A Musical Experience

A cool January evening, turned out to be a pleasantly surprising, transcendental experience, beyond imagination. It was a small gathering of music or rather classical music lovers, hailing from South India, and the occasion was Thyagararja Aaradhanai, meaning salutations to the one and only classical music exponent Thyagaraja Bhagadavar.

I am definitely not competent enough to speak or comment about this revered and profound subject, but I was just thankful and privileged to be a part of the electrifying atmosphere that evening. Just to be, as an observer, trying to drink in, the sheer pleasure of listening to a mesmerizing performance. The violinist played such soul-stirring music, that we found ourselves drawn completely into his world of poignant, soulful notes. Not in vain is it termed the 'queen of instruments'! The truth being we did not sit through the entire programme, but what I did manage to garner from those few hours was enough to make an indelible impression, which seemed to pervade me for a while.

Apart from the utter enjoyment of the scintillating performance, rendered by the group, what sort of shook me and made me realize, is how we tend to forget our roots, and miss out on the richness of the bottomless pit of wealth, it has to offer. As the speakers with their vibrant and striking words, unfolded before us the background behind the Thyagaraajar’s life, and about his astounding compositions, we could all but listen, in awe and wonder. The Pancharathna Kirthis was expounded upon so vividly, that for a lay person like me, who had no inkling that it had such such intense and insightful depth to it, it was a wonderful revelation. This might give you a general idea about, what I have or I had been so taken up with!

And of course it was so unbelievable being in a milieu, that could have easily passed off as a gathering, right in the heart of any town or city in Tamilnadu; the pattu paavadais, and kanjeevarams the diamond thodus (earrings), and the tinkling of Tamil all around! Was left to muse, how we uproot ourselves, to be transplanted elsewhere, and we sadly loose the initiative to celebrate the vastness and the incredible beauty of our beloved heritage. And it has been more than a week now as I think back, the intensity of my feelings has definitely petered out a bit, and am glad that I did manage to capture that moment in writing, for I would need a reminder about, things that lay beyond the everyday realms of our lives. The untouched ocean of knowledge, that lies beyond, to be tasted and savoured. And I would like to tell myself, I have …’miles to go, before I sleep’….

Blooming Beauties!

A long break from blogging, as other priorities have sort of pushed my blogging time, right down, and had to pull it up, with great difficulty, to give its rightful place, right on top, after oh- so- long! So just putting up two tiny blogs, with pictures to do more of the talking!

With the summer waning away and climate turning absolutely pleasant, picked up few plants at the nursery. I think it belongs to the zinnia family, though not sure. They looked lovely, in full bloom, and some buds still to open up. The entire family took it up to tenderly water the pots and placing them on sills for its daily dose of sunlight, and then putting them back in time. And well the effort did shine through, much to our delight!

It’s Fauna this time...!

A wonderful huge garden, relatively close to our place, is hugely popular, during the pre-winter season, where families throng the place for picnics. Crowds descending with a trail of stuff, the pram, the cycle, the bats and the balls, the huge mats, blankets the entire barbeque embellishments, and the huge food bag(s) ofcourse. Its fun watching them troop in like an army building up their base! Huge stetches of green grass, big drooping trees, and well laid walking paths and pavements, and not to forget the lovely lamp posts, which looked great as the night crept in!

The best part was the visit to the mini zoo, within the huge park, which never fails to delight, especially the liitle ones who go all ga-ga watching either the tricks of the monkeys or awed by the huge ostrich strutting around. Was glad the animals were enjoying the brilliant weather, and hoped that the summer to follow is not too harsh on them. So just a few pictures, though not very good ones, which manage to capture the animals, who mustve made an arduous trip across oceans and plains, to be here, in this Arabian desert, warming the hearts of the multitude, who go back with a definite skip in their steps and a smile on their face.

And then it poured!!

With the onset of October, the scorching heat gave way to milder, pleasanter days and nights. So could see people, out in the streets, especially in the evenings and weekends. More of picnics, more of trips to the beach, trying to make most of it, the outings, before it turns too chill for comfort, towards November. The past two weeks though, it began to turn muggy and humid, sort of upsetting things. Well, that was a prelude to the showers to follow, was not known then. Well what a shower it turned out to be, yesterday!!

It did rain cats and dogs, atleast in our part of Kuwait, for surprisingly there were parts which didn't seem to have received any! It was lovely, all the prerequisites of a perfect rainy day! Starting with a consistent cool breeze, (which always is accompanied by a 'whooo...ing' or rather a loud whistling noise around here), the darkening clouds, the smell of damp soil, the claps of thunder, and the dazzling lightening too! What seemed to be a mild drizzle to begin with, gained momentum and it was a full fledged pour, lasting for few hours.

Was reminded of the scores of Indian Monsoon we have been part of, more so when we saw kids and ladies stepping out to 'have a dance' in the rain!! Most windows were thrown open, and heads popping out, straining to have a look at this wonderful gushing, gurgling dripping wet sight; to an otherwise dry, dusty, arid scene outside. Streams of muddy water making their way to the nearest outlet, cars and buildings stumped, by this sudden torrid wash, and the pigeons and cats, scurrying for cover or huddled up in corners. The rain did take the desert land by surprise, to say the least, man ,besast et al!!

And it was such a comforting coincidence, that the rains did not make its sudden appearance during our Diwali Celebrations, the previous two days. The general festive mood, though slightly felt was there alright; and with the usual rituals being carried out in a foreign land, they seem to take on a greater significance. So a very eventful week, with loads of goodies to gorge ourselves on, lots of visiting to be in done, getting in touch with friends and family, sharing of good times and wishes - what festivals are all about!

So gearing up for winter, in the offing, summer clothes stacked away, and the woolies dragged down. Sigh! In for a, not long, but a cold, merciless season of heaters and sweaters, socks and gloves, and maybe laced with hot coffee and crispies, steaming kababs and pizzas doesn't seem all that gloomy!!

Visit to the Kuwait Towers

Planning for an outing on Id, did not leave us with many choices. But Kuwait Towers worked out to be a great choice by the end of the day. We had been forewarned about a possible preposterous traffic rush, and a general closure of all activities around. But what welcomed us were stretches of empty roads, a great sunny day, and people (minimal, mostly non-Muslims, and many non-Asians, for a change) lazily moving around, relaxed and taking in, and relishing the general holiday mood. Could see mums, dads with kids, cycling, or maybe old friends taking a leisurely stroll, along the beach. This was the view along the Gulf Road, which runs along almost the entire eastern stretch of Kuwait, alongside the lapping waters of the Arabian or as it was called earlier,Persian Gulf.


As we approach the towers, which is situated on a slightly curved small peninsula like extension, towards the Gulf, we need to take a sharp right turn, while the Gulf Road, takes a left turn to continue along the contour of the land, north- westward. The first impression is amazement at the sheer size of the three towers, with the blue balls perched atop. We get our entry tickets, and by the time we count five, we are at the top floor! That was quick quips my son, as we step out into the viewing area. It is circular rotating platform, from where we are able to take in the entire view. Initially the triangular viewing sections were a bit dirty for our liking, but soon we could see the window cleaners doing their job, moving up and down, in their motorised shafts. We could see the portion of land below, gently curving in further into the sea, with a huge water park strategically placed, along a lovely coast line. We could also catch sight of the ball at closer range, where we could see, they were actually covered with small disc shaped metal pieces in shades of blue, which gives it the colour.

The insides were furnished with polished metal and granite, and could see some photos, displaying scenes, when the Tower was vandalised, during the Iraq War, and how it was restored. The tower has been around for quite some time, first opened to public in 1979! There was an interesting curio shop, featuring the typical memorabilia, and typically steep priced. There was a viewing telescope through which we couldn’t see much, because it was timed, and before we could decide on a spot and focus, the time was up. So don’t see what’s the whole fun, in having telescopes auto timed! So done with viewing and clicking and more clicking of snaps, zoomed down to have a bite, at a sandwich counter, and the juice was a great quencher. The garden below was green, real green surprisingly and the grass, fresh and wet! So after a short walk below, as it was almost noon by then, along the dyked coast, was back along the swerving Gulf Road, glad at having had a good time at one of the ‘must see’ spots in Kuwait.

To Tag or not to??

Well, doing a Tag, Tagging, are stuff, that comes along with the package i guess, of being, in Blogdom. Me being a novice still, totally at a loss as to how you go about making Tags interesting; still left clueless. For some veterans it seems to be a cake walk, coming up with witty one-liners effortlessly. And the questions were sort of, a bit queasy at times, and had to wade my way through them. Ofcourse being tagged is an official way of informing that your presence has been acknowledged i guess. So my heartfelt thanks to the initiation, by Reflections.
And here goes....

If you can have a dream come true, what would it be.

As of now….being able to spend more time with my little niece.

Whose butt would you like to kick?
The minds behind the terrorist attacks.

What would you do with a billion dollars?
Just sit tight for a while, with a Cheshire smile on my face!

If you could root for one social cause, what would it be?
Three square meals, for every individual on the face of this earth.

Will you fall in love with your best friend?
It happens all the while i guess, and if it equates to absolutely loving your friend!

If your lover betrayed you, what will your reaction be?
Dejection, Anger and Retrospection!

If you fall in love with two people simultaneously who will you pick?
Picking up dresses is done.

Which is more blessed: loving someone or being loved by someone?
Both i would think, even if it be at different points of time.

How long do you intend to wait for someone you love?
Wait and ????

If the person you secretly like is attached, what will you do?
Its no heinous crime to ‘like’ a person i guess, secretly, attached or whatever!

What takes you down the fastest?
Listening to someone go back on their words.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
(Hope to) Satisfied and Happy with Myself!

What’s your fear?
That I would not do full justice to my potentials (whatever little), and opportunities that come

my way.

Would you rather be single and rich or married and poor?

As many had mentioned, would like to change the combination!

Would you give all in a relationship?
Most of the times, i guess.

Would you forgive and forget someone no matter how horrible a thing he has done?
Same as above!

Do you prefer being single or in a relationship?
Being in a good relationship, doesn’t bring in the preference i guess.

What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is?
Reflections : A very interesting, positive and lively person, or that’s what she comes across as, in her two wonderful blog sites.

Phew! Done with it. And as per the rules of the tag, i am supposed to Tag few more, but me being relatively new i think i would exempt myself from the rule! ;) Maybe next time round, when I am Tagged, hoping to have more readers to Tag! So Beware!! :)

Closer home

The route from Goa to Pune was awesome, rain and mist playing havoc with the hills and cascades of the grand Western Ghats, whipping up a stunningly beautiful landscape. The pictures would say it all I guess. Monsoon again, though was on the wane, so got to feast on some steaming hot corns and delicious vada paavs, enroute.

Meeting old friends with lots of catching up to do (both for us and kids), visiting our usual haunts, observing the growing changes, were all part of the short trip. Getting back to your old friends is such a lovely experience, its like getting back to your own self; where one’s thoughts, aspirations, fears and triumphs are voiced out, only to be totally understood and empathised with, and the huge gap of time and distance becomes, as good as non-existent. I would think maintaining and keeping alive old friendships, is such an important and special chore, in one’s life, that gives such a fulfilling and an enriching dimension to our otherwise routine life.

My train trip from Pune was like experiencing a slice of India indeed, in its true sense and spirit. Be it the change in terrain, the shades of the soil, the flora and fauna, the village scenes - they are all so different, as you cross the so called borders (of states); but each one of them be it the brightly painted yellow ‘lorries’, or the ambling, rattling six-seaters, the eclectic crowd thronging the countless stations strewn all over the country, the language or the dialect, each bursting with its individual identity and pride. The entire experience offers such a diverse, exciting adventure of sorts, to say the least. And this being the scene outside the metal windows, what one can expect on the inside is your own guess! Never a dull moment, nothing like a train ride, as it whistles and rattles past, the much worn tracks traversing huge sections of our homeland. Was constantly reminded of the lovely lovely, 'From a railway carriage’ by RLStevenson. This was an interesting link on the net - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jCoigg77Y4

Trichy, my dear home town, where we had a family meet, was a memorable experience. And so was left with not much time to do our usual shopping, restaurant and cinema hall hunts! There was this slight and sometime not so slight showers that played spoil sport too. Anyhow family did get to visit the famous ‘Ucchi pillayar koil’ the Rockfort Temple as its called, sans me. So have some lovely pictures of Trichy/Tiruchirapalli from atop, not a bird's view, more like a goat's view!! The splendid Cauvery weaving its way in the background, the imposing structure of Srirangam (temple), and a portion of the Pillayar koil where there is a small connection with the inroads.

Looking back,it was a terrific trip, and now loaded with pictures and memories to last for a while, frozen and preserved.