Open book

Day 5- GM Diet!

2011-06-11T09:46:00.001+01:00

..was fairly uneventful. I am not desperately hungry and I don't feel tired. The one good thing that has come out of this diet, if not weight loss, is how good my skin looks now..i think its all the water that i have been drinking. So even if i don't lose much weight, I can at least fuss over my skin..

Someone commented and asked me how is this a GM diet when I'm cheating my way through..well my aim was to stick to the diet cent percent. I couldn't, and so am still continuing just to see if there would be a change at all at the end of it.

Morning- a cup of coffee (the usual)

Lunch- a 10 oz burger patty, grilled.

Tea- a few biscuits (I baked these and couldn't help but delve into some right out of the oven)

Dinner- a grilled 7 oz burger patty made with lean beef, and baby tomatoes seasoned with salt and pepper and a few sips of red wine (my husband, how mean he was, to actually convince me that a glass of wine wouldn't do any harm.I fell for it initially and realised i wasn't enjoying it too much and so stopped with just a few sips)

Would have had about 6 glasses of water (less compared to the usual)

Weight at the end of day 5, 55.5 kg (duh)

Day 4- GM Diet!

2011-06-10T09:43:00.000+01:00

Day 4, according to people who have done the diet (including my mom), seem to be the most difficult with just bananas and milk. Now i don't mind eating bananas at all...I mean I actually like it, but the milk..i cringed and decided to skip and that's when my ever smart (pun intended) husband suggested i have it with a wee bit of horlicks to mask the milky taste. Great idea, I thought and went ahead with it only to realise that whatever you do to plain milk, it tastes milky whatsoever. Especially the whole milk we get here, is so thick...yuck! So i added some sugar, well lots of it and it was a pleasure 2 drink :)

Morning- a cup of coffee with little milk and loads of sugar :) :) :) (got tied up with work so skipped breakfast)

Lunch- 1/2 cup cauli and potato sabzi

Tea- 1 cup milk (with 1 tsp horlicks and quite a bit of sugar) and 3 small bananas

Dinner- 1/4 cup potato cauli sabzi, a few slices of chicken and 3 more bananas

Weight at the end of day 4: 56kg (it actually shows 55.5 but I'm gonna just say 56 cos id then be more motivated)

Day 3- GM Diet!

2011-06-09T17:58:00.001+01:00

Ok so i messed up, well almost!

We had invited a few people over for dinner and I couldn't be rude and eat my own fruit and veggie (which btw if I had eaten, would have definitely gone mad!). So cheated, big time. I hope it doesn't affect the diet significantly though!

Breakfast- 1 cup coffee with a wee bit milk, but loads of sugar (I decided I was never gonna skip this ever!)

Lunch- a pear (I was not feeling hungry at all)

Dinner- hogged a bit (I don't want to reveal and make a fool out of myself). Also had brandy lemonade

But the good part is, the head ache trauma and the lethargic feeling has vanished. I didn't feel hungry that much and so I didn't force myself to eat the fruit/veg.

Weight at the end of day 3- 57kg (gained .5kg)- not impressed!!!!!

Day 2- GM Diet

2011-06-08T10:04:00.001+01:00

I couldn't post the update yesterday..why you my ask?? Well because I thought I would die of a headache. It started on Monday night and whole of yesterday I had a splitting headache. Again I don't know what the reason is, but it made my life miserable. I couldn't concentrate on work or anything for that matter. Spent the whole day in bed. When Ro came home i burst into tears saying I didn't want to continue the diet secretly hoping he would ban me from continuing. Instead he consoled me saying its only 5 more days, you can do it! Bummer!

Cheated a lot yesterday because I couldn't handle the headache and I decided it was either because I was sugar deprived or caffeine deprived. And by night I was in such a fowl mood that Ro made a cup of horlicks (with no sugar..yuck) and before I went to bed had a crocin.

Breakfast- 1 large baked potato with salt and a pat of butter (this tasted so damn good and kept me full till evening)

Lunch-tea time- baby carrots (had quite a few) (also had 2 biscuits hehe)

Dinner- Baby tomatoes seasoned with salt, pepper and lemon juice (I love this any day, but yesterday somehow it seemed a bit painful eating it), a glass of horlicks

I would have had about 8 glasses of water (all the while imagining it to be brandy lemonade)

Checked my weight this morning and it shows 56.5 kg (not much of a difference)

Day 1- GM Diet!

2011-06-06T21:51:00.001+01:00

What the hell was I thinking???????????????????????????

That's what went through my my mind all day, and even now. I struggled through Day 1 with great difficulty. Eating fruits one whole day sounded like cake walk when I read it on a website, but in reality I hated it. The fact that my husband decided to be the devil in disguise and tempt me with food didn't make it any easier. While I gnawed my way through an apple, Ro was biting into a cheese quesadilla. While I was sipping the barely-edible GM-diet soup, he was grinning at me with a half eaten pizza slice in hand. Sigh! how much more of this I can handle, I have no clue. This time its not just myself I'm gonna admit defeat, its to all of you..so I'd be pronouncing to the whole world about the lil or no will power...

I was in a foul mood all day and had a headache. I wonder if it was just psychological (because I read about it online) or if it was the heater on full blast since its been raining non stop or generally me being me, but the day just crawled.

Morning- had a cup of black coffee with 1 tsp sugar (cheated on that itself)

Lunch- a box of cherries

Tea time- a cup of black tea with a dash of lime and 1 tsp sugar + an apple

Dinner- the GM-diet soup and a slice of watermelon

I would have had about 7 glasses of water as well.

I don't have a digital scale, so noting down exact weight is not possible. But as of now I see NO change:(

PS: Thanks all you guys who wrote in about the diet..I know its a fad diet and it has its ups and downs, but like id mentioned before this is more of a personal thing that I need to do for myself.

The GM Diet

2011-06-05T21:29:00.002+01:00

I have absolutely no will power to do anything, leave alone patience. I start everything with great enthusiasm only to see it sizzle away in a matter of days, sometimes, minutes even!

This time however, I am determined to do this right till the end. I have been hogging on all the food I make (don't believe me..take a look here) and I don't fit into my jeans. This has never ever happened to me and I gasped. So I decided to do this diet for 2 reasons:

To reduce the unnecessary weight I've gained (obviously!) and

to try and finish something I start, for a change.

(well the 2nd is also to prove my husband wrong..he laughed at me when said the D word, yet again)

I am hoping that by sharing it on a blog, I would at least be motivated to carry on for the entire week. I shall chart out what I ate and how I handled it. I know I make it sound like labour pain but humour me please...

Here's hoping I'd be at least 3 kgs less at the end of the week.

Starting at 127 lbs/ 57.6 kg on a Sunday evening.

Spring is in the air

2011-05-05T22:57:00.002+01:00

Some pics taken on our weekend walk through the English countryside.

The bluebell patch is Dockey Woods near Ashridge Estate, about an hour north of London. It was just so beautiful, I can assure you the pics havent done justice.

This is the Daffodil patch right outside my apartment...William Wordsworth wasnt joking when he said '..ten thousand saw I at a glance..'

Mushy post alert!!!

2011-04-20T10:57:00.004+01:00

So..I love my husband. period. Does it sound strange coming from my mouth? Especially since Ive been brashing him on both my blogs?? Well the truth is, I think he's simply the best...I don't think I would have lasted if it was for any other guy..except maybe Christian Bale or something...in which case I would have just shut up and lived with him no matter what (as long as I am allowed to just sit there and drool at him and maybe once in a while be hugged or kissed).

Ok not getting carried away here (although I'm highly temped.. I could divulge the Mr Bale and me dreams)

I have been sitting back and wondering how lucky I actually am, incredibly lucky that is! Of course every wife considers their husband like god..except for me maybe..not God for sure. Although at times when I exclaim "oh god"..Ro would actually reply saying "did you call me." So vain..yeah I know! But I do regard him quite highly, if that's what you want to know. He's the sane one in the relationship, the one who's got a good head on his shoulders, the one who makes decision-making so much more easier (in spite of me arguing like a mad woman about everything). He never complains about anything especially the chores that need to be done around the house. How can anyone be so pro active in life. I mean he would come back from work, tired and all but would still be happy to do the dishes. Or at least pretends to not be hassled by it. While I groan and complain and bitch about having to make one..just one meal a day.

And the one day Ro says something about food being laid on the table a little late, I throw such a tantrum and fight with him and say all sorts of mean things. The one good thing I've learned over the years is to forgive and forget fast. Something I was never good at.. I could brood for weeks because Ro said something mean to me (friends who know me well will vouch for that). But now we fight and argue for some 15 minutes and then storm out of the room (mostly me) and after about an hour or so pretend like nothing ever happened.

I used to complain about him not being romantic (what is it with us girls and romance???), and he actually asks me to piss off. But the small things he does sometimes at the spur of the moment makes me love him to bits. Like the time I was bugging him to dance with me at a party and he completely ignored saying he was too old for this shit. And i just stayed away. But after a while a slow song was playing and he grabbed me by the arms and dragged me on to floor saying, 'now this is a song id like to dance to.' or the time I was bawling my eyes out about something silly and he tried to make me feel alright by trying to play my favourite song on the guitar...and I had no clue he knew that was my favourite song. Or at night while we are in bed and he sings to me...And the rare (very, very, very) days where he picks up a bunch of flowers for me..Id be so damn thrilled and Ro would be all embarrassed. Or when he comes back home from work and swoops me down for a kiss. Things like that mean so much to me, but I don't know if I've ever told him that or he knows that at all???

I am glad that even after 5 years of being married, we still have that spark in us...at least I do. I agree its not all smooth sailing and such, but most of the time, its that way for us now and when its not its mostly me at fault (I wouldn't agree on that if he asked me directly though). We have certainly come a long long way.

So the other day when we were on our way back from a friends place I suddenly blurted out to Ro that he was the bestest husband in the whole wide world and he was like 'yeah baby...I know!' (gloating??? yeah I thought so too). But I'm gonna let him get away with that. I am gonna make this year the 'I love my husband to bits year' and try and make him feel that marrying me was the best decision he ever made in his life.

Ex girl friends...eat this!

PS: Don't jinx me (or I think I've already done that to myself) cos my tomorrows post might be about how I'm stuck in a loveless marriage and is considering a one night stand with a Christian Bale lookalike ;) (drool)

Scavenger Hunt Sunday 2

2010-10-10T12:36:00.003+01:00

My second set of entries for Scavenger Hunt Sunday and I'm kicked about it..again! Just follow these rules and you are good to go!

1. Anyone can participate

2. You're encouraged to take five new photos this week for the challenge

3. If you get stumped, you may use one photo from your archive (although not too strict about it- I do my best to take fresh shots)

Link up here on Sunday (or Monday at the latest)- you can use the new button

5. Have fun!

Do hop on to Ashley's space to see what the others have done..they are all fab.

Now here are my interpretations:

1. PINK

This is a flower from my tiny garden and I thought the patterns formed on the petals were interesting...oh and the pink is absolutely gorgeous against that yellow, don't you think?

2. BOOK(S)

I don't have that many cook books and I tend to not use them even if I borrow it from the library (thanks to the world of food blogs out there). But I won a signed cop of the Masterchef cook book on a blog give away, a few weeks back and was adamant I would try at least a few recipes from those. Finally got down to it last week and this is what I tried :)

3. FALL COLOURS

I live in London and that too pretty much central London and so don't really see much of the fall colours like in Connecticut (which is mind blowing gorgeous) unless you head out to the country side, and then its absolutely beautiful. This is one from the archives, but an absolute favourite of mine. We headed down to the quaint lil village of Salisbury last year this time and the fall colours were jest beginning to set in. It could also pass off for orange but I had something better for that. This is a self pic :)

4. LEAF

I was out on my balcony on a cold, windy morning with a cuppa coffee and thinking out loud when they would all start shedding, when this leaf flew on to my garden table. I thought the contrasting colours look pretty. So here is one for the leaf.

5. ORANGE

Aren't these the cutest lil carrots ever??? All ready to go into a roasting pan along with chicken.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

2010-10-05T14:24:00.002+01:00

...is the brain child of photographer Ashley Sisk and is basically a photography challenge wherein she gives you themes every week and you need to photograph them as per your creativity or interpretation. Sound fun? Yup it is. All you have to do is follow a few simple rules, and you are good to go!

I first stumbled upon the event on Kamalika's blog and she herself has done a pretty good job. Do hop over to both the spaces to see how incredibly creative people can be.

Since I am trying to improve my photography skills, I thought I'd give this a shot. Its my first week on the hunt and im pretty excited at what I've come up with.

Hopping on to this weeks themes:

1. GOLDEN

This is my wedding ring, something which signifies 5 years of togetherness for me.

2. SMELL

Baking one cake fills my house with the awesome smell..imagine two!!! Need I say more?

3. FRUIT

Left over oranges after baking an Orange cake. Yes, I bake a lot of cakes:)

4. SIMPLE

An orange gerbera daisy in a used cider bottle now adorns my side table in the living room..simple yet gorgeous!

5. SPORTS

I'm wondering if I should start playing Badminton again.

Self proclaimed Hypochondriac and a few insignificant things

2010-09-07T23:07:00.001+01:00

Ok I'm definitely a hypochondriac or there is something seriously wrong with me. My latest worry is my diagnosis of various ailments (well nothing less than cancer, if I may add) and Ro has had it with me and has threatened to cut internet connection if i didn't stop googling every little thing. Easy for him to say, he's not hypochrondiac (I just found out this term btw).

Last months PMS caused a whole lotta dilemma...i bawled my eyes out one night saying I was going to die and Ro didn't make it any easier, saying out loud he wouldn't make the same mistake again and will marry someone with a bit more brains the next time. Then I bawled at that for a while which confirmed it was PMS.

The thing is I see these symptoms online and then force myself to believe i have it, because the very next day I seem to somehow have that very symptom i read about. Oh my god, that sounds even more retarded out loud. Sigh! I also think its because I suddenly have a wee bit of time on my hands after a very hectic summer..which brings me to my apology..sorry about not being a regular here. A whole lot of you have asked me to continue writing here and I would be lying if i said i didn't miss this page.

The thing is, I started this space to vent out my anger and frustration and i have done it quite a bit. I guess I'm a much happier person now (touch wood) and have come to love London even more than Chennai. I just don't miss India any more. Should i be happy about that??? Still wondering.

Anyhoo, summer went by in a whiz and now signs of Autumn are here. I almost cried out loud when I saw a yellow leaf on the road recently exclaiming fall was here...and it is!

Leaving you with a few pics we took during summer.

First day of summer...Pub lunch at the Fullers Inn

Picnic at Regents Park followed by a game of Frisbee

Pretty Bonsai collection at the BBC Good Food Show, Birmingham (I won tickets to this show yaaay)

A bright and sunny day at Hampton Court Foodies Festival

White Cliffs of Dover

Durdle Door, Jurassic Coast in Dorset

Mayfield Lavender Field, Surrey

Autumn Showers

Heaved a high sigh!

2010-05-08T14:12:00.008+01:00

I am such a sucker for romance...really. Last night i saw this old chick flick Maid in Manhattan and it made me so badly want romance in my life...and that movie is not even that great a romantic movie. But as i sat there sipping a glass of wine, watching hunky Ralph Fiennes hold JLo...with 'Come away with me,' by Norah Jones playing in the background...i was all queasy and wondered for the hundredth time why romance just dies in a marriage...why we don't bother to keep it alive even after the honeymoon period, why we just take things for granted and why i so badly want it. I mean i know life is not like how it is in the movies, but it just cant 'not be there' right? Or am i just naive and refuse to accept reality?

'Spring' into action

2010-04-07T10:53:00.009+01:00

I get so excited when i see the trees and plants in full bloom. I guess, when you have bad weather for the majority of days, and when you see the sun out once in a while, its definitely a day to celebrate. Yesterday was one of those days..after 4 days of terrible weather during Easter break...and so I went out and clicked a few pics. We live by the Thames river side and it is quite beautiful in summer. We also have a pub nearby that serves Sunday roasts and is a frequent stop for us. I did mention that it was Daffodil season and boy are they a pretty sight. Here are some pics:

Pilot Inn..the pub

The white variety

The bright yellow ones

Daisies

I think its a dandelion, or maybe just a weed...I'm not sure

Bluebells

I'm a year Old

2010-03-25T10:19:00.003Z

My blog that is....and i don't have anything interesting to write about, which basically means there's nothing exciting in my life at the moment. I'm bored talking about the weather and the plants and trees and evil birds...there is nothing spectacular to write about that as well. I did 50 posts in one year and that's awfully sad...I again blame my food blog for causing this drift between me and my personal all-time-favourite blog...so this year I'm gonna try and keep this one more alive, even if it means posting just a one liner or a picture on and off.

On a positive note, I started my gym sessions and boy does it feel great to work out again. I'm aiming at being trim and well-toned to fit into my swimsuit and look as ravishing as Cheryl Cole (if not now, at least in my next life) if at all we go to Spain this summer or if we don't, I'll just have to flaunt it for Ro (grin!)

Hope all you guys are living life to the fullest whichever part of the world you are in. I'll check back in a few days. Adios!

In Full Bloom

2010-03-18T11:00:00.004Z

My Daffodils are in full bloom and i love love taking pics of the same.

'....When all at once i saw a crowd, a host of golden daffodils' William Wordsworth

Well that's kinda what the scene is right now, in all the common areas around our apartment complex. Its like a lush yellow carpet and absolutely gorgeous. Although it was a bummer to know they grow like wild flowers, when we kinda paid for the potted ones, but nonetheless, i love it and if I'm not too lazy, i'll go out and click a few pics of the daffodils 'fluttering and dancing in the breeze.'

My basil, coriander and parsley have also started to sprout after we moved it from the balcony indoors. Even if the temp. is in double digits, the wind chill is quite unbearable. The Serano Chilli Seeds which we got from Wahaca restaurant is still shy to come out i guess...no signs of growth there.

Do i have a green thumb? I'm still not sure. I love to look at the plants and take pics, but not take care of it, like water it and think of 'how to create the green house effect' like Ro does. I just stand back and make fun of him :)

I can also see fresh green leaves appearing on the trees and shrubs and we have never been so excited about the weather this way. I even dared to go out to the store next door in my track pants and open shoes. The wind screwed my happiness, but atleast i didn't have to wear my thermals. Spring cleaning should start soon and I cant wait to stack away the heavy jackets and woollens. We used to make fun of the locals who used to get out when the suns shining and now we do the same, and have endless discussions on how Summer, in London this year, will be brilliant. I thoroughly look forward to it. Anyone who wants to visit UK..Summer should be your aim.

Back with a Bang!

2010-03-04T11:06:00.011Z

I have ignored this space for so long and am feeling horrible about it. Even though my food blog seems to be more popular with 23 followers, Open Book is still my favourite space. I can actually blurt out whatever i want to and not care a damn about being judged, although i know a lot of em out there do judge me..but seriously, I couldn't care less.

My previous post was quite heart wrenching for me and now I'm embarrassed at having written all that. So you can say this post is to cover up the awkwardness. And as weird as it sounds, I got the maximum number of comments on that one. To an extent it comforted me...that i was not the only one going through emotions like that. Thank you all...

So whats been happening at my end..well, lets see...

1. I thought i should start job hunting seriously. I have a few projects in hand that i need to submit. But truth is, i haven't started work on that, neither have i started work on my resume. Honestly, I'm trying to figure out if its PR or Publishing or Editing or Writing or Events i want to work in. I have to undergo a proper interview if and when a consultant calls me. So i should be very clear on what i want and realised i cant play my way around like back in India..its a very serious issue here. And life would have been so much better if i could just for once decide what i wanted.

2. I have been putting off gym sessions for a while now. I decided to finally get off my comfort zone and start gymming on march 1st only to realize the package i wanted was not available in the gym nearby and i had to do a 15 minute bus ride to another gym to avail that package. If i took the one nearby, it was a 10 pound extra for facilities i would rarely or never use for that matter. After brainstorming with Ro, i am now pissed and am still in the process of deciding which one i should succumb to. Again we come back to making decisions.

3. I miss my girlfriends...I saw the Sex and the City 2 trailer the other day and wished for the 100th time i had them somewhere nearby, so we could all go watch the movie together and then go out and have Cosmopolitans and partay. Ro asked me why i miss them and i very openly told him i was so bored of hanging out with him. I got even more upset when i took a voice message left by one of Ro's colleagues about a project of theirs and i could clearly understand what that guy was talking about....IT related security solutions. That was an eye- opener. I need girl company and that too immediately.

4. I'm thoroughly enjoying baking. Its one thing i think i wouldn't mind doing even when I'm extremely tired. Like the other day, I was so craving some yogurt cake and at 10 in the night I decided to bake against Ro's wishes and it was one of the yummiest cakes I've ever made. Yes I'm blowing my own trumpet..somebody has to :)

5. I am gonna make it a point to go to church every Sunday henceforth and then compulsory brunch after that...that way i get to review various restaurants and enjoy brunch in one of the worlds greatest culinary cities. Although I'm now wondering if I'm doing church to have brunch on Sunday or vice versa. We went to St Pauls Cathedral the other day and what drama i must say. It was like theatre. Be it the sermon or communion or whatever it was, all had a bit of glamour added to it by the priests walking up and down with a sceptre and chanting and lining up and all sorts of stuff like that. It was highly touristy i guess. The choir was brilliant, but the echo was way too irritating. Ro- the non believer- attended the communion and he said the bread was stamped St. Pauls and that i missed it. I had to remind him it was a holy communion he was talking about and God would not leave him alone to which he replied there is not god. I wonder how ill convince him to head to church every Sunday.. maybe the brunch would do the trick.

6. The new DSLR has given a whole new perspective on photography..at least to me. We lug it around wherever we go and Central London is never out of new things to capture. Its so full of life and excitement and crowded and i love it. This pic was taken at Regent Street near Picadilly circus after a visit to the National Geographic Store and Cafe that was hosting a photography exhibition.

7. We very rarely have a full moon night or rather a clear night and when we did, we had to capture it. Didn't have a tripod back then, so its not picture perfect. Ro and me huddled together in the cold and managed to get this:

8. Its still cold and windy and pathetic and i cant wait for summer (note: I'll crib about it being too warm then). The only relief is that Spring has slowly made its way through and it wont be long that we are back in the green. To celebrate Spring, we went and got a few flowers and plants. I wanted fully grown plans with flowers and all the works and it just had to look pretty on my balcony, whereas Ro tried explaining to me it was a pleasure seeing the plant go from scratch..well..whatever that pleasure is...i really don't think I'll have it. We picked up Tulips and cypress and Iris and Daffodils and even a few herbs for cooking. I am not a gardening/plants/ flowers person at all. I don't even know how to appreciate it. You might wonder why i got them in the first place..have no clue... I wish I knew. Its like all other things in my life...after the initial excitement, I'm bored with it. A friend asked if we were watering it and I said its Ro's duty to which he didn't reply but gave me a stare that lasted a while. Our orange tree is so shattered, I think it will die completely by end of summer.

Some of the flowers bloomed and i clicked a few pics. I'm loving the new DSLR!

TULIPS & HERBS (in the pot..i am yet to plant it)

CYPRESS

IRIS

DAFFODILS

No heading ...its a state of mind for me

2010-01-22T16:01:00.007Z

This is how i wanted it to be:

Pass out of college and get a kick ass job

Move into an apartment on my own and live life to the fullest

Take salsa classes

Make enough money to do my higher studies in a good University abroad, preferably the US..i say abroad because the course i want to specialise in is available only in Universities abroad..and US because half of my family is there and i have a soft corner for US;)

Pass out with flying colours and get a job

Think about marriage

Build my way up the career ladder

Visit loads of places

Take up a hobby and be serious about it. Pottery, painting, baking, candle making and so on.

Meet a Mr. perfect (and by that i mean someone in my wavelength..there is no Mr perfect in reality)somewhere along the way and get hitched for life

Have the most amazing, romantic wedding ever and be so smitten and in love for ever and ever and ever

Honeymoon for about 5 years and then decided to go the family way

Have kids and still enjoy life to the fullest and not fall out of love in the process

Not stop 'having a life' because you are all settled down

Chuck the kids out of the house by 18 and go ask them to live life the hard way, make money on their own if they want to have an extravagant wedding (if they want to get married at all that is. Living together..good enough for me)

By now i would have reached somewhere up the career ladder, prob own a business or something and so id be tackling other areas of interest or expanding my business

Take a holiday without having to worry about loans and ailments

Die before my husband does :)

This is how it ultimately IS

Passed out of college and did land a job

Moved into an apartment on my own and was just beginning to enjoy life to the fullest.

6 months down, i got engaged and quit my job (no not to Mr. Perfect but to Mr. systematic and I'm-serious-in-life-i-cant-do-things-for-fun)

Had a pretty decent wedding, but not the one of my dreams. Smitten yes, for a good 2 years, after that it was just plain annoying to have a nagging husband..yes in our case.

Honeymooned for exactly one week and after that it was eclipsed. Fought on all valentines days, birthdays etc. after that, religiously :)

Pottered around a newly set up house, threw parties, had a tough time adjusting to the new person in my life and married life in general

Missed being single, a lot

Went off to the US. Was beginning to like it there when we had to return back to India

Frustration set in and i got a job, again

Enjoyed myself to the max, loved the job, loved being independent, loved the appreciation, loved the money, loved the pressure, loved life in general

One year down, quit the job, relocated to UK. Within UK, relocated quite a bit. And yeah uncertainty rocks!!!!! You should try it sometime

Frustrated, friendless, fat

Struggling to freelance from home. Was doing OK, till a bunch of unprofessional f****** in the publishing business decided to keep my pay stalling and i decided to quit. Thanks a lot F----e (you know which mag right?)

Non stop harassment from people-i-don't-care-about, about stuff i don't care about at the moment

Did i mention FAT?

...this is the story so far

Yeah yeah, sob, sob, i know everyone has their share of miseries. I'm in one of those miserable moods and the rainy, gloomy weather inst helping much. I complete 4 years of wedded bliss (quite a strong word to use, if i may say so) in 3 days. What a pathetic time for me to remember nasty things. Well, if only the world was a happier place to be in and life worked out just the way you planned it.

As if that wasn't enough, I am entering the big three zero soon and i haven't achieved any of those things i wanted to. Reality set in last night and i recalled all those things i wanted to do and which i would have done if my head had made the decision and not my heart. I cried myself to sleep and actually woke Ro with my uncontrollable sobs. He thought i had a bad dream or something and in between snores consoled me saying, its all OK...well, little does he know!

PS: Even though i have an emotionless, unromantic goof of a guy as husband, he is the only one who can actually stand me (although I'm sure he's wished a million times he'd married someone else). Understand me, not quite well, but bear with what I'm going through, yes to an extent. I love you and I'm sorry for being a bitch right now. I love the fact that you are so organized and planned and know what to do when you are 80 (if you are alive that is hahaha) even though i will tease you to death about it. I love it that you are neat and tidy and shout at me if i don't fold clothes properly, roll the toilet paper right and leave the toilet seat down:). Even better, i love it that you willingly do all this and more and are never lazy or tired to do anything (except of course shop which im ok with). I don't think i could have lived with a guy who wasn't you. Happy 4th Anniversary. Lets get drunk and celebrate 4 years of achieving nothing.

Yaay im back!

2010-01-06T14:07:00.014Z

All Christmassy @ the Canary Wharf

Hellow and happy New Year to all of you. Yes, i am back in London and thoroughly enjoying every bit of it. I just couldn't’t wait to get back to London and feel all Christmassy and in the thick of things. Weird right? The reason i went down was for a reunion we had planned...with the 2 most amazing friends in my life. R, i grew up with and we are neighbours ( my mom and her mom were friends and neighbours and expected us almost at the same time and we were born a week apart) and then S, we met up in College and have been inseparable ever since. We vowed to meet up once a year and we did manage to keep it all up when we were in India. Now that we are married and settled in various parts of the world, its become less frequent but still we try and get together whenever possible. Since R was going down for her annual vacation and S was in Mumbai, I just had to be all emotional for a week and ta da Ro buys me a ticket to go home for not 2 but 6 bloody weeks (i thought that was a tad too long a time at home..but whatever!). So we met up in Mumbai and oh my god we had a great time. Shopped like mad, talked about stuff in our lives, gossiped about ex boyfriends and bitched about husbands (wink!). R and i got back home and she had to leave in 10 days time after which it was torture for me. I was bored! As simple as that. To top it all, i had weather issues (this coming from someone who spent the greater part of her life in humid Kerala and the rest in hot Chennai). The clothes that I brought down made me itchy..the neck, the hands and even legs. I had no cotton clothes and so had to go splurge on that (not that i was complaining) and now have left them all behind because its is useless here in UK, even in summer! I couldn't eat spicy food. How can you be in Kerala and not succumb to spicy food. I however went ahead and ate it, which in turn gave me tummy trouble. Milk..i culdn't have the normal milma milk..can you beat that? Tried the tetra pack..even worse. I was forbidden the amazing filter coffee at Saravana Bhavan in Chennai. But i went ahead and did so anyway. Result...had a date with my aunts loo continuously for half an hr. Ro had the same issues the last time we were in India and i marked him as a stuck up Brit. Now i completely understand and wont make fun of him again. So basically, i hated this trip cos it screwed up with all the things i looked forward to. I have never missed London so much. I remember R almost in tears in having to return to work and me also almost in tears having to spend the rest 4 weeks with nothing to do.

Linking Road, Mumbai. One of the 4 pairs :)

Came back home and it was the 22nd of dec..London was so Christmassy and so full of life. I dashed to the supermarket fighting my jet lag and it was just awesome to be in the midst of all that Christmas shopping (even if it is just grocery). We decided to go to St Pauls Cathedral for their Choral service, but the crowds were massive and we had stand in line for about half an hour only to realise the seats were filled and so couldn't get in. We however went to St James Cathedral on Piccadilly Circus and attended the Christmas Carol service there. It was average...i wouldn't vouch for it. Christmas was however a small affair at a cousins place with turkey and the add ons.

Turkey Lunch for Christmas

26th Dec was the Boxing day sale and i basically went berserk at the Westfield mall. It was madness and so i ended up walking in and out of shops making a mental note of things to buy later (meaning when Ro is not with me)...ah and also making a note to get my own credit card and not an add-on card. I finally got myself something from a shop that had no sale and like losers we walked out. The next 3 days were spent at different shopping locales and if you have the patience i must say this is the time to shop..I have the patience but not with a man tagging along pretending i don't exist when i walk into a lingerie shop. Ultimately it was Ro who picked up stuff for himself and i have proclaimed myself as a very fussy shopper. I walked all over London, surfed various shops online and still haven't found that perfect trench coat. What i bought...a Chanel lip gloss which is out of this world. Now i know why people die for designer brands. Once you are addicted, you cannot think about anything less that that..trust me..its awesome. I was the type who used to love road side shopping, not that i don't like it anymore (picked up 4 pairs of sandals from Linking Road in Mumbai for 600 bucks..that's under 10 pounds and i couldn't help smiling at my achievement). The fact that i can only wear them in a warm country didn't cross my mind then..so yes, they are all still in Kerala. (I am thanking God that Ro doesn't read my blog). Anyways, i have realised that it is better to spend money on something that will last longer. Seriously! no more spending money on cheap shit is my New Year resolution, unless of course they are incredibly cheap ;) and id be stupid not to buy them.

Talking about New Year..we decided to head to the infamous London Eye for the New Year's Eve fireworks display. Also decided to grab dinner somewhere outside and then head to one of the viewing areas. Since the plan was last minute, getting a reservation at the restaurants were a task. It was all sold out or the earliest we could be squeezed in was around 10ish. We however decided to hit Central London and by luck managed to get a table at Browns after ordering Martini's at their bar. I was a bit adventurous and decided to try the Guinea Fowl with a coq au vin style sauce and rice which was out of this world, and Ro went ahead with the 28 Day Aged Rib Eye Steak which was average. There was no space for dessert and so skipped it. We made our way through to the Thames river side and it was already packed with people..this was at 9pm. Got a pretty neat location on the Waterloo bridge and so began our wait. By about 9.30 i was freezing. I couldn't feel my toes, in spite of wearing knee high boots and 3 layers of clothing, gloves and the works. By 10 DJ Nihal from BBC started his work..which was getting to me by 10.15 and i started acting all cranky. I began convincing Ro to head back home and decided it was so not worth standing in the cold to watch 10 minutes of fireworks display. He however kept prolonging and finally when the countdown began on the big building next to the eye, i was in full spirit. The fireworks were nice, i wouldn't say out of this world, but the whole feel of the place was nice. The Big Ben chimed at 12 and the fireworks were in full swing, immediately after which everyone sang Auld Lang Syne and what do you know, it started to snow..flurries rather..but it was magical. We had carried a bottle of Champagne to pop open at 12. We couldn't even take our hands out from the pocket, leave alone the Champagne. We popped it open at home at around 2am. So New Years was kinda nice...like DJ Nihal said..it was the worlds biggest street party with 250, 000 people.

St Pauls Cathedral. Its way too huge to get it in one frame

Ro got himself a very expensive Canon EOS 500D camera as New Years Gift (as he calls it) and so on the 3rd we went to St Pauls for the Sunday service (which was so dramatic and i shall blog about it later) and then went around town clicking pics followed by brunch at Tootsies on Bond Street. After 2 weeks of holidaying, Ro went back to work on 4th but stayed back and worked from home yesterday and today because of severe weather warning..and yes its snowing like crazy now.

Snow on our balcony

Backyard

Each time i see snow its the same excited mode i go into.

...and ofcourse you have to taste it

I loved the holiday season and its just getting better with our wedding anniv and both our birthdays round the corner. Haven't started updating my food blog, but shall soon do so. I'm still catching up on all your blogs, so pardon me if i don't leave comments as yet.

A friend met with an accident and he's in hospital after a major surgery. Please do keep him in your prayers and deeps..i hope you have a speedy recovery. Enigma, a hearty welcome to the new born. I'm sure you are thrilled. Get back on your feet, and i cant wait to hear all the gory details :). All you others, i hope you have an amazing year ahead with loads and loads of happiness.

2009-11-10T17:35:00.003Z

Just a quick note to say im heading to India tomorrow and will be back by December end..well just before Christmas to be honest (Now who wants to miss the Boxing Day Sale right). After a wee bit of travelling till end of this month, il be more or less jobless after Dec first week. Hope to catch up with all of you and blog a bit then.

Till then its bubbye from me and hope you all have a great winter :)

PS: Thanks a lot reflections for writing in to see if i was busy. Now you know why i absconded:)

Four years...but does it feel like forever?

2009-10-21T10:12:00.006+01:00

...is what i keep saying when someone asks how long me and Ro have been together. Yes, four years back, this day Ro and me met for the first time. Err to be more precise, it was sometime between the 20th and the 27th...lets put it that way. Its so weird that its usually the women/girl in the relationship that remembers the dates... birthdays, the day they first met, the day they first held hands and so on. I am nothing like that. I am still confused about Ro's birthday in spite of it being the same month as mine, but i rem my best friends b'day again in the same month...weird? I thought so too! I don't remember the day we first met and so every year i conveniently announce a day or 2 before hand that 21st or 22nd or whatever will be x number of years since we met. So today, i have decided its 4 years and whats different...nothing:)

Ro is working from home and as usual eating my head every five minutes asking me for food or coffee or juice or whatever. I am watching Gilmore Girls (ya...absolutely lame..don't ever start watching it) and waiting for the next season of Everwood to start on Channel 4 and simultaneously typing this out. I made Tiramisu yesterday and its chilling in the refrigerator. I have become a pro at it and I'm slowly losing the enthusiasm at making it, since its now no longer an achievement. If you are thinking its damn difficult, its not at all. I also have decided we are going out to dinner..i am yet to figure out where.

Our first date was at this really sad coffee shop in Chennai called Java Green..i was so adamant about not meeting Ro when my parents called up and asked me to do so. Whatever bit of excitement was left, was ruined when he suggested Java Green and to this day i take his trip on that, to which he holds the fact that he was based in Mumbai, and had no clue about places in Chennai. Although the fact that he took me back to the same place a year later was incredibly sweet. I wore torn jeans and an even worse top...purposely looked like a college girl and i had my friends call me every now and then to make him realise i had better things to do...which i honestly did. He however, happened to be in Chennai for a week and asked me out a couple more times..actually twice or thrice a day, the entire week, took me to expensive restaurants, bought me flowers and completely wooed me into it. I was so stupid to fall for all that shit. That's probably the first and last time he ever bought me flowers..er and also when i quit my first job cos he thought id be upset. Well anyways, what i was trying to say is..if you think its gonna be the same even after you get married, its not....and i thought it would be.

Now when i ask Ro why he doesn't get me flowers, he's like..there are way too many varieties and i don't know what you like, so why don't you go pick up any flower you like..well, that's the whole point....dumbo! get to know what flower your wife likes, and what colour she likes the most. To which he replies, ' you are confused yourself....what flower do you like N? Err mmm..tulips, no no wait roses...no no no I'm sure i like the daisies or maybe even the white lilies..oh no not white, cos it will look too plain in our apartment.' Well, i think he just proved his point. 'Why don't you make an effort to know what i want and buy it for me..surprise me..the fact that you made an effort is good enough (not actually..id like to get it too).' What do you want for your birthday? Oh baby, i don't want anything (means...i obviously want something, but i shall not say what...you need to enter my mind and play along with it every minute so you would, at the end of it all figure out what i might want). When that doesn't work, i throw hints..hmm I've always wanted a pair of Jimmy Choos, that trench coat sure would help stop the gusty wind hitting my thighs, my sunglasses are broken (or it will be soon). After all this drama....N, here's some money, go buy what you like...is what i hear. Well, the fact that i exchange most of the things Ro's got me is another thing, but he could still make an effort right.. well this went on for quite a while and initially it used to upset me so much because i make such an effort at things like this. Now i have resigned to the fact that i should just tell him what i want, or even better I'm completely OK with the fact that i get gift money and i can do whatever i want with it. In fact i think I'm beginning to like this arrangement a whole lot better.

See i have evolved from a hard core romantic to a more practical woman....well mostly. And Ro...from a person who thinks birthdays and anniversaries are over rated, has come this far to play along with me and humour me. And this is just one of the simpler things that both of us have learned to accept about each other. We have had our share of terrible times when all i wanted to do was run away which i sometimes feel now as well, but i know that at the end of it all, i would run back to him...Ro this is to you..who is a complete pain in the ass most of the time, but the bestest friend ever..muah!

He proposed to him...

2009-09-29T16:59:00.006+01:00

So we were out at the movies last weekend and thoroughly enjoying it when this guy in front of me puts his hand around the guy sitting next to him. He was so tall that it actually blocked the view and thats how i noticed. I nudged Ro and he thought i was doing so generally( ya why would i generally nudge him????) or with relevance to some scene in the movie and he just shrugged. I then had to be more obvious and then both of us couldn't concentrate on the movie after that. How insanely rude right..us i mean! So after the movie we got out and on the escalator, these two love birds (henceforth LB1 and LB2) were right in front of us and they started smooching...and the bloody escalator was about a mile long (well exaggerating a bit to be more dramatic). It was never ending. Ro and myself along with a whole bunch of others were quite embarrassed.

The next day was the Greenwich half marathon and it was passing right in front of our apartment complex. We heard loud cheers and music and so threw on our slacks and ran to the main road to catch a glimpse of the marathon. It sure was exciting. There were people dressed up as bananas sponsored by leukaemia research and i decided i was gonna cheer for them. So off we went to the finish line after about an hour and we were lucky enough to catch the first lady win the race. Well more importantly, while we were out there cheering the bananas Ro noticed it was one of the love birds (LB1) from the movie who was in front of us clicking pics. As usual i made up a whole story as to why he is there and his partner (LB2) must be in the marathon and what not...i get a kick out of it, no idea why :)

So anyways, LB2 was running and as he approached the finish line, he shouts out to LB1, 'marry me' and LB1 almost faints with bewilderment. I couldn't contain my excitement that Ro was actually embarrassed to be right next to me. I thought it was utterly sweet and all Ro could wonder was, 'who'd be on top?' How predictable men are i say!

I love spontaneous proposals and its the 3rd time I'm seeing something like this. The next day we saw them again at the cinemas (yes we do frequent the cinemas quite a bit) and they were just being normal, not coochie cooing or not even holding hands.. and it was story time again for me..i figured it out all in my head why LB1 wouldn't have accepted the proposal. That's the most my brain has worked all week i think.

Though i got Ro to go down on his knees and propose, i would have loved it if he was more creative. Men are boring..except the gay ones of course!

BTW this was a vague post. I had to jot it down cos i still am pretty excited about the proposal

PS: still using someone's wifi and hate it!

Warning: Awfully long post ahead, and one filled with complaints

2009-09-19T23:26:00.008+01:00

We have finally moved into the new place and this move was comparatively less hectic than all others, maybe because we were moving just across the road and also because we had the keys one week before we had to give up the apartment we were in. We started moving things bit by bit and so it was not that much of a problem. Still, cleaning up the other apartment was a task. They deduct the deposit money if we don't leave it spic and span and also have to leave the apartment as how we found it. Basically we had moved stuff around to make more space and we forgot what went where at the end of it, leaving us utterly frustrated and irritated. So we left it as is and the agents haven't complained till now, so i presume its alright. We also had to go back and clean the windows which we conveniently forgot and they were nice enough to let us do it, otherwise 125 quid for four small windows. The new apartment is amazingly spacious, which means more space for junk. We have no clue how we accumulated so much of stuff in spite of living in fully furnished apartments all throughout. God forbid we will not have to leave UK after 6 months for Ro's next project. If that's the case we have quite a bit of stuff to be thrown out. It breaks my heart to throw off stuff that have been barely used.

Coming back to the apartment, we tremendously miss the views and privacy we had on the 5th floor. Now on the first floor, we have to draw our blinds because one side looks into the neighbours' apartments (more or less) and the other into the courtyard, which is alright but Ro being the incredibly private person he is, doesn't want to leave the blinds open there as well. I feel claustrophobic and most of all miss watching the rains. The locals have absolutely no issues with privacy and no one peers into apartments, but us desi's are really nosy. We have a couple living diagonally opposite, who are always out on the balcony and very OBVIOUS. If you know what i mean!

There is still some more cleaning/fixing work to be completed and Ro is eating the agents head about it. I would have given up long back. The apartment has been vacant for a long time and so things are not in the best of conditions, which means loads of cleanliness issues, lights/ switches not working etc. hoping to be fixed by next week latest. Sometimes i think the 'improper' way of doing things back home is such a blessing. You call someone up and the persons at your door that very day or max the next day..electrician, plumber or whoever it is. No appointments, nothing! For an Internet connection here...mind you, this is just a transfer from one building to the other, the exchange is the same, and no one needs to come fix stuff or anything.....we need to wait 10 working days. C'mon how on earth can it take this long in this day and age?????????? It irritates me like crazy that i don't have Internet. Oh btw right now I'm getting someones open wifi which has really really low connectivity. But somethings better than nothing right?Also, i need the Internet for my cooking. I have no clue how to even make a simple chutney without a proper recipe. I'm lost without the net and the dependency kinda scares me, seriously! I am now bored outta my mind because day time TV sucks big time in UK. They have the most boring, uncreative programmes and BBC has full control over the entire system, which means American sit. com.'s etc. are all shown in ration, that too reruns and old old old episodes. When we were in Chicago i used to be so confused as to what to watch because each and every channel had interesting stuff. Why Chicago, i think India has more interesting programmes than out here.

Since I'm on a complaint spree i shall ramble for some more time about things that bug me. I recently called the NHS practise to fix an appointment, regarding a rash on my face. The earliest available appointment was a week later. I went ahead and fixed it, but after about three days my rash disappeared. How am i supposed to go to the doc and say. I had a rash that looked somewhat red and was obvious but its no longer there, but can you anyway tell me what it is. DUH! (Secretly i am kinda happy about it because i hate hospitals and docs and I'm scared of even a blood test. I have sleepless nights and butterflies in my stomach the moment i realize i have to go see the doc). This has happened to me twice already. Health care in UK is free and probably that's why the GP's really don't care a damn about you. We have been talking about going the family way and so my husband being the research specialist he is, wanted to know all proper details. Well, we wont have a doc doing check ups etc. any time during the term unless there is a complication...and that too it has to be really really complicated for the doc to come take a took, so I'm told by friends working in hospitals. We either have a nurse or a mid wife doing the needful. They told us not to make a big deal out of something as small as having a baby. Well, for them it might be the millionth case, but for us its the first time and we are apprehensive and scared. We deserve much better. Back home, you all know how different it is! A close friend was given a wrong diagnosis, which almost cost her life, and later was apologised to...like that solved all issues!

Ro on the other hand thinks its Gods gift to us...the free medical treatments. And to make matters worse, the NHS walk in centre is just around the corner, exactly 3 mins walk from our apartment. He goes to the GP for even the slightest ordeal. Like the other day he made me fix an appointment because he noticed his nail had ridges on them and was worried (yes, i laughed too). I insisted i go along with him just so i could take his trip later on. The doc had no idea what the hell Ro was so worried about and she said she cant even feel the ridges. Ro gave her major gyan saying his research on the net proved he had iron deficiency. She said usually women have iron deficiency and not men. But no, my man wont take that for an answer. He insisted something was wrong and then the doc opened a book and started referring it (this is where we start questioning the medical service we get). I was almost about to burst out laughing, seriously! And then she suggested a blood test so he could be sure. How happy Ro was, but to his disappointment the blood test was just fine. I still take his ass about the ridges on his nail. If you think this is weird, i am not even gonna start on his other issues. All i can say is, not many docs like it if you question them and Ro is an expert at that.

Settling into the current apartment is a tedious job, with figuring out the controls on the complicated shower, topping the list. Ro and myself have already started fighting about where to put what...Ro being more practical, and i being more 'but it doesn't look pretty there' orientated. I have an empty shelf staring back at me and its depressing. I cannot spend lots of money, nor can i accumulate stuff, but i need to put something or the other on it. Do pass on affordable ideas so i can work on it till i get my Internet connection back. I will try my best to visit your blogs, thanks to someones' wifi connection, but do pardon me if i don't leave comments, since it keeps disconnecting every now and then.

PS: Will upload pics later. Like i mentioned, limited connectivity.

A post long overdue

2009-09-14T10:48:00.010+01:00

Its been about 2 weeks since Nottinghill Festival and i have been too busy (for once) to actually pen down the details. Well, better late than never right?

I have been hearing about the Nottinghill Festival for a long time and last year we couldn't make it in spite of being in Nottingham, cos we decided to head down to Wales instead. A good decision indeed. So this year, i had to go no matter what, and i also had to cover the event for a mag, so that meant no ditching at the last min. Friends and news channels warned us about the number of people who had come into London for the carnival, but that didn't stop us from going. So the event was over 2 days, but we decided to go only for the main parade which was on day 2. Day one was mainly kids activities etc. We got there way too late and thought the parade would have already started and that we would have missed out on stuff. Well...no way, the parade hadn't even started and we had a to wait a good one hour till it was in full swing. Well, i would honestly have to say i was a wee bit disappointed. I expected it to be extravagant. It was colourful and loud, but extravagant, not so much. There were prizes to be won for the best float and so people did go out of their way to be creative. Music was loud, Jamaican, Caribbean and Chinese food were in plenty, people were dancing all over the place..well grinding to be exact...and the crowds were way too much in some places. We had to walk quite a bit and by the end of it was so so tired. Got back home with aching feet. I don't think i would go for the festival ever again, its definitely a one time thingy.

There are way too many pics, so i have uploaded it on to an album. Will post it once i figure out how to put it here.

Summer has come to an end and so has the fun outdoor events London throws at you. Yesterday was the last one..the Mayor's Thames Festival happened over the weekend and it was awesome. Cold, but awesome. Loads of street food, arts and craft stalls, live music, dance, cocktails, a nice parade and the best of all..an awesome display of fireworks..well coordinated and much appreciated by all Londoners. Again, we had to walk so so much and i complained all night about leg pain, Ro wouldn't carry me piggy back in spite of cribbing non stop. He just went on and on about how stupid i was to wear my knee length boots (which btw kept me warm) instead of sneakers. It was a nice way to bid adieu to the Summer of 2009. Did take a few pics, but none came out that well because it was dark and the flash was not as powerful as i thought it would be.

I am gonna be a bit aloof for the next one week because my Internet conn. is being transferred to the new apartment and yes it will take one week to just shift it to the next building. I will have to connect via my phone and that's a bit frustrating, so i have decided to let go of FB and orkut and the like for a week. Gonna see if i have the will power to stay away. So when i write in the next time, it will be from our new pad. Till then ciao!

Amsterdam...and a lil bit of everything

2009-08-30T19:04:00.000+01:00

I know I haven't been updating this blog for a while now and I'm about 2 weeks late on my Amsterdam update (yes, we took a short break and headed to Ams for 4 days). Now i cant seem to remember half of what we did/saw..intricate details i mean... and most of my readers (yeah i have a total 6 or 7) would have seen all the pics on FB and orkut and so I'm not gonna bore everyone by going on and on about it again. For the others, me and Ro had a gala time relaxing and taking in all that Amsterdam had to offer...well almost. Except for the first day, where we took an organized tour of the Dutch Countryside, we soaked up the sun in the cafe's and went totally wild at the 'coffee shops,' if you know what i mean! My whole perspective of a holiday has changed, i must add. Initially i used to love going around, catch glimpses of the local attractions, shop and do major touristy stuff without even taking a breather and at the end feel so pooped and tired and wait for the hustle bustle to end. My parents keep going on holiday to these resorts and do nothing but eat and sleep and not even step foot out of the resort. I used to shout at them saying they are such losers and have been to so many places, but haven't actually 'seen' any. I now know what exactly they mean. Its probably signs of getting old. I just love to relax...in the hotel by the pool, or at a cafe sipping Iced tea's and Sangria..which is exactly what we did in Amsterdam. The cafe culture in Europe is just amazing. Its popular here in London as well, but because of the crappy, unpredictable weather, cafe's are not the most fun thing to do when you want to sit with your jackets and shawls and umbrella. Amsterdam was laid back, but filled with tourists and so commercialised. The countryside was good, but even that has been preserved as an attraction and infested with tourists. We missed the tulip season, which was something i actually wanted to see so so badly. But if you ask me if i saw the famous Rembrandt and Van Gogh museums in Amsterdam..no i didn't, did i see the cathedrals and shop, no i didn't do that either. But what i did was completely relax and eat and sleep and took a real holiday for once. The last time i remember doing this was on our one week honeymoon in Goa (i would have to admit that was the best trip i ever had). Came back and it took me one week to recover and get back to routine (read boring) life. Posting some pics, just to add to the rant.

The cheese factory. Was so sick after tasting all the varieties of cheese.

The beautiful, but awfully uncomfortable clogs

What gets served in the 'coffee shops'

The beautiful Dutch countryside

The Alkmaar Cheese Market, where buyers and sellers come face to face.

Taken on our canal cruise. The canals are a major attraction and are filled with houseboats. We thought of renting one, but they were incredibly expensive.

The wild part...in the Red Light District

Tulips (wooden, plastic) at the flower market

Orchids @ the flower market

Street side entertainment. This old man was very popular with his wacky moves and skimpy thongs

One of the cafe's we lounged at

I had mentioned previously that we were apartment hunting and that we were almost gonna make an offer on one. As usual with Ro breaking his head on the pro's and cons and by the time we decided to say yes, someone had already done the deed. We were quite bummed by it, so gave up our hunting and decided to stay put in our one bedroom abode since winter was approaching and we didn't have any family visiting us till next summer. Friends have our pull out sofas to crash on :)

But just last week we went and saw an apartment just for the heck of it and we liked it. But they were asking for about 200 bucks more than what we are paying now and we still battled the odds and said no. the agent harassed us to make an offer anyways and so we went ahead and made a bizarre offer which surprisingly got accepted....even the terms and conditions. I now keep asking Ro if there is something seriously wrong with it, that the LL agreed to it. I shall update you on that once we move in. We are, however, going from amazing views on the 5th floor to absolutely no views on the 1st floor. The only draw back, but not bad enough to say no to the apartment and moreover with winter fast approaching, the views and balcony wont be of much use. So yes, we are moving in by Sept 2nd week and i am looking forward to setting up the new place, but dreading the packing.

Talking about winter, i completely dread it. Temperatures have already started dropping below 20's and it gets dark by 8. Before i know, leaves would start changing colour - Autumn and then the horrific winter. We are getting ready to pack our fans and get our thermals out. In fact according to BBC, the coming week will be the last of sunshine and warmth we can enjoy. Yeah i know, weather has become an important part of our lives and i have begun to appreciate the sun and warm weather just like the Brits. No wonder they all come out in shorts and bikini's the moment the temperature hits about 23C. 25 above will be declared as heat wave and they make such a big deal out of it.

Its nice to catch up with this space after a long time. I have been completely hooked on to my food space and been ignoring this one long enough. I enjoy pouring my heart out on this one, but most of the time laziness gets the better of me and i chuck my random musings for easy-to-type out, brainless recipes.

Its a long weekend and the last of the bank holidays that we have this year. The Nottinghill Carnival is on and i am covering it for a mag. So, long day tomorrow, but sooo looking fwd to it. Will be back with pics. Till then, ciao from me.

The London Loop Walk..finally!

2009-08-03T14:26:00.000+01:00

After a really late night on Friday we were woken up pretty early on Sunday by Ro's friends asking if we wanted to join them on the London Loop Walk to Richmond. Since we were anyway awake, we decided to give it a shot, and boy did we make the right decision. The day was as gorgeous as ever and the place even more beautiful and serene. We were about 5 adults, 1 three year old, 1 baby and 1 over enthusiastic dog. The trip started off with us missing the first train to Richmond and commotion at the ticket gate when the 2 buggies got stuck and Auro (the dog) wouldn't barge without his master. Me and Ro stood back and enjoyed the commotion (how very helpful right?). So we managed to take the next train out and got to Richmond at about 11.30am. The town is pretty quaint and the shops there gave me a feeling it was very expensive. Other than the big brands, there were also individual labels which are usually a sign of being in a high-end area. We walked further down and got to the river and voila..was i right or what..huge mansions by the river side and apartments with great views, offered for a minimum rent of 3000 quid a month. Expensive restaurants, swanky yachts, joggers with expensive dog breeds etc. are some of the other qualities that made me realize it was an expensive area. So, down the drain went my dream of living there. Like a friend mentioned, 'you have to be rich to be living in Richmond.' After taking a nappy and feeding break for the kids we decided to trek up Richmond Hill and on to Richmond Park. At one point me and Ro were stuck with a buggy and Auro and we were completely lost. Ro even banged the buggy on a tree in his struggle to get it moving. And Auro gets very restless when he doesn't see his master who, by the way, was very brave and brought along his 8 month old so the mommy could have some alone time. I think that was a very kind gesture and he was unbelievably awesome with the baby and she, a darling to the core, not bothering anyone.. all the time cooing and smiling and then sleeping in her buggy. Auro required more attention than her. But the good part was...we now know what buggy to buy and how to handle it to an extent :)

Richmond Hill apparently is/was home to a lot of celebrities the most known of them being Mick Jagger (Rolling Stones). The houses were massive on the hill top and the views from there were so beautiful, it would have cost them a bomb to stay there. The restaurants and pubs on the hill were also on the expensive side and quite empty as for that matter. We made our way through to Richmond Park which stretches for acres and acres and is supposedly three time bigger than Central Park in New York and the largest park in London. After the boys spent a good 15 minutes trying to figure our where we were on the map and how to get to point B where we would have lunch, and after a few phone calls to locate a pub which was child and dog friendly (yes they are very strict on that), we made our way through the park. We spotted a few red and fallow deer and Ro managed to get a few close-up's which was pure luck though. There were a few weddings taking place in the park and we saw the grooms-men and ladies in fancy dresses and hats make their way through to the scenic areas. It was a glorious day to have a wedding, i thought aloud. The walk was longer than expected but built our appetite quite a bit. We waded through thick flora and fauna and at certain points the views were brilliant. After a one hour trek through the park we finally made it to the New Inn, a child and dog friendly pub with a huge beer garden. Settled down with our drinks and the rains welcomed us. Bag, baggage, buggie, baby we rushed inside and restlessly waited for the food. Stuffed ourselves with BBQ ribs, Chicken Fajitas, Pork Chops, Lamb Cuts, Fries and Cheese and pints of cider and beer. The bill came up to a whopping 100 odd and we were convinced that Richmond was definitely not the place for us. For the money we paid, the food didn't come up to mark, but left us satisfied for the time being. We were in no mood to walk again after the heavy meal and so decided to take the bus back into Richmond town and then take the train out from there into Central London. The day didn't end that way. We headed back to a friends place and stayed there till the wee hours of the night, partying and merry making and was so so pooped by the time we got back, we didn't wake up till 11am the next day. Aching legs and back didn't stop us from staying at home on Sunday..shopped till we dropped and caught a movie too.

On another level, we have started house hunting again and cant believe 6 months just passed by so quickly. For those of you who have been following my blog from day one, you would have read the drama attached to the house hunting session. I completely dread the whole scene all over again, but looks like we are lucky this time. Its very rarely that me and Ro agree on the same topic, but we somehow seemed to have agreed on a particular property and am keeping my fingers crossed on this one. Its a 2 bedroom property and our only logical reason for moving into a bigger apartment was either because we had family visiting or we were going the family way. Winter is approaching and no family is visiting us for another six months..and the family way..we still haven't reached a conclusion on that. But taking everything into consideration i think this is a good deal, money-wise and also apartment-wise. Will update on the scene laters.

In the meantime, here are some pics of the Richmond trip. Not the best because it was a bit over cast at times.

Riverside apartments

The expensive Gaucho restaurant

Auro

Trekking up Richmond Hill

View from the hill

Richmond Park

Deer spotting in Richmond Park

Notice the houses on the right...bloody expensive i presume

View from Richmond Hill

Lamb Chops at the New Inn Pub

Pork Roast

'Cinema under the stars'

2009-07-26T00:22:00.000+01:00

caught my eye while surfing the 'whats on in London' web page and i decided i had to go for it. What came to my mind immediately was the scene from 'The Wedding Planner' where JLo and Matthew McConaughey watch a movie in a park eating M&M's. The event was over a span of 5 days and i had seen all the movies mentioned except the one called 'Funny Face,' a 1957 musical starring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire. What could be more romantic than watching a classic under the star studded sky? So I quickly did some research on the park in which it was being screened, timings, how to get there etc. and sent it out to Ro hoping he would be as enthu as i was. To my surprise he replied saying we should get a bottle of wine and just go. I was thrilled and i went a bit overboard preparing an entire picnic.

Syon Park, the home of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, was the perfect venue for the evening. Although getting there was a bit of an issue, with us forgetting to get off at the required stop (which Ro claims was because of my non stop chit chat that we didn't notice the stop and over shot) and the sudden down pour which put us in a state of bewilderment on whether the show would take place at all, we were relieved to see a whole lot of cars at the car park and people walking in with huge picnic baskets. After paying 25 quid for both of us (yes very expensive indeed) we made our way to the park. It was so beautiful with well-manicured lawns and pretty flowers and trees breaking the monotony. There was a big glass conservatory, maintained in tropical temperature, growing all sorts of vegetables, creepers and palms. There was also a lily pond and an entire section on Cacti. The movie was supposed to start at 9pm, but it still wasn't dark by then and so we ended up finishing off our food and half the bottle of wine. There was a good crowd and most of them came fully prepared with portable chairs and huge picnic baskets and even umbrellas (which we also had brought along). By about 9.30 the movie started and everyone settled down pretty fast. The movie was ok. I expected it to be like the 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' type, but it didn't come close to that. Audrey Hepburn is gorgeous as ever and Fred Astaire is old. Towards the end, it started getting a bit chilly and the wine had made us pretty tipsy and we completely started fooling around and i secretly hoped the movie would come to an end because of the cold winds. I must admit, the whole idea of a romantic evening under the stars, huddled together with a blanket, was more appealing than the movie itself, though 25 bucks for a night out was a bit on the steep side, but what the hell...these are things you do once in your life.

There are more outdoor movies coming up in September at the South Bank Centre and are fee of cost. Only thing is, they are showing movies like 007 and Slumdog Millionaire which i cant really associate with 'romance.' I would however like to go see 'Mamma Mia,' the sing-along version again, just so i can scream out the songs :)

Events like these make me feel happy being in London.

I kicked myself for not taking my camera and had to make do with Ro's phone camera. So please bear with the 'not so perfect' pics.

The Great Conservatory, Syon Park

One of the Lily Ponds

A huge Cactus

Enjoying the picnic. See how bright it was...time was around 8.40pm

The huge screen

Thats the last part of the movie. Its not too clear.

To Watch or not to watch

2009-07-22T13:35:00.001+01:00

An update on the movie scene:

Latest ones:

The Hangover- Hilarious movie. Loved every bit of it from beginning to end. Its after a long time that i have seen a movie that kept me amused all the way through to the end. Every scene was funny and yes Vegas is as wild as the movie portrays it ;)

Bruno- I think Sacha Baron Cohen looked gorgeous in the movie. I honestly enjoyed it better than Borat and it was less gross. I still keep recalling scenes from the movie and crack up. I also recently saw Ali G Indahouse, his first movie and it was such a drag.

Drag me to Hell- I am a total sucker for horror movies, but my other half is not. I would watch the scariest of movies and then not sleep for a week because the scenes haunt me, invariably waking up Ro in the middle of the night and declaring i cant sleep because of bad dreams. He banned horror movies. But i still somehow convince him to catch them once in a while and 'Drag me to Hell' happened during one of those times. Its got its 'boo' moments and sometimes 'too gross to handle' moments, but its not scary scary and i can assure you wont have bad dreams. The climax was awesome and unexpected and i loved how the movie ended.

My Sisters keeper- I bawled my eyes out during this movie and now thinking about it, it was not even that sad a movie. Its the usual with the family battling the case of a daughter with cancer and the whole drama attached to it..oh and ya there is a slight twist which is not that important after a point of time. I saw this movie on my own and there were loads of women in the theatre who were in the same boat. I could hear sniffs and sighs and when the movie was over all of us ran to the ladies' with red eyes and acknowledged each other with a smile that said it all. I realized i love watching chick flicks on my own and not with Ro.

Public Enemies- Usually id sit through any movie starring Johnny Depp without uttering a word, but this one, i felt, dragged on quite a bit and in spite of the story-line being good and all, it still seemed like a dull one at the end. Like right now when I'm trying to remember what it is about the movie that was so striking, i cant seem to remember anything great. So i guess, to sum it up..it was just another drama/action flick.

Sunshine Cleaning- If you have seen Little Miss Sunshine and you liked it, there is a slight chance you might not like this. Because Sunshine Cleaning (by the same producers) is nothing like LMS. The whole feel of the movie is similar, but after a while, you just want the movie to somehow end and when it does end, you wonder why you sat through the whole thing, all the while knowing what exactly was going to happen in the end. I know, it sucks! But chicks would dig it and i didn't mind either. Mindless, but still not bad enough to make me quit the movie half way through.

Year One- A no-brainer. What do you expect when Jack Black stars in a movie anyway? I wouldn't say it was 90 minutes of torture, but its not one id want to spend money and go see. If you can borrow a DVD or something, you can watch it while cooking or something. It can just play in the background and you wouldn't really care if you missed scenes.

Ice Age 3. Dawn of the Dinosaurs (3D)- Ice Age 1 was nice, Ice age 2 was really nice and Ice Age 3 was just about ok. Children would prefer the third part to the first two. So you can imagine how lame the plot was. Ro was thoroughly bored and hated it when people laughed for all the ridiculous scenes. He was more pissed because he had to pay an extra 2 quid for the 3D glasses which, by the way, wasn't that great either. There were no scenes in the movie which were worth capturing the 3D effect.

Transformers Revenge of the Fallen- This was torture for me. They diluted the movie with insignificant emotional traumas and shit like that and the movie went on and on and on.

Terminator salvation- I didnt sleep through this, but it didnt keep fully involved either. The special effects were pretty neat.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince- I haven't seen this one and don't intend to. But i just wanted to share my thoughts because its been publicised like crazy here, for all the wrong reasons i suppose. The only thing people are talking about is the snogging. Seriously, whats happened to the fantasy world of magic and wizardry? Interviews after interviews on how it was kissing Daniel Radcliffe, how Rupert Grintt spends the first half of the movie kissing, not to mention how awesome a kisser he is. And Emma Watson....its all about her wardrobe malfunction at the red carpet ceremony. Ro comes to the defensive when i make snide remarks about HP and says its a coming of age movie. yeah, so its no different from the other movies then!

Older ones:

Religulous- Its more like a documentary and not a movie. But stand up comedian Bill Maher has done a good job with his take on religion and faith. It might be offensive to some, but if you take it in the right sense, its hilarious and entertaining.

I'm still mourning...

2009-07-14T21:47:00.000+01:00

...the death of Michael Jackson. I still remember how Ro woke me up one morning and said Micheal Jackson had died and i just couldn't believe it. I spent the next couple of days researching him online, catching up on interviews done by BBC journalist Martin Bashir and the Fox Network documentary contradicting Bashir's accusations. Also saw Oprah's interview and the weird one by Larry King at the Neverland Ranch where they supposedly saw MJ's ghost in the corridor and the video shows this faint figure vanish. I get unbelievably spooked by such weird things and i swear i couldn't sleep one night because, thanks to my husband, he made matters worse by reminding me of the scariest of things. I almost convinced him to work from home the next day! Yes, I'm a total chicken when it comes to silly things like this.

And after seeing these videos i have these relentless discussions with Ro (more like with the wall, because Ro thinks I'm easy to fool and all his interviews are PR gimmicks) who hardly gives ear to it. From his interviews what i perceived was his childhood was taken away from him and he with his fame and money was able to relive those childhood days in a whole lot of ways. A friend visited us last weekend and he and Ro ganged up against me on the whole MJ scenario. I got all worked up..and they thoroughly enjoyed seeing me let off my cool.

Anyways, yesterday was supposed to be the first of his 50 shows here at the O2 and a huge crowd had gathered outside the arena to commemorate his life. There was a huge screen displaying his last public appearance at the O2 and also his music videos and other footage. The crowd laid flowers, cards, stuffed toys and photographs and signed the huge Memorial wall, including yours truly:)

Our apartment complex overlooks the O2 Arena and these huge laser billboards can been seen from really far away and whatever show is on, we come to know in an instant. But yesterday, i was roaming around in Canary Wharf and on my way back, there were huge crowds getting out of the tube station and my inquisitive mind followed the crowd to the Arena and this was the scene there. So today me and Ro took an evening stroll down to the O2 and I paid my tribute to MJ by signing the wall.

I know i will never hear the end of it from Ro who has been irritating me with the sick MJ jokes but i guess i needed that..it was like getting closure and i got to bid the final goodbye.

Pride London Parade

2009-07-07T13:13:00.001+01:00

The recent victory for Gay rights in India got me thinking. I wondered if i was comfortable with the whole idea. I cringe when i see two women kissing in public or men holding hands and caressing each other (which is a very common sight here). I'm not against it all, its just that i need a little getting used to i guess. Good for them is all i can say, although i couldn't help but think how id react if i see the same thing happen back home.

Coming back to London, the Pride London Parade was in full swing on Saturday. I insisted i wanted to go see what it was all about. Ro as usual thought it was gross (except if there were hot women who were kissing each other...yeah pardon my husband who thinks that's every mans dream come true). I promised there would be hot women (ya i play along) and we watched the entire parade on Oxford street. tactfully i took him to Oxford Street because i wanted to do some shopping too.. It was a good idea because the Parade started from there and proceeded onto Piccadilly Circus, finally ending at Trafalgar sq. We got a pretty decent view of the parade and it was good fun with great music and loads of eye candy. I'm posting some pics. I guess they would speak better than my words. Enjoy!

The Parade starts off with the Chairman of the LGBT

The musicians

The colourful rainbow flag which is their trademark

The Royal Navy

Wedded Bliss

This float had the 'Hare Rama, Hare Krishna' chant in full swing

The London Swim Club

The British Airways Crew

The Food Industry

The National Health Service

The best part of the show were these CK models who just looked so so so so sexy with the perfect tanned bod and awesome looks. I secretly hoped they weren't gay. But who are we kidding, who else can carry off those teeny weeny undies and flip flops so damn well.

I'm still having dreams about them :)

The Older LBT Community

The Royal Army

Letter from Google

2009-06-30T22:05:00.001+01:00

Hi all,

Just a quick question to all those who have signed up for AdSense. Did you all receive a letter with a 50 quid voucher for advertising your blog on other sites? I received a letter from Google, UK stating so. I wanted to know if any of you have used it and posted your blogs on other sites. I am thinking of trying it out since i have a 50 pound credit. It is not a hoax because it is from the google office here in UK and the logo, return address etc. have all been verified (courtesy my adorable husband who is an IT security consultant by profession and is a pro at identifying such atrocities). He also swears by google and has given me the go ahead sign to give it a shot. But i thought i shall just check around and see if its of any use.

Do let me know if you guys have received the same, and whether you have tried it out.

Still crying over my new look

2009-06-26T12:08:00.000+01:00

OK I'm open to atrocious comments on this one...I'm still crying over my new hair cut.

Its Baby Boom

2009-06-25T11:00:00.000+01:00

I was speaking to this friend of mine today and she is the 25th person i know who is expecting a baby or has already had one this year. Isn't anyone actually worried about the credit crunch? Or are people out of jobs and at home and taking up making babies as the latest past time. Yeah i know I'm being insensitive here, sorry. Congrats to all the mommies/mommies-to-be.

Phew! I'm shitting bricks thinking about how we would raise a child if we were in drastic situations like that. I read an article the other day that says it costs around GBP 30,000 a year to raise a child here. With the lavish lifestyle we now follow, I don't think we would have that much money in our account EVER! I'm sorry but i seriously cant struggle to raise a kid. When i went home a couple of months back, I was bombarded with questions as to where, why when i would be having a baby and i was so damn pissed off. The funniest part is, my parents are pretty cool. Its the rest of the world that is so worried about me. Its easy for them to say. I, first of all, want to be 100 percent ready to be a mom (I'm just coming to terms with being married, so i guess I'm a long way off). And i am not, at the moment, willing to let go of the lifestyle we now follow. I want to travel (expensive after we have kids), make sure we have a decent bank balance and need it to be a planned affair as much as possible. If you think i am over doing it, you don't want to know what all Ro has to have in place in order to have a baby(He's even picked up a D.O.B). Ro, however, says he's ready to start a family. I ask him why we should have kids and he has no answer. So i said to go figure and let me know.

Both of us are not very child friendly. I have very biased opinions about children. I do not cuddle and kiss every child i see. I roll my eyes at them and curse it out when we are stuck in a restaurant or movie theatre or train with a wailing child. Moreover i think children these days act way too smart and have lost all their innocence. They talk like elders. I like a total of 2 children/babies right now..my adorable cousin (who cannot be referred to as a baby anymore but i still consider her a baby and will do so forever) and my best friends son who is the most well-behaved baby ever. Of course, there are the numerous cute, blonde hair, blue eyed babies that stare at me in buses and trains and at supermarket queues. They are adorable and i don't mind coochi cooing for a maximum of a minute maybe. When we were travelling back from India this time, at the baggage claim area, a lady with a baby made casual conversation with me saying how tired she was and her bags seem to be lost somewhere. She suddenly spotted the buggy and handed the baby to me. I was lost...trust me LOST. But she was so adorable with the pink bunny body suit and a pacifier (notice how i described the attire and accessories rather than the baby herself) and just stared up at me making all these funny noises. When its somebody else's baby its ok. A small whimper and you thrust her/him back to the mom.

Ro got back with our bags and goes, 'euuuuuuuuuuu...you have "something" in your hand.'

Me: Isn't she cute

Ro: If u insist. Stay away. 'IT' smells (then for the next one hour it was baby jokes..not the funny ones, the really mean ones!). Oh ya he definitely is ready to have a baby and with that attitude, (it smells) that's some help i can expect.!

So that's how our conversations are about babies and children. He recently told a friend to come visit us in London but 'NOT' to bring their baby along as it can ruin plans. He first of all called us to pass on the good news that he just had a baby. Seriously? how heartless is he (although i completely agree with him).

They have children on leashes here and its actually quite sad to see them being dragged around like dogs in supermarkets and malls. Ro thinks its one of the best things ever and is definitely picking up one for our kids. Poor kids of mine. I am sure i will have to shed quite a few tears during those times.

Anyways coming back to my friends, most of them who told me about the expecting part sounded so lost. I asked one of them, 'so aren't you supposed to be like totally excited and all.'

She replied saying, ' well yeah, not really...I'm still in shock and i don't know what to do.' Another friend didn't speak to anyone for one whole week and then cried for another week. Now that's what i don't want to feel like. I want to be so damn excited and happy and think of it as the best thing that ever happened to me....not just by chance. So if i need to feel this way, i need to be 100 percent ready for it. My biological clock is ticking, family is harassing me about it, but i shall not succumb to these pressures and have a baby for the sake of it. I want it to be a cherished moment and i am working on getting there. For all you may know, i might aready be there:)

P.S. All the mommies and mommies to be...don't listen to me..i am on one of my blabbering sessions. You guys have a god given gift, so enjoy it to the max. And if ever you need me to baby sit. I would gladly agree with all my heart (once or max twice). I'm not that mean :)

P.P.S. My orange tree was almost dying and was completely bare. Today i saw a new bud and i have some hope. Phew! Blindwreck however shouted at me the other day for even comparing it to a child :)

This is usual out here even without having children around.

Comic strips are from Baby Blues. Ro's got the entire series and its hilarious.

West End Live

2009-06-23T17:37:00.000+01:00

The husband is away on work for 2 days and its been kinda nice not having to do anything (not that i was slogging it out otherwise..but still). I was ordering take aways, watched quite a few silly chick flicks and then went and cut my hair at a salon run by Chinks who are supposed to be really good with their hair cutting techniques, but this was one where no one understood or spoke English. I only realized it once i had my hair washed and had settled down to get it cut. She didn't understand what i wanted and i didn't understand what she was trying to tell me (except that Indian women are pretty). Result of which was a really short hair cut and i look like a retard. Usually it looks nice after they blow dry it and set it and I flaunt it around for at least 2 days, but this was not even good even after all the styling and gels. I rushed back home and had a head bath. Ro is sooo gonna make fun of me when he gets back today.

Otherwise, things are pretty good. My gym expedition is still in full swing and since i combine it with badminton, its 4 days of gym and 2 days of badminton. I come back home and eat like a pig which is why i haven't noticed any change in my weight, but I think my body looks a bit toned...at least id like to think so.

Last weekend we went to see this programme in Leicester Square called West End Live. West End is an area in Central London where the entire theatre scene is. I have been wanting to watch The Lion King, Mamma Mia and Sister Act for a while now, but tickets are so damn expensive. That's when i saw on Time Out, London that the worlds largest free theatre festival was on and we decided to go. When we got there, the crowds were massive with a huge queue to get into the compound. Luckily there were screens outside telecasting it and so we got comfy in a corner and watched quite a few of the musicals. They were amazing- one, to see it free was a plus point and two, the actors who do the real shows were acting out their parts here as well. Though the props and colourful costumes were missing (which I'm sure would have definitely added to the glamour of the whole thing), this sure was a good way to decide which musical was worth watching. I personally loved Dirty Dancing, Jersey Boys, We Will Rock You (Queen) and just out of curiosity would like to watch Thriller Live (yeah, the Michael Jackson one). Sister Act was not as great as i thought it would be, though the singing was spectacular and Jerry Springer (the American TV Show host) singing in 'Chicago' was interesting because i was generally excited to see him in person.

After catching lunch at a Chinese take away, we managed to get inside the compound. It sure made a world of a difference to see the actors live on stage. The afternoon session was mainly for amateur theatre shows- a chance for them to display their skills. Avenue Q, a musical by puppets but managed by actors on stage, were remarkably good. The characters are inspired by the Sesame Street ones and it was hilarious. Another interesting performance was by theLondon Gay Men's Chorus. They were absolutely adorable with their action songs and of course the melodious music.

They didn't perform anything from The Lion King because its been running for a few years now and its time had passed. I hear its amazing with the costume and props. So that's still first on my 'to see' list. All in all it was a nice warm day with good music and singing out load some of the songs gave me a sore throat, but one i didn't complain about :)

Posting some pics:

Gothic puppets

Avenue Q at its best

Inside Leicester Square

They were distributing goodies. That's me with a 'Jersey Boys' fan and 'The Lion King' flag(before the hair cut)

Yabba Dabba Doo (guess which movie this is from!)

These guys were doing the 'hare Rama hare Krishna' dance outside and had a large crowd watching. I'm not sure whether they were serious followers or whether the song was just fun to sing and dance. There were a bunch of teenagers who thought it was cool to dance along!

My daddy's proud of me

2009-06-19T22:34:00.000+01:00

Since i have nothing much to crib about, I thought I’ll brag about some of my recent achievements. I sent this to my dad the other day and he was so proud, he sent it to the whole worldJ So here i am, doing my bit to show off.

This is an article i submitted on the weekend markets in London (remember i had posted pics in a previous post) and the article appeared in a magazine called INBOX 1305- a Chennai based lifestyle mag. It came in the June issue of the mag.

This article is quite old, but I’m really really really proud of this one. It came in the Travel Plus Magazine and i also got my profile on it.

It really sucks to look at my article in a pdf or jpeg formatLI am yet to see the hard copy.

This one was actually by fluke. But isn’t it trippy? Thats Ro at the Bike and Kite festival in Blackheath. When i was taking the pic, i actually told him, ‘ I cant see anything Rosh’ and so he’s named the pic..cant see anything Rosh.

I was a very bad photography student during my Mass Comm days. When everyone was running around getting their project together I used be the one who used to pose for the pics and not bother to take any. As usual, last minute panic hit and then i had to beg for pics from everyone (also i fell sick and had to return home). We had certain subjects to be photographed and i remember texting all my classmates, ‘does anyone have an extra child to give me?’ I did manage some pics and guess what....I was the first one to submit the projectJ

Some nerve huh...borrowing from everyone and 1^st one to submit, on time that too. I didn’t get high marks or anything, but not a bad one either.

I boast about my photography skills to Ro and he brings up this story every time

Weekend Fun

2009-06-16T11:16:00.000+01:00

The weekend was very interesting with a few activities happening around London. I had mentioned about the 10mile walk we were supposed to do two weeks back...well we didnt go because the rains completely spoilt it and so we decided we'd go the next week which was the previous Sat. Apparently, the World Naked Bike Ride,London was on that weekend and guess who was all excited about it...us. So Saturday was spent at Hyde Park watching the nangu bike riders protesting against oil dependency. I was initially a bit embarrassed, mainly because we were there with this other couple- who didn't seem one bit interested- and they were quite uncomfortable. Ro on the other hand wandered off to take pics and i had to make lame conversation with them about what...naked men and women..well sort of! I think it takes immense courage to appear nude in public. I mean, to be able to be absolutely fine with your body and to appear in public like that would be a massive boost to your self-confidence right? I'd like to think of it that way.

Rest of the day was spent at the Camden market with food and drinks and then at Edgeware road for dinner- thorough Mediterranean fare. I keep thinking i should try the hookah and the sulaimani tea there, but I'm jinxed. Something or the other always comes up. This time it rained and hookah's are allowed only outside.

This was a one man show..was brilliant

Ro's arty farty pic. It was a clear day and the sky was gorgeous

A kite made with recycled plastic bottles and paper

Synchronized kite flying to music. It was so beautiful and the co-ordination was just superb

The Dragon Kite

Thats me in front of all the kites

Mountain bikers doing their stunts

Sunday was good fun at the Blackheath Bike and Kite Fest organized by the Lewisham Council. I guess the pics will explain the rest.

'WE'men or 'WOO'men

2009-06-07T14:08:00.000+01:00

Why is it that men get the better of both worlds all the freaking time? They are put up on a pedestal and always given first priority in every relationship. In a marriage, the women always ends up giving more importance to what the husband wants, in a relationship the girlfriend always does things to please the other. Seldom does it happen vice versa. Take my case for example, I cook food Ro likes, I take part in social activities that Ro is interested in and does everything else in my life giving him the priority. My likes and dislikes take a back seat. I make an effort to like what he likes, but he relentlessly shows his disinterest in what i like, be it food, movies..name it and its true. I may get what i want at the end of it, but i have to throw a fit...which shouldn't be the best way. I'm sure there is a better way to do this. Sit him down and talk...nope not going to indulge in that lame activity again. It goes over his head.

I'm not sure about you but I know a whole lot of other women...moms, aunts, sisters, friends and a lot of others in blog world...who are exactly this way. A lot of the food blogs i follow mention why they make a particular dish because the better half likes it and not make something because he doesn't but craves for it so much, so waits till they are away to enhance their gastronomical pleasures. Why exactly are we doing this? I mean we are just like them and we deserve to get what we want right?????? Why are we trying so hard to please the men in our lives? Why cant they please us for a change...which I'm sure will never happen (at least in my case) so i am going to show my disinterest and cook food i like for a change (in fact i have already started:P) to start with.

Fridays are Pizza days and when we were in Nottingham, we used to buy the Tesco pizza's which were really good. Now that we are in London, we don't have a Tesco nearby and i absolutely dislike the Sainsbury and Asda pizza but love the Waitrose one, but the nearest is a tube stop away (these are the supermarkets here btw). So we tried out a few other Pizzeria's nearby, but they were either too expensive, bad service and wasn't all that great with regard to taste. I like Domino's and intend to stick to that. I tried all those other brands in the beginning because Ro liked it , but now i don't care..i want what i like! hmppppfffffff. If he wants let him get used to it.

WE should be men for a change and not try and WOO them all the time. Letting go in between is fine, but they should know we have likes and dislikes too and must respect that equally!

PS: I'm super pissed with a few things happening at my end and so the nasty post. I mean it though!

Bird is the word

2009-06-04T16:32:00.000+01:00

I'm not sure i have mentioned this before, but Peter Griffin and his family (Family Guy series) have suddenly become an important part of our lives.

Watch this video...how much more dumber can it be? This entire episode was about how Peter discovers this song at a diner and doesn't stop singing. Its appeared in a lot of our conversations and yesterday morning Ro woke me up singing that and he got it exactly right. We laughed so hard and it cracked me up each time i thought about it, which was all day! I'm usually grumpy in the mornings and Ro has found the perfect song to make me laugh even in the grumpiest of times.

When i was first introduced to Family Guy i thought it was one of those boring adulterated series with senseless humour. And then i started enjoying it so much..we now religiously watch it together (airs at 11.30 at night cos its not one of those 'lets watch it together' family shows). Its still got senseless humour and is absolutely brainless, but i so so enjoy it and if you get a chance do catch it.

PS: Day three at the Gym and my whole body aches. I'm lethargic and tired and cant get myself to do anything around the house. I wonder if i can go on the 10mile walk tomorrow. Ro said absolutely NO to a piggy back ride half way through the walk..so I'll have to think of something else when i get tired.

The Weekend that was....

2009-06-01T15:40:00.000+01:00

...so so with mundane activities. Played a game of badminton at the Leisure Centre and also signed up for the premium membership which entitles me free participation in aerobics, swimming, gym, kick boxing, Pilate's, ballroom dancing, r n b dancing, dance aerobics, bums tums and thighs, group exercises, water aerobics and a lot of other activities. Every Borough in England has a leisure centre and a library. The library can be used free of charge and they have quite a good collection. Some of the activities at the leisure centre are free, others are at a very low charge. Just before you say exclaim how cool it is, lemme say that we pay quite a bit as council tax every month and so its all taken care of.

We used to regularly play badminton in Nottingham and had a good team join us every week. Now its just Ro and me and its quite tiring to play singles. Ro makes me run all over the place and i lose at every game. But its still nice that we have started playing although we are both now suffering from the aches and pains. I had my induction at the gym today and it went quite well. My trainer asked what my goal was and i blurted out a long story and he then charted down a schedule which i need to follow henceforth. My developments will be recorded and in 4 to 6 weeks time, there will be a re-check on all aspects. I am hoping to be a regular and also make use of some of the other programmes at the centre. This along with my Kellogg's diet (which i am not following to the dot but since i have taken a liking towards some of the varieties, I plan to stick to it) should make a difference. Lets see how that goes.

Ro has been trying to pep me up saying, 'aw my baby's gonna look so fit and toned like Paris Hilton (first of all Paris Hilton..seriously??????????) and have the hour glass figure again and a whole lotta other flattery. I got so irritated after a while and i retorted saying, 'id like a husband who looks like Brad Pitt...i don't have it..do i freaking complain???!!! To which he said something...but i cant tell you what:)

We also made a visit to the Royal Observatory..remember Greenwich Mean Time? This is where the imaginary line separates Eastern hemisphere from the Western. There is actually a green laser beam in the sky that travels 15 miles from the Observatory separating the hemispheres. The Observatory also houses a Planetarium, various museums and best of all the green lawns where you can just laze around on a nice warm day. The weather was brilliant and everyone was out having a picnic or BBQ and there were a few weddings as well. The shows at the Planetarium are quite interesting. We saw the Journey of Stars and its a good half hour show, though we had a stiff neck after it because we were right in front and had to crane our necks. Didn't see any movies this weekend because we have seen everything that's out in the theatre (can you believe that?). It was a lazy weekend and I'm not sure i enjoyed it. I love a fun filled day packed with activities and so i am off to a wine tasting session and the 10 mile walk with Ro the coming weekend. Will post details of that later. Meanwhile here are a few pics.

People waiting in line to take a pic at the separating point..which i didnt btw.

The line that separates the hemispheres

View from the Observatory

PS: I started a food blog..not because I'm an awesome cook or anything, but to remind myself I'm not a bad one either. Since i depend so much on the Internet for my recipes, i realized this was the best way to keep track of some of the tried and tested easy recipes. I do not have the habit of maintaining a book with all the recipes nor does the google doc. actually help, so voila...my food blog. Though i wonder how long I'm gonna maintain it.

To Watch or not to watch

2009-05-22T16:47:00.000+01:00

An update on the movie scene:

Latest ones:

Angels and Demons: This was much much better than Da Vinci Code. Tom Hanks looks old though!

Star Trek: I hate the Star Trek series on telly and dreaded having to sit through the movie. Was surprised when i started enjoying myself though i kept interrupting Ro with doubts. He tried to explain it all to me at the end and was getting slightly irritated that i wasn't following it :). I obviously had tonnes of doubts with the one topping it all, 'Ro who is Kirk?' who happens to be the protagonist (yeah most of you might be thinking what the hell I'm doing suggesting movies..hehehe). Moreover i totally think Chris Pine looked immensely cute and he's even better in the movie Blind Dating.

State of Play: A good watch except that it was a bit of a drag in between.

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past: Absolute chick flick. I always like to watch a lighter movie after a serious one, where i don't have to think much and that's how we ended up watching this after State of Play. Jennifer Garner's collagen injected lip seriously looks hideous. Mathew McConaughey is very annoying at times, but yeah like i said its a light movie to watch.

X-Men Origins: Loved the movie, except Wolverine's over-built body was kinda giving me the creeps on an off.

I love You Man: Ro liked it (should i be worried???!!!). Its a pleasant movie with some humour thrown in that doesn't make you roll on the floor and laugh, but a chuckle here and there.

Older ones:

Lakeview Terrace: Watched it at home in between chores and so couldn't concentrate on it whole heartedly. Its branded as a thriller but i didn't think it was one, though getting a neighbour like Samuel L Jackson would be something to be worried about:)

The Motorcycle Diaries: Its a story on the travel expeditions of Che Guevara and the basis of his fight against ecocnomic inequalities. Quite an entertainer except i would have preferred if the cause was a little more powerful than the travelogue itself. The cinematography was gorgeous.

What were we thinking?????????

Crank High Voltage: Oh dear Lord, i have never seen such a horrible movie in my life (except for the lame Hindi masala ones, of course). You can keep your brain back at home and go watch the movie. You just don't need it!!! And also leave your children behind. In the credits i saw the costume designers name and i turned and asked Ro whether he saw anyone in the movie with actual clothes on? There is also a lot of swearing and gross scenes which i don't even want to discuss. There was a total of 10 people in the movie hall and majority were Desi's. The lads behind us had a good time (porn at the local cinema wowoieee!). I hated every second of it but there were mixed opinions too. Some of the others who joined us said they enjoyed it for the total lack or reality and brainlessness, and asked me not to be so serious about such movies. Seriously? Watch it if you don't believe me!

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian: As bad or maybe even worse than the first part. The humour (if at all you refer to it as humour!) sucks and it was just frustrating to sit through the 105 minutes of utter torture.

Hard Rock calling...

2009-05-21T13:20:00.001+01:00

It was my first visit ever to Hard Rock Cafe, London (cant count the Hard Rock Casino in Vegas..i only got a sneak peak) and i thoroughly enjoyed it. One, because i really enjoy the usual American fare and two, its the first Hard Rock Cafe in the world (opened in 1971). Since it was a weekday we thought reservations wouldn't be necessary, but to our surprise it was packed and we had a two hour wait. There was also a concert on and so we decided to check that out. Entry was separate and four amateur bands were performing. The first band was just about to start when we walked in. I was a little over excited seeing all the rock and roll memorabilia covering the walls and Ro had this totally disinterested look on his face. A look that implies he's thinking hard about some serious issues..like hes gonna give me some gyan about life in general and the root of all our arguments...the disapproval of how we should live our lives..Well we had started off on a bad note in the train and i warned him saying we should go back if he intends to stick to the boring behaviour. But we didn't and i decided to have a nice time no matter what..If Ro didn't, it was his loss.

But as soon as our drinks came and the band was in full swing, the moods changed. Ro so totally is a music buff and he enjoyed it. I love the American joints like TGIF and Chili's and now HRC for the variety of fancy Cocktails they serve. The boring pubs in UK have wine, cider, ales or beer (100's of varieties of those but no cocktails. Now who cant go to a super market and get those?) But cocktails have this personalised feel to it and you mix and match and you get something either good or something horrific at the end).

Once in TGIF, when i was finding it difficult to make up my mind, the bar boy (gorgeously cute) told me,'I can make anything and everything love, tell me what you want. And i said, 'Go ahead,surprise me.' No actually i asked him for a Long Island Iced Tea and he convinced me I'd like the California Iced Tea instead (forgot what the ingredients were) and it was amazing.

My Berry-rita

Coming back to HRC....I had a Berry-rita which is the cranberry version of the Margarita. Was so so good, except I need to ask them to go easy on the ice the next time. It kinda gets diluted after a while. Ro had the same ol Gin and Tonic..something i also have recently started to enjoy with a hint of orange lemonade.

Two hours went by quite fast with the bands in full swing and we went back to the cafe just in time for our table. Our dear waitress Anna from Poland was at our service. Ro has this habit of striking up a conversation with anyone and everyone (fellow passengers in a train, the barber, the guy at the till, the concierge etc). I on the other hand hate having to make conversation with people leave alone strangers. I pray that my hair dresser doesn't start talking to me, i go to the self check-out section to avoid chit chats at the till and in the trains..i pretend to sleep. How made for each other are we? So yes, you guessed right..Ro got her entire life history and as he said..if i hadn't glared at him, he would have also gotten her phone number. She, in the process of yapping her life story, forgot our order and had to ask us again (no tips for you, Polish woman!).

American food..oh how absolutely tasty they are- the ribs, spicy chicken wings and steaks and sandwiches. The quantities are also humongous unlike Brit food which is bland and tasteless and variety-less. All the freaking pubs here have a pie, fish and chips, roast beef or chicken (trust me they are horrible) and if you are lucky, burgers (by now you may have realized how biased i am). Our drinks came in (I ordered a Hurricane (Keepers they are called if you want to keep the glass as a souvenir) and Ro had some rum based cocktail-forgot the name in my excitement on seeing the souvenir) followed by a Trio platter of BBQ Ribs, BBQ Chicken and Smoked Pulled-Pork served with fries, beans and coleslaw and the Hickory Smoked chicken wings with a bleu cheese dip and celery sticks (did i mention I'm off the Kelloggs diet for this week?). There was just way too much food and we ended up wasting a bit. I wanted to try the desserts, but had absolutely no space for it. Will go back another day and have it.

It was a bit expensive which was to be expected since its American fare in UK. In the US, its dirt cheap and they have a wider variety too..we used to frequently visit the TGIF's in Chicago and they finally gave us a membership card (yeah!).

It sure was a night i enjoyed after a long long time and thank you Ro for making it fun filled and not grumpy-like. Although my ramblings were about the cocktails and the US/UK comparison, I'm guessing you have at least a faint idea about the Hard Rock Cafe in general. Posting some pics to add to the fun:)

Hurricane (I got the glass as the souvenir) and the Rum drink

Some of the stuff on the walls

Madonna's Jacket (Ro was upset her spiked undies were not on display)

Me or the Rainbow?

2009-05-19T13:36:00.000+01:00

The weather had been crappy the last couple of days and so the weekend was washed out. Ro tried his best to get me outta the house, but i was so lazy (so whats new?) and convinced him to chill out at home. Sneaked in a movie on Sat. at the theatre, but other than that all we did was eat, drink, sleep and watch the telly. Ro displayed his culinary skills on Sunday with a kappa and meen curry lunch and it was impressive. I of course was present for the moral support and then to eat:)

After a heavy lunch and then a movie i announced my departure for an hour long bath. It was raining and i was so in the mood for a tub bath. So filled in the tub and jumped in with an OK mag. (Ro thought i was getting way too spoilt). Wanted to light some candles too, but i remembered only after i jumped into the bath and Ro would definitely not have agreed to do so for me. I was just done with the bath and i hear a shout from the balcony

Ro: Nish come fast...

Me: What is it?

Ro: Two rainbows, come fast

Me: Pleeeeease wait (was i telling the rainbow???!!!)

Ro: Its getting cloudy, so come fast

(I ran out on to the balcony with a towel around me. But by the time i got there one was already fading away)

Me: Wow so pretty, take a pic, take a pic.

Ro: Wont get a clear one (but he still runs to get the cam)

Me: See everyone's out on their balconies looking at the pretty rainbow

Ro: They are all looking at you, you fool. Get inside!

Me: You think so? But I thi..... (Ro gives me the stare and i run inside)

Got a 'not so great pic' of the rainbow. But anyways take a look:

Notice the colour contrasts. The blue skies getting cloudy.

If only every day was a Friday

2009-05-16T11:52:00.001+01:00

The Tate Modern Art Gallery on the Way to South Bank. You can walk all along the river side.

It was a productive Friday for me, for a change. I went out to Borough market for a lunch date with Ro and enjoyed it a lot. I had tomato and basil baguette with a salty beef filling. The condiments were the best part..apple sauce, Dijon mustard, spicy salsa and garlic mayo. For 4.35 quid you get a huge baguette and very filling. Ro opted for his usual- prawn and fish (very very fishy) in a tortilla wrap. Dessert choices were way too many and we started with a chocolate filled eclair and a french cake (teeny weeny cakes with a caramel and orange glaze). I had to have the carrot cake and after walking past umpteen dessert stalls i finally decided on one, but when i got there the banana cakes were way more appealing and i bought that instead. Ro picked up a double chocolate brownie (so much for my Kelloggs Special K diet!).

From the time Ro went for his Schengen Visa to the German Consulate, he's been telling me to head to Sloane Street in Knightsbridge (a very upmarket area- home to a lot of celebrities like Nigella Lawson, Hugh Grant etc). Since i didn't have much on my agenda, and since i wanted to pick up a pair of shoes, i thought id head out there. Well, well what awaits me is a never ending lane of Armani's and Louis Vuittons and D & G's and Chanels. He sent me to a street with only branded shops! Why? I have no idea? Does he generally want me to feel horrible? No idea! Anyways i walked down the lane and each step i took i just felt more miserable in seeing the beautiful clothes, shoes and bags. I walked into the Jimmy Choo boutique and loved almost everything there. Now the weird part was, the shops were practically empty and so when a customer walks in occasionally, its a treat for them. They hover around you in the hope you would buy something. I, with my torn jeans and dirty sneaker, was definitely not of interest to them. So it made me very awkward walking into these and trying on stuff. In some of the shops, i was the only one. I blamed it on the credit crunch. The Yves Siant Lauren outlet had a sale. I walked in to find out that the cheapest item on sale cost an arm and a leg. Walked out telling myself that it was anyways not my style. But i also told myself I'll pick up a Jimmy Choo shoe atleast on eBay!

After a vain attempt at trying to figure out the bus route to Trafalgar Square i decided to walk towards the nearest tube station. There are a couple of affordable shops in and around that area. Did numerous trial sessions at Next and H&M, picked up a nail kit and mag from Boots and headed to Ro's office in London Bridge. His office is right by the Thames River and there are a couple of cafe/bars/pubs with Al fresco dining. Picked up a coffee and was just beginning to settle down with the mag when the freaking pigeons started bugging me (I hate anything with feathers- to be more precise birds freak the hell out of me). So in my process of moving from one point to the other i ended up not reading the mag and not enjoying the coffee and would have sent atleast 10 messages in a span of 15minutes to Ro asking him to come out fast. Anyways we then walked over to South Bank where a lot of concerts and dance and arty farty stuff happens. There was a free Jazz concert on and so hung around there for a long two hours. I, for a change, actually enjoyed the concert even though i couldn't relate to it that much. Caught a movie on the way back and reached home really late.

.....if only every day was like this Friday:)

Ohhhh Retail Therapy!

2009-05-11T12:44:00.000+01:00

A very close friend gifted me this tee ages back to prove a point. Thanks Jungle Jane:)

Wow what wonders retail therapy can do to you. While Ro was out London Looping with his buddies, i crawled out of bed at 12pm, lazed around, watched a few episodes of Family Guy and then headed out to the mall nearby and shopped:)

Tried on so many clothes and shoes but only bought a nice lil summer dress (which i don know when I'll be able to wear, considering the crappy weather). Have noted a few things I'd like to come back and buy though. Then i picked up a whole lot of cereals so i can start this new diet. Remember i told you about the mixed feelings..yeah this is all part of that..cos i was initially following the 'low GI diet' recipe book (which is now neatly stashed away in a corner) and eating healthy, but now have decided to go completely opposite by doing the Kellogg's Special K 'Slimmer for Summer' Challenge. Yes i am not able to make up my mind about anything..Like on Sunday when Ro asked me what I wanted do.. and i just stared into space trying to actually think 'WHAT THE HELL I WANTED TO DO.' This is how the conversation went:

Me: I don't know.

Ro: So shall i then decide what to do? I nodded. Lets go to Hyde Park and....' Didn't complete the sentence..

Me:...oh you don't want to do anything i like, you are so selfish. Pout!

Ro: Nish i just asked you what you wanted to do and you didn't have anything on your mind..and that's why i said lets do this. BRAT!

Me: Whatever! Pout, pout. (I didn't get anything concrete to argue about and a smile accidentally escaped. And then i couldn't control the fact that i was being such a pain and how stupid i sounded). I agreed finally, not to take part in the rollerblading expedition, but to just watch.

We ultimately didn't go to Hyde Park cos Ro's friends couldn't make it. Dinner out and a movie was the next best thing, and so we did just that.

The weekend was not as bad as i thought it would be. I start my new diet today and wonder how long that's gonna last.

Mixed Feelings

2009-05-08T21:49:00.000+01:00

I'm having mixed feelings about a lot of things now. Its just the other day that i was giving all the gyan i can about living life to the fullest and adjusting with wherever we are. I am totally contradicting it now..I WANT TO GO BACK HOME. I hate it here. I actually don't know whether this going back thing is associated with the fact that my cousin is down from the US, all my friends are getting together for a wedding, my moms making plans to do a lot of travelling with my cousin and then the most obvious one..I'm lonely and I'm missing everyone like crazy. I have this urge to be pampered by my grandma, have some undivided attention from my parents and endlessly chatter with my bestest friends over a cup of coffee. Me and Ro recently had a discussion about how different our interests were, and we decided we shouldn't force each other to do it, rather go ahead and do whatever it is you want. The argument started off with Ro wanting to go rollerblading in Hyde Park and insisting i join him. I don't know how to do so and didn't want to waste 20 quid to rent a blade, fall down and hurt myself on a day when the weather is pathetic (not that its ok to fall any other day). Ro has a lot of his school friends around and he is on a different trip altogether. Don't get me wrong here, they are really fun to be with and i don't mind meeting up with them and their families once in a while. But me being the anti-social element is not fond of meeting up every other weekend and we rarely share the same interests (children, buggies, schools, nap time, feeding time etc.). And i take ages to get comfortable around people.

I was talking about my mood swings right, well its a Friday and Ro called me around evening to say we were all to meet up at a friends place. The nasty, PMSing (this is post btw) me bawls over the phone for no apparent reason making Ro very uncomfortable. He then thinks twice about going. But i was smart enough to snap out of it soon and convinced him to carry on. I have absolutely no idea why on earth i said i was not joining them. I lied i was lazy, but that's not it. I am not able to figure out what is going through my mind. I didn't see him for 2 hrs and so i called and called and called and again started crying over the phone (you must be thinking I seriously have issues right?) saying he promised he'd be back for a Pizza dinner (he vaguely mentioned). This is just a simple example of the utter nonsense i put Ro through! He does deserve a prize for bearing with me.

Ro has been a smart ass and has now made his own plans for the weekend. He's going on a 16km walk on the London Loop with his pals tomorrow, and on Sunday roller blading in HP. Who is the loser here? ME!!!! I want to learn salsa dancing and have been asking Ro to join me because most of the places require you bring a partner. He is not interested and i have put it off because i don't have anyone to go with. So now since we are on this trip of doing our own thing, i think i should put on my dancing shoes and enroll for a class. What say? My heads asking me to do my own thing, but my heart wants to do everything with Ro and make an effort to like what he likes (but rollerblading is still a strict NO!). I never used to be like this..i couldn't care less. I guess marriage (and the fact that i don't have a life out here) has made me weak hearted. It makes me pick on small small things like these.

I usually look forward to a weekend, but this one has already spoilt my mood (spoilt would be an understatement). I don't know what to do. So here i am sipping on a breezer and watching the world pass by (actually watching whats going on in the apartments opposite ours).

All you others have a nice weekend. Sulk! Sulk!

Market Hopping

2009-05-07T10:36:00.000+01:00

I was sulking and brooding all of last week..about life in general. Fought with Ro, gave him the silent treatment and then on Friday when he asked me to go for a movie with him, i denied and he went on his own...well almost, cos by the time he got to the underground station i called him and he like a sweetheart returned...and then we fought again, that's another story:). I know i should be spanked. In my defence it was that time of the month. When will men ever understand what we go through??????? But anyways, now we are back in love.

I had to do an article for a magazine on the weekend markets in London and i went market hopping last Saturday . I went all alone (rem the fight?) and enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a marvellous day and i completely took in the sun that hadn't been out whole of last week. I am posting some pics here. Hope you guys enjoy it.

The Old Spitalfields Market

We grabbed lunch at Greenwich Market on Sunday. Also had the yummiest Cheesecake ever.

Remember the movie Notting Hill? Well this is Portobello Market. Most of that movie was shot in and around this area. The travel shop around the corner (from the movie) is still there. It was way too crowded and so i couldnt get a proper pic of that. Its an antique market and you get anything from Vintage clothing to leather to coins to stamps...name it and you get it.

This is Borough Market next to London Bridge. Its a favourite hangout for Ro (his office is near the London Bridge) and he grabs lunch here on most Fridays. You get awesome desserts and yummy pies, tarts, thai food etc. We picked up our Orange tree from here.

Healthy (hopefully), wealthy (nope) and wise (not at all!)

2009-04-25T12:24:00.001+01:00

Breakfast

Dinner

I made a healthy breakfast for Ro and myself on Thursday morn. In case you are wondering how i woke up so early, its because there was some fire emergency and about three engines made their way through to our place with their sirens on. I could hear them from so far away and they stopped right below our window. Now, everyone loves a drama. So i forced myself out with the hope of catching some hunky fire men. Unfortunately they were all pretty old and they looked pissed off. The emergency was not really an emergency and they were off by the time i managed to get Ro out of his bath to take a look. They turned off all the hot water after after that. Don't know why though.

Anyways, I made scrambled egg with cheese, chive and dill on a wheat bread and a slice of bacon (Ro begged for two..there goes the eating healthy bit). It was the first time i was experimenting with dill and chive and it might be a bit of a challenge to get used to the flavours. Its an acquired taste i guess. I liked it, Ro said he'd need to try it out a few more times to make a decision (yes, his life is always this complicated). The cheese was low fat and the bacon was back bacon with the fat trimmed. The milk used in the scrambled egg was supposed to be skimmed or semi-skimmed but I used whole milk. Very little goes in so it shouldn't be a problem. Ro prayed a fire engine would appear every morning so i would wake up and make him breakfast. He said he'd download a siren sound on the comp and play it every morn. High hopes on that one.

Lunch was outside with a friend so i kinda screwed up on that. Didn't over eat though. I was majorly tempted to have waffles from the roadside waffle huts. But i bravely resisted. Did a lot of window shopping and decided what all to buy for summer. Ro ignored my discovery. Spoilt my friend who accompanied me (new to London) and she said she's definitely getting her husband to buy her some stuff. I'm bad influence when it comes to shopping. I remember going out once with my friend Jane and we were supposed to make sure we dont end up buying stuff. I tried on a pair of jeans which i couldnt afford. Jane was supposed to forbid me from buying it, but instead she said, 'Nishi if it fits you so well and if u really really like it, dont thinnk twice, pick it up.' Now that was all the convincing I needed, I picked it up. Its the most perfect slim fit jeans i ever owned. Thanks Jane. I, on the other hand, insist you try something out and then you would really find it difficult to not buy it cos it would look really nice (and im usually correct about most of the stuff i select for people). So yes, bad influence i am.

Dinner was not so healthy. Portobello mushrooms with spinach-cheese filling, prawns marinated in garlic butter and chive and jacket potatoes with sour cream. Had some perry to go with it:). Potatoes are probably the last thing you should have and staying off alcohol is important. But, what the hell, we went all out and had a yummy din din.

I am posting some pics. Its not the best, but I'm really proud of it. All said and done, Conti. cooking is way more easier than Indian cooking. I make less of a mess and its all oven and microwave cooking and so no back aches standing at the hob and stirring, making sure it doesn't burn etc.

To watch or not to watch

2009-04-22T14:13:00.000+01:00

Latest ones:

The Boat that Rocked: was simply awesome. I never knew 60's rock music was so good. Ro was brooding over how he completely missed being part of that era. I, on the other hand discovered 60's music and am in love with it. Blamed Ro for not introducing me to it earlier to which he replied id argue Robbie William sang a song and not Frank Sinatra.

Older ones:

The Reader: No wonder Kate Winslet won the Oscar for this movie. She's brilliant. Its an emotionally inclined movie and quite thought provoking.

Australia: Super long movie, but i still liked it a lot

The Secret Life of Bees: Women dominate the film and some refer to it as a chick flick. I loved the melodrama and the emotions its provoked. A must see.

The Hunting Party: Richard Gere does a pretty good job in this movie (even if he doesn't, i can just gawk at him for hours). Its got humour, drama and adventure but no romance whatsoever (which Richie here is known for)

Avoid:

Monsters vs Aliens: Not really a 3D flick. Its just a waste of time

Fast and Furious: Looks like they made money on their first few parts and now don't know what to do with it.

Paul Blart Mall Cop: I don't even know why we go for movies like this (actually i do..we have an unlimited movie card and don't need to pay!). Kevin James (King of Queens) should just stick to sit. com's.

Knowing: Nicolas Cage needs to seriously retire. I'm actually kinda sick of this alien shit.

Will keep updating the space.

An attempt at dieting and staying fit, again!

2009-04-21T22:03:00.001+01:00

My ever pertaining weight problem has started bugging me again. I have been complaining about it for way too long but been absolutely lazy to do anything about it. Same thing happened when we were in Nottingham and one fine day i just put my foot down and decided to go on a diet. So after tonnes of research i decided on the South Beach Diet because i thought it was easy. It didn't restrict me on the amount of food taken in and sounded much easier compared to the GM diet and Weight Watchers. It was a three phase diet and you gradually increase the variety of food you can take in. I followed various blogs and forums to get easy recipes and found them really helpful. I convinced Ro also to follow the diet, mainly because i wouldn't have to prepare two sets of meals. We missed the potatoes, rice, breads and the occasional wine, but soon was into it full swing. Ro threw tantrums at times and so we used to go easy once in a while. And then at the end of phase two we left to India unexpectedly on a one month break and there, it all went for a toss. Its impossible to stay on your diet while visiting home. Also, after one year of the wife's tasteless cooking anyone would want to hog on food made my moms.. Ro freaked out on mallu food and at the table i used to roll my eyes asking him to go easy. My mom in law probably thought i was starving him to death back in England or something, I'm sure.

Came back to London and since we were in a hotel for close to three weeks, it was impossible to follow a diet. Moved into the apartment and still i ignored the 'eat healthy, keep fit' mantra. Last week i tried on a tank top and it look hideous, i almost cried. So while we were grocery shopping I picked up a Low GI Diet Cook book (Ro sneaked in a dessert recipe book as well) and decided to eat healthy. The diet book is still in its cover, but i tried two desserts already (If i haven't mentioned this before..i love baking esp. cakes, cookies and pies). I'm not a pro at it mainly because i don't have the patience and half way through i just want it to somehow end.

Yesterday i woke up early (actually coz Ro was on a conference call and he was too loud) and was full of energy. Made breakfast for Ro and a sandwich for lunch (all the way reminding him how wonderful a wife i was and he's so lucky blah blah). But after a while i kinda started getting restless and so bugged Ro while he was working and then he told me not to wake up so early tomorrow onwards and its ok if I'm not the dutiful wife. Duh! so much for all the enthusiasm. But anyways, after he left i actually cooked lunch (i usually have just an apple or something) because i stumbled upon a sausage fried rice recipe from sigsiv's blog and it made my stomach growl. Did a few adjustments here and there and ta daaaa...i had a yummy lunch. Then there was no looking back. I prepared an elaborate dinner (elaborate according to me would be three items max including rice obviously because its a hard-ass job) and i was still in high spirits for a change. I didn't wish for the genie this time. Strange!

These days we have an early dinner. Ro comes back home cranky and serving him dinner immediately would make life easy for both of us. By about 8.00 we were done and i was still so enthu i decided to go for a jog (dragged Ro also). It was still bright and nice and there were fellow joggers. I was pooped by the time i did half a mile and then decided on brisk walking. We discovered a Yacht Club with a restaurant and an Eco park right on the river bank (I am ashamed to say that we discovered all this only after a month of moving in. Ro is into sailing and rowing and so we have decided to check on membership etc.). Got back home with an aching leg and back and worse, an aching conscience of being out of shape (literally). So out came the Low GI recipe book and I shortlisted a few easy recipes. I'm determined to get back on track and will update you on how it went. Will post a few pics and recipes if they come out well.

Always an open book

2009-04-20T22:36:00.000+01:00

A lot of people told me that my blog is like a personal diary. Well i really don't care at this point of time. When i started the blog i was a bit concerned as to how long it will be alive. But i now am enjoying it so much that i am not quite concerned about what i portray. Yes i am an open book and intend to be that way for as long as i want. I might take serious deviations in between but penning down my day to day activities and thoughts will be my first love. I don't like to write intellectual stuff simply because i hate reading intellectual stuff. I had to do this travel article the other day and i took two days to complete it. Today, i submitted one in exactly an hour and was so proud of it. I realised its after i started my blog, that it now comes to me automatically. So at least for the work I'm doing, I need to make sure i update my blog as frequently as possible.

The choice is yours..stay or move on. Whatever it is keep the comments flowing and no hard feelings.

Cambridge- A photo story

2009-04-17T14:23:00.001+01:00

King's College (Salman Rushdie)

Well manicured lawns of Corpus Christi College

Daffodils and Tulips on campus

The magnificent stained glass windows

Inside King's College Chapel. Note the huge Pipe Organ

Student rooms on either side

King's College Chapel

River Cam

Trinity College grounds. Isaac Newton and Prince Charles were undergraduates at this college.

St John's College (Manmohan Singh and William Wordsworth were part of this college)

Punting on River Cam

contd...

2009-04-16T14:18:00.000+01:00

Day 3 started pretty early since we decided to head to Cambridge for the day. If i didn't get a good nights sleep, then I'm a cranky bitch. But on Easter morn i was as fresh and awake as a sunflower, except that Ro insisted he make breakfast..that too an elaborate one..and i was not too happy leaving the unwashed vessels in the sink since we didn't have enough time. I cant have a heavy bf as soon as i wake up and so i opted for just the coffee, which again I'm very particular about and make it on my own even if I'm at my heights of laziness.

Cambridge is about an hour away by train and is as beautiful and scholarly as you imagined it to be. The University comprises of 31 different colleges (something i didn't know) and has a strong alumni. Isaac Newton, William Wordsworth, Rajiv Gandhi, Prince Charles etc. were some of the renowned people who studied there. We opted for a walking tour of the University and was absolutely worth it (would have been even better if the weather was a bit generous). The guide explained every single thing about the Univ-from admissions to graduation, what every nook and corner of the Univ was known for, the people who studied there and its age old traditions. I seriously would have taken up some sort of course if it wasn't for the exorbitant fee international students had to pay even after a scholarship. My days at Madras Christian College were deeply missed. I regret not having stayed in campus to enjoy the MCCian way of life, to be part of the elections, the hall days and the traditions.

The tour ended at the famous King's College Chapel known for the Carol service broadcasts on BBC on Christmas Eve. The chapel is a true example of Gothic architecture. Flash photography was not allowed inside, so the pics we took doesn't really do justice. There is a massive pipe organ in the middle and the stained glass windows are a sight to be admired. We were supposed to make it to a choir service but got held up at the pub for lunch and missed it. Ro was pretty upset. He's a real music buff and wanted to be part of it so badly. I promised him we'd come back another day.

After lunch at The Eagle (where Francis Crick and James Watson discovered 'the secret of life' after they figured out the DNA structure) we headed out for the punting session along River Cam- one of the traditional ways of exploring the college. Since we had already taken the walking tour, this was more or less a repetition, but the whole boat ride was so romantic and serene, none of us complained. The more adventurous types opt to do their own punting and so be prepared to be bumped by/into other punts since most of them don't know how to professionally steer. We however opted for a chauffeur. The 2 hour walking tour plus the 45 minute punting session cost us about 11 quid per person which is not a bad deal at all. By the time we headed back home it was about 10pm and we were pooped. Ro cooked dinner for us even after all that.

Most of Day 4 was spent at a Desi restaurant in Tooting called Dosa & Chutney. We were about 8 and ordered so so much that by the end of it, we just wanted to sleep somewhere. Which is what everyone except us decided to do. We caught Monsters vs Aliens at the theatre. It was a 3D movie, but there was absolutely nothing 3D about it. There was probably one scene in the entire movie - a ping pong ball which had some sort of 3D effect- and i managed to miss exactly that cos i ran to the loo. That's so typical me.

And thus came to an end my fabulous bank holiday weekend. I was so lethargic for the next two days that i seriously wished for that genie to appear and do all the cooking and cleaning. The genie never appeared but Ro in the form of a genie was all i needed:)

No Easter bunnies or Easter Eggs but loads of food, fun and good company

2009-04-14T13:29:00.000+01:00

Jazz at South Bank

Fruit Preserves at the market

Freshly baked bread, cake, brownies...

Varieties of Cheese

The four day weekend went by so fast and i had loads of fun. In UK, we have something called Bank Holidays where they club a weekend and give the Monday or Friday off so people can enjoy their Spring/Summer. We have four or five i think every year. So the Easter weekend was also a Bank holiday weekend, where we got Friday and Monday off. Last year we never knew this Bank holiday deal and so stayed at home when the whole of England was on holiday elsewhere. So this year we decided to plan way in advance and make use of the holidays. But as usual getting the whole gang to decide on something and plan turned out to be a mess and i gave up. I had Europe in mind and by the time Ro got his company to approve etc., it was too late to apply for the Schengen Visa. I lost my interest by then. Some of our friends came up with the idea of Dover and Isle of Wight. I did my research online and found out there was nothing awesome about the place other than the scenic beauty. Now, dont get me wrong here, i love the nature and the beauty and all that. But I think, here in UK, if you have seen one you have seen it all. The castles, the coast, the hills...I have been to Wales and Scotland and have seen some of the most beautiful places on Earth. I know, i know, it may not be the same, but seriously an overdose of nature kinda makes me bored. There is a limit to how much ohhh’s and wow’s you can do. Also, it worked out a bit expensive and i didn’t think it was worth spending so much to see the same thing again. Of course we argued about it (we never let anything go without an argument!). Ro wanted to see the White Cliffs of Dover, but he didn’t and now blames me for it!

Anyways, coming back to my Easter lunch, it was a success, atleast i thought it wasJ. Ro helped me out a lot. Seriously, i would have lost it way before if it wasn’t for him. So a friend offered to split the cooking and i had to make pulao and chicken roast and she, prawn curry and dessert. Ro cleaned the chicken and marinated it the previous day itself. So it was a cake walk the next day and it turned out absolutely gorgeous (although i think we could have made a bit more, since it was just about enough for all of us) and was a good combo with the pulao. By the time everyone left it was about 8pm and we watched a movie for the rest of the evening. Revolutionary Road is a nice movie. Women stay away from it, men folk..watch it so you’d get an idea of what women really go through even todayJ

Day 2 was laazzzyy. Had leftovers for lunch and was watching a mallu horrible flick when a friend called asking if we wanted to meet up. So off we went to South Bank- a beautiful riverside stretch. Restaurants, markets, theatres, movie halls dot the river side and there are these free events like jazz concerts, dance workshops, art programmes etc open to the public. We walked around a bit and headed to the Jazz concert. I’m not that into jazz and so didn’t really get it. But it was a pleasant experience..some sipping wine and chilling out, some requesting songs and some soulfully into the music oblivious of their surroundings. Dinner was at Phoenix Palace, a Chinese joint. Ambience was good, a bit noisy though..but extremely child friendly (im not sure if that’s a good thing or not. I personally like it quiet). The tables were an inch apart from each other. You had to make sure you wouldn’t bump into the table behind you when you were taking a breather in between your courses. The pretty stewards running around in short skirts, who didn’t really understand or talk proper English, were obviously the highlight. Beers and wines followed and pork ribs and garlic chicken which were starters were nice. My aversion towards seafood was persistent and so didn’t enjoy the prawn dish (i forgot the name) but the duck in black bean sauce was just out of this world. I am not that adventurous and usually don’t try out meat that is not too familiar, but this was really really good. Ro was darn surprised about the fact that i atleast tried it out. The service is really quick, which is something i really appreciate while eating out. I found it a tad too expensive for a Chinese joint but, what the hell, when the food is good and the company even better you tend to not mind the exorbitant bill sometimes. Well this was one of those days. On our way to PP we passed by a Belgian waffle van and decided to come back and have that for dessert. Unfortunately they had packed up by the time we were done and so missed the chance. Now since the idea of having dessert was already in us, we decided to get some anyway. As usual none of the places were open (they close at 6pm, leave alone 10pm). So we headed to M&S, picked up a chocolate and fudge mousse and headed home. I wanted to catch a movie but Ro and this other friend who was staying with us were too tired and so chucked the idea (This is what happens when you marry really old men!!!). We however ended up watching Cliffhanger on TV, munching on the fudge.

Day 3 and 4 is way too long for me to write about. So il post that later.

New addition

2009-04-11T12:36:00.000+01:00

Ro bought me a really nice calamondin orange tree or rather bonsai and i am pretty kicked about it. Well i think he basically wanted to test me.. whether i could look after a plant before i have a child or somethin:). Usually people start with a dog (hint hint!!), but in my case first a plant, then a dog and maybe then a baby if all goes well. More than anything it looks very oranmental with the miniature oranges (which are very sour) and the fragrant white flowers. Take a look..

My 'oh so pretty' tulips

2009-04-09T13:41:00.001+01:00

Picked up some really pretty tulips from the Greenwich market yesterday. I need my house to look presentable when i have guests over:)

I also painted the vase and the plate its on. In case you are wondering what the guitar is all about..its a souvenir from Las Vegas. You can have your drink in it and keep refilling it at different stations. I had a cosmopolitan:)

Also, its the beginning of spring here and the trees have all started to bloom, new carpets of grass have been laid out and its a lovely sight from my apartment.

Confessions of a bad cook

2009-04-09T13:33:00.000+01:00

I just hate cooking and everything after and before that. Right from searching for a recipe online, to shopping for the ingredients, to cutting and marinating, to cooking, to cleaning up after my mess, to washing the utensils, it is too tiresome and by the end of it all you hate what you have made and don’t want to eat it. Ro is an absolute foodie and loves anything from anywhere. I am fussy, extremely fussy when it comes to food. I hate seafood after a bad experience of a fish bone getting stuck in my throat when i was five years old. I think i will carry that experience to my grave. I don’t mind prawns as long as it doesn’t taste prawny (seafood haters would understand what im talking about). So when i make a prawn preparation, i masalafy it so much it hardly tastes of prawns. I like chicken but not the legs (i don’t have an explanation for that). I don’t like the liver, gizzard and the like. Ro loves it but since its too yucky for me to handle i don’t, and if he wants he does the needful on his own. I am also not a big fan of Mutton or Pork. So that leaves me with very few options. The irony of it all..i used to do food reviews for a living. The first review i ever did was at a Chinese restaurant and they served me lobster. You really don’t want to know what i did!

Well, the reason im writing this is because, after a huge argument at the super market the other day, we bought cod fillets. Ro was supposed to make his signature dish but then i thought i would give it a try and made this really awesome fish curry. I was so proud (obviously i used the ready-made masala for it). But i improvised it a bit after tonnes of research online. It’s come to a point where i can’t survive without the internet. I need to even check how much water to put in while making rice (laugh all you want..but i manage to mess it even after all that). My first experience with rice was not so pleasant. This was right after we got married. I used to call my mom every other day and find out how to make dishes (i was trying to be the good wife who cooked for the husband). Anyways, i asked her how to make rice in a pressure cooker and she explained it to me. I have this habit of switching off after a while (a habit i have now excelled in after listening to endless conversations on IT security, data privacy and the like..courtesy my bestest half). I made the rice in the cooker and tried to open the lid immediately after it was done (yes, now you know why Ro insisted on a maid). The pressure weight went flying all over the place and there was rice on the ceiling. I freaked out and i have a phobia about pressure cookers ever since. There is a joke that goes around in my family, ‘if you go to Nisha’s for lunch, you need to take a ladder with you, cos you need to scrape the rice off the ceiling and have it.’ So now i just boil it on open fire. Takes ages, but i’d rather do that.

I cant do stuff off-hand. Ro on the other hand just needs an outline of the recipe and he will go on his own trip. Its like watching Rachel Ray enjoying her cooking. At the end of it all, he will have this satisfied smile and would enjoy the meal so much. I, on the other hand, would crib while cooking, after cooking, while eating and then hate the mess i have created and pray a genie would appear out of nowhere around this time and grant me a wish (a wish would be too little..many wishes).

Sometimes its irritating that Ro knows so much about cooking, that the one time i actually get a bit pepped up, he gives his suggestions and ideas and gyan about what to do and what not to, i get so pissed off. The same happened while i was making the fish curry and we argued about it (yes our lives revolve around arguing). But it ultimately came out really well and i read somewhere (thank you lord for google) that if it stays on for another day, the better it is.

I bragged about it to my mom, but she didn’t believe me. I brag about the stuff i make but she’s never tasted any of it. She says she’ll believe it when she sees it. Fair enough! I have guests for Easter and now I’m a bit tensed. I am not sure i can carry off a whole meal on my own. Back in Chennai i used to entertain guests every other day. I had a driver to go buy grocery, a cook who was just out of this world and a maid to clean after the mess. But this time its me alone and hope i can do a good job. In case i don’t catch you guys in a couple of days, it’s because I’m slogging it out in the kitchenJ

Happy Easter to all of you.

Cant really think of a heading

2009-04-07T11:01:00.000+01:00

The weekend was pretty amazing for a change. I actually ended up having a nice time. So here’s what i/we did.

I woke up on Friday with this extra oomph and was up and ready by 10am (it is an achievement for me because these days i don’t even bother waking up till 11 or so). Headed to Oxford Street- the busiest shopping area ever. There is this energy when you get into Central London. It’s bustling with tourists and shoppers and what not. It was comparatively a warm day and it was colourful for a change. Otherwise all you see are dull black and grey coats and depressing umbrellas.

I have a friend who works in Oxford Circus and so decided to catch up with her for lunch. She took me to this really nice Thai Pub called Masons Arms. I had the chicken Phad Thai noodle and Olivia had the Thai red curry with rice. The food was awesome and we thoroughly enjoyed it (the gossiping and the catching up was even better). Dessert was at this French bistro. I picked up a fig and peach tart and Olivia, a blueberry cheese cake. Continued our yak yak session and then i pushed off to galavant a bit more. Checked out quite a few stores on Oxford Street but didn’t buy anything. After a while i got sick of window shopping. That doesn’t interest me much these days you know. Whats the point when you cant buy anything. Also i have decided i would only shop when sales are on. Last year i bought this really expensive leather jacket and two months later it was on sale for Christmas for half the price. Felt pretty stupid.

Had to pick up some grocery from M&S and so hung around there for a while and then headed home. Fridays are pizza nights so i didn’t have to cook anything (not that i otherwise prepare a feast, but still). A movie and pizza was perfect, when we both had this urge to have wine. So off we went to the nearest store and picked up a 3litre can of wine (yes absolute drunkards). Watched Vicky Christina Barcelona and i thought it was just watchable whereas Ro thought Penelope Cruz and Scarlett Johansson made it worth (you seriously need to see the movie to know what he’s talking about..sigh!men..I say).

Saturday was good fun too. We headed out to Londons desi area called Eastham to have mallu food. There’s a restaurant called Thattukada and we hogged everything from soda lime to karimeen to full meals. We had friends who joined us there and so decided to catch a movie afterwards. Saw ‘Knowing’ which was an utter disappointment. Two and a half hours in the theatre without ‘Knowing’ what the hell was happening was torturous. We are on a membership card and so we pay a monthly amount and watch unlimited movies. Otherwise watching movies, that too in London, is super expensive. Anyways, we decided to head back to ours, drank up and called it a night at about 12. Sunday was laaaaaaaaaaaaaazyyy. Stretched outJ. Did absolutely nothing. Well, I did absolutely nothing. Ro went on a cooking, cleaning, tidying, ironing spree without complaining. Now that’s a good husbandJ

A brand new day

2009-03-31T14:08:00.000+01:00

Well, the bitch mode is on and its been that way for a while now. I am pissed off with anything and everything these days. I know i have been testing Ro's patience but hes not yet lost it. A lot has to do with the fact that i am seriously bored. An idle mind is a devils workshop and my mind is so screwed up it even puts the devil to shame. The days just crawl by and everything just seems to bug me. I pick conversations that would ultimately end up in an argument and then a fight (the 'you dont love me the same way you did, and i gave up my job and a good life back in India to be in this horrible country' are just examples). After three years of being married, Ro now knows where this usually leads to and so agrees to/with the things i say or just shuts up and listens to me go on and on about how horrible my life is.

I am not emotionally attached to anything (except my lovely clothes ofcourse) or anyone. I could easily make do with friends and Ro and end up not calling my family back home for ages. That does not mean i dont love them or anything. Its just that i take them for granted and expect them to know i think about them and love them more than anything. My mom recently complained about how my brother, who is in the US, and I dont keep in touch. She was pretty dramatic about it saying we would ultimately have only each other at the end and things like that. Its true we havent spoken in ages. We catch each other online once in a while and discuss stuff, then abscond for ages. But we both know for a fact that we are doing ok and absolutely love and care for each other no matter what. Ro on the other hand makes it a point to call his folks and sister every Sunday. He'd ask me if i wanted to call home and id be like, nah il speak to them later. And later would be really later. But there are days (like today) when i miss my family so so so much id just want to be with them. I call them up like a tough girl and fill them in on stuff out here. And then my dad says he misses me and a sob escapes. Id just want to be their little girl and not grow up at all. At that moment its like id do anything to just be with them. I'd speak to them for a really long time and then when i hang up I’m an emotional wreck. I pick on everything and anything and we go back to square one. Yes, i am quite an impossible person at times. Ro would say most of the time but its not true. I am not that difficult a person. Very few people are allowed to see this side of mine. I know for a fact that my best friends Riya and Sachu have been there and they sure can handle it. Riya knows me way too well, it sometimes scares me. Sachu will give a humorous twist to it and bring me out of whatever nonsense i am in. My mom would be able to figure out but i wouldn’t let her help me. She'd try for a while and ultimately leave me to handle it. Ro, nope he hasnt reached there as yet, but im sure he will. He is still struggling to handle me and understand me at the moment (newly married couples..no three years in not enough. Given a lifetime also i dont think men would understand women at all). But i so so hope he does get half way there atleast.

So ya, today was one of those horrible days and at the end of it all Im the one suffering. I don’t gain anything by doing so, other than make myself and the people around me uncomfortable. Its all because i am bored, unconstructive and jobless. So tomorrow is a brand new London beginning for me. The proactive me is gonna explore each and every nook and corner of London, start working out and maybe sign up for some volunteer work. I am so going to make use of my time in this country. Im allowed to brood and do my emotional trip once in a while, but i have promised myself i would snap out of it as soon as possible and look at things in a positive way.

Id also like it if Ro bought me some flowers tomorrow you know...just to pep me up a bit..it would be just perfect..but ya knowing him he’d ask me to just pick up the flowers i like. Why doesn’t he understand that id like anything he picks up? Well i did exchange the last two birthday gifts he bought me, but seriously how can people go wrong with flowers? Well that’s enough matter for a whole new post which i shall discuss another day.

Not too much of an optimistic start there eh? Well the bitch mode is jus fading away, there are still traces of it. Bear with me.

Anyways, I hope the weather behaves and i have the time of my life. Will update you on what happened.

Privacy eh?

2009-03-27T16:34:00.000Z

When we moved to London, numerous comments about where to stay came pouring in which confused us to the core. Certain areas in London are to be avoided for obvious reasons and since we were new to the place, we had no idea which place was known for what. I started my apartment viewing sessions and whatever I could gain from the area on my visit, I did but not to the extent of knowing if it was safe and secure. The estate agents obviously put the places up on a pedestal and paint a rosy picture. Some places gave me the chills the moment I got out of the station, others made me feel at home and those were places which were mostly far away in zone 3 and the like (London is divided into 6 zones. Zone 1 is Central London and you can’t afford to live there, unless of course you are part of the Royal family). The further you go, the more you get for the money you spend but it also becomes inconvenient and expensive to travel into Central London. It’s perfect for couples with children- huge town houses with gardens, parks and good schools- who wouldn’t have time to do anything else. But my whole trip of being in London was to be part of the scene. Take in the culture, events, food, theatre, concerts and everything else that London had to offer. London is a great place to be in summer, or so we were told and we succumbed to that blindly. We were left with very few options since we decided not to go beyond zone 2.

We were in a hotel in North Greenwich for about three weeks and we ended up liking the area a lot. So we hunted for apartments in and around that area. I found this one I liked a lot and was hell bent on taking it. It was just beautiful in my eyes. It was nicely furnished and set up very appropriately. Ro on the other hand was more practical and took into consideration space, wind directions, storage and important things like that which did not or would not have gone through my head at all. My face just lit up the moment the agent opened the door and Ro had to give me the stares to stop me from showing interest in the place because it would then be a negative point in bargaining for the rent. I just couldn’t hide the excitement. We left the apartment and then it was discussion/argument time. Ro said it was too expensive and was tiny for the amount we will have to pay. I defended saying we didn’t have to buy anything since it had everything in it including cleaning accessories and crockery and cutlery (which actually I’d hoped was not there because I loved going to the department stores and picking up stuff for the house), the tube station was a stones throw away (exaggeration) and the nearest dept. store was also walking distance (ya right, like I would walk anyway. I definitely will take a bus even if I can see the store entrance from my window). I could just imagine myself reading a newspaper on the balcony and cooking away at the shiny hob to which Ro replied, Nish you never read the newspaper, and making coffee is not cooking. Men are mean. Whatever you do for them, its always a joke, atleast for my husband it is. Hmmpff!!

Anyways, I was in the process of convincing him and there, we see an ad in the newspaper for another apartment and before I realize we are on our way to take a look at the same. We had to change two trains to get there and I already hated it. The apartment was nice, spacious, furnished (not as good as the previous one), had a gym, a pool, a convenient store and the best part, it was a 100 quid lesser than the previous one. This was obviously a good deal and this time Ro’s face lit up. We go and open the curtain leading to the balcony and there, the deal breaker, you can see what your neighbours are having for dinner or rather breakfast, lunch, tea and everything in between. Its like living with them. We take a walk around the area and its really dodgy. But then according to Ro safety is not much of an issue because immediate requirements can be quenched from the convenient store on site and major shopping is just a train ride away and the station is right at your door step. I do not agree saying I need to walk around and in Greenwich I can walk to the grocery store in which case we would be saving on bus fares. So then we discuss this apartment and I bring up the privacy issue. We could always leave our curtains closed, but then whets the point in having a balcony if we need to leave it closed, and summer can be hot. Now the difference between us desi’s and the locals are: we have issues about people peering into our personal lives. Here, no one really looks into each others apartments how much ever they are left open. No one cares what others are doing. People on the ground level apartments leave their doors and windows all open and wear the skimpiest of clothes and walk around. No one even looks and they know that. Its us desi’s who are so tempted to peer into the apartment and get all excited if we see a girl in an underwear talking on the phone or a guy with jus a towel around his waist. Its just natural for us to do that and we keep thinking everyone else wants to do the same. So I finally win the battle over the privacy and the safety issue after a lot of teary endeavours and Ro is sold on the idea it’s going to be menace. Yaay we get the fancy apartment in Greenwich.

So we now stay in a huge apartment complex with about 10 to 12 blocks and they are all far apart. We are on the 5^th floor and like I mentioned before, we have an amazing view of the Thames River on one side and the O2 Arena (where all the concerts happen, has restaurants, bars, pubs, a movie theatre etc.) on the other. Night falls, lights are on and there you go, everyone can see into each others apartments. Maybe not as clearly as what they are having for dinner, but yeah you can still figure out what they are up to. And here, its not just the apartment opposite, you can see what the inhabitants of the entire block is up to. There’s a huge garden, a bus and a car lane separating the two blocks and it’s still so so obvious. Its absolute time pass for me and yes I’m nosy (I don’t have a TV or a proper internet connection as yet). I just sit on my sofa and have a nice time ‘watching people.’ I vaguely made a comment a couple of days back about how we can see into other peoples apartments and Ro nodded back saying, well you should remember they can see into ours as well. (I conveniently forget the privacy argument we had and conclude its a menace). I get the, ‘this is what I was trying to tell you,’ nod and I shut up. So last night I was again cosy on my sofa all ready to apartment gaze (also had a book, just in case) and Ro walks into the room, switches off the light and takes his place next to mine. That way, they don’t see what we are up to; it’s just a one way thingJ

Since we made a mistake, might as well make use of it right?

PS: And by the way I take a bus to the dept. store and Ro takes a bus to the tube station. We have ended up spending double. I also do not roam around, atleast not yet. On the other hand I could have made use of the gym to shed the extra pounds I gained and used the money we would have saved to go on our Europe trip.

Moral of the story: don’t always listen to what women say.

Paid premium for what?

2009-03-26T11:06:00.001Z

Woke up on the wrong side of the bed and was pissed off right from then on. It was so windy and raining and the whole apartment was cold. Every morning i wake up hoping its a nice sunny day so i can have coffee on my balcony, but even nature is against me. In Chennai, where i was earlier, i had a huge balcony and it was a pleasure sitting there with our morning coffee and discussing stuff. I used to be late to work most of the days, but we still did so whatsoever. Moved to Nottingham and the whole apartment was the size of two of our bedrooms put together, leave alone a blacony. It was suffocating and we went from discussing stuff over coffee to checking mails and the like on our independent laptops. No words exchanged!

So when we were hunting for apartments in London, we decided to take one with a balcony so we could go back to coffee and conversation. I promised my significant other that i would serve brunch on the balcony and wine and cheese under starlit skies. Did move into one with a balcony and an amazing view, but i havent step foot onto it because its just so cold and windy. An option would be to head out in our thermals, gloves and boots and have coffee which would get cold in a jiffy. Whats the point of a lazy morning when you have to do all this? So now we have gone back to sitting at two ends of the room with our laptops convincing ourselves that summer would be better and its ok that we paid premium for a room with a view.

How it all happened

2009-03-25T13:47:00.000Z

So yes, I have decided to start blogging. Yeah i know, i know..too late for someone who's been associated to writing. But better late than never right? Well, this is, thanks to Jane who has been behind me to blog and now that i have too much time on my hands, i decided to start.

I remember going for an interview and the 1st question they ask me is, 'Do you have a blog?' ..a Blog, well..i vaguely remember a class on Blogs by a guest lecturer..ya right..you are in college and you dont even listen to your own class teacher, leave alone a guest lecturer! Anyways, i couldnt obviously ask them what a blog was. So i played around and managed to tactfully skip that question. I got the job, but i left it after a couple of months..
Now, after inspiration from reading other blogs, here i am kick starting my episodes with a rather weak one..lost interest already. Just wanted to see how it would look online :)