Yesterday was Janmashtami.. ie the birthday of Lord Krishna.The reason that I am coming up with this post today and not yesterday because the whole ceremony takes place at midnight...when the clock strikes 12. Right from my childhood, this day has held a special significance in my life. I spent my formative years in mathura, the birthplace of Lord Krishna and hence I have been very well acquainted with this ceremony right from childhood. In Mathura (where Krishna was born) and Gokul and Vrindavan (where he grew up), Janmashtami is an enormous festival. Begins with a month long 'sawan ka mela' which is a huge kind of carnival in its own way. The temple which was near our school used to conduct cultural programmes and lots of contests which I actively used to take part. I do miss those good old days terribly but I believe in making lemonade out of lemons. So when our apartments decided to celebrate janmashtami, I jumped with joy!!

The afternoon started with all the females gathering for 'keertan' which lasted for about 4hours. Then we all assembled at around 9 at night. We cut up fruits for the offerings, gave a bath to Lord Krishna , made him swing in his palna(cradle) and finally the concluding puja at midnight. My hubby was busy in the hospital as usual, so my pictures of this day are not upto my satisfaction :) After my Mom, he is my only and most trusted photographer :D Missed him terribly!! :D

me swinging Lord Krishna...sorry for the low lighting :D

Lord Krishna in his swing...

garlands and sugar...

females chopping up fruits for the offerings...

me doing Arti...

the school where I teach yoga celebrated janmashtami the day before. here the kids are dressed up as little krishna and his girlfriend Radha...

a kid dressed up as little krishna eating butter...

poster made by the students...

the puja at school yesterday...

me swinging in the 'jhoola' originally meant for krishna and his lover Radha :)

a poster made by the children...

 Those carnivals evoked memories of a recent carnival I attended... It was so much fun!!

reminds me of my childhood!!

Going down the memory lane...two and a half years back.Yes, going back to my honeymoon days in Mauritius. As I had told earlier, Mauritius was my dream destination and hence I cherish every single second spent there; not just because it was my honeymoon :D

Mauritius is a tiny island in the Indian Ocean, East to the African mainland. Tiny being the word as I hail from a large country like India :D Despite being so small, It does not lack any facilities or (designer label showrooms) for a shopaholic like me :) It is the home of world class luxury resorts where natural beauty and hospitality go hand in hand :)

The capital is Port Louis and as the name suggests, mauritius was a French Colony. Even today, 97% of the real estate is owned by the French.Well Port Louis is a nice city and it has a large shopping centre in its heart known as Le Caudan Waterfront.

You all must have known till now how much i love water...and so do waterfronts..the name itself is so fascinating!! So this shopping centre has everything one could ask for including casinos overlooking the ocean!! Since we got married in February, we enjoy the valentine decorations too!! :) We were given two hours by our guide to romp around here and i took full use of it!! Hubby tried hard to prvent me from buying anything...my habit of splurging is a nightmare for him you know ;) The other honeymooning couples of our bus were just sitting on the banks after having lunch..such a bummer :D
 

the beautiful waterfront area...

does it need a caption??

making my way to the shops...

the lion clawed casino...

v day festivities...aladin n jasmine...

v day festivities

wind in my hair...

inside the mall...

a huge anchor...

in front of the casino...

pizza hut by the sea...is not it interesting!!

TRAVEL TIPS:
1. Make sure you have a heavy breakfast. It will enable you to survive the whole day without wasting precious time for lunch...after all we eat everyday; do we get to get to travel abroad in the same manner ;)
2. Mauritius is not a shopping destination. However the kraft market inside the mall in Waterfront has wonderful array of souveneirs at reasonable prices. 

It was an usual hot summer Sunday afternoon. Going out during weekends is our ritual but that week it was different. I had just recovered from viral fever; and I neither had the energy for a small trip nor it was recommended. So I was just sulking in my home. After I was done with cooking and having lunch,hubby decided to perk up my mood (which is not very often :p). He offered to take me to the Old Fort of Delhi. The sun was scorching but the idea of sulking in an air conditioned home was outdone by the thoughts of perspiring in the heat outside. After all, I am Miss Sunshine :D

As soon as I nodded in affirmation, hubby quickly traced the path from google earth. I got ready in a jiffy and so was he; and in no time we were zooming our way to the Old Fort.

How many times have I mentioned that I just love Delhi for the equal mix of heritage and modernization?? Well I once again profess my love for this city and will keep on doing so. The Mughals did a great job in constructing so many interesting and lavish structures in North India which continue to attract tourists from all over the world. From Taj Mahal to Sikandra to Red Fort, these places are all UNICEF heritage sites and I just love visiting them!! The Old fort is one of them!!

the first view of the fort...the lake behind me...

the main entrance of the fort...

the long line up of the ruins...

an old world amphitheatre...

hubby seems happy sitting on the stone steps...

a prisoner's style stint :D

perched high up...

a mosque inside the fort...

finally a pic of both of us...

Hence I reached the conclusion that falling sick did not prove to be that bad after all.....sometimes cancellation of something good brings up even something better. :D

31states, 1618 languages,6400 castes,6 religions,6 ethnic groups,29 major festivals and 1 country!! proud to be an Indian!!

 Hello my lovely readers!! Today is 15th August...India's Independence day!! This is the 67th year of independence. As such I am quite a patriotic person, but on this day somehow I become very emotional for my country :) I love the liberal attitude that we have here, I love the freedom of speech and movement.I love the fact that I can live without fear and wear whatever I want :D

To take the feel of the our most important national holiday, we went out to have fun. Forever21 was opening its 2nd outlet in Delhi. There was a supposed to be a grand opening in Pacific mall,Tagore garden. I, a total Forever21 fan did not want to miss it. The opening was at 3pm, which was quite impossible for my husband (a super busy surgeon :(). So what I did, I emotionally blackmailed him saying that when f21 opened for the first time, famous bollywood star Sonam Kapoor had come for its launch and I did not even know :( At least this time he could take me there.
So he came home at 2 30pm (which is hours before his schedule) and we managed to reach the venue at around 5 30pm. The store had been inaugurated by the founder of forever21 along with bollywood actress Yami gautam. It was very crowded and I could not take her picture with me. Sad enough, I also did not get the complimentary gift as i was late.
I am a buyer of international brands though I am patriotic. After all these brands are providing employment to so many people. And that makes me happy....
The mall was in full independence day flavour. I loved the decor!!

a proud Indian...

bollywood actor Yami Gautam with the founder of forever21

hubby with Do Won Chang, the founder n CEO of Forever21

ashoka chakra...

ye mera India...

 

full tricolour flavour....

tricolour umbrellas....

Its been almost a year that I am back from the NY of middle east... Dubai. But its memories are still fresh and new; in fact I just could not get enough of this place!! We were in Dubai for four days...four days seem enough for exploring a single city, but in this case it was not!!
There are so many things to do in Dubai that one may never get bored no matter how much time you spend here. And no matter how much money you carry, you are always going to fall short!! There are myriads of options to splurge in Dubai. From seven star hotels to gold jewellery to sky diving et al, there are so many novel things to experience, that you would always keep asking for more.

The best thing about this city is its cosmopolitan nature. There are so many expats here that you will never feel alienated. Dubai is one of the very rare 'broad minded' cities in the middle east. It is safe, friendly and above all you can wear anything you like!! In fact its very forward when it comes to fashion. All the world renowned designers have their showroom here. This city is the epitome of luxury!!

Enough said, I would love to describe more of my experiences and this city's fabulousness  in my later posts. As I said, its the home of gold jewellery. Arabic gold is considered to be the purest of gold found in the world. Moreover their designs are exiquite. 'Souk' as a market place is called in Arabic, there are gold souks here.Be prepared to be dazzled by the radiance of the jewels!! you would see kilos and kilos of yellow gold ornaments on display!!
For today's post, I am sharing with you the Gold souk of Dubai mall(the largest mall in the world) . The mall is divided into several sections; well that is another story which i will share later. As of now, I hope you all enjoy seeing the pictures as i did clicking them. :)

the impressive skyline in the background...

this is why I love Dubai mall...it does not look like a mall at all!!

the path to the Souk al bahar...

different structures that make this place so beautiful...

those are apartments in the background....

the entry to the soul inside the mall..hubby looks awkward in this pic; mom(read our photographer) made him stand like this :p

a huge arabic flower vase...

fooling around...

the main hall of the souk...

with my sweet mom..also the sponsor of this trip :D

Travel tips:
1.If you are a shopaholic, donot forget to carry loads of cash/traveller cheques/credit card!!