Traveller ... Kamal Kapur .... 45 Countries

According to “Copyright@2013 Maps of world.com there  are 236 countries in the world. 

“If we add all the pieces of land under jurisdiction by other countries, like Aruba, Christmas Island, Isle of Man…then we can argue that there are 247 different countries.

www.world-country.com 

Another argument : You can be part of the  “World Country List “ If you are member of the UN…and then there are  193.

On June 22, 2017 I set out for Slovenia and Croatia and by July 15 my tally was 45 countries visited. 

I had almost ruled out Slovenia because I could not pronounce the name of its capital city. 

Ljubljana.... The J’s were throwing me off. .and then I was told to ignore them..and  Loo..Blee..Ana   just rolled off my tongue.

Not that different from Loo  Dhee Ana.

Slovenia , Croatia and five other countries were  carved out of  Yugoslavia.

I visited two of them ( Slovenia and Croatia ) and drove through a third Bosnia

Map from the WEB

My strongest memories are of great natural beauty…


Shades of Blue  and Green

Red Roof  Tops 

There are cable cars, easy to attempt   grassy   tracks…and my special mention goes to the cows I encountered…an unbelievable size with lovely tinkling bells around their necks. 

Both countries are Adriatic..Slovenia has only 46 km of the sea..but it has the Julian Alps and Croatia has an 1800 km coastline.

It was summer. There were plenty of tourists, mostly from Europe, families, students, back packers; and tour groups from the far east.  The numbers were manageable. I did not wait in long queues and there was no jostling. 

I loved the fact that my hotels in Ljubljana  ( Slovenia)and Split ( Croatia) were in a pedestrian only zone. You walked or rode a cycle . Food and other provision trucks came in before 7.30 am and thereafter you could cross the busiest street   as many times as you liked..where ever you liked and there was no danger of being knocked down. .

6 AM

 A great rule that ensured no pollution be it noise or fumes. It allowed for pavement cafes  which ranged from rustic tables and benches to elegantly laid ones with silver cutlery and little posies.

Slovenia is primarily a catholic country.

 I had visits to several churches on my itinerary. Their interiors  were ornate , but not garish. Some had tiny souvenir shops and almost all of them had little cafes serving simple snacks, soft drinks and coffee.

 I suppose that since my entire schooling was in a convent  I felt a kind of kinship when I entered them. 

Slovenia Highlights :  

- A Gondola ride to the Bled Island.  The Gondola had a feminine name and I was told that It is customary to name your gondola after your daughter. I don’t know how they sort out an issue if there is more than one daughter.

The ride is approximately 20 minutes and then there are a daunting 90 steps to climb.. to reach The Church of the Assumption….this is a must..and I did…because you dare not disbelieve that when you ring the church bell and make a wish…it will come true.

-A visit to Ljubljana Castle..you go up in a Funicular…there is the charm of the views from the castle walls a lovely courtyard and when you are exhausted from climbing the turrets  you can rest on one of the several stools  around a tree with a book stand..not for sale just reading.

 The castle has a museum with its history and there are underground   prisons with an audio that has the sound of tortured prisoners !

- You cannot leave the country unless you have tasted their absolutely sinful cream cake; crisp on the top and at the bottom with a  custard filling which oozes out at the first bite!

Croatia is currently the more popular tourist destination.

 Perhaps it is the beeches and the  crystalline waters of the Adriatic

  , the over 1000 islands , and the absolute must see

 Plitvice National Park .

( Croatia has 11 Nature Parks , 8 National Parks and 2 Nature Reserves.)

It is a country, that in its 56.59 sq. km of space makes a huge variety of experiences available.

Over a stay of 4 days , I went truffle hunting, 

rambled around in Goznjan,an interesting hill town with private galleries and studios, then stopped for a snack at Porec where my guide revealed that she always shops for her clothes in Italy..there is a ferry service ..one and a half hour one way ride…to Venice…No visa required. 

I had a full day for Plitvice…and it was not enough. You need time to linger, reflect, savour.. and revisit.

You can cover the park on foot, by train or by boat….and there a lot of visitors, queues..but I did not mind because there was always a lot to feast your eyes on and it was well managed.

Dubrovnik…is the star of Croatia. 

I was recommended to take a cable car to Srd Hill..which I did, to get a view of the city…

take a boat to the Elaphati  Islands , which I did. The sea was very rough but luckily for me I have a strong stomach .

and to get another view of the city from the city walls …a tough climb !

My two evenings were wonderful. After walking approximately 10 km a day I returned to

 my  now deserted   hotel beach… not for any serious swimming …just cooling off and recording  memories

…and then on to the terrace restaurant where they had  musicians playing  and you could sit till as long as your eyelids stayed open. 

Recharging My Batteries.

Recharging  My Batteries.

There have been times when I have dreaded week ends.

I would form a task list for these two days that could be so formidable that I would feel guilty even reading the newspaper with my morning cup of coffee.

Its totally different when two additional days off are added to the Saturday and Sunday. There is a buzz and my brain switches to “mode planning…a getaway”.

The Golden Temple and the Wagah border; Binsar in Uttrakhand;  Tatta Paani  near Mashobra and Angkor Wat, Cambodia were all as a result of the buzz.

Binsar in Uttrakhand 

Tatta Paani near Mashobra

Angkor Wat  Cambodia

This year, March 29 was Good Friday, followed by a Saturday, a Sunday ( 3days)…and I gave my employers a choice:   Thursday 28^th or Monday April 2  to  pick  for an additional day off  which would give me my 4 days at a stretch.

I would use these 4 days to treat my physical self.

My target was to look one week younger and attain a fitness level of 5 years ago.

The other terms and conditions were that the Getaway :

-         Should not require a point to point travel time of more than 3 hours.

-         Should be in the Luxury Category.

-         Have within reach facilities to fulfill if the appetite required “other experiences”

I found Raas Devigarh. . 

An old palace…18^th Century; a fortress built using local marble – refurbished to incorporate all modern facilities and yet leaving its history intact.

It fulfilled all my criteria .

  A one hour flight Delhi to Udaipur and then a 45 minute drive by car got me to Devigarh.

 ( I was in no way influenced by the fact that Liz Hurley and her boy friend Arun Nayyar had chosen to celebrate his birthday there.)

 The “other experiences “  being  Udaipur with its bustling bazaars selling handicraft ranging from embroidered textiles to “jooties” ; a sound and light show at The City Palace , which I went to and if you want to be out every night then there is a sound and light show at Bagore ki Haveli, which many people vote over The City Palace one.

For those that look for peace and solace in temples there are approximately 1000 temples including 400 Jain temples that can be visited.

 Raas Devigarh has a  total of 39 suites…and for me that was another plus. I choose Boutique Hotels any day over the Chain Hotels with their swimming pools, dining options..and people, people  people.

I had been booked in the Garden Suite of the hotel

The Garden Suites are not located in the Palace. They were an add on , opening onto a garden and with little sit outs of their own.

I loved mine..large enough to play soccer, white and more white and rose petals on a lot of the surfaces, including the floor.

After a day I was upgraded to a “ suite” in the Palace.

It was in the “Zenana Khana”..with a courtyard, fountains and a swing.

You had to change elevators to get to it or you could climb 62 steepish..steps.

I chose the latter…. 4 times a day … on my way to yoga,

to breakfast and lunch; to and fro from a swim. I took the changing elevators after dinner, and after the body massages that were part of my package.

It was pretty going up and down the steps…with marigold stations, Nathdwara Paintings, and a sturdy handrail.

My calves came back to proportions of five years ago and no no I did not attain that same fitness level because I did make a few stops on the way up…partly pretext and partly true…the paintings needed time to be admired.

I returned “ fully charged”. And no I really did not wish for an additional day. 

Just as much as I look forward to recharging I am equally in favour to getting back to use the fresh energy. 

The Drifting Canvas

Credit : Pinterest

The Drifting Canvas

I make ‘to do’ lists with a “do by” date.

The list falls under various headings such as places to visit, books to read, what to pack, car servicing….

And the ‘do by date ‘ falls under :

-          - Immediate..no delay

-          - This week

-          - By the 15^th

Some on the list get done as per schedule; some get carried over…and quite a few just age and finally disappear.

The Drifting Canvas advertised as :  A One Of Kind Multi Media Art Exposition at Select City Walk was in the “This week List “. I am really glad that this one got done on schedule.

I have never studied art. My appreciation is based purely on what appeals to me visually; what transports me to another world.

And so there was no standing and gazing at the brush work. Instead  in a  spacious cool, dark and comfortable hall with unusual seating which allowed you to lie back and stretch out if you wished and 360 degrees of  Wall space  that were  large screens and with  music and laser effects  the paintings came alive.

Degas Ballerinas, Monet’s Water Lilies, Lautrec’s Moulin Rouge and Van Goghs Starry Night and The Potato Eaters went past me sometimes through sleets of rain, and sometimes through snow flakes.

Selected works of 11 artists were presented. The presentation was for 50 minutes but I saw it twice over and could have seen it once  more.

One of my many “non” accomplishments is Photography.

I truly wish I was better at it.

Cameras are intelligent…they adjust light, give you options to zoom in. There is this little square which appears on the screen ..it  is supposed to help you focus . There must be many more aids.

It’s just me. I am hopeless.  I take too long allowing people to walk into my shot..AND there was this one time when my thumb came into the frame.

I am not defeated…I will read the camera’s accompanying booklet and continue to click till I get it right.

What I saw is perfectly etched in my mind ...but my click looks like this!

This & That

This …And That.

This…

I am readying myself for my annual “see the world in bits and pieces “trip.
The kick off is June 22 and I have chosen two countries on the Adriatic Sea –Slovenia and Croatia to visit.
The biometric for the visa process has begun. It will have to be done twice as the Schengen Visa  is not applicable to Croatia.
I have started on some pre trip reading and am working on  how to pronounce Ljubljana..my first stop and the capital of Slovenia.

     

That…

Washrooms in hotels and restaurants are now open to the public. Rights of Admission have got unreserved!
Many may not be able to afford a cup of coffee at the Oberoi..but any can walk in and take a leak.

What I am not clear about is whether this rule is applicable only  in Delhi ; only to hotels and restaurants in market places.

 Will the authorities wash their hands off maintaining the public loos constructed with the tax payers money..AND Can we expect along with the education cess, krishi kar a shauchalya kar ?

                       

 That Again..

There is a couple living in the same complex as I am. The husband is from the hospitality industry..an alumni of Pusa Institute of Hotel Management… and the wife is a warm and generous person with a "Values " rule book that I find similar to mine. 

Their two daughters are grownup and independent and  got them interested in E commerce. 

The parents created their  own website ... are very hands on ... and are equal bosses . The husband is  the photographer and content writer..the wife has good business instincts. 

I am not sure if they will scale up. Currently I think they are on the third rung of the ladder. 

 I love is to see them enjoying their business. I admire  them and when I conduct my module on entrepreneurship will ask them if they will be my case study.

 

Check their website. www.theindianweave.com

This & That  

                                                         
                                                                   " I'm in Heaven......."

The Champa tree  in my balcony has bloomed after  5 years. 

There are many trees in the courtyard laden ....
 but mine is the prettiest and the best 

Morocco..Dec 23, 2016 to Jan 3, 2017.

Morocco..Dec 23 ,2016 to Jan 3, 2017.

Many countries have an "Open Sesame" word. For Morocco it is Amitabh Bachchan. India ... Indian meant Amitabh Bachchan .. it got you a warm smile, the offer of hot mint tea and in some cases a special price.

I discovered this only on arrival.

I chose to visit Morocco partly because I liked the sound of it  !   There was a feeling of the exotic in speaking aloud ...Marrakech..Rabat…Fes…Meknes and although Casablanca does not quite match up…but  Humphrey Bogart and Tom Cruise lent it  plenty of romance and adventure.

Actually the country is quite a hotspot of Hollywood shoots. Martin Scoresese’s epic story of the early life of the Dalai Lama the film Kundun was shot at  The  Kasbah Du Toubkal  at the foot hills of the Atlas Mountains .

Daniel Craig in Ian Fleming's Spectre went to the Sahara and very recently it was The Game of Thrones in

Essaouira (the E is silent) a beautiful beautiful city along the Atlantic Ocean.

 The country inspired Henri Matisse to paint over 20 of his canvases  and Yves St Laurent bought the famous  Majorelle Gardens which his trust maintains  to date in Marrakech. 

I do a lot of reading before firming up travel plans…and the more I read…the history,  the Berbers, the role of the French and the Spanish,  the Souks, the more determined I became to go.

Reading is not the same as seeing.

For one..no matter how well written… your jaw does not drop…and the experience goose bumps are totally different.

As the plane lowered itself to land at Casablanca I saw this wonderful carpet of green..and the reading came back to me..I am in a country of Olives..Olive trees…Argan trees …

and a new for me..Cactus farms. The prickly pear ( Cactus type  )   is cattle feed , its sold in fruit markets for human consumption  ...and as per my car  driver it will be the next big beauty enhancement breakthrough!

Morocco is Mosques…there are only 3 that non muslims can visit and  Casablanca has one of them.

The country is a  big pendulum that swings  between the traditional and the modern.

My guide in Marrakech was a woman. She spoke excellent English..was fun..retold how her husband , educated in France and with a PHD prayed fervently for a son when she was giving birth to her first child.

My lady Guide 

She walked me through three centuries..

The 12th Century...showed The Koutabia Minaret .

An ordinance forbids  any other building to rise above it

The garden of La Menara…with hundreds of olive trees..and a pool.

The Koranic School

In the 14^th century I found myself in the Koranic school..a theological college with 132 cells for the scholars and there was The 19^th Century took me to the Bahia Palace


I was told that if I wished to live in Marrakech the facade of my house has to be pink.. ( there is a shade standard. )..I cannot cut any date palm trees 

and of  course I cannot build higher than 250 ft.

On my own I went for a cup of tea to the La Mamounia  ..a 300 years old hotel set in 20 acres and Winston Churchill’s favourite. It is believed that he was a very regular visitor and had a permanent suite which the Hotel Management offered to label with his initials..and being what they were..he refused.

Morrocco for me is also a history that dates to the 2nd & 3rd century AD when the city of Volubilis was built by the Romans ... Soaring arches springing from columns and mosaic tile work.

It is also craft ....silver jewellery .... ceramics ...rugs and leather

I went to visit a tannery that only used natural dyes..quite prepared to not be overpowered by the smell.

At the entrance I was greeted by a man with a basket of mint leaves and told to take a bunch..it would be more pleasant than holding a handkerchief to my nose.

Dyeing .... Tannery

In the Medinas  the  streets, were narrow .....donkeys laden with fruits...... it was the season of oranges  walk past you .It was clean..and in all my car travel which was plentiful..I did not encounter a pot hole !

Sauce for the Goose is not sauce for the Gander

" Kamal , you are so fit !!
You walk four and a half kilometers everyday ... and sometimes twice a day .
You go to Greater Noida by Metro, changing trains, taking an auto for the last leg, lecture for 4 hours and return home the same way atleast once a week "

I say  " Bah....Nix !! "

The Kasbah du Toubkal , Imli is 40 miles from Manakech and 5850 ft above sea-level
( Mussorie is 6580 ft)  It is directly below Jbel Toubkal the highest mountain peak in the Atlas range.

Imli is 5710 ft above sea-level  and Kasbah du Toubkal says it is a 15 minute walk from Imli.
I was asked would I like to walk or ride the mule  that was going to carry my luggage up.

Kamal " The fit" said ... walk up ...
The path was rocky , steep and my breathing was so laboured that some of the tree leaves fluttered.
I took two stops ...met my mule on his way back ...and reached the gates of the  Kasbah in twenty five  minutes.

The itinerary for the next day had the words " Picnic"  and a "Moderate" walk in it.
I imagined apple orchards , cherry and walnut trees , a rug , and a flask of hot coffee.
Instead  it was a snow clad peak 7520 ft  high !!

My calves are still screaming and the fact that I made it and came back is because I had a wonderful guide ... Mr Ali.
If you are as fit as I am I recommend you ask for Mr Ali before you set out.