The Official Blog Of Ritam Saha

As a traveller, I usually fall in love with the places I visit. There can be hundreds of reasons why, but with Turkey, everything seems to be different. You can fall in love with its vibrant colours, and yet not overlook its delectable cuisine. You could admire beautiful Cappadocia, and yet not forget mighty Istanbul. Turkey has a character, one that I have never felt before and probably never will. A mesmerizing mix of the exotic and the familiar, this great nation is definitely much more than its clichéd image of a “bridge between East and West”. Invaded and settled from every direction since the start of recorded history, it combines influences from the Middle East and the Mediterranean, the Balkans and Central Asia. Mosques coexist with churches, Roman theatres and temples crumble near ancient Hittite cities, and dervish ceremonies and gipsy festivals are as much a part of the social landscape as classical music concerts or football matches. The friendliness of the Turkish ...

Ankara in all it's glory Most people visiting Turkey do not bother to stop by Ankara. I luckily did not commit this mistake. After a four-hour long bus journey from the Cappadocian town of Nevsehir, here I was, in the Turkish capital. The number of police cars and personnel on the streets exceeded the numbers in all other Turkish cities. The red and blue flashes gave the capital its official look. The streets of this official destination are lined with hotels and government offices: a capital city doing its job. A few paces away from where I was staying, the statue of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk looked over the   A statue of Ataturk in his office district, perched on his horse as a commander. The sober lights of the Ottoman styled Osmanli Mosque spilt onto the rushing traffic. It was only a couple of hours since I had checked in, that the sun set in a sea of red, leaving the sky pale and dark. The cars rushed along below, and the lights had been left on. Ankara did not sleep th...

The travertines are beautiful in turquoise and white Of the many historic wonders the world has known, some of the most intriguing lie in Turkey. Visitors to this transcontinental nation often stop by the Bosphorus, the turquoise waves of the Mediterranean and famed Cappadocia, the land of mystery. Though not as frequently visited as the above, the town of Denizli is still frequented by large tourist crowds. It is here that the ancient Roman city of Hierapolis once stood. Today, all that is left of the city is a mass of rubble, and Pamukkale, a sequence of limestone travertines flowing into the Menderes Valley. Getting to Pamukkale, as the site is popularised, is no difficult task. I travelled from Kusadasi, a resort town and cruise ship port on the   Turkish Airlines even has a Boeing 737 named after Denizli Mediterranean coast, but tours leave other regions too. Denizli has an airport which is served by the flag carrier, Turkish Airlines, as well as other r...

Istanbul, a universal beauty where poet and archaeologist, diplomat and merchant, princess and sailor, northerner and westerner screams with same admiration. The whole world thinks that this city is the most beautiful place on earth.   – Edmondo De Amicis Istanbul. A city that is built from the bedtime fairy tales that children learn as they fall asleep - a city of dreams and sky-high minarets indicating its significance as the seat of flourishing empires. Here, one notices the brilliance of the past, coexisting with the optimism of the future. From the heights of the Galata Tower to the seemingly calm, but fierce currents of the Bosphorus, Istanbul is one city which has two sides to everything. Two continents, two speeds - one slow and one fast and two cultures. Napoleon observed that if "the world was a single state, Istanbul would be its capital". The seat of romantic beauty, Istanbul attracts the world's attention to itself every day. Getting to Istan...

The town is located in the Canton of Valais Zermatt is a small, but popular village on the southern border of Switzerland with Italy, and an access point for travellers and mountaineers to visit Switzerland's signature mountain - the Matterhorn. It is nestled in a valley, surrounded by the highest peaks in all of Switzerland, like the Monte Rosa. It is commonly known as the Zermatt ski village and a little way up the Monte Rosa, one may find the Zermatt ski area, one of the most popular of its kind in the country. The village is a car free area, and the only transportation methods within the town are bikes, battery operated vans and buggies. The concern for air pollution in Zermatt and the effective methods to prevent it have termed this village "The World's First Pollution Free Town".     A view from Trockener Steg Zermatt is served by the railway station Zermatt Bahnhof, from towns up in the valley, like Visp and Brig. A Zermatt shuttle is operated by c...

Europe's best mountains lie in the Alpine state of Switzerland, a country that boasts of the whitest peaks and the most picturesque landscapes. However, Switzerland stands apart for another reason - the Swiss know just how to civilise the mountain tops. They introduce connectivity to inaccessible regions, ensuring high tourist activity and stunning Alpine experiences. Perhaps the most visited of all is the Jungfraujoch, a saddle connecting the Mönch and Eiger peaks in the Bernese Oberland. I travelled to this very place during the month of May in 2018 for the third time and was not disappointed. It seemed all new. Scores of tourists were flocking to Jungfraujoch, all riding the train right up into the tunnel. The old Bollywood restaurant was still serving hot Indian food while the open area and glacier park looked as thrilling as ever. To reach the Jungfrau region, one must take the train from Lauterbrunnen station in the valley. It is a beautiful place, this valley - and ...

Switzerland , Europe’s mountain playground, is a classic tourist draw that remains consistently popular. A small, politically neutral, central European nation whose chocolate, cheese and mountains win the hearts of all who visit. Visitors from the world over travel here to ascend the slopes of the Alps, breathe the crisp air, and feel on top of the world. When they come down from the mountains, they find thriving, cosmopolitan cities that are steeped in history and culture. In this blog, we take a look at some of Switzerland's best tops, from mountains to glaciers, that make up the perfect Swiss Story: Schilthorn The cable car station at Stechelberg Stechelberg is a short bus ride  away from Lauterbrunnen Station, which serves as the  depot for trains to Jungfraujoch. Cable cars depart Stechelberg and go all the way up to the summit of the Schilthorn . This peak earns its fame for being a shooting location for James Bond movie “In Her Majesty's Secret Service...