Yay! holiday season :)

Yay! Holiday season started and holidays are coming on Tuesdays :)

So, taking leave for one day will give a long weekend of 4 days. Isn't that a good news? Both Christmas and New year are falling on Tuesdays  So, go ahead and plan the weekends now :) 

                  For children, it's a fun season except the preparation for Half yearly exams in Jan. 2 reasons to enjoy - Christmas holidays in this month and Pongal holidays next month. I used to love this season as a kid. Since i studied in a christian missionary school, we used to get holidays for 15 days for Christmas and Pongal as well :) Christmas celebration used to be very good in school with many dance performances, Christmas carols, chocolates distribution from Santa, decorated Christmas tree and daily visits to church in school.

                 I enjoy this season even after joining work. In my earlier firm, we used to celebrate Christmas season with 'chrisma chris child' game. If you have never heard of this game, here is my earlier post on this game. In brief, it is a celebration by giving and receiving gifts. In my current firm too, we play 'Secret Santa'. How do you celebrate Christmas in your organization? Please do share your experience in comments.

Happy Christmas and enjoy fun time with jingles all the way :) 

Until next time,

Image courtesy: Google images

What does freedom mean to you?

Freedom is the condition of being free; the power to act, speak or think without externally imposed restraints as per word web. Then, we are all free, have the power to act, speak and think without constraints in our country. 

Wait.. did I say all? It may not be for all right? We see cases of women forcibly getting married at a young age, taking away their right to education and burdening them with family and health problems. We also see cases of gang rapes, eve teasing which is increasing in numbers year by year. We also see child laborers who don’t have the freedom to choose to study. So, many people don't have the freedom to realize their dreams due to many reasons.

Leaving behind the nation’s problems, what freedom actually mean to you? For me, it’s the power to act without any restrictions imposed like the freedom to pursue my hobbies, freedom to roam wherever I want to, freedom to take decisions of my life on my own.

But, with freedom, comes responsibility. Our responsibility for our nation can be voting in general elections and contributing something to improve living conditions of poor people around us. We can start with helping our servants/ maids to let their children study and help them financially to the extent we can. My maid told me one day that we are so lucky to get everything that we need whereas, it is very difficult for them to make their ends meet with their meager income. I told her - if she makes her children study well, they will also earn good jobs and increase their standard of living. She is making her children study well with that ray of hope. Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom. What do you say?

Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom, and being one's own person is its ultimate reward.   – Patricia Sampson

A very happy Independence day to one and all  :) 

Until next time,

Image courtesy: Free images from pixabay.com 

Linking this to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne. 

Dreams becoming true - choti ashayein

How do you feel, if all your dreams are becoming true slowly, one after the other? Iam not talking about big dreams like great career, money or something else.

      Iam talking about smallest wishes that we make to God from childhood and dream to make them realize - like drenching in the rain without worrying of getting cold, listening to your favorite song in Walkman without anyone’s disturbance, eating all junk food or eating ice cream in chill weather without worrying about health, dancing as if no one is watching, pursuing your hobby like painting or singing or blogging without worrying about studying or going to work. I hope you got the picture on what iam leading to.

         I have many small wishes from childhood. I wanted to travel in AC first class in train. I couldn’t do that in childhood and it got postponed for a long time. There were many opportunities, but I didn’t get a chance to travel in AC coach until I reached my age of 25. And, when I could travel, I didn’t feel the same happiness or excitement I thought I would feel when I was in childhood. It’s obvious right!

          I wanted to dance in heavy rains, jump on the mud, enjoy the smell of soil before it rains. But, always when I get chance, there will be someone else who would stop me doing so or I, myself stop in the fear of getting cold.

I used to like eating 5 star chocolates in childhood. I used to think I will buy a big bag of chocos when I start earning and I will eat daily one. Isn’t it funny now? I don’t want to do that even when I have enough money for it. It doesn’t seem that interesting now.

          I wanted to get a very good job, support my parents and make them happy. Realized this wish after 6 months out of college, but I didn’t feel anything exciting as I dreamt in childhood. Everyone does that. Getting a good job is not such a great thing, I feel now.

          I wanted to travel to different places, take photos and enjoy nature. I could travel a lot after my marriage and the thirst for travelling doesn’t end. It increased day by day. If you have visited your state, you want to visit other states. If that is also over, you want to visit other countries. It’s never ending.

          I wanted to spend time for myself. Wanted to drench myself in a huge pile of books and read all my favorite books without any disturbance in my room. Wanted to enjoy loneliness, be selfish, cook for myself, eat, do whatever I like and sleep. I got the chance now, but I don’t enjoy it now or feel the same way as I dreamt earlier because iam missing my family and friends now. Enjoying loneliness doesn’t seem interesting now.

I wanted to visit US. But, when iam already here, I don’t feel the excitement. It feels to be a very common wish that anyone can achieve.

As we grow up, gradually we will achieve everything what we want, but circumstances and priorities may change. Dreaming for things and achieving them is first step. Second step is dreaming for some more things and it should go on. Dreams, ambitions, priorities and everything will change day by day. Change is the only constant in this world. 

Until next time,

Image courtesy: Google

Is dowry practice a root cause of other problems??

After watching 'Satyameva jayathe' episode 3, I feel dowry problem is not a single issue but is leading to several other problems.

1. If a marriage is involved with the dowry ( bride's parents forced to give dowry), how can a bride be happy with her husband without even mentioning the pain that their parents are facing? How can she make their in law's home a happy place when their parents are recovering from financial problems? Will it not create any problem in her marriage? Won't her husband be also a sufferer due to her behavior/ pain?


2. I feel, one of the root causes for female foeticide is dowry problem. Why I say this is - if you give birth to a daughter and you know that you have to pay a huge sum to get her married and see her happy in future, then you may feel baby boy is better than a baby girl. When parents don't have this fear in mind, then female foeticide may reduce. 

3. Another problem is illiteracy. Many people are not interested to make their daughters study well as per their wish. They think, if she becomes an engineer or doctor or any professional and earns well, searching for a suitable bridegroom of that stature and qualifications will become difficult, as they need to spend much on dowry for an engineer or doctor or any professional bridegroom. 

I know, days are changing. I am hearing this from my childhood. But, still, some people are not coming strong against dowry. I am not sure how many years will it take to completely eliminate dowry practice from India. 


I am dreaming of one scenario:
- Marriages happening with expenses paid by both bride, and bride groom's side equally
- Bride and bridegroom responsible for buying the furniture or anything related to their house independently without depending on either side of parents
- No dowry deaths, No female foeticide
- Girls getting educated and becoming independent 

But, I believe change comes from within us, as we are part of the society and we cannot blame others for this. I decided I will show the right path to my children and guide next generation to eliminate this social evil practice. What else can we do as an individual? Please share your opinion in 'comments' section.


Until next time,

Image courtesy: taken from google image search labeled for reuse

Weight issues after pregnancy

      Is weight gain after childbirth, the biggest issue to be discussed? I don't understand why people are much worried about the weight gain of celebrity women after delivery. Is this not a personal matter for the celebrity?

Read from this blog that Aishwarya Rai Bachan has given birth to the baby by normal delivery without the help of epidural at the age of 38. Isn't that a great thing itself? If you are a mother, you would understand how difficult it is to bear labor pains and deliver a child without the help of epidural. 

          During Pregnancy, the skin and abdomen stretch a lot and after following a strict healthy diet for breastfeeding the baby, it is not easy to come back to normal weight within one year for any woman. It also depends on the body tendency, genes etc., However, with my experience I have jotted down some tips for weight loss after pregnancy.

• First and foremost rule is to breastfeed the baby. Some studies find that breastfeeding exclusively will make weight loss faster.

• Exercise - Brisk walking is the simple thing that can be done as new mommy may not get much time/ break from babysitting. Abdominal exercises can be started at a later stage after consulting a doctor.

• Good sleep - this is impossible to achieve since some children will wake up in the nights and mother cannot have a peaceful sleep of course until there is someone else to help.

• Diet - A healthy diet with all varieties of fruits and vegetables. Having green tea twice a day and avoiding heavy meals with rice in the dinner may help.

• Taking care of a baby itself is a big work out. breastfeeding, playing with the kid, cleaning, bathing the kid etc.,

• Try Yoga or hit the gym if time permits. I am sure this cannot be done at least until 6 months after delivery and that too only after consulting doctor if it is a Cesarean delivery.

What is your say? Do you know any simple tips to lose weight without taking much time out of babysitting? Please do share your opinion on weight loss in the comments section.

Until next time,

Image courtesy: Google image search

My passport renewal story :)

Do you know how difficult it is to apply and receive an Indian passport? Re-issue/ Renewal of passport is also the same process as applying for a fresh passport and here is my looong story..   

         First of all, I didn't know until last year that an Indian passport validity is 10 years. So, after I found that mine is due to expire in March 2012, started reading the process of applying it online. I have started with creating an online user account on passport website. Online account creation and submission are cool. The website is also working fine most of the times, but some days site doesn't open at all. If you are applying from a specific city, you need to go to the regional passport site. 
For ex: Hyderabad has a separate passport regional site. 

After logging in, we can check for the documents required to apply for the passport by a link on the left side. This is a very useful feature. We can also check fees to be paid.

           I have verified both documents required and fees to be paid for the renewal of my passport. I was thinking whether I should opt for the tatkal or normal option. As per site, the tatkal passport will be delivered in 15 days, whereas normal passport will be delivered in 45 days. There is one extra document required by us to apply for tatkal. We need to submit a verification letter attested by someone who is a manager or above level in any public sector undertaking company like BSNL, BHEL etc., It was difficult to get that, so I opted for a normal scheme.

 I have to make a change in my last name after marriage and want to include my spouse name as well in my new passport. There is an address change too to be considered. 

Following are the documents required for this case:
1. copy of first and last 2 pages of old passport - self-attested
2. Proof of address - I submitted my spouse's passport copy with the marriage certificate
3. For last name change and the inclusion of spouse name - a copy of the marriage certificate

                If we have any valid visa for old passport, a copy of that page also to be submitted. Other options for address proof are electricity bill, telephone bill(bsnl), One year statement (with transactions)/ Passbook of running bank account (Scheduled Commercial bank excluding Regional Rural banks and local area banks) etc.,

               So, after arranging all the above, i logged into my account in passport site and filled the application online with all details. Now, comes interesting and difficult part of creating an appointment in any PSK (passport seva kendra). At that time, the site used to allow to book appointments only 2 days in advance and that too appointments get filled in 5 to 10 mins after 7 PM. So, it was really difficult to get an appointment. Daily I used to try at 7 PM and at last could succeed after 2 days. 

                I went to passport seva kendra (Begumpet) on time with my original documents for verification.  Usually i keep one pen drive always in my hand bag so that it will be useful to trasport data in emergency. Security personnel in the building didn't allow me to take pendrive inside and worst part is they dont have any clock room to place it. I said in frustration to throw it in dust bin as i cannot go back home and keep it there and return. Security lady told she will keep it and i can take it while leaving. She was straight away demanding money for keeping it while I was taking it back. I don't have any other option than to give some money.

                After entering inside passport seva kendra, there are counters to verify the original documents and copies required. After passing through first verification, in second counter also they verified all these again, verified our personal details and address to ensure that passport reaches to correct address when dispatched. They also took a photograph, gave one token and told to wait in the next counter until our number is called. The first 2 counters are run by TCS employees and the third counter is actual verification by passport employees. After it is done, we need to wait for 4th counter call, where they will stamp on old passport that it is extended and confirm that new passport will be dispatched after police verification. Not to forget, there is one last counter where we need to collect receipt which is very important. This receipt has a file reference number which is useful to track passport status. I completed all these formalities on Feb 02nd and waited for almost one month for police verification to start. But there is no update on it. So, we sent someone to go to passport office and track the status. They told it will go to respective police station in 2 days and we need to contact them. Atlast, police officer has come and completed verification by checking all documents again that i submitted for passport application. He took signatures from our neighbours and then left by taking some bribe. After this, it took around 15 days for my passport to be dispatched. It came by speed post and an sms and email sent to me informing that it is dispatched by speed post with tracking number. Even post man expected some bribe which is common and I received my passport on May 8th 2012. 

Can you believe? It took 3 months to receive my passport from the day I appeared in Passport Seva Kendra excluding the days when I filled the application and submitted it online. If I consider the whole process from the day of creating an account in passport site which is on Jan 4th, it took 4 months. I did all these without the help of any agent. I am not sure how fast it can be with the help of an agent.  

Don't lose hopes, if you are going to apply now. Because there are many changes in the site. One major change is the ability to book an appointment for 7 days in advance and also check this link to know how they are improving the process to dispatch a normal passport in 3 days!!!

http://passportindia.gov.in/AppOnlineProject/online/whatHasChanged

I hope this will come true soon :) 

How about you? did you ever have such a bad experience while applying for the passport? Please do share in comments.

Until next time,

© Swamin | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

Reality dance shows - A story

Chutki, an 8year old girl looks pretty with adorable eyes and innocence in the face. She is from a middle class family, her father being a government employee and mother a house wife. She has a younger brother who is very naughty. Her parents made her join dance class as they like their little princess dancing rhythmic with music. She too loves dance and she picks up every step very fast and she is also good at academics. Her life is simple and happy. 

          Whenever she used to give a dance performance, people used to say to their parents "Chutki is a child prodigy and she is very smart. You are very lucky to have a daughter like this with exceptional talent in dance in an early age". Her parent used to feel proud and happy and that makes her also happy. She starting winning first prizes in all dance competitions that she participates. Her parents made her participate in even district level and state level competitions even though it is difficult for them to spend money on her travel and dance dress and accessories. They encouraged her in every step. 

            Her father took her for the auditions to a dance reality show for some tv channel. All judges are spellbound seeing her perfection in dance, her expressions, footsteps, hand movements etc., She got selected in auditions and even first 3 rounds of the program very easily without much competition. Now, its time for quarter finals. Their family is given accommodation in a five star hotel in Mumbai where competition takes place and the schedule for shooting is for around 2 days. There is rigorous practice with all other participants, Chutki is groomed well, every detail taken care of like her hair style, dressing and makeup. Even though there is slight competition, she could win quarter finals too. Semi finals are just few days away. They came back to their home town. Every one started recognizing them on the streets and Chutki has become a star around the household. Neighbors, teachers and all well wishers congratulated her and wished her all the best for next rounds. Prize money is a very huge amount if she wins in finals. As there are chances for her daughter to win, their parents dreamed of a comfortable house, car, giving better education to their children etc., Chutki never cared about win or loss in competition, she just enjoyed her dance till now. But, seeing her parents dreaming big, she also thought she should win for sure to make them happy. Pressure started building up. She got selected in semi finals too with another good performance. 

             Organizers arranged a shooting schedule of 10 days for finals. Each participant is assigned to a celebrity dance professional and their practice, guidance, song selection, everything is picturized. They also went to every participant's native place and interviewed their family and grand parents, showed their home, life style etc., Chutki felt like she is in a cage with all lights focused on her and every one expecting her to perform the best. Every thing around her is exaggerated and show cased in tv.  She couldn't attend school for 10 days and had to miss classes in between for different rounds of selection and shooting schedules. Their school head mistress and teachers are fine though as these organizers also showed their school in tv interviewing some of her friends and teachers. But, Chutki felt she is missing something. She wants to play like earlier with friends, fight with her brother, get good marks in academics, spend time with her parents etc., On the other side, she is becoming nervous that she might disappoint her parents, friends, teachers, neighbours and every one else if she doesn't win this finals. Earlier, she always enjoyed her dance, but now she want to perform to win the prize. 

             At last, the D -day came. Her parents took her to temple and also gave their blessings and best wishes. They made sure that she is well fed and her father also promised that he will buy her new toys and more dresses after she wins. She wanted to ask, "is it fine even if i don't win? I don't want to dance this time. Can i drop out?" etc., but didn't dare to ask. When her turn came for dancing, she is nervous, couldn't concentrate on music and is checking the faces of judges and audience in between to see the reaction. She understood that she didn't perform well like earlier and the result is as expected. She didn't win either first prize or second. Her parents, friends and everyone else who supported till now are disappointed. They showed sympathy on her and told her that she can do best in future competitions , but no one asked her why she failed and why she was not like earlier. 

             As she never experienced a failure earlier, it is difficult for her to forget this. Her parents didn't say anything and they just told her it's fine. But, her teachers, neighbors, relatives still show sympathy for not winning it even though they say at the end that it is ok, not to worry much. At last, she decided that she will never perform anywhere again and she want to concentrate on her studies. 

Author's note: These reality shows just create a hype for TRP ratings and if parents are not mature enough to counsel their children that win or loss doesn't matter much in the world, children like Chutki will feel depressed and pressurized. 

What do you think? 

Until next time,

Image: jscreationzs / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Travelling by auto in Hyderabad - Not an easy task

To all those who travel by autos in Hyderabad.. do you have a hassle free travel always? I have a few good and many not so good experiences.
I have patience of a saint.. not kidding :) true! i wont get angry often and even if i get, i wont lose control of myself and shout/ scold in the peak of my voice. I try to control and talk about the issue with logic. But, when it comes to auto wallahs i just lose my patience and get angry. See below some of the reasons..

1. Auto fares: First thing that irritates me is autos not having meters. In few areas of Hyderabad, autos will not have meters which show fare and distance. Even if some autos have, 80% of them are tampered as per ndtv survey!
Auto wallahs who doesn't have meters for their autos will demand a hell lot of amount(which is at least Rs.50+ genuine meter fare) and our skill of bargaining helps to some extent. If you speak perfect hyderabadi language with confidence,there are more chances of reducing the fare.


Got this info from andhraspider.com which might be useful to know auto fares:
Minimum Fare for Autos in Hyderabad: Rs14 for first 1.5Km
Fare per km: Rs8perKm
Waiting Charges: Rs15/hour – minimum 1minute is taken
No extra charge for luggage
Formula for calculating cost of your journey (for more than 15kms): Rs. [14 + (Total Distance-1.5)*8] 


2. Language: Some auto drivers here just try to scare you by speaking in urdu/ hindi, especially if you are a Telugu person. So, usually people who come from different places of Andhra feel un-comfortable to bargain in Hindi. This is what they want! I have come across some auto drivers who are reckless, drive very fast, doesn't talk with respect etc., So, any day, if i come across an auto driver who speaks to passengers with respect, i just give him extra money without bargaining much. Because, it is very difficult to find these kind of people.


3. Safety:  Just observe traffic signals.. autos being small, move between vehicles easily. If you are a newbie driver, then first thing you should be careful about in cities are auto drivers. Autos go zig zag in the gaps between vehicles so easily like bikes do. Forget about safety if you are travelling in share autos. They can fit any number of people in auto and driver will be fine with very less space for him to sit/ even stand. 


Sometimes, i feel taxis are better when compared to autos except for the fact that they are not very economical. It will cost around Rs.100 by auto from our place to Secunderabad railway station and auto drivers will demand at least Rs.150. If we book a cab, it will cost Rs.250, but driver will be waiting at your door step 10 mins before the expected time to leave. Since distance is constant and time to reach station will be within one hour, there will not be any change in cab fare. There will be enough space for luggage and 4 persons can travel comfortably in cab with AC.
What you say?


Until next time,

Image courtesy: http://www.spiritualbangalore.com/

Shop Shop till you drop !

         Last week when I was travelling from begumpet to Hitec city in Hyderabad, I was surprised to see that each and every shop has some percentage of discount/ clearance sale/ year end sale or whatever you name it mentioned. This might be a shopping season of the year as i see same kind of discounts every year between December and mid of February. If I say, it’s honeymoon period for shopaholics in Hyderabad, its not an exaggeration. If you don’t believe, just have a look at the list below.. ooo.. a long list!

Apparel sale

Pantaloons

Lifestyle

Central shopping mall

Kashish

Spykar

Brand factory

Coupon

Kalaniketan

Biba

Globus

Levis

Reliance trends and so on..

Others

Centro

Mochi

Reebok

@home

Reliance footprint etc.,

          Thinking.. if I explore and shop in all these, I might end up with longest monthly credit card statement of the year and zero credit.. I may not go for it yet as iam not a shopaholic and don’t have much patience for shopping. But, whoever is interested in shopping, enjoy the shopping spree J

Image courtesy : Google images

Until next time..

A plea - Contribute to Vaidehi ashram, Hyderabad

I frequently read blogs of Siri for cooking tips and interesting recipes. But this post in her blog moved me. This is about a fund drive organized by her to contribute to destitute girls in Vaidehi ashram which is in Saidabad, Hyderabad. Ashram works for adolescent girl child empowerment by providing education and vocational training for self reliance.


Some details about Vaidehi Ashram:
Ashram established in 1993, is home of 120 destitute girl children. The Ashram has two caretakers who bestow the children with motherly care. The girls are imparted education in Saraswathi Sishu Mandir High School, which has an exceptional academic record. 
Address:
Vaidehi Ashram 
17-1-473/v/3&4,
krishna nagar ,
Saidabad,
Hyderabad-500059.
Ph.no:(040)24075544
see more details :www.sewabharathi.org


This is how the Fund drive works..
1. Click on 'Chip In' button and contribute fund using paypal/ credit card. You can donate any amount. Each $10 donation will give you one raffle ticket towards a raffle prize of your choice. 1 raffle ticket = Rs.500
2. Check the list of 40+Raffle prizes to decide on which raffle prize you like.
3. Once the donation process is completed, please forward your payment confirmation message to info(dot)siri(at)gmail.com, clearly specifying which raffle prize(s) you are interested in.


Isn't the process easy?? Please contribute if you want to help the needy.

The event will close on 25th February and winners will be announced on 27th February via a random drawing by the Ashram kids. :-) 

Until next time..

Too busy to care for the society??

              There are many things in our life, which move us and seek our help, but we still ignore them due to our busy routine schedules. Sometimes, its not because we are busy, its because we don't give much preference to it or just that we don't care. 


              Today, found about a contest 'Too busy to care' by Jaagore in collaboration with blogadda.com. You too can participate in the contest, follow the below link:
http://blog.blogadda.com/2011/03/02/too-busy-to-care-tbtc-syndrome-tata-jaago-re
Iam too busy to care, but want to do something. Jaago Re and BlogAdda.com are helping me do my bit for the society.
Sharing my experiences -


               First thing that comes to my mind is removal of dead animals on roads. Many a times i have seen dead animals on Old bombay road (Knowledge park right from Gachibowli road) on the way to office. Everyone will be busy to go to office, so, no one does anything to move dead animal off the road. Many times, i wanted to call any animal welfare organization to remove them off the road, but i couldn't as i don't have number handy and i don't have time to Google for it. It seems bad and inhuman when vehicles go fast over dead animals and the rotten smell pollutes the air. 


Here are contact numbers for Hyderabad (got from google):
Blue cross for animal welfare: (0)40-244355 / 238071

GHMC (Great hyderabad  municipal corporation) : 9440448158

If we save these numbers and keep them handy, it will be useful.

           Second thing that comes to my mind is wastage of food in marriages. We, Indians celebrate functions/ marriages with at least 10 varieties in lunch/ dinner to show our affluence and prestige in society. When our estimates go wrong, many items are left out and they are thrown to dust bin. I always think,  it will be nice, if we can distribute these left overs to some one who are hungry. There are many non profit organizations set up these days to help hotels/ marriage parties to distribute these left overs to slums and orphanages. They will check that food is not spoiled before picking up.

Here are the contact details of an organization called RHEED - Rural health employment education development which does this in Hyderabad

I believe in this - whatever good we do as an individual will help the society, however small it is. 

Until next time..

Prajwala Foundation

This time, it is a serious issue that moved me after watching the below video in you tube. This lecture given by sunitha Krishnan is doing rounds in face book and emails from long time. This lecture makes us realize how lucky we are, to be born and brought up in a very good environment with all amenities and with various options in life to chose from. Please watch the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeOumyTMCI8 


          Dr. Sunitha Krishnan is a mental health professional, she has done extensive research and is essentially a field practitioner. She has been instrumental in rescuing hundreds of children from severely abusive conditions and restoring childhood to them. She co-founded 'Prajwala Foundation' with Bro Jose Vetticatil. 


Activity: Prajwala is an non-governmental organization in Hyderabad, India, opposed to forced prostitution and sex trafficking.Today, Prajwala runs over 17 transition centres in different areas of Andhra Pradesh for the sex workers’ children. Over 5,000 children have benefited from the second generation prevention programme. The organisation, so far, has rescued more than 2,500 victims with the help of the information provided by its partners and through police intervention. The organisation has 80 members in India and 25 members abroad.
Support: Sex-slavery, prostitution, rehabilitation, girl-child
Note: Financial support, volunteers
This post is a part of BlogAdda's Bloggers Social Responsibility (BSR) initiative. I am exercising my BSR. You can too with three simple steps. Visit http://www.blogadda.com/bsr/ and support the NGO's.


Here is their official website http://www.prajwalaindia.com/ 
We can contribute financially or volunteer ourselves for help. Please support the good cause, if you are interested.

Address:
Prajwala 20-4-34, III Floor, Behind Charminar Bus Stand Charminar,    Hyderabad Andhra Pradesh, INDIA Zip/Pin: -500 002 Ph: +91 40 24510290 Fax: +91 40 24410813 

Until next time..

Weekend gateways from Hyderabad

It's holiday season!! at least, it is for people like me who are working for US clients. Many of our clients will be on vacation from December last week to Jan first week and so we get time to plan long vacations. Iam thinking about how different we can spend this weekend, welcoming new year. 


This time, Dec 31st and Jan 1st are on weekend days, so there will be crowd in every party in city and in malls. What can be a peaceful, but a rejuvenating place away from city buzz? Browsed a lot on net about weekend gateways from Hyderabad. Following are a few good options within 300km range:
1. Srisailam
2. Nagarjuna sagar
3. Ananthagiri - Vikarabad
4. Wargal saraswathi temple
5. Basara
6. Yadagiri gutta 
7. Bidar 
8. Warangal
9. Kurnool
10. Mantralayam


Srisailam is located in Nallamalai hills in Kurnool district on the banks of river Krishna. Besides the Bhramaramba Mallikarjunaswamy Temple, clusters of minor shrines and Wildlife Sanctuary, there is the 512 m long Srisailam Dam on the River Krishna, which offers views of the Ghats, cliffs and forests. 


Nagarjuna sagar is around 150 kms from hyderabad. Nagarjuna sagar dam, Ethipothala waterfalls, Museum with Budhist excavations on Nagarjuna konda are some of the tourist attractions here.


Ananthagiri hills near Vikarabad is nice peaceful place away from city buzz. Lord Anantha padmanabha temple, Vikarabad forest, trekking in Ananthagiri hills are main tourist attractions.


Wargal saraswathi temple is located on a hill top in medak district on karimnagar highway. There is an idol about 10 feet high in front of the temple, which is a magnificent piece of art. The temple architecture is very good. 


Basara gnana saraswathi temple is located on banks of river Godavari about 205 kms. from hyderabad. This is famous place to do 'Akshara abhyasam' for children before commencing formal school education. Lord Shiva temple near Godavari bank is also a beautiful place.


Just 60kms from Hyderabad is holy shrine of Lakshmi narasimha swamy temple in yadagirigutta. Surendrapuri and Bhongiri fort are also good places to visit.


Bidar is a historic place in north-eastern part of Karnataka. It is a popular tourist destination for monuments and temples built in Bahmani era. Bidar fort and tombs of Bahmanis are popular tourist attractions. Black bug jungle resort is an excellent lakeside resort in the forest.


Warngal has many excellent places to visit. Ramappa temple, Ramappa lake, Thousand pillars temple, pakala lake, Bhadrakali temple , Warangal fort and Eturu nagaram sancturay are only a few to name.


Kurnool is a beautiful city on the banks of Thungabhadra river. Kondareddy buruju (kurnool fort), Belum caves, Ahobilam, sangameswaram, Alampur and Mahanandi are some of the important places to visit around Kurnool.


Raghavendraswamy temple ,Lakshmi venkateswara temple in Mutt complex and Panchamukha temple in Raichur are some of the tourist places in Mantralayam. Navabrindavan, an island in between two branches of River Tungabhadra, between the districts of Koppal and Bellary, is at a distance of 175 km from Mantralayam.


So, What's your plan for new year??

Until next time..