Italian Adventures...

First two posts about Italy have created a perception that NBH did nothing but to eat, eat and eat in Italy. Well, amongst other things Daniele’s summer house is indeed well equipped with a variety of fruit trees (Grapes, Apples, Figs to name a few) but honest judgment of the trip is that we immaculately followed the one and the only NBH commandment "Hike Hard and Party Harder". There were no half measures as we undertook two strenuous (hikes in Appennini mountain ranges) and one quite hike to the castle of Sestola. Albeit a bit more demanding on the body and the mind, hiking on the mountain is much more fun when compared to a plain surface as it offers a huge high. It’s so different compared to the usual hikes in and around Belgium. The mountain ranges in Italy were indeed very much picturescue relieving all our stress whenever we got tired. We also encountered the beautiful Lago Scarfaiolo (Scarfaiolo Lake) and a refreshing waterfall called cascate del Dardagna along the path. All through the journey, Kaya kept collecting flowers, Mika kept herself busy collecting blueberries on the way and we kept ourselves busy munching those. Again, we only followed the only NBH commandment :-o

Lush Green Appennini Mountain range

Good to hike on the mountain!!!

Lago Scarfaiolo!!!

Refreshing cascate del Dardagna !!!

Castle Of Sestola

The breathtaking lush green views of the mountain ranges from atop offered much needed Oxygen enabling crucial next step to reach the summit and when you reach the top, the feeling of success, a sense of accomplishment leaves you ecstatic and so were we…

Memorable Tractor Ride
In the contemporary days of Nuclear families and distant relationships, it was a pleasure to be with cohesive Leonellis. All of them were very friendly but the most vocal of them was Daniele’s uncle Palmo. He took us to a tractor ride, which is again one of memorable incidences of the trip. In spite of his broken English, he was very much anxious to put forward his point, generate discussions, offer his opinions and have fun. In his attempt to pronounce our names correctly, he ended up distorting all our names. “Yao Yao” reborn most of the times with names like “Ciao Ciao”, “Miao Miao” etc. etc. In retrospect, if even one of us (except Daniele) knew as much Italian* as Palmo’s English, the fun would have multiplied manifolds. That’s for sure…

NBH on a tractor ride with Palmo!!!

Gazing Stars
A place away from city lights and an open space is an ideal ambiance for star gazing in the night. It was fantastic to spot shooting stars. Some of us spotted three, some of us spotted two, I could spot one and made a wish. Hope the wish comes true…

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* When I realized Daniele’s parents can’t communicate in English I attempted to learn Italian especially for this trip. But my Italian never went pass “BuonGiorno” (Good Day), “Grazie” (Thank You) and "Ciao" (Hello). Terrible, very terrible (Tremendo, molto Tremendo).

Italian Drivers and Ferrari!!!

"Do you mind if I smoke?", Stefano - Daniele's cousin light up his cigarette without waiting for our reply. Me and Koen were sitting on the back of the car with a sand bag in between while Tomas took the front seat along side the driver Stefano. As soon as we came out of the airport Bologna, we found Stefano steering the car as adeptly as any F1 driver could. With one hand holding the mobile while talking to a friend and the other hand holding the cigarette, Stefano could nonchalantly change the lanes from slow to fast and vice versa, mimicking an expert. Bemused with each lane change, me and Koen were colliding sideways on the sand bag one after the other, as if we were in a roller coaster. Quite a bit of a show really until we found ourselves racing with Daniele's car in the parallel lane. Imagine or not, these two drivers were literally racing against each other on one of the busy highways in Italy and later in the heart of their hometown, Modena. Although they raced against each other vehemently, Daniele never (never ever) speed-ed against the car driven by his uncle/father/mother. When questioned why, he responded, "Elders in the family have to be respected. It's a must, a complete must in Italy." By comparison, the elder generation was much more disciplined when it came to driving. It's much safer to be driven by them :-)

Italian drivers and Ferrari do have a special connection, as every F1 Italian driver aims to be a part of the Ferrari's racing team one day in his career. These were the times when Ferrari's Felipe Massa has had a life threatening accident and there were talks about Schumacher making his comeback to the F1 circuit. Looking at these fantastic drivers, left me convinced that Ferrari need not be looking for drivers outside Italy* as there is a lot of hidden talent in Italy alone. The last day tour to Ferrari town, Maranello-Modena and the Ferrari museum were one of the most memorable experiences all of us will cherish for one life to mention the least. We had never ever seen So Many of Them, So close, for So long together in such a short time. We could also don the drivers seat in a F1 car and feel what's it like to be a F1 driver. The seat is so low to the ground for the aerodynamic reasons that you would really feel dragged on the ground at supersonic speeds. must be an incredible experience driving those machines. Apparently, we found ourselves short of time for the ride in a Ferrari (yes, you can rent a Ferrari here paying EUR 60-70 for 10-15 mins or so). Next time, during the visit, this ride must (a genuine must) be the first on the cart. Enjoy the photos...

Upside down or down side up! It's Ferrari cheering u up!!

Ferrari F1 Car. I have a picture with me driving :p. Need to receive from Tomas. 'll blog later

NBH F1 Fans and Ferraris!!!

The Beauty

NBH F1 Drivers?

Never knew such a model ever existed

You can really rent this car for a while

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* As far as my information about F1 goes, another Italian Giancarlo Fisichella (former key Force India driver) joined the Ferrari team in the recent past.

One Meter Pizza in Italy

"Salute, Amore, Denaro e Tempo per Goderli" Spanish/Italian toast which translates to "Wish you lots of Health, Love & Wealth and (most importantly) Time to enjoy all of them", announced Daniele's aunt Rosy on one of the fine Luncheons @ their summer home in Casine, Modena-Italy. I knew that when it comes food Italians are unique but the last trip to Leoneli's summer home redefined my imagination. I always believed (and treated) breakfast as very important meal of the day but I never knew that breakfast should be done twice (one @ home and one in the town) in order to prepare for a sound Lunch and the purpose of the sumptuous lunch is nothing but to get ready for a rendezvous dinner. Every evening during the trip was unique. Every evening was special and more importantly it always used to be a surprize.

A delicious home dinner in day 1* followed by an authentic multi course dinner on day 2 was still fresh in our minds and on the third evening Daniele declared, "Tonight, we'll go to have a One Meter Pizza!!!" and everybody started dreaming about One Meter Pizza that indeed whetted the appetite of one and all. After a small walk as we reached the restaurant, everybody was surprized at the amount of cars being parked at the restaurant. It was as if the entire town had descended to taste a one meter Pizza on the day. Although the wait took us a while to get a table for 10, it seemed all the worth. "What toppings are we going to go for?", Daniele as we occupied the table. Soon the toppings were decided, the orders were placed and we kept eagerly waiting for the special One Meter Pizza. The drinks were served but what all of us wanted was the glimpses of that One Meter long Pizza which I was eagerly waiting to see for the first time. "The son of the owner has received a special training to make the special Pizza", Daniele extended the curiosity once again and now we were no longer able to hide the curiosity looking at the kitchen door from which our Pizza would be brought at any moment.

Finally the wait ended and there it was, in the hands of the waitress who hurriedly parked herself at our table serving us much awaited Pizzas, not one but two (Two but hey, we ordered only one :-)) and two half meter ones :-( Ooops!!! That's not ON :-(:-(:-(:-(:-( Not at all. Even two most beautiful Miss Universes can't replace the woman in your mind.

Pic. 1. Two Half Meter Pizzas. Disappointing :-(

They were big, indeed were huge. They were certainly mouthwatering and yet I believe they did disappoint us. Tastewise, they were undoubtedly one of the best Pizzas we have ever had but that one shear look of One Meter Pizza eluded us may be we all be looking for that elusive one meter Pizza in the heart of Pizza Land during all our forthcoming trips....

Eating the last piece of delicious Pizza ended Tomas hallucinating about One Meter Tiramisu. "If not Pizza, let's have One Meter Tiramisu, Daniele", Tomas. "Not a bad thought", Daniele,"One meter? in which direction though? 2D or 3D?". Not a bad thought either but "Why not One Meter long Tiramisu in all directions?"...LoL.

Pic 2. Can we have One Meter 2D/3D Tiramisu?

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* I understand from Massimo that it really proved to be an ordeal for them to cook a vegetarian meal only for me. Thanks a ton for the effort. I really liked it.

Curious Case Of A Photographer...

"Is NBH made up of crazy photographers?", if you pose this question to the entire NBH Group all of us will raise our hands in unison. And if the group is questioned, "Is Tomas the most obsessive photographer?". I am sure all of you will raise both the hands in unison again. NBH is totally Photo Frenzy group. With tons of Canons and a few Nikons and others (a rarity), everybody in NBH is geared up to photograph one another in addition to the splendid nature. Moreover, in any NBH Hike, Tomas acts like a Photo Warrior, climbing up and down from head to the tail of the group, ensuring that he has all the group members, important spots, all events covered to perfection for the slide show at the end of every hike. On the way, he will offer amateurs like me a lot tips too. Keep this ISO. This focal length should be ideal in this condition. This shutter speed would create a better effect with this light. He is unstoppable. So far so good, but what he did at the end of sumptuous Lunch at Daniele's summer house in Italy left all of us spellbound with his passion for photography.

Pic. 1. Daniele's parents

Pic. 2. Leonellis with the NBH

Pic 3. "The Robin" with his leisure pose

Pic 4. The Curious Case Of a Photographer. Tomas and his model

Pic. 5. Berserk NBH Group (Daniele, Koen, Kaya and Mika)

It was a very special afternoon when most of the Leonelli family (pic 1 and 2) had arrived for the gala lunch. After the sumptuous Lunch as Deniele's uncle Palmo wanted Doggy "The Robin" to be photographed and Thomas with his Canon kneeled down to photograph "The Robin" but Robin was very much adamant and did not want to give up his leisure pose (pic. 3) at any cost and that left Tomas unsatisfied. With a few tricks failing to get The Robin stand, Thomas offered another tip, "You know guys, Animals are best shot with the lens at their eye level." and he went posthumous (pic. 4) photographing The Robin as everybody burst into a huge laughter. Simply Incredible!!! The shot he took was mesmerizing as well. It's a part of the Italy Slideshow. Do have a look. As a side effect, all of us went berserk to shot the photographer and the model. Now on, we'll always remember "Animals are best shot with the lens at their eye level."

Diwali - The Festival Of Light

A Festival Of Light;
Bringing home delight!!!
Make every Diwali;
an event to highlight!!!

Be with family;
enjoy with Friends!!!
When it comes to Joy;
Never make any amends!!!

Hog a lot on special Food
and cheer up the mood!!!
Burst a lot of crackers;
don't be dummy Jokers!!!

-- GuruDeFundae

Festivals and Nostalgia

True or false, Good or bad, fortunate or otherwise, while staying abroad I have always had a feeling that something is amiss. The feeling aggravates the most during the festive season back home. You dearly dearly miss it. Missing colors of Holi downs you. Ganapati comes and goes but hardly hear or sing/hum on the chorus of aarti/bhajans. Navaratri makes you nostalgic looking for the elusive Dandya-Rass. Diwali is probably the worst amongst all suggesting that probably, just probably, you are loosing a tad more than your gains.

This is not only about food as you can cook anything and everything here but probably it's about that vibrancy, that radiance which makes you most nervous, most nostalgic and most craving for the aroma of the land (read Mitti ki Khushboo). On a typical festival day, you end up cooking a delicious meal, catch up with friends and have a nice banter. Indian diaspora is also quite active the world over celebrating the key festivals. Be it Ganesh Chaturthy in Antwerp or Durga Puja in Brussels or Holi and Diwali by ISAL Leuven, they do their bit to bring the community together and attempt to rejoice a bit on the firangi land. But, for me it hardly appeases the solace of the thought that I could have been to the Ganapati Mandir (photo below) early morning for the darshan on a Ganapati day and for most of ten days would have ended up attending the music concerts and other recreational programs. The stroll on the crowded Phadke road early in the Diwali morning is no way near to any walk on the planet. Moreover, missing company of your family members is obviously irreplaceable and you certainly miss them a lot.

Ganesh Puja in Antwerp. Quorum must have been around 1000 and the slogans of "Ganapati Bappa Morya!!!" filled the air. Photo Courtesy: Ajay

Durga Puja @ Brussels. Photo Courtesy: Sagnik babu. I personally was engrossed in an India-Pak Cricket match and decided not to go. If Dandya would have been there...

Ganash Mandir Sansthan, Dombivli. The place I miss the most every Ganapati. Phadke Road next to it is what I miss every Diwali :-(

Unfortunately, this is the 4th Diwali I am missing (3 abroad and one during the first year @ IIT-M) so far and this one being special it hurts the most. This is the first after Rucha's (my sister's) marriage last year and the home should be abuzz with all the relatives and friends enjoying festivities. They say they are going to miss me. But in reality I am going to miss them the most. The truth is with flesh and blood I am in Leuven, but with heart and sole I am in India, with them @ home...

A Taste Of India...

If Indian cuisine is considered the crown of the world cuisine, Punjabi cuisine could easily be the shining stone demonstrating its glory. The reason why Punjooo food is so popular across the length and breadth of India and places abroad, in my opinion, are the delicious variety of Parathas it offers. From Kashmir* to Kanyakumari and from the Run of Kutch to the Bay of Bengal, everybody craves for them and can go places to hog on them. Where I have had the most delicious Parathas? Well, it's a difficult question to answer but probably the Parathawali Gali near Chandani Chawk and the roadside ones next to IIT-D gate in Delhi are etched in my memory for a long long time. But obviously the list goes on and on...

To me, Akhil certainly is a veteran Paratha expert in Leuven and in addition to Parathas what I love the most is the vintage tomato chutney he prepares. Both these things go so wonderfully well together. Sukhi almost makes them single handedly (guess with left hand) and my new neighbor Amrit is as adept as anybody can get at the art. Taking a cue from all, we decided to give a shot at making Parathas at my new place. Being the tutor, it was natural that Amrit's Parathas were superb. I was awestruck though, when I saw my first Paratha slowly but surely took the shape of a circle. Well, almost circular :)

Guru's First Paratha

Lasnachi Koshimbir (Garlic n Curd), a Maharashtrian delicasy learnt at Millionaire's place in Leeds also went very well with the Punjooo Parathas. Tamil delicacy Pachadi (composed of ginger and curd) that Sandeep prepares should also go well. Isn't it wonderful the way cuisines from different parts of the India come together and result in what could be termed A Taste Of India...

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* Sagnik wants Kashmir to be replaced by Kathmandu in the present context. Reason: Amrit hails from kathmandu.

She came; She saw and She conquered...

"काय करताय?(What are u guys doing?)", Kiran could not control the curiosity looking at the near liquidous Modak flour and our floured hands. Question did nothing but to rub the salt on our deep wounds as we ourselves were trying to come to terms with the fact that Modaks have turned out to be a complete disaster. So much so that, we were finding it difficult even to put them in the simplest form, forget about much revered and dreamed Modak's shape.

The plan was indeed to make modaks during the Ganesh Chaturthi and having done them last year under Harshada's tutelage, I was hopeful to pull them off this year too. Moreover, Madhura# and Nandan, the most enthusiastic foodies in Leuven were set to don the lead role and all I was supposed to do was to arrange things, offer a bit of moral support and of course eat my heart out on the day. This would have proved to be a nice surprize for Harshada and Prabhat (and new born Nitya) too. All things were set. We zeroed on the recipe to follow and the aroma of the modak feeling filled the entire room. The taste of partial success made us more enthusiastic. Madhura cracked a joke. You know what my grandma used to say, "It's very difficult to screw up modaks. Why in the world would a recipe with lots of coconut and Jaggery get screwed up?" But we managed to do the improbable in the 2nd Innings and screwed up the flour a big big way. From last year's experience, the crux of preparing nice modaks is to shape them when the dove is warm. This is a very crucial step. But, the flour became so soggy that the it could have been declared as dead drowning in the water. We added a part of extra flour and tried to fix it to some extent but nothing really worked and all we ended up was these pieces, if one dares to call them modaks :(

The disaster that we need to call our modaks :(

Now, all our hopes rested on one individual and it was Harshada - The Annapurna. If there was one who could fix the flour it was her. She came and in no time realized the grand plan we had. She saw the messy flour and started giving steadfast instructions and in a while She conquered all the obstacles in the way to shape the first modak of the day to make us all jump with joy. The rest of the modaks were a mere formality. Thanks to her expertize*, we could have our taste of Modaks this year. Not to mention that we ended up stuff ourselves heart out.

Harshada's Fix to our Modaks. I am not terming them as Harshada's modaks as the usual ones look far more beautiful than these fixed ones. should blog them the next time we/she makes them

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# Madhura's enthu to try out new and newer recipes (and feed us) is endless. One can never forget the Tikhatmithachya Purya (Do not request translation) and Bhaji, she had prepared during the Madonna Event Hike. Being enterprizing, she has a courageous plan to start a small eat out place in Leuven. If any of you are interested to participate in such an endeavor, please contact me.

* An expert is the one who has done all possible mistakes achieving the goal. We are now a step closer as far as the modaks are concerned :)