Happy New Year

      It has been two years when we unknowingly started the journey to venture into India's unknown treasures of natural beauty,serenity and heritage(especially North India). This year ,our odyssey consisted of being close to the Great Thar desert in Jaisalmer, beholding a tiger (from about 8ft far) in Sariska and exposing the myth of ghostly existence in Bhangarh (except for "yaha hasna mana hai" :P) ,the serene location of Lansdowne, water rafting,riverside camping in Rishikesh,the exhausting but untouched,beautiful Chopta and finally ziplining at Neemrana .Sorry for me being lazy not to report most of this except for Sariska and Neemrana. :(
       Nevertheless, this year too we hope to continue to explore the mesmerising hidden scenic destinations in India. So cheers to the thought. To all my fellow wanderers...

 subh nav varsh

naya saal mubarak

nuthana samvathsara subhakankshalu 

subho nabo barso

nava varsha ashamshagal

navin varshaachya hardik shubbheccha 

rest settle for Happy New Year  ;)

:-)

Neemrana

WHY? ZIP-LINING
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zip-line
WHERE? Neemrana Fort ,Neemrana, Alwar district 
http://fort-palace.neemranahotels.com/activities
HOW? Bikes
FROM? Ghaziabad
TIME? 4 Hours
TICKETS?http://flyingfox.asia/bookfox.aspx?pgid=33


    I guess the basic details are covered. Zip Lining is an adventure sport which entails moving from one end of a cable to other using a zip line. We started from Ghaziabad at 12PM and had made the bookings fro 3:45PM. Online booking costs you less than on-the-spot booking. Bike rides do take a toll on you( especially to ones on the pillions ;)) but compared to our many tours this was comfortable not only because the distance was hardly 150KM but also because of the road. All thanks to NH8 that made it possible for us to reach the venue just on time ,i.e 3:45 PM IST(Indian Stretchable Time)-> 4:00PM (and I know this is the minimum we could stretch).
    The venue seemed more like a hidden treasure ,directions to which were either not present and if it were, we could hardly guess where it pointed to. As you might have guessed, I did lose track and went 12KM ahead of the destination. But we did resort to local help and managed to sight the concealed location. We hurried towards the fort, got into the strap pants :P, and trekked a few metres to our first zip-line. We were briefed about it, given a demo and were asked to do likewise as a trial. All instruction go in vain as did this and I can assure you ,you do and you learn. Mistakes are the best teacher.

                        
   Finally it was showtime and a secret tip, don't take your own camera, because you will be the first to godownt he zip line so that you can shoot others :P. Though we were generous enough to relieve the owner of its duty after the first one. A very safe (acrophobic people can give it a try) adventure sport.  There is nothing to fear for all is safe especially with the experienced and lively Flying Fox staffs.All was fun with our usual state-of-the-art PJs (strictly proscribed),photography ,the freely hanging feeling and the experience.

(From Left: Sayan,Suresh,me,Nakul,Bala,Asad,Vikash,Mohit and Rampa(behind the camera :P))

   Sadly all the zips were traversed and we returned back to our bikes after handing the "strap-pants" .We did take some pit stops because I cannot go without food ;).
wait,wait... picture abhi baaki hai.. We took a pit stop at  the "munnabhai hotel" where you get everything."You order ,we cook" as the waiter proclaimed where we settled for a chicken fry instead of the much awaited fish fry :P
     Nevertheless , the adventurous part was the return journey between large trucks,trailers. The bikes +us sitting were smaller than their tyres. Zig zag movement, inching ahead between the huge vehicles, we reached Delhi where (as usual) I got lost. But in the end, we all reached home SAFELY, happy with the odyssey and the experience. Enough said, the taste of the pudding is in eating.zip zap zoom;)

  (Neemrana Fort)

8 Riders 4 Bikes Destination: Tiger,Ghost.....

All efforts of canvassing the brown dry tree trunks and shrubs over kilometres were in vain but the enthusiasm still undiminished. Suddenly we heard the Sambhar's 'pooking'. The gypsy driver followed it with the same magnitude of energy .The gypsy was instantly geared back and we moved towards the sound.  Our eyes were still canvassing the top heights of the jungle .The gypsy stopped. Our eyes stopped. All focussed in one direction.Just about 6 ft from us was a tiger, in his amazing yellow balck stripes, mesmerising .All emotions subdued, conflicted with whether to exclaim the joy of seeing the rare specie or move back to save ourselves. Even the hearts refused to beat harder for the sound could be heard. The tiger was moving up towards the hill with poised steps, asserting his authority.

 A Flashback:
Date:12/03/11 Saturday: 8 riders 4 bikes, destination Sariska.
We started by 7AM from Ghaziabad and reached Sariska by 2PM.Saturday and Tuesday bike rides are allowed inside the jungle as well.So we took the opportunity and moved towards PanduPol. On our way we saw Peacocks,Peahens, Nilgai,Sambar,Deer,Pigs (:P), a small jackal. We were halfway with 14Kms left when a tyre got punctured. Amidst the jungle, a major setback, seemed like a perfect day for the Tigers. After much thought ,two of them left with the punctured tyre to get it repaired.The rest of us waiting ,imagining abut tigers and the lucky day they would have with around 400Kg of human flesh. We were having fun and enjoying the unfortunate stop.Suddenly a faint growling sound was heard which we dismissed as an aeroplane's sound.While we were waiting, a truck cameby. We requested them for help, hoisted the bike on it and we marched back towards the entrance. We had hardly moved 1 Km when we saw some jeeps lined up. We moved there and saw the sound's origin, the Tiger resting and well-camouflaged with the forest. Lucky we were to find the truck. This ended day one whose climax reached anticlimax by the disappointing display of Indian Cricket.

Second day ,13/03/11 Sunday Destination Bhangarh + Sariska(Safari)
We rode towards Bhangarh. The route towards Bhangarh is beautiful, especially the villages and the lush green field and the Aravallis around it.We reached the much awaited, the haunted city of Bhangarh. The fort,lake,ruins all were eye-pleasing.We couldn't justify the haunting ghosts in daylight .Soon we rode back towards Sariska. We reached there by 3 pm, booked two gypsy and moved into the jungle again. The same view repeated until we saw the Tiger and a few minutes later a tigress. The day was the best it could be.
After 2 hours of the memorable jungle safari we embarked upon our way back to Ghaziabad. The long journey seemed never ending. All eyes waiting for milestones with the distance decreasing. All exhausted,tired but enthralled . Soon we reached Gurgaon. That was the start of Bike Race with trucks,lorries all double the size our size.Dodging ,overtaking we reached Delhi .All tiredness lost with the gentle wind at 3AM .Finally we reached our home sweet home and crept into the bed so as to never wake up.

ना मंजिल की फ़िक्र

ना मंजिल की फ़िक्र हो.. ना रहे समय का होश..

ना थकान का हो कोई निशाँ.. बस यूँ चलते रहने का जोश..

साथ रहे सब यार अपने.. करते रहें नयी राहों की खोज..

मस्ती में चलते रहना हमें.. अपनी यही सोच..

जंगल हो या बर्फ, पहाड़ हो या रेगिस्ताँ..

चाहे ना मिले कहीं आसरा, ये दुनिया अपना मकाँ..

फिर ओढें आसमाँ की चादर.. ये धरती बने अपनी सेज..

पहियों की फिर क्या दरकार .. जब हिम्मत पे चले हम तेज़..

कलकल करती नदियाँ हों .. पेड़ पौधे हों खामोश..

मिलने अपनी मिटटी से .. निकल पड़े हम खानाबदोश..