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plumbobpost · 7 years ago

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It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere

Sul sul!

With the release of The Sims 4: Jungle Adventure last week and the promise of spring break in the coming month, it only makes sense to take a look back at previous destinations in The Sims series. From Vacation Island to Selvadorada and everywhere between, let’s explore some of the places sims have been vacationing at since 2002.

In The Sims: Vacation, there is a singular vacation destination: Vacation Island. Vacation Island is a winter wonderland, a forest campground, and a tropical beach all located on one island. Visiting sims have an option of staying in an igloo, a tent, or a hotel, and they have the ability to socialize with townies who travel in families. The Sims: Vacation also has one of the most entertaining soundtracks in the series, which even features a simlish parody of the rapper Shaggy.

Vacations return in The Sims 2: Bon Voyage, featuring three destinations: Three Lakes, Takemizu Village, and Twikkii Island. The three sub-neighborhoods each have their own distinct locals and atmosphere, and they all have a secret mystery lot. Bon Voyage also introduced new features into the game, such as the Bigfoot life state, jewelry, and vacation benefits, which are temporary social and motive boosts given to a sim after a good vacation. These destinations have proven popular enough for some players to recreate them as main neighborhoods.

The Sims 3 expanded on the exploration aspect of Bon Voyage through The Sims 3: World Adventures. Like its predecessor, it features three vacation destinations: Champs Les Sims, Al Simhara, and Shang Simla. However, unlike its predecessor, these locations are supposed to exist in real life countries, France, Egypt, and China, respectively. World Adventures expands The Sims 3’s gameplay through a variety of new traits, skills, lifetime wishes, and of course, a new life state: the mummy. The expansion pack also allows sims to accept challenges and explore tombs, but players should keep an eye out for traps, unless they want to be cursed by a mummy.

The Sims 4 wasted no time introducing a vacation destination; the first game pack released for the game was The Sims 4: Outdoor Retreat. This game pack introduced players to the world of Granite Falls, a rustic campground. Sims can either choose to rent a house or stay in the great outdoors for the duration of their vacation. Additionally, Outdoor Retreat adds the squeamish trait, which makes a sim afraid of bugs, dirt, and violence, as well as the Outdoor Enthusiast aspiration. One of the more light-hearted additions of the pack is a bear suit which enables a sim to roar at another sim, thus scaring them.

Three years later, The Sims 4: Jungle Adventure has been released, and players are still getting to know its features and its destination: Selvadorada. The game pack introduces two new skills and two new aspirations, Jungle Explorer and Archaeology Scholar. Like World Adventures, a key feature of Jungle Adventure is exploration. In Selvadorada, sims can access the Jungle District through adventuring, and they can explore ancient temples.

What sort of destinations would you like for your sims to visit next? If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, feel free to visit my ask box. If you are interested, give Plumbob Post a follow, and reblog for anyone else who you think would enjoy this blog. Stay tuned for upcoming posts.

Dag dag!

*Disclaimer: These are not my images.*

#the sims #the sims vacation #the sims 2 #the sims 2 bon voyage #the sims 3 #the sims 3 world adventures #the sims 4 #the sims 4 jungle adventure #vacation island #takemizu village #twikkii island #three lakes #champs les sims #al simhara #shang simla #granite falls #selvadorada

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topfygad · 5 years ago

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Chateau Garli – A Heritage Hotel For Luxury Travelers in Kangra Himachal Pradesh

Chateau Garli -The place Heritage Greets Luxurious Vacationers

There are days when the sky decides to place up a magic present for you. Cotton sweet clouds change colour by the minute, the solar performs disguise & search yet another time earlier than saying goodbye. And why not when the stage itself is the Chateau Garli in Kangra Himachal Pradesh.⠀

On one among my highway journeys to Kangra, our information talked about would you want to go to Garli a heritage village? I used to be like okay allow us to test it out, and am I glad or what that I agreed to go to this virtually deserted but charming village that was as soon as the forte of Suds, the normal service provider clan of Himachal Pradesh. That is once I first visited the Chateau Garli the lesser-known heritage village in Himachal Pradesh, that only a few folks go to. Vacationers might not go to Garli in hordes however trying on the deserted mansions and few occupied houses of Garli you’ll be able to take my phrase that the Suds, the individuals who constructed these mansions have been world vacationers. And journey they did to far of lands, crossing the seas and visiting international locations in Europe, the Center East and in addition inside India. Any individual, someday throughout these jaunts began the development of creating big mansions that have been closely influenced by the locations the homeowners have visited. So you discover influences from royal Rajasthan, colonial Europe, and different influences. However it will be one other 12 months or so earlier than I’ll go to Garli once more and keep at Chateau Garli on their invitation as a journey author.

Discover the hand pump in entrance? Examine it later within the submit

However this submit is about my keep on the crown jewel of Garli the heritage haveli constructed by Lala Mela Ram Sud, some 100 years in the past, ( 1921 to be exact ) that has been lovingly restored by his grandson and great-grandkids. Yatish Sud the present inheritor to the Late Lala Mela Ram Sud needed to do one thing for his ancestral village usually and residential specifically. Since he runs different glorious properties in Shimal and Naldhera, changing the heritage haveli right into a luxurious lodge was a pure alternative. Nevertheless it was simpler stated than carried out as no one has lived within the Haveli for many years, anyone with enterprise sense would have deserted the mission however not Yatish. After months of cleansing, scrubbing, repairing, including trendy services like Air Conditioning, plumbing, the mansion began trying like one thing that may be made habitable. However restoring the haveli was solely a part of the problem, Garli just isn’t your standard Shimla or Nainital sort of hill station, it isn’t a vacationer magnet so the thought was that the Chateau Garli, the brand new avatar of Haveli of Lala Mela Ram Sud needs to be an attraction in itself and a base camp for folks exploring the Kangra Valley.

The magic unfolds because the night time falls on Chateau Garli

Thus got here a multi-cuisine restaurant, a curated heritage stroll to the village round and at last got here THE POOL, with a sunken bar within the pool. Sure the pool! oh the pool! Ah the pool! This pool is certainly the spotlight of any go to to Chateau Garli, massive sufficient to swim round but sufficiently small to to not intimidate even a non-swimmer, the pool invitations you to take a dip or simply sit again and calm down within the waters with a drink in hand as you take pleasure in your day practising the misplaced artwork of doing completely nothing. However the most effective a part of the pool is loved after sundown because the “Dhinchak Disco” lights are turned on and it adjustments colour with each passing second.

A hen’s eye view of Chateau Garli. The pool adjustments gentle with each second

Like I stated earlier it’s a bit tough to categorize or outline the architectural type of mansions of Garli, because the touring Suds have been influenced by many types and the identical might be noticed at Chateau Garli in Kangra. When you have European type roofs and facade, you have got colourful glass home windows which might be impressed by colourful home windows of many a center japanese, Persian, Moroccan and Spanish Mosques. As you enter the Chateau you see a central courtyard with a small Tulsi plant occupying the middle of the principle verandah. Hmm, a European type mansion with a Tulsi put in within the central courtyard, you mutter to your self as you’re ushered to your room proper reverse the pool. The rooms proceed the show of multiplicity of cultural influences, with none apology, whilst you have all the fashionable services you have got closely carved picket poster beds, grandma-style dressing-table that will have been a part of the dowry of a shy Kangra Bride many moons in the past.

Your eyes are open however you aren’t certain in case you have woken up or if the dream remains to be persevering with. For the morning rays of Solar are enacting… ( PLS Proceed Studying HERE )

The room grows on you however the cool waters of the pool invite you as you look out of your colourful home windows and the workers mentions they’ve made” Aloo Parathas” for you. Properly, it’s powerful to say no to the decision of ” Aloo Parathas” the room should wait you inform your self and stroll right down to take pleasure in some sizzling tea with Parathas because the pool winks to you to return and take a dip.

Each nook and nook of the Chateau Garli has had its brush with historical past, from the numerous ceramic pickle jars strewn round within the verandah to the massive glass of Lassi that’s served to you have been as soon as a part of the home items of Lala Mela Ram Sud. As I love my lassi glass intently I can learn the title of the proprietor on the brass glass itched prefer it was the custom in these days. I shiver for a second, partly as I maintain the chilly glass however extra so as a result of Lala Mela Ram Sud was the gentleman who accompanied Mahatma Gandhi to signal the unique Simla Pact higher often called Gandhi-Irwin Pact, as I’m knowledgeable whereas I love a Black and White picture of Bapu Gandhi popping out of the then Viceregal Lodge in Shimla.

A bit rustic & so much European, the architectural type of Garli Mansions is hard to outline

What to do round Heritage Village of Garli in Kangra Valley Himachal Pradesh?

Like I discussed Garli just isn’t your typical hill station, the place you stroll on mall highway and meet the exact same folks you have been working away from in your hometown. A go to to Garli has a lot extra to supply you can simply spend just a few days exploring the numerous comparatively unknown gems round from the close by and higher know heritage village of Pragpur to the well-known, but hardly ever visited Rock Lower Masrur Temples. Then inside driving distance is the famed Kangra fort that has a historical past going again to greater than 2000 years and was constructed and rebuilt by Katoch Kings of Himachal.

However your finest expertise round Garli shall be to stroll across the village, first with one of many workers of the Chateau Garli as your information after which just a few extra instances by yourself. On every go to, you’ll uncover a brand new facet of Garli, a mansion right here, a wreck there a chatty shopkeeper inviting you to examine the products to a stoic baker making biscuits the great previous wood-fired means within the native bakery.

However all that’s for an additional weblog submit as I wish to preserve this submit targeted solely on the Lodge that’s Chateau Garli. However let me give right here a fast checklist of locations you can go to round Garli

Pragpur Heritage Village

Kangra Fort

Masrur Rock Lower Temples

Pong Dam Reservoir Backwaters

Dadasiba Radha Krishna Temple

Shaktipeeths of Kangra Devi, Bagla Mukhi Mata, Jwalajee and Chintapoorni Mata all are inside driving distance for these searching for blessings of Mata Rani aka mom goddess.

You too can go to McLeodgunj as a half-day journey from Garli like I did in case you are lacking the hustle-bustle of a hill station and are available again within the night within the calm cool environs of Garli

As you stroll round Garli you’ll understand that the Garli Suds have been one of many early philanthropists of this nation. Proper on the entrance of Chateau Garli is a properly constructed by Lala Mela Ram Sud, which he devoted to the village of us who nonetheless use the water from it from the handpump added to it. With a purpose to enable folks to take water from the properly Lala jee shifted his house boundary in order that the properly might be open and accessible to all. As you stroll across the village you see Faculties, a hospital, a neighborhood corridor ( Naurang Yatri Niwas) now transformed right into a hostel for vacationers and even one of many earliest piped water provide techniques all contributed by the rich Sud households for the advantage of the neighborhood. Most of those faculties and so forth. are nonetheless in use and are a legacy that may final for much longer than the mansions round.

A hand pump that continues the great work of Lala Mela Ram Sud

How is the meals at Chateau Garli?

The meals at Chateau Garli is influenced by Himachali, Punjabi & different North Indian cuisines. The parathas are actually good and so are a lot of the greens which might be grown domestically together with within the household farm simply down the highway. However you can too order continental dishes from the menu and I appreciated the few dishes I attempted. However should you actually wish to take pleasure in your go to to Garli, ask the chef upfront to arrange the Kangri Dham a standard festive meal in Kangri festivals and marriages. You can be left licking your fingers and asking for extra. However please word it’s lots of effort to make the identical so you have to to tell the chef upfront and a few minimal group dimension could also be wanted.

Now chances are you’ll surprise if the meals is so good then why I’m not sharing any photographs

Properly reality be informed except I’m taking pictures professionally I hardly ever have the endurance to click on my meals, I like to eat it slightly than clicking my meals. However in your reference, I’m sharing a picture of one of many easiest but yummy meals I had sitting within the courtyard of Chateau Garli.

There’s something about meals that isn’t bored with touring 100s of miles to succeed in your plate. Learn Extra HERE about this memorable lunch of Aloo Matar at Chateau Garli

Learn how to attain Heritage Village Garli in Himachal

Garli could be very properly related by highway, rail and air community to all the most important cities within the nation.

The closest main airport to Garli is Chandigarh about 190 KM or 4.5 hours away. Although the Gaggal Airport of Kangra is nearer at 60 KM flights are rare.

By highway, it’s about 8-9 hours drive from Delhi NCR ( 480 km appx )

Finest method to journey to Garli from Delhi NCR

For my part the easiest way to journey to Garli is by practice. You’ll be able to both take the Chandigarh Shatabdi and take a cab from there and even higher is to take the in a single day comfy practice from Previous Delhi Station to Amb Andaura railway station ( Station code AADR, please don’t confuse it with Ambala Cant. ). From Amb, Andaura Garli is about 45-minute comfy drive and Chateau Garli will coordinate with you for the pickup and drop.

Right here is the contact data for Chateau Garli

VPO 12, Garli, Distt. Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India

[email protected]

+91-9816062007 +91-1970-246246 +91-9418062002

Total it was an exquisite journey for me and I acquired to see many locations round Garli and Kangra through the journey and I shall be writing about them in one other weblog submit.

Please word this go to to heritage village Garli in Kangra was on the invitation of the administration of Chateau Garli as a journey author. All views expressed are my very own

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source http://cheaprtravels.com/chateau-garli-a-heritage-hotel-for-luxury-travelers-in-kangra-himachal-pradesh/

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srbachchan · 8 years ago

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DAY 3390

Jalsa, Mumbai July 9, 2017 Sun 11:49 PM

That is all one can express on a Sunday such as this .. the might of the well wishers .. the cheer on their faces .. the excitement for just those few minutes .. the hours of waiting for it .. the banners, the gifts, the pictures they seek .. just for those few moments ..

Nothing but an obligation crosses the mind .. a gratefulness that has now reached proportions indescribable ..

मन में इस घड़ी के आने से पहले , कुछ संकोच होता है - क्या आज भी लोग मिलने आएँगे , क्या मेरे वहाँ आने पर उनके मन में ख़ुशी होगी , ऐसा क्या पाते हैं वो उन क्षणो में जो उन्हें हर इतवार यहाँ खींच लाता है - और जब तक इन प्रश्नों का उत्तर मैं सोच पाता हूँ , वो पल समाप्त हो जाता है ।। और जीवन का एक और पहलू हाथ जोड़ कर बग़ल से निकल जाता है

Idleness invites complacency .. begs it to be of immense disinterest and lethargic in nature .. binds you in an embrace that you find difficult to get out of .. it is the fortune of goodness that I begin work in earnest again by tomorrow .. 102 Not Out starts again and hopefully shall be the end of the film, by the end of the month or a few days into August .. and then begins the ABC of KBC .. and then some more projects .. and the greater time for TOH .. and on and on till most of the end of 2018 and perhaps spilling over into 2019 .. and then some more for consideration .. and you wonder .. is it not too ambitious to be thinking so far and beyond ..

One aspect that has intrigued many is the ability of management .. a home, a work place, a production, a film programming, a desk, a work load .. and all ..

And the matter that comes to unite in an effort to give result is that nothing can ever replace the concept of personal management, the individual interest to be taken, and the monitoring of affairs in person ..

The grand old man of Hotels in India and Internationally, Rai Bahadur Oberoi, whose chain of Hotels run all over the world, started as a small worker in one of the Hotels up in Simla, eventually one day to take the entire Hotel and made it his property, to multiply severally around the world .. was one that I noticed personally once ..

Early in the morning at the Srinagar Palace Hotel, where we were housed for a film in the making in Kashmir, I discovered the Rai Bahadur at an early hour, dressed in his finery, walking the lawns of the Hotel, with the Manager and inspecting and seeking answers for the flowers that were being planted in one area of the vast lawns and why they were not giving the same results as the flowers in another part of the property .. !!!

Lessons learnt !!

Mr Ford of the creator of FORD Motors, employing millions of workers apparently knew each worker in this factory by first name .. so I read somewhere .. that sense of belonging translates into efficiency of work, belonging and thereby a greater attachment to not just the master, but the job at hand ..

I do long for such .. and they tell me it is far too late to be involved .. really ..?

Either be involved then and bear the pain of management .. or be distant and be distant to all else that your work and surroundings desire .. and if is too late, then so be it ..

Amitabh Bachchan

I hear sad news of the passing of Sumita Sanyal, she who played opposite me in ANAND, and it saddens me to, learn that she was just 71, 4 years younger than me ..

a simple soft spoken shy artist, with the most pleasant face .. gone .. what can one say at moments like these ..

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oneearthhotel1-blog · 5 years ago

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Memorable Family Vacation in Shimla With Best Family Hotels in Shimla

Shimla is the former summer capital of the country and it is also an ideal destination for perfect family vacation. If you want to spend time on shimla then check out some good family hotels in Shimla for your stay.Shimla formerly known as Simla is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh and is a famous hill station in North India.For a memorable trip to Shimla you should travel by train on the famed Kalka - Shimla railway that passes through scenic landscapes and numerous dark tunnels. Shimla is a famous tourist spot and you can find many hotels here to make your stay comfortable. Check out some of the quality Shimla hotels for your stay.

Best Hotels in Shimla

5-star hotels in Shimla provide all the facilities to the tourist to view all these destinations and enjoy the view of nature.To enjoy the hilly area the contribution of Family hotels in shimla and best Leisure Hotel in Shimla can’t be overlooked.

Services

One Earth aims to serve environmentally sensitive travelers through its Green chain of hotels. Right from products to practices, everything at One Earth will be essentially Green.One Earth believes in true Indian hospitality - providing full service, at affordable prices.

Conclusion:-

If you want to spend quality time with your family and want to visit beauty of nature in shimla then visit our hotel:- http://oneearthhotels.com/ for budget hotels in shimla we provide full facility to our client so they can make their vacation memorable.

#hotel #shimla #earth #hotels

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caitlinpharoah-blog · 7 years ago

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Letter 81:

On outside of the letter it says: Observatory House, Officers Leave Hotel.

Observatory House,

Simila

15 Nov

Well, only one more week remains!

This leave is certainly no rest cure – last night it was bed at 3am, the night before that it was 3.30. Tonight we are going to dinner with the Willinsons, so won’t be home until past one. And tomorrow we are going on a picnic for the whole day. Mike, Tatty, Shelia, Grace, & myself, together with a few others. I don’t know whether we shall go as far as we hope - it would work out at about 18 miles; but we shall have a good party anyhow. We went for a short walk yesterday afternoon & took our tea; & then shook Simla quite considerably by dashing back down the main street linked arm in arm, & singing the “Wizard of OZ” & so forth, just as the Brass Hats were coming out of G.H.Q.

On Thursday we had another party here. 13 men/ 13 women, & great fun. Everyone was advised to turn up suitably attired, & Sheila & Grace very sensibly turned up in slacks. It was a really first-rate party with charades, murder, sardines & a grand treasure hunt, & plenty of dancing (for those who like it).

We’ve also had lots of photographs taken & some of them are very good. I’m just waiting for the final lot to be printed before sending them, though I won’t send them altogether.

The weather is still perfect, & this is by far the best leave I’ve ever had!

Much love to you both,

Mick

Xxxxx

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kotiresorts-blog · 8 years ago

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Best Luxury Hotels and Resorts In Shimla, Himachal Pradesh-Koti Resorts

Koti, one of the best luxury resorts in Mashobra, Himachal Pradesh offers you an exotic getaway with extraordinary settings having top amenities of 3 Star hotels and absolute serenity of Himalayas making it one amongst the best hotels in Shimla.

#best hotels in Shimla #luxury resorts in Himachal Pradesh #resorts in mashobra #3-Star hotels in Shimla #resorts in Mashobra Hhimachal Pradesh

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sumikoirala · 8 years ago

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The ghosts of a literary Indian hill-station that haunt the writers of the present

“All hill-stations have their share of ghost stories” writes journalist Sheela Reddy. “But the Doon must be the only spot that can boast of so many writers, living and dead, who have turned their home into their muse.”

The Doon is a quiet valley of hamlets in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is home to a nearly 200-year-old English literary tradition and many Victorian styled decaying structures. Of all its little townships, Mussoorie and Landour comprise what is arguably the most fertile literary territory in the country.

Well-known writers from the valley include the legendary octogenarian author Ruskin Bond; historian Ganesh Saili; Stephen Alter with his warmhearted recollections of an American boyhood in the Indian hills and intrepid romances; the travel writer and spiritualist Bill Aitken; and the thespian-turned-essayist Victor Banerji.

Around the mid-1820s, Mussoorie became of the first sanatorium in British India. It was established by Captain Frederick Young, founder of the Sirmour Rifles regiment, who also sowed the first potato seeds in the valley.

While Rudyard Kipling seemed to be more partial towards his beloved Simla, Victorian writers such as Emily Eden, Fanny Parkes, John Lang and Andrew Wilson gave us numerous literary and epistolary writings on Mussoorie.

Most of them became characters in the ever-expanding folklore of the valley. Some turned into the endeared ghosts that are said to haunt the region.

Rokeby Manor Gate in the snow. Paul Hamilton/Flickr

The past and its apparitions

From time to time, the Doon’s literary and historical legends emerge to posthumously assume the mantle of the guardian of the valley’s innermost secrets. And current-day writers have ensured that these secrets are well-preserved in the splurge of literature that the hill-station has produced in the past two decades.

In 1964, Ruskin Bond discovered the grave of John Lang in the Camel’s Back cemetery. Lang was an Anglo-Australian-Indian barrister, who had opposed the Doctrine of Lapse in the Indian courts.

The Doctrine of Lapse was a policy of annexation promulgated by Lord Dalhousie, the then Governor General of India, which decreed that any Indian state whose ruler had either died without a male heir or was ruled by an incompetent leader would be annexed by the British Empire. Since the discovery of his grave, Lang has been a standard feature in the Doon’s literary musings.

John Lang with Nana Saheb. Illustration from Lang’s book ‘Wanderings in India and other sketches of life in Hindostan’ (1858).

Another legendary character was Frederick (Pahari) Wilson, also known as the Raja of Harsil and his second wife, Gulabi. They are among the hill-station’s most recurrent ghosts.

In 1883, Wilson’s obituary in The Pioneer described how he came to the valley:

[Wilson] started from Calcutta, armed with five rupees and a gun on his long march to the Himalayas … He lived for many years by the sale of what he shot, and finally embarked on timber contracts in the forests … until he amassed a considerable fortune.

Although he was not an author, he built the Wilson bridge over the Jadganga river, traces of which remain today. Kipling came in contact with Wilson, took a fancy for the legends surrounding him, and used his biographical details for his story, The Man who Would be King.

The ghosts of Gulabi and Pahari Wilson are said to still lurk in the Doon, largely owing to one of Bond’s supernatural stories, Wilson’s Bridge.

Sisters Bazaar in today’s Mussoorie. Paul Hamilton/Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

Young’s ghost is also an alleged regular at Mullingar flat. Today, Ganesh Saili and his family reside there. According to Saili:

[Young] astride a white horse arrives at the old Mullingar lodge, ties his steed to the remnants of the old wrought iron railing and … waits for the parade of Redcoats to begin.

Young, too, was an author of sorts. He may not have written anything but he helped build St. Peter’s Church and the area around the Sister’s Bazaar in Mussoorie, shaping the literary personality of the town.

An unlikely architectural heritage

Aside from ghosts, the other formal aspect of Doon’s literature is architecture. Writing about India’s hill-station buildings, Giriraja Shah explains:

A good number of historical monuments are famous, more because of the proper exposition of hoary romance, antiquity and myths … than the visible splendour of art and architecture.

Buildings in the region’s writings seem to embody the ghosts themselves, a kind of hauntology: where the literary landscape is a ghostly simulation of the lived space.

The Savoy Hotel, an iconic landmark in the Doon Valley, with its haunted corridors, and famed Writer’s Bar. Nick Kenrick/Flickr, CC BY-SA

Although Mussoorie’s buildings are offshoots of the Swiss-Gothic form – a style praised during colonial era in the Himalayas – it certainly is not a place replete with architectural intricacies. The Savoy Hotel, the Mussoorie Library, Skinner’s Hall, and some other old buildings and the churches of the township do exhibit the usual spires, gables, dormers, balustrades, pilasters, Glasgow-built lampposts, and colonnades. But these features are not as architectural as the state of disrepair itself in which the buildings find themselves.

The renowned architect-turned-scholar Bernard Tschumi, once gave an “Advertisement for Architecture” with an old photograph of the Villa Savoye, with the caption: “The most architectural thing about this building is the state of decay in which it is.”

Above Bothwell Bank. Paul Hamilton/Flickr

In literature, as also in reality, Mussoorie and Landour live in a state of aesthetic decay.

The names of their houses invoke a landscape set in a parallel timezone. Mullingar, Zephyr Lodge, Companybagh, Cloud End, Tipperary, Killarney, Shamrock Cottage, Scottsburn, Connaught Castle, Hampton Court, or those borrowed from Sir Walter Scott’s novels such as Kenilworth, Ivanhoe, and Rokeby (the last now converted into a pleasure resort, keeping intact the stony façade of a castle).

Landour preserves the memory of those Anglo-Indian spirits that refuse to acknowledge their extinction. Tourists are seduced by the town’s literary ghosts. And every once in a while, an ordinary night’s peace is disrupted by the purportedly paranormal interventions of a dead memsahib such as the spiritualist, Frances Garnett-Orme.

Her ghost is said to linger in the valley or the corridors of the Savoy Hotel, where she was allegedly poisoned to death, over a hundred years ago.

We might wonder whether the hauntings at Landour have any experiential element or are simply practical fictions conceived amid the solitude of the hills. As Ruskin Bond candidly stated, “when I run out of relatives, I invent ghosts.”

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blogamyamykinslove-blog · 8 years ago

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I arrived in Agra by train in the morning, got settled in at N Homestay, and at the suggestion of their guide/driver Mokul, I took the rest of the afternoon to visit Fatehpur Sikri- home of the Jama Masjid mosque and Mughal palace predating the Taj Mahal. Little did I remember that the entrance fee for the Historic palaces had gone up to 500 INR, so I only had enough money for it, and to take the bus back to Agra (and maybe a bag of chips). Lunch consisted of the leavings of my goody bag from Simla. Luckily I did bring a scarf (I had completely forgotten my hat) because the Jama Masjid is an active mosque. I have also been using my water purification drops when filling my water bottles from the tap, and so far, so good. One could go broke keeping up on drinking water here in India. Also, I paid $20 CAD for this water purification kit, so I might as well use it. TRAVEL TIPS TO FOLLOW, SO NECESSARY FOR SURVIVING FATEHPUR SIKRI.

Arriving in Agra, I knew right away I had officially arrived in India, and gone were the days of orderly, friendly, clean little towns. It was a madhouse of Autorickshaws around the train station, and all of the drivers clamoured at me “taxi? taxi? hotel, miss? hotel?” Basically one has to say “No,” firmly and give an emphatic shake of the head about a million times or or ignore them completely running the gauntlet until you find your driver, – which will happen, seemingly by magic. After riding the regular public bus from Agra (very hot and dusty- bring a scarf just to put over your nose to filter some of it out), there are tour touts waiting for you at the little bus depot in Fatehpur’s bazaar. If your hotel or homestay has a driver/tour guide and offers to take you to Fatehpur Sikri (hereafter “FS”) for 700 INR or suchlike cost- DO THIS! Learn from my mistake. I decided I didn’t want to spend the 700 INR for my own private autorick and tour, and simply took the 40 INR bus ride from Agra. I thought I was being really smart by forgoing the extra cost…

There is a direct path straight up from the bus depot in Fatehpour’s bazaar towards the gate to the mosque, but one is essentially walking a path of garbage, so I took the long way around and took a second look at the bazaar, which was full of vendors and services of every sort. Traffic slowed to a crawl those last 50 meters from the beginning of the bazaar and the bus depot. The road above the bazaar leading up to the mosque and palace grounds, though, is wide, free of traffic, and lined with ice cream and goodie vendors, so Indian families take full advantage of the refreshments before going into the so-called abandoned city. Walking up the ramp to the entrance of the huge and extremely impressive Buland Darwaza (Victory Gate) entrance to the Jama Majid mosque, I couldn’t help but laugh at the frolicking and leaping goats combing the ramparts for goodies left by tourists.

As soon as I entered into the mosque, a young man calling himself a “guide” offered to show me around. These guys (and there are a lot of them) are touts, not guides. They will indeed take you around the mosque, they’ll show you all the different parts of the grounds and tombs, they have good information, and they will even take really nice photos of you and for you while on the grounds, and will be very pleasant- but they will conclude their tour at their own little blanket set out with the souvenirs they sell- usually carvings in soapstone or alabaster. There’s nothing wrong with buying from them except they’ll give you the hard sell and you will have to haggle within an inch of your life, and there’s nothing wrong with not buying from them and tipping them for their time instead. They’re not as happy with the tip as they would to sell you their stuff, but whatever. Bazinga. I saw all the parts of the mosque- was encouraged to do all the little things that people do when they visit, like tying a string in the lattice screen of the white marble tomb of Shaikh Salim Chishti and making a wish (NO TELLING), and genuinely enjoyed my tour. I found the cemetery and the crowded ladies-only cemetery behind lattice screens interesting as the marker stones were very compact. The honour of being interred within the mosque was only conferred to family members of the saint. The white marble tomb with the reflecting pool before it, and single tree growing beside it within the broad expanse of the mosque complex courtyard was genuinely beautiful. I explored the courtyard of the mosque once I left the young tout, and there is no angle from which this little building is not striking and a spot of visual coolness in the expanse of baking redstone. It was also a constant hub of activity as people came to pay their respects, tie their string, make their offering of thrown perfume or rose petals and some rupees to the saint. Directly outside a group of musicians crouched in the shade, playing and singing their devotions. I noticed that the tomb had gutters leading directly to the pool, so that rainwater would be collected there for both its beauty and utility.

Exiting the mosque from the King’s Gate, I then proceeded into the expansive palace grounds, paying the entrance fee at that point. The architecture and gardens were unlike anything I had seen before (or would see again in India), especially the 5 tiered Panch Mahal, and it’s no wonder for King Akbar who lived here encouraged unique designs melding Islamic, Hindu, Christian and Buddhist elements and imagery in the decor. King Akbar decreed that each religion was to be respected equally, and to “seal the deal” he took a queen from each faith. The special audience hall (Diwan-i-Khas) and the decorative pool in front of his palace use a quartered square design illustrating the new faith he developed, called Din-i-llahi (God is One). Wandering around this place was genuinely enjoyable. There were lots of arcades in which to shelter from the sun, gardens to refresh the eye from all the red sandstone, and wonderful spots from which to view the surrounding farmlands. Within the palace grounds, I also discovered the striped chipmunk-like squirrels, wild green ring-necked parrots and many songbirds and swallows (and pigeons) that inhabit India. To sit in the shade from the softening afternoon sun and breeze, journaling and watching the parrots and other birds race from buidling to building to tree was a real joy.

I was really glad that I had come out to FS and explored these amazing buildings. Until I was foolish enough to NOT run and catch the bus I saw leaving the bazaar as I came down to the corner. “Busses run for another two hours,” I told myself, “I’ll grab a quick snack and catch the next bus.” Famous last words. I waited at the bus depot and no other bus arrived. I had a snack, wrote in my journal and exchanged a few pleasantries with a couple of the touts there who were brothers… and then it started getting dark. The young Islamic touts started to look a little uneasy on my behalf and gently remonstrated me “Why didn’t you run for that bus?” Finally one of the young men said “I don’t want you sitting here after dark. Tourists have been stranded here before by the bus. I have seen it and helped them get back to Agra before. Maybe the last bus will be here at 5:45, but if not then you should let my driver friend take you back to Agra because none of the tourist taxis come here.” This was factually correct and not an exaggeration on his part, I hadn’t seen a single white car with the blue and yellow “Tourist Taxi” emblem painted on the side since arriving in FS, and there weren’t even any Autoricks. Two of the young touts arranged someone to drive me back and they tried to quote me double the price of what my homestay driver had offered for the return trip. Boy was I mad at myself and a little annoyed with them as I tried to discuss the discrepancy with them. When he finally admitted that what he was really including in the price was a commission for him and his brother who had both kept me company for two hours while I waited, and arranged my ride, my frustration vanished. I was happy to give them a commission, but I was not happy about being ripped off for a drive back to Agra- qualitative or semantic difference, as either way I was out a lot more rupees than I wanted to be for the day, but I don’t have a problem with rewarding people for taking their time to help me.

As it was, there was a massive traffic jam on the road back to Agra, and my driver was fortunately able to get out of the jam before too many vehicles boxed us in from behind, so we took a link road around the blockage and made it back to Agra with only a little delay. It was a bit of an adventure itself and when I experienced some acute culture shock (see next entry). I tried to not kick myself too hard for having to pay so much money to get back to the homestay, but on the other hand FS is a good hour outside of Agra, and I was very relieved that I got back safely and in comparative comfort. Who knows when I would have got back to Agra if I had gotten on that bus. For all I know, it was the thing causing the jam.

Matriarch Naghma of N Homestay had a wonderful thali dinner waiting for me when I got back to their place, and was kind enough to sit and chat with me while I ate. She told me the interesting history of her family home, how happy and content she was to share it with travelers, and how this was definitely the best part of her life with her sons grown and one of them recently married. After eating, I was grateful to retire to my very spacious room, shower and wash my clothes and retire to bed.

Tomorrow is the Taj Mahal at dawn.

Fatehpur Sikri (Agra) Oct. 15 ’16 I arrived in Agra by train in the morning, got settled in at N Homestay, and at the suggestion of their guide/driver Mokul, I took the rest of the afternoon to visit Fatehpur Sikri- home of the Jama Masjid mosque and Mughal palace predating the Taj Mahal.

#Agra #Fatehpur Sikri #Jama Masjid #N Homestay #Tomb of Shaikh Salim Chishti