Cities
Cities boggle, baffle, bluster, overwhelm, intimidate. Yet they are also dynamic, vibrant and above all, inclusive. Holding out hope to the millions who throng to them from everywhere, never turning anyone away, cities offer refuge and the promise of a better life. Like alchemists, they can turn adversity into advantage, blend diversity with tolerance and create a singular identity for themselves, a colourful mosaic held together by common purpose and integrity.
Each city is unique, despite the sameness of the malls and multiplexes and the standardisation of clothes and cars. In these pages, you will investigate what makes each city tick. There are too many of them to enumerate here, but if you’re a city buff, hop on and hop off. That’s the best way to experience a city.
Almaty, Picturesque & Cool (2013) - Almaty is the charming and mountainous former capital of Kazakhstan. The capital has now moved to a very swanky and ghostly Astana built with oil wealth. Set in the foothills of the trans-Altau mountaints, Almaty enjoys a cool climate all the year round. I was…
Antananrivo – Cobbled & Confusing (2019) - Antananrivo is a tongue-twister no doubt, and means ‘city of a thousand warriors’ but most shorten it to Tana. The Malagasy, of course, are mind-twisters: they defy slotting – they could be negroid, Indonesian, Malaysian, Indian or even European. My travel company has sent me…
Astana, Pompous & Ghostly (2013) - Astana reeks of new money – from oil. Yes, Kazakhstan has recently come into huge oil wealth and what does it do with it? Build a swanky new capital in the middle of the steppe far from everywhere. Its gleaming steel and chrome structures and…
Athens, The Contemporary Scene (2008) - If you visit Athens wide-eyed about modern Greeks with the genes of Socrates, Aristotle or Plato, you might come back a bit disappointed. Like Indians, modern day Greeks have to bear the burden of history and the expectations that arise from it. The Greek economy…
Beijing, Bundle of Contradictions (multiple visits since 2000) - The attractive attendant at the travel desk at Jinlung Hotel in Beijing smiles approvingly when you ask to hire a bicycle. After all, she knows it is the best way to get the real flavour of this sprawling city of wide, straight avenues and…
Berlin – Out of the Chrysalis (Many Times) - My first visit to Berlin was in 1981 at the height of the Cold War. Back then, we were travelling by train all the way from Paris to Moscow, stopping in Bonn, West Berlin and Warsaw along the way. Truncated and traumatised, Berlin had already…
Bishkek, Garden City of Kirghizia (2003,2013) - Bishkek is one of those featureless, relaxed cities with spaced-out Soviet-era buildings unleavened by ugly malls that have sprouted elsewhere in Central Asia. The sprawling gardens and the excellent weather are ideal for unwinding. But if you want a piece of action, head to the…
Budapest – Defined by the Danube (2011) - The enduring image of Budapest, the capital of Hungary, is the river that splices and nourishes the city perched on its banks. By day, a drive up the funicular to the top of Buda Hill offers a panoramic view of the city sprawled on the…
Cairo, Parsing the Past (2008) - Soon after we returned from the family trip through Egypt, I published a few stories on its historic sites. But the one story I wanted to write on Cairo was on its Coptic legacy. I wandered through Coptic Cairo, admiring its many splendid churches, photographing…
Canberra – Sandwiched Sarkari City (2007) - Sandwiched between two glamour queens – Sydney and Melbourne, Canberra seldom evokes interest in the traveller. Neatly laid out streets, predictably disciplined locals, Canberra offers little for the visitor except a stunning museum of aboriginal arts.
Casa Blanca – Going Through Identity Crisis (2006) - FOR those of us on the wrong side of fifty, the mention of Casablanca brings alive black and white images of that electrifying pair – Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, exquisite in their 1940s outfits. But don’t go to Casablanca with stars in your eyes…
Chengdu, China’s Panda City (2014) - Chengdu is, in some senses, the very antithesis of Sichuan, the beautiful mountain province in Southern China abutting Tibet. It is too modern a city, full of gleaming malls, but just peek behind the glitter, there are ancient temples – Tao as well as Buddhist…
Chicago, The City of Spires (2010) - Gazing in wonderment at traffic speeding at 1450 feet below my own two feet makes me dizzy. Is this what they mean when they talk of reaching dizzying heights? I am in what they call ‘skybox’ sticking out of the side of the 108th floor…
Colombo, Peaceful At Last! (Many times) - I have had many dates with Colombo through the years. The first was in 2003 to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. Our dear friends in Colombo, Nishantha and his wife Prasansa hosted us and arranged for us to tour the island. Since then, I have…
Cusco – Inca Splendour (2009) - The little girl selling alpaca scarves and painted calabashes is insistent that I buy at least one. She does not know I am good at fobbing off persuasive salespersons. But she has tricks up her sleeve. She asks me where I am from. India? She…
Dar-es-Salaam, Maid of the Savannah (2014) - Dar-es-Salaam is besotted with Kilimanjaro, Africa’s tallest peak which is in a town called Arusha in the north of the country. The hotel I stayed in was called Kilimanjaro, the taxi company that ferried me around was Kilimanjaro, the soft drinks served were called Kilimanjaro…
Derry – Free of Prefix (2012) - It took just one little word to salve our wound, aye sir, that’s what it takes to heal,” says Martin McPherson, our tour guide, his voice choking with emotion. We are standing on the ramparts of the city walls overlooking the Bogside, the…
Dhaka – Vibrant & Vocal (1983,2003,2013) - There was a time when we used to live in Agartala on the border with Bangladesh and crossed over a few times, once going upto Dhaka by road. In 2003, I attended a week-long regulatory workshop in Dhaka and was escorted by my dear friend…
Dublin -Wilde Country (2012) - He is stretched out on a rock, his lips curled in a characteristic sardonic smile. His wisecracks are strewn like graffiti all over the rock as though he had just scattered them. Oscar Wilde reclines languorously under a verdant canopy, undiminished by age and untarnished…
Dushanbe – Spring of Central Asia (2014) - I accepted the invitation to speak in a conference in Dushanbe with alacrity. I thought I could use the visit to drive on the Pamir Highway, something I missed on two earlier visits to Kyrgyz Republic. I wanted to travel from Murghab to Osh or…
Geneva, Vault of the Wealthy (1980, 2005) - I spent six weeks in Geneva in 1980 when my husband was on duty at the UN offices. I used this time to wander around, even learnt roller-skating on the banks of the lake (I was young then ) and checked out every attraction including…
Gold Coast – All That Glitters (2016) - Gold Coast glitters, true to its name. Sandwiched between Cairns, the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and Brisbane, the capital of Queensland it needs to find a purpose. The town, laid out on its gorgeous shores, is a skyscraper city full of casinos and…
Hochi Minh City, Vibrant & Asian (2007) - Scores of scooter-borne Santa Clauses wove nonchalantly through chaotic traffic. Floating markets sold plastic pots, flowers and fruit to customers in houses that also miraculously floated on the Mekong river. Disembowelled and dried snakes hung from hooks while live specimens eyed us warily from glass…
Iran, ever a surprise (many times) - As I make my way out of the terminal at Khomeini airport in Tehran, I am startled to see two placards bearing my name. One is held by a stylishly veiled lady who holds it discreetly near her waist while the other is held aloft…
Istanbul, Straddling Two Continents (2007) - The plane tilts alarmingly to the side preparatory to landing at Ataturk International Airport. I gasp at the twinkling lights of Istanbul as they seem to rush towards me. The Bosphorus is ablaze with a zillion lights shimmering through a miasma – probably of suspended…
Kazan, A Slice of Kancheepuram and Kalakshetra - Kazan, a day’s drive from Moscow, is a delightfully different Russian town with a distinct Tatar flavour. Tatars come from diverse ethnic backgrounds, but trace their origins to the Bulgars an ethnic group that inhabited this part of the Volga in the 9th century. The…
Lhasa, Serene No Longer (2014) - Our small plane takes a sharp turn to the left, dodging the towering massifs that line up to form an amphitheatre and eases itself neatly into a narrow gap to begin its descent into the Lhasa valley. For the better part of the last five…
London, Losing Lustre (1980-83, 2010) - We lived in London from 1980 to 1982. I am not posting those pics here since this website begins in this century. A few stray photos taken during a recent work-related visit. This time, I felt London was losing its lustre or maybe I have…
Madrid, Gothic Grandeur (2006) - Madrid was our pitstop as my friend Rekha and I traipsed all over Spain and Portugal in 2006. We spent quite a bit of our time in Prado, admiring the various masters. In fact, museum-hopping is my favourite pastime in most cities. Guernica dazzled.
Marrakech & Fes – Patchwork Quilt (2006) - The Rock of Gibralter wore a shroud of midday haze. From my perch on the foredeck of the Comarit ferry, I could just about spot phantom white columns shimmering at a distance. As the ship did a complete U-turn and cruised closer to the rock,…
Melbourne, Mellow & Moody (2007, 2015) - There has been intense rivalry between Sydneysiders and Melbournians over the prized tag of the most livable Australian city. While officially, Melbourne has been conferred the coveted title, my personal preference is for Sydney, where I have spent extended stays upto six months. Melbourne, in…
Merry Melaka (2022) - Melaka, sitting astride the busy Malacca Straits is a quaint little town that fancies itself as the Venice of Asia. It has the Melaka river (more a canal) running through the town. Kitschy bridges criss-cross the canal while the dilapidated houses on its banks have…
Moscow – Catching Up (1981, 2003, 2006) - My first visit to Moscow was in 1981 at the height of the cold war. I accompanied my husband on his official trip and stayed in Moscow for five weeks. We stayed in the grand Hotel Russia for about a week and afterwards,rented an apartment…
Munich, Bavarian Brew (2010) - Oktoberfest in Munich is an unmitigated, but not altogether unpleasant assault on all your senses – visual, auditory, tactile, gustatory and olfactory. Of course, everyone present, including yourself, is both perpetrator and victim. During the fest, Munich, in the evenings, is a visual delight with…
Okhlahoma City – Rigs & Rodeos (2009) - When you’re working in the petroleum industry, you will, willy nilly, find yourself in Texas, Okhlahoma City, Rotterdam, Tehran, Beijing and Singapore, at some point in your career. If you’re a man, you’d probably land up in Riyadh and Ras Tanura on the Red Sea…
Paris – On a Bike (multiple times since 1981) - Napoleon, perched nonchalantly on top of the 135-foot column at Place Vendome, appears to be mocking me as I try to balance precariously on a three-foot high bicycle right under his nose. After all, I hadn’t ridden a bicycle in over a quarter of a…
Pokhara – Plunging Lakes and Towering Peaks - Pokhara dissuades all but the inveterate trekker or the masochistic traveller who does not balk at a 12- hour road trip through some of the most clogged, dusty, treacherous roads in Nepal. Of course, you can book a flight from Kathmandu months in advance if…
Prague – Pretty & Preening (2007) - When I check into the elegant Schlosshotel Cicilienhof at Potsdam near Berlin, I have little idea of the historic significance of the location. It is only when I stray into the adjoining wing of the hotel, now converted into a museum, I learn that this…
Pretty Porto (2023) - Porto, another UNESCO World Heritage site in a planet crowded with such sites, is a coastal city in northwest Portugal known for its stately bridges and port wine production. Cobbled and sloping narrow streets lined with colourful homes and ornamental windows face the river and…
Quito – Sniffed & Frisked (2013) - “You have been selected,” gushes the breathless airline attendant in her charming Spanish-accented English as I approach the boarding gate. Her English vocabulary exhausted, she then lapses into Spanish. I am mystified but also flattered about having been chosen for whatever it is. Visions of…
Ramallah, Fighting for Survival (2010) - The barbed wire fence is never out of sight. It is no more than a few meters away almost wherever you go in this town of blocked roads and spiked gates. In some patches, the spiky wire is draped around a reinforced steel and…
Seattle, Sentinel of the Pacific (2010) - Seattle was sultry and sunny. Hubby and I were there only for two days and had to cram everything into such a short visit. The best way to do it is to join a tour group which I would never do normally. Here we were,…
Singapore (multiple times) - I have visited Singapore several times, because of a family connection as well as on account of it being on the cross-roads to many Asian destinations. While the city is neatly-laid out, squeaky clean (even grass does not grow without government permission in this city-state),…
St.Petersburg – Splendid & Stunning (1981, 2007) - THE very mention of Russia evokes that single unmistakable imagery – of the strikingly coloured and stunningly patterned `onion’ domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow’s Red Square. Virtually every news report from Moscow is telecast against the backdrop of this brilliant edifice, making it…
Sydney – Sultry & Sizzling (multiple times) - The top of Sydney Harbour Bridge is an excellent spot to get a panoramic view of this bustling Australian city. But I am somewhat amused when my tour guide hands me a certificate vouching for my having successfully climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Frankly, I…
Tbilisi, Queen of the Caucuses (2006) - Tbilisi is one of those silent, serene, and graceful cities, picturesque against a backdrop of the gentle Caucuses. Georgian architecture is unique and understated. The city is sprinkled with cathedrals and churches of the Eastern Orthodox faith. Its cobble-stoned old town with its ups and…
Tehran – Bristling & Bustling & Ever a Surprise (Many Times) - As I make my way out of the terminal at Khomeini airport in Tehran, I am startled to see two placards bearing my name. One is held by a stylishly veiled lady who holds it discreetly near her waist while the other is held aloft…
Tokyo – Quintessentially Asian (2013) - Not only does the ATM promptly spit out my perfectly valid global cash card, but to add insult to injury, on the ATM screen, two comic figures—a boy and a girl— nod and bow their heads in commiseration. Try the machine a second time, and…
Vancouver – Verdant & Winsome (2010) - As our ferry from Victoria, an idyllic town in Vancouver Island just across the bay, glides unhurriedly towards Canada’s mainland, thickly forested islands, with occasional smoking chimneys peering out of the foliage, line up on both sides. This seems quintessential Pacific Northwest, untamed and unharmed…
Windhoek – Expansive & Elegant (2022) - Like Delhi, Windhoek is perched on the edge of the desert, but unlike Delhi, there’s no alluvial river to fertilize it, nor is there abundant vegetation to clothe it. To me, Windhoek appeared like a disrobed town, fair, clean and orderly in its nakedness. The…
Yangon -Spell of Shwe Dagon (2005) - Visiting Yangon is like emerging from a time machine into a sepia-tinted, dreamy, misty town where overloaded ancient buses with beaked bonnets and pump horns share road space with bullock carts, chickens, and Buddhist nuns in single file seeking alms. Unmindful of the chaos on…