This blog was in the making for God knows how long, but I have now finally managed to put my experience into words, although these words really fall short in describing the expansive gorgeousness that this holiday was all about!

The trip began on Aug 14, 2019, at Wilson Airport – Nairobi. We boarded this tiny aircraft that managed to fit in 9 people excluding the pilots, 7 out of 9 being our travel party including myself, the husband Venky, BFF Rashmi, her husband Nikhil, the guy who almost threatened to beat up my husband Meryl (a dear college friend), his wife Meryl and his mother Cecilia! It felt rather nice to have a mom on board, even though all of us were touching/had crossed our thirties, just some adult supervision, I guess.

After a quick 45 mins in air, we reached the Musiara airstrip, bang in the middle of the never-ending plains of Masai Mara! The tiny aircraft made its way on the landing strip and almost ejected us and our luggage. We got off and saw a sight that none of us had even dreamt of, just the vast grand Savannah with animals casually grazing everywhere. I am still unsure of the right words to describe it, but it did not seem real, it seemed like we were in a VR experience somewhere, but we weren’t, it was as real as it could get. Millions and millions of wildebeests, zebras, birds and animals that I hadn’t even seen on National Geographic were all around us. Before we could process this sight, our dear guide and friend from our camp, Cole received us at the airstrip. He loaded our luggage into the open top, windowless Land Rover and straight away began our Game Drive!

5 minutes into the drive, we spotted vultures doing what they do best – scavenging. The sight of those vultures made me squeal like a mouse and made my friend Meryl scream like a child in a candy store. We were quickly made aware of our decibels and politely asked to shut up and sit down. Cole moved closer to them, and we saw this majestic lioness guarding the carcass of a wildebeest as her lazy husband, Mr. Lion ate away in peace. So, Cole told us something funny and rather relatable; the lioness is usually the one hunting for food and the one eating only after the lion, his brother, his uncle and all their children are fed for the day, much like our desi moms who even worry about the neighbour’s dinner before themselves. We spent the next 45 minutes gawking at all the sights and finally reached our camp.

MARA OLAPA – a fenceless camp somewhere in the middle of 370, 000 acres of this wild, wild Savannah; of course that’s where we chose to stay! Did I mention fenceless? Yes. That. The area where the camp is located is called Kaboso, after the famous and elusive leopard of that part of Mara. We were greeted by some adorable looking zebras that lurked around right outside the tents. We’d booked 3 out of the 6 luxurious tents the camp had to offer, equipped with hot showers, fully functioning toilets, massive beds that were always kept ready for the night with hot-water bags to warm it up & make it feel like a cozy hug from mamma bear, and a canvas wall separating us from the wildlife outside.

We checked in and got ready for our first official Game Drive. A quick lunch later, we were on our way. We spent the next 2 hours seeing multiple prides of lions, herds of elephants, giraffes, gazelles, antelopes, jackals, vultures, wildebeests, zebras, cheetahs, cranes, wild hogs, water buffalos, hyenas, mongoose and if I am not mistaken hares, thanks to our friend, Nikhil’s impeccable spotting abilities! We obviously couldn’t get enough of what we saw, but it was getting dark, and Cole kept joking about losing our way and asking us if we had any clue of how to get back. I clearly didn’t sense the humour in his tone and started my prayers, I did not wish to be dinner for some big cat on the prowl.

We then cleaned up for the evening and whistled to call our Masai guard to escort us to the dining area, yes, we had to do that because we were in a fenceless camp. No matter how many times I say it, I still can’t get around the fact that we managed that stay rather comfortably, until we found out what that bird sound we heard every night from right outside our camp was. More about it as you read on!

Moving on, you wouldn’t believe the spread we had for dinner. Hot, vegetarian comfort food, cooked only for us, literally in the middle of nowhere; the Masai hospitality was extraordinary! We had to wrap up quickly because our game drives began at 5 am, so we each took our Masai guards and scuttled back to our rooms for the night.

05:00 AM August 15, 2019, we all got ready, had a cup of coffee and made our way to the open top, open window Land Rover. We basically just managed to get out of the camp’s vicinity and saw a sight that words cannot describe, even a photograph cannot do it any justice, but I tried. What played in all our minds was the opening track of Lion King – Circle of Life.

The sun was rising, and the horizon was dotted with millions and millions of wildebeests getting ready for their great migration – the exact reason we were in Masai Mara was to see this unbelievable natural phenomenon. They all filled up their tummies and almost on cue started moving, we could literally feel the ground beneath shaking like a very powerful earthquake, they started moving in unison, if even one of them slowed down, stopped, or changed his pace, there would’ve been a stampede. Just then, something alerted them, the birds or the bees, and they almost immediately stopped. We circled the area a couple of times and then moved on.

It was to be the most unforgettable day: we just didn’t know it yet. Obviously brimming with excitement, we went on to spot ostriches and other birds, we made our way to the watering hole and saw all the animals chilling together – elephants, hippos, giraffes, water buffaloes, secretary bird, and so, so many other animals and birds just having a drink and making merry.

And just before all our stomachs started making noises from the lack of breakfast, we spotted a rather large number of safari jeeps gathered at one spot. We quickly found a spot to park and participate. There was a gazelle casually grazing and prancing around. And hiding among the tall bushes were three cheetahs calculating their moves to hunt down that petite gazelle. We waited there for over an hour, but no attempts were made. It almost seemed like the cheetahs made some inside jokes about fooling so many people into believing that they were setting up for a kill while nonchalantly chewing on some grass. We decided that it was time for us to eat, whether the cheetahs wanted to or not, so we went for our Bush Breakfast! What a fun experience, picnic baskets filled with sandwiches, yogurt, coffee and cookies! Cole set up the whole thing and we took a good 45 minutes to finish up. Once done, we made our way back to the cheetahs, and unluckily for us, they indeed went for the kill while we were away and were enjoying their sumptuous breakfast, piece by piece!

Next up, we heard something on the radio that we couldn’t decipher, but good ‘ol Cole sped up and followed lead to our next exciting moment of the day. A regal looking leopard, not Kaboso, was walking up and down the muddy path. He seemed rather angry with so many safari enthusiasts clicking pictures, surrounding him, and blocking his path. He found a narrow escape and made his way through and vanished behind the bushes.

We went back to the camp for lunch. We all grabbed a quick bite, rested for a bit and quickly headed back to continue our safari!

We first saw a pride of lions by a rock, the lion and the lioness enjoyed some alone time while the kids played elsewhere. “Can you feel the love tonight” played in all our minds, Meryl even sang it out loud. When people say that they felt close to nature, I always wondered what that meant, but this was the day I finally understood what it meant.

We then went to the Mara River, spotted crocodiles & hippos swimming happily as zebras and wildebeests crossed over nervously. We hoped and prayed for a dramatic crocodile kill, but it never happened! We just stayed there for a bit, taking in the views, the sunset and the calm. But sunsets almost always mean that we need to find our way back as soon as possible. We spun around and went to the other side of the river. We first heard it – something that can only be compared to a very loud drumroll, it kept coming closer and closer and closer and then we saw it. A massive herd of wildebeests were approaching us, we moved out of their way and cleared their path to the river. This was it, a river crossing. Their crossing of the Mara River was the climax of this odyssey, a spectacle filled with drama, death and endeavour and pretty much the reason why we chose this time of the year to visit Kenya. THIS would have taken this day a few notches up than it already was, and it happened, although partially. A big group crossed the river and some of them were left behind. I wonder what stopped them this time, the setting sun, too many tourists or a message from the birds, something did.

There was no time to waste now, we had to drive back. But could this day get any better? Yes, it could. While we were making our way back, it got dark. By now I had caught on to Cole’s habit of joking about losing our way and not making it to the camp. We were going as fast as we could, putting on the headlights only when it was pitch dark. We were just a few kilometres away from the camp when suddenly, Cole just stopped the car, headlights went off, engine went off and there was pure silence, just the odd cricket chirping when my husband, Venky said “Look!”. To our left was a herd of gazelles standing still like statues with their ears fully perked up. To our right was a herd of antelopes also standing still and expression-less. And in front were some zebras, ready to run on command. We did not know what was happening we stared in the dark for a few seconds to adjust our eyes to the darkness and then a magnificent lioness walked across with her little cubs. That’s when we understood that all those animals were literally scared for life, time stood still when they spotted the lioness, we could almost hear them pray, none of them wanted that night to be their last night! It surely wasn’t.

Time did stand still while we waited for the lioness to cross the street and ensure her cubs followed her. We slowly went back to the camp, showered, and got ready for dinner, whistled for our guard to pick us up and carried on. We spent that evening having some beers and chatting about the day, about life back in Dubai and what not under what I’d describe as a blanket of a gazillion stars, I hadn’t experienced anything like this before and that overwhelmed me. I cried a little just processing that beauty, was I really that moved or was it the alcohol, I can’t be sure! Our guards walked us back to our rooms with nothing but a torch light and a Masai spear, and while we were walking, we heard that bird sound again. Rashmi innocently asked him which bird it was, to which he chuckled and said Hyena. I swear to God we all had goosebumps and I spent the night praying.

“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up, it knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn’t matter whether you’re the lion or a gazelle-when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”

Christopher McDougall

Last day at the Mara Olapa camp started with a hot air balloon close to the Tanzanian border. We woke up at 4 am to make it in time for this spectacular experience. I had never been on a hot air balloon, so I obviously did not know how to get in, we actually had to get in horizontally, not climb in, but crawl in. The hot air balloon offers a completely different perspective of Mara. Picture this – we slowly rose to tree level and after a near miss with a branch, the basket clears the treeline and we gracefully inch up the sky, it’s not long before we see thickets opening up to vast plains and the sunrise rapidly illuminating the Mara River and the vegetation below. The morning was freezing cold, we saw the sunrise from mid-air and tried to zoom in to anything that was moving to check if it was a rhino, unfortunately for us, there weren’t any. After about 35 mins in air, we landed close to the Tanzanian border and enjoyed breakfast out in the open. It really was an amazing experience and we even got certificates to prove our flight!

We then went back to our camp to rest and have lunch.

Post an hour or so, we resumed our game drive. About 500 metres away from our camp, we finally spotted Kaboso, the leopard after whom our area was named, dragging a fresh kill to his tree and enjoy his meal in peace. We took a lot of pictures and went ahead.

By this time, we had picked up the talent of spotting animals in the distance and chasing everyone else to a front row seat for the viewing. Birds, beetles, zebras, wildebeests, leopards, cheetahs, ostriches, giraffes, lions, we had seen them all. We finally were slowing down for the afternoon, and we drove by what I now call the “PRIDE ROCK”.  Two fully grown lions, two fully gown lionesses, and about eight cubs, we spent the evening at their home. This was a moment when I was excited and nervous at the same time. Excited because this was almost like a one on one with the #KingOfTheJungle himself and nervous because this was almost like a one on one with him.

And all I could do was capture this moment and pray that nothing untoward happened. But that’s the whole point. These animals of the jungle went about their day without bothering us, even at a proximity of about 2 feet. So many jeeps, so many cameras and so many people, but it was their home, and they were comfortable. I wasn’t, so, I was sitting on the floor of the car, willingly making myself the butt of all jokes for the next 24 hours.

There’s something about seeing lion cubs that creates a warm, fuzzy feeling inside one’s soul. Perhaps, it’s because they grow up to be such majestic looking creatures, yet their cub-like antics and adorable curiosity couldn’t be further away from their ferocious adult versions. You almost want to pick them up and cuddle! Right when I was warming up to that idea and getting back up on the seat, the lioness growled and put me back in my spot at the floor of the car.

We spent hours there, I don’t even know how many. One of the lionesses even seemed to look for a kill, we waited with bated breath for it to happen, but it didn’t. It was the guilt of missing the cheetah kill that made us hope against hope for a NatGeo moment.

We finally moved and found our way back to the camp. Remember we spotted Kaboso a few yards away from our camp? He was no longer there, instead there were some hyenas noisily biting into the bones of that poor gazelle that the leopard had killed for himself, we heard the eerie sounds of a hyena’s laugh and that bird like sound, and instantly feared for our lives. We had seen a lot of carcasses, a lot of dying animals, but this was the most unpleasant sight and sound we had experienced in this holiday. Hyenas are known to be scavengers, they ganged up on Kaboso and got his kill all to themselves.

As much as I didn’t want my Mara holiday to end, this was it, the end of our Masai Mara experience. It has been one that cannot be contained in words. The sights we saw, the sounds we heard and the chills we experienced, they are personal, they are private to us. I know I will make another trip, soon. Until then, Kwaheri marafiki! Hakuna Matata!

Frankfurt felt like home, whether it was the warm hospitality of my childhood friend, Manaswini, her husband and their adorable child or just the entire vibe of that city, I didn’t feel out of place even for a minute.

We took the tram from Frankfurt Central to Manaswini’s place and were invited to a mouth-watering, home-cooked South Indian meal. After a longish catch-up session, we decided to get ready and go around town a little, we barely had an evening, but we made it count.

We started our evening at Römerberg. This historic square is situated in the heart of the old town and had to be completely reconstructed after the bombings of World War II. As iconic as the gabled houses that frame the Römerberg, so is the Fountain of Justice (Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen) built in 1612.

We came across a German Flea Market right around the corner and gobbled up some delicious flamkkuchen (probably the only vegetarian dish around there). Here’s where it began, #BeersOfGermany. Venky was very sure that he would try a #LocalBeer in every German city/town/village we visited, and he did.

Humble request #1 by the husband:

When you’re in Germany, please, oh please do try the local beers. You will come across some delightful ones like the Ketterer Banana-Wheat Beer or the King Ludwig Dark Beer, and you will crave for more!

We roamed around in Römerberg for a while, walked across the Eiserner Steg bridge at sun set and added our very own love-lock to the hundreds of thousand others on the bridge. We then strolled in a park right below, got a few pictures there, helped a few others get pictures there and then headed back to the tram station.

Next stop, the Big Euro Sign. This spot is exactly what it is called, the Big Euro Sign near the stock market. Anyway, the best part according to me is taking a picture in front of the Euro symbol and that is it. The Opera and the English Theatre are just about 100 metres from the symbol and the Hauptbahnhof is within 10 minutess walking distance. But hey, we didn’t have enough time for that.

Once back home, all it took was a candid conversation with an old friend, I was convinced I wanted to move to this city. We’ll get to that later.

Black Forest, the cake and the place.

We rented a car from Frankfurt and made our way to our fairytale holiday, quite literally! The Black Forest is best known for being the place where many of the Brothers Grimm fairytales were based, so it’s an area that has long been associated with folklore, fairytales and magic. It’s also a place of incredible natural beauty, filled with spectacular waterfalls, expansive lakes, dense forest and mountains, and I believe that’s the magic we were looking for.

We stayed at this quaint little cottage like hotel – Gersbacher Hof run by Rodger and Bernadette. Oh! What a lovely stay. From the moment we got there, Rodger’s warmth and Bernadette’s delicious food just made us never want to leave that place. Also, the views from here are incredible, definitely a place I’d like to visit again.

Public transport and railways are super comfortable in Germany. However, a car gives you the freedom to go anywhere and everywhere and believe me with those pretty little villages and castles on the hill, you will not regret it. We spent our first day just admiring nature all around us that was overwhelmingly green, where the hills were alive with the “Sound of Music”.

Humble request #2 by the husband:

It’s all in the name, black forest, we grew up having this cake from little bakeries in India. We were excited and had a rush even before we gave the cake any scope for a sugar rush. To our surprise, the original Black Forest cake has a layer of sponge soaked in whiskey. It would’ve probably grown on us, but we didn’t expect the taste in the first bite. So, we were left wanting for something sweet, a scoop of vanilla ice cream helped us overcome that. Locals will tell you, the look of the cake is inspired by the traditional costumes of country girls, which includes dark or brown skirts, white shirts, and cherry red hats.

The mouse ran up the world’s first largest cuckoo clock!

From the moment I decided to travel to this place, I knew I wanted a cuckoo clock for my home and that I wanted to see the world’s first largest cuckoo clock; I did both.

We first visited the House of a 1000 Cuckoo clocks. My childhood home, back in Hyderabad, India had a cuckoo clock and I absolutely adored that thing. I scouted the store for one that looked exactly the same, and I found it. Now, that was a souvenir coming back with me to Dubai.

Next, we went to see the world’s first largest cuckoo clock! The cute little town of Schonach, on the way to Triberg, is where you can find it. The clock more like a duplex house with an adorable gift shop inside. You almost feel like the little mouse that ran up the clock in the nursery rhyme. We clicked pictures in front of it, around it, behind it and in its near vicinity, then moved on to the next place on our checklist.

Off to the wasserfalls! Triberg is a small town and home to the largest waterfall in Germany. It’s an uphill hike of about 45 mins, nothing that a non-hiker can’t hack.

As we walked up looking at the gorgeously green pathways, I could imagine Red Riding Hood, hopping around the woods, and may be catching up with Hansel, Gretel, Snow White and the seven dwarves over a cup of hot tea or something.

Humble request #3 by the husband:

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock. The clock struck one, the mouse ran down. Hickory dickory dock, tick tock, tick tock.

That didn’t make sense, but that’s what was on my mind while we were shopping for our cuckoo clock and while we visited the world’s first largest cuckoo clock. Tick tock!

 Do you believe in fairytales?

Come let’s slay a dragon and rescue a princess! If you can imagine a castle where this princess is kept, then yes, you are thinking of Neuschwanstein! Stepping into the picturesque town of Schwangau is like going back in time to our childhood when the world seemed all magical. Close to the Austrian border lies this wonderful cluster of castles built in the age of King Ludwig II and his forefathers. One look at the towering castle from a distance takes us back to stories of Cinderella and Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. But funnily enough, this castle was built in the 19th Century around 1882 barely 30 years before World War 1. 

As you walk up the steep sloping road that leads up to this magnificent castle, with people double your age passing you by with ease and even toddlers running, waddling and toddling far faster than you can hike up (thanks to our fantastic fitness levels at the time), time stands still at its first glance. The sheer scale and opulence with which this Castle was built stands as a monument to the grandeur of the Bavarian kings. It is said that Ludwig II never intended for this castle to be accessible to the general public and yet barely weeks after his death, his regent threw it open to paying visitors and this landmark today is probably the most visited place in all of Germany.

In peak summer, one doesn’t realize that the town of Schwangau and the Neuschwanstein castle lie at the foothills of the Bavarian Alps. Pictures from the winter show a shimmering castle covered in snow with a setting straight out of a Disney musical. Fun fact here, many believe that the Castle shown in the opening credits of any Disney film is in fact inspired by Neuschwanstein and its surrounding castles.

We lived in a tiny little slice of heaven called Hotel Schwansee.The owners, Susanne and Claus (yes with a ‘C’) were phenomenal and made us feel right at home.Tall with blonde hair and Blue eyes, Claus was the quintessential German. But the real star of this hotel was their Siberian Huskey, Yuki. My husband and Yuki became fast friends and he even drank a pint of King Ludwig Dark beer with her sitting right next to him all throughout. They live in the rooms right above the hotel. There’s something about these small and quaint little fairly run hotels in this region. Through their owners, you see a whole new dimension of German culture that will seldom reveal itself in the hustle and bustle of Berlin and Munich.

Humble request #4 by the husband:

You can take the Indian out of India but not India out of the Indian. In Schwangau, check out this Indian restaurant called Annapoorna in the main town centre. Our Indian palate was longing for its spices and deep fried goodness that European food could not offer. And boy did we have a hearty Indian feast! Burrp! And don’t forget to try the King Ludwig Dark beer. Making money off a dead king’s name has never been tastier!

Biergarten, BMW, Olympics Park

We drove the next morning from Shwangau to Munich as we had our flight back to Amsterdam from there. We reached Munich with a little time to spare, so we decided that we only want to do a couple of highly recommended highlights.

First stop, the BMW museum. This is where I fell in love with Mini Coopers. We spent close to 3 hours roaming around the Welt and the BMW museum. The Welt was an architectural beauty. The main floor section is catered mainly to tourists like us, displaying some of their top of the line cars like the M6. They even had a section for Rolls Royce which was unexpected. I picked up a miniature red Mini Cooper for myself as part of my souvenir collection.

We walked around the Olympic Park, which isn’t particularly in great shape today, lots of graffiti and lots of littering, but nevertheless, it is a nice open space with a lot to see.

We had a couple of more hours in town before we had to hit the road to the airport. Guess what we did? We made the mandatory pit stop at one of Munich’s world-famous Biergarten – the Augustine Keller Biergarten. 

Dating back to 1812, this beer garden is the oldest one in Munich and the second largest with space for 7,000 visitors. Off the beaten tourist track, this well-known beer hall takes the party outside in summer. And if it rains, the biergarten’s cellar from 1807 stays open. 

Fresh Augustine beer is served straight out of wooden barrels with a bell marking the arrival of each new cask. Hot, cheap German biergarten classics are served until 23:00, but visitors are welcome to bring their own food. You can spot the regulars as about 100 Stammtische (regulars tables) date back to 1847.

What next, it was time to say, so long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye!

We continued the onward journey to Amsterdam, you can read it here.

Suitcases packed.

Visas received.

Hair coloured red!

This holiday was precious! We had planned and prepared way beforehand, and we were excited beyond measure. So, we Aerofloated our way to Amsterdam via Moscow, and our adventure began right away!

• 

• 

• 

A city of 1500 bridges, 50 kilometres of canals and more bikes than people, Amsterdam is one of Europe’s most popular cities with visitors from around the world. The first thing you notice are the gorgeous brick buildings, open skyline, rich history, and the relaxed, easy going attitude towards life of the Dutch.

Along with its beautiful gabled houses and flower-decked watersides, there’s an enormous amount to see and do, whether your interests are more Golden Age art or graffiti, high culture or getting high in a coffee shop; and we did all that!

We stayed pretty close to the city centre, at The Flying Pigs hostel. Why hostel? Well, what’s Europe without a couple of hostel stays!?

Day 1 was all about typical sight-seeing stuff, as we hopped on and off trams and buses to get from one place to another. If you plan on visiting museums in Amsterdam, I recommend investing in the iAmsterdam card, which will allow you access to Amsterdam’s best museums, public transportation as well as discounts to many attractions and a free canal cruise.

Humble request #1 by the husband:

Wherever you’re traveling next, try staying at a hostel for one night. The experience is interestingly awesome, you make friends, you save space; communal breakfasts and lunches and other meals, with some ‘joint’ conversations over a coffee pot. And guess what it’s considerably cheap, because let’s face it, you’re only there to spend the night.

Where all did we Gogh!

Is it possible to write about museums in the Netherlands without mentioning the world-famous Rijksmuseum? The Rijksmuseum focuses on the culture and history of the Netherlands although their collection of Dutch masters is particularly notable.  If you’re not into the Dutch masters (like my significant other), you’ll still find plenty to see in the Rijksmuseum, but to save time, we did a quick tour around and went to the next museum on the list, not before the mandatory “IAMSTERDAM” picture, of course!

Vincent Van Gogh is arguably the most popular artist in the history of mankind. Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum holds the largest collection of his works. This makes the Van Gogh Museum one of the 25 most-visited museums in the world. The collection at the museum includes his paintings, drawings, and letters, along with the notable works of his contemporaries. Surprisingly, though, one of his world-famous paintings, The Starry Night, is not in this museum, but in the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

It is quite simple to navigate through Van Gogh’s works at the museum because of the chronological arrangement. There are 2 audio tours you can try, one is the long, extended version and another short concise version, both of which take you through the entire life of Vincent Van Gogh, including the artist’s struggles and painting techniques, his correspondence with his brother, Theo, all the museum highlights, an in-depth insight into Van Gogh’s major works and a live light and sound narrative installation that allows you to enter the mind and heart of Vincent van Gogh. You can experience Van Gogh’s emotional journey when he moved from Paris to Arles, in the South of France. His journey was alive with inspiration and beauty, but also tarnished with doubt and confusion.

After walking around for a little more time, we decided to head to Amsterdam Centrale to meet a friend. On our way we stopped by one of the most famous Belgian Fries chain in this side of the world – Manneken Pis.

Humble request #2 by the husband:

If you’re ever in this part of the world, please, pretty please try these delicious, scrumptious and gorgeous Belgian fries. They beat the ghee roast I spoke about in our Sri Lanka blog. You will thank me later.

Because I need my space.

The evening was trippy to say the least, without giving away too much. We rolled over to all the important evening destinations – The Blue Lagoon Coffee Shop, The Bulldog, (the jail/holding cell that was converted into a café), and even Wagamama. My memories of the night are Amstel radler, the chatty and affable Amsterdamians who just waltzed in and out of conversations with us. Maybe it is the Dutch culture of exploration of new cultures which eventually led to them being a colonial powerhouse or just the heady air of Amsterdam that mellows you down with every breath, there’s something about the people that makes you want to visit the place again and again.

The Dutch countryside

Acres of green, powder puff clouds, Lakenvelder or the Dutch belted cows, charming canals and boathouses, and a red scooter! We rode the scooter aimlessly around the Dutch countryside and I don’t think I have seen anything so gorgeous in my life. All we had was a physical map, 2 bottles of water, names of our pit stops, a weakish internet connection, a scooter that wouldn’t go beyond 30 kmph and hidden red arrows along the way. We were one with nature and we loved it!

We stopped by little cafes that served fresh bread and coffee, we saw residents out on a stroll with their ponies and of course saw the adorable vintage windmills. What was awesome about the whole experience was the dedicated bike lane across highways and even inside little streets.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The story of the world’s most famous beer!

A small Amsterdam brewery went on to become the world’s favourite beer, that’s the story of the Heineken beer!

The brewery was established in Amsterdam in 1864 and today Heineken is one of the three largest beer producers in the world. Heineken’s rich and successful history has been presented in their old defunct brewery in Amsterdam, with several amusement park attractions added to the exhibit and renamed as Amsterdam Heineken Experience.

The architecture of the 19th century Heineken brewery buildings, authentic interiors, old photographs and state decorations Heineken family received, famous gold medal from The Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1889, which you may see reproduced on each can of Heineken, impressive brass beer tanks and a quiet horse stable, they took us around everything and even made us our very own bottle of Heineken beer with our name on it.

The experience also included a canal tour that went down the same route that the Heineken barrels took back in the day. We cruised along Amsterdam’s lovely UNESCO-listed canals, listening to engaging commentary on board that gave us background into the city and historical landmarks, including the Skinny Bridge, Anne Frank House, the National Monument, the Royal Palace, St Nicolaaskerk (St Nicholas Church) and the final stop was at A’Dam Lookout; where we got off and made our way to the observation deck.

An unrivaled panoramic view of Amsterdam and a thrilling ‘Over the Edge’ swing, A’DAM Lookout is a spot in the city that has views of the city’s historical centre, its pulsating port, the unique Dutch polder landscape and also the famous canals. We obviously wanted to get on that swing, but unfortunately almost everything in Amsterdam requires pre-booking, that sometimes go back to weeks if not months, so we couldn’t.

Humble request #3 by the husband:

Once you have your entire itinerary planned, MAKE YOUR BOOKINGS. Be it the museums, the shows, A’DAM Lookout or anything else, you don’t want to miss them. We unfortunately had to skip a few because of unavailable tickets.

Also, everywhere you go, stock up on Stroopwaffels. I think God took some time to encourage the human mind to invent these, it’s got that heavenly taste, I swear.

Break ke baad!

After a gorgeous getaway to Germany over the next few days, we were back in Amsterdam for just one more day. (details of the German Holiday in the next blog!)

Tired and jaded, we reached Amsterdam Central. That night was weird. Remember when I spoke about being open to hostel stays, well, you must not over do it, especially in a place like Amsterdam.

We stayed at the Train Lodge, which as a place to stay is adorable, but the company we got was not one we sought. Let’s cut to the chase, I was spooked by the screams and hallucinations of a fellow roomie and nothing about that night was funny.

Humble request #4 by the husband:

Don’t judge a book by its cover and don’t judge a place by its ambience. Company matters! Especially when you’re travelling with your partner, no matter how accommodating you both are, you want to be sure that the people you’re sharing a room with are not eccentric to say the least. Nothing against the guy who was enjoying his holiday and doing what he was there to do. 

I don’t want to go back home!

The next morning we bolted out of there even before the sun rose fully. Booking.com helped us find a really cool place to stay the day and night, it was called Hotel Teleport, and it was awesome!

Day was spent doing the typical touristy stuff in Amsterdam, cheese museum, tulip museum, duck store, a very uncomfortable visit to the sex museum, a coffee shop named Grey Area, picture outside the Anne Frank House and of course the mandatory visit to Manneken Pis for those delicious fries!

 Humble request #5 by the husband:

Half the day was spent inside our hotel room watching Comedy Central, munching on some ready to eat food and stepping out in the rain for a quick puff or two. My request here is, if you’re traveling to this place, try everything we’ve listed and more, eat everything you wish to eat, waffles, pancakes, pizzas, Indian food and especially the fries at Manneken Pis. They beat the pizza at Auto Grill, (refer to Rachna’s blog on our trip to Italy). Divine is the word.

Before we knew it, it was time to go back, but there was so much more to experience. Here’s us ending this blog with a promise to make the Netherlands a recurrent travel destination.

15/12/2016, 9:00 pm UAE.

R: We still haven’t booked our tickets to Sri Lanka. 

V: Let’s do it! Come on! Check Sky Scanner! Wooohooo! Who’s paying? *I raise my hand* Credit Card!(I am not kidding, this dialogue is verbatim. My husband is generally excited about life, one of the things I love about him)

V: Done! VR going on the 23rd of Feb and back on the 3rd of March. Apply for leave.

Fast Forward 03/03/2017, 6:45 pm Sri Lanka.

V (on the phone *cough cough*): We have missed our flight due to a medical emergency, can you book us on the same flight for tomorrow?

Sri Lankan Airways representative: We have just one seat available.

V (off the phone to me): Do you want to take that and proceed?
Suspense!!!!!
Disclaimer:This blog is all about the fact that you MUST always listen to your wife. Nawwwwwwww. I am kidding!Well, I could be serious.Read on and figure out for yourselves.

The real disclaimer: If you are from India, you may find Sri Lanka a tad bit expensive, although the currency is about half the value of the Indian Rupee. If you are from any other part of the world, you’re ok, you’ll find US Dollars to be accepted at most places.
Alright, here we go. We landed at 6:00 am local time in Colombo and were received by our ever smiling and super friendly driver Sushantha. We head straight to Kandy from the airport with a stop over for breakfast.

Up and up and up

We reached Kandy in about 2 hours, then we started finding our way to the hotel. We went swirling uphill, through narrow alleys, muddy tracks, and a trillion prayers to get to ‘The Kandyan Villa’. The approach was extremely scary. Frankly, there were times I thought we wouldn’t make it, but once we got there, it was worth it!

After a quick shower and a power nap, we got ready to explore the city. What a relaxing town. Centered around a beautiful and clean(ish) lake, Kandy is a mix of the modern hustle bustle with old heritage. The central religious attraction is the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. Legend says that the sacred tooth of the Buddha was snatched from his funeral pyre in India in 483 BC. It changed hands a few times before it landed here in Sri Lanka. We joined the throngs of people to witness a small golden urn that is revered by all. 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Next up, the Kandy Lake. The Kandy Lake is a dominating part of the city, you can’t miss it even if you wish to. As we walked by, we saw some locals putting up a show with monkeys and snakes and even fishes. We didn’t spend a lot of time there, there wasn’t much to do. We went straight to a Ganesha and Shiva temple to celebrate the occasion of Maha Shiva Ratri. It almost felt like I was celebrating the festival back home in Mumbai.

After that, we loaded up on some supplies for the next couple of days and set off on our adventure ride back up.

Footnotes by V: R loves to take photos of anything but herself. I pose and preen like a Vogue cover model but getting her to stand in the frame, stoic and composed, without a pout or pointing or waving or doing the chicken dance is next to impossible. To that end, it works out perfectly for us. There are photos of almost every microbe we saw in Kandy that day but hardly one of two of R. 

The day we fell in love with elephants

I can safely call Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage my favorite part of the holiday because I couldn’t stop grinning! V and I sat at a small bar amongst the gift shops and other facilities and watched the herd trundle down to the river at the sound of a giant bell. For almost 2 hours we simply sat and watched as elephants of all shapes and sizes danced around in the water. We picked a favorite, a baby elephant, and watched his adorable quirks as he enjoyed his bath.

On our way back to the orphanage we picked up some “Poo Paper”, I am not kidding, it really was paper made from elephant poo. In the orphanage, herds of elephants were being looked after by no less than a dozen caretakers. Some were being fed, while others were enjoying a romp out on a flat plain and they were all unchained and uncaged. And watching beautiful creatures live their lives without any restrictions is an easy way to bring a day-long smile to my face.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Covering 150 acres, Peradeniya Gardens are the largest in Sri Lanka and include a massive collection of more than 4000 species of plants. We rented a golf cart to go around the gardens. In addition to the well-manicured lawns and flower beds dotted with lakes and pagodas, the orchid house is a highlight. Peradeniya is well known for its extensive collection of orchids, and the colorful selection is well worth a look. The local wildlife includes a huge number of fruit bats hanging from tree branches, deep in slumber, and carloads of monkeys generally running amok.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

After a quick trip to a herbal garden nearby, we made our way to a mini auditorium to witness the culture show. Dancers dressed in colorful outfits sang and danced to the quintessential Sri Lankan folk beat. Some of them managed to pull off some epic moves and some very good story-telling. It was quite a tiresome day, we had a quick bite at the City Centre and called it a night by 10 pm.

Footnotes by V: Pinnawala was where it all started, R’s absolutely epic pose for every solo picture she will ever take in her life. She holds up her hand, pointing behind or above or beyond to some corner of space; pointing at something just to ensure that the picture pose is anything but normal. She is awesome. I only appear relatively insane in comparison. Match made in heaven! 

Out of sight, out of breath

The next morning, we visited Sigiriya. While it is not as famous as the pyramids, it is most definitely a sight to behold. The ancient city surrounding a rock-topped palace is today a World Heritage Site.
Sigiriya was founded in the fifth century by King Kassapa I. It was the regional capital and a major stronghold. In its time, Sigiriya was one of the most important urban centers in the region. The crowning jewel was the fortified palace, said to be impregnable and perched atop the giant rock, its smooth sides denying access to invaders.

Most of the city has been destroyed and only the stone parts, the “bones” of the city remain. V decided to climb it. I didn’t, he dragged me. At the start of the climb, a monkey stole my only pack of chocolate milk, that I had saved for later. All the way up I kept dissing at V. I dreaded the climb. As we walked up a little, I came across children sprinting up effortlessly, I saw senior citizens struggling their way up determined to make it. And I was out of breath even before the actual climb even began.

At first, we walked up a set of wide, stone stairs, I took breaks, but I was fine. Eventually, the stone stairway ended and gave way to narrow rusted ones that seemed like they would unhinge any minute. I somehow, pushed on up against my will, my face gradually turning red and my legs trembling. At times, when it got too bad, I pretended to stop and nonchalantly pull out my camera and clicked some pictures.

Halfway up the rock is a cave filled with frescoes of 21 women. They call them “The Maidens of the Clouds.” Not sure exactly who these women are, but with their carefully constructed features, it’s fair to suspect that these were modeled on actual women — perhaps Kassapa’s concubines.

We climbed a little longer and then reached the base of the rock. The Lion’s Rock, as they call it, looks as magnanimous as its name. This was it. I wasn’t going any further. And the humid afternoon sun didn’t help. Five minutes of rest and a drink of water magically changed my mind. I made it!

• 

• 

• 

• 

And here’s what was waiting for me at the top.

It was worth all that climbing and more. With burning lungs and sweat-drenched hair, I sat on the edge with a sense of achievement unlike anything I have felt before.

Footnotes by V: For all the jumping jacks out there, Sigiriya is a painful reminder of when and where you should display your youth and exuberance. Your needless excitement will be met with cold and icy death stares, curses under the breath and some of the choicest abuses when your wife is not exactly fond of climbing 267,546 needlessly high steps which were probably built for giants and not two sub 5 foot 6-inch hobbits.

• 

• 

• 

Walking on Cloud 9 

We then drove further up north to Nuwara Eliya. 
Does the word “Ceylon” remind you of something? Tea? Yes, right! The rainy, humid and cool temperatures of Sri Lanka make the perfect conditions for high-quality tea. And Nuwara Eliya is the heart of this tea making hill country. 

Nuwara Eliya was the destination for the British colonialists to spend their summer and practice their hobbies such as hunting, polo, golf, and cricket. The British influences are quite visible in the architecture which is why Nuwara Eliya is also called “Little England”.On our way up, we visited a Tea plantation called Storefield Tea Factory. We saw all the traditional equipment and learnt the process of manufacturing tea. The best part of the visit was their little tea shop where we could try all kinds of tea. This was the second highlight of our trip. It was sublime. We stocked on six different varieties of tea and continued our way up. I recommend stopping by this tea factory for their hospitality and their amazing teas and tastings, which by the way were completely free of cost.

• 

• 

Just before we reached the top, we stopped for lunch at the Ramboda Falls restaurant. We went very close to the falls and clicked gazillion pictures and then ate lunch at a table with a refreshing view of the falls.

After lunch, we went further up, driving by gorgeously lush tea estates. We stayed at this charming property called Villa Tea Fields, a little off Gregory Lake, one of the most prominent tourist spots in Eliya. V booked the attic room, and I believe that was the best decision he ever made, other than marrying me, of course! We spent the eve of our anniversary mostly tucked in our bed because of awful weather conditions and a sweeping laziness that was inevitable considering that the room was a supersized version of Harry Potter’s first chapter, ‘The Boy in the Attic!’

A little later, when it stopped raining we stepped out for a walk and stopped by a strawberry farm, which was a little dingy and unclean. We went there specifically because V had looked it up and thought it was a great idea to go in freezing weather to have crepes, which weren’t that great by the way. And as we were about to step out of there, the weather gods reminded us why laziness is often the best recourse. We should not have stepped out of the Attic room that day. Sushanta came to our rescue and took us to a South Indian restaurant, Sri Ambaal’s, for dinner! 

We ate Neyi Roast. It was such a relief to have food that I was familiar with. Nothing fancy, just a quaint little restaurant/canteen with amazing vegetarian food, filter coffee and chitter-chatter in Tamil (pandering to my homies here!).
We spent the rest of the night watching a new TV show called ‘Cosimo’ on Netflix. On a side note, I would recommend the show if you’re into history.

Footnotes by V:  “You had me at Neyi roast!”is what the final dialogue of Sleepless in Salem would have been. For those who did not get this reference, “Neyi Roast” is basically a crispy Dosa made with Ghee (clarified butter). It is what a warm hug from a pug feels like. It is what stealing your friend’s pencil in school feels like. It is what it feels like to wear a lungi/veshti after wearing skinny jeans all day. If you haven’t eaten it already, then Neyi roast is what you should demand from God, your parents or spouse as your immediate next meal. It will set you on the path to Nirvana!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Happy Anniversary 

Sri Lanka screams hospitality. No one exemplifies this more than our driver Susantha and the caretakers of our accommodation at Villa Tea fields. While we trotted down for breakfast on our anniversary morning, there they were with a bouquet, cake, sweets, and breakfast spread out on the table, smiling at us wishing us a happy anniversary. One of the sweetest memories of the trip no doubt!

We wore about four layers of clothing and began our first anniversary with a visit to the Seetha Amman temple, formerly a part of Ravana’s Ashoka Vatika. I haven’t seen a setting better than this one for a temple. Nestled in the arms of meandering hills, right at the end of a small waterfall, inside a thick forest sat this gorgeous temple of Goddess Seetha. The interesting thing though were the monkeys that surrounded the entire temple premises, not one of them strayed an inch outside. Legend has it that Lord Hanuman left a part of his army there to take care of the Goddess. And as much as I don’t believe in myths, this setting was so surreal, it made me believe for once.

Our next stop was the New Zealand cow farm. The rain had picked up by then and we could barely see anything. And frankly, I was not very keen on visiting this place anyway. Although the cows are left free to graze and wander a little, it’s a pitiable sight to see them being forcefully milked and separated from their calves. Not my best memory of the trip.

We were back at Sri Ambaal’s for lunch. Yes, we had Neyi roast again! Fully satiated, we went back to our attic room for a nap.

Our anniversary dinner was at a fine dine restaurant called the Indian Summer, a few minutes away from our hotel. The food there was divine. I will take the liberty to be punny here and say that we thoroughly enjoyed the Indian Summer in the biting cold of Nuwara Eliya.

Footnotes by V: 
Excerpts from an important conversation – Part IR: Hey, maybe we should book the spa for tomorrow evening, we may not have enough time on 3rd. We have to pack up and leave.V: 3rd? We are leaving on the 4th.R: Are you sure?V: Yes, yes. I booked the hotels and the tickets. We have all of the 3rd to chill.
R: Ok

Warning 1: The wife is always right. Drill this into your skulls all you husbands out there!

In nature’s lap 

Feeling rejuvenated by our quiet trips in the hills and valleys of the Emerald Isle, we headed towards the Southern coast of the island. The scenery changed from the greens and browns to the sparkling shades of blues as we drove by coastal towns.

We reached Ahungala late afternoon. The moment we entered our resort, The Roman Lake Ayurvedic Resort, it seemed like we were in a parallel universe; that of peace, happiness and yoga! I haven’t stayed in a property better than this one. Not even in Matera, Italy, which I thought was straight out of a fairytale (refer to my blog here). For God’s sake, this property had a hot tub on the patio! ON THE PATIO!

The hot tub was put to good use. 
Chilling – Check
Whiling Time – Check
Catching up on Cosimo – Check
Weird Sri Lankan Hair dye commercials – Check

Now it is a holiday!

Footnotes by V: 
Excerpts from an important conversation – Part IIR: I remember us booking our tickets for the 3rd, are you sure we’re leaving on 4th.V: Yes.
Warning 2: A repeated question is a surefire sign that you have screwed up!

Moby Dick, Ninja Turtles, and Beach Bums

We started at 5 am the next morning and went straight to Mirissa for whale watching. The weather was not very conducive. We spent almost three hours mid-sea and we managed to see only two whales. It was still worth it.

We then went to the Galle Fort. In the 18th century, the Dutch built their headquarters on the Sri Lankan coast, surrounded by ocean views on three sides and a daily sunset. We stepped back in time to the most perfectly preserved colonial town in Sri Lanka, before heading off to a Turtle reserve. With its sandy beaches and warm climate, the Sri Lanka coast is a hotbed of sea turtle activity. Aman and Arun Turtle Conservatory and Research Center, like the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, became a favorite.

At the reserve, they have what appear to be really large sandboxes. The sandboxes are surrounded by chain link fence and covered with netting. After eggs are procured, nests are dug in the sand, and the eggs are buried again. Then the spot is marked with the date. If everything works out you should have a horde of baby turtles in 50 – 70 days.
Our guide took us over to a  rectangular cement pool full of little baby sea turtles splashing around. Even though there were signs posted everywhere saying, “DO NOT TOUCH THE TURTLES” our guide seemed to have no qualms about scooping up the little wriggling critters and dropping them into peoples’ outstretched hands. I have to admit that one of those outstretched hands was mine.

Most of the hatch-lings are released after 48 hours to make their way in the Indian Ocean. The hatchery holds on to a handful for research. These turtles are kept in bigger cement pools sprinkled throughout the hatchery. We saw a few older turtles and spent a lot of time clicking pictures with them.

After a quick stopover at the Moonstone mine, not worth it, by the way, we spent the evening sipping on cocktails and admiring the gorgeous sunset at the Shinagawa beach. What a way to call it a day.
Footnotes by V: 
Turtles are the coolest creatures ever! Touch them on their back or head and they pretend to play dead. Let them back into the water and give them a gentle push and they swim faster than Michael Phelps! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will become a reality some day and I will see turtles doing awesome things that I know they are capable of.
Excerpts from an important conversation – Part IIISusantha: Sir, what time is your return flight? It is tomorrow, right?
R: Check the tickets once, just in case.V: Oh my God, STOP! CHILL! It is on the 4th! I will check it later just in case
V (in his mind): No I won’t! Buhahahahaha! (Evil villain laughter.)
R: Why do you look like you are about to have an evil villain laugh?

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz 

After such an eventful day, we thought we deserved some pampering. Our resort had an attached spa and we spent the morning being treated to an Ayurvedic massage. 
We didn’t just nap, we slept like logs and gave Sushanta the day off.

Excerpt from important conversation Part IV 2:30 pm local time

R: You know what, do the web check-in.

V: Sri Lankan Airways allow web check-in only 24 hours in advance.
At 6:30 pm local time, as I was making us some green tea.

R: Check-in now!V: Arrghhhhh! Ok!

V takes out the carefully packed tickets and documents from his backpack.

V: Rach, we are about to miss our flight

R: Enough now! Don’t have to be mean to me.

V: I am not kidding!*glass shatters* *I hear thunder*R: FIX THIS NOW!
03/03/2017, 6:45 pm Sri Lanka.

V (on the phone *cough cough*): We have missed our flight due to a medical emergency, can you book us on the same flight for tomorrow?

Sri Lankan Airways representative: We have just one seat available.

V (off the phone to me): Do you want to take that and proceed?

R: You dare to ask me that on our anniversary trip?

V (on the phone): Any other suggestions?

Sri Lankan Airways representative: Apply for a no-show, you may get 50% refund and rebook tickets for tomorrow.

V: Alright.

Needless to say, we booked the next flight and bolted out of there. Our savior, Sushanta cut short his time with his wife |(since Bentota was also his hometown) and came back all the way to our hotel to pick us up.One long cab ride later we were at Colombo airport, running and making our way to the check-in counter. And four hours later we were back home in Dubai.

We might’ve made a sudden exit from the country, but here’s a parting thought, the people, the place, the hospitality, the greenery, the heritage, the culture, the food, everything about India’s tear drop, Sri Lanka is just so welcoming. If Kerala, India is called God’s own country, Sri Lanka is probably HIS world.

P.S. You may not want to drive around Sri Lanka by yourselves or take their public transport. My recommendation is to book a cab for your entire holiday, it cost us about USD 300, which, considering the duration of our trip and the distance we traveled seemed worth it.

Final Footnotes by V:
1. Smile, pause and take in the magnificence of nature once in a while. It doesn’t hurt to be nice to people. Sri Lanka just drove home that point every single day we were there.
2. Hire Susantha as your driver in Sri Lanka. If there was ever a more genial personality, someone who is helpful beyond his regular duties, this is the man. If you are planning a trip, let us know and we’ll share his contact details with you.
3. White Tea is the iPhone of Teas. You will need to sell a kidney to buy a 100 gram tin of it.
4. Listen to your wife, always, every time, even if you know you are right because you won’t be, ever!

“The past always looks better than it was because it isn’t here.”

Finley Peter Dunne

We started our drive from Bari, Puglia (or Apulia), the southern Italian province referred to as “the heel of the boot”. We drove past some the most scenic sights of Southern Italy, through Forest Mercadente, which was dotted with olive trees and cherry blossoms. There was absolutely no one in sight. At one point, we even stopped, had a drink of water, ate some cookies and clicked pictures. Not a SINGLE car went by.

As we drove closer, the beautiful little town of Matera came in sight. It looked like any other small town in Italy. Tiny buildings, tiny cars. We followed the directions on Google Maps and suddenly, spun around a roundabout and went back in time by a few decades. That’s when we realised that on one side of the canyon was a modern city, on the other side of the canyon was old Matera, an area so ancient that it was used to portray Judea in Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ.” Often called the Sassi (which means stone), or the City of Stone, this part of Matera is a maze of caves and churches dating back to Roman times with zigzagging steps and stone facades carved from a massive slope of yellowed tufa.

We noticed some film equipment being moved around and some shooting being wrapped up. We only later realised that ‘Wonder Woman’ was being shot right next to our hotel. Nevertheless, I can always pretend I knew beforehand and that it was part of the reason we chose Matera.

We parked at a clearing and struggled our way up the stony stairs to our fairytale suite. We spent the rest of the day admiring our room and being lazy.

Matera: I Wonder, Woman!

We woke up to the mouth-watering whiff of coffee, croissants, cakes, pizza, cheese, fruits and so much more. We followed our noses to the restaurant and were met by the sight of a lavish spread that we had never seen or tasted before.  Oh the coffee! Coming from someone who swears by the typical, tambrahm filter coffee, the coffee here beat it, hands down! 

Our tour guide, Cosimo greeted us at our hotel restaurant right after. It was cold and rainy. He walked us to some unimaginably old, yet unbelievably beautiful chapels with elegant frescoes that were chipped off at some places and made way for new ones as Christianity evolved. We went around the labyrinthine stairs to some old wine cellars, ancient grottos that portrayed the Matera way of life almost centuries before us and visited some charming little kitchen gardens.

While on the move, I naively pointed out to Cosimo that he must have been really lucky to have grown up in a place as beautiful as Matera. And then he said something very interesting. He said that these limestone caves and houses were originally inhabited by slaves and the outcast. Without proper sanitation and drainage systems, Matera was actually a breeding ground for infections and diseases. At one point it had to be evacuated. It is today that these old, limestone houses have been transformed into gorgeous luxury hotels and residences. Thanks to the United Nations.

We ended our tour late afternoon, it started raining as we walked back to our room, oh my God, it was cold. The streets were empty, there was an eerie silence which was suddenly broken by the church bells; we saw a headless goose on a parapet wall and literally ran to our hotel room to save our lives.

Trani: Over the horizon

We left for Trani early, next morning, to make it back in time for supper.

As we drove closer, we spotted the horizon.

Now, frankly, I wonder why we haven’t heard more of this place!

Trani has a captivating view of the shoreline and boats bobbing in the harbour, a beautiful chapel that looked like it was recently built and some of the best panoramas Italy has to offer.

We walked along a lonely ramp to a light house. Well, we were actually stalking a cat which led us to an amazing view. The photographers in both of us woke up with a jolt. The next few minutes were spent attempting panoramas from every angle.

We got tired and found our way to a quaint little restaurant for some pizza. We spent a little time walking around and then drove back to Matera only to be spooked by the headless goose and the empty, cobblestoned alley.

Day 3: Alberobello

“Green gold olive trees, red soil, blue sky and white houses. The world is beautiful, I love the world.”

Vito, our tour guide

We researched a little about Alberobello, and everything about it seemed very attractive, including the fact that a Bollywood song was shot there.

We met Vito, our tour guide at Bari station who drove us to Alberobello. Continuing our path around the perimeter of the forest from Vieste we enjoyed vistas of the Adriatic coastline with clear blue waters.

As we drove closer, we spotted the tiny white and grey hut like structures. If the Hobbits had to suddenly take up residence in southern Italy, they’d likely do so in the trulli dotting the countryside of Alberobello. Many of these stone hut structures, often dating to the 14th-15th centuries, were originally built to house agricultural workers or as storage buildings. Why this style of home became so popular is still a bit of a mystery. One appealing theory posited: people built trulli so they could easily dismantle them before the tax collector arrived. How’s that for a clever tax dodge?

While we went around the tiny little town, which also happens to be a busy tourist attraction in peak season, we saw many small shops selling souvenirs, but among them we found one appealing local shop, spoke to the owners there, and got introduced to some of the best wine from the region.

To say the least, we clicked a gazillion pictures.

We went back to Matera a little later that evening, and walked our way up the lonely streets, crossed the headless goose, who started to seem friendlier now and went straight to our room to get ready for our date night. 

I sincerely made an effort to dress up and look pretty. We went to a Michelin Star restaurant, Baccanti, for dinner. The meal was, to say the least, divine! Goat cheese starters, pink sauce pasta and the best tiramisu either of us have ever had. V even stole a wine cork for me, as a souvenir of this fairytale land and the fairytale dinner.

The sights of snow capped mountains, vast plains, clean cows, stuff I have seen only in Bollywood movies, were right in front of me. All through the drive, I only remember clicking pictures. Oh! And we stopped for some delicious Margherita on the way at Auto Grill and carried on our way to Florence on the Auto Strada at 200 kmph.

We reached Florence and it was everything we’d imagined it to be and more. We followed the instructions on Google Maps and drove almost 70 degrees uphill in a street that was less than 8 feet wide. We did it. Finally, we reached our hotel, Villa Agape. And the views! Oh my God the views! They were breathtaking.

The property had a curious charm. The origins of Villa Agape are actually lost in history. 

It changed hands a few times, and in the process expanded to a beautiful estate. At one point it was owned by Galileo’s close friend and fellow academician. In fact, we learnt that Galileo spent a part of his house arrest in this villa. Until 2014 it was owned by the  Stabilite nella Carità Sisters, and was a place for spiritual exercises, conferences, meeting, studying days, short or long periods to rest in solitude for physical and spiritual relaxing. The nuns renamed the Villa to Villa Agape.  And in 2015 with a new management, it has become a wonderful hotel in the hills of Florence. 

We literally lived in a place of historic significance and I didn’t feel the weight of it until just now.

• 

• 

• 

“Sometimes I arrive just when God’s ready to have someone click the shutter.” –

Ansel Adams

Much like Rome, you need several days to get even a glimpse of Florence. If you really want to see it properly, you should probably just move there. There is no way you can take it all in, in a day. We tried.

We started our day early in the morning, after a sumptuous breakfast. We got dropped off by the hotel cab in the city centre, which is where we began discovering the gorgeous city of Florence. We walked the entire city on foot, under the Tuscan sun.

We started at Palazzo Duomo which was gorgeous, to say the least. We walked around for a bit and then decided to climb up to the tomb. The climb to the top of Brunelleschi’s dome at Palazzo Duomo was probably the scariest thing I have ever done, I am supremely claustrophobic. I was in tears because of the narrow stairway and dim lights. V walked up with me, step by step and calmed me down. Once were up there, the view was worth all that effort and more. And as we made our way down to discover the Lindt cafe right outside, the fear was gone in seconds.

My personal favourite, though was Ponte Vecchio. This bridge does get packed with tourists, but it really is a special place that you should experience once. Legend has it that if you and your loved one attach a padlock to any surface of the famous bridge and then throw away the key into the Arno River below, your love will last forever. Funny thing is, you can’t do that anymore, but people still do!

We went on to cover almost everything Palazzo Vecchio (Dante’s death mask), Palazzo Pitti, Boboli Gardens, Uffizi, San Lorenzo, Piazzale Michenangelo. Soon, it started getting dark and the entire city started shutting down, by 7:00 pm. o_o

After one very scary walk to Piazzale Michelangelo, imagining multiple situations of being mugged, killed, hurt and what not, we stared at David’s statue and his teeny weeny for a brief minute and got done for the day.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•