Rupanjan had been a great host to Partho and me in the last four days. He not only gave us company but also saved us quite a bit of money. I got to know from him that Munich is very expensive. One can get a good idea of the standard of living from the cost of availing public … [Read more…]
Partho had proposed two options—either we go to Zugspitze or Salzburg. The weather at Zugspitze was sub-zero, which, in a way, made Salzburg a default choice. One of the cheapest ways to visit Salzburg is to go in a group of two to five people. The railway station comes under the “Bayarn Ticket” zone even though Salzburg … [Read more…]
Spielzeugmuseum (toy museum) Most of the interesting places to visit in Munich are in and around Marienplatz. The toy museum is located right beside the Rathaus of Munich. It’s a five-storey tower whose four floors are filled with various old toys and some replicas. A strange thing happened while we were visiting the museum. The fire … [Read more…]
Museum Fünf Kontinente The weather gods were not with us. It had been raining since early morning. By the time we were ready, it was almost 11:30 AM. We ventured out in the drizzle. Rupanjan, our host, had left to attend a group project discussion followed by a choir performance at an orphanage. Partho and … [Read more…]
From Hamburg to Munich On 30th November, I was done with my work. I had one last meal with my colleagues, packed my bags went straight to the Central Bus Terminus (ZOB) to catch my bus to Munich at 10:00 PM. Partho had promised to join me for my trips. I have known him since my … [Read more…]
One last trip around Dehradun As soon as I got up, I went towards the bus terminal. The board showed that the first bus left at 6:30 AM and the last one at 7:30 PM. I knew that I couldn’t take the first bus and make it in time for my 8:00 AM flight. Instead, I … [Read more…]
If I had done Har-Ki-Doon, today would have been the day that I would have descended from Sankri to Dehradun. The shorter Kedarkantha trek gave me a window to explore Yamunotri. The earliest bus to leave for Dehradun was scheduled at 7:00 AM. Shubhajit, Mahavir and me freshened up, packed our bags and woke Mohit … [Read more…]
During winters, the hotels do not have adequate staff to take care of the few rooms that are kept open. The room in which Mahavir and Gautam slept smelt a bit funny. Mahavir, who was in general a very well-dressed, cleanliness-seeking guy, complained about the smell. There wasn’t much that could have been done. We … [Read more…]
The sweet shop across the street was visible from our window. I saw them taking out a fresh batch of samosas and alerted Shubhajit. We had our breakfast—samosas and tea. It was in this shop that we met Prem Singh Rana—a frail looking man who smoked bidis with a shaky hand. He had been guiding, porting … [Read more…]
We packed all our stuff one last time, returned the micro-crampons and had some tea and pancakes for breakfast. It still amazes me how these guys were able to cook anything so tasty at that altitude, battling those dips in mercury. I would praise myself if I was able to cook anything at all. Once I … [Read more…]
