At Los Angeles , California, US

Los Angles downtown is a area where you can find a fast moving public. Downtown does have lot of places of interest and lot of commercial activity also happen here. My intention was to move around Hollywood area. Once you reach hollywood, you can see lot of tourists thronging the streets of hollywood visiting different places of interest related to flim industry.
The pavements of Hollywood is having tiles lied all over and they had written the movie artists name on the tiles. I had taken a photo sitting near "Britney Spears" tiles . This pavements are called walk of fame. Lot of small restaurants like McDonalds , Berger king etc can be seen here like any other part of US. I took my lunch from McDonalds just near to Kodak theater
First i went to see the kodak theatre where the grammy awards functions take place. Its a very big hall and it seems its the largest amphitheatre in the whole of US with more that 3000 people seating capacity. After that we searched for a guided tour to Beverly Hills, LA. This is the place where all the movie stars and celebretis live. I took a guided tour. There are several pacakges available. I took a tour which will go to Hollywood hills and then to Beverly hills . They show us all the houses of celebrities like Britney Spears , David Beckam etc. From hollywood hills one can see a long birds-eye view of the city.
After that we together went to Ripleys Believe it or not museum. Its really a "believe it or not" museum. Soon after that we went to a tamil movie. Lot ot Mallu population surronds this city. Even malayalam movies are running in some theaters.

At Troy , Michigan , US

Troy is in the northen part of US. Its a small area near Detroit, Michigan. This is the place where all the big names in Automobile industry like Ford , Chrysler etc are located. You can see very huge roads and one thing you can notice is the width of the roads, its very large than the usual american city roads.
The bad thing about this place is there is no public transport system. The locals say its because of the Automobile lobby that they dont allow the city to come up with a public transport system , so that people will stick to buying a four wheeler. The area is lying near to Canada border and you can go near the Canada border and have a panoramic view of some parts of Canada.
There is Indian population here too, but less compared to other US cities. The place is calm and cool. Winter can be extremely cold and terrible. Its May 2008 and US economy is in bad shape , moreover the city of detroit is facing a downturn in there economic might since automobile industry is facing economic challenges. This is partially due to high gasoline prices.People are hesitating to buy Automobiles and finally the companies here are suffering due to that. Although the roads are very big the condition of some roads are bad due to this economic slowdown. Life without a car can be terrible here.
Its cheap compared with stats like California, you can easily get a condo for around 800 to 900 dollars per month.
There are some Indian hotels here and there. But one Andhra hotel i had visited is having a nice buffet with reasonable prices. That is the one south indian hotel i had seen there. All shopping centers like Vons, Rite Aid, Longs etc can be seen everywhere. The summerset mall is a treat to the eyes

At Detroit Airport, Michigan , US

Detroit airport was big than i expected. It was too crowded and people where rushing to get to thier destinations. Similar kind of crowd we can see in normally in Indian Airports. There are a lot of hotels inside the airport. I was running out of time and didnt try any of the hotels.
While departing from the airport , there was heavy checking of the baggages. But the airport staff is friendly once we obey to thier instructions.

At Hartsfield-Jackson Internatonal Airport , Atlanta , Georgia, US

The airport is a major international airport and a major transit point. Most of the North West flights operate from here. It acts as a major transit point not only for international travellers but for domestic travellers too. Its a very big airport and does have a modern look. Travellators and Elevators are provided at every place. The elevators are very huge in size and the elevation between two floors are also higher than usual. I arrived in the morning and there was a huge floating population inside the airport. Lot of hotels are there inside the airoport , but i coudnt find out something veggy inside

At San Diego International Airport , San Diego, California , US

I arrived San Diego after hearing about this six largest city of US a lot. The city is well known for its tourist credentials. San Diego was famous for the climate and pristine beaches. But as the flight took off from Atlanta and was nearing San Diego I couldn’t notice greenery. When I was peeping out thru the Aircraft window I could notice only desert like aerial view.But all my concerns where soon away as I crossed some mountain ranges. I could see thick clouds on one side of the Mountains and thru it I could see lush green fields and bright blue beaches.
Nearby San Diego airport , I could see several other airports. Its not a very big airport, but still all facilities are arranged. The baggage collection is in the ground floor and the arrival hall is in the first floor. A taxi stand is just in front of the San Diego airport. I felt internal space is less in San Diego airport and gives a little crowded look since there are no Big hall like structure.

At Newyork JFK Airport, Newyork , US

The JFK airport is one of the biggest airports i had seen. Each section is linked together with a skytrain. Similar train is seen at the Singapore changi airport. Although i couldnt see convinient travellators like in Singapore airport. The departure and arrival terminals are placed in a multilevel structure. Elevators are provided to travel between different levels. The airport does have facility for Internet and phone calls , but internet service was too costly.
I think the airtraffic is too high here , as we look into the runway , we can see either a airplane going up or coming done every 30 seconds or so.

At Brussels Airport, Brussels, Belgium

Belgium is trying to promote the Brussles airport as a gateway to Europe. Brussels being the headquarters of European union , this push to create a gateway to Europe is quite understandable.The airport does have all facilites and acts like a transit point for international flights. Its not big like singapore or dubai airport , but does have a unique ambience. Lot of chochlate shops i can see as i go thru the malls inside the Airport.

At Sharjah Airport, Sharjah , UAE

The airport is not that big but they have given a makeup to an old construction reflecting the architectural flavour of that region , along with modern amenities. One need to take IRIS scan before entering into UAE. The airport staff is very cordial and most of them can handle multiple languages. There are very less number of shops for shopping and dining here.

At Dubai , UAE

Dubai is modern , flashy and one among the major cities of the world. THe city tries to proclaim itself as a city of the modern world. City authorities are trying day and night to make the city as modern as possible. There are lot of locations which are of tourist interest. This is my second visit to this city and lot had changed after my first visit three years ago. Mainly the change is near the shaik Syed Road, the life line of Dubai. City is burstling with lot of commercial activity and is one of the ecnomic hub in the region.Normally Indian and Arabian food are available everywhere, although you could find other flavours of food here and there. Weather conditions are normally dry, but does have some part of the year with pleasent cold climate.At present lot of real estate activities are happening in and around Dubai. The worlds tallest building Burj-Al-Arab is coming up in Dubai, I could see lot of construction happening in and around that building. From a very long distance we could see the glimpse of the tallest building.Although Dubai does have lot of malls , IBAN BATUTA MALL and MALL of Emirates are the major attraction. IBAN BATTUTA MALL is divided into sections representing major countries of the world. An ambience is created for each of the sections in accordance with the culture it is represnting. Indian and Chinese pavillions are quite interesting to see. One can easily spend a day inside the mall, or i can say its a mall of malls.Dubai marina is an upcoming real estate venture. Lot of water bodies are created inside the real estate venture that it looks like a modern venice, where one can see lot of speed boats parked around big sky scrapper flats. As we move towards jebal ali free zone, we could see lot of industrial units. Traffic is a major problem in Dubai. Even though the roads are good, number of vehicles jam the roads often. Rent in dubai is high, so people are moving out to outer regions like sharjah to live and they wil commute to dubai daily.Karama center is a place where lot of keralite population is working and doing jobs. We went to a hotel called Soorya , and had a typical mallu lunch there. Shawarma (an eatery) which is made of marinated meat and grill is one of the favourite dish. Its taste had take it to other parts of the world. I had seen shawarma in some of the south Indian states.Dubai Sree Krishna temple is very near to Shiva temple and is a place of worship for Hindus here. Near by the temple we can see the Dubai Museum. Its a big structure built underneath the earth. It does explain about the resurrgence of the modern city Dubai. Shaik Syed played a major role in developing this city in the present form.

At Fujairah , UAE

UAE has a number of emirate states. One among them is Fujairah, its a state not so developed like Dubai, but still with all the facilites for a modern lifestyle. The state is on the eastern side of UAE. The weather conditions most of the time dry. Temperatures can go up to 50 degrees plus. Sometimes dust storms also appear , mostly during the dry season.There are several beautiful corniche to do brisk walking by the seaside. Khor fakan beach side is a major attraction. Its a beach with a small park nearby the beach. Lot of people come in the evening and spend time at the park. There are several dangerous roads by the seaside once you travel thru the khor fakan route, but the whole way is a scenic beauty. Kalba chorniche is beautiful and we can go to Oman border which is very near by.Mostly Arabian and Indian food are available in this region. Lot of companies surrond this area which is directly or indirectly linked with petroleum products. Traffic system is good and violations of traffic rules attract heavy penalties. In the recent years lot of developments had happened in Fujairah, and you could see lot of real estate development happening.There is a huge Indian presence in this region. Indian Social Club of Fujairah is an apex body where all indians come together. Mainly the keralite population is high like any other part of the gulf.

At Singapore Changi Airport, Singapore

This is my 12th visit to this airport, and probably this is the most visited international airport in my life , till date. Each time i visit , it was my luck that i got enough transit time everytime i reached here so i utilized the Singapore round trip tour that Sinapore authorities had provided me. Singapore and Dubai airports are my most favourite airports and the most flashy ones i had seen. Changi airport staff is very helpful and the airport is maintained very well.Singapore airports are divided into several sections. Between each section sky train is provided. There are several shops of interest inside the Singapore Changi airport. There is a South Indian restaurant in the First floor of the airport. I usally doesnt fail to take some snaks from the south indian hotel.There is a shop run by Singapore airlines , which is of my interest. They sell several sundry items which is Singapore specific. Other than that lot of free internet browsing terminals are provided by the airport authorities which i found very useful , even during the transit time you can get in touch with the outside world.I had gone thru several electronic shops to buy some electronic products , but what i feel is there is no major difference compared to the prices in India. Nowadays some of the items you will find much cheaper in India.

At Seoul Incheon Airport , Incheon , Seoul , South Korea.

This is my 12 th visit to this airport. I reached from the hotel to airport thru the limousine service. City authorities had provided service of bus service from several pickup points through out seoul. Around 13000 korean wons is the ticket price , the arrangement is quite helpful. This time i stayed at Novotel Ambassador Gangnam, one of the luxruy five star hotels in Seoul. The bus comes to all the major hotels for pickup , before leaving to Airport.The airport is not as big as Changi airport , but the airport is well maintained. The departure faciltiy is a huge hall with a chormium finsh roof. Once you enter the facility on one side several small cafeteria is visibile , along with that there are several banks counter for currency exchange. Woori bank, ShinHan Bank etc are major ones.This time i was travelling with Singapore Airlines. Once you do the checkin and baggage scan you enter to a shopping area. Lot of duty free shops are seen , but most of them are little costlier.

Singapore Transit Tour, Singapore.

This is my 6th time visit to Singapore via Singapore transit tour. Usually one need to report to the transit tour counter to take the free transit tour. They will take you only if enough time is there for transit.The travel is convinient as they take you in a AC bus with enough leg room. They take you to the financial district and other places of interest. You cannot get out of the bus and explore things out there. You can see second hand things being sold for cheap prices (thiefs street) at a location. Sinaporeans say this is the place to look for if you have lost something stolen :).You can find lot of tamil population in this part of the world. There are temples and mosques of indian style located. The whole country is very small and some of the construction is going on reclaimed land. The city has good public transport system and the authorities demotivate people from buy cars. Statistics show that the number of citizens in the country is lesser than the number of tourists in an year. Singapore is the home for one of the largest containter shipment terminals in the world. The whole region depends on Singapore for container traffic.Indian street and Chinese streets are there where you can find lot of Indian and Chinese culture. The government tries to restore the old buildings which reflects Singapore culture. So modernity buildings with buildings with old style of architercture is interwoven and blended nicely in this city.Private flats are too costly , but there are a number of government flats that normal people rely for a leaving. The city is having an entertainment and leisure center called the sentosa island. A new casino center is coming up in the city which is build after the casino center models of Las Vegas.

At COEX Aquarium , Seoul , South Korea

COEX is one of the biggest mall cum international hotel in Seoul. The whole structure is too big that one can easily spends one or two days inside seeing and learning things. Inside the COEX mall there are lot enertainment facilities like ice skating and other stuff. It does have a cineplex and other eatery outlets.

Hyndai department store is worth seeing and almost its a like mega shop.COEX acqurium is house inside the mall underground. Its a worth seeing Acquiriam with all under water flora and fona being displayed. At the end of the Acquirum there is a mega glass structure where all the big beasts of the sea are put. Big sharks , turtles all you can see thru the glass structure. There is a under water journey and throuout the journey you can see all the creatures in a normal sea-life like atmosphere.

At Bannerghata National Park and Butterfly Park, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.

One of the beautiful parks in Bangalore is the Bangalore Butterfly park. Situated adjacent to the Bannerghatta National Park , Bangalore butterfly park is a gift to the nature and relief to tired human eyes. A big covered structure is maintained and within this structure lot of artificial garden is created. 100 of different varieties falling under the butterfly spcies are maintained there. The entire area gives a sooting effect to tired minds. Lot of general info is provided on butterflies. It was an interesting fact to know that Butterflies are the most ancient species in earth and one which is having the most number of variety.

Bannerghatta national park , houses wild animals. Here the concept is just opposite to the zoo. You will be taken in a covered bus to the jungle and you can see real life jungle infront of you. White Tigers to Deers, almost all wild animals you can see in this journey of around 1 hour.

Near by that a zoo is also there where lot of different types of snakes and other animals are kept. Which is like any other normal zoo. With Bangalore emerging as Business hub, i could see lot of sponsorships for these wild life protection efforts. Weekends are normally crowded , as lot of techies from nearby Bangalore come to see the wild life for a break.

At HAL museum , Bangalore, Karnataka, India.

HAL museum is maintained by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd , and the tradition and history of the organization is well captured and presented the Museum. Emergence of India as a mere technological buyer of aerospace devices and components to an innovator and producer is visible from the chronolgical photo library that is being displayed there. The transformation and emergence of a technical giant is visible from the museum displays. Apart from this several war planes and helicopters are on display.

Nainital , Uttrakhand , India

Nainital is a favorite tourist destination. The hill station provides superb view of Icy mountains and splendid water bodies. Lot of tourism related business, mainly hotels and restaurants have sprung up all thru the valley. You could watch Everest mountain, which is in Nepal. Horse rides are available but slightly risky as the trainer will leave the horse after some time along with you and the horses are trained to trek the mountains and you will get frightened as the horse go up thru narrow trails and take you to the destination regardless of the presence of a trainer during the journey.

There are udan khotla like sky safari available which will take you to the top of the mountain and back and you could enjoy the beauty from those heights. There are several lakes in and around the place and boating facilities are available at nominal costs and most of the places are very beautiful and brings freshness back into your life at least for some moments.

At RitZ Carlton hotel , Gangnam-gu , Seoul , South Korea.

RitZ Carlton is a seven star hotel in Seoul and one of the costliest hotel to stay with. Facilities are superb. The welcome hall is a big hall and the entrance is a gold plated rotating door. The entrance itself has a royal look. Once you enter two women wearing korean traditional dress welcome you in. The marble work done with gold plated top and the small small lights lit together gives a very bright ambience.Once you enter the room, I saw a letter, amazing it was written "Welcome you back, Prasad" along with it was some chocolates. They keep record of all thier visitors by the passport number. One need to give the credit card number details before taking the room. I was having an American express corporate card which is handy during these types of visits.The next day was a holiday and we decided to enjoy the spa and the swimming pool. The swimming pool is facing the clouds and sky , once you are in the pool looking towards the sky you can enjoy your back stroke. The spa and gymnasium are nearby.Evening i decided to just expolre the Gangnam area. The Ganganam is one of the costliest and posh areas in Seoul. I could find a number of Indian restaurants. The major ones was Chakara, India Gate , Delhi, Taj Mahal etc. Chakkra is a chain hotel and comparitively cheaper. India Gate is costlier , but the ambience is fantastic.By 5.30 pm roads are filled with couples. It seems like whole korean couples are boozing and enjoying ther lifetime.All indian hotels close by around 9.30 pm but the other hotels are open till early morning. During previous visit I remeber I along with some of my friends had spent the whole night till moring in an Irish bar talking each other.

Bangalore City Tour.

Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation is having AC and Non-AC services for one day city tour. The bus takes you to well known places of historical and religious importance. Everyday the service starts at around 8am from the Majestic Bus Station. The Bus covers ISKON temple , Raja Rajeswari temple, Nandi temple on its way. Apart from temples Bus takes you to Tippu Sultans fort inside bangalore. Also some particular slot of time is alocated to see the splendour of Lal Bagh Gardens. As the day proceeds towards from dawn to dusk, you will reach the Planetarium where several shows related to solar system and universe are played. Apart from all this the tour is worth as it takes to several places of minor importance within Bangalore.
A visit to the Mysore Silk showroom is also included in the tour.

At Nariman Point , Mumbai , India

I am at the historical Nariman Point, Mumbai. Even though i had heard and seen about Nariman point from several places, this is first time I am seeing the place directly with my Eyes. The Taj Mahal hotel overlooks the Nariman point with its royal flavour. You can see pigeons coming to have thier share of food from the hawkers. The place is flooded with tourists.

You could see the India Gate , where the history of India sleeps. I took a boat journey to the nearby Arabian sea. The Taj Mahal hotels speldour seemed multiplied several times as i took a long shot view from the boat, several miles away from the sea shore. On one side i could see Naval Base of Indian Navy.

Nariman Point is Mumbai's premier business district. It was named after Khursheed Framji Nariman, a Parsi visionary. The area is situated on land reclaimed from the sea. It had the distinction of having the highest commercial real estate rental space in the world in 1995 at $175 per square foot ($1880/m²). As per 2006 the area prices rose sharply to 450 US$ per sq ft. ($4800/m²). 2007.Property prices Nariman Point hit a new high as a flat sold for a record $8.62 million (USD) on November 26 2007[1], at an astonishing $2488 (Rs.97,842) per square foot. The area is situated on the extreme southern tip of Marine Drive. It houses some of India's premier business headquarters.