Charm of road trips... kicking off 2018...

There is something charming about road trips and when it is into an unknown unexplored destination, makes it that much more special. This year began with one such, rather it was a holiday but with an agenda and plenty of road trips within... 

The first day began with us hitting the road from Rajahmundry to Uppada. There was nothing but trees in one section of the road, making it look like a beautiful canopy.

And then in another section we came across sheep/goat herds, and a few temples down below as well. Oh lets not forget the signboard at one point, it had arrow pointing downwards and we chuckled thinking "So, the car is supposed to fly off the bridge onto the road is it?" lol...

But the most magical of it all was the stretch where we drove on a road with the ocean on one side, and at certain points, the waves would lash over the road as if trying to reach the other side... It was beautiful alright. To prevent the water from overflowing, giant boulders had been placed along the side of the road..

Here are a few shots taken along the road journey.. What has been your most fun road trip? Do share.... Would love to hear/see.. 

Kadalekalu Ganesha in Hampi

There we were headed towards Matanga Hill to catch the sunset and see if we can spot the Yellow Throated Bulbul when we stopped on the way to catch a glimpse of the Kadalekalu Ganesha and the towering Virupaksha temple Vimana. 

The Ganesha statue is infact the largest statue, standing tall at 4.5 meters or 15 feet in height. The beauty of this is that it has been carved out of a huge boulder. This is situated on the north-eastern slope of the Hemakuta hill. It is said that the belly of this Ganesha statue is so huge that it resembles a Bengal gram (Kadalekalu in  Kannada)  which is how he earned the name Kadalekalu Ganesha.  There is also a sanctum built around this structure which is located in the center of a pillared hall. Each of the pillars has beautiful work on them, representing various mythical themes.

You can read more of my experiences in Hampi here

Off to the Blue Hills... and around

This year has been quite good, touch wood!

Rather, this month has been good i should say. I have managed to revisit Delhi, spend time with uncle and cousin, explore a few new places and it was an opportunity to do something for the 1st time, travel with mom. 

And now, another trip is in the offing, am off tonight and back saturday. Yes, it is a short trip, but one that i am definitely looking forward. Yet another 1st, a holiday with friend & her family. During my visit to Kochi, she made me promise them i would join them on a holiday this year, irrespective of where it was. We did make a few plans, zero in on a few destinations, but as always, destiny is taking us elsewhere. No Complaints!

[If you've been on this blog before, you will know this picture and where it was taken... :-)]

Even though i am headed to a destination i've visited a handful of times, am sure it will be different..My last visit to this Hill station was about 5yrs ago, or was it more? I was there for a good 5days, and enjoyed my visit immensely. This time around, i am spending about 6-7hrs before my friends land and we head off to the Club Mahindra resort [ my 1st time at a Resort]. I hope to do some birding, lazy strolls, fun with kids and soak in the nature, apart from the good time i am bound to have with friend and her family... :-) 

See you around...