Bon Voyage 2009!
sea crossing Bay of Bengal into the Pacific Ocean and towards the South
China Sea, all happening in this very year of the Ox 2009.
I started off from January 1st being into Hyderabad and thought I have
started 2009 off with a travel and may god keep the streak running into
the whole year. God, passing by just heard it and granted my uncanny
wish. I have already traveled 12 times this very year and travel is
again on the cards on the last day the 31st as well!
I traveled my heart out this year to various destinations including
local, domestic and International, various occasions official, leisure,
pilgrim and fun. I visited places in India like Lonavala, Ganpati Pule,
Hyderabad, Shirdi, Nashik, Shani-Shignapur, Jammu, Kota (3 times),
Jaipur, Ajmer and Pushkar along with International Cities Tokyo twice
and Hong Kong in this very year of the Ox. Passed in Transit over
Bangkok as well!
Over these travels I clicked thousands of pictures and met hundreds of
people around, now it feels like being an avid traveler. Now I can boast
off my tales of voyages across flights, trains, buses, boats, ships and
ferries, trams and rickshaws and worth mentioning the city Walking
Tours. Had at least 300 meals outside my usual place of eating and met
at least 100 new people. Kudos to 2009 for that!
The Tokyo Drifts:
Twice this year I flew over to Tokyo over an Official trip and
absolutely loved the way the city treats gaijins! The hope of getting
lost in the crowd was as fake as song and dance in Bollywood. Tokyo is a
magnificent city for Gaijins like me who like to parade the streets on
foot and look out for local wonders about food. It has a network of
multi-cuisine restaurants spread all across the city and you'll get from
Pasta to Sushi and from Dhokla to Paratha and also from Masala Dosa to
Chardonnay! Its just said that a vegetarian will face problems in Japan
but its all fake unless you are short of cash. You get excellent Indian
Vegetarian food and that too with Authentic Punjabi lassi in any Indian
Restaurants in Tokyo.
Filled with beautiful and scenic country side and also a great network
of transport to reach places like Nikko, Kyoto, Enoshima-Kamakura,
Hakone and Mt. Fuji. I would not say all this is cheap but if you have a
thirst for them they are worth it.
I just think why do Indians head west for these comforts when Japan and
China are our such good neighbors? People are helpful enough to show you
the nearest AM-PM shop and Pedestrians rule over traffic on the road.
Minimal Pollution and no dearth of trees in the city. City so advanced
that even a local needs a GPS to locate the nearest barber shop. All
this and more when you look at the fantastic Metros that operate in the
city. They have English Commentary and Signs that help even a Gaijin to
travel safely to his destination.
I know I am praising a lot but what can I say that's the way it is.
Okay, there are a few disadvantages as well. One, the Rents are too high
and you can only live there if you are on an official trip. Two, the
people are a little slow in understanding and not knowing Japanese can
be the biggest challenge (read nightmare) if you plan to live there.
Apart from that if you are okay with the cost of transport and food in a
metro like Mumbai you would hardly notice any price too out of reach for
daily household articles.
All is said and done, I rate the city a decent 8/10 on my scale of being
traveler friendly and beautifully set to make you want to come back.
Hong Kong: The Gateway to China:
Although I just went there for a week, I learnt it's a closer India than
England itself. the first experience was however not pleasant as I
struggled to reach my hotel from the airport despite having Cash in my
pocket. On Sunday there is a shortage of Public Transport and some Buses
do not operate at all. So plan a landing on either a Weekday or on a
Saturday. My hotel was fabulous and on a decent not so far list of
hotels from my Super Cool Office the 2 IFC. The Transport system in HK
is far better than what I saw in Tokyo as it was more foreigner friendly
and neat. HK is a World City and it lives up to it to the fullest. Plush
Malls and Subways people dressed in Armani Jackets, holding Louis
Vuitton Bags you've see it all in HK. Classy Restaurants a very feel of
like being in a British City, after all the roots do tell the tales of
the mighty stem that once stood over it.
HK has the famous Island mentality and boasts of a fab culture of being
living on the Island. People feel proud of being able to afford living
on the mail Hong Kong island. Others not so fortunate live in place like
Kowloon and North Point and some even more far from riches stay in the
'New Territories'. The divide is so much so that Malls are structured
based on the purchasing power of the people living there. Like Pacific
Mall at Admiralty is a No-No for foreigners with just ample money to buy
souvenirs as it is sky rockety pricy and sells only Super Designer
Brands you would only like to drool upon. On the other hand there is
Time Square Mall which is good enough to fulfill all your gift and
souvenir needs as well as not burning a hole in your Levi's. And then
there is Citygate Outlets which though being right at the Airport at
Tung Chung is the most visited and highly recommended Mall for all the
foreigners and locals also I would guess. It claims to run at discounts
of 30-70% all round the year.
I was able to buy my first Armani bag and Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren
Shirts at very neat prices here. It also has a good food court offering
Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Korean food besides serving excellent Indian
Punjabi food made by a Delhi Family.
Hong Kong also is very beautiful if you explore the country side and the
different surrounding islands. I got a chance to go to the Po Lin
Monastery on the Lantau Island built over the Tung Chung Plateau which
seats the Largest Sitting Bronze Buddha Statue in whole of the world. It
is situated an hour long boat ride from Hong Kong followed by an hour
long Bus Ride to Ngong Pimg village which is host to the Statue and the
Ngong Ping Cable Car station and loads of other museums and markets.
Recommended Course:
Boat Ride from Central Ferry Pier No. 6 to Lantau Island (60 mins) . Get
down from the Lantau Pier and board the Bus no 2 from outside Bus Stand
to Giant Buddha Statue. Walk down the Wisdom Path and get on top of the
Statue (Don't forget to buy the Meal Pass if you are not carrying any
lunch) Visit the Museum atop the statue and head out to the Po Lin. At
Po Lin you'll find different God Chambers or temples and beautiful
deities and forms of Lord Buddha, very peaceful inside it. Here you can
have the Monk Food inside the restaurant at a good rate of 100 HKD.
Leave Lantau by the Ropeway Cable Car as it takes only 20 mins to reach
Tung Chung and from there you can go to Citygate Outlets Mall and take
the Tung Chung line back to Central Hong Kong Station.
One word I would say about Hong Kong is Awesome!
I would write more about my escapades in India in my later posts, stay
tuned for now.
After all these travels all I can say is keep'em coming and I am lovin'
it!
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