Oh Mon Diu!

The most unfortunate part of Diu is that it's appalingly hard to reach. Direct flights are available only from Mumbai. From Delhi it can take up to 2 days to reach Diu by flight. From Ahmedabad one only has the option of a Non A/C bus which takes roughly 11 hours to reach Diu. Not fun! Not fair. If anyone wants to develop this as a tourist spot someone needs to take a serious look at the connectivity. For a state that's 40 degrees all year round a non AC service is just bad business sense. Diu is called the 'Europe of Gujarat' but it's harder to reach than the real Europe. Our journey, which began with a 15 hour train ride from Delhi, took about 26 hours one way. So do the math, over 2 days to do Delhi-Diu-Delhi. With no light, poor ventilation and a thick velvet covering all 6 sides, the bus compartments were only slightly better than a coffin.i have travelled coach most of my life but travelling 'coffin class' was a whole new experience.

Now that that's out in the open as a fair warning for the world, here's the good part: Diu itself is surprisingly clean, blue and serene. The beaches arent crowded at all. The resorts are super affordable yet charming and chic. A family or group of friends can easily make birth here and spend a quiet time. But that's about it. The most popular activity here is reading a book while lying in a hammock. Diu is certainly beautiful but also a serious snoozefest. All one can do here is drink, eat and swim all usually within the resort itself. That's hardly worth a travelling time. If a swim in the wide, blue ocean is desired wait till the crowds thin before you strip down to your swimsuits because most people here are partial towards swimming in saris or rolled up jeans. so an actual bathing suit will certainly look out of place. My friend was convinced that my cotton sundress would inspire the locals into naming the beach after me.

Essentially Diu is pretty and clean. But it's not exciting or exceptional and most importantly, not worth the travel time. Unless one is coming in from Mumbai it's expensive and incovenient. Diu's union territory status really does it in. The roads have not been left at the Lord's mercy and no convenient connections have been developed. To put it simply, there are tons of better options in India which have superior beaches, activities, history and connectivity.

Early in the day we head out by auto to the main city for a city tour. On the way we passed a dolphin jumping about in the water. It was right next to our hotel but apparently they're more active early in the morning and we actually missed most of them. So, the POA for tomorrow is certainly waking up at the crack of dawn for an au naturel dolphin show. Our auto reached the Diu Fort, which is very pretty and has a lot of character. The lighthouse of the Fort was a great vantage point from where to see all of Diu easily. From there we could see cliffs that reminded me distininctly of Wales. Truly, India has it all. The Fort was the best part of Diu. The following trips to a church, a museum, a manmade waterfall were all extremely underwhelming. Definitely would not bother with them again. The other great part of Diu was clearly Jalandar Beach. In stark difference to Nagoa, Jalandar was quiet and very private. It was spotless and only 2 people were peacefully sunbathing there. Quite clearly we made a mistake by staying in Nagoa instead of Jalandar. But that's why i mention it; so that people who read this know better.

Another thing people should know is that people shouldnt come here during the peak season. During winters, beach towels carpet Nagoa's sandy beach. And around Diwali half of Gujarat invades Diu to mar its best trait - unadulterated serenity.

Maajha Ma.

My friends studying in NID and MICA would strongly disagree but Ahmedabad isn't exactly an exciting place. The roads are big and the people are kind. But when one of the top 3 things to see in the city is an ancient grill, you know you're in trouble.

As we were being roasted by the October sun and underwhelmed by the sights and sounds, Sabarmati Ashram proved to be the saving grace of the city. It literally is like an oasis in the concrete desert. Gandhi's charkha, his room, his legacy were more moving than one ever expected. One could easily sit there for a while and enjoy its suspended-in-time atmosphere. The literature of the museum was conspicuously biased. But that was neither unexpected nor off-putting.

The only other thing i liked in the city was the Night Heritage Walk from Mangal Rai's Haveli. Maneuvering through aggressive scooters and lazy cows the group goes on a 1 hour walk through the old city region. The old haveli and the subsequent centuries-old temples, havelis, poles etc. that one comes across are stunning and oddly fascinating. The dark alleys and intricately carved buildings make for excellent shots.

Shopping is interesting in Ahmedabad. The top places for products in local styles are Law Garden market, Sanskruti and Teen Darwaza. Sanskruti is an upmarket, expensive but high quality showroom, in Panchvati. Law Garden Market is a night market which is set up at 6pm daily on the sidewalk outside the Law Garden. The last is also an outdoor market but unlike Law Garden, this market it is open all day and well into the night. Law Garden and Teen Darwaza markets are both hard to miss. They're chaotic flea markets with tons of scope for bargaining. The products are super colourful often bordering on costume-y and tacky. But with a bit of patience one can find stylish pieces. Many of these pieces can be altered into cool skirts, shirts etc with some imagination and a talented tailor. Watch out for ripped and damaged pieces.

Kalpesh the bun maska guy is a youth icon of the city. The young guy sets up his table at 3am near NID and sells different types of spreads on buns. There's usually a sea of students at his stall all night and he makes more than most college graduates. He shuts shop at about 7am by when he's collected the latest gossip on most NID-ians. Who's flunked what. Who's dumped whom. Kalpesh knows everything. His other field of knowledge is bikes. The guy has bikes, parts and accessories from Paris, Australia, America and all. His collection would put Jay Leno to shame. A truly interesting character and all round nice guy to meet. His success has inspired many other me-too bun maska guys. So make sure you find Kalpesh and not a wannabe. The crowd ordering The Jadoo Bun would point you in the right direction.

good places to stay:

Riverfront. $20 Budget

Sarovar Portico: $70 Medium

House of MG: $110 Luxury

Places to eat: Swati hotel, Aghashye, Kalpesh bun maska.