For my grandparents - on their 64th anniversary!

64 years!! With a mere 14 years of marriage behind me - 64 years seems like forever and then some more!! And yet, here they are - my grandparents, bearing eloquent testimony to the fact that nothing is impossible with a little bit of understanding, compassion and compromise! Yes, compromise - somehow, this word has gathered itself quite an unsavory reputation these days, and most people are under the impression that to compromise is to give in! However, probably the most important thing I have learned from my grandparents, it is that a little compromise can sometimes go a long way towards happiness and peace of mind, an angry retort bitten back can end a quarrel like nothing else can!!

My grandparents - way back then!

25th Feb, 2014 - the 64th anniversary

 Aaji and Aaba (as I call my grandparents) were married at a time when phrases like 'personal space' and 'my time' simply did not exist. The family - a huge sprawling joint family, of course - always came first! My grandfather being the oldest son, was expected to shoulder a lion's share of the household responsibility - and he did so admirably, to the extent of forgoing a college education so he could start earning! And my grandmother was the very engine which powered the entire household - a hundred activities, from dawn to dusk, day in and day out! To hear them talk about those days, is to learn another valuable lesson - a smile on the face of a beloved family member is always priceless, no matter the cost to yourself! It is no wonder that everything my grandparents have ever touched has turned to gold, the more they gave of themselves - the more they received!

Of course, it hasn't been all rosy and shiny - my grandparents have weathered their share of disappointments and misfortune and hard times! And I think their greatest strength has been to face all adversity head-on, to never play the blame-game, and most important - to never give up! Remembering their cheery optimism has helped me get through some of my problems - their pragmatic approach is something I try to emulate every day! And then the good times - what a dazzling bouquet of joyous moments! All their children well-settled and flourishing (how strange it must be to have kids who are grandparents themselves!), grandchildren all married and forging ahead with their lives, and what probably is the greatest gift of all - great-grandchildren to carry their legacy forward! I wonder, when they were starting out, did they ever expect their hard work and sacrifice to yield such a rich dividend? Take a look - the pictures speak volumes!



My mom with her siblings, my uncle and my aunt! The photo is a bit faded, but I love the simple joy of childhood captured forever!

Here they are, all of them grandparents now! Although, I'm sure their parents still see them as the mischievous kids they once were!








And yet more branches of this verdant family tree - my cousins, my sister and I - the grand kids!







And the precious great-grandchildren - the pride and joy of the entire family!

Blessed be the ties that bind generations!

I don't think this is said enough - and I take the liberty of speaking on behalf of the whole family here - we are incredibly proud and fortunate to have Aaji and Aaba standing tall in our lives. If I can manage to live my life with just a little bit of the grace and dignity that my grandparents have always shown, I'll count that among my greatest achievements! I think they are the coolest people ever - sure, given half a chance they'll talk your ear off - but hidden in their stories are the secrets to their contentment - their ability to find happiness in the most unlikely places, their willingness to forgive and forget. After 64 years, they still squabble and argue about the mundane - but their dependence on each other is clear for everyone to see. What an impossibly high bar - and yet, what an inspiring example!

So, Happy Anniversary, Aaji and Aaba, and wishing you many, many more - with love from your grand-daughter!!

A little bit of Feng Shui

Feng Shui was January's flavor of the month here in Golden Lough! A 10 week course condensed into 5 days, taught by a teacher who came down from Shanghai - Feng Shui for Beginners! Very efficiently organized by a couple of ladies from Golden Lough, about 15 of us attended the morning and afternoon sessions - it's been such a while since I've been in a classroom, and I had forgotten how hard it is to sit in one place for a long time! And not just sit - it was of course required to listen, pay attention, take notes and try really hard to keep awake - all at the same time!!! Needless to say, coffee consumption was very high!

So, what is Feng Shui?? Literally, it translates as 'Wind Water', and it is the art and science of living in harmony with your surroundings. Although it is said to have been in practice for over 5000 years ago, it was about 1500 years ago that the principles and elements of Feng Shui were polished and then recorded. The very basic concept is that we are all all surrounded by Qi - Feng Shui provides the tools to analyze and then correct the flow of Qi around us. As with every ancient tradition, Feng Shui too, has many different schools of thought - the most traditional being the Form School, other popular ones are the Compass school and the BTB schools.

Our first week lesson was an introduction to the Form School, and the definition of a perfectly located house - facing south, with a mountain at the back, a river in the front, two trees on either side, with the left one taller than the right. Who wouldn't want to live in such an idyllic spot - except in today's world, are sites like these even available? No fears though - all these 'forms' translate easily into the modern world! In today's concrete jungles, buildings replace mountains and trees, and roads are of course our rivers, flowing incessantly with people and traffic! Form school assigns 4 different animals to the 4 cardinal directions - North is the Turtle, South is the Phoenix, and East and West are the Dragon and Tiger, respectively. So of course, you want the Turtle (a symbol of longevity) to your back, an open space in front of you for the Phoenix to fly freely - and since the Dragon is the Emperor of Heaven, the left ie the East has to be higher than the West's Tiger, who is the King of Earth. Not as scientific as I would have expected - but still keeping an open mind at this point!

The next session explained a lot about Qi - the vital force, the invisible energy that fills everything. Of course, not all Qi is good - and an important part of Feng Shui is recognizing and eliminating sources of stagnant or uncontrolled Qi. Opening windows and clearing clutter are simple ways of restoring the flow of good energy - although that seems to be more good sense than anything else! Intricately linked with the Qi is Yin and Yang - a very popular symbol. Yin and Yang represents the balance of masculine and feminine forces - the moon and the sun, the earth and the heaven. Added to the mix are the 5 elements - Fire, Water, Earth, Wood and Metal - everything can be classified into one of these. Each of these have their unique properties, and also interactions with the other elements - either positive or negative. Again, balance is the key word here!

The Bagua maps are a logical progression from the Yin/Yang and the 5 Element theory. This is basically a square divided into 9 smaller squares - each of the 8 peripheral squares is assigned an element, and a life characteristic. For example, the top middle square is Fire, with the color Red - and it is associated with Fame and Reputation, or the bottom left square is Earth, with the color Blue, associated with the Skills and Knowledge. Using this map is simple - any room can be divided into the 9 squares, the assumption being that the entrance is always on the bottom edge - and then use the Bagua to enhance any particular aspect that might be lacking. To use the previous example, a red lamp or trophies could be placed in the Fame and Reputation corner, or a bookcase with a blue globe could enhance the Skills and Knowledge corner. What is most surprising to me is that there is no reference to the compass here - the cardinal directions play absolutely no role!

Moving on to site selection - this refers a lot to the Form School - and also the shape and size of the lot and the house. This is probably more relevant to someone looking at building a house from scratch, but for those of us who already own a house or rent - pay close attention to the section on remedies for bad Feng Shui! The Outdoor Fengshui - gardens, pools, outdoor plants, trees - led to a very lively discussion! The teacher talked a lot about things being 'ugly' - this included any asymmetry, any straight lines (by the way, straight lines are an absolute no-no), and even manicured lawns! Ideas of beauty obviously vary from person to person - so it was very hard to make sense of this! Not everyone thinks that Chinese classical gardens - like the ones here in Suzhou - are the absolute epitome of beauty! There's a lot to be said for well-laid out, symmetrical beds of flowers, and wide expanses of green grass!!

The Indoor Fengshui was something we had all been waiting for - and here finally, were the compasses! Similar to the Bagua, the entire house can be divided into 9 sectors - 8 directions and the center. Of course, no house layout is an exact square - which leads to the interesting concept of Missing Corners. Each directional corner belongs to a person in the family - for example, the SW corner is Mother, the NW corner is the Father, and the other 6 belong to children - so if the house is L-shaped, and the SW or NW corner is missing, watch out! The person with the Missing Corner is sure to have some deep, dark problems! Also, children's bedrooms in the parents' corner, a daughter in a boy corner or vice versa, children missing their relevant corners - could all lead to the harmony of the family being disturbed! Gloom and doom all around - because, really, the perfect house is almost impossible!

There are rules and complicated calculations for everything - the number of stairs, the width of doorways and dimensions of furniture, shape of rugs, type of pictures and curtains, placement of sofas, coffee tables, desks and plants - just endless! A lot of emphasis on beams - don't sleep under one, don't sit under one, cover up exposed beams with false ceilings, avoid 4 poster beds - now I'm looking for beams wherever I go! Of course, to understand the full scope, it would be necessary to take the Advanced Feng Shui class! The simplest solution to any seemingly unsolvable problem - let it go, ignore it, if it hasn't bothered you so far, it's ok! The last part of the class was Personal Fengshui - a small detour to Chinese Astrology, face reading and palmistry. A Fengshui master would combine all these elements to help straighten out the overall Qi - of course, mastery can take years and years of intense study.

So what did I think of the course? Well, there wasn't enough science for me - a lot of it seemed to be very intuitive and subjective. Granted that this was a very basic introduction - but I didn't get enough to make me a true believer. Our Indian system of Vaastu Shastra relies heavily on the cardinal directions, and the Earth's magnetic field - and the rules seem to be grounded in reason. Not that I know too much about Vaastu, but what little I know and believe, has made sense to me. Of course, if I can change the location of a plant or two, or hang up a new picture because of the Fengshui I've learnt - I'll do it! What's the harm - and in case it does work, well, I've got my bases covered - if only getting a promotion or pay raise was as easy as adding bamboo to your study!

All said and done, this was an interesting piece of Chinese culture to be introduced to! Although I doubt I'll go for the Advanced class, I would definitely like to learn a bit more about Chinese Astrology, or maybe Tai-chi - now that would be so much fun! Couple more years here in China - so much to do, so little time!!

Welcoming the Year of the Horse...

Xin nian kuai le!

Hard on the heels of the 'regular' New Year comes the Chinese New Year - this lunar new year usually falls somewhere in the last week of January or first week of February. Barely 3 weeks separated the 2 New Years this time, and although the Chinese New Year is the longest holiday here in China, and is usually a perfect time to go away on vacation - we still hadn't really settled back fully after our December vacation, so this year, we decided to stay in Suzhou! Besides, everyone gets time off - including our driver and aayi - so if we travel, our little cat has to go to a kennel, and that does not make him very happy!

The story goes that every year, a monster named Nian would come to terrorize the villagers - eating livestock, and sometimes, even children! To scare this monster away, loud firecrackers were set off, and houses decorated with red lanterns and scrolls - the fierce monster was afraid of the color red! This tradition continues to date - most places you go to in China will be a sea of red at the time of the New Year! Houses are decorated with red paper cutouts, and streets are festooned with red Chinese knots and lanterns! The 'fu' character - which kind of looks like a wine bottle - symbolizes luck or prosperity, and is seen everywhere! Now, I can recognize the fu, but what baffled me was that it seemed to be stuck upside down on our Chinese neighbour's house - any guesses why? Well, the Chinese character for 'upside down' sounds very similar to the Chinese character for 'arrive' - so upside down fu signifies arrival of good luck! An 'aha' moment, if ever there was one!

The tradition of setting off firecrackers continues as well! With pollution levels always hovering at 'Unhealthy' levels, I don't know if this really makes sense anymore - but, tradition is tradition, and must be followed, come what may! So New Years Eve is one of the loudest nights here, and the smokiest! The fireworks go on till the wee hours of the morning - and while I was expecting it to bother me, the noise brought back strong memories of Diwali in India! Totally unexpected were the fireworks at midnight on the 5th day of the New Year - these sounded even louder than the New Year ones, and went on until late in the morning! The 5th day is the Money God's birthday, and firecrackers are used to attract his attention and welcome him home - sounds a bit like our Laxmi pooja, doesn't it? Still not done - the 7th day of the festival is the birthday of the Jade Emperor, who is the ruler of the heavens - birthday celebration, bring on the fireworks, of course!

Canals of Suzhou

With the aayi on vacation, a large chunk of my time was spent in the kitchen - but thankfully, that was not all that I did! We got one really, really beautiful day here - almost felt like winter was over - perfect day to explore the ancient district of Suzhou, specifically Shi Lu and Shantang Jie. In fact, Shantang Jie is known as the No. 1 Ancient Street in China! Like many places in China, this area is a curious mix of the old and the new! Newer malls, the ubiquitous McDonald's and Metro stations rub shoulders with stone bridges and houses that look like they are centuries old! The famous canals and waterways of Suzhou are also found here - and a boat ride is among the top attractions, even though the water is indescribably filthy! The usual silk and souvenir shops line the narrow streets, as well as plenty of little tea houses and eateries! There is plenty of history here, and I would definitely like to go back when it's a little quieter, to appreciate the beauty a little more!

The Shanghai Science and Tech Museum has been on our list for the longest time - so one day, we took the train to Shanghai, and spent a day at the museum! It is really convenient to take the train from Suzhou to Shanghai - trains run quite regularly, every hour or so - and the journey is really short, a mere 25 minutes! Once in Shanghai, the awesome metro connectivity will take you wherever you wish to go! The Science and Tech Museum in Shanghai has a little bit of everything - younger kids will enjoy the Spectrum of Life and Animal Kingdom exhibits, especially the African animals exhibit, which was really awesome! The Light of Exploration section had some interesting displays about quantum theory and nanosciences - but Manasi was quickly bored here! To commemorate the Year of the Horse, there was a special exhibit to learn about everything equine - that I really enjoyed!

Where's the water coming from?

Most other sections - including the much anticipated World of Robots and Space Exploration - were kind of flat, except one! We all agreed that this section was the best of all - the Light of Wisdom section! Here a variety of interactive experiments had been setup - what a fun way to learn basic principles of Science! The displays were all innovative - my favorite was the giant faucet apparently suspended in mid-air, with water gushing out into a sink! Where is that water coming from? Put your observation skills to the test - the solution is actually quite simple! This was the last section we visited before the museum closed, and I really wish we had gone there first - would have made the day so much more interesting! The museum also has 3 Imax theatres - even a 4D one - but all shows are in Chinese! That was a bit surprising - I would have expected at least a couple of shows in English! The added attraction at the museum is actually not in the museum - rather, right across from it! AP Plaza, a huge shopping complex located right in the Metro station for the Science and Tech Museum. The perfect place to get all souvenir and gift shopping done, AP Plaza also has some good clothing stores and tailors (in the market for a suit?)! Real easy to spend a couple of hours, or even the whole day here! Be prepared to bargain hard - the asking prices are way beyond ridiculous!!

The rest of the week passed surprisingly quickly - a lot of puttering around the house, huge meals, and of course perfect for rainy days, afternoon naps! Ajey and I spent an afternoon figuring out travel plans for the rest of the year - looks like it's going to be another exciting year! School will start in couple more days, and soon this lazy week will be but a memory! So before we all get back to our routines, a New Year wish - may the Year of the Horse bring you joy, prosperity and good luck! Xin nian kuai le!!

Dubai Diary III

Did I say Dubai shopping was done??? I did say I was saving the best for the last - the most valuable thing that can be bought in Dubai is, of course - wait for it - gold!! An endless stream of 70s Bollywood films have depicted smugglers bringing in 'Dubai ka sona' - and though the situation has changed somewhat, gold still remains the number one purchase of most Indians traveling to Dubai! An entire marketplace is dedicated to this glittering metal - the Gold Souk located in the historic, ancient Deira region of Dubai. The Gold Souk is not a mall, but rather a market with a vast number of shops selling gold jewellery. The jewellery is typically in the Arabic fashion, although there are quite a few stores that sell Indian designs. 18 karat gold is usually used for the ornaments - for pure gold, look for the 24 karat gold bars! The sheer amount of gold on display is good reason to make the trip to the Gold Souk!! The pictures speak volumes - all that glitters, is most assuredly gold here in Dubai!

If it is diamonds rather than gold that makes your heart beat a little faster, head to the Gold and Diamond Park, conveniently located on Sheik Zayed Road. Certainly more upscale than the Gold Souk, but with probably just as many stores specializing in diamonds and other precious stones. What a mind-boggling variety of jewellery to choose from! Workshops for all the jewellers are located right in the premises, so sizing for rings or anything else is not a problem - customer service at its best!! I didn't think that the price of diamonds was any lower than anywhere else, but the lower price of gold might just drop the price of the jewellery. Besides, this was the best selection of designs in diamond I have ever seen - impossible to resist! Of course, just like in the Gold Souk, it is customary to bargain - and while there won't be any dramatic discounts, a good deal will be found by those who seek!

Atlantis the Palm

As I previously mentioned in Dubai Diary I, we spent 3 days of our vacation at the Atlantis. Besides being the only hotel/resort on the Palm Jumeirah, the Atlantis is a famous tourist destination and landmark in its own right! The Aquaventure Waterpark is probably the biggest in Dubai, and is definitely worth spending a day here enjoying the adrenalin rush of the thrilling rides, or just meander lazily along the River that winds its way across the park.

The highlight of our stay - hands down - was the visit to to Dolphin Bay! Talk of once-in-lifetime opportunities - getting a chance to swim with dolphins ranks way up there for me! With a group of 6 other people, Manasi and I, suitably wet-suited, spent about half hour in the lagoon with a very well-trained dolphin! Fascinating creatures these - ours had a scarred back, souvenirs from a shark attack and a boat propeller, before he was rescued! And I got to kiss the dolphin too - nothing like the doggy and kitty kisses I'm used to - this was, well, like kissing a fish - cold and clammy! Yes, I know, dolphins are not fish - but still! The jury is still out on whether the whole experience was worth the exorbitant charge we paid - but hey, dolphins, is that amazing or what??!!

The one thing we whole-heartedly enjoyed in Dubai was the food! Rajasthani food at Maanwar, chikoo milkshakes at Haji-Ali, sev-puri at Bikanerwala - I could go on forever! The best, in my opinion, was this Arabian restaurant, Arabiska - on the Dubai Marina, outdoor seating, great food and atmosphere! Perfect way to spend an afternoon! Interestingly, none of the restaurants in Dubai serve alcohol - unless they are part of a residential hotel. Good thing, too - considering the zero-tolerance policy on drinking and driving!! The bar scene is pretty active, though - take a cab, or assign someone to be the designated driver!And of course, no drinking in public places!

 What really elevated this vacation for us was the company of great friends - and not just any friends! SB is probably Ajey's first ever friend - they've known each other since before kindergarten! As SB so appropriately said - "I don't remember a time when I didn't know Ajey!"!! How many of us have that - that easy familiarity, the amazing comfort level, the years of shared memories??!! And what incredible hosts SB and his wife PB were - they were with us almost every evening, spending as much time as possible with us, driving us places, taking us out to eat! Truly, the best times in Dubai were the ones we spent together, just chilling at their place, Manasi and A playing together, Ajey and SB cooking breakfast while the ladies enjoyed a cup of tea!! So if you're reading this, SB and PB, start planning your China trip - can't wait to see you again!

The best mirror is an old friend...

So that's it then, our time in Dubai is up! As with most places, I felt we barely scratched the surface - and I left with a 'for-next-time' list longer than my arm!! And as if Dubai weren't enough, there's Abu Dhabi and Sharjah barely an hour's drive away - both with their own unique attractions! I will say this, though - Dubai is an extremely easy place for a vacation! The usual impediments of language and food don't exist here, the public transport is good, and there's plenty of ways to spend your time (and money)!! One thing to keep in mind - behind the very Western facade and cosmopolitan air, beats a heart of strong Middle Eastern sensibilities!! So what are you waiting for - go ahead, book your tickets - the ever glittering Dubai awaits you!

Dubai Diary II

The wait is over - the next installment of Dubai Diary is here!! I'm going to mix it up a little in this post - instead of doing a blow-by-blow account of our time in Dubai, I'm going to write about the must-sees and must-dos in Dubai, and my impressions about the ones that I actually saw and did! That way, not only will I save myself the trouble of thinking up a bunch of new opening phrases - using 'and then we...' does get really monotonous, doesn't it? - but, I also don't have to worry about being chronologically correct all the time! With the added benefit, that this will (hopefully) make for a crisper, more interesting post! Win-win all around, the way I look at it!

First of all, a little background about Dubai. For the longest time, I've thought of Dubai in the vaguest terms - everyone knows it is in the Middle East, but is it a city or a country or maybe both like Singapore, exactly what is Dubai?? Well, Dubai is neither a city or a country - but an emirate, which means a kingdom, and is ruled by a Sheik. The country it belongs to is the UAE - United Arab Emirates, which is a federation of 7 Emirates, the most prominent being Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Traditionally, the Sheik of Abu Dhabi is the President of the UAE, and the Vice-President position belongs to the Sheik of Dubai. Made me feel so much better to know all this - one more nugget of information to use when I'm in the hot seat of KBC!! Anyway, moving on...

Desert Safari

One thing you cannot miss in Dubai is the Desert Safari! There are a number of companies to choose from, and most hotels will also arrange this for you. We had booked with Oasis Palm Tours, chosen absolutely at random, nevertheless, I would definitely recommend going with them! We were picked up very punctually at our hotel, and then it was about an hour's drive out to the desert. The desert is absolutely gorgeous - literally a sea of sand, tinted pinkish golden by the sun, the sand dunes like frozen waves, a few bushes struggling to keep their heads up. Barren desolation, yes - but also, breathtakingly beautiful!

Dune bashing is the main attraction of these tours - riding over the immense sand dunes in a 4WD Land Cruiser - felt like an out-of-control, unpredictable roller-coaster! To be very honest, while the novelty made it fun - sand spraying over the windows, the sudden dips and turns - I was quite happy when we were done! Quick stop to take pictures and maybe have a go at sand boarding, and then we were off the campsite for the rest of the evening. We were served coffee/tea and snacks (what else - samosas and pakoras!) - and various forms of entertainment like a henna counter, a little stall where you could try on authentic Bedouin clothes for a photo, a hookah corner, camel rides - almost like a little fairground! The barbecue dinner was decent - plenty of vegetarian food (mostly Indian) and a good mix of Western and Arabic food. The highlight of the evening was the belly dancing and the twirling dance (don't remember the name, unfortunately!) - really great way to end the evening! If only it hadn't got that cold...

Image courtesy: wikipedia

Next on the list is undoubtedly the Burj Khalifa - the tallest man-made structure in the world! My fear of heights notwithstanding, I can never resist going up to the observation decks of these tall towers! Keep in mind, that tickets to go up to the observation deck of the Burj Khalifa can and should be booked in advance for a particular day and time-slot. Not only is this cheaper, but limited availability makes it almost impossible to get tickets at the last minute. I really loved the interactive display in the lobby which placed the Burj Khalifa amidst the skylines of various other cities, for a side-by-side comparison with other famous towers! The observation deck, however - didn't really live up to expectations! For one thing, the Burj Khalifa absolutely towers over the rest of the Dubai - so the view from the top is the desert on one side, and the network of roads and the sea on the other - nothing really spectacular! The celebrated 'Palm' islands cannot be seen clearly, neither can the 'World Map' islands. 10 minutes at the top, and I was done! They do have interesting displays about the actual construction of the building, and the engineering that has gone in to make this tower feasible - that was pretty cool! I won't say give it a miss, but realistically, a check on the list is all that should be expected here!!

Shadow of the Burj Khalifa

At the base of the Burj Khalifa is the Dubai Mall - can this be anything other than the biggest mall in the world? Dubai is known to be a shopping heaven - and I've always wondered what people buy here! Yes, Dubai Mall is huge - why, it even boasts of an ice rink and a whale of an aquarium - but at the end of the day, isn't it just like any other mall? Restaurants and name-brand stores - seriously, what do people buy here? Another big attraction in Dubai is the Mall of Emirates - the USP here is an entire ski resort smack dab in the middle of the mall! Now this has to be seen to be believed - ski runs with chair lifts and all, sledding and tobogganing for kids, and temperatures of -3degC. There are a number of restaurants overlooking this winter wonderland, so you can have a leisurely meal, and pretend you're in Switzerland!

The Dubai Mall and Mall of Emirates are the two biggest malls in Dubai, but that's not the end of the list! I have never been much of a mall person - window shopping is definitely not my thing! So here's what I would recommend - after you've mall-hopped to your heart's content, head to the Karama Center market for some real shopping! This place is not as posh as some of the other malls, but here you will find everything you need to take back from your vacation - mainly, clothes, souvenirs like magnets and replicas of the Burj Khalifa and even gold (more about that later)!! I was delighted to find a store which sold T-shirts with the logos of different IPL cricket teams - perfect gifts for my little nephews!

Spice market at Global Village

To round off the shopping in Dubai, Global Village cannot be missed! This is a huge outdoor world market which runs 6 months of the year - vendors from different countries set up their stalls with national specialities. Handicrafts, food, jewellery, clothes - everything under the sun! Most of the Middle East is represented here, India has one of the largest booths and there is a sprinkling of European and other Asian countries. Conspicuously absent is the USA booth - no surprises there! I absolutely regret not buying saffron here - this is the first time in my life that I have seen enormous piles of saffron - oh the fragrance! The spice markets were also quite interesting - huge sticks of cinnamon, almost looked like small tree trunks! Ironically, most of our shopping was in the India booth!

Shopping done, what's next? The best is yet to come - with yet another installment of the Dubai Diary! What's that proverb - good things come to those who wait? So don't miss the third and final Dubai post - coming very soon! Signing off until then!!

Dubai Diary I

Ajey has always, always wanted to go to Dubai! It would have been a really easy trip to make while we were living in India, but for some reason or the other, we never got around to it. Of course, once we moved to China, Dubai got right back on the top of the bucket list - no excuses this time! It's very convenient to get to Dubai from Shanghai - Emirates flies directly to Dubai, 3 times a week. So what's the problem? Well, the Emirates flight is a tad on the pricey side - about $1800 per head - there goes my entire budget, just on airline tickets!!! Besides, I also wanted a week in India - and trying to work that with Emirates wasn't really straightforward!

Good old Air India to the rescue! We managed to get reasonable deals to fly to Delhi - wait a few hours in the airport, and then get on the first flight to Dubai with SpiceJet. The return tickets clinched the deal - fly directly from Dubai to Pune (how great is that!) and then back on Air India for Pune-Delhi-Shanghai! The pricing worked out great too! So here's my 'Tip of the day' - people planning vacations to Dubai from China - give Emirates a pass, check out Shanghai-Delhi-Dubai on Air India! Anyway, first step, tickets - done! Dubai, here we come!

But wait - not so fast! Manasi, courtesy of her US passport, didn't need a visa - but Ajey and I, as always, had to figure out the paperwork! And did we have a couple of anxious moments! The good thing is that you can apply online or through an agency - but the UAE Embassy does not issue tourist visas directly. Even the online has to be through an agency! Now here's the big advantage to flying Emirates - the airline will process your visa hassle-free! We soon found that all hotels will process the visa, provided you are staying with them - that seems pretty easy, right! Well, where's the fun of planning a vacation without a little tension?!! Out of 5 nights in Dubai, we were to stay 3 nights at the Atlantis, and spend the remaining two with a close friend of Ajey's. Interestingly, our hotel informed us that they would process our visa only for the number of days we were to stay with them! Then, we could apply for an extension - for an additional cost, of course! Seriously, I think I need to write a separate post about all our weird visa experiences! Anyway, all's well that ends well - after all the fuss, when we finally got the visa, it was for 6 weeks! Okay, now, Dubai - here we come!!

Once we had the visas in hand, excitement levels soared! And this actually has to be some kind of record - I was packed, my suitcases in the foyer - 3 days before our flight!! The wait in the Delhi airport wasn't too bad - we were there at about 3am, but we did find a couple of empty benches for a quick snooze - brought back memories of traveling from India to USA with flight changes in Europe!! Surprisingly, could not find a decent cup of tea in the whole airport - all restaurants serve the dip-dip teas - and I do need my chai in the morning! Delhi - India - masala chai?? Well, only at railway stations, apparently!! Oh well, I would have settled for a cup of Chennai-style filter coffee, but although we managed to get a good masala dosa for breakfast, not even a whiff of the aromatic coffee!!

Outside the Dubai airport

Flight to Dubai was cool - flying over the Hindukush mountains, and then Pakistan and Iran - added a little bit of spice to the otherwise uneventful flight! Dubai airport, too, was very uneventful - when you think Dubai, you think big, jazzy, bright - the current airport is almost subdued! I did hear that a new airport is under construction, maybe that will live up to the Dubai glitz! Finding a taxi is really easy - vans designated as special airport taxis, big enough for all your luggage, all metered - so getting to your hotel anywhere in Dubai is not a problem!

First impressions - besides the bright sun, and the bleached sky, of course - Dubai is a curiously flat city. One main road, almost a highway leading from the airport into the heart of Dubai, and then onwards to Abu Dhabi, one elevated track for the Metro parallel to the road - no criss-crossing flyovers, pedestrian bridges or train bridges overhead -very different from most other big cities! The Arabic architecture is very much in evidence, and the skyscrapers seem to be scattered around instead of being bunched together in what usually is the downtown area! Huge hoardings of the Sheiks of Dubai and Abu Dhabi line the road, along with some very well-known faces - Bollywood stars advertising a variety of things!

Lobby of the Atlantis

The Atlantis lobby, very beautiful, very spacious - was absolutely packed with people as we waited to check in. Very interesting place to people watch - the mix of nationalities was unbelievable, the large number of Indians even more so! The other unbelievable thing was that this 5-star resort did not have free Wi-Fi, not even in the lobby or breakfast areas! Seriously, after paying upwards of $600 per night, free Wi-Fi should be a no-brainer! On principle, I refuse to pay for this very basic service - so even with all the electronics we were traveling with, we were effectively cut off from the world for the duration of our stay! A month later, still can't get over it - no Wi-Fi, honestly!!

Lunch at The Burger Joint

Normally, when staying at resort like this, it is very hard to get to the city to look for places to eat. Most resorts do have a wide variety of restaurants, but most of these are usually too fancy when all you need is a quick sandwich for lunch! The Atlantis, though, in addition to being a resort, also has a Water Park open to non-residents - and the entrance to this park has a number of delightful eateries - pizzas, burgers, yogurt, even crepes! For dinner we were to go out with our friend, SB and his family - where else, an Indian restaurant! As we drove there, I was struck by the number of restaurants that we passed - from the British Nando's to the American Chilis to our very own Sarvana Bhavan - Dubai seems to be a heaven for foodies! Even the Indian places - everything from pav-bhaji and chaat, to regional specialties, to the celebrity owned restaurants - a place for every palate and wallet!!!

The temperatures dropped sharply in the evening, and even with a sweater on, it was quite chilly - even the ocean breezes had a bite to them! Busy couple of days coming up - the must-do things in Dubai, the Desert Safari, and the Dolphin Swim, and of course the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa! Although, very typically, I have rambled on too long, and these exciting Dubai adventures must wait for my next post! So don't go anywhere - I'll be back soon with the next installment of Dubai Diary!

'Bollywood Dreams' - the FoD Annual Charity Ball

My last post painted a dreary picture of our life here in China - but it's most certainly not all gloom and doom over here! I, for one, have a great deal of fun - weekend parties with friends, shopping trips to Shanghai, activities in school, and always, the exotic vacations to look forward to! Just last month, we were at a fabulous soiree - the Friends of Dulwich Annual Charity Ball!

A little background about the Friends of Dulwich - this society has been created mainly to bring Dulwich parents together - if you have a child at Dulwich College Suzhou, you're automatically a member! The goal is to increase parent involvement in the school, and also through various fund raising activities, give back a little to the local community! There is an elected committee - all the members are parents who are serving in a purely voluntary capacity. Volunteers are, of course, always welcome to help out with the myriad activities happening all-year round. The 2 main events organized at the school - the first, International Day and the second, the reason for this post - The Annual Charity Ball!

The word 'Ball' always brings to mind images of glass slippers and elaborate masks, champagne and caviar, waltzing under the stars - all very romantic, true, but definitely something that I would steer far, far away from! Last year, by the time I found out about the Ball, it was too late to get tickets - so we didn't go. Everyone we know went, however - and there was plenty of excitement about getting gowns made, tuxedos being ordered - just listening to all the talk was a bit intimidating, I have to admit I was secretly relieved about not going!!

This year, I knew we would go - so it was with some trepidation that I waited for the announcement - and somehow, just like that, all my fears were gone! The theme was announced - and it was, wait for it - Bollywood!!! Talk of comfort zones, I was smack dab in the middle of mine!!! I knew exactly what I was going to wear, I had the jewellery to match - never before had dressing for a party been that easy!!! What made it better is that I was able to offer some of my non-Indian friends 'costumes' to wear - my sarees, collected over the last dozen years, finally being put to good use! We had a try-a-saree afternoon - for me, a great kick-off to what I knew was going to be a great event!!!

Next in line was Bollywood dancing - we have a very talented lady here in Suzhou, well versed in both Bharatnatyam and Kathak, and she ran a dance workshop intended to familiarize people with Bollywood song and dance. She was also going to put on a number of dance items at the Ball, and was planning to train a few women for that purpose too! I'm certainly no dancer - and by the way, just for the record - being Indian does not necessarily mean that you are an expert on Bollywood dance - or yoga! Anyway, I still showed up at the first session - and I found out that I was actually capable of gracefully moving my hands, or my feet - just not together at the same time!! I'm definitely no dancer!!! 

While most of us were having so much fun, the committee members had their noses to the grindstone - the amount of work that goes into putting on a event like this is unimaginable! I'm sure the logistics were mind boggling - selecting the venue, deciding the entrance fee, printing and selling tickets, food, decorations, entertainment - and these are just the things that are visible!! My friends were part of the decoration team, and I got a chance to see them at work - and their efforts were nothing short of genius! The creativity and ingenuity - ordering ordinary items from taobao, and then transforming them into flashy centerpieces, yards and yards of fabric to be use as chair bows and drapes, tons of flowers and votives, Bollywood posters - gold stickers, glitter, lace, glue guns, and a lot of manpower (or should it be womanpower?!). There was also archways to be made - one for the entrance, one for the photo booth - and this involved sawing and nailing wood, mixing concrete, lot of foam board for the decoration - what a tremendous job!!

The entrance archway

Baby elephant masterpiece - created from wire and flowers!

The decorated and ready ballroom

After all the hard work and anxieties - will there be enough centerpieces, will the archway hold up, to name a few - the Day of the Ball! I had a few anxieties of mine - I certainly had offered to dress my friends, but was I up to the task? Thankfully, the sarees all co-operated, and we were ready to leave by 6pm. The venue was the Hotel Kempinski - not too far from us! I had initially thought I was a bit too blingy, but as we walked into the ballroom, it was obvious that tonight there was no such thing as too much bling!! The photo booth was the first stop after registration - and I was glad to see my Chennai brass lamps add just the right touch of authenticity! Cocktail hour with much oohing and aahing followed - and then finally it was time to find our seats in the beautiful ballroom!!

The 'official' photo!

The dance show that kicked off the evening was amazing - it was quite a revelation to see the performers going all out with all the jhatkas and matkas! Free flowing beer and wine at the table - surprisingly, the wine was terrible, more vinegar than wine! The buffet soon opened - there was a large selection of entrees, both Indian and Western - like the wine, the food was nothing to write home about! They did have quite a few vegetarian options, so at least, it wasn't just salad and dessert! Then of course, there were sponsors to be thanked, and raffle tickets to be drawn, a few party games - and one last dance number, the current favorite - 1,2,3,4, Get on the dance floor! With that everyone was on the dance floor - the DJ was from Shanghai, and he played a lot of our favorite Hindi songs, so we danced the night away!

 

 

Going crazy on the dance floor!

What a night! I guess this was my first Ball and I literally had a ball!!! Honestly speaking, I think Ajey and I probably enjoyed it a lot more than some of the other guests - Indian dress, Indian food, Indian dance - this party was tailor made for us!! Now if only they would do this same theme every year....I know, I know - wishful thinking!! Nevertheless, one thing is certain - we'll be back, no matter what the theme!!! Until later, signing off!