FACINATING MUSSOURIE

A North Indian Summer conjures up horrific images of dazzling sunlight and searing heat the dehyrdrating hot wind called loo. So take a few days break; and head for the little town of

 Mussourie in Uttarakhand. The road goes up the mud mountains of the Shivalik range.

Small town, but with many good hotels and eating places quite pocket friendly and pleasant place. Being a town developed by early British Settlers  the town manages  to transport you to a more gracious, less hurried way of life. Have a tummy filling, soul satisfying breakfast aloo paranta with curd and pickles.

Like all old British developed towns the main bazar for shopping area is called The Mall. Quite steep in climb, be careful , useful items, gift items, brass ware, take your pick. If you are in good shape walk upto the area known as Landour you find yourself transported difficult to believe ; calm clean, the hills with Deodhar trees rolling on for miles together on the undulating slops. Have lemon honey tea at “Char Doosan” – 4 shops – set up long back to cater to the needs of European Nursing sisters of the Military hospital . Savour the ambience, it will linker in your mind years to come. Have a respectful visit to the small church, now near 2 centuries old still a living church.

Descendants of British family who stayed back in India after independence still live there. Many of the old homes now belong  to locals but they retain their old names and looks.

If you are fortunate you may meet Ruskin Bond one of the most loved writers of India. Locals are very proud of him and assure you that he welcomes all visitors to his home. But he is now in his mid 80s; and it would extremely bad manners to disturb him. He is sometimes spent some hours at the Cambridge Book Depot in the mall and will autograph his books for you.

If you have some time to spare take a walk on the camel back road, it goes around the peak on which Missouri clings.The Himalayan range

can be seen from there often glittering with snow. – even if you cannot do admire the view . There are many small tea shops by the road of which  Mr. Bharadwaj’s tea shop is a place where you may meet many of the old time residents of the city, people who held high posts but have made the town their homes.

Instead of taking local sightseeing buses, hire a car and visit hathipau – where George Everest has settled. The garden is beautiful but the residential portion will collapse or slide down below to   the valley.

Dhanaulti  an Eco development park is worth more than a mere visit but Kemptyfall  you may well give a miss too crowded too dirty.

A Bit 0f God’s 0wn Country ....... Munnar

Kerala, the legend goes, is “God’s Own Country”. Spend a few weeks there and you will in your soul know why it is called so..........so many places to see; but to savour the spirit of Kerala you will do well to spend a few days at Munnar..........a not very big town in the Western Ghats range, ensconced in hills about 1700 metres above sea level.

Though only a small settlement some 150 years ago, British planters seeking suitable environment for Tea plantations began settling there, the beginning of a “Hill Station” for the British Raj elite in South India; and later the post-Independence elite, Government and civilian.

The old world charm still lingers, the broad streets lined with shops, hotels and restaurants to cater to the fancies of tourists from all over the world. And the speciality of the city seems to be home-made chocolates!  So many flavours to boggle your imagination  and leave a lingering regret that you cannot take home all of them.

Hotels and accommodations are aplenty ; basic large rooms with multiple beds to the OYO rooms to the most luxurious. Often there is no “service charge” for there is no room service- you get meals- very good meals- at some steps away. The Marwari meals at the restaurant of the Sujatha Inn are superb. Of course you can have meals of your choice at the literally hundreds of eating places lining the major and minor streets.  

For proper sight-seeing, a personal/private car would be nice, though all sorts of vehicles are available for hire. Moving towards Medupatty Dam, the Rose Garden is a couple of kilometres; worth a stopover.

and then you will move on through the Tea plantations; the green terraced   fields by the hill slopes, like waves of the sea, just awesome. Tea sales outlets are there every few kilometre .....Medupatty Lake  is a perennial favourite; a serene lake created by a dam, surrounded by the awe-inspiring mountain range...............take a speedboat ride for that “heart in mouth” experience; of course more sedate boat rides  are also available, but it is a good idea to book in advance. There are a couple of reasonably good eating places, with fast food and traditional goodies.

The Hypnotic Element

"Who is there in this world who has not at one time or other not dreamed of me?  I am Gold; when God created this wonderful world, He paid particular attention to me.  I am fascinating; to possess me has been the dream of Kings and conquerors ; for I am a storehouse of Wealth and Power.  Women, from Queens to commoners, have sought me; ornaments of Gold adorn and enhance their natural beauty and allure. ........

Nature has not created much of me, but has created me as a beautiful lustrous yellow metal with a reddish tinge, heavy, malleable and ductile; meaning I can be moulded into shapes or drawn out without breaking easily.  So I am in deep demand for making jewellery; and being scarce I am of high value; thus coins and bullion of gold are a safe form of keeping your wealth as it is not affected by changes in weather conditions- heat , cold or rain and time does not take away it’s lustre......

Most people prefer to keep their gold in the form of jewellery   and add to their holdings bit by bit. Due to ever rising demand from an ever-increasing population gold does not lose its worth; indeed the value appreciation is more than money kept in Bank. Besides, Banks have been known to fail, reducing the deposit receipts to no more than scraps of paper and often enough, turn the well-off  to penury.

But holding gold in the form of jewellery has dangers that that are often overlooked. For one, jewellery cannot be made from pure gold; base metals like copper has to be added to it to make it harder, there are labour charges for fashioning the metal into jewellery and the most insidious factor is what jewellers call “wastage” , apparently the gold lost in the process of making. So in broad daylight the quantity of your gold disappears before your eyes! Has any gold really been lost and the percent of gold in the jewellery is what the jeweller says it is?  The not so scrupulous jeweller will pass the item through a fineness testing instrument, but even testing laboratories admit that the degree of impurities vary at different places."   

So how is the buyer to protect himself in such a seller’s market? The answer is simple; invest in gold in the form of gold coins, and not jewellery, sold by Banks and reputed jewellers. Their fineness is certified by govt. approved labs , there are no hidden charges. And the best is that these coins are sold in a wide range of weights, so anyone can buy the quantity they choose and according to the occasion..... 

I recently bought a gold coin of Malabar Gold (through Flipkart) keeping the above factors in mind. It has been delivered promptly at my residence. It was packed in a beautiful box making it the perfect gift for my cousin’s wedding. I am glad that i opted for gold coin, that too through e-commerce . The seller also provided the purity certificate and proper invoice.  I have been telling my family circle to check this way of gold purchase when the next occasion arises………  

SISO HAIR DYE SHAMPOO

I heard of this product from my colleague from Delhi even though I am based in South. First I could not believe that there is a product like this without any ammonia and chemicals and purely an herbal type. I purchased this and used.To my amazement I could not believe a shampoo within 5 minutes can make the white hairs so natural black. It was awesome. I have seen hair dyes which one has to apply and wait for hours together to get black hairs. Not only that most of hair dyes are ammonia and chemical based which can cause skin irritation and allergies for sensitive skin.  That was the main reason I was avoiding hair dyes so far. There are other chemical free hair dyes such as Organic, SANAB etc. but the cost is too high that an ordinary person like me cannot afford to buy and use. But SISO hair dye shampoo is so cheap just Rs.30/- for a pouch and everyone can afford to buy. In the market SISO is the only hair dye which dyes as well as shampoo the hair. The hair looks so natural. In the modern busy word when people are so mechanical and no time to spare for anything, introducing such a good product like SISO is very good. I appreciate the company’s thoughtfulness in giving good products to the common masses in such cheap rates. 

The ingredients used in SISO are purely natural herbs, noni fruit, aloe vera, coconut oil etc. The usage of the hair dye shampoo is so simple like that of shampooing our hair during bath. Just wet the hair and apply this hair dye shampoo, leave for 5-8 minutes, massage it well in the hair. Wash the hair well. Dry it. The hair looks so natural and brilliant. The old age look has turned to be a young person’s look. Is not it a great thing what SISO is doing to the people because these days even an youngster’s hair is turned to grey due to mechanical stress and strain in life.  Not only this one can use the product without any fear as it has been certified by International and Indian Laboratories as an ammonia and chemical free hair dye shampoo. I am thankful to the company who had the innovation to bring into the market such a good product. I really liked the product and I give a hundred percent clearance to SISO HAIR DYE SHAMPOO.  For those who would like to use hair dyes, SISO IS THE BEST IN THE MARKET.  I have advised many of my colleagues to use the same and also got the product through online for my use  as well as my friends’ use. Thanks to SISO.

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HONEY THE WONDER MEDICINE

Honey is a sweet liquid produced by honey bees. Honey is a predigested food and  has been valued as a natural sweetener in ancient times. It has also been called liquid Gold as it has got the colour gold. This is made by bees using nectar from flowers.  There are many varieties available in the market and many big companies are selling honey. Honey is a wonderful medicine for many deceases as well as to boost our metabolism. Some of the medicinal effects of honey are: 

-        -  Reduce belly fat thus preventing obesity. Every morning upon waking up, drink a glass of luke warm water with a half fresh lemon squeezed juice adding a teaspoon of honey. With the daily use, the liver is given a support to clean the system. And when the liver functions properly, we can reduce the excess fat in the belly. Honey can detoxify the belly fat.

-          Honey Reduces Blood Sugar - drinking a cup of warm cinnamon tea with honey is one of the best ways to balance blood sugar, fillip metabolism and get rid of excess weight.

-          Honey Makes Excellent Medicine for Cough and Throat  Irritation - Ginger tea is a metabolic booster and when combined with honey gives an elixir for powerful and efficient digestion. Drinking a glass of ginger tea with a teaspoon of honey half an hour before a meal will encourage to stable blood sugar, maximum digestion and in turn making favourable calorie utilization and fact burning.  A few drops of Ginger juice mixed with a teaspoon of honey clears the sore throat and cough.

-          Honey Alleviates Allergies - Honey’s anti-inflammatory effects not only cures cough and cold but also can reduce seasonal allergies.

-          Honey is a Natural Energy Drink. One teaspoon of honey contains 17 grams of carbohydrates and it is one of the best natural energy drinks. It has got fructose and glucose which directly enters the bloodstream thus delivering a quick energy boost.

-          Honey can treat Burns and Wounds – Since it has got antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidants and has got   antiseptic qualities, it is ideal for treating burns and wounds.

-          Honey gives Good Sleep. Before going to bed, just have a teaspoon of honey. It gives you a sound sleep. It cleanses the entire body system and wakes you up refreshed and rejuvenated.

-          Honey is the main ingredient in most of the Ayurvedic Medicines due to its medicinal qualities.

Here I mentioned is only a few medicinal qualities. It has got much more to do in our day to day life. You can see a bottle of honey in every house hold for quick relief for acidity, cough and cold etc. 

Do start taking honey every day. 

TIPS FOR A HEALTHY LIFE

Today I wish to write about certain natural things about food which we eat for a healthy body and powerful mind. To have a disease free healthy body it is always better to go for home cooked foods. The food that we prepare from our home by oneself or our parents, contributes a lot about our good health and taste. Why it is giving good taste is because when we cook, our full mind with undivided attention is given. This increases the taste also. Today’s mechanical life, people do not have any time to cook food for themselves. They always rush out looking for good restaurants, hotels and Dabas. The magic of home cooked food is, it helps to have a pure mind which enables the person to have a strong body and clear thinking.  When we prepare, the vegetables are washed properly, grains are cleansed and rice is cleaned well taking away the dirt. Vessels are clean.  Mostly vegetarian foods are preferred by many. The reason is that we use less oil, spices are put less which allows our stomach to be light. Mind gets fresh and cheerful. To have a healthy body and mind we should practice taking our food which contributes to have disease free life. What we should adhere is take pure food,  e.g  morning the usual milk and light breakfast, lunch homemade rice, sambar, curry, curd, rasam etc. After noon around 4.00 pm take a cup of coffee or tea with light snacks. In the night take light food that too very early around 7.00 p.m.  – giving at least two hours gap before going to bed. Sleep around 9.00 p.m. and get up early morning. Start the day by doing Yoga or go for a brisk walk. Come back, have a bath, do your routine morning work with light breakfast. 

The stomach should never be too much filled. If the stomach is too full, one feels sleepy and lethargic. With good fresh light food, the mind is calm, healthy and cheerful. By adopting this way of life, obesity will never be near you. One is always happy, as fresh as a blossom of flower, active ready to do anything in an enthusiastic way. That mood makes people around you happy and cheerful like you. Select good friends and their company. Always be pious and God fearing. Speak and discuss happy things. Have kind heartedness. Be charitable. Help needy and poor. Live a life with purity and spirituality Read the life of Great Saints and Seers. Adopt their way of life if possible. Use these simple tips in your life and be happy always.

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Vinayaka Chathurthi Celebrations

Lord Vinayaka, Ganesha, Ganpathi, Vigneshwara is the darling and popular God of the masses of our Country. Ganesha Chathurthi or Vinayaka Chaturthi brings people together irrespective of their caste, creed of religion. 

Ganesha Chathurthi is celebrated with great devotion all over India. People bring home Idols of Lord Ganesha and celebrate the festival by worshiping the God. It can be for a day and a half, 3 days, 5 days, 7 days or 11 days depending on the family's tradition and culture. On the last day of worship the idols are taken out in a colourful and musical procession to be immersed at a river, lake or in an ocean in the traditional manner. 

Vinayaka Chathurthi is one of the most popular festivals celebrated all over India. Ganpathi is a popular God liked by one and all. He is the one who removes all obstacles in our life and gives success and prosperity. He can be pleased easily. The most favourite nivandyam of Ganapathi is Modakam, Ladoo etc. Once he is pleased, he bestows everything we desire for. For any good things we start, first we propitiate Lord  Ganapathi to invoke his blessings. He is the bestower of fortune and can help us in warding off natural calamities. Vinayaka is the God of Wisdom. 

In Kerala this festival falls in the Malayalam month of Chingam i.e sometime in August/September. This year in Kerala it was celebrated on 19^th of August 2015 whereas in other states it falls on 17^th of September 2015.  People worshiped idols of Ganesha and did milk abhishekam and Modaka nivedeyam as offering to the Lord . Temples were very crowded and people were standing in queue to have darshan of Lord Ganesha. There were fairs in each locality which included music concerts, dances and skits. In the evening a huge procession with the devotional music and bhajans were taken out through the streets, taking the idols of Ganapathi to immerse in the river.  People were standing in devotion to have a darshan of their beloved God. Hundred of vehicles decorated and illuminated were carrying big  Ganesha Murthis. When these vehicles were passed through the streets, it gives the mind joy and enthusiasm taking us to a spiritual realm. Devotes standing in the vehicles were singing and dancing shamans. I was thrilled to see my favorite God being taken away on the most beautifully decorated chariots.  A lovely sight to see. People shouting and chanting with excitement asking him to come again in the next year. I could not resist myself to share these memorable events. I could also get some photographs of the Ganesh idol processions taken through my street. I am eagerly waiting my Darling God’s Ganesh Chathurthi  to come again and again every year to give a chance for a grand celebrations. 

 May LORD GANESHA’s blessings be showered on all of us !

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