Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Beer Trail

Starting the trail at Shreyansh's pad

En route to Pit Stop 1 (stable enough to coordinate a photo bomb)

Pit Stop 1: TJ Brew Works

 Selfie with the selfie stick

Selfie with the selfie stick - output

Better job with the selfie stick

After TJ Brew Works

En Route to Pit Stop 2

Pit Stop 2: Kiva

After Kiva

En route to Pit Stop 3

 Pit Stop 3: Independence

Pit Stop 4: Salt Water Grill 

Good Night! 

The Big Dusty

8  Thursday, Oct 1
Unlike most trips, this one actually had such a peaceful start to it. No hurrying to wrap up work, rushing to the airport, not finding enough time to pack, arguing all the way to the airport – none of all that. We peacefully finished work in office and left well in time to make it to our comfortable Emirates flight. It was Geet’s first time on this airline and I was doing the mental math and telling myself that I need to have at least 5 drinks on the flight to call it even on the premium I paid for this. But with just 2 drinks, I ran out of appetite as well as time, and we soon touched down at Dubai at 8:30pm local time for our blast of a weekend.
Geet caught a few winks on the flight as I watched Tomorrowland on the awesome Emirate entertainment system. She wasn’t too impressed with my choice of seats I blocked, as it was close to the exit, but also close to the loo which I hadn’t considered. Moreover, in spite of booking window seats, there were no windows, as this was the seat near the exit! So the Emirates experience was not turning out as first class as I wished for Geet, and was only thankful that it was just a 3 hour flight. However, just before touch down, we strained our necks to catch a glimpse of the city from the window attached to the exit door and the first thing we spot is the Burj Khalifa!
After that neat welcome to the desert city, Noel picked us up at the airport, which we got out of in express time thanks to the separate immigration counters that Emirates enjoys in Dubai, and were pleasantly surprised to notice he owned a BMW coupe. The guys been pretty quiet about it, especially considering he’s had it for 3 years now. Anyway, we drove to his place in The Gardens, Jabel Ali, and met Bhavya who wasn’t keeping too well post their recent return from Andamans and couldn’t come out for drinks and dinner. However, Nikita joined us, and we had a blast of a time at a place called Traders Vic in Madinat Jumeriah. We had this drink called Tiki Puca Puca that was a really wild cocktail, coz in just 2 drinks, I was completely hammered. So much so that I threw up in the next pub we went to, Belgian Beer CafĂ©, and just couldn’t complete the beer that I ordered there. The others couldn’t finish their drinks too, and it was anyway way past closing hours and were hence politely asked to vacate the place as well.

Friday, Oct 2
Woke up with a splitting headache – the Tiki Puca Puca had me in bad. Had some water once I woke which I promptly threw up. Had some coffee after that, which I threw up again. Had a tablet they gave me for a headache, which only managed to put me back to bed given the throbbing head.
I was soon woken up by all three of them saying they were awake and it was really time to go for our brunch that was planned on this day. I was fairly sure that there is almost no way I could eat, but still didn’t want to be wasting my time in Dubai, and so stepped into the shower and spent far longer than I normally would, trying to sober up for the day.
We then picked Niki and drove to Atlantis, the fancy hotel on the far stretch of the Palm Jumeriah, which hosted multiple eating joints, one of which is world famous for their brunches, called Saffron. The moment we got here, I rushed to the loo to throw up once again. This time I made sure I don’t have to throw up again, and just forced everything out, including the party smart pill Noel gave me just before leaving to help me through the day.
I think the effort helped, coz once I got back, I slowly started eating, beginning with some sushi and lobster, and pretty soon, forgot all about the hangover, headache, and the irritable bowel. We even tried out a popular drink here called Pimms which has become my new favourite cocktail coz it’s not as sweet as the Sangria and not as tangy as the Mojito, and pretty much just right to my liking.
So it was Pimms and loads of food after that. The options to eat and drink were just plenty at Saffron. Among drinks, there were options of Malibu in a coconut shell, a watermelon based cocktain served in an actual watermelon, loads of JD cocktails, wine, beer, and all of then served with food that you just don’t seem to have a finish line.
We all tried savouring as many of the dishes that were on offer, but truly did justice to none of the cuisines. It was all just way to much food! And it wasn’t just the drink and food that surprised us here, it was even the crowd. The people here came dressed like it was a club. I was only wondering how people in clubs would be dressed here. The girls were insanely hot and all of them were dancing like the worlds coming to an end soon. It was some experience here!
Soon after, we got out, took some photos of the Atlantis, took a drive around the Palm Jumeriah, and soon hit home where we chalked out our plans for the rest of the day, as Geet tried getting comfortable with Duke and Panda, the 2 cats in the house.

A short nap later, we got ready to visit Atmosphere, the pub on the 123rd floor of Burj Khalifa, where we got a seat right next to the window, which offered a drop dead view of the hotel base, all of 452mts high. It was not an easy reservation to come by, and hats off to Bhavya for pulling that off. We did have a minimum spend of 250 Dirhams to cut through here, which was actually not too much considering the brunch earlier in the day was 500 Dirhams. We had 2 cocktails each, and the entry charges were pretty much exhausted with that. None of us were anyway in a mood to drink or eat too much given how heavy the day had already been, so this was pretty much just right for us. Moreover, the cocktails we ordered were simply awesome. We tried out all the signature cocktails available and loved just each and every one of them.

After the drinks here, we dropped Bhavya off to a hotel where she was catching a fashion show with Niki, and Noel dropped us both off to Ajith’s place where we planned to spend the night. Just before dropping us off, we picked a Shawarma from a store near a petrol bunk, as it was something I was dying to do ever since I got here. However, I ended up picking the Beef Shawarma, which has lately become a craving since the insipid Bombay government put a ban on it, and it turned out half as nice as the regular Chicken Shawarma that I bought for Geet. However, I couldn’t really complain and just punched through the meal as I was fairly hungry given it was a while since brunch, which by the way wasn’t the most I would have ideally made out of a buffet brunch given my stomach was still just recuperating.
We got to Ajith’s place by 11pm by when everyone else was asleep. So we just chatted with him for a short while and called it a night ourselves in Ajith’s big fancy house that was all paid for by Unilever.

Saturday, Oct 3


In spite of sleeping at 1am and not barely getting any sleep even the previous night, I woke up at 6:30am thanks to the east facing windows in the room. The morning was just too bright to continue keeping my eyes shut and let myself look out of the window to just join the party than fight it, and was welcomed with a beautiful sight of the vast desert that was all you could see from the windows at this house.
Geet also woke up shortly and we joined the rest of the gang, Ramya and Aadhya in the living room. After some small talk and an awesome breakfast of Chicken stew with bread, we met up again with Noel and Bhavya, who came over in their Mini Cooper this time.
We hit Sheikh Zayad road once again, the road we kept going up and down in ever since we hit Dubai, and drove all the way to Abu Dhabi to see the Grand Mosque. Noel’s plan was to simply see the Mosque from outside and then hit a joint where we could grab some drinks and food, but he was obviously vetoed by the rest, including me, and we managed to talk a walk inside the Mosque, which was truly grand and surprisingly peaceful. In spite of the number of tourists visiting, the actual functioning Mosque held itself together in charm and sanctity, and being our maiden visit to a Mosque, was thoroughly enjoyed by all of us here.
Soon we drove back to Dubai and hit a place called PF Changs for lunch. This was an American joint that served Chinese as Bhavya explained to us, who ordered 2 plates of Dynamite Shrimp as soon as we got our seats. I picked the menu to see what beer I can get and was perturbed to notice there were no drinks! Noel calmly explained how drinks can only be served from a place that was attached to a hotel – sort of the same irritating rule that Chennai followed, and I was quite surprised at how leaving the Mosque in a hurry to simply hit a joint that wasn’t even offering a beer was something Noel wanted to do so bad. Anyway, guess Dubai has just grown on him, and now I had to make do with a Peach Banana Smoothie.
The Dynamite Shrimp soon landed on the table in 2 cocktail glasses, and Bhavya had hyped this up so much that our expectations were sky high on the food. However, once we tasted it, we were far beyond sky high, as this was just the bomb as Bhavya called it herself.
Just as Geet and I rummaged through the shrimps, we get a call from the Tour Operator about our car having arrived for our desert safari on this day. Bhavya spoke to him and asked him to wait a bit while we finished our food, and by the time we got to the car, it was good 20mins since we first spoke to him, and there were 4 other girls in the car who were just not looking happy with us ambling into the car. The initial awkward moment gave way to a really great time with all of them as they turned out to be a merry bunch of Irish-women settled in Aberdeen, the only Scottish city Geet and I have visited.
The car that picked us up was a Land Cruiser, and we thought it would just be a transitional vehicle before we entered a bus that would take us to the desert, and then maybe an off-roader for the dune bashing. But then it was this Land Cruiser all along the way, with our not so friendly driver Mahmood who barely said a word during the entire trip and just wanted to get to what he did best – bashing the dunes.
So we got to a point where he drove off the road and parked at the entrance of the vast desert that stretched before us. Deflated the tyres for better grip, drank up a bottle of sprite that was probably his Red Bull/Absinthe, picked up the volume on the radio which actually had AT40 playing, and pummeled ahead.
The next 20 mins were some of the wildest moments in a car for all of us. The airwaves belted some pretty good music between Top20 and Top10 and Mahmood sped along the dunes with the setting sun to keep us company on one side, as he nearly toppled the car twice to give us one hell of an unforgettable car ride.
We soon got to a point in the desert where there was to be a belly dance show and dinner, after which Geet and I were to return in the car, while the rest of our new friends would stay back under the starlit sky.
The belly dance was quite enjoyable, but Geet was just not appreciating the rest of the begrimed setting with threadbare sheets and mediocre food. In hindsight, it wasn’t the unbomb but I guess the start of our trip was so high standard, that we just couldn’t get around to appreciating the subtler offerings of the city.
I was anyway enjoying my Corona, which I was so pleased to see being sold in the desert here after the lunch gaffe, and we both made small talk with the ladies from Ireland-Scotland as we punched through a little of the food.
Soon Mahmood took us back to Dubai and dropped us at Ibn Batuta Mall, which was right next to where Geet and Noel stayed, and waited outside for them as they wrapped up the movie Talwaar that they were watching.
Once they got out, we ordered something called Manakeesh, an Arabian dish that resembled a Pizza, and picked a take away to have with some drinks back at home. And once we got home, all Geet and I could have was one Breezer that we both split as we gobbled some of the tasty Manakeesh along with the leftovers of lunch from PF Chang. It was just too hectic a day for us, with the visit to Abu Dhabi as well as the desert safari on the same day, and we were just too tired to even stay awake.

Sunday, Oct 4
I once again woke up with barely 5 hours of sleep, and had to pack everything and load into Noel’s car as he and Bhavya were leaving for work and Geet and I had our last day in Dubai to ourselves. The plan was that Noel would pick us up at Burj Khalifa where we would end our day and take us straight to the airport.
So once they left, Geet and I got ready and hit the road in a cab that Bhavya coordinated for us, which took us straight to Dubai Mall. We had originally planned to visit Ikea before Dubai Mall, but glad we kept it to just one place in the day, as even Dubai Mall was too huge for us to come anywhere close to checking out substantially before the day ran out. I was thankfully loaded with the Dubal Mall app that helped me navigate through the stores seamlessly as Geet shopped, and although we couldn’t hit Bose and Louis Vuitton as part of the itinerary I chalked out for ourselves, I still took Geet to H&M, Gap, Aldo, Call it Spring, Nine West, Forever 21, Micheal Kors, Charles & Keith and a few other stores she popped into en route to help her with the shopping, and in spite of all those stores, she just couldn’t pick anything more than a couple of shirts for herself which was just beyond my comprehension. Anyway, guess its just one more of those things only a girl would understand, and I was content with the fact that I managed a good meal at Cheesecake Factory during the day, seeing a beautiful view of the sunset from the view from the top of the Burj Khalifa and finally ending the day with the fountain show from the base of the Burj Khalifa.
The visit to the view from the top was not all that stirring given we had already enjoyed a similar view from Atmosphere. However, while Atmosphere only provided us the night sky, we caught the sunset from here which was majestic.
Once we got down, we met up with Noel who took us to Magnolia where we had the tastiest Red Velvet Cup Cake and then walked to PF Chang for one last bite of the Dynamite Shrimp to find that the restaurant was closed, which turned out to be a good thing as we visited Tim Horton for a juice instead, which was when we caught the fountain show.
We then drove to the airport which took us far lesser time that we thought, giving us enough time to repack our luggage and browse through duty free with sufficient time to pick exactly what we wanted before boarding.
Once inside the Emirate airline, I ordered a quick 2 rounds of JD and Coke and watched Ex Machina as our last experience of Dubai touched down at Bombay 3 hours later. A Dubai trip that was never really on the agenda, with 3 days so packed that it actually felt like a weeklong trip, and with company that made it one of the best party trips ever.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Times Passion Trail


I decided to celebrate the big 33 a little differently this time, partying with a complete bunch of strangers rather than surrounding myself with people I am close to, which is the way I like to spend important days, especially ones like my birthday. This was a curated trail organized by TOI called the Royal Food Trail in Madhya Pradesh, and given I’m a foodie and the fact that anyone would love a royal treatment, it made sense to consider a tour like this. Although it went completely against something Geet would want to do, it eventually turned out to be one of the best trips we have been on, and here are some of the highlights:
1)      The fact that this is organized by TOI, ensured there was sufficient awareness translating to over 3000 entries, and giving TOI an opportunity to handpick the 24 participants on the Trail. This was probably the best part of the tour, as it ensured a group of like minded individuals, who got along like a house on fire, making the entire trip truly memorable.
2)      Some of the experiences on the trip were totally impossible to replicate. Dining with the royal family while hearing their stories. Staying in the very rooms that the Kings and Queens once lived in. Savoring certain delicacies that we may never get to try again, including some that were prepared by the current day Maharaja of Mandu in Madhya Pradesh.
3)      Visiting places like Maheshwar and Dhar that is nearly impossible for people like Geet and me to have ever considered on our own, and thereafter, having the time of our lives visiting them.
The whole tour was a concerted venture between TOI, Yatra.com and the MP Tourism Board. TOI was largely involved in the branding and scouting for bytes, while Yatra.com and the MP Tourism Board were somehow trying to keep the act together in spite of the rants from some of the travelers given a bunch of gaffes on the trip.

Thursday, Aug 20
The group convened outside the Bhopal airport, where Manoj from Yatra.com stood holding a “Times Passion Trail” board. There were 2 flights each from Bombay and Delhi, bringing in people from these cities, as well as other cities who took the connecting flights from Bombay/Delhi given this was the only way to get to Bhopal. So once everyone came together, we began our journey towards Jahan Numa Palace where we were to spend Day 1.
Radhika from the group who was later christened Radhe Ma was the first to make an impression given her large personality and an even larger voice. She herself stated that she kept the group entertained during the day while Suraj took over the reins at night, which was completely true given how the next 4 days transpired. Suraj was the next person we got to know who picked us out from the group to have breakfast with, and he was this typical advertising guy who was never short of pearls to share, some of them being:
·         In today’s digital world, one needs to isolate one’s self, in order to connect
·         Nothing is real until it is posted in the virtual world. If it is not on virtual, it is not real.
At breakfast, I had some of the best Chicken Sausages I’ve ever had. It’s usually something I don’t enjoy at breakfast, but took it anyway as I wasn’t in the mood to start with Poha and Bhujia which I knew would be staple for the next few days given we were in MP. After a good breakfast and even better conversation, we checked into our second room as the first one that was given to us just prior to breakfast had 2 individual beds instead of a King bed, one of the earliest gaffes from the OC. We had to quickly change and meet at a conference table where Sanjay, the main man from TOI introduced himself, followed by Mr. Gaekwad, the chief architect of the tour, Anita, a historian that we were supposed to take tips from, but was completely ignored by pretty much everyone in the group, and lastly Mr. Syed Akhtar sahab, probably one of the most articulate octogenarians we have met.
The session was an introduction to the tour that was to unravel itself, which included Akhtar sahab taking us through a long list of 50 dishes that hail from MP, including 13 different types of Roti from here.
He also spoke of some of the historic monuments at Bhopal, which included one of the largest and well as one of the smallest mosques in the world, a big lake called Bada Thalab, that was actually man made as our ancestors here were asked to bathe in 7 different types of water bodies in order to cure themselves of diseases, and there were only 6 lakes in the vicinity which prompted the king to commissione the creation of Bada Thalab which would be the 7th water body that his subjects could use. Akhtar sahab had a wealth of information, and spoke with a dry sense of humour that kept all of us listening with rapt attention in spite of the lack of sleep on everyones faces given the early morning travel everyone undertook. 
Post this session, we had a short 1 hour DYOT which we quickly used to freshen up and change to “semi-casuals” which was the prescribed attire for the dining sessions during this trail as we would be meeting dignitaries, and Sanjay had already met and chided me on wearing shorts which I did thinking we would get some time at least once we land and checkin.
Anyway, we got into the bus and prepared ourselves for a journey to our lunch destination, and we reached in about 2 minutes, as the hotel was just down the road. We were wondering why we even needed a bus ride for this.
 The lunch venue was at Rail Coach Restaurant, which was a restaurant created out of an actual train. It was so authentic that when people walk in, you can actually feel the train shake, giving the aging shock absorbers in the trains underbelly, providing the impression of the train being in motion. They even set up TV screens for windows on one side, which had a scenery video on loop to once again add to the effect. Even the entrance was just like that of a train station, as there was an entire platform with sign boards around the train restaurant. We were just admiring all of this, with HP for company, who we were having a first and last serious conversation with, as he turned out to be the next funniest in the gang after Suraj and Radhika, when suddenly some well built security guards started walking around the restaurant with the organizers and we started to get the feeling that somebody important is going to join us. Within a few minutes, there was some commotion outside, and we started to strain ourselves out to see who it was, and it actually turned out to be Shivraj Chouhan, CM of MP! He entered the restaurant from the door where we were the very first table, and happily shook hands with all of us there. He then sat on one of the tables for a brief moment, laying out some sound bytes, before stepping out for some photo ops that all the participants were thronging to be a part of.
Geet and I were obviously not being very pushy and found ourselves lining the corners, because of which we got cut out when the photo actually appeared in the next days TOI edition, but we still managed to get a “selfie” with him that Geet very nicely went and asked him for. The whole thing was quite an experience that caught us completely off guard, and was a really neat touch by the organizers.
After the tryst with politics, we got back to food, the reason we were here in the first place, with a culinary experience of the Bundelkhandi cuisine. We had Dal Soup, Gujan ki Sabji (an Arbi dish), Indrahar (a Kofta curry), Bhata Bharta (from which we got a really strong flavor of mustard) and Peas Muna, which we had with Lochai (poori) and Bhopali Veg Biryani, and finally topped them off with Bhopali Jamun that is like the Jamuns we get here, but with an interesting filling. The entire menu was vegetarian, which we got to know was arranged given the presence of a government dignitary there, but we didn’t really complain as just about every dish tasted brilliant. I was also surprised to know that all dishes were prepared with mustard oil, although the flavor was strong only in the Bharta given the cooking style. 
Post a scrumptious lunch, the group decided to walk back given the short distance, and catch up on another short 1 hour DYOT before we stepped out again to visit a museum nearby followed by a boat ride on the Bada Thalab. The museum was really impressive for an Indian one. Most museums we see here start and end before you realize it, and the ones abroad tend to go on and on. This one was a really huge and well designed museum, with artifacts from all around the country, describing the origin of the human civilization, starting from Homo Sapiens to the various tribes that exist even today.
This was followed up with a boat ride that offered one of the best sunset views we have ever seen. The Bada Thalab is a really big lake and you are constantly getting the view of the sunset from different angles and backgrounds, and Geet and I went ballistic on the photos.
I was just thinking to myself that I possibly could not have asked for a better birthday, in spite of the fact that nobody around me knew about it, as the lunch and sunset were truly great experiences on their own. But the highlight of the day was actually still to come.
 Geet and I changed into dinner attire once we returned from the boat ride, and walked up to the dining area which was completely transformed with candle lights all around the entrance arch, followed by lights that lined up the lawns leading up the grand ball room. It was the prettiest setup we have even seen at a dinner that wasn’t someone’s wedding, and my elation knew no bounds when I noticed Chivas being served at the bar. I quickly got to downing a few drinks with Galauti Kababs and Chicken Liver Quiche, when members of the Royal Family here began interacting with us. There were 4 couples in all, which included the parents, two sons and a nephew with their spouses. The parents were grandchildren of General Obaidullah Khan, who was the last of the Begums that ruled Bhopal, and it was interesting to hear about the matriarchal style of leadership that existed here in the 19th and early 20th century. The younger couples that we were chatting with were really cool people to hang out. They have studied abroad, worked in Bombay, and now run this property along with 2 others that the family still owns.
 Just as we were chatting with all of them, I notice a cake being brought out with my name on it. Geet was busy with Sanjay a while back, and I figured now that this is what she was plotting. I cut the cake just as the Qayali band singing in the background all this while started “happy birthday to you” in Qayali style. Listening to them, cutting the cake, and being wished by everyone in the group, it was something I could never have thought would happen.
 The night only got even better from here, as when we got into the grand ball room, Geet and I noticed our names right next to one of the royal couples, and we spent the rest of the night chatting away with Lady Anjali Jaisalmer, who is a descendent of a Rajasthan Royal Family, a Hindu Pathan, who married the Muslim Pawars of Bhopal. She was regaling us with stories of how their wedding created a lot of news given a Hindu Muslim union among Royalty that was completely unheard of, and more importantly, how she practices Islam right now, and abstaining from all alcohol, in spite of being a complete socialite most of her life.
Throughout dinner, not only were we engaged in a deep discussion with her, but were continuously served food and drinks by waiters who just stood behind us at all points of time, when not in the process of bringing the next dish, that it looked like we could just snap our fingers and they would appear next to you the next instant. We were served dish after dish of complete extravaganza, and even learned a lot about them:
·         Dungar Mutton: Dungar is Onion skin that is fried, and with minced mutton, the taste was simply divine
·         Bateyr: This is Quail here, and although the meat was not something I tried, the gravy was awesome
·         Mutton Nihari: Absolutely the tastiest Mutton Gravy to date
·         Machi ki Sheekh: Never knew Sheekh kababs could be made from fish as well! And another interesting trivia here was that Sheekh was the kabab format used for the working class, which Galauti or Kakori was used for the royals. Of course, we were trying out different cuisines from that era, and made sense to try some dishes that even the working class used to have back then
·         Yakhni Pulao: Again, the tastiest Mutton Rice I’ve ever had. And another tidbit here; Pulao is again the delicacy for the Royalty, while Biryani was for the working class. Difference was that Pulao is cooked in the meat stock while Biryani is just Dum style
There were a whole host of dishes and I’ve mentioned the top ones here, and the way they were being served, we were completely full after the first round of starters and main course with Roti and gravy. So when they gave the palette cleanser, I thought it was a dessert, given it was paan flavoured kulfi on ice cubes. I was in for a complete shock when they served the highlight main course, Yakhni Pulao, just after this. But somehow the palette cleanser had actually done the trick, and we gorged on the Pulao as well. After all of this, the dessert comes by, and by this time we were seriously starved for space in the stomach, so Geet and I just took one dish between the 2 of us. Right across the table were Kapil, Sahana and HP, and they ended up taking only 1 dish between all 3 and giving us smiles from there. In spite of starting out with the noble intention to only take a few bites from the 3 desserts that were offered on 1 plate, Geet and I still devoured the Shahi Tukda, again the most brilliant Shahi Tukda we’ve ever had.
All in all, it was just the most wonderful dinner we have ever been a party of. The Royal Family were such a delight to hang out with. Geet even exchanged numbers with Anjali, and we chatted around for a bit more time before we got back to our rooms to crash out.

Friday, August 21
I diligently woke up early and landed at the breakfast counter by 8am which was the time given to us to assemble, and found nobody else apart from 2 waiters still trying to set the place up. So I called Manoj from Yatra.com, and he too groggily picked up his phone. So I realized people were pretty passed out from the party the previous night, which in itself was a stretch as nobody got any rest for the whole day after a Red Eye flight in the morning. So I got back to my room and found Geet attending some work calls and furiously tapping away at her laptop at the same time.
So I basically had too much free time for myself and decided to hit the 25mt long swimming pool, followed by an awesome sauna that was available on the premises. Post a refreshing work out, we caught up with the rest of the crew at 9:30am and enjoyed the sausages and poha once again at Jahan Numa before we checked out and began our long journey towards Maheshwar.
We traveled for 2 hours and took a lunch break at a place called Dodi where Radhika was joking saying it belonged to the Dodi of Al Fayad. Suraj had smartly packed some Yakhni Pulao from the previous night, that one of the “royal” waiters promptly parceled for him when he asked them to, and both of us were chomping on it as the spread available was once again vegetarian just like the previous day. We were craving for some beer as well, and Sanjay very nicely had some stock in his caravan, which was a separate vehicle that was following our bus everywhere, much to the contempt of the people on board. Suraj, HP and a few others had a bit of this beer that was available in the caravan, along with the Yakhni Pulao and a few dishes that were once again really good – the Sabudana Kichdi for example. It had pomegranate and peanuts in it, and tasted nothing like the crap you get in Bombay.
 We continued on our journey after lunch, and weren’t even allowed to take a tea break during the long 4 hour travel, as we wanted to catch the sunset at Maheshwar. The ride didn’t seem as long though, as we were being entertained by Mr. Amit Bhardwaj, the photographer on the tour, who turned out to be far more than just a photographer. He kept cracking one joke after another, and people like Radhika and Suraj who were the entertainment so far were also spellbound to hear the stuff Amit was cracking. He made the lousy planning and terrible driving by our bus driver feel much lighter, and we ended up reaching Hotel Akhilya Fort well after dusk missing the entire sunset, and once again had very little time to quickly change and congregate at the sit out area.
 Geet and I took our time to get ready though, as we just couldn’t get over the room that was given to us. Being one of the only three couples on board, and having celebrated a birthday the previous day, the organizers decided to give the best room available on the property to the two of us.
It was called Nagarkhana and was situated outside the main property, on elevated stilts, such that it oversaw the main Maheshwar Temple, the Narmada river just behind that, which was a view that was directly visible from either the bed in the room itself, or the humongous balcony available just outside the room. This was apparently the actual bedroom where Queen Akhilyabai Holkar used to stay once upon a time, and their family was known to have done done so much for the people here, that the airport at Indore is actually credited to them and called Akhilyabai Holkar airport.
Once we got ready and stepped out to the dining area, we met Mr. Richard Holkar, who is the current descendent of this very family, and chatted with him as we soaked in the brilliant view of the Narmada that was visible from this place. There were once again really good drinks available, and the entire group came dressed up looking really grand. We enjoyed some traditional Maheshwari cuisine after this, which included Katahal (jackfruit) Pulao, Goolar (Plum) Duck, Corn Kichdi (probably the best version of Kichdi I’ve had till date) and many other dishes that were finally topped with a dessert that was fruit stuffing in a poached apple. The entire meal was simply stunning, served by a bunch of waiters that were not as grand as the ones at Jahan Numa, but just as efficient, as they were managed by an incredible lady who lived here called Kunta Bai. Geet spent a lot of time chatting with her and even tipped her graciously before leaving, as she felt Kunta Bai reminded her a lot of her late Grandma.
 After lunch we checked out the only other room apart from ours that was located outside the main property, called Maharaja Tent, where Sahana and Priyanka were staying. This was an actual Tent set up on the lawn to maximize the space available, and offered an equally brilliant view like the one we had, but instead of a balcony, they had a small indoor pool where they could sit in.
Quite a lot of people looking for a night cap landed up here and were preparing themselves for a Laphroig bottle that HP had brought with him, but Geet and I were just not in the mood for it given how much food we had just stuffed ourselves with. So after chatting around for a bit, we hit Nagarkhana and slept like logs.

Saturday, August 22
 Geet and I woke up to a beautiful view of the sunrise, visible direct from our bed as we intentionally kept the curtains open in order to enjoy this view in the morning. The sight of the sun, albeit covered by clouds, marked with the views of the temple and river, completed one of the best morning views for us. We got ready early and took a walk down to the Narmada river, where a huge bunch of people dressed in orange were taking their morning dips as part of their religious rites in the river. It was one of those religious sights you see being romanticized on documentaries of India. I was beginning to get a craving to take a dip myself in the river, but decided to favor my better judgment and simply continue behaving as tourists and taking more photos.
 Once we got back, Mr Gaekwad was explaining to us over breakfast how the location of Akhilyabai Fort is in such a manner that you are likely to sleep completely dreamless and really deep. This was actually true for us, and apparently for everyone else as well as they completely agreed with him.
Over breakfast, I ordered Scrambled Egg in Maheshwari style, which was eggs that had carrot and some herbs as stuffing and tasting gorgeous. I had these with bacon, which was a beautiful fusion dish that I just couldn’t seem to get enough of. Geet ordered the same dish, but in Omelet version, and Kapil and Bimmy from the group also ordered the same dishes after trying it out from us.
A quick DYOT session after breakfast, we started off once again towards the banks of the river for a boat ride that was arranged for us. The entire group went on 3 boats to a temple that was located bang in the middle of the river, were some people in the group got off to pay their respects, while the lazier ones like us remained on the boats while Amit continued taking our photos and cracking jokes like “thoda fitness dikhayie pls”.
The weather also continued to remain gracious to us, with sufficient cloud cover minus the rains, which ensured the boat journey was very peaceful. Once we embarked on shore, the group went shopping at a sari factory adjacent to our Hotel where they were getting fresh Maheshwari sari’s to purchase. Geet didn’t pick any given how expensive they actually were, but the rest of the group ensured some heavy business for the day.
We then checked out from our rooms and had lunch at the Akhilyabai Holkar Hotel itself before starting off on our journey towards Mandu where we were to spend the last night of the trip, with a lunch spread that actually turned out to be the last great meal of the trip, but little did we know at that point.
There were just the basics that Kunta Bai had prepared; Luchi with Dal and Paneer Palak, Rice with Mutton Roganjosh, and the dishes were simply out of the world. The Mutton Roganjosh with plain rice was just the most delectable Mutton Gravy dish we’ve had and none of us could stop ourselves from repeating it over and over again. Sipping on beer from glasses that were shaped like the conches that were probably used to announce the arrival of kings back in the day only added to the effect, and the group of us that included Radhika, Archana, Kapil, Bimmy, HP, Sahana, Suraj, Geet and me, sat on a table in a room that was away from the rest, which was perfect for us given the amount of noise we generated. It was an absolute blast of a lunch before we once again hit the road for another slow bus ride. Amit joined the group to once again provide the entertainment, and just before dusk set in, we reached our Hotel at Mandu. Now this Hotel was a huge disappointment given how the last 2 days were. The rooms were dilapidated, and the only saving grace was the view of the lake from the rooms. But we weren’t complaining much as we already savoured some amazing moments so far, and moreover, were only spending a very short time at this Hotel here, as we would be driving to Dhar, 30kms away in Innovas for dinner later in the night.
 Again a quick 1 hour DYOT session followed, after which the boys were asked to assemble earlier in order to get turbans tied on our heads. All of us wore our best formals and headed towards Dhar for the Darbar that was setup there for us. It was a fairly awkward session when it started off, as we were asked to stand up one by one and salute to the Maharajah who was announced on to the throne in the typical fashion we have seen on old soaps. Then there was some singing about the stories of the dynasty here. Finally we were asked to compulsorily take a tour of the palace when all we really wanted to do was grab a drink. It was at this point that one of the members of the royal family came up to us and in polished English, which completely defied the attire he wore, implored us to be less formal and go ahead and have a drink first. They were offering drinks that were not of the same quality we were getting earlier, but Old Monk was still available in the 12 year old edition, and that was more than enough for me.
When we began drinking and having the food from here, we realized that all of this setup was nowhere near the class of royalty we experienced so far on this trip, but the incredible thing was the effort they put in organizing this. The entire Royal Family went about doing their chores and serving all of us throughout the evening, and didn’t have a morsel of food or drink on their own. The food was also prepared by them, with some of the dishes cooked by the Maharajah himself. Suraj kept joking saying that cooks from Bihar are anyway called Maharaj and hence its not very different. But the fact was that these people were indeed descendents of the kings from here, and today don’t have anything to show for it, apart from trying really hard to give us a whiff of the royalty that once existed. We really felt bad for all of them here and completely mesmerized by how the royal family treated us.
There was one time towards the end when each of us were called up by Sanjay and the Maharajah handed out Silver Cuff Links for all the boys, and when the girls were being called up, he didn’t like the gifts that were being given to them, and instead asked his staff to get some silverware from the house itself. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough silverware to give to all the girls there, and the Maharajah was so upset that he said he will personally ensure all the girls got their gifts once they get back, as he wasn’t happy with the gifts that were currently available. That was just too sweet of him. At the end of it all, the Maharajah even made a closing speech, and when he was done, gave the mic to his wife to speak as well, and even she spoke articulately in English. I was completely stumped by their diction, knowledge and character, all of it in spite of living in near poverty. The poverty is not really an exaggeration, as there was one time when we were trying to go the loo, and were asked to use the one in the Maharajah’s bedroom itself rather than the public one outside, and even his own bathroom was barely holding itself together.
Overall, it was actually a humbling experience for us, with the only loss being the inability to enjoy the food here all that much. There were some dishes among the starters that we enjoyed, like the Kaleji (Mutton Liver), Mutton Samosa, Corn Kachori and Maratha Fish Fry. The main course consisted of some dishes like Black Fowl Chicken and Egg Halwa that we were looking forward to, but really didn’t taste that great. But the good thing about not eating too much was that we ended up drinking long into the night sitting out at the lawn once we returned to the Hotel in Mandu with the entire gang. There were surprisingly a huge group of people who congregated for the night cap, including the organizers, being the last day we were out here.
We kept cracking jokes through the night, and got back to our rooms only once we finished the bottle of Laphroig along with some of the remanents of the 12 year OMR that we picked from the Durbar.

Sunday, August 23
Breakfast was extremely basic at Hotel Mandu and we began our journey towards Indore by about 11am. We were to reach by 1pm, grab lunch and Geet and I would be the first ones leaving from the group as we had an earlier flight at 3:30pm. But by the time we reached, it was past 2pm, and Geet and I barely made it to the airport. The rest of the group leaving to Bombay had a flight at 5pm, and they too ended up missing lunch given some sessions that were planned prior to the last meal. So for all of the Bombay folk, the awesome lunch at Maheshwar the previous day was pretty much the last good meal we had for the trip.
It was a bit disappointing with the organizing, as the entire trip felt like they were just about trying to keep it together, rather than going an extra mile to create delight. It may have been expected given it was being organized by the Times, with so much of hoopla going behind some of the moments along the trip like the CM visiting us, meeting Richard Holkar, and dining with the royals from different regions, some of which were even covered in the TOI editions. But anyway, I really didn’t want to complain too much as they did give us some moments that would last a lifetime, the most important of which were the friends we made over this trip. Something we are sure will stick for a long time given we share one very important passion – Food!

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Udaipur Part 3

Udaipur
This is my 3rd visit to Udaipur and surprisingly, my first entry about it. I could write about my repeated visits to the City Palace, Sahelion ki Bhag, Pichola Lake etc etc, but they were so boring even the first time, that going there the second and third has not voided the reason to write about them entirely. So I will stick to writing about the cool things that happened on this trip, some in fact, were paradigm shifts with regards to my relationship with the Royyuru’s.
To start off, it was Geet’s dads 60th birthday celebrations in Udaipur, and Naan booked Udai Villas for all of us, which is pretty much the best property to stay in Udaipur, and turned out to be one of the best services we have ever received at a hotel.
So it all began with Naan surprising dad with his visit to Bombay. I had some crazy coordination to do on the Thursday night where I had to go home and pack my clothes for stay at in-laws as Geet would be there once Naan comes, then pick mom from Oberoi Mall junction, go the international to pick Naan, then get to domestic to pick Geet who was returning from Hyderabad on the same day, and finally go home to surprise dad. And it all started with my driving our car into a ditch outside our house, for which I thankfully received some help from some guys smoking nearby, and managed to not keeping Geet’s mom waiting too long. It was just a total rush from thereon, and managed to complete everything with precision timing. And it turned out to be worth it at the end of it all, as Geet’s dad was immensely surprised, which was the point of all this planning.
The next few days was chilling out with her family. Saturday morning we played squash, evening we watched Drishyam, Sunday we lunched at Masala Library, which turned out insanely expensive for the level of appreciation Geet’s parents had over the experimental food. But the good thing was, the first of the paradigm shifts happened here. Naan peacefully ordered a cocktail. In fact, Geet ordered the same drink and asked for it to be a mocktail. So we specifically ordered an alcohol based drink, which was a first for me in front of her parents. It took me nearly 3 years to finally start having some Breezers at least in front of them over these lunches/dinners we used to plan as Geet would just never let me even consider that option, which was so painful as I really appreciate my food when it is accompanied with a drink. But thankfully, all that changed on this day. We ordered a drink specifically in front of them, and I was so glad they knew we were having alcohol in our drinks, until mom nicely took a sip from my LIIT and nearly threw up when she tasted it! So clearly, she didn’t know what was in them, but hopefully at least dad did. But irrespective, I am now confident of moving from Breezers to cocktails from our next dining out moment.
Anyway, Monday morning we left to Udaipur. We barely slept the previous night as Geet and I were working till midnight on Sunday and had to wake up in 2 hours for the red eye flight. So we didn’t even get the first stage of the power nap, and had to stay in that transient state all the way to Udai Villas. Once we got there, we thankfully received our rooms immediately, unlike the time at Lalit Hotel where Geet and I went for our first anniversary, where we had to painfully wait for some 3 hours before getting our rooms.
So after checking in, we caught up on some sleep, then went out to lunch at Ambrai, which was the same restaurant Geet and I ate at when we were the last time, only that was dinner and now we were having lunch. Got back to our rooms, slept some more, and stepped out for dinner at Upre.
Here was the second big paradigm shift. We ordered Mutter Mass, a mutton mince dish with peas, which was Geet’s suggestion. It was a good follow up to the Lal Mass we had during lunch which Naan was having for the first time on my suggestion and he completely enjoyed it. I had never heard of this Mutter Mass before, but turned out really tasty. The paradigm shift moment was when Geet tasted some of it from my plate. Now this was the first time she’s having mutton with me, in all of these 5+ years I’ve known her. So glad she finally broke this barrier. When I first met her, she wasn’t having chicken either, it was just prawns and crabs. It was a restaurant in Chennai called Kabab Junction where she first dabbled in chicken given how much K and I were enjoying it there, and thereafter she’s managed to have it although it was always small pieces without the bones. And now she tried mutton, albeit in mince form.
The next day, we had a beautiful moment with a peacock outside our room, which decided to take off right over our heads and land on the terrace. Something I managed to get on my phone camera making it a spectacular shot.
We spent the rest of the day dong some more sight seeing and eating at Natraj, a restaurant specializing in Rajasthani Thali, where all of us enjoyed the Daal Batti, Jeera Rice and Daal, and everything else on offer on the plate.

I left after this as I was returning a day before the rest, and it was back to work for me from Wednesday. A few days later, Geet’s mom made Capsicum stuffed Mutton mince, and Geet once again tried it from my plate, so Udaipur was definitely not a one off. Now I need to have a cocktail when we go out next. That was completely assure me that all that happened on this trip are not one offs and definitely paradigm shift moments.