Travel & Leisure
Metro takes shape in Samba land
Mar 11th
CHENNAI: The first set of coaches for the Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL) is getting ready at Alstom’s plant at La Paz in Brazil. The company has also begun groundwork to set up a plant outside Chennai to mass produce coaches.
A consortium of Alstom Transport SA France and Alstom India Ltd bagged the Rs 1471.3 crore contract to design, manufacture and supply 168 coaches for the CMRL in August 2010.
Alstom will supply 42 four-car rakes made of stainless steel. “The first four or nine rakes will be made in Brazil and shipped to Chennai while the rest will be manufactured at a plant that is being set up near Sri City on the Tamil Nadu-Andhra Pradesh border,” said a senior official of the Chennai Metro Rail. “Production has started making shell of the coaches,” said chief general manager public relations of Chennai metro Rail S Krishnamoorthy.
The Brazil-made coaches will be shipped here to be used during trial runs on the Koyambedu-St Thomas Mount elevated line by the end of next year or early 2014. Work on the Chennai plant is progressing fast and a fitting shed has been completed in January.
The company has also started manufacturing battery, traction motor, coupler and gangway. Metro officials have approved the shell of the coach after inspection. More inspections will be carried out on prototypes in the coming months.
A prototype of a passageway (gangway) connection between the coaches is ready and Alstom has conducted an internal test. Metro officials will inspect the gangway by end of next month.
The stainless steel coaches will be airconditioned with automatic sliding doors that will offer easy access to passengers. The trains, which will run at 80 km per hour on 25 KV power drawn from overhead wires, can reach a maximum speed of 90 kmph. Rakes will also have regenerative braking system to save energy. Metro Rail is planning to operate one train every three minutes to meet peak-hour rush.
Alstom has provided train control and signalling systems for Delhi Metro Rail and is installing them in the Bangalore metro rail.
The company has already sold over 3,000 cars for metro trains worldwide, including cities like Singapore, Shanghai, Paris and Santiago.
Source: Indiatimes
Air India Strike: Not much impact in Chennai
Jan 15th
A strike by a section of pilots of Air India did not have much impact in Chennai, said the airport sources.
On Saturday, the national carrier cancelled two of its flights from New Delhi and rescheduled the departure of another flight from Chennai to New Delhi.
Air India sources said the departure of flight AI 440 from Chennai to New Delhi was rescheduled and it left Chennai around 8.45 a.m.
The cancelled flights included AI 439 and AI 801, both from New Delhi to Chennai. While the first flight’s scheduled arrival time is 8.55 a.m. the second one’s arrival time is 7.25 p.m., the sources added.
World’s Strangest Buildings
Jun 4th
These odd, eye-popping structures—in England, China, and elsewhere—are worth a detour
If the Eiffel Tower were done up with giant dime-store Christmas ornaments—shiny, glowing spheres—it might rival the Oriental Pearl Television Tower for eccentricity. Eleven habitable disco balls bulge out of Shanghai’s 1,535-foot-tall needle, which also includes a “space hotel” and a (perhaps inevitable) revolving restaurant. When it comes to weird buildings, this landmark is in a class by itself.
Between all the bubbly novelties that went up in pre-Olympics Beijing, and Dubai’s feverish invention over the past decade, nothing should surprise us. Except that some buildings still do. And these eccentric edifices, breathtaking in their strangeness, are worth a detour—if only to ginger up your worldview a bit.
Still, how can any building be considered strange anymore? Sure, we’ve had time to digest the CCTV headquarters in Beijing, the one that looks like a huge Möbius strip, and we’ve acclimated to the implausible height of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. And yeah, we’ve shrugged off our share of goofball novelties, like the Pyramid Arena of Memphis or the Eiffel Tower of Las Vegas.
Sometimes strangeness is a function of amazing architecture where we least expect it, like the Selfridges Department Store in dowdy, downtown Birmingham, England, that effectively out-Bilbaoed Bilbao. “The mother of all magic mushrooms” is how Jonathan Glancey, architecture critic of the Guardian described it, perfectly capturing its hallucinatory character.
More often, the truly strange buildings are the outgrowth of an obsession: the stranger the obsession, the stranger the building. Take Korean politician Sim Jae-Duck, for example. He has spent his life campaigning for clean and beautiful toilets in his home country and around the world. A few years ago, he tore down his own home in the town of Suwon and replaced it with a new house shaped like a giant toilet. The house, a showplace of toilet wonder, is named Haewoojae, which means “a place where one can solve one’s worries,” Korean forsans souci.
And then there are the projects by architectural visionaries, like the Austrian free spirit Friedensreich Hundertwasser, who attract clients and major commissions despite the fact—or perhaps because—their approaches to design are completely outside anyone’s frame of reference. You stare at their buildings and marvel that they ever got built.
Whatever the variety of strangeness, we’re truly grateful for these buildings. We think that it’s an honor to make this list and that it’s an extraordinary building that can shake jaded observers like ourselves out of our complacency.
source:http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/worlds-strangest-buildings
World’s Hottest Rooftop Restaurants
May 11th
Savor the five-star views at trendy rooftop restaurants from Brooklyn to Bangkok
You step out of the elevator on the 27th floor, and it hits you: a dazzling view of Chicago’s Loop, Lake Michigan, and Millennium Park. You’ve arrived at the Roof at the Wit just in time to snag a table with a built-in fire pit and watch the sun dip slowly behind the city’s architectural landmarks. It’s going to be one memorable dinner.
Better than a room with a view, a roof delivers a prime vantage point for unobstructed panoramas. Savvy restaurant owners know that open-air dining guarantees business, and with outdoor space at a premium in cities, they’re looking skyward. But that doesn’t mean diners have to settle for a mediocre menu. Increasingly, you can find rooftop restaurants where the food rivals the view.
In Brooklyn, four ambitious young guys bought a brownstone with the lofty dream of building a restaurant themselves from scratch—foundation up to roof deck. They enlisted talented chefs to create fresh-from-the-market Mexican dishes like poblano relleno stuffed with braised short ribs and Gouda atop a yellow mole sauce.
When they opened tapas spot Alma on the Columbia waterfront, the area was still under the radar. A decade later it’s one of Brooklyn’s hot spots, and scoring a summertime table facing Manhattan can require a nearly two-hour wait. “We provide more open sky than any restaurant I can think of,” says co-owner Anthony Capone.
Some rooftop restaurants go beyond trendy to become destinations that can rival even the most gleaming skyscraper. Sirocco at the Dome is a 64th-floor space in Bangkok that looks down at a jumble of skyscrapers and Buddhist temples and the Chao Phraya River. Lit up in changing shades of neon, its circular Sky Bar is practically cantilevered onto the city.
Of course, sky-high views beget sky-high boasts. According to Deepak Ohri, CEO of Sirocco’s management company, the place is a “major icon” that “revolutionized the rooftop restaurant.” Regardless, the tasting menu does make a dramatic impression with courses including chilled Alaskan king crab accompanied by osetra caviar, citronelle emulsion, and yuzu.
You can bet that the art of rooftop dining will only continue to climb. After all, there’s nothing quite like drinking in the view from on top. Bottoms up!
Best Secret Islands on Earth
May 9th
For white-sand beaches, salty breezes, freshly caught seafood, and no crowds,head to one of the world’s best secret islands
Hollywood scouts were on to something when they skipped over Mykonos and chose a secret island in Greece as the location for Mamma Mia. The movie was a $600-million hit, in part because it fueled peoples’ fantasies of escaping to a secluded island (and yes, those catchy ABBA tunes didn’t hurt).
Surprisingly, that picture-perfect movie location, Skopelos, has stayed under the radar. When you hop off the ferry, you’ll be wowed by the view of the shimmering Aegean Sea, the island’s tile-roofed tavernas, and a decided lack of travelers.
There are still gems like Skopelos hidden all around the globe, if you know where to look. T+L editors have done the hunting for you to uncover secret islands where you can truly unwind, from the rugged Chilean spot that inspired the novel Robinson Crusoe to a tiny island in the Caribbean that was virtually deserted for decades until a luxe resort opened in 2010.
Similar high-end resorts have been popping up across Southeast Asia, where many islands are vying to be the next Phuket. So those looking to get far off the grid head to Con Dao, an archipelago 110 miles off Vietnam’s southeastern coast. Sheer granite cliffs border deserted beaches and crystal-blue water, and a private guide can lead you by motorbike to remote spots like the spectacular Dam Tre Bay lagoon.
Diving enthusiasts should opt instead for the secret island of Mabul, off the northeastern coast of Malaysia, where the marine life is on a par with the Galapagos. Even better, the native sea moths, bobtail squids, and elusive paintpot cuttlefish are some of the only inhabitants.
Travelers looking to commune with nature can also find solitude on Nicaragua’s acre-wide Jicaro Island on freshwater Lake Nicaragua. The nine casitas at Jicaro Island Ecolodge were built from storm-felled trees, and all the food is locally sourced; you can sip a passion-fruit-banana cocktail as you sit by the infinity pool.
Prefer something closer to home? On Washington’s Lummi Island, a nine-square-mile oasis on Puget Sound, you can sample the region’s bounty (net-caught salmon, spot prawns) while watching orcas ply the waters.
Whatever your daydream, you’ll find a destination to match by checking out our slideshow of secret islands around the world.
source:http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-secret-islands-on-earth
Entertainment places in chennai
Mar 26th
| Anna Zoological Park Vandalur Zoo, 30kms from Chennai, Chennai |
Birla Planetorium Kotturpuram, Chennai Tel : 4915250 |
| Break Point No.23 Spur Tank Road II nd Floor, Heavitree, Chetpet, Chennai Tel : 8216907 / 8216908 |
Children’s Park Sardar Patel Road, Chennai - 600020 |
| Dakshinachitra Muttukadu, East Cost Road, Chengelpet Dist. Chennai Tel : 915 45303 / 4462435 E-mail : mcfdak@md3.vsnl.net.in |
Danny’s Karting 23, Old Mahabalipuram Road, Next to Polaris, Navalur, Chennai - 603103 Tel : 954114 – 45451 |
| Dash “N” Splash 103/1 Mevallur Kuppam, Chettipad Chennai Tel : 954111- 56211 / 56200 |
Development Centre for Musical Instruments 86, Munda Kanni, Amman Koli Street, Mylapore, Chennai - 600004 |
| Development Centre For Musical Instruments Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Bldg., 759, Anna Salai Chennai |
Down Under 123/1, Dugar Towers Basement, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai - 600008 Tel : 8413911 |
| Fort Museum Beach Road, Kamaraja Salai, Chennai - 600009 |
Fort st. George Kamaraj Salai, Beach Road, Chennai - 600009 |
| Fun World 172, Liz Church Road, Malapore Chennai - 600004 Tel : 4996433 |
Government Museum Between Egmore and Annasalai Southern Road, Egmore, Chennai - 600008 Tel : 8269638 |
| Guindy Snake Park Next to Children’s Park, Near Guindy Train Stn.,South Ellort Beach Road, Chennai - 600113 Tel : 2353623 |
Horticulture Gardens Cathedral Road, Opp. Woodlands Drive-In, Chennai |
| Kalakshetra Tiruvanmiyur, Chennai Tel : 4911836 |
Kart Attack East cost Road, 2 kms from VGP Golden Beach Chennai Tel : 4492386, 9841010984 E-mail : kartattack@etn.net |
| Kishkinta Theme Park Tambaram, Darkas Ward 2, 82, Varadarajapuram Chennai - 600045 Tel : 8258988 / 2367255 E-mail : kishkinta@eth.net |
Madras Snake Park Chennai |
| Mahindra Sega 10, Casa Major Road, Chennai - 600008 Tel : 8225733 / 8227633 |
Marina Beach Kamraj Salai Chennai |
| Mayajaal 34/35, Kanathur Reddy Kuppam Village, Chennai Tel : 954114-45050 to 60 |
MGM Star City E33A, 2nd Avenue, Besant Nagar, Chennai - 600090 Tel : 4902285 |
| MGM” Dizze World” Beach Resort 1/74 New Mahabalipuram Road Muttukadu, Chennai Tel : 8571415 / 8511017 / 8531012 |
MGR Film City Southern Outside Near Guindy National Park, Chennai |
| Mudumalai Sanctuary 60kms From Udagamandalam, Chennai |
Periyar Science & Technology Centre Next to Birls Planetorium, Kotturpuram, Chennai - 600085 Tel : 4915250 |
| Prime Time Annanagar Chennai |
Snow Bowling 15A, HM Centre, 3rd Floor, Nungambakkam High Road, Chennai - 600034 Tel : 8264045 / 8213306 |
| St. Andrews Church Near Egmore Station, Chennai |
St. Thomas Mount 11 kms. South of City Centre Near Airport, Close to Guindy Station, Chennai |
| The Champion MGM 294 Z-Block, 2nd Avenue, Anna Nagar Chennai Tel : 6205209 |
Vandalur Zoo 30kms south of Chennai Chennai |
| Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary 49, 4 th Main Road, Adyar, Chennai |
VGP Golden Beach Injambakkam, East Cost Road, Mahabalipuram, Chennai - 600041 Tel : 4491442 / 6 / 4991125 |
This Luxury Singapore Hotel Has Just One Room
Mar 26th
Want to get cozy with Singapore’s iconic Merlion? Head to the Merlion Hotel at One Fullerton. This luxury hotel is in fact, a single five-star hotel suite that is temporarily constructed around the eight metre tall sculpture of the Merlion.
The free-standing 100sqm suite is fully-equipped with a double bed, amenities like a pristine white bathroom that overlooks the Singapore waterfront as well as the luxury Marina Bay Sands resort; and also has a cosy balcony. Recognisable Singapore icons, such as the statue of Sir Stamford Raffles, speckle the room’s purple wallpaper.
The Merlion Hotel can accommodate two adults each night at a price of S$150 (approx Rs. 5,000) with breakfast at The Fullerton Hotel. And the luxe room is booked for all 32 nights.
Read full story from publisher
Major Indian cities witness increase in hotel prices: Hotels.com Hotel Price Index
Mar 23rd
According to Hotels.com Hotel Price Index, the average cost of a hotel room in India rose two per cent (reached USD 147 per night) in 2010. Hotel rates in Mumbai and New Delhi rose seven per cent (reached USD 173) and 11 per cent (reached USD 158 per night) respectively as business and leisure travel picked up.
Despite declining two per cent, the average price of a hotel room in Asia was 15 per cent (at USD 115) higher than when the Hotel Price Index began in 2004. The region exhibits a varying price landscape. For example, Thailand suffered from political unrest and having a relatively large supply base, Singapore recorded significant increases thanks to the strong bounce back of corporate travellers and new tourist attractions, while Shanghai price points were boosted by the successful World Expo.
While prices in all regions were either flat or down year-on-year in the first half of 2010, the average annual price went up one per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean, two per cent in North America and had stabilised in Europe. The global hotel price increase was the first time that the average hotel room price rose year-on-year since 2007. However, prices fell so low during 2009 after a 13 per cent drop that despite last year’s modest increase, the average price of a room is still the same now as it was in 2004.
David Roche, President, Hotels.com said, “After the worst trading conditions most in the market had seen, the 2010 story shows a market in recovery. However, since the fall was so prolonged and steep, guests were still roughly paying for a hotel night what they would have done six or seven years ago. Whilst the high volume of promotions we saw in the depth of the crisis has dried up somewhat, there are still deals to be had.”
Abhiram Chowdhry, Marketing Director-Asia Pacific, Hotels.com highlighted the trend in India and the region and stated, “The Asia Pacific region saw a big variance in the movement of hotel prices. On average, in Asia, room rates were relatively flat dropping a marginal two per cent. India was among the country destinations, which witnessed a growth bucking the overall APAC trend and reflecting the resilience of India’s economy.”
