Spend weekend in Florida, Pensacola Beach. It was amazing. The water was just right, not too hot, not too cold, not too deep, big waves and sparkling white sands.
Showing posts with label Travelogue. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travelogue. Show all posts
This time last year
This time last year, I was holding up the Tower of Pisa. LOL.
Italian Vacation during spring break
Do you know that PhD students don't get spring break like the undergrads. We sure could use that break for sure. Its been a crazy semester.
I was holding up the Tower of Pisa
With a tilt and a twist, like Galileo's wrist
Galileo throwing objects from the top
Law of falling bodies nonstop.
Chilling on a houseboat
This is where I would like to be today on my birthday.
Chilling on a houseboat in the Kerala backwaters
(photo taken a few years back)
Chilling on a houseboat in Kerala's backwaters
Coconut trees sway along the shore
The sun dips low, painting the sky with colors
A serene moment, that I'll forever adore.
Seatbelt? What is that
Seatbelts? What is that.
This is the way to ride to school. Students in school uniform on the back of an auto. Carefree joy!!
Photo taken during a 2018 India trip in North India.
The worst enchilada ever
Thick and rubbery Tortilla and not tasty filling.
The worst ever enchilada ever at Chuy's Tex-Mex
@nashville, TN
Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation
History of the Industrial Age - Trains, cars (including presidential cars), planes, tools, steam engines, farm equipment, art glass, furniture, clocks and more all under one roof.
Manimandapam and Kanchipuram Silk
During my (short) summer trip to India, got to visit Manimandapam, samadhi (resting place) of the late Kanchi Shankaracharya. A fantastic work of architecture. Refreshingly cool inside (natural AC) amidst the blazing heat outside.
A visit to the Gosala outside the temple.
And got to go sari shopping in Kanchipuram (famous for silk) with my Kapil Maama and Anu Maami for my cousin Ved's Poonal.
Got to see the mill where they handweave all the saris. And they use punch cards to feed in the patterns.
Vacanza in Italia
Italy was a vacation of awe with art, architecture, music and countryside, all rolled into one trip over spring break
First it was Florence - highlights- Vasari's fresco on the ceiling of Brunelleschi's Duomo , Michelangelo's David, da Vinci interactive museum with his inventions, Uffizi museum (too many magnificent works of art) and the Medici chapel (Donatello sculptures). You can just stare for hours at the profound simplicity of the scenes and the thoughts the David statue evokes. And the exterior sculptures of many of the buildings were quite breathtaking as was the Neptune fountain.
As delightful as the Uffizi museum was, the sheer volume of art became too overwhelming at some point (too much awe!!) so had to leave after 2 hours(i guess there is a limit to a person's ability for "accommodation" /cognitive shift aspect of awe, which made me think of what some autistics had written about in my awe study). But did manage to see a good part of the museum, Botticelli a definite favorite.
Day in Tuscany- Siena (cathedral with black white striped Moorish influence architecture), the medieval town of San Gimignano (claims world's best gelato and tower houses - one room per floor, tall and narrow) and Pisa (climbed to top of leaning tower).
Venice was delightfully unique indeed with its canals and quite different from Florence. But extremely crowded with tourists. Highlights were the gondola ride, the vaporetto rides, snacking by the waterfront, the ceiling of St Mark's cathedral with its byzantine influence, frescos in the Doge's palace, and a Vivaldi 4 seasons concert. I totally noticed my mouth open, jaw drop as I was listening to Vivaldi, quite mesmerizing, and it was like my body became still, and out of body feeling (the physiological sensations associated with awe).
We also took a day trip to islands in venetian lagoon- Murano ( glass making, somehow not so awed, over commercialized) , Burano (saw an old lady make lace as well as a whole bunch of pigeons trying to cleverly outwit each other over a piece of sandwich I accidentally dropped) and Torcello which had a lovely Roman chapel, only 10 residents but a few hundred tourists.
Planned to visit Verona (of Shakespeare fame) not happen as covid travel test arrangements took up good chunk of day.
Have to wonder why Euro door knobs are in middle of door instead of to the side. Was it all about aesthetics of a symmetrical pleasing look. Turns out that the central placement of a door know provides greater leverage and ease of use, especially in the larger/heavier doors and it makes it more difficult for intruders to open the door as force must be applied directly to the center of the door rather than at the edge where the lock is located.
I held up the Tower of Pisa
With a tilt and a twist, like Galileo's wrist
Galileo throwing objects from the top
Law of falling bodies nonstop.
Kollu Paati
This artwork from the 1920s-1930s, still in its original frame, was made by my Padmasini Kollu-Paati (great grandma) - died 1958. She was quite the entrepreneur, ran her small home based milk business, and has even made speeches to mobilize other women to join the Indian Independence Movement.
Some of the relatives from that branch of the family run the Gandhi Ashram in Selam, Tamilnadu. Another aunt of my grandpa went off to live and do social work with Harijans in the villages, which is pretty progressive for a femail from a conservative Brahmin family of that era.
Fossil
My late Raghavan Thatha liked to collect fossils. This is not a piece of wood but actually a fossil and as heavy as a stone. How cool is that.
Harrapa Artifact
My late Raghavan Thatha (grandpa) worked in archeology for a while. Replica of an artifact - Harappan seal from the Harappa archeology digs from the time of the Indus Valley Civilization. 2600BC-6000BC
Tongan Kava Bowl
My late Raghavan Thatha (grandpa) also spent many years in Tonga. Tonga is one of the last remaining Polynesian monarchies in the world. This is a Tongan Drum and a Tongan Kava Bowl. Thatha & Paati (grandma) have been to many traditional Kava ceremonies.
Tree Cup
Afternoon snack of Dosa with Muruga Sambar made by Paati, accompanied by Green Tea with Lemon and honey in a cup that's shaped like a tree trunk.
Remote Instruction, International Edition
So I'm in India for a few weeks.
I had multiple varieties of kuzhutattai for breakfast. Kuzhukattais are traditionally steamed rice balls with sweet or spicy stuffing inside. They just got more creative. The white one is made with palm sago, there were ones made with Ragi (Millet) and also upma kuzhukattai.
A variety of spice and sweet Lip-smacking and finger-licking varieties.
Remote Instruction, International Edition
Remote Instruction at the table your parent used during their schooling. No laptops back then!!
A Variety of Kozhukattai Experience
The tiffen scene in Chennai is quite interesting.I had multiple varieties of kuzhutattai for breakfast. Kuzhukattais are traditionally steamed rice balls with sweet or spicy stuffing inside. They just got more creative. The white one is made with palm sago, there were ones made with Ragi (Millet) and also upma kuzhukattai.
A variety of spice and sweet Lip-smacking and finger-licking varieties.
Murunga's Three Feet Long
Freshly harvested Murunga Drumsticks (Moringa Olifera). Murunga's are loaded with good nutrients right from Vitamin C to antioxidants with many parts of the plant used in ayurveda meds. I've never seen a muruga drumstick this long before - its over 3 feet long. And these look fat and juicy too, when cooked.
I'm think I'm getting a yummy Murunga dish from Paati (grandma) tomorrow. Can't wait.
Competitive Cats
The cats at my grandma's place are seriously competitive. It saw me hugging grandma and demanded - as in meowing away loudly and pawing the rug and couch - to be be given room on the couch so it could get in on the love.There are actually 2 cats here, one on each floor and each possessive about its territory. The downstairs one (Chinni) never goes up and vice versa for Feather. The upstairs cat is quite old and decides to meow away in the middle of the night for food.
And did I mention the visiting fellows. A couple of cats turn up at the backdoor several times a day and meow for food. My Paati promptly feeds them. These cats never venture inside else they face the wrath of the house cats.
They are too funny. LOL
Lifelong Learning
My Paati (grandma) likes languages and at 82 doing courses on conversational Sanskrit. Got distinction in her last exam too.
No cats competing for this Paati's attention. Lol
Healthy Idly's
Breakfast today was healthy Bajra Idly's
The Ubiquitous Masala Dosa
Evening tiffen was Masala Dosa with sambar and chutney served on a banana leaf
and filter "Kapi" (coffee) served in a tumbler and dabara (saucer)
Happy Tamil New Year Everyone. Its the herald of spring.
My first Tamil New Year in Tamilnadu!!
An elaborate and delicious naivedyam lunch made by Paati (grandma) and Athai (aunt) with mor kuzhambu, kootu, 2 karamadhis, vadas, green mango pachadi, carrot payasum and more. Delicious and served on on a freshly harvested banana leaf from the garden.
It usually rains on Tamil New Year and the weather did not disappoint. Complete with Thunder. Rain is considered auspicious, means things will go well.
Banana Leaf Lunching
Warm delicious Paati samayal (grandma's cooking) on a freshly cut banana leaf from the garden.
Eating traditional style on an organic, eco-friendly, biodegradable plate with extra nutrition thrown in.
Extra nutrition? Polyphenols (think micronutrients in plant based foods packed with antioxidants) in the banana leaves get stimulated from the warmth of the food and get absorbed into the food along with Ascorbic Acid, Citric Acid, Ca and Carotene in Banana Leaves.
Can I get a banana leaf every meal?
Eating with fingers? Its a natural exercise and builds dexterity for the fingers and the hand (kind of useful for someone like me actually with poor fine motor skills). It's slows down eating and brings about greater awareness of texture and taste, a.k.a mindful eating.
Eating with fingers? Its a natural exercise and builds dexterity for the fingers and the hand (kind of useful for someone like me actually with poor fine motor skills). It's slows down eating and brings about greater awareness of texture and taste, a.k.a mindful eating.
And isn't seeking sensory experiences an autistic thing? LOL Using silverware actually lends to faster eating.
Faster eating is linked to Type 2 Diabetics. Silverware actually lends to faster eating.
Ayurveda says nerve endings on the fingers stimulate digestion and improves blood circulation. Incorporating the five elements represented by the fingers - starting with thumb - space, air, fire, water, earth - is holistic eating. Somehow the Colonial legacy has meant that such indigenous cultural practices were frowned upon. That such things were "inferior" and made you "less than"
This sound familiar? - that the disabled mind-body is somehow "less than"
Image Description: Young male of South Indian origin eating food served on banana leaf. Also seated at the dining table is his grandpa with his grandma serving them food.
Ayurveda says nerve endings on the fingers stimulate digestion and improves blood circulation. Incorporating the five elements represented by the fingers - starting with thumb - space, air, fire, water, earth - is holistic eating. Somehow the Colonial legacy has meant that such indigenous cultural practices were frowned upon. That such things were "inferior" and made you "less than"
This sound familiar? - that the disabled mind-body is somehow "less than"
Image Description: Young male of South Indian origin eating food served on banana leaf. Also seated at the dining table is his grandpa with his grandma serving them food.
#PaatiSamayal #GrandmaCooking #EatingOnBananaLeaf
Nungu Time
Chewing into delicious water-filled Nungu's
Nungu in Tamil, the Palmyra palm fruit is a wonderful dehydrater for the 99F heat of Chennai, packed with Vit A, B7, C, K, Fe, Na and minerals.
I have absolutely no idea why the Brits wanted to call a Palm fruit as Ice Apple. This is not a fruit I would associate with an "Apple" on any level.
Centenarian Plus
Still comfortable after a century.
Sitting on a centenarian spinning wood chair, from 1920 - belonged to my great grandpa, Sadagopan Iyengar.
From 1920 to 2021 - that's centenarian plus
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