Broadly defining life!

So, today is when i wanted to sit and think peacefully what is it that i like doing in life and would continue to do.. There are just so many things which i did not choose, but happened to be circumstantial and given that more often than not i take life as it comes, i have been fine and i always think when people cant think for themselves, God does.. :)

But somethings which i really think i would like to keep or bring in me till i die are:

-- Walk. I think i love to walk for miles with greens all around.. alone, with friends, with music, without music.. i just love to walk when everything around is silent.. i have noticed that i am not a party animal, i can manage with any kind of day, when i end it with a long walk.. anything i observe on my way teaches me something about life and it gives me time to talk about the day, think about the day and just dump the day with good thoughts and new learnings.. i have made some of the bestest friends during my walks..
-- Talk. Yes, many people know me as extrovert and equally know me as introvert.. fact of life is i love to talk to the right people.. talk about anything under the sun.. dumbest to smartest.. discuss on everything seen and unseen.. i like it when my day ends with talking and laughing with some of my good friends here.. i think, i do talk a lot, no matter where i go, i always find some people to hang around with and eat heads of.. the point is, i never regret the time spent talking, so thats something i will want to make an integral part of life..
-- Think. funny, but i like to think on anything and tell my mind to keep calm, have patience and pray to God to not give me the best , but give me the wisdom to handle good and bad with equal peace.. Thinking is just so impotant to keep ones mind from going off track.. if thoughts are streamlined right everyday, there is little that ups and downs of life can do.. i always wanted to learn to meditate, it probably is complex for me, but i can do simple streamlining of thoughts everyday to think good and do good..
-- Grow. no matter what it is, mental growth is very important for me.. i have realized it has no connection with a job.. it has got to do with your thoughts, what you learn from your surrounding, people around you, books you read and activities you do to make your day.. I have to change and change for good every passing day.. if i were to wake up as same human 2 years down the line, i will be disappointed.. there is just so much to change to be a "human"..
-- Empathize. Have a feeling of respect and understanding for all, no matter how my mind categorizes them.. this is tough one.. it deteorates with time, but it should ideally get better as you move in life.. i dont want to be judgemental and i dont want to categorize people and behave differently with different category..
-- Have fun. watch movie, eat ice creams, travel, eat out.. do whatever, but when i die, know that i lived it..
-- Tolerate. Neutralize feelings and thoughts. Diffuse the negativity out of any discussion and then take it on.. reactions are not worth everyone and every discussion..

In the end, i came to conclusion, i like to be happy and peaceful and it takes all of the above to maintain it. No matter what i live for, how i live; in the end i should make trade offs which dont come on the way to any of the above because thats probably what i want to achieve in life, everything else is just a means to it.

Liverpool

It was march 1 and i had to travel to Liverpool on a weekday.. I took a night train from london , the journey is 2 hours. I had made a booking in one of the hotels near lime street which is in the heart of the city. I must admit, though the choice of hotel was made on internet, i quite liked it. I had some work on tuesday morning, so day started early, but it ended by mid day; then on was my tryst with the third largest city in England. I walked my way to the waterfront.. The river side is a beautiful walk and there is a nice pub overlooking the river which shows the liverpool soccer matches recording which you can enjoy over a coffee or drink.. I started with it.. It was good to grab bite on a riverside place..
I then decided to take a hop on and hop off tour on the bus to travel around the city.. The city boasts of magnificient old buildings.. the ports of Liverpool were famous for trade and slavery trade was prominent here.. i happened to spend a fraction of my time in museums near Albert Dock educating myself on the city and what it stood for in old times.. the city is associated with some magnificient ships like titanic which unfortunately wre also symbolic of tragey.. There are large cathedrals one of which is desingned by the guy who happned to also design the red telephone booths which i am sure all of us have either seen or been into..
The city to me looked quite small.. city center is paved walk, no traffic and gives a small town feel..
i might be wrong but i always like people in small towns.. they are more open and simple.. same was for liverpool.. they have some kind of accent which tends to grow on you.. food is average, nothing tht i came across worth mentioning.. BTW, they ahve some grand historically relevant pubs and hotels.. the beatles spirit is all around, there are special pubs which play their music and are meant for Beatles fans.. :)
I reached back to station well in advance as my long walk ended into it.. i decided to stay put in customer lounge.. a brit born chinese, who happned to be really sad entered into the place.. he started praising india women and india and given that he decided to completely ignore my laptop, i decided to talk for 5-10 mins.. frankly, it was kind of scary moment.. he started crying saying life is tough and lots of things which i could probably not comprehend.. i decided to stay cool and in name of humanity not to run away and leave the person in misery.. i got some food for myself and him.. he got better and smiled, in the end he said i wanted to die but not nemore after which i completely ignored him.. more people came in so felt better.. finally took trai back to london and sweet home..

People, London is damn expensive.. You can afford 10 times better lifestyle with same expense in any city outside.. :) [ will add pics of liverpool in time ]

Brand Creation

It was a nice lazy friday evening.. i started back from office at 5 PM.. on my way back, i wanted to pick up something exotic to start my weekend.. i entered into the super mart and started checking out the shelves for something nice and soothing to eat or drink.. something in tea section attracted me.. it was a very attractive pack of tea.. i went closer to check on what was it.. this was tea with various flavors which is quite a big market in europe.. but this was something new, targetting the "organic and healhty" crowd.. as i held the pack in my hand, i could smell strong cardamom and liquorice.. i had picked up a detox pack.. retail being my passion, i went on hunting a bit more within the section.. i saw that this tea was priced almost 50% higher than the normal green tea that i buy.. but i just wanted it.. the marginal price difference did not look too much for a month's consumption..
Curious, i picked the pack, as i wanted to try this diffuser tea.. The curiousity has proven to be good, i guess.. i have a learning..
Here is what i saw how brands and commodities separate themselves out:
-- Certification from USDA Organic, Organic soil association and Kosher Parve
-- Detailed information on how i am different from other teas
-- Unique combination of ingredients
-- Elegant , soothing colors and packaging

This is "Pukka" detox tea for you.. It is an Indian sourced tea, marketed extensively in Europe and i must say, if you have it once, you would just want to try more of it.. its perception, attention to details and keeping eyes on niche markets.. they say your love and passion shows in everything you do.. looking at their product and then further into website and details, i feel entrepreneurship is about finding your passion and getting started to build it brick by brick.. in the end either you will find your way or you would have been through a journy which you shall never regret.. Not to forget India comes back to me in so many ways.. :)

Cirque Di Soleil

I am not one of the theatre and art enthusiasts.. I like good things in life, but animation and television was what art meant for me.. then came this art which becomes the part of my subject line..
During my visit to Vegas, some of us decided to watch "Ka", a circque di soleil's show.. this is a theatre which involves circus gymnatics and theatre art.. I did not really know what was i going for till i landed in and got introduced to this amazing world of art..
Lavish stage concept and direction, amazing acting, superb flex bodies, music, a neat story line and an awestruck me.. the colors of clothes, the impact that this theatre left on me is memorable for life.. I just knew that artists are unique and desrve to be the guys in fortune's top 50 rich people to live in this world, if only world was a fair place to live in and people got rich for their relative value of skills..
I like the way th art has been preserved, a niche market created and priced well for the same.. the uniqueness and quality has drawn more investments and hence has helped the organizer improve the art by adding visuals, costumes and stage effects..
Truly inspiring.. all form of arts, all over the world, need some enthusiasts, who can build these up and offer to the world.. the right shall survive and thrive.. :)
For all the money that "KA" in Las Vegas seeks, its worth a lifetime experience.. if you are around, just go in..

Inspiration!!

What is so common among all who do well and make their mark in life?? Most of us die ordinary.. we are born in comfortable setup, we know how to find faults, we know who can solve our problems for us and we die average.. with a few lakhs here and there, we die same..
Then, there are street hawkers, Dhiru bhai Ambani's, Chris Gardners of the world.. nothing seems to be working for them.. born in poverty, struggling for food, no one seems to be solving anything for them.. they dont have a choice but to fight and then one of such million fights turns their fate.. what dsnt change?? they keep fightng till they die, its an addiction, they dont realize till the end of their life that they achieved what they fought for long back.. With a lot of lakhs here and there and addiction to generate them, they die same.. just that they become inspiration for millions before they die..
So, what does really drive you to make your mark in life? Circumstances? Yes, in more cases than not.. Drive? Yes, if you dont fee like giving up, its a genetic disorder you have and you will carry it.. passion? you have to be mad enough to not be pulled by crowd of averagers who think you are hitting in dark, while they really are.. last but not least, perseverance to follow the silver lining in dark crowd till the last breath of your life!! Really, the ones who give inspirational speeches, dont really care about them.. their life is a never ending journey to move and learn.. there is never enough to stop and feel proud about and feel thankful about.. In the end, nothing is good or bad, great or faulty, right or wrong.. if you became an inspiration, you probably fought all your life and in the process never sat and looked back at life; if you did not, you probably did not fight for anything, so you dont know what is it to create and live a life of your own.. Life is equally exciting for the 0.5% who stand of stage and inspire and 99.5% who sit on chairs aspire..

Isle of Wights

It was the 31st Aug 2010 long weekend.. one of my friends from India was in London and in an early morning discussion, we decided to head to Isle of Wights!
Its a simple travel from London.. We took a train from Waterloo to Southamptop, a free bus to ferry station, a fast ferry to Crowes, a family bus pass for isle of wights!! The journey is around 2 - 3 hours..
The must see attraction in Isle of Wights is : the Needles.. this is a beautiful cut of valleys that overlooks the sea.. The white cliffs and natural beauty around is extremely calming.. There is a ferry ride for 15 mins which can take you near the white cliffs and give you a view of the island from proximity of needles.. you can take a sitting trolley down the cliff to reach the sea side.. The journey from New port can be done in an open top Breezer bus.. the natural beauty of the island settles in your mind.. while coming back from needles, you can choose to take the coasters bus ride... this bus takes the sea side route through the Isle of Wights and covers almost whole of island .. Some of the sea side towns are beautiful and comfortable.. if you are the kinds who enjoys your peace of mind and love nature, then just stay on for a night before you move on.. you can always choose to stay out in coasters ride for 2.5 hours, come back to Rhyde or Crowes, take the last ferry at 11:15 to Southampton and a train back to London..
All in all a MUST SEE place around London.. Very beautiful countryside feel with sea all around.. very far away from crowd..

The Neemrana Palace

This time when i visited India, i decided to spend a weekend off at Neemrana.. its an old fort which has been refurbished and converted into a resort.. Priced fairly, it does not really boast of the 5 star facilities, lavish lobbies and excellent room service.. this is a "true fort".. for those of you who want to go there, this has 11 floors, you might not realize it, but yes, you might climb 8 floors on your feet to reach to your room.. the rooms are very simple and have been decorated with old pots and craft from time of kingdom.. each room is different from other and has a history of its own which is preserved and explained in pictures and decors.. Small fort windows might lead to a scenic view of the village or a the back view of mountains.. there are cultural folk dances, buffet lunch and dinners and fire fox( zipping) activities which can be done in this resort apart from spending a lazy day and exploring the fort..
The fort has local staff which ensures that you get personal touch and you are taken care of.. all in all, a must once in lifetime experience.. a very well preserved heritage which shall make you relive the moments that you had read about in some tales..
Price : INR 4500 - 12500
Food : Buffet - Average
Services : Good but unique
Decor : Simple and elegant
Attraction: Pool and people
What you can see around : A Bowri and walk in the village
How Long : A day or two may be