Kumarakom, Queen of Vembanad

It is the perfect backwater village of KumarakomVembanad Lake, 15 km west of Kottayam. My biggest dream of seeing the backwaters of Kerala came live when I went there. It is the best weekend destination or getaway of the people of Kerala. Kumarakom is a perfect resort destination for the honeymooners, couples and the backwaters lover. It is a tiny village on the edge of Vembanad Lake which was practically unknown till Henry Baker purchased the land from the erstwhile Raja of Travancore to build himself a grand home. When they left India, Taj hotels stepped in to turn it into a fancy resort, changing the fortunes of the once quiet fishing hamlet. But today when I see it, it is a maze of modern resorts and heritage homes cum hotels spilling over the island banks.

I started experiencing the Vembanad backwaters slowly and leisurely. I hired a kettuvallom, the traditional rice boat turned houseboat. There are many floating hotels range from tiny canoes to houseboats capped by elaborate superstructures of bamboo and rosewood, paneled with mats of screwpine. There are scores of motorboats available to take a ride on Vembanad Lake. I saw the past paddy and coconut groves, mangroves, along fresh water canals and rivers that debouch into Vembanad Lake. Around Onam the waters of Vembanad at Kumarakom come alive with boat races such as the Kumarakom Arpookara Vanitha Jalmela and the Kavanthikara Boat Race. I also came to know that I can even fish in these waters and some of the resorts also offered water skiing and wind sailing.

The next day my plan was to view the bird sanctuary of Kumarakom which is spread across 14 acres on the eastern banks of Vembanad Lake. It is best to visit the sanctuary on foot by a 1 ½ km long walking track, where I spot heron, darters, storks, teals and common egrets. I also took the boat ride and came across waders like waterfall and ducks and some filers like parrots, larks and flycatchers. And I went in mid November last year which is the time when the sanctuary turns into a transit lounge for migratory birds. The entry fees was only Rs. 5 however the guide took Rs. 100 from me and the timings were 6 am to 6.30 pm which meant I had to go back soon to reach the starting point of the sanctuary.

My third and the last day were to relax on my houseboat and view the Museum of VembanadLake. On the Kumarakom jetty itself a distinctive building with its pillared verandah and sloping tiled roof at the Market junction is the Bay Island Driftwood Museum. It displays the art of the sea chiseled driftwood gathered from the beaches of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal. It was unique as I haven’t seen any museum displaying these things before. Raji Punnoose, a retired teacher were chiseled by him into shapes that vary from a crocodile found off Port Blair’s Wandoor Beach to a sculpture Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose I also purchased few sculptures here to gift them to my family and friends. And my last night in Kumarakom Lake Resort which also offered ayurvedic centre, backwater cruises, gift shop, Jacuzzi and water sports, I though of enjoying few of them.

There are many Kumarakom Holiday Packages available now. For Driving Directions from Kochi to Kumarakom check this out.

Palampur, Darjeeling in Himachal

Palampur is in the Kangra Valley, criss crossed by streams and brooks which make Palampur pulum word for water in pahari, ideal for tea plantation. According to my guide the British were so obsessed by the aroma of the leaf of the Chinese origin that they began to plant tea bushes wherever land was suitable. The fame of Palampur lies in this British desire to have more tea than they could drink and export the rest back to a thirsting Europe.

While you enter Palampur you would come to know that it is surrounded by dense forest of oaks, pine and deodar making it ideal for those who enjoy long walks. For me the green valley also makes for enjoyable drives with my family and for those who are more adventurous, plugging off course to nearby destinations can be pretty rewarding.

Baijnath Temple also known as Kigram, was once the capital of the Kirat kings of Kangra as told by our guide. The early 13th century Shiva temple here is most unusual and looks as if it has been lifted from Puri in Orissa and dropped in the Kangra Valley.

The Tibetan monastery of Tashijong is one of the many built after the Dalai Lama settled in McLeodganj. We buyed carpets of delicate weave, Buddhist thanka paintings and other Tibetan arts and crafts, which were available here for our friends and relatives.

My destination was Neugal Khad close to the five centuries old temple of bundlamata. Also rising tall behind the chasm are the mighty Dhauladhars where we had a cup of tea at the HPTDC café nearby enjoying the views of chasm, temple and mountains all together as leisure.

Then there is a palace of the crescent moon Taragarh, heritage property build by Nawab of Bahawalpur and was named after the glass pleasure pavilion he built here which is now converted into a temple. However now it has been turned into Taragarh Palace Hotel.

Sherbing is a gigantic monastery also home to the pre- eminent Tal Sti Rimpoche. There are huge stupas and grandly conceived monastery in the middle of the forest. The Buddhist temple here contains an immense statue of Buddha. The Rimpoche allows the people between 2 and 4 in the afternoon; everyone is welcomed for the darshan.

We stayed at Hotel silver Oak, which offered us home-cooked food and horse rides, however there are many other hotels to stay like Hotel T- Bud, Sath Camps and many more. There is no dining choice in Palampur outside the hotels. Only Joy in town is famous for its veg food.

Ladakh A Spiritual High

Ladakh A Spiritual High

Ladakh is a high altitude plateau at India’s furthest frontier, bordered by POK and Tibet. To the west is Kashmir and to the south Himachal Pradesh. The Indus River bisects the plateau and by its banks is Leh, the capital of Ladakh. The vast land, dry and dedicated, swells and billows into great tiers of snow-crested peaks. Arching over it is a sky, pure blue, benign, sheltering. The river bisects the floor of the valley. The best season is from May to the end of October. Winter in Ladakh is bitterly cold. If you plan to travel by road, keep in mind that the Rohtang and Zoji La passes are open only between mid June and early October.

Dominating Leh from its vantage on the northern crag is the Leh Palace, a diminutive Potala. In the late afternoon, the wind picks up, riffling the prayer flags, carrying snatches of the deeply- intoed homage to Manjushri.

The mountains, snow-capped peaks and fortress- like monasteries provide a dramatic backdrop to the many roadside cafes, restaurants, beer bars, carpet and curio shops, and trekking and rafting agencies. It is full of trails that connect remote villages spread across ancient trade routes, and there is no better way to absorb this fascinating land and its culture than to trek through it.

Leh Palace is the imposing nine- storey Palace of Sengye ‘Lion’ Namgyal dominates the city. Explore its dark passages, making your way to the top floors to get a brilliant view of the Indus Valley. Further beyond the palace is the Tsemo Gompa.

Shey is the old capital of the Ladakhi kings. It is a pretty spot with numerous chortens and graceful willows that dip their leaves into pleasant artificial lake. There are extensive remains of a fortress on the hilland a palace, incorporated into which is a temple with a handsome copper and gold Shakyamuni Buddha. Around 300m away is the Thiksey Monastery, which housesa huge three storey Maitreya Buddha.

On the beautiful Leh-Kargil road lays the earliest surviving monastery of Ladakh known as Yung-drung, or the Swastika. Its site, perched on a rocky promontory high above the Lamayuru Village at the valley.

On the high southern bank of the Indus, in a lush, quiet oasis across the road from Saspol is the ancient center of learning. Alchi Choskhor. One can happily spend the whole day studying the frescoes and loafing under its verdant apricot trees. There are two high altitude lakes Tso Moriri and Pangong Tso.

Leh abounds with places to stay as almost every house being converted into a guesthouse ranging from Rs. 300 to Rs. 3000. There many hotels like Shambha La and Lharimo, which offer, heated rooms and lovely view. The Leh area has restaurants, cafes and bakeries catering to all budgets that run the entire range of cuisines from authentic Tibetan fare to European to Kashmeri to Israeli.
A successful trek in Ladakh requires you to acclimatize well. Spend a few days in Leh, go for gentle walks and get used to the altitude.

Kerala, The Land of Trees

Kerala

Kerala is a green strip of land, in the South West corner of Indian peninsula. It has only 1.1 8 per cent of the total area of the country but houses 3.43% of the the country's population. Kerala is a land of rivers and backwaters.

There are a thousand things that you can do like embark on an enchanting journey on the speckled backwaters on a kettuvallom, a fully furnished traditional rice boat, venture in to the very heart of the paddy fields, on narrow dykes with water passage running through the muddy path, cross water bodies with extremely narrow bridges or watch the natives do so. You can even drift across cheerful and colourful banks in a country raft or tread a treadmill used for irrigation even today.

If you have an experimenting palette, you can feast here relishing the traditional panorama of vellayappam, Uppuma, iddli, puttu, masala dosa, appams, vegetable/meat stew, kappa and meen curry, hot red fish curry with steamed tapioca or boiled rice. If you are not the one dish at a time person, just can roll your sleeves and savour a multi course feast of rice, 15 vegetarian dishes, spicy pickles, crunchy banana chips, crispy pappadams, plantains and payasam- the dessert. Served on a plantain leaf, the meal is eaten with the fingers. Apart from all this, sip on coconut juice all throughout or relish the soft white flesh, natural and healthy. Indulge with a swig of toddy or fresh madbura kallu prepared from sweet toddy extracted from the coconut palm. Teem it with exotic karimeen pollichathu (baked fresh water fish) or spicy pickles. If you are a fish eater, visit the Malabar Coast and at Vasco da Gama Square in Fort Kochi and take your pick from the inviting display of juicy sear fish, sardines, prawns, red snappers etc. and ask the fishermen to fry it the local way for you for an unforgettable snack.

Having toured and eaten to your heart’s fill, you can now turn your focus on something lavish…Keralan sarees. With thousands of colours, pattern, fabric, embroidery to choose from, Kerala offers something to suit every pocket. This five metres of fine off-white cotton edged saree with golden zari that lends an extraordinary elegance to the person wearing it, is woven from traditional handloom. Run around with gajras or a string of jasmine flowers adorning your head along with the swish sash of the patt pavada. Kerala is the spice capital of India and you cannot leave the place with a bagful of these aromatic spices.
The more adventurous can visit Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary in Thekkady and go on a safari in an elephant. Try following the tiger trail and spotting one, apart from the numerous egrets, herons, Siberian stork, darters, teals and hundreds of other migratory birds found here.

If you are a luxurious traveler, you cannot return without pampering yourself to an authentic Kerala massage. The options range from rejuvenation therapies like Shirodhara, Navarakizhi and Pizhichil to medicated treatments like Panchakarma processes of Vamana, Virechana and Raktamoksham etc.

Kerala is a magical place that offers so much to see and do, and yet leave you yearning for more. The addictive charm of the place mixed with the hospitality of the people and the fast urbanization definitely makes Kerala one of the most sought after destinations of today.