Tadoba Safari

Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve

9th April - 10th April 2018

Best Time to Visit: Summer (March to May)
No of people: 5 

Total distance covered to and fro from Nagpur : ~320 KM

Hotel /Home-stay bookings: Rs.3500 per night including the Lunch, Dinner and the Breakfast on double occupancy basis.

Tadoba Core Zone Safari charges: Rs.4300/-

Tadoba Buffer Zone Safari charges: Rs.3400/-
Petrol Expenses: Rs.3000/-
Total Expenses: ~Rs.15,000


In the month of March, we planned for a safari to Tadoba Tiger Reserve and immediately I started my search and google was to my rescue. As Nagpur is our hometown, reaching Tadoba was no big deal. But, if you are traveling to Tadoba, you can reach by - 

Air : Nagpur is the nearest airport and is 150 KM from Tadoba. 
Rail : Chandrapur is 45 KM from Tadoba and is the nearest railway station. Nagpur is 150 KM away and is well-connected too. 

Taxis from Nagpur to Tadoba should cost approximately Rs.3000 one way.

Following are the list of the Core and Buffer Zone Safari's that you can choose from:

Tadoba Map

Core Zones:

1. Moharli
2. Khutwanda
3. Navegaon
4. Kolara
5. Kolsa – Zari
6. Pangdi

Buffer Zones:

1. Alizanza
2. Devada Adegaon
3. Agarzari
4. Junona
5. Kolara
6. Ramdegi

I was totally confused by the above options and couldn't finalize any. Alas, after doing a lot of research, I thought of experiencing one core and one buffer zone safari.
 
Major difference between the 'Core' and the 'Buffer' zone is that; the 'Core' zone is actually a forest with abundant wild life. Whereas, in the buffer zone you will see a few wild animals along with co-existing villages. But, don't get to a conjecture about the tiger sighting. There is no relation between tiger sighting and the zones. You might sight a tiger in the buffer zone and not in the core zone , it's all on your luck. Also, you cannot predict which core/buffer zone gate will have a good sighting as you cannot trace the tiger movement.

I choose Khutvanda afternoon safari (Core zone) and Agarzari early morning safari(Buffer zone). You can book the same at:http://www.mahaecotourism.gov.in/Site/Common/nationalParks.aspx. I also had done one night booking at the 'Waghai Resort' near Moharli gate (https://www.tripadvisor.in/Hotel_Review-g1459055-d10171932-Reviews-Waghai-Chandrapur_Chandrapur_District_Maharashtra.html).

Park timings as on https://nationalpark.mahaonline.gov.in  

On 9th April, we started on our journey at 7:30 AM  in our Maruti Alto. Considering it as a 4 hours journey including the pit stops, we planned to reach the' Waghai Resort' at 11:30 AM. All it started with a gala journey, having chips/biscuits and soothing background music, when suddenly the car started loosing it's control on the highway and finally broke down. My husband Sagar, immediately got down and concluded that the tyre of our vehicle was ruptured and that we all had to get out. It was so much damaged that we could only see the rim. All of us were shocked, but the most relieving thing was spotting a garage at the same place where our car had stalled :) It was as if  the 'Almighty' wanted to help us out :)


After half an hour, we fixed the tyre and resumed our journey. Since ,we did not have spare tyre, we decided to purchase one from Varora to avoid any inconvenience later. We planned to have breakfast at a hotel on the highway. But, beware! There are not many restaurants :(  We ended in having food at one of the stall which wasn't value for money and was unhygienic .

At 11 AM, we reached Varora in search of a new tyre, as the roads were going to be more treacherous thereafter. As we reached Anandvan, we found out that the 19 KM stretch of the road towards Tadoba was under construction :(. It was very difficult drive through the scorching heat! Alas, we reached our resort at 12 PM.

As soon as we reached our resort, we relaxed in the rooms and had lunch. At 1:15 PM, we decided to leave for Khutvanda gate which was 13 KM drive. The drive was good, not many vehicles were plying on the road. In about 15 mins, we reached the Khutvanda gate and waited  for the safari. 

We started our safari in scorching heat of 43 degrees with 6 litres of water stocked in for the next four hours. We also covered our heads with scarves and caps :)

The Amazing Safari

 After half an hour all the vehicles waited at the spot near a pond where they sighted a tiger (fondly named Matkasur). But the tiger was a bit far (about 300 m) and was hardly visible. We waited for half an hour but Matkasur didn't move. 
  

Deer's on our way.

After an hour, we spotted another tiger (Chota Matka) who was resting in a pool of water along with some crocodiles. We all were amazed by that sight. He was almost there for half an hour and  he quietly moved behind the tree after spotting some deers. The deers ran helter-skelter after finding the presence of the Jungle King🐯.

Checkout the Deers in the background.

Crocodiles in the same pond :)

After this event, the tiger escaped through the farms and no one knew his location. We also waited for him for about 30 min and then left to the Tadoba Lake.

 Tadoba lake was too beautiful and surrounded by wild life. One could see the spotted dears, sambars, monkeys, wild buffaloes, Nilgai's, crocodiles and birds such as the storks, kingfishers, jacana's, woodpeckers, eagles. It was a sight to behold  :) The greenery besides the lake was talk of this journey in such scorching heat and was a lovely sight. My eyes couldn't take over to anything else, than this. It was indeed a fantastic moment :)

Tadoba lake

Deer

Wild Life @Tadoba

Eagle

The Lazy Croc!

At 6 PM, we left by the lake towards the gate and photographed the beautiful tar roads amongst the ghost trees. It is an awesome feeling when you are the only one meandering through the dense forests.

Serpentine!

Internal tar roads in Tadoba

Here, ends our afternoon safari..

Our 4 hours safari had come to an end and we reached our hotel at 7 PM and relaxed in our rooms. We also had nice delicious dinner and dozed off.

10th April, we left for Agarzari Buffer Zone at 6 AM and reached at the gate in 5 minutes. We got our documents checked and started our safari with our guide and the driver. I still cannot forget that morning, driving deep into the forest in the perfect weather conditions. We drove through the bamboo trees with peacocks in the background and golden backwaters of the IRAI dam. View was just irresistible!

Peacock!

Backwater of the IRAI dam.

The beautiful Kingfisher :)

Deep inside the Forest :)

We could see the pug marks of the tigers at one point and we followed them. We reached at a point and waited for 15 minutes but couldn't spot the cats.

Pugmarks!

We almost spent 2 hours later in the jungle and my hope to see the 'Bengal Tiger' almost diminished. Alas, we waited at a water spot where 'Madhuri', the tigress was spotted the day before along with her kids. We spent half and hour and one of the tourist spotted  some movement just adjacent to the water-pond. All of us were eager to see the 'Bengal Tiger' making a heroic entry through the bamboo trees towards the water pond. 

He came. He posed. He drank water and finally made a Good Bye! We were stalled by the beauty. He was just 15 feet away! What a terrific sight it was! I was blown away.

Tiger Spotted!

Gosh! He is so huge 😻😻

Superb!

What a sight!

Closeup!

Good Bye!

There was a senior ladies group aging 70+ and they were busy eating their tiffins and as soon as they saw the tiger, they stood and started annoying him  ... :|

I think the tiger identifies this gesture :) :P

We all couldn't control our laughter :D  and their guide promptly asked them to be seated. Those people also threw some paper wrappers from their gypsy and our guide picked it up later. I somehow was irritated by their behavior. All rules and regulations should be strictly followed is what I feel while you take the safari and if anyone disobeys the rule, the safari should be called off.  You shouldn't take advantage of people who are nice to you.

With that happening in the background, another 3 tigers started making their way towards the water pond. Everyone was excited to see all of them coming. Suddenly, surroundings went quiet. Our hearts were pumping for what next to come and boom!👊 One 9 month old baby from fellow gypsy started crying loudly. Tigers who were on their way got disturbed and sat down at the same location :(. We all love babies, but we were so upset as he totally ruined our experience.

Also, there was one instance where one of the tourist did not switch of his phone and his alarm was continuously ringing and the guide too couldn't switch it off as it was kept inside the locked safety box. 

We nearly sat there for more than half hour, but no luck! Finally, we made our way towards the gate and our safari ended.

It was amazing experience to visualize the 'King of the Jungle' in the wild. We could have sighted more too but probably bad luck. I wish the people are more thoughtful and the forest department makes stricter rules in the best interest of everyone. 

After buying some souvenirs we reached our resort at 10:30 AM. We had a quick breakfast and left for Nagpur at 12 PM. On our way home, we visited 'Anandvan'. We took a break for lunch at 'Hotel Ashoka', Jamb. We reached home around 4:30 PM. 

To summarize, it was a mesmerizing experience watching big cats in the wild!🐅 Not to forget, the incredible Tadoba forest and the amazing safari experiences in the core and the buffer zones which would be in my memories forever! 

They say once you spot the tiger, you start planning for your next visit and so are we :) 😼

For more photos follow me on instagram @saylibidkar, @sagarbidkar

Road trip to Europe

Road Trip to Central Europe

Germany - Austria - Slovenia - Italy - Switzerland - France

17th May - 8th June 2018

Best Time to Visit: Summer

Total distance covered : ~2000 KM

Part 1: Nissan SUV (Diesel)  touring Germany - Austria - Slovenia - Italy - Switzerland: 400 Euros

Part 2: Ford Galaxy (Petrol) touring Paris and Strasbourg: 227 Euros

Hotel /Home-stay bookings: ~850 Euros

Flight bookings: Rs.1,11 L for 3 people (Return journey Mumbai- Frankfurt)

Cab Expenses to and fro Mumbai: Rs.4000 
Schengen Visa: 120 euros for 2 people (No fees for children below 6 years)

Total Expenses: Rs. 3.75L

Travel Plan: 

We planned to cover the best of central Europe (Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland and France). Overall (Mumbai to Mumbai) tour was for 23 days. We applied for Schengen Visa in German consulate, Pune in the month of March. Thankfully, we received our visa stamped passports within a week.

A lot of friends asked me how did I manage touring 6 countries in such a less amount. Oh boy! you can manage the tour just like I did, if you:

• Plan your itinerary well in advance.
• Book flights 3-4 months before planned travel date.
• Decide in advance what all site-seeing you are going to do and book your site-seeing tickets online accordingly.
• Hire a diesel car and self-drive.
• Book accommodations much in advance.
• Have a good company, of course! 😉

 Our tour route was as below:

Itinerary:

17/05: Reaching Mumbai airport and boarding flight to Frankfurt (Germany).
18/05: Reaching Mannheim from Frankfurt Airport.
19/05: Mannheim to Innsubruck via Neuschwanstein castle.
20/05 : Innsbruck site-seeing (Austria).
21/05: Insnbruck to Salzburg via lake Chiemsee and Salzburg site-seeing.
22/05: Salzburg to Hallstatt. Hallstatt site-seeing.
23/05: Salzburg to Lake Konigsee.
24/05: Salzburg to Venice (Italy) via Lake Bled (Slovenia).
25/05: Venice site seeing.
26/05: Venice to Alps de Suise.
27/05: Venice to Siviez (Switzerland).
28/05: Trek in Siviez, Nendaz.
29/05: Nendaz to Interlaken via Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald.
30/05: Interlaken to Engelberg - Titlis.
31/05: Interlaken site-seeing.
1/06: Interlaken to Mannheim (Germany) via Rhine Falls.
2/06: Mannheim to Paris. Paris site-seeing.
3/06:Paris site-seeing.
4/06:Paris to Mannheim via Strassbourg. Strassbourg siteseeing.
5/06:Rest day.
6/06: Hidelberg site-seeing.
7/06:To Frankfurt - Mainz.
8/06: Return journey to Mumbai from Frankfurt Airport.

Road tripping in Europe was a dream come true. After my exceptional North-East road-trip, I never would have thought that Europe trip will happen for us so soon. Just an informal talk with Abhishek, one fine day, we never knew we would embark us for this sojourn. So, we started planning for this trip since January. We were quite excited about our plan and feeling of traveling to Europe was surreal until we packed our bags. 

Now, let me take you through my itinerary in detail 😊


17/05: Reaching Mumbai airport and boarding flight to Frankfurt (Germany) 
 
We booked the cab and left for Mumbai airport at 10:30 AM. We then boarded our Gulf Air flight to Bahrain at 6:30 PM. In the beginning, I was little skeptical about how our experience with Gulf Air would be, but I must say it was definitely a better experience flying with them. We reached Bahrain at 7:30 PM local time and then took the connecting flight to Frankfurt at 1:30 AM Bahrain time. One thing none of us could ever forget about Bahrain, was the 'super-chilled' airport. The temperature at the airport was so low that all the fellow travelers were literally shivering. We definitely weren't prepared for this, as all our winter-wears were already checked-in. We missed our clothes badly!!😃

18/05: Reaching Mannheim from Frankfurt Airport

We reached Frankfurt at the scheduled 7 AM local time and Abhishek had come to receive us at the connecting Bahnhof (Train Station) to Frankfurt airport. We then boarded train to reach Abhishek's place in Mannheim which was at an hour's distance. We all freshened up and then had mouth watering chicken prepared by Mimi (Abhishek's wife). I can still remember how yummy the chicken curry was! That was a really really warm welcome😊. Thank you Mimi and Abhishek!

In the evening, we had a guided city walk with Abhishek in the lanes of Mannheim and visited the nearby attractions like the Wassertum, fountains, library, market etc.

Mannheimer Wassertum

Fountains near the Wassertum

It was an evening well spent. Later, we geared up for the next leg of our trip.
 

19/05: Mannheim to Innsubruck visiting Neuschwanstein castle.

We had plans to leave for our journey by 9 AM after having scrumptious breakfast but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we could only leave by 11 AM . Also, due to some work-related reason Mimi couldn't join us.We took the first pit stop to fill the diesel and tasted the famous Curry wurst sauce. We had tried it for the first time and we totally loved it. 

Driving on world famous Auto-Bahn through no speed zones, we reached Neuschwanstein castle at 5 PM. The first thing that popped-up in my mind was the image of the Disney castle. It was a fantastic sight. Soon, the drizzling started, weather became more beautiful and I was exhilarated.

Neushwanstein Castle, Germany

We also visited the falls behind the castle and our evening was well spent! By 7 PM, we started our journey to Innsbruck. Pretty snow-capped mountains greeted us to beautiful Austria. 

On our way to Innsbruck

We reached our 3 bhk apartment (https://www.kolpinghaus-innsbruck.at/) in Innsbruck by 8 PM. This apartment was a steal! We savored hot dal makani and rice and then rejuvenated.

20/05 : Innsbruck site-seeing (Austria) 

This day, we visited the local site seeing places such as the Bergisel Ski Jump,Ambrass Castle, ,The Golden Roof and Swarovski Crystal World. Innsbruck city view was stupendous from the Bergisel. Check the image below:

Innsbruck city view from Bergisel

Golden Roof, Innsbruck city

The world-famous Golden Roof is considered as the landmark of the city. We spent half an hour around this masterpiece and then had our lunch along the road-side food stalls which was lip-smacking. We then relished the peace and tranquility of the river Inns. After spending an hour, we decided to visit the beautiful Ambrass castle which is one of the topmost tourist attractions of Tyrol region.

Innsbruck city view and the river Inns.

In the evening, we visited the Swaroski Crystal World which was mobbed by Indian tourists; as every tour operator has it on their to-do list. However, it didn't fancy us. We soon left for our apartments at 5:30 PM as weather turned cloudy. I must mention here that, Abhishek was so particular about the weather conditions that, there was not a single instance in our entire trip where we encountered rains while site seeing. Hats of to him for his planning and deliberations!!

21/05: Insnbruck to Salzburg via lake Chiemsee

We left from Innsbruck at 9AM and on our way we decided to visit Lake Chiemsee also known as "The Bavarian Sea" in Germany. We reached Chiemsee at12:00 PM and then spent an hour by the lake side. The Lake is very beautiful and offers a picturesque view. Its also one of the top attractions for the Sailors in Germany.

Lake Chiemsee, Bavaria (Germany)

After having lunch at the famous joint near the lake, we reached Salzburg at 4 PM and then visited the Hohensalzburg Fortress. The climb was very steep with 45 degrees ascend. There is also a funicular which takes you at the top if you don't wish to burn calories by climbing.

Later, we decided to visit the Mirabell garden which I thought was quite ordinary. And, if you want to optimize your plan in Salzburg then you can easily skip it without any worries.

Thereafter, we decided to go on a short walk by the river side which was quite memorable and was a highlight of the day.

Salzburg riverfront

While having the walk, we were amused to see the 'Classic Amphibious bus' which takes you for a ride in the city as well as in the river Salzach. And though we did not try it, I presume it should be a magical and worthy experience when in Salzburg.

Amphibian Bus on the city road

Bus when in Salzach river.

Come evening, and we checked into our hotel "7 Days Premium Hotel" in Puch-Urstein and savored hot omelettes. That was indeed divine! A must mention here that this hotel's location was prime as it was in close proximity to Salzburg, the Lake Konigsee and Hallstatt.

22/05: Salzburg to Hallstatt

We reached World Heritage Village, HallStatt at 10:30 AM after a two hour drive. The drive was through many magnificent tunnels carved through the spectacular mountains. It was a sight to behold!

We then went boating into the Hallstatt lake for an hour (which costed us 12 Euros each). After having nice boating experience and listening to the tour-commentary in English and German, we visited Hallstatt church and had lovely walk through this fairly tale village.

Hallstatt

After purchasing some souvenirs and filling our bottles with natural glacier water (I must say, that it was sacred experience), we left Hallstatt around 1:30 PM. We then had food break at McDonald's and quickly made our way to the hotel as there was rain prediction thereafter.

23/05: Salzburg to Lake Konigsee

We left for Berchtesgaden National Park at 8 AM, which was just 45 mins drive from our Hotel. Eagle Nest was closed due to some reason and we ended making random plan to tour the Lake Konigsee. Tickets to the lake tour were 19 euros per person, but every minute we spent was commendable.

Lake Konigsee is a breathtakingly spectacular lake in Germany and the boat ride was even more mesmerizing with the driver playing the Trumpet Echo song amidst the mountains. 

St. Bartholomew church, konigsee

We then took the first stop at the church and spent an hour wandering in the beautiful landscapes.

Lake Konigsee

Thereafter, we took another boat ride and reached the endpoint which was even more pleasing and no words could describe the crystal clear waters! It was treat to ones eye! Truely spellbound..😇.

Crystal clear waters of Lake Konigsee

It was 5 PM in the clock, and we realized that we didn't have any food since morning and were awestruck :) We took next stoppage at the nearest restaurant. After fueling our tummies, we reached our hotel by 7 PM.

24/05: Salzburg to Venice (Italy) via Lake Bled (Slovenia) 

It was a cloudy day and we had to reach Venice which was a 6 hour drive. Abhishek suggested that we skip lake Bled Slovenia, as he found during his research that it was not worth the journey. But, I was a little skeptical, as it was once in a life time opportunity. We reached lake Bled at 12:30 PM and Abhishek's research was right on the ball! It was an over hyped destination at-least in summer😐

Lake Bled, Slovenia

Journey through Slovenia was not value for money and we ended paying 35-40 euros toll + 15 euro vignette. 

Reaching Venice was also little painful with the traffic and exit tolls. Still, we managed to reach the 'Camping Village Jolly' by 7 PM. After an exhausting day, this was the place to be.

We quickly inquired about the bus to Venice at the hotel's counter and payed 5 euros each as the ticket fare.

25/05: Venice site seeing

We boarded the bus at 9 AM and within half an hour we were at Venice city entrance. At the first sight, I couldn't believe that I was in my dream city. It was a wonderful site to see canals with Gondolo's all over. We had a walk through the city enjoying it's architecture followed by some photo sessions.

Canal view, Venice

View from the other side

While we were happily roaming in the narrow alleys in Venice, our journey suddenly turned almost into a nightmare. Yes.. We never thought something like this could ever happen with us!
 

 I had read on many online portals that Venice is confusing for the beginners and you should plan your trip beforehand. And, even if you strategize, you tend to get lost sometimes. I was concerned of my little kiddo and hence I didn't leave him alone for a single minute. We were also following GPS we had with Abhishek as we forgot to carry Venice maps with us. Suddenly, at one point Sagar questioned, "What is the next point we tend to visit?", and I casually replied, "There is some Marks Square that is the biggest attraction". After 5 minutes of walk, I was following Abhishek and observed that, Sagar was not following us. After spending 30 minutes in the narrow lanes, we concluded that we had lost him 😓.

There was no way we could reach him as his mobile was dead since morning 😞 . We walked and walked in desperation and grabbed chairs at a restaurant in St. Marks Square, in a hope that we might find him there. Thousands of people were just pouring in. We nearly spent an hour in our search and by this time we were quite hungry. Alas! We ordered pizza and started discussing the sequence of events that took place and Bing! Abhishek uttered .. "Hey Sagar!", I quickly turned around and said.. "Finally! We found you..". I was quite upset and angry but at the same time happy since we finally met.

Sagar uttered, "I didn't know which turn did you guys take. I just remembered we were planning to visit some Marks Square and I landed here asking other fellow tourists for the directions". Hushh!!! There was a huge sigh of relief!!😌

St. Mark's Square, Venice

We quickly finished the pizza ordered. This was the worst pizza we ever had. It was pizza made up of two slices of bread with sauce and cheese costing us 9 euros 😩. Beware of such restaurants at St.Marks Square. Later, we had some more pizza's and ice creams in the afternoon near the canal and had a leisurely walk in the city. This time the pizza was good and we were content. We also packed some more pizza slices to take away and then left for our hotel.

Check the crowd on this bridge :)

Wearing caps and applying sunscreen should be a mandatory ritual in the scorching heat of Venice. We didn't have either of them and by the evening, we looked duskier than before 😁

26/05: Venice to Alps de Suise

At 9 AM, we left from 'Camping Village Jolly' and reached Alps de Suisi at 1 PM, ascending the steep mountains. The entire route was bewitching and we had multiple stops on the way enjoying and capturing the mesmerizing beauty. Dolomites are Europe's highest meadows and are surrounded by scintillating mountains and rock formations to make any trip a unique experience. This was the best highlight of our trip. No place in Europe is as beautiful as this one! Definitely, NOT to be missed😇

Somewhere, near Alps de Siusi

Dolomites

We also had a nice cup of aromatic coffee which further made our day ⛾ This was so far the best coffee we had in this entire trip with soothing melodious country songs playing in the background. Sometimes, you don't have to plan things, they just happen. This was THE Day 😊

Dolomites!

On our way back to Venice :)

The above pictures do no justice to the dazzling view of this entire trip. Look in any direction and each time the landscape turns out to be more beckoning than before. I am totally in love with this place ✌

Evening we went shopping at a nearby mall and then lazed in the Camping Village's mobile rooms 😃

27/05: Venice to Siviez (Switzerland)

We left at 8 in the morning from Venice and en-routing Milan we reached Siviez around 2:30 PM. On the way, we visited the famous lake Garda from Sirmione which is also a popular holiday destination in Italy. There is lot to do in and around the lake but given the time we had, we just visited the view point in Sirmione.

Lake Garda from Sirmione (Italy)

Earlier, we had planned for Chamonix but due to some reasons we just changed it spontaneously. Thanks Abhishek for this change and finding the best property in no time. We stayed at "Rosablanche B74 Siviez". Maurice, the owner was very helpful in getting us at his property whose interiors were exceptional. Every small thing was so well organized in an innovative way, that we were flabbergasted!

We then discovered that the Siviez valley was famous for Ice Skating and so the view from our apartment had to be astounding with snow clad mountains in the back drop.

Cooking time with Masterchef Abhishek at our apartment in Siviez (Switzerland) :)

Later, in the evening we simmered down and savored hot spicy chicken, rice along with a bottle of wine.

28/05: Trek in Siviez, Nendaz
 
After having breakfast at 10:30 AM, we began our trek through the gushing waterfalls and dense pine trees. Earlier, I was reluctant but then I made up my mind to complete it. I am really proud of my 4 year kiddo who completed this 9 KM's trek without any hassle. Rishaan was so excited that, he only wanted to play and have fun in the snow.

View from the Summit

Proud to be at the summit.

We enjoyed an hour and had some classic photo's. While we were gazing at the surroundings, Sagar spotted some mysterious blood marks in the snow. We moved forward and there was one small sign board mentioning 'Beware of Wolves'. Gosh! It was scary💀. I was really scared, and insisted that we disembark the mountain immediately and so we started the quick descend and reached our apartment at 4 PM. 

It was indeed an alluring experience trekking the mountain. Sometimes, random plans also make your day and this was THAT day 😊

29/05: Nendaz to Interlaken via Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald 

We started around 10 AM from Siviez and we had out first pit-stop at Lauterbrunnen. Lauterbrunnen is a quaint village situated in the rocky valleys of the Swiss Alps.One can notice series of stunningly beautiful waterfalls all over, but that's it. Nothing much for you to do here. We also visited the Trummelbach glacier waterfalls which costed us 11 francs each. We found the Falls good but not value for money.

On the way to Lauterbrunnen

Random falls in Lauterbrunnen

Trummelbach glacier waterfalls

Later, we also visited Grindelwald and then reached our homestay "Ferienwohnung Oeyen 1 Zwischenflüh Diemtigtal" in Interlaken. 

View from homestay in Interlaken

Our Home-stay, as you can see in this picture had a breath taking view of the mountains and the traditional houses in the valley. The owner was very helpful and we enjoyed our stay here more than we could have enjoyed it anywhere else.

30/05: Interlaken to Engelberg - Titlis

The day before we first took a look at the weather forecast and we concluded that it was a sunny day with little cloudy weather by the evening. Smiles all over and we instantly decided to venture to Mount Titlis.

We reached Engelberg at 11:30 in the morning after a 3 hour drive and many traffic diversions due to multiple constructions on the way. We reached the ticket counter and purchased Tickets to Titlis which costed us ~180 francs.

Mount Titlis is also famous for World's first rotair which gives you panoramic 360 degrees view and is a dream destination. It is located in central Switzerland and has elevation of 3020 meters. We took the rope-way and the rotair to reach the top. We also visited the glacier cave and had wonderful experience cliff walking through Europe's highest suspension bridge 😊. The chairlift experience at the top which costed us 13 francs, was extraordinary. You must try this!
 

There is also a poster of Bollywood celebs Kajol and Sharukh Khan at the summit as the famous DDLJ movie was shot here😊

Rotair at Mt.Titlis

Cliff walk on Titlis.

Later, we visited the Trubsee lake and then descended Titlis through the rope-way at 5 PM.

Lake Trubsee from ropeway.

At lake Trubsee.

Family snap at Lake Breinz

We spent around two hours by this lake and then reached Lake Thun in 30 minutes. Lake Thun was also beautiful in it's own way. People enjoyed swimming, parasailing at this lake and we had fun feasting on it's side with light bollywood music playing in the background.

Lake Thun

We spent 4 hours around these picturesque crystal lakes and in the afternoon, we visited Interlaken town.We had lunch at the nearby Subway and later went shopping in the adjacent market.As a souvenir, we purchased magnets and chocolates.We also did some grocery shopping from the market. There on, we cooked chicken curry and had lovely time babbling together 😎.

1/06: Interlaken to Mannheim (Germany) via Rhine Falls

We left Interlaken by 10 AM and reached majestic Rhine Falls around 1 PM. The Rhine Falls are the largest waterfall in Europe. You can do boating there as well. We chose to walk around the falls and enjoy it's beauty. It was a magnificent view and literally, we could feel the vibrations of the thumping falls.

Rhine Falls from the other side

After having lunch, we started our return expedition to Mannheim and reached home by 6 PM.

In the evening, we went shopping by the nearby market for our next leg of our trip with another friend of mine - Dixit and Family.

2/06: Mannheim to Paris

We started for Paris from Mannheim at 10:30 AM. On our way, we had lunch at the famous restaurant and fueled our car. The entire route to Paris was covered with green meadows which looked amazingly beautiful. Check the image below:

On our way from Mannheim to Paris

As we reached Paris, the kooky GPS started misleading and we took several incorrect turns. Alas after a 'bhul bhulaiyaa' journey :P, we reached our hotel 'IBIS budget Paris Porte de Bercy' at 6 PM and parked the vehicle at a charge of 12 euros per night.
 

Dixit had booked the two day 'Open Bus Tours' pass online at cost of 36 euros each as Abhishek suggested us. In the evening, we thought of traveling by the same, so that the next day there would be no confusions. The bus stop and the metro were just adjacent to our hotel. We chose to travel by Bus no '24' which took us to the Notre Dame 'Open Bus Tours' stop. We hopped into Green Line which rode through city in perfect weather. I loved Paris for it's architecture, monuments, Seine river and the Life! It's an amazing city to have an experience for a lifetime.

One of our friend quoted before that, 'There is just one city in the world and that's PARIS' and I am in total agreement with him. You should at-least plan for 5 nights as there are so many things to do 😊 After having peaceful bus ride into the city, we had fine dinning experience at the Turkish restaurant nearby Notre Dame. We then boarded the bus from Notre Dame to our hotel and then slept at 12 AM.

In Open Bus.. Tour de Paris

Paris in dawn..

3/06:Paris site seeing
 
It was 8:15 AM by the clock and we were waiting for Bus no '24' to Notre Dame. As planned, we destined from the Green -line on to the Blue line. It's impossible to see all the attractions in a day and hence you should do your homework first and prioritize accordingly.

We visited the Cathédrale Notre-Dame, Louvre, Place de la Concorde, Arc de Triomphe, Seine River Cruise, Champs Elysées, Trocadéro and the most important 'Eiffel Tower'.

Louvre museum, Paris

At 5 PM , we reached the base of the Eiffel tower where we purchased tickets to reach the top at 25 euros. From the ground level, you get a feel of it's magnificent architecture and it's grandeur. We first visited the second floor and then decided to ascend to the top with other lift. Panoramic view of the city can be visualized from the top which was astonishing.We could also see the Seine river gushing through multiple bridges across the city. The view turned much more prettier when the entire Paris was lit in 'golden pink' as the sun was setting in the backdrop 😍

View from Trocadero view point

Paris city view from top of Eiffel in the dawn

Golden Eiffel at night

We then reached the bottom of the tower at 10:45 PM to watch the sparkling Eiffel. And we were overwhelmed! Such a pretty view.. Absolutely euphoric! After having wonderful 'Tour de Eiffel', we decided to have dinner at the same Turkish restaurant near Notre dame at 1 AM and thereafter reached our hotel by taxi.

It was a fabulous experience in the city of love. We will cherish every moment we spent here forever. Paris is a MUST visit city when in Europe and one shouldn't miss the opportunity.

4/06:Paris to Mannheim via Strasbourg

We left PARIS with heavy hearts and started for Strasbourg at 9:30 AM. Strasbourg is the capital city of the Grand Est region, formerly Alsace and is also famous for the European Parliament. We reached Le Pettite in Strasbourg at 3 PM and parked our vehicle with many deviations and deliberations. Later, we began our walk towards the canal which had charming beautiful houses in the backdrop. We also also visited the Gothic Cathédrale Notre-Dame, which we thought was a replica of the same we visited in Paris.

While roaming in the lanes of the Cathédrale Notre-Dame with Dixit and Anne.

La Petite, Strassbourg

Church in Strassbourg

This was unexpectedly exquisite location along with beautifully architect-ed churches adding to it's charm. One cannot miss this extraordinary sight. We then planned dinner in a traditional Italian restaurant and we really enjoyed the mouthwatering pizza's and Lasagne more than the one we had in Italy. At 8 PM, we decided to leave for Mannheim and reached there around 11:30 PM.

5/06: Leisure day
 
In the morning, there was impromptu plan to stay at my friend Dixit's place which was within an hours distance from Mannheim station. Dixit had come to Mannheim to drop the car we hired for the Paris tour and hence the plan churned out.We had nice sumptuous lunch Anne had prepared for us and then we relaxed a little in the afternoon. In the evening, we had lazy walk nearby Walldorf/Wiseldorf which was a location away from the hustle bustle of the city. We truly enjoyed our stay at Dixit- Anne's place and we thank them kindheartedly for the warm welcome.

6/06: Heidelberg site-seeing
 
We left for Hiedelberg at 12 PM . We took train from Walldorf to Hiedelberg which was 15 min journey. After reaching Hiedelberg station, we boarded Bus no. 33 which dropped us at the castle. We took tickets (12 euros) of Bergbahn till Konigstuhl funicular which included ticket forthe castle and to the top of the mountain.

The castle is in ruins and presently is the most important renaissance structures which is now partially built. We had some snacks including the famous "Schnitzel" besides the castle and it was an awesome experience.

Bergbahn

Hiedelberg castle view from the bridge

 Also, Heidelberg city view from the top is mind-blowing. Check the below photo.

 


Evening, we spent wandering in lanes, sipping a cup of coffee which was unforgettable.

In the narrow lanes of Hiedelberg

7/06:To Frankfurt - Mainz. 

Morning we did some shopping at the local market in Walldorf and at 3 PM we boarded train to Frankfurt. Our friend Abhijeet, had come to receive us at the station. We were quite elated to meet him and his family. Vaishali (Abhijeet's wife) had prepared delicious Mutton curry and biryani 😋. Thank you Abhijeet and Vaishali for being so hospitable. We also purchased the Haribo's - the signature gummies from Germany.

8/06: Return journey to Mumbai from Frankfurt Airport. 
 
We departed from Frankfurt Airport at 11:30 AM and reached Mumbai early morning at 5 AM.My dream trip had come to an end. With a heavy heart, we had to bid adieu to Europe ✋ . We had experienced the ethereal nature right from the beautiful snow capped mountains to the dolomites in Italy, crystal clear rivers like the Inns and the Seine, the amazing classy city 'Paris' to the city of canals 'Venice', the ancient charming cities Strasbourg and Hieldelberg, the splendid lakes Chiemsee,Konigsee, Breinz and Thun, the magnificently architect-ed castles and the churches; and nonetheless the buttery smooth autobahns.We also got to introduced to the new delicacies like the Schnitzel, Curry wurst sauce, Kartofellen and much more 😋

Writing this blog made me nostalgic and I was reminiscing each and every moment again.

Better planning and execution made our trip fantabulous and it wasn't possible without help of our dear friends. I thank Abhishek, Mimi, Dixit, Anne, Abhijeet and Vaishali wholeheartedly, for the wonderful support they have been provided us throughout our trip.
 

To all of you, heart felt gratitude from all of us😊.

Will definitely wish for another Europe trip sooner. Until then Auf Wiedersehen!

Thanks Sunny Shah for reviewing my blog 😊
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