Memories- Storytelling afternoons

 

Alhambra- Equinox Concert

 

Poetry- The Word is dead

The word is dead until it find it's reader holding it with one's eyes seeing it with one's hands staring at the typeface sensing the apex, bar, vertex that's distinct and daring at times it is as plain as the whitespace The word is dead until it find it's reader.

What's on my plate?

The colourful plates! I realised that I need to learn a few tips and tricks in food photography. I began to enjoy the colourful mixture I'm seeing on my plates. S is brilliant in cooking biryani. A delightful treat. 

The Colourful Meal

Egg Biryani

Geneva Journals- The Green Smiles & Blue Beer Cans

On my usual walks in Geneva, I was standing at a crossing waiting for the light to go green. Four of us, two on each side were waiting for the signal to turn green. 50 seconds or odd, the light didn't turn green. Two men from the opposite sides decided to jay walk and crossed the path heading in their own directions. A woman in her black suit and I in my dark blue jacket waited all the time through those 50 seconds and more. As it turned green after a few seconds, we began to cross path looking at each other smiling, for waiting and walking when it's only green.

As I continued walking, I spotted the abandoned beer cans. Ever since I saw the short clip- Abandoned glass cup, I got intrigued by where and how the glasses, drinks are abandoned at random places. As I began to click, two walkers passed by asking if I want a blue beer can next to it. "I am documenting abandoned beer cans where they are left at random places." I explained. "Have a nice evening." we greeted each other and headed in our own directions, crossing paths. These little encounters brought a bright smile throughout the day. 

Book- Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri

I remember reading Jhumpa Lahiri's work in Bengaluru in 2016, during one of my visits to book stores. Lahiri's work is like to take a walk on a rainy day barefoot. It's gonna be messy but it's very earthy and raw. The melancholy reminds you of your humanness and the joy of feeling an emotion. 

In Whereabouts, without a mention of names, the characters are described by their identities- friend, walker, mother, father's friend, lover and a lot more. Without mention of name of the place, the places are described by their characteristics and stories flow between the nameless places and people. This book has stirred memories and reminded me of my childhood and travel trips.

 

Geneva Journals- The Cheerful S

Ever since I left Sirohi for Switzerland, I missed catching up with people who represent different states of India. I met S, who is local to Berlin, Delhi and hails from Bihar, speaks English, German and Maghi. I'm amused by his journey as he reminds me of my good old friends from Bihar-Azhar and Shankar.

S pursued journalism from Delhi University and been a passionate in life, pursuing everything that interests him. Be it the internship with world bank in his first year or attending London School of Economics during his summer time. He is not deterred by a lot of limitations. Be it financial or informational crunch. He thinks loud and people around him seemed to be always puzzled by his enthusiasm to pursue bigger things in life. 

S enjoys listening to music commanding Alexa, now and then to play his favourite music and loves food. Heartful person, wearing his emotions on his sleeves cheering himself and people around him all through out. As S continues his professional journey in Berlin, catching up with his friends in Geneva frequently, I'm glad to cross paths with him.

Geneva Journals- The Little Yellow Flower

Whenever I go out on walks, I often find a lot of flowers. Many a times, I do not pluck any flowers but, when I walk into forests or utamed gardens find some nice flowers, I pause for a moment and pick if I feel it,place it in the notebook and walk away, if not enjoy the sight of it and walk ahead. 

Plenty walks resulted plenty moments and a few flowers in the journals, notebooks. I love sharing flowers with people. I've learnt to share it with friends who receive it and appreciate it with a nod, smile and acknowledgement rather than ignorance. 

In one of the class, I was preparing a notes and a classmate, TA noticed a flower and appreciated it. Of all the flowers, a tiny yellow flower got a lot of acknowledgement and appreciation by the TA. "This is for you" I handed it over to her and she got a book from her table to keep it safe at her end. 

After two months, in a conversation, she mentions- I was thinking of you as I just noticed the tiny yellow flower and it is still yellow and distinct." "I'm so happy that it's in a better place." I said and the conversation continued. 

I love it when people are thoughtful and express their appreciation in gentle and simple ways. To more flowers and to more meaningful exchanges. 

Memories- The Houses

I've lived in multiple houses thanks to my father transfer. Living in different places, different houses, every houses evokes a different memory. As I moved out of GM, I had multiple residences in Geneva and began to contemplate on living spaces. I wished to live in a bungalow rather than visit it as an outsider. Experiencing the life in Bungalow, I realised that to let one person live in it, 10 other people need to maintain it. 

As I moved to an apartment for a while in Geneva, it's right near the railway yard. The only time I lived near a railway yard was when I visit my grandfather in the town of Guntakal, a city in Anantapur district. As Guntakal railway station is a junction, it's a big railway station. My grandfather used to live in railway quarters. The railway quarters were adjacent to the junction and train sounds was the white noise. I vividly remember the fragrance and the ambience of the quarters. The buildings were off white and has a lot of spacious places around. The fragrance of hot steam engines and coal bogies. It's a vivid intense smell of the place. Living next to the maintenance centre after 24 years, I see a clean closed space with little dust around. I hardly smell anything around. There's no particular fragrance of this place. 

Friends- Dinners and Conversations

Snigdha is back in town and three of us, Tridisha, Snigdha and I decided to have our signature dinners and conversations. Just after graduation, S & T got a lot to catch up on their new journeys and transitions. While I was high on my recent travel trips and experiences, we shared how we felt in 2023 and 2024. Snigdha got a special coffee from East asia and sipping the coffee, we caught up with a lot of new comers and huddled for our own conversations. 

T has cooked rice and egg curry for us. Over sumptuous dinners, describing 2023 & 2024 in three words, all of us shared our journeys and reminisced our heartful of experiences that bring more life out of us. 

I just realised that we have come a long way. I remember the first day I met Tridisha while she was cooking a curry using cococunt milk, cream and a lot more. I was amused by her cooking skills. Within a couple of days Snigdha joined and over months, we gathered over food, sharing what's happening in our lives. Tridisha has been consistent in respecting my space and being there empathetic for my own journey, all through out. Appreciate their presence and company 

My three words for 2023 was blooming,bittersweet & borderless. For me, 2024 is more about curiosity, compassion and questions. I always cherish these dinners and conversations with these two lovely people whom I met in Geneva. 

Art- The Facade

Ever since I walked into the institute, I was intrigued by the piece hanging around. Such a heavy piece metal hanging around like a cloth. It can't be avoided. It seemed heavy metal, dishivelled windows. As I learnt more about artist's statement, I could visualise the paradox of the institute's architecture and the way this art symbolises the architecture. It's a facade that replicates the famous Bauhas. Why has the institute chose this glass shaped, windows shaped architecture is still something to be curious about.

 

https://www.kunstbulletin.ch/en/art/facade

Geneva Journals- The Saturday Haul

 After a couple of cloudy days, arrived a full sunny day with a gush of wind. Prepared for the 25kmph wind, I walked out of my building across champel and carouge. After walking till Augustin, I walked to my favourite library and found a good collection of books. This time, I picked, freakonomics, Measuring the world by Daniel kehlmann, The Polaroid Book by Barbara Hitchcock, Art now edited by Uta Grosenick. Got a couple of taschen publications. Interesting publishing story.

After picking the titles, I walked across the flea market. I was amused by the amount of antique stuff they got for the sale. A lot of amulets, fragrance sticks, wood carvings, fake paintings were there for the sale. A lot of clothes and shoes as well. 

After walking across the flea market, I headed to Cornavin and further walked to the lake. After 2 months, had a good sight of the lake. To beat the heavy winds, I found a spot and rested there sleeping under the sun. 

A bit of reading, a bit of writing, got back to the building after a bit of grocery shopping. A good day. 

Movie- Hit Man

Watching the posters at Salzburg, I was intrigued by a few movie titles. I walked into the theatre and asked about the film festival and a few movies. Wearing a black flat cap, a person began to share his thoughts on the movie I asked about. Quickly, we began to talk and he was explaining how he's keen to watch a few movies and showed the poster of Hit Man by Richard Linklater. I admire the way Richard narrates his stories and his collaborating with the actors to evolve the story. I was sold on the poster and Richard's name. A very few in the cinema hall. Had a great time enjoying the cinema. 

Glen Powell acted as Gary johnson, a fake hitman who works as undercover operative with the cops get into an entangled relationship with the women who approaches him to kill her abusive husband. Adria is at her best. Loved watching her through the lens of Richard Linklater. A lovely movie. 

Movie- Masters of the Air

After watching Band of Brothers, I was keen to check out Masters of the Air. It's based on the book by the same name- Masters of the Air. It's a story of 100th Bomb group who fly boeings, the heavy big birds in the war. Starring, John Buck Egan and Bucky Cleven, the 9 episode series narrates the tales of several heroes of the war. Striking visual effects and oblivious background score, the series is well made with a lot of suspense and drama. I loved watching the friendship bond between buck and bucky and how they survived as Prisoner of War. Also, a few stories-Crosby, Rosie, Sandra, Bubbles stayed with me. I'm amused by the way they name their flights, friends developing a sense of belonging. Having visited a bit of germany in the past month, I was not keen to visit the concentration camps in this journey as I knew, it'd take a toll on you. Watching the series and witnessing the suffering of many, I'm perplexed by the rules and the game of war. Who decides the rules of the war and how the conflicts are resolved through war field at times? Loved watching it. Would be watching again as I did with Band of Brothers. 

What's on my plate? - Morning Colours

The meal with Asparagus- German's favourite.

I was told that it's a special treat. On being asked, I was shared the history of kaiserschmarrn. It's made of squashed apples and pancakes. 

Sometimes, I resorted to the bread. I love German bread!

Pizza for the night

 

What's on my plate?

I never took food for granted and I always had abundance of food around me everytime. In the past, I hardly paid attention at home on how food is cooked. When I moved out of home, food always came on my plate in return of money. I was conscious to eat healthy food and listed a few options as a go-to options. When I moved to Rajasthan, diversity of food got expanded and I began to enjoy different kinds of food. Also, accompanied by amazing friends who are into cooking, I had delicious food but, never dared to be creative in the kitchen. When I have to cook by myself, I struggled to be creative in the kitchen and spent very less time in the preparation of food. I learnt that I always projected all my anger, fear of committing mistakes in kitchen on my food and ended up sticking to the basics. After traveling around in Europe gave me a chance to see how others cook and how it's okay to be creative in the kitchen. Food and identity and how identities evolve through food seemed to be an interesting thought to ponder upon.

I began to click the pictures of food which I have never done in the past. The first act to be aware and study a bit more on what's on my plate. Here are some snippets on what's on my plate. 

Food with Harold- Pretzel, Mozarella, Potato Salad, Cinnamon Roll, Butter milk

Harold and I were on a drive and both of us felt we should eat something. Both of us headed to LidL and Harold picked these and encourage me to try it out. We picked croissants, cinammon roll, potato salad which has a little vinegar in it and Mozarella cheese. As we reached home, we distributed croissants to Bibi, Luder, Thomas and had the rest to both of us. Margaret gave us the pretzel which is daily baked in the morning. 

The Daily routines

Margaret loves preparing pretzels and I used to be greeted with pretzel every morning. Black coffee and pretzel was the usual routine before the heavy breakfast. 

Apfel Strudel is Martin's favourite. Hence it's always prepared by Margaret. Love is always about action! I was served in a royal blue plate. 'You need to finish it' commands Martin, leaving with coffee to spend time with his love. This is another dish I get to eat very regularly as they're abundant with apple orchards in their place. 

This time, Apfel strudel with home made berry sauce. 

On one of my hikes, I visited this small cafe where I was ready to try out  a lot of stuff to celebrate the hike. I had an apple, apricot cake and buttermilk. 

I was also served Mount Cheese, butter, bread along with cucumber and radish. 

Blueberry cake with icing on the top. 

Whenever I had to choose for the food, I never chose. Instead, I'd seek suggestions and go on with their suggestions. I always made sure to not own any choices whenever it's food. This time, I was conscious of it and with the help of the cafe owner, I selected a lemon pastry on a rainy morning. 

I do not remember the names of these. There's a lot of fruits and cakes 

Another cake! By now, one can realise that I love cakes and icecreams. 

These are a few glimpses of the food I captured. The idea of clicking picture before eating food is a practice I condescend upon. Grateful for all the love that's served on the plate. 

Travel Diaries- The Vipassana Retreat

Being close to nature and traveling around, I got a chance to meet amazing individuals. On a fine day when I was on my evening walk across the river, tech. I stood for a while, picked up the stones and kept dropping one after the other observing the flowing water and ripples I was creating. I looked sidewards and saw Karen with a smiling face. 'I didn't want to disturb your moment' she mentioned and began the conversation. Over a conversation, we continued walking together and she showed me a place where she goes for a swim. A secluded stream with a lot of rocks and trees around. Talking of her experiences in India, she mentioned of her vipassana experience in Hyderabad. In 2016, I've attended my vipassana in Hyderabad as well. Over conversations, she mentioned if I'm interested to do it again. I contemplated on the thought of meditating again for 10 days. When would I be able to have 10 days of free time again, I thought and decided to apply. Long story short, I applied and headed to Germany to attend the retreat. The twist in the story is that they needed help with volunteering and I agreed to volunteer rather than be an old student. I'm glad I've volunteered. 

I got a chance to meet a lot of amazing individuals. Peer, Philip, Ramez, Mirko, Luder, Maria, Klaus, Cornell, Chayan, Bibi, Brtille, Viktor, Nicolay, Eva and a few more people. Luder and Mirko headed the kitchen and I got a chance to work everywhere, having great fun in cooking for 100+ people. A lot of the processes were broke down into tiny processes and assigned to different people. In that way, three teams were formed. Cooking, cleaning and serving. I was floating around in all of these teams, preparing salads, cutting carrots, cleaning 100+ dishes in one go. I was amazed by the team work from the beginning. 

Three hours of meditation was compulsory through out the day and meditating from day-1, I struggled to focus and concentrate for the first 3 days. After 3 days, I was comfortable to focus and meditate for long time. As we meditate, there's a lot of past memories keep floating by and staying equanimous to them is the key. On day 5 I met Nicholay and conversations with him helped me a lot to appreciate the life in a better way. More than worrying, I became curious about the future and instiled curiosity towards life being equanimous. 

The Daily sunset

The place I spent most of my time

Martin's Meadow

Berghof

Sharing the cabin with Chayan, our usual day began with a sight of sheep under the vast blue skies. After freshening up, we head to kitchen, prepare for the breakfast, serve it for students and eat our breakfast. the first group session began at 8 till 9 am. After 9 am, we take a break and get back to kitche to prepare lunch. By 11 am, we are ready with lunch. Serve it for students, have our lunch and take a break till 2.30. We meditate for an hour and head back to prepare dinner. By 5.30, the dinner is prepared. We have our dinner and head to the meditation. After 7 pm,  I always headed to watch the sunset while Chayan headed to discourse at times. Sunset at Berghof was simply one of the best moments of the day. After the sunset, we head to meet the teachers for a while and rest for the day. This routine continued for 10 days and I loved the journey I got through these 10 days. 

Living in the cabin and watching the sky, sunset and being close to nature are few moments that will stay with me for a long time. Also, I was learning to stay equanimous while being aware of each and every moment rather than craving for me. A memorable and transformational experience indeed.

Travel Diaries- The Neighbour Yoseph

Living at Berghof, I was wandering around the vicinities and became familiar to the neighbourhood as well. I got well versed with few neighbours. Even though, I don't know much german, I managed to build rapport with a few. Over a walk, I came across an elderly man in his typical bavarian shorts and hat looked at me. Guten Morgan, we exchanged our greetings. When we tried talking to each other, we realised that he doesn't speak English and I don't speak german. Thanks to few words that we know in German and English, we managed to know a bit about each other. 'Nationality' he asked. Indian, I mentioned. Immediately, he said, Gandhi, Nehru and associated India to these names. I was amused by their perception of India. Have you been to India? I asked moving my hand to symbolise the flight. No. Istanbul, he murmurred and added another country- Turkey. Have you been to Switzerland? I repeated the question. Suisse, wonderful country, he said in german. Atleast, that's what I could understand. After that day, whenever I walked, both of us exchanged greetings Guten Morgan. AllesGut. We couldn't improve much beyond these two words but, the smile with which both of us greeted mattered a lot. Also, ahaa, is the expression he says before saying, Guten Morgan. 

After a few days, I noticed music from far away. I stood for long time, listening to the music. I tried to spot the musician and there, he sat, Mr. Yoseph, playing the horn witnessing the sunset. I didn't wanted to disturb his solitude and maintained the distance. After a while, he looked around, spotted me and welcomed me by waving his hand towards. We can speak a lot without words, I thought. 

I joined him and enjoyed listening to him amidst the sunset. We exchanged a few words and I got lost whenever he continued speaking more than 2 german words. I love the fact that they value being close to nature and do what they love. An abundant life. I'm glad I could catch up with Yoseph for a while. Thanks Yoseph for catching and up performing a few pieces for me. 

Soliloquies- Does medium matter- Intimacy, Connection and Conundrum

Does medium matter? My answer is yes. Medium matters. Medium is the message along with the message in it. Observing the recent communication style and the way people around, responding through different mediums, I realised that a lot of us became comfortable with new digital mediums and are now trying to find intimacy through the medium. 

Over the past 5 years, the average time spent on social media has definitely increased by everyone. So is the consumption of the content. I realised that people have become comfortable sharing their stories, experiences and journeys through social media extensively. As there's an increase in sharing of the stories, thanks to the loops created by our social media giants, we are spending more time on the mediums, consuming them as well. As we spend more time on the mediums, we're perceiving our friends, connections through those mediums. We may perceive information as knowledge. We may perceive communication as conversation. On an average, we spend less time with our people in-person and more time through screens. This gives us the feeling of being connected and proximal. Does social media affect couples? How much romance through social media affect people who are in relation? As more and more people are showing up on those mediums, how does the communication affect at larger scale? In a society, is communication becoming a norm rather than conversation? How vulnerable are children to these mediums? We had TVs, video games in the past and I'm assuming there'd be the same narrative around them in those ages.

If we begin to find intimacy through social media, are we gonna fall in love with ourselves or others? Instagram has become a memory photo album for many and people who perceive one of their account as memory box, they feel loyal and obliged to be linear, chronological and acceptable to the narratives. It's interesting how we are going to navigate through this medium. 

Travel Diaries- Holiday with Hofer- Day 7

Never have I woke up after 7 am in the month of August. I was always keen to look at the sunrise and enjoy the morning mist. This time, my body demanded sleep more than any other experience. I slept until I felt I rested completely. After the usual encounter with Martin, I continued my day. I got to know that they're planning to reduce the number of sheep. I could see the nervousness in Martin's face. When the clouds cleared from the sky,  I had my morning walk and walked till I found different meadows and different skyline. I chanced upon a cute bench, different group of cows and a forest where the roots are above the ground showing how trees are intertwined underneath. I spent 2 hours in the woods and returned by the lunch time. After spending a few minutes, I was on my stroll again, this time trying to be as present as possible. I managed to write a bit and got a chance to witness the orchestra practice. I got to know that I was witnessing the famous composer and cellist- Graham waterhouse conducting the orchestra. I've been introduced to him as professor in Music at Munich by Martin. I didn't knew that he's not just an academic but a musician with a lot of prolific work. Enjoyed the way he conducted the session. Asking about the pieces he's been conducting for this week concert, he shared the details. The last piece was by Aaron Copland  titled- Hoedown

After the dinner, we eagerly waited at the hall to get inside. This time, there was a small theatrical play starring a kid. After a cute performance, there was some instructions and then began the dance performance. This time, I joined them in group performance for a while. As they began to pick partners, I walked out as I didn't wanted to fail my partner. I enjoyed the performances though. Soon after the performance, again the group gathered with their violins, violas and cellos. This time, the teachers were also part of the group. They played Mendelsohn octet for more than an hour. Witnessing them live is a pure enthralling experience. I was awestruck by the harmony and co-ordination the musicians got. Grateful to witness it live.