WOW, long weekend approaching again! Its time to rejoice, and live life and have fun. But, this weekend is special as It is festival time during this weekend and people are busy with Durga Pooja and Vijay Dashmi celebrations.

So, guys chill out in this long weekend and have a great time ahead!

"Wishing all the readers of this blog a happy dussera and a prosperous Durga Pooja"

How does relationship blooms between married couples?

Well, it seems to be an interesting topic for most of couples, and especially, when both the partners are working. And, when I am talking about relationship between a man and woman, it could be anything but now I am just talking about one thing and i.e. Marriage. Marriage, as is defined by Wikipedia.com, “is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic.” It is very important to build a relationship after marriage, and allow it to grow as time progresses. Well, the basis of most of relationships, post-marriage consists of three crucial things. These include: “Trust”, “Respect”, and “Love”. We all know this as we all have most of the books before tying the knot but we often tend to forget these basics after we marry someone. It is very important to keep reminding ourselves of these basics from time to time because this builds upon the relationship. It is also very important to have a constant interaction with each other. This helps in knowing each other the better, and thus helps build a strong relationship. Another important thing is to never take your partner for granted. There might be situations when we might think of our partners as a permanent fixture. In addition, watch out for the tone you use while communicating with your partner. You might be stressed out and tired from work or your boss might have spoken in a harsh manner or your team has really messed up with the work. So, it’s quite natural as a human being to take out your stress. But, your partner is not aware if your stress. Instead, it is always recommend to keep a calm mind and speak about your stress with your partner. Remember, your partner can be your best friend only if you make the best effort. Also, it is very important to have thoughtfulness among your partners. It is very important that you continue to make surprises by sending cards or buying flowers for your partner or doing things that your partner likes as you have been doing it while you dated or within few months of marriage. There can be small surprises but these can help you have a great relationship with your partner. It is also very important to understand the feelings of each other to have the relationship going. Also, critical is to be supportive towards your partner i.e. to support in any case even if your partner is wrong have committed a mistake. We all are human beings, and we are bound to make mistakes. As it said, “To err is human, to forgive is divine.”

Marriage is something that is never tangible. Any difference among the partners can weaken the relationship among each other, and may have serious aftermaths. So, in the end, I would like to remind you of the three crucial things once again that I spoke earlier:

TRUST your partner

RESPECT your partner's feelings

LOVE thy your partner (and this doesn't really mean to have a sexual relationship.)

Education system is improving..

Recently, Indian government approved the grading system for CBSE schools, which was really nice to know. It shows that finally the government has decided to improve the education system. This may be the first step towards the improvement, though but still it really provides us an opportunity to applaud the efforts of the government. Now, atleast, the students do not have too much of competition in their minds. The Government is trying to follow the US Education system by bringing in the grading system into place. This will generate a sense of involvement among the child as the children will now have to be upbeat throughout the year as they will be assessed accordingly. There is still a lot that needs to be done to improve upon the education system, which has been followed by an age-old philosophy. Times are changing and so should the education system also. It will require deep thinking and thorough planning. Someone needs to start somewhere. Like, there should also be a concept of "Tutor" or "Help Required" introduced if a child fails make adequate yearly progress. It is generally a trend that teachers may pay attention to a group of students who are consistently doing well in order to maintain the reputation of the school. This should not be the case as all the children have an equal amount of knowledge. Each of them is well-equipped with their own abilities. The concept of Tutor should be made mandatory by the Indian Government so that no student is left behind.

Still, I feel that its a good start for a new beginning into the education system in India. The road ahead is tough and has a lot of barriers. There are vast opportunities in this world, and the students should be made equipped to face the tough challenges.

Last night, I was listening to a wonderful Hindi song called "Woh Kaagaz ki kashti" sung by Jagjeet Singh. It really touched my heart as the words brought back my childhood memories, and got myself to shed tears as well and as the song progressed, the memories got even stronger. I felt how wonderful was the childhood, free from any worries and tensions. Today, while we are working 24X5 to earn a livelihood for ourselves and our family, we have forgotten the meaning the life. We have forgotten what life is all about. We are so much engrossed in work that we just don't find time to play around and have fun. By fun, we just tend to plan a vacation on a weekend but then we again come back on Monday for work and get tied up so much in work that we forget we have a family who wants our time and not money. Agreed, Money plays an important part in today's world and that too in times of recession as they said earlier that we don't earn to live rather we live to earn. So, don't make it a reverse i.e. don't earn to live...

Here are the lyrics from the wonderful song:

ye daulat bhii le lo, ye shoharat bhii le lo
bhale chhiin lo mujhase merii javaanii
magar mujhako lautaa do bachapan kaa saavan
vo kaagaz kii kashtii, vo baarish kaa paanii

muhalle kii sabase nishaanii puraanii
vo budhiyaa jise bachche kahate the naanii
vo naanii kii baaton mein pariyon kaa deraa
vo chahare kii jhuriryon mein sadiyon kaa pheraa
bhulaae nahiin bhuul sakataa hai koi
vo chhotii sii raaten vo lambii kahaanii

kadii dhuup mein apane ghar se nikalanaa
vo chidiyaa vo bulabul vo titalii pakadanaa
vo gudiyaa kii shaadii mein ladanaa jhagadanaa
vo jhuulon se giranaa vo gir ke sambhalanaa
vo piital ke chhallon ke pyaare se tohafe
vo tuutii hui chuudiyon kii nishaanii

kabhii ret ke unche tiilon pe jaanaa
gharaunde banaanaa banaake mitaanaa
vo maasuum chahat kii tasviir apanii
vo kvaabon khilaunon kii jaagiir apanii
na duniyaa kaa gam thaa na rishton ke bandhan
badii khuubasuurat thii vo zindagaanii

Travelogue - Trip to Nainital
It was 7 AM in the morning when we set off from Rampur to our journey to Nainital. We had hired a taxi for this purpose. Though, there are several mode of transport available to travel to Nainital but I preferred a Taxi against other cheapest options. For more information on the mode of transport, just click here. Well, we took the route of Rampur - Bilaspur - Rudrapur - Haldwani - Kathgodam - Nainital, and we stopped at Haldwani for a small break. Then, we continued our journey to Nainital, and we found some mist and clouds en-route to the hills of Nainital.

At 11: 00 AM, we entered into Nainital, and had a glimpse of Naini lake which looked exceptionally good. The people over here are very friendly, and we didn’t find tough to get ourselves a hotel. Since, we hadn’t done an Advance booking, so we decided to explore on our own. There are a lot of hotel options available in the Mall road just facing the lake. You can choose from a list of hotels from 2-star to 3-star such as Hotel Alka, Hotel Everlyn, Hotel Prashant, Hotel Classic – the mall, etc. We explored a lot because we were looking for room that will give us a view of the lake. So we decided to go for Hotel Prashant. The hotel was good and so was its staff as it was pretty friendly. In fact, they provided us with the Cab facility to pick and drop to the mall road. Though, later I realized that it was a bit high priced as I would have got much better hotel with the same price. But, otherwise, the hotel was not a bad option if you are looking to stay for a night or so. We checked into the hotel at 12:45 PM, and changed our clothes to get ready for sight seeing. We decided to go for sight seeing, and have our lunch on the way itself. They are plenty of options available for you to do the sight seeing. In fact, if you are going on a off season, then you do not need to worry on finding a tourist guide. Instead, they will find you at once, and it’s easier to bargain in an off-season. You can get a package of 7 points at a price of Rs 350-400 or even less if you know how to bargain. So, we started our sight-seeing at 2 PM (we had fixed a time from the tourist guide earlier to come at 2 PM itself.) and we began from the Eco Cave Gardens, are natural caves which have been slightly modified to allow for convenient human inspection. In total there are six caves, named after various birds and animals found in the Corbett National Park, which is a part of the Nainital district - for example, one of the caves is named Tiger Cave. It was our bad luck that the caves were closed due to rains. We moved on towards Waterfalls where clicked some snaps of ours and we also had our lunch over there. There are two eating joints over there. But, I suggest you to get yourself something from the Mall road itself as the food in those eating joints is not good at all. Or, it is preferable to have Maggi over there if you are fond of it. Though, they do provide a lot of options from Indian to Chinese to South-Indian but the taste is not that good. Next, we moved towards Lake View point to have a glimpse of the Khurpatal lake. Even here, we had our share of bad luck as the mist came in between, and it wasn’t easy to look at the lake. So, we decided to click some snaps, and move towards the other points, “Suicide point” and “Lover’s Point”. Upon reaching over there, I realized that they are nothing but a waste of money as it was just a huge rock and nothing else. Following is a list of places that will usually come in the package:

Eco Caves: This is a cave garden, which is a latest entrant into the many attractions of Nainital. You can make your visit to Nainital a memorable one with a trip to these gardens wherein you can introduce your child to an eco-friendly life.

• Suicide point
• Lover’s Point
• Waterfalls
• Lake View point
• Land's End: (2,1l8 m) 4.08 kms. One can have magnificent view of Khurpatal and the terraced fields on the hill side. Normally, you would require a horse to travel to this destination.
• Lariakanta : (2, 481 m) 6 kms. This is the second highest peak of Nainital and commands a glorious view of the lake region. Normally, you would require a horse to travel to this destination.
• Dorothy Seat: (2,292 m) (4 km). This is a memorial to an English lady believed to have been killed in an air crash stands here. The spot commands a partial view of the town and the nearby region. Normally, you would require a horse to travel to this destination.

There are other places as well that you would like to visit such as:

• Hanuman Garhi: (1, 951 m) 3 km. A popular place for worship in the temple of lord Hanuman and its Sun-set view.
• Khurpatal: (1,635 m) 5 to 10 kms. This is an angler’s paradise on Nainital-Kaladhungi-Ramnagar Road. It is here that the conifers belt merges and gives way to the Sal trees. Fishing permits are available from Deputy Commissioner, Nainital.
• Kilbury: (2,194 m) 10 kms. A wooded spot, ideal for a quiet and peaceful holidays, which is connected by road.
• Naini Peak: (2,611 m) (Cheena Peak) 6 kms. Most favoured picnic spot of the town. One can view the distant plains and snow clad Himalayas from the peak. A bird's eye view of the lake is also obtainable from here. One can either trek or go on a horse back upto Naina Peak.
• Naini Lake: The boat club overlooking the lake offers sailing facilities and also boating. Fishing is allowed with the permission of Executive Officer, Municipal Board, Nainital.
• Snow-View: (2270 m). 3 km. This is the nearest easily accessible peak on Sher-ka-Danda hill connected by Ropeway. A powerful telescope is fixed here which enables one to view the Himalayan ranges.
• State Observatory: (1951 m). 4.4 kms. Devoted to astronomical studies and optical tracking of artificial and earth satellites.
  

Many times, I use to think why do people fall in LOVE? What makes them LOVE their counterparts? What is it, actually? Is it a "feeling" or a "characteristic". LOVE as quoted from the dictionary, states that: "Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful". Well, the different dictionaries will give you number of other definitions of this simple yet complex word LOVE. Now, you must be wondering why I am calling it complex. Its complex because it is not easy to understand other's feeling and until and unless you feel from inside, you cant just fall in love like that. LOVE itself can refer to a variety of different feelings, states, and so on ranging from generic pleasure to intense one. For instance, it might be that you might love eating a certain dish or you might be in love with your wife or girlfriend. But, once you get married, does it mean that the feeling of LOVE dries down a bit? And, the answer to this is, No. Once you feel that the feeling of LOVE in you is drying, you got to energize yourself. LOVE, after marriage means "Sharing" by sharing, I mean willing to open your and share each other's feelings i.e. pain, joy, success and failure. Love itself means being honest and sharing and losing ones inhibitions and knowing that the person on the other side will never be judgmental. Secondly, LOVE also means to talk. Well, now you must think if I am sharing, Am I not talking. I guess you are right and you get full marks for this. Sharing me ans talking and thats these two hold the key for LOVE as its all about speaking, talking ans sharing your thoughts and feeling with your partner. I have seen may married couple, once they marriage gets older, their conversation gets restricted to credit card bills, monthly allowances, and housekeeping, and so on. This shouldn't happen at all. There should be continuous interaction between you and your partner to keep yourself motivated and energized. Also, thirdly, LOVE is all about spending time with each other. In this times when we are so busy with our own hectic schedules, this might not happen lot of time. But, believe me, just a few minutes spent with your counterpart is extremely critical for an everlasting relationship. Believe me, it means a lot when you spend time together with your partner. It means a lot and especially when one of the partner is not working, this becomes extremely critical. Next, Love means loving one unconditionally without any reason and cherishing each and every moment spent with each other. It means being true to each other, and it also means giving your everything to your partner. Besides this, LOVE also means being friends with each other. Well, this comes before even you start loving your counterpart. It is said that if you cant be friendly to your partner, then the chances are that you might not be in love. So, friendship is "the" starting point for LOVE. Apart from this, LOVE means to look into the same dorection as your partner. Now, this might amuse you as many would disagree with me because its generally said that all people are not same. But, when you are in LOVE, you think in the same direction as your partner. You share the same goals and take the steps in that direction to make them come true.

As George Elliot rightly quoted,

"What greater thing is there for two human souls than to feel that they are joined... to strengthen each other... to be at one with each other in silent unspeakable memories".

Life after marriage...

Its been just a couple of weeks since I have got married but it already seems that it has been a long time since I have got married. Life after marriage seems to be a lot different than before. Its beautiful and at the same time seems ugly sometimes. Life seems to have taken a U-turn post marriage, and you are not willing to take risks once you get married, even if you want to. You seem to be a lot responsible than you were in your bachelor days. Before marriage, your focus is centralised more on yourself but post marriage your focus shifts to your spouse and your family, and especially if you are living in a joint family. You seem to be understanding enough about the needs and desires of your spouse. I have had an advantage because I got pretty decent amount of time (around 6 months) of courtship where I got to understand about the likes and dislikes of my partner. So, if someone gets a long time before marriage, one should make full use of it to understand each and every thing about his/her partner. It is very essential for both man and woman to understand each other post marriage, and make conscious effort to make the marriage a wonderful experience.

Mystery of Life...

Today, a strange thing happened while I was waiting to board my bus on my way home to Faridabad. I saw an old man, not so much old though, just had a grayed hair and wore pretty decent clothes so should have been from reputed background. He was distributing few pamphlets to all of us that mentioned the "The Mystery of Life..". Strange it sounded but quite true as it mentioned that a man is nothing but a God's purpose sent on this earth. God has created man for a definite purpose. Many few people realize this, and those who do so, we call them as messiah or messengers of God. Its a fact that all of us have a God inside us, and its only about believing in ourselves that we can believe in God. We tend to get so much busy with our own problems that we seldom have belief on our own selves. Its so easy to solve the mystery of life only if we want to understand it and believe on ourselves.