Manali Himachal Pradesh

Manali is a small town in the lap of the Himalayas in Northern India. The Pir Panjal mountain range passes through this high altitude town, situated 550 kms from New Delhi.

We travelled to Manali in June, 2019. On arriving in Manali, you will be greeted by the towering mountains peaks covered in snow with river Beas roaring through the town. Manali is named after the Hindu sage Manu. 

We stayed in Old Manali which is a few kms away from the Mall road in the center of Manali. Old Manali is relatively less commercialized, calm and peaceful.

Day 1

Having reached Manali early in the morning - we dumped our stuff in our hotel (Tourist Nest) and went for a quick stroll. By the way - we got a room with a great view!

Nice view from the balcony

The town was really beautiful and peaceful surrounded by brown and green hills with snow covered peaks, visible from most places. Manali has an inexplicable charm with pine, fir and cedar forests all around - great ambience and aroma - nature at its purest form! The clear blue sky was a treat to the eyes! 

Manalsu river flowing between the Old and New Manali

It was fun having breakfast at the river-side Kathmandu Cafe. The source of crystal clear fresh water of river Beas are the glaciers high up in the Himalayas. Beas is the lifeline of the people of Manali. After a lips smacking breakfast, we decided to walk towards the Hidimba Devi temple. 

The bridge over river Manalsu

On the way to the Hidimba temple

The path was dotted by some old looking homes

Obvious from the name - the temple is dedicated to Devi Hidimba, wife of Bhima from Mahabharata. It is believed that Pandavas stayed in Himachal Pradesh during their exile. The temple was constructed by a Hindu King in 1553 A.D.  When people in India worship Durga during Navratri, people of Manali worship Hidimba Devi. The 3 km uphill climb towards the temple was really picturesque along the Himalayan Mountain range.

The temple is surrounded by a beautiful cedar forest popularly known as Van vihar.

Yaks are common in this part of the world - well adapted to mountainous terrain

Tired from overnight travel - we went back to our den and rested for  the day. 

At the German Bakery for a midnight snack! 

Day 2

We spent the entire second day at Rohtang Pass - with a lot to say, it requires a separate post. Will share the link soon.

Day 3

After our travel from Rohtang, we decided to keep the day lighter. Wanted to go around Manali and soak around in the local culture. When in Manali - how can we miss the Manu Temple after whom Manali is named. The temple was only 500 m away from our hotel - it was a steep uphill climb. According to Hinduism, Manu is believed to be the creator of life on earth and author of Manusmriti which has the Dharmasastras of the Hinduism. The temple has visitors from across the globe.

Feeling relatively lucky and elated to have visited the only temple in India dedicated to Manu. Interesting thought - the words 'man' in English, 'manushya' in Hindi, 'manush' in Bengali, 'manu' in Tamil etc - all seem to have the 'Manu' connection

Simple and hardworking people of the hills. In summer, tourism is a key source of livelihood but in winters life becomes tough with temperatures dropping below zero degrees

We tread downhill and decided to go towards the Mall Road in New Manali now which is around 4-5 kms from Manu temple. The path towards Mall Road goes through a 2 km stretch of cedar forest by the river. The areas was all green with a narrow path through middle of the woodland which was supposed to end on to the Mall road.

I had no words to describe the cedar forest - it was so calm, peaceful and refreshing with the sudden showers of dry leaves from the 80-100 feet tall trees, like almost falling from the heavens. There were few people in the forest busy with their own stuff - few Europeans were chatting by Beas, saw a couple practising rock climbing, locals using the route as shortcut to the Mall road and few tourists like us capturing these moments in our cameras.

Tranquillity and peace in the cedar forest. 20 mins of walk through the beaten tracks will take you to the Mall Road

Stopping by to take a look at the snow covered mountain peaks

The path was winding and long and we never wanted it to end but as all good things come to an end - we finally arrived at the Mall road. 

This place is a lot more happening with commercial establishments, food joints, and of course lot of the tourists - this place is a sharp contrast to the peaceful locales of Old Manali.  The Mall road hosts the local bazaar which sells the winter wear and handloom which is unique to Manali.

Summing up, Manali was fun!

Wild berries, litchis and other fruits from the orchards of Manali

Manali Mall Road

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Just Falafel, Hyderabad Review!!

Hey guys- am back with the review of Just Falafel, Hyderabad.

Been to the restaurant today evening and you know what - I liked it. With an American theme - be it flags painted on the furniture or Hollywood stars decorating the walls, the place smelt of a rustic American setting. Their tie up with GBC led to a unique blend of brands. The low light by the road-side ambience is a sure winner when Hyderabad is looking to escape to a faraway place in the weekend to take a well deserved break from their computers.

We had Chicken Kofta from the Falafel Pocket, Butter Chicken Classic Shawarma, Dates Shake and Dates halwa. Needless to say, Just Falafel did a good job in calibrating their global style to suit the local Hyderabadi Cuisine - " Spicy" that's how the people love it here and it goes with the weather. The Kofta and the Shawarma was stuffy high on vegetables and chicken The halwa and the shake is a differentiator and easily the best of what we had in the evening.

Waiting time was 10 mins but the themed interior and few clicks kept us busy. Overall, it was an evening well spent coupled with good food.

Ooty in an Auto!

Morning Walk along the Palolem Beach

Kailashgiri Hill, Vizag

Coonoor to Ooty Toy Train Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Goa Trip - Aguada, Panjim, Colva

Been to Goa last year during the Independence Day weekend. But always wanted to visit again. So, when my family visited me in Hyderabad, we thought - why not Goa again?

Journey started from Kacheguda railway station in Hyderabad at 9.05pm. Had heard that this is a very picturesque ride through the Western Ghats – would include the night in the train and we would reach Madgaon between 2-4 pm the next day depending upon the weather in the Ghats.

At 3am in Guntakkal, our rakes got detached from Prasanthi Express (Bengaluru bound) and got linked to Amravathi Express (coming from Howrah). The train went through Madikera, Hospet and Hubbali and finally entered Goa. The ride between Londa and Castlerock station is usually 3hrs. That’s when the journey comes alive. For any forest/wild life lover, the journey is heavenly and is itself an experience. The long train meanders through the dense forest of Western Ghats and if you are lucky you can spot deer, monkeys, boars and birds. And of course, during the journey you will see multiple waterfalls including the famous Dudhsagar falls. You will pass through more a dozen tunnels too.

Somewhere in the Western Ghats

Dense evergreen rain forest

Train taking a meandering route

At 4pm reached Madgaon and checked in our hotel. We could hear the roar of the waves and Colva beach was 3-5 mins walk. It is off-season and less crowded, so everything comes at a lesser cost and there is peace. Best part is - Goa is completely green during this time of the year and you literally smell the earth and vegetation. Everything is so pure and beautiful.

Amigo Plaza Hotel at Colva

Colva Beach

Clean and clear beach

In the evening had a delightful supper at Kentuckee Seafood restaurant. We spent the evening at the beach, mostly resting and arranging the logistics for the next day’s trip.

Next day, we started around 9.30am. We intended to drive through North Goa to Aguada Fort and on the way back, plan to spend time in Panjim (Capital of Goa) and would be back after visiting cathedrals and temples.


It being a Sunday and offseason, there was hardly any traffic. The ride by the Mandovi River was truly refreshing. We decided to stop at Dona Paula – a film shooting destination and it’s here only that you saw Singham thrashing the goons. At this point Mandovi and Zuari meet rivers and merges into the Arabian Sea. Really beautiful place – there are options for boating and kayaking too. We were busy enjoying the view and taking snaps.

Ravaging waves at Dona Paula

Crabs living on the edge

Dona Paula Viewpoint

The Men in the family

We headed towards the Miramar beach situation right in the middle of Panjim. Always great to have such a beautiful beach in the city – if you don't believe, check with someone in Hyderabad, Bengaluru or Delhi.

Buying and Selling at Miramar Beach

After a 40 min drive, reached the 17th century Aguada Fort. Strategically built at the mouth of the Mandovi river and overlooking the Arabian Sea, it was built to guard against the Dutch and the Marathas. It had docks for Portuguese ships as well as chambers for gunpowder, freshwater, bastion and also prisoner. The lighthouse was active until what 30 years when it was closed. After this tryst with the sea and the raw beauty of the sea, we headed back towards Old Goa. On the way - we had a sumptuous Goan lunch at Lembranca.

View from Aguada Fort

Strategic view point to ward off invasion

Inside the Aguada Fort

The lighthouse

Tourists taking a break after exploring the huge fort

Light house was in operating state till 30 years ago

We headed towards the Basilica of Bom Jesus (UNESCO World Heritage Site) and the adjoining Sé Catedral de Santa Catarina. Basilica of Bom Jesus is one of the oldest churches in India. It contains the body of the St.Francis Xavier and is displayed in the public every 19 years, last it was displayed in 2014. The Saint is supposed to have a miraculous power of healing. Sé Catedral de Santa Catarina was built to commemorate the victory of the Portuguese and it houses a “Golden Bell” one of the largest in the world. The churches also had their museums with several historical artifacts.

Inside Basilica of Bom Jesus with my father

That's my brother - enjoying the beauty of the cathedral

Basilica of Bom Jesus (top)

Basilica of Bom Jesus - One of the oldest churches in India

This is my second visit to the cathedral

Sé Catedral de Santa Catarina

The garden outside the cathedral was really well maintained

Finally, we ended our day with the visit to Shanta Durga and Mangueshi temple. Shanta Durga temple, which is 450 years old, is situated at the base of the hill with lush green vegetation. The temple has pyramidal roofs with a dome, owing the European influence in the architectural styles. Mangueshi temple is also 450 years old dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Mangueshi temple dedicated to Lord Shiva

The temple stationed in the lap of the hills

The holy waters

My ma at Shanta Durga temple

Fusion of architecture styles: Indo -European

The holy pond outside the Shanta Durga temple

It was raining and we headed back to our base, chilled at the beach and had a finger licking dinner at Praie de Colva. Our sea food platter had it all be it crabs, lobsters, squids, prawns and what not!

Searching for the right place to dine

Dinner Time!

Goan crab curry

We spent the next day exploring Colva. The Colvan population comprises mainly Indians and migrants from Portuguese Colonies such as Brazil, Mozambique, Guinean islands, Angola etc. Dialect is Konkani (saxtti). Other languages are Portuguese, English and Hindi. Colvans are primlarily Roman Catholic with some Hindus and Muslims. Tourism is one of the main source of income. Mostly people are fishermen and their staple food is rice and fish. ‘Bebinca’ – an egg-based multi-layered sweet dish is very famous here.

Colva Beach

Simply beautiful

Designs created by the waves

It's another feeling to be at the beach just before the rains - ofcourse beware of the Tsunami!

Just before the thunderstorm and the rain

Tranquil Colva beach

It was fun and very refreshing to spend 2-3 days in this lazy Goan village on the Arabian Sea. Enjoyed the spicy sea food and immersed in the local culture. Surely, Goa keeps calling me back!