Sri Lanka Luxury Stays Best Somatheeram of Kerala Shopping Woven Dreams of Desire
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
FOOD STOPS: SOUTHERN INDIA & MUMBAI MagazineEXPLORE CONTEMPORARY INDIA & SOUTH ASIA MALAYSIA EDITION JANUARY 2014 PLUS Private Jet Charter Astrology & Travel Sri Lanka Luxury Stays BEST Somatheeram of Kerala SHOPPING Woven Dreams of Desire COVER STORY ROYAL TREATMENT at Indian Forts & Palaces CKS_Embassy_of_India_AW150114.pdf 1 1/15/14 3:35 PM EXPLORE CONTEMPORARY INDIA & SOUTH ASIA MALAYSIA EDITION 11 04 Editor’s Note 05 Contributor’s Page COVER FEATURE 06 Indian Forts & Places - The Royal Treatment The elegant, the subtle, the whimsical and the bizarre! The range of palaces boggles the mind! FEATURES 11 Winter Thrills in India’s Alpine Country Stunning scenery, skiing and snowboarding in India’s DESTINATION Himalayan retreats 26 Olde Banglore Beckons The quiet side of India’s Silicon 34 Starry Journeys - Where to Go Valley Look to the stars for your next travel destination! BLOGGERS’ TALES 16 R Niranjan Das - Vythiri: The Emerald Gateway IN PERSON 17 Anuradha Goyal - Bewitching Personal travel accounts of Bomdila Southeast Asian travellers 18 Puru - Nalanda: Lost Knowledge 29 Malaysia: Kashmir is Heaven on Earth fACES & PLACES 19 Mandip Singh Soin THE WELLNESS DESTINATION Adventure is My Business 30 Foods that Heal Exploring India’s Adventure tourism sector INDIA - A SPIRITUAL JOURNEY LUXE LIFE 30 Jewels of Jainism 14 Private Jet Charter 31 Bodhisattva Bhumi - The Uber luxury way of Buddha’s Land destination hopping in India 14 33 Travel Trade Fairs & Events 2 3 46 24 11 FOOD STOPS 24 Flavour of Southern India 42 and Mumbai A literary tour with recipes and a Michelin chef food guide to Mumbai WELLNESS & SPA 36 Somatheeram Ayurvedic Hospital & Yoga Centre: The Best of the Best in Kerala SHOPPING 38 Woven Dreams of Desire Regional guide to fine carpets and floor coverings of India IN SEARCH OF... 42 Heartland of India Seen through the lens of Rajesh Dhar SOUTH ASIA SELECT 48 Sri Lanka Luxury Stays Quick guide & fast travel facts THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST 52 Going to Gulmarg to Ski Unforgettable and unplanned - first adventure with snow SUBSCRIPTIONS IN Magazine is available on the newsstands as well as by subscription. For more information, please contact Circulation Department Indian Forts & Places Tel: (65) 6735 2972 or Cover Story The Royal Treatment 6 email: [email protected] 2 3 Editor’s Note LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW! Editorial Team It still comes as a surprise to many but this little ditty is PUBLISHER equally applicable to the snowfields of Jammu & Kashmir, & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Himachal Pradesh and Uttakhand in India. Ski and Nomita Dhar snowboard enthusiasts from around the world are already in the know that these are some of the most pristine, scenic and EDITORIAL challenging slopes on earth for these adventure sports. The Syed Jaafar Alkaff Foo Yong Han time to visit them is now, as the season officially ends around Arjun Dhar March. The great news too is that those who are new to the sports can also enroll in Beginner packages that we feature in CONTRIBUTORS our Winter Thrills in India’s Alpine Country feature. India is Prionka Ray Ranee Sahaney one of the most inexpensive places on earth to learn to ski! Ranjana Rana Adventure travel in India, whether it is skiing, hiking, treks or river rafting — lots more is coming up in a BIG way. We CREATIVE PROJECT MANAGER were privileged to get an expert’s insight on this topic when Valerius Reza Boenawan Ranee Sahaney interviewed India’s best known Adventure ADVERTISING Expert, Mandip Singh Soin for whom a ‘childhood hobby’ & MARKETING became a way of life — and ultimately his business calling! Jamie Ho Untold thrills and limitless excitement await the visitor in COVER PHOTO this multi-faceted land — And with the slew of fresh new Shutterstock developments, promotions and new facilities in the pipeline you can be assured it’s going to be one rollercoaster ride of PRINTING new adventures and discovery in India’s tourism landscape. IMAGE Printing Pte Ltd Adventure It’s a Luxe Life and the Royal Treatment is exactly what travel in you will get in our Forts and Palaces Guide. The Cover Story gives our selection of the best of what India offers in this MICA (P)188/04/2012 India— © Copyright 2013 by Sun Media Pte Ltd. All materials unique category of accommodation that money can buy. We in this publication are strictly copyrighted and all rights whether it is also have an article also in this issue that suggests private air reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission of skiing, hiking, charter is one of the most convenient, hassle-free and thrilling the copyright holder All facts are correct at the time of ways to go palace-hopping—Just ask the well-heeled! publication. While every effort has been made to ensure treks or river the information that appears in this publication is correct Paradise ‘Lost’— and found. That in a nutshell is the at the time of production, changes might occur and Sun tourism story of Sri Lanka. After years of strife, the country’s Media Pte Ltd shall not be liable for any errors, omissions rafting— or inaccuracies that occur. lots more is tourism scene is making a comeback with a vengeance. Our South Asia Select features the Sri Lanka of today which will coming up in spoil you for choices. We start with recommendations for the A PUBLICATION OF a Big way best places to stay in this issue. Nomita Dhar Publisher & Editor-in-Chief 20 Kramat Lane #01-02 United House Singapore 228773 TEL: (65) 6735 2972 / 1907, 2986 FaX: (65) 6735 3114 E-MAIL: [email protected] 4 WEB: www.sunmediaonline.com 5 Contributors WORDS PRIONka RaY RaNEE SAHANEY RaNjaNA RaNA Prionka has The author of this issue’s Ranjana Rana interviewed, cover story, Ranee gives an edited or Sahaney is no stranger interesting written up this to travel writing. A twist to travel issue’s Guest Contributions prolific travel writer planning in this from the and contributor to IN issue by linking region for the Magazine as well as its destinations and IN PERSON weekly e-newsletter IN astrology! Her column. She Touch, she also interviews own journey hails from Mandip Singh Soin for into astrology India and some great insights on began when she has lived in Adventure Travel in India. was 12, after Switzerland She also contributed reading books on and Hongkong before settling down substantially to the Sri Lanka section for this palmistry. Her successful predictions on in Singapore 15 years ago. Her favourite destinations are always edition. She has been a Consulting Editor for reading the palms of friends and family Indian. She says, “I love Mumbai, the past 12 years to the Outlook Traveller strengthened her desire to go deeper where I studied for three years, but group of publications as well as contributed to into this field. She later went on to do her I am absolutely and totally smitten Discover India, BBC Good Food Guide, India PHD in Astrology and she also studied by Benares, where my grandparents Abroad as well as yatra.com. In the past 25 years, Numerology, Vastu and Fengshui. A lived. This city is so anachronistic, that her features have appeared in India’s leading Reiki Grandmaster and Pranic Healing here I lose myself completely.” On newspapers and magazines on a variety of teacher, Ranjana also reads Tarot Cards. what inspired her when writing the subjects that include travel, culture, heritage, In addition to this she is also a past-life wedding story, she says, “Indians love jewellery, fashion etc. She has published a lavish regression therapist and innerchild and to love and weddings are where the coffee table book, Adventure Sites in the World, breathwork facilitator. Ranjana travels a emotions go beautifully overboard. I myself had an elaborate Bengali and also written A Travellers’ Companion: India’s lot as a consultant in her area of expertise style wedding in India, 18 years ago. North East for the Tourism Department (GOI) and also participates in many TV shows. It was a typical big, fat wedding and several chapters for Dorling Kindersley’s with countless rituals, constant dress India and Delhi Agra & Jaipur travel guides. changes, ample food and of course, She has also worked in the capacity of Editorial abundance of emotions. Weddings Co-ordinator for the Incredible India magazine, tend to get larger than life and that’s brought out by the Ministry of Tourism, the best part of an Indian wedding.” Government of India. FOO YONG HAN He loves action whether it is on screen (watching PICTURES movies or playing video games) or for real - sky diving or white- RajESH DHAR water river rafting. Sun Media’s Rajesh Dhar lives in the City of Joy, Mumbai and is a graphic designer youngest editorial by profession. The 38-year old has a Bachelor of Visual Arts and took up correspondent also photography seriously in 2006. He takes great interest in focusing on loves to ride words people of different religions and their diverse cultures. He says he still and transport gets a great thrill travelling into the country’s heartlands and capturing readers into the now of the moment. He the spirit of the nation. Ultimately for him, he says his aim is to portray spent the last 10 years writing and editing all the possible “merits and demerits of human lives in our society for a variety of print and online magazines through my work”. in Singapore. 4 5 COVER Feature Indian Forts & Palaces (Above) Ram Bagh Palace THE ROYAL TreatmentBY Ranee Sahaney ust a couple of months of some of the most intimate within the ambit of a world where ago, a galaxy of the aspects of India’s royals hailing from (sometimes) time seems to have country’s who’s who the 565-odd kingdoms that made stood still.