A unique Double Rainbow on Earth Day

Standing at our balcony in Mashobra, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India ,we were witness to a spectacular double rainbow yesterday afternoon.

Lasting for over 20 minutes, it stayed right there in front of us as we stood there awestruck.
 The highlight of out day on Earth Day, its something that will stay with us forever

Here it is in all its glory

Enchanting Himachal- Moods, Shades and Views-My video on You Tube

On a road trip to enchanting Himachal in the month of April we are discovering  some fabulous views, moods and shades.

The weather is unbeatable- a slight nip in the air in the morning and cold on some evenings. In fact,day before yesterday when the temperature was 24 C I remember saying it was rather warm. Hey Presto, it rained the very next day and how! The temperature dropped by about 8 degrees instantly and we are back to feeling 'normal'.

We are based at Gables, a beautiful colonial hotel in Mashobra which is a part of the Club Mahendra network and head out to a different location everyday.

Surrounded by beauty all around

Apple trees with beautiful white flowers and orchards all ready for the season which begins next month.

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Walking past these beautiful sights is absolutely delightful and one just cant get enough of the weather, sights and fragrance..

     Apple orchards getting ready for the season

And the trip has just begun....

Magical Moments on a beautiful Spring afternoon- The Pinewood Cafe, Barog- My video on You Tube

Its Spring in the hills and my husband Avi and I have decided to spend some time in beautiful Himachal Pradesh- a state that we come back to time and again. Each season has its own special charm and there is something new to discover and enjoy every time we come.

En route to Himachal, we definitely make a stop at a beautiful little cafe in Barog. Called The Pinewood Cafe, it has everything one could ask for and then some! Apart from from their very special coffee and mushrooms on toast, it has the best possible range of flowers that one could think of.

So this time, we were greeted by a veritable sea of poppies - large, red and very beautiful. Then there were more flowers, including one called Paper/Tissue flowers, very unique and very beautiful-Something you really have to see to believe. Check out the video I've posted here and you will know exactly what I mean.

More Himachal stories unfold as the days go by so stay tuned folks and let me know what you thought..  

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A New Era Begins-IndiBlogger Launches IndiPR.com - A self-learning engine that automatically targets the right publishers

Thousands of businesses, products and services are launched everyday across the world. When these products go live, a Press Release (like the one you’re currently reading) is usually the first order of business. Heralding the launch of a new era, businesses of various sizes, including start-ups, can now have their Press Releases published by relevant influencers in less than 72 hours. 

Sounds too good to be true? All you have to do is read on and check out whats on offer:

IndiPR.com was built to make it extremely simple for a business to get their Press Releases published by top bloggers. All a business has to do is upload their Press Release and the ‘Automated Influencer Targeting Engine’, or ‘AITE’ for short, proceeds to accept applications and automatically shortlists bloggers based on various factors including internal ratings and rankings. Once shortlisted, the influencers do their research and publish their articles.

Now doesn't this sound a most convenient, logical and economical way to reach out to your specific target audience? I'd say a definite Yes!

Greetings from AITE- A New Era Begins

Anoop Johnson, Co-founder & Director of Marketing at IndiBlogger, adds, “With a starting budget of just USD 150, a business of any size will be able to get their press releases published by influential bloggers with a few clicks.”

So what do you get in return for your  minimum investment? Guaranteed returns by way of the following-

IndiPR.com assists digital marketers with a variety of tasks including, but not limited to, SEO, content marketing, generating awareness and gaining much needed conversations around the product, driven by internet users on influencer platforms like blogs.

One of the main issues that most marketers face when working with influencers is the cumbersome process associated with identifying and targeting each Influencer. Karthik DR, Co-founder & Business Head at IndiBlogger says, “The amount of time that people spend in trying to identify and contact influencers is huge. With IndiPR.com, you don't have to worry about any of this as the system just needs your Press Release. The rest is history!”

To catch a first look at what will arguably become one of the most recognised logos in India in the very near future, take a look and get familiar with it.

In the future, IndiPR.com will carry more than just Press Releases. Influencers will be able to get creative assignments, get invitations to attend the trendiest launch events and be privy to the latest news on the planet before the world wakes up to it.

Renie Ravin, the Founder and CEO of IndiBlogger, says, “We believe that this system will help Influencers with fresh and new content on their site every day. In a way, you could be writing about the next Google without even realising its immense potential.”

Contact Information:

Anoop Johnson

contact@indipr.com

Phone - +91-9900-001655 or 0124-4891498

Istanbul Diary revisted - Lasting impressions and some real Food For Thought

Looking through my blog entries on my first visit to Istanbul a few years ago, these are some excerpts that caught my eye and these are also what I'm choosing to share with you. 

Looking out of my hotel window

"Approachıng the last leg of thıs trıp whıch I wıll be ıllustratıng wıth lots and lots of photographs as soon as I upload them, these are some of the lastıng ımpressıons of my fırst vısıt to Turkey, wıth my mınd clearly made up to come here again,some tıme ın the future.

The people here are just wonderful ,arm frıendly and extremely hospıtable. And really do care about you beıng a vısıtor to theır country.In fact, they are extremely concerned that you really should see the best of what Istanbul has to offer. Whıch to my mınd ıs plenty!

Some great street food, bread which tastes fabulous!

The hıstory of thıs place-just too much to take ın! And here I am -a student of Hıstory-I actually found all my hıstorıcal and other flıghts of fantasy comıng true.

Istanbul ıs Constantınople, the most ancıent place ın the cradle of well developed cıvılızatıon. A place where fırst the Romans then the Byzantıne rulers followed by the Ottomans/Othmans came to power and boy,dıd they have some power! All evıdent wherever you look...

A Priceless vase made of a single slab of marble inside the Hagya Sofia

And today we met Mustafa an Ottoman Turk, just outsıde Hagya Sofıa. I dont know what ıt was that propelled hım to come across and talk to us but he dıd and what a wealth of ınformatıon we gleaned from hım!(I'm goıng to need a whole new blog entry for thıs story.)

Mustafa and Avi outside the Hagya Sofi

And at the end of that meetıng we learnt quıte sımply and baldly from hım that he was dyıng of pancreatıc cancer."Dua Karo mere lıye" were hıs last words as we saıd goodbye and he went ınto the mosque for hıs mıdday prayer leavıng me thınkıng that thıs was the most calm acceptance of lıfe and death that I've seen ın recent tımes, coming from a man who had been told that he had two years (at the most to lıve.) 

Of whıch, one was almost up.

Sometimes, I think of him and I can't help but wonder if....