The Sunny Side of Life

Is your child catching up on lost growth?

2016-07-03T04:04:00.001-07:00

Being a parent is not easy. It’s only after I became a mom I realized I am much more sensitive and emotional than I thought I was. I used to think I was pretty cool and patient but when you are a parent your patience is tried every single minute and so is your nature of worrying over little details of your child.

It’s important that the expecting mother eats well, rests well – everyone tells you that, isn’t it? I was told by a kind doctor one little advice which helped quite a lot. Doing long breathing exercise – no it’s not a prep for delivery. The more oxygen you inhale in, the more oxygen gets into the system of your baby and they put on weight better and faster.

There are many mothers who eat and rest well while expecting still their babies are born underweight. Some babies do catch up on gaining weight pretty soon, but some don’t manage to and are a step behind from reaching their weight and height milestones.

Did You Know?

After birth babies lose some weight and weighs lesser than their birth weight. It’s a natural phenomenon because they lose the excess water from their bodies. They can lose upto 10% of their birthweight in the first few days.

Thus the actual weight gaining mission starts from this lost weight mark.

Once solids are started after 6 months, some babies feed well, some absolutely hate the sight of food. My cousin sisters son didn’t eat anything till a year! I know some worried parents who have been facing this I-won’t-eat challenge for quite some time. When your tots don’t eat properly and they don’t meet the growth milestones on time, it can get pretty worrisome for parents.

You are constantly thinking of ways to feed your child, so that his height and weight is growing well and falling under the WHO growth standards. If they don’t catch up on their lost growth it might give rise to health problems as well as emotional problems for both the parent and the child.

As a parent, I will be worried about his health, his growth, his over-all well-being. But imagine the emotional set back your child might experience when they are in school and get bullied for being short or too thin in his class. What if they are not selected in a sports team because of being underweight!

My son wasn’t eating properly for some time now. I couldn’t make him eat anything. The only thing he was okay with was milk. Most children are okay with milk when they are flavored, I guess. If your child is between three and nine year old and is not falling under the growth standards you could try the Horlicks Growth+

Check in the calculator if they are falling under the standards.

Horlicks Growth+ is a specialized nutrition product for children who are lagging behind in height and weight. Whey protein and added nutrients enable children to catch up on lost growth. It has been clinically proven for visible growth in children within six months. Children tend to drink flavored milk better than normal milk, the chocolate and vanilla flavors would help in getting the glass wiped clean.

As a parent, all we want is our children to be healthy, normal and happy.

#AtoZChallenge 2016 Day 2 - B is Braving the Bumble!

2016-06-28T04:03:00.000-07:00

B is Braving the Bumble!

I like wearing freshly laundered and pressed clothes for work and I like ironing my clothes myself. But you know sometimes you are running late and need to iron in a hurry just before you step out.

So on this particular morning, I grabbed my formals which were drying out in the balcony and did quick ironing before I went for my bath.

Husband was still asleep as his work timings were very different. I wore my trouser and was buttoning up my shirt when I felt a sharp pain on the back of my left knee. This pain was strong and painful enough to get me screaming and jumping half dressed. It woke my sleepy hubby who could only muster “you’re screaming so loud!!”

When I tried to feel the area of pain I could feel something fluttering!

‘What the hell! What was in my pants! A cockroach!!!’

Those few seconds were hell… I hate cockroach.. or anything like that.

Indro came for help. I could feel he was grinning inside with my third eye I guess, and I was in a good mood to give that back but this flustering entity was the bigger problem at that moment. The pants were off in a second. And guess what came flying out – a bee!! A big fat black and yellow bumble bee!!!!

The sight of it was bad enough to get me screaming louder but the pain was worse.

Leg in pain, huge bee flying in the room – it was horror story for me.

I had to go to work, had an important morning meeting but the leg was in bad shape – swollen, red and burning. Damn that bumble bee!! I remembered applying vinegar would bring relief. Don’t know where I had heard that. Indro got the vinegar bottle from the kitchen in a flash and I fetched some cotton from the medicine chest. Just before application the label on the bottle caught my attention. It read Chili Vinegar!!!!

Can you imagine what would have happened?

Some after shave came to rescue and I limped till work later.

One brave bee, I tell you!

For more of such anecdotes from my life keep visiting throughout April.

Source

Do you have any experience with a bee or any other insect? Let me know. I’ll wait for your comment.

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 2 Letter B. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Should I say YES to The Datsun redi-Go?

2016-06-03T03:15:00.000-07:00

Cars are your best friends! Isn’t that true like the truth itself? For a long time I had this wish to have my own car – bought with my money. You start loving your car when it’s bought with your money and not dad’s money! And I did accomplish that as soon as I started working! My first, a hatch-back, came into my life some five years back.

Now I am thinking of upgrading. Though my first car will always be with me, but why not a second one. Should I go for a sedan? Should I go for a SUV? There are lots of options these days. I keep a tab of the new models that are going to get launched.

I came across this Datsun Redi – Go recently which is an urban cross. It looks and sounds interesting to me. It’s a fusion of compact crossover and an urban hatchback. Totally works for me. It looks wide, roomy, sturdy and sporty – just the car for this ready-to-go generation.

My drive till work used to be long and tiresome but since I am taking a break now for some time, I am more inclined towards a weekend drive or a long drive somewhere in the outskirts. I think the Datsun Redi-Go is going to fit that requirement perfectly.

I did a quick check on it’s site and figured out the Datsun Redi-Go has a lot to offer. I think the safety features are quite robust. It has performance augmented brakes – which is brakes at the shortest distance. You know how people on the roads are – specially bikes and autos – you need to keep your foot on the brake almost all the time. It also boasts of a reinforced crash protection shell. The strengthened Datsun body structure is optimized for Torsional Rigidity and stiffness and better Frontal Offset Crash performance. The H shaped Suspension System also looks good. It has double pivot arms to give high stability and cornering performance.

And it obviously has better legroom, sporty looks, spacious and beautiful interiors. I always look for good safety features in the cars. Taking it out for a spin would be really nice

I think it will be a pleasure to drive this one. I am thinking of booking a test drive soon. I love driving on the Electronic City Elevated Flyover. It’s a long flyover without a traffic signal! That’s like a heaven for all who love to drive. Just drive little faster than your normal traffic laced roads. You get to feel the power and smoothness of the car. But seriously I would like to drive all the way till Hosur or somewhere on a highway where you can drive for long uninterrupted, without thinking too much. I just want to feel whether the Redi-Go is going to give me as much love as I am willing to give it! Isn’t that a great idea?

I think it will be good to test it sometime soon. It looks like it is going to give me a good day of drive - Fun. Freedom. Confidence. The ultimate Urban Cross - Datsun redi-GO - the capability of a crossover with the convenience of a hatchback.

Have a look below

Book Review - Daughter of the Sun (Cult of the Cat series, Book 1) by Zoe Kalo

2016-05-01T03:44:00.003-07:00

Mythology and fiction always bring out a lot of imagination and creativity. I am a fan of this genre. I have loved a lot of reads in this genre. Daughter of the Sun, by Zoe Kalo is a mythological fantasy fiction with a backdrop of Egyptian mystical theme. After a long time I had a good fantasy read. Let’s see how the book was.

Cult of the Cat series blurb

According to ancient Egyptian prophecy, three feline goddesses—Bastet, Sekhmet, and Mafdet—would one day be reborn as triplets during a solar eclipse. But someone—or something—separated them at birth. Because if ever they were reunited, they would unleash a blistering power that could destroy the world. In an adventure where the past confronts the present, and blood, betrayal and secrets abound, the triplets face each other for the first time. And discover they’re the only force able to stop the evil god Apophis from enslaving humanity.

The Story

Trinity was left at an orphanage with a sealed note as a kid. She is raised by the nuns in the convent and for sixteen years she grows up with other orphans. Her life starts becoming eventful when one day Dr. Nassri comes searching for her at the orphanage and wants to take her to her grandmother who was alive and has been searching for her all her life.

She has a fleeting meeting with her grandmother in the Island of Cats, a small island near Istanbul, in the Sea of Marmara. But before she gets to know her the grandmother passes away. All that Trinity is left with was a mysterious eye-shaped ring and an island full of grieving cats. The sealed note that she was left with in the orphanage happened to be a papyrus with mysterious symbols which Trinity can’t decipher.

Trinity tries to solve the mystery of the papyrus and discovers a whole world of curses and sacrifices and a prophecy that points to her and her feline abilities.

She meets a handsome young man Seth and there is an instant connection. She is pulled into a vortex of sensations that forces her to confront her true self—and a horrifying destiny.

My thoughts

I like that fact how soon the author gets you engaged with the story. For some reason the way Trinity behaves her bravery, her open mindedness, her clean attitude in the first few pages makes a strong connection with the readers.

The story is intriguing – island of cats, feline affection, prophecy, mystery it’s all so enticing.

The plot thickens as you keep reading and the twists and turns only keeps you hooked to the book. I like the fact there is a romantic angle too in this mythological fantasy.

I like the author’s writing style and use of language. Sometimes when an author uses good words yet keeps the narrative simple it gives the reader a great joy in reading.

I am definitely looking forward to the second installment in the series. I am sure all readers would be looking for the same answers – what next?

About the Author – Zoe Kalo

A certified bookworm, Zoe Kalo has always been obsessed with books and reading. Reading led to writing—compulsively. No surprise that at 16, she wrote her first novel, which her classmates read and passed around secretly. The pleasure of writing and sharing her fantasy worlds has stayed with her, so now she wants to pass her stories to you with no secrecy—but with lots of mystery…

A daughter of adventurous expats, she’s had the good fortune of living on 3 continents, learning 4 languages, and experiencing a multicultural life. Currently, she’s working on a Master’s degree in Comparative Literature, which she balances between writing, taking care of her clowder of cats, and searching for the perfect bottle of pinot noir.

You can connect with her on www.ZoeKalo.com / Facebook / Twitter

My Rating: 4/5

I will give 4 stars for the use of wonderful language and keeping me engrossed till the end.

It is releasing today!

You can purchase it on Amazon

Book Details

Title: Daughter of the Sun
Author: Zoe Kalo
Version - e-book

ASIN: B01DRDUQW8
Language: English
Release Date: 1 May 2016

This Review is a part of the Blogger Outreach Program by b00k r3vi3w Tours

ZZZ LONG ZZZ

2016-04-30T01:14:00.000-07:00

Okay tell me how long have you slept in a day? Ever?

After my school final exams I was exhausted, like really exhausted with the last minute studies and back to back exams. I remember our last exam was maths exam (which I completely hated) and I just wanted to go home and eat and sleep and not think about exams for a long time. The pressure of exams in India is a trauma almost.

The math exam didn't go quite well but I didnt want to tell that to my parents - it would have only led to another big discussion and bouts of tension and my mom sulking. So i said - it was good.

I went back home in the evening around five ate my food and told my mom I am going to bed, i want to rest. Like any other good mom, she obliged. She must have thought - my daughter has come back after climbing the Everest, let her get some rest! LOL

Yeah, I slept and slept and slept.

I woke up next day after lunch time!

My mom had tried to wake me up for dinner the previous night, but she told me later I just turned and went back to sleep. The next day for breakfast I said don't disturb!

I almost slept for 20-22 hours in that day and a half!

That by far for me has been the longest snooze time.

Did you ever sleep really long?

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My god, the A to challenge is finally over?? Now I want some more zzz

Yummy Arabian Masala

2016-04-29T06:38:00.000-07:00

As a kid who has been born and brought up in Kolkata I wasn’t pretty good with Hindi. We had it as the third language in school. Communicative Hindi was ok but that was mostly from watching TV and movies.

We spent a few weeks in London some time in 2006. My dad used to stay in the UK as a practicing doctor after finishing his FRCS in Edinburgh. He wanted to take us around places that he had lived and visiting during his decade long stay.

For some reason we wanted to visit Southall. As a resident there my dad had never visited Southall. We took a bus from the Victoria Station and begun our Southall trip. We also were aiming at a nice Indian Lunch.

We were at a restaurant called Chandni Chowk. I was being extra smart and wanted to order something different. For some reason the Arbi Masala sounded pretty fancy. I thought it would be some nice spicy Arabian preparation. I have no idea why I thought an Indian restaurant would be serving an Arabian preparation.

Guess what the waiter got for us – it was colocasia!! We call it kochu in Bengali and I absolutely hate it! That was a double facepalm moment!

Never ever in my life will I get even close to anything called Arbi!!!

Image Source

Xtra Smart

2016-04-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

This is one more story from my school times. When you are in your teenage years all you want is acceptance and attention. Less attention from your family (read: protective parents) and more attention from peers and friends and boys!

We used to have this fete at our school which was like a Valentine’s Day for us – I was in an all-girls school! That was the only day when boys, men women everyone was allowed and you know well by now who got most attentions!

Every girl in the eighth to twelfth standard prepared for this day in advance! Picking your outfit, handbag, time to hit the grounds - those were not the days when girls were quite allowed to sport makeup and fancy hair. Otherwise those would have been in the list too! We never had things like prom or anything, nor was the society too liberal for a date between two young school going people! And they were also not the time of easy access to cellphones!

Anyways, the best part used to be the competition between the girls – who got how many phone numbers! Yeah as silly as it may sound, we used to feel we were extra smart and if boys came and left their number with you – you have really achieved something. I now feel it is the dumbest silliest thing to ever think of – but you, know TEENAGE!

So one particular year I had collected quite a few numbers. These used to be landline numbers (no cellphones remember!) In return we always gave fake numbers, at least I did. I couldn’t even imagine a random guy calling me up and my mom picking up the call!

But this one time with someone I slipped and ended up giving my actual number. I don’t know how. And guess what this guy called up that very night and my mom picked up the phone! FACEPALM!

Got a good lecture at the end of the day too!

Image Source

Wild Surprise in Wayanad

2016-04-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

Last week I wrote about our surprise encounter with a tiger from the wild in Kumaon Surprise. Today let me share another wild encounter story. We were on our way back from Wayanad, a little hill station in Kerala to Bangalore. Read my Wayanad Story.

You have to cross the Bandipur Tiger Reserve on your way. While driving back we saw a few cars parked on the side of the highway. This isn’t a place you park your car! Instead of stopping and adding to the queue we decided to drive past few cars.

What we saw ahead was a sight to remember. A wild elephant had some out of the forest and was being busy by the road. Two guys on a bike decided to show their bravado or rather foolishness and decided to tease the big guy. They honked and made weird sounds. The elephant was silent for some time. But then I guess he too quite had it!

The poor animal was getting irritated with the sound and in a split second charged towards them. The guys on bike tried to speed off! In the heat of the moment they almost did a willy to vanish from there.

Sometimes I feel bad how humans try to find amusement by instigating the wild animals! I managed to click a photo of the elephant while he was retreating to the forest!

Visit my Food Blog for some Healthy Recipes this entire month!

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 23 Letter W. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Very Fat Lady

2016-04-26T04:42:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it’s so funny that people don’t realise the obvious. I was in Kolkata last year before my baby was born. I was 7 months pregnant when my uncle left us for the heavenly abode. It was a moment of shock for most of us since he was one of the nicest men around and loved by everyone – young or old. We held a prayer meet and funeral according to Hindu rites where many dropped by because my uncle was quite famous amongst his peers.

I was already tired and exhausted with his loss, the funeral and my health. I was sitting down quietly at a corner not wanting to talk to many people. At this time one of the distant family relative came and asked how I was, when I came from Bangalore, why my husband didn’t come and other rubbish.

She also said – you have become full ‘ginni’ (Bengali term for expert wife). You have become very fat, husband is showering you with love!

I could only give a blank dry smile. But inside I wanted to scream – ARE YOU BLIND???

Carrying a baby is no joke and people do put on weight. Why is it so difficult for people to see the obvious?

I laugh over it now, but that time I wanted to answer back!

Image Source

Visit my Food Blog for some Healthy Recipes this entire month!

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 22 Letter V. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Ultimate Mallu Avatar

2016-04-25T08:12:00.000-07:00

We were visiting Kerala once when my cousin sister was getting married there. A day after the wedding the newly-wed couple had thrown a houseboat party. I am always fascinated with the Malayalam food, their culture and their simplicity. The ladies wear these beautiful white and gold cotton sarees which are so typical of the place! I had bought one with pink embroidery. I wanted to dress up like a Malayali woman for the houseboat party.

Gold chain, gold bangles, long hair and white and gold saree – the perfect attire of a Malayali woman. It surprised quite a few people in the family but the funniest part was when the local people we met on the way to houseboat started speaking to me in Malayalam. May be they thought I am one of their own!

I didn’t complain though!

P.S. I was really thinking hard what can I write for today. Then Facebook showed this memory from 4 years back! It saved my day!

Visit my Food Blog for some Healthy Recipes this entire month!

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 21 Letter U. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Tricking the Thief

2016-04-23T08:35:00.000-07:00

I was at work when my husband whatsapped to inform some foreign currency was missing from the bed side table drawer! He was back from his work trip just a day back. When I was back home we searched the entire drawer and our cupboards but still some 250 USD were missing. But more than that what was worrying me was when I couldn’t find one of my gold bangle which was also there in that same drawer!

Theft at house! Who could it be?

Next day I rounded up my cook and questioned him. I told him I am going to question my maid too and then go to Police, they’ll then investigate. All I wanted was one sign of fright on their faces to know who the hell was so smart!

The mention of police made my housemaid’s face all white. This was what I was waiting for. I went to the association office to get her details but unfortunately they were having her old details. You know, how carelessly these things work in India!

She thought she could outsmart me and got the bangle with her that evening when she came for work and kept it behind the bed. She picked it up and told me – “madam, it was lying behind the bed and you are worrying about it.”

She just never realized I was standing right behind her and watched her entire act!

I was furious that not only she stole in my house, she was trying to act super smart. Things like this doesn’t go down well with me. I still had to recover my dollars. I had already fired her from work that evening. But I was adamant o get the dollars back and report to the cops.

I followed her secretly to her house – which wasn’t a pleasant place at all. It was a dingy wet slum area. My husband tried to stop me but I was sure I wanted to know where she lived exactly so that I could report to the cops. I carried an umbrella with me. Yeah, that was for self-defense!

There was a heated conversation in front of her house where she claimed she didn’t have the money, then she didn’t have the keys to her cupboard etc etc. But I was so furious and so angry that she probably got scared. My poor husband who had followed me to see if I was safe was also scared I guess by that time.

While searching for the money – I found my iPod in her cupboard! It was just the fuel I needed to explode. My further searches revealed it was not just one day she had picked up randomly she has been doing that for months or may be years! My husband’s iPod nano was also there and so were my clothes, watches, coffee mugs, earrings and god knows what not!

I went to report it to the cops next day. Instead of filing an FIR they were surprised I had recovered all the stolen material from the house! They had even suggested me to submit al that I had recovered in the police station before they start questioning her.

That’s even more risky I guess!

She had sent people from her community to threaten me – but yeah neither me or my husband give a damn about such things.

Sometimes I feel I was lucky she had not sold off the bangle. It would have been a big loss. I still don’t know how and when she took my stuffs, maybe I had to be more careful and I try to be that now.

Have you ever faced such a situation? Recovering your stolen stuff or tricking the thief?

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 20 Letter T. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Surprising Statistics

2016-04-22T06:36:00.000-07:00

This for once is not about any travel incident. I was writing the post yesterday and thinking why is that all funny things happen while I travel! Then I thought hard to remember things from school and college. Then I remembered about my statistics paper! God it is a story indeed.

I have always hated maths or anything remotely related to it. I deliberately had chosen to study of media and communication so that there was no mathematics, binary or whatever. I had done my graduation on Sociology but to my surprise we had a paper on statistics in my final year. Can you imagine my horror! Anyways I managed with that.

I had shifted to Bangalore doing my post grad in Media Studies and I was focusing on my studies because the good degree will help in a good job! In my third semester I got to know we were having a statistics paper! Ohh God, not again! Why was this damn statistics not leaving me! We were being taught by this strict old professor from the Department of Stats and he wasn’t pleasant to the eyes or ears!!

For some time I used to think what the hell am I going to do coeffiencts , theorems and chi-squares! (OMF I still remember these). We even had to learn and use software for solving things! Really statistics software!!

I tried really hard not to sleep in the class and get used to doing things. The old man was quite strict but little helpful. Before the final semester exams I was sure I didn’t want to fail. So I sought help. All the girls in my PG were engineers and my roommate was a finance girl. What better place could I get for help!

I borrowed a scientific calculator from one of the girls too. I was still not very confident on the day of the exam. I still remember doing back calculations on the calculator which had a function of formulae!!

When the results were out for the paper, it was hung up in our class notice board. I heard there are two sections in the result sheet. The last significant section was with the names who had to re-appear – they had a back in the paper – basically people who had flunked the test. I ws pretty sure I would be there. But somewhere in the back of my mind I thought maybe not. I had attempted some 88 mark questions. I didn’t even attempt which I couldn’t do. There’s no point in making a fool of oneself and proving to the professor what an idiot you are. It’s not a subjective paper at all!

Three of my friends along with me went to check the notice – one of them was in that famous list. But I didn’t see my name anywhere! This list was not according to the roll number somehow. The other friend slapped on my shoulder and said – “what the hell, you said you didn’t know anything about stats and you scored 85!!!!”

85!!! What?? WTH?? Where???

My name was up on the list at third I guess, where I hadn’t even checked!

I was super happy! But got a lot of frowns from my friends!!

I am still thankful to my friends in PG.

Any thing sounds alien to me now!
Image Source

Have you been scared to death about any subject as a student?

Meanwhile checkout a super healthy soup in my cook blog

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 19 Letter S. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Runaway Bride

2016-04-21T03:46:00.002-07:00

Well this isn’t exactly a runaway bride story as you have seen in the movie. One of my very close friend A was getting engaged in Dec 2010. We have been friends for a few years after I met her in my PG accommodation. She’s from Kerala and that’s where she was having her engagement and of-course we were all invited.

A girl trip to Kerala was a very exciting idea. Too exciting and happening to miss out on it. So we booked our tickets and I had already applied for leaves at work. My other friend R called my twice to confirm if I was sure about this. And I said a big YES.

We reached my friend’s house in Kerala early in the morning on the day of the engagement. This was the first time I was witnessing a South Indian Engagement. It was a grand affair but got over pretty soon, very different from our weddings and customs.

Later in the evening we were helping my friend unpack the gifts and have a chat with her mom and relatives. My friend was obviously very happy that we made it there. She told her mom, she never expected me to be present.

“Why” aunty had asked.

“She is getting married in 5 days, and she’s here attending my engagement here!” said my friend in a flash.

“You are getting married in 5 days and you are here???”

Everyone in her family was surprised!

They couldn’t understand how come a bride was missing from her wedding scene 5 days before her marriage! We had a blast touring various places afterwards. The best part was everywhere I went my friends and her parents took extra care than I don’t fall, trip, injure myself. Aunty was caring enough to tell me use a hat don’t get a tan!

For my wedding in Kolkata, everything was getting planned and done by my parents. And I thought its best not to take too much stress. The girl trip was very exciting to miss. I reached Kolkata three days before my wedding. Though my mom wasn’t very happy about the idea of me reaching so late, I conveniently told her it didn’t have much leave!

P.S. My parents or anyone in the family still don’t know about this trip before the wedding!

The two Brides to be

Few in the Girl Gang

Queen

2016-04-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

I was quite young when we visited Darjeeling, the famous hill station in the north of West Bengal. I was with my parents and another family of friends. Back then it was quieter and cleaner in Darjeeling. I was not more than 8 or 10 year old. Yeah I was a kid.

When you visit this hill station a horse ride around the hill is a ritual – like every person has to do it. I was a kid and super excited to see the horses. Well they stink quite a lot.

My parents were enjoying a good sip of the Darjeeling tea at a café in the central area when I went on my first long horse ride. These horses are I guess trained to walk on that 2 inches space that you have between the road and the slope downside. You will be feeling as if they are going to jump down and push you towards your unplanned suicide.

There was this young boy, not more than 17-18 who was the owner of the horse and was walking along the horse. I am not sure owner or care taker or what, but he was now responsible of my wellbeing till I was back at the center.

That guy kept speaking non-stop in Hindi (I wasn’t too fluent in Hindi back then). About his family, his house, his horse and god knows what not. When he had asked me my name and where I was coming from I had told him without thinking anything. I don’t know why he wanted this horse ~~ride~~ walk not to end at all!

I on the other hand was worried on two things first the horse was may be half a centimeter away from the slope and this guy walking by the horse was getting on my nerves and I was not getting any good feeling.

This is when he said – “bhag chalo mere saath… I will make you my queen” (Run away with me, I’ll make you my queen).

This was the moment of shock, surprise, and terror all at once. And I was a kid.

The only thing ran in my mind was – I have no idea where I am, there’s no one around, and this isn’t something good. That sixth sense of a girl was inside me quite early I guess.

I thought, the best thing I could do that time was not respond to him at all. And guess what I did, I started singing. I sang our school assembly song loud and clear!! I had no idea what else I could do. He kept on saying weird things but my ears were not party to them at all.

All I wanted was to get back to the central area and away from this mad man.

And I did, in another 15 minutes I guess and simply ran towards my mother. But I don’t know why I never told this to my parents. In fact I have never told this to anyone! But this isn’t a happy memory for me somehow!

Have you ever faced such a situation when you are uncomfortable with someone’s presence or advances?

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This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 17 Letter Q. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Pandal Hopping Mess

2016-04-19T00:06:00.001-07:00

Durga Puja is the biggest celebration of the Bengali’s. More than being a festival it’s an emotion and part of our identity for Bengalis. It’s five days of fun, food, pandal hopping, meeting friends, attending cultural programs, new clothes and a lot of fun.

For those readers who are not aware about a ‘Pandal’ – it is the temporary outer structure where the idol is kept and worshiped. It is decorated and lit up in the most beautiful ways. Every locality of the city has their own Pujas and their own Pandals. These days they are crazy for themes.

When we were younger we were crazy about visiting pandals and almost made lists of how many we are going to visit. When you want to visit numerous pandals across the city you have to be geared with map and mark the routes. Since these pandals crop up on roads and streets many roads are blocked for those 5-6 days and traffic is diverted. In short – if you have not visited Kolkata during pujas then you will not understand it!

Now, you already know how prone I am to getting lost. You missed that part, did you? Worry not, read my lost stories.

This one time all of us cousins had planned to visit a few pujas late in the night. Durga Pujas are whole night affairs, in anyways. I was the youngest in the group of 12. That Time I myself was some 10-11 year old. We were led by my eldest cousin brother who was big enough that time. This particular pandal is very famous for their decorations every year and each day of the festival they usually have a footfall of more than a lakh people.

You don’t even need to walk because you’ll be invariably pushed by the crowd. We entered the pandal through the entry way and within minutes we had to walk out along with the crowd in the same flow through the exit. There were two exits one to your left and one to your right. Once you are out and in that flow of the crowd there’s no way you can go in the opposite direction. It’s like a human river.

Me and three of my cousins came out through the left exit way and stood near one of the stalls waiting for the others to come out. Time flew, thousands of people passed by my other cousins were still not out. We got a little worried. Those were not the days of mobile phones. We realized they must have gone out of the other exit. I made one of my brothers climb up a wall of a nearby house to check if he can see the other group over the sea of crowds! We didn’t spot anyone familiar.

After almost 45 minutes we visited the inquiry box and made an announcement – “Amitava Bose, who has come from Behala, your young brothers and sisters are waiting for you at the inquiry box please contact immediately”. [It sounds hilarious now, but we had to do all this back then.]

I was the only one in the small group of four who stayed in Kolkata. The others stayed in different cities and were visiting Kolkata during the Puajs. Imagine my plight. Even after waiting for a long time we didn’t see or hear anything from the other group. We searched for our car at the parking, the cars were missing too. We thought they must have forgotten about us!

One of our house was nearby and we decided to walk. But waking up someone at 2:30 AM in the night and announcing we are lost wasn’t a great idea. We waited in the garage amidst mosquitoes and light flies hoping this other group will come there looking for us.

But then we had to ring the bell and wake my grand mom up who came down worried with the bell ringing at that deathly hour. Guess what few minutes after ringing the bell we heard the cars honking and the other group barging in!

How I wish we had mobile phones back then!

This is how crowded it gets
Image Source

Meanwhile check out a crunchy salad recipe

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 16 Letter P. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Out in the Space

2016-04-18T09:44:00.001-07:00

Well no, I have not done a Space tour or visited the ISS. I am not a rollercoaster person at all. I always feel I will fall down and break a leg or smash my head. It’s not that I have a fear of heights but I have a fear of falling down specially from these roller coasters. I was in Disneyland in Paris sometime in 2005 or 2006 and if you have visited a Disneyland you will know it has these wonderful lands – Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland and so on.

This Tomorrowland has all sorts of weird rollercoasters. I was being pretty happy with the castles, Tarzan’s tree house, trains and shows. Frankly, one day at the park is too less a time! A friend dragged me to this craziest ride called SPACE MOUNTAIN. I was not too keen on it. But \since everyone was rushing towards it I too joined the queue. You cannot see this ride from outside. All you can do is he people screaming their lungs out. This is a complete covered ride. As I got closer to the entry gates I could see the people of the last ride getting down. Few were puking, few were all red (from all that screaming I guess), few were crying and some looked disillusioned! I told my friend – you go ahead I am leaving the queue – there’s no way I’m doing this to myself willingly!

This is that dreadful ride! Source

He still dragged me and made me sit in that god damn ride!

The ascend itself was at a steep angle and we were taken up to some 5^th floor height I think. And after that all I remember is I thought my heart was already outside my body, I am neither hanging or sitting, I couldn’t shut my eyes any tighter and the guy beside me was laughing!!!!

He even told me “open your eyes and see the space”

Really

If I could I would have jumped and hung on to a rope or the scaffolding – practically anything and escape that ride.

I did open my eyes for a split second and I guess a meteor whizzed pass me. The commentary in French behind the seat wasn’t helping me either!

This torture (for me) lasted for how long – I have no idea. I even screamed – “I don’t want to die!”

By the time we were down and the ride stopped I was shaking. The attendant and my friend had to hold and support me to get out of that seat. I didn’t howl or swear at everyone around was the saving grace!

I have been to Disneyland Hong Kong after few years and STEERED CLEAR of everything that remotely even looked similar to that Space Mountain.

Did you have a similar experience at a rollercoaster in an amusement park? Believe me I am scared of the oscillating Pirate Ships too!

Seriously I didn't even go back to look at my photos. They would have been worse than this!
Image Source

Meanwhile check out a gluten free breakfast recipe

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 15 Letter O. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

No Fish Fry

2016-04-16T03:36:00.000-07:00

We Bengalis are very sentimental about our fish. We eat fish like every day and if given a choice then in every meal. We have like some cosmic connection with fish. Ask a Bengali to be without having fish for a week he might find it is absolutely okay to murder you!

Here in Bangalore there are apartment complexes where they don’t allow non vegetarians. Imagine a Bengali trying to get a house for rent over there. Back in 2011 when we were looking for a place for rent we skipped all the properties that were listed with – prefer vegetarians.

My in-laws were visiting us one time and we had gone to Coorg for a quick holiday. For us food is a big part of any holiday. We were staying at a resort which was supposedly a good one over there. During one of the dinners my father in-law wanted to order fish fry. The restaurant in the resort didn’t have any fish fry apparently. They served only seer fish (which is a sea fish, and we are river water fish eating people) and that too only for lunch!

This is something that’s almost unacceptable for a Bengali.

“You don’t even have a fish fry?” asked my father in-law.

“No sir, no fish fry”

What worthless restaurant you are, we all thought inside!

Source

Have you too faced such a situation where you are sentimental about a particular food?

Meanwhile check out my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 14 Letter N. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Macau or somewhere else?

2016-04-15T03:08:00.000-07:00

Looks like all sorts of funny incidents happened in my life while I am travelling. I was going through my own posts this month and I can see most of these are my travel stories! LOL.

We were visiting Macau and Hong Kong sometime in the year 2008. We had to take a ferry to reach Macau from Honk Kong. This is one of a kind ferry though! We were asked by the local guide at Hong Kong to get down at the last stop and a driver would be waiting at the terminal for us with our name.

It’s actually difficult to follow the English that a Chinese origin person speaks. But we did catch the word ‘last stop’.

The ferry was supposed to stop at two terminals. We got down at the second one. It was sometime around 7 or 8 in the evening local time. By that time we had got a message from the driver that he was waiting outside for us. We came out and started searching for the placard with our name. Didn’t see any familiar name. Those days there weren’t Matrix cards (at least we were not carrying any!) My phone was on international roaming. But in the roaming things were also funny that time. I was using a pre-paid connection that time. I could send and receive SMS and ONLY receive calls and couldn’t do outgoing call. Thank god we have better options these days with WIFI available everywhere.

We spent over an hour looking for the driver. If you have visited this Macau you’ll know it’s a city of Casinos and tourists. Just outside the terminalwas the runway of the only airport there. While waiting for the driver we watched planes taxing in the tiny airport.

We sought the help of the tourist police there. He called up the driver and some words with him.

What he told next caught us in surprise.

“Your driver is waiting for you in Macau”

We were a little dumbfounded – where the hell were we if the driver was in Macau!!!

“Is this not Macau?” asked my dad now sounding worried.

Mom was tensed so was I – where the hell did we come?

“This is Taipa!” said the police

Taipa, now where was that?

The police explained Taipa is another island in Macau about 20 minutes away from the terminal where we landed up. This is the place you get down if you are visiting MGM or Venetian.

He asked us not to worry since he instructed the driver to pick us from our current position.

Thankfully, we didn’t land up in some weird place!

Have you ever been in such a situation? Reached somewhere else by mistake instead of your destination?

Meanwhile check out a quick salad

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 13 Letter M. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Lost

2016-04-14T02:08:00.000-07:00

While travelling if you have not got lost and don’t have a lost story to tell, were you even travelling? I have a history of getting lost or getting separated from the group of people, or losing something important, like everywhere. It’s either I am getting lost or my parents or my friends! I thought why not share few glimpses of that today.

Vanished in Venice

We were in Venice, right in front of St. Mark’s Basilica mingling with people and waiting for our turn to enter the cathedral. We had some nice sandwich and cappuccino at a café at the Piazza and were pretty excited to be in Venice in the first place. Just before entering the cathedral I touched my sling bag (this was in 2006 or 2005 – I don’t quite remember – and sling bags were not in fashion, it was a small pouch bag with a long sling like strap) to see if everything was in place. I sometimes get this OCD rush when I am travelling. And guess what happened? The sling was there over my shoulder but the pouch was missing! WTF?? Where the hell was my bag. I was in Italy and that pouch had some Euros and my Passport!!!!

Two things ran through my mind – my parents will probably disown me if I lose the passport and I might be deported back to India that very moment! I was super scared to report this to my parents even. I was what twenty year old that time. I even asked them to go ahead with the Basilica and I’ll join them in a while. But my dad understood something was wrong because I had turned al red! For twenty minutes I searched almost everywhere, from the café to the entrance of the church! It was finally another kind Indian Lady who came searching for me, she had found my purse. She was searching for me to help me out. Madam you saved me that day thank you!

Absent in Acropolis

If you have visited Acropolis or anywhere Athens, Greece you will know it’s just tourist tourist tourist. Everyone wants to click a photo first and then see everything else. I was also young and carefree when I visited and climbed the place up much faster than our friends and my parents. All I wanted was someone to click my photo with the nice backdrop. Then I realized the camera was with my mom. (those were not the days of iPhones and smartphones).

But where the hell was my mom, or my dad? They were tugging behind the last I remembered. But I didn’t see anyone! There were scores of tourists but not the people I was looking for. I went down the underground museum in search of them. They were not there as well. I think for an hour I left everything and kept searching for my parents. The other thought at the back of my mind was – they must be worried about me too, their only daughter was lost, and lost in Greece! This time my passport was not even with me – I started trusting my documents with my dad after my Venice experience. I forgot about the photos and everything else. I even reached the parking lot. I saw our bus parked; I thought maybe I can take the driver’s help to report to the police! And then guess what – my parents were seated inside the bus!!!

They roamed around everywhere, finished the sightseeing and were waiting for me in the bus – supposedly! I still don’t know who was lost – me or them. And I don’t have a single photo of mine at Acropolis!

There are many such incidents that I can write about, but may be later. Tell me when was the last time you got lost in an unknown place?

Seriously. Source

Meanwhile check out a super grilled salad

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 12 Letter L. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Kumaon Surprise

2016-04-13T01:10:00.000-07:00

We were visiting the Jim Corbet national Park in 2002. Having read several books by Jim Corbet I was more than eager to encounter some man-eaters , or even deer eater tigers of the Kumaon. For those of you who are not aware – Kumaon region of Northern India is famous for its tigers and leopards and they were made even more famous by the legendary Jim Corbet when he decided to pen down his trysts with them in the jungle way back in the 1940s.

Coming back to 2002, we were visiting the national park from Nainital and were at the gates by the morning for our safari ride. We didn’t go for the safari at the deathly hours though which is around 3 AM I think!

The guide there had said you will get to see this and that and blah blah in the jungle. But we were most interested in the big cat! Throughout our day long safari we saw – wild boars, elephants, countless deer, one peacock, several birds, a supposedly big snake’s nest (it was only the opening of a burrow that we saw) and some other animals. But no big cat! Such a waste.

The guide kept showing random impressions on mud as pug marks – we were totally dejected. May be it was not in our luck.

We were on our way back to Nainital. Roads in the hill are tricky – if you don’t know the way you can either bump your car on the hill or go down the bottomless pit!! We were travelling in a Maruti Van – those were popular in those days. My dad was half asleep in the front seat beside the driver, mom was looking outside her window though the glass was slid closed – it was November and cold there. The only glass that was open in the car was by my side – because I was feeling dizzy with the hill drive and wanted fresh air. Music was on in the car stereo and drifting thoughts in my teenage mind that time.

Suddenly the brakes screeched and we were all jolted back into the action and heard the driver yelling – “Dekho dekho tiger dekho!” [look at the tiger]

In that half asleep state dad asked “Tiger, where?”

I had almost sprung up from the seat and lodged myself above the gear box to see ahead. There it was a huuuuge majestic tiger. The tail was probably as long as the body. He had climbed down the hill, was crossing the road to get down the sides. The driver had put the headlight on brightest and thus the tiger stopped on his way with so much light on its eyes. In those two seconds I remembered I should click a photo and was searching for the camera in my bag. But the tiger had other plans. He roared and took a step ahead. That roar is something I’ll never forget in life!

It was enough to scare the driver who had put the gear in reverse by that time. And then there was darkness. Darkness and silence apart from the sounds of insects. The driver had pressed so hard on the clutch in that moment of fear he forgot he had pulled his hand break earlier to marvel at the tiger! All lights were off, the car was not starting – there was a total silence for a moment.

My mom started screaming – Tina close that damn window!

Dad – There can be more tigers, I can its eyes glowing at us.

The driver was already saying his Hanuman Chalisa.

It was a risky and scary situation. It was already dark outside with a broken car and an almost angry male tiger ahead (yeah it was male because I had spotted his THING) and god knows if he had few more friends following him. If another car came from behind it could hit us and we all could be down the slope with the tiger and his friends and be their dinner.

We could see the glowing eyes turning and going down the slope. We also felt that musty smell was gone too. That’s when I realized that tigers smelt horrible!

My dad asked the driver to go and check what was wrong in the car but he was too scared to do that. Thankfully it was a van and he went at the rear of the car through our seats! Finally we figured out some wire had gotten loose which had cut all power supplies. He had managed to fix that within the car.

The driver later said this was the first time in his career of 17 years as a taxi driver in that road that he had seen a tiger. He said – “aap to bohot lucky ho, aisehi tiger dekhneko nahi milta” [you people are lucky, you don’t get to spot a tiger just like that].

Yes we were lucky to see a wild tiger and in the most unexpected way. Guess, the tiger wanted to surprise us! This is an experience three of us will not forget.

I don't have any photograph of that tiger, but frankly somethings are so deeply etched in your mind that you don't even require a photo!

source

Meanwhile check out a breakfast smoothie

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 11 Letter K. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Just too hot to handle

2016-04-11T23:11:00.003-07:00

One of the best part of work is traveling. I visited quite a few cities which were new for me. I was in Vizag for a few days for some work.

Vizag or Vishakhapattanam is a port city in Andhra Pradesh, South Eastern India, best known for its wonderful beaches and Naval activities.

On this particular day, the team suggested a place for our lunch - according to them it was the best Biriyani place there! I think I was there in 2014. It was the month of June or July - it was hot, humid, sultry. The kind of weather which I completely hate! And biriyani in that weather was not on my mind. I still said yes because three hungry men were all enthusiastic about it.

They ordered this pot biryani for themselves. I asked the waiter to suggest me something less spicy. Andhra food in anyway is super spicy. He suggested biriyani invariably. I thought of trying a coastal curry with steamed rice. The waiter suggested there's hardly any spice - it's prawn cooked in coconut milk and tempered with red chili.

I was happy with the description and promptly ordered that.

"Special se banana madam ke liye, pehli baar ayi hai humare yahan", instructed one of the TSI. [Make it specially well for madam, she is visiting our city for the first time]

These guys surely wanted to impress their madam with their hospitality.

Our food was served in sometime. The three hungry men dived into their pot biriyanis and I tasted my coastal curry.

The rice was steaming hot, the curry was hot.

My tongue was on fire, ears turning warm and red....

I was trying very hard to hold the tears in my eyes...

But not for two long...

Eyes, nose everything started running in moments!

The supposedly mild coastal curry probably had only one thing - guntur chili!!!!

That's supposed to be very very hot chili. And I am not a chili person at all.

All I wanted to do that time was run in any direction possible and stick my tongue in ice.

I gulped down water - it didn't help.

There was a ketchup bottle - I had a spoonful of it - it didn't help either.

The men in front thought their madam must have gone mad! One of them tasted the curry and said - "isme kahan mirchi hai?" [where is the chili in this?]

I was like :O don't you guys open your mouth.

Finally it was a big ice cream sundae that came to the rescue and my only lunch!

I probably should have stuck to the biriyani!

My savior to control the damage!

Meanwhile check out a refreshing drink

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 10 Letter J. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

#AtoZChallenge 2016 Day 9 - I say happy Halloween

2016-04-11T00:22:00.003-07:00

In India we hardly celebrate Halloween. It’s only now that I see kids in my apartment complex come for a treat or trick session in groups! Well I am not sure what tricks they have ready. LOL.

Halloween was not there in my childhood either! But I was always kind of interested in it specially after these Hollywood movies. I was also lucky to witness the Halloween parade when I went to Disney Land, Paris in the month of October. Instead of the regular Disney parade at the end of the day they have this Halloween parade throughout the week. It was pretty cool to see that for the first time.

A year back I had a sleepover at my house. My besties V and R were visiting Bangalore and we had quite a nice time. It was incidentally also Halloween that day. Now, Halloween is never complete without some great make-up.

For last few years I have been trying my hands at make-up. You may say, new found creativity interest of mine. So I thought let’s get painted! We all are a crazy bunch in anyway and any crazy idea always clicks with us!

Kohls and lipsticks were out of the make-up box in a flash. And we had some quick crazy make up session! See for yourself and hey Happy Halloween for your next Halloween!

Pouting on Halloween!

Meanwhile check out a refreshing drink

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 9 Letter I. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

#AtoZChallenge 2016 Day 8 - Hair Pin Bends

2016-04-08T23:06:00.002-07:00

I have this weird problem of feeling nauseous while travelling in the hills. This has been with me for as long as I can remember. My mom tells me in my childhood I used to throw up in every darn trip in the hills and she had to bear the brunt of taking me and washing me up! She had hoped it will be okay with time as I grow up. But that isn’t the case. I still feel the same but thankfully in a little lesser intensity!

But I have noticed this has never happened to me abroad, like I have visited the Swiss Alps, the French Alps, Salsburg and some more heights but never faced such a problem. Thankfully, I can’t imagine myself throwing up at Titlis or Jungfraujoch and then invite some awkward glances from people!

This one time, me and Indro were visiting Connoor, and Ooty to celebrate our anniversary – our third if I am not wrong. It was a road trip, a pretty long one when you are in the hills. We had hired a driver because both of us are not comfortable in driving through the hills.

Ooty is a beautiful place. It was cold in December but bustling with people. After the mandatory Botanical Garden and Lake visit we were driving back to Bangalore. I was already feeling dizzy with all the driving for three days. We had a quick lunch at a restaurant before our descend.

Next day we were joining on work, all I wanted was to reach home little early and have a good sleep. I asked the driver if there is a fast but safe route to which he promptly said yes.

He drove slow, we at the back seat. The window on my side is rolled down as I wanted to breathe in the fresh air. But gradually my head started becoming heavy. With every turn, which were quite frequent, I was sliding on my husband’s side. Things inside head and stomach were swirling like as if a washing machine is on!

This driver was driving through bends – the dreaded hairpin bends!!!

I was prepared with a sickness bag and a lemon! [Ohh, this is a good tip, if you feel sick while travelling in the hills, feel nauseous any time, keep a lemon/lime handy. The aroma of it keeps you better. This is tried and tested, it helped even during pregnancy!!]

There were moments when I wanted to shout STOP THE CAR. But I stayed calm breathing through the lemon. Indro understood I was sick, he offered water like a good husband and asked if I wanted to halt for sometime. But halting on a hilly road means problem for drivers of both the sides. So I continued.

There was moment, when I thought I’ll tell them you go ahead in the car, I’ll walk down!

But somehow the lemon kept helping. I was distracting my mind to various things – people at work, cricket, blah blah. When nothing was working I thought of sleeping, but that didn’t work out too.

I was praying inside this darn winding road should just end.

Guess what – I SURVIVED. I survived 36 hairpin bends while coming down from the hill!!!! For me it’s like I have scaled the Everest! By the time I was in plain lands I was much better.

But I have vowed never to visit Ooty again!

Do you get nauseous in the hills? Or have a similar experience?

Until next time, Cheers!!

Source

Meanwhile check out a yum Stew Recipe

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 8 Letter H. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

Genting Highlands and the Chinese Couple

2016-04-07T22:35:00.000-07:00

A to Z challenge is definitely doing good to my memory and giving me a heartfelt grin every time I am writing a post. Thank god I chose to write anecdotes from my life. LOL. In 2004 we were visiting Malaysia – me and my parents. I was a freshman at college that time. Malaysia is definitely a shopper’s paradise if you know where to shop from. Actually, Bangkok takes the cake in shopping in these Asian countries.

Anyways, we were visiting Genting Highlands on this particular day. The ride through the cable car was awesome. We were staying within the theme park. After a sumptuous dinner at one of the restaurants we were hanging around and talking a long walk to our hotel.

I was walking ahead followed by my parents at some distance. An elderly Chinese couple were walking up from the other side. They quickly came towards me and started talking in Chinese all of a sudden! I could hardly understand anything and only thing I kept repeating was – I don’t speak Chinese!

I guess they didn’t understand me either.

But I could understand they were asking for some help.

Only Chinese word I knew at that time (or even now, I guess) was ‘ni hao’!!

The more I tried to explain them neither was I understanding anything, nor can I speak, they kept on asking in Chinese.

And seriously when two people are speaking so fluently and you don’t understand anything it feels funny to be the spectator.

What I could understand from all the gestures was they were lost and they wanted to get back to their hotel!

If you have visited Genting you will know the four hotels are color coded and you have to follow the colored lines along the walls to reach to your destination.

I don’t know if things have changed now, though.

They were carrying the yellow card, with the hotel’s name in English. With some effort I could make them understand that if they followed the yellow line on the wall they’ll reach. Really hand gestures are a savior!

They said xie xie and left.

And guess what my parents did when they reached me – simply laughed at me!

This is a constant problem in my life. According to my parents and a lot of people I have quite a few Asian features on my face! I have small eyes, flatter nose etc etc. I used to be called Japanese when I was a kid because I looked like them! I don’t really believe in that, maybe I have little eyes but that doesn’t make you look like Chinese or Korean!

But this has happened with me quite a few times. Once in Mizoram, where I had gone for a trip, I was mistaken by their people as a Mizo. They were protesting against something, there was a rally and they came to our car and gave me a flag and said something in their language. Yes they picked me out from a car full of passengers!

Even in Kolkata, my hometown people used to speak to me first in Hindi, thinking I’ll not know Bengali, which is my mother tongue! Weird I say.

You guys tell me do I look that Asian???

this is me in childhood, I am the one in Blue

This is me from the time this incident happened. That's my mum by my side.

This is me now, Feb 2016 and my little man

Do I look very Asian??

Until next time, Cheers!!

Meanwhile check out a yum Salad Recipe

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 7 Letter G. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!

#AtoZChallenge 2016 Day 6 - F for Faculty Fondness

2016-04-06T22:32:00.000-07:00

Guys admit it, everyone has had a crush on their teacher at least once in their life time! I am sure you had a crush on one of your faculty too. If you say no, you are lying!! Now I studied in an all-girls school where all teachers were also female. But in our times we had these exciting tuition classes.

I had joined a tuition class (which was like another mini school) because many of my friends were joining it! I was in 7^th or 8^th standard at that time. We had a lot of fun specially because we met a lot of new girls and ‘boys’ and made friends with some. That was also a place where we constantly judged a lot of girls and boys. Who has feelings for whom? Why this girl is getting so close to that boy, ohh that poor boy got dumped by that girl so on and so forth.

Seriously when I think about it now, I can only say what nonsense creatures were we.

This was also the place where one day a hot dude entered the class – the maths class and everyone went :O awwww… the guy was a third year college student that time who had just joined there as the maths teacher! Vikram Sir, that’s what we called him!

I too was quite carried away by his charms! I used to (I still) hate maths but never missed a class just because this guy was cute! Okay okay, I was a gullible teenager then, it happens.

On a particular day this Vikram Sir had given some algebra equation to be solved. And I was trying hard to solve it only to get a good remark from him. I thought I was doing good and as he was passing by my bench I showed him my notebook. I was obviously not going right with my equation and he placed a finger on my notebook and said something. [I don’t even remember what he had said]

But I was careful enough to circle that part of the page where he had placed his finger and then pasted a cellophane paper patch on it!!!!

Seriously I was that naïve! I am laughing as I am writing this down!

I was travelling in a local bus once, I guess after a dance class, when I saw this Vikram Sir, sitting there. I simply looked at him and thought, does he recognize me? He smiled at me! And I don’t know why he smiled!

I still can’t digest how dim-witted I am sounding with this crush on teacher story! But it happens I guess, in everyone’s life!

P.S. I seriously hope no one I know from that tuition class or this entity Vikram is reading this!

This photo is so damn apt for that situation
Source

Let me know if you are enjoying the anecdotes!

Until next time, Cheers!!

Meanwhile check out an easy healthy fast food

in my Food Blog

***
This post is written for the A to Z Challenge 2016 for Day 6 Letter F. Visit A to Z, BlogChatter to read other beautiful bloggers!