Tag Archives: travel

Europe, Travel Blog

Discovering Lisbon – Food and Sights

Image Leave a comment

The Spain leg of our Western Europe trip was done and we landed at Lisbon, the capital of Portugal (you can read the Seville and Barcelona blogs after this one). We left our bags at the airport itself and only carried the backpack. We had to get back by night for our flight to Ponta Delgada.

A short day in Lisbon

The plan was to spend the day in the Baixa area of the city. We took an Aerobus from the airport which is a convenient way to get to the city and got down at Martim Moniz.

First sights of Lisbon
First sights of Lisbon

The plan was to explore the district by foot. We saw the famous egg custard tarts (pasteis de nata) at one shop and tried it – it was really good!

Pasteis de nata in lisbon
It might look weird for someone who has never tried it. Once you try it, you’ll look at it differently

We continued walking and saw the old trams – a historical symbol of the city which started in 1873.

Another historic structure which is worth a visit is the Elevador de Santa Justa – an elevator walkway to negotiate the hilly terrain of the city. It was constructed in 1900 and originally operated using steam!

The giant old escalator of Santa Justa in Lisbon
The giant old escalator of Santa Justa

It was a cold, windy yet sunny day and the sun provided relief from the chilly breeze. As we reached the large town square at Terreiro do Paco, we saw that a music festival, Eurovision, was ongoing. On the other side of the square was the Tagus river.

We quickly grabbed dinner from a restaurant called El Rei dom Frango (amazing sangria and lasagna). Initially, we weren’t sure if it was a good restaurant – the tables were empty when we entered. But we finished our meal and stepped out to see a long queue of people waiting to get a table.

el rei do frango in lisbon
Apparently it was a popular place

In case you are wondering why we didn’t just check the ratings on Google Maps, we were travelling without SIM cards and going “with-the-flow”.

With happy tummies, we took the next bus back to the airport for our most unique experience in the Azores. We would be back in Lisbon for part 2 of discovering the city (below).

Another day in Lisbon

We were back from the Azores. The luggage we had left in the airport locker was still there. We unpacked and re-packed our stuff, took essentials for a 1-day stay and put the bags back. It was super convenient to have a system like this – all that lugging around had been prevented. This time we took the metro instead of the bus.

On the way to our guesthouse, we entered a cafe for breakfast – the worst food of the trip so far. We checked into our room and immediately left – looking for better food.

Continue reading Discovering Lisbon – Food and Sights →
Europe, Travel Blog

No Entry in Barcelona

Image 3 Comments

It was 5:08 pm and we boarded our train to Barcelona. We had just completed the France leg of our trip and got on the train from Nimes – a lesser known town in the south of France. The train sped along the coast as we passed the cities of Montpellier and Perpignon and we reached Barcelona at 8:45 pm. It was a trip unlike any we had done before.

Navigating a maze

There was a direct connection between the train station and the metro. However, it felt like an underground maze as we went up and down different floors, crossing platforms and getting into confusing lifts which had doors on multiple sides (you may enter through one door but exit through another one on the side). I had never seen such lifts before and it was very disorienting.

We got into the metro station of Sants Estacio and evaluated getting regular tickets vs passes. Among all the options, the T-10 ticket seemed best for us as we were only here for two days – we could use the same ticket for multiple people.

Our stay for 2 nights

Finally, we were on our way to our Airbnb which was on a street named Carrer del Camp – the closest station was called El Putxet. We checked into our apartment – an old Argentine lady owned it. She lived on one side of it while she had let out the other side – the entire place smelled of cigarettes. We quickly left our stuff and took the metro back to Catalunya.

Continue reading No Entry in Barcelona →
Europe, Travel Blog

Seville – Flamenco, Oranges and more

Image 2 Comments

The train sped past the sun-drenched landscapes of Andalusia at a jaw-dropping speed of 300 km/h. This was the fastest we had ever travelled on land! Despite the speed, everything was calm and stable inside. We were travelling from Barcelona to Seville in Spain for the next leg of our Western Europe trip.

Getting into the city of Seville

We exited the station (which looked more like an airport) and went on a short side-quest. We had to get our flight tickets printed for the next day and walked into the nearest tabac shop (yup – tobacco shops often function as multi-purpose outlets selling local transport tickets and printouts). Prints in hand, we took a bus to Plaza de Armas – the main bus station of Seville. Some of you may have heard of “Plaza de Armas” in Latin American countries as well. It is a common term used to refer to town squares and literally translates to “Weapons Square” (no weapons kept here in the modern times).

Seville is a very unique city – with architecture and culture that are different from the rest of Europe. Let’s take a quick look at its history.

Continue reading Seville – Flamenco, Oranges and more →
Asia, Travel Blog

Feast for the Senses: Hong Kong Foodie

Image 1 Comment

Hong Kong is a foodie’s paradise! With various cultures from across the world coming together, it is a true melting pot when it comes to food. While we’ve covered most of the food places in previous blogs, we will summarize all the iconic foods and places we ate them in this blog. This is for the Hong Kong foodie!

Breakfast at Australia Dairy Company

On our last day in Hong Kong, we said goodbye to our friend, Naveen and made our way down the escalators one last time. We headed straight to the Australia Dairy Company for breakfast. There was a long line outside the restaurant but it moved fast. We quickly got a table and ordered Hong Kong style milk tea, mixed coffee and tea with milk, milk pudding, french toast and sandwich with egg and ham. Everything was so fresh and tasty that we ordered another sandwich with eggs and cheese!

The amazing breakfast at Australia Dairy Co. Hong Kong Foodie
Lining up for breakfast hong kong foodie
The amazing breakfast at Australia Dairy Co.
Continue reading Feast for the Senses: Hong Kong Foodie →
Asia, Travel Blog

East Meets West: The Macau Mosaic

Image 1 Comment

It was day 3 of our trip to Hong Kong. Our destination for the day was Macau – we had planned to do a day-trip covering most of the must-visit places in the city.

Starting the day with 3 breakfasts

As you make your way down the Central-Mid-levels escalator in the morning, the smell of freshly baked goodies would drag you into the bakery called Bakehouse. There was a line at 8 am itself! I have a weakness for bakeries and wanted to eat everything! Since that wasn’t possible, we went for the beef rendang pie, vanilla custard doughnut and egg tart. Everything was delicious! The egg tart felt like a warm hug with a crispy flaky outer cover.

bakehouse in hong kong
Freshly baked goodies at Bakehouse

Next stop was a tiny place called Fineprint. It had a very unique vibe – dimly lit, a long table in the center and people sitting all around. Most of them were occupied with their own laptops or books. We ordered a half and half – avocado toast on one side and tomato with feta on the other. It was too good – I had never tasted avocado like this before – it was the perfect combination with the buttered crispy sourdough bread!

Best avocado toast ever at Fineprint
It's tough to find the place as it doesn't have a prominent signage
Discovering delicious food in the tiny lanes of HK

Our third breakfast was a small one – pineapple bun with BBQ pork and wife cake (one story goes that a baker loved his wife’s creation of wintermelon pastry so much that he named it “Wife cake”) at Hang Heung bakery. All these places were on our way to the Macau ferry terminal – so we could just keep eating without any deviations. 

pineapple buns and wife cakes
Pineapple buns and wife cakes

The ferry terminal at Sheung Wan

Google maps showed us that the ferry terminal was right across the road. But there was no way to cross it – and Maps told us to go half a kilometer down the road and then cross. We stood there for a minute eating our pineapple bun – the bun helped slow us down. That’s when we noticed the metro station entrance right there – and it had an exit on the other side!

Pro tip: don’t always be in a rush. Sometimes it helps to slow down – it opens up new options.

As soon as we entered the ferry terminal, we realised that we hadn’t carried our Hong Kong PAR form. But we felt safe as we had the entry slips which we got at immigration. They asked for neither as we exited immigration to board our ferry. They just looked at the passport and let us go. Huge sigh of relief!

Continue reading East Meets West: The Macau Mosaic →
Asia, Travel Blog

Incense & Neon: Hong Kong’s Culture

Image 4 Comments

We continue on our Hong Kong adventure in this blog. Last time we explored some of the green oases nestled within the skyscraper packed city. We continue down that path and visit some temples and monasteries and also explore Hong Kong’s culture – both traditional and modern.

Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin temple

We exited the metro at Wong Tai Sin station and walked over the temple next to it. There were some cultural programs happening next to it – with songs and dances being performed on a stage. The vibe outside was very similar to an Indian temple – many shops outside selling incense sticks and other offerings to the gods. The architecture was beautiful with arches at the entrance and bright colours everywhere – once again, we felt like we were in a movie.

Wong tai sin temple - hong kong's culture
Wong Tai Sin temple’s entrance to the main hall

This was a Taoist temple dedicated to the deity of healing – Wong Tai Sin. After the first set of steps, we arrived at a landing that had statues of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals. A quick Google search told us that my zodiac was the Horse and Nam’s was the Metal Goat. Parth’s animal was the Metal Ox. People kept rushing around them, some praying to them, others walking into the main hall.

posing with zodiac animal - hong kong's culture
Posing with the Chinese Zodiac

Inside the main temple, there were a lot of lanterns hung up. It was an open air area and the lanterns were rotating automatically, powered by solar cells. In the shrine, there were idols and statues, storks and other animals and scrolls. People were kneeling in front and shaking bamboo containers that had sticks with numbers on them. The entire scene reminded me of the Kung Fu Panda festival scene inside the palace courtyard. 

hong kong's culture - wong tai sin temple
Inside the main hall area
Continue reading Incense & Neon: Hong Kong’s Culture →
Asia, Travel Blog

Hong Kong’s Urban Oasis: Peaks & Parks

Image 5 Comments

In the previous blog, we explored Lantau island and got a glimpse of Hong Kong at night. Home to the most skyscrapers in the world and with mountain peaks offering amazing bird’s eye views, Hong Kong is indeed a vertical city. In this blog, we discover the green side of the city – nestled in between the tall towers. These gardens and parks create a perfect blend of nature and concrete jungle to make up Hong Kong’s urban oasis and make it a unique place to live in.

hong kong's urban oasis
Hong Kong has a lot of green spaces in the city

Morning hike to Victoria Peak

We started the day 1.5 hours later than planned. But no regrets – we managed to get a good night of sleep and were well refreshed for the day! 

Naveen suggested that we hike all the way up to the Peak from his home on Robinson Road. It was not too steep but quite long and took us 1.5 hours to get there. This is when I truly got a chance to appreciate the city from the ground. 

The streets are very well planned with enough space between buildings. There were canals made to allow water to flow downhill without damaging buildings and roads – especially during torrential rains and typhoons. 

After 10 mins of walking away from the main road, it felt like we were in a dense forest. There was no clue that a megacity was right below us except the low roaring sound of the city – an amalgamation of cars, buses, planes, chimneys, construction and other sounds. One more thing that amazed me was that there was construction happening all the time but there was no dust anywhere. 

hong kong's urban oasis - roads leading to tram
All roads lead to the tram station!
Continue reading Hong Kong’s Urban Oasis: Peaks & Parks →
Europe, Travel Blog

Discovering Nimes and Pont du Gard in Southern France

Image 3 Comments

When we planned our trip to France, we were looking for places beyond Paris and Nice. If you read the previous blog on the Azores, you know what I’m talking about. One place that quickly caught our attention was Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy. From a commute and proximity point-of-view, it did not make sense, especially given our 2 week constraint. The next one was in the south of France – an interesting little city called Nimes (pronounced Neem). That’s the one we picked!

We waited for our bus at a junction in Cannes. The city of Cannes is most popular for being home to the international film festival as well as other festivals. We had spent half a day exploring the town, the Walk of Fame and cute cafes. There wasn’t a lot to do here and we had planned to take a bus in the afternoon to our next destination – Nimes.

The Cannes walk of fame
The Cannes Walk of Fame

Why did we pick Nimes?

If you check the map of the South of France, there are a bunch of cities lining the French Riviera- Provence-Occitanie region – Saint-Tropez, Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, Arles, Avignon and Nimes. Many of these places are famous for lavender fields. Some are resort towns. All of them are nice stops if you’re doing a slow road trip along the coast from Italy to France to Spain.

South of France map showing Nimes
Map of the south of France

We were looking for something unique however. Nimes had a bunch of Roman monuments – in fact, it was often referred to as the most Roman city outside Italy. The Nimes arena is considered the best preserved Roman amphitheater in the world. It is still used for concerts. The Maison Carree, an ancient Roman temple, is also considered to be one the best preserved in the world. The best part however was a sight just outside the city and was one of the main things which prompted us to visit here.

Continue reading Discovering Nimes and Pont du Gard in Southern France →
Europe, Travel Blog

Flying on the Wings of Tatev

Image Leave a comment

I opened Google Maps to check where we had reached. We were supposed to take a cable car to the Tatev monastery. I could neither spot the cable car nor the monastery. I scanned all the surrounding hills but they only had trees. Why did we enter this parking lot 15km away from Tatev in this village called Halidzor?

Where is the cable car?

It was day 4 of our Armenia trip and we were at a remote village in the south of the country. Zaven took us towards the ticket counter and showed us the platform that stood above it. This was the starting point of the cable car. That’s when I realized that the cable car was going downhill – that’s why I couldn’t see the monastery anywhere. 

The cable car is called the Wings of Tatev (Such a cool name!!!). It is the longest reversible aerial tramway in the world. At the ticket counter, we were told that we had a set time for boarding and returning on our ticket. The cable car would arrive every 15 minutes and the last one was at 6:45 pm.

Some stats about the Wings of Tatev
Some stats about the Wings of Tatev
Where is the monastery?

Once it arrived and we boarded, I started looking for the monastery. It was still nowhere to be seen. Soon, what I noticed was that the cable car line was shaped like a “U”. We were first going down, then up to the top of the next hill. And after the pillar on that hill, there was another “U” to the next hill and that is the one which had the monastery! We were actually crossing two hills to get there!

We could see cars snaking their way along the hairpin bends on the roads below. I was glad we didn’t spend an extra hour navigating those!

At the edge of the cliff

The monastery is a short walk away from the cable car. It is literally standing on the edge of a cliff. There were many hidden rooms and halls and it was a lot of fun to explore the entire place! Our cable car back was at 6 pm – so we got to spend a good hour here.

Exploring the hidden rooms of Tatev monastery
Exploring the hidden rooms of Tatev monastery
The Tatev monastery stands on the edge of a cliff
The monastery stands on the edge of a cliff

When we got back, we asked Zaven to take us to our hotel in Goris – the town where we were spending the night. Tatev and Halidzor only had basic homestays and would have been difficult with the kids. It turned out to be a good decision.

A remote Soviet town

We stayed at a place called Khoreayi Dzor. It was a castle-like building on a hill overlooking the town. The view from the room was really nice! We could see the mosaic Soviet-era buildings strewn across the town. This would be the most remote part we visited on this trip.

The town of Goris as seen from our hotel
The town of Goris as seen from our hotel

For dinner, we had dolma – lamb and rice wrapped in grape leaves. It was amazing!

Yummy dolma!
Yummy dolma!

Next morning, we had breakfast at the hotel and started on our way back. We said goodbye to Goris! First stop was Shaki waterfalls. We hoped it wouldn’t be as difficult to reach as the Gveleti waterfalls in Georgia! 

Waterfall time!

The hike was not very steep to begin with and thankfully, we got to the end quite fast.

A relatively easy hike to Shaki waterfall
A relatively easy hike to Shaki waterfall

We turned around the corner to see the waterfall gushing down with its spray rising almost as high as the waterfall itself. It was a beautiful sight. We took off our shoes and went into the water – it was ice-cold and the kids quickly had enough of it. Parth was quick to ask for his cap to cover his ears from the spray and sound.

Super refreshing experience
Super refreshing experience

We spent a lot of time here, enjoying nature. It was the most underrated experience so far. And there was no one there except us!

Our next stop was for an early lunch at the same food court. The kids were fast asleep after playing in the water, so we packed lunch for them and left for Noravank monastery.

Another unique monastery

This monastery is unique in its shape – it’s a two-storey structure unlike the others we had seen so far. It was also surrounded by brick red cliffs inside a gorge which gave it a very different look as compared to all the monasteries we had visited. I guess the others were tired of monasteries by now but I couldn’t get enough of them as each was different.

Posing in front of the Noravank monastery
Posing in front of the Noravank monastery
The two-storied red monastery of Noravank
The two-storied red monastery of Noravank

That’s how the trip was planned so that we wouldn’t be repeating stuff.
We got back to Yerevan by evening, explored the Cascade area, had dinner at Rehan restaurant and slept. Our flight back to India was the next day. We had finally completed the trip that originated with the Air Arabia vouchers left over from our Uzbekistan adventure!

Read all the Armenia blogs here:

Subscribe to the blog here and share it with your friends.

Europe, Travel Blog

Crossing a land border to Dilijan – the Switzerland of Armenia

Image 2 Comments

It was the second last day of our Georgia trip. We had booked a car for the next day to cross the border from Georgia to Armenia. I got a message from the driver, Iuri, that we would have to modify our plans slightly. 

We were supposed to visit Haghpat monastery on the way to Dilijan. His message was exactly this, “Good evening. I wanted to warn you that the road to the Haghpat church is closed, we will go tomorrow only towards Dilijan. The road was washed away by the rain and the road there is blocked. I don’t know for how long, but I don’t think we can get there”. 

Floods in Armenia

I searched on Google and found that the entire north of Armenia was affected and train services were suspended. The main highway between Georgia and Armenia had been washed away by the floods, the worst they had seen in more than a decade. The entire train system was also blocked. And we had to cross over the next day!

Continue reading Crossing a land border to Dilijan – the Switzerland of Armenia →