MotoTraQ

Many cruises claim to offer the newest service or have biggest accommodation areas on their boats, and it is true that the standards of cruise ships are improving all the time. So what is it that differentiates a great cruise from a luxury cruise?

Service. A luxury cruise relies on offering excellent service to keep its clientele happy. Sometimes a cruise ship might not have the best facilities in the world, or might not go to the best locations, but can still be classed as luxury due to the exemplary service they offer. Staff should be looking at their best the whole time, be courteous, helpful and never rude to guests. It is vital that guests on the boat have an easy path of communication and can have their queries answered quickly.

Facilities. Although cruise ships are rather large these days, they are still limited in the range of facilities they can provide, and therefore it’s important that what they do offer is top notch. Facilities can mean anything from the dining room to the swimming pool and most luxury cruises keep their facilities up-to-date and well maintained. Silversea Cruises are among the industry leaders in getting the latest cruise facilities.

Food. This is one of the most important elements for any ship. If people experienced good food on their trip it can mean they have the best time ever, but alternatively, if the food is bad, it can ruin the cruise even if everything else was great. It is not uncommon for a luxury cruise to have a world-class chef on board preparing the food, or at least controlling a team of chefs underneath them, who are available to cook something up at any time of the day. Cruise companies such as Oceania cruises pride themselves on the food and drink they offer to guests and actively encourage their guests to ask for tailored dishes.

Popularity: 11%

When you holiday at Singapore, it is not just on Sentosa, Zoos, Bird Parks. There are more to explore about Singapore, one which is the night cityscape views. There are several locations where you can see splendid night cityscape views in Singapore.

Many visitors to Singapore maybe do not realize that there are various appealing things to do while in Singapore. If you are thinking of just the Singapore Zoological Gardens, Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari, Sentosa etc., it is time you consider hitting the roof!

Hong Kong boast impressive night cityscape views, Singapore has them too. To fully enjoy the amazing views, you should check out the following places, which will allow you to dine, wine and enjoy the night cityscape views of Singapore.

There are several places in Singapore which you can do that. The ORGO at 1 Esplanade Drive (Esplanade Roof Terrace) is one of them. It operates from 5pm to 2am daily, and offers a impressive 360 degrees scenic view of Marina Bay, the future Marina Sands Integrated Resort, the Singapore Flyer and the skyscrapers of the Singapore’s Central Business District. The view is just one part of it, you get to enjoy the exotic cocktails created by a Japanese celebrity bartender. If you feel the high temperature maybe a problem to you, you will be delighted to know that there are three air-conditioned glass houses, which are 3metres high structures that can sit eight to fifteen people.

A short distance away is MR PUNCH WINEBAR, a rooftop bar with a mid-level view of Stamford Road’s cityscape. It is located on the sixth floor of a toy museum – Mint Museum of Toys, at 26 Seah Street. The pub is named after the traditional English puppet show featuring the characters Punch and his spouse Judy. Be pleasantly surprised by the owner’s personal collection of over fifty unique enamel posters and tin plates, some dating as far back as the 1890’s. One particular enamel sign, a retro Quaker Oats sign, is estimated to be worth over US$150,000! The signs are collected from countries like Japan, Hong Kong, India and Taiwan. The bar also boasts a 1920s L-shaped timber counter that was from a remittance center. Visited by mostly young professionals who go there for dinner and cheap drinks in a homely setting, the draw of Mr Punch Winebar is not just the view, food and drinks, but also the heritage element of the atmosphere.

MR PUNCH WINEBAR operates from 4pm to midnight on weekdays and till 2am on weekdays. It closes on Sundays.

There are several hotels in singapore around the vicinity. If you enjoy the night views, remember to book a hotel room near the locations. One good place to be at would be staying around the Marina Bay Area.

If you think there are only these two places for marvelous night views of Singapore, well, there are more!

HELIPAD at No. 6 Eu Tong Sen Street, The Central, is another. It offers exciting bird’s-eye view of Clarke Quay and the Singapore River. It opens daily from 6pm to 2am on weekends and till 3am on weekends and are closed on Sundays.

At THE NEST, DXO at Colours by the Bay at the Esplanade Mall, you can get pleasure from the view of the busy food street at Colours by the Bay and Esplanade Drive. It is also by the Formula 1 race circuit.

BREEZE at The Scarlet at 33 Erskine Road offers the views of bustling Chinatown, is another place you can chill out and get pleasure from the night views of Singapore.

So remember this, Singapore also offers great night views. You just require to hit the roofs and take pleasure in them while you wine and dine.

Of course you should not restrict yourself to just the night views, you should select a hotel in singapore to suit your travel plans. There are more places and things to do in Singapore than just shopping and dining.

Popularity: 7%

Thousands of guests always come up to to Lake Tahoe to see the excitement of shops, casinos, fine restaurants, nightclub, theatre, cabaret, dancing, shows and live musical performances. There is lot of discount that regularly located close to the gaming and entertainment venues.

The city of South Links tahoe accommodations is surrounding by abundant hotels and resorts from smaller kind’s hotel to big stars hotels that provide for all brand of visitors. The visitors can find the best options of South Lake Tahoe hotel to alter their lifestyles and budgets. The South Lake Tahoe hotels and resorts are more compromised to suit with your budget, so don’t be anxious, if you are on a tight budget. The hotels are always looking for you.

Links lake tahoe luxury rentals, the South Lake Tahoe hotels or north Lake Tahoe hotels are presented for ski reservation. The hotels can arrange your ski activities to find the perfect choice for you. Also they offer the distance of price to put up easier for to make reservation. The other feature is they can even custom great match resort options that meet your preferences.

The forest suite resort is 100 yards from the casinos, heavenly ski resort and heavenly village. The resort is located in private alpine environment, couple blocks from the lake Tahoe crystal water and couple minutes from casinos. Forest Suites Resort is the great place to escape from year round activities and annually recreation activities. The forest suites resort is preparing for a day of fun either you have activities on the lake or you have outside activities.

The rooms are very lavishness and at ease, everyone whom staying in the forest suites hotel will have a good time spending a day or night. You won’t have a problem walking to the heavenly ski lift while you are draining the ski uniform and ski boots. It’s also easy to get fine restaurants and shops as well as walks able to heavenly village.
The service is very brilliant with the hospitality of its staff and management, from dining room staff, housekeeping staff to front office staff. The hotel is absolutely installed with great pool and large hot tub where you can enjoy rest of the day. The hotel does have a lot dining options within surrounding area.

The meeting place in the forest suites resort is in the conference center. The place can put up for over 70 visitors with an colorful background and natural setting.

The forest suites resort has own website where you can check more information and more hotel descriptions, such as the room layout, facilities, images and availability of the rates and occupancy. If you sign up through the website directly, you can take advantage of the low rates around $10 below any other online rates. So it’s lot cheaper.

Get helpful information for vacation home – this is your individual knowledge pack.

Popularity: 14%

The first Philippines Islands cruise ship to fly the Philippine flag has made Subic Bay its home port, giving an added addition to this free port’s claim of being one of the country’s most spectacular tourism destinations.

Esteban Tajanlangit, chairman of the 7107 Islands Cruise, said the 370-passenger ship would now start its twice-monthly inter-island tours here, after cruise line officials saw Subic’s benefit as a nautical gateway.

“This is the Philippines’ first cruise ship and Subic Bay is the fitting home port for it,” Tajanlangit said when the ship first sailed to Subic.

He noted that Subic’s Alava Pier, where US warships used to dock, offers an immediate panorama of the freeport zone, unlike in Manila where containerized cargoes blocked the view of the city.

“The 7107 Islands Cruise is committed to make Subic a starting point to the Philippines islands 7,107 spectacular islands, and today is just the beginning,” he said.

On its maiden cruise to Subic on, the Filipino cruise ship brought almost 300 vacationers who spent a day exploring some of the top attractions in this freeport under tour packages arranged by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

The tour destinations included theme parks like Tree Top Adventure, Zoobic Safari, and Ocean Adventure, as well as duty-free shops and other leisure facilities in Subic’s central business district.

With the ship homeported at Subic, meanwhile, tourists from Central and Northern Luzon would now have the chance to join the ship’s island-hopping tours, said SBMA Chairman Feliciano Salonga.

“They can take the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx) and be in Subic in no time for the scheduled tours,” Salonga said.

Tajanlangit said the succeeding 7107 cruise schedules would start from Subic, proceed to Manila to pick up additional passengers, then begin the hops to Puerto Galera, Boracay and Coron and possibly Cebu City Philippines.

“The ship will dock one or two days in each destination before sailing back to Subic Bay,” he said.

The 110-meter long 7107 Islands cruise ship has 137 cabins with a total bed capacity of 370, a swimming pool, sauna and spa, poolside bar, and entertainment lounge with professional bands and guest artists.

The cruise line also has associations with Philippines Islands destination resorts for diving, snorkeling, boating and other water sports activities.

The entry of the 7107 Islands cruise line in Subic was the result of the aggressive promotion campaign by the SBMA Tourism group, which has been busy making various tour packages for Subic Bay.

A private firm has also developed areas at the SBF for a passenger terminal and tourist complex, and built a Bali-type resort along the waterfront.

Salonga said the passenger cruise industry is expected to energize Subic’s tourism zone and provide some steam to port and maritime-related businesses here in face of the global recession.

Read important advice about Niche Finder – check out hyperlinked webpage.

Popularity: 14%

It was 6 a.m or 7 a.m we leave our hotel at Ajmer and start our journey towards Udaipur.  Now first time we feel the cold of December as the road to reach the highway from Ajmer was from a village and small hills. After touching the hiway thankfully we found a small tea stall.

Rajasthan Trip: Tea stall

We take 2-3  cups of hot tea & biscuits to make ourselves hot and waiting for sunrise.

Rajasthan Trip: Sunrise at Ajmer

Then start again. What I have found that the roads here are amazing and ideal for biking.

Rajasthan Trip: Amazing Roads of Rajasthan

After reaching Udaipur bypass we found a milestone where Jaisalmer was 315 K.M.  As our plan was to see sunset & sand dunes on desert at Jaisalmer, it will be very late if we go to Udaipur.

Rajasthan Trip: At Udaipur bypass (Mikhail taking pose)

We moved our bikes towards Pokhran – Jaisalmer. Here are some pic …

Rajasthan Trip: Towards Pokhran

Rajasthan Trip: Small break for photography

Rajasthan Trip: Way to Pokhran-Jaisalmer

Now it was boring same kind of road same scenery. We were just waiting for Jaisalmer to come. Finally we reach Jaisalmer. Oh! yes I must mention our lunch at Pokhran. It is a small village kind of place but the food was very teasty.

Rajasthan Trip: Jaisalmer fort

After reaching in front of Jaisalmer fort heard sand dunes neary 45k.m. from there. We decided to go to Sam (Desert village) where we can see sunset and sand dunes.

Rajasthan Trip: Mikhail posing with camel

Rajasthan Trip: Me posing on Camel

Rajasthan Trip: Sunset at Sam

Rajasthan Trip: My creative shot

I must say it was not a very good experience of desert due to huge rush in a small place. One can see more people than sand dunes there.

Sun was already down and we moved towards jaisalmer to find out a hotel. We reach Jaisalmer following the backlights of other cars. Hotel were very costly in Jaisalmer compairing to other places of Rajasthan.

We manage ourselves in a decent hotel where generally foreigners stay.

Popularity: 24%

We started our journey on 25th December at 12noon. After crossing heavy crossing on Delhi and Gurgaon we stopped somewhere on the Jaipur Highway.

Mikhail posing for his best shot

Rajasthan Trip: Me also tried to take shot

Rajasthan Trip: On the way

The road was amazing to ride bike. We touched our max speed several times and enjoyed the ride.  As the journey was not according to our plan some how we reached Ajmer nearly 7 p.m or 8 p.m.

There was nothing to much at night so we just refuel our tanks and take a walk on the galis of Ajmer.

Popularity: 90%

It was Thusday on 25th December and 27th and 28th was Saturday and Sunday. So you need a leave on 26th. Right now I don’t have remember it was an another holiday or I applied for a leave. But it was our (Me and Mikhail) trip to Rajasthan from 25th to 28th December.

Rajasthan Trip: Sunset in Desert

It was my longest trip on bike till now. We traveled nearly 2000km in 4 days. But it was not according to our plan. What we plan was to start our journey in the morning but it was 12 noon when we were able to start our journey to wards Rajasthan via Delhi- Gurgaon.

Rajasthan Trip: Our fisrt stop after crossing Gurgaon

First Day we stopped at Ajmer. On the second Day we traveled up to Jaisalmer. Third day we stopped at Bikaner and on the last day from Bikaner to Noida via Rohtak-Bahadurgarh.

Here are some picture of that trip….

Rajasthan Trip: Break towards Jaisalmer

Rajasthan Trip:Jaisalmer Fort

Popularity: 80%

Subrata's bike under snow cover

There are as many different techniques for riding on ice and snow as there are varieties of snow. I have gain some experience in my last rohtang ride.There are certain common techniques that seem to be useful in many instances. One of main thing to remember is use your breaks care fully. New fallen snow presents problems for bikers due to the extra effort need to get through it. Six inches of really light powder is tireing and slow, but you can go for long distances. Its very little worse than riding against a good stiff wind. Even a foot of powder is manageable as long as you get there first, before someone else makes a mess of it. You will find it much easier to travel in totally undisturbed snow than to follow car tracks, or even another bike. If you are the first vehicle along the route your biggest problem is the extra effort needed to push through the snow. If you are following others you also have to contend with their ruts and the front wheel diversions these cause. On open road ways, watch for small bumps in the snow which appear without any apparent cause. These can signal debris in the road, or potholes under the snow. You will find that things happen slowly in heavy snow. Falls take a fair bit of time to happen, and you will find that most are avoidable by quick bike handling. Sharp turns that would only exacerbate a fall on ice are quite viable recovery techniques. By a “sharp turn” I mean turning the handlebar in large increments, and fairly large lean angles. You may feel you front wheel slip sideways. Don’t over react. The snow will supply resistance to this sideways slip, but it takes time to kick in (your tire has to compact a couple inches of snow as it slips before there is real resistance). Maintain forward motion, wait for the tire to catch. More often than not, the side slip will simply cease with you still in the saddle. If you dab, you dab. No big deal.

Popularity: 2%

On the way to Rohtang

Time to complete the log

Right from the first day, we were searching for Bhuttas. I mean whats better than a bhutta, hot and salted, nimbu maarke, in such a weather. Got them in Marhi which is about 11km from the top. The last 11km took almost an hour because of the road condition, two landslides a few trucks ambling down the pass and the sheer number of qualis/innovas.
Ofcourse, some people were kind enough to park their vehicles right on the road, leaving barely enough space for a big 4X4 to pass through

On the top, finally, i was disappointed. Too many tourists, soiled snow and shops. We decided to move ahead a bit. And rewarded we were

Enjoy !!

Near to Rohtang vally

RohTang

Rohtang vally: photo taken by subrata

Some guys parked at one of the turns beyond the pass and enquired, excitedly.. “Going to Leh!!”. I replied “Not yet” Next year i definitely will!!!

Way to Leh

The standard biker baba pic

Biker baba at Rohtang

Me.. posing.. hindi film style

Mikhail:posing

The Alien and the Earthling

The Alien and the Earthling at Rohtang

As we played and posed around.. the weather changed dramatically. At first i thought it was a drizzle. But the white specks on my jacket made me jump with joy. This was the first time i was seeing live snow fall. Soon, the snowfall got more intense. It was about 3:30 in the afternoon. We decided to stop for lunch at the touristy place we had left behind. Surprise Surprise!! most of the vehicles were gone.
Tactical Mistake #2:: When in unknown area, do as the locals do.

We didn’t. Stopped at a small tent for some tea. This is when the things started going bad. Soon, the snow fall had become violent and the wind had started howling. It was getting very cold now and the only respite was the gas stove on which the tea was being made.
We asked the vendor, whether we should make a move. He said “Don’t worry. Kal bhi hua tha. Bas dus minute ki baat hai”. We ordered one more round of chaai.. but now i was genuinely worried. Tables were upturned, not a soul seemed to be in sight.

Snow storm at RohTang

It was now 5 and light had started fading. The wind wasn’t letting up at all. Now, the vendor himself said, “Saahab!! yahaan rehne kaa intezaam nhi hai. Aap bikes pe kaise jaaogey.”
Subrata and i exchanged worried glances.
5:30 and still no let up. Visibility was down.

snow storm

I said, “we have to get off the mountain”. Can’t risk wasting anymore time. The multiple orders of tea + maggi thing had cost us 280 Rs !!!

Ventured out of the tent and my visor went foggy. Shit!!! no chance i could use it. Opened the visor and was stung by the ice.
This is when subrata took this mobile pic.

Snow covered bikes

Snow covered bike

A few kickstarts later, the zma roared to life. The 220 seemed dead. Have had a few starting problems previously. I pleaded with God “Not today!! just not today!!”
Tried dhakka start but even that wasn’t working. Finally, my moody bike relented and started up

We went ahead. 100m on, the windward side of the pass was covered with thick snow. The road was all white. Even at 10 kmph, i lost control. We skidded. Looked back for help from the Zma guys but saw that they had also fallen down. Subrata’s leg was stuck somehow in the Zma. Parking there, we helped him up. The Zma fairing had suffered a big crack. The clutch lever had broken in two. I looked around but there was hardly anybody there. For the first time.. fear engulfed me.
He said that he could drive it. So we started again. Both the pillions(my wife and bro-in-law) got off and we decided that they would walk down a kilometer or two while we would drive the bikes at a snails pace. Both feet on the ground.
We saw a Swift in the distance. A newly married couple was sitting in it. The Swift seemed perfectly capable of dealing with the snow. I asked them if they could take my wife down to Marhi while we follow them. The charming couple obliged and now the first of my problems were over. Went ahead a bit and Subrata fell down again. This time, he hurt his knee. I was shaking my head. This was just not part of the plan.
God has a way of testing you and then showing you the way, in our case, a truck
Talked to the driver who was ready to load up the bike. A few localites joined in and we were able to lift the zma up. Now, i had to take a call. Either i could continue alone in the snow or get my bike loaded up too. Bravery and bravado have a thin snow laden line and i decided not to risk freezing in the snow in the dark.. Plus i was concerned that the Swift might be able to negotiate ahead easily and if i got stuck my bike would be a big liability
Both the bikes loaded up, Subrata and Rishabh went in the truck while i joined my wife in the comfort of the Swift. Even with the heater on, i was shaking. The snow on my clothes was melting and simply soaking them.
Anyway!! we were safe now
Needless to say, the climb down the mountain was treacherous and took quite a while. We stopped at just one point where i finally mustered enough courage to take out my camera. The lens was all foggy. To hell with scratches i thought and cleaned it with my gloves.
Took a few shots. Here they are,

As we crossed Marhi again, i looked up. The dark clouds had engulfed the mountain above. I guess we had been very lucky

This was the most exciting part of the journey. Rest of it is just–
1. All wet and mudded in Manali(the couple dropped us there) among the scores of tourists in their bright shawls and monkey caps. Bongs, Bongs and more bongs. Well how can i complain!! i am a Bong too
2. We ate some boiled eggs so that we could finally get warmed up a bit.
3. We took a taxi from Manali to kullu as subrata said that he couldnt drive so better to take the bikes to kullu.

Day 3:
Sunday is a lazy time in the hills. Nobody gets up and even if they do, they won’t open their shops. Finding mechanics was tough. Some jugaad with rope to tie up the zma fairing, and we decided to move on.
The day was dusty and downright hot. But i had no complaints. We were alive.
As i sipped tea in a roadside dhaba near Ambala at 7 in the evening i reflected on a few things.
My tactical mistakes, pillions on these mountain rides and whether a car was a better option.

I drifted off to sleep and my wife woke me up. It was time to roll on. The wind gently energizing me, the rising moon for company, i was content. Saw a family get out of a car, all decked up and asking at the dhaba if they had a cooler, the kids shouting out for pepsis , their mouths full of fatty chips. I had the answer to the car Vs Bike dilemma
I revved up, engaged the gear, and screamed past them.
It was time to go home.

Popularity: 100%

Got up at 7. We were already behind the plan for the day. Wanted to bike till a few kilometers beyond Gramphoo. Not to be now. Finally.. at about 8:45 in the morning we decided to move, leaving the luggage in the hotel only.

The drive from Kullu is very easy paced and leisurely. Here are a few pics

RohTang:Notice the third goat from the left in the pic

Notice the third goat from the left in the pic. Its giving me such a funny and confused look

Manali

Finally reached Manali. The snow covered mountains were just so inviting. We were very excited.

RohTang: Manali

Here i made a tactical mistake. Inflated the tyres to the optimum pressure(28, 34)
Anyway, had a hearty breakfast of paranthas, poori bhaaji and bhaturey among ourselves. A few strolls on the Mall road in Manali and we were ready for the climb. It was already 11 in the morning and it had started drizzling a bit.
As we started up, the weather alternated between sunny and a slight drizzle.
Let the pictures do the talking now. Its almost one at night. Can’t write anymore

Towards Rohtang

Me.. trying to do a bit of posing by cornering on a loop. Unfortunately, wifey clicked the pic a bit early  Trust me.. i did well:D

MIkhail

The series of pics of our journey to the top.

Subrata's Karizma

Wifey and me..

Wifey and me..

The MotoSnapper in action

Mikhail:The MotoSnapper in action

The bulldozer. Clearing a land slide

RohTang:The bulldozer. Clearing a land slide

The horses/khacchhars grazing around. I personally feel this is a great shot  Critics be damned!!

Mostly, the traffic was descending from the pass. We were one of the few who were going up at that time.

Ok guys.. Now i am really sleepy. Rest of the log tomorrow night
Just a quick cell phone grab of what we went through

Popularity: 84%