Reason to Smile :)

Reason to Smile: The first long weekend of 2015 and people have their plans. Treks, tours, camping, shopping, some dining outlets to check out and what not ! ;) I am glad I didn't opt for any for a change :P I, instead went out for a lavish lunch with family at Oriental Residency, Khar. By the time I had just finished hogging, I was called to welcome my very dear friend from Singapore ! Chinmay Koshatwar - your surprises can be really nasty :P Had I been on any trek outing, I would have missed out on all the fun we had over the weekend ! ;) Chinmay, Me and Pooja (She is no more Meow, now she has a new Quack ;)) are always fun to be with. We roamed the mall, abruptly decided to go to Marine Drive, literally chilled out there and again hogged on to Bade Miyanz for dinner ! ;) Sunday morning music class always sets the tone for a perfect day :) Disha had inquired about some Veerdas pyjama fest that was making the buzz in Mumbai. Well, it is India's largest comedy festival t...

Reason to Smile: A Nasik Range trek from Shikhar Vedh did not excite me much after my last trek at Uttarakhand really. Not because of the difference in zones, but because of the difference now in my stamina. I had realised in UK itself that treks are now getting difficult for me :P It was Krupa and Vikas, my trek friends who insisted I join them. I did it just for a shot. I was confident I will anyways not be able to complete all four, but even if I could make it for two I would feel glad was my option at heart. To my surprise I could almost complete two and half out of the three forts - Rajdher, Koldher, Indrai Trek in the Nasik Region. We dropped out Chadawad due to lack of time. We instead checked out a beautiful palace called the Ahilyabai Holkar Mahal at Nasik :) We first attempted to climb Koldher which is a two hour ascend that includes about 50% traverse and then followed by the rock carved steps that lead you to the base of the fort wall, vertically flat enough which ...

Reason to Smile: It was indeed a great way to celebrate new years at UK :P Yeah, I meant Uttarakhand - a trek that started end of December 2014 and invited the new years with some great experiences, friends and fun :) I have not really bothered to look back on time and thanked many who deserved nor bothered to think of anyone who made it disappointing in 2014. This time around, I just enjoyed the trek, chilled at minus 7 degrees, and came back rejuvinated for 2015 :) I surely caught up on some hangover of the trek to get over the last weekend. Gathering pics, sitting at home doing nothing but resting and spending time with family made me realize I can get and feel 'old' too :P But yes, I have figured out some 'extra' love for music and have been thinking to join some course on it from the past 2 yrs. This time I am glad I have taken some step towards it and here's a toast to some beginning. Lets see how far it goes ! :P However, if its not outing or trekkin...

Reason to Smile:  What can be more exciting and thrilling when you know that you are going to spend the new years night at one of the most amazing places in the world :P Yes, my new year plans were as exciting and thrilling as if a parent may feel for its new born. For me, it was a trek to Kuari Pass at Uttarakhand ! :) The mere thought of the cold weather at 'UK' gave me chills and floored out the feet of my ground. The real feel of it gave me shivering and lots of woolen and winter jackets to move on :) I had a flight to Delhi to meet 30 mates at Haridwar. From Delhi Sumeet, Sarika and me took a bus to Haridwar. The step at Delhi gave me a feel of the starters of the cold menu I had to be served on ;) - weather updates from the whats app group helped to some extent to prepare myself :P The drive from Haridwar to Joshimath (start point of our trek) was about 12 hours drive. Pictures, good food and cold hands on the way were giving me a feel of the real winters I tend ...