Durga Puja 2008

All of us are waiting for october 2008,Durga Puja.

North Bengal Beauties

A land of infinite charm with breath taking views of Kanchanjunga, bewildering variety of flora and fauna, colourful festivals, bush green tea gardens, inching adventure spots, laundry trekking rocks, perfect solitude. All this makes the East Himalayas your favourite destination.
Some of the interesting places are


Dooars Valley ...........................
Derived from the word ‘doors’, the Dooars forms a gateway to the hill stations of North Bengal. The valley stretches across a total span of 130 km by 40 km. The unending stretch of virgin forests is criss-crossed by the river Teesta. Beautiful motorable roads cut through deep forests teeming with wild life and Terai tea gardens.
The Dooars Valley is specially noted for its wild life sanctuaries, the most famous is Jaldapara, offering memorable elephant rides through rhino and tiger forests. Other sanctuaries include Buxa Tiger Project, Gorumara and Chapramari.
Siliguri is the gateway to the Dooars as well as Kochbuihar. Regular bus services and hired cars ply between Siliguri and these destinations. Siliguri is also connected with a large number of long-distance bus routes from Kolkata, the North - East and other parts of the country. The nearest airport is Bagdogra airport connecting Kolkata, Delhi and Guwahati.
Wll-equipped tourist lodges are at Malbazar, Jalpaiguri, Jaldapara, Hollong, Madarihat, Gorumara, Samsing and Jayanti. Beside, there are quite a good number of hotels, resorts, guest houses etc. at Malbazar, Jalpaiguri, Lataguri, Chalsa, Alipurduar and Kochbihar. Darjeeling Darjeeling conjures visions of serenity, of vibrant green hills steeped in splendour, a land of breathtaking beauty crowned by the majestic Himalayas.



Darjeeling is one of the most magnificent hill resorts in the world. This heavenly retreat is bathed in hues of every shade. The flaming red rhododendrons, the sparkling white magnolias, the miles of undulating hillsides covered with emerald green tea bushes, the exotic forests of silver fir - all under the blanket of a brilliant azure sky dappled with specks of clouds, compellingly confounds Darjeeling as the QUEEN OF HILL STATIONS.
Best time to visit -- March to mid June & September to mid December
Darjeeling beckons thousands today for a leisurely respite from the bustle of the madding crowd. The traveller - will find in Darjeeling an experience which will remain etched in ones memory - forever.
The nearest airport- Bagdogra airport is primarily for Darjeeling hill areas. Bagdogra is 90 kms from Darjeeling.
Apart from Darjeeling Railway Station the two closest railway stations are Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri from Darjeeling. These railway stations have direct railway connections with Kolkata, Delhi, Guwahati, Varanasi and other major cities of India.
Some of the trains: Darjeeling Mail,Kamrup Express,Kanchanjunga Exp,Teesta Torsa Exp,Brahmaputra Mail



Kurseong .....................
A quiet township between Siliguri and Darjeeling at an altitude of 1458m, is noted for its secluded charm and Eagle’s Crag. The word Kurseong means – the place of White Orchid. Because of its lower elevation, Kurseong enjoys a milder and very healthy climate throughout the year.
It is the peace, serenity and the healthy climate that attracted many a great person to this place. Some of the famous poems and songs of Guru Rabindranath Tagore were composed in Kurseong. Sister Nivedita, the great disciple of Swami Vivekananda made kurseong her home. Fazlul Haque the Prime Minister of undivided Bengal also stayed here. Netaji Subhash Bose was interned by the colonial government for a couple of months in 1936 in a house at Giddapahar near Kurseong.
Best time to visit-- March to mid June & September to mid December

Mirik .................

Mirik is a nest in the hills is West Bengal’s one of the hill resort at an altitude of 1767 meters with its own special charms. A floating fountain in the middle of the lake is a joy for ever and very often you may find the glory of Kanchenjungha reflected in the lake waters. A rich forest of thousands of Cryptomaria-Japanica trees clothe the slopes on the west. A zig-zag footwalk takes you along the lake – a sleek footbridge connects the garden on the east with the woods on the west. Alone or in company, you are sure to enjoy a boat-ride in the lake.
Trekking from Mirik to Sandakphu, Phalut has become very popular.



Lava and Lolay Gaon ....................
LavaNot far away Kalimpong and situated at an altitude of 7200 ft. Offers panoramic view of Jelep La and Rechi La passes. Short drives through dense forests from Kalimpong are tourist spots with unspoiled idyllic surroundings. Lava is the entrance to the Neora National Park.
Lolay Gaon......................
Not far away from Kalimpong. Panoramic view of Kanchenjunga can be obtained from this point. Fabulous view of Sunrise over Kanchenjunga can be seen from Jhandi Dara.



Siliguri..................
Siliguri may called the Gateway of Eastern India as it is the main transit point for going to Darjeeling hill region, Sikkim, Bhutan, Eastern Nepal and Assam. It is the biggest town in North Bengal.

Tiger Hill..................
Situated at an altitude of 2590 metres and 13 kms from the town, this spot has earned international fame for the magnificent view of the sunrise over "Kanchenjunga" and the great Eastern Himalayan Mountains. Even Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, is visible from here.

Batasia Loop ..............................
About 5 kms from Darjeeling, this Railway Loop is a marvellous feat of engineering. It is fascinating to watch the toy train wind its way round the loop. The War Memorial constructed in the memory of brave sons of Darjeeling is worth a visit. A glorious view of snowy peak and town can be seen from this place.

Tiger Hill:
Situated at an altitude of 2590 metres (8482 ft.) and 13 kms from the town, this spot has earned international fame for the magnificent view of the sunrise over "Kanchenjunga" and the great Eastern Himalayan Mountains. Even Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, is visible from here.

Batasia Loop:

About 5 kms from Darjeeling, this Railway Loop is a marvellous feat of engineering. It is fascinating to watch the toy train wind its way round the loop. The War Memorial constructed in the memory of brave sons of Darjeeling who died in different action since 1947, is worth a visit. A glorious view of snowy peak and town can be seen from this place. Entrance fee: Rs. 2/- Timings: sunrise till two hours after sunset.

Observatory Hill:
Apart from the magnificent view it commands, great religious importance is attached to the observatory Hill by both Hindus and Buddhists who are worshipped here by the hundreds.

HIMALAYAN MOUNTAINEERING INSTITUTE & PADMAJA NAIDU HIMALAYAN ZOOLOGICAL PARK:
Situated on Jawahar Parbat about 2 km. From Chowrasta, this unique institution trains mountaineers. It has a museum containing an interesting collection of mountaineering equipment. Adjacent to the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, it is a high altitude wild life park and new home for Siberian Tiger, Himalayan Black Bear, Deer, Red Panda, Snow Leopard and Birds.Timings: 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.Closed on Thursday.Entrance Fee: Rs. 6/- per head for Himalayan Mountaineering Institute and Zoo.
The snow Leopard breeding Centre was started in 1986 to breed Snow Leopards in captivity with the help of International Snow Leopard captive breeding project.Entrance fee Rs. 10/-Closed on Thursday.

Tenzing Rock and Gombu Rock:
Situated at Lebong Cart Road. Himalayan Mountaineering Institute conducts preliminary course on Rock climbing on these Rocks.
Natural History Museum:
Within walking distance from Chowrasta, this interesting museum contains comprehensive collection of the fauna of the region.Opens from 10 a.m. too 4 p.m.Closed on Thursdays.Entrance fee: Re 2/-, children Rs. 1/-.

Lloyds Botanical Garden:
A colourful garden situated just below the Market Motor Stand. It contains a representative collection of Himalayan plants, flowers, orchids etc. The green houses are well worth a visit. Timing: 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Entrance free.
Chunnu Summer Falls (Rock Garden) & Gangamya Park:
A worth-seeing place. Beautiful combination of natural hill rocks decorated with fountains and flower gardens. Boating facilities available.

The Shrubbery:
This beautiful garden is situated on the Jawahar Parbat behind Raj Bhawan. A magnificent view of Kanchenjunga Range and Singla Valley can be enjoyed from here.
Step Aside:
About 3 mins walk from Chowrasta will bring the visitors to the place where the famous Indian patriot Deshbandu Chittaranjan Das had passed away in 1925.

Ava Art Gallery:
About 2 km from town on the way to Ghoom. It houses fine art and embroidery work of Mrs. Ava Devi.Timing 8 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Entrance: 25p.

Happy Valley Tea Estate
Of about seventy tea gardens in this hilly region, this is one of the nearest, about 3 km from the town. Here one can see the processing of the world famous Darjeeling tea.

Darjeeling Rangeet Valley Passenger Ropeway
At North Point about 3 km from the town. The first passenger ropeway in India.

Lebong Race Course
It is the smallest race course in the world. The complete lap is only 480 yds. Long. It was laid out in 1885 as a parade ground.

DR. GRAHAM’S HOMES
A unique educational institution, started in 1900 by Dr. John Anderson Graham, a Missionary, with six orphans, the school, has today a strength of well over 700 boys and girls who are accommodated in small cottages in a picturesque set-up. It has its own diary, poultry and bakery and every year in the month of May the school organises "MAYFAIR". A day’s visit there can be enthralling.

KALIMPONG MARKET
Visit to Kalimpong won’t be complete unless you spend several hours or better still, several days at the two Kalimpong bazars, one on the Main Road, the other near the 10th mile. It is a unique experience to see villagers turning up in their local costume at the bazars on weekly market days to sell their farm products.

West Bengal Beaches

Our dear West Bengal has many intersesting places for travel .Some of them are.......

Digha................
Digha The Southern West Bengal is endowed with the most famous beach on the eastern coast of India – Digha. The beach town of Digha is famous all over for flat, hard beaches. Digha beach is girdled with casuarina plantations along the coast. The sea is calm and shallow for about a mile from the beach making it quite safe for swimming.

Shankarpur .................
Shankarpur, is a recent discovery. It is a twin beach of Digha, around 10 km. from it. It offers nearly all the pleasures of a private beach. This beach too is cupped with casuarina plantations.Shankarpur is now developed as a sea resort with hotels, tourist lodges and other facilities.

Junput ..............
Junput fish firm not far away ,from Digha by bus;it also has a beautiful sea beach with a change at Contai. The place offers beautiful sea-view and lines of casuarina trees. The beach is unspoilt

Sagardwip
A lovely destination combining pilgrimage and fun, situated on an island in the Sunderban, holds the charms of a completely unspoilt beach on the estuary of the mighty Ganga. Sagardwip presents a quiet, silvery expanse of beach and the calm seaprovides the perfect setting for a quiet weekend.
On Makar Sankranti day in winter (mid-January), pilgrims from all over India congregate at Sagardwip to take a holy dip at the confluence of the river Ganga and the Bay of Bengal. After the holy dip, they offer ‘Puja’ at the nearby ashram associated with the legendary sage Kapil Muni. Gangasagar Mela, held on the occasion of Makar Sankranti is the largest fair in West Bengal.

Bakkhali and Frazerganj
It is so near Kolkata and yet so very different from the bustling metropolis that is Kolkata. Bakkhali is only 132 km from Kolkata.En rout, there is Diamond Harbour where there is a comfortable Tourist Lodge for accommodation.
At Bakkhali, the beach is long and sandy, the waves twinkling in the sunlight. Dense casuarina groves drape the beach. Red fiddler crabs march in line on the beach.

Experience of Local Trains........

Do you have the exp of Local Train of Kolkata?Its wonderful and at the same time nasty.
The trains from the suburbs like diamod herbour,Lakshikantapur,Bonga etc are full of crowds every time.Once upon a time I goes to Shealdah Station in the morning.I was completly shoked to see how many people come to kolkata every morning.

Then there was "LalGari".A few years back not many people buy tickets for short distance.To address this problem railway introduces LalGadi--a special train for caching those WTos(without ticket).At this happens to be very usefull.Suddenly all of us joined the line in front of ticket counter to buy tickets........

And the introduction of LalGadi led to many humorous stories..
And I expect to you people to tell some of them.

With best wishes..........

Sidur Khela.........

This ritual is performed on Dasahmi(the day of immersion of durga idol).Every married women in the locality gather in front of Ma Durga and after giving Sidur(vermilion) to the daity,they play among themselfs.We cannot call it Dol Utsav .

Its very refreshing to see women from different background,status interacts free with each other.
This is very good ritual at the end of Durga Puja .

Jhalmuri ... Chanachur

Jhalmuri or masala muri is a favourite item of all. Its acceptance lies in the fact that it is easy to make, available everywhere, safe on the stomach and best of all, can be customised to suit every palate. An item, made even at home and the focal point of many an adda and party.



The home of every person from Kolkata, be it in India or abroad stocks a savoury called the Chanachur — a mixture of different savouries made of besan and sprinkled with fried peanuts. Many have tried unsuccessfully to steal the formula, MNCs included, but this sustains itself on its simplicity. An all-time favourite is Ujjala Chanachur, where it is mixed in front of you as per your choice and where ones needs to queue up today, even on a Sunday.

Puchka..........

A favourite snack of the Kolkatan is the puchka — pani puris and golgappas come a distant second. The crisp puchka, with its mashed potato filling and dipped in tangy tamarind water and eaten out of saal leaf rolled into cups, is an experience to be savoured. Favourite hangouts are near Victoria Memorial and Vivekananda Park in South Kolkata. Another delicacy from the puchkawallah is the churmur — crushed puchka with potato and masala, which has not yet found its way to other cities.

EggRoll,ChickenRoll...............

Roll, as many would know, was invented in Kolkata at Nizam's, a central Kolkata Mughlai restaurant, quite a few decades back. That was mutton roll. And then, after a couple of decades, egg roll was born and won over all. Roll is now synonymous with egg roll. If you just order a 'roll' in any roll shop you will be served an egg roll.

In South Kolkata (Also Kolkata per se) non-veg varieties rule the roost, starting from the basic egg roll to the super specialities like chicken saslik roll (Made with chicken saslik kebab). Veg variants were never favourite with Bengalis who dominate the roll consumer population. But of late veg roll (With meshed potatoes, beet, carrot etc) and paneer roll are quite visible everywhere. Every non-veg variety is yummy (Telling from experience) and the trendsetters in South Kolkata roll joints are dishing out yummier, innovative varieties with times. Basic and bestselling varieties are egg roll and chicken roll.

Sports in Kolkata

Kolkata Sports:

For sports lovers, Calcutta is just the apt place. People are simply passionate about sports. When it comes to playing sports in Calcutta, men folk are mainly interested in Soccer followed by cricket, golf, tennis, swimming and rowing. In this article, we will provide you information on some Kolkata sports clubs and stadiums where you can have a good time indulging in different sporting activities.


To over-zealous, highly patriotic' Kolkata cricket fans ,Cricket is not just a mere sport. It’s an important social event for them. Whenever there is an Indo-Pak series the Cricket fans go overboard and keep on cheering the Indian team. Over zealous Cricket fans scaling the stadium’s compound wall to get a glimpse of their favorite Cricket star is a very common thing in Kolkata Whenever there is an Indo Pak series the hype over cricket gets even more severe. Avid Cricket fans wear masks of their favorite hero and wave the tricolour to cheer the team. Even those enjoying the game on television at home they stay glued to it. When Sourav Ganguli, the former cricket captain made a glorious comeback an air of celebration gripped the entire city.

Sounds,Taste,Images....etc of kolkata: Many Miles away from CityofJoy..

Sounds,Taste,Images....etc of kolkata: Many Miles away from CityofJoy..