Pandemic And Its Panic Buttons.

“Mum, I tested positive for COVID!” I am numb for a second. The setting couldn’t be more unreal for I am in a taxi. The Knight and I are on our way to the airport. Just a few seconds ago we were congratulating ourselves on leaving the baby of the family safely in the big…

Make A Wish At The Aeroplane Gurudwara in Punjab, India

So what connects a miniature airplane to a gurudwara (a place of worship for the Sikhs) in Jalandhar ? This particular gurudwara goes by the name of Shaheed Baba Nihal Singh Gurudwara except it is also referred to as the ‘Hawai Jahaz (aeroplane) Gurudwara’. Intriguing, right? A bit of online research and ...voila! So there…

Skills I May Need Tomorrow-Hairdressing

If you are ever stuck at home with an exacting teenager whose idea of beauty is perfectly coiffed hair, you are in trouble . It begins innocently enough. "Don't these honey - blonde high lights against dark hair looks fine mummy? We can do it at home. One box is enough and it's easy too.…

iPhone 11 And Its Log Story

If you combine a new iPhone 11 with an awful memory, you get hell on planet Earth. I have lived through one and this is my logging in story. So it began a few years ago when I got my first iPhone 6. It was a dream come true. I had an Apple device and…

Throwback To 2020.

January 2021 and time for the annual, "Where in the world did the last year go by?" 2020 was to be my 'Year of Travel'. I was in Aurangabad in Maharashtra, exactly at this time last year. I had explored the Ajanta caves but it was Cave 16 , also know as Kailash Temple at…

A Potpourri Of Italian Memories.

I flip through my old Italy travel photos and I'm instantly there. Was it just a year ago? My happy place where I frequently disappear. Perhaps this is what is, 'wistful longing'! Then it was euphoria, curiosity and anxiety. My old Whatsapp chats are proof. "Am I packing right? Is it enough or too much?…

Now and then

Thanks to COVID-19, we have found ourselves in a pickle. Squashed at home, adjusting, adapting, remembering the pre-Corona days with plenty of time to do all the stuff we always wanted to. So pickling is one of the activities done with a gusto these days. Homemade Dalle Chili Pickle. Red hot, eat at your own…

Loud Conversations And A Quiet One

Last week we went to Santala Devi's temple. Ms Teen had experienced the divine power of the goddess, 'an impossible wish that came true'. Hence she wanted a darshan. Was it another favour or just an excuse to get out of the house, she wouldn't say. The Government had unrolled  Unlock 5 Guidelines but home…

Colours of Venetian Isles.

The constant Corona news doesn't let me forget Italy. I hold on to the memories of how I saw it last summer- breathtaking, bustling with life, impromptu street concerts, delicious food and wine to sign off each day. I remember evenings in Venice, shadowy inky gondolas bobbing on the dark blue Adriatic Sea, under the…

When Corona Came Marching Home.

Corona Virus with an official name COVID-19 hopped across China, Korea, Iran, skipped to Italy and finally jumped to India. When WHO declared it a pandemic, I had to google the word since my vocabulary on contagion began with outbreak and ended with epidemic. Social distancing physically continues to be propped up like Captain America's…