Bangkok from the 18th floor of my hotel. This looks like any Indian metropolitan with the traffic jams that we encountered on the 40km drive from the airport to our hotel and had to wait for a long time for the traffic to clear. For breakfast there were a variety of regular western items but there was an Indian corner which had steamed rice, pulao and Brinjal. May be the Thai think we have this for breakfast.
On 8th Novemeber, 2017, Enroute Thailand,The land of Smiles. At mid night in the lobby at Rajeev Gandhi International Airport.
On the way stopped at Yeola in a saree shop on 8th October, 2017, a shop that claims to be one of the oldest shop in the area. It had an amazing collection of silk from Maharashtra, especially Paithani sarees. I picked up few and enjoyed looking at the old buildings. Many of these are now being razed and new buildings being constructed in their place.The 2,000 year-old weave is done with the same technique as the Persian rug. It is an heirloom sari and once it was even used as currency because it was so expensive.One important difference between Paithani sarees and Shalu sarees is the thickness of the silk that is used. Paithani is a thicker weave, which makes the sarees fall with a certain amount of stiffness, while the Shalu is easy to drape as the silk used is much thinner and lighter.
For the past forty years I have become too much of a Hyderabadi and though I love to collect sarees from all regions my first preference is always for the sarees from Andhra and Telengana. No saree can stand in front of these sarees be it for any occasion.
At Shani Shingnapur with my family on 7th October, 2017. Shani Shingnapur Temple is a famous temple which is located at a distance of 65 kilometers from Shirdi nestled in the Ahmednagar district. This popular temple is dedicated to Lord Shanidev, the popular Hindu god associated with the planet Saturn. As I visit this Shani temple could not help but remember Ms. Trupti Desai, and thank her for her struggle to take the authorities head on in November, 2015 and see to it that women are allowed into this temple. Earlier women were not allowed into this temple and had to remain outside only. It is the struggle like these which have added to the richness and diversity of the Women's Movement in India.
Reached Dharamsala on 2nd October, 2017. A view from my hotel balcony in Dharamsala. Lush green forests of Deodar trees. An amazing and beautiful sight.
On 28th September, 2017, stopped by a road side dhaba. It is indeed a pleasure to stop by one of the roadside dhabas as we take a road trip from Delhi to Chandigarh. The whole Haryana belt is dotted by these dhabas, eateries of different hues, colour and sizes. One gets lovely paratha's of Alu, Gobi, Muli, paneer(potatoes, cauliflower, radish, cheese) and what not. The milk products, lassi and butter are great. I am very impressed with the level of hygiene and the quality of the food. Even the toilets are neat and clean and well maintained. Yes, indeed things are changing in our country and inspite of the dust and crowd on the roads it is fun to take a road trip.
In New York 0n 3rd September, 2017, visited the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbour. It was a lovely evening with the New York skyline visible at one end. We sailed in ships that travel the river for a hour and half to reach the island. There were a large number of tourists from different countries all admiring the symbol of freedom a loving gift of the French people to America.
