Roadtrip - Arizona, Utah and Nevada

Hi,

I'm back with a new travel journal entry. It was my first roadtrip with my favourite travel mate. The best so far!

Before I start, a few words of my travel mate, Jean Tan. Both of us are basically easy going folks (basically folks who just book a flight and accomodation and decide what to do when we reach the destination) and not natural planners but given that we are going on a roadtrip, she moved out of her comfort zone and spent many nights charting out the path, booking the Chevy, hotels and briefing me on the do's and donts on the road as I have never driven on the right side. She was an excellent travel partner and I must put on record this roadtrip would not have been possible without her. I am definitely looking forward to many more trips with her :)

Here's the map showing the journey planned and completed as planned! We covered approximately 1500 miles in a week (planned - but our mileage showed about 2000 miles as we made a few detours for various reasons including changing to a different rental car as our tyres were more worn out than us :))

Our first stop was the Grand Canyon! Travelling to the Grand Canyon was my dream ever since I first saw the movie on Grand Canyon in Omnimax Theatre 2 decades ago. I can hardly describe the feeling when I had my first view of the Grand Canyon. The vastness and the structures of the Canyon was mind blowing.

My Jean Tan insisted that I should move my butt and make our way to the watchtower. I reluntantly dragged myself back to the car and made our way to the tower. The tower was under construction but fortunately it was still accessible. The colorado river was visible from the Watch Tower and it was such a beauty.

After a good 3 - 4 hours absorbing the beauty of the Grand Canyon, we hopped back into our car and made our way to Moab where we were eager to see what the city had to offer. On the way, we were rearded with many other wonderful scenaries such as the Mexican Hat. We had to stop by the roadside and snap the many majestic structures that we passed. And thus, reaching the hotel around midnight :P

After a good night's rest at Motel 6, we set off to the Arches National Park. There were many "Arches" that we wanted to see but as hours of trekking was involved for each of the arches, we had to choose what we wanted to see. We decided on the Balanced Rock, Delicate Arch, Landscape Arch and the Double O Arch. The easiest trail was the balanced rock. It was a short 15 mins walk from the parking area. The balance rock was an amazing sight where a huge rock stood balanced on a narrower structure. We wondered what would happen to these structures in years to come due to the harsh weather.

We had to trek up for about 2 hours to see the delicate arch. Frequently, we had to face our fear for heights as we walked along narrow paths on top of cliffs. Tip: Wear a good pair of trekking shoes with a good grip !! Along the way we were encouraged by fellow trekkers and the excellent scenaries. We reached the top of the cliff and we were welcomed by the magnificant delicate arch. The challenge was not over. We had to walk around a downsloping funnel ike structure to reach the foot of the arch. With our legs wobbling in fear, we forced a smile when a trekker helped to snap a shot for us! The arch was a architectural miracle. We sat there watching the arch and daring young trekkers walking down the funnel.

The sun was setting. We had time for just one more arch - The landscape arch. That was a short hike but we were not short changed with what we saw. The landscape arch was one arch no trekker should miss. Positioned hgh above the grounds, you will be able to see the landscape arch welcoming its guests with a wide smile.

We just could not stop tho the sun was setting..we continued the path to see the Double O Arch. The signboard read "Primitive path". We didn think much of it (i.e. under estimated the challenge). What was waiting for us was a complicated structure of boulders steeply sloped. Getting up there was relatively easier. Once we got up there, looking down was like looking at the gates of death. The view of the Double O arch pacifed us just for a while til we came back to reality. We had to get back down. Holding on to the boulders i.e. our life, we carefully and slowly inched our way down. One wrong step and we can kiss goodbye to life..It was a trembling experience tho.

To Be Continued .....

The Terrific 30s

Crossing to the 30s have not been easy. Apart from my slowing metabolism, one question keeps bothering me. What have I achieved in my life thus far?

And automatically a checklist appears right in front (Typical planner Mode) ...Ting!

First on the list...A good degree and an MBA (Check), Second...a career that I am enjoying despite the long hours (Check), Third..My own home (Check) ...not exactly mine mine but I am one of the joint owners of our first family landed property..Our dream home and our gift to our parents (YAY!YAY!)

So what's left?? Damn...hate the unchecked items....

1) PHD...Put on hold til I can find a reputable part time PhD program as I will never ever quit my job to study full time..

2) Holidays to Everywhere - Left many more including Africa, Mt Everest, NZ, Skiing trip to Switz and Japan....I still have time for that unless I am suddenly diagnosed with a terminal illness (then I will just have all the hols back to back..see I got it all planned :))

3) My own family.. to love and live for..I always wanted a wonderful family of my own and I bet that's what my parents, siblings n friends want for me as well..But it take two hands to clap..have not found the other hand..so marriage shelved for the moment or mebbe for good..

But one tiny thought keeps coming back. Why wait for that one hand when there are so many little hands waiting to be held... yes..Adopting a little one.. or the little one adopting me rather.. I believe I can be a great Mum or the Best Mom!! This little dream is not just a dream but my achievement and the meaning of my life... I am not making this decision so that I can check off one more item or to show off but I feel that the little one is the missing gem in my life right now.. and I am even prepared to postpone or forego the other two undone tasks for this angel..

I know I'm gonna have a tough time convincing Mum n Dad..but I have to do this.. for my selfish reasons, to make my life complete and of course more challenging and thus meaningful..

Wish me all the best guys... I need all the support and well wishes :)

Beautiful Bali

Bali is a perfect blend of culture, beauty and kindness. Here's some tips if you wish to visit Bali one day...

Places to visit

BEACHES - Make sure you have a feel of the white sand on the east coast and the black sand beaches (due to volcanic eruptions) on the west coast. Kuta beach and Sanur beach to name a couple.

There are lots of water activities activities too such as surfing, jetski, para-sailing, flying inflatable beds attached to speed boats (dun know what they call it...).

VOLCANOES - There are several active volcanoes in Bali. I had an awesome view of Batur volcano from a restaurant overlooking the volcano while enjoying a balinese lunch. I wish I was prepared to hike up one of the more friendly and manageable volcanoes..

BALINESE HOME - Do set aside some time to visit a balinese home. Their homes are kindda nice n cosy huts with grass roofs. A typical balinese house will house several huts including a temple within their premises. The one we visited also had a house on stilts to house the rice and a pig's pen..Oink Oink :)

SHOPPING - Bali is very tourist-y. Many shopping centres, villages and villages of handicrafts, rows and rows of family shops, flea markets (called up markets) and factory outlets but mostly selling the same stuff...anything from silver, intricate scupltures to branded stuff like polo and roxy.

PERFORMANCES - They have evening perfomances all around Bali. I went for a Kechak dance performance inspired by Hindu epic "Ramayana" in a temple situated on top of a cliff (think its called monkey temple). It was an open air amphitheatre and there was a chanting 'choir' of men who provide the 'chak-a-chak-a-chak' noise. Beautiful sunset and performance but watch out for the monkeys as the scan you for valuable items (such as jewellery and reading glasses) to barter trade for food..

TEMPLES - Visit a couple of temples to get a feel of the culture and the architecture. The temples are mainly for the 3 Hindu Gods- The Creator, Destroyer and Preserver. Do wear modestly. If not,fret not,they will have sarongs and sashes for visitors and you are expected to donate a nominal sum when you return the sarongs. Do not be conned by shopkeepers who insist that you have to buy a sarong as you are not allowed to wear shorts to the temples. The temples will loan the sarongs to you.

Other Travel Tips

BARGAINING - If you are not a good bargainer like me, forget about bargaining and just pop into fixed price shops in shopping centres. All other shops require you to bargain. Just as a guide, start bargaining from 30% of the initial price. Our guide told us that if you reach 50%, it is a win win situation. ANything lower, you gain..

TRAVEL AGENT - One of our family friends recommended Bali Mardy Adventure Tour. Mr Mardy has a team of 8 staff and they are very very professional and affordable. They charge according to the distance travelled. They provide MPVs and a professional driver cum tour guide. The highest we paid was US$45 for one day and the total tour came to US$140 for 5 days which we felt was extrememly reasonable. Contact details in case u wish to engage his tour services:

I Wayan Mardana (Mardy)

Mobile: 08123912108 or 7425110

Email: mardana45@hotmail.com

Are U Ready, Arsenal?

What is the Time, Mr Wolf?

Junior Soccer School Tryouts

Dental Phobia

I was on my way to Alexendra Hospital on Monday and was feeling extremely nervous. My palms were sweaty andy legs were a little shaky. I was cursing myself for not taking care of my teeth and munching on all the chocolates and sweet stuff. I should have listened to Mum and Dad...and the dentist..

I was going for tooth extraction surgery @ AH..... Several images flashed across my mind as I rode in the bus to AH... A dentist laughing at me hysterically while bring the big drill towards my face...and in another a rather unapproachable looking dentist scolding me for not opening my mouth wide enough for him to force a drill, a plier and his hand inside to pull out my poor tooth. Ahhh...Stop! Stop! ..

I tried to divert myself from those thoughts by plugging in my iPod, watching people rushing to work and fiddling with the contents of my bag..didn help..SO I started wondering why I was fearing visits to the dentist (why the fuss over pulling out a tooth).. My mind raced to the time when I was in Primary 1. Everytime, someone knocks on the classroom door holding a B5 sized white card, all of us in the class would start praying hoping that his/her name was not on the card. For it was the dentist who would have sent her last victim to call for the next one.. and yes, I have been quite "lucky" to be the chosen one on several occasions.

On such lucky moments, I would drag myself slowly and nervously down to the dental room...I hated the dentist. She hardly smiled at least not to me. In fact, she had this perpetual displeased look on her face. While updating some records manually, the dentist would command me to lie down on the chair that seemed like the electric chair (even now...). She would then swing the chair around, pick up her weapons from the shiny tray and starts to knock and poke my gums and teeth. Throughout the what seems like a really long ordeal, the dentist would be reprimanding me in a muffled tone (thanks to her mask) for not keeping the teeth clean.. I must tell you that I do keep my teeth clean but probably not up to her ISO 18000 standard.. Once the corrective maintenance is completed, she pulls out a big plastic-ky jaw set and asks me to demonstrate how I would brush my teeth and starts lecturing a second time on how I should brush my teeth. Finally, the session is over and she hands you the next victim's card.

With the discomfort and the taste of blood tingling in my mouth, I would take the card, unwillingly thank her and walk out. The moment I leave the room I would feel so relieved that I do not have to face her for the next 6 months unless she accidentally pulls out my card earlier(which also happened..).

Now I understood why I feared dentists even after all these years. My childhood experiences influenced my thoughts all these years and created an irreversible negative fearful image of dentists. This time, I braved myself thinking of people who had to undergo major surgeries and diverted my attention to beautiful memories as the dentist extracted my tooth. I would be lying if I said I wasn afraid at all but it was not that bad... I am so proud of myself to have survived the terrifying 30 mins and I reported to work the very next day despite given 3 days MC :)

2 more wisdom teeth to go... hopefully never or at least a few years later..

Pain in the .....

Hi Hi.

Wanted to share with you some simple tips to get rid of the usual aches and pains. I learnt them from my parents and believe me..they do work miraculously. Hope you find the tips useful especially if u hate taking medication or do not wish to make your rich doctor richer....

I must qualify that these are for normal pains and aches not associated with other diseases and should not be tried when you are under another medication. So here goes...

Toothaches (Decay/ Wisdom Tooth)
Take a few cloves (say 5 or 6), poke a needle through the stem and heat the cloves over a flame. Remove from the pin when the clove blackens and fattens a little. Once you have done this for all, place the cloves over the decayed area and bite into them. Leave the cloves there for a couple of hours and when the juice from the cloves sinks in, you’ll feel better.

You may need to do this a couple of times and the toothache will go away for a few days at least till you see your dentist. This is only an interim solution. So, please consult your dentist for a permanent solution

Sore Throat/ Flu/ Cold (Beginning Stage)
Take one small shallot, peel off the skin and eat it before you head to bed!!! Make sure you chew well and swallow it. Drink a glass of warm water mixed with a spoon with honey. You will feel much much better the next day. Shallots are super effective in killing germs... Take a mint or two in the morning to get rid of the smell.

You could also eat it everyday to reduce the chances of coming down with flu or cold..

Sore Throat

Take one teaspoon of honey and mix with black pepper and heat it over a small flame. Once it is heated up, slowly sip it and your throat will thank you for it. But dun take it too frequently as pepper is heaty..

Gastric Pain/ Feeling of Tummy Bloated (Mild)
Take about 3 to 4 pieces from one garlic. Skewer them (with the skin) and heat them over fire till the skin starts to blacken (the skin may catch fire, so dun panic..just blow off the fire). Remove the skin and eat them. Drink a glass of warm milk and the pain should subside...

This post is dedicated to my 2 babies

Dearest Dharani and Bharath,

This post is dedicated to both of you. Both of you loved birthdays more than anything else and we always sang the birthday song at least twice - for each one of you though your birthdays were months apart...

I really hope that both of you will be best of friends and siblings forever. Be the pillar of strength and encouragement for each other even when you have your own circle of friends. Nobody cares for you more than family.

Finally..Hope you guys had lotsa fun growing up...as much as we had, watching you grow !!!

Yours lovingly,

Chitti.