Bhimbetka and Sanchi

Dec 23, 2015

Train from Mumbai at 2245.

Dec 24, 2015

Reached Bhopal station at 1400. Didn't find any good hotels near the station. Plain rice and egg curry was a safe bet at a small roadside hotel. Left for Habibganj bus terminal immediately and boarded one at 1500. A better option would have been to get down at Habibganj from train and take the bus from Inter state Bus terminal from there.

It took another 50 minutes to Obaidullahganj and further 20 minutes later, the driver stopped for Bhimbetkal. A small road towards the the right off the highway leads towards Bhimbetkal. A small rail crossing and another 1 km further, you reach the ticket counter (Rs. 50/-),nothing extra for camera. From there its an uphill walk of 3 km to reach the main point. Its serene and peaceful as it falls in the Ratapani Sanctuary. Had some Langurs for company on the way.

On the way you get to see many smaller shelters and rocky terrains. Reached the main site at 1500. Paid a guide 250 bucks for a quick tour of the place.

Have to be back some other time to visit all the caves spread around the area. Seems there are over 700 sites spread across this area which is a part of the Satpura ranges.

Last to leave the park, decided to walk down the hill rather than taking a lift. That's the best way to enjoy the silence and nature. Back on the main road, it was dark at 1830 to add to it no lights on the road. Got a bus plying towards Bhopal. It was cold (Around 11 deg). Decided on not buying a jacket or sweater. Reached the SBI guesthouse at 2000. Took a while to convince the caretaker about my booking for the night!


Dec 25 , 2015

Left at 0930 hrs to Bhopal bus stand near the railway station. Enquired at railway station but the next train would be at 15 00 only. Got onto a bus going to Vidisha at 1200. Sanchi would be after Salamatpur. One can see numerous orange, guava farms and the Tropic of Cancer mark on the way.

Reached around 1330. Sanchi Stupa site was ridiculously overcrowded. One can make out the families having no sense of history moving around making their own references of history! Whatever was left off  from history has been well preserved, may be because of the interest shown by the Buddhist nations to a large extent!

The destroyed column of the Ashoka pillar is visible near the South gate of Stupa-1. The main crown is in the Sanchi museum which was closed (on all Fridays).

The main gateways of Stupa 1 are rich in carvings and brahmi script. Buddha relics can be seen all around. Few including the one at temple 45 near the remains of the monastery was well preserved. Left at 1700 from there. Bus ride back to Bhopal station and took Bhopal-Panvel train  at 1945.

Dec 26, 2015

Got down at Igatpuri and took the Manmad Mumbai train. Back to Mumbai at 1200.

Portugese ruins, Bassein - Vasai fort

Portugese ruins (Bassein)Vasai fort, Mumbai
Date - 2nd November 2009



Boarded train : Vidyavihar-Dadar-Virar. Reached Vasai in an hours time.  Boarded a bus from the nearby Bus stand  and within half an hour travel  reached the fort area.



No one to ask for directions, no one to disturb, the forts all yours to explore all day. The entire perimeter inside is lined with palms and thick vegetation.




Moved past a facade and reached what used to be an enormous Church and probably a graveyard. Renovation work was going on here at that time. Stone tablets in portugese lay on the floor and many walls still presented the fine textures of its distant past.






The sea was visible from the fort wall linings. The nearby gate opened to what seemed to be a creek. Further away to the opposite side lay another church/graveyard. The arcs had fine linings with many signages of the past. Here the altar was also partly maintained.





The last of the churches had colored stone walls which presented a pleasant look. This one is bigger than the earlier two churches and is located very near to the Chimaji Appa statue. Few ruins were found in this area and just kept beside the walls of the church. It would have been better to have read in detail the history of the place and then gone over! At around 1730 , left for vasai road railway station...

Daman

Being on the border town one could easily see the transformation - bars mounting up in numbers as soon as one enters the Union Territory tugged in a corner of the state of Gujarat.

Townside waking up

The search for an economical and financially feasible lodging took nearly an hour. Early morning left for the famed beaches of Daman, which turned out to be a shocker Devka beach - dirty, black sands and a few dogs. But Luck seemed to favor us at the beach at the other end of the town. Not a single soul was there, just the four of us and a small shop nearby.

Lighter Moments!!!

T'was fun to play football on the beach, and a binge of beer to pass on. An intriguing sight to see was the tide. Within half an hour , the waters had crept all the way across half a kilometer stretch and it was clearly visible for us- the way the tide crept in. A camel lay on the barren sands , least bothered of the heat. The best moment of the journey was infact the camel ride me and DK had- this was atleast worth the money we spent!!!

The Graveyard....neatly laid

An auto ride back to the main town and this time went to the famed Portuguese Forts on the seaside. The small graveyard inside the fort seemed unusually attractive.

Back at the station, Vapi

One can see the Portuguese ruins, lamp post, the buildings, houses portraying the art and styles of a forgotten era. all around.