Archive for February 2015
Memorable & Adventures Trip @ Andaman
Day : 1 9th Feb
Airports
Chennai
Lakshmi Narayan Temple
Greatness of Temple
Lord Lakshminarayana, sitting under the Padma Vimana graces with Sri Mahalakshmi on His lap. Tirumanjanam is performed every day. As the procession deity Sri Venkatesa Perumal accompanied by Sridevi and Bhoodevi, is very popular among the devotees, for a difference, this is known asSri Lakshmi Narayana Perumal Temple
As Lord Vishnu graced His darshan to Sri Narayana Theertha as Krishna , Gokhulastami-Krishna Jayanthi is devotionally celebrated in the temple. There is no special Child Krishna idol as such. Lord Lalkshmi Narayana Himself is considered as the Child and worshipped.
They dress the Lord as Yasodha the mother of Krishna . This is followed by a discourse on Krishnavatara. Famous Tamilnadu preparations as Murukku, Cheedai, Thattai – all salted preparations – are offered as nivedhana. Next morning, Lord graces from the hall called Kadungal Mandap. He returns to the temple as crawling Krishna with a butter bowl. Devotees follow the Lord in the streets doing the angaparakshinam – lying and rolling. The little boys kept in a house will shout ‘Uriyadio – Govinda’ as if the cows kept in the shed cry for Govinda their Lord.
The Uriyadi takes place then. A basket of preparations would be tied at the top of a post. People have to cover their eyes, move with a stick carefully targeting the basket with a calculated move, then strike the basket at the top of the post to win the basket with the preparations. This is called Uriyadi Utsav.
Then the Lord would move to the Slippery Post – a post planted dipped in oil. The participant should climb on the oily post. He has to reach the top facing slips due to oil. This is called Vazhukku Maram – slippery post.
Next day shall be Lord’s wedding festival with Rukmini. There are no sub-deities in the temple as all importance is to Lord Lakshmi Narayana alone. He comes on the Horse Vahan on Mattu Pongal – the day next to Shankranti or Pongal falling almost on January 15. There will also be processions on Balarama Jayanti (Balarama is the elder brother of the Lord), Koorma, Varaha and Narasimha Jayanti days with special Tirumanjanam. Other celebrations in the temple include Sri Rama Navami (birthday of Lord Rama) and Radha Kalyanam – wedding with Radha. Those seeking child boon place an anklet at the feet of the lord, wear it themselves till getting he child and finally returns it Lord.
Sacred places where Lord Vishnu appeared Himself (as swayambu in Shiva temples) are called Swayamviyakta Kshetras. Lord Vishnu appeared here this way.
A devotee from Andhra Pradesh, Narayana Theerthar was suffering from acute stomach pain. He undertook a pilgrimage to all Vishnu temples for a cure. He relaxed in a Vinayaka temple in this place. An old man appeared in his dream that night and asked him to follow any live being he would see on opening the eyes in the morning. Therthar saw a white swine while opening his eyes and followed it as directed. The animal entered the temple and disappeared. Narayana Theerthar understood that the swine was none other than Varaha form of His avatar and began raining Keerthanas (songs set to Ragas and Talas according to musicology rules) in praise of the Lord. Lord graced him His darshan with Bama and Rukmini. He sang in praise of the Lord which later had been edited as “Krishna Leela Tharangini”. As the Lord appeared in the form of the swine, the place is known as Varahur.
Lord Lakshminarayana, sitting under the Padma Vimana graces with Sri Mahalakshmi on His lap. Tirumanjanam is performed every day. As the procession deity Sri Venkatesa Perumal accompanied by Sridevi and Bhoodevi, is very popular among the devotees, for a difference, this is known as
Temple History
Sri Parthasharthi Temple
Thiruvengada of the Seven Hills to give him darshan in the form of the Charioteer (SARATHY) to PARTHA during the MAHABHARATHA WAR and rendering GEETHA. Lord Thiruvengada appeared in his dream and bade him to go to "BRINDARANYA" where he would give him Darshan in the form he wished. Meanwhile, Athreya Maharishi requested his Acharya Vedavyasa to mention to him the place fit for doing Thapas and he was directed by his Acharya to go to Brindaranya on the banks of the Kairavani Theertham overgrown with Thulasi plants and where king Sumathy was doing Thapas. Saying so, Vedavyasa gave Athreya a Divya-Mangala Vigraha with a conch in his right hand and Gnana Mudra in the left hand pointing to HIS HOLY FEET signifying the famous Charama Sloka of the Bhagavat Geetha:-
"Sarva Dharman Parithyajya Mamekam Saranam Vraja Ahamthwa Sarwa Papebhyo Mokshayishyami Ma Suchaha" (18-66):
This quintessence of the Geetha is rendered into English by Sir Edwin Amold thus:-
"And let go those Rites and writ duties! Fly to Me alone!
Make Me thy single refuge! I will free Thy soul from all its sins! Be of good cheer!"
Accordingly, Athreya Maharishi reached the Ashramam of Sumathy and narrated to him in detail, the circumstances that led him to go there. Sumathy was pleased with the Divya Mangala image of Sri Parthasarathy Swamy in accordance with the desire and welcomed Athreya. He celebrated the Chaitrotsavam according to Vaikanasa Agama and worshipped him. The central figure enshrined in the sanctum sanctorum is being worsipped as "SRI VENKATAKRISHNA SWAMY". Sri Rukmani Thayar and Satyaki, his younger brother, are installed on his right and left side respectively. His elder brother Balarama is seen on the right side of Rukmani Thayar facing north and his son Prathyumnan and his grandson Anirudhan are seen on the northern side of the Garbagraha facing south. These five warriors (Pancha Veeral) are so placed in these positions as we now worship them to keep in conformity with some incidents that took place in their life-time. Still more grandeur and inspiring is the bewitching and ever smiling UTHSAVAR Deity – Sri Parthasarathy Swami, with marks in the face caused by Bheeshma's arrows during the Maha Bharatha War. The Thilagam set with diamonds with a Safire in the centre resembles the full moon in the crystal clear blue sky.
Marina Beach :
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Day : 2 10th Feb
Donating hair in Tirupati is considered as a goodwill and thus the place is one of the biggest suppliers of hair for cosmetic and other purposes. It is expected by experts the temple has such a vast collection of gold that if its gold comes in the market then the price of gold and silver will seriously thrash down! It is estimated that the annual gold offerings associated with the Tirupati Balaji temple are over 3000 Kg per year. In a current survey, the annual income of The Venkateshwara Temple was estimated to be around Rs 700 crore and this figure includes Rs 150 Crore made by selling the 'quick darshan' that VIP passes of entering the temple which gives a speedy entry to the shrine of Lord Balaji or Venkateshwara. Thus, making it the richest pilgrimage temple of all over the world.
Apart from this the dome of the temple is majorly made up of Gold cover and 7 pure gold urns are established on the top of the two temple sub structures. The shrine of Lord Venkateshwara is daily decorated with gold and diamond studded clothes, ornaments and belt. Truly this Indian temple is one of the biggest and richest gold reserves of the world. Have a look at its photos to know about it's grandness.
The Tirupati Balaji temple which lies on the Tirumala hill town of Tirupati lying in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India is one of the richest and biggest gold reserve centers of the world. The temple is so popular that thousands of people visit it just for a little glance of the god 'Venkatesh' who is also known as 'Balaji' who is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Almost each and every devotee who visits this temple donates something to the temple in the form of cash, gold, diamonds, ornaments, jewellery, precious and valuable items in the temple 'hundi'. Thus there is a particular department of temple handling this and big machines are installed in the temple to collect and track donations from the devotees.
Donating hair in Tirupati is considered as a goodwill and thus the place is one of the biggest suppliers of hair for cosmetic and other purposes. It is expected by experts the temple has such a vast collection of gold that if its gold comes in the market then the price of gold and silver will seriously thrash down! It is estimated that the annual gold offerings associated with the Tirupati Balaji temple are over 3000 Kg per year. In a current survey, the annual income of The Venkateshwara Temple was estimated to be around Rs 700 crore and this figure includes Rs 150 Crore made by selling the 'quick darshan' that VIP passes of entering the temple which gives a speedy entry to the shrine of Lord Balaji or Venkateshwara. Thus, making it the richest pilgrimage temple of all over the world.
Apart from this the dome of the temple is majorly made up of Gold cover and 7 pure gold urns are established on the top of the two temple sub structures. The shrine of Lord Venkateshwara is daily decorated with gold and diamond studded clothes, ornaments and belt. Truly this Indian temple is one of the biggest and richest gold reserves of the world. Have a look at its photos to know about it's grandness.
Day : 3 11th Feb
Port Blair :
History :
The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are unique. It is unlike any other place in India. The Islands are shrouded in the mystery for centuries because of their inaccessability. A paragon of beauty, these islands present a landscape of scenic and picturesque extravaganza, shimmering like emeralds in the Bay of Bengal.The Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands Stretches over a length of more than 700kms from North to south floating in the clear blue waters of Bay of Bengal, East of the Indian main land and consists of 572 emerald Islands (36 of which are inhabited), islets and rocks.slets and rocks.
Views from the Port Blair:
Saw Mill :
Andaman offers a lot apart from beaches and Chatham Saw Mill is one such great example. Asia’s biggest and oldest saw mill, Chatham Saw Mill, is situated at Chatham Island and is a popular tourist destination. The mill dates back to 1883 and was set up by the British.
Chatham Saw Mill and Forest Museum, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The mill cuts huge, lofty logs of woods into usable wooden sticks. As soon as you land in Chatham, it is all wood around. Large piles of woods can be seen being loaded, unloaded, sorted, cut and moulded.
Chatham mill was of utmost importance in the pre-independence era as it catered to the needs of the west. During the second world war, it became a prey to the heavy bombarding done by the Japanese and was badly destroyed as one bomb hit it directly. The Japanese then occupied this island and it remained under their rule till 1945. Post second world war, the island revived its glory and the mill started functioning again in 1946.
Earlier, locomotives were used to carry woods. Later, the use of locomotives was discarded.
Chatham Saw Mill also produces sawn timber and handles the production of ‘Paduak’ – Andaman’s well known, premier wood.
In the mill, there is also a Forest Museum that showcases some of the masterpieces made from Andaman woods.
Beautiful Wooden pieces in Museum :
Naval Marine Museum :
History, Geography, anthropology, ….and the beautiful marine life ! No other place brings together all of these aspects of the Andaman Islands as well as Samudrika , the Naval Marine Museum.
The
museum has been thoughtfully divided into five different rooms, each of them
showcasing a different facet of the Andaman Islands. A massive blue
whale, in its skeletal form of course, greets you as you enter the museum.
Did you know that Andaman apparently has been named after Lord Hanuman or Handuman as they refer to him here? From its name to how it came to be formed, the first room deals with the geographical history of the islands.
Did you know that Andaman apparently has been named after Lord Hanuman or Handuman as they refer to him here? From its name to how it came to be formed, the first room deals with the geographical history of the islands.
The
second and third rooms will be quite a delight for the young and the old alike.
An aquarium in the second room is teeming with fishes of all shapes and sizes,
from a parrot fish to the rare and venomous species of stone fish. The
third room on the other hand exhibits corals, which the islands are quite
famous for. In addition to learning more about these beautiful marine formations,
one can also know about the sites to spot them. A fourth room houses an
extensive display of shells. Thus giving one a complete sense of the marine
life of the Andamans.
As
important as the marine life is to the Andamans, one can’t leave the museum without
visiting the fifth room. Here one will find information about the tribal life
in the islands along with a display of interesting specimens of snakes and
butterflies. You should visit the curio shop in case you want to take back a
few souvenirs of your trip here.
The museum presents a perfect blend of the old and the new, the present and the past, making it a must visit for all.
The museum presents a perfect blend of the old and the new, the present and the past, making it a must visit for all.
Zonal Anthrological Museum :
The Anthropological museum in Port Blair started in the year 1975-76, is an ethnographic museum. It showcases the four Negrito Tribes of the Andaman viz. the Jarawas, Sentinelese, Great Andamanese and the Onges and two Mongoloid Tribes of the Nicobar viz. the Nicobarese and the Shompens.
Cellular Jail :
History:
The Cellular Jail, also known as Kala Pani situated in the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands (India). The prison was known to house many notable Indian activists
during the struggle for India's independence. The Cellular Jail is one of the
murkiest chapters in the history of the colonial rule in India. The
construction of the prison started in 1896 and was completed in 1906. But the
history of using the Andaman island as a prison dates back to the Indian
rebellion of 1857. The bricks used to build the building were brought from
Burma, known today as Myanmar. The penal settlement established in Andaman by
the British after the First War of Independence in 1857 was the beginning of
the agonizing story of freedom fighters in the massive and awful jails at Viper
Island followed by the Cellular Jail. The patriots who raised their voice
against the British Raj were sent to this Jail, where many perished.
Construction
of Cellular Jail :
the Cellular jail stands, tough in truncated
from, as a mute witness to the indescribable sufferings of the patriots who
were incarcerated in the cells of this Jail even had to lay down their lives as
victims of tyranny and brutalities of the foreign Government. The jail is the
first sight that greets a visitor on his arrival at port Blair. Simultaneously,
the huge building instills terrorism, the minds of the onlookers and a sense of
reverence. Every brick of the Cellular jail has got a heart rendering story of
resistance, sufferings and sacrifices.
The jail was constructed as a 3 storeyed edifice with 7 wings, Each wing
stretching from Central tower like the ray of a star fish or the spokes of a
wheel. There was also an entrance block to the jail. It has 696 cell one for
each person the name Cellular Jail is derived from its unique feature as it has
only cell and no dormitories and each cell measured 13.5 feet by 7 feet and had
door with iron grating in the front. A 3 feet by 1 feet ventilator, nearly 10 feet
high from the door was provided to each cell.
In order to minimize the chances of dialogue among the convict and to isolate
them from each other, the construction of the Jail was so made that the front
portion of each wing was to face the back side of the other wing.
The room in the jail were in a row. The verandas about 4' wide ran all along
the front surrounded by iron railings fixed into the arched pillars that
support the roof of the verandas. All these corridors meet at the Central
Tower, which alone has the gate entrance and exit. The rooms were shut by means
of iron bolts and locks from outside and cannot be reached from within. The
three corridors consisted of upper corridor, middle corridor and the lower
corridor. Wardens were appointed in each corridor in the night to keep watch.
There used to be 21 warder simultaneously for watch duty Besides, sentries in
the Central Tower also kept vigil throughout day and night even through chances
of escaping from the jail was very remote.
Prisoner
Life in Cellular Jail
During twelve hours of the night, the warder
insisted that the prisoner shall have no occasion to ease himself. The pot was
so diminutive and that one could not discharge into it even once during the
night. As for nature's call one had to go down on his knees to the Jamadar to
let him out. The Warder may not take the call seriously. He may be reluctant
himself or he may fear the Officer. The prisoner had, therefore, to check it
till the morning. If the Warder realised and carried the matter to the Jamadar,
the Jamadar would severely create the convict for the call at such an odd hour.
He would or would not report to the doctor as his fancy or memory may guide
him. The doctor's report on the ailment was never made or made only in one case
out of a hundred. That report had to go to Mr. Barrie and Mr. Barrie would take
action upon it at his own sweet will. Imagine the prisoner's condition during
the night and during this process of red-tape. Particularly when the call was
not normal but an abnormal and sudden ailment. In the morning Mr. Barrie, would
sit in judgement upon it, rebuke sternly the warder and the Jamadar for their
lapses of duty. When he prayed in this fashion there was no answering him.
The prisoner was also cross examined by Mr. Barrie and if the former said that
he could not help the call of nature Mr. Barrie would tum round upon him
fiercely with the ejaculation why the devil did you have it? And if the
wretched creature had the courage to say, I got it because I get it, the Jamadar
would give a slap in the face and scold him for giving such an insolent answer.
Usually the prisoner was let off only with this cannonade of word. But Mr.
Barrie's particular kindness to the prisoner always ended in an order to put
him immediately on the grinding mill.
Freedom Fighter's in Cellular Jail
Some of the better known political prisoners incarcerated in the Cellular Jail were Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Upendra Nath Banerjee, Hem Chandra Das, Ullaskar Dutta, Indubushan Roy, Bibhuti Bushan Sarkar, Hrishikesh Kanjilal, Sudhin Kumar Sarkar, Abinash Chandra Bhattacharji & Birendra Chandra Sen. All these prisoners were sent to the Cellular Jail after 1910 on their conviction for participation in the Manictollah Conspiracy case. Vir Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was sent to Andamans on 4th July 1911 with sentence of two transportations for life. When he came to the Cellular Jail his elder brother, Ganesh Savarkar was already there. But the Savarkar brothers came to know about this fact only after having been in Jail over a year.
Savarkar in Cellular Jail
Savarkar in his celebrated book 'The story of my transportation for life' refers to a certain utterances of Barrie the Jailor to the prisoners "Listen, you prisoners, in the universe there is one God, and he lives in the heavan above but in Port Blair there are two one, the God of Heavan and another, the God of Each! Indeed the God of earth in Port Blair that is myself. The God of Heavan will reward you when you go above. But this God of Port Blair will reward you here and now. So you, prisoners behave well. You may complain to any superior against me but my work shall prevail; hold my own, Mind you well." Savarkar while describing the Jail conditions says " who can describe the suffering the agonies of mind & body ? I may give you an instance, however, to point the moral of all the hardship of prison life in the Cellular Jail of the Andamans grueling work , scanty food and clothing, occasional thrashing and other none was so annoying and disgusting as its provision for urinals and lavatories. The prisoners had to control the demands of nature, for hours together, for want of these arrangements in the cell itself. Morning . noon and evening these were the only hours when prisoners were let off this convenience at any other moment than the stipulated hours. The prisoners were locked in their cell at four or five o'clock in the evening and the lock was opened only after six in the next morning. A sort of clay-pot was given to them to use for urination during the night.
Barindra Kumar Ghosh, younger brother of Maharshi Arabinda Ghosh, while describing about the inadequate and insufficient quantity of food says that "the next morning we came out and washed our face and then had for the first the darshan of ganji,otherwise called 'kanji'. It means boiled rice churned in water one may say, a sort of rice porridge. We were given each a 'dabbu' full of this dainty. Dabbu is a kind of primitive spoon, made of a broken half coconut shell with a canehandle fixed to it. The Ganji was saltless and. Therefore, tasteless. Each prisoner was allowed only one pinch of salt per day and,this was requied for the dal and the vegetable, the Ganji had necessarily to go without salt. However, we had to swallow the thing with utmost preservance, in spite of its tastelessness. The same thing was called Lapsi in the Alipur Jail but there it had some taste, as it was prepared sometime with molasses and sometime with dal'.
Other famous freedom fighters who were incarcerated in the Jail were Vaman Joshi, Shambunath Azad, Jay Dev Kapoor, Bathukeshwar Dutta, Sachindra Nath Sanyal, Pandit Paramanand, Lok Nath Bal, Ganesh Chandra Ghosh and Trailokya Nath Charaborthy Trailoky Maharaj.
The Cellular Jail Was often considered by the freedom fighters all over the country as a place of pilgrimage. It was here the British Government used to send 'Dangerous prisoners'. Against the tyranny of the Jail management, several times in the history of Jail, political prisoners had to resort to hunger strike, after having failed all other methods of ventilating their grievances. The food otherwise supplied was not only inadequate but was unfit for human consumption. Neither any writing nor reading materials were provided to the prisoners. The prisoners were not allowed to communicate with their friends and relatives on the mainland except once in a year so. Even the letters coming form mainland and newspapers subscribed by the prisoners were often censored before being given to them. While fighting against this tyranny Political prisoners like Bhai Mahavir and others had to lay down their lives. Many prisoners had gone insane in the Jail and some had to find solace in putting an end to their lives by committing suicide rather than subjecting themselves to the indignities heaped on them.
Mahatma Gandhi Park :
Day : 4 12th Feb
Baratang :
Baratang
Island is situated between Middle and South Andamans,
approximately 100 kms from the capital city Port Blair. Connected well through
road and boats, the main transportation point is the Baratang Jetty. The road
to Baratang from Port Blair passes through the Jarawa Tribe Reserve also known
as Andaman Trunk Road (ATR Route). Hence, security personnel also travel for
the safety of the tourists and the tribals in a convoy. Interacting with them,
giving them food or clicking their pictures is strictly prohibited and a
punishable offence.
It
can be said that this place is a conglomerate of the varieties nature can
offer. Like every other place in Andaman Islands, it has a beautiful coastline
that boasts of rich marine diversity. Some of the beaches are Baludera,
Rogalchang, Nayadera etc. It has mangroove creeks on both sides and a dense
tropical forest apart from the beaches. This gives scope for adventure and fun
activities like Jungle Trekking, Creek Safari, Island Camping, Beach Tours and
Bird Watching and water sports like Snorkelling and Scuba Diving.
Lime Stone Cave :
A limestone cave or cavern is a natural cavity that is formed underneath the Earth’s surface that can range from a few metres to many kilometres in length and depth.
Most of the world’s caves, including those at the Cradle of Humankind, are formed in porous limestone. Over millions of years, acidic groundwater or underground rivers dissolve away the limestone, leaving cavities which grow over time.
Early life forms appeared in the oceans about 3.8-billion years ago. These were single-celled, blue-green algae, called cyanobacteria, which made their own food through photosynthesis, releasing oxygen into the atmosphere in the process.
Dolomitic limestone, a sedimentary rock, was formed over millions of years through chemical reactions generated by these early organisms.
With movements within the Earth’s crust, the sedimentary dolomitic limestone eventually became exposed on dry land.
As time passed the limestone, which is permeable and soluble, was eroded by water. Weak carbonic acid in rainwater, reacting with the chemicals in the rock, dissolved and eroded away the limestone as the water filtered into the underlying depths of sediments. Large hollow solution cavities were formed in the limestone in this way.
Many cavities occur at various depths in a cave system due to the continual seepage and flow of the mildly acidic water through the deposits, while underground rivers may eventually carve their way through a mountainside, creating openings and entrances to the outside.
Other cave entrances include pit and depression areas that are located at the tops of caves.
Strange, beautiful structures
Many beautiful structures – including stalagmites and stalactites – form inside caves as carbonic acid, carrying limestone, drips through cave roofs and onto their floors. Structures inside a cave may require millions of years to develop.
Some of the geological structures that may develop inside a cave include:
Speleothem
“Speleothem” is a general geological term for a deposit of calcium carbonate in a cave, including formations such as stalactites, stalagmites and flowstones.
Flowstone
Flowstones are speleothems (deposits of calcium carbonate) on the walls or floor of a cave formed from a gradual flow of water over a relatively broad area.
Stalactite
The term stalactite comes from the Greek work stalaktos, which means “dripping”, because these other-worldly formations “drip” from the roofs of limestone caves. Essentially, water reacts with carbon-dioxide to form carbonic acid. It then seeps slowly through the roof of the cave, depositing calcium carbonate, which hardens and builds up over time to form a stalactite.
Stalagmite
Stalagmites are corresponding formations on the floor of caves to stalactites. Stalagmites rise from the floor in a build-up of calcium carbonate over time, from mineral-bearing water dropped from the roof of the cave. The term stalagmite comes from the Greek word, stalagma, to “drop”.
Column
Sometimes, stalactites and stalagmites meet, forming a pillar or column of rock-hard calcium carbonate.
Helictite
A formation of calcium carbonate in a cave that grows in a twisted, curled fashion, like a helix (hence the name), seemingly defying the laws of gravity.
Live Mud Volcano :
Located at just 4 KM away from the Baratang Jetty and about 100 Km from the city of Port Blair is the one of its kind in the whole India- Live Mud Volcano.
This mud volcano is one more main attraction for visitors travelling in Andaman islands. Though this Volcano is nature’s wonder. It takes atleast a day to visit this place and return to Port Blair. People have to travel through road in a Jarwan tribal reserve (forest area) and cross the sea at Baratang jetty. After crossing the sea people reach the Uttara Jetty . From Uttara Jetty this place is 20 minutes journey by road.
These mud volcanoes have erupted sporadically, with recent eruptions in 2005 believed to have been associated with the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. The previous major eruption recorded was on 18 February 2003. The locals call this mud volcano jalki.
Mud Volcano is created by natural gases emitted by decaying organic matter underground. As the mud is pushed upwards by the gas, it deposits and hardens above ground. As more mud oozes out and spills over the edge it grows in sizes, gradually forming what you can see today a miniature volcano with rich, creamy mud crater at the top.
Day : 5 13th Feb
North Bay :
Sea Walk Boat at North Bay Island
North Bay Island Beach
North Bay Island is about an hour ferry ride away from Port Blair jetty (speed boat takes much less time) and is a lovely place to go for a day’s trip. What makes it even more tempting to visit is the wide array of water activities that one can enjoy.
North Bay Island looks colorful with these boats and tourists
Sea walk has already been introduced and has been going on for over a year now. Along with sea walk, you can do jet skii, speed water boat ride, snorkeling and other such activities at the beautiful North Bay Island.
Sea Walk Boat at North Bay Island
I went to North Bay Island on a morning in the month of February and I have been wanting to go there again sometime. I liked it so much.
SCUBA DIVING
Ross Iland :
Ross Island is another beautiful Island near Port Blair. If you stand at the Marine Park, PB, you can see the island.
It is a lovely place to spend few hours and learn about the historical importance.
Ross Island is located very near to Port Blair and thus can be easily reached within few minutes. Regular ferries connect the island with Port Blair Marine Park.
The island was the headquarter of the British colony in A&N. On visiting the island, one can understand the reasons why British chose Ross Island as their head quarter. The place gives picturesque views from all around.
Ross still has ruins of some of the buildings that were built during British period. Though they have now been engulfed by the roots of huge trees but watching these buildings makes one nostalgic.
The place can boast of the ruins of a British Church, Mansion, Market etc.
There is also a small museum that has pictures taken and drawn in those times.
The back side of the Ross Island gives a lovely view of the open sea. You can sit for hours reveling in the cool breeze and the amazing sea view.
An added perk is the number of Peacocks, Deer and Ducks you can spot at the Island.
Open Air Theater Japanese Bunker
Day : 6 14th Feb
Jolly Buoy :
Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park :
Day : 7 15th Feb
Kruzz :
Havelock :
Day : 8 16th Feb
Mount Harriet :
Chidiya Tapu :
Day : 9 17th Feb
Jogger's Park :
