EXOTIC ANDAMANS

Lost in the beauty of the emerald waters;With a plethora of aqua marine life;Walking through the lush green mangrove forests;With an occasional coconut drink to rejuvenate my body and mind.

The rays of the morning sun kissing my forehead;The tranquility of the night sky bidding me good night.The granular white sand, the green-grey sea, the tall and magnificent coconut trees lining the beach;The chirping of birds, the glorious colors of the sky...

The serenity of the Andamans is truly beyond my capacity to aptly describe.

Highlights : 

1. Emerald Gecko ( an Eco friendly resort)2. Black Beard Bistro ( Emerald Gecko's restaurant)3. Wild Orchid ( Classy with a bar and beautiful display of fishes, crabs and prawns to choose for your meal)4. Welcome restaurant ( a small dhaba in the main market with yummy food)5. Golden Spoon ( a smaller dhabi with delicious Banana Fish)6. Dalia ( Dahlia miss-spelt as Dalia - for noodles and rolls)7. Andaman Bubbles ( nice cafe for pizzas)8. Gol gappey/ puchkas/ paani puri at a theli served by a woman opposite Charcoal restaurant in front of Holiday Inn Resort.9. Fresh fruits at beach.10. Coconut water standardly priced at Rs. 30/-11. Charcoal - Naam Badey aur darshan chhotey

Day 1 : 

Reached Port Blair and hailed an auto  for Gol Ghar. The auto guy charged us 150 bucks for a distance of about 3-4 kms. We reached the hotel at about lunch time and were hugely disappointed on seeing the arrangement there.

Can't call it the best start to an exciting trip as the hotel we had booked in Port Blair was actually pathetic. To add to our woes, they hadn't booked our tickets on the ferry (for Havelock) we had asked them to and had even paid in advance. On repeatedly asking the manager, he produced tickets of another ferry by the name of Coastal Cruise. Bitten by the delay in the process, we decided to take them. We now decided to not let this frustrating chain of events dampen our spirits and so decided to go out and visit the historic Cellular Jail. It was a 5 minute auto ride that cost us ₹30/-.The Cellular Jail shook our inner being. It was a soul stirring visit. The sacrifices made by the freedom fighters,the torture they underwent made us reflect in wonder as to what was the force that was driving them!The light and sound show which followed later was beautiful. The narration along with light and sound effects was spectacular and touching at the same time. It was heart- wrenching!

Now came the time for dinner and the foodies that we are, we headed to ' The Lighthouse' , a restaurant which had been highly recommended by people. Contrary to the high recommendation, the food was below average, the ambience or should I say no ambience was horrible and the service was extremely poor. Day 1 winded up with a whole lot of disappointment and to top it my husband was running high fever :-(

Day 2 :

I know it's not turning out to be interesting yet but ironically, as disappointing as day 1 was, equally annoying was the start of day 2. We had asked the reception for

a wake up call at 5:45 AM, instead got a call at 4:00 AM. Got up and started getting ready only to realise that it was way too early. The ferry here requires passengers to check in an hour prior to departure so we reached Phoenix Bay Jetty at 6:30AM.As if the turn of events hadn't been frustrating enough, we were in for a further shock! The coastal cruise ferry seats we had booked were not the ones which we got. We were allotted no view, first row, cheapest class seats wherein we had paid for the higher class. To my utter surprise, the ticket which had been handed over to me the previous evening was different from the one I had picked up from the hotel room while leaving in the morning. I still fail to understand how this happened, however the truth was that we had been grossly cheated. Thankfully the coastal cruise staff was empathetic. They heard me out and offered us an upgrade. The ferry ride was just about average. It took 2.5 hours for a 1.5 hour journey. While on the ferry I felt distraught and felt like abandoning this holiday. What the heck! Who wants so much of tension on a holiday? This was turning out to be disastrous :-(

In all our troubles, we forgot that it was HOLI that day. We arrived at Havelock Jetty and were happily surprised to see people in full holi mood. We took an auto to reach Emerald Gecko, an Eco friendly resort located at beach no. 5. The reception people at the resort paid the auto wallah. The best part was the auto ride. As it was holi, we were greeted with pichkaris, balloons and coloured water. It was thrilling to see people in full holi mood. What we saw at Emerald Gecko, lifted our spirits! We had booked a split-level bamboo lodge. The lodge overlooked the emerald waters of the Indian Ocean. This looked like a perfect ray of hope in the dark clouds that had shrouded us on the first one and a half day of our holiday. It was fun to colour people of different nationalities at one place. After playing holiday, we soaked ourselves in the sea to wash off the colours. The ensuing lunch

at Black beard bistro was satisfying. The day winded up with relaxation and then dinner by the sea under the moonlit night at Emerald Gecko.

Day 3:

Travel blogs had recommended Radhanagar beach as one of the best 5 beaches in Asia, so we decided to visit that beach. On the same route is the Elephant Beach. We planned to hit Radhanagar beach first and then on the way back go to Elephant beach. Pangs of determination hit us hard. We wanted it to be an action packed day. After a complimentary breakfast at the resort, served by our cheery-chirpy attendant, Sheela, we set off on the scooty. Vroooooom......off to the beach!

Reached Radhanagar beach, did some knick-knack shopping and then reached the beach. Undoubtedly the beach was beautiful. Light blue waters till wherever you could see.....it was nice but the waves seemed to be too high and the waters didn't look too safe to wade in. After spending about an hour there, we moved on to our next destination, Elephant beach. Reaching the beach was a task as it was almost an hour long trek through the jungle. The walk had started to tire us, when suddenly the small jungle trail opened into an unbelievable sight! Words fall short when I think of describing the splendour of that place. The sight was truly spectacular!!!!The emerald of the waters with white uprooted trees fallen around made such a sight. We quickly made our way into the waters and it was definitely the best part of the holiday so far. The waters were crystal clear and colourful fishes swam just below the surface of water. Snorkelling is a famous water activity there and how could we not do that! Along with an instructor, we decided to try it. Swimming is one thing which scares me immensely. Being a seafarer's wife doesn't help me in that matter and I'm extremely water phobic but it was something I really wanted to experience. So there I went as I was assured that no swimming skills were required for it, and I'm so glad I took the plunge! The corals of Elephant beach are just so beautiful! The plethora of colourful fishes are a sight to behold. Left, right and centre.....everywhere just colour and beauty!!!!

All three of us experienced this and were super elated. We decided to buy snorkelling equipment as soon as we would reach the main market. Some more lazing in the waters and on the white sands and then we had to make our way back as it was already evening. On reaching the main market we had dinner at Welcome hotel, a dhaba. Again we were in for a pleasant surprise, as we hadn't expected much from the place but I must say that the Pasta was just fantastic! The taste is still settled on my palette. Hubby and lil boy enjoyed some fresh crabs which they chose themselves to be cooked for them. Back to the resort and an early retiring to bed. 

Day 4:

This day was reserved for the much anticipated and even more exciting Scuba Diving! The clarity of the waters in Andamans allow for some great snorkelling and scuba diving. Now this was something I was quite apprehensive about.As mentioned earlier, I have no experience of waters but I was assured that diving has got nothing to do with diving. Andaman Bubbles was the dive shop we chose for this expedition of ours. After some coaching and then donning on our diving suits, we were all set to plunge into the deep waters. For this activity, we had to go to North Bay which is a diving site owing to its coral reefs and enchanting marine life. A short drive with our instructor and our diving gear and there we were, shoulder deep in waters, masked with oxygen cylinders, ready to indulge into once in a lifetime experience of diving!!! What pushed me further was the uninhibited thrill in my child's eye. I'm sure he had no inkling that this stint was to unveil such an exotic marine life in front of him!

We went deep into the waters, enjoying every moment of our dive, spotting fishes, corals, turtles and what not! The water was so clear.....swimming along with the fish in their own home felt so wonderful. We managed to go 30 meters into the water while being happily clicked by our diving instructor. It was an out of the world experience.

Out of the waters, we hit bed for an afternoon nap and then spent rest of the day, just enjoying the solitude of the place. What is enchanting about Andamans is it's virginity. The clarity of the waters, the speckless beaches and the civilized people....all add to the charm of the place. Dinner for hubby was the famous Banana leaf fish at another dhaba, Silver Spoon while I happily munched on to rolls and noodles at Dalia while chatting up with a French Couple. 

Day 5 : 

Done with everything and not having adequate time to visit another island, we had to now decide what to do with this day. Kala Patthar Beach was quite close to our resort and so we thought of going there. Strangely the place didn't excite us at all and so encouraged by the fun we'd had on Elephant beach, we happily decided to spend our day there yet again :-) 

I must say that it was the best decision of the day. Ask me why? Well.....it turned out that the previous day we had reached the beach on low tide, and today it was still morning, so there was high tide. As soon as we finished our jungle trek, we were taken aback. The entire way up to the beach was flooded with water!!! What fun!, we thought, and quickly and happily took our slippers in our hands and waded through the waters. It wasn't easy though and many would not have really enjoyed it but we decided to make the best out of it. Clicking, recording, we reached the sandy beach. The water was even more beautiful today. It was a breathtaking combination of Green, Blue and Purple! Never having witnessed such beauty, I stood there with a gaping mouth.

Soon, my son brought me to senses as he hit the waters with the newly bought snorkelling equipment, this time to witness the beauty on his own. Dad and son bonded well into the waters while I gaily sat on the beach reading my novel, glancing at my darlings and refreshing myself with coconut water in between. Turn by turn we took our dips and soaked into the bliss of those divine waters. It was evening and we had to head back to our resort. Dinner was as Wild Orchid, a restaurant with amazing ambience and a wide display of sea food to choose from. Dad and son feasted on some prawns and fish, while I managed to eat just something. What else does one expect as a vegetarian....hate myself for being that at times :-(

Day 6 :

The last day of the trip. Best time to laze and enjoy the last day of bliss. We had reserved this day for no activity but for lazing at our resort. Lunch was at the bistro and then evening we just went out for a ride. Charcoal was one place we wanted to explore but it was a major turn off. We ordered for a mocktail, only to hear that their blender was not working. We ordered a tandoori dish to be told that their tandoor was not working. "Naam badey aur darshan chhotey" is what aptly describes this restaurant. Fuming, we came out from the place and thought that out evening had been ruined when I spotted a lady selling gol gappas/puchkas/pani puri at her theli. Enthusiastically  I ran across the road to her and waited for my turn. Needless to say, that was the best thing I did that day. What amazing gol gappey!!! Each one made me crave for another one. Okay okay.....now I'm finding it hard to resist. Looks like will have to treat myself to gol gappas tomorrow but where on earth would I find that divine taste!!!Again some delicious dinner..... the yummy Pizza at Andaman Bubbles cafe.Off to bed.

Day 7 :

Last morning at Havelock. With heavy hearts, I packed the bags and made our way to the Jetty. This time around we got our tickets booked on Makkruz which was definitely far far better than coastal cruise by every standard. Reached Port Blair,

checked into a hotel, had some South Indian meal and then went off to visit the museums of the place. First was the Anthropological Museum and then was the Samudrika Museum. Both museums were nice. It was great to know about the culture and history of Andamans. 

Some shopping at the government outlet, Sagarika Emporium and then we went off to sleep to catch our flight the next day. With happiness and sadness as a mixed emotion, we bade goodbye to the beautiful land of Emerald waters.The best part of the trip was no network coverage, no TV, no Internet.....total cut off from all the materialism of the world. 

Life has certainly much more to it than just work, tv and phone......though I myself admit to the absolute necessity of these, yet at times the simplicity of life takes over all these worldly entanglements and you feel freed from the shackles of the materialistic world. So do take out time and experience the raw beauty of nature and life.