Upscale Hotels in India

We have penned down a hot-list of famous Hotels in India. Find your next destination on our list.

The Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Mumbai: Since it opened its doors in 1903, The Taj Mahal Palace & Tower has been playing host to Maharajas and Queens, Presidents, royal dignitaries, diplomats, CEOs and entertainers from all across the globe. Located amidst the backdrop of Arabian Sea and the Gateway of India, the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower is aptly called “Jewel of Mumbai”. It has 565 rooms including 46 suites decorated with archaic artifacts and period furniture that will take you back to the bygone era. All the rooms have:

• Tea and coffee makers
• Direct dial telephones
• Mini bar
• Safe
• Data port facility
• Color television
• Hair dryer
• Wi-Fi wireless internet access is available throughout the hotel.

The hotel’s fitness centre with steam and sauna is a retreat for all the weary limbs. The shopping arcade, featuring brands like Montblanc, Ravissant, Regent, is the paradise for all the shopaholics. For business travelers the Hotel offers an array of business services that include:

• Broadband Internet access
• Wireless Internet access
• Secretarial services
• In-house video-conferencing
• Color copier
• Laptops on hire
• Mobile phones on hire
• Workstations with Multimedia computers
• Portable printers on hire
• Translation / interpretation services

The Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur: Located in the fabled “pink city” of Jaipur, The Oberoi Rajvilas exudes an aura of royal charm and elegance. Sprawled over 32 acres of green landscaped gardens, The Oberoi Rajvilas has won many awards and accolades. It was declared the 3rd best value hotel in Asia by a poll conducted by the Travel + Leisure in 2005 and also received an Editors’ Choice Award from Harpers. The hotel has rooms, luxury tents and villas with private pools. The rooms and villas surround a traditional Rajasthani courtyard.

All the rooms include following facilities:

• Satellite television
• LCD TV
• DVD player
• Personal mini-bar
• Separate walk-in closet with electronic safe
• Wired & wireless broadband internet access
• Direct dial telephone
• 24 Hour Butler service

The hotel has spacious conference and board rooms. The Oberoi Rajvilas provide following facilities to business travelers who wish to conduct meetings:

• LCD projector
• Digital Camera
• Overhead projector
• Slide projector
• Video Walls
• Computer on hire
• Laptop on hire
• VCR
• VCD
• Video projector visualizer
• Cordless hand mike
• Cordless collar mike
• Photocopy machine

You can relax and rejuvenate with holistic treatments, aromatherapy steam bath and rejuvenating beauty treatments at The Oberoi Spa or with a session of yoga.

The Leela Kempinski, Goa: The “Pearl of the Orient” as Goa is aptly called attracts hundreds of thousands of travelers from all over the world. Goa is home to many famous hotels and beach resorts one such resort is The Leela Kempinski. Set over 75 endless acres of lush gardens and sparkling lagoons in idyllic South Goa, The Leela is located at 40 kms from International & Domestic Airports and 7 kms from National Railway Station. It has 186 rooms and suites. All rooms come with following features:

• Central air conditioning
• Color TV with satellite channels
• DVD players
• CD players
• Wi-Fi internet connectivity
• Private balconies

Except the Royal Villas and the Presidential Suite all the rooms have a lagoon view. The Royal Villas and the Presidential Suite face the ocean and overlook the lush golf course.

The hotel has a business center which provides a 24 hour service and is equipped with computers, fax machines, photocopier and cellular phone.

The following equipments are available free of charge upon request:

• White board
• AV screen
• Name cards
• Flip chart

Feeding a Dog Commercial Vs Homemade Foods

To a great many of us our Dogs are special members of our family, where they become our loyal and reliable companions. We realize how much they depend on us as caregivers to take good care of them and feed them a healthy and safe diet.

All dogs, whatever their breed, love to eat and will usually eat anything offered to them. So, you need to be very sure that the dog food you offer to your dog provides him or her with all the nutritional benefits they need for health, vitality and longevity.

Commercial dog food may have all the necessary ingredients that your dog requires listed on the label, including the minerals and vitamins. But, these foods may not be the best choices if they contain unhealthy preservatives and additives that can impact your dog’s health and lifespan.

Because of this many caregivers may decide to make their own homemade dog food.

Although this may not be an absolutely perfect solution for your dog, it’s the closest thing there is to ensuring your dog gets a balanced, safe and healthy diet.

If you plan to begin feeding homemade dog food recipes, you should be aware of the pros vs the cons of giving these to your dogs.

Pros:

* You can choose whatever ingredients you want to use in the food. Therefore, you’ll know exactly what goes into your dog’s dish every day.

* Like human recipes, these have healthy, all natural ingredients and will even cost less in the long run than commercially manufactured dog food.

* Your local grocery store or supermarket should carry all the ingredients you’ll need to make most of the homemade dog food recipes.

* You’ll be able to prepare healthy, nutritious, as well as delicious foods for your dog without any fear it contains harmful preservatives and additives that are contained in the commercial products.

* The beneficial nutritients found in homemade meals can make your dog far more energetic and provide him or her with a much healthier existence.

* Homemade meals can even be prepared from healthy leftovers of human meals, and therefore nothing will be wasted.

Cons:

* Shopping for, choosing, deciding what to feed your dog and then preparing the meals can be a time consuming activity, opposed to just going for the easy option and buying ready to eat commercial dry or canned dog food.

* Preparing the right foods to feed your dog can also take quite a bit of knowledge. Figuring out the right balance in your dog’s diet can be kind of tricky and can take a good deal of research in order to find the healthiest ingredients you should be using, and which foods you need to avoid.

***PLEASE NOTE: You’ll need to be very careful with the ingredients you use because there are certain foods that can be extremely toxic for your dog.

The Answer:

There are a great many benefits of homemade dog food and an excellent choice to help keep your pet in optimal health.

And even though there are some disadvantages, if you do some research on how to correctly prepare the healthiest meals for your dog, and spend the necessary time doing so, you can overcome them.

You’ll be very happy you did!

This can be accomplished, provided you have a strong desire to ensure your dog is happy, healthy and long-lived.

Overwhelming Rajasthan Wildlife Destinations

Wildlife of Rajasthan is ready to conquer you with its beauty and wilderness. The wildlife sanctuaries and national parks are the fascinating hot spots where every minute is worthwhile. Visit the following destinations to witness the enchanting drama of nature and its wild creatures:

Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan
Treat your eyes to the majestic tigers at this park, which was once the hunting ground of the Maharajas of Jaipur. Famous for its tiger population, it also shelters a wide variety of other wildlife. Located between the Aravalli and Vindhya mountain ranges, this Park is truly worth a visit. It also boasts of a thousand year old fort and lake palace. The best time to visit is from November to April.

Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary
This sanctuary can be best described as a paradise for bird lovers as it is a home to around 300 bird species,including native and migratory. Here you will be greeted with colorful birds, scenic beauty and melodious sounds. It occupies a great place on the world map as a World Heritage Site. Take a boat ride and enjoy amazing sights. It can be visited throughout the year.

Sariska National Park
Located ideally in the Aravalli Hills, Sariska is a home to a variety of wild species such as tiger, leopard, Nilgai, Great Indian Horned Owl, Serpent eagle and many more. It is a tiger reserve which attracts visitors from across the globe.

Desert National Park
It is a dramatic land with desert, sand dunes, rough rocks, wood fossils and amazing fauna. It is one of the largest National Parks in India.

Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary
Enveloped in scenic beauty, this sanctuary is rich in flora and fauna. Apart from sighting a range of exciting animals, you can also treat your eyes to a wide range of orchids. It can be visited throughout the year.

Easter Eggs – A Long Tradition in Many Cultures

Easter eggs or spring eggs have been given as gifts to celebrate Easter or springtime for centuries. They have long been a symbol of the “start of life.” The pagans thought the egg was a symbol of the rebirth of the Earth and fertility, in celebration of the vernal equinox. The idea was later adopted by the Christians.

The Easter egg tradition may also have emerged as a celebration of the end of Lent. They were forbidden during Lent. Consumption resumed on Easter, the end of Lent.

The egg is the most identifiable symbol of Easter. Easter eggs were originally painted with bright colors representing spring and sunlight. Different cultures around the world adopted their own techniques for creating beautiful and unique icons of fertility.

Eggs in Austria were designed with patterns by attaching ferns and other small plants around the egg before boiling. A white pattern would be left on the shells after the plants were removed.

Hanacke kraslice, or Easter eggs from the Czech Republic, are decorated with straw. This technique takes pieces of straw that are cut, curled and shaped and glued to the eggs, forming different patterns.

In the United States, eggs are typically dyed with many different colors. They can be hand painted or dipped into cups of dyed vinegar and water.

Now you have all these dyed and decorated eggs, what do you do with them? That will depend on where you live. In the United States, children are visited by the Easter bunny. In our house he would hide the Easter eggs that we had colored, along with leaving a basket filled with candy and other treats for each child.

The Easter egg hunt is a much anticipated event and celebrated in homes across the country and an annual event at the White House lawn in Washington, D.C.

In northern England, “egg tapping” is a popular game around Easter time. Boiled and dyed, Easter eggs or “pace eggs” are passed out to players, who then roll their egg into another player’s egg. The player with the last unbroken egg is the winner.

To make perfect Easter eggs you must start with the perfect boiled egg.

Have eggs at room temperature before cooking to prevent cracking. Make sure eggs are completely covered with cold water.

  1. Cover the eggs with completely with cold water.
  2. Bring to a boil.
  3. Cover and remove pan from heat. Let stand for 25 minutes.
  4. Remove eggs from water and let cool completely before decorating.

Voila! The perfect hard boiled eggs for decorating.