Tag: bollywood

Hawa-Hawaii 2026!

Hawaii, has been on the places to travel list for a while now.
It would only be a destination that you would visit for any reason you would get!
And what better than a wedding on the island?
A long journey to get to the island,
another few hours’ time difference from California and a total of 15 Hrs 30 min from India.
We just kept resetting our watches & Food Cycle and just when our sleep cycles were set in Hawaii, it was time to travel back.

The travel from India ( Mumbai to San Francisco) via Dubai, yes. We flew Emirates and the first surprise we received at the check-in counter, was an upgrade to Business class for the Mumbai- Dubai sector and what a journey.
The flat bed and the service were what made Emirates fly better and fly differently.
The Dubai airport was silent and quiet with no crowds at the airport, it took us less than 15 minutes to clear immigration, Security and reach the gates.
The United States after a decade felt so different yet nothing seemed to have changed.
The dollar exchange rate changed a lot, things definitely felt more expensive, fewer staff around at retail stores and in the hospitality sector,
The Waymo driverless experience was a highlight of the California stay.
Before we knew it, it was time to head to Aloha.
The week we were to go there. It was stormy and floods were forecast.
A couple of days, and there were no
Signs of Rain, only sunshine and sunset around until it poured one night and changed a few more plans.
Hawaii – The first reaction is like Thailand, Phuket, a little like the Maldives and a lot like Goa India. But cleaner, Bluer and less crowded with very good seafood & meat.
And while we walked and explored the place.
Aloha as a state is almost twice as expensive as New York & San Francisco.
A little history!
In 1810 Kamehameha became Hawaii’s first king. The islands continued to have royal rulers into the 1880s.
No wonder the Suite at Royal Hawaiian was named the Kamehameha, a spacious room
And a huge balcony to enjoy the sunrises and sunset and occasionally the local cultural show from the balcony itself.
The hospitality & the service in the States is something that they need to learn from India.

Did You Know?
Hawaii is an island that has 132 islands but only 7 have been inhabited
Hawaii the Names comes from the Hawai’i Loa, a legendary figure who is said to have first discovered the islands.

Many beaches are filled with white sand, but other Hawaiian shores are covered with green, red, pink, and even black sand.

Hawaii is the only U.S. state with two official languages: English and Hawaiian.

Barack Obama the 44th president of the United States was born in Honolulu Hawaii

Sugarcane, pineapples, coffee, macadamia nuts, and flowers are all important sources of income for the Aloha’s economy.

Hawaii’s nickname, the Aloha State, is no mystery: Aloha is a Hawaiian way to say hello and goodbye.

No Texting While Crossing Street
Looking at your cell phone while crossing a crosswalk is prohibited. If you commit a breach, you will be fined $ 15-99. In addition, crossing at other than the pedestrian crossing is prohibited and punishable by a fine of $ 130 for violations.

Kenya – 2026!

Africa and Kenya have always been a fascinating region for me, It has been on the Bucket list for a while! And the reason we have always avoided it is that we were afraid of the “Yellow Fever injection” But since we already got our shots during the Brazil Visa! It was a matter of time, till we would be planning for Kenya!
But… A wedding in Kenya! Excited us! And one of the reasons we changed our tickets and plan for Egypt was because of the destination first and second this would be a fun family wedding to attend.
In the next 24 hours, we have reworked are plans and are all set for the Indian wedding in Kenya.
Kenya is popular for the Masai Mara for its lion & leopard spotting.
But, Amboseli National Park, was making news recently for its celebrity Elephant “Craig Super Tusker” who had passed away!

And Amboseli was also our wedding destination.
Arriving in Nairobi after a 3 hr flight delay from the airlines, We Were tired but fresh to explore the city, with just about one day in hand here!
The city’s roads were beautifully wide and smooth, the Traffic too was one of the worst we had experienced during the peak hours of locals heading home!!
The Food we ate was satisfying and yum! Greek food at a Greek restaurant for lunch and Kenyan food ( Beans, Vegetables and Rice) we tasted during dinner.
Kenyan! Has like a lot of other countries in the world, an Indian population who has settled there in the early 1900s and an Indian community that meets often!


A couple of things I learnt on my trip besides the fact already known that Kenyan Coffee is one of the best! Kenyan Exports a huge amount of Roses, to Europe & Tea to the United States.
This is a little insight into the Kenyan economy.
Let’s get back to the Kenyan experience- The Safari I am talking about!
The safari set for 5 am, with a hazy sunrise that had shades of purple was an experience of quietness and An Army of elephants walking together, zebras on either side and hyenas chasing, deer flocking together. We enjoyed the safari so much, we headed again for an afternoon one, trying to spot Giraffes and lions/leopards.
The afternoon safari… we were lucky to have spotted a couple of giraffes but none of the lions or leopard.
The different sounds, the calmness of animals and the early morning of Kilimanjaro mountain before it would play its hide & seek game was one of the highlights of the Kenyan wedding experience.
The wedding decor with backdrops of the mountains and simplicity of colours and florals made the whole decoration look beautiful without any OTT emphasis on filling up the space.
The grazing table during the cocktail dinner had space utilised well!
The Dholki’s during the afternoon mehendi was a vibe that stepped up the whole wedding mood for the coming functions.
While we were still soaking in Kenya, we had to leave for another destination…

A few facts on the coffee from Kenya:

Kenyan coffee undergoes a unique doublefermentation process, which sets it apart. After the beans are fermented and washed, they are soaked in fresh water for up to 24 hours and then fermented again to enhance the development of intricate flavours. This process amplifies the coffee’s acidity and brings out bright, fruity notes characteristic of Kenyan coffee

The eight coffee grades are:

AA: Large beans (20 mm) with the highest quality.
AB: A mix of A and B grades (6.80 mm).
PB (Peaberry): Rare round beans, highly prized.
E (Elephant): The largest beans.
C: Smaller beans.
T: Smallest, thinnest, often faulty.
TT: Light beans, typically from “elephants.”
MH/ML: Unwashed beans (Mbuni) with lower prices and a sour taste.
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2025 in Experiences & Journey’s

Indian Reader


Does India Read? Do Indians Read? 
And if they do what do they read? 
Well, India is slowly getting into the habit of reading books! And a lot of them have been enjoying reading books. But, this India that I am talking about is not the one that is into literature books. But, a new emerging audience of readers is discovering reading books is not for the joy of it. But, to improve my English speaking skills, Vocabulary and diction. These readers are the ones who make up the large population that we have. But again are we growing in numbers? Who enjoy reading Mythology, Romance, and Young Adult books. The authors who have successfully managed to capture their audience are the likes of Chetan Bhagat, Preeti Shenoy, Durjoy Datta, Ravinder Singh, Anuja Chauhan, and Robin Sharma to name a few…Others like Amrish Tripathi and Devdutt Patnaik are Gaining popularity amongst new readers who are interested in reading books. 
But, what are the avid literary Indian readers reading today? 
They are the ones who like reading Amitav Ghosh, Sudha Murthy, Chitra Banerjee, Arvind Adiga, and Arundhati Roy, which are some of the books which the other Indian audiences are reading. 
But, the positive side of the reader reading in India is they have started reading books of Indian authors from India.

Brazil! South America Journey

After Nearly a year of waiting! 

The trip  or opportunity happened. 

The 25+ Hours journey through the UK to Sao Paulo was slightly tiring. 

The first impression, Sao Paulo is a huge city! 

The architecture and construction are lovely. 

Water! No Water in the rooms! This was going to become a common observation as we would travel around the country! 

The restaurants too don’t serve you water. 

This was  quite alarming, Maybe the water isn’t quite hygienic here! Or maybe they aren’t hospitable or maybe they are going through a Water Crisis. 

Sao Paulo had the appeal of New York, Wall Street and  Fifth Avenue. The Liberade, Japanese Neibhourhood did remind me of being lost in Japan! 

The Food whether it was the local Brazilian Meat, Mexican Gucaomole, American Burgers, Italian Pizza, Thai or Japanese was the best in Sao Paulo. In the places we visited, we realised  they were either part of the best Restaurants in the World and Latin America or were part of the Michelin restaurant guide. 

The Cafes and coffee were also some of the finest we had here in the city! 

Rosewood in Sao Paulo. Ranked #25 in the Worlds best was truly an experience. Walking into the lush green arches and being welcomed by books at the entrance/Waiting area. As you make yourself comfortable through the hotel you pass through a couple of more coffee table bookshelves before you reach the restaurant, which you feel is in the middle of the forest. 

The Acai Berry Smoothie, Pastrami Sandwich and Burger were the juiciest, healthiest and most satisfying meals of our trip. 

Rosewood was a nice experience. 

The city, Was so clean with ample of dustbins, unlike Japan. Where you struggle to find even one. 

The shopping malls, Each one competing with the size and the interiors.

The weather, Yes, we did feel the heat waves.

The roads were so broad and well-maintained. It was a challenge to find even one pothole in the country. 

Rio was a tourist hub, and so was our instruction. Be extra careful while walking on the streets of Rio, After 5 pm avoid strolling on the street with Mobile Phones, Jewellery or Watches/Smart Watches.

The Sugarloaf Mountain & Christ The Redeemer have to be our typical tourist highlight. One for the sunset view and the other for getting the structure to the top. 

Copacabana Beach was going through a post-event pack-up! Madonna had performed a free concert two days before we planned to reach Rio de Janeiro. 

Language is a huge barrier! The locals don’t understand English and as Tourist, we had no understanding of Portuguese. 

Brazil has their measurement too! 

P being M , The universal Medium size, G being large, GG being Extra large in clothing. For Footwear too, they are normally a size or two smaller than the Typical US sizes one Wears. 

Salvador was a small quaint colourful city that would remind you  a lot about Europe’s small towns. 

While travelling across the city we flew through GOl or Latam. The local airlines of Brazil were always on time and internally we travelled through the  Uber App with minimum communication! 

Oh! One thing that was a huge disappointment was Google Maps! Often they did not take us at the right location, either 100 meters away from our location or would be pinned at another entrance/Exit of the same location. 

The Google Maps, were always not updated with locations that had been permanently closed or had being relocated to another location. 

In both of these times, We were faced with challenges on how to communicate to the exact location. 

While planning Brazil  I had also noted a few bookstores I wanted to visit in Brazil! 

To my disappointment both of the bookstores that were listed for the longest time as the most beautiful bookstores in the world had been closed now! One in Sao Paulo And the other in Rio. While I visited other bookstores across the cities. There weren’t any books available in English at all. 

Brazil with two of the most prominent global events like FIFA and the Olympics in the past decade is still not considered a Tourist Destination. With Food options, the Weather being pleasant,   Globally recognised homegrown Fashion brands and Warm and friendly people you wonder if the Country’s not being  Safe Image is playing a key role in tourism. 

Information: 

Currency: 1 Brazilian Relias = 17 INR, 1 USD – 5 Brazilian Relias 

Time Zone: -8:30 Hrs From India Time. 

Sao Paulo Guide:

Sightseeing: #saopaulo
@becodobatman.oficial
@japanhousesp
@ibirapueraoficial
@minhaliba

Cafes:
@confeitariacolombo : One of the Worlds Oldest Cafe! 175 Years old Cafe. #rio

Coffee: #saopaulo
@coffeelab_br
@89coffeestation
@takkocafesp
@wecoffee.br
@thecoffee.jp

Eat: #saopaulo
@ranchoportuguessp
@nbsteak @michelinguide
@aizomerestaurante – Part of @theworlds50best #latinamerica
@pingyangsp – #11 Best Place to eat in #Brazil

Taro Sushi – Michelinguide

@rosewoodsaopaulo -#25 Worlds Best Hotel @theworlds50best
@sisenorbrasil
@brazpizzaria – #4 best pizzeria brand in the World
@pecorinoteresina
@apizzadamooca – #77 in the Worlds Best Pizza

Chocolates: #brazil
@dengochocolates
@kopenhagen_

Personal favourite for Shopping :
@farmrio
@osklen

Stay:
@belmondcopacabanapalace
@santateresamgallery
@ferahoteis

Cafes:
@confeitariacolombo
@plagecafe
@cafeliercarmo

Eat:
@labicycletterio
@gurume_oficial
@omirestaurante
@restaurante.tereze

Mee copacabana palace

Shopping:
@salvadorshopping

Shopping Rio Sul

#saopaulo
@morumbishopping
@jkiguatemi

A few Facts:

Carry Cash & Change – The change isn’t easily available in the country.

Brazilian prisoners are allowed to reduce their sentence by four days for every book that they read.

Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of coffee.

Brazil is the largest orange producer in the world. Responsible for more than 30% of global production.

Brazil is the 2nd largest tobacco producer in the world.

Brazil is home to the largest population of Japanese people outside of Japan.