Thursday, June 16, 2011

Mumbai to Vittal road trip

Having driven 830kms from Bandra we reached Murdeshwar in the evening at around 5pm.
It was a very smooth drive on the NH4 upto Hubli and then onto NH63 upto Ankola to connect
NH17 which has been resurfaced and a pleasure to drive on.
We checked in at Naveen Beach Resort which as the name suggests is bang on the beach.
Absorbed the beautiful sunset from the beach along with hundreds of others who had come to spend their evening out there.
Participated in the community watching of the cricket match on a huge screen on the lawns of the resort for a while and crashed out for the night after a delicious fish curry and rice dinner.
Went for a long walk on the beach at sunrise and was surprised to see a lot of activity on the beach. All pleasant except for one – guys crapping. Why are our beaches used as toilets by the locals? Have seen this happening all along the Konkan coast too.
The fishermen who had laid out nets during the night had hauled in a rich catch of a variety of crabs and lobsters and were busy sorting it out.
Then there were the entrepreneurs who were getting the speed boats ready for water sports. Families were arriving by the busloads to spend the best part of the morning at the beach.
The hawkers selling T-shirts and junk jewellery were setting up shop too.
After a leisurely breakfast of idli dosa, we set out for the Kollur Mookambika temple. Reached
there in time for the pooja, got blessed and moved onwards towards Vittal.
Driving was a pleasure on the smooth roads and a scenic route. Reached Vittal in the evening, in
time for a refreshing cuppa kapi.

23 comments:

  1. wow. loved all the photographs too. specially the chai chai, the fellow with crab and marawanthe...nostalgia
    thanks for sharing

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  2. Amazing trip , loved every bit of it .

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  3. Your photos are excellent. Roads look very tempting. When was this trip? We are thinking of a road trip but monsoons & bad roads are deterrents.

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  4. @Nisha the roads are excellent! Did this trip just last month.

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  5. Ah the fish - how was the food there? Did you eat some crab or lobster curry while at the Naveen Beach Resort?

    Murdeshwar looks great, I do love the temple, but the weather looked awful - where was the sunshine?

    Yeah, open toilets...the same happens in parts of Sri Lanka. Negombo is basically an open sewer - not a pleasant thought. But, the facilities have to be provided, and if there is no decent sanitation, where else is there to go...

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  6. Aww... Awesome pics! Must have been an awesome trip too! :)

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  7. A vacation helps us escape the mundane and all we are left with is memories.

    Lovely pics.

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  8. Loved that last pic... especially during the monsoon nothing can be better...

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  9. Lovely, lovely pictures.

    You brought memories of a trip done about 12 years back along the West Coast from Honnavar to Thiruvananthapuram. It was a journey done by trains, buses, cars, etc.

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  10. Class pics! The road really looks inviting...gosh!I need a break:)

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  11. Always enjoy looking at photos of India especially when abroad.

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  12. really love the cloud on the 2nd image! :D

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  13. thanks for the excellent virtual tour.. great photographs - as always:)

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  14. Absolutely magical, Superb!!!

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  15. Wow.... a drive besides the ocean/sea!

    Lovely pics :)

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  16. You were in my part of the world.. :) Beautiful place isn't it? And the pictures are really great.

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  17. ah ! I wish I could be on the road now..just seeing the pics was so relaxing

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  18. Missed this post in the hubub of the family visit. I have gone to that part of the country too -- Murdeshwar and Gokarna. Lovely places. The beaches are great, as your photographs attest.

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  19. Awesome .Had a wonderful virtual trip with you .Thanks for sharing.Waiting for the festival post.

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  20. Could you not notice the tallest Shiva in India at Murudeswar.

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