A Memorable Monsoon Getaway - Sagargad Fort 2015

I believe the last time I went out camping during the monsoons, was to Ishraghad where the cold monsoon winds, rains, dirt and everything else that does with it made me feel like home. And I believe months later, it was time again to hit the road during the rains, and this time it was Sagargad. It’s a fort situated near Khandale Village, which is 4km’s away from Alibag. Bhramar is group with whom in the last few months, I have gone quite found of. Anup and his troops surely know how to organise an outing and make everyone feel like family.

It was a Sunday, and I really wanted to head out camping during the monsoons. I reached a bit late to the bus (Thanks Anup, for holding up and being patient!). But a little later we took off to our base point. It was a good base journey away from the city, as we made stops at various points to pick up other travellers. The bus soon arrived at the base point. And my word, cottages and the greenery really did make me feel like I was home. The rain had just began to make its way through the clouds as we rushed out of the bus into the shed area. We then had some delicious breakfast and hot tea to go with it. Then we had the introductory round where we got to know each other and a little bit of history about the fort. We then started our journey towards the top.

We did experience some marshy land and some slips and falls. We help on to the rocks and the sides so that we could push on.We saw crabs, birds, worms and a lot of other insects on our way. On every base point on our climb to recall the great history and heritage of the fort and its importance. Its a tall climb with a quite decent patch, but the rains sure do make it more thrilling as you climb along. On your way you can smell the fresh green grass and look at the water falls all around the mountains. I believe the monsoons has to be the best time to visit the fort. So a little bit about the history then of the fort. It is speculated that the fort has been standing here since ancient times i.e. Satavahan period around 100 A.D. The fort is also called as Kheddurg in some records. The known history of the fort starts from 1665 when Shivaji Maharaj lost this fort to Mughals as part of the treaty of Purandar. It was given to Angre, naval chief of Maratha forces, along with 16 other forts, so that he won't separate from them and remain loyal to Shahu Chhatrapati of Satara. Later it was lost to British. Some British officers during 1800's built their retreat homes on this fort.

Slowly and steadily we made our way to the top. And my word, it was a beautiful sight. We could see clouds stretched out far and wide. And the breeze hit us like there was no tomorrow. Not a lot of the fort still stands its ground. There is a temple on the top thats still quite holy and has a pleasant feeling about it. There are a few walls and an entrance which resemble the fort and its pride, However not a lot of it still remains. We explored the fort and the greenery spread around. We took pictures, shared snacks and smoke about the mighty sea that could be seen if the clouds would clear up. The Khanderi & Underi fort along with the Kolaba fort are forts that can be seen from the top. However, due to the beautiful clouds we were not able to see much apart from fog.

It was beautiful, the whole experience of trekking during the rains. You don’t feel as tired and you feel washed from all the muck and dirt that you walk through as you walk ahead. You don’t feel as thirsty as the cold rain keeps the body cool. And of course with Anup and the other pleasant company this trip was surely special. We head down after exploring and found our way bag. Yes it did include some slips and falls.but I guess playing football has gotten me use to it. We head down, and enjoyed some delicious lunch. Nothing tastes better than freshly baked home food after a long trek. I also picked up some naturally and herbally grown mangoes for home, which my parents are still raving about. We took the standard group picture, spent a last few moments at the base and then head to the bus and were heading back home. We were quite tired on our way back, most people got some sleep a few others were enjoying music by singing and listening to them. Overall it was a quality experience and Bhramar as expected did not let me down. I think they and their team surely do a great job in terms of overall experience. I can’t wait to head out for a trek again. And surely can’t wait to do it with this lot too in the future.

Pictures of the Fort (Sagargad Fort 2015):

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.909466155783830.1073741840.855590067838106&type=3

Show some love to Bhramar too and Anup:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bhramar/398535046927678?fref=ts

This is Mr. Happy (Or you can call me Al) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                      

The Happy Getaway:

https://www.facebook.com/thehappygetaway

https://instagram.com/thehappygetaway/

Twitter: @thehappygetaway

Thank You

Alvin Anthony

A Landscape Of The Old & Forgotten - Bassein Fort 2015

It was a sunny weekday afternoon, and I was wrapped up with work like every other day. I then began to look at options that I could bagpack to in quick time, in and around Mumbai. It’s hard sometimes to keep up with the weekly “Go to a new place” routine, when your work schedule doesn’t permit you to travel too far or invest too much time (Note to self: Need to travel full time, to keep up with this.) But then again, If I don’t get out and travel I’d probably feel gloomy for the entire week ahead, so not doing it was really not an option.

So Bassein Fort (Vasai Fort) is a fort that I have heard a whole lot about since my childhood, but have never visited or been to. I have heard stories about how big and mighty it use to be and is, about the churches and sea facing walls, the Portuguese and their mighty rein during the historical times and of the founding and building of the fort. Since this wasn’t that far me in terms of distance and I could cover most of it in nearly half a day (As per what Sheldon said), I decided to pack my bags one weekday and go. Me and Sheldon head out to explore and cover the Vasai Fort, one of the most unvalued and tucked away Forts of Maharashtra (And oh so beautiful.).

If I often wake up early, especially If I'm really excited to head out trekking or have work to do. However because of working late the previous night, I kinda met Sheldon an hour later than what we had planned (Sorry man!). And during summers, since the heat picks up really quickly an hour is really expensive to lose on. Luckily we did reach there soon, after taking a fast train. We first took a rickshaw midway and then changed rickshaws again. The rickshaw driver soon left us at the entrance at the fort, as to my luck and since Sheldon had been to the fort before he knew his way around and we needed to do next. We soon began to walk deep inside the green bushes and forest like paths taking us deeper into the fort. There were ruins all around us, and birds, trees and a feeling of being close to history and the past. We walked closer to the shore, as we came across large doors and damaged towers. Some say the weather got to it, others say with time the walls began to perish. However, it did look like it was depleting. We soon reached the shore (Oh, going to any kind of water body during the summer is bliss!). We could see boats, crabs and fishes all around. I even picked up a small pot I found on the shore. We were then told that we can’t take pictures. That’s right a beautiful sea view and you can’t even take pictures because of security reasons yes (Merchant trading rules). We were a little bummed out, but I still did manage to sneak around and take a few pictures anyway (Such a criminal I am nah? I know.).

We also saw a small Hanuman temple, it's tiny and you wont miss it on your way to the shore. It was closed when we met. But it seemed beautiful right in the middle of the forest and fort to find a temple. We then climbed up a small path, and could see the sea view from the high facing fort walls. We continued to trail around on the walls. Then we climbed up to what seemed to be a watch tower or bell tower of sorts. It was beautiful carved. And I believe the Archaeology Preservation Community are trying and doing a great job by restructuring and cementing the walls (Trying too hard at some places, but it's surely give and take. And I am happy to see we are trying to preserve and safeguard these places.). We spotted a few love birds around (Couples, yes) whom Sheldon did try to scare away. But we just pretended that they weren’t there and kept exploring. We soon started discovering the various churches (There are 7 apparently in the fort.)

According to Historian Joseph Gerson Da Cunha, during this time, Bassein and its surrounding areas appeared to have been ruled by the Chalukya dynasty of Karnataka. Until the 11th century, several Arabian geographers had mentioned references to towns nearby Bassein, like Thana and Sopara, but no references had been made to Bassein. Bassein was later ruled by the Silhara dynasty of Konkan, and eventually passed to the Yadavas of Devagiri, before being conquered by the Muslim rulers of Gujarat. The Treaty of Bassein was signed by Sultan Bahadur of Gujarat and the Kingdom of Portugal on 23 December 1534 while on board the galleon São Mateus. Based on the terms of the agreement, the Portuguese Empire gained control of the city of Bassein, as well as its territories, islands, and seas. At the time, the cession of Mumbai (or Bombay) was of minor importance - but retroactively it gained a crucial importance when the place passed from the Portuguese to the English in 1661 as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza, and became a major trade center - making this the treaty's most important long-range result.

We saw a chimney tower, that was used for cooking a couple of water storage spots. And also there was another temple (This one was open!) that I stepped into quickly, explore and took some blessings from. We soon met a few locals climbing trees and grabbing some mangoes, they were kind enough to give me two, and tell us a bit about the fort and about themselves and their village (The Vasai Village). He happened to live close to my place earlier (Mt. Mary’s) when he was a kid (Raju). He told us even a day wasn’t enough to see all of the fort. That’s when I said my goodbyes and got really anxious to cover as much of the fort as i could. We soon saw another Church that was left in ruins that we were told Sunday masses still happened at (A Jesuit church, could say so with the IHS logo at the front and because I was schooled at a Jesuit school of St. Stanislaus). We explored (I lied down) the church for a bit. Was very beautiful and peaceful. Was very well crafted. We then explored the compounds and could see graves of various soldiers, and other people around the church. I met a really adorable doggy too, who was hurt and been taken care of by the villagers, I could see his wounds were being medicated by them. We soon head towards the last church on our path.

Sheldon’s trip was made. As I have mentioned on my previous posts, the man loves birds and is always looking around to click and see a new bird on his trips. Guess who we met? A Kingfisher. Yes a beautiful, peaceful calm and colorful Kingfisher. He sat down all quiet, all ready to be taken pictures off. We looked at his beautiful wings and eyes, it was surely a treat. We then explored then next church it had a huge compound and well crafted interiors. I never felt like leaving, even for a single moment, but we had too so that we could come again and relish the beautiful fort and all its might. Its huge, it keeps going on and on. Raju was right, it is a magical fort that is long forgotten by many, yet for those who have visited it will always hold a special place of importance in their lives.

The trip then came to an end. Its good to do trips and alone, and with 2 or 3 people sometimes. Exploring with Sheldon was fun like always. Enjoying conversations, and sharing travelling experiences. (And me bugging him cause I wanted to go and see more places, or spend more time at places.) Can’t wait for the next trip. Surely am looking forward to it.

Pictures of the Fort & Temple (Bassein Fort 2015) :

https://www.facebook.com/thehappygetaway/timeline/story?ut=43&wstart=0&wend=1433141999&hash=-8815666137905326921&pagefilter=3

This is Mr. Happy (Or you can call me Al) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                        

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Alvin Anthony

A Green & Unsettling Morning - Maharashtra Nature Park & Mahim Fort 2015

It’s not quite often that you're told that there’s no point of visiting a Fort, because it's been taken over by slum dwellers and localities. Cause it’s dirty, locked up and damaged, you’re asked not to waste your time or even bother dropping by. But I never like just “listening” to things, and treating them like experiences. So I locked on a day the 3rd of May to do a trip to Mahim fort (Nearly just 15 or so minutes away from my place) to see for myself, if it’s really true what people say and to have an experience of something so upsetting myself.

Also, after my recent visit to Kaneri Caves, and the nature park my sudden interest for visiting nature hotspots and reserves, has suddenly peaked. So I decided to pool my Fort visit with dropping by at Maharashtra Nature Park (Best decision ever!) close to Mahim and Dharavi. So I called Sheldon told him, “Let’s go, broo.” And like everyone else he didn’t seem interested or pro the idea of volunteering to come to Mahim Fort. He was all in for the park though. (But don’t worry, I made him come around coming to both places. Haha!). It was a sunny Sunday morning, it started off with my taking a rickshaw and heading to the park. The minute I got out, I see this really adorable dog, making faces at me who then I hug and pet. Later I entered, and soon Sheldon joined me, we payed the gate pass entry fee (Rs. 20 or so.) and were then inside the vicinity of the green long forgotten reserves of nature.

The minute we entered, we first found a squirrel nibbling on a thread. When we turned our eyes up we saw a beautiful parrot hiding away in the leaves. It was bliss, the feeling like being in a jungle, even though you're in a city. The peace, the hot summer breeze, the chirping of birds and the blue skies. It is quite unfortunate, that people don’t really appreciate nature and its beauty as much anymore. I was really disappointed, that even though I live so close to the park, this was my first visit, and that it took me a lot of looking up to do, to be able to know about the park. Its an amazing place for bird watching, morning walks, meditation, butterfly watching and just cutting off from the fast life and reminiscing the green pure world. We kept following the trail and ended up completing the walk through the park the other way round (This is maybe, why they should start giving us maps at the start I guess.) We walked through the short and narrow path, explored through various plantation patches, and saw a lot of woman and other workers cleaning, and maintaining the park, which was comforting to see. As you walk towards the end of the park, you’ll see a huge banyan tree and it merging into a small open locality of sorts (Quite, dirty and unclean the last patch.) that will make you a little sad, cause you wouldn’t really want the beautiful protected natural patch to end. The park off lays the Mithi River, which is quite dirty and not well kept. We were able to walk aside the river as one of its paths lays directly aside it. It was good sharing conversations, looking for birds and butterflies.

Soon we reached the end of the park. We stepped into the library for a bit, where so old books related to nature, environment and the wild life. There is also an art gallery, that has exhibitions put up on a monthly or so bases (Mention in local newspaper listings, usually as per the authorities there.) There is also an open space with steps, a stage and plants where a environment themed poetry session was on when we were there. It seemed like a great place to hold small sessions and activities. The authorities told us that it can be taken up for show and events related to environment and nature. (Surely gonna make a note of this, you should too!) It was a nice visit to the park, they usually open up at 7amish on the weekends, which I’d suggest will be the best time to visit the park and take photographs too, if you like too. Sheldon, loves watching and clicking birds, so he was a little let down (Actually a lot more than little.) that we just kept seeing crows, and didn’t catch glimpses of other birds. But on a whole, I felt it was a lovely morning.

We soon done with the park and head out to the fort. After not a lot of convincing Sheldon agreed to come show me where the fort was too. We first cabbed it out to the bridge and then went to the small beach like opening that Mahim offers towards Mahim Creek. (Mumbai being a mixture of 7 Islands, this beach and Creek have a lot of significance for how Mumbai came up and together in the early days.). Your soul will not wither away, it will wander aimslessly seeking happiness and peace all day.In 1516, Portuguese officer Dom Joao de Monoy step foot in Mahim Creek and conquert the fort. The fort was a site of frequent turmoil between the Portuguese and the Ali Shah, before the island of Mahim was taken away from Bahadur Shah of Gujarat by the Portuguese in 1534. In 1661, the Portuguese offered the island of Mahim as dowry to Charles II of England. It was later strengthened by Sir Thomas Grantham and became a strategic defense tower against possible Portuguese and Maratha attacks. According to older records, the fort had 100 soldiers and 30 cannons at that time.

You’d think a Fort with history, culture and some amount of significance, will be taken care off and be kept well. But the insides of me hurt and cried. Cause it was dirty (filthy) and not cared about. If you like Forts, you’ll wonder why people don’t care. I understand people face problems, and at times this is the way out. But it's just upsetting to see the way it's maintained and not even cared about. The closer you walk to the fort you’ll smell feces and garbage. You’ll see people walking around doing their chores, kids playing cricket (which is fine!) and you’ll find clothes hanging to dry everywhere. The entrance is blocked with a huge ladder and the dwellings of people on both levels of the fort. No, you won’t even be able to enter. The lady there told me that people live all across the fort there is a thin staircase to climb during low tide, but the people won't let you go see the fort. The entire, fort has now basically become a colony where people reside. I am all for poverty, finding your space and making do, but at the cost of a historical fort being tucked away and hidden. I am not sure. A lot of people will say “I told you so.” But for me the problem here is deeper, I know. You know. But what can we do? Write letters? Try talking to these people? Try doing something ourselves? Well I don’t know the next step. But I promise you I will get back to this in time, and make sure that something is done at least from my end to change the present situation. Even if it is in a little way. Cause I don’t like our country being looked down at, but because of instances like these I see why we give people an opportunity to look down at us, and for us to look down at ourselves. I am sure, there should and will be a better alternative to this. You’ll find a bamboo loading and moving area at the beach near the fort, which is still okay cause it doesn’t dirupt the fort directly like the people there do.

So a solo, or two man trip is always fun (Thanks, Sheldon.). It was nice to head out to the park and fort. Have a beautiful and bitter taste of life and its challenges. And realise that knowing isn’t good enough, you need to go out there feel, experience and do  your part. Hoping to do more short halt trips and exploration escapades in the future.

Pictures of the Fort & Park (Maharashtra Nature Park & Mahim Fort 2015) :

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.885080161555763.1073741834.855590067838106&type=1

This is Mr. Happy Captain (Or you can call me Al) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                                                                                                                                                 

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Thank You

Alvin Anthony

  

A Beautiful Cave With A Peaceful Heart - Kanheri Caves 2015

It’s good at times to just pack your bags call a few people you love and head out exploring and visiting new or long lost places. Kicking back your feet, doing things spontaneously not having a schedule, and just having places in mind that you want to catch glimpses off. So this was one of my first of such kind of trips, backpacking to the Kanheri Caves in Borivali, a place I had visited at an early age as a child (And, I really did not remember much off.) with a few good friends that made the trip even more memorable. A short yet memorable trip was about to get underway.

It started off with me calling Sheldon, and saying “You’re free, I’m free, lets do this.” We soon spoke to Dua and Jean, and gradually the next morning we were catching a train from Bandra station and heading out to Borivali. Me and Dua enjoyed some cold lassi, idli’s and morning vada's at a few stalls close to the station as we waited for Jean. As soon as she arrived we, caught a rickshaw and head towards the park. (You can usually take a bus too, it’s pretty close to the Borivali East station, and right on the highway if you're travelling by road.). We reached the park and soon began our long walk towards the caves. The weather was pleasant, you can see others walking, jogging and reminiscing the beautiful morning and nature too. Cycling around (Renting them) is a good option too, unless you have people who do not cycle, or wish to learn to cycle in your group then you will need to walk.

So after a long walk of conversations, jokes and enjoying cold cucumbers we had finally reached the base point of the caves. I have been to a few Buddhist caves in the recent times, and they all have this beautiful feeling of peace, harmony and beauty in them. You’d feel like you’ve finally gotten home after all these years. There are numerous amount of small caves you can explore there once you enter. You’ll see a lot of trees, monkeys and remains from the olden days. We saw two snake too! (If you’re lucky/ during the monsoons) The caves are quite well maintained and taken care off. These caves are as old as from the first century BCE to the 10th century CE. Around a 109 caves are carved here out of basalt. All caves have a stone plinth for a surface. A huge congregation hall with huge stone pillars contains the well crafted and beautiful statue, the Buddhist shrine. Some of the caves were use for living, studying and meditating (Vihara’s). The larger caves are the ones we're halls used for congregational worship (Chaitya’s). Avalokiteshwara are the most different figure. The large number of viharas demonstrates the well organized establishment of Buddhist monks.

This Cave was also connected with many trade centers, such as the ports of Sopara, Kalyan, Nasik, Paithan and Ujjain. Kanheri was a University center by the time the area was under the rule of the Maurayan and Kushan empires. There are about 34 unfinished paintings of Buddha within the Caves. Nearly 51 legible inscriptions and 26 epigraphs (Cave 90) are found at Kanheri, which is very beautiful to see. I was really put to ease by the architecture and work put into it by the monks, surely historical. Dua was mentioning how it is a bliss to visit these caves during the monsoons, as there a lot of waterfalls and small streams that flow across the park, and the weather also is bliss. (Must go again!). There are also various bird and butterfly watching spots (Clubs too) across the park that one can visit or spend time at to enjoy a little bit of nature.

We head back after exploring. We took a bus that dropped us at a central point. We then, by feet climbed up stairs that a lady told us can help us see all of Mumbai, yes just 100 steps and you can see all of Mumbai (Note to self: never believe random stranger aunties, or ask them where steps lead too.). We climbed up to see nothing, then head back and saw Deers (Many kinds), Vulchers and Peacocks. They were beautiful to see, and touch and be with up close. We even fed this really beautiful looking deer a banana that Sheldon was carrying with him. Was really nice to see them all chill at the shade of the tree, trying to enjoy the warm summer. We soon then later grabbed a bite and head back. Cause it was time to goo home.

It was a nice experience this, not going with a group running around having a schedule. It was nice to just spend really long hours talking at a place, fooling around, being at peace and just being together. Its sad to see that even though the cave is so close to the city, and to our lifeline (Unlike the other far off places I usually visit) there is not as much importance given to this place. Yes people do visit now and then, and you’d see it buzzing with locals and nature/history lovers. However, I really feel this place should be adored for how peaceful, beautiful and home like it is. I really hope to do more spontanious trips, and local trips in the future. And learn more about important and significant places right around the corner and backyard. Hope to do more trips and getaways with these guys too. (Hi5! Love you guys.)

Pictures of the Caves (Kanheri Caves  2015) :

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.880508555346257.1073741833.855590067838106&type=1

This is Mr. Happy (Or you can call me Alvin) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                                                                                     

                                                                            

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Thank You

Alvin Anthony

It's A Pink Shaded Fort - Sewri Fort & Flamingo Watching 2015

It’s always a setback when you look at your weeks schedule and you realize that you can’t do a weekend trek or an overnight trail, due to the work load. (Gaah!)  I was quite disappointed, and annoyed at first but then I started snooping around looking for short trip options and history trail options I came across Birdy Trekkings in a day Sewri Fort and Flamingo Watching listing online, which was marked for the 18th April, 2015. A morning trip that was scheduled to be completed by afternoon. All of a sudden I did not feel as bad anymore! (Yay!). Always wanted to go Flamingo watching since I was a kid, (Those big pink birds, with really long feet and necks? Sign me up please.) and I was finally going to be able too. Also, had not heard a whole lot about Sewri Fort before then (Since, it's located quite close and within the city.) But it does have quite a lot of significance, that you might be surprised to hear.

It started off with me giving Birdy (Birdy Seth) a call and telling him, that I’m coming. Confirm me, mark me down, engrave my name, you’ll see me at the station at 7:00 am for sure. He firmly said okay, and kept the line. I then packed my camera, bottle, goggles, binoculars and cap and waited for Saturday to set off. Soon, came the warm humid morning of the 18th. I caught the train at around 6, to make sure I don’t get late. And was there quite before time.

I took my self for a walk as I waited, around Sewri station exploring the market and silent yet gently buzzing people and streets. Soon, Birdy arrived (Oh, I love his name.) and then came, Kay, George and the others. Soon, we were around 10-12 people all gathered up, ready to hit the road, and walk. We began walking towards the east of the station, all close to each other, like a small family. We soon stopped for tea and chai (Oh, I love morning tea!) and got to know each other a bit better. There were reporters, doctors, frequent travelers, home makers and a lot of other people in the mix. The summer heat was just beginning to settle in as we reached the dock yard, filled with small, big old and rusty ships been worked and looked upon by the locals there. We soon, began to see the Flamingos at a distance.

They are quite majestic birds, with small heads and glorious wings. They have this shade off pinkish white, that will put you at ease and want you to look at them for hours. They seemed to be quite peaceful yet intelligent birds. We walked a bit closer towards the shore, and jumped and tripped our through some mossy stones to reach as close as possible to see them. A beautiful thing I noticed is that they are quite unison in nature, walking and staying together, and taking care of each other. They have beautiful wings, with a shade of black and dark pink. We also spotted, a large (Oh, he seemed like the alpha.) Flamingo. Way way taller and sharper than the others, with a much larger neck and essence about him. We all kept gazing at how beautiful he looked, and how well he walked among the others. Soon, high tide began to hit and we moved, packed our binoculars and cameras, and began to head towards Sewri Fort.

The Sewri Fort was built by the British in 1680, and was one of the 3 forts constructed by them on the eastern shoreline, the other two being Sion Fort and Mazgaon Fort. It is built on a high hill from rocks quarried from its hillside and is surrounded by land on 3 sides; the 4th side is a sheer cliff that drops down into the mangroves. Built for security purposes, the Sewri Fort served as a watchtower and was also the first line of defence in the case of attacks and invasions from the Angrias of Alibaug, the Siddis of Habsan, pirates from Janjira, the Savant from Wadi and the Dhulap from Vijaydurg. As threats from the sea abated, the importance of the Sewri Fort too waned and it got converted into a godown of the Mumbai Port Trust. Not surprisingly, it was in a pretty bad shape when the Maharashtra State’s Department of Archaeology and Museums took over its upkeep and renovation a few years back and classified it as a Grade I structure.

You can see different views from each part of the fort, one facing the Dargah that you need to walk up, to reach the fort. The other facing the sunny Sewri streets, the other facing the shore, where we did catch a glimpse of quite a few Flamingos, that had flown away together due the high tide at the previous point. Its a quite a beautiful fort this, crafted gently with stairs taking you to the upper level, with dark storage rooms, and openings both ways. However, sadly it isn’t maintained and looked after as well, we could see bottles of used liquor and writings of names of lovers from god alone knows which times, covered with other unneeded litter and waste. We did however in the fort also meet two small kittens. They were tiny and kept playing and fighting with each other, they were fun to look and play with. Soon, we had explored the long forgotten and undervalued fort and had decided to head back. The hot summer had began to kick in as we walked back towards the station. Birdy shared some sweets Kay got for him (Love Indian Sweets!), and we reached the station and head back home.

It was a nice trip this. A short yet peaceful one. I loved Birdy and his way of going about things systematically and gently and holding the ship alone, yet firmly together. And there are very few groups I come across, who do it for the love of travelling and backpacking. I understand there is a cost to everything. But Birdy Trekking organized this trip for no cost (Respect!) even though he easily could have. Cause he wanted to promote and encourage traveling and did not incur any cost himself. It was a memorable trip, and I hope to join Birdy and the others who travel regularly with him more often, in the future.

Picture of the Fort & Flamingos (Sewri Fort & Flamingo Watching 2015):

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.874441342619645.1073741832.855590067838106&type=1

This is Alman (Yes, like Superman! Calm down ladies.) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                                                                                                                                                               

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Alvin Anthony

The Birthplace Of Emperor Shivaji - Shivneri Fort 2015

This trip, is surely one of the most memorable trips, that I have done in the recent past. Not because I travelled to Pune, in a day and back. Not because I may have missed majority of one of the most memorable Manchester Derby's (Football), where we won 4-2 and secured 3rd place. But because on Sunday the 12th of April 2015, I was finally able to see and live the stories and triumphs I was told about as a child. I was able to visit the home of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj a great king and warrior of ancient Indian historical times. I was finally able to visit Shivneri Fort, in Pune. A place I have heard a lot about, and have always wanted to visit since an early age. I was always fond of kings, queens, warriors and stories of their triumphs and reigns. (Huge LOTR fan here.) So this visit surely did help me learn and understand things, about Shivaji and his early life and childhood a whole lot better.

It started off with me calling Anup (Founder of Bhramar, and Mr. boss organizer)  during the week in the afternoon, confirming myself for the trip. Also assuring him, that no matter what happens (Heaven or earth moves.) I'll surely make it. Then the week went by really quickly and in no time it was Sunday. It's beautiful looking forward for something all week, and then finally seeing it happen. It was around 4:30 am, when I boarded a train from Kurla to Thane. It was a bit of a let down that no one else from the 36 or so that we're coming, we're coming from the suburbs. So it left me listening to the Beatles, sipping some chai and boarding an almost empty or so  train to Thane. Post reaching Thane, I looked for Ananad Cinema hall (As Anup told me too), walking across the empty Thane station roads, in the dim yet not so shady street lights felt quite warm and homely. Soon, everyone began to gather at the hall. Tall, old, short, young, mothers, babies, students, you name it we had it. It was quite a mix bunch of people (From different professions and walks of life) all gathered in the early hours, all looking forward to a good trip. Felt like one big family of Bhramar volunteers, regulars and newbies. A family of strangers, away from home.

Maybe delays are a new trend. Or just trips I take are jinxed, but we did end up waiting quite a bit for the bus to arrive. But once it did, we soon filled in and caught our seats to set off. The bus journey onwards was quite a peaceful one, me including quite a few others caught up with some sleep. Some others munched on a few snacks and shared some pleasant conversations. We soon arrived at our Breakfast halt. We all caught a light bite, had some hot coffee and tea and set off again. We soon, began to pass the beautiful mountains, misty river and cloudy hills  as we reached closer to our destination. We then arrived at the base point, and lied ahead of us the mighty mountain, which encompassed the long beloved Shivneri fort. The stairs greeted us, with longing gates and flowers.

Shivneri Fort was built under the aegis of Sahaji, the father of Shivaji, who wanted a strong fortification that could protect his family from the enemies. Jijabai (Shivaji's mother) spent the days of her pregnancy at Shivneri and it was here that Shivaji Maharaj was born, in the year 1627. Almost the entire childhood of Shivaji was spent playing inside the compound of the fort. He received most of his basic education at Shivneri only and the lessons he learnt here were responsible, to quite an extent, in shaping his personality as a great ruler.

We soon began to pass the gates. There were 7 different beautiful gates, set up for the enemies to cross, one more mightier than the other. We soon climbed up the steady stairs passing through the morning sun and breeze. Our first stop was at the Shiv Mandir, we first entered bare feet bowing in mercy and worship. We later gather outside the entrance, sitting one aside the other listening to Shilpa Parab Pradhan (Our Guide and Teacher, for the day.). She told us about the temple, and the early age history of the fort. How it was a very important historical structure, and how it was where Shivaji got his name Shivba here. We soon head back and upwards towards Ambarkhana (A grain, gold and food storage facility) which was well crafted and had vintage security and air circulation facilities (Impressive!).

We later passed Ganga & Jammuna one of more than ten water tanks present in Shivneri (This being the only potable and pure one.) We filled up our bottles and enjoyed the cold and earthy water of the tank, that was very refreshing to have in the warm sunny weather. We moved forward and came across, Shiv Kunj.  Shiv Kunj is a monument constructed by the state government, in honor of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Inside Shiv Kunj there is an idol of Bal Shivaji and Jijabai made of “Panchdhatu” (An alloy of 5 metals.) Very beautiful, and artistic indeed.  We later head forward to Shiv Janamasthan, we climbed up the narrow stairs and sat in a quarter where the entire group gathered up again and we began to listen to the birth story of the great king. How the modern day misconceptions  of the three Shivaji Jayantis, due to change in the English and Hindu Calendar, and due to multiple beliefs and followers. Also stories about Jijabai and her strength and grace to and through Shivajis birth. It was really heart filling to hear. We then head towards Kadelot point, a place where prisoners were punished by throwing them down the fort. This point is on the northern end of the fort.

We had now reached the end of our visit long yet beautiful visit, we received a few words of conclusion and wisdom by Anup and Shilpa. It was followed by a quick round of introductions, and getting to know one another. As we were behind schedule, we then later rushed to the base point, got back to our bus and head towards our lunch point. In a comfy little village home, we then enjoyed some delicious food, that helped us reminisce over the day gone by. It was beautiful, the rocky hill and detailed architecture. The crafted strategic pathways and structures. The history and childhood memories of Shivaji and his family who lived and grew up at Shivneri, after whom he was named. We soon, got back to the bus and it was songs (Some self made new ones! and jokes, till the way back home!

It was a good experience. All wrapped up in one rushed yet, memorable day. Bhramar were quite efficient and warm with their organizing and experience delivery. However, sometimes on such trips, time passes by too quickly so delays are bound to happen learning and listening to new stories. However, overall it was a memorable day, and great set of people (Very family like! ).

Looking forward to my next getaway with Bhramar, and the group.

I know it will be quite a memorable and happy one :)

Picture of the Fort (Shivneri Fort  2015) :

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.871141542949625.1073741831.855590067838106&type=1

This is Alman (You know, like Superman?) signing off, until next time.

Have a great day, and an adventurous weekend! :)                                                                                     

                                                                             

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Thank You

Alvin Anthony