Matheran toy train and UNESCO

photo courtesy - Himanshu Sarpotdar

Officials from UNESCO were recently in Matheran, a hill station outside of Mumbai, to consider one of India's latest nominees to the World Heritage list. Operating for over a century, save for yearly pauses during monsoon season, the Matheran Light Railway (MLR) runs only a short distance--approximately 12 miles--but has the kind of history and character to qualify for the UNESCO list. Read all about it at -http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/intelligenttravel/2009/11/the-little-train-that-couldbec.html

Read all about my trip to Matheran in this blog.

Comments

Coonoor & Ooty

COO N OOR & O O T Y This is the Coimbatore - Metupalaiyam - Coonoor - Ooty circuit. I haven't been there yet but the beauty of Coonoor and Ooty has capitivated me from what I have read about them. These 2 beautiful hill stations are topmost of my list of places to visit next. One has to first go to Coimbatore and then move onwards to Metupalaiyam (located at the foot of the Nilgiri hills) which is the popular entry point for the toy train journey and road route to Ooty via Coonoor . You can get to Metupalaiyam directly by train from Chennai. Mumbai doesn't have a direct train service to M. It takes 1 hour to by road from Coimbatore to Metupalaiyam. It takes 3 1/2 hours by road from Coimbatore to Ooty. If you need to stopover at Coimbatore enroute to Ooty, there are several hotels available. COIMBATORE Hotels - 1) Aiba Regency – Tariff Rs 495 - 1600. http://www.hotelaibaregency.com/Contactus.html 28A, Geetha Hall, Opp. Railway Station, - 0422 - 2303737, 2303747 ...

My Panchgani Diary

My PANCHGANI Diary THE IDEA - The rolling hills and silver oaks invited us to visit them at Panchgani. We had heard a lot about the breathtaking view from every corner of Panchgani and were intrigued. So finally, we decided to make the trip in December 2009. Yes! My mother and I are just back from the cozy town of Panchgani. THE PLACE - Panchgani is around 21 kms (30 mins) before the other more popular and populated sister hill station, Mahabaleshwar. It is in the state of Maharashtra, India and an ideal place for a quick getaway. The travel agents tried very hard persuading us to go to Mahabaleshwar instead but we were firm on our decision. http://www.indiatravels.org/panchgani.htm tells us About Panchgani Panchgani earned fame when John Chessen, a British Warrant Officer founded it in 1854 and formulated it with a grant from the Governer of Bombay. He chose the place to experiment and to create it into a European-style health resort. The ancien...

I t all began with a spiritual desire and a vow to be fulfilled… at Infant Church, Nasik. Nasik is a city in Maharashtra , India and is located 180 km from Mumbai and 202 km from Pune . The shrine has its own website which I scoured for information about travel, lodging, mass timings etc. http://www.infantjesusnashik.com/ Infant Jesus shrine - Nasik The Shrine does have a Pilgrim Rest House for pilgrims at a nominal charge and subject to availability upon arrival, for a maximum of two days (48 hours), only for "Pilgrims" to the Shrine. The website now claims that the Rest House has been renovated to provide better accommodation facilities to pilgrims and senior citizens. Pilgrims may also find suitable accommodation at reasonable rates in Hotels - next to the Nasik Railway Station. Shalom Guest House, Durga International Hotel and Hotel The Landmark are very close to the Shrine. After food for the soul, there is f...

Vast Blue Skies

Search This Blog