Travel Archives — Page 3 of 4

Bangalore RTO – Hypothecation removal and NOC

Most of us think that RTO work is very tedious and people there don’t want to work and just want to earn more money in the form of bribe.

But let me tell you, if you know the process and have all the documentation/papers required for the work in order then it’s very simple and might not require any fee.

My initial thought was to go with agent as my first impression was not so good. But then I thought to give it a try, another reason for doing it myself is the abrupt amount agents were asking.

There is this website DriveKool which operates in multiple cities and they were charging me Rs 3800 + GST for NOC which is actually a free process and Rs 900 + GST for Hypothecation removal, actual cost Rs 200. Local agent also quote me something similar around Rs 5500 for both.

Let me share my experience with Pune RTO and Bangalore RTO with respect to NOC and Hypothecation removal from the RC (Registration Certificate).

Few years back we moved from Pune MH to Bangalore KA. So for this we need to take NOC from Pune RTO. I searched online how to do the same and what all documents are required.

NOC Process is quite simple and does not even require any fee. One should have copy of –

Form 28 with chachis impression on each form. we should have either 3 copy or 4 depends if Loan is there or not.
Valid insurance, even third party liability will work
Pollution certificate which one can get easily by paying
nominal charge, mostly it is done on petrol pumps
Copy of RC + the original.
Self attested ID proof copy

Process is, take copy of all the documents and filled forms to the RTO, sorry I don’t remember the window number. There they will give one more form with RTO seal and some number.

We need to take this form to the Police commissioner’s office to get the certificate stating that there is no pending case against this vehicle. Once you reach Police commissioners office there you need to give them the form and show them the documents.

In Pune you won’t get the letter immediately they will give you one acknowledgement and then ask you to come after certain days. I think one week or so.

After taking the clearance form from Police you need to submit all the documents in the RTO. They will give you a acknowledgement and will ask you to come again after a week or so.

This is it, after the given time frame you can go to RTO and get your NOC. For this simple process agents charges anything starting from Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 in Pune. The process and documents are same for both 2 wheeler and 4 wheeler.

Now we have to do the same exercise again in Bangalore as we are moving back to Maharashtra.

When we first moved here I tried to register my vehicle here and pay road tax but my first impression was not good. People in RTO Jayanagar didn’t respond properly and there was language issue as well.

Finally I have to go through agent to pay the road tax. There are provision to pay road tax for smaller period say like 1 year or 3 year in case you are planning to move back, but for this you need to convince the RTO officer.

I paid lifetime tax but didn’t register the vehicle here. I think from 2017 they have added a penalty i.e. after certain period if you don’t register the vehicle you will have to pay fine of Rs 300 per month.

In mid of 2018 I thought to register my 2 wheeler but after I came to know about the penalty/fine amount I gave up and lucky me I got opportunity in MH 🙂

Some says that one can drive other state vehicle for six month or 1 year if he/she is planning to go back without registering the vehicle in new state. Just pay the appropriate road tax and don’t take NOC from original state. This will save you some time.

So now as we are moving back to Maharashtra we need to take NOC and remove Hypothecation from our 4 wheeler and had to take Non Migration Certificate for 2 Wheeler so that we can cancel the NOC in Pune RTO.

Now a days we can use this to pay fees online. Click on the link and select Other State if you are not in Delhi. Enter your vehicle registration number. You will see a list of different services, select what ever you want to do.

For NOC you need to validate your vehicle by entering chachis number. Then follow the steps there and take print of the receipt and other documents. And for Hypothecation removal we need to pay a fee of Rs 200.

I need to take 2 copies of the receipt as I was applying for NOC and Hypothecation removal as well. If it’s same vehicle then it can be done at the same time in a single process other wise it will take 30 working days for each.

In Bangalore they send the NOC and RC through post so you need to take 1 Self address envelop with Rs 17 stamp on it. The envelop is that green one with cloth inside.

Put your original RC inside the envelop. Now arrange the papers in order – Fee paid Receipt, Form 28 with chachis number imprint on each form, insurance copy, pollution check copy.

For Hypothecation removal you first need to repay the loan 🙂 and then get NOC from bank with 2 copies of Form 35. You don’t need to ask/request for it they will give it. Banks NOC is valid for 30 days, so you need to submit it in RTO before that.

As I was going for both the things for same vehicle I don’t have to take separate copies for Form 28, insurance and pollution check certificate.

If you want to remove Hypothecation then add the related document as well and don’t forget to take a file i.e. a brown file with thread or any other paper file. Now give the file with all the documents to the clerk sitting right in front of the gate in Jayanagar RTO.

This time I didn’t face language issue as the clerk was pretty good in english and didn’t do any partiality with language which is very common here.

He will check and verify all the documents and if require rearrange them. Once done he will ask you to go to the madam sitting behind the window right beside him. She will verify and sign it and then ask you to go to last window in the same row.

Person there will handover one form with seal which we need to take for police clearance. Here in Bangalore you will get the clearance certificate at same time. It was quite simple process.

Commissioners office is on infantry road and for NOC we need to go to 4th floor in the main building. There they will verify if the vehicle is involved in any kind of theft or accident or any pending charges.

The guy was kind enough to hand me the clearance certificate even though there was Rs 100 fine (for signal jump) and asked me to pay it (which I did immediately) in building near to this office (it’s a walking distance).

So either you can first check there if there is any pending fines and then go to get the clearance certificate.

Once you get this you just need to submit all the documents in the RTO and get the acknowledgement which you need to keep safely as you won’t have your RC with you. That’it no hassle no heavy charges nothing.

It’s a 2 day process as document submission time in RTO is 10 Am to 1 PM and getting clearance certificate from police will take time mainly due to traffic in Bangalore.

Now to get the Non Migration certificate we need to submit 3 things

hand written letter stating what we need and why we need
Road tax paid receipt copy
Copy and original NOC.

The madam was ready to give it same time but the supporting staff was acting little busy so he asked me to get the self address envelop with stamps. Now they will post the letter to me.

Madam was kind enough she said me to tell the clerk to do it fast. This certificate is required to cancel the NOC.

Last day in Paris

After amazing day 1 & 2 in Paris, we were getting use to the things here like travel, food, walking etc. Day 3 starts with visit to Notre Dame roof. We missed our timeslot due to the huge line to enter the cathedral and confusion, assuming the entry to roof will be from inside. But … Continue reading “Last day in Paris”

After amazing day 1 & 2 in Paris, we were getting use to the things here like travel, food, walking etc.

Day 3 starts with visit to Notre Dame roof. We missed our timeslot due to the huge line to enter the cathedral and confusion, assuming the entry to roof will be from inside. But it was from outside.

After we missed our first slot (check detail here) we booked it for the next day and made sure this time we are on time else our €10 ticket will be waste. We checked with the Paris tourism office from where we got the ticket that if we can exchange it with some other place, but they refused.

Notre Dame, Paris — One of the tower of Notre Dame view from the top

After seeing the city from Eiffel tower, you won’t be able to justify the view from here, it’s beautiful but can’t be compared to Eiffel. So, our conclusion is you can exclude this from your list, and you can invest the money purchasing ticket of someplace else or eating something good or enjoying French wine ?.

There are lot of stairs to climb and the space is very little. The stairs are in spiral shape and quite steep. After climbing all the stairs, we were feeling so hot that we had to remove our jackets. It windy on top.

There are multiple levels here like Eiffel but in this case it’s only 2, Eiffel has 3. One can spend limited time on the roof as there are fixed number of people per slot and there are continues slots. So, they even ask you to hurry up and start your decent.

You will climb through the left tower (if you are facing the cathedral) and come down through right one.

View from Notre Dame, Paris — Beautiful sky & Eiffel at the back

After this we went to see one of the most beautiful Opera house in the world – Palais Garnier.

If you want to walk, then it’s around 3 Km from Notre Dame else you can take a metro station name is Opera.

Opera Garnier, Paris — Front Side of Opera, there are lot of sculptures made on this side

We were very exited to visit this place as we have heard a lot from our friends and family who have visited it. But our bad luck it was already closed for the day.

As it’s a working Opera so continues shows keep happening here. Before planning your visit here do check the schedule on their web site.

So, we just took some pics from the outside and left for lunch. We went to some falafel place which was suggested by one my husbands’ friend. And trust me it was simply amazing.

The falafel was so amazing and tasty and fulfilling. It’s a take away place and there is line in front to place order.

There staff will be on the street to help you decide with your order. It’s located on a small street with very less traffic.

Then we just relaxed a bit strolling on the banks of Seine river. It was amazing, cold breeze, calm.

After some relaxation we wen to place which is one of the most famous and important thing to do in Paris. This place is even featured in some movies i.e. Louvre Museum.

Louvre Museum, Paris — One of the part of Louvre after closing

This museum is one of the biggest and will take a lot of time and walking to explore. It’s located in Louvre Palace and the famous glass pyramid is right in the centre of the palace ground. This place contains antiques from all over the world and one of the most famous possession of this place is – Mona Lisa.

Ticket price starts from €15 and then we have skip the line, guided tours, audio guide tour. So, decide carefully which one you want.

It has all sorts of things in the display like art, paintings, sculptures, prints & drawings. If one has interest in museums & history then this place is like temple for them. So much of history and beauty to admire.

As this place took a lot of time, rest of the evening we spent just strolling on the banks of Seine, it’s nice just to walk on the banks, it’s in the middle of the city but still quiet.

This ends out 3^rd day in Paris. Paris has a lot to see and one would at least need a weeks’ time to visit Paris alone. It should not be like this is on your bucket list, so you planned and spent just 1-2 nights and visit 2-3 places in a hurry.

We stayed here for 4 days and still it was not enough.On our final day we really want to see Opera, this was one of the top priorities. We have already checked the visiting hours on their web site.

As usual there are different kinds of tickets available starting from €12 which is an independent visit ticket. You can check the prices here, this is from where we bought ours.

Stroller can be taken inside, but you need to leave it just before you enter the main area as there are a lot of stairs. So, better take Baby carrier also with you if you have small kids.

This place is mesmerizing. It’s beautiful, you will be lost in its beauty. It is beautiful inside out. There are many sculptures on the out side on the Principle Facade.

One of the ramp through which King use to come

There are 2 pavillon one is on west side which has 2 ramps and it was the entrance for the king, now a day this is used to enter visitors. Second one is on the east side that was designed for rest of the public.

The interior has many corridors, stairwells and huge place for people to socialize. 3 main things to see inside –

Grand Staircase
Grand Foyer
Auditorium

Grand Staircase Opera Garnier, Paris — Grand Staircase

Grand Staircase – as the name say these are grand, white marble staircase which divides into 2 & leads to the Grand Foyer. These staircase is decorated with female sculpture holding torches. Hence sudden royal feeling will come when you climb these staircase ?.

Grand Foyer – this is a long hall with very high ceiling. This is 154 mtr long, 18 mtr high and 13 mtr wide.

Grand Foyer,Opera Garnier, Paris — Beautiful ceiling of Grand Foyer

The ceiling is painted and represent various historic moments in the field of music.

This place was used to socialize and enjoy some drinks.

Both the ends of the Foyer have halls with beautiful painted ceilings.

Auditorium, Opera Garnier, Paris — Main Auditorium

Auditorium – this is traditional horseshoe shape sitting with a capacity of nearly 2000 people.

The stage is largest in Europe. The main ceiling area which surrounds the chandelier is beautifully painted & it depicts scenes from opera of 14 different composers.

The min chandelier was designed by Garnier him self and is very heavy and made from bronze and crystal.

Grand Vestibule, this is from where you will exit, it contains the statues of four composers: Rameau, Lulli, Gluck and Haendel.

Grand Vestibule Opera Garnier, Paris — Grand Vestibule

There is a small museum inside which displays stage sets, photographs, drawings & paintings. Besides that there is a library with huge number of books.

After spending some quality time, we went out had our lunch and then headed to Luxembourg Garden.

This was our final stop in Paris as after this we had to catch train to Italy?

Luxembourg Garden, Paris — Our doll enjoying some time before the rain

Luxembourg Garden is huge spread in more than 20 hectares. It was constructed in 1612. The beautiful gardens are the part of Palace – Luxembourg Palace which is now owned by French Senate. Gardens are known for its lawns, flowerbeds & fountains.

Again, it was our bad luck as soon as we reach and decided to relax for a bit it started to rain. We thought it will stop in some time and waited for it to stop under a shed, but it didn’t and finally we decided to leave as we have a train to catch.

This place has covered sitting area, metal chairs in front of the palace near to the pond. What ever time we spent here it was good and relaxing. You can spend some quality time with friends and family here.

Information about Paris Pass

Paris Pass, it’s a card where you pay one time and it gives you access to certain number of attractions as per the pass. You can buy pass starting from 2 days to 6 days.

This Pass includes travel card with which you can travel unlimited times in central Paris in metro, RER, bus and is valid as per your pass validity.

As per me it is useful and cost effective for those who want to cover maximum in the given period. We didn’t want to rush things get most out of the Pass.

There is a lot more to see like – Palace of Versailles which will take one full day, Disney Land again will take one full day, Montmartre to name which are not to be missed and many more museums if you are a museum fan.

Paris to Milan Bus — Good Bye Paris, beautiful final evening Of Paris

Our Paris trip ends with a twist which is related to our journey to Florence, Italy which I’ll tell in my next blog so stay tuned for it.

Yercaud – TGI Star Holiday Resort

This was our first holiday of 2019 and a much-needed break from the hectic city life. Yercaud is a small hill station situated in the state of Tamil Nadu. We came to know about this place while searching online for a place not that far from Bangalore. Yercaud is around 225 Km from Bangalore. The … Continue reading “Yercaud – TGI Star Holiday Resort”

This was our first holiday of 2019 and a much-needed break from the hectic city life. Yercaud is a small hill station situated in the state of Tamil Nadu.

We came to know about this place while searching online for a place not that far from Bangalore. Yercaud is around 225 Km from Bangalore. The roads are quite good throughout the journey.

Rout we took was via Hosur – Krishnagri – Selum. We started at around 6.20 AM on Saturday. After reaching the silk board junction we came to know that it is very late if one must go on this rout on a weekend.

There are tolls on this rout and total toll we paid was around Rs 600 in total i.e. for return journey. Plus Rs 90 on NICE Road, Bangalore from Electronic City to Clover Leaf.

There was traffic on silk board & a long queue on the toll plaza just after the Electronic city flyover. It took us around 10 min to clear the toll. Then after the toll there was traffic on the highway as it was kind of long weekend, Monday leave gives 4 days as Tuesday was holiday on the occasion of Sankranti.

Outside sitting area
Quite big car parking
Main hotel building

For b/f we stopped at Hotel Shri Krishna Inn, Shoolagiri. Food here is nice and priced reasonably. This was very crowded and that day and there was a waiting as well. There are 2 sitting option – inside and outside.

There’s a HP petrol pump, Mc Donald’s and Cafe Coffee day all located in the same complex.

After Selum the ghat section starts, Yercaud is around 30 Km from Selum. There are 20 Hairpin bends on this rout and the amazing thing is the roads are very well maintained and are quite broad.

There are mirrors installed but only few are in working condition, rest are either damaged or stolen.

TGI Star Holiday Resort, Yercaud — Entering the resort

This time we wanted to stay in a place where we can spend some quality & screen free time with family. So after googling for some time we came across TGI Star Holiday resort located just 1 Km before the main town or Yercaud.

Resort & list of what all things are there to do

Main reason for going with this property is its family friendliness. This is a 3-star property with some amazing features. There are 2 categories of rooms i.e. Deluxe/Superior cottage and Suit Cottage.

Living Room
Sofa in living area
Bed room with King size bed
Beautiful decoration with towels
Tea/Coffee maker
Sitting arrangement in Balcony
Bathroom
Toiletries
Towel arrangement in bathroom

The main difference in both the rooms is space, in Suit there is a living room with a sofa and one sofa cum bed plus the bedroom is also quite specious. Other one is normal size room. Both the categories have a private sitting space/balcony outside the room.

We stayed in Suit cottage as we need some space for our daughter to run around when we relax in the room ?. Other amenities include a welcome drink at reception, some snacks in the room, good quality toiletries in the bathroom.

In suit it was a king size bed and it was quite comfortable. Lenin and towels are also of good quality and soft to touch. This place is located on a hill slope so first to reach you must get down from the main road and after you enter you must climb up & both the time it’s a steep slope.

There is ample of parking, you can either park at the front of the resort or inside at the end. There are small gardens with different varieties of flowers/plats in front of each cottage, which makes the stay more pleasing.

Chess
Carrom & TT
Swimming pool
Bonfire
Bonfire at its peak

If we talk about the facilities of the resort, then there are a lot of things one can do with family. There is a spa, a restaurant which serves good and tasty food. An indoor games room with games like carrom, chess & Table tennis. A badminton court, swings for adults and kids, separate play area for kids and swimming pool.

Walking on rope
Walking on single rope side ways
Walking on planks
Crossing the net
Walking on sideways hanging planks
Activities for kids are also there

If you are a dare devil and like adventure sports, then there is facility for that too. Adventure activities are conducted inside the resort and the instructor is very good.

Adventure activities..it was really fun

Activities have different difficulty levels and finally there is a zip line. So, if you are planning to visit this place and want to do this then do carry sports shoes.

We took the spa after we were done with our first dose of adventure activities. Me and my husband both took the spa and we really felt good after it. All refreshed and recharged. The massage therapist for male and female are very good, and both were experienced.

Price wise it’s very reasonable starting from Rs 1500 for Kerala massage to Rs 2500 for their signature package. They do have facial and other stuff also.

One of the most interesting and unique thing that I like about this place is there open-air theatre. Yes, you read it correct, they show a movie once it is dark in the garden space b/w the games room and badminton court. That too with a Bonfire ?

First day it was an English movie and second day it was Tamil movie with English sub ?. There is light in the badminton court, so you can play even at night just make sure you don’t make too much of noise as there are rooms just adjacent to the court.

Food here was good, they have buffet for all 3 meals or if you want something else then you can order from the small AA-la-carte menu.

Sitting arrangement
Ambiance
Veg Buffet
Salad on First day Lunch
Salad in Dinner
Rice prepration
Starting with salad and starter
Ordered from menu
Noodles soup
Starting with salad and starter
Paneer 65

In buffet there are 3 veg dishes and 2 non veg dishes with 2 rice preparation and rasam. Chapatis are pre cooked and kept in hot case.

One more thing that I really like is in the evening/night time their housekeeping guys come to every room to refill the snacks, tea coffee and ask if you need any other thing. They also ask you to provide feedback about the room cleaning and their service which was something new to us.

There is free Wi-Fi, but the speed is not good, there is no issue with mobile signals at least with Airtel.

Whole staff of the resort is so courteous and friendly, we really like their hospitality.

We really like the time we have spent in this resort.

Small tour of the beautiful Property of TGI Hotels

There are quite a few things to see in Yercaud. Some of them are –

Kiliyur falls
Yercaud lake
Ladies seat
Gents seat
Rose garden
Few temples

We checked about the falls and came to know that there is no water in the falls so it’s not worth visiting it. Also, there are steep steps to reach to the falls, around 250 to 300. Going down is easy but climbing up is a tedious task. So if you are visiting in rains then only plan else you might regret.

Out of these we saw only few like rose garden, lake, ladies’ seat and while coming back from ladies’ seat I noticed a small aquarium just beside the lake.

Yercaud is a small town and the resort is located just 1 km from the lake. There is no proper or designated parking space at the lake, you have to park on the road side. Beware if you go on Sunday morning then there is a flea market on both the side of the road.

There is boating facility at the lake and one can choose from paddle boat, boat with oars or a motor boat. There are few good points to click pic with lake as background. Rose garden is 1.5 km around from lake.

Beautiful yello rose
Some buds ready to turn into beautiful flower

The road is not in good shape and just before the main entry of the garden it is a single lane. So, if some vehicle is coming from other direction then one must go reverse. One can park vehicle inside the gate of rose garden or on the road side, parking is free.

Rose Garden, Yercaud — Inside Rose garden

Ticket to enter garden is of Rs 30 and for us it was not worth as there were only few plants were, we could see some roses. The garden was maintained well. From rose garden you can either walk to ladies’ seat it’s just 100 mtr. Or you take your car and park it there.

Ladies seat is just a valley view point and nothing else. There is small shed from where you can see beautiful valley below. But what we feel is it will be worthier to visit in/after rains as the view will be clearer. This time it was all foggy/cloudy. But still it was beautiful.

Gents seat is located again some 100 mtr from ladies’ seat and it’s a valley view point. So, we skipped it. While coming back from ladies’ seat google maps leads us to a road which was closed at the point where is meets the main road. So, we have to take a U turn.

On the same road there is a small aquarium which has 17 varieties of fishes including ‘Piranha’. The entry ticket to this place is only Rs 10 pp but parking outside is Rs 30. It’s a good experience for kids.

Over all we really enjoyed our 2 days of stay @TGI Star Holiday Resort and in Yercaud.

Note -
All the pictures are from our trip taken by us.

Europe Trip – Paris

Day 3 This is our day two in romantic city of Paris. If you have not read my previous blogs do read – my start of Europe trip here and our first day in Paris here. We were tired on our first day as I have travelled first from India and then Amsterdam to Paris … Continue reading “Europe Trip – Paris”

Day 3

This is our day two in romantic city of Paris. If you have not read my previous blogs do read – my start of Europe trip here and our first day in Paris here.

We were tired on our first day as I have travelled first from India and then Amsterdam to Paris and finally not so good experience with Paris Metro. After our seine river cruise, we straight came to hotel had dinner and slept.

After a good night sleep, heavy b/f we head out to spend our day in the beautiful city. As mentioned in my previous blog we used bus for the rest of the days in Paris, well mostly. Bus stop was some ½ km from our hotel.

After you plan your day do check if stroller is allowed/feasible for those places else take baby carrier. There is no place to keep stroller if it is not allowed at an attraction. So, plan accordingly.

We started with Arc de Triomphe, took bus 22 from place near to hotel took around 35-40 min. It’s an iconic triumphal arch built to celebrate Napoleon’s victories, with an observation deck. It’s a 50 mtr high arch and the observation deck is on the roof.

There are 2 types of tickets for most of the attraction in Paris, one is normal where one must stand in line and wait for your turn. Second is skip the line where you can go directly to the front or say near to entry point.

Normal ticket cost around € 10-12 and skip the line on viator will be € 14. We didn’t go on the roof didn’t find if worth as we have already booked summit ticket of Eiffel. But the view of ‘Champ Elysees’ can be enjoyed from the top.

Arc is on the centre of a busy road, at this juncture 12 roads meets. You can get some beautiful pics here with the beautiful Arc de Triomphe. We clicked some pics and then headed towards our next Destination Notre dame.

You find all the useful information about Arc de Triomphe here.

Notre Dame has historic importance and it’s one of the finest examples of French gothic architecture. This cathedral witnesses the coronation as Emperor of Napoleon Bonaparte. It took quite long to finish the cathedral.

This is a beautiful cathedral from inside as well as outside. It’s active church and very beautiful. The entry to the church is free but there are tickets to enter the tower and treasury. Tower ticket costs € 10 and treasury € 8.

One need to book the time slot on there app if you want to climb the tower and witness the view from there. There is no more waiting in line as there is an app ‘DuckTheLine’ where you need to book your slot in advance and be there on selected time.

There is no price for the app or for the booking the slot, you just have to book the slot, purchase there € 10 ticket and be there on time.

This app even reminds you about your time. One thing that you need to make sure is be on time else they won’t allow you to enter as this happened with us, we have purchased the tickets and were late and they didn’t allow us.

Also make sure you book the slot as early as possible as the number of people per slot are limited and it is booked quite fast.

The line to enter the church was too big and it is usually big, we have waited for at least 1 hr to enter the church. There are benches where you can sit while waiting.

You can get all the information about the opening/closing days timing ticket pricing here.

From here we went to ‘Sainte – Chapelle’. It’s a royal Chappelle. It is located with a palace where the king of France stayed till 14^th century. It is also based on gothic style architecture.

The most famous thing about this place is it’s huge mid-13^th century stained glass windows. This part is located on the first floor of the Chapelle. Even the ceiling of both the parts of the Chapelle are beautiful.

The stained windows displayed different historical events and there are placards available in different languages which helps you understand what is displayed on which window.

There is ticket to enter the Chapelle and they have an app through which you can zoom in the windows and know the meaning of the art on it.

Ticket cost is € 10 pp and it’s always better to book the tickets in advance to avoid the queue. When we went there the queue is not that big, but it was there. If you have tickets, then directly go the front show the tickets at the counter and enter.

You can get all the information about the opening/closing days timing ticket pricing here.

For tickets of Notre Dame and Sainte- Chapelle we have used official website of Paris convention and visitor’s bureau. Here the tickets are available in all sort of combinations unlike other websites where they sell guided tours only.

Guided tours are good for some but not always required.

After this it’s time to visit our last destination of the day and most awaited one – Eiffel Tower.

If you really want to enjoy this place and don’t want to wait in long queue, then you should spend additional money and book a priority entry ticket which might include small guide session on the second level.

We have booked out ticket from Musement. We paid € 72 for 2 and it include small guided tour on the second level and summit access. There office is in a lane near to Eiffel tower.

You can also buy the tickets from the official website of Eiffel tower and you have option of second floor ticket which will cost € 16 pp and summit ticket which is € 26 pp.

Summit ticket includes Second level access also. You need to select the date then available time slots will be shown.

Earlier you book better are the chances to get your preferred date and time.

Palais De Chaillot — View of Palais de Chaillot

One more benefit of booking from an agency is they will get you in, in a group so you don’t have to be in a line at the security check gate, then you don’t have to wait in a line at the lifts and you will get little history lesson by the guide at second level.

Paris City — Beautiful sunset view from the top

Eiffel is really an architectural beauty. Such a massive structure, standing for so many years. It’s huge. Lifts from the ground floor will take you to the second level and then if you have summit entry ticket they you can go. There is only 1 lift to go to summit.

It was our lucky day there was no queue to go to summit. We were alone with the lift operator lady. She also said you are lucky otherwise there are huge queue. There are stairs as well to climb up or come down.

Once you reach second level the view of Paris is magnificent. We have booked our ticket for evening. Evening is perfect time as you can enjoy the view, sunset and then enjoy the Paris in artificial lighting.

Believe me it was mesmerizing. When we there it was still cold and there is lot of wind, so if you are visiting in winter do carry good quality warm cloths else be prepared to shiver.

There is a restaurant at level 2 and on summit you can enjoy a glass of Champagne at an additional cost. There are restaurants on level 1 which has separate entry and you can not go to second level from there.

You can just visit restaurant, have food or enjoy a drink with a view and back on ground floor. There is one restaurant at second level as well.

After dark, diamond lights increases the beauty of Eiffel tower. These lights have that sparkling/glittering effect and it’s amazing to watch it.

We have waited 1 hour to see it as while coming down it happened, and it has an interval of 1 hours. It is there for 5 min or so.

Eiffel Tower when Diamond Lights are turned on

There are these road side vendors selling all kinds of souvenirs, most of them live together. There are Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshi, African. Even African were speaking Hindi (few words ?). We bought few things – wooden alphabet train, electronic toy dog which my daughter lost before it could see India ☹, few fridge magnets relatively cheap compared to a shop.

This ends our day on a beautiful note with lots of memories.

** Do select the tour operator very carefully, as when we went to collect our tickets for Eiffel tower there were people standing who has booked the tickets with different operator and their shop was closed and no one was answering their calls.

Stay tuned for more details about our coming days in Paris.

Note - All the pictures are from our trip taken by us.

Europe Trip – Hotel, Paris Metro/Bus ride & Seine River Cruise

This is our day 2 in Europe and Day 1 in beautiful city Paris.

Day 2

After going through all the trouble at Paris Nord and Paris Metro station near to Pairs Nord we finally reached our hotel all thanks to Uber. (If you have not read my previous blog do read it here)

For our 3 night 4 days stay in Paris we have booked MERCURE PARIS BOULOGNE APARTHOTEL. It’s an apartment hotel where you get a small kitchenette with refrigerator, microwave, ceramic hotplate, dishwasher. Safe, television, telephone, Wi-Fi. Bathroom with bathtub and hair dryer.

We choose apartment hotel due to 2 reasons one and major one was our daughter, as she was only 1.6-year-old, so we need to make food for her second in a medium long trip of 10 days we don’t want to eat outside junk food both the time. Eventually save some money ?

We really didn’t cook full meals but cooking B/F as it was not included in the booking and dinner which was mostly a ready to eat Indian meal like pre-cooked rice, dal, pulao, chole etc.

Mercure is a mid scale brand of hotels b/w 3 & 4-star properties run by its parent company AccorHotels, a French multinational corporation.

Our’s was an around 32m sq. room with a double bed and 1 sofa bed. Bed was comfortable with lights on both the side of the bed, a small shelve on the full wall behind the bed to keep the things like phone, wallet etc.

There’s a small dinning table places beside the wall in the kitchenette, space after you enter the room where we can keep the stroller and other stuff, one wardrobe to store all the luggage and one small stool.

There is a storage cabinet above the sofa cum bed and beside it was a small TV. This storage was very useful during our stay as we kept all our raw/ready to eat food item there.

These was a big window on one of the walls, our room was a front room, so we could see the front road. This hotel is in the quitter residential area, sometimes it was nice to open the window and let the fresh air in.

So, after reaching and settling down, relaxing a bit after a tiring Metro run we went out as today evening we had our Seine river cruise.

Beautiful art on one of the most beautiful bridges in Paris – Pont Alexandre III

Deliberately we have opted for evening time as that time we can see the beautiful monuments in the day light and witness the beauty of Paris in the artificial lights.

To travel locally in Paris, you have metro & bus. Regular ticket cost 1.90 or say 2 Euro if you purchase per ride but there is a little cheaper option i.e. ‘Carnet’ which is a book of 10 tickets cost 16 Euro.

At Nord Station the machines through which we can buy Carnet was not accepting international credit card, but at other station it worked.

You can take help from local people there, they are helpful.

Green Metal Bridge, there is a metro line 6 above the roads

With the help of Google Maps, we found that we can take direct bus from a stop near to our hotel directly to the center where all the attractions are. So, there is no changing metro, no climbing stairs, we were very happy ??

For the next 4 days we only used Bus, well most of the time say 95% as once you reach the centre then you must walk…walk…walk & walk… Saying it again stroller and baby carrier is a must if you have small kid(s).

If one doesn’t want to walk then there is an option of Hop on Hop off bus, in these buses you can ride full day on a single ticket. You can Hop off at any attraction on their specific route visit the place and then Hop on again in the next bus to go to another attraction.

We have done our booking from Vedettes du Pont Neuf after going through review of different service providers at different platforms. Normal ticket w/o any add on would cost maximum 14 Euros pp.

The boats are quite big and have 2 type of sitting options one is in open on the top and second is close below it.

The tour is of 1 hour with live commentary informing about the monuments and places that are covered during the tour. If you choose the evening tour which might end up in late evening or night, then you can witness the beautiful monuments and bridges in night light.

Art on one of the bridges out of many bridges in Paris

Beautiful Cour De Cassation – Civil and Criminal Court Paris
Beautiful Pont Alexandre III at night

It’s all Altogether a different experience in artificial lights. It’s amazing experience sailing in the Seine river.

This concludes our first day in Paris.

Stay tuned for more updates and details of the coming days in Pairs.

Note - All the pictures are from our trip taken by us.

Europe Trip – Emirates, Schiphol Amsterdam & Thalys

Day -1 & 2 (This is going to be a series of Blogs of my 10 days Europe trip, please be patient as these blogs might be lengthy as I want to provide as much information to help someone in their trip ?) The whole trip was planned by us which includes lots n lots … Continue reading “Europe Trip – Emirates, Schiphol Amsterdam & Thalys”

Day -1 & 2

(This is going to be a series of Blogs of my 10 days Europe trip, please be patient as these blogs might be lengthy as I want to provide as much information to help someone in their trip ?)

The whole trip was planned by us which includes lots n lots of research, on call discussing with each other where to go what to see, how to go etc. many hours spent burning our eyes in laptop screen.

After all the hard work we really enjoyed and created some amazing memories. There is this amazing site and app inspirock which will help you to plan your itinerary.

Itinerary planning Application

This will tell you each and everything like how far the place is from each other how to go how much time to spend, how much spare time you have etc. This was great help in planning our trip.

It was March end of 2018 when I landed in Amsterdam, Netherlands, travelled through Emirates airline. It’s a 1 stop flight with around 1.30 hours of layover in Dubai.

After landing in Dubai to go to your connecting flight’s departure gate you must go through security check. This could take time as many people will be coming to same place to go to their respective gates.

If time permits, then you can relax and enjoy some food and drinks in Marhaba Lounges in Dubai Airport with your Priority Pass membership. Priority Pass is a program which provided Lounge access to its members across the world.

There are some premium credit cards that too provide International lounge access like HDFC Bank Diners Club card.

This was my first solo flight with my daughter, who was around one and half year old. Few points I want to mention which will be helpful if you are traveling alone with baby.

1) Always carry some healthy food for your baby as they don’t provide baby food below 2 years

Food served in flight

2) Baby carrier is must as you must check in stroller while boarding and will get back once you reached your destination. Check my post on baby carriers for more details.

Baby carrier

3) Limit your hand luggage as with baby it’s hard to manage with heavy luggage

4) Flight staff was helpful. So, feel free to ask for any help needed

After landing in Amsterdam and clearing the immigration’s, me and my little daughter came out and looked for hotel shuttle service. Hotels near to Schiphol, Amsterdam provide shuttle service which is free of charge to pick and drop their guest.

The frequency of this service depends from hotel to hotel and what time of day but mostly it is in every 30 min.

I stayed in NH Hotel Schiphol, it’s nice big hotel with lot of facilities present in it. I just stayed there for a night so didn’t use any of the facilities like gym, indoor heated swimming pool etc.

Room at NH Hotel

Bathroom with all the toiletries and hair dryer

Gym at NH Hotel

Gym at NH Hotel

The room was quite cozy and of good size, you can even request for a kid’s cot w/o any extra charge. Check in and check out was smooth as we have already paid the charges.

NH Amsterdam Lobby

Earlier you book cheaper it is and if you go online payment with Zero refund option then it is cheaper than the full refund option. So, it’s better early you decide, might get good deal in full refund option.

We were little late in planning as we were planning with my brother & sister in law who were supposed to join us from London. Ours was 128 Euros + 7.30 Euros in city tax.

Where ever you go in Europe city tax is charged additionally and needs to be paid either at the time of check in or check out in cash or card.

Next day took train from Schiphol to Paris Nord. Our tickets were in Thalys First Class. Full train journey was covered in just 3 hours.

First Class Seats

Train ticket prices also increased as the journey date comes closer. Our ticket price for 2 adults was 190 Euros. So, if you are planning a trip by your selves then finalize soon and book everything to save some money.

First class of Thalys is quite amazing and can be more amazing if you can get the single seats. So basically, in first class coach the seat layout is 2×1. Seats are comfier and broader and recline a little then the one in economy class.

Comfortable seats

Other benefits of first class are like – free faster WiFi with more data, paper & magazines, there lounge access, priority boarding etc.

There are attendant in each first-class coach, they will great you at the station and might help with luggage (depends on person to person). A separate space to keep your luggage and it is there at the start of each coach.

Enjoying sun after long cold winter

In 3 hour of journey we were served 2 times, yes you read it right there is free food or say included in ticket price of first class. As ours was morning 9.34 AM train so we were served, B/F and small snack.

Morning breakfast

In B/F we got a multi grain bun, sugar coated puff,delicious cake, fruit, juice, yogurt. It was nice tasty and makes you full. 1hour before the scheduled time to reach Paris Nord, we were served some snack.

Snack

It was delicious chocolate cake, with drink of your choice like, juice, tea, coffee or wine. The trains in this part of the world are very punctual. They come on time, depart on time, the highest speed that I saw on the display was more than 250Km/hr.

After this amazing journey we finally reached my dream destination – PARIS.

Reaching our hotel from Paris Nord was a big task and took us more than 1 hour to figure out how to reach there, which metro to take, which direction to go etc.

Paris Nord (Not clicked by us, was so exited after reaching Paris that totally forgot to click)

Believe me Paris metro stations are not at all stroller friendly. These stations are very old, and they have lots and lots of stairs. It was very difficult for us to climb up and down with stroller, heavy suitcase and bag with small kid.

So finally, after lot of struggle we finally book Uber ? and it was costly ☹. We paid 22.5 Euros and finally reached our hotel.

Stay tuned for more details in my second blog like hotel we stayed, places we visited with some amazing pics ?

Note - All the pictures (except one) are from our trip taken by us.

Gandikota and Belum Caves

Gandikota is a hidden gem, also known as Grand Canyon of India. Gandikota is a small village on the banks of river Pennar in Andhra Pradesh. Planned 1N/2D road trip from Bangalore to Gandikota and Belum caves. Gandikota is around 292 Km and it’s NH 44 i.e. highway to Hyderabad. The roads are awesome, it’s … Continue reading “Gandikota and Belum Caves”

Gandikota is a hidden gem, also known as Grand Canyon of India. Gandikota is a small village on the banks of river Pennar in Andhra Pradesh.

Planned 1N/2D road trip from Bangalore to Gandikota and Belum caves. Gandikota is around 292 Km and it’s NH 44 i.e. highway to Hyderabad.

The roads are awesome, it’s a 4-lane highway and state highway after Kodur with quite less traffic.

Route took –

Outer ring road from home till Hebbal Junction and merged into NH 44.

Bangalore – Kodur – Muddalakuntapalli – Sunnampalle – Mukkandlavarikothapalle – Kadiri – Kutagulla – Kanampalli – Venkatpuram – Rachumarripalle – Muddanur – Ananthagiri - Gandikota

There are toll on this road. The state highway is also in good condition with occasional bad patches.

If you love to drive fast, then you will fall in love with this highway (please don’t drive fast you will save few minutes but will be risking your and others life’s).

Bangalore to Belum — Beautiful view on NH 44

We started around 6.00 AM from our place, it took 1 hour to cross the airport toll from out place. There are good options for B/F few kilometers after the toll. We stopped at Indian Paratha Company.

Heard a lot about Indian Paratha Company from friends and were thinking to visit this place from long. Finally, we got a chance and made our first stop here.

It’s quite good option to have heavy B/F with large glass of tea. They have 2 sitting options few tables inside and then outside. It’s quite nice to sit outside in the morning as there is less traffic, less noise and pollution.

Taste was good, they serve parathas with achar, curd & chutney. As it was early morning time, we had ginger tea which they served in a big glass. Tea was priced heavily around Rs 60, but taste was good. Toilets are not that clean and small toilets.

After having heavy B/F we stopped one more time as washroom break then directly to the hotel in Gandikota. We reached around 1 PM and after checking in directly came for lunch.

There is only one place to stay in Gandikota and that is Haritha Hotel which is run by APTDC i.e. Andhra Pradesh Tourism. There are limited rooms available here and can only be booked through APTDC website.

Do carry print out of booking confirmation.

Haritha Hotel Gandikota — View of rooms @ Haritha Gandikota

Rooms are air conditioned and cost very nominal i.e. Rs 1500/night on weekdays and Rs 2000/night on weekend. Nothing is included in the price but the food here is quite cheap.

There is no other restaurant near by as this is located right next to Gandikota Fort, which is far from nearby towns.

One of the speciality of this hotel is you can drive your car right up to your room and park it there itself.

Volkswagen Polo — German beauty soaked in over night rain

Nearest towns are namely Tadipatri, Gooty and Guntakal. The road after the highway to the hotel is single lane road but in good shape. You might be able to see Tatireddy Narasimha Reddy Dam at a distance and Pennar river on the right.

Tatireddy Narasimha Reddy Dam — View of Pennar river

It’s a decent property with big room and small washroom. Room was nice decently cleaned and doesn’t smell foul. They do have TV and set top box. There is option to stay in tents, as this is a government property, they have lots of open space.

For full review of this property please check my TripAdvisor.

Food was OK here, mostly they have limited options. Taste was OK, and price was low we paid around Rs 770 for 4 meals and evening snack for 2 persons.

Bangalore Gandikota — Somewhere on the way to Gandikota

Best thing about this hotel is the view and is located right next to fort. They do have some outdoor activities at additional cost like kayaking which is organized by some other organization. For it you have to track down to Penna river which takes around 40 min.

After lunch, went to relax for some time. After freshen up head out to visit the main attraction – Grand Canyon of India. It is called Grand Canyon because a spectacular gorge formed by river Pennar which goes through the Erramala hills.

Grand canyon Gandikota — Mesmerising view of gorge

You can take you car inside the fort and park it near the Mosque. From there walk/climb/jump/balance to reach the point where you will be mesmerized by the beauty of the gorge and river Pennar.

Gandikota Fort — Way to the gorge inside Gandikota fort

As it’s full of rocks so please do wear comfortable shoes and relaxed bottom wear.

Sunrise/Sunset view must be amazing here. We couldn’t witness the sunset as it was all cloudy that evening and we had rains in the night.

After enjoying the evening at the gorge came back had some snacks with a cup of tea and then went to room to relax.

There is one positive point about this place is there is no or very limited cellular n/w, so you can totally enjoy the time with friends and family.

But has one drawback Google map won’t work so download the map of this region in advance.

After dinner we slept early, had a good night sleep and then woke up early. Went to the terrace of our room (one unique thing about this place is each room has its own terrace). The morning view was simply amazing. Click some pics and then went down to get ready to leave.

After B/F we checked out and head to Belum caves, it’s around 61 KM 1.30-hour drive. It’s a state highway and nice road with traffic as you have to cross towns.

Gandikota to Belum Caves — Gandikota to Belum

There is ample parking space and the entry ticket costs Rs 50 -60 for Adult and Rs 30 for child.

The caves are largest caves in India. We visited after the rainy season and major part of the caves was closed as it was filled with water and mud.

There are lights and large fans installed to keep pumping fresh air so that one won’t feel suffocated. If full cave is operational then it is advisable to take a guide.

Belum caves are natural caves formed by underground water. The entrance looks like we are going in a pit and only after entering that pit you will be amazed to see the hug and amazing caves.

It will be humid and hot inside the caves; cloth selection should be accordingly. Walking path inside the cave is nicely laid so you can take stroller, but it will be bumpy. Our daughter was small, so we carried her in her carrier.

We spent around 1 hour in the caves and came back, if it was fully open then one can spend around 2-3 hours exploring the caves.

Coming back to Bangalore from Belum it was different route –

Belum – Bugga – Tadipatri – Anantapur – Rapthdu – Kodur – Bangalore

Belum caves to Bangalore — Belum to Bangalore

From Rapthdu you will merge on NH 44 till Bangalore. Kilometer wise it is few KM more around 10-15 KM. One can plan a trip the other way as well i.e.

Bangalore – Belum – Gandikota – Bangalore

On our way back, we took lunch at NH 7 Refuel which will come after Indian Paratha Company. You must take ‘U’ turn which is little ahead but not too far.

Food was Ok here it was based on Punjabi theme so major food item was non-veg and we are pure veg. so after digging in the menu we finally settled for Makki ki roti sarso ka sag and chole bhature.

Makki ki roti and sag was good but they didn’t serve any gud (jaggery). Chole bhature taste wise were nice but bhatura was too oily. Service was kind of slow and less staff.

It is a huge place with 2 sitting option out of which one is inside in the main hall and other is upstairs in open with a view of highway and landscape.

Over all it was amazing experience exploring the huge natural caves for the first time and the view of Gandikota and Panna river.

Note - All the pictures are from our trip taken by us.

Kalasa

This was much needed break for both of us as we didn’t go anywhere outside Bangalore is last 6 months. Came to know about Kalasa through one of our friend as he posted some amazing pics of this place. Kalasa is located near to Chikmagalur around 85 Km. Distance from Bangalore – 315 KM Route … Continue reading “Kalasa”

This was much needed break for both of us as we didn’t go anywhere outside Bangalore is last 6 months.

Came to know about Kalasa through one of our friend as he posted some amazing pics of this place. Kalasa is located near to Chikmagalur around 85 Km.

Distance from Bangalore – 315 KM

Route took –

Outer Ring road till Yeswanthpur signal then turn left on Tumkur road took flyover - took left on Nelmangla road NH 75 till Hassan - then on SH 57 Belur Road - in Belur take left on NH 73 from Nehru circle – continue on NH 73 via Halekote – Banakal – Kottigehara, from here you have to turn left on SH 66 – after traveling around 6.5 km turn left on SH 106 till Kalasa.

Till Hassan the road is 4 lanes, not that much traffic if you leave early. After Hassan mostly, it’s 2 lanes but the condition of the road is quite good even the ghat section which is around 34 Km is also in good shape.

There are tolls on the Hassan highway. Total one side toll is Rs 165. Trip was completed under one full tank (diesel). ¼ fuel was left after parking our car back home.

We stopped 3 times and it took us 6.5 – 7 hours to reach our stay. First stop was at Kamat upachar, kunigal which is around 87 Km from our home which took 1-1.5 hour.

Kamat upachar has clean restrooms and good food which is what we require while traveling. There is big parking and kids play area beside parking.

There are other options as well little ahead of this place like – Swathi Delicacy which is on the right side of the road and Halli Mana on the left. These two are in front of each other. Then there is Dhruvathare which is relatively new and modern wrt all these places.

Food is good at all these places as we have tried all in our other journey i.e. to Sharavanbelgola.

Our second stop was 5 min which was restroom stop. We stopped at a small restaurant named ‘Pushpagiri’ or something like that. Please don’t stop at this point as the toilets are very dirty, as we were not sure if we would find any good place ahead, so we managed somehow.

After going ahead, we could see much better places where one can stop, and one such place was Ibbani cafe. Again, it’s a small café which sells raw spices and other stuff with nice view. Clean toilet and good freshly prepared tea.

After all the stops we finally reached out homestay at around 1 PM. We stayed in Mudra Homestay, Kalasa. It’s a town homestay i.e. not like other places which are out of town inside some estate with narrow roads. This place is located on the main road left side easily visible once you enter Kalasa.

It’s a commercial building on ground floor, residence of owner on first and homestay on second. Restaurant is on the roof. They do have lift which is quite slow but helpful with luggage.

Mudra is not that old will complete 5 year in sometime, and it’s maintained very well by Vikram our host and his staff.

This place has around 6 – 7 rooms and each room are designed differently. There is a small theatre present on one side of second floor. Vikram is a kind of antique collector as he has decorated Mudra with old musical instruments, paintings, artifacts, car, bike, scooter parts etc.

Over all it was looking nice and room amenities were good. We had a bigger room which was kind of 1 BHK flat as it has one big living space, big bedroom and huge bathroom a small dining area, kitchen with gas, induction, microwave and fridge and finally a wash area with automatic washing machine and drying hangers.

We were really surprised with this kind of setup. This room was joined with the adjacent room with a door for big families.

We have opted for food also, so we had all the 3 meals at this place and it was quite good. Every meal menu was different and was a mix of local dish + one north Indian dish.

Taste was superb. The staff was very friendly polite and well behaved, and they took care of our daughter so well that after a long time we have enjoyed our food w/o running after her or worrying about her activities.

Even though this homestay was in town but still the view was magnificent i.e. lush green mountains covered in clouds.

Price per night – Rs 2900 which include b/f. Lunch & dinner costs Rs 250 per meal, as mentioned above it’s a buffet.

Places we have covered in our trip are –

Kyatanamakki Hills
Shri Kalaseshwara temple
Vasistha Theertha
Amba Theertha
Samse Tea estate
Soormane falls

Kyatanamakki Hills

This place is simply amazing, it was such an amazing panoramic view which will leave you awestruck. It’s a off road drive and only 4×4 vehicles can reach to the top.

Vikram has already informed us about all the spots and how to reach there and arranged a vehicle both days. Charges are separate.

Kyatanamakki Hills — Beautiful sunset view

Best time to visit this place is sun rise or sun set.

Shri Kalaseshwara temple

This is the main temple in the town and it was located just a walking distance from our homestay.

It’s the first thing that will come once you enter the town. It’s small, old and important temple here. Men can enter the temple only after removing the top wear.

There are 2 entrances one is from the main road, there is small parking on the front side of the temple and the second one is from behind.

Main benefit of second entrance is that you can take your vehicle and then don’t need to climb any stairs.

But there is limited parking as it’s a narrow road.

Vasistha Theertha

The narrow road behind the Kalaseshwara temple leads to this spot. Some part of the road is good some is not good, but you can take your car. Need to park the car little ahead of the main spot.

Vasistha Theertha — River Bhadra with beautiful background

This is located on the bed of Bhadra river and there is a long hanging bridge which connects the 2 shores of the Bhadra river.

There is one Linga and Nandi present on the banks of the river which people workship and there are few submerged in the river.

It’s a beautiful spot to take pictures.

Amba Theertha

This is another river spot, this is rocky terrain and in and after rains when there is good flow in river this place looks amazing.

At Amba Teerth when the water level is little less you can find a spot and put your feet in the cold fresh and clean water, relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings.

Samse Tea estate

As per the name it’s a beautiful tea estate with Ganesha temple inside it. If weather is good, you can climb up the hill to have beautiful panoramic view of the full estate.

There is small shop in front of it where you buy local spices and nice tea. They also sell freshly made tea, there is sitting space behind the shop with river view which is nice.

Soormane falls

It’s a small but beautiful fall located in a private property. Once again, the roads are not in good shape, so you need car with big wheels and high ground clearance.

As it’s in private property they charge some royalty which is Rs 100 per vehicle (also depends if it’s mini bus then it will be more)

The main area of the fall i.e. just below the fall is around 6 ft deep, rest of the area has water below knee so no need to worry. Water is very clean, and it looks beautiful when there is good flow.

As most of the road leading to the places mentioned above are not in good shape our host suggested us to take 4×4 instead of our car. After visiting the places and seeing the roads we were happy that went with his suggestion.

Price paid Rs 3500

Mudra has their own 4×4 and the driver is nice guy, they have fixed rated to cover all the places.

We came back via same route and for lunch stopped at Hoysala Village resort. we have seen it while coming and decided to visit it while coming back. It’s located in Hassan. While going to Kalasa it will come few Km after Hassan town and before while coming back.

We left Kalasa around 10.30 AM and reached Hoysala around lunch time i.e. 1.15 PM. It’s a big resort with man made lake inside it.

Hoysala Village is very beautiful, calm and clean place. One can go here on weekend just to relax. restaurant was decent means not very good but not that bad as well.

We have opted for buffet which has decent options with live counter as well. After this we didn’t stop anywhere and reached home around 6.20 PM

Final verdict – Kalasa is beautiful place one must visit after monsoon and till Feb as river and waterfall will have good water, there will be greenery everywhere and the climate will be better then what we have in cities.

Note - All the pictures are from our trip taken by us.

Coorg – Scotland Of India

Coorg is also known as Scotland of India due to its vast natural beauty, hills and cold climate. Coorg was on our travel list from long time the time, the time when we came to know about Orange County Coorg, I remember it was in 2013. After we move to Bangalore it was our top … Continue reading “Coorg – Scotland Of India”

Coorg is also known as Scotland of India due to its vast natural beauty, hills and cold climate.

Coorg was on our travel list from long time the time, the time when we came to know about Orange County Coorg, I remember it was in 2013.

After we move to Bangalore it was our top most priority to visit Coorg but again delayed as I was pregnant ?. So, after delivery and baby is big enough to travel long distances & buying our first car it was time to visit Coorg.

Done some research online, trying to find some nice home stays and luckily, we found one in our budget on MMT(MakeMyTrip). It was Silver Brooks Estate; this home stay is run by a couple Revathi & Yogesh. Yogesh was in hospitality business for long, so these guys knows what all things are required and how to manage and maintain a property effectively.

Route we took was – via Mysore highway till a round about from where we need to take exit on KSR Road then Belagola – Yelwala – Mallinathpura – Hunsur – then on Mysure – Medikeri Road till Kushalnagar. Continue on same road via Suntikoppa – Kedakal – Boikeri.

It was around 250 Km from our home and took us 5.30 – 6 hours with 2 stops. Our first stop was at Kamat Lokaruchi – Ramanagara, it’s around 50-55 Km 1 hour drive, nice clean toilets and very good food.

Parking is on the road side. Second stop was Café County which is around 125 km from Kamat Lokaruchi and 70-75 Km from out stay. It’s café cum restaurant here you have snacks coffee or full lunch/dinner as per the time.

Service and cleanliness is not good, less staff and until you call them they won’t bother to come to your table, so better find some other place if you want a second stop.

We had one of the cakes with coffee (don’t remember the name) but it was delicious. Small but clean toilets 2 type of sitting options i.e. inside and outside.Other than these 2 stops we stopped at 2 attractions before Coorg.

1. Namdroling Monastery:

Namdroling Monastery is center of Tibetan Buddhism, it’s very calm and peace full place. There is a parking facility outside the monastery behind the shopping complex. Entry is free, there is large beautiful Buddha temple in the center of the complex. It is surrounded by beautiful gardens.

2. Nisargadhama:

Nisargadhama is an island formed by river Kaveri. This place is situated near Kushalnagar. There is ticket to enter the island, you have to cross an hanging bridge built over Kaveri.

The island has lots of bamboo trees and some activities like zip line, place to sit, small tree house kind of. The place is not maintained very well. There is boating facility as well but when we went the current in Kaveri was strong due to which boating was suspended for some time.

There are lots of shops here, all kind of shops like Gov. Silk shop, food shops, toys etc. The main entrance is little hard to find as it’s a small way b/w the shops which leads to the place to buy ticket.

After all the stops and soaking all the natural beauty on the way we reach out home stay Silver Brooks. Believe me it was amazing, exactly what was shown in the pics and the hospitality was just great. Revathi guided us very well and was available all the time for help.

The house is created from scratch inside their estate, look and feel was of old housed. Revathi informed us that they have used reused the old materials like the pillars, doors, swing, chairs. Means they bought the things from some old home and restored it to give more traditional and old age feeling.

This home stay has 5 rooms I think 2 in the main building 1 on the right side which has its own private entrance and site out area, room is also little big and 2 at the start near the parking which are smaller than the other 3.

Cost of room includes B/F and dinner which is home made by 2 talented cooks. Food was delicious, it was a buffet with authentic flavors. There is an open kitchen which means guests have access and can cook their food or snack.

It’s kids friendly place even for infants, the cooks cooked special food for our daughter, the staff is very friendly and help full.

For more detailed review please check my TripAdvisor.

We stayed for 2N/3D and felt that we could have stayed one more day. Most of the time we have spent in home stay relaxing, interacting with other guests. But we also went for some sightseeing to the places like Abbey falls, Raja’s seat & Madikeri Fort.

Abbey Falls:

Is around 14 km from the home stay and you have to pass the Madikeri city, but don’t worry there is not much of traffic like what we have in Bangalore ?. Route is beautiful as it’s a ghat/mountain road 2 lane.

There is a parking little ahead of the main entrance to the falls. There is toilet facility as well in the parking area. To reach to the main falls you have to decent some steps and slope.

The area in front of falls is quite small and in tourist season when the falls are at there peak it will be difficult to find a spot to click some good pics. Spent less time there as it was over crowded, took few pics and came back.

One main issue there is due to some stupid people which park their cars on the road side which leads to traffic jam, so be prepare for that.

Madikeri Fort:

It is around 8 Km from home stay and it is near to Raja’s seat. So, you can cover both the place in one go. You can either park your car in the parking area in front of Raja’s seat or inside fort and walk to one of the places. Distance b/w these places is around 1 Km.

Fort is old and now kind of Gov. office, there is one small museum inside the fort on the right side just after entering the fort. One can stroll on the fort walls, but there is nothing much to do here.

This place lacks proper sign boar, or any kind of guide like some printed material or some guided tour. Due to these reasons it’s very less time consuming.

Raja’s Seat:

Is a kind of valley view point or sunset point.

Kings of Kodagu use to sit here to relax and watch the mesmerizing sunset with beautiful valley view that’s why it is called as Raja’s seat. It has beautiful garden at the start with fountains. Safety measures are good with railing on stairs and on the edges.

There is bon fire facility available in the home stay but went there in after rainy season, but it still rained so couldn’t do it.

To shop from Coorg is special Coorg wine, which comes in different flavors like ginger, chilly, mixed fruit, dates and many more, price range from Rs 500-1000 also spices. There is one government shop on the road which leads to Raja’s seat.

We really enjoyed our stay in Silver Brooks and Coorg tourist spots and the long drive from Bangalore.

Visit Month – August

Note - All pics are from our trip and clicked by us.

Drive-in Beach Kannur

Kannur has one of the most beautiful beaches we have visited till date. It’s also known as ‘Crown of Kerala’ due to various reason and its geographic location. After we bought our first car it was my husbands wish to drive the car on a beach and splash the sea water while driving through the … Continue reading “Drive-in Beach Kannur”

Kannur has one of the most beautiful beaches we have visited till date. It’s also known as ‘Crown of Kerala’ due to various reason and its geographic location.

After we bought our first car it was my husbands wish to drive the car on a beach and splash the sea water while driving through the waves (just like what we use to see in movies). So, while planning our holiday he came across Kannur and immediately it was his first preference to visit this place.

After doing some research for route & stay, we finalized one home stay through Airbnb. Our home stay was located right on the beach, well not exactly right on the beach but stone throw distance.

It was around 310 Km from our home, we started early but not that early around 5.30 AM. With kid it’s hard to leave very early, you keep thinking if you have kept all the required things for your kid or not till you sit in the car and leave.

What we have started doing is we pack all the luggage a night before and arrange it in the car, only thing we leave for the morning is the food item and ourselves ?.

This leads to less hassle in the morning to arrange the stuff, less sweating which leads to fresh mind and body to start the long drive. We took 2 stops one for B/F and another a loo/tea break, also it helps in relaxing the legs which is required if only one person is there to drive.

Coorg Gate Karnataka — Coorg Gate, stop just before entering Kerala

The route was quite straight forward till we reach Kerala, then some ghat section comes through the beautiful jungle. Our second stop was just before the ghat/jungle section at Coorg gate, that’s the only restaurant on the right side. It has ample of parking, nice clean toilets (w/o health faucet).

The route we took was –

Mysore highway till Krishnarajasagara road, then from there Bilikere – Hunsur – Gonikoppal – Vayathur – Iritty – Mattanur – Kannur

Most of the road is in good shape till we reach kannur but just before kannur there is road and new airport construction going on so there are some diversions, mud road etc. otherwise no issue at all.

With all the stops and road condition it took us 7-7.30 hours to reach our home stay, by lunch we were at our home stay.

We booked Ivorycoast’e home stay through Airbnb and believe me it was simply awesome experience with our host. Our host is simple, humble, polite and friendly guy who will help you in every manner.

Ivorycoast'e Kannur — Balcony of our room

They serve fresh, homemade Kerala style food at very reasonable rates. We didn’t go anywhere else for any of our meal. If we are out somewhere then we finish that site and came back to have the lunch and then after some rest head back to another place.

Another benefit of our home stay is distances from the places to visit, it was like in the middle of Muzhappilangad Beach and Kannur Light house & St. Angelo’s fort. Ivorycoast’e has 6 rooms, 3 on ground and 3 on first with porch, balcony, garden area with table chairs kept.

(For more detailed review of the property visit my TripAdvisor)

Here you have your B/F, Lunch/Dinner served which you can enjoy with cold breeze coming from the sea and magical sound of sea waves.

Thottada Beach is just 50 mtr away from the Ivorycoast’e, it’s beautiful, clean, calm beach. It’s located behind the residential area so not many people come here. In the morning we saw only 4-5 people doing there morning walk or exercise. You can easily enjoy your time with family and loved one’s w/o worrying about any kind of disturbance.

Ivorycoast’e is mostly popular with foreigners which come here to relax for 10-15 days and explore the local culture. When we were there Theyyam festival was being celebrated in a near by temple. Our host was kind enough to take us to witness the festival.

Believe me it was amazing experience.

Other than relaxing at our home stay we have visited Kannur light house, and St. Angelo’s fort and the most important place for which my husband had planned the holiday i.e. Muzhappilangad Drive in beach.

Muzhappilangad Drive in beach is one of the largest in Asia. There is entry fee of I think Rs 30, it’s around 5 Km in length so you have enough space to drive your car or find some place away from crowd. The beach is very clean, its awesome experience driving your car on the beach (as per my husband ?).

Muzhappilangad Kannur — Beautiful sunset

We have visited in the evening to witness sun set and it was amazing experience. It was special as it was my daughters first beach holiday. She was initially afraid of water as it was too much of water coming and going also it was her first time on beach. After some time, she was enjoying her time playing with sand.

There is one thing one must be cautious about i.e. washing the under body after driving the car in sea water.

Second day of our visit we went to see Kannur light house and St. Angelo’s fort. There is also a museum below the light house which has a collection of different types of lights used in different types of light house etc. there is ticket to enter the light house and museum which is reasonably priced.

The view from the top is quite magnificent you can see sea at one end and greenery at other. Even in sunny day it was very pleasant on the top due to cold breeze. There is separate ticket to go to the front of the compound sort of walking space with garden at one end, it’s good for morning/evening walk beside the sea. Parking is available on the premises which is free.

Timings are – 10 to 6

There is documentary played inside the museum, in local language and English which gives more information about the history of light house and types of light houses.

For St. Angelo’s we have to first pay the entry fee as it is located in cantonment area, then there is parking that one has to pay. Entry is free. It’s a Portuguese fort built in 1505.

St. Angelo's Fort Kannur — View of Arabian sea from fort

There is ample space inside the fort and has a cliff like end of the fort. There are watch towers on the walls and a chapel in the premises.

From one the walls of the fort we can see the port where the fisherman park their boats. Fort has some beautiful trees inside it’s an ideal place to relax, watch sunset and enjoy the breeze. School children comes here for picnic or visit to learn more about history.

We have really enjoyed out stay here, it was amazing experience in the home stay with amazing homemade Kerala style food and in the town with amazing long drive from Bangalore.

Visit Month – January

Note - All pics are from our trip and clicked by us.