Letterfinlay Lodge and hotel

The journey by car from Inverness to Fort Williams via Eilean Donan castle was picturesque. We were three cars going one after the other. As we passed through the lovely countryside

From Fort Williams

we wished we were staying at one of the lovely hotels in the shadow of the mountains, besides a loch. We could not almost believe that the lodge where we were staying, the Letterfinlay lodge and hotel could be at such an amazing location. It is on the A82 about 7 miles from Spean Bridge and 17 miles from Fort William.
Everybody told me that they wished that we were staying at Letterfinlay lodge for more than one day. We revised our plans for the next day but all of us had prebooked connections and accommodations from Glasgow the next day, when we would be dividing into three groups and going to London, Hull, and Windermere.

After checking in the hotel, we drove to Fort William for dinner. We had traditional scottish food Haggis, neeps(turnip), tatties (potatoes).We shopped from tesco and also got Indian food packed for people back at the lodge.
We were fortunate to see the Lochaber school band performing that day at the market square.

From the lounge at the lodge we could see the sheep up on the hills. The lounge had recliners where one could relax.

The other side looked over Loch Lochy. It was an amazing view

Jacobite cruise - The Lochness experience

We went to Fort Williams from Inverness. Left our hotel, Express by Holiday Inn after having breakfast. We decided to take a Jacobite cruise on the Lochness. It was enroute so we decided to do it on our way to Fort Williams. The route was beautiful. We stopped to take photographs on one of the layby (space next to the highway where you can stop the car)

Except for a wrong turn due to some confusion because of the GPS, we reached Clansman Harbour situated opposite the Clansman Hotel. It cost 34 pounds for a family of five for the cruise. The cruise was a great experience.

 
There is a stop at the Uruqhart castle where you can get down and the ticket costs 10 pounds per person, and take the next cruise back. We did not get down at the castle, instead we came inside the boat from the deck it was warmer inside and enjoyed a cup of warm coffee. As most of the passengers had disembarked at Uruqhart castle we had more space to ourselves, on the way back, in the boat.

Uruqhart castle
After the Jacobite cruise. I thought we might as well may see the Eilean Donan Castle. It was about an hour and a half away. We set our GPS to Eilean Donan castle. The route was beautiful but the castle was a let down especially as we had come a long way to see it. It seemed very small and not at all grand.
Most of our group did not go inside the castle. There was a family ticket of 13.5 pounds and five of us went in. The inside of the castle was interesting and well preseved. The kitchen was especially good.

Eilean Donan Castle

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Inverness - area around the river Ness

Our Guide in kilt told us the literal meaning of the word Inverness, the highland capital. It is one of the most beautiful places in Scotland. We reached Inverness by car and the route was beautiful.


The best part of going to Europe in summer is that one has a very long day at one's disposal. The sun rises very early in the morning and sets around 10pm. It looks like its evening time from 4 pm right through to 10pm an endless evening especially for us Indians for whom the length of the day hardly varies with seasons and very often we do not need to see the watch to find out the time, we just look outdoors and can pretty much guess what time of the day it would be. In Europe, in summer your times sense goes awry and many a times you have to draw the curtains to go to sleep at what seems like 4pm time here. In the birthplace of Golf you can tee off at 12 midnight there is still enough light and usher in the sun at 3am by the time you finish your game.
The delay caused in the car rental meant that we reached our destination quite late in the day. The day or rather the evening we reached there we took our cars along the river Ness. We walked along the river, enjoying the beautiful scenery and the crystal clear water. As it was a weekend the parking along the river was free.
The banks of the river Ness beyond the Inverness Castle were known as Ladies walk and the Ness Walk. It was a very picturesque area. On going futher away towards the Eden Court theatre it became lovelier with a number of small islands accesible by small pedestrian bridges, this area we actually explored the next day. The air was chilly.


There were numerous rabbits (and there burrows), living wild on this slope.

We walked upto the Primark store. The market was closed at that time. We saw an Indian Restaurant here. It was called the Shapla ( meaning Lotus?) Indian Restaurant. We had dinner there. It was not excellent stuff but good enough.
Next day we took our cars into the city and parked in the multilevel car park which charged 20pence per car for two hours. The catch was that you could only increase the time of parking after 2 hours. So at the end of 2 hours Shaleen and Anupam had to rush back to increase the time. We walked down to the town centre from the car park but missed the 11 am Happy tour. The Primark store was just 2 shops away so we all went on a shopping spree. The clothes were even cheaper than what we get in India. A shirt with tie for 1 pound. Children's jeans for 3 pounds. Unfortunately we did not buy much due to lack of time and space in our suitcases.
We then went on a walking tour of Inverness - Happy Tour.

Walking tours are fun. A good way to get a feel of the city and also a chance to interact with a local . We did not walk for a long distance but we came to know a lot about the folklore, the history of the city. He told us about the Mac Donald clan. The guide was friendly and humorous.
We headed back to our hotel Express by Holiday Inn which was outside the city towards the Culloden Battlefield. Our group being so large we had not been able to procure accomodation at a B&B as had been our plan initially. The hotel proved comfortable, as Tesco was nearby. For the first time in a hotel we saw that a Microwave was provided for the use of the guests in the common area, where the breakfast was served daily, and there was crockery and cutlery with it. Guests could get food from outside, heat it and carry the food to their rooms from this area if they wish.
Next we went to the Culloden Battlefield. Where the Jacobites had fought with the british army. The battle lasted for about 2hours and there is a tour there now which lasts for almost the same duration.

The tour has GPS facilitated audio tour. On reaching a particular spot the audio guide automatically tells a story related to that location. Here we realized how the golf buggy which we had taken on rent  in Versailles used to give us automatic commentary on reaching a particular place.

Scotland one of the most beautiful places on earth

We are back from a great vacation. We had planned to see Scotland in the latter part of the vacation. It was a novelty for us, Shaleen and me, rest of the cities we had already been to before, (except for Brugee). So that part we planned to visit in the end.
To keep the anticipation going till the end. I think when you plan a vacation, the sequence in which you plan your holiday locales is very important, if you are covering more than one place. If you see the best in the first go, the rest pales in its comparison. During our USA trip the trip ended in a grand finale, the best, the Niagara falls.

I found Scotland quite overwhelming. As I had mentioned in my previous post we took car rentals in Scotland. We were three cars going one after the other. Shaleen had purchased a GPS from London with maps of the European union. His colleague Amrita helped us with the selection of GPS which she had already purchased on the net at Amazon.com.
The car rentals gave us more freedom as we were not bound by any particular schedule, except that we had our hotel and apartment bookings done from before. We got the best deal from Alamo and it got better with Etihad Airways Partnership.
We reached Edinburgh from Amsterdam by flight. It took us quite some time to get a taxi for 8 persons as we had a lot of luggage. On reaching Grove street Apartments, we met the rest of our family. They had arrived the same day by train from London. Grove street Apartments proved to be a great stay. It is a daily serviced apartment!! After Citadines stay everywhere else --London, Paris, and Brussels. Grove street Apartments exceeded expectations.
We were so hungry on reaching Edinburgh. The one and a half hour flight had been without any service and the costliest leg of our journey at 80 Euros per person. We feasted on fried Bhindi and Theplas from India and by that time Suhani and Nalin had convinced us to go to the Ghost walking tour. In retrospect I think that was one of the most enjoyable and happening excursions of the trip.
We met our guide outside the Starbucks cafe on the Royal mile. 10 pounds adults and 8 pounds child was the cost and we got a free torch and a drink at the local pub each. He was a good story-teller. We came to know that suicide is legal in Scotland. He told us about the witch burnings, and about Mary Queen of Scots .



The pub where we got a free drink each

He told us that a Scots believe that after death their souls come back to Scotland and therefore at the graveyard there were many memorials of scotsmen who had lost their lives in other countries, made by their kinsmen so that their souls would have a resting place in Scotland when it came back.

We walked a few kilometres and saw few of the greatest views of the city.

Inverness - Things to do

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We were chalking out as to what our itinerary would be in Inverness.
Things to do

1. Culloden visitors centre.
reviews
The timings are 9am - 6pm Summer (April - October)
The prices are
Adult - £10.00
Family - £24.00
Concession - £7.50
Single Adult Family - £20.00

Hire of a battlefield tour PDA is included in the price of admission.

Weekly off: Battlefield open daily, all year

2. Happy tours
reviews
History Walking Tour of Inverness,
through heart of the City
The tour begins outside the Tourist Information steps
The timings are Every day at 11am, 1pm or 3pm!
The prices are Adults £10, Super Adults £8, Kids are Free
Discounted rates for larger parties.
Weekly off : they operate 365 days a year.

3. Lochness tour
Still to be researched
The timings are
The prices are
Weekly off

4. Floral Hall
review
The timings are Easter to October - Daily, Floral Hall & Gardens 10am – 5pm, Coffee Shop 10am -4.30pm
Last admissions to Floral Hall & Gardens, 30 minutes before closing time.
The prices are
Adults £2.00
Under 18s Free of Charge
Senior Citizens £1.50
Weekly off : it seems that there is no weekly off.

Cawdor castle is privately owned and extrememly expensive at 30 pounds per person. we decided to give it a miss.

VFS UK Delhi

We reached the VFS UK New Delhi without appointment early in the morning at 7:30 am there was already a queue. We got a number for waiting for paying the visa fees at the cash counter.
In case of USA visa this fees can be paid by applicants in their hometowns at a HDFC , specified counter.
After 3 emails to UK VFS we got an appointment for a date other than the 3 dates we had requested.

Although not mentioned in the required list of documents a Bank statement is absolutely required to be submitted at the time of application.
In 2007 when we went to USA we had been sure that we would be refused visa. But they had told us not to buy flight tickets or pay for accommodation before getting the visa. For the UK visa you have to purchase tickets before hand and also book accommodation. What happens when they refuse visa? I found the Working of US embassy much smoother and systematic than UK VFS.
After submitting all documents and after hours of standing in, this queue then that queue, we were told that we may still be required to come for an interview, that was ultimate especially for us, coming from another city.
We proceeded to Biometrics where we had to give finger prints of all 10 fingers. They took photographs also. AVOID MEHNDI (Henna) application on hands if applying for a UK Visa, otherwise you might have to postpone your visit to UK.
First time visitors to UK and less frequently travelled people should be prepared that their applications would take a longer time to process.
Collecting the passports afterwards was again not easy. I suggest you stand in line by 5:30 pm otherwise there would be a long queue.
Pankaj had last year applied for a 5yr visa to the UK. The family had a history of travelling to UK for 3 times in the last 4yrs. He had payed the hiked visa fees only to receive a visa for 2years. In contrast one applies for a tourist visa to the US embassy for 6 months and they even give you a 10 yr multiple entry visa in the same fees.
I think UK VFS seriously needs to revamp the processing process which they are currently doing for visa applications.

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Visit Scotland - planning a trip

Planning a trip to Scotland has turned into a daunting task, with so many inputs from so many forums and the wish to see as much as possible. Expectations are high as we have been told that it is the most beautiful place in the world. I got this map from visitscotland.com a truly great site.
The best car rental site is Arnold Clark rental.
I found a tour appropriate for us at Globus.


Day1 Hull – Edinburgh, Scotland.
(Sat.) This morning a magnificent highlight visit to see the lavish ALNWICK GARDEN, where the fountains and waterfalls are a breathtaking feature. Take your photos of the castle, ancestral home of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, setting for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the recent Harry Potter films. In the afternoon, distant views of Holy Island and Lindisfarne, then cross the border at Berwick-on-Tweed and head for Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital city. Optional Scottish evening with Highland dancers, bagpipers, and the Ceremony of the Haggis

Day 2 At Leisure in Edinburgh.
(Sun.) Morning city sightseeing of the 200-year-old “New Town” and famous scientists, inventors, and novelists. In the “Old Town,” drive up the narrow Royal Mile to EDINBURGH CASTLE to admire Scotland’s Crown Jewels, then explore HOLYROOD PALACE (except when the Queen is in residence). The afternoon is free to enjoy this “Prince of Cities” at your own pace. Later, a unique optional experience: board the former Royal Yacht Britannia, once the perfect royal residence for the Queen’s glittering state visits and family holidays. Tour five decks and see how the Royal Family and crew of 240 lived and worked on board. Dinner rounds off this optional evening.
Day 3 Edinburgh–Pitlochry–Braemar–Inverness.
(Mon.) Over the elegant Forth Road Bridge and into the Highlands. Stop at the Victorian mountain resort of Pitlochry, then head for Deeside with its royal connections and visit pretty Braemar, home of the Royal Highland Games for over 900 years. Cross heather-clad moors for a visit to a WHISKY DISTILLERY, see the ancient art of converting barley, water, and yeast into a heart-warming liquor. Spend the night at Inverness, the Highland capital.

Alternatively
Edinburgh–St. Andrews–Braemar–Inverness. (Wed.) Over the elegant Forth Road Bridge and through Fife to St. Andrews, whose Royal and Ancient Golf Club, founded in 1754, has given us the rules of golfing. Cross the Firth of Tay and from Dundee head into the Highlands with a lunch stop in pretty Braemar, home of the Royal Highland Games for over 900 years. Drive through the Grampian Mountains, following the River Dee in the area where the Royal Family spends their summer holidays. Later, visit a WHISKY DISTILLERY, see the ancient art of converting barley, water, and yeast into a heart-warming liquor. The next two nights are spent in the Highland capital.

Day 4 Inverness–Isle of Skye.
(Tues.) A leisurely day with a stop first at CULLODEN VISITOR CENTRE, which sets the scene of the crushing Hanoverian victory over Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Scottish clans. Plenty to focus your camera on as you follow the shores of Loch Ness, keeping a lookout for the mysterious monster.
Then call at CAWDOR CASTLE, setting for Shakespeare’s Macbeth and for over 600 years home to the Thanes of Cawdor. View the castle rooms and take a stroll through the gardens. Back in Inverness, the rest of the day is free to explore this compact city. We can have the Loch Ness Experience excursion including a cruise on the loch followed by supper at a local inn.
After a lunch stop in Fort Augustus, cross onto the Inner Hebridean Isle of Skye, the relaxing setting for tonight’s stay. Before dinner an optional excursion to spectacular Eilean Donan Castle.

Day 5 Isle of Skye–Fort William–Glasgow.
(Wed.) Call at the Clan Donald Centre for a visit to its MUSEUM OF THE ISLES and an insight into 13 centuries of clan history before boarding your FERRY at Armadale to sail across the Sound of Sleat. Rejoin the mainland at Mallaig and follow the “Road to the Isles,” pausing at Glenfinnan, the site where Bonnie Prince Charlie’s standard was raised in 1745. More scenic highlights this afternoon: Fort William beneath Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest mountain; the shores of lovely Loch Linnhe; the mountain pass known as Glen Coe, where the MacDonald Clan was treacherously massacred by the Campbells; wild Rannoch Moor; and the “Bonnie Banks” of Loch Lomond. On arrival in Glasgow, your orientation drive takes in the 12th-century cathedral, imposing university buildings, and elegant Georgian squares built by the wealthy tobacco barons.

Optional
If possible
Glasgow. Excursion to the Isle of Bute.
A worthwhile last day’s excursion out of Glasgow with a short drive and FERRY crossing to the picturesque Isle of Bute. The highlight is a visit to the Marquess of Bute’s MOUNT STUART HOUSE, Britain’s most spectacular Victorian gothic stately home, built in the 1880s in breathtakingly grand proportions. Here you’ll be welcomed in the family’s private sitting rooms for morning coffee, see this amazing house. Back in Glasgow, the rest of the afternoon is free for last-minute shopping before enjoying a farewell dinner at your hotel.

OPTIONALS
CITY: Edinburgh

Scottish Evening April 1 - October 31
No visit to Scotland's capital city would be complete without joining a Scottish evening with dinner, wine and a show featuring singers, dancers, bagpipers and the Ceremony of the Haggis.
Approximate value: GBP £50 per person

Rosslyn Chapel
Take a short trip from Edinburgh to visit Rosslyn Chapel, featured in the best selling novel The Da Vinci Code.
Approximate value: GBP £18 per person

Royal Yacht Britannia and Dinner
A visit on board the Royal Yacht Britannia, now moored at Leith docks, is followed by dinner with wine and coffee at a local restaurant.
Approximate value: GBP £47 per person

CITY: Isle of Skye

Eilean Donan Castle and Pub Visit
Enjoy a visit to spectacular Eilean Donan Castle followed by a drink of your choice at a local inn.
Approximate value: GBP £19 per person

London Paris Brussels Brugge Amsterdam Scotland

Our itinerary for the summer. A lot of planning has to be done as yet. Main areas of concern are the connections and the stays. Our group has slowly increased to 15 people.
In London we plan to see the Tower of London, British Museum, Madame Tussaud's, London Eye, London Aquarium, Changing of guard and Buckingham palace, nearby Windsor castle, Westminster Abbey. I want to go to the Hyde park, Leicester square, Trafalgar square,

Selfridges. I want to watch a play in London this time round. The list is endless. London is a travellers delight because of the metro. Take a cruise on river Thames.

Easiest and cheapest way to cross the English channel would be by Eurostar. In Paris we are still searching for apartments for our stay. Things to do in Paris are Grevin Wax museum, Louvre Museum. In our last trip we had been amazed to find out that the Glass Pyramid was actually an access from the metro. We had just by chance taken the metro station to th e Louvre and we had been quite in awe of the shops which we saw at the station as if in an expensive mall, and to top it all as we ascended the escalator we realized that we were coming out through the glass pyramid! It had been a windy day.

Musee de Orsay, Eiffel tower,

stroll on the Champs Ellyses, Versailles, Eurodisney,

Notre Damme.

From Paris via rail to Brussels. The Grand place, Mannequin pis and then the freshly made waffles and lovely home made chocolates which cannot be carried home because of their short shelf life.
Brugee would be a new place for us. It is a medieval city preserved in time. Belgium's most visited city. We plan to see the Town Hall. Roam about and enjoy the feel of the place. If we have time and folks are interested we'll see one or two museums.
From Brugge to Amsterdam again by train. Accomodation is tough in Amsterdam. We will enjoy a family trip to Amsterdam. The Dam Square and the Vondelpark. Anne Frank's House and a canal cruise. Some coffee and chocolate at the coffeeshops. Van Gogh museum maybe.
We are taking the night ferry to New Castle upon Tyne. Then to Edinburgh. On Divya's suggestions we'll do 2days in Edinburgh, one each in Fort Williams, Inverness, and Glasgow. Then return to London for our flight back.
Everything is in planning stage and can be altered as and when the need arises.

Cheap flights -- Delhi to London return -- Etihad Airways

Any of you guys, if you have any miles in Etihad Guest, the reward programme of Etihad airways, now is the time to use them. A family of 4, three adults and 1 child can get a return tickets to London from Delhi for as little as Rs. 26000.
The tickets we purchased in May 2004 to US of A have given offsprings it seems. We thought that Etihad had a great reward programme but this beats everything.
After great deliberations and thought as to where we would be going for summer vacations. Etihad decided for us.
We had planned for

• Australia and orNew Zealand, Shaleen was not keen on it. Singapore airlines has not given us a single frequent flyer mile!! it has a lousy reward programme. We did not much care for the planes either.
• For America as the visa is at hand. Only thing is the enthusiasm was lacking for a repeat visit, so soon to America.
• For Manali, Shimla, Mashobra, Dharamshala, Club Mahindra let us down. The call centre is in the habit of refusing initial requests for booking without rhyme or reason. In one day their whole resort gets booked.
• We planned a road trip to Leh Ladakh via Srinagar. Or rather thought about it only.

Zeroed in on London, Paris and Scotland, god willing and if the passports (renewal) and visas go through, we would be on our way.
We will again stop at the doughnut shaped airport of Abu Dhabi.

From New York

We love the planes that Etihad Airways has because the screen on each of the seat is big. We truly appreciated them only after we travelled by Singapore Airlines later on, when we went to Singapore.

Caught in the Making - Club Mahindra resort at Corbett

While roaming on the streets of Paris in the summer of 2004, we had just been on top of the Eiffel tower, having arrived the same day by coach from Germany, Shaleen and I had been both dumbstruck by a large framed photograph of Eiffel tower built just half way up. It was kept in the show window of an expensive store dealing mostly in rare photographs. That particular photograph had been very heavily priced. Till then the very idea of a photograph of a half built building had seemed repulsive to me. Looking at that photo we marvelled at the uniqueness of it, frozen in time.
It was this photo which came to my mind when on 29th March while walking along the river just beyond the Wood castle resort, we came across the under construction Club Mahindra resort. The whole family got excited and we decided to go have a look inside. This resort is probably scheduled to start in May this year.



As we roamed over the place one of the staff came forward and showed us the rooms from inside as well. One fully furnished room was locked and another almost done one could be seen from the window.

I realized that our search for a good resort for future stays in Corbett ended right here. With a Club Mahindra stay a great holiday is almost a foregone conclusion.
People interested in Club Mahindra can weigh their options here.
A site selling and buying used Club Mahindra memberships

KGMC '86 Batchmeet contd

During these two trips to Corbett, so close together, I realized that it was a great place for family and or friends to spend time together esp people living in Lucknow, Delhi, Moradabad, Barielly, Rudrapur and nearby places. Its advantage being that no hilly drive is involved. A number of good resorts are there and you are away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Its close to nature and quiet. A nice place to catch up on things, meditate etc. One or two Jungle safaris would provide the excitement. Last year Bhabhi's batch had organised a meet at Woodcastle resort which was just adjoining the Corbett Riverview resort where we were staying. The previous day we had by mistake reached Corbett Riverside retreat instead and that resort was poorly maintained.
Next day, morning of 29th March 09, most of our group had gone to the jungle in a canter leaving early morning. We decided against going for a jungle safari. Just a few days back we had done the safari. We walked down instead to the river from the resort itself. It was lovely walking along the river. The resort itself was quite picturesque





Along the riverside we went across to have a look at the Woodcastle resort. It is one of the better and costlier accomadation available in Corbett. We were interested to have a look at the rooms after hearing about the open to sky, shower stalls in the rooms. To our disappointment all rooms having this feature were occupied so we were not able to see that from inside, instead they were just pointed out at from the outside.
Adjacent to Woodcastle resort there was another one coming up. We were very pleased to know who that belonged to!!

More pictures of Corbett Riverview resort (Leisure hotels)

Photographs of The Woodcastle resort

The Class of '86, KGMC - countdown to the 25yrs reunion

Last weekend saw us again at Jim Corbett Park!! This time it was the reunion of the batch of 86 KGMC, my batch. Organized by Dr. Sarvesh and Dr. Rajshekhar. We thought it was a trifle expensive at Rs.6300 per couple and Rs.900 per child. But noneteless we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.
It was an, on the spur decision, to go to the batch meet, because we came to know that both the children had holidays in those days. Train reservations were not available, we had to go by road. Shaleen had to take an exam in Barielly. We started early from Lucknow, though we had planned to leave at 4:30am we left by 5:30am. We reached Barielly at 9:30 am despite getting caught in a massive 15km long jam at a railway crossing just before Barielly. Shaleen used his driving skills to the max to get out of this jam at the earliest which still took 30mnts.

We reached Barielly and were received by Dr. Gaekwad and while Shaleen and Dr. Gaekwad took exam we stayed with Dr. Gaekwad's family. His in-laws had come visiting from Pune via Mumbai. We were lucky to eat the season's first mangoes at their place, that too Alfonso mangoes, straight from Ratnagiri and strawberries from Mahabaleshwar and sea water fish got in ice box from Mumbai. Soumya had a great time playing with the children. As we were about to leave Barielly we discovered that our Qualis had a punctured tyre pointed out to us by a three yr old "Innova doctor", Dr. Gaekwad's nephew.
We left Barielly for our onward journey. We reached Corbett Riverview retreat, Corbett Park around 5pm.

After freshening up we joined the group in the conference hall in the resort. On our way to the conference hall from our cottage we saw a hot air balloon inthe sky from the neighbouring Wood Castle resort. This is the resort where Bhabhi's batchmeet will take place in the Easter holidays in the coming month of April.

Only three female counterparts had come to the batch meet including me. Kusum Gahtori now Oli from Haldwani, Usha Rawat now Bhandari married to a batch mate also settled in Haldwani.

After introductions the children did several dance numbers, songs and jokes as well, some of them were really good. The paper dance was the most enjoyable part of the evening. Food was great and the atmosphere was great also.

We retired early because we were so tired after the long drive from Lucknow. We missed out on the discussions which took place later on, and also the distribution of momentos. I really liked the momento which was given to me later on by Ratnesh in Lucknow. Next year the batch is planning to meet in Mussorie, a reunion to be organized by Ratnesh I think. I hope the girls join in greater numbers.
Lets start collecting the details of all our batchmates.

To enter your details and your friends fill in this form. This would help us in gathering information about more and more of our batchmates.

The Lake Resort - Naukuchiatal

From The Lakeside resort, Naukuchiatal

From The Lakeside resort, Naukuchiatal

When we were at Naukuchiatal we stayed at Dancing waters, Club Mahindra's resort. It has well appointed rooms, but the it seems more like staying in a hotel, than a resort. We spent most of our second day at The lake side resort which is nearby. It is just at the lake and one can go boating from the resort itself or just walk under the trees and enjoy the feel of the lake. When I had first seen this lake side resort I had been absolutely enamoured by it. This time round the location was unbeatable and the staff very friendly but the resort seemed lacking in upkeep.

In the afternoon we lounged about in front of the lake enjoying tea and excellent cheese chilly toasts while the children went for paddle boating yet again. We decided to return to lakeside resort for dinner later.

From The Lakeside resort, Naukuchiatal

As we entered the premises of the resort later in the day it seemed quite deserted and if we had been alone we may not have ventured there, in the dark. We had already placed our order in the restaurant. We initially decided to sit outside but changed our minds because of the cold breeze. The food was great and we had a great last evening together.

The Strawberry farm at Kiccha

One of the attractions while going to Kumaon region by car is the strawberry farm at Kiccha. This farm is the source of strawberries for fruit marts of Lucknow, Delhi etc. The climax of our La Martiniere break is this farm, esp as Shaleen is extremely fond of strawberries. While returning home we stop here to buy strawberries in wholesale. It is situated between the 2 and 3 km milestone while reaching Kiccha from Haldwani on the right side.

From Strawberry farm at Kiccha

After entering through this gate we go about a half a km inside and have to look around for the farm because every year the position of the farm is changed to another plot near by.

From Strawberry farm at Kiccha

From Strawberry farm at Kiccha

We bought 14 kgs of strawberries, all freshly picked in front of us. It took us 2hrs to collect these delicious strawberries. Costing us Rs.60 a kg

Dancing waters, Naukuchiatal - Club Mahindra resort

This time of the year is a good time to take a break for parents of children studying in La Marts, as it is the only school whose session starts so early. While the rest of the schools have exams we can chill out during Holi Holidays. Many years back it was Reshu who enlightened us with the idea of taking a short break at this time of the year.
Thanks to Club Mahindra this year we had a ball. A great time with friends.
We started from Corbett after breakfast for Naukuchiatal. We went via Haldwani, it took us almost three hours to reach there, Dancing waters, Naukuchiatal. It is a school converted to a resort. The restaurant and activity centre are on the second floor. It would be wise to ask the management to reserve lake-side facing rooms to make the stay delightful.
We had a sumptuous lunch and then waited for Anupam and Shubhra and kids to join us.
In the evening we decided to walk down to the lake but half way down, it became too dark to continue so we came back and enjoyed the dinner spread.