Travel With a Couple

Solapur was once a bustling textile town. The Solapur chadder is famous even now, though the number of mills has dwindled and many of the looms have moved out of the town.

We wanted to visit one of those looms and speak to a few people and made our enquries, but only to realise that there are only show rooms and not any mills/looms around the town. So we were directed to the largest and the most popular one – Pulgam Textiles. We were not disappointed for there were some unique cotton bedsheets. The chadder certainly has its charm, going by the crowd thronging the shop, spread across three large buildings. The salesmen were friendly and had a knack of selling. And, we ended up buying a few.

Solapur chadder once got the fashion world sit up and take notice. James Ferreira, a Mumbai based fashion designer featured a fashion range at the Lakme Fashion Week 2006 and the models walked the ramp wrapped in Solapur chadder.(Photos from Sify)

(Solapur is 405 kms from Mumbai, via Pune)

It’s already jingle bells time at the ITC Grand Central! Last week was the ‘cake mixing ceremony’ – mixing loads of dry fruits with spices, honey, and fruit extracts. The mix is let to ferment for a month or so, for baking those delicious plum cakes for Christmas.

This year, the students of Akanksha Lower Parel Centre were invited for the cake mixing ceremony at the ITC Grand Central, Parel, Mumbai. Saroj maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his sons were the celebrity guests for the event.The kids were so thrilled and charged up that they managed to convince their teachers to allow them to leave early from school. They were restless even while watching cartoons during the short wait time.

The excitement was palpable as they got ready for the ceremony in the ball room. As about 30 kids got into the act, wearing Christmas caps and palms duly tucked in gloves, the room soon got filled with a heady aroma of fruits and spices. The colourful mixture and the sweet aroma was enough to give an idea about how yummy the cake would be! The exhilaration soared as the kids fished out the two hidden coins from the mix.

Food cooked and served by women always has that special taste. We experienced this at Hotel Amantran at Solapur. The restaurant at Hotel Srikamal International where we stayed was undergoing renovation. The hotel manager gave directions for some good Maharashtrain fare and a certain Hotel Kamath for the typical Shetty food. We chose to have a Maharashtrian dinner.

When we entered the hotel, it was a pleasant surprise to see women taking orders and serving. The semi-open kitchen showed women cooking too. Only mini thali and limited meals were available. We ordered one each and relished the soft chapathis, rice, and vegetables.

The array of laddus too looked tempting. Since we already had our fair share of Diwali sweets, we chose to give it a miss.

Updated on 14th. Photos of laddu

“This island has to be saved for its trees, it has to be saved for its animals, it is a part of a reserve forest, it belongs to a project to save tigers, which is paid for by people from all around the world.” Everyday, sitting here, with hunger gnawing at our bellies, we would listen to these words, over and over again. Who are these people, I wondered, who love animals so much that they are willing to kill us for them? Do they know what is being done in their names? Where do they leave, these people, do they have children, do they have mothers, fathers? As I thought of these things it seemed to me that this whole world has become a place of animals, and our fault, our crime, was that we were just human beings trying to live as human beings always have, from the water and the soil. No human being could think this a crime unless they have forgotten that this is how humans have always lived – by fishing, by clearing land and by planting the soil.”

– The Hungry Tide, Amitav Ghosh

This is what came to our minds when we heard about the man-animal conflict at Nannaj. At a teashop in Nannaj village, we met two locals – Salim Ansari and Sohail – who help with the research on the ‘extent of crop destruction by blackbucks.’ According to Salim and Sohail, crop destruction by blackbucks is so extensive that many small farmers have given up cultivating their land. The only solution to this problem is erecting fences around the farm, which is not affordable by small farmers. Those who have the wherewithal to do this save their crops. The state government offers Rs 800/- per acre of damaged crop as compensation. To claim this money, farmers need to submit photographs as proof of damage and a host of documents. Still, this meager amount comes to them only after many months. The cumbersome and delayed process deters the farmers from claiming the compensation. They take the easier, but painful way of giving up farming and working as labourers in bigger farms.

Though the picture is not as worse as depicted in The Hungry Tide, the small farmers at Nannaj are getting deprived of their livelihood. Blackbucks need to be protected. Human beings need to live. What can be done? Is there an organisation that can help them build fences and restart farming? Our agriculture and allied activities growth is estimated to diminish by 2% in 2009-10 due to poor monsoons. Do we need more farmers to forego farming in this dismal scenario?

Nannaj is 25 kms from Solapur on the Solapur-Barshi road. Solapur is 405 kms from Mumbai via Pune. Nannaj bird sanctuary is a protected area and is known for the endangered Great Indian Bustard. The area has also a good number of black bucks who often grazes in the farmlands causing crop damage. A few researchers from a couple of universities have been researching on this.

The Great Indian Bustard didn’t reveal itself to us. But our birding experience at Nannaj Bird Sanctuary wasn’t disappointing. We spotted many other birds (don’t ask for names, though we went there armed with A Field Guide to the Birds of India) and as a bonus, saw two wolves chasing blackbucks.

Nannaj Bird Sanctuary, officially called as Maldhok Bird Sanctuary or GIB Bird Sanctuary, is at 25-odd km from Solapur, Maharashtra. It is home to the endangered Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and is one of the few places where it is still spotted. Nannaj was declared a bird sanctuary in 1979 to protect GIB (Maldhok in Marathi).

This vast grassland also welcomes a few migratory birds, though we didn’t spot any as it was not the season. The road from Solapur to Nannaj is bordered by grasslands for a few kilometers. We got glimpses of several birds on these tracts as well. The sanctuary has a good population of black bucks and we watched a few herds going about their daily lives.

Unlike other bird sanctuaries, you are not allowed to move around freely in the core area of Nannaj. At a 100-odd meters from the gate, there is a hut (brick-work structure) with peep holes and fitted with benches and desks for observing and capturing the life outside. You are not permitted to go beyond this hut. This space provides a perfect hiding place to observe birds and animals without disturbing their peace. There is also a watch tower near the gate.

Since we went there during Diwali, the watch tower and the hut were locked. The forest guards were not around. To our luck, we met an avid bird watcher and wildlife enthusiast, Vishal Jadhav from Pune. Being a regular visitor, he had managed to get the key to the hut from the forest department the previous day. We joined him in the hut and got a lot of information about Nannaj’s wildlife and some photography tips from him. Thanks Vishal, for your friendly gestures.

We went to the sanctuary thrice. On the last day, we spotted two wolves chasing blackbucks. We waited for some time for the drama to unfold, but had to leave as it was getting late to start our journey back to Mumbai.

The only stay option near the sanctuary is the forest rest house. It’s hard to get accommodation there as you have to get permission from Pune Forest Office. Nearest teashops and restaurants are one kilometer away in Nannaj village. If you want to spend a few hours in the sanctuary, stock up enough water and snacks. We stayed in a hotel in Solapur and drove to Nannaj thrice.

Nannaj is 25 kms from Solapur (Maharashtra)on the Solapur-Barshi road. Solapur is 404 kms from Mumbai via Pune

Mahabaleshwar. Just as the rain recedes. The last few days of whispering between clouds and the hills.

In the past three years or so, we have visited a few places in Maharashtra. One thing that has been common in many of these visits was MTDC ( Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation) resorts that offer reasonable boarding and lodging. We have now become a fan of MTDC resorts albeit it’s difficult to get accommodation without advance booking.

(Mahabaleshwar)

MTDC is present in most of the important tourist places in Maharashtra. Simple and basic accommodation. Clean toilets. No fancy stuff. Will fit any backpackers / travel lovers’ budget. Some of these resorts are leased out to private contractors, who have to pay a certain rent for the building and a share of revenue. In some cases, only the restaurants are contracted out.

(Mahabaleshwar)

But food certainly is not a gourmet’s delight. If you are a foodie and would like to give an equal weightage to the food experience, MTDC might not satisfy you always.

As a first mover, MTDC’s resorts occupy the prime locations in these places.

MTDC resort at Mahabaleswhar is in a sprawling estate with accommodations of various types.

(Lonar)

The resort at Lonar, (the only lodging place in Lonar) overlooks the crater. This resort is fairly new.

Ajanta has two resorts – one of the luxury type and the other, a basic one.

Raigad has many old-style cottages, but recently renovated.

(Harihareshwar)

Harihareshwar resort is set very close to the beach, flanked by beach almost on two sides and a hillock on the third side. Almost all the rooms are cottages and pretty cool.

The resort at Koyna Nagar offers beautiful view of the Koyna lake from top.

(Bordi)

Bordi resort opens to the beach itself.

Pench (Nagpur) is now privatized, but still offers the MTDC comforts and is the only accommodation available at Pench, Maharashtra.

(Pench-Sillari)

Amboli resort borders the forest

More after we visit the remaining ones.

This sounds very pessimistic. Yes, we lost our optimism after a trip to Mahabaleshwar recently. We were there in the last week of September. Being off-season, it wasn’t crowded at all.

But the amount of plastic waste strewn around was shockingly beyond our imagination. Plastic bottles, cups, wafer packages, pan packets, beer bottles … Every tourist spot, main streets - virtually every nook and corner. Even the back-of-beyond places were not spared. While tourists were there at the common sight-seeing points even during off-season, most seemed to give a miss to Connaught Peak point. As per our usual practice of looking for places less-explored, we climbed up to this point through the forest trail. The pathways and the peak remained thick with vegetation. However, the beauty of the landscape was marred by plastic cups and beer bottles. There were even broken pieces of plastic speed-breakers.

One evening, we went for a walk to the Polo ground, which was closer to the MTDC resort. Just outside the ground were a narrow stream and a culvert. Tied to one of the branches of a tree near the stream was a big plastic carry bag, full of disposable plates and left-over lunch. A similar one was left on the ground. Will someone come and dispose it off properly?

We can’t but feel pessimistic.

It started nine years ago from an Internet café in Chennai. Not too many net cafes. Even fewer internet connections at homes. And hardly any one had heard about matrimonial websites. While searching for jobs in www.naukri.com, the girl clicked on the banner ad of www.jeevansathi.com out of curiosity. Little did she know of the life-altering events that were about to happen with that one click. She registered her profile (was free at that time) with no expectation of anyone even giving a second glance as her demands – no dowry, simple marriage and such – were not conventional. But that was a time when online matrimonial ads were also not conventional. Within 24 hours she got a response. It looked like this guy was waiting for her profile. And for her, it was the man of her dreams!

Dot com boomed. Love bloomed. Fibre and copper cables lay silent as they exchanged feelings at speeds ranging from 32kbps to 48kbps. (Broadband policy was not announced then).

Then they met, talked and had tea. Gave some time to think it over. Again they met, walked and talked. And decided to walk the long road ahead together.

A simple marriage ceremony followed, attended only by close family and friends. And they lived happily ever after.

Today, 5th of September, it’s been nine years since thecouple started their journey together. We thank everyone, who we’ve met so far and who we will meet in future, for this wonderful journey.

Wishing ourselves a happy anniversary…

(Thanks Nimesh, for capturing this moment during a recent trek)

Traveling and blogging have opened up a whole lot of interesting experiences for us. Of which, one we cherish the most is the blogger friends. After interacting with them online for some time, meeting them in person (that too unexpectedly) adds to this pleasure.

Thomas and Shilpy of Walkthewilderness (http://walkthewilderness.blogspot.com/) is another couple-blogger like us. Passionate about wildlife and photography, their blog is a visual delight. Thomas has been generous to us with his tips on photography. We were looking forward to meet them at the auditions for the Great Driving Challenge. After three fun-filled days, the exuberant Thomas and composed Shilpy have become our friends in the real world too.

Our neighbours are always excited about our travels and adventures. When their brother-in-law from Bhopal visited them, they became eloquent about us. They didn’t know that the brother-in-law and we were already online friends. It was a surprise to open the door and see the smiling face of P N Subramanian, whose blogs are a treasure trove of history, archaeology, travel and numismatics. He writes in Hindi (http://mallar.wordpress.com/) and English (http://paliakara.blogspot.com/), though we manage to read only the English one.

We are now sure that more will follow…