Luckynumber13_Chai

November was fast approaching and we had just enjoyed a series of celebrations for Diwali & Halloween. Almost everyday, there was thunder & lightening with heavy rain in the evenings. Ishika and I decided that we should make a handmade card for her dad's birthday, which was on the 1st of November. Since we don't follow a tradition of giving a gift to the adults in our house, we did not buy him one (How I wish I was a child again.....sob sob!) She looked through the internet and chose a picture and message that she wanted to draw. On the eve of the birthday, she had a fight with her dad about using a permanent marker which was strictly off limits. In order to have a clear handmade card, she needed to use it and fortunately, she managed to get hold of it. In the end, the card looked more like a father's day card than a birthday one :) ( Picture Below ) Later that night, when we got ready for bed, she asked me a question. Ishika: How will Acha*'s friends...

Though it's a continuation of my previous post about the Vietnam trip, I decided to talk a little about the day I landed and the weather. A very dear friend, Mr. R, was kind enough to give me feedback on my last post and said I could have included a few more details. So here it goes! We landed in Noi Bai airport and headed to the visa counter, which is on the opposite side of immigration. We had done our homework and hence, we just had to submit the visa application forms with a photo attached for each person. Then, we were expected to wait for the visa to be stamped on the passport. There were sofas to sit and wait patiently.  The immigration officers were neither friendly nor rude. Our  photo is flashed on the TV screen when the visa is ready and since mine was flashed for our group of 5, I felt like a TV star!  If you want to know the cost of the visa and accompanying documents, ask me in the comments! The dress code of the female airport staff were elega...

Hanoi is called The city of peace . I would much rather it be called the city of motorbikes. The BBC even did a story about it, with some amazing pictures in the link here:  https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-47908800 . It is easy to get around the city by renting a 2 wheeler and if you have driven in India, you will see familiar traffic sights on the roads. They have no lane discipline or rules. You just need to be smart to drive around without stress. The people of Hanoi are so relaxed and patient. No hustle or bustle. They love to do slow dancing in the middle of the street, in the park or beside the lake (see video below). It is more like a slower form of Zumba and am sure it has its own health benefits. On a Friday night, in the weekend eve, the Old Quarter town around the lake are closed to vehicles and the entire place gets filled with street performances, children driving their little rides around and playing, slow dancers and food stalls and little shops. Its lik...

Conversation between a mom and a child after a day at school goes like this.... M: Did you show the poster to the teachers? C: No, I forgot. M: How can you forget something that we spent a lot of time doing last night? C: Well, i just forgot. M: Do you know- only old people forget things that happened so recently? Are you old? C: No, i m N.E.W M:What? C: I am not Old, I m NEW. M rolls her eyes and chuckles.

Nee Hao (Hello) Singapore So green you are, yet so hot So many people, yet so clean So much plastic around, yet so close to nature So expensive, yet so laid back So may fun events to attend, yet so little marketing Nevertheless, waiting for that day when I give my heart completely to you It has been close to 2 months in a new country and I get asked this question often.  "How different is Singapore when compared to Dubai?" My answer is " I feel like I moved from Heaven to the Earth. Period." I am pinning down a few observations that I have made and experienced during my first couple of months in a country known as the "Red dot" on the world map. A city where Ground Floor is a Myth You know you are in S'pore when you get into the lift,  search for "G" to go to the Ground floor and can't find it. We like to start from 1. A city where the Rule on Escalators is to stand on the left and allow movement on the right...

Ever wondered what Tattoos' mean?   I have seen lovely tattoos' on some people and I am always attracted by those which have a hidden meaning. For me, tattoos have always been "Art that can be admired on others, but never on self" :-)   Reminds me of a tattoo which I saw once and it made me wonder what it meant. The story is set in Armenia. We were on a group tour from Yerevan to see the famous snow-capped Mt Ararat and the first church in the world. We met a couple, who sat beside us in the bus. They lived in York, UK. Maya was from America and John was from England. As the 4 of us were sitting in the last row of the bus, we had the most adventurous journey with the bus speeding over not-so-smooth roads over the Armenian mountains. I happened to notice a tattoo on Maya's arm, which read 'навсегда'. I tried to make sense of what it meant for a few hours and finally gave up and asked her. She said it means "frevor" in Russian. I ...

We did a home trip to India in May this year.  It was two weeks well spent.  Gappu liked it so  much that the night we landed and were getting ready to sleep, she started to weep.When asked what the matter was, she mentioned that she wished to spent 100 days in India. We were wondering what made her say the number 100. However, we couldn't blame her for thinking being pampered at home and playing all day, was way better than waking up at 6 am and going to school. And not to mention, the "army" style routine at home. Summer vacation was approaching and she told us that she wanted to go to India without any hesitation. Being away from mom and dad was the least of her worries. Dropped her in India and she has been having the best time of her life playing with neighbors, traveling in auto-rickshaws, bike and bus. Rain has also brought joy into her life, as she could use her favorite umbrella.  It is close to two months now and we told her to start packing...