Hey there! I hope you are hereafter deciding to catch a quick break from your routines and escape to a peaceful place, and what better than Pondicherry for a quick getaway. Especially if you are travelling from anywhere in South India. So here is my guide if you are looking to explore Pondicherry in a Budget.

I personally love Pondicherry for a weekend getaway and I have been there multiple times. The serene streets of white streets, the calmness at the rock beach promenade and the surfers and blue waves at the serenity beach makes it a perfect getaway.

Here is what I do every time I travel from Bangalore to Pondicherry, on a budget.

How to get to Pondicherry?

From Bangalore, I take an overnight bus which usually cost around 800 INR for a sleeper and around 650 INR for Semi sleeper AC buses, Private or State Transport.

From Delhi or Kolkata or Bombay, Take a flight to Chennai and take a bus to Pondicherry, which usually takes 2 hours and 200 rupees.

Where to stay in Pondicherry?

Best bet on a budget is to stay at the ashram guest house, but for that, you need to follow quite a few rules and curfews, but It is more than worth because of the people there, the location and price!

If you want to stay at a hotel, I suggest book online, look out for options near the Pondicherry bus stand. There is a couple of reason why I would suggest this. The Promenade is walk-able from the bus stand, around 1.5 km and about 900 meters to the market to rent bikes.

So you save on the around 400 INR coming and going to the bus stand, sometimes per person even {during holiday seasons}

And second, cause you can leave your luggage at the hotel, {which is near the stand} and go around for as long as you want after checking out and freshen up before boarding the bus, at a decent restroom, while you go for picking up the luggage. But, do make sure you don't leave anything expensive there.

But if you want to relax at the lap of luxury, try getting a reservation at the promenade hotel or a few around the Promenade area. 
And if you are a gipsy soul, a few beautiful air-bnbs in the same area, filled with lush green plants and an old-world charm might be the best fit for you. 





Now the most important thing, 

What to do in Pondicherry?

Relax!! Relax!! Relax!!

I love to do just that sitting on the serenity beach or the promenade. But there is something for everyone there. 

- Visit Auroville, see how a society like that can exist, if you have got time try to arrange a stay there. Explore the cheeses made locally, the fresh food as well. 

- If you are into surfing, then serenity beach is the spot to stay for you. Stay for a week, plan to get enrolled in surfing schools. You might have to plan this a bit ahead. 

- Explore the town, the French Quarter is beautiful, the city itself is dotted with beautiful with churches and temples in the Tamil part of the city. It has a balance of peace and quiet and the everyday Indian hustle-bustle and makes it that more dynamic. 

- Don't forget the lip-smacking fresh food, you want gelato, no problem, wood fire pizzas, no worries, you want to try some authentic south Indian food, don't worry about that at all! You will be surprised, how many types of foods you can try at the various artsy cafes and restaurants. 

- Lastly, for all the shoppers! Look for minimal designs, cotton clothes, beautiful pieces for your home at boutiques located in the White town and apart from that, look out for cheeses to bring home! 

I am super happy to post a travel blog after so long! Let me know what you think of this, was this helpful or not. 

Loads of love, 
Priyanjana 

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Wonderful Ideas to travel on a budget!

Hey guys! I hope you are doing good. I am trying out a new way to put out more blogposts . So let me know if it works !

Today I am reviewing my favourite Face wash of the moment. The best part of this face wash is that it is from an Indian brand. I have been , for quite sometime now, concious about the products that I use. About the contents and where it is coming from and this one checks all my boxes.

Let's get into my three P s of a product review. Price, packaging and "product" itself.

Price - 575 INR, and totally worth it! 

Packaging - It is standard squeeze-y tuve of face wash, non transparent. I love the minimal design and the white aesthetics. 

Product - Now the key thing that has me head over heels! The face wash itself has a thick gel like consistency and has small granules of mild scrub, I am guessing that's the flax seed. 

Even though it has a scrub like texture, it is very mild on the skin. The best part of this product is its fragrance. it is so fresh, so, so invigorating that I always only want to use this. The next best thing is the cool sensation on the skin after washing off the product, it really seals the deal. 

The fact that it has "no chemicals" is a bit unbelievable to me, but it is not all chemical-y so I am satisfied. 

I will say that this is a must have for acne prone and normal to combination skin. Highly recommended.

Love, 
Priyanjana 

Hey everybody! 
I am super happy to be writing this post because I a writing about the Fab bag after a long while. It has been my pleasure to have worked with them for years. This month's bag is one not to be missed if you want to stock up on some good stuff! 

First Up let me tell you, I am really happy with the things inside the bag, but not so much with the bag. It is more utilitarian, which I think we all need a dose of now and then! haha! 

Let me tell you what awesome things there are in the bag that makes it a must buy at just 599 INR! 


Seduction Las Vegas Mini lipsticks - A set of 10 mini lipsticks in a subscription bag! Bring it on! The lipsticks are perfect sizes and can be easily carried whenever and wherever you want. I have done mini swatches as well. The lipsticks glide on smooth! 

Swiss Tempelle Total clean up - A perfect product to travel with ! You can use this as a scrub, face mask and face wash. I loved how earthy and fresh it smells. A good product to start with. 

Tvakh Bamboo sap illuminating cream  - A sample size of a newly launched product from one of my favorite brands. It can be used on it's on or can be mixed with your foundation to get that glowy look! 

Blossom Kochar Foot cream - A sample size life saver , i'd say. I always forget to carry foot creams while travelling and I love the foot creams from Blossom kochar. I am sorted with this. 

Organic harvest 30 minute makeover kit - Again a one time use, full size product for a quick facial at home. All the steps clearly explained and perfect for a DIY facial. 





I am going to finish most of these products this month from the looks of it. What do you think ? Will I be able to ?

But do get your bag , cause I am super excited and I am sure you will be too! 

Loads of love, 
Priyanjana 

If you haven’t noticed, shopping has become more about sustainability in recent years than ever

before. After all, a recent study showed 36% of women only bought from those brands which refused to conduct animal testing.

Hey Guys! It has been aaaages since I put up a product review, but I will be putting up quite s few product reviews in the coming weeks. Maybe a few quick DIYs too! But for now let us talk about somethings that bothers us all there days, more or less - Hair Fall! I hope you have all the weapons in your arsenal to tackle the worst problem of all, when it comes to hair! Sharing my quick fix to reduce hair fall on an every shampoo basis. 

This product, The Hair fall serum by Elixir shop works really well for my hair. Smells amazing and leaves my hair feeling super smooth. All you have to do is simply mix about 10-12 drops of the oil, which they call serum in your shampoo , massage the shampoo as usual. Leave it for a minute or two, wash of as you would normally. Follow your normal steps to shampoo, just adding the  oil to your shampoo is the extra step.But, It is totally worth it.

The packaging is a glass bottle with a glass dropper, and is a little inconvenient to travel with. And if you have long hair then you'll need to use more of the product, so you'll use this up quickly. 

The product retails for 1000 INR and can be expensive for people with long hair. But for me, with my short hair it has been going on for almost 6 months now. 

Overwhelming. That's the word I'd use to describe the last few months, actually most of 2018. And there is more good in that, than bad. And all of those overwhelming things, moments, feelings made me see clearly that I need to sort my stuff out, more than anything. And in all that sorting, I had to place my blogging {or what it had become} at the bottom of things that had to be set right. To be honest it's still hasn't moved up on my list very much. But, I at least know what I want to do, and that's not at all what I was doing in most of 2018. 

Overwhelming. That's the word I'd use to describe the last few months, actually most of 2018.

Everyone will agree with me, this is the best time of the year! Everyone around is usually in a Festive spirit! In this atmosphere everyone lights up with happiness. Even the men dress up a bit, and we take out our heavy weight ammunition! Or as I like to call it, glorious Indian ethnic outfits. 

Adding gold to everything this season

Diwali Outfit from Indya!

This year, I have really understood what "Change is the only constant" really means. And honestly, I have fallen in love with the process of change. Be it a small in change in habit or a change in season!

Obsession with Fall is unreal with me, this year. May be because I could really appreciate the beauty of this transition season since I accepted the idea of change. But, even though I say this, I am not ready to let go of pastel shades!

Yup, I know, they are best left for summers and spring, But how can one let go beautiful pastel shades. I have actually been wearing a lot of warm shades, I am actually living in my dark blue and grey jeans and two t shirts in fall shades I got from Zara last month, which I also wore in my last fashion post! But, pastels are peppered here and there in my outfits, maybe I will let go of them after the nip in the air appears! {Although I can feel a slight chill , as I write this!}  

I bought this dress on a whim, because I was on a lookout for dresses I can wear in different ways and also suitable for work. This one checked all the boxes and that's why I am on a repeat mode with this one. I guess I will keep this post short, and say this.

I want to city wise collaborative post, starting with Bangalore. Drop in a paragraph of whatever you would like to share related the city, or fashion, nail art , beauty , anything and I will collate everything I find has a theme and put out a post with proper credits! So drop in your writings at priyanjanamns@gmail.com !











Loads of love,
Priyanjana