Day: March 3, 2018

Haridwar belongs to the Uttarakhand state of India. It is one of the holiest cities in India. What makes Haridwar sacred is the river Ganges that enters the Indian terrains for the first time here. The city is also spelled as Hardwar and its ancient name is Gangadwar, because of river Ganges.

Why is Haridwar a sacred city?

According to the Hindu mythology, during the Samudra Manthan, Garuda, a celestial bird while flying, dropped few drops of Amrit or elixir of immortality here. The city is thus known to wash off people’s sins and a gateway to heaven.

Samudra Manthan is churning of ocean and its mention appears in Hindu epic tales of the Bhagavata Purana, the Mahabharata, and the Vishnu Purana.

Because of the pleasant, refreshing climate of the city and people’s religious sentiments, many popular Ashrams are built here and are still in operation. The famous few are-

Shantikunj Ashram

Shantikunj is the headquarters of a spiritual and social organization- All World Gayatri Pariwar (AWGP). The Ashram is built on the bank of river Ganges along the Shivalik range of Himalayas, giving it a mesmerizing atmosphere. The place thus attracts tourists for both spirituality and sightseeing.

Patanjali Yogpeeth

It is a Yoga Institute and research center founded by Yoga Guru Swami Ramdev. Thousands of people visit this Ashram for health benefits. The infrastructure of the Patanjali Yogpeeth is worth seeing on your visit to Haridwar.

Saptarishi Ashram

This is a place where people believe the seven great saints of India meditated. At this place, the river Ganges split into seven streams so that the sages do not get disturbed by the flow.

River Ganges at Haridwar

In the Hindu mythology, king Bhagirath performed years of meditation to bring her down to earth to release his 60,000 uncles from a curse. Because the Ganges was brought to earth by king Bhagirath in Haridwar, it is also known as Bhagirathi here. The evening Ganga Aarti in Haridwar is a lifetime experience.

Are you looking for these-

Things to do in Haridwar

How to plan one day trip to Haridwar?

Best food in Haridwar

Places to visit near Haridwar

Since Nashik is located in the western parts of Maharashtra state, the traditional cuisine here is Maharashtrian. One can also observe the influence of neighbouring cuisines like Rajasthani and Gujarati.

If you ask about the speciality of food in Nashik, we would say, go for- Nashik special Misal Pav, Makai Chivda, Amti, Bharli Vangi, Batata Vada, and Gulachi Poli. you can book a cab for your entire trip and enjoy the food trail.

Nashik Special Misal Pav

Misal Pav is the signature dish in Nashik. In this dish, a small bread loaf is served with two types of gravies- spicy curry and chili gravy (locals call it ‘Kutt’). Almost every street food vendors and small restaurants serve Misal Pav. You can also try this dish at Raswanti Misal in Panchavati Karanja, Shelke Misal in Raviwar Karanja, and Ambika Misal, again in Panchvati.

Makai Chivda

It is a crisp savory snack. People usually eat this at evening with tea. Makai Chivda is available in snack stores and even large grocery stores in Nashik. You can also carry this snack home and enjoy them for months.

Bharli Vangi and Amti

Vangi is brinjal and Bharli Vangi is a side dish usually taken with chapati or rice. The brinjal is stuffed with the tradition Gada Spice mix and shallow fried. You can try this dish at the restaurants who serve the Maharashtrian cuisine. While on your quest of traditional food in Nashik, try Amti– the Maharashtrian version of lentils, made with curry leaves.

Gulachi Poli

Gulachi Poli is made with wheat flour and stuffed with filling made from gram flour, jaggery and peanuts. It is a festive dish and available at the Farsan stores in Nashik. If you have friends or hosts in Nashik, you can ask them for Poli, you will enjoy this dish more when prepared fresh and served hot.

Batata Vada

Batata vada is a deep fried snack made from gram flour and potato. It is yet again a popular street food snack and served hot with fried green chili and kocum chutneys.

You can also travel to Nashik via outstation taxi from your city.

Folks, check out these topics-

Nashik- One day trip planner

Places to visit near Nashik

Shopping in Nashik

St Thomas Cathedral is a 16th century basilica in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. You can reach Chennai via road, railways, or airways. However, we would not say that travelling to St Thomas Cathedral in Chennai is easy, mainly because of the language gap. In this read, we have used Chennai Airport as the starting point to reach St Thomas Cathedral. Following are the options to reach St Thomas Cathedral-

Reaching St Thomas Cathedral via road

This is the coolest option. It hardly takes 20 minutes to reach St Thomas Cathedral from Chennai Meenambakkam airport. You can easily get cab or taxi, both prepaid and postpaid from the airport.

Reaching St Thomas Cathedral via bus

You need to walk about 250 meters to reach Redhills Bus Terminus, the closest bus depot from the airport. The bus will drop you to Pranaipalai, the closest station from St Thomas Cathedral. You will have to walk again for about 850 meters to reach the cathedral.

Reaching St Thomas Cathedral via train

If you wish to reach St Thomas Cathedral via train, you need to again walk for like 250 meters to reach Tirusulam station. The train will take you to the nearest station to the cathedral- Guindy station. The St Thomas Cathedral is 2 kilometers far from the Guindy station. You can get local transport like rickshaw then. Just to mention, boarding the train could be tedious for the ones who are not familiar with the local transport in Tamil Nadu. And when you can reach the St Thomas Cathedral by road in less than 20 minutes from the airport, booking a cab could be most comfortable.

Folks, if you are not familiar with the Telugu, the regional language of Tamil Nadu, we suggest avoiding using public transport. There are two reasons- one, the telugu script is difficult to understand; and two, the people in Tamil Nadu are not fluent in Hindi.

You can book a taxi or rent a car for the entire day in Chennai and enjoy hassle free travel.

Fellas, are you looking for-

What is St Thomas Cathedral famous for?

What to eat in Chennai?

Places to visit near St Thomas Cathedral

Picture gallery- Chennai