The Great Barrier Reef, Australia

While planning my Australia trip, the two things that I was positive I wanted to see was the Great Ocean Road and the Great Barrier Reef. Our whole trip was planned around these two givens. The first part of our trip was based in Melbourne, Victoria as most Great Ocean Road bus tours originate fromContinue reading “The Great Barrier Reef, Australia”

Jasper Hotel, Melbourne – A Review

Previous Location Right in the heart of Melbourne City Center, Jasper Hotel is just about a 20 minute drive from the Melbourne Airport. A tram line passes right outside Jasper Hotel so it is easy to get around via public transport from here. In fact, the hotel is in the Free Tram Zone so youContinue reading “Jasper Hotel, Melbourne – A Review”

Year 2020 Trips

January – Rishikesh We ushered in 2020 in Rishikesh. We had come here a few days earlier and stayed at GMVN’s Ganga Resort. Then on 31st December 2019, we joined our friends at Parmarth Ashram. They were celebrating their 25th anniversary and had invited a few close friends and relatives. Apart from the famous aartiContinue reading “Year 2020 Trips”

The Great Ocean Road Bus Tour

Previous Our 2nd day in Melbourne was devoted to the Great Ocean Road Bus Tour. This was our primary reason for including Melbourne in our Australia travel itinerary. I had been quite sure I wanted to visit the Great Ocean Road (most trips originate from Melbourne) as well as the Great Barrier Reef (accessed fromContinue reading “The Great Ocean Road Bus Tour”

Year 2019 Trips

April – Kerala The first trip of the year – a hastily booked trip to my hometown when my dad passed away. I’m not yet ready to talk about it. Someday. April – Rishikesh My dad had been talking about revisiting Haridwar and Rishikesh for some time but hadn’t been able to make it dueContinue reading “Year 2019 Trips”

Drawing Challenge #Day 16

So the original drawing challenge #16 was to draw an owl in an iconic style. I started it, but somehow never got around to completing it. I guess I found it boring and not challenging enough. Anyway, months passed, and I still hadn’t done it. I suppose I could simply have moved on to theContinue reading “Drawing Challenge #Day 16”

Trailing the Tiger in Bandhavgarh

This travelogue about our trip to Bandhavgarh more than a decade ago was selected for publication by Mississippi Books (www.mississippibooks.co.in) in their anthology, Caravan. Over the last few years, I have been on tiger safaris in Corbett, Rajaji National Park, and Thekkadi but have never been fortunate enough to actually spot a tiger. This time,Continue reading “Trailing the Tiger in Bandhavgarh”

Aloha On the Ganges, Rishikesh – A Review

Usually, when we visit Rishikesh, we stay at the Ganga Resort run by Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN). But it hasn’t yet resumed operations after the Covid lockdown. So this time, we tried a new resort, Aloha on the Ganges. Aloha on the Ganges is a beautiful, 3-star resort in Tapovan, Rishikesh, a little aheadContinue reading “Aloha On the Ganges, Rishikesh – A Review”

The Razorback

Previous – Loch Ard Gorge Just adjacent to the Loch Ard Gorge viewing platform are paths leading to two other natural wonders, the Island Arch and the Razorback. We only had time to see one of these and based on the driver-guide’s recommendation, we opted to go down the path to the Razorback. The RazorbackContinue reading “The Razorback”