I missed a train

I think of adding content to my blog every day. It's a promise I never fulfill. But I knew that I would write sometime spontaneously and surprise myself! There I go…Missed the first train of my lifetime. Two fat hours to go and there is not dearth of things that I think I can accomplish.

In hindsight I think that missing a train, flight or a bus is not such a bad thing unless your travel is linked to a life altering event. I actually get 2 full hours to myself thinking of how the day went, what’s pending and ruminate a bit over where my life’s headed and most interestingly just watch people. As a social scientist, I take immense pleasure in watching people, their body language, trade smiles .. I try and build a story around them. Los Angeles is such a melting pot that wherever I am I always have different cultures, costumes and mannerisms to assess. I can never get bored of just observing people!

He who made my Cafe latte

Starbucks with free internet has been a blessing to mankind. Get a tall latte easy foam for $4 and enjoy free internet access for a lifetime! They don’t bother you to leave the place. Hubby must have called me 5 times after I communicated the bad news of having missed the train. He is fretting over the fact I could be sad or bored. But little does he know that I am quite relishing the 2 hours of mental stretch break.

I intend to work on my thesis this weekend but I could jolly well start now. It’s indeed a great time to know how I want to formulate the book and who I want to write to for guidance. I love writing formal corporate emails or reports. My cyber networking skills are so active right now that I have some fabulous ideas of who I want to connect with to get some striking inputs for my thesis on social media.

Self pic @ Starbucks

I just have one hour to go to board the train. The wait is really not that bad.

Be there or be square: An unforgettable wine trail

These have been long pending “self-commitments” that were accomplished more or less at the same time! I finally created my weblog and paid a visit to the Sula vineyards of Nasik.

I am not too sure if you share the same sentiment, but I was impressed to see what I did! The winery is top! It is spacious, clean, well designed and classy. The forthcoming staff of Sula vineyards organized a crisp and snappy visit of the winery followed by an elaborate wine tasting session. The fruity and honey-like taste of Chenin Blanc is still lingering somewhere inside my mouth. We even tasted their new matured red, Dindori Reseve Shiraz. If I were to put it my way then it was comme ci comme ca…!
We started off with the sparkling blush. Trust me its pale pink colour and glint will remind you of Penelop Cruz in the recent L’Oreal TV commercial! I quite liked the late harvest desert wine and loved the idea of complementing my desserts with it.

Though it was time for lunch, we decided to take a little stretch break at the winery itself before heading to the recently opened Little Italy restaurant and ordered for some Chenin Blanc with a cheese platter. The silence of the vineyards and the relaxed airs helped us come over our fatigue, (we drove 4 hours from Mumbai to Nasik). We realized that the wine was settling in well when we heard the gradually ascending sound of our chiming laughter..

The interiors are again stunning! We were welcomed by a string of wine bottles suspended from the ceiling of the restaurant. We were pleasantly surprised to learn that the restaurant now served a non-vegetarian menu. We chose a table facing the Sula amphitheatre. We were not ready to give up on Chenin Blanc; and another bottle was ordered along with thin crust pizza, pasta arabiatta, a chicken starter and fuseli in cheese, and spinach sauce. Since we all believed in striking a balance in life, striking a balance of taste was not exception to this rule! Tiramisu and chocolate brownie for dessert gave us the required shot of glucose! The restaurant is surrounded by manicured verdant lawns which were so inviting. The thought of a power siesta crossed our minds but it was also time for us to start for Mumbai.

We landed up at the winery again to take back some so called tangible memories of the visit. Apart from premium wines, I bought back a Dia, a low alcohol wine meant to target the women drinkers!! It’s very strange but true; we got very attached to this place and my meandering mind is still trying to understand why??!! Well, I think I need to go back to Sula to get some answers….