The New Year is just around the corner as 2016 comes to an end. This year has been quite exciting for me, both in terms of travel and big decisions that I took in life (finally!!). Looking back at 2016 brings a smile on my face, every time so it’s only natural that I feel like sharing all that had happened over the years. But because that is definitely not a good idea lest the post becomes never-ending, let me share a handful of fun moments which I shared over the course of the year on my Instagram timeline.

A Day-Trip to Yercaud
Yercaud remained elusive to me for quite some time before one fine morning I finally decided to drive down up to this colonial hill-station. Though my visit there was not during the best of seasons when it is most beautiful but the slowness and the charm of the uncrowded place made up for it.

All the while on the way to the Pagoda Point, I thought there will be an actual Buddhist Pagoda there. That got me pretty excited for I had never heard about a Pagoda in this part of the country and I was not sure if it actually would be what I was expecting. My all apprehensions were put to rest once I reached there. There was no Pagoda. The place was so called because of three hill – tops surrounding it looked like one. However, Pagoda or no Pagoda, the views from there were fantastic. Of the tiny hamlet below, of the surrounding green hills and the Salem city further ahead below. With a clear bright sky the place looked like a jewel far from the maddening crowd of the cities. Time seemed to fly and by the time I decided to head back, I realised I had been sitting there lost in the surroundings for more than an hour! #yercaud #weekenddrive #weekendfun #travel #blogginglife #ttot #instagram #instapic #travelphotography #travelblogger #blogginglife #pagodaviewpoint #pagodapoint #salem #tntourism #hillstation #tamilnadutourism #webguytraveltales

A photo posted by Rajiv Verma (@hackernewbie) on Apr 22, 2016 at 10:53pm PDT

The Surprise called Gokarna
Gokarna was a pleasant surprise to me. I had heard and read that Gokarna is how Goa used to be a couple of decades back. I had my expectations set roughly on this hearsay but when I actually found myself in Gokarna, I was pleasantly surprised by the vibe, the rusticness and the charm of the place. So impressed was I that I ended up staying there a day more than I had planned to.

After the humidity kept me indoors the entire day, I decided to finally brave it by the evening. The cool breeze of the sea did not fail me and by the time it seemed the humidity would win, I finally reached the serene Kudle beach. Not much crowd, no hawkers or shacks, just the waves crashing at the rocks and people relaxing all around. Not to mention the Golden rays of the sun that gave everything there a vibrant and Lively tinge. What a beautiful sunset it was! #gokarna #travelphotography #travelblogger #blogginglife #instagram #instapic #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #nikon #incredibleindia #d3100 #webguytraveltales #kudlebeach #kudle #karnataka #karnatakatourism #ig_karnataka #igkarnataka

A photo posted by Rajiv Verma (@hackernewbie) on Apr 1, 2016 at 11:33am PDT

Fun with friends in Singapore
One of the most fun-filled trip of the year was undoubtedly our trip to Malaysia and Singapore. More so because a significant amount of our time there was spent with friends. Endless bakar, food and beer, it was a wonderful. It’s a shame that I am yet to write about our Singapore experience but that can’t stop me sharing a glimpse of a wonderful evening in Singapore 🙂

Street graffiti at Arab Street in Singapore! #pub #beer #bar beerbar #arabstreet #arabstreetsingapore #singapore #webguytraveltales #blogginglife #latenightjourneys #grafitti

A photo posted by Rajiv Verma (@hackernewbie) on Jul 2, 2016 at 5:46am PDT

Magical Hampi
Hampi undoubtedly was the most magical place I visited in 2016. It is was an overwhelmingly strong place. There’s so much history attached to the place that you never have enough of it. The trip to Hampi was an eye opener in more than one way for me. It showed me how a grand historic past can so perfectly stand side by side to the modern society we live in today. To be honest, I did not have very high expectations about Hampi (how foolish of me!!) but now I can’t wait to go back.

A very happy #worldphotographyday to all of you. There’s an interesting story that precedes this photo but that will have to wait until I post the next photo. Do keep an eye. #sunset #hampi #unescoworldheritage #unescoworldheritagesite #unesco #ttot #webguytraveltales #blogginglife #travelblogger #blogging #worldphotographyday2016📷

A photo posted by Rajiv Verma (@hackernewbie) on Aug 19, 2016 at 3:59am PDT

Magical Chikmagalur
As embarrassing as it might sound, even after staying in Bangalore for close to a year I had never been to unarguably the most beautiful part of Karnataka, the nippy and beautiful Chikmagalur. To someone who considers himself a mountain person it was even more embarrassing. But as they say, better late than never. So, one fine day–one of the bestest times to head up the hills of Chikmagalur I and a friend found ourselves riding that way. To put it simply, it was one of the most beautiful rides in a long time.

Monsoons bring with it so much charm, charm by not just turning everything refreshingly green but by giving a new look and feel to a lot of other things as well, in different forms. And believe you me when I say that of all those ‘charms’, the beauty of waterfalls, full & gushing are the best ones. I recently visited one such beautiful waterfall in Chikmagalur. Any guesses which well-klnown waterfall is this? **Hint: Can be only accessed by foot or jeeps. #travel #ttot #webguytraveltales #greenery #monsoons #waterfalls #chikmagalur #chikmaglur #karnataka #karnatakatourism #water #slowshutter #longexposure #longexpo #slowshutterspeed #nikon #nikon_photography #d3100 #nikon📷 #nikond3100 #dabdabbefalls

A photo posted by Rajiv Verma (@hackernewbie) on Sep 6, 2016 at 10:28pm PDT

So, how was your 2016? Did you have fun?