100 journeys before i die : 90-81

the last post can be viewed here. in a nutshell:

100. goa with friends

99. wild wadi water park, dubai

98. taj mahal by the full moon

97. amsterdam's red light district

96. bhaang in jaisalmer

95. coffee plantations in coorg

94. jogging in central park, new york

93. crossing the panama canal

92. driving on the autobahn, germany, austria and switzerland

91. dev deepavali, varanasi

now coming to 90-81.

90. driving a vintage in udaipur

while udaipur is constantly referred to as india's most romantic destination, replete with palaces, lakes, and lake palaces, what better way to enjoy royalty than wave to a crowd (julie andrews style, a la princess diaries) from a vintage? or drive one youself, for added pleasure!

where to stay : its a three way fight - taj lake palace has the impossible middle of the lake location, udaivilas has the oh-so-awesome service by the lake, while devigarh, out of town altogether, soothes you with its design.

89. walking through pondicherry'e french quarter

think of ochre walls, tree lined avenues, colonial mansions and pleasant sea breezes. now add to it a selection of excellent boutiques, some great places to eat, and squeeze them in an urban district easily exploarable on foot, and you have delightful pondicherry. for an added bonus, you can head out to several beaches and also too auroville - a commune of the followers of aurobindo, but of interest to me due to the architectural freedom on display.

where to stay : at any of the reconverted mansions. hotel de l'orient by neemrana is upstaged by le dupleix, but both or on quiet though charming streets. the promenade is on the waterfront, while calve is a small but nice bungalow.

88. fly over mount everest

this is simple enough. take a flight over mount everest, cause climbing it is a huge feat. airlines routinely operate on this route, but hiring your own propcraft should be a better way to do it. plus, you can enjoy a proper view when you land at the base camp in sagarmatha national park.

where to stay : in kathmandu, you dont have too much of a choice, beyond hyatt or a slightly esoteric dwarika's.







87. roller coaster riding at six flags great adventure

move over disneyland. while we go gaga over tame parks which offer parades as prime attractions, its time we got down to the real deal - with a huge collection of hair raising roller coasters, the park also has water park, a safari park, and god-knows-how-many rides for nerves of all kinds. plus its located between new jersey and philadelphia, so is supposedly easy to reach, if you make it to new york.

where to stay : in new york, i've already mentioned the pierre by taj. also consider the bryant park hotel, a chic property with an awesome location, or take your pick from heavyweights like the mandarin oriental, the peninsula and the four seasons, apart from hundreds of others.

86. fete de la musique in paris

paris is reason enough to visit by itself, but even more so on june 21, when the fete de la musique brings the city out to a night of open to all music - anyone can perform, anyone can view, anywhere, through the night. the city celebrates its heart out. 

where to stay : like new york, paris has no dearth of places to live it up. pick from the always-in-fashion ritz, or the discreetly luxurious four seasons george v, among others.

85. switzerland, yash raj style

yash raj single handedly made switzerland a household name, and now, as i saw in my short trip to geneva, its fairly easy to spot grey haired patriarchs with their spouses taking in the pleasures of europe's playground. however, yash raj style is in reference to doing switzerland the bollywood way - running through panoramic trains, dancing in green valleys, sleeping on the bonnet of a mercedes benz in the middle of an alpine expressway, and bringing home the cowbells.

where to stay : all over! in zurich, choose from the widder or baur au lac; in geneva go for four seasons des bergues. for the 'out there' experience, head to the omnia in zermatt, to access which you have to go into a tunnel, then take a lift through the mountain, and come out to a hotel without the view of the view of the garish drives.

84. ride on the tgv

sure, this is no longer the fastest train on earth, but 320 kmph still knocks your socks off, and this one did it first. when in france, take a tgv and enjoy the speed as the countryside blurs by. you can travel down south to marseille and discover the cote d'azur, have wine in situ in bordeaux or head to grenoble or geneva for the alps.

where to stay : paris and geneva have been detailed already. in cote d'azur, the veritable colombe d'or has a fantastic collection of picassos and matisses apart from welcoming a range of celebs, while in the wine country, chateau cordeillan bages mixes good design with a historic manor.

83. incan and mayan ruins in central america

incas and mayas have always been one of the most mystic and attractive. therefore, head to little heard of central american countries like belize, guatemala, nicaragua and obviously, mexico and discover your own jungle adventure in ruins like chichen itza, tikal and copan. all are close to a fantastic set of beaches.

where to stay: the yucatan peninsula in mexico is chock-a-block with haciendas and villas, but basico in playa del carmen is a unique place - industrial in its styling with rusted containers as roof top baths, hospital beds and so on with all mod-cons.

82. cross the karlov most

prague may be east europe's biggest tourist magnet, but for a great reason - its possibly the prettiest big city in all of europe. and crossing the iconic karlov most at all times of the day is a must - preferrably on a foggy winter morning when all is quiet and the routine truckloads of tourists mercifully absent.

where to stay: prague has three amazing options - four seasons - with awesome riverfront views, the augustine and the mandarin oriental - both restored monasteries and high on the luxe factor.                                                                      

81. ecology lessons at lake baykal

lake baykal is the deepest and largest freshwater lake on the planet, and has a fascinating ecosystem to its credit. apart from its location in remote siberia, an ecology lesson by one of the many active researchers in the region should be a nice experience.

where to stay : hotels in irkutsk, the nearest big town, are quite uninspiring. camping seems to be the way to go, especially if  you want to be close to the lake at all times.







current score - 7/20, or 4/10 for this entry alone.
the next segment will see jungles, monsters, celebrations and a bit of dancing. (sad attempt at a teaser, but whatever...)
as always, comments are welcome, really. seeing i have none till now. :P