Na

me:
Omk
arPa
war

Su
bje
ct
:F.
C.

Ro
ll
.n
o:1
349

T
opi
c:T
rav
elBl
og

1
.Oo
ty

2.Da
rje
el
in
g
Oot
yHi
dden
Gem
Fondlyreferr
edt oasThe‘QueenofHi l
lStat
ions’
,Ootyisoneofthe
bestdestinationsoftheSout
hI ndi
anstateofTamilNadu.Locatedinthe
West er
nGhat szoneatanalt
itudeof2240m abov ethesealevel
,thi
shil
l
stati
onisequal lypopul
aramidstfami
lyvacati
oners.Theplaceboastsofa
numberofchar merssuchaslushsurroundi
ngs,salubr
iouscli
mate,aromati
c
teaestates,naturalaswel
lasmanmadewonder s,WorldHerit
ageSiteofthe
Nilgi
riMount ainRail
wayand
mor e.
BestPlacesToVi si
t:-

1.Doddabet t
aPeak
Standi ngatanal t
itudeof
2623m abov et hesea
l
ev el,Doddabet t
aPeaki s
thehi ghestpointinthehil
l
stationfrom wher eone
cansav orpanorami cvi
ews
ofOot yandits
surroundingplaces
i
ncl udinghighlandsofMy sor
eandplai
nsofCoi
mbatore.Just10km away
from
themai ncit
y,DoddabettaPeaki
sknownt obeoneofSouthIndi
a’
shighest
peakt hatisqui t
epopularamidt
ouri
ststoo.

Donotf orgettocl i
cksomememor ablephot
ographshere.Onacl earday,t
he
viewsar eev enmor emesmer i
zi
ng.Thereisal
soaTel escopehouse( wit
h2
telescopes)att hePeak, managedbyt heTamilNaduTour i
sm Development
Cor porati
onsot hatthetouri
stscangetabet t
erviewfrom thetop.At r
ekup
tot hePeaki snotachal lengingone.Thepeakisenv el
opedbyar eserved
forestareat hathassev eralendangeredspeci
esoffloraandfauna.
2.Bot anical Garden
Spr eadi nanar eaof22hect aresof
ri
si ngsl opesonahi ll
,the
wel lmai ntained
Bot anical Gar densar e
placedatanal t
itudeof2400m
abov et heseal ev el
.Arrangedby
theMar quisofTweedal eint hey ear
1847, itisoneoft hemai nt ourist
attract i
onsi nOot y.
Thegar deni sat reasuret rov eof
l
ov elyshr ubs, f
loweringt reesand
rarecol oredl i
li
es.Mai ntainedbyt he
Hor t
icultureDepar t
mentoft he
Gov ernmentofTami lNadu, therearewellmai
ntained
ver dantl awns, amonkey ’
spuzzl etree,a20mill
iony earoldf ossil
tree, ahugev ar
ietyoff l
ower s,plantsandbushes, anItal
ian-st ylegarden
bor der i
ng, af er
nhousewi thav astv ar
iet
yoforchidsandf erns, apool and
mor e.
Apar tfrom t ouri
sts,thepar kiswi delypopul
arami dstudent sstudyingpl ant
sci ence.Thegar denbecomest hev enueofSummerFest ival,whichishel d
her e
ev eryy earinMay .

3.St oneHouse
Thef i
rstbungal owbui ltinOot y,
StoneHousewascommi ssioned
byJohnSul li
van( t
hef ounderof
Oot y)int hey ear1822.The
officialresidenceoft he
Principal oftheGov ernment
ArtsCol legeofOot yi nt he
presentt i
mes, i
twascal ledKal
Bangl abyt heTr i
balsf rom whom
Sullivanhadacqui redt hel and
for
const ructingt hi
sstruct ure.Inthefr
ontoft hebungal
owisat r
ee,cal
ledt
he
Sullivan’soak.
Thear chitectureoft hisbungal owisquitesimil
artoaBri
ti
sh
Cot tage.Ther oofhasasl anti
nghut-
li
keshapet hati
scol
oredgreen.Thear
ea
aroundt hebungal owi scov eredwit
hlichens,pi
neandorchidtr
ees.
4.Rosegar den
Lyi
ngi nthehear tofOot y,Rose
Gardenort heCent enar yRose
Parkcov ersal ushl andof10
acres.Mai ntainedbyTami lNadu
HorticultureDepar tment ,the
gardeni sspr eadi nt hef orm ofa
ter
racewi thbower s,tunnel sand
pergolas.I nt hey ear2006, t
he
gardenhasbeent hewi nnerof
‘
Gar denof
Excellence’ ,awar dedbyt heWor l
dFeder ationofRoseSoci et
ies.
Thegar denboast sofhousi ngt hecount ry’
slargestcol
lecti
onofr oseswith
over
3600Var ietiesl i
kemi niaturer ose,hybri
dt earose,ramblers,
flori
bunda,roses
i
nsev eralcol orsincl udinggr eenandbl ack.Thedi f
fer
entv ar
ietyofroseshere
havebeenbr oughtf rom di fferentplaces.Thepar kisopenf r
om 8:30AM t o6
PM.RoseGar denist helargestr osegar denoft hecountry
.

5.Oot yLake
Placedneart heRai lway
stati
on, rightbehi ndt he
Cent ralBusSt andofOot y
,the
verypopul arOot yLakei sanLshaped
l
akewi thal engt hof
2.75km andawi dthv ar
y i
ng
from 100m –140m.An
arti
ficial l
ake, itwasest abli
shed
between1823and1825byJohnSul l
iv
an.Themount ainst
reamsf r
om the
Ooty
Vall
eypr ov i
dewat ert otheLake.TheLakeor igi
nallywasf i
ll
edupt he
present day
mar ketandonl yferrieswer eusedforcommut i
ngf rom onesideto
another .
Ast hel akeshr unk-busst and,racecourseandmi nigardencameup.The
fart
hestendhast heBoatHouseof f
eri
ngboatr ides, f
rom 8AM to6PM.Ther e
i
saChi ldren’sPar ktooher ethathasat oytr
ain.Fr om theLake,youcant reat
yourey est ot hel ovelyviewsoft heenci
rcli
ngshr ubsandeucal yptustrees.
Rightadj acentt othisattracti
onisadeerpar k.Local poni
esareal soavail
able
out
sidet
heboathousef
ory
out
oenj
oyr
ide.

6.Fer
nhi
l
lRoy
alPal
ace

Theer stwhi l
esummer
residenceoft heMahar aj
aof
My sore, FernhillPalacehas
nowoneoft hef inest
heritagehot elsi nOot y.
Repl i
catingt hest r
uctureofa
Swi ssChal et, t
hisbungal ow
wasconst ruct edi nthey ear
1844byCapt .F.Cot ton.Thepr opertyspreadsi n50acr esofl ushlandand
compr i
sesof19spaci ousr oyal l
uxurioussui t
es.
Guest scanenj oyacomf ortablest ayinami dstwor l
d-cl
assmoder n
conv eniencescl ubbedwi t
hi mpeccabl eregal hospit
alit
y.Ornament al
casti
ron
andcar v edwoodenbar geboar dsaddachar actert
othePal ace.Firandcedar
treesint hemani curedgar densoft heproper t
ylookbeaut i
ful.Withinthe
premi ses, t
her eisani ndoorbadmi ntoncour tandachur chtoo.

7.Ni
l
gir
iMount
ainRai
l
way

Buil
tbyt heBr it
ishinthe
year1908, theNi lgi
ri
Mount ainRai l
wayi nOot y
i
saUNESCOWor l
d
Heri
tageSi te.Alsocal l
ed
the‘ToyTr ain’ofOot y,
it
wasoper atedbyt he
Madr asRai l
wayi nt he
beginning.Thi sr ail
way
sti
ll
runsonst eam
l
ocomot ivesandi sa
majorat tract i
on,equally
popularami dstchi l
drenas
well
asadul ts.

TheNi l
gir
iPassengertrai
nduringitsjourneycoversadi stanceof46km,
tr
av ersi
ngt hr
ough16t unnels,250bridgesand208cur ves.Thisj
ourneyis
coveredi nadurati
onofar ound4. 5hours.Thisroutealsoconsistsofthe
steepestt r
ackinAsia.TheNi l
giri
stoytrainconnectsOot ytoMet t
upalayam
wher eonecant reathi
sey estot hemesmer izi
ngnat ur
al surr
oundings.
Chi
l
led
Dar
jeel
i
ng
Af ewdecadesago, Dar j
eeli
ngwasj ustacl usterofv i
ll
ageswhi ch
wasadmi ni steredj ointlybyNepal andSi kkim.Looki ngati tsfav orabl
ecl i
matic
condi t
ionsf ort eapl ant ation,Bri
tishest abl ishedahi llstationaf terleasingit
from theChogy al ofSi kkim.Subsequent ly ,Darjeeli
ngbecameawel l-
known
newBr i
t i
shset tlementandt r
adingpoi ntf ortea.
Get t
ingar oundDar j
eel ing
Mostoft hemust -seepl acesar eeasi lyaccessi bleonf oot .Forv isi
ti
ngt he
Himal ay anZooandt heMount ai
neer i
ngI nst i
tute,youcanei thert akeat axior
eitherwal kwhi chwoul dt akear ound30mi n.Ti gerHil
l isabout20km f rom
the
cent r
al cityandy oucangetashar edt axi from Chowr ast ha.
At owni nl esserHi mal ay as,Darjeelingst andspr oudasi t
sgat eway .Toa
backpacker ’sdel i
ght ,nat urelover,mount ai
neer ’swish, phot ographer’sshot–
Dar j
eelinghassomet hi ngt oofferf orev er y
one.Power fullyat t
ract i
ngv i
sit
ors
wi t
hitsgr eent eaf i
eldsononesi deagai nstt hewhi t
emaj est i
csnow- capped
peaksont heot her ,Dar jeeli
ng’spanor amasar ejustbreat htaking.
Placest ov isitonDar jeel i
ngt r
ip

1.Hi mal ay anMount ai

neeringI nst
it
ute:
HMIwast hemai nr easonwhyI
alway swant edtov isitDarjeeli
ng.
Tenzi ngNor gayalongwi t
hSi r
EdmundHi ll
ar ywhowast hef i
rstto
conquerMountEv er estf
ounded
thisInstitut ein1953.AtHMIy ou
willfindmount aineer i
ngrecor dsof
maj orexpedi t
ionsunder takenanda
near bymuseum di splaysfew
historical factsandequi pmentused
fortrekki ng.
Hopef ul
lyonedayIwoul dbebackher eatHMInotasavi
sit
orbutasast
udent
forpur sui ngbasi candadv ancemount ai
neer
ingcour
se.
2.Hi mal ayanZoo:
Knowni nf ul lasPadmaj aNai du
Himal ay anZool ogi
cal Park.
Don' tdiscountDar jeeli
ngZooas
yetanot hert ypi
cal onet haty ou
seei naci t
y .Thisiswher ey ou
canact ual lyseesomeoft he
highal t
itudeamazi ngHi mal ayan
animal sandsomeendanger ed
speci est hatar erarelyseenany whereelseintheworl
d.InI
ndia,
thi
si st
he
l
ar gesthi ghal ti
tudezoo.I tspansacross67.5acresofareaatanaverage
alti
tudeof7, 000ft(2133m) .
India'sfor merPr i
meMi nisterlat
eIndir
aGandhi dedi
catedt
hiszooinmemor y
ofPadmaj aNai du.ShewasanexGov ernorofWestBengalandthedaughter
of
Sar oji
niNai du, anat i
onal leaderandapoet .andthemainatt
ract
ionincl
udesa
whi tesnowl eopardandt hef amousredpanda.

3.Dar j
eelingHi malayanRai lway:
TheDar jeel i
ngHi mal ayan
Railway,al soknownast he“ Toy
Train,
”isa2f eetnar r
ow- gauge
rail
wayandwasest abl
ishedi n
1881.Youmi ghtbewonder ing
whyIdi dn’ ttalkaboutDar jeeli
ng
Himal ayanRai lwaywhenIwas
wr i
ti
ngaboutway storeach
Dar j
eeli
ngf r
om NewJal pai guri
.
Youcannev erbesur ethatt hetr
ainser
viceiscurrent
lyav
ail
ableornot
,dueto
frequentl andsl i
desandsev ereweathercondit
ions.OnceyoureachDarj
eel
ing,
youcani nqui reaboutv ariousj oyri
des.

4.TigerHi ll
Locat edatt hehi ghestpoint
i
nDar jeel
ingar ea,TigerHill
enrichesuswi thsome
dazzl i
ngsunr isev i
ewoft he
Kanchenj ungaandt hesnowcover
ed
peaksoft heent i
r e
east ernHimal ayanr ange.
TigerHi ll
isoneoft het wo
point sinIndiafrom wher eyoucancapt
uret
hewholepanoramabetween
MountEv erestandKanchendzongaal ongwit
hotherpeaksli
ket
heRathong,
Kabr u,andKokht ang.YourDarj
eeli
ngtr
ipwoul
dbeincompletei
fyoumiss
wat
chi
ngthesunri
sefrom Ti
gerHi
l
l.Shar
edt
axi
sar
eav
ail
abl
eatar
ound4am
i
nthemai
nmar ketar
ea.

5.BatasiaLoop:
TheBat asiaLoopi saspiral
rai
lwaycr eatedt omi ni
mize
theelevationoft he
Darjeel
ingHi mal ay anRailway
i
nDar j
eeli
ngdi strictofWest
Bengal,India.Thepl aceis
famousf orhousi ngaGor kha
warmemor i
al andwhi l
ein
thetoyt r
ainy oucanwi tnessa
360degr eesv iewofDar jeeli
ng.

FoodandRest aurants
1.Singalil
aRest aurant–Af terget tingoutoft hej eepfr
om NJP, Iwas
extremelyhungr y,andt hisi
st hev er yfir
strest aurantIat
eati nDar j
eel
ing;It
provedt obebyf arthebest.Ser vingacombi nat i
onofNepal if
oodand
Sikkimesef ood, t
hemot her
lyrest aur antprepar essomeser i
oushomest yl
e
comf ortfoodandcat ersmai nlytol ocals,especi all
ytaxidr
ivers.Every
thingI
hadatSi ngali
laRest aurant,i
ncl udingt hechickencur r
yandbeefcur r
ywi th
sideswasout standing.
Fullri
cemeal swi thchoi ceofmeatcur ryisabout70–90I NR, andy oucan
ask
forasmuchr iceasy ouwant !

2.HastyTasty–I nDar
jeel
i
ngIateatHastyTastyanumberoftimes,mostl
y
becuaseit’
sinagoodlocati
onandit
’sconvenientt
oeatther
e.Theirf
ood,
whichisallveget
ari
anandincl
udedbot
hIndianandChinese,i
salr
ight,
butnot
thebest.Themasaladosawasdecentandt heyhavebot
hanor t
handsouth
I
ndianthali
.

3.KaldenCafeandRest aurant(ChowrastaSquare–t hendownt hel

anepast
theponystables)–Speciali
zinginTibet
anf astf
ood,y ou’
llf
indmomo
dumpl i
ngs,f
ri
edchowmei nnoodles,cur
ry,andri
ce.Ther estaur
anti
scosy,
verysmall,
andt hefoodisdecent(thoughnotnearlyasgoodasSi ngal
il
a).I
hadv egmomos( 24INR),fi
shcurryandrice(55INR).

4.Glenary’
sBakery–Ni celysit
uatedont hewalki
ngr oadheadingupt othe
Chowr astasquareist
hef amousGl enary
’sBakery.Theyhav eallsor
tsof
bakedgoodandsweet saswel lasafullmenuofsandwi ches.Iparti
cular
ly
l
ikedthebut t
erchi
ckenroll(40INR),t
hechocolatecake, andthechicken
sandwi ch(80INR)
.InI
ndiat hi
ngsdon’topenear l
y,soit’
snicethatGlenary’
s
opensat6am.Iwentnear l
yeverymor ni
ngtouset heirwi-f
iearl
yinthe
mor ningbef oret hemai nbr eakf astr ush.
Adv ent ur eSpor tsI nDar j
eeling
Dar jeeling- RangeetVal leyRopewayi nDar jeel i
ng
Auni quewayt ogetapanor ami cv iewoft hev al l
eyi st or idet heDar jeeling-
RangeetVal leyRopeway ,bel i
evedt obet hel ongestandhi ghestr opewayr ide
i
nAsi a.Itiscl oset o4, 260met resl ongandwi l
l fl
yy ouov erl ushv erdant
val ley s
foranawe- i
nspi ringex perience.Fr om ahei ghtof7, 000f eet( inDar jeeling),
thisr opewaydescendsdownt oamer e800f eetandcancar r
y6peopl eata
time.
Whi teWat erRaf ting
Whi tewat err af t
ingont heTeest aandRangeetr i
versi sbestav oidedbyt he
faint -hear ted.Easygoer scanenj oyaser ener i
v ert r
ipal ongt hequi etersi deof
thebanks.Ther out ef ort heday -l
ongr aftingexpedi tioni sDi kchut oTeest a
Br idge, Di kchuandKal i Johr a,Bor dangandMel li
.
Dar jeelingPar agl iding
Dar jeelingPar agl idingi soneoft hemostt hrill
i
ngadv ent ur eact ivitiest haty ou
cani ndul gei n.Oneoft her ecentaddi ti
onst onumer ousadv entur espor tsin
Indi a, par agl i
di ngmakest hatdr eam ofsoar i
nghi ghi nt heskycomet r
ue.
Ther e
ar et wor outesf ort hegl i
dei nDar j
eel ing, onef r om Sai ntPaul st oLebongand
ot herf rom Tukv arTeaGar dent oJaumney .Thef l
y i
ngt ri
pr angesf rom 10t o
30
mi nut es, dependi ngont hewi ndcondi t
ions.
Whi leopt i
ngf orSai ntPaul st oLebongr out e, youwi l
l startf rom t hehi ghest
ridgei nDar j
eel ing, glidingacr osst hemai nt ownandl andi ngi nthepubl ic
gr ound.Ont heot herhand, theTukv arTeaGar dent oJaumneyt ripst art sfrom
ahi lltopoft heTeaGar den.Dur ingt hef light ,youcanenj oyabi rd’sey ev iewof
thev astexpanseoft eagar densal ongwi thgushi ngwhi t
er iver.Whatmakes
thisauni queexper iencei swat chbi rdsf lyingnextt oy ouwhi l
er isingupi nt he
l
imi tlesssky .Toal l
owt ouristst oexper iencet hatadr enal iner ush, tandem
par agl i
di ngi sof f eredbyar enownedadv ent urecompanyi nDar j
eel ing.I nthi s,
anexper iencedandcer t i
fi
edpi lotbr iefsy ouaboutt het ri
pandgi v essome
saf et yl essonsal ongwi thinst r
uct i
onst hatshoul dbest rictlyf oll
owed.
Ther eaf ter ,youj usthav et ohol dont ightt ot hegl iderast het echni cali
tiesl ike
pilot ingt hef lighti sal l handl edbyt hepr of essional whowi l
l accompanyy ou.
Theequi pmentusedi nt hisact i
v i
tyi squi tel ight ,
easyt ouseandsaf e,soy ou
don’ thav et owor ryabouty oursaf et y .Cer taincr i
terianeedt of ulfil
ledf or
i
ndul gingi nt hisact ivit
y ,li
ket heper sonshoul dbephy sical lyf i
t(noheal th
i
ssues)andwei ghar ound45–85kg.Apl uspoi ntoft hisact ivi
tyi st hati t’
s
easy
tol ear nandar elat ivelyi nexpensi v
eadv ent urespor ts.
Ent r anceFee
Rs.3000perper son( di scountf orl ocal s)