Introducing “The Towers” at Park Sheraton, Chennai

Background

One of the Chennai’s most popular luxury hotel Park Sheraton had recently opened its stylish and contemporary residential facility – “The Towers”. It is located at the entrance of fashionable Boat Club neighborhood or at the corner of the TTK Road.

Newly revamped “The Towers” would establish as a distinguished urban retreat to the city’s fast evolving hospitality landscape.

The 125 Towers Rooms are tastefully designed keeping in mind the unique requirements of the business traveler with contemporary sound proof rooms, luxurious beds, a smart Wi-Fi enabled work area and plush bathrooms with ample space.

Reception

Customer reservation details are taken from booking and pre-registration get carried out by Tower Staffers. Guests are simply required to collect key in Tower reception and sign the reservation form at the room. Can someone keep it simpler than that? Or would you prefer to call it as Personalised in-room Check-in?

Lobby

As one steps into the Lobby, a dazzling designer chandelier catches the eye and the heart. Suspended from the ceiling, this masterpiece, sourced from Austria provides a welcoming delight to the travelers.

The tall atrium allows the flow of maximum light and one can enjoy a delectable array of Hors d'oeuvres from the patisserie situated in the corner.

Luxury Suites

Rooms are plush and splendid …. But., what else is what you are curious to know, rite? Divider between reception and bed to ensure privacy and business to happen at the same time… motorized curtains and button operated mood lightings and what not !!!

Two LED TVs, can take USB card or can be connected with Laptop using HDMI Cables! Broadband or wi-fi internet connection to stay in touch with colleagues or family J

Connectivity

Sheraton Towers is well connected with the business districts of Chennai city … For example:

To Airport – 12.5 km or 7.8 miles

To MEPZ – 22.8 km or 14.2 miles

To Sholinganallur – 17.2 km or 10.7 miles

To SIPCOT, Siruseri – 26.3 km or 16.3 miles

Retreat

Sheraton Towers also offers well established Gym to tone you up, 'Kaya Kalp' spa for rejuvenation, swimming pool to improve your muscles and relaxation. 

Cost

Pls note that prices might vary due to seasonal demand and supply. I would request you to check it with hotel or the website:

http://www.itchotels.in/Hotels/sheratonpark/

Approximately, it might cost around INR 8,000, USD 130, Euro 95 or SGD 163 without local taxes.

Conclusion

Do come and stay in The Towers and enjoy the wonderful, memorable, personalized hospitality ! Allow yourself to get pampered to the trusted hands at fabulous customer service.

The Towers has also got business center, restaurants which will be covered in separate posts. Keep Reading !!!

Manchester - Intro

Manchester - An Introduction

1. Sun rise by 05:00 to 05:30 am.... sun set by 21:00pm !!!
   
   1. I hv to see the watch for dinner and not outside the window L
      
2. Maximum 5 days of sun shine in a stretch – drizzle, rain, heavy winds will be back after that
   
3. Temperature range 5 to 14 deg; Wind speed 15 to 28 kmph
   
   1. Sometimes, i am scared that I will fly especially when I walk on riverside near my home !
      
4. Indian food is available in some Asian hotels;
   
   1. Dosa / Idly is a rare commodity.
      
   2. Huge Muslim population in Manchester
      
   3. So., Roti / Dhal is not an issue at all J
      
5. Need to explain Vegetarian – no meat, no egg, no prawn, no fish etc etc etc...
   
   1. Then, they ask – what do you want to eat then !!!!!!
      
6. Small city – nicely connected in Tram and Bus
   
7. There is a small neighbourhood called Stockport
   
   1. Need to go there for Indian movies / Tamil Movies
      
   2. Priced at 7-8 Pounds per ticket
      
8. Work-wise
   
   1. People come in by 8:30 am or so and leave by 5pm
      
   2. Coffee culture, eating food at desk is common
      
   3. Most of Men wear come in suit to work and first thing they do, is to remove overcoat and hanging it on chair J
      
   4. Folks keep their laptops at desk, lock- it and leave to home – unlike Asians
      
   5. Folks mostly work – they do not open multiple browsing windows to track trading, news etc...
      
   6. So Productivity ensured in that 7 hours....
      
9. Potato is GOD is it is available everywhere
   
   1. I also eat Rice, Curd, Juice & heat to use Roti packs
      
10. Picture Link
    

1. https://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/FirstGlimpseOfManchester#
   
2. https://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/ManchesterHomeAndTheNeighbourhood#
   

Trip to Ahmedabad

I decided to spend this Diwali away from family and in Ahmedabad... mainly to understand how Diwali is celebrated in other parts of India and to understand the lakshmi puja concept.

Ahmedabad City is hot and shining heavily. Its relative small. My site-seeing trip took hardly 100kms. Broad roads, malls, traffic jams are common.

I relished my food in The Village, Vishalla. Vishalla's food taste and service were exceptionally good especially. I would recommend a visit to Vishalla.

I loved grandeur and the superb maintenance of Akshardam temple. Unfortunately, not allowed to take pictures. Exhibitions were there inside with some movie like light and sound effect.

What to say for the Adalaj Step - Well .... 3 storeyed well... lovely art work, pillars. Highly imaginative... same with Lal Darwaja steel jollies...

People are helpful and communicative. Only thing is, you need to ask for each and everything like even "switch on FM radio" while in taxi...

Worth visiting for any Foodies....

Picture Link - http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/Ahmedabad2010#

Maharashtra Tourism

As most of you are aware, i am working out of Pune for the past 7 months. I managed to visit many places over this period and wanted to share my experience with Maharashtra tourism. what to expect, what not to expect...


1. Maharashtra is filled with mountains and hence lot of Ghat roads. Pls do not ever think that you can cross one KM in one minute at 110km speed in your car. 150 KM trip will take 5 hours... so pls be prepared for that. Dont even take the word of your tour operator.

2. Roads are mostly bad due to heavy rain effect, ghat related water stagnation etc. So, do keep your backup tyre intact.

3. Food availability is very stable. One will get Pav misal (bread with gravy), vada pav, rice, dal anywhere inside the state. Same with Non-Veggies.

4. Climate is mostly dry. Rainy season is July, Aug and September. Winter in December & January.

5. Accomodation booking to be done in advance... Payment (50%) has to be transferred while booking. Lot of people travel on three day week ends. So., planning has to be done atleast one month before.

6. Coastal towns are very sleepish but homely. Not knowing Hindi / Marathi will be an issue to interact. Dont expect too much of facilities and blindly trust the web page pictures. They are often misleading.

7. People are relatively nice and not at all arrogant. They are willing to guide and help while you are on the road.

8. MTDC runs resorts at decent rates everywhere.

9. Price of a "Guide" services is very very affordable in historical places. Pls pls use them.

Aurangabad, Ajanta, Ellora

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/AjantaCaves#
http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/ElloraCaves#
http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/DauladabadFort#

Ajanta is one of the finely maintained places. MTDC's facilities, food is very good here.

Ahmednagar

Dont miss the hot Jilebi and Pan / beeda.

Lavasa

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/LavassaUnderCloud#
http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/LavassaUnderLights#

City being built as of now. Decent for a day's trip. Can go in bike too

Bhimasankar

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/Bhimasankar#

Nashik

Trimbakeshwar is a very good shiva temple.

Malshej Ghat

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/MalshejGhats#

Decent for a day's trip. Food is not great.

Dapoli

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/DapoliKonkanCoast#

The best food town on the coastal.

Sinhagad

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/Sinhagad#

Good for nature glimpse.

Raigad Fort

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/RaigadFort#

Murud Janjira

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/JanjiraFortMurud#

Cochin like town with lot of guest house stay options.

Diveagar

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/DiveagarBeach#

Got lot of guest house stay options.

Pune

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/GaneshVisarjanPune#

Tour of Ajanta, Ellora

Where is it ?

Its near Aurangabad. Ellora and Ajanta are 110 KMs apart.

Where to Stay?

Either in hotels of Aurangabad or Hotel Kailas, Ellora

What to expect ?

Paintings in Ajanta, Sculptures in Ellora

What kind of Food one get?

Veg, Non-Veg with good taste at Aurangabad, Ellora, Ajanta. Pan and Jilebi are also pretty good.

Tips for visiting ?

Do not visit in hot summer. Do visit between Aug to Dec. Take a guide. They are cheap and decent. Dress softly, take water bottle, snacks before entering the caves as you need to roam inside for 3-5 hours.

Which is best?

Ajanta caves are pretty well maintained when compared to Ellora caves.

Photo Link ?

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/DauladabadFort#

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/ElloraCaves#

http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/AjantaCaves#

Short trip to Surat

I finally found some time to visit Surat this saturday. Summary of observation is as follows:

1. Typical indian middle class city
2. Crowded, traffic chaos comes free like any other growing indian city
3. Textile market is quite huge and interesting
4. But you feel let down for being born as a Male - No choices !
5. Bargaining is advised
6. I liked these temples - Ambaji temple, Krishna Mandir
7. The only way to describe the attire of lord krishna - awesome
8. Tasted good food at - Lord's Plaza (buffet breakfast) with superb south indian taste
9. Tasted good food at - one small restaurent at ring road (kuoni academy building)
10. Auto fare is damn cheap...
11. Climate is regular hot - so dress cotton
12. Most of the shooping happens around Surat Station - so plan your hotel alongside
13. Shop keepers are service minded, willing to display as many clothes as you want
14. Carry cash as credit cards are seldom accepted
15. Photo link herewith - http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/GlimpseOfSurat

Pune Camp

Pune Camp area is an active commercial locality - malls, shopping, hotels, pubs...and a typical MG Road :)
Locality is quite good, mix of wide and narrow roads.. mix of old and new structures...

Ram Krishna, PUne - Vegetarian restaurent - offers wide variety of indian food... one things stands out missing in the menu is - Thali or buffet lunch or dinner... All ala-carte for some strange reason... food, taste is quite decent... reasonably priced... cuisine is not definitely authentic, sambar is full of sweet, veg biriyani is awefully bad and comes with dark brown color.... But But But the other items like Pulav, Naan, Panner tasted reasonably well. Do visit and eat but choose your menu carefully.

SGS Mall - typical mall, no great shakes.

Kayani Bakery - Lovely, tasty biscuits. Dont even think of missing this place.

East Street Cafe - Nice setup and getup like some European street. Nothing more than that. You order Nachos... some readymade nacho with another readymade butter poured over it... come on guys, just dont take people for granted for Rs.150 !!!

Shoppers Stop - Great place for bird watching... shop at your own will :)

MG Road - little high end shopping, big shops, decent collection of jewellery and textiles.


and some glimpse of places for you....

Laxmi Road., Pune

Laxmi road, Pune offers exciting shopping opportunities for middle class. It offers wide variety of items like Bindi, ear ring, textiles and what not....

Fully crowded streets, best suited for general walking and buying.... Its closed on Mondays... so plan it out folks...

Only issues is finding parking lot. Once you get that, you are on roll... You keep going from one place to another, one shop to another for shopping with ample small hotels to fill in your stomach.

Some clips for you.... To quote some examples... Kala Chappens offers wide variety of Kholapuri chappals, men's shoes, floaters.... Some big bollywood stars like Nana Patekar had bought shoes here... Its run by Amit Sheth, lovely dressed person, offers nice service too. He is saying, they are exporing to USA too !

I found one more interersting brand of men's shirts called Ciera for Rs.425. Lovely colors, combed cotton shirts...

Have a look at the lovely looking Ganesha temple too !

Trip to Konkan coast Dapoli

Onward Journey Pune to Dapoli
via Katraj tunnel, Harrisons Foly (New Wai), Panchgani, Poladpur, Khed

Return Journey Dapoli to Pune
via Veer (river), Shenale, Ambet, Lonere Phata, Mangaon, Mulshi, Pirangut, Pashan, Pune

Photo Link: http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/DapoliKonkanCoast#

Distance covered - 650kms with a hired tavera
Terrain - Mountains and Ghats with very limited plains

Self and couple of friends went around to explore Konkan coast. It turned out to be a memorable experience. The trip started off with drive through lovely Katraj tunnel - nice, wide and long one with good light. The drive in the hills of Panchgani, Mahabaleshwar was relatively peaceful but little strenuous. Mapro gardens was a wonderful place and gave us some relief. Simple garden with eating facilities. Also provides sneak preview of manufacturing facilitues through transparent glass windows. Nicely marketted i should say.

We reached Dapoli around 1:30pm (7hrs of journey) and went to SeaPrincess resort. It was right on the beach, quiet place with basic facilities. The lunch was very decently made and we went out to see Panhale kaji caves where pandavaas supposed to have lived. No proper route guidance was given to us and we took some round about route to reach there by close to 2h and 15m where as the return trip just took one hour or so.

The caves were interesting and were on a riverside. The caves offered glimpse of facilities, worship of lord shiva and was found in 1976. The caves were quite long and going interior and could take more than a day to visit each and every one.

We returned back had dinner and slept. Woke up early morning and went on a ferry ride. The ocean was quiet and the waves were generally subdued. Water color was not green and it was semi green with mixture of black. The ride was peaceful but we could not sight the dolphins. I was very disappointed with that but to my dismay the ferry ride of another batch over the next hour successfully sighted couple of Dolphins.

We had breakfast at Lotus Resort (group of Kamat) and it was a good property and loads of facilities. The buffett breakfast was priced at Rs.100 and had a decent offering of bread, eggs, idly, sambar, pav and misal. We ate and went on ride to Anjarle. It turned out to be one wonderful ride with picturesque locales of ocean, mountain, temples, eagles.

We went from Ganesha temple of Anjarle to Keshav raj temple which was situated in Ashwadbag. The temple was deep inside a forest. So, we had a scenic walk inside the forest for some 45m to reach the temple. One can happily medidate in that forest as there was no disturbance at all. We loved every bit of this visit due to its serene atmosphere.

We came back and had lunch at one of the villager's place. Traditional maharashtrian, konkan lunch cooked with normal vessells without any gas facility. Food was very nice - Rotis, chawl, dal with 3 different curry.

We returned back to Pune in different route which was less of Ghat but it took same time of close to 6-7hours.

Over all rating: Interesting.

Warning: Dont plan your journey time on kilo meters... it takes double the time to travel

Pune - first impression

As you all know that I had moved to Pune for now.I am writing about my first impressions. I am living in a locality called Pimple Saudagar and working out of Hinjewadi phase two. The distance between the places is around 10kms and the established nearest neighbourhood is called Aundh and Baner.

Pimple Saudagar exactly looks like 90s madipakkam or velachery. No great roads, street lights and construction everywhere. But Aundh and Baner has got nice facilities thanks to Balewadi stadium which came couple of years ago.

Pune railway station, Pune Camp, Kalyani Nagar are located some 25Kms away from my place and i am yet to explore them.

For me, it looks like Pune is definitely behind Chennai or Bangalore infrastructure as of now. But lot of construction, road building which is happening now might make the place more comfortable over a period of time.

Traffic - No driving sense at all and people drive at all the places. No right or wrong side as of now. Autos are costly but Tata Aces, Marutis and shared Autos are cheaper than individual autos. Signals are relatively less and traffic moves comfortably as the roads are reasonable broad. Lot of sign boards help you to move around freely.

Will post more info as i keep exploring. so enjoy some photos as of now.

Mumbai trip

I went to Mumbai, Pune this week after some gap of 3-4 years. Mumbai never fails to surprise me. It brings up something new every time. Just could not figure out how this maximum city survives when a tourist like me bewilders abt the traffic jam on the Bandra flyover.

I drove through Worli Sea Link and felt bit excited. As usual, had bites of street food like vada pav, pani puri and one dish called "bell" - chinese chat item. All were good.

Drove down to Pune through Mumbai - Pune Expressway (done by IRB) in the foggy morning and liked it thoroughly. But the heavy vehicles end up struggling bcoz of hill terrain, curves.

There was a food mall on the way and they were calling "Thoosai" for dosa and "Soombar" for Sambar... had a hearty laugh abt it.

Will write a lot about Pune over next six months for sure...

Temple for Lord Guberan

Self and some other friends went to a concept temple for Lord Guberan this morning. The temple is situated some 4-5KMs inside next to Vandalur zoo's compound. One's wealth is supposed to increase when you offer prayers to him regularly.

Temple is located at a small place called rathina mangalam. Temple is small but got some elegant and unique gods like Lord Ganesha with Lakshmi, Brahmma with Saraswathy.
It was a small homely temple and I liked it.

My trichy trip

I went to attend Upanayanam function to Trichy. It was quite a short trip. We (me and my eldest brother) started off on Tuesday morning in Swift Dezire around 11am and reached Trichy around 5pm.

Diesel car responded reasonably well and it gave the best overtaking result in 4th gear when compared to 5th gear.

It was nice to catch up with relatives after a long long time. I didnt go to trichy for more than 8 years and it is one of the places i am in real love with. Sad, i could not spend some time to roam around.

I liked the roads laid in the last 7 years. It was a excellent journey barring the Ulundurpettai stretch.

Do catch up with some of the photos in
http://picasaweb.google.com/svijayganesh/TrichyTripMay2009#

Tough two days

Drove down to Trichy on Tue mor and came back on Wed night. Family function well attended. Good to meet relatives after a loooonnng time for a nice chat. Will write more on this trip shortly.

Iran - Imam Square

I caught up with some episodes of "BBC's around the world in 80 treasure" during Sunday mornings recently.

I liked Imam's Square (Isfahan) as soon as I saw it. It is a huge place with Mosque, bazaar etc... spread over such a big landscape. Probably similar to Tinannmen square in size. Just check out the link below to feel the place.

http://www.art-arena.com/Imam.html

Sri Lanka trip photo link - revised

Folks...

Revised path of my srilankan tour photos...

http://www.flickr.com/gp/50378337@N00/p5mUi0

Travel tips for Sri Lanka

Travel tips for Sri Lanka

1. Sri Lanka is a humid country.

2. The food is mostly non-vegetarian. It is seldom served hot for eating.

3. Rice and bread are staple food.

4. Exchange Forex or TC in banks. Countryside Hotels offer unfriendly rate for exchange.

5. Sinhalese smile a lot. They have customer service mentality.

6. Females look good and wear western wear comfortably. They wear tight dress and children tend to wear jeans, mini skirt and adults wear skirt mostly.

7. The food looks Indian but it does not have indian taste.

8. Fish and Chicken related food available through out the country. Pickle concept not practiced in Sri Lankan hotels.

9. Strict vegetarians have to adjust to rice, dhal and some kind of salad when they travel outside Colombo. Colombo has got Anjappar, Amaravati and couple of vegetarian restaurant in a neighbourhood called Bampalapitiya.

10. Liquor is sold in neighbourhood shops in Sri Lanka for a moderate price. Hence, no need to stock the liquor.

11. Train services connect the entire country. Trains also have a one observation compartment with transparant glasses.

12. Sri Lankan people wake up early and goes to bed early say 6:30am to 7:30pm. Tourist need to plan their work accordingly.

13. Laksala is a good souvenir shop of Sri Lanka.

14. I didnt explore the night life in Colombo hence could not comment.

15. Carry and Keep your passport ready to show during security check-ups.

16. Pre-paid SIM Card buying in Sri Lanka requires Local ID proof !!!

17. Sri Lanka follows patriarch system. Dowry system is prevalent for arranged marriages. But majority of marriages happening out of love life.

18. Hundreds of people travel out of Colombo to Kandy, Anuradhapura, Galle (pronounced as goal) regions on weekends. Hence, plan your appointments accordingly.

19. Internet facility is available only in major cities.

20. Textile shooping is recommended in Sri Lanka for price sensitive tourists.

Sri Lanka trip - thanksgiving

On Yasith - Our Reluctant Guide

Yasith named as our co-ordinator for our official project. Also, he ended up co-ordinating the entire branch trip. He is very quiet, humorous and always smiling. He is very knowledgeable about landscape, culture, places, history and geography. He was very proud of his country and was forthcoming and explaining a lot throughout the trip. We enjoyed his companionship very well.

On Sarath - Our Mr Discipline

Sarath was the driver and responsible for steering us. He is well mannered. He drove comfortably without violating any signal or taking on rash driving. He wore seat belt through out the tour, locked the doors before moving the vehicle and never got upset when he had to circle back. He kept his eye on us when we walked through the streets of Kandy. He ate very little food as if a person on diet and hence got a nick name from me as Mr Discipline

Photo: From Left: Yasith, Self (Vijay), Sarath

Srilankan tour photos

Do check out the following links for photos of my Sri Lanka tour. Ensoi.

http://www.flickr.com/gp/50378337@N00/1w956J
http://www.flickr.com/gp/50378337@N00/115Pmw
http://www.flickr.com/gp/50378337@N00/2YRMF7

I wish you all a happy and prosperous new year !!!

Travelogue - Chennai to Colombo Part 7

Travelogue - Chennai to Colombo Part 7

25th December 2007

We started our day around 7am to a hill station called Nuwara Eliya. We drove out of Kandy and realised that the Kandy river encircles the town on one side and the town is covered by mountain on the other three side. We drove through a well maintained hill road and all the way and reached the hill town by 9:30am.

The town Nuwara Eliya means the city of lighting and the lighting is supposed to have caused by Hanuman when he burnt the parts of Lanka during the rescue operation of Sita. Lot of sri lankan tamilians work in plantations. I saw them with Viboodhi or Sandhu Pottu (Sindoor), sighted some small temples, VEL tamil movie poster etc.

I bought dust tea packet, had some Ulundu vada, tea in Niwara Eliya and transacted in tamil throughout. This small hill town also has one golf course, horse race ground.
We circled the lake once before leaving the town to a place called Hatton. Our interest was mainly to see the place called "Kitulgala" where the classic movie Bridge on the River Kwai was shot.

The road to Hatton was not great but motorable comfortably. When we came down to Hatton around noon, we also a construction site for Hydro Power plant near a huge waterfall. We realised that we climbed one site of mountain through Kandy and came down through another side !!!

We had lunch at a rest house at Hatton and drove down to Kitulgala. We sighted a board guiding the place where the movie was shot before the real town of Kitulgala. We stopped the car and entered the jungles. Only one person can walk and others have to follow through the path and sighted some houses. One boy came and showed us the place.

We were bit surprised by the site and tried to recollect the move and chatting sometime. Water level was quite low during our visit so we could co-relate briefly. We left from there after taking some photos around 2:45pm and saw some river shafting being promoted on our way to plains.

The drivers were quite patient on the hill roads and does not make many horns and give side regularly for vehicles which tries to speed up without battling an eyelid.

We reached Colombo through Avissawella and Highlevel road (A4) by around 5pm or so.

Our romance with rain lasted for some 500Kms of our travel out of total 900 Kms and our trip came to end peacefully.