Chennai Mahabalipuram Pondicherry

Kapaleeshwarar Temple

We have always wanted to do this! To travel together, just my best friend and me and we finally did! We went off to Chennai and Pondicherry for a little beach break as none of us had been there before. 

Malaysia Truly Asia

Rightly described as 'Truly Asia' Malaysia offers a uniquely asian experience being a melting pot of various different asian cultures. Malaysia has always been on my list of places to visit and if I were to write about the 5 things I would want to experience in Malaysia, they would certainly be:

1.       Bungee Jump from the Petronas Twin Towers
2.       Try Dive at Sipadan Island
3.       Visit the world’s largest cave chamber at Mulu National Park
4.       Spend a day at Genting Highlands
5.       Attend the Rainforest World Music Festival at Sarawak Cultural Village

Picnicking

Now that the lovely English summer has become a thing of the past (as it is already getting cold now) I miss the warm sunny days already (it was just last week that I wore sun dresses to work!)

When the sun shines bright, you just want to be out there and make the most of it. Summers (especially English summers) bring out the fun loving picnic goer in most of us.

So here is what I did this summer.

Kirkstall Abbey

Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined monastery on the banks of river Aire in Leeds. Perfect place for a picnic on a sunny day. Walked all the way to and fro. Overall, a day well spent! :)

Road Trip: Portsmouth and Southampton

This time we hit the road and it turned out to be one hell of a crazy weekend with 18 people and 4 cars!! Enjoy the photos!! :)

York

York is a historic little town in Yorkshire, about an hour away from Leeds. It used to be a Viking capital in the 10th century and continued to be an important city in the north in the 11th century. The main attraction in York is the York Minister which is northern Europe's largest cathedral and attracts a large number of tourists and pilgrims alike. It is both a cathedral and a minister and is built in the shape of the cross symbolizing the most important Christian belief: that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins. The guided tour helps discover the history while absorbing the beauty and the architecture with the stories immortalized in stone and stained glass. It also houses a tower with 275 spiral steps from where you get the best views of York and the neighbouring countryside.

Happy New Year!!

Christmas in UK is beautiful and the decoration starts as early as October. In Leeds the Christmas lights were officially switched on in November itself and there was a German market that went on for a month housing fun rides, food and various other stalls.

I am going Home!! :)

As I write this looking out of my little airplane window watching the sun lighting up the horizon, remembering the past one week and how it passed by in a blur..... After a 4 hour coach ride, 10 hours of camping on Heathrow, some duty free retail therapy and a 13 hour flight with a 'run to catch the next flight' transfer at Doha when the plane finally descended upon Mumbai the feeling of being back home was great.

Down the memory lane...

As I see the snow fall from my window and everything outside covered under a blanket of snow, I realize time has passed and I will be going home soon for the holidays. Its been 3 months now that I am here, but it feels just like I came yesterday. Time really flies...lets rewind a bit and let me tell you about the day I came here....

Lake District

Like Scarborough, my university had organized another 'give it a go' session, this time a trip to Lake District. The Lake District, also known as 'The Lakes' comprises of 15 lakes and has some of the highest peaks in England including Scafell Pike and Helvellyn. The area is bestowed upon with natural beauty and is the home to one of the most prominent figures of English Literature: William Wordsworth (Daffodils)

Canterbury

My best friend has been in the UK for the past two years now and now that even I am here, I thought of visiting her for the weekend. She lives in Canterbury, in the district of Kent in south-east England. It is an English town which lies upon the river Stour mainly populated by students and the elderly. She lives in a lovely house with a cute loft, that I really envy!!

Scarborough

My university conducts something known as 'Give it a GO' sessions where you try something new. One such session was a day trip to Scarborough. Scarboough is a small English town by the sea, one of the oldest sea resorts in Britain. It was a lovely day, not sunny though unlike today. We reachead there around 10 am and headed straight towards the water. Too tempted looking at the water for the water-baby that I am, I could not resist but dip my feet in the icy cold water.

Gimpses of Bombay...

Hello there, I have secured admission in the University of Leeds, UK and am already in Leeds. I will be studying here for my Masters degree in International marketing Management and will be here for the next one year. Its a nice place and I am liking it here and will be writing about it soon.

As I am not in Mumbai anymore, atleast for the next year...here are some glimpses of my favourite city...

Panhala

"Panhala is a hill station?" was the first question that came to my mind when my dad told me that we will be staying at Panhala during our visit to Kolhapur. I had always thought that Panhala was a fort and I was not completely wrong, Panhala is a city within the fort founded by Shivaji Maharaj. Panhala has a great historic significance and is in fact the smallest city in Maharashta.

Lonavala

 Last weekend was one of those rainy days in Bombay when it pours and pours and the only things to do are: either laze around the house, watch a movie or go for a long drive. And what better place than Lonavala to go for a drive in such a climate?

Bandra: the Queen of Suburbs

Bandra is a western suburban area in Bombay (Mumbai city) and is nicknamed as the 'Queen of Suburbs'.  I studied in a Bandra college so I have practically lived in this place for the last three years of my life . But, as I have graduated now I miss the place badly.

Kerala: God's Own Country

Kerala is a mesmerising strip of land on the south coast of India and this was my third trip to Kerala, rightly known as God's Own Country. Though it is a small area geographically, there is always something new to discover. It is also known as the Spice Coast and drew early traders to its shores in search of fragrant riches. The National Geographic Traveller also voted Kerala as one of the 10 paradises of the world.

Jodhpur Jaisalmer

As I am in the last year of graduation, this was my last Industrial Visit. So all of us were very excited and wanted to make the most of our last college trip together. We were going to Rajasthan: Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, which are both great places and I had been wanting to go to Jaisalmer since a long time. So at 12 noon sharp we assembled at Bandra Terminus to embark our journey...our last one together...We took the Suryanagri Express to Jodhpur and had loads of fun enroute.

Ajanta and Ellora

On a lovely winter morning, after a wonderful drive overlooking the sunrise on the Mumbai-Pune expressway we reached Ellora Caves in the afternoon. The Ellora cave temples contain elaborate carvings of Gods and Goddesses of three faihs- Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. Though each system had its individual style of architecture, Ellora presents the varied styles side by side. It was excavated between 5th and 11th Centuary AD and the most notable caves are cave 5, 10, 15, 16, 21, 29 and 32. Cave 16 is considered the best of all Ellora excavation. It is cut from a single rock and took ten generations to complete!!

Gangapur Akkalkot Pilgrimage

Well to start with, there were two reasons for taking this trip. First, my mom's love for temples and not wanting to miss a wonderful chance to visit these temples and was elated when I agreed to come along. And second, my love for travel and not wanting to miss an opportunity to visit a new place. Also I love the picturesque Indian countryside and the humble village life.