The mention of Goa conjures up different images of golden sand beaches, gorgeous sunsets, swaying palms, nightlife, historic portugese villages and beautiful churches  but to us it means sheer hospitality in a serene and canny holiday destination at the Planet Hollywood, a newly opened luxury hotel where charm meets out and out warmth extended by each and every staff including Mr. Anand Chatterjee,the GM, the Food and Beverage Mgr, Mr. Saurabh Bhatnagar and unquestionably the most fabulous personality, the Executive Chef, Mr. Sundar Rajan Sudharsan.

Our holiday was made all the more special and indelible by the wonderful Exec Chef who cooked up an exquisite meal along with a birthday cake not only on my special day but during each and every day of our stay there.

The rooms and every corner was adorned in a classy hollywood style with pics of hollywood celebs. Housekeeping could have been slightly better and it would have been great if there was complimentary wifi in the room or atleast the lobby.

Buffet spread at the planet dailies consisted of a fusion of both Indian and western along with a  live counter for dosa and omelet and had a good choice for both breakfast and dinner. Al la Carte options are less but we were privileged to enjoy out of the menu options prepared by the Exec Chef every day which was totally customized to suit our taste buds. And each staff personally ensured we were comfortable and had everything at our table.

The beach which is hardly a min walk from the hotel was very clean though there were a few stray dogs and cows too. The swimming pools are great along with jacuzzi and a paid paddle boat for kids which could be rented at INR 350 for 15 mins.

However the place lacks any kind of activity for kids. The Pink Spa services are excellent but the ambience would have been better.

Reception staffs were also very polite and made sure to greet you everytime they came in contact They were kind enough to pack the breakfast for us as our flight back home was early morning.

Would definitely like to recommend it to anyone who pays more value to service.

In other words, it was a splendid and awesome holiday packed with utmost warmth and hospitality which makes it a nostalgic one.

Check this link for pics and do not forget to leave a comment about your holiday:-)

http://www.photosnack.com/MoonmeeDasChakrabarty/planethollywoodgoa.html

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My LO was turning two and this time I decided to do all the decoration myself. It is not only economical but also gives a fair chance to keep your child engrossed in the craft activities.

The theme for this year was Apple and I chose red, green and pink colours to go with the theme...very apt for my DD as her favourite fruit or rather flavour was Apple and she relates to everything round and soft to an apple:-) Also her favourite colours are pink and red:-)

Here are some flamboyant yet easy ways to pep up the birthday place. I started with an apple tree cut out. All you need is two shades of green craft paper, one red and one brown craft paper.

Start by cutting out the two sheets of the green paper into cloud shapes which can be done free hand.

Then you can either use apple templates or use a cut out creator application ( Cutout Creator from reallusion.inc at a minimum fee of INR 60),to cut a few apple shapes with your red craft paper. Next, I cut out the trunk of the tree with the brown construction paper. Now glue the back side of the green cut outs and stick them to one another in a overlapping way to resemble the tree and attach the brown cutout to make it look like the trunk. Glue the apple cut outs and stick them over the green portion and one or two near the trunk below.

It was now turn to make some wall hangings....apple shapes again. The cut creator will come in handy again. Cut out lots of apple shapes with red and pink construction paper. Now attach them at a gap of around 15 cm each and attach them with a green string. You could use hot glue to string them.

I bought a few red, pink and green paper lanterns and hung them from the ceiling along with lots of balloons in the same colour.

If you have a big plain portion in the room it could be adorned with apple shaped picture frames with photos of your LO.

I also used some red, pink and green crepe paper ribbons to decorate all the walls, a basket of apples placed in one corner of the room and one red round paper ball to which I attached a green leaf cut out to make it look like an apple.

Now the last but the most important task was to create the bunting banner. I chose a triangle shape with apple designs placed in each triangle shape but you could also opt for an apple shaped banner.

The apple cut outs come in handy again:-) or you could even check out for free printable's on Pinterest.

In case you want to go with the triangular design all you have to do is create the triangle design in MS-Word, fill your favourite colours, insert some apple picture, readily available on the Internet and insert your desirable font onto it to write Happy Birthday. Repeat the process so you have a nice pile of the triangular shapes. Now take printouts, cut, punch holes and hang them with a string at an interval of 3-4cms.

I kept the cake simple two tier one with apple fondants placed here and there but you could also bake an apple shaped one.

To add a zing to the party, I welcomed all guests with an Apple-Cinnamon flavored freshener and packed apple cinnamon flavoured oats and tea bags with apple enriched mouth fresheners and candies  sealed in a pack that was tied with an red apple cut out and green ribbons to send guests home with a party favor along with a thank you card.

For entertainment, a fabulous selection of party games is mandatory. But since my LO was just 2 and did not start school yet my selection of games mainly centered around adult players. I arranged for a skittles game where instead of the ball I used an apple. Next was a blindfold game where players had to spot the hidden basket of apples. And last but the most awesome game that tested the balance skill of the players was to move from on point to another with an apple balanced on one's head. And to cheer up the spirit do not forget to arrange the gifts for the winning players.

The menu was a grand selection of all apple flavoured delicacies like apple tarts, caramel apple pops, zesty apple salad, apple juice, apple and cherry strudel,maple syrup roasted apples with pumpkins, grilled apple cheese and chicken sandwich,etc.

I am sure these apple themed party decorating ideas with definitely help steer you in the right party planning direction at home at an affordable cost making your party a significant and wonderful occasion to hold a lifetime of memories.

To make LO's party the sweetest celebration, do not forget to take lots of pictures. I am posting a few pictures of my party to be followed by the party craft activities in my upcoming posts. So, do not forget to come back and check that with more party themes and ideas. Till then happy crafting!!!

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Though we are fond of trying world cuisines but at one point we too feel like having our own traditional home cooked food...and there we were hunting for Indian groceries during our Seoul sojourn which brought us to Itaewon this weekend.

After thorough surfing the net,I discovered that the only place that stocks Indian stuffs along with food from most other Asian countries like Thailand,Indonesia,Pakistan,Bangladesh,etc is located at Itaewon also nicknamed as the global community in Seoul,it is a street full of restaurants and stores from all over the globe.

It was a cloudy evening and though we kept on postponing our trip,atlast we set out to catch the subway line no.6 but since our regular route was line no.2 we boarded it to the Seoul National University,changed it to line 3 to reach Yaksu station and then boarded line 6 to reach Itaewon...which sounds like a long trip but is actually not so.

Click here for a subway map of Seoul

http://www.blogger.com/map%20http://www.nsubway.co.kr/korea/seoul/seoulsubwaymapen.htm

Exit at gate no.3 and just a few metres away after crossing the police station on your right, Hamilton hotel on your left across the road and the fire station on your left side take a right turn which is a slightly hilly area and try to locate Kings club...right next to it is the Foreign Food Mart.

The address is # 137-8,Itaewon dong,Jungeun Bldg,Yongsan Gu,Seoul City.Tel :02) 793-0082 and email: foreignfood_mart@yahoo.com

You can also log in to their website: http://foreignfoodkr.com/

As it was the weekend the shop was too crowded but the ready stock of all our groceries...be it basmati rice,dal,atta,papad,Haldiram sweets and snacks,spices,hair oil, ghee,mustard oil,Indian cosmetics,etc...made us feel at home and delighted. We bought the things but left it to be delivered to our residence after making the payment and there it was at our doorstep after a day.

It is always recommended to buy in bulk as you get good discounts. And don't forget to relish some Indian dinner available right next and opposite to the shop at two restaurants named..Foreign Restaurant and the Taj which has serves both a la carte and buffet style(16500 korean won per person at the FR) which includes an array of salads,soups,snacks,rice,naan,chicken,chole,dal,veg curry and pakodas,papadums and also loads of Indian desserts for those having a sweet tooth.

Hope it helps and do keep coming back for more interesting and valuable posts on Seoul as we continue our sojourn in this global city and the largest metropolis of South Korea.

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Our long awaited dream of moving to South Korea finally materialised this year but it was not an easy task to move from one land to another as it calls for a lot of detailed planning if you don't want your life to be jeopardised in a foreign land.

The first challenge starts with house hunting. As we moved from India where big sized apartments are readily available we could not get out of that frame of mind when we started our house hunting process. In most Asian countries as we had heard earlier the size of houses are pretty small but when we practically saw it in Seoul,it was a source of dissapointment as we could not get anything better then studio type villas for USD 1500-2000 with everything in one open room. At most you can get one with a sliding door which doesn't make much of a difference.

However if you are willing to invest a lot of money as deposit for the house you may end up in a big place like an apartment. It is only in the Kangnam area that one can pay one month's rent as deposit which we chose to though it is one of the most expensive areas in Seoul as it had all the amenities in close proximity and was easily accessible by the subway lines.Or else have 10-12 months rent ready to be paid as deposit.Utilities and maintainence charges are extra.

Realtors do a good job in helping you find a home and in most cases you have to pay them 30% as brokerage. We found our home sweet home via http://www.nearsubway.com. Run by a lady named Sue,very professional and helpful, she helped us locate this place which was fully furnished at one go without any hassle unlike in most apartments where you have to buy all things on your own,this villa(usually a 5 storey building in S.Korea) had everything from TV,Fridge,Washing machine with dryer,AC,Gas stove,floor heating,bed,dining table,etc to make your stay comfortable.

A few other realtors that we explored were...nicerent and acerent but most were not prompt in their replies when we tried to contact them via email.

Once you are settled in the house,the next few things to be kept in mind are that Koreans are very particular about garbage disposal. Food,clothings,paper and plastics are all to be separated before disposing.Be sure to ask the manager of the place before doing so or it may be sent back to you.

For shopping one can opt for E Mart ,Home Plus, Diaso etc for reasonably priced groceries and other home items. Communication is very convenient in Korea as most places are easily connected by the subway lines..make sure to get a subway map...they have it english too. Once you buy a ticket it's easy to move around the city though call taxis are readily available too on the roads but make sure to tie your seat belts as they drive really rash and most cannot speak in english so learn a few basic korean verses before boarding to explain your destination.

As we continue our sojourn in S. Korea and undergo new and numerous experiences, I shall keep coming back with more tips and tricks on how you can make your stay more enjoyable and easy in this wonderful land called Seoul which is indeed the "Soul of Asia"

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Yet another creation during my craft sessions was a wall hanging made with sand paper. Very simple yet elegant and something kids would enjoy doing.

The materials required are:-

Black and Brown coloured sandpaper

Glitters

Satin ribbon

Cone Liners

Glue

Scissor

Scale for measurement

First take equal measurements in the sand paper (I took 4cms on both sides) and cut it into equal pieces using a sharp pair of scissors. Now place them one on top of each other (you can also place one above and one below like I did in a criss cross pattern using both colours).

Now using glue stick them as you see in the picture. You can use either 3D cone liners or glitters or even any paint to create any patterns on the sand paper. You can also make rose with satin ribbon and stick on it.

Once it is done you can frame it and hang it in your child's favourite spot in the house!!!

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My next class during the summer workshop was on pot painting, something simple but very pretty!!!

The materials required are:-

An earthen pot

Fabric colours

Glass colours

Glitters

Brush

A piece of cloth.

We first start by painting the base colour of the pot in any shade.preferably white or black. My students mostly did it in white so they would have a choice of variety of colours to add on to it. At first paint the entire pot including the inside portion ( to where it can be seen) with white fabric colours using a thick paint brush and let it dry for some time.

The most easy design is to pour glass colours onto the pot and let it flow down naturally on its own. We started from top of the pot where we poured four drops of glass colors in equal quantity and let it flow down. Let it dry. Now take the glitters and put different coloured lines in between the glass colours. You can also give glitter borders. Be Creative!!!

The same pattern could be followed for the outside of the pot. You can start pouring four drops of different shades of glass colours and let them flow down on their own. Let them dry and then glitters could be used to draw line in between the glass colours and on the neck of the pot some chain pattern could be done with golden glitters and put a pink glitter drop in between each loop of the chain.

Here are a few pictures of such designs done by my students. In pots with black coloured base use more of glitters then paint. Let your creativity flow and keep checking my forthcoming posts for more crafty ideas!!!

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One of my favourite pastime activities besides art and cooking includes craft work too!!! This time during the summer vacations I decided to organise a craft workshop,the activities of which I am planning to post one by one so that everyone sitting at home this summer can utilise their time in a fruitful way.

On the first day I started with Glass colours on Canvas which is pretty simply and looks beautiful. The same colours can be used to paint on glass or stick glass peices on canvas and pour paint on them to create a wonderful item. But I didn't want to take risk with the small ones and hence decided to keep it simple on Canvas.

Here is how it goes....

Materials required:-

One Canvas board

A set of Glass Colours (I used Camel)

Carbon paper

A pencil

Pallette

Any medium sized paint brush

A piece of Cloth.

First, select any design for your canvas and trace it out with the use of a carbon paper and pencil. Once the pattern is on the canvas,use the liner provided in the glass colour kit and outline the entire drawing on canvas and let it dry for about 15-20 mins.

Then start filling the glass colours according to your taste. You can either pour it directly if you think you have control over them or else can use a pallette and brush,but remember glass colours are not easy to be removed from your pallete!!!

Once you are done let it dry for sometime and frame you beautiful painting for display at the favourite spot of your home!!!

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