N for New Zealand

Yes, I did it. I left my balcony, and today I am so ready for my dear friend Farah to take us all to her home country, a place which is definitely on my want-to-visit-list. A guest post today in other words. Thank you so much, Farah for saying yes:-) This will be awesome - so buckle up, dear reader, as we take off for Farah's New Zealand: 

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We call it ”Aotearoa” in English: The land of the long white cloud.

We are at the bottom of the world, annexed form everything and that what makes New Zealand one dream destination. New Zealand has lots to offer, it has the beaches and warm Mediterranean climate in the north of the North Island; and the fjords and glaciers of Norway in the south of South Island. In between you have the geysers, mud pools, waterfalls, pristine lakes and many many mountains.

In brief, my favourite places from the north to the south:

Cape Rienga – 90 mile Beach (actually the white sand continuous beach is 55 miles long, but the name 90 mile beach stuck!)

Auckland, the city of sails. As the name suggest, there are many boats of sizes, they say, each household owns a boat of some sort.

Lake Taupo, a lake in the middle of the North Island, they say that the north Island is actually a mountain and Lake Taupo is the crater. You would like to go trout fishing? Well this is the place to go.

Napier, Hawkes Bay - The art Deco Capital and the wine valley. Here you will find no less than 50 vineyards, each has a restaurant or shop you can visit. The city was rebuilt in 1931 after a 7.8 earthquake flatten the city and raised what was Napier island. This is the place I grew up.

Wellington (North Island) to Picton (South Island) ferry crossing – Truly magnificent crossing, the ferry takes you through Cook Straight and Queen Charlotte Sound, nature at its best.

Kaikoura – if you want to do see Whales, Dolphins and Sea Lions this is the place to be!

Franz Joseph Glacier and Fox Glacier – Unbelievable, that’s all I can say.

Queenstown – The Adventure capital! Bungee jump was invented here. In the summer there are many things to do from hiking to every water adventure you can think of. In the winter this place is great for skiing. Here there is no low season. It is peak season all year round.

Lake Te Anau and Milford sound – Fro lake Te Anau you will find the glow worms cave and you Milford sound is out of this world, although I have been told it is like in Norway.

Now, having said all of that I would like to take you on a different tangent. Hollywood! What you didn’t know? Many block buster movies were filmed in New Zealand, simply for its true nature beauty. You want to see New Zealand? Watch these movies for stunning scenery:

Race for the Yankee Zepher

The Piano

Whale Rider

The Last Samurai

Heavenly Creatures

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

The World Fastest Indian

Babe, Pig in the City

The Lovely Bones

Vertical Limit

Lord of the Rings – Trilogy

The Hobbit

My last trip home was at Christmas time, as we drove from Auckland to Napier (550km) we took the opportunity to visit “Hobbiton the Shire”. Fantastic absolutely worth the visit! Peter Jackson and crew have left everything exactly as is. I walked around the hills, and felt like a giant! It was great to walk around and be in the Shire and we had ale at the Green Dragon Inn.  As a fan of Lord of the Rings and Hobbiton it was one heck of a delightful day.

Should you ever visit New Zealand, ideally it should be 3 weeks or more, but allow yourself at least 2 weeks. The most common accommodation in New Zealand are Motels (very nice accommodation usually consist of a bedroom, kitchenette and living room) and Holiday Parks (Motels, Camp sites and motor homes sites). You could do this with a car and stay in motels or a Camper van and stay at Holiday Parks.  Remember New Zealand is in the southern Hemisphere therefore the best time to visit is November to April.

Thanks Farah for showing us your New Zealand:-) 

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I feel so blessed to have my lovely global friends - taking us home with them through my blog and this challenge, and Farah is a true global spirit (:-)) From Indonesia/New Zealand, married to Danish Michael, with two sons, and soon leaving (buu-huu) Mumbai to live in Africa! Thanks again sweet Farah - for a wonderful NZ tour. 

Tomorrow we will leave NZ and travel off to a new dream destination, and I can promise you a bit of a wild place... when we take off for O...  

1-30 April I participate in the A to Z blogger challenge, and this post is written as a part of that challenge. Check out some amazing participating blogs here. My theme for the challenge is Dream Destinations. I hope you had fun coming along? Please stay tuned for a new destination tomorrow. 

Go to a-to-zchallenge.com

The adventures of Allan Karlsson

Allan Karlsson has a thought. He is sitting quietly in his room in an old people's home, waiting for his party to begin. It is a party he never wanted anyway, his own 100 year's birthday party. The local press will be there, politicians will be there, and there will be a big cake. But Allan does not want to go, and he decides to run away. With some effort ( after all, he is a hundred years old), he slowly climbs out of his window, into a flower bed ( in his slippers) and makes his getaway.

And this is how my chosen book starts out. In The Hundred - Year - Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared by Swedish author Jonas Jonasson we follow the escapades of Allan Karlsson. We travel with him for a month on his run-away adventures throughout Sweden, and believe me: it is anything but boring. His journey involves a suitcase full of money, some murders and a bit of romance, and he is chased by both criminals and the police.

Parallel to the present story, Allan's life-story unfolds, and that takes us on a journey through the 1900`. Of course it turns out that our Mr Allan was involved in many of the key events, often as a participant behind the scene. But also in some unbelievable moments like having dinner with the US president Harry S. Truman, hitchhiking with Winston Churchill, walking the Himalayas on foot and traveling on a riverboat with the wife of Mao.

The book is written in a very humorous way, and it is easy to follow. I feel I am right there with Allan all the way, and yet as a reader you are challenged ( this is just too crazy!). I also enjoy how we recapitulate the historic events of the previous century, but of course in this book it is done in a completely different way ( hey, we are having dinner with Truman!) It becomes very personal, and the angle is very different from what I am used to.

I would describe it as being a warm and really funny book. A genuine feel-good book. Because just how cool is it - to join a hundred year old who escapes from an old people's home? Its hilarious, and just the idea makes you want to cheer for Allan. Go, Allan, go! And as I mentioned - it has a bit of romance. In this book you will meet the 85 year old lady who gets a computer, meets The Internet for the first time, and of course she starts to blog!

What I love is that this book leaves you with the feeling of -  it is never too late! Whatever you want to do with your life: do it! And do it now! Seize the moment - just like Allan:-)

About: 
Title: The Hundred - Year - Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared 
Author: Jonas Jonasson
Issued: 2009, Sweden. Translated to 30 languages since then. 

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I am participating in a fun festival of words this week, and you can too:-) This post is written for The Write Tribe Festival Of Words, which goes on from 2-8.March 

Today, Day 4, our topic was: Book review. You can read more about the festival, and enjoy some of the other entries on the website. I am sure there will be a lot of tips on good-reads today: Day 4, 5. March: Book review. 

HAPPY READING! 

A good-read and a guest-post

"- Have my parcels arrived from America?
- I don't know
- Can you find out?
- No.
India is the country of the No. That "no" is your test. You have to get past it. It is India's Great Wall; it keeps out foreigner invaders. Pursuing it energetically and vanquishing it is your challenge.(..)"

"I now realize that if you don't understand the no, pretend it doesn't exist, was never said, then slain by your incomprehension, it will transform itself abruptly into its opposite. Or it might never become a Yes but will turn into a wagging of the head, which can mean either No or Yes, depending on your interpretation. You will interpret the wagging generously, charitably, and proceed."

I am obsessed by this book these days. I can't put it away. It's brilliant, humorous, rough, moving and interesting - this "The mother of all Mumbai books" (according to Time Out Mumbai ). Suketu Mehta portraits Mumbai in a captivating way in his Maximum City. Bombay lost & found. As a 14 year old he left Mumbai, and returns 21 years later to rediscover the city. It's a fascinating journey to follow.

Mehta received good reviews and several prizes for his book, well deserved. It is a truly good-read!  I particularly like the words of Rohinton Mistry: “In Maximum City, Suketu Mehta has given us a brilliant book. He writes fearlessly about the horror and wonder that is Bombay. One by one, he reveals its multiple personalities: maleficent Bombay, bountiful Bombay, beckoning temptress of hope, manufacturer of despair–city of dreams and nightmare city. Best of all, reading this book helps one understand why Bombay can be an addiction.” 

I am so into this book, that when fellow blogger Amelia with her Chai - a Cup of Life asked if I could write a guest post on her blog, about Mumbai, I immediately thought: Yes, I can write about my Maximum City! And there is a first time for everything, right? - so my very first guest-blog on another blog was just published. Yey:-) A fun experience! You can read it here: My maximum city.

Here is a small taste from the post, hope you enjoy:

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"Here I have learned the rules of cricket, how to make pakoras and how to put on a sari. I have cried with homeless children, fought with rigid rules and physically removed a lady who tried to cheat in queue. Here I have ended up as a statist in a film shoot, seen elephants and had chai with people whom I will remember for the rest of my life. Here I have become immune to traffic jam, I have learned to dress like a Diva, indulge in spices and I have seen crocodiles, monkeys and rats. I have watched senior citizen doing yoga in the parks and I have seen babies deserted on the streets. Yet, I have never seen a brighter sunset than here."

- and you can read the rest of my guest post on the blog, if you like:-) 

Well it's a sunny and warm Thursday morning in Mumbai, and weekend is coming up. Stay tuned and have a great day, dear reader. Thank you for following:-)

Shopping for Christmas - Mumbai style

I think I might have a love-hate relationship with shopping in India. Either I am in and out so fast that the trailing staff only gets a quick glimpse of my fluttering dupatta as I head for the exit OR I start to chat with the staff and I kind of just stay on, at least until I have had a chai, heard their life story, and I can wander happily off knowing that I am now part of their extended family:-)

Yes, December is here and some Christmas shopping is inevitable. I have decorations, remember?- now we are talking purely presents! I find it a bit tricky to recommend the best places for Christmas gift shopping in Mumbai- because we all have our taste, right - and I humbly admit that my knowledge of shopping here will always be limited, as I discover new places all the time! I think you can live here a life time - and still be exploring new shopping options! But, let me share some of my favorite spots and tips for good buys - as they are right now! And remember- it is personal, and my view may have been influenced by a good chat over a spicy chai:-)

Where to shop? 

You may probably either love or hate shopping at the open door markets in Mumbai. Perfect - if you love hoards of people, lots of noise and endless rounds of bargaining (look here for some basic tips)  - and an opportunity to get unique presents and get a feeling of the bustling crazy Mumbai life. Here are markets I like, and also some gift-tips:

• Bhuleswhar market - for clothes and fabrics, garlands, decorations and last but not least: my favorite spice shop: Motilal Masalawala. (Turmeric (haldi), Garam masala and chicken masala are my favorites, and I got some for presents too.)  
• Crawford market - for lamps, ornaments, decor and trees head to Lohar Chawl. Really cheap (also brand) all kinds of beauty stuff at Beauty Centre. Delicious sweets, dried fruits and nuts at Ramanlal's. Something special for the passionate baker - at Arife's.   
• Chor's bazaar - for old Bollywood posters (I love those), artifacts, coins, souvenirs and antiques
• Gol Deval markets - My favorite! bangles, copper cups & mugs (to keep the cold drinks cold, and the warm warm:-), - just a that-something-special-place! Lots of handicraft-items. 
• In other parts of the city you will also find some good markets, like the IIT market in Powai and the Santacruz market. In Bandra, I always end up at the bazaar-like ELCO market as my most beloved tailor is there - and I found some amazing embroidered kids' blouses in one of the shops:-)  

If you start to sweat just by the idea of open markets, there are lots of other options. Of course: the Holiday melas- often where the NGO's sell their products, and this year I was lucky enough to find a lot of presents there (and to chat - great combo:-) 

You can check out the Oberoi arcade at Nariman point - chatting with Kavita at Le Printemps (a pure paradise for leather-lovers:  you can get or have made just about anything there) or with Navin at Rishi Gems (artifacts, small statues, boxes etc) is always fun. 

Many Mumbai expats know Harry at Bhaghem Bombay, Fort (souvenirs, art craft, and last but not least: jewelry). Now, that is a shop where you can easily spend some hours. I did quite good, until I discovered that Harry spoke Greek and he started to tell about back then when he helped Greek seamen in Mumbai to phone home. I was lost, and so was my time schedule. I could just picture the mustached Kostas (in tears of homesickness) talking to his mama in Athens on the phone from India - with a compassionate Harry next to him, patting his shoulder, handing him napkins..

Oh, well. If you are down at Fort, you may as well also drop by Chimanlals - remember? The place for gift-wrapping stuff. My tip is that you will easily spend quite some time in that paper-heaven. At least I did.

For a not-so-personalized-but-more-efficient-shopping round, you may want to hit one of the many huge Mumbai malls - Phoenix High Street in Parel, Phoenix Market Centre in Kurla, R-city in Ghatkopar or Infiniti or Inorbit in Malad, which are the ones I know the best.

What to shop? 

1. Books. Since I love receiving books, I also believe it is a perfect present:-) If you are an expat, make your folks a favor and introduce them to some of the many excellent Indian authors - whether it is fiction, non-fiction, novella, poetry, travel-books or cooking books! Or a 2014 calender- with decor and quotes and an overview of all the Indian festivals (so they can plan when to visit you next year!). You find bookstores like Crossroads and Oxfords in most malls.  
2. DVD / CD. Why not spread some exotic feel-good Bollywood stories and music? Most films come with English subtitles. I like English Vinglish and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. Dvd's and Cd's are also sold in most bookstores. 
3. Clothes. You can bling someone up with new Indian outfits. But don't go completely crazy - a silver glitter sari is maybe not what your aunt in a snowy village in the Alps has on top of her list. Or who knows? Maybe it is! Anyway- lots of choices, or you can settle for some shawls or dupattas - thin or thick - they are usually a hit:-) 
4. Jewelry. Good expat gifts (take up no space in the suitcase, right?). I like the colored stones, and the watches are beautiful. And if you can not find anything, you can have jewelry made for you (read: for your gift-receivers) - just as you want them. One piece only, how about that? 
5. For kids. From my own experience these items has caused standing ovations among the recipients: A) Indian Barbie dressed in sari, preferable wedding sari. B) Plastic rickshaws. C) Art craft sets to make bangles, magnets, cards etc. All with fantastic Indian colors and motives. D) Soft toys- elephants and camels:-) I like the toy shop at the Infiniti mall.   
6. For teenagers. Phone and PC covers and bags are popular gifts. You can find them ready made or have one made in the pattern and color you like. Also bags, jewelry and sports stuff may be a hit, but again: know your recipient - teenagers are... well teenagers:-)      
7. General gifts. At Good Earth, Bombay Store and FabIndia you can find souvenirs, gifts, tablecloths, clothes etc. Also knock yourself out in the malls. No lack of shopping opportunities!
   
   My hottest tip (!): get a gorgeous gift bag or box, and fill it up with Indian tea, Indian spices, some sweets, nuts or dried fruit and maybe a product or 2 from the Biotique Botanicals Ayurvedic series- facial cream or bodylotion - or a Jasmine perfume. The magic scent of India - perfect for Christmas:-) 

Well, I hope you enjoyed my little tour-the-shops-of-Mumbai-tale? As you see, the greatest shopping experience for me is the one which comes with a friendly smile and a really good story! The best presents can be just that, remember? A smile, a chat, a tea or a meal shared with friends...

So, the shopping is done! Yey! Now, I sit at my balcony - in 30' degrees and sunshine, with my cup of tea and Driving home for Christmas. I light a candle (!), send some warm thoughts to people I love, sharpen my pen, and I start to write my Christmas greetings.

Warm thoughts to you, dear reader!  Have a wonderful week!

Romance, love and violence at Times Literary Carnival

- Tread softly, Breathe peacefully, Laugh hysterically  (Nelson Mandela) 

The power of words can be immense, and as a symbol of that, Nelson Mandela was honored also here in Mumbai. You see, the Times Literary Carnival Festival is now on! That means 3 whole days of sessions, workshops, readings, lectures, book-launches, stalls, entertainment and cafes - all in the venue of Mehboob studios, Bandra. My friend Kiran and I spent the day, in company with fellow readers, writers and book-lovers, exploring different sides of Love, Romance and Violence - which are this year's themes. A great event for Mumbai, and a true inspiration for me personally. Indeed, what a powerful tool words can be!? Here are some moments from our day.

Writer and filmmaker Hanif Kureishi - (included by The Times in " The top 50 British writers since 1945") gave a lovely keynote. I enjoyed how he described how love can be the love from a writer to the story they are telling, and how a romance can be a romance between the reader and the current story they are reading:-) ( And oh crises- we all know what happens when the romance ends right?)  

The festival has several studios and a garden for the sessions. In the middle, there is a large open square - perfect for getting a cup of tea, a bite of something yummy, buying a book, or just hanging out chatting in between the different sessions. A very relaxed atmosphere:-)

The festival has a lot of sessions within a wide range of themes. Who would have thought I would learn so much about Bollywood in the -50's for example? Well, I did - by attending The Flawed Heroine session - on the book about one of the most prominent Hindi actresses Meena Kumari! What a life!

Panel on the Meena Kumari book: Author Vinod Mehta, in discussion with Rachel Dwyer and Mahmood Feroqui. 

The highlight for me was the book launch of "Women of pure wonder". With tears and laughter we listened to some amazing ladies who had very touching stories to tell. We listened to Laxmi, who at the age of 15 was attacked with acid and has now become the symbol of the fight against abuse and attacks on women. We heard the stories of the ex-sheriff of Mumbai, the professor, the sociologist, the top-leader - some of them making their path  - against all odds. And expat-in-India-me really enjoyed and learned a lot from following the debate and discussions on women empowerment. What does it take? Where do we go from here? How to do it? They could have gone on for hours, and I would have haaanged in there! Front row!

The launch of "Women of pure wonder! 

Nandini Sardesai, Priya Dutt, Zarine Screwwala and Indu Shahani.

After the wonder women session, we had to ease our excitement with some ice-tea and Indian sunshine, and then we enjoyed listening to the author Bapsi Sidhwa reading from her book Ice Candy Man (Cracking India) - and sharing anecdotes from the process of making it in to the Deepa Mehta film Earth.

Bombay, the city we lost! - ? well, we had to check out what that was about, right?

So, after Bachi Kakaria's book-launch, Charles Gorrea held a very interesting session, comparing Mumbai to other grand cities - regarding construction of new buildings, city plans, public transportation, parks, green lounges - or more or less - lack of such - and the impact that will have on the people living in the cities.

Charles Gorrea, Bachi Karkaria and Gyan Prakash. 

The festival has a lot of sponsors, and is therefore free of charge. If you are up for some love and romance (and violence - themes..?), and you are in Mumbai, you can still make it! It goes on all weekend! Today and tomorrow -  packed with interesting sessions! Check out the website for detailed schedule!  And if you are not in Mumbai, - well, then maybe next year?

I wish you a continuous wonderful weekend dear reader!

The Times of India Wall - the symbol of the festival:-) 

A book for Meena

- Miss. Miss. This is the last one!
I look up from my papers. She is standing 1 cm from me, repeating:
- This is the last one. 
I see pride in her eyes, and also..sadness? And I have no idea what she is talking about: - What do you mean, the last one, Meena?
- This is the last book only, Miss.
And then I see the book in her hands: Cairo Jim, On the trail to Chacha Muchos. 
And I get it.

The last one. You see, Meena has now read every single book in our library. She is proud of it but I can also feel her anxiety. Now, what is she going to do? What is she going to read? Because she is a reader, you know. Whenever I see her, she has a book with her. In class, she has a storybook hidden under her notebook, supposedly a secret..:-) And now, she is the only one of the kids who has read every single book in our library, and even though our library is not the biggest- we are still talking lots of books!

So, I can not wait. I have to let her know the good news today. Because we have more books! They are ready, waiting to come along for next time we all meet - in just a couple of days. Donations and gifts has made it possible. And even some brand new books will come! I break the good news, and I can see how this big smile is spreading on her face. Yey! It does not end after Cairo Jim finishes his Chacha Muchos adventures! There will be more books! More stories! The reading continues!

I head home, and I can feel this silly smile spreading around my face too. Ahh, those book-lovers are all the same around the world, aren't they?! But can you imagine - not having a book to read, when that is the only thing you really really want to?!

A good moment today dear reader! It feels great to see so much joy! The readings will go on, and so will my Mumbai tales. I hope you have had a good day! Thanks for ... well,...  thanks for reading:-)  

A Greek feast - on a normal Thursday

While experiencing happiness, we have difficulty in being conscious of it. Only when the happiness is past and we look back on it do we suddenly realize - sometimes with astonishment - how happy we had been.

Yes, today Zorba the Greek came to Mumbai! Perfect time for a Greek Feast  - in the company of the wonderful ladies in my book club. We chatted, discussed the book, watched a bit of the film, enjoyed Greek yummies like souvlaki, moussaka, tirosalata, melitsanosalata, Greek salad and olives, and of course with Greek music on the speakers! Opa! Opa! (no, no, no plates were broken:-) Great feast! 

Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis was first published in 1946, and made in to a movie in 1964 - huuuge success around the world! People loved the story about the narrator, an intellectual, who hire the crazy Alexi Zorba - and together they travel to Crete to start a lignite mine. It is a book that I feel, still can provide some good insight and wisdom - about life, about being in the moment and living in the present, about appreciation, gratitude and about happiness. 

I felt once more how simple and frugal a thing is happiness: a glass of wine, a roast chestnut, a wretched little brazier, the sound of the sea. Nothing else.

  

Anthony Quinn and Alan Bates - in the famous scene from Zorba the Greek

This is true happiness: to have no ambition and to work like a horse as if you had every ambition. To live far from men, not to need them and yet to love them. To have the stars above, the land to your left and the sea to your right and to realize of a sudden that in your heart, life has accomplished its final miracle: it has become a fairy tale.

Happy is the man, I thought, who, before dying, has the good fortune to sail the Aegean sea.

See what I mean? Happiness doesn't need to cost anything and it can be found in the simplest of things: the sight of dolphins, a warm hug, a kind word, some cooling sea breeze- or simply sharing a meal with some good friends:-) And it is about seeing the beauty of it while it happens, not allowing the past to stress you (it is gone..) nor allowing yourself to worry about the future. To be in the present - 100%!    

So, one of my favorite scenes from the film is the famous one, on the beach. The mine has gone down the drain, the narrator is broke- things are looking bad and then ... 

- Dance, did you say dance?!

Nikos Kazantzakis is one of Greece most known authors. He was born on Crete in 1883. He studied law in Athens and worked also as a journalist. He traveled all over Europe, Russia and Asia and wrote numerous works, whereas Zorba being the most famous one. Kazantzakis died in 1957, and is buried in Heraklion, Crete where the epitaph on his tomb reads:

= I fear nothing. I hope for nothing. I am free. 

I hope you enjoyed it, dear reader. Thank you for following and have a wonderful evening! 

Bye from Mumbai! 

The road to Agra

As a 10 year old girl (in the city of Bergen on Norway's west coast), I read a book which made an impression on me. I re-read it, and I tasted the name: - Agra - Agra - Agra - all the way on the other side of the world somewhere.... Where was that? Could I go there sometime? Would that be possible? I kept the book, and when I had kids, I read the book to them too.

And there I was. Some decades later. In the car - on the road to Agra! From Jaipur to Agra to be specific. Oh, dear reader, I could not help myself : every time I saw the sign "Agra", my mind went to my childhood book, and I had that silly little smile on my face: I was going to Agra! Pinch my arm!

In the book The road to Agra* we follow Lalu (13) and his sister Maya (7) on their journey from Allahabad to Agra to seek help for Mayas eye disease (which may cause blindness). It is a dramatic story: the kids meet both bad and good people and they are threatened by snakes and jackals. They get an elephant ride, and see camels. ( Utterly exotic for a 10- year- old in Norway, I tell you!) The journey is hot, dusty and exhausting, but Lalu and Maya never loose spirit - please let the hospital in Agra help Maya! Need I say there is a happy ending??

So, except for the signs saying Agra - we had also had some interesting sights along the way, still exotic for an expat in India. Slowing down in front of a toll booth, this one came up right next to us :

- not sure what he payed :-) - but he got through the toll both a lot faster than we did:-)

Leaving Jaipur, we talked about how we saw most motor-bikers wearing helmets there (in Mumbai, we often see only the driver wearing one). Ladies in sarees with helmets, kids, the whole family - all with helmets - and then this family of 5 on a motorbike appeared:

Of course the cows were in the middle of the road on the road to Agra too! Ok, ok- I was a bit carried away by the touristic atmosphere: Cows on the road everyone! Cows on the road!:-)

So, elephants, snakes and camels: - we saw you too! On the way to Agra---

And yes, dear reader, the road finally took us to Agra. What we found there - might not come as a shocking revelation to you..? Stay tuned, if you want to know....-) Thanks for reading:-)

Have a wonderful day:-)

*The book: The road to Agra was written by Aimée Sommerfelt and was first published in 1959. It has been translated into 17 different languages. 

Some moments to remember

- All these days that just came and went .... little did I know that they were life itself..*

My beloved late grandfather was an enthusiastic collector of small wise quotes like this, and he showered them over us grandchildren whenever he had a chance. - Listen to people, he would say, there is something to learn from every person who comes in to your life. And the last few days has really been all about persons for me, dear reader.

So, nope - no big exploring excursions, no travels, no adventurous experimenting in the kitchen. It has been about people and moments - the small things which make your day - and by that - make life itself. I cherish those moments, I feel them and try to be in them. So, what have I really been up to lately?

Well, my oldest child just turned 18, so naturally I had my HUUGE -oh-I-am-so-proud-and-happy-but-oh-why-do-they-have-to-grow-up-so-quickly???- moment *sob*sob* But hipp hipp hurray!

Yes, I am a cake!

My I-feel-so-lucky-and-humble-to-be-part-of-this- moment appeared when I found myself sitting on the floor in a temple in the slum with 37 women who all want new knowledge, and I listen to stories about how their life has been and to what dreams they have for the future and for their children.

From the local newspaper about the self-help group for women

Today I met with the lovely ladies in my book club again, ready to discuss And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini - a good read, I think - ( and the story also takes us to the Greek Island of Tinos:-)) But an emotional moment, because since the last time we met, one of our fellow book-lovers passed away very suddenly. She was with us when we met last month, and it is still hard to grasp that she is no more. We really miss her, and it felt good to share good moments we have had with her with each other.

Colorful flowers - how they fill me with joy! And I enjoy my everyday moments - with my morning coffee on the balcony, watching new flowers come up (PS -Europe: here in Mumbai, we use our balcony every day..:-)) Flowers are here and now, love it! A friend just told me about this white flower in India which blossoms only some hours once a year, and then in the night. Hm - must check out that one.

This week's -pinch-me-in-the-arm-I-am-living-in-India moments (moments which actually appear quite often, to be honest) came up driving around last week... Just seeing these HUGE Ganeshas on their way to immersion...hm - NOT a usual sight driving around in Europe, I assure you! Amazing moments!

And finally- a salute to friendship! My tearful I-feel-blessed-to-have-such-a-good-friend-in-my-life-sad-to-see-you-go-but-happy-that-you-are-going-to-move-where-you-wanted-to-move moment came when I was saying goodbye to one of my dearest friends who is now leaving Mumbai. We have shared laughter and tears, and I feel so grateful to have met her. The tears intensified when she gave me a necklace with the inscription:

A true friend reaches for your hand, but touches your heart.

So, no good-byes - just: see you again! To love and friendship! I hope you cherish your people and your moments, dear reader:-) I wish you the best. Good evening from Mumbai!

*By Swedish writer Stig Johansson.