TAXI not FOR SURE (TnFS)

Now a days we are slowly getting habituated with the Mobile app. We are started living in an e-world, where the rule is simple: Whatever you want will reach you wherever you are. I won’t get surprised a day will come, when we will need only a Cell phone for living, rest all will be take care with a finger. Almost for everything there is an app to help you out at any place and any time. Is it bliss of Technology or an illusion that driving us ahead of time.

After a lots of thought process finally I too started booking my cab through internet. I started with Meru cab, and subsequently in some days due to non availability of Meru cabs, I tried Taxi For Sure (TFS). As the name suggest, I started getting taxi for sure whenever I tried. Slowly I started booking cab always from Taxi For Sure.

On 2^nd Dec 2015, I had to travel from Mumbai to Bangalore. The flight was scheduled in the Morning 7:30 am. I booked my cab from TFS on 1^st Dec 2015 (TFS-AT-C45543355) to travel from my residence to Domestic Airport. The cab was to report to my residence at 5:45 am on 2^nd Dec 2015. As per standard practice the message was : *The driver's details will be sent to you 15mins prior to pick up time.

On 2^nd Dec 2015 , I got a sms around at 5:30 am regarding the cab details and Drivers name. But till 5:40 am I didn’t receive any call from the driver. With some doubt, I again crossed check the detail of my booking and it was confirmed on the same day and time. I started dialing the cell number of the driver as provided in the sms. But to my surprise this time no one picked my call. I still tried for 10 minutes and dialed the number again and again, but there was no response from the number.

Where do I get any cab at this moment of time? I started feeling the tense since, I had to reach airport on time and I hadn’t planned for any cushion time for such incidents. Just for a trial I checked in Meru App if any cab available. Thanks to Meru that , on that day there was a cab available near by place and I could reach airport just before the time.  It was an eye opening for me and a big lesson. When I discussed this incident with my colleague, I came to know that there are such experiences with other online cab service providers too.

Though this e-world has created lots of convenience for human being, without aligning the human values where is it leading us? Do we Trust someone in this virtual space ?

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

TRIP TO SIKKIM

One of the most beautiful place in India that I have visited during June 2014.  The memories still young in mind and every time I hear someone planning to visit the state, I can’t stop to tell the places they should visit.  What you want ; Adventure, Photography, Peace of Mind or away from the crowded cities to relax ??? Sikkim gives you everything..

It is an ideal proposition to first decide the purpose of the vacation and then plan the entire trip to the state.

Brief about the tourist spots;

Mostly whoever visit Sikkim, they have the capital Gangtok in mind.  Gangtok is a beautiful hill city ; neat, clean, cool weather and off course a complete different experience you will get the moment you enter this capital city.  

Keeping Gangtok as a Centre place or base for your travel, the geography of the state can be divided as ; East Sikkim, West Sikkim, North Sikkim & South Sikkim. In terms of geographical placement Gangtok city fall under East Sikkim. It is the commercial and administrative hub of the state.

GANGTOK/ EAST SIKKIM:

Ideally to cover Gangtok and east Sikkim it will take three days ; one day in the Gangtok city and the two days for the other places. The places worth to visit are: MG Market in Gangtok, Rope way, Fambong  Lho Wildlife Sanctury, Zoological Park(this park is a home for red pandas, snow leopards, snow deer and other high altitude animals), Tashi view point (you can enjoy the breathtaking view of the Khangchendzonga. Best time to go there is early morning during Sunrise), Ganesh Tok ( it provides a birds eye view of Gangtok town), Hanuman Tok (provode a majestic view of the city and mountains),  Bakthang Waterfalls, Banjhakri Falls, Rumtek Dharma Chakra, Nathula Pass(situated at an altitude of 14450 feet, 56 km from Gangtok, it is the outpost through which Indo-China trade is conducted), Tsongmo Lake(the lake remain frozen during winter months),Baba Harbhajan Singh Memorial Temple (Temple built in honour of Harbhajan Singh a Soldier in Indian Army. The beautiful story of believes can be found from Google search).  Though the details about all these places can be searched from Google, each place is having its own identity and will make you mesmerized with its own beauty.  Don’t miss the delicious Momos and local food at Gangtok.

NORTH SIKKIM:

When we travelled to North Sikkim during June 2014, the road conditions were very bad but the journey was awesome and you can feel the thrill while crossing the road under a waterfall, while looking straight down at the Tista river on your right , while two vehicle from opposite side crossing each other in a narrow track at an altitude of around 8000 feet J J J . A slight mistake by the driver may end your journey there, a change in weather condition (rain) may turn the track in to a waterfall, if there is a landslide you are stuck J JJ. Imagine the journey towards this Heaven called Yumthang valley at North Sikkim.

There are two major spot at North Sikkim; Yumthang valley via Lachung, Thangu Valley via Lachen. It required minimum for days to cover both the places. Since we didn’t have much time with us , we covered only Yumthang valley . It took almost an entire day to reach Lachung, the place normally covered with snow during winter till March-April. Since we were there during June hardly any snow was there but we could see the snow beautiful snow peaks. We stayed the night at Lachung and unfortunately there was no electricity that day and we were shivering with cold. The Sound of Tista River making it a rocking musical night without any reflections around. Next day morning we left for Yumthang valley and with a desire to experience snow, we further travelled till Point Zero.  Wow the journey was amazing. It was like Switzerland of India. As if we got our ROI of the trip.   

SOUTH SIKKIM:

With limited time in hand, we decided to visit Namchi a beautifully maintained place in South Sikkim  and quite developed interms of  infrastructure. The place we visited was Samdruptse, Ralang Monastery, Siddeshwar Dham( situated on Solophok Hill, this place has a special religious significance, there are replication of four major pilgrimage destinations of Hinduism, also on display are twelve replica of Jyoti Linga, the gigantic statue of the Hindu God, Siva also attracts the devotees )

We couldn’t many other parts of Sikkim due to few days in hand but off course we are planning to have another trip some other time to cover other places and this time atleast 15 days J

How to Reach Gangtok :

Nearest Airport : Bagdogra in Westbengal

From Bagdogra it was around 5 hour drive due to bad road conditions during that time

Note: You should carry your identity proof like passport, driving licence and also passport size photographs. These are required for taking permission to visit East & North Sikkim.  It is always advisable to make your tour arrangement by talking to a local tour guide or travel agent. There are many outsiders, who too run these shows of tourism and there are chances of getting cheated by some. Always does your home work in advance like; what are the weather conditions, information on whether the route to Nathula and North Sikkim is open or not by talking to different people, also the trip fare for each day and for each route.

Tour Guide : Though there was no proper plan for us before the trip, we could find a local  guy named Dipen , who made our entire itinerary for the 5 days and guided us for an wonderful experience. He is an honest guy with a small tourist guide setup. But with his network , he (on my left ) along with his friend made our journey memorable. He can be contacted at +91-9733306845