I am a hopeless roamer. I hang my kid at my side and just
follow my husband wherever he goes. Be it the godforsaken places where I do not
get to see pizzas or malls for a very long time and make myself comfortable
with the knowledge that home is where heart is.
Fortunately my life is not as bad as I make it sound.
Recently I had a very luxurious spoilt experience at Taj. And its not the Taj
Mahal at Agra, though I plan to see that soon. I am taking about the Taj
Hotels. Its not just one place I have been to but so many places and so many
beautiful structures with facilities that just makes you feel like a queen (or
a king).
My first Taj start with Hyderabad. My hometown yet I saw it
in a different light this time. Taj
Vivanta at Begumpet makes a very grand generous service to the army crowd. The
welcome drinks were refreshing too. They gave us huge rooms and meals that
would delight your palate. I never thought I would have momos for breakfast or
barbequed prawns for lunch or perhaps have steamed fish for dinner. There was
no way I would step out in the June summery day to miss all this. The swimming
pool area was cozy and armed with beautiful ornamental trees and cane chairs. The
people were warm and I left a happy customer.
We landed in Bangalore. Bangalore as a city simply boggles
my mind. The Taj Gateway at the Brigade
road was perhaps more of a cooperate
hotel. It didn’t warm my heart right away. Though the breakfast area outdoors
was a treat to sore eyes. The waterfall and the lotus in the pond made me
ignore the dried idlies and overcooked dosas. I am more of a foodie. I decide
the reputation of the hotel with its delicacies. The beat part was the walkable
shopping area. I browsed through the junk jewellery and the clothes sipping on
my soda. Sky Bar @ UB city is a sure place to see. The lunch buffet the next
day was a delight. They realized we were a group of very hungry people. The
bread pudding and the biryani were great.
Taj Gateway at Marine
drive, Kochi would perhaps be the best located hotel so far. I could view
the sea from my room. I don’t know how long I stood there just watching the
lush green palm trees, swaying away to rain
and wind. We took a walk towards
the ferry and I could picturize some cheesy Hindi song as I watched the couples
holding hands. Love here meant, a woman wearing a saree, her head full of
fragment flowers and she could be more on a heavier side but the guy holding
her hand looks at her like his life depended on her. The food with its
traditional rasam-rice was the only thing that made me love coming down for
lunch. Breakfast was a grand affair here. Somehow, getting down all dressed
with so many options makes you never go into your kitchen again.
Pune was the next destination. We didn’t stay at the Taj and
we got so used to the expensive free toiletries that I didn’t have the heart to
touch what Sun n Sands had displayed
in their bathrooms. The hotel was beautiful, the food was great but the service
lacked warmth. The hot kettle (where my son’s milk depended on) was placed all
wrong and it felt like a normal room to me. Perhaps they need to raise their
standard a little more. Food was great. I especially loved the salad they had
to offer for lunch. And the Maharashtra cuisine in breakfast was great too.
Taj Vivaanta near Khan
Market at Delhi was again a treat. Khan market is a great place to shop. You see all
the delli girls in their latest fashion, the foods around was great. I even saw
a local politician having lunch just out from a CBI investigation (I got an
update from the news). I was received by a Moroccan manager at Taj. She was
more than happy to know me. She offered me a crib for the baby and insisted that
I tell her more what I needed. Milk and cookies for my son while I sipped on my
masala chai. The room was huge (I have a thing for huge rooms and space) and I
slept fitfully.
Taj Usha Kiran
Gwalior felt like I was in a movie. I was actually in a heritage palace. A
guest rooms for the VIPS during the times of kings and queens was not turned
into a five start hotel. The room as soon I entered was perhaps bigger than my
own house. The bathroom had two rooms, the bedroom looked like a playground and
I was simply ‘wowed’. The elevator was as ancient as the palace. There was
history everywhere and I just soaked in the luxury. The swimming pool was
another story. This needs a separate introduction all together as we saw the
birds chirping, the trees bowing above the water and the rose petals in a
copper bowl. The huge lions and the steps that took you into the pool was all carefully
preserved to show how to live the ancient times beautifully.
Taj truly made me feel out of home and treated me like the
princess that I think I am.
For batter:
For batter:
