India

Every time I hit the beach anywhere, I am boggled by the huge number of people who are so in love with sun that they lay themselves practically coverless on the sand to be baked in the heat. Well lucky those who come from the country of no sunshine. I, on the other hand was blessed to be born in India where the Sun God is merciful all year round. I have been travelling twelve months now with layers of tan all over me. It didn’t bother me enough but I finally got tired of seeing someone else in the mirror every time I looked so I decided to fight that sun. And I learnt how the likes of me can protect our perfect, if may I say so, sun kissed complexion from being sun smooched: Early mornings and late evenings – Wake up early, walk along the beach watching the sun rise. You will be first up and the privileged ones with the beach all to yourself. Switch to sun set if you are West coast. And evenings just as the sun is setting is the best time for a swim. There is still light and the sun is not scorching you as the waves wash that heavy dab of sunscreen Cover up – I have seen women in Vietnam wear socks, gloves, full arm jackets, conical hats, typical of Vietnam and face masks to keep the sun off. You don’t need to go that far but you need a light cotton jacket to cover your arms and a scarf to cover your neck and face. A Cap or wide brimmed hat is must if you are going out. Over that walk under the shade of an umbrella if you don’t want to look like a shade card at …

India is a country that has both amazed and intimidated travellers and at the same time. Forever, buzzing with life, magic, apathy and colours, it is a seductive concoction that you must handle with care and enjoy at your own risk. A friend asked “how is an Indian to be pissed?” I laughed. I laughed so hard it hurt my stomach. Really, we have the patience of the steel and determination of the Iron Man. We never lose our cool. It is impossible to piss us off. But I can easily think of a 100 ways an Indian can piss you off! Okay wait you can’t handle that. Let me give you just 10 reasons how an Indian can piss you and how we are a bunch of special 1.2 billion. 1.      By peeing in public and not being apologetic about it – Come on where else does one pee. If you are going from office to work or work to office. The bus stations, empty private buildings, stairways of office buildings, outside gardens, parks, public places of all sorts or just about anywhere you see a wall is where you pee. If you see a man facing the wall with his hands invisible, you should know what he is up to and don’t be pissed, just let him piss in peace. 2.      By burping – Our food is amazing and we know that the ultimate expression of appreciation of a meal cooked well is a giant loud noisy smelly burp. So if you invite me over and I leave without offending your olfactory senses that would clearly mean you need to work culinary skills. Because it was not out of politeness that I didn’t burp, I meant to offend you. 3.      By slurping …

A weekend in Aurangabad We love Aurangabad, because we are from Auranagbad. So, it is highly important for us, that you love it too. And, here is our list of things that one must do in Aurangabad to get the full flavour of the city. Hire a car: First and foremost, you will need a car to check out all the major sites in the city and to do a day trip to Ajanta caves. Start Early: On day 1, Wake up early in the morning. Yes, no lingering around or sleeping in. Our monuments get hot and crowded very early in the day. So be sure to be out by seven at the latest. Plan your day: Start with a hike up to the top of Daulatabad fort. Then move over to the Ellora caves. Remember, you cannot see all the caves, so pick a sample of caves based on a little booklet on sale outside the Ellora caves and aim at covering those. Added attractions: Finally check out the Grishneshwar temple which is further ahead of Ellora on the same road. On your way back into Aurangabad, at stop Aurangzeb’s tomb at Khuldabad. All these attractions are along one highway that goes in and out of Aurangabad so finding them will not be a problem. You can also buy fresh fruits along the highway. When back in the city, enjoy a glass of juice at Lucky Juice center or Pakeezah if you are here in the summers. Have a meal of Rajasthani thali at Bhoj or Eklavya. And wrap up the day with paan at Tara pan center On Day 2 you can explore the Ajanta caves, which are 108 kilometers from the city. It is possible to visit the caves and return the same day back to …

  Brijwasi ki chaat – Famous for Bunn Tikki – Amritsar must taste!   Women cooking langar for lunch meal at a neighborhood gurdwara Famous Chai Stall in Amritsar. A morning stop for many Amritsaris.   New style patterns of the colorful Phulkari, traditional embroidery of Punjab   Stacks of duppattas in a cloth shop in Amritsar    Dress material for women’s clothing. Amritsar likes it bright.   Lovers of Osho in Sikh dominated city of Amritsar Read my travelogue on Amritsar.

Located in one of the oldest part of the city of Aurangabad, Osmanpura, Tara Pan center is a local  favorite. The lights shine on what one could call the Paan street of Aurangabad in late evenings when families and adult males in groups arrive for to bite into special ingredients wrapped raw into a betel leaf. The old Tara Pan center The undeniably most famous in Aurangabad and arguably so in India, is the paan of Tara pan center. Running for generations this shop serves a large variety of paan. A fact you will be told everytime you go to the shop with your hosts is that it is in this shop that Asia’s most expensive paan is sold. I have no means to judge the veracity of the statement. But, the costliest of paan on the menu costs Rs 3000. The new Tara Pan center formed after brothers seperated There are several competing paan vendors on the same location. I have tried paan at both the Tara Pan centers and liked both equally well. The paan vendors have their employees reach out to arriving customers who place their orders sitting inside their air conditioned cars, receiving a quick delivery of ordered paans and leaving as soon as they arrive. But what they carry with them is the refreshing after taste of paan well-made and served. Competing Pan sellers on the same street  

Sachkhand express initiates in Nanded every morning and finishes its journey in Amritsar the next day after running for 34 hours.   We boarded the train at Aurangabad. We were provided free langar at the station. A bowl full of vegetable rice. At Manmad station, vendors sell pomegranate in little packets. At nine in the evening we reached Khandwa where devotees served rotis called ‘parshada’ with kaali daal to the travelers onboard train.    The train itself is considered holy since it connects two major centers of Sikh pilgrimage, Golden Temple and Hazoor Sahib. This was my first overnight journey on a train and we were pampered all the way by the kindness of the believers. 24 hours passed by quicker than usual.   Here is my video log of the journey:   <iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/ktM5cj9gIhQ” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>  

Lucky Juice Center is located in Paithan Gate in Aurangabad. It is arguably the most famous refreshment corner in all of the city. It has been standing in the area for over 30 years now. The quality and consistency of juice served at Lucky Juice center is different from any other you will ever drink anywhere in the world. The mango pulp is my personal favorite. The price for juices vary between INR 20-30. It proves yet again that great taste and good quality do not necessarily come expensive. The Lucky Juice center is so famous that now many look alike of the original shop have sprung up in different corners of the city. They may or may not be equally good. But definitely give the original one a try to taste the soul quencher of this historic city. If you are in the area, it is a must drink. If not you are missing a big part of being a local in Aurangabad.  

Located within Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University Campus, Soneri Mahal lies on foothills of Satara mountain range. It is close to the Hanuman Tekri, Aurangabad Caves and Bibi ka Maqbara. Now converted into museum, the mahal is a small building which is said to have been constructed by the Bundelkhand Chief of Aurangzeb, Paharh Singh between 1651 and 1653. Pahar Singh and his family resided in the building but now it houses a variety of ancient Indian pottery, dresses, statues excavated from nearby sites and remains of local palaces and antiques of daily use. As you enter the main building, you will see a number of 18th century paintings on wooden planks on display. Inside the building, the walls were once painted with frescoes made from natural colors with a heavy usage of golden paint from where the building gets its name “Soneri Mahal” – “Golden Palace”. Very few of these frescoes can now be seen on the wall. ASI has done a very shoddy job of recreating some of the frescoes after having white washed all the walls.  The palace is also a venue for the annual Ellora Ajanta Aurangabad Festival held at the end of November.

The tomb of the last great Moghul stands in all humility inside the little town juxtaposed to the city of named after him. Khuldabad is the last stop on the Mughal Trail where rests Aurangzeb. It was once called ‘Rauza’ which means garden of paradise.    22 kms from Aurangabad and four kilometers from Ellora caves, the town itself is surrounded by a wall constructed by Aurangzeb with seven gates built around the city.   Here lies the valley of saints where several sufi saints chose to reside in 14th century. Zar Zari Zar Baksh migrated to Khuldabad in 14th century on the orders of his teacher Nizamuddin Auliya.  It is said that in this town rest 1500 Sufi saints in their graves. Referred to as the the abode of eternity many in the history including Malik Ambar who is referred to as the architect of Aurangabad, Azam Shah who constructed Bibi ka Maqbara found their resting ground beneath the soil of this little town.Aurangzeb died in Ahmednagar on 20 February 1707 at the age of 88. Today he lies in the courtyard of the Sufi saint Shaikh Burham-u’d-din Gharib’s dargah. His grave lacks any embellishments, a sharp contrast against the elaborate burials that has brought Moghul dynasty much fame around the world. His grave is covered by a simple cloth next to his teacher’s as per his last wish. On the other end of the courtyard behind metallic door and heavy locks is placed a robe of Prophet Mohammad and a single strand of hair from his beard. The robe ‘Pairhaan-e-mubarak’ is said to be historically important. It is said that the robe was presented to Prophet by Allah on his trip to heaven. 

Alongside the Kranti chowk there is a deceptively decrepit shop open on all three sides facing the Shivaji statue in the center of the roundabout. With a clay oven in the center and chairs and tables strewn about carelessly on another side, it could be a place you can easily miss. The shop is shabby, its walls blackened by the soot from the oven that rages with fire like your empty stomach.  But this is the shop that Aurangabadis have been thronging for ages for their dose of evening snacks. What is on offer you ask – from moong daal bhajia, aalloo vada, samosas and kachori, you cannot pick one. You must have one of each. Everything is sold at per piece basis for INR 10 laden with sweet and sour chutney at the top. Bhajiya is fried balls of soaked and boiled moong dal that taste crunchy and soft. The food is fried in a big wok infront of you, served fresh and hot. Close to the shop are other food options including paav bhaji, bhel puri, and badam milk. If you eat as much as I did, your mouth will now be on fire and what you now need is a cool stick of kulfi available for INR 10 from push cart vendor. We ended up with a meal for four for INR 130 with 3 plates of bhajiya, 3 plates of samosas, 3 plates of kachori, 1 aaloo vada and three kulfis.