Statue of Unity - A Modern Marvel

Finally we got a chance to visit Statue of Unity just before it's first anniversary during Oct 2019. The statue is an architectural marvel built to honor the one of the greatest Indian, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

I have done reasonable amount of travel within India, from north to south and from east to west. One complain that I always have is that our governments have almost stopped building new tourism attractions for quite some time. In most cities and states, the places of tourism belong to British or pre-British era, or places of worships by independent organisations (like Akshardham). I have also seen during my foreign stay how Indian Freedom struggle has been reduced to couple of people in International media. For these reasons, I am quite happy to have a modern monument that not only establishes the legacy of national leaders but also becomes a major tourism destination. It also showcases the skills of Indian companies and engineers to the whole world.

Trivia - The height of 182 mtrs was chosen to signify 182 number of seats in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly.

The Giant talking to the mountains

Reaching Statue of Unity:

• Statue of Unity is located on Sadhu Bet, Near Sardar Sarovar Dam, Kevadia, Gujarat. Statue site is accessible by road from Gujarat's major cities, nearest one is Vadodara. It is at 90 kms distance from Vadodara Airport, a 2 hour drive. The road is newly developed and is a scenic drive along which we can see Pavagadh Hills in distance.
• Booking for Statue viewing can be done online at https://soutickets.in/. The dates open before 30 days. Tickets are also available at the ticket counters at Statue site.
• Statue site opens at 8:00 am in the morning, and entry to museum and statue is allowed till 6:00 pm.

Staying at Statue of Unity

• Though we made a day trip mainly to visit Statue and Dam, with the addition of Dino Park, Valley of Flowers, Cactus Garden, Butterfly Park and other projects, it is difficult to cover everything in a single day. There are multiple tent-cities near Kevadia for the overnight stay whose booking can be done online. With the increase in tourists, a number of new stay options are likely to come in future.

There is a parking space for private vehicles at the entrance of the Statue site. There are AC buses to reach Statue and other locations from here. These buses runs free of charge, and are quite frequent. Main statue is 6 km from the parking space.

The first place we visited after reaching here was Sardar Sarovar Dam view point. It is a small climb along local shops from where 163 mtr high dam can be seen. It is the biggest dam in the state of Gujarat, and provides water to arid regions of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

Trivia - 1.2 km long Sardar Sarovar Dam is the fifth tallest dam in India.

Sardar Sarovar Dam

As the Valley of flowers was closed due to security arrangements for Prime Minister's visit, we directly headed to the Statue site from the dam view point. It is a huge space with separate entry and exit. There is a decent size cafeteria where good veg food is available, though it can be crowded during peak season. There is also souvenir shop, and a huge open space with benches. This is from where evening Light-and-Sound show is seen. Statue is constructed such that Sardar is overseeing the site of Sardar Sarovar Dam, his vision that was fulfilled almost 70 years after his death.

Trivia - It took 250 engineers, 3,400 laborers to build this statue in a record time of 3 years and 9 months.

Statue of Unity

At the feet of the Statue, there is a big state-of-the-art museum that showcases life of Sardar Patel, India's Freedom struggle, partition and unification of India. It also showcases photos of different animals, birds and trees found in Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary. There are two mini-theaters within this AC museum that continuously shows biography of Sardar Patel and Sardar Sarovar Dam construction in various languages. Museum also has a replica of statue, and outline of statue made from instruments donated by farmers.

Trivia - Indian Sculptor, Ram Sutar, created three models measuring 3 feet, 18 feet, and 30 feet to finalize the Statue design.

Statue of Unity Museum - Freedom Struggle

Statue of Unity Museum - Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife

From the museum, there are four high-speed lifts fitted within Statue can carry 26 people (each) to the viewing gallery at 153 mtrs in just about 30 seconds. This provides a scenic view of dam and surrounding area from that height.

After exploring museum during the afternoon, we reached the foot of the Statue through multiple stairs/escalators. While the Statue is visible from entire site, it is from here that we come to know about its giant stature compared human size. We took a moment to admire the great man at his feet, and in a true sense we are all dwarfs against this legend.

Trivia - It took 2,12,000 liters of concrete, 18,000 tonnes of reinforced steel and 6,565 bronze panels to build the statue.

View of Statue from the base

After 6:00 pm, entry to the Statue and museum is closed, and we sat at the benches near cafeteria, enjoying evening snacks. It started raining, but stopped after some time. Every evening at around 7:15 pm, there is a Light-and-Sound show projected on the Statue. It showcases the life of Sardar Patel, India's Freedom struggle and details about the Statue itself. Watching this 30 min show is highly recommended.

Evening @ Statue of Unity

The Statue provides good exposure to young minds about the life of Sardar Patel and freedom struggle. It ignites that curiosity in them which will lead to the path of greater knowledge about India's history.

Trivia - The Statue will turn from its original bronze color to green in 100 years due to natural aging process.

Monsoon Trek - Lohagad and Bhaja Caves

Arrival of monsoon in the month of June inaugurates Punekar's (and Mumbaikar's) one of the favorite activity - scenic drives and trekking. With number of forts and hills in close vicinity, this is one of the most satisfying experience one can have in this season.

Lohagad  means 'the iron fort'. Historically Lohagad was one of the many forts of Maratha empire. It is located in close to a larger Visapur fort.

Lohagad Fort

Reaching Lohagad:

• It is an 90 minute road drive from Pune to Malvali town on the foothills of Lohagad (and Visapur) along the Old Mumbai-Pune Highway. There is another road that comes via Pavana Dam.

Bhaja Caves

Bhaja Caves

Before we reach Lohagad from Malvali, there are Buddhist caves on the way that one must explore. A small trek up the hill steps, Bhaja caves were one of the oldest Buddhist religious centers in the Deccan. There are scenic waterfalls on the either sides of Bhaja caves.

Bhaja Caves Steps

View from Bhaja Caves

Lohagad

The 5 km drive from Bhaja cave to Lohagad base is along the steep mountain roads with number of sharp turns. While major part of this road is quite good, there are slopes with potholes which makes driving up/down the hill a bit tricky. We preferred parking our vehicle along the way, and trekked rest of the path. Advantage of this was enjoying delicious kanda bhajji and pitala bhakhri in the road side huts on this road. There are also number of waterfalls along this route.

Pavana Lake, as seen from Lohagad Fort

Lohagad has well maintained steps to climb, and it takes nearly 45 minutes to reach the top from the base. In monsoon, there will be water flowing along the steps. While this gives a nice rustic feeling, be careful with your footsteps. The trek along the steps is also accompanied by monkeys, and be mindful of them if you are carrying food items.

Visapur Fort, as seen from Lohagad Fort

The top of the fort is mostly covered with clouds during rainy season, and visibility reduces to few meters. The rush of wind instantly refreshes the body after a decent hike. Like most hills and forts, there is a temple (Mahadev Temple) on top of Lohagad , along with few other monuments. The fort overlooks Pavana reservoir on the southern side which provides an excellent view during clear weather. 

Lohagad is quite a good for a day outing from Pune/Mumbai, and is normally very crowded during weekends.

Assam and Meghalaya - God's Own Abode

India is a country full of surprises with so much diversity in its geography, culture and heritage. There are places with which you will instantly fall in love with. North-east is one such region. Each state is unique, with its own cultural identity, liberally blessed by nature.

We started planning for our trip in January 2019 along with our friends our friends Srihari and Anu. We explored different options, finalised plans, and did all the booking. Finally, we visited Assam and Meghalaya in March 2018. We pre-booked our transport, Innova crysta, for the entire journey. Nripen was our driver and companion who took us to the wonderlands of Assam and Meghalaya. His expertise about the region helped us cover everything that we planned for.

While across India there is common timezone (IST), do keep in mind the changed (early) routine of sunrise and sunsets if traveling here from western part of India.

Reaching Assam and Meghalaya

• Guwahati has a military airport where domestic flights also operate. There are regular flights to Guwahati from all major cities of India.
• There is an excellent road connectivity between Assam and Meghalaya. It is a 4 hour road journey from Guwahati to Shillong.

Best time to travel

• Every season offers different reason to travel this beautiful world. Monsoons starts April onwards, and it is a good time for monsoon lovers who want to witness heavy rains. But some of the places, like Kaziranaga remains closed during monsoon, and Dawki river may not be as clean as it is during summer. February/March is end of summer and is generally a good time when most places can be explored.

We started our journey from Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport of Guwahati. We explored Guwahati, Kaziranga, Shillong, Cherrapunji (Sohra) and Shnongpdeng. These places are well connected by road. While Assam is mostly flat lands, majority journey through Meghalaya is on mountain roads.

Guwahati

Guwahati as seen from Bhubneswari Temple

Guwahati is one of the major cities in north-east region, located close to the capital of Assam, Dispur. Located on the banks of Brahmputra, this city is known for its temples. Our stay here was at Baruah Bhawan, a walking distance from the riverbank.

Places to see

• Kamakhya Temple : Kamakhya is one of most famous temple of north east India. It is located on a small hill, where one can reach by car. It is usually very crowded and takes 5-6 hours for the darshan. We were lucky to do it within 2 hours. Try to reach early in the morning. Further on top of the hill is Bhubneswari Temple, from where a beautiful view of Guwahati is visible.

We also went to Navagraha temple and Umananda temple (on the peacock island in Brahmaputra) here, and crossed Saraighat bridge and IIT Guwahati. Guwahati market is good for Assamese Mekhla saree shopping, and delicious rasgullas.

Kaziranga National Park

Rhino at Kaziranga National Park

215 km from Guwahati, is World Heritage site of Kaziranga National Park. Famous for its Indian one-horned rhinoceros, the sanctuary is also a home to a wide range of animals and birds like Royal Bengal Tigers, Wild Elephants, Swamp Deers, Wild buffaloes, King cobra, tortoise, hornbills, eagles, vultures and stokes. Kaziranga is a part of Golaghat and Nagaon district, and spread across the area of 430 square kms along the Bramhputra river.

There are three major entry gates, western (Bagori), central (Kohora) and eastern (Agaratoli). Decent stay options are available here. We stayed at Sneha Bhawan which was closer to Kohora gate.

Things to do

• Elephant safari : Exploring the forest on the back of an elephant is an experience to remember. Every morning there are safaris that need to be pre-booked. Elephant safaris covers appx 15 sq km area, and takes us very close to rhinos and other animals. 
• Jeep safari : Jeep safari covers much larger area, and takes us deep inside the forest. We did multiple jeep safaris, from Bagori and Kohora gates respectively. This is enjoyed best by remaining quiet, observing the surroundings and listening to forest movements. Though we missed tiger by 10 mins, We saw hornbills, eagles, vultures, monitor lizard, rhinos, swamp deers, wild elephants, stokes, variety of tortoise and many different birds.
• Cultural Program at Kaziranga National Orchid And Biodiversity Park : After the hectic day that was spent mostly in the forest of Kaziranga, this cultural program provides a soothing relief. The group here performs various traditional dance forms and live music, and they are exceptional. There are souvenir shops to carry back memories.

Kaziranga remains closed for visitors during monsoon, May 1 to Oct 31.

Shillong

Airforce Museum

Shillong is a capital of Meghalaya and 3 hr journey from Guwahati. It's a scenic journey as most part of it is in hilly regions. We took a halt at Umiam lake to see the wonderful sunset. Shillong was the coldest place in our trip, and temperature drop is significant. We stayed at the wonderful and well maintained Pine Hill Homestay.

Places to see

• Elephant falls : This is one of landmarks of Shillong. You'll see couple of waterfalls along the small trek.
• Airforce museum : Shillong is the head quarter of eastern airforce, and a visit to airforce museum is highly recommended. Museum also has a souvenir shop.
• Shillong View Point: On top of the hill, within airforce area is a point that provides scenic view of Shillong city. It takes some time getting the entry here due to security reasons. Remember to carry id cards while going here.

We also went to Ward's lake, and explored Police Bazaar area for shopping. City Hut Dhaba is a recommended place for lunch/dinner.

Police Bazaar market remains closed on Sunday, so plan your trip accordingly if you are interested in shopping.

Cherrapunji/Sohra

Nohakalikai Falls

65 km south of Shillong is Cherrapunji, which is locally known as Sohra. It is famous for its rainfall, and we did get a glimpse of it during one of the nights.

On the way from Shillong to Cherrapunji, there are some good places to explore. Meghalaya comprises of large number of caves in Jaintia, Khasi and Garos hills, and few of them are a must visit.

• Arwah Lumshya Cave : Arwah Lumshya is a natural cave formed within the limestone rock. Along with stalactites and stalagmites, this cave has presence of fossils along its walls and roofs. Journey to the entrance of this cave from the parking is also quite scenic within the forest.
• Mawsmai Cave: This is another limestone cave that provides good view of the natural formations. Some of the passages are very narrow, and adds to the thrill.
• Nohakalikai Waterfalls: Nohkalikai Falls is the tallest plunge waterfall in India with the height of l115 feet. It is located quite close to the main town.

There are other waterfalls as well like Wah Kaba and Seven sisters (which is actually beyond Cherrapunji) in this region. Our stay here was at La Kupar, which was quite well maintained, offers campfire and provides amazing night sky view. Orange roots restaurant on this way offers good food.

Nongriat - Double Docker Living Root Bridge

Double Decker Living Root Bridge

Meghalaya is a land of living root bridges, and double decker living root bridge of Nongriat is a special one that has two levels. It is a trek down of 3500 steps to reach here. It is recommended to start the trek very early in the morning. Guides are available for hire here.

We started the trek at 8:00 am and carried breakfast with us. The trek has cement stairs at more places along the slopes of the hill. Along the way, we cross few small streams and couple of single level root bridges. It took us 1:45 mins to reach the double decker bridge. There is a small waterfall and a stream near the double decker bridge. From here, you can trek further to reach Rainbow and NohaKalikai falls though we didn't do that in the interest of time. After exploring the bridge and doing photography, we started the return journey upwards. There are small shops along the way, as well as drinking water outlets. We finally reached the top at 1:15 pm, headed straight to Jiva resort for a well-earned lunch!

There are students here who do this trekking everyday to reach their school.

Dawki/Shnongpdeng

Wah Umngot (Dawki River)

Further south of Cherrapunji, along the Bangladesh border is the town called Dawki. The road is along the hills, and as we reach near Bangaldesh, climate will be a bit hotter.

Along the way, we stopped at Mawlynnong, Asia's cleanest village. It's small village, and also has a living root bridge. Dawki is the last town on Indian side of the border, which is connected to Tamabil of Bangladesh by  road. We visited India Bangladesh Friendship Gate which is the entry point for either country.

From here, we went to Shnonpdeng, a small village established along the Wah Umngot (Dawki River). The stay here was in wooden cottages constructed along the slope, though one can book tents as well. Cottages provides direct view of river. This is one of the cleanest rivers, with river bottom visible. We did boating in this river for close to an hour. There are also options for kayaking and snorkeling. Crossing the suspending bridge over the river is a must act, and gives a good view of the river. River is full of pebbles and stones, and sitting here with feet soaked in river water is a calming experience.

During rains the river becomes muddy, but January onwards the river has crystal clear water. 

At Kaziranga Cultural Center

More pics can be found at - https://www.instagram.com/nimeshddesai