Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Saturday, June 29, 2024
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Agrarian Business
What a perfectly bad time to be alive? A time at which we cannot adjudge the probability of any living being be alive. A time at which we have the most powerful computers which try to churn out weather data, but are unable to do the same to for the last mile of the living beings on earth. We are in the midst of a pandemic. We exactly know where it started. We exactly know how it was spread. We exactly know how the people who had the initial information stay quite and plan for the future to make use of this scenario. We are seeing a different world structure. The "diplomacy" word has become so complicated. The world, is in shambles.
On one side we have the government of a country go and attack the agriculture industry which is the bread and butter of the majority of its residents. Instead of modernizing the agrarian sector, the government is hell bent on bringing corporate to the sector. Am I an economist, am I an agriculturist, am I a diplomat? No, None of these. I am a living being and I require food to be alive. So, yes, I should be interested what is happening in this sector. I should be interested in as much as the issues regarding the shortage of computer chips which has bought many of the industries to a stand still. Do the corporate have the agrarian experience which this big country which once was one of biggest economic power, which induced many emperors to come here and collect back the gold which they had paid for the artistic and the agrarian produce this country has produced.
Our agrarian industry is in shambles. Modernization has not reached this industry. Modernization tried to teach them shortcuts instead of the best practices. Modernization has destroyed the top soil in such a way that no crop can be grown without any chemicals/fertilizers. Modernization has failed to incorporate the experience of our hardworking farmers of yester years. There are only a handful of farmers who are striving by continuing with the practices laid out by their forefathers. There have been instances of educated people from cities going back to their agrarian roots and try to bring back the practices by our farmers from previous generations combining them with modern replacements ensuring that the chemicals used are minimal and every crop taken out is sustainable.
Vast tracts of land have lost the capability to grow anything. These vast expanse of land is waiting for the adjacent cities to grow so that it encapsulates this area. With this, agricultural land becomes residential land. But, until then the farmer can till the land, yes? No. The youngsters in the are are impressed by others going to the city to earn every day money or monthly money which is absent in the agrarian setup which they have been accustomed to. They go and do menial job which does not require any brain processing. If the youngster is at his agricultural land, he has to study the soil, he should study the weather, he should study the market, he should be smart. And then after all this, he wants that daily/monthly money which he knows cannot happen now. But, if he strives it might happen in an year or two. But by that time he would have earned that money now. Why wait for a couple of years. He dont know the disadvantage of working under others. It will be too late for him to recognize the freedom he had if he had continued with his agrarian plans.
The new crop of farmers want their crop to just grow. If there are issues put more fertilizers, more issues, more pesticides. If that dont work, the run towards the cities and do menial jobs. Ethics have been lost on the producer and the consumer. The consumer wants to alienate himself from the hardship of the producer. The producer dont care about the ill effects of his practises until his produce gets sold.
On one side we have one country making the industry fertile for corporations, on the other side, there are countries which have already done this. Even these countries are not left alone. The bigger corporations are ready to take it to the next level. There have been examples of big corporations buying large tracts of agricultural land in the midst of a pandemic. This shows that these bigger ones know something which the present corporations dont know. In the midst of a pandemic a medical speech recognition company is bought for 20 billions USD. A person who dont know the first letter in the medical field, talks about the next pandemic. A philanthropist, through his non profit arm, ensures that the not for profit vaccine is smoothly transitioned to a money making machine.
Combine all this with the lack of interest shown by farmers. You have corporations which will then sell us doctored food. Food grown and altered as per the region and the class it is being sold. Time will come where food also will be assumed to be made like electronic gadgets. People dont know the issues associated with mining the minerals necessary for their gadgets until they have their shiny gadgets every spring. It will be the same for food. The time is not far away, where there will be presentations made about super food v1. We will all eat it. And then in the next presentation we will be told about the problems in the v1 food and we will be told that super food v2 will resolve all the issues v1 created in your body and then some improvements(In fact the issues to be resolved in v3) and so on.
The pandemic on hand is awesome. It is affecting only the 99.99% of the population. The 0.01% is not bothered. They are going about their business while all the business of the 99.99% have tanked. Deaths have become mere numbers. Rules and regulations have been played with like it is childs play. The 99.99% dont know to believe the pandemic or not. The thing is if they believe, they have to stay indoors, which again, they cant. They will not be able to survive for long. If they dont believe, they will be be-littled by the believers and will be blamed for anything happening to the believers. No deaths are being questioned. No deaths have been subjected to further analysis. Even if it is subjected to further analysis by another doctor, what is the guarantee that the other doctor will be doing an ethical job of it. Hospitals are running out of beds. They are running out of oxygen. Let us not talk about ventillators. When the entire government machinery is busy chalking out the strategy to win an election, instead of the pandemic on hand, we know something is wrong the world is being run. Those who are near and dear to any human being only will be able to tell the damage, the pandemic has done. Those who have struggled to breathe will only tell the pain the pandemic has inflicted on an individual.
So, the pandemic originates somewhere and spreads miraculously without anybody's knowledge. In the times of human wanting to go to the moon/Mars, without understanding the planet which they have inhabited for their entire lifetime, is a joke. The human kind is at crossroads. There is talk of universal basic income for every human being on the planet for workers and people who want to just while away their life. If it is all about printing money and sending it to every individual on the planet, it is very easy. However, all these people are to be fed. So, universal income depends on food available in plenty. We want to device methods of farming with minimum amount of water, so that potable water left on the planet can be used for human consumption. All these ideas boil down to one fact.
The "agrarian" industry is the most crucial one for the continued existence of man kind. It has to be kept out of multinationals and be kept as a family run enterprise and should be free for any individual to take up. It should be one industry which does not need any approvals. Water and air also were supposed to be kept out of reach of multinationals. However, we have lost it. The strategy used by multinationals to reach this situation is dangerous. Spoil all the pristine and natural sources of water and air. Now sell the same polluted water and air by commercializing the process of cleaning the damage which they themselves are responsible. The "agrarian" industry is taking the same path. Pollute the soil, pollute the minds of the farmer. The consumer's mind is already spoilt, We can ignore him here. Now, buy off all the land(water and air already owned) and then you have the complete planet under your control. First remove all the ingredients from the food and then add what is required based on the geographical location/caste/creed/class. We are nearly there.
Coming back, the covid tests are a joke. There have been no improvements in the testing procedure. There have been no advancements in the treatments. Everybody is behind the vaccine. Mars missions and moon missions have been planned and executed. I dont feel the world wants to know the problem on hand. It just wants to go about its regular duties as though there is no pandemic. We surely can do away with the Mars/Moon missions. They can wait. They can perfect their mathematics.
What has all this got to do with agriculture? Well, every living being has to eat. Food has to be grown. All the packed food needs the output from a farmer. The time is closer wherein, the super store racks will not have any packaged foods. The raw material for any edible item has to come mother earth. All governments, please leave the agrarian economy as is. Compile the experiences of yester year farmers. Combine it with just enough tech to ensure that the procedure is 100% sustainable. Not any lesser percentage. It can be done. There have been instances wherein individuals incorporating these older procedures have succeeded. Identify them and empower them. Now.
When governments huddle together and discuss how to efficiently increase the capacity of mortuaries so that people who are dead will have a speedy ritual, there is something wrong. In all this where does a farmer stand? Is he important? In fact, is food important? Should we eat to survive? It is high time the government supports innovation in this field. It is high time, the individual farmers start planning. It is high time the young farmers who have understood this concept educate the others than to get highlighted and stay so at the expense of other failures.
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Why are we here
Yes, Why are we here. Why are we born on this planet and why on this planet and only on this planet. Why is this question being asked now. Is this the right time to ask this question and is it the right time. In fact, are we allowed to ask this question. The whole world has been swallowed and united by a pandemic. United is a very big word and that too encompassing the entire world with that is a bit..... We are united only in discussing about it and the devouring news regarding the pandemic. But when it comes to resolving the problem at hand, there has been no unity.
Let us see, what does a restaurateur do in this time of a pandemic. He can serve free food until his capability to do so runs off. Which happens very quickly in this modern world. We dont stock anything except our electronics, which is totally useless and a headache for cleaning. Our forefathers always planned for a bad day, bad year, if possible, out of experience. Dried food which can be store for a long time. Food grains which have long storage life etc were always maintained. Now, it is all, JIT. The concept of cost cutting, the concept of saving time so that the time saved can be spent on our electronic devices. So, did we get our answer for the first question. Are we here to consume and consume only. We are not creating a new earth. We are trying to move to more dirtier and dangerous planet instead of cleaning up and maintain the most inhabitable planet in the known cosmos.
It is all the same everywhere. All Indians dream of going towards the west and the west are always in awe at the philosophical and metaphysical knowledge available for ready digestion if anybody wants to have some. Since we are in the times of a pandemic can the funds for the rocket scientist be transferred to the scientists/doctors working towards the pandemic. Can the same be done for other areas of research. Can we press the pause button for two quarters for all other scientific spending. Will there be an alien attack within this time. Can we stop the petty quarrels related to our fake borders, ethnicity, colors, beliefs, gods, ........, nationalism, jingoism, religion, economic models, rich, poor.... OMG,I cant further go on. I am tired. What a waste of knowledge. What a waste of brains capability, listening to all these things and arguments about all sides. The thing is some people are expendable. Now, who are expendable is situational and many other variables which is beyond the capability of my brain. Is any living being expendable. Really, a living being is expendable. The statements and statistics that this many will die. I have to agree that the statisticians are definitely doing their job. Who gave the right and power to allow the people making such statements by arranging press meets and spending money for such events.
All human feelings have become situational. Everybody is made to believe that the pandemic will not affect him. Whoever is affected is brought to the side and told that your are affected. Now, who is responsible for this. Human apathy towards fellow humans is the reason. Everybody is fighting the pandemic in their own way. There has never been a unified approach. There has never been all hands on the deck approach. If that approach had been there, we would be out of this scenario by now. Fake sanitizers, Fake masks....... Where is humanity going towards. Is/was there anything called humanity. Does humanity mean every human has equal rights for everything in this world. Humanity also means that we should be considerate to all other human beings. But, if the meaning of that word does not apply to fellow humans, then I think the word is just a catchphrase for a company. Whoever is affected by the pandemic is fighting a lone battle and who has not come into the contact of the virus is feeling that he will not be affected. This is being maintained by all the governments and corporations across the world.
This pandemic is not something which humanity can defeat. It requires all hands on the deck approach regarding human efforts and all the resources required for resolving this issue. Can Human race unite and join together in bringing health to the entire world. Was the world before the pandemic a better one. Will the world after the virus is defeated be a better one. We can make the world better by imbibing the real meaning of humanity into minds/hearts of all the humans on this planet. Isnt that why we are here. To survive and strive. Let us.............
Let us see, what does a restaurateur do in this time of a pandemic. He can serve free food until his capability to do so runs off. Which happens very quickly in this modern world. We dont stock anything except our electronics, which is totally useless and a headache for cleaning. Our forefathers always planned for a bad day, bad year, if possible, out of experience. Dried food which can be store for a long time. Food grains which have long storage life etc were always maintained. Now, it is all, JIT. The concept of cost cutting, the concept of saving time so that the time saved can be spent on our electronic devices. So, did we get our answer for the first question. Are we here to consume and consume only. We are not creating a new earth. We are trying to move to more dirtier and dangerous planet instead of cleaning up and maintain the most inhabitable planet in the known cosmos.
It is all the same everywhere. All Indians dream of going towards the west and the west are always in awe at the philosophical and metaphysical knowledge available for ready digestion if anybody wants to have some. Since we are in the times of a pandemic can the funds for the rocket scientist be transferred to the scientists/doctors working towards the pandemic. Can the same be done for other areas of research. Can we press the pause button for two quarters for all other scientific spending. Will there be an alien attack within this time. Can we stop the petty quarrels related to our fake borders, ethnicity, colors, beliefs, gods, ........, nationalism, jingoism, religion, economic models, rich, poor.... OMG,I cant further go on. I am tired. What a waste of knowledge. What a waste of brains capability, listening to all these things and arguments about all sides. The thing is some people are expendable. Now, who are expendable is situational and many other variables which is beyond the capability of my brain. Is any living being expendable. Really, a living being is expendable. The statements and statistics that this many will die. I have to agree that the statisticians are definitely doing their job. Who gave the right and power to allow the people making such statements by arranging press meets and spending money for such events.
All human feelings have become situational. Everybody is made to believe that the pandemic will not affect him. Whoever is affected is brought to the side and told that your are affected. Now, who is responsible for this. Human apathy towards fellow humans is the reason. Everybody is fighting the pandemic in their own way. There has never been a unified approach. There has never been all hands on the deck approach. If that approach had been there, we would be out of this scenario by now. Fake sanitizers, Fake masks....... Where is humanity going towards. Is/was there anything called humanity. Does humanity mean every human has equal rights for everything in this world. Humanity also means that we should be considerate to all other human beings. But, if the meaning of that word does not apply to fellow humans, then I think the word is just a catchphrase for a company. Whoever is affected by the pandemic is fighting a lone battle and who has not come into the contact of the virus is feeling that he will not be affected. This is being maintained by all the governments and corporations across the world.
This pandemic is not something which humanity can defeat. It requires all hands on the deck approach regarding human efforts and all the resources required for resolving this issue. Can Human race unite and join together in bringing health to the entire world. Was the world before the pandemic a better one. Will the world after the virus is defeated be a better one. We can make the world better by imbibing the real meaning of humanity into minds/hearts of all the humans on this planet. Isnt that why we are here. To survive and strive. Let us.............
Thursday, April 14, 2016
My first trip towards the North of India, Maharashtra on a Mahindra Scorpio SLE
Disclaimer: This blog does not encourage you to take long distance trips nor asks you to speed up your vehicle beyond the stipulated mark as and when mentioned on the highways. Drive responsibly. Slow down as you reach villages.
Left home exactly at 4.30 am. Road to davanagere are good. Tolls all the way. Reached Guru kotureshwara hotel, davanagere (14.453710, 75.915252), at 8.30. Turns out that is the perfect time for breakfast. The place is too modest. Just the size of a small room. Ur order is limited to set dosa or benne dosa. We opted for the benne dosa. Had to wait approximately 20 minutes. All this while I was just watching with awe the chef was continually going through the motion of belting out 10 dosas at a time with such perfect timing and finesse. He exactly knew when the dosas were fried just right. The aroma is unbelievable. The hotel is truly Japanese ideology. It just doles out what it can do best. The first bite presents my tongue with a medley of salt, chilly, pepper, mixed in the preparation of the batter itself. and all these harsh flavors moderated by oodles of butter. U also get a handful of potato mash and coconut chutney. But, believe me, u can have the dosa as is or with any other side dish u want and it will taste the same. We ordered two dosas per person in the beginning itself and that was an excellent decision.As a side note, we returned to this hotel again during our return journey at around 1.00 PM in the afternoon and the activities in the hotel are the same. They are outstaffed and out of space. Had to wait a good 15 minutes before my order was taken.
It was the time to hit the road again towards kolhapur. The stop at kolhapur was only for having kolhapur mutton. Again excellent tolled roads all the way and reached hotel opal, kolhapur, (16.703068, 74.250572) at around 1.30 pm. Parking is available. The layout of the hotel was very confusing and sonny rightly called it bhul bhulayya. The rooms were spacious. Toilets were clean. Ac working. With another small bed. By the side of the double bed. Just right for a couple with a kid. The restaurant serves all Maharashtrian delicacies. Had a Maharashtrian thaali which had all the regular food u can find to be specifically Maharashtrian. If u had Hyderabad dishes u will be at home with all the spicy nature of kolhapuri food.
Did not want do go out much. Sonny pressed us to visit the mall just next door. Went there and did the unthinkable. Watched a Telugu movie. Woke up in the morning and headed towards the restaurant for breakfast. The assortment was truly Maharashtrian. We had misal pav, upma, poha, sweet curd. The misal was a revelation. The taste and the ingredients going in r unique. A mixture of healthy and sinful ingredients. U have bhujia on the one band with varying thickness and shapes which is to be drowned in a spicy, oily curry of sprouts. The combination is a spicy and very tasty did efor use with any Indian bread, but normally used with pav. The poha is nice, mildly fried and spicy. In the South the poha ingredient is used to make a variety of kheer. Was thinking of visiting phadtares misal kendra, udyam nagar, (16.694454, 74.233168), but decided against it after having it in the restaurant itself. Checked out of the hotel and drove towards Mahalaxmi temple, kolhapur, (16.660884, 74.211154). Be very careful while visiting this place. It is somewhat hidden in the centre of the city. Google maps was totally confused. Ask the locals. And be careful there are a lot of mahalaxmi temples around kolhapur. The next stop was rankala lake, kolhapur, 16.693724, 74.209255. It is a big lake and I did not see any boating activity. Maybe it happens in the evening.
Time to hit the road again. Headed towards hotel panorama, mahabaleswar, (17.924890, 73.656868). This decision was solely based on the availability of swimming pool, nearness to market, parking and ac rooms. Not disappointed. It had all our requirements. It was located right in the heart of the market area. Had lunch at the hotel and it was ordinary. U receive a food coupon on arrival and u have no option but to use them. At checkout i was told that there is a balance in my food coupons and was advised to take a parcel. Decided to take a sandwich. One issue, the room was not serviced, though we gave the keys to the reception and instructed them to do so.
The market area was unique. It displayed nothing else than whatever was grown or fabricated in house. It rarely had the usual fare. Had a mixed fruit ice gola. Mahabaleswar is red, red with strawberry plantations. If u like strawberries, then, there is no better place than here. Everything is strawberry. Juice, ice cream, fudge, chikkie, u name it. Sone juice making companies are housed here. Maple is one among them. The maple restaurant is huge. Pizzas sandwiches, juices, mock tails, ice creams, sinful. U have a plethora of fruit concentrates, bottled pulp and plenty of ready to drink mock tails. Bought pina colada and a mojito. Sonny bought a chocolate drink, The better half bought a rose based drink. Visited venna lake boat club, mahabaleshwar, (17.934275, 73.668901) row and pedal boats r available.
For lunch we headed towards panchgani, (17.923644, 73.798307), another hill station approx 18 kms. Hidden here unknown to the lesser mortals is jafer bhai's Delhi darbar (17.921530, 73.796844), Do not miss this place, if u r not a delhite. Ordered a chicken starter and two mutton biryani. The ambience is nice with a bit of parking available. The starter was spicy, juicy, creamy and fresh. They just called it darbar special. Next was the biryani. If u r two, start with just one biryani otherwise u will struggle plenty to finish ur meal. Enough about qty, let us talk about quality. The biryani is aromatic, just spicy enough with a medley of colors and flavors. The mutton juicy, tender, spices spread throughout the core, indication of good marination and nice dum style cooking. A good biryani doesn't require anything to support it except itself. This was proved once again here. Here u r served only the biryani, no curds nor any other curry. other masala. It was not required. Excellent fare. This space is a haven for meat lovers. I just enjoyed every byte of food at this place
Next destination was shirdi. The route took us through the most gruelling drive. Pune is a concrete jungle in the most realistic sense. The traffic drove me mad. Approx 100 kms of hateful driving. My beast was huffing at the traffic. It did not hide its dislike for the traffic.
Reached mtdc shirdi, aka, travellers inn, around 3.30 pm. It is just at a distance of 100 metres from the temple. The moment u near the temple there will be touts and they will virtually catch u by ur hand and take u to their shop and give u all the required pooja things and charge u starting from INR 450/-. But there is really no need except u know what u r doing. Back to the hotel, had a coffee. It was good. For dinner we decided to have it in the in-house restaurant. Food was also good. Had a masala soda just to wash things down, just in front of the hotel, was good
Checked out around 9.00. Drove to etrange resort, 8 kms from ellora. Came to know that very day that ellora caves are closed on Tuesdays(Ajanta caves are closed on monday). Also came to know on that day, ajanta caves are 112 kms from our resort. No option but to visit ajanta. And in all the reviews, ajanta gets more brownie points. Got out the beast and headed towards ajanta caves. The road is good for 80 percent of the distance. The other 20% is nerve rattling. Reached around 1.30 pm. The last 4 kms are to be covered only by mtdc buses which are available every 10 minutes in both AC and non AC versions. There r three ways to climb the hills.
1. Crossing the bridge available, it will take u directly to cave no 9.
2. Climb the steps, the hardest and the best way. It will take u to cave no 1 and will in reality take u from 200 BC to the next 800 years.
3. If u can't walk then there are people to carry u in a palki like chair
Don't use cameras with flash, it is supposed to affect the paintings. Drinking water is available along the entire distance of the caves. Chilled water is available somewhere around the 9th cave. Do not forget to take guide. If u don't take a guide then, don't visit the place. U will not be able to appreciate the art, history, evolution of techniques, phasing out of ideas and ideals. There is an mtdc restaurant at the hills, for info. The best time to visit is the monsoons. It will be more picturesque and cool. If u head out in the summers wear chappals and carry an umbrella. Of course a water bottle.
Came back to the resort, had food. Half handi of mutton masala, semi gravy and chapattis. Both were prepared well. Nothing out of the ordinary. The chef, seeing, us south Indians had just made the mutton fiery enough. He admitted that he did not want to take any risk. The last course was kheer without dry fruits and it did taste good. Swimming pool was not clean, disappointing day for sonny.
The resort is good. It has a conference hall which can be converted to a dancing hall with a computer ready to accommodate a DJ. A swimming pool. Made to order dishes, a further free area after the swimming pool for other games. Negatives, don't go in summer, guests r minimal. It is a very solitary place. All the facilities might not be as u thought it would be. No WiFi. No shops nearby.
There was one big issue from stayzilla, through which I booked the resort, they booked a double AC room and then three days later, I get a call telling me though I booked an ac room, the amount I paid was only sufficient for a normal room. So if u book through stayzilla, confirm with them about the room and all the amenities. I also received a link to provide feedback, but it takes me to the homepage, so......
Had a veg sandwich in the morning and left for ellora caves. Reached at 9.00 AM and then came to know it is open from morning 6.00 AM to evening 6.00 PM. Biggest mistake of the day. Again beware of touts and head towards mtdci nformation centre. It is a huge campus with facility for an expansive vehicle parking. From thee again, mtdc/msrtc operates buses to the ellora caves. Just remember the caves are spread across a distance of 4 kms. If u buy a ticket here u can catch any bus moving within the ellora campus and move around between the caves. U r totally lost without a guide. Not much paintings to see here. They r damaged. But the carvings r more pronounced here.
My 2 cents tip when u go to any place if art is
1. Look closely at the face. Lot of feelings will be expressed here. The intent of the art piece is evident from the face.
2. The other portions of the body will reinforce this feel.
3. Keep the religion, race, creed, language, color for later. The artist talks to u irrespective of all these.
4. Majority of the carvings and paintings are serial and follow a certain progression. The progression is visible in the quality also, a result of learning.
Its time to go home. The route taken, hotels chosen have been affected by this blog post on team-bhp. I am stressing this here because, I wanted to skip pune altogether in my return journey. The route to be taken to do so was taken from this blog. Couldn't return home on the same day. Rented a budget hotel at kolhapur and called it a day. I don't like driving in the night when surroundings and people r not visible and I cannot taste the local food, the local fruit.
Honorable mention regarding food. On my return journey I tasted a twist of the venerable dum biryani. With the regular masala, this had fried corn chips, deep fried onions, lots of cloves and plenty of pepper. The concoction was tasty and crispy. The mutton definitely was beautifully dum cooked. There was only one chicken item, fried chicken. No twist here, but tasty. I don't remember the hotel name. Who cares. U might find a different twist in some other place. For a foodie, is there any limit......
Everything about any trip starts with and ends with the "drive". There is a catch 22 here. Whether the destination or the path to the destination, which is more important or which comes first. Without path you don't reach the destination and without a destination you cannot formulate a path. It is "very" difficult to single out which was more beautiful, the journey or the destinations. My jumbo did a 140 Kmph as effortlessly as it did 160 Kmph. I have a suggestion for the RTO of India. The driving license for a two wheeler should be given only and only if the driver passes the test given for cars also. These two wheeler drivers spoil the entire fun of a "drive" in a car. They should be shown "this" fun of driving a car and then they will know how not to destroy the journey for all the car drivers.
Almost throughout the journey the roads were good owing to the pune highway. With fuel guzzlers, it is always better to fill up when the fuel gage reads half way.
Left home exactly at 4.30 am. Road to davanagere are good. Tolls all the way. Reached Guru kotureshwara hotel, davanagere (14.453710, 75.915252), at 8.30. Turns out that is the perfect time for breakfast. The place is too modest. Just the size of a small room. Ur order is limited to set dosa or benne dosa. We opted for the benne dosa. Had to wait approximately 20 minutes. All this while I was just watching with awe the chef was continually going through the motion of belting out 10 dosas at a time with such perfect timing and finesse. He exactly knew when the dosas were fried just right. The aroma is unbelievable. The hotel is truly Japanese ideology. It just doles out what it can do best. The first bite presents my tongue with a medley of salt, chilly, pepper, mixed in the preparation of the batter itself. and all these harsh flavors moderated by oodles of butter. U also get a handful of potato mash and coconut chutney. But, believe me, u can have the dosa as is or with any other side dish u want and it will taste the same. We ordered two dosas per person in the beginning itself and that was an excellent decision.As a side note, we returned to this hotel again during our return journey at around 1.00 PM in the afternoon and the activities in the hotel are the same. They are outstaffed and out of space. Had to wait a good 15 minutes before my order was taken.
It was the time to hit the road again towards kolhapur. The stop at kolhapur was only for having kolhapur mutton. Again excellent tolled roads all the way and reached hotel opal, kolhapur, (16.703068, 74.250572) at around 1.30 pm. Parking is available. The layout of the hotel was very confusing and sonny rightly called it bhul bhulayya. The rooms were spacious. Toilets were clean. Ac working. With another small bed. By the side of the double bed. Just right for a couple with a kid. The restaurant serves all Maharashtrian delicacies. Had a Maharashtrian thaali which had all the regular food u can find to be specifically Maharashtrian. If u had Hyderabad dishes u will be at home with all the spicy nature of kolhapuri food.
Did not want do go out much. Sonny pressed us to visit the mall just next door. Went there and did the unthinkable. Watched a Telugu movie. Woke up in the morning and headed towards the restaurant for breakfast. The assortment was truly Maharashtrian. We had misal pav, upma, poha, sweet curd. The misal was a revelation. The taste and the ingredients going in r unique. A mixture of healthy and sinful ingredients. U have bhujia on the one band with varying thickness and shapes which is to be drowned in a spicy, oily curry of sprouts. The combination is a spicy and very tasty did efor use with any Indian bread, but normally used with pav. The poha is nice, mildly fried and spicy. In the South the poha ingredient is used to make a variety of kheer. Was thinking of visiting phadtares misal kendra, udyam nagar, (16.694454, 74.233168), but decided against it after having it in the restaurant itself. Checked out of the hotel and drove towards Mahalaxmi temple, kolhapur, (16.660884, 74.211154). Be very careful while visiting this place. It is somewhat hidden in the centre of the city. Google maps was totally confused. Ask the locals. And be careful there are a lot of mahalaxmi temples around kolhapur. The next stop was rankala lake, kolhapur, 16.693724, 74.209255. It is a big lake and I did not see any boating activity. Maybe it happens in the evening.
Time to hit the road again. Headed towards hotel panorama, mahabaleswar, (17.924890, 73.656868). This decision was solely based on the availability of swimming pool, nearness to market, parking and ac rooms. Not disappointed. It had all our requirements. It was located right in the heart of the market area. Had lunch at the hotel and it was ordinary. U receive a food coupon on arrival and u have no option but to use them. At checkout i was told that there is a balance in my food coupons and was advised to take a parcel. Decided to take a sandwich. One issue, the room was not serviced, though we gave the keys to the reception and instructed them to do so.
The market area was unique. It displayed nothing else than whatever was grown or fabricated in house. It rarely had the usual fare. Had a mixed fruit ice gola. Mahabaleswar is red, red with strawberry plantations. If u like strawberries, then, there is no better place than here. Everything is strawberry. Juice, ice cream, fudge, chikkie, u name it. Sone juice making companies are housed here. Maple is one among them. The maple restaurant is huge. Pizzas sandwiches, juices, mock tails, ice creams, sinful. U have a plethora of fruit concentrates, bottled pulp and plenty of ready to drink mock tails. Bought pina colada and a mojito. Sonny bought a chocolate drink, The better half bought a rose based drink. Visited venna lake boat club, mahabaleshwar, (17.934275, 73.668901) row and pedal boats r available.
For lunch we headed towards panchgani, (17.923644, 73.798307), another hill station approx 18 kms. Hidden here unknown to the lesser mortals is jafer bhai's Delhi darbar (17.921530, 73.796844), Do not miss this place, if u r not a delhite. Ordered a chicken starter and two mutton biryani. The ambience is nice with a bit of parking available. The starter was spicy, juicy, creamy and fresh. They just called it darbar special. Next was the biryani. If u r two, start with just one biryani otherwise u will struggle plenty to finish ur meal. Enough about qty, let us talk about quality. The biryani is aromatic, just spicy enough with a medley of colors and flavors. The mutton juicy, tender, spices spread throughout the core, indication of good marination and nice dum style cooking. A good biryani doesn't require anything to support it except itself. This was proved once again here. Here u r served only the biryani, no curds nor any other curry. other masala. It was not required. Excellent fare. This space is a haven for meat lovers. I just enjoyed every byte of food at this place
Next destination was shirdi. The route took us through the most gruelling drive. Pune is a concrete jungle in the most realistic sense. The traffic drove me mad. Approx 100 kms of hateful driving. My beast was huffing at the traffic. It did not hide its dislike for the traffic.
Reached mtdc shirdi, aka, travellers inn, around 3.30 pm. It is just at a distance of 100 metres from the temple. The moment u near the temple there will be touts and they will virtually catch u by ur hand and take u to their shop and give u all the required pooja things and charge u starting from INR 450/-. But there is really no need except u know what u r doing. Back to the hotel, had a coffee. It was good. For dinner we decided to have it in the in-house restaurant. Food was also good. Had a masala soda just to wash things down, just in front of the hotel, was good
Checked out around 9.00. Drove to etrange resort, 8 kms from ellora. Came to know that very day that ellora caves are closed on Tuesdays(Ajanta caves are closed on monday). Also came to know on that day, ajanta caves are 112 kms from our resort. No option but to visit ajanta. And in all the reviews, ajanta gets more brownie points. Got out the beast and headed towards ajanta caves. The road is good for 80 percent of the distance. The other 20% is nerve rattling. Reached around 1.30 pm. The last 4 kms are to be covered only by mtdc buses which are available every 10 minutes in both AC and non AC versions. There r three ways to climb the hills.
1. Crossing the bridge available, it will take u directly to cave no 9.
2. Climb the steps, the hardest and the best way. It will take u to cave no 1 and will in reality take u from 200 BC to the next 800 years.
3. If u can't walk then there are people to carry u in a palki like chair
Don't use cameras with flash, it is supposed to affect the paintings. Drinking water is available along the entire distance of the caves. Chilled water is available somewhere around the 9th cave. Do not forget to take guide. If u don't take a guide then, don't visit the place. U will not be able to appreciate the art, history, evolution of techniques, phasing out of ideas and ideals. There is an mtdc restaurant at the hills, for info. The best time to visit is the monsoons. It will be more picturesque and cool. If u head out in the summers wear chappals and carry an umbrella. Of course a water bottle.
Came back to the resort, had food. Half handi of mutton masala, semi gravy and chapattis. Both were prepared well. Nothing out of the ordinary. The chef, seeing, us south Indians had just made the mutton fiery enough. He admitted that he did not want to take any risk. The last course was kheer without dry fruits and it did taste good. Swimming pool was not clean, disappointing day for sonny.
The resort is good. It has a conference hall which can be converted to a dancing hall with a computer ready to accommodate a DJ. A swimming pool. Made to order dishes, a further free area after the swimming pool for other games. Negatives, don't go in summer, guests r minimal. It is a very solitary place. All the facilities might not be as u thought it would be. No WiFi. No shops nearby.
There was one big issue from stayzilla, through which I booked the resort, they booked a double AC room and then three days later, I get a call telling me though I booked an ac room, the amount I paid was only sufficient for a normal room. So if u book through stayzilla, confirm with them about the room and all the amenities. I also received a link to provide feedback, but it takes me to the homepage, so......
Had a veg sandwich in the morning and left for ellora caves. Reached at 9.00 AM and then came to know it is open from morning 6.00 AM to evening 6.00 PM. Biggest mistake of the day. Again beware of touts and head towards mtdci nformation centre. It is a huge campus with facility for an expansive vehicle parking. From thee again, mtdc/msrtc operates buses to the ellora caves. Just remember the caves are spread across a distance of 4 kms. If u buy a ticket here u can catch any bus moving within the ellora campus and move around between the caves. U r totally lost without a guide. Not much paintings to see here. They r damaged. But the carvings r more pronounced here.
My 2 cents tip when u go to any place if art is
1. Look closely at the face. Lot of feelings will be expressed here. The intent of the art piece is evident from the face.
2. The other portions of the body will reinforce this feel.
3. Keep the religion, race, creed, language, color for later. The artist talks to u irrespective of all these.
4. Majority of the carvings and paintings are serial and follow a certain progression. The progression is visible in the quality also, a result of learning.
Its time to go home. The route taken, hotels chosen have been affected by this blog post on team-bhp. I am stressing this here because, I wanted to skip pune altogether in my return journey. The route to be taken to do so was taken from this blog. Couldn't return home on the same day. Rented a budget hotel at kolhapur and called it a day. I don't like driving in the night when surroundings and people r not visible and I cannot taste the local food, the local fruit.
Honorable mention regarding food. On my return journey I tasted a twist of the venerable dum biryani. With the regular masala, this had fried corn chips, deep fried onions, lots of cloves and plenty of pepper. The concoction was tasty and crispy. The mutton definitely was beautifully dum cooked. There was only one chicken item, fried chicken. No twist here, but tasty. I don't remember the hotel name. Who cares. U might find a different twist in some other place. For a foodie, is there any limit......
Everything about any trip starts with and ends with the "drive". There is a catch 22 here. Whether the destination or the path to the destination, which is more important or which comes first. Without path you don't reach the destination and without a destination you cannot formulate a path. It is "very" difficult to single out which was more beautiful, the journey or the destinations. My jumbo did a 140 Kmph as effortlessly as it did 160 Kmph. I have a suggestion for the RTO of India. The driving license for a two wheeler should be given only and only if the driver passes the test given for cars also. These two wheeler drivers spoil the entire fun of a "drive" in a car. They should be shown "this" fun of driving a car and then they will know how not to destroy the journey for all the car drivers.
Almost throughout the journey the roads were good owing to the pune highway. With fuel guzzlers, it is always better to fill up when the fuel gage reads half way.
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