The Raghavan Instincts

It had been quite a while since I travelled anywhere, and even longer since I wrote about it. Thanks to some divine intervention, a friend invited me for a holy Holi trip to Udaipur, with a few days' stay at Ahmedabad. Day-0, Sunday, 13-Mar Since he was to travel from Bangalore, I went there too for a weekend, catching up with relatives before boarding the flight to Ahmedabad on Sunday night. Bangalore was at its nicest because of the weekend - i.e. less traffic, despite the metro construction work dotting the outer ring road. While waiting for a friend at Indira Nagar, I stumbled upon this plaque which at first felt like a joke installation, but the "BBMP" on it was surprising. It was interesting to discover such mapping solutions, the most recent one I knew being What3words . Anyway, I reached the airport in earlier than I thought - the flight-fare was expensive, as it was all planned in a short notice, but I had taken the rest of the week off, and had decided not ...

The previous few weekends were boring, to say the least, and we didn't want to miss this one. My friends and colleagues J & L were too keen on walking / hiking, and I decided to take them to Peak District , for one can't get anything so good so close to Nottingham. The Walking Englishman has always been a favorite place I'd look before I go, and this time, I decided to do the  Dove Dale and Wolfscote Dale trail . And unlike earlier, I had planned a bit more than usual, and hence this ended up to be one of the most economic & hassle-free itineraries. Given that it wasn't just myself but 2 others, I had to not only plan & organize but also make it lighter on their wallets. I'd always preferred YHAs for their standards & the incredible value for money. I chose YHA Ilam Hall , and there are no direct buses / trains. It was Nottingham - Derby - Ashbourne - YHA Ilam Hall, with the last leg on a taxi and the rest by bus. Trentbarton, which operate in ...