Jordan: Aqaba and Kings Highway

Jordan: A week in the Middle East
Jordan: Petra and Wadi Rum

Aqaba

The drive from Wadi Rum to Aqaba is short - about an hour or so along the Desert Highway. And again Google Map plays up! We were staying at the Radisson Blu on Tala Bay - which is a resort area about 15 kms south of Aqaba. In Google Maps, this place does not exist at all!

Anyways, Aqaba is a port of Jordan and located in the south of Jordan, on the Red Sea. It is about 25 kms from the Saudi Arabia border (our hotel was about 8 kms away!), and neighbours Israel and Egypt across the Red Sea. Its quite an interesting location at the meeting point of 3 other countries. The first view of Aqaba is also impressive - you are driving amid desert mountains and suddenly you see this town next to the blue sea come into view. I wish we could have taken a photo of it!

Radisson Blu, Tala Bay

Aqaba is famous mostly for the diving offered in the Red Sea. We stayed in Aqaba at Tala Bay for 3 days and dived all the days through Aqaba Adventure Divers who are again located close to the Marine Reserve in Tala Bay. They were quite relaxed and run a good diving centre. Its owner Talal had studied in India for 5 years and was quite chatty with us on what he missed about Delhi.

I again felt that divers across the world are such a different community - they all follow a common language when in the water. And bond well when outside. All get relaxed when in the zone, its the one aspect I haven’t been able to get into. All dive centres run on such relaxed schedules, there is nothing like a fixed time or deadline for anything that they do.. Someday it may come naturally to me, hasn’t happened yet.

There are loads of locations nearby for off the shore diving. We went to Japanese Garden, Seven Sisters, a shipwreck and Black Rock. The sea here is full of colourful corals, and fishes abound. We spotted moray eels, lion fish, stonefish, shrimp fish, lobsters, the puffer, a starfish, sea urchins, sea snake and even a turtle! I tried following it but it was too quick for me:(.

Aqaba mosque

Other than the diving, there is not that much to see around here. We visited Aqaba city once, it was like any other city - some local streets and some touristy streets with KFC and Popeyes!! The city centre where we were walking seemed very alive at night, I was sure there must have been some clubs also nearby (though we didn’t see any). We also saw a beautiful mosque while walking around, not sure if its a famous one or not, but looked pretty at night.

Sunset across Israel

The weather was extremely hot and sunny - around 40 degrees during the day. There was no way you would feel like being out during the afternoon. The evenings were also too humid to be out much. Being in the pool or the sea was the best thing to do when here.


Accomodation + Food

We stayed at the Radisson Blu on Tala Bay outside the city. It was an excellent location next to the Red Sea with Israel and Egypt across the sea. There are 5 pools to fend off the heat, couple of restaurants and basically anything you need to just chill out. We tried the food at two of their restaurants - Heatwave and Baywatch - and both were tasty and recommended.

Just next to the hotel is a marina, where the rich park their boats and buy pretty houses for holidays. It was a nice area to walk around, and apparently you can also rent those apartments. Worth checking out if you prefer self-serve accommodation rather than hotels. We had dinner at a restaurant called Platters in this area which was ok.

Madaba

The last day, we drove back to Amman through the King's highway and stayed at the city of Madaba. The Kings highway is one of the three main highways that run north-south of Jordan from Amman to Aqaba. Desert highway, Dead Sea highway are the shorter more modern routes, while the Kings highway which takes the longest time is the most scenic one.

We had no idea when we took the road how long it is. Finally, this drive took us about 7 hours rather than the 3.5 it would on the Desert highway. I think it was totally worth it, though a bit tough when we did it. We drove through small towns, mountains of all shapes and sizes and colours; some green, some red; some of rocks, some of sand and some were eroded; next to dams and riverbeds; up and down cliffs; next to green reserves and so on. The views at each turn were pretty - one of those paintings or photographs that you see in exhibitions. Not the usual green forests and mountains, but paintings in the sand, of the desert, in yellow.

There were sheep on the way; plateaus; windmills; springs. We passed many small and big villages and towns with beautifully maintained houses. We went up mountains and down into valleys and then up again. Crossed Mujib and Tabbineh dams. There are not many words I have to describe all that we saw! And no pictures either. all that remains is in the mind and what I had felt at the time…

Your mind wanders thinking about all this land would have gone through, all that happened which led to such a landscape.. it was all so very mystic, the entire 7 hours, I can still feel the feeling I had when we were on that drive, endless… where the journey was so much more alive than the end...

Dam on kings highway

Was it worth it - I would say yes, but if you are not much of a fan of scenic drives, where all you get are pretty views, then its not for you. If not, then you would love this road - you should definitely drive through.


Also, as I wrote earlier, try to keep enough time for this drive. One, so that you can stop and enjoy the views. And second, that you can visit the places on the way, like Mount Nebo, Dana reserve, Karak and Shobak castles etc.

We reached Madaba at night and stayed overnight at the Mosaic City hotel. The hotel was near the famous churches of Madaba with the famous mosaics. Madaba also seemed like a bustling city with places to visit of its own. We did not get time to explore them but have heard they are worth visiting.

Anyways that was the end of the trip, flying back to London in the morning. By the way, the drive from Madaba to the airport in the morning at 5 am was pretty too and we saw a lot of rich houses on the horizon - Jordan never failed to surprise us, even on the last morning!

On the whole I would say that Jordan was unlike any other traveling experience of mine. Maybe because it was the first trip to the Middle East. It was a culturally rich trip, with a huge variety of things to see - Petra, Dead Sea, Wadi Rum. I wouldn't say Jordan is a must-visit destination, but if you like going to different types of places, it definitely is! What it has to offer is one of its kind.



Map

Impressions of Jordan

Jordan: Petra and Wadi Rum

Jordan: A week in the Middle East

Petra

Our next stop after the Dead Sea, was Petra. The drive from Dead Sea was about 4+ hours and the first part was on the Dead Sea highway (No 65) along the sea. It was a pretty drive, with the calm deep blue sea on one side, and yellow mountains in varying patterns on the other. The setting sun was giving the water and the mountains many different hues.

There were many oasis located on the road which looked pretty - a small patch of green, surrounded by empty landscape around. There were small villages all along the way, with people in Arabic clothes going about their daily life. There were multiple places to visit on the way too, like Mount Nebo, Karak etc which we did not have the time for.

Also, interestingly the mountains on the other side of the sea are in Israel. During the drive, we droppef at a viewpoint known as the Dead Sea panorama where there are signboards saying that across the Sea, you can see Bethlehm, in Israel (where Jesus Christ was born).

After the Dead Sea highway, we took a different road (Road 60) through the mountains to connect to the Kings highway (No 35). This was the place where Google Maps again lost it and we were driving in the dark, across completely empty mountains with no idea on whether we were on the right track or not! The drive was scenic though, with mountains in pink hues, but it got dark soon, and we missed most of it:(.

Road 60 linked into the Kings highway at a village called [Al Latifah]. By that point we had become a bit scared that we were lost. The road had become completely unpaved and there was just one person on the road who did not speak English. We however crossed the village and reached Kings highway, when we felt better!

The drive thereafter felt beautiful, quaint little villages on hills, lights, and the stars above (and there were cars other than ours on the road, unlike the last two hours!). One interesting thing was that a major part of the Kings highway was lighted. There were street lights along the way which helped - at least we felt we were not completely off track! We finally reached Wadi Musa at night, driving through these villages and pretty scenes we could not see.

Wadi Musa is the town around Petra. It suddenly felt very commercial and touristy - loads of foreigners walking around and multiple eating places. We had a local Arabic dinner at a restaurant called Al Fandi. The waiter at the restaurant was a Syrian and he told us that he speaks Urdu! I found that pretty surprising, but apparently that’s because there are many Indians in Syria and Syrians see a lot of Indian movies.

We then checked into the Moevenpick hotel which was located right outside the entrance to Petra. The hotel also had Indian channels showing Hindi movies! (We saw Welcome, Race and Jhoom Barabar over the next 3 days. On a side note, I am impressed by the reach of Indian movies. I have met people in Tanzania, Jordan and Bali all of whom watch Hindi movies and know Shah Rukh Khan. Its very impressive especially given how tough it is to connect to people who don’t speak your language. But Bollywood has managed to breach these barriers with many cultures)

Petra of today

The next whole day we explored the ancient city of Petra. Petra is a city from 100AD which was built in stone, by the Nabateans Arabs. It was a major trading city, located on some of the major trade routes. It must have been a bustling town in its time, with people coming and going all the time. Petra was then won over by the Romans, but multiple earthquakes thereafter destroyed it, and it was finally abandoned in the 1500s. It was re-discovered much later in the 1800s and since then has been the biggest tourist attraction in Jordan.

What remains now of this grand city of yore, are the still remaining structures which were carved out from the mountains. Most of the free-standing buildings are gone, but only the tombs and other buildings which were carved out of stone stood the test of time. All these buildings look pinkish (Petra is sometimes therefore called the Rose city), are mostly eroded but the outside facades remain. If you can imagine what it would have looked like in its age, it will fascinate you.

Petra treasury

When you enter the gates to Petra, you need to walk for a mile or two to reach the Siq - a 1.5 km entrance to the city, flanked by 20m high cliffs on both sides! It is such a grand entrance to the city, similar to some of the visuals used in Game of Thrones. There are some sculptures in the Siq, remnant of those times. And then you come to the first view of Petra - the Treasury - a huge tomb carved out in stone. It appears pink in low light and is one of the most well maintained building in the complex. You can spend quiet some time just sitting in front of this marvel and imagining what traders travelling between Europe and Asia in those times would have felt like, when they took a break in this city...

Tomb facades

Then you enter the city, walk through its streets, see some of the remains of those times - amphitheater, kings tombs, market place, colonnaded street, nymphaseum, an old temple and so on. Each building must have been grand and impressive at some time, but alas not much remains anymore.

Monastery

We also did a short 3 hour trek to the monastery, a building similar to the treasury located on top of a hill. There is a viewpoint near the monastery too, to get a high-level view of the deserts and valleys around. The sun was too hot by the afternoon and so we came back to our hotel in the evening. Its advisable to wear a cap when visiting in the summer. Its very hot and sandy all around.

The entrance to Petra was 50 JOD for a day which I felt was expensive. Some sites suggest spending multiple days at Petra, but I would think one day is enough. Also, Petra felt a lot more commercial than Amman. From the start, there are people trying to convince you to take a mule ride to the site, and this selling does not end the entire time you are inside! Also, they treat the mules very harshly, this is definitely a place where animal cruelty activists need to make their voices heard.

Petra at night

Anyways, in the evening we went back to Petra - to see the show called ‘Petra by night’. It happens at night, when the whole Siq is lighted up with candles; you walk through the Siq to the treasury where candles fill up the empty space in front of it. For the next 15-20 mins, a Bedouin plays the [harp], one plays the flute and one tells the story of the place.

I was hugely disappointed with it though. The concept seems brilliant - to see Petra at night all lighted up. But the whole show is so shoddily put up - the treasury isn’t even lighted. It would have been a lot better if they had lighted it up instead of putting the candles on the ground! Also, the whole effect is spoilt because everyone around is more interested in recording the event on their phone/camera rather than actually watching it live! Anyways, I think there is huge scope to improve it, but as of now, its completely avoidable!

At night when we came back to our hotel, we heard singing and dancing on the road below and went to take a look. There was a group of about 20-30 local men who were dancing next to the main road and singing along. I am guessing its part of the local traditions, but it was fun to see. Simple movements being done in tandem by all the men, as if they do it everyday.

Little Petra painting

The next morning, we took a quick trip to Little Petra, about 15 kms ahead of Petra. These are the remains of a little settlement from the same time as Petra, which looks like a resting place for traveling merchants. There are similar rock cut structures here, the only difference being that one of the rooms has the original painting still preserved from that time! It was pretty to see, though not much remains. After this quick stop, we were off to Wadi Rum which took about 2 hours, through the desert highway.

Accomodation + Food

We stayed at the Moevenpick hotel which was located just in front of the entrance to Petra. The whole Wadi Musa area is completely touristy, so there are enough restaurants there to eat and hotels to stay. There is a Marriott and Moevenpick located about 10-15 kms from the town, which offer a great view of the valley below, in case you would prefer that. We preferred being close to the entrance though, especially when you come back dead tired after trekking!

The terrace restaurant at the Moevenpick is pretty. It provides a panoramic view of Wadi Musa and the mountains around and is a great place to spend a nice evening after walking around in Petra. They also have an open pool which is refreshing and a very well decorated bar.

In terms of food, we ate at a couple of local places, Al Fandi and mystic Pizza. All offered good tasty food and were relatively cheaper than the hotels. Vegetarian options are there, though limited. So hummus became our staple diet for everyday.

Wadi Rum

Wadi Rum is a huge desert spotted with huge stone mountains. It is almost completely bare, with limited vegetation and dotted with camels and goats. There are about 8 Bedouin villages within the protected area. Its beauty comes from the colour of its sand and mountains - all look yellow in the light. Also, the mountains come in myriad formations due to wind erosion over the years, which give it an exotic feel.

We reached Wadi Rum after about 2 hours drive from Petra. Part of the drive was on the Kings highway and the rest on the very quick Desert Highway - one of the two main roads joining the North and South. The whole landscape in this area is scenic - pretty views on every turn. Its tough to describe what all we saw, but driving in Jordan is really one of the very different drives I have ever done. We drove through many villages in the first half and they seemed to be very well off villages. The houses were all yellow, well constructed and definitely better looking than Amman. Also, all villages had multiple cars parked around.

Bedouin camps in Wadi Rum

At Wadi Rum, most people choose to stay in Bedouin camps - which are tented accomodation run by the local Bedouins, to showcase to tourists how they actually stay. We were staying at Obeid's camp, and his son met us at the Wadi Rum Visitor Center. He drove us to the camp is his own 4X4 jeep, as normal cars cannot drive in the desert sand.

Sunset

We spent one day at their desert camp. In the afternoon, the tents get very very hot, and there are flies around. So we sat outside where there was some breeze and felt cooler. In the evening, the whole weather became better, and the scenes around pretty - with sunlight playing shadow games with the mountains around. We walked to one of the mountains nearby to get a good view of the sunset, and the rest of the evening was spent in taking in the feeling of being out in the desert.

The sky looked mesmerising at night - clear and full of stars. The sand became cool, and the rocks awesome places to sit and take in the surroundings. It was all so quiet and serene, you could see lights far away and hear the sounds of insects. The feeling of being so close to nature is something we miss a lot in our city lives. I loved the few hours we spent there after the sun went down and all was quiet all around.

Wadi Rum landscape

The next day, we took a jeep ride to explore stuff nearby. The guides take you to buy local stuff, see some sand dunes, do sand boarding, climb a mountain, see inscriptions in the stone from 2000 years away, visit the house of Laurence of Arabia and so on. My suggestion though would be to wake up early morning and climb one of the (easier) mountains yourself. The whole area looks so much more fascinating during sunrise - everything in shades of orange rather than yellow of the day!

It was very very hot when we were there, so my suggestion would be that if you are not up for it, the best idea is to reach Wadi Rum in the evening, explore the place the same evening and next day morning and then leave. Doesn't make sense at all to spend an afternoon there, when you won't be able to do anything or go out.

Also, a warning but apparently there are lot of touts at the Park gate who try to ensnare tourists to their camps. So don’t trust what people at the gate tell you, sometimes they try to give the wrong information. Book a Bedouin tent beforehand and go with them only!

Accomodation + Food

Before entering Wadi Rum, we had lunch at Bait Ali lodge, which is located slightly outside the reserve. It was a lot of food, and one of the cheapest we had while in Jordan. Also, I would recommend it as a place to stay for people who may not want to stay in the Bedouin tents, as they have AC rooms there too, for 50 JOD per night.

Obeid's camp was a great experience - there were 3 people of the same family working at the camp. They chat with you, tell you about their way of life, serve you local food, and loads of tea (!). They also arrange all your tours around. The food was great, and they even made Indian rice (basmati) for us! We went in May when its not peak season, and turned out that we were the only ones staying at the Camp. But otherwise, its fun to interact with other people who are visiting the area. And then in the evenings, the Camps also arrange cultural programmes for the tourists which are fun.

The tents were very simple, just a room with a mattress. They are made of goat hair and become very hot during the day - its actually better to stay outside during the day. But at night they stay warm, much more than outside. An interesting thing about the tents is that not a speck of light comes into the tents at night (or the day for that matter). I don’t know how they do it, but its really scary! Also, staying at the tent made us realise that all you actually need from hotels is just a bed! The rest are all extra luxuries:).

Map

Jordan: Aqaba and Kings Highway

Impressions of Jordan

Jordan : A week in the Middle-East

This summer, we spent one week in Jordan traveling across the country, exploring what it has to offer. The idea of Jordan started with doing a week-long trek to Petra. But that initial plan turned into a driving trip across the country from Amman in the north to Aqaba in the south, and visiting tourist sites on the way.

Jordan has a lot to explore, especially given how small the country is. History - ancient sites in Petra from the 100s AD to religious sites from Judaism, Christianity and Islam; deserts; the Dead Sea (which is unique in itself); the Red Sea for diving; and a different culture - the lives and customs of the Bedouin people. Honestly, a week did not feel long at all, given the varied things you can experience everyday!

Planning the trip was easy, book all the hotels, rent a car and you are good to go. It was a good decision to rent a car to drive around as all the places we visited were mostly within 2-4 hours of each other. So the driving was generally comfortable and convenient (except the last day but will write about it later:) ). A lot of websites had suggested hiring a car with a driver/guide but we wanted to have more flexibility and hence just got a car. It worked out perfectly for us, notwithstanding what people wrote on travel sites about it being tough to drive in Jordan.

Anyways, our itinerary was a pretty relaxed one, with plenty of free time to chill out and do stuff on the go. The basic itinerary was as follows:
Day 1: Land in Amman - explore nearby - overnight in Amman
Day 2: Drive to Dead Sea - take a dip etc - drive to Petra via Kings highway - overnight in Petra
Day 3: Explore Petra - overnight in Petra
Day 4: Quick trip to Little Petra - drive to Wadi Rum - explore in evening - overnight at Bedouin Camp in Wadi Rum
Day 5: Morning jeep drive in Wadi Rum - drive to Aqaba - overnight in Aqaba
Day 6-7: Dive in Red Sea - 2 nights in Aqaba
Day 8: Dive in morning - drive back to Madaba via Kings highway - overnight in Madaba
Day 9: Fly back to London!

I found this itinerary on trip advisor and I think its perfect for a week. There are only two changes I would make to it. One, when in Amman, one should not miss a visit to Jerash. Second, the drive on Kings highway is long with plenty of things to see on the way. We did not keep spare time for this drive, but would suggest one should do that. That way, one can also visit Mount Nebo, Bethany, Kerak castle, Shobak castle, Dana Reserve and other spots on this beautiful route.

Or if you are feeling very adventurous, there is an option for a one-week trek to reach Petra. It sounds exotic and a trek of a lifetime. Maybe you can try that out?

And an important tip before I start - don’t depend on Google maps when in Jordan. Its terrible. We spent hours looking for our hotels in Aqaba and Amman, because Google Map showed directions to the hotel, and then made us go around in circles, while the actual hotel was nowhere near! Anyways onto the trip…

Amman

We landed in Amman at 6 in the morning, rented a car and left for the city, which is about 40 mins from the airport. The weather was quite cool (looks like Amman is cooler than the rest of the country!) and everyone had warned beforehand that the traffic in Amman is terrible. Honestly, given that we’ve driven in India, the traffic felt like a breeze! Lot of cars, roads within the city are sometimes narrow and not maintained, people honk a lot and stop wherever they feel like, but otherwise it was pretty disciplined. Surprisingly, there was a lot of army on the street to the city, which felt scary at first. Think it was because the Pope was visiting, but did not help in setting our minds at ease though!

What played up this time though was Google Maps! We were staying at the Sheraton which was just one turn from the airport road! And it took us 3 hours of driving within the city, to reach the hotel shown by Google Maps. We finally ended up calling the hotel, and them trying to navigate us without really knowing where we were! Another thing to note about Amman is that each road and circle has a long long name, named after earlier kings and queens, none of which are used by the normal people. So the hotel staff were trying to direct us ‘turn left from circle 5 and right from circle 6’ when there is no way of finding in the map what is circle 5 and 6! Anyways after a long ordeal, we reached the hotel. (Reminding you again - don’t depend on Google Maps, use paper maps if needed. Back to basics helps in some cases:) )

Anyways, after the morning adventure, we just rested and ditched the plan to go to Jerash. We spent the rest of the evening within Amman. The city of Amman is not appealing at all, it looks like a yellow brownish mess of houses, which look the same, old and run-down. Honestly, the whole city felt very dirty and backward (I am sure it isn’t but it felt like that!). Most people did not speak English either, unlike other touristy places we visited later. Looks like most tourists don’t come to Amman.

Hercules temple - Citadel

In the evening we went to the old town, first to the Citadel. It is located on top of a hill in old Amman, and has supposedly been inhabited continuously since Neolithic times (6500 BC)! It has been called the Rabbath-Ammon, then Philadelphia and finally Amman. There are remains of a Greek temple (of Hercules) as well as an old Muslim palace, all in relatively good condition given how old they are! There is also a museum on top with exhibits found at the location, from all these ages, starting with the pre-historic times. The view from the top is quite panoramic - 360 degrees of the city. You can also see the Jordanian flagpole from here, apparently the tallest flagpole in the world. It is quite a huge flag, visible from afar; given its size it flutters in slow motion giving it a very black and white movie look.

Amphitheatre and Amman old town

We had parked our car on the top of the hill and then walked down to the old city. We checked out the remains of the Greek amphitheater and a beautiful mosque - the King Abdullah mosque - in the area. The rest of the time, we just spent walking around in the market. It felt just like any Asian city - small shops selling all kinds of assorted wares. It felt so much like India too, the people, all the handicrafts being sold - made me a bit nostalgic too.

In the evening, we saw the Champions League final match on the terrace bar of the Sheraton, called Sanctuary Lounge. It was open air, with comfortable seating around, the game playing on a huge screen, heaters to warm in the chilly air, lots of sheeshas around, women dressed in party clothes and live music playing in the breaks. It did not feel like Jordan at all, could have been anywhere in Europe even! (It made me realize the rich everywhere around the world enjoy the same lifestyle, its the poor and middle class where you can see a difference!)

Accomodation + Food

We stayed at the Sheraton, which was an easy drive from the airport and located on Circle no 5! It was the usual high-end chain hotel, nothing different to offer

In terms of food, we had one meal at the city center, at a local restaurant called Al asalah al shameya. It had very tasty food, and a very local ethnic Arabic ambience - was a nice experience. One thing to look out for though - portions in Jordan are always American size, so you would always end up over-ordering.

Dead Sea 

The drive from Amman to Dead Sea is quick - about an hour or so. On the way, you can stop at Bethany - the place where Jesus Christ was baptized. From the visitor center, you take a shuttle, walk a bit and then reach the site. We were short of time, so had to skip it.

The first view of the Dead Sea is mesmerizing. You see this body of blue coming into view, contrasting with the light brown mountains on all sides (The mountains on the other side are actually Israel!). The dead sea is completely calm, not much movement happens on its surface due to lack of any water life. There is a public beach to access to sea, or you can go to the hotels which allow private access to the sea. We went to the Marriott - it costs about 60 JOD, with 25 of it usable for food.

Dead Sea

The Dead Sea is an experience in itself. As we all know, it has so much salt, that anyone can float on it without any effort. The water feels greasy because of all its minerals. And it tastes awful! Just next to the sea, there is generally some dead sea mud kept, which is apparently good for skin diseases. We floated on the sea for sometime, and also applied the black mud to ourselves. Hopefully our skin has become more youthful now;-).

The Dead Sea area is about 400m below sea level, this leads to more oxygen in the air and is supposedly a very healthy environment. A lot of people come here for healing, both in terms of general health, and curing skin diseases using dead sea mud. Even we felt a lot more energetic when we were here. Also, the sun does not hurt much here, don’t know why, even though it was so hot and bright, we did not get tanned at all.

We spent some time in the sea, some in the hotel pool, had lunch and then left for Petra. Before leaving, we visited the local mall and found a huge poster of Deepika Padukone promoting Tissot. Was quite a welcome change! You can buy lot of dead sea minerals and cosmetics from here - mud masks, creams etc. Am not sure how good they are, but definitely sound different.

Accomodation + Food

There are a couple of hotels in this area, Marriott, Moevenpick, Kempinski etc. They are all located next to each other on the same stretch of the road. We ate at the Acacia Lounge and Champions Sports Bar in Marriott, all offering tasty and expensive food. Also, you will see so many hookahs all around - all eating and sitting places offer these.

Map





Jordan: Petra and Wadi Rum

Jordan: Aqaba and Kings Highway

Impressions of Jordan

Skiing in Gryon Villars

There is not much that is different between skiing trips, they are generally all similar - beautiful white mountains, pretty little wooden towns/villages, long hard days of skiing, and being tired and crashing at night. And this trip was similar too. We went for a 4 day skiing trip to Gryon-Villars resort, and even though there wasn't much snow to ski on initially, that changed soon and we ended up having a complete ski holiday.

How to get there

Gryon-Villars ski resorts are in Switzerland. We flew in to Geneva, and then took a train till Gryon. It took up about 2 hours by train to get to Bex, where you can take the local trams to Gryon and Villars. You can buy a combined ticket for this trip from the Geneva airport itself.

When the train goes from Geneva to Bex, it goes along the great lake, and provides pretty views of the mountains covered with snow, and houses with twinkling lights, across this lake. Also, apparently those areas are in France, unlike this side of the lake which lies in Switzerland!

Acco

We stayed at a hostel after a very long time - at the youth hostel, Chalet Martin in the village of Gryon. The local trams take you till Gryon, and the chalet is just a 10 min walk up a mountain, just next to the train station.

It was a fun place to stay, a nice little wooden chalet, very comfortable and warm. There were many board games to play in the evening, a fully stocked kitchen to cook your meals in, lot of people to chat with and friendly owners. The Chalet also has separate rooms in case you prefer that to dorms.

Things to do

Everyday for skiing, we used to take the local trains which run between the villages in the area (and are included in the ski lift tickets) to Villars, take our skis from the rental and take the train up the mountain to Bretaye. That used to be the base, and then we skied around.

We all took lessons, which I think makes the whole experience of skiing so much easier and controlled. I spent two days learning tips and tricks, and then the next day covered a lot of blue slopes during the day.

Ski map of Villars Gryon

I skied from Chaux Monde to Bretaye multiple times, and down till Villars, and went up D'Orsay too once. It was good fun taking the lifts and the gondolas and exploring the area. There was a cafe in Brettaye to come back to for warm unhealthy food after a hectic day of skiing.






As I said, isn't much to talk about skiing, other than experiencing it yourself. It does help if you can do that at a scenic place like Villars, but was fun anyways.

Villars

The village of Villars was usual, with a couple of eating places and ski rentals. When we landed in Gryon, there wasn't much snow. But the two days we were there, it snowed almost continuously, which did help us get good snow to ski in. It also made the entire area a lot prettier than it looked when we reached. Also, the valleys were all full of clouds the entire time we were there.

Food

We did not eat out much, so wouldn't know much about the food options. The kitchen at the Chalet was definitely well stocked which made cooking a lot easier:).


On the whole it was a fun trip, and I improved my skiing multifold (given I was starting at a low level). Also, I would definitely recommend Villars as a ski option for people looking for slightly more reasonable skiing options. It wasn't as crazy expensive as most of such places are, especially Chalet Martin which is a very reasonable place to stay in.

Yorkshire Dales - Malham

In spring this year, since it had generally been a warmer winter, we decided to spend a weekend walking in the Yorkshire Dales, near the village of Malham. It turned out to be a terrible weather weekend, but still we enjoyed the walks in the area, and would definitely revisit the Dales.

How to get there

We took a train to Leeds, where we stayed the night. Leeds is a city kind of a place, with a very harsh architecture and limited character to it. But once you get out of the city, its pretty! We hired a car from Leeds airport and then drove from there to Malham. It was a short drive, about 40 miles or so, and frankly, that was all we used the car for! Once there, the rest of our time was spent in walking around, and since all amenities were within a 5 min walk, the car remained parked for the rest of the weekend!

About the trip

We reached Malham in the morning, the drive from Leeds being very very pretty - small little villages on the way, stone houses, streams, green fields dotted with sheep, narrow roads once you get close to the Dales- just like they described in all the old English novels!

When we reached Malham, we realised it was a very small little village with about 10 houses, a stream running through it, green fields all around and hundreds of people visiting! We were staying at the River House, one of the B&Bs in the village.

Malham Cove

Malham falls on the 'Penine Way' : a cross UK country trail going from north to south, and hence has a couple of good walks around. There were some 5-6 day trail options near Malham, ranging from 2 hours to 8 hours. The first day, we walked on the 'Malham Spectacular Landscape' trail which was a short circular route of about 7 miles, taking about 2-3 hours to complete. The trail starts at the village, takes you to the Malham Cove, you walk up the mountain, stop at the limestone pavement, walk across fields, go past the 'Janets Foss' waterfall and come back to the village.

Link to the walks map

Limestone pavement

Malham cove was a huge cliff-face where you could see some people doing rock climbing. On the top of the cliff though, you can see such rock structures been made by water on limestone rocks - called the limestone pavement! The crevices are deep and hide many types of foliage.

Janets Foss

The walks in the fields were scenic; crossing gates, going up and down fences, jumping over small streams, walking through muddy tracks and farms dotted with sheep. It felt fresh and energising. The last part of the walk which went next to the waterfall was different from the rest though, with thick wild foliage and undergrowth all around. It almost felt like a tropical jungle!! On the trek, we also found a small trailer serving snacks and drinks! Alas, we had taken no money with us!

Tropical jungle?!

There were a lot of people on the trek, which surprised us a lot. One suggestion definitely is to wear waterproof clothes, as the clothes get very very muddy. We saw all kinds of weather while we did the walk - rain, snow (!), sleet, wind and sun - alternating with each other. It was a great experience though being wet and still going on walking!

The signage for the walks was ok. There were times when you had to make an educated guess on where to go as the signs were not clear and the map was tough to understand!

We came back to the hotel tired and wet and were ready for a hot tasty meal. We had dinner at Lister Arms which was one of the 3 eating places in the village and a 5 min walk from our B&B.

Dry Valley

The next day, we did a longer trek, upto Malham Tarn. It was about 8 kms and took us 2-3 hours. The first part of the trek was the same as the previous day - Malham cove, and up to the limestone pavement, but the rest was completely different. After the limestone pavement, we walked in the Dry valley, and over barren grassland (or moors) till the Tarn - a lake. There was a pretty manor on one side of it, and apparently a beautiful walk around it. The walk had started when the sun was out, but again turned out to be unpredictable weather - sleet, rain, sun, wind and cold!

Moors

We felt too cold by the time we reached the Tarn, so we did not walk around the lake but came back to the village soon. It was a pretty walk but not as much as the previous one. While coming back to the village, we saw some yaks grazing in the farms - which was quite a surprise as I did not realise there were yaks in England. We also saw some 100 sheep run behind a hay van which was quite a surprising sight for us. Everywhere in the UK we have seen sheep only sitting, grazing and lazing around. But they ran fast and with energy behind the hay van!

One back in Malham, we had lunch at Beck Hall next to the stream, sitting outside, with the sun shining and hot food! Overall both the days, we found the trail to be quite muddy and slippery because of the rain. It felt awesome to be out though, with fresh air everywhere. When it was sunny, the area looked even prettier - lush green shade everywhere around! There were also a lot of daffodils around, providing a nice yellow and white to the landscape around!

Food

The first day we had food at the Linter Arms which was a nice little pub full of people. Food for vegetarians was limited, but still we stayed there for more than 2 hours. There was a nice little wood fire burning in the pub and lot of board and card games were available. And since at a place like Malham, there is not much to do after 4-5pm as it gets dark, playing games and sitting next to the fire was what we did, and enjoyed thoroughly. We also realised there are things to do, even when you dont have the computer or the internet!

Beck Hall

The other place we ate something was at the Beck Hall which was just next to the stream. They had some sandwiches and scones which tasted lovely after the walk. Plus the shining sun and warm weather made it even more enjoyable.

Acco

We stayed at the River House, a small B&B in the village, It was nice and comfortable, with very friendly owners. And another great thing again was the wood fire burning in the evening, with sofas around them to sit and read a book. Isn't that a scene we have read many times in all the Jane Austen and other old English classics? When we experienced it, we loved it!

Scottish sun at Turnberry

Lighthouse

This Easter, we had planned a relaxing trip to a golf resort in southern Scotland - Turnberry, which is located on the sea. The pictures of the place looked pretty but we did not really know much about what to expect. Moreover, till a couple of days before the vacation, the weather forecast was rainy/cloudy as well as cold. But finally it turned out to be 4 full days of sun (with some cold though!) - quite a welcome change in weather (and apparently very rare for Scotland)! Apparently, its more likely to snow on Easter than to have sun and no cold.

How to get there

It was relatively quick to get to Turnberry - we flew in to Glasgow from London, and hired a car for the next 4 days. We did a quick detour, visiting Edinburgh for a couple of hours (its an hours drive from Glasgow) and then drove till Turnberry, reaching there in the evening. The drive was quite average - nothing much to write about, some houses here and there, green fields but mostly felt very bare.

The resort

Turnberry hotel

The Turnberry resort is just beautiful - I had seen pictures earlier, but was still not prepared for what I saw. A grand white building on top of a small green hill. Golf grounds right in front, a lighthouse, the sea and a small island popping up far in the horizon. The view is imprinted in my mind - serene, calm, extending forever. This itself made the whole trip worth it:)

The entire area was lush green, the weather bright and sunny, and at times during the afternoon, the weather even got warm -  everything felt perfect for feeling relaxed and happy! One thing I would suggest though - its a good idea to book a sea view room - this is one of the places where it is worth it. The sunset is worth experiencing from the comfort of your room:)!

Turnberry hosts some Golf Open tournaments here, and you can see photos everywhere of old championships and winners. Also, there are some activities always happening to keep you entertained - there was an Easter bunny for the kids, and a Scottish man playing the bagpipes in the garden in the evening.

The trip

We stayed in Turnerry for 3 days, and spent our time walking around and trying out the activities available there. We went for a walk on the beach and the golf grounds - a 2 hour walk which was pleasant. There is a lighthouse on the way, which can be seen in a lot in pictures of the area. The beach here is rocky, plus never really has water warm enough to go in. Its a good walk though and you find a lot of people out there on the beach on weekends!

Beach

We played golf a couple of times, which was more fun as it was in such beautiful environs. We went horseriding on the beach for an hour. Our guide was a Scottish woman, who was interesting to talk to. She mentioned that she would oppose the move to make Scotland an independent country, but worries that the majority may not vote the same way! Another interesting thing she said was that her husband who is 60 and has travelled to Australia has never been to London or to Edinburgh! Interesting how what is close to you doesn't feel as exotic as something far off!

The rest of the time we just chilled in the pool and the many restaurants there are. There are a couple of other activities too which the resort offers, but we never got time for that. The spa, pistol shooting etc

The nearest town is Ayr, which is about an hour away. A good option for food, in case you get bored with the offering in the hotel. Also, there is a coastal route which goes from Turnberry to Ayr, which is right next to the sea. A definite recommend.

Culzean castle

There is a castle nearby, called the Culzean. We went there for an evening, and it was a beautiful estate with gardens and activities in the summer. But would still suggest to give it a pass - not worth the 15 pounds they charge for entry.

The countryside around was green and pleasing to the eye but nothing extraordinary. This area does not get snow even in the winters, so is popular during that time as a way to get away from extreme cold.

People

The staff in the resort wore kilts, even the men. I must admit, even though I know its the Scottish dress, I still find it funny to see men wear skirts! Scottish people seemed quite friendly overall, though their accent wasn't the easier to understand!

Food

There are multiple restaurants at the resort - Tappie Toorie (in the golf grounds), Ailsa (casual dining), Grand Tea Lounge, Halfway point (small cafe on the 9th hole) and 1906 (fine dining). Of the ones we tried, [Ailsa] has limited vegetarian options but a relaxed ambience and pretty view of the outside, Grand Tea Lounge has nice traditional tea and snacks and the Tappie Toorie had good food.

We did however go to Ayr one evening for dinner, and Meridien Bier cafe was a good option to get vegetarian food. The Mexican food there was quite different than typical Mexican food we have had elsewhere, but at least its Mexican:).

On the whole turned out to be a resortey vacation, with the weather making it very enjoyable.

Mexico: Impressions

(P.S. The photos in this blog are just some photos of people and some of handicrafts that I took in Mexico)

Mexico... I don't even know where I should begin! In the 10 days I was in Mexico, I have felt and experienced so much history and culture in the country, I am amazed how such a gem has been hidden for so long...

A brilliantly hand-made bedcover

Since I wanted to do a trip to the Americas, and Mexico does not require a visa if you have a US visa, it seemed like a feasible option for the trip. But most of the people I knew who had visited Mexico before, had visited Cancun and some did a bit more and took a day trip Chichenitza. That was all I knew of tourism options in Mexico when I started planning for the trip. And it was not much to go on with!!

Wooden masks

But what made me finalise Mexico for the trip were the recommendations of a friend who had gone to Mexico for 10 days. He raved about it so much, that there is so much to do there; it gave me comfort to book a 10 day trip without really knowing what I would do there.. And it worked!

When I started researching, I realised he was right! There is so much to explore in the country that 10 days is actually too less. There are the canyons and jungles of the north, and the history and culture of the south, that in the end I had to pick and choose and it was not easy (though online research did not help as much as I would have wanted!).

Our itinerary for the 10 days was limited to Central and South Mexico and included:
3 days in Mexico City : tour to Teotihuacan ruins, city tour of Mexico City, visit to Museum of Anthropology and walk around the Centro Historico
2 days in San Cristobal de la Casa : tour to Sumidero Canyon, El Chiflon waterfalls and Montebello lakes
1 day in Palenque : tour to the Mayan ruins at Palenque
3 days in Merida: tour to Uxmal and Chichenitza Mayan ruins and visit to Progreso beach

I would though suggest spending not more than 2 days in Mexico City and that extra time can be spent in Oaxaca.

Wooden characters

Some fun facts: The symbol of Mexico, is the Aztec symbol of Mexico City. An eagle on a cactus, with a snake. Apparently, Mexico City was founded at the location where the Aztecs were told they would find an eagle sitting on top of a cactus plant, with a snake in its mouth! The cactus is abundant in Mexico, and the snake was considered a holy symbol by the Mayans. Also, another common depiction in Mexican culture is of the jaguar, which is quite often found in the Mexican jungles.

Overall impressions about the country

Indigenous art

First, Mexico City is separate from the rest of the country. Its a busy crowded metropolis, while the rest of the places we visited were a lot more relaxed and open. Second, Mexico is not as under-developed as a lot of Hollywood movies would have us believe. That is just a view that the US has created of Mexico and Mexicans - as if the whole country is one big jungle where drug wars are all that happen!

Its not so - Mexico is a normal country with tourism, history, development, industries and whatever a normal country has. In fact, I found it a lot more developed than I would have expected.

Weather is very mixed, with parts of the country (like Mexico City, San Cristobal) located at high altitudes and hence colder, while Yucatan which is surrounded by the ocean has a more equatorial climate. We were there in December which was supposed to be the dry season, still there was rain in the Yucatan area.

I had heard a lot been said about how Mexico is unsafe, and too be honest, the first couple of days I lived in that fear. But then I realised, it was all in my head! The place did not feel unsafe at all, its not like gangsters are walking on the streets selling drugs and killing random people! That only happens in Hollywood movies (or as my friend said, in the border areas of Mexico bordering the US). The rest of Mexico felt pretty safe and normal to me.

Culture

Wooden masks

Mexico is a Catholic country, and you can see it visible everywhere. There are many many beautiful churches in every corner of the country. People wear the cross, and during the time we were there, every village was decorated with a christmas tree and the birth of Jesus. Also, I found nuns traveling to touristy places, working and selling food stuff outside a church - which I found very different from any other place I have visited.

Also, I found Mexico to be a very healthy mix of indigenous and Spanish cultures. There is a whole section in the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City devoted to this - how the Mexicans adopted and adapted Christianity, mixing it with their own ancient customs and culture. Thus you find that people in different parts of Mexico have their own dresses, foods and customs; mixing some from Spanish and Christianity and the rest from their own.

Colours and embroidery

The Mexicans also did not seem to resent the Spaniards as much as I would have expected. Maybe it is because they accepted their religion, their language and their culture a lot more, and so many Spanish people settled in Mexico, becoming Mexicans; that it isn't feasible to resent the Spaniards anymore as outsiders. It is not the same in India, where other than the Britishers' language, we did not adopt their religion, their culture, and neither did many of them settle in India. So they were and always will remain outsiders and resented.

Brightly coloured bags

The handicrafts that were being sold in Mexico were just amazing. Woollen cloth, Mexican dresses, embroidered bags, shawls, wooden show pieces etc etc. The list is endless and I just loved exploring all they had to offer. I was quite impressed with the colours that were used in the woollens and other clothes. Such an overdose of colour, I have not really seen outside India. I just loved it!

History

Handmade wares

The history of Mexico is long. All I will mention here is if you get a chance, to explore the different areas where all the different civilisations were : Aztecs, Mayans, Olmes, Toltecs, Teotihuacans, Oaxacans and the rest. They are all different, yet similar in some way. If you are interested in ancient history, Mexico will be a boon for you.

Other than that, there was just a very funny thing I realised about Mexican history, which I did not know earlier. Apparently the American states of New Mexico, Texas and California were earlier a part of Mexico! And the US just took it from them in a war in 1846! Guess nothing has changed really over the years;-).

People

I liked the people that I met in Mexico. They all seemed simple and helpful. Not knowing Spanish is a problem though, as a lot of them do not speak English, but its enough to get by. It seemed generally like a safe and relaxed place, and women seemed to be working everywhere.

Cute children

Also, the indigenous people here definitely looked different from people of the other continents. I was trying to categorise them in a category but couldn't. I guess thats because a lot of the indigenous people are descendants of what are called the Red Indians, different from the ones I had met elsewhere till now. There features are different, their body structure is different - they are just different! Also, the children were very very very cute. They were all very chubby, and with reddish faces, looked even cuter:).

Indigenous artist

When I read about the people of Mexico, apparently there are very few of them who are 100% indigenous. They still live in the hills, away from the rest of the civilisation. But most of the other people are a mix of the indigenous people and the Spaniards and other conquerers who invaded Mexico.

Also, one of our guides mentioned something which I found very interesting. He said, that people in Mexico do not want to accept that they speak Mayan (even though a lot of them do that at home!). They do, and they are of Mayans descent but prefer not to say that openly. The same guide also said that he thinks they are related to the Asians as they have similar eyes. I don't know if thats true, but possibly could be?

Witchdoctor?

A lot of people we met who were also traveling were Mexicans. Seemed like a very high percentage and unexpected! And then we met some people who were doing long 1-2 months trips across Mexico. They all seemed to love the country, and were surprised with what all they experienced! Also, a lot of them were going to Cuba, which I would love to visit too. (Apparently best way to go to Cuba is through Mexico as there are no US flights going there!)

Food

Snacktime!

In terms of food, everyone had told me that food in Mexico is awesome. To be honest, I was left asking for more. We went to a couple of recommended places, but the Mexican food there was not as tasty as the food I've had elsewhere, say in the US. Its different - most people do not give the tomato salsa, and the food per se was not as spicy as it generally is. There would be a spicy sauce with it separately, but the food itself was not spicy. I think I prefer the Mexican food I have eaten outside Mexico, than the one within:).


To end it all, I would say that I feel that anyone who is fond of traveling must once go to Mexico - its definitely worth a visit. And I would rate it as one of my best trips - next to my trip to Africa:)

Other articles on Mexico

Mexico City

San Cristobal de Las Casas (Chiapas)

Merida (Yucatan)

Mexico: Trips for travel