Raj Gutta

The bus reached Pune at 1:30am. My plan was to check into a retiring room at the railway station. But luck did not favor me this time, there were no rooms and even the dorm was filled. The attendant who I woke from his sleep wearily told me that one bed in the dorm might be available at 4:00am. I was in no mood to keep waiting when my body was unable to cooperate. I decided to stay at a budget hotel across the railway station. When I had called earlier, the receptionist told me that they have a single room with a common bath for 500Rs. So, I went to check the room and found out that the check out time was 5pm, which I thought was weird. I never came across a 5pm check ... read more

The train reached Aurangabad at 1:45pm (a little late). I went to the enquiry to get a retiring room. Luckily, there was a non-AC room and I was asked to pay 60Rs. The crowd at the ticket counter was too big and I realized it would take forever to pay 60Rs. Instead, I told the guy I would just pay him the money and get into the room for a quick shower. My biggest concern was to make sure that I visit the temple and also Ellora caves. The caves close to public at 5:30pm and wanted to get there on time. However my priority was to visit the temple first. The railway official was nice enough to allow me into the room without any payment. The retiring room was well maintained and had a decent ... read more

Saurastra Mail/Exp arrived on time in Mumbai. Upon a suggestion from a fellow passenger, I got off at Dadar and took a cab to Vadala Road (suburb station). From there, I took a suburb train to Thilak Nagar and walked across to Lokamanya Tilak Terminus. This is where I need to board the train to Nasik. There was a summer special train that I booked and it started on time (10:15am). The journey from Mumbai to Nasik is quite picturesque. The train route passes through hills, valleys, & tunnels. I can only imagine that spring time would be much more beautiful. I reached Nasik Road (2:00pm), on time and took an Auto to Hotel Abhishek (75Rs). The hotel is near Panchavati and a very nice place for the price (550Rs for AC). I gave few clothes ... read more

This morning, I headed to Bet Dwarka, supposedly Lord Krishna’s kingdom. It is a small island in the Arabian Sea, situated 30 miles from Dwarka. There are some very early morning trains (4am or so). I took a bus, GSRTC (17Rs) for a 45minute journey. On the way, you will come across small fishing villages amoung the back waters. I don’t think, I mentioned in my earlier blogs but Somnath had similar villages as well. Someone commented on the internet about the foul smell of fish. Well, what would you expect, fresh bloomed smell of lilies and roses? Gimme a break, they are fishing villages and they stink! LOL. Apart from them, the Tata’s have a huge chemical industry close to Okha. Upon reaching Okha, the bus stops at a point where you take a boat ... read more

The next day morning, I boarded a bus to Dwarka to visit Nageswara Jyothirlingam. The bus took off at 9:00pm (140Rs). The route was nothing special except at one point, the road gets very close to the Arabian Sea (a few hundred feet away). It was very scenic with the cool ocean breeze. The route passes through small villages and reached Porbandar, the birth place of Mahatma Gandhi. It is a very small town, dirty, poorly developed, and once again neglected by the government given the history behind it. On my way, I consumed 100 gms of Pistachio nuts!!! The irony is I asked Satish's inlaws not to buy them. Now, I have eaten half the packet but if not for Uncle's pistachio's I would have starved. Whats going to happen to the 16lbs of weight ... read more

The next morning, I woke up at 8:30 am to a boisterous man over the phone. The train had all ready crossed Ahmedabad by that time. On the way, it is easy to realize where the “Indian Smiths” (Patels) have been storing their dollars. There is so much of construction going on. The next few hours, I worked on a pending scientific paper review that I had been sitting on for 4 weeks. I called few hotels in Somnath & Veraval. I decided to check into Hotel Satkar (400Rs for AC room) train had reached Veraval on time and got down at veraval since the hotel is at this place. Auto charge is 15Rs to the hotel (near Bus stand). Surprisingly, the hotel was very well maintained. It is certainly not luxurious but it was clean. ... read more

To reach Omkareshwar, there are no trains from Ujjain and a rare bus. The best way is to take a cab (couple of thousand Rs) or go to Indore and them take a train or bus to Omkareshwar (80 miles from Indore). I decided to take the latter option. The next day, I got ready by 5:00 am and took an auto to the station. Be aware that transportation might be difficult if you don’t plan ahead to time. There are few autos in the area at that time of the day. I walked few yards out of the hotel and luckily me, I found 2 autos and took one. I purchased a 2nd class ticket (29Rs) to Indore (80 Kms) and made myself comfortable in a 3-tier AC coach. I reached Indore at 8:00am and ... read more

After arriving in Ujjain, I took an auto (40Rs) to Yatri Nivas, a unit of MP tourism near Nanakhede bus stand. I checked in and quickly realized that the AC hasn’t been working. The sweltering summer heat and lack of air circulation made it feel as if I was gonna be cooked in an oven. The receptionist said that a room would be available at 12:00pm. I was so tired from the journey that I wasn’t in a mood to go to the temple in a rush. I decided to take it easy for few hours. After breakfast, I got ready and headed to Mahakaleswar temple in an auto (50Rs). Since it was Monday, there were quite a few pilgrims and almost all of them are from north India. This temple is quite big compared to ... read more

The following morning, I realized that the train was running late again. I checkout of the hotel appropriately and upon arrival at the station, the train was delayed by another hour. Finally, it arrived at 9:30am instead of 7:50 am. The worst is yet to come! I boarded the train and found out that the engine was not functioning well. And the delay continues…..it was 12:10pm before the train took off from Allahabad. That’s a delay of 4 hours. At this point, I started to hate Indian Railways. Over all those years of travelling in the south, I had never experienced such a miserable experience with delays. Thank God, I had adequate time so that my schedule is intact so far. However, I have another 7 temples to visit and 7 more train journeys!!! My sops ... read more

Well after a tiring train journey and walking in the alleys in Varanasi. I followed the suggestion of the receptionist and went to watch the evening Arti at Dasaswamedha Ghat overlooking Ganga. It was simply spectacular with several thousands of pilgrims. The plan was to take a boat ride to watch the sunset and the evening Arti at the end. Well, I was unable to take the boat ride, thanks to Indian Railways! But the ritual of Arti along with chants of Siva thandava sthotrams was awesome. No wonder why it is revered as the most scared place for hindus. After watching the event, I just forgot the painful journey and felt refreshed. There were many foreigners who were awestruck with the event. I am sure this one kind they would not get to see anywhere ... read more