What brings me joy!

Year after year, my resolution every year is keep the calendar as open as possible and just go with the flow. And then the weeks start rolling and kids events, our events and general planning nature kicks in and calendar starts filling up. And here goes the first resolution out the window!

But then there are some times, when we consciously keep the weekends free for "just in case trips" especially the long weekends. This time around, the strategy worked. Except I missed a dear friends birthday and I need to celebrate with her! We could make a short trip on the long weekend and really reminisce with our friends, get amazing parenting tid-bits from a couple I think have gotten it figured out this parenting thing. And of course we called friends who were en route the road trip to see if we could pop in to say Hi! It worked out beautifully for this short trip!

Whilst in Pitt a cozy afternoon, Our friend had volunteered to take the kids to D&B, till this point I am not sure if it was for him or for the kids. But thank him for that since his wife, Sumit and me spend a wonderful afternoon admiring the Warhol Museum and then just sitting in a coffee shop for over 2 hours! (Sans Kids!) Of course Sumit found this amazing board game made in 1970's and that provided the right fodder to just truly "be in the moment"

There was no farce, no judgement, no pretenses, just the three of us bonding over this game and enjoying ourselves immensely! We had no clue how the time flew. During a conversation we asked a friend just hitting her milestone birthday. What's important to her to 2020? She being a highly self aware individual said "Do more of this(referring to the afternoon in the coffee shop), simple things but things that bring me more Joy" and as we continued the conversations over dinner with the rest of the family what she said resonated in my mind!! "Do things that bring more Joy"

Do I know what those things are? Definitely Not yet! But I will learn from her and Sumit's wisdom and may be do things and figure it out along the way.  If I could predict, a lot of them will be around food! But I am excited to learn over the course of 2020 and start a new tag "Bring me Joy".

And before you think we had an epiphany moment over that coffee, no, we made enough jokes over the 'Mary Kondo' philosophical viewpoint as well!

So you think about it: What brings you joy?

Seoul Welcomes you...

Driving into the city, that's what I read: "Seoul Welcomes You", not "Welcome to Seoul" as most cities with. This slight play on words, made me happy, I had a feeling it was going to be a good trip... and gosh, South Korea blew my mind (well and my back)!

Our trip was a sans-kids trip. A quick stop over en route to India! 4 days: A perfect trip!
DAY 1: 

We arrived super early and kick started by a peaceful beginning at Jogyesa temple. What a serene environment and the laughing Buddha did me in!


We enjoyed the palaces of "Gyeongbokgung", took pictures with locals in their attires and then enjoyed a colorful change of guard ceremony.

Walking around aimlessly and enjoying the subtle sights of "Hanok Village" including having a massive ice cream for breakfast!!! This was a highlight for me, it is truly a village admist a bustling city.

It was a crazy hot day and we needed food and more cold water and a complete meal. The 16 course Temple Food at San Chon. It took us 2 hours to finish the meal and boy was I thrilled!! Sumit did really good researching this place and this was a definite MUST DO AGAIN!

Jet lag creeped up and we checked in to our hotel and slept through. In the evening we went to check out the "Night Market" : Myeong-dong. Shopping till wee hours on jet lag just didnt feel right! Of course we did find the Korean Yellow tent shopping area!

We headed over to a Korean Bath House at 1 am.... and that my friend needs a post on its own. A 6 storey building with a traditional and super clean "bath house" experience. We came back to the hotel around 5 am and yep, you guessed it: Slept Again!!!

DAY 2:
We kick started the day with the "Namdaemun Market" and boy I could spend hours more without complaining. The colors, the street sights, the amazing trinkets left me wanting more!

 As always, tummy grumbled and we headed to a Tibetan place called" Potala" a must do. Some Chinese fusion food in, we headed out again to a "forest" in the bustling city center:

Cheonggyecheon: The stream, the breeze and the ability to soak our feet in the middle of the city was bliss.

Some silly pictures later, we headed up in a cable car to " Namsan" tower to enjoy un-interrupted views to the city.


Only when you reach up there do you realize how massive the city it. Some crazy love padlocks and ice cream later, we called it a night.

DAY 3:
This was our pre-booked "DMZ" tour day. The ability to see North Korea a stone's throw away, understand the history, the pain of the locals and see the love and want for unification between these two countries was just a sight! Hiking in the 3rd infiltration tunnel was so much fun and I thoroughly enjoyed the tour.
 

We then headed out to the "Gangnam" area.... i mean come on- Gang-nam style is a must see!
After a jet lagged nap later, we wanted to experience the infamous Seoul life! Party in Hongdae

We waited for cabs at 11 pm ... and eventually got a cab at 2 am... yep, and mind you we were in the most bustling part of the city... all cabs were already full and heading to Hongdae-
This was an experience.. and boy I felt old. 99% of the clubs dont let "Over 30" enter... yep... which meant, they chuckled us and told us "You too old" and we laughed sheepishly. I mean we took 3 hours to get here.. Some pleading and some begging later, only 1 club let us in. And we enjoyed some K-pop, some fun music and lots of college kids around! Nope, i felt right at home!!









And then... I fell.. on the stairs (My excuse: They were wet and slippery). Sumit says, I am too old! Oh well. Our night or early morning got cut short. And then for the next 2 weeks, I was out with a bruise on my entire back.
I could barely walk, I could not stand after sitting and lying down, haha, not possible. So the supportive husband did what he does best- got me a wheel chair and took pictures of the "Old Garima" and I coult not even protest. even raising a hand to hit him, was painful!

So day 4: for me was sitting in the hotel and enjoying un-interrupted movies while Sumit went for some fun trinket shopping for a bit!

So I left Seoul onward to India. With a back blown out, but lots of laughter, smiles and wonderful memories of the friendly people and "feeling old".

All I did was Chill!!

In the uber ride at some ungoldly awesome hour,on our way back from Manhattan to my friends place in NJ, the driver said" In NY the you can eat the whole world and experience the whole world"

And to think of it... it's true: Name the cuisine, it's there, you walk around in Time Square and within 20 ft of you there will be at least five different countries being represented. I Guarantee you! It truly is the "melting Pot" where you become one with the city and city becomes one with you.

Before my much awaited trip to NY, a friend asked: What's your plan in NY.
And I thought and instantly replied... well, nothing, just chilling.

For the time that we were in NYC and around... that's what we did... Chill.

Met our closest and oldest friends, played with their mini-me's and bonded, as always got inspired by our older relatives in the city, hugged a friend on a recent heart break, hugged a cousin on new love in their lives, laughed with our kid cousin, started where we left off with some friends, reminisced a lot and truly chilled. 

As I wandered hand in hand with Sumit for a bit in the city, I realise, the glitz and the glamor enamour me- EVERY SINGLE TIME. I am back to being the 12 year old when I visited NYC for the first time in my life.. and the charm, the heart of the ciry still continues to enthrall me.
As Sumit says- NY never gets old.... I somehow feel that's true.

To a trip, filled with chilling, to a city that never really truly sleeps, to re-energising, to re-connecting, to re-becoming young again. NY for me will always be.. a Charming City

What a week!!!!

I feel wonderfully relaxed and rejuvenated after a vacation and it feels good. This time around the Holiday's it was a stay-cation for us.
The vacation started with an exciting trip to the water park, followed by a week dotted with lazy lunches and even lazier dinners, meeting friends and sprawled on the couch. We  did manage to complete a couple of (time consuming) home projects, we slept in and above all we played a lot of board games and danced a little more!

Come January 1st, we are slowing waking up from the slumber of the vacation and getting ready for the back to school, back to work, back to scheduled life mode. As I call it, "Regular Scheduled Programming".
But on that last day of stay-cation, I wanted to end it on a bang!
I didn't want left overs from deliciousness before, it was too cold to step out for dinner and definitely didn't want to order in! But I wanted good food!!!

So I got cracking on it. Making one favorite dish for all 4 members for the dinner

Menu:
Cucumber Sabzi: For myself
Palak Paneer      : For Little Lady
Kadhi                 : For Miss Chatterbox
Ajwain Paratha  : For Sumit

I dont know what it was, whether the softness of the paratha, the heat of the kadhi or just the kids hogging the food without nagging (yes, even little lady) or us four sitting on the dining table and laughing through the meal, dinner was perfect!

A wholesome meal is a brilliant way  to kick start the Year !!!!

China... an experience

4 families.... 8 adults, 6 kids ranging from 20 months to almost 10 years of age making a 12 day trip to China. What did you expect?

We expected, fun, frolic and lots of memories and man.... it was all that and more!

Let me first get the following out of the way: This was a first one of the 'organised tours' we did and boy was that an experience. It was definitely very well organised, very hectic also very touristy at the same time. We covered a lot in the places in China but at the same time did waste some time at those 'sell ups of Jade market and Pearl Factories'. But not planning the minutiae details ourselves, travelling with such a large group and above all getting brilliant time together was perfect!!!

Now back to trip itself.
Our itinerary
Day 1- Day 3.5: Beijing
Day 3.5 - Day 5: Wuxi
Day 6: Suzhou
Day 7: Hangzhou
Day 8-10: Shanghai
Day 11-12: Shanghai- Disney

As you can see, lots of places visited and lots and lots of pictures and above all, memories to last a while, a long while!

I am not sure writing about every minutia detail of the trip would do justice, so i will stick to highlights!

For me, my biggest highlight was meeting my brother, SIL and my nephew. They flew in to do the trip together and though we were always touring and going from one place to the next, just having them sitting in the bus behind me and taking silly pictures of my SIL sleeping was just the best.
Dearest friends from Chicago decided to do this trip together and the giggle at the silliest of stories is perfect. I think travelling with friends and family is special, you can be yourself even if that means huddling the group to be on time!
Sumit and I rang in our dozen years together! Yep, we celebrated our anniversary on this trip. And it was amazing, since we fought a little, we enjoyed a little and as always fell in love a little bit more!

We scaled the Great Wall, wandered in the halls of the Forbidden City, lazed around at tea plantations, got massages, experienced jaw dropping Olympic Ceremony, rode the fastest train on the planet, cruised through canals and Shanghai skyline views and of course said Hello to Mickey in the Shanghai Disney!

All with a group of "my peeps"

More details to follow, but for now I have to leave you with this... the kids we traveled with are champions and troopers. We were all jet lagged, but they were super excited, barely any tantrums and above all they were more excited at learning and experiencing China and being respectful of knowing the world is larger than them!

Day 3, 4: Resort Stay & Journey to El Nido

Continuing the story of the Phillippines in a week, read here for Day 1 and Day 2

Day 3: Rainy days, but a stay at the plush resort with friends

This day started again with torrential rain fall and was our day with the friends. We had originally planned to take an island hopping tour and explore Mactan/ Lapu Lapu. But rain forced us to improvise and we all headed to the lavish pools of the resort.
So when it rains, we enjoy the pool even more! It's brilliant actually!

A lazy lunch and some more conversations followed. My friend and I decided to get matching tattoos (sticker ones) and this day turned out to be a lovely relaxed and fun filled day. By the evening, they were 'not' ready to return to HK and we packed and 'got ready' to head to Palawan/ El Nido the next morning.

I am so thankful for great friends, who adjust their own schedules to take a combined vacation. Though we met them after 5 years, it felt like we started where we left off and it was just simple and of course with a few more kids in the mix.

Day 4 A morning flight to Palawan and a long 7 hour drive to El Nido

Cebu- Flight to Palwan/ Puerto Princesca- 7 hour drive to El Nido!!!
The TRAVEL TIME is the ONE thing I wish I could change. It was really late that we found out about a a direct flight from Cebu to El Nido, so for anyone who is planning, do that. Cebu- El Nido direct
It saves you a day of travel time and this way you can maximize your time on the beach instead of travelling from one island to the other.

We reached El Nido around 7 pm and met our host of the Bed n Breakfast we had booked for. Tony was the sweetest host and really helped us navigate the local area. His BnB was one street off the beach and really in the middle of the activity hub, all the fun and frolic the city of El Nido has to offer. He made us feel so at home and went above and beyond to help us book our tours for the next two days.

Though we had done research and knew we wanted to do Tour A & C, he connected us to his known tour company Caldao Tours and booked us in for the next morning with a custom Vegetarian Lunch order. We walked around town, grabbed some dinner and then headed back for some rest and more sleep.

More on Tour A & C coming up

Day 2: Philippines: Oslob & Kawasan Falls

Before we had booked Philippines, one thing that was a MUST DO for me was the swimming with the whale sharks in Oslob.

WHAT AN EXPERIENCE.

Yes, the day was super long, we started at 5 am and ended at 9 pm, but booking a private tour, having a 10 seater van after a jet lagged flight was totally worth it, since when not doing the activity, we pretty much slept in the big van.

Note: Booking tours in Philippines is a big plus, they have really good cars, all in one package including pick up, stopping for food, activity, suggestions for local stuff and then they drop you back. It's quiet brainless during the day for you then and you are never worried about safety if you have pre-booked using a good company. I used Cebu tours for Oslob-Tumalog-Kawasan falls and they were really nice.

Now, we were driven to Oslob and the day started out with torrential rainfall. i was definitely nervous, but the tour guide/ driver mentioned to us, we will be fine So kids packed up and we headed out!
The drive was gorgeous, but taking the 18 hour flight the day before, we were all knocked out and slept until we stopped a a cute cafe outside Oslob.... we could see 15-20 boats in the water and lots of tourists.

But we started at the cafe with a local's breakfast of sticky rice and mango. yes, Mango, you can imagine our utter happiness. After breakfast and changing into our swim gear we headed to the Whale Watching tour area. Now, reminder: No sun-block allowed since the chemicals harm the whale.

Here booking with a tour company really helped since they had secured our permits and after our orientation of the 'what to do with the whale shark' tour we were loaded on the boats for a 30 minute 'swimming with the whale shark'

WHAT AN EXPERIENCE!!!

The whale Shark are peaceful and so massive. My older daughter V jumped in the water with us, but was nervous and stayed closer to the boat. The little one S stayed in the boat and awed the Whale Shark. I was half prepared for a 'crying session' with the little one, but she was super strong and stayed on the boat being our whale shark spotter.


Sumit and I swam or rather 'shivered' with these gorgeous creatures. We really tried to toughen up and get a picture with the whale shark, but were partially successful. This is definitely a recommended trip.

After the Whale Shark and the oohing and aahing,we headed to Tumalog falls, where more than the falls, i had fun on the bike ride to the falls and then the 'natural fish spa' eeeew, we all sat in the water, the fishes come to feed on the dead skin and eeeew, I could not do it for a long time, of course the older monster loved the 'spa' and Sumit was pretending to love it to.

These Tumalog falls are nothing to write home about, but just since the water was so shallow and th mist was worth it with the kids. We returned back to our cafe and Miss Ruth, the tour guide to enjoy a Vegetarian Lunch. These were by the far the best noodles I have had. So simple and so earthy and so delicious, These lemons, were tiny, juicy and tangy!!

A little more relaxation and then we bid farewell to Ms. Ruth and headed to Kawasan falls. Again the drive though gorgeous, our jet lagged bodies forced us to deep slumber. By the time we reached Kawasan falls, it was pouring down really hard.

But we braved it out and hiked a mile to reach the Kawasan Falls. Complete disclosure, I added this to  our custom tour, one can do Oslob and return back, but I really wanted to explore these much spoken about falls.
The highlight here (minus the rain) was the clear water and the raft ride which takes you below the falls. After much waiting and getting wetter in the rains, the three of us went on the massive raft and were 'water massaged' on it. The little one decided to stay on shore and watch us. Good call. The pressure of the water is crazy hard and though it was amazing fun, it would not have been worth it.

We hiked back and enjoyed some coconut water. And then drive back to Cebu was loong. I think about 6 hours. We were all knocked out solid. By the time we reached the hotel, we were exhausted and tired and happy to see our friends.

We freshened up and met our friends for dinner and some more cake and conversations which are never ending.

Day 1: Flight into Cebu and relaxing in Mactan

Day 1:

Our flight into Cebu was via Taipei and of course flying on my Birthday Day, going east means, I lose a day since I cross a date line, my Birthday was less than 12 hours long. And that was not fun. 

But my kids and friends and hubby made up for more than that.... they sang Happy Birthday whenever, I got flowers, cake and more cake and lots of hugs, so in effect it did become a 10 day birthday celebration! So no complaining.

After reaching Cebu, we reached the hotel to be greeted with their delicious fresh fruit juices as welcome drinks and our friends and extended long hugs. For the Cebu portion of our travels, our friends, their cute 15 month old munchkin had flown in from HK to have a combined vacation and catch up. It was really awesome to see them and be able to coordinate our chutti together.

We started with pigging out on food, after a 20 hour flight getting daal tadka with palak paneer in the most unexpected place was awesome. The one thing we were warned about Philippines was its not vegetarian friendly, I disagree, the pounds I packed in my trip also disagree with you.

Anyhow, after pigging out on food and see the 15 month toddle around, we headed straight to the beach for some sun, sand, snorkel and sand castles. Then the pool and then our friends had renter a private villa with a private pool. So heading into their pool with some 'desi music' and kids going crazy swimming, life is good. It was the perfect start to the vacation.

By the time dinner time came, kids were zonked out and before the meal was served. I think it was more helpful for having them sleep then eat, so they slept, we ate and caught up with our friends and of course there was cake!!!!

We crashed early tonight… well midnight is early when you are with friends, since we had the next morning of our much awaited trip to Oslob, for swimming with whale sharks!

More to come!

Ziggi Ziggi

Ziggi Ziggi

Meaning Ok Ok... and that was not the only word we learned in our ten day trip to Phenomenal Philippines.

The trip was wayyy more that Ziggi Ziggi, it was simply astounding!

Philippine’s is a cluster of 7500 plus islands, breathtaking natural beauty and really simple and happy people. We are left mesmerized and would love to go back and explore more of the islands some day!

We visited two main islands: Cebu and Palawan. Our itinerary is shared below with more details to follow soon

Part 1: Cebu

Day 1     Reach Cebu @ 10 am, Meet friends, beach, pool, private pool and luxurious dinners

Day 2     Full day trip to Oslob and Kawasan falls: Swimming with the Whale Sharks yay!

Day 3     Rainy days, but a stay at the plush resort with friends: Pool time, chill time, Catch Up time!

Day 4     A morning flight to Palawan and a long 7 hour drive to El Nido : Looong travel day

Part 2: El Nido/ Palawan

Day 5     El Nido: Tour A: Caldao Tours : The lagoons, the day at the sea and the lovely Asian hospitality

Day 6     El Nido: Tour C: The beaches, the boat and the sun and breathtaking views and snorkling

Day 7     Early am drive back to Palawan via the Underground Caves @ Sabang: A Natural wonder of the world along with a zip line with the kids… the longest zipline over the ocean!

Day 8     Stay at the resort with Sandbar, boat rides, water slides and a local dinner, a relaxing and pampering day

Day 9     A few more water slides and then fly back to Cebu for more beach/ water and local candy shopping

Day 10   11 am: fly back to Chicago and day dreaming of the beach!

Day 11  Settle back to reality and relive the fun of the trip

This trip was dotted with a combination of really action packed days, some long travels, some really chillaxed days and meeting our dear friends after 5 years!!! Yes we did all this in only 10 days and we all wished it was longer. Philippine’s though really far from Chicago was totally worth it.

Indian Army: A story that need's to be told

As I read up on the Uri attacks, my hearts fill up with sadness. 17 Indian Army men lives lost in this cowardly attack.

We recently visited Leh & Laddakh and were guests of the Indian Army. After spending a week with our Indian Army, I feel one Indian army man equals the courage, the strength and the humility of 20 civilians combined.

The story of the Indian Army needs to be told- not in the 'Indian Bollywood way' but their true stories of sacrifice, spending months away from family, having the willfulness to actually so something for the country. The way I see it, we as Indian's sleep peacefully while the Army (as a matter of fact our navy/ air force) stay awake and protect us.

Being an Indian, I love Bollywood, love the movies, the fun, the gossips, the drama, the music and the vibrancy of Indian Film Industry. But today, to them I say: One thing you fall short on is showing the true nature of our Jawans (Soldiers)!!

Within a week of the one-on-one time with them, my entire family was often brought to tears as we heard their daily lives.

Here are some excerpts of stories from a week:

Mr S-ji, is a Kargil veteran, he was with us for the entire week. He recanted stories of the war: His best friend from school who joined army together. He helped his friend and his lady love elope and get married; they went through training together, cared of each other's families like they were their own! In the Kargil war, one evening they sat and wished each other luck. Mr S'ji's friend said- please tell my wife no matter where I am, I will always care! The next evening they come back to the base camp and Mr S finds out his friend was martyred! It's been over fifteen years, but Mr S'ji eyes were moist. He said- he feels this guilt that he lived and his friend died. He questions 'why him', he has this guilt every time he visit's his friend's family- maybe he could have done something different to save/protect his friend.

Another Army Jawan- Mr. X, let’s call him is a Kargil Veteran. He was telling us very simply about the "Tiger Hill Capture'. In the snow clad mountains, they would go for days without food or water. There were days when they came back to the base mountain to get one poori since all Jawan's needed food and supplies were running short. He told us of a story that they had to kick ice with their boot's for some ice to melt and they could quench their thirst. He told us the eve of victory night for the Tiger Hill, he was tired, hungry and exhausted. His colleague told him, carry this extra food for the night- Mr X's response:' Just give me the Tiranga (national flag): I just want to hoist that on the mountain!! That's the only extra weight I want to carry- food can wait!”

Mr S'ji tells us about his son, similar age as my daughter gets to see him may be 2-3 months every year! He was describing a story of building his house in his hometown. And though the civilians see the army uniform- they are not shy of asking him for a bribe to get the 'house plan' passed or get 'electricity connection' going! For Mr S'ji- I am here on the border, truly serving my nation and here these civilian's ask me for a bribe to build a house with my hard earned money!

We heard about the disparity of 'hardship pay' A Jawan stationed in the Siachen gets an additional hardship allowance of say 100$, but an IAS officer stationed in the urban city of 'Guwahati' gets a hardship allowance of '100$*5' How is that fair?

We visited the army base camp near 'Tso Moriri' lake. We had the privilege of having lunch in the Officers Mess. The camp, the Jawans, the officers all had the largest smiles and unspoken humility for us. They were happy to have my little one play with their hat or show my older daughter the 'pistol' from one of the wars. I was wondering- may be watching my kids- they think about their own families, little sisters or a life they could have had!

That evening we met a really young officer and we asked him- Why army:: He responded : Why not? This young officer from grade 9 knew the army is what he wanted:- he went to military school, studied did everything he could to get to the army. Nope, he has no family in the army- it's just what he wanted to do: Serve his country!!

I can go on and on about these little conversations, the stories, the valor, the courage, the sacrifices... but they won’t be enough!

These are the stories that need to be shared, the movies that need to be made! Bollywood, you know I love you- But I really want you to show the true army! Their stories. It might not be 'masala movies' but it will be something that will inspire you and me!! may be it will make us think twice before we ask/ give bribe. May be it will make us salute a passing soldier; donate a little something to their families!! 

Just a little something for them so that they know- we care, or at least we acknowledge and really appreciate their hard work.

As I sip on hot tea in an air-conditioned office: I remember the Jawan's who blew our minds in ONLY one week!

One of them- asked us what we did professionally- and all I could say was: Nothing! Nothing compared to you

We are fishes in disguise!

I really don't remember when I learned swimming; it was just something I did with my dad. Every morning, he would wake my brother and me up early, really really early. We would go for a swim, race with each other, learn new strokes, play, and shower, come home for breakfast and off to school. This was our routine for most of my formative years.

I love water, water based activities and so much so that, when Miss V was 5 months old, she was in the swimming pool. That was the one thing, I knew I wanted to do with my kid(s), swim, enjoy in the water and laze by pool side.

Sumit and I make sure there is at least one beach bumming vacation a year.

 Over the years, V has continued with swimming lessons, playing with us and just 'chillaxing' in the water. Her first 'Big Girl' water slide was in the cruise ship when she was just over 4 years old. She was scared the first time, and then was on -repeat rinse- mode. There is no stopping her.

For Little Lady, S, the water story is similar. We introduced her to the pool early on and she has her moments, but all in all, once in the pool, is hard to get her out. She has the biggest grin when in water and the 'splash' game never ceases to amaze her.

This weekend was perfect for us: A water park.

 Not far from city, five families meeting there was fun in the indoor water park/ resort. 6 kids and the water, oh my gosh.

Little Lady was on the slide. I am not exaggerating when I say that she went up and down the water slide for more than hundred times! And Miss V, she scaled the largest slide, the slides in which even I held my breath for the first few seconds. She was scared, but she kept on going and going.

Miss V and Little Lady ruled the water, we were with them. Sumit making sure Little Lady came down the slides as many times as she wanted and I ensuring Miss V went on the craziest water rides/slides as many time as pleased her. It was fun to be in the lazy river with Little Lady napping on me and Miss V and I holding hands and relaxing. We are fishes in disguise!

 Needless to say, Sumit and I laughed, did the slides to our hearts contents, enjoyed with our friends and really loved to see all the kiddos bond so well. After the water, kids slept, dads hung out together and the moms had a PJ gossip session. Was perfect.

I can't wait to do this in peak of winter when in Chicago it will be just snow outside and heated indoor water park and us. Along with laughter, water slides, amazing company and laughter, lots of it!

A memorable vacation.. for us.

While the kids are enjoying themselves with Grandparents, Mama, Maami, I was left sulking and whining. On any given day you are bone tired by 8 pm, but at 9pm, when you peek in their bedrooms and see them snoozing, its rejuvenating. Kids do that! It's refreshing, makes you count your blessings and yes, get ready for next day at Casa De Chaos.

I digress, Sumit sensed me being home was too painful without the kids, so last minute, we headed to Toronto, Niagara On the Lake and Niagara Falls. 3.5 days of complete bliss, relaxation and well moments when you wish the kids were just with you to snuggle with. And you can't say no when a vacation starts with this!

We booked our hotels an hour before we took on the long drive from Chicago to Toronto. The 8 hours drive became 11.5 hours thanks for July 4th rush. But our drive was beautiful, we chatted, listened to 'our' music, caught up, reminisced and just unwound.

Next day after a scrumptious Indian meal in Brampton, Canada (Come on, you can’t go to Canada and not eat delicious spicy Indian food!).

We headed to Toronto to our fabulous hotel- Shangri-La. What a treat! Sumit had called prior, we entered an upgraded room with a box of chocolates and cake. Just perfect and yes sooo romantic.

This was my first time in Toronto, and I wanted to visit the city, but the room and the hotel was so luxurious, I didn’t want to head out.

After much cajoling, we headed to the Distillery District. It was like time stood still, we lazed out in art galleries admiring very interesting pieces. I participated in a small salsa lesson. Was so much fun, under the Toronto sun. (Poetic, eh?)

We held hands, walked and before the sight of any kids laughing would pinch my heart, Sumit would point to the next interesting art work. With the World Cup scores in background we cheered, shouted and well laughed. A Lot. It reminds me of the countless hours we have spent in the Italian Piazza's- Town Squares!

Tired, we then headed to the 'Dunda's Street' time square. We caught the end of an amazing victory of Brazil. Walked around a little more and with exhausted feet headed back to the hotel. The plan was rest, freshen up and head to the lively night life of the city. Come on, no kids, there is no reason to be indoors at 8pm!

But, a detour to the hotel Jacuzzi, pool and Sauna followed. I have no idea where the 3 hours went by. The cabanas were so inviting after the swim, I read that book I have on my night stand since 2 months. Smile. I think time stood still.

We returned and swore we will be out in 10 minutes. And then I said the famous last words, ‘Let me lie down for 5 minutes” The next I remember was waking up, stumbling across the room to see the time as: 11:15 am. Yes, next morning.

Aaaa! So much so for not calling it  a day at 8 pm! It was such a nice feeling to wake up that late, that refreshed and that hungry.

We then enjoyed the sights and scenes of the lively China Town. Eating lychee and drinking sugarcane juice in the heat was perfect. We then walked some more and headed to the harbor front and spend the next few hours looking at the water, the planes, the cyclers at the AmsterDam Brewery! The wood fire pizza was so delicious, the service impeccable and the ambience, pure bliss.

Time to head to the Falls. We made a quick detour to the Niagara-On-The-Lakes. Such a charming town, walking in the lazy town, having ice cream and enjoying Crepes. I think this was the town my kids would have gone crazy in! In a good way, there was an ice cream shop every 10 steps. I kid you not.

The Niagara Falls are breathtaking as always. Our room overlooked the falls, and with the view, you could gaze out for hours. Which I did while Sumit tried his luck at the casino!

We walked and talked on the Falls Ave Strip, enjoyed the liveliness in contrast to the relaxed walks in Distillery.

Next morning, we swore, we will wake up when we wake up. A 11:15 am call woke us up from the slumber. After a heavy meal, we headed to the 'Horn Blower' The Maid of the Mist. It’s my third time at the Falls and I think I will do this Every-Single-Time! It was enjoying the spray of the water, catching the rainbows and just taking it all in!

With heavy hearts and relaxed bones we drove back to Chicago. I think the getaway did us good. The best part, I know the next road trip to do when the kids get back from the Grand Parents.

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