Kentucky Derby grounds

A day in Louisville, Kentucky

While touring United States, I ended up in Kentucky. There isn鈥檛 a lot to do in Kentucky, especially, during the winters that I visited. So, here are a few small ideas for a day trip. I would recommend starting the day with Kentucky Derby Museum which is famous for its annual Kentucky Derby Horse race. Afterwards, check out the sit-in demonstration site of the 1961 civil rights movement at 501 S Fourth St. ...

A view from Taj Samundra (Colombo)

A surprisingly positive experience with Air India

After an amazing 5-day trip in Sri Lanka, we were to catch a late night Air India flight from Colombo to New Delhi. The flight was delayed to due an engine malfunction. First by an hour. Then another hour. And four-hours later, when the repair work finished, the flight pilot鈥檚 shift had already ended! An emergency flight was planned and it was supposed to arrive 20-hours later! Air India sent all the passengers to a complimentary all-inclusive stay in Taj Samundra. ...

Nashville

A day in Nashville, Tennessee

While touring United States, I ended up in Tennessee. There isn鈥檛 a lot to do in Tennessee, especially, during the winters that I visited. So, here are a few small ideas for a day trip. I would recommend starting the day with Rednor Lake State Park Check out The Parthenon. It is a full-scale replica of The Parthenon in Athens, Greece. I would recommend combining your trip with a visit to the city of Birmingham in Alabama and the city of Louisville located in Kentucky. ...

Birmingham

A day in Birmingham, Alabama

Alabama is a flyover state with historic connections to the civil rights movement of the United States. I spent a day in Birmingham, Alabama and here鈥檚 what I would recommend visiting. Start your day with Birmingham Civil Right Institute which talks about the race relations and the civil rights movements for the Black citizens. I would recommend spending an hour or two here. From here, visit Sloss Furances, a historic landmark around industrialization of the United States. ...

Mt. Fuji

Hiking Mt. Fuji

Mt. Fuji is a tough but gorgeous hike. It is much shorter than Grand Canyon or Mt. Whitney and can be done on a day trip.

Kyoto in three days

Unlike Tokyo, Kyoto is a nice and cozy city. We started the day with a walking tour that gave us an intense view of this city of shrines. There is a lot to do in this city. However, I would recommend focusing on a few of the best specific shrines. Inari Shrine - do the full mountain hike to the top and check the small waterfalls on the backside Kinkaku-ji Shrine Ninna-ji temple - a 1200-year-old temple with several statues of Hindu gods sculpted in 800 AD. ...

Shinjuku at night

Tokyo in three days

Tokyo isn鈥檛 a city per se but a prefecture. A prefecture is more akin to a county in the US. Japan has 47 prefectures. I would recommend two important cities in Tokyo to spend your time in - Akihabara Electronic District and Shinjuku (fancy) District.

Thirukoneshwaram Kovil

Sri Lanka in 5 days

Sri Lanka is a small island country near the southern coast of India. My trip was heavily focused on Ramayana and Hinduism. While I loved it, those who have little interest in Hinduism might find the trip. Like Kerala and Sikkim, I had a chauffered guide for the trip. I would highly recommend doing that, otherwise, a packed trip becomes harder to pull off. You can see a list of recommended guides here.

Volcan de concepci贸n - Ometepe island

Nicaragua in 5 days

Granada Granada is one of the oldest European settlements in the Americas. While it has nice Spanish-era architecture, there isn鈥檛 a lot to do in Granada. I would recommend starting your day with a walking tour.

Aswan Egypt

Why I always buy a local SIM in a foreign country

I reached Aswan, Egypt after an overnight train journey. The city is not exactly tourist-friendly, and I wouldn鈥檛 get any signal on my Google FI connection. This has happened before but this was the breaking point. I quickly ran to a nearby store and got a local SIM. The plan was cheaper than my Google FI plan (10 US$/GB).

May 18, 2024 路 1 min      Travel