Thursday, January 10, 2013

Day - 3 Lonavala Page No.4


Page No.4

Dear All,

This entire H2H 2K2K Road Trip is being made into a DVD Movie.

In fact all my previous Road Trips have also been made into DVD Movie.

This movie will have all the photos, videos, text with explanations & very nice MP3 Songs for background which will ultimately make watching this movie as a virtual journey along with MN family to NEPAL in your own home with your own family a very memorable experience for sure.

Anyone who is interested to get them please write to mnh2h2k2k@gmail.com with your name, address & contact number & I will respond to you. The DVD Movie is under preperation & will be ready shortly.

What I am sharing with you all in this blog site is only the photos & not the videos taken and these priceless videos will be there in the DVD Movie.
I can assure you it will be real fun & worth watching it on big screen as a Movie over a nice weekend.

Send mail with your requirement to mnh2h2k2k@gmail.com

Day - 3

Location: Lonavala - Maharastra

Date: 24.12.2012 (Monday)

We continued the night driving from Bengaluru after stopping for Dinner around 8.30 PM and left at 9.15 PM towards Maharastra & the Destination was to reach Lonavala & we had to cross Pune City too.

The roads from Bengaluru to Lonavala were good except for some places there was repairs going on. I did stop on the way at few Dhabas to have nice steaming hot Tea.

In this picture below we are 6 KMs short of Davangere, 140 KMs to Hubli & 584 KMs to Pune.

The time was 1.51 AM night on 24th December 2012.


Such a valuable advise! I had to adhere to the 2nd part as I had 3 priceless possessions with me inside the car sleeping peacefully fully trusting me.



At 2.26 AM on 24.12.2012 we touched 43000 KMs of our FIAT Linea 1.3 MJDs Journey in just 2 years. We had covered 1800 KMs of our trip till now.


The magic mark of 2000 KMs of our trip at the odo reading of 43201 KM at 5.35 AM almost morning...chill morning outside, birds chirping, sun about to rise and look out for the fog too...



At 6.16 AM I passed a sign board which made me to halt & look at this side lovingly. Hidkal DAM & GOKAK.... I miss them so much.

We grew up in Gokak Mills & Gokak Falls as our Father worked for Forbes Gokak Ltd Textile Mills for 30 years from 1963 and retired in 1993 so we spent a whole life time in Gokak Falls.

Well so many good old memories of my childhood days & friends.

Team GOKAK at Face Book & my contacts this is the best picture I can share with you all and sincerely tell you all that I love you all & miss you all and this picture says it all for all of us that we are so near yet so far.


Crossed Belgaum & I stopped the FIAT Linea at the same spot I had Stopped my FIAT Palio 1.6 GTX in 2009 during our 2nd Road Trip "Mission Impossible" Coimbatore to SAM Village beyond Jaisalmer Pakistan Border to India in Rajasthan 18 Days 6800 KMs Trip.

I had taken some nice snaps then of the surrounding hilly areas but now it was still dark & the million stars were twinkling away to glory waiting for the SUN to rise.




The car is returning an awesome mileage figure of 17.5 km per litre..just unbelievable with all that speeds I was doing contineously to cover almost some 900 KMs from Bengaluru to Lonavala, I was really pushing the car at night.





The time below at the Welcome Arch is 7.10 AM on 24.12.2012 and we are about to enter Maharastra State by leaving behind karnataka State.

We had covered 2096 KMS from Chennai Kanyakumari till now.

Namaskara Karnataka & thank you for the awesome & great journey so far. Thumba Santhosha.

Amchi Maharastra Welcomes us towards Pune, Lonavala & Mumbai & beyond.


We were very low on fuel & we tanked up at this pump and we just witnessed a lovely early morning Sun Rise.











We could see fog in the fields & on the road.


We are 19 KMs short of Kolhapur, 144 KMs to Satara & 252 KMs to Pune & the time now was 6.58 AM.






As soon as we crossed Satara I got a phone call from my good old friend & Brother Ganesh Baliga from Pune who also is a fellow FIAT lover and he was so thrilled to hear we were about to reach Satara.

He told me he will come to the Bye Pass to meet us. I told him we will wait for him.

Ganesh Baliga came to meet us with his Little Children Manas who is the same age as Uthamkumar i.e 9 years & Baby Shreya who is of the same age as Shrimeenakshi i.e 5 years.





Ganesh drives a Skoda Octiva now.


What a great time the children had even though they were meeting each other for the first time.

Left to Right:
Manas, Uthamkumar, Shrimeenakshi & Shreya.



The 2 boys were busy playing Stone Paper Scissor - have you grown ups tried this game?

No? Please try this mind game & ask your little ones whether they know and I am sure they will and it is very interesting.

Uthamkumar & Manas are playing this game.


Baby Shrimeenakshi is asking Baby Shreya pick any four and Shreya is telling I can only pick two!



The bear hug was great Ganesh and it was great meeting with you and our sincere thanks for taking the time off to come & meet us.

Even though the meet was brief about some 40 minutes we all enjoyed the being together.

The time was 10.45 AM and we still had quite a lot of ground to cover to Lonavala.

We went through the Pune Mumbai Express way which has many tunnels drilled through the Mountains.







 Finally we reached Lonavala & found our way to the Hotel Chandrlok where I had done booking in advance. The time was 1.30 PM.

We checked into the room and had a good bath & had great Thali Meals.

This Hotel is very good & has decent parking space & the food was great Gujrati Thali Meals with so many tasty dishes too.




On 24.12.2012 we had covered 2406 KMs of our trip to Lonavala from Chennai.

We had just covered 1624 KMs from Kanyakumari to Lonavala Non Stop.

We left KanyaKumari on 23.12.2012 (Sunday) at 7.30 AM morning from the KK Beach and drove non stop till Bengaluru till we met Arun Nagaraj & spent a brief time and had just stopped for Dinner.

We drove on from Bengaluru till Pune to meet Ganesh Baliga and then proceed to Lonavala.

Lonavala is very famous for a special variety of Sweet called Chikki it is called Lonavala Chikki.

Anywhere & Everywhere you will only find CHIKKI shops, big ones, medium ones & small ones all selling only CHIKKI.

The Car was cleaned throughly at the hotel and then we went to Bhushi Dam.






Bhushi Dam:













Baby Shrimeenakshi is enacting like a very Old Woman who is having great difficulty walking with an imaginery walking stick.






 Master Uthamkumar is busy taking photos.





The ripple effect, kids were throwing stones to get a ring.









After this we went to the famous Wax Museum.

I will upload the snaps soon. It is about 12.41 AM mid night and I will upload the Wax Museum Photos & my meeting with my 2 other Brothers Shibu Tarak & Nilesh Naidu & his with wife Jyoth.

Lonavala Wax Museum:

We need to buy entry tickets @ Rs.100/- per head.

Inside it is completely Airconditioned and we cannot compare this with any other wax musuem around the world.

The artist Sunil Kandallor from Kerala has done a good decent job on some of the celebrities and they look real life like.
 














Beat it Beat it Beat... it & how many times should I say BEAT IT!!!

The Nose Job was bad then..poor Micheal now it looks like it hasnt been cleaned for a while!!!!













Yende Eshwara Edhu enthanu Mone? Idhu Yaranu idu?



I am so Dangerous!!!


"There is Tremoundous Strength, Wisdom & Potential within You.

If you Realise this then Nothing is Impossible and you can do anything & everything."




You American Dogs..I have been telling all of you for months & years all the while that I dont have any Nuclear Biological & Chemical Bombs and No one is believing in me!!!

Look even when you are about to hang me, I am swearing on this Holy Book and telling you the truth. I dont have anything to hide & you guys are really wasting all the dollars & time searching for something that isint here.

I can definately point in the real direction & you will find it with ease look towards Iran & Pakistan..they have it all!!! Ha Ha...


No one will believe you Old Chap!


You touch me up here & I will shoot you down there!!


Oh! I was only offering you some nice flowers..it is all part of the Art of living you know!!! Welcome to India.. 






Mozart of Madras - Humma Humma Humma Humma Humma.......



After the visit to Wax museum we went to Narayana Temple in Lonavala.

It so majestic and beautiful & it had a great play area too for kids. We were here in the temple till 7.30 PM.

It is a great temple having spacious parking space.

It has a Goshala (Go in Sanskrit Language means Cow, Shala means Place Goshala = Cow Shed) remember Lord Krishna loves Cows and it is always said where there are Cows there always is Gopal.

The variety of Cows inside are superb. All throughbreed cows & their calfs. The kids had a great time feeding the cows & calfs.








Shrimeenakshi cracked a funny joke with her Brother & Mother and making them laugh out so much and make them so happy & she is sitting smug like an innocent baby. 




After the long haul drive of Kanyakumari 2 Lonavala throught the day & night and the visits to Bhushi Dam, Wax Museum & the Temple visit and the playground the kids & Jamuna were so tired all 3 of them came back to the hotel & slept like babies.

They never woke up when my best friends from Mumbai came after 8 PM & they never responded when I called them.

When I told them the next day they were so disappointed that they could not meet Tarak & Nilesh Uncle & Jyoth Aunty.


I had to play the host to my 3 friends who were so charged up to see me & the FIAT Linea and the Love & Passion was to be seen to be believed.

It was so nice & great of you 3 to have come all the way from Mumbai driving down in your own cars to meet us.

Sincere thanks for making the moment so memorable.

It is rightly said It isint the the Number of Breaths you take but the number of moments that take your Breath Away.
Here are the priceless photos



Nilesh & Jyoth had brought some nice red Chirstmas Caps for the kids & Chocolates and they would have been happy if Uthamkumar & Shrimeenakshi were awake to wear them, since the kids were fast asleep, I told them I will wear it, I am them & they are ME!





Nilesh's Maroon FIAT Siena & Tarak's Blue FIAT Grande Punto.

A real FIATFULL Family.





This Young & Smart looking Lad, Shibu Tarak is a Most Eligible Bachelor!!!

He has that smart look that reminds me of the famous Don Coroleone Dialogue that says "I made him an Offer he could not refuse" for Tarak is the resident Chief of our MYFIATWORLD Forum in Mumbai.

You really were dressed up Smart looking Man!


Nilesh Naidu & his Wife Jyoth.



The India Map looks so majestic.

Mera Bharat Mahan!!!

My Bharat India is So Great & I am so Proud of my India.












Tarak, Nilesh & Jyoth left by around 9.45 PM and I bid them good bye. They wishes me & my family all the very best & a very safe journey.

I promised we will meet again soon.

Next day on 25.12.2012 (Tuesday) we had to leave Hotel Chandralok Lonavala to udaipur another Long haul and we had to drive through Mumbai by catching up with the Ranjnikath & Badshah of Indian Highways the all time great H.V.Kumar Sir who is our close personal friend, a well wisher for our family and has helped us a lot during the earlier 3rd Trip we did from Coimbatore to Bhutan.

So stay with me for more photos & travelogue details which are coming up.

You just finished reading Page No.3 Travelogue of 24.12.2012 @ Lonavala Maharastra. 

To Read the Previous Page No.2 Kanyakumari 2 Bengaluru onward to Lonavala please click on this link below;

http://mn-h2h-2k2k.blogspot.in/2013/01/day-2-kanyakumari-to-lonavala.html

To Read the Next Page No.4 Lonavala to Udaipur in Rajasthan please click on this link below;

5 comments:

  1. Very informative and helpful for any one travelling in NH7/NH4/M-P EH. I have a query. Is Lane change is strictly prohibited? How do we then overtake trucks that moves very slowly. We may have to overtake very frequently. I haven't travelled this route.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Sunil,

    To be very honest no lane change discipline is followed. Most often you will find heavily loaded very slow moving trucks hogging the extreme right which should technically be used by fast moving lighter vehicles. No use in honking trying to move these trucks. It will be like trying to wake up KumbhKaran. I have seen few very good truck drivers very seasoned & very disciplined and they use hand signals, blinkers when they move to the left & right from their own lane and even have the courtesy to wave at you.

    I have tremoundous respect for these lorry drivers. Some of them are very lousy and guess what the car drivers arent so holy than thou too. Some of the car drivers are pathetic, they use excessive horns, use the head light beams by buzzing you from the rear without overtaking sick guys too you will find on the highway.

    We are once in a while shooting stars in the highway when we do any road trips but these truckers are the ever green Suns shining as they live ON the highway as driving is their bread & butter and driving is their profession. Let us also remember the truckers are the blood veins of this country as they move & transport all our needs across this wast country which is not so kind on them at all, how many dangerous accidents we have seen Oh!.

    I have never ever haggled or pushed any lorry drivers off my lane by honking & I am not so kind on the 2 wheeler guys who come in my lane. I have seen the truckers they keep their eyes in the rear view mirror also and immediately give way if they have been overtaking another lorry and they move away from your lane making it clear for you. You can oever take them from any side so long as you are very clear & have the space. It is better to be careful though. Presence of Mind will help.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for detailed reply. Waiting for the next part(north episode).

      Delete
  3. Hello,

    The post is very informative, i got more knowledge from your blog.

    villas in lonavala

    ReplyDelete