The Charm of Charminar!

A different angle to Charminar!

Charminar from the busy streets!

Incandescent!

The famous Chudi Bazaar of Charminar

Street
Street food at Charminar!

Sawaiyaan!!!

Ghangaria: Above 9000 ft

This is a series of my two weeks of tryst with the Garhwal Himalayas:

Day 1&2 : Secunderabad to Delhi
Day 3: Delhi to Haridwar bus ride
Day 3: Meerut Road
Day 3: Har Ki pauri- Haridwar
Day 4: Impressions from Haridwar
Day 4: Through Rajaji national Park
Day 4: Devaprayag-Srinagar-Rudraprayag-Karnaprayag
Day 5: Pipalkoti-Joshimath-Badrinath
Day 6: Mana: The last Indian village
Day 6: Adventure in Badrinath-Govindghat Road
Day 7: The Boys from Rishikesh
Day 7: Trek to Ghangaria

(Click on pictures to see better)

25th September, '08:
After a gut wrenching walk of 14 kms and reaching dizzying height of 9147 feet, (more so with a ruined knee), I felt at ease. Ghangaria turned out to be a hamlet more developed than I had imagined.

Multitude of ponies in Ghangaria to carry piligrims

But since it was the fag end of the season, the inhabitants were less. Within a week, the whole village would be moving to the base below to Joshimath.

Local theatre. I went in and saw a little hovel with a TV set and VCR set. Tickets were for Rs 5

And this beautiful place would be draped with snow for the next six months. My mind couldn't imagine the greenery and civilization dissapear into 8 feet snow from next month.

I hogged these gulab jamuns. They were tasty.

The first thing I did was get a cheap accommodation to park myself and get some rest. Though my heart was racing to explore Ghangaria, my body needed rest badly. I got a room for 150 Rs. Since this was end of season, rooms were dirt cheap.


The same rooms spike to 1500 Rs during summers. I couldn't get warm water here. So settled to freshen up without a bath. Soon it was dusk, and I walked (limped. I had aggravated my knee seriously) around this small village and clicked a lot of pictures.

The locals favourite pass time: carrom

Ghangaria is a busy base for all Pilgrims to Hemkund sahib and visitors to Valley of Flowers. And reasonably so, there were all sorts of basic facilities available for such tourists. The village should be having not more than 20 houses including little shops.

Locals playing cards

Gurudwara at Ghangaria. See the snow peaks.

This is how big Ghangaria is. View from top.

And then I spotted this unique shop glittering with colorfull paraphernalia. This shop caught my attention. Looked like a lot of attention and effort had gone to set this up at this godforsaken place. I ogled inside it. I was going to be pleasantly surprised meeting the shop owner.

This was the door to the shop. The door had a message pinned up which read.

"I am going for trekkking. I will come back in the evening. Thanks, Rajnish"

It was Rajnish who was to become my company for the next 24 hours at Ghangaria. I was glued to him. Next post is dedicated to the amazing man.

Soon it was dark and settled in my room snuggling into my damp blanket. The electricity is a problem at this god forsaken place. They dont have it after 7 pm. It was the first time since I set out of home alone, did pangs of home sickness struck me.
I felt lonely. I wasn't able to imagine that I was so far away from my family
in this dark, lonely and frigid place, 9000 ft above somewhere amidst mountains. I started writing my feelings to assuage my nerves.

Next Post: Rajnish, a little known celebrity at Ghangaria

Day 7: 14 kms Trek to Ghangaria

This is a series of my two weeks of tryst with the Garhwal Himalayas:

Day 1&2 : Secunderabad to Delhi
Day 3: Delhi to Haridwar bus ride
Day 3: Meerut Road
Day 3: Har Ki pauri- Haridwar
Day 4: Impressions from Haridwar
Day 4: Through Rajaji national Park
Day 4: Devaprayag-Srinagar-Rudraprayag-Karnaprayag
Day 5: Pipalkoti-Joshimath-Badrinath
Day 6: Mana: The last Indian village
Day 6: Adventure in Badrinath-Govindghat Road
Day 7: The Boys from Rishikesh
Day 7: Trek to Ghangaria

(Click Pictures for better view)

6 am: After relieving myself off from my heavy backback, I heaved a sigh of relief and ascended towards Ghangaria.

There was nip in the air and my leather jacket was pretty much saving me from the chill. I met a group of pony riders on the way. They offered their service. To and fro from Hemkund Saheb would cost me 1200 Rs. I declined. I had come to trek. No ponies for me. I had no idea, what was it to do a 14 km trek, from a height of 6000 ft to 9,147 feet. I was too excited and agitated to think about it.

I kept walking. Admiring the beauty around. Bliss was here. Greenery around. Amidst the mountains. Shimmering snow peak ahead of me beckoning and asking me to keep walking.

The buzz of the flowing river on your right giving you unmitigated support all through the way. Soon, the sun was up and I divested myself off my jacket. Sweat beads formed on my forehead. And heavy breathing ensued. Let me talk a bit about the terrain.

The trek though is steep, has been maintained well. Because hundreds of pilgrims follow the same route to Hemkund Sahib. But sadly only a few amongst these hundreds of pilgrims, are nature lovers.

Only a few among them, know about the beautiful Valley of Flowers. Only a few amongst them, know its relevance. I met many pilgrims along the way. They were pleasantly surprised to see a Hindu trekking towards Hemkund. I never mentioned to them that my pilgrimage was the Valley of Flowers.

How much I had read of it and dreamt of it. My mind was full of imaginary visualization of what Valley of Flowers looked like. I had read and read a lot about it. And my mind was in ecstacy that finally I was on my way to that heavenly abode. It was this excitement, that pulled me through this torturous trek. No torturous is a wrong word.

How can such lavish natural beauty, the lush verdant greenery, the fresh atmosphere be torturous. The pain, the rigour was only too little a price for the priceless experience that I was witnessing.

Each turn on the trek, presented a matchless view, each as beautiful as before. But the strain was too much for me to bear. I have a week right knee, due to an accident 5 years back. It showed signs of weariness.

I wasnt using a stump at all. And that aggravated my right knee. The last 5 kms of walk was unbearable. I was dragging myself slowly, asking every passerby, every few minutes how far it was.

At last these smiling girls marked my destination. And my pain for a moment was lost in their smiles. I had reached Ghangaria.

Next post: Awesome Ghangaria

Day 7: The boys from Rishikesh

This is a series of my two weeks of tryst with the Garhwal Himalayas:
Day 1&2 : Secunderabad to Delhi
Day 3: Delhi to Haridwar bus ride
Day 3: Meerut Road
Day 3: Har Ki pauri- Haridwar
Day 4: Impressions from Haridwar
Day 4: Through Rajaji national Park
Day 4: Devaprayag-Srinagar-Rudraprayag-Karnaprayag
Day 5: Pipalkoti-Joshimath-Badrinath
Day 6: Mana: The last Indian village
Day 6: Adventure in Badrinath-Govindghat Road
Day 7: The Boys from Rishikesh

After a close shave with life crossing the landslide, we began walking in the drizzle. Govindghat, which was going to be our halt for the night was still 5 kms away.

Govindghat is the foothills to Hemkund Sahib and Valley of Flowers. It is nestled beautifully at the confluence of Alaknanda and Laxman Ganga rivers and is at an altitude of 6000 ft. Its a popular halting point for hundreds of Sikh pilgrims who visit the Hemkund sahib,a pilgrimage 21 kms above Govindghat.

I had plans to spend the night at Govindghat and climb up to Ghangaria, the early next day. Night was falling fast and we boys were walking at a steady pace to reach Govindghat.

And as if like divine intervention, an open jeep crossed us. We cried for help and the vehicle screeched to a halt. The next moment we were enjoying the ride standing on the jeep's rear. It was exhilarating again. I was getting my quota of adventure more than what I expected. We got down at Govindghat, which was teeming with activity.

Busy shops at Govindghat selling paraphernalia of Sikh rituals

Next we hogged and crashed in a hotel room. But...

Before I proceed, I cant miss describing this bunch of boys who have been sharing my company since morning today. They hailed from Rishikesh, one of the holiest places in India. But the boys who were 16-ish in age had nothing holy about themselves.
Every utterance from them were punctuated with the choicest expletives that would throb an unprepared mind to madness. I have stayed in Delhi and the MCs and BCs are not new to me, but these teenagers from Rishikesh had standards of their own. I couldn't have a good sleep that nite, because of them, as we shared the same room together.
They were at peace when I clicked the picture

[The best thing meeting them was this. They promised me a comfortable yet cheap stay at Rishikesh and provide me river rafting at the Ganges for 200 bucks. They bragged about their contacts. I fell for it.]

The next morning I hugged them bye, since they were going back to Rishikesh. I proceeded on take my courageous trek up to Ghangaria.

Will remember them!

Ghangaria is a beautiful small hamlet 14kms up from Govindghat and falls on the way to Valley of Flowers and Hemkund sahib. Situated at an altitude of 3049 meters, this place is also called Govindham.

I had a heavy back pack and i couldn't bear its weight beyond 3 kms up. I returned back, parked it at a security base and climbed back again with just one polybag.

Caution: Be sure you are fit enough to climb up the tortuous trek 14kms up. Other than the trek, its the lack of oxygen that tires you. You may hire ponies if you find it difficult. If you are walking pick stumps as it would lessen pressure on your knees.

Laxmanganga at Govindghat

Beautiful Bhubaneswar

Ah! I am so proud to belong to this city. A city that sweeps your feet off in its simplicity and unassuming self. A city though is coming of age embracing swift development, yet proudly clinging onto its rich heritage and flaunts it with equal elan. And it is this proud display of its cultural heritage, that makes it stand out. The pictures below were photographs taken by me on my last visit to my hometown. I was thrilled to see this happen to my city. The whole city is painted meticoulously with paintings that reflect the rich culture and tradition of the state. Each painting speaks a story which is known so little of outside the state. If you visit the city, spare some time to marvel at the paintings. It is hard to miss them.
Enjoy the pics.

Boundary of a bank staff colony

Painting below a flyover, which otherwise is usually neglected

This is a road facing side of a government quarter. Look at the creative makeover. Even the sewage tank as you can see has been made up. Awesome! isnt it?

Bonda adivasi/ tribals of Orissa

The fly over again

Day 6: Adventure in Badrinath-Govindghat road

This is a series of my two weeks of tryst with the Garhwal Himalayas:
Day 1&2 : Secunderabad to Delhi
Day 3: Delhi to Haridwar bus ride
Day 3: Meerut Road
Day 3: Har Ki pauri- Haridwar
Day 4: Impressions from Haridwar
Day 4: Through Rajaji national Park
Day 4: Devaprayag-Srinagar-Rudraprayag-Karnaprayag
Day 5: Pipalkoti-Joshimath-Badrinath
Day 6: Mana: The last Indian village

Before I move on to Govindghat, let me narrate you the adventures of the previous evening while on my way back from Mana village. I was looking for a conveyance to reach Govindghat from Badrinath. It was raining steadily and no vehicles were willing to oblige. And then I found a Sumo who agreed to carry passengers on a premium. After futile attempts to bargain, we gave up and got in. As suspected just 5 kms down Badrinath, roads were blocked because of landslide. I wanted to reach Govindghat badly before dusk since it would save me a day to trek up to the Valley of Flowers.

Where's the road? Landslide ahead....

The boys in the jeep decided to cross the landslide walking. I was aghast. Since, it was still raining, I could literally see the rocks tumbling down. The younger boys from my vehicle were hell bent to cross it. I was tentative, shaking in my boots. What if a big chunk of land mass washes down taking us along to the deep gorge below into the mighty Alaknanda.

My mind was doing somersaults. I saw the boys move ahead. The next instant I gave them a shout and joined them, my heart pounding nevertheless.

Look at the tension in the man's face. They were all running.

Warning: Never ever cross a landslide when its raining. Flirting with nature can be fatal.