Piece of mind!

Far from the maddening crowd…. Yes! That’s what our priority was when we planned our trip to Ramgarh in the foothills of Kumaon in the summer of 2016. Come May and June and most of North India starts packing their bags for the cooler climes. I shied away from the touristy nainital and almora as it was brimming with people. We searched for options around bhimtal, sattal and then finally headed towards bhowali and uphill which made us look for some more in ramgarh, mukteshwar and as far as peora, however thinking of travelling with two small kids we decided to not head away too far as it would get tiring for them. After a good week’s internet search we zeroed in on the Ramgarh Bungalows, a heritage property of Neemrana Group at Ramgarh which is around 30 kms uphill bhowali. I went through a lot of reviews of the Neemrana Hotels, the Ramgarh Bungalows, their “non-hotel hotels” and I would say everyone should experience Neemrana at least once in their lifetime. Indeed a “non-hotel hote

To the stars and fireflies To the dusk which has surrendered itself to the dark skies, Of folklores which speak of full moon Regaling lovers who meet and swoon, Over hopeful vows and ever after promises…. Where the dance of twilight belongs to their dreams Where the sunsets are embraced entwined and the glorious dawns are welcomed with open arms, Of a place you tell me Where dreams come true and rainbows shine Where one knows of clouds only with silver lining Not a soul cringes, nor an eye rains Coz I know of a world which owns those who love and bereave Those who fiercely hold onto their flickering flame In the moonless and darkest of skies  who passionately embrace darkness swashbuckling the yearnings of their soul, who wonder where to get their share of sunshine and confetti When the night becomes both a mammoth and a soul mate to them stabbing in the back with incessant ‘what ifs’ and gently lending a shoulder to cry on wholeheartedly, To

At the risk of sounding cliche I would say that the buzz of Raksha Bandhan led me to think how tying of Rakhi is synonymous with the bond of love and care between a brother and sister. So leaping across many thoughts of love and hate, my mind inevitably wandered towards the rampant killings, bombings, terror attacks, lynchings, rapes, murders and what not, all across the world! Yes, I sound like a maniac thinking that only this is what happens around us, when indeed life has so much more to offer. But you see I cannot help myself.  Somehow most nights (not every night) before going to bed tucking my kids in, kissing their sleeping faces my mind inevitably drifts to images of grief stricken, dirt laden, faces of kids among the rubble called Syria and I shudder at the mere thought of those innocents. I wonder what if we were subjected to such situation, then another shudder, close my eyes, thank God a zillion times and a silent prayer goes for them who are suffering.  Closer home,

Like the way you do this, Suddenly popping out of somewhere and then unknowingly i witnessed myself "lost" Lost in the whirlwind, Like the way you do this, a force so effortless a magnetism so impulsive leaving behind a non-plussed me Like the way you do this the games played so uncoyishly yet they found a way and won over the phenomenon "me"in a sway!

Going back to places you have been earlier to with your loved ones brings back pleasant memories. And revisiting such places is always double the fun, enjoying the present and relishing the past. Two years ago while coming back from our weekend trip to Corbett my husband said I love the solitude, wish to come back here. May 2015 saw us heading towards Corbett again, adding more members to our brood this time- (literally) a seven month old gem of a girl, extended family and more fun. Mostly I am the trip planner when we travel. There were certain things on my mind before I zeroed in on the trip, first and foremost the place being child-friendly, coordinating in accordance with everyone’s feasibility, travelling time should be less as it was a weekend trip and so on and so forth. Our group of 13 reached from 3 different locations and it was from Moradabad that we packed ourselves into two cars and headed towards ramnagar which is around two and a half hours drive away. The drive

The topic of utmost concern during lunch today was an ambulance stuck in the traffic jam. My kindergarten going son came a little late from the school today. When we settled down for lunch he said do you know why I got late today, to which i replied must be the traffic. He said yes and do you know what happened , " an ambulance was also there in the traffic jam and no one was giving it the way to move ahead", Then he went on and on about how people were honking their vehicles and nobody paid attention to an ambulance which was on its way to help the needy. He said that he asked his father (who picks him up from school everyday) why is no one giving the ambulance the space to go ahead to which he replied that they are not smart people, and want to move ahead themselves first. I wonder how to explain to a 4 year old the "don't care less" attitude of people,to let him know we preach but we do not practice. As a child he has just started his social contact through

Yes, it is through you that i survive each day, manage to just get by, thinking to tell you this or that, sharing with you every little detail, asking for your opinion, or letting you know the mistakes that I make, the lessons I learn, the way i conduct my life, handle my kids, the way you would shower them with all the love, play with them silly, have a hearty laugh over dress-ups, seriously participate in their games, calm their tantrums, narrate beautiful endless stories like you did to us, and then marvel at their queries. I always always instinctively turn to you for everything ranging from studies(back in the days) to relationships, housekeeping to baby food, socializing, travelling, the trials, the exciting, the mundane, the beautiful, the ugly of life, that dream i had last night, the little girl i want to be, the ambition that i hold, or the hobby that i want to pursue, the interesting book that i recently read, the recipe i tried and it turned out to be a disaster(yes! you a