Hello travelers,
India is a country which is rich for its heritage, culture and different geographical features. Lets explore the unexplored.
In this platform I will share details and my experience about different places, cultures, hotels and more.So Stay tuned.
Jaipur, the pink city known for its heritage and history, is a perfect place to explore. We have traveled to different places but there is something unique about Jaipur and that is, its raw culture. Jaipur is overall a very artistic city. The art can be seen in their work, be it through block printing on the fabric or miniature paintings on rice paper.
The architecture of the Indian heritage in Jaipur is just mind blowing. You will be astonished to know that, all the artistic designs on the forts are handmade paintings. The size of the each element that is painted, is accurate, sharp and detailed.
You may find cultural activities which are uncommon in other states of India, one of these activities is the puppet dance. The attractive puppets are dressed in Rajasthani traditional get up. Making these puppet dance, is another beautiful skill, not everyone can do that.
The Rajathani folk dance and music can take you to another world. The soothing sound of the instruments and the Kalbelia dance is something that will hold on to you forever.
Things to do in Jaipur
Tourist attractions -There are end number of forts and temples but here is a list of tourist attractions you shouldn't miss visiting, if you are someone who is found of history and architecture.
Amber/ Amer fort- A beautiful fort with a vast history. Do not forget to take your stole/ scarfs, shades and a sunscreen while visiting this place during the day. Please wear a pair of comfortable shoes as you will have to really walk a lot here. The fort is beautifully built and is known for its history. You can visit Shees Mahal or the mirror palace and Diwan-I- Khas within the fort. Do not miss the light and sound show that happens here in the evening, it is a must watch.
Amer fort
Nahargarh fort- This fort gives you an amazing view of the city. Padao, a cafe on the top of the fort, gives you an amazing vibe. The view is amazing in the evening, it feels as if the stars are on the ground, when the houses are lit up.
Nahargarh
Jaigarh fort
City Palace
Hawa Mahal
Galtaji - This is one of the most animal friendly places. You will find many monkeys out there. The best part is, you don't have to be afraid of them. They won't bother you unless you bother them. These monkeys are very playful. Mr. Krishna Sharma is the well known care taker of these monkeys. He says he grew up there only and all the monkeys of the fort knows him very well. Various NGOs take care of these monkeys in terms of food and health.
Galtaji
Sisodia Garden
Jal Mahal
Step-well
Where to eat?
Well you will find end number of cafe/ restaurants in the city. Our personnel favorite is 'Tapri the tea house'. You'll find an entirely different menu here. The food here is delicious. Do not miss out on the corn shots (golgappa filled with cheese and corn), tadkka maggie, Red bull ice tea, samosa bun and off course the masala tea.
If you are a coffee lover then do not miss out on 'curious life coffee roasters'. They have an entire menu of coffee, which is gonna amaze you. If you are a coffee lover this should defiantly be a part of your check list.
Here is a clip of Jaipur which will give you a feeling of the city.
Join us in our journey of exploring India. stay tuned for more.
There is no doubt that our ancestors must have been really smart to relate various logic and science behind the Hindu festivals. Further they associated these festivals with religion to make sure everyone follows them and the people of the society stays healthy, wealthy and wise.
Goddess Durga
Navratri is celebrated twice a year. Both the times, Navratri is celebrated for nine days in honour of the mother goddess who is also referred to as Durga, Sherawali Maa or Parvati in different parts of India. The Ashwina Navratri starts at the beginning of winter (between September and October) is the more popular Navratri. The Chaitra Navratri that happens during the beginning of summer between March and April.
On all these nine days of Navratri, various forms of Goddess Durga are worshipped with full devotion. Navratri honors the three essential aspects of the Supreme Mother Goddess Durga in the form of Kali, Lakshmi and Saraswati. On the first three days the Goddess is worshipped in the form of Kali who is the destroyer of all our impurities. In the next three days, Mother is adored in the form of Lakshmi who is considered as the giver of inexhaustible wealth. In the last three days, the Goddess is worshipped in the form of Saraswati the giver of knowledge and wisdom. The eighth day of the festival is popularly celebrated as “Ashtami” and the ninth day as “Maha Navmi” and even as “Ram Navmi” on Chaitra Navratri.
Celebration of Navratri
The nine avatars of Goddess Durga are also worshipped during the festival of Navratri. The nine avatars or forms of Mother Durga are known as Mata Shailputri, Mata Brahmacharini, Mata Chandraghanta, Mata Kushmanda, Maa Skanda Mata, Maa Katyayani, Mata Kalratri, Mata Maha Gauri, and Mata Siddhidatri.
scientific reasons for celebrating Navratri twice a year are as follows:
Detoxification of the body: You must have notices both the navratari are celebrated during change of season. The health of human's body is directly linked to change of season as the body's immunity is low during this period. Through the medium of this festival people follow certain practices and diet so as to avoid health troubles which gives them power. People avoid non-veg food items, grains, alcohol, onion, garlic etc. which is known as fasting. This helps the body to maintain a perfect balance and well being of not just the body but also the mind.
Improving the mental health: Fasting during Navratri ensures that your digestive system is at rest which provides mind with more energy to have more clarity and life force to sort your life and feel the ease of lightness of your system. During this period the old aged people and the people who are emotionally weaker are more prone to mental illness, so during this festive season their mind is also occupied with activities and celebrations which keeps them away from the negative energies.
Maintaining cleanliness: This practice of keeping the home and the surroundings clean, is a crucial part of this festival which helps in keeping the seasonal diseases away. During this period, most of the vectors causing vector borne diseases are active. Cleanliness helps as a precaution in controlling the situation.
Medical benefits of camphor used in pooja. During this period pooja is done every night. The use of camphor in these poojas has medical benefits. The fumes of burning camphor purify the air and inhaling it can be beneficial. From a scientific viewpoint it can effectively kill germs and keep mosquitoes away. Smelling camphor fumes can be beneficial for people suffering from asthma, typhoid and measles.
We have been travelling to different destinations in India to explore different places, cultures, practices and beliefs. There are still some parts of the country which is unexplored by the travelers. There is still a lot to know about this country, be it places, best places to stay, culture, beliefs or lifestyle. As travel bloggers we've been writing down all this, to create awareness among people about the mentioned topics.
We recently visited Jaipur, the pink city of Rajasthan. The city is rich in its culture, history and monuments. While exploring this city, we met a guy from Jaipur textiles industry who explained us few facts about Pasminas. They showed us some shawls and quilts made from Pasminas.
The quilt was of just 100 grams. 255 blocks are being used to print the design on the quilt. These quilts are washable. The weight of the Pashmina shawl was just 15 grams. The best part about using a Pashmina is, that it can be used in any temperature. one can use this in 0 degree temperature in winters to 40 degrees in summers. This is to say, you can use this in winters to cover yourself from the cold weather whereas, in summers you can use it to prevent yourself from tanning and sun burn.
Block printing
Blocks used for block printing
Further he explained us how to identify pure Pashmina. When you visit a shop to buy Pasmina they generally tell us to pass the cloth from the ring to test the purity of Pasmina but guess what, we've done it wrong throughout. This is not the ideal way of identifying the purity of Pashmina.
Here is the ideal way of testing its purity. You can take out a thread from the fringes, it won't harm the shawl or the design. You’ll have to see it burn and smell the odor as well as check the ashes with your finger tips. If you get a burnt-hair kind of odor and the ash turns out to be a powdery stuff, it is more likely to be pure. But in case it smells like the way burnt leaves would do and there are bigger flames consuming it up, then you’ve been cheated, it is viscose. Again, if it gives a vinegary odor or smell like burning plastic, with the ashes forming small lump, it too is the wrong stuff. It can be acrylic or polyester.
Next time if the seller tries to show the purity of Pasmina with the help of the ring, you know exactly what to do.
Himachal Pradesh is one of those North Indian states which is popular for its natural beauty and known for its rich culture. Himachali topi is one thing that catches attention of every traveler traveling there. This topi comes in different vibrant colors and designs. If you have ever thought of buying one for yourself, I am sure you must have been perplexed looking at the variety of designs and colors. But have you ever tried to know what is the significance of these varieties of Himachali topi. We have been to different districts of Himachal and we noticed every local person of that particular district wears a different pattern and design of cap. Have you ever wondered, if the color and the pattern of these topi mean something? Well we got the same thought and we tried to find out if there is any symbolic representation attached to these topi, if yes then what are these representations. We did our research and found out that these topi that we buy, by just looking at the color and design has a lot to say.
There are three types of Himachali topi
Kulluvi topi
Bushehri topi
Kinnauri topi
Kullvi topi is generally worn by people of Kullu district. Surprisingly, the color of these topi attaches a political meaning to them. The topi with maroon color on it represents Bharatiya Janata Party and the green color represents the Congress party.
Bushehri topi is worn by people of rampur bushehr area. This topi gained popularity in 20th century and became a status of pride for this area. Green coloured Bushehari caps are in great demand these days as the Congress party has its government in Himachal Pradesh.
Kinnauri topi also are also associated with the political significance based on colors. Maroon color signifies Bharatiya Janata Party and green color signifies Congress Party. This cap came into existence as people in the cold desert felt the need to cover their head to avoid chilly conditions. The cap is made from pashmina or woolen cloth and colored cloth on its front that is presently imported.
These caps are shows pride and status of the himachali people. The local people of Himachal still follows the tradition of wearing these topi during functions and marriages. The women decorate their topi with beautiful fresh flowers which makes these caps even more graceful. The himachali people offers these caps to the guests as a symbol of honor to them.
If you feel like buying one you can also buy them online as they are available on various websites for sale.
India is a country which consists of different Religions. These religions follow their own beliefs and practices. I am going to talk about one of these practices followed by Jains which many of you must be unaware of.
Kshamavaani Day or kshama Divas is a day of forgiving and seeking forgiveness. On this day Jains start a new life by forgetting and forgiving everyone of their intentional or unintentional sins. This day is celebrated every year to make the world a better place to live in. This festival is a symbol of growth of spirituality and purity. On this festival a Jains ask for forgiveness and approaches everyone irrespective of their religion.
We can simply understand the mean of “Kshamavaani divas” by this :-
Kshama – mean forgive and, Divas – mean day.
Many people of this community go for prayers in Jain temples. The Jain community may approaches their neighbor, friends, family members, relatives etc for a peaceful co-existence with everyone. This is one of the day when people take all the responsibility of any sorrow, pain, or anguish caused to by their own.
As a human we should all irrespective of our religion learn good practices from all the religions and make us a better human being. This will not just make us positive but it will make this world a peaceful and happy place.
There are certain beliefs and practices that Indians follow that has no logic behind them in today's world. These practices are being followed from many generations.
Sometimes we don't question what we do. We simply follow them because we have seen our elders doing the same, we unfortunately follow some practices without knowing the reason behind them. don't we? I am sure if we recollect our childhood days there have been situations where we asked our parents or relatives that why are we follow this practice and they asked us to keep shut and follow as they do. Probably because even they didn't question these practices when they were kids. But before following any practice or belief, we should always try to find the logic behind it. It will surely make life much easier instead of following things blindly .
Today we 'll find out the logic behind these practices and answer to why do we call these practices as superstitious now.
Ten Superstitious beliefs that had some logic behind them
1.Hanging a lemon and 7 green chilies- We've noticed people hanging a lemon and 7 chilies in their shops, cars, houses etc.This is called as superstitious practice because people followed this to avert buri nazar. Have you wondered what convinced people to do that? well it has a scientific reason behind it. The cotton thread that passes through chilies and lemon absorbs vitamin C, acids and other nutrients which is released into the air through vaporization. This is said to have significant health benefits and our ancestors made it an essential part of their rituals.
2.Black cats crossing path causes bad luck - Back in old days people used to travel by carts that were pulled by the domesticated animals. These animals used to get scared and act weird when they sensed wild cats like tigers, leopards and cheetahs crossing their paths. This has no significance today. 3.One should bathe after attending funerals- When vaccinations were not introduced people used to follow this practice in order to avoid infections of deadly and contagious diseases from the dead bodies. 4.Throwing coins in holy rivers for good luck- This is one of the most common practices that people follow. Earlier rivers used to be the main source of drinking water. When copper coin stays in water for long, it becomes beneficial for the one who drinks it. Hence it was followed. 5.Do not sleep with the head facing north- People believe that it invites ghosts or death and hence its a superstitious belief. According to science when we sleep with our head facing the north direction, our body's magnetic field becomes completely asymmetrical to the magnetic field of the earth which caused health problems. 6.Killing a spider causes bad luck- It has nothing to do with luck this was probably said in order to save the spiders, as the silk produced by spider is used in many optical devices and laboratory instruments. Spider venom is used in neurological research as well and it may prevent permanent brain damage in stroke patients. 7.Do not trim nails after sun set- Earlier electricity was not easily available in houses so people used to trim their nails during the day by using sunlight as a source to see. It has no significance today
8.Do not sweep after sun set- This was practiced since electricity was not easily available so people used to sweep the house during the day. This has no significance today. 9.The Mourning family of the dead should not cook food until shraddh- This is followed by people so that the mourning family gets some rest and time to cope up with the emotional situation. 10.Eat curd and sugar before heading for important work- Science says that the consumption of curd and sugar has a cooling effect in stomach and it provides instant glucose. This works for a tropical region like India.
Here is luxurious Retreat in the Bakrotta Hills, Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh. Alps Resort Dalhousie is one of the premium hotels in Dalhousie. Located just outside of Khajjiar, the Switzerland of Himachal Pradesh, the hotel offers travelers a comfortable haven to retreat after a day of outdoors relaxation. Guests will enjoy modern, recently-refurbished rooms with all necessary amenities, as well as superior local and Continental food, in the peace of the Bakrotta Hills.
How to reach Dalhousie?
By Air
While Dalhousie does not have its own airport, cities close to this hill-station do have one. The closest domestic airport is in Pathankot which is just 75 kilometres away from Dalhousie but is connected to New Delhi only. The second nearest airport is Gaggal airport which is in the Kangra district and is approximately 140 kilometres away from the town. The airport is well-connected to both domestic and international cities. You can hire a bus from Kangra to Dalhousie, which will charge a nominal fee of INR 150 only or take a private cab/taxi transfer.
By Bus
Though the drive might be a long one but the roads leading to Dalhousie or in and around nearby towns like Pathankot and Chamba are in good condition. Many deluxe, semi-sleeper, luxury and Volvo buses run from ISBT New Delhi covering a distance of approximately 590 kilometres. Most of the buses stop by the roadside dhabas and eateries. A lot of private companies, Himachal Road Transport Corporation and Haryana Road Transport Corporation run buses to Dalhousie.
By Train
The most cost-effective and convenient way to reach Dalhousie is by train. Pathankot’s Chakki Bank railhead is the nearest railway station from Dalhousie (approximately71 kilometres). Many superfast, deluxe and express trains are well linked with most of the Indian cities including Jammu, Delhi, Jaipur, Bhatinda, Ahmedabad and Jodhpur. You also have the option to take an overnight train and reach Dalhousie in the morning. You can hire a private or a shared cab from the railway station which will take 2 to 3 hours to reach Dalhousie. The second nearest railway station from Dalhousie is Delhi which is well-connected to most of the Indian cities but from where you have to take a train again.
Further to reach the hotel you can take a cab.
Best time to visit Dalhousie?
March to May: The summer season in Dalhousie starts from the month of March till May and it is generally the most-preferred time when tourists from different parts of India visit this hill-station as the weather is pleasant and the temperature is less than 30 degree Celsius.
June to September: The monsoon season in Dalhousie starts from the month of June and lasts till mid-September. While it does not rain that much in Dalhousie, you can expect some mild showers. During this time period, the town appears quite beautiful and romantic with lush-green forests gleaming with rainwater. This can also be a good time for honeymooners to visit Dalhousie as it is less crowded with just the right amount of rainfall.
October to February: While October and November might not be that chilly, the time period between December and February which constitute the winter season of Dalhousie is quite cold. Since the place is at a high altitude, the temperature is low. It ranges from 10 degree Celsius and can sometimes go down below zero degree as well. However, if you love to play in the snow, then winters is the ideal time to visit Dalhousie. Also, some hoteliers offer attractive discounts on accommodation during this lean season.
Things to do in Dalhousie
The town is famous for the walking circuits it has, you can walk around the town and enjoy the beautiful views of the mountains and the surroundings. One of the famous track is in a form of 8 which cover the Gandhi Chownk to Subhash Chownk and has some interesting views on the way. Don't forget to look for the Tibetan paintings on the hill walls in thandi sadak.
The town also offers good shopping varieties in the famous Tibetan market which has some interesting stuff from around the country.You can also pick up some local handicrafts from these shops which are actually made in Dalhousie itself and if you are lucky you can actually take a tour to see these places.
HISTORIC SIGHTS, LANDMARKS, RELIGIOUS PLACES
St Patrick’s Church Overview
St Patrick’s the largest church in Dalhousie located at the Dalhousie’s main bus stand on military hospital road. One of the major attraction in Dalhousie, it was built by the officers and ranks of the British Army in 1909.
Opening Closing Time7 am to 7 pm
Entrance FeeFree
Hariraya Temple Overview
It dates back to eleventh century is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and has idols of other deities, like lord Shankara, Aruna ,Surya , Uma and Nandi. Devotees of lord Vishnus should visit this temple and offer prayers to take his blessings.
Opening Closing Time6am to 12:30 pm and 2:30pm to 8:30 pm
Entrance Fee Free
St John’s Church Overview
St. John’s Church, built in the British architectural style, founded in 1863,this protestant church is one of the oldest structures of the town from the victoria era and is therefore carries an immense historical significance and receives frequent tourists. It also houses a library, with a rich compilation of books and some rare photographs accounting for the history and culture of Dalhousie.
Opening Closing Time: 7 am to 7 pm
Entrance Fee Free
Alps Resort
If you are someone who dreams of a vacation playing in the snow, in a beautiful resort, with your friends or family then this is the place that can convert your dream into a beautiful memory. Here is a clip of snowfall from the room of the resort.
Garden
The garden in green and well maintained. It has a beautiful tree-house. Chairs and tables are laid out for the travelers to relax. You will see a riot of flowers in various flower-beds, with butterflies fluttering around in happy abandon. Swings are provided for the children to enjoy in the garden.
Alps Resort
Garden
During winters
Rooms
Rooms are big and spacious. The categories are:
Standard Room
Deluxe Rooms
Deluxe Garden View Rooms
Suite Room
Standard Room
Budget double room measuring 32 to 35 sq ms. with (King bed/queen bed) have recently refurbished with elegant decor are fully en-suite with toilet, rain shower and toilet amenities. Also available in rooms are tea & coffee maker, satellite TV, 32 inch flat screen TV and comfort mattress.
Deluxe Rooms
Bright & spacious double room with quiet and modest view,measuring from 35 to 38 sq ms. in size, the rooms have attached modern bathrooms and come along with comfort mattress and LCD TV.
Deluxe Garden View Rooms
Premium double room with full view of garden , rooms measuring 38 to 40 sq ms. with (King bed/queen bed) have recently refurbished with elegant decor are fully en-suite with toilet, rain shower and toilet amenities. Also available in rooms are tea and coffee maker, satellite TV, 32 inch flat screen TV and comfort mattress.
Suite Room
Exclusive and elegantly appointed two room suite with a spacious living room/bedroom with king size bed with full garden view, measuring 55 to 60 sq ms.is perfectly equipped for comfort and convenience with modern amenities, en-suite with toilet rain shower and toilet amenities .Also available in room are tea and coffee maker , satellite TV with 32 inch flat screen TV.
