Pune
Sea, salt and sequins. Portuguese churches, art-deco, and a kitchen that runs late.
Pune is the over‑grown college town that pretends to be a corporate sandbox, and you’ll feel the split the moment you step off the air‑conditioned station platform onto Fergusson College Road. Two days is honest if you want the highlights: a sunrise stroll through Shaniwar Wada’s crumbling ramparts, then a quick coffee at Café Goodluck for its buttery bun maska; the next morning, wander the leafy Koregaon Park‑ward fringe, sip a strong Marathi café at German Bakery, and bribe a guide for a peek inside the 19th‑century Aga Khan Palace, where Nehru’s legacy feels more museum than monument. Evening is for the food‑court chaos of FC Road—masala dosa at Shri Krishna, a plate of vada pav from Joshi’s, and a nightcap of locally brewed Old Monk at a rooftop bar in Baner. Skip the sprawling Pimpri‑Chinchwad industrial belt unless you’re a gearhead; the factories are louder than enlightening. Stay in the Kalyani Nagar enclave for decent Wi‑Fi and easy metro access, and avoid the monsoon months of July–September unless you relish flooding in the campus quad. November to February offers tolerable heat and the city’s cultural calendar at its busiest.
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Sea, salt and sequins. Portuguese churches, art-deco, and a kitchen that runs late.