sun and sand and a good time!

the golden square gang was at it again! doing what we love doing... we used the holiday last friday and went on a weekend getaway... this time it was to the coastal city of karwar.

we were 10 families, 37 individuals... the youngest was a little over a year old and the oldest was... (i am not telling you our secrets! it makes me feel too old actually! :P )

we had booked cottages at the devbagh beach resort which is a beautiful resort with furnished cottages, log-huts and tents situated in the midst of a dense casuarina grove. the resort is on prime property, right next to the devbagh beach with clean, beautiful sandy beaches and blue-green waters of the arabian sea.

we took the matsyagandha express from mumbai which is a convenient train to reach karwar and the kids always enjoy a good train ride. it always adds a sense of adventure to any trip!

we spent three days at the resort and didn't move out for any local sight-seeing, though there are many options in the vicinity. but we still had a action-packed and fun-filled time at the resort itself.

we were taken out to the deep sea for a joy-ride and we were hoping to see some dolphins which can be spotted here... but we were not lucky. though one of our team members was luckier and he managed to spot some dolphins the next day when he had gone snorkelling.

we also managed a few water sports including a banana-boat ride, water scooter rides, kayaking, etc. and these were activities which even the kids could do safely... and they had a whale of a time! we also spent a lot of time at the beach... and it was so refreshing as compared to the beaches in mumbai... it was far less crowded, the sand was golden, the water was also so clean... the kids and adults alike did not want to step out of the water!

the food was also very good... not the usual greasy punjabi food that you get in most of the resorts... here they served a lot of local dishes which everybody enjoyed... since we were the largest group at the resort, they even asked us if we would like any specific dish prepared... and they made some amazing local crab preparation (as reported by the carnivores in the group! :P )

while the kids did their own thing, we adults played antakshari, dumb charades, taboo, teen-patti, etc. but the highlight of the trip was the impromptu game of throw-ball that we came up with... we played on the last two days and they were very exciting matches... each point was hard-fought... the only problem was that in the enthusiasm we'd forgotten that our bodies were no longer as young as they used to be... we were all aching all over after the trip! :P

so if you are looking for a relaxed weekend to destress yourself, then karwar is the place to head for!

here are the pics of our trip which will give you an idea of the place and the activities

and here are some amazing nature pictures from karwar

(all pics courtesy - murli nambiar)

children and monkeys and animal droppings!

kids can do the most embarrassing things at the most inconvenient times!

we recently had a good friend over for dinner. our daughter was going through a 'i don't like daddy' kind of phase... and took a great liking for the friend who had dropped in for dinner...

suddenly in the middle of our casual conversations she decided to declare that her mother was he mother and the visiting friend was her father! the three adults at the table decided to continue our conversation (i don't even remember what we were talking about!) as if nothing had happened... that only served to infuriate the little one, who was determined to get her message across... so she interrupted us again, made sure she had our collective attention and then proceeded to redefine her lineage!

as expected, there was some polite coughing and mumblings and 'ok beta' and laughter all around... and then everyone moved on... the little one smug in the knowledge that she had made her point... and the rest of us relieved that we were not subject to any more such revelations! :P

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we went to matheran this last week-end... one of our weekend get-aways with a group of 6 other families.

we had a whale of a time (i will put up the pics soon) and the kids had a 'blue whale of a time'!

some of the kids got it into their heads that i am the resident narrator of stories and all things amazing! :P
(i have a feeling most of the other dads spread such slander among their kids so that they could lounge around and eat/ drink/ sleep/ play tt without having their spouses throwing daggers at them (just by looks, mind you!) about taking care of their respective kids!

so i was the chosen one to impart them some invaluable knowledge which included naming various species of monkeys and apes and other simians; as well as the various types of dogs... since there were a large number of both species of animals in close vicinity!

later over one of our soul-enriching conversations that i normally have with the 'big boss' i told her about how we also learnt how to identify the animals by just examining the spoor (or potty as the kids preferred to call it)! :P

the big boss gave me 'the look' and said, 'i am sure it was your idea in the first place to educate them about such an esoteric subject as animal droppings!'

the big boss knows me so well! :P