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There is nothing more humbling than standing in a scary corridor with tiny rooms devoid of light and sanitation; and thank people who suffered in them for the blessing of freedom you have today. If you have been to the Cellular Jail in Port Blair you know what I mean.


A dummy showing how people were punished. They would be tied, lashed and left to suffer in pain before the punishment would begin anew.
Equally chilling are the gallows especially for someone like me who stays clear of all things gore and sad, death and execution are exactly that -sad. But that is not what you see first, as you enter with your a ticket in your hand, unaware at the sheer scale of inhumanity you are about to witness they ask you to first walk through two rooms flanking the entry corridor. These contain historical accounts, photographs of those who used to be, and first person accounts of those who managed to get heard.


Back breaking work, the output of which decided how their fate would go that day. Less than expected and you would go hungry. 

All it takes is half an hour and the pleasant sea breeze affects you not as you walk to the first corridor of doom. these rooms were designed for isolation, they were designed for torture and nobody was supposed to ever get out of these.


The men barely clad and sparingly fed were just hands, splitting coir, weaving the ropes and toiling to press oil out of coconuts. Their food and comfort depended on what their hands had achieved at the end of the day.

You would think if someone has been restricted food, made to work unbelievable hours doing strenuous activity and punished for any small mistake with lashes; they have been punished enough. Unfortunately the jailers did not think so, they stripped inmates of their dignity by providing clothes that barely covered the essentials and restricting their access to toilet.

Every inmate was provided an earthen pot which was to be used for urinating and defecating. If you were restricted to your cell for days that is all you would have for those days. Requesting wardens for a breaks during the night was a futile exercise and in case it was granted there would be repercussions the next day.
The gallows. though it has not been used for years there is something chilling when you see nooses hanging over a openable floor, meant to take away lives of people who seldom deserved it. I have never thought about my stand on death penalty but this got me thinking.
The gallows were something which got me thinking, if I feel scared and disturbed looking at the noose how do those feel who have to execute the decisions made by the jury and hang or inject people to their death. It is definitely something which makes most of our workplaces feel like heaven in comparison. For sure it impacts people and changes them like nothing else. Funny thing is rarely do I hear anyone fighting about the person who pushes the button or pulls the lever.


A beautiful setting indeed, if only this was not a prison of torture but a school for children or even a housing. How would the prisoner's have felt when they heard waves lashing the shores not far from where they were; but they could not even wet their feet.
The building today is pleasant, with narrow corridors, wide stairs and a bell up top on the watch tower. Views from the roof are beautiful, with sea, hulls, and green all around and a nice breeze easing temperatures a bit.

Would I suggest you visit the monument?

Yes, it does not matter if you are an Indian or not as long as you are a decent human being you will come out touched and humbled. They do have sound and light show which we did not attend but I have been told it is good and to be true there is not much to do in Port Blair in the evening so you might want to pay a visit.

Is it really that horrible?

In my opinion yes, but that depends on you. I saw families and aunties (why do women do this) posing, shouting and talking in high pitch about anything but history. So you might not be as affected as I was, or you might feel way stronger about it.

If you do visit the jail or you have already been there let me know what your reaction was.
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Andaman had been on our wish list for long, I mean really long. Not long ago it was a difficult and expensive place to get to, it still is but when you club awesome free travel strategies you can get by with lesser hit on your pocket. We put all our might behind this one or else the flights which cost us 12K would have definitely exceeded 20K, that would have put a big strain on the entire trip. We managed to get a diving day too and it was epic much better visibility than our last outing at Goa.

We were having a particularly frustrating day but all became good when we boarded the ferry to Long Island. I can go on and on about how awesome the ferry ride was but it is much easier to show in pictures as you will see below. We are not trained photographers and can slip a bit here and there but when your subject is beyond beautiful you can't fail.

This is the Yerrata jetty some Km form the better known Rangat jetty from where you can take a ferry to bigger cities and towns. Ferry timings are a bit weird and getting tickets can be a problem. This jetty is surrounded by mangroves like most of Andamans, and they are beautiful.



As the ferry moved on we were met with probably one of the most beautiful sights ever. Green islands with varying shades of green and clear sea, a perfect setting for a castaway movie.



There has been a huge debate forever about which one is better sunrise or sunset. I prefer sunsets because I rarely make it to sunrise. After beautiful sunsets we saw there was no doubt left.



If you have been thinking of going to Andaman, don't think just go, it is far more beautiful than they say.

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We went to Andaman& Nicobar for ten days, you would remember it from my last post. Now it is time for me to help you plan your trip to Andaman the way I helped you plan your trip to Diu.


This post is more for those who have researched about Andamans but are looking for some first hand experience and reposts. In case you are looking for the First Hand guide it will be out soon. Now that you have decided to visit Andamans the far Away Indian territory with beautiful beaches, forests and wildlife it is time to take note of all the things below. You will thank me for it later.


Transport

All of us on the ferry deck to Havelock

Transport in Andaman can be the biggest spoil sport for your plans and you will not know what is going to happen unless you land in Andaman or get your tickets booked through an agent. If like us you are DIY ticket bookers go straight to phoenix bay jetty in Port Blair from your airport, and book your ferry tickets. Bus terminus is close by and in case you are looking to catch a bus to go up north get your tickets there. Ferry advance booking counters are closed on Sunday and even when they are open you will have to endure a long line filled with agents who always seem to multiply before you. If you know when you are going to leave the other Island get that ticket booked here too. Earlier you book the tickets more chances you have to get the ticket and not have your plans pushed back due to ticket unavailability.
After all the exercise remember a ticket is no guarantee that your vessel will leave on the designated date in case of bad weather the ferry will be canceled along with all issued tickets. You will have to buy fresh tickets.
Another thing which you need to consider is the timings, there are no transport options in the night an almost every thing moves around 6 in the morning. Do not attempt to get from one place to another far away in a day or night. Plan in some stop days and options.

If someone has the link for online booking of ferries or bus please leave it in the comments.

Health Care


Andaman is every one's Health care dream. Government provides free health care and hospitals are quite clean and well maintained. We had to use the services on multiple occasion and were pleasantly surprised to find reliable services available on even the remote Long Island. We were treated with injections and medicines with great recovery and all of that for free. On the other hand it is quite impossible to find pharmacies anywhere except for Port Blair.

Language and culture


Andaman is almost little India. You will people talking in Bangla, Tamil and most surprisingly Hindi. English is widely spoken and most Indians as well as foreigners will rarely have problem communicating. Like the language the culture is heavily influenced by the mainland and it is quite evident in clothes, interactions and celebrations. Durga Puja is a big festival and though it is difficult for any on to match the craze in Gujarat or Bengal Andaman did well with beautifully done Pandals and blaring songs. It might not be the best way to celebrate it but it is a big festival like many other mainland festivals from different regions.

Food and Liquor

Rate list for liquor outside Govenment Shop in English and Hindi

Just like the language and culture food is heavily influenced by Tamil Nadu and Bengal. You will find piping hot idli and parota in the morning for breakfast and thali for lunch and dinner. Taste and style of curries will vary depending on whether you are in a tamil establishment or a Bengali one. In the main Andaman Island we came across mostly Tamil and South Indian influences in food while it became majorly Bangla as we traveled to Havelock.
Liquor like all UTs in India is very cheap, you can get a chilled beer bottle for under 80 from a Government shop and for around 120-150 in one of the expensive bars. Other spirits are similarly priced with known Indian brands available in a few hundreds to Johnnie walker aged running for around 2500.

It is very cheap and very expensive

Our Duplex cottage for 3 great deal and right across the beach

Andaman is like most of India and yet different. Here you can get clean accommodation for two starting at 350-500 or you can spent 5000 a night easily for an average accommodation in one of the high end resorts.This was a welcome relief after all the fretting about Andaman trip.  Most cheap accommodation come without attached toilets especially in the islands though you will get good accommodation with attached toilets for 500-600 in Port Blair. The places we stayed in were not just clean and well maintained the toilet to user ratio was also very good. We rarely missed attached toilets except when nature called late at night. Rooms with attached toilets run from 100-1500 upwards and have no real top limit.
Air conditioned rooms seem to be in big demand especially by Indian tourists, maybe it was the time we had visited but we saw no need of AC rooms. If your room has ventilation rest assured the island has enough sea breeze. Actually I for one needed a sheet or two to keep away the cold which would settle in late in the night.
Food is likewise quite inexpensive as long as you stick to local fare especially vegetarian. In case you want some meat choose sea food over chicken and you will still have a cheaper deal. Rice is the accompaniment of choice though you might get parota or roti if you are lucky.

Very few people harass tourists

The People of Long Island- Nobody spared us a look and we loved it!

To be true very few will turn and look at you unless you approach them first. People here not only respect privacy but are quite content looking after themselves. You might have a few asking if you need an auto but a single nod will solve the problem even at the Airport.
That being said this is not true for the Havelock Jetty where you will find agents in droves approaching tourists. Even though most tourists come here as a part of some group tour you will find touts trying to help you get everything from taxi to hotel.

Forget the Internet and sometimes your phone and Relax


There is no Internet in Andamans. You might get fleeting connection on your phone in Port Blair but don't expect a regular 2G service let alone 3G running with any force. We did spot a few cyber cafe and one of our guest house in Port Blair offered WiFi in reception area for 60 and hour. In Havelock though you can book every thing online the only Internet we found was satellite Internet costing around 150 for 30 minutes of usage. Forget about your mail and enjoy the nature.
If you have a BSNL connection you rare the king in Andaman, and you will have network on all islands. Most other carriers are limited to Port Blair and Havelock with some connection around Rangat. Like most remote areas in India BSNL is the way to go.

If there is something you would like to share or ask put it in the comments below. I would be happy to help.
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Andaman


We are back from Andaman and here is one of the most common sites you will see island hopping in the archipelago. A distant Island making beautiful sunsets even more beautiful. Did I hear you go Awww... First post about Andamans is coming soon...


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Did I tell you about the Andaman trip in September end. This year has been AWESOME with all the trips we have been able to do and enjoy. We set up a budget target for our travels when the year started and we have exceeded it maybe spent almost double already. Anyways we are going to another beach and this time unlike Diu I am hoping to get some swimming and snorkeling done. SCUBA is right now looking very out of our pockets and so is the surfing trip I had wanted to go on later in the year.

Right now I am breaking my head about what to take along and what to omit. One of my bigger concerns is my weight and getting a swim suit. I am looking at few and I am honestly unable to decide which ones to buy.

Apart from the clothes it is my desire to carry a small barbecue to the island, not just to have great food but also to save ourselves some money. The trip looks like it is going to be another expensive one and I am not really sure where I am going to dish out the money from. so I am working hard on my freelancing.

The reason why the trip is threatening to empty our pockets is because of the obnoxiously expensive accommodation (affiliate). The only reasonable accommodation I am able to find comes with scuba diving and that will decimate my resources. I feel like I should go and start my own home stay in Havelock and have a huge hall where people can bring in their sleeping gear and rest for the night. Let me know what you think about that. Anyways a sleeping bag is definitely not one of my desired items to pack. It is just too bulky and with the standing seats on the ferries which we will probably take it doesn't sound practical either.

Our itinerary for the ten day trip includes Havelock, Diglipur and Little Andaman. As of now I don't think we will be in Port Blair for long though cellular Jail is definitely one of the things I am interested in.

If you have been to Andamans and have a few tips to share or if you can direct us to a place you think will suit us. Our criteria clean and CHEAP like the guest house in Diu.

Photo on the top is from awesome people at Death to the Stock Photo.
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Parul &Ajay +1

We are a couple travelling the world one country at a time with our full time jobs since 2013. Our daughter has joined us from 2018.


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