Why there are No White People in Khandala

    Khandala, 29 Aug 2009. I don't see any foreign tourists here, do you?

Recently, I was speaking with an American gentlemen who happens to be a regular traveller to Mumbai. One of the questions I asked him was why most foreign tourists to Mumbai only hang out around Colaba, when there are beautiful places to see outside the city. I assumed this was because most guidebooks aimed at foreign tourists only publicise the town bit (see Dear Lonely Planet India), which of course brought up another question - why the guidebook focus on town?

His answer was, most foreign tourists who come to India don't have much time to see the whole country. Many of them have taken leave from work to be here, giving them maybe 2/3 weeks for their trip. And then they try to fit in as many places into that time period, leaving them with maybe just 2/3 days to see Mumbai. As such, the guidebooks try to reflect this reality, giving those people interested in spending only a few days in Mumbai the relevant information they need i.e. the must-sees like Colaba, Elephanta, Haji Ali, etc.

And here I was wondering why I don't see white people in Khandala.

Thoughts?

Why there are No White People in Khandala

More Recent Adventures

The Pavana Trip

I was home on the 5th and 6th of September, during which I attempted to recover from a mild case of vertigo brought about by my sinusitis. This was only the second time this monsoon that I hadn't gone out anywhere. On the plus side, I got to meet a cousin who dropped by during a 10 day break from work, and my uncle before he left for Calcutta.

However, it was back to travelling on the following Saturday. I was keen to go to Pavana again since we only just got an appetiser of it the last time around. But my cousin and his car weren't available. While talking to RV about the possibility of him getting a vehicle, he confirmed what I'd been thinking - that I'd become lazy and too dependent on private transport. I started off this monsoon trekking but now preferred comfortable travel. Part of this was due to health reasons of course. I still hadn't fully recovered from the sinus attack. I was still getting headaches, was not 100% and definitely couldn't think of a trek, even a short one. But he was right, I have grown lazy, after just two trips in a car.

But I so wanted to go out that weekend. RV finally managed to get a Tata Sumo from his uncle and called three other friends along and the five of us decided to visit Pavana, via Khandala. This would be my fourth trip to Khandala this monsoon, though we didn't visit Buffalo falls this time.

The day started off with me travelling to the Directi building at seven on Saturday morning, meeting RV after his graveyard shift. The others were late, still in bed (I don't know why I even bother getting up so early if everyone else's going to be late) so we chilled out for an hour, me beating RV royally at fooseball (I've recovered my touch it seems; I guess I'm good at one on one fooseball). He, not to be outdone, ran away to play TT as soon as the table was free, and showed me how good he was at beating me at that.

The others called to say they were ready at last, and we picked them up. The drive to Khandala along the expressway was warm but non eventful. A lot of this trip was going to be non eventful, I was to realise by the end of the day, at least compared to previous trips. We visited St Mary's villa and Father Robin first - he used to organise camps in the area. We then checked out the cliff face path leading to the Garden of Eden, before driving to Lonavala, for money, fudge and alcohol as usual.

We then drove to Pavana. It was exquisite, the play of light on the water, the different shades of blue and green. We drove all round the dam and up and down various paved and unpaved roads, stopping now and then for pictures. RV, being the only driver in the group, had to do all the driving.

We stopped at one of RV's family friends' beautiful weekend home for a while at one point. They plan to rent out a room and bath to travellers. That's good to know. What I liked most about he place was the view of lake from the large verandah.

We then drove up into the hills, looking for something to eat. I ate some Choris Pao that RV had got while the others had fuller meals. RV was tired by now. We went back to Khandala and Fr. Robin's place for some thick hot soup, and that, together with a lot of cigarettes on the way back, kept him awake.

I caught a train home from Vile Parle. The trip was good, but I really should be doing overnight trips to the area.

The Shivneri Trip

With RV in Paris the following weekend, and RG and his car still unavailable, it didn't seem like I'd be going anywhere the following weekend. But a colleague suggested Shivneri and I launched onto the idea of a bike trip on Sunday, 20 September.

It was a truly exquisite trip. It took us (four guys on two bikes) 5 hours to get to Shivneri fort via Malshej ghat, with Borivli as a starting point, and another 5 hours to get back. My legs were sore the next day from riding pillion in the same stiff position for that long, but it was worth it if only to see the beauty of Malshej once again. I hadn't been there in 5 years.

And Shivneri fort was a good visit. I wish we had more time to explore it. Being the birthplace of Shivaji, it was well maintained and busy. Uptil this point, Janjira had been the largest fort I had ever visited, but Shivneri seemed larger, at least because it's built on a hill and you need to go up a winding way to get to the top.

My friend's blog post on the trip is here. Again, it was a wonderful trip, and even chilly in parts (the ride up and through the ghats) and we even encountered heavy rain on our way back. This is the last monsoon trip I did.

The Kashid Trip

And that finally brings me to last week's Saturday trip. RG, RV, NS and I drove to Kashid and Murud for the day. A lovely trip. RG and I picked up the others from Jogeshwari and Andheri, leaving at 8.00 A.M for Vashi and Panvel, from where we continued along the highway for Pen and Alibag, passing Karnala on the way. I depended on the others for directions till Alibag, and they depended on me for directions till Murud, I being the only one among us who had been there before. The drive to Alibag was pretty peaceful, with very little traffic.

We came to a trisection on the outskirts of Alibag and after asking for directions, took a left for Revdanda. This road was narrow but peaceful, with bungalows lining both sides. We soon came to a junction where we took a right for Revdanda, came to a crowded town, and passed under ancient arches, the ruins of an old fort and town, on our way out.

We continued south, the road turning into a coastal one, coming next to Korlai, which we passed by, and then finally to Kashid, where we stopped for a rest, snack and pictures. The beach is clean and beautiful. And a row of shacks along an embankment along the beach provide refreshments, shade, and hammocks. And behind the embankment is the road and across the road from the beach is a beautiful green woody slope.

You don't get full meals on the beach, and have to visit a resort for that, so we drove 20 kms south to Murud for lunch, stopping for views of Nandgaon beach and the palace on the cliff.

Inspite of being hungry, we drive through Murud to see Janjira fort, almost coming to Rajpuri village itself. We were happy with a view of the fort from the hill overlooking it, and went back to Murud for a heavy seafood lunch. The drive back, as is usually the case, was never-ending.

My friend's post on the trip is here.

More Recent Adventures

Recent Adventures

 

I'm not sure where to begin. With my Dahanu trip on August 8th I guess. My first trip to the area. A one day trip involving a train ride to Vangaon with a friend who owns property there, drinking coconut water, visits to his relatives, a scooter ride to Vangaon beach, travelling to Dahanu in 3 (or was it 4 rickshaws?), using the 6th seat for the first time, eating a sumptuous lunch, mixing naan and noddles, hitching a ride to Dahanu station in a tractor. So many firsts. I'm glad I had experienced company. He turned every instance into an adventure. A trip here is recommended in the rains when it's cool and breezy, though there's not much to do except travel around.

Followed this with a road trip to Vikramgad & Jawhar on the 22nd. The last time I went there was 2006 with PrV and the gang. A different gang this time. One I brought together. A good mix. A car with four people, a calming drive along the highway, green hills, open sky, climbing up, changing topography, greenery everywhere, low grass and black rock, a hill station minus the crowds. 

Taking funny pics with friends, deep stone quarries filled with rainwater, a friend takes a dip, jokes, hunger, a restaurant with tasty filling food and low prices, a palace to explore, a beautiful view from its backyard, 360 panoramic photography, hairy caterpillars, a lookout point, tiredness creeping in, driving back to the city at 120 km/hr on the highway, photographing clouds, going to Vijay Sales, looking for cameras, decide to meet on Sunday to buy some. 

And finally, a trip to Lohagad fort in Malavli on Saturday. I had to visit a fort this monsoon. The previous attempt at Rajmachi was rained out. With the adventures from the last two trips, I didn't think I'd be having any more. I was wrong.

And so we meet again on Saturday, five of us this time, and drive to Khandala first, to Kune mission, where we take photos. I have never been to a place with better views of the valley. We drive to Lonavala next, to get money, fudge and alcohol. Drive on to Malavli after that, asking for directions to Lohagad. Come to Pavana Dam, take more photos, realise we've taken a wrong turn and should have taken a left before turning onto the Pavana dam road.

Turn back, go left, drive slowly up the rocky road to Lohagad village, very slowly. Trek up the hundreds of stairs (with caves along the way) leading to the top of the fort, a well maintained fort, enjoying every bit of it. So many levels, so many interesting sections of the fort to see along the way, experimenting with photography.

The climb to the top takes us into raincloud and we're literally walking among the clouds. No description suffices. You have to be there to feel it. I've only seen this twice before - in Malshej Ghat (2004) and Karnala (2008) - and only felt the same magic feeling once. The Himalayas may be majestic but the Western Ghats in the monsoon are magical. It's worth waiting an entire year for. It's something to see before you die. There is absolutely nothing like a hill fort in the rains.

We descend, slowly down slippery steps, it begins to rain, we drive back to Khandala, stop for a late lunch at a place riddled with menu misspellings that takes even longer to prepare it, and head to Buffallo falls, the third time this monsoon. It's raining so the water's muddy. A friend dunks his head under one. This is his moment. This is what he came for. He's enjoying it.

We go back to Kune to dry off. Watch darkness descend. RV regales us with poetry and then almost looses his phone along with a box of empty beer bottles on the way out. That's why you shouldn't litter. It's a sign from above. The others think that's our last adventure of the day. In my mind I just know there's more.

Five minutes later I'm proved correct. We get onto the highway and realise we can't see anything. It's covered with fog. Our lights are not very helpful. We're scared. RV's working from memory. We connect with the main freeway and other vehicles and the situation improves. Traffic increases as we cross over from Navi Mumbai into Mumbai. I doze off till we reach Andheri. We bid farewell to RV and HS and drive home, our last adventure of the day being the stop for dinner at a dhabba at Kandivli for brain rice and chicken tikka.

Recent Adventures

Bufallo Falls Again

So we went back to Buffalo falls on Saturday. Had an even bigger blast this time, since it hadn't rained in a while and the water flow wasn't so bad and we could explore the area round the falls a bit.

It was just RV, a friend of his, and I, this time. We went to Khandala by bus (a three hour journey beginning at at around 7.30 A.M). Had a quick breakfast when we arrived (I watched, they ate) and headed to Kamat to be picked up by RV's office mates. They had come here much earlier and were getting ready to leave when we arrived.

So we sat around, drinking, getting our feet wet. I sat under one of the falls for a while at one point, before lying down to rest. The water was cooler than last week's.

We left in the afternoon, another three hour bus journey, but to Sion this time, which meant more travel time getting home for me. Dead tired when I reached home. Dinner, shower, and sleep.

MD visited on Sunday. Wished me Happy Friendship Day. We talked a bit. I still had a hangover from Saturday. I accompanied him to visit some relatives nearby, then got him to buy a cake to surprise his wife.

Bufallo Falls Again

Khandala - The Trek That Wasn't

The plan was to trek to Duke's nose on Saturday, spend the night in the area, and visit Lohagad fort on Sunday if possible.

So I wake up at 5.30 to meet the guys at Borivli Stn. at 7.00. I'm not even sure who the guys are. RV and BB are in, and RV said he might be getting office mates. He calls as I'm getting ready and tells me there's only going to be five of us in total, and I should drop down to his office instead so we can all take a colleague's car.

I do that. It doesn't take me long. Travelling to Mindspace brings back memories. The rick from Malad station follows that all too familiar shortcut through the chawl area. I'm at RV's office well before 8.00 A.M. He takes me inside and to their stifling pantry and introduces me to the rest of the gang - HS (who was with us last week), and AM - his boss. Not many people seem to be around. Their graveyard shift has just ended and they're making sandwiches, waiting for BB and I.

BB arrives and we play foosball. AM and I on one side, BB and HS on the other (it's a miniature table - three prongs a side). My side looses. I hate loosing. Especially at a game I have no valid reason to suck at.

We leave in AM's car for Khandala. Stop for a second breakfast along the way, at least for the others. Didn't they just eat?

We continue driving and see interesting sights along the way. Waterfalls along the road, a tank on the expressway, monkeys, geeks (as BB calls them) getting out of their cars for pictures. I'm reminded of how few times I've made this trip.

The Khandala exit is closed for some reason so we're forced to head to Lonavala instead. RV doesn't like this. Still, we stop for alcohol and then drive to Kamats for food.

I watch the others eat again. Seriously, these guys are thinner than I am. How much can they stuff down? It's only afternoon and this is their third meal of the day. I'm still full from my 6.00 A.M breakfast.

There's a change of plans. RV and AM would like to be back home by evening. Which means skipping Duke's nose and going to Buffalo falls instead. We go there. It's beautiful. We've had beautiful cloudy cool weather all day.

We do the five minute trek down to the falls and start drinking. Get buzzed. We're all in an extremely jovial mood. Smiling and laughing a bit too much. This is the best part of the trip. Getting high a few feet away from a roaring waterfall, anything we say or do instantaneously becoming a joke. We go under the falls. Get wet. The water's not as cold as Chinchoti. I go in last, BB leading me by the hand there and back.

We go back to the car. BB checks with her friends again to see if we can make this an overnight trip. Their bungalows are all unavailable. We decide to go back to Mumbai as well.

Dry off and drive back to the city. Now I'm hungry. I open a packet of theplas in the car, somewhat explosively. The packet bursts open. Theplas flying everywhere. I end up eating most of them. Then start on the banana chips. Yum. And that's my lunch.

RV parts ways with us in Mulund. AM drops us off at Powai and we take a rick to Jogeshwari. HS and I take a train home. The guys leave me with an entire tandoori chicken for dinner. We hadn't had time to eat this at the falls. It's an excellent meal. I've got to treat them next time.

A very enjoyable day with excellent company. Next time I'm spending a longer time at the falls, even if I have to go back all by myself.

Khandala - The Trek That Wasn't

End of an Era

One of my best friends, MD, got hitched yesterday, in a much awaited ceremony that went off perfectly.

I first met MD almost 2 years ago. It was Jan 6th, 2007, and I had tagged along with a group of guys from I.C for a Lonavla/Khandala trip, the three guys being CP, JB and J. How I met CP and JB is a story I shall recount some other time. I had walked to CP's place with my travel bag on Sat afternoon, from where JB (who lived next door) drove up in his Volkswagen. We helped CP load the car with water, snacks, alcohol, his BBQ grill, etc. and then picked up a bag of charcoal, withdrew money from an ATM, and went to a third guy's home - J - whom I was about to meet for the first time. Apparently, they were all former classmates, along with another guy from Vashi we were to meet later and a guy named MD who we'd rendezvous with at Khandala and whom they kept saying I'd love. We befriended a friendly pup as we walked to J's place, and the first thing that struck me as we entered his bungalow was the huge cat (I was to discover later that he had 6 of these). Apparently, J didn't know about the trip until we turned up at his place, but sportingly, allowed himself to be convinced to come along with us after CP and JB insisted.

We drove to Centre One in Vashi to meet up with the fourth guy, K, who had his own car. And did the four former classmates, after meeting up, pay heed my advice to make haste so as to make the best of optimal light conditions that could and should have been utilised for a trek? No, the four generously proportioned mates spent an hour loafing around Centre One, a significant amount of that time at one of the supermarkets on the ground floor, and even clustered around the chocolate/candy stall at one point. It was a comical sight, and I stepped back to avoid being paired with them. JB kindly offered me a Marzipan chocolate (which was actually quite good) but I was in no mood to lounge around or snack at the mall, for I was told earlier that I'd be meeting MD, a man as trek crazy as I was. And with each passing moment, I felt like he was having fun that I was missing out on, which later turned out to be somewhat true.

We eventually reached our lodgings - Kune Mission - in the evening at around 7.00 P.M and it was dark. I was disappointed to say the least. I never figured that we'd take so long to reach our destination, and my main fear was that I'd missed out on a trek, which was the main reason I'd come in the first place. We walked inside, and one of the guys introduced me to a man about my height with an easygoing manner, significant beer belly and an evil smile. This was MD, and those were the first three things I noticed about him. I immediately confirmed the possibility of a trek to a place called Deer Falls the following day, though I had missed out on one to Bufallo Falls that day.

MD had arrived there in the afternoon with his own group of friends and relatives, and I soon got to meet them all. I would go on to meet some of them - like Abhi, RV and BD - on subsequent treks and random city meet ups.

Dinnertime was approaching, and we set up our BBQ behind the lodgings, on a patch of ground with some chairs and a picnic table overlooking the valley. It was cold, and just got colder as the night progressed. It was also very dark. The only light we had was that coming from the windows of the building behind us and the moon (if there was one) and stars. We got everything set up with the help of a flashlight that we kept passing around. The chicken that we were barbecuing was already cleaned and marinated so we just had to get the grill started.This turned out to be a major task. The wind at the edge of the valley was quite strong, and every single match we lit would simply get blown off. Try as we might, we simply couldn't light a piece of paper to place among the charcoal at the bottom of the grill. MD, who seemed the most persevering of us all, kept at it, we trying to help by using our bodies as wind shields. The matches were running low and a few times we thought the paper or charcoal were alight, only to have them go out again, but finally, with only a few matches to spare, MD managed to get it lighted.

We took turns overseeing the chicken, and our group sat at the picnic table. MD's group, sitting a little bit away on a few chairs available and on the ground, mostly had their own arrangements, with only Abhi joining us. As the night went on, our group munched on barbecued chicken and sipped our drinks, enjoying a truly enjoyable meal. Our group retired to our rooms after dinner to drink some more and chat, soon to be interrupted by MD, who invited us to join him and his friends to a Grotto on the top of a nearby slope. We weren't in the least bit sleepy, and after wrapping myself up in a blanket (over the sweater I was already wearing for it was freezing now), walked to the Grotto with the rest of the group. I noticed not for the first time that night that MD was carrying a really huge long flashlight, one of those pieces that looked like a really thick stick and might even be used as a weapon.

The Grotto was beautiful, and CP and another guy or two actually clambered up on top if it. Clambering down was somewhat harder, especially for CP who, with his weight, accidentally dislodged a stone that fell on a girl's foot. We rested in the cave like formation that the Grotto formed, which proved a welcome respite from the chilling wind. Once again, MD attempted to get a fire going, with the remaining matches and some dry branches that he went searching for. I didn't get why some one would wander about a freezing forest area in the dead of night looking for a way to start a tiny bonfire that wouldn't make much of a difference anyway. And his tenacity after piling the branches together and lighting match after match to finally get a fire going was something I didn't completely understand, thought it was something that appealed to me, a person who can get equally obsessed at times about doing something particular, though not anything like this. I don't remember who it was who first came up with it, but that night, MD earned the nickname Pyro.

We sat there for a while, talking about this and that, most of us silent, looking at the stars and admiring the beauty of the moment. It was at this time that I got to know RV. My gang decided to go back to their quarters to sleep. MD and gang decided to spend the night under the Grotto, waiting for daybreak. I waited with them for a while, before heading back myself. I slept snug under two blankets.

The next morning I woke up refreshed. MD helped wake up our gang, and we headed off to the common eating room for breakfast. I voiced out once again my eagerness to go trekking, drawing a breath of irritation from J, who felt I had voiced my eagerness to go trekking one time too many. Anyhow, I finished off the remaining rum and we started off on our short trek to Deer Falls, a little waterfall that I'm sure is a lot bigger during the monsoon. Friends took pics of the Duke's nose on our way there, and we took a little shortcut on our way back. It was really hot walking back. Afternoon temperatures go up to 33 degrees in the winter in Mumbai. It can't have been much better in Lonavla/Khandala.

Had a cold shower and then lunch, before CP, JB and I said our goodbye's and drove home. I made it a point to take down MD's contact details, for I didn't know too many people who liked going on treks as frequently as he did. The group I trekked with at the time did an average of one a year.

Since that fateful trip, I met MD many a time. Two months later, he called up to say he was going to Gorai and I readily joined him, even though it was only us two. At the start of the monsoon of 2007, I met up with MD and Abhi at a Goan fast food stall at Orlem. A week after my Peth trip (hopefully to be recorded later), MD and I went on a half day trip to Erangal (my idea), where we took a bus to the church, looked around the beach, and walked to the very tip of that little peninsula that marks the end of Malad, from whose coast we could see Andheri, and from where we took a two minute ferry to Versova. On reaching the Andheri end of the ferry ride however, we didn't bother getting out - the area was filthy - so we simply rode back to Erangal and took a bus to Mith Chowky, and another one to I.C.

As the year went on, MD and I would meet many times. He was studying at the same place I worked, so it was convenient to meet on Fri nights for dinner. We've probably been to more low-life low budget food joints with missing walls that can be documented here, though I could try. I wasn't blogging much in 2007 and so didn't record any of these trips, though there were many. Special mention must also be made of the dhabba near his home where his friends and us spent many a night making merry. All through this time, I came to know MD as a guy who valued his freedom more than any of the rest of us. He enjoyed taking random, unplanned, last minute trips to nearby trekking spots and having a blast, especially with beer. To see him getting hitched yesterday was a potent symbol of my own fleeting youth, and I sensed many of his other friends (now my friends as well) feel the same way.

His wedding Mass yesterday was amazing. The priest he knows so well gave an excellent sermon, with a couple of guitar solos thrown in. I met up with now common friends BD and PV at the church, and we went to my place to chill out before the reception, which was close to my home. The reception was perfect as well, with an excellent spread, and everything going according to plan and everyone enjoying themselves. Met a few other friends there. BD & PV left early, and Ry's group and I hit a bar after we wished the couple (RV handing MD a quarter of rum as a parting gift, MD remarking that it was empty but still accepting it). We went to MD's place after the bar and helped with the unloading of presents, being rewarded with copious amounts of alcohol in return. It was a peaceful way to end the day, all of us friends minus MD sitting on a quiet beautiful porch sipping our drinks chatting and reminiscing. I looked up at the sky at one point and watched the stars - something I haven't been able to do for a long time.

As the friends started leaving, MD emerged and I finally got an opportunity to chat with him for a while, something I hadn't got much of an opportunity of at either the church or reception. It was nice to have a chat at last, before leaving for I.C at 1.00 A.M with the rest of his family. It's a bit sad to lose a friend to matrimony but I'm happy for him and a joyous landmark event in a friend's life has made this Christmas season all the more memorable.

End of an Era

Garden of Eden Trek

Went to Khandala for a trek on Sat/Sun with MD, PV and BD. MD organised the trip (he's been there many times). MD and I caught a train from Borivali and met up with BD at Dadar, from where we took a cab to C.S.T to meet PV, whom I hadn't met before.

We caught an 11.00 P.M train from C.S.T. to Khandala. The general compartment was packed and we had to sit in a cramped uncomfortable space for 3 hours.

Reached Khandala station at 2.00 A.M and slept (or tried to sleep on stone amidst cold and mosquitoes) there until 6.00.

Since the Garden of Eden trail is just a few mins walk from the station, the group first had breakfast at a local place nearby as I watched the glorious early morning light reveal mountains that hide themselves every monsoon night.

When it was clear enough, we started off on our walk towards the trail, which leads from the precipice of a hill that borders the valley down into the depths of the valley itself. This being September, there was greenery everywhere atop the hill and throughout the valley, making this a golden photo opportunity.

We found the trail and began climbing down, into the valley. I have never encountered a trickier or more exhausting descent. I'm used to climbing up trails when I go trekking hills and forts, and then descending, which is always an easier process. This trail seemed to behave the other way round.

The descent was torturous, with interwoven streams of boulders and water that required work with all fours to negotiate. We came to a small clearing eventually (at around 9.00) where we braked, ate, rested and where I took many a photo. The group decided to continue down. I, exhausted, decided to go back up.

Before we continued on our opposite paths, however, a landslide took us unprepared. A series of rocks came crashing down unexpectedly from above. We didn't even have time to react. Luckily, none of the rocks managed to hit us, though one landed on one of our bags and one among us scraped his leg against one.


We reached the top of the trail (at around 11.00) quicker than we took to descend it (this is the first time I've found it easier to climb than to descend) and rested in the shade of a tree, sleeping and then eating before going back.

Took a rickshaw to the Lonavala ST depot and caught a bus to Sion, but not before buying some excellent walnut fudge.

Garden of Eden Trek