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Our Panna is quite a dry forest. The green you see now will wither soon,” 20-year-old Iden Lal smiles at me as we walk across the dry deciduous expanse just within the territorial area of Panna National Park. What I notice first is how…
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Dear 28-year-old me, We haven’t hung out in a while. At 68, I could blame the knees, but really it’s the foggy brain that seems to be always leaking out of things to remember. And by that I don’t mean bulbs that need fixing or the names of…
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Spring in the eastern Himalayas connotes not only a spectacular burst of flowers, it also marks the peak activity of the region’s glorious passerines, who are busy courting as the temperature thaws. Sikkim’s Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary…
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Stealth and grace marked his every step; his long furry tail swished like a bridal train, helping him maintain balance at the top of a ridge. The snow leopard paused, preened and then presented a proud profile, unaware of the adoring…
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It’s that time of year when everything is bathed in a warm, fuzzy, honey glow and there’s a sweet fragrance in the air. That might be partly due to summer setting in across India but it’s also because the best (and India’s national) fruit…
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Thousands of tourists from India and around the world have many reasons to come to Kashi, often called the world’s oldest living city. Some come to experience the “real India”, some to wash their sins away, and yet others come here to die…
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The summers of my childhood were defined by three things: books, mangoes and power cuts. Often the three would come together and I would eat through plates of raspuri and langda, while sprawled on the floor reading by the light of a…
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What’s the Most Scenic Trek on Koh Chang? People who hike to the top of hills on Koh Chang are often disappointed when they get there as the views are blocked by trees.  The trek up Khao Laem, in the southeast of Koh Chang…
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“You want to go to a farm in Ratnagiri in the middle of May?” “Yes! And we can go mango picking.” “But in May?” My reaction was not that unexpected. Temperatures often reach 40 degrees in Mumbai and parts of Maharashtra in the summer. It’s…
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In the last dozen years, I’ve made at least one annual trip down this road; very often on my own, down a cut and dried route. It starts with a night bus from Delhi that reaches Haridwar in the wee hours. A quick chai in the lone, just-open…
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The first thing most people would notice about Imphal, Manipur’s capital city, is that it seems to be overrun with shabby, worn down buildings, traffic and dusty streets. And the city often becomes the mirror for the state. But if you have…
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As young, impressionable children, we were allowed to watch TV only on Sundays at my grandma’s house in the Himalayan foothills, even during our long winter vacations. The set was a grainy, black-and-white Jolly, kept behind a shutter, and…
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Awesome surfing, the coolest street art, yoga studios, hipster cafes and beach bars – it’s time to find out the best things to do in Canggu, Bali.  Canggu is one of the hottest destinations in Bali right now! Buzzing with…
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Jammu & Kashmir, Srinagar, and beyond Why Go Now: ‘Water trek’ across placid lakes No visitor to Kashmir returns without taking a shikara ride on Dal Lake. We suggest going a step further—and ‘water trek,’ as Kashmiris prefer to call…
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