A Last kiss, Goodbye.

“Well then, one last kiss, goodbye” I said. He looked at me and smiled. We had another hour to ourselves and I knew that there was more to what I had asked for. 

He turned twenty-three this day and that would have marked the seventh year to our relationship, if I may say so. 

“It will not work out for us”, a mutual thought two years ago and it was a decision made to let go.

“Can we still be best friends? he said. “Yes, I guess, with no better option left” 

“Let us celebrate the day together.” Birthdays have always been special for me. With him by my side, I had happiness bubbles fizzing inside me. It was a plan, his plan for me. 

Excited....I was looking forward to celebrate the special day with him and chose to wear the orange dress he bought me. “You look beautiful.” With all my teeth visible, I was on Cloud 9 or higher. 
He held my hand, escorted me into the car and whisked me away to where he walked me into a surprise. 

So I enjoyed every moment of the drive still smiling in order to express my delight because it was his birthday, yet my surprise!! 

A drive through the sea link, into the five-star and I knew that he had luxury waiting for me. 

“Whoa, this is so much, my style” Yet, I was not ready for this. The religion following, strict vegetarian and a non-alcoholic and obedient person all by choice had decided to take me to the open sky-lounge BAR!! 

The thirty-third floor had thick sheets of six feet tall glass forming the boundary wall. The cool breeze swept through my face and hair while I stood there watching the orange sun set into the sea.

Standing close behind me, I heard him whisper “Are you happy to be here?” I hugged him, “Do we really have to let go?” 

“I really do not know” “Go ahead, call for your drink” 

 “You sure, you’re comfortable with me drinking!! … All the more, this place looks really expensive!!” 
"It is more the price that the height that will give us a nosebleed" 
“Only once in a while makes for a surprise and every penny is worth your smile” 

He called for a mock tail named ‘Rise’. “Can’t drink and drive.” 
I looked through the menu and was definite to try something new and was ready to raise a toast. It just made more sense to celebrate NOW. 

Just then, his phone whistled. He received and e-mail and he had news to share. He cleared his visa application process to Australia. He was going to shift base. The mock tail named aptly in this situation for he was going to “Rise” towards his new life. Happy as I was, I knew somewhere deep inside that he, my best friend is going to go far away. My heart skipped a beat. 
“Do I have a way out?” 

“What would you like to have ma’am?” I browsed through the menu again. 
“Well then, one last kiss, goodbye”, I said.
 Certainly ma’am “That is Irish whiskey on the rocks.” 
Apt to the situation, my drink, it was smooth and rich, just like one might have had their last kiss.

YOU MAKE ME FEEL SO SPECIAL!!!

You make me feel so special,

Sometimes it just does not feel real,

Whether I am happy or am sad,

By my side, you I have always had.

With you I laugh and also cry,

And there is no way that to you I can lie,

Not that I ever try!!! :P

You always know when to be there and why!!

No matter what….

You are someone I have always sought.

Of course with you I fight,

But then our friendship is like a soaring kite.

Forever my love for you I will voice,

Whether it is day or night.

Because You are certainly one choice,

That I made right.

Finals!! :-o

Nearing the end of the semester, it is now the time when everybody has realized how important it is for them to start working for their final exams/submissions/projects. The teachers are emphasizing the exam schedules and students are all hyped up about the same.

Log on to Facebook and everybody has the same status message “Living in the library!!” …. Meet somebody and they will say “There is just so much work to do, the pressure is increasing.” It is kind of funny how nobody realized about the extensive amounts of work earlier!!! Enter the library; look around and you will see the students at their best. Everybody gets together with their group often to complete projects together at this time of the year. And research is at its peak in order to meet the due dates.

I am personally not feeling very stressed. I seem to have submitted all my work on time and have gotten good results. Still to complete a few papers though and I try and complete it on and off. Still keeping up with my policy “Work is Play!!” most of my research work is done as a participant observer while in conversation with somebody trying to accumulate data that they know of and at the same time making new friends.

Teachers are awesome; they understand our situation like they were there just yesterday. They help us with any problem and always have a solution. Ask them for a finger to grasp and walk and they will always extend their whole hand. You know what I am trying to say now, don’t you??

The best part however is that the events are still in full swing and in fact with a greater Bang because it’s the last event of its kind for the semester. So they have special edition blasts sometimes even raffles and more. And yeah, not to mention but there is always food at most events.

Bottom line, do you work when it is due and do not let it pile on. I’m going for the last Movie night this Thursday and also had a great time bowling last week. And guess what, I even did a part of my reading work at the bowling alley and it worked out just fine coz I managed to complete it!! There are a lot of other events through this final week, I think it is like pre-events for senior week. Graduating students have a treat then and I am joining them to the ‘Six Flags’ amusement park in New England. Unfortunately I’m leaving before the Red Sox game in Boston.

Anyways, I hope you know what is good for you and do well through your finals. All the best and keep enjoying!! Don’t forget to leave any comments or requests. I’d love to talk. :)

Emerging Leaders :)

I was hanging around in the fire-side lounge when Lisa (Director of the IDX Student Life Center) called for me; she had something to inform me about. I went in to her office and she said that they were giving me a chance to go for the leadership retreat. I did not know what that meant but agreed immediately and asked for a few more application forms for my friends. All I knew was that we will be off campus for a week-end. A trip all paid for inclusive of lunch. I believed it would be a good break!!


A few weeks later, I received a confirmation letter from Lina (Assistant director IDX- SLC) about the date and time for our trip. So we were to leave in the evening on a Friday post dinner and return on Sunday at 2.p.m. I was all set and ready to go. I did not know what to expect but knew that in any case it would be a lot of fun and an extremely good opportunity to meet more people.

We were 16 people in all, 8 students + 5 student-felicitators + 3 staff members. In the bus, on our way to the place, we made good use of our time as we introduced ourselves and played some games. The place was a surprise spot which was ‘The Mad River Barn’ in Waitsfield. We looked inside the lodge and it was peaceful. It was a perfect place for the getaway where we had enough room for bonding and playing around.


We played ice-breaker games where we gave ourselves some adjectives. So we had Whacky Will, Rambling Rajna, Archer Ashley, Marvelous Megan, Naughty Nishit, Krazy Kaisey, Kicking Kevin, Perfect Pat, Tooshy Tyler, Jumping Jess, Axe-carrying Allyson, Silly Sam, Ambitious Alyssa, Leaping Liza and Arising Ariel. Lina was to arrive the next day!!


Through the entire trip then, we were a part of various games, activities and conversations about leadership and its qualities. I would have loved to explain every moment of the trip, but that does not seem feasible and so I’d rather share with you what I learnt. The little things we do in our lives teach us the values we must inculcate (E.g. riding a bicycle teaches us to balance, direct, look ahead, make and effort etc,). Concluding solutions before understanding the problem only increases frustration. Give others a chance, try and understand them because internal beauty is not evidently visible. Share your feelings and you will learn more than you taught. Value yourself and all you have and you will be valued. And most important of all… open your mind, body and soul to new learning, change and acceptance.


All that I said may sound very theoretical, but I swear I experienced it and so I encourage you to be a part of it. The feeling is way beyond words that may sound lame. And if what I say makes a difference, please remember that training is a tool for the weak to survive but wealth for the leaders to thrive.

Now if, all that does not matter to you, no great deal. Go for the sake of fun, it’s a great way to make friends and bond. Don’t forget to share your experiences with me or maybe ask questions. It’s a great way to learn!! :)

SURPRISE!!! :-)

Nishit’s birthday was closing in, 17th march. Neither did I have a clue about what we were to do for him nor did I know where I could buy a cake from. I had seen a note which said that we could plan a surprise and order for a cake from the cafeteria or maybe make chocolates. But that required 48 hours of prior notice and I did not have that much time as his birthday was hardly a few hours away.

I practically lost hopes about doing anything and decided to go online and check face book instead. I was aimlessly surfing the sites when Sarah said “hi”, through the chat options. She had been with us long enough in India and remembered our usual birthday tradition. The birthday boy/girl receives a surprise cake from the rest, at midnight.

All she said after our greetings was, “So… I am coming over at midnight!!” And there my solution was ready. I said that was perfect and our plan was ready. Now I had to make sure Nishit did not realize before time and I had to make sure he was out of the way up until midnight.

We were heading towards the dorm late after dinner. Luckily, for me, Nishit’s room-mate was in the room. So I said, “Let’s go up to my room and do work. No one is there so we can even listen to music.” He agreed. That was easy!! So we were doing our respective work and I found Sarah online. I still did not know how I was going to let her into the dorm without letting him know. So we decided she would come at 11.45 pm and I would go down for whatever reason.

When she did come, I excused myself from the room stating that I had to go to the restroom. Fair enough. I let Sarah in to the dorm, left her in his room and went back up to mine. Still 10 minutes away. I was excited and wanted to go back down and stay with Sarah and make sure he comes down at the right time. I did not know how that was going to happen but I excused myself stating that I wanted to go to the restroom (Again!!!). He was so busy playing FIFA that he was least interested in what I was doing, so he just gave me a nod. I asked him to go down in a while to his room and he ignored me deeply involved in his game.

Now that I was out of there, I did not know how to expect him back in his room. So Matty had an idea. While Andew, Xanth, Sarah and I waited in room, Matty went up to ours where Nishit was and told him to go down with her because she wanted something that she had left in his room. He agreed and came down with her. The door to his room was shut and we waited for him to let himself in with the keys. As soon as he did, we all shouted “Happy Birthday” and sang the birthday song for him. His chocolate cake was ready with 20 lighted candles on it and he was lost for words.



It was simple, yet valuable. He loved it and was happily thanking everybody in there. All those who passed by got a piece of the cake too. Soon everyone was back in to their own room and we had plans for the next day to go to the Indian restaurant “India House” for dinner. The food was authentic, though expensive and we enjoyed the day post all the classes.

What next!! …A Similar, midnight birthday surprise for Sarah, 18th March. Action replay!! Mike was with Nishit and me this time. Sarah did not expect us to be there and so it was successfully a happy quotient to begin her day.

“Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of 'you' to the world.”

- Anonymous.

A week-end at Boston :)

We had just returned from the amazing trip to the falls and had our plans ready for the week-end. We were leaving for Boston on the very next day!! Nishit and I were to stay at Sarah’s house while Bob and Matty had a hotel room booked at the Holiday Inn.
The trip was calm and we visited Montpellier on our way.
This time we did not take a lunch break and instead decided to have food once we reached our destination as Boston is 4 hours away from Burlington.

However, once we reached Boston, we lost our way. We did not know how to reach the hotel in particular and so we were traveling round and around the city automatically site-seeing!! We passed through downtown, and Harvard University, Boston University, etc. Finally we decided to call the hotel help-line and get directions with the help of which we reached while Sarah reached there just in time to meet us.

We were starving and our stomach was growling with hunger and so we walked towards an eating joint where we ate and drank. I bought myself a burrito that filled me up and coffee that gave me immense warmth in the freezing cold atmosphere. For some reason all of us expected to experience warmer weather than it was. We then took the train and went towards the state center and park and the shopping area where we walked around and looked about the city while Sarah explained to us about the various places.


Soon we were tired and we left to go to her house which was about 45 minutes away from the center. She drove along the longer route in order to show us around the city. We reached her house and I loved it!! Neither was it too big nor too small, just perfect and cozy. The colors inside were nice and bright. It made me feel warm and happy partly because her parents and sister are just as warm hearted and cool as she is. I love them  it felt like home. We had some conversations and laughter after which we were off to bed.

The next day Sarah’s dad made a wholesome breakfast for me!! The “Egg in a hole” was delicious and had immense aesthetic value. I had not had good breakfast in a long time and so it was welcome. We decided to take the trolley tour around the city and it would have been perfect had the climate not been like it was. The rain was pouring and the winds were lashing. It was like an amalgamation on the monsoon and winter. Not funny at all! But we were happy to be there and so we enjoyed. Went around learning some facts about the city, went around shopping and then ate dinner at an Indian restaurant.

The adventure however was yet to come. We returned to the parking lot to go back home when Sarah realized that she had left the parking lights on all day!! The car had died!! I do not know what we were thinking of, but Nishit and I jumped out of the car and pushed it India style while Sarah tried to start the ignition. All in vain and drenching wet, we hopped back in. She then called her uncle who came and jumped the car alive again. And we went straight back home to change into warmer clothes and grasp a hot cup of coffee. A perfect ending to the amazing trip!!
We left the next day and returned back again to Burlington wondering why classes had to begin again!! Have you ever felt the same?? Please feel free to comment.

P.S. The entire trip to Niagara Falls and Boston inclusive of food and stay cost me $150 which was totally worth it. Well planned and possible!!

“Experience, travel – these are education in themselves” - Greek playwright, c. 480-406 BC

The road trip to a natural wonder!!

We were all excited about the trip and had packed our respective bags in order to leave. Bob drove up to our dorm to pick Nishit and me up and we hurried to get ready… yeah we were running late!! However, we finally left and decided to go as further as we could and stop someplace for lunch through our 8 hour journey from Burlington to Niagara Falls, Buffalo. Bob was driving, Nishit was seated alongside him and I had the back seat for myself!! … I decided to lie down and sleep through the long drive as I managed to fit in there. Bob is a good driver, the car felt like a cradle to me!!

When we were hungry at about half past 12 we decided to stop by at a town where we chose to eat Chinese food. They served us a large portion and it was delicious and we were content before we took pace into our journey again. Bob Long legs stopped once in a while in order to stretch and I would usually tease him as I could stretch inside the car itself!! :P



We had a room for three booked at the Howard Johnson hotel which was just about a block away from the falls. We reached there a little before 7.pm… checked in and let Bob rest for a while. We could see the famous revolving hotel in Canada from our room… how I wished I had the Canadian visa then.


However, in a while we took off to see the falls in the night light. We walked and neared it in anticipation about how it will look. We knew we were closing in as we heard the roaring sound of the falling waters. A little further than us a crowd of people were walking and we decided to follow them to the right direction. And Yes!! … It was totally worth it. OMG, it was amazing, awesome, beautiful, majestic, and every other adjective you can think of. All three of us thought simultaneously that we were fortunate to see this beauty. We were in mere awe and had no words. People who know me will agree that it is not usual that I have no words, but I really did not.

We clicked innumerable pictures and stared at the flowing wonder blankly as though we were happily high because of its beauty and presence. We decided to walk around and look from the islands and from every angle and perspective it was just beautiful. But honestly, I did feel the peril of being close to it while listening to its roaring sound in the darkness of the night. But I silently thanked God for providing me with this chance and was feeling the total worth of my hard earned money.


We walked back hungry and satisfied in search for food. And guess what… the city was asleep!! .. I could not believe it, a tourist city almost shut down due to the late hours i.e. 9.pm or so. However, walking around, we reached a casino were we were allowed to go in to the restaurant. Of course we did not gamble as Nishit and I were underage!!

Anyways, we were so hungry that we did not know what we were paying for but the bill was for a prepaid buffet $22 each. And that was good too; the cheese cake was pure sin. A short stroll back to the hotel, we took to our respective beds and let both mind and body rest by the wonderful memories of the evening.

Next day, we got up by 8.a.m and decided to check out and go by the falls again and then to the Aquarium. “In darkness or in light, natural beauty just remains”, that is all I can say. We even wandered across to the “Goat Island” and then to the “Three Sister Islands”. Here we could go up close to the waters. We felt the ripples of the cold clear water and had some perfect backgrounds for our picture albums. The aquarium was cool too. We saw many a species of fishes, penguins, and even sea lions and seals. We were even on time for the sea lion show.I event bought a penguin (Soft toy!!) :)

Look at the pictures, let your imagination flow and share with me what you know :)