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What Lockdown is Looking Like for Me – Keeping Sane in Quarantine: Part 2
Read Part 1 here. Now that I have acknowledged and put my thoughts into perspective, I can have a clear mind for my other activities. Daily Household Chores You see, routine and regularity are the two R’s that maintain balance and stability in the mind and the household. With the lockdown in place, there has been a massive tipping of that scale. Routine disappeared and regularity lay in shambles. One of the key reasons behind this is the absence of domestic help. In a family of six people, this sudden change becomes overwhelming. So we suddenly ended up in a space where household labour was threatening to pile up faster…
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What Lockdown is Looking Like for Me – Keeping Sane in Quarantine: Part 1
After an unusually exciting beginning to the year and our 2-year anniversary celebration, the world suddenly came to a standstill. While we had only begun to ease into the new year by March, so had the coronavirus, without most of us knowing. When the lockdown was put into effect in India on 26th March, the virus had already started to rip the world apart. And before we knew it, the engines screeched to a halt. Earth was closed for maintenance. We went into the quarantine hoping that it would help contain the virus and things would gradually return to normal. Little did we realize then that there is only hoping…
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30 Quotes That Changed My Life
I have a habit of writing down good quotes. I used to have a diary for them and now they’ve all been transferred to a Google Doc which I access from my phone. So every time I come across a sentence that resonates and touches a chord with me, I quickly try to memorize it and write it down as soon as I get the chance. The thing is I never know where I would pick out a quote from – it could be from a song, a book, a prayer, a movie or even a conversation – which is why I’m always on the lookout. Now why the habit?…
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Sundarban – A Breather in the Mysterious Mangroves
I get asked this question a lot – what do you want to remember a year by? For the last two years, my answer thankfully, continues to be the same. Travel. Okay, so how do I count my blessings for last year? Here goes: Bali for a merry start to the year Koh Samui to ward off the summer heat Darjeeling for a Durga pujo cuppa Tajpur & Mandarmoni for a pre-Christmas jolly good time God has been kind, oh so kind. Tathagata and I had been looking forward to this year’s travel which we had planned to begin in May with bookings to commence from March. Needless to say,…
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An Ode to Winter: A Season in the Life
Winter is almost over. Every week a woollen layer is peeled, washed, folded and placed inside the wardrobe. It wouldn’t see the sun in the next 10 months. And here I am, holding on to the almost non-existent remains of the temperature dips. I’m a winter person to the core. Not a good choice for seasons given its short-lived nature in my city. But I shouldn’t have reasons to complain this year because winter had surprisingly (or not) extended her stay. It’s time for her to leave now. And the least I could do is pay a tribute. So this blog will take you through what this winter has been…
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Tajpur & Mandarmoni – Travelling With Friends
Tathagata and I have been living out of suitcases since we got married. We’ve been lucky enough to travel to more destinations than I have fingers in one hand in our almost 2 years of marriage. This video is of the last place we travelled to – Tajpur and Mandarmoni, both beach towns situated along the shoreline of the Bay of Bengal. We travelled with friends this time and it made all the difference in the world! Take a look. Thank you Arghya, Payel, Pritam and Indrani for making this trip a huge success. You are amazing!
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What do The Arsenal and I Have in Common? Tathagata.
“Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I don’t like that attitude. I can assure them that it is much more serious than that.” Honestly, doesn’t this Bill Shankly quote sound a bit too stretched to you? It sure did to me when I was introduced to it and the fanaticism of ‘The Beautiful Game’ in 2017. Until then, football used to be nothing more than 22 people chasing a goal across the field for 90 minutes. It was only another sport. And then I met Tathagata. Anyone who has spent time with a true football fan has heard the phrases, “We won!”, “We lost the…
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10 Things I Want to Remember About Darjeeling
While growing up, every year when Baba brought home the new calendar from office, a set routine was followed. The calendar used to enter the house before Baba, who stood laughing at the doorway at my enthusiasm. I used to hurriedly unroll the calendar with my cold fingers – the smell of freshly printed oily paper hitting my nostrils, the rush of excitement coursing through my veins, the glee of a to-be discovery shinning in my eyes. Paper cuts were ignored because two very, very important things needed to be checked in the calendar, so important that the fate of my entire tiny but mighty world depended on it. 1.…
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How to Get More Out of Koh Samui on a Budget – Part 6
Wait, I didn’t forget the essentials: 10. Use By-The-Kilo Launderettes Clothes pile up quickly once you are on a vacation. If you are not carrying enough clothes for every outing on your trip, you would need to get them washed. Almost every hotel provides good laundry service in Samui but at a high cost. Instead, I would suggest you to try out the coin-operated laundromats lining the streets of Samui. They are generally priced at 30 Baht per kilo. If you ask me, I’d say it’s a bargain. However, I haven’t had a first-hand experience of these launderettes so I cannot say for sure how good they are. Here’s what…
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How to Get More Out of Koh Samui on a Budget – Part 5
On to the next most important thing: 8. Shopping I have so much to say about shopping. Thailand is abuzz with charming, have-to-buy souvenirs. There’s almost nothing that you wouldn’t want to get your hands on. From beautiful wood art to jewellery and even paintings, you would want to take everything home. Sadly, you cannot. Remember luggage limit? So, you really need to be methodical about shopping. Bracelets are lovely, thoughtful gifts that do not weigh much. Try to look for the beachside vendors for buying bracelets from – they sell these for half the price of what brick-and-mortar shop owners do. There’s another thing that caught my eye on…
