyprus with Cyprus Tourism Board! It is a beautiful country. The beaches are gorgeous, the historic sites majestic and it was full of flowers in summer. I will actually like to go back one day.

28. Russia

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I visited Krasnoyask and Moscow in Russia. Never in my life did I imagine that I would get an opportunity to visit Siberia! I was invited as a blogger to Siberia and I extended my trip to explore Moscow on my own.

It has been fun doing this series on my blog. The next part will be the conclusion and I hope travel will resume soon! And that I can think of visiting more countries!

PS. The first image in the picture is from Kakopetria in Cyprus

Chhavi and I decided to watch the India Denmark Davis Cup tie at the Delhi Gymkhana Club. All the prominent news stories remarked that the event is free. So, we arrived, only to be promptly stopped at the gate. The event is free, but the entry is through free passes. I clearly didn’t have one. There was another gentleman stuck like us. We talked to the police telling them the event is reported as free everywhere! He denied it first. Then he called a senior who asked us to wait for five minutes. We waited patiently. Three young volunteers approached us and told us that the passes were available free of cost at Delhi Lawn Tennis Association’s (DLTA) Office. But they had passes with them too and gave it to all of us!

At the security we were asked to leave our water bottles but camera, including DSLR, is allowed. After this we had no surprises. We were quickly seated and Ramkumar Ramanathan’s match with Mikael Torpegaard was already in progress. My daughter had exam in the morning, so we knew we would miss some of the match!

It was a pleasure to watch him live, I have only seen his clips on YouTube and his mixed doubles at Wimbledon on streaming. Ramkumar won his match in straight sets!

After Ram had a word with the legendary Vijay Amritraj, the court started getting prepared for the next match between Yuki Bhambri and Christian Sigsgaard. India was already leading 1-0 at this stage.

It was a pleasure to watch the stars of Indian Tennis at the venue. Rohan Bopanna (second from right) was vocal in his support for the team! Sometimes I wish there were more team events in tennis!

Yuki too was in fine form, he won the first set without too many difficulties. There were a few break of serves but our lad cruised through.

It was also fun to see the Indian team cheering their mates. The gentleman in the orange cap is Dr. Yash Pandey, one of the physiotherapist of the Indian team. I can vouch that his whistle can be heard above the crowd at the other end of the stadium.

While the Indian team had the support of the whole stadium, the Denmark team was 5-6 member strong. I wish I knew the name of this young Danish player he also could be heard above the crowd throughout the stadium. His cheering would invite counter cheers and everyone had a good time!

Yuki quickly went up 4-0 in the second set. But what is tennis without a few twists and turns! After 5-2 lead, it suddenly got narrowed down to 5-4. It was Yuki’s serve and he did manage to serve the match out comfortably.

For Chhavi and I this was a great adventure! I have still watched a lot of live sport growing up, particularly badminton but this was a first for Chhavi. She was suitably impressed. It is another matter that she has played a lot of junior matches at the All India Tennis Association (AITA) level.

Getting a chance to see Vijay Amritraj in person was a high for me. I realized that I have watched a lot of tennis on TV but not so much live. I think it is time to change it. On the other hand I have watched so many AITA junior matches because my daughter plays there! I have to say it is tough to watch your child play! And it is super fun to watch professional matches!

We will try to go and watch Day 2 matches too. As I knew I needed passes for tomorrow, I went to the Delhi Gymkhana Club reception and asked the lady there if she had passes. Of course she didn’t and neither did she know where could I get one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A gentleman in India blazer (I recollect this now) overheard the conversation and said he had a few to spare. He gave us two passes for tomorrow. We thanked him there and I wish to thank him again for coming to our rescue. I leave you with a reel of the day 1 of the India Denmark Davis Cup tie at the Delhi Gymkhana Club!