travel tips | On My Canvas

Dusty Sharjah: The Poorer Brother of Abu Dhabi and Dubai

the grand souk sharjah best places to visit in sharjah for free

A Day in The Dusty Emirate of Sharjah, The UAE: Exploring on Foot, Seeing Some of The Best Places to Visit in Sharjah

Sharjah is another emirate in the UAE. While flights have been rescheduled, as I mentioned in this subtly titled piece, I had more time on my hands. Of course, I wanted to see another one of the seven Emirates of the UAE, after visiting Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Several ways were on my mind. Either I could go to Sharjah by bus for a day trip or stay overnight. I had booked one night in a hotel in Sharjah, thinking that I shouldn’t spend all my days in Dubai. That was a fully refundable booking as I was unsure of my plans. Then, while walking around the Old Dubai creek, I saw a board of the Sharjah tourism map, and next to it were mentioned ferries or water taxis to Sharjah.

That sounded too good! The Dubai Creek was fringed with boat stations and marine stations. These marine stations had the water taxi and ferry schedules. The particular boat station Al Gouibiba, which was near the Bur Dubai Marine station, had Sharjah on display. The first time I asked the counter, I only enquired about ferry times, not duration or price. Weekdays had a ferry starting from morning, 7:30 or so, and on weekends, the ferries only ran in the evening. I thought to go on the four pm ferry and return by the eight pm ferry. Or if I was going to stay in Sharjah, then take a one-way ferry.

Visiting Qaṣr Al Waṭan, The Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi (The UAE)

I wasn’t excited to visit Dubai. A Hungarian traveler I had met in Abu Dhabi had told me that a twelve-lane road runs through the center of Dubai. It is busy. Lots of people. Taxis are expensive. He said Abu Dhabi is much quieter.

Now I am all in for new experiences, but who wants to go to a busy city after a quiet one? I had no choice. I couldn’t stay in Abu Dhabi forever. My host had been kind and hosted me for two days. Now, as promised to him, it was time to leave.

I got up at 8:30 and immediately messaged a friend. He is from my college, and we have been in touch. I had messaged him when I had booked a ticket to Dubai, and he was excited to meet. Finally, about to start my journey to Dubai, I wrote to him that I would be traveling to Dubai during the day. To my surprise, and good luck, he replied he was in Abu Dhabi for a meeting, and we could go together if our times synced. He also suggested me to stay with him and his family so we could chill at home.

I said I already have a booking for three days. He replied, “You can crash at our place for the entire duration.” I realized I couldn’t bother them for the five days I would be in Dubai. I didn’t know what was about to happen, though. We are always so clueless.

I overthought our conversation and whether I should accept his invitation while he told me he would message me later in the day. He had meetings to attend.

Meanwhile, I formed a plan.

I would visit the Presidential Palace. I had just searched for things to do in Abu Dhabi, and the palace was at the top of the list. I thought that visiting a palace would give me an insight into the royal life of the UAE. How does the king live? How do they build their palaces? Would there be chandeliers and big halls? The ticket would cost at least seventy dirhams, and on every travel forum, people suggested buying the ticket online to avoid the line at the ticket counter.

things to do in abu dhabi visit mosque united arab emirates

Things To Do in Abu Dhabi: Going Around the City Slowly

My first day in Abu Dhabi began at 3:30 am. I landed at the Zayed International Airport, completed immigration (I have explained it in my UAE visa guide for Indians), and took a bus to my host’s house. Remi is a Frenchman who works and lives in Abu Dhabi and is active on Couchsurfing, providing space and shelter to travelers. Couchsurfing is a platform where hosts willing to share their homes put up their profiles, and travelers looking for accommodation write to them about themselves and their travel dates.

Couchsurfing benefits both: travelers get a home, and home dwellers get company and also the opportunity to be hosted when they travel.

Remi had told me I could show up anytime and that he would leave keys for me at the reception. Even at four am, when I took a bus from the airport to his house, street lights were on, buildings were shining, and many people boarded the bus. On that fifty-minute ride, I dozed off. After the bus, I walked to his home, Google Maps directing me skillfully. A few people were out and about, and some restaurants were open, too.

dubai-creek-uae-dubai-seagulls-people-water-creek

This is How My Solo Trip Began

So this is how the nightmare began. I shouldn’t say that, though. Many people must have had it much worse.

I was in Dubai at my friend Haninder’s house, working on my newsletter, when I read a message from him. He had gone out.

“Heard the interceptions? Loud blasts?”

What blasts?

“Not really? You did?” As if that wasn’t obvious.

I checked the news.

Dubai airspace shut down. Flights canceled. Iranian missiles and drones hitting UAE. UAE intercepting the Iranian air attacks. Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan bombed as well.

NO. NO NO.

chindi himachal pradesh temple leopard devi goddess deodar and pine trees

Hanging out with villagers, Wandering Around Apple Farms, Climbing Into Pine Forests, and Drinking Wine under Starry Skies in Chindi, Himachal Pradesh

The government guesthouse in Chindi, Himachal Pradesh, was located on the brow of a hill. Below the guesthouse and further ahead and behind it, the village sprawled. We checked in at two pm. Our room was Set 1.

The PWD (Public Works Department) guesthouse caretakers hadn’t received a call from their superintendent regarding our booking. They thought there was no booking. All the staff, all men, were sitting on fixed wooden chairs that seemed to have been carved out of tree trunks right at their place under a giant Chinar tree.

trees of chindi pwd government guesthouse chindi himachal pradesh giant tree — The sycamores!

the author travel writer priyanka gupta posing with the backgroud of a train from chennai to howrah for the article what is backpacking feature

Everything I have Learned about Backpacking: My Backpacking Advice for Beginners

Table Of Content

In 2016, I took out my old grey and rusted brown backpack, Rusty, from the cupboard where it had been for the last three years. I was traveling to Chile to teach English as part of a volunteer program. As I was going for at least six months, I packed Rusty, a small wheeled suitcase, a laptop bag, and a black leather purse.

I stayed on a cold island in the south of Chile, and most of my bags stayed put. I only carried Rusty on short weekend trips within the country.

The four-month volunteer program was over soon. It was time to set sail for my longer backpacking trip through South America. With some push from my travel friend Alison, who also happens to be a backpacking genius, I accepted that Rusty wasn’t the best backpack after all.

main feature image for the article best places to see in udaipur rajasthan showing a window overlooking the udaipur city houses and the city and the aravalli hills in the distance tiny

Exploring Udaipur Slowly, and the Best Places to Visit in Udaipur, Rajasthan

Table of Contents

Okay, so let’s set it straight. Some of the below things happened in Udaipur.

A man stalked me; it doesn’t happen in all Indian cities, though I wouldn’t say this kind of thing never happens. A friendly banter is often interpreted as a desire for something more. In Udaipur, I had bought a blue and yellow georgette sari that had been hanging outside a shop. Its colorful flutter had caught my eye as I returned from an exploration of one of the best places to see in Udaipur (Rajasthan). I spoke with the shopkeeper casually, and when I left the shop, he was following me on his bike, having shut his store, calling out to me as if I was waiting for him to take me to a fort and show me a molten yellow sunset.

I also climbed, no scrambled up, a very muddy hill. It was the Karni Mata Temple hill, or the Machla Hills, on which the temple is located. Though a ropeway climbs to the temple from Udaipur city, at that time, it was closed. I took a staircase to the temple. But, I think, after following the stairs for a while, I had taken a shortcut, a mud path, as is expected of me. As it hadn’t rained in Udaipur for months, the path was dry, my feet slipping.

the climb to karnimata temple udaipur from manik lal park rajasthan karni mata is one of the best places to visit in udaipur rajasthan — The staircase I had taken from Manil Lal Park to Karni Mata temple in Udaipur

i think at some point i had taken this path which is muddy — the muddy path, which I eventually always find

I had arrived at Karni Mata temple’s back gate, which was closed. So I had to maneuver around. In ten minutes or so, a well-dressed straight-postured young man, who introduced himself as a royal family staff (maybe someone important, perhaps a young son’s friend) said he had come to get me. The guard who had refused to unlock the back gate for me had apparently called him. He, the son, not the guard, was courteous and concerned. “Ma’am how did you reach here?” He watched me curiously.

I felt slightly odd to be called ma’am by him, a guy who supposedly had come from the fort or the palace and who said all the royal family members were scheduled to do a puja in the temple later that day. I don’t remember all of it, but he was saying that it wasn’t safe for me to be up there alone in the evening.

from the balcony outside my room in rewalsar monastery the view of rewalsar lake homeless to home

Homeless in Himachal During a Storm But Then We Find a Cosy Home in a Monastery-Travel Serendipity in Rewalsar Lake, the Himalayas 12:45 pm, May 25 Let’s see if we find a place in Rewalsar. 7 pm, May 25 Though I said let’s see if we find a space in Rewalsar today morning, I’m already …

admiring the taj mahal in bright daylight in agra

Please note: This narrative is the fifth in the series of travel essays on my Sikkim to Himachal highway journey. The rest are available on the blog. Staring at the Symmetrical Taj Mahal, Soaking in Sun, and Scuttering Away from Petha Sellers After the Lucknow food tour, we drove on to Agra (Uttar Pradesh). My …

the quint essential Uttar Pradesh tiki on a plate

Please note: This narrative is fourth in the series of travel essays on my Sikkim to Himachal highway journey. Read the First: Leaving Sikkim for Himachal, Second: The 500-km Drive Through Bihar – Corn Harvests, Marriage Certificate at Hotels, and Truck Slogans, and Third Episode: Arriving in UP at Midnight – an Eerie Expressway, a Suspicious Hotel Attendant, and a Missing Wheel-Cover, too.

Also note: If I was a bit calmer – and perhaps had an ice cooler sticking to my head – I would have photographed it all. For now, we would have to do with this photo-less tour of Lucknow’s famous food. I have added a few photos from Google though.

The featured image is of a plate of tiki, taken at my parent’s home and purchased from a street food shop in their town. It’s a quintessential Uttar Pradesh photo, showing the tiki (though without chutneys) along with the Hindi Punjab Kesari, the everyman’s newspaper of my state.

My Home State Uttar Pradesh (UP) Has Moved On, But I Have Not: Indulging Nostalgia Through Lucknow’s Famous Food

We were going to pass Lucknow on our way to Himachal (from Sikkim). So for that afternoon, we had planned a Lucknow food tour: not a guide, but we ourselves were taking us to some of the most famous food in Lucknow. Neither had I been to the capital before nor did my partner S, and skipping the city’s quintessential delicacies to make it quickly to Himachal sounded like a lame excuse.

driving through haryana sunflower fields used as feature image in driving through UP article

Please note: This narrative is the third in the series of travel essays on my Sikkim to Himachal highway journey. Read the First Episode: Leaving Sikkim for Himachal – Serendipity or Choice? and the Second: The 500-km Drive Through Bihar: Corn Harvests, Marriage Certificate at Hotels, and Truck Slogans, too. Can We Ever Feel Safe in Uttar Pradesh? …

two women farmers carrying loads on heads

Please note: This narrative is the second in the series of travel essays on my Sikkim to Himachal highway journey. Read the beginning of the journey here and the onwards drive to Uttar Pradesh here.

Driving Through Bihar: a Test of Our Unrelenting Spirit

Driving through the field-fringed Bihar highway – of which so much was under construction that we were mostly taking diversions – I sat with the car window open, feeling the wind on my face. Eighty’s English Rock played on the car stereo, and the promise of open hours on the road seemed as fertile as the green-yellow country extending to the horizon.