Winter is coming

Heading for a winter break? Here's where you should go

As the year winds its way inexorably towards its end, our thoughts inevitably begin to focus on our year-end breaks. And if you live in Delhi, where the air quality begins to plummet around this time, it becomes even more imperative to head out somewhere where breathing is not in itself a health hazard.

So, here - in no particular order of importance - are five best winter holiday destinations. And the bonus is that they are all about four - or less - hours away no matter where you live in India. 

Bhutan

I know that most people prefer to go to Bhutan during the summer, escaping the scalding heat of the plains. But there is a special charm to this destination in winter. The air is crisp, the snow-capped mountains provide a perfect backdrop, and the steaming momos are the best way to beat the bracing cold. 

Maldives 

If you want to escape the cold, on the other hand, there is always the Maldives (now that the political kerkuffle between our two countries seems to have died down). There is something magical about boarding a flight wearing three layers to ward off the cold, and then getting to your hotel in the Maldives to walk on the beach with warm sand scrunching between your cold toes. Pro tip: book a hotel that is speedboat-distance away from the airport so you don’t waste time hanging around for a seaplane to your final destination. 

Sri Lanka

If you like your water sports interspersed with a bit of temple-hopping, a spot of culture, and maybe a visit to a hill resort, then head for the Emerald Isle of Sri Lanka. Not only is this one plane ride away from India, it is small enough that you can drive from Colombo to Kandy to Cape Weligama in a matter of hours. And as an extra bonus, the food is to die for. 

Thailand

If city destinations are more your bag than you can’t go wrong with Bangkok. There is an astonishing energy to this city, whether you eat at the bustling food courts, shop at the heaving malls, or do the touristy thing at the many temples in the old part of the city. And the good thing about Thailand is the beach resorts of Phuket or the mountain destinations like Chiang Mai are only a short hop away. 

Dubai 

I must confess that I wasn’t the biggest fan of Dubai when I first started visiting but over the years the city has begun to grow on me. Not only does it have one of the liveliest dining scenes (taking in everything from international chains to local favourites) it also has some amazing resorts in which it is possible to forget that you are in a city destination. I am not a great one for shopping while on holiday but even I have succumbed to the temptation of mall walks — and loved every busy, bustling second of it. 

The age of uncertainty

We just have to get used to Covid – and its endless variants – upending our plans again and again

 

If things had gone according to plan, I would have been filing this column from Sri Lanka, sunning myself at a beach resort, while sipping on a Pina Colada. But, as it turns out, I am writing this at my home in Delhi, sheltering from the cold and the pollution in my living room, with two air purifiers going full blast around me. And the only beverage I have in hand is a humble cup of black coffee. 

 

And it is all down to – yes, you guessed it! – Covid. Just as we were firming up our plans to travel, news hit that a new variant, Omicron, was devastating South Africa and had made its presence known in parts of Europe as well. New travel regulations and restrictions soon came into place in India, and even though Sri Lanka wasn’t on any red list, it made sense to postpone non-essential travel. So, we sadly reconciled ourselves to spending time in Delhi, even though the air was poison, especially for an asthmatic like me. 

 

But then, that’s the thing about living in the time of Covid. You never know what tomorrow will bring (though it is beginning to look like it will, with a certain inevitability, bring a new variant) so the only thing you can be certain of is today. You can moan and groan about it – and God knows that I do! – but at the end of the day, you just have to get on with life as it now exists. 

 

So, how does one cope? Well, to employ that well-worn cliché, you cope by living in the moment and for the moment. You carpe the diem, seizing each day by the collar and shaking every last drop of fun and joy out of it. And then, you hope to hell that you can do that all over again, the next day.

 

What you don’t do is make long-term plans. Or frankly, even short-term plans. I have two trips scheduled in January. One to the Kolkata Literary Meet to launch my new book, Madam Prime Minister (a sequel to my first political thriller, Race Course Road) and the other is to the Jaipur Literary Festival to do much the same sort of thing. And every day, I nervously check to see if Omicron has sent the Covid cases in these cities soaring – because if that happens, I am pretty sure that these events will become virtual-only. 

 

But honestly, what is the point of obsessing over the future when we could just be optimizing the present? So, that’s what I have resolved to do.

 

Over the last fortnight or so, I had stopped going for my daily walks to Sunder Nursery, because the pollution levels were so high. But ever since news of Omicron came, and the case count in Delhi began showing an upward trend, I resumed my afternoon perambulations, albeit with an N-95 mask. Who knows if the city will shut down again? So, I might as well make the most of our freedom while it lasts.

 

That is not the only re-calibration I have done in recent times. Having read how quickly the new variant spreads in large gatherings, especially those held indoors, I have declined several invitations to wedding/birthday/anniversary parties on the grounds that it is much better to be safe than Covid-positive. Most of my friends are understanding while some treat me like a misguided Nervous Nelly. But even at the risk of coming across as a party pooper, I have decided to defiantly stay home.

 

After all, that’s all you can do in this Age of Uncertainty – just keep yourself safe to see another day. How you do that is a function of how much risk you want to assume. Are you okay with a dinner party with four other guests? Or are you happy mingling with hundreds at a wedding? Are you okay with long-haul international travel at a time when regulations change all the time? Or would you rather just drive to a neighbouring city for a mini-break?

 

These are questions that all of us will have to answer for ourselves. Though there is very little doubt which side of the divide I will come down on. 

 

There's something in the air

Smells can transport you out of this world – and into an entirely different one

 

Smell is a funny thing. No, I don’t mean scent. Or perfume. Or parfum, if you want to get all fancy-schmancy on me. I mean smell. The kind that drifts into your consciousness when you are not even thinking about it. The kind that sneaks up on you while you are doing something else entirely. But before you can say ‘olfactory’ it has transported you to a realm entirely different from the one you inhabit. 

 

That’s what happened to me last week, as I travelled through the tea trails of Sri Lanka and ended up on a guided visit to a tea factory. The moment I walked in and the smell of the dried tea leaves hit my nostrils, I was suddenly ten years old again. And instead of the hills of Sri Lanka, I was back in Assam, visiting the tea garden that my aunt used to own. Memories of the mornings that I spent with my cousins trudging through the tea bushes came rushing back; of lazy afternoons spent on the makeshift swing that my uncle had fashioned for me on a banyan tree; of the time I sneaked out on my own and was held transfixed by a snake that was in the process of swallowing a frog (no, I was too young to be scared, and too stupid to run away!). All it took was one smell, and I was transported back to a childhood that seemed magical in retrospect.

 

This is, of course, not the first time this has happened. I find that smells take me by surprise and take me out of myself all the time. I just have to open a bottle of coconut oil in the kitchen and I immediately feel my grandmother standing beside me, her snow-white hair immaculately braided and exuding that warm, toasty smell that I will always associate with her. I remember all the times she pleaded with me to let her oil my hair, and all the times I refused. And a whiff of regret infuses the air around me as I look back on my obstreperous, younger self. 

 

Sometimes I will walk into a smoke-filled room and just for a moment I will conjure up my father’s face among the shadows, even though he is long gone. My teenage years were spent trying to make him give up smoking. I would ostentatiously walk out of the room if he ever lit up in my presence. And here I am now, searching for him in smoky rooms which he will never enter. It’s funny, the tricks smells play upon you. 

 

It is the most everyday smells that trigger the strongest memories. A friend sent me some home-made mango pickle this season, but it was my mother I remembered as I opened the bottle and took a hit of that aroma. She took her mango pickling so seriously that she would go to the market and choose the unripe fruits herself. Then, the entire household would be coopted into the process of washing, cutting and drying the fruits. Finally, after the whole laborious process was over, the finished product would be stored in large jars and left out in the sun. Not every jar – or ‘biyam’ as we called it – was meant for us. Many were destined to be distributed to friends and family, who would eagerly await this annual present from her. And now, here I was, her daughter, receiving the same gift that she had taken such pleasure in giving.

 

The smell of jasmine takes me back to a flower market I visited in Chennai years ago (when it was still called Madras); the smell of eggs frying reminds me of various rail journeys that were fueled by copious quantities of omelets and fried toast in my younger days; the smell of turpentine puts me in mind of the art classes I took in school, and to the art teacher who despaired of teaching me to draw as much as a straight line.

 

As I said, smell, it’s a funny thing. It’s both a window into your world; and an escape out of it. And I don’t know which one is better.

 

Ringing out the old

If you're making plans for the New Year, here are some tips to help you along

No sooner has the end of November hoved into sight than the questions begin. What are you doing for New Year? Where is the party? Have you planned a trip somewhere special? And so on and on and on.

There was a time in my life when I was up for partying late into the night on New Year's Eve, drinking and dancing till my feet hurt. Then, there came a phase when my husband and I would leave town around this period, heading to one resort or the other, where we spent all our time reading, relaxing, and fitting in the odd massage. Of late, however, I find myself longing for the comfort of my own home for New Year, quaffing champagne from my own fridge rather than the overpriced swill that hotels include in their all-inclusive New Year 'package'. I love the thought of rustling up a meal in my own kitchen and eating it on my dining table, and then retiring to the couch for  a post-prandial glass of port and a dissection of the year past with my husband. 

The very idea of packing my bags and negotiating the horrors of airports at this time of year strikes terror into my heart these days. But I can understand the impulse of people who want to get away from it all and bring in the New Year at an exotic and exciting location. After all, I did that myself for years on the end. 

The problem with this plan, of course, is that flights are astronomically expensive during this period and hotel rates are ludicrously high. If you are willing to break the bank for a trip like this, then good luck to you. But what are the options for those who don't want to bankrupt themselves for the year to come, even as they celebrate it's arrival. 

Well, here are some tips for them, based entirely on my own experience over the years:

* Staycations are the way to go, especially if you live in a big city. If you do, then check around and see which of the luxury hotels in your city is offering a good package for the New Year break. It will be expensive, of course, but you will come in well under budget when you account for the fact that you are not spending anything on flights (and you will eliminate travel-related stress as well, as an added bonus). Most hotels will turn a blind eye if you bring in your own liquor so long as you drink it in the privacy of your room. So you can sit around in your fluffy bathrobe, order room service and get a bit tiddly, if that's your thing. Or you can get all dressed up for for the fancy New Year dinner in the restaurant downstairs and bop along to the live music as you wait for the clock to strike the midnight hour. And the next morning, all you need to get home is a car ride. No standing in line to check in for your flight. No stripping down to your essentials at security. And no nasty airplane ride to destroy your lovely post New-Year buzz. 

* If leaving town is mandatory for you, then steer clear of the usual New Year destinations that are horribly overpriced and awfully overcrowded at this time (and yes, I do mean Goa) and look further afield. If you want to sun yourself on pristine sands, then try the Andamans or even Lakshwadeep. Head south to Kerala, where you can enjoy the backwaters along with beach destinations, or just cruise along on the iconic rice boats as you enjoy the verdant scenery. If you are up for a bit of adventure then use this time to explore the north east. You could go the usual Gangtok-Rumtek route or go off the beaten track and head for Arunachal Pradesh as I did earlier this year. In this part of India, it will be the beauty that takes your breath away, not the prices -- or the milling crowds for that matter. 

* If you don't feel like you are truly on holiday unless you have left the country, then there are plenty of destinations that will give you a sizable bang for your buck. If you are a fan of Thailand, then head to Bangkok for a city break (the resort islands are unaffordable at this time of year). This is a city that caters to all budgets, the food is excellent and cheap, and fireworks display on New Year's Eve is free as long as line up along the riverside. If you have been there and done that as far as Thailand is concerned, then head on to Vietnam and Cambodia, both of which are great for the budget traveler. Sri Lanka is another county that is good value at this time. The country is trying to revive its tourism industry after a few setbacks and some judicious Googling will garner you some great deals in such destinations as Bentota, Kandy, Galle, and of course, Colombo. 

But wherever you end up, and whatever you do, I hope you have a brilliant New Year. And that 2020 turns out to be your best year yet. 

Happily ever after...

Prince Charles and Camilla: a love story for our times

Last week, Prince Charles brought the house down at one of his many engagements in India by referring to his wife, Camilla, as his ‘Mehbooba’. No, he wasn’t inspired by the iconic song of the same name from Sholay. The word had been gifted to him by some of his Indian friends back in the UK, who had explained that it meant ‘beloved’. So, that’s how Charles presented Camilla to the assembled guests, “My wife…my Mehbooba” even as Camilla blushed and then flashed her trademark jolly-hockey-sticks grin. And the audience lapped it up; this unabashed display of middle-aged love.

And indeed, looking at the many images of the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall on their recent trip to India, one thing shines clear. Camilla is clearly Charles’ ‘Mehbooba’. The pair of them look as loved up as a newly-wedded couple, exchanging complicit glances, the odd giggle, and touching each other with the ease of long intimacy. They share asides, gaze adoringly at one another, laugh easily and often, and seem to take enormous pleasure in each other’s company. Not bad going for a couple which first met and fell in love in their 20s, and then made their way back to one another after two failed marriages and much rotten publicity. But clearly, all those scandals are long forgotten as the British heir to the throne readies to take over from his mother, with the woman he has loved for most of his adult life firmly by his side.

They were together on the banks of the Ganga in Rishikesh, performing a ritual aarti; they visited the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun; they did the rounds of Asha Sadan, a home for abandoned and homeless children in Mumbai; they were the star attraction at a party hosted by Mukesh and Neeta Ambani for the Prince’s British Asian Trust; and then they headed off to Sri Lanka, where Charles was standing in for his mother, Queen Elizabeth, at the meetings of Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

For us in India, the contrast to the way things had unfolded when Charles visited with his first wife, Diana, were too stark to miss. There was the famous kiss-that-wasn’t when Charles bent down to kiss Diana on the cheek as she handed him a polo trophy only to have her turn away, leaving him red-faced with embarrassment and fury. And who can forget that haunting image of the Princess posing forlorn and alone in front of that monument to eternal love, Agra’s Taj Mahal, while her husband busied himself with engagements in Delhi? They may have been joined together in what was billed as a fairy-tale wedding, but their strained expressions and public unhappiness made it clear that they were rapidly building up to a nightmare divorce.

Who could have predicted then that Charles would one day be back with a new wife, Camilla – then widely reviled as the mistress who had been the third person in the Wales marriage and had, in the Princess’ memorable phrase, made it a ‘bit crowded’ – the memories of the Diana years finally exorcised? Gone was the miserable git who looked perennially pensive and glum. In his place, was a man finally happy in his own skin, who had found the contentment and peace he had always been looking for in his second go-around.

I know that this is an unfashionable view, but I have long believed that the saga of Charles and Camilla is the love story of our times. Theirs is the commitment that has stood the test of time, taking on vicious attacks in the media and the derision and anger of the British public to emerge bloodied but unbowed. And you only have to look at the relaxed body language of the Prince and see how he lights up in the presence of his ‘darling wife’, to know that he is finally in the kind of supportive and loving relationship that he always craved.

But what I like most about the images of Charles and Camilla on their Indian adventure is how they tell us is that even if you screw up big-time the first time round, you are not fated to eternal loneliness. Their shining faces and brilliant smiles teach us that it is possible to find happiness the second time round.

Second marriages have, of late, become a hot topic of discussion in India, not least because of that now-famous Tanishq ad which features a single mother getting married again (Is she single? Is she widowed? Is she divorced? The answer to all these questions is: Who cares? Or even: How does it matter?) I have to confess that it left me touched and a little teary-eyed. Yes, I know it is cheesy (“Aaj sey Daddy bulaoon?” asks the young daughter) and designed to tug at your heartstrings. But it is moving for all that, with its promise of new beginnings and a brand-new love story.

As far as I am concerned, the cynics can carp all they want about second marriages being a triumph of hope over experience. But sometimes – actually most times – hope is all you need when it comes with lavish lashings of love.