For anyone who actually noticed, new Wintersong posts have been long in coming. Not only have I been feeling very “summerly” lazy, Hubby and I have hosted some 19+ visitors, adults and kids, over the month of July–more if you add daughter and family to the soup pot for family meal sharing. Don’t get me wrong, it was great fun to see and catch up with family, but very tiring overall and I’m still catching up on linen laundry. I’ve spent the last week or so taking it easy, resting up, and mostly wondering where the heck July went! Blogging has been far from mind. For the first time since I began Wintersong, I didn’t even get on the computer to check stats or comments or anything for days at a stretch. It was such a freeing experience–I learned that I am NOT addicted to computers after all, YAY–that I almost decided it might be time to phase out blogging altogether. Then I took another look at the remaining photos from our trip to India and was inspired once more. It looks to me as though (some of) the best is yet to come! So here I am ready to continue my tour of–what I’ve come to think of as India’s New York City–Bombay. It’s Mumbai now, but when I first visited in 1980 it was Bombay and I’ll continue to refer to it that way.
We’ll continue with the beautiful Malabar Hills attractions of Bombay we visited in February during a personalized tour (through the suggestion and planning of Hubby’s niece Malavika–thanks Malu!) through Mumbai Magic a la carte tours. Let us begin with this tantalizing view of Marine Drive at twilight, often referred to as the Queen’s Necklace for reasons I believe to be quite apparent. I hope you’ll join me in the next posting, to be published forthwith, that will include notes on Victoria Station, the Mahatma Gandhi Museum, the hanging gardens, the fascinating towers of silence and funeral ghats of the Parsi’s, and of course another temple–this one a Jain Temple–all located in the beautiful Malabar Hills of Bombay.
Photo credit: Thanks to Wikipedia, through the GNU Free Documentation License agreement of 2008.
My Wintersong 
I was just about to say fabulous photo Alice when I saw it was from Wikipedia! I am so with you on the not addicted to computers part though – I was away from everything electronic for two weeks including inadvertently leaving my iPod behind and I realized that I don’t need (nor want) any of it!!!!!
Learning to control and steer my own life and wants and choices has been my mantra for much of my adult life. Growing up poor and female in the south can really suck all that out of you–worse if you happen to be black! Hope it’s not that way any longer, but some things make me fear maybe it still is. New Orleans isn’t south, is it ❓
New Orleans is and isn’t the south – it’s an enigma in its own region and country. I came from a party last night where the guy I was speaking to referred to people as African Americans or Caucasians – I thought he was doing this in response to my saying that two black women started this fab hair salon in NY and created great hair products – who knows? – things aren’t easy for those who are marginalized be they black or female anywhere but I can tell you that sometimes what is gained by being marginalized is a much better world view than being part of the main pulse. When you learn to look in, you hopefully learn to look outside as well. That is the hope anyway. In the meantime, I read an interesting article about a woman looking up her ex, who is a blogger, in the NYT and discovering his “intimate” blog – and both feeling compelled and repulsed by it – http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/fashion/modern-love-when-an-ex-blogs-is-it-ok-to-watch.html – it always makes me wonder just what us bloggers are actually doing with our time, our talents, our lives but in the end, I feel compelled to continue along this journey that I started back in 2004 and to see where it leads even if it is only about the journey.
Oh to say the least! There’s so much fodder for further thinking/comment in this reply. I have to admit I’m sometimes confused by the “political correctness” bug…sometimes those expressions just slip out and don’t mean anything at all other than that’s the way we were taught. I do understand the need to think about what we say before, not after, it’s said though. As for blogging, I cannot explain it–except maybe it’s easier to be friends online because you feel less “judged” than [you do with friends encountered daily or] those you may annoy every day? I’ve found the more you move around, get to know about yourself, and the older you get, the more discerning you are about making new friends. As a born introvert (in my opinion) with “learned” extravert abilities, writing is the only way to both keep in touch with myself and let others see the real me. That probably makes no sense at all, but that’s the way it is. ‘Love hearing from you and watching Tin grow up in the pictures on your blog!
I have missed you greatly!!!!!!!!!!!!!! However, I do think it’s good to take a break now and again — I think we all get a bit of ennui now and again. I value my blogging friends too much to let my blog go and hope you do, too.
I’m not quitting but my focus is constantly changing! I missed you too. Keep on giving ’em (you know who!) hell!
Oh, hurrah, here you are again. How wonderful to see you. REading on. 🙂
Nice to be back, Mage. Nice to see you going great guns with your writing!
You may have been gone, but you were NOT forgotten. I don’t “think” I’m addicted to my PCs, but I may be heading in that direction. At least, G.E. thinks I may. The computer is such a big part of my work and hobby life. But I’m expanding my horizons, too: bike-riding and RE-learning French, maybe.
Please don’t totally disappear. You were my very first blog-o-sphere friend. =)
Thanks for the assurance! I went to a lecture on travel in France in anticipation for a trip to Europe perhaps next week. I think (re)learning French is a noble thing to spend time on. Have you heard of a book called (something like) Learning French in 10 Minutes a Day? Apparently it’s a good rudimentary intro that help the non-French-speaking traveler. blog-o=sphere or however, it’s good to have friends!
I’m using an online immersion program – free – that is highly recommended. It helps to have some French-speaking background. You can check it out at learner.org.
I’m jealous about your upcoming travel plans, but wish you bon voyage whenever you go, my friend.
Merci beau coup!
Good to have you back, I am ready for the next part!
Hey Granny! Thanks! I’m looking at family connections to Ireland intently now. Soon we’ll be fixing a date (after the body-scan at the end of the month) and then I’ll ask for a “what to wear” plan for fall in the BK. It’s terrible to plan your life around scans but that’s the way it is sometimes. Hang loose!
You saw so much more of Bombay than I did, unfortunately for me who had only a half day to visit this immense city. Of course, if I had known that my flight would be delayed eight hours due to weather conditions in NYC, I would have seen more. And I would have had a better meal than the one served on Air India. Great photo…reminds me of the lights from your porch in SLC (smaller scale).
Interesting note about Ghandi’s history of read a lot of Tolstoy! We read Anna K in an Osher class and it was good. I’m now reading, Sonya, a story from diaries Tolstoy’s wife left. AK had a lot of connetion to Tolstoy’s personal life…which included a pretty racy youth with a history of sex connections. Later in his marriage to Sonya, he seems to withdraw from her and lean on Chertkov, a trusted friend. Sonya wondered if her husband was homosexual or bisexual….he had done a 180 in his behavior when he started his work with the poor class…didn’t want to participate in sex at all…it was only to be used for procreation, etc. etc. Also shows he had a tremendouse lust for sex and then made her feel guilty for wanting more conjugal vists as well as his own feeling of guilt and depression assoc with sex (remember his youth, sex was frequent and a novelty he enjoyed.
Tolstoy is quite a guy! Sonya is a good book tho long but does give a lot of insight to the wifely/feminine role she played. She was a fighter tho. Stuck in there. Congrats? to her…
I left! 10 years and I was out of there!
Anyway. Ghandi and Tolstoy seem to something in common. Too much religion? guilt mixed with a grand appetite.
Wouldn’t surprise me to know somehow that religion had a part in it…in both Tolstoy and Gandhi…and even ten years is a lot of life to waste, glad it only cost you that. I’ll bet women in my grandmother’s time spent their whole adult lives in bad relationships! You make that class sound like another good one I missed.