Goa – Fam-Jam

Amma   : “She has a fever. See how warm she is.”

Me         : “She just sleeps hot. She’ll be fine in sometime.”

Amma   : “There should be a thermometer somewhere in this house but I cannot find it.  Call the chemist and ask him to send one.”

I call both chemists but they don’t have the kind of thermometer I am looking for – digital, forehead reading.

Amma   : “Can you order it online?”

This was the perfect opportunity to teach Amma how to shop online. We order a thermometer… and find the one we were looking for at home. The LO’s body is back to normal temperature. She is still refusing to eat more than a few bites. She’s been doing that for a few days. My mother packs lunch for her and we are on our way to the airport. At the airport we meet the husband and one set of cousins. As we walk towards security, the husband says a security personal said we are going in only to have to come out. There’s going to be some drill. We still go in. I am wearing the LO. The lady at security asks me to take the baby out and put it in the scanner. I am flabbergasted. She means put the carrier through the luggage scanner. Once past security we buy some food and sit down to eat. Then we hear the siren. Everyone starts moving towards the gates. Sam insists the drill is only of employees. Travelers are not expected to participate. No amount of reasoning will get her to budge. Finally, a security personal comes to the food court and ushers us out.

We get on a bus and wait for two hours, after which we are taken back to landside. This means go through security again. Can you imagine the pandemonium!

Now we are joined by another piece of our crew. The whole lot of us reach Goa at the same time. The resort has a bus waiting for us. The last bit of our squad has already reached and beached. The day is lost, but the night is ours. After a loooong check-in, we head to our rooms, order food, eat, drink and crash. The bathrooms are clean and spacious enough to hold two cribs. The babies are temporarily moved in so that we can keep an eye on them without having to keep the lights and voices low.

Goa – watch out!!

Mumbai – Culture Shock and Immersion

September-October 2018

Can your own culture give you a culture shock?

Does it count as cultural immersion if it is your own culture?

 

It was the little one’s (LO) first ever visit to India. The day we landed in Bombay (Mumbai), we took our year-old daughter to see a Ganpati idol immersion procession. It is Hindu belief that once year, every year, the elephant headed god Ganesh or Ganpati visits earth for a period of eleven days. On the eleventh day he is sent off with great pomp. Ganpati idols worshiped over the past eleven days are immersed in water bodies. I grew up with this festivity. I have been a happy part of it, yet my first thought was that the noise and chaos might overwhelm our daughter. I thought the noise and general chaos might overwhelm our daughter, but she pushed my hands off her ears and danced. I thought I would be swept away, and she would be overwhelmed, but she was swept away, and I was a pleasently surprised. A couple of days later, we had a traditional Hindu prayer service to mark our daughter’s first birthday as per the Hindu calendar. The priest and the baby both did much better than expected. In fact, they were both champs. Not only did the priest actively include me in all the proceedings, he even pacified well-meaning relatives who tried to stop me. Our daughter dealt with the heat, smoke and attention overload like it was just another day.

The LO dealt with the sensory overload that is Mumbai like a pro. Her favourite pages in her little book on Mumbai are Ganpati Bappa (always gets a moriya out of her), Cricket (enthusiast clapping for Sachin cheers) and bad Bollywood songs (she even got her cousin hooked on to one of her favourites). Noisy toys that would have scared her back home were inspected with curiosity and accepted with equanimity. Our daughter dealt with the sensory overload that is Mumbai like a pro, but for me it was somewhat of a shock. I always thought it would be the other way around. Afterall, even after all these years, this was still home.  But coming back is never the same as not going. It’s not just everything around you, it is also about how much you have changed. That’s the real shock. Suddenly the streets look smaller, traffic seems worse, familiar faces look older, fewer people recognize you instantly, you recognize fewer people, you clutch your baby close and hope the auto rickshaw won’t overturn… There are good changes too – no more plastic bags. Change is natural, but what hurts is that the change has happened without you. I was stuck in a time warp. It was not exactly where I left. Sometimes it was a little ahead, sometimes way back in time. It took me an entire day to process everything. India can be overwhelming. Coming back, even more.

 

 

Paris- for the Romantic Soul

October 2018

Paris is not the world capital of romance for nothing. You won’t see people kissing at every street corner; you can see more action in Bombay, if you know where to look.  While you won’t see people kissing at every street corner, I love how the local markets are all filled with fresh flowers – and men with a bagful of them.  C’est trop charmant, don’t you think?

The local markets are everywhere. Every locality seems to have its own little market. The food is fresh, and so is the produce if you are interested. We bought our first meal in Paris at Marché Monge – the city market. We wandered into it looking for Marché Mouffetard. Sundays are flea market days.

The flower market at Île de la Cité has attracted avid gardeners and curious passersby since 1830 and converts into a bird market on Sundays. Canaries, budgies, lovebirds, parrots, doves… It is heartbreaking actually.

Broken hearts rejoice, all the locks on the “love lock” bridge – aka Pont des Arts have been taken down and it is now illegal to attach locks to the bridge. You can still bring your baguettes, cheese, wine and blankets and camp out on the bridge while musicians serenade you as the sun sets in the back. Book lovers can walk along the Siene and browse the little bookshops that line both banks, while admiring the views. The Seine is often described as ‘the only river in the world that runs between two bookshelves’. The bouquinistes of Paris are booksellers of used and antiquarian books. Sit down at any of the numerous cafes around for a bite and a glass of wine. I had a wonderful vegan meal at Le Grenier de Notre Dame.  Or take your book, a baguette and a bottle of wine* to any of the big and small parks around. Find a bench and picnic.

 

“A book of verses underneath the bough.. A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread—and Thou.”

*Don’t hold me on the wine. It might be illegal to drink in a public place. Please do your own due diligence.

Prague – Paisa Vasool for Everyone

My second trip to Prague was in August 2018. This started off as a work trip with four other colleagues from UK, followed by my family joining me on the Thursday for an extended weekend. Being our second trip, my colleague and me decided to play tourist guides to the rest and walked them to Charles Bridge to give them a glimpse of the river front and Prague Castle.

By August I had done 3 work trips with the lads and my stomach was more conditioned to accepting a bit more alcohol, in short, I graduated to the large pint. I won’t bore you with every place we had dinner, but it won’t be complete without mentioning U-Fleku.  The Brewery and Restaurant U Fleků in Prague is one of the most famous and most visited Czech cultural sites, such as the Prague Castle, Old Town Square, Vyšehrad, the Jewish Town or the National Museum.This place had a number of halls with a large beer garden / courtyard in the middle. The seating was very Oktoberfest’ish with long rows of benches and tables. The place was heaving with tourists and locals with traditional live music running in the background that helped create an atmosphere. Beer was continuously refilled until you ask them to stop, quite dangerous for light weights like me! I ordered the only vegetarian option which felt like a Czech version of a ‘bhajiya‘ platter with salad. The waiter asked us to try ‘medovina’, a classic sweet honey infused alcoholic beverage. A small shot glass was enough to make us appreciate the ambiance. Don’t miss this place if you visit Prague.

Pic courtesy- ufleku website. It looked a lot like this

Let’s get to the family part of the trip. Up until now, I’d only seen the ‘dark’ side of Prague, as we only had time in the evenings and the agenda was heavily inclined to places that served alcohol!

After a bit of research, I found a hotel quite close to Wenceslas square. The family had a bit of airport drama with flight cancellations etc which meant that by the time they arrived Prague it was mid- day and the girls were knackered.  After a much-needed nap, we got ready to explore the place on foot. Did I mention that last summer Europe was blessed with some never-ending sunshine and heat wave? It was early thirties and I was determined to try on that pink vest which I wouldn’t dare to wear in England. Besides that, was the only thing that coordinated with the pink themed evening.

We had the most enjoyable walk from new town to old. Prague has managed to maintain its heritage with its multi-colour facades along the street. The cafes along the street are pretty and unpretentious. Food and drink are not expensive in Prague when you compare them to other European cities. After a long walk to the town centre in the heat, we took a pit stop to grab a quick gelato for the little one. It was simply awesome. I wanted to show the family the Old Town square. As you walk along these lovely cobbled streets, you cannot ignore the Baroque architecture. Prague was once the cultural capital of Europe and it truly lives up to that title.

The walk, in day light observing the rich heritage of Prague is simply spectacular. The little one was still sprightly, so we decided to head to the famous Charles bridge. The sun was about to set, and we managed to get clicked along the riverside. The riverfront promenade is bustling with more cafes and restaurants.

The missus was a bit apprehensive to experiment the local cuisine besides her motherly instincts were flowing full throttle, so we had to find a dal-chawal place for the little one. On the way back towards the hotel, we bumped into Bombay Express. This was a life savior. If you are craving for Indian food in Prague, don’t miss Bombay Express (I think it is a chain in Prague as I saw it in more than one place!). We ordered a dal makhni, naan and paneer masala and may I say that it was quite simply delicious. I thanked the wife as by day five of staying away from home-food, I was craving for some desi food. On that tasty note, we called it a day.

The following day we decided to get a tram to Prague Castle. Remember I told you that Uber is good in Prague, trams are also good and cheap!  We arrived early and got a day pass to cover a few monuments within the castle. It gave us access to the Rose gardens, Cathedral, Gold lane among a few other historic buildings. The castle is on a hill top offering a breathtaking view of the city.

After getting lots of photos, we entered the St. Vitus Cathedral. The intricate designs on the walls, the rose painted glass, high ceiling walls and the ornate decor was simply mind blowing. This is a must visit place and completely worth it.

The Cathedral was definitely the highlight of the visit. It was a visual treat from inside and outside. There is a lot to cover in the Castle. Our little one cooperated as we walked to tick everything we wanted to see. She was quite excited to see the castle exteriors, the rooms where the soldiers guarded the city and their outfits. The place has managed to preserve its history beautifully and highly recommended if you visit Prague.

Day 3 with the family was meant to be any place of fun for the little one. We were toying with the idea of going to Karlstein which was also a palace type of place but instead chose to go to the zoo. Prague zoo is huge with a lot of area to cover. I would definitely recommend if you are travelling with kids and would probably start early in the day and get a cable car to the top. The zoo expanses on a sloping terrain and they’ve managed to get all the wild animals at the top end. We chose to walk up as the missus was petrified with the incline of the cable car (bad decision). Once up, we hired a mini train to take us around the park and we got to see a lot of the wild animals. Prague zoo is not a Loro Parque or San Diego Zoo in terms of different shows but nonetheless it has all wild animals one would want to see and recognize. If you are travelling with kids and want to do something locally, then it is worth a visit.

I told you 2018 was a year of firsts and seconds. Two trips to Prague with completely different agendas but equally worthwhile and fun! Whether you decide to go solo, with a bunch of friends or with family, Prague has something to offer for one and all.  At the end of the trip, the little one said to me “Papa, Prague was the best because it was nice and hot!”. Paisa vasool! *

 

* Paisa vasool!  – got my money’s worth

-Nitin Kumsi – I’m not a born traveller, accountant, dancer, chaat-lover,reader or writer. l’ve just picked some of these habits along the way and stuck with some of them as I seemed to enjoy them more than others.