Alankar Guest House Kolkata (Calcutta)

... from last trip, they all recognized 'Mama' right away & were so happy to see her, Rosie came up to taxi window on our way to conf., seemed stunned for a minute, then started beaming saying over & over 'Hi Mama! Rosie, Mama! We couldn't beleve it!]

... to Varanasi) headed, I fear, toward a most useless place. The Waiting Place... (waiting at train platforms and oversleeping the Varanasi station) and these words too: I'm afraid that some times you'll play lonely games too. Games you can't win 'cause you'll play against you. All Alone! Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you'll be quite a lot. And when you're alone, there's a very good ...

... atmosphere and the herds of bubble shaped taxi cabs with the narrow streets and alleys makes it feel like I've stepped into the 1930's. There are some radical differences though, for a start the city is absolutely filthy, a thick layer of dust and grime covers absolutely everything and rubbish lies strewn about the streets culminating in thick piles amongst the shanty huts of the poor that nestle in the forgotten nooks and alcoves of the city ...

... Arohan has been doing great work due to its client-friendly approach. Arohan was adjudged as Regional Winner in recently concluded RBS-Planet Finance Microfinance Process Excellence Awards 2008. Shubhankar & Gitali (wife of Shubhankar) have been supporting me in many ways. Gitali is a freelance consultant. Currently she is supporting many budding and growing microfinance institutions by being consultant to MicroSave.

... She told that the tiger was sitting in one corner of the room. Some one bolted the door and informed the forest department officials who came with guns with tranquilizer bullets. We left after the adventure for Sudhanyakhali. As we sailed along deep mangrove forests, we realized that civilization as we know it comes to end in this forbidden terrain and we enter the tigerland. We saw a large family of stork, possibly Lesser Adjutant Storks on a tree. But when shouts of Muktar ...

... feel the full effects of the Indian food and started to feel sick (probably due to the food she ate in Agra with our termite infested chicken curry)... and after a good night sleep she was to be back on form. Uncle Padam started as he meant to go on and introduced Mike to the drinks cabinet with choices galore (No I didn't hide any!). Met the family guard dog Copper, Nani and of course Aunty Vini (whom most of you met at our wedding) and then Suhanjna (aka CK), Rajesh ...

I touched down in Kolkata Sunday evening, Oct 5th and after waiting in an hour line for the prepaid taxi made my way into town to meet up with Ankit at the hostel. Being night time, the entire city was lit up brilliantly with loud music playing everywhere. Like all large Indian cities, there were cars/rickshaws everywhere and every bazaar/store/restaurant was buzzing with life. I did not immediately experience the destitute poverty and squalor or ...

... sale it as a standard piece of fabric that is 6m for all sizes. I didn't believe them that it would fit. They kept saying, "Yes, yes all size...standard." I told them, "do I look like a standard sized Indian woman?" We all found this pretty funny and couldn't stop laughing. Between giggles the younger woman replied, "we know -Americans are healthy." So I still didn't believe them even with all the laughter because I'm quickly learning that ...

... just inches away. Funny, you get used to all this stuff and don't even notice it after a while. I caught a bicycle with a scraggly driver coming towards me next and moved aside for the bike. I suppose this was my fault, as pedestrians are lowest on the food chain, but I did not notice that this was a half-bike, half-cart, 5 times wider than the bike. Therefore, I did not give enough room and he could care less. Youch! He rolled his heavy load (I know ...

Long time no see...due to: royal tigers, tummy tigers, a Colonel and a wedding   We were in the Sunderbans, largest mangrove system in the world and the last remaining place with man-eating tigers... about 260 of them. As they were never hunted in the great tiger hunts early to mid last century, they are not afraid of man, nor of eating him! They live on a series of islands separated by channels of salty fresh tidal water which they occasionally decide to swim across for fast ...