Pondicherry to Yercaud

We went on a bike trip to Yercaud. To reach Yercaud first you need to reach Salem, which approx 230 Km. From Salem to Yercaud you have 32 km awesome uphill, neat & green road of 20 hairpin bends.

You can reach there by taking  the bus/train to Salem, then from there you can get a local bus or can book a cab to Yercaud.
In Salem you can find all kinds of restaurants  & cinema halls. 

Yercaud is a hill station, having sightseeing locations, Lake, waterfall like - gent's seat, ladies seat, child seat, pagoda point.
It's also called as 'a poor man's Ooty'. You can finish all the sightseeing in one day only, there is nothing much to do. Everything will be overpriced at Yercaud. It's very difficult to find North Indian food there.

TIPs - You can hire a bike/Scooty for rent in Yercaud/Salem. Choose to stay in the Krishna paradise area, there are lots of awesome hotels at cheaper prices.

Rating - 3/5

Trip to Mahaballipurum

We went on a bike trip to mahaballipuram also known as maamlapuram fall on the ECR road while going to Chennai .
It is approx 110 km far from Pondicherry, took approx 2hrs to reach mahaballipuram.

You can also catch a direct bus to mahaballipuram from pondicherry bus stand.

Its kind of a very small city, specially made for tourists.

Don't miss the Krishna's butter ball and the five rathas .
After viewing the monuments you can visit the seashell museum, its amazing there.

Rating 3/5

Pondicherry to Ginjee Fort

We went on a bike trip to Ginjee fort.
It is approx 75 km far from Pondicherry. It took approx 1 hour, there are two forts, one is of Queen and another one is of the king. The king's fort is an important one, as it is one of the forts which Britishers couldn't capture. It is also called as 'Troy of the East'

The fort is on a hill having multiple stairs and kachha rasta.There it is a trekking to the height of 800 ft (240mt) , that too almost at 90 degree angle , that is why I think it is the most impregnable fort of the India.
It takes approx 3 hours to reach at the peak of the forts .
It's an amazing view after reaching at the top. No shops available at the top or on the way.
There is a big garden, ancient jails and monuments before you start climbing the hill, don't miss them.

TIPs - don't forget to carry a stick with you and always carry food, water in a  tightly packed container and keep them hidden . As there are lots of monkeys and can attack you any point of time,so Beware

Rating - 2.5/5

6 BEST THINGS ABOUT PONDICHERRY

1) Beautiful,relaxing beaches..- there are many cool places to hangout. e.g-rocky beach,paradise beach,auro-ville beach,light house beach...etc.

2) Auroville & Aurobindo asharam- this little peaceful oasis is dedicated to Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.Their samadhi, in the center, is always beautifully decorated with flowers and has people meditating around it. To enter inside the golden globe you need to pre-book your ticket 1-2 days before by personally visiting to Auroville around 11-2pm.

 The area around the samadhi of Sri Aurobindo allows visitors to sit and pray/meditate or just absorb the deafening silence.

The Ashram is a spiritual center for the practice of Integral Yoga and is the major draw in Pondicherry. It is one of the most popular Ashrams in India for Westerners. It is also considered one of the most affluent.

            

3)Heritage walk- If you thought that Pondicherry is a small fishing town with a laid-back air and lots of French people milling around. Remember that Pondicherry is a union territory (named Pondicherry and having 4 areas: Pondicherry, Yanam, Mahe and Karaikal), so it is by no means a 'small city' and by no more means by a 'laid back air'! Parts of Pondicherry are reminiscent of its French association, but they form a very small part of the town. Yes, the streets in this part are named in French, but they have their Indian versions as well.you can easily roam around onfoot.

 

4) different style,but awesome birayani..- few places like- food paradise, J.A.Arcot.....etc

5)Low taxes ,especially in indirect  category(VAT,GST,sales & specific tax).- this makes this city more cheaper & attractive- e.g-many people 

come for cheap booze,electronics & electricity,vehicle,petrol..etc.

6) last and most important, - this city has JIPMER  :P yay..!! proud of it :) \/

-ankit suniyal  (date-5 july 2014 )

Pondicherry to Pichavaram

We went on a bike trip from Pondicherry to Pichavaram
It was a journey of approx one hour. Pichavaram is approx 71 km far from Pondicherry.
Basically people go there  to see Mangrove Forest, you try to go there in groups to enjoy and reach around 9-10 am in the morning as in evening the beach is closed. After reaching there you have to buy a ticket either for motor boat or  manual boat. It is better to choose a motorboat as it will be faster but  costly. They take you in between the forest of Mangrove to a beautiful sea shore. It will be hot and humid there due to its climate so carry a cap/hat, water bottle & goggles. Don't miss to see the Nataraj temple in Chidambaram which is approx 16 km far from there.
Overall, it's an OK place  to hang out.
Rating- 3.5 /5

You can reach Pichavaram by

1) Your personal vehicle is the best option

2) Take a local bus to Pichavaram, local buses are easily available from the Pondicherry bus stand

Pondicherry to kanyakumari

It was an awesome trip to Kanyakumari with friends.

You can get a direct train from Pondicherry to Kanykumari
Or catch a train from Chennai or villupurum to Kanyakumari.

 You try to reach the Kanyakumari early morning, after arriving at the railway station, go to the Sangam side (5mins walking distance) and get a cab/ bus for Kanyakumari Darsan. 

There are approx 6-7 tourist places to visit in Kanyakumari. It is a very small place everything is nearby only (walking distance).

Don't miss to see the Sangam, Thiruvallur statue, and the sunset point.

To see the Thiruvallur statue you need to buy the ferry ticket available near the Sangam.Try to reach there early as there is always a long queue for it.

Reach sunset point in time, it will be better to hire an auto/ local transport.It is approx 2-3 km far from the Sangam. Sunset at sunset point is amazing, don't miss it at any cost.

Pune to mumbai

Mumbai-a city of dreams

1) The best way to reach Mumbai is through train, as it will drop you to Shivaji terminal. From there you can visit gateway of India / Taj hotel/ main tourist spot, which is 2-3 km.
Either you can choose to walk (5min distance) or take a local bus to the Gateway of India

* don't miss to see Shivaji terminal at night, it's amazing and a world heritage site

2) A second option  is to reach Mumbai is through bus. Take a bus from Swargate,Which will drop you to Mumbai west,
It will be a very long journey full of traffic jams and etc.