Heaven

 

I would like a piece of the sky

and a box full of breeze
Some fresh lemons
and may be a few stars

I would like some warm granules of sand
and the salty water from the sea
A bottle of fragrance from the wet earth
and a basket full of young giggles

I would like the colours from the flowers
and freshness from grass
A warm moist cake
and a bunch of wagging tails.                                     Heaven.

10 Things that I learnt in 10 months of staying Abroad

I moved to Germany from India exactly 10 months ago. It has been an brilliant experience. I have had many new things to learn. Have made some great friends belonging to different Nationalities, have learnt a new language, have even been a witness at a Chinese-German wedding. The 10 months here have given me 10 major lessons.

Lesson 1: Importance of respecting our language

Here everything is in German- websites, official documents, newspapers, everything is in German. So much so that the famous and delicious Nestle Condensed milk- Milk made- is Milchmädchen here. Even the biggest brands of the world make labels especially for Germany. People know English but they take pride in speaking their mother tongue.

On the other hand in India, It is cool to speak in english. Speaking in Hindi is 'so LS' ( low-society). Teenagers proudly say, I don't know hindi very well. New age parents are not teaching hindi to their children. We don't befriend people who don't know English. We even make fun of people who make grammatical errors. How many of us can write in Hindi without even one spelling mistake? Why don't we take pride in our language? Why is Hindi LS?

It truly hurts me that even at the Indian Embassy in Munich, the officer at the counter would speak to Germans in german but as an Indian when I spoke to him in Hindi, he responded in English and made sure that the entire conversation was in English.

Lesson 2: There is much more to a country than what the news shows.

For a lot of people, the country is only what news papers and channels show. Almost all people I met wanted to know about women safety in India. Sadly after Dec'12 India is viewed as barbaric and all the  Indian men as rapists. Some people have asked me openly and some subtly, some ask if the news is true and a few others have asked ' do women go out in Delhi?' A close friend said, she thinks every girl on the street is raped in India. I know that the women safety situation is not good but I still need to put in so much effort to explain that not every Indian man is a rapist. 

Similarly, Germany somehow is facing difficulty getting over it's past. I am asked so often if I am safe and do I feel secure staying here. Many think, hate crimes are all there is to Germany and foreigners are not welcomed. UNTRUE. I feel safe, secure and well respected.

Lesson 3: As an NRI, we have a lesser right to comment on the conditions in my own country.

Strangely just a few months of staying out of my country takes away my right to speak freely and share my views about my country. Now if I comment on bribes or how we as the citizens need to bring about a change, I am immediately reminded that I no longer reside in India, and how it is easy for me to say things when I am not living there. If I have a political view, I am told that I have all the comforts and earn in Euros. I am sorry guys but I need to tell you that you can't take India out of my heart. In fact living abroad I am more patriotic than a lot of people living in India are. 

Lesson 4: Indian are super brains.

Indians are generally considered very smart here. They pick up things easily and are intelligent. We are truly respected for our analytical and inferential skills. We don't realise it staying in India, but we do possess these in superb quantities. Another strong belief (which is partly true) is that most of the Indian men are into software ;). 

Lesson 5: Spanish are the European Punjabis 

Yes, this one is not related to India (or it is ;) ) but I have discovered Spanish are truly punjabi at heart. They talk aloud, hug everyone, dance like there is no tomorrow, love to eat, love food and are always talking. They make friends easily and even love Punjabi MC ;) What else can they do to prove their punjabi-ness.

Lesson 6: A smile breaks the barrier of all languages

No matter what language you speak (or don't speak) a smile always works. Just smile to say thanks or to say sorry or to say nothing at all- Just smile and you will get by.

Lesson 7: When making friends- don't choose on the basis of nationality.

People always asked me initially, Have you made friends yet? If I said yes, the next question always was- Indians? I some how never understood and still don't understand how friendship can be country specific. My closest friends here are Chinese, Spanish and German. They are my friends because I like them as people. I can not judge them or reject them based on their country of origin. I have learnt so much from them about their country, culture and above all my next lesson. 

Lesson 8: Everyone is the same.

The nationality does not matter. We all are human beings. We laugh on the same things, similar things hurt us and pain has no language too. On the first day of my language class I saw people as Iranian, Mexican, Spanish, Chinese, Russian etc. By the third day when we all laughed on the same joke, I realised we are all the same- humans. Our skin colours may differ but humanness is alike.

Lesson 9: The world loves POTATOES.

The cuisine from all the country consists of many potato preparations. We all love our potatoes, no matter what name we call it by- it could be aalo, patata, Kartoffel, or potato. It is aalo all the way. It is also the most famous picnic preparation almost everywhere.

Lesson 10: Learning a foreign language is not impossible.

I used to believe that I could never learn a new language. I just did not have it me. It was a strong belief until I started learning one. The first language class made sure my belief was strengthened but the second class onwards I realised it was hard work but fun. With-in a few months when I could talk to people who I had instinctively liked but could not speak to because they spoke no other language apart from their mother tongue, I realised all the effort was worth it. Now I plan to perfect Deutsch and may be learn another one.

When I lost a bit of my wisdom

                                           (This picture has been taken from the internet)

It took me almost 30 years to get wise. The process was still on, when the dentist told me I don't need to grow more wiser. In fact I should let go off some of it. He was kind enough to say that he would not make me a complete fool in one ago. It would be a step by step process. A little wisdom at a time in 4 easy steps and I would be back to how I began my teens- lets just say- not so wise.. At least nothing in my mouth to prove it.

I had never been to a dentist before. The first one I go to tells me - 'Sie haben zu viele Zähne" which literally translates to 'you have too many teeth.' I thought it was a funny thing to say to someone. After all 32 is the number of teeth we should have, or at least I thought so. Anyway, listening to the doc, I decided to become a fool. Took an appointment for Monday at 11.30.

I reach dot on time and am a little anxious. I have never had an extraction before. Of course, as I had never been to a dentist before. But the truth is I have never had any medical procedure. Don't know how anaesthesia tastes or feels and the biggest problem in the dentist's clinic is, no matter when you come, you have to wait.

The more I wait, the deeper I feel the need to breath and the faster my heart beats. After 15 minutes of waiting in the 'Wartezimmer/ Waiting room', a petite lady comes and tells me, ' Kommen Sie mit/ please come with me.' I follow her with heavy steps and shallow breaths. She tells me to lie down on the dentists chair and places a violet cloth round my chest. She puts a few instruments, which look like weapons to me, on the table in front and leaves the room, shutting the door behind her.

Now, I am alone in this room, dressed up by the nurse like a mouse ready for dissection, with these weapon like instruments in front of me. My thoughts are racing, my breath is shallow, my heart is beating fast. Any movement outside the door feels like dooms day is here. And time passes. 7 minutes later, I am calm. I think the storm has passed and I begin to breath normally. After a few minutes of the calm I realised that this was the lull before the storm. Time passes slowly, I check the time and I now have been waiting for 15 minutes on this chair.  Almost 20 minutes later as soon as I decide to surrender to my fate, suddenly a tall Man in his 50s walks in and shakes hand with me. The next thing he does is, pick up an injection. I had voluntarily opened my mouth seeing him, but as soon as he pointed the thin syringe towards my mouth, I closed it.

 I am brave after all ;)

He spoke to me and told me what he planned to do and I thought, for once let me act with the short lived wisdom I possess right now. All he wanted to do was give me an injection and pull out my teeth. I prepare myself, I tuck in my hands under my legs and wait for him to poke me with this weapon. I wait..... my body is stiff and mind ready for the pinch or poke I was about to feel. And he removed his hand from my mouth. I asked why did you not give me the injection? He said he did ! I got the biggest shock of my life. I thought dentists are supposed to hurt us, they are the pain masters in doctors, dentists are devils !!

Just like that he pulled out a bit of my wisdom and showed it to me. I smiled a bloody smile and we said our good byes.

I wonder......

I wonder how the leaves know when to change their colour,

I wonder how the seasons know when to come,

I wonder if the birds realise how beautiful they are

and I wonder if the rivers ever forget to flow?

I wonder how the smell of freshly cut grass remains the same all over the world,

I wonder how the wood burning in fireplaces reminds me of the hills,

I wonder how tiny the rain drops can be,

and I wonder if the ladybirds can fly?

I wonder how this universe was created,

I wonder if the big bang is really true,

I wonder how our body is so magical

and I wonder how much do I really know? 

I wonder if marriages are made in heaven,

I wonder if there is God,

I wonder how many colours truly exist,

and I wonder how much love there is? 

Oktoberfest

Living in Munich, it is our duty to visit the Oktoberfest. Hic ! We did, first day fist show types. Attended the parade, visited the beer tents and got drunk.

According to Wikipedia "Oktoberfest is the world's largest fair held annually in Munich. It is 16-day festival with more than 6 million people from around the world attending the event every year. The Oktoberfest is an important part of Bavarian culture, having been held since 1810. How it all started was with a celebration of King Ludwig-1's (Prince then) wedding. The locals were invited for the festivities. There was a horse race at the end of the event which everyone enjoyed so much that decided to have it every year. Hence, Oktoberfest was born.

Now the only horses that we see are in the Parade, which marks the beginning of the fest. I am sure no one remembers the race or the marriage. Now Oktoberfest is all about beer and b**bs. The traditional Bavarian attire for a woman, a Drindl, makes sure the women flaunt what they have.

Like I was saying, we did see the parade. It is a good experience. People dressed in their traditional clothes, the band playing local music and different beer companies in their buggies with horses, ladies dressed in their best, standing on the open buggies throwing flowers at the crowd. It was a superb experience. The number of people that were there to see the parade was unthinkable, in fact some locals had a brilliant idea to catch the parade. The picture was taken from a humble phone but check out the balcony of the house.

I tried my best to upload videos here to help you understand the experience but failed. Here is a picture of the entrance. This much I could manage ;)

Inside there are many rides, shops selling t-shirts, crazy hats and souvenirs, food stalls and of course BEER.

These hearts below are supposed to be made of ginger bread. They have different messages on them and are worn around the neck like a necklace. It could also be used as a cheeky way to propose or share your feelings as Oktoberfest is I think the biggest dating spot in the world. The numbers of people who meet their partners here is equally proportional to the beer served.

And of course the post is incomplete without the pictures of these ladies carrying 10-12 masses of beer together. A mass is one litre of beer and the glass is pretty heavy.

Our friendly American table sharer with a crazy beer barrel hat.

This t-shirt worn by a visitor describes very well what people at the beer gardens and halls are feeling. hic !

Time for me to quench my thirst for more Oktoberfest experience ;) ;) ;)

Pictures tell a story

Have found some truly interesting signs for bathrooms / WC , in Munich. Like this one is in the famous restaurant Ratskeller. Typically a Ratskeller is a restaurant located in the basement of the Rat Haus or in English 'The City Hall' of the city.

I loved the detail of how the Mouse is trying to protect himself ;) from the warm showers being bestowed upon him.

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Another interesting phenomena I realised as an Indian staying abroad-  For the world India means Gandhi, Yoga and delicious food. A restaurant in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, combined two of these together:

Never imagined that Ahinsawadi (peace lover, believer of non-violence)  Bapu (means father, as we fondly call him) would be a trademark for Tandoori food somewhere in the world. 

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Some of you must have seen the next one many times. For those who have not- what you see below is basically a bag dispenser. And it is no ordinary bag, this is a bag especially designed for you to pick up the poop of your beloved doggy and dispose it off properly. If you notice, there are very clear pictorial instructions of how to use the bag.

I found this interesting particularly because we in India are so used to throwing garbage everywhere. if we are eating something in a car, then the wrapper goes out of the window as soon as we open it. Empty chips packets, bottles and even used condoms can be found on the road. When we go abroad, our habits change completely, no littering at all. And when we go back to our motherland we praise how clean and beautiful 'foreign countries' are. I fail to understand what stops us from practicing the same civic sense in our own land?? 

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I have no particular story behind this one. It is a picture of a picture. We (me and my husband) spotted it at a tiny yet charming Italian restaurant in Valldemossa, a village on the island of Majorca, part of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands.

The place was full of paintings of legs and shoes in bright colours, which was a delight to watch. This was the only picture and that too in black and white. We loved the expression of the kitty.

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Here is the picture of that restaurant wall :   

The date Today

Certain dates become special to us. The reasons can be a million, the day we met some one for the first time or the day we were supposed to meet someone for the first time, the day we entered college or the day we graduated, the day we fell in love or the day we fell out of it. Whatever the reason, we just remember certain dates.

I remember today- it is close to my heart. The reasons changed over the years, but the day remained special. Since the first 16th September that I noticed, I have started something new every time this day came.

For me 16th September is a date for new beginnings and new hopes.

Today,
I promise myself to do better than I did the last year.
I promise myself to grow.
I promise to expand my horizons.
I promise myself to touch more lives.
I promise myself to share what I can.
I promise myself to fall in love more deeply.
I promise myself to create life.
I promise myself to take care of my plants.
I promise myself to be true to who I am.
And above all,
I promise myself to keep all my promises.

This day is a promise, like all the other days.