Balaka Basu's Blog, page 19

Review of ‘The Girl on the Train’ #Readbravely

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” – George R.R. Martin

This is amazing that I am posting back to back book reviews on my blog. I finished reading the second book of the year. I am honestly impressed at the speed in which I am finishing the books. Last year, it was taking me weeks if not months to finish a single book, so many books I left unfinished with bookmarks still intact inside their pages. Some books I wish to go back and finish while for some books I guess I will never reach the last page. Interestingly many of the books were international bestsellers yet I never managed to turn pages till the end. Maybe, I was distracted by other mundane thoughts and never really got inside the book cover.

Thankfully, in 2018, so far so good and I finished two books in seven days.  Both the books have been diametrically opposite in every sense. While Poonachi: Or the Story of a Black Goat was the innocent and rustic story of an orphan goat, the second book The Girl on a Train was intriguing and gray. There are no black and white characters in this book and every single character is gray with their own vices, yet they do not appear as villains but extremely humane.

This book tells us that what we see on the surface is not actually the truth and once we scratch a little we get to see the actual ugliness of relationships (note to self/others: do not take Facebook PDA by couples literally, you may never know how their relationship is in real life

Poonachi- My First Book of the Year 2019

“Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary.” – Jim Rohn

This year I am taking part in the Write Tribe Reading Challenge (If you look at my sidebar you would notice the challenge button). Write Tribe has been encouraging bloggers to #writebravely since long, however, this is the first time that they came up with a reading challenge to inspire members to #readbravely.

I used to be a voracious reader but thanks to my smartphone and the allure of social media, these days I find myself easily distracted and end up wasting time looking at stupid #couplegoals photos and reading motivational posts that eventually demotivate me. I wanted to break free from this vicious cycle and this reading challenge was exactly what I needed. I am so proud of myself that I took part and also finished my first book in record three days.

My first book for this challenge was Poonachi: Or the Story of a Black Goat by Perumal Murugan. This book was a gift that I received from my Secret Santa, the beautiful and loving Apeksha Rao. This made the book even more special. This book adhered to four prompts of the challenge:

#1. A book that is a translation

#8. A Book with a name in the title

#12. A book with an animal in the title/cover

#19. A Book written by an author who is new to you

Poonachi is a book that was originally written in Tamil by Perumal Murugan and translated in English by N Kalyan Raman. The book is about Poonachi a black goat with untraceable origin. I have never read any work by Perumal Murugan and it was a pleasure to read him for the first time. Hope to read his other books in the near future.

Poonachi: Or the Story of a Black Goat is not only the story about an orphan black goat it actually is much more than that. This book talks about emotions, sentiments, useless rituals, formalities and most importantly the ephemeral nature of our existence. This book talks about how the system has turned us into cowards where the common man has no say and has to oblige to the whims and tantrums of the regime. It also takes on the media when the woman is repeatedly asked how she felt when her goat delivered a litter of seven. Don’t we see journalist asking this stupid question all the time in every situation?

Poonachi is also a story of love and longing. It talks about the perseverance of a small goat to survive against all odds and it talks about the impermanence of life where any moment we can lose a life. Poonachi is also the story of any daughter in our country. This book makes a lot of commentary on our social and political life. The language is lucid and the ambiance of the book is rustic and endearing. The story flows seamlessly and there is not a dull moment when you feel like putting down the book. No wonder, I finished reading it in 3 days. I had read amazing reviews about this book and the book was also recommended by Senior Reading Racoons. The book is worth every review that I read. I am extremely glad to have initiated my reading challenge with such an amazing book. Hope to read more such good books in 2019.

 

 

What’s My Word Of The Year For 2019 #WOTY2019

I have already written my Gratitude Journal for 2018. Honestly, 2018 had been amazing year except for the months of July and August. I would love to hold on to this year a little longer. I am almost singing the song “tu thodi der aur theher ja” for 2018.

[image error]This year I traveled a lot, read so many amazing books, watched a few awesome movies, published my book, took part in blogging challenges and most importantly met so many friends both from the real and virtual world. We had two Write Tribe Blogger’s meet this year in Mumbai. Meeting virtual friends in real life is no less than going for a blind date, where you often do not know how the other person may turn out in real life. I was lucky to find that all my blogger friends are as awesome in the real world as they are in the virtual world. I also took part in the secret Santa and received an amazing book from one of my favorite fellow bloggers.

In May this year, I met a friend with whom I had fallen out almost 13 years back. Not that we reconciled but we got closure and a huge burden lifted off my chest that I have been carrying all these years. I also learnt a big lesson that we cannot burden ourselves with our expectations from the other person. The other person may not act as per our expectation and we should have the wisdom and courage to accept the way things are without feeling any pain or guilt. Most importantly we should learn to love ourselves because if we do not love ourselves nobody else is going to love us.

This year another friend asked me for forgiveness. I do not know if I am entitled to forgive anyone. We all make mistakes knowingly and unknowingly and therefore rather than forgiving I would prefer forgetting the whole episode and walk together towards a happy future. This year also made me realize that the theory of Karma works. We pay for everything in this life and therefore it is very important to do good deeds. We should never feel proud of our achievements and start undermining others. I may be a king today but tomorrow I may turn into a beggar in a single ugly stroke of misfortune.  A friend of mine learnt the Karmic lesson the hard way this year and I feel sorry for her but at the same time, I am grateful for the lesson it taught me.

I met another friend after 10 years this year and it was such a lovely reunion when we cherished old memories. I always considered this friend to be little flamboyant and unempathetic, however, I was surprised to see a softer and vulnerable side and I felt blessed to have met this friend.

“I realized my life is a huge ocean where people go away in one wave and come back with another wave. None of them really go away forever, they just go away to come back. I feel myself like a phoenix who gets burnt only to rise from the ashes once again.”- Trinasays

Let’s Not Forget the Roots- #ThursdayTreeLove 54

“The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness“- Dalai Lama

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During the Christmas weekend, we went on a family trip to Murud -Janjira. I spotted this old tree inside Janjira fort. More than the tree the roots fascinated me. If you look carefully you will notice that the plant is at the edge of the soil and it is the deep roots that are keeping the plant in place. I guess for us also it is the roots that keep us in place lest we forget.

Joining once again #ThursdayTreeLove hosted by lovely Parul.

Paris Sightseeing in a Day- Walking Tour Part 2

It was a warm winter afternoon in Paris with the Sun high up on the sky. The weather was pleasant and way less cold (thankfully) than I had anticipated. By the time we completed the Walking Tour till Louvre, I was already quite tired but my enthusiasm was high. Probably as there was no sweat it was making me less lethargic.

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Roadsign in front of Louvre

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We crossed the road in front of Louvre and went down the slope and started walking on the banks of River Sienne. Autumn leaves were scattered everywhere and it was a childish fun feeling to kick them while walking.

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The Sienne river was full of small Batobuses that takes the tourist to various tourist destination using the water route. We had also thought of taking it but lack of time made it difficult. There are various cruises available on the Seine. They take the tourists from one end to the other while the tourists can enjoy food and drinks.

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Batobus and the Eiffel Tower

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Pont Neuf at a Distance

Our next destination was Pont De Artes, the famous ‘Bridge of LoveLocks‘. These days the locks have been removed due to the heavyweights yet some people still secretly put them on the bridge. This was considered as one the most romantic bridges in the world but after the locks were removed it has lost its glory.

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Love Lock Bridge

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Love Locks secretly put on the Bridge

The next destination was Pont Neuf. The Pont de Arts and Pont Neuf are parallel to each other. Pont de arts is more romantic while Pont Neuf is grander in terms of architecture and built. There is a huge statue equestrian bronze statue of Henry IV.

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Bronze Statue of Henry IV

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Pont Neuf

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After crossing the Pont Neuf we walked for about 500 meters and reached the Cathedral de Notre Dame. This is undoubtedly one of the iconic structures of Paris. I was told that the aerial view of Notre Dame shows it in the shape of a cross. The place was extremely crowded when we reached yet we managed to enter inside.

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Cathedral De Notre Dame

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By the time we completed our tour of Notre Dame, Paris was covered in a thick black cloud. I am sure you can figure out from the above images. It was afternoon but looked like evening. Our last destination was Shakespeare and Company.

 

Shakespeare and Company is an institution in itself. This place is a Mecca for any book lover. This is the place where writers like Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, F.Scott. Fitzgerald and James Joyce used to hang around. The book is mentioned in Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast. This store was the focal point of literary culture in bohemian Paris. Even in many movies, this store was shown like Julia and Julia, Before Sunset and Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris. If I start writing the history of this bookstore it will never end. Therefore let me just describe my feelings. This is a quaint little shop with an adjoining cafeteria. The store sells both new and old used books. Outside the store, I could find some rare old used books. The store has retained its old world charm till date. Even today numerous aspiring writers take refuge in this store. An afternoon is not enough to explore this shop. A book lover can keep exploring this place through an entire lifetime. Every nook and corner has a story to tell.  The store is not huge but the collection is undoubtedly the best in the world.

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The entry and exit gate can be seen along with the desk of old books

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We had our lunch at Shakespeare and Company. With this, we came to an end to our walking tour of Paris. Thanks to Google Maps and Wikitravel for helping me plan this walking tour itinerary.

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Paris Sightseeing in a Day-Walking Tour Part 1

I had only one day in Paris. Technically one and half day. The ‘half-day’ I had spent going to Montmartre and Eiffel Tower, therefore the next full day I wanted to utilize to visit the various tourist sights of Paris. It was not an easy task to visit the major attractions in one single day and that too mostly by walking. It was difficult nevertheless we did it. Yippeee!!!

With a little bit of research and good planning, Paris can be seen in a day. But, if you have time then please do not hurry and soak the vibes of the city slowly.

Thankfully, unlike the previous day, it was not rainy and warm Parisian sun greeted us warmly as soon as we left the hostel. Our friend R had come over and three of us me, Gail and R set out at around 9 am. We took the metro and reached Etoile station.

Our first stop was Arc De Triomphe. The structure looks completely different in daylight. Its grandiose was mesmerizing and we clicked more photos than our harddrive could accommodate. However, when I showed them to my son he had a different opinion “yeh apna India Gate ka bhai hai kya?” Now, how do I know about the familial structure of arcs?

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Once our picture clicking madness was over, we started walking on the Boulevard of Champs Elysses. It was indeed a walk to remember with such amazing architecture and flashy designer stores on both sides. We were stopping every 30 seconds to either admire a store or a building. Champ de Elysses looked very different from how it looked in An Evening in Paris.

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The Grand Architectural Structures

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The quaint Parisian Cafe

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The Queue to enter Louis Vuitton

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Souvenir shop

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View of Eiffel Tower from Champ Elysses

It was a long walk from Arc De Triomphe to Louvre but the beauty on both sides of the Boulevard didn’t allow us to get tired or bored. We went to Louvre through the Concorde and Jardin De Tuilleries or Tuilleries Garden.

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Concord

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Jardin de Tuilleries

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We were in Paris on a Tuesday and Louvre is closed on Tuesday, therefore, we had to be satisfied by visiting Louvre from outside. SIGH!!! However, Louvre is beautiful architecture and we were more than happy to spend an hour loitering around. When I got a first glimpse of the glass pyramid inside Louvre it reminded me of Davinchi Code by Dan Brown.

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It would become an extremely lengthy post if I write any more, therefore I will continue the rest of the Walking tour in the second part where I will cover Pont Neuf, Seine River, Notre Dame, and Shakespeare bookstore. Catacomb was not part of the walking tour so it deserves a separate post. It is possible to cover all the major tourist sights of Paris in a day. Stay Tuned!

The BirdMan-#wordlesswednesday

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This was shot in Rome. This is the entry to the Ponte Sant Angelo. Ponte means bridge in Italian. Ponte Sant Angelo is considered one of the romantic bridges in Rome and many Italian romantic movies are shot here.

Joining Esha and Natasha for #wordlesswednesday.

Gratitude Journal for 2018

On 1st January 2018, I opened my tattered diary and scribbled a wish list. It was in a way a crazy list because I had jotted down things that were impossible. I mean, at that point I felt they were nothing more than a few impossible wishes to fulfill. Last week, I opened the list once again and had almost an eerie feeling. Most of the wishes have come true. The wishes that I thought were crazy and impossible have come true.

My biggest takeaway from 2018 would be “wishes do come true” but the only prerequisite to making them true is hard work, faith, and a strong conviction. If you work hard then wishes, big or small do come true.

Golden Rainbow: This year I fulfilled a long-cherished dream of mine. I always wanted to be a published author. Since the last couple of years, I was also writing a romantic novel but I am yet to finish. However, the memoirs that I wrote in the month of April finally made my dream come true. They were initially published as an ebook and later on published as a paperback. I am so glad to have received some amazing reviews. This is certainly one of the best things that happened to me this year. If you wish to read, click here.

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Blogging: As a blogger, this was an extremely rewarding year. In January, my blog completed a year and I hosted a blog party. Many of my blogger friends attended the party and wrote some amazing guest posts. I am so grateful to them.

This year I successfully completed the A-Z Challenge and the 26 posts that I wrote during the challenge were later published as Golden Rainbow by Notion Press. I also took part in the Write Tribe Festival of Words. This year I also overcame my fear of drawing and took part in Inktober. I was myself surprised at my sketching skills. I feel all these years I underestimated myself way more than I deserved.  This year I also hosted a #20daychallenege. In 2018, my blog also became one of the Top Blogs in India.

Travel: I love to travel and that is no secret. 2018 gave me some amazing opportunities to travel within and outside the country. In January I went on a trip to Goa followed by a 3000 km road trip to Gujrat. Both these trips were with extended family.

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Goa

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Somnath Temple, Gujarat

In May, I went on a marathon trip with my son, my friend Kavita and her daughter Kaju. This was a remarkable trip because for the first time we went on a Mom and kid trip minus the fathers. This trip was an excellent opportunity for us to bond. This trip liberated and refreshed me in more than one level. Our first stop was Kolkata, from there we went on an unplanned trip to Shantiniketan. The next few destinations were Siliguri, Kurseong, Darjeeling, Gangtok, Rumtek and Nathulapass. It was an emotional trip because Gangtok is my erstwhile home and it was a great feeling to take my son there.

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Nathula Pass

In November, I went on a solo trip to Europe. This was my second solo trip to Europe after Prague and Budapest in 2017. Well, not exactly solo as my Canadian friend Gail joined me in Paris, together we then went to Pisa, Florence and Rome. I also had a transit in Kuwait. Spending a whole night in Kuwait after almost 10 years was a great feeling.

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Reunion: This was a year of reunion. I met so many of my friends and family after ages. In May, I met an old colleague to whom I was quite close in office after almost 13 years. In May, I was in Kolkata and met my father’s friend after almost 15 years. I spent an entire day with them. I also met my mom’s school friend. I also met my best friend M this year after almost 4 years. We also spent her birthday together after ages.

An Evening in Paris

I do not remember if I watched the movie “An evening in Paris” but I loved the song “Raat k humsafar” from it. Typically, I always associated Paris with Eiffel tower. Therefore, It was forever in my bucket list to see the La Tour Eiffel, up, close, and personal.

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Did you know that Kalki Koechlin is related to Maurice Koechlin who designed the Eiffel Tower?

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Maurice Koechlin and Kalki Koechlin

Eiffel tower in the evening looked mesmerizing but the neighborhood looked intimidating with lots of African hawkers literally forcing tourists to buy the Chinese made replicas of the tower and other souvenirs. When the hawkers heard the police siren in the distance they immediately folded their merchandise in a cloth that was previously acting as a display spread and ran away wherever they could. But as soon as the police patrol left the hawkers came back within minutes. I wonder where they were hiding.

The service road that led to the tower was muddy as it had rained in the afternoon. It was so muddy that we literally stained our shoes. Never expected this kind of “kichar” in a first world city

Montmartre- The Mecca of Art and Cabaret

A visit to Paris is incomplete without visiting Montmartre, the Mecca for any art lover. The inspiration for many artists and the birthplace of cabaret and cancan, Montmartre is a district in Paris to reckon. This is the place where art and bohemianism get together.

Before heading to Paris, I did quite a bit of research and found that the best way to visit Montmartre is by taking a walking tour. Each day the walking tours began at 10 am and 2pm from the Blanche metro station. I had planned to go to Montmartre on the first day itself but when I reached my hostel it was way past 2pm, so I missed the walking tour but decided to go on my own.

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The Village

 

As you know from my previous post that I met an Indian guy at the airport, let us call him R. You will meet him in subsequent posts also. He had booked an accommodation in the outskirts of Paris and when we reached Gare Du Nord station he asked politely if he could keep his luggage at my hostel and accompany me for the Montmartre tour. He was equally interested in exploring Montmartre.

We checked into the hostel and kept our luggage. After exactly 10mins we were on the Barbes Rochechouart Boulevard. Montmartre was barely a 10 minutes’ walk. The sky was cloudy and it was drizzling intermittently but that did not deter our spirits.

Our first stop in Montemarte was the Sacre Coeur that is situated on the top of a hill. Climbing the stairs to reach up was a daunting task for my torn ligament but thankfully I managed. The view of Paris City from top of Montmartre is breathtaking but we did not have the good fortune to view that. It was cloudy and what we saw was a foggy outline.

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Basilica of Sacre Coeur

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Cloudy Paris Skyline

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Spot the Eiffel Tower