Dates with destinations

Neeti Mohan (Singer)
I  largely like to be in action and barely take proper vacations. I’m in immense love with my profession, and I also get to travel around the world as a singer and therefore get to see many fascinating places. I normally do not stay back after shows or concerts, but I make sure that I grab some time to see places during the time I’m there.

And one place that has stayed with me is Cape Town. Before this year, when I went there for a corporate gig, I had been there for A R Rahman sir’s concert. What I like about Cape Town is that it’s at the southernmost tip of South Africa. This is where the Indian and the Atlantic oceans meet, and we can see their confluence as two distinct colours of water. Cape Town has an altogether different energy. This is one place that has it all — mountains, seas, a lot of nature. In one of the wildlife sanctuaries there, you actually get to see even penguins.

Samir Mondal (Artist)
I ’m not an avid traveller. When I travel, I must have a purpose. And so, when I visited Jordan, it was to visit River Jordan — which, since my childhood, had fascinated me due to its historical significance in Judaism and Christianity, and to some extent, even Islam. This is supposed to be the river Israelites crossed to get into the Promised Land, and where Jesus of Nazareth was baptised by John the Baptist.

More than River Jordan, I was keen to see the Dead Sea, which I had learnt didn’t support any life, and so there were no fish. Being a Bengali, I couldn’t imagine a waterbody without fish! I didn’t swim in it, but I was looking at others and enjoying their floating on the water. The third thing I wanted to see was the Petra city. Unbelievably beautiful and awe-inspiring! My son, Somak, who is a geologist, had explained the rock formation, carved architecture, history etc. But he had not prepared me for the magnificence of the place.

One of the wonders of rock formation due to earthquakes, this city is also called Rose City due to the pinkish hue of its huge rocks. It was probably established as early as 312 BC, as the capital of the nomadic tribes of Arab of Nabataeans. Of course, the rock formation has been there thousands of years before that. But even today, one can see the creativity and talent of these nomads in constructing the efficient water-collecting methods in barren deserts and in carving structures out of
gigantic rocks. Though the wind and the constant stream of visitors are eroding some of the ancient architecture, the beauty is still visible.

A bounty of precious stones, metals etc has been found during an excavation. There is also a belief that many treasures stored by several rulers have not yet been found. The Al-Khazneh, or the treasury of Petra, fascinates not only tourists but also filmmakers. Films like Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Arabian Nights, The Mummy Returns and many others have been shot here, and have spoken about the unearthed treasures. Though Jordan is a historical place, Western influence has made heavy inroads into its attire, food, music and art. The Bedouins are very much there, but even this ancient nomadic tribe has accepted changing lifestyles.
The only disappointment for me was their art scene. Not very good galleries, and not a very good collection.

Probably, they are surrounded by so much history, art and architecture that they haven’t gotten into mainstream art scene yet.

Aindrita Ray (Actor)
I’ve just returned from a month-long holiday to Australia. And, as my sister lives in Sydney, we celebrated my mom’s birthday there. I had a great experience dining at The Rocks, at a waterfront restaurant that had views of the Harbour Bridge and Opera House. I also went to the Whitsunday Islands in the Great Barrier Reef, and also visited the Hayman Island, Airlie Beach and Whitehaven Beach. I had great fun doing a basic snorkelling course. I did a lot of jet-skiing and non-touristy treks that took me through Kangaroo Creek. I went on The Bondi to Coogee Walk, which is a six-km trek offering views of Bondi Beach and the coast. Seeing the corals and fishes was a great experience, and I really loved the underwater world. I also visited the Jenolan Caves, which has a river flowing underground. The inside is beautiful, crystallised with limestone, and on the drive back, I spotted many black kangaroos. It was wonderful!

Boman Irani (Actor)
For me, an ‘internal’ holiday and an ‘external’ family holiday are a must every year. Recently on my birthday, 24 of us went to Shillim, a lovely place in the middle of nowhere in Maharashtra, for a weekend. For my wife Zenobia’s birthday, we visited the wonderful Taj Falaknuma Palace Hotel in Hyderabad. For me, family doesn’t mean just my immediate family, but also the parents of my daughter-in-law, Rhea, with whom we have become closer over the years, and many others, like my dear friend Kunal Vijayakar. They are people who share our joys and burdens.
On a holiday abroad, it’s usually my immediate family — my wife and my elder son, Danesh, his wife, Rhea, and their son, Ziaan, and my younger son, Kayoze. On a classic holiday, one is not distracted by anything, and it’s just about
being together and seeing new places. Like this year, it was the Czech Republic and Hungary.

For professional reasons, however, I keep visiting other locations. But whenever I’m in America, I make it a point to visit New York, and when in Europe, London. These are the two places I am most comfortable in, and feel like a part of the furniture! London, especially, is an old-fashioned, beautiful city. You may be a partygoer, historian, sportsperson, art enthusiast, theatre aficionado, shopping maniac, or a foodie, London has something for everyone. Back home, even when we play Monopoly, it’s all about London. Every nationality is there, and I firmly believe that people from all over the world are supposed to be interacting with each other like this.

Saransh Goila (Chef)
I  had recently been to Mauritius and before looking up anything else, I had to explore the food scene. I was bowled over by the blend of cuisines there. Even street food there was a blend of French, Sri Lankan, Malaysian and South Indian flavours. They use a lot of French herbs like tarragon, chives, chervil etc. I particularly enjoyed their dholl puri, supposed to be inspired by Indian parathas! They are thin crêpes filled with moongdal, green-chilli pickle and tomato chutney. There were other items as well, like palm heart salad, which was interesting. Mauritius is an island nation in the Indian Ocean. At my place of stay there, a resort, the windows opened to the cleanest picture-perfect beach I had ever seen. The water was unbelievably blue, and the life there reminded me of North Goa. The whole atmosphere was laid-back and tranquil. You could catch all the emotions of the sea by sitting by the window throughout the day.

The other highlight of my trip was the trek to Le Morne Brabant, a Unesco World Heritage Site! Though it seemed easy to climb the 1,800-feet-above-sea level peak, it wasn’t, and it gave me an eerie feeling after the guide told me that the mountain was notorious in the early 19th century as a refuge for runaway slaves who, on
February 1, 1835, mistook the approaching police force to inform them about the abolition of slavery, and jumped to death from the rock at the peak. The sun too rose with me as I climbed, and after sometime, the scenic beauty made me ponder about life and future. Tourists also visit the sacred Shiva Temple in Ganga Talao, a crater lake located in the heart of Mauritius, 1,800 feet above sea level.

Salim Merchant (Musician)
As you step on this tiny island country in the Indian Ocean, the first thing that attracts you is the unrestricted beauty of nature — simple, yet breathtaking. Someone described Maldives as ‘nature’s sunken garden!’ This description is so bang on. The land is barely tall anywhere, and even the tallest place on any of these islands is supposed to be just around eight feet above sea level. This gives you a feeling of being in the sea all the time. It’s an out-of-this-world feeling. The clear blue water reminds you of the satellite pictures of a blue earth!

The sand on the beaches is clean and white; plus, the corals peep right out of the water. With such clean water, the coastal food has a different taste. Most items on the menu comprise different types of fish cooked in unique ways, so they have a distinctive taste. Also, a lot of coconut is used to give the food flavour. Another enjoyment is water sports — scuba diving! A dive into the sea, with the help of a coach, of course, and you are transported to the world of beautiful coral gardens. The natural beauty is amply aided by the hospitality of the islanders. And to think that such a cluster of islands is fast sinking due to the depletion of water is really sad. The government is doing everything to make it safe and a carbon-neutral country by 2019. But this needs to become a phenomenon to save not only Maldives, but also the world.

Sudeep (Actor)
This year, I visited Srinagar for the first time and was completely mesmerised by its beauty. The place is certainly one of the most beautiful creations of nature. In fact, it is so wonderful that it must be seen to be believed. When I went there, I actually felt bad that people keep themselves away from this place due to the fear of terrorism. I hope and think that will change soon. Srinagar is a place that families can enjoy. What struck me about it was that it was full of life. Also, this is the place to appreciate the beauty of nature. When you step on the grass, you will really feel the difference. It’s a place that everyone must visit and enjoy.

Hiten Tejwani (Actor)
Recently, when we holidayed in Kerala, it was great fun —  the beaches of Kovalam, the backwaters of Alappuzha, and of course, Kanyakumari, were breathtaking. It was great especially for my (seven-year-old) twins, who read about these places in textbooks. As children, we study about the confluence of the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal in Kanyakumari. That’s not really the question. For me, their (twins’) excitement of watching the ferocious waves from Vivekananda Rock Memorial was exhilarating.

Even Gauri (wife) and I were equally fascinated.Earlier, it was the backwaters of
Alappuzha. The serenity of the winding waters nestled in the greenest of trees was soothing. The houseboat rides on the backwaters were something that we had been looking forward to, and we enjoyed it. Food and language were not our difficult
areas in Kerala.

We enjoy seafood. The fish cooked in Kerala style was delicious. Some people spoke Hindi, but when we interacted with locals in a bazaar, we had our driver to interpret the language for us. The hospitality industry was so well organised. No tourist will encounter any problem there.Next on our agenda was the Kovalam Beach. The water was so clean, and I had never seen that kind of blue. Even the beaches were clean and invigorating; one could spend a lot of time there.

The clean waters helped my children enjoy the sea like never before. It was only here that I had to spend some time with my fans. The general public of South India weren’t so familiar with Hindi films and serials, so we were left on our own. But here, people recognised both Gauri and me, and wanted to click selfies with us. It was fun when our driver from Kerala realised our identity.Till then he was under the impression that we were like any other tourists from Mumbai. Then, he too wanted pictures with us.


Vaishali Shadangule (Designer)

 I’m a traveller by nature, and if the travel is unplanned and a little experimental, then I love it more. Most of my visits to the weaving clusters in interior villages were road trips. One of the most surprising and satisfying visits was to Karnataka. I wanted to work with khand (fabric) for my collection and as per available information, I was supposed to get it from Pune. On reaching there, I came to know that authentic khand could only be found in Karnataka. Though it was a long run —more than nine hours — to the village called Guledgudda (Bagalkote) from Pune, I began the trip immediately. On reaching there, I realised that only a few families produce the original handloom. The rest were lookalike fabrics produced on power loom. Finally, we reached the family known for selling the original. Looking at my consistent demand for genuine khand, an old weaver lying on the cot agitatedly asked the younger weaver to show it to me. So from another cupboard tumbled out a treasure of khand, my dream fabric! Another senior weaver displayed a huge collection of textiles that were kept in many cupboards. The trip ended on an emotional note when the senior weaver told me about the poor state of the textile and how he had to shut his business, as he was not willing to produce fabric using power loom.

The experience of visiting another interior village in West Bengal was very different. I was the guest of a weaver family for a week. They lived in a small village surrounded by nature. The husband and wife would both weave, and the only way to work with them was to follow their discipline. They woke up at 4 am, but were kind enough to let me sleep for an hour more. Their entire approach to life was minimalist. I was overwhelmed by the experience and realised the mad, mundane routine of modern city life.

From growing their own vegetables to farming for food and weaving the cloth — all have made them so independent that they don’t have the feeling of lacking. Along with managing their chores, they weave continuously. The sun sets there at 5 pm and one cannot work beyond that because the only available light is sunlight. Then the preparation for dinner begins, and after relishing some simple, organic food, the folk music session begins, when neighbouring families also join in. You end up going to bed with a smile.