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Monday, 30 June 2014

An Evening In Paradise - Dal Lake Kashmir (A photographic tale)

An Evening in Paradise-Dal Lake Kashmir is an account of my experience of a Shikara ride after the sunset till wee hours in the morning.The Dal Lake covers an area of around 18 sq kms and a part of natural wet land which covers around 21,1 sq kms including the floating gardens of lotus blooms . One of the geological theory suggests it is the remnant of a post galacial lake where as according to the other version it is of fluvial origin from an old flood spill channel of The Jhelum River. During the day time its thronged with tourists who come for Shikara rides but very few know the beauty of shikara ride after sunset . The lights around the lake and in the houseboats light up the lake water and the sound one can hear is of the oar trying to make way for the shikara at night and the " shikara wallas " rowing back home humm the regional kashmiri songs that liven up the night at intervals.

#photography #travel #srinagar #jammu and kashmir #dallake

Saturday, 28 June 2014

Pahalgam - Views from my hotel window

Pahalgam one of my favourite destinations is a world famous hill station and quite popular among tourists visiting Jammu &Kashmir , located on the banks of Lidder River at an altitude of 7200 ft. from sea level.Pahalgam is also associated with the annual Amarnath Yatra. Chandanwari (2,895 m), 16 km from Pahalgam, is the starting point of the Yatra that takes place every year in the month of July / August. Surrounded by snow clad mountains , gushing blue water of Lidder River makes it uniqueness of its own.Here are some descriptive views from my hotel window. The pictures may appear a little hazy as they were taken from inside the window but I managed to capture some beautiful moments .

#kashmir #pahalgam #photography

While I was enjoying a view of Lidder River From My Window

And My Friends Were Waiting For Me

I Took A Notice Of The Monkeys Who Had Thronged The Place

And This One Outside My Window Was Eyeing The Butter Toast On My Table

Oh Boy , How Could I not Feed Him After The Eye Contact He Had With Me?

On Being Asked To Come Around The Other Window He Came And Waited Patiently For A Bite

What Surprised Me The Most

He scraped The Hard Dark Brown Edges Of The Toast Before Gulping Them Down - Intelligent Breed , Huh

Had My Fill - Time To Join His Gang

Friday, 27 June 2014

I feel beautiful - photography

" I feel beautiful " is inspired by one of my own photograph that is shared in this blog post and more than the photographer(A layman in photography) I compliment my self to have brought about the beautiful expression and given such good shot. A picture , the record of visual perception - Some of us love being pictured while few of us turn our faces away from the camera and I fall in the second category . Photography is a passion for me and once in a while I do try my hands on it but I rarely allow myself to be photographed for the very reason that I picture badly but of late I realised its just the state of mind that reflects in our pictures.and there is only #1 tip to give a good shot that has worked for me which is one must feel beautiful while posing for a photograph and there you are ! This is one of the best shots I have ever given though I have a sharper nose than it appears in the photograph but it can not stop me from saying " I feel beautiful" and now your opinion matters .

#photography #1

Wednesday, 25 June 2014

A Kick Over Frozen Yellow mary - A variety of bloody mary ( cocktail drink recipe )

The frozen Yellow Mary -A variety of Bloody Mary is a combination of fragrant herbs, ripe yellow tomatoes ,celery stalk, cucumber and a bit of kick from the vodka, lemon juice , a touch of horseradish juice , ice,, and hot sauce . A morning after drink Frozen Yellow Mary is a variety of Bloody Mary , a frozen vodka drink is made with yellow tomatoes as it is much easy on stomach as yellow tomatoes are less acidic than the red ones and allow the sweetness and and garden-freshness to come through unhindered. While you sip the frozen Yellow Mary let me look up my recipe book for some more interesting cocktail recipes to share which I collected over the years and are on my bar menu on every occasion...Cheers !

#frozenyellowmary #bloodymary #cocktail #drink #recipe #howto

Ingredients

• 5 medium ripe yellow tomatoes

• 1 celery stalk, chopped

• 1 cup diced cucumber

• 2 oz fresh lemon juice

• 1/3 cup chopped fresh horseradish

• 1 teaspoon of salt

• 6–7 oz of vodka

• Hot sauce of choice to taste

Preparation

Put all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth, add 3–4 cups of ice and blend again until it reaches the desired consistency.

Pour the drink into a highball glass with salt on the rim, adding the hot-sauce-covered lemon slice.

Sunday, 22 June 2014

Mood Swings - My Journey To Kashmir " The Paradise On Earth "

"Mood Swings " - a rapid change in mood and that's exactly what I am going through ever since I came back after a week long holiday in Kashmir Valley " The Paradise On Earth ". One of the most beautiful and memorable journeys I have ever had , packed with fun and romance with nature was indeed a lifetime experience. It took me no long to get back to normal life style once I landed back in Delhi. and as an addicted blogger would have , the first thimg I did after reaching home logged into my blogging sites ,replied to all the comments left by my readers , read a few blogs, wrote a few comments and finally when I tried to write a blog post I was at total loss of words , though my mind is loaded with stories of my experience in " The Paradise On Earth " Kashmir ,where I spent a substantial portion of my childhood and grew up without having an iota of feeling or sense that how much this mystic beauty of the valley is going to haunt me as I grow older. "The Kashmir Valley " the place where I would love to spend remaining years of my life

So we go back to "Mood Swings " I believe I was and still am in a state of nostalgia and therefore I decided to share the pictures of my own on Face Book ac and in that process I found some pictures depicting my own moods.. I certainly need to get over with my Mood Swings and start sharing some beautiful pictures of The Kashmir Valley known to be " The Paradise On Earth " in the ,meanwhile bear with me when I ask you to enjoy watching my mood swings and share your opinion with me . I found this beautiful series of pictures taken while I was busy attending the phone calls .

#Kashmir #moodswings #photojournalism #India

This is how happy I was when I checked in the House Boat until I received some business calls from my office that ultimately forced me to switch off my phone once again that had remained shut throughout while I travelled.

Monday, 16 June 2014

Queen of cocktails - Bloody Mary

Queen of cocktails " Bloody Mary " also known as a hangover cure “a classic example of combining in one potion both the poison and the antidote.” A complex drink yet popular , Queen of cocktails -Bloody Mary is a vodka based drink tomato juice and spices are essential ingredients in the cocktail ,while Worcestershire sauce, piri piri sauce, Tabascos sauce are added for flavours . Virgin Mary, Bloody Shame, Bloody Virgin, or Bloody Barbara: Without alcohol ,typically with an increased volume of tomato juice, the vodka simply being omitted are the non alcohlic substitutes of the cocktail. . The Red Hammer of 1950's now known as Bloody Mary Used to be a thick; chunky drink with plenty of garnish which made it appear like a salad bar . To make the improved cocktail the grinding of blend is a must .It not only changes the texture of the drink but also makes it a more elegant pour. While you enjoy the drink I will be off to Kashmir to come back with few more interesting cocktail recipes.Before I take your leave One final note: the Bloody Mary is an early afternoon drink—those who consume it after the sun has set possess personality defects and are to be avoided. It is, however, a known antidote to the common hangover, and those who drink it in the morning are to be regarded as people of great knowledge and unerring discernment.

#bloddymary #drink #cocktail #lifestyle #recipe

Ingredients for imroved Bloody Mary (Cocktail drink )

4 oz. Tomato Juice

1 ½ oz. Vodka

¼ oz. Lemon Juice

¼ oz. Lime Juice

½ tsp. Gold's Horseradish

½ tsp. B-Mary’s Spice Blend

¼ tsp. Cholula Hot Sauce

Preparation

Stir it in a glass. Serve before 2 p.m. – preferably on a weekend.

Copyright ©2012alkanarula photo credit - google image search results

Thursday, 12 June 2014

A true story to success "When I paid $15000 for a handshake"

Sounds unreal but this is a true story when I ended up paying $15000 for a handshake

#truestory #onlinemarketing

and from the top of his lungs, voice piercing through the speakers and rumbling off the concrete floor in the Meadowlands Expo Center in New Jersey…

Tony Robbins gave the call-to-action to buy a package of his events — and the room split into two sides as if Moses parted the red sea.

I rose from my seat… similar to how I put the needle down and rose up from the ashes almost 6 years ago in that run down laundry room bathroom in one of the worst parts of town and decided to get clean and sober…

…And I walked over to the table, handed the staff member my credit card and said….

“Sign me up for everything.”

What I want to share with you today is how I’ve learned that sometimes….

I need to stretch myself to prepare for the next level of success.

As the lady finished running my card, someone said to me “We need to get you up there if you want to take a picture with Tony on the stage.”

At that moment (and really at any time throughout the event) my “ego” could have taken over and said….

“I fill events of 5,000 people too. I don’t need to go to more events.”

Or “Why would I spend $15,000 to go to Tony’s events when I can make a few calls, probably even get on the phone with Tony… and go to any of his events for free or at a discount.”

Or “I already make enough money. I don’t really need to learn anything new right now.”

Or even “I’m busy leading a team of few -thousands people…. I don’t have time.”

Instead, I decided to stretch myself to prepare for the next level.

Tony Robbins walked over to me and as we exchanged a few words, hands locked in a firm handshake — I looked out and scanned over 5,000 people in the expo center and knew in that moment that sometimes….

I need to stretch myself to prepare for the next level.

I also realized I just spent $15,000 for a handshake.

…And even if I never go to any of the events that I just bought (which I will)….

Making the decision to buy, meeting Tony on his stage and locking arms — and then looking out over the crowd…

To me – was worth the $15,000 I just spent.

So I want you to ask yourself a question:

Are you ready to get around someone that will stretch your reality and what you think is “possible”?

Are you willing to clobber your excuses?

Are you willing to be where you need to be? To spend what you need to spend? And work the way you need to work to make it happen?

And do you want to do it NOW or later?

(I think I know that answer to that)

I’ll look forward to meeting YOU on stage

- Alka Narula

“The NEXT Alka Narula”

PS: Leave me your comments below. Let me know the last time you did something that stretched your reality and gave you a bigger perspective on what’s possible…

P.S.S Before you leave , ”If you think you can stretch your mind with possibilities of earning upto $2,700 per day online and getting mega rich……Fill up the subscription form here for our news letter.

C ya soon