Discovering Singapore Heritage in Geylang

This weekend I was suddenly overcome with a burning desire to take the (somewhat new) DSLR for a spin. After some quick searching, Hari came to the rescue (as he often does..) with a  suggestion to drive to Joo Chiat Rd. That is all I knew  and I was happy to go along and be surprised. Three hours later, I came away excitedly with a camera full of fun images of colourful Geylang!

Joo Chiat Rd is a narrow lane with gorgeous shop-houses 

A small little bird cage outside the neighborhood mosque

  

 

So many elegant carvings and windows to take in

And some vivid colours

Not to mention adorable tiled roofs

All surrounded by lovely tropical foliage, so typical of Singapore

We ran into a couple walking by in traditional outfits (I wonder if the woman is wearing a modern 'Kebaya'?)

I could have easily mistaken this location for a resort!

A modern building in the middle of the heritage area yet with a similar colour pallete

I took this image just as we were heading back - I truly wondered if I was in Geylang or outside the Pompidou in Paris?

 We picked up some flowers as we headed back- Can you tell if these are real or fake ?

What a lovely way to discover cool parts of  the city we now call home..!

I Click & Therefore I Am

The title is borrowed from ex-colleague and editor of Vogue India @priyatanna when she was in a digitally  inspired state of mind...

Its been over 12 years since I made my first purchase online.....Book? (No) Tickets? (No) None of the usual suspects - It was in fact an economical and perfect for students sort of TV set found on eBay. I remember not feeling worried about using my credit card online or feeling the lack of trust on whether the TV would arrive in proper condition. Either I was a natural at this or it was plain naiveté. Either way, I really enjoyed shopping online.

From there on till today, the online shopping spree has continued and grown rapidly in ticket size, physical size and more! My love for it has reached such proportions that some might call it a desperate addiction. I prefer to term it as my utter and complete dedication to the digital lifestyle ;-)

This morning, I sat thinking about all the things I have bought online and decided to do a top 10 list. Here is the best of what I can admit publicly to buying online:

zalora.com

On My BookShelf Today: Deepak Chopra

Hari met Deepak Chopra recently and get me signed copy of his new book of soulful leadership. I finally found some time to read this morning.

30 pages done already - Anybody that knows of my reading habits can vouch that this is great progress for me!

The unfinished tattoo story

Image Courtesy: Unique Tattoos Here is the tattoo I fell in love with recently. I am still waiting to get it done. Suggestions of good tattoo artists in Mumbai anyone? The experience with Al's in Bandra turned out to be completely disappointing...so the tattoo still awaits :(

Harajuku Shopping

After 4 years of planning and anticipation, we finally made it over to Japan. Given where I work, one of my colleagues had chanted the name Harajuku in my ear atleast 5 times saying I must visit. Never under estimate the power of affirmation ;-)!




Once in Tokyo, I found myself feeling a burning urge to go to Harajuku - still cant explain why.

The narrow brightly lit lane dotted with adorable stores was hard to resist. As luck would have it, my shoes fell apart as we started walking down Harajuku. Conveniently it was right outside a shoe store! I call it 'meant to be', Hari calls it ' the cheat in me' - either which way, I was forced to walk in and buy a pair of cool suede boots.
It took over an hour to find a pair of boots that fit me. Serves me right for taking my giant Ogre feet to a fashion forward store in a country where women have the tiniest of feet that have stayed wrapped up in Japanese silk booties for very long.....

Love our new place!

We finally moved to a dream place in Mumbai. The sort that Hari and I feel like we have wanted and aspired to for a long time. To my utmost and innermost joy it is in my favourite Bandra area and to Hari's utmost joy, he is close to the sea again (He grew up living close to the Sea). I am itching to order more contemporary yumm furniture and rugs and art!! Boconcept, Urban Decor, here we come!

Antara has got her long awaited baby room in blue and green with a lovely pottery barn style while bed. She is waiting to inagurate it soon!

Most of all, Hari has his long dreamt of DEN! Oozing masculanity with Red black and steel !

Here is a sneek peak - More pictures coming later..

Geek! Marketing! - Labels Labels

After a long long time.....here I am - once again - back to my dear blog.

While its been a cool 4+ years in Mumbai, professionally, the quest for a befitting 'label' continues.

Starting at Google in India, I was labeled 'Marketing' (to be said aloud with a healthy sound of cynicism in your voice and a look suggestive of impending evil). All the friendly engineers will slap that label on me occasionally along with suggestions of flowery language and commercial packaging in the same sentence ;-)

Moving next to Stylkist, here of course, I wore the halo label - 'entrepreneur'. This label carries a kind of cache which cannot be explained. You are suddenly cool, and sub-optimal working conditions add further to the coolness quotient.

Coming now to the label at hand - 'A Techie with a creative side' - When you work at a temple of fashion, style and luxury (Vogue India / GQ India) and particularly when you preach social networking and the digital way of life, it isn't surprising that a label such as 'A Techie..' has come about. The reference to the creative side is a huge compliment!

And the labels continue to pile up. Wonder what the next intriguing one will be!