National_Geographic_Traveller_India_May_2017

MAY 2017 • ` 150 • VOL. 5 ISSUE 11 • NATGEOTRAVELLER.IN 

MACAO 

A PROCESSION 

OF COLOUR 

COORG 

ZAC O’YEAH 

ON DASARA 

MUMBAI 

INSIDE 

INDIA’S FIRST 

POD HOTEL 

MADHYA 

PRADESH 

IN THE THICK 

OF A FOREST 

It’s always 

FESTIVE SEASON 

AUSTRALIA CONSERVING KOALAS AND KANGAROOS • JAKARTA CAPITAL INVESTMENT

national geographic traveller india 

MAY 2017 

CONTENTS 

Vol 5 Issue 11 

FESTIVE SPIRIT 

JOURNEYS 

62 

FANTASTIC 

BEASTS AND 

WHERE TO 

FIND THEM 

Macao’s vibrant 

Latin City parade is a 

surreal introduction 

to its history 

By Diya Kohli 

70 

DANCING IN 

THE DARK 

Mythology gets crazy, 

colourful, and trippy 

at Madikeri’s Dasara 

float parade 

Text by Zac O’Yeah 

Illustrations by 

Charbak Dipta 

74 

MOVE WITH 

THE MOVING 

PICTURES 

Shrines for cinephiles, 

film festivals also offer 

the rest of us a bit 

of everything 

By Kalpana Nair 

80 

LIGHT AT 

THE END OF 

THE FUNNEL 

Celebrating 

Loy Krathong in 

Sukhothai, Thailand 

By Sugato Mukherjee 

104 

MY FAMILY 

OF OTHER 

ANIMALS 

From shy bandicoots 

to adorable koalas, 

Victoria brims with 

stories of conservation 

and rehabilitation 

By Sonal Shah 

82 

WHEN MAGIC 

BECOMES 

REALISM 

A summer festival in 

Denmark brings Hans 

Christian Andersen’s 

world of fantasy alive 

By Saumya Ancheri 

88 

LENS AND 

SENSIBILITY 

A masterclass on 

shooting festivals 

around the world in all 

their vibrant glory 

Text and photographs 

by Ashima Narain 

94 

PLAY WITH 

FIRE 

Follow the crowds 

to these nocturnal 

fire festivals around 

the world 

96 

REACHING A 

CRESCENDO 

From Kolkata to Coorg, 

jazz to Indian classical, 

these music festivals 

around the country are 

worth travelling for 

By Varun Desai 

110 

THE JUNGLE 

BOOK 

Camping in Satpura 

Tiger Reserve reveals 

wondrous landscapes 

and a new perspective 

By Kareena Gianani 

96 

Alibaug, Maharashtra 

HIMANSHU ROHILLA 

6 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA | MAY 2017

MACAO 

A PROCESSION 

OF COLOUR 

MUMBAI 

INSIDE 

INDIA’S FIRST 

POD HOTEL 

MAY 2017 • ` 150 • VOL. 5 ISSUE 11 • NATGEOTRAVELLER.IN 

AUSTRALIA CONSERVING KOALAS AND KANGAROOS • JAKARTA CAPITAL INVESTMENT 

COORG 

ZAC O’YEAH 

ON DASARA 

MADHYA 

PRADESH 

IN THE THICK 

OF A FOREST 

40 118 

VOICES 

14 Crew Cut 

A traveller turns to art for fun and self-discovery 

16 Traveller’s Check 

Can pit stops become destinations too? 

18 Wayfaring 

Exploring the foundations of faith at a cathedral 

in Chennai 

NAVIGATE 

20 The Insider 

Calm meets clamour in Thailand’s vibrant capital 

28 The Quest 

On the trail of the Vikings from Newfoundland 

to Norway 

32 The Concept 

Europe’s first underwater museum throws us in 

the deep end, Museo Atlántico 

34 Off-Season Escape 

Soaking in winter-time delights in Sydney 

36 Urban Explorer 

Derided for being densely populated, Jakarta could 

well pull in a crowd 

40 National Park 

A boat trip through the Sundarbans mangrove 

forests yields many secrets 

It’s always 

FESTIVE SEASON 

On The COver 

Every year in December, 

all of Macao hits the 

streets for Desfile por 

Macao, Cidade Latina 

or Macao’s Latin City 

parade—a celebration of 

its multicultural heritage. 

Photographer Ashima 

Narain captures a group 

of dancers making 

their way through an 

enthusiastic crowd that 

has gathered at Tap Siac 

Square for the final leg of 

the vibrant parade. 

REGULARS 

12 Editor’s Note 

122 Inspire 

128 Travel Quiz 

46 Superstructures 

Basaltic formations meet a minimal aesthetic in 

Reykjavík’s Hallgrímskirkja church 

47 Heritage 

Secrets on the ceiling of Thiruvananthapuram’s 

Napier Museum 

50 Smart Cities 

Futuristic libraries, open-air museums, and avantgarde 

restaurants: the Danish city of Aarhus loves to 

spring a surprise 

52 My City 

Discovering traditional cuisine and hidden haunts 

in Moscow 

54 Road Trip 

Coming around the bend in central Oregon, U.S.A. 

SMART TRAVELLER 

Checking In 

56 Cosy up with tiger quolls at Australia’s Great 

Ocean Ecolodge 

58 Spectacular lodges, romantic resorts, and 

historic hotels that inspire us to travel 

SHORT BREAKS 

Stay 

118 Camp in style at Jamtara Wilderness Camp 

120 Inside India’s first pod hotel in Mumbai 

RIDDHI MUKHERJEE (TIGER), PHOTO COURTESY: JAMTARA WILDERNESS CAMP (WOMAN) 

ASHIMA NARAIN (COVER) 


Editor-in-Chief SHREEVATSA NEVATIA 

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About us National Geographic Traveller India is about immersive 

travel and authentic storytelling that inspires travel. It is about 

family travel, about travel experiences, about discoveries, and 

insights. Our tagline is “Nobody Knows This World Better” and 

every story attempts to capture the essence of a place in a way 

that will urge readers to create their own memorable trips, and 

come back with their own amazing stories. 

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Editor’s Note | SHREEVATSA NEVATIA 

OUT OF THE BOX 

OUR 

MISSION 

Before 

epiphanies 

and selfrealisation, 

we believe 

travel should 

first make 

real our 

ideas of fun 

Years ago, I heard a well-travelled 

musician say that men are defined 

by the manner in which they pack 

their bags. I have since been 

obsessive about my boxes. My 

shirts are always neatly folded. 

My several wires—chargers for iPods and iPads, 

phones and Kindles—have their dedicated 

pouch. Even my portable speakers have their own 

compartment. When put through X-ray machines, 

I hope their operators will be stunned by the 

symmetry of my packing, but airport employees 

unfortunately like keeping their wonderment 

to themselves. When journeying to lands and 

countries that are unfamiliar, travel can sometimes 

seem unnerving, so a precisely packed 

bag or case is assuring. You’ll 

know where things are. 

Buying tickets and 

planning itineraries leaves 

me excited, but only when I 

empty my cupboard to make 

its contents luggage do I 

really start to inhabit two 

places at once. While travel 

helps disrupt the everyday, 

breaking monotony 

and habit, it also 

makes discovery 

possible. Being 

foreign can help 

us learn who we are 

and being away often 

gives us a checklist of 

what we miss and love 

most about home. The 

transference of my belongings helps pre-empt this 

transition. Departure makes imminent an arrival. 

In the last month, we at National Geographic 

Traveller India have found ourselves packing 

our own little box. Members of a new team, we 

have chosen from the abundant experience of 

our predecessors their best and most proficient 

editorial practices and intent. We have, however, 

left some room for the shopping we hope to do 

once we dig in our heels. (We’re young. We like 

things that are new.) In the pages of this magazine, 

you’ll continue to find maps to places that urgently 

demand exploration. As we try and make your trips 

more frequent, we’ll also ensure your experience 

of reading us and our writers will be an escape 

in itself. You will get tips on where you can stay, 

what you can eat, and what you should do. Your 

itinerary will be as neatly packed as our design. 

That’s a promise we’ll always keep. 

Since airlines are usually more exacting about 

weight than gym instructors, our endeavour 

will be to never carry any excess baggage, both 

as travellers and journalists. Before epiphanies 

and self-realisation, we believe travel should first 

make real our ideas of fun. Going to a concert or 

a film festival can be as rewarding as witnessing 

Loy Krathong, a festival of light in Thailand, or 

travelling to Macao for its Latin City parade. In this 

month’s issue, one we have devoted to festivals 

and festivities, we try and blend the traditional with 

the contemporary. History fascinates us as much 

as culture and it is our eclecticism that gives us 

something to celebrate all year 

round. More importantly, it 

helps us travel light. 

Hugh of St. Victor, a 

12th-century theologian, 

knew how to stay 

pertinent a thousand 

years later. He had once 

said, “The man who finds 

his homeland sweet is still 

a tender beginner; he to 

whom every soil is as his 

native one is already 

strong; but he is 

perfect to whom 

the entire world is as 

a foreign land.” There 

is more wisdom than 

judgment in Hugh’s 

assumption. It is, in 

the end, our capacity 

for wonder which makes travel replenishing and 

joyful. We strive to continuously be surprised by 

the world, but also by the several homes in which 

we live. Since souvenirs have regrettably gone out 

of fashion, we intend to bring back stories instead. 

Stories that entertain and stories that make the 

unknown a touch more accessible. For decades 

now, National Geographic has delicately unpacked 

the world for us. Its yellow frame helps give the 

stories we find at Traveller a perfect box. Our task 

is cut out. We’ll pack it with care. 

National Geographic Traveller India is about immersive travel and authentic storytelling, inspiring readers to create their own journeys and return with 

amazing stories. Our distinctive yellow rectangle is a window into a world of unparalleled discovery. 

BILLION PHOTOS/SHUTTERSTOCK 


Voices | CREW CUT 

Down to a 

Fine Art 

ART ASTONISHES AND ENTERTAINS. 

SO DOES TRAVEL. TOGETHER, THEY LEAD 

TO SELF-DISCOVERY 

Kareena Gianani 

is Senior Associate Editor at 

National Geographic Traveller 

India. She loves stumbling upon 

hole-in-the-wall bookshops, old 

towns, and owl souvenirs in all 

shapes and sizes. 

In 2015, I walked into the glass building of Toronto’s Art 

Gallery of Ontario only because it coolly curved 600 feet 

along a street I happened to pass. It was my first day in the 

country, and entering some place that resembled a canoe or a 

silvery spaceship seemed like the wise thing to do. 

Inside, I looked at the works of Emily Carr, a trailblazing 

Canadian artist I’d never heard of. But her dramatic paintings 

of moist rainforests, brooding cedar trees, and old brave totem 

poles told me stories of a Canada we rarely see: a land of rich but 

fast disappearing indigenous cultures, way beyond its first-world 

shininess. Carr’s fierce art protested against European settlers 

erasing her homeland’s cultures. Slowly, Canada’s newness 

slipped away and I didn’t feel as much of a stranger. 

Until late last year, I’d travel for unforgettable places and 

people. I savoured the getting away, and the arriving at a place 

where foreign tongues fill a bistro during breakfast. I travelled 

for boisterous cities, camped in wild forests, or followed a lover 

to new lands. But things changed last October, when art began 

ruling my itineraries in Paris, Barcelona, and Amsterdam. 

From being quarter-day plans squished between long spells of 

roaming a city, museums became delightful dawn-to-night 

affairs in themselves. 

I discovered, for instance, that being in the Louvre building 

is like being all over the world at once. One never knows what 

one might find. My interactive Nintendo guide took me to a 

corner of a room where a marble 

sculpture of a woman stretched 

out on a mattress, a lone flimsy 

sheet wrapped around her left leg. 

She was dreaming. The eroticism, 

her sinuous grace was palpable; 

until I walked over to the other 

side and realised that “she” wasn’t 

a woman. It was the androgynous 

figure of Hermaphroditos, carved 

as if to half-shock, half-tease a 

viewer. It was made between the 

third and first centuries B.C., yet 

there I was, abashed and amused 

by the effect it was having on me. 

Someplace else was a painting 

of a man dressed in a frilly redand-black 

costume. He smiles 

mischievously at someone we 

cannot see; his eyes are crinkled, 

and face flushed. The merriment 

exuded by the “Buffoon Holding 

a Lute,” by Dutch Golden Age 

painter Frans Hals can ward off the greyest of moods. 

Paris’s Musée d’Orsay, on the other hand, is a map of what the 

city was like at various points in time. The nightlife and show 

business of Paris in the 19th century are brought to life by the works 

of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Edgar Degas’s “The Ballet Class” 

is a window into the moods of Parisian ballerinas once they’re 

off the stage. One scratches her back absentmindedly, others 

only half-listen to their ballet master. Here, centuries collide and 

Paris’s many histories move about freely. In the evening, strains 

of waltz filled this railway-station-turned-museum and at least 

80 dancers filled the atrium for a spectacular surprise. 

Isn’t this what we travel for? To be astonished and entertained; 

tickled and thrilled, mostly by people we will never meet? Given 

the range of discoveries it entails, art doesn’t feel very different 

from travel itself. And while it is a great way to see the world, 

it is also a way to see myself. Being in Amsterdam’s Van Gogh 

Museum, for instance, had the most cathartic effect on me. I went 

chasing a teenage favourite and found myself wrapped in the life 

stories of the artist’s hope, tragedy, and great perseverance. In 

the Rijksmuseum, watching a local art student sketch Johannes 

Vermeer’s “The Milkmaid” calmed me as much as the original 

painting itself. I also discovered that artists who hang out in 

museums make for great conversation: Louvre turned extra 

special after I met a Portland-based artist and we sat on a bench 

thumbing through his sketchbooks filled with Michelangelos, da 

Vincis, and other works I’d never 

have checked out if I were alone. 

If you, like me, ever feel slightly 

daunted by museums, step into 

Room 19 of Rotterdam’s Museum 

Boijmans Van Beuningen. There is 

a man’s head poking from the floor. 

The life-size wax sculpture rises 

from a gaping hole in the ground, 

looking inquisitively at a roomful 

of Dutch Romantics around him. 

Fifty-six-year-old Italian artist 

Maurizio Cattelan created this 

installation because he still feels 

like an outsider in the art world. 

Yet he breaks new ground, literally. 

Travelling for art, above all, is a 

reminder of what is most important 

to me: to seek beauty and joy, and 

to be playful while I can. There is 

no such thing as being too happy, 

too emotional, or too moved by an 

artwork. They are safe places. 

PHOTO COURTESY: MAURIZIO CATTELAN, UNTITLED (MANHOLE), MUSEUM BOIJMANS VAN BEUNINGEN 


Voices | TRAVELLER’S CHECK 

Go Between 

LEARNING TO SAVOUR HYPHENATED SPACES 

DURING A TRYST WITH A MEDIEVAL ENGLISH TOWN 

Debashree MajuMDar 

is a freelance writer and editor. 

She can often be found plotting 

yet another escape. 

On my first and only visit to York a little more than a 

year ago, I managed a cursory glance at its quaint 

medieval magnificence. Ever since, I’ve been devising 

plans of going back. The charm of these in-between 

places—tiny towns, quiet cities—that you meet on your way to 

longer, well-planned vacations, often linger long after you’ve 

left. With York, the haunting has persisted. 

More often than not a modern traveller’s itinerary is so 

packed with these numerous stops to a carefully picked 

destination that a thought is rarely spared about traversing 

these sometimes prominent, sometimes nondescript worlds. 

They often teem with stories, experiences, and secrets of their 

own. In our case it was merely happenstance that led us to York. 

We were headed to Scotland for a road trip after a brief stay in 

London. York, which falls almost halfway between London and 

Edinburgh, sounded like the perfect place to meet a friend who 

was set to join us. 

These resting places or stopovers rarely get a fair chance. One 

checks out of the airport or train station, grabs dinner on the 

way to the hotel, and succumbs to exhaustion only to chase that 

early exit the next morning. But given a chance, or a few waking 

hours, these hyphenated spaces could be mined for insight and 

wonder into a world unknown. 

The unfamiliar in York unspooled as we made our way to 

our address for the night through its residential quarters. A 

gust of cold wind and drizzle greeted us at the precincts of the 

time-worn walled city. That night the sounds of a heaving river 

York, U.K. 

were evident. Parking lots lay submerged, a few abandoned 

cars disappeared under water. It was November 2015, just 

about a month before the Ouse would breach its banks and 

wash the whole city away. It would be months before tourists 

returned to marvel at its cathedrals and castles. York that 

night seemed like a threatening place, its streets deserted, 

the wind howling, and its residents visible only through 

warmly lit glass windows. Its unique reputation for being 

the most haunted European city, which it was awarded 

in 2002 by the Ghost Research Foundation International, 

seemed accurate. 

Stormy weather and eerie warnings notwithstanding, we 

stepped out for a peek into the microcosm that York packs 

within itself. I hugged myself against the merciless, icy lashes 

as we walked through the dimly-lit alleyways that crisscrossed 

The Shambles, York’s and one of Britain’s most iconic 

streets. Lined with half-timbered 15th-century dwellings, The 

Shambles derives its name from the Saxon shamel, meaning 

slaughterhouse. Before the chic boutiques, lace-lined tea 

rooms, chocolatiers, and trendy pubs took over, the street used 

to be home to butchers who hung their meat for display a couple 

of hundred years ago. 

It’s surprising what an hour’s rambling can reveal about a 

town. If familiar, in an Indian town for instance, one could step 

out for tea or samosa and return with a wealth of information 

about life in the neighbourhood following an exchange with the 

local chaiwallah. If unfamiliar, and away from home, one could 

feel overwhelmed by the revelations of a place that one had 

hardly considered including in one’s journey. I wandered along 

the snickets around the imposing Gothic York Minster, whose 

silhouette towered against the inky skies giving it a shadowy, 

desolate air. I remember coming to sudden halts, my mouth 

agape, staring at the crumbling Tudor dens that appeared to 

close in over our heads, stirred with child-like curiosity. The 

houses came closest to resembling the tattered lithograph 

print-filled books from my girlhood. 

On the wintry night we walked down its paths, York revealed 

its essence in little bursts—a couple of still open pubs providing 

shelter to locals and travellers, and homeless musicians playing 

to an invisible audience in the the bitter cold outside. Like all 

cities with an enduring character, York is marked by layers 

of history and stark contrasts. It’s a place where it would 

be right to want to “stop all the clocks,” much like how its native 

W.H. Auden had once written. With its many ghosts of present 

and past, it continues to haunt me for not staying, for having 

resisted its singular charms. I’m impatient to return to it— 

not to dash through it again as a halfway stop but to savour 

it as a destination. 

G01XM/ISTOCK 


Voices | WAYFARING 

Room for Doubt 

FAITH CAN GIVE A PLACE ITS FOUNDATION, BUT IT IS 

CURIOSITY THAT BRINGS ALIVE ITS HISTORY 

Sudha Pillai 

is an artist, photographer, and 

writer. She writes about her 

encounters with people, places, 

art, and culture. 

The best moments in a journey are always unplanned. 

Those are the moments that get calligraphed in 

travel memes. 

After almost a decade I was back in Chennai on work. 

I had a few hours to spare before my flight back home. While 

bumming around in the hotel room, the leaflet on the nightstand 

caught my eye. It was a tract on “sights to see” in the city. 

Santhome Cathedral was on the list. On a whim, I got into an 

auto and made my way to the Cathedral which stands on the 

shores of Marina beach. 

The last time I visited the Cathedral, my hair was black 

and waist willow. The significance of the Cathedral was 

completely lost on a 15-year-old who spent a chimerical summer 

reading Thorn Birds. This time around, when I found myself 

standing in front of the Cathedral, I was 15 twice over. The hair 

was now dyed and the hips wide. 

Santhome Cathedral stands atop the tomb of St. Thomas. 

There are only three churches in the world that are built over 

the tomb of an apostle of Christ, the other two being St. Peter’s 

Basilica in Rome and the tomb of St. James in Spain. 

Amongst all the apostles, St. Thomas, also known as Doubting 

Thomas, is my favourite. He was intelligent enough to doubt 

and Trojan enough to express those doubts. The search for 

knowledge begins with a kernel of doubt. The latter Thomas had 

in abundance. Thomas was not present when Jesus appeared to 

Santhome Cathedral, Chennai 

his disciples after his resurrection. Thomas refused to believe 

that the Lord had risen; he would do so only after seeing the 

marks of the nails in Jesus’s hands with his own eyes. During 

his next apparition, Jesus invited Thomas to check His wounds, 

which Thomas promptly did before falling to his knees and 

crying, “My Lord and My God.” 

Apostle Thomas came to India in A.D. 52. He was martyred 

in then Madras in A.D. 72. When the Portugese arrived in 

Mylapore in 1521, the chapel which contained the tomb of St. 

Thomas was in ruins. The Portugese rebuilt the church in 1523, 

which lasted until the end of the 19th century. The present-day 

Cathedral was built in 1853. 

The Gothic Cathedral looms large and is almost pastoral in 

the middle of a raucous city. The wide teak doors are open to 

people from all faiths and walks of life. Inside the 115-footlong 

nave, the harsh Chennai sun streams through 36 stained 

glass windows creating a psychedelic display of colours. Under 

the 155-foot-high steeple stands the statue of Christ with arms 

wide open. It tickles me to see that standing on a lotus with two 

peacocks for company, the Lord was doing a ‘when-in-Rome’. 

The underground tomb-chapel, which is built above the place 

where St. Thomas is believed to have been buried, is behind the 

main Cathedral. This chapel contains a precious relic—a bone 

from the tip of St. Thomas’s little finger. A caretaker-nun brings 

out the relic once every month for a special mass. Looking at the 

red and gold box that holds the relic I wonder 

what it must be like, for the nun to hold a piece 

of a man who walked alongside the Messiah 

himself. “I get goose bumps just thinking about 

it,” says the nun rubbing her arms. “I cannot 

express the feeling in words, but it is something 

… something …” She gropes for words and fails. I 

think I get what she means, though my agnostic 

brain cannot shape that feeling into words. The 

nun has no doubts in her mind. 

There’s a pole inside the compound. Locals 

call it the Santhome pole. Some believe it was 

erected by St. Thomas. But nobody knows for 

sure. Legend has it that the sea never crosses 

the pole. Even during the Tsunami the sea did 

not defy the pole, leaving the church intact 

and annihilating the rest in its wake. The place 

where Doubting Thomas rests is but a testimony 

to the aphorism: Be not faithless, but believing. 

Delicious irony! 

A few hours later, mid-flight, a teeny-tiny 

doubt rears in me: Can faith flourish without 

the faithless? 

SUDHA PILLAI 


NAVIGATE 

the quest 

On the trail of the Vikings from 

28 Newfoundland to Norway 

national park 

A boat trip through the 

40 Sundarbans yields many secrets 

superstructures 

Basaltic formations meet a 

46 minimal aesthetic in Reykjavík 

The Wat Arun temple 

sparkles on the 

Chao Phraya River. 

Bangkok Beckons 

CALM MEETS CLAMOUR IN THAILAND’S VIBRANT CAPITAL 

Bangkok is two-faced. At once 

serene and spicy, frenzied 

yet romantic, it is the best 

of both worlds. The golden 

tiles of the temples wink eternal, the 

steam from Chinatown hawkers’ woks 

carries the peppery scents of fragrant 

herbs, and down alleys the twisted 

arms of aged banyan trees wrap the 

gates of rickety wooden homes. At the 

same time, baristas hand over lattes 

made with Thai coffee beans. Bitters 

and Bénédictine line the back bar at 

cocktail joints. And when the faded teak 

doors of the shophouses roll open in the 

morning, you’ll find tables stocked by 

independent, young designers. 

—Jenny Adams 

JACK KURTZ, ZUMA WIRE 


Navigate | THE INSIDER 

BOOK IT 

The infinity pool at 

Okura Prestige, offers 

a stunning view of 

Bangkok’s skyline. 

GO WITH NAT GEO 

FOR THE BEACH LOVER 

Snorkel around sandy island 

shores, kayak along the coast, and 

discover watery caves aboard an 

iconic long-tail boat on the eightday 

National Geographic Journeys 

with G Adventures’ “Explore 

Southern Thailand” 

trip ($1,749/`1,12,504 per person 

in double occupancy). 

Hotel Chic: Thai 

Rooms With a View 

● Classic 

● Trendy 

● New 

The majority of the rooms in 

Siamotif (), a 70-year-old 

wooden canal house turned 

bohemian boutique hotel, were 

hand-painted by a local artist. Amenities 

here include balconies overlooking the 

canal, bikes for exploring neighbouring 

temples, and rotating Thai breakfast 

offerings (siamotif.com; doubles from 

THB2,800/`5,300). At the colonialchic 

Riva Arun (), opened in 2016, the 

view steals the show, whether you’re 

dining on larb ped salad (minced duck 

salad) with foie gras on the rooftop or 

parting the gauzy curtains of your suite’s 

floor-to-ceiling windows. The backdrop 

is Wat Arun, meaning Temple of Dawn, 

even though it’s ironically best at sunset 

when silhouetted against a bright pink 

sky (www.snhotels.com; doubles from 

THB3,160/`5,950). To feel like you’ve 

fallen into a James Bond flick, head to 

Okura Prestige (). Each of the 240 

rooms features a Japanese bidet, rain 

shower, and touchpad that controls the 

room’s lighting. But the infinity pool is 

what you’ll likely remember most. With 

views of the city’s skyscrapers, it’s 82 feet 

long and cantilevered off the 25th floor, 

hanging high above the busy streets of 

Bangkok (www.okurabangkok.com; 

doubles from THB6,375/`12,000). 

FOR THE HISTORY BUFF 

Listen to Buddhist monks chant 

at a traditional temple, visit World 

War II spots, and dine in a UNESCO 

World Heritage city on National 

Geographic Journeys with 

G Adventures’ eight-day “Thailand 

Journey” trip ($1,399/`89,990 

per person in double occupancy). 

NATGEOEXPEDITIONS.COM 

FRANK HEUER/LAIF/VAULT ARCHIVES/REDUX 



SEE IT 

Walk Bangkok Like a Local 

CRUISE THROUGH THE CAPITAL BY BIKE, THEN TAKE A STROLL 

THROUGH A VINTAGE NIGHT MARKET 

SPAS 

For a quick recharge, head to 

Soi Rambuttri street in Old 

Town, where kerbside chaiselongue 

foot massages are 

$5/`325 for half an hour. At 

Ruen-Nuad Massage Studio, 

inside an 80-year-old house 

with gardens, and lemongrassscented 

rooms, request its 

herbal compress massage, 

where tamarind, makrut lime, 

and salt are designed to relieve 

inflammation (42 Convent 

Road; www.facebook.com/ 

ruennuadmassage; open 

10 a.m.-9 p.m.). A pampering 

session at the Siam hotel’s 

Opium Spa is more of an 

expensive indulgence, but 

includes free transport to 

the spa via private boat 

(3/2 Thanon Khao; www. 

thesiamhotel.com; open 

10 a.m.-10 p.m.). 

ART GALLERIES 

The Bangkok Art and Culture 

Centre is home to an array 

of contemporary arts, from 

design to music, film to theatre 

(www.bacc.or.th; Tue-Sun 

10 a.m.-9 p.m.). At Dialogue 

Coffee and Gallery (533 

Phra Sumen Rd.; Tue-Sun 

11 a.m.-10 p.m.), the eclectic 

coffeehouse and gallery on 

Phra Sumen Road, you can 

enjoy the attic exhibitions and 

also snag an art map of Old 

Town Bangkok. It lists nearby 

gems like the Foto United 

Gallery (519 Phra Sumen 

Rd; Tue-Sun 11 a.m.-7p.m.), 

with work for sale by local 

photographers, and the new 

Pipit Banglamphu Museum 

(Phra Sumen Rd; Tue-Sun 10 

a.m.-6 p.m.), a former printing 

facility now dedicated to the 

neighbourhood’s history. 

BIKE TOURS 

Many hotels in the city provide 

bikes for solo exploration, 

but guided bike tour options 

abound. Follow Me Bike 

Tours has a four-and-a-halfhour 

tour of Old Town along 

the Chao Phraya River, which 

threads through back streets 

and includes temple stops and 

ferry rides. You also get a link 

to photos of your day (www. 

followmebiketour.com; bike 

tours from THB1,300/`2,430). 

If you crave greenery, 

Bangkok Bike Adventure will 

take you to Bang Krachao, 

nicknamed Bangkok’s Green 

Lung. This thick swathe of 

jungle is filled with towering 

palms, tropical birds, reptiles, 

and ancient canals (www. 

bangkokbikeadventure. 

com; bike tours from 

THB1,300/`2,430). 

Chatuchak market 

is home to more 

than 8,000 stalls. 

MARKETS 

Start with the sunrise at 

Pak Khlong Talad, the city’s 

premier flower market, where 

locals purchase phuang 

malai, or garlands made with 

frangrant flowers like jasmine 

or rose. These are a symbol 

of good luck and are offered 

at shrines or even given to 

special guests. During the day, 

the shops along the numerous 

alleyways of Chatuchak 

market sell everything from 

spa products to knockoff 

Ray-Bans. After 5 p.m. venture 

just outside the city to Talad 

Rot Fai, a sprawling, outdoor 

night market that focuses on 

the nostalgic, such as antique 

lamps, vintage clothing, and 

’57 Chevys. You can also get 

a 10 p.m. shave in the garage 

barbershop or sip a beer in a 

converted VW-bus bar. 

FRANCESCO LASTRUCCI 



EAT IT 

IF YOU LIKE 

PAD THAI 

IF YOU LIKE 

PAPAYA SALAD 

IF YOU LIKE 

TOM YUM SOUP 

IF YOU LIKE 

CHICKEN SATAY 

THEN TRY 

Pad Thai Omelette 

At the Thipsamai restaurant, 

Thailand’s most recognisable 

dish is nearly unrecognisable 

to visitors. A true pad thai 

in Bangkok is actually an 

omelette with dried shrimp, 

tamarind-dressed noodles, 

and soft tofu inside an egg 

wrapper (313-315 Maha Chai 

Rd, Khwaeng Samran Rat; 

open 5 p.m.-2 a.m.). 

THEN TRY 

Pomelo Salad 

This salad hails from Nakhon 

Pathom Province, but to have 

Bangkok’s best, head to Issaya 

Siamese Club. Its modern 

adaptation has pomelo 

wedges, hard-boiled eggs, and 

fried shrimp in a chilli-lime 

dressing (www.issaya.com; 

lunch 11.30 a.m.-2.30 p.m., 

dinner 6-10.30 p.m.; bar 

closes at 1 a.m.). 

THEN TRY 

Kuay Teow Neau 

Kuay teow neau is Thailand’s 

rich beef noodle soup. Join 

the communal tables at Kuay 

Teow Neau Nai Soi on Phra 

Athit Road, and dig into the 

braised beef and gooey glass 

noodles in a lightly spiced 

broth with hints of vinegar, 

cinnamon, and star anise 

(100/2-3 Phra Arthit Road; 

open daily 8 a.m.-6 p.m.). 

THEN TRY 

Pork Satay 

Even though chicken satay is 

common in restaurants across 

India, the pork version is the 

norm in Bangkok. Try the 

skewers, served upside down 

in a plastic sack with spicy 

dipping sauce splashed inside, 

at the prime place for street 

food: Chinatown’s vibrant 

Yaowarat Road. 

Toast this colourful capital city 

at The Speakeasy, a rooftop bar 

at the Hotel Muse, where the 

Wasabi Martini (a mix of green 

tea–infused gin, wasabi, elderflower, 

and lime juice) comes accompanied 

by a small plate of wasabi and grilled 

salmon (hotelmusebangkok.com; open 

daily 5.30 p.m.-1 a.m.). At the Thai 

Skewers of satay (right) are a common sight on Bangkok’s streets; One of the special dishes to 

try in the city is the beef larb salad (left), that has sticky rice and a fragrant mix of spices. 

Three Drinks to Sip in Bangkok 

shophouse Smalls, you may fall for Love 

Is In The Air, a frothy, hard-shaken blend 

of strawberry-infused vodka, sauvignon 

blanc, lemon, elderflower, bitters, and 

an egg white. This three-storey spot has 

an around-the-world menu of boutique 

spirits, a penchant for absinthe, and a 

menagerie of French antiques on display 

(186/3 Suan phlu Soi 1; open daily 

5.30 p.m.-2 a.m.). Quince is a warm and 

casual space full of brick, dark wood, 

candlelight, and opportunities to try 

the locally produced Iron Balls gin. It’s 

the perfect ingredient to the Spitcock 

cocktail, which mixes gin with coconut 

palm sugar, lime, celery leaves, and fresh 

mint (www.quincebangkok.com; open 

daily 11.30 a.m.-late ). 

CHRISTOPHER WISE (SALAD, SKEWERS), TAMER KOSELI (ILLUSTRATIONS) 


Navigate | THE QUEST 

Raiders of the Lost Arts 

SAGAS, SWORDS, AND SURPRISES ON THE TRAIL OF ALL THINGS VIKING 

FROM NEWFOUNDLAND TO NORWAY BY JUDITH FEIN 

Flames consume a 

Viking ship at the Up 

Helly Aa festival in 

Shetland, Scotland. 

I 

always believed that the Vikings 

were a bunch of raiders and pillagers 

whose only redeeming quality was 

that they built sophisticated ships 

to carry out their murderous missions. 

But one day, at an exhibit in Los 

Angeles, I saw elegant jewellery by 

Viking goldsmiths, encountered writing 

on rune stones, and learned that 

Vikings practiced a form of democracy 

and that their women had personal 

and political power. That’s when my 

fascination with the eighth-to-eleventhcentury 

culture began. 

I planned a trip to L’Anse aux 

Meadows, in Newfoundland, Canada; 

it’s the only authenticated Viking site 

in North America. There I saw my 

first longhouse, built with thick sod 

walls and a sod-covered roof. Inside, 

historical interpreters recreated 

quotidian Viking chores such as 

weaving, candle making, and cooking 

over an open fire. But what made the 

DAVID GUTTENFELDER 


Navigate | THE QUEST 

deepest impression was learning that 

Vikings suffered from lung disease, 

caused by smoke from indoor fires. They 

were no longer “the Vikings” but, rather, 

humans who lived, loved, laughed, 

worked, and had lung issues. 

I wanted to know where the Vikings 

hailed from, and if there were any left, 

so I headed to Norway. And I developed 

a sort of traveller’s tunnel vision. All I 

wanted to see were places connected 

to the Vikings. On the small island of 

Vibrandsøy, I met a couple who were 

constructing a 115-foot-long Viking ship 

by using the exact building methods 

and materials the Norse did. 

Inspired by their passion for Viking 

vessels, I set off for the Viking Ship 

Museum in Oslo, where I saw three 

beautiful ships that had carried Vikings 

and then carried their bodies. It made 

me long to encounter living, 

breathing Vikings. 

I went on Facebook and connected 

to Georg Olafr Reydarsson Hansen, 

the director of the annual Viking 

Market in Gudvangen. I jumped on a 

bus in Voss and rode to an encounter 

that transformed my fascination into 

an obsession. At the edge of a fjord, 

Viking re-enactors came together 

as blacksmiths, bards, cooks, runemakers, 

and weavers to live the 

ancient lifestyle. 

My Facebook friend Georg, in a furtrimmed 

hat, sailed up to the site on 

a Viking ship. He greeted a gaggle of 

buff, bare-chested young men who were 

flinging each other around in the Viking 

sport of glima wrestling. He introduced 

me to their coach, Lars Magnar 

Enoksen, who gleefully said to me that 

even eye gouging was permitted. I 

was relieved when Lars explained that 

gouging actually meant pressing on an 

opponent’s eyes—much more civilised. 

I was gobsmacked when Lars invited 

me to attend his evening sorcery class. 

Inside a wooden cabin I sat around 

a crackling fire with Lars’s students, 

learning the fine art of galdurs, or 

Viking incantations. Several hours later 

we were outside, swilling from a meadfilled 

horn, cajoling the powerful forces 

of nature with our alliterative galdur. 

Once back home, when I would give 

public talks, I ended them with an 

Old Norse galdur. And the nightstand 

next to my bed became a repository for 

Icelandic sagas, which are masterworks 

Ribe Viking Center, in Denmark, recreates a Viking manor farm circa A.D. 980. 

of medieval literature about—what 

else?—the Vikings. By night I read and 

by day I planned a trip to Iceland. 

It was at the National Museum of 

Iceland, in Reykjavík, that I saw my first 

real Viking sword. A confirmed pacifist, 

I was nonetheless mesmerised by a 

culture as sensitive as it was violent. 

At Viking World I boarded a replica of 

a ninth-century ship and then planted 

myself in front of videos that explained 

the secrets of Viking shipbuilding 

and the navigational technology that 

allowed them to raid, conquer, and sail 

by dead reckoning. 

Then I raced to Thingvellir National 

Park, the epicentre of the Viking 

legal system, where the world’s oldest 

existing parliament first assembled in 

A.D. 930. 

Everyone back then was invited to 

attend the annual event, where the laws 

of the land were proclaimed aloud by a 

lawspeaker, who stood at the still extant 

Law Rock. Alas, there was no system in 

place to enforce the Vikings’ subtle and 

brilliant legal decisions, so they literally 

took matters into their own hands and 

used their deadly swords. 

Murderers. Sorcerers. Storytellers. 

Farmers. Traders. Adventurers. 

Inventors. Artists. Lawyers. I am 

haunted by this complex culture that 

dominated a large chunk of the globe a 

thousand years ago. I recently learned 

that archaeologist and National 

Geographic Fellow Sarah Parcak has 

used satellite imagery to try to locate 

new Viking sites, which I long to see. 

Those fearless ancient mariners speak 

to the traveller and explorer in me, and 

they have become my mentors, guides, 

and inspiration as I set off once again in 

their wake. 

MORE EVENTS ON 

THE VIKING TRAIL 

THE ICELANDIC SAGAS 

Who said Vikings didn’t have a sense of 

humour? “Icelandic Sagas: The 

Greatest Hits” is a 75-minute 

uproarious theatrical show (in 

English) in Reykjavík that surprisingly 

sums up the ancient tales really well 

(icelandicsagas.com; ISK4,900/`2,840; 

check website for dates). 

UP HELLY AA 

Dating from the 1880s, this annual 

Viking-themed community event in 

Shetland, Scotland, takes place on 

the last Tuesday in January. The 

highlights are a torch-lit procession 

and the burning of a replica Viking 

galley (uphellyaa.org; next event on 

January 30, 2018). 

ROBERT CLARK 


Navigate | THE CONCEPT 

Under Troubled Waters 

EUROPE’S FIRST UNDERWATER MUSEUM THROWS US IN THE DEEP END BY RUMELA BASU 

XXXXXXXXXX XXXXXX 

Since the installation of sculptures at Museo Atlántico in February 2016, there has been a 200 per cent increase in aquatic biomass in the 

steadily growing artificial reef. 

Deep in the Atlantic Ocean, on 

the southern coast of Canary 

Islands’ Lanzarote island, lies 

an artist’s creation amid the 

waters’ aquatic inhabitants. The Museo 

Atlántico is British sculptor Jason 

deCaires Taylor’s brainchild, one that 

took three years to complete. Its exhibits 

made with pH-neutral cement are not 

only a comment on worldly affairs 

but in due time will also create an 

artificial reef. 

Visitors to this Bahía de Las 

Coloradas (Colorados Bay) attraction 

have the choice of snorkelling or diving 

40 feet to view this underwater world. 

Spread over 2,500 square feet, the 

museum has 12 exhibits comprising 

about 300 figures. Every installation, 

from “Los Jolateros”, which shows small 

boys on flimsy brass boats—a comment 

on the fragile future of the world’s 

children —to “Disconnected,” a portrayal 

of our unhealthy connection with 

gadgets, makes a strong statement. 

Hidden within the poignant 

works are little details that will aid 

in bringing to life the artificial reef. 

“The Portal” is an installation of a halfhuman, 

half-animal figure looking into 

a mirror-like surface that the artist 

imagines to be an entry to a different 

world. Holding up the mirror is a 

platform created by supports that have 

little nooks which can be home to sea 

urchins, octopus, and small fish. It sits 

in the middle of what is known as the 

“Hybrid Garden,” a collection of cactishaped 

sculptures. The pyre of sticks in 

“Immortal,” also creates little pockets 

making it suitable habitat for marine 

biomass. The man lying atop the pyre is 

made from the cast of a local fisherman. 

The local community has been 

closely involved in the making of 

Museo Atlántico. Many volunteered to 

have themselves used as casts for the 

figures used in the artwork. In fact, 

the centrepiece of the museum, an 

installation of 35 figures, is made using 

casts of locals. Named “Crossing the 

Rubicón,” it shows this group of people 

walking towards a wall in the middle 

of the ocean. Another sculpture is a 

circular pile of 200 life-size figures, 

known as “The Human Gyre.” It is a 

dramatic piece of work that evolves 

from the idea that all life, including 

humans, originated in the ocean. It 

also embodies the vulnerability of the 

human race when faced with the full 

force and power of the ocean. To some, it 

could also mean that in the conservation 

of oceans they see life coming to a full 

circle—you protect what gave you life. 

Museo Atlántico leaves lasting images 

in the mind of a visitor swimming away 

from this underwater world to the one 

above the waves. 

THE VITALS 

Museo Atlántico is located off the 

coast of Bahía de Las Coloradas 

(Colorados Bay) in the Spanish 

territory of Lanzarote in the Canary 

Islands. To visit the underwater 

museum, one must sign up with 

a certified diving company (www. 

cactlanzarote.com; diving hours 

Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-6 p.m; snorkellers 

€8/`550, divers €12/`825). 

PHOTO COURTESY: JASON DECAIRES TAYLOR/CACT LANZAROTE 


Navigate | OFF-SEASON ESCAPE 

Sunny Sydney Up 

DISCOVERING WINTER-TIME DELIGHTS IN THE AUSTRALIAN METROPOLIS BY ERIC ROSEN 

While many of the sights in Australia’s Harbour City are 

outdoors, the country’s winter (May to September) can still 

be a fabulous time to visit, thanks to generally mild weather 

and that always-warm Aussie hospitality. 

850F 

130 

mm 

60 0 

J F M A M J J A S O N D 

J F M A M J J A S O N D 

Average high temperature 

Average rainfall 

Sydney’s emblematic 

Harbour Bridge, as 

seen from the water. 

ACTIVITY 

See Sydney in a New Light 

Part outdoor art exhibit, part music festival, and 

part symposium, Vivid Sydney is an annual 23-day 

event held in May and June that draws innovators 

from all over the globe. During that time designers and 

artists transform Sydney’s urban landscapes into 

massive light installations. An extensive programme 

of musical performances takes place in venues 

across the city, ranging from the Opera House to 

electric neighbourhood bars. Visitors can also 

purchase tickets to public discussions among some of 

the world’s top creative thinkers (previous speakers 

include Orange Is the New Black creator Jenji Kohan 

and Monocle founder Tyler Brûlé). 

(www.vividsydney.com.) 

DINING 

Theatrical Treats 

Inside the Sydney Opera House, 

seasonal, local ingredients have the 

leading role at Bennelong. “Seafood 

is best during winter because it’s 

plump and sweet from the cold 

water,” says executive chef Peter 

Gilmore. Frequently changing winter 

tasting menus can include dishes 

like roasted John Dory fish with 

orache, turnips, native greens, and 

umami butter; or quail with plum 

jam and macadamia “rubble.”(www. 

bennelong.com.au; three-course 

meals from AUD130/`5,130.) 

LODGING 

Starry Nights 

At the Langham Sydney, which 

reopened in 2015 following a 

$30-million makeover, each of the 

98 rooms blends antique touches, 

such as original wooden doors, 

with contemporary amenities like 

ultra-luxe Dux beds. Be sure to take 

a dip in the hotel’s subterranean 

pool—its famous ceiling depicts 

the Southern Hemisphere’s night 

sky with twinkling fibre-optic 

lights for constellations. (www. 

langhamhotels.com; doubles from 

AUD375/`18,300.) 

FRANK HEUER/LAIF/REDUX (BRIDGE), TAMER KOSELI (ILLUSTRATION) 


Navigate | URBAN EXPLORER 

Invest in this Capital 

DERIDED FOR BEING DENSELY POPULATED, JAKARTA COULD WELL PULL IN A CROWD BY BHAVYA DORE 

The city’s many rooftop bars offer the best 

vantage points for a view of Jakarta shimmering 

by night; A bronze statue of Barack Obama as a 

child (bottom) stands in the yard of the school he 

attended during his six-year stay in the city. 

Under a bridge outside Glodok, 

Jakarta’s Chinatown, I 

spiritedly tried to bargain 

with a taxi driver a little after 

sundown. “Two hundred thousand 

Indonesian Rupiah (IDR),” he said, 

opening the proceedings. I pulled out 

my notebook and began scribbling 

on the last page. “Fifty thousand 

rupiah,” I wrote. This went on for 

five minutes as we parried using 

fingers, ink, and notes of Indonesia’s 

hyper-inflated currency to 

express ourselves. Eventually we 

settled on IDR70,000/`345. 

The driver was a rider, and the 

taxi a bike. In Jakarta they are 

slender Bajaj-like bikes known 

as ojeks. In the city’s famously 

congested highways, where traffic 

stalls for vast swathes of time, 

the ojek is the best way to get 

around. Clutching feverishly to the back 

of the bike and snaking through waiting 

cars, over bridges and through side 

lanes—here was a bespoke adrenaline 

rush in a sprawling East Asian 

megapolis. 

Jakarta is panned as an overcrowded, 

hopelessly jam-packed 

city, but it’s still possible to eke out 

some good bits from Indonesia’s 

capital. The beaches are in Bali and 

the culture is in Jogjakarta, but if 

you’re passing through Jakarta, 

some fun can yet be had. 

The bike is of course a means 

of transport rather than a 

tourist attraction, yet the ojek 

for the ojek’s sake certainly has 

its moments. (If you really want 

to go native, you should buy 

an anti-pollution face mask— 

now available in dazzling 

colours, cutting-edge patterns and often 

embossed with movie characters.) The 

reason I had needed one in the first 

place was because I was just coming 

from the city’s old town—Batavia—the 

former Dutch centre. The hulking ships 

lurk near the water’s edge, and a whiff of 

colonial hangover still pervades the area. 

To get to Sunda Kelapa, the old port, 

I had to take a cycle taxi from the old 

square, perched precariously as the old 

cyclist pulled my weight. I deboarded 

and took a little ride around the harbour. 

“Fifty-thousand rupiah,” began the 

whiskery boatman, as he tried to lure me 

into his little wooden vessel. The port 

has none of the grandeur from times 

past, but it has a certain gravitas and 

character. It’s Jakarta’s faint nod to its 

Dutch past. The boatman ultimately 

prevailed, though I only parted with 

IDR20,000/`100 for a quick tour of the 

HANAFICHI/ISTOCK (CITY), BHAVYA DORE (STATUE) 


Navigate | URBAN EXPLORER 

very dark grey swampy waters. 

The Fatahillah square in Batavia is 

somewhat more appealing—it represents 

the old settlement established by the 

colonisers. The area was once the centre 

of the Dutch East Indies and a lively 

site of the bustling spice trade that 

dominated the 17th and 18th centuries. 

The 1.3 square kilometres of the heritage 

quarter has a clutch of museums and 

places to eat; though even simply 

walking around is its own pleasure. 

That apart, the city has a few 

monuments, many are concentrated 

in the centre. Monumen Nasional 

(Monas), Jakarta’s national monument, 

at the spiritual heart is a monument 

commemorating the Indonesian 

independence struggle, and is 

determinedly minimalist. Visitors can 

take an elevator to the observation 

deck that offers grand views of the 

city. Nearby is the impressive National 

Museum of Indonesia; covering various 

periods of history and showcasing 

multiple cultural artefacts. (Monas, 

daily 8.30 a.m.- 5 p.m.; closed last 

Mon of the month; National Museum, 

www.museumnasional.or.id; open 

Tue-Fri 8.30 a.m.-4 p.m., Sat-Sun 

8.30 a.m.-5 p.m.) 

However, one of the things the city is 

proudest of is its association with the 

former first citizen of the United States. 

At a school in the posh Menteng area is 

a statue erected in honour of its most 

famous student; Barry to schoolmates, 

President Obama to everyone else. 

“A young boy named Barry,” says the 

commemorative plaque, “played with his 

mother Ann in Menteng area. He grew 

up to be the 44th president of the United 

States and Nobel peace prize winner 

Barack Obama.” He spent four years 

of his childhood in the country after 

his mother married Lolo Sotero, her 

Indonesian second husband. 

By the time I had arrived at the Barry 

pilgrimage halt, I had spent my third day 

in the capital, and was ready to hit the 

smaller towns outside. But not before 

one last stop that evening: the Skye bar 

and restaurant. This is one among other 

bars in the city lording over everything 

The Indonesian rupiah (top left) has been revalued several times due to periods of economic 

inflation; The 500-year-old Sunda Kelapa harbour (top) was an important port for the 

15th-century Pajajaran kingdom as well as the Portuguese; The best way to navigate Jakarta’s 

bustling roads is on a motorcycle taxi or ojek (bottom). 

from a suitably high vantage point. It’s 

on the 56th floor, and sits atop a mall. 

At night, as the bright lights in the big 

city come on, what better way to sign 

Orientation Jakarta is a sprawling 

megapolis in northwest Java, with a 

population of 9.6 million. 

Getting There Singapore Airlines, 

Malindo, Air India, all fly to Jakarta 

from Mumbai and Delhi with a stop at a 

Southeast Asian gateway. 

Getting Around Blue Bird Taxis are 

THE VITALS 

off from the capital than with a beer in 

hand, from a vertiginously high rooftop? 

(www.ismaya.com; daily 4 p.m.-1 a.m.; 

beer from IDR60,000/`290.) 

reasonable, air-conditioned, ply by meter, 

and can be hailed on the spot. Ojeks, the 

motorcycle taxis, are a speedy delight, 

and can be hailed on the spot as well. 

Bargaining might get you a better price. 

Visa For Indian tourists, visas can be 

obtained on arrival. A 30-day singleentry 

visa costs $35/`2,260. 

KZENON/SHUTTERSTOCK (BOAT), FIGHTBEGIN/ISTOCK (MEN), DIDIONA.SHUTTERSTOCK (MONEY) 


Navigate | NATIONAL PARK 

In the Eye of the Tiger 

A BOAT TRIP THROUGH THE SUNDARBANS MANGROVES YIELDS MANY SECRETS 

TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHS BY RIDDHI MUKHERJEE 

The lush mangroves of the Sundarbans 

teem with creatures big and small, 

like the rhesus macaques and the 

brown-winged kingfisher (bottom). 

Ever since I read Amitav Ghosh’s 

The Hungry Tide as a boy, 

I’ve been fascinated with the 

Sundarbans. I first visited the 

national park in 2015, and have been 

back many times since. On Google 

Maps, the mangrove forest appears as 

a small patch of green along the coast, 

crisscrossed by veins of blue. But once 

you get to Godkhali Ghat ferry point and 

set off in a boat, the Sundarbans emerge 

as an immense, mysterious jungle, 

a birthplace of myths that is 

ruled by tigers. 

The boat trip I took 

on my last visit to the 

Sundarbans yielded 

some amazing 

wildlife encounters, 

thanks to my crew, 

especially my guide Mrityunjay Mondal. 

On the second day, Mrityunjay 

was scanning the forest from the 

Sudhanyakhali watchtower with his 

binoculars, when he spotted a rare and 

elusive leopard cat. We watched the 

graceful feline for a few seconds before 

it vanished into the forest. I also 

managed to photograph the seldom 

seen green-bellied malkoha from the 

same spot. 

Another day, we heard a tiger 

growling near the Panchamukhani 

Zone while sitting down to lunch. 

Ignoring our food, we scanned 

every inch of the mangrove 

thicket. Suddenly, another 

tiger’s call pierced the air. My guide 

guessed it might be a mating pair. The 

tension grew as our boat cruised slowly 

forward. Suddenly, about 30 feet away 

from us, behind the scraggy trees, was 

an immense male Bengal tiger. He let us 

photograph him for a leisurely 10 to 15 

minutes before ambling into the forest. 

Sticking to the middle of the river, we 

soon spotted a large female with a tawny 

coat, who prowled along the banks 

before disappearing into the thicket. 

Their intermittent roars continued, and 

later in the day we heard them chasing a 

group of chital. 

Another evening, just as we left 

the protected area around teatime, 

Mrityunjay spotted two huge saltwater 

crocodiles swimming towards us at an 

incredible pace. Soon, they were right 

beside our boat, swimming behind each 

other or side by side. Then, amazingly, 

the trailing crocodile gained speed, 



catching the other one by surprise. All 

hell broke loose and the river turned 

turbulent as the titans engaged in a 

dramatic fight. I teared up in gratitude 

for having witnessed this when it came 

time to say my goodbyes to the crew. 

EXPLORE 

Because of the muddy terrain, the only 

way to explore the park is by boat. Due 

to safety reasons walking in the forest 

is prohibited, except for around the 

watchtowers, with a guide as escort. 

The forest department issues dawnto-dusk 

permits for the forest’s various 

zones: Sajnekhali, Sudhanyakhali, 

Pirkhali, Lebu Khali, Bonbibi Varani, 

Panchamukhani, Netidhopani, Dobanki, 

Sarakkhali, and Choragaji. It is common 

to see many other boats as well in these 

open parts of the forest. 

The landscape—a blue sky reflected 

on dark green waters—does not vary 

much between these zones, but each 

has its own charm. The Sudhanyakhali 

Watchtower is a well-known vantage 

point, located about 25 kilometres from 

Canning and accessible by boat. Visitors 

can catch the sunrise and then pray for 

a tiger sighting to the forest goddess 

Bonbibi at a shrine located at the tower’s 

base. At the Dobanki Watchtower, a 

canopy walk allows visitors a closer 

look at the mangrove vegetation and 

habitat. Guided village walks are also 

recommended. At sunset, visitors must 

return to their resorts or specified 

spots where boats can drop anchor for 

the night. 

WILDLIFE 

Though the Bengal tiger is king of the 

Sundarbans, there are many other 

species of beasts and birds in this rich 

habitat. Others felines include the 

leopard cat, fishing cat, and jungle cat. 

Chital deer, rhesus macaques, and wild 

boar hide among the trees, and water 

animals include otters, water monitor 

lizards, Irrawaddy dolphins, Gangetic 

dolphins, and saltwater crocodiles. 

There are also elusive snakes and 

colourful birds of all sorts. 

A dedicated naturalist and wildlife 

photographer can make spotting animals 

much more rewarding. Way2Wild 

organises nature study and photography 

tours with experienced trackers and 

naturalists (www.way2wild.in; `13,500 

per person for a 2-night/3-day photo 

A boat safari (top and middle right) in the Sundarbans gets you a front seat to all the action, 

be it spotting a red-tailed bamboo pit viper (middle left) at the Sudhanyakhali watchtower, or 

watching a vicious fight between saltwater crocodiles (bottom). 



Tigers are the main draw at the Sundarbans, 

a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Since a large 

area of the mangroves is often underwater, 

these big cats are expert swimmers and can 

survive on fish, crab, and other crustaceans. 

tour; includes all meals, jungle cruises, 

and transfers to and from Kolkata). 

SAFARI TIMINGS AND COSTS 

The park is open throughout the year. 

August to mid-February are the more 

pleasant months to visit, and October 

to January the most popular, with 

perfect tidal conditions. The weather 

gets temperamental from mid-March 

to July. Permits can be obtained from 

the Sajnekhali forest office. The safaris 

usually take place from dawn to dusk. 

Boat permit is `400 per person for 

all other zones except the interior 

Netidhopani zone, which is near the core 

area and costs `800. Visitors pay `60- 

120 depending on the season. All forest 

permits can be obtained from Sajnekhali 

forest office which is an hour and a half 

from Godkhali. 

GETTING THERE AND AROUND 

The nearest airport is Kolkata, which 

is about 100 km/3 hr north of the 

Godkhali Ghat ferry point. From 

Godkhali, the rest of the journey is by 

boat. Boat charges range from `3,000- 

10,000 per day depending on the craft 

and the season (Nov-Jan are peak 

months). Most resorts can arrange a 

boat safari; I recommend Shuvarthi 

Guha (98367 11148), Gouranga Mondal 

(80177 38940), and Nitai Mondal 

(97329 09545, 90910 36626) who have 

travelled with many photographers and 

understand their pace. 

STAY 

Boats The best way to enjoy the 

Sundarbans is to sit on a boat in the 

middle of the river with a hot cup of tea, 

listening to the stories of the naturalists 

and boatmen. Boats can be hired from 

Godkhali Ghat, and most have kitchens, 

beds, and bathrooms. 

Resorts Besides boat stays, resorts, 

too, provide packages that include 

accommodation, food, boat safaris, 

and village walks. Tora Camp situated 

on Bali Island provides an authentic 

village experience (www.toraresort.in; 

doubles from `5,883). Sundarban Tiger 

Camp, also in Dayapur, is an eco-friendly 

resort with rooms decorated with locally 

sourced materials (www.waxpolhotel. 

com; doubles from `4,810). West Bengal 

Government’s Sajnekhali Tourist Lodge 

in Pakhiralaya village is a good budget 

option (www.wbtdc.gov.in/Static_ 

Pages/sajnekhali_lodge.html; doubles 

from `2,500). 

SUNDARBANS TRIVIA 

Sundarbans has been significant 

ever since the Mughal era. It was first 

surveyed under Akbar’s reign and has 

since been an important place for 

sourcing timber, honey, paraffin, salt 

and fish. It was under the governance of 

the East India Company since 1756 and 

was declared a national park in 1984. 

Around 14 per cent of its population 

of four million subsists on agriculture. 

The others live off the forest and 

river and collect honey and fish for 

their livelihood. 

In the Sundarbans, the Hindus and 

Muslims worship the same gods. The 

cult of Bonbibi (the goddess of forests) 

and Dakshin Rai, the tiger god, are 

widely followed here. 


Navigate | SUPERSTRUCTURES 

Volcanic Passion 

BASALTIC DESIGN FORMATIONS MEET A MINIMALIST AESTHETIC IN REYKJAVÍK BY RUMELA BASU 

Architect Guðjón Samuel 

never saw the completion 

of his iconic creation which 

now adorns every postcard, 

poster, and magnet in Reykjavík, 

Iceland. The Hallgrímskirkja church, 

at Hallgrímstorg 1, was built in honour 

of the saint and poet Hallgrímur 

Pétursson, well-known for his work 

“Hymns of the Passion”, a collection that 

is still played on the radio for Lent every 

year. The building is not only the city’s 

most recognisable structure but also the 

tallest church in the country. 

Samuel was fascinated with the 

shapes that formed when lava cooled 

down to basalt and envisioned a design 

for the city inspired by basalt rocks. 

Hallgrímskirkja’s facade embodies 

this vision. Its long, dark central tower 

and sloping sides resemble a gigantic 

stalagmite of cooled lava residue, one 

that is 245 feet tall. 

When it was first proposed, the 

unconventional design raised eyebrows. 

However, after 40 years in the making 

from 1945-1986, it is one of the city’s 

landmark symbols. The church is visible 

from almost every corner of Reykjavík 

and hardly any visitor returns without 

having visited it. 

For its imposing grand exterior, 

the interior is rather simple. Tall grey 

columns flank the aisle leading to the 

altar and seem to curve into pointed 

arches creating a canopy punctuated 

by large glass windows. In the long 

rows of seats, wood and basalt-coloured 

upholstery complement each other. The 

most eye-catching feature inside is a 

pipe organ added in December 1992, 

about 50 feet tall and with 5,275 pipes. 

The 25-tonne organ made by German 

organ builder Johannes Klaishas 

featured in pieces by international 

concert organist Christopher Herrick. 

Visitors enter through stained glassfitted 

doors to stand right below it and 

then walk towards a small stage 

beside which is the altar. The 

minimalist interiors are all a reflection 

of the Lutheran roots of the 

church and give it a distinctly Gothic 

design aesthetic. 

The Hallgrímskirkja offers an 

unparalleled view of the city. And 

elevator through its bell tower leads to 

an open-air observation deck. From 

that vantage point the Hallgrímskirkja 

feels like a sentinel quietly watching 

over Reykjavík. 

A statue of Leifur Eiriksson, said to be 

the first European to discover America, 

looks out to rooftops of waterfront 

homes in the distance. The houses and 

lanes stretch out to meet the azure 

waters of an inlet of the Norwegian 

Sea and to the viewer atop the tower, 

Reykjavík spreads out below like a 

colourful carpet. 

(www.hallgrimskirkja.is; Oct-May 

9 a.m.-5 p.m., Jun-Sep 9 a.m.-9p.m.; 

Sunday service 11 a.m.; tower entry 

adults ISK900/`520, children 7-14 

ISK100/`60.) 

Every night, lights illuminate 

the Hallgrímskirkja church and 

the statue of Leifur Eiriksson, 

credited for discovering 

America almost 500 years 

before Columbus. 

FOTOVOYAGER/ISTOCK 


Navigate | HERITAGE 

Culture is Looking Up 

MORE THAN ITS ARTEFACTS, THE NAPIER MUSEUM IN THIRUVANANTHAPURAM IS 

WORTH VISITING FOR ITS MESMERISING CEILING BY SUDHA PILLAI 

The 19th-century design of Thiruvananthapuram’s Napier Museum is an amalgam of Kerala, Chinese, Italian, and Mughal architecture. 

Summers can be ‘hot as Hades’ 

in Thiruvananthapuram in 

God’s Own Country, except 

in one place in the city—the 

Napier Museum with its natural air 

conditioning. Right then, though, 

standing in the middle of this landmark 

building in the city, I could hear my 

friend’s voice in my head: “Don’t forget 

to look up at the ceiling,” he had said. 

When you think of overwhelming 

ceilings, you think of the Sistine Chapel 

or the Blue Mosque in Istanbul or the 

Sensoji Temple in Tokyo. Museums 

usually do not feature on the list. The 

only deviation is the National Gallery 

of Victoria in Melbourne: its 200-footlong 

ceiling is made of 10,000 pieces of 

hand-cut glass in 50 different colours. 

At Napier, I find myself with my mouth 

agape at hand-painted frescoes on the 

coffered ceiling of one of the oldest 

museums in the country. 

Situated inside a garden spread 

over 55 acres, the Napier Museum 

was established in 1857, and in 1880 

the old building was demolished and 

a new structure built by Ayilyam 

Thirunal Maharaja of Travancore. It 

I walked around the museum 

and discovered art and history 

in nooks and corners, roofs, 

balconies, and ceilings. It was 

like finding forgotten ancestral 

treasures in the attic 

was designed by the English architect 

Robert Chisholm who was sent to 

‘Trevendrum’ by Lord Napier, 

the Governor General of the then 

Madras Presidency. 

Chisholm conceived a museum 

based on the local architectural style. 

However, Kerala’s native architecture 

has for long been influenced by the 

cultures of its trading partners— 

Chinese, Japanese, Arabs, Europeans 

and so on. Hence Chisholm’s ‘native 

design’ was, in fact, a combination of 

Kerala, Chinese, Italian, and Mughal 

architecture. It can be seen in the 

Gothic roof, minarets, hand-painted 

frescoes and extensive ornamentation 

of the museum. This dreamy, romantic, 

and fusionistic style is known as 

TSCREATIONZ/SHUTTERSTOCK 

MAY 2017 | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA 47

Navigate | HERITAGE 

Napier museum’s facade features many interesting minute details like oriel windows that are supported by carved wooden horse corbels (left). 

Inside, the historical artefacts (bottom right) battle for attention with the vaulted ceiling adorned with handpainted frescoes (top right). 

Indo-Saracenic (Saracenic is derived 

from the word Saracen, an archaic 

name for Muslims given by the British). 

Also known as Indo-Gothic, it was the 

style of architecture used by British 

architects in late 19th century India. 

It drew elements from native Indian 

architecture and combined it with 

the Gothic revival style favoured in 

Victorian Britain. But even with so 

many styles and influences in play, 

Napier Museum did not end up a 

mish-mash of a museum. Only to the 

destitute of vision, the museum might 

be a garish amalgamation. 

Aeons ago, a visitor told a curator 

of the Napier Museum: “I suggest 

you remove all the artefacts from this 

building. Because the building itself is an 

elegant object d’art and should be viewed 

singularly without any distractions.” I 

concur. For the next couple of hours, 

the rare artefacts, idols, carvings, coins, 

and paintings in the museum became 

invisible to me. Craning my neck 

upwards, I walk around the museum to 

discover art and history in nooks and 

corners, arches, balconies, and ceilings. 

It was like finding forgotten ancestral 

treasures in the attic. Riches wrapped 

in fables and fantasies, waiting to reveal 

themselves to those who come looking. 

The museum has three massive halls 

connected by long corridors. The walls 

are striped—in pink, blue, yellow, and 

cherry red. They augment the scalloped 

arches in banana yellow colour with 

red, white and pink latticework. It is 

a cornucopia of colours; as exciting 

and eye-popping as a chilled glass of 

falooda on a hot summer afternoon. 

Wide balconies flank the central hall 

at both ends, and they are supported 

by wooden corbels that have intricately 

carved yalis or dragons. Stained-glass 

windows stipple the walls throwing 

up magnificent play of light. The ledge 

above the doors carries the statues and 

carved figurines of goddesses. Floral 

motifs embellish the friezes on the 

walls. These are interspersed with the 

design of Valmpuri shankhu or the 

conch shell of Lord Vishnu—the deity 

of the royal family of Travancore and 

also the royal insignia. 

By now, there should be a crick in 

my neck. But I don’t feel it as I get 

SUDHA PILLAI 


caught up in all the action above. The 

museum’s vaulted ceiling has handpainted 

panels, beams, and cross-beams 

in teakwood with muted gold-coloured 

inlays that sparkle in the light. Oriental 

frescoes of flowers and leaves in yellow, 

red, green and earthy colours contrast 

the wooden braggers of dragons 

supporting the painted beams. The 

colours on the frescoes seem to change 

with the light of the day. The frescoes, 

which have been painted using natural 

vegetable dyes have withstood the test 

of time and remain, one of the chief 

attractions of the museum. 

I wind my way up the dusty, neglected 

narrow stairway to the top of one of 

the four watchtowers. At the end of 

it is a breathtaking aerial view of the 

museum and the city beyond. The roof 

resembles a well-constructed abstract 

work or an exciting board game. A 

closer look reveals the ornamental 

stone projections of the gable roof. It 

is truly an artisan’s labour of love. 

Otherwise, how does one explain the 

decorated railing or cresting along 

the ridge of the roof where it is bound 

to go unnoticed and unappreciated? 

From this vantage point, I could see the 

extensively decorated pediments of the 

gable roof. There are also bargeboards 

or decorative woodwork on the rafters 

projecting from the roof. The soffits 

are in terracotta, stone, and wood. The 

building is dotted with oriel windows, 

supported by richly carved corbels 

and tassels in the form of mythical 

horses. This is a characteristic feature 

often seen in Victorian and Arab 

(mashrabiyya) architecture. 

It is blazing hot outside, but I am 

yet to break a sweat while walking up 

and down inside the museum. The 

famed natural air cooling of Napier 

Museum is at work. The museum has 

double walls with ventilators, which 

trap the hot air, tempering it before 

allowing it to flow into the museum, 

providing a cooling effect without any 

modern air conditioners. Understandably, 

footfalls to the museum increase 

during the summer season, I am told. 

The Napier Museum with its Gothic 

structure, high arches, intricately carved 

balustrades, hand-painted frescos and 

stone ornamentations stands testimony 

to a cultural sharing from aeons ago. I 

have always wondered why some of the 

most famous artworks in the world were 

high up on the ceilings of monumental 

structures. What was the purpose? I 

discovered that the act of looking up 

could lead to an uplifting experience. 

I am glad I listened to my friend and 

“looked up”. 

THE VITALS 

Getting There The Napier Museum 

is on L.M.S Vellayambalam Road 

in Thiruvananthapuram’s Kanaka 

Nagar. It is 3 km away from the 

Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway 

Station and 9 km from the airport. 

Open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 

Saturday, Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; 

Wednesdays 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; closed 

on Mondays. 

Despite soaring temperatures outside, the natural air-conditioning system of the museum ensures the interiors are always cool. 

SUDHA PILLAI 


Navigate | SMART CITIES 

Maximum City 

FUTURISTIC LIBRARIES, OPEN-AIR MUSEUMS, AND AVANT-GARDE RESTAURANTS: THE DANISH CITY 

OF AARHUS LOVES TO SPRING A SURPRISE BY ADAM H. GRAHAM 

Situated about 160 kilometres 

northwest of Copenhagen, 

Aarhus has been designated 

a 2017 European Capital 

of Culture, and both the city and the 

central Denmark region received the 

title of the 2017 European Region of 

Gastronomy. To see it now is to witness 

a city undergoing a transformation, 

as new food markets, light-rail links, 

futuristic libraries, refurbed hotels, 

and value-centric restaurants—an 

alterna-tive to Copenhagen’s exorbitant 

prices—have reinvigorated this 

Danish city. 

But Aarhus’s makeover has been in 

the works for the past several years. In 

2009 it announced plans to go carbon 

neutral by 2030, and it has stayed on 

track since. The city has evaluated 

70-plus new technologies to determine 

which will have the biggest impact on 

carbon reduction. 

Most of all, it’s presenting a variety of 

ways to experience its charms, both new 

and old. 

EAT! 

Food Fit for Vikings and Visitors 

Last August, Aarhus Street Food 

market opened in a former bus garage 

with around 20 vendors offering options 

such as grilled cheese with truffled 

vesterhavsost (a Danish Gouda), bao buns 

stuffed with beef and kimchi, and spicy 

Nigerian stews (aarhusstreetfood.com; 

open daily, check website for timings). 

Bryggeriet Sct. Clemens restaurant and 

brewery, located on the site of a Vikingage 

combmaker’s workshop, serves 

turbot with apple butter and fennel, 

dry-aged steaks, and hoppy pilsners 

(bryggeriet.dk; turbot DKK295/`2,710; 

open daily; check website for timings). 

Aarhus has three Michelin-starred spots, 

but eco-bistro Pondus was one of two 

to receive the Bib Gourmand, awarded 

to restaurants serving quality food at 

reasonable costs. Daily specials include 

goat cheese with lemon and walnut and 

silky cod soups (restaurantpondus.dk; 

set menu from DKK295/`2,710; open 

daily 5.30-11 p.m.). 

The 150-metre-long rainbow-coloured 

glass walkway known as “Your rainbow 

panorama” is not only an architectural 

feature but also a permanent art 

installation at the ARoS art museum. 

JULIAN BROAD 


The stairs of the Moesgaard Museum (top left) have seven hominin sculptures depicting the 

origin of humans; Hotel Royal (top right), opened in 1838, is one Aarhus’s iconic landmarks; The 

Salling Tower (middle) offers a 360° view of the harbour and city; At Den Gamle By or The Old 

Town, you can ride a horse-drawn carriage (bottom) and see buildings from the 16th century. 

STAY! 

Coastal Views, Modern Comforts 

Rest up on a quiet beach along a stretch of 

sandy Jutland coast at Marselis Hotel, a 

mid-century Aarhus respite that faces the 

calm Kattegat Sea (www.helnan.dk/en; 

doubles from DKK1,250/`11,500). For 

those who’d rather be downtown, try the 

Hotel Oasia, near Rådhusparken (City Hall 

Park), where 65 design-forward rooms are 

fitted with custom furniture from Danish 

makers like Montana and Kjærholm 

(www.hoteloasia.com; doubles from 

DKK895/`8,235). The newly revamped 

First Hotel Atlantic overlooks the city’s 

bustling harbour and the walled Aarhus 

River (www.firsthotels.com; doubles from 

DKK1,004/`9,235). 

PLAY! 

Architectural Amusement Park 

Mounted atop a dock at the edge of the 

harbour, Dokk1 is a heptagonal library 

that opened in 2015. The mixed-use 

facility is the largest public library in 

Scandinavia and hosts cultural events 

ranging from 3-D printing demos to table 

tennis meet-ups (dokk1.dk; library open 

Mon-Fri 8 a.m.-9 p.m., Sat-Sun 10 a.m.- 

4 p.m.). The wedge-shaped exterior of 

Moesgaard, an archaeology museum, 

protrudes from the ground like an 

excavated relic. Its galleries house the 

2,000-year-old Grauballe Man, a famed 

bog body discovered in Denmark in 1952, 

and interpretive displays on the Vikings 

and the Bronze and Iron Ages (www. 

moesgaardmuseum.dk; Monday closed; 

check website for timings; entry 23 Oct- 

7 Apr adults DKK120/`1,100, 8 Apr- 

22 Oct adults DKK140/`1,290; visitors 

under 17 free). And in 2017, ARoS, 

Aarhus’s massive art museum, will receive 

an open dome extension designed by 

American artist James Turrell (en.aros.dk; 

Monday closed; check website for timings; 

entry adults over 28 DKK130/`1,195, 

adults under 28 DKK100/`920, visitors 

under 18 free). 

SHOP! 

Cultural and Creative Souvenirs 

Den Gamle By is a living recreation of an 

old town, playing up several of Denmark’s 

historical periods. The 1864 Merchant’s 

House still hawks timber and porcelain, 

while 1920s chain store Schous Sæbehus 

sells perfumes and washing flakes 

(www.dengamleby.dk; open daily; check 

website for timings; entry adults from 

DKK110/`1,000, children under 17 free). 

For one-off designs of divider screens, 

tea cozies, and pillows, head to 1+1 Textil, 

which sells avant-garde Danish craftwork 

(www.1x1textil.dk; Sunday closed; check 

website for timings). 

JULIAN BROAD (WOMAN), QUINTIN LAKE (TOWER), JULIAN BROAD (RESTAURANT), CHRISTIAN GOUPI/AGE FOTOSTOCK/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (CARRIAGE). 


Navigate | MY CITY 

Like Russian Dolls 

DISCOVERING TRADITIONAL CUISINE AND HIDDEN HAUNTS IN MOSCOW BY JEFFREY TAYLER 

Built in the mid-1500s, 

St. Basil’s Cathedral in 

Red Square is one of 

Moscow’s most iconic 

structures; Delicatessen 

(bottom right) is a cocktail 

bar and restaurant popular 

with young Muscovites. 

Seeing the Kremlin at night 

always enthralls me, even 

after my 23 years in Moscow. 

The vista of brick towers and 

crenellated ramparts, so magnificent 

as to appear unreal, calls to mind an 

illuminated print from an old book of 

fairy tales. 

My sighting of Russia’s most famous 

(or infamous) fortress comes as my cab 

trundles over the Bolshoy Kamenny 

Bridge, through air shimmering with a 

fierce frost. Gusts of wind stir snowdrifts 

along the banks of the Moskva River 

below us. No less the seat of power 

now, during the era of Vladimir Putin, 

than it was in Ivan the Terrible’s day 

(or Stalin’s), the Kremlin evokes, for 

me, a mix of dread and majesty—the 

emotions I experienced as a child of the 

Cold War when I both feared Russia (I 

lived in Washington, D.C., aka ground 

zero) and marvelled at it. My fascination 

led to graduate studies in Russian and 

East European history, to my first visit 

in 1985, and to a move here for good in 

the summer of 1993. In 1999 I married a 

Russian. Moscow is the city I call home. 

The Kremlin, a walled citadel with five 

palaces and five churches, looms on my 

right as we shoot past vast Red Square, 

presided over by St. Basil’s Cathedral, 

NADIA ISAKOVA/AWL IMAGES (CATHEDRAL), CEDRIC ANGELES/INTERSECTION PHOTOS (WOMEN) 


with its candy cane cupolas. We drive by 

the State Duma (parliament), faceless 

and modern (and totally subservient 

to President Putin). Then comes 

Lubyanka Square and another bunker 

of a building, today housing the KGB’s 

successor, the FSB. Here one August 

night in 1991, crowds of Russians 

cheered as cranes dismantled the statue 

of Felix Dzerzhinsky, the blood-soaked 

founder of the Soviet secret police. 

Those were promising days, when 

real democratic change in Russia 

seemed possible. These days, Western 

sanctions threaten the highest living 

standard Russians have ever known. 

For all but dollar- and euro-bearing 

travellers (feeling blessed by the rouble’s 

devaluation), now should be a cheerless 

time in Moscow. But it’s not. 

My cab leaves me at a restaurant near 

Lubyanka, Ekspeditsiya (expedition). 

It’s crowded, loud with folk songs sung 

by a group of musicians and customers 

clinking glasses and toasting. I have 

come for lively conversation and 

traditional Russian cuisine; since the 

fall of the Soviet Union more than 

two decades ago, Russian cooking has 

become something of a rarity in Moscow, 

at least outside people’s homes. (Most 

top restaurants are international.) 

I’m joined by Irina, a Muscovite 

friend who staunchly defends Putin. 

The evening promises to be interesting. 

Over drinks and cedar nuts, Irina 

enlightens me. 

“Russians,” she says, “have always 

been conquering wild country. We 

are always ready to light out for the 

wilderness, even in subzero frosts. We 

need difficulties to thrive. That is just 

who we are.” 

Settling wildernesses also meant eating 

unpalatable things, including some 

“delicacies” on our menus—marinated 

moose with cabbage, grilled reindeer 

tongue with cowberry sauce. I choose 

a safe favourite, pelmeni (dumplings), 

specifically Siberian pelmeni stuffed with 

deer meat and smothered in delicious 

smetana, or sour cream. We wash the 

meal down with a half litre of vodka, 

which we drink straight, the Russian way. 

The next time we meet, it is at Club 

Mayak, a restaurant in the middle of 

“Old Moscow,” a web of lanes winding 

between low stucco houses dating from a 

century or two ago. Once the dining area 

of the Mayakovsky theatre next door, 

Supersize matryoshka dolls (top) at Afimall shopping centre are an example of the role art and 

design play in this historic city; A temple to gourmet foods since 1901 (and renovated in 2004), 

the neo-baroque Eliseevsky emporium (bottom) specializes in caviar and other delicacies. 

Club Mayak now serves as a low-key 

gathering place for some of Moscow’s 

best known actors, writers, and 

journalists. With a red-walled interior, 

careworn furniture, and sepia-tinted 

lighting, there are no pretensions here 

(www.clubmayak.ru; glass of wine 

from RUB200/`230) 

Over some wine and a plate of 

European cheeses, served despite an 

official ban on such goods, I ask Irina 

what the future holds. 

“We went through World War II and 

we won,” she replies. “I am not worried.” 

I’m feeling a bit less sanguine. But 

I do know this: Whatever happens in 

Russia, its fate will be decided, one 

way or another, here in Moscow—a 

fact that continues to fuel this city’s 

indomitable spirit. 

JEREMY NICHOLL PHOTOGRAPHY (GIANT DOLLS), FRANK HEUER/LAIF/REDUX (STORE) 


Navigate | ROAD TRIP 

The Painted Hills of John 

Day Fossil Beds National 

Monument illuminate the 

central Oregon landscape. 

When High and Dry 

COMING AROUND THE BEND IN CENTRAL OREGON, U.S.A BY JULIAN SMITH 

Oregon in northwest U.S.A. 

has more than its fair share 

of craggy coastline and 

dense, mossy forest. So it’s 

easy to forget that once you get east 

of the snow-capped Cascades Range, 

a good chunk of the state is high, dry, 

and sparsely populated. This three-day 

itinerary out of the city of Bend explores 

Oregon’s sublime high desert country, 

where the vistas are broad and the skies 

tell stories all their own. 

Rock climbers know Smith Rock 

State Park, 42 kilometres north of 

Bend, as one of the birthplaces of 

modern sport climbing in the United 

States. Even if you’re a climbing novice, 

it’s hard not to be impressed with 

the cliffs of volcanic tuff and basalt 

soaring above the aptly named Crooked 

River. There’s a walk-in campsite 

MARC ADAMUS 


Oregon’s fiery origins are 

etched in its jagged Cascades 

skyline—and also in an active 

Newberry shield volcano 

that’s a little smaller 

than Delhi 

10 Barrel Brewing Company in Bend, Oregon, serves six kinds of microbrews on tap. 

and an extensive trail network, the 

12.3-kilometre Summit Trail Loop, 

open to hikers and bikers, that winds 

along the river before climbing almost 

a thousand feet. For a closer look 

at climbers in action, take the 1.6- 

kilometre-long trail up and over Misery 

Ridge. Keep an eye out for river otters at 

the bottom and golden eagles up high. 

In the piny forest 13 kilometres south 

of Bend, the High Desert Museum 

offers a concise but in-depth overview 

of central Oregon’s natural and human 

history. Resident critters include 

porcupines, a bobcat, a Gila monster, 

and two river otters. Check the daily 

schedule for raptor flight 

demonstrations and 

activities at the Miller 

Family Ranch, where 

re-enactors explain life on 

the frontier at a model of 

a 1904 homestead and an 

authentic sawmill. 

Oregon’s fiery origins 

are etched in its jagged 

Cascades skyline—and 

also in an active Newberry 

shield volcano that’s 

a little smaller than 

Delhi. Start your visit 

to Newberry National 

Volcanic Monument at 

the Lava Lands Visitor 

Center, 13 kilometres 

Lava 

Lands 

Visitor 

Center 

97 

Deschutes 

south of Bend, where you can drive to 

the top of the perfect cinder cone of 

Lava Butte for views of a 7,000-year-old 

lava flow. From there it’s a five-minute 

drive to Lava River Cave, where a 1.6 

kilometre-long trail leads down into the 

darkness. (Bring warm clothes for the 

underground chill; you can rent lamps at 

the trailhead.) Another 45 minutes’ drive 

south is the 44-square-kilometre caldera 

itself, now filled with two large lakes 

instead of molten lava. Here you’ll find 

trailheads to 7,984-foot Paulina Peak 

and the Big Obsidian Flow, an under 

two-kilometres-long hike sprinkled with 

black volcanic glass. 

97 

Bend 

Smith Rock 

State Park 

High Desert Museum 

NEWBERRY NATIONAL 

VOLCANIC MONUMENT 

Paulina Peak 

7,984 ft 

2,434 m 

Painted Hills 

26 

10 mi 

10 km 

Crooked 

Thomas 

Condon 

Paleontology 

Center 

JOHN DAY 

FOSSIL BEDS 

NATIONAL 

MONUMENT 

AREA 

ENLARGED 

Portland 

OREGON 

It’s a longer drive to the Painted Hills, 

137 kilometres northeast of Bend, but 

the sight of late-afternoon light on the 

kaleidoscopically coloured slopes is 

something you’ll never forget. They’re 

one of three scattered units of the John 

Day Fossil Beds National Monument, 

where 40 million years of plant and 

animal evolution have been preserved 

in stone and soil. The nearby Thomas 

Condon Paleontology Center houses 

exhibits and a working lab where 

researchers pore over one of the most 

complete fossil records on Earth. 

A cold brew may seem like a mirage 

after the desert, but luckily Bend has 

more craft breweries per capita than 

anywhere else in this beer-crazy state— 

which is about one for every 4,500 

residents at last count, and that’s not 

including distilleries or cideries. The 

Bend Ale Trail connects ten breweries 

within about a kilometre of downtown, 

including two by Deschutes Brewery, 

the granddaddy of them all. Most offer 

food on site, like the Crux Fermentation 

Project, with a wide lawn, picnic tables, 

and a taco stand out back. (Their 

Doublecross Strong Dark Belgian Ale 

packs a tasty punch.) If you would rather 

not drive, take a guided tour by bus 

or “cycle pub,” a 14-passenger, pedalpowered 

rolling bar. 

With a full day of volcano 

hiking and an evening of 

sipping local suds, you’ll 

need to unwind in the hot 

tub at the Oxford Hotel, a 

26 

boutique eco-hotel in the 

heart of historic downtown 

Bend. All 59 rooms face 

south for maximum 

sunlight, with French press 

coffeemakers and cruiser 

bikes available to guests— 

they even have loaner 

guitars, if you’re feeling 

so inclined. Some suites 

have kitchenettes, steam 

showers, and balconies with 

views of the Cascades. 

THOMAS PATTERSON/THE NEW YORK TIMES/REDUX (BAR), NG MAPS (MAP) 


SMART TRAVELLER 

checking in 

Exploring an Australian guest 

56 58 

house with a wild, green heart 

checking in 

Spectacular lodges, romantic resorts, 

and historic hotels around the world 

Built using mud brick and timber, 

the Great Ocean Ecolodge is off the 

grid, drawing energy from the sun, 

and harvesting water from the rain. 

Conserve Their Energy 

COSY UP WITH TIGER QUOLLS AT THE GREAT OCEAN ECOLODGE IN AUSTRALIA | BY SONAL SHAH 

I 

woke up to sunlight streaming into 

my room through large French 

windows. Within minutes, a strong 

wind buffeted the leaves of a gum 

tree outside, bringing with it clouds 

rolling in from the coast of Cape 

Otway in southern Victoria, towards 

the Otway mountains. Moments later, 

the sky was overcast, then pouring. 

I huddled into my blankets, feeling 

as snug as a possum in a hollow— 

appropriately the name of my room 

at the Great Ocean Ecolodge. 

Each room is named for an animal 

home, and the ethos of the guest house 

is that it should sit as lightly on its 

165-acre surroundings as any burrow 

or nest. In fact, for owners Lizzie Corke 

and Shayne Neal, the rustic lodge is 

secondary to the Conservation Ecology 

Centre they founded here in 2000, as 

recent graduates. 

The lodge, which is solar-powered 

and runs on rainwater, opened in 

2004 to fund the conservation centre’s 

research, wildlife rehabilitation, and 

habitat restoration programmes. 

However, nothing about it felt like an 

afterthought as I stepped into the cosy 

main area full of books and bird’s nests. 

A wood-stove heated the sitting room, 

with a chimney that carried warmth 

to other parts of the house. Resisting 

the temptation to sit next to the fire, I 

followed Shayne outside instead. 

The sun shone briefly over a field 

behind the lodge, where a mob of 

eastern grey kangaroos grazed, 

bounding silently towards the cover 

PHOTO COURTESY: MARK CHEW 


of a stand of trees as we neared. At the 

entrance to a forested area, a koala 

slept, hugging a manna gum tree 

branch. As I followed Shayne into 

the forest, it began drizzling again, 

the rain dripping off musty brown 

stringy bark and messmate trees, 

onto the lush undergrowth. Shayne 

described the burn cycle of this 

ecosystem, and about the erstwhile 

Aboriginal fire regime, which created 

mosaics of new and old forest, 

attracting different species. 

The species at the heart of the 

centre’s recent conservation work is 

the tiger quoll, or spotted quoll. The 

largest marsupial predator on mainland 

Australia, it is a bit smaller than 

its island cousin, the Tasmanian devil. 

We circled back to an enclosure, which 

houses two tiger quolls, both sheltering 

from the rain when we arrived. Lifting 

up a hollow log, Shayne revealed a large 

brown marsupial, with its distinctive 

white spots. 

Once thought to be to locally extinct 

in the Otways, this top apex predator 

has been sighted a few times in the 

region over the past couple of years. 

Well camouflaged, solitary, and mostly 

nocturnal, quolls are difficult to study 

in the wild. Catching them requires 

sedation, as their jaws, second in 

strength only to the Tasmanian devil, 

could take your fingers off. Instead, 

the centre has trained local dogs to 

scent quoll scat, using them to find 

the animal’s communal pit-stops, and 

trained dog-owners to gather data 

related to sightings. 

This also has the effect of spreading 

information about tiger quolls, which 

helps fundraising efforts. “It is human 

nature,” Shayne said, “people need 

to be able to see them.” At the top of 

the native food chain, the tiger quoll 

was once an important stabilising 

force in the local ecosystem, and 

could be key to understanding the 

population dynamics of its prey, as 

well as their herbaceous food sources. 

“If you deal with the apex predator,” 

Shayne said, “there are follow-on effects 

for other species.” 

Leaving the animals to sleep in 

peace, we turned towards the warmth 

of the lodge. The fire was roaring, and 

breakfast had been laid out, with flaky 

croissants, home-made cereals, and 

jams. If the tiger quolls feel even half 

as well provided for, they’ll hopefully 

stick around a long time yet. 

THE VITALS 

Accommodation The two-storey 

Great Ocean Ecolodge has five country 

chic rooms, some of which have 

sundecks. The en-suite bathrooms 

are simple but luxurious, and the 

rooms have basic amenities like coffee 

and tea, and desks (no televisions). 

Meals incorporate produce from the 

lodge’s kitchen gardens. Continental 

breakfast is included and other meals 

can be booked along with rooms 

(greatoceanecolodge.com; doubles 

from AUD380/`18,550, minimum 

two-night stay; includes breakfast and a 

guide walk at dusk). 

Getting There The Great Ocean 

Ecolodge is located just over 200 km 

southwest of Melbourne, a 3.5-hr trip 

via the scenic Great Ocean Road, along 

the route to the iconic 12 Apostles. 

Conservation Ecology Centre - Conservation and Research Assistant 

feeding orphaned Swamp Wallaby - credit Mark Watson. 

The endangered tiger quoll (top) is distinguished by his spotted tail; Little jars of homemade 

jams (bottom right) accompany breakfast at the Great Ocean Ecolodge; The guest house is full 

of illustrated nature books and curios (bottom left). 

PHOTO COURTESY: LUCIA GRIGGI (TIGER QUOLL), SONAL SHAH (BOOKS & JAM) 


Smart Traveller | CHECKING IN 

Making Room 

THESE SPECTACULARLY SITUATED LODGES, ROMANTIC RESORTS, REVIVED HISTORIC HOTELS, 

AND NEIGHBOURHOOD HUBS NOW INSPIRE US TO TRAVEL | BY ELAINE GLUSAC 

EPIC VIEWS 

PANORAMIC WINDOWS ONTO 

THE WORLD 

The canvas domed tents at Asilia’s The 

Highlands perch on the forested slopes 

of a volcano in Tanzania’s Ngorongoro 

Crater area. The sustainable lodge is 

a perfect base for game drives to spot 

elephants, buffalo, zebras, and leopards 

(www.asiliaafrica.com; doubles from 

$430/`27,730; rates vary according 

to season; includes all meals, selected 

hikes, game drives, and transfers to/ 

from Manyara airstrip). Shades of blue 

saturate the sea-to-sky views from 

Le Barthélemy Hotel, on St. Barths’ 

Grand Cul-de-Sac beach (www. 

lebarthelemyhotel.com; doubles from 

€576/`39,450; includes breakfast, water 

sports, and transfers to/from airport or 

harbour). At Amanemu, private terraces 

Geodesic tents at Asilia’s 

The Highlands, in Tanzania offer 

the wildest views. 

ASILIA 


Guests in the Great Room in 

Timber Cove, California, can 

kick back beside the fireplace 

and enjoy their extensive vinyl 

record collection. 

and onsen hot baths overlook forested 

islets and oyster rafts in Japan’s “Bay 

of Pearls” (www.aman.com; doubles 

from JPY1,10,000/`65,116; suites 

have private onsen baths). Explora 

Valle Sagrado, in Peru, looks up—and 

around—to a ring of serrated Andean 

peaks (www.explora.com; doubles from 

$3,244/`2,10,000 for 3 nights; includes 

meals, transfers to/from airport and 

railway station, all exploration tours). 

On the urban flip side, majestic Table 

Mountain fills the floor-to-ceiling 

windows at The Silo, in Cape Town, 

South Africa (www.theroyalportfolio. 

com; doubles from ZAR12,000/`57,500; 

includes breakfast and entry to Zeitz 

Museum of Contemporary Art Africa 

opening September 2017). 

REVIVED ROYALTY 

GRAND HOTELS WITH 

FRESH MAKEOVERS 

Timber Cove, a 1963 Frank Lloyd 

Wright–inspired lodge, features 

new redwood-decked suites 

overlooking California’s Sonoma coast 

(www.timbercoveresort.com; doubles 

from $255/`16,450). The Beekman 

transformed a 19th-century building 

into Lower Manhattan’s destination 

hotel, thanks partly to the soaring ninestory 

atrium lobby (www.thebeekman. 

com; doubles from $399/`25,730). 

The reopened Hotel Royal Savoy, in 

Lausanne, restored its art nouveau 

exterior and appended a state-of-theart 

Swiss spa (www.royalsavoy.ch; 

doubles from CHF350/`22,450). The 

historic Pulitzer Hotel, in Amsterdam, 

added a courtyard sculpture garden, 

giant swings, and themed suites (www. 

pulitzeramsterdam.com; doubles from 

€314/`21,500). 

WHEN IN AMERICA 

TRENDY SPOTS WHERE TRAVELLERS 

AND LOCALS HANG OUT 

The Tilden Hotel, in San Francisco’s 

Tenderloin district, brings in local poets 

and artists for rotating residencies 

(www.tildenhotel.com; doubles 

from$279/`18,000). Hotel Saint George 

shares an address—and a clever vibe— 

with the indie Marfa Book Company 

in Texas (doubles from $215/`13,900). 

Local acts perform at the music club 

at the Ace Hotel New Orleans, a 

community magnet in the Warehouse 

District (www.acehotel.com; doubles 

from $112/`7,200). The Williamsburg 

Hotel loans bikes for exploring 

Brooklyn (www.thewilliamsburghotel. 

com; doubles from $18,830 ), while 

Chicago’s The Robey opens doors to 

the arty Wicker Park neighbourhood 

(www.therobey.com; doubles from 

$195/`12,500). FOUND:RE Phoenix, 

which doubles as a gallery for area 

artists, embodies the Arizona city’s 

downtown revival (www.foundrehotels. 

com; doubles from $101/`6,500). 

LOVERS’ CORNERS 

HIDEAWAYS FOR ROMANCE 

The barrel-vaulted, 16th-century chapel 

at Masseria Trapanà, in southern Italy, 

provides a cosy setting for making 

—or renewing—vows (www.trapana. 

com; doubles from). Sandals Royal 

Caribbean, in Jamaica, introduces 

STACI MARENGO 


Smart Traveller | CHECKING IN 

Stay cool at The Robey’s rooftop (bottom) in Chicago; Le Barthélemy’s pool in St. Barths (top) 

luxury South Pacific–style over-thewater 

villas—with outdoor showers 

and glass floors for viewing marine 

life—to the region (www.sandals. 

com;doubles from $1025/`66,100). 

Casa Laguna Hotel & Spa, in 

California’s Laguna Beach, offers 

colourful, intimate rooms at a 1920s 

former artist colony dotted with 

palm trees (www.casalaguna.com; 

doubles from $229/`14,750; the 

Garden rooms have a private curated 

library). On an island located in 

the Maldives’ Noonu Atoll, Soneva 

Jani features over-the-water villas 

with retractable roofs for stargazing 

(www.soneva.com; villas from 

$2,088/`1,35,000). In Mexico, 

Andaz Mayakoba Resort Riviera 

Maya fronts white sands ideal for 

beachcombing, with sleek rooms 

that look onto tropical gardens, 

a clear lagoon, or the Caribbean 

Sea (mayakoba.andaz.hyatt.com; 

doubles from $350/`22,550). 

OLIVIER LEROI/LE BARTHÉLEMY HOTEL & SPA (POOL), NICOLAS SCHUYBROEK ARCHITECTS & MARC MERCKS INTERIORS/COURTESY OF GRUPO HABITA (CITY) 


IN FOCUS 

62 macao 

The city’s Latin parade is a 

surreal introduction to its history 

70 karnataka 

Mythology gets colourful and trippy 

at Coorg’s Dasara float show 

82 denmark 

The Hans Christian Andersen 

festival brings fantasies to life 

96 




In Focus | FESTIVE SPIRIT 

FANTASTIC 

Beasts 

AND WHERE TO FIND THEM 

Macao’s vibrant Latin City parade is 

a surreal introduction to its history 

By Diya Kohli 

XXXXXXXXXXXX (XXXXXXXXX) 


■ MACAO 

Macao’s annual parade sees 

over 50 crews from Macao, 

mainland China, Latin America, 

as well as Europe. 

XXXXXXXXXXXX AMIT VAKIL (XXXXXXXXX) 



The Ruins of St. Paul includes a 

Jesuit complex as well as the facade 

of the 17th-century Mater Dei church, 

one of the most iconic structures of 

Macao. This forms an apt backdrop 

for the theatrics of the parade. 



■ MACAO 

ANative American 

chief complete with his feathered war 

bonnet was standing two feet from 

me posing for a selfie with a Chinese 

grandma, beaming in spite of two missing 

front teeth. Across him, two beautiful 

boisterous ladies in their big hooped 

skirts were bantering with a petite fellow 

who had a giant Venezuelan flag draped 

over his shoulders. I pinched my arm to 

make sure that I was really wide awake 

and standing in a hotel lobby in Macao. It 

seemed like the perfect surreal beginning 

to the day of Macao’s Latin City parade. 

Macao is a Janus-faced city, with one face turned towards its 

past and the other towards a glittering future. Since my arrival I 

had done the regulation sightseeing tours, museum visits, even 

an obligatory Cotai Strip casino tour. However, it was the parade 

that brought it all together for me. The mixed crews with their 

vibrant costumes and multitude of languages seemed to be in 

sync with the city’s multifaceted identity. As the day unspooled 

through colour and music, what amazed me the most was the 

gusto with which the event celebrated the region’s cosmopolitanism 

and its Portuguese, Chinese, and Macanese heritage. 

A view from the top made the parade look like the sparkly 

trail of a giant comet. And as I followed a train of strange and 

beautiful creatures, from the ruins of St. Paul’s to Tap Siac 

Square, I ended up collecting bits of Macao’s past like pieces of 

confetti saved after the last wedding hurrah. 

The Countdown 

The Portuguese arrived on Macao’s shores in the 1550s and over 

the centuries, they left an indelible impression on the region’s 

cultural identity right up until they finally left in 1999. The 

first Desfile Por Macao, Cidade Latina (Latin City parade), was 

held in 2011, and has since continued as an annual event that 

commemorates the city’s handover from Portugal to China. 

Interestingly, what the parade celebrates is the melding of the 

ASHIMA NARAIN 



two cultures. Performers from Latin American countries as well 

as Mainland China and Macao showcase an array of dances, 

traditions, costumes, and art forms ranging from the traditional 

to the wildly inventive. 

I had landed in Macao three days before the event and the 

place was already thrumming with impending festivities. 

Distant drumbeats and clashing cymbals interrupted my singleminded 

focus on food as I queued up for a pork chop bun at a 

street kiosk. Exploring the narrow streets around the imposing 

Ruins of St. Paul, I spotted girls in spangly costumes and boys 

cradling traditional lion head masks like warrior helmets of 

yore. There were men at work around Senado Square, setting 

up a stage and decorations. This beautiful square with its iconic 

Portuguese pavements, skin care boutiques with candy-coloured 

displays, pastelarias selling traditional snacks, and fast food 

kiosks is a vibrant pinwheel. It is part of the Historic Centre of 

Macao which is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Here, ancient Chinese temples lie cheek by jowl with churches 

and western custard-filled tarts get a local eggy spin. In this part 

of downtown Macao, East and West do meet, and all around me 

there are signs of this synergy between the cultures, right down 

to the Portuguese-style mosaic pavement under my feet. 

In the run up to the parade, there was a little bit of magic 

thrown into the mix. Vividly coloured life-sized models of odd 

little creatures graced street corners. These fantastical characters 

were drawn from the Chinese fantasy epic Shan Hai Jing 

(Classic of Mountains and Seas)—the theme for this year’s parade. 

They were the brainchild of local artist Un Chi Wai, and 

included the Mottled Flying Fish, the Torch Dragon, and the 

towering Hairy People. 

A post-dinner walk just the night before the parade turned 

disastrous as my phone sputtered and died taking with it a 

map back to my hotel. After an hour and a half of following my 

instinct and limping from a bloody shoe bite, I realised that I 

was irrevocably lost. After many wrong turns, it was another 

parade icon, the daunting three-headed Qiyu Bird at the corner 

of a public square, which helped me finally reorient and return 

to my hotel room. And thereafter in my walks around Macao, it 

was this motley crew from Shan Hai Jing’s universe that helped 

guide my way. 

Crossing the Time Gate 

There are many marvellous places and all manner of imaginary 

beasts listed in Shan Hai Jing and I join the thronging crowds at 

the foot of the Ruins of St. Paul’s, waiting for them to appear. It is 

one of those days where the sky is the shade of cornflowers, and 

the light is dappled with sunrays streaming through the many 

arched windows of the Madre de Deus church’s massive stone 

facade. This is one of the most notable structures of Macao, 

part of the 17th-century St. Paul’s Jesuit college complex which 

was an important centre of western education and arts in this 

part of the world. Although the complex was destroyed in a fire 

in 1835, the baroque facade of the church and the stone steps 

remained intact and continue to endure as Macao’s most iconic 

There are numerous tableaux on 

parade day and they reference 

traditional as well as modern pop 

culture. There is a whole gamut of 

performances featuring everything 

from a herd of zombies to this group 

of characters from a Chinese opera. 

RAJKUMAR MATHIALAGAN 


“ 

And the quiet afternoon bursts around us like a 

thousand piñatas as crew after crew in dazzling 

costumes, dance their way down the steps to a 

frenetic soundtrack of drums and cheers” 

■ MACAO 

tourist spot. This complex is flanked by the Mount Fortress 

which houses the Macao Museum, an excellent repository of the 

life and culture of the diverse communities of the city. 

The clock strikes four and VIVA, the mascot of the Macao 

parade emerges at the top of the church steps. As he starts 

descending, he literally crosses over a time gate—a portal from 

21st century Macao to the magical world of Shan Hai Jin. In 

his wake, come the paraders from far corners of the world. They 

are the dragons, the goddesses, beasts from Africa’s savannah, 

giant serpents, puppets, acrobats, clowns, robots, and more. 

Thousands of onlookers including me are gathered at the head 

of the city’s Rua de Sao Paulo to witness this moment. And the 

quiet afternoon bursts around us like a thousand piñatas as crew 

after crew in dazzling costumes, dance their way down the steps 

to a frenetic soundtrack of drums and cheers. 

The Lions of Senado Square 

Meanwhile, there is another prong of the parade that starts at 

Senado Square and joins up with St. Paul’s brigade. Not wanting 

to miss a single moment, I tail a couple of intrepid photographers 

who take it upon themselves to weave through the sea of heads 

to make their way back to this point. I find myself behind a 

line of whistle-tooting girl scouts who have been roped in for 

crowd control. The majestic 18th-century Leal Senado building 

towers above the stage that has been constructed for the event. 

Originally the seat of the Portuguese government, today the 

sprawling two-storey neoclassical structure houses a public 

library specialising in foreign languages and Portuguese history, 

and offices for the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau of Macao. 

This seems like a good vantage point. Just as I position myself 

behind a very accommodating little girl with a smart blue beret, 

the magnificent dance of the lions begins. They are green, black, 

and white, tall, sinuous, and fierce. Each “lion” comprises two 

dancers, the body and the head, who move as a single organism 

to the beat of a gong and drums. These energetic band of 

multicoloured cats lead the way down from Senado Square 

through Rua de Sao Domingos past the cheery yellow baroque 

church of St. Dominic, dating back to the late 16th century. 

The parade snakes past a lovely little bookshop, the Livraria 

Portuguesa, which has a wonderfully curated collection of books 

on Macanese history, culture, food, and customs along with 

some nifty maps, graphic novels, and souvenirs. I cross at least 

ten outlets of the Koi Kei pastelaria and each one is milling with 

crowds. This bakery specialises in traditional snacks, and beef 

and pork jerky in myriad flavours. Enthusiastic attendants tempt 

passers-by with generous samplers of their delicious products. 

Case of the Drunken Dragons 

Back near the ruins, the drama continues as characters from 

a Chinese opera descend the stairs. Young girls dressed as 

matadors twirling their red capes with panache follow a train of 

adolescent boys carrying a giant serpent. Suddenly the air grows 

dank with the sharp smell of rice wine. Old men stumble down 

the stairs dancing, or rather reenacting an ancient myth where a 

village is saved from the plague by a magical dragon. The group 

comprises old men and young boys carrying wooden heads and 

tails of dragons, and pots of wine. They drink and spit into the 

air to ward off evil spirits and propitiate Lord Buddha. A lot of 

the wine clearly makes its way into the gullet of the dancers and 

as the parade progresses, their inebriation seems to increase 

proportionally. Their dance is clumsy, but completely uninhibited. 

I follow them, maintaining a safe distance from the alcohol 

EPIC TALES 

Meet the magical characters from the Chinese epic Shan Hai Jing that formed the theme of the 2017 parade 

MOTTLED FLYING FISH 

It can fly as well as 

swim and represents an 

abundant harvest. 

QIYU BIRD 

This bird with its three heads 

and six tails has a booming 

laugh and can chase away 

nightmares and evil. 

THE HAIRY PEOPLE 

The hairy people have thick 

fur covering every inch of 

them and come from 

a distant land. 

THE TINY PEOPLE 

These people come from 

a land where everyone 

is very short. 

TORCH DRAGON 

Half human, half snake, this 

god controls weather and 

the cycle of day and night. 



Men intersperse their drunken dragon dance with large mouthfuls 

of rice wine, which they then spit out creating a haze of alcohol 

around them. 

sprays, past St. Anthony’s church. The current baroque-style 

building is on the site of the original wooden structure which 

was built in 1558, and subsequently destroyed in a fire. Since 

St. Anthony’s was a popular venue for Portuguese weddings, it 

is also known as the Church of Flowers. 

I trail the parade, sometimes on the sidelines, sometimes 

joining its raggedy tail, and sometimes using my media access 

pass to walk alongside performing groups that I love at first 

sight. However, I have to be nimble so that I am not in the way 

of photographers or security staff. I have to dodge projectile 

props and save myself from being stampeded by energetic 

troupes. Sandwiched between graceful Balinese dancers and a 

nattily dressed jazz troupe, I make my way down narrow cobbled 

lanes, flanked by elegant Portuguese-style manors, old Catholic 

churches, and traditional Chinese apothecaries. I take a pause 

from the parade to look around this charming historic quarter. 

I notice that we pass manicured public squares lined with 

heritage lamps, and brightly coloured shop fronts with intricate 

Chinese motifs and lettering. Roads are signposted on beautiful 

Portuguese azulejo tiles and these blue and white tiles help me 

orient myself on the parade route. 

We Are the Robots 

One such sign informs me that I am in Calçada da Igreja de São 

Lázaro. This is the area around the 16th-century St. Lazarus 

Church. Among the oldest in Macao, this church was a beacon 

of hope, built on the site of a hermitage providing care and 

shelter to lepers. As the parade snakes up cobbled streets, I fall 

in line with an eccentric looking group from Spain who call 

themselves the Robots. Dressed in the motley garb of clowns, 

they look straight out of a steampunk sci-fi film with Tin Man 

hats, armour plates, and stilts and blades on which they walk, 

hop, and jump. They are crowd pleasers and their silver painted 

faces crinkle into broad grins as they oblige young ’uns with 

selfies, and make little tots laugh with their antics. The moving 

is sometimes pretty slow but I enjoy walking with the robots 

as they come up with games to keep the crowds entertained. 

Occasionally I take a pause from their antics and stop to take 

in the neighbourhood. This very European part of Macao with 

tree-lined streets has hidden courtyards, art galleries, graffiti 

on the walls, a cemetery with marble angels, and a grand old 

church presiding over it all. The parade also passes by the 

Albergue da Santa Casa da Misericórdia, a set of beautifully 

restored 400-year-old buildings set around a courtyard with 

two massive camphor trees. Originally a charity and home for 

old women, today this is an eclectic arts and entertainment 

space: It has art galleries, a Portuguese restaurant, and a lovely 

little boutique selling Portuguese crafts and food supplies. 

The Great Gig in the Sky 

From St. Lazarus, the parade crews take different routes, 

finally converging at Tap Siac Square for one last blowout. This 

is a fitting place for a finale. Paved with Portuguese tiles, this 

erstwhile training ground for soldiers has been transformed into 

a central public space in Macao where people gather to relax 

and celebrate different cultural events through the year. Tap 

Siac Square is where parade mascot VIVA has his “love, peace, 

and cultural integration party” and where all the crews present 

one last performance. It is a magnificent celebration and one 

which all of Macao takes part in as giant inflatable puppets 

float above the stage like strange and benevolent gods. Below, 

under the strobe lights, fantastic beasts, and creatures big, 

small, and weird come together and make merry. On this night in 

Macao, history truly feels like a sum of its glorious differences. 

Diya Kohli was until recently part of National Geograpic Traveller 

India’s editorial team. She loves the many stories of big old cities. 

For her, the best kind of travel experience involves long walks 

through labyrinthine lanes with plenty of food stops along the way. 

The Vitals 

Macao is a peninsular region in southern 

China and was the last European colony in Asia, 

governed by the Portuguese until the late 1990s. 

The most convenient way to reach there is to fly 

to Hong Kong, and get to Macao by ferry. Indian 

travellers are eligible for a visa on arrival 

in Macao, and must fill a pre-arrival 

registration form on www.immd.gov. 

hk/eng for a visa-free entry 

to Hong Kong. 

RAJKUMAR MATHIALAGAN 

FACING PAGE: ASHIMA NARAIN (MAN & DANCERS), RAJKUMAR MATHIALAGAN (LION COSTUME) 


■ MACAO 

Macao’s parade is an unforgettable spectacle. The Spanish crew 

called Robots perform at Tap Siac Square during the parade’s final 

performance (top left); Two crew members make up each of the giant 

multicoloured lions that perform their dance to drums and gongs 

(top right); A group of young dancers form a riveting sight as they 

gracefully swirl in their costumes down the streets of Macao (bottom). 




MYTHOLOGY GETS CRAZY, COLOURFUL, AND TRIPPY AT 

MADIKERI’S DASARA FLOAT PARADE 



■ KARNATAKA 



t is late in the night. The hill town of Madikeri bops and 

hops wildly around huge carnival floats that pump out 

megawatts of eardrum-blasting disco from onboard sound 

systems. Elaborately crafted polychrome superheroes and 

heroines—some up to 15 feet tall—try to outdo each other. 

This curious sight feels like a mixture of high heaven and the 

world’s biggest non-alcoholic outdoor religious nightclub. 

I’m totally into it. I’m mesmerised by the frenzied dancers and 

start shaking my hairy legs to an enticing mix of Kannada pop 

and Hindi rap. This must be what it feels like to do the carnival 

rumba in Rio de Janeiro. But I’m not in Brazil. I’m in Madikeri, 

in the serene and a tad conservative hill station of Coorg 

(Kodagu). Not on vijayadashmi night though, when all citizens 

head towards the hotspot of the festivities—near the old fort at 

the centre of Madikeri. This is the culmination of Dasara, when 

good wins over evil, and the gods succeed in their annual battle 

against demons. 

It is always the same story: morality cancels out immorality. 

From a forensic point of view the mythical heroes exterminate 

the netherworld baddies, like in the Clint Eastwood or 

Amitabh Bachchan movies of yore. It also feels great to 

jive all night, as it doesn’t get sweaty in the cool October 

air and there are ample chilled drinks 

and snacks in the stalls around. I’ve had some 

delicious roadside chicken biriyani, spicy gobi 

manchurian, and of course Coorgi coffee. That is what 

keeps everyone going, because this all-night rave isn’t fuelled 

by intoxicants—the police have shut down bars and liquor shops 

for the day so there’s no public drunkenness or misbehaviour. 

Instead there’s jolly energy in the air. He-hunks do their 

ballyhoo ballet before all the young girls sitting on tiered 

benches along the street. Even families with kids step out after 

dinner and partake in merriment till well into the wee hours. 

The main amusement is the grand floats. On one there’s a green 

monster in yellow shorts, like a fiendish character from some 

Xbox game, with guts spilling out of his tummy. On another, 

Ganapati with four arms is busy juggling weapons of potential 

mass destruction, while on the third Shiva meditates on his 

throne, and on the next float Vishnu flies on his Garuda. A tiger 

with Viking horns bares his fangs. Another elephant god swings 

a sword—but this one has ten arms and rides a peacock—and a 

Mother Goddess looks on calmly in the middle of the madness. 

Somewhere in the throng there’s even a King Kong. 

The figures are built on mechanical frames that make the 

arms flex and heads turn. Pulled by tractors, the gods enact their 

dramas based on various ancient plotlines involving gods and 

goddesses, demons and goblins, while semi-epileptic lightshows 

and bass-boosted sound effects accompanied by pyrotechnics 

make the ground virtually tremble under the audience’s feet. A 

total of ten floats participate each year, all very elaborately done 

up, making the mythology come alive for one boisterous display 

of heroic histrionics. 

Each float costs between `10,00,000-20,00,000, so put toge- 


■ KARNATAKA 

ther their budget equals a Sandalwood action movie and yet 

they feature only in a one-night, fully-free, sold-out show. The 

float teams, all of whom are attached to various temples in town, 

consist mainly of localites with creative ambitions, but for certain 

hi-tech expertise like sound they bring in audio engineers from 

Bengaluru. For fireworks there are pyrotechnical professionals 

from Tamil Nadu. In some cases special effects men come from 

as far away the U.S.A. to provide the onlookers with an earthshattering 

spectacle combining Amar Chitra Katha aesthetics 

blended seamlessly with Harry Potter and Hollywood. 

***** 

adikeri used to be the capital of the erstwhile 

princely state of Coorg ruled over by Mudduraja 

of the Haleri dynasty, who had come down south 

from northern Karnataka to carve out a kingdom 

for himself. According to one sign that I find in 

the hilltop fort, he named it Muddurajanakeri which was later 

abbreviated to Madikeri, misspelled as Mercara by the Britishers. 

Circa 1680, Mudduraja built the city’s fort from mud. His 

descendants ruled for a hundred years until Tipu Sultan came 

to conquer briefly. In 1790, Doddaveer Rajendra took over and 

his family was in charge until 1834 when the somewhat loony 

Chikkaveer Rajendra was exiled (and interestingly enough buried 

in London’s Highgate cemetery not so far from Karl Marx). From 

then on Coorg was developed by the East India Company into a 

production centre for the best coffee in the world. 

Before the British takeover, the rajas started a tradition of 

celebrating Dasara in the early 1800s to purge the city from 

plague. The practice of taking the shakthi devathas—or female 

goddesses of the town’s four Mariamma temples—out for a 

procession has continued to this day in order to protect the 

people against illnesses. In those days, menfolk apparently 

carried deities in palanquins through the streets accompanied by 

traditional Kodava music and dance. The spectacle ended in the 

market area on the tenth day of Navaratri at the Banni Mantap 

with puja and worshipping of the banni (or Indian Mesquite)—a 

ritually important tree for warriors and particularly significant to 

the people of Coorg with their strong military traditions. 

When it lost its royal patronage, rather than remaining a regal 

affair like the annual Dasara in Mysuru, this Dasara turned into a 

people’s party or a janutsava. Local legend has it that one Bheem 

Singh came from Rajasthan in 1958 to tweak the festivities with 

exotic colour and change it all from a purely religious ritual into 

a folksy do. Bheem Singh started using tractors and building 

bigger floats with wood instead of bamboo. So today there are ten 

motorised hi-tech floats. 

And while the majestic Mysuru Dasara is a tourist attraction 

with the main events held in the daytime, the Madikeri Dasara 

remains a homely all-night affair with no king in the picture and 

is therefore perhaps much more fun. The people want innovative 

displays every year, which challenges the temple committees to 

come up with fresh spectacles. 

After a long final Navaratri evening of joyous dancing and a 

slow build-up of excitement, when midnight comes each float 

will make what is called a “demonstration.” This means they will 

crank the music up to full blast and ignite the fuses for whatever 

bombs have been built into the carriages. This show continues till 

around 4 a.m. while judges compare scores and announce prizes 

for the most amazing creations. 

The winner gets 24 grams of gold and the runners-up are also 

awarded. And as the sun begins to colour the eastern horizon, 

the floats—or whatever remains of them—reel around dizzily in 

the city while the more zealous devotees shimmy in a climactic 

delirium. By 10 a.m. or so the energy levels dip and the heat of the 

sun hits with force and fells the last revellers. 

The morning after the Dasara float parade, I walk about 

looking at the residue. Most floats have ground to a halt. Disco 

still blasts from a few speakers, but generators low on diesel are 

hiccupping. People are sleeping by the roadside, napping on the 

pavements and in ditches. They have, with their enthusiasm, 

once again helped the gods save the world—and they deserve 

quiet quality time now until next year’s Dasara. 

Zac O’yeah is the author of crime novel Mr Majestic: The Tout of 

Bengaluru (Hachette India, 2012). His latest novel is Hari, a Hero 

for Hire (Pan Macmillan India, 2015). 

charbak Dipta is a Delhi-based graphic storyteller. Reading about 

about Faxian and Xuanzang in school fuelled his desire to see the 

world. He now travels widely for his art exhibitions. 

Getting There 

The nearest airport to Madikeri is 

Bengaluru Kempegowda International 

Airport (280 km/6 hr by road; taxis 

charge `6,450). The closest rail junction 

is Mysuru (120 km/3hr). Regular buses 

go from Mysuru to Madikeri (state 

transport buses from `112). 

It is possible to plan a trip from Mysuru 

to spend the night at the festival and then 

return by an early morning bus. Buses run 

frequently throughout the night as well. 

Stay 

Thousands of people gather to 

experience the event and Madikeri is a 

very small town, so book accommodation 

sufficiently in advance if you wish to stay 

conveniently near the city centre. 

KSTDC Mayura Valley View (www.kstdc. 

co; doubles from `3,900) has the best 

hilltop views and is near Gandhi Maidan 

where the Dasara cultural programme 

take place. Coorg International (www. 

indoasia-hotels.com; doubles from 

`5,000) located away from the main 

town is one of the region’s oldest hotels. 

The luxurious Vivanta (www.vivanta. 

tajhotels.com; doubles from `14,000) 

offers cooking classes, pottery workshops, 

as well as a traditional gudda 

bath experience. 

Festival 

Madikeri’s float parade is on 30 September 

from 10-11 p.m. Floats pass 

through the town’s Main Street around 

midnight and are best viewed from the 

Town Hall, in front of the fort, and near 

the Kodava Samaja Shopping Complex. 

The event is free and includes a weeklong 

programme of dance performances, 

musical recitals, magic shows, and 

martial art displays at a stage in Gandhi 

Maidan. Reach early to grab good seats. 

This is a family-friendly festival and 

also includes a separate Makkala Dasara 

which has a range of activities and 

competitions especially for kids. 

Many shops stay open later than usual, 

so tourists can pick up spices, coffee 

powder, honey, and other local produce. 

Fast food stalls stay open until the wee 

hours as well. The fare on offer includes 

the usual churmuri, gobi manchurian, 

bhajjis, and delicacies like the local style 

non-veg biriyani. 



Move with the Moving Pictures 

SHRINES FOR CINEPHILES, FILM FESTIVALS ALSO OFFER THE REST OF US A BIT OF EVERYTHING 

By Kalpana Nair 



■ WORLD 

This month, I am off to Cannes. I like 

throwing that phrase around casually. 

For a second, it sounds oh-so-glamorous. Right now you are 

probably thinking of a montage of scenes centred around yachts, 

beaches, and champagne. Please allow me to derail that train of 

thought. I am a programmer who attends the Cannes International 

Film Festival to scout for films and meet the people who are in the 

business of making and selling them. I have never come within 

hugging distance of any major Hollywood star there (although last 

year I did see the back of Ryan Gosling’s head, walking a mere 400 

metres from me). The one time I got onto a yacht, I got seasick and 

I may have had to get into a staring match with some doormen to 

enter the many luxury brand stores that line the Croisette. So when 

I say Cannes, the picture in my brain is nothing like the one in yours. 

Film festivals are like that. Poised right at the intersection of 

cinema, glamour, travel, and food, they are connected to the cities 

they inhabit, yet they have their own energy, vibe, and ideology. 

I highly recommend trekking to the ones listed here to experience 

why thousands of people migrate to them every year, almost like 

devotees who find themselves on a pilgrimage. 

DENIS MAKARENKO/SHUTTERSTOCK 



Cannes Film Festival Festival de Cannes 

Year of Inception 

1946 

Month 

May 

Festival Hub 

Palais du Festivals 

Average no. of 

films screened 

180+ 


people attending 

30,000+ 

Cannes is the mother of all film festivals. Every 

May, over thirty thousand directors, producers, 

writers, journalists, sales agents, and assorted film 

professionals descend upon the eponymous town 

in French Riviera. They network, walk the red carpet, 

pitch films, and try and watch some of the over 180 

films that are screened here as part of the official 

selection. As a festival, Cannes is so exclusive—some 

would say haughty—that you can attend it only if 

you’re connected to cinema professionally or are a 

member of the press. But not to despair, the festival 

also has some fantastic sidebars like the Director’s 

Fortnight (which Anurag Kashyap regularly features 

on) and Critic’s Week for which the general public can 

buy tickets. 

If you do manage to swing yourself an accreditation 

or place your faith in swinging some last minute film 

tickets, Cannes is a town that has much to offer. 

During the ten days of the festival, the sleepy town 

transforms itself and films take over. The weather is 

usually perfect with just enough nip in the air to save 

one from being broiled. The beach is only 10 minutes 

away. But to experience Cannes in all its glory, one 

must set aside hours to stargaze and people-watch. 

The best places to do this is right outside the Palais 

des Festivals where all the red carpets take place or 

in the lobbies of hotels like the JW Marriott, Carlton, 

or the Grand Martinez where all the A-listers stay. It’s 

quite normal to see people dressed from head to toe 

in couture, walking casually down the road as they 

make their way from the red carpet to the first of many 

parties of the night. You might also spot your favourite 

art-house filmmaker in one of the many restaurants 

opposite the two-kilometre long Croisette. Do try 

out some authentic Provençal cuisine and pack your 

walking shoes. Cannes is best covered on foot and 

cars are prohibitively expensive. Although the Uber 

in Cannes does have a helicopter option, so that’s 

always there. If you’re a racing enthusiast, Monaco is 

only an hour away. (www.festival-cannes.com/fr.) 

TANIAVOLOBUEVA/SHUTTERSTOCK 


■ WORLD 

Mumbai Film Festival Mami 

The Mumbai Film Festival, or MAMI as its popularly 

known, is the youngest on this list. Three years ago, 

it was about to be discontinued due to lack of funds 

when a team led by journalist Anupama Chopra and 

filmmaker Kiran Rao stepped in to galvanise support 

and money to keep it going. It has since grown by leaps 

and bounds. MAMI starts the film festival calendar in 

India and only screens India premieres. This means 

that every cinephile, writer, actor, assistant director 

and filmmaker worth his or her salt in Mumbai takes 

a few days off work and braves Mumbai traffic to cram 

as many films as possible in one day. Regardless of 

what kind of cinema you veer towards, MAMI will have 

a section for you. Indie, genre, world cinema, restored 

classics, children’s films; it’s all there. For the more 

populist palette there is the Movie Mela. You can also 

catch masterclasses with stalwarts like Jia Jhangke, 

Cary Fukanaga, and Catherine Deneuve. MAMI has 

venues all over the city. There’s nothing quite like 

watching the latest Asghar Farhadi film with fellow 

movie fans in an art-deco theatre like the Regal in 

Colaba. (www.mumbaifilmfestival.com.) 


1997 

Month 

October 

Festival Hub 

PVR Icon 



200+ 



10,000+ 

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF 


1986 

Month 

September 

Festival Hub 

TIFF Bell Lightbox 



400+ 



5,00,000+ 

Unanimously crowned the “happiest film festival” 

Toronto International Film Festival’s unpretentious 

personality is first made obvious by its friendly 

acronym—TIFF. Over the years, the festival has 

become a hub for premiering American and Canadian 

cinema. It is also one to reckon with come Oscar 

season. It’s attended by all leading Hollywood studios 

and talent. Beyond the movies (which are excellent) 

and the glitz (there is a lot of that), TIFF is a festival 

that genuinely wants to embrace everyone. That spirit 

shines through in the hundreds of festival volunteers. 

TIFF also has the coolest festival merchandise that 

ranges from brooches to coffee cups to cameras. 

While the festival is going on, TIFF converts a section 

of King’s Street in Toronto to a pedestrian-only zone 

called “Festival Street”, which is choc-a-bloc with 

buskers, pop up shops, and food trucks, and free 

concerts. Also recommended is a trip to the Toronto 

Islands, which is only a 15-minute ferry ride from 

downtown Toronto. (www.tiff.net.) 

PHOTO COURTESY: MAMI (MAMI), DOMINIC CHAN/WENN LTD/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (TIFF) 



Berlin International Film Festival Berlinale 


1951 

Month 

February 

Festival Hub 

Berlinale Palast 



400+ 



20,000+ 

The Berlinale is another leading film festival in Europe 

that becomes a global agent for cinema each year. 

Drawing on the legacy and baggage that comes 

with Germany, it’s carved an identity for itself by 

consistently curating cinema that is political and 

addresses critical issues like migration, race, refugees 

and climate change. In 2015, Ai Weiwei festooned the 

pillars of the Konserthauswith with 14,000 refugee 

life vests. Last year, German politician Claudia Roth 

walked the red carpet wearing a gown that said 

“Unpresidented”. 

Berlin is a city that remembers history. So pieces of 

the Berlin Wall which came down in 1989 are framed 

all over the city. You can also visit Checkpoint Charlie 

which was the most famous crossing point from East 

to West Berlin and is still patrolled by actors dressed 

as border guards (€1/`70 for a selfie with them). Also 

spend some time visiting the Topography of Terror, a 

museum that is built on the site that used to be the 

headquarters of the Gestapo. 

It’s not all grim though. Berlin is an affordable city 

with a thriving cultural scene. One could spend a 

whole day just viewing the incredible graffiti that is 

everywhere. The food is cheap and comes from all 

over the world. Once you’ve had the currywurst which 

is almost the national dish, check out Johnny’s Bar 

in Zimmerstraße for the Jamaican fare and Linh Linh 

near MGB (Martin Gropius Bau) for some sumptuous 

Vietnamese food. 

The large Turkish community in Berlin also means 

the falafel and the doner kebabs are delectable across 

the board. If you’re in the mood for some pub hopping, 

Berlin has an astounding selection of beer. Hop over 

to the hip Kreuzberg district to drink the night away. 

Also recommended is the flea market at Mauerpark 

that takes place every Sunday. Independent German 

artists set up stalls and sell everything from handmade 

posters to jewellery at prices. The only downside to all 

this is that it is freezing during the festival, so pack 

your woollies. (www.berlinale.de.) 

DENIS MAKARENKO/SHUTTERSTOCK 


■ WORLD 

South by South West SXSW 

The state of Texas does not immediately seem like 

an ideal setting for a film festival. But over the last 

30 years, its capital Austin has been countering that 

notion successfully with SXSW (South By South West). 

It has a unique format with three bifurcations that 

focus on film, technology, and music. Led by the spirit 

of discovery, SXSW is a great place to see upcoming 

films, bands, and technology. The 2007 SXSW was a 

turning point for Twitter which got a lot of traction and 

came into public awareness there. SXSW has become 

a U.S. cultural fixture and former U.S. President Barack 

Obama even gave a keynote interview here in 2016. 

The festival is also the backdrop for Terrence Malick’s 

latest film Song to Song. SXSW features sidebars like 

the Southwest Invasion which is a three-day concert 

series that takes place on the rooftop of a Whole Foods 

Store. If you feel like partaking in some local flavour, 

try the Tex Mex at Tamale House East and visit the 

Rodeo Austin which comes to town during the festival 

in March. (www.sxsw.com.) 

Kalpana nair coordinates the film programme at the Mumbai Film Festival. 

Her work takes her to film festivals all over the world and she moonlights 

as a freelance writer when the urge strikes. Her travels are always 

sprinkled with generous doses of cinema. 


1984 

Month 

March 

Festival Hub 

Austin Convention 

Centre 



150+ 



85,000 

STOCK_PHOTO_WORLD/SHUTTERSTOCK (SXSW) 



In parts of Sukhothai, 

it is an age-old tradition to 

release paper lanterns, known 

as the khomloi, into the sky 

during Loy Krathong. 

LIGHT AT THE END OF 

THE FUNNEL 

CELEBRATING LOY KRATHONG IN SUKHOTHAI, THAILAND 

TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHS BY SUGATO MUKHERJEE 

Last year, I visited Sukhothai, in north-central 

Thailand, timing my trip to coincide with 

the annual Loy Krathong festival in November, 

a festival of light which celebrates the Buddha. 

It is celebrated throughout the country, though it originated in 

Sukhothai. Here it is associated with the commemoration of a 

13th-century battle, during which a Buddha statue allegedly 

spoke to the Siamese army, boosting their morale as they fended 

off Burmese invaders. 

On the advice of my Italian host Paulo, who runs a guesthouse 

in Sukhothai with his Thai wife, I travelled to Wat Si Chum, 

the temple where Buddhist monks worship the speaking 

Buddha from the legend. Few people witness the ceremony 

here, which takes place before the larger public procession. 

The nondescript temple is located on the northern fringes of 

the manicured gardens and old stone Buddhas of Sukhothai 

Historical Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site 10 kilometres 

from the city. 

I followed a group of orange-robed monks, who entered 

through a narrow slit in the temple’s wall. Inside was one of the 

largest and finest Buddha statues I had ever seen. As the chants 

of the monks reverberated in the conical temple, sunrays filtered 


■ THAILAND 

Traditional Thai clothing and headgear (top left) are sported during the festival parades; The buoyant, decorated baskets called krathongs are 

released into water (bottom left) as an offering to Pra Mae Khongkha, the goddess of water. They are believed to carry away one’s hatred, anger, 

and defilements; According to a Thai legend, the stuccoed Buddha statue (right) inside Wat Si Chum spoke to the Siamese army during a 

13th-century battle against Burmese invaders. 

through to light up the 13th-century statue’s golden fingers. 

It was the fifth and climactic day of Loy Krathong. Festivities 

had so far involved beauty pageants, basket-making competitions, 

food stalls, and musical soirées. In the evening, the city’s main 

boulevard brimmed with colour and music. A long parade inched 

towards the historical park. Women in flowing costumes froze in 

elegant poses atop elephants and on palanquins carried by other 

revellers. Children darted in and out of the procession to grab 

deep-fried delicacies from roadside food stalls. 

At the park’s main gate, vendors sold incense sticks, candles, 

and an array of ornate krathongs, floating baskets made of banana 

stalks and meticulously-folded banana leaves and decorated with 

flowers and candles. I purchased one, and lighting the candle, 

floated the dainty vessel into a small moat along with the crowd. 

Then it was time for the laser show, the high point of 

Sukhothai’s Loy Krathong celebration. The full moon soared atop 

Wat Mahathat, a 700-hundred-year-old shrine and the park’s 

largest temple. The performance began with laser rays piercing 

the darkness. The history of Sukhothai unfolded through 

superbly choreographed performances by about 200 dancers and 

actors. At the end of the extravaganza, thousands of khomloi or 

sky lanterns filled the night sky, illuminating the majestic head 

of the Buddha of Wat Mahathat, before gradually fading into 

inky oblivion. 

THE VITALS 

Loy Krathong is on 4 November, 2017. 

Getting There Sukhothai is 440 km/6.5 hr north of Bangkok. 

Buses leave every 30 minutes from Bangkok’s Mo Chit Northern 

Bus Station (www.sawadee.com/thailand/transfer/bus-north.html; 

tickets THB324/`620). Another option is to take a short one-hour 

flight (roundtrip from about `6,000). 

Getting Around Renting a bicycle (THB50-60 per day) is a good 

way to explore Sukhothai. Take a broad-brimmed hat, as it can be 

uncomfortably hot even in the middle of November. 

Sugato Mukherjee is a Kolkata-based writer and photographer 

who loves travelling off the beaten path and experimenting 

with local cuisines. His first coffee-table book An Antique Land: 

A Visual Memoir of Ladakh was published in 2013. 



When 

Magic 

Becomes Realism 



■ DENMARK 

A festival in Denmark brings 

Hans Christian Andersen’s 

world of fantasy alive 

By Saumya Ancheri 




Growing 

up in the 

Bombay 

of the 1980s 

and ’90s, 

my make-believe world included characters from Hans Christian 

Andersen’s fairy tales: a girl so tiny that one of her suitors was 

a frog, another girl who proved she was a princess because she 

could sense a pea lodged beneath her bed of 20 mattresses. 

Andersen’s world was ruled by whimsy and magic. I didn’t 

realise how much of his stories had coloured my imagination 

until I walked the streets where he lived in Odense, Denmark. 

The first sign that our group of five journalists and our host 

were in the 19th-century author’s hometown, was the traffic 

signal outside the railway station of Odense. The traffic light’s 

little green and red men resembled Andersen in profile, complete 

with coat, top hat, and cane. On the pavement, footprints in the 

author’s giant size 46 created a trail to Andersen attractions 

across the city. 

Around a corner marched golden-haired princesses with 

wands and crowned princes with sceptres, all singing. Their 

invisible pied piper was none other than Andersen, who is 

celebrated for a week every August in his hometown. The 

Hans Christian Andersen Festival, started in 2013 by a group 

of local businesspeople, hosts parades, street performances, 

ballet, theatre, and 3D light shows, all inspired by Andersen’s 

magical world. In keeping with the festival theme of “anything 

can happen”, drummers banging on trash cans would suddenly 

fill up a square, or we’d turn down a street to find a canopy of 

umbrellas swaying overhead. 

Odense may be Denmark’s third-largest city, and just a twohour 

train ride from Copenhagen, but it exudes an air of the last 

century. As we wandered lanes away from the festival bustle, 

we passed pretty half-timbered houses, restaurants serving 

traditional Danish food like fried pork belly with potatoes, and 

quaint cottages with windowsills displaying porcelain figurines. 

We paused by the museum to Odense’s other celebrated resident, 

Carl Nielsen, and peered down a narrow cobblestoned street 

that looked the same 500 years ago. And yet for all its old world 

charms, Odense was a hub for robotics, with the national test 

centre for drone technology inside the Hans Christian Andersen 

Airport. It was mind-boggling. 

At 14, Andersen caught a bus to Copenhagen where he 



■ DENMARK 

Every July, visitors to the Hans Christian Andersen 

Museum can sprawl on its lawns and watch a free 

performance of “24 Fairy Tales in 24 Minutes”. 

Previous spread: With its lush parks, heritage 

buildings, museums, and traditional cuisine, 

Odense makes for a wonderful family day trip 

from Copenhagen. 

JORDI SALAS/AGE FOTOSTOCK/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY 

PRIVIOUS SPREAD: PHOTO COURTESY: VISIT ODENSE (PERFORMER, STATUE, AUDIENCE & FOOD), PHOTO COURTESY: ODENSE BYS MUSEER (KIDS, MUSEUM, BUILDING) 



Andersen’s fairy tales come alive all over Odense as grown-ups enact them for children (top) across the city; The island of Funen (bottom), 

on which Odense is located, is called Denmark’s Garden Island for its rolling hills, apple orchards, and fresh farm produce. 

PAOLO BONA/SHUTTERSTOCK (PERFORMES), PHOTO COURTESY: VISIT ODENSE (INSTALLATION) 


■ DENMARK 

spent most of his adult life, but he never really left—we saw 

his portrait drawn on a building facade, and his metal likeness 

seated outside a hotel. I couldn’t imagine what it was like to be 

a kid in Odense, reading his stories in school and then walking 

by sculptures from his tales on the street. At one street corner 

was a larger-than-life statue of Andersen’s tin soldier toy, who 

literally burned with love for a paper ballerina. As a child, the 

melancholic tale made me pull faces, but looking at the soldier, I 

couldn’t escape its grimness. Andersen’s life was far from easy, as 

I was about to find out at the Hans Christian Andersen Museum 

and Childhood Home. 

Large-nosed and taller than average at around 6 feet, 

Andersen was considered ungainly; in a way, his life paralleled 

his story about an ugly duckling that turned into a swan. But 

he loved having his portrait made. Little details like these were 

turning a legendary author into a real human being for me. In 

Copenhagen, he tried to be a ballet dancer, an actor, a singer, 

but had made his mark as a writer. He was a prolific writer of 

plays, stories, poetry, and travelogues, and became one of the 

most translated authors of all time. But he was also terrified of 

dentists, and was so scared of dying in a building fire—a real fear 

in the 19th century—that he used to carry a rope with him on his 

travels for a speedy escape. 

And boy, did he love to travel—to Italy, Germany, the Czech 

Republic, Scotland. On my first walk around Copenhagen, I’d 

spied the last line of a favourite Andersen quote “To travel is to 

live” on a signboard near our hotel in Nyhavn, now a gentrified 

waterfront district. During Andersen’s time, Nyhavn’s charm 

was its cheap rent; it used to be frequented by pub-goers, sailors 

and women of pleasure. He lived in three different houses 

on that waterfront, writing stories like “The Tinderbox”, about 

a soldier with questionable morals and a bit of magic. Andersen 

was so broke that he used to stroll with a dinner napkin in his 

pocket, ready to be invited for a meal. At the Odense museum, 

we saw his beautiful paper cut-outs of ballerinas, pirates, and 

angels. Andersen was known to entertain friends by spinning 

a story around his paper art as he worked, finally revealing an 

intricate chain of paper figures that he would gift to his host. 

Andersen was famous by 30, so much of the details of his life 

remain. Even his birthplace is reconstructed at the museum; I 

was quite struck by a short bed made for people to sit up and 

sleep as a precaution against tuberculosis. A troubled man 

emerged from Andersen’s correspondence and journals. He fell 

for unattainable women, expressed unrequited love to men and 

women, and was lonely though he was so well known. It is a side 

that most of Andersen’s biographers ignore, but it made me better 

understand the often unhappy endings of his stories. 

It was at The Tinderbox, the children’s cultural centre next 

door, that the fantasy of Andersen’s fairy tales came alive. A 

huggable life-size soldier puppet waited by the entrance, while 

enormous geese soared against the ceiling, and a tree curled 

above us with paper leaves for kids to scrawl wishes on. There 

was a large castle where kids could play dress-up, and a costume 

room with racks of spangled mermaid tails, fluffy octopus 

puppets, and royal costumes. We were tempted to join the kids. 

The Andersen trail continued as we headed for lunch by the 

River Odense, sipping on store-bought cans of potent Hans 

Christian Andersen beer. Close to the museum, we passed the 

spot where Andersen’s mother, a washerwoman, did laundry; 

his shoemaker father died early. At Kramboden, a quaint shop 

whose premises were 450 years old, I sampled traditional tart 

rhubarb candies. Outside, a wheelbarrow marked the spot where 

the teenaged Andersen caught a bus to Copenhagen, a ride that 

would change his life forever. 

The author’s spirit was still alive in Copenhagen, I found 

the next day, on a whirlwind Andersen tour with our guide 

Richard Karpen. Dressed in a top hat and coat, with a cane in 

hand, Karpen was quickly recognised as Andersen and warmly 

greeted by locals and tourists. After all, Andersen had helped 

put Denmark on the world map—and he was everywhere in 

the city. Tivoli Gardens had an amusement park ride named 

after him, his statue graced the royal gardens and the City 

Hall square, his Little Mermaid character was the city’s most 

photographed statue. 

I had arrived in Denmark looking for a long-forgotten childhood 

companion. I had stood outside Andersen’s homes, shuffled 

by his leafy grave in Assistens Cemetery, gazed up the 

Round Tower where he wrote stories. Behind those timeless 

tales, I found an intriguing person. At the airport the next day, I 

couldn’t resist buying a beautifully illustrated copy of his work. 

Andersen wrote his fairy tales as much for children as for adults, 

I remembered Karpen say. I couldn’t wait to re-read them. 

Saumya ancheri was until recently Assistant Web Editor at 

National Geographic Traveller India. She loves places by the 

sea, and travels to shift her own boundaries. 

The Vitals 

Orientation Odense is on Funen Island, 

Denmark’s second largest island. The birthplace 

of Hans Christian Andersen, it hosts a weeklong 

festival every August in his honour. The 

Hans Christian Andersen Festival will run 

from August 20-27 2017. Details and tickets 

on www.hcafestivals.com. 

For details on Richard Karpen’s Hans 

Christian Andersen tour of the old city, see 

www.copenhagenwalks.com. 

Getting There & Visa Flights from India 

to Copenhagen require a short layover in a 

European city such as Munich, or a Middle 

Eastern hub like Dubai. Travellers to Odense can 

take a train, bus, or car for the roughly two-hour 

journey from Copenhagen. 

Indian travellers to Denmark require a 

Schengen visa. A 90-day, multiple-entry visa 

costs `5,641 including service charge. Applicants 

must have a return ticket, a confirmed itinerary, 

and travel medical insurance with a minimum 

coverage of €30,000/`21,00,000 valid for 

the duration of the visit across EU states. For 

application forms and documentation details, 

visit dk.vfsglobal.co.in. It is best to apply for 

a visa at least 15 days before departure. 





■ WORLD 

IMAGE PARTNER 

CANON EOS 5D MARK II 

APERTURE: F/5.0 • SHUTTER SPEED: 1/200 SEC • ISO: 200



APERTURE: F/5.6 • SHUTTER SPEED: 1/1000 SEC • ISO: 400 


■ WORLD 


APERTURE: 6.3 • SHUTTER SPEED: 1/320 SEC • ISO: 100 

The shamanistic Lai-Haroba Festival is 

led by a procession of Manipuri ponies. 

The riders bathe the ponies to prepare 

for the ritual. I find that these cultural 

practices are important but often 

neglected in visual documentation of 

the festival. 

When shooting in bright light and 

with water, I like to use a fast shutter 

speed, and shallow depth of field 

as it helps to eliminate some of the 

chaos prevalent when working in a 

tight space. My Canon EOS 5D Mark II 

shoots almost four frames a second, 

so while throwing buckets of water, the 

patterns were constantly changing, and 

I needed to shoot a lot to get the most 

interesting shape. 

Hola Mohalla is an annual Sikh festival 

that marks the establishment of the 

Khalsa Panth (the community’s martial 

wing) by Guru Gobind Singh. During 

the event, pilgrims from the world 

over come to pay their respects at the 

many gurdwaras of Anandpur Sahib. 

The festival culminates in a martial arts 

display by the Nihangs (Sikh warriors) 

at a crowded stadium. While the performances 

are perilous, it is almost as 

risky to be a spectator.I wanted to show 

the crowds lining the makeshift track 

as the young boy gallops down on two 

horses, holding the reins in his mouth. 

It was important to have the sky as the 

background for his arms as it highlights 

how exposed he is. 

Previous spread: The Latin City parade 

was started in 2011 to promote Macao’s 

multicultural heritage. The parade 

moved faster than I expected, and I had 

to run ahead to try to get my settings 

done before the performers went by. 

The AI SERVO auto focus mode on my 

Canon EOS 5D Mark II ensured I could 

track my subjects, as they moved. The 

parade went through many narrow 

lanes lined with high buildings, creating 

“gorge” like lighting conditions, where 

it is hard to balance exposure. Because 

of the full-frame CMOS sensor, by 

slightly underexposing the RAW 

images, I was able to retain enough 

information to create clean images 

during post processing. 



The Maha Kumbh Mela happens 

every 144 years, so it is safe to say 

that you will only get one chance to 

shoot it. At my first Kumbh Mela, I 

was keen to shoot the famous sadhus. 

Unfortunately before I reached, there 

was rain—a signal for the Sadhus to 

move. I was disappointed, but realised 

I had an opportunity to create images 

that reflected the faith of the people 

I had shared space and time with. 

The arrangements were thoughtful, 

and the mela grounds remained 

illuminated through the night, with 

policemen on patrol on horses, 

boats, and on foot to ensure safe 

passage for everyone. As the sun set, 

I shot on a tripod with long exposure 

and a small aperture to get the star 

effect of the lights. 

Ashima Narain’s photography and 

filmmaking has covered a diverse range 

of topics that have allowed her to wade 

through Mumbai’s mudflats in search 

of flamingos, hide out in bear caves, 

and document sari weavers in Varanasi. 

As a former photo editor of National 

Geographic Traveller India, she covered 

the Portuguese influence on the island 

of Diu and an ex-reconnaissance pilot’s 

solo circumnavigation of the earth by 

sea, among other stories. Ashima is 

part of National Geographic Creative. 



■ WORLD 


APERTURE: 32 • SHUTTER SPEED: 4 SEC • ISO: 100 

KAUSHAL PARIKH (AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH) 



Fire-breathing dragons 

come to life with fireworks 

during China’s annual 

Shangyuan festival. 



■ WORLD 

Play With Fire 

Follow the crowds to these 

nocturnal fire festivals 

around the world 

SHANGYUAN FESTIVAL, China 

The Shangyuan festival, or the Spring Lantern 

Festival, is celebrated on the 15th night of the 

first month of the Chinese new year (February or 

March). On this day, towns and villages across the 

country bathe in the glow of lanterns. Red paper 

globes fly among illuminated butterflies, dragons, 

and birds, each written with a riddle—those who 

solve them win a prize. 

SUMMER SOLSTICE, Glastonbury, 

England 

Glastonbury Tor (or hill) has been sacred for 

millennia, and on Midsummer Eve hundreds 

gather on it. Children throw petals, holy water is 

sprinkled, and the hill is blessed with fire. It marks 

the important celebration of the beginning of 

summer, the season of warmth and plenty. 

FEAST OF SAN JUAN, Spain 

At this June festival, revellers build bonfires that 

blaze through the night to welcome summer. 

According to tradition, jumping over a fire three 

times on San Juan night burns your troubles away. 

QUEMA DEL DIABLO, Guatemala 

In early December, just before Christmas, 

Guatemalans rid their homes and lives of the 

devil. Garbage is cleared and homes cleaned, with 

special attention paid to nooks and corners and 

the area below the bed. All rubbish is then burnt 

to celebrate Quema del Diablo or The Burning of 

the Devil, and Christmas is welcomed with a clean 

heart and home. 

DAIZENJI TAMATAREGU SHRINE’S 

“ONIYO”, Fukuoka, Japan 

On the seventh day of the new year, after being 

guarded at the temple for a week, the Oniyo or 

fire devil is brought out to ward off evil spirits in 

a ceremony at the Daizenji Tamataregu Shrine. As 

part of a 1,600-year-old Shinto ritual, the flame is 

transferred to six 45-foot-tall and three-foot-wide 

torches, which are carried by men in loincloths. 

Onlookers who have embers or ash fall on them 

from the torches are believed to be blessed. 

CHI HUNG CHEUNG


Reaching a 

Music is known as the universal language of mankind. 

Outdoor festivals stand testimony to this theory, when 

hundreds of pulsating bodies groove to a rhythm in 

unison. It’s a transcendent experience that can change 

your life. Indian festivals have yet to achieve the 

grandeur of Tomorrowland and Coachella or be as 



■ INDIA 

Crescendo 

diverse as Glastonbury and the Montreal International 

Jazz Festival, but many of them have reinvented 

themselves to make India one of the fastest-growing music 

destinations in the world. With a choice of over 200 

festivals hosted across the country today, here are four 

that have proven to be both music and travel hotspots: 

BY VARUN DESAI 

XXXXXXXXXXXX HIMANSHU ROHILLA (XXXXXXXXX) 



SOUTH 

Go:Madras 

Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu 

Since the mid-1990s, Chennai has had a strong connection 

to techno music so it was inevitable that their biggest 

festival would showcase this genre. Go:Madras began in 

2008 on the beaches outside the city. But now it has moved to 

the seaside town of Mahabalipuram. The clubbing culture of 

the city has been amplified to create an outdoor music experience 

that unfolds through the day and moves indoors by night 

into a giant reverberating room. Unlike the techno experiences 

abroad, which are usually in warehouses and industrial spaces, 

this fest is held within the confines of a five-star hotel property. 

If you’re an energetic dancer Go:Madras promises you many 

new friends, as the tempo picks up dramatically through the 

evening. Some Chennai punters pride themselves on being on 

the floor from start to finish. If you dance with them through the 

night, you are promised good company, beautiful seaside spots, 

and some of the best seafood in the world. 

C 

Dates September 2017; Final dates to be announced 

Festival tip Be prepared for both rain and shine as the weather in Mahabalipuram is notoriously unpredictable. Remember to 

pack your swimming gear in case you want to take a few laps in the sea. 

Website www.gomadras.in 

BHUVNESH MUTHA 


■ INDIA 

EAST 

Jazzfest 

Kolkata, West Bengal 

Kolkata welcomes the onset of winters with Jazzfest. 

During its historic 40-year-old existence, the iconic 

festival has moved around the city from venue to venue 

and has played host to jazz legends like Herbie Hancock, 

Wayne Shorter, Jonas Hellborg, Kenny Garret, and Shawn Lane. 

Currently, the event is held at the Dalhousie Insitute, a 

downtown country club. The three days of evening outdoor 

shows at the fest usually feature a line-up of six to eight 

international bands. Over the last few years, this event has also 

become a platform for Indian jazz bands to headline shows. 

During the Jazzfest, Dalhousie’s grounds are packed with 

serious music aficionados, often the most ardent ones taking 

up seats in the front as families and groups enjoy the ongoings 

from farther behind. Since the programme starts in the evening, 

visitors can spend the day exploring the city’s cultural offerings, 

taking in its bookstores, coffee houses, and restaurants. 

C 

Dates 8-10 December 2017 

Festival tip The seating is open, so reach the venue early to grab a good spot. Also pick up your food and 

drink coupons in one go to avoid long queues later. 

Website jazzfest.in 

SAYAN DUTTA 



NORTH 

Magnetic Fields 

Alsisar, Rajasthan 

Started in 2013, Magnetic Fields has achieved a cult-like 

status among festival die-hards. The 17th-century Alsisar 

Mahal, a historical Indo-Islamic monument about four 

hours north of Jaipur, serves as the backdrop for some far-out 

futuristic music. Each day moves from sun scorched reggae 

parties on the sands to laser and light-filled live concerts in the 

evening, climaxing with sunrise sets on the roof of the palace. 

The standout feature of Magnetic Fields is its well-curated 

crossover music line-up. European acts rub shoulders with some 

established and promising local electronic musicians and bands. 

In its initial days, the roster was heavy on house and techno. 

Those are still the big-ticket draws, but the festival slate has 

become more diverse. 

Last year saw the addition of a reggae/dub stage and a 

dedicated jazz programme. Expect more musical diffractions 

this year along with dazzling visual and light shows. 

C 

Dates 15-17 December 2017 

Festival tip Plan a group trip and opt for a comfortable stay in the palace rooms. Rooms go on sale months in advance and sell out in a 

matter of hours leaving only tented accommodation for latecomers. 

Website www.magneticfields.in 

REBECCA CONWAY 


■ INDIA 

WEST 

Nariyal Paani 


This festival is all about sunshine and music by the seashore. 

Exuding a bohemian vibe, it is held at a secluded beachfront, 

built to look like a bamboo and teepee village. The 

playlist includes live musicians from all over the world, who start 

the day with a drum circle under coconut trees, which is followed 

by high energy ska and electro-jazz acts in the evening. 

For urbanites looking for some respite from their daily grind, 

Nariyal Paani offers a vision of community beach living without 

them having to actually rough it out. The drinks and food 

include both a coastal menu with thaalis and coconut water, 

and snackier options like gourmet pizzas and craft beer. It’s a 

welcome change from the assembly-line fast food and bottled 

beer served at more commercially-oriented bigger festivals. 

This is the smallest festival of the four, but the prospect of 

watching spectacular sunsets while listening to good music 

usually brings its fair share of loyal visitors every January. 

C 

Dates January 2018; Final dates to be announced 

Festival tip Taking the boat to and from the festival and staying at the campsite is the easiest way of experiencing the event. If you do plan 

to drive in and stay at a hotel be aware that it’s peak season so make bookings months in advance. 

Website nariyal-paani.com 




Get Ear Plugged 

Other highlights worth making the journey for 

The Big Gig 

MUSSOORIE, OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 

The Himalayan music festival is 

a blend of live shows (including 

blues and jazz), trekking, 

nature trail walks (organised 

in Jabharkhet Nature Reserve 

every year), heritage walks, and 

open-air film screenings. 

www.facebook.com/ 

biggigfestival 

Dover Lane 

KOLKATA, JANUARY 

A prestigious three-night 

cultural do, it features leading 

classical exponents such 

as Pandit Jasraj, Ayaan Ali 

Bangash, Shivkumar Sharma, 

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, 

and Ajoy Chakraborty. 

www.doverlanemusicconference.org/ 

Varun Desai is a director 

of a Kolkata-based event 

management company and 

a music aficianado, who 

loves touring the world as a 

music producer and a DJ. 

Ruhaniyat 

ALL INDIA, NOVEMBER-MARCH 

Spiritualists and artists 

from all over the country get 

together for a slice of serenity 

at this sufi and mystic music 

festival. Its next edition will be 

held in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, 

Bengaluru, and Chennai. 

ruhaniyat.com 

Sunburn 

GOA/PUNE, DECEMBER 

India’s pre-eminent EDM 

festival is the hottest musical 

ticket of the year-end calendar, 

often attracting international 

superstars like Armin Van 

Buuren, David Guetta, Afrojack, 

and Axwell. 

sunburn.in 

Ziro Festival 

ZIRO, SEPTEMBER 

Featuring indie, rock and folk 

acts, this festival immerses you 

in the native Apatani culture. 

The experience is enriched by 

the breathtaking scenery of 

the Ziro Valley. 

www.facebook.com/ 

zirofestival 

Hornbill 

KISAMA HERITAGE VILLAGE, 

DECEMBER 

This event is a prominent 

fixture on the North East 

cultural circuit, showcasing 

Nagaland’s inimitable heritage 

through songs, food, art, 

and dance. 

hornbillfestival.com 

RIFF 

JODHPUR, OCTOBER 

Timed to coincide with 'Sharad 

Purnima', the brightest full 

moon of the year in north India, 

RIFF is a folk music extravaganza 

held in Jodhpur’s Maharaja 

Fort. In the past, Mick Jagger 

has made an appearance here. 

www.jodhpurriff.org 

Sula Fest 

NASHIK, FEBRUARY 

India’s wine capital throws 

an elaborate party every 

year, complete with indie 

and electronic music acts, 

delectable food (and lots of 

vino), and an unforgettable 

camping experience. 

www.sulafest.net 

Storm Festival 

COORG, FEBRUARY 

A diverse range of artists, 

domestic and international, 

set the stage on fire at this 

event. Along with the music, 

visitors can also enjoy a 

laidback camping experience 

in picturesque Coorg. 

www.stormfestivalindia.com 

Sankat Mochan Sangeet 

Samaroh 

VARANASI, APRIL/MAY 

The classical music festival 

has been celebrated for over 

70 years on Hanuman Jayanti. 

Past performers include 

Birju Maharaj and Pandit 

Hariprasad Chaurasia. 

www.smssvaranasi.com 

PHOTO COURTESY: BIG GIG (THE BIG GIG), IP-BLACK/INDIAPICTURES (DOVER LANE), PHOTO COURTESY: RUHANIYAT FESTIVAL (RUHANIYAT), 

SURUCHI MAIRA (ZIRO FESTIVAL ), IMAGES MART/INDIAPICTURES (RIFF), PHOTO COURTESY: STORM FESTIVAL (STORM FESTIVAL), 

RAKESH DHARESHWAR/ALAMY/INDIAPICTURES (SUNBURN), VIKRAMJITK/SHUTTERSTOCK (HORNBILL),SULA FEST (SULA FEST), 

REDDEES/SHUTTERSTOCK (SANKAT MOCHAN) 


JOURNEYS 

104 

australia 

From shy bandicoots to adorable koalas, 

Victoria brims with stories of conservation 

madhya pradesh 

Camping in Satpura Tiger Reserve reveals 

110 wondrous landscapes and a new perspective 

110 

Satpura Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh 

PHOTO COURTESY: PUGDUNDEE SAFARIS 


Journeys | INTO THE WILD 

The “Penguin Parade” at Phillip Island 

gathers a group of enthusiastic viewers 

who wait at sunset for a glimpse of little 

penguins returning to their burrows. 


■ AUSTRALIA 

MY FAMILY OF OTHER 

From shy bandicoots to adorable koalas, 

Victoria brims with heartwarming stories of 

conservation and rehabilitation 

BY SONAL SHAH 

PHOTO COURTESY: PHILLIP ISLAND NATURE PARK/VISIT VICTORIA 



The seals at Melbourne Zoo have 

become the symbol of its campaign, 

“Seal the Loop”, that works towards 

cleaning Victoria’s coastal areas. 

As the plane descended, the moon rose, inching across 

the sky like the bioluminescent tail of a giant glow-worm. 

The land glistened with its light, reflecting off lakes, waterholes, 

and muddy riverine slivers. The illuminated, striated hillocks 

below, pocked with bush plants, echoed an observation in 

the book on my lap—Bruce Chatwin’s classic travelogue, 

The Songlines—that Australia’s “dotted” landscape inspired the 

Aboriginal style of painting. 

But as we turned towards Melbourne, the moonlight splashed 

across the ocean, revealing the crenellated coastline of Victoria, 

and the dots gave way to straight lines and squares. Here, unlike 

the distant part of the continent Chatwin wrote about, the 

scrub had been transformed into pasture and farmland by its 

European settlers over the last 180-odd years. 

This transformation appeared, complete, by the light of the 

next morning, in the staid urban landscape of Melbourne. 

Except for an abundance of eucalyptus trees, everything looked 

startlingly familiar to me, like the eastern coast of America 

transplanted, with elms and oaks, and precise road markers. Of 

all the supposed strangeness of the land “down under”, there was 

no obvious sign. 

Yet Australia is still one of the strangest places on the planet, 

particularly in terms of the biodiversity of its wildlife. One of 

a handful of “megadiverse” countries, the continent has a high 

percentage of endemic species. But it also has one of the world’s 

highest rates of extinction; some scientists estimate a rate of 

one or two land animals lost per decade. Climate change is a big 

factor, but so are invasive species, such as feral cats and foxes, 

introduced by Europeans. 

Now, as the descendants of the settlers who irrevocably altered 

the landscape work to preserve its particularity, some of their 

approaches involve bringing in tourists—typically an invasive 

lot themselves—to help fund conservation efforts and raise 

awareness. Over the week I spent in and around Melbourne, 

discovering a range of these approaches and their effects, the 

weirdness of Oz and its unique animal life slowly sunk in. 

The Special Ks 

“Wowie Kazowie!” yelled Janine Duffy, swerving and slamming 

the van to a halt. “That was an eastern blue-tongued lizard!” By 

the time I was out of the vehicle and peering into the long grass 

that lined the road leading into You Yangs Regional Park, the 

skink had slithered away. But Duffy’s Level Ten enthusiasm—and 

the tenet of animal avoidance she had so forcefully just put into 

practice—turned out to be hallmarks of my group day trip with 

her company, Echidna Walkabout (www.echidnawalkabout. 

com.au). 

Founded in 1993, Duffy’s company was one of the first to offer 

minimally invasive wildlife experiences in Australia. She and 

her co-founder also set up a research foundation, specifically to 

study koalas. Echidna’s guides and researchers are intimately 

familiar with each koala around the granite You Yangs range, 

PHOTO COURTESY: PAUL PHILIPSON/VISIT VICTORIA 

FACING PAGE: PHOTO COURTESY: MARK WATSON/VISIT VICTORIA (PEOPLE), PHOTO COURTESY: ECHIDNA WALKABOUT NATURE TOURS/VISIT VICTORIA (KANGAROO) 


■ AUSTRALIA 

an hour southwest of Melbourne. In 1998, they discovered a new 

way to tell koalas apart from the underside of their nostrils—a 

testament to how much time they’ve spent staring up at them. 

Once in the woods, Duffy led us to Winberry, a “dominant” 

male, who she called the king of the forest. Despite the crunch of 

our feet on the dry undergrowth, he slept peacefully, his cushion 

of cartilage keeping him moored to his high perch. Duffy told us 

that koalas prefer the moisture-rich new leaves from the tops of 

trees, and that climate change, which causes dryer eucalyptus, 

has affected their population. 

Duffy explained that because Australia’s climate is already so 

extreme, its flora and fauna are “superheroes”, uniquely adapted 

to living on the edge. Kangaroos, for example, can survive 

10 years of drought, even reproducing for the first six. But 

because animals are so precisely calibrated to certain extremes, 

their populations decline catastrophically when a larger change, 

such as global warming, is introduced, making Australia a 

bellwether of climatic disaster. 

Duffy’s insistence on maintaining a strict distance from 

Winberry was in stark contrast to the koala conservation 

centre I visited on Phillip Island, about two hours southeast 

of Melbourne, where the trees surrounding a boardwalk were 

festooned with fresh eucalyptus boughs to draw the animals 

to them. However, Echidna does encourage some handson 

engagement, and Duffy soon had us hard at work, pulling 

up boneseed, an invasive weed that was planted here about a 

century ago to pack the soil after a forest fire. 

This weeding project began when Echidna’s researchers 

noticed that koalas avoided the trees that were surrounded by 

boneseed, probably because they like a clear view of predators 

when ambling from one trunk to another at dawn or dusk. 

Partly through the weeding efforts of Echidna’s tour groups, 

which resonate with traditional Aboriginal land management 

practices, the koala population in the park has increased 

fourfold in two years. 

As the afternoon grew hotter, we ventured out of the shade 

of the You Yangs’ eucalyptus groves to a field of dry long grass 

in the nearby Serendip Sanctuary, which the state purchased 

from farmers in the 1950s to breed endangered birds. Serendip’s 

grazing ground for mobs of wild eastern grey kangaroos became 

a stalking ground for us, as Duffy all but belly-crawled between 

sparse rows of trees, attempting to sneak up on the skittish 

megapods. 

Feeling a little foolish, and very sweaty, I was still thrilled 

when a kangaroo bounded by, then melted ghost-like into the 

grass. The experience surpassed the more up-close and personal 

encounter I had with eastern greys at the Melbourne Zoo, where 

one can pet the creatures while they feed. But as Duffy said, 

“some people need zoos to form the connection.” 

Trails sheltered by Great Otway National Park’s rainforest canopy (top) 

are a popular option for hikers; The eastern grey kangaroo (bottom), 

Australia’s poster child for wildlife, reaches a speed of over 56 kmph. 

Hit Parade 

If Australia’s animals are superheroes, nowhere are these 

champions pressed into greater service than at Australia’s 

oldest zoo. The Melbourne Zoo (www.zoo.org.au/melbourne), 

though cosy and colonial, has come a long way from its mid- 

19th-century origins. Besides areas like the kangaroo enclosure, 

where humans are taught to respect animals within their 

spaces, the zoo also runs several campaigns to change people’s 

habits. One of these is “Seal the Loop”, an initiative to recycle 

the zoo’s plastic into bins for collecting fishing line, which is 



The elusive platypus can be spotted on a boating trip on Lake 

Elizabeth (top) in Great Otway National Park; The 74-odd-acres of 

You Yangs National Park are an ideal habitat for koalas (bottom). 

harmful to marine animals. At the fur seal tank, these graceful, 

intelligent animals, whose ancestors drew the earliest European 

hunters to Victoria’s shores, now perform acrobatics while their 

keepers talk about Seal the Loop: the grand finale involves a seal 

dunking items into a bin. 

The zoo’s star ambassador is a little penguin named 

Miss Wing, who was abandoned by her parents and adopted 

by the keepers. During a special backstage interview with the 

diminutive bird, she allowed me to touch her iridescent teal 

feathers, gargled out a few notes, pecked at my toes, and then 

wandered off, wings straining, behind a shimmering dragonfly— 

her aspirations towards humanity momentarily abandoned for 

an attempt at flight. 

Miss Wing’s relatives at the nature reserve on Phillip Island 

(www.penguins.org.au) were far less tame, though just as 

sociable amongst themselves. Since the 1920s, the island’s 

Summerland Peninsula has hosted viewings of the “Penguin 

Parade” at dusk, when little penguins return to their burrows 

after a day of fishing. What began as a couple of guys with 

flashlights is now a huge viewing area that can accommodate up 

to 3,000 people per night. 

In a process that involved the state’s purchase of a large 

housing colony, the peninsula became a conservation and 

tourism destination, and its penguin population has grown 

steadily, from 6,000 birds in the late 1970s, to 35,000. The 

viewing areas are designed to get you very close to the penguins 

without disturbing them, and a great deal of work goes into 

conditioning human behaviour here—no cameras are allowed, 

for example. When a new section opened a year ago, only three 

burrows were shifted, and the penguins, who follow the same 

path home every night, were carefully taught their new routes. 

Though the visitor centre has a regurgitated mass of penguin 

merchandise in its gift shop, its informative displays show how 

little penguins’ powers extend beyond cuteness. Among their 

“superhero” skills is the ability to dive into the water up to 

1,300 times a day, sometimes to depths of 130 feet. 

But as the sun went down, and the foot-high penguins 

emerged from the ocean, cuteness was most definitely their 

predominant feature. Appearing in small flocks, the penguins 

waddled cautiously out of the water, scurried across the exposed 

stretch of beach, then ambled slowly—stopping often to socialise 

on the rocky shore—towards their burrows. 

Unsexy Beasts 

Penguins, koalas, and kangaroos are among Australia’s most 

popular and recognisable animals, but they are not its most 

threatened. A priority list of about 20 highly endangered 

species includes such timorous beasties as the southern brown 

bandicoot and long-nosed potoroo, and marsupial “mice” such 

as dunnarts and antechinuses. The eastern barred bandicoot, 

already extinct in the wild, is foremost on the list. 

This small marsupial is the focus of conservation efforts on 

Churchill Island (www.penguins.org.au/attractions/churchillisland), 

a smaller island just next to Phillip Island. Churchill 

has a preserved early settler “heritage” farm, complete with 

livestock, but conservationists are trying to return the underlying 

ecosystem of this island to its pre-European state, starting with 

the eastern barred bandicoot. I visited Churchill during the 

day—the wrong time to commune with this elusive, speedy, 

and nocturnal marsupial, but I did meet Donald Sutherland, 

PHOTO COURTESY: MARK CHEW/GREAT OTWAY NATIONAL PARK/VISIT VICTORIA (LAKE), PHOTO COURTESY: ECHIDNA 

WALKABOUT NATURE TOURS (KOALA) 


■ AUSTRALIA 

The Open Vehicle Adventure at the 

Werribee Open Range area in Melbourne 

Zoo lets visitors witness the wildlife of the 

African savannah up close. 

a researcher involved in its rehabilitation. Sutherland talked 

about how a small population of bandicoots was introduced to 

Churchill, which has no foxes or cats. With Churchill’s bandicoots 

now rapidly multiplying, Sutherland hopes the species can one 

day be delisted as extinct in the wild. 

Getting people to care about such reticent and visually 

understated animals as bandicoots is a challenge, but 

Sutherland explained that such efforts are key to broader 

ecosystem restoration. And the myriad people and institutions 

involved in bandicoot recovery—from citizen scientists, to zoos, 

to a special fox management team—spells greater collaboration 

in conservation efforts across the board. 

Sutherland spoke of geographically isolated places like Phillip 

and Churchill Islands as conservation hubs. Thanks to the 

trapping, baiting, and hunting initiatives of the fox management 

team, no foxes have been spotted on Phillip Island for almost 

two years. This is good for the penguins there—a single fox can 

kill up to 40 birds in a night—but also means that bandicoots 

could be reintroduced on a larger scale. “People could go 

to Philip Island to see what life could have been like,” 

Sutherland said. 

Hide-and-Seek 

In the Great Otway National Park, along a southern tip of 

Victoria’s coast, the landscape looked not only pre-European, 

but primeval. A rainforest of tall tree ferns and hang-ing mosses 

loomed over an enchanting trail at dusk. I followed guide 

Bruce Jackson (www.platypustours.net.au), a man as quiet as 

the animal he was taking a small group of us to see, down to 

Lake Elizabeth for the subtlest wildlife experience of my trip. 

It was here that I saw—or did I?—the platypus. 

Though the hidden lake looks ancient, it is actually only 

about 50 years old. The trunks of dead trees stuck up from 

its muddy green surface, casualties of its formation when the 

valley flooded. As we paddled across the water in rowboats, the 

lake seemed so devoid of life that we might as well have been 

searching for the Loch Ness monster. Indeed, the platypus, a 

mammal with a bizarre duck bill and habit of laying eggs, was 

originally considered to be a hoax in Europe. 

Each time Jackson murmured, “12 o’clock, 3 o’clock, to our 

left,” we whipped our heads around, looking for the fascinating 

creature, which not only uses electrolocution to hunt, but also 

produces venom from an ankle spur. Was that the glimmer of 

a fur-slicked back, or a wet log? The ripple of a swimming fish, 

or a diving platypus? After several such ambiguous sightings, 

Jackson, presumably deeming the outing a success, brought out 

biscuits and a flask of coffee. 

I sipped the warm drink, bemused at the capriciousness of 

this sort of wildlife “encounter”. But even if the platypuses were 

not forthcoming, it was enough to know that they were there, 

and to drift a while longer, listening to the rustling trees, the 

occasional splash of an oar, and the unfamiliar evening birdcalls. 

As we rowed towards the shore, the soft, basso grunting of a 

koala calling for its mate floated across the water. Its rumbling 

gently receded behind me as I walked back through the dark 

forest, along a path glittering with glow-worms. Everything was 

strange and wonderful. 

Sonal Shah is a freelance editor and writer. She formerly edited 

Time Out Delhi, and was an associate editor at The Caravan. 

PHOTO COURTESY: ZOOS VICTORIA/VISIT VICTORIA 


Journeys | THE ESSENCE 

THE 

JUNGLE 

BOOK 

CAMPING IN SATPURA TIGER RESERVE REVEALS WONDROUS 

LANDSCAPES AND A NEW PERSPECTIVE 

BY KAREENA GIANANI 



■ MADHYA PRADESH 

Hiking in the territory of tigers 

in Satpura is full of small joys, 

like savouring silence amid dry 

brown grasslands and making 

pit stops by gurgling streams. 

XXXXXXXXXXXX PRABHAT VERMA (XXXXXXXXX) 



Baked by the summer 

sun, the leaves of sal 

trees crunch like potato chips under my feet. Beyond me are armies 

of these tall sentinels the Satpura Tiger Reserve is well known for. 

Some trunks lean tipsily towards others. I have left my group behind 

for a moment, but I’m far from alone: red ants scuttle up and down 

tree trunks, the twitter of drongos and orioles blends with the happy 

babble of brooks. Perhaps, I tell myself, I am being tracked by a 

stealthy leopard and don’t even know it. 

This is the core area of the tiger reserve and walking through 

it plunges me into the wildest heart of a jungle—any jungle— 

I’ve seen yet. None of that zipping across designated tracks in 

the safety of a jeep or returning to a guest house after safaris. I 

am here for a two-and-a-half-day camping trip across Satpura 

reserve in the Satpura range. The jungle falls in the hill station 

of Pachmarhi, which is a five-hour drive southeast of Bhopal. 

Pachmarhi is a UNESCO biosphere reserve that boasts of a 

variety of medicinal plants and stunning rocky landscapes. Day 

1 of my hike begins with the Forsyth Trail, a 15-kilometre walk 

that retraces the route British explorer James Forsyth took on 

one of his explorations of Central India in the mid-1860s. 

WILD SIDE 

About 30 minutes into the walk, Chinmay, our tireless 

naturalist, points to a large mound. It is unmistakably manmade; 

the smoothest of pebbles, stones, and twigs are arranged 

and placed on it is a rock “dressed” in red cloth fringed 

with silver tinsel. The local Gond tribe has erected this 

shrine for their goddess Banjari mata. “They believe she will 

protect them from predators while they collect firewood,” 

explains Chinmay. I feel a strange comfort in knowing that 

these woods, which for me are an escape, a distraction from a 

personal predicament, are somebody’s home. The Gonds have 

long been relocated from the tiger reserve but still consider it 

their spiritual abode. 

Satpura’s landscape changes like a fast cutting montage. 

The forest closes in thickly before suddenly opening up into 

a yawning ravine. Rocky stretches lead to swathes of tawny 

grassland, which then give way to startlingly clear streams. In 

minutes, I feel like I’ve thumbed through Pantone’s swatches 

of green, yellow, and brown. I relish the quiet, tuning in and 

out of conversations. Sometimes my mind rolls to mundane 

worries I have outside of this forest. I tell them to wait; perhaps 

the wisdom of these trees is rubbing off on me. Inspired by 

this centuries-old land that shapeshifts so much, I mentally 

compose aphorisms about change (none to be shared publicly). 

I watch a sambar in the distance coolly going about its day. 

A few metres away, I spot a rhesus macaque peering at me 

through leaves before whizzing from one branch to another as if 

they were trapezes. In a jungle, spotting animals isn’t just about 

looking at them in the eye. Ever so often, it is about joining the 

dots with the traces they leave behind. Fresh scat of a sloth bear 

tells me how it feasted on termites for lunch. Recent gashes 

on trees mean that a tiger or leopard could have stood here 

minutes ago. 

“A nest of weaver ants! They make yummy chutney of them in 

Chhatisgarh,” announces Chinmay, pointing to a football-sized 

cluster of leaves hanging from a mahua tree. They are sewn 

together with a white substance. This nest is just one of a few or 

even a hundred other such homes which are part of one mega 

construction, a seething city built by a weaver ant colony in this 

part of the jungle. 

I share Chinmay’s sense of astonishment when he points 

out a tree dying a slow death after being attacked by relentless 

termites; or picks up a beautiful beige-and-brown porcupine 

quill and tells me how the boys of the local Baiga tribe gift it to 

girls they fancy. To him, Satpura is a wild wonderland and his 

own open-air botanical laboratory. It dawns on me that my time 

in this jungle isn’t about keeping eyes peeled for the tiger, but 

being attentive to every sigh and secret of this wilderness. And 

hiking is also a good way to patrol the area so poachers remain 

at bay, says Chinmay. 



A typical day in Satpura Tiger Reserve is spent manoeuvring miles of boulders (top), but nights are reserved 

for swapping stories under the star-spangled skies (bottom). 

DHARMENDRA (TREKKERS), PHOTO COURTESY: PUGDUNDEE SAFARIS (TENTS) 



SATPURA’S LANDSCAPE 

CHANGES LIKE A FAST CUTTING 

MONTAGE. THE FOREST CLOSES 

IN THICKLY 




Come dusk, campsites are set 

up in the most picturesque parts 

of the forest’s buffer zone, like 

grasslands or clearings by brooks. 

DHARMENDRA 




The canopy of trees in the 

tiger reserve brims with 

birds of every imaginable 

hue, like the green Jerdon’s 

leafbird and sun-coloured 

oriole (bottom right); It 

is never too silly to grab 

hanging roots and imitate 

another Satpura resident, 

the Rhesus macaque 

(middle); A walk through 

Satpura’s core area means 

rare proximity to its grandest 

resident, the leopard (top 

left). But the experience also 

kindles an appreciation for 

other creatures, such as the 

swift and shy Malabar giant 

squirrel (bottom left), and the 

hard-working weaver ants 

who build complex nests 

(top right). 

XXXXXXXXXXXX (XXXXXXXXX)


A MOVEABLE FEAST 

In the distance, I see a long wooden table and cushy chairs arranged 

at a clearing under a tree. It is lunchtime, and a small 

team of staff from our lodge, Denwa Backwater Escape, meets 

us near a cool shallow pool. We gratefully accept small luxuries: 

hand sanitizer is slathered liberally, cold towels are pressed on to 

grimy faces, chilled cola cans are popped right and left. I heap dal 

and some rice flecked with coconut and raisins on to my plate, 

feeling full only after my third helping of crispy bhindi tossed in 

spices and aamchur. 

The feast has no soporific effect on Chinmay. He tells us that 

next up is a steep descent. I’m terrible at them, I want to beseech 

shrilly. Yet I tell no one that the last time I trekked down a steep 

descent, I rolled down like tumbleweed. I emerged covered in 

muck, weeds in my hair, and my pants torn in strategic places. 

“Don’t think. Don’t teeter between rocks. Keep going,” says 

Manav, a fellow trekker who grew up scaling snowy mountains 

in Uttarakhand. I peer at the path below: it’s not a trail but a 

once-trodden path at best, amid rambling weeds and rocks slick 

with wet mud. This, I think dramatically, is Planet Earth. And my 

current spirit animal is the Nubian ibex getting down dizzyingly 

steep slopes of the Arabian Peninsula’s mountains. I have none of 

its soft cloven hoofs; one misstep and I’ll fall right into the belly 

of the valley. 

I start gingerly, but slowly I push at the limits of my nature and 

try not to think; really not think. I keep my eyes open but don’t 

linger looking for the best footholds. I wouldn’t say I descend with 

ease, but I do develop a rhythm. The proof that there’s always a 

way out is all around me. This jungle may be at the mercy of the 

elements, but it puts up a hell of a fight and survives. So, up or 

down, there’s a path. Always. 

That evening, our home pops up at the foot of a hulking mountain 

like a magic trick. Khaki tents are kitted out with soft beds. 

Makeshift bathrooms are fitted with open-air showers—hot 

showers!—for a bath under the skies. 

Laltains are placed along this buffer zone campsite like fairy 

lights. A bonfire sputters to life. Frogs croak throatily over the 

concert of cicadas, and the aromas of seekh kebab and peppery 

potato eddy in the air. My legs smart from all the hiking, and the 

horror stories we exchange are spookier than the plot of Stranger 

Things. But I can’t stop grinning every time I look up at the stars 

blinking in the night sky like glittered confetti. 

CLOSE CONNECTIONS 

There’s an unmistakable closeness among us when we set out 

the next morning. D.K., a Delhi-based businessman, thoughtfully 

clears prickly bushes for the person walking behind 

him; Manav offers to carry backpacks when he notices someone’s 

tired. And Chinmay reveals why he became a naturalist 

instead of an engineer. He fervently loves snakes, and 

grew up spotting them in his hometown of Nashik. But a 

few years ago, while rescuing a cobra, its bite almost killed 

him. He decided life was too short to crack computer codes 

instead of mating calls, so he came to Satpura. “What didn’t kill 

me made me surer of how I wanted to spend the rest of my life,” 

smiled Chinmay. 

This day is full of startling discoveries. Or perhaps it is just me 

who is more present, tasting every detail. I coo over the delicate 

red sundews whose surface is covered in what look like dewdrops. 

But these are badass carnivorous plants and the “dewdrops” are 

deadly globules that lure insects. I spend some quality time making 

faces at a Malabar giant squirrel perched on a tree branch. All 

this while, the smallest of rustle tells me that a leviathan of the 

Satpura range might be looming large. 

And suddenly they are all around: boulders. Fifteen kilometres 

of rocks that will put up a fight as we cross them. I am not daunted, 

and attribute this cheeriness to the terrain; miles of stunning 

pink and purple sedimentary rock that looks like swirling waves 

frozen in stone. True, I cross some boulders in the most unladylike 

ways: clambering over them on all fours, clutching at plants for 

support, even spraining my ankle. But I learn that all that matters 

right now is putting one foot after another; not the craggy cliffs I 

leave behind, nor the emerald streams that lie ahead. 

Our pace isn’t adequate, and we cross the jungle in semidarkness 

for a full 45 minutes. My mind turns trickster. Shadows 

seem like lurking beasts and the quiet feels like a precursor to 

doom. For the first time, I see the forest as a brutal place. 

Later that night, we huddle around the bonfire for one last 

time. We aren’t just co-travellers; we trust each other. We hauled 

each other up every time someone froze among massive boulders 

and steep cliffs. We speak of our childhoods, lost loves, and healing 

hearts until we run out of wood for the fire. We are vastly different 

people, but tonight in this forest we explored together, we 

have the same stories. 

Kareena Gianani is Senior Associate Editor at National 

Geographic Traveller India. She loves stumbling upon hole-inthe-wall 

bookshops, old towns, and collecting owl souvenirs in 

all shapes and sizes. 

THE VITALS 

The best time to camp in Satpura Tiger Reserve is November 

to March. The Denwa Backwater Escape lodge organizes 

1-3-night luxury camping trips to Satpura. The trek traverses 

through its core area, and camps are set up in the buffer 

zone. Expect twin beds in roomy tents, hot showers and dry 

pit toilets, and delicious meals made from local produce. 

Stay The lodge lies in the Madhai area in south Madhya 

Pradesh, 60 km/1.5 hr northwest from the entry point of the 

Forsyth Trail. Overlooking the backwaters of the River Denwa, 

the lodge’s 8 cottages and 2 treehouses offer memorable 

views of grasslands. All accommodations have large sit-out 

areas perfect for curling up with a book and watching the 

sunset. (www.denwabackwaterescape.com; doubles from 

`18,000; luxury camping from `20,000 per person per night). 

Getting There The closest airport to Denwa is in Bhopal 

(170 km/ 4 hr northwest). Itarsi railway station (70 km/ 

2 hr west) is well connected to major cities. 

CHINMAY DESHPANDE (LEOPARD & SQUIRREL), DHARMENDRA (LEAVES & PEOPLE), PRABHAT VERMA (BIRD) 


SHORT BREAKS 

stay 

Glamping and other perks near 

118 Pench National Park 

stay 

Inside India’s first pod hotel 

120 in Mumbai 

Jamtara Wilderness 

Camp’s Star Beds are a 

glamorous twist on the 

machans farmers sleep 

on in the middle of their 

fields at night. 

GROOVY GRASSLAND 

ROUGH IT OUT IN STYLE AT JAMTARA WILDERNESS CAMP | BY NEHA DARA 

Since I was a child, I’ve considered the 

grasslands a sinister place. It’s probably 

the result of dozens of trips to Jim Corbett 

National Park, during which my mother told 

stories of tigers and other dangers lurking 

among the tall grasses. Unlike trees, 

which very obviously have hiding spots, 

grasslands are beguiling spaces. They 

can usher an animal in with their soft 

undulating movements in the breeze, 

only to spring a nasty surprise. 

So, I was a little taken aback when 

my luxury tent at Jamtara Wilderness 

Camp, near Pench National Park’s Jamtara 

gate, turned out to be surrounded by a sea of beige 

grasses as high as my waist. I swallowed back the 

sudden uneasiness I felt, and followed my husband 

down the snaking path that led to our home for 

two nights. Ignoring the grass brushing against 

my sides, I focused instead on that tree in the 

distance from which I could hear a bird whistling, 

and gurgle of the stream that ran just beside 

the tent. 

This was my first experience of 

glamping, and I must confess I was 

surprised by the number of comforts 

that can be crammed inside a 

structure that, come monsoon, can be 

disassembled and packed away. In one 

corner was a wooden desk, stocked with 

writing paper and a stack of postcards 

with colourful tiger motifs. Besides the bed, 

the tent also has a sofa in a corner with an inviting 

pile of soft cushions, an antique-style oval mirror, 

and bright rugs covering the wooden floor. The 

only permanent part of the set-up is the bathroom, 

wildlife 

`` 

luxury 

relaxation 

PHOTO COURTESY: JAMTARA WILDERNESS CAMP 



MADHYA 

PRADESH 

Jabalpur 


Camp ì 

in which everything is stored during the monsoon. 

In the lethargy that crept up on us in the heat of 

the afternoon, we flopped on the beds, not asleep 

but not quite awake. Small details flitted in and 

out of focus. The gleaming slimy underside of a 

snail creeping up the tent flap. The loud buzzing of 

a bee somewhere beyond it, just out of sight. The 

tiny purple flower atop a nodding frond of grass. 

A warm wind blew in, rustling through the grass 

and carrying indecipherable whispers to our ears. 

When I woke up in the early evening, the grassland 

seemed like a less intimidating space. 

Besides embarking on jeep safaris into 

Pench, visitors to Jamtara can stroll through the 

village the camp is named after. Plump gourds 

grew on vines that climbed up whitewashed walls 

and onto tiled roofs of the single-storey cottages. 

Their courtyards overflowed with corn cobs 

turning into a shade of orange as they dried in the 

sun. Our guide from the camp waved out to several 

people we passed; many of the men from the 

village work as guides and drivers in the national 

park. They told us tales of tigers that creep out of 

the jungle in the cover of the night, and prowl on 

rooftops and back alleys in search of easy prey like 

poultry and cattle. 

Back at the camp, we settled into chairs 

around a bonfire that’s organised most winter 

evenings. Snacks and drinks made the rounds as 

we exchanged stories of animal sightings in the 

park with other guests in the light of the dancing 

flames. When we went in for dinner, the dining 

room’s rustic décor caught my eye. The floor is 

made from scrap wood, the walls have a rough, 

bumpy finish, and the dining table is fashioned 

from a long cross-section of a tree trunk, with all 

its natural twists. 

For a special experience, guests can opt for 

a night on the Star Bed, and sleep on a raised 

platform under the stars. But honestly, it is not 

necessary to opt for anything extra to feel special. 

The camp’s staff made us feel that way all the time 

with thoughtful little flourishes. Like the hot water 

bottle tucked into the blankets that awaited us in 

the safari jeep, and the candlelit tea they surprised 

us with when we returned from an evening walk. 

THE VITALS 

Getting There Jamtara 

Wilderness Camp is 

located near Pench 

National Park’s Jamtara 

gate, a 1.5-hour drive 

from the park’s better 

known Seoni entrance. 

It is 208 km/4.5 hr 

southwest of Jabalpur 

and 150 km/3 hr 

north of Nagpur, the 

nearest airport. 

Accommodation 


Camp has 10 tents 

on a 10-acre property 

bookended by two 

streams. The landscape 

is a mix of grassland 

and trees. There’s 

no television, Wi-Fi, 

and limited phone 

signal, giving visitors 

an opportunity to 

disconnect from their 

routines. Tents are 

bright and airy, with 

forest-facing porches. 

(91906 18805; www. 

jamtarawilderness.com; 

doubles from `39,501; 

including all meals, two 

safaris, buffer zone and 

village walks; lodge 

open mid-October to 

mid-May). 

Jamtara’s luxury tents 

(bottom) are a great base 

for safari excusions into 

Pench National Park 

(top left) and strolls into 

the neighbouring village 

of Jamtara (top right), 

after which the camp 

is named. 

PHOTO COURTESY: JAMTARA WILDERNESS CAMP 


Short Breaks | STAY 

I,POD 

IN A COMFORTABLE SPACE-AGE COCOON AT INDIA’S FIRST POD HOTEL | BY RUMELA BASU 

The 124 Classic Pods at Mumbai’s 

Urbanpod are cosy, compact, 

and equipped with everything a 

traveller might need for a night 

in. The fact that they resemble 

the props of a sci-fi film is only 

an added advantage. 

I 

am an astronaut. Not really, but I feel 

like one as I look into the circular mirror 

inside my little pod-room in Mumbai’s 

Urbanpod. I left my shoes in the shoe locker as 

soon as I entered the hotel and now I’m crawling 

into my bed inside a capsule-like pod. I sit there 

taking in my cosy surroundings. There is a lot 

of white, from the sheets and the pillow to the 

interiors of the pod. The lights are a bluishwhite, 

unlike the amber ones usually found in 

hotel rooms. It gives an illusion of more space 

and makes the pod look a little clinical. I touch 

the tiny icon on the console-like set-up to my left 

and the ceiling light flickers on. This console is 

right below my mirror that looks like the peaceful 

cousin of HAL 9000, 2001: A Space Odyssey’s 

electronic antagonist. There are two USB ports, 

a socket for plugging in my devices, another 

for the headphones that are hanging on the far 

left corner near my head, a digital clock, and 

touch-operated controls for all the lights. Tucked 

right under this edgy techie display is a small 

Godrej locker. 

The inner astronaut in me sighs wearily as I 

settle back on the pillow and pick up my laptop. 

Little blue LEDs along the panel indicate the 

brightness of the lights around the mirror and on 

the ceiling. I fiddle with it to let my pod be bathed 

in a mellow bluish-white glow. 

The little world created inside is in sharp contrast 

with the one outside the hotel. Urbanpod’s 

location—the busy area of SEEPZ Andheri, right 

beside a bus depot—is as nondescript as can be. 

Offices and shops line the bustling road in front 

of the building where the hotel is housed. Only 

after stepping off the elevator on the first floor 

URBAN 

` 

POCKET-FRIENDLY 

PHOTO COURTESY: URBANPOD 


■ MAHARASHTRA 

and entering through the double glass doors does 

the sense of being in a hotel kick in. And one floor 

of a building is all that it occupies. The pods are 

located in clusters of 12 to 18, most of them in a 

large room with one main door and some along 

the hallway. Travellers flitting in and out of the 

city for work would probably find a comfortable 

space here. 

At around 7 p.m., I am asked to give my 

preference for dinner. The café outside serves 

packed meals that come from a kitchen located 

a few kilometres away. Simple Indian, Asian, 

and European meals with vegetarian and nonvegetarian 

options make up the menu. I am 

informed that my dinner will arrive in the next 

hour and a half or so and I decide to make my way 

to the shower. The bathrooms, separated from the 

pods, are located in one section at the end of a long 

corridor. Since I am put in a ladies special pod— 

one in a cluster of 18—my bathroom is within the 

same room as my pod. 

While I have a lot of privacy, because the 

ladies pod is relatively empty, a shared space 

like the Urbanpod may not be the best fit for 

every traveller. However, if you are a backpacker 

and would return to your room only to find some 

peace and shut-eye, then the pod may be a good 

idea. It also helps that this little cocoon looks 

snazzy. Mulling over my next backpacking trip, 

I head out to the café for dinner. My Asian meal 

of rice and chicken comes in a take-away box, 

along with cutlery in a transparent pouch. If I 

was airborne, this would feel like a lavish meal 

on a flight. 

As I crawl into my pod at the end of the day, I 

think about whether I’d like to return to Urbanpod. 

I live in Mumbai and often feel like getting away 

from the din. Most times there is an urge to be 

closer to nature and get a room with a view that 

soothes the eyes, but once in a while I wouldn’t 

mind being left on my own. 

However, this might not be an experience 

suitable for everyone. If you are expecting 

24-hour room service, or are over about 6’3”, then 

you might want to reconsider staying here. One 

of my main concerns when checking into 

Urbanpod was claustrophobia but I didn’t need 

to worry as I have almost a foot of headspace 

and a lot more leg-space inside. In the beginning 

I did consider checking into a private pod, which 

is located away from the cluster—a solitary pod in 

one room that also has some space outside its 

sliding door. I was also given the option of a suite, 

with a queen-size bed and a large window. It, 

however, seemed only fitting that I give the pod 

a shot. 

Turning in for the night, I find myself planning a 

getaway, or “podation” as I call it. I think about an 

upgraded business-class flight experience. It looks 

a lot like my pod. 

Urbanpod, 

Mumbai 

MAHARASHTRA 

THE VITALS 

Getting There 

Urbanpod is located 

in SEEPZ in Andheri, 

Mumbai. The international 

airport is about 

15 min/5 km south of 

the hotel. The closest 

railway stations are 

Bandra railway station 

(30 min/35 km south) 

and Chhatrapati Shivaji 

Terminus (1.5 hr/35 km 

south). 

Accommodation 

Urbanpod has 140 

pods and rooms. 

The Classic Pod is a 

single-occupancy pod 

located within a room 

with 12-18 other pods. 

Showers are separate. 

There are 124 Classic 

Pods. Of these, 18 are 

only for women and 

housed in one room. 

The bathrooms are also 

accommodated within 

the same space. The 

second kind, the Private 

Pod, is not located in 

a shared space and 

has some extra space 

outside. There are six 

of these in all. The 10 

suites are regular rooms 

with a queen-size bed, 

television and locker. 

Meals are served at 

the café and guests 

are advised not to eat 

inside the pods. (www. 

theurbanpod.com; 

pods from `1,800; suite 

doubles `3,200.) 

Urbanpod’s pods (top), 

housed in clusters of 

12-18 within a large 

room, and 10 pod-suites 

(middle) are located 

on one floor; Meals 

packaged like take-aways 

are served in the hotel’s 

sunny café (bottom). 

PHOTO COURTESY: URBANPOD 


© d-maps. 

600 mi 

Inspire | TURKEY 

UKRAINE 

RUSSIA 

Konya 

TURKEY 

SYRIA 

IRAQ 

RUMI FESTIVAL 

KONYA, TURKEY 

Every year more than a 

million people from all around 

the world, descend on the 

Anatolian city of Konya in 

Turkey, for the annual Rumi 

festival held in December. 

It was here that Mevlana 

Celaleddin-i Rumi, a well 

known 13th-century Sufi 

poet and writer, breathed his 

last. Despite the passage of 

time, Rumi’s writings have 

mesmerised people from all 

walks of life. His philosophy 

and thought which show no 

bias towards any religion or 

race has successfully managed 

to win the hearts of many, 

including the likes of pop 

icon, Madonna. 

During the festival, the 

brotherhood called Mevlevi, 

or whirling dervishes formed 

by his followers, dance to 

connect with their philosopher 

and to their inner selves. The 

dervishes dance for several 

days but put up the most 

spectacular show at the grand 

finale on 17 December—the 

day that Rumi united with God, 

considered to be his wedding 

night. Wearing white long robes 

meant to resemble shrouds, 

black cloaks symbolising their 

worldly tombs, and traditional 

conical caps their tombstones; 

the dervishes dance 

themselves into a trancelike 

state while onlookers soak in 

the mystic atmosphere. 

—Chaitali Patel 


MAY 2017 | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA 123 

©OLEKSANDR RUPETA/ ALAMY/INDIAPICTURE

Inspire | IRELAND 


IRELAND 

Dublin 

UNITED 

KINGDOM 

CELTIC SEA 

BLOOMSDAY 

DUBLIN, IRELAND 

It was Russian literary 

great, Vladimir Nabokov, 

who remarked after reading 

James Joyce’s Ulysses, “How 

beautifully the man writes!” 

Dubliners certainly echo that 

sentiment during a month-long 

celebration of Joyce’s seminal 

work every year. 

The festival, which kicks off 

on 16 June, is called Bloomsday 

after the protagonist of the 

novel, Leopold Bloom. What 

began as a small event in 1954 

has grown into a nationwide 

affair with the day now being 

observed as a national holiday. 

Ulysses follows advertising 

professional Bloom’s life as it 

played out on 16 June, 1904, 

from 8 a. m. to the wee hours 

the next morning. On the 

day, Joyce devotees follow 

the journey of Bloom in full 

costume complete with straw 

boater hats. Fans of the book 

go through the streets of 

Dublin and visit the places 

referenced in the book, from 

visiting Sweny’s Pharmacy for 

lemon soap, to having a lunch 

of gorgonzola sandwich with 

burgundy just as Bloom did. 

The streets come alive with 

performances and readings 

from the book. Such is the 

popularity of the tome and its 

characters, that Bloomsday is 

celebrated around the world 

from San Francisco to Tokyo. 


ZOONAR/P.CREAN/ ZOONAR GMBH RM/ALAMY/INDIAPICTURE 


Inspire | INDIA 

PAKISTAN 

Jaipur 

RAJASTHAN 

INDIA 

JAIPUR 

LITERATURE 

FESTIVAL 

JAIPUR, INDIA 

If you want to catch some of 

the biggest names in literature 

congregate for an exhilarating 

exchange of ideas, then 

the place to be is Jaipur in 

January. Despite its modest 

beginnings, the five-day Jaipur 

Literature Festival (JLF) is 

now the premier destination 

for authors, managing to snag 

some elusive invitees like 

J.M. Coetzee, Jonathan 

Franzen, and Margaret Atwood. 

As the sun beats down on the 

green lawns and grounds, fans 

pack different tents across the 

majestic venues throughout 

the city in the hope of catching 

their favourite speakers. The 

setting’s elegance and luxury 

also attracts trendy socialites 

and celebrities, who mingle 

with the other guests in the 

evenings over cocktails and 

dinners. There is plenty to do 

outside literature, too, with 

music concerts, food stalls 

that hawk both haute and local 

cuisine and art installations on 

offer. In the last few years, 

JLF’s popularity has soared so 

much that the festival has now 

gone beyond Indian shores 

with an annual event held in 

London in May, and another 

one held in Boulder, Colorado 

every September. 



MAY 2017 | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA 127 

ZOONAR/P.CREAN /ZOONAR GMBH RM/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY

TRAVEL QUIZ 

TEST YOUR TRAVEL IQ 

NAME THE COUNTRY WHERE 

HÁKARL, A DISH OF SHARK MEAT, 

IS CONSIDERED A DELICACY. 

IN WHICH COUNTRIES WAS ROGUE ONE — A 

STAR WARS STORY FILMED? 

3 

HOW LONG IS THE GREAT BARRIER REEF? 

4 

1 

WHERE CAN YOU MEET WILD 

LLAMAS AND ALPACAS 

WHILE TREKKING UP TO 

RAINBOW MOUNTAIN? 

HOW MANY OF THE SEVEN WONDERS 

OF THE ANCIENT WORLD STILL EXIST 

AND WHERE CAN WE SEE THEM? 

7 

2 

THIS CITY SITTING BETWEEN THE 

SANTA YNEZ MOUNTAINS AND THE 

PACIFIC OCEAN IS ALSO KNOWN AS 

THE AMERICAN RIVIERA. 

8 

WHICH IS THE WORLD’S 

OLDEST CHINATOWN? 

3 

WHERE IS THE LARGEST DINOSAUR 

FOSSIL SITE IN INDIA? 

9 

ANSWERS 1. ICELAND 2. U.K., U.A.E., JORDAN, MALDIVES, AND ICELAND 3. 2,300 KILOMETRES 4. PERU 5. SANTA BARBARA 6. GUJARAT 7. ONE. THE PYRAMIDS OF 

GIZA, EGYPT 8. BINONDO IN MANILA, PHILIPPINES. IT WAS ESTABLISHED IN THE 16TH CENTURY 9. PETRA, JORDAN 

5 

6 

WHICH ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE, ALSO KNOWN 

AS “ROSE CITY” OR “ROSE-RED CITY”, IS 

CARVED INTO SANDSTONE CLIFFS? 

ANDYKRAKOVSKI/ISTOCK (HÁKARL), DIN_EUGENIO/ISTOCK (FANS), GONZALO AZUMENDI/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (GREAT BARRIER REEF), MONTGOMERYGILCHRIST/ 

ISTOCK (LLAMAS), TOUCHINGPIXEL/SHUTTERSTOCK (BOATS), STEVEGEER/ISTOCK (DINOSAUR), DIRSCHERL REINHARD/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (PYRAMID), FUMIO 

OKADA/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (CHURCH), RAFAEL BEN-ARI/CHAMEL/DINODIA PHOTO LIBRARY (CAMEL)

National_Geographic_Traveller_India_May_2017

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