Saturday, January 23, 2016

A look at Architecture: Delhi and Agra

During my recent trip to India, in November last year, I visited New Delhi and Agra for 4 days with my parents. The city that has been the capital of several empires throughout it's 500 odd years' history in the subcontinent, Delhi had been on my travel list for a long time. Below are some of my photos from the trip.

Entering the Taj

Entrance to the Taj


The Taj
The Taj Mahal

Qutub minar



Bahai faith - Lotus Temple
Red Fort

Bahai faith - Lotus Temple

India Gate


Rashtrapati Bhavan - Facade

Rashtrapati Bhavan - Front yard

Jama Masjid

View from the minaret -Jama Masjid

View from the minaret -Jama Masjid

Agra Fort


Lawns inside the Agra Fort


Sheeh mahal - Agra fort


Painting inside the Sheel Mahal - Agra Fort

Monday, January 4, 2016

By the Blue Waters of Los Cabos

El Arco de Cabo San Lucas (The Arch)
Playa del Amor
My wife and I recently did a short trip to Los Cabos during Christmas last year. The land's end of twin cities of Los Cabos lies at the tip of the Mexican State of Baja California, surrounded by the Gulf of California (or the Sea of Cortez) on the east and the Pacific ocean on the west.
The immigration in Mexico is usually very smooth, if you're coming as a tourist, and this was no exception. Although it took a little longer than usual, because of the holiday traffic.

Day 1: We had booked a pre-paid shared taxi using Fun Los Cabos, from the airport. They do the booking through a company called Trans Cabo but it's more expensive
to book directly with them. The taxi picked us just outside the airport and since we were staying in San José del Cabo and not Cabo San Lucas, which is farther of the two sister cit
ies, we were dropped first at our destination.
The Mission of  San José Church
After dropping off our luggage, we went for a stroll towards Mega, which is a huge grocery store, to exchange money, as Banco Santander which has a no-fee tie up with Bank of America, has an ATM inside the store.
From there we took the Urbano, which is the bus used by locals for transport within San José, to get to downtown San José, where the weekly art walks happen every Thursday. The art walk is a weekly activity organized 16 artist organizations around the town. We explored the art work for the rest of the evening and headed back to the apartment after a light dinner.

Whales Spotted!
Day 2: We had booked a Whale watching safari as part of a package of 3 for 2 tours offered by Cabo Adventures. We were driven by a van from their office in San José to their office in Cabo (from where most tours commence) early in the morning. After some initial guidelines and instructions from our boat captain, we hopped on to the boat, wearing our life jackets. The high speed boat made it's way past the Arch, and the other beaches and we were quickly in deeper waters for Whale watching. We almost immediately spotted a couple of humpback gray whales hanging out by the Sea of Cortez.
Sunset cruise
The mothers usually bring their calves to nurse near the shallower (but still deep by human standards) waters, and many of them can be spotted when they come up to the surface to breathe some fresh air.
Sunset at the Arch
After the tour, we went via a small boat to the near by beach, Playa del amor (Lover's beach), to relax.

Evening, we did the sunset sailboat cruise, while catching some stunning views of the Arch during sunset and enjoying margaritas on the deck. We were also provided some delicious snacks during the two hour sailing.

Fishes under water at Santa Maria
The intersection near our apartment
Day 3: This morning we had booked the Snorkeling tour, and like before, we were picked at the San José office and driven to Cabo Marina. We were then take via the speed boat to Santa Maria beach, were the water is a little warmer compared to others.
We were given instructions along the way on how to wear the masks and life jackets while snorkeling. Since it was our first time, we were a bit nervous doing this exercise, but the guides were with us throughout and were really helpful. We saw some colorful fishes and underwater life during the almost one hour underwater. We were then driven back to the main office, from where we were given a ride back to San José.
Sunset in San José

Day 4: This was the last day before we left back, and we wanted to reserve this day just for relaxation. We strolled the Estuary near by, and the downtown in the morning and relaxed at the beach, opposite where we were staying, in the evening.


What businesses did we use?
Hotel: Airbnb
Tours: Cabo-Adventures
Airlines: American
Airport transportation: Fun Los Cabos