The Listeners (just another online class with secondary school students)

Disclaimer: This is a parody of one of my favourite poems and I make my apologies to Walter de la Mare! “Is there anybody there?” said the Teacher Tapping on the silent screen And her cursor in the silence moved across The names of participants in the meeting And more participants joined the meeting But … Continue reading The Listeners (just another online class with secondary school students)

Of People in Places.

Travel is not just about seeing different places and trying out varieties of food (as I used to think). It's also about the interesting/annoying people one encounters on the way. The interesting ones enrich the travel experience and the annoying ones give you that feeling of relief that you will not have to see them … Continue reading Of People in Places.

The Sands of Time.

"In every curving beach, in every grain of sand, there is a story of the Earth." Who would have thought that beaches can have so many stories to tell? We see them as sandy or rocky, smooth or rough, white or golden and (unfortunately) polluted or clean. After visiting the beaches at Dapoli, I added … Continue reading The Sands of Time.

The Marvellous ‘modaks’ of Dapoli

modak: (n.m) Indian dumpling-like sweet consisting of freshly grated coconut and jaggery filling and outer cover made of rice flour which is then steamed. Served hot with home made ghee (clarified butter). Can be had at any time of the day or night or month or year and in any quantity. Disclaimer - needs to … Continue reading The Marvellous ‘modaks’ of Dapoli

In search of a bygone era.

Wall have ears and maybe that's why buildings have history. So when old buildings get demolished, their history too gets ground into rubble. As do the stories of their inhabitants. The city we live in is slowly and inexorably losing parts of its history as many familiar, old landmarks disappear. Pretty soon, we will be … Continue reading In search of a bygone era.

Form Marz to MahaNaaz- eating our way down memory lane.

Food and nostalgia in the company of old friends- now that's a combination that's hard to beat. When my friends and I decided to take a walk down memory lane one Saturday morning, we were very clear that we would be eating all along the way. The meeting point was an old favourite- Marz aka … Continue reading Form Marz to MahaNaaz- eating our way down memory lane.

It’s All Write!

There comes a point in one's life when a new year is just another year. There's no thrill or excitement or anticipation of what the next twelve months may bring. It's more of a heigh-ho-it's home-to-work- we- go kind of a feeling and the calendar will have already been scanned for the holidays and the … Continue reading It’s All Write!

The Gift That Keeps On Giving

So, this pandemic has been a great teacher and we have learnt many valuable lessons that will last us a life time and all that.I get it. I GET it. And I am grateful. Every day. For all my blessings. I couldn't be grateful-er, honest to God. But there are some blessings that are so … Continue reading The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Of ‘mandas’ and ‘gosht’ at the Mission.

It's a tablecloth! No, it's a 'manda' While going through some old, really old family photographs (as in, from before I was born), this one popped up and as usual; launched a string of memories. What you see here is a 'manda' - a kind of roti that was served at every single wedding dinner … Continue reading Of ‘mandas’ and ‘gosht’ at the Mission.