Wanderlust Tales : Mumbai darshan

In continuation, after our visit to the Shree Siddhivinayak temple, which you can read about it in the below posts:

https://xylo742.blogspot.in/2016/11/wanderlust-tales-shree-siddhivinayak.html

We made our way to the famous MahaLakshmi temple - it is dedicated to the MahaLakshmi the central deity of Devi Mahatmyam. As usual, as in every temple - the temple was flocked by the pilgrims coming from far off lands. The temple is well maintained - but there is a immense wait of about 1-2 hours before you can have the darshan. But the crowd is still better managed.

On our way, we saw the pigeons being feed by on goers.

One can travel in Mumbai is with ease - you can hire the typical yellow cabs and they take you to and fro in the city. And drive from the Chowpathy to the Marine drive was absolutely stunning, breathtaking!! Just let your hair down and enjoy the view.

Marine Drive, I would say was the most exotic place in Mumbai.

Picturesque - glancing one end of city with its towering high rise buildings. Beauty - truly deserves the name "Queen's necklace".
It is a 4km stretch located in the South Mumbai. It is a "C" shaped stretch along the coast forming a natural bay. Watch out for the calmness of the sea gulfing down everything in its arms. Serene!!

Albeit the official name of the road is Netaji Subhash Chandra Nose Road.

The area and the buildings in and around the Marine drive constructed at a very early time - looked very old. But lucky residents or the offices setup around here - witnessing this beauty, each day !!

One thing that would catch your eye are the a very specific shaped concrete structure placed all around before the sea meets the concrete walls. These are the tetra-pods - four legged concrete structure designed to dissipate force of incoming waves by allowing the water to flow around rather against it. There are about 6,500 of those in there, each weighing about 2 tonnes.

Mumbai - a place where every women are considered to be the safest at any hour. They can live their life freely and be bindaas.
And as you see, the beautiful lady spending time all by herself.

Most of the buildings - had the old Gothian and Victorian architecture. According to writer Jan Morris : Bombay is one of the most characteristically Victorian cities in the world, displaying all grand effrontery of Victorian eclectism."

And finally we came to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus to board our train back to Pune. In front of the terminus, you would find many jewelery, clothing and many other stalls for fulfilling your street shopping desire.

Cheers to life!!

~Journey  of a thousand miles begins with a single step! :)

P.S. All the above photos have been clicked by me. 

Wanderlust Tales : Pamban bridge , Rameswaram

On our trip to Rameswaram - we had the chance to view the magnificent Pamban Bridge.

You can read about my Rameswaram trip here:

https://xylo742.blogspot.in/2016/09/travelogue-rameswaram-tamil-nadu.html

I believe that the Pamban Bridge rose to its overly fame after the shots from the movie Chennai Express.I don't know about others, but I must admit it was those shots from the movie which truly got my mom intriguing to visit Rameswaram and rest is history. 😉

For you to access Rameswaram - you need to cross via the Annai Indira Gandhi bridge which runs parallel to the Pamban Bridge. The bridge is the one which connects Rameswaram to the rest of the country by road.
There is a minimal fee of Rs.60/- per vehicle to access the  bridge. The ticket is reusable till 12 AM.

The Annai Indira Gandhi bridge facilitates access to the ultimate scenic beauty, you could possibly want to view.
We were here during the wee-hours of the morning and it was then, that the roads were traffic and crowd free - which allowed us to sink in the breathtaking view. Literally seeing water all around me has never made me more happier. :)
Stunning would be an understatement!

There is something about the water, so still that it seemed almost like backwaters. It was astonishing how you could hear the sound of water gushing through in spite it appearing so calm - quite pondering on the aspects of life too - ain't it?

The n-number of fishing boats sailing through and others which were on anchor were a composition of the mesmerizing view. These were the fishermen sailing through, awaiting for their share of the catch for the day.

The place is indeed a photographer's paradise - be it from catching the glimpse of the shoreline or the boats anchored in the sea or the glance of the artistic and the majestic Pamban bridge, every bit of the view is worth capturing. And true as they say :

"A picture is worth a thousand words..."

The 360 degree view of the place is picture-postcard, decorative like beads in a necklace.

If you are lucky you can chance upon to view the train passing through the Pamban bridge - albeit you could  make a calculative visit , to make sure to witness the marvel.

The Pamban Bridge - is a railway bridge on the Palk Strait which connects the town of Rameswaram on Pamban island to mainland India. It was the first sea bridge and the longest one until Mumbai got it's very own Bandra-Worli Sea link. The Pamban bridge now ranks the second in the country.
The construction of the bridge dates back to the 1911 - as mentioned in the economic times, it is truly an engineering marvel that evokes awe!! It allows the ships to pass through beneath its piers. The rail bridge has passage like arrangement named "Scherzer Roll" in the middle of it.

All in all, a cherish-able and a memorable experience in itself.

Few pictures from the visit:

Cheers to life!!

~Journey  of a thousand miles begins with a single step! :)

P.S.All the above photos have been clicked by me. 

Wanderlust Tales : Bannerghatta biological park, Bannerghatta - Bangalore

At a distance of 15km from Kanakpura Road, this is one of the must visit place for all age genres. :)

Not kidding this place is for all - like all parents who don't want their kids to grow up, my parents also attempted a trip to the zoo with me which sure was a reminiscence to my childhood days.
It definitely was also a learning experience too - as we all learnt something new about animals, birds and the environment. :)

Bannerghatta biological park is one of the few places in the world where the wild having been preserved in such proximity to the city life. It is also among the famous tourist places in Bangalore.

To save all the trouble - they do have ample parking space a little farther from the park.

Before you enter, you would see a lot of stalls where locals sell varied items - looked quite very vibrant and amusing to me.

As you near the entrance, you will see the placards stating that the entry fee for adults and children is about Rs.80/- each. There are also options for safari in the buses or jeeps.

It is appreciable that zoo has been kept really clean and there is a great attempt at creating the natural habitat of the animals - which actually should be of prime concern in any zoo. :)
They have various animals ranging from the birds, tortoise, snakes,tiger, elephants, peacock,ostrich, deer, rhinoceros etc - quite educating actually.

It was nice to even see a a vetenary hospital in the campus as well.

The lake in the premises is an added attraction which offers boating for recreational activities. As expected it is beautifully decorated with a plethora of trees. The benches nearby offer a nice way to sit,relax and enjoy the scenery and breathe some fresh oxygen. It is totally a moment which is worth capturing - serene!

Along with getting educated and amused by the animals, there is also a play area for the kids.

Inside the premises of the zoo they have setup shops for buying quick snacks, water and juices.

The forest staff staying within the premises are very helpful,cheerful and guided us well. :)

During my visit I did notice the behaviour of few of the passerby and it doomed on to me that how important it is, rather it our responsibility that we as humans allow these animals to be on their own and at peace.
We should not encourage in any kind of activity involving teasing the animals or in indulging in anything which would disturb them.

Few pictures from the visit:

Leopard

Boating area

Vet nary hospital

Cheers to life!!

~Journey  of a thousand miles begins with a single step! :)

P.S. All the above photos have been clicked by me. :D