Travels and Experiences
-Satyavani Kakarla
Who knew, we would have our lunch at the house of Sri. RamandSagar’s house (he is not the current owner, but once he was) famous for Ramayana TV series!
We were on a tour recently, a short pilgrimage one can say to make our travels distinct, visiting India. Places we chose to see were Rishikesh, Haridwar, Mathura and Vrindavan.
Ended up flying into Delhi from San Francisco, immediately flew to Dehradun and from there our Yatra stared on a car to Rishikesh. Our first day at Rishikesh was just great. Visited some places on our list and ended with taking part in a honoring ceremony to River Ganga in the evening with lit lamps, up close to the flow of the sacred waters.
Our second day started off well, with majestic views of the Himalayan foothills and the Ganga flow, and soon it became a hectic morning, with a very strenuous drive to Neelkhanta Mahadeva Temple nestled in high altitude up the peaks of Rishikesh. From there drove up an arial view road through the jungles savoring the air of the sacred place of Rishikesh enroute to Haridwar.
Planned to spend the rest of the day in Haridwar, visited and drove by some temples and ashrams nook and corners (our taxi guy was very nice showing us not just the touristy places but historic and inside detailed spots as well). We then went up the Bilwa hill on a gondala to see ManasaDevi and capture the views from hill top.
It was now beyond lunch hour and were debating what and where to have for a quick bite. Drove through some streets, checked out some places here and there, not satisfied somehow to step out, and soon relied on our electronic gadjet to direct us, thanks to the maps on the phone, hubby said we are going to a Satvik restaurant.
Ok I said, we walked into the restaurant through a courtyard, and for sure I felt there was something about this place, the ambience, decor, antic walls, ceiling and furniture. It had a balcony over looking the flowing Ganga.
As we were waiting for the food, I stepped out to the wash room and as I was walking back to our table the security greeted me again and shared the story of the place with great enthusiasm the lineage of owners of this place now turned into a hotel with an exclusive small restraunt.
I just couldn’t believe how in the first we ended up there, it was a very memorable experience, the excitement of dining in a historic place, food, ambience, views, and much more words fail to explain…
Pondering on as always, aftermath, I always wonder what makes and moves us to feel something special from ordinary we bump into in life, certain experiences, expressions, places we dream to be at, places we just land our feet on unknowingly and unplanned…
I am sure you must have such experiences, do you wonder ?
*****
