Our original plan had been to get back to Mumbai from Ayodhya, and then fly out that very night – thankfully, we eventually planned for a day’s buffer. With the flight from Ayodhya delayed by several hours, it would have been a scramble to get to the airport in time! So we had a nice…
Author: Gauri Kulkarni
Spiritual journey to Ayodhya
Ayodhya has been our list ever since the Ram Mandir was completed 2 years ago – and this trip to India, we finally made it happen!! Flight options from Pune were limited – no direct flights to Ayodhya, but with options to fly to Lucknow, Varanasi or Delhi. Going to Varanasi, or even Prayagraj, was…
Hiking in Zion National Park
With our annual India travel just around the corner, we usually don’t plan anything during Thanksgiving break – I think our last Thanksgiving trip was New Orleans in 2019! This year, Manasi was gone all summer for her internship – and how could we let a whole year go by without a family adventure?!! So…
The ABCs of the EBC trek
Hard to believe it’s a year already since we were on the adventure of a lifetime!! May 21st, 2024 – Ajey, Manasi and I reached Everest Base Camp! It had been a long journey – far longer than the 12 day trek itself – not just physically, but also mentally!! And although it definitely took…
California Dreamin’…
Ajey and I were last in California for our first anniversary – a good 24 years ago, and I had a solo trip before Manasi was born – and even that’s more than 2 decades! And then in 2020, Manasi found her Hindustani vocal guru, SO, who first lived in San Diego and then moved…
Walking on sunshine
San Francisco!! We had just about one day here, maybe day and a half – and in unabashed tourist mode, Manasi had a list, and we were determined to check off everything on it!! We started by driving through the North Beach area to Telegraph Hill, admiring the gleaming buildings of downtown SF, including the…
Wind in my hair, I was there….
So, the title is a dead giveaway, isn’t it?!! YES!! This blog is about how Manasi and I got to see the incredible Taylor Swift LIVE on the last stop of her ERAS tour!! And seeing TS was the absolute grand finale of a week with back to back performances! First up was Manasi and…
EBC trek – THERE and back!
George Mallory once famously replied ‘Because it’s there” when asked why he wanted to summit Everest. Being in the mountains, I certainly came a little closer to understand this fascination – why so many risk life and limb to conquer this ‘Third Pole’. Even as we were preparing our final trek to EBC, a famous…
EBC Trek – Onwards to Dingboche!
You know, in a very basic way, each day was pretty much the same – get up, get dressed, same breakfast everyday, toast and omelet, and then start walking. Break for lunch, usually momos and fried noodles, a brief rest, and then walk some more to reach the destination of the day. An early dinner,…
EBC Trek – Reaching Namche Bazar!!
This story starts a long time ago – 13 years ago, April 2011, the last few months of our stay in Chennai. One of the professors in Manasi’s school, AISC, organized an annual hiking trip for graduating high-schoolers to Everest Base Camp – EBC. AISC parents were welcome to join – and Ajey jumped on…
A 3-movie Sunday!
Of course, the picture is a spoiler – yes, we did see Fighter on Sunday – to be more precise, it was one of the 3 movies Ajey and I ended up watching on Sunday. Definitely not the norm for us, and definitely not planned – and but as you will see through the sequence…
Sacher torte in Vienna
Ok – this is what always happens! I get a good start on the vacation blogs, I’m flying through – and then, life happens and the last one, the wrap-up post, always gets so delayed. Anyway, better late than never – that truly should be the motto of my blog!! So, Vienna!! The way our…
A place called home... 