Trinity Trip - The Tulip Festival, Albany

Tulip Festival may be a thing of the Pacific Midwest; however the 63^rd Tulip Festival at Albany definitely puts up a good show!  This year the East Coast paid tribute to the Dutch Heritage on Mother’s Day weekend: May 6-8, 2011.

Inspired by the Season 4 of the famous US television series, “Dexter,” I call this a trinity trip. Everything related to the trip had to do with three.

Tribute to Love

>> 3 hours of drive to Albany...

>> 3 hours of hunt to park in Albany...

>> Eventually 3 hours of sight-seeing...

>> And well 3 hours’ drive back home...

Yes, I am not kidding. It’s neither a coincidence nor a joke; we did take that much time to hunt a parking lot. The festival is really popular!! There were at least a couple of thousands to admire the beauty of the colorful festival - old and young, couples and singles, families and friends.

FunFest with Ring Dancers

~~ Festival full of 'Performances n Dances' – Musicians, Ring Dancers, Singers…

~~ Festival full of 'Fun n Frolic' – Arts & Crafts, Live Music, Food, Amusements….

No amount of writing can describe the feast to the eye. We did capture the abundant colors… colorful flowers, colorful birds, and above all colorful people…colors that refresh life :-)

Colorful Tulips

Click here to view Colorful Pictures of the Festival

Click here for more information on the Albany Tulip Festival                   

Cherry Blossom Festival – Rejoicing Friendship!!

Gift of friendship

Everyone in this world celebrates most wonderful and loved relationship “Friendship” in the month of August. There can be no better reason to write about the gift of friendship to the people of United States from the people of Japan – 3020 Cherry Trees!! The Cherry Blossom Festival is the annual celebration of the enduring friendship between these two countries. This year the celebrations were quite emotive and had the sentiments of thousands attached, who came to express their support for the earthquake hit victims in Japan. 

Cherry Blossom Fireworks

We were in Washington DC (DC) to enjoy the nation’s biggest springtime celebration — Cherry Blossom Festival 2011. It has been celebrated for almost a century in US and reflects the respect for Japanese culture in the nation. These Cherry trees turn the Tidal Basin into a cloud of pink each spring for everyone to enjoy.

DC is best when explored on foot. It is tiring and quite chilly in the month of April. Nevertheless, the city acquires the ambrosial flavor of cherry trees planted in the Smithsonian area! It was the evening of April 2 and we were close to Jefferson memorial to witness the radiating fireworks show of the Cherry Blossom Festival. The most spectacular show I have seen, that totally captured the spirit of the festival.

Cherry Colored Fireworks

Bloom watch is the main reason for almost a million tourists to flock to the capital. We were there, just like thousands, to admire the blossoming cherry trees and attend events that herald the beginning of spring in the nation’s capital. And the view was truly amazing!! The view was serene!! The view was exquisite!!

Cherry Blossom - Pink Cloud

We walked and wandered, clicked pictures, admired the scenic view, enjoyed kettle corn.. All this and much more… Not realizing that we would need some energy for the 8 hour road trip back home. We left the state of Delaware at almost 9 pm. It was dark and raining. … I admit we had a tiring journey back home, with very little concentration to drive or to listen to music on deck so that we do not fall asleep. We halted at every service station in New York and Connecticut and took a 5 min nap on our way back.

All-in-all a fun festival that rejoices friendship, raves about beauty and rises for a cause  :)

Maple Festival, New Hampshire — must go for lovers of sweetness in life!

Spring - couple of weeks away

Every year the Maple Festival in New Hampshire marks the onset of spring. This year it was somewhat different. The official start of spring was about a couple of weeks away, and in northern New England, it was still winter. The long winter and late spring of New England is indeed hard to get used to, for someone who is new to New England. Most people say, nothing much happens until the snow finally melts in late April. I beg to differ!! 

What it takes to make Maple Syrup

 The Maple festival in New Hampshire has loads to offer. With air masses getting warmer and winter losing its grip, sap begins to rise in maple trees across New Hampshire. The sap tapping time lasts for about two weeks in March. Sugarhouses and producers all over New Hampshire celebrate this occasion with a bang! They invite people in and organize open houses, festivals to feature the region’s most famous product — NH Maple Syrup.

We were there in the third week of March this year (19 - 20 March, 2011) to join the celebrations at the NH Maple Producers Open House Weekend. There were over 60 sugar houses participating across the state. It was really difficult to choose which ones to visit! We could cover two sugarhouses that day, primarily because we spent way too much time admiring the scenic drive to New Hampshire, chatting with the owners on the steps involved in the maple syrup manufacturing process, getting to know exclusive New England traditions like ‘Maple Sugar on Snow’ from some elderly couples. 

Maple Syrup - just about to get ready

Fresh and warm pure Maple Syrup

The first sugar house had a distinctive aura - small, cozy, welcoming pull. It was a family owned sugar house where all the members of the family were busy attending to visitors, educating them on how maple syrup is made, distributing free samples of the fresh and warm ‘Maple Syrup’, along with free fresh homemade donuts and coffee. This scene was very close to my heart, as it jogs back to my memories of India. Most small time businesses in small towns in India — like a local newspaper vendor or local grocery store or local dairy are — family run, where all members of the family come and chip in some time during the day.  

  

Second Sugar House

The visit to the second sugar house was even more captivating. There were so many families, that we had to walk through a long trail of cars (about half a mile) to get to the sugar house. It was a petite path and I guess it was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. We somehow scrambled over the petite path to reach our destination. And as we moved closer, I realized that it was all worth it!! Couple of yards later, I could see kids playing with their Maple Cotton Candies, couples sharing jokes, pets fooling around with their masters. My guesstimate is that there would around 75 people celebrating the festival; it was amazing to see so many people at one sugar house, all appreciating the sticky sweet treat – fresh and warm!

Fresh fun treat with Maple Cotton Candies, Maple Kettle Corn, Hot Maple Chocolate, and many more Maple delicacies :-) A must go for lovers of sweetness in life!

We love maple cotton candies

Enjoying the festival

Magical Mystic Memories

Magical Mystic Memories… Memories full of enjoyment, exuberance n amusement!!

The first thought that crossed my mind when I heard of Mystic Aquarium, was that of ‘Mystique’, Magneto’s loyal second-in-command, in the X-Men film series.

The alluring Azureus did fulfill his role by of reminding us of ‘Mystique’ but there is certainly more to explore.  I hope the short video ‘Magical Mystic Memories’ gives you a sneak-peek of the deep sea ocean world!!

"Whoah! We’re going to Cape Cod… Whoah! Back to the island… Whoah! We’re gonna have a party…"

With 'Vengaboys' song in mind and the direct correlation of beaches and party, I commenced my journey to the beach, forgetting that it was the cold month of February in New England. Our first beach experience in New England begins with Massachusetts very own ‘Cape’ (Cod). The popular day-trip destination of Cape, Chatham, is known as elbow of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. 

Chatham Lighthouse Beach

In the last one month I really missed the coast (I am from Mumbai and have spent two and half decades of my life there) and just wanted to visit the most attractive beaches in New England. I and GJ both wanted to experience a beach visit in winter; to adore traffic free routes, open parking spaces and ample shopping time.  

Perfect romantic get away

After about a two and half hour drive (approx. 120 miles) we reached Chatham Lighthouse Beach, is said to be a part of Lower Cape and is about a half mile from downtown.  The crowd –free, scenic beach transformed my thought process of partying along the beach to an ideal location for tranquility. The strategic parking lot, at the beach overlook, made our visit even more convenient. I admit, I could not resist nor did I have the patience to stay away from the virtually inviting beach, not realizing that it would be piping cold. In a hurried manner, I got off the car without wearing gloves or jacket or cap. Within no time was I back in the car again, hunting for them. It was cold really cold, windy and how!!

Unique colored stone

After spending about 10 mins to get all decked up to move out of the car, we walked towards one of the best beaches on Cape. By this time, I was sure that it was the perfect romantic beach I was in search for. The views led to infinity and none like others I had seen. I spent over 3 hours admiring the gulls enjoying free time on the beach, pets having a stroll, collecting unique colored shells while GJ was busy capturing the most distinctive shots of the beach and the surrounding. We did explore a few village shops for some antiques and souvenirs. 

Well Chatham has a simple, relaxed and a charming self to it. A serene place with beautiful beaches, harbors, coastal scenes and distinctive village antique shops and really quiet (in winter); ideal to enjoy one’s solitude! 

Pet strolling around

Seagull's free time

My first encounter with Snow!

a fun drive..way under the speed limit

My first encounter with snow has been frightening yet fascinating. I landed in US on 07 Jan 2011 with about a hundred pounds of luggage, a single layer of clothes (from the tropical island 'Mumbai') and with high temperature in the mid-20s to lower 30s (Fahrenheit)! As far as I remember, New York/New Jersey was struck with a snow storm and there was almost up to a foot of snow in Connecticut. Thankfully my husband GJ – who is pretty accustomed to New England’s unpredictable weather – got some gloves and snow jackets when he came to pick me at the Liberty International Airport, Newark.  

Crazy about snow

For starters, I got crazy when I saw snow, started jumping around, singing songs, playing with snow and I so wanted a snow man and snow angles of my own right then and there, that GJ had to push me in the car to take me home. We did halt at a few places on our way home, for coffee and breakfast, where I enjoyed my fascinating moments with snow. GJ was having a hard time driving, I guess it took him almost 6 hours (instead of a 3 hour journey) to get to Newark. 

And as we got closer to home, I encountered the most mysterious part of New England - the weather!! The snow was almost gone half –way thru’ Connecticut and it was sunny in Massachusetts. For the first time ever, I saw a completely frozen lake (an outlandish phenomenon for someone from the tropical weather) and I danced like a peacock  in the snow. As I reached home (after a long and tiring 13 hour drive for GJ), my love for snow had reached newer heights. The view from our living room was awe-striking with heaps of snow in the lawn and chipmunks playing around, a distant teeny tiny frozen pond with the cardinals and blue jades, whose gently awful stirrings seem to speak mounds!  

This was the time I decided  to begin my relationship with snow!!!

View form our living room

ooooo i found a nut ^_