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

100 journeys before i die : 100-91

the title's straightforward enough. so lets get down to business - with each subsequent post, i'll reveal my pick, 10 at a time. struck out titles are journeys ive done.
 

 

 


 


100. goa with friends




though i've done this twice already, i'm always up for it. goa is fun, period. and with friends its an all out blast. the next time i go around, i want to wander around fontainhas district in panjim, check out more shacks along the coast and definitely drive in an open top jeep.

 


where to stay : fort tiracol, north goa, is a small restored fort, far flung from the crowds and overlooks a deserted coast.

 

 

 

99. wild wadi water park

 


one of the best water parks on earth is actually at the edge of the desert in dubai. with a selection of killer slides, huge wavepools and even a flash flood simulator, you do have a good enough reason to visit over-the-top dubai.

 


where to stay : for the pure experience - burj al arab. its horrendous in its design sensibilities, but still. otherwise, the al maha desert resort and spa offers a great tented setup in the arab desert.
 

 

 

 

98. taj mahal by the full moon

 


i doubt this needs any explanation. only passes for the bureaucratic brouhaha.

 


where to stay : obviously, the oberoi amarvilas, with its regularly updated collection of world's best awards and some astronomically high luxury standards. apart from the 600-m-away-taj views.
 

 

 





97. amsterdam's red light district




amsterdam's star attraction is its darkest, and walking around a district full of brothels, sex shops, 'hash' joints and strip clubs was a fun experience indeed. try and make it on a day when the dutch have something to celebrate about and its one wild party on the streets. when i'd gone, the dutch had just one a world cup match, and there were drunk oranjes on the loose, creating one laughathon.

 


where to stay : hotel patou, which has a gourmet eatery attached with 12 minimalist rooms. very chic, very intimate and bang in the centre of the city.
 

 





96. bhaang in jaisalmer




most of my batchmates fondly remember one wild night after having bhaang under jaisalmer's golden fort. you go crazy in rajasthan's best mainstream destination, and spend a night hallucinating, blabbering, losing your balance and so on.

 


where to stay : nowhere specific in jaisalmer, but outside, on the way to the sam sand dunes, you hit the serai, a classy collection of genuine luxury tents and even a pool, in the middle of the desert with nothing else in sight.

 

 

 

 

95. coffee plantations in coorg

 


or kodagu, as it is officially called. this is a pretty segment of the western ghats and has a countless number of charming estates and plantations, along with pleasant walks through forested hills. it also helps that the coorgis are rumoured to be the best looking in the country.

 


where to stay : orange county, though overhyped, is still a fine place to put yourself up.

 

 

 

 

 

94. jogging in central park

 


with every second hollywood movie romanticizing this rectangular block of green in the midst of skyscrapers, you do end up wanting to jog the mile, and catch the eye of a beautiful stranger in his or her nikes.

 


where to stay : the pierre by taj has just undergone a rehaul, and while it maintains a classical touch, the location is hard to beat. plus taj ain't that bad hoteliers.

 


 
 
 

 

 

 

93. cross the panama canal

 


be it on land or sea, and you'll pass through a tropical central american paradise to boot, between the pacific and the carribean!

 


where to stay : the canal house hotel in panama city is a chic townhouse which also put up daniel craig when he was shooting for quantum of solace.
 

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

92. drive on the autobahn

 


pick an audi or porsche or mercedes benz or bmw, and simply rev it up on the now mythical autobahn in germany, austria and switzerland.  drive from fussen in bavaria to innsbruck, austria, and youll be reaching top speeds in the sight of neuschwanstein castle and the alps.

 


where to stay : in munich, the 150 year old bayerischer hof is every bit the grande dame. off in innsbruck, leave town and head to an equally ritzy but far modern lanserhof which is also the haunt of roman abramovich.
 

 
 
 

91. dev deepavali

 


this is probably cultural india at its peak. to crown off a thematic journey as any, benares offers a celebration full of lights, frenzied devotion and a placid river.

 


where to stay : nadesar palace, by taj, is a bit off the cultural core, but is hands down the finest place to stay.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

current count - 3/10 journeys done.

 


next time, as we head from 90 to 81, you can mix a bit of romance, music and dance.

 


done any of these journeys? speak out and opinionate!

grande dames

grande dames. more specifically, old hotels. way old. now, india's colonial legacy did manage to leave sprinklings of the same left, right and centre, but the overall condition is not worth talking about.


1. taj mahal palace, mumbai


good : the iconic stature - from the architecture to the location, everything about the hotel has managed to set benchmarks. although the deserving-ness of its many bouquets is very arguable, the hotel still manages to retain its position as bombay's best, since 1903.


the hotel just re-opened, and expectations are very high indeed. so, all further comments are delayed to the future.

2. the imperial, new delhi


the hotel, which imo, beats the taj flat. or used to, since we still need to get a full grasp of the bombay taj. 1931 opened, this is an excellent property, which till before the aman set shop, was unmatched in the capital. superb food and even better service meets an excellent ambience in the art-deco meets colonial feel of the place.

3. taj westend, bangalore


mixed bag, really. the location is good by the city's standards, and it is a fine hotel overall. but thats just about it. there's nothing spectacular about it, not even a compelling history. the only interest factor is probably the vietnamese (yes, vietnamese) restaurant, blue ginger.

4. taj connemara, chennai


a colossal waste of prime property. taj can screw up property prioritization immensely. the corromandel (also in need of a heavy upgradation) is higher on the priority list, while this colonial landmark suffers ignominy and out of fashion fixtures.

5. taj malabar, kochi


a very fine place indeed. the only problem is, this being kochi, such a large hotel really doesn't need to break luxury records. thats why all the converted mansions in the fort are scoring way better. the poolside view though, has no comparison.

6. the oberoi grand, kolkata


desperate renovation required, but this being oberoi, it still works like a charm. the location is very central, though not that happening as a few blocks down the road, but the courtyard orientation dispels all urban brouhaha.

7. the oberoi cecil, shimla


the same case as calcutta's, only that in this case, attention is diverted to wildflower hall. needs more tender loving care.

8.  the windamere, darjeeling


fireplaces and cottages and raj era hillstations are all nice, but not to the point of being a chintz emporium. can do much better, especially with that awful website.

9. the maidens, delhi


blame it on the political shift. the oldest hotel in the city (as old as the bombay taj) suffers from a southward movement of commercial and political power since its opening. civil lines has no need for a five star hotel (leave aside an uber 5 star), so this hotel is downgraded to 4, disassociated with oberoi (and even trident) and kept running nicely at that.

10. the great eastern, kolkata


if current construction site ideas are to be believed, this is going to be a greater tragedy than before. the oldest hotel of the country enjoys a great location, between the political hub of the city and a huge dig-up which is supposedly its new wing. the website (god awful at that) renderings are no better. rape, ongoing and undefied.

the other deep blue

how do you deviate from the usual exotic paradises that most beach resorts claim to be? here's a sampling...

1. warapuru, itacare, brazil
anoushka hempel meets brazilian rainforest meets virgin beaches. extraordinary, if purely for the design value. soon to open, sure to shock.
site

2. vamizi island, quirimbas archipelago, mozambique
mozambique? well, its a lesser known cousin to seychelles and mauritius, but its islands are equally gorgeous and even more virgin, and vamizi is perfect as a luxe-eco-exotic lodge.
site

3. villa dubrovnik, dubrovnik, croatia
a dramatic cliffside setting to the most exotic of all mediterranean destinations, with the turquoise waters of the adriatic below and the white minimalism of the sleek hotel above.
site

4. bedarra, great barrier reef, australia
another piece of minimalism washed ashore. i'm not complaining. especially if you're sipping a martini while sauntering in your plunge pool while gazing at a sunset over the pacific. the wood cabins in the forests by the beach is the best way to go back to nature without the heartache.
site

5. the datai, langkawi, malaysia
a local legend, and for good reason. asian neo-traditional design meets lush rainforest meets pristine beaches and usual cliches for exotic seaside paradisos, but with ghm flair.
site

6. amanwana, moyo island, indonesia
aman resorts at its seaside best? arguable, but that doesnt alter the fact that the place is amazing. tents with sleek interiors and service+location to match.
site

7. w retreat and spa, maldives
how do you even attempt being different in a place which has typified lagoon resorts? by funking it out. w brings in the jazz, retains the luxe and lets out the cliches. works for me.
site

8. parrot cay, turks and caicos
the carribean is a step further than maldives - its even tougher to be different in a place with such easy access to americans. yet parrot cay retains the historical aspect without being kitschy. the neo-colonial look is not exactly path breaking, but refreshing enough to be loved.
site

9. amphityron hotel, navplion, greece
the aegean beckons with a historic city as a backdrop and a modern hotel as the host. great design, awesome location. greek without the white plaster-blue dome route.
site

10. le sirenuse, positano, italy
positano in itself is a twistedly awesome place to stay - a hillside that tumbles down to the sea. before the water, on the slope, is an italian legend that looks like one, but has a refreshing design sensibility on the inside. and its luxe enough to write volumes on.
site

11. ada, bodrum, turkey
middle eastern mansion meets mediterranean seas. pure sexy.
site

12. hix island house, vieques, puerto rico
retrosexy, simply put. my kinda place.
site

13. katakies hotel, santorini, greece
if you have to go the white-blue-greek island line, then this one's like no other. stands out because its so well standing in.
site

14. rayavadee, krabi, thailand
another south east asian legend. steers clear of phuket, keeps the asian touch, binges on luxury and even has a grotto set restaurant to boot. and the isthumus setting? ah, that too.
site

15. fort tiracol, goa, india
historic fort restored to its portuguese brightness, overlooking the arabian sea? goa at its different-est.
site

seclude

Back after a pretty long time.

This time around, its looking at places which offer seclusion. And a jaw-droppingly awesome one at that.

1. 360 Leti, Uttarakhand Himalayas, India
Himalayas is good enough. Add to that a journey that involves a couple of hours of hiking to get to the place, and seductive little stone cottages with drop dead gorgeous views. I've already started saving up for this one.
Hotel Site

2. Bangaram Island Resort, Lakshadweep, India
Basically a set of clean rooms which occupy the last bit of virgin paradise on planet earth. Thank the setting, or the spartanism would have made you homicidal, especially after the parting cheque.
Hotel Site

3. Juvet Landscape Hotel, Norway
Minimalist wood boxes with floor to ceiling glass facades + Stunning Norwegian Landscape + No sign of human habitation all around = Multiple Orgasm.
Hotel Site

4. Explora en Patagonia - Hotel Salto Chico, Patagonia, Chile
Another perennial favourite with a location thats stunning enough to make you want to give up everything on earth, and luxury to help you in your quest.
Hotel Site

5. Explora en Atacama - Hotel de Larache, Atacama Desert, Chile
The driest desert on the planet, its awe-inspiring landscape and the stylish luxury of another of explora's noble renderings to mankind. If only somebody had the brains and sensitivity to do that with the unexplored swathes of India.
Hotel Site

6. Vigilus Mountain Resort, Tirol, Italy
Whats more charming than a stylish Italian Alpine Hideaway? One that is reached via a short walk from a hamlet accesible only by cable car. And the views... ah...
Hotel Site

7. Ultima Thule Lodge, Alaska, USA
For a name that sounds like it, Ultima Thule lives it up. No cell coverage and access only via red planes, along with a protected Alaskan wilderness. Makes you forgive the hotel's not-so-bad but horribly-americanized-rustic design sensibilities.
Hotel Site

8. Turtle Island, Fiji
A South-Pacific legend, this tropical gem is served only by seaplanes or boat. Getting there is a short ride, but getting aways seems impossible, if only for the 'Blue Lagoon' type natural extravaganza it beholds.
Hotel Site

9. Denis Island, Seychelles
As if a relatively obscure Indian Ocean Creole island wasn't enough, this gem is located on a smaller isle that has just recently been upgraded to a '6-flights-a-week' status. All luxuries present. Just hope all the flights stand cancelled.
Hotel Site

10. El Questro Homestead, Northern Australia
All those who have seen Australia (the Luhrmann-Jackman-Kidman one) know how gorgeously desolate Oz's northern territories can be. Add to that a romantic collection of ranches equipped with tropical gardens, balinese beds and even a couple of tennis courts.
Hotel Site

11. Shompole, Great Rift Valley, Kenya
Seductive forms, cliffside setting, african wilderness, safari chic, private pools. Sex me up big time. And an ultra luxe property.
Hotel Site

And here's a sampling of places that could've done much better in terms of locational attributes.

1. Four Seasons Mumbai - Worli doesn't deserve it. Yet.
2. ITC Sonar, Kolkata - A heartfelt favourite, yet it sits in a stinky marshland, opposite a garish 'Science City', not to mention an urban highway on two sides. A rare case of context not following the (rather fine) architecture.
3. ITC Grand Central, Mumbai - Another ITC folly. Yes, its central. But what views does the country's tallest hotel offer? The central railway line? or maybe the more authentic dhobi ghats? or the chaos on the Bombay street? bafflements galore.
4. The Manor, Delhi - Friends Colony is posh, agreed, but the trunk rail line to Bombay behind the backyard isn't quite the uppity thing. Spoils the otherwise amazingly serene ambience.
5. Radisson, Delhi - A literal plonk. Think Haryanvi urban village. Think illegal construction brick walls. Think a flyover. Think airport trauma. And just add a Radisson in between. Voila, even by the chain's low standards.