Pic taken at Sirsi, Karnataka, India

Wishing the readers of Travelingbeats.com a very Happy and Prosperous new year 2012.

The first month of 2012 has a lot of travel in store and will share here as when they take place.

pic: Yahoo

Cyclone Thane has hit the Tamil Nadu coast between Cuddalore and Puducherry (Pondicherry). News is that Cyclone Thane has caused severe damage to property and road infrastructure in north Tamil Nadu coastal areas and Puducherry. It has caused overcast climate all over Tamil Nadu, southern Karnataka and Southern Andhra Pradesh.

I had planned to visit Kumbakonam and Tanjavur located in central Tamil Nadu on Dec 30th, 2011 but I had to abandon it after I received message from hotels over there that it is heavily raining in Kumbakonam. As per Met department this is suppose to continue for next two days. Cyclone Thane has also gave a overcast whether in Bangalore with drizzling to light rain. Today morning around 3 am I was driving from Whitefield and it was not that cold. It used to very chilly since 20th Dec 2011. I think the formation of the cyclone and it movement caused the air to be little warmer.

Some helpline numbers:

Chennai Corporation – 1913, 25619237; Kancheepuram district administration – 1077, Police control room – 9445465536, 27238001; Tiruvallur district administration – 27661200; Police control room – 27661010.

To download the complete TravelingBeats Calender 2011, click here.

I was inspired to compile the calender to a large extent by Kingfisher calender and to put my large collection of pictures to better usage.

The calender as of now is only available in digital format and if you would like to take a print out you can do so provided that you do not make any changes what so ever without our written permission.

If you have any suggestions, please provide your feedback by commenting below or write at – info@travelingbeats.com.

India is the mother of all civilizations and home to spirituality. But only a small portion of total tourist in the world visit India. So to change this, the Tourism Department, Government of India did a good job with the Incredible !ndia campaign.

Lets check some of the best videos of the Incredible India campaign. In most of the recent videos bollywood actor Amir Khan is associated.

Website:
http://www.incredibleindia.org/
http://incredibleindiacampaign.com/

I am glad that with god’s blessings the last day of 2010 was spent at Madurai and the first day of the 2011 was at Rameswaram. The detailed post and pictures of the trip are coming soon.

Check the new year sun taken at Kanyakumari on 2nd January, 2011.

The new year sun at Kanyakumari

It features some of the most beautiful sunset captured.

To download the entire set of 7 wallpapers, click here.

Please write back if you have any feedback.

1. The High Five Interchange, The USA: It is located in Allas, Texas. This 5 level flyovers reaches as high as a 12 story building. It was competed in December 2005. Read more ……

2. Highway 1, Iceland: Highway 1 is like outer ring road of Bangalore. Completed in 1974 it circles the whole Iceland.

3. The Atlanterhavsveien, Mxre Og Romsdal, Normay: This road is located in the Artic region of Norway which connects an archipelago of 8 islands. It was completed in 1989 and is around 5.4 mile. Read more …..

4. Karakoram Highway, Gilgit – Baltisan, Pakistan: This 800 mile highway connected Pakistan and China through the Karakoram and Pamir mountain ranges. It opened in 1986. Read more …..

Refer more: http://karakoramhighway.blogspot.com

5. Hana Highway, Maui, Hawaii: This stretch is said to be one of the most scenic drives in the world. It runs along the northern cost of Maui. Read more ….

6. Passo Dello Stelvio, Lombardy, Italy: This road on the Alps of Italy is one of the most dangerous roads with sharp turns. Read more ….

7. Trollstigen Rauma, Norway: Opened in 1936, this road passes thorough scenic mountain ranges of Norway.

8. Yungas Road, La Paz, Bolivia: Yungas road on the Andes mountain range is also known as the road of death. Roads are very narrow at places and accidents are common. Read more …..

9. Capulin Volcano road, Capulin, Mexico: This road just ascends the mouth of a previously erupted volcano called Capulin in Mexico. The road is so narrow that even passing a vehicle is difficult.

10. The Magic Roundabout, Swindon, London: The junction was earlier know as Country Island ring Junction but was later names as Magic Roundabout Junction. Opened in 1972 it lets over 1000 cars to pass in an hour. Read more ….

Last Sunday The New York Times has compiled a list of 31 places to visit in 2010. Sri Lanka stole the first spot. But the good news is that India’s Mumbai (13th position) and Mysore (4th position) featured on the list. Mumbai being the financial capital of India is always beaming with tourists. Mysore the city of royals in the state of Karnataka is a popular destination in almost all foreign tourist’s itinerary. The article has praised Mysore for good Yoga teaching and training. Most people in Bangalore may not be aware of this. NYT also talked of Mysore place which receives the second largest number of visitors in the world after Madame Tussuad in London. Apart from Mysore city, the Mysore district and surrounding has many places to explore.

This is great news for Mysore Travel industry as this listing of Mysore by NYT will send a lot more tourists to Mysore this year. So they should be geared up to meet the expectations. And tourists should try their best to book a hotel before visiting Mysore particularly before or after any event.

Check the complete list of 31 places to Visit in 2010 by NY Times.

Please take the poll to let us know how do you feel about the new design.

picture on custom header on the new forum

Below is the list of those places/countries:

1. Denmark (Europe)
2. Wuyishan, China
3. Andorra (Europe)
4. Malawai (Africa)
5. Hidakagawa (Japan)
6. Colombia (South America)
7. Bhutan (Asia)
8. Happy (Texas, USA)
9. Montreal, Canada
10. Vanuatu ( an island in Pacific ocean)

Now are people not at all happy in urban areas? Well there are more pollution, tension, stress, commitment – so how happy that leaves people! Check a list of world’s top happy cities, compiled by Forbes.