Yeh hai Mumbai meri Jaan !

“What can you possibly see of Mumbai in a day and a half ?”
     “I can spare just that much of my time ,” says I ,as I land at the Santa Cruz airport from Goa at around 7.30 in the evening and am being whisked away by my sister’s husband to their house in Kandivili . He gives me a rundown of the city while we  get stuck in some heavy traffic. Mumbai is all longitudinal , unlike Delhi which is expansive in all directions ,someone had once told me a few years ago. Yes travelling in Mumbai does not give one a big city feel . The roads aren’t really wide,the houses all look dumped together  and yet its vibrancy and modernity is visible, palpable. There are just three major roads all north- south ,he tells me, the Western Express highway,the Central express Highway and the Harbour line and we are on the Western  as we speed past the  Oracle office ,metro overbridge and  Oberoi Mall, Goregaon .The cab is a rundown Padmini and shudders when the driver applies the brakes ,but he takes us to our destination safely .

    But cabs are an expensive means of travel  and  if you haven’t travelled in its notorious yet superbly efficient  local trains ,you haven’t seen Mumbai .And so the next day I boarded the 9.25 am local from Borivili ,much safer to catch it from a terminal station rather than the closer Kandivili because by that time ,there would be no  space left to even stand comfortably . And my sister who was accompanying me had taken care of the sensibilities and ineptitude of a non Mumbaikar and had wisely decided to go to Borivili ,despite it being a second Saturday and most offices closed.  On normal days she tells me she does not wait for the passengers to disembark and the train reverse for its return trip. She has learnt the agile art of getting on to the slowing train if she wants a seat to sit down for her one and a half hour journey to Churchgate everyday. The local train is a whole world of its own , and travelling in Mumbai would have been near impossible without it. Efficient,timely and so much time saving, it chugs on.Crowds flow in  and out  at Borivili,Kandivili,Jogeshwari,Goregaon,Andheri and others and finally Vile Parle.  That’s where I have to  go  and I stand close to  a number of ladies standing at the gate , asking everyone where they want to get off,to ensure that I am in the crowd with the same destination . I get smoothly pushed along to the platform , no effort required except to ensure that the incoming travellers don’t push me back inside ! 
   Now I meet my brother who stays at Vile Parle . And then the Mumbai Darshan . Since we are near Juhu ,I choose  the most iconic of experiences for this day's visit .Those that define Mumbai . The Juhu beach in the evening and the street foods of Mumbai. On the way,   a motley crowd of onlookers catches my attention and I am told it is Jalsa, home of the one and only  Amitabh Bachchan and his equally illustrious family members . Its dusk when we reach the beach . Joggers, cosying couples,children , the monkey man ,the chaiwaala ,and so much more  all give the beach a life and colour .But we find our own space there and play  with the waves of the Arabian Sea ,almost tamed by urbanisation yet forbidding . Its pleasant and the children get busy  racing each other to the sea and then building sand castles. The sea is dirty ,occasionally a polythene packet gets washed up to the shore ,but there are also waste collectors with their gunny sack collecting rubbish thrown by uncaring revellers. Fun,frolic makes us tired and we head back to the stalls of pav bhaji , chat,vada paav,ragda patis ,sandwiches . But we decide to give these ones a miss ,and have chaat at Sharma chaat near Kala Niketan on SV Road . I love paani puri and this  pani was spicy and makes my mouth water as I still savour the tanginess even as I write. I save the golgappe ,(another name for pani puri which goes by several names for the last always) having delicious chatpati aloo tikkis before that . But there is more street food in Mumbai and I reluctantly  control my gastronomic impulses and very bravely forgo the temptation to have more of the chaat ,leaving place in my hungry stomach for other tastes.
    We move towards Vile Parle station , and stop at a corner under the flyover ,a stone’s throw from McDonalds." Lucky sandwich and Pizza Corner" has a recommendation  hanging on his corner shop from the Times of India for a best street food award and we queue up too .There is everyone there from an Aston Martin to a young couple on a bike,from 10 year olds to grandparents . And there is a sandwich for everyone there too . You want grilled with veggies inside, cheese inside, a Frankie or just a plain one with only boiled potato pieces and yummy sour green chutney  .This is the one my niece raves about. We have the grilled vegetable one, delicious and so filling . It is a small meal in itself and I agree the recommendation by TOI is not unwarranted. Next to him stands a kulfi chap ,no crowd here .Is it because the weather is slightly cool today ? We have one kulfi with paan flavour and we know why there is no crowd. But a dosa walla nearby does brisk business . 
       It’s about 10 at night ,but Mumbai comes into its own .We get an auto to take us back the 2 km distance.Autos are easy to get , though earlier  it hadn’t been  so easy getting an auto to this place  from Juhu beach where we asked almost 8 fellows before one of them agreed and not before we had also walked some 500 metres away from the beach by then. The long distance travellers lure the auto drivers and makes them refuse a short haul passenger. Delhi at night is only cars and road traffic. Mumbai at night, is about girls, women, boys,everyone on the streets ,animated ,happy ,enjoying, comfortable ,brisk ,laughing and joyousness. There is a comfort in the air, of being able  to stand outside street shops and eat, of no pretentions , of shops open till late evening , of being able to catch a bus or an auto easily ,of just enjoying life.

    Our plan to see the beach on a Sunday morning ,in its peaceful avatar were thwarted by the laterisers  and the working couples need to finish their pending weekly jobs . So we started the   day late and were out of the house only by noon . In the spirit of seeing things defining Mumbai we planned to got to Gateway of India and the places thereabouts .This time another local and being Sunday it was a comfortable ride ,getting off at Churchgate and then a cab .The Kandivili folks also decided to join us later and so instead of a family get together at somebodys’ house we had one later at the museum. The Gateway ,was seen by yours truly some 30 years earlier , more crowded now and with another landmark the Taj being pointed to all visitors. Too many Sunday visitors each one of them being followed by photographers with promises of instant photographs ,the most popular demand apparently of the one where you hold the Taj or the Gateway between your forefinger and thumb. The Gateway itself appears to stand immune to everyone crowding around below it,straddling the entrance to Bombay ,welcoming and yet unfeeling. You are welcome here but find your own way , it seems to say .

    On the way we had seen billboards of the Hindustan Times Kala Ghodha Visual Aarts festival and so we walked back to the erstwhile Prince of Wales museum,now renamed  Chhatrapti Shivaji museum .  And so we saw an exhibition of the paintings of the Flemish masters ! Landscapes, still life, black and white  and from the most famous of them all ,Rubens. There is nothing so frustrating than to see a masterpiece and realise your own inadequacies of not having the eye or the knowledge to really appreciate the finer points of a masterpiece. Must join an Art appreciation course ASAP ! But time was short and we criminally skipped the other parts of the museum to go to the festival next door . The museum was there to see anytime ,the Kala Ghodha comes once a year.  The crowd there was enormous and most of the visual delights were lost in the pushing ,jostling mass. The artists who had created some pieces were shunted to the background by people more keen on posing for photographs rather than enjoying the beauty of a horse made of gears ,a monumental structure of empty water bottles,some triangular mirror structure, and many such creative ad absolutely stunning works of art . A childrens workshop warmed our hearts .

And then the pride of Mumbai ,the Marine drive ,the Queens necklace ,the Fort Area. Walking by this very crème de la crème of Mumbai city , with its imposing buildings,its cobbled pavements ,its very historical antecedents . The Gaylord restaurant where Raj Kapoor would drop by for a meal . Areas familiar to us by movie scenes, where across the road we spotted a film shooting was going on . The evening at Marine drive where we sat on the embankments like so many others watching the sea below ,waves breaking on the rocks and the promenade with its breeze  and history ,Nariman point a short distance away ,Shanti Kuteer,Oceana and other residences of the rich ,wealthy, royals etc etc.   But the Marine Drive is egalitarian ,the sea is for all to see,the sea breeze fans every face and in each Mumbaikar’s heart is a piece of this beautiful view of the setting sun a ,reddish blush in the sky and then sinking in the sea far on  the horizon .

   Time  to go back . We missed the 7.05 ,which started moving just as we reached the platform on Churchgate station ,but the 7.11 was ready on another . The ladies compartment was empty when we sat down and I felt a little apprehensive .We thought of moving to the general but another passenger boarded just when the train was about to move and slowly at other stations ,it started to fill .  A group of three hawkers selling cheap jewellery boarded, trustingly handed there baskets in willing customers laps for them to go through and take them back a couple of stations later .A group of chattering Gujarati women livened up the compartment and got down at Dadar . 

   In a day and a half window Mumbai had been well covered ,I thought.
 

Lost in my spring garden

 January , February and March are the months of the flowers in India. We have a small garden but enough to have all the flowers that spring has to offer . I step out of my house ,onto the grass and  lose my way among the beds and the trees. I kneel down to say hello to one of my  favourites , the marigold, the non fussy,cheerful friendly ,generous  soul. .It has been  planted to form a border for the lawn and it so enthusiastically does its picket duties with smiling joyousness. The smaller ones lie low in their yellow-orange  and golden-brass  As I circle the garden , I look down and return their smiles and nod in agreement when they seem to tell me that planting the nasturtiums in corners was a good idea. The orange nasturtiums , so close to my heart , creep merrily and spill over  on the grass  . They have even climbed up the lampposts in the corners. I planted them around the mango and peepal  ,daring them to encircle the huge trees. They took up the challenge and not only do I have an anklet of nasturtiums around the trunks,they have also managed to climb up ,winking at me to say if the money plant can climb up and grow so can we. The nasturtiums and marigold with their intermingling yellow and orange hues will last long. As cheerful as they are,they are also hardy ,revelling in the yellow sunshine. 

I tear myself away from these generous flowers ,only to stumble on the calendulas. Yellow again, but then yellow is the colour of this season for me. Bright sunshine and so very Indian . Slightly taller than my "gendi ' or the marigold edging ,they have flowered in profusion .As I bend down, to caress them,I spot several varieties ,the simple to the double petalled. Suddenly I find a tickle on my nose and look upto see the Margarit,another yellow , laughing and beckoning me. Its tall ,thin stem bends down to reach to the other ones ,all the time its shapely pale yellow petals spread cheer. The flowers are similar to the calendula but the leaves are smaller and fine . Its difficult to come out of these yellow  beds ,catching the sunshine and being one with the sun. 

Poppy

I manage to find my way out of this ,only to be stopped in my tracks by the very waiflike yellow poppy.Light and sheer they appear like butterflies flitting in one place .I planted the red poppies too .In one of the beds these are just behind the yellow ones and the two look gorgeous together .But in another corner,there are only red ones,some with a cluster of petals and some single petaled. But before the red can consume me ,I see  white poppy ,with a delicate blushing tinge of red .And the pink one next to it creating a lovely sequence of a red ,pink and white poppy with tinges of red. What a happy feeling it is to see the red too. And there there were the Salvias. Almost the same height as poppy but with denser leaves and a column of flowers.The red seems to have a matte finish. Salvias form a backdrop bed for the garden .They are solid flowers,whereas the yellow iris in the adjoining bed seems to be there and not there .Small yellow they were the first to flower and the first to have seeds.So its time to let the pods ripen and save the seeds for the next season.
These are the flowers in profusion . I find my way out of this Golden delight to gaze upon the flamboyant Gazanias . They are showing off their bright colours . Bright yellow,creamish yellow,pink ,mauve,lilac all vying for attention and forcing me to look their way .They are some of the most beautiful and striking flowers,bold and brash , needing Good light for them to open out to the world. Evenings I can see them , petals folded fast asleep! Next to them is the Cineraria,no less eye catching. The larger ,ones this time are mostly purple but the smaller or the button sized ones are in many different hues.White,pink, purple ,they are just like a big cluster of small buttons ,near the ground ,looking up at me with a baby innocent look. After the unicoloured marigold,calendula and margarit,the other flowers are all in various hues bunched together.The multihued cover on the ground is breathtaking. I love the dog flower ,the colours not as bright as the Gazania or Cineraria,but the bell shape  shape so unique ,each stalk having several small flowers on it. Lower down is the Dianthus,again in  myriad colours mostly a deep pink with white zigzag edges ,some in a deep shade of red ,some lavender too ,but all with ends shaded a lighter colour .The dianthus looks dainty,lacelike ,and very fragile.A similar looking flower but on close observation very different is the iceplant. A hardy succulent,,in pink  and white , this opens up in the sun and nods happily at the world ,short stalked barely lifting above the ground.

Dogflower 

Phlox and the guava tree 

The purple ,violet, fuchsia,magenta riot continues as the monkey faced pansies join in the fun. The hybrids are bigger with their fan shaped petals but the local variety is impish with its simian smiles.the velvety texture of the petals makes me want to caress them .But the Pansies are a little restrained ,unlike the petunias which flower with such exuberance  the whites,the pink and the purple and a crimson or two, abound ,growing with wild abandon everywhere. No sophisticated elegance for them.I have them wherever I want a large area to be covered.The flowerbed under the window sill,in planters ,in hanging baskets and where have you.Non demanding and long lasting,they are the hardiest of the winter flowers and will continue to flower till late April.The sturdiness of the Petunias is offset by the tiny Candytuft ,the dainty looking white blanket that grows swiftly and has covered the ground. It will grow again next year even if I dont plant more seeds.So undemanding and giving . I move around ad reach by Guava tree in the garden.Its so well placed and gives some shade so I can place a chair and sit down under it ,with not too much sun and not too much shade. The foot of the guava tree has the Phlox ,the star shaped flowers hugging  it and nodding their heads happily.They look like a bunch of children playing in the park ,in shades of pink,purple,red and white .There are two flowers which I have not been able to identify ,one is a bigger starshaped too,in colors of red and pink .the other is white ,cream and orangish-red . The chrysanthemums were the first to flower and wither,the heralders of all things beautiful. The white snowball had grown well,and so had the small
     How impossible it is to get out of this luxury .I lie on the grass ,looking hungrily all around,trying to save these images before the heat withers them and before the rites of passage make the flowers dry or become fruits. I am going to save the seeds for the next year . But there is more to come from this treasure spot.Near the walls are the Hollyhocks and the Dahlias.The hollyhocks blossom a little late,but I know they will continue till May .White ,soft pink and darker ones ,they form a lovely backdrop to the craziness of the smaller flowers.The Dahlias ,of course with their huge flowers ,the plants bending under their weight seem to look down on everything else in the garden.While the hollyhocks are ready to play with all others,the Dahlias maintain a stately, statesque stance,proud but charming.
While the trees are shedding their leaves in the spring,the flowers are all in bloom .Is it a wonder that I have stopped going inside my house ,but roam around in my garden like a lost wanderer,weaving in and out of the happy flowers, a caress here, a sigh there, a fragrance calling me from a corner , a nod from another. But I have company.Its the butterflies which I see ,delighted ,flitting from flower to flower.And the birds chirping ,singing,picking at seeds and having a party. The squirrels running on the grass trying to remember where they hid their nuts and I presume playing hide and seek .
Oh how the earth laughs in flowers.(Emerson)
I hope some day to meet God, because I want to thank Him for the flowers. ~Robert Brault

Inside Ram territory in Chitrakoot

       Its probably the only district claimed by two states . A river separates Chitrakoot in Madhya Pradesh and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh. And why not?  Chitrakoot , literally  translated to mean the hill of many  wonders is the haloed place where Ram,Sita and Lakshman spent the major part ,almost eleven and a half years of their 14 year exile.

  About 120 kms  south east of  Allahabad on NH76  , it was going by the  google map a 2hrs 7 mins journey. But that did not take into account that NH 76 is a forgotten Highway , just a two lane road ,with little rumble strips,a busy railway crossing just after Naini  and twists and turns when it reaches the Vindhya ranges.It took us a good four and a half hours to reach Karvi . The road took us past wheat and mustard fields,the Gangetic plain slowly giving way to the rocky Vindhya terrain .

We met  our guide ,Tripathiji ,at a Government guest house .Tripathiji is a local government official who very kindly agreed to take us around this holy place .His dhoti clad bulky frame with a befitting red tilak on his forehead was in sync with the ambience of the place.  .He would narrate  the history of the place with all the reverence due to the legend  of Ram and Sita,interspersed with Ramcharitmana quotes. Though it was almost one in the afternoon and we were hungry we were advised to visit the Ramghat first. Ramghat is on the bank of Mandakini ,the place where Ram alongwith Sita and Lakshman first   resided in a small cottage or parnkuti  built by the tribal inhabitants of the forests. .A flight of steep steps leads us to a  temple  built at this site by the king of Orissa . This is also the place where Bharat met Ram to take him back to Ayodhya .Each small area of this place is linked to some activity of Ram's exile.

Ramghat is also the place where Tulsidas had the darshan of Lord Ram . A small statue on the banks of Mandakini  is installed at the place. Like all temple towns,the place is dotted with temples associated with the stay of Ram here and small shops sell the usual things,diyas,Ramayan, Ramcharitmanas,incense holders .The river has people taking a bath with religious fervour. A huge banyan tree is said to have been inhabited by Hanuman.

Ramghat 

It was about 2in the afternoon  and we stopped for lunch at Kamadgiri Bhavan ,just about  100 mtrs from Ramghat.The food was good,vegetarian thali .The place also offered lodgings for the devout.  A quick lunch and then it was time  to move to Gupt Godavari. about 20 km from Ramghat .The road was narrow and in a very bad condition.We did twists and turns , the vehicle just about managing to be kept straight.Its a pity that the Government does not do anything to improve the conditions of the roads despite their beig a steady stream of pilgrims. The weather had become rainy and when we reached the place ,it had become slightly slushy.Nevertheless we got down and had to walk some distance a narrow 

At Gupt Godavari 

path lined with the uual shops.Interestingly some of them were selling herbs,said to be sourced form the vast forests of this region. Some were calling out names like Sanjeevini and other herbs for the skin !The Gupt Godavari is a rivulet which runs through two caves in the mountains and forms two tanks .A huge crowd had lined up for entry in the cave. The entry to the cave was between two overhanging rocks .Different legends are associated with this place.The main story relates to hoe Godavari wanted to come and meet Ram during his exile,but because she was young,her father the sea,allowed her to come here in the form of an underground rivulet.

Sati Anasuya Ashram 

A visit to the two caves does not gtake much time and we come out to find a slight drizzle.On the advice of Tripathiji ,we move to Sati Anasuya Ashram. A little more than 6 kms ,the appraoch to this ashram has dense forests on both sides.The narrow road becomes busy with traffic as we approach the place.In fact a jam like situation is all set to be created as the road is really to narrow for both sides of traffic and the devotees on foot. A couple of cares and vehicles parked on the side lead to the confusion. The Ashram itself is on the banks of Mandakini which has its source in the Vindhya ranges .The story of Anasuya,wife of Atri Rishi and how she did  'tapasya' to bring the river Mandakini to this region is famous.So are other stories about her faith,all depicted in the temple built by a sadhu sect at this place.The place is serene ,the river barely flowing ,forest on the other bank,a mountain in the background and people taking a holy dip. There is also a smaller temple said to be the original home of Anusuya. 

It was getting late now and with the rains and an overcast sky ,not really a good day for visiting a basically rural place.As it is we had just one day to visit Chitrakoot.Tripathiji,our very respectful guide was unhappy with this shortest of visits.A place where Ram lived for 11 years needed more time .There were about 99 places associated with his exile and we were not doing justice to this place.

So we were on our return journey and on the way we stopped at Kamadgiri temple.This is said to be the original Chitrakoot hills ,from which the town takes its name.Kamad,another name for Ram is the reigning diety here .Thanks to our guides Connections and the word VIP which slipped easily off his tongue,we had a close darshan of the temple and our own samll pooja.The temple buitl in the mountain has a small parikrama of about 5 and half kms.We,of course did not have time for that.Maybe Shri Ram will call us another time to perform this parikrama. 

Till then we said goodbye to this place full of the echoes of devotion to Ram,Sita and Lakshman and it seems as if their lives are still being played out,in the folded hands of the pilgrims and the stories being narrated by the local people.They consider themselves  blessed to be in a place where the Lord spent so much time as an ordinary mortal. 

Boats lined up at Ramghat 



Goswami
Tulsidas 

Out of the shadows of the Qutub Minar -Mehrauli Archaelogical Park

As one drives from Andheria More towards Qutub Minar a y blink-and-you-miss pathway  branches off ,just after the Mehrauli nursery. There's only  a signboard with various do's and dont's which marks the entrance to one of the densest historical ruins in  Delhi.
After many weekends of aborted tries at  visiting this hidden treasure, I could join Kanika of the Delhi heritage walk fame on one of her walks. And am I glad I made it. The modest lane with rocks on the sides and a few little twists and turns ends at the famous Jamali Kamali mosque.But that's not where we started. Instead of following the katcha road we wandered off  to the green on the right side near the main road ,and stood at a  doorway ,the entrance to Balban's tomb. As we walked through it,there were ruins , apparently having been excavated just about a year back. Its great to feel one is standing at a place where history is still being unearthed. Straight ahead was Balbans's tomb... his tomb or rather the cenotaph no longer exists . Balban was one of the most well known of the  Slave dynasty Sultans .The walls are there but the roof is missing ,it had a dome which did not survive time ! As we look up to the skies , standing at the place where the tomb must have been,we come to know that this is the monument where the true arch was first used in construction as was the dome . A landmark of sorts in architecture ! In a chamber next to this, lies his son Khan Shahid ,the cenotaph intact ,with the fragrance of incense around it. Much to our disappointment,the incense fragrance is of recent times,  the residents  of the nearby  Mehrauli village ,having converted this to some sort of a  sacred place . Khan Shahid was Balban's favourite son,who was killed in battle and Balban died ,soon after , heartbroken .

Khan Shahid's tomb near Balban's

The Jamali Kamali complex

We got out of father and son tomb ,and climbed a small flight of stairs ,to ruins of probably some dwelling place.  The ruins showed rooms and possibly the existence of a courtyard. No more  is known of this house,palace,or whatever it may have been. As we walk a  few steps ahead we reach the most well known monument of this place,the complex of the Jamali Kamali mosque and tomb. We move westward   through a darwaza and we are facing the mosque.It has a five arched verandah ,with the Central arch being the largest and having a dome. The courtyard has a tank ,dry now .The western wall of the mosque has some  Quranic inscriptions.We were shown the lotus and lotus buds carved in the parapet of the arches ,showing  the Indian influence on Islamic architecture .  Puzzling was the carved hexagram on a niche in the wall,the Hindu Shiv-Shakti Shatkon ,the Jewish Star of David or the Muslim Khatem Suleiman ?
Moving away from the Jamali Kamali complex ,we climbed a hillock to be at Metcalfe's folly. Thomas Metcalfe,the British resident at the court of Bahadurshah Zafar ,bought this whole area ,lock,stock and barrel or should we say,tombs,buildings  and streams ,to make it his monsoon retreat.He changed the course of the stream flowing through the estate ,so that it could end in a lake.He converted a Lodi period building to a boat house ,built a carriageway and bridge and finally made the building housing a tomb  his home ! Quli Khan ,a Moghul noble ,and son of his wet nurse Maham Anga ,is buried here. But Metcalfe had no qualms in installing his dining table,or was it billiard table ,at the same place where he was buried.I imagine that when Quli Khan turned in his grave at this travesty,either of the tables would have taken a ghostly tumble .

The Boathouse with a glimpse of the now dry stream and the carriageway

Quli Khan's tomb

Metcalfe's Folly and Qutub Minar not so far

The last leg of this educative walk  was to the Rajon ki Baoli. This stepwell had been built by Sikandar Lodi  for the   masons or the Rajgirs, hence the name rajon , building the monuments in the area . The three storeyed stepwell is a magnificent structure and we climbed up steps to see the now dry well. Near the Baoli is also a tomb and a mosque ,and the inscription on the chatri of the tomb givs away the period of its construction.Nothing else seems to be known about the tomb. But sitting on the steps and counting the number of steps leading down to the bottom of the baoli was exhilirating, Just to imagine that at see point of time it must have been filled with water  and people assembled here to gossip,relax take water was like reliving history .  

Rajon ki Baoli

The trio of Baoli,Mosque and tomb

Budapest World heritage sites

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/budapest.html


I visited Budapest in May 2011, and was mesmerised by the city and its beautiful architecture .Both the Buda and Pest have their very own distinctive style of architecture.We could see the Palace ,the Chain bridge and the Danube lit up,stunningly beautiful at night ,from our hotel room.

Buda palace at night

The walk on the banks of Danube is delightful ,with old women sitting on benches selling Hand embroidered tablecloth and runners.Walked up to the" shoes "on the banks of Danube ,then up to chain bridge ,crossed over to Buda side and had a view of the Funicular or the single compartment train which takes one up to Buda castle .Did not take it though but walked up to the palace. The castle is splendid ,and saw preparations for the horse show being arranged there. Walked onwards on the cobblestone streets to Trinity square , Mathias Church with its lovely Rococco roof which can be seen from our hotel too,then on to Fisherman's Bastion

Fisherman's Bastion

and stood there to get an absolutely magnificent view of the River and The Pest side of the city.

Pest from Buda

The next evening we walked in the opposite direction passing the statue of the little boy ,(or is it princess?) crossed the Danube at the Elizebeth Bridge(named for the most popular Queen Sisi ) to reach Gellert hill ,trekked up to the Liberation Monument and The Citadel a fortress from which we got another panoramic view of the city .
But before the walk to Gellert hill,we had had a tour of Buda in the morning ,walking down the Danube to The magnificent Parliament building and St Stephen's Cathedral . We were taken along the Andrassy Avenue to Heroes square , passing the House of Terror enroute.
Of course Budapest has more to see,the Hungarian Agriculture Museum and its statue of Anonymus,the City Park , the Szechenyi bath ,though we did not have time to go there ,The Farmers market and the long exclusive shopping promenade "Vaci Utca" .

Call of the Wild

There was excitement as we started for the bus ride which would take us to Murchison Falls national park , the largest national park in Uganda. For most of us it was the first safari and a first experience of the African wildlife. It is about 300 km from Kampala ,taking around 5 hours . The bus drove past interesting villages,markets,farms and at one point we stopped for a spot of breather. The ladies also wanted a place to relieve themselves but the lush green made us hesitant to go behind a tree.Luckily we spotted a number of schoolgirls standing outside a building.It turned out to be a school and two of the girls guided us to a place at the back where a woman's toilet was built.Four walls,an aluminum frame door and a hole in the ground . We started talking to the girls and one of them told us about how she wanted to become a doctor when she grew up. Curiously I glanced through a notebook she was carrying to find the formula for moment,momentum,Laws of Newton smiling back at me ! But sadly when I asked whether she knew where India was,she nodded her head in a no. Maybe her geography lessons are not so good as the Physics one !

At around 2 we reached Masindi a small town about 30 minutes  short of the National park. Our lunch was arranged at the Masindi Hotel ,Uganda's oldest hotel set up in 1923. Smiles greeted us as we made our way to this historic hotel.Having once hosted Ernest Hemingway ,it had  a lovely  old world charm. Predictably they have named the bar  Hemingway bar  had a lovely feel about it . Llunch was served in an outside patio sort of place and I had a swing at a rope swing on a tree nearby.

But we had to catch the ferry and get across the Nile to the lodge where we would stay and so no lingering in the Masindi hotel and we made our way forward to the national; park. At the entry was a small souvenir shop where we bargained and bought an ebony mask. And then we drove in to the park with almost no traffic to give us company. In the distance we could sometimes imagine we saw the river but it took us a good one hour to reach the place. The bus and vehicles were loaded on to the ferry and we were crossing the river Nile. Its a huge river and one could spot hippos cooling off .

On the other side, the Paraa lodge is a luxurious place ,welcoming all guests with a drink and a wet towel. The whole place has been made to reflect the jungle safari look and we climbed up the stairs to our rooms , overlooking the swimming pool and the river beyond. An evening drink at the Explorer's bar  and dinner at the quaintly  named Captain's table finished off our first day . But the night was mesmerizing with the river flowing by and standing on the balcony I could  imagine the wild cats roaming the forest and grasslands beyond.

Day 2 was scheduled for both the safari and a boat trip . An early breakfast and then off to the bus with the safari guides for the high point of the visit. Murchison falls national park is Uganda's  largest protected area. We had our tryst with the  Huge African elephant just 2 mins inside the park when a group decided to cross the road just in front of us.The bus stopped to give them the right of way and it took them a good while to lumber across the road. But it is definitely bad manners to pass them by and move to  the  proximity to these mighty animals and we wisely waited. As we moved ahead the Savannah grasslands and the forests then started revealing their treasures .The sun was hot but I moved forward and sat in the seat next to the drivers'to get a good view. Deer and warthog ,(Pumba,pumba  ala the Lion King ...!)  ran across the huge expanse . Then came the Giraffe,their necks seemingly touching the sky,comfortably chewing off the top leaves of the tree. At first we were really enthusiastic to have spotted a giraffe,but then there were plenty of them ahead,in groups,mostly lazing around ,some even giving us a pose to click .

We would request our guide to stop and let us admire the animals,the  bushbucks, reedbuck, duikers, kobs, warthog,oribi  ,hartebeest,all introduced  to us by the ranger and forgotten soon after . We wanted to photograph,stand ,stare and photograph. He wanted to move forward so that we could catch a glimpse of the most lion before they retreated for the afternoon siesta. He was right because by the time we reached the grasslands with scattered bushes it was almost 10 AM and the mighty beasts had had their breakfast and had found the shade of bush to rest. Our bus went off the track and the guide peered inside each bush to catch a glimpse.Asw e move a little further another returning bus told us the exact location where they had spotted a lion and sure enough we found him there hidden deep inside ,his eyes shining .We were enthralled ,and took a number of photographs ,none of which could catch him as he was well hidden.We were lucky that day , because some time later we were given directions to another bush where a lioness was resting. This time she was not deep inside the bush and we could only stare at her in awe ,the tawny coat and the majestic posture. Disdainfully, she did not pay much attention to us ,now that she was not hungry ! We did not of course dare to get off the bus ,but saw her fascinatingly  from the window . 

We thought this was the end of the safari,but we moved towards the Lake Albert where the Victoria Nile meets it at the Delta Point   and becomes the Albert Nile. There were hippos in the water but we were advised not to wander off ,for crocodiles are found here . It was time to go back and prepare for the next leg ,the most beautiful sight in Uganda of the Murchison falls .

Out of Africa

It was a remote possibility that we would plan a trip to an African country , given our stereotype of a 'phoren' holiday being Europe or now Thailand,Malaysia,Singapore. So when an opportunity came our way we were delighted to be a part of a group going to Uganda.Uganda is associated in our minds with Idi Amin and more delightfully with the Madhwani family one of whom married our very sexy Mumtaz .
The trip to Kampala was via Dubai and I must say Dubai is not the place for me .Buildings each higher than the next,malls each bigger than the one before.....no its not up my street. So we had half a day in this unique city but I was glad to get out of it and board Emirates for Kampala. As one looks down from the plane,huge Lake Victoria and green is what sooths the eyes. We disembarked at the Entebbe airport on the banks of Victoria and went to a delightful resort ,the Speke resort , in Munyono on the outskirts of Kampala .A half hour drive from Entebbe to Kampala gave us a taste of the traffic in the city ,heavy and apparently jams are quite commonplace there .
The Speke resort built during the CHOGM meet of 2007 is a wonderful place to stay. Absolutely divine landscaping greeted us with lush green trees and an almost bewildering variety of trees and flowers. I felt like a child wanting to run and see all the vegetation and went clickety click with my camera. Hats off to the horticulture team for an absolutely lovely place and great maintenance. The place is on the shore of the Lake Victoria and predictably an early morning ,next day led me to take a walk around the place. The sun rose brightly and its rays fell playfully but powerfully on the waters.A lone boatman rowed his boat towards this ray of light and I was delighted when I captured him beautifully. The amazing diversity of plants and flowers kept me enthralled that morning from the Lantanas to huge hibiscus to flowers I did not know  about.
Uganda has  a very large Indian population so the food served was good old home food. The breakfast buffet had poori sabzi alongwith the usual cornflakes ,hashbrown potatoes, etc that one is served in such places.

We were moving out to the Murchison falls the next day so had a time crunch in Kampala. A look at the city's more poular places could not be arranged but we did vist a handicraft centre on the lines of Delhi's own Dilli Haat. Small stalls gave us a lovely experience of shopping and bargaining for typical Ugandan handicrafts mostly made of ebony . Figurines,hats,stools,.it was an absolute treasure trove . It was rather difficult for us to count in thousands of Ugandan shillings because 1 dollar would give about 2300 ushillings.and stuff would be for nothing less than 10000 ush and multiples thereof. The crafts village lay in the National Theatre compound just across the road from Parliament where the swearing in of ministers was taking place that day .Funnily our bus parked on the side of the street was locked for wrong parking and I saw a couple of more cars whose wheel was locked by a right angled iron brace.

The next day was the Nile,Masindi and the Savannah grasslands.