By: J. M. Bhandary, USA
Tiananmen Square is one of the largest outdoor plazas in the world that can hold millions of people. At one end of the plaza is

 By: Ganesh Nayak
My navigator device said “you have reached your destination”. Called up my wife, mom and couple of friends and shared my joy of being on top

 By: Giridhara P Mallya
St Petersburg in Russia is a historic city with over 300 years history. The city was founded by one of the greatest emperors in Russian history

 By: Oneal Hector D'Cunha, Abu Dhabi
Cheers is a synonym for success, celebration and achievement. With a population of 1.3 billion, a GDP of 6 trillion, the country that scooped over 100 medals in the last Olympics, an enduring ancient

 By: Nelson Lewis, Bahrain
Since the last one year, I had toyed with the idea of touring Sri Lanka, having heard about its beauty. I talked to four persons who had visited Sri Lanka: two of them told me that everything is cheap and affordable, but the other two told me to be wary as things are costly there. I did not know whom to believe then. The first person had taken advantage of the Air Lanka's package tour, where the airlines, takes care of their guests’ comforts, i.e. accommodation in a five star hotel, transportation, sightseeing, food, etc. The second one is an airline employee

 By: Sucheta Pai, Shimoga
Highway and take a detour to the little village of Adalaj. The architectural marvel resembles a subterranean temple dedicated to the beauty and mystery of natural water. Water-the elixir of life-has sustained mankind from time immemorial. Access to water has determined the development of various civilizations. Myths and legends flowed from the fertile imagination of a people who deified water as the mother goddess-Ganga

 By: Rajanikanth Shenoy, Kudpi
A visit to the Kashmir valley is incomplete without a stay in a House Boat and shopping for dry fruits, fresh Apples and Kashmiri Handicrafts. During our Eight day stay in the Valley, we spent four nights and Five days in a super deluxe house boat “Kashmir Treat” owned by Ghulam Qadir Goosani and managed by him and his son Mustafa.

 By: Rajanikanth Shenoy, Kudpi
Kashmir’s grandeur is enhanced by the pristine beauty of the hills, glaciers and meadows. One could find umpteen choices according to one’s fancy following the budget but the main places highlighted are always marked in travel guides and blogs. As per our tour itinerary, we decided to visit Sonamarg at a distance of 84Kms, connected by well motorable Srinagar Leh Highway NH 1D that passes parallel to Sindh River. Sonamarg is the Northern Gateway for Amarnath Yatra via Baltal before Kargil.

 By: Cdr GP Mallya(Retd), South Korea
Water has always fascinated mankind. Most of the civilizations have been built on the river banks since water which is one of the most essential ingredients for human life, is available in plenty. No wonder that the water falling off from a height has been even more fascinating for us and such waterfalls have mesmerized the visitors due to their sheer beauty, elegance and feel of power. Our own Jog falls and Shinvanasamudra falls are a huge

 By: Rajanikanth Shenoy, Kudpi
The reminiscence of my visit to Kashmir Valley in the late Eighties haunted me always and called me in my dreams to revisit and explore the valley better. My wife Meena who was deprived of the chance to visit Kashmir later, always used to tell me that life is peaceful there and we must plan a holiday sometime. This has been her regular mantra since the late Nineties when tourists started going there including foreigners.

 By: Oneal Hector D'Cunha, Abu Dhabi
Summer was round the corner and we were unable make up our mind to visit anywhere. Finally with very little time to plan we decided to travel to a country that would give us a visa on arrival (too little time to apply for one), ideally a 4-5 hour flight radius (as it was to be a short break of 4-5 days), nature abound (a contrast to Gulf environment), value for money (thanks to recession) and last but not the least in-depth (culturally and historically). Therefore with so many parameters naturally it had to be Nepal

 By: Sucheta Pai, Shimoga
We were looking for a hiatus in the dreary intercourse of daily life. The sultry days of May provided no respite from the heat. Like the sun-baked earth, we yearned for cool showers. Kashmir beckoned us with its infinite charms. With the passing of sheshur, the season of sonth had awakened the valley from its hibernation. The sweet-scented yamberzal or the narcissus had already heralded the arrival of spring. The white and pink

 By: Obla Vishvesh, Albany
In my life in North America, I have found that I have often stumbled upon some of the finest displays of Mother Nature. Quite a few of them which I have visited with eager expectations have proved to be unfit of the hype because of the typical 'tourist' attractions that were hardly out of the ordinary. There have also been quite a few where the drive was far more attractive than the destination!

 By: Nagaraj Shetty, UAE
Al Ain which is also known as the ‘Oasis’ or ‘Garden city’ of the Emirates, has recently found its way into the Guinness Book of World Records by displaying hanging baskets with millions of flowers, in the shape of a huge pyramid at Al Ain Paradise.

 By: Rajat R., Mangalore
Can you believe Mangalore has piece of Africa? It is beautiful, unexplored by tourists and lonely. Yes it is Gatti Kudru about 5 kilometers from Padil-NH 48 intersection. You have to arrive there by boat after crossing a short walk on the fields crossing villages and picturesque countryside of Padil. Those who are good two wheeler riders can reach to the point where the waiting

 By: Nelson Lewis, Bahrain
I proceeded on leave by the 03rd February evening flight, arriving home at dawn the next day. 05th February was my birthday and was celebrated with my family. As I am not a party bird, the occasion was a low key affair without any fanfare. Nevertheless, it was thoughtful of my children to present me useful gifts, which I hope will bring back fond memories as years pass by. Mind you, this day was also the birthday of a Bollywood film star.

 By: J. M. Bhandary, USA
Land of poets and authors, philosophers and inventors, legendary castles and mighty heroes, home of golf, world's finest whisky distillers – yes, it is Scotland. And even more, dramatic landscapes of mountains, lochs, glens, isles, it is a photographer's paradise. When we got a convenient time, during last autumn ( September/ October 2010), we (my wife and I) packed our bags and headed to this northern land in Great Britain. Scotland at its northern most isles is close to Norway

 By: Dony Lobo, Qatar
Though born on 7th April 1506 at Xavier Castle, Navarre, Spain in an aristocratic family, Francis Xavier was one of the first persons to respond to the call of St. Ignatious of Loyola the founder of the Society of Jesus and become a Jesuit missionary. He travelled to India, landed at Goa on 6th May 1542 and then traveled to the Far East even up to Japan spreading the Good Word where he faced stiff resistance from preachers

 By: Kedar Uttam, Sweden
A couple of days before Christmas, I was making my plans to arrange a short trip to Mangalore for a best friend’s wedding. It was rather difficult to make a plan since the time was too short to buy tickets for good prices. Apart from the reason of hating to miss my best friend’s wedding, there were few more reasons to visit Mangalore. Especially that it has been long since I enjoyed the Mangalorean December and the Mangalorean

 By: Oneal Hector D'Cunha, Abu Dhabi
Destination within a destination is Ho Chi Minh City if you intend visiting Vietnam. A troubled history and a country that was ruled or dictated by various dynasties and foreigners including French, Chinese, and Americans. The country (North and South) has now been fully integrated in most sense of the term after the bloody infamous American War that’s cost over 3,000,000 Vietnamese