Globe Trotting!

V.G.P Golden Beach Park- Hit ya Miss??

2010-08-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

The first thing that crossed people’s mind when they heard the name,”V.G.P Golden Beach Park” was Sridevi and Jeetendra juxtaposing in front of beautifully carved pillars facing the gigantic “Golden Beach”, heroes and heroines chasing each other and romancing on the shores of the beach with beautiful blue sky overhead,mightly waves kissing the shores and crystal clear blue sea water. V.G.P Golden Beach Park in Chennai was the abode of various directors,producers,cinematographers and film makers long ago.

I too remember visiting V.G.P Golden Beach Parkwhen I was in my 7th grade on account of All India Tour sponsored by my dad’s bank! I reminisce the beautiful scenaries,sculptures,artistic carvings,spots,locations apt for filming a movie and not to forget the beach. The park had erected huge structure and sets where many renowned hindi,telugu,tamil and kannada movies were shot.

Recently,I visited V.G.P Golden Beach Park with my in-laws when I went to chennai for my “Student Visa” interview. I was shell shocked looking at the annihilated state of the park. I still wonder if this was the same beach park which had satiated and gratified me when I was a child.

Things which leave you shocked are:
1>The entry fee per person is Rs 150/- . I dont mind paying Rs 150/- and entering. But what’s disgusting is ALL the rides inside are “pay rides” in spite of you paying an entry fee!! Wonder why they charge Rs 150/- at entrance though!! Only few children rides are free!! Where as in places like “Appu Ghar” [delhi] or “wonderla”[bangalore], you just need to pay at the entrance and can enjoy any number of rides,any number of times.

2>Pathetic Maintainence: You will see few sculptures,statues destroyed. Place is littered very badly. Toilets are filthy. Flush doesn’t operate in toilets!

3>Place is deserted: If you enter the park with mindset of finding large number of people savoring the spot like you,then welcome to reality! The place is deserted. You hardly find a handful of people. Where as even people operating the rides will be missing at perticular rides or will be found snoozing.

4>3ft dosa?? Earlier,the park was renowned for availability of 3ft dosa which could be consumed by 10 people surrounding a table. I too remember devouring that dosa when I was a kid. Now,we still get the dosa,but the batter is sour. The aroma of sour batter fills your nostrils when you stand at the counter to order one! We did not eat this dosa this time.

5>Crows are regular customers of Restaurants:You catch the sight of large number of crows sitting at the food counters and pecking the food with their beaks. Eekssssss it was an ugly sight to watch,hence we decided to skip food at the beach.

6>Very Pricy: We came across a fruit vendor who was selling freshly cut cucumbers,mangos etc. We were shocked to see the exorbitant rates of Rs 20/- per 2 slices of mango and cucumber. I noticed a blackberry on his fruit stand and enquired him as to when he was planning to own an iphone or ipad!!

Looks like V.G.P. Golden Beach Park did not withstand the juggernaut of “Ramoji Film City”[Hyderabad]!! A V.G.P Golden beach Park lover is surely to be disappointed if he visits it now. All that remains now is golden memories one spent at this golden beach park!!

Now,the only attraction and saving grace of this beach park is the “Beach”! The magnificient crystal clear Blue water that spreads to an enormous mile, the gushing winds,clear blue sky above,the milky white waves which kiss the shores of the beach is still an enthralling and captivating sight!!

Image Courtesy: Google Images.. Piks captured by me will be uploaded shortly!!

So,if you are planning to visit V.G.P Golden Beach Park now, I suggest you to give it a MISS!!!

Brecken Ridge

2010-07-02T02:33:00.000-07:00

Scorching Summer Sun? Wish to beat it? Wanna go Skiiing? They've heard you!
Brecken Ridge Resort Managers offers Breckenridge vacation rentals, Breckenridge Lodging, and Breckenridge Property Management. Breckenridge Lodging properties consist of ski in and out condos and townhomes, as well as private vacation homes for family vacation rentals. You can also experience rocky mountain majesty while navigating miles of bike trails, hiking through the endless national forest, rafting the many rivers, riding across the acres of high country, or simply relaxing in Breckenridge Lodging. Breckenridge is a historic mining town that has become one of the premiere ski destinations in North America.

Breckenridge vacation rentals offers some of the finest Vacation rentals and condo properties.They have a catalog of rentals and condo properties which can be browsed through to make your vacation Perfect and memorable. Their Breckenridge Vacation Rentals range from ski in/out studio and 1br condos to 6 bedroom Breckenridge Vacation Rental homes.They have a huge list of detailed vacation spots,rental prices per night and which can be booked on spot by clicking the "Reserve Now" button on the website! You can also inquire about it by clicking the "inquire" button.

Wanna know what Breckenridge is all about? Visit Breckenridge Ullr Fest ! Since 1963, Ullr fest in Breckenridge is a celebration of the Norse snow god, Ullr, for all of the snow that he bestows on the ski area every year. Breckenridge has become an internationally known premier ski area that hosts many ski events every year.Breckenridge Ullr fest has evolved over the years into a week long event which includes: the Ullr parade down main street, The Ullr Ball, The Ullr king and queen crowning, Ullr bonfire, snow sculpting competition, and the Ullympics.Ullr fest in Breckenridge will make your vacation an unforgettable memory.

REPAIR PAL

2010-07-02T02:12:00.000-07:00

Imagine you are driving to your favourite destination and unfortunately your car breaks down! It is the source of all frustration,irritation. Wish you could have rechecked your car before? Pray God that you spot the nearest Repair centre? Well,they have heard you! Presenting... Repairpal .
RepairPal is an independent,resource designed to deliver repair price transparency and the expert information car owners need. Their team of expert technicians help you to compare parts prices and labor time data to ensure you have the right information about the service or repair.They also have Shop Directory where you can enter a city or zip code, and then feel free to search by car make or shop name for the shop in your area that best fits your needs.They also have ratings and reviews.

San Diego Auto Repair provides a catalog comprising of list of top rated repair shops and mechanics at San Diego with their address and phone numbers. They also provide Items and services like:Air Filter Replacement,Timing Belt Replacement,Brake Fluid Replacement,Tire Pressure,Brake Pad Replacement,Tire Rotation etc

They also provide a service where you can select a car,recall,view reviews and ratings. For ex, Ford F-150
provides you the detailed information of recall,review and ratings of the car Ford F-150. This website also helps us to choose other cars,the model,their year of make,read about the common problems,recall,reviews and ratings.

The Check Engine Light is a warning indicator which informs you that component or system in your emission control system is not working properly. When the light comes on, one or more diagnostic trouble codes (DTC) are stored in the Engine Control Module. These DTCs remain even if the light goes out.
Don't confuse the Check Engine Light with the maintenance or service light. These lights illuminate when a routine service is due. They are usually triggered by mileage, gallons of gasoline consumed, or some other type of vehicle-use measurement.

Finding the auto repair shop or mechanic is now easy by using this auto shop directory.All you need to do is key in your area,city or state zip code and select your car model make and hit Search for Shops!

NIAGARA FALLS!!

2010-05-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

Since my childhood,I desired to visit the Magnificent and Grandiose cataract,Niagara Falls and also ride in a Black Limo. This May 6th 2010,being our First Wedding Anniversary,hubby made my dreams come TRUE by planning a surprise trip to Niagara Falls as well as surprise Black Limo ride.

Since,there is no direct flight from our place to Niagara Falls,we had to take a flight to Atlanta and then a connecting flight to Buffalo,NY. After 1 hour of flight journey,we landed in Atlanta. Later,it was 3 hours journey from Atlanta to Buffalo,NY.

Tired and famished,we landed in Buffalo airport at around 12 PM on May 8th,Saturday. Least did I know that another surprise awaited me at Buffalo airport! When we sought our luggage and were waiting for our taxi,the driver dressed in black suit held a placard at the airport displaying hubby's name on it. While the driver escorted us to the taxi,I saw him taking us to the direction of a parked flamboyant shining Black Limo!! I went bonkers seeing the Black Limo especially waiting to escort us from Buffalo airport to Niagara Falls and vice versa. The Black Limo ride was AWESOME!! We thoroughly enjoyed driving in the magnificent Limo for the first time in our lives!! We shot few pics inside the Limo.We reached our hotel,thanked the driver for such an enthralling drive and requested him to capture few pictures with us standing with Limo and he obliged.

The moment we landed in Buffalo,we witnessed a drastic change in the weather.

Niagara Falls being towards North pole is extremely frigid and gusty. Usually,Niagara Falls is very chilly,but unfortunately,wind was blowing at 60 miles per hour that day! We checked into our rooms,freshened up and set out to visit our dream destination,Niagara Falls!!

Niagara Falls was just 5 minutes walk from our hotel. We have to pass through a park as well as cross a bridge to go towards Niagara Falls.

It was very windy and chilly. Hubby and I were shivering despite wearing warm clothing and our hands started freezing due to cold.

May 8th 2010,Saturday:

We first came across American Falls,(which is on the American side). It was beautiful. Since Niagara Falls is a dream destination for most of the Indians and Chinese,you will be surrounded by huge hordes of Indians and Chinese at Niagara Falls. I had never seen so many Indians accumulated at one place in USA before. Seeing such huge crowds of Indians at Niagara Falls,gave me a feeling of being in India!!

We thoroughly enjoyed the view of American falls,shot few pictures and proceeded towards the flamboyant,Niagara Falls. The winds started agitating and was forcefully pushing everyone back as we were proceeding towards Niagara Falls. We reached the viewpoint of Niagara Falls,but could not withstand the jaggernaut of wind and chilly weather. Everyone gave up and decided and return to their respective rooms and we followed suit.

Cursing our ill luck and such an acerbic windy weather,we returned back to our room. Later during the evening,the winds had receded,so we decided to visit the Niagara Falls again.

Niagara Falls was enthralling,captivating and magnificent! I was awe-struck and agaped gazing at the flamboyant,Niagara Falls! Since,Niagara Falls is at the border of USA and Canada,we being in USA,can only see the US side of it,in order to visit the Canada side,we need to either procure the Canada passport or go on the "Maid of the Mist" ride which takes us to the journey beneath the falls! Having enraptured and satiated by the beauty of Niagara Falls,we shot few pictures and spent the rest of the evening at the falls.

It was dinner time and being vegetarians,it was difficult for us to find a good vegetarian restaurant in USA [which is next to impossible]. But hubby after rummaging his iphone for good vegetarian restaurants at Niagara Falls,accidently bumped on Maharaja Restaurant which was given rating of 5 by its visitors. We decided to dine at Maharaja Restaurant! Trust me,it is the BEST Vegetarian Restaurant in which I have dine so far in USA. We were so satiated by the food that we had our lunch the next day too there itself. I have even procured the visiting card of the restaurant so that we can suggest it to our friends who visit Niagara Falls in future.

May 9th 2010,Sunday:

We woke up early as we had plans of going on "Maid of the Mist" ride which takes us to the journey beneath the falls. As expected there were hordes of Indians and Chinese patiently waiting in a beeline to embark onto the "Maid of the Mist" drive. We procured the tickets and reached the tower which is on the midway of the bridge between Canada and USA.On account of this bridge being at a great height, we were frozen literally by the chilly weather and gusty winds. We shot few pictures of both American Falls and Niagara Falls from this bridge. Then we entered the lift which takes us to the ground level from which we were supposed to embark onto the "Maid of the Mist" boat ride which has the capacity of more than 200 people overboard. Having donned the blue ponchos provided to prevent getting wet,having held our digicams in precise positions we were agog to take a journey towards the Magnificent Niagara Falls.

The boat started and first took us beneath American Falls with the recorded explanation explaining the history of the American Falls. We were also shown the "Cave of the Winds" ride which is nothing but just a bridge beneath the American Falls where people can just go and stand on the bridge and savor the American Falls.

The "Maid of the Mist" later proceeded towards the Grandiose and flamboyant,Horse shoe falls viz Niagara Falls. The Gigantic Niagara falls stood before me in the form of the horse shoe!! Being on the "Maid of the Mist",we can see the entire horse-shoe shape of the Niagara Falls,which we could not see from only USA side. It was so enthralling,mesmerising and captivating. People went bonkers,started booing,capturing pictures etc. I thoroughly was awe-struck and stood there agaped savoring the beauty of Niagara Falls.

Having our lunch again at Maharaja Hotel,we returned back to our room. With heavy heart[of leaving Buffalo] and sweet memories,we awaited our Limo to escort us back to the Buffalo airport.

Niagara Falls is indeed Nature's beautiful creation!! A MUST visit place for all the nature lovers! I m agog to visit it again!!

360 degree view of Madurai Temple!

2010-02-25T05:30:00.001-08:00

Madurai Temple: I stumbled on this link and found it "Mind Blowing"!!!

Click on the link below and drag the mouse pointer around at 360 degree to get a "Complete View of Madurai Temple"!!

http://www.view360.in/virtualtour/madurai/

Disney's "Magic Kingdom",Orlando

2010-01-19T15:20:00.000-08:00

Since my childhood,it has always been a dream for me to visit Disney World. As a kid I thoroughly enjoyed watching Disney's cartoons like Mickey Mouse,Donald Duck,Chip & Dale etc. People of all ages are enthralled and amused by these cartoons and their creation.

On Jan 16th 2010,hubby made my "Dream Come True" by planning a vacation to Disney World,Orlando.

Walt Disney World,Orlando houses 6 theme parks viz
1>Magic Kingdom
2>EPCOT
3>Animal Kingdom
4>Hollywood Studios
and 2 water parks.

Since we had planned for vacation only for 2 days ,we decided to visit "Magic Kingdom" and "EPCOT" this time!

Having stayed at Disney's Resort,we could avail "Disney's Magical Express" for transportation. This bus shuttles every 30 mins and takes you to and from any of the Disney's theme parks.

Magic Kingdom is just 15 mins drive from Disney's Resort. We reached 'Magic Kingdom' at 3pm on Jan 16th 2010,Saturday.

Entering "Magic Kingdom" gives the feeling of being in a "Fantasy Land" . It houses many Palaces,Castles,Disney's Characters,parades and most Importantly, the "Cinderella Castle" which is the Major Attraction at "Magic Kingdom".

"Magic Kingdom" was packed with children of every age right from toddlers in prams to the adolescents and teenagers. The air was filled with Magic,Enthusiasm and Excitement.

If you happen to take your kid to "Magic Kingdom",they are sure to get Mesmerized in this lovely "Fantasy Land"!! Everyone,being kid or an adult will be truly captivated,enchanted and enthralled in "Magic Kingdom".

Truly Enchanting "Cinderella Castle" stood before us. We took few pics of this lovely structure.

Cindrella Castle @Night

Fireworks at 9pm @Cinderella Castle

We also witnessed "Dream Along with Mickey",a Musical Show which was staged every 1 hour at Cinderella Castle!

See the videos:

Pictures:

Crowd witnessing the Musical Show @Cindrella Castle

We later took a stroll and watched "Mickey's Phillar Magic",a 3D movie show presented by Kodak.

At 6pm,we were allowed to walk inside the Cinderella Castle. A lucky couple even gets a chance to dine at Cinderella Castle. We were not that lucky enough :(

Later,we witnessed the Disney Parade. It was a parade which showcased all the Walt Disney's Characters. Children went bonkers during this parade. There is also a time when this parade stops at some mid point and encourages children to sing and dance along with them!

At 8pm,we witnessed another Parade,"Cinderella's Golden Carrousel".

Announcements of commencement of Fireworks @Cinderella Castle at 9pm were made. Everybody rushed towards Cinderella Castle to witness the Spectacular Fireworks!!

"Magic Kingdom" was truly Enchanting,Enthralling,Mesmerising and Magical...!! If you happen to visit "Disney's Magic Kingdom",dont miss the Fireworks at Cinderella Castle! Its truly Spectacular!

Nazca Lines

2009-11-15T06:58:00.001-08:00

Hubby once showed me this fascinating information about the 'Nazca Lines'

What are Nazca Lines?

There are large number of lines cutting aross the desert of Nazca,when viewed from the ground,there are just lines,but when viewed from an aircraft,these lines are actually series of drawings on land in nazca desert. These drawings stretch more than 80 kms between the towns nazca and Palpa. There are hundreds of indiviual figures drawn on land like spiders,monkeys,fish,shark,lizard etc. These are beleived to be drawn by people of nazca culture between 200 BCE and 700 BCE.

Arial survey revealed the presence of nazca lines showing various drawings of spider,monkeys,lizards etc. Reasearchers,Archeologists,Scientists are baffled as to how these figures were made by the people of nazca without any advanced tools,planning or arial survey.

The surface of Nazca is covered with reddish-brown iron oxide-coated pebbles. When these pebbles are removed, white coloured earth lies underneath.So,these lines are beleived to be made by removing these pebbles in some fashion.These lines are shallow designs on the ground and are beleived to have some religious significance. These lines are preserved till date due of the dry,windless,stable climate of Nazca.Extremely rare changes in weather may temporarily alter the general designs.

Scientists also beleive that these lines were made by the people using simple tools like wooden stakes as few wooden stakes were found at the end of some lines on the ground. These lines cover an area nearly equal to 500 square kilometres and the largest figures can be nearly 270 metres (890 ft).

There are many contradicting theories for the purpose and the construction of these nazca lines,but no theory has been proved right till date.

Pictures of Nazca Lines:

a>Satellite Image from NASA:

b>Monkey

c>Spider

d>Humming Bird

e>Flower

and many more

Also,see this video:

Four Corners,USA

2009-11-15T06:57:00.000-08:00

The Four Corners is a region in the United States consisting of southwest Colorado, northwest New Mexico, northeast Arizona and southeast Utah. The boundaries of the four states listed above meet at one point.This is only such geographic point in the entire United States.

Four Corners was acquired by United States from Mexico after the Mexican American War in 1848. This area was first surveyed by the U.S. Government in 1868.The first marker was placed at the spot in 1912.

Four Corners Area is generally defined as a circle around the Four Corners Monument located at 36°59′56.31532″N 109°02′42.62019″W. However there were few controversies over the exact geographical position of this 'Four Corners'.

A large metal circle has been placed at the intersection of this 'Four Corners'. Visitors standing at this point are just One Foot away from each state.

The Four Corners is part of a high Colorado Plateau. This makes the area a center for weather systems.This weather system creates snow and rain fall over the central United States.

Interstate 40 passes along the southern edge of the Four Corners region. Other Highways include U.S. Route 64, U.S. Route 160,U.S. Route 163, U.S. Route 191, U.S. Route 491 and U.S. Route 550.

Tour De Ooty Conoor!

2009-09-04T12:10:00.000-07:00

On June 12th 2009,Shruthi,Vatsa,Vikas,Abhi and me set out on our trip to Ooty and Conoor.
I reached Shruthi's house at 6:30pm and we went last-minute shopping for basic food items like mineral water,chips,chocolates,biscuits,fruit juice,coke etc for our journey.

We started our journey bound to Ooty at 11:30pm after being given last minute instructions from all our parents like..Be careful,Take care of yourself,your belongings,dont play in water,etc.(No idea why our parents still think we cant take care of ourselves!!)

In order to keep ourselves engaged in this long journey,we started playing games like Antakshari,Dumb charades,watched few movies,listened to few songs,shared few stories,jokes etc and last but not the least,devouring on the food items bought by us.

Few people who had visited Ooty prior to us gave us special instructions to stay awake in the night and not to miss the view of animals like deer,elephants,bisons etc when our bus passes through Bandipur forest which is enroute to Ooty.

The bus first reached Mysore and stopped in front of Mysore palace allowing us to capture few pics of the Illuminated Mysore Palace which looked Magnificiently Elegant in the night!

Few pics of Illuminated Mysore Palace @ night

The bus later did pass through Bandipur forest where we got an opportunity to witness and capture pics of animals like Bisons,Elephants,few deers.(but pics did not come out well due to darkness).Being extremely famished,tired and sleepy,everybody fell asleep after some time.

Day 1:

Ooty welcomed us with a SPECTACULAR view at 7:30am in the morning!

We alighted from our bus,stretched ourselves,enjoyed the SPECTACULAR view,shot few pics, walked a mile to view Pykara Falls! It was a Magnificient falls.

Capturing few pics of the falls,we later proceeded to the Hotel which was booked for our stay.

Pics of Ooty in the morning

Pykara Falls.

Pykara Falls..

On reaching the Hotel(i forgot its name) the manager guided us to our cottage. It was a Beautiful cottage with 2 bedrooms with attached bath,a huge hall,a kitchen and living room.

We freshened up,had bath,wore warm clothes(as it was biting cold outside) and proceeded

to board a train to Conoor .

Conoor is 1 hour journey from Ooty and the train was jam-packed,but still we managed to be seated.

After reaching Conoor,boarding the taxi (which we had booked beforehand), searching for decent looking vegetarian restauarants,we finally had our breakfast, but were not satisfied with the quality of the food and the cleaniness of the restaurant.

We started our journey in Conoor by visiting 'Dolphin's nose'

Dolphin's nose comprises of a wide range of scenic beauty and mountains in Conoor,where all these natural scenic beauty resembles a Dolphin's nose.

Journey from Ooty to Conoor

Dolphin's nose

We later visited 'Sim's Park',which is again another scenic beauty and enjoyed the amazing Nature!After having our lunch ,going sight seeing in Conoor,feeling sleepy and tired,we proceeded back to our cottage in Ooty

Day 2:

Our venture for next day were places in Ooty like 'Dodda Betta',Tea Plantations and Shopping.

Dodda betta: We can see the entire nature and scenic beauty of Ooty from the top of the hill.

A telescope is also placed at the top of the hill to enable the visitors to have a more clear and panoramic view of the beauty of nature.

We later proceeded toward Tea Plantations and were explained about the processing,prepation,manufacturing,packing of tea by a person who charged us Rs 5/-.

Paying and thanking him profusely,we bought spices and various flavoured tea bags in one of the shops over there.

Our last destination was shopping area which showcased large variety of choices to pick from home made chocolates,wollen clothing,pull overs,sweaters,stuff toys,bags,purses,fruits etc.

Home made chocolates are extremely delicious,cheap and they melt in your mouth.I bought decent amount of different varieties of chocolates, few pullovers and a handbag.

All these items were neatly packed in a Paper bag as Plastic is banned in Ooty (in order to be eco-friendly and to preserve the natural beauty)

This initiative of banning plastics in Ooty is higly commendable.Hopefully other states follow suit!

Having our lunch,we started our journey back home carrying wonderful memories of Ooty and Conoor.

Ooty-Conoor are must visit places for any nature lover!

Karnataka

2009-08-08T09:20:00.000-07:00

Sunset @Gokarna

Kali River Backwaters @ Dandeli

Sunset at Thungabhadra Dam,Hospet

Mountain mist @ Kodachadri

Monsoon Retreat @Kodachadri

Sunrise @Kumaraparvatha

Bababudangiri

Om Beach,Gokarna

Sunset @Honnemarudu

Abbey Falls, Coorg

Backwaters,Kabini

Dondole Falls

Evergreen forest,Agumbe

Green Grounds,Kemmangundi

Jog Falls-Pride of Karnataka

Kadra Backwaters at Karwar

Kaveri full flow at Shivanasamudra

Kudremukh

Kudremukh Peak

Paradise in Agumbe

Rock Monolith,Yana

Sunset at Honnemarudu

View of Kudremukh Valley

Incredible India!

2009-01-19T15:59:00.000-08:00

A>Karnataka in Nutshell

B>Ooty,Conoor