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The Vaishnodevi Experience 2023

My first trip to Vaishnodevi was unimpressive. Climbing was hard, and it only served to highlight how badly out of shape I was, while my in-laws managed to cope so much better. Further, I hadn’t quite realized that the cave experience wouldn’t be the same as I had imagined, since the original cave was only opened at certain times a year, and that we only entered a newly created tunnel, one far easier to access, and hence more manageable with the crowds that thronged the mountain shrine. The resulting experience at the shrine, for barely a fraction of a second, hardly compared to what I had expected / imagined / heard about. So, for me, Vaishnodevi was like any other temple, nothing to write home about, something that was reflected (though not explicitly mentioned) in the blog post I wrote then.

Skywatch Friday - Yearning to be somewhere else!

The hectic days of the Navaratri festival are over, but the chaos in our house continues, with repair work going on. I find myself under a virtual house arrest, which, for itchy feet like mine feels like the harshest of punishments. Stuck inside the house, I yearn for the hills and open spaces.... and feel like getting away somewhere, even if just for a short while... This tiny village tucked in amidst the western ghats, surrounded by mountains, clicked somewhere near Mahabaleshwar, is just the kind of place I would love to escape to, at the moment!


Meanwhile, my post on Wai, near Mahabaleshwar, has been featured on the Club Mahindra Blog!!!

For more beautiful skies from around the world, go to Skywatch Friday!

Comments

  1. What a beauty! And I am exactly in the same state of mind, itching to be someplace else!

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    1. Thanks Mridula!!! i guess we cant stay more than a month or so at home before the itch sets in... or i wonder, does the itch go away at all, or do we just suppress it because we have work to do?

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  2. Lovely Anu! I have been to Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar many times, but stay over at Wai, never! So is there a flight to Mahabaleshwar now? Or you were going elsewhere, flying low over Wai?
    Julia

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Julia! No, this is not taken from a flight... but from the winding road to Mahabaleshwar! looks just like it was taken from the air, right?

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  3. Beautiful click!!

    http://www.rajniranjandas.blogspot.com

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  4. Replies
    1. Thanks P-ter! but this is not taken from the air, but from the road!

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  5. Lovely photo Anu... Have been itching to escape and it seems the more i itch, the more grounded i become :/

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Aarti!! thats so true for me too... the more I try, the more I cant escape... the less i plan, the more I go...

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  6. That looks like a wonderful place to escape to. Great shot!

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  7. Beautiful capture! Happy sky watching.

    Skywatch

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  8. Oh my, my. I don't think any place can beat the Deccan Plateau region in the monsoons. Beautiful capture, Anu.

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    Replies
    1. So true, Sudha! its certainly among the most beautiful places in the monsoons.. i can never tire of them!

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