Hotel Poonja International Mangalore

Udupi is home of the masala dosa and not a lot else, so this blog entry is going to be fairly food-oriented. Udupi is famous across the country for its food and restaurants all over serve traditional 'Udupi breakfasts' or 'Udupi meals', so by the time we got here our mouths were watering just thinking of all the culinary delights we'd be sampling. We arrived in Udupi at 4.30am and were so grateful that our hotel was visible from the bus stand. We weren't so grateful to discover that our ...

... aforementioned thalis. We had one last night, and it is the best so far. Of course, being in the South, its spicier, and also eating with your hands is mandatory - I'm sure I could have cutlery if I asked, but I'm not bad at it, and it seems to cause less of a scene by joining in as everyone else does. Yesterday we went to see the temple, where they have an elephant outside giving out blessings instead of a priest, quite a funny ...

... voice of Rahul the gate keeper directs you to the reception. You wonder whether you are already at the beach, because you are treading sand, boats, nest and anchors, add to your excitement as you taste the salt on your breath. Childish squeals rend the air, a wide expanse of green borders on a large swimming pool, palms hammocks, colonial sun chairs, weave an atmosphere of wellbeing. Between the palms, the ...

... One m*lloo guy c*me *nd t*lked to Unni ett*n. He *sked whether we w*lked *ll the w*y from Do****l. When Unni ett*n s*id yes, he *sked innocently, "None of u guys got *ny job yet?" J At 7:30, * ceremoni*l tr*in p*ssed by without stopping *t the st*tion. Then some people told us th*t Hubli R*ilw*y GM's inspection tr*in will come very soon. But the st*tion m*ster told us th*t we c*n't bo*rd it since it's only for the r*ilw*y employees. Anyw*ys, when we he*rd the ...

... for us. The overnight coach rides had taken their toll and coupled with the uninspiring vibe of the place, H and I were feeling seriously uninspired. We had hardly any energy to roll off our asses and find some sights, save for sniffing out a Cafe Coffee Day outlet, buying a new turquoise umbrella (lost the old one in bar in Goa where we left without paying asthey took so long to give us the bill - so obv couldn't go back..!), and umm..not much else. Pathetic. Swamped ...

... through, you will see right in front of you usually a big bucket full of water and a small ewer-type plastic container with a notched spout on it. Pour down the back of the crack ( I learned this after the initial splash-from-under attempts), with the RIGHT hand, while "helping" with the left from underneath. C'mon, don't be shy, it's only ****, after all, and left hands can be washed. Voila! A fresh clean feeling you don't get from using "western roll" paper. . When ...

... being scammed, or "rinsed" of all her money by a handsome and charming Kashmiri. . There is a scam perpetrated on Western women here, known by the long-timers, and it invariably involves a handsome Kashmiri "gentleman" who owns a Travel Agency, and preys on the aspirations of marriage that many single women over 30 seem to have. The Man will meet, wine and dine the woman, sometimes she will even fall in love with the man. He may even promise marriage, though, being mostly muslims ...

... he is now crippled from the waiste down.....his legs have completely atrophied....to the point where they are twisted up....and he is bad pain.... the situation is so bad that when i came to the house, i found him lying in the entrance by the doorway....apparently that is where he sits permanently....the house they live in does not have any electricity and is made of hut for a roof.....to imagine that there are konkanis living like this when all of these richer than filthy konkanis are ...

... come the next two days. 9 Indians and me arrive at a little forest camp. We had booked to big tents which were luckily surrounded by a real roof to resist the rain. The river Sita was swollen over it's borders thanks to the heavy rains. Our plan was to go white water rafting! A life jacket, helmet and a paddle! Ready to take off!!! Well, I did a white water rafting tour before and guessed that it won't be as exciting as you can see it sometimes in the TV. Some rapids ...