My brother Toad bought a condo in Salem. I am sad - no more Harvard Square accommodations for Akhil and me. But I suppose his diving into the real estate market is a good move. I'd like to do it myself before the six-figure homes ALL turn into sevens. First though, I better get this job thing taken care of. Employers are now taking advantage of people like me to the tune of cash under-the-table, 300 bucks a week salaries. Have they no self-respect? Have I? I got myself into an interview at one of these places - I hope I will have the courage to tell them exactly what I think of their glorified volunteer opportunity but I have been out of work for months. And that makes people do some pretty desperate things... wish me luck.

In other news, Akhil's fellow countrymen, the Kenyans, swept the Boston Marathon Monday. Katie and Heather had a Patriots Day BBQ at our old/new pad at Freeman Street which, sadly, I missed. You see, Heather is moving into the LCC - the Life Crisis Closet - at 145 this month. Priya doesn't live there anymore because she bought a place in Allston a couple of years ago. But two of the "originals" will be living there once again. Funny how things evolve sometimes, isn't it? Six years ago at this time, Heather and Katie lived at Freeman Street, I was looking for a job, about to move into this apartment in Glendale, and Akhil and I were driving an '87 Jeep. Today, Heather and Katie live at Freeman Street, I am looking for a job and LIVE in this apartment, and Akhil and I occassionally drive an '87 Jeep.

Brief update by popular request: you're not missing anything. Status quo intact. (Jobs report, schmobs report. Hmph.) However, I can recommend Ofoto.com, baking your own bread, and films, television and books: "The Fog of War," "The Apprentice," and Arundhati Roy's "The God of Small Things." In other news, my dad sold the store (congratulations Al!) and, still to come: baby news from Debbie and Justin...

Photos are back... and here's my best shot: the elephants at Lake Manyara.



More photos are at Ofoto.com. Take a look:

http://www.ofoto.com/BrowsePhotos.jsp?&collid=204762444103&page=1&sort_order=0

Happy Super Tuesday! Akhil and I voted in the primary today - first time ever for both of us to vote in one of the primaries. These times can make a political junkie out of anyone. We also had to vote on some California props related to the state's budget crisis. Funky times when you've got Terminator in office. And the Kennedys! His children, indeed, are Kennedys. Think about that. Arnold's kids are Kennedys. Bizarre.

The blog continues, but there is not much to report. I am still living off the fat of the earth, Akhil is on a regular work schedule, and we have overcome a terrible hardship: as of yesterday we now have our DSL connection working again. We've been sifting through our trip photos, and many of Akhil's slides are pretty good, but my 16-year-old Olympus has some exposure issues, so most of my prints are unusable. Time to put that old machine to rest. Speaking of old machines, this weekend Akhil finally fixed the headlight switch in the '87 Jeep. We played some tennis on Saturday, and saw "The Ghost and the Darkness," in memory of Africa. (Sigh.) Self-education in cooking continues: we tried not to liquify the fish we made Sunday night for our "Oscar dinner," and cereal has resumed its place as one of our most popular entrees. Try those new maple mini-wheats. Fabulous.

So, we tried making chapatis last night. Okay, I tried making chapatis last night. They were a little stiff and coarse but edible so I am calling them "rotla." Indian food connoisseurs will know what I'm talking about! The curried beef was fine.

Meanwhile, on to more important things. My hair. It's passable. I suppose you'll all be happy to know that I have greys! Like Lucy.

Here are couple of photos from Africa - the really good ones, I hope, will be from the film camera batch. By the way, anyone hiring? Call me.

Akhil's birthplace: the Aga Khan hospital in Nairobi...



One of our tented camp accomodations in Tanzania...



A lion in the Serengeti National Park...



And, my favorite, elephants. These were at Lake Manyara...

Another week gone by... but this one in good 'ol Los Angeles! We're home and reeling, sort of, as Akhil prepares for the first day back at work (tomorrow) and I prepare for, well, I don't know what, except for my hair appointment on Tuesday. This time, believe me, it's not a want, but a need! We had dinner out in Beverly Hills last night with Leslie, who caught us up on local happenings. Still not sure what the heck is in store for us this year but we're "working on it."

Putting up some photos -- see a few below - but is anyone still reading this?!!!

As today's bonus content feature, I want everyone to see LUCY, Regina's rediculously adorable schnauzer dog! Jealous!



England photos: Akhil's splendid cousin Sagar...



A village in Devonshire....



Us near the site where the Magna Carta was signed...



Now, some India pics. Here's much of the Madhani crew in Jamnagar...



And a schoolboy in Jamnagar, at my father-in-law's former elementary school...



This week I'll work on Africa photos. See ya!

Alas, it's time to admit we've reached the official conclusion of our trip - tomorrow we fly back to Los Angeles and should reach our apartment by dinnertime. People keep saying, "Geez, you must be so depressed!" But not so much, really. I have a feeling of satisfaction that is somewhat invigorating - though I don't have a job to go back to... Maybe that's why I'm so relaxed at the moment. Akhil may feel a bit differently, since he starts working again on Monday. This past week we spent a few days visiting with friends in Boston and then with my parents in Connecticut. Akhil and I went to the Mystic Seaport on Saturday, which I haven't seen since I was a kid, and saw the Charles W. Morgan - which, as I mentioned, we saw a model of in Zanzibar. Then we went to the Mohegan Sun casino just for curiousity's sake, along with my mom who thought it was very unpleasant - it was absolutely packed - New Englanders have apparently taken passionately to gambling. On the way up here to Boston today we visited with Akhil's friend Archie in Providence - also a surprisingly lovely city these days - they seem to be paying a great deal of attention to aesthetics here in the northeast. California developers could learn a lesson or two.

Happy Presidents Day! Photos will appear by the end of the week - assuming we can get our DSL up and running without much trouble.

Ah, Bahston in February... has it always been this cold?! Here we are back on home turf. We were greeted at Logan Tuesday afternoon by very unfriendly airport security personnel followed by my gracious brother Todd, who picked us up and took us on the long way home to his place in Cambridge so we could see the glorious progress on "The Big Dig." A walk through Hahvahd Yahd to Pinnocchio's pizza and then we went to sleep. Yesterday Akhil and I traipsed around Cambridge, Faneuil Hall and Newbury Street, then caught up with some friends here in town and tried to imagine what life would be like if we were ever forced to live here again. A tough sell when the wind rips right through your thermals!

Now that we've got the hang of this blog thing, it may be hard to stop. So keep checking here for updates - and maybe new photos and other exciting added features. Off to Connecticut tomorrow and then, L.A. again on Monday. Back to reality - what?!

Shannon and I have been having a wonderful time here in jolly old England. We spent another day visiting London, including the imperial war museum, which was tremendous. We had dinner - at a local pub - with my aunt Sudha and uncle Douglas. Steak and Ale pie and a pint of local bitter. Very British, very yummy. Great to see them, trading stories about Nairobi, New Zealand and other places.

Over the weekend, we went with Surbhi, Karan and Sagar to Devon. We stayed in Lynmouth - a beautiful little English town on the west coast. Walked through the woods along a river there and generally enjoyed the scenery. This was where Shelley (the poet and original hippie) lived for a few years. We also saw the home of Coleridge. We ate the the Ancient Mariner (the pub next door). In fact we've eaten at a number of pubs - always a highlight of any trip to England!

Today, we're off to Windsor Castle, which is just nearby... In fact we've got to run!

The trip is winding down now as we are back in the Western world... at the mothership: England. Yesterday we went to Westminister Abbey and saw the tombs of many of the characters from the story we've been following the last three months -- Charles Darwin, King George, David Livingstone... what a journey.

We also saw my old B.U. digs at South Kensington and I showed Akhil the deli where we used to buy our beer and Hob Nobs. We feel like we are home already - here with Akhil's aunt Surbhi and uncle Karan in Weybridge and bopping around London during the day. Heard the good news about the Super Bowl and can't wait to reconnect with our friends in Boston and CT and L.A. next week! Hope to bring this mild weather with us. If not, can I borrow some woolens?

And a few notes about Nairobi. We've spent a couple days here since the safari and still had some wildlife experiences! Went to an elephant/rhino orphanage that rescues animals whose mothers have died. Saw a playful baby black rhino and a bunch of mischievous baby elephants! Pretty funny. Then we went to the giraffe preserve... They have an elevated platform and you can feed the giraffes food pellets directly. I mean you put the food right on his tongue! (Which is about a foot long, by the way.) Pretty strange... We also visited the Karen Blixen museum, now of Out of Africa fame. And today, we'll visit the national museum before heading out tonight on a late night flight to London via Dubai. Bye bye Africa!

For Surbhi and Karan! I (Akhil) haven't been able to access my Disney email lately (Shannon's hotmail account, shannonpv@hotmail.com, still works), so just to confirm our flight information:

Emirates Airlines flight EK 15 from Dubai to London Gatwick. Departing Dubai at 7:55 AM Tuesday, arriving in London at 11:40 AM.

Look forward to seeing you!!!

Finally - an update! Our circuitous tour of East Africa brought us back to Nairobi this morning, after 16 days of witnessing herds of hundreds of elephants, thousands of wildebeest and zebra, and a variety of antelopes and gazelles day after day on the plains, plus prides of lions eating - and playing - within ten feet of our vehicle. Then there were the rhino at Lake Nakuru, the baobab trees at Tarangire, and baboons - well, everywhere.

Africa is sublime! I was not happy to get on the plane this morning, leaving Zanzibar and its white sandy beaches behind. With its unique history combining so many cultures and of course, its abundant spices, the food there is some of the best we've had on this trip. Cardamom, cloves, ginger and lime are used along with fresh fish, vegetables, pineapple and mango. Delish! We took a spice tour yesterday and discovered that cinnamon is a tree, and so is cocoa. Also saw cardamom and vanilla growing, cloves, tasted chickoo, jackfruit and grapefruit off the tree, and met some other tourists - one who knows some friends of ours in L.A. We went swimming off the beach by our hotel yesterday afternoon and had an unbelievable view of Kilimanjaro on the flight here today, but that wasn't enough for me - I could've spent another week there.

At the start of our safari, on our way out of Nairobi we did see the birthplace of Akhil - the Aga Khan hospital. We also got our driver to take us to what we believe is Mina's childhood home. Once out in the "bush," somehow we got very lucky with our accommodations, from the Ark to the Mara Serena to the Tarangire Safari Lodge. I had one bout with stomach trauma otherwise we've been well fed and had an incredible time.

Two more days in Africa before we head to London, continuing on this tour of the former British empire! We stop in Boston on Feb. 9 for a week to complete the circuit and reconnect with bitter winter weather. We hope to post some photos from there.

Jambo! We're in Nairobi! A breath of fresh air that was greatly needed. Bombay was actually a very cool place - we saw Akhil's parents' medical schools and dorms, and the Gate of India on our brief city tour before leaving the country Friday morning.

We arrived in Kenya last night, toured around Nairobi a little and then arrived at the Fairview Hotel. Very nice! We had pizza and a beer, a good night's sleep and showers this morning! Plus, a great breakfast, and now a few last minute emails - not sure when we'll have access again. We're off on our safari in 1/2 hour. We hope to stop by the Aga Khan hospital (where Akhil was born) and maybe even his Mom's old house, as it is on the way to the Aberderes, our first stop. A quick itinerary: Aberderes (The Ark), Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, on to Tanzania to Lake Victoria, the Serengeti, Ndutu, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and Arusha. Then three days in Zanzibar before returning to Nairobi and heading to London!

See you after Safari!

Another Akhil post... We're back in Ahmedabad, preparing for Uttran (the big kite festival). Well, actually, my Mom is doing some last minute sari binge shopping, and Shannon and I are trying to prepare for Kenya/Tanzania. Have I mentioned that I've eaten enough ghee (clarified butter) and sugar to supply the energy needs of NYC for a year? More soon!

Technical note from Shannon: If the archives have disappeared from your view of this blog, that's because they have been pushed down to the bottom of the page (we have to make our sidebar wider somehow...) So, if you want to get to the archives to see the new photos we added for NZ, Australia and Bangkok, just scroll on down and you'll see the links on the left. Also, you can try viewing the text on "Small" or "Smallest" font size in your "View" menu.

Just when I was getting adept at the art of the bucket bath, suddenly I realize, our India experience is nearing its end! Today is Monday and we depart early Friday for Nairobi from Bombay. We've reached Ahmedebad and it was a little sad to leave Jamnagar after nearly two weeks there - enough time to almost feel like a local. I don't even notice the cows in the median anymore...

After our farewell dinner out with the family last night, Akhil and "the guys" had paan -a betel leaf stuffed with any combination of candy sweets, tobacco, calcium carbonate and coconut paste. It's an acquired taste, I think. I haven't quite acquired it yet. I have acquired a taste for mustard-chilis and 4 p.m. masala chai though. Akhil and I complain about the chaos and the caste system, the corruption and the filth, and the confusing, seemingly hypocritical treatment of various unfortunate animals (if you're a dog, STAY AWAY from India!), yet we're both very sad at the thought of departing so soon, when there's so much left to see. Maybe next time we'll come for Diwali.

Here is another India photo from Jaipur, where we rode an elephant to this palace gate. We're adding some old photos today from Glenorchy, Bangkok and Sydney in some of the archival posts, in case you're interested!

Can't get the theme song to "Kal Ho Naa Ho" out of my head....

For the most part, we've been lazy bums the last couple of days, doing nothing more than shopping around town, playing with Akhil's entertaining 10-month old, 3-year old, and 6-year old cousins Simeron, Rushali and Isha, and ingesting way too much very tasty Gujerati food, including this millet-flour tortilla type of bread called rotla that you top with ghee (clarified butter) -yum! And this vegetable and potato mash you eat with grilled buns called pao baji (sp?) - Akhil was able to consume no less than 8 buns himself. Needless to say you may not recognize us when we see you next! Please be kind... We're planning to leave Jamnagar tomorrow afternoon for Ahmedabad for the kite festival, Utteran.

Jamnagar is known for its tie-dye, or "bandhani" textiles. Apparently much of the work is done by women who work from home, tying thousands of tiny knots in cotton and silk fabric, and dying it in stages, one color at a time. We bought so much stuff, Akhil's parents were forced to stuff an extra suitcase that they're graciously taking home to the U.S. for us. Akhil's aunt Aruna Foi also took us to the teaching hospital where she is a professor in the OB/GYN wing. I got masked up and peered into the O/R, and visited the maternity ward and labor rooms. There is a sign on the wall near the entrance to the hospital that says "First two deliveries free." They encourage tubal ligations after that.

I know this is out of sequence, but here is a photo from our days in Rajasthan - of the palace in Udaipur.

Another quick note. We did a day trip from Jamnager to Dwarka to visit a temple, day before yesterday. There are many priests who live there - something like 30 according to different castes. They each keep a book with signatures from visitors. We found the priest for our caste and found the signature of my great grandfather, from 1928. The books are well kept. My father wrote our names in the book. The funniest comment was from the priest who, upon finding that Shannon and I were married, quietly asked my father "is she of the same caste?" My father replied "not quite!"

Oh yes, in case you were wondering, India transvestites DO wear saris. That one even threw my parents a little.

Yesterday, we went to Junagadh, the site of Mt. Girnar. There are thousands of steps constructed to a series of temples on this mountain. Another site for pilgrimages. Apparently, at one temple, 1108 saddhus go each year and magically dissappear. My father asked if there was a trap door someplace - they didn't think that was funny.

We climbed 5500 steps today to the third peak, where some holy men were smoking weed and asking for money. We gave 5 rupees for a photograph and came back down. Took about 5 hours total - finally some exercise!

We have received such an education here in Jamnagar. I can't even go into it all. This house has so much history. The fourth generation of Madhani's are living here now. My father was born in a room downstairs, along with most (if not all?) of his nine siblings. We visited cousins in Rajkot yesterday as well. More Madhani's (who knew?)
We're here for a few more days, then off to Ahmedabad on Monday for the big kite festival, Uttran (sp?), before heading to Mumbai (Bombay).

All over Ahmedabad, they are winding kite string onto spools for the festival. They make a mixture of powdered glass, glue and coloring, and run the string through it before winding the spools. They can then have kite fights, trying to cut each others string. I'm told they sell a lot of band-aids this time of year, seriously.

Just as an update - we are now in Jamnagar, seeing the town where Akhil's father spent his formative years! Many stories to tell... more soon.

Okay, here goes, we're going to attempt to post a few photos from India! Below I hope you'll see an image of the Taj Mahal. More to come...