Travel wishlist

Ever since being smitten by the travel bug and randomly packing my bags for anywhere and everywhere so often, these are some nick-nacs I wish were available at my local supermarket...

1. Disposable socks...coz you know what it takes to walk barefoot around all the temples to gaze at the splendid architecture..
2. Sanitizers are handy but why do I not see liquid handwash pocket sachets like shampoos...
3. I make my own travel kit from a larger pack...but wish to see ready travel kits for tea or coffee...u see it saves time at the last minute
4. Disposable toothbrush-toothpaste kits..yes why not?

Do you find something missing in your travel too...do add in your comments...

Polar bear of a kind!

I was recently presenting at the India Design Festival which was a part of the CII-NID Summit where I spotted this stranger in the parking area. It is Hetal Shukla's Polar Bear! Freaky to touch though a complete attention grabber.
Poor thing, stood still in the afternoon heat, hope it did'nt smell of all the sweat!

The letter

Ink, Croquil and some lazy time well spent...

The letter arrives


Image detail

Rackety Rack : bartans to books

The old rack for utensils in the kitchen had caught little spots of rust and was of no use. Almost decided to give it out to the radddiwalah, I still gave it a second chance.



A little weaving and painting, and it now serves perfectly as a book rack in my office!

Mumbai weekend getaway : Harihareshwar and Diveagar

No, this wasn't a trip to a religious place as it may seem. Within a range of 200-250 kms. by road from Mumbai, these are actually one of the most spectacular beaches of the Konkan belt (western coast of the Indian subcontinent). Equally enjoyable and thrilling is the drive down the Goa Highway. The ghats, the serpentine roads, little villages on the way are fascinating frames and subjects for the lens men.
As we go gallivanting in the hills, we are in for a double bonanza-The sea view emerges from the bushes on the hill side! (This is my first tryst with the coastal belt so I am obviously surprised by this view)
It is season time and we have risked coming coming all the way to MTDC Beach Resort at Harihareshwar without any prior booking. But we get lucky with the one and only room left for our new year's eve. In our excitement we forget al about the tiring journey that began early in the morning and head straight to the beach for a short walk and look around. Even at noon the water looks inviting, but we decide to keep the swim for the evening. After a mouth watering prawn curry and rice preparation, it is time to give ourselves some rest.
The golden light of the evening sun almost makes the whole setting appear surreal. The water is warm from the day as we go in for a splash and finally bid adieu to the drowning sun. We snore blissfully into the new year as our phones are out of network connectivity here.
Our next destination is a small Konkani village in Sreewardhan, Diveagar. A few kilometers down, this place is sheer heaven on earth. We halt by a 6 km. stretch of virgin beach on our way. On reaching Diveagar we land at the Patil Lunch Home and order a local thali, which is quite a mouthful. After which we think it might be a good idea to take a walk around and soak in the village culture. Primarily everyone here is into fishing. Some locals even sell homemade goodies like sherbets, sweets and namkeen. It is cool and peaceful under the dense vegetation of tall coconut and palm trees. We find a place to get into our swimwear and head to the beach as the sun gets moderate and evening is setting in. This one's even better with the huge waves that are ideal for a dip. We learn to keep ourselves abreast of the waves that challenge us each time. It is fun!
Reluctantly we sit back in the car as our holiday comes to an end still dreamy eyed about the good times we had in just two days.

Mumbai weekend getaway : Matheran

This weekend we decided to explore Matheran, a small hill station near Mumbai that our friends had told us about for long.
To reach here one can take a train from Dadar to Neral and then get onto a narrow gauge toy-train up into the hills. However, we went via Pune collecting a bunch of old friends driving all the way around Lonavla, Khandala etc.
It was a short two hour drive on the Old Pune Highway which I loved. This route is much scenic in contrast to the mundane Expressway, ofcourse if you have enough time on hand.
Once you reach Matheran, you leave your car at the huge car parking at the entrance. We reached here by afternoon. Unlike the northern hills in India, these hills never get excessively, unbearably cold. The weather here in winters is just perfect for a vacation. We did not have any bookings and am glad about it as the hotels on the internet show a very dreamy picture. Its best to go there and see what suits you and your pocket.
Walking can be a pain for someone who is looking for a luxurious vacation on the hills. But we loved every bit of it. Incase one tires out there is either the horseback or a hand-cart. After a lot of exploration we finally got a place to stay close to the main market. (FYI, the train would drop us at the market itself.) The market has several footwear shops and mini eateries to spend time at.
At the end of the day when you've had your fill all you care for is a goodnight sleep. Mornings are beautiful I suppose like the others said as I spent it getting that extra doze which I can hardly get back home in the city.
We walked around more, exploring the various points mentioned in the guidemap. If one likes spooky settings there are way too many here. Abandoned lodges, hollow tree trunks and the likes. Little nicknacks on the way. Kokam soda, a red colured, sweet and sour drink was interesting and instantly refreshing. There were little games for entertainment like loop the gift, target etc. Almost like a mini fair.
It was time to head back to the car parking before dark. This time we walked along the tracks, taking the train route and this was even more pretty.
Matheran, I say is a breath of fresh air. Almost literally!

DesignMembane blog

Helos to all! My studio turns Uno and just to initiate some more meaningful conversations on work and design from DesignMembrane I have started a brand new blog :

http://designmembrane.blogspot.com/


Do let your comments flow in.

P.S. I would still be writing on the SWAT.CH. Analysis about my experiences with life in general.