Most annoying questions!!!!

In my childhood, after the death of my mother people often asked me, "Don't you remember your mother?", and I had no clue how I was supposed to answer them. The more they asked me this question, the more aloof I became. I just wanted the years to pass, so they won't ask me this question. But now I know, years may pass, but society's questioning attitude will never change. The moment I was 22 years old, the world surrounding me quickly adapted a new approach to deal with me. The people who often enquired about my mother's memories, education, marks and future aspirations suddenly had a different set of questions.They weren't interested in my marks or my ambitions, they didn't appreciate my high spirit or approach to life, they didn't even observe what kind of a person I had grown in to. After I crossed that milestone of 22, and since then, people have asked me very weird and offensive questions. They are undoubtedly very annoying and humiliating and that's why I thought of writing all of them together and posting it here. So, the next time if somebody asks me any of these questions, I will share the link to this post!!!!

1. It all started with "when are you getting married?".

The sooner you finish your studies, the sooner you get this obvious question. In my case, as I wanted to pursue my higher studies, my parents discarded the idea of marriage and somehow shut the mouth of this I-am-interested-in-your-business society. 

But once again, they started pelting these questions at us the moment I finished my post graduation. My parents convinced everyone that it is my dream to work after studies. Hence, I once again got a time window of two years. But after two years, everyone including my parents started pressurizing me for marriage.

Submitting to their demands and also, to avoid the questions I got married thinking the "Kaun Banega crorepati" series would end. Sadly, it didn't!!!

2. After marriage due to visa issues, I was stuck in India for a long time. I kept shuttling between my parent's house and my in law's house. So, whenever I would go to my parent's house people would assume not all is well in my nest. They would ask indirect questions, trying hard to make sense out of it.

"So, why are you not going to saudi?"

"How long it will take?"

"But my friend got the visa in just two months. Why are they delaying yours?" - Dude, Saudi embassy in India just want to make my life miserable, that's why!!!

and the most ridiculous of all - "How come your husband is able to travel leaving you behind in your parent's house?"

My inner soul (with lips sealed) kept on screaming loud, "It's my life. So, don't poke your filthy nose into it".

3. The same people, once who were least bothered about my career, job and aspirations, got suddenly interested in my professional life. Due to circumstances, I couldn't work after marriage and even after moving to Saudi, I am unable to get in to a job. Hence, I have to face one more set of firing bullets with a pinch of "unnecessary gyan" and sarcasm.

"Why are you not working in Jeddah? I have heard there is quite a demand for speech therapists in Saudi" 

"Why did your dad spend so much on your studies? So that you can sit at home?"

"Oh, your husband must be earning well then!!!!!"

"Why don't you try some other job?"

People should first of all stop interfering in others' lives and it's high time they realize I am a smart, educated, sensible woman. I won't simply sit at home doing nothing if I had any other preferable option. 

4. It's just been four months since I shifted to Saudi Arabia and people are already asking me when am I travelling back to India!!!

I understand the concern of family members who genuinely miss us. But that's not all, there are many other people who keep asking me and even my parents when I am planning to shift back to India. 

They even make statements like,

"It is Saudi Arabia. Don't stay there for long. You don't know how that country is!!!" - I wonder how do they have so much knowledge about this country sitting in India, having never travelled abroad.

"People who stay outside India tend to never come back." - Firstly, there are many people who come back and secondly, you don't know me and most importantly, why do you care?

"You are the only child. If you stay away who will look after your parents?" (with a sarcastic pitch) - I love my parents and I also know my responsibilities. Plus, if you care for my parents so much, why don't you take them to your house?

5. Ah, this is my favourite part. My entire family circle and people surrounding them are constantly peeking inside my uterus now. First you get married, then have your first child and after that second child. By any chance if you break this cycle or delay, then people will start asking questions. 

"Do you at least have the desire of becoming a mother?"

"If it's not now, then when?"

"What are your plans? Any good news?"

"What do you mean by right time? There is nothing like that!!!"

"You know you are becoming old right?"

So, basically there is nothing called "purely personal matter". Everybody wants to know everything and suggest like they have the ultimate knowledge. 

Come on people, it is high time you stop asking questions and let people be. I understand why parents ask these questions but why the whole society (in fact they are least bothered about my happiness) wants to know about my life? I don't know if they get any kind of pleasure by doing so. But spare me!!!

I am sure you all must have gone through something similar. Let me know what questions irritate you the most.

*** All the images are downloaded from different sources via google. 

Two ends!!!

In India, there is a vast gap between how hospitals work and how corporate offices function. Having worked in hospitals for almost three years, I have realized the fundamental difference between a corporate employee and a hospital staff. Here goes my list of factors which explains how our lives are entirely different.

1. In corporate offices, especially the one with foreign joint ventures, dressing up neatly is a must. That doesn't imply hospital staffs don't dress up well, but their dressing is far more simple as they know nobody is going to judge them by their clothes. As far as employees in corporate offices are considered, the way how they are dressed and how they present themselves becomes the crucial factor in building up their first impression. Even a wrinkle on their shirt spoils their mood, whereas, people in hospital don't care much about all these things. I have come across doctors wearing simple cotton shirts with chappals to hospitals.

2. The extravagant buildings and plush offices are the second home to these corporate employees, on the other hand, most people working in hospitals in India just hope to get a clean toilet in their working place. The added benefits like air conditioning, unlimited internet, laptops are like a dream for people working in hospitals. There have been instances when we have asked for these benefits with the management just to get a shady "no" as if we have no use of them!!!

3. People often believe hospitals are the cleanest place, but that's not true. It is an abode to many viruses and bacteria and literally, we have to take extra measures to keep ourselves safe. Maybe because of this, we are either too worried about health or too casual about it. I take cetirizine even if I sneeze once, whereas, I have come across doctors who treat rabies patients without being too cautious. Look at the luck of people working in corporate offices, they are always in a disease free environment, unless some virus secretly invades their plush office through an electronic door by hiding inside some employee. 

4. Corporate employees normally get free coffee and at places, they even get free food. Look at the plight of people working in hospitals, they have to walk all the way till cafeteria (which is normally in the basement or some remote corner) and drink that not-so-hot coffee amid patients who are continuously coughing or their relatives who are crying non stop. Adding on, the coffee normally sucks!!!!

5. The people working in corporate offices are not only living away from diseases, but also, the pain. Their life wanders around fancy buildings, stylish clothes, frequent vacations, fun filled co-workers, lots of laughter and joy. But the life inside a hospital is totally different. We are feeling everybody's pain and seeing their uncontrollable tears. We are unable to laugh at a joke thinking about the situation of a patient. We are unable to wear stylish clothes when we are submerged in a patient's misery. We are unable to be happy when we see sadness around us every day. 

I am not denying that people working in corporate offices have a lot more work pressure and are always forced to perform better to save their jobs. I am not denying the fact that corporate employees don't have a personal life as they are always thinking about work opening an excel file. The best part about working in a hospital is that we have the luxury to switch off and detach from work once we are home unlike corporate employees except some research or study. 

This post is mainly written to highlight why people working in hospitals behave in a certain way. Why it doesn't matter to them how they dress up, why they take more medicines and always worried about health, why they don't look away at the pain of others, why their evenings are dull!!! The place where we work is completely different. The kind of life we live is very close to reality. We are exposed to pain, death, suffering far more than any population. Hence, we are different. 

PS: This post is inspired from real life incidents as my husband and friends work in corporate offices and they don't seem to understand why I am like this!!!!  I am not saying this is the ultimate truth; this is just based on my observations. Agree or disagree!!!!

Abaya exploration

When we decided to shift to Saudi Arabia, the first thing my husband was concerned about me having to wear an abaya (burkha). Though I had no qualms about wearing one, certain degree of disappointment was lingering around. The disappointment slowly turned in to frustration when I realized I can't show off my fancy clothes in fancy restaurants. However, I had to gulp this fact hard as I am here to stay!!!! 

I had done my abaya shopping in Udupi before my first trip to Jeddah. I had taken the help of a friend and bought a very simple, black colour abaya without a scarf or what they call it here, hijab (covering head with a hijab is not compulsory for expatriates in Jeddah). I had picked up the least expensive one paying 2000 rupees. There were some more cheaper ones but they lacked quality. My first abaya was definitely not stylish, but for me it served its purpose. 

Last year when I was travelling to and fro Jeddah multiple times, my simple black abaya came handy and I just did not feel the need of buying one more. But after I shifted to Jeddah this year, I started observing women in Saudi Arabia and their abaya designs closely. In Saudi Arabia, especially in Jeddah, women can wear colour abayas; not gaudy ones though!!! I wonder what Mutaween (Islamic religious police who makes sure all the rules are followed properly) will do if they spot a fluorescent abaya!!! So, like I was saying, women can wear abaya of different colours like blue, brown, cream, white, grey and some lighter shades of pink, purple, etc. 

I have already bought two new abayas with hijabs - blue with lace and brown with front zip since this year January. But the interesting part is, in spite of paying in riyals, I have paid lesser money compared to India. For the blue one I paid 65 riyals (1103 rupees) and for the brown one I paid 85 riyals (1442 rupees). Like India, shopping in malls is very expensive. Even a simple abaya would cost nearly 1000 riyals (approximately 17K INR) but shopping in local streets of Jeddah saved me a lot of money. 

Al-Balad is the historical area of Jeddah which flaunts its market along with the UNESCO heritage site. Most of the shops are owned by Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis (or maybe I visited only their shops) and Arabs. As most of the shop owners spoke in Hindi, my first shopping experience in Jeddah was not bad. However, finding a colour abaya with a front zip was a difficult task (as most of them doesn't have a zip) but I enjoyed every bit of wandering around the streets of Balad. 

The different shades and designs of abaya made me feel like buying every single piece!!! I had never seen so many colours of abaya and that too in so many styles. I understand donning an abaya all the time can be less colourful for women from other countries but come and have a look at the vast collection of abayas, you will definitely fall in love with it. Most importantly, wearing an abaya is also very comfortable with an added advantage of going to supermarkets in sleeping pants!!!

I am definitely looking forward to some more abaya shopping and will upload pictures of Al-Balad market then (I did not have enough time to click pictures last time!!!!). 

PS : All the images are downloaded from different sources via google!!!!

The "Dementor"

Of course, we all know what dementors are!!! After all being a die hard Harry Potter fan, nothing scared me the most than those foul soul sucking hooded creatures. All my life I have been consciously waiting for the entry of a dementor to suck the soul out of me. I believe, everything depicted in Harry Potter has a real life meaning attached. Starting from Dumbledore to Voldemort, I have experienced my share of "Harry Potter" so far!!! But, it's only been three months since I have become a captive of a dementor and it has sucked my soul, my good spirit so much that I am unable to recognize myself in the mirror. 

So what happened three months ago? Where did I meet my dementor?  

Three months ago, on January 17th, on the most inauspicious day, I shifted my base to Saudi Arabia. A land where I had been travelling frequently and hence, had no qualms about moving. But things have changed in the past three months. I define KSA as colourless for people who are not very spiritual from within. It is a place which doesn't offer anything to improve the "fun quotient" in life. Definitely, it does provide a lot of options for shopping and eating, however, life becomes monotonous after a while. 

Being away from family and friends is still manageable, but after a certain age when you can't even make new friends quickly, it gets lonely without them. This loneliness starts hovering over you day and night, slowly taking that ignited spirit away. From day 1 to day 90, I have seen myself regressing from within. On the contrary, physically I have been putting on in all directions due to lack of exercise. I stay very close a street which is meant for walking and jogging. But I am hesitant, thinking about my plight of jogging wearing a burkha!!!! 

Life becomes so comfortable here, that you don't want any challenges or struggle in life any more. What people do here is - eat, sleep, shop and yeah, at times they work. This comfortable life has made me extremely lazy that even ten hours of sleep becomes insufficient for me. I have begun to cook only easy dishes which consumes less energy and time. I spend most of my time crouching on the sofa, looking at my facebook account and doing nothing!!!! The sad part is, I have become too lazy to write (this is my first post in the last one month) and even, read. Three books are half read and I am finding it impossible to finish them. 

Basically, I can't read, write, work or even think properly. All I do is eat, sleep and eat, sleep and cycle continues...  

Recently, after an hour long discussion with my husband I have realized this country is my dementor. It is slowly sucking out all my positive spirits and turning me in to a stiff. I have no aims or goals, I have no expectations from life, nothing to achieve, nothing to look forward to and if somebody asks me what my future plans are, I have no answer. But at least now I know what was wrong with me and I have decided to ward off my dementor saying "expecto patronum" and regain the spirit I have lost. 

A new country, a new culture can change your life style and thus, affect your overall personality. I always thought, the real challenge is to live and adapt in a new country. But now I have realized, the real challenge is to not lose yourself when you are exposed to a new place, new culture. I am pulling myself together and holding my spirits tight. I am sure, this dementor will return again but this time I will be ready with my magical wand and a spell to throw it out of my life forever.  

PS : All images are downloaded from different sources via different sources.                  

My mom's experiment and experience with the new moto E

Smartphones have made us smarter!!! 

Before the age of smartphones, I normally slept during travel. But now, I watch movies, listen to music and even blog while travelling. I am not wasting a single minute of my life because of this smart invention. It maybe about using a dictionary or finding a recipe or getting the right lyrics, everything is at our fingertips. I still remember those days when I got my first smartphone. I couldn't sleep at all. I kept on looking at the mobile screen, playing endless games and exploring different options. Maybe our generation is smarter than our parents when it comes to technology. Nobody ever taught me how to operate a smartphone, but when it comes to my mom, I taught her everything including how to swipe. 

I recently gifted my mother moto E. This is her first smartphone which she insisted on buying. So, I thought of surprising her with this new phone. I thought once she got the phone, she would be extremely happy and she was happy, until she realized how difficult it was to operate. She couldn't even swipe properly and unlocking the phone was a bigger task for her. I couldn't stop laughing at her plight, but poor my mom, who struggled very hard but never gave up. It felt like teaching A B C D for kindergarten kids. I had to start everything from the scratch and teach her even the simplest things. When she finally started operating the mobile phone, I felt like a proud mom myself!!!! 

If you think, buying a new smartphone for your mom is an easy task, then the answer is no!!!! This is what happened with me...

Once I taught her how to unlock and use the phone, her questions seemed to never end.

But then the final blast came from my father.

No matter how many questions she asked, no matter how many times she pressed the wrong button, no matter how many times she called and troubled me with stupid queries, I am very proud of her. She behaves like a teenager when she is using her phone - excited, happy and full of energy. I never thought she would get so involved. 

Now she downloads her favourite songs, uses facebook, whatsapp without any trouble, googles her favorite song's lyrics and even tries out new applications. I might eventually forget my first smartphone experience but will never forget my mom's. Answering her endless questions, that too over a phone call, is hell of a task!!!!

I am happy that I chose to start her smartphone experience with moto E, which has taken a few falls from her, and endless rough tapping on the screen, and also, gave her enough battery life to experiment with the phone. So, thank you, new moto E for, making my mom technologically modern and standing by her side during this new phase of her life!!!!

This post is written as a part of IndiBlogger contest in association with Motorola : http://www.startwithmotoe.com/

Kellogg's wale Guptaji ka nashta!!!!

First time when I met Guptaji's crazy family near jogger's park, I wanted to meet them once more. Their son Rohan is very naughty and cute. And of course, I had lots of fun with him. Guptaji's wife, Shalu seemed very nice and invited me to their house for lunch. Being new in the neighbourhood, I agreed to their invitation, only to realize later I had committed a sin!!!

When I told, kitkit aunty next door about my plans of going to Guptaji's house for lunch she was shocked.

"Oh my god, betaji. Why aren't you going there for nashta (snacks)? You are going to Guptaji's house for lunch? It is unbelievable"

And when corner gali wale Popla uncle got to know about my lunch plan, he guffawed. He said, "Finally, Guptaji found someone to invite for lunch. Otherwise nobody visits them for lunch and Shalu often complains about it".

I was seriously confused. I mean, why wouldn't anybody visit Guptaji's crazy family for lunch? So, I called kitkit aunty and Popla uncle home to clarify my doubts and when they explained about the mouth watering "nashtas" prepared by Gupta family, I decided not to visit them for lunch but for their exquisite, unique "nashta".

Now, my menu is ready and I have already called up Shalu asking her to prepare it for me. She sounded a little sad for cancelling the lunch plan and was equally excited to prepare her kellogg's nashta for me.

Item 1: Line pe laane wala nashta

I chose this snack mainly because I love all the key ingredients. It is made of Kellogg’s corn flakes, tomato and onion and cheese. Me and my husband, we both love cheese. The entire concept of crunchy corn flakes and onions with soft, juicy tomatoes with a flavour of cheese, made me drool over this “nashta”.

Sounds yummy? Then check out this video to prepare your own “Line pe lane wala nashta”

Item 2: Best tiffin wala nashta

Cornflake coconut laddoo, is very easy to prepare and definitely, looks very yummy. I chose this "nashta" because it has lots of dry fruits and tell me, who doesn't love a tasty, healthy laddoo? My husband loves sweets and so, one sweet dish has to be included in my menu.

This recipe is very simple to prepare and less time consuming. Check this video to prepare Corn flake coconut laddoo.

Item 3: Remote wala nashta

I feel the menu is incomplete without a healthy drink. Hence, I chose almond, coconut shake.  The best part about this shake is it has chocolate syrup and vanilla ice cream and also, the richness of coconut. Blanched almond makes it healthy and tasty. There is one more reason why I chose this "nashta". I am more curious to see how Kellogg's corn flakes blends along with these other ingredients.

If you want to try this recipe, here is your video:

My menu is ready and I have already informed Shalu about my favourites. So, today evening we are going to Guptaji's to have some yummy snacks. I seriously never knew so many dishes can be prepared out of Kellogg's corn flakes. If I knew, I would have tried many of them by now and people would be drooling over my "nashtas". Now I will definitely learn all the interesting recipes from Shalu and Chef Ajay and prepare some yummy snacks for my husband. 

By the way forgot to ask you guys, 

"when are going to Guptaji's for nashta?"

For more recipes, click on this link and discover a whole new world with Kellogg's corn flakes : https://www.facebook.com/anaajkanashta  

: https://www.youtube.com/user/kelloggindia

And if you want to meet the crazy Guptaji's family, check this video: 

Food heaven - Singapore...

I have never visited Singapore or eaten authentic Singaporean food!!! But, I have an unspeakable bond with this beautiful country where I had planned to work and spend the rest of my life. 

Let me rewind a bit,

In 2011, I had a got a good job offer in Singapore. I had resigned from my current job and packed my bags and waited for my visa to arrive. It was in those two months, after doing enough research, I knew more about Singapore than any Indian living there!!!! Whenever, you plan to travel to a different country the first thing you "google" is about restaurants, then maybe other stuffs like movie theatres, holiday spots, recreational activities etc. But the first thing on your list has to be about food. 

Being a vegetarian, I had my own insecurities of travelling to Singapore. Hence, my task was to find restaurants which provide good vegetarian food. After a few days of neck deep analysis of restaurants, I realized Singapore is a bliss for foodies like me. My entire assumption of vegetarian food not being available was wrong, however, the menu was lengthier for non vegetarians!!! Once satisfied, I gave my nod to Singapore. Ah, the most painful part is after drooling over those yummy food for two months, I couldn't travel to Singapore due to visa issues. Pity my taste buds!!!

Click here for Vegetarian Restaurants

Even today, whenever I look at some yummy Singaporean food, I drool. Literally!!!! And thanks, to Far East Hospitality for giving me an opportunity to go through those pages and drool some more and satisfy my taste buds once again through visuals. It would be even better if they parcel me some food from there so that I finally get to taste the mouth watering food of Singapore. 

There is only one food of Singapore which I can write about here - Popiah, which is more or less like a spring roll. Popiah is one dish which I thought I can prepare at home and fulfil my desire of eating Singaporean food. Most of the online sites said Popiah is very easy to make and homemade Popiahs are the best. So, just after losing my heart over the visa problem, I thought of bringing Singapore in to my home. Even in India, I love spring rolls and by the description of certain websites, I believed Popiah is the best of the spring rolls available in the world. Hence, I began my experimentation. But even after several attempts, I couldn't get the  Popiah skin texture right and failed miserably. If we ignore the mistakes, it still tasted delightful. Now I don't know if what I prepared was the authentic Singaporean Popiah or not, but I tried. I am sure after reading this you may all want to try preparing popiah at home and trust me, if you get the Popiah skin correctly then it is a very easy dish to prepare. 

Source

Popiah can also be made with egg, pork and other non vegetarian ingredients (just making the non veggies happy) but you can also make it without them. I had tried an Indian-ized version of the dish by replacing many of the ingredients which was not available. More like the Chinese Manchurians we get in India with a tadka on top!!!  

You can check this video for Popiah recipe, but this is a slightly difficult one. Google for more easier recipes and you can modify it like I did!!!! 

Now the question comes why did I choose to prepare this dish at home amongst the variety of other cuisines available? 

This looked easy to prepare and healthy. And also, my taste for spring rolls pushed me into preparing one. 

Source

Well, it's been three years since I experimented with this dish and failed in all my four trials and finally, I gave up. But definitely, I want to try it once again with all the right ingredients to get that flavour of Singapore which is still stuck in my head and not reached my tongue!!!

Life without good food

Is like a painting without colours

The flavours you savour with each bite

Takes you into a state of trance

You crave for it more and more

And images haunt you all night

Pay a visit to haven of food, Singapore

Your taste buds would experience

A pinch of everything, just right!!!

Vegetarian food in Singapore is not a myth!!!

So, for all the foodies like me, who drool over the images of foods and by the mere memory, it is time to switch on the gas, pour in some oil and experiment with some Singaporean food or even better, book a holiday in Singapore - a country which never fails to amaze me.

One suggestion - stop looking for Indian hotels in foreign lands. Eat their food, experiment and enjoy the endless variety you get to savour. I feel vacation is incomplete if you don't taste their food!!!! After all, food defines a land with its spices, sauces and ingredients. Give your taste buds a rejuvenation therapy in Singapore... 

PS: After my friend visited Singapore the first thing she told me was how amazed she was looking at Singaporeans who are slim, fit and fat free (majority of the population). May be we should seriously give a thought about their food habits, so to flaunt a curvaceous slim figure and of course, to remain healthy. 

***** All the collage images are downloaded from various sources via google. Only in the shuffling and scrambling is done by me!!!!

Discover a whole lot about Singapore - hotels and cuisines here : http://discover.stayfareast.com/ and during your next vacation do not forget to check it out!!!!

This post is written as a part of IndiBlogger contest in association with http://discover.stayfareast.com/