After two hours drive from Mal station along rough hilly road in Himalaya, we reached our destination. We arrived at a tiny village of Todey Tangta panchayat in Kalimpong district of West Bengal ,India. This village (Chisang) is near Bhutan border. This is a picturesque village and offers breath-taking views of the distant mountains of Bhutan. After check in we entered to our room of the nice homestay. From the window of the room and from the balcony, views of the green mountains of India and Bhutan were clearly visible.
Walk at Chisang
Serene Environment
At after noon we took a walk towards upper Chisang area. We found none on the road—no car or vehicle was seen on the road. This is a silent quite place with virgin nature. It was an enjoyable walking.
Way to Upper Chisang
After sunset we returned to our home stay. We could see the lights of the Bhutanese villages. We spent the evening at the beautiful balcony as there is no other activity in the area.
The journey in the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi international airport was amazing as we enjoyed the view of sea at the bottom and before landing clear bluish water was visible. After arrival formalities, we left airport by Grab cab for Kuah. Kuah is a big city of Langkawi – an island and an archipelago of 99 islands in Malaysia. We checked in In Bay view hotel , Pusat Bandar, Kuah after half an hour drive .
Sunset over Andaman Sea at Langkawi
MAHA Tower
At evening we walked to Maha Tower which is one of the land marks of Kuah. It is built at sea side . The Tower is 138 meter tall ,( a replica of Eiffel tower) . From the deck we observed the natural beauty of Andaman sea along with green hills. The view of sunset at evening from this place was also beautiful.
At Hotel
MAHA TOWER
Next morning we visited Dataran Lang( Eagle Square) which is far from our hotel. Dataran Lang ( Eagle Square) is the iconic symbol of Malaysia. It is located on the waterfront of Kuah near the Kuah jetty. There is a 12-meter high sculpture in the shape of a sea-eagle perched on rocks in pre-flight pose. Eagle square is surrounded by well maintained parks . Nice views of the sea and the city can be seen .
The rapid development of human civilization has caused the deterioration of our environment and forests. About 31% of the earth’s surface is covered by forests ( approximately 4.06 billion hectares ). But over 420 million hectares of forest have been lost since 1990. Between 1990-2010 an average of 15.5 million hectares of forest were destroyed every year. Between 2015-2020,10 million hectares of forest were destroyed every year. Every minute, 2,400 trees are cut down. By 2030, there may be only 10% of the world’s rainforests left.
Tropical deforestation contributes about 20% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions. Every day 137 different species of plants, animals, and birds are lost due to global forest loss. Global carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions are also increasing. In 2022, global CO2 emissions were 321 metric tons.
We should take care to preserve the greenery of the earth and protect nature, forests, and the environment. Some of the most common ways that we could adopt to preserve our environment are :
3R’s- Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle everywhere that’s possible
Buy Sustainable clothing and goods
Use Non-toxic chemicals in household, office, and personal care
Promote precise use of water, reduce wastage and runoff
Drive Less and Walk/ Cycle more to reduce harmful emissions and global warming
Plant more trees -both indoor and outdoor to take care of excess CO2 produced by modern technologies
Aware and Educate people on sustainable actions toward the ecosystem
Some daily habits that can help us are carrying reusable shopping bags every time you step out to reduce plastic usage, walking or cycling when going for a short distance, avoiding accepting plastic cutleries at takeouts unless necessary, Reuse Plastic Bags to reduce Landfills, using washing machines and dishwashers at full load only to reduce water wastage, etc.
On the World Environment Day., I am sharing some snaps taken by me during my recent travels. We should preserve the Earth for future generations.
On the World Environment Day, I am sharing my views on the green and pollution free environment of Mizoram, situated at North -Eastern part of India, where I travelled last week.
Mizoram is bounded by Myanmar in the east and south and Bangladesh in the west. It is a mountainous state covered with dense virgin forests . Mizoram is richly endowed by nature with varieties of flora and fauna. It has a green ,pollution free environment—- 88.93% of the total geographical area of the state, i.e. 21,081 sq km is under Forest Area. This state has an area of 138 sq km Very Dense Forest , 5,858 sq km of Moderately Dense Forest and an area of 12,752 sq km of Open Forest . These types of lush green mountains are rarely seen at any other place. The forests are maintained properly—deforestation is not allowed anywhere. The people of Mizoram take care of its environment and forest. Air pollution status of the day is displayed on the main roads of Aizawl which can be hardly found in any Indian city.
In the state there is no major industry. So there is no pollution from industry–the only source of pollution is emissions from vehicles .But The Govternment is taking measures to control pollution by not allowing all the cars on the roads for all the days of the week ( except Saturday and Sunday). The capital , Aizawl is a ‘ Silent city’—no honking in traffic on road which can be rarely seen in any other city. So the state is very clean and free from pollution. We should learn to preserve and conserve the environment from the people of Mizoram.
K.V. Paradise
It is on Durtlang hills on a beautiful slope facing Aizawl city . It is known as ‘Taj Mahal of Aizawl.‘
Lalsavunga Park and View point
Lalsavunga Park is a favorite tourist spot — 10 km from Aizawl in South Hlimen. The park was opened on 3 October 2018 by Hlimen Local Administration Department, Govt. of Mizoram . We enjoyed the panoramic views of lush green mountain ranges in the quite environment . We climbed one mountain to reach the ‘Hanging bridge’ and enjoyed the amazing views of nature.
Berawtlang Hill
On Berawtlang hill , 10 km from the city at the eastern part of Aizawl , there is a tourist complex of Dept. of Tourism, Govt. of Mizoram. On the top of the hill, there is a Watch tower from where we enjoyed the views of the green mountains and the houses of the city .We spent an hour on the Watch tower. We visited the Science Centre, maintained by National Council of Science museums at this remote area. We took lunch at the Tourist Resort at Berawtlang.
If you are looking for a quiet place with a lush, green nature, you must visit Mizoram…..
A railway communication between a hill of high altitude and plain is a challenging task for engineers. In the year 1878, Franklin Prestage of the Eastern Bengal Railway, foresaw the necessity of a rail link between the hills of Darjeeling and the plains at Siliguri in India and submitted a scheme for the construction of a two feet gauge railway line from Siliguri to Darjeeling to the British Government.
Prestage received sanction for his project on April 8, 1879 and formed the Darjeeling Steam Tramway Co. On September 15, 1881, the company adopted the designation of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Co. (DHR), which remained effective until it was taken over by the Government of India on October 20, 1948 after its independence .
DHR , commonly known as Toy train of Darjeeling, travels 88 km (55 mile) from New Jalpaiguri (NJP) to Darjeeling — climbs from 100 m (328 ft) above sea level at New Jalpaiguri to about 2,200 m (7,218 ft) at Darjeeling, using six zig zags and five loops to gain altitude. On 5 December 1999, UNESCO declared the DHR as a World Heritage Site.
DHR is one of the most attractive tourist sites of the world. Common people and tourists used this service to reach Darjeeling from NJP or Siliguri enjoying the beautiful views of Himalayas. Nowadays this service is not operational for the entire stretch—only service from Kurseong to Darjeeling is available. Joy ride services are available for tourists.
We were eagerly waiting for the joy ride on this toy train. After booking tickets we were roaming on the platforms on Darjeeling station which looks also like a toy station – small platforms with all facilities of a railway station. We saw the views of hills and the city from the station and waited for our train to arrive. Some trains and engines were halted at the station. A toy train with classic steam engine came and we boarded the train. The joy ride route is Darjeeling – Ghum- Darjeeling, covering a total distance of 15 km. As the train started, we passed through the main Hill cart road– with the cars moving parallel to our train. We could see the amazing views of mountains, busy streets, houses on mountains through our window.
After 15 minutes we reached Batasia Loop. The Batasia Loop is a spiral railway created to lower the gradient of ascent of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in Darjeeling district. At this point, the track spirals around over itself through a tunnel and over a hilltop. It was commissioned in 1919.The train stopped here for 15 minutes and we got down from the train to take snaps at this nice location.
After another 15 minutes journey we reached Ghum station. Ghum railway station is the highest railway station in the India. It is situated at an altitude of 2,258 metres (7,407 ft).The train halted here for half an hour .We visited the rail museum at the station. This halting time did not permit us to visit the Monastery .
The train started for its return trip to Darjeeling following the same route. We enjoyed this two hours joy ride on Toy train. Every one can enjoy this joy ride. But the cost of ticket is very high—INR 1500/ per head for steam engine and INR 1000/ per head for diesel engine for only 15 km journey. The first class coaches could be improved as they are old enough , less spacious and not properly cleaned .
In the World Environment Day, I am sharing my views on the clean environment of Singapore,as I have seen there. Singapore is an island city -country in South -east Asia. The country is composed of one main island and 63 small satellite islands. The British ruled the country since 1819 AD and it finally became an independent country on 9th August 1965. Rapid economic growth and support for business entrepreneurship made the country as a most modern and developed country of the world. The country has a land area of only 720 km2 . Total population in Singapore is 57 lakhs. Its Human Development is 0.935, ranking 9th in the world.
Singapore has a very clean pollution-free environment. Singapore’s environmental quality is better than many Asian countries and is comparable with cities of USA. National Environmental Agency (NEA) ,Singapore strictly monitors and maintain the environmental quality in Singapore. Singapore achieved sustainable growth and development while maintaining public health and clean environment.
The major air pollutants are sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, ozone, particulates, carbon monoxide etc. In Singapore industries like petroleum refinery, power plants and motor vehicles are major source of sulfur dioxide. The main oil refineries are Shell, Singapore Refining Co.,Exxonmobil etc. which contributes about 90% air pollution due to Sulfur dioxide. Power stations and motor vehicles contribute about 2.6% and 0.1% sulfur dioxide emissions respectively. The NEA’s Source Emission Test Scheme for industries requires industries to conduct source emission tests on their own. This allows industries to monitor their air emissions regularly, and to meet prescribed air emission standards.
All motor vehicles( petrol and diesel) uses nearly sulfur- free fuel ( less than 0.001% S content) . All the vehicles are having Euro VI emission standards. I have seen new cars are plying on the roads- no old cars were seen. So the emissions from motor vehicles is almost negligible.
Singapore has also almost zero water pollution. Domestic waste water and industrial waste water are regularly monitored by NEA. The water quality of both inland water bodies and coastal areas is regularly monitored. For inland water bodies, the parameters monitored include pH, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, ammonia and sulphide. Coastal water samples are analysed for metals, total organic carbon, and other physical, chemical and bacteriological parameters. The discharge of wastewater into open drains, canals and rivers is regulated by the Environmental Protection and Management Act (EPMA) and the Environmental Protection and Management (Trade Effluent) Regulations. No water pollution can be seen on any water bodies, rivers and marine environment of Singapore…
During the great Indonesia forest fire of 1997, the birds in the bird singing neighborhoods stopped singing and bird owners kept them at home. Indonesian forest fires in 1997 and the haze they produced disrupted the environment of Singapore .This also disrupted air travel and business. Such problem occurs in the dry season as a result of forest fires in the sprawling Indonesian archipelago, some of them deliberately started to clear land for cultivation
Singapore’s primary forest areas cover only about 200 hectare of the country’s land. In total, there are about only 0,25% of its total 720,5 kilometers square is dedicated for primary forest. Singaporean’s primary forests are characterized by its multiple layers with complex structural feature. It has one specific feature, which is the presence of main canopy of tall trees. Above the canopy we can easily spot some emergent dominated by giant trees.Below the canopy, we can find richer biodiversity of plants. Starting from a sub-canopy consisting of smaller trees, saplings of tall trees and shrubs. The lowest layer of the forest consists of seedlings and herbs covering the ground.
Not only rich in plant composition, Singapore’s primary forest is actually a rich ecosystem with unique biodiversity. A team of biodiversity surveyor spent their time in Singapore to study the forests’ biodiversity, in which they found interesting discoveries. Their discoveries include the re-discovery of white-spotted cat snake (Boiga drapiezii), bicolored leaf-nosed bat etc.. The species of snake, that can grow up to 2 meters long, has not been seen in the country for more than 100 years until their rediscovery.
I was amazed to see the lush greenery and green environment of the country —- Gardens by the bay ( artificial forest) ,Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird park., Botanical garden . How beautiful is the artificial forest and misty tropical mountain with variety of flowers, orchids and greenery in Garden by the bay!
We should take lessons from Singapore to preserve our environment.
We took a weekend Trip to Massanjore recently. Massanjore is a quite and calm place with natural beauty in Dumka district of Jharkhand state. It is 40 km from Suri of W. Bengal. The Massanjore dam (also called Canada Dam ), on the Mayurakshi river , was commissioned in 1955 with financial assistance from Canadian Government. The Mayurakshi River at the dam site has a catchment area of 1869 sq.km.The dam is 155 feet high from its base and is 2170 feet long. The reservoir has an area of 16,650 acres when full and has a storage capacity of 500,000 acre feet. Apart from the Massanjore Dam there is a barrage on the same river at Tilpara, near Suri.
The place is just amazing for adventurous persons. Hill climbing , boating or swimming is pretty much enjoyable. The river and hills gives its identity. At night, the total ambiance changes.
We reached Massanjore after two hours drive from Santiniketan. After a brief rest at the resort we strolled on the dam and looked the views and enjoyed the views. The boating was also enjoyable.
I am familiar with the name Waltair from my childhood as my father used to visit Andhra University in Waltair frequently for official work. I accompanied sometimes in childhood. In 1999, I arranged a trip to Waltair with my family and parents. My daughter was only one year old at that time.
The present name of Waltair is Vishakapatnam also known as Vizag. Visakhapatnam, located in the Andhra Pradesh state in India ,the name is derived from God Vishaka, the God of Valour. In the past it was a small fishing village. It was a part of Kalinga empire in 260BC. The British converted the village into a port. Now, it has become an important port of eastern coast of India.
In the past, we reached Waltair on a morning of October 1999 where Dr. P. Reddy , a professor from a college received us at railway station. In the evening we visited the famous beach, R.K.Beach.
At Ram Krishna Beach(1999)
Next day we hired a car for sightseeing. We reached famous Simachalam temple at the top of Simachalam hill. It is the temple of Lord Vishnu ( Narashima). One can find a man-lion incarnation of Lord Vishnu. We offered Puja. The environment is very good—hills covered with green trees. We left this hill for city. We reached another hill ‘Kailash Giri’. A large statue of Lord Shiva and Parbati is on the top of the hill. The natural scenario of the Vishakapatnam ,surrounded by sea is beautiful from this spot. We left this place by the car for Rishikonda beach. It is a natural beach—silent with no crowd, no house. We saw the beautiful waves of the sea touching the sands of the beach. But in our recent visit, we observed a vast change of the beach—many hotels near the beach and crowds at the beach.
At Simachalam Temple ( 1999)
We took lunch in a beautiful village themed mud house restaurant ,’Sea Inn’—the South Indian food was very tasty and cheap. We could not find this restaurant in my recent visit. After lunch we went to VUDA park. The park is made and maintained by VUDA ( Development Authority). We sat on benches under tree as it was very hot at that time.
At Shivaji Park (1999)
Next we visited Ross hill. It is the highest hill of Waltair. In 1964 Mr Ross made the first house on the hill which was then converted into a catholic church. The hill is beautiful and the view of the beach, city and the port from the hill is amazing. We saw the catholic church and saw the beautiful murals describing the life of Jesus.
Next day, Prof. D .Satyanarayana , Professor, Andhra University and a close friend of father, invited us to his house. At morning he came with his car. We visited some temples of Waltair with him—Jaganath Temple, Ramkrishna mission, Panduranga temple. Then we reached Indira Gandhi Zoo which is situated at the outskirt of the city. It was the second largest zoo in (then) Andhra Pradesh covering an area of 450 acres. We walked a few areas of the zoo to explore animals and found elephants, deers, peacocks etc. My parents and Dr. Satyanarayana took rest on the benches under tree while we were walking and looking the animals. After spending one hour in the zoo, we left for Dr. Satyanarayana’s residence.
We reached his place at noon. We got a very cordial welcome from his family . After talking and gossiping for an hour we took lunch with them. Tasty and delicious foods were served to us. We were surprised to see their hospitality shown to us. In our recent visit they also invited us. Post lunch, Dr. Satyanarayana came to to drop us at our hotel.
Recent Re-visit in 2018
In our recent visit to Waltair ,we stayed in the same hotel as our previous visit. The hotel is recently renovated and we could not recognize it in a glance. We noted a lot of changes and development of the city over the years.
Next day we took a hired car (like previous tour) for sight seeing. We followed same route as 1999 visit. At first we visited Simachalam temple and offered puja. There are some changes outside the temple —car parking area, cloak room etc. Shops and stalls were not existing near the temple( as we saw last time).
From Simachalam we again started for Kailash Giri hill. This place is beautifully redesigned than my last visit— gardens with colourful flowers ,floral watch, toy train and rope way service, a view point, WIFI service etc. are noted addition at Kailash Giri. We took a view of the beautiful city and the sea beaches from the view point on the hill. We left this place for Rishikonda beach.
After half an hour we reached Rishikondabeach. The beach was not quiet and calm as seen in our last visit with parents in 1999 but found many hawkers and stalls selling different items on the beach. There are many hotels and resorts built near the beach. However the beach has its own beauty and attractive environment.
Next we started for the city and reached VUDApark. The park is more or less same as last time visit. We left by the car for the remaining sites of today- we reached the fishing harbor -it is one of the largest fishing harbour in India. Many trawlers and ships were standing at the harbour, fishes were being dried on road.
Then we left for Rosshill—reached the church at hill top. This is also very beautifully decorated than as we saw in last visit. From the top of the hill we took the view of Port and ships waiting there for loading. There are boundary walls around the church which were not there in our last visit. From this place, we returned to the hotel at evening.
Next morning we left hotel by the same car to visit some other places at Waltair. We took marine drive road , enjoyed scenic beauty of the sea and reached IndiraGandhiZoo. At our last 1999 visit, we were unable to explore this totally because kids were very small and my father and mother could not walk and explore this large area. This time we started walking through the roads looking at the animals and birds. We walked around 5 Km and saw almost every zone of the zoo. We left the zoo for city and reached R.K.Beach.
We then came to see the Kursuna Submarine museum. This is the only submarine museum in south east Asia. The INS Kursuna submarine was in the fleet of submarines of Indian Navy up to 28 February,2001. After decommisioning, It was converted into a museum for public at R.K.Beach. It was not built during our last visit. As we entered the submarine, we were surprised to know the mechanical, technical components of the submarine, arms used by army, living arrangements of army personnel’s. It is a very informative and interesting place to see. One must see this. After this we strolled at the beach and before evening returned to hotel.
That evening ,we had invitation from Prof. Satyanarayana ( like previous tour). His son came with car for us and we reached his beautiful house by the beach. We were glad to meet them again, had several conversations and dinner with them. The food was delicious like the previous visit. At 10 pm his son again dropped us back at the hotel.
A comparative description of my two visits to Waltair is given here. This time we found the crowd of tourists was more than our previous visit. The city is very clean, attractive with natural beauty of sea and hills, local people here are very honest , polite (which is rarely found in any other city) and helpful. One can have a variety of South Indian cuisine here at very affordable price.
So, make a plan to visit Waltair in your next vacation .👍
Due to the present pandemic situation, travelling is not possible. Therefore, I am sharing my travel experience based on my travel last year.
After having our lunch at the cafeteria of the Jurassic World park. We went for the next zone…
At Jurassic world food court
On walking down the road we reached ‘ Ancient Egypt’.
This park is based on Egyptian architecture and artifacts found in ancient Egypt in 1930s.
We took the vintage Jeep ride and drove around abandoned Egyptian excavation sites. It was an enjoyable ride!
There were large crowds at the rides of this theme park.
At Ancient Egypt
After this zone,we reached ‘Sci- Fi City’. How and what the cities may look in the future is shown in this theme park.
At Sci Fi city
We saw the show ‘Transformer: 4D Ride Motion Simulator’. We were astonished to see the photo- realistic 4 D video imagery along with its effects! The show was amazing!
At Sci Fi city
This zone is also the home of roller coasters—Accelerator and Battlester Galactica—which were seen moving at very high speed with tourists. We did not try to ride these.
Roller coaster
At the last phase of todays visit to Universal Studio, we walked towards ‘ New York’ theme park. The streets and buildings are similar to those at New York city. It features replicas of New York landmarks –some beautiful cars were parked on the road.
At New York
We reached the ‘Hollywood’ themed zone. Its main attraction is a broadway-style theatre. We saw an interesting show, ‘Sesame Street Show’—the cartoon characters narrated their stories nicely. This was the last attraction to see at Universal Studio. We proceeded towards Main gate for exit.
At the “Hollywood”
We left Universal Studio with wonderful experience. By that time it was evening and we waited at the parking area for our cab for our return trip to the hotel.
I recommend to plan an entire day in the iternary for enjoying Universal Studio completely.
Hope you enjoyed the journey with us. 🏝Don’t forget to share your feedback.☺️
After two hours drive from Mal station along rough hilly road in Himalaya, we reached our destination. We arrived at a tiny village of Todey Tangta panchayat in Kalimpong district of West Bengal ,India. This village (Chisang) is near Bhutan border. This is a picturesque village and offers breath-taking views of the distant mountains of Bhutan. After check in weContinue reading “HOLIDAYS AT A HILLY VILLAGE”
The journey in the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi international airport was amazing as we enjoyed the view of sea at the bottom and before landing clear bluish water was visible. After arrival formalities, we left airport by Grab cab for Kuah. Kuah is a big city of Langkawi – an island and anContinue reading “HOLIDAYS IN KUAH”
The rapid development of human civilization has caused the deterioration of our environment and forests. About 31% of the earth’s surface is covered by forests ( approximately 4.06 billion hectares ). But over 420 million hectares of forest have been lost since 1990. Between 1990-2010 an average of 15.5 million hectares of forest wereContinue reading ” World Environment Day”
On the World Environment Day, I am sharing my views on the green and pollution free environment of Mizoram, situated at North -Eastern part of India, where I travelled last week. Mizoram is bounded by Myanmar in the east and south and Bangladesh in the west. It is a mountainous state covered with dense virgin forests .Continue reading “GREEN ENVIRONMENT OF MIZORAM”
A railway communication between a hill of high altitude and plain is a challenging task for engineers. In the year 1878, Franklin Prestage of the Eastern Bengal Railway, foresaw the necessity of a rail link between the hills of Darjeeling and the plains at Siliguri in India and submitted a scheme for the construction ofContinue reading “Joy Ride on Toy Train of Darjeeling Himalayan Railway”
Travels by Arnab De 
Nice Read! Thanks for sharing. Like, Share and Subscribe to: https://tastytreks.blog/