Joy Of Gardening

                     
                                Joy Of Gardening!!

      

         Nature makes me truly happy. I love going to places where I can be close to nature, away from crowded concrete structures. I have been to many places, Himalayas, Jungle safaris, treks in Sahyadri. But sadly these visits don't last long. At the end of trip I have to come back to routine boring life. So I make up for my longing for nature to some extent by nurturing my own backyard garden.

Mini garden inside home

My love for trees and flowers started right from my childhood. Our bungalow was surrounded by quite a big garden. In a backyard, there was also a Big Well with turtles and fishes in it. We had all sorts of trees and plants. Fruiting trees like Banana, Cashew, Mango, Coconut, Jamun, Mulberry, Chikku, Guava & also the wide variety of flowering plants. I used to tend to & water the garden with enthusiasm. Sadly, years later, given for development, almost all of it was gone. Though it's been two decades now, I still remember each and every tree there was, with it's exact place in our garden. My love for gardening that started from childhood is still growing.
 
    

Some of the Beauties from backyard

After I came to my In-Laws' house, I was happy to see the backyard, & being the only one interested in gardening soon it became my place. Even it was small compared to my old garden, it was still a place where I can continue my hobby. So over the years now, My beautiful little backyard garden is growing nicely. My 7 years old son is also developing interest in gardening. He loves to help me in planting and tending to the garden. I want him to experience the joy of growing the plants from seeds he planted himself and watching them blossom eventually. Plants are like children which you Nurture with love and care, Watch them grow tall, Show them off with pride. You worry about them when you are away. If even a single plant dies, you feel sadness to the core. Your Garden becomes important part of you as it is your creation. 

 

Garden Visitors

These days, when huge buildings are sprouting everywhere in cities, having a backyard garden feels like luxury. Concept of Terrace garden  is trending in crowded cities as an alternative for backyards. Professionally as well, Landscaping is in great demand these days. In my view, Gardening is not just a hobby. It has it's own benefits. Gardening works well as an exercise. It's also good for relaxing your mind. When you watch the plants grow and flower in front of your eyes, it gives sense of satisfaction and achievement. Kids can observe and learn about insects & birds from even a small patch of garden. As for young generation who is more attached to artificial things rather that living ones, Giving them at least glimpses of nature through home garden, may help push them back towards the Nature. 

  

My beloved cacti & succulents

Back to my garden, I am fond of flowering plants rather than ornamental ones. I like to see my garden bursting with  different colours, different fragrances, different shapes of flowers. But my love for Cacti is greater than regular flowering plants. Cactuses fascinate me more than anything. 'An average looking ( sometimes even ugly ugly looking) dwarf plants, covered in stingy thorns suddenly blooms into the Most Beautiful Vibrant coloured  flowers', is indeed one of the best tricks Mother Nature plays. I am crazy about cactuses and succulents. They are quite easy to grow as they need less water, can sustain in maximum heat and grow from small cuttings too. Very easy to take care of. My craze for cacti is so deep that wherever I go, I look for cactuses to bring back home. Be it trips to other cities or mountains or jungles, my eyes keep scanning roadsides or gardens for  them and by hook or crook I just get my hand on them. I love cactuses that much. Now a days, many online sites offer wide range of plants all over India which can't be found in local nurseries. It's great option for quenching my thirst for new additions to my Collection. 

  

Liliums!!

I have soft spot for my garden in my heart. My garden doesn't only serves as hobby but it's a Refuge from tensions of daily life. When I step outside, into the backyard, all the worries I leave behind. The fatigue of body & mind vanishes in an instance. Just sitting alone in that atmosphere gives you chance to think about things in rational mindset. The beauty of trees & flowers calms the nerves. Every nature lover can relate to this feeling. If ever, I am asked about my favorite relaxation idea after hectic day, It has to be the time I spend in Garden.

     In Late Evenings, Sitting on Garden Swing in the Dark, Sipping Hot Green Tea, Feeling Cool  Refreshing Breeze on Face, Smelling Sweet  Fragrances of Flowers, Listening to my Favorite K- Pop Music, My Dog playing around, Sometimes Chatting with my Little Son, Star Gazing with him,Hearing his Incredible Ideas about random things. These are The Most Enjoyable Moments for me. Doesn't it Sound Nice!!! 

 PS. All the pics are from my garden clicked by me.

  

  

    

  

                                       MEMORIES OF KANHA!!!

      Another jungle safari. Another magical experience. This time with my son Yuki. Our first mom-son vacation. After my last years' Tadoba safari, I chose Kahna National Park in MP for 2017. This time my 6 years old son Yuki was companying me along with other people from Tadoba group. I had planned for Bhedaghat stopover as well to visit the famous Dhuandhar waterfall & Marble stoned gorge of Narmada river.

On 21st Nov., we caught a train to Jabalpur, taking overnight journey to reach there. On the way to Kanha, our first scheduled stop was Bhedaghat. Just an half hour drive from Jabalpur. It was early morning so we halted for breakfast at the hotel that overlooks The Narmada river flowing through the gorge. Our trip had officially started with a beautiful view. One of the attractions of Bhedaghat is The Boat Ride through this gorge. This marvelous location is very famous as many of Bollywood songs have been filmed here till date. We took the boat ride. The atmosphere there was so Serene. The view was Stunning. The Marble stone that surrounds entire area has many shades of colour. Pure white, Gray-ish, Pink-ish. Those who visit Bhedaghat on the night of Full Moon, Specially on 'Sharad Poornima', They can take the night boat ride and the effect of those moonlit marble stones is absolutely mesmerizing. This whole gorge is like a maze. Depth of river is more than 400-500 ft at some places. There used to be crocodiles in this part of river but unfortunately human interference drove them away long time ago. To my surprise, we got the beautiful pair of Egyptian vultures sitting on cliff nearby. Quite a rare sight! Also huge beehives hugging the white stone looked awesome.

Later we visited 'The Dhuandhar Fall'. Though it wasn't in it's full glory at that time, it still looked massive. After absorbing the view into our mind, we headed towards the main attraction we were waiting for. Kahna National Park! After almost 3-4 hours of drive, we finally reached at the Khatiya Gate of Kanha. Our resort named 'Barhasingha' was just 5 minutes away from the actual gate. That evening was activity free which was really needed to get rid of the fatigue of travel. Weather started to get cold as sun set. All of us retired to rooms to get a good night sleep.

Next day at dawn, our first safari started. Kanha National Park is the only place which has the population of Barhasingha deers. No Where Else. Therefore Barhasingha is the main attraction rather than Tiger in Kanha. Hoping to start our day with some unique sightings, our Gypsy entered the Khatiya gate heading into the core zone of the forest. To our delight, a very cute and curious Jackal welcomed us right in the middle of a road. Ohh!! Such a cuteness overloaded!! While we were admiring it, that jackal also curiously walked around the car and then ran off the road. The forest of Kanha is very different than the one I saw in Tadoba. Tadoba is almost 60% of Bamboo forest which goes dry in summer. It has 3 big lakes inside the reserve. and terrain is almost flat. But here in Kanha, The  Evergreen 'Saal trees' cover the 70-80% of the forest area. So even in summer, the forest remains bright green and cold. Water-bodies in Kanha are like small ponds scattered here and there. No big lakes. The terrain is quite mountainous and vast. As we came to the meadow, we got the sight of fully grown handsome Barhasingha male standing alone. Those antlers looked magnificent. It truly made our day. Then as we went on, A big Cheetal male showed up showing off its beauty. 

There is a Museum which is located inside the national park. It has specimens and skeletons of various animal and birds. At the front there is a huge Arch donning the Name of Kanha. The Arch is entirely made of real antlers and horns which deers & antelopes shade. Before it was the reserve, there were villages inside the forest and villagers used to collect the shaded antlers and sell back to forest department. Once the villages were relocated outside the reserve, this practice stopped and those antlers were used to create this stunning Arch. After visiting the museum, we headed back. Just near the inner gate 6-7 jackals were  lazily resting in the shadow of huge trees. Our very first safari was indeed very successful, I would say. 

In the evening safari, another rare sighting happened. Blackbucks!! They are not the native animals of Kanha but they have been brought here for breeding purpose. We got to  see three handsome males of Blackbuck antelope. They were absolutely stunning. In that safari, got to see many Peacocks up close. The whole families of Cheetals and Barhasinghas were grazing side by side. A beautiful Sambhar family made there presence known. As compared to Tadoba, bird activities seemed very less at Kanha. Possibly because of the thick forest and lack of lakes. Still, overall the first day ended on a very good note. In the late evening some of us went to watch the tribal Baiga dance show which native tribal folks perform for tourists.

New Day! New Hope! On 24th, we only had one morning safari left. We all were depending on luck for the sighting of the tiger. Previous day, we had a chance but it couldn't fructify. There were couple of cubs hiding in tall grass. But so many vehicles lined up on the road that scared the cubs. They just sat there unmoved, hidden from our sight. Only few lucky people got the glimpse of them. We were hoping for the best this morning. Our guide and driver took us on a trail circuiting the hill in search of a tiger. We got the plenty of pug marks of male tiger on that trail but unfortunately they were little old. Two hours gone, just got some Sambars and some Gaurs.

We reached the plains, almost loosing hope, when we saw a lone Cheetal male standing in the meadow. So I asked the driver to pull over so that I can click some Photos. While I was at it, another Gypsy came and told us that some workers saw a Tiger couple on the other side of that grassland. So our guide decided to take a chance and wait there. We heard few alert calls of Langurs. After waiting for 20 or so minutes, guides spotted a tiger at the long distance. Excitement level just shot up that instant. I woke Yuki up. Poor thing was asleep due to cold weather. At distance, the tiger started walking quite fast, parallel to the tree line and within a minute it came closer to the pond nearby. On a funny side, that Cheetal, was still standing there, grazing and totally unaware that a predator was walking behind him. It was actually amazing to watch.

Now our Tigress, as we came to know, walked through the grass and suddenly vanished. No one could see her. All started guessing if she just sat there or walked away so fast, left us searching for her. For 10-15 minutes we were so nervous, praying for her to show herself. Finally she came in sight again. To our surprise she started coming our direction to cross the road. No one can contain the thrill and excitement. Yuki grabbed my phone and started clicking photos. The Queen of jungle gave us quite a chills when she turned her head towards the vehicle, straight staring at us. Like ordering all to make way for Her Highness. That Magnificent Beast crossed the road, walking Gracefully & Carefree, like she owned every moment. Very rightly so. Taking her own time, she  slowly walked out of our sights. The moment she vanished, people came to their senses. Our patience paid off big time. While coming back all were reliving that few minutes only. I felt so happy for my son that he got to see this Beauty up close at very first jungle trip. He clicked some nice pics of the tigress. Now he has great tale to tell back at home. With fulfilled hearts we bid goodbye to Kanha, returning to routine life. Planning for next adventure.

 

Must say, No matter how many times you go to Jungle and witness the Nature's Creations, it's Never Enough. Never!!! 

  
              

THE WAY I WANT SON TO GROW UP!!

          THE WAY I WANT MY CHILD TO GROW UP!!

     In our society, general expectation of parents and family from their children is to become a doctor, an engineer, a lawyer, a businessman. In other words, 'Financially successful'. Of course, it is a fair expectation. But is it sufficient?
Personally for me, it's not. My primary expectation from my son is to become 'A Fine Gentleman'. Successful luxurious life comes later. Making him a gentleman is my duty, so the way I raise my child is very important. How I plan to do this? I have my own perspective which I wish to put forward here, combining it with my experience with my son.

     I am an outdoor instructor. I have seen thousands of children with many different natures over the years. What saddens me is, many of these children lack the daring to face new challenges mentally or physically. I don't want this happening to my son. I want him to be strong and fearless. Many kids of this generation are the single child to their parents and because of that, parents tend to over-pamper and overprotect them. Loving and protecting is very natural but overdoing it can make children Dependant and lazy. It can also hurt their self-confidence.

   

Often the elders scare small children by telling "Don't go in darkness or someone will catch you, Don't go near fire, Don't play with scissors, Don't do this & Don't do that". Stopping kids from doing things is not a solution to keep them safe. They are going to do it one way or another, whether you permit it or not. This is their curiosity after all & this curiosity can make kids do things behind parent's back. And in worse case scenario, they will get phobia of certain things for rest of their lives. Therefore it is better to let them do things under elderly supervision and teach them how to do it properly. My son have no fear of darkness, he handles sharp things carefully because I have never stopped him from being curious. He plays with our cats and dogs who are double of his size with ease. In fact, one of my female dogs is hound which is a hunter breed & she used to be very protective of him when he was very small.The thing is, animals understand. So let children play with them. Let them get attached to animals as animals are the most loving creatures. Apart from this, being with animals, playing in sun, rain, mud makes children physically strong and their immunity increases. Keeping them hidden inside walls will only make them weak and lonely. Getting cuts and bruises, scratched knees is part of growing up. Don't try to avoid it by not letting them play outside. Just guide them how to avoid injuries. Yuki, my son seldom cries over injury no matter how big it is. He gets back to his business within minutes. Yuki is quite an outdoor lover like his parents. We take him to mountains, To the forest, to lakes. I want him to experience all kind of nature's creations at young age. It will make him sensitive towards nature and also adventurous. 

  

Teaching kids 'Sharing, Kindness, Sensitivity towards other people ( If a boy, respecting women and girls) is very necessary at early stage. These things are essential to live as a good person in society. We need to embed in their young minds that 'If you give respect, then only you will get respect in return'. Many times children show more maturity than their age. So treat them as equals not just as small immature kids. Ask their opinion in things where they are involved.

    One of the most important stage, in progress of kids, is Schooling & that's where parents have to be very careful. Parents should take decision thinking about child's progress and not by listening to people around. I will tell my personal experience. I was very firm on my decision of putting my son in Marathi medium school, as my family's mother-tongue is Marathi. I am from Marathi school as well. When people hear about it, reactions that come, are so negative over this decision. According to them,'A child should go to English medium if you want him to be smart and intelligent.' This thinking makes me laugh. Being smart does not depend on medium of schooling. It depends on natural intelligence of kid and how parents and teachers help him increase it. Every language is equally rich. Not just English. In fact, kids can understand basics in their mother-tongue more easily than foreign language. As an universal language, now a days, all schools introduce English from 1st standard anyway.

Once children start school, they start facing burden of expectations about high grades in exams from family. It's really disturbing to see that 'A Junior KG kids going to external tuitions. "I mean, Come On. They are 3 years old kids. Give them a space." Let them enjoy their childhood. Once they get to High school, serious studies are unavoidable. No need to ruin their precious childhood, just because of family's expectations which kids don't  even understand at that age. I am personally very against it. I am not going to force my son for external tuitions until his high school and unless he asks for it when he thinks he needs to study extra. I don't mind if he gets 90% or 60% as long as he understands the basics.    

      Another very dangerous thing for child is the 'Comparison with other children'.  Never ever compare a child with other children. Every child is different in nature and intelligence. Never tell a child that He or She is Inferior OR Superior than others. It will either make him or her feel useless or arrogant. Both are very bad feelings. Instead make them believe that they are strong, smart and unique in their own way. Figure out their talent and help them nurture it. Be it Sport, Art or Academics. Let their creativity and imagination flow. 

There is general thinking regarding small children that 'Television is bad influence on the minds of kids, so keep them away from TV'. I find it illogical. Parents can always supervise what kids watch. With the right TV programmes, kids can actually learn many different things. Books are great source of knowledge as well. Introduce kids to books at early age. Even if they can't read it, describe the pictures to them. My son, at the age of 3, started picking up Hindi language while watching  his Disney cartoons. We were amazed to see how nicely he was understanding the meanings of words perfectly just by linking actions of characters and words together in his young mind. We literally did nothing except correcting him some times. At 4, he could converse fluently with Hindi speaking people with ease using big big words. Also he got so much knowledge about species of animals, birds, ocean life from various shows and books. He got very interested in sports as well.

   We often see youngsters who don't know anything about household stuff. Don't know about how their house's budget works. Functioning of day to day things should be integral part of children's learning. Parents should let kids try household works, girl or boy. They should know importance of smallest household work and responsible spending habits from early age. Parents should teach them difference between necessity and luxury. It will help them become a good family person in future and take care of family efficiently.

   Eventually all these small or big things  we teach our children in their tender age, can help them become a respected person in society, which is every parent's greatest wish. Raising a child is a big task but Nurturing a Good-Hearted child is a challenging task & every mother should give her best to accomplish it. I am very much trying to fulfill all these things with my son. I want my son to become a fine gentleman.

Strong and Kind; Emotional yet practical; Proud but Not Arrogant; Fearless and Adventurous; Obedient but Rebellious for the right reasons; A Good Speaker as well as A Good Listener; A person who can Lead people but Who can follow others when necessary; Carefree yet Responsible!!!   
   

TADOBA JUNGLE SAFARI

   

                          TADOBA ANDHARI TIGER RESERVE
                         My Very First Jungle Safari..!!

    I had never been to any National park or Tiger Reserve Forest till now. Though I was in adventure & outdoor field for a decade, been to Himalayas for many time, this one thing was remaining to do all those years. So I thought "Instead of looking for other groups to go with to Jungle safari, Why not organize one on my own?" Friends and family also supported my idea & I put one batch in December. It was very first time for me to something myself. I was quite nervous & also not expecting the batch to be full at all. I was like "It's just a try, Let's not get disappointed even if it gets cancelled." I got a reference of a guy who recently started company named Wild Wings. Abhimanyu , a young lad from Amaravati. So I contacted him & discussed all the details as I had no idea about it at all. I put faith in a person whom I had never met before. We decided the dates in December. To my surprise, My family members and Friends came forward to book their seat in that batch which ultimately got full within a fortnight. I was very grateful to them as they boosted my moral & put their faith in me instantly. We all were very excited to experience the jungle. Finally the day came, 10th Dec, to start our journey. In cold of winter, we reached Chnadrapur in morning of 11th. Cars took us to Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve. We were going to be at Moharli gate. As soon as we entered the Buffer zone through main gate of  Tadoba reserve, the feeling of excitement struck all of us, just by looking at the roadside tall wall of trees. We reached our hotel, 'Waghai Home Stay'. It was a nice cozy hotel, just a kilometer or two away from Moharli gate. All the arrangements, rooms, food were so very good. Abhimanyu's management has lived up to my expectation. 

After the introduction, we left for our very first safari in the afternoon. Our 4 safaris were in core zone of reserve. Each of our Gypsy got one forest guide. These were open gypsys. More excitement. Every safari is of 4 hours. No one is allowed to step down from the gypsy through out the ride as per the rule. Tadoba core zone is almost 625 sq/km vast, out of which only 20% area is open for visitors. 

Almost 60% jungle is covered with Bamboo. There are 3 big lakes in Tadoba. Jamani, Teliya & Tadoba. Each is claimed by one Tigress as her territory. Jamani belongs to Chhoti Tara, Teliya is territory of Sonam & Tadoba lake is home to Maya. 3 dominant tigresses of the reserve. We all were eager to see any of them. As we started our ride, very first encounter of wild animal was a Samabar female who was crossing the road. Our excitement rose, watching this big animal right in front of us roaming freely. As we rode to various parts of forest many other animals we saw. A Very handsome Samabar Stag with beautiful huge antlers, A mongoose, A crocodile, Cheetal Females and their kids grazing, some birds, Langurs. Also I got to see the Bamboo flowering for the first time. Its very rare. A bamboo flowers only once in its lifespan and then the whole cluster dies. The seeds then give life to new bamboos. Though we didn't see a tiger on that day, still we were very satisfied of whole safari.

Queen of Jamani Lake. CHHOTI TARA

        Next day we woke up at dawn and left for morning safari by 6 am. It was a very cold morning. We took a trail to Jamani lake which is a home of a tigress named Chhoti Tara and her cubs. She and one male tiger are the only ones who are radio collared in Tadoba. When we reached the lake, 2-3 gypsys were already waiting there. There was a call of deers suggesting a tiger presence. Then we heard a slow growling of a tigress, calling her cubs, from nearby trees. A caring sound of a mother. And then the Queen of that lake came out of the

Little Paws

bushes followed by her two 3-4 months old cubs. It was a scene to remember for a life. Then she again crossed the road from little further, went to the water nearby, and started walking on the road, right in front of 10-15 gypsys. The playful cubs followed her. She was walking with Swag, Ignoring all the unimportant humans, like they are nothing in front of her. That's the real Royal Behaviour of The Royal Bengal Tiger. She made our day. You can't expect anything more from first jungle trip of your life. Luck was indeed on our side that day. Later that day, in our evening safari, we saw beautiful cheetal males with there gorgeous velvety antlers. They were so handsome.

 

Handsome Cheetal Stags

On 13th morning was our last safari in morning. I was feeling bit sad for leaving that awesome forest in the evening. But to our surprise our day started with the rare sighting of two Wild dogs AKA Dholes. and again two more on roadside. Dholes are considered one of the 4 VIPs of Jungles. Tiger, Leopard, Sloth Bear and Wild Dogs. Then we headed for the Teliya lake. There was news of a tiger's being sighted there in morning. So both our gypsys waited there. But then in my group we decided to go further to Navegaon to try for Indian Guars. As we had our moment with Tara, we went ahead. We got to see a female Gaur sitting at open roadside with 2-3 juveniles. Even the females are tremendously muscular but with a very gentle face. At Navegaon meadows we saw many birds. Cute spotted owlet, buzzards, Eagles. While we were gone, our second gypsy waited patiently at Teliya Lake and their patience paid off. A 2 years old female cub made her appearance in style. She was chasing a Sambar, learning to hunt. She was an elegant tigress. They get to see her from distance of 15-20 ft. What a treat to watch. It was a perfect ending of our journey. Two Tigresses and Two Cubs graced our whole jungle experience.  
    

Gaur female

  Sadly the trip came to and end very soon. Before leaving we took a boat ride which is newly started in back waters of Irai dam. Got to see some wetland birds. In evening we made our return journey, Promising myself to plan next trip very soon. Now to experience the summer forest after this winter one. Can't wait to get in the wild once again. 

  
Animals are the Keepers of the Forest. 
Respect Them. Protect Them.  
Then only Humans can Survive!!!

   

 
       

            BALANCING BETWEEN MOTHERHOOD, WORK & PASSION!

       I was an outdoor person. I still am, very much. But when you become a mother, all the things, your whole life changes drastically. Of course it's worth the change. But once your child grows up a little, that excitement of a new motherhood fades away & the hard part starts. That hard part is to keep the balance between motherly responsibilities, work and your passion. I was a very relaxed & outdoor kind of person. I never liked the idea of doing a 9 to 5 office job despite being a commerce graduate (My worst academic decision. I could have done so many things which I love now, if I had chosen science or Arts side.) I love everything about nature, animals, adventure, travel. Well, sadly time can't come back. So I locked away all my commerce study back of a mind & entered a mountaineering field after collage. Done mountaineering courses & for almost 10 years worked as an outdoor expert, even after marriage. Thanks to my open minded In-laws. Then came in this world my little precious son. The perfect little child. I am the happiest person to have him. Nothing can take away that happiness from me ever. But then I had to sacrifice my other happiness for a while. For few years. My love for outdoors and adventure. Every new mother have to enter this unknown territory after a child birth. You can't go out for a long time. You can't even think about doing something else except looking after your child. In few months you get so tired physically, running all over behind your toddler, that the excitement starts to fade. It's a reality. Thankfully, My son has all his grandparents in same city. So I have all help & guidance from my parents and In-laws in raising him. My Mother-in-law is so enthusiastic about taking care of the baby that I had to put in very little efforts in his daily routines, till date.

After becoming a Mom, I had to stop doing my outdoor work for few years as it was impossible to leave him alone overnight at home. I didn't even want to part with him for any reason. It left me with only thing, that is to sit at home, look after him & do the household work whole day. I wasn't at all prepared for this kind of situation. I started to get frustrated. I wanted to go out and do something, anything. Their was one good but not so happy option. An Office job. I was hesitant at beginning but at least it allowed me to get out of the house, get some earning of my own & get a confidence that my baby can stay without me for some time. As I couldn't sit in one chair for a whole day, I took a part time job, very nearby my home. Now it's been almost two & half years since I joined. It's quite good job still not as interesting as adventure job. In fact after 20-22 months of job I started to get depressed so badly that for 2-3 days I was so restless in office. I just wanted to quit and go running back to my beloved Himalayas. I even told in the office that I am quitting the job. But then by mutual understanding with my employer, I kept the job and also I was granted as many leaves as I wanted to do my outdoor activities. In between I started to write this Blog as I was quite good at writing. I enjoy writing on random subjects. It gave me relaxation and confidence too. 

       I had this Idea in mind to start my own venture of Himalayan treks and Jungle safaris. But the problem was, my son was still very young and it didn't feel right to leave him behind for so many days. I was suffocating as I had to fight this urge to be in nature. & Here comes the family support. Specially my father-in-law. He is the most supportive person to everyone in my family. My parents and In-laws said "Don't worry about Yuki (My son), Go ahead & do whatever you have in mind. We are happy to take care of our Grandson." Now Yuki often goes to my mom-dad's home and stays with them for 2-3 days. He loves it. Apart from family members, there was unconditional moral support from my two Best friends who were & are always there for me at every step. I decided to start working as a freelance OE. Attended one 6 days adventure camp at Panchgani this June. I felt so great, finally being my old self. I am also organising my own Jungle Safari at Tadoba National Park this December. With friends and family's support my batch got full in no time which boosted my confidence. I am so happy to be finally doing the thing I wanted for very long time. It's a great feeling. Now only thing left to do in near future is to start my Himalayan treks again. It's been almost 6 years since I last visited Himalayas & I crave to see it again. To meet my friends there. I am going to take my son along with me to experience the beauty of jungles and snow clad mountains. He is already an adventurous little guy. He will love mountains. 

     Though it's hard, I am getting hold of my Life better. Now I am successfully balancing Between Motherhood, Work & My Passion. For all working mothers I want to say, "Motherhood & your child are the most precious things in life but also keep your Passion alive. Pursuing your passion or dream is healthy for mind or you will end up in depression. So love your child as well as passion and live your life to the fullest". 


        Cheers to all Mothers!!!  
 

BRAVEST OF THE BRAVE! BEST OF THE BEST!!

   BEST OF THE BEST ! BRAVEST OF THE BRAVE !

        I love reading. I keep searching for new books. Few days ago I was just going through news and other stuff online. And one book caught my eyes. It was a book named 'GURKHA' and I immediately thought 'I want this book in my collection.'  I found it on online shopping site and luckily there was another interesting book I found with it, named 'PARAMVIR CHAKRA STORIES'. I couldn't be more happier. Immediately bought them both. These days my interest is more in Biographies or the books that tell tales of real people and not fictions. I have Biographies of Rafael Nadal, Malala Yusufzai, Sabriye Tenbarken,T. Lobsang Rampa, Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw and now these precious additions. After reading these two books, My respect for soldiers has doubled.

     Legendary Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw famously quoted "If a man says he is not afraid of dying, he is either lying or he is a Gurkha". That is the legacy of the Gurkhas, and in all senses it's true.
    

This book 'Gurkha:Better to Die than Live a Coward:My Life with the Gurkhas' written by Colour Sergeant Kailash Khebang Limbu is the First ever Gurkha Autobiography. On the occasion of celebrating the 200th anniversary of Brigade of Gurkhas in the service of British Crown, Kailash Limbu has been selected to write the story of Gurkhas. In 1814-16, British forces faced Gurkha worriers for the first time when they invaded Nepal. Nepalese Gurkhas defended their land with great bravery. Impressed by their courage and fighting skills, Gurkhas were offered to be included in British army and the First Gurkha Regiment was raised. Post Indian Independence, out of 10 Gurkha Regiments, given Choice, 4 remained in service of Britain and 6 became part of Indian Army. In this book author writes about his unit's deployment in Afghanistan, the fierce battles with Taliban they faced there, the selection process of recruits for British Army, about his homeland.
    

Gurkhas are known as the most feared soldiers in the world. They are not just fierce but also they are well known for their Loyalty. At the same time they are sweet, caring, with great sense of humour as well. With their most dependable weapon 'Kukri', they are the deadliest. In Armed Forces, Every Regiment has its own Motto. I find the Motto of Gurkha Regiment most fitting and inspiring of all. "Kafar Hunnu Bhanda Marnu Ramro" means " Better to Die than Live A Coward". And all these Gurkha worriers live by this motto. There are many stories of their bravery in battlefield. British Gurkha Regiment has won 26 Victoria Crosses, Highest gallantry honour of England, out of which 13 were awarded to Gurkha soldiers. One of them was Lacchiman Gurung, Whose platoon was facing attack of over 200 Japanese. Even after his comrades getting severely injured, he fought alone. His one eye and one arm blown off in grenade explosion, still he kept firing his rifle with one hand and defended his position for hours. When the reinforcements found him in his trench, there were over 80 enemy dead bodies out of which almost 30 killed by himself.
     Another unbelievable story of Gurkha in 2010. In Afghanistan, Sergeant Dipprasad Pun of Royal Gurkha Rifles was on sentry  duty alone, when Taliban attacked his post. He single handedly fought over 20-30 Taliban fighters with machine gun and grenades and when one Talib reached on roof, rite in front of him and Dipprasad's gun misfired, he actually grabbed the heavy metal machine gun tripod and hit the enemy with it. He defended the post, saved his comrades, all by himself. Crazy that is. Dipprasad Pun has received bravery award from the Queen.
     And there is our own Gurkha Soldier from Indian Army, Bishnu Shreshtha. This retired soldier was on the train returning to his home when around 30-40 armed robbers attacked the train. Looting the valuables. But when they approached a teenage girl with bad intentions, Bishnu shreshtha couldn't just watch. He drew his trusted Kukri and attacked the robbers, leaving 3-4 dead bandits and others running to save themselves, so scared that they even left the loot behind. For his incredible act , he received Sena Medal for Bravery and Uttam Jeeva Raksha Medal. This is the Kind of Worriers the Gurkhas are. And that’s exactly why the Gurkha Soldiers are called,"THE BRAVEST OF THE BRAVE."

   

Indian Armed Forces are recognised as one of the best Armed Forces in the World. What makes our Army great is the Bravery, Courage and Determination of our Soldiers. The other book I am referring here is very Special. It is "The Brave: Param Vir Chakra Stories" written by Rachana Bisht Rawat. The book tells the battle stories of all the 21 Param Vir Chakra Recipients  of Indian Armed Forces. The author herself is wife of an Army Officer. For writing this book, she Travelled all over India to gather authentic information of these soldiers and the battles they fought. She interviewed those Paramvirs who are still alive. For others she met their families, Friends, fellow soldiers from their units. The book is very well written. PARAM VIR CHAKRA is the Highest Gallantry Award in India. Till date there are 21 Param Vir Chakras are awarded to brave soldiers for their incredible display of courage, leadership & sacrifice. Most of them were in their early 20s. While reading these stories of these real life heroes of our country, you actually get tears in eyes and your heart fills with more & more respect for each & every soldier serving to protect his country. We, civilians, live peacefully only because of these brave men, guarding our borders with their lives on line.

     21 PARAM VIRS OF INDIA 
     Immediatly after the partition, First war between Independent India and Pakistan took Place in 1947-48, which gave the Pakistanis the taste of capabilities and strength of Indian Army.                        
* Major Somnath Sharma- Indo Pak War 1947-48
* Lance Naik Karam Singh- Indo Pak War 1947-48
* Major Ram Raghoba Rane- Indo Pak War 1947-48
* Naik Judunath Singh- Indo Pak War 1947-48
* Company Havildar Major Piru Singh Shekhawat- Indo Pak War 1947-48

     Not just in Indian wars but our soldiers showed utmost bravery in the wars abroad in the UN Operations.
* Captain Gurbachan Singh Salaria- Katanga, Congo 1961      

     In 1962, the war with China, though the war was lost by India, every Indian soldier showed great courage and fought with everything they had got till the end.
* Major Dhan Singh Thapa- Indo-Chinese War 1962
* Subedar Joginder Singh- Indo-Chinese War 1962
* Major Shaitan Singh- Indo-Chinese War 1962
                                                                                                                                                       
     Thinking that the Indian defence is weak, Pakistan attacked Kashmir in 1965, which proved grave mistake for Pakistan. Pakistan faced Humiliating defeat. In the battle of Asal Uttar, more than 90 Pakistani Patton Tanks were destroyed or captured by Indian Army.
* Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid- Kashmir War 1965 
* Lieutenant Colonel Ardeshir Tarapore- Kashmir War 1965

    India went to War with Pakistan in 1971 to help Bangladesh get Independence. In yet another humiliating defeat Pakistan surrendered to India. Over 90000 Prisoners of War were taken in by Indian Army. 
* Lance Naik Albert Ekka- Indo-Pak War 1971
* Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon- The Only Air Force Officer awarded Param Vir Chakra till date- Indo-Pak War 1971
* 2nd Lieutenant Arun Khetrapal- Indo-Pak War 1971
* Major Hoshiar Singh- Indo-Pak War 1971
 
    Siachin Glacier which is named after Sia flowers of that region, is the Highest and geographically most difficult battle field on  the Earth and is controlled by Indian Army. After Independence both India & Pakistan fought for the control over  Siachin Glacier. Ultimately India won.
* Subedar Major ( Honorary Captain) Bana Singh- The Quaid post which Bana singh and his two men captured is known as Bana Post- Saltoro Ridge-Siachin-1987       

    At the time of Militant crisis( LTTE) in Shri Lanka, Indian Troops were sent for helping Shri Lankan Army in Peace Keeping.
 * Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran- Operation Pawan 1987-90
               
     The Famous Kargil War. Pakistan sent the militants and soldiers to infiltrate Indian border in Kargil district. The war was won by Indian Army with Support of Indian Air Force. The day of Victory is Known as Vijaya Divas.
* Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey- The Kargil War 1999
* Grenadier Yogeneder Singh Yadav- With 15 bullets in his body, he survived- The Kargil War 1999
* Havildar Sanjay Kumar- The Kargil War 1999
* Captain Vikram Batra- also known as Shershah- The Kargil War 1999

    These are "THE BEST OF THE BEST" of Our Indian Armed Forces.

    Some of these Param Virs like Vikram Batra, Manoj Kumar Pandey are known to young generation because of the movie  LOC Kargil. Also in the celebration of bravery of Param Vir Chakra Heroes , An illustrated series in set of 5 books is Published recently named VEER GATHA. This series of books is in the format of Comic book which makes it suitable for children to understand. Young Indian Generation really needs to know about all these Heroes and their Courage. Not only these but all the Unsung Heroes of the Indian Armed Forces who put the Country before their own lives. 


             Each and Every Soldier is the Hero for us!!!

   


  

IFSC BOULDERING WORLD CUP 2016, NAVI MUMBAI

 

Photo by IFSC CLIMBING WORLD CUP 2016, NAVI MUMBAI

                 A DREAM COMES TRUE...!!

     13th May to 16th May 2016. These four days were the most important and memorable days in the life of every Indian climber as they witnessed an Epic event unfolding in front of their eyes. It was 1st ever IFSC Bouldering World Cup held in India. It was a Dream came true for all of us, for all the climbing community in India.

    It all started few years ago, when Abhijit Burman AKA Bong Da and Girivihar Family had thought of organising a world cup in India. Girivihar already had history of organising very successful International Open bouldering competitions in Navi Mumbai for many years in a row. A Thought became an Idea, An Idea became The Reality because of the passionate efforts of whole Girivihar Team.

    Once they put forth the proposal to IFSC for organising world cup in Navi  Mumbai, India, there was no looking back. Bong da knew it was humongous task, specially in country like India. But he and whole Girivihar team was ready to make it possible. He had many meetings with IFSC people, visited many Climbing gyms abroad to get the idea of foreign climbing conditions and climbers. Also Bong da, Franco Linhares, Vinita Chhatwani , Sandeep Bhagyawant and Anushka Kalbag attended World Cup event in Munich to get the practical idea about how to conduct the world cup. They collected every tiny detail of the event. After IFSC Got satisfied with all the aspects, it gave a nod for hosting the world cup in India for the 1st time.

    After receiving official permission from IFSC, the real task began. That was Preparation for the event. The 1st and the most hard task was the Fund raising. The budget was in crores. In cricket crazy country like India, it was very hard to reach to the  people for funds. They made appeal to all climbing and adventure community to donate anything possible. CIDCO, Navi Mumbai provided very good venue for event that is CIDCO Exhibition Centre in Vashi. Many good friends of Girivihar team Donated with both hands. But still much more was needed. Even though there are people who actually want to support climbing, there are also some who only talk about promoting climbing but when times like this come to financially support the cause they back out. I am saying this from my experience. My home town Nasik, which has considerable numbers of old and new generation of mountaineers and climbers but except for few of us, not a penny was donated from Whole Nasik. Its really sad and shameful thing. Anyway, good cause always finds a way to get through. When there was a month or so left for event and still finance was way too short, Tata Trust came forward and Sponsored Generously. And all the things started to look achievable. It was all possible because of Bong da, Franco and all the Girivihar team which was working relentlessly, sleeplessly. In the final stage of it, they all were working their hearts out. And they did it all by themselves. From arranging funds, reaching out to media, making the Wall (One wall was of Enterprises but 2nd wall was locally made by their trusted carpenter Raju.), arranging accommodation and food for all volunteers and IFSC Officials. 
 

Photo by Jitendra Gaikwad

     Participation of some big names in climbing made the atmosphere even more enthusiastic. Rustum Gelmanov from Russia, Sean MacColl from Canada, Shauna Coxsey from UK signed up for world cup. Also big teams from Japan, Iran, Nepal, Korea, Austria, Canada, UK, A climber from Singapore and a big team from our own India. So total 20 countries participated. IFSC sent their Route setters and our own, Vaibhav mehta (Who also did the live commentary on the IFSC Channel  live streaming with official commentator) and Praveen from Banglore joined them as route setters. They enjoyed setting routes on Indian wall more than imported wall. All the holds and equipments, one crash-mat were imported. One crash-mat was donated by Gipfel company. So eventually stage was set and Wait for this epic event was about to get over.

    Finally on 13th May, event started. Me and my husband Bhushan  got the opportunity to be a part of official team which was a huge thing for us.  On 1st day, all the registrations took place. Foreign climbers got the taste of Mumbai weather that day. It was horribly hot and humid, but thankfully the Isolation hall and Main hall was AC. Every volunteer was given a duty like registration, ticketing, technical team, brusher team, judging, food and accommodation, Isolation team etc etc. Whole event is supposed to be executed as per strict IFSC Rules and Regulations. I got the ticketing task which was  important but we had to sit outside the competition hall, in fact outside the entrance, in that hot humid condition for whole two days and had to skip all the action except the Finals. Poor our Ticketing team ..!! But It was worth the two things. 1st, The totally amazing, mind blowing finals and 2ndly Pride of being part of this historical event.

    On 14th, Qualification round took place. 20 men and 20 women climbers including all the big names got through to semi finals. But as expected all the Indian climbers could not perform well. They were short of proper training as there is lack of  proper facilities, inappropriate coaching. Also they looked nervous, playing on such a huge platform, competing with so many great climbers. We can't blame them as IMF is supposed to make available better facilities and training to them which is clearly not happening. But still it was good platform for Indian climbers to know the pressure of being in world cup and to train hard accordingly for future.

Photo by Jitendra Gaikwad

    Next day, 15th may, started with the Semis. In a surprising competition, favourites like Sean and Shuana dropped out of semis. Rustum made it to the finals. Japanese climbers were amazing. 6 out 20 made it to finals for both men and women. At 6 pm Grand finale started. All of us went inside to watch it. Arena was jam packed. Over thousand spectators were cheering for the climbers, shouting their names, moving from boulder to boulder for better view of each climber. all were very enthusiastic which made finalists to perform better. In the epic battle for podium Japan clearly triumphed. Kokoro Fujii from Japan flashed 3 boulder out of 4 with style and took only 2 attempts for final boulder, his fellow Japanese Tomoa Narasaki wasn't far behind in attempts. 3rd place went to Alexey from Russia. In women group as well Miho Nonaka from Japan did awesome climbing to capture 1st place followed by Monika from Germany for 2nd place and again Akiyo Noguchi from Japan took 3rd palce on podium. It was totally Japan's Day to celebrate. And specially when it was both Kokoro's and Miho's maiden world cup title. They put up a great show and they won the hearts of all Indian crowd. Other than the winners, all climbers from all countries gave all the spectators reason to love them. So the 1st ever world cup hosted in India by Girivihar was a huge huge success.

     On 16th may, there was Promotional Masters Climbing Competition. Many Indian climbers as well as Iranian team,Canadian team,Nepalese team took part in it. Canadian Brother & sister Eric & Elise Sethna won the masters competition. In men category 2nd and 3rd spot captured by Iranian climbers. In Women 2nd position went to Iranian climber followed by another Canadian girl for 3rd place. Finally the 4 days event came to an end on a high note. Girivihar got the great reviews from the foreign climbers and IFSC officials about organisation of event. Many tweeted that it was one of the top 3 well organised world cups of 2016. Route setters liked Indian wall for route setting. They all loved the Indian hospitality. Though the over heat was the negative point but every other aspect was nicely organised and there is hope to hold world cup next year as well, hopefully in winter season.

  

As for me I am proud beyond words to be a part of organising team, may be in a small way, but its huge pleasure for me. I have been attending Girivihar's competitions for many years now and world cup is cherry on the cake. Working with these amazing, passionate people is something I will cherish always.  Thanks a lot and Bravo Girivihar team, and All the volunteers who came from across India to help and All the great climbers who participated and made this event as Great and Spectacular as it was.

     This blog can't end without giving due credit by names to CORE Girivihar team whose tremendous efforts made this possible. Abhijit Burman, Franco Linhares, Vaibhav, Vinita, Sandeep Bhagyawant, Sandeep Varadkar, Sharad, Shyam, Mangesh, Gaurang, Vivek, Sandesh, Neerav, Rohan,Anushka,Kunal, Nishit, Dilip, Kaivan, Priya, Praveen, Sunny, Sunil, Akshay, Divyaka,Nina from Switzerland who worked tirelessly with constant smile for all days and those important members of Girivihar who I don't know personally, All the Sponsors, Donors, Media, each and every other volunteer who came from Mumbai and other states of India. Also those who came from other countries to help with the event. Huge Thanks to all the spectators who made this event a grand success by their presence.

    
HATS OFF TO THE PASSIONATE EFFORTS OF EVERYBODY!!