The mountains are calling.... let's go!!

I took a break off my blog for a year now. A year has passed. So many trips have lined up but I have never felt like it. However, my recent trip to Darjeeling was something else. I just got back a few days ago and here I am, all ready and set to talk to readers about my journey to the mountains. But before I begin let me tell you this... all my friends talk about beaches and fun and I always nod in agreement as I don't want to feel left out. But the truth is I am a sucker for the mountains. I don't know why, I really feel connected with the mountains and the valleys that surround the mountains. The mist, the chills, the greens, the blues, the hues... it all makes me feel so alive!

Views of the majestic Kanchenjunga mountain range from Darjeeling









This article my dear friends won't talk about the usual. I don't have stories to say of the places I visited or of the people I met. I am just going to talk about the moments that took my breath away. Moments that made me pause and feel one with the universe. Here, I recall a beautiful quote I once came across and would like all of you reading this blog to read it too as I am sure it will resonate with you as much as it does for me - “All mountain landscapes hold stories: the ones we read, the ones we dream, and the ones we create”.

The mountains called me when I was asked to travel to Darjeeling for a photo shoot at our resort there - Darjeeling - Silver Oaks, a Sterling Holidays resort. The resort is situated in Ghoom at an altitude higher than Darjeeling town making it one of the best locations one can be at. I was travelling with Kunal Daswani, the photographer for the shoot who happens to be a very good friend and the best company one can ever have.

My week-long sojourn began with a journey uphill from Bagdogra airport. The journey was quite pleasant proving me wrong as I imagined it to be curvy as all mountainous terrains are. But this travel was a winner in more ways than one. We took short breaks in between, mostly for coffee and reached the resort in approximately 4 hours. Since we reached the resort after sunset I was unable to take in the beauty of the location which I usually do. As a norm I always walk around the resort to gaze at the beautiful location which all our resorts boast of. I soon checked into my room which was warm and cosy with an inviting bed that put me to sleep instantly.

I woke up the next morning to a gorgeous surprise. As a habit I draw the curtains of my room when I wake up every morning back at home so I did the same here. However, I forgot that this was not home and I was in Darjeeling. As I drew the curtains my jaw dropped. "Wow!!" was the only reaction I had for 5 minutes as I looked upon the snow-capped mountains. I etched the amazing view of the Himalayas in my memory and that moment... that moment was so so special. My very first tryst with the Himalayas.

Breath-taking view of the Himalayas visible from my room

The shoot went on fine that day and in the evening as we were wrapping up the shoot I walked to a view point at the resort and caught the most beautiful sight. As I looked at the far end of the sky I saw that the entire skyline had turned an eye-catching red and orange. Though I had my camera with me I did not take it out to click a picture. Instead, I stood there breathing in the mountain air with the mist blowing on my face as I felt amazed at the beauty of Mother Nature wondering how much the skies hold in them. It was truly magical!

Afterglow - the Kanchenjunga range playing hide and seek with the coloured sky

In the course of the week we had dedicated a day to exploring the destination. You have to trust me when I say this, that day was the best day I had in Darjeeling. I'll tell you why...

We started with the Batasia Loop, a war memorial and also a place where you can watch the Darjeeling Himalayan toy train at its best as it chugs all the way through the loop with the majestic Kanchenjunga range in the backdrop. Such a beautiful sight it was!

A close encounter with the heritage toy train at Batasia Loop

We visited the famous tea gardens of Darjeeling after Batasia Loop. I wouldn't say it was a different experience as I feel all tea gardens look the same and have nothing much to offer. This is a personal opinion though. But that does not stop us from flooding our phone with tea garden pictures? Does it? ;-)

Kunal and I sharing a fun selfie moment

On our way back to the car from the tea gardens a very sweet lady at the stall stopped us to ask if we wanted to sip tea prepared with freshly plucked tea leaves. I immediately said yes as that was all I wanted that very moment. The tea was definitely one of the best teas I’ve had. Sipping tea in a cloudy tea garden setting was an experience that was out of this world.

That feeling...

Image credits: Kunal Daswani Photography

We moved on to go to the Tibetan Refugee Self Help Centre. If shopping is on your mind then I would suggest you visit the Tibetan Refugee Self Help Center. You will get beautiful carpets and Tibetan souvenirs here. The feel good factor of shopping here is that the monies spent go towards the rehabilitation of Tibetan refugees. A good deed is awaiting you :)

Shopping at the Tibetan Refugee Self Help Centre

There was a sudden downpour that day while we were shopping. Nah! I am not the type who would grumble when it rains. Instead, I rejoice. Ahhh!!! The lovely feeling of witnessing rains in a hilly region is pure delight.

The heavens open up! Darjeeling town at its best after a sudden downpour

Our sightseeing trip ended with lunch at Glenary's, a charming restaurant at mall road. And some tea shopping at Golden Tips, do purchase Makaibari tea from here - tea from Darjeeling's finest tea estate. While we were walking back to the car we noticed that mall road had gotten crowded and there was this traditional procession that was happening right outside the community centre. We stopped to take a look and I loved it. It was the very first Tibetan procession that I witnessed. A good experience and a fulfilling end to the day!

Amidst a Tibetan procession

We were soon back in the resort packing our bags to leave the next morning with a heavy heart. But we had to leave. We didn’t want to miss visiting this one place on our way back to the airport ‘the Ghoom Monastery’, the oldest monastery in Darjeeling town. So we visited the monastery in the early hours of the morning. The monastery shares its boundary wall with our resort and this being my first visit to any monastery was truly an experience that I would cherish for a long time.

Marvel in architecture – Ghoom Monastery

On our way we got to stop at Zero point, Nepal border and sip some good tea at one of the stalls there*. We also visited the quaint little town of Mirik which is slightly off the route to the airport but we planned a visit since Mirik has a good lake and some monasteries that are popular shooting spots.

Mirik diaries: Kunal photobombing my picture

I don’t know when I will be writing my next blog or where my next travel would be but I am glad that I am leaving my readers with fond memories (I hope!) of good times spent in Darjeeling. I don't know how much my blog has impacted others but I definitely know that I want to visit Darjeeling again for all the lovely moments that it has given me. See you soon Darjeeling!

*Just a week after we returned from Darjeeling a major earthquake struck Nepal. I just hope the people who touched my heart at those little stalls at Zero Point are safe and their families are safe. I am constantly praying for Nepal and I hope that the country recovers sooner from this grief. I would urge everyone to do their bit and reach out to the people of Nepal by donating towards Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. I have done my bit, please do yours.

A different side of Munnar

It has been long since I have penned down my thoughts and my travel experiences in my blog. So, what got me excited to do so today? I got back from a 7-day trip to Munnar on 17 March 2014. Got back to routine life and to all the daily stress, fun and drama (exactly, in this order). Whenever I had the time to look back and think of memorable moments, I would think of Munnar and the fun time I had there. There is something in Munnar's air that makes you feel at home, relaxed and carefree and that's what I miss the most.

I visited Munnar for a resort photo shoot in the beginning of March. Stayed at Munnar - Terrace Greens, a Sterling Holidays resort. Rooms are so comfortable and cosy. The resort is well located and all my mornings were spent looking outside the window wondering how much Nature has to offer. We never realise this in a city, but destinations like these help us to get closer to Nature.

View from my room at 8.00 am in the morning

Since I was busy with the photo shoot, most of my days were spent in the resort, gorging on the appetizing food that Chef had to offer. We had a day in between which was kept aside for destination shoot. Thank god for that! I got to see the world's best views from this place called 'Kolukkumalai', world's highest tea estate. Drive up there is about a hour and a half's jeep ride which is so bumpy that I advice elders and pregnant women to avoid going up here. As soon as our jeep stopped at this point which read "Welcome to Kolukkumalai Tea Estate... The World's Highest Grown Orthodox Tea", I was stunned beyond belief on what my eyes saw. I am sure people who visited Kolukkumalai earlier haven't been lucky enough to see what I saw that day. A feeling that I can't express!

Bed of clouds at Kolukkumalai

You can't get enough

I captured the moment in my heart forever

After we drenched our souls completely in this magnificent sight we went further up to see the tea factory, the oldest in the world. Do not miss to sip tea at this place as it is the best tea you will ever drink. One of the factory worker took us inside the factory and explained the process of tea making to us.

Kolukkumalai Tea Factory

This is where fresh tea picked from the tea gardens is stored

This is a tea rolling machine which is 120 years old, from the time of the British

I have too many pictures to share of this quaint tea factory, however, I don't want to go on and on about. All of you who are planning to visit Munnar should go up here. A suggestion though, start after sunrise (usually people go up there for sunrise) as you will get unimaginable views of the clouds covering the peaks.

I would like to give a special mention to our jeep driver, he is super skinny but he is super tolerant to the bumps on the road to the top. Believe it or not, he takes tourists up and down approximately 4 times a day during peak season. He calls the drive up to Kolukkumalai as 'Bum Massage' :-P Hats off to him!

I will never ever forget this trip in my life. It was one of the best and most interesting and memorable experience of my life. Even today I proudly show off pictures of Kolukkumalai to people who talk about Munnar, asking them if they got a glimpse of what I saw there.

Apart from Kolukkumalai I got to visit Aanaiyirangal Dam, Mattupettey Dam (got on an elephant ride too) and Top Station.

Aanaiyirangal Dam during sunset

Munnar at its best 

Sunrise at Munnar - Terrace Greens, A Sterling Holidays Resort

I wish to get back to Munnar in the near future with my friends. So long till then.

Special Thanks To

Lata Subramanian (Head of Marketing at Sterling Holidays) without whom I wouldn't have got this opportunity.

Shankar Menon (Resort Manager, Munnar - Terrace Greens) for making me feel at home at the resort.

Kunal Daswani (Freelance Photographer) because he is the best person anyone can travel with :)

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this blog are my own and not those of the company I work for. All images shared on the blog are taken using Moto G and are copyrighted. 

A sense of satisfaction in Kodaikanal

It all started when my colleague and I had to travel to Kodaikanal (Kodai) on work. Both of us were in Kodai for a different purpose. I have always travelled alone for a long time now, but this time in the good company of my colleague it was so much fun and so much more exciting.

Our work was limited to a day and half and we had 2 days in hand to explore Kodaikanal. Yes, explore! You may wonder what is there in Kodaikanal to explore? Well, read through and you may know what you would have missed in this extremely lovely town.

So on Day 1, we decide to go trekking to little known places so we sought help of our resort's Holiday Activities Manager. Since it was a little late when we informed him, he arranged for a quick trip to Dolphin's Nose. Now you may think this is an often talked about trekking spot but it wasn't that crowded when we were there and trust me, it made all the difference. So we started the 'so called' soft trek to realise that it was quite difficult. We were panting for breath. The road that led to Dolphin's Nose was narrow with path self-designed by roots of indigenous trees that surrounded the area. There were these small snack shops every 5 minutes that provided some relief with its wooden benches where one could relax and move ahead.

A little snack shop helping breathless trekkers like me :-D

Mist beautifully covering the towering trees

Not so easy to fight your way through these tough roots. Nah!

Skyline or branchline? My favourite picture from the trek

We reached Dolpin's Nose after repeated stops on the way to catch our breath. Dolphin's Nose is this protruding little rock which is settled on the edge of a deep valley. One may bravely go ahead and walk on the little piece of rock and when one looks down, the chills that the view below brings is scary. Scary to an extent that you feel you may just fall and die. I did exactly this, went ahead like a brave girl without my colleague and I was almost going to fall down out of fear. Thank God! I sat down to balance myself, otherwise I wouldn't be writing this article :-P

When the mist vanishes - view of the Dolphin's Nose

Was I scared? Oh YES

After our trek to Dolphin's Nose, we got back to the resort and planned to check out local eateries for lunch that day. So here we were in the buzzing locality of Kodaikanal, the hub where you will find the most awesome restaurants to indulge your taste buds in. And man! we were so hungry after the trek that all we wanted to do is EAT.

Kodai's very own Eat Street - P.T. Road

Our first stop was Abby's. It is usually flocked by kids from the Kodai International School. The lady there prepares some amazing dishes. The mozzarella cheese sticks, pizza and gulab jamun were a pure delight to our growling intestines. There is something that makes Abby's food very special and that is the owner who prepares the food with all her heart. Something we hardly find in city restaurants.

In another 2 hours we had tried all the other eat-outs in that lane, you name it and we were there. Who says only city restaurants can satisfy your hunger pangs? Take a look:

Brother Tibet

Cloud Street

The Tredis Tea Room

After our food-eating spree we returned to the resort quite satisfied with the day. Maybe we did not have an idea what was awaiting us the next day.

My colleague had heard about Elephant Valley in Kodaikanal as a good spot with lesser or no tourists. Our Holiday Activities Manager made arrangements for us to go there the next morning. So here we were, all ready the next morning at 6 am to start our journey to Elephant Valley. It was a pleasant drive to the spot. To brief you'll on Elephant Valley - this is a waterfall which has been name after the Elephants that are spotted in this area. Our driver had mentioned that we be very careful while starting our trek to the waterfalls as there are paths where the water flows and we may have to cross the path by wading through the water. We managed to reach the waterfalls crossing the water and by walking through narrow slushy (due to the rains) path, pushing branches and bushes to make way each time.

As we came closer to the waterfalls we were glad that we made here. It was beautiful. There was a small dam through which water was gushing to the hill from where the water was plunging into the river below. It was an amazing sight. The view from here was breathtaking. We could see the sun shining brightly over the surrounding hill. It was so good, there was no one around, just the three of us.

R-L: My colleague, Vaishnavi and self

Waterfalls at Elephant Valley

This trip was a thorough satisfaction of wanderlust. Had oodles of fun and moments that I will cherish forever. I have not mentioned many of the crazy moments I had here though.

So after reading my experience in Kodaikanal how many of you have planned your trip? Not yet, well you should then. There is so much Kodaikanal has to offer. Plan a trip this year to the wonderful little town of Kodaikanal and have all the fun that I had.

Stayed at Kodai - By The Lake, A Sterling Holidays Resort

Visited in the month of July 2013


The views expressed in the blog are my own and not those of the company I work for.

Wishful mist in Lonavala

They say the way Lonavala is for Mumbai, Yelagiri is for Chennai. Since I have not been to both the destinations, I didn't have a given mindset nor did I have expectations. All I knew was that Lonavala is now commercialised and isn't the way it was before.

A photo shoot took me to Lonavala in July (2 months back). I was put up at my aunt's place in Mumbai as I decided to join the crew from Mumbai and drive up to Lonavala. I wanted good company as I prefer not to travel alone and the crew members were fun so why not.

Ainvayi photography. Out of boredom

I was welcomed in Mumbai with heavy rains and you know how annoying rains can get. I was stuck in traffic and somehow managed to reach my aunt's place.

Started next day morning at 5 for Lonavala. Trust me, Mumbai is a blessing in the wee hours of the morning, no traffic, clear roads, a smooth drive, a dream for any Mumbaiite. So, Aarti (food stylist) joined me on the way. Oh man! It was a pleasure being with her. She was like this big sister, who keeps you entertained and also ensures she gives you valuable tips (I won't tell you what advise she gave me though :-P) on the way. Aarti was talking about how she used to visit Lonavala frequently as her father used to own a hotel there. And she was telling me how beautiful Lonavala is during the rains.

In her words "It is lush green, like a green carpet, mist all around. Bliss."

The other car with the rest of the crew was ahead of us. We stopped on the way at a dhaba kind off place to have kandha poha. Loved it, not more than idli-vada breakfast though :) Met Kunal here, as our cars got together. Kunal was the photographer for the shoot. One of the most humble and suljhahuva person I have met. It was a pleasure working with him.

We started from the place, and as we shifted to a higher altitude I could see the lush green carpet come live out of my imagination and say "Hi! I am going to be with you for a week now." It was such a pretty sight. Mist all around, it either hides in the hills or moves around and spreads its chillness to people. And the mist has a best friend, you know her name, RAINS :) Yes, it was pouring all the time in Lonavala.

Mist + rains = Perfect!

Lonavala, at Nature's best during the monsoons

Lonavala was a magical sight and soon we reached our resort. A nice cosy room was given to me from where I could see the lush greenery around and of course, the incessant rainfall.

Lonavala - Under The Over, A Sterling Holidays Resort

I hate it when it keeps raining all day long as when in a city you get annoyed as you cannot go out. One is always scared of getting drenched or falling sick. But in Lonavala it was a different case, I loved the rains, the moment the rains halted, even for some time, I would pray that it should start raining again. That was the love I developed for this beautiful little town and the rains.

The crew (Kunal, Nikhil and Fayaz) was so encouraging and spontaneous. They would just crackle up on a plain moment and leave me bewildered. They used to crack these funny jokes which would leave me laughing all day. Our day would start with breakfast, discussion on requirements for the shoot, a little prep, going to the market to purchase requirements and then standing all day to get a perfect shot. In fact there was a day when we were a little relaxed so we decided to go for sight-seeing.

Kunal was like, "Sight-seeing in Lonavala? During the rains? No ways. You will just see mist all around, you can't even take pictures." And I was like, "Kunal let's go I want to see Lonavala, it'll be fun". So all of us started from the resort and the first stop was a viewing point which was filled with thick mist as soon as we stepped out of the car. It was this place from where we could see waterfalls trickling on the opposite mountain. It was cold and pleasant. Felt like standing there the whole day and looking at Nature's beauty that surrounded me, however, we had to leave as the mist was getting thicker.

Can you see the waterfall trickling down the mountain? And all the mist around. It was magical!

We then went ahead to Bushi Dam. In fact we thought of going to Tiger Point first. But, oh man! The mist was thicker as we reached a higher altitude, that after a point I couldn't even see Kunal who was standing next to me. And hola! It started pouring madly. Thank goodness that we were carrying umbrellas, which in the breeze and the rain that accompanied, was almost flying. So suddenly we see a lady, clad in a saree, appear from in between the road and the side path, in the mist. She yelled and drew Kunal's attention and said in a rather loud tone, "Sir aapko bhutta chahiye?", Kunal said no. She persisted and said "Sir yahaan Hookah bhi milta hain, chahiye kya?" Rofl, Nikhil and I couldn't control and burst out laughing. You wouldn't believe, the lady kept calling Kunal and finally we had to oblige and buy bhuttas from her as Kunal couldn't stand her yelling, plus it was still raining hard and we needed shelter.

On the way to Tiger Point. Nothing but mist!

As the rains stopped, we moved and came down to Bushi Dam. The driver suggested us to go for a walk up to Bushi Dam as he said there wasn't any parking around. We started walking towards Bushi Dam. I don't know how Bushi Dam was, but now it is certainly a mess. Dirty! That's all I can say. I could only see a groups of young boys playing the fool and some horny couples. I was reluctant to go any further so we got back.

After getting back to the resort, we started off on our shoot the next day. I loved what I was doing. The shoot was going on well. This was the first time ever that I visited a resort's kitchen so frequently. I was not a guest at the resort. I was a part of the staff so I was treated that way. I made friends with the staff. I would often go to the Holiday Activities area in the resort as this was a lovely place to sip chai. You can just sit at this place (which was on the terrace) and face the flyover, from where one could see a picture-book-like Lonavala. Rain droplets dripping from the roof, hot chai steam in the air and misty mountains around. I wished I could stay there forever.

View from the top of the resort

On the whole, the trip was filled with WOW! moments and a few tension moments. The wow ones beating the tension ones. It was my very first photo shoot experience and I thank my seniors for giving me this opportunity. It was a learning curve for me. I came back home with a lot of learnings and pleasant memories of Lonavala and my time well spent here.

General tip: Always carry an umbrella when here during winters.

Souvenir tip: On route to Bushi Dam there is a small makeshift place which sells amazing vases and crockery items. A must-buy with awesomely low prices.

Foodie tip: Don't forget to visit the chikki factory from where chikkis across all Maganlal outlets are supplied in Lonavala. Not-to-miss Ms. Cooper's fudge... hmmm... yummmmm.... just don't miss this, the almond fudge is the best.


The views expressed in the blog are my own and not those of the company I work for. 

Karwar - Boundless Beauty

Have you ever travelled and discovered Goa beyond 90 km? No. I think you should, otherwise you are missing something, you are missing Mother Nature at her beautiful best. Yes, Karwar is beauty abound.

I took off from Goa, for Karwar, driving on the NH17 highway, reached Karwar - Emerald Bay, A Sterling Holidays Resort. Checked-in to my room and wow! I didn't believe in the destination, not before I walked up to the balcony and........ I stood there, right there, mesmerized!

View from the balcony

Since it was 7 pm by the time I settled down, I thought of ordering food in the room and relaxing. Believe me, the silence that surrounds you in the evening in Karwar is remarkable. It's the perfect silence that you need to relax. And yes, the resort manager did ask me to join him for the morning walk as morning is the best time to feel Karwar and drench your soul.

Come morning and I was up at 5.30 am (thanks to the front office staff for the wake up call). Up before sunrise, after a long time, it was a great feeling. Went walking with the resort manager, and as I took to the right of the resort, I saw this huge road up ahead. And, on its left was the Sadashivgad Fort and its remains.

Road to the bridge, from where you can see the confluence of the Kali River meeting the Arabian Sea

As we walked further, I was left speechless, oh man! I had never seen anything as beautiful as a morning spent just standing on that bridge. Water all around. It was truly magical. The sun was set to rise. And I, couldn't have asked for more.

A breath-taking view of the Arabian Sea

The first few glimpses of the pretty water bodies that surrounded me that morning

The sun rising slowly

“Nature always wears the colors of the spirit.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” — Aristotle

Woah! The sun has risen

Trucks loaded with goods pass through the highway

Fishermen set out to get their day's catch

Our walk ended at the Tagore beach, yes, this is the very beach where the world renowned Tagore Saheb penned his first play, Prakritir Parishad.

As I got back to the resort I was thoroughly satisfied, satisfied of having been here. It was a wonderful experience.

The day ahead was fun-filled at the resort, had fun hanging around the resort, watching TV in my room, visiting the Holiday Activities Centre and eating at the restaurant. 

My trip ended on a light note, on Valentine's celebrations at the resort. Here are some amazing glimpses of the evening spent well at the resort. 

The place is all set and filled, a romantic evening

The awesome team that made it all possible

Well, I created amazing memories at Karwar that will always be with me for the rest of my life. Even as I am framing these sentences, I feel nostalgic. Wanna go back, Karwar please call me soon.

Till then...

Loads of love,

Husena.