Hong Kong with toddler

We decided to take a short vacation in HKG as our flight had a layover there. We took a flight from Blr to Mumbai via Jet airways. The travel to Mumbai was uneventful as R was fast asleep. We landed in the domestic airport which I was seeing after 6 years and it seemed to have become a little more organized. We boarded the shuttle bus with little delay and R was thrilled to ride in a bus. The ride was a little over 25 minutes and the we were dropped off at the crowded international terminal entrance. There were so many people standing outside the airport, it seemed like atleast a dozen people were coming to see off 1-2 people. It was a bit of a struggle to navigate the stroller through the crowd, I am considering getting a horn or a whistle for the stroller next time around, a slight adaptation for Indian roads. We reached our gate and got some milk for R while he went to sleep, it was almost midnight. When the boarding began, we were shocked to see that we had to take a big flight of stairs. How could we do that with a sleeping toddler in a stroller? When I complained to the flight staff, all I got was a sheepish grin. Argh ! Anyway, we managed to go get to our seats and luckily, R was in deep sleep. I noticed several people wearing jackets with 'Shaimak' and could not see any famous faces. Then suddenly out of the blue, Shaimak came from the business class to talk to his troupe members. Wow !
He passed us a couple of times and I could not get up because I was holding a sleeping baby. I pleaded V to take a picture with Shaimak and he refused. Finally by the time he was ready, Shaimak was nowhere to be seen. Sigh !

We reached HKG and completed the immigration in a jiffy. It was so nice to get a visa on arrival with so few countries doing it for an Indian passport holder. We picked up a octopus card for us and took a taxi to our hotel in Taikoo. The city looked so nice and well planned. We checked into EAST hotel and got a fabulous room with a harbor view. The hotel was very nicely located near the MTR (metro) and the city plaza. After a quick shower, we went to the city plaza to grab lunch. We could not find an elevator to take the stroller and had to make do with the escalator. Then began the hunt for vegetarian food and the food court had nothing. Many of the staff there did not know english also making it more challenging. We found McDonalds for R and we finally found Pizza Hut. We had big plans for that evening but finally just took a nap. Later that night, we visited my aunt who lived down the road and got some pointers on food and travel. V found a supermarket in the city plaza basement where he got fresh fruits and drinking water.

Next day, we were still jetlagged and woke up late. By now, we found the elevator and could navigate the stroller more conveniently. We found an Indian place in the basement food court of city plaza, called ' curry in a hurry' which had awesome food. We had a good brunch and set off in the MTR towards the giant buddha called Ngong Ping 360. The attraction was easy to find and the although there was long line, it moved very fast.We took the crystal cabin cable car at around 3:00pm and had fantastic views. All of us enjoyed the ride and it got chilly on top. After a quick walk in the village, we went towards the big buddha. We parked the stroller in the bottom of the steps, and walked the 200 some steps. We were impressed when R also walked the flight of stairs by himself. After taking blessings, we came down to the Po Lin monestery and had a veggie snack. The snack was simple and delicious. The monestery was very beautiful and we felt at peace. This was a toddler friendly attraction and R loved to run around in the open spaces everywhere. He was also very happy to see many friendly dogs roaming freely everywhere. We picked up some souvenirs and passed by the Bodhi tree, it seemed to be made from plastic ! We boarded the cable car and when we reached the base it was almost 6:30pm.  R fell asleep in the MTR train and we decided to go and see the star ferry as it was too foggy to go the 'peak'.

From the central station on the MTR, we found an exit towards the ferry. It was a bit of a walk and was thankfully stroller friendly. We found the ferry towards kowloon and boarded it. The ferry crosses the south china sea from Hong Kong to Kowloon and is about 15 minutes long. We got a wonderful view of HK skyline. After reaching Kowloon, we walked for an hour and saw all the famous designer stores. There were lines to get into stores like Chanel. I wonder if there was a sale going on. After sometime, we walked into a mall for dinner and there was no elevator to the basement, where the food court was situated. As usual I did not find anything vegetarian and had to make do with some sweet soup. V had some nice dumplings while R continued to sleep. We took the ferry back to HK and I spotted a subway. I was happy to see it and had a sandwich. We then headed back to hotel via the MTR on the island line.

It was a good day and we were happy to have managed to see two attractions. I will be happy to see more elevators in the malls and signs for them. Next time, I better learn some Cantonese to at least ask for veggie options in food. Next stop, Macau.

Sunny Days

A few weekends ago (Aug 6), Saturday began being cloudy and dull.

After R's soccer class, we decided to skip the blue angels show 

as it was cloudy.  That afternoon, suddenly the sun broke through 

and it was beautiful ! Yipee !

I quickly decided that we should go out and enjoy the sun. 

DH picked one of our favorite spots, Gas works Park in Seattle.
I packed a dinner for R and some sandwiches for us to enjoy. 
Beach towel - check. 
Sunscreen - check. 
Camera - check. 
Stoller - check. 
Ball and Frisbee - check. 

Gas works Park is on Lake union and it was an old Gas 

manufacturing plant. Remnants of the factory still remains 

in the park. Some of them have been seem to be refurbished. 

It is a very unique park. 

We reached the park around 6pm and it was a gorgeous day, 

glorious sunshine with blue skies. We went to the lookout 

and sat there enjoying the view of Seattle downtown. 

There were sea planes taking off and landing every 5 minutes. 
There were so many boats that I lose track of them. 

There were so many pretty sail boats, the regular seattle 

ride-the-duck tours, kayaks and other tour boats. R was 

happy to see the birds, dogs, boats, planes and people. We were 

happy to just bask under the sun and look at the beautiful view. 

There were people playing with frisbee and amused R a lot. The 

grassy lawn was nice to play soccer and R played with DH for

a few minutes. R also decided to walk more than usual and we 

were very happy. MIL who is visiting us also loved the park. 

We finally moved to another spot as the sun started setting. 

We then had our sandwiches while R had his dinner. Adding 

to all this was some music being played by some college kids. 

They were dancing and having a good time.Perfect weekend 

activity. Loved every second of this outing. 

Finally the sun began to set and it started to get a little chilly.

We packed up and headed back home. 

Yet another reason why I love Seattle. 

The music must go on

It was my 6th violin lesson today and it has been an interesting learning experience so far. My teacher is very patient and more enthusiastic about my playing skills than yours truly. I love to playing the violin and feel so refreshed after every class. I am having a hard time co-ordinating the notes I see and finding the corresponding note on the string. But hey...I am trying. My order for a metronome was delivered today and it was different playing with that ticking sound. I have still not mastered 'holding' the bow and keep getting corrected every class.

I met student A in my first class. She has her class after mine and would usually come in a few minutes early with her mom. She must be a teenager and I've never heard her play although I've entertained her with my 'open note' skills. I met student B for the first time a few weeks ago and got a shock. He cannot be more than 6 years old ! He was so tiny and cute and my jaw hit the floor when I heard him play Bach. How could anyone so tiny play something so advanced?!! I was so amazed and felt so strange to be learning to play at my age. So every time I go for my class, I listen to B play and enjoy it so much.

I missed a class last week and rescheduled it for today evening. I met student C who was playing before my class. I met an 'adult' student for the first time and he was playing superb songs. C must be in his 40's and I was really happy to see an adult learning to play. My day got even better, when my class ended and I met student D. She must be around my age and she was the first person I met who was also learning to play from Wohlfart. He wrote these learning books for violin more than 100 years ago ! Anyway, coming back to D, I told her I was so happy to see an adult learning from the same book as me (beginners). She expressed similar feelings and commented about only meeting kids playing so well and giving her a complex ! We laughed and encouraged each other. Our teacher told us to just keep practising and not give up :-) .

The Crater Lake Weekend

V and I sent off early on Saturday morning and headed towards Oregon on I-5 in the wee hours of the morning. We're spending the long weekend in Fort Klamath near Crater Lake with 2 other friends. After driving for a couple of hours, we finally took an exit to highway 58. The scenery changed dramatically as we drove past beautiful lakes, sometimes on either side of the road. One of them was simply called Lookout Point Lake and it was beautiful, the right side of the lake looked blue while the left looked green. We're finally getting closer to the destination and decided to check on our friends, R and VA. Sadly, neither V not I had a cell phone signal at this point. How frustrating ! Ofcourse, we seem to be surrounded by the most beautiful mountains and green pastures and not a soul was in sight for miles. There were no other cars on the road, very few houses were seen. There were many cows, horses and even a few animals that looked like an alpaca in the pastures. My phone rang suddenly and it was VA, he asked us to turnaround as we had just passed him at the intersection. We got lucky to have been in a small section where all of us had signal and no other cars were in sight.

It was already past noon and so the first agenda of the day was lunch. None of us recalled having passed any restaurants nearby and so we just kept driving on highway 97. We suddenly spotted a restaurant called Melita's and it seemed decent. We went pleasantly surprised that it was very cosy inside and the menu actually looked very appealing. There were quite a few veggie options, bearing in mind that we seemed to be literally in the middle of nowhere. VA and I ordered some jalapeño melts while V and R tried some chicken. The food was fantastic and the prices were cheaper that most restaurants. We quickly decided that we would come for dinner and even decided what to eat.

We proceeded to check-in into our inn, and were happy with the accommodation. The Aspen Inn was very comfortable and incredibly cute cottage. There was a queen size bed downstairs and 2 twin beds on the loft. The bathroom was very clean, and they had the oldest microwave and TV model that I had ever seen. The owners were also very friendly and amiable. We took all the local maps that we needed and asked for recommendations on things to do and finally headed towards the lake.

Crater Lake was incredibly beautiful. The snow added to its beauty as all of us stood mesmerized for sometime. The R unpacked his camera gear and started talking pictures with his SLR. I did not expect so much snow and just wore sneakers to the lake, as a result found it very slippery. We then decided to get some warm coffee in the lodge. The challenge seemed to be that it was completely covered in snow and we did not where the entrance was. We went off the beaten path and did a hike through the snow, and I slipped and fell, to the great amusement of all. We got our warmth back inside and we also bought some souvenir's. The lady at the counter gave us some ideas on where we could go the next day. As the rim was covered with snow, there was not much we could see at the lake. We left the lodge when we noticed a nice entry to it from the street. The trek through the snow was unnecessary after all !

We then set off towards Diamond lake when it started raining. We finally reached the lake and found a look out point. We were not very happy with the sight, perhaps, the rain and cold weather had a role in it. It was a pretty lake but not worth driving 1.5 hours in the rain. We then drove back and reached Melita's at dinner time. The pasta I ordered was heavy but tasty. We had one of the best salad's there. Satisfied, all of us went back to get some rest.

Day 2 - to be continued.

What to do in the next 10 years

Archana tagged me to write about my plans for the next 10 years. So, here is a list of 10 things I would like to do in the next 10 years, in no particular order.

1. Buy a house.
Hopefully I will have money saved up for it soon :-)
I would like to have a room where I can play my violin (so that no one complains).

2. Travel to Europe.
This is something I always wanted to do. I happened to watch a lot of Rick Steves travel shows recently and am inspired to travel to Europe more than ever. While on the topic, I would say I love his travel shows the best followed by samantha brown on travel channel.

3. Learn to Swim.
This has been on my list of things to learn for a long time, hopefully I learn it this summer. I love being in the water, sadly, never learned to swim.

4. Play in an orchestra.
As a child, whenever I heard violin concerts on the radio, I would aspire to play in a western orchestra. I still feel the same, hopefully with my baby steps, in learning western classical, I will achieve this goal.

5. Be fit.
Last year, has been very erratic and I've neglected the gym. I am making amends now and trying to get back to something I really enjoy. I hope to lose weight and be fit soon and continue being 'fit as a fiddle' over the years to come.

6. Career and Personal Growth.
Well, I just started working and hope to grow in my career. I've a few certification exams I am planning to take soon. Hopefully I will pass them hehehe. I also want to learn a foreign language and take some formal dancing classes with my hubby. I also want to learn to paint, don't know if I have the skills for it, but want to definitely give it a try.

7. Be a better person.
I've so much to improve and change in myself. I hope to be a better daughter, a better wife, a better friend and a better person each year. I hope to make new friends, keep in touch with my old friends, and share new experiences with the ones I love.

8. Spiritual Growth.
I've so many plans in this area, and I hope to achieve them. Someday, I would be able to dedicate atleast 10 minutes of my time to just meditate.

9. Enjoy Life.
In today's busy lifestyle, we sometimes, forget the simple pleasures in life. I hope to balance all the elements in life and enjoy the ride ! I would like to continue enjoying all outdoor activities, travel, hike, dance, enjoy good food and take life as it comes. I want to have a beautiful garden and a dog :-)

10. Be more organized.
I like being organized and am not happy over many of my current habits. I hope I improve and find time for all the things I want to do !

Violin Blues

I was 10 years old when I had my first violin lesson in carnatic music. I don't really remember much about it, except that my teacher was a very patient lady. I had classes every weekend and I used to find them very boring. I stopped after a year due to reasons I don't remember now. Then, I began to learn again after when I was a teenager; this stint was longer for about 3 years. I was one of those students who was quick to learn but practiced very little. My parents always encouraged me to practice and get better at it. By now, I enjoyed playing the instrument but was still lethargic about practicing.

After a gap of a couple of years, I decided to give it my shot again. It was back to sarali varisai and the usual path; this time I reached varanams (songs). It was a good achievement for me; just because of my sheer laziness. My mother always used to say that I would miss it later and I used to be amused. I quit playing when I was in my engineering and hardly touched the instrument after that.

Fast forward a few years, I am in the US and I begin to miss playing my violin; especially when I hear any song with a violin in it. My mother was right (aren't they always?). I did think about enrolling in a class but never got around to it.

All that changed today. I went to the violin store and picked out an instrument to rent. I figured that I would start playing and then buy my own instrument later. I also found an instructor and would start my first western classical lesson in a couple of weeks. Till then, I am going to try to play all the carnatic music lessons that I can pull of the web. I am very excited about playing a violin again. It would be interesting to learn a different style of playing.

I only hope my neighbors don't complain :-)

Ash hears a Boo

Over the last couple of days, I watched two interesting period movies, both approximately in the 16th century.

The first one as this title suggests, stars, the actress I love to hate, Ash. Frankly, I did not want to watch the movie, Jodhaa Akbar; but V wanted to and his friends were waiting for us in the theater. Surprisingly, the movie was not bad at all. This is one of those few where I could bear, Ash's acting. She looked beautiful and sleep-walked through the role. Hritik looked good too. The movie was shot well, the palaces were just beautiful. There is a scene, when Jodhaa comes to her new palace, and she is shown to her room. It was so grand ! She had a room just for changing clothes that was bigger than my whole apartment! The jewelery was gorgeous, in fact, I was surprised at some of the styles, as they resembled the popular costume jewelery of today. I have seen very Bollywood movies with huge war scenes, this was one of the few. It was not fantastic but good for desi style. Watching one of the war scenes, reminded me of a game of chess, complete with soldiers, horsemen and powerful people of elephants. The songs were also good. The only thing bad about the movie was the length, it was too long and tended to just drag. But, looks like it is not very popular at the box office; especially for Ash. Interesting fact I learned during the movie, did you know that Akbar the great was an illiterate? That did not stop him from being one of the greatest rulers though.

The second movie, the other boleyn girl, was also very interesting (spoilers below). The story is based on the rivalry between 2 sisters, Anne and Mary, over King Henry VIII. Mary becomes the King's mistress first and gives birth to a son. Then, her sister has an affair with the King; she drives the King to divorce his wife, Catherine. His marriage is on the rocks because the Queen cannot give birth to a son, so in order to divorce her, he even makes up his own law and goes against the church ! Tut, tut ! Men ! The King then marries Anne Boleyn, she gives birth to a girl. She then succumbs to pressure for giving birth to a son, gets desperate and almost cheats with her brother !! This is seen by the brother's wife, and she reports to the King. Needless to say, the King, who is already unhappy by now and overcome with regret, charges the Queen and her brother. They are both sentenced to death. Phew ! Quite a story, eh? Now, comes the most interesting part, Anne Boleyn's daughter, becomes the greatest Monarch of England, Queen Elizabeth I !! Yes, folks, all this is a part of history.

It was interesting to see both these movies, and the role of women in those days. It seemed to revolve around, giving birth to a male heir; combined with politics, manipulation, power, lies, etc....somethings never change eh?

Lets eat Wasabi !

My friends visited us from the Bay area and Dallas for New Year and we were out in downtown Seattle one night. I had heard a lot about a Moroccan restaurant called Marakesh and so decided to eat dinner there. So, 6 souls braved the cold weather and walked to 2nd street from Seattle Center. We finally found the place and were really hungry. The restaurant was so popular, that we did not get a table. Dejected, we decided to find something else. P suggested Wasabi Bistro less than a block away on the same street. Some of us had never tried a sushi place and this one seemed really nice from outside. The staff was very friendly and we got a table soon. The restaurant looked really nice and they had some really nice options for vegetarians too. So, we're all settled in, had miso soup, some delectable tofu starters (the best tofu I've ever eaten) and waited for the main course.

The waitress was really friendly and suggested some dishes that were not on the menu. We happily ate everything she brought to our table. I had a sushi roll called green decadence roll which looked like a caterpillar. It was very tasty and so were the other dishes. It was a totally enjoyable dinner where everything was just right. I tasted the pungent wasabi for the first time. Then, suddenly the guys started talking about who would finish their wasabi; and before we knew it, there was a wasabi competition. This was pure fun for me and A, who kept laughing at everybody's reaction to wasabi. At the end of the night, all the 4 guys with us had finished their wasabi. S was crowned Wasabi King for having finished the fastest. Then, it was time to head back into the cold night. We had a good time with good friends. I would definitely go back and enjoy the sushi rolls.

The next night, we went back for dinner to marrakesh and were disappointed. The food was average and pricey and it was not worth it.

I prefer going to wasabi bistro anyday.

Let's Ski

Yesterday was a fun day at work, because we went for skiing the whole day, as a part of a team building event. I carpooled with some other colleagues' and we set off to the Summit at Snoqualmie Pass early Friday morning. The agenda was to be there by 8:15am. When we reached, there was hot Starbucks Coffee and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Some of us were skiing while the others decided to snowboard. Most of us were beginners and were taking lessons.

The first step was to get the ski rentals. I found my shoe size finally and it took me ages to get it buckled. I felt so uncomfortable walking in them and was clumsy. We got our skis and proceeded with the lesson. The instructor was an old man named Jim and he was making it sound very easy. The first lesson was to learn to get the shoe into the ski and out. It was so difficult to do it. I used a ski pole most of the times to get out of the ski. Otherwise I convinced somebody else to help me. After a few more exercises, we were off with both skis. I could not even walk with them, let alone ski. I seemed to be skiing backwards most of the times and it was funny.

Skiing is so tiring ! After a lesson that lasted 1.5 hours, all of us were ready for lunch. The shoes were really tight by now and I just wanted to kick them off. Alas, all I could do was loosen it. After lunch and rest, we headed back to the 'magic carpet' area. This was basically an escalator which took beginners to a small slope, a prelude to the ski lift. I was struggling with the carpet and decided that ski lift was best avoided at my skill level.

I kept falling and it was so hard getting up with the skis and shoes. Sometimes I fell in such funny postures, that I was reminded of the comics I used to read. The snow was soft and powdery; a couple of times, I just lay in it and enjoyed the beauty around me. I was well prepared in terms of clothes; many people who came in jeans were in for a shock. It is not the best thing to wear for skiing !

Finally, it was time to head back. Getting the ski shoe off was harder than getting into them. I finally got them off and felt so free. I was so happy to back in my regular shoes. I had a fun day and so did most of my other colleagues. We headed back to the city and I was home by 5pm. This resort is very close to where I live and V and I have decided to take skiing lessons to make the most of it.

Today, all that remains of yesterday are aches and pains. As they say, no pain, no gain.

Resurrection

We decided to watch a movie last Friday, I was hoping to watch beowulf in 3D and was disappointed to learn that it was not available. So, we decided to watch ' the golden compass'. I din't like the movie, it was long and boring. As I had not read the books, there were many unanswered questions. Poor V almost dozed off.

Then, on Sunday, I found out that it was the last day of Beowulf in IMAX. The show was at 5:30pm and we reached just in time. It was fun watching the special effects in 3D. The movie was a tad too long for me.

After hearing a lot of raves about, Sleepless in Seattle, I was curious to watch it. So, when I saw it listed for free on cable TV, I decided to watch it. I dozed off after 10 minutes. It was incredibly boring. As long as that movie is available, nobody will be sleepless in seattle :-)

Today, I happened to watch the song, akele hain from QSQT. Aamir and Juhi looked very young in it. I was really surprised to see the 'spidey kiss' in this song. I wonder if the makers of Spider Man copied it from here or did QSQT copy from some other older Hollywood movie.

Thanks to my friend, A, for suggesting a new title for my blog.

Settling in....

After a lot of travelling this summer, I finally got back to my Grad life this month. As luck would have it, caught a bad cold which just refuses to leave ! I tried self-medication before things got out of hand. I never knew ears could get blocked because of cold ! My cold has improved but my ears are still blocked because of which many of my plans had to be cancelled :-(

Now that I am graduating this semester, there is a ton of research work yet to be done, long reports to be written and presentations as well. So I am basically too busy to blog regularly. On the bright side, I would be finally out of Grad school !

Watched Lage Raho Munna Bhai this week and really liked it ! Arshad Warsi as circuit is simply hilarious. Now I am waiting for Kabul Express to release.

My friend told me about a book sale today in the public library and I decided to tag along...just to see...not to buy. Ha ! The instant I saw the books stacked up in the basement, I went berserk and picked books till I could not carry them because of the weight. I knew it was time to head back. So much for resolutions not to buy ! The books were real cheap and that was my justification !

Day 5 - The Cocktail Party and Dinner

The final event during our wedding was the cocktail party and dinner hosted by Vikram's Grandparents. I wore my favourite saree for this occasion - a deep pink saree with Kundan work. It was so simple and yet so pretty.

Vikram's Grandpa ( a retd coln ) gave a small speech and then we cut a cake. The dinner was yummy too. Everyone was finally relaxed and enjoyed the party.

A lot of planning and hard work went into the planning the wedding. I wanted a lot of things differently. Luckily for me, both my mother and mother-in-law were very supportive and let me have my way. Thanks to them, I had my dream wedding. Our clothes had co-ordinated colours. We bought all our clothes in Bangalore. I bought my jewellery after a lot of window shopping.

I realised that my mother had been planning my wedding since I was born ! I have to thank my parents for giving me such a beautiful wedding. My cousins, Shilpa and Anu helped me a lot throughout. My cousin, Andy, helped me with great ideas and suggestions. My friend, Pushpa, gave me the names of many stores for shopping. My friends, Archana and Prasanna helped me a lot during the wedding days. And ofcourse I had the wishes and support of friends and family. Thank you all !!

The 5 day wedding was finally over and my posts on the wedding series is finally complete :)

Sauna Belt

I was flipping channels when I came across TVC and saw some very funny products. One of them was ' Sauna Belt' ...

LOL !

"Want to lose weight or inches quickly that to without any pills, Lotions & creams ! Seems like a dream! Not anymore. TVC presents Sauna Belt a convenient, comfortable and personalized way of losing that unwanted fat & flab in the confines of your home. An absolutely easy and effective way of reducing body measurement, not in months weeks or days but in one hour. "
The ad was very funny....according to which you can have a flat stomach ( even a six pack) by just using the sauna belt ! The claims were ridiculous. There was free offer with the belt - something called DAANT PARI - what a tacky name ! ROFL !

Then V told me that he actually knew someone who bought this product to lose weight ! I din't know people could be so guillible !!!

Click on the TVC for some really silly products ( some are endorsed by stars of bygone eras).

That is familiar !

On my first day in Dubai, V took me to the desi grocery store in the evening. There were stores everywhere ! The city has stunning buildings and lighting. And it is undoubtedly the Shopping Capital of the World. I will write about the malls and stores in another post.

So, anyway coming back to my story. We came out of Choitram, the grocery store, and my eyes fell on a coffee shop on the opposite side of the road. It was 'Second Cup' ! Imagine my surprise. I had seen this coffee shop chain Canada just a few months ago. I had not even seen it in US and here it was ! I was very curious to see if it was the same chain. So, the next evening, V and I went to have coffee. It was the same ! But they did not have the maple latte. Instead they had more cold beverages ( made sense as it was in Dubai).

Then on subsequent trips to the grocery store, I even found many brands that I use in the US. For example, my breakfast is still Quaker oats ! Ragu pasta sauce is available here. So, are Milano chocolate cookies ! There is so much more variety here for food products. But food products are a lot more expensive compared to US.

Starbucks is a familiar sight everywhere. Here are some more stores that were familiar
( NOT including those that are european and common in India)


* Cold Stone creamery
* McDonalds
* Burger King
* Chilies
* Tony Roma's
* Cinnabon
* Haagen Daz
* Subway

* Gap
* Old Navy
* Banana Republic
* Claires
* Forever 21
* Columbia
* Timberland
* Liz Clairborne

Famous stores like Guess, Nike, DKNY, Levis, Hugo Boss, Polo, MAC, Dockers, Espirit, Diesel, Calvin Klein, Benetton, Elle, etc are there in most of the malls !

Needless to say, I was quite surprised !

Ibn Batuta

V : Lets goto Ibn Batuta.
Me: Duh...whats that ? A restaurant ?
V: No, its a mall.
Me: Oh. What a strange name !

It turned out that the mall was named after a person called 'Ibn Batuta'. Ibn Batuta was a famous Arab traveller from the 14th century. He was born in Morocco in 1304 ( thank you google). He set out to go on the Hajj and toured many countries for more than 25 years before returning home. He wrote a travelogue called 'Rihla' with all his encounters. I was totally fascinated by his travels.

Batuta had visited China, Andalucia ( part of Spain occupied by Muslims), Constantinople, Baghdad, Persia, Tunisia, Mali , Ethiopia, Egypt, India, Sri Lanka and many other places.








India was ruled by Mohammed bin Tughlaq - Sultanate of Delhi ( remember those history chapters? ) when Batuta visited India. Tughlaq was an eccentric King ( he was the one who moved the capital from Delhi to a place in the Deccan and forced the entire population of Delhi to move as well). Batuta was employed by Tughlaq after which they had a misunderstanding and Batuta had to flee the country.





How did I know so much about Ibn Batuta ? Why, the mall ofcourse !
This mall has been designed to reflect Batuta's travels.

It has 6 theme zones inspired by the places visited by Batuta - China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia and Andalusia. So, V and I went about taking pictures and reading about his travels. The mall is beautiful ! There were tons of stores but for a change, I did not visit any and kept myself occupied with the beauty of the mall.


Each court was done very well. I simply loved the ceilings in each court.

They were very creative !











The China court had a huge ship and lots of other decoration. India court had some people riding the elephant, an ancient clock and a band. The Persia court had a stunning dome ! It was the most beautiful among the other courts ! It looked so grand ! The Egypt court had many paintings on the ceiling, walls and pillars. The Tunisia court had blue ceiling which looked awesome and finally the Andalusia court had a big lion fountain. The mall was not only beautiful but also very educational.

If you are visiting Dubai - this place is a must see !!


Ibn Batuta Mall - The world under one roof !

Day 4 - The Reception in the evening

I was back in the Mandap to get ready for the evening. I was to be ready promptly by 7pm. I was so exhausted that I feel asleep for a few minutes while getting ready. I asked for food before going to the reception. Turns out, nothing was ready for evening and nothing was left-over from morning ! Crap ! All that was there was curd-rice; which I happily ate !

I had made a big fuss about the *reception chair*. Normally you would a see hideous red color chair with golden color arm rest. I abhor that chair. I refused to come for the reception if that chair was present. Finally they found one more that was atleast bearable.

I wore a maroon color gagra for the reception while Vikram wore a Sherwani. I was ready on time. But I was so exhausted that I did not have the energy to smile. So, I smiled in the first few pictures; slowly that progressed to no smile; then stare blankly; then scowl and finally closing the eyes and sleep ! Needless to say The pictures are awful ! LOL when I think back now. To top it off, the photographer took awful pictures. I got so depressed when I saw how terrible I looked in the reception pictures ! Everyone convinced me that I looked different in person. Hmmm.

I was suggesting to everyone that from next time, the couple getting married should just make a cut-out of themselves for the pictures. That way, they would look good, have a nice smile and not get tired ! Those who are getting married in future - please consider my idea and save yourself a lot of trouble!

Our reception started promptly at 7pm. Archana and Prasanna were the first to come and pose with us. Then P went back to Chennai and A went to her friend's house after dinner. I had to stand and pose for eternity. No respite. I wore high heels and so my feet were killing me too ! After standing close to three hours, we were finally let go !

Dinner was good. Its strange that the couple getting married eat in the end. The chaat was over. We had different varieties of food that night; south indian starters like dosa, north indian chaat, chinease food, north indian and south indian food. Desserts ofcourse. I got a sample of most of it; but I was so tired that I din't care what I was eating !

4 days of the 5 day wedding were successfully over !

Day 4 - Jan 20 - The Wedding - Morning

My earlier posts on my wedding description were Day 1, Day 2 morning, Day 2 evening-mehandi, Day 3 early morning , Day 3 morning-engagement and Day 3 evening - sangeet. Wow, looks like I've written a lot already !

It was finally D-day. I woke up early and then left to the Mandap by 6am. I had decided to get ready in the Mandap. We hired a lady to do the the bridal make-up. I was very worried that she would put too much make-up and make me look like a ghost. My deadline to get ready was 8am. I had refused to wear pure gold and instead chose to wear fashion jewellery with stones. I was almost ready and looked at myself in the mirror and the reaction was - ' OMG who is this girl' . I could not recognize myself !!!
I looked like a bride indeed !! I hoped Vikram would recognize me !!

By then my friends, Archana, Prasanna and my cousins, Anu and others came to see me. They could not recognize me either. By then the clock was ticking and I was a nervous wreak. I don't know why. I was so nervous, I even forgot how hungry I was ( you guessed it - no breakfast for the bride Grrrr). I hoped I would not faint with hunger in front of everyone.


Vikram and I come from different backgrounds and so choosing the style of marriage was not an easy task. My mother suggested a 'Arya Samaj' style after she attended one such marriage. The popular notion is that Hindu couples who elope have this style of marriage. I guess there are many variants of its style too. When I heard about its style, I knew it was the wedding that I wanted. I was NOT keen in having a wedding where the 'Pandits' just chant Sanskrit slokas that make no sense to the couple getting married. I feel it is a trauma to sit in the smoke for hours and not understand what is going on.

Our marriage was conducted in Hindu Vedic Style by Mrs. Sharma ( yes a lady ) and a Pandit. We had all the elements of the usual weddings. We had mantras too. The only difference was that Mrs. Sharma explained the meaning and significance of all the Sanskrit mantras in English as we chanted them. She has conducted more than 1000 marriages all over India and was a very learned person. Before she started the wedding, she asked everyone in the mandap to maintain silence to give respect to the ceremony. She also said that for the mantras to have their effect, it was vital to have silence and not disturbances from other people chatting. Believe it or not, people maintained silence for the complete wedding !

The wedding lasted for slightly more than an hour. It was perfect ! I finally understood the meaning of the rituals and all the promises made while chanting the mantras. I was overwhelmed with an urge to cry ! I had told Vikram that I would not make a scene and so controlled myself. When, I looked at my friends and family, almost everyone was so touched by the wedding that they all seemed to be crying !


And finally, Vikram and I got married. We were blessed by all . We went to the Guruvayoor temple attached to the Mandap and took blessings.


After that, everyone came to wish us. I was tired of standing and smiling. My head and back was aching thanks to the hairstyle. I was hungry. By the time I ate lunch, it was past 1 in the afternoon ! Then, we went to Vikram's house for my 'grehapravesh'. After that, we went to take blessings from our Swamiji at Dayanand Ashram. It was past 3 pm when I came back to my house. I was so exhausted that all I wanted to do was chop my hair and goto sleep. I took more than 3 people to help me get rid of the 'jadai' ( the long traditional plait). By the time I was out of the bridal clothes, it was time to go back to the Mandap and get ready for the reception !!!

Recent Flight Journeys

When it comes to flying, I have a certain luck. You can find my previous posts here.

I flew Lufthansa from TX to Bangalore this June. This was my quickest flight to Blore till date. I had heard that the food was not so-great and so carried a few snack bars in case I need them. The flight was full. The service was good. But the food was as I feared. I don't remember what they gave - but it was the same thing meal after meal ! Still, some food is better than no food and I was happy. For the first time, I had no great adventures either ! With my luck, I usually almost miss connecting flights, or baggage would be lost or I would be lost. Anyway I reached home.

The Dubai flight was a different story. I flew Air-India as it was the only flight going directly from Blore to Dubai. My flight was at around 8:30am. I checked-in my bags and waited for immigration. Compared to my Canadian immigration, this was a cake-walk ! I then waited in the lounge. And waited and waited. It was past 8:30am and no sign of the plane or any announcements ! I began to panic. I worried that maybe I was in the wrong terminal ( quite silly as there is only ONE terminal). After what seemed an eternity ( around 9 am), there was some activity indicating that the plane was ready to be boarding. What was the indication ? Well, everyone seemed to run and stand in the queue near the gate. Then there was an announcement for passengers with children. Chaos ruled for a while. Then everyone else were asked to board.

The plane was huge ! And empty ! The seat next to me was empty. I waited for take-off. I dozed off for a few minutes and when I woke up - the plane was still in Blore. Looks like there was some delay. Damn ! A movie was playing and it looked interesting. The only glitch, no ear-phones. I wondered how people were watching a movie without audio ! I guess they were really bored. The seats were really old, the volume and other controls were ancient ! The socket for the ear-phones were priceless ! I was LOL when I saw 2 holes grilled into the seats. I wondered what sort of ear-phones would fit into these. Then, the air-hostess gave us some PVC cables. Oh o. Turns out, those weird cables were the head-phones ! They were the weirdest and the most uncomfortable ear-phones I had ever used in my life ! It was so bad, that I decided to forego the movie than torturing myself.

By now, the plane had taken off and I was looking forward to the food. Did I mention that the air-hostess was really old ? I have nothing against senior citizens working in planes. But this lady was really mean and lazy. She had a bored expression all the time. And was so snooty ! No one came to even offer water/beverage for a long time. Then this lady made her grand appearance with the food trolley. Pushing it was quite difficult for her as even the trolley was old ( paint had come off and it looked very dirty). She was basically throwing the food trays on the people without even a smile. She gave me a food tray and I asked her if it was veggie. Imagine ! She did not even ask the choice of meal. She then started rummaging her trolley for veg food and finally found one. The food was average. I was disappointed. The old lady made her appearance again with tea/coffee and then she took away the trays.

We finally reached Dubai safely. The airport was huge. I had a marhaba lady help me with the immigration formalities and then I finally saw Vikram.

How hot is too hot ?

Well that depends on which side of the building you are !

I was blog hopping and realised many people are complaining about the Summer. It was really hot in Texas when I was there in June. I thought, coming to Dubai would not be such a big deal as the temperature here was only slightly higher. How wrong I was.

My first day in Dubai was really hot. I came out of the air-conditioned airport to get a cab and felt as though I was standing in an oven. Within seconds, I was feeling so sticky thanks to the humidity. I was thankful to get into the cab. That evening, I ventured out and it was bearable.

Then V took me to his work place in the weekend. As I am a shutter-bug, I wanted to take pictures near an artificial lake in that area. I was trying to focus the scene when everything looked really foggy. I din't understand. I

panicked thinking my camera had some problem because it was a really clear day with no sight of fog anywhere. Then I saw that the lens was fogged. What the hell !! I wiped it and took another picture, which was a little better. But within a few seconds, the lens was fogged again ! It was so hot and humid there that it was not possible to even take pictures ! Here are the two pictures with fogging effect and slightly less fogging effect.


Cameras are not the only thing affected - even sunglasses have the same problem ! I wore my glasses for a few minutes after which I could not see anything clearly ! It reminded me of the glasses fogging up during winters...I did not know that it can happen in Summer too !

Its more than 42 C here with very high humidity. Its so hot that even though the house has air-conditioning, the walls radiate heat ! Yesterday night, we went to the nearby store and I thought that my flip-flops would melt !! Well, if you are in a concrete jungle inside a desert, this is something expected i suppose. The locals tell me that it would only get hotter here and peaks in August. I seem to have come at the perfect time !

Blogging from Dubai

Well folks, after having lived without internet for well over a month now, I finally got the internet connection today morning !

Some sites like orkut is banned here ! Google comes in Arabic and I am trying to change the settings...but since everything comes in arabic...I can't even make out what the options are !

So, from now on, I will be blogging regularly. Life here is awesome ( esp since its with V).
My bday was fun. V bought me a very cute looking cake from Baskin and Robins. He took the day off. In the evening, we went out for dinner to an awesome Indian restaurant called 'Ashas' . It is owned by Asha Bhosle. The place was superb. The ambience was great. Food and service was excellent. Location and music was great too. The restaurant is in a mall which is built like the pyramids. I was simply bowled over. My digi-cam takes awful night time pics, so I'm planning to go there in
the day and take more pics sometime.