Happy Independence Day to every American and everyone else in the world

To share in the celebrations which will be cheering the hearts of everyone in America, I am posting some photos of our trip to America - the beauty of America is celebrated by us here in India too and we wish them the happiest and most joyous 4th of July ever.
.                              Samir on his Graduation Day in Stanford with Abha and Deepak
..                             This is my great Internet friend Diana with me and Abha in
                              Stanford  - we had a wonderful day together .  .                              Abha and me at Stanford's wonderful approach lawns
                               Our dearest friends RK and Sujata with us in Broadway N.Y.
.                     Such a wonderful song on the Broadway theatre mini screen behind us - so
.                                  I had a good dance with Abha amongst the crowd
.                               Tall young grownup Anurag & me at the Nashdaq, N.Y
                                  Dallas with Sudhanshu, Monica, Sumona & Ramona
                                  and my great friend of a decade Kathy the Professor
                                  of American Literature who flew down from Greenville
                                  Illinois to be with us - such a great first time meeting



 We went with Monica and Sudhanshu and the kids to a wonderful Safari place near Dallas - lots of fun and a wonderful experience - we also went to Billy Joe's Ranch and danced there.







.                                 SEATTLE -  Great city and wonders all around

.                                 Deepak at Alcatraz Prison Administrative building

.                                 On the way to Niagara we visited this MUST visit museum
                                  and got to know that Glass is more beautiful than virtually
                                  anything if properly crafted.
.                         Abha, Sujata, me and Gavy at the Lincoln Memorial Statue
                          in Washington
                           Strolling down the street of Carmel, C.A. on my Birthday
                           26th July with Abha
                           Gavy, RK,Sujata, Abha and Deepak at Niagara Falls
                           It is really a natural wonder of the world beyond compare
                          At the lone Cypress - Monteray C.C. this is the famous
                          TREE HUNDREDS OF YEARS OLD THEY SAY
                                                    I think this is one of the great Juniper trees Peter has
                          written about - it is on the famous 17 mile drive at Carmel/
                          Monterrey

                          Sam, Abha - Deepak

RAMAN AND PARUL - ROKNA CEREMONY FARIDABAD

Abha's younger sister Shobha and her great Physician Doctor Husband, Surender were the happiest people in the world as their son, our nephew, Raman was booked at a Rokna ceremony for a marriage to Parul from Faridabad. All details will be added by and by - but here are the first Photos of the ceremonies I am uploading for every one to see. I, Abha, Shobha, Surender and Raman and Parul will be recognised easily - shall try to name everyone by and by with help from Raman. Have a great tour of Indian culture.

17TH DEC 2011 DEEPAKS FAMILY GET TOGETHER

I have posted all the picture of the party here and also posted a descriptive blog for everyone at http://deepakdemoninlove.multiply.com/journal/item/131/DEEPAKS_FAMILY_GET_TOGETHER_IN_DELHI_17TH_DEC_2011

DEEPAKS FAMILY GET TOGETHER IN DELHI 17TH DEC 2011

One day I thought that time and tide have resulted in a widening abyss between every one in our family - the children have no idea of our heritage - they have no knowledge of the sacrifices and bravery of our forebears who had to leave everything behind in Pakistan during the terrible days of India's partation and the creation of the new country 'Pakistan' in the Northwest of our country, of the massacres that took place - I had posted a blog on Jan 8, '08, especially for my Aunt Mrs. Promilla Ghose which will give an idea of what they all went through to give a secure new home and a new life after the partition of India - you can read it at End of an Era - An Eulogy dedicated to Mrs Promilla Ghose my Great aunt on my blog - http://deepakdemoninlove.multiply.com/journal/item/73/End_of_an_Era__An_Eulogy_dedicated_to_Mrs_Promilla_Ghose_my_Great_aunt .
So I planned a party and invited 35 people of my maternal side of the family - but again events often do not happen as they should -
1. Derek (Uncle Ozzie's son) and his family - wife and two children could not come because he was down with a heart problem
2. Dinky (Aruna Paul) my cousin along with Anil and their newly married son and bride could not attend because Anil had fixed a national level meet or something where they all had to go
3. Aunty Maureen - the last surviving of our older generation who were born in Quetta (Now in Pakistan) is over 80 years old and had to be brought by Derek and consequently could not come
4. Ronnie's son Kabir was not well and so his wife Sudha had to stay behind to care for him.
6. Tina (Vikrams wife Edna's sister with her husband and kids could not come because Eric was not well and Tina had her school function on that date itself - 4 Less sigh!
5. In addition, Abha's sisters from Jhansi and Muzaffarnagar had said that they would be with us - but only Gaurav arrived - so that made 6 less
So to finish the tally - finally there were only 15 of us left!
But we had a great party - and celebrated the day with lots of fun and laughter and reminiscences of the great times we had in the yesteryear filled with a little nostalgia and lots of laughter! There were Aunty Mano, Roma, Ronnie, Me, Abha, Gaurav, Percy and his wife Seema and kids Shalini and Mister Jerry, Jatin with his wife Meenu and kids
I am posting photos of the evening for every one to see in a separate album and the link is http://deepakdemoninlove.multiply.com/photos/album/60/17TH_DEC_2011_DEEPAKS_FAMILY_GET_TOGETHER_ -
Hope you all enjoy the pictures
Deepak

BREMEN - GERMANY - DEEPAK ABHA MASHINDER JULY 2011

Mashinder dove us in his car to Bremen - and on the way we enjoyed the impeccable German landscape - precision is the word that comes to mind when one thinks of Germany and we arrived at Bremen in good spirits. It is really a very fine city! We roamed all around the town area and savored the wonderful architecture of the buildings. many many wonderful statues, beautiful gardens and flowers, fascinating bylanes of old Bremen where there were quaint shops -each different from the next and each selling its own brand of goods. The cobble stones and the bicycle tracks were so nice to see. And the discipline amazing. No one - I repeat - No one every violated a traffic rule even though we seldom saw the traffic police!

SELIGENSTADT, GERMANY - ABHA DEEPAK VISIT WITH MRINAL PETRA ALBAN DANIEL

We went with Mrinal and Petra and their kids Alban and Daniel to SELIGENSTADT which is a beautiful Monastery near Frankfurt. We had great pastries at a cafe also. The most beautiful thing about that Monastery, aside from its beautiful medieval architecture, were the gardens. I am sure that the variety of plants and different variations of apples can not be found in any single garden anywhere, other then the Botanical Gardens of the Universities or the Government.
We were so happy there with the wonderful weather and the company of Petra and Alban and Daniel, that we remained smiles all the way. The Monks had cultivated an incredible assortment of rare medicinal herbs too. In a way it was like the Dream Garden that Abha carries close to her heart.!

AMSTERDAM - DEEPAK ABHA MASHINDER - JULY 2011

Mashinder put us in his car and off we went to a drive of over 500 KM to Amsterdam. And what a wonderful city it was. Just when we finally parked the car and had walked a little way across a bridge, the rain clouds loomed over the sky. We took refuge in a little shop and were pleasantly surprised to find that besides souvenirs, chocolate, coffee and trinkets, they also sold tickets for a Canal Cruise. Soon the clouds receded after a slight drizzle and we were on the Cruise Ship, cruising along the canals of Amsterdam.
I was amazed to see the extent of canals which crisscrossed the city. We passed many monuments and other constructions along the way and covered a very large portion of Amsterdam. The cruise ship was completely covered with glass covering so we could get a great view on all sides. We admired the many bridges the most. At one point one could see 7 Bridges simultaneously while going down one of the canals. Amsterdam is a city meant for Tourists.
Everyone spoke English so we did not feel like strangers. The entire town was full of hundreds of shops selling an amazing variety of things ranging from dolls, postcards, paintings, do-it-yourself kits, coffee, great confectioneries, great food, and what not what not - not to forget the clothing stores. The roads were perfectly maintained. The whole local population of Amsterdam seemed to be riding on bicycles. No one ever crossed the road on a red traffic light, including the pedestrians. The architecture was enchanting. Mashinder had been there many years before, but he remembered the narrow by lanes of Amsterdam and took us across to that sector of the city.
Marijuana is allowed to be used in Amsterdam and there were shops selling reefers of Marijuana. We also bought one to smoke when we reached Hepstedt for the experience, but no one remembered it so it was never smoked ha ha.
The day was reaching a close, but we had time because Mashinder had booked us into one of the Hotels near the Schipol Airport, and we could get a train to town very easily from there. The hotel also had a bus which took passengers to Schipol and back, so we could roam all around Amsterdam till late night.
The next day we again went to town and saw new areas. In one of the lanes there is a house which has many many bells covering its walls and all the bells ring simultaneously at a particular time. Many tourists were waiting for the bells to ring. Amsterdam also has lots of famous places like Madame Taussads, and many museums where the Great Dutch Masters great paintings are displayed. Since we had only a two day stay there, I chose to see the Museum of one of the Greatest of the Dutch Masters - Rembrant!! I will write more about that museum which is in the original house where Rembrant lived. Suffice it to say that it was an experience like no other!!