I don't exaggerate when I say that my poor guardian angel is overworked. I don't exaggerate when I say that I have the craziest possible travel experiences. Proof of the fact was given to me yet again in 2010 with the most unbelievable of problems. A volcano erupted.The famous volcano eruption that caused GPS all over Europe to stop working in 2010 and volcanic ash to descend into the continent naturally affected me as well. How could it not affect Varsha and her travel stories?In Paris with a flight to catch, I learned that all flights had been cancelled indefinitely, until the volcanic ash settled. As 'usual', my visa was due to expire very soon, but as usual, it was not my fault that I could not go home.And as usual, the experience was wonderful.Extra days with my sister and my truly incredible French family are treasures I cherish. I remember the joy that accompanied all the … [Read more...]
‘Stranded’ in Milan
Coming back from France in 2006, we had an Alitalia flight via Milan. Everything until Milan was fine - except one thing. This is an aside, but I must say this. In Milan, like in Vienna, I was asked to take off my belt and lay it in the tray to be passed through the X-Ray machine. That's okay, acceptable. Then, I was asked to raise my hands as I walked through the security gate. If I was comfortable enough to lift my arms wearing jeans without a belt, I would not wear a belt at all, I wanted to tell them. I now make it a point to wear a salwar kameez or tighter jeans.Coming back. Our stopover from Paris was at Milan - and there, we discovered that the flight ahead was cancelled. All kinds of reasons were given to us. 'Technical snag', 'staff on strike', 'no co-pilot'... We had no idea when we'd get a flight back and our visas were due to expire that day.That, we were told, was not a … [Read more...]
Chenonceau
The little castle that appears on the Disney logo is, I am convinced, Chenonceau. The château de Chenonceau has to be a Disney castle.In the World War II, the castle marked the boundary between war zones and safe areas. People were often smuggled through the castle to the other side - the idea itself adds the element of romance and adventure I love! We chose not to take the audio guides, but we missed nothing, simply because there was just so much to see. The castle brings to mind all the Georgetter Heyers I've read with its magnificent rooms and four-poster beds and all that. The maze, in typical touristy style, is very simple. It's impossible to get lost there, which takes a little joy out of the idea of a maze. Though the wax museum was a huge disappointment, the rest of the castle had a beautiful feel of people. It felt lived-in, with shiny copper utensils, a quaint pulley to draw … [Read more...]
Power Cut
I remember going to a creperie in Grenoble a few years ago - an important part of my French experience. I was in a large group of Indians for once, and soon after we had placed our order, our delicious lunch was served to us.And then, there was a power cut.We were surprised, but power cuts are not such a new experience for us. Particularly since we were out for lunch and not dinner, we calmly continued to eat, merely commenting on how bizarre it was for this to happen to us in France.What drew our attention away from the food before us though was everything else that happened. The reactions of people all around us were priceless! The people in the restaurant were astounded that something like a Power Cut could possibly take place. They came to us and apologised for the inconvenience. "What inconvenience?" I wanted to ask, amused at the waiter's bewilderment. A candle was placed on … [Read more...]
An Old Lady in France
Having performed at Aix-en-Provence (close to Marseilles), and being readers of Dumas, we couldn't not go to Marseilles and visit the Château d'If. We had read and heard enough about it to want to go and see how picturesque it was. We went to the tourist office and found out what we were supposed to do. Excited and eager to set off, we stepped out of the office and unfolded the map we had been given, trying to find the the bus-stop. The map did not make sense to us at all. We looked up and around, trying to find places that corresponded to the map. We found none, so we turned the map upside-down to see if that would help. It did not.An old lady was watching our animated and amusing little drama, easily understanding what our problem was. When we turned the map upside-down, she finally came up to us and asked in that French accent that I've come to love so much, "Doo you need 'elp?"I … [Read more...]
The Eiffel Tower
I was not at all impressed when I first saw the Eiffel Tower. My problem with the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal and the Mona Lisa is that they look just like the pictures. When you go and look at them, there's nothing that you have not already seen or sensed, unlike, for example, when you see the Notre Dame, the Sistine Chapel or the acropolis. When I said this, everybody told me that the charm of the Eiffel Tower lies in how it's lit at night. So my sister and I decided to go at night to see the Eiffel Tower and then take the last train out from Paris back to Grenoble.It was worth it, people were right; the Eiffel Tower was truly beautiful. Paris by night is charming, and the Eiffel Tower carried some of that mood - call it romantic, call it festive, call it anything.We worked out our schedule to the letter, planning perfectly how long the metro-ride to the station would take so that … [Read more...]
Ramayan in French
My association with France began with a French exchange programme in 2004. I was vegetarian, I barely spoke French, I had never heard the French accent, I was to live with a French family for three weeks and I was to attend French school in that time. And because I was 17, I was not scared, I was excited.I remember the first day vividly. I remember all the attempts everyone made at making conversation. We talked about the world wars. We talked about food. We talked about India. We talked about France. I understood about five per cent of the conversation.And then, one thing led to another, and my sister and I started talking about the Ramayana. In English, it's a beautiful, complex story that I enjoy telling. In French especially back then, I was comfortable only with present tense. That's all very well for regular story-telling, but if you forget that one little episode, you're … [Read more...]