Road Trip!!!

I have always wanted to do a road trip, ekdum US style - RV, camping, small towns and big roads. Usual trips just take us to from point A to B and after spending a few days checking out place B we return, not ever stepping away from the main highways. This summer we decided it was finally time to test the waters.

We headed in our van (Yes I know, next time the big RV) on a 10 day road trip - which ended up being a 11 day trip (change plans on the road, check). Out paths took us along the Calfifornia coastline up to Oregon.

We started early in the morning and headed to Florence Oregon. The beautiful landscape of trees and blue skies along the highway made way to coastline and sanddunes by evening.  As we settled into our small town B&B, the typical Oregon weather assaulted us with rains and dark skies. Our hopes of a grand road trip looked bleaker as we thought about Kochunni's asthma and other troubles. We decided to grab a bite and head to safe corners of our room and see how things turn out the next day.

On our buggy ride over the sand dunes

Mornings always seems more hopeful and joyous than the dark nights and with the rains slowing down a bit we decided we need to first get some reinforcements. We hit the local store and bought raincoats for everyone and drove up to the sanddunes to ride the RTVs. As Goddess Luck turned to shine on us, we basked in its glory as they let us go on the smaller buggies than the bigger ones that we were supposed to go on. Smaller buggy meant double the fun as the driver took nose dives and turned around pushing sand everywhere. We experienced the awesome windswept dunes and rode along the beach while the boys screamed to their little hearts delight. The rains kept away through the morning and late afternoon for us to linger and enjoy the small town.

The next day we headed to Sea Lion caves that is a wonder and a delight in itself. As we took the elevator down to the caves the temperature dropped and we stepped into a cavern filled with sounds of the sea lions, ocean waves and sea birds hooting. On our way back we stopped by our first lighthouse of our trip at the Heceta Head Lighthouse. The little overlook reminded the boys of pirate ships and wondrous journeys that old seafarers took back in the day.

From Florence, we headed to town of cheese - Tillamook.

Kids on the airplane at the air museum

Post a tour of the cheese factory and bountiful helpings of ice cream we headed to call it a night. Of course, not before a swim for the boys at the hotel pool. As we let go of our need for appointments and seeing everything in the alotted vacation days we adjusted well to late nights and sleep-ins - this  another check for our road adventure.

The next day we treated the boys to little bit of time travel as we took them to the days of world war 2. We took them to Tillamook Air Museum which is actually a former hanger built for blimps. Today it holds around 30 airplanes that the boys checked out in great detail. Their fascination piqued we had to entertain them with toy air crafts from the gift shops as we exited. We then traveled to our second light house.

After the couple of small towns we headed to the bustle of Portland. There we visited the Multnomah Falls, a 611 foot drop of icy waterfall display. The boys and I took to only the first tier of the water fall display, while hubby decided to trail all the way to the top of the waterfall- to see the vantage point over the second tier's whopping 69-foot drop. Kochu, Kunju and I headed back to the nearby restaurant to have our lunch. It was possibly our first time at a real sit down "nice" restaurant with just me and the boys and for a change they behaved. There was no cringe worthy display of tantrums or talk backs and we enjoyed our meals while we waited for a call from husband about his trek.

Suspension Bridge

Post ice creams and some more time at the falls we headed back. The next day we headed to the to Washington to see Mt. Helens - an active stratovolcano. Unfortunately, we lost our way and ended up in south side that though gave us the view of the mountain did not get us near the Lava Dome of the mountain. But what is a road trip without its share of adventure. Plus this gave us a rare and unexpected opportunity to hike up the Canyon trail that led us the springy suspension bridge over the Muddy river.

The thrill of hike was not only the views and the bridge but also getting Kochu to be my little helper - holding Amma's hand to help her cross and climb down steep and slippery rocks. He was (as expected) extremely proud of his little achievement. The next day we headed to the Enchanted Forest theme park and the Wildlife Safari as we headed back to California. In the evening we headed to a river cruise that one big thrill ride. Along the Hood river the ride was both exhilarating and breathtaking. This was a great way to finish off our Oregon trip or so we thought.

Kunju looking out from our van at the animals

Our friends suggested we head back via Crater Lake and I am glad we took their suggestion as this breathtaking beauty is not to be missed. The deep blue clear waters and surrounding mountains are so serene and unadulterated that it reminds us of what the earth might have been  thousands of years ago.

Crater lake

The extra day was indeed well spent and we headed home happy.


The road trip was adventures and a great way to start the summer. It was probably not the ultimate  road trip but as our first family road trip it will go down as a memorable one.


Until the next one, Bon Voyage!!!

Another beginning

It's been ages since I have lifted my pen, or rather sat down and opened blogger to pen down my musings. Of course there is always something or the other and yet I seemed to have lost my motivation to write. Things happened - big and small - everyday things and milestones - and yet I wasn't moved. My mother, even she tried, but somehow their wasn't enough time in the world.

As the new year starts I decided I need to at least make the effort of doing a year end post to note things I still remember from last year. Kochu closed out kindergarten in style and enjoyed every minute of school. He made many new friends and by the end of the school year grown to love his teachers, his school and his new friends.  Now in First grade he seems to be building his social skills some more. He tried his hand at basketball and continue to flourish in swim lessons.

Kunju had his second birthday and he seems to have skipped being a baby altogether. Learning about superheroes and ninjas, he bypassed the whole PBS days of curious George, Thomas the train and other things. Picking up from his older brother saying No to everything is often times the first answer to everything. The terrible twos phase is passing us by - hopefully the new year will curb it some.

During summer we made another Europe trip - this time to Paris, Belgium, Amsterdam and a ride through German countryside. Traveling with two boys had it's own share of adventure and craziness. Paris was just like the movies - all the flair and not much substance. Belgium was a surprise - absolutely great food (fries - actually invented here and not France, waffles, and chocolates - YUM). The car ride through Germany was a great experience in terms of traveling through small towns and enjoying the true countryside. The people were friendly and the places around the Rhine river was just breathtaking. Like someone once said, it was beautiful to take the road less traveled - to wander, to slow down and enjoy the moments.

This past month we went down to Lake Tahoe and Kochu for the first time tried his hand (or should I say leg) at skiing. He took to it like fish to water. Enjoying going downhill and playing with his cousins and friends we made most out of the snow. Halloween, Diwali, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year celebrations had it's own style and fun. The boys dressed up as Captain America and Iron Man for Halloween while for Diwali they blew phuljharies and lit diyas outside the house. We did many day trips around the bay area and enjoyed all the holidays.

As the new year starts, new things are beginning to shape up; just as old things keep us strong. Kochu starts back on swimming and basketball lessons. He is learning chess and wants to enroll into piano as well. I have take a new job and Kunju should soon start at daycare. No idea how my writing will shape up ... but we'll give it a shot.

Off we went

Just got back from a 3 week trip to India – specifically Bangalore and what a time it was. To start off I was traveling for the first time with two kids. I knew going in it would be one hell of a 24 hours but all I could think of was seeing family and friends after a gap of almost two years that I was without worry. As it turned out the forward journey went off without too many hassles. I got a bassinet seat row, so there was enough space for the little one to move about; and with many Disney movies on the flight Kochu was entertained and his day was made with watching 3-4 movies in a span of 18 hours.

Once in Bangalore, Kochu had the best time by going to every shop with his Muthu on the scooter. Every time Muthu stepped out to run to the local shop he would want to join him and insist on taking the scooter even if the shop was within walking distance. Another highlight of the trip was watching TV – cartoons like Chota Bheem, Krishna and Balram ran non-stop continuously. He enjoyed their adventures so much that he now considers himself Balram, and the baby Krishna. He was in seventh heaven when I found a small plastic "gadha" that he now brandishes around.

Unfortunately all wasn’t peachy with jet lag the first week and then Kunju’s fever during the middle of the vacation. He really scared us by getting a 103 degree fever. The bigger issue was trying to find a doctor at short notice. We had to call our neighbors and cousins who had young kids to see who their paediatrician was, find out if the doctor practiced close to where we live so that we could get their quickly (Bangalore traffic is horrendous). After some frantic couple of hours we found a doctor and met with him. It turns out he had a virus infection and with 2 days of medication he was much better; though he seemed to have lost his appetite all-together. This was a real damper as by the end of the trip the little one lost at least a couple of pounds and looked pretty weak though he was still active and vibrant self.

For a change this vacation was unlike my previous trips to India in respect of traveling back and forth within India. We stayed at my mom’s house and to me it was truly a vacation with complete rest and a few shopping days thrown in for retail therapy. My best friend from college came down from Mumbai and we had a great 2 days of bonding and laughter. Even Kochu warmed up to her so quickly that it seemed he had known her all along and I was the outsider! After a long time or sorts, we even did a small Bangalore tour for my friends benefit and it was nice to see Lalbaug and other prominent places as an adult. The traffic and the congestion of Bangalore was quite apparent and like my friend I missed the convenience of Mumbai trains.

The highlight of the trip was just being away from the daily grind and spending a much needed time with the company of the two boys. It seems every time I stop and look at them, I realize how much they have grown and continue to.

Snowfall

This past Thanksgiving weekend, after much deliberation we rented a house in Lake Tahoe and headed out with some family friends. It was supposed to nice weather and the snow had just started a couple of weeks ago, so the guys were all ready with their ski gear.

We packed enough food for us to have some nice potluck, but as luck would have it we forgot the rice cooker. Luckily the house had a nice big pot for us to make rice the traditional way, while the kids enjoyed some oatmeal to tide off their hunger. We also took some dosa batter, rava for upma and other ready made stuff like soups, chapati and snacks to ensure there was enough nutrition to go around.

We reached the house late night on Thursday, so after a quick dinner everyone hit the sack. The next day was going to be play-date for the kids. We headed out to the resort that offered some kid activities, but on the way it started to snow. Yes, nice fluffy snow. By the time we reached the resort, it was snowing pretty heavily and we had to bundle ourselves in sweaters and jackets and bring out the umbrellas to avoid the direct hit. Luckily the resort had an arcade which allowed us to stay warm indoors. After some pizza, we had to head back home. On the last trip we saw the snow covered mountains and picturesque lake view, and even though that was the first time Kochunni saw snow, this trip yielded us his first ever snow fall. But I have to say it was great to be back at the house all warm and cozy.

When we woke up the next day, the land and rooftops were covered in white blanket of powdery white sugar, the most beautiful sight was our white car - it looked as if someone had covered it in a white blanket. The kids ran up and down the house trying to catch sight of the snow plow trucks that were trying to clean up the roads a little. Since it was supposed to be 'ski' day for the guys and older kids, their first job was to clean off the cars to pull them out of the driveway. After that they headed out. Moms with younger kids decided to stay home and let the kids play a bit in the backyard snow with the fear of driving with snow-chains, which none of us had any experience of.

Luckily the sun was up for most part of the day, which was a boon. Even though it was cold, it melted much of the snow for us to walk around the neighborhood and made it safer for our drive back home the next day.

Seeing the snow fall and having a snow fight was loads of fun, the kids even made a small snowman with the pine cones and snow. But if I ever owned a vacation house I would much prefer it if it were a beach house facing the warm sun and salty seawater. Here I leave you with some wonderful pictures of our fun trip.

Siena & Pisa

Siena

A quaint little town tucked away on the hills - that was my first impression as I stepped down from the bus. Our hotel was located a few blocks away from the main town square - Il Campo. The city could be a coin toss between - a smokers paradise or a pedestrian heaven.

The air is tainted with smoke every corner you turn becoming the one drawback from a non-smokers perceptive. While the city having limits on car and bus allowed into the main city (downtown) area the locals seem to have built a rather healthy way of life. It even made me wonder how the world would be if most overpopulated cities would have similar regulations - not only giving way to a healthy set of people but giving back to the earth, what we have taken for granted for centuries.

Piazza del Campo (Il Campo) or the town square is a large area for townsfolk to meet and greet - a park in disguise. Today the four corners are streamlined with restaurants though I wonder how it would have been say a 100 years ago. The city being small compared to Rome, it seems natural that the locals know each other rather well. The town square was filled with kids playing ball or running to catch the pigeons, an older generation sitting along the side laughing and talking. It was a rather relaxing part of the trip. We enjoyed the evening hours until it was time to head back and find some food. (But the story of the food would have to wait for another post).

The next day, we went to the Duomo (Cathedral) and the nearby museum. The museum houses some of the famous paintings of Madonna and Child as well as the original stained glass window that was originally housed behind the altar inside the Duomo. The main attractions for us was the climb up to the museum top for a great view of the city. The tiled streets, the two-three story houses laid out below was a great sight. Of course for Kochunni the big attraction was the large cranes (Cranky from Thomas series) that were hard at restoration work.

The Church housed some great paintings inside the Piccolomini Library that were so 3-D like that it felt like we were looking thorough a window rather than into a painting. It also has a rather unknown piece of St Peter by Michelangelo. The floor of the Church is lined by mosaics covering the whole floor of the cathedral. The last but not the least is the amazing sculptures by Bernini - St. Jerome playing the crucifix like a violinist lost in beautiful music, and one of Mary Magdalene immersed in her faith of the Lord.

After afternoon lunch we went back to get some rest (gelato + nap). In the evening we went back to Il Campo and browsed the local boutique shops for souvenirs, bags and local antiques.

Final word: Overall Siena turned out to be a very pleasant surprise. It turned out to be the highlight of the trip - a must see place for any Italy traveler for great food, quaint township, good folks and some high-end shopping.

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Pisa

Out next stop was Pisa - a day trip on our way to Florance. Pisa seems like a city that sprouted to support its famous attraction - the bell tower that leaned. Its noisy, dusty - a stark contrast to Siena.

Of course the main reason for the pit-stop was the famous tower, and the famous sights - the Duomo, Baptistery, and the Leaning Tower - are housed inside the Field Of Miracles. As it turns out, we enjoyed the Baptistery were the structure built gives way to great acoustics. In olden days, the priest could sing haunting harmonies with himself, due to the echoes that are created. Today every 15 minutes the guard sings the chord, in remembrance of the bygone era.

Since you have to be eight years old to climb the tower, Kochunni and I sat by the Duomo while husband took the flight of stairs to see the town of Pisa from above.

Probably, we did not give the full justice to the town of Pisa as we headed back to the train station soon after to head out to Florance.

Final word: Seeing one of the seven wonders of the world is the obvious highlight of this trip. So if you are traveling to Siena or Florance, take the easy day trip via Rail Euro and cross off one, out of the seven wonders!

Rome

Its been a while since I used paper and pen to jot down memories. But being in a town square of Siena where everyone walks & seems to know everyone, this seems a logical choice.

Yes I am in Siena - on a week trip to Italy. Our first stop was Rome - the old town. Rome was what one expected - a city built around the ruins and grandeur of the past. It seems like the bygone generation wanted to stand the test of time by building large scale arenas and churches. The pride that locals justly feel towards these monuments overshadows their capacity for providing help to tourists. It seems the locals have no idea where they are themselves or lack common courtesy. But without this one drawback our first stop on the Italy tour turned out to be lesson in history and art.

The Colosseum even with only 1/4th of what once was, stands as a magnificent piece of architecture. The grandeur having outlived its people, it stands boldly challenging us. Of course this stadium has gone down in history for the cruelty that was instituted via the battles between man and animal, but the enginering skill of the people is unmistakable. The center is laid out with many tunnels that would have been underground for people to do all the backstage activities while the whole stadium could seat thousands of people.

Our next stop was the Pantheon - a wonderfully well-preserved structure that stood the test of time due to the fact that it was consecrated as a church. It also stands as a tomb to Renaissance painter Raphael and other kings of Italy. The square surrounding the Pantheon has a wonderful vibe around it with cafes and shops surrounding the square. It almost feels like a college campus!

As jet lag finally hit us we decided to cut short our tour of Rome. So the next day we took the trip to Vatican city - a sovereign city inside Rome. We decided to see St. Peter's Basilica - one of the largest churches in the world. As I stepped into St. Peter's Basilica, Michaelangelo's Pieta stood out in all its glory. Even though one might have seen the image a million times; seeing the artist's (one) masterpiece especially up close (behind the bullet proof glass, sadly) has a greater effect. The largest church seems like the rightful place for this wonderful work of art.

The building is truly a magnificent piece of art and architecture that holds the tomb of St. Peter - according to tradition, first Bishop of Rome. It also houses the bronze statue of Saint Peter, with a very kissable toe that stands out, Bernini's star burst doe at the center and his bronze canopy.

The dome is a huge, magnificent work and as one looks up to the heaven one can only gasp at the infinite possibilities in life and the little time one is presented with. It made me think of the people who actually were able to live their dream, while the thousands who go unnoticed throughout their lifetime and beyond.


Overall Rome reminded me of an old town, the transportation mainly the buses are well connected and very frequent. Of course, they are crowded and one needs to worry about being pick-pocketed but overall the frequent services helped us. Taxis are expensive, of course locals seems to prefer the two-wheelers over anything else. The people are not the friendliest but I guess tourists forever asking them routes and directions would be distracting to anyone. September was a great time to visit weather-wise though we encountered a little drizzle and ended up buying two umbrellas - one of which broke within two rounds of opening and closing!

Final word: Rome is must for history buffs who can enjoy with the crowds and for those who are not interested in history just think about this as a city that contributed to the world some of the finest pieces of art and architecture . A definite must if you travel to Italy.

The Vacation

Being miles away from home, we traditionally save our holidays for the one big trip home. Of course, with such a trip means traveling miles within a span of weeks. Its an ordeal and a vacation rolled into one. After all meeting your college buddies, getting home made food is fun part of the trip, while planning to meet everyone and yet coming back realizing that we did not get enough time with family turns out to be a sad reality of every trip home.

And so planning a vacation - a true vacation - not meeting friends or family - but traveling - doing the thing that all tourists do was a major undertake at the Kochunni household. So after months of deliberation we decided to take an Europe trip. To be more specific an eight day trip to Italy. The next couple of posts are ones I wrote (yes actually wrote down) while in Italy that I am finally posting online. Why did it such a time to post them back online because oh, hmm, well, with all these years of typing away on a computer - the art of decent handwriting seems to have weathered away (rather sadly) to a state of non-existence! Therefore it took some time and effort to re-read my own handwriting! Anyway, hope you enjoy the ride with me ...

The return of the king

We reached the shores of Dubai Thursday afternoon and were pleasantly surprised by the chilly winds that awaited us. It turned out to be a really a great time to visit Dubai, the weather being just right, and with two nights to spend in town, we decided to hit one of Dubai’s main attractions – shopping – the first night.

The next day we went to the Jumeira beach – a magnificent picturesque beach, with crystal clear cool waters, the turquoise colored waters so inviting that I was ready to spend my day there.

But we headed back, for a quick lunch before we were to go “dune-bashing” or the desert safari – a pseudo roller-coaster ride on a four wheel car across the Arabian desert. With great insistence by our cousins to be taken to the bigger sand dune areas, our driver did go up & down the sand dunes, though Kochunni did not like the experience and started to cry. But we held on and enjoyed the (less than) 20 minute ride through the deserts. (According to our cousin though the dune bashing in Muscat is far better with the dunes raising far higher than its counterpart in Dubai).

Later the car took us to the camp site for dinner and some ‘extras’ – a little henna decoration on our hands, a very short camel ride and an opportunity to wear some traditional outfits for family picture time. Of course, no show would be complete without an area for shopping for some souvenirs. A while into barbecue style dining, entertainment in form of belly dancers and music made the rustic scene complete.

Kochunni enjoyed the later part of the night at the camp and as we headed back home, fell into a deep slumber. I mentally crossed off seeing another natural wonder – the desert – from my list of things to do and happily settled into family conversations. We were back home soon and had another round of re-packing as were heading back to US the next day.

Heading back to the airport, we contemplated the decision to do a stopover and realized that in a way it was a nice gamble, not only did we meet with family we had not met in years, we had something to look forward to while starting from India. And sometimes, God does work in wondrous ways, as we were treated with a surprise free upgrade to Business class at the Emirates counter. Not sure their reasoning behind it, but we thanked our lucky stars as we headed to the long 16 hour flight ahead.

In style, we headed back home. The spacious seating a genuine bonus for us, that left us wanting more air rides. As we landed back in US, I slowly accepted the fact that vacation was over and we were back into the grind.

Again nature has a way of healing our thoughts, and as I opened my backyard door, it revealed the magnificent blooms of spring flowers on our barren peach tree welcoming us back into its folds. It reminded me of another time zone, the love and the joys the journey bought us, and of the bright future that laid ahead of us. I felt rejuvenated and rather than mull the fact of the vacation spent, I decided to look ahead to the wonderful summer.

The journey so far

We are at the tail-end of our trip, tomorrow we travel to Dubai for a small stop over before heading back to US.

Kochunni did not have any stranger anxieties and enjoyed meeting the extended families. The influence of family is easily noticeable as he speaks Malayalam more fluently making full sentences.

Here's Kochunni with his Ammamma, having a "tickling match"


Some of his favorite times was going on bike rides with Muthu (grandpa) standing in the front with the wind (and dust) in his hair, the autoricksha rides and watching the tanker lorry bringing water into our houses. Clearly his personality is more pronounced these days easily showing off his displeasure – yesterday we went shopping and by the time we were done it was already 12.30 or so and I asked my dad to take Kochunni and my mom home first so that she could start lunch for him while I could do some more shopping, of course he started to throw a tantrum and I had to return pretty soon, and as he saw me from the window he yelled “amma vannu” (amma is here) but as I entered the room, he just walked away his face showing his displeasure of sending him home first. We laughed at his antics but it is clear how easily he is able to articulate his feelings today. Gone are the days when the only weapon he had at his disposal were war cries at different pitch and decibel to let us know his displeasure.

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Since our inner country travels was over we decided to do some potty training hoping that having more number of people to monitor Kochunni will be an easy option for all. Of course the little fella did not see it that way and the rounds of coaxing, bribing had no impact on him. He just decided not to pee or poop! By evening he started showing signs of discomfort and I started him on apple juice and back on diaper. And so another round of potty training battle, Kochunni won hands down. This is the last thing I am going to say about this topic (for now) totally blocking off this memory (such a sore loser that I am) and only going to remember this picture of a cute little fella in chaddies.

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Met with Abha and her little cute, adorable, smart little bundle of joy. She was exactly how I imagined she would be – true Mumbaiker at heart and soul, fun loving and smart. I wish I had more time to spend but had to head out to the Commercial Street to fire the tailor who completely screwed up my ‘Patiyala’ to be a clown pants. The tailor for once turned out to be a nice polite fella and agreed to try and make some changes to it so that I could at least wear it at home.

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As the vacation draws to close, I start dreaming more about stuff from work, about Kochunni’s daycare and of course the worsening economy in US. I try my best to push back the thoughts to enjoy my last few days, finish some shopping but the thoughts creep back up, just as I see my parents mulling the same fact in a different way - the empty house, their beloved grandson no longer a part of their everyday lives, his antics no longer live action but more of a re-run through the blog, pictures and videos sent over. But as they say, the show must go on, and so we get ready to pack up and head on back to California.

Spell Check, please!

Somethings are still the same here; spelling errors on a bus ...

The journey so far

Since one of the main reasons for this trip was Kochunni's Vidyarambham we decided to ensure that both sets of grandparents were with us to enjoy the proceedings. We rented a car from Bangalore and traveled further south to Kollur and then to Kerala to visit our home town - though we really have no stake in it. Both sides of the family have let go or been pushed into letting go their respective tharvadu (ancestral house), but for both its still the place that beckons them. The agenda included a quick circuit around most of Kerala visiting some famous temples, the tharvadu and meeting a little bit of family.

But after two days of continuous travel from Bangalore to Kollur and now to Kerala, Kochunni looks like he is half his original size, seemingly having withered into a skeleton. We decided that it might be better on him (and us) to take some rest and give the little fella a break.

We stopped at my mother's cousins house in the lush green house near Palakkad. Kochunni was treated to various treats from Chakka upperi (jack-fruit side dish), cool nalikera vellam (nariyal pani/cocunut water) straight from fresh coconuts, fruits and fresh vegetables. He even had a traditional lunch on the plantain leaf for the first time. It turned out to be a wonderful stop-over. Kochunni was pleased with meeting his mema (mothers younger sister/mausi) and seemed to enjoy the sights of our home town - the green trees, the homely temples to the lush green fields. Having decided to cut short on some temple visits Kochunni got a well deserved break while both sets of parents still managed to do their darshans. By evening, with two good meals in his tummy and a good night sleep he was a new fella, and we went to my parents tharvadu and the associated temples.

The only concept that seemed archaic to Kochunni was our insistence on taking his shirt off inside the temples, the poor fella having never seen such a sight cried foul everytime we had to step into the temple. As far as I am aware, Kerala temples are the only place where they insist on men going to the temple in the traditional mundu - shirt less, with only a short mundu covering their chest or using their shirt over their shoulder. Women have to wear sares, while girls have to wear long skirts (pavada/blouse). Though today slowly the idea is challenged and some of the more famous temples have accepted girls/women in churidars and men in pants instead of the mundu. But going shirt less is still widely practiced. Slowly he is getting accustomed to showing off his 'tummy'!

By evening we progressed to Guruvayoor. Guruvayoor turned out to be so warm that we had to move from our non-A/C room to an A/C room during the middle of the night. Deciding to give the little fella another break Kochunni, my dad and I stayed back at Trissur at my husbands aunts house, while husband, mil and mom progressed further to his hometown. I did a little shopping and took rest.

Tomorrow we go back to Bangalore - another long 8-10 hour ride back. Its definitely not been a relaxing vacation (in terms of doing nothing) so far but after tomorrow hopefully the next few days will be restful until we go back home next week - back to the grind.

Vidyarambham

Today was Kochunni's Vidyarambham - the initiation into learning and writing in front of the Lord. This was one of the main reasons for our journey. We reached Kollur yesterday evening after a long car ride from Bangalore.

As the sun rose we quickly got ready for the big event. Luckily Kochunni was showing little signs of tiredness and we hoped that he will be a happy fella during the puja activities at 7AM. After bath, we quickly headed out to Goddess Mookambika temple a few minutes away from our hotel.

Luckily there was not much crowd and one of the priests was getting ready to do the ceremony for two girls when we arrived. He asked us to join them and we sat down inside the Sarswati Madapam. Kochuuni sat on his father's lap and myself next to them. He followed all the instructions that the priest gave with a curious look in his eyes. After prayers he wrote down 'Om Hari Shree Ganpathaya Namaha' in rice and that initiated him to his new learning's. The priest also used a gold ring to write the same on Kochuuni's tongue, represting Goddess Saraswati being with him through/for speech.

The event went off well and then we visited the temple and seeked Goddess blessings. After leaving the temple we stepped outside to see an elephant. Kochunni gave a 'laddooo' to the elephant and in return the elephant raised its trunk to Kochunni as if blessing him. Kochunni liked to feed the elephant but when the elephant turned to bless him he cried a little and tried to turn away. Few minutes latter though he kept re-telling the story of the elephant give him a blessing.We bought Kochuuni a 'chenda' (drum) that was an instant hit with him as he kept trying to play a tune and do a little dance walking down the street, amusing many folks.

Soon it was time for breakfast, re-packing and heading out to Kerala - our next stop.

16 Hours Done

Another 6 more to go before I we touch base with family. Currently at Dubai Airport, waiting for the next flight home. Its been a long 16 hours with Kochunni getting some uncomfortable sleep on my shoulder and on the seat. We barely got any sleep. The flight (Emirates) itself was a comfortable ride though since we got in late to the airport we did not get any time to eat lunch. Being on an empty stomach we gobbled up the dinner they served 3-4 hours later, barely realizing its flavour or taste. One drawback on the flight is its timing, due to which we got only two meals during the 16 hours of journey and very little snack items. On the other hand the Disney channel selection on board entertainment was a perfect thing for kids. Kochunni watched the movie Cars and spent some time being entertained by the idiot box. We barely needed the toy cars and coloring book that I carried for him. Also with a little puppet Jamal that the air hostess gave for the all the toddlers on the flight, Kochunni was a happy camper.

Hopefully with all the sleep he got he will not have much of a jetlag and reach home happy safe and sound. Though I cannot say the same for us!

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Posting a few back dated posts that I typed up, but never got around to post during our trip.

In 8 days

We are off to India, what many folks here would consider a vacation of dreams – for 3 whole weeks! My colleague almost fell off her chair, saying that it was 'awesome'.

Now tell the same thing to your desi friend and they give you knowing smile saying its been a while since you have gone back, haven’t you?

But it doesnt matter, 'coz I AM GOING TO INDIA IN 8 DAYS

I can’t hardly wait. To meet my best friends from college, to maybe see some of my school buddies, meet my parents, my family, travel and the BEST part – watch Kochunni’s reaction to everything. I am not sure how he will do – not a clue, but the anticipation is a joy every day.

Here I come ....