10 Days Trip To Gujarat And Diu

A painting on the wall of one of the Dwarka Temples

The trip destinations

State of Gujarat districts

Day 1

We flew to Ahmedabad on the first day. At Ahmedabad airport, we hired a car with a driver for our road trip to Dwarka. We reached Dwarka around late evening.

Day 2

The second day started early. We went to the Dwarkadhish temple first. Then to the Pandava wells and the beach. After lunch, we took a boat ride from Okha to Beyt Dwarka. On the way back to the hotel, we visited some other popular temples in Dwarka. 

Places of interest in Dwarka

On the way to Dwarka

Dwarkadheesh Temple

Beyt Dwarka

Nageshwar Jyotirling

Nageshwar Jyotirlinga Temple

Day 3

On the third day, we went to Nageshwar temple Jyotirling in the morning and then after lunch, we headed towards Porbandar. We reached Porbandar around 5:00 p.m. So, we decided to just relax at the beach in the evening.

Places of interest in Porbandar

Mahatma Gandhi's birth home

Sunset at Porbandar beach

Huzoor Palace

Day 4

On the fourth day, we went to Mahatma Gandhi's birth home, Kirti Mandir which is now a museum. After Kirti Mandir, we toured around the other popular tourist attractions in Porbandar.

Places of interest in Somnath

Somnath Temple from the beach

Somnath temple in the evening

Day 5

On the fifth day, we drove down to Somnath early in the morning. After dropping our bags at the hotel, we headed for Somnath Temple. From Somnath, we went to the beach and other popular tourist attractions in the city. In the evening we came back to the Somnath temple for the light and sound show.

Day 6

On the sixth day, we drove down to Diu. We had a beachfront hotel at Nagao Beach, so we spent the day at the beach. There were quite many beach activities. In the afternoon we went to Gangeshwar Mahadev and Sunset Point at the Chakratirtha beach

Banana boat rides at Nagao Beach

Gangeshwar Mahadev

Watching the sunset from Chakratirth Beach

A sea (Gulf of Khambat) viewpoint near Gangeshwar Mahadev

Day 7

On the seventh day, we toured around Diu in the first half and in the late afternoon headed for Gir National Park.

Places of interest in Diu

Diu Fort

Pani Kotha Jail

Diu Museum

St Paul's Church

Old City Gate Diu

Day 8

On the eighth day, we went for the jungle safari early in the morning and went to one of the wildlife sanctuaries in the afternoon.

Early morning at Kamleshwar Dam

Watching the sunrise from the watch tower

Sasan Gir National Park is surrounded by Gir Wildlife Sanctuaries. There are some lakes and temples within the Park area. Our Safari route took us through Sasan - Khokhra - Shirvan - Dev Dungar - Shirvan - Khokhra - Vawalwala Chowk - Kamleshwar Dam - Kankai Check post - Sasan

National Parks (NP) and Wildlife Sanctuaries (WS) in the state of Gujarat

The dark brown part is the national park area - Our safari route covered the western periphery of the park from Kankai to Devadungar

Barking Deer or Indian Muntjac

Blackbuck - The endangered Indian Antelope 

Peacock without tail. At the end of the mating season, most peacocks shed their tail feathers. The tail grows back again before the next mating season

Nilgai or Blue Bull

Spotted Deer or Chital

Chinkara or Indian Gazelle

A camouflaged Jungle Cat. These are currently among the critically endangered species

Lions at Devalia Park - we didn't see any lions on the morning safari so we decided to go for an afternoon safari at the park which is kind of a reserve

Day 9 

On the ninth day, we headed for Junagadh early in the morning. Our plan was to cover some of the popular tourist destinations in the city and go directly to Ahmedabad. It was a little hectic plan and I later felt we should have stayed back at Junagadh for a day. We reached Ahmedabad close to midnight and were completely exhausted.

Places of interest in Junagadh

Junagadh Fort / Uperkot Fort

Adi Kadi Vav (Stepwell)

Junagadh Fort

Buddha Caves at the fort

Day 10

On the tenth day, we went to the Sabarmati riverfront and the Gandhi Ashram first. Since we had a long day the day before, we woke up pretty late that day. We had plans for Patan, Modhera, and Adlaj but canceled all of that. It would have become another hectic squeezed breathless trip. We decided to do Ahmedabad and the sites close to Ahmedabad the next time. We had an early morning flight the next day.

Places of interest close to Ahmedabad 

Places of interest in Ahmedabad

Sabarmati Ashram

Hazrat Bai Harir Vav (Stepwell)

Lothal, Ruins of the Harappan Civilization

Rani ka Vav (Stepwell), Patan

Modhera Sun Temple

Adlaj, Stepwell

Statue of Unity

Chitrakote Falls - Asia's Widest Waterfall

I went to Chitrakote Falls a very long time ago in the late 1990's probably around 1996. It was a forest area and there was no road to the falls. We parked our car on the nearest road available which was about an hour's walk from the falls. Our driver who was a native of Bastar, requested some Adivasis who lived in the forests around to lead us to the falls. Initially, the tribesmen didn't like the idea cause they felt we were intruding into their homeland but after some requests, they agreed and one of them led us to falls through the forest. There was no road, it was a forest path. It took us about 30-40 minutes or more to reach the waterfalls. The area around the falls was rocky with scarce vegetation. Since it was not the monsoons, the falls were not in their maximum flow but still grand as could be. It was even more exotic at that time cause it was unexplored and the stories the Adivasi told us through the forest trek were enlightening. He showed us his hunting weapons and showed us many trees and plants that had medicinal properties. Unfortunately, I lost most of my photographs taken before 2005. 

The waterfall area was developed into a tourist spot post-2003. I feel it was a lot better when it was hidden and unexplored. I guess the Adivasi were displaced too when the area was developed. Sometimes, I feel the Adivasis were right when they refused us at first. we did intrude into their homeland and uprooted them from their roots.

Considered Asia's widest waterfall

The falls is located on the Indravati River. River Indravati is a tributary of Godavari

10 Days Trip To Gangtok And Darjeeling

Day 1: Drive to Siliguri. Stayed over at Siliguri that day. Just relaxed and did nothing post the very long drive.
 

Day 2: Started out for Darjeeling in the afternoon. Didnt want to make things hectic. It was vacation after all. After reaching and freshening up, we just hung around the mall road. Luckily the weather overall was good and the Kanchenjunga range was in full all three days we were there.

We were lucky to see Kanchenjunga the entire day in Darjeeling

Day 3: We headed for Tiger Hill. It is said that Mount Everest can be seen from the viewpoint if one is lucky. We got to see some mountain ranges but were not sure about Mount Everest.

Maybe Mount Everest ?!! We do see some peaks and mountains from Tiger Hill. Not sure which is what!

Day 4: We took the train ride. Went to nearby tourist destinations like Ghoom Monastery and tea estates. Basically just enjoyed the pleasant weather of Darjeeling.

Ghoom Monastery

Day 5: We drove down to Gangtok in the morning. There were some pretty steep roads. One was almost perpendicular.

Day 6: We went to Rumtek Monastery.

Rumtek Monastery

Day 7: We went to Changu Lake and Nathu La Pass.

Changu Lake / Tsongmo Lake is a glacial lake and is considered to have healing properties

At Nathu La (La is pass in Bodhi / Tibetan). Nathu La is one of the three open trading border posts

 of India. The other two are Shipkila, Himachal Pradesh, and Lipulekh, Uttarakhand.

Day 8: We toured Gangtok and close by tourist destinations

Day 9: We drove down to Mirik. It was late afternoon when we reached Mirik. We just relaxed around the lake since we had a long drive back the next morning.

Mirik Lake / Sumendu Lake is an artificial lake

Day 10: We drove back to Asansol. It took us about 15 hours with two stops in between. A stayover somewhere midway would have worked better.

10 Days Trip To Odisha (Orissa)

We started our trip from Asansol, West Bengal. We were kids in school back then and every summer holiday my parents planned a road trip. That year in 1993, we decided to go to Odisha. On the way, we stopped by the famous terracotta temples of Bankura and Bishnupur in West Bengal. It took us about 2 hours to drive from Asansol to Bankura. 

Terracotta temples as the name suggests are baked clay structures. 

Source of base map: https://nbsslup.icar.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/Publications/District_Reports/Bankura.pdf

The Bishnupur area is rich in red laterite soil with a clayey texture. The terracotta temple architecture evolved in Bengal around the 15th - 16th century under the patronage of the Malla rulers (interesting history of the Mallas) during the revival of the Vaisnavism / Krishna bhakti movement. The temples were built in different styles. Bengal temple architecture follows 8 distinct styles: 

1. Chala (roof in Bangla): Curved roof style. The Chala style has different forms as well.

a. Dochala - two roofs

b. Char Chala - four roofs

c. Aath Chala - eight roofs

d. Baro Chala - twelve roofs

e. Jorbangla - Twin roofs

f. Ratnasaho jorbangla - Twin roofs with tower

2. Ratna (jewel/crown in Bangla): This style has domical pinnacles. The different forms of this style include:

a. Ek Ratna - one pinnacle

b. Panch Ratna - 5 pinnacles

c Nabo Ratna - 9 pinnacles

d. Ekadash Ratna - 11 pinnacles

e. Trayodosh Ratna - 13 pinnacles

f. Saptodash Ratna - Seventeen pinnacles

g. Ekush Ratna - Twenty one pinnacles

h. Panchish Ratna - Twenty five pinnacles

3. Dalan (Courtyard in Bangla): This style has a courtyard/s in the temples 

4. Mancha (stage/ podium in Bangla): These temples were built in a gallery or podium style with a high-raised platform.

5. Matha (monastery in Bangla): The Matha temples were built on big complexes with various sections.

6. Mishro Riti (fusion): As the name suggests its a fusion of different styles

7. Nijoshyo Riti (Unique): Unique styles are not in line with any of the standard styles.

Different Styles of Bengal Temple Architecture Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Classification_of_Bengal_Temple_Architecture_12.jpg

Radha Lalji Temple - Ekratna style - Single pinnacle temple architecture

Ras Mancha Temple - Mancha style temple architecture It is one of the first art galleries in India. This Temple is built in brick, laterite stone, and terracotta art work.

Jorbangla Temple - Chala with Ratna style temple architecture

We stayed in Bankura for two days. From Bankura we headed to Chandipur. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Integrated Test Range (ITR) is located in Chandipur. Most missile launches in India are done from Chandipur ITR. Chandipur is also famous for its vanishing beach. 

The vanishing beach of Chandipur is a unique occurrence due to high and ebb tides. It occurs every day a couple of times as per the moon cycle. During low ebb tide, the seawater recedes more than 5 km and is back during high tide. The beach is famous for horseshoe crabs as well. Horseshoe crabs are found in very few places Chandipur being the only one in India. These crabs are actually of the spider family and are not related to the crab family at all. They are a very important part of the coastal ecology. Their eggs are the main food source of coastal migratory birds.

From Chandipur we went to Cuttack. We stayed there overnight. The next day we headed for Bhubaneshwar. This temple city is the capital of Odisha State. This City is home to more than 700 temples. Most of these temples were built between the 8th-12th century and were influenced by Shaivism  The architectural style prevalent in Odisha is the Kalinga Nagara Style. This style comprises of two distinct parts a curvilinear or flat tower called deul in Odiya and a walled hall called the Jagmohan in Odiya. The Kalinga Nagara style has three forms based on the type of the deul.

1. Rekha deul - In this style, the tower is tall and curvilinear with  a pinnacle on top made of two parts called amalaka and kalasha.

2. Pidha deul - In this style the tower is not very tall and has a flatter stepped pyramidical pinnacle comprised of a ghanta and pidha.

3. Khakhara deul - Khakharu means gourd in Odiya and in this unique style the low tower pinnacle is elongated barrel-like or horizontally halved inverted gourd 

The famous Lingaraj Temple - The rightmost tall tower is an example of rekha deul and the shorter pyramid like structure next to the rekha deul is an example of pidha deul.

Aerial view of Lingaraj temple

The Vaithala temple is an example of Khakhara deul style

Other than the Shiva temples, Bhubaneshwar has many temples and monuments built by Jains and Buddhists. Khandagiri and Udaigiri are famous Jain caves. There are a total of 33 caves that were used as abodes for Jain monks. There is also a Buddhist shanti stupa on Dhauligiri mountain. The foundation of this pagoda was laid by the Great Emperor Ashok at the end of the Kalinga war. 

Aerial view of Khandagiri (left) and Udaigiri (right)

Picture source: https://www.toursorissa.com/monuments-in-odisha/udayagiri-khandagiri-caves-bhubaneswar/

Bhubaneshwar also has a large zoological park called Nandankanan which is home to white tigers and lions among other animals. We stayed in Bhubaneshwar for two days and then drove down to Puri.

Puri is a coastal city. It's famous for the holy Jagannath temple and the coastal beaches. Puri is considered one of the four holiest pilgrimage destinations or Dhamas in India. Staunch Hindus believe that visiting the four dhamas in one's life will help achieve moksha/nirvana. The four Dhamas represent the four great epochs noted in early Hindu texts. These epochs were defined by the way dharama changed over the years. According to Hindu texts, Dharma (duty) of a human being is comprised of four elements - a. Satya (truth), b. Gyan (knowledge) c. Niti (morality) and d. Daan (sacrifice). The satyug marked the age where humans embodied all four elements of dharma. Satyug was followed by treta yug where satya was no more a distinct part of dharma because humans learned to lie. Treta yug was followed by Dwapar yug which saw the end of gyan because humans started becoming ignorant. Finally came the Kaliyug when dharma was left only with Daan because humans let go of morality as well. Dhama of Satyug (the age of truth which lasted for four thousand years) is Badrinath, Uttarakhand. Dhama of Tretayug (which symbolizes the three legs or triads of morality and lasted for three thousand years) is in Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu. Dhama of Dwaparyug (The age of the two which lasted for two thousand years) is in Dwarka, Gujarat. The fourth dhama of Kaliyug (The age of darkness which lasted for one thousand years) is Puri, Odisha.

Pic source: From the web https://velivada.com/2017/07/11/quislings-jagannath-temple-puri/ (since my old photos file got corrupted)

The Jagannath temple is considered one of the holiest temples in India and is dedicated to Lord Jagannath another form of Lord Krishna (incarnation of Lord Vishnu), his sister, Subhadra, and his brother, Balbhadra. This temple was built in the 12th century by King Anata Varman Chodaganga  Deva. This temple is also built in the Kalinga Nagara style.

We stayed in Puri for 5 days of which one day we visited Konark and one day we visited the Chilika lake.

Konark is famous for the Konark Sun temple. As the name suggests this temple is dedicated to Sun God and is built in the form of a chariot with 24 wheels led by 6 horses. This temple is an example of the Pidha deula form of Kalinga Nagara Tstyle architecture. This temple was built in the 13th Century by King Narasimhadeva 1.

Aerial view of Konark Sun Temple

Picture source: Web (https://zeenews.india.com/india/konark-sun-temple-purana-quila-among-100-asi-sites-to-be-lit-up-bear-g20-logo-as-india-assumes-its-presidency-2542188.html)

The Chilika lake is considered the largest saltwater lagoon lake in Asia. It is most famous for the Irrawady Dolphins, migratory birds including flamingos, and many varieties of fishes. Chilika prawns and lobsters are very famous. It is UNESCO heritage site because of its biodiversity and is home to many rare, endangered, and threatened species of birds and aquatic animals, and fishes like the green sea turtles, Irrawaddy dolphins, and limbless skinks among many others.

Photo source: The Web (https://www.ndtv.com/offbeat/navin-patnaik-shares-mesmerising-photos-of-chilika-lake-in-odisha-3458916)

From Puri, we headed back to Asansol with a stopover midway.