Grand Canyon - Glorious, Gorgeous, GRAND indeed!

I may as well be posting on Mountain Time (most of the Grand Canyon's time zone) instead of IST. So decided to make it easy with a picture post. But before you get to the pics, here's a serious suggestion. Please please DO VISIT natural wonders like the Grand Canyon before they get altered irreparably by Mother Nature. And be a RESPONSIBLE tourist. No, a piece of rock chipped off is NOT a good souvenir, your name painted on the walls is NOT a good memory, your plastic chips and pretzel bags or water bottles are certainly NOT appreciated there nor is the Grand Canyon responsible for your limbs and safety if you choose to climb over the fence to take a pic. Be good. Be serious. ENJOY the journey and DO WALK lots!

We started with the Zion Narrows, where you walk in water, and the two sides of the canyon move closer and closer and closer till we don't fit in (well, some earlier than others!) but do not touch!

Our first view when we started the trek

Wading through... it was shoulder high at the point we decided to return

Next stop was Toroweap! Its a not-often visited part of the Grand Canyon where the North and South rim are closest with the Colorado river cleaving its way between them. And your overlook point is 3000 feet above the river, remember its the Canyons! Its Red Indian territory and we had a blast remembering stories, talking about conservation and using the dry bathrooms (no, not a blast this!)

Our picture perfect entry to the Toroweap overlook

The Colorado doowwwwwnnn below

A friend clowning around!

And then a scene outta a disaster movie! We drove back REAL quick. 

Next stop the Northern Rim of the Grand Canyon. Some more hikes and funny trekker memories (But I shall stick to the pictures part!)

Slowly tiring out...in our defence, it was HOT!

And these cool parents strut by, baby in kelty, taking pics everywhere (shocking to us Indians!)

The Canyon vista behind

This BEAUTIFUL Angel Window far behind. Still brings goosebumps!

And one more day of trekking.... the picturesque Bryce Canyon next. The natural formations, called hoodoos, just took our breath away. The beauty of these formations is that they were not shaped by water, but by wind. Imagine how many millions of years 'wind' must've worked patiently to create these masterpieces. And my Tam friends, no we did not sing a la Aishwarya Rai in Jeans, no, not anywhere!

The beautiful hoodoos

Naturally carved

The Hand of Thor

At Sunset

The Grand Canyon is one of those places that'll come to your mind time and again, and again, and one more time! Its beauty is timeless, classic, a wonder. It lingers on and I hope to return.... one day!


ps: We had a HAIR RAISING ghostly drive back to Vegas really late in the night. More on that some other time.

Finding Nemo, Floyd and other Fish tales

I have always been fascinated by underwater creatures (fish AND others, including mermaids!) I used to insist on one summer treat every year from the age of 8 or so.... the smelly, dirty, excuse of an aquarium in Chennai. There is something soothing yet exciting about watching fish swim around. Colors, silence, their little pouting mouths, their peculiar ways.... its addictive! 

Although I am a vegetarian, in honor of the excellent Ilish maach in Kolkata, I became fishitarian one autumn, and then once when I was served some prawn (and it didn't agree with me), fish and me continued our relationship with a glass wall in between again. 

Love the idea of danger - Jelly Fish

My fave sea creatures - Sea Horses

My first 'great' experience of an aquarium was at Monterey Bay, CA. I was newly-married and my husband was indulgent and amused and accompanied me in what-he-thought-was-a-2-hour-vist-but-turned-out-to-be-a-day-long-visit to the aquarium there. I was deeply upset at not having brought a swimsuit to accompany a diver into the tank. I particularly enjoyed how the aquarium was just an extension of the natural underwater flora and fauna of that area and how the sea water is constantly pumped in and out of the aquarium. I have said it in many a post and I say it again, Indians suck at marketing. Monterey Bay is again a classic example of how you can buy fishy toys, souvenirs, have experiential learning via diving, feeding, touching etc. I still remember how 'touching' a baby shark felt. How you ask? 1 part scary(it did have teeth, though it was a baby), 2 parts leathery (mildly repulsive, like touching a wet canvas shoe) and 1 part thrilling (I was touching a SHARK, yippee!) My love for aquariums was quite fulfilled that year (including a smallish aquarium in Camden, NJ). And continued in my travels whereever I went. 

And then one summer I had a baby. My love for fishy babies came to an end, or a dormant phase and I became immersed in the joy of parenting my son. 

Some years later, we went to Singapore on a holiday with our 3 year old, we took him to Sentosa's underwater aquarium.We had planned for this to be a 1 hour stop and then go on to Universal Studios. We ended up spending over 5 hours there - over an hour just outside the Nemo - clownfish-reef display (thanks Pixar!) He really wanted to touch a sting ray - 1 part excitement, 2 parts fear, 1 part thrilled...sounded similar.... and it suddenly clicked. He has my genes after all! We are not the oh-i-gotto-tick-this-off-today type of tourists and enjoyed the experience with him very much. I got to do something fantastic that day in the show... I touched a sea-lion. Made myself AND my son proud... both of us conquered a bit of fear that day! These days, after his lessons on 'conservation' at school, my son has been telling anyone who cares to listen that we are going 'snorkeling' this summer at Maldives, Andamans AND Lakshwadeep and that his baby (my infant daughter) will learn swimming there. (Doesn't stop to think he's older and can't swim eh?) 

In other fish tales, I have sent many a goldfish to their next abode by buying and over/underfeeding or not giving oxygen or by cooing too much at them! And named ALL pairs Floyd and Rahman :( Have you had success with goldfish? 

On my bucket list, a shark dive. Have you done it or want to do it? 

Before I sign off here's one of my fave Floyd songs(Floyd was my alternate F topic!) Don't miss Gilmour singing 

"How I wish, how I wish you were here.

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year,

Running over the same old ground. 

What have we found? The same old fears.

Wish you were here"

Easter Journey: Begging the question

This could've happened at any signal, in any Indian city (any city really!), to anyone. But it happened to me. 

A couple of days ago, Easter evening, my husband, 4 year old son and I were returning from a mall, happy with our shopping, time spent together, money spent easily... happy and content, enjoying the journey back home. At the signal (near Shozinganallur, OMR for the ones who want details), a familiar incident occurred. A bedraggled woman in tatters, holding a 6 months (or so) sleeping infant in her arms tapped on our window for some money. Without even glancing at her, I waved her on (I don't believe in giving money to 'organized' beggars). My son was perched on my lap (India, eh?!). And before we knew what was happening, he burst into tears, he "begged" his dad to give her some money. My husband relented and quickly passed on a tenner. 

His tears continued. He wept for the woman and the child (who he claimed looked a lot like his 5 month old sister, we'd left at home). He couldn't believe the baby did not have a home. I did not help matters by trying to rationally explain that he baby was probably 'hired'. I made a colossal mistake asking my husband if thought the baby was drugged (as some infants are, and this one was unbelievably knocked out).  We drove on in silence. 

I thought the tears would cease. 

I thought wrong. 

I thought I could bribe him with presents to stop sobbing. 

I thought wrong. 

I thought I could distract him with iPhone apps. 

I thought wrong. 

My son refused his dinner that night. He changed into his night clothes and as is his night time routine,  said his night prayers. To calm him down and deal with his fears, I asked him why he was upset (for the millionth time) and to my surprise he said "Amma, she doesn't have a house. The baby has no place to go, no milk to drink. If we don't help her, who will? I wanted to bring her here, but was afraid to ask you. You say it is always good to help others. Why are you not helping her?" 

Out of the mouth of babies, eh? 

My husband and I immediately logged into the site of SMILE foundation's, an organization we believe has well executed outreach programs. 

It was truly humbling, an Easter revival indeed for us. A few organized begging syndicates robbed us of compassion, seeing poverty around us everyday took away the sting and pursuit of our life goals led us to wear blinkers. And here, a child, who has never seen anything less than luxury, crying for an unknown woman and child, refusing his food thinking of the baby's hunger and persuading us to do our duty towards the society. 

Child IS the father of man. 

Amen!

Driving, Distillery & Directions!

There are two kinds of drivers in the world - ones who drive with maps and ones who drive with a GPS (and you thought the ones who ask for directions, and ones who don't, eh?!). My husband (P) belongs to the former and his brother (referred to as G for the rest of the post) belongs to the latter.

Just as we entered Scotland

Flash back to a holiday in Scotland in 2006. We'd gone to Liverpool to meet my brother-in-law and his family (especially our new-born niece). G, P, my 5 year old nephew U and I decided to get out of my sister-in-law's hair and go on a 5 day trip. P and I of course wanted to map our route and plan the journey, G waved us off saying his trusty GPS Mr.T would show us the way brilliantly.

Around the first bend in our drive

And off we went.... after a couple of days of traipsing around castles and lochs, looking for Princesses, Crown jewels and monsters, we decided we ought to go visit a distillery. After all, we were in Scotland! We chose the Isle of Skye (home to famous Talisker) in the inner Hebridges area of Scotland. Now to get there we went early in the morning drove into a ferry and with the car, crossed a small channel from Fort William to Mallaig.

Lovely weather, lovelier Heather (couldn't resist that!)

We drove into a bright sunny morning on the Isle (in July). Beautiful meadows, heather everywhere (and I recommend a holiday there, just to see miles and miles of purple, lavender, mauve and all shades between blue and pink.... breathtaking!) a stiff wind, but hey, we were in Scotland. Stopped to take pic after pic after pic, till my nephew got thoroughly bored and demanded a LONG drive. We had initially planned a trip to the Talisker distilllery, but discovered on the ferry that kids under 8 had limited access during the tour. So we just wandered around. Mr.T was quite upset by our sudden turns and twists and stops, but he coped valiantly as we were still heading in the same direction.We just drove in the Cuillin area, admiring the view. When we were thirsty, we drank Coke and the sheer beauty kept us going. U drank lots of Coke too....... and THREW UP! All over the car.

The clouds crept up in a matter of seconds!

The story changed now.The weather changed in a jiffy to dark, foreboding and rainy! (Scottish weather, remember) We had planned to drive back via the Kyle of Lochalsh, a beautiful bridge over the straight via Inverness, back to Fort William for the night. But with a now sick and moaning child, we decided to go back via the ferry.... which shut at 5.45 p.m...... and the time now was 5.10 p.m. G had had enough and wanted his son to feel better ASAP, so he drove like a madman to try and get to the ferry. We had no time to re-program Mr.T.






Mr.T started panicking... and HOW!! I still laugh at the directions it gave. "Turn back NOW". "You are going the wrong way.". "There is no left turn ahead."  At one point when its GPS must've read that we were over 20 miles from our original, it sadly intoned "Your destination is not this way. Turn back. Turn back. Turn back". Imagine a child groaning, a worried father driving fast, a terrified brother cautioning his brother to drive slower, a hungry me and a totally panicking GPS! And we had no time to turn it off (it required a password et al, which only my b-i-l knew). It was bleating piteously until we almost reached Fort William, when U began howling "Dad, please don't take me somewhere else, I want to go to the hotel. I promise I'll be a good boy. Mr.T loves us, he doesn't say wrong things. Please take me back!"

To date, we tease my nephew (now a teenager) much to his mortification on how he pleaded for us to listen to Mr.T! And the Talisker distillery tour? Just remains on the to-do list.... another day.... another trip! Slainte Mhath! 

California Dreaming!

"All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey 

I've been for a walk on a winters day

I'd be safe and warm if I was in LA 

California dreaming

On such a winters day" 

For me, the epitome of a 2 week dash around CA was the drive on Route 1. The coastline on one side, stopping at several scenic spots, laughing, talking, eating and singing till my throat was hoarse. After a great 2 days of 'Park' fun at Disneyland, Orange County and meeting Shamu at Sea WorSan Diego, it was time to head up to Santa Barbara and crash. 

We woke up to a glorious bright cold day in December, headed for the really beautiful Hearst Castle. Now, if you've read Jeffrey Archer's Fourth Estate or watched 'Citizen Kane', the house would certainly be a stop on your drive. The Turkish pool, the Grecian columns, the mega-giant-supersized dining table, the guest cottages et al were man-made and stunning, but the real piece-de-resistance is the view! The view from the garden is to kill for, and I can easily imagine a life lounging in the garden watching the sea, reading a book... for a long time in my life! 

Julia Pffeifer Burns State Park

Then the long drive.... we drove to SFO leisurely.... stopped wherever I wanted to take a pic (read every 5 mins!). The Big Sur coastline is a must-see. The Pacific swirling, crashing on the rocks, merrily frothing and gently kissing the coast....bewitching! The entire Big Sur area has many many untouched, pristine spots, but I recommend the Julia Pffeifer Burns State Park, for its well-kept walkways, wonderful spots and excellent photo-ops. Bird-watchers would be especially delighted. A gull decided he liked my sandwich and until I gave him my PBJ, insisted on perching on the open door of our car!



The sunset was spectacular, cold (December, remember?) and romantic (after all, we'd been married 6 months only!) We watched the sun set with an old couple who were apparently celebrating their 48th year of marriage. Awww! Late in the night, when it was too late to click anymore with our beginner's camera, we wound up at Carmel-by-the-Sea, a quaint little town. We stayed at a cute little boutique hotel. But those stories later! 

Route 1 means different things to different people...beauty, nature, good roads, togetherness, romance, happiness, money, but best of all, great memories! That mixture does it for me :) 

Consider carrying adequate snacks and topping the gas tank in your car before you set off, it could be a nerve-wracking drive otherwise!


Ps: If you are wondering about the title or the lyrics, its a great song by The Mamas and Papas, a 1960s band which a bunch of us attempted to sing in B-school, and whether we succeeded or not, we sure remember the lyrics well :) 

B for Bhubaneswar and B School and Bhaina!

Two of my most memorable years were spent in Bhubaneswar, during my post-graduation there at a well-known B-School. I remember when I landed, I got my first language immersion...I asked for Xavier Square, and the auto driver told another that he was headed for "Jhabier Chakko"! 

With some friends at the 'Chakko'!

2 years in B-school there gave me ample time to explore the city. I am not going to write about the historical or cultural events there, but of the general 'feel' of the city. The joy of living there of course is embellished by nostalgia! 

What I loved about Bhubaneswar is the simplicity of the people there. It may not be true today, but 12 years ago, there were no Cafe Coffee Days, no tens of hotels and not even a multiplex. The state was limping back to normalcy after a devastating flood an year ago. The food was still local - no McDs and no KFCs yet. There were still tigers at Nandan Kanan zoo. And best of all, a general languor in the air. No body was in a hurry. People were interested in you, not just your work. Whatever you asked for, the answer would be "Gote minute, bhaina". Wait a minute, brother! That the minute could range from 1 to 15 is another matter :) 

While the place may have changed, my memories are safely bottled away for my pensieve :) 

Aurangabad, Arlee Bird, April and Aunt Annie's Alligator

Aurangabad, in Maharashtra, India is named after Aurangazeb, the last free Mughal ruler of India. For more history on Aurangabad, Wiki has a lot to say. I am going to focus on my travel. We traveled during the Good Friday weekend, way back in 2007, by train from Bombay. The train journey was comfortable, getting us to Aurangabad at 5.00 in the morning, which let us have a full day of sightseeing. I recommend Hotel Atithi, the rooms were large and good, prices fantastic! 


We started off with the Daulatabad Fort. A sweaty trek (go armed with a bottle of water and a cap, even in 'spring'), the dark secret mystery passage and the view from the top was well worth the effort. Guide books are available at the start point and give you accurate and interesting info as you climb up. The ramparts, the walls and the big stones do literally speak to you. You can almost hear horses galloping, the cries of the prisoners in the dungeon and the screams of the enemies who dared attack the fort! It is amongst the most well-maintained forts I've been to in India, and given my special love for 'em, I give this fort a MUST-SEE tag. 



We were exhausted after the trek up and down, and a bottle of Coca-Cola, no, did I read right, Mecca-Cola washed away some of our tiredness! Aurangabad is largely populated by Muslims and in some areas, traditionalists abound. Some hard-liners prefer the Middle-East's answer to the global giant. In fact, further investigation got us wandering down the alleys of these tranditional areas near the Fort and Bibi ka Maqbara. We had the most delicious Phirni and found lovely attar to buy. 



On my insistence, we visited 'Panchakkki' next. A water mill, built in late 17th century, it is a complex system of underwater cisterns that grinds flour, as well as cools off the mosque nearby AND supplies water to the mosque garden. Engineering feat indeed. Its a short stop, about 20 mins should do the trick. 

We went on to visit Ellora caves next. I can't describe the beauty of Ellora in words. Its moving, its amazing, a marvel indeed. Thanks to being a UNESCO World Heritage site, it is maintained reasonably well and there are English signs, English speaking guides and most importantly, dustbins. The intricate carving is a hard task even in today's technologically advanced world. Imagine the concentration and efforts of the sculptors in the 5th century, working for years to complete the  beautiful mountain reliefs. The caves are Buddhist, Hindu and Jain caves, cut into rock, mainly for the purpose of monks resting and praying. 

We are not particularly religious, but fascinated by the stories of the Jyotirlingas, we went to Grishneshwar temple, near Ellora, where you can perform puja yourself to the lingam. 

There are excellent Gujarati thalis and other restaurants in Aurangabad. I went to Madhurams' and loved it, but it was in 2007. Please do your research before you go!

What do I say about the beauty of Ajanta? After 6 years, I still remember the vivid

colors and extensive detailing. And to think these were painted so many tens of centuries ago. Amazing! Since we'd already visited Ellora, we were not as awed by the sculptures (though they are exceptional too) as we were by the paintings. The murals range from the divine, to animal fables to sylph like nymphs and phantasmagorical creatures and scenes. The rock cut 'viharas' clearly have non-Indian influences, just like the murals, indicating the love for art and culture those days. Though the site is well maintained, do follow the rules and please, no flash photography, I want my granddaughter to see the murals too!


Last history stop was 'Bibi ka Maqbara'. A Taj Mahal look alike, it actually is the tomb of Aurangazeb's wife. It's often called the Deccan Taj, but I do think it is a classic beauty by itself, even without the comparison. What's amazing is the sheer contrast of Aurangazeb's tomb to his wife's. His tomb in Khuldabad(which I insisted on going to) is a salute to simplicity and starkness. He lived in piety and was a devout Muslim  He led an austere life, despite being the biggest Sultan of all times, a Badshah. He apparently knit caps, sang Sufi songs, lived off alms and copied verses from the Quran to 'earn' money for his own expenses.  We were led by a blind old man who showed us the tomb, and explained the significance of being buried with 2 saints.

Paithani saris are a must buy if you are in this area, and if you wear saris. I wish we'd had more time to explore the Lonar lake nearby, but the weekend rolled to a close inexorably. 

Even after 6 years of visiting the place, I have such fond memories of Aurangabad. If you are in Bombay and have a free weekend, I urge you to discover it for yourself.  



On popular request, a shout out to Arlee Bird, co-founder and leading blogger of the A-Z blogging challenge. 



And on another 'A' note, happy April to all of you! 

Ps: When I was thinking aloud this morning, without meaning to I apparently kept saying A, A, A, A! And my 4 year old jumped up and said "Amma, Aunt Annie's alligator A A A". Thank you Dr.Seuss!