East Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh, India (2nd May 2010) While India is known for its sweet tooth and a range of tasty sweet foods, I have seldom seen how they are actually made. Fortunately, I got this opportunity rather unexpectedly while travelling through the villages of East Godavari district in the Southern Indian state of …
Paris, France (6th September 2008) Come spring-time, Paris springs to life with the numerous cafés and brasseries on its sidewalks. Small tables and chairs are lined up outside the café on the sidewalk and Parisians indulge in their favourite pastimes of eating, drinking, smoking and people watching. During my time in Paris, I used to …
Ayutthaya, Thailand (16th April 2011) During my travels in Thailand, I had seen a lot of statues and idols of the Buddha. However, I found a very peculiar one in Wat Maha That temple in Ayutthaya. Here, the Buddha's head is lodged in the tangled roots of a large tree and there is also a …
Hoi An, Vietnam (1st January 2013) Being one of the largest producers of rice in the world, Vietnam has managed to find other ingenious use for the food grain – that of creating art. I came across these rice paintings in a little shop in Hoi An, and stood fascinated before them wondering how much …
Berlin, Germany (19th November 2008) For a city which is steeped in 20th century history and with an eclectic assortment of architecture, chancing upon this architectural beauty in the heart of Berlin was not surprising. But realizing that it was actually a Holocaust memorial constructed in the memory of all the Jews murdered by Hitler’s …
Passikudah, Sri Lanka (5th August 2013)The sun was setting on the eastern coast. The beach near our resort was so serene, the sand so soft, coconut trees swayed in the wind and the evening sky had acquired a blue hue. The setting was perfect for an evening walk along the coast line. We were virtually …
4th - 6th August 2013 After 4 days of traversing the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka and soaking in some wondrous sights - marvelous archaeological sites, awe inspiring palaces built on rocks, and Buddhist temples built in caves - it was finally time for us to stop for a while, just relax and do nothing. It was therefore …
Continue reading Travelogue: East Coast Reborn (Passikudah, Sri Lanka)
We had to choose between Penang and Langkawi.... After our Singapore sojourn, me and my buddies had already made up our mind to go around Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur was planned for the last two days, and we still had two days in between. So where do we go? We had to make a choice between …
Continue reading Travelogue: The Jewel of Kedah (Langkawi, Malaysia)
Cannes, a town in France’s Cote d’Azur, is synonymous with an annual event that captures eyeballs all over the world. As the Cannes travel website proclaims, the town’s moment of glory takes place in May, with the International Film Festival, when images of the stars descending the red-carpeted steps of the Palais des Festivals are …
Continue reading Travelogue: Where the Stars Come Down (Cannes, France)
I had to spend the whole night cramped in a cab and travel over 800km in order to get to what is considered to be one of the most beautiful islands in Thailand…. There we were the day before, in a low-key Pattaya restaurant, the gang groggy (with hangovers), and all of us downing fresh …
Continue reading Travelogue: The Isle of Coconuts (Ko Samui, Thailand)
At around 6 o clock on a cold October morning in 2008, I was shaken awake by my agitated friend who was signaling his watch and whispering fiercely. At first, I did not understand what the fuss was about; and then my mind cleared. We were in Munich now, and we were to take the …
Continue reading Travelogue: Journey Into Fairytale Land (Black Forest, Germany)
At noon in late September 2008, I suddenly woke up from my deep reverie; I found myself staring at a strip of shining coastline and the vast stretch of the ocean beyond. So mesmerizing was the sight before me that I did not remember where I was for some time; I did not care. I …
Continue reading Travelogue: Welcome to the Riviera! (Nice, France)
The Wandering Buddha 