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Category Archives: Travel
‘Pop’ home for ‘pop up’ Assamese
I ‘popped’ home to Mumbai on the weekend and found myself at a ‘pop up’ venue for a home made lunch of various Assamese delicacies. Expect by now most are familiar with the concept – enjoy fab food outside of the traditional restaurant setting with other ‘foodies’.
In this case, our venue was a funky store Sanctum, our hosts The Secret Ingredient and our chef the beaming energetic Gitika. (more…)
“Let’s go out for dinner!” aka the Puncak un-plan…
If someone says to you “Let’s go out for dinner Saturday”… you can be forgiven for having visions of a civilized sit down dinner, a glass of wine, a little desultory conversation..
However, that’s vastly underestimating my friends.
What did we do?
Hop in the car and drive from Jakarta to Puncak… braving macet in the city and macet on the winding road up to Puncak pass. (more…)
Visa o visa woes!
Twas the night before my Tokyo flight… and all was decidedly NOT calm in our house… Cue partner muttering expletives, with the occasional shout of exasperation.
Why?
He had a film shoot in London…
Great, right? You bet! Independent production with a cross-continent story of an estranged father-son relationship… with every element to potentially do well in the film fest circuit.
Sounds fab! Until…. time to apply for a UK work visa…
(more…)
Iconic Images – O Canada!
I was in Mumbai for the Canada Day celebration this year (conveniently held on Friday in advance of 1 July!).
This year they added a fun little gimmick – a photo taken in front of a Niagara Falls backdrop as a little ‘gift’. They even provided those bright yellow rain jackets that one typically sees on the Maid of the Mist.
It has been much more than a decade since I visited Niagara Falls – 1997 I think! Like many of the world’s iconic sights – it truly is remarkable.
As for where I actually am right now? Let’s see if you can follow this….
Right now? I’m mid-way through this trip in Tokyo at the moment. It is my first trip to Japan and I’m trying to squeeze as much experience in as possible alongside work in my short 2 days / 2 nights! Suggestions welcome! 🙂
Beating Bombay Girls – Educating violence
For some time, our mostly reliable maid was consistently late.
Why? Her daughter wasn’t well so wasn’t going to school.
However there is more to the story of her daughter’s mysterious fevers, broken arm and absence from school. This sweet young girl fears going to school…
What happened? (more…)
Sleep deprived Sundays… a travellers lament!
I love traveling, experiencing new places, those random conversations that bring new perspectives and insights…
I also love being home with my partner, hanging out with friends, catching live music, theatre and more!
I also love Love LOVE lazy Sundays…. no alarm, wake up when you want, stretch, have that first blissful sip of cappuccino.
Thanks to my desire for both traveling/work and wanting to be home, I’ve given up most of my sleep-in Sundays! I’ve also learned a new trick – navigating international travel and working ‘abroad’ with an injury! A tenacious torn ligament dashed all normal dashing about at my usual pace…. grrr…… (more…)
The Emma G Days… a tribute to taking a chance!
Once upon a time there was a young lass, who had a crazy notion to run a late night vegetarian café! So she gathered her friends and friends of friends, they pooled their meagre resources, wrangled a Student Business Loan… And voilà! “Emma G’s Deluxe Eatery” was born 25 years ago!
It was a moment in time. Most of us were around 19 years old, we were fearless of failure, didn’t actually care about making money, just wanted a home for aspiring artists, musicians, writers, students and sundry misfits. (more…)
Canadian lass in Bollywood – Aspiring actress or dreams dashed?
A dear director friend asked if I could meet with a young Canadian woman contemplating moving to Mumbai to get into acting here. Mostly from the perspective of how I’ve adjusted, my experience with visas, etc.
East weds west on the small screen – read all about it!
Now it isn’t completely unheard of.. after all… in a country of a billion plus people there is a ONE new TV serial that actually stars a blonde haired blue eyed new bride “Firangi Bahu.” I’ve been a bahu or daughter-in-law and survived to tell the tale! It isn’t a completely preposterous idea…
But breaking into ‘The Bollywood Biz” ain’t easy… and while I’m no expert, I have watched on the sidelines off and on since 1990 with friends and family (partner) who have struggled and sometimes succeeded in film, TV and stage. Along the way have picked up a few insights and stories behind the stereotypes….
Yet I still felt like such a nasty horrible person dishing out the following reality check dashing starry eyes and hopeful smiles: (more…)
Who keeps the house clean?
A friend sent a link to a new online publication he started called “Scroll.in – News that matters”. I love lots about it and while the current focus is on the Indian elections, an earlier article on domestic matters caught my eye:
Hopping home…
There is a reason for my ‘radio silence’… just not a very good reason.
What happened?
I came back from Jakarta early with a nifty new acquisition and insight into a very different mode of travel.
Re-wind… exactly what happened? (more…)
Everyday Asia 