Andamans - a decade or 2 back was an unknown travel destination. It was known more for the Cellular Jail, where Freedom Fighters were sentenced to `Kala-Pani’ imprisonment. `Kala-Pani’ means black water, because of the colour of ocean when seen from far off. The place were once someone was sent there, was not expected to be seen again. Great Freedom Fighters such as Veer Savarkar, Tatya Tope were all imprisoned here on this island making this place a very important part of our freedom struggle. History and sentiments apart, it is the Best and and most beautiful place visited by me India and I am sure, it can compete with any other tourist destination anywhere on this planet to be among the most beautiful places on Planet Earth.
I visited Port Blair in1996, i.e. almost 7 years ago. Six of us decided to visit a place where none of had been to before. We left Mumbai by train for Madras and then by steamer - `Nancowry’ for Port Blair. The steamer takes about 4 days 3 nights to reach Port Blair. This travelling time seems to be a bit too much at first, but believe me, if you are not alone and are with your family or friends or in a group, you will enjoy every minute of this sea-journey. The entire Ship is centrally Air Conditioned and Cabins are as per requirement. Bunk type cheap accommodation is also available for the budget travellers. The ship has Swimming Pool on the deck, which is filled up in morning by sea water. This dip in the pool is enjoyable and refreshing too. The views once you leave the Madras harbour is breathtaking. The colour of the ocean changes dramatically once you leave the harbour. From the ugly black, brown the colour changes to a green and then blue as you move into the bay of bengal. Food on the ship is also good and a variety of entertainment programmes on board make the travel worth it. One way by ship is a must if you actually want to experience Andaman.
On reaching Port Blair, we checked in the Guest House we had booked. There are several budget hotels, guest house’s as well as high end hotels in Port Blair. As we had reached Port Blair at night we could not actually see the nature around then, but as we approached the Port Blair harbour, the lights in city from far off were a beautiful sight and reminded of the Queen’s Necklace at Marine Drive in Mumbai. In the morning, we got up and got ready for breakfast, and were surprised to find Port Blair to be the most Clean City we had seen in India. The roads were broad and clean, Garbage was non-existent, no beggars, stray dogs what soever. One thing I would like to mention here is that, you will not find a single crow or sparrow in Port Blair. After Break Fast we left for Ross Island, this was our first major visit to any place on Port Blair. Ross Island was a place were the British empire had set up a colony as a place to relax. What remains now is just ruins of the magnificient structure’s that once were. Deer’s and Peacock’s roam the island freely and come close to you, when offered food. Its like being in Eden, surrounded by peacock’s, deers. Fantastic place. The water around this island is icy blue and very inviting. The best place to visit while in the Andamans is the Red Skin Island or the Jolly Buoy lsland. The place where you can scuba dive, snorkel and watch the beautiful world under water. Words are not enough for the beauty that is there under water as 100’s of fishes of various sizes and colours come close to you, the colourful corals and sea weeds. These are two places one should not miss in their life. Nothing can compare to the beauty I have experienced here at these places. Some of the other places worth a word is the Chatham Saw Mill, Samudrika - the Marine museum and yes I forgot the Cellular Jail. It is a must. Also not to be missed is the Light and Sound Show in the evening at the Cellular Jail. When you visit the jail and see the place where our great freedom fighter were jailed, tortured, hanged, our heads automatically bow down in respect. We had the priviledge of visiting the Naval Dry Dock Ship as we had a friend in the Coast Guard. This place is out of bounds for general public but if possible a visit to the docks is worth the time.
The food here is fantastic, if you are a lover of sea food. You name it and you will have it and it also cheap. Veggies, beware as Veg Food is costlier than Non-Veg as nothing is grown on the island and everything is brought from the Main Land and therefore costly. Milk is not available and Milk is by way of Milk powder.
All in all, Port Blair is the most beautiful place on this planet and every Indian should visit it once in a lifetime. Why just Indians, all earthlings should visit this place if they want to know what Paradise is like.
Time constraints have prevented me from writing a more detailed review. but I will write a more point to point review in the near future for sure
Happy Travelling, Bon Voyage.