Lines that make me think

1. All happy families resemble one another, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

    Leo Tolstoy

2. All you who sleep tonight
    Far from the ones you love,
    No hand to left or right
    And emptiness above -

   Know that you aren't alone
   The whole world shares your tears,
   Some for two nights or one,
   And some for all their years.
   Vikram Seth

3.Sit, drink your coffee here; your work can wait awhile.
   You're twenty-six, and still have some of life ahead. 
   No need for wit; just talk vacuities, and I'll Reciprocate in kind, or laugh at you instead. 
   The world is too opaque, distressing and profound. 
   This twenty minutes' rendezvous will make my day:
   To sit here in the sun, with grackles all around, 
   Staring with beady eyes, and you two feet away.

   Vikram Seth

4. "A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes.

Status symbol means nothing to him.

A waterlogged stick will do just fine. 

A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. 

A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, 
clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his.

It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more 
sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not.

As I wrote that farewell column to Marley, I realized

it was all right there in front of us, if only we opened our eyes. 

Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure 
intentions to help us see."

John Grogan (Marley and Me)

India Unbound

Goa, Pondicherry and Lucknow were conquered in 2010.

Pondicherry

 

Auroville

Starting from Pondicherry, definitely a different experience from other coastal towns.   Firstly a distinct French presence in the city and secondly an ensemble of people from different nationalities. Pondicherry's laid back streets and the idyllic walks are the musts for any traveler visiting the place. Nearby Auroville offers you the most natural settings for a weekend away from the mad town rush. The French breakfast and a pizza for lunch from the nearest pizzeria completes the french experience. My only bad memories from the trip was the short stay in Chennai. Chennai please stop being torturous. Off course how can i forget to add Mainu and Abhishek, who made the journey more memorable.

Next pitstop was Goa, third time in three years. Will i be third time lucky too. You bet i was. The best thing about the place is that it let's you be yourself. For the partying crowd you have the Calangute's and Tito's. For adventure seekers you have the water sports and the casino's. For the God fearing soul's you have the temples and the churches. For a nomad like me, I had an unending neverland to be explored on Manoj's bike. Surprisingly i had landed on a Diwali morning, with the city gearing up for the festivities. Before i forget, i should mention the picturesque town of Belgaum on our way. Belgaum to me seems to be a town right out of R.K.Narayan's book, through the window of my bus i could see many Swami's and his friends running in the streets. 

Day one was a low key affair mostly concentrated on the festivities and meeting fellow shippies.

Day two morning was brilliant with morning swim in Bogomalo beach but the afternoon proved to be a spoilsport. A damp day with incessant rain meant coming back and simply enjoying Goan sea food and beer.

Day three was exactly as i had planned with morning trek to Vagator fort. There is something about the point on the hill top which makes me feel that i will keep coming back to this place. One of the most amazing feeling you can possibly get is watching the nearby river coming and joining the Arabian see. You perched on the hill stop surrounded by green grasses can spend the entire day endlessly staring at the awesome scenery. As i describe the settings now, my mind is forcing me again to take the next bus and hit back Goa, such is the power of the place. It draws you towards it's charm.

Day four had an anti climatic ending, with the visit to the temple town of Ponda. Marvelous architectural wonder's with loads of grandeur. The Hindu inside fell pure after last three days of binging and revelry.

Bye with a heavy heart to Goa and daddy to be Manoj. I'll be back says the soul.

Vagator

Pose-o-graphy

Finally was a visit to the Hindi heartland and the town of my ancestor's Lucknow.It was a short detour from my visit to Patna and boy what an amazing experience. Firstly the joy of meeting old friends, participating in a full marriage after 10 years of wait. Meeting all my relatives about whom i had only heard. The warmth of Lucknow is sure to stay inside me for long. Lucknow people really know there food and the mehman nawzi.

Lucknow Weeding

New Delhi, Tirupati, Mumbai and Bhopal are lined up for this year. Let's see how it turns out to be.

2010.....The year it was.....

Hi there,

Long time no blog,reasons... firstly lappy was in coma for a long while and secondly the overpowering sleep after office.

2010 zoomed past before you could realize. Much more disciplined and less chaotic than 2009 i must say. Mundane in many ways. Home to office and back has been the order of the day.

Some of fondest memories etched in mind are celebrating Holi at home for the first time after 7 years, the euphoria of finally landing up into a job after lots of if and buts and running out of good choices.Nitish drubbing Lalu big time and Sachin's 200.

Since it is nearly more than 10 days already into 2011. Lets forget 2010 and i hope to actively pen thoughts for this year.

Hasta Lavista 2010, bring on 2011.