A fictitious tourism experience in Vizag

28 March 2012

What tourism experience means to me

Someone asked me what tourism meant to me. “If you were coming to Vizag on a short vacation how would you like to experience Vizag?” I have been an ardent tourist most of my life, always mixing a little sightseeing even when I travelled on business. Having travelled in India and abroad extensively, I tried to visualize what a good tourism experience would be for me. I took the best experiences of several destinations and put them all together as a sort of wish list.

Here is how I imagined a good tourism experience at Vizag.

I have several friends in Vizag and decide to take a weekend break there with my wife. We fly into Vizag; walk through a good air-conditioned aerobridge into a modern airport. The toilets are clean and for once in the gent’s toilet the urinal is at the right height, the sink tap works and there are enough paper towels napkins on the basin counter.

Our luggage comes quickly, we load them into a smooth working trolley and we make our way out of the airport. At the taxi rank, a row of good air-conditioned taxis are waiting. We take one of the taxies; the smiling driver wishes us “good morning” and loads our luggage into the car booth. “Where do you wish to go?” he asks, as he turns the meter. We give him our destination and the vehicle smoothly takes off.

We arrive at our hotel, a mid-range three star property with a swimming pool for Rs. 3,500 a day including breakfast. As we pay the driver, a uniformed bell boy greets us and picks up our luggage. The receptionist gives us a broad smile, “did you have a good flight sir, madam?” she asks. She verifies our booking and checks us in efficiently. We go up an elevator that is quiet and clean. The room has excellent air conditioning and is comfortable.

After freshening up we go down to the lobby. Several stands are placed near the travel desk with brochures about Vizag. The brochures are well designed; they have a short history of Vizag, a list of restaurants and a list of places we can visit. We ask for a taxi and are soon on our way to do some sightseeing. Our driver, Raju, is both polite and knowledgeable. He drives safely and follows all the rules.

We visit a number of sites along the beach road. All along the road there are clear signs in English and Telugu. The venues have clear information boards. There are plenty of trees for shade and park benches under these trees to rest. There are adequate garbage bins and no litter to speak of. Everywhere there are clean pay-per-use toilets. We are delighted to see the small cafeterias at the venues; they have soft drink coolers and water dispensers. The staffs are all in uniform and are very tourist friendly.

We stop at a quaint little place called Ashoka, for lunch. It has simple décor, clean surroundings and friendly staff. The waiter is charming; he recommends some local dishes to get a taste of the region. The dishes are priced between Rs. 100 and Rs. 150 each. As we wait, we sip a chilled beer and a glass of mango juice and enjoy the view. After an excellent meal, we settle down under the shade of a large banyan tree near the beach. Watching the blue sea is mesmerizing, a cool breeze blows gently. Soon I drift off and take a short snooze on a bench.

Later we continue take in some more sights. We enjoy a pleasant walk at the water’s edge. We are happy to see that there is no smelly garbage and plastic waste there. The beach is pristine and the waves are sparkling clean. Other tourists are friendly, we smile at each other. We make friends with a family from Gujarat. We sit together on the sand and enjoy the conversation and the view.

Later that evening we stop by at a lovely Sea Food restaurant. It is crowded with tourists and locals alike. The music is good. A group of dancers perform a vibrant “Tappeta Gullu” dance for the guests. The cuisine is marvellous and the restaurant’s bar is well stocked. As we have a leisurely meal and enjoy the ambience we get quite mellow. What a wonderful vacation we exclaim.

We return to the hotel at night. We are happily tired; we shower and hit the sack quickly. Tomorrow we will drive to Araku and stay the night at Ananthagiri. 

Early next morning our taxi driver, Raju picks us up at 7 am. We set out for the hills. We stop for breakfast at S.Kota at the "Eastern Ghat Restaurant". The place is spanking clean. We use the rest rooms; my wife says she is now confident that Vizag’s tourism department and private players know the importance of clean toilets for tourists. We have a wholesome breakfast of idly and dosas followed by some amazing coffee in porcelain cups, not the little plastic cups that we have been getting in other states.

As we drive up the ghats, we marvel at the beauty of the place. No plastics, no garbage, good signage. At Araku, we are surprised to find all the picnic sites to be quiet, no loudspeakers and noisy tourists. Every place is clean. Large shady trees line the roads and there are several public toilets for visitors.  The tribal museum is upgraded and now has improved exhibits. The coffee museum next door is a real eye opener. The uniformed tribal guides are helpful and polite.

We go to Chaparaya, the stream is flowing briskly. There is adequate parking. Signs dissuade littering of the place; after all it is this water that will join a river that will flow to a reservoir near Vizag. We sit at the streams edge dipping our feet in the cool flowing water.

Later we have a quick lunch at a tourism department restaurant. On our previous visits we were disappointed that their menu was not too different from any that you see in a city restaurant. Every dish was the same red colour. Now it is different. In Jackfruit season they offer Jackfruit curry and in Mango season they offer mango pulusu. The restaurant management now is authorised to purchase local produce. The food is more cosmopolitan.

After dinner we head back to Ananthagiri where we will spend the night. On arrival at the Tourism Department property we find that it is spic and span. The receptionist is welcoming and greets us cheerfully. We are shown to the rooms. A good addition is low cost rooms with a canteen for the drivers. They can use the bunk beds and a large common toilet is available to them. The days in which they spent cold nights in the car are over.

Our rooms are clean. Unlike before we have a set of two towels, two hand napkins and two soaps on the bed. The bed sheets are not tattered like before. That evening along with a buffet dinner, a fireside get-together is arranged on the lawns. We witness a magical Dhimsa dance. There are several other tourists there and soon we make plenty of friends and exchange notes. We interact with some Adivasis who explain their way of life with candidness. The evening passes quickly. The weather is marvellous and the hills are quiet.

Early next morning, accompanied by a guide, we go bird watching. We rent binoculars at the reception. Our guide, a local young man, is full of information on the flora and fauna of the area. We spend a couple of hours enjoying nature’s bounty. Later we have an excellent South Indian breakfast. Later we check out and head to Bora caves.

When we arrive at Bora, we are delighted to see that the area has been cleaned up. Last year we saw tons of litter choking every stream here. The parking area has been improved and the entire area has been made a NO HORNS zone. What a difference!

We buy our tickets and enter the cave. A local guide accompanies us. He is knowledgeable about the geology of the caves. Unlike last year’s guide he does not simply talk about which film were shot here and which formation looked like which God. We enjoy the real beauty of God’s handiwork, the rare formations. We notice that no one is allowed to touch the formations and everyone sticks to the designated paths, a big difference from previous years, when thousands of visitors touched the formations destroying them for ever. We are of course saddened that almost all the stalactites and stalagmites are gone due to all the previous years of mismanaging the site.

We emerge from the cave and freshen up in the toilet. We visit a curio shop outside the cave complex and buy some small mementos before heading back to Vizag. Tonight we will take a train back home. Our trip to Vizag has been amazing. We have spent quite a bit of money but we have enjoyed our money’s worth. This is certainly a value for money destination. We will certainly be back, with friends.

(This scenario is only imaginary. It is a complete fiction. In reality the areas are filthy, there are no toilets and tourist facilities are woefully lacking)

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