Facebook The Culprit?

I like reading blogs. Whenever time permits, I just randomly go through them and if a blog interests me, I follow it. Last night as I was randomly reading, I was stunned to read a particular blogger write about how she closed her facebook and twitter accounts and as a result could now blog daily. I am not able to blog on a daily basis, but was facebook the reason? I do not think so.

             This got me thinking and when I mean thinking, it meant real hard. I imagined closing my account and BOOM!!! What would happen??? It would feel that the only lifeline I had was cut away from me. Why my lifeline? Surely I would be able to survive!! Yes, I would be able to be breathe and live. No doubt about that.

As an expat living in a foreign land, facebook is what keeps me going. Back home I used to log on to facebook once a month. I never felt the need to be so hooked onto it. I come from a very large family( 8 sets of uncles and aunts and 22 cousins only from my Mom's side and an approximate equal figure from dad's too) where I would have a chat with my mother and sisters on a daily basis, and in-laws on a weekly basis. Birthdays, Anniversaries were never alone, we would have somebody or the other popping in not only on special days, but every other day or two and we loved it. So also, we had family get togethers where we would all meet atleast once a year and have a ball. Calls were cheap and we all knew what everybody was upto. We didn't need facebook to update about our where abouts or what we were upto.

             Now that we are away from family, facebook is the only means of being in touch with the large family. There is Skype, Google chat and other means, I know. I do not see myself sending mails and photographs to oh so many people every now and then (95% of the family is on facebook, so it helps). So also vice versa. The last month saw many functions within the family. All they had to do was post countless pictures for me and the kids to see what we missed..:-( Also facebook has helped me reconnect with long lost friends and by friends, I mean those who I have been pretty close to and with whom I have spent some memorable moments of my life.. It feels good to know what's happening with them and share  lives with each other through facebook. Apart from being in touch there is an occasional game of Scrabble that I play and not to forget the farming. I am not an addicted farmer, but do like to visit it now and then. Not sure for how long it will last!!

So, will closing my account mean that I can blog on  a daily basis??? I do not think so. For all you know, cut off from facebook may mean a closure of my blogs too.

Tuesdays Around the World!!

Today, I am still reeling from the holiday hangover!!! I will show you why????

Its been three whole days since we returned from the German Alps and my body is still in a trance, more so like a zombie!! It refuses to come back to its normal state. I wonder how long will I be in this state?? How do you feel after a holiday?? Visit the ladies at Communal Global to see how their Tuesdays are.

Sunday's in my City

We are back from holidaying in the Czech Republic!! The highlight of our trip was a 15 km hike at the Bohemian Switzerland National Park at Hrensko, close to the Czech German border. This park is the youngest National Park in the Czech Republic.

Deep in the park is PRAVCICKA BRANA, the largest natural stone bridge in the continent and a natural monument of the Czech Republic. Inseperable from Pravcicika Brana is the holiday chateau(pictured below) known as the Falcon's Nest. It was built in 1881 and served as a tavern. Today, it contains a preserved period restaurant.

This is the Grand Canyon of Europe. We climbed way upto the top and I must say, my heart was in my mouth. Husband and the children enjoyed every bit of it, just like an adventure.

Wouldn't you be petrified too at such a height??????

We continue our hike admiring the flora and fauna, taking in sights and songs of birds. This was an amazing experience for us. The last leg of it takes us through the Gorges at Hrensko alongside Kamenice river, a landscape which had started to develop many millions of years ago at the bottom of the sea.We walked beneath rock ledges, several tunnels and narrow footbridges, surrounded on both sides by a wall of high rocks.

I felt I was in paradise, lost to the world!!! We completed the hike in 7 hours, and at the end we were a very proud family!!! I hope you enjoyed hiking along with me!! Do not forget to have a look at Sunday's in my city of fellow bloggers too!!! Visit Unknown Mami to see more!!!

The celebrations have begun!!

A nice early surprise in the form of a package from Amazon!!!! And how would you react??? I laughed louder than when I watch Ray in his show. I couldn't believe what my Raymond had got me, more than that the note took me by surprise. It means that my laughter is priceless to him!!
               My date with Ray Romano began 12 years ago. Every Monday I would meet him faithfully. This guy could crack me up and have me rolling with laughter. Eventually, I got married and I introduced Ray to Vinay. Now, there were three of us on a date (Ray, Vinay and May...sounds good) every Monday, laughing our butts out. Slowly the kids came along, Vinay had to work longer, I had to slowly bid goodbye to Ray. I could not meet him anymore. Also, I had made new F.R.I.E.N.D.S. who I could meet after the kids fell asleep.
Years rolled by and I never forgot Ray. I would try to steal a show here and there, every now and then mentioning him to my family. Having moved to Germany, I had forgotten how to laugh. I then remembered this guy who used to crack me up. Also I had all the time in the world, but alas, German television does not bring Raymond to your homes. Tried looking for him in various stores, yet no luck.
             Vinay managed to download his shows, but it never felt the same, sitting in front of a PC and having a laugh. So, it looks like my Raymond got into action and got me this early present. This is our first Amazon purchase and it looks like we will be having many more in the months to come. For now, I am glad that my date with the man who can crack me up and the man I love are back on!!!

Welcome to Lohr!!!

Today, I learned more about my village Lohr am Main. I realised that I had never shared information about the place I call home. 

As you can see from the map, Lohr sits on the banks of the river Main, surrounded by green meadows, fields and softly rising wooded hills. It is a peaceful little village amidst unspoilt nature.

Lohr am Main has been settled since the 8th century, and was first mentioned in documents in 1295. To this day, Lohr has retained its medieval charm. If you wander through the streets and lanes, you can sense how alive history is...

Some of the important sights in Lohr am Main are the Old Town Hall, the 14th/15th century castle, the "Bayersturm" watchtower and the parish church.

The Town Hall

The Castle which is also the Spessart Museum.

Once upon a time in the castle in Lohr, there lived a widowed Count, whose beautiful daughter was not popular with the step mother, because the "mirror, mirror, on the wall" refused to recognise this lady "as the fairest of them all". This "speaking mirror" continues to hang in the Spessart Museum today.

               We are also surrounded by the Spessart(forest) with unique flora and fauna. If you go walking in the Spessart, you can hear the woodpecker and so many other birds.

Whether on foot or by bike, a journey through the Spessart is always a unique experience. This was quite some learning we did today!!! I hope you enjoyed the tour of my little village!! For more on what the ladies learned today, head over to Communal Global.

Sunday's in my City!

Today was International Museum Day!! All over Germany, museums participated by having special tours and activities for visitors. Today we visited the Spessart Museum at Lohr. The museum has exhibits on the wood processing industry, glass manufacture, forestry, hunting and so on. It tells us the life of the Spessart inhabitants...

We had a terrific Sunday and I hope you all did too..For more Sundays head over to Unknown Mami who host Sundays in my city!! Have a great week everybody!!!!

Wilhelma Zoological and Botanical Garden, Stuttgart

It's been more than a month since we went to Stuttgart on a short holiday. Stuttgart is the capital of the state Baden Wuerttemberg in Southern Germany. It is spread across a variety of hills, vineyards, parks and valleys.  We did see a lot of places. One of them included a visit to the Wilhelma Zoological and Botanical Garden. It is the only zoological botanical garden in Europe(or so the website claims). Whatever be it, this is one place that should definitely be in your itenary if you are holidaying in Stuttgart. And if kids are involved, they will love the place. You need an entire day to see the sights the zoo has to offer. With two cafeteria's available, you need not worry about food and drink.

            What amazed us was to see animals which we would never be able to see back home in India. Penguins, kangaroos, Polar bears, flamingos, sea lions.........

 If you are tired any time in between, do not despair. There are benches right outside the animal enclosures. You can choose your favourite animal and sit outside the enclosure viewing its antics. We chose to sit outside the polar bear enclosure and watch it pace up and down.

The butterfly garden also was amazing with all the colourful butterflies of different shapes and sizes!!!

Not to forget this sea lion who seemed to be very happy and barking away to glory.

And before we left, ooohhhhhh flamingos!

Of course, there was so much more!! Wish I could put up all of them. I chose the best to be published!

Participating in Outdoor Wednesdays!!