L’échange scolaire : Un voyage inoubliable

Le dernier jour au lycée Héléne Boucher

Le 17th décembre, mes amis et moi, Nous sommes arrivés à l'aéroport internationale d’Indira Gandhi au petit matin ne plus tenir en place et un peu et un peu nerveux de voyager près de 8000 km par nous-mêmes. Est-ce qu’on a su à ce moment-là, comme nous avons pris l'avion, que notre famille allait allons maintenant élargir pour y inclure de nouveaux frères, parents, sœurs, tantes ...?

Pas du tout, nous n’avons eu aucune idée. Mais à 19h du soir, quand nous avons quitte l’aéroport Charles de Gaulle, salué par des affiches hindi et avons accueilli par deux messieurs dans les vêtements français traditionnels, nous avons commencé à avoir une idée. 

« Quand une histoire sort de votre expérience, c'est presque toujours plus fort. »

L’expérience que nous avons vit pendant L’Echange Scolaire 2012 entre DPS International et le prestigieux- Lycée Helene Boucher. Ce n’était pas seulement un voyage dans ​​la ville de Paris et une expérience parisienne mais nous avons réussi, en effet, à trouver une famille loin de chez -nous. 

Là, à Paris, nous avons appris à ajuster, à se faire des amis, de s'adapter, d'apprendre, de s'ouvrir à de nouvelles idées, d'enseigner et surtout d'apprendre avec un esprit ouvert et la bouche fermée. Il nous a appris quelque chose de différent et nous a changés pour devenir de meilleurs amis, de meilleurs enfants, de meilleurs étudiants et de meilleures personnes. Mais plus que tout, le temps que nous avons passé dans la ville restera toujours proche de nos cœurs. 

De nombreux voyages en métro nous ont fait mémorisé les stations par cœur, de longues promenades, se perdre, le nombre des musées, la connaissance acquise, les parcs magnifiques qui vous détendent, le paysage splendide, l'odeur persistante d'une pâtisserie, la liste est longue. La connaissance, l'expérience et le plaisir que nous avons vit sont inoubliables dans toute vie. Et j'espère qu’un jour tout le monde aura la chance d'avoir la même expérience inoubliable.

2 Minute Dinner Tips - Watermelon and Feta Salad

This combination should not work - for some one as basic as me in my taste - but it does and while, right away you don't even realise how genius and easy it is; it comes back to you at the most strange moments begging you taste it again. The salad works because the freshness and sweetness of the watermelon goes splendidly with the saltiness of the feta cheese. Also, it is so easy to prepare.



Methods of Prep:

• 1 Bag of Lettuce
• Watermelon (according to taste)
• Feta Cheese (in accordance with Watermelon)
• 1 Onion, thinly sliced (optional)
• A dribble of Olive oil
• A squeeze of lemon juice
• Mint leaves to garnish
• And Voila!

Enjoy!

Marriage

 Study till 22, job at 25, girl at 26, kids at 30, retirement at 60 ... and then wait for  death ... who wants to live such a boring life     

I'm using this dialogue yet again but it's because it so succinctly puts into words, what boggles me about life. Since, when has marriage become the goal of our lives? I understand that everyone wants someone to share a life with; to love but that would apply if all marriages were love marriages. They aren't.

We understand that child-marriages should be illegal because every child under 18 is too young to take on the responsibilities of marriage. What responsibilities? I thought this was about sharing your life not becoming an unpaid servant to the whims and fancies of your "other half" (applies to both men and women). And what qualifies you to be 'too old for marriage'? There are no physical disabilities that we succumb to once we get older! Then how does one get too old to marry?

Marriage is nothing but a binding contract for a relationship which I am in no way against but at the end of the day, it is a relationship. While, perhaps you may be too young to have one (not sure about this yet), you cannot definitely ever be too old for one.

Marriage should stop being treated as the ultimate goal of life, as the definitive next step when you turn of a certain age. And to those who say, we marry to procreate - open your eyes and look around! There are far too many people on this planet. If some people decided not to have kids, doesn't mean the human race will end. Apparently, humans love sex too much. At least we don't eat our children.

Travel Guide: Jama Masjid and an Iftar Food Walk

This post is a Eid special. And while I write it most of the countries in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia Europe, America and Canada celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr today marking the end of a month long period of fasting, Ramadan (Ramzan). In India, it's tomorrow.

In celebration of Ramadan, Eid and in a way Chand Raat* my family, friends and I visited the famous streets around the Jama Masjid (Masjid-i Jahān-Numā)  in Delhi. 

View of Jama Masjid while there was still light.

The streets were wonderfully busy as people on their roza (fast) went about purchasing food and getting ready for their prayers. Around 7:45, the as the sunset, two loud firecrackers announced the end of the roza. I couldn't help but watch curiously as everybody nibbled on a small food item and drank some water. It was a strangely calming sight. You would imagine these people would be starving after an entire day of no water and food. If they were, they showed no signs. Shopkeepers, vendors and restaurant servers alike ate nothing more than maybe one khajoor (dates) or some fruit. It was so cute to see that vendors gave away small snacks for open to open their fasts.

A very blurry picture of a Khajoor vendor.

View of Jama Masjid at dusk (above) from Meena Bazaar (below)

Once the sun sets, special lighting all around the Masjid are switched on making for a spectacular view. Our food walk began in street just opposite the Jama Masjid. About 100m away from it's beginning is a nondescript eatery where an old man is cutting up meat. A large bain-marie is boiling away with hot oil. This shop goes by the name of Haji Mohammed Hussain. 

They sell the most amazing fish and chicken fry. I kid you not. The food is marinated in a mix of spices that have remained a secret. The food is plated up straight from the pan. Served with chutney, a sprinkle of masala and round onions, the taste is orgasmic. The chicken is succulent and delicious, breaking apart as you bite into. One of the finest fried chicken ever served.

We couldn't get enough of this chicken but moved, quite unwillingly, back down the lane to the Masjid, entering the street perpendicular to it for some mouth-watering kebabs. Perhaps, some may have a problem with the hygiene at this particular taste but perhaps for some the taste would be worth the risk. The kebabs are soft and melt in the mouth. 

Popular indoor restaurant Al Jawahar

As impossible as it seems, we weren't done yet. ate at the popular Al Jawahar. It's touted as the undiscovered Karim's and since I've been too Karim's, I felt that it was the right time to compare the two. 

Al Jawar is a nice restaurant. I wanted to write little but it's not. It has extended into three floors of a medium-sized seating arrangement that is comfortable and provides full A.C. There was a waiting to get a table but because the service is so coordinated and fast, we didn't have to wait long - even though we were nine people!

We ordered a Sheer Mal, Romali Roti, Tandoori chicken, Afghan chicken, and biryani. I wanted Nihari but it was only available in the morning hours - huge bummer for me because I'd been waiting for that the entire evening. I know it's hard to imagine.

Unfortunate as it was, I didn't enjoy the food at Al Jawahar as much as people had said I would. Sheer Mal which is sweet bread was definitely fantastic - better than Karim's. But the biryani and the chicken were nothing special. It was a pity because they were made so well but I suggest Karim's Nihari. To top off the meal, we ate phirni - a traditional rice pudding delicacy which was alright as I have eaten better but it was perfect end to the night.

Phirni, a traditional dessert (rice pudding) at Al Jawahar

Meena Bazaar on the foot of Jama Masjid, Gate 

Before the sunset

After the breaking of the Roza, the lights came to life.

Here's a video of when the azaan started. Just wanted to sit and listen forever. 

How to get there: Take the metro to Chawri Bazaar and then a rickshaw to the Jama Masjid.

So here's the Food Guide to Jama Masjid. To everyone, Eid Mubarak, especially to our friends in Gaza. May Allah guide you and bless you with peace, happiness and prosperity. 

*eve of the Muslim festival of Eid ul-Fitr

Travel Guide : The Westin Sohna Resort & Spa

View from the window - The Westin

In the humdrum and chaos of life, it not always possible to travel much. Perhaps that was the thought the The Westin Sohna was built with. Only 2 hours away from Delhi, on the Sohna road, the resort is made to be the perfect weekend getaway. 

My journey (with my family) began on a friday when we set off around 3:30 p.m reaching quite quickly around 5:30. The roads started out as fantastic and worsened the further we got away from the city. However, thankfully there wasn't much traffic and the bumps only slowed us down mildly.

Westin at first glance is quite exotic: the path leading to the reception, a steady wooden walkway flanked by a shallow water pool. Infact, the entire reception is surrounded with water moat. Greenery is in abundance and it almost seems like the luxurious farmhouses in Gurgaon. 

Westin is huge so although you can walk, there are golf carts deployed around the area to drive you to and from your room. Apart from having the most lovely, soft beds. The Westin provides for cycling, swimming, horse riding, and just siting around doing nothing. There were special activities for kids too.

Architecturally, the resort is wonderfully made with individual building of red brick standing in contrast to the greenery and the sandpaper path. However, inside the rooms, the oddest feature is that there are no doors to the bathroom. Instead, there are two sets of meagre, see-through curtains making bathing and going to the loo an embarrassing and rather quick process. As you can see, anyone siting up in made has full view of anyone who is taking a shower in the cubicle (not shown in picture) or having a bath in the tub (in picture).

The breakfast is lavish with a spread perhaps wider than that of a five-star hotel such as Taj but the food, in general, is anything but ordinary. In fact, the accessibilty of Westin meant that on Sunday there was no space to breathe much less stand as families from nearby all popped in for a Sunday Buffet Breakfast.

View at The Westin, Sohna: Resorts & Spa

Pretty pretty.

 The Westin is at the most a one time visit and although staying in the room, or siting in the garden provides the kind of relation city-dwellers often need, the nearby activity of paramotoring and the cars on the road along the resort can most easily ruin the peace and quiet. It's perfect for a one or two-day vacation.


Rating - 2/5 stars

Everything and Nothing : Fresh Starts

I should start by mentioning how deeply apologetic I am for being this inactive on the blog this past few months. The truth is that things have been crazy. But when are things not crazy right?

I recently started college - a week back to be specific - last monday to be even more - and everything has changed. The transition from school to college has only been spoken off but can only be understood best when experienced - as with other things. When my mum had repeatedly told me, 'Things will be completely different at college.' I believed her but never understood the extent at which that happens.

The best and possibly the worst thing to happen at college is the amount of freedom that you get. You are no longer children. All this while, you are waiting impatiently for you to be treated like an adult. Suddenly, as if the college gates were some sort of transformation portal, you finally start being treated like an adult. You are left completely responsible for your own self. For those who move away from home to hostel, the change is much greater and scarier. No one is going to feed you, do your laundry, make your bed or even remind you of homework. If you want to sit and watch Netflix all day you're most welcome to!

School to college in real life is like birthday transformations in sims.

There is no way to be prepared for college: I was a bundle of nerves the first day. Making friends can be both difficult and easy. At first, there are some who you easily become friends with yet others whom you feel you could be friends with but neither you make the effort nor they. It's all okay though. Slowly and steadily, things will become more steady and less scary. Even if, on the first, you weren't as successful in making friends as you hoped, it doesn't guarantee that you'll be friendless throughout. In fact, once you start attending class and participating in societies, you'll probably make enough friends to last you a lifetime.

Thankfully for me so far; my teachers are great, the students are alright, the seniors are as helpful and friendly as they can get and the campus is lovely. Slowly I hope to get to know more people, learn more things and become more confident.

One thing a senior told me and I'd like to share with you - 'By second year, everything changes. The first year is a massive grooming process.' So let the chips fall where they may! Have a happy experience!

The Days of Future Past in the X-Men Franchise

You see what I did there with the title? Future Past? X-Men? Play on the title of the new movie? No? Okay.

So, far I am legitimately the ONLY one in all my friends and acquaintances (ten people) who disagrees with the general consensus on the movie 'X-MEN: Days Of The Future Past'. Critics, reviewers, fans - everybody is literally gushing over the film but is it really that good?

I'm going to have to start with the title. I am aware of the fact that the title doesn't define the movie but 'Days of the Future Past' has to be the worst title ever! Subtitle actually. Or whatever. Does it even make grammatical sense? I feel like zero energy and effort were put into naming the film. It is honestly the most unimaginative, and literal title I have had the misfortune of coming across.

X-Men: Days of the Future Past is based in a dystopian future when the world has been taken over by killer robots (of course this is original!). These robots were created to kill mutants but went rogue, and started killing anyone who had even the slightest connection with mutants and their mutations. Mutants decide to save the day by sending Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) back into the past to stop the event that led to all this.

Although, the story boasts of complexity, in reality, however, people are forgetting that 90% of the movie only follows Wolverine, Beast, Prof X and Magneto as they chase Mystique down to stop her from shooting Trask (creator of Sentinels): the event that spirals out of control into a bleak and dark future.

When Jackman arrives in the past, Magneto is in prison for killing JFK and so it is decided that he must be freed. There is an extensive albeit hilarious breakout scene featuring Quicksilver which proves to be the undoing of the main characters. Magneto was meant to help them stop the creation of the Sentinels instead he ends up making the situation worse and then abandoning the protagonists to follow an evil path - entirely his own. Notably, Quicksilver's powers would have been much more handy and much less messy in stopping Mystique and the decision to leave him behind seems inexplicable.

Coming back to the other 10% of the story, it is quite unfortunate, but the action sequences are seriously lacking. Mystique's fighting scenes are repetitive, Wolverine's fighting scenes are non-existent because he can't fight with his non-metal claws, and the beast hardly ever uses his powers. Moreover, Professor Xavier can't use his powers as a result of a drug that allows him to walk. When he does come around to using his powers, he is too weak to provide an substantial result. Hence, the movie spans a multitude of  long narratives instead, through which (surprisingly) he is able to convince the villains of the hour against their villainy.

The film ends on a predictable happy note with an altenate future in which all of the previous characters are alive since none of the events of the past films have occurred. For instance - Jean and Scott are alive. This means our money, time, and patience were all truly wasted watching the previous films as none of it ever happened.

'...characters diagnose and cure each other through the power of motivational speechifying...[Xavier] eventually pumps everyone up slowly, empathetically, boringly.' - rogerebert.com

This could not get any worse but unfortunately, it does. The cast of the film is bloody amazing! James McAvoy and Patrick Stewart are as usual fantastic as Charles Xavier as are Micheal Fassbender and Ian McKellen as Magneto. Peter Dinklage plays Bolivar Trask with panache. Moreover, there is Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Halle Berry (Storm), Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique), Ellen Paige (Shadowcat), James Marsden Nicolas Hoult (Beast), Lucas Till (Havok) and I am not even halfway through the cast. The acting prowess of these actors is commendable and the movie felt short to fully showcase their abilities.

I love the X-Men.; the comics and all but the truth is that the X-Men franchise is a huge disappointment. People keep saying that the movie is a huge improvement from The Last Stand  however, the point is not the compare it to other films from the franchise. It is a better than The Last Stand, yes, but that doesn't make it any good. Much like its predecessor, apart from a few chuckles and mediocre graphics, the film really doesn't offer much to the viewer.

X-Men movies have stopped depicting what the comics and its characters stand for. The standards of this franchise have been falling for a while now, and the The Last Stand did hit an all new low. The only hope is that now that rock bottom has been hit - there is no way but up!

To conclude - eh!

1/5 stars

P.s - There was a post-credit scene that I obviously missed, as did everyone else in my hall. #StopThePost-CreditScenes. The short scene introduced Apocalypse as the new villain of the series.


Similar Reads: Den of Geek - 11 questions about X-Men Days Of Future Past answered