For those of you who are fed-up of watching nature documentaries on television and want a taste of the real thing, here's a holiday package that doesn't require much planning. Just head to Hans Adventure Holidays, located just 135 km from Mumbai, off the Goa highway. Hans' self-contained cottages are located on a nine-acre farm with a mango and cashew plantation, overlooking a beautiful lake and surrounded with farms, hills and forests. It can accommodate upto 12 persons, and for the more adventurous types, there's tented accommodation by the riverside. There are special workshops to keep kids over the age of eight occupied, while you indulge yourself in trekking, rock-climbing, camping, rafting or even playing golf.

For more details contact: (0212) 677914.

Call of the wild

And if being a couch potato is your thing ambulate a little and check out these great wildlife drawings, paintings and sketches by Vivek Bhandari. Presented by Bombay Natural History Society,25-year-old Bhandari is a graduate from the Raheja School in Mumbai and has participated in several exhibitions. A regular at poster competitions, his work has merited several awards. `The Return to Wilderness' is a selection of his nature-related work. Worth a visit given that animals are being popped off by shikar enthusiasts -- who knows, some day this might be the only way to see them.At Hornbill House, Dr Salim Ali Chowk. Till Oct 30. Time: 11.00 am to 7.00 pm.

Women on wheels

Vitesse is all set to kick-off the city's first all-women car rally, `She Wends Her Way on a Maruti', on Sunday, Oct 25. Over 100 women will participate in the rally which will be flagged off from the Nehru Centre by Vitesse's CEO, Ashwin Sanghi. Organised by the Andheri Junior Chamber and the WIAA, this event will be a regular annual feature in the city, but is open for Maruti cars only -- though you don't need to own a car to participate in the rally. And although it is an all-women's event, they will beallowed to have male navigators.

`She Wends Her Way on a Maruti' has been conceptualised on the lines of a treasure hunt and will cover an approximate distance of 40 km spanning all corners of the city. Contestants will be given a set of 10 visual clues, which they need to identify, locate and reach in the stipulated time of two-and-a-half hours. What's more, there will be a penalty for all those who cover the route before and after the given time. And for those who finish the race on time, there are 14 prizes to be won, apart from revolving trophies for the winner and the runner-up. It might not be Formula One racing but hey, it's a start!

Classical composers

The Jindal Arts Creative Interaction Centre (JACIC) of the NCPA has organised a workshop on the the great Western Classical Composers `From Bach to Tchaikovsky' at the Little Theatre, NCPA, on Oct 31 and Nov 1. The workshop will be presented by Dr Anjan Ray and Parag Trivedi of Sabrang. The audio-visual presentation will give anintroduction to the life, times and music of Europe's greatest composers. It will explore the social, political and artistic environments that they lived and composed in, the difficulties they faced in their personal and professional lives, their trials, tribulations and triumphs.

The registration fee for the workshop is Rs 350 and the workshop will be conducted from 9.30 am to 6.30 pm.

For forms and other details contact: 283 3737 / 3838 Extn 204.

State of the art

The Zed Institute of Creative Arts (ZICA) Studio began its operation at Essel World this week. This newly constructed, centrally air-conditioned studio claims to be Asia's largest animation studio and can hold as many as 100 animators under the same roof. ZICA took up its first batch of 50 students and started training them in August 1995 in Hyderabad. The institute is presently training 100 animators under the tutelage of Indian and international faculty. The institute is also equipped with state-of-the-art computer systems,software and other editing systems, a full-fledged sound studio with digital recording systems and other such sophisticated hi-tech attachments.

A film made by animators trained at ZICA, has been screened at an International Film Festival in Chicago. What's more the institute is currently working on India's first full length feature film in animation called Bhagmati, and is also working on a TV film on India's struggle for independence titled Wings of Freedom.