Tag: mesmerized

9 Things That Nobody Told You About Vacationing In Italy

Italy Banner PagePic Courtesy: Shutterstock

Italy is a European country like no other! A wise traveler once said, ‘Put all of Europe on one side and Italy on the other and Italy will still come up trumps’. Maybe it’s as true for their brand of football, wine and food as well, but I guess in his mildly inebriated state he meant it from the tourism point of view! This boot-shaped country has got beautiful landscape with a remarkable coastline and mountains, rolling wine country, an ancient culture which is hard to beat and architecture which will take your breath away. And after you have been suitably mesmerized by Rome, Florence and the Tuscany region, you land up in Venice and think, what the hell were these guys up to? How could they pull off such an incredible feat as building the city of Venice? And then off course there’s the incredible food and wine and the typical Italian way of life ~La Dolce Vita~

1) That Italy is NOT for a hop-skip-jump visit.

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If you are looking at Italy as a 3 night stopover in Rome, don’t waste your time. Go someplace else. That’s a frank advice. You can’t do justice to what this country did in 5000 years and attempt to even try and understand it in 3 days. Minimum spend 10 days. Anything short of that is a blasphemy! Rome and the Vatican needs 4 days; Florence and Tuscany another 4 days; Venice a good 2 full days; Amalfi Coast another 3days. Then there’s Sicily which if you want to get a feel you need 4days. Exploring it would require 6-7 days. And we haven’t covered Milan and the Lake Como region or the Dolomites! So, there you are. In 10 days you would be able to rush through Rome, Florence and a stay in a Tuscan villa, Venice and a bit of the Amalfi Coast.

2) Make a wishlist and dump that checklist.

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For those who want to see a bit of everything and have a hassle free guided tour where even your meals are accounted for, go for the coach tours. Yeah bring out your laundry list for Italy! But if you have your own wishlist and want to see the Duomo in Florence at leisure or check out the ambiance of Tuscany by staying on a farm or a villa or want to enter Venice in style aboard a cruising yacht or spend endless hours in a piazza in Rome or stand transfixed for hours on end in front of the Coliseum, or stay in Taormina in Sicily for the awesome views of Mt.Etna and the Mediterranean, then go for the independent holidays. Don’t get chaperoned like on a guided coach tour and spend all your time in the world to savor the beauty of Italy like you would your red wine while seated in a café in front of the Pantheon or at the Trevi fountain!

3) Add that ‘self drive’ star to your trip.

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Firstly, the ‘self-drive’ houseboat holidays near Venice. It’s a lifestyle holiday that’s so reasonably priced that it’s quite unbelievable. Imagine having a private yacht with 1-4 cabins with en suite loos, a small kitchenette, its own music system, the freedom to navigate down the river, choosing where you want to eat, where you want to moor and go for long walks or cycle down pretty pathways in villages you would never have seen otherwise. The second is self drive car holidays all over mainland Italy where we will chalk out your route and book you in pretty places all over Italy. The 3rd is the enchanting and myth laden island of Sicily. From short breaks to 10 day holidays in Sicily and covering Taormina, a climb to Mt. Etna, Cefalu, Palermo, Agrigento etc.

4) Don’t throw caution to the wind.

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They have never given suparis to Indian tourists. Not even in Sicily. At least not yet. The Godfathers are yet to hear about ‘India Shining’ out there. But yes, we keep hearing from people or reading in news that there have been purse snatching or pickpocketing. I have never ‘met’ someone who has been at the wrong end of Italian hospitality. But since they say its that way in Italy, why not just be more careful and don’t go hanging your new Mont Blanc wallet around your neck!

5) Don’t visit at the wrong time of year and regret.

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June to Sep is summer. The scent of a warm summer breeze, pretty cafes open till late at night, fashion laden locals and hordes of mesmerized tourists waltzing down every narrow lane, music pouring out from street corners and pubs. It’s a heady cocktail of splendid architecture, food & wine, fashion, amazing landscapes and warm people. You will find it hard not be swept into the philosophy of La dolce vita. Apr/May & Oct would have a bit of all that but less in its intensity as well as price.

6) Don’t be the last minute Indian while VISA application.

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Not a problem, if you have your papers in order. In perfect order. It’s a Schengen country. But during the summer months, the consulate is loaded with applications, so don’t plan to apply at the last moment.

7) Don’t club in random countries with Italy and regret later.

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France, Switzerland and Austria make a good combination. All of them are well connected by trains. For eg, you can combine Geneva (Switzerland), Chamonix (France) with a trip to Lake Como and Milan in Italy. Or you could wander to the Lake side triangle of Lugano (Switzerland), Como and Maggiore in Italy. The schengen visa will suffice for all these countries.

8) Exercise caution while hotel booking for ultimate savings.

ColiséePic Courtesy: Wikipedia

It depends entirely on your budget and the kind of location you like. But we would advise that in Rome choose a centrally located hotel between the Tiber river and Termini stn. Preferably within walking distance of the metro. In Florence choose any hotel close to the station. It’s a walking town. In Tuscany if you want to stay in a vineyard or on a farm, there are plenty of places to choose from. Check with us for ideas. In Venice, if you stay ‘inside’ Venice city, then prepare to pay a stratospheric price for a measly sized room but you may hear the gondola guys serenade you right below the window! Or you may opt to stay instead at Mestre, which is just across the creek and a 3min train ride away. Here you will get a decent 4 star hotel (eg Hotel Bologna) at the cost of a ‘so-called’ 3star hotel in Venice city.

9) Eat through Italy.

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Italy is a foodie’s delight. The further south you travel the more elaborate the meal becomes, so much so that in Sicily, 1-4pm is siesta time which I guess is more to do with their lunch than with rest. If an Italian decides to host you for lunch or dinner, do keep aside 2-3 hrs for that and no meetings afterwards. Nothing is short of a 3-course meal with wine overflowing. It’s not a Veg food paradise, but veggies will survive well. Indian restaurants are there in the main cities but these are not cheap. A simple dinner for 2 at the only Indian restaurant in Venice will set you back by Euro 40-50. Tap water is safe for drinking in Italy. But then in Italy who drinks water!

Holler if you finally want to take that Italy vacation or just click here to see our awesome Italy package: 16 Days Italy – The Wanderers Way!

Tiger Trails of Central India – Urmimala Banerjee, The Wanderers

By Urmila Banerjee

Urmimala Banerjee of The Wanderers travelled to Pench, Kanha and Bandhavgarh in Feb, 2007 and came back mesmerized and wiser..here is her story


“I am the only person who can show you the tiger”, said Atul. He was a confident man. It was barely two hours, since we had checked into the Pench Jungle Camp. The 6 kilometers drive from Khawasa to Avarghani Village had been back breaking. The kaccha road was bumpy and threw up dirt at every two minutes. It was a dry area with barren Sal trees and few villagers were working on the main road.

However, the resort was a complete contrast. We parked our Ambassador and proceeded towards the reception. The lawns were impeccable with flowers planted in neat rows. Butterflies fluttered about in gay abandon. A French family was waiting to check in, while the waiters stood in attention.

The drive from Nagpur had been good. En route we had stopped at the Dragon Palace at Kamptee. Built with Japanese aid, it was a big complex with a large prayer hall. We were the first visitors of the day. After a 15 min stop, we drove further. As we entered into the countryside we saw huge sunflower fields and villages homes painted white and blue. A considerable area came under the Forest Department and we could see rows of teak trees. This belt started in Maharashtra, while Khawasa came in the Seoni District of Madhya Pradesh.

After a round of hotel inspection, we were in the common dining area. And it was during a sumptuous lunch that we heard Atul speak about tiger sightings. He was telling the foreign guests that he was one of the few people who could guarantee a tiger/leopard on a safari. “That’s really great! I exclaimed, trying to be genuine. Before embarking on this trip, we were clearly told that spotting a tiger isn’t easy. It is by far the most elusive of wild animals in India.

The safari was at 2 pm. The foreigners rushed to their tents to get their cameras while we waited at the lawns. Atul and his colleague joined the foreigners while we were accompanied by a forest ranger. We were slightly miffed that none of the in-house naturalists accompanied us. Somehow, they seemed more pre-occupied with their foreign clients. We reached the gate of the National Park, where the board read “Indira Priyadarshini Pench National Park’. The park also includes the Mowgli Pench Sanctuary and a buffer. Young boys, picnickers, tourists and officials had formed quite a crowd. Our resort’s staff members did the entry formalities. We hadn’t expected this much noise, as this wasn’t a very popular national park (Atleast we thought so!).

 

We entered into the park. This was my first visit to a tiger reserve. The forest was dense and the chattering of langurs filled the air. We became alert and started looking around right from the word go! From a green-forested area, we moved slowly to a rougher terrain. The right side was an uneven plateau with dry Sal trees, while the left side was much greener. Our heads turned right and left in a continuous motion. A moment’s lapse and we could lose out on a sighting. My alertness levels had reached a new height. Few birds were chirping noisily. I simply ignored them and looked around for an animal. They were a flock of Jungle Babblers.

Finally, our guide pointed at a Collared Scops Owl sitting in a tree trunk. It was wonderfully camouflaged in shades of brown. Finally, we saw two beady eyes peering at us. It was hardly ten minutes and we could feel the excitement building up. The area had trees like Teak, Sal, Gagri, Dhira, Saja, Bija and Mahua trees. We then encountered a large male Chital (Indian Spotted Deer) lazily chewing the leaves off a tree. He was gorgeous with his big antlers covered in velvet. This beautiful animal is widely found in Northern and Central India. Another one was relaxing, a few meters away from him. But we couldn’t see it properly.

As we moved ahead, we saw more of them. They were walking leisurely chewing the tender leaves that had fallen on the ground. The guide explained that the Langurs dropped them from the treetops for the deer. All along the trip we could hear the langurs swinging from tree to tree. “The langur and Chital are best of friends. Everywhere you find a deer, you’ll find a langur,” said our guide. “Langurs warn the deer of the approaching danger,” he added.
A mention must be made of the ‘Sadhu Monkeys’ i.e. Common Langurs striking the most sagacious poses. Their perfectly crossed legs made for great meditative postures. We saw many of them throughout the safari, lost in introspection.

Pench is not particularly grassy, especially in summers. Now, we were driving towards the watering hole. This was a low lying area with dry grass. A lone Nilgai was grazing out here.Seeing us, the shy animal fled. The Blue Bull or Nilgai is found only in India, mostly in lowlands and plains. Moving ahead, we crossed a small path with a dry river bed below it. A Gaur (Indian Bison) was walking over it. He went a little further whereby we couldn’t see him clearly. Though we knew that the chance of spotting a tiger at Pench was low, we kept on asking. Somehow, the thought of spotting a tiger was always at the back of our minds.

Driving along the riverside we saw herds of deer, males and females with cubs in tow. A beautiful Indian Roller made a brief appearance, sitting for 2 minutes on a stone.  We saw two Gaurs (Indian Bison) drinking from the waterhole. As we moved ahead, we saw a whole herd of them. The oldies kept to themselves while the younger ones drank in groups. We drove very close to a young male that was standing alone. After a few minutes when he seemed to get irritated, we moved away.

Pench has a rugged landscape of small hills and uneven plateaus. It was quite a roller-coaster ride driving up and down the forest routes. I got up from my seat to get a better view of the landscape. The deciduous trees were shedding their leaves and the whole park was carpeted with them. A family of wild boars was walking up the plateau. The guide told us that they are known to charge with or without any provocation.

It was almost 5 pm. We came near the banks of the river Pench and rested awhile. This area is known as Sitaghat and is a birder’s paradise. Species like egret, stork, cormorant and kingfishers could be easily spotted. Our British friends seemed particularly delighted. This was their second visit to India and they were on the ‘Tiger Trail’. We left our friends and moved ahead.

The sun was slowly setting in. We drove ahead and saw a couple of jeeps at a stop. The other guide said that they had heard the call of Sambhar Deer. This call is the most important signal for rangers and tourists that a predator is nearby. I stood up on my seat and looked at my left. A herd of deer was resting near some boulders. I saw them getting up slowly and moving away. More vehicles started congregating near us. Our 15-min wait was futile. The guide told us that most probably it was a leopard.

We now reached a different part of the forest. This was a mixed forest with bamboo thickets and dense undergrowth. The branches of the Indian Ghost Tree seemed to shine in the twilight. We spotted a creature behind a bush. It was a female Sāmbhar Deer. On spotting us, she retreated back into the bushes. As we moved further, we saw a mother and her cub. They were ambling along the road. We gave way for the pair to cross to the other side. A little later, we saw a lovely fully-grown female Sāmbhar Deer.

Besides the animals, we saw a lot of birds. Peacock and peahen were in large numbers throughout the forest. A long tailed bird flew over our heads. It was the Racket-tailed Drongo; a rare bird. We left the park in the next ten minutes. On reaching the camp, we were refreshed with tea and biscuits. As we sat before the bonfire late evening exchanging stories, we learnt more about the forest. The other foreign guests had a deep love and passion for wildlife.  Different people from different walks of life all bound with a common love for Indian jungles. The starlit sky was simply gorgeous; we did a bit of stargazing. I don’t remember seeing a star lit sky in Mumbai for ages.


One of the waiters told us that the Chital as well as leopards wander into the resort grounds at night. We didn’t have a lock in our otherwise luxurious tent. At night, we heard a variety of calls and sounds. The forest never sleeps.