"Aati kya Khandala asks the tapori version of Aamir Khan in a movie not long back to which the sophisticated heroine rani Mukherjee replies " kya karun aake main Khandala?"to which the tapori answers "ghumenge phirenge nachenge gaayenge aaish karenge aur kya? Well, Khandala and nearby Lonavala too is a place where young boys, taporis and otherwise and girls and young couples, some with little children hang out to experience the rains, sit under some waterfalls and indulge in some climbing adventuresand get drenched together.These tourists do not ask for much by way of infrastructure from the authorities and any kind of authority or infrastructure is conspicuous by their absence here!
From the time we came to Bombay and even before that, I've been humming the 'aati kya Khandala ?' song to the Mr and finallyhe gave in to the incessant ringing in his ears to plan a 2 day getaway.At the first attempt there were no train tickets available which shows how popular the spot is with the people here.Finally after a postponement we got seats in a train going to Pune from Thane whose departure time was 6am. That meant that we had to leave home at 4am to catch the local train ti Thane.After a full days' school and an evenings' packing the Mite showed rare enthusiasm, actuallynot so rare for the Mite who is perpetually enthusiastic about everything. It is his middle aged parents who showed rare alacrity, after having not travelled anywhere for a long time, by springing out of bed at 3:30 am. Inspite of heavy rainfall we found ourselves in an ola cab heading for the nearest local train station. We arrived well on time and took the 4:55 to thane. At Thane we boarded the old but comfortable chair car coach on the Pune bound train.We had a sumptuous railways breakfast of omelette cutlets and bread and settled down for the 2 and a half hour journey to Lonavala. Here our rustiness as travellers showed forth when after all this effort we fell into a deep sleep. I got up with a jerk after sometime, we had stopped at a station. I casually woke the mr up and enquired when our station was expected. He promptly asked the next person, who said "this is lonavala". There was shocked silence from us for a few seconds, then a frantic grabbing of luggage and the Mite and pell mell rush to deboard! The train left within minutes of our exit! Phew!
It was raining in sheets in Lonavala and we waited under a shed at the station gate. The Mite had his raincoat but we adults hadn't got down to getting ourselves one and umbrellas were of no use. the auto rickshaw stand was a few meters from us but we still continued to wait. Finally one of the auto drivers over to the gate and picked us up from there.We were off to Mon Repos which we understood was a guest house in pristine surroundings. It was no doubt a beautiful bungalow amidst an unspoilt location, but it was lacking by way of any kind of service for the weary traveller.
Firstly the check in time is 12pm, but every hotel, guest house or holiday home worth its name has a place to deposit luggage and a common toilet for those who arrive early, not so here. The Manager was in mortal terror of the owners and kept calling them for little things like where we can keep the luggage! Of the need for a bathroom the owner said, "but this is a guest house, not a hotel" as if only hotels are allowed to have one!!
The owner said there was a car and driver atb their disposal that can take us around to visit the sights. The rates are reasonable for this car, but one should have a good knowledge of the sights one wishes to see as the driver will have a booking in the evening and will hurry you through the various spots. By the time the car arrived the call of nature was becoming quite urgent for me! The Mon Repos owner assured us that the first stop would be the Narayani temple where we can use the toilets!
The Narayani Dham temple is more like a 5 star hotel and the lobby at the entrance has the names of doners to the temple trust displayed with contributions in lakhs and crores! The first building is the guest house and there were rows of toilets for the public. Somehow we washed and splashed some water on our faces and entered the manicured gardens which had halls and rest houses on both sides and looked like a Rajasthani palace. The authorities had stuck some plastic flowers among the bushes as the rose plants had not started flowering yet.
The main temple is beautiful and affords a view of the ghats.The modak prasad was delicious. The idols of Ganesha , Lakshmi and Shiva are full of bling, shiney stones glittering from their bodies. Photographs were allowed but no selfies with the idols!
Thereafter we went to Lion's point, the highest place in the region. The air was crystal clear, the wind was forceful and the roasted corn on the cob was juicy and delicious, the tea was milkyb and sweet! It was heady! Some people, lacking any good sense, have brought up two hapless camels for rides in the mist! This should be made illegal with immediate effect! We hung out for sometime and then headed off to Bhushi Dam.
Now here was a natural water park setting. College kids, young scrawny boys and girls and even some families with young children and elderly people launch themselves into the tremendous force of the water coming from the high dam wall!! The tourists look after each other, there were just 2 policemen on the dam wall and the rapids created by the gushing water on the rocky hill had the general public strewn all over it at regular intervals in big and small groups! I wondered why we did not hear of any accident over here yet. The Mite quipped, "It looks more like suicide point than waterfall point!"
There were hot channa, green mango and tea and vada pao stalls all around and a boy selling boiled eggs!While going up and down to and from Bhushi dam we got a glimpse of the enormous Lonavala lake and several tiny waterfalls that lead into it. there were people bathing and sitting tight under most of the waterfalls. Cars are not allowed to stop near the lake so we decided to come back later to enjoy it.
We headed off to Khandala next which is about 7 to 8 kms from the Lonavala lake area. Khandala is more pristine than Lonavala and is full of natural beauty. The Monkey point is a sheer drop into the ghats and has a spectacular view of the opposite hilly terrain with waterfalls of all shapes and sizes gushing down its sides. There is no attempt to make the place safer for tourists. A few iron rods protruding out of the ground is all there is to show for the very lacklustre efforts of the authorities.It speaks volumes for the discipline of the tourists here that accidents are not frequent.
Monkey point was fully covered by clouds when we got there, but a light shower ensued after which the majestic view was revealed to us.It was breathtaking! There was a group of monkeys there too, true to the name of the spot. There were some other view points ahead eg The Duke's Nose but because of the heavy cloud cover they might not have been visible to us, therefore we set off back to Lonavala. The driver was quite pessimistic and discouraged us from venturing further, later we realised he must've been eager to head back for the next set of tourists.
The last stop was a highly avoidable and substandard and also overly priced wax museum in Lonavala. We learnt later that Lonavala has no less than 3 wax museums and the one we went to was the worst. The best one is the one that has a MacDonald's outlet in the same building! The only statue worth mentioning in the one we went to was that of Anna Hazare, of all people, it had a marked resemblance to the original. Lata Mangeshkar looked constipated and Modi slim and vacant. The 150Rs per head entry fee went to waste! Why would Lonavala need a wax museum, leave alone 3?? Why not spend on better roads and a minimal railing at view points for the safety and security of the visitors??There is a Dinosaur park to, which, I feel should be made illegal!! Everyone is bent on making a fact buck. There are no facilities for tourists only places to fleece them! The uncomplaining and un demanding public keep flooding in, none the less! I have the same feeling about the Mall near the Lonavala lake,a total waste!
We had lunch and returned to Mon Repos, it was mid afternoon and no room had been readied for us. The Manager perpetually disappears and after a wait he casually comes by and after a lot of pleading and urging and making calls to the owner finally we got a room. Actually it was a set of twin rooms with double beds and a common attached bath. Here was enough place for my Brat Girl too, I missed my baby, studying so far away from home.The rooms had built in beds of granite and 2 chairs each but no wardrobe or table or dustbin or any shelf in the bathroom. The surroundings were of course beautiful, trees with birds chirping away and a wonderful breeze. We had to have lunch outside as the guest house has to be informed 2hours in advance if you want a meal!
After a short rest we ventured out againdetermined to enjoy the lake side waterfalls. We then met our excellent auto rickshaw guy, Mr. Nilesh. I recommend him to all and sundry because he knows all the spots and he will not hurry you about. he only drives on Saturdays and Sundays but he is dependable and atuned to touristy tastes. we got dropped at the lake and enjoyed an hour or so at the waterfalls near it. Thereafter we walked to the Tricos Mallwhich has a small gaming place, a few eateries, a children's play area and a clothes shop. The cinema hall only runs shows if 4 or more tickets are bought!
The Mite and the Mr played some video games and a pool hockey game while I sat around chilling.Thereafter we walked again upto the main market, had dinner qand called our friendly neighbourhood auto guy Nilesh who dropped us back to Mon Repos. We fixed a time with him to take us to Lohagarh and Bhaja caves next day.
From the time we came to Bombay and even before that, I've been humming the 'aati kya Khandala ?' song to the Mr and finallyhe gave in to the incessant ringing in his ears to plan a 2 day getaway.At the first attempt there were no train tickets available which shows how popular the spot is with the people here.Finally after a postponement we got seats in a train going to Pune from Thane whose departure time was 6am. That meant that we had to leave home at 4am to catch the local train ti Thane.After a full days' school and an evenings' packing the Mite showed rare enthusiasm, actuallynot so rare for the Mite who is perpetually enthusiastic about everything. It is his middle aged parents who showed rare alacrity, after having not travelled anywhere for a long time, by springing out of bed at 3:30 am. Inspite of heavy rainfall we found ourselves in an ola cab heading for the nearest local train station. We arrived well on time and took the 4:55 to thane. At Thane we boarded the old but comfortable chair car coach on the Pune bound train.We had a sumptuous railways breakfast of omelette cutlets and bread and settled down for the 2 and a half hour journey to Lonavala. Here our rustiness as travellers showed forth when after all this effort we fell into a deep sleep. I got up with a jerk after sometime, we had stopped at a station. I casually woke the mr up and enquired when our station was expected. He promptly asked the next person, who said "this is lonavala". There was shocked silence from us for a few seconds, then a frantic grabbing of luggage and the Mite and pell mell rush to deboard! The train left within minutes of our exit! Phew!
It was raining in sheets in Lonavala and we waited under a shed at the station gate. The Mite had his raincoat but we adults hadn't got down to getting ourselves one and umbrellas were of no use. the auto rickshaw stand was a few meters from us but we still continued to wait. Finally one of the auto drivers over to the gate and picked us up from there.We were off to Mon Repos which we understood was a guest house in pristine surroundings. It was no doubt a beautiful bungalow amidst an unspoilt location, but it was lacking by way of any kind of service for the weary traveller.
Firstly the check in time is 12pm, but every hotel, guest house or holiday home worth its name has a place to deposit luggage and a common toilet for those who arrive early, not so here. The Manager was in mortal terror of the owners and kept calling them for little things like where we can keep the luggage! Of the need for a bathroom the owner said, "but this is a guest house, not a hotel" as if only hotels are allowed to have one!!
The owner said there was a car and driver atb their disposal that can take us around to visit the sights. The rates are reasonable for this car, but one should have a good knowledge of the sights one wishes to see as the driver will have a booking in the evening and will hurry you through the various spots. By the time the car arrived the call of nature was becoming quite urgent for me! The Mon Repos owner assured us that the first stop would be the Narayani temple where we can use the toilets!
The Narayani Dham temple is more like a 5 star hotel and the lobby at the entrance has the names of doners to the temple trust displayed with contributions in lakhs and crores! The first building is the guest house and there were rows of toilets for the public. Somehow we washed and splashed some water on our faces and entered the manicured gardens which had halls and rest houses on both sides and looked like a Rajasthani palace. The authorities had stuck some plastic flowers among the bushes as the rose plants had not started flowering yet.
The main temple is beautiful and affords a view of the ghats.The modak prasad was delicious. The idols of Ganesha , Lakshmi and Shiva are full of bling, shiney stones glittering from their bodies. Photographs were allowed but no selfies with the idols!
Thereafter we went to Lion's point, the highest place in the region. The air was crystal clear, the wind was forceful and the roasted corn on the cob was juicy and delicious, the tea was milkyb and sweet! It was heady! Some people, lacking any good sense, have brought up two hapless camels for rides in the mist! This should be made illegal with immediate effect! We hung out for sometime and then headed off to Bhushi Dam.
Now here was a natural water park setting. College kids, young scrawny boys and girls and even some families with young children and elderly people launch themselves into the tremendous force of the water coming from the high dam wall!! The tourists look after each other, there were just 2 policemen on the dam wall and the rapids created by the gushing water on the rocky hill had the general public strewn all over it at regular intervals in big and small groups! I wondered why we did not hear of any accident over here yet. The Mite quipped, "It looks more like suicide point than waterfall point!"
There were hot channa, green mango and tea and vada pao stalls all around and a boy selling boiled eggs!While going up and down to and from Bhushi dam we got a glimpse of the enormous Lonavala lake and several tiny waterfalls that lead into it. there were people bathing and sitting tight under most of the waterfalls. Cars are not allowed to stop near the lake so we decided to come back later to enjoy it.
We headed off to Khandala next which is about 7 to 8 kms from the Lonavala lake area. Khandala is more pristine than Lonavala and is full of natural beauty. The Monkey point is a sheer drop into the ghats and has a spectacular view of the opposite hilly terrain with waterfalls of all shapes and sizes gushing down its sides. There is no attempt to make the place safer for tourists. A few iron rods protruding out of the ground is all there is to show for the very lacklustre efforts of the authorities.It speaks volumes for the discipline of the tourists here that accidents are not frequent.
Monkey point was fully covered by clouds when we got there, but a light shower ensued after which the majestic view was revealed to us.It was breathtaking! There was a group of monkeys there too, true to the name of the spot. There were some other view points ahead eg The Duke's Nose but because of the heavy cloud cover they might not have been visible to us, therefore we set off back to Lonavala. The driver was quite pessimistic and discouraged us from venturing further, later we realised he must've been eager to head back for the next set of tourists.
The last stop was a highly avoidable and substandard and also overly priced wax museum in Lonavala. We learnt later that Lonavala has no less than 3 wax museums and the one we went to was the worst. The best one is the one that has a MacDonald's outlet in the same building! The only statue worth mentioning in the one we went to was that of Anna Hazare, of all people, it had a marked resemblance to the original. Lata Mangeshkar looked constipated and Modi slim and vacant. The 150Rs per head entry fee went to waste! Why would Lonavala need a wax museum, leave alone 3?? Why not spend on better roads and a minimal railing at view points for the safety and security of the visitors??There is a Dinosaur park to, which, I feel should be made illegal!! Everyone is bent on making a fact buck. There are no facilities for tourists only places to fleece them! The uncomplaining and un demanding public keep flooding in, none the less! I have the same feeling about the Mall near the Lonavala lake,a total waste!
We had lunch and returned to Mon Repos, it was mid afternoon and no room had been readied for us. The Manager perpetually disappears and after a wait he casually comes by and after a lot of pleading and urging and making calls to the owner finally we got a room. Actually it was a set of twin rooms with double beds and a common attached bath. Here was enough place for my Brat Girl too, I missed my baby, studying so far away from home.The rooms had built in beds of granite and 2 chairs each but no wardrobe or table or dustbin or any shelf in the bathroom. The surroundings were of course beautiful, trees with birds chirping away and a wonderful breeze. We had to have lunch outside as the guest house has to be informed 2hours in advance if you want a meal!
After a short rest we ventured out againdetermined to enjoy the lake side waterfalls. We then met our excellent auto rickshaw guy, Mr. Nilesh. I recommend him to all and sundry because he knows all the spots and he will not hurry you about. he only drives on Saturdays and Sundays but he is dependable and atuned to touristy tastes. we got dropped at the lake and enjoyed an hour or so at the waterfalls near it. Thereafter we walked to the Tricos Mallwhich has a small gaming place, a few eateries, a children's play area and a clothes shop. The cinema hall only runs shows if 4 or more tickets are bought!
The Mite and the Mr played some video games and a pool hockey game while I sat around chilling.Thereafter we walked again upto the main market, had dinner qand called our friendly neighbourhood auto guy Nilesh who dropped us back to Mon Repos. We fixed a time with him to take us to Lohagarh and Bhaja caves next day.
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