Visit to Bali

6 Days in Bali !

The plane turned to land on a narrow strip flanked by the ocean on both the sides. We barely got a glimpse of the runway due to the darkness and realized its beauty close to the touchdown.

Bali is a tiny island amongst the Indonesian Archipalego. The other islands of Java and Sumatra are heavily populated and are largely Islamic. Bali is different due to the influence of Hinduism which had reached its shores in the 1^st century largely from influence of southern India. People here mostly have Sanskrit names, including ones like Su-Greewa, Wibi-sana, Dewata – referring to our Sugriva, Vibhishana, Devata. 

Bali’s most visited places are Seminyak, Legian, Kuta which are the party places and the main shopping districts. The beaches here aren’t too bad and its great to watch the sun go down from one of these places.

 

Nusa Dua, Jimbaran are a little isolated and away from the hustle-bustle, but have good beaches on that side too. We spent 4 days around Seminyak and 3 days in Ubud- the hilly area with scintillating Rice fields. The northern areas of Singaraya , Tanah Lot are less visited, but we were told - are equally beautiful.

There are few tiny islands called – Lembok, Gilli islands which are far less crowded and spectacularly beautiful. One needs to plan to stay on those islands and need to spare atelast 2-3 days for it. There are many Scuba diving, snorkeling places in those islands.

If you don’t have so much time- you can follow our itinerary J Read on!

Day 1: DENPASAR & SEMINYAK

We started towards Denpasar on our rented bike, skeptical about not having an international license. Fortunately, the cops don’t bother the tourists much unless you break the rules!  After wandering on the roads of Denpasar, both being history buffs, headed towards the Museum to get a glimpse of the Bali history. The Museum was actually a Dutch palace in older times, which fortunately survived 2 centuries. Opposite the Museum is the park where the Balinese resisted the Anglo and Dutch invasions and a mega rock concert (dedicated to the army) was going on, to mark an anniversary.

I always wondered how Bali escaped the sword of Islam or the missionary zeal of the colonial era.

I was told that the Dutch (bless them) had forbidden Missionaries on this island to preserve the Unique Hindu culture – turned out to be a great move.  Thus Bali remained a Hindu oasis in the world’s most populated Islamic country.
As is common across the globe, the Balinese worshipped a mother figure – Cili from ancient times, a tradition which has carried to this day. They carry cane baskets on their heads to mark the festival of Cili to ask her to continue blessing them with the Bounty.

 

The Indonesians had begun embracing the western wear only after their independence, with the women moving wearing clothes on the lower half. Guess we became more and more conservative & fanatical about religion in the 20^th century, than it’s widely believed to be the other way!

 The guide told s about the old ruling families and showed us around how the KERIS- a Dagger and coins are important to Balinese. They have coins for various occasions – A coin to bring in fortune, another to cure illnesses and so on, whereas the Arjuna coin is worn by women to attract handsome men!! He told us about BARONG – the good spirit and RANGDA – The bad one, which are in constant tussle- another common theme around the world.

Bali is strewn with temples at every 500m, we visited a Jagannath temple where a prayer was going on. One needs to be in traditional Balinese dress to enter the temple.

Men – Sarong + Head gear. Women – Sarong + Prayer Jacket (they are pretty !!)

 

We drove around Denpasar for a while along the lanes and strolled around the Seminyak beach for a while and headed back to our villa. Kuta, Legian are the key party places with great options to unwind in the evenings. There are multiple Disc and Pubs and as most of them are in the main Shopping district, one can hop multiple times J

We headed to SKYGARDEN and it turned out to be the biggest party place, I have been to. It’s a 4 storeyed Lounge and Disc. It had amazing ambience with dazzling lights and great music going on. Being a weekend, it was buzzing with people from all over the world. Entry gets you a few drinks and the place isn’t too expensive – 1000K IDR including food and Entry. Taxis are easy and safe around this place, commuting isn’t a headache, though the traffic jams are!! Sky garden is right next to the Bali Bomb memorial which was built to honor the 2002 blast victims. It’s a horrible memory in the otherwise peaceful Bali.

 

 

Day 2: ULUWATU TEMPLE, JIMABARAN BEACHES

Day 2: WIBI-Sana, Nusa Dua, Jimbaran, Uluwatu

After a lazy breakfast, we started out with Komang who showed around most of Bali. He led us to Wibi-sana where one can do all the water sports we see in Goa at Candolim or Baga. The weather was pretty and their charges reasonable, so we did parasailing, Jet-Ski and few other sports in the amazing breeze. Many people were also surfing a little further into the sea.

ULUWATU TEMPLE: A beautiful Cliffside temple which is spread out on a large area. It had some points with a spectacular view of the ocean crashing against the hillside. Partly reminds of the Fort Aguada, but is much better.

 

Jimabaran and Nusa Dua has some high end Villas and resorts. The area is less crowded compared to Kuta and the beaches are cleaner and better.

CATCH THE SUNSET! The sunset is great to catch on this side, just hit any of the sea side café’s in Jimbaran or Nusa Dua for a great view. Unless the clouds play spoilsport and hide Arka (yes, the names popular here too) !

 

We stopped at the Jimbaran Beach Club - decent ambience with lazy bean bags around. The beach was nice to chill atthe sunset.

 

Day 3: LEMBONGAN ISLAND!!

CUISINE: Bali also A Unique Cuisine, dominated by sea-food of great variety. Though I would make many waiters uncomfortable by asking for vegetarian options.

They can make some of the dishes vegetarian by not adding Chicken/Shrimp to you. I tried the NASI GORENG and NASI CAMPUR and a few other options where they substituted meat for veggies for us.

There are many Indian restaurants too - Queens Tandoor, food’s good, but over priced!

As we didn’t have 2/3 days to spare for Gilli islands (supposedly most scenic)… we chose Lembongan islands.

SNORKELLING & KAYAKING AT LEMBONGAN ISLANDS !

After a  45 min Ferry ride (we climbed onto top of the Ferry – Fabulous ride!) we reached the Lembongan islands. There are multiple diving sites strewn around these tiny islands with sea and mountains on all sides, giving it a legendary view on any side.

 

 

We hopped onto a jeep which took us to the very end of the island at a diving site. It was an idyllic village where the women seemed to do most of the work. Some men were working as diving instructors, rest were playing cards/chilling with a drink/smoke in their hands!!

I immediately fixed on this island to settle down post retirement!!!

The instructors led us into the sea on a boat and we jumped into the sea with the Snorkelling gear. IT was a breathtaking experience to swim with the fishes and amongst the coral reefs. The weather was perfect for the dive and we could spot a few star fishes, Sea anemone – almost a page  out of the 20,000 leagues under the sea!

Will move on, as I can’t do justice to it in words.

The island is a “PERFECT” place to laze around the whole day with a book in your hand, lying on the couches by the shore. You can even sip a gigantic coconut which took us almost 15 mins to complete!

Day 4: Visit to KINTAMANI & KOPI LUWAK !!

Kintamani is the only active Volcano in Indonesia, its at a 3 hour drive from Seminyak.

The drive was through the rice fields and leads to hillside in the central part of Bali. We stopped in one of the farm places for the world reknown – KOPI LUWAK! We saw the civets who are fed coffee beans and their digestive tract processes the coffee with a special enzymes in their stomach. It lends a delicate aroma to the coffee.

 

An employee from the farm gave us a tour of the farm and showed us the process of making the coffee. They sampled us almost 17 flavor of tea and Coffee, each splendid in its own unique manner. KOPI LUWAK was good as a coffee, but i wasnt able to appreciate the reasons for it mega popularity. I leave it for the connoisuers ! I preferred other flavors like the Cinnamon and Ginseng Coffee. They also gave a taste of the Local rice Arak - It had a tangy sweet taste!  We bought a few flavors and left for the Volcano.

Pretending to be art connoisseurs, we stopped a place selling paintings. They are nice and pretty, but mostly made to con the tourists. Beware of paying any hefty price for the paintings. I took a particular liking to a Budha, which they quoted $ 450 and said that they would come down to $300, because they liked me!

Fortunately for me, I moved out and later found exactly similar copies of that painting being sold I Ubud for $20 upwards!! If you want a piece of art, shell out some money, but buy it from a reputed gallery which is licensed by the govt of Indonesia.

The air became cooler as we climbed to the Kintamani. The peak can be reached after a trek of over 2 hours, but being lazy, we just chose to see it from distance.

There are a few nice restaurants lined up on the hillside with a view of the entire valley and Kintamani. You can sit around for a while and enjoy the panorama. There are some hotels up there and you can stay for a night if it you fancy the trek.

 

Day 5, 6 & 7 : 3 days in UBUD , Bali

 Day 5 & 6: UBUD!!

Ubud  is in the foothills of the mountain range in central Bali. It’s considered as the art and cultural capital of Bali. After the release of Eat Pray Love, many tourists started flocking to this place.

 The air is much cooler and there are multiple drives around which lead into the beautiful country side. There are seas of emerald green paddy fields around the place. The drives around the country can be amazing, and would recommend getting off the main road, and exploring any road that goes deep in. Its perfectly safe during the daylight.  

  The Tegallalang Rice fields are incredible and there are many nice cafes around the place where one can pause time and sip the warm coffee in the cool hillside watching the fields.

We reached the GUNUNG KAWI – a 11^th Century temple, which is nestled in the middle of the forest. It was one of the best temple complexes I had seen in Bali. There are a couple of water fountains and a huge park around the main temple. As at all the temples, you need either a sarong or a sash to gain entry, apart from the ticket J

The evening was fun at Budha Bar – with a Live band performance. It’s a small place, but the crowd was fun and the ambience was pretty good.

Next day, we went to the Goa Gaja which is a cave temple with an ancient Siva shrine and a few places to go around.

We reached the Ubud Palace- which is not much of a palace, as large part of it is out of bounds for visitors as the royal family still resides there. We caught a performance of the Balinese dance coupled with the Music performance.

They played 5-6 short plays which were picked out of the puranas – Sunda, Upasunda story, etc. Its definitely worth a watch for their expressions and the radiant costumes they wear!

 

Ubud also has a few amazing party places and can rival the Kuta/Legian area. We went to CP LOUNGE which is an intresting lounge with a LIVE band here too. This is unarguably the best place to chill in the evenings.

 

One Restaurant – Bambi right opposite the Ubud Palace is worth a mention for its outstanding food quality. Also its one of the most value for money places in Bali !!

The westerners were quite fascinated with the Balinese women when they landed, probably due the custom clothing of that era spanning only the lower half. They did a bit of a study and learnt that their features were due to the Hindu rituals where they used to balance heavy Cili baskets for long walks to the temples.

One such artist – Antonio Blanco of Spanish origin was quite enamored by the women and an entire art Museum is dedicated for his love of Balinese women in various paintings.

 

The Monkey forest is also worth a visit in Ubud.Compared to the glitter and glamour of Kuta, we loved the Ubud visit too much, probably because of the freedom to roam around on bikes!

 Overall, Bali turned out to be a dream vacation.

Dhanushkodi - The atlantis of India !

Seldom you go to a place that stays with you long after you have left it.

Dhanushkodi is one such place which haunts your memory and pulls you towards it long after you have returned. It’s the Dead end of India – the Lands end!

It’s a narrow stretch of land, approx 1 KM wide and stretches almost 25 Kms into the sea. One side you can see the Indian ocean, and at the same time see the calm and tranquil Bay of Bengal on the other side. The difference is perceptible.

There is a small fishing community who still live there, atleast 1 hour away from nearest telephone, medical facility or even basic supply of daily needs. You can hear the constant hum of the ocean on both the sides with the winds hitting the Indian landmass at great speeds. The fishing boats dot the horizon of the ocean, where they brave their lives just to make ends meet, braving not just the fury of the waves but also the coast guard of our neighboring country who frequently nabs them for no good reason.

Imagining Lord Rama and his vanara army building the great causeway gives you goosebumps, whether you believe it to be history or part of the Myths. There are markings to show where Rama worshipped Siva and started to build the causeway to reach Lanka. There is a tiny temple where you can see the stone which floats on water.

Then there are the remnants of the Ghost Town which was ripped apart in the devasting Ceylon cyclone in 1964. There are parts of a Church with its tapestry still standing. One can also see the tracks of the Trains which Connected the Remote Dhanushkodi to EGMORE !!  This small town was a entry point to Sri Lanka and an important port till then.

There are horror stories of how winds at 160mph hit the land and people survived clinging to the Pamban bridge, while many others perished before the fury of the Nature.

I struck a conversation with a Souvenier shop owner and was surprised at the Fluent Hindi of the person who rarely left Dhanushkodi. I was in disbelief when he told me that they live on this remote piece of land without even a phone connection, and which is disconnected from mainland when sea is high.

He told me they get fresh water on the island itself!! He told me that he loves the peace of the place and the uncomplicated life. He says that he can provide for his family and has all the time to do as he pleases.

It reminded of the Remote places in Ladakh which are under snow for 9 out of 12 months an year. When asked, why they survive these conditions ?! The farmer had replied that, here he is an owner of 3 acres of land and If he went to Delhi, he has to sleep under a flyover! What choice does he have.

Though I can’t imagine doing anything like that, I do want to camp out in Dhanushkodi, in the lap of the ocean for a few days. They say it’s dangerous for non-locals to hang around there, would definitely make this trip before I leave TN. 

Trip to Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Kerala

Periyar River

Bird Trail

Looking for the elusive forest birds

• An arctic Tern is a bird which flies 2.4 million Kms in its lifetime.
• Racket tailed drongo can imitate 26 different birds.
• Hummingbirds fly at 54kmph.


Interesting creatures… their flight, sense of freedom, colors and variety has always fascinated us!

In 1933, While he was travelling from Travancore to Munnar on the old British highway, Salim Ali , a world reknown ornithologist, had to stop overnight at a Govt Bungalow at Thattekad. He was on his way to Munnar to study the endemic birds of the Malabar-Nilgiri area.
To his surprise, he counted 167 different birds in his 2 days stay at Thattekad. He remarked that this is one of the richest bird habitat’s he had seen in Peninsular India. Later he sent one of his students to study and document all these different species of Kerala. He recommended the government that a bird sanctuary be opened here, which they fortunately did almost 50 years later (sigh)!

Dr Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, Thattekad: It’s a little known place on Indian tourist map, though quite popular on the international circuit. Many foreigners travel to this place to sight hard to spot bird species.

The two rare bird sightings are:
Ceylon Frogmouth: Belongs to Sri Lanka, has the colour of dead leaves, difficult to spot.
Malabar Trogan: Extremely colorful bird, becoming rarer by the day.

Since the place was only 54 kms from Cochin, Adarsh and I drove to the sanctuary on Saturday afternoon. It was a pleasant drive through the Kerala countryside with the air getting purer and landscape getting greener as we approached the forests.
Fortunately we found a home-stay within the Sanctuary, owned by a Naturalist and Bird-watcher Vinod. He told us that the best time to watch for birds is, just before sunrise and late in the afternoon, when they forage for food. So we set out in the afternoon to watch some birds.

Around 4 pm, we left for a jungle trail and spotted many birds like :Jungle babbler, Emerald Dove, Racket tailed Drongo, Malabar Parakeet, Black Cormorant, Whistling Duck, Kingfishers: red and blue, Water Hen, Yellow Oriole, Little Tern, Coucal, Ash tail, Crested Woodpecker, Rufous Woodpecker.

Next day morning:It was difficult to wake up on a cool Sunday morning at 5 am, while its drizzling outside, and is nice and cozy inside the home stay room ! Dragging ourselves out and getting dressed, we picked up our binoculars and headed for a hilly trail, where we can spot the birds out for their breakfast!

A short trek into the forest led us to a hillock. As we climbed it , we were treated with a fantastic view of the hills with the mist shrouding them and sunlight breaking its way lazily through the clouds.
We spotted many a rare and endemic bird today: Crested eagle, Ceylon Frogmouth, Iora, Orange Minivet, Wagtail, Greytit, White breasted woodpecker, Ash Drongo, Jungle Myna, Common Myna, Crested Goshawk and some birds whose names I forgot! Each bird more beautiful than the other.

Another good thing was watching a Southern Birdwing, the largest butterfly in India! … and Parisian Peacock. Both exceptionally beautiful to look at! It’s quite a task to get a hang of how to view through a field glass and adjust the focus in a short while, as our winged friends are twitchy and disappear into the trees if you are not quick.
As it was just after the rain, we got lucky with the sightings, as many birds were drying themselves in the sunlight on the treetops.

The best time to visit this place is November-February, when msot of the migratory birds flock to this place in winters.Many birds fly in all the way from the Himalayas. Spending some time in the nature away from the daily chores and work is a great way to restart your mind and body!

After we returned from the trek, we left for a swim in the Periyar river with some Columbian tourists who were staying in the same guest house. The dip in the river was cool and refreshing. Though, as the water level was low, we couldn’t manage Kayaking 
Apparently, birding/bird watching is quite popular hobby, with some enthusiasts tracking and seeing as many as 12,000 species. Some hop across continents to study / see these endemic birds.

Overall, it was quite an experience to spend the night in the forest, and the whole experience had a very calming effect. Let’s see how many species we can tick off! A weekend certainly well spent.

How to reach: 54 kms drive from Cochin crossing Kothamangalam. Bus/Taxi: best way to reach.
Where to stay: Hornbill camp, Soma bird song. Home-stays: Bird Song, Jungle bird
What to do: Bird-watching, Kayaking, Nature Trail/ Trek, Cycling, Swim!
Where we stayed: Birdsong Home-stay.
Contact: Vinod: +91 9764248274, +91 8943894087
www.thattekadhomestay.com, vinodnatu1@gmail.com
Per day: Rs 2000 for stay + Food , Rs 750 per guided tour.
Decent place with basic amenities, friendly people and good homely Kerala food.

Nehru Trophy: Kerala Snake Boat race

People travel thousands of Kms to watch the Legendary Chundan vellam - Snake Boat race in Alapuzha, so staying just 70kms away and not going there felt like a crime! Hence we decided to move our lazy selves to tick this off our list.

This year the rains have been reported to be over 60 % higher than usual norms, many rivers flooded their banks and the infamous flooding of the Cochin Airport by Periyar river happened this year too! Fortunately today rain gods have been a little merciful today, and it’s been a light drizzle instead of the usual afternoon downpour.

Background:

The origins of these boats go back to the era of raja-maharaja’s. The rajas of Changachery, Kottayam, Kottarakara were all vassals of the Travancore kings for most of the time. Yet, there was constant rivalry amongst them for gaining an upper hand over others and controlling the trade and hence the revenues of their regions. Since Kerala is enmeshed with water bodies, it was frequently patrolled by their navies and spy-network to maintain control. This led to competition amongst the chieftains or Raja's to design and own the fastest-strongest and most powerful boats helping them patrol their waters and also to win in the constant conflicts in the backwaters and seas.

Thus over time, these snake-boats were developed with specific designs to help them move fastly and swiftly in times of need. They are smeared with oil or oil skins of the animals to help reduce the friction over water. Most of the designs of these ancient boats are carried and used till date.

Back in 1952 the proud PM of the oh-so-proud-and-free India Sri Jawahar Lal Nehru visited Kerala. He was given a rousing welcome with people queing for miles to get a glimpse of him and some with even audacious ambitions of shaking hands with Panditji. He was taken on a boat ride in the calm backwaters of the Punnamada Lake in Alleppey and a procession of boats followed him. The people are said to have cheered him for a full 2 hours. He then presented a token trophy to one of the boats which had reached the shores first. Since then on the 2^nd Sunday of every August, there is a fierce competition to win the prize and bring honor and acclaim to their village or club.

Since last year, a women’s race has also began to be conducted separately from men. They are clad in the typical cream-white sarees with golden or colored borders and adorned with flowers in their hair. They row with equal fierceness and competing spirit as men do.

Approaching Alapuzha:

Surprisingly the traffic wasn’t as bad it usually is on these potholed roads from Cochin to Alleppey which is a 90 min drive. As traffic was barred on the main approach road to the Starting point, we left the cab on the main road and started walking towards the main stands.

There were pandals and makeshift shades like the shamianas along the coast with some chairs in it. There were some paid stands ranging from Rs 500 – Rs 2000. Those who wish to watch the races comfortably can book those tickets on internet or from reliable sources in Alleppey.

The rest of the stands are mostly free for all and you can simply walk into these stands. We were conned by a local into buying some free passes to these stands who must have run to the closest BEVCO shop (govt liquor stores) with our money. Do NOT buy complimentary passes from anyone there.

Unlike most of the other parts of India, people are extremely courteous to visitors and look at them with some degree of curiosity. If you are a foreigner, you are sure to be ogled at all the time.

Foreigners or touristy looking people are allowed by the locals to walk to the front side of the stands to get a better view. If you are carrying an SLR, you are moses, for the crowd parts infront of you to make way and help you get a better shot!

Let the Race Begin:

There are teams from various clubs and affiliations, which only the locals are aware of. Some of the men carry soft drinks laced with the happy potion and pass it around. After some of the happy potion goes in, they start singing and chanting boisterously cheering their own teams ahead! The cheering rises and falls in rhythm with people carrying the plastic whistles and horns whenever something happens or doesn’t happen!

You better carry some drinking water and wear the right clothing as it’s not possible to get out of the pavilion once you are in and you might have to sit down on the damp floor to let people behind you get a view of the race. Policemen are deployed in all stands as some of these gatherings have got rough and violent in the past. This time there was great order in the crowd.

The Umpire boat does a survey of the waters and once done, it waves a white flag signaling the beginning of the race. All the boats then travel to the starting point one after the other amidst roaring cheers from the audience.

 

Some of the boats are unbelievably long: with over 100 feet and carrying 100+ men, and are said to be the longest water vessels, used for sporting purpose, in the world. In centre of the boats, you can see men with drums or long wooden poles hitting the base of the boat to create beats with rhythmic intervals. This helps the rowers to maintain their timing and sync their movements for maximum speed.

Once the race begins, these boats compete with each other and it’s quite a sight to see these men row in unison with beats and trying to outdo each other. These races amidst the picturesque setting of coconut trees and placid waters of the lake make it a terrific vista!

The races typically take about 2 hours to complete. It is quite a spectacle to watch the tight competition between the boats close to the finishing line. The audience erupts into cheers and the trumpets blow continuously till one of the boats reaches the end line.

There are series of races based on lots and at the end of the races, the winner is announced based on the timing and handed over the Great Nehru Trophy which is a rolling trophy passed on over years.  

The current winner of 2013 has been winning it for last 3 years and was quite the favorite among the locals.

NEHRU TROPHY OFFICIAL WEBSITE
 

Can be better:

Though the arrangements were kind of adequate. The number of people estimated to view the races is around 2-2.5 lakhs who are crowded into the stands and some are forced to sit on the damp floor (like us) and others are forced to stand Jostling into each other. It can be a problem sometimes when you are travelling with kids and women.

Since its an event of international repute, our Tourism ministry can do much more to make the experience better for the audience and also to use it to promote Tourism during this off-season !

1. Organise the stands in a better fashion.

2. Ensure proper communication about the tickets and other arrangements for the event and publicise it in India and abroad adequately.

3. Help people build some connect with the competing teams with their brief history and other details available on the internet or by distributing brochures along with the tickets.

4. For the common stands, they can charge a nominal fee and utilize the money to make the stands a little cleaner and comfortable.

 

5. Be a little more organized and control the chaos !

 

 

 

 

 

 

Differences in Shia and Sunni prayers

Gulliver's travels contains one episode where Liliput and Blufescu are at war with each other as they hold different views as to which end of an egg must be broken first - Little or Big.

Differences between Shia and Sunni :

The Shia (or Shiatul Ali) are the 'Party of Ali' or those who believed Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law, as the rightful successor of the Prophet. The Sunnis did not regard him as the rightful successor.

1. Shia Muslims pray three times a day and combine Maghrib and Isha salat whereas Sunni Muslims pray five times a day.
2. Sunni Muslims fold their arms whereas Shia Muslims do not fold their arms during namaz.
3. Shia Muslims add “Khayr al amaal” whereas Sunni Muslims add “Nawm.”
4. Sunni Muslims touch their heads to the ground whereas Shia Muslims use a wooden block or tablet of clay to rest their heads during prostration.
5. Shia Muslim scholars prohibit the use of word Amen during the namaz whereas Sunni Muslims consider it as a must.
6.Shia sit comfortably on the folded feet whereas Sunni sit on twisted foot and so on.

For these differences, we blow up each other ! !

Heard somewhere: If i am asked to summarise last 2000 years in 2 words, my reply would be : Religion, Science.
While science took us to the moon, religion gave us crusades and extremism - not only in islam but in christianity, hinduism and many religions too.

DISCLAIMER: I was going through this on purely academic interest and reserve no judgement on the following. Hope no one issues a fatwa in my name.

Top 10 Led Zeppelin songs

Led Zeppelin created music which is truly one of its kind. I can hear them in an infinite loop without ever getting bored.

Though difficult to pick top 10 songs ... in no particular order are:

1. Going to California

2. Tangerine

3. When the levee breaks down

4. Whole lotta love

5. Lemon song

6. Immigrant song of coz

7. Stairway to heaven

8. Good times, Bad times
9. Heartbreaker
10. Ramble on !