Just For Kicks

Deepawali at Perot Systems India

2008-11-04T06:44:00.001-08:00

Deepawali was celebrated with lot of zeal on our floor in Tower II of Perot Systems Noida office on 24th October 2008. The day started with getting flowers mainly rose and marigold were arranged. All associates were given a chance to give their imaginations a flight to come up with their own ideas of decoration. The various teams were formed which actively took endeavor of designing flowered floor arts(called Rangoli in Hindi) with creativity and enthusiasm.

We decided to dress up few of our assoicates as Lord Rama his brother Laxman, his wife Sita and his most favorite devotee Hanuman.This idea came out to be an instant hit.Everybody got real curious of taking their snaps and created an excitement amongst all of us.The slide-show narrates the whole story...

Here goes the video:

Paris Trip - Day Three(1st July,2007)

2007-07-17T07:30:00.001-07:00

The third day in Paris and we set off for Notre Dam,a Roman Catholic cathedral and is the seat of the Archbishop of Paris.Notre Dam's construction began in 1163 during the reign of Louis VII & the foundation stone was laid by Pope Alexander III and this Gothic masterpiece got completed only in 1345.It was Sunday and when we reached here Sunday mass was in progress.The very striking thing over here I found was lack of cleanliness outside of the cathedral,may be because of lot of tourists mobbing in peak of tourist season.

We spent almost an hour in the cathedral.The next destination was Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles which is located 17.1 km west-southwest from the center of Paris.We took an RER from Saint Michel railway station.It took us around 45 minutes to reach Versailles(pronounced as versaii in French).When this palace was built Versailles was a small country village but now it is a suburb of Paris.

Versailles was the unofficial capital city of the kingdom of France from May 1682 (King Louis XIV moves the court and government permanently to Versailles) until September 1715 (death of Louis XIV and regency, with the regent Philippe d'Orléans returning to Paris), and then again from June 1722 (when Louis XV returned to Versailles permanently) to October 1789 (when Louis XVI was forced to move back to Paris by the people of Paris). During the entire period, Paris remained the official capital city of France, and the official royal palace was the Palace of the Louvre, but in practice government affairs were conducted from Versailles, and Versailles was regarded as the real capital city.(Source:wikipedia)

The gardens inside the palace, lakes, statues,there were so many things to explore.My wife and I enjoyed a great day at Versailles exploring all that it had to offer.One definitely needs a full day here to enjoy it to the fullest, and don't forget to pack a picnic lunch filled with your favorite drinks and eatables.

We finally left Versailles in the evening and after reaching Paris, we headed to Champs-Élysées and visited Arc De Tromphie.Champs-Élysées is the second most expensive street,from real estate perspective, in the world and said to be the most beautiful avenues in the world.One will find cinemas,cafés and luxury specialty shops of all leading international brands over here.

On the western side of Champs-Élysées lies Arc De Tromphie.The arch honours those who fought for France, particularly during the Napoleon wars, and today also includes the tomb of unknown soldiers.

We ended our day with a lavish Indian dinner at Pooja, an Indian restaurant at Passage Brady.

Paris Trip - Day Two(30th June,2007)

2007-07-06T05:54:00.001-07:00

The first day in Paris left us completely exhausted and we slept like log with an intention to get up late next day.So another brand new day in Paris and so many places yet to explore.The very first place we visited on day two was Basilica of the Sacré Cœur(Basilica of the Sacred Heart) on the Montmartre hill.It is situated in North of downtown Paris.This immense basilica was built by Paul Abadie in a Roman-Byzantyne style.It is worth the effort of taking stairs to reach at basilica which is quite different from rest of Paris monuments.
While going upstairs we encountered group of people who tried putting a multicolored thread on our wrists while narrating some story.This whole drama was only to demand money from unsuspecting tourists.We were virtually caught by these people but then we rudely ignored them.The best thing to do in such cases is just ignore them,do not look into their eyes and walk straight upwards.While going up the Basilica you pass through a street where a lot of wholesale clothing shops were found.I found whole of this street similar to Lajpat Nagar Market in New Delhi as loads of people were buying and selling cheap stuff with their bargaining skills put to their best.

In Sacré Cœur, time just flew away.The next destination was Palais Garnier which is also known as Opera.It was designed by Charles Garnier for Emperor Napoleon III which is the most important symbol of the 19th century Second Empire baroque style.The construction of the magnificent structure started in 1862 and got completed in 1875.The exterior of this structure was not as impressive as its interior.The interior seemed like "Indra Kee Sabha"(According to Hindu mythology the large gathering of Lord Indra,the king of clouds).The marble grand staircase and long grand foyer features a mosaic covered ceiling and a large number of chandeliers. Behind the Grand Foyer and below the green copper dome, there is lavishly decorated auditorium with red velvet, plaster cherubs and gold leaf.

The next place visited was Musée du Orsay,an ancient railway station turned into museum.It is situated along the Seine opposite the Louvre museum.As there was long queue of people to get inside and we did not have much of time so decided just to leave this place with some snaps clicked from outside.

The final stop of the day was Eiffel,the iconic structure of Paris.As per our plan we had to complete Tour de Eiffel by reaching at the top and wait till the lights go on in the evening to capture the beauty of Eiffel in night.The ascent started after waiting for more than an hour in queues at around 5p.m. and we were at the topmost floor in next 20-25 minutes.The view from third floor was breathtaking,an awesome experience.Paris is not a city of highrises, all you see from top are great and historical structures in different directions.All I can suggest to my readers is - go in the evening - near dusk. Take the first elevator to the second floor. Immediately get in the line for the elevator to the third floor. When you plan to come down,take elevator to Second level and from there you can walk down till the ground level.I can assure you that way you will have best experience of Eiffel tour and walking down will not kill you.The most beautiful view of Eiffel we got when night fell upon this monument and lights were put on at around 10p.m.They have two kinds of lighting to keep this whole structure lit-up,one the normal light which keeps the tower normally lit while second kind of lights gives Eiffel a sparkling effect.I could not make out why they kept those sparkling lights on for few minutes and not for the entire time.

At 11p.m. we took metro back to our hotel from Ecole Militaire station which is not far away from Eiffel.

Paris Trip - Day One(29th June,2007)

2007-07-05T07:58:00.001-07:00

The recent four days trip to Paris was a memorable one.Paris was high on my holiday destinations' list in Europe and eventually I executed my travel plan with panache.It had left indelible mark on my mind for all good and mixed reasons.

Paris is one of the most wonderful cities in Europe with centuries old history and culture.It is the city where Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte ruled in different phases of times.It is situated in the North of France on river Seine.This magnificent city has a nickname 'The City of Light' (La Ville-lumière), a name it owes both to its fame as a centre of education and ideas and its early adoption of street-lighting.

We(me and my wife) took a bus of Eurolines from Frankfurt which left from Hauptbahnhof at 10 p.m. and reached its final stop in east of Paris next morning at around 7 a.m.The bus journey was not so bad but a bit tiring as you did not catch your sleep properly.Our hotel Etap,one of Accor group of hotels,was very close to the bus station so we dumped our luggage in hotel room and straightaway went to Gallieni,the eastern terminus of metro line 3.We bought three days, unlimited use, commuter pass, which is valid in metros,buses,trams and in RER for Zone 3.It is best way to feel the nerve of the city and gives you a lot of freedom to explore the city at your own pace and will.

On day one the very first place we visited was Eiffel tower for obvious reasons.Though the first encounter with Eiffel was not so exciting,and did not appeal to me from any angle.I wondered why so many people across the globe visit this one large electricity-transmission-pole lookalike structure.But then building such a structure way back in 1889-90 as a tribute to hundred years of French Revolution was a big feat and it remained the tallest structure of the world till 1930.Its lattice work of riveted steel beams is highly appreciated over the years.These thoughts had started giving me a reason to feel the grandeur of this structure and more time I spent there, an eerie fascination I had grown with Eiffel.The most striking thing which you find here is lot of fabulously dressed tourists from different parts of the world,some queuing up for going on top of Eiffel,some having romantic walks and some just chilling out in large green space of Champ de Mars.It seems one big gelling pot of different cultures and people from all walks of life. When I started from Frankfurt,it was predicted rains in Paris for next four days and I was a bit sceptical whether rain gods would play spoil sport during my entire stay but thankfully little showers neither in anyway hampered my travel plan nor dampened my enthusiasm to explore Paris to the hilt. We spent around an hour visiting Pont Alexandra III(popularly known as Alexandra Bridge),Palais-Royal and Invalides,which is popular army museum and houses Napoleon's tomb, by bus.We were very tired from overnight journey and decided to come back to hotel room for freshening up and catching some sleep and decided to explore planned areas for the day with fresh mood in the evening.

In the evening the very first place we visited was Museum Louvre,one of the largest museum in the world and is famous for housing painting of Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.In just front of this museum you will find Jardin des Tuileries(Gardens of Tuileries) which was found crowded due to peak of tourist season.We spent the rest of the evening hip hopping in buses to get a feel of the Parisian life.Somehow I found Metros of Paris clumsier and dirtier than Frankfurt.Even catching one metro from a platform to another on the same station required a lot of walk and most of the stations are not supported with escalators and elevators.

Nevertheless,the spirit of the city just takes over you in a mystical way.The architectural grandeur,glamour,culture and rich history are reasons enough for enormous numbers of tourists flocking in throughout the year and with no exception we were also amongst them.

Frankfurt 'Parade der Kulturen 2007'

2007-06-24T11:49:00.000-07:00

The annual Cultural Parade 2007 was organized yesterday in Frankfurt.The inhabitants of this beautiful cosmopolitan city, coming originally from more than hundred countries, participated in it.The parade representing cultural variety started at 12 o'clock from Untermainkai, passing through Willy Brandt Platz,Hauptwache, up to the Kaiserstrasse and taking a round trip and eventually ending at 3p.m. at Untermainkai.

The Frankfurt youth-circle called all groups of cultures,associations and citizens to take part in this parade. Here creativity was highly in demand, multicolored,traditional clothes and tastefully decorated cars and exciting group formations were the elements which constituted the parade course.Both international and native groups of cultures show how varied the spectrum of the cultures in this city is. In grand finale the groups of winners received special prizes and certifications.

It was great timeout from hum drum of life to witness such vivacious and high energy event.

Enjoy these snaps which depict varied culture and fabulous skyline of Frankfurt..

Heidelberg:The Most Romantic City Of Germany

2007-06-11T01:07:00.001-07:00

As enough of exploring and sightseeing of Frankfurt city had already been done, on weekend,June 3rd'07, I went to Heidelberg with my college friends.It was a great weekend spent in one of the most visited and romantic places of Germany(as per records in history of this city) with great touristic value.Heidelberg is situated south of Frankfurt/Main in Baden-Württemberg state.

The main attractions of the city are old city,churches and Heidelberg castle.In different phases of a bright sunny day one gets different moods and shades of this city from the top of the castle.The awesomely beautiful valley surrounding the Neckar river mesmerizes its visitors.

We reached Heidelberg in the afternoon at around 1:30 PM after one and half hours of journey from Frankfurt/Main. After getting down in Heidelberg, we roamed around the old city,Hauptstrasse,visiting famous Heiliggeistkirche,Rathaus,Church of the Jesuits and St.Peter's church.A brief history of Heiliggeistkirche (Holy Ghost Church) says that it was built from 1344 to 1441, its tower completed in 1544. It was the burial place of 55 Prince Electors and hosted the famous Bibliotheca Palatina until 1623.

After visiting main attractions of old city,we took 'Heidelberger Bergbahn' way up to the castle.This majestic red sandstone castle is surrounded by beautiful gardens and is situated 300 feet above the city. The construction was begun around 1300AD during regime of Prince Elector Ruprecht III (1398 - 1410) who had erect the first representative building as a regal residence in the inner courtyard and lasted over 400 years.One gets a beautiful aerial view of old city from the castle.

We stayed up there for around three and then walked down in the evening to the old-city.This time we visited the river banks,the old bridge.

Here goes the list of features of this most romantic places of Germany:

- Heidelberg was the center of the main phase of Romanticism in Germany and inspired generations of poets of romanticism.
- The city of the oldest university(Heidelberg Universität) in Germany (established in 1386) looks back on over 800 years of history.
-Monuments like 'Church of The Holy Spirit'(Heiliggeistkirche),Heidelberg Schloss(Castle) which is surrounded by a park where the famous poet Johann von Goethe once walked.
-The Heidelberger Bergbahn funicular railway runs from Heidelberg's Kornmakt to the summit of the Königstuhl via the castle.
- A center of forward-looking science and research activities, is a quickly growing business location.
- A lively centre of the Rhine Neckar Triangle.
- A City of Science is one of Germany's most important centres of research and development. In addition to the University of Heidelberg, the German Cancer Research Center and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, five institutes of the Max Planck Society are based in Heidelberg. Worldwide enterprises such as ABB, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG and IBM run outstanding research centres in Heidelberg.

Overall a fun filled trip which have left marks of Heidelberg's romanticism,glorious past and its beauty on our minds, forever.

Accommodation in Frankfurt

2007-06-06T01:51:00.000-07:00

Being an expat and moving to Frankfurt for a longer duration(minimum more than six months),then finding an appropriate,reasonably priced,well appointed accommodation was a challenge for me.I just had one preference not a tiny hotel room but a hotel apartment with all basic provisions.I would like to thank one of my college friends, Mayank Agarwal to make my search easy.Mayank has been living and working in Frankfurt for almost two years now.He arranged a Hotel Apartment(a sort of serviced apartment) in Preungesheim,FFM. I have posted some snaps of this apartment in this post, which has area approximately 40 sq meter.

Note:FFM is abbreviated form of Frankfurt am Main

Frauen In Der Kunst[Women In Art]

2007-05-29T14:12:00.001-07:00

A song by Billy Joel about a woman...

She can kill with a smile
She can wound with her eyes
She can ruin your faith with her casual lies
And she only reveals what she wants you to see
She hides like a child
But she's always a woman to me

She can lead you to love
She can take you or leave you
She can ask for the truth
But she'll never believe
And she'll take what you give her, as long as it's free
Yeah, she steals like a thief
But she's always a woman to me

She takes care of herself
She can wait if she wants
She's ahead of her time
And she never gives out
And she never gives in
She just changes her mind

And she'll promise you more
Than the Garden of Eden
Then she'll carelessly cut you
And laugh while you're bleedin'
But she'll bring out the best
And the worst you can be
Blame it all on yourself
Cause she's always a woman to me

She is frequently kind
And she's suddenly cruel
She can do as she pleases
She's nobody's fool
But she can't be convicted
She's earned her degree
And the most she will do
Is throw shadows at you
But she's always a woman to me

But quite contradictory to this song, the following video which captures beauty of women in art, has an altogether different impressions of women to convey.Enjoy...

Mainhattan Skyscraper Festival

2007-05-15T02:23:00.000-07:00

The last weekend(12-13th May,2007) Frankfurt celebrated Skyscraper festival.This is an event which usually occurs once in four to five years.This time too people enjoyed to the hilt.The skyline of this commercial capital of Germany has its varying shades and spectacles in different hours of the day.If you are roaming around the streets of city center in lazy afternoon,the reflection of summer sun in glass facade of these giant buildings gives a beautiful view.When darkness of night falls on them they have altogether a different story to tell, specially marvelous view that one gets from the banks of river Main, is awesome.The dim-lit plantations along the gently flowing river,light shimmering from boats on surface of Main and music played by roadside artiste create a perfect setting.It infact compliments Mainhattan's grandeur.

The two days festival attracted people from all corners of the world.There was lot to offer to people who came to enjoy this event like stage shows, street festivals, hot-air balloon rides and spectacular extreme-sports such as base and bungee jumping.The sky walking gave an opportunity to explore various 'Hochhause' from close quarters and view of the 'Innenstadt' from rooftop is breath-taking.

All high-rises opened their doors and rooftops to invite the world to celebrate the city's magnificent skyline. The beauty of Mainhattan reached its pinnacle in night and magnificent firework in night was mind-blowing.
Enjoy these videos:

Aishwarya and Abhishek Marriage

2007-04-25T04:22:00.000-07:00

The mother of all Indian marriages, Ash-Abhi marriage will be remembered for many reasons,no attendees from Gandhi family,no Khans,no Rani,no Karishma,no Oberois,no media,only charismatic trinity of Anil,Amar,Amitabh and very close friends and relatives.The couple took the plunge on 20th of April,2007, amidst the crème de la crème invitees and the Bachchan and Rai family.The wedding was solemnized at 'Prateeksha' in Vedic traditions after a long spate of preliminaries starting from ancient Kashi Vishwanath and Sankat Mochan temple in Varanasi.It was a highly protected affair from prying eyes of media but in the world of Internet and digital content some stuff do get siphoned, though not in an official way.

Enjoy this slide capturing different shades of Ash-Abhi marriage and post marriage trip to seek belessings of Lord Sri Venkateswara at Tirupati.

Frankfurt Zoo

2007-04-13T07:54:00.000-07:00

A photograph worths thousand words.

Enjoy these snaps from visit to Frankfurt Zoo...

Spring Time In Frankfurt

2007-04-02T03:49:00.001-07:00

It is spring season and Frankfurt has now flowers all around.The temperature is rising a little bit and perfect for flowering.In this slide posted I have tried to capture vivid colors of this beautiful time.I am not a Botanist who can tell you the names of these flowers, but do you really need to know all that to appreciate beauty of Mother Nature.Enjoy this feast to your eyes...

Frankfurt Zoo and Zeil Videos

2007-03-27T07:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some small video clips of Frankfurt Zoo and Zeil(Main Shopping area of FFM).
In bottom-most video clip at Zeil there is a roadside singer with his cute drummer.In rest videos, I tried to capture different colors of Mother Nature that one witnesses in a zoo.

Ich liebe Mainhattan

2007-03-22T06:37:00.000-07:00

Frankfurt is commercial capital of Germany and among the world's foremost finance centres.Most of the leading banking houses are headquartered out of Frankfurt. It is situated on the banks of river Main, a home to largest airport of Europe and busiest train station of Germany.More than 40,000 flights from 110 airlines arrive at and depart from Frankfurt International Airport, or 'Fraport', as it is referred to in trade circles, every week, servicing a total of 290 destinations in 109 countries.

A further 350,000 travellers frequent Frankfurt's main train station every day; more than half of all ICE passengers use Frankfurt as their port of arrival or departure. In 1998, Frankfurt was chosen as headquarters for the European Central Bank (ECB), which takes over from the European Monetary Institute located at Willy Brandt Platz.

Germans call this city as 'Frankfurt am Main'(Frankfurt-on-the-Main) as there is one more city with the same name exists in the German state of Brandenburg, known as Frankfurt(Oder).According to Liverpool University, Frankfurt was the wealthiest city in the European Union in 2001 as measured by GDP per capital.It is also listed as one of nine Alpha world cities.

The center of this city was completely destroyed during the World War II.Saint Paul's church faced worst damage and reconstruction took many years to restore the originality of the structure.The skyline of Frankfurt gives you an impression of some of its twin city in US and sometimes referred as 'Mainhattan'.The tallest skyscrapper is Commerz Bank Tower which is situated 259 mt tall, it was tallest structure of Europe till 2005.

Other major skyscrapers are:

Kronenhochhaus (DZ-Bank) with its "statue of liberty" like roof structure.
MesseTurm — Europe's tallest building (1990–1997)
Maintower, among others "Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen" (HeLaBa)
Silver Tower Trianon (Frankfurt am Main).

The main shopping area of the city is known as 'Zeil' which is very close to Hauptbahnhof(Central Railway Station) and metro stations 'Hauptwache' and 'Konstablerwache' are main access points to this area.The Zeil houses some of the leading super markets of Germany like 'Galleria Kaufhof','Kardstadt' and 'C&A'.You can shop for all leading international brands of various commodities here.

The main attractions of this city are:

In City Center:

Dom

Dom:
It was originally built as a parish church in 1235।All German emperors were coronated here
after 1356, thus conferring cathedral status upon the church। The cathedral was rebuilt several times over the years: after a devastating fire in 1867 and after World War II.The tower contains a masterpiece of the early Renaissance period - a sculpture by Hans Backoffen portraying a scene from the crucifixion।

Römer

Römer(means Roman):
It has been the city hall or Rathaus of Frankfurt am Main for 600 years and the middle-age building is one of the city's most important landmarks।A Roman merchant family sold it to the city council on March 11, 1405 and it was converted for use as the city hall,mainly as a civil registration office।

Justitia(The Roman Goddess of Justice) facing Römer is a personification of legal system across the globe.

Saint Paul's Church

Frankfurter Paulskirche/Saint Paul's Church:
It is an important political symbol of Germany.It was opened as a Protestant church in 1789 and in 1848-1849 it became the Frankfurt Parliament, the first democratically elected body of Germany. In World War II, the church was nearly destroyed along with much of the Frankfurt Innenstadt(inner city).It was rebuilt in Frankfurt after the war, reopened on the 100th anniversary of the Frankfurt Parliament.It is now used as a center for various displays and events. The most well-known is the annual awarding of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade during the Frankfurt Book Fair.

Alte Oper Frankfurt (Old Opera House):
It is a former opera house in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The building was inaugurated in 1880 and was almost completely destroyed by World War II bombing in 1944.
It consists of:

The Grosse Saal (Large Hall) which has seating for an audience of 2,500.
The Mozart-Saal with 700 seats.
Smaller halls used for conventions.

Goethe Haus:
Goethe was born here on August 28 1749, is a fine example of how the well-to-do lived in the late baroque era. In 1733 Goethe's family acquired two neighbouring half-timbered houses in Grossen Hirschgraben. The family sold the property in 1795, by which time Goethe himself had already moved to Weimar. Adjoining Goethe Museum is also worth taking a visit, which is recently renovated and contains both a library and a bookshop.

Frankfurt Zoo:
Zoo was opened in 1858 and home to 4800 animals of 565 species.It is next metro station from Konstablerwache on U6(Underground Direction: Frankfurt (Main) Ostbahnhof ) and U7(Underground Direction: Frankfurt (Main) Enkheim).

More on transport of Frankfurt, click here.

To Heaven And Back

2007-03-16T08:00:00.001-07:00

Switzerland is a dream holiday spot of most of the Indians.One reason which evidently comes to my mind of this choice is Bollywood romantic movies being shot here.Ever since I landed in Germany, my wife was pestering me to plan a visit to Switzerland and ultimately I surrendered to her wishes and visited Switzerland in the month of December,2006.We booked our train tickets on Deutsche Bahn counter,quite unlike me, to get the maximum flexibility in terms of timings and of course pricing.In my opinion, a detailed travel plan is must before going to a holiday.I made an Excel sheet detailing my travel itinerary.I planned three days and two nights stay,too short I know and my wife still complains about it, covering three major locations namely Zurich,Luzern and Jungfraujoch.I made my hotel bookings in advance for two nights stay in Luzern.

Switzerland has been blessed by mother nature with bounty of goodies.The snow capped mountains,lakes,vast green landscape,fascinating dense forests,nice and tourist friendly people,it has it all.

Day One

We reached Zurich at around eight in the morning.As per our itinerary, we had to reach Luzern and start exploring beauty of Switzerland from thereon.We planned to originate all travels from here and spent next two nights in this beautiful city.The train travel from Zurich to Luzern takes fifty minutes flat and let me tell you it is very refreshing in early hours of day to soak in the beauty which you see through window pane of train.It is divine.The public transport system in Switzerland is very punctual,reliable and efficient, so making a handy and detailed itinerary helps in chalking out a meticulous travel plan.My advice is buy a 'Swiss pass' or 'Swiss Saver pass' which is valid for minimum four days through out Switzerland in trams,trains and buses.It also gives rebates on fares of gondola/cable car,cogwheel trains trips and ship/ferry/boat rides across whole of Switzerland.
We checked in the hotel at nine which was not far off from railway station.We had heavy breakfast to have a perfect start for whole day long excursion to Mt. Titlis and Mt. Pilatus Kulm.
Mt. Titlis is situated near Engelberg which is one hour journey by train from Luzern.This glacier paradise at 10,000 feet offers a snow and ice experience on the highest viewpoint in Central Switzerland.It lies in Bernese Alps range. The round trip travel from Engelberg to Mount Titlis in Rotoair,360 degree revolving gondola is one experience to have.There are always chances of getting this trip on top of Mt. Titlis closed because of adverse weather situations, in winters mostly.So one should better call up authorities in Engelberg from Luzern in order to get timely weather information so that you can maximally utilize your time in alternate excursion plans.

Unfortunately we could not make it to the top of Mt Titlis because of bad weather conditions and this dampened our enthusiasm a little bit but then we thought of if we could make it to Mt. Pilatus and without wasting too much of time we left for Luzern.

The next destination was Mt. Pilatus Kulm.We took the aerial route to reach on top of Pilatus from Kriens.(Tavel Tip:You take Low-floor bus, Direction: Obernau, Dorf to reach Kriens, Linde-Pilatus and then walk till Kriens where you can take gondola(cable car) to the Pilatus Kulm ).It was an awesome ride as sun was setting down on Luzern which made whole city seemed to turn into a field of gold.Those images in mind are very difficult to paint with words.We reached at the top in forty minutes.It was too windy at the top and snow capped mountains all around, took all our weariness of the whole day.My wife dared the chilly wind to make a snowman in order to leave some signs of her audacious creativity.We spent around an hour at the top.Frankly speaking, it is practically impossible to visit and enjoy both the mountains in a day.

In the evening we explored Luzern city.The main attractions of the city are Chapel Bridge and WaterTower.Chapel bridge was constructed in first half of the 14th century as a part of the city's fortifications and named after St. Peter's Chapel.WaterTower which is octagonal in shape, a landmark of Luzern and most frequently photographed monument - over 34 meters high (111.5 ft.) - was built in 14th century as part of the city wall.It was used as an archive, treasury, prison and torture chamber. After the whole day of sightseeing and excursion we were dead tired and retired to bed for the next day of exploration.

Day Two
On day two we started for Interlaken around eight in the morning.We had a plan to visit Jungfraujoch(3454m, 11333ft) and back by the end of the day.Jungfrau is a German word which means a 'Young Lady'.'Joch' means 'Yoke' and contextually it means, it is a bond or union of Moench and Jungfrau mountains in Bernese Alps range,in Berner Oberland region of Switzerland.It was snowing all the way from Luzern to Interlaken and we were a bit skeptical whether we would be able to make it to Jungfraujoch which is popularly known as the 'Top Of The Europe'.

When we reached Interlaken, the weather got bad to worse.There was an announcement of cancellation of all trips to Jungfraujoch,originating from Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen.We were disappointed and cursed our bad luck for a while but when we were aboard a train from Interlaken to Grindelwald, another announcement brought the good news of route-opening from Grindelwald to Jungfraujoch.We had to take another train from Grindelwald to Kleine Scheidegg and then to Jungfraujoch.The total journey time is around two and half hours from Interlaken to Jungfraujoch with two changes.The whole journey itself is a once in a lifetime experience.

The Jungfraubahn is meter gauge rack railway electrified at 3-phase 1,125 volts, which runs 9 kilometers from Kleine Scheidegg to the highest railway station in Europe at Jungfraujoch. The railway runs almost entirely within a tunnel built into the Eiger and Moench mountains and contains two stations in the middle of the tunnel, where passengers can disembark to observe the neighboring mountains through windows built into the mountainside.The train tickets are very expensive and you can get good rebate if you are travelling with 'Swiss pass' or 'Swiss Saver pass'.

When reached at Jungfraujoch, there is a small city exists at the top with all facilities.There is a post office,unarguably,highest in Europe,a weather observatory(Sphinx Research Institute which has an indoor viewing platform),theme restaurants(specially Bollyowood restaurant is very popular during summer season).We could not do Husky Dog Sledge ride due to bad weather.It is highly recommended.There is an ice sculptures museum too where you can find good carvings in ice.I would suggest have a meal and, if conditions allow, take a walk on the snow.
At such a high altitude, one does not breathe easily , better you take it easy while walking,try not to walk too fast, and take a rest if you start to feel dizzy. Do take some real good quality warm clothes with you and footwear.

We finally reached Luzern at half past nine in the evening and the only thing we thought of just to go to bed and recharge our batteries for another day in paradise.

Day Three

The last day in Switzerland was spent in Zurich which is rated as the best city in the world to live in.We arrived here around ten in the morning and headed straight to Uetliberg, which is popularly known as 'Top of Zurich'.It is just 20 minutes away from the central railway station of Zurich.You get a very good aerial/panoramic view of the city and the Lake of Zurich.There is a hotel, "Uto Kulm" on this small mountain.We spent almost one and half hours here.

The next we went to Lake Zurich which offers long or short distance boat rides.If you are carrying 'Swiss pass' or 'Swiss Saver pass', it comes free of charge.Zurich Lake was most enjoyable and memorable experience with a joyride on Zurich lake. We spent most of our time here as it was bright and sunny day, reflection and color patterns of sunrays on lake Zurich.

We saw Frau Munster church from outside and had stroll along the Zurich lake passing through Bellevue and Stadt Theater in the evening.

Another attraction of Zurich is China Garden, which is a gift from Zurich's twin city, Kunming, opened in 1994.It is located at the end of the Zurich Horn.But China Garden was also closed as some locals informed us it is opened to the public from March to October.

There are more attractions too in this beautiful city where its inhabitants have a enormous respect and love for nature.They relish their exquisite relationship with mother nature and it could be found the way city has been maintained immaculately.
It also has a Zoo which is recognized as one of Europe’s finest zoos. But it was neither included in our travel plan nor we had the time to pay a visit.
As they say, all good things come to an end so as our holiday and we took CityNightLine back to Bonn with memories for life.

Useful Web Links:

Switzerland Rail Network
Official WebSite of Zurich
Official WebSite Luzern
Official WebSite Interlaken
Official WebSite Jungfraujoch
CityNightLine
Trip Advisor

Living in Bonn

2007-02-22T07:16:00.001-08:00

I arrived in Bonn on September 17th, 2006 from India. It was my home till the end of Januray 2007. The very first thing which impressed me about this city was its visitors-friendly people. I and my wife found an apartment for us in North-West part of the city, known as Tannebusch Mitte.It was a small and cosy apartment with all amenities of life.

Bonn is a beautiful city on river Rhein. It once used to be the capital of West Germany. The first chancellor of West Germany, Konrad Adenauer was a resident of this region (North Rhein Westphalia) and this was probably his will to make Bonn the capital of West Germany post WW II.Bad Godesberg is the region where most of the foreign embassies used to reside.Bonn is said to be the city where Beethovan, a great German musician was born. His home has become a museum where all his music instruments, creations and other belongings are kept. The university in Bonn boasts of Beethovan and Karl Marx as its famous Alumni. Bonn has several museums which encompasse fine arts(painitings,music), sciences(mathematics,biology,chemistry,physics), politics, history as their subjects of interst.

Beethovan Memorial, Zentrum,Bonn

A statute of Beethovan, as a memorial, is installed in Zentrum which is also a commerial hub. It is very close to Hauptbahnhof. The other places to visit near Hauptbahnhof are Poppelsdorfer fort, City Museum, Meunster Basilica,Egyptian Museum and of course Beethovan house. One will find lot of hustle and bustle during weekends in this region as lot of people come here for shopping and relaxing. My favourite food used to be a small pizza like snack with tomatoes, spinach, olives and lot of fresh cheese within it from Beckwerk, a famous bakery in this region.

Munster Basilica,Bonn

The main attraction near Bonn is excursion to Sebengebirge(seven hills).A place called Drachenfels(Rocks of Dragon) is quite popular among tourists.We had been to Drachenfels so many times and it gives the best view of these seven hills.

Aerial View of Siebengebirge

The hiking starts from Koenigswinter and it is around 1.5 Kms stretch upto the top.There is a small train to go up but the real fun is while you cover this distance on foot. A boat cruise in river Rhein is very relaxing and a memorable experience. We took this joyride from Alter Zoll to Koenigswinter and then back in the evening. The whole trip(Alter Zoll to Koenigswinter) lasts for around 45 minutes, covering some landmark buildings of Bonn, like UN House, Deutsche Post, Beethovanhalle. The fairways along the river Rhein are ideal for walking in the evening. You can find people here walking all the time.

I left Bonn in the end of January 2007.Overall we had a pleasant stay in Bonn which will keep enriching our memories forever.

Introducing Just About Anything

2006-03-28T00:33:00.000-08:00

What has intended me to make this space? I think all of us come across so many situations, incidents, people, places, emotions,feelings and blah-blahs...just thought of providing a space to myslef to vent out my views and opinions about anything...