Of Bumpy Landings into Maharaja Suite at Devigarh by Lebua, Udaipur

A curious case of missing center seats in the plane while scrutinizing our tickets and an eventual realization that it is a 2x2 seater small air craft by Jet. A hilarious introduction of a couple of crew present on board (hilarious cause the list finished before it started) and an equally expected bumpy touchdown by the pilot Rahul, a name my son won’t forget in a hurry. That was the beginning of our 4 day action packed holiday in Udaipur or really if you ask me our hot trail of following Maharana Pratap through Mewar’s forts and palaces.

MRP (as is fondly called by son and his friends) is a popular historical figure with them, the imagination having been fueled by the teleserial of the same name on Sony on this veer putra. Not a TV watcher and bad with dates I was being corrected and reprimanded for my lack of knowledge in the matter but confess I must, I came out equipped with stories of valour, strength and a great deal of sense of patriotism and respect for the Maharana clan. 

Our landing at the Maharana Pratap airport was as you have noticed much dramatic and equally dramatic was our double upgrade to the suite with private swimming pool in Devigarh by Lebua. A 40 minute ride by the car on an uphill winding road led us to a beautifully restored fort hotel, in the middle of a sleepy village that wasn’t so sleepy when we checked in since there was a wedding going on that night and the loudspeakers were blaring Sheila and Munni with equal gusto. On checking in we were greeted with showering of rose petals from the Ganesh Dwar and offered subtly flavored rose drink while the husband completed check-in formalities.

Now, this calls for a short review of the hotel. Well maintained with manicured lawns, high reaching fort walls, dreamy landscape of hills as far as you can see the horizon, very very well mannered and attentive staff that each time they saw you joined their hands in “namstae” and greeted you with cheer, much in contrast with our stay at Trident Udaipur that looked and felt equally bland after a stint at Devigarh. Our room with the pool was nothing short of a royal treatment, at the entrance to the suite was a very well created trishul and Shiva installation, an inviting pool and typical Rajputana sit outs complete with low seating. These definitely made early mornings almost surreal and an hour to look forward to, what with sipping tea (made by husband; even better, actually more shocking than anything else), surveying the expanse and soaking in the loud chatter of the birds. An amazing property, I must say with the only deviation being the F and B prices, prohibitive.

our private sit out 

Devigarh by Lebua

Since it was late evening that we had checked in, all we had to do was soak in the dimly lit fort and have our dinner. Except that the beer that we had at the hotel’s restaurant that costed us a cool Rs500/- per pint (we had 4 pints that night, poor unknowing us!) our adventure that night was limited. I still can’t get over the pint, whoever said size matters was right, a pint-size can happily take your happiness (am I making good Sindhi sense?!). Well the food made up for the shock, the Lal maas that we had was superlative and so was the chicken accompanied by Rs 200/- each roti/parantha. There I go again. I told ya, this meal was an adventure. Anyways retiring to the room with a most awesome view that we were promised the next morning was a solace. Another day. Another story. 

Ah did i mention that at Delhi airport we got lucky to have bumped into Saifeena; yes Saif and Kareena. Got sonny boy's pic with Saif while Kareena was at the cashier at WH Smith. 

Baby Waterfall near Shimla

This summers when we stayed in Shimla, our main agenda was to explore and discover new terrains by trekking or by driving. So when someone told us that there is a “real waterfall” nearby in a place called Shaddi around 8 kms down from Koti Resorts, we decided to check it out.

My son was very excited at the prospect of a waterfall in the midst of the mountains. Packed the car with munchies and started off, the journey in itself was awe inspiring and gaping-worthy. Beautiful peaks lit with brilliant glistening sunshine, majestic pine trees sprouting fresh cones, butterflies strutting around as if they owned the place, a single car or jeep passing by as leisurely, Ahh the times of no traffic chaos and us in no hurry to reach anywhere or looking at the watch time and again, just the serene cool crisp mountain air,windows rolled down a feat unimaginable in Delhi. On the way down we caught many sites of step farming, a quaint little mandir, a shepherd and obviously many monkeys doing what they do best; monkeying around. Whoever said joy is in the journey must have traveled mindfully focusing on the moment and happiness derived from it.
 
Soon on crossing the bend we reached THE waterfall. It was “so small” like the son put it since I think mentally he was expecting a distant cousin of Niagra or the Tews falls that he has been to and had a reference of. Small it was but disappointing it wasn’t, and it was as private as it could get since we were the only people around. A bit of crossing over the slippery boulders and getting feet and hands wet did the trick for my son and frankly us too, at that time seemed like we were all kids, flowing gushing water does have that effect on boring grown ups too, the mischievous child within awakens and wants to splash and get splashed.

But like all good things have to come to an end, on a philosophical note thankfully all the bad ones too have an ending. Infact my mantra for life remains “this too shall pass”, we bid our goodbyes to this short rejuvenating and memorable sojourn too.

Submitting this post for the contest by indiblogger facebook.com/AmbiPurIndia

Over the Rainbow

A trip to Niagara is a fascinating experience. Every time you look at the roaring beauty you can not but marvel. Each visit offers you a different and a fulfilling experience, the sights are so completely of this and yet out-of-this-world. One thing that always “is” and most captivating is the formation of a rainbow on a sunny day. The rainbow moments are transient but awesome. And since a picture speaks louder than words here is one:

Rainbow Dreams

Do share your rainbow moments and if you have a picture of one on your blog, let’s link ‘em up!
For more pictures of Niagara Falls visit:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.265210623554593.65054.223467761062213&type=1

Ram's Ayutthaya in Thailand!

 

Anubha Kathuria Bellani, as published in ET
Whenever I thought of Thailand it either used to be a mouth-watering experience (what with the foodie in me loving all those spicy curries and seafood), or else a common shared joke among friends about those notoriously popular Thai massages. But when I got a chance to visit this land of Smiles, as is fondly called by the locals, with my globe-trotting husband I was pleasantly surprised. Frankly, I wasn't prepared for such a heady mix of cultural bonanza laced with a distinctively Indian flavour. Like, when you meet someone they greet you with folded hands just like our very own namastae. This gesture is called 'wai' and the hands shape like a closed lotus bud often offered to Lord Buddha as a symbol of purity.
Another striking similarity when visiting any place in Thailand is their adaptation of Valmiki's Ramayana. Basic story remaining the same that of Prince Rama and wife Sita, of victory of good over evil, it has been adapted to suit the Thais. 'Ramakian' pervades all forms of Thai artistic expressions. From murals on the palace walls to the dance-dramas and even as the most popular story line for puppeteering. However, when heard from the tour operators at the Hilton, where we were staying, about a city called Ayutthaya –Thai version of our very own Ayodhya – I was intrigued. That's when we decided to take a day's tour from Bangkok and opted to take the bus to Ayutthaya and return by the boat. We were told that the bus would leave at 6am sharp considering the notorious Bangkok traffic jams (all Thai VVIPs travel in their stretch limo's with motorcycles in tow so as not miss important deadlines!). Though it was a pain waking up at such an unearthly hour it was well worth it.
En route to Ayutthaya approximately 18km short of it, we halted at the Bang Pa popularly known as the Summer Palace. Originally built by King Prasat Thong who was the ruler between 1630 to 1655, this palace was used by later kings as a country residence. This Palace lay abandoned for nearly 80 years. However, during the early Bangkok period, King Rama V commanded several more buildings to be added in this compound. These include pavilions and halls constructed in Thai, Chinese and European architectural style. Modern in construction and though varied in style, they are resplendent with the liberal use of gold and colour. The national symbol, that of the garuda graces almost all buildings.
After the guided tour of the palace we proceeded to Ayutthaya. Located about 85km north of Bangkok, the city is also called Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya. It has been the Thai capital from 1350 till 1767. And for these 417 years the kingdom of Ayutthaya was the dominant power in fertile region of the Menam or Chao Phraya Basin. The official year of its "founding" is 1350 by King Ramathibodi I. This island-city is situated at the confluence of three rivers, the Chao Phraya, the Pasak and the Lopuri.
The main attraction is the ruins of the Ancient Palace, which was built by King U Thong. Several building were added later including the Wat Phra Si Sanphet. Built in the 14th century and used by several kings, this temple held the same ceremonial function for the royalty as the Temple of Emerald Buddha in Bangkok nowadays. Some other notable buildings are Wihan Somdet Pavilion, Sanphet Prasat Pavilion,Chakkrawat Phaichayan, Pavilion, Banyan Ratnat Pavilion and the Tri Muk Building.

Walking underwater in Mauritius

as published in Economic Times
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2003-12-11/news/27543452_1_water-sports-reefs-grand-baie
When I married the guy of my choice, everybody kept telling me I was walking on the clouds. But when that guy took me for our honeymoon, he made me walk under water, literally. Mauritius is one of the rare places on the globe where one can do this. Yes, we went to the honeymooner's paradise – Mauritius. Even before we touched down, the aerial view from my window seat was spectacular. Miles and miles of white sandy beaches and palm tops swaying to a universal rhythm. The sights, sounds and the smells put one immediately in the mood that dominates this little island – forever on a holiday!
The sparkling water with glinting beaches and coral reefs were awe-inspiring. Formed of volcanic eruptions millions of years ago, the island has a central plateau, is dotted with mountains and criss-crossed by rivers. The coral reef is the third largest in the world and surrounds almost the entire island. These reefs create tranquil lagoons that protect it from the open seas making it a perfect spot for professional divers and first timers alike. Mauritius is balmy and warm round the year, which means whichever month you choose to visit you can swim, jet, snorkel, parasail or sunbathe. One can never really get bored with the limitless facilities for all kinds of water sports – water skiing, surfing, canoeing, water biking, banana boat rides and more.
Ours was an action-packed holiday in many ways than one. During the nine days that we were there, we took various small tours. A trip to Grand Bassin, a natural lake inside the crater of an extinct volcano, Pamplemousses Botanical Gardens with its huge signature Victoria Amazonica water lilies and the talipot palms, Chamarel or the seven earths popular for coloured dunes of volcanic ash in seven patterned colours, Cassela Bird Park and Ile aux cerf, a tiny island off the east coast. But the most unique experience was the underwater walk.
We decided to take a Captain Nemo's Underwater Walk programme. After getting picked up from our hotel Le Mauricia in Grand Baie, we were transported to the middle of the ocean by a motorboat, where we were welcomed by a group of divers who were our guides for the trip. Once mid-ocean we were hitched up in a launch from where we took the plunge down. Prior to which, we were given instructions and taught some basic sign language to be used underwater to indicate our level of comfort. They dressed us up in some really heavy metal belts that would help us keep under water when we were finally lowered on to the ocean floor with a box-like helmet. Oxygen is pumped from the boat so that we could breathe normally.
Once we hit the ocean bed and got acclimatised to our surroundings, it was a different world altogether. Schools of exotic tropical fish, perhaps wondering what aliens like us were doing in their domain, were all around us.
Spotting varied hues simply unimaginable to the human palette were an overwhelming number of fish. Fluorescent fish, zebra fish, and yet more fish. Phew! It sure was a fishy world down there.
Our guide handed us pieces of bread to hold and we were mobbed by more fish. I was scared for a moment and just let the bread go. Our guide, who might have been secretly enjoying our discomfort, even told us to hold hands and do a little jig of our own. It seemed as if we had walked quite a distance. But when we were pulled atop the surface, we were probably just within some 20 metre depth.
The next day, we took the glass-bottomed boat and were ferried to almost near the same place were we had dived a day ago. Sitting on the benches we watched through the glass bottomed boat and were thrilled at the thought of really being there. But just as an aside, when I spotted the water snake I was aghast, and wondered if I had been on the boat ride first, I would have probably chickened out of the walk!

Canada’s Wonderland

Aayush, my kind Hilter type of a bro passed the diktat and announced that for our trip to Canada’s Wonderland all of us be out of the house at 8am. What 8?? That too on a Saturday morning after a night of well ....3 vodkas...acha so i lied ok 4. But when HE passes the rule all better follow. So there we were stretching and yawning literally at the crack of the dawn 7.30 am IS THE crack of dawn for moi. We started or well tried to start at 8.15. Tried? Yeah because the gear of the van got stuck!!!!!! And plan B was put into action after all the kids had given their invaluable suggestions as to how to start the van...

Plan B we took the car out and mum opted out L for lack of space and her peace of mind. Finally off we went. The day was wonderfully cloudy and cold too...Canada’s weather is worse than the proverbial Mumbai rains. When it was spring it was too hot, so hot that heat wave was declared officially; and since the onset of summer i haven’t seen a single warm day.

Reaching the destination i was shocked to see the place swarming with people and long queues at all the places...and i thought my bro was the only one with the crazies. When it was our turn to enter the place and our bags were frisked for security out came loads of food packages that we had packed for our imps. However to our charging and utmost stress this place was “no food policy” in a very very fine print, the security guy smirked. Barring some fruits for ids nothing allowed. Another jhatka.

And all this before the adventure in the Adventure land had begun. Anyway we picked up the maps, got the relevant height bands for the kids, and off we went. The first stop Bumper cars. And 1 sulk because the youngest one and by the way the most fearless of them all was not allowed due to height restrictions. Anyways...that through we went for the other rides in Kidzville.

After going through the Helicopter Chase a monorail ride, the Blast off, the Jumping jet, Golf cart rides, the kids were warmed up thoroughly and decided to take the roller coaster.

Arnaav was hesitant, Arkin expectant and Arnay just sooo dying to go. Arnaav observed that the roller coster went around twice and that what could be the speed and if it was safe and so on. Finally after fighting among themselves for the coveted last car in the coaster that was the Police car Arnaav and i sat in it.

Phew the coaster was actually fast and furious for kids. And after a whole lot of screaming themselves hoarse when we exited they were feeling like a bunch of courageous bunch of achievers.

Quickly came the lunch break and while i and Shilpi queued up for lunch for pizzas, chicken strips, and fries, Aayush minded the kids and took them for a ride literally. They went in for the Carrousel and big tea cups. Arnaav tried to but couldn’t back out because thankfully i wasn’t around to see them tantrums.

Post lunch we decided to check out the Spooky cave. After this me and Aayush decided enough is enough and decided to go for the real kill. THE BEHEMOTH. Shilpi poor thing wasn’t given a choice and took the kids to the water park. Nobel prize to her for putting up with 2 bullies like me and Aayush.

The queue at the Behemoth was sooooooooo long but so totally worth it. Whenever that thing used to start up for the round while we were waiting i would have multiple thoughts...Anyway when the turn came me and bro looked at each other (he had done it earlier too) he challenging and me cowering...but what the heck i can’t ever back out and so we sat and did i sit tight! Jai Mata Di and uske baad toh jo hua bus ho hi gaya... mind also didn’t get time to process...aawaz bhi nahi nikli....leave alone screaming...But man the view from the top when it was ascending was mind blowing but the descent heheh i cheated couldn’t keep both them eyes open...only 1 periodically. When it grated to a halt gosh thats when i let out a big sigh and a whoop!!! It was amazing. It was awesome. And it was a lifetime of memories.

Just to impress everyone here are some statistics:

The Behemoth is a total of 5400 feet long with the highest point of drop being 230 feet and the speed of first drop is 125km/hr (and after that u stop caring J ).

Losing it in London

To say that the 5-day work trip to London was action packed and full of surprises is to say the least. The first surprise came in the form of a crashed computer system on the eve of the event. The grace came when we managed to salvage the situation, phew !! Murphy’s law in motion.
Anyways…post a successful and a rocking finale to the event; me and Rajesh decided we so wanted to go for a trip to the Windsor Castle and also to Stonehenge…and Sanjeev readily and willingly took charge. Since he was the one holding an international driving license he decided it will be economical and better if we rent a car with a GPS and get going. And thats what we did.
The “aunty on the GPS” as Sanjeev liked to call that shrill guiding voice on the GPS weirdly called Tom Tom started to guide us. Rajesh smirked and said, “cool now we don't have to use our brains, just go with the aunty.” Proved to be ominous later. The ride till Windsor Castle was smooth and on the way only got honked at for 4 times. Jeez and coming from the land of “Horn OK Please” we don't take no offence even if the Londoners were trying to give it to us. Parking the car and then paying the parking fee was a challenge too---what no parking wala bhaiya to who we could toss the keys---gosh we are spoilt. The machine chomped off 2 GBPs before we manually deposited the fee to the sweet lady sitting at the counter. Machines can make life as tough as it can make it easy.
Windsor Castle was a beauty. Awe inspiring structure, the oldest living castle, abode of the Queen, landscaped lawns, now manicured moats, royally dressed to intimidate security and the never moving or blinking soldier (aside: what do they do if they get an itch to scratch or if a fly sits on their upturned noses…for this Sanjeev said “there are no makhis (flies) here Anubha” Ok boss, Yes sir whatever you say. 
Another kick was that they give an audio tour player free….yay atleast something in the land of “no free lunches” was free. Happily wearing those big fat ear phones that also protected them poor ears in the cold,windy and chilly weather we embarked on to the tour of the Windsor Castle. The trip inside was filled with oohs and wows, and then we came to the section where many treasures of different shapes and sizes were displayed; some were gifted to the State and others were taken…..well. The art of laying the table all at a studied angle cutlery included was a revelation. After strolling around and happily posing with the guards, the structure, the this and the that; we decided to move back to the car parking.
Destination Next: the Stonehenge --me and Rajesh highly anticipative and excited whereas Sanjeev thinking chalo kuch to acha hi hoga after all Rajesh and Anubha are soooo excited. So off we tried to go. Tried? Yeah…because just then the TomTom aunty decided to play truant and a lady the men couldn’t woo to wake up from the grave. Yes the TomTom died…..but well not our hopes. Rajesh pulled out all the Google maps and the road maps that we were armed with; in the meantime i kept trying to wake up the dead. The maps were not useful; by the time we used to figure out the turning we would have already missed it 2 miles ago…unfortunately there weren't any bhaiya jis on the highway to guide us.
Rajesh figured we will have to cross Ascot and Bracknell. We also figured our redemption will only be another TomTom that we must buy if we were to ever set eyes on Stonehenge. We stopped by the sleepy town of Ascot; passing by the royal racecourse and feeling great about it. The little shop by the gas station did not have the TomTom and we were left well…tomtoming about the idea of whether to go further or not…..Ok let’s go….so off we went and finally found an uncle ji near Bracknell, who guided us to a small mall where we could buy a GPS. After losing way a couple of more times and circling the town thrice we hit upon the mall…and bought one. phew!! the dreams of Stonehenge looked a little more real and a tad more closer.
I asked Rajesh what if we reach late and it is closed….well the optimist in him said “arrey bhai agar Qutab Minar band ho jaye to kya dikhti nahin hai.” Lets get going…Sanjeev punched in the required address and now the voice of aunty ji was nothing less than manna from heaven. A stop over for lunch- for the now famished us and growling tummies- later we finally left for yes the Stonehenge!
By this time Sanjeev had visions of grandeur, majestic, prehistoric monument. The rolling countryside, the green manicured farms, and hefty sheep with awesome fluffy fur grazing by them, lovely clean and crisp air… wow the countryside of London is definitely not overrated and very much what you envision of it.
Finally we reached Stonehenge….and while me and Rajesh exulted…..Sanjeev was like “what?!!!!??? is this it” he just could not get over the feeling that this is what we were trying to reach after thousands of hurdles and mini fiascos. And lo! it was closed…the charms on the security guard and the offer to pay more just did not work….another thing that works awfully well in my country :) Any way Sanjeev gamely posed for a couple of pics and clicked a few too. Though i could not shake the feeling of “is this it” off i dare not confess. And man was it cold…it was freezing…the wind chill factored in. After a couple of minutes we all snuck up in the warm and cozy car and having ticked off Stonehenge off the list went back to Wembley Plaza.
Besides Sanjeev having discovered the Stonehenge….on this discovery filled trip we discovered the totally superb countryside, Ascot’s royal racecourse …and the art of losing and then finding it all only with the TomTom.
The Tomtom was dead. Long live the Tomtom !

A trip down to God’s Own Country…

 
Planning a trip with the husband is most often than not filled with adventures of a different kind. What begins as a confirmed trip sways between various Kabhi haan and Kabhi Naa; as always professional commitments have a nasty way of raising its serpentine head at just that precise moment. So after many a tantrums thrown by our 8 year old we finally decided to cut short the trip but go for it nevertheless. And was it a good decision…yup ultimately it was. Cause over a measly 5 day trip including 2 of travelling we enjoyed the most and carved out our moments. Yes like the Kerala tourism ad says my moment sure was waiting…and grabbed it..i did.
A day of sightseeing in Kochi and we were ready to embark on a cruise to the backwaters. 2-3 hours away from Kochi to Alleppy which is where we boarded our cruise. The cabbie poor chap had heard of the Rainbow Cruises 1^st time and made many calls to find out exactly where it was. His anxiety reflected on my poor baby as he thought here too is something might go awry. Thankfully it didn’t. En route there were many small shops selling jute and coir products and the hammocks took my breath away. It was awesomely priced at just Rs.350 pre bargaining. But the baby was like “why do you always have to do shopping mum, let’s go” and I had to give in. My bargaining prowess did not see the light of the day here..but a mental note was made already.
Reaching the dockyard, we all let out a big sigh of relief and amazement it was an extraordinarily beautiful sight. On checking in the guy at the reception told us we had been upgraded to the luxury houseboat from the premium category that we had selected. Our hearts did a somersault..whoops it was too good.
The houseboat was true to its promise. What a luxury. We had a sit out area with a lovely rug thrown in and sofas with fluffy and comfy seat cushions. A relief for the aching bums after a journey of 2 and half hours. The dining room was separated with glass sliding doors and behind it was the bedroom. The room had a bay window, a four poster bed and an A/C that was on full blast.

Our little photographer had started clicking the swaying palms and the ducks and other birds that he spotted. The journey began with a cool and fresh nariyal paani that the hubby loved, i ignored and baby refused. The cruise along the backwaters was breathtakingly beautiful presenting some of the gorgeous sights and waterways, and some funny ones too like the buffalos bathing alongside. There is a whole economy thriving along the banks and a life style that is so alien considering that we are in landlocked Delhi.
The cruise revealed many sights that were visually delightful and indelible etched in the memory. After meandering through several kilometers the backwaters opened up into a large water expanse. this is where the boat anchored for the night. The site overlooked a beautiful field of water lilies that stretched over a couple of kilometeres on the right and the left side was all open water. 


The sunset was magical andinspired all of us including the little tyke to meditate. It was really heart warming to see the little imp quiten down and close his eyes facing the sunset and do his bit for 2 minutes. those 2 minutes trust me were peaceful…what with him keeping his ever blabbering gob shut. phew!

While we were on the deck a rice boat vendor came trying to sell us live prawns! A fisherman came along and spread his net wide to catch some. However it was very difficult to stay out on the deck post sunset since insects of the flying sorts took over and shooed us into the cabin. 



A chilled glass of beer down, we were ready to gorge on the fantastic gastronomic treat, dishes cooked in Kerala style. Fortunately the child also loved what was served. We wrapped up for the night promising to each other on catching the sun rise. But the next morning the sun played truant and hid behind the clouds during the sunrise and eventually shone bright in all its glory at around 8.30. The fisherman from the night before came to collect his fish and along came a toddy collector too. Kerala has many Toddy bars.  
Breakfast was served around this time and was a delectable spread of uthapams, sambar, and idlis with a choice of sandwiches which all ignored. At 9.30 we docked back….the journey on the houseboat ended. Lovely experience made up for treasured memories for all of us and the baby ranks this as one of his favorite holiday trips. After this we left for Munnar…which is another story for another day.
Kerala Rocks!!!!!

Strawberries, ah those lusciously juicy and tempting red fruit, exotic and mouth watering. Mostly and I mean mostly save for my traditional at heart and taste father love the fruit. We all have romantic connotations and slurpy dreams the minute strawberries are mentioned, well do you think it also has to do with its red passion color and the heart shape. Everyone from those following a south beach or protein rich or carbohydrate counting diets also can and do add strawberries to their list of fruits to eat. The fruit lends itself to making some of the really yum treats in form of cheese cakes, preserves, glazed, shakes, in cream, squashes and toppings.

So when my sis-in-law suggested we go strawberry picking when I was in Canada, I jumped at the thought of it. However as the picking season (mid June) neared our holidays were also nearing its end, so she searched and crawled the internet and finally did manage to find a place within 20 miles of our home. But but to everything there are detractors like the husband said and in this case it was three not feeling too well little kids, I was reluctant but shilpi my sis-in-law adamant. She was sure it will be a great treat and outing for all including my nature lover and ever ready to try new experiences mum, so after some initial resistance we set on our trip. The weather was lovely and fully cooperative, nice and sunny though not warm.

After a picturesque ride through farms and orchards we reached our destination, and hearts and moods were uplifted and kids were scampering now with, thank god, renewed energy. Anyone with kids can vouch for the fact that if kids are happy and uncranky(is this a word oh well) parents and grandparents enjoy and indulge that much more. Well we reached the so called open barnish looking reception and asked the whats and hows. To our whooping joy the charges were only on the per pound rate of the strawberries we would pick.

We all rushed with our basket to the waiting tractor. Wow from the littlest three year old to the oldest seven year old all the three kids were ecstatic to say the least. We jumped on to the wagon so to say and headed for an experience that will stay with us forever. First we decided on the strategy under the instructions from the experienced farm hand, he pointed to us the areas or the beds where we will find good and plenty strawberries. Also we didn’t want to go too inside the area as the collective little feet would have trampled and crushed the strawberries before they reached the basket. We decided to stay on the periphery.

The kids started picking up and imaging shapes in them arnaav looked for a rabbit shape while arkin discovered a car and arnay was trying to figure out which one to pluck. And in all of that me, shilpi and mum were also busy picking as if there was no tomorrow and well picked loads of it. Suddenly a little tantrum jolted us out of our individual reveries and we separated the two imps only to find and say ok this is the last one, ok now this is the last one, hey look that one is so red and sooo big how can we miss that, ok now arkin stop, stop arnaav, hey look ma another one lets pick that. Finally the lack of space in the basket made us stop and we reached the reception to get them weighed, mum said well they may be 4 pounds on the outset and we almost fainted when the lady said 8 pound, well mum!

Anyway it was a great experience and kids loved it. Now another daunting task was to finish all of those strawberries and that’s what troubled shilpi. But my god the kids were damn excited and asked to eat them the minute we reached the car, what started as one piece, two pieces …went on for a while. It encouraged the kids as they had picked them themselves and the excitement was like as if it was their harvest. Then came strawberry milkshakes, strawberries on the go, and well well the best was strawberries coated with chocolate courtesy of shilpi which she did to perfection. Gosh I am hungry now.