I just applied for leave to go to Puri. We start on 12th July, Tuesday and come back on 16th July, Saturday. We plan to spend a night in Konarak this time. I love the Konarak temple for its architecture and beauty but have never stayed there. This time I want to. As an added bonus the scaffolding around the main temple is now gone and one gets good clear view of the temple. I have been seeing the scaffolding for ages. Literally it has been there for I guess more than 25 years. God only knows what repair work takes so long.
In Puri we will be staying at the office guest house operated by Joy Dasgupta. I have already booked it informally. As a day trip we plan to go to Satapada one day. Apart from that Sargadwar is the all time favourite hang out for Bengalis. Our guest house is a bit off the main city. So for the local travel we use the auto. I have always done that.
July 19, 2022
The Puri trip (a total of 1200 km round trip) went off pretty well and we are back. We went on a Tuesday and came back Saturday. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we stayed in Puri with a day trip to Satapada. Friday we went to Konark and came back to Calcutta on Saturday. Both the trips took us exactly nine hours of non-stop driving. We did not need to stop anywhere for lunch or breakfast.
There is nothing much to write about a family trip to Puri really. Any average Bengali has been there umpteen number of times. But this was my first self drive since the new 4-lane road from Bhubaneswar opened to the public a few years ago. Finding the exit was not a problem at all. The point is quite well marked. But entering the town was a bit of a challenge as we were not allowed to enter through the normal entry points by the local traffic police. They said there is a terrible jam in the town (this was just a week after the Ratha Jatra) and we were directed towards the marine drive. This is a new 4-laned road that ends in the sea ahead of the Swargadwar. So we turned left from the beach and soon discovered the well known Swargadwar. From there our guest house is a matter of two kilometers or so.
Joy Dasgupta, the guy who maintains our guest house, had to send a boy to show us the entry lane to the guest house. I waited on the main road. I forgot the local landmark of Ramkrishna Math which is inside this lane. I couldn't locate the exact lane. There are a few parallel ones. My vehicle did not look like is small enough to enter through the gate of the guest house. So I kept it parked on the lane outside the GH, which was fine.
The Exide Guest House
I quite like this old building of ours. It does not belong to Exide but to a Bengali family in Calcutta - their name can be seen on the tablet on the sea facing outer wall - but I think Joy has taken it on lease or rent from them and has rented it out to us or something like that. It is right on the beach and located on Chakra Tirtha Road which is a little off the main Swargadwar area. Earlier we had a straight view and access to the sea from the house. Now it seems there is a small plot of land in front of it towards the beach which is walled off. So our straight access to the beach is kind of blocked but the view is fine. Indeed there are a few ugly plastic roofed shacks that have come up in the recent past on the beach which spoil the view. If and when another building comes up on that plot of vacant land, the guest house will possibly lose its charm. But given the current situation of the tourism industry I doubt it will happen any time soon.
The building, on a high plinth and with a court yard inside with the main kitchen and servants' quarter away from the main house reminds me of our house in Deoghar. It has a few other similarities to our Deoghar house that I cannot pin point. It has wooden beams in the ceiling holding the roof. The Deoghar house a different kind of ceiling. But the high ceiling, the abundance of natural light and wind gives it a similar look and feel.
I think the forlorn look of the house, standing alone adds to its appeal to me. This is what was unique about our Deoghar house. Also, I guess the state of mind - being on a holiday - is similar and both the houses would always be exclusively for us only. It's not a hotel that you share with hundreds of strangers.
I regret that I will not be able to go and stay here any more as I retire in September this year. It will remain as a happy memory. I once stayed here with my in-laws and Mampu and them had a whale of a time together.
In the GH Monisha and I took one of the large rooms with AC on the left hand side, while Mampu took the other one on the right hand side. There are two more smaller rooms without AC. And of course there is this large sitting area overlooking the sea and a dining space. It's nice if you come with a few friends.
Cooking is in the hands of the resident cook Raju who brings in the ration and cooks as per your order. He cooked a delicious daab chingri - prawn in tender coconut and a wonderful caramel pudding. Bebu loved both these dishes no end.
Chung Wah in Puri
On the second day we went to lunch at the relatively recently opened Chinese joint called Chung Wah. It's a delightfully authentic Chinese owned place. The decor is also very authentic including the Chinese owners at the counter. Apparently they are from Cuttack and have recently opened this outlet in Puri. Given the kind of Bengali tourists who come to Puri, I am sure this Chung Wah will do quite well.
In my excitement to discover the new place (originally recommended by Monisha's colleague Navojit) I forgot to ask the owners if they have any connection with the Chung Wah of Calcutta, which is a heritage Chinese restaurant of Calcutta. I wonder what the name means in Cantonese.
I cannot remember what we ate there. I think there was a soup which was ordinary and there were noodles which wasn't so bad. There also was a chilli chicken which wasn't so great. They were more meat balls, rather than flat pieces and they were certainly not hot. I think the total bill came to less than Rs 2000, which isn't so expensive by Indian standards but not cheap either.
Mampu, who claims to not like Chinese didn't mind the food. I think what she means is she doesn't like the Chinese Chinese food but is fine with the Indian Chinese food. I wonder where she tasted Chinese Chinese food to have an opinion on it.
We loved the decor and the fact that there is such a restaurant in Puri, which is largely known only for its chhana pora and goja.
The restaurant is very prominently located on VIP Road which is very close to Chakra Tirtha Road (illiterate locals may not recognise this name, ask them for CT Road). Although No Parking is written very prominently on the footpath outside the restaurant, their guard directed us to park right under the traffic sign and assured us that nothing would happen. Mine was not the only vehicle parked there. It's a wide road with a central median that divides it into two.
In the evening we went for GH food and gave Wild Grass a miss. Otherwise, this is yet another plush restaurant that has come up in Puri and was highly recommended by Navojit.
Satapada on Self-drive
Here is a link to our round trip driving route as recorded on Calimoto . It was a 113 Km trip.
We call Chilika a lake but it is actually an estuarine lagoon. One of the largest of its kind. It is also now on the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage sites and of course a Ramasar site too. In winter it hosts millions of migratory birds including the elegant flamingoes. But exploring Chilika from Satapada was not so big on my agenda. I just wanted to see the place and understand what is there.
As an average tourist I was quite disappointed by what I saw in Satapada at the end of the drive. It was a damp squib, as they say. On the Google map the place looks so wild with sea on one side, the lake on the other and barely any land in between. But on the ground it looks very different and very ordinary. It could be much better kept and beautified in a wild way (not the typical Indian definition of beautification). As of now, there is no wide open view of the lake or of the sea. Careful planning could add this view for an average tourist.
My intention was to go and see the ferry ghat from where a ferry service runs every day to take you to the other side of the lake (I think Nuapada). The idea is to come cycling here in winter (perhaps from Bhubaneswar which is about 100 Km), take the vessel and cross over to the other side and ride off towards Rambha or Barkul etc. I suppose if one spends the night at the OTDC guest house there, one can catch the first ferry to reach the other side by 9ish latest and then go to Barkul.
As I found it, there is a motorised country boat service also running parallel to the more robust ferry service. I did not ask for its frequency. When I went there it had just docked and several motorcycles were being unloaded. The ferry, I suppose, is used only by larger vehicles like cars, jeeps and trucks etc. It makes four trips either way during the day. In fact we saw a Bolero come with passengers and wait patiently for the ferry to go across.
We had a simple lunch at the Yatri Nivas which took about half an hour to come. The Nivas looks rather spartan but the rates are not. Hotel tariff is really high in India.
Now let me explain the scam.
There is a point on the highway - a bifurcation of sorts - before the final destination where the locals conspire to mislead you. They tell you not to go to the ferry ghat where there is nothing. Someone told us the nearest OTDC guest house is in Barkul etc.
The government run tourist service for boats etc are near the ferry ghat.
About ten kilometers before you reach the place, motorcycle borne touts - essentially unemployed local young boys - accost you, trying to ride side by side, almost crashing into the vehicle in the process. They thrust their visiting cards into your hands from their running bikes and urge you to hire their boat for a pleasure ride in the lake to see dolphins. Touristy outsiders who go to Satapada all go there for dolphins. These are wild Irrawaddy dolphins that are found here and make for quite a tourist draw. In winter of course there are migratory birds galore.
The actual Satapada is where the highway ends. Not anywhere else, no matter who tells you what.
Puri Temple
On the last evening of our Puri stay, that is, the same day that we went to Satapada, the two of us decided to go to the temple. My main intention was to gorge on the chhena pora and rosogollas. Mampu being totally godless chose to stay back at the GH. We hired an auto upto Swargadwar for Rs 100 and walked the rest of the way to the temple which is a kilometer and a half.
Here is a Strava link to the walk recorded on the way back.
But before temple we had 100 gm each of Chhena Pora and a ledikeni near the Swargadwar. I have no idea what they did to my sugar level. Monisha spent a considerable amount of time inside Bayanika, the Orissa government state handloom outlet. She bought a few bed covers and a geen gamchha (Indian towel). The later item was on my insistence. The towel or gamchha looks very very classy but if you are used to a Turkish towel after bath, you cannot use them. They are just no match when it comes to mopping up water from the body. But I loved them for their traditional values. They can be used for special occasions for sure.
The lane from Swargadwar to Puri temple is littered with shops selling traditional sweets like goja, rosogollas, ledikenis etc and I loved walking up and down this road. I think this lane alone stocks more sweets than we have in the entire city of Calcutta. Unless you see it you cannot believe it. It's a narrow lane and I am sure for hundreds of years pilgrims including Shree Chaitanya, have used it to go to the temple after a dip in the sea. We did it too, without the dip though.
We had an unusually nice view of the idol inside the temple. Our strategy to go in the evening after 8:30 pm paid off. However, we could not go in together. Monisha stood outside with all my belongings like shoes, mobile phone, leather wallet etc. Once I came back she went in and I did the same job of taking care of her stuff. We both had an excellent view, though from a distance because entry inside the sanctum sanctorum is now discontinued. We also got to see the three chariots kept outside the temple, their finery yet to be taken off after the Ratha Yatra which got concluded only a week or so before.
We came back walking to the Swargadwar once again and took an auto back to the GH. I had intended to walk it off but it started raining. However, it would've been a long walk for sure.
Konark At Night
I love the Konark Sun Temple. I have been there a few times before but every time was a day trip. We would go from Puri, see the temple and then come back. That is what most people do. This time we had decided to stay there overnight to give it more time. As a bonus we got to see the temple in the evening light. Artificial light but looks very classy. The son et lumiere was also another bonus.
There is nothing special to write about the Konark trip because everything went off smoothly. But mention must be made of the Marine Drive along the Chandrabhaga Beach. It's beautiful and reminded me of Australia. The day being cloudy, it added to the beauty of the sea. The total distance from our GH was 37 Km and here is the Calimoto link to the route.
We stopped a little before the official Marine Drive view point. It was the right thing to do. Because the official place now has a number of ugly plastic-roofed shacks selling Lays and Limca etc. Everywhere you go in India this ugliness is visible existing side by side with beautiful nature. It is tolerated in the name of poverty and unemployment. I find it disgusting. I guess everyone does. Political will to change the situation is not there because they think this will get them those votes.
The Sun Temple Son et Lumiere starts at 7:30 pm or so. Seats are limited. So if it is peak tourist season go a little in advance. The show was very nice. Each individual ticket holder is given a headset and the commentary is available in various languages (including I think Bengali). The use of light on the temple was very nice. But the story could have included more about the temple architecture and construction details or unique features of the temple. But the focus was entirely on the story which is a mixture of mythology and history. How much of that is true and how much is political agenda driven is open to question.
I guess average tourists would be bored by more technical details or at least that is what the creative team thought. We tend to assume that the mass is totally stupid and like to see soap opera only. It might not be so all the time.
If you don't want to see the show but just want to see the temple in static yellow light, for that view is also splendid, you can go there in the evening but must come out of the complex before the show starts.
The OTDC guest house in Konark looks very pretty. But the facilities inside are not up to the mark. We will remember the millions of flies and a very poorly lit dining hall with very average food and the electrical power points that mostly do not work. The open parking space is huge. The waiters are very nice and well behaved.
The Vehicle
My vehicle performed flawlessly during the up and down trip. While going it was almost a non-stop nine hour ride, except for a couple of comfort breaks and while coming back it was more or less the same. Apart from these, there was the day-trip to Satapada and Konark. There were absolutely no hiccups anywhere on the way. The vehicle is now showing more than 56K on the odo. But in terms of health it is perhaps in its prime. The tyres are just about 6K old. Perfect. I plan to do a Sela Pass and Khardungla before selling it next year. Otherwise it does not justify the new tyre purchase.
