Stop #3

We are in Istanbul, Turkey now.  It is amazing....  OK, the weather is far from amazing!!  It was cold, rainy and windy....  and sadly, we were not prepared for the chilly weather....  but we survived....

Did you know that Turkey has an Asia side and a European side...  it is pretty cool.  Today we went sightseeing.  We went to Topkapi Palace, this is a palace from the Ottaman Empire.  Here it is now converted to a museum.  In the museum, they have the 'stick' that was used by Moses to part the Red Sea, and a foot print of Mohamed.  The history is truly amazing.

Another 2 days that then we are off to stop #4....  Last  but not least.... Dubai.  The trip is going day 11, and I am in dire need of a 'home-cooked' meal!!  Eating out is really starting to get old.  We have been eating breakfast at the hotels...  starting to get tired of omeletes and pastries for breakfast!!!  Really starting to crave some 'kitchari'!!!

Stop Number 2

We are on stop #2!!!

Cairo was fabulous!!

Now enjoying Sharm el Sheik on the Red Sea.  It is amazing!!

On Christmas day we enjoyed 4-wheelin' on the dessert, and today (the 26th) we went snorkeling in the Red Sea, and in about an hour we will go in a submarine that takes us into the coral reef.  This will give the non-snorkelers a chance to see the beauty under the water.

The kids are having a great time with their 'cousins' Umber and Veda. 

The trip is going great....  next stop, Istanbul.  We leave tomorrow....

In Egypt!!!

We are 2 days into our trip in Egypt!!  WOW!!

Hotel overlooks the Giza Pyramids!!  It is amazing!

Enjoying the time with our Friends from Atlanta that have met us in Cairo.  The kids are having a blast together!

One down fall to the trip....  Pharoah's Revenge (Similar to Mantazuma's Revenge and Delhi Belly!!) on the first day!!  The victim....  yours truly!!!  Thankfully just a day of troubles....  hopefully the rest of the journey is 'worry-free'!

Hope you all are enjoying the next few days leading up to Christmas.

Safe travels!  Be Safe!  Especially with all the snow that has hit!! 

Less than 24 hours to go!!

Guests just left this morning, and we leave in less than 24 hours!!!  YIKES!!

With all the activity that we have had in the house, it has been hard to mentally (or physically for that matter) prepare for the trip!!

Tonight will be a mad rush of last minute packing....  but in the end between Vim's attention to details, and my ability to plan the 'big things' we should be all set!!!

First stop....  Egypt!!!

3rd Wave of Guests!!!

We are enjoying the 3rd wave of guests!!  The house is full with the hustle and bustle!

The kids are enjoying time with their cousins, I am enjoying time with my cousins...  it doesn't get much better than this!!

And, with all this going on, it is hard to believe that we are going on a trip in just a few short days!!

So much excitement....

Reading....

So, this whole reading thing is sort of sticking....  in a good way!!

To fill you in.... the last book that I posted about was Shantaram (yes over 900 pages!!), since then I have read Namesake, Provoked, Under a Tuscan Sun, Kite Runner, My Sisters Keeper (for the record, the book is far better than the movie... and the movie has a totally different ending... what gives??), and currently reading Goodnight Nobody.

All of these books have been really great!  I have enjoyed each one.  The current book (Goodnight Nobody)is a little slow, but is OK.  I should be done with the current book in a day or so. 

I need some help from all of you readers out there...  what are some other good books?  I need a good one for the trip.  I think that we will have a total of 7 flights that we will be taking...  that will be a lot of time to read!!

Round 3 Almost Here!!

Round 2 of visitors are off....  back to Bombay for some more shopping!  And, round 3 is busy packing their bags and getting ready for the trip to India!!  Round 3 is my cousin from England, her hubby and their 3 daughters!!  The kids are so excited!!  This is the round of visitors that brings cousins their age (or close enough to their age!!)!!

So after all the guesses for out holiday trip (NOT!), I figured I would stop keeping you in suspense.  First stop is Cairo, second stop - Sharm el Shiek on the Red Sea, third stop - Istanbul and last stop - Dubai!!!  Some of you may be scratching your head wondering, 'how does that equal 3 continents.....????'.  Simple, Africa, Europe (Istanbul is actually in both Europe and Asia), and Dubai is in Asia!

We are excited about the trip!!

Its December!!

I just realized that it was December, and Christmas is right around the corner.  Being here, the approach to Christmas is quite subtle.  A few house with Christmas decorations, a few buildings with a few Christmas decoration, but it is all understated.  This has caused me to reflect on the Christmas blitz (or should I say Blast) that is upon all of you back home.  The hype is all around, trying to get you buy the newest gadgets, the newest toys, and have the best decorations....  unfortunately that is the commercialized version of Christmas....  Yes, a part of it is necessary, but not to the magnitude that it has become.

We will enjoy our approach to the holidays with what matters the most for us....  and that is Family and Friends!!  We will be thinking of all the family gatherings that we will be missing out on!!!

But to help us along, we are thankful for those that are coming to visit us!!  We are in the midst of our next round of visitors.  They are from Dallas and Chicago.  It is nice to have them around, especially since they came bearing gifts from back home.  You know important stuff like cereal, pancake mix, peanut butter and skittles!!  Come on, these things really got the kids soooo excited!!!

Our last round of visitors will come in on Dec 12 from England.... then we are off to our vacation!

Any guesses where we are headed??  OK, I will tell you the continents that we will hit...  Africa, Asia (and no India does not count), and Europe.  Come on...  give me some guesses!!

Have a great day!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

This weekend is the start of the Holiday festivities back at home....  though many stores have already begun the Christmas-blitz over a month ago.  While the media-blitz can be a bit overwhelming (and irritating), the holidays bring around the family gatherings.... Which is what we miss the most being so far away!!

We hope that all of you that are celebrating Thanksgiving with the traditional Turkey dinner enjoy the great meal...  and have some Turkey for us (and some pumpkin pie too!!).  Unfortunately this year we will not be having a Turkey dinner in Ozone.  : (

But instead, this Thanksgiving weekend starts the first wave of our vistors!!!  YEAHHH!!!

My cousin and aunt (Mami) are coming from England today!!  Then we have a few more sets of visitors, and then..... we are off for our Holiday excusion!  This holiday excursion will take us into 3 continents over 2 weeks!!  Any guesses where we are headed???  Keeping thinking...  I will fill you in on the details later!! 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Don't Drink and Dance..... REALLY....

OK, so some of you are aware of some really swanky, high end clubs in India.  Now these are for the 'high-rollers' and Bollywood folk....  Mostly in Mumbai....  So when we were coming to Bangalore, I thought that we would get to see a few of this places.... even here in Bangalore.

Not long after we moved here did I get informed that dance clubs are illegal in Banaglore.  Really....  See the articles below...

NY Times article

Indian Express Article

So, I was a little surprised when I heard the news.  It reminded me of the movie Footloose..... was I a little disappointed?  Not so much....  I think that my 'clubbing' days are long gone....

So anyways, this past weekend we actually went out with a few couples on Saturday night.  The mission for the evening.... check out the Bangalore Nightlife...  There were 2.5 couples from the US and 2.5 couples from England.  We started off at a 'lounge bar' called the 13th floor (yep, it was mentioned in one of the articles).  Then we went to another 'bar' called Opus....  Don't tell anyone, but we actually danced at Opus....  Yep, we broke the law....  But we were not alone, the had a pretty decent group boogie-ing to the Bollywood beats....  and then boom, the clock struck 11:30 and the music came to a screeching halt....  that was it.... NO, not a raid....  It was closing time....  We were on our way home by midnight....

All in all, a nice evening of clubbing (if you can really call it that!)....  I think that I can keep up with the clubbing in Bangalore (in limited doses, of course) since they work to my timing...  close by midnight!!  : )  There was a time where I could keep going until the bar closed (2am in Michigan), but that was many (many) years ago....  I don't think that I could do it anymore!!  Yes, I admit it!  I am becoming an old fart!!

The Play Date.....

So, let me start from the beginning.....
In the start of the school year, Milan starts to tell us about a friend in school that he just met.... now, this is not just any ordinary friend.... nope, this friend is of the female kind.... uhm, hum.....

So it starts something like this...

'Mommy, I have a new friend at school, he name is Sonia. No, not the Sonia from the US (Milan has a cousin named Sonia so he wanted to make sure we got the Sonia's straight), this is a different Sonia. She is really nice'. He says to me with a little twinkle in his eye....

From that moment I knew that Sonia was special. Then the weeks go by and then I hear another story...

'Mommy, I don't like Sonia. She is not my friend anymore. She is mean' I was not sure what prompted the trouble in paradise, but we will just let it go..... I did not think much of it.

Then last week we went to a party at a neighbors house and there were a few friends that were invited that we had not met before. It did not take long for us to realize that one of the couples there were Sonia's parents..... They were actually a really nice couple from the US. So at the end of the night, I made sure that I got Sonia's mom's phone number so that we could meet up.
The morning after the party I was telling Milan who we met at the party the night before, and his eyes lit up. He made me show him the number on the phone.... So, since then he as been asking.... 'When is Sonia coming for a play date'....
So, finally I called Nita (Sonia's Mom) on Saturday and we arranged for a play date for Sunday afternoon.
Sunday morning when Milan woke up, I told him that the play date was confirmed and that Sonia would be coming over at 2pm. His eyes lit up!! And the first thing he said to me 'What should I wear'!! Honest, not making this one up!!! It was clear that Sonia was a special friend.....
So, Sunday we decided to go into town to run a few errands and Milan, who typically never bothers to ask the time, kept saying 'is it 2 o-clock yet' and 'hurry, lets go, we are going to be late'.....
At 2 we go to pick up Sonia, Milan walks with me and I could tell he was a little shy.... but it was cute.

So Sonia comes over. Mira acts as a good buffer doing art with both of them, since Milan only know how to play cars and trucks. They play for a bit inside. Then I tell them to go out and play. And off they go...

About 30 mins or so later they come back and tell me that they went biking around and that they had fun. Then Milan and Sonia are sitting on the bench by the front door just talking, and all I can see from the hallway is 2 pair of feet just dangling. It was really cute.

Then it came time to say good-bye. Sonia was going home. Vim was driving her back and Milan went along as well. He asked if he could play at her house... (it was like he did not want the play date to end.....).

At night as he was going to sleep I was talking to Milan and he told me that he really had fun with Sonia. He says to me 'she is really nice, isn't she mom'. And I said, 'yes she is'. I was asking where they went when they were on a bike ride..... and Milan was just telling me.... Then I got to thinking.... How did they both ride around..... When we only have one bike their size. Then Milan tells me that be borrowed a bike (a bike that is rusty and a size too small) from the neighbor. Then I asked who rode which bike. And then he tells me..... He gave Sonia his bike (mind you no one rides his bike, not even Mira!!)..... It almost brought a tear to my eye... My son was a true gentlemen.... he gave his bike to Sonia and he took the crappy old one. So innocent, and so sweet!

Now in about 4 years from now, Milan won't be having any play dates with girls, and if he does.... I won't let them out of my sight!! The thought of him growing up is frightening!!!

Delivered.....

There is one thing that I have really come to appreciate being here in India.....  And that is the fact that you can get just about anything delivered!!

OK, there is the usual food delivery .....  Pizza, Chinese....  But here, Subway delivers, and so does just about any other restaurant in town.  They have a small radius of delivery zone (5kms usually), but there are enough places around where you can get a full Indian meal - delivered....  There is a French Lady that makes homemade bread and she comes by everyday delivering fresh bread.....  There is of course the Milk delivery too (yes, the Milk Man)....

Then here are some that might surprise you....  the liquor store delivers beer and alcohol...  just call and it is on its way.  Thankfully Mira and Milan are not in the troublesome teenage years, otherwise the fact that the liquor store delivers would frighten me, especially since they don't 'card' when they deliver.  Actually I am not even sure if there is a 'legal drinking age' here in India.  And even if there was, I am sure that it is not enforced, just like many other laws here in India.  Anyways, I digress....  back to deliveries.....

Every weekend I get the flower delivery guy that come with a basket of fresh flowers, and for less that $4 I can end up with a dozen long stem roses along with a half dozen gerber daisies. Or for the same price, orchids and lilies.....  It is a great bargain, and I don't even have to leave my house!!

The local grocery store delivers too, but I have not had the need to use that service since I can send my driver off with the list and he returns with all the goodies....  it is as good as getting it delivered!!

Essentially, India is a service oriented country....  as long as you are willing to pay.  So while we are here, we will take advantage of all those that want to serve, and let them serve us!!  When we come back home, we know that we will be back to serving ourselves.....

The Weather.... Again!!

OK...  I have to post about the weather again....  sorry.....

So, post-cyclone created an aftermath of grey-dreary days.....  Including the weekend....

But today, Monday morning we woke up to BRIGHT SUNSHINE....  wow, what a feeling!!

The trip to the bus stop was invigorating as I felt the vitamin D just seeping through my body (it is Vitamin D that you get from the sun, right?)!!!

At the bus stop, the kids were complaining that it was hot....  keep in mind just last week they were complaining that it was cold!!!  As the group of  'complainers' kept growing, I asked all the kids to look at the bus driver that was waiting in the distance.  Here the bus driver was wearing a full ski-cap.  You know, the kind that covers your whole head and neck, with just an opening for the face.  The kids all looked and laughed!!  It is interesting to see the differences in perspective....

For those of you back at home, I know that you have been enjoying your Indian summer!!  It is a wonder what the sunshine can do to lift your mood...  it definitely put a little spring in my step this morning!!

Happy Monday!!  Have a great day!!

How about that....

There is a good explanation for the miss-behavin' of the Banglore rains....  (some of you may recall in an earlier post, I called the Bangalore Rains - 'well-behaved')

Check it out....

It is a Cyclone in the Arabian Sea.  How about that!

Let's Talk About the Weather......

So, today is Tuesday morning, and we woke up to another grey morning with a drizzley rain.  You know, that cold, wet, gloomy rain that gives you a chill that you just can't shake.

Having been here for 1 year and 4 months, this is the first time that we have had cold, wet, gloomy rain for 4 days in a row.... Can you believe it, 4 days in a row!!! I know... the horror!!

What have I learned from this 4 days of yucky weather?

• I can never live in Seatle, Portland, London, or any other place that has this kind of weather throughout the year!!!
• I would take 60 degrees and sunny over 70 degrees with wet, cold rain - anyday!!! 
• I am a little jealous of the weather you all are having back at home!!!
• I will learn to appreciate the sun more....  The sun will come out tomorrow, you can bet your bottom dollar.... that tomorrow, there will be sun!!  (ok, it worked for Annie, hopefully it works for me!!)
• I am glad that I packed some turtlenecks.....  That is what I am wearing today!!  Who would have thought that I would need a turtle neck sweater in Bangalore????
• I am going to DIE the first winter back home....  especially if I am complaining about 70 and rain!!!

Enjoy your day, and more importantly, enjoy the sun!!!

Diwali Party in Ozone

Once again, there was an Ozone Diwali Party....  it started with a stage show with some kids from the 'zone, then dinner, and lastly some tunes to boggie to....  all in all a good evening!!  Here are some pics...

Hiran and I

Family Shot!

And another!!

Halloween in India....

Yes, once again we were lucky to have the large population of foreigners in our housing complex that were well aware of the Halloween tradition, so yes, once again...we celebrated Halloween in Ozone.

The kids were able to wear 2 different costumes, one for school and one for the actual trick or treating on Sat. The best part.... all 3 costumes cost me less than $2 this year!! Gotta like that!!!

Again...  like last year... the candy selection...  not so good!  : (  No peanut M&M's, No Reeses Peanut Butter Cup, No Almond Joy.... 

Services....

This morning gave my dry cleaning to the driver to drop off, along with a list of groceries to pick up (bread, eggs, yogurt, etc....). This afternoon gave the maid the material to sew the kids Halloween costumes.....

Gotta love it!! With this level of 'service' at my disposal..... I never want to come back!!!

Priceless

4 Bagels from Au Bon Pain - 60 rupees ($1.30)

8 ounces of Philadelphia Cream Cheese Imported from Dubai - 400 Rupees ($8.80)

Bagels and Cream Cheese for breakfast.....  PRICELESS

For most of you this may not seem like a big deal...  but here in Bangalore...  Bagels and Cream Cheese are hard to come by....  especially finding both at the same time!!

Now the kids have voted Fridays as Bagel mornings...  This means I have to pick up the bagels on Thursday when I am at work...  and we will keep our fingers crossed that we can continue to get cream cheese...  even though it is over priced...  it is well worth every bit!!!

The Trip... Summary...

The quick summary on the trip...

10 days, 6 cities, over 20 hours in the car, 12 hours in the train, about 6 hours on a plane.... and a whole lot of togetherness!!!

The key points....

•  We realized that the kids were real TROOPERS!! They did an amazing job keeping up with all the running around.
• There is A LOT of history to see in India.... it is amazing. It really makes me proud to say that I am Indian!
• The kids loved hearing all the stories about the palaces and forts.   Both Mira and Milan were amazed with the story from the Taj Mahal.  They both were amazed to hear how the son turned on the rest of the family.  Mira's comment 'couldn't they just talk it out and share the power' - a true peace maker.  Milan's comment 'if anyone does that to me, I am just going to beat them up and shoot them' - a true confortationalist!
• In the car journeys we had some great dialogue with the kids.  We learned that Boys start with B because boys are Bad.  Girls start with G because girls are Good.  Also, Boys go to Jupiter to get stupider, and Girls go to college to get more knowledge!!!  The bonding time was great!
• Mira and I have tested the bladder capacity yet once again....  no public restrooms, no holes in the ground, and no train bathrooms!!!!  SOOOO GLAD!!!  Milan and Vim....  not so lucky!!
• Have experienced the irony of Delhi Belly in Delhi!!!  Actually it started in Jaipur with Milan, then Agra with Vim and Mira and I were hit in Dehli.  Milan has proven that he is definitely the biggest trooper when he was sick...  it did not phase him and he did not skip a beat.  Mira....  the other end of the spectrum... 
• The kids have now experienced 5 star luxury hotels on this trip.  At one place before we got there, Milan asked 'Mom, I hope this is a 5 star hotel'.  I think that they have become 'hotel-snobs'!!!

We enjoyed every minute of the trip....  it was a truly memorable experience!!

Trip.... the continuation and finale!

I left off with Day 5.....

Day 5 morning took us on another road journey from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer which is in the 'Thar Dessert'.

We arrived to the hotel and quickly realized that the hotel was a huge let down coming from the luxury at the Taj Hotel..... We were disappointed... Thankfully only one night!!

The evening in Jaisalmer started with a camel ride into the dessert where we saw the sunset. It was really amazing...

Day 6 was touring of Jaisalmer which is also known as the 'golden city' because the stone that is local the area is golden in color. The big highlight was the fort and Haveli's. Day 6 wrapped up with the overnight Train Ride!!! I don't want to scare anyone... but it is far from 5 star... But, all in all, we survived and even managed to sleep a bit.

Day 7 started with the train arriving in Jaipur at 5am!! We were quickly met by our travel agent and car and quickly taken to our hotel. After a bit of rest... we were off sight seeing. We saw the Amber Fort, Jantar Mantar which is built around astronomy and Havwa Mahal. Jaipur is known as the 'Pink City'. Now, I thought that it was because the stone was pink... no, not that simple. The buildings are painted a 'pink' color.

Day 8 was yet another road trip from Jaipur to Agra. This was taking us to the well known Taj Mahal. Enroute we stopped at Fatehpur Sikri. This is the fort and palace for Akbar. He was the mughul king and grand-father to Shah Jahan (more about him below). We arrived at the hotel and we were fortunate to stay at a hotel where every room boasts a view of the Taj!! It was amazing.

Day 9 started with an early start with sunrise at the Taj Mahal. We had a tour guide that took the time to share all the details of the Taj. A brief summary for those of you that don't know the full story. The Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan the king of the Mughul Empire for his wife, Mamtaz. He had designed and built this palace to show is love for his favorite wife. Yes, he had many wives... the other ones did not get a momument in their honor! Mamtaz died while giving birth to their 14 child at the age of 38. At the time of her death, she had no idea that there would be such a grand palace built in her honor! It took over 20 years to build. Shortly after it was built, Shah Jahan's son Aurangzeb (one of 3) decided that he wanted his father's power. Instead of going about it diplomatically, he killed his brothers and their sons, and imprisoned his father in the Red Fort. Ironic, isn't it. Shah Jahan builds a palace for his wife to show his love, and his son kills his brothers and nephews and put him in jail for the desire of power.

The day wrapped up with a tour of the Red Fort and another road trip from Agra to Dehli.

Day 9 was also significant for few other reaons... it was Diwali (Hindu Celebration) and it was Vim's Birthday. Needless to say, this will always be a memorable birthday for Vim.

Day 10 At this point, the Patel family ran out of steam..... we were exhausted. The day started with a quick trip to Akshardam, the Swaminarayan temple, and then we quickly retreated back to the hotel for some relaxing. The day wrapped up with another journey.... the last and final one. It took us from Dehli back to Bangalore!!! PHWEW!!!

Camel Ride is Jaisalmer

Dessert Sunset

Fort in Jaisalmer

The Havelis in Jaisalmer

Jaipur - Hawva Maha

Sundial at Jantar Mantar

Amber Fort in Jaipur

Jaipur City Palace

Fatehpur Sikri

The TAJ MAHAL!!

The Red Fort

Arches at Red Fort

A View from Red Fort

Dehli India Gate

Happy Diwali!!

Wishing all of you a very Happy Diwali! May the New Year be filled with the best of everything!!

We celebrated Diwali in Dehli. We saw fireworks from our hotel room! It was wonderful to see how it is celebrated here! However, we did realize that Diwali is just not the same when you don't have your family near by!!

Hope you all enjoyed!!

Jodhpur - the City Tour

Mehrangarh Fort

Jaswanth Thada

Inside Jaswanth Thada

A view of the Fort from the Thada

The Blue City

The Clock Tower

Inside the Fort

As for city sights of Jodhpur, there a few highlights.... our hotel being one of them! : )

The others were the Mehnragarh Fort, which was the old palace for the royal family before Umaid Bhavan was built, and the Jaswanth Thada, which is the area for cremations for the the royal family.

From the Fort you can see pictures of 'the Blue City'. The city is called the blue city because the houses were painted blue. The blue color is known to repel bugs, and keep the houses cool.

So the city tour was all on Day 4....

Day 5 took us on the road trip from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer....