Sunday, February 26, 2017

Burma Burma # food # experience # resturant # Gurgaon


If I meet you over a meal next time in Gurgaon, it has to be at Burma Burma.

Tonight's dinner was a wow experience savoring food, which seems to be close to authentic. The humongous wooden bells hung overhead are impressive and added to the aesthetics. Yes, Mayanmar is on the "soon to be visited" destination now :-)
The courteous staff had patience to decode some of the confusing names given to the less complicated dishes.
Khow Suey - on the menu it reads "Burma Burma Oh No Khow Suey" and is difficult to refuse.

Khow Suey
Trust me on the Pauske (steamed buns).We opted for steamed buns with mushroom filling - delicately sliced with a spicy tangy flavor which just melts before you get to realize its there.

Tohu Mok Palata- tofu cooked with onion, tomato and spices had a hint of coconut and appearance of chana dal(lentil). Served with small portions of paranthas (baked bread) is compelling to go for a repeat.

I missed taking pictures of the above two dishes to show you how interesting they are as in the description !!

Oh Na Na Nat Thi

Coco Piana on the desert menu figures out as Oh Na Na Nat Thi. Believe me, chocolate brownie is an old fashioned, the caramelized pineapples served with chilled coconut custard is surely the in thing.

Each dish had a local name on the menu, which sounds Greek would surely have some meaning.

Time spent wasn't enough to indulge on the other local delicacies and bubble teas - may be next visit will deliberately be on the empty stomach !!
   

Friday, February 24, 2017

A Taste of Hummus !!

 Tossed by the waves, but does not sink – goes apt  for Israel, the land of Jews and many contradictions!!!Incredibly beautiful, undoubtedly daring, complex and conflicted is what makes it more fascinating and was also the reason to mark it as my next destination of travel
Tel Aviv, standing tall by the side of Mediterranean Sea

Part of me gallivanting the South Israel included a trip to Eilat, a port resort town on the red sea surrounded by the Negev Desert. It was easy to explore the entire city in few hours on a bicycle. Experienced the desert wilderness on a 4X4 jeep . It roved us through the dramatic mountains carved in colorful red stone- breathtakingly beautiful with each dip and turn.


The country boasts on impressive art work by some of the world famous Graffiti  artists. It was indeed a very unique experience to walk through the streets of Florentin, a hipster area in the modern city of Tel Aviv, surrounded by colorful and artistic walls. The walls were illicitly scribbled and sprayed showcasing the underlying social and political messages- some controversial and some humorous



The Golden Dome of the Rock 
Jerusalem- my favorite of all the destinations in Israel !!
The ancientness of the city is not just in its centuries old holy sites but in the complex histories of war, religion and politics which also makes the place feel timeless.
The city of impossible contradictions is the origin of 3 prominent religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) and during its long history has been attacked 52 times, captured and recaptured 44 times, besieged 23 times and destroyed twice.
You can lose yourself for hours in the lanes of Old City (just 0.9 square kilometer of walled area with four uneven quarters - Armenian, Islamic, Christian and Jews) which has holy sites, significant to each religion.

The Western Wall
The Temple Mount compound in the walled city is a paradox of multiple beliefs. In the compound is The Dome of the Rock, an Islamic Shrine, from where Muhammad ascended to Heaven. The Jews believe this to be the site of their First Temple, from where the world was created. Surrounding the Temple Mount is The Western Wall, holiest site of Jews. Significantly known as the Wailing Wall with close proximity to the Heaven and the First Temple. The compound is under the surveillance with strong presence of the army. Tourists are allowed to wander around the compound post scrutiny at the security check point, however the entrance to the Shrine is prohibited.
In the Christian quarter is the Church of Holy Sepulcher. It is one of the major Christian Pilgrimage and is believed that the Jesus was crucified and resurrected here.
It is compelling to stop every few steps and absorb the stories of religious conflicts fermenting over the centuries in this tiny little space of the walled city.   

The West Bank Tour
West Bank is a disputed territory, earlier designated as part of State of Arab, captured by Israel in a six day war in 1967 along with eastern Jerusalem. It has strong military presence and entry for Israelis is forbidden in the West Bank, also known as Palestine


The Jewish tour guide got down the bus at the border and the narrative tour was further led by a Palestinian guide once we crossed the border. Conversations with him were interesting  as we got the  insight on the Palestine view of the territorial conflicts. Palestinian public opposes Israeli military and settler presence and  views as a violation of their right to statehood and sovereignty.
    
It was a day long tour with visits to the town of Ramallah, Jericho- the oldest city in the world and also the lowest place on earth 1300 feet below sea level and Bethlehem- the city of David as per Hebrew Bible and biblical birth place of Jesus as per Christians.  
The mosaics in these sites were intricate and incredibly old.
The harshness of the never ending conflicts in no way has dampened the warmth and hospitable nature of the people whom we met in the streets and restaurants here.

Beyond Jerusalem- Masada and The Dead Sea
Looking forward was the climb to ancient fortress, Masada, to watch the sun rising over the Jordanian Mountains and emerge over the Dead Sea. This is where thousand  Jewish Rebels committed suicide instead of  accepting defeat at the hands of the Romans in a war in 73AD.
After the  most spectacular sunrise, was awaited another adventure - the Dead Sea. Nothing amusing than floating on the Dead Sea, the lowest possible level on the planet, soaking the afternoon sun
Sun Rise View from Masada & The Dead Sea




Haifa
Up North has some of the most iconic sites. It was fascinating to visit the immaculately landscaped terraces of the Bahai Gardens in the city of Haifa. Halfway along the coast, between Haifa and Tel Aviv, is Caesarea which is home to ancient structures overlooking the beach with calm water.
My travel experience in Israel has proved that “Faith is the daring of the soul to go farther than it can see”. Ten days of back to back travel was undoubtedly the most exhilarating experience in the country which exhibits multifaceted faiths and ethos in its long history. I met some incredible people  and drooled on the appetizing hummus with warm pita breads, taste of which still stands fresh.


Thursday, February 16, 2017

Where can I find a Mother for you, Bosco !!

From the archives of 2012 or earlier....

Bosco is not deaf as he swings his body at the beats of the music when played loud in the car- he is hearing impaired. Bosco says his name with a thrust, as Burfi says it in the movie. He understands the sign language, so he is not dumb. Its been more than a year now since i have known 15 years old Bosco. He is not an orphan as Father and brothers of the missionary are his parents and more than 20 mentally challenged kids are his siblings.

But the biggest miss in his life is - he doesn't have a mother

His recent medical examination says that his hearing ability is negligible, though can be cured. There was some hope when i met Dr Ameet Kishore along with Bosco and his medical reports.

He came straight- medical science could have helped him with hearing and speech ability, if he was an infant. At his age, his mind cannot co-relate to the various sounds, words, languages, music, even if heard by his ears. Someone has to dedicate her life to make him understand what he hears and to speak. His mind is 15 years behind and its not going to be easy, he said.

Can you find a mother for him? asked the doctor. Only mothers can do this job out of selfless love, as it involves a lot of dedication. Father, Brothers, volunteers of the missionary, cannot replace a mother and i would not recommend implant which will frustrate a happy child.

The best bet is to support him finish his education.

Bosco has a beautiful handwriting, he is a bright student, arithmetic is his favourite subject, he loves to draw, he is appearing for Grade VI examination, his notebooks reflects he is a bright child. He can surely do much better, if exposed to good education. Bosco dislikes going to this special school as teachers are not helping him learn appropriately. Children picks up fight and he does not have friends here.

Top schools in Delhi / NCR do preach a lot about inclusive education, but do not practice in spirit. There is a huge gap to support this disability, i realised this after exchanging couple of e mails, phone calls, interactions and personal interview with some of the renowned educationists.
There is a lack of special educators in our country, at least the speech therapists for his kind of special needs

I wish and also believe, he will shine and do well for himself