Thursday, April 26, 2007

Washington Visit

Photo links to my DC Visits are here:

Snow dust, Tidal Basin, Smithsonian Here
DC Neighbourhood, Lake, Mall, sabita's house
Potomac river rapids
Luray Caverns, Shenandoah woods, Skyline Drive







Thursday Apr12 2007
Washgington
DC Visit:

Sunday 1st Apr I am dropped at Chicago OHare Int. airport to board at gate C15 to DC in
United Airlines. I am all excited travelling on my own, meeting my friend sabitha after 20
years. I feel stressed finding my way out to gate C15 so many pathways and so many escalators up and down which I am afraid to ride, my throat parched dry and tense and stressed in finding my way to the right craft. "Is this the flight to Dulles DC ?? " I confirm. The attendant says "Yes My Love" .

Travel to DC
The flight duration was 1 hour 15 min. I enjoy a stunning view from my window facing wing
seat which I always love. The craft seems Floating amongst white cottony clouds.

I also see the turbulence happening when ever the craft is engulfed in a cloud which was quite often. I was afraid "Can the pilot see his way?? " My first view of DC from the craft as we were landing was cars cars and more cars Surprisingly washington time is 1 hour ahead of champaign so i had to advance my watch by one hour. So I landed at 6:30 washington time at Dulles airport. But man, it was not easy locating exit from the airport. Not having a cell phone was my undoing ( right thro' this trip) . The airports are huge huge huge. So many exits, so many gates. My fear of escalators added to my woe. First of all I sat in a bus that took me from the aircraft exit to some other point. There I tried to locate an exit for about an hour. How do I go out?? "EXIT" was written everywhere. The airport staff are very polite , helpful and friendly lot ( always any airport in USA I had this pleasant experience) Anyway at last I was lucky to get out and spot my dear friend sabita with her son vivek and husband.

Soon we were driving down washington DC to their place in a suberb in a swanky brand new ACURA SUV. i was fascinated by the speeding large luxury (by my Indian std.) cars.

Sabita's house:
This was the first time I was experiencing a proper American (Indian) home. Sabita's house is huge by my Indian std. a 3 floor X 1000 Sq. ft structure a basement area, a living area and the bedrooms upstairs. They have a open space infront and behind ( backyard). The basement has a large living room with a large TV, some exercising equipments, a Office room for her husband Raman. She said the Office room was a gift to raman on his 50th birthday from the three of them ( she, her son and her daughter). They had painted it themselves!!

The family's living area consists of one drawing room for visitors, a living room facing a kitchen, a dining room , a gods room, a wash area. The flooring is elegant polished wood (strips). The living cum kitchen opens to the backyard open space into a wooden deck. The deck had a closed sitting area like a room, covered by glass on all sides, and a open railing all around. looked to be a very cosy area to be inside in summer. The top floor had 4 bed rooms a large master bedroom and three others.


The entire house is very tastefully and comfortably furnished. There were so many large closets built into the walls for storage including in the bathrooms. I really admire this feature in all American homes - the Storage space in the walls concept. Sabita is very artistically gifted and her house has all sorts of artefacts from India and some from Africa very beautifully arranged all over the house. She is also fond of gardening and plants and had a lot of plants cleverly displayed all over the house - even the bathrooms had them. I was proud of my friend's excellent taste in all things small and big.

I went all over the house admiring every corner. It is in my nature to appreciate beauty in all things living and non living. I clicked lot of photos in and around the house. The best view of her pictureque backyard is from the bathroom and I did click from here too. sabitha said " you are obsessed with your camera' . Rightly said my friend !!

A Maryland Residential suburb
The locality where the Ramans live has lush greenery, clean roads, large neat patches of green grass ( what we would be calling as lawn) lining the roads, lines and lines of trees. The Pear shaped trees were in full bloom covered with white flowers. In the evening hours of sunset the branches opened up in the evening breeze, the tree looked larger and more beautiful. The cherry blossom trees were covered with white or pink flowers and looked absolutely magnificent. Washington is famous for its Cherry Blossom festival from Apr. 1 to 7th and I was indeed lucky to witness this floral gift of nature all over the place. The place was full of natural beauty and I simply loved that feel. This is true of every place we visited in USA so far- abundant natural beauty preserved as well as created.

Pear Trees in Full Bloom

Raman had come to USA as a doctorate student and since then settled here for the last 26 years. They have a pretty 18 year old daughter Swati who is studying medicine to become a doctor and is an accomplished musician too. and a smart 12 year old son vivek studing in 7th grade and is an excellent singer as well. Raman is a satellite specialist and works for IntelSat. Sabita has specialized in Special Education and works in a big school in the neighbourhood. She is herself a talented singer and an accomplished person. At Maryland they have a group of Indian families as close friends and neighbours and lead a very interesting life socially ( I think).

Sabita gave me her daughter Swati's room to sleep. The next 6 days this room was my haven.
The windows everywhere in the house open to scenic beauty. The bathroom has the best view .
Every morning when i woke up I saw such a lovely landscape in front of me the sun rising
lining the landscape to a red hue, the neat looking houses, the green grass, the Pear tree
in full bloom.
Another thing that struck me was the house was provided with good ventilation something I missed in the few apartments I had seen in USA. There was so much to talk catching up on the twenty years of time and the past before that.

Sabita was our neighbour when we had just got married and moved to Uttam Society in Chembur and her father was a dear friend of both my husband and myself. They were a very warm and loving family and always laughing and joking. Vivek was a baby and darling of all. She was in her teens and twenties and a very attractive beauty in Uttam in the eighties. Uttam
Society in those days had so many activities and very warm interactions between its inhabitants. I believe this comediarie no longer exists.

Well Monday and Tue. we drove to many interesting Malls the kMart, some garden malls to buy
some flowering plants. USA can never tire you out with its husge Malls. There are always bargains to be had and window shopping can be endless fun at least for me. I keep wondering at the logistics of it all how they are able to stock and invest so much, what kind of returns would they be realising etc.. Many shops shut down too due to loss.

The drives in this part of DC were also always lovely. The manicured landscape, the spring
blooms, the super super cars wizzing by everytime , the 12 lane heavy traffic at times in some places, criss cross roads and flyovers like a maze of a game . I must be one of those rare cases enjoying heavy traffic!!

Beautiful Walks
I wanted to go for walks in this beautiful neighbourhood. I got a direction advice from sabita and Vivek. This residential locality was not like Champaign at all. There were no public transaport, no hotels, not many people on the road. Only whirring cars or empty roads. Since the weather was good some kids and family were outside their homes.

I love walking on unexplored roads especially when they are as scenic as these. The normal
roads in USA are very very broad (like our highways back home) . I chanced to come upon a
big lake with some huge geese floating and the swaying weeping willow trees and pink and white cherry blossom trees.
In some walks I chanced upon roads lined with pear trees in full bloom, and small trees / shrubs covered with yellow flowers. The spring in USA is the best time to be out in the streets.




Potomac river Rapids
We went to Potamac rapid a breathtaking view of the force of the water, Unfortunately the jungle around this area had trees which were barren without any greenery so it was very hot.. I believe the trees turn green in summer months ( may june onwards) and then this scene would be most enchanting.







Metro Travel
We travelled by metro to Smithsonian The MALL in DC. This was my first experience of travelling in a Metro and I just loved every minute of it. My fear of escalators was cured here as in some places there simply was no other way but escalator. The metro is an example of organized quick comfortable cheap public transport. There was no way one could travel ticketless , I just loved that. We Indians defintely deserved all this in our country to make our day to day life more enriching.

THE NATIONAL MALL
The MALL at Smithsonian is the most interesting place in DC housing all the historical museums ( I am told there are 19 of them and entrance is free to all ) , the White house, The Congress building, the Jefferson Memorial, a number of govt. offices. So much to see and so little time!! We went to Air and Space museum as Vivek wanted to experience Space Travel Simulation. I just looked around and clicked some photos. When we came out sabita was tired and told me to go and check out the Tidal bassin. I tried to walk but after a sincere attempt gave up as the place was quite far and i was tired. So we headed back home by metro.

Shiva Vishnu Temple Maryland
Thursday sabita drove me to see her daughter Swati in her dormitory in University of Maryland at College Park Campus. Was I not lucky? to see a college dorm? Sabita told me this univ. was one of the best schools in USA.

Then we drove to the Shiva vishnu Temple in Maryland a very beautiful and peaceful place. The temple is huge, very beautiful inside and outside and has many gods and godesses very tasteful. Any temple visit always leaves me peaceful within especially here there was no one except us three . It was like a private temple visit. Ihis visit and time i would always cherish.





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From net: Tourism Washington is home to numerous national landmarks and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States. The National Mall is a large, open area in the center of the city featuring many monuments to American leaders; it also serves to connect the White House and the United States Capitol buildings. Located prominently in the center of the Mall is the Washington Monument. Other notable points of interest near the Mall include the Jefferson Memorial (see right), Lincoln Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, National World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the District of Columbia War Memorial and the Albert Einstein Memorial. The world famous Smithsonian Institution is located in the District. The Smithsonian today is a collection of museums that includes the Anacostia Museum, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Hirshhorn Museum, National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of American History, National Museum of the American Indian, National Museum of Natural History, National Portrait Gallery, National Postal Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery, and the National Zoo. There are many art museums in D.C., in addition to those that are part of the Smithsonian, including the National Gallery of Art, National Museum of Women in the Arts, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Phillips Collection. The Library of Congress and the National Archives house thousands of documents covering every period in American history. Some of the more notable documents in the National Archives include the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights. The District of Columbia operates its own public library system with 27 branches throughout the city. The main branch — which occupies a multi-story glass and steel-framed building at the intersection of 9th and G Streets, N.W., designed by modernist architect Ludwig Mies vander Rohe — is known as the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library.[9] It has a large mural in its main hall depicting the civil rights leader. Other points of interest in the District include Arena Stage, Chinatown, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Blair House, Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle, Folger Shakespeare Library, Ford's Theatre, Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, International Spy Museum, National Building Museum, National Geographic Society, the Awakening at Hains Point, Old Post Office Building, Theodore Roosevelt Island, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Washington National Cathedral.
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Luray Caverns Virginia

Friday I was excited. Raman was going to take me to a place normaly visitors to DC may not
get a chance to see. yes we went to the Luray Caverns in Virginia.The weather had become quite chilly since thursday it was cold, snow flurries in the air, and a overcast sky. Temperature was definitely dropping. This was a solid drive of about 2 hours. It is a scenic route from potomac to Luray with Appalachians mountain ranges and lot of greenery. Luray was located in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. After a pleasant drive and fortifying ourselves with some hot food ( Raman said we would need that to energise us ) we went to see the caverns. the entrance ticket was stiff ( appr. 20$ per adult ) . Raman would not hear me when I wanted to pay. " Nothing doing " he said.

The walk thro' the cavern is 1.25 miles long and it is an experience of a lifetime. Unimaginable if you have not been into it. The magnificent huge giant sized rocks jetting out in such rich hues of colour golden, red rust brown, reddish white, grey ... Oh it is another world. How much nature has gifted to mankind to enjoy!! and the cave is lit so strategically. U never see the lights in your face only the glow on the rocks. The entire cave was wet and water was dripping in some places. Some rocks were rounded like pebbles or marble so smooth and shiny grey like threaded pearls. Some rockes were such thin sheets like wafers or our southindian towels we use the pink checked variety ( called thundu in tamil) What i admired about so many Americans is they bring chilren and even babies in prams into these places. We had a very nice guide who was full of humour. Some places had water accumulated on the floor which made a perfect reflection of the rocks above giving a virtual depth to the water where none existed. It was like a still picture as the water is so still it is like a mirror. We walked slowly and carefully along and it reminded me of some Hindi movie. The water dripping from the top mountains had formed these various rock types shapes and colours over millions of years . Today we admire these but after millions
of years the people then will see something different. The process of evolution will go on.There is a Wish well where we thro' coins so our wishes may come true. How charming!!

We spent 2 hours in the caverns. When we came out my heart was full and i was contended. I
had seen enough of USA. We drove thro' the 105 Miles Skyline Drive thro' Shenandoah National
Park ( toll 15$) . This drive reminded me of Kandala Ghats in these days when express highway was not yet built between Mumbai and Pune. The only difference was there was no traffic jam, no potholes ( for which the roads back home are so famous for) and ofcourse no water falls either. The winding road runs thro the skyline and is fascinating. The sky is USA always fascinates me wnereever we go as it is so close by as if we are enclosed by the sky all around us.


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From the net:
http://www.luraycaverns.com/index.htm
Discovery of Luray Caverns:
Luray, VA - Cold air rushing out of a limestone sinkhole atop a big hill west of Luray, Virginia, blew out a candle held by Andrew Campbell, the town tinsmith. It was on the morning of August 13, 1878, when Campbell, three other men, and his 13-year old nephew Quint, were exploring for a cave. With the help of his photographer companion, Benton Stebbins, they for four hours dug away loose rock, and candle in hand, Campbell followed by Quint slid down the rope. Man and boy could scarcely believe what they saw around them, for they found themselves in the largest caverns in the East, an eerie world of stalactites and stalagmites sparkling in the light of the candle.

Alexander J. Brand, Jr., a correspondent for the New York Times, was the first travel writer to visit Luray Caverns. "It's a magnificent cave, " he told townspeople. "The most beautiful I've ever seen. Trying to compare your cave to others would be like comparing New York City to the Town of Luray. " Professor Jerome J. Collins, the explorer, postponed his departure on a North Pole expedition to visit the caverns. The Smithsonian Institution sent a delegation of nine scientists to examine the caverns and praised them for their stalactite and stalagmite ornamentation. The Encyclopedia Britannica devoted an unprecedented page and a half to the cave's wonders. Others considered it to be the find of the century.

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Back home tired and happy. Sabita says "lets go out to dinner" wonderful Indian food at an Indian restruant in Maryland. I feel a little guilty for not offering to pay . I always hesitate to pay when a gentleman is around for fear of offending that person. An old fashioned Indian thinking ???

Smithsonian, Tidal Park and IMAX
Next day the last day of my stay at DC Vivek, raman and myself are off to DC to visit the Tidal Basin and Smithsonian. The weather is not at all good . There was a dust of snow in the morning ( ofcourse I was thrilled to see the pure white snow cover everything around and had clicked madly) and snow flurries flying around ( i was happy ) but the cold was biting - not very comfortable at all . 45 Min. of driving and we (Vivek and self) were dropped at Tiday Basin. This is where the lovely lovely Potomac river flows thro DC . The river was full almost touching the road level. The Japanese had planted more than 1000 cherry blossom trees along the tidal basin as a mark of extending a hand of friendship and the trees are in full bloom the first week of
April every year. Travellers from all over USA and the world come to see this beautiful sight.
The place had all sorts of people young, old, toddlers, indians, japanese, chinese, all types. Police were controlling the traffic. Unfortunately we were not able to enjoy this as we both were freezing. My winter clothes betrayed me and I felt like I was in need of more warm clothes. This is the typical chill of USA in winter. U should have proper winter wear to enjoy outdoor. Otherwise it is pure misery. All we did was try to get back into the car. If i was clothed proprly or the day sunny I would not have ever felt like leaving this awesome natural scenery. I promised to myself to come back again to DC in better weather and with more time to spare too.

But one sight I saw shook me up - Some guy lying on the road curled up in a corner - dead? .
Raman said they were the "homeless" . What pardon me " Homeless in such a rich country like
USA? " That made me think. What kind of human beings are we that we have some of our own
kind sufferring a cold like that in the open? For a fleeting moment my mind thought of Mother Theresa.

Well off to Smithsonian we went. Raman was very keen I see an IMAX movie. Smithsonian museum is a gift of a britisher Smithsonian to The USA and it is so huge that Sabita said it requires 8 days to see everything there. I was happy to see whatever we could and not having that dying desire to see everything. So we saw natural history museum. we saw some skeletons od Dynousars ( MY God so so huge?? ) some fantastic fossils . The collection of gems and rocks was simply mindblowing and I would like to spend at least a day in there . We saw the Hope Diamond 127 carats ( I/everyone hope to get it someday ) . The collection of crystals so beautifully displayed reminded me of vaithu and Ganga - They would have loved that.

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From the net: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithsonian_Institution The Smithsonian Institution was founded for the "increase and diffusion" of knowledge by a bequest to the United States by the British scientist James Smithson (1765–1829), who had never visited the United States himself. In Smithson's will, he stated that should his nephew, Henry James Hungerford, die without heirs, the Smithson estate would go to the United States of America for creating an "Establishment for the increase & diffusion of Knowledge among men". After the nephew died without heirs in 1835, President Andrew Jackson informed Congress of the bequest, which amounted to 104,960 gold sovereigns, or $500,000 U.S. dollars ($9,235,277 in 2005 U.S. dollars after inflation). Act of Congress: Eight years later, Congress passed an act establishing the Smithsonian Institution, a hybrid public/private partnership, and the act was signed into law on August 10, 1846 by James Polk. (See 20 U.S.C. § 41 (Ch. 178, Sec. 1, 9 Stat. 102).) The bill was drafted by Indiana Democratic Congressman Robert Dale Owen, a Socialist and son of Robert Owen, the father of the cooperative movement. Ladies Playing Double-Sixes, original by Zhou Fang (c. 730 - 800 AD), 10th century - 11th century remake of the Chinese Song Dynasty, housed in the Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian, Washington, D.C. The crenellated architecture of the Smithsonian Institution Building on the National Mall has made it known informally as "The Castle". It was built by architect James Renwick, Jr. and completed in 1855. Many of the other buildings are historical and architectural landmarks. Detroit philanthropist Charles Lang Freer's donation of his private collection for Freer Gallery, and funds to build the museum, was among the Smithsonian's first major donations from a private individual. Though the Smithsonian's first secretary, Joseph Henry, wanted the Institution to be a center for scientific research, before long it became the depository for various Washington and U.S. government collections.
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Out of Smithsonian and off to Air and Space Museum. Raman seemed very much at home here as this was a subject close to his heart. He explained many thigs to us ( like US and Russian spacecrafts had joined mid space) and we took a walk in a space ship. We ate at Mcdonalds
and were soon seated at IMAX theatre. We were going to watch a half hour movie on Combat
training for fighter pilots in US airforce on real live conditions. Oh My God I was soon zipping off to the left, right, taking off landing a flighter plane dropping bombs jumping off parachutes ducking enemy planes looking down at drop dead valleys taxing on at great speeds - all this without moving an inch . My head was spinning left right and centre . An IMAX experience is a must a heart stopper before you die. I often checked with the chairs ahead of me "was I really sitting". IT is such an optical illusion. I simply loved it. Raman was so right when he said "if u have not experienced it u have seen nothing " .

ON the way back home Raman stopped briefly for me to go and see the White house. "Hello President Bush here I come"


So bye bye Washington Here I go Sunday back to Chicago. The Dulles airport experience this time was not bad at all infact quite manageable unlike the time I had landed a week back. I had gotten a bit wiser to the giant sized USA airports with hundreds of gates and escalators and levels and learnt how to find my way out and in. With a promise to myself to come back to Washington to see the great capital city in more detail, i was back home in Champaign.

My Photo links:

Snow dust, Tidal Basin, Smithsonian Here
DC Neighbourhood, Lake, Mall, sabita's house
Potomac river rapids
Luray Caverns, Shenandoah woods, Skyline Drive


Monday, April 16, 2007

Allerton Park Champaign Visit


Photos are here

Sunday April 15th 2007

It was a bright sunny day at champaign - which is a rare happening . yday was cold, freezing and raining. We - vivek, self , Mini, and Jayesh left in vivek's car at 10:30 am to see the "Moms Weekend Flower and Garden Show." at Stock Pavilion, Urbana. This show was put up by undergrads of horticulture dept. and the theme was Apple and Ipod - the rock culture . It was an enthusiastic effort in landscaping and creative display of flowers and plants. The lush profuse geraniums. petunia flowers, the cute pitcher plants and others stole our hearts. Real green apples were kept floating in water. This reminded me of the fabulous flower show held every year in Empress garden pune.

After spending an hour or so we dropped Mini at her residence and drove off to Allerton park about 45 min. drive. My expectations were not very high as I had come to associate woods (trees and grass beneath) as park in US.

But Allerton was a pleasant surprise. Vivek showed as around the conference rooms where he used to attend conferences regularly . This place is simply fabulous , it was Allertons home, and I imagine Robert Allerton who has donated his property must have lived like a King in his days. The conference room with huge central hall, adjacent Oak Room , Pine Room, Butternut Room, rest rooms, huge cafeteria , library, entertainment area in basement, bedrooms upstairs , a beautiful bar room, faces the lake surrounded by woods. The wood work is of superior quality ( Jayesh wanted all of them in his house ofcourse - he kept saying i like this i would like to have it in my house - i teased him we will have Jayesh Park after his death he would be donating to US govt ofcourse) and finish as also the lamps and chandeliars. Every room boasted of all facilities for a conference like huge TV, and exuded a serenity when we sat there. The whole place seemed very peaceful to me.


I remembered the magnificent exhibits , art and architecture we come across in India everywhere when we visit King's palaces and temples in Rajasthan, Hydrabad, Mysore anywhere

We walked out of this building into the lake and took a walk along the garden and it is breathtakingly neatly landscaped lawns, trimmed lush greenery, walls covered with trained fruit trees ( ???? ) long long long pathways, statues here and there. One must venture only with a proper map other wise one can get lost as the place is gigantic ( 600 acres ) . This landscaped walk leads to virgin jungle with narrow paths for walking. The thickly wooded jungle has the river Sangama flowing thro it . I felt this walk was so like in Hindi movies (Urmila matonkar and Fardeen khan in movie Jungle ) and it is in the lap of mother nature. We thoroughly enjoyed this nature trail and after quite an exhausting trek were glad to return to civilization.

Jayesh was hungry and happily we sat under a tree and ate all that i had packed for this picnic. Lesson : Always carry good food , drink and water. So we picnic-ed near the FuDog garden. Here there are 18 porcelain Chinese dogs which Allerton had colleced and now they sit (THE DOGS ) royally in a special garden he built for them ( Who will build a garden in my memory?). The garden had a intricately designed ornate white watch tower with a tiny spiral staircase and 2 Budda statues at the base.

We drove back home by 3:30. Yet another unforgettable day at champaign for me.

Check out Allerton photos by clicking here


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More information on Allerton from their Web site :-

Allerton Park is a part of the Office of Continuing Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The facilities include a Visitor Center, public park areas with formal gardens, a conference center, a diversified farm site, and vast natural areas. The 1,500-acre park is located 25 miles southwest of Urbana-Champaign near Monticello, Illinois with easy access off I-72. The property was given to the University of Illinois by Robert Allerton in 1946 for the following purposes:

Use as a public park

* Visit Allerton Park
* Hold a conference or retreat
* Hold a wedding
* Rent space for a special event
* Volunteer to help at the Park
* Make a gift to Allerton Park

Education and research

* Environmental programs (includes day camp)
* Diversified Farm
* K-12 teachers
* UI Faculty
* UI Student opportunities
* Research projects

Natural areas conservation

* Deer management
* Exotic species management
* Ecological restoration


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Monday, April 9, 2007

Chicago revisited


Tuesday Apr 4

Sears Tower Skydeck photos are here

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Check this link for more information on Chicago :

For the photos I clicked in Chicago on mar 31 check out this link:

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Saturday March 30th :

Left for Chicago at 2 p.m. in Vivek's car with Vidhya, self, vivek, Sonali and Nikhil. It was a pleasant drive and I enjoyed the warmth between these friends. Reached Chicago by 4:45 . Parked the car in a parking lot ( 22 $ for 2 hours)

We walked into the Millenium Park and downtown Chicago. The day was a bit wet and chilly. The famous chill wind of the Wind City was blowing . Thanks god I was covered in proper warm clothes and had proper socks and shoes. Even Vidhya who is used to Chicago was feeling uncomfortably chilly. Ofcourse both Sonali and Vidhya had slippers and not shoes on.

Chicago was crowded ( not in Indian sense but in Champaign/US sense) We walked across to Millenium park.

Chicago Millennium Park:
******************* Information from net ************************
First planned in 1997 as a way to create new parkland in Grant Park and transform unsightly railroad tracks and parking lots, Millennium Park has evolved into the most significant millennium project in the world. Located in downtown Chicago on Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe Streets, the 24.5-acre park is an unprecedented center for world-class art, music, architecture and landscape design, where you can experience everything from interactive public art and ice skating to al fresco dining and free classical music presentations by the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus.

Among the park’s prominent features is the dazzling Jay Pritzker Pavilion, the most sophisticated outdoor concert venue of its kind in the United States, designed by Frank Gehry, one of the world’s greatest living architects.

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We walked round wriggley square.

Wrigley Square and Millennium Monument (Peristyle) :

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Located on the corner of Michigan Avenue and Randolph Street, the tree-lined area of Wrigley Square is an inviting open space for visitors to relax on the lawn or stroll paths. The Square is anchored by the Millennium Monument (Peristyle), a nearly full-sized replica of the original peristyle that stood in the same location between 1917 and 1953. With its graceful semi-circular row of Doric-style columns that rise nearly 40 feet, the Millennium Monument ties the past to the present and supports the designation of Michigan Avenue as a landmark district.
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There is a huge mirror shaped like a bean. It is fascinating. The mirror reflects the entire skyline on all sides. We clicked many photos here. It is convex on all sides. This is called Kapoor Sculpture designed by an Indian on SBC Plaza (Cloud Gate) called "The Bean"

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A major feature of Millennium Park is this 110-ton elliptical sculpture designed by the celebrated British artist Anish Kapoor, one of the most prolific and respected sculptors in the world. "Cloud Gate," the monumental sculpture located on SBC Plaza was named by the artist on June 29 when the final panel of the elliptical sculpture was installed.

The sculpture is forged of a seamless series of highly-polished stainless steel "plates" that create an elliptically-arched, highly reflective work with Chicago’s skyline and Millennium Park itself as a dramatic backdrop. Visitors will be able to fully experience the majestic nature of the work by literally walking through and around, as it was designed for public interaction. Inspired by liquid mercury, the sculpture is among the largest in the world, measuring 66-feet long by 33-feet high.

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We saw one open air theatre called --------- . Huge lawn with lots of accoustic tube like structures and speakers running cris cross. Vidhya told me that will give an effect of live performance wherever u sit. This place was huge.

Vivek and I walked on the BP bridge. It was cold but by now i could bear it and vivek was all admiration for me. I had come prepared for chilly windy chicago

BP Bridge
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Connecting Millennium Park to Daley Bicentennial Plaza, east of the park, this 925-foot-long winding bridge, Frank Gehry's first, provides incomparable views of the Chicago skyline, Grant Park and Lake Michigan. Clad in brushed stainless steel panels, the BP Bridge complements the Pritzker Pavilion in function as well as design by creating an acoustic barrier from the traffic noise below. It also has a 5% slope to allow easy access for people who are physically challenged.

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The bridge leads to Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan
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Lake Michigan (43°30'N, 87°30'W) is the only one of the Great Lakes wholly within the borders of the United States; the others are shared with Canada. It has a surface area of 22,400 square miles (58,016 km²)[1], making it

  • The largest freshwater lake in the US
  • The largest lake entirely within one country
  • The 5th largest lake in the world.

It is 307 miles (494 km) long by 118 miles (190 km) wide with a shoreline 1,640 miles (2,633 km) long. The lake's average depth is 279 feet (85 m), while its greatest depth is 923 feet (281 m). It contains a volume of 1,180 cubic miles (4,918 cubic km) of water. Its surface averages 577 feet (176 m) above sea level, the same as Lake Huron, to which it is connected through the Straits of Mackinac.

The history of Chicago is closely tied to that of Lake Michigan. Since before Chicago was founded, ships were bringing people and supplies from all points on the compass. Lake Michigan is the third largest of the Great Lakes, with a maximum depth of 925 feet and a size slightly greater than the nation of Croatia. The average depth off Chicago's shore averages 15-35 feet.

To reach greater depths, one must travel several miles out in the lake, or head north to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The lake bottom off Chicago's shore is littered with shipwrecks, ranging from schooners and tugboats to car ferries and even WWII airplanes. Scuba diving is a popular recreation for local residents, as are lakefront dinner cruises. In 1988 zebra mussels were discovered in Lake Saint Clair, and soon spread to all the Great Lakes, severely impacting the ecosystem. They have clogged intake pipes and fostered drastic changes in the base food chain. One unexpected result was the clarification of waters – in the 1970s, average visibility was 5-15 feet – on rare days, water visibility could reach 20 feet; now visibility averages over 20 feet, and often exceeds twice that.

************************************ End *********************

I and vivek walked along this great lake and took some photos. Vivek wanted to take me to Navy pier but it was getting late and chilly. Sonali, Vidhya and nikhil were waiting elsewhere for us. So we walked along the Chicago river. This reminded me of pune with so many rivers flowing thro it. Unfortunately the river side walks are not always as enjoyable as here in Chicago. On either side of the river tall buildings were touching the river bank . Lights were slowly coming up and i was excited to see the tall skyscrapers getting lit. This part of Chicago - downtown - has such a high energy feel abt it . Large branded malls lined the street. vivek said that we could only window shop and things were very expendive even by American stds. We walked on a busy broad traffic road with 4 lanes - ???????/ - and Vivek told me that when the ship has to pass the
entire road will open in the middle. I was awestruck by that. Such a huge road? open ? I would love to see that if luck is on my side.

The Chicago River is the seed from which the city of Chicago grew. Much of the layout of the city is based on the river and the many bridges that span it. ships which were taller than the bridge, could pass thro, when the bridge opened ! I got some mind blowing photos from the net showing the bridge opening. Check it out once i put the link here.

Now it was dark, cold and drizzling and we walked fast on our way to the Hancock building


John Hancock Center

********************************* Net ********************
Known locally as 'Big John', the John Hancock Center is probably the Chicagoans favorite skyscraper. The 100 - story building, completed in 1969, has a remarkable design, with the huge X-braces serving both a structural and a visual purpose. Visually, it gives the impression of stability and it moves the eye away from the human-sized windows.

X Braces
The construction was designed by the engineer Fazlur Kahn and architect Bruce Graham from Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Fazlur Kahn devised the frame-tube system, which he also implemented in the Sears Tower. This new construction method was made possible by new technologies, like more advanced software and new developments in steel. Thanks to the new construction method, it was possible for Kahn to design constructions which could resist the strong windforces more effectively by having the forces absorbed by all three dimensions of the building. The diagonals are connected to the exterior columns, making if possible for the forces to be carried over from the braces to the columns and back. The innovative construction also resulted in a 50% decrease of required steel compared to skyscrapers built with interior columns.

Multifunctional
The John Hancock Center is a multifunction building. It includes 48 stories of apartments (with a total of 711 apartments), 29 stories offices, shops, a hotel, a swimming pool, an ice rink, restaurant and on top of the 344 meters tall building radio and television facilities. On top it offers services like its own post office and a refuse collection. The apartments are located at the top of the tower. Some of them are so high that the inhabitants sometimes have to call the doorkeeper to ask what the weather's like down on the ground, as the apartments are sometimes above the clouds.

At the beginning of the project, it was controversial mostly because of the location of this massive tower, near the much smaller and more gentle buildings on Michigan Avenue. After its completion, most of the criticism dwindled, but much like with the Sears Tower, the plaza at the entrance was considered very user- unfriendly, being afflicted by heavy gales and loud traffic noise from Michigan Avenue. It was redesigned in 1995 and now includes a 3,5 meters high fountain to muffle the noise and a recirculation of office and shopping traffic.

Observatory
The observation deck at the top of the John Hancock Center gives one of the best views you can have on the Loop, Chicago's downtown area.

******************************* End ****************************

My neck pained when I tried to look up to the top. We went to an American restruant on the 95th and 96th floor of the building. My head was spinning inside the elevator.

The Signature Room
At the 95th floor is the site of countless special occasions and memories for Chicagoans , this hotel is dimmly lit so we can see the magnificent view outside. What a breathtaking view. I felt like staying the whole night here. The brightly lit city of chicago lay like jewels all around us. But being a hotel we had to place order something. At least one item per person. and eat . Everything we ate that day tasted wonderful This was an unforgettable happy moment in my US travel. The young americal girls and ladies looked stunning in their mostly black dresses and
jewellary. We Vidhya , self and Sonali kept admiring them. The view from the womans rest room was the best.

Well we had to leave and spent the night in Vikrant's house in Schaumburg a suburb of Chicago. Morning I took a walk within his complex. His apartment is a sample of a well designed small and elegant American apartment and he has furnished it elegantly too. Vikrant has a good taste for fine living. There were 2 lakes within the complex , geese swimming , walking on the green grass and flying gracefully in the air. Lucky creatures. Aquatic, terrestrial and arial - three in one !! How I wish I could be like that The light green "Weeping Willow trees' lining the lake with their long tender light green branches swaying in the wind was a new sight to me and somehow I was reminded of ' Vikram Vethal "

We visited IKEA a huge furniture mall - and drove in pouring rain to a venketeshwara temple in 'Arora" in Chicago. NO photos could be taken due to the rain. All were very very eager to get there. well it was more due to devotion to the yummy hot hot idli, dosa, wadai , pongal etc. which is available as prasad than due to special devotion to Lord Venkatesheshwara - may the lord forgive us our temptations.

We reached chicago OHare airport and vidhya and sonali helped me upto security clearance. But the walk (run ) to gate C15 was quite a long one. My throat was parched dry with tension to reach and board the flight on time. I did manage to sit in the right craft and was on my way to Washington DC .

Thursday, March 29, 2007

Photo links of USA visit

USA : A govt. for the people



USA Govt. : for the people


USA comes across to me as a govt. that cares for its citizens. Progressive policies and efficient adminstration makes the life of an average american comfortable in many ways. They lead a fine tuned life.

Public Library:
Every city is the proud owner of a large library which is the size of a mall. I found books on all subjeccts, latest thrillers, books with large prints , computer terminal everywhere for people to surf the net or whatever, tables and chair , copiers , fax machines, music Cds, DVDs, video tapes, magazies and news paper of all types. Latest movies were available. Chilren section is mind blowing. such a large collection of books , music cds and video one can borrow at a time any number of any of these and return within a week/month. No rent no deposit. What a system in place ! No robbing no stealing !
How literacy and acquisition of knowledge is a govt. policy and how effectively a system in place implements that - The public libraries in US are a shining exxample of that. India has a long way to go in this direction.

Well equipped Gyms :
Every town small or big houses several huge gyms with large no. of exercisers like treadmills, cycles, wieghts, trainers, jogging track, swimming pool, game courts. Gymming is again a way of life . This is an example of caring for public health in a positive way.


Art museums:
I visited only one in UIUC so far called Kranert's. There ia section here where all drawing and craft materials are provided free and you are encouraged to do what you want let the ceative juices flow.

Public rest rooms :
Where ever we went I found rest rooms with clean and safe toilets and tissue. How I wish back in India we have this system. I recall so many painful trips where one is hunting for decent loos.

Public transport system:
The buses are very large, cosy, comfortable. You ring a bell when you want to get down anywhere. IN Urbana Champaign there are large no. of buses plying on the road and some of these are free for students.

Pedestrian crossing:
Evrywhere there are boards that say "Vehicles yield to pedestrian. It is a state policy" . I always found if there is a car in a crossing and i want to cross, the driver would always indicate that he/she would wait till i cross. IN some signals where large no. of pedestrians are expected to cross there is a "WALK" , "No WALK" signal. In some busy signals where few pedestriaans are likely to cross, there is no pause cycle for pedestrian crossing. but there is a switch the pedestrian has to press for request to stop traffic. THE STOP SIGNAL changes to a human form indicating you can cross safely. "Yield to pedestrian" is a Illinois state policy and boards are put everywhere.

Public Laundary system:
There are laundary rooms where there are large number of washing machines and dryers. The average american does not wash clothes everyday but periodically once in some days. You put your clothes to wash , insert some coins, set the cycle and go complete some work, come back and pick up your clothes on the way . Drying means really dry. In a country where weather is adverse and rooms have to be kept absolutely dry, this is a way of solving a basic need.

Public water distribution system:
Many places in USA experience adverse weather conditions well below zero. Everywhere I saw hot and cold water both flowing out of taps . This is such a huge heating system in place in such a large country. i am really wonderstruck how they have acheived this as a nation. back home we are yet to have 100% water availability to all our people.

Care of Trees and soil:

Here in Urbana champaign I see rows and rows and rows of old tall trees very well cared for. and grass covers every piece of soil on the roads under the trees. Neatly trimmed green pine borders , The grass is swept and trimmed, Squirrels and rabbits run hither and thither. The green carpet of grass is given neat shapes too. Truly America is very rich in this natural resource and they take excellent care of it and nurture it. because of the grass everywhere there is no soil erosion and no dust. The landscape looks pretty too. India has a lot to learn in this direction.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Impressions of an Indian visitor to USA

View from aircraft


"An open minded Indian Woman visits USA and the views are entirely hers. She is full of appreciation for all those small and big amenities enjoyed by its people. She wishes all these amenities for her people in India as well."


Tuesday March 6th 2007

Dear all


Well The Great news I am finally in the USA Now the story of my journey : The takeoff affairs at Mumbai airport was very tense as I had to do so many things and I was rushed for time. When I sat in my seat at last, I was hungry, stressed due to all those ques, formalities and relieved to be at last on my way out of India. I had a window seat with a lady in red coat next to me one Gujarathi women from Ahemedabad who had a upas (fasting) so saved all troubles for herself of eating all the terrible stuff served on board. Lalitha, the seat is similar to the bus seat in Asiad bus. Imagine sitting like that for 9 hours+. At the end of this journey my knees and legs were aching. Every time you want to go to loo, the passenger next must get up and give space, I was constantly thinking how much people ( especially our children) suffer while travelling to US. Well I expected food to be served at once no chance. The hostess were not warm and friendly at all. It was like traveling in some unreserved class., So I opened one biscuit packet (Sridhu u remember we had bought one ) and ate that. The scene from craft when we take off at night is breathtaking, the entire city with lights looks like some intricate jewelery patterns During your night flight every time a jewelery pattern comes in to view, you know you are going over some city. -

We touched schiphol airport in Amsterdam after 9+ hours of flying.
Schiphol is huge huge huge. Just like escalator, you have those moving belts for walking too from one point to another( like tread mills exercising machines). there are also mini 4 seaters driven by air port people to help old, handicapped people move within the air port. But everything is very expensive and people do not talk English. I could not locate drinking water, you have to buy only a small half liter water bottle that costs 1.5 euro I had a hot cocoa that cost me 4$ and a cofee which costs me 1.8 euro's. The cofee was pure decoction with no milk or sugar. . I just longed for our cheap country with lovely coffee and tea. In the flight the coffee servered was like some azhukku tanni ( dirty turbid water) . I just threw it. away

The good thing about this craft was each of us get a small TV screen
and a remote and a head phone to watch what we want, movies , game music anything. There was also announcement in good Hindi. At Schiphol the flight was delayed by 1.5 hours. I just looked around. because everything is so costly, I could not even think of buying. Even then I had spent 10$ and was hungry too. Anything is min. 10 Euros

The flight from Amsterdam to Chicago was the best part of my journey. The hostess was very beautiful and absolutely charming. How she could be so pleasant and smiling with so much of work I really admired her. All the crew were like that. As soon as we took off we were served roasted almonds and some drink. You could have your choice cofee, tea, pepsi, fanta, beer, fresh juice, even hard liquor. I opted for fresh orange as I felt I will regain some energy. This was followed shortly by superb lunch dal, chaval, chappati, rajma, raitha, icecream and dahi. Surprisingly this food was really hot and tasty. Any number of times drinks were available. I thought since we were doing trans Atlantic we would be looking at the sea. but all we see is the clouds below us Only one place we flew over snow covered land and mountains and it was awesome sight. The announcements were in American English and I understood nothing. Luckily they put a video and give you a head phone so you can listen and see to what is explained. Well more in next mail love

vatsala





Thursday March 8th 2007

Dear All

Well Life in USA is different (read luxurious and comfortable) in so many ways

At Mumbai airport and at Chicago airport the difference is so evident. At
Mumbai airport it was long ques, wait, tension and noise. At the end
of it I felt so drained out and hassled. Chicago airport handles
massive traffic yet the procedures are simple, very quick, stress
free. The lack of crowd, noise and dirt makes one feel so comfortable
( at least for me ). There were so many clearance counters at Chicago
Immigration that I was out in less than 45 min. and though I was on my
own there was absolutely no problem.

As soon as we landed Vivek drove me around downtown Chicago. It is the
business hub like peddar road, Napien Sea road in Mumbai. The rich and
the famous live here. It has very tall skyscrappers ( your neck pains
when ever you try to look up to see the entire building) but the
architecture of each building is different and very beautiful. Lake
Michigan is on one side. The lake is actually like sea with proper
waves. So much to see that vivek said you will require 2 days to
really see these places. So we are going again sometime. This drive
had a dream like touch to it as it was my first visual of the grandeur of
America

Life at vivek's place: Champaign and Urbana are twin cities separated
by a road. Like this side of road is Champaign and that side is
Urbana. The place is very beautiful with well lit very broad roads
Balaji the signals on the road are so clear. Every time they change you
get a shock. Traffic moves very smoothly. No one ever breaks rules so
driving is very relaxed. Seat belt is compulsory at all times even for
short drives vivek insists I wear.

I felt jet lagged for 2 days sleepy, severe headache. Today I am fine

Vivek's building ( as also all buildings I suppose ) has a electronically
secured entrance . Only if you have the key or you know the house
number you can enter. If you do not have the key you can call the
house number. One can talk to that person from inside the house and by
pressing a button, the outside door will open. Then there is a long
well lit carpeted corridor like a hotel and doors to apartments in a
row. There is absolutely no communication with neighbors. No one
knows who lives next doors. I find that unnerving as we in India
really have community living. We live with our neighbors, plants and
animals , traffic which makes life so interesting. He has a one room
studio apartment with all comforts. It is as big as our house minus
the kitchen.
Vivek's building Entrance

Weather: Ice cold outside but inside the house it is fine. There is
ice outside the house and i feel like walking on it. It looks solid
hard but if we put out foot, then it is crunchy and crumbles. It is
fun. To go out I put on all the possible warm clothes and look like
Hardy.


Only my eyes are visible. The walk from home to car is ok but
y'day vivek made me walk a short distance and I was freezing. Then he
got me hot coffee. The coffee and tea they drink here is minus sugar and
milk. and tastes different. Everytime we buy coffee I am optimistic that
this time it is bound to be better but alas no such luck so far..







Vivek and Vidya walking down Clark St.

We visited the UIUC student union building and it is like a 5 star
lounge so so charming. the wood works and the interiors are so
aesthetically done up and you see nothing but the best quality
everywhere. Even smallest things reflect design and quality and
comfort. sai peripa would have been amused at the taps here. They
rotate freely at all angles to give you water of varying temperatures
from ice cold to boiling hot.

malls: in US everything is giant sized. vivek took me to Walmart which
is likie 2 Nigdi roads combined in length and breadth, Spencer daily
looks like a miniature mall in comparison.In fact Vivek joked that if
you want a long walk just drop in here. Things are fairly priced.
What you are sure about is the high std. of hygiene and quality.
Balaji the cheese varieties are mind blowing an entire length of one
side is filled with them.

Y'day vivek walked me to his work place. "The co-ordinated Computer
Research lab" I felt proud to read that the current director is
"Ravishankar Iyer". It is a state of art building and the security
mechanisms reminded me of hollywood movies. Nowhere you can move from
one room to another without elecronic security card validation.

Social life: as I mentioned earliar it is you in your own island. You
have to have your friends network. They drop in and talk ( generally
about how one could make more money, the deals they got on so many
things, etc.. )

The dry bathroom : The closed living demands that nothing should be
wet as smells linger. So bathrooms are dry all the time. You have to
bathe in a tub and it is dry cleaning for kokki. Takes some time to
enjoy that!

Love to all
Vatsala




Friday March 9th 2007

y.day was my first enjoyable walk in Champaign in bright sunny sky. Though the sun seems so close and blazing, the temp. is 0 C and it is ice cold. You must have all your gears for cold ( atleast for me)

The roads are very broad and clean. The buildings have a old world charm. Very few tall skyscrapers here. All buildings are gen. 2 storied.

The streets are lined grass, and 2 types of trees, one coniferous like our christmas tree which are ever green and the other decidous which do not have a single leaf and only the tree structure. Together they make a nice combination all over the landscape. Shall send some photos of them soon.


The streets are lined with parking meters thro out on the sides. I saw people inserting somethings ( coins? card? ) and park. Immed. it displays what is the allowed time to park and how many more minutes are left for you.


There is the towing vehicle on the move constantly that tows away any vehicle with parking violation.Vivek also drove me around a 5 story parking lot. Hari lines are drawn for each car and you have to park exactly there. No random parking. Else fine. speed and parking violations are severely dealt with. Vivek says you have to go to court face a magistrate and pay your fine to get your car back. so much hassle and so no wonder no one wants to violate rules.

There are small mountains of ice everywhere. Y'day due to the bright sun there was melting so the roads were wet as if it had rained. When the sun vanished and the temp. dropped, this water refreezed and formed thin shining sheets of ice all over. This forms a very deceptive slippery surface and you have to be careful not to step on that. It is a sure fall else.

I also had so much of time hanging on my hands . There is a book on drawing and Ii spent hours learning to draw and shade a tower. The result is quite decent and shall send you the evidence of my efforts.


Love to all there
Vatsala