Gandhinagar Diaries: Part One

I am here in Gandhinagar for a month and decided to write a weekly blog about my experiences (well the plan didn't exactly pan out since it's been three weeks now but better late than never!). Prior to this visit, my connection to Gujarat has consisted of hearing my college roommate rant (for 3 years!) about how boring Baroda is and a two day visit to Ahmedabad. Well I was in for a surprise!

Being a foodie the first things I looked out for was the food and I was not disappointed, a host of local restaurants as well as some of the chains like Subway, Dominos, CCD and Baskin Robbins are here in all their glory. A thali place called Curry House and a pizza joint called Sam's Pizza really won my heart.

They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so I won't try to explain the sheer beauty of the place that takes your breath away the minute you get here, I'll just let you see it.

These pictures are clicked on my way to work, I walk there (a first!), it takes 10 minutes. That's right Mumbaikars, I can see your jaws dropping. Actually nothing in Gandhinagar is more than 15 minutes away (the area of the city is 177 sq. km.), and it is such an organized city, warms my perfectionist heart.

The distance between Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad is 25.9 km and Google says it takes 37 minutes to get there, well I've made it in 20 (another first, where Google is the less optimistic one!). The road connecting the two cities is another beauty. 

My first weekend in Gandhinagar was spent in Ahmedabad (told you it's close). I thoughts I had enough of malls everywhere but the Alpha One Mall in Ahmedabad's Vastrapur region is quite something. Huge doesn't even begin to describe it and stores of every possible brand will be a delight to any shopaholic. After the general roaming around and a fabulous dinner at KFC, I was in for another surprise, a movie at a Drive-in Theatre!

Picture: View of the screen during the interval

Picture: A view of the rows and rows of cars which show just how many people show up to enjoy the experience. There are even families who have spread out blankets on the ground and settled down to watch the movie while enjoying all kinds of food, almost like a picnic :)

I didn't have very high expectations from the movie (D-Day) but not only did it have a surprising twist but the entire experience of sitting in your car and watching it made it quite fabulous!

During my second weekend, I was in Bombay and returned via train. I personally love train journeys and have not been on one in a while, so maybe that is why I enjoyed it so much but I think anyone would enjoy the journey. It's short enough (7 hours) to not get restless but long enough to actually spend some time in the train taking in the atmosphere, staring out of the window watching the scenery, munching on junk food, and the works! Recommended for anyone who wants a break from routine and just unwind with a book or some music or even do nothing at all.

Last but not the least, our office in Gandhinagar is also a thing of beauty, quite like a college campus, the way it spreads out ad it's ample spaces.

That's all for now folks, Cheers!