Hi

Have logged into my blog after few days. Don't really know how days are flying... very very hectic days are following me ....tutions, my work as the editor of our association magazine which we have to make it ready by this month end for publication, my duty as a mother ,wife is taking a toll.

Hope my work as editor goes well nicely and I along with Alok da  is able to keep up the expectation of the people. We are also holding two competitions for the kids...have got good feed back

Will come back and update my blog soon

Kapau Flower,Assam,india

"KAPAU FLOWER" is the state flower of Assam and Rongali Bihu is incomplete without this flower. Its a very beautiful purple coloure orchid. We have it at home and as a kid, I still  remember waiting for it to bloom so that we can use it during bihu. Young women perform Bihu, the traditional dance, wearing Muga attire and decorated with kapou on their head/hair and traditional ornaments.

This flower is the part and parcel of the Assamese community.

Rongali Bihu,Assam,India

Rongali Bihu (mid-April, also called Bohag Bihu), the most popular Bihu celebrates the onset of the Assamese New Year (around April 15) and the coming of Spring. This marks the first day of the Hindu solar calendar and is also observed in Bengal, Kerala, Manipur, Nepal, Orissa, Punjab and Tamil Nadu though called by different names. It's a time of merriment and feasting and continues for several days. The farmers prepare the fields for cultivation of paddy and there is a feeling of joy around. The ladies make pitha, larus (traditional food made of rice and coconut) and Jolpan which gives the real essence of the season. The first day of the bihu is called goru bihu or cow bihu, where the cows are washed and worshipped, which falls on the last day of the previous year, usually on April 14. This is followed by manuh (human) bihu on April 15, the New Year Day. 


I had already written about BIHU in my earlier post. You can have a look at it to understand it better
http://mytravelsmyexperiences.blogspot.com/2010/04/happy-rongali-bihu.html


Tomorrow, here in Kuwait we are celebrating Rongali Bihu at Fintas park where there will be games for kids and adults; will have our traditional breakfast and snacks and will end with lunch.


For the last few days, sandstorm have being creating havoc here in Kuwait. Just praying and hoping that it is a clear nice weather tomorrow .

Roshan Di Kulfi,Delhi

Delhi is known for its chillness in the winter.We visit home mainly during November-December and on our way home we stop at Delhi each time for few days. Jeet had studied here and so it holds a very special place in his heart. We love to roam about , taste the chats and snacks which we miss very much here in Kuwait.

During our recent visit, as we moving around Karol Bagh, we saw a small fast food shop crowded with people. We were hungry and decided to try out something there as we thought the shop must be famous as lot of people were waiting for their chance. The shop was "Roshan Di Kulfi". We were surprised to see that though it was chilling cold people were standing outside the shop as they didn't find place to seat and eating Kulfi. As we were waiting for our chance to get a seat, we came to know from a Punjabi couple that the shop has a legendary reputation in the Karol Bagh area and Delhi . And that it is famous for its kulfi, chhole bhature, aloo tikki, dahi bhalle,papdi bhalle and delhi chat. The huge crowd that was thronging the place gave us ample testimony to what the Punjabi couple told us. We had to wait for sometime till we got a place to seat. We ordered chola bhature, dahi bhalle, aloo tikkia and the famous faluda kulfi. The chola, dahi bhalle, tikkia was ok type, taste was good but not excellent I must say; had better one in some other place. But the best part was the faluda kulfi  which was topped with sweet rose water and vermicelli. The taste was very good and texture was perfect as it was not very soft but melts in your mouth at the slightest pressure from the teeth.

Can try it out when you visit the Karol Bagh area next time. Here's the address

2816,Ajmal Khan Road,Karol Bagh,Delhi
Phone: 28724230, 28722728

Dragon Fruit

When we went to Lulu Hypermarket for our weekly marketing, we saw some new,uncommon fruit.It was the Dragon Fruit. We had never seen it before nor had we tasted it. So felt the urge to buy it. It tasted wonderful, sweet and crunchy,something like kiwi with its black small seeds.

Also known as Pitaya or Pitahaya, Dragon fruit is a beautiful fruit grown in South East Asia,Mexico, Central and South America and Israel. The plant is actually a type of cactus and the fruit comes in 3colours....2 have pink skin but with different colored flesh(one white, the other red),while another type is yellow with white flesh.The fruit is very good for health as it is low in calories and offers numerous nutrients including Vitamin C,phosphorus,calcium,plus fiber and antioxidants.

To know more about this extremely beautiful,exotic and tasty fruit, you can check this link out
http://dragon-fruit.biz/

Sandstorm,Q8

When you stay in a desert country you cannot escape from sandstorm and we have experienced it many times. Continuously for the last two days,today is the third day we have sandstorm in Kuwait. But nothing was more terrible and horrifying then the one that Kuwait faced on 25th March. We were out and when we saw the approaching clouds, we thought it would rain after few hours.It was a terrible mistake, actually it was clouds of sandstorm.We went to Mishref and hurriedly came out in 10-15mins and to our utter surprise it was horrible sandstorm. We had never seen and experienced such sandstorm before.We did wait for 15 mins and decided to drive home.We somehow reached our car but there was no visibility.Still Jeet drove very slowly and we took some time to reach our home safely.But another shock was awaiting us,though all windows were close,it was sand everywhere.

Here are pictures of the sandstorm and what it did to my house and plants......

The worst part was cleaning the house. The maid did not come and Jeet had to go to office.I thought I had to go Ahmadi hospital as I feared suffering from dust allergy as I had to clean it all myself .

The sandstorm in Kuwait for the last three days has made Kuwait International Airport shut down temporarily yesterday. Many schools have declared holiday today as it is predicted that todays sandstorm will be strong one.Yesterday my daughter came home earlier then her regular school time because of bad weather.Its really making life difficult.