Experiences of a Lifetime

AVISHEK GHOSH

ISBN 978-93-90463-77-0 Copyright © Avishek Ghosh, 2021 First published in India 2021 by Leadstart Inkstate A Division of One Point Six Technologies Pvt Ltd 119-123, 1st Floor, Building J2, B - Wing, Wadala Truck Terminal, Wadala East, Mumbai 400022, Maharashtra, INDIA Phone: +91 96999 33000 Email: [email protected] www.leadstartcorp.com All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. Disclaimer: The views expressed in this book are those of the Author and do not pertain to be held by the Publisher. Editor: Shayoni Mitra Cover: R. Maharaja Layouts: Victor Patali

About the Author AVISHEK GHOSH is an IT Consultant by profession. He has lived and worked at multiple locations in India and abroad thanks to his various assignments in IT consulting. He and his wife Asmi love to travel, see new places and live new experiences. Avishek also loves to write about all his experiences on his travel blog, along with actively sharing content on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Originally from Kolkata, India, Avishek did his schooling from St. Xavier’s Collegiate School, Kolkata, and his graduation in computer science from Fergusson College Pune, followed by an MBA from T.A. Pai Management Institute, Manipal.

Acknowledgements A note of thanks to my wife Asmi, who has been a constant companion on almost all the trips narrated, and the main planner behind our little and not so little escapades. Her planning was instrumental in building some of the best memories around the places visited. Also, my thanks to all others who accompanied me on some of the trips and build those awesome memories and stories to write about. I thank my editor Shayoni for raising the quality of the content and publishers One Point Six Technologies Pvt Ltd (earlier Leadstart Publishing) for giving me my first break as a writer. I am hoping this will now be a continuous process.

Contents PART I: PRAGUE (2009-11)

7

1.

Prague

8

2.

Hungary: Hungaroring F1 and Budapest

13

3.

Amsterdam: Going Dutch

17

4.

Switzerland: Another Day in Paradise

21

5.

Slovakia: A High at the Tatra

28

6.

Budapest: Back Where it All Began

35

7.

Keukenhof: Walking through the Tulips

40

8.

Paris: Basking in the Easter Sunshine

46

9.

Italy: A Roman Holiday at Venice, Pisa and Rome

53

10.

Schwarzwald and Stuttgart: A Road-Trip to Remember

63

PART II: PHILIPPINES (2013)

75

11.

Manila

76

12.

Pagsanjan Falls: A ‘Shower’ to Cherish

80

13.

Taal Volcano Island: A Tryst with Nature

84

14.

Boracay: White Sand, Turquoise Waters, Easter Sunshine

87

PART III: INCREDIBLE INDIA (2010-15)

93

15.

Ladakh: Breathless and Awestruck

94

16.

Rajasthan: Lakes, Forts, Palaces and Dunes

102

17.

Agra: A Slice of Wonder and History

119

18.

Sydney: Touchdown and Back from Down Under

128

PART IV: UNITED KINGDOM 2015-17

137

19.

Arriving in the United Kingdom

138

20.

Copenhagen: Back to the European Sunshine

142

21.

Isle of Wight: Nature Shows It All

146

22.

North York Moors - A Walk Into The Country

151

23.

Lille: A Welcome Weekend Getaway

156

24.

Croatia

161

25.

Under The Tuscan Sun – Pisa, Cinque Terre and Florence

173

26.

Iceland

181

27.

Scotland: A Trip to Edinburgh and the Highlands

192

28.

London

199

PART I: PRAGUE (2009-11)

1 Prague

I

t was the year 2009 and I was all set for my first major break for a long-term overseas assignment. For most Indian professionals, this is the biggest incentive… that of getting to travel and experience different cultures. For me, this was sort of compensation, from the mundane non-creative work that was on offer at our day job. The chance was available to absorb the experience and soak it all in and get an opportunity to let your creative juices flow, through travel blogs and photographs. The location was not USA or UK which is what most desire, but Prague, Czech Republic. I am an IT Consultant working in the banking domain so my clients would always be banks. And this was one of the banking giants of Central Europe. Prague might not be a part of one of the West European power houses, but its beauty was well heard of. Anyone returning from a Europe trip would invariably have their photo on the iconic Charles Bridge as their display picture on social media, which was still at its nascent stage. It was an unusual location for work, but surely a beautiful one.

8

Prague

I was booked on Air France via Paris. I boarded the Air France flight from Mumbai Airport on the midnight of June 26 after a typically great drive from Pune through the monsoon-stricken Mumbai-Pune expressway. Though still a few years away from T2, Mumbai international airport had risen somewhat close to international standards, and hence I enjoyed a decent waiting period with my colleague. Not to forget, that I tasted beer for the first time in an Indian airport. I could not recall a moment where I tasted alcohol at an Indian airport before this. The airport was in shambles the year before when I had travelled to Moscow, as it was undergoing renovation. KFC, Pizza-hut all had their offerings, but I settled for pan-fried noodles. There was absolutely nothing to write home about regarding the flight. As usual, by the time it was time for boarding, it was difficult to keep the eyelids far apart, a typical situation for international travellers travelling out of India on late night flights. I just about managed to get some sleep, though it is extremely difficult for a person of my height to find enough leg space on an airbus A-330 seat. I had little appetite left for food and only wine was on offer as far drinks were concerned. I was not fond of wine back then, so sleeping the time away was the best option. We arrived at Paris CDG airport on time and there I had my quickest immigration ever! It did not even take a minute, making it an amazing welcome to Schengen territory. We had all the rights now to hit the streets of Paris, but the connecting flight was in an hourand-a-half. Half of that time was taken to walk to the terminal and the other half in security and boarding. Soon I was on the way to the beer capital of Europe. As a prelude, I enjoyed the short flight to Prague with some beer and peanuts to go with it. The next two years would bring more and more Pivo (Beer as they call it in the Czech Republic). On reaching Prague, by the time we reached the luggage belt, our luggage had already arrived and in no time we were in the cab and on our way to Hotel Prague Centre Superior, of course after exchanging some money. The hotel had the basic stuff and was

9

The Heart Travels

nothing extra-ordinary. In fact, it was not worth the tariff we were paying. As the week started, Monday to Friday went into work and house hunting. However, accommodation issues were sorted out, before we hit the first weekend. The following weekend was an eye-opener about this great city and we soon realized why it is revered by tourists. As I walked into the old town which was a ten-minute walk from my residence, it was like entering a retro world seen in movies and read about in novels! For someone like me, the sight of those cobbled roads was the most fascinating part, especially to see and realise that these existed in reality and not only in Sherlock Holmes movies! I could visualize horse drawn carriages moving around some two hundred years back. I did not even need to try too hard, as there were some horse drawn carriages there on offer for tourists wishing to be transported back in history. Over the next two years, every time I walked through those cobbled lanes, I would need to pinch myself to check if this was real. Being a part of urban, developing India, I had never imagined that there would be a day when I would be walking up and down such lanes. The astronomical clock was the most prominent and probably the oldest landmark in the old town square. There were a couple of churches around and innumerable souvenir shops, restaurants, cafes and bars. Most old buildings had been converted to such places for tourists, while still maintaining the heritage and their historical beauty. Summer brings out the best in these places and it was the most beautiful sight to see people seated in open air cafes sipping beer under the hot sun. I walked through the lanes of the town square and reached the iconic five-hundred-year-old Charles Bridge across the River Vltava. The most common ‘photo’ moment of Prague is on this bridge overlooking the beautiful Prague castle. The beautiful city lived up to its billing and it turned out to be a photographer’s delight as every sight looked frame worthy. For someone, who despite the love for travel and new experiences, is still keen on Indian food, the icing on the cake was that 10

Prague

there was no dearth of Indian restaurants. I located two of them in the first week itself. It was overall a friendly city, with a low population. Not many times will you see an empty road close to the heart of the city in India on a Saturday evening. That was quite a shock for us. Work started off in full swing from day one itself and along with the arrangements for accommodation, we had to open our bank accounts since we would be paid our salary in Czech Koruna (CZK). We were told we would not need to go anywhere, since Citibank representatives were going to come to our office and get the accounts opened for all of us. I mean fill up the application forms and complete the other formalities for all of us. That was one weird thing to digest. Citibank salespersons were going to walk into the head-office of a rival bank, sit in their cosy conference room, and open thirty-odd savings bank accounts for their contractors. How strange that would be, I thought! This did not make the best business sense. The only possibility could be that our client bank did not care less for a liability of thirty savings bank accounts of Indian contractors. As another weekend approached and the weather was at its gorgeous best, we decided to take a call on the places to travel to. That is what European summer weekends are all about. We were not quite ready for a long-haul European city trip yet. A bit of research on my part, led to the result that, two places for a perfect day trip, would be Karlovy Vary and Cesky Krumlov, the beautiful medieval town. We settled for Karlovy Vary – a small town located in a valley about 140 Km from Prague. It’s a place famous for film festivals and I learnt later, that even Satyajit Ray was a visitor to this place for the screening of some of his highly and critically acclaimed films. A quiet, beautiful place, located in a valley, had a whole lot of beautiful buildings which you could go on capturing through your lens. Twelve of us were on the trip; we were easily able to walk around the whole place twice and even managed to locate an Indian restaurant to have a sumptuous Indian lunch, along with some beer. Along with the film 11

The Heart Travels

festivals, the town is also known for its spas and massage centres, but unfortunately not many were operational on a weekend. A rich man’s town – the place is mostly occupied by Russians. Most of the property is Russian-owned, purchased at dirt-cheap rates during the communist regime pre-1989. It was a beautiful walk and it resembled any Indian hill station especially with the houses on the hilly slopes. It also had a cobbled lane similar to a ‘mall road’, typical to most hill stations.

12

2 Hungary: Hungaroring F1 and Budapest

W

ith a couple of weekends gone and having seen a bit of Prague and Czech interiors, it was now time to utilize the Schengen Visa and hit Europe. The magical Schengen visa provided a gateway to twenty-five odd countries to an Indian citizen without having to apply individually to each country. The numbers have increased ever since. It was one of the moments I have been looking forward to - the F1 weekend at the Hungaroring Budapest. As soon as my Schengen Visa got stamped, I had one eye on the calendar for this particular weekend. Budapest is just seven hours from Prague by an overnight bus and I knew it was most definitely workable. Luckily, my friend Aditya also was ready to go so the plan was finalized. No F1 tickets obviously but no harm in hitting the venue. Even without the F1, Budapest was a top destination. Due to the weird bus timing, we realised that it was impossible to stay back for race-day, so it was decided that we would watch the qualifiers on Saturday and take the Sunday morning bus back home. After all, even in the qualifiers, the same twenty-two cars would run

13

The Heart Travels

around the tracks at top speed and emit the same noise as it does during the race. We took the Friday night Eurolines bus which would drop us at Budapest by 5 o’clock the next morning. Having travelled so much on overnight buses in India, I would have to say that the bus here was nowhere close to the standards of our Volvo buses in India. The seats were as bad as economy class seats in an aircraft as compared to the business class ones which we have back home. We reached Budapest Neglepet bus-stop at 5 am and it was no surprise to see that everything was shut including the exchange counters. Without currency, it would not be possible to even buy a metro ticket, so we decided to take a nap till the time the operations of the day began. I was woken up by a security person at 6 am (or was it a policeman?) and we realized that the exchange counters were open. We bought the tickets and strictly followed the instructions provided on the website of the hostel that we were booked in till the next day morning. The directions were precise and after a metro and bus ride through the streets of Buda and Pest, we were safely checked in at the Bagpackers hostel. It was full of chilled-out folks, some popping their heads out of their sleeping bags in the garden and the others too sleepy to even realize that they have two new roommates. We were in a room with five beds. We got ready as quickly as possible, put our stuff in the locker (Aditya, the alert traveller had carried a small lock). Aditya had smartly found out the route to go to the Hungaroring which was tram, metro, followed by another forty-five minutes by surface train. A long-haul ahead of us, I realized, but a lifetime’s experience at stake. We took the tram to the city-centre, grabbed a meal at Burger King and set off by metro from Astoria station for the last stop on that line, from where we took a surface train. The train generally did not stop at the station which was named ‘Hungaroring’ but that weekend was an exception. Fans were there with us, so we just decided to follow them. As the journey began, we went deeper and deeper inside rural Hungary, and all the concrete made way for the greenery. Some

14

Hungary: Hungaroring F1 and Budapest

of the fans got down before the Hungaroring stop and when we reached there; we realised it is in the middle of nowhere! No wonder they do not have a formal stop here for the rest of the year. We got down and blindly followed the crowd through green fields mostly used for agriculture and slowly the trip to the venue became a trek. After a long walk, we reached the ticket counter and to our delight, tickets for the qualifiers were available for 40 Euros at the Silver stand which is just next to the grand-stand and offers a great view of the final corner and the end of the starting grid. As soon as we started walking towards our stand, the Qualifying session Q1 started, and the roar of the V8 engines echoed through the air. We grabbed a beer and started running desperately as this was not to be missed. As soon as we took the seats, a Red Bull car (probably of Sebastian Vettel) zoomed past right under our noses, followed by a Mclaren, Renault and Ferrari. The noise was deafening and with the beer in hand, it was like living a dream as a sports lover. However, while watching it live it is nearly impossible to keep track of the positions and race updates. For that, you have to rely on the giant TV screens. So much so, that when Felipe Massa met with a horrific accident (which was to rule him out for the rest of the season), I hardly realized the extent of the damage. All we saw on the screen was a Ferrari crashing into the walls and later craned back to the pit lane. It was only when the medical vans were in action, did we realize something was drastically wrong. It was rather unfortunate that my first F1 experience turned out to be a nightmare for Felipe. However, thankfully the damage was far less serious than it could have been. Apparently, a flying piece of the screw from Rubens Barrichelo’s car pierced Massa’s helmet, almost drilling a hole into his forehead. Qualifying was held up for a long time due to the horrific accident and when it resumed, Fernando Alonso took a stunning pole position. I could know that only because he came out of his car and stood in the middle flanked by Red Bull Racing team-mates Sebastian Vettel and Mark Weber. Commentators confirmed it soon. The GP2 series race started next, so we could also

15

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MRP `299

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978-93-90463-77-0