Mountain Trip

At the drop of the hat..I need vacation & I don’t leave any opportunity to plan one. Due to long weekend vacation coming our way owing to diwali an impromptu vacation to Kasauli was planned. A research from my traveler savvy friend & good old google prepared my itinerary. I booked Kalka shatabdi from Delhi which reaches Chandigarh in 3/12- 4hrs time. From there we hired a cab & went to our first destination i.e Pinjore garden in Parwanoo. The mughal garden was quite a dekko but night time is the best time to visit it. My kid had a good time climbing the tree & I too joined in the fun. We had our lunch inside Pinjore garden’s restaurant & headed to Timber trail. Timber Trail gives you a delightful experience of riding a cable car from Timber Trail resort at 3000ft above to Timber Trail height which is at 5000 ft above. The view was mesmerizing. Once we reached to Timber Trail heights we had a fun at amusement park there. Also a round of badminton refreshed us. Something you miss doing when you get caught in 9-12 job . From herein we drove to Kasauli & reached our hotel well before dark. Ros Common is hptdc hotel which is quite decent & gave you scenic view from small porch of your room. We had planned to relax on that evening & take it easy. We did required to put on our room heater as it gets chilled in the evening. Morning we had a breakfast in the garden table basking in the glorious sun rays & enjoying the mountain view from there. Also we happened to pick few pomegranate fruit from the tree in the garden. Theirs not much to see in Kasauli. It’s a laid back vacation destination where you bond with yourself & your family. Also you do things that you don’t get to do everyday in this marathon of life & that’s to RELAX. Before signing off from Kasauli we trekked our way to famous monkey point & paid our respect to hanuman mandir perched on the top of the mountain where you get the entire view of kasauli as well as Chandigarh. You need to be aware of monkey‘s though out there. We encountered a funny incident at Monkey point. While climbing down one of the big monkey came and grabbed our bag which had few food item as well as our return train ticket. My husband refused to leave the bag & kept convincing the monkey to let it go as if it’s a small baby he’s talking to. Thanks to the lady who owned a cafeteria around there, she made a noise to scare the monkey off. We had a hearty laugh at the end of it! The whole experience was enjoyable & the travel in shatabdi was altogether new experience which made the whole trip pleasurable.

The Secret

This is the book that I'm currently reading. The book is awesome but what its telling is something which we have already heard from our elders. The only thing why it hits me is that it tells us how to practice it & foolproof method to do it. It advocates the age -old saying that "THOUGHT" is very powerful & we create our life by thinking what we want to become & what all we want to experience in this life. Be it money, health, career...whatever. If you are stuck in a problem, not having great health or money & blah blah then its because of our thought. So its very important to think positively and enrich our life with whatever we desire. It also dispels all doubts of "I didn't ask for this?" query & tells us why its happening it to you. Must read! I adore this line in this book:

" Universe is the Genie & You the Alladin! You are the Master of the Universe, and the Genie is there to serve you! Your Wish Is Genie's Command!"

Face Value

Here I'm going to share few tips for glowing face.

Quick glow face Pack

1-2 tbsp milk powder, few drops of water

Mix milk powder with water to make a fine thick paste, apply this on your face using your finger tips and rub for few minutes. Leave it to dry and then wash your face with warm water. Try using this pack for 7-10 days everyday you will find glow on your face. This pack can be applied all over body also, your skin colour will lighten.

Skin Renewal Pack

2 tsp besan, 1/2 tsp haldi powder,1 tsp fresh malai, 1/2 tsp honey,and 1/2 tsp lemon juice.

mix all the ingredients , apply on ur face daily ,massage it well on ur face, hand, neck and leg and wash ur face with warm water.

Pack for Oily Skin

fullers earth(multani mitti), lemon juice or rose water

mix multani mitti with rose water or lemon juice , after 1/2 hour wash with cold water

Almond Face Mask

fine almond powder, milk

Mix 1 tsp of almond powder with few drops of milk. Make medium thick paste and apply on your face. Leave it till it dries completely. Remove the mask by rubbing gently in massage movement.

Home Bleach

Fine rice flour, Curd

Mix 1 tsp spoon of each. Gently massage on your face and neck for 10 minutes and leave it till gets dry. Wash it well with warm water. Moisturise your face after that. This gives shine and glow to the skin. Makes skin smooth and get rid off unwanted hair.

What next?

This is a question that comes to my mind often nowadays. This hold true for all domain of my life...be it career, personal or spiritual growth. No sooner I settle down in my comfortable couch, a poking blurb pops out of my mind posing this question to me- "What Next?"! Horrifying thoughts cloud my mind like, "I'm going to become redundant very soon if I don't pull up my socks" or thoughts like "How long this 9 to 5 schedule will go on" & "What exciting things should I learn to keep going" blah blah....

I understand this is just a trick that my mind plays to keep me on my toes always. Relaxation is such a waste! But Hello, I'm not going to buy this. I have decided to stick to old adage of "crossing the bridge when I come to it" and in the mean time be prepared for the unexpected. Got That!

Vacation to Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary!

The countdown had begun for the summer vacation to end for my daughter. She was getting a little impatient & asked me whether we are going for any vacation or not. This put me on my toe to plan an impromptu vacation as I didn't want to have the guilt of not taking any break at the right time. Anywayz, a few research here & there & we were off to Sariska. I never imagined it to be such a beautiful experience for my entire family. It's our first ever vacation in a jungle & it was beautiful. We saw lots of peacock,Deer, Sambhar, chital, Lungoor & all kinds of birds. We also saw peacock dancing in the rain with it's feather wide opened. It was mesmerizing. Next day we headed for Jaipur. Chokhidaani was at its cultural best! Rajasthani food & shopping marked the day at Jaipur. Finally we started for Delhi to catch up with regular grind but not before stopping over for some Dhabha food which was yummy too!

Its a new day!

Its a new day,
fresh and rejuvenated,
new ideas, new thoughts,
what will you create?
may each day be like this,
for I love its bliss,
state of 'NO MIND',
is it that, that makes it a delight?
or is it a flood of ideas,
that is ready to rush in?
sowly & surely the mind has started to play,
spoiling the fun of spontaneous display,
Oh what an ecstasy, to be in no thought,
For I got to see me........ as God!

Single child Challenges!

The other day, I was talking to my hubby about why we should think of completing our family & provide my daughter(who's already 7yrs old & what with my biological clock ticking..) with a sibling. Since I'm constantly being reminded of 'how a single child' is a big challenge to parent with & how my daughter will feel lonely..blah blah... I was at my element best to convince my hubby about what to expect. He asked me one question which was like pouring cold water on my enthusiasm: "Are you prepared to give up your flying career and go back to diaper changing et al?" Hmmmmm. That really set me thinking into what goes into bringing up a child. No small effort & that too after 7 long years, when your child is grown up enough to take care some of her needs. Thoughts like China has passed a "Single child policy" comforted me enough to rethink about having a second child. In this Age when both the parents are working, we could hardly spend even 2hrs daily with your child. Forget about bringing up 2 child...you are not even able to justify the task of bringing up a single child. With nuclear family mushrooming nowadays, its unjustified to the childrens to leave them in the care of total strangers like maids et al. And whats the need to have children's in the first place? societal pressure? do you feel incomplete as a family/couple without them? If a couple doesn’t want children in the first place then its a different matter. If someone doesn’t want kids but still has them due to the pressure from their partner or society, then obviously the kids are going to be a cause for resentment and may substract from marital happiness. I think one should priortise things before one goes into parenting. Its the most blissful thing to have a child but its also a journey which one needs to tread carefully & justify completely!

Uncertainity Strikes Again!

Uncertainity....this word has been my shadow ever since I understood the meaning of it. Things looks so uncertain to you at time. But I guess this is what makes your life enriching . It teaches you to believe in yourself and nothing else matters. It also teaches you that nothing is gonna be permanent & their will be light at the end of the tunnel. Suprisingly I'm most happy personally when I'm hounded by challenges, though it does shake me up a bit. It gives me sense of cosines, feeling of security just to be surrounded by my loved ones. You get to feel all this only if you are faced such eventful situations and not otherwise. Hence the usage of word 'enriching' for describing uncertainites.

“Uncertainty and mystery are energies of life. Don't let them scare you unduly, for they keep boredom at bay and spark creativity.”
R. I. Fitzhenry quotes

Cherishable B'day!

Happy birthday to me! Yes it was my birthday on 22nd April. Turning a year older didn't dampen my spirit of enjoying my day thoroughly. My morning was made by my family members, gifting me surprises, things that I always wanted to buy myself. My daughter was the most enthusiastic person around me, reminding me every second that its my birthday...no matter how it blushed me out completely. Blessings from elders & best wishes from my friends outnumbered the record call that I have ever taken. This tired me out completely :). Lunch was with my office colleagues at Dana Choga, & a cosy dinner with my close ones, marked my day! Thank You God for surrounding me with such a wonderful people & for once m not even thinking that I have to shift my base from Mumbai to Delhi for my soulmate....leaving all my family members, friends, acquaintance & my job.

Strong Medicine

Strong medicine is an amazing book. It gives you an insight on work-ethics of pharmaceutical industry. Miracle drugs save lives and ease suffering, but for profit-motivated companies, the miracle is the money they generate...at any cost.A successful drug could make fortunes overnight. One mistake and thousands could die. The pharmaceutical industry was no place for the faint-hearted. Or for a woman. But Celia Jordan had what it takes. Attractive, superconfident and disarmingly forthright, she knew how to get to the top in Fielding-Roth. The book reveals fascinating and disturbing drama as Celia Jordan overcomes male prejudice, politics, unscrupulous colleagues and heartbreaking tragedy in her relentless rise to be president of Fielding-Roth.

Language of Soul of the World!

No prize in guessing that I am reading Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist". Since I have been reading this book, I have been thinking too much about things like 'Language of the Soul', 'Soul of the World', 'Omen', 'Destiny of Life' and so on. I have started thinking about it and most importantly realised the importance of 'living in the present'. Also how all of us are so well equipped to chart out in unknown & create our destiny. How one should not stop hearing the Omens and regret later for not being courageous enough to acheive what one is destined for. This prevents us from miseries & afterthoughts of not doing what one always wanted to do cause of some constraints. It has freed me in more ways then other and has instilled in me courage to embark what I want to do, no matter how much I fear of failure for "Failure is the obstacles to success"

Happy Republic Day 2008!

It has been 8yrs since we are staying in Delhi, but had never been to India Gate during Republic Day. This time we decided to visit one as my daughter was interested in seeing the fighter planes as she's taken fancy for it. It was chilly Saturday morning when we started of for India gate. We encounter high security on road just a few meters from our house...though India gate was about 18kms from our house in dwarka. There was proper traffic management so that people take certain route to reach their alloted cabin booth. We reached on time to take a seat in front row. Although the prime minister's cabin was far from where we were seated & hence we missed all the action over that stretch. But the overall experience of watching different states cultural activities as well as missiles & armaments were too good. Their was parade by different states cantonment & finally a bike stunt show. Helicopters from above showered rose petals on the crowd from top. As we got exhausted & was moving towards parking to go home, their was final act of fighter plane for which my daughter had specially come. We managed to show her that too & that saved us from her questioning eyes as to why did we come here in first place, if we have to leave before the show is over? But any given day if I am given a choice to come again for Republic Day Celebration I would choose the comfort of my home as we get the best possible view of all the happenings.

Saturday Discovery

It was a usual Saturday morning. I woke up at my own pace, leisurely enjoyed breakfast & drank my cuppa of tea. Its been a ritual since quite a long time that Saturday was never spend at home unless we are having some guest over. But today their was no plan in place & I was cribbing to my hubby that our social life sucks. How I had been uprooted from my birth place & been separated from all my contacts, had we been in Mumbai, we would be having a rocking social life.

Anywayz after lunch their was impromptu plan to visit air-force museum, as my daughter was asking us to go for a long time now. So we packed up for the Saturday night out. Alas! when we reached to the destination it was staring blank on our face. We quickly read the board put outside it which read "Holidays on Monday & Gazetted holidays". Recollecting that today is Moharrum & probably thats the reason why the museum was closed, I informed my disappointed daughter that we will try to take her somewhere more exciting place then this. Although I had no clue where.

I started thinking where could my daughter can have more fun so as to forget the museum thing. I know she loves swings et al....but had just been to children's park last Saturday. Finally an idea of taking her to "Rail Museum" came to my mind, to which she whole-heartedly agreed. We had a great fun there & finally went to another happening place for my daughter called "Eatopia" at India Habitat Center. This is best eating joint to be in chilling evening as it has a cosy warm interior & children section is separate where they can play video games. So a family is most happy coming over here as it serves the purpose of parents as well as children.

While going out of this place I spotted beautiful paintings in the lobby. On close inspection I came to know that those paintings has been done by disabled children from umang organisation.

It was so beautifully done...you can take look here:



























Seeing those painting stirred my desire to once again take the easel & brush in my hand & do painting. I also got assured that in long run I have one skill to keep my self occupied apart from reading & watching movies.