Club Mahindra Varca Beach Resort Goa
This four star property is nothing short of a perfect getaway. The hospitality is wonderful and will ensure you feeling the need to stay a day or two longer. The restaurant at this hotel is commendable; the lip smacking food will enhance your taste buds! Make sure you book rooms online so that you get rooms at affordable rates!
Divar Island Goa |Image Resource : greatincredibleindia.com
If you are looking for a nice and relaxed stay, this place should be on top of your list! The food, company and wonderful views will keep your heart at bay! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves here and intend to come back as soon as we get the chance. Since it is a rarely visited place, there are no crowds or loud place. Peace and calm is all around!
Boats On The Calangute Beach Goa | Image Resource: wikimedia.org
When we went here, we got a nice man to give us around five rides for 600 rupees only. It was extremely exciting and thrilling while being a light blow on the pocket. The parachute gliding was my favourite experience! We went during off season time and thus didn’t have to wait in long queues for our turn. All in all it was an exhilarating day!
Holiday Inn Ranjit Avenue Amritsar
The hotel was like a lighted city offering a grand and comfortable stay for its guest. The rooms on top floors gave an amazing view of the city below. The service was impeccable offering a pleasant experience. The coffee at the Lounge was amazing and I was addicted to it. The Italian restaurant Bella became my favorite serving exotic Italian garlic and tomato chicken with the starter Crostini which is now my new favorites.
With rich history and culture, Amritsar has a lot to explore in its architectural buildings. We had a good time so far enjoying work and leisure in this Punjab city. The next place in our agenda was the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, which was situated in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, Chandigarh. We had a long distance of around 250 km to travel and so it was advisable to start early.
Certainly there was no convenient mode of transport other than the cab to Chandigarh, and so we had to travel by it. Recognized all over the world as the Mohali Stadium, the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium was founded in 1993. Though it is a home ground to Punjab team, the stadium has gained reputation of international stature with many matches being played here.
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium | Image Resource: thatscricket.com
I learned from a cricket buff that the first cricket match held here was the international match of limited number of ‘overs’ played between India and South Africa. Approved by BCCI, which stands for The Board of Control for Cricket in India, the stadium was built at a whopping cost of 25 crores and it holds approximately thirty thousand people at a time.
The stadium looked amazingly beautiful with green coverage of grass. It has lightings of unconventional type and suits to hold day and night cricket matches. I learned from an official that the arena has set good standards and offers exceptional facilities to players, as well as spectators.
The cricket stadium houses a swimming pool, gymnasium, dressing room for players, practice wickets, and tennis court for the convenience of sportspersons. The pitch, where the action takes place – the bowler bowls the ball and the batsman hits or defends it – is prepared to suit the seam bowlers. However, the nature of the pitch changed later and now it suits spin bowling.
Nevertheless, the cricket arena has records of high scoring draws and according to one cricket buff, the most memorable international match took place in the World Cup in 1996 and it was between West Indies and Australia. We had a very good time at the stadium walking around. By then, we were quite hungry and tired and want to refresh, so we went to a nearby food plaza.
It took us couple of hours to freshen up and we were ready for our first visit in Amritsar. I had included a few historical sites in our agenda because I loved to visit them. Amritsar, a city with overactive streets, traffic and pollution – is of course in most tourists itinerary for its heritage places. Frankly speaking, our first visit was to Golden Temple, which was located just 12 km away from the hotel.
Our cab was ready and within no time we were off to the holy temple. It took us just twenty minutes to reach the place. Contrived by Guru Arjan, who was the fifth guru, the Golden Temple or Harmandir Sahib, is the holy gurdwara of Sikhs. The gleaming beauty of the temple is enhanced by the surrounding water in the tank, which is called Amrit Sarovar where Amrit stands for nectar and Sarovar for pool.
Entrance of the Golden Temple | Image Resource: wikipedia.org
We entered through one of the four doors, which gloriously represented the openness to other religions by Sikhs. The holy structure showcased a blend of Islamic and Hindu architecture with marbles and animal motifs. Furthermore, the engraved panels and dome are immaculately finished with gold, giving a stunning look. The temple was somewhat crowded with people from all walks of life. We had to wait for some time before we entered the gilded bridge.
Next, we entered the inner sanctum of the temple, where we heard the nonstop chanting of scripts from Guru Granth Sahib, which is the holy book of Sikh. We stood there and paid our respects and moved on to reach the ‘Sevadars’, who offered us the Prasad.
Golden Temple Amritsar | Image Resource: wikipedia.org
It was a mesmerizing experience that we lost track of time. We were guided to the Langar Hall, where we were served vegetarian meal. The food tasted really good. Before leaving the place, we also went to ‘Har ki Pauri’ to bow and collect nectar from the tank to take home.
Next, we moved on to visit the Central Sikh Museum in the first floor. I was thrilled to see large exhibits of paintings, which represented mainly the Sikh personalities who contributed to their religion. There were exhibits that elaborated on the history, struggles of Sikh.
It was getting late and we have to return to go to our next destination, which was Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar.
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