Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan!!!

Mumbai, the dream city of the Masses, a magical city that has elevated people from poverty to prosperity. The glamour world of Bollywood, home to business tycoons and one of the world's most expensive house and alongside comes the darker and grimmer world of underworld dons trying to run the city and the common man shrugging off the ghastly attack by coward terrorists. A few spots in the city still wearing the signs of destruction left behind. This city teaches the world on how to be brave and survive even in the most horrifying circumstances, be it the terror attacks or natural calamities. This city has a never say die attitude and comes together to come back to normalcy.

Mumbai was meant to be a pit stop for our Magical Monsoon Matheran trip. But coming to Mumbai and not getting engulfed by it's charm is highly impossible. This is the perfect city to see the ultra rich and ultra poor co-exist. The financial capital of India takes you aback with breathtaking high rises, bridges built over sea, the over hyped real estate prices and the sea facing homes.

Taj Mahal hotel was built in 1903 and believe it or not it was built 21 years before the Gateway of India. This beautiful piece of history is a true example of what Mumbai stand for- It's surviving spirit and fearless attitude. This hotel was opened in record time after the ghastly terror attacks.

The beautiful monument, Gateway of India, was completed in 1924 and it was built to commemorate the visit of King George and Queen Mary but the first major event to happen was the ceremony that was conducted on 28 February 1948 when the last set of British troops and divisions left India post-Independence.

The beach providing a view of Gateway of India and Taj Mahal hotel is a picture perfect moment but as much as we would love to see the beautiful building, the clutter floating in the water reflecting a darker side of commercialization and tourism melted our hearts. This significant and beautiful place is surrounded with so much garbage around, if only Mankind would respect Nature, this world would definitely be a much better place.

Commuting like the Mumbaikars in the local train is an experience in itself. You need to master the art of boarding and alienating the train without getting a scratch. That being said, this is the lifeline of Mumbai and the entire city relies on it and its pretty much a part of every single person's routine.

With the monorail being introduced, we hopped in for a joy ride and were pretty impressed with it. The smart Mono rail criss-crosses the city, ferrying people from one end to another. 

This dream city is also home to several slums which houses the most hard working class that are grossly underpaid. It is such a contrast to see one of the world's largest slum among such urbanization. This made us wonder how is it not possible to eradicate poverty and rehabilitate these folks. Living conditions in these slums are beyond imagination, millions still don't have access to clean drinking water, healthy living environment, drainage system etc.

The high and the mighty bow their heads down at Siddhi Vinayaka temple and even at times ditch their luxury cars and choose to walk it up from their sprawling bungalows to the temple. This Ganesh temple built in 1801 is one of the richest temples in Mumbai.

The Mount Mary church at Bandra, 80 mts above sea level, is a beautiful stone structure and the interiors have beautifully painted murals depicting the life events of Mary. This church is also famous for the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary held in September followed by a week long celebration known as Bandra Fair.

Bandra-Worli sea link, reduces the travel time from Bandra to Worli from 90 minutes to 20-30 minutes. This INR 16 Billion bridge is perfect for late night drives and of course makes for some beautiful photographs.

Marine Drive, is the ideal place for an evening stroll or to just sit there with the high rise building behind and the sea in front inviting us to dream big and encouraging us to fulfill those dreams. Ah! The city of Dreams.

The Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus, popularly known as Victoria Terminus "VT" Station, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is blend of Victoria Gothic, Mughal and traditional Indian style of architecture. The wood carvings, tiles, iron and brass railings, and the grand staircase left us in awe at the brilliance of the designs.

Mumbai is a fantastic destination for food lovers and apart from the most famous Juhu Chowpati, there are a lot of other eateries that make you lick your fingers. We treated our taste buds to the best of street food, desserts and a wee bit of fancy continental food.

Your trip to Bombay is not complete without a visit to Leopold Cafe. They have extensive variety of Beer and their Alferdo Veg Pasta and Peking Chicken fried rice is a lovely add on. This place still bears the remains of the terror attack- the bullet holes and small crater due to the grenade blast under one of the tables tell the horrifying tales.

If you are in mood for some Nachos, french-fries, nooodles, visit Abstrakt Bistro & Lounge. The food was excellent and the ambience great.

Milkshake at Shiv Sagar- This place is not just famous for its Idly, Vada, Dosa, tea and coffee but also serves some really good milkshakes. We tried the Sitaphal Milkshake and it was as heavy as a whole breakfast meal.

Sadguru Pav Bhajji- This place is famous for the variety of Pav Bhajji that they offer with lots of butter floating on the bhajji and the only thing you can be heard saying after finishing it is - Yeh Dil Maange More!!

People who love chaat will definitely vouch for this- "as long as you have not had Pani Puri you have not had Chaat". For Pani Puri, we would highly recommend Sind Pani Puri house, they have the perfect blend of spice and masala providing a perfect end to your chaat experience.

To satisfy the sweet tooth craving, head to Rassilly, a small falooda joint and try from a list of their faloodas. The Rabdi falooda was heavenly filled with dry fruits and believe us when we say it would not be possible for a person to finish the whole glass.

For those who love ice creams, Ice Cream sandwich at Rustoms at Churchgate is a must visit. This place serves Ice cream Sandwich with some variety of flavors ranging from Muskmelon to Pappay and the ice cream is sandwiched in between two wafer slabs, definitely unique.

Of course, the trademark snack Vada pav at any of the eat outs, Maharashtra's very own favorite snack is a must try.

Mumbai gave us a taste of the rapid fast Mumbaikars' life. We enjoyed the iconic places, the food and in true Mumbai style we were welcomed by our friend and her family who made the stay in Mumbai filled with happy and joyous memories.

Matheran Photo Blog

Matheran travel blog. 

Bhutan Entry Procedure For Travelers

The Highway connecting Bhutan with India is scintillating, making it one of the best memorable rides that we have had in the entire trip. Our eyes never got tired of seeing lush green tea estates for miles and miles.

We entered Bhutan via Jaigaon/Phuentsholing. The mere thought of riding your own bike in another country was thrilling and a country as beautiful as Bhutan was the icing on the cake. Indians do not need a visa to travel to Bhutan. In fact one can cross over to Pheuntsholing shop around from 9 am-10 pm and get back to Jaigaon by 10 pm. However, if you plan to extend your trip beyond Pheuntsholing, you would require a travel permit and a vehicle permit if you plan to use your own vehicle.

TRAVEL PERMIT

The Entry Procedure is pretty straightforward and simple. One has to go to the Immigration office at the border, the first building on your right and fill out the entry permit form. All you need is your passport and a couple of passport size photos. After taking pictures of you on their webcam, the Immigration office at the Pheuntsholing issues entry permit. The permit is issued for a maximum of 7 days and entry is restricted to Paro, Thimpu and Pheuntsholing. To visit any other destination within the Kingdom and extend visit beyond 7 days you have to extend your travel permit at Thimphu.

VEHICLE PERMIT

Getting a permit for your vehicle is again a simple procedure. Vehicle permits are issued by the "Roads And Safety Authority Of Bhutan." This office is barely a kilometer away from the Immigration office at the border. You have to provide a copy of RC book, Insurance, Driving License along with a copy of Entry Permit. You are required to write a letter seeking permit for your vehicle from the Road and Safety Authority. Bikes are charged Rupee 10 per day. Vehicle permits are issued with the same conditions as entry permit.

Any extension requests should be done at "Roads And Safety Authority" office at Thimphu. If you wish to enter the Kingdom on a Sunday, keep in mind that the Road and Safety Authority office functions only from 11 am to 1 pm. Once you have all the permits, keep the permit papers handy and safe as you are required to show these documents at various check posts en-route. From Pheuntsholing to Thimphu, there are two Immigration check-posts and it is mandatory to get your travel permits stamped here during entry and exit.

FOREIGN NATIONALS

For Foreign Nationals planning to visit Bhutan, it is mandatory to book their trip through a Bhutanese tour operator. The tour operator will take care of their visa, stay, tours and the likes.

STAY

We would recommend staying over at Pheuentsholing instead of Jaigaon as it is more organized, calm and peaceful. Pheuntsholing is a brilliant place to break your journey as it offers wonderful hotels and restaurants catering to all budgets.nd also has a bustling and busy market making it the perfect place to pick up goodies for friends and family.

Petrol pumps are fewer in Bhutan. Leaving the pumps at the border town there are only two more fuel pumps en-route. One at Geddu and the other at Tsimasham. It would be wise to tank up before entering Bhutan.

Photo Tribute To Nalanda University

Nalanda- An acclaimed University of Ancient times

World's most prestigious and thriving university of Ancient India. It was a childhood dream come true to visit this magnificent first International Residential University that flourished for centuries. A center of learning and way to means for people who were in search of wisdom. People from across the globe flocked to this university in India to graduate in Astronomy, Math, Grammar, Logic, Theology, Meta Physics and Medicine. It is said that the library of Nalanda continuously burnt for three months and that the smoke was seen from far away distances. Despite the savage destruction left behind by the Mughal invaders they failed to wipe away the memory and learning that this place offered. This proves "Pen is mightier than the sword."

An archway of massive thick green trees welcome you to this esteemed site. The ruins of Nalanda comprises of several monasteries, residential quarters, temples and shrines. The entire complex is mesmerizing that beyond any doubt in its heydays, Nalanda university would have given the best of education to people from across the globe. It is sad to see such a glorious historic monument now in ruins. We stood there baffled thinking about millions of Indians who stand for several hours in long queues outside embassies of foreign countries in the hope of getting admission in colleges overseas. There was a time when we gave the World good quality education and now for several years India has been facing a brain drain crisis.

Almost all of the many monuments, temple and monasteries are breathtaking. As we entered the ruins, to our left was monastery 3, the post card of Nalanda University- the most imposing of all and was constructed in seven phases. There were four towers erected on the corners of which only two remain now. You can walk around this monument and on the other side are several pagodas and small stupa like structures. Parallel to this is another monument in ruins that showcases state of the art water harvesting system.

Backtrack the same route and the pathway leads to the remaining temples and monasteries. Almost every monastery has residential cells, raised platforms for the teachers to preach while some of them are equipped with wells and traditional ovens used for cooking.The drainage system and the well thought of ventilation shafts for sunlight are commendable.

Monastery 1 apart from providing the maximum number of artifacts during excavation  is one monastery that went through nine phases of construction. It has bed platforms and shelves for keeping books and other valuables. The destruction of the University by fire is visible in the cells of this monastery.

There is one monastery with vast number of stone pillars still standing in their original position serving more the purpose of a grand hall. Stay on the walkway and you will be led to the huge smelting furnace. Also, watch out for the small narrow passage that leads you to the temple and with this the tour of Nalanda pretty much comes to an end.

However, when you are existing the complex do not walk back the same route but take the trek path from the last temple shrine that leads you to the backside of all the monasteries. The highlight of this path is the elevated platform that offers breathtaking panoramic views of the ruins and also leads you to the most incredible ruin i.e. Temple no.2. Take a stroll around this temple to witness some of the most stunning and crisp stone carvings, portraying sculptures of gods and goddesses, Jataka stories, geometric patterns and even mermaids. Either our ancestors were big fans of fantasy or actually saw this for real. There are several pillars lying around this temple and each paints a unique story.

Sarai Mound concludes your visit to the ruins of Nalanda. This multi-storeyed Buddhist temple with large number of stupas and shrines was protected by a massive wall enclosure. The ruins in the sanctum suggest that the Buddha statue was around eighty feet high. Don't be too surprised if you find a monitor lizard giving you company while taking a stroll around.

ASI has done a wonderful job of maintaining the ruins well. An early morning visit to the ruins would be ideal, the monument is open to visitors from 9 am. Clean drinking water is made available and restroom facilities too are available. A day pack is an absolute must as it takes a minimum of two hours to see the entire ruins. There are hardly any options to stay or dine in Nalanda. If you are planning to stay over, Rajgir which is 12 km away would be the best place to halt and there are plenty of buses that ply from Nalanda to Rajgir.

Right opposite the ruins of Nalanda is the Nalanda ASI museum. It houses relics that were excavated from the ruins of Nalanda and other neighboring regions. The museum houses age old relics in absolute pristine condition. The sculptures of Buddha in various mudras, the striking calm sculpture of Shiva and Parvati and the sculpture of a fierce looking Goddess with seven hands wearing human skulls as ornaments around her neck are enthralling. A display of the simple tools used by the sculptors made us appreciate the immense talent that they had to convert rock into such amazing sculptures giving them so much life. There are two massive storage earthen pots at the entrance. The terracotta gallery exhibits elephant stamps that come with a lid, this was used to save time and make multiple copies or impressions. Other interesting displays that should not be missed are combs made of ivory and dices made of bones.