Archive for January, 2012

Travelling To Bangalore India

The undisputed Elvis of South Asian mega cities, Bangalore is in a class of its own when it comes to redefining flamboyance. Perpetually drunk on the good life, this South Indian metropolis packs in the best brews, the scrummiest cuisines, the trendiest shopping malls and the liveliest arts and music scene, not to mention the hippest population you could hang out with. Move over Delhi and Mumbai – Bangalore’s stolen your fizz. And on 2012, evenings in the capital of cool are poised to get even more intoxicating. Home to both the UB group (India’s number one brew masters) and an ever increasing community of white collar expats, tech savvy Bengaluru offers the choicest cosmopolitan pleasures to make visitors feel at home. Want a heads up on the newest hot spots? Well, there’s Skyye Bar, a super stylish lounge at dizzying heights, with bird’s eye views of the city below; and Touche Diner, the first of its kind in India offering gizmo aided fine dining. English Premier League fans can check out the Manchester United Restaurant Bar, complete with a stadium tunnel and dugouts. And if the maddening traffic has always been your concern, take heart: Bangalore’s new high speed Metro network now ensures that your favorite watering hole is easier to reach than ever. There’s only one thing you could say to that: ‘Chill maadi!” Read more…

Lets Visit Ukraine

Its always the same. When we don’t know much about a country, we just fill in the gaps with cliches-and Ukraine, the great unknown of Europe, has had plenty hurled at ti. Wide-scale counter-espionage? No, not even in Odessa. Communist grime everywhere you look? One glimpse of glorious Old Town Kiev or the wildlife on unspoiled Crimean shores will set you straight. Wolves? OK, there are wolves, and bears as well if you scour the lovely, lonely Carpathians, but you’re more likely to encounter magical folk traditions and Gothic scenery dramatic enough to make Dracula cast an envious eye east. cheap beer? You bet: it’s cheaper than water. Football? Funny you should mention that.

It’s through the power of soccer that Ukraine is poised to showcase its charms to unprecedented numbers of visitors. It will co-host Euro 2012 (the European football championships) and the four match venues have been cunningly selected to encourage further travel by visiting football fans. So Lviv becomes the jumping off point for Carpathian exploration, while Kiev, which stages the final, will become base for forays to the Black Sea coast and, yep, the grim tourist attraction that is Chernobyl. A series of side trips means the country’s hot spots will be easier to access than ever before (good news for those who can’t read Cyrillic). When it comes to adventure, Ukraine can definitely go all the way in 2012. Read more…

Delicious Soup Around The World

Here are 10 delicious soup around the world:

1. Pho, Hanoi, Vietnam. Beef noodle soup for breakfast? Once you’ve tasted a good pho, you’ll crave it for lunch and dinner, too. Pho is the more ish national dish of Vietnam, though its genesis is relatively recent. In the early 20h century the colonising French introduced beef stock to local cooks, who threw in some chillies, fish sauce, spices and rice noodles to give it a local twist. the dish originates from the country’s north and, though now widespread, Hanoi is still the Phocal point. Every morning, street side stands and no frills restaurants go into beef slicing, broth-boiling overdrive, producing bowl after bowl of Asian ambrosia for the passing crowds Read more…

Travelling In Denmark – A Perfectly Formed Country

The Top Quality Life of Denmark

Every year, Denmark tops a ‘quality of life’ list and is revealed as the coolest / happiest/best looking place on earth, because not only is the living is easy in this small, perfectly formed country, but it’s also easy on the eye. Viking raids aside, the Danes have long tried to make the world a better place (think generous foreign aid programs and the pursuit of green technology) and they make sure they lead by example; their homes are stylish recycling-savvy havens of hygge (a sense of contented coziness) and their public spaces are enjoyed by all. And all you have to do is hop on your bike – literally. The flat as a tack capital, Copenhagen, has 390 km of cycle lanes and it’s hoped that by 2015 some 50% of the city’s population will commute to work by bicycle. Read more…

Travelling To Bhutan – A Visit To The Fabled Land

Bhutan’s newly opened area

Things are afoot in the high Himalaya, and we don’t mean the mighty yeti. Beautiful Buddhist Bhutan has always coyly shielded its charms from the wider world, but new areas of this remarkable mountainous land are finally opening for business. Of course, you’ve been able to visit for years, but most tours hit the same highlights; a part-awesome, part terrifying flight into peak protected Paro, a jaunt around western Bhutan’s cultural sights, then perhaps a trek through pristine mountains (Bhutan’s conservation credentials are exemplary). There’s no independent travel here; itineraries are sanctioned by the Tourism Council and guides are compulsory.

But now, at last, it’s possible to visit other parts of this famously reclusive country. In a bid to raise tourist numbers, areas once off limits are being opened up. Royal Manas National Park, prowled by some of the planets’s last remaining tigers, has reopened. And the far east, where most locals have seen more yetis than tourists, is accessible and is getting better infrastructure. you can join local spider hatted Brokpa in the Merak Sakten regon for butter tea at new tourist shelters, or experience at home stay in Trashi Yangtse. Read more…