நல்லதோர் வீணை செய்தே...

குழந்தைகளே!

ஆம். இன்று பொன்னியின் செல்வியாக அல்ல, ஒரு தாயின் ஸ்தானத்தில் பேச விழைகிறேன்.

நாம் ஒவ்வொருவருமே கனவுலகத்தில் வாழ்கிறோம். கனவை நிஜமாக்க துடிக்கிறோம். முயற்சிக்கிறோம். சிலர் வெற்றியும் அடைகிறோம். ஆனால், சில நேரங்களில், ஏன், பல நேரங்களில் நம் கனவுகள் நிறைவேறுவதில்லை. சிதைந்தும் போகக் கூடும். அப்படி நேர்ந்தால், சிறிது நேரம் எடுத்துக்கொள், குலுங்கி அழ. ஆனால் மறுபடி உன் கனவை சீர்தூக்கிப் பார். அல்லது வேறொரு கனவை தேர்வு செய். அதனை நோக்கி பயணத்தை மேற்கொள். 

வாழ்க்கை ஒரு மிகப் பெரிய வரப்பிரசாதம். இந்த மிக ப்ரஹ்மாண்டமான அண்டத்தில் ஒரு சிறிய இடம் நமக்கும் இருக்கிறது என்பதே எத்தனை பெரிய அற்புதம். பிறந்த ஒவ்வொரு உயிரினத்திற்கும் அதற்குரிய நோக்கம் ஒன்று உண்டு. நோக்கமின்றி கடவுள் யாரையும் படைப்பதில்லை. 

வீழ்வது தவறல்ல; திரும்ப எழ மறுப்பதே தவறு.

நாம் விரும்பும் கதாநாயகர்கள் எல்லாரும் தைரியசாலிகள். வீழ்ச்சியிலும் வாழ வாய்ப்பை ஏற்படுத்திக் கொள்பவர்கள். அவர்களிடம் நாம் கற்க வேண்டியது என்ன? கற்க வேண்டியது ஒன்றே ஒன்று தான். திட வைராக்கியம். மனோ தைரியம். 

எத்தனை படித்தும், எத்தனை சாதித்தும், எத்தனை புகழ் அடைந்தும் என்ன பயன்? எதையும் தாங்கும் மனோதிடத்தை வளர்த்துக்கொள்ளாவிட்டால், அனைத்துமே விழலுக்கு இறைத்த நீர் அல்லவா? 

இயற்கை நமக்கு தரும் அறிவுரை என்ன? பூகம்பமே வந்தாலும், பூமி தன் கடமை தவறுவதில்லை. தான் சுற்ற வேண்டிய பாதையில் சரியான நேரத்தில் சுற்றிக் கொண்டே இருக்கிறது. பாய்ந்து வரும் நதி, வழியில் இடர் இருந்தால் தாண்டிச் செல்கிறது. மலை இருந்தால் பாதை மாற்றி வளைந்து செல்கிறது. ஏனெனில் அதற்குத் தெரியும் தேங்கி நின்றால் அதன் வாழ்வே முடிந்ததென்று. 

நம் வாழ்க்கையும் அப்படித் தான். ஒன்று கிடைத்தால், அடுத்ததை தேடிச் செல்லும் மனம். அதுவே இயற்கை. அப்படி விரும்பியது கிடைக்காவிட்டால், அடுத்த பயணத்தை மேற்கொள். வாழ்க்கையில் எதுவுமே நிற்பதில்லை. அனைத்தும் கடந்தே போகும். இதை அறிந்தால், நீ கலங்க மாட்டாய். தவறான முடிவுகளைத் தேட மாட்டாய்.

உணர்ச்சிவசப்பட்டு நீ எடுக்கும் ஒவ்வொரு தவறான முடிவும் உன்னை மட்டுமல்ல உன்னை சேர்ந்தவர்களையும் பாதிக்கும் என்பதை அறிய மாட்டாயா. அத்துணை சுயநலமா?

பெற்றோராக கலங்கி போயிருக்கிறோம். நீ கற்ற கல்வி உன் ஆன்ம பலத்தை வளர்க்கவில்லையே என்று. உங்களது திறமைகளை வீணாக்குகிறீர்களே என்று. உலகையே வென்று நீங்கள் முடிசூட எங்களுக்கு ஆசை இல்லை. ஆனால், எங்கள் முடிவு காலம் வரை உங்களை சந்தோஷமாக காண மட்டுமே ஆசை.

நல்லதோர் வீணை செய்தே அதை 

நலம் கெட புழுதியில் எறிவதுண்டோ. 

சொல்லடி சிவசக்தி!

தவறான முடிவெடுக்க நீங்கள் கொண்ட தைரியத்தில் பத்தில் ஒரு பங்கேனும் வாழ்க்கையில் போராட கையாண்டிருக்கலாமே என்று புலம்பிக் கொண்டிருக்கிறோம்.

மற்றுமொரு தாயாரின் மனவேதனையை கண்டு கலங்கிப் போயிருக்கிறோம். 

உன் வாழ்க்கை உன் கையில் என்பது உண்மை; ஆனால், உன்னை சேர்ந்தோர் வாழ்க்கையும் உன் கையில் உள்ளது என்பதை மறந்து விடாதே.

பெற்றோருக்கும் ஒரு  வேண்டுகோள் உண்டு. பிள்ளைகளுக்கு எதை ஊட்டுகிறீர்களோ இல்லையோ, தன்னம்பிக்கையையும், தைரியத்தையும் ஊட்டுங்கள். எல்லா சூழ்நிலைக்கும் ஒரு நல்ல தீர்வும், முடிவும் உண்டு என புரிய வையுங்கள். உணர்ச்சிவசப்பட்டு எடுக்கும் முடிவுகள் தவறாகவே முடியும் என சொல்லிக்கொடுங்கள்.

வாழ்க்கையேப் போர்க்களம் 

வாழ்ந்து தான் பார்க்கணும் 

(அறிந்து கொண்ட ஒரு இழப்புச் செய்தியின் தாக்கத்தினால் ஒரு பதிவு)

Gorgeous Georgia - Part II

Contd. from Part I

19^th July 2019 – We started the day with sumptuous breakfast at Holiday Inn and our journey towards Kakheti, which was famous for grape vineyard and production of wine. Georgia’s major export is wine and there are more than 140 varieties of wine produced there.

Kakheti Traditional Wine Making Factory

First, we reached Kakheti Traditional Wine making factory called as KTW. We were guided through the factory and the factory representative explained about different varieties of wine. We were also offered some shots of various types of wine to taste. White wine, red wine, dry, sweet & semi sweet varieties and many more. They also explained about 10 year old Brandy which was imported from France in big barrels.

After the factory trip, we headed towards a grape vineyard and our guide explained the process of cultivation and harvest of grapes. He also explained that they also make a local sweet called chuchkela with grape juice boiled to a thick consistency and then stuffed with walnuts, hazelnuts etc.

Our next stop was at Bodbe Monastery. It is completely run by nuns living there. Except for the Patriarch, no other men are allowed to stay at this Monastery. It is a totally serene and beautiful place. An apt place of worship where you feel peaceful and divine.

Bodbe Monastery

After filling up our souls with blissful sight of the place we headed towards the small town of Sighnaghi. Paragliding activity was happening here as well. And this time I had decided to paraglide. But once I reached the spot, my stomach started churning and I was questioning the team and the pilot whether it was safe or was it scary etc. However, they comforted me that they have all safety measures taken and I just had to bear the fear for a few seconds to get a brilliant view from the top.

As they say, “Fear is only temporary. Regrets last forever”; now am happy that I wouldn’t have to regret missing it.

The team fixed me up to the parachute and the pilot was right behind me.

Paragliding

I was asked to run a few steps to take off for the glide; I would say, that was the toughest run I have ever done. A few steps and I felt I was gonna fall, but luckily the parachute took off. And WOW, what a feel it was! Flying like a bird, having the best view from the sky, all fear had vanished, and it was just an awesome moment!! Around 500 metres above the sea level and it was out of the world experience. Though only a 5 minute ride am sure I would never forget this in my life!

We landed on the plains and the team had arranged for a vehicle to pick us up from the plain to the starting point which was at the top of the mountain. Then we started on our return journey chirping throughout about the paragliding experience.

Royal Bath - Sulphur Bath

When we reached back to Tbilisi, we wanted to have a Sulphur bath and hence reached the old town. There are several hot springs in Tbilisi with high content of Sulphur. The erstwhile kings and queens experienced Sulphur baths and preferred to have their abode nearby and that was how Tbilisi was built. We visited ‘Royal Bath’ and booked for a private bath for an hour. We were provided with room which had a small waiting room, a restroom and a big bathroom with pool filled with Sulphur hot spring, a marble platform and showers. Those who require, a masseur shall also scrub and massage for a fee.

The Sulphur bath was rejuvenating to the skin and at the same time, when we came out, we were feeling so tired with the hot bath, which also resembled a sauna.

We breathed fresh air and visited India Palace restaurant for lunch at 6 pm. The food was very delicious there, very much like food back in India. We had plans to have a night walk after relaxing; but we were so tired that we skipped the walk and decided to rest.

Jvari Monastery

20^th July 2019 – The last day of our trip. We had a good breakfast at Holiday Inn and proceeded to check out from the hotel. Our plans for the day was to have tour of Mtskheta and Tbilisi – the old and new capitals of Georgia.

We started our travel towards Mtskheta and we visited the Jvari Monastery first. Before Christianity spread in this country, the people were worshipping Armas, the God of fire. A temple stood at the place of this Monastery. When Saint Nino, a female evangelist visited Georgia, the then King accepted Christianity. The statue of Armas was removed and a Cross was installed at the temple and it became the Monastery. The guide also informed us that initially the monastery was built with wood, but later it was renovated with stones. Jvari Monastery is on a small hill top and from there we were able to view the town of Mtskheta. We were also able to view the confluence of Mtkvari and Aragvi rivers.

Svetitskhoveli Cathedral

Next we travelled down to the town of Mtskheta. Most of the places of Mtskheta are listed under UNESCO World Heritage site. Our next stop was at Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. This church, built in 4^th century, is considered as a very Holy place and called as Jerusalem of Georgia. The Church has the robe of Jesus Christ buried in its hall. A piece of wood of the Cross that was used for crucifying Jesus is also protected here and widely worshipped. The church also has secret passages to escape and protect the inmates from invasions. Several kings and queens have been buried in this church.

There is also a legend that the King who ordered for the church to be built was astonished by the beauty of the church and believed that the architect who built it, was empowered by evil and hence ordered for his right hand to be chopped off.

Cross which protects the piece of wood

There is a relief on the northern wall which shows a right hand holding the chisel with an inscription which says that

“The Hand of Arsukidze,

slave of God,

may forgiveness be his.”

(The guide explained about this legend, however I have picked the exact words of the inscription from Wikipedia)

We noticed that in almost all the monasteries and churches, the walls were painted with frescoes and have been damaged extensively during wars. I was reminded of the damages that have happened to our historical artifacts and buildings during invasions at various periods of time in our country.

The entrance of the church also had two bull heads which meant as a warning to the invaders not to enter the church.

After our visit, we roamed around the streets to find many shops and were excited to see ice cream rolls being prepared.

Ice cream rolls with fresh fruit

They used a freezing plate, added fresh fruits, chocolate sauce, and molten ice cream and prepared a wonderful ice cream roll. Please note ice creams in Georgia are super tasty.

Our tour in Mtskheta ended and we headed towards the city of Tbilisi. We took a walk around Tbilisi with our guide explaining about the political situation, the Municipality office, new and old projects for development in Tbilisi etc. He showed us the Patriarch’s house, President Palace (which is now being modified as a Hotel), the art school etc. Tbilisi houses many Medical and Technical universities and students from various countries study there.

Dog Feeders & wooden house

We crossed the Bridge of Peace again, but now in day light and reached the Rike Park to board the cable car. On the way, we saw several feeders and wooden houses for dogs in the park. The guide informed us that all stray dogs are being vaccinated and the feeders and wooden houses are set up by the Government. People who walk around may pour the water into an inlet set for it and also drop the empty bottle in the other inlet. When water is poured it gets dispensed through an outlet for the dogs and similarly, when an empty bottle is dropped, food gets dispensed through another outlet for them. The wooden houses are kept nearby for the dogs to get rest. And believe me; the stray dogs were very healthy and well fed.

Mother of Georgia

We boarded the cable car and reached Narikala fortress. After having a look at Mother of Georgia in the day light, we walked our way to the Fortress. There is also a botanical garden present there, but considering the limited time we had, we decided not to opt for it.

Narikala Fortress was built in 4^th century, but what remain now are only the outer walls that too in dilapidated condition. The fortress houses a church which was built in 1996-97, as the 13^th century church was stood there was destroyed by fire. We took a walk around the fortress and climbed on the watch towers to get a better a view of the city.

Narikala Fortress - Inside view

Next, we walked down the hill to reach the Meteki Square. It was time to bid adieu to the guide. We parted after greetings and then headed towards India Palace restaurant to have our lunch. After lunch, we walked down the street, did some shopping here and there and reached Liberty Square. We had heard of the Metro rail in Tbilisi and wanted to travel in that. So, we reached the Galleria Mall where the Metro rail station is located. We took a quick walk inside the mall and then went to Metro station. We took a train to Holiday Inn; refreshed ourselves and once our driver arrived to pick us up, we started towards the airport.

Our short trip to Tbilisi winded up with sweet memories and great moments to cherish. The Gorgeous Georgia is still fresh in our minds!

Gorgeous Georgia - Part I

“I would rather own a little and see the world than own the world and see a little of it!”

Travelling to new places is adventurous and of course, addictive. I have always loved travelling. So, a sudden plan to go on a trip to Tbilisi, Georgia, is like getting paid for tasting sugarcane. We readily went ahead to decide for a short trip, only enough to accommodate 4 days in our routine schedules. Travel is one thing where you act the moment you think of it. I set out to check on the places to visit around Tbilisi, the flight schedules, accommodation etc on Google. After obtaining some knowledge on the place, we were checking on options whether to plan our travel on our own or look out for packages from a tour agent. Considering the travel plans at very short notice, hardly 15 days before the planned date, we contacted a few travel agents. Out of the responses, we were happy with the itinerary provided by Al Mulla Travels and booked our trip through them.

Tbilisi International Airport (Pic courtesy: Internet)

Visa to Georgia, for Indian citizens with GCC residency is totally free. One must just carry his residence ID to get entry to Georgia. However, travel insurance is compulsory to visit the place.

We got our booking ready – flight tickets, hotel voucher, travel insurance and we were all set to go.

The day of our tour arrived – 17^th July 2019. We boarded the Qatar Airways flight which reached Tbilisi via transit at Doha.

Tbilisi Airport – A very small airport and the immigration process hardly took any time. We picked up our baggage and came out to find Mr. Beqa, our driver waiting for us with our name in a placard. We bought local sim card, as guided by our travel agent and proceeded towards the hotel. Enroute, we felt the city quite very familiar with similarities with suburban Chennai. The very first look of the city revealed that it is quite a poor country unlike many countries in Europe.

Holiday Inn

We reached our hotel Holiday Inn and checked in. A wonderful cozy place to relax; they also had other facilities like gym, swimming pool, lounge bar, casino and a restaurant. We didn’t have any tour plan in the itinerary on that day. So, we decided to chill out for a while in the swimming pool. After some time, the alarm bell rang from the stomach. Yes, we realized we hadn’t had lunch. It was 3.30 pm already. So, we quickly took a shower and went around looking for an Indian restaurant.

We located ‘Indian Express’ restaurant in 1.2 km radius from our hotel.

Indian Express Restaurant

We took a walk on the streets and found that Pekini Avenue was a hub for shopping. Happily watching the stores and shops from outside, we headed to Alexander Kazbegi Avenue where the restaurant was located. The weather was just right for a relaxed walk. Indian Express restaurant had wonderful North Indian dishes which we relished. A restaurant run by a Gujarati and his wife being the Chef. We had a good talk with them while we enjoyed our food. We noticed that all supermarkets & restaurants had wine and alcohol as well. With all the tiredness in travel we headed back to the hotel and relaxed with a nap.

Since we had already heard of night life of Tbilisi, we started our tour in the night. We took a taxi to Bridge of Peace to start with. The Bridge of peace had a bow shape and illuminated with numerous LEDs with a wonderful sight.

Bridge of Peace

It is a pedestrian bridge across the Mtkvari river and connects both the banks of the river. There was Shangri La Casino across the road. We took a walk on the bridge of peace and we found several people persuading for a boat ride. We decided to go on a boat ride. Initially it was only the two of us and the boat driver and he was playing music on his speaker. We connected to the speaker via Bluetooth and played Tamil cine songs. After say, around 10 minutes, we had more foreigners onboard. To our surprise, they enjoyed our songs – mass maranam, guleba, aaluma doluma, rowdy baby etc – and started dancing. We too joined and had a good dance on the boat. The boat driver also joined the dance and wah, what a fun time even with strangers. When the boat ride ended in half an hour, we had happy memories to take along.

After the boat ride, we walked our way to Rike park. There is a cable car operating from Rike Park and takes you to the Narikala Fortress up on the hill, across the Mtkvari river over the rooftops and buildings of Old town in just less than 2 minutes. The cost of travel is also very nominal and here they use something called as ‘Metro card’ for journey in cable cars, metro rails and buses. We travelled in the cable car and it was a splendid view from the top. We reached Narikala Fortress; however since it was already late in the night, we didn’t attempt to enter the fortress.

View from Hill top

We just strolled around upto the statute of Mother of Georgia. Despite being late in the night, there were several tourists like us, who were taking a walk around and enjoying the beautiful sight of the city in the night from the top of the hill. Again, we came down in cable car and walked thru the Meteki bridge and reached Meteki square. This area is the city center of Old Tbilisi. Several shops, pubs and bars were open and full of activity. There are few Indian and Pakistani restaurants too at this place. We selected Taj Mahal Restaurant for our dinner. Quite an okay food. After dinner, we headed back to our hotel in a taxi to rest.

Next day, 18^th July 2019, it dawned with our super excitement to visit Kazbegi. We finished our continental breakfast at Holiday Inn. Our guide Mr. Santino arrived along with our driver Mr. Beqa on time to take us on our tour.

After pleasant introductions, we started our tour, first to Zhinvali water Reservoir. It was such a beautiful place.

Zhinvali Water Reservoir

The guide explained how the water level got to be very high this year, as the snow from atop the mountains had melted due to global warming increasing the water level at the reservoir. 

Our next stop was at Aragvi river in the southern slopes of Caucasus Mountains. Two rivers Tetri Aragvi and Shavi Aragvi combine here to form Aragvi river. The tetri aragvi is in normal colour whereas shavi aragvi is black in colour, due to high content of minerals in it. The mixing up of white and black waters was a wonderful view.

Aragvi river - white & black

Then we headed towards Gudauri. On the way we saw a hotel by name Club 2100 and the guide explained that it is located at 2100 meters high from the sea and hence named Club 2100. The mountain route was delightful with scenic beauty around. It is always exciting to see the big cities look small from the top of the mountains. It reminds us, how small we are, considering the size of our earth and of our universe!

At Gudauri, the main attraction would be the ski resorts and winter games, however that happens only when it is snowing – November to March. Since we visited only in July, we had to miss them. We visited the Russian Georgian Friendship Monument at Gudauri. It was built in 1983 to commemorate the friendship between Russia and Georgia. The view from there was breathtaking.

Gudauri - Breathtaking view from top

Paragliding activity was available at this place. However, we did not opt for it there. We spent some good time embracing the fresh air and beautiful sight for eyes and the headed towards Stepantsminda.

Stepantsminda is a small town in the center of Kazbegi municipality. Writer Alexander Kazbegi was born in this town and rose to fame. The guide claimed that Stepantsminda was named as Kazbegi in memory of this writer. But we also heard a story that this writer’s grandfather was nick named Kazi-Beg and was very loyal to Russia and hence the town was named Kazbegi.

The main attraction of Stepantsminda is the Gregeti Trinity Church.

Gregeti Trinity Church

The Church is located at around 2170 metres high from the sea. We took a different vehicle to reach the Church. The Church which was built in 14^th century was also serving as a treasure house to safeguard the treasures of Georgia whenever it faced attack from enemies. From the church, we were able to view the Mount Kazbegi and its shining snow capped peaks. We wished to go there as well, however, the guide informed us that it was around 5000 metres high from the sea and the only way to reach the top is by trekking and it took more than 10 days to reach by experienced trekkers. Unable to move our sight away from its beauty, we just heaved a sigh and continued our journey.

It was time for us to take the return route. We travelled towards Ananuri and on the way we stopped at a place where water with more iron content was available and the rocks on which the water was flowing had a totally different colour and texture. The guide said it was due to the high mineral and iron content that the rocks had a different colour; it looked brownish orange and the rocks looked slippery.

The rocks & water with more iron content

However, when we climbed on them, we found that it had good grip and the slippery look was only deceiving. We tasted the water and it was almost like drinking soda!!

We were hungry already and it was nearing 6 pm. So, we took a break at a Georgian restaurant, the tables were set on natural setting near the river and it was a delight to have food in a scenic location. We wanted to try the Georgian cuisine, though there were only very few options for vegetarians.

Georgian Khachapuri

We tried our hands on Georgian Khachapuri (a pizza type bread with cheese stuffed inside), Cheese momos, brinjal with walnut, and some French fries. Sure, it turned out to be too heavy for us that we had to give away some momos.

On our way back, we visited Ananuri Castle at the banks of Aragvi river. The guide explained how the castle was destroyed as the Dukes of the castle were attacked by rival forces. A few years later, a church was built in the castle complex. We visited the castle and the church. 

Ananuri Castle

We also had a quick walk through the tunnel which was used as escape route for the dukes to lead to the river, whenever there was threat by enemies. The guide showed us an underground prison as well, which has now become a garbage bin.

Wherever we travelled, we saw lots of walnut trees, beehives, grape trees and, we were informed that loads of fruits and vegetables grow in the country.

After a long day, we relaxed back in the hotel. However, our day wasn’t over yet. We rested for a while, and again set out for a night walk and dinner. We googled to find Maharajah Indian restaurant at Akhvlediani Street and had our dinner there. The food was very good. Later, we took a walk to a nearby supermarket and picked up few items and headed back to the hotel.

To be Continued...

Europe Trip - A Travelogue - Final Part

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your valuable comments and appreciation for the earlier parts of this travelogue. Here is the fourth and final part of the travelogue. Hope you enjoy reading it!

Day 9 – Italy – Rome & Vatican City

After breakfast we drove towards Rome and our first stop was at the world famous Colosseum at Rome. We have seen this place in many Hollywood movies like Gladiator, Return of the Dragon etc.

Colosseum - Rome

The Colosseum originally called as Flavian Amphitheatre was built during 7^th to 8^th Century AD and can accommodate 75000 people at a time. It is the largest amphitheatre ever built. It is an iconic symbol of Rome and is listed in the new wonders of the world. The Colosseum has an arch in front of it which has been the inspiration for many countries to build such structures.

Altar of the Fatherland Monument - Rome

After visiting the Colosseum, the local guide took us on city orientation tour and showed us many places of historical and archaeological value at Rome which dates back to more than 2000 years. The entire city of Rome is under UNESCO and declared as a world heritage centre.

Vatican City

Our next destination was Vatican City. The Vatican City is the smallest country in the world. It is separated from Rome with just a wall around it. The Vatican City has the Vatican Palace where the Pope resides usually and St. Peter’s Basilica, one of the holiest Catholic shrines in the world. There’s a tower in Egyptian style just like the one in Paris and is called as the Vatican Obelisk.

Vatican Obelisk

We waited in the queue for more than half an hour and entered the Basilica. Once we entered, we understood that the wait was worth it. What an artistic place!! Paintings and sculptures everywhere, a real treat to the eyes!! We were awestruck by the grandeur of the Cathedral! No wonder why the Roman history and art is praised worldwide!! 

St. Peter's Basilica

In front of the Cathedral there is a stage and a huge space adjoining, where the Pope meets the people twice a week. The adjoining space can accommodate more than 150000 people at a time. The Basilica had various chapels inside. The ceiling is 150 metres high and is beautifully decorated with sculptures and paintings. It was an awesome experience to pray in one of those chapels and walk around the great historical and religious place.

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

Outside view

Later we headed towards ‘Ristorante Gandhi Indiano’ for enjoying our dinner. The irony was the restaurant named Gandhi, did serve alcoholic drinks too😜. After dinner, we checked in to Hotel Duca D’Este at Rome. Later in the night, we had a get together of all families. We shared our experience during the trip and also enjoyed the singing and dancing.

Day 10 – Bidding Adieu

It was our last day in Europe. After breakfast we took a small walk around the hotel and caught glimpse of the beautiful landscape. 

At the Hotel lawn

We packed our bags to bid adieu to Europe and drove towards the Fiumicino Airport at Rome. During our three day stay at Italy, we had a chance to taste the Italian Pizza on and off, whenever possible. But we never got to taste the Italian Pasta. That was upsetting me. But thankfully the food court at the airport had Pasta and Lasagna and we tasted it there before leaving Europe. (Jenma Saabalyam 😋) 

Italian Pasta and Lasagna

After flying for five hours, we reached Kuwait at around 8.30 pm. As we took a taxi to reach our home, we were more delightfully surprised when our dinner was arranged to be delivered at our doorsteps, thanks to the wonderful gesture of Mr. Satish.

Pleasant Memories

The trip did get over but it seeded several pleasant memories to cherish in terms of the scenic beauties, wonders of the world, fun and entertainment, friendship and bondage, support and motivation. I am sure I am gonna keep talking about this trip for many more months to come to everyone around me. 

We had lots of fun games during the travelling hours which made the travel stress free. The organizing committee did a fabulous job; everything was perfectly planned and well executed. The travel agents Thomas Cook did a tremendous job too, very professional tour manager and driver to take us to various places. I take this opportunity to thank each and every person in the group for everything, because without this wonderful group this trip wouldn't have turned out to be so awesome!!

Pic Courtesy: Internet

An excellent trip ended making us to long to have many more such trips!!

Earlier parts:
I
II
III

Europe Trip - A Travelogue - Part III

Dear friends,

Happy to receive your feedback and response for the earlier parts of travelogue. Here we go for the third part of the same.

Day 6 – Switzerland – Mt. Titlis

Lucerne City

When the Tour Manager announced the schedule of the day, there was an outbreak of cry - yes, the ladies in joy and the men in anguish. Oh ya, shopping at Switzerland were the most awaited event all these days. Swiss chocolates, Swiss watches, Swaroski, Red Wine, Cow bell, Swiss knives, Fashion garments and accessories – what not!!! The tour manager took us to Lucerne city to do our shopping and spend our time by ourselves. We took a nice walk around, went into various shops, did some shopping and finally assembled to start to Mt. Titlis. 

Lucerne - Shopping malls

The tour manager had promised a surprise lunch and finally he announced it to be a South Indian Meal at Hotel Viktoria. We were happy that we could enjoy our sambar and rasam varieties. Because, all these days the meal had been North Indian with roti/naan, dhal, paneer gravy, aloo gravy, basmati rice and yoghurt mostly. One or two items varied sometimes, otherwise it was typically the same. But we were more surprised (!!) to see that we were offered Idli, Oothappam and lemon rice along with chutney, sambar and raitha... Dei, ithu South Indian tiffin da, meals illai da – The person next to me says, neenga mind voice nu nenaichu sathama pesitteenga 😄

Engelberg - View from cable car

After the surprise lunch, we headed towards Engelberg. From here, we had to take a cable car to reach Mount Titlis. Mt. Titlis is also located in a stretch of Alps Mountains at a height of 3,238 metres above the sea level. The rope for the cable car looked steep going up the hill; however it wasn’t scary like a roller coaster while moving up.

Cable car

The cable car is designed to accommodate 8 people at a time and it was a delightful sight to look at the beauty of nature around. We were also amazed by the man made facilities that help us to reach the top of such hills to enjoy the beauty, both at Jungfraujoch and at Titlis. We crossed a station Trubsee and then alighted at the next station called ‘Stand’. From there we had to take the next cable car – the first 360 degree rotating cable car and it accommodates around 80 people at a time. But of course, we didn’t have a seating arrangement, and we had to stand through, of course, the ride was only for few minutes. (Is that the reason, the station was named ‘Stand’, Lol!! 😆)

In the open space

Finally we arrive at the top of Mt. Titlis, the rotating cable car taking us above the glaciers and what a spectacular view!! There we had come to the open space to enjoy the snow and we had few rides and activities like the Ice Flyer and the Cliff Walk. The Ice Flyer is another cable car, but this time it is not a closed one; an open cable car but with the safety seat locks. We took a ride in it and enjoyed the beauty surrounding us with a white carpet (bayathai velila kaattapdaathu, okay?!!) 

Ice Flyer

The cliff walk is nothing but similar to a hanging bridge, however one might find it scary if he takes a glimpse on the ground. We took only a small walk around as we were running out of time. A cut-out of DDLJ is still available there and do I need to mention that we took pics near that as well?!! 

On the top of the mountain, when it is freezing cold, it is adventurous to try out the delicacies in ice cream, ain’t it! Why to miss all that fun! Yes, we had different flavours of ice cream to test our taste buds and we relished them. It was time to get back to Engelberg and we took the same route for return.

Return ride in Cable car

We had a long way to travel at the fag end of the day; yes, we had to reach Varese at Italy to check in the hotel. The next few days were to be spent at Italy. We finished our dinner at an Indian restaurant and checked in to the Hotel Ibis Styles Varese. This Ibis Hotel was much better in terms of space as compared to the one at Zurich.

Day 7 – Italy – Venice

After our continental breakfast (yes, again bread, croissant and cakes – one week la naakku sethu pochu pa!), we travelled towards new Venice. A long travel for around 4 hours. We had a cruise awaiting our arrival, ready with food to be served to us. On reaching the spot, we boarded the cruise, quite a small one as compared to the Seine cruise, the food was already served on our tables. The boat took us across the sea while we relished our food. 

On a Cruise towards Old Venice

We alighted at the Old Venice, but we were stunned at the hot climate. It was blazing hot with around 36 degree Celsius temperature. At Venice, the tour manager took us to Morano for glass demonstration. It was such a delight to watch a piece of glass turning into a flying horse logo of Ferrari. There were several show pieces, jewellery, masks etc at the Glass factory. Our next spot was St. Mark’s Square. The square has a beautiful Church of St. Mark, a bell tower and a huge adjoining space which connects to the commercial centre.

St. Mark's Church

From there we reached the banks of the creek to enjoy the Gondola ride, the speciality of Venice. Venice is connected only through water and there is no road or any other transport service available there. The small yacht called Gondola sailed through the narrow canals and passages and we witnessed an age old city withering away, eroding in the water underneath. People seem to stay only from second floor onward as the ground and first floors looked vacant and unattended.

Canal and the gondolas

After the gondola ride, we took a short walk in the small bridges and the huge platform near the boatyard and some shopping here and there. Later we sailed back to New Venice in a big boat. Finished our dinner and checked in to Hotel Venizia at Mestre.

Day 8 – Italy – Pisa Tower

When we stepped out of the hotel after our breakfast to start our tour for the day, we saw several road side shops open early in the morning itself. Before the bus would start, we took a quick look at the shops – belts, handbags, shoes, dresses all in very reasonable and sometimes cheap rates. After heaving a big sigh as we didn’t have enough time to shop there, we started our journey towards the Ferrari Car Museum at Maranello. 

At Ferrari Museum

The fastest car in the world – Ferrari – it was breathtaking to watch the different models of Ferrari cars in stunning colours and shapes. We also had the opportunity to get into one of those beautiful cars and take pictures as well.

Doesn't she resemble Lightning McQueen? 💓

The tour manager had arranged packed lunch for us and we had it in the park nearby. Post lunch, we started towards Tuscany, where one of the wonders of the world ‘the leaning tower of Pisa’ lies. Once we reached Tuscany, we took a shuttle bus and then a short walk to arrive at Pisa. We reached the ‘Square of Miracles’ which includes the Pisa Cathedral, the Pisa Baptistery and the Bell tower, which is the leaning tower. 

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Pisa Cathedral

The leaning tower is 55.86 metres tall on the lower side and 56.67 metres on the higher side. The Square of Miracles is built with Italian Marble and is a beautiful site to visit. We walked around the tower, the cathedral and the baptistery and took several pictures. Of course, a few posing to push the tower to make it stand erect 😂

Pisa Baptistery

We had some coffee outside and then headed to the Indian and Italian Restaurant for dinner. Later we drove towards Prato to check in to the Hotel Datini. This Hotel, in my opinion was the best among those we stayed till then with spacious rooms, bed and other facilities. But I had to quickly reverse my opinion after the breakfast the next day!

Watch out this space for the fourth and final part of the travelogue to be posted soon...

Part I here
Part II here
Part IV (Final) here