Welcome!

Welcome to my blog! Its about stories from my trips in India and abroad. Its also about my thoughts and opinions on all the things about travelling (and occasionally on non-travel subjects). While I strive to provide as much useful information as possible about the route and the destination, I am not attempting to write another Lonely-planet guide book about that destination. My intended audience are solo travellers. "Solo" is important word here! I usually travel alone and I found it to be the best way to experience what the world has to offer. However, it shouldn't matter much as long as the reader (you) is interested (like me) about the journey as much as the destination!

My other interest is in Aviation (civial aviation in particular). I have been an active member of number of aviation forums on the internet. I am always excited about flying as I was with my first ever. Therefore I feel obliged to include a report about the airlines, the planes, their service etc etc.

Hopefully you will enjoy my posts! I would appreciate if you give your opinions and feedback through comments section!

Happy blogging!

Krishna Shastry

Maldives on budget? You must be joking...!

Enough has been said about Maldives. The fact that its not going to be around for long (due to raising sea-levels caused by global warming), and the picture postcards from this paradise isles are so inviting, one cannot avoid the urge to just packup and leave. But Maldives is too darn expensive place to rush and just show up.


Maldives is perhaps one of the most expensive tourist place in the word. It is simply not a backpacker's destination. There is not much in store for culture-vultures. Only cheap thing there must be entry visa, which is granted 'gratis' (free of charge). Everything else comes at a cost (of the higher order).

Maldives has nearly 250+ resort islands in its various atolls. December through April is considered the peak season and perhaps the best time to visit. It falls in the dry season of the region when underwater visibility is good.


Now, to the question which is subject of this blog post. Can Maldives be done on budget?

Answer is 'possible' with lot of planning and some luck. I managed to do a week long holiday in Maldives. I can't say I did on a budget. But I did managed to save significant moolah with some deft planning.


As I said, planning ahead is key for doing Maldives on a budget.

Below are few tips from my experience.

a) Identify a resort and an agent : Well, what's the big deal? you may think.. this needs to be done anyways. Correct. However, it matters where you book from. Maldives largely caters to Europeans. UK based travel agents can give best deals on resorts. In India, consolidators like Yatra.com / Makemytrip.com can sometimes have best deals. The trick is to get "all inclusive" or "full board" option in the resort so that one can have a worry free holiday. Don't forget to check whether airport transfer is included or not. Remember, it is mandatory to have a pre-booked accommodation before arriving into Maldives to secure a visa.


b) Accumulate loyalty points of Hotels / Airlines : This may seem hardly a tip considering that it takes lot of flights and hotel stays to accumulate enough points to redeem to be able to reach Maldives and spend few days there. In my case I just had to accumulate points just to hop across from India to Maldives, a relatively short distance. It takes roughly about 10000 to 15000 points (miles) on most of the airlines to get to Maldives from a South Indian airport (Bangalore, Chennai, Trivandrum). Hotels of reputed chains require anywhere from 15000 to 100000 loyalty points per night for stay.

c) Minimize transfer cost from Airport to resort : Suppose you only booked the resort, and it charges you for airport transfers, you would soon find out that those charges are generally very expensive (USD 150 per person for 30 mins speed board ride to resort). It may be worth finding out a nearest inhabited island close to the resort for which there is a public ferry service from Male. It doesn't cost more than few dollars for a ride in public boats to those island villages. You can then ask the resort to pick you up from that island, and transfer cost will be much lower.

d) Try overnighting at Male on arrival day / night : Male, the capital city is an interesting place. Most of the resort have an "excursion to Male" as one of the menu items in their activities. It usually costs about USD 50 - 100 per person for a tour of Male. You can save on these trips (if you really want to take it) by spending a day on your arrival at Male and exploring it on your own. Male has budget accommodations starting from USD 45.


e) Bring your own dive / snorkel gear : Some resorts do charge for lending out snorkel gear, and almost all of them for dive gear. Therefore bring your own snorkel set and (if possible) dive gear.

f) Go there in low season : Generally July to November is considered as low season in Maldives, and most resorts offer discounts from their list prices. Try to time your trip in low season for a better deal.


All said, do remember that Maldives is an expensive place. Do carry plastic money and be open minded. But its worth the price for its sheer natural beauty and the paradise that it is. If you have followed the above tips, you have done what you could. So, just relax and enjoy!

Review of Durga Puja trips by West Bengal Tourism - WBTDC

Kolkata is perhaps the most culturally "happening" city of India. No other city may have contributed to intellectual capital of India as much as Kolkata has. There is so much to see and do here that I couldn't say I have seen it all inspite of few trips made there. I always enjoyed visiting Kolkata and looked forward for an excuse to be there again. Durga Puja season of 2010 offered another such excuse, and I grabbed it without blinking.

Durga Pujo in Kolkata

Durga Puja festivities of Kolkata is sometime equated to Rio carnival. Its certainly the best time to be in this part of the world. Durga Puja, the biggest and grandest festival of Bengalis is hubbed in Kolkata.



Enough material is available over web about Durga Puja and how it is celebrated in Kolkata (Click here for a Wiki Link). Durga Puja festivities begin at "Mahalaya" ( and culminate grandly on "Dashami" (Bijoy Dashami, 10th day of waning moon cycle). Thats a 10 days of continous festivities. However, the last 5 days begining from "Shashti" (6th day) are important. This is when idols of the pandals are inaugurated. Bengalis from all over the world travel towards their homeland to be part of these important 5 days.



Is Durga Puja of Kolkata is a complete Bengali affair? Can a non-Bengali (and a non Kolkatabashi) indulge in its fervour and enjoy it equally as a native Bengali could? Why not? but only if you know where the best pandals of the city are are, when are they at the peak of their decor, and could navigate through labyrinth of Kolkata streets jostling with masses, that too on your own? Questions, questions..



Finding answers to these was not very easy. Nevertheless, I had made up my mind to visit Kolkata during Durga Puja. I frantically searched Internet for information, went through several forums, browsed durga puja websites and glanced archives of news-papers, all for hints and clues about doing a trip to Kolkata alone, without much knowledge of either Bengali or geography of Kolkata.


Then I hit upon something!.. which seem to have answers for all of the questions listed above. That is WBTDC (West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation), a state owned 'Babu-dom' having a colorful website. They seem to be organizing specialist trips of puja pandals during Durga puja season since year 2000. They had several tours during Puja season in and around Kolkata; just what I was looking for.



Unfortunately there was not much information (reviews) about WBTDC or on their tours during Durga Puja. Having experienced Kolkata few times previously, I dreaded dealing with a state owned babu-dom. They were (are) notorious for slow, inconsistent services and red-tapism (endless paperwork).

WBTDC packages for Durga Puja

WBTDC marketed Durga puja packages under the name of "Sarod Utsab" (Sharad Utsav OR festival of autumn). At least in October 2010, following packages were available:

Puja parikrama (Pandal hopping tours) : These are a must in my opinion. There are day and night tours. Day tours are based on the direction (Uttara, Purba and Dakshini) and are available in both AC and non-AC coach options. Night tours visit most of the famous pandals. Pandals are at their best during night with all of their neons blazing. Go for night tours.



Banedi bari tours (traditional family durga pujas) : These are for history buffs and for those who are really interested to see the ritual side of the pujas. They may get monotonous after visit to few baris. Avoid if you are looking for excitement.



Pujas in outskirts of Kolkata : This is a trip conducted to Guptipara and Serampore in Hooghly district, mainly to visit famous family pujas there. On the way, few temples are also visited. Not a bad choice if you want to experience rural Bengal (not really, as they are hardly few kilometers from Kolkata)



Pujas of Salt Lake : These are a must. Salt Lake area pujas are show pieces of Kolkata. Tour to salk lake is named "Sandhobhromon" (Sandhya Bhraman or Evening beat)

Pujas on river using WBTDC vessels : Puja conducted on boats ownded by WBTDC. I avoided them as I didn't found to be worth doing.

How to book tours with WBTDC?

Simple. Log on to WBTDC official website. There is an Online booking link that leads to a page where lodges and packages can be booked. All you need is a Credit card (need not be your own). Once a package is successfully booked, you would get an eReceipt which needs to be printed.

WARNING : Though WBTDC's online booking engine records email and phone of the person making the booking, it never emails the confirmation receipts to the email address provided. Be sure to either print or copy the receipt into a word document (This was true as of October 2010)

If online booking is not feasible, packages can be booked by contacting WBTDC's authorized agents. Link is provided here. This year (2010), WBTDC had released packages in the month of August itself. They were mostly sold out by the end of September. Therefore, it may be a good idea to book early.

Also, WBTDC has strict rules about cancellations. However they may accommodate changes if the seats are available on different dates. (I changed one of my trips to a different day without issues, and without any paper work. This was done at their office).

How the tours are conducted?

This year (2010), tours were organized from two locations

a) WBTDC's Kolkata city office which is located at "Dalhousie square" area of BBD bagh.
b) From Netaji Indoor stadium, which is right next to Eden Gardens stadium (see below pic showing the arrangement here).



WBTDC had scattered the tours between these two locations. Day time trips had Netaji stadium as their starting point. Night trips / early morning trips were from Dalhousie. This I guess is due to traffic congestion / parking problems near their office.



WBTDC had done a poor job of NOT indicating the proper times of when a trip is going to start and from where. Its better to enquire with them about the time and location.

Where to stay in Kolkata

Now that packages have been booked with WBTDC, where to find the accommodation? Kolkata (for me atleast) seem to offer two types of choices; either a low budget backpacker type accommodations (which can be dirty and unsafe) or a cozy 3 star and above category, that are too pricey.

I would recommend staying around Sudder street area haunted by westren backpackers. This location is nearer to both BBD bagh and Netaji stadium locality, which is a major plus. There are several choices for all the budgets, and importantly there are few mid-range budget hotels which have clean and working interiors.

However Sudder st. surroundings win no prizes when it comes to cleanliness and hygine. Whole place is dirty and abuzz with touts. There are also not too many good choices of restaurants. Be warned.

So, how are WBTDC's Durga Puja tours?

I did a total of 4 trips with them (in both AC and non-AC transport). Perhaps the biggest advantage of touring with WBTDC is that they can get their guests to skip the large queues through VIP access to Pandals. I observed this in Salt lake and in some other popular pandals. The tours usually also gets a police pilot escort which gets the buses through cobweb of traffic on priority.

Here is my rating:

Concept and coverage : I guess WBTDC has done a very good job of covering whose' who of Kolkata pujas, and also pujas in outskirts. There were puja parikrama (pandal hopping) tours, tours to Rajbari pujas (royal family, traditional), to outskirts and private puja on vessel. I would rate them 9/10



Quality of Guides : Information provided was not adequate, especially for Rajbari (family pujas) where there is so much history. Few buses didn't had a functioning PA system. Most of the guides did nothing more than herding people around. They seem to be not very well informed either. I would rate them 5/10

Quality of transportation : I chose non-AC options within Kolkata as I thought AC coaches simply isolate me from the hustle-bustle happening outside during Puja times. WBTDC owned coaches were OK when it comes to seating comfort. However they had steep steps which made getting down and up often a cumbersome task for elders. AC coaches were acceptable. They had been contracted out to private operators. I would rate them 7/10.



Quality of Food / snack / supplements : WBTDC provided snacks / dinner / lunch / breakfast depending on time of the day. Everyone got packaged drinking water (1 ltr bottle each). Food quality was not upto the mark. Cold snacks, curries and mandatory Bengali sweets. Usual suspects like Poori, Samosa (deep fried preparations dripping with oil), Pedas were provided. I avoided them altogher. I would rate them 6/10

Punctuality : As happens in India, an hours delay is no delay. However most of the tours left on time and returned almost on time. I would rate them 8/10

I found that 90% of the occupants in the tours were locals of Kolkata. WBTDC has not promoted these tours aggressively outside West Bengal.

In conclusion, WBTDC are a good choice if you do not have all the time in the world, and are not familiar with topography of Kolkata. They are still a good choice if you are from Kolkata and do not have means to hop through all that is there to be seen. There are flaws. But positives outweigh them heavily. Hopefully, with time they will improve.

Trip to Hindu temples of Bali, Indonesia

Bali is a fascinating place, especially for Indians or to those who are either familiar with Hinduism or practicising it. Bali is a small Hindu enclave in the vast, and mostly Muslim Indonesian archipelago. It is really astonishing that Hinduism has survived here for thousands of years, and retains a valuable link to the past, about how most of Hindu south east Asia would have looked like. It is said that Bali's name has been dervied from "Subali" who was elder brother of "Sugriva", both of who are characters from Ramayana. (There could be other theories for the origin of this name)



Getting there : Bali is essentially the name of an island province of Indonesia. Denpasar is its capital city, located towards the southern tip of island. Bali's international airport "Ngurah Rai" is located south of Denpasar. It is well connected with most of ASEAN capitals in the region. However there are no direct flights from India. Best places to connect are Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore. Air Asia and Jet Star, both LCCs serve Bali.

Visa requirements : Indian passport holders are entitled for Visa on arrival. A 7-day single entry visa can be purchased at USD 10 at the immigration counter. A 30 day entry would cost USD 30. Payment can be made in USD. There are no forms to fill. It is essential to have atleast one free page in the passport for visa sticker. The process is very easy and there are clear instructions.

Indonesian Rupaiah : The local currency IDR has seen a great deal of inflation during late 90's. As a result, the lowest denomination is 1000 IDR. 1 Indian Rupee buys roughly 250 IDRs. 1 USD is equivalent to roughly 9000 IDRs. In Bali, most of the things are quoted in "Thousands". A bottle of mineral water would cost IDR 3000. Taxi from Airport to Kuta would cost IDR 45000 etc.

Stay : Most of the tourists prefer to stay in "Kuta" area. Kuta has a nice sandy beach, hotels, restaurants, bars, night clubs and a great nightlife. However it is crowded and filled with touts and hawkers. Kuta is a great place for Surfing, with the waves averaging 3 to 4 meters. There are several surfing schools which teach surfing for newbies.

Kuta was in the news in 2002 for the bombing of Paddy's nightclub by Islamic extremists, which resulted in the death of more than 100 lives. There is a bombing memorial in Kuta where the club once stood. The other popular areas are Nusa Dua (which has a lagoon), Sanur (beach) and Ubud (a small town north of Denpasar). These are more peaceful and family friendly.



How much does it costs? : Accommodation in Kuta may cost anywhere from USD 20 to USD 300 per day depending on the proxmity to beach and other attractions. Because of the tropical weather in Bali, air conditioning is a must in the room. Makre sure that you get an AC accommodation.


Vegetarian food : There are several good eateries catering to all types of tastes. However Indian food generally, and vegetarian food particularly is hard to find. Good thing is Balinese Hindus are familiar with the conept of Indian vegetarianism. They can recommend few local dishes. If not anything else, there is always Pizza to fall back on.


Fuel is cheap in Indonesia, which inturn makes transport cheaper. A car with AC for a whole day hire would cost USD 45. Usually they can be arranged through Hotels.


Balinese Hinduism : While I am no expert in this subject, what I could gather was that Balinese Hinduism, just like its Indian counterpart follows "Varna" system. There are 4 varnas (Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra) , and people of these varnas usually have their own temples and sub customs. However all Varnas commonly worship Hindu trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.

People of top varnas trace their ancestry to one of many early sages of Hinduism (Markandeya, Gautama, Vishwamitra etc). Each household of Hindus in Bali has a small home temple. It has small structure dedicated to "Pitru" (ancestors), Spirits and home diety. The temples usually always have trinity sculptures and other gods. Priests in the temples chant "Mantras" in Sanskrit with a Balinese twist. Unlike in Indian Hinduism, "Gayathri Mantra" is used by many Balinese Hindus.


Inter-marriage among the varnas are common. There seem to be no resentment between the Varnas atleast on the surface (as in case of India).

Balinese Dances : Tour of Bali will not be considered complete without enjoying exotic Balinese dance shows. There are several types of traditional Balinese dancing, like "Barong", "Kecak" and . Most of these would involve depicting a sequel from the epics of Mahabharata or Ramayana. The dances themselves are very elegant, and it is easy to detect the similarities to dances of South India. There will be daily shows in the mornings (for Barong dance) and evenings (Kecak dance).

Bali Hindu Temples : Below are some of the important Hindu temples in Bali. This list is only partial, and of only those that I managed to visit. Bali has several other Hindu temples at towns like Amlapura and Singaraja. Please use google to know more about them. Most of the Hindu temples in Bali may require the visitors to wear "Sarongs" (a long waist line cloth) . It is required only if one is wearing short pants (3/4ths) or "Bermudas".

In most of the temples, it is recommended to engage a local guide. He could explain the history and background of the temple. Their services usually cost between 5 to 10 USD depending on the temple.

Taman Ayun : Located north of Denpasar, this temple literally means "Beautiful Garden". It is situated in a village named Mengawi, The temple has several small and big sanctums, which are dedicated to many manifestations of Lord Vishnu.

Tanah Lot : Famously known as "Sunset temple", this literally means "Island by the sea". This temple is more of a "sunset spot" than a holy temple. The temple is located on a big sea rock, surrounded by sea on three sides. Frothing breakers of Indian ocean crash on this rock and has given a unique shape to it. There is a holy spring in the temple. A priest would conduct small sermon and administer the holy water to the devotees.

Pura Goa Gajah : This literally means "Elephant cave temple". Its a temple carved out of a cave. An earthquake of 19th century destroyed parts of cave temple. These remnants have been preserved in an adjacent spot. This cave was orginally a place of meditation for Hindu and Buddhist monks. There are statues of Lord Ganesh (Elephant god) and a Shiva Lingam. There is also a small pond with colorful fishes in front of the temple, which is an added attraction.

Besakih : Perhaps the biggest and most important temple of Balinese Hinduism. This temple is located near to the slopes of Mt.Agung volcano in the north east part of Bali. The temple name is derived from the word "Vasuki" who was king of "Sarpas" (Snakes).
The temple complex is vast spanning many acres. This temple has many sub-temples for various clans of Hindus of Bali, and hence is considered most sacred. The temple hosts several festivals through-out the year. There are also once-in-a-century rituals called "Ekadasha Ati Rudra" which are conducted on grand scale. It would involve elaborate sermons, animal sacrifices, colorful parades etc. One requires atleast half a day just to get a quick glimpse of this temple.

Gunung Kawi :

Tampak Siring :

Recommended Driver / Guide : I took the services of Mr.Nyoman Arnaya as a driver cum guide for the tour, and was very happy with his service. I recommend him. Below are his contact details.

Mr.Nyoman Arnaya

Mobile : +62 81 797 08118

E-mail : nym_arnaya@yahoo.com

Enjoy Bali!

Leh, Ladakh and Khardung La : Some quick notes

Ladakh is an unusal place. It is right beside India's fiercest conflict zone, and is quite special. It is geographically, culturally, ethnically and religiously very different from mainland India. It almost feels foreign, yet retains a formidable sense of India.. kind of 'so near but so far' type. I spent a week in Leh, the capital of Ladakh.

Getting there : For most of the travellers, Delhi is the natural starting point for the trip to Ladakh. Ladakh (Leh) can be reached using two popular land routes. One is via Jammu - Srinagar. Another is via Manali - Sarchu. Roads to Leh are open only during the summer. Manali-Sarchu route is considered to be most scenic, spectacular and bit dangerous. It is popular among bikers who generally do a Delhi-Manali-Leh-Srinagar-Delhi circuit. There are loads of information in Wikitravel and LonelyPlanet sites about land routes to Leh. I will excuse myself out of detailing them here.

Another means to reach Leh is by flying, which is most convenient.. and which I opted for. I wanted to save my energy for the overland trip from Leh to Srinagar (detailed in a separate post). When I did this trip to Ladakh (June 2008), couple of Airlines were flying into Leh from Delhi IGI airport.. namely Jet Airways, Kingfisher Red and Indian Airlines. Flying time is approx 1 hour and 15 mins. However fares to Leh from Delhi are not cheap, even if booked in advance. Goodluck finding cheap fares!

Getting around in Leh : Leh town itself is hilly and dusty. If you are flying in to Leh, you may experience altitude sickness. It is good to rest for a day, letting the body to adjust, and not to venture into any physically straining activities. There are taxis (Maruti Omni Vans) plying around. Fares needs to be negotiated as they are not metered. There is also a local bus service which is chaotic and (seemed) inconsistent.

Staying at Leh : There are several hotels in Leh catering to all the budgets. Fort Road has several budget and mid-range hotels. Location wise Fort Road is probably the best place to stay as it is centrally located, and some of the attractions are even walkable from here!

Eating out in Leh is not a connoisseurs delight. But there are several decent options of both Continental and Indian type, from a by lane Punjabi Dhaba to 'upscale' Delis on Fort Road. Vegetarians will not have any problem

Attractions : Leh's main attraction is "Old Palace" which looms large and is visible from most parts of Leh. It can be hiked from Fort Road. Ask locals for the directions. The trek goes through narrow lanes of Leh which is quite fascinating. Palace is located on a hill. Obviously the route gets bit steeper towards the end There are several photogenic spots on the way. Entrance fee for Palace is Rs.5 for Indians and Rs.100 for foreigners. Palace itself is quite interesting offering glimpses of the private life of Ladakh's erstwhile royal glory. View of Leh town from the Palace is simply fantastic and makes the whole trek worthwhile.

There are several "Gompas" (Buddha temples) and Monasteries scattered around town.. "Namgyal Gompa, Soma Gompa" to name a few.

Trip to Khardung La : This is what took me to Leh. To experience the so called "highest motorable road in the world" at 18380 feet. Its a half-a-day trip from Leh. Khardung La is one of few "passes" on the way from Leh to Nubra valley. Nubra is part of the legendary old "Silk Road". It also has hot springs and two-humped Batctrian Camels. It is said that Khardung La is often wrongly claimed as highest motorable Road in the world, whereas Tibet is suspected of having the highest motorable Road. Nevertheless, notwithstanding the authenticity, it was enough motivating for me to make a trip to Ladakh even if it was highest within India.

There is no public transport to Khardung La. One needs to hire a Vehicle at Leh. There are plenty of tour operators offering trips to Khardung La. Typically Indian made Mahindra Scorpio's and Toyota Qualis (Kijangs) make the rounds. In June 2008 it costed roughly Rs.2000 to hire a Scorpio (with the driver) to Khardung La and back.

Road to Khardung La is "one way". That is vehicles from Leh to Nubra are let to pass in the morning half, and those from Nubra to Leh in the later half of the day. Once out of the Leh, its a steady climb to the pass. The road was in good condition, and was asphalted for almost half the way. Border Road Organization of Indian Army maintains the Road. The journey may take 90 mins to two hours depending on the road and traffic conditions. The Road has several vantage points to take photos of the scenery.

The pass itself is a piece of flat land on top of a hillock. The weather will be considerably chillier here than Leh. Even during Summer, there was snow and sleet. There is an Army checkpost, a temple, couple of tea joints and a memorial. Of course the main attraction is the famous signpost announcing the highest motorable road. When I was there there were several Roadies from different parts of India who had driven their own vehicles, happily snapping away their achievement.
After the mandatory photo sessions, the parties and the vehicles leave to Leh at 1 pm.

On top of the world : Climbing Mt.Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

Well, I think it was in the summer of 2000... the discovery channel (India) was airing a series called "50 things to do before you die..." or something like that. I don't remember much of those 50 things, but few things among them really made an impression on me. One of them was an invitation to climb the Mt.Kilimanjaro before the ice caps and the glaciers melt and gone for ever due to global warming. Since then I had harboured a secret fantasy that one day I would make it to the top of Mt.Kili and that too when there still was some ice and snow left on it.

So, I squarely blame (or credit) the "idiot box" for this little adventure of mine which (so far) has been the most fulfilling and cherished milestone of my life!

Why Mt.Kilimanjaro afterall?

Good question. Why it has to be Kili? In my case it was "Why not"? Though Kili is no Mt.Everest, its not less fascinating by any means. Tons have been written on Kili already. Here are some tid-bits about Kili that got me going.

• Its the highest 'peak' of the African continent (Peak may be a wrong word as its actually a volcano)


• Its one of those rarest mountains in the equatorial region which has snow on it (other being Mt.Kenya)


• It is perhaps is the only 'highest-in-the-continent' type mountain that can be 'summited' by mortals like us with no prior mountaineering experience


• Its the place where you can experience all the four seasons on your way up to the summit

This was enough for me. Wiki has tonnes more to convince the reluctant sloths who are still making up their mind. More info can be found here

Where exactly is Kili?

Mt.Kilimanjaro is located in northen Tanzania at the border of Tanzania and Kenya. Surrounding areas of Mt.Kili have been declared as a National Park (Mt.Kilimanjaro National Park). There are several varities of fauna and flaura which are unique to this park.

One can see the vast planes of 'Amboseli' in Kenya from several view points during the ascent. Infact best ground views of Kili are said to be from the Kenyan side. Photos of game animals of African planes with Mt.Kili forming the backdrop are legendary.

'Moshi' is a small town (rather a big village) located at the base of the mountain (at some 20 KM away) is the hub of all activities. 'Arusha' is the nearest big town. Both Moshi and Arusha are connected with the capital of Tanzania, Dar-es-salaam by coach service.

Some vital statistics about Mt.Kilimanjaro

Mt.Kilimanjaro is actually a combination of 3 volcanic cones. They are Kibo, Shira and Mawenzi. All these volcanos are extinct now. In technical terms they are in the "dormant" state (that is no new volcanic activity is expected). The Shira cone has the famed crater with ice and glaciers that we all are used to see. On its crater's rim lies the coveted highest point of Africa, the "Uhru peak" at 5895 mts or 19340 ft.

Another speciality of Mt.Kili is that all the four seasons can be experienced on the way to the top.

How to get there? Visa, currency, weather etc.

The nearest international airport is KJIA (Kilimanjaro International airport). Its located about 35 KMs from Moshi on the way to Arusha. This 'International' airport is served by airlines from the neighborhood (Kenya Airways, Ethiopian, South African etc), Air Tanzania and several charter planes.

Other options to reach Moshi are;

1. Arrive into Nairobi, Kenya and take a coach/taxi to Tanzania border at Namanga. Continue to Moshi after visa formalities. It could take about 5 to 9 hours form Nairobi to Moshi depending on the type of transport provider.

2. Arrive into Dar-es-Salaam and take a overnight / day coach to Moshi or Arusha. Its a 10 - 12 hour journey. Condition of road is quite good (atleast in Oct 07) and there were few luxury coach services to choose from.

Getting there from India:

There are several airlines providing connections from India to Tanzania and Kenya. Air India has a weekly twice service to Dar via Nairobi from Mumbai. Emirates, Kenya Airways, Ethiopian, Qatar airways, EgyptAir provide connection services through their hubs. The cost of economy class ticket would be in the range of Rs.30000 to 40000 for single person.

Visa requirements:

Tanzanian visa is issued on arrival at various port of entries (usually for a period of 30 days) and its available to most nationalities. For more information on the entry requirements into Tanzania click here

As for the citizens of India, visa is available on arrival for a fee of USD 50 at the Airport. One needs to fill in a application form at the Immigration points. (Photo is not necessary). A visa sticker is pasted on the passport detailing the duration of the stay and validity. The whole process takes about 20 minutes.

Currency:

Tanzanian currency is "Tanzanian Shillings" (TZS). At the time of creating this post, the exchange rate with 1 USD was about 1170 TZS (1 Indian rupee would buy 30 TZS). Thats a lot! and goes to show the effect of inflation. I would recommend travellers bringing the forex in USD and getting it exchanged through a reputed bank counters at the airport or at the border (Namanga). There are lot of touts promising good exchange rates who sometimes can be a nuisance. USD 100 is valued more than say 10 bills of USD 10. TZS comes in the denominations of 500, 1000, 5000 and 10,000. Coins provide for lesser denominations.

Weather and the best time for the climb...

Tanzania's is a typical equatorial climate. The summer (hot season) is from December to March. Rest of the year its temparate and moderately hot. It has two rainy seasons April-May and October. Best months to climb Kili are August and September with clear skies and pleasant mercury levels.

Am I fit for the climb? What are my chances?

Though no prior mountain climbing experience is required, one certainly needs strong pair of legs and enduring pair of lungs. It doesn't in anyway mean that one can simply walk up to the summit. The initial trek and the final ascent require considerable stamina and physical fitness.

If you are young, fit and under 40, a regular regime of brisk "off road" walking of say 6 to 8 Kms everyday, 3 months prior to climb might suffice (don't hold me for this though!). The distance of entire trek till the summit is in average about 30-35 Kms, depending the chosen route. Don't get misguided by the word 'trek'. Infact its an ascent which only gets steeper by each passing Km. Half way up the route, mercury plunges to near zero levels and oxygen starts to thin out. This could cause altitude sickness.

In my experiece what one really needs is the right 'attitude' towards the whole climb. If one does not worry too much about odds of making it to the summit and all the hardships on the way, but gives his best shot, he/she has the maximum chance of making it to the top. I have seen people from many nationalities, of both sexes, in different to age groups (teens, youths and even an Icelander who was 57!) who succeeded.

Essentials : Organizers, tour guide, routes, gear, food etc

Plenty of tour operators in Tanzania (especially in Arusha and Moshi) organize climbing treks to Mt.Kili. Usually these operators also organize game safaris and hikes within East Africa and you could bargain out a decent deal combing both of these. Its always better to pre-organize the trek with a reputed tour company before arrivng to Tanzania. It may be possible to shop around for cheaper deals in Moshi or Arusha provided one has plenty of time and ready for few compramises.

If you are a solo climber the tour company (usually) provides a tour guide (who guides and accompanies you to the summit), a Porter (who carries your gear, food and water till the last camp) and a Cook. These are the local men and boys who have done this adventure many times over. They would know the routes like back of their palm.

Like many first timers, I was under the impression that I would myself be able to make it to the summit alone without any assistance. This is indeed not the case (with very few exceptions). You HAVE to take the assistance of a guide, especially if you intend to summit.

Popular routes to the summit.

There are various routes to the summit of Mt.Kilimanjaro. By far the most popular route is the "Marangu" route. The "Machame" routes comes close second. There are other routs like Mweka, Umbwe, Shira etc. For a detailed list of the routes and their characterists, click here and here.

The duration of the expedition could vary from a trek of 5 days and four nights to 8 days and 7 nights depending on the route chosen.

Marangu and Machame are by far the most popular routes of them all. Unlike Machame where one needs to pitch tents for resting in the nights,
It has 4 camps en-route and at each camp there are 'huts'.
These huts are made of wood with proper bunk beds, and they are bit weather proof.. saves some time and effort of pitching the tents. Each camp has a separate large hut for dining. There are shared facilities for toilets, separate for men and women.

More about Marangu route.

It should be kept in mind that expeditions to Mt.Kilimanjaro are controlled and managed by Tanzanian government through the offices of Mt.Kilimanjaro National Park. The adiministrators would allow only allow fixed no. of climbers at a time on the trail ensuring that existing infrastructure (like camps, bunker beds, water etc) would support them all.

Marangu route starts at the base of Mt.Kilimanjaro at the Park Headquarters. It consists of four major points (or camps) en-route.

1. Marangu Gate. Altitude 1980 mts (Park Headquarters and starting point of the trek)

2. Mandara Hut. Altitude 2700 mts (distance from Marangu Gate - 12 Kms, about 5 hours of hiking)

3. Horombo Hut. Altitude 3720 mts (distance from Mandara Hut - 15 Kms, about 7 hours of hiking cum climbing)

4. Kibo Hut. Altitude 4700 mts (distance from Horomob Hut -12 Kms, about 6 hours of hiking cum climbing)

Final ascent to the summit (or shall I say the attempt) will be made from the Kibo Hut. If one manages to reach the "Gillman's point" at 5681 mts on the crater rim, then he has officially climbed the Mt.Kilimanjaro! But the real thing, the "Uhuru Peak" at 5895 mts is still a distance away. Reaching the Uhuru Peak is what the ultimate aim of this trek.

The Marangu route can usually be done in about 5 days and 4 nights. However it is highly recommended that an additional day is added to this for the acclamitization purposes. This extra day would be spent at Horombo Hut.

About en-route food (especially for veggies), medicine and creature comforts

Your porter and the cook would carry enough food essentials (like Vegetables, Cereals, Bread etc) along with water for the length of the trip. The food is prepared by the Cook and served at the dining areas of each camp (in Marangu route). They will serve you a breakfast, a lunch (which is packed like 'take away' to be eaten on the way), a tea-snack and a dinner. Besides this, soft drinks, mineral water and crunchy snacks are available in these huts for purchase as well.

I being a Vegetarian had absolutely no problem with the food. I had told my organizer about my food requirements and it was adequately taken care. I was served with assortment of vegetable soups, cereals, noodles, steamed rice (yes!), yogurt, salads, pickles, bread, jam etc.

How much does it cost?

The average cost of the trip (in either of these routes) could be in the range of about USD 1000 to USD 1300. This excludes the tips and niceties that you would pay for your guide, porter and cook. This also excludes the travel costs from your place in the world to Moshi. This could be quite a sum for some of us (especially those from third world countries). For the illustration purposes, I have given the cost of a trip made from India in Indian Rupees.

Airfare : Rs.30,000 (Mumbai to Nairobi)
Visa : Rs.4000 (Kenya and Nairobi)
Lodging : Avg cost of Rs.1000 per day for a basic accommodation at Moshi
Local travel : Rs.3000 (from Nairobi to Moshi and back)
Food : Rs.500 per day

Cost of expedition : Rs.40,000
Tips and gratuties : Rs.10,000
Rental of trekking gear : Rs.4000

Grand total : Rs.100,000 (or 1 lakh)

My own experience of summiting :

Details about the tour guide and their contact info.

I used the services of Mr.Paul Shayo of Moshi. He is a amateur tour organizer. I found him to be man of his words, not trying to tout un-needed extras or pestering for extra money. I highly recommend him. He can be contacted at the below address:

MR.PAUL ROBERT SHAYO

TOUR GUIDE AND ORGANISER

TREKKING TOUR KILIMANJARO COMPANY

P.O BOX 8132

MOSHI-KILIMANJARO

TANZANIA

E-MAIL prshayos@hotmail.com

WEBSITE: http://www.trekkingtour-kilimanjaro.cjb.net/

CELLPHONE;+255 755 439088/ 732 973327

I hope you find the above post useful. Would love to hear your opinions.

Revisting History : Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope

When I was a class 5 student, I had my teacher make all of us in the class memorize few sentences of a history lesson for the sake of impending mid-term tests. History was taught to us in our local language. I remember myself and my "bench" mates (we sat on wooden benches. No writing desks till we reached class 8th) shouting loudly so as to convince the teacher that we were indeed memorizng the lines and she could keep the wicked cane to herself.

Infact we were bored and couldn't be more indifferent to the sentences we were endlessly repeating. Those sentences were something which stayed on within me long after class 5th. Those were about a person called "Vasco da gama" ("Vasco da gama discovered a route to India", "Portuguese came to India for spices trade" etc). Being a book worm that I was at that time, I had read history books of my seniors in the school. I was always fascinated by the English names that used to lurk in our vernacular text books. "Columbus", "Barthalomeu Diaz", "Cape of Good Hope", "Vasco da game", "Robert Clive", "Fort St.George", "King George VI" etc

It was again in Class 10th that an elaborate lesson made us aware about the adventures of Europeans in their attempt to find a sea route to India and the west. Mention of Cape of Good Hope came again. Nobody in my class or indeed in my school had seen a cape (any cape) in their life, including our teacher. We were told that a Cape is the tip of a peninsula. In India we have one cape; a famous one. Cape Coumarin (Kanya Kumari).

Cape of Good Hope's was rather an exciting story. It seems there was a race to find routes to India and the East. There were many competing nations (Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and English). Nobody seem to win that race due to vastness of African continent which needed to be circum navigated. Many brave sailors sailed south as far as they could, but they gave up. Some reached upto what is today's Nigeria and returned. A brave Portuguese sailed on further. He was Barthalomeu Diaz. Sea was rough, stormy and cold. He finally was able to disover a point from where sailors could sail towards the East. He had reached Cape! He called it "Cape of storms". Later, a missionary called it Cape of Good Hope hoping that it will make the job of finding routes to India a bit easier one.

Many a times I imagined being present at a Cape and telling myself that it is the farthest one can go in this land without being drowned! Finally I had an opportunity to do it for real, and what's more, it was infact at Cape of Good Hope in South Africa!

Organized day trip!

April seemed not such a great month of the year to visit Cape Town. It was cloudy and tad bit cooler. I arrived there hoping to see the familiar silhouette of the Table mountain in the back drop. Cape Town is such a beautiful city that it should easily top the "Top 10 places to see before you die" list. I took a day-tour from one of many tour operators there, called "Hylton Ross tours". The itinerary of this day long tour would cover Clifton's beach view, Cape of good hope, Cape Point, Chapman's peak drive and Penguin colony. The cost was about Rand 400 (~INR . 2000)

The tour itself was pretty well organized. The driver-cum-guide was a cheerful lad who was well informed and willing to tell. The weather was bit chilly. Cape Town can get really windy. The tour began at around 7 am. There were stops for breakfast and lunch and ofcourse the mandatory souvenir shopping. Cape of Good Hope was the first stop, followed by Cape point. There is just this hoarding at Cape of Good Hope proclaiming the name and Co-ordinates. Its actually a small beach! In real terms, Cape point (and perhaps not the Good Hope) is kind of the real cape where one could see the land extend out into the ocean with water on either sides. Cape of Good Hope was kind of disappointment to me where I had hoped to see something more spectacular. But I had to wait till I got to Cape Point.

Here, one needs to climb several hundred steps to reach the point where you could view the "meeting place" of two great oceans (Atlantic and Indian). You could easily spend couple of hours exploring cape point. It (Cape point) also has a old light house (which has been rebuilt). Chapman's peak drive was fantastic and was worth every penny. Its a road of about 7-8 Kms , carved out of a cliff made of unstable rock basin with a deep gorge on one side and rocky cliff on the other side. This road is prone to frequent rock slides. But the view was incredible. The tour ends with a stops at Penguin colony and a botanical garden (nature reserve).

Cape Town! How incredible... "You gotta do it dude"!