Posts

Enchanting Ratnagiri

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Ratnagiri is nestled between the Sahyadri mountain range and the Arabian Sea in the South west part of Maharshtra called as 'Konkan' or 'Kokan' as we call it in Marathi. Hubs and I decided to visit this beautiful place, to unwind and relax. This was a long awaited break and we were looking forward to it. Ratnagiri did not let us down. We travelled by our car to Kolhapur to meet family and stopped over at Ratnagiri for 2 days on our way back . The Western coast of Maharashtra is dotted with pristine beaches and you can just go in to a trance looking at the Sea. There are many untouched places and you can have the whole beach to yourself, especially in the off season. Here are some photos of our trip.                                What is a beach holiday without a Pina Colada, eh?  We stayed in 'Ratnasagar Beach Resort' which is bang on Bhatye Beach. It is a lovely place which has cottages right next to the beach and one can hear the roar of the ocea

Are you a good Guest or a Pest?

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Ever since I have been married, my home has been a magnet for guests. Not a month goes by, when I don't have someone or the other from relatives and friends coming over for a stay. Hubs and I do love entertaining and we have a constant stream of people coming for Lunches and Dinners. I have entertained a lot of people over the years and have faced people who were perfect guests and the ones who managed to raise my hackles with their antics. It is fun to mingle with friends and family over good food and lively conversations. Though sometimes these engagements can become a thorn in your side, when guests do not follow proper etiquette. They forget the basic manners needed to be a good guest.  For all those uninitiated, who don't know how to be a good guest, here are a few tips to help you be a good guest and not a pest . Walk in with a gift : I have observed that my mother never goes empty handed whenever she is invited to someone's house. She always takes a gift to

a million little pieces

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A million little pieces is a hard hitting, semi fictional memoir by James Frey. Though I am an avid book reader, I hardly ever have the patience to do a book review. Also, I am usually not into memoirs or biographies,I prefer thrillers and crime fiction is my favourite genre. One day, as I was searching though the books at my library, I came across 'A million little pieces '. The title of the book intrigued me and I decided to pick it up. image source: Wikipedia This book is the journey of James Frey as an alcoholic, drug addict and criminal from total depravity to sobriety at one of the oldest treatment centre in the world. At the age of 23 James finds himself on a plane, his front four teeth are missing, his nose is broken, his cheek has a hole big enough to put two of his fingers and he does not remember what he has done in the past two weeks. He has been an alcoholic for 10 years and a crack-cocaine and Meth addict for many years. James starts drinking at the a

Raindrops keep falling on my head

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The much awaited Monsoon finally arrived in my part of India, last month, albeit a bit delayed. Raindrops keep falling on my head every time I step out of my house, but it is still lacking that enthusiasm to become  a heavy downpour. The arrival of Monsoon in India means lush greenery blankets everything. The smell of the damp earth rises and seeps into your entire being and stirs a longing. The parched earth is soaked and everywhere you see the earth is welcoming this precious nectar. I have always had mixed feelings about the Monsoon. Most people consider Monsoon to be a romantic season.  There are things I don't like when it rains too much. The muddy roads: It is such a pain to go walking, you always end up with muddy shoes, muddy feet, dirty clothes..I guess you got my drift The clothes don't dry for days and they even smell if not aired properly.  You can never wear white clothes for the fear of getting splashed with rainwater. Everything that is crisp and cru

Open letter to everyday super Idiots

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Dear Super Idiots, Everyday, while driving and even walking around the city, I come across people like you, who think they are God’s gift to humanity. Your arrogant attitude and non sense driving skills has prompted me to write this open letter. Yoo-hoo!! guys, you know who you are and hope you are reading this.I know that deep in your heart you do want to follow traffic rules, but again breaking rules is a matter of pride for you. You still think that being a rebel is in, and have taken it to heart. The other day, I was in a great mood and was on my way to do some shopping. I was waiting patiently for the signal to turn Green. There were only a few seconds remaining for the light to turn Green, 12,11,10 the seconds ticked away. At that moment, I felt that I was standing at a Derby with restless horses ready to start galloping, the moment the doors are thrown open. I suddenly see you and your friends starting to drive ahead in the incoming traffic just like untamed horses in the win

Dealing with Infertility

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After I wrote the post My experiments with infertility where I lay bare my soul, I received a lot of support from all you dear friends who read my blog. I would like to thank each one of you for being so kind to me in this difficult time. Your emails, messages, texts and calls have given me strength to carry on, thank you. Many people congratulated me for being brave to have  written  about how am dealing with infertility. I believe that just like people who have a hole in their heart or suffer from diabetes, infertility is a disease and there is nothing to be ashamed of being infertile. In 2009,WHO (World Health Organisation) has defined ‘Infertility’ as a disease. This is not self inflicted and can happen to anybody. Why do then people feel ashamed of talking about it? After reading my post, some friends felt sorry for me and others had an instant advice ‘Have you thought of adoption? ‘. This question makes be furious . Instead of asking me, how I am coping, people have been i

Are women their own worst enemies?

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‘Unch Maza Zoka’ loosely translated as ‘My swing will touch the sky’ is a Marathi television series based on the life of ‘ Ramabai Ranade’ . The series deals with her life and that of her husband 'Justice Madhav Govind Ranade’ who was a reformer and the founding member of Indian National Congress. Ramabai was married at the age of eleven to Madhav Ranade who was 32 and had lost his first wife to illness. Ramabai was illiterate when she married Justice Ranade who helped her to learn how to read and write. In spite of their age difference, there was a camaraderie between them and Ramabai was thoroughly inspired by Justice Ranade. He was highly educated and strived his whole life to remove the social evils that existed in the society. He was against untouchability, the practice of sati and child marriage and sponsored the first widow marriage. He was a strong advocate of women’s right to education. Ramabai herself is  shown to be very enthusiastic and dedicated to learning. The