Ep - 15 Sawantwadi to Amboli | Sindhudurg District | Amboli Waterfalls | Maharashtra Tourism
Namaskar friends! Welcome to Visa2explore! This is your host Harish Bali. We are starting our day in Sawantwadi. Last night, we stayed at Hotel Mango here. We are standing outside the hotel right now. Prasad and I are ready to begin our day.
Buddy, tell me where are we going for breakfast? Sir, there are several options for breakfast here. Like Anand Bhuvan, Vijay Tea-stall. And there is another hotel nearby, called Chandu Bhuvan.
That is where we are going. It serves delicious breakfast. Great! It is 8 am right now. Only a few shops are open at this time in the morning. Just about 2 out of every 10 shops is open.
You can still have a look at it. This is the main market of Sawantwadi, right? Yes! This is how it looks. Let us go for breakfast now. I have ordered Poori-Bhaji for breakfast.
And Prasad has ordered Pav-Bhaji. Great! Usually I've seen that bhaji means potato curry mainly. But here, they have kept potatoes to the side and...
...this curry is mainly of black chana. When I looked carefully, I saw these are black chana. Apart from the black chana, the other dominating flavor... ...is that of coconut. Coconut, as we already know, is used in most of the dishes...
...in this whole region. By the way, we are going to stay in Amboli tonight. And how far is Amboli from here? 35 KM. 35! Alright.
The taste is good. Overall nice breakfast! After this, I will eat the malpua! All good! Now we are going to go to the palace. It is nearby, right? Yes it is nearby. Just 5 minutes away. 5 minutes. Alright! We travelled for 5 minutes from Sawantwadi market... ...to reach Rajwada (royal palace). We are standing outside the main entry gate of Rajwada.
Prasad Bhai, is this Moti lake? Yes, it is Moti Lake. Let us go closer to the lake and later... ...we will go inside the palace. It feels good to stand by the lake.
Beautiful! In some cities, lake is situated at the centre of the city. So, this experience is quite unique. Recently, when we visited Gujarat...
...we saw a similar lake right in the middle of Jamnagar City. And we all know about Udaipur, which has many lakes. Tell us something about this lake and its surroundings... ...like these mountains, forest around it. Sir, this lake is about 15-20 feet deep.
It is surrounded by a dense forest on all sides. During monsoon, water from all these mountains... ...flows down into this lake. And this water, in turn, flows into Terekhol river. This lake also has boating facility. Right there! Yes! So, if one wants to go boating in this lake...
...they can do so. And Sir, this lake is filled with water throughout the year. Really? Yes! Great! It felt good to visit here. So, now we will go and visit the palace? Yes sir! Come then! As I showed you a while ago, the lake and the palace are... ...facing each other. This is where we will go in from. We are inside the palace.
They operate guided tours too. While we were talking about the palace, we got to meet... ...the son, daughter-in-law and daughter of the ... ...Raja Saheb (King) of this palace. So, you are going to help us visit this palace. Before doing that, can you please give us a ... ...brief introduction of this palace? Our ancestors came here from Rajasthan during the 1600s. Our family lived in several places before arriving here.
This palace was built during 1800s. The original palace was constructed by Khem Sahab. But this current structure was built during the reign of... ...Raghunath Maharaj in around 1881. The whole palace has been built with red laterite sourced locally. We call this stone "cheera" locally and the palace displays...
...a certain amount of English design in its architecture. Yes, it looks like an English-design. That much is evident from the outer part of the palace. The red laterite is prominent and the white borders...
...look quite good on it. Shall we go inside to visit the palace? Definitely! I have to be somewhere right now so... ...my wife and my sister will accompany you on the visit. Absolutely fine! Okay! Thank you! This is our Durbar Hall, it was built during 1881. At the time of Raghunath Sawant. Let me tell you more about it. These tiles were built to represent flowers. The ceiling is made of metal sheets with zinc engraved on them.
The ceiling looks so beautiful! Yes! This throne was made during the reign of my grandfather-in-law... ...Raje Saheb Shivram Sawant Bhosle. Before that the coronations used to take place on Gaadi. This is a portrait of my grandfather-in-law Shivram Sawant Bhosle. This portrait is of his mother, Parvati Devi, the Queen Regent for a short while. We watch in older movies or TV serials that... ...ladies used to sit or stand on the balcony... ...to watch the court proceedings happening down below. So, is this section for that purpose? Yes! During the court proceedings, the ladies of the house used to...
...sit up there. A curtain was placed in front of the balconies so that those... ...sitting down here weren't able to look up. And this star with "Jai Shambhu" written below it... ...is the war cry of our family. Really! So nice! Beautiful! This is the Tai-sahebwada. Right now, work is going on here for... ...our boutique hotel. It was built during the reign of Raghunath Sawant... ...for the use of his second wife. She was fondly called Tai-Saheb, hence the name of the Wada.
Right now, the construction work is on but... ...let me show you a glimpse of the structure. Nice! This portion is now part of our boutique hotel. It will have 6 rooms. The theme of these 6 rooms will be based on ... ...the six avatars of Lord Vishnu. Alright! That is great! This is our Facade Square.
It has our museum and our artists also practice here. What do they practice? They practice Ganjifa Art. Let me tell you something about our legacy. We practice Ganjifa Art, which belongs to the 16-17th centuries.
It was first practiced in Sawantwadi approximately in 1655. We are at the ground floor of the palace museum. This is our photo gallery. There is a description given below every photograph... ...to explain its significance. Thanksgiving procession! These photographs were taken at the time of coronation... ...of Raje Saheb Shivram Sawant Bhonsle. His coronation took place in 1947.
India got its independence approximately 6 or 7 months later. Great! Where is the Ganjifa that you were talking about? It is on the first floor. Alright! We are inside our Ganjifa display room. Here, you will see products related to Ganjifa art and... ...Sawantwadi Lacquerware. Ganjifa actually mean playing cards. These originated in Persia and were brought...
..to India by Mughals. This art belongs to the 16th century. Let me show you. This is our "Dashavatar Darchitri Ganjifa Set."
Sawantwadi is famous for this work. It has 120 cards and 10 suit signs. The theme of this set is the 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu. Can I take a look? Yes, of course! These are some of the cards of this set. You told me that Mughals brought Ganjifa cards to India.
Correct! So, from what I've understood, when these cards came to India... ...their theme was changed. That must be the case! Yes! When Mughals would've come with these cards,... ...there themes must've been different. The Mughal sets were based on their kings and Gods while...
...ours are based on our Gods. Great! This art form is based on the ten avatars (reincarnations)... ...of Lord Vishnu. This art form was revived in 1971 by Rajmata Satyasheela Devi and... ...Raja Saheb Shivram Sawant Bhosle. This art form, which was diluted over the centuries... ...remains standing today because of their efforts. Superb! Great! This is a representation of the traditional games of India. This piece aims to break the monotony of the local games.
For example the color of this chess-set is red and green. It is because these colors are readily available in Sawantwadi. Nice! We will take you to our Ganjifa artists now. These are our Ganjifa artists and they do all the paintings. She is coloring the back of our double-figure playing cards. These are our playing cards.
These are based on the French suit signs and... ...these also have our flower design. What is this material? Wood! White cedar wood. What is he drawing? He is painting our flower patterns. You will see that this art form is based on Chittari paintings.
She is painting a door knob for our boutique hotel. These are rooster napkin holders. Looking at the final product, one cannot imagine the... ...amount of minute detailing involved in this art form. But now that I see the artists in motion, it is clear... ...that this work demands great care and patience. Precision is an important factor, especially because ... ...everything is being done with hands. You will notice that none of the artists have pencils.
Everything is being done directly with brush. Great! Very good! Our palace tour is complete. We will now leave for Sawantwadi market? Sawantwadi market! We will go back to spend some time at the market. After that we have to go to Amboli. How far is Amboli from here? Amboli is about 35 KM from here. If I am not wrong, we are going towards the Western Ghats.
Yes! On the top of the Western Ghats. We didn't come across a single view of the Western Ghats... ...during this whole tour. We kept travelling in the coastal region. Though we travelled in that direction once or twice but... ...didn't actually reach the Ghats. Okay great! So, thank you so much! A short while ago, we were on that side of the lake.
We were along that road that you see in the distance. From there, we walked by the roadside for 10 minutes, to reach here. The weather is a bit warm today.
There is bright sunlight. So Prasad Bhai, we are going into that shop now? Yes Sir! It is a famous cold drinks shop, Balakrishan. We will go there and drink a cocktail. In the Sindhudurg district, if I ask for cocktail anywhere... ....they will understand that I want this drink? Yes! They will understand and you will get the right drink. So this has mango ice cream, garnished with cashew nuts...
...and filled with fruits. Obviously with milk! This is the right way to beat the heat in this warm weather. I forgot to mention in between everything that... ...this region is famous for its kaju (cashewnut) crop. I remember I visited a kaju processing factory in Mangalore... ...during our coastal Karnataka tour. Similarly, this place also has lots of kaju trees...
....as well as kaju factories. Kaju can be harvested in which month? Sir from March to May or March-April. After harvest, the crop is sent to the factories. This means that you can purchase kaju either from Goa...
...or from Sawantwadi, if you are travelling in this direction. There are a lot of shops here selling kaju. Yes! Kaju is widely cultivated here in Sawantwadi area. The variety of kaju grown here is unique. Good! Sir, as we climb on from the Sawantwadi lake,... ...we reach an area known as Chitar Aai. This place is famous for shops selling wooden toys.
There are 15-20 families making these toys. The erstwhile king had granted this land to those families long back. And those families created a very good artistic section in this place.
I can see a number of shops selling such toys. Let us go into a shop and check out what type of toys are available. We've come into a shop. Bhai Sahab, I want to ask you, how long have craftsmen been making....
....wooden toys in Sawantwadi? This craft has been practiced since past 100-150 years... ...since the time of our great-grandfathers. So, you have beendoing this work for generations. Yes! He showed us some wooden toys in the past 5 minutes. All these wooden toys are made locally? Yes, in Sawantwadi itself. For instance, this is a fruit tray carved from wood. If one isn't told, it is difficult to identify that...
...these are wooden fruits. Obviously, touching these fruits would make it clear. What is its cost? Its price is Rs. 250. 250. This is a bus, a tanker.
Its cost is Rs 350. It is written here, 350. I can see you are selling some solid stuff for Rs. 350. It is evident as I handle this toy. It is rough and tough! Yes, rough & tough, quite reasonably priced. This is a bullock cart.
Price? Rs. 600. It has a polished finish. Here is a colourful piece. This toy is good for enhancing concentration among kids. It has 3 small balls, which are to be brought into the centre. What is its price? Rs. 150.
Nice! There is another toy to promote concentration. This cup and ball toy. You need to put the ball into the cup. First shot done! Couldn't get it done! 3! 4! Two out of four attempts! I feel that this toy could be a great stressbuster...
....for office-goers who need to sit in front of computer... ...for long hours. This could address all types of office-related stress. Nice! So, what is its price? Rs. 80. Please give me 5 of these, alright! And the other one, for concentration! Give me two of these. We travelled for about 5 KM from Sawantwadi Moti Lake...
...on way to Amboli. For lunch, we've stopped at "Malvani Days." Malvani Days! Is it a famous place? It is famous Sir, they serve good food and... ...its structure is quite unique as well. This restaurant is built like a typical Konkani home.
This is looking nice and has big parking space. Let us go in. Look at what we've ordered for lunch. This is crab masala.
Bangda ka Tikhla. Prawns curry, slightly yellowish in colour. This is Solkadhi. Then there is Tandul Bhakri (rice flatbread).
This is a sweet dish called Patodi. And this is a fish fry, made from Chanak fish. This variety is quite popular in Goa too? Yes Sir, in Goa and South Konkan, Sindhudurg region too. What is it called in English? It is called "Black Sniper" in English Sir. Alright.
Where do we start from? Let us start with the curry, that would be good. Bangda ka Tikhla means it is "teekha" (spicy). Apart from the black pepper, it also has... ...Gavti Lal Mirch (local red chili). I came to know of this variety of chili in the last two days.
You can see, this is the red chili used in Bangda ka Tikhla dish. We have been noticing this since last two days. Though this chili doesn't lend color to the dish... ...but it adds a unique spiciness to it. The first thing about this fillet is its unique taste.
Second thing, when I visited Goa, they use Richeado masala.. ...which is a different thing altogether. The main flavor in this fish is that of the local mirchi. Why is it sour? Does it have lemon juice? No Sir, it has Kokum in it. Kokum is there in the masala? Yes Sir! They've also kept this kokum here to show to those...
...who may not be familiar with it. There is one more thing Sir. The fish that you ate so far in the coastal region,... ...were sea fish or saltwater fish. This fish lives mostly in the backwaters. That lends it a different taste to the backwater fishes. Like we saw at Sangam point, those fishes are different.
Chanak's taste is quite impressive. This tastes good. The taste of crab, by the way, is very unique.
Now look at this, you will get just a little meat... ...from this large piece. Let us taste this as well. These are banana slices, which may look like a fish fillet. But these are banana slices, shallow-fried, after being... ...covered in semolina mixture. Prasad, this tastes delicious as well! Yes! Which bananas are these slices made with? Sir, this is a local banana variety. It is used to make curry and fried like this.
It isn't eaten ripe. It is called "Sabji ka Banana" (banana meant for curries). We've shifted the sweet dish, Patoli, to a separate plate.
And we've also ordered another sweet dish. What is it called? Sir, the local name for this dish is Dhondus. And you told me it is made with Kaakadi? Yes! This is cooked inside a haldi (turmeric) leaf. It is steamed, right? Yes sir! See, I am at least a feet away from the dish but... ...I can smell coconut and haldi clearly. Yes! It is filled with coconut, right? Hmm! Wow! The stuffing is very delicious but the outer covering...
...has gone cold. Therefore, I can't enjoy its full taste. It is time to taste Dhondus now. Look at its texture. Prasad, why does it have this texture? Sir, it has haldi (turmeric) in it. Alright! Haldi. I have discovered in the last few days that...
...a lot of dessert recipes have haldi in them... ...as well as haldi leaves. It is definitely a new experience for me. Very good! It has gur (jaggery) in it. It has kaju (cashewnuts) in it. Though the flavor of Kaakadi is not obvious but... ...since I know it is made with Kaakadi... ...I can identify the flavor. One would need to eat it at least twice to understand this flavor. My overall observation about today's lunch is that...
...you shouldn't miss this sweet dish. We enjoyed our food here. Nice place! Right? We are finishing our lunch at around 3.20 pm. Now we have to go to Amboli. How much time will it take? It will take around 40-45 minutes. We will pass through the Ghat, where I will show you a waterfall. Yes, I've heard it is a very beautiful waterfall.
I've watched a few videos of that waterfall, so... ...I am very excited to go there. We will leave here in the next 5-7 minutes. We will join you in Amboli now. We have been travelling through the Western Ghats...
... for the past 30 minutes now. It rained for some time. This journey is very different & quite enjoyable. Though we saw several waterfalls on the way but... ...we decided to stop only once we had reached Amboli waterfall. However, before Amboli waterfall, I've come across... ...3-4 waterfalls in one place. This waterfall is huge. You can see water falling down from such height.
There, on top of the mountain! From where I'm standing, I can see 3 waterfalls on that mountain. The mountain in front of you is all forest area. There are clouds in the sky as well as on top of that mountain there.
The visibility is low because of the recent rainfall. The view from here is mesmerizing. We have been standing here for the past 15-20 minutes. Now we are proceeding towards the Amboli waterfall. I think Amboli waterfall is just half a KM or a KM away now.
Finally we've reached the waterfall. They've built stairs here over which, the water.... ...from the fall is flowing down. This is a very unique experience.
A lot of tourists are standing on these stairs... ...to enjoy the view. Good! It is a very popular tourist destination. The tourists travelling to Kolhapur on this road...
... make it a point to stop here and enjoy a view of this waterfall. I think I should change my shoes and wear chappals. I won't be able to go there without chappals. This experience is absolutely unique. Look at the water flowing down. Wow! I've been feeling a bit of cold, otherwise I would've... ...definitely gone under the waterfall. Whenever I see a waterfall, I cannot resist taking a bath under it.
It was a good decision to come here. We have been here for the past 15-20 minutes. Will spend 5 more minutes after which... ...we will leave for Amboli. Amboli is hardly 5 KM from here. We have reached Amboli.
We had an option to stay at Hotel Whistling Woods... ...which is near the local police check-post. We went there but it was fully occupied. After that, Prasad told me that he would arrange for..
...an accommodation in the middle of the jungle. Thus, we travelled 3 KM straight from there to reach this place. Now, it is not possible for me to tell you, in words,... ...about that journey. We had forest on either side of an empty road. I sincerely felt that no words would be enough.. ...to describe that beauty. We reached here.
This place has two properties. First we went to, Dark Forest, right? (nods) We liked the rooms there, it had all the facilities. The tariff, we were told, was between Rs. 3000-4500. We liked the place overall.
However, we wanted to explore another option,... ...not because of the tariff, but because of a better view. So, we climbed this mountain and here... ...we came across an accommodation, Aranya Amboli. This place has only 2-3 cottages, as we can see. Now, talking of facilities. Dark Forest had better facilities in comparison to this place.
But I liked the view from here so much that we've now decided... ...to stay here tonight. They charge Rs. 2000 for double-occupancy. They also serve food here, there is a restaurant too. This place has no other mobile network, except for BSNL.
Now, our journey ends here today. So, we aren't going anywhere else today. Prasad, tell us about our tomorrow's programme.
Sir, tomorrow we shall explore certain viewspoints here. There is also a temple, which we shall explore in Amboli. There are a lot of places to explore in Amboli. We will go to 4-5 places out of those.
So, hopefully, we will do sightseeing in Amboli till tomorrow evening. After that, I will leave for Goa. Since I've visited Goa earlier and shot videos during that visit... ...I am not going to make any new videos in Goa. Goa has been planned as a family holiday destination for a few days. So, in a way, this series would be over in Amboli itself.
We are enjoying this journey very much. Talking of some of the best experiences... ...one such experience was when we travelled to Pachad in Western Ghats. The second such experience is here. Though Chiplun had a similar vibe but still...
...it was more of a city. That was the base of the Western Ghats. Now we are on the top of the Ghats. Yes! The weather of this place is similar to that of Mahabaleshwar. Now I will say bye to you at this moment.
One more thing I would tell you. The distance between waterfall and Amboli is hardly 5-6 KM. We came across a sunset point on the way here. We missed it.
Missed in the sense that the weather was cloudy. So, there would've been no point in stopping there. That point is better explored during winter season. Yes, but I am talking about the current weather. Otherwise, it would be an ultimate viewing point...
...if the weather is clear. No doubt! Okay then, we experienced a bit of Western Ghats today. We saw the waterfall. Now we are also enjoying the clouds here in front of our eyes. Alright! So, bye-bye for now. We will meet again in the next episode.
It will show our tomorrow's journey. Thanks for your time.
2022-01-30 14:00
