Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2022 i Travel + Leisure India & South Asia

AS CHEESY AS IT MAY SOUND, we cannot help but fall for the month of love. And for us, #TravelisLove. As a special tribute to Valentine’s month, in the February edition we go places with people—this time with couples—and share their journeys: from some of the world’s most LGBTQ-friendly destinations like Provincetown (p. 78) and Germany (p. 51) to under-the-radar romantic locales like Serbia (p. 54). Travel is the best way to discover the uninhibited side of your partner (for better or worse). It reveals how you decide to travel, where you choose to go, what you experience, and the choices you make when you’re in an unknown environment, far from the comfort zone of familiarity. We bring you stories of couples who have rediscovered each other by travelling together:…

1. Ladybird “Valentine’s Day 2022” BLANCPAIN This 99-piece limited-edition watch is the latest in a long line of affectionate gestures made by Blancpain for its female patrons. A white mother-of-pearl dial, adorned with varnished red numerals and a circle of diamonds, expresses the sweetness of love. The theme is confirmed by the seconds hand, which sweeps a fiery red heart along in its perpetual rotation. The 34.9mm white-gold case sparkles with 58 diamonds set on the bezel and lugs, and a rose-cut ruby gracing the crown. ₹22,87,000 2. Spring Drive GMT GRAND SEIKO In January 2022, a Spring Drive limited-edition watch was introduced to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the first Grand Seiko GMT watch. Its dials take inspiration from the snowscapes of the Hodaka mountains that surround the studio…

What are the things you easily agree on, and things that you often disagree on? We both love food and travel, so we agree on what’s for dinner, where to go out to eat, and where to head on our next vacation. We disagree on what to watch on TV. I love documentaries and drama, and Danny (Daniel) loves Marvel, horror, and sci-fi. What’s your go-to destination for a holiday? In India, it’s Goa/Kerala. We love the sea, and the obvious choice has been Goa. We [also] love going to Thailand; we actually started our vacations on a secluded island called Ko Phayam. Any LGBTQ-friendly destinations that you’ve experienced and would recommend? We have travelled to the Caribbean on a cruise ship, and Fort Lauderdale is the most LGBTQ-friendly destination…

A COLD BALKAN NATION may not be your first choice for a romantic holiday, but Serbia steals your heart as much as it blows your mind. We realised this shortly after our flight landed in Belgrade. My wife, Priya, and I found ourselves at the beautiful Republic Square. Crowds milled about the bronze equestrian statue of Prince Mihailo Obrenović III, who famously challenged Ottoman occupation and expelled the Turks from Serbia in 1867. Open-air restaurants spilled onto pavements as we walked hand-in-hand down Knez Mihailova, the cobbled path often described as the most beautiful pedestrian zone in southeastern Europe. The kilometre-long avenue is lined with beautiful buildings, shops, hotels, and art galleries, and is protected by law as the city’s oldest and most valuable landmark. We indulged in charming…

Kaya Kalp - The Royal Spa, ITC Grand Bharat Gurugram Kaya Kalp - The Royal Spa lives up to its name, which translates to ‘rejuvenation of body, mind, and soul’ in Sanksrit. Nestled in the Aravallis, Kaya Kalp has a dedicated floor in ITC Grand Bharat and features nine treatment rooms, a yoga pavillion, a spa cafe, a gymnasium, indoor vitality pools, an outdoor pool, and other facilities. Time-honoured practices of Ayurveda and yoga, along with international therapies, populate the menu. Pick Sangam or Kundalini Devi to relax and rejuvenate with your partner. Both take place in the luxurious couple’s suite, which includes a private steam bath. To make the experience even more romantic, consider adding a bath ritual to the mix. itchotels.com THE LODHI SPA, THE LODHI NEW DELHI…

I HADN’T SPENT much time in Provincetown, Massachusetts, before last summer, but I had been given to understand that it’s a place not entirely like the rest of Cape Cod. If Cape Cod is beach-club conservatism and navy-blue-striped American prep, Provincetown is glitter and magic, poets and painters, and queens—or so the hearsay went. My partner, Lora-Faye, and I arrived by car and were greeted not by glitter, but by a warren of narrow lanes lined with tidy houses and gardens bursting with spectacular beds of flowers. Through these lanes strolled men, usually young but sometimes middle-aged or older, walking hand in hand, evidently on their way to the beach or returning to their own hydrangeathick front yards. Lora-Faye and I live in New York City, where there is no…

THE VILLAGE OF Catskill doesn’t seem particularly Catskilly. That’s partly because it’s located on the Hudson River, several miles to the east of the mountains that give the region its name. Still, you can see those mountains, a bumpy band of grayish lilac, from the house of Thomas Cole, where my husband, Caleb, and I found ourselves one recent afternoon. The England-born Cole began painting this part of upstate New York in the 1820s. A founding member of the Hudson River School of artists, he’s best known for his romantic renderings of the waterway. But he frequently painted the Catskill mountains, which he portrayed as lush, unpeopled, and suffused with an almost otherworldly light. Cole worked in the region around the time that it started to attract tourists, many of…

TRIUND, LOCATED IN the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, was my first trek. After five hours of climbing, I reached the top of Triund and found the place covered with clouds. The lush green grass, the textured grey boulders, and the dazzling white clouds made for a beautiful sight. The view took away all my tiredness. It was an enchanting moment—I captured it first in my heart and then on my phone. It was windy and cold, and soon, there began a hailstorm. But I felt at peace. —SWATI VERMA ON HER PHOTOGRAPH, SHOT ON AN IPHONE 8 PLUS IN MAY 2019. Swati Verma was an entrant in our ongoing ‘Your Best Shot’ contest. Submit your best shots at tplusl@burda.in, or use the hashtag #telltnlindia and tag @travelandleisureindia on Instagram,…

THERE’S A FOREST IN Guadalajara where the mud tastes like white chocolate and matcha. Crumbled pistachios climb over the mire like moss, making a bed for fuzzy sprouts of spearmint and peppermint and ripe blueberries as fat and glossy as sapphires. Red-capped meringue mushrooms shade the miniature woodland like beach umbrellas. They taste like pine. El Bosque and the other bewitching desserts from Fernanda Covarrubias and Jesús Escalera, the pastry chefs at La Postrería, are among the many reasons to go to Guadalajara. The city is Mexico’s second-largest in population and in business traffic, thanks to the vital tech industry that has turned it into the nation’s answer to Silicon Valley. It’s also the capital of Jalisco, the state famous for mariachi and tequila and the coastal resorts of Puerto Vallarta.…

1. SMARTPHONE Xiaomi 11i Hypercharge 5G Never happy with a phone’s battery life? Xiaomi claims to have the answer—120W fast charging that can bring the 11i Hypercharge 5G to 100 per cent capacity in just 15 minutes. But this new device isn’t just a one-trick wonder: You also get 5G, a 120Hz display, 108MP main camera (as well as an 8MP ultra-wide and a 2MP macro camera), Dolby Atmos, and even a 3.5mm audio out that should make audiophiles happy. From ₹26,999; mi.com/in 2. SMARTWATCH Garmin Venu 2 Plus The Venu 2 Plus won’t get you to the running trail, but once you are there, it’ll make exercise a lot of fun. There’s an accurate GPS, up to nine days of battery life, voice control, 25 sports tracking, all-day health…

What made you start an Instagram page dedicated to sexual wellness? I was living in England a few years ago, and at that time menstrual cups were not really available [in India]. I found a cup on the internet that was quite affordable, and I started using it and talking about it on my personal Instagram account. Anytime I would come to India, all of my friends would ask me to bring back cups. One day, after I moved back home, I picked up a uterus model (both my parents are doctors, so there are models lying around the house) and made a video explaining how a cup works. Coincidentally it was World Menstrual Hygiene Day, and people really liked it and asked me to make it [the video] public.…

1 Laois, IRELAND Known for mysterious woodlands and enchanting garden trails, the county of Laois, formerly known as ‘Queen’s County’, is located in the province of Leinster in Ireland. While the town of Abbeyleix beckons with beautifully restored fountains, Heywood Gardens, and one of the oldest pubs in Ireland, Portlaoise delights history buffs with archaeological sites, castle ruins, and Iron-Age ring forts. Say your vows at Ballyfin Demesne (ballyfin.com), a country-house hotel located at the foot of the Slieve Bloom Mountains. You can host the ceremony in its beautiful gardens or by a lake. If you fancy a royal wedding, head to Kinnitty Castle Hotel (kinnittycastlehotel.com), a lavish medieval revival castle seated on 650 acres of parkland in the neighbouring county of Offaly. laoistourism.ie 2 Kirkby Lonsdale CUMBRIA, ENGLAND At the…

GETTING THERE Air France (airfrance.in) offers flights from Delhi to Guadalajara via Paris and Mexico City. STAY Casa Habita is a splurge by Guadalajara standards (especially for such snug rooms), but those extra pesos pay for an address in the picturesque Colonia Americana neighbourhood and a relaxing little rooftop pool. Doubles from ₹12,936; casahabita.com EAT An ideal eating day in Guadalajara starts with choosing your favourites from the woven baskets of pastries at Antonia Panadería (instagram.com/antonia_panaderia). Get acquainted with braised goat, one of Jalisco’s regional specialities, during lunch at Birriería Las 9 Esquinas (entrées $4–$6; las9esquinas.com), situated on the prettiest plazita in the Centro Histórico. Don’t miss Alcalde (entrées ₹222–₹1,552; alcalde.com.mx) for Chef Francisco Ruano’s cocina franca or La Postrería (lapostreriagdl.com) for Fernanda Covarrubias and Jesús Escalera’s fanciful desserts. DO Several of Guadalajara’s cultural institutions,…

Tell us about the inception of your Instagram page, @chaosinacoupe. Divya (D): It started around four and a half years ago. Initially, the idea was to share snippets of our travels with our two dogs, Marco Polo and Tigress. Then, Pari (a third dog) and Marius (their son) joined, and our family grew. What are the challenges you face, especially with a tiny human in the mix now? D: When we started, it was not something people talked about. If they did, it was mostly road trips. The reason we decided to travel by train was because one of our dogs, Tigress, has extreme car sickness. I’ve gone on 66 train journeys with my dogs. Indian Railways is very pet-friendly, but it is still not easy. There are a lot…

“After a while, just staying alive becomes a full-time job. No wonder we need a vacation.” THIS FAMOUS QUOTE by Michael Zadoorian holds even more significance today because of the times we are living in. An overseas vacation has become a big luxury thanks to the pandemic. So, when I got a small window of opportunity to travel outside the country a few months ago, I grabbed it without a second thought. It was also my first trip in 15 months, so it became even more special. I took the holiday with my partner and favourite travel companion, Mohit Rai. We decided on the itinerary just 15 days before taking off, and Germany was one of the few places allowing quarantine-free travel then, so we zeroed in on it. I…

AS THE HAZY BALL of light gets sharper and sharper, a moon appears in its vicinity. Then another, and yet another, and finally a fourth. These are four of the 79 moons of Jupiter, I’m told, and if you’re observant (and lucky) enough, you can also see the Great Red Spot, a centuries-old anticyclonic storm in the gas giant’s atmosphere. Approximately 16,350 kilometres wide, it is said to be the largest in the solar system. As the night gets nippier and the sky darker, we could be on any of the far flung stargazing spots on this planet. But our vantage point is much more modest and closer to home than you’d imagine: we’re buckled up for our space adventures in the welcoming home of an elderly couple on the…

WHILE AYURVEDA’S POPULARITY as a healthcare life-science is making a strong comeback in the era of COVID-19, it’s important to remember its emphasis on disease prevention. Ayurveda is a 5,000-year-old science that allows you to personalise your diet and lifestyle based on age, body constitution, genetic factors, seasons, and geography, so you can live a disease-free life. Ayurveda emphasises that it is better to preserve the health of the healthy person than wait to cure the sickness of a sick body. How can one do that? First, you need to identify your Ayurvedic body constitution, which is shaped at the time of being conceived and remains the same through your lifetime—much like your blood type. There are three biological building blocks or doshas: kapha (earth and water), pitta (fire and…

GETTING THERE Fly to New York from Mumbai or Delhi on Etihad Airways (etihad.com). Catskills is a two-hour journey from LaGuardia Airport. STAY Eastwind Hotel & Bar Scandi-chic A-frames and cabins in the ski town of Windham. Doubles from ₹20,742; eastwindny.com Kenoza Hall A gracefully restored boardinghouse on the quiet Kenoza Lake. Doubles from ₹33,381; kenozahall.com Urban Cowboy A stylish retreat in the serene Big Indian Wilderness Area. Doubles from ₹20,445; urbancowboy.com EAT The DeBruce Chef Eric Leveillee dreams up inventive dishes at this restaurant and hotel near Livingston Manor. Tasting menu ₹13,010; thedebruce.com Harana Market This Asian market in Woodstock has a rotating to-go menu of Filipino dishes. haranamarket.com Main Street Farm Great sandwiches and gourmet provisions in Livingston Manor. mainstreetfarm.com Overlook Bakery Woodstock’s new bakery serves heavenly cakes,…