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Want to travel soon? Take a travel loan

Want to travel soon? Get this loan to help you

The travel restrictions that were imposed worldwide during COVID-19 are now a thing of the past. Buys work schedules aside, nothing really stops you from travelling and satisfying the wanderer in your soul. Nothing, that is, apart from some shortage of ready cash! But if your travel plans are hampered by a lack of finances, we suggest you get a travel loan to get started on your next dream holiday.

Travel is important, but expensive…

There is no disputing the fact that travel broadens one’s horizons. Visiting new places, experiencing new cultures and food, interacting with local residents and learning their ways of life, all enrich your understanding of the world. You may go on a solo trip or with your family, but travel always benefits the person who goes seeking new experiences. And it works like a drug – once you’ve caught the travel bug, you want to travel again and again!

But as wonderful as it is, it is also expensive. Flight or train tickets, hotel bookings, sightseeing tours, eating out and shopping, all cost a lot of money. It does not do to plan a trip while being strapped for cash – you end up not enjoying the sojourn as much as you would like because you are constantly thinking about how much money you are spending. On the other hand, having extra cash on hand helps you get more novel experiences without thinking twice about the money. However, you cannot exert additional pressure on your income to fund travel trips.

Here’s the solution: take a travel loan

If you have never borrowed money to travel or buy expensive things, you might be hesitant about doing so. However, you might be interested to know that a lot of people regularly borrow travel loans, a.k.a. personal loans, to fund their various travel jaunts. The personal loan pays for tickets, bookings, visas and inter-city tours, based on the amount you can borrow from the lending institution.

Here’s why you should consider getting an instant personal loan to pay for your next trip:

  • It is processed quickly, especially if you apply using a reputed loan app. The money is disbursed in a few hours, so you can plan the trip the way you like
  • The best loan apps in India offer up to Rs 5 lakh loan based on your loan eligibility. This is a sizeable amount that can fund the foreign trip of your dreams
  • You need not pay from your savings or disturb your income to fund the trip. The personal loan pays for it all
  • The lending app does not ask why you need the money or for details on how you wish to spend it. You can use the money the way you want. It is sanctioned in a lump sum amount in your account, so you can start shopping for the trip, applying for a visa, buying flight tickets, making hotel bookings, etc.
  • Since the personal loan has a shorter tenure than other loans, you can repay it in full in a few months and be debt free much faster
  • If you are going abroad, the Consulate will like to see your financial statements when you apply for the visa. Having the large infusion of cash in your account is a positive sign and the visa has a higher chance of being approved

How to get the instant personal loan for travel

Start by downloading the best loan app and set it up as directed. Creating your profile on the app registers you as a potential customer and the app can also check your credit score and other particulars. When you apply for the loan, the app asks you to submit documents (these are listed on the app) so that the application may move forward.

  • You can self-attest the documents and keep them ready for pick-up from your home. The app checks the documents, verifies your credit worthiness and loan eligibility, and notifies you of how much loan amount you can get. The best loan apps in India sanction personal loans without salary slips and bank statements, which helps immensely during an emergency
  • Once the loan application is approved, the money is disbursed to your account. You can withdraw it and start planning your trip.
  • Repay the loan in simple EMIs as per the tenure.

(Featured image courtesy https://nextvacay.com/why-traveling-is-important)

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Goa goes traditional on Ganeshutsav

Far from Mumbai’s raucous Ganpati celebration, many devout Hindu families in Goa celebrate the festival with dignity and quiet faith.
by Gajanan Khergamker and Sriddhi | gajanan@draftcraft.in, www.draftcraft.in

Ganeshutsav is Maharashtra’s most prized…and Mumbai’s landmark festival. In sharp contrast to the psychedelic ‘lighting’, the colossal ‘mandaps’ and endless sea of crazed dancers accompanying the ‘visarjan’, lies the festival’s traditional, family-centric avatar in India’s smallest state, Goa. The idols here are all made of mud and clay as a rule.

So, however far and wide a family’s members move beyond their ancestral homes in Goa, come Ganeshutsav, they make a beeline for their roots. Reliving the joint family saga, almost all Hindu families across Goa bring the God of Knowledge home for at least five days. The ‘hall’ is decorated with multi-hued plastic ribbons forming a play of patterns on the ceiling leading to the murti usually bought from the Maharashtra-Goa border at Sawantwadi.

In a modest house at a quaint Arambol in North Goa, Sarika Naik rushes to complete her daily chores and pre-pooja formalities before the pundit arrives. Work doesn’t stop for Sarika but there is a spring in her step as she hurries about offering tea to guests, getting the pooja samagri in place and attend to her in-laws visiting for the five-day fiesta.

Ganeshutsav is the Goan Hindu’s most cherished festival. It binds families together during this period. Unlike Mumbaikars, Goans prefer celebrating Ganeshutsav in the most traditional manner. An idol of Lord Ganesha is established in the ancestral home and all members of the family and the extended family come together to live in the house for the entire duration of the festival. A daily pooja takes place in the presence of a pundit and traditional meals, which include puri–bhaji and neori (known as karanja in Maharashtra) and modak.

In contrast, in Maharashtra, particularly Mumbai, Ganeshutsav is perceived as an opportunity to display stark commercialism and vulgar show of pomp and wealth. Often, Sarvajanik Ganeshutsavs are organised to extort monies from local businesses who pay up more for fear of reprisal rather than devotion. The money involved in even creating a Mumbai Ganesha Mandap complete with decorations and security is phenomenal.

And opposed to the pack-and-go kind of Ganeshutsavs celebrated by families in Mumbai for a series of reasons that include lack of space, dearth of time and a shift in values systems, most Goan families have been celebrating Ganesha Chaturthi for generations together.

Putting profit on the back-burner, Goa shuts shop during Ganeshutsav. Bars down their shutters, hotels operate at bare minimum for local needs and markets open up just for a bit for essentials during this period. “It’s a holiday for a full 11 days during Ganeshutsav in the whole of Goa,” says Francis Fernandes, a resident.

It was Lokmanya Tilak who had initiated the public celebration of the festival which went on to be known as the Sarvajanik Ganesh Utsav. Over the years, families started installing the idol at home for shorter periods of time. And, today almost every Hindu family in Goa has its own Ganesha idol during the festival. The Ganeshutsav celebrations in Goa are predominantly traditional and family driven as opposed to the commercial extravaganza in Mumbai.

The mostly fish-eating families do not cook any fish or meat, even abstain from the use of onion or garlic during the five days they house the Lord. Alcohol, a tax-exempted commodity consumed widely in Goa, is strictly prohibited during this period. After installation of the idol, the next most important day is that of visarjan. Once again, unlike Mumbai where the idols are carted along public roads amid fanfare and cacophony, in Goa, families of an area get together and meet at a pre-determined place where all the idols are placed in a tempo or small truck and transported to a local water body which may be a lake or a nearby river side where they are collectively immersed.

In Mumbai, the installation and immersion is an ear-splitting public affair. Few families manage to get the Lord home for a range of reasons. The families here are nuclear in nature and with the constraints of time and lifestyle, Ganeshutsav too assumes urban proportions. It is a social festival in Mumbai, where even traditional aartis are mixed with bhangra beats.

In contrast, at Goa, it’s a family affair with daily poojas, ethnic food, local bhajans and traditional aartis. It is not that there aren’t any Sarvajanik Ganesha Mandals in Goa: every village in the State has at least one, like Mandrem’s Sarvajanik Ganeshutsav Mandal which keeps an 11-day socially-driven celebration so that Goan families from the area can participate after the five-day immersion of their own Ganesha. The celebrations include regional songs and dance, folk songs, bhajans, ghumat arti, kirtan, drama, etc. Local ‘heroes and performers’ are felicitated and lectures are organised to inspire and motivate the youth.

Sarvajanik in the true sense as it aims to achieve public good.

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Amalfi Coast: A little piece of heaven

Mumbai girl Beverley Lewis visits the Italian site for the rich and famous on a budget. This is her story.

If you’re tired of dragging your feet around museums and ancient ruins in Italy, it’s time to take and breather and head down to the Amalfi Coast for a bit of R&R. The Amalfi Coast, with its cobalt blue waters and green foliage, is perhaps one of the most beautiful places on earth. The Amalfi coast, along with the surrounding coastal towns of Sorrento, Ravello, Positano and Capri, comes alive in the summer with the buzz of vacationers, from all over the world, most of who look like they’ve stepped off the runways of Milan.

So how do you get to the Amalfi Coast at an affordable price? Well, the key is to book hotels and flights in advance. If you are a budget traveller, then the best time to visit the Amalfi Coast and its surrounding towns is in the month of May. Chances are air fares and hotels will be cheaper, and it will also be less crowded.

Amalfi CoastMy base was Sorrento, which is much cheaper compared to other towns along with coast. Also, due to its convenient location, I was able to take day trips to nearby Capri, and Ana Capri, using a local guided tour operator. Lined with designer stores on both sides, the stunning island of Capri is best left to the super-rich. The rest of us will just have to be satisfied with the breath taking views and delicious local Caprese cuisine along with a glass (depending on how many sorrows you wish to drown) or bottle of wine made from the delicious Falanghina grape.

The next costal town I visited was the quaint Positano, which has pastel-coloured buildings and long-winding, steep narrow lanes. Positano is an affordable town, where a budget traveller can afford to stay in a fairly decent hotel and take full-advantage of the local fare. There are numerous cafés, which offer freshly made pastries and piping hot cappuccinos to the weary traveller. Positano is also known for its strappy leather handmade sandals, which are reasonably priced and make great souvenirs.

Another day trip that I took was to the town of Ravello, which is literally situated on a mountain and overlooks the Bay of Salerno. This sleepy little town is well-known for its stunning gardens and sea views. It also has a number of family run restaurants, which offer a variety of homemade pastas. There is an array of family-run stores that offer everything from olives and local wines to home-made jams.

And you cannot leave without enjoying the coast’s busiest town, Amalfi. This glorious town is located between the sea and the mountains and has a beautifulPositano Arab-Norman cathedral. Also, if you enjoy seafood, then this is the town for you. Most restaurants in this former maritime Republic offer fishy antipasti and mixed seafood and tomato pasta dishes.

You don’t have to break the bank to enjoy this 43-mile stretch of beautiful coastal towns, you simply need to do some research and keep your eyes and ears open for good deals. Also, you may need to dust out your gladrags and plaster on a pair of over-sized shades, in case you need to hobnob with a millionaire or rub shoulders with a celebrity.  After all, it is the playground of the rich and famous.

(Pictures courtesy Beverley Lewis)

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On the money trail at the RBI Museum

Our coins are made of ferritic stainless steel, and have a mint mark which reveals where the coins were made. Read on for more.
by Ritika Bhandari Parekh

It all started when my cousin asked me to find out places in Italy which she could visit on her own. Her husband, who had work to finish said, “There isn’t much to see, except museums and more museums.” She retorted, “I don’t mind the museums at all.” This got me thinking and looking for ‘her’ kind of places, and I thought about the museums in Mumbai.

A quick search revealed that I had been to most of them as a schoolchild. But, wait! There was a new addition to the list – The Monetary Museum by Reserve Bank of India (RBI). While most of us in Mumbai are game to visit international museums, how many have actually visit this fascinating one in their own city?

RBI Museum 1This numismatic museum officially opened in 2004 at the hands of the then Indian President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Situated in the commercial Fort area of South Mumbai, the museum building is located in the business district on Pherozeshah Mehta Road. If you wander a little ahead, the famous Strand Book shop is right around the corner.

After depositing my bag in a locker and being issued with a strict ‘No Photographs please’ warning, I started my tour alone.

The museum is divided into six sections, with each section enlightening us on different ideas. The first section talks about ‘Concepts, Curiosities and the Idea of Money’. It takes us through the era of the barter system and explains how grains, cattle, implements were used. The evolution to precious metals, coinage and paper money is also explained here. On display are curiosities like the Neolitihic stone axes from 10 millenium B.C, as also cowri shells and beads from the A.D. era.

What caught my fancy was a square-shaped miniscule coin from the 3rd century BC, a silver bar from South East Asia, as also one shaped as a knife served as a token of money. A huge rectangular Indian note of Rs 10,000 (I am not kidding) was also on display.

If observed closely, an early 20th century cheque book of the Bank of India (BOI) Ltd, reveals three languages on it – English, Hindi and Gujarati (an indicationRBI Museum 2 of how the Gujarati business class was always an important part of the city). A counting tray from South India for the many fanams or small circular coins and other interesting articles are displayed in glass boxes.

Section 2 on Indian coinage is vast and comprises every kind of medieval coinage used by the Indian Princely States. It also houses coins from the pre-Colonial era. A quick look reveals that metals such as gold, silver and copper were the favourites among the kings. So Akbar, Tipu Sultan and Shivaji had golden mohurs of different values. It is also interesting to note the inscriptions on these coins.

From deities to names to zodiac signs in which the coins were made, all have made their mark on the money trail. It is said that before the East India Company was taken over by the British Crown in 1858, there were over a 100 princely States that had the right to issue coins. So the museum and its curators have done a splendid job in bringing not only the famous Mughal era coins, but also the coins from the North-Eastern States and the koris and dokdos from the Kutch kingdom.

As we end the section, a display of Indo-European coins and the commemorative coins by the Indian Government greet us. For the uninitiated, 1988 was the year of Aurobindo Ghosh and his saying that ‘All life is yoga.’ And so, we walk through the third section of ‘From coins to bank notes’. My Organization of Commerce (O.C.) lectures started playing in my mind, as I read about promissory notes, bills of exchange and payment hundis.

Section 4 on Indian paper money, reveals the metamorphosis of the Indian currency. Paper money from the British and post-Independence days make their way to the displays. A peculiar and striking feature of most of the notes were the portraits of the British rulers, like King George, on them.

The fifth section talks about ‘Knowing your currency’. It helps us understand the difference between a real and a counterfeit note. I learnt that the motif of the tractor on the five-rupee note was to symbolise the green revolution, and that the two-rupee note had an Aryabhatta satellite. Interestingly, our current 500-rupee note uses raised intaglio printing for the blind community.

The last section is called ‘RBI and You’ and is devoted to the activities of the main central bank of India. There is also a wall of portraits of all the presidents of RBI, since its inception in 1937.

And then, just like that we come to the exit. The Monetary Museum revealed a lot and keeping all that in mind, I am back on the sunny, crowded and chaotic street outside.

(Pictures courtesy www.eumo.in, wannabemaven.com, strayingaround.blogspot.com. Images are file pictures)

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A Buddhist temple at Worli

Blink, and you’ll miss it – look out for the sublime aura of the Nipponzan Myohoji temple at Worli Naka.
by Ritika Bhandari Parekh

Amidst the lovers waiting to reach the Worli sea face and the cars honking to go home, Worli Naka was engulfed by the flag-waving bike riders celebrating the India-Pakistan match victory in the 2015 ICC World Cup. Our search for the oldest Japanese-Buddhist temple in Mumbai on this day was met with curious glances from passers-by. I, fleetingly, remember a Japanese inscription written high on the walls of a shrine each time we passed the locality. But that evening, I was destined to experience its tranquil nature.

The Nipponzan Myohoji temple at Worli was built in 1952 by Jugal Kishore Birla. Legend has it that the philanthropist and Gandhian built the simple shrine on being impressed by the Buddhist philosophy imparted by a Japanese monk (Bhikhu) Nichidatsu Fuji. Fuji had come to India to fulfill and gain knowledge from the prophecy of a 13th century monk named Maha Bodhisattva Nichiren.

Nichiren had said that the ultimate salvation for all humanity lay in the western land (according to Japan’s position on the map) known as India, the place where Buddhism originated. With an all-welcoming attitude, the temple is witness to the changing nature of Mumbai.

A sublime experience

Once inside the premises, I heard the chant of ‘NaMu-MyoHo-Renge-Kyo’ mantra and in a second, all noises faded. The stress of a sleepless afternoon didn’t disturb me, as I took in the beautiful facade of the simple temple. It was evening time and we saw the resident monk, Bhikshu Morita, sitting and softly chanting the lotus mantra.

With just the two of us in the temple, i.e. my partner and myself, we explored the area leisurely. Quite a few clippings of the temple’s narrative along with Morita’s younger days are showcased in one corner. But if you glance up, you will be taken on a tour of the story of the Buddha – painted with vegetable dye.

While the main statue of the Buddha is made of marble and placed right in the centre of the temple, one will get a peek of other Buddha statues in different poses. One standing under the Bodhisattva or the Tree of Enlightment, another sitting in meditation, with another lying horizontally.

What catches the eye is the huge Japanese drum, being played in sync with the lotus mantra. There were two more devotees, who played to the beat on smaller tennis-shaped rackets. The hand-held rackets had the lotus mantra written on them.

As we went ahead, the monk urged us to silently go inside the main chamber and pray to Lord Buddha. We bowed our heads and took the prasad. Then we read about the birth of Buddha as Prince Siddhartha and saw a few postcards from different countries with wishes for the New Year.

And slowly, just like the setting sun we made our way out and back to the busy street. But this time the rush in our steps was not there. Just the calmness of our mind accompanied us.

Visit the Nipponzan Myohoji Buddhist temple located near Hindu Smashan Bhoomi, Jijamata Nagar, Worli.

 (See more pictures at www.facebook.com/themetrognome.in. Pictures courtesy Ritika Bhandari Parekh)

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Ter excavations to throw light on ancient Roman trade

Some evidences of Indian trade with Rome, and a flourishing ancient civilisation, were recently unearthed at Ter, in Maharashtra’s Osmanabad district.
by Shubha Khandekar

Dr Maya Sahapurkar PatilAfter a gap of nearly almost 40 years, the Directorate of Archaeology and Museums, Maharashtra State has resumed excavations at Ter, by the Terna river in Osmanabad district, a village in Maharashtra, under the leadership of Dr Maya Sahapurkar Patil, Deputy Director (in pic on left). She has been a teacher of archaeology at Solapur earlier and has authored three books. Shubha Khandekar spoke to her on site.

Shubha: Why is the site important and what was the reason for choosing Ter for excavation after so many years?

Dr Sahapurkar Patil: Ter is the modern name of the ancient town Tagar, the Mumbai of those times in terms of brisk commercial activity between India and Rome. Various kinds of textiles, beads and jute were exported from here to Rome. The local people imitated the fine Roman pottery, with a characteristic red polish, that came with the Romans. Tagar is mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea by a Greek author 2000 years ago. It says that Tagar is a 10 days’ journey from Pratishthan (today’s Paithan), which was the capital of the Satavahana rulers. Periplus also tells us that Tagar was the important market town for merchandise originating on the east coast of India. The famous British archaeologist Henry Cousens, then working with Archaeological Survey of India, first explored this site in early 20th century and recorded his observations, pointing to unmistakable trade links with ancient Rome. On the basis of copper plates found outside Ter, which mention ‘Tagar nivasi’ Ter has been identified with the ancient Tagar.

Meanwhile, Ramalingappa Lamture, a merchant from Ter became fascinated with the surface finds and the visits of the British who came looking for them and Pompeii_Terto visit the nearby Jaina Dharashiv caves. He started collecting these finds, such as figurines of baked and unbaked clay, beads, pottery, shell bangles, ivory objects, stone grinders and coins. It became a large collection and was taken over by the Government in 1978 and expanded to house this private museum, consisting today of over 20,000 artefacts, testifying to the cultural glory and prosperity of the Satavahana days.

Are you the first one to excavate Ter?

No. It was first excavated in 1958 by KN Dikshit, who found a large brick stupa. Dr BN Chapekar continued with the work in 1967-68 and found a large number of mother goddesses in the Lajjagauri form from the mound called Renuka Tekdi. A team under Dr SB Deo from the Deccan College again excavated it in 1974-75 and published a brief report. After that, two small scale excavations were undertaken by the State Department of Archaeology which revealed a stepped reservoir. And now it has been entrusted to me and my team.

What are you looking for?

(Smiles) I have a special interest as I belong to this region. Of the seven mounds here, named Sultan, Kaikadi, Mulani, Renuka, Bairag, Mahar and Kot, the first Pompeii_Bestthree are greatly disturbed by modern habitation and hence we have chosen to dig at Bairag and Kot. Our two objectives are to define parameters of the ancient trade with Rome, to trace the material culture of the early Satavahana phases and to find evidence to fill the gap between the Satavahana period and the mediaeval period remains that overlie them.

And what have you found?

We have found a well of mediaeval times and associated structures in which the earlier bricks of Satavahana times have been reused. A plan of a house has been traced. There is evidence of timber construction which has been mentioned by earlier excavators, too. Apart from that, there are several ivory objects such as dice, comb and a rod to apply kajal to the eyes. An important find is the rim of a pot on which some letters are inscribed in Brahmi. We have sent the piece to experts for reading. Beads of carnelian, agate, jasper, lapis lazuli, faience shell and terracotta have been found. Bangles of shell, terracotta and multi-coloured glass, ear-rings and gamesmen also have been found. Female human figurines of terra cotta and kaolin show that the local people had adopted the Roman technique of double mould manufacturing.

What is your message to the people?

People are very fond of saying how great their ancient culture is, but when it comes to taking action, one sees nothing but callous apathy and mindless destruction of our precious heritage. Sculptures of excellent workmanship and immense historical value are lying waste all over the State. From what I have seen, we have the potential to build a local museum in every district. People should take the trouble to conserve this rich legacy. They can either set up a museum of their own, as done by Lamture, or donate the local findings to the government or to a museum for maintenance. This is not just the Government’s but everybody’s responsibility, and the awareness should be created right from school days.

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