In Gratitude. The year was 2016, the place was a secondary school in a picturesque town called Boulogne-Sur-Mer, in the north of France. I had accompanied a group of students from the school where I was working, on an exchange program; and as part of the program, we were attending classes in a secondary school … Continue reading To French, With Love
Every year around Christmas this topic comes up for discussion, is hotly debated, never settled and then kept aside till the following year. The topic being 'Which is the best Christmas movie- Love Actually or Die Hard?' There are memes, jokes, articles (and podcasts too, I'm sure) which hold forth on the pros and cons … Continue reading Love Hard @ Christmas!
The Year: 1857 The place: Lucknow Residency The Players: Rebels (or Natives) The rebel forces were made up of troops who had gathered from all over the province of Awadh. they were joined by local landlords, villagers and even peasants. They numbered around 36,000. v/s The British. There were British soldiers, Indian soldiers loyal to … Continue reading The Rebels and The Residency
These mysterious looking squiggles on yellowed paper were pasted on the wall of our resort in Pahalgam. At first glance, I thought they were the usual post-its that so many places have on their walls- with comments and messages from guests who have stayed there. But a closer look revealed that this was not the … Continue reading The Weaver’s Talim
Comparing Wordle scores with friends at the start of the day is like comparing marks when the answer papers are given out. Once one's own marks are seen, the next questions is "How much did he/she get?" We may have left our school days far behind but some things stay with us. Here are some … Continue reading The Lighter Side of Wordle
Q1: What do the Battle of Seringapatam, the Second Anglo-Maratha War and the Battle of Waterloo have in common? A1: They were commanded by Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington. Q2: What does Arthur Wellesley have to do with the White Mughals? A2: This book is set in the period (1798-1805) when his brother … Continue reading White Mughals by William Dalrymple- A Review
Every month, there's a collection drive that takes place in my neighbourhood. A notice is sent around on WhatsApp informing the date, time and venue so that people can come by and drop off stuff they don't need. This stuff is then taken away to be reused, recycled or upcycled. I'm a pretty regular (and … Continue reading Stuff It!
The hangover of a trip lasts much, Much longer than the trip itself. It takes a while to settle back into the grind of daily routine, to cook, clean and worse; get back to work. Ughhh. At such times, it's very tempting to just sit back and relive memories of the trip and plan more … Continue reading Notes From My Travel Diaries
Disclaimer: No, this is not one of those posts that list out generic bits of advice on how empty nesters can get on with their lives. I view with disfavor any attempts from random, unknown people who know nothing about me, dishing out suggestions and telling me what I can and must not do. Also, … Continue reading Lessons from an Empty Nest
1. The First Law If you get into the first parking space you see and walk the rest of the way, you will find three parking spaces just next to your destination. Corollary- However, if you drive on in the hope that there will be parking nearer your destination, you will end up desperately having … Continue reading (My) Murphy’s Laws of Parking:
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