CFA Level 2 – Redux

It was hard not to get disheartened. But in such times, I have found that a systematic approach always helps you keep aside any emotion and walk a steady pace. I chalked up a nice plan to restudy the material, deciding how many pages I must read to cover the syllabus and revise it properly.…

CFA Level 2

When I was reading ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’, the last book of the series, I kept on wondering that so many new plots were opening up, how were they going to fill them in only half a book? To JK Rowling’s credit, she did it spectacularly. I got a similar feeling while studying…

Kashmir Chronicles

Ever since I read the story of Tulipmania, I was curious to see the flowers in person. In the 17th century, the random variegated varieties of tulips soon caught the fancy of market speculators and bettors, and the prices of tulips went from the best variety costing one month of pay to almost 5 years…

Starfish story in action – Murudeshwar beach

When I was touring at Murudeshwar Beach, Karnataka, I saw the fishing net being brought in by the local fishermen. It is always an experience seeing these fish. But this time, I noticed a lot of baby fish left to die out, since nobody wanted them. This started a little mission to save the baby…

Glimpses of Maharashtra in Seven Steps

From 3rd to 9th June 2011, I did a thousand kilometers solo ride  on motorcycle for seven days, to see the glimpses of Maharashtra. This ride was part of a competition – Wrangler True Wanderers. The blog can be read here: Introduction Day 1 – Taking the first leap towards exploring Day 2 Part I…

Afterthoughts

When I came to know I am one of the ten finalists of the Wrangler True Wanderer contest, it was a moment of mixed reactions. There was joy of course, of being selected from all India, and having a chance of winning the prize as well as the honor of the best travelogue. But there…

35 years later….

‘Grandpa, look! Daddy gave me a bicycle! I am going to explore all the of neighbourhood now!’ ‘That’s good, kid. Did your daddy give you a helmet too? I will gift you one today evening.’ ‘Great! Grandpa, Daddy was telling that you were a motorcyclist in your days?’ ‘Why, he is lying! I was a…

Day 7 – Homeward bound

‘Please God, please God… let it be visible… please God.’ Climbing huffing and puffing over those steep stairs, I was praying to all Gods I could remember, may it be visible. Climbing up in that downpour with all the rain gear, a heavy backpack and a helmet was not easy, and I was particularly a…

Day 6 – To the last color in rainbow

‘Welcome to Mahabaleshwar, Sir! Need a hotel?’ ‘Sure.’ ‘How many people?’ ‘Just myself.’ ‘Just one? But here we give rooms only to couples.’ ‘Oh, come on! Where will I find a girl at this time now?’ ‘No Sir! It’s not like that! There have been incidences here, that a single man comes, and commits suicide!’…

Day 5 – Exploring the forgotten past

‘These wells are not just architectural wonders. They are in this particular shape not because they look good in the landscaping of the village.’ The learned sage was telling the spellbound audience, listening intently, myself included. ‘These are “Jalayantras”, the ancient machineries s that can be used for a specific purpose. If one has the…