Apun ka dost Circuit from Denmark has tagged me to pick three destinations from the (unofficial) list of the new wonders of the world that I would like to visit, and also list the ones I have visited so far.
Wonders I have visited
The Statue of Liberty
I still remember how cold and windy it was on the day I went to see the statue of Liberty. It was in May last year. I'd gone to see the newborn baby Aish. My hands were numb with the cold as I took this picture. I was so amazed to find out that the statue wasn't originally green, but got its colour over the years due to oxidation. More pictures here.
The Angkor Wat
It was one of the best holidays of my life. I may not have climbed the Everest, but I am proud to proclaim that I, with a bunch of other nutcases, have climbed the Angkor Wat. Without any climbing equipment except my bare hands. Here's a picture my friend took of me just outside the Wat. More here.
Wonders I would like to visit
The Pyramids at Giza
Image courtesy: http://www.hotelmanagement-network.com
Once when I was all of six, my sister was reading 'Target' (the hottest children's magazine in those days), and burst out laughing. "This joke is so funny!" She said and read it out to me.
I gave her my classic 'what-is-so-funny-about-it' look. Years later, I came across the joke and laughed my ass off. We were learning about Egypt in History at school then, and I was fascinated with the world of ancient Egyptians, the pharaohs, pyramids, mummies, and the fascinating hairstyles of Egyptian queens. Egypt is definitely amongst the top of my to-see list.
The Great Wall of China
Image courtesy: http://www.hci-international.org
A man-made structure that's visible from the moon! Actually, it'd be kinda cool to see it from the moon, but errm... I think China is closer and cheaper to travel to.
And last but not the least... *drumroll*
The Taj Mahal
Image courtesy: http://saanga_blogger.home.comcast.net
*gulp*
I'm ashamed to say that I have not visited the Taj.
*gulp*
*takes her hypothetical rolled up newspaper and thwacks her head with it*
Actually, I don't want to visit it because it's supposed to be "romantic" and stuff. I don't really find cutting off the arms of the labourers who built your gift to your dead wife romantic at all (if the story is true). I want to visit it because it's one of the things that I have seen pictures of in random places, but I've not seen the real thing. It annoys me to see it being used by random blokes whenever they want to throw in a dash of India - in restaurants, shops, tea packets, matchboxes and what not. I want to take my hypothetical rolled-up newspaper and thwack some other heads, muttering the words, "India not equal to Taj Mahal. India not equal to elephant. India not equal to Kathakali mask." Sheesh.
Inshallah I will visit the Taj very soon. I want to see the real thing before acid rain turns it completely grey. Amazing how natural factors can beautify the statue of Liberty, but ugly-fy our Taj. Even the chemicals in the air are partial to Americans, sheesh!
Speaking of the Taj, there are in fact, a lot of places in India I want to see, prominent among which are Jaipur (I'm trying to bribe a friend to get married in Jaipur so I can visit it. I'm least bothered about whom he ends up marrying, as long as the venue is Jaipur), the northeastern states (I've been fascinated with them since primary school Geography when we had to mug up the capitals of Assam, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim, Meghalaya and what not), Kerala (to take a raft out on the backwaters, live in a tree-house and visit the clifftop bar somewhere in Kerala that a friend of mine described to me). And oh, Ladakh and Kashmir (sigh!). Oh man, there are way too many places to see in India itself!
("If you ain't seen India, you ain't seen nuthin' yet.")
31 comments:
GOLD!!!!!!!!!!!!
I dont believe this!!!
:)
Cheeku
And now my comments!
- hmm... i too wanna see all those places u mentioned and more... donno when though!
- i jus remembered this little talk between me n my friend... we were talking abt places we wanna visit some time during our life... while i was listing all beautiful places, her list was something like this: "Amazon forest and hold anaconda in my hands! Sahara Dessert! Antartica!!!"
- and Bhai, maybe someday u n Viv must visit the Taj! u were wondering 'can any "romantic" talk happen between now-married-best-friends', well, maybe the TAJ will make tat happen ;)
:D
Cheeku
Official silver! :D
Oh, I know about that green-coloured thingie of Liberty! It's amazing, isn't it? I've seen so many scuptures and statues here too which weren't originally green. Wonder if they can undo the oxidation process...*science dumbass*.
By the way, you know WHAT? There's this whole branch of study on Egypt called Egyptology! I've never missed a single show on Discovery Channel about ancient Egypt...and that's how I came to know that there are actually gazillions of people who study about it all for a full degree! Cool, isn't it? :D Someday, when, I finish my studies, I'll go back to college to study Egyptology. *Navs ke sunehre sapne*
And by the way, do you also get weird stares from people when you tell them that you're Indian but you've never been to Taj Mahal? Stupid Frenchies look at me as if I'm a loser not to have visited that place! Hmph.
//Even the chemicals in the air are partial to Americans, sheesh!// Hehehehe, that's okay. Wisdom and intelligence favour us. :P
Oh, and I've been to Ladakh and Kashmir! Mwahahahaha! Thenga!
And here's a thenga to TGFI too.
Hurrah! *sobers up before Sash gets her tested for dope* :P
Kya bhai!!! Dil jigar gurda phephada sab khush kar diya tune
U havent seen Taj Mahal... TAJ MAHAL... T-A-J M-A-H-A-L.
Haath milao.. apun ne bhi nahi dekha.. hahahahaha
And Grt Wall of China pe kya karegi jaake??
woh tumko china se bahar rakhne ke liyeich banayela hain :P :P
u "least bother" about who he marries? sheesh - some friend u r!
Toot and come in!
still LOLing =))
And me visited the Taj...yippeee!!! :D
Of the latest one's I sure wud love to visit the Cristo Redentor...Awesome structure that is!
You haven't seen the Taj????
*walks up to Bhai, calmly snatches hypothetical rolled-up newspaper from her, thwacks her one on the head and gives the paper back*
Well, tension nahi lene ka bhai - the key word is 'hypothetical' ;-)
But you MUST visit the Taj when u get the chance (better yet - create the opportunity, as it's well worth it). I remember my first ever time, I was simply blown away by the sheer SIZE of the monument. To give u an idea - take a careful look at the pic u have posted - there are a series of black ant-like creatures along the marble base - those are people! Also, any tour guide worth his salt can point out the architectural nuances (and there are gazillions of such examples), but a great way to take in the Taj is to simply soak it in. And though the Taj is beautiful by day, it is simply brilliant by dusk - the last 45 mins of the day as the sun goes down are the best time to watch, as the marble goes from white, to grey, to blue, to gold, to pink - and then in the dark it seems to float like a pale ghost in the distance. This is probably the most photographed wonder of the world, but no picture can do justice to seeing it in the flesh! Please to go!
Hey Sayesha,
I would like to know more about the kitchen you volunteer for on certain Sundays (not sure if you still do it). Can you please send me your email address, I have a few quick questions about the place. If they have a website that you can give me that would be great as well. My email address is kroopashah(at)gmail(dot)com
Thanks
Wow. Thats quite a list of places you have visited. I am SO green with envy now.
Been trying to coax people into joining me for a trip to Italy but none willing [:-(]. Would YOU consider?
-PeAcE
--WiTh
---GuNs
Actuall great wall is NOT visible from the moon (http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_092.html "Basically it looks like a big blue marble. No man-made detail can be seen at all; sometimes even the continents are barely distinguishable.") :). Btw how can you forget Machu Picchu. I would visit Machu Picchu just for its cool name :)). I voted for it because of that :)). Btw have you ever wondered that great wall is just a copy paste of one wall section over 6400 kms......seems more like the programs i write..
Sigh.. now you have guilted me into doing the tag and not procrastinate any longer..
Aur Taj ko Poonam ki raat mein dekhna. Subhan allah!
Are bhai apun ne bhi India main reh kar bhi kuch nahin dekha hai. Hota hai. Par meer paap kat rah ehain aj kal. I have shifted to Delhi last fortnight and from the sixth floor balcony of my hostel I get to see the Qutab Minar every day and every time. When there are clouds in the sky the tower looks great. Shuru to hue paap dhulne par pata nahin kitne din lagenege.
Aaaah, you are so going to get attacked for not seing the Taj:p even I've seen it!:o But before I get attacked to be honest, I saw the Taj and a few days later I went to Jaipur and I really liked the fort there a lot more than the Taj....it seemed a whole lot more magnificient! But all in all the Taj had something.
>> Kerala (to take a raft out on the backwaters, live in a tree-house and visit the clifftop bar somewhere in Kerala that a friend of mine described to me)
Hey where's this bar? Haven't been there myself :$
Hawwwwwww - you have not... I mean...really? Never? Went all the way to NYC...and not... I mean...hawwwwww Sash! Hawwwwwwww!!!!
heh! Bhai not seen Taj?? :0 :0 :0
i'd lik to join qsg n say hawwwwwwwww bhai hawwwwwwwww!
heheh..i had gone to taj wen i was veryyyyy young n dat day was propbably the hottest day on earth.. :S cudnt enjoy any 'beauty' of the place bcoz of the hot marbles.. *sniffs* i wanna go again!! [n this tym maybe i'll understand wat ppl found romantic bout the spot ;)]
"India nahin dekha toh GHANTA duniya dekha!"
You said it! And how about Eiffel Tower, dont wanna see that? :)
No, no, Sash, don't take T's advice. Eiffel Tower sucks. If you come to Paris and ask me to take you there, I'll throw you down from the second level. (It's not possible to throw people from the third- and the last - one. Heh.) :P
just updating facts, china wall is not visible from the moon: http://www.todaysengineer.org/2004/May/myths.asp
N, if u dont like the idea of workers' hands being cut off, i think you would be surprised at the number of human bones you can get from under the china wall, bones that were once workers who built it (this is courtesy of the Discovery channel).
Apart from that, nice post. Cool choices. I also wish to visit the Aztec and Incan ruins, the eskimo land, and may be ayer's rock. I wish.
Hey may be you can convince Viv to take you to the tanjore temple when you visit india. a classic.
ROFLLLL Navs. If I ever come to Paris, i'll meet you after I've seen the ET, really :P
Sash bhai, even I wanna see all of them but hey, I've seen Taj Mahal. Was in school then, with family. Had taken lotsa pics then. Still have them in mind :D
But I really really reallllllly wanna see Kashmir & Ladakh. Ok, Goa cancelled, next time you're her, we'll go Vaishnodevi & then Kashmir. Kab aa rahe ho?
I havent been to the Taj Mahal either. I really dont know and dont wanna know whether the hand cutting part of the story is true though :-/ But they must have been talented artists! One mistake in carving and the marble is wasted! I heard the carvings are supposed to be beautiful :)
I wanna go to jaipur too! But more than that, i wanna go to the himalayas in the north eastern states. And throw in Himachal Pradesh too! well... actually, ALL of north india. I am pretty well versed with the south indian destinations though. We used to just take the car out and go on week long road trips during my school vacations! :D
Oh!! An interesting tag!!
I am gonna do this tag! After all, travelling around is one of my favourite activities :D
hey u shud definitely see the Taj.. no matter how many pics u hv seen, nothing beats the real one! its breath-takingly beautiful... n Sikkim is an awesome place too.. n when u go near the border patrol at roughly around 20,000 feet above sea level, u can even get a peek at where the wall of China ends..
Great tag re!
aur apna Bar koi ajoobe se kam hai!huh! :P
Gosh, the wonders have been on my mind! I would love to visit the ruins....Machu Picchu (sp) in Peru, and yes, the Pyramids for sure...and this ancient Mayan city in Mexico. It's just really fascinating to me to visit places where people lived eons ago.
Yeah, India itself has so many places to visit yaar. Do visit the Taj..don't think you'd be disappointed. I will be going to B'lore soon, and I plan to do some sight-seeing, as much as I can fit in in those 10 days! :-)
(PS: India visit after 10 yrs! I can't wait to get there.)
unlike most here ... i liked the eiffel more than the taj (no! .. plz dnt whack me on the head :s)
and yeah machupichu, pyramids and the great wall sure r a must-see
#Cheeku,
HOLD Anaconda?? :O :O :O
We'll see what the Taj does! :)
#The Girl who sold the world,
I'm not surprised! That country has tons to study about! But then so does India, there should be a branch called Indialogy! :/
#Lalit Singh,
Hahahahahahahaha! Khud toh dekha nahin, aur baat karta hai! :D
#Sahil,
Yeah! He didn't wanna marry the girl I recommended, so now he can go marry a guy for all I care! :)
#Bivas,
:D
#Anand,
Dude, you think it's so easy to snatch Bhai's hypothetical newspaper, huh? You'll be history before you even touch it, kya? :D
And yes, I totally want to see the Taj in the evening! :)
#Kroopa,
Sent you an email about it, no reply from you?
#GuNs,
Italy?? Yessss! Will you sponsor? :O
#VR,
//Actuall great wall is NOT visible from the moon
Ufff... there comes along the geek to ruin my joy! Ufff! Haha, doesn't matter where it's visible from, I still wanna go there! :)
//Btw have you ever wondered that great wall is just a copy paste of one wall section over 6400 kms......seems more like the programs i write..
Ufff... there comes along the geek to ruin my joy! :P
#Sakshi,
Zaroor dekhenge ek din, inshallah!
#Ritu Raj,
Hahahaha! Tame lagega lekin kaam ho jayega! :D
#Duhita,
Yeah I'm really excited about Jaipur! :)
#Lehmunade,
Will tell ya after I get back from there! ;)
#QSG,
//Hawwwwwww - you have not... I mean...really? Never? Went all the way to NYC...and not...
Hainnn? Taj NYC mein kab shift ho gaya???
#Tejal,
I heard that people sell cloth chappals outside the Taj for days like the one you described! :P
#T,
Naah, I don't understand the Eiffel Tower craze! :)
#World Gal,
Hahahahahahaha! If I go to Paris, it will only be to see one wonder of the world - YOU! :D
#Johnny,
But did the Great Wall workers die from natural causes or were they killed?
Tanjore temple? Hmmm... I'm not really a temple person... only liked the Birla temple in Hyderabad :)
#Rebellion,
How does this year sound for Goa??
#Macho Girl,
Himalayas! Wow! Yeah I'd like to get as close to Kashmir as possible without dying :)
#Pizzadude,
Oh yeah, you should totally do it! :)
#Jade,
Hehehe... yeah! :)
#Creepa,
Muahahahaha! :D
#Harshi,
Wow! Enjoy your trip!! Eats loads of pani puri on my behalf okay?? :P
#Mythalez,
*THWACK*
Muahahahahaha! :D
I've been trying to egg on the Guy from Jaipur too, but it feels kinda bad when you hafta do it in person! :p
I could if I was rich. YOU are the editor - cant you edit some bank notes?
ROTFL knowing how much you hate "Editor" jokes.
I can sponsor dinner though.
-PeAcE
--WiTh
---GuNs
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