Reflect.....Rejoice.....Ring the bells......

It is Christmas eve.  Time to rejoice and to thank for all the blessings.  Time to remember the beautiful children and adults whose lives were taken abrubtly in Newtown CT.  So far, Mother Earth has seen many brutalities all over the World.  War, hate, intentional and non-intentional crimes, destruction of nature, natural disasters to name a few.  Love, hope,  prayer, caring and sharing alone will ease the pain of loss and destruction.  Let the bells that ring tonight bring peace and consolation.

Let joy and love prevails.

***WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS***

             PEACE ON EARTH

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Perogeis....Plum Vodka.....Poland......

Landed in Warsaw on a cold afternoon during early November. The fall season is still reluctant to go away and the trees still had some leaves. Luckily I had a weekend in between the busy work week to explore the culture and the city itself.  Warsaw, like most of the ancient cities developed on the banks of the Vistula river pronounced in Polish as "Viswa".   Poland's sad history covers many wars the important one being the Polish invasion by the Russians and the Germans.

The old town is the best place to stroll and to taste the Polish specialty like the perogeis. The restaurant owner understood my vegetarian requirements and recommended the one made with potato and cheese filling. It reminded me of Indian Samosa!.  Poland is also famous for vodka just like its neighbor Russia.

Needless to say, Perogeis and plum vodka are the best combination.


Apart from food, Polish music and art are quite enchanting.  Chopin's music can be heard on the streets. I mean literally! There are small benches on the street which has the recorded music of Chopin. When you walk the street and feel tired,  press the button, the music plays!

I did manage to see most of the tourist attractions that reminded of a war stricken past - thru photographs, museum artifacts and the co-existence of communities like the Jewish ghettos, buildings that are built on top of the rubble, the vibrant old town and the modern business centers.  The city looks beautiful with a poignant past, resilient present and full of dreams for the future.  Thanked the Marriott city center staff for making my stay a memorable one and headed to Frederic Chopin airport to catch a flight to Walldorf Germany, my next stop.

PEACE ON EARTH

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Changan.....Xian.....Warriors......

My mind was set to visit the all time famous warriors of Xian.  Yes, I mean the Terra Cotta Warriors!.  On a lovely sunny morning I took a flight from Beijing to Xian.  Xian is the modern name given to the ancient city of Changan located in the yellow river basin.  The city has seen more than 13 dynasties the famous being the Qin Tang and the Ming dynasty. The city now house the 8th wonder of the World, the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horse museum aka archaeological site. 

The Terra Cotta warriors and horses supposedly guard the mausoleum of  Emperor Qin Shi Huang. It is amazing to see the Warriors standing in battle like formation and each one of them is a unique life like figurine.  Just like in ancient Egypt, death was a powerful phenomenon and the Emperor has to protect himself during the journey to the nether world.
After visiting the different chambers and seeing the museum artifacts one gets inspired to become a warrior! So the quick way is to get behind a life size Terra Cotta Queen!
There is also a modern pottery barn where they make the life size warriors and horses just like the ancients did.  We all can be an  Emperor and Queen and can buy our own Warrior and Horse to guard us! 

Xian is also a major city on the ancient Silk Road trading route and once textile industry flourished here when merchants from Asia and Middle East brought silk and woollen goods like carpets. They traded and also settled down and integrated with the Han people, the original inhabitants.  Today the Muslims form the large majority of the Hui ethnic group.  There is a mosque built in typical Chinese architecture style in the Muslim quarter.

I was thinking about the ancient marvels and the ethnic groups that passed through this land who brought ideas, art, culture, invented, created, worshipped, lived and left behind the artifacts.  I was trying to search a Qin, Zhou, Tang, Han, or Hui among the crowd all I could find is only a smiling proud Chinese proving the amalgamation.  Having tasted a nice Sichuan cuisine for lunch - vegetarian dumpling and hot pot I have reached a Zen state which will certainly drive me to the next stop, the Wild Goose Pagoda!


 China Chronicles will be continued....



All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Great wall.....Amazing......Armstrong......

The journey to the Great wall began after the visit to the Jade mines and factory. There are options to hike to the highest point. To hike from the start or take the cable car to the top and from there continue the hike on the wall.  We took the cable car option to the highest point. The view was fabulous. The building of the wall began as early as 7th century BC.  The first Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang supported the building of the wall. Since then empires changed, but the wall was continuously being built till the Ming dynasty. The wall extended on the mountains covering provinces and strategic posts on the Silk Road. The traders and travellers paid toll to cross the great wall.  Today the wall is witnessing tourists from all across the globe paying an admission fee.  UNESCO has proclaimed the Badaling side of the great wall as its heritage site. The grand panoramic view made me to wonder on the marvels of an ancient man-made structure on these mountains, preventing enemies, paving way to interact with far off lands,  and preserving the culture. I silently stood on the very old remnant of the wall paying tribute to those workers and builders.

This weekend Neil Armstrong passed away. Landing on the moon was indeed a 'giant leap for mankind" and he won my heart as a hero when I was a school girl. My prayers to him.

PEACE ON EARTH

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Cities.... Tombs.....Ming.....

I got into the dilemma when the two Great wall tour options were offered to me. One is the most visited Badaling or the North Pass and Mutianyu in the South East which also connects with Badaling.  I chose Badaling mainly to check out the famous Ming great wall and the fortress.  With the itinerary settled,  I concentrated on the business side of the trip.  The most awaited Saturday arrived. The Beijing morning was sunny, the tour guide chirped the history of Beijing and its famous city gates that separated the royals from the commoners. 

After hearing a nice lecture about FengShui, we stopped at the Ming Tombs. The ancient faith in life and death and sending the soul to the nether world follows the same belief system be it a Pyramid built in Egypt or in Mayan land.  Apparently, immortalizing a mortal king or queen must have reinforced the power and monarchy.  The Ming tombs contain beautiful jade artifacts.  The museum has some of the treasures that are recovered from the tombs. The history of  the Ming dynasty unfolds like a suspense thriller. The penniless Buddhist monk who had overthrown the powerful Mongolian Yuan dynasty and to become the famous Ming emperor Hongwu.  He got support from the red turban rebellion, the White Lotus secret society, and the scholars from the school of  Confucius. These factors helped to change the fate of China from 1368 onwards. The original ethnic group Han regained their power in the Chinese history. The cities Nanjing and  Beijing flourished developing a class conscious society with a powerful monarchy. I was thinking that the human race is always trying and experimenting with changes and like a volcano where the old lava is being pushed out to churn the new one the old ideology and belief system are pushed out to pave way for the new one!

After touring the tomb, and when crossing the gate that supposedly divide the mortal from the immortal World, the guide asked us to shout in Chinese that "we are back into the World again" ! We promptly shouted in unison so that our names will be taken out of the register of death for a while!  We headed to a nearby Jade mine and factory and had our lesson Jade 101- difference between jadeite and different types of jade. A fascinating experience but expensive as one is tempted to buy the gift items.
Having visited the netherworld and back into the earth again, our mortal souls craved for a nice lunch. The guide took us to the restaurant and I had the vegetarian clay pot. Sometimes part of heaven can come in disguise as food!!!

China chronicles will be continued.....


PEACE ON EARTH


All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

China....... Changes........Capitalize

Beijing,  gripped by one ideology after another, one regime after another is now basking under the shades of the capitalist high rise buildings.  The development is amazing. It is almost 10 days now since I landed up in Beijing and every day has not gone without an "ah" or a wow!

The infrastructure development is amazing.  Like the petals of the lotus, Beijing expands spirally with its ring roads. The well kept gardens, parks and the tree lined streets give it a zen like peaceful setting.

The high rise apartments dot the skyline of the city along with the corporate offices and the shopping malls.  Khaki green uniform coats are things of the past.  Designer stores like Burberry, Tiffany, Chanel etc entice the customers.  Spending power reflects the Chinese empowerment.

Has poverty been completely eradicated? Of course not but there are more opportunities. The hutongs, migrant workers, working class with low income, homeless are still there. But, it is the optimism, the sense to achieve that vibrates and the city marches to the tunes of capitalist economy with smiles.

China chronicles will continue.....




PEACE ON EARTH



All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Celebration....Jubilation.... July 4th....

Washington DC has taken a festive look with flags and fire works .  Time to celebrate and remember history. This is a time to view history as it is and not to pass judgement or evaluate the past with today's references.

I am not a poet otherwise I would have written something like an "Ode to the democracy and freedom!".  Freedom is not a simple concept. It can be nurtured and sustained only by a strong constitution that promotes democracy and respect for a fellow being. The founders have foreseen that.

But, when anyone asks me about the best moment of happiness as an American, I can say that - the time when I return from abroad and the immigration officer with a genuine smile greets me, "welcome back to the USA". 

Happy July 4th!

PEACE ON EARTH

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Coronation....Jubilee....Kolkata....

My path crossed again at Heathrow. Yes,  I am on my way to India. The airport duty free shops are adorned with the diamond jubilee celebration of the Queen.  Even the airport security and ushers are wearing the purple sash and the British Airways lounge looked festive too.  I do like the BA lounge these days as the food they serve has become more like the regular London cuisine!! aka Indian!!

While browsing the Internet I came across this news about the discovery made  in the RCAHMS ( Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland)  archive -  a collection of photographs of India from early 1900 or around 1912.  They mention about the photographs must have been taken during the visit of George V and his Queen. I definitely know our Bengali family friends and especially dear Mashima will enjoy these pictures of  old Kolkata (Calcutta).
                                                     

Here is the link to the website and gallery.

http://www.rcahms.gov.uk/news/lost-imagery-of-india-discovered

PEACE ON EARTH

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Hello.....Helsinki......Kiitos......

I could not believe that it is May already! The past two months had been hectic but pleasant.  Busy schedule yet calmness prevailed. In April I visited Finland for work. First hop at Helsinki the capital, and then to Turku in the eastern shores of the Baltic coast. From here one can take a cruise to Stockholm.   
When I landed in Helsinki the April showers welcomed me.  The driver gave me a bright smile and we proceeded to the hotel in the city. The tall conifers looked like soldiers standing still on either side of the guard rails on the road.  On the way the driver pointed at a  retirement community full of Russian immigrants.  Finland was once occupied by the then Soviet Union and one can see the influence. Helsinki is hosting the design month and the city center was full of tourists in spite of the rain. One can easily walk around or take  a tram to visit the museums, art galleries, and the cathedral in the senate square. I did not miss the Finnish sauna in the Hilton.

The sky was clear and blue when I travelled to Turku on the east coast of the Baltic sea. Turku is a small town by American standards but one of the ancient towns located at the cross roads connecting Sweden and Finland.  The famous castle at Turku is its landmark. Finnish are very hospitable and happy when I said "Kiitos" which means Thank you.  My Finnish colleagues took me to an authentic Finnish restaurant Brahen Kellari in the City Center.  I got a very nice vegetarian dish along with Parmesan potato puree and French beans salad. The chef was happy to give us details of the Finnish history when the land was consistently under occupation by Sweden and then Russia.  He said the restaurant was named after General Brahen and kellari means cellar.  

 I walked back to the hotel from the restaurant. The land, the people, the language, the culture looks different but when one takes a few minutes more with non-judgemental compassion, one realize that it is the same universal principle that guide us all.  The chill breeze lulled and I looked up to see the clouds running fast in the starry lit sky reminding me about the meetings tomorrow yet asking me to stop and enjoy the stars.

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.

Deutschland....De-escalate.....Decisive....

2012, the year of the Dragon, Mayan predictions about December 21st, economy, eco system disturbances, political and social unrest in many parts of the World - with all these do we have something to hope for and to celebrate?  As a die hard optimist I believe that with hope we emanate positive energy and that make us to look for solutions.  I found this in my chauffeur Mr. J  during my business trip to Germany for a week in January.  It was a nice Sunday morning when he picked me up from the Frankfurt airport to my hotel in Waldorf.

As usual I was curious to find out how Germans are facing the current economic situation and their perception about Ms.  Merkel,  a woman chancellor in the Father Land whom I admire for her leadership qualities.  Mr. J reflected that as a German he found her doing a good job but still more has to be done in the areas of unemployment and economy as a whole. Many Germans are now doing 2 or more jobs to keep up with the house mortgage and raising children. He showed me the pictures of his two twin daughters and his dreams and hopes for them. The best part was his determination to fight the odds. He took up this part time job with the travel company,  when his factory announced about a possible upcoming layoff. He decided to do the chauffeur job so that if at all he lose his full time job he has something to backup. He wanted to gain experience to even start his own car service. Yes, that is the spirit, that is the hope and dream of an achiever. 

He asked me whether I want to stop at a bakery.  Ofcourse I have to whiff the aroma and taste my favorite Deutschland breads and pastries! This time not much time to travel around except visiting Karlsruche.

Now it is February. Happy to be back in the USA. 

All content copyright © by Sobana Iyengar.