Kumbalangi

Until five minutes ago, I was just passing my time on the internet – just reading some interesting travelogues- when suddenly an idea to phrase my words about this small hamlet named Kumbalangi situated on the outskirts of Cochin came to me. Many of my blog readers must have googled the name of the place by now and read up few facts about the destination. Well, without taking much time or confusing you in my own thoughts, here is some general description about the place by a person who loves to travel and thhen write about it at some point of  time (actually when he gets time).

As already told, Kumbalangi is a beautiful village situated on the outskirts of Cochin. But, besides being a beautiful destination, it’s also product packaged by Incredible India –UNDP project with a motto to make it popular as a Model Tourism Village for tourists. Now, you must be thinking, what does that mean? Well, nothing according to me, it’s just another marketing jargon.

Covering an area of 16 square kilometres, with a population of about 35,000, Kumbalangi is divided into Anjilithara, Kumbalangi and Kallanchery sectors. Malayalam is the spoke language here. Vast stretches of tranquil backwaters, perfect setting for country boat cruising, crab farming, prawn cultures and indigenous fishing, all this is a part of Kumbalangi village.

Kumbalangi is ever ready to lure tourists with its natural beauties and it specialties of a unique village life. Friendly and warm village folks – fishermen, boatmen and farmers- are ever ready to take travellers to the sea and paddy fields. In the evening times, travellers can experience pleasant ambience by walking along the mangroves in the smooth freshness of the cool breeze.

Reaching Kumbalangi

By Road

Since Kumbalangi is very near to Cochin City, therefore, reaching it is never a problem. Huge number of buses, both KSRTC and private ones, ply regularly towards Kumbalangi. Private bus service can be availed from Ernakulam in every 15-20 minutes.

By Rail

The nearest railway station is at Ernakulam, about 25 kilometres from Kumbalangi.

By Air

International Air Port at Nedumbassery, near Aluva, is about 40 kilometres from Kumbalangi, Kochi.

Roopkund Lake Trek

Roopkund trek is more than just a trip. This high altitude Himalayan trek is truly a lifetime experience. Here, you’ll be welcomed by some of the most beautiful views of Mother Nature which very few lucky people witness in their lives.

Here, you also get to witness various shades of nature, which can astonish any human. For many of us, each and every trek in the Himalayas in introduces us a whole set of new things that can be a life changing event every time.

Roopkund Lake is best under the shades of yellow sun when it sparkles a lot.

Birds, insects and lovely flowers celebrate the departure of dark clouds and sing welcome songs in respect of the rich new sky. Animals like mountain goats and mountain deer can all be seen in herds especially near to fresh filled waterholes.

The Roopkund Lake trek encloses in itself amazingly beautiful landscapes, serene ponds and some of the largest meadows of Garhwal. Human skeletons can be easily seen lying at the lake’s bottom during autumn season. Plus, the sight of Trishul and Nandaghunti peaks is worth seeing when on an adventurous Roopkund Lake Trek.

                                                                                                                       

Commonly called as ‘Mystery Lake’, Roopkund Lake is located at an altitude of 5029 metres and nestles between Nanda Ghunti (6310 metres) and Trishul peak (7100 metres).  It is named as Mystery Lake because some 30 years ago, nearly six hundred year old skeletons of human and horses were discovered here a renowned anthropologist D N Majumdar.

As per scientists, all these skeletons are either of the pilgrims who went to pilgrim from Rajat Yatra to Homekund, or are the remains of army of General Zorawar Singh who along with his army made a frivolous attempt to conquer the nation of Tibet, but wasn’t successful because of weather. The beautiful and mysterious lake attracts innumerous travellers from all around the world every year.  

The Roopkund Lake Trek originates from Mandoli and completes at Ghat near Nand Prayag.

Best Times to Trek: April to June and September to October end.

           

Cherrapunji- A land of incessant rains

North East India is a land of natural treasures. “Mother Nature” has blessed this region with immense natural beauties that can beckon you whole of your life.

Blue mountains, rocky hills, verdant valleys, lush green canopies, untamed gushing rivers, diverse flora and fauna are part and parcel of this region. Every single bit of this region is showered with natural wealth that can behold your attention at the very first sight. One such breathtaking destination is Cherrapunji.

Situated in the Meghalaya state of North east India, Cherrapunji has been declared as the “wettest place on earth” by the popular Guinness Book of World Records. A short drive of about 60 kilometres from Shillong, the capital city of Meghalaya, will take you to entirely new ambiance.

A place to cherish the ever-lasting beauties of nature, Cherrapunji travel is simply a must-experience. Cherrapunji is the only place in the whole world where monsoon can be enjoyed all round the year.

Incessant rainfalls, varying from light to medium to even light, there’s not even a single month without rain here. Rainfall here is measured in feet not in millimeters.

Paradise for botanists, Cherrapunji is a place that enfolds huge range of flora and fauna within its lap. Lush green scenery is not a common scenario in Cherrapunji as it assumed to be. Instead, colourful and rare ferns, orchids, moss plants and dense forests can all be seen here. Orange and pineapple orchards are a common sight here. Oranges of Cherrapunji are considered as the forefathers of the famous Nagpuri oranges.

Nearby area of Cherrapunji is also embellished with some splendid natural beauty for instance village of Mawsynram, which has recently acquired the title of the heaviest rainfall record. Few kilometers away from Cherrapunji is this spectacular cascading 1,035 ft high Mawsmai Falls. It is the fourth highest water falls in India and simply must-see.

The sad part is that this pristine town of Meghalaya is losing all its glory and charm due to pollution and deforestation. It’s high time and we should take some sincere steps to protect this gem of North east India.

Manali, a destination for the Honeymooners

There is only one and only place to go soon after your wedding is over but before the bridal mehndi has worn off and that is Manali. Very right, the popular north Indian hill station is simply unbeatable for a best honeymoon destination of the country for newly weds in the subcontinent.

Wander the main street or the mall and get ready to witness the energetic, romantic young couples enjoying ice creams, panipuri in each other’s company. The wild grins, couples romantically holding each other’s hand and forearm-spanning stacks of red and white coloured bangles displayed by new wives is a common sight in Manali.

Most of them remove and store the beautiful bright bangles after one after completion of one year and then wear only on certain special occasions. However, with changing trends, it’s now in fashion, amongst young brides, to wear them anytime and with all types of dresses, from sari to jeans.

Numerous mini-industries have settled in the city just to cater to the fancies of these young couples. You can easily locate sign-maker craftsmen decorating wooden plaques with name of couples and romantic phrases like “Happy Honeymoon in Manali”, knick-knacks can be bought along the mall side and many exclusive resorts have opened to cater to newly weds.

The exclusive hotels for honeymooners feature amenities like special suites having round shaped beds and decorated walls to lure newly wed couples looking forward to spend beautiful moments of their lives in these suites. Many such resorts or hotels can be easily located outside main Manali, in less crowded areas like Simsa, Chadiyari or Aleo. Howsoever unusual it might look, all these resorts possess their own unique charisma, like honeymoon suites, private discotheque and in some lavish cases, exquisite round shaped bathtubs in rooms simply to pamper couples.

Honeymooners in northern India land in Manali immediately after nuptials and some continue to visit the scenic place each year simply to re-ignite the romance flames in their married life.

Maldives Tour : An offer Hard to Miss, check it out!

Island of Maldives

Maldives, a dream destination for millions of travellers is all waiting for you with its arms wide open. Sun, sea and Sand, thousand of ‘Robinson Crusoe’ islands, huge lagoons with various depths and endless shades of water, shimmering underwater corals; Maldives holidays is an ideal combo of that perfect tropical holiday destinations.

Witness the exquisite Maldives sunset with love of your life! Capture the romance in scenic surroundings all around. Settled across the equator in the mid of Indian Ocean, this necklace of islands are a rare view of a tropical paradise. If in no mood of activity, simply laze around, and pamper your taste buds with mouth-watering local cuisines. For fun-freaks, there are endless opportunities to dive into marine flora and fauna of Maldives and relish immense pleasure via scuba diving and snorkeling. Some of the beast beaches and dive site are Banana Reef, North Male' Atoll, Baa Atoll, Raa Atoll, South Ari Atoll, North Ari Atoll, Vaavu Atoll, Dhaalu Atoll, Faafu Atoll and Lhaviyani Atoll.

Just came to know about this amazing Maldives Tour Offers from one of my friends, so thought of spreading it all over. No wonder who recently married couple or an adventure freak is looking for a budgeted Maldives holiday?

Departure Date	Return Date	Number of Days	Current price	Discounted Price
11-Dec-10	15-Dec-10	3 Night 3 Day	37,999	32,999
14-Dec-10	19-Dec-10	4 Night and 4 Day	41,999	36,999
18-Dec-10	22-Dec-10	3 Night 3 Day	39,999	34,999
28-Dec-10	2-Jan-11	4 Night and 4 Day	49,999	44,999

Explore the best of Maldives with exciting charter packages. Packages inclusions are as follows:

• Return economy class airfare on Kingfisher Airlines (Charter Flight) from Mumbai to Maldives (Gan Island)
• Current applicable airport taxes
• Accommodation in Herathera Island Resort – Maldives Tourism Dev Corp co-owned
• Daily breakfast & Indian dinner
• Return airport transfers by speedboat
• Services of a Tour Director

Get an additional Rupees 5000 flat discount on dream Maldives holiday for all December departures. So, pack your bags and get ready to explore the divine Maldives!

Udaipur: The Venice of the East

Watermarked by splendour and whimsy, Udaipur, the Venice of the East is truly India’s most seductive cities. An international spot destination unto itself, Udaipur is best known for its magnificent Lake Pichola lapping against glittering white buildings and the Aravalli hills closing in to add charms to the view.

The main attraction of enchanting Udaipur is the magnanimously beautiful floating Lake Palace- impetus enough for Bond films (some parts of Octopussy were filmed here). Packed with royalty and passion, Udaipur is raw Rajput, with its imperial havelis, palaces and temples at every nook and cranny.

Formerly called as Mewar, the lake city was founded in the year 1559 by Maharaja Udai Singh II after he took flight from the final discharge of Chittor by Mughal emperor Akbar.

Simply splendid, no words can describe the beauty of this stunning city. Check out the following list of its top-most sights:

Must-see in Udaipur

Bagore-Ki-Haveli

This 18th- century Haveli, situated on the water’s edge in Gangaur Ghat region, was built by Amir Chand Badwa, the former prime minister of Mewar. The haveli has been carefully kept and consists of 138 room sets around courtyards. There’s also an ey-catching art gallery, displaying magnificent folk art and popular monuments beautifully carved out of polystyrene. An ambience for energetic Rajasthani dance programs sets up each evening at 19:00 in the upper courtyard.

City Palace

A brilliant work of architecture, City Palace, settled over the lake, is largest palace in Rajasthan, with its façade of 30.4 meters high and 224 meters long. Its construction was initiated by Maharaja Udai Singh II, the founder of the city, but its aggregation of buildings is built by several maharajas. However, beautiful City Palace still manages to portray an amazing uniformity in design. The views over the lake are simply breathtaking and perfect eye-curry.

           

Crystal Gallery

The amazing Crystal gallery at Fateh Prakash Palace Hotel is truly a sight worth seeing.  In year 1877, Maharaja Sajjan Singh ordered for a rare crystal from F&C Osler & Co in England. Unfortunately, he died before it arrived. For almost 110 years, all the items stayed packed. The ostentatious, unused, rare collection includes crystal sofas, chairs, tables and beds. No camera please as Photography is completely prohibited here.

Jagdish Temple

Just 150 metres north of City Palace main entrance, Jagdish Temple, was created by Maharaja Jagat Singh in the year 1651. The temple is truly a beautifully carved Indo-Aryan temple. A black stoned image of deity Lord Vishnu is respectfully placed inside the temple.

Shilpgram

This fabulous crafts village is situated 3 kilometres west of the town. The exquisite village holds a fabulous Shilpgram festival in every December. All around the year, the village also sees fantastic performances by traditional artisans and performers from Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat.

10 Reasons to Visit Bahamas This Holiday Season

1. Give yourself a refreshing break from regular routine life.
2. Enjoy s
3. It’s beautiful Bahamas after all – a real paradise!
4. cenic views of palm fringes and later on narrate stories to friends about them.
5. Fishing! Aww, at one point of time you will surely say that once you caught one big fish.
6. Snorkeling, something you must-try!
7. Put your sailing caps on and get on a sailing expedition.
8. Weather in Bahamas is pleasant and friendly all around the year and offers endless opportunities for all age-group people.
9. People in Bahamas drive on the left side of the road, so test you’re driving skills and see how skillful you are!
10. A visit to Jonas Brothers at Atlantis can give immense happiness to your teenage daughter if you have one.
11. Beaches, Beaches and beautiful beaches all around!