[Dieselritzer]

These days, most parents take their kids for an adventure in a "Mall". You are taking your kid in the right places, you are an amazing parent :-) Wish your family lots of such amazing travels and adventures. Loved your description thoroughly.

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by lovecars21

Here are some of the shots from our Bhutan Trip Oct 2011
Photos were taken using Canon Powershot.

Arunasish, the pictures are beautiful and too good for a PowerShot . Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by lapis_lazuli

Beautiful travelogue : loved every bit of it!

Congratulations, no easy task by any means: with a kid on board! 37k is a great figure!

I was just wondering, what kind of mileage the Storme returned overall. It has seen and overcome mixed terrain, was pushed a bit, here and there and it seems to be more than capable.

Thanks lapis_lazuli. I did not work out the overall figure for the trip. But I did rough calculations during every fill up. The figures varied between 11.5 to 12.5. On very good highways like NH-2, it returns around 13.1.

Storme is definitely a capable SUV, but mine currently suffers from lack of proper shoes (read tyres).

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Lovely pictures Partha and detailed travelogue. I have been planning to go to Bhutan for quite sometime now (last visited in 1990) but have not been able to manage yet. Thanks for sharing this t-log.

Thanks Sumitro. I am sure the day you set out on your voyage to Bhutan, you'll pierce through the poor little country from west to east!!!

Originally Posted by M35

Bhutan is a cute little land space with a unique charm of its own. The blue sky, clean air, beautiful landscapes, the culture –what an amazing piece of land.


Thanks for taking me back to early 2000s when I enjoyed a short stint in a place called Wangduephodrang which is about a couple of hours drive from Thimphu.


Lovely travelogue !

Hi M35, good to know that you liked it. Bhutan is definitely a little paradise on earth, no doubt about that.

Originally Posted by Dieselritzer

These days, most parents take their kids for an adventure in a "Mall". You are taking your kid in the right places, you are an amazing parent :-) Wish your family lots of such amazing travels and adventures. Loved your description thoroughly.

Hi Dieselritzer, That surely is a unique observation and yes, we do want our baby to grow up seeing the "real world". There is nothing more flattering for a parent to hear the complement that he/she is doing the right thing for his/her baby! Thank you so much for that. I am glad that you liked the TL.

[S2!!!]

Wow! You surely are making good use of your Storme! Within 6 months this is your 3rd road trip (travelogue) and I am sure by the year end there will be a few more. Its great to read your touring experiences.

Keep 'em coming .

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by S2!!!

Wow! You surely are making good use of your Storme! Within 6 months this is your 3rd road trip (travelogue) and I am sure by the year end there will be a few more. Its great to read your touring experiences.

Keep 'em coming .

Thanks S2!!! I never thought that I would ever enjoy writing. But honestly speaking, writing travelogues have become part of the excitement of the trips.

[sasi405]

Wonderful travelogue, succinct and yet informative. The pictures are very nice too. I too dream of taking my baby everywhere, in the 'real world'; only that I have to wait a bit more (she is only 11 months old now!)
The Storme is a great car and I think finally we have a vehicle that is the true highway enthusiast's friend. The fact that you have 4WD on yours is an added advantage.
Whenever I see pictures from any of our neighbours (Bhutan, SriLanka etc), it never ceases to amaze me how dirty we are in India. I don't understand why we can't keep our surroundings, streets and roads clean of litter. Shameful!

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by sasi405

Wonderful travelogue, succinct and yet informative. The pictures are very nice too. I too dream of taking my baby everywhere, in the 'real world'; only that I have to wait a bit more (she is only 11 months old now!)
The Storme is a great car and I think finally we have a vehicle that is the true highway enthusiast's friend. The fact that you have 4WD on yours is an added advantage.
Whenever I see pictures from any of our neighbours (Bhutan, SriLanka etc), it never ceases to amaze me how dirty we are in India. I don't understand why we can't keep our surroundings, streets and roads clean of litter. Shameful!

Hi Sasi, thanks for your encouraging comments. You may have to wait for another 6-7 months before you can start taking your baby on serious road trips . I started taking my baby on short road trips to my hometown Bolpur (Shantiniketan) and back when she was 4 months old. It is only 170 kms drives door to door and the roads are excellent. But the "real" trips started only after she completed 18 months.

It is indeed true that Strome is the best value for bucks if you are looking for a very comfortable, capable and rugged long distance tourer.

I totally admit that our roads and cities are very dirty compared to our neighbours and a lot of other countries. We TBHPians have to take the lead to show others how to keep our country clean because, I believe, a TBHPian uses a lot more sq kms of the Indian land than an average Indian, don't you think?

[sasi405]

Originally Posted by psurelia

Hi Sasi, thanks for your encouraging comments. You may have to wait for another 6-7 months before you can start taking your baby on serious road trips . I started taking my baby on short road trips to my hometown Bolpur (Shantiniketan) and back when she was 4 months old. It is only 170 kms drives door to door and the roads are excellent. But the "real" trips started only after she completed 18 months.

It is indeed true that Strome is the best value for bucks if you are looking for a very comfortable, capable and rugged long distance tourer.

I totally admit that our roads and cities are very dirty compared to our neighbours and a lot of other countries. We TBHPians have to take the lead to show others how to keep our country clean because, I believe, a TBHPian uses a lot more sq kms of the Indian land than an average Indian, don't you think?

My little one has done two trips to Shimla and two trips to Jaipur already with an extended one to Deogarh (200km from Jaipur), so she's very much into it. And the Storme has been a good companion to her too, with the baby seat in the rear centre still leaving enough space for her grand mom and aunt to comfortable sit on either side.
And yes, as TBhpians, we need to lead the way in ensuring cleanliness on the roads. We always have a garbage bag that gets emptied at the end of the journey in a designated spot such as a hotel or a municipal garbage can.
Looking forward to more enduring trips!

[Samba]

Just completed reading the whole travelogue. As usual loved reading the whole part. The pictures are beautiful too and your storm is looking perfect for the terrain.

Seeing the pic of the coronation bridge made me a bit sad. Day before yesterday i crossed that while returning from our road trip to North Sikkim. Every time while coming back i get sad while crossing this bridge as it indicates we are coming back to the plains leaving the hill memories behind.

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by Samba

Just completed reading the whole travelogue. As usual loved reading the whole part. The pictures are beautiful too and your storm is looking perfect for the terrain.

Seeing the pic of the coronation bridge made me a bit sad. Day before yesterday i crossed that while returning from our road trip to North Sikkim. Every time while coming back i get sad while crossing this bridge as it indicates we are coming back to the plains leaving the hill memories behind.

I am glad to hear that you liked it. I share your feelings regarding the Coronation Bridge and I am sure many of the Bengal bhpians also feel the same way

[JASMEET MATTOO]

Nice travelogue there psurelia. Storme is definitely a capable and comfortable vehicle and you have a 4 by 4 so am sure you must be enjoying the hills even more.

The more I read, the more I realize how many more places I would want to see. Bhutan is surely on my list now. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by JASMEET MATTOO

Nice travelogue there psurelia. Storme is definitely a capable and comfortable vehicle and you have a 4 by 4 so am sure you must be enjoying the hills even more.

The more I read, the more I realize how many more places I would want to see. Bhutan is surely on my list now. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Thanks Jasmeet. If at all you plan to drive to Bhutan, don't miss debarshim's travelogue I mentioned in the opening post of this thread. He has given a broader coverage of Bhutan.

[AJ-got-BHP]

Hey psurelia !!
I read through your entire Travelogue today and must say that it has indeed been very well compiled; well written with some .

More than anything it has been a very inspiring read as I have myself wanted to do Bhutan since sometime now.

You really seem to have 'Stormed' your way into a Foreign Land......I'm sure the feeling must be awesome !!

[arundhuti]

Such a nice read and beautiful pictures ! I have had Bhutan on my mind for quite a long time now, but not as in a road trip till there. Your writeup and photos have inspired me. Thank u !

[psurelia]

Originally Posted by AJ-got-BHP

Hey psurelia !!

I read through your entire Travelogue today and must say that it has indeed been very well compiled; well written with some

More than anything it has been a very inspiring read as I have myself wanted to do Bhutan since sometime now

You really seem to have 'Stormed' your way into a Foreign Land......I'm sure the feeling must be awesome !!

AJ, glad that you liked it. Please do call me and drop in to my place if you need any help in planning your trip.

Originally Posted by arundhuti

Such a nice read and beautiful pictures ! I have had Bhutan on my mind for quite a long time now, but not as in a road trip till there. Your writeup and photos have inspired me. Thank u !

Arundhuti, Thank you for the kind words. If you need any help in planning your trip (by road or otherwise), you can get in touch with me. I can help you to some extent and direct you to couple of other members of our team who can be of great help.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by psurelia

Day 7 (3rd Oct, 2014) – Start of The End: Thimphu to Siliguri

In the last 2-3 days we had been trying to...... approximately Rs 37000 including everything (stay, food, diesel, activities, etc.).

Hello Partha,

Great travelogue/photologue! I read your introduction thread too and would like to say kudos! The idea of a borderless world is one I subscribe to whole-heartedly, having experienced the discrimination (of the reverse kind too!) at first hand.

Your photologue reminds us of our long-standing love-affair with Naukuchiatal in Uttaranchal, about which we recently submitted a thread (Naukuchiatal- Far from the madding crowd, 13th March '15).
We have been touring the country by road for a while now (our first longish trip in '97 was mumbai>lucknow>uttaranchal>lucknow>mumbai in a naturally aspirated Tata Sierra!) and since then the touring bug just bit deeper!

Thanks again,
Shashanka