Mother Nature has spoken

Yesterday was an ordinary rainy day. Very light but non stop rain. No one anticipated that Mother Nature is gonna be talking to us.

Waters from highlands suddenly rush into our place, the low lands. I was stuck in the office until 10pm because the street where I live is unpassable by any vehicle. All I can do is call our house help on the phone regarding the situation inside the house.

I was expecting bad, but when I got home at around 10:30 This is what I saw.

This is the morning after picture.

The house is still a mess now. I hope we all learned our lessons.

Interesting Chat today

Today I got the chance to see an old friend online.

"I" now lives in Berlin we use to work together and after she got married to her german boyfriend, they transferred to Germany.

Since she got hired by a German Bank, I seldom see her online. When I saw "I" was online, I instantly message her. And ask her how are things and if she has adjusted to her new job already. Here are some parts of our catching up.

Me: have you adjusted well already?

"I": yeah, work is good I'm enjoying it stressful at times

Me:Wow that's really good to hear that you are enjoying work

"I": I am proud to say, modesty aside, that my bosses are impressed with me. I think I finally found the job that suits me. Its a mix of 3 things, Banking,Legal and Research, the 3 fields that interest me most.

After updating each other, we spoke about our common friends and some of her law school classmates whom I knew also. Our chat lasted for at least a little over an hour. Suddenly she has to go.

"I": dude I gotta run. "T" ( T is I's husband) promised to take me shopping cuz it's my birthday.

Me: hey sorry

"I": huh? why?

Me: I didn't know its your birthday, I closed my facebook I am not updated. I feel bad I didn't greet you.

"I": hahahaha no worries we're new yorkers we can take it.

Me: well yeah.... that's a good answer.

"I": haha thanks let's catch up again soon.

Me: enjoy your day newyorker

"I": Ciao!

After catching up with "I" , It made me realize again how we are and how we feel towards our birthdays. Some become sentimental, some needs more attention, some need to feel special and for "I" maybe it is just another day. After all she is a Newyorker.

Are you a newyorker?

my favorite pictures (to be given away)

Out of almost 2,000 photos, I scanned through some of my travel pictures and printed those that are my favorites.

After printing the 9 pictures, I realized how I wish to share the insights and learnings I gained from these trips. Since I am not good in putting all my thoughts into words, I guess sharing pictures to my friends will be a way to convey the wonderful feeling I had during my travels.

Here are some of my favorite pics and a little story behind the photos.

The Massai Guide. This man is our guide when we arrive at the massai village, arriving at the village on a wednesday. We were lucky to see the bustling and colorful exchanges of goods, which only happens once a week. The massai people are very strict with their photos taken. When we were going back to camp, I asked him If I could take a photo of him, He agreed but he looked away from the camera thus giving me this picture.

The orphans at Kibera. On my last day in Kenya, I decided to spend the day in one of Africa's poorest and largest slums. My first stop is an orphanage/school. I learned from this place the value of food to the orphans. It is rare that these kids get to eat a good meal. It is very common for them to partake a sticky liquid made from maize. I tried tasting it. It was just like a sticky flavorless water. Yet for these kids, it is a way to fill in their stomach to combat hunger, regardless of its tastelessness.

The warriors. The massai warriors doing their traditional dance, which involves a lot of high jumping in the air. After printing this picture, It made me realize how fortunate I am to experience such culture at this modern times. Looking at this picture made me think that while we are bustling with our modern gadgets, on the other side of the world, there are people living their normal lives in a very traditional and laid back way.

The smiling Massai. I like this photo because of the sharpness capture of the massai guy in contrast with his fading background. This for me is a lucky shot.

Early morning tour. The most intense and spiritual city in India. I arrived in what I describe as the city of deaths, Varanasi feeling suffocated, irritable and emotionally drained. All these negativity is because of the intensity and the power of the place that overshadowed me. Seeing death in its natural form, it gave me another meaning to life. I hired a boatman to give me an early morning cruise at the gaths. This image conveys how locals do their daily morning routines of dipping in the world's most polluted water, which they believe is a way of cleansing themselves from the impurities of life. After staying a few days in Varanasi, I appreciated its negativity and its intensity, making Varanasi one of the best places I visited in India.

The scavenger. I like this picture because of how the young kid's face transformed because of the facial expression. And up to this day I am not sure if this kid is a boy or a girl. I like the intensity of the kid's eye. One of my personal favorites.

The Sand dunes at last. We started the 2 day journey in the Thar desert around 9am we reached the area with vast sand dunes around 3 or 4 in the afternoon. The trek was very exhausting but the experience of sleeping under the stars and riding the camel for 2 days was all worth the exhaustion. Plus we are only a few kilometers away from one of my dream destinations. Pakistan.

The greeters. Entering the old Jaisalmer fort, these ladies cant be missed, from the bangles they are selling to the vibrant colors of their clothes. Since I don't intend to buy any of their goods, I bargained for a few rupees for them to be photographed.

The musician. This man is sitting in the middle of the massive fort, playing with his instrument the whole day for a few drops of coins in his can. I took this photo quite far from him as so not to distract him and I was afraid that he might be angry having photographed without his knowledge. To my surprise he genuinely smiled when he saw me taking his picture.

Two pictures given away already. Do let me know if you want one.