N - 1st month at school

N started going to a montessori school since June 7th. There are children in age group 2 - 4 in a class. The funda is that the younger kids will pick up things (faster) from the elder ones and the elder ones will learn how to coach the younger ones. Since N follows everything that M does at home, we thought this would be a right kind of approach for N.
Our only experience with starting school has been with M, and that has been something that none of us will every forget anytime soon. M had started going to a home daycare near our house in Seattle. So when the time came to put him to a preschool, we thought he would blend right in. But we were so wrong. He used to howl and we literally had to drag him to school everyday for almost a month. The first couple of weeks, he would cry in the preschool most of the time. Since M has always been more attached to A, I used to do the drop off to make the transition easier. It was a heart wrenching experience to see him cry and there have been days when I have just sat in the car, umb for a few minutes after dropping him off. Things gradually improved after a month or so and pretty soon he started to enjoy his time in school. One of his teachers, Miss Masa had a particular liking for him and he would be with her most of the time.
Given this experience as a background, we had braced ourselves this time around. Since N is more attached to me, A dropped and picked him up the 1st few weeks. At school, it was a gradual transition as well. The 1st week was with a parent in class for 30 mins or so. Next week was 1 hr with the parents waiting outside incase the kids were crying non-stop. The week after that was 1.5 hrs with the parents free to go away. The 4th week was again 1.5 hrs but starting at 9 am (which is the regular timings) instead of 10 am. After 4 weeks, it was going to be 3 hrs school from 9 - noon. N had been pretty good the 1st few weeks. He did not cry on his own but there were other kids in the class that cried a lot and so looking at them he would cry for some time. After the 1st few weeks, he started crying a little at home when we would get ready for school. However once the school started for the full 3 hrs, he started regressing. He would plead/cry to not go to school at home and in the car. One could see that he was truely trying to be a brave boy and not cry in the car. However the moment we would get to the school gate, he would not be able to control anymore and start crying. Also after a month we figured he was getting used to it and so I started dropping him off as well as picking him up. It has been a week of full day school and he has cried everyday. Also he has regressed in his potty training as well. We had started his potty training in May and by the time he started going to school, we felt he was 90% potty trained - he would tell us most of the time and when we took him to this potty seat, he would do the job quickly. The 1st month in school went smoothly as well since he was there only for 1.5 hrs and didn't need to go in school. Once the school started for 3 hrs, he has to go there as well and most of the days he would come back with a wet pant or would have had a change of clothes. Hope N settles soon and that there is a big improvement in his mood when he goes to school.

I am Nishanth

N has now entered the phase where when given 2 alternatives, he would pick the 2nd one, provided ofcourse that nothing major is at stake. To test my theory, we had the following conversation -
K : Nishanth, tu girl aahes ka boy aahes? (are you a girl or a boy)
N (without diverting any attention from what he was doing) : Booooyyyy
K (1 sec afterwards) : tu boy aahes ka girl aahes? (are you a boy or a girl)
N : Gaaaalllll
gap in conversation for about 10 secs.
N : me Nishanth aahe (I am Nishanth).

World's Best Food

Friday evenings are time for fried food for Mihir. He really looks forward to them throughout the week. Here is his list of world's best food after one such orgy
- Fried Paneer
- Fried Fish
- Fries
- Smileys (fries in the shape of smiley)
- Butter noodles
- White Rice
-  Olives

Thankfully he eats healthy stuff the rest of the week so that he can enjoy on "Fry"day.                                                                                                                                                             

Solution to world food shortage

Hi
This is Nishanth again. I have to really blog this one since no one around gets it. I think I have found a solution to world food shortage. I know it doesnt sound like something a two year old should worry about or have to solve. But I think I have given enough time for adults to figure it out and it doesnt seem to work. So I had to take matters in my own hands. The solution is really very simple (as most things are). Everyone should eat hair. The advantages are that they are easily available everywhere and they grow back. I would agree that the taste is not the best but one can get used to it with enough practice.
The best source is baba's head. There always seems to be hair over there and it is very conveniently located as well. Everytime I hug or cuddle up to him, i can pluck some with my hands or directly try to pull some with my mouth. I dont think he was very happy with it when i had my eureka momemt - about 6 months ago. By now he seems to have taken it very personally and gets very annoyed whenever I try to get a mouthful. The good thing with Baba is that he has hair on his arms, legs, cheeks (sometimes), chest....pretty much everywhere I can get my hands to. So when I drink milk sitting on his lap, i can try to pluck hair on his arms with my free hands. I am such an expert that I can now pluck one hair at a time. It also helps me with my fine motor skills. Far from nominating me for a nobel prize, he doesnt even encourage me. So I have moved on to others as well. Aai has long hair and I just have to put my hand in her head vicinity to grab some. There are so many sources of food - Aaji (again long hair), ajo (white hair), Mihir dada, Bharti maushi (my caretaker), Anita maushi (cook), people in front of me in a crowed elevator, etc. I am surprized and disappointed that the idea has not caught on yet.
Hopefully my glory time will come soon.....

Annapurna Mini Circuit Trek - Day 14

Day 14
Today was the day of 3 flights. Got up at 6:30 am and after a quick breakfast went to the airport quite early for my flight. Had to wait for an hour at the airport before checking in. My flight was delayed by about 50 mins and we finally left Pokhara just after 10. This was a slightly bigger place with 3 seats per row. It was also a short flight of about 30 mins. Didn't see any mountains in the flight since it was too bright. Ganga had come to pick me up at the airport. However, my next flight to Delhi was due in another 3 and 1/2 hours. So it did not make sense to go to Thamel and come back in time for an international departure. So I bid Ganga goodbye and waited at the airport listening to music.
After another hour wait, the counter opened so that I could checkin my luggage. Then I went through security and to the departure gates. I did not have much Nepalese rupees left with me and they dont accept 500 rupees (Indian) bills at the airport. For the money I had, none of the stuff looked appetizing and so I decided to wait till I reached Delhi to fill my belly. My flight to Delhi was also delayed by about 40 mins. However I had enough layover in Delhi. After clearing Immigration and Customs, I went to my departure gates area. Before that I gorged myself with Pani Puri, Sev Puri and Chicken Tikka Kebabs. I had the same feeling as when I used to visit India from US - just wanting to eat all kinds of Indian food. The flight to Bangalore was delayed as well but was uneventful. I finally landed in Bangalore by 10 pm and came home just after 11 pm. Felt good to see family.

It was with some sadness that I left Nepal. I felt that I left a part of me out there in the mountains. However there were enough scenic views, new experiences and challenges to take back with me and more than fill the void. I think that is what travelling is all about, isn't it?

Annapurna Mini Circuit Trek - Day 13

Day 13

After getting up at 4:30am and having a quick breakfast at 5 am, we headed out to the airport. It was a 5 min walk and we were ushered in an open space.  We could see some snowcapped mountains in the clear morning air.

After some time we were ushered into a building. After checking in at Agni airlines counter we got a very unique boarding pass. It was the airlines boarding pass with none of the fields filled in. So no name, no flight number, no gate number, no seat number, no source and destination, nothing... Just an empty boarding pass that anyone could have used to board the flight. Then came the security check where he had everyone open their bags. After that we were in a room for some time waiting for our flint to arrive. It was a very small plane with about 20 seats - 2 vertical rows of about 10 seats each. Each seat was a window seat and the 2 rows were separated by a very narrow pathway. One had to stoop down inside the plane since the ceiling was short. No sooner were the required people boarded, the plane took off. It was just a 20 mins flight but we were right next to scenic hills and mountains. I could see the other side of the Annapurna range with the big peak of Annapurna I clearly visible. Pokhra seemed like a very green and beautiful city from the plane.

Right after landing, we picked our checked in luggage and left by taxi to our hotel (Mum's Garden). It was a short 10 mins ride. My guide Raj bade me goodbye after dropping me at the hotel. He had other clients waiting for him and he took the next flight to Kathmandu. I gave him a thank you tip and then went to my room. It was a beautiful hotel with many flower trees. My room was nice and big. After repacking my bags for the flight home the next day, I took a long hot shower and shaved. It was only 8:15 am when I stepped outside to explore the area. The hotel was a 5 mins walk from the famous fish tail lake. It is a very calm and beautiful lake with green hills all around it. I sat beside the lake. Some people were doing boating. However the sun was out and it had just started to feel hot. So I didn't do boating as I didn't want to sit under sun for an hour or two.

Some of the souvenir shops had just started opening and I did some souvenir shopping for folks back home. I was feeling very lethargic and tired. I guess all the exhaustion of the trek was finally catching up. Since I was alone I didn't feel like venturing too far out and just wanted to sleep in the afternoon. While wandering around, I saw a board for Blind Hands. This was a place where blind people give massage. This is a NPO (nonprofit organization) that trains blind people to be masseurs so that it gives them a source of income. Also, since blind people are more attuned to their other sense like touch, in theory they can give very good massages. My legs were still aching and so I decided to give it a try. Seemed like a win-win situation. Good cause as well as good massage. My massage was painful since there were many tender spots. But it felt very good after the massage. My masseur was very good and he would always ask if the pressure was ok and find the tender spots very quickly. After a quick lunch, I went to my room and slept for 3 hours. Got up at 5:15 am and went out after freshening up. After talking to family, I was still feeling very lethargic. Decided to walk around for some time since I had nothing else to do.  After 5 mins, I discovered the touristy area. It was very lively with many people on the road. The road was lined with souvenir shops and restaurants on both sides. Felt good walking and after some time went to a restaurant for happy hour. Had some cocktails and grilled fish for dinner. After dinner went back to my room, read a book and fell asleep by 9:30 pm.

Random Facts
Altitude - 820 mts

Annapurna Mini Circuit Trek - Day 12

Day 12 Today was supposed to be an easy 4 and 1/2 hrs. of trek from Muktinath to Jomsom. Got up a bit later than most days and after breakfast left the lodge just after 8 am. Had two folks for company - Will from Alaska and Elran from Israel. They had stayed with me at the same lodge. Today's trek was a mostly downhill trek. It was a gradual decline and hence was not bad on the knees and toes. At the start we got a glimpse of Dhaulagiri (8200 mts) and Annapurna III (7700 mts) before they were shrouded by clouds.

For the first couple of hours it was a very easy and scenic trek. On our right we could see the desert of Mustang and upper Mustang. There were mountains and hills with pretty much no vegetation. Only the mountains of upper Mustang had some snow on the top. Otherwise it was brown sand and gravel. They looked beautiful. On the left were sandy hills of Mustang and behind them the snowcapped mountains (Annapurna range, Nilgiri range and Dhaulagiri range). It was different scenery from what we were used to but it was very scenic.

The wind was very very strong and after a couple of hours we had descended the huge valley and were inside a HUGE river basin. The river was at this point a very narrow stream and most of the approx. 300 ft. of the river basin was sand and stones. The strong wind was tunneled in this valley and it felt like we were pounded with hurricane force winds. It was so windy sometimes that my legs would go sideways when I was trying to walk straight. After my skydiving experience this was the windiest experience that I have experienced. Apparently it is always this windy in this valley. After another 90 mins of this wind pounding, we could see the town of Jomsom.

Our lodge was towards the other end of the town and so we traversed the whole town. The lodge was right next to Jomsom airport. It was extremely windy in the open patio. However we were at 2800 mts and hence it wasn't very cold. We were very dusty since the trail coincided with the dirt road most of the time. After a very delicious lunch I went to take a hot shower. However the water had not heated up at all and I had to contend with a very cold water shower. My room was the usual 8X10 room with just 2 single beds. Afternoon was spent in reading a book and talking with family. Later on we played some cards. After dinner I went to my room and tried to sleep early. I had a very early morning flight to Pokhra the next day and so had to get up at 4:30 am the next day. I bid goodbye to Shiva, my porter and gave him a "thank you" tip. He was going to go by bus to Kathmandu. I tried to sleep, but it was very noisy outside with the TV on and people chatting. Finally, I must have fallen asleep around 10:30 pm.

 Random Facts

Altitude - 2720 mts