Does life really change?

Does life really change after a baby is born????

This questions used to linger always in my mind...Now that I am a mother , I can answer this too...Partially yes but its all the way we take it through. A baby is no wonder,the gift of GOD...We as parents have more responsibility in catering to their needs..They are demanding at times and challenging too.. For the initial years , life takes a roller coaster ride. Mother's lose their individual self and just live for their new born. But as time progresses, if we start our own routine as per our needs, the baby gets accustomed to such a surrounding and starts understanding the parents too..

So life is beautiful even after a new addition to the family and we have to lead it as per our wish..

New year eve 2009

This is my last post in 2009..I resolve that I will be regular in 2010 in updating the happenings...New year resolutions are meant to be broken...So I do not have anything particular as of now..

Yesterday we made pani puri at home...The spirit and enthusiasm in maing it was tremendous and the dish als came out pretty well...

Wishing you all a cheerful and funfilled 2010...

Chennai Kutcheri Season

Good Morning!!

A good start today..Listening to Karaharapriya in the morning by T.M.Krishna.One of my favourites. I am drifted back to Chennai where it is the peak music season now.One will be totally confused as to which kutcheri or sabha to attend. I really miss that 2007 December experience. I used to somehow get permission from office and religiously attend to concerts in Music Academy or Narada Gana Sabha (closest to my house). There used to be 5 -6 hrs queue for buying tickets to listen to a Sanjay's concert in the Academy.

And a variety of music stalls , canteen. Oh what a life that was. Me and my Scooty..and am off to a concert..I wish I get another opportunity in my life to listen to a music in such a grandeur.

Vadam making in Nairobi

It is indeed a bliss to be with parents at this stage of my life...We miss them more when we are away from them and setting up our own family. I am fortunate to have them here in Nairobi for my delivery . Since we are so used to mother's cooking in younger days, it feels like heaven when I am eating her food after so many years. Hows standardized the tastes are. Today we made javarisi vadam and vaazhathandu karuvadam at home praying the almighty that it should be a sunny day. The reason am posting it is , whichever place we are, our food tastes do not change and I got reminded of the days when amma used to make such tasty vadam koozhu in huge quantities with all the strain to her hand and we used to dry them in the terrace. Today though the quantity is lesser, the taste and the method is still the same. Only difference is , myself and amma were thrilled to make them in African continent.

Govinda Govinda

Today I learnt a Purandaradasar krithi “Venkatachala Nilayam Vaikunta Puravasam” from my mother.Since childhood I have been listening to this song but never took an interest to learn it. But yesterday when amma was humming, I felt that I should learn it. This song is in Ragam Sindhubhairavi set in Aadi talam. It was made popular by out great maestro M.L.Vasanthakumari . When we like something, its natural to find out know more about it. The melody in the song is very soothing and makes one keep listening to it. I am thankful to my mother to have hummed it. Hurray! I learnt a new song!!

Juley to ladakh- Part II

We went to Khardungla which is the highest motorable road in the world at an altitude of 18380 ft. It provides excellent view of the Ladakh range as well as the Karakoram range on the other side. It is some 43 kms from Leh town but takes around 5 hrs to ascend. We had taken bicycles with us so that we can ride on our way down hill. And truly, I never dreamt that I could bike from that altitude. It was an experience of a lifetime to bike down the road from Khardungla to Leh. I felt as if I was on top of the world, like a bird flying with its wings outstretched. It was absolutely scenic with long ,beautiful ,winding roads and mountains very close and near.
Next trip was to Pangong lake. A pristine lake with deep blue waters, surrounded by tall mountain peaks.It lies in the Indo-China border with only one-fourth of the lake in India.The 4 1/2 hour drive(149 kms) from Leh to this lake passes through Chang la ,the third highest motorable road in the world. It was a sight to see the water freezing as it dripped down the mountain. What strikes the eye at first is the richest blue and greenish water with a "Garnet Hill" as the back drop where one can find raw, uncut garnets.
Our next journey was a white water rafting in the Indus-Zanskar range from Chilling (at Zanskar) to Nimmu through the Indus & Zanskar river confluence. This is one of the most exotic rafting expeditions in the world. The rafting on the Zanskar river passes through the steep gorges carved out by the river over countless years. The gorge has been referred to as the Grand Canyon of Asia by many explorers. The river is graded as Class IV, and it passes through very remote and difficult to access terrain of ladakh. The water was very cold (7 degree Celsius) and cold water gear like wet suits are necessary. This was my first rafting experience and absolutely brilliant. The confluence of the rivers was a sight to watch One is greyish and the other , brown. They merge and flow as Indus forming its tributaries and branches down the Himalayas.
The last event in our trip was the Ladakh festival which happens between September 1-15, every year. People from different tribes exhibit their culture and tradition with their traditional dances, archery competitions and processions.
Our 13 days trip was coming to an end. The Tibetan chants “Om Mane Padme aum” were still lingering in our ears. With that happy note, we boarded our flight back to Delhi from Leh. It is one of the most exotic locations in India, if one is ready for some adventure and can enjoy the serenity and tranquility of Buddhist culture. Our salutes to the ALMIGHTY who created HIMALAYAS.

Juley to Ladakh- Part I

Ladakh is a fascinating place to visit .The Great Himalayan Range spreads across with its colourful mountains. It was like a dream come true for me when we travelled to Leh from Delhi by road. Never have I seen nature at its best with beautiful landscapes and pollution free air. Himalayas are, without any doubt majestic. Mankind cannot create anything like this. Leh is the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh, now Leh District in Jammu & Kashmir State. We took the road from Manali (in Himachal Pradesh) to reach Leh (distance of 473 kms).It took us two days for the ascend with an overnight stop at Jispa. The route was spectacular with winding, narrow roads and military checkpoints. We had to cross various passes like Rohtang la, Tanglang la, Baralacha la, Chang la (La is a “pass”) which were ranging between 13000-16000 ft altitude. Excited with the thought that we will camp in Sarchu tents overnight, our journey from Manali started witnessing an awesome and scenic route.

Crossing Rohtang pass, we saw a huge traffic jam on the road. Being a single lane winding road one has to wait in case of a traffic halt. To see what caused the roadblock, we walked up to the epicenter. And gosh, it was a terrible landslide that had occurred the previous night due to rains and one stretch of the road was completely broken. All the more, there were trucks, military cantonment who had been waiting for more than 15 hrs trying to clear up the mess. I lost hope that we would continue our journey to Leh as it was a horrific sight to see. The traffic was halted for about 4 kms and one can imagine the plight of tourists and locals, since there are only two roads to reach Leh, one from Manali and the other from Srinagar. Also the daily cargo, essentials for the inhabitants in Leh were being transported via this route.

We chilled out in a nearby tea shop for sometime with some Maggi noodles. The traffic was clearing up very slowly. Hats off to Indian Army and the truck drivers who helped clearing up the mess. Atlast after 7 hrs of long wait, we started our ascend. All the plans of staying in Sarchu went for a toss and so we halted in Jispa. It was also a wonderful experience because we could see the moonlight (full moon day) falling on the river showing a silvery radiance in the water.

Reaching Leh(Little Tibet) we visited monasteries (called Gonpa),Leh palace, and Shanti Stupa(the sunset view is brilliant). Leh is small town, dominated by Tibetans situated at an altitude of 13000 ft. Its clean, unpolluted without any plastic bags.After 2 days of acclaimatisation, our real adventure started.