Memoirs of a Wandering Nomad

Udaipur - The City of Lakes -------------------------------------- Udaipur City from atop Karni Mata Temple Fort Of all the touristy places in Rajasthan - rather, in India - Udaipur is perhaps the most over- hyped and commercialized one. Don't go by anything you read on the Internet (including this post) on face value. Most of it is just cleverly planted, airbrushed, and photoshop'ed (not including this post though - this one tries to be as unbiased as it can get!). And yet, Udaipur -  rather, "Oudieipore" as is spelled below a 18th century French sketch in the City Palace museum - has a charm of its own, if it can be called 'charm', that is completely different from the Jaipur-Jodhpur-Bikaner variety. Some of it is due to the number of lakes and hills doting the landscape of the city. I mean, the entry to the city is brilliant, as the road winds through green hills and you can see the expanse of the city contained yet spilling through cervices amon...

Ramthambore -------------------- The problem with going to wildlife preserves, especially a tiger sanctuary like Ranthambore , is not that they are in such exceedingly faraway places from normal civilization that only dusty and rusty roads lead to; or that you have to make do with some terribly basic accommodation with half-lit rooms cluttered with old cranking beds and soggy mattresses and a swarm of tiny blood-sucking winged monsters; or that you are expected to get up at ungodly hours of wee morning only to find that the safari canter has got delayed. Any travel junkie in his right mind or pair of smelly socks will not find much difficulty adjusting to these trivial irritants. No, the problem is that in spite of suffering all the above and much more - like the sweat and heat from the progressively menacing rising sun, the bumpy ride into the jungle and the non-existence of shock absorbers on the safari canter (which makes you feel that you are sitting directly resting your now-...

It has been almost a decade that I had rode down to Lansdowne, a tiny sleepy town just on the ridge of the Corbett national park, home of the Garhwal Rifles, away from the hustle and bustle of typical hill stations and yet with promising views of the Rudraprayag valley and the Shivalik mountain ranges. So this weekend we decide to pay Lansdowne a short visit. There are three challenges though - one is that the route goes through the densely populated sugar belt of U.P. and the road surfaces near the sugar mills are especially tiresome. A quick call to a regular roadie confirms that the road has been better now for most parts and it is a good ride. The second issue is that one has to cross the horrors of Meerut and Najibabad. Apparently there is a long route from Khatouli, but I am unable to get more  info on this, and decide to live with this hazard. Bad decision, as you will see later. The third problem is more pressing. The town of Lansdowne has nothing - as it has the army ...

Day 3: Manali local and Rohtang (Gulaba) --------------------------------------------------------- The next morning at Manali came early. The day looked bright and sunny, and there was none of the gloomy, cloudy feeling of yesterday. We decided to try our luck on the Rohtang road after a hearty breakfast of omlette and bread from a local roadside chap. For Rohtang, one has to cross the river and go to the other side. Taking left, you first reach a petrol pump - one of the last few on the road to Leh - this is the base of a place called Vashisht - famous of its hot medicinal water springs. The road is dotted with shops selling and renting snowgear - jackets, boots, the works. But most of it is reused often and usually quite dirty and smelly. Stairway to Heaven? Anyway, some 20km ahead, a road leads to Solan valley. Do not go there - especially when you know that Manali is swarming with tourists. All Indian tourists go to Solan to play in the snow, and make an absolute lousy...

Day 2: Bilaspur - Aut - Mandi - Kullu - Manali (170km, 4 hours) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The morning came swiftly on the second day, but before we started off, it was already about 10am - perils of a family traveling together that one has to learn to endure over time. The road further ahead is now narrower and winding, and the going starts getting slower. The surface gets a little rough once again near Barmana - where ACC has a cement factory, but it is better than the last night. There is a large lake near Bilaspur - I believe it is called Gobind Sagar. We could see the glimpse of the water body from far, and the setting looked nice. The road climbed further to Sundernagar - which is actually quite pretty (Sunder - literally 'beautiful') - with a canal flowing along the edge of the road, and has a small-town feel. It is pity they have not developed this one into a nice a tourist place. There are no restauran...