Unique Museums - Part One - Deutsches Museum in Munich

There is at least one and mostly innumerable museums in every city in Germany. There is bound to be a natural history museum, a toy museum, a museum in the local castle. We are restricted by our toddler's minuscule attention span, and almost afraid of visiting museums, but we look up at least one place in every city we visit - one place that we think would be different. We base this decision on reviews, personal preferences (we are both not the art-friendly people, for one) and mostly time and place constraints. Most times, our decisions are well-rewarded.

In this series of posts, I have decided to review unique museums - albeit as I visit more of Germany and other parts of Europe, my opinion might get reinforced or I may be forced to change it. Let's see how it goes!

1) Deutsches Museum in Munich:
We see the history of man and animals and evolution carefully documented everywhere, but getting to see early machines and latest technology under one roof is remarkable! Especially if you are inclined towards engineering or pure sciences, you will really dig this museum. Everything from large and awkward early contraptions to the sophisticated nano technology equipment is displayed in the most unique fashion. There are even helicopters and planes on display. Our toddler too was unexpectedly fascinated and we could spend good amount of time looking around. She was particularly enthralled by a large 18th century water wheel and huge ships. As if that was not enough, the museum features a children's area with large lego blocks, life size musical instruments, and scientific games full of fun and learning.

Now that's what I call a museum!

The recycling necessity

International air travel does not respect the need to carry your own house with you when you move to another, completely alien city. Thus meeting economics in its rugged simplicity - the limited resources problem.

We traveled here with a completely inadequate stock of toys for the kiddo and now getting through the day with the same old, boring few is very hard. I am continuously scouting for durable, relatively low cost toys (don't want to pour all of the mister's salary into toys now, do we?). In the longer term I hope to build a good collection for her, to suit different play moods, weathers, etc. etc. In the short term, we have admittedly a problem on hand. The idea of toys from recycled toys was born out of this necessity and has almost possessed me. (I think I may start looking at items in the grocery stores with this lens soon enough - carton just right for train wagon, purchase, check check!)

Anyway we started with a milk carton ship. A simple cut here and there on the carton, a straw sail and we were ready to cruise to the local playgroup on the Monday morning - the theme for the week was ships! I don't think I have a picture of this ship; basically it sank pretty soon. Blame the architect!

Another hit was bowling pins - from flavored milk bottles. We got a ball two days ago and haven't looked back since.

This morning, we used a cardboard box to keep us busy for a whole two hours and come up with this tunnel-cum-road-cum-activity box. We have our panda-on-wheels, our excavator and our newly acquired porsche (from the said museum) to race through the tracks we painstakingly created.

On ventilator support

It has been an excruciating week this - hot and humid beyond all imagination. We had a romantic idea of the European summer - sunny days, short clothes, et al. This isn't quite the stuff of our dreams. We spent day one and the following night in denial but soon realized what we had to do - buy a fan - and it seemed simple enough really - get to the nearest technology/appliances shop and hand over the moolah to the person behind the check out desk. Alles Gute?

Nope, Nein. Living in a Utopia, were we? This is what really transpired:
We enter the shop and stare at the menu of items floor by floor. Where does the damn thing fit? There is no such category as household appliances. You could have computer + office (check - no fan there); household + kitchen + lighting (nope); small appliances (no luck again)... well we had to find it if it was there, right? It was in "Bathroom and Health products".. Eh?

After spending 10 minutes figuring out which section the fan was to be sorted into, we learn that it is out of stock. No table fan, pedestal fan, no USB fan, not even those tiny battery operated ones. New stocks to be available in 2-3 days. Bookings are not accepted.
We went to three other shops, fortunately decided to just ask the man behind the counter as we entered the shop. Got the same reply everywhere!
We felt like fools, really. And were almost getting looked at like fools too. As if we had woken up so late it was already too late. "What did you expect to hear?" kind of expressions on the faces of salesmen.
Uh oh!

We came home disappointing, the frightening prospect of another hot and sultry night ahead of us. Decided to check on amazon and learnt that fans are called "Ventilators" in German. Well, that explains a lot somehow! Amazon to the rescue it is, then!

This is one of the most advanced nations in the world - surely they don't need lessons on how to seek a steaming hot business opportunity, pun intended? Back in India, I remember we bought ACs not once but twice in April, when temperatures start to soar and most people would choose to invest in an AC. April is also the month when you will see the maximum number of models of ACs in the market, the best stocks and mostly reliable customer service. Both our ACs were up and running in a matter of hours after we decided to buy them. Oh how I miss that opportunism!

My sister summed it up in the best words possible - if fans were so direly needed, they would by now have been sold on traffic lights if we had been in India!

Raising a kid - never you mind!

The term "kid-friendly" has got a whole new meaning in my dictionary since I arrived in Germany. Before this I thought of kid friendly as a place accessible with a stroller, having clean toilets and perhaps even a mother-care room, at best a high-chair in a restaurant. I think I would have been happy with these had I not come to Germany.

Not anymore. In the first month, we consciously avoided public places. We struck off museums from our  must-see list since were totally unsure how the kiddo would react in a place like that. Entry tickets are not exactly cheap, which means walking away in case of a meltdown would pinch hard. Slowly we started to realize that people with families, even infants were omnipresent. As we explored the town further, we saw parks, demarcated play areas and child-friendly facilities just about everywhere we went. The central shopping street has a ride or two each block. Book shops have a kids-area to allow you to browse in peace, eateries have a kids-area, trains have areas marked out for strollers. I'm sure there is lots that I haven't even discovered yet.

Subsequently we have became more relaxed about taking our kid out - whether it is eating out, shopping, site-seeing or plain travelling, you can be sure that there will be something or the other to engage your child.

We decided to risk it at the Natural History Museum after reading reviews that indicated that our kiddo could enjoy it too. She totally digged it. The exhibits (not the history) was life-like, colorful, caught her fancy in the strangest ways. We naturally had a great time together. Kid-friendly in a never-before way!

Ludwigsburg was particularly marvelous. The Marchengartens is a incredible children's park with all sorts of rides, dramatized fairy tales, even a water-play area. I would not in my wildest dreams have imagined a castle concealing a children's play area that size.

May be there are still places where I can't expect to visit with my kid - like the theater or a serious museum of art. But on the whole, I am unlikely to miss out on most aspects of life just because I have a kid in tow.

Why should having a baby put you in the back-seat in life? This society has acknowledged and internalized the challenge that is part of raising a child in such a beautiful manner. I'm really surprised that economics should come in the way of enjoying parenthood with so much to enjoy about it around!

JUMP JUMP

Bobo has been trying to jump for several months now, with us parents intently watching each time, hoping not to miss that moment of joy when both feet would be simultaneously above the ground, even just a few ticks. Of course Bobo has been convinced that she can actually jump, the moment she started trying, that is! Didn't end there. Aai or Baba had to jump along with her, had to stand beside her and even lead the way.

There have been few real 'milestones' in the last few months, since Bobo has learnt to walk and talk. Most of the language development and other skill gathering has been subtle, albeit in spurts, and there have been no pinpointed moments such as the jumping one. Last night was therefore special. Not only did she manage to jump... she repeated it over and over with extreme excitement, her joy knowing no bounds, and I guess somewhere even understood that all her previous triumphs at (pseudo) jumping were almost humbug.

Her newly discovered skills bring a lot of anxiety back into our lives though. No longer can her histrionics on her little stool, the dining chair and the sofa go unsupervised. I am terrified that she might just let loose, and all hell will break in the house. At least until those little feet learn definitively to balance and co-ordinate, Aai and Baba are going to need eyes at the back of their heads!

Cafe Bay Leaf: Great spread but average taste

We tried the lunch buffet at Cafe Bay Leaf at Holiday Inn, Pune last weekend. The spread was very impressive at first glance. However, when you read deeper into it, there were disappointments. There was no beverage offered in the price of the buffet, even non-alcoholic - rather strange and uncompetitive, I thought! Both the soups on offer were 'spicy' and I could not try either.

But what was totally unexpected and therefore a complete spoiler was the poor taste of the food - especially compared to the visual appeal. The crunchy fried vegetables were literally sticking to each other and simply awful. The thai chicken yellow curry and the paneer korma were totally tasteless. The saag chicken was the only thing I loved. Desserts were ok, nothing extraordinary there, apart from may be the fruit pie. The savior was the number of dishes - you were full just by trying a bit of each.

Overall, the service and ambiance were more than satisfactory, but I am unlikely to give the fare another chance!

The Casual Vacancy - Can't Understand the Hype :(

Are you a Potter fan? Can't wait to grab the next Rowling novel (if you haven't already that is!)? Take my advice and shine happier without ever touching this book. If you still don't get it, read on.

First, expect extremely bad language. Move over the wonderfully drafted, almost literature-style Potter output - this is third grade writing. Poor use of words, lengthy, rambling sentences, repetitive text - unimaginable stuff this is, especially from Rowling herself!

Second, what has been covered in more than 500 pages could well have been summarised in a couple of hundred. At least that would've spared the reader a story that just goes on and on, throwing across needless detail and bringing together forced climaxes as the characters and story progress into sheer perversion. If this is a true depiction of society in a quaint British town I cannot be more shocked! If not, I cannot imagine how a mature author can stoop to such depths just to 'entertain' readers.

My verdict - As a reader I simply cannot get over not being enthralled by Rowling. I wish I'd never read it, for somewhere deep down I want to puke. I want to wash off all the muck that this book brought into my life. Never another Rowling for me, that's for sure!

Valley of Flowers at Kaas - Revisited

We revisited the Valley of Flowers at Kaas Lake after two years, not knowing what changes to expect this time. The area has been declared as a heritage site a few months ago and we'd heard that there were a few new rules in place. The experience left us pleasantly surprised for once.

The key was reaching there really early in the morning (as early as you could manage to start from Pune with two toddlers... though I think we did a good job!) As you drive into the beautiful view, there is a makeshift ticketing office where you buy tickets for the group, your vehicle and your camera.

The parking area is far away from the flowers, so that does take a bit of hiking. Better if kids and older people are dropped off near the flower area while someone parks the car. 

There were clearly marked trails around the flowers to avoid trampling, and a few guards were working hard to ensure order. This time we were able to take our time and explore a larger area. All of us who had been there earlier felt that there were more varieties of flowers this time and the beautiful belts of colour made it amazingly vibrant.

Food and water is allowed so we even had a nice picnic type snack amidst all the natural beauty. We were blessed with a mild cloud cover that made it really pleasant all the way. Later we drove down towards Kaas lake and picnicked again under a shady tree. We spent around 3 hours in the area in all, and when you go in a group that can't be accomplished without an adequate supply of foods, right? 

Food joints along the road are scarce (which is a good thing actually) but mind that toilets are totally missing from the scene as well. A policeman told us that mobile toilets are likely to be installed soon but no idea if that has really happened. A lone restaurant before the flowers start was the only source of relief!

The Lotus Beach Eco Resort, Murud-Harnai - Wish We'd Stayed Longer

We chose to stay at this resort for only one night, and felt very bad leaving the next morning.

The deluxe AC room where we stayed had a fabulous sea view. The room was spacious but cozy and very well maintained. The important part (very important for me) was that it was absolutely free from lizards and other insects which is inevitable in Konkan. The clean, beautiful beach is hardly 2 min walking distance from the resort.

The staff was courteous and worked hard to make us comfortable. The restaurant is reasonably good. There was no buffet due to low occupancy on the weekday, but we got whatever we ordered. The fried fish and chicken was especially worth a mention.

We took a boat ride to see dolphins early the next morning (again this was arranged by the resort), which was an unforgettable experience.

All in all, it was a hassle-free, peaceful stay - with no arguments, no reminders to the staff and no complaints.

I would definitely recommend this resort for at least a 2-3 night stay. The standard rooms do not have much of a view though, and the deluxe rooms come with a higher price tag. However, the view makes the incremental spend worthwhile.

The Bindi effect

Bobo is just fascinated with Bindis. Ajji's bright red bindi makes her unique and a lot more interesting than other members of the house who don't care to wear one! Every day when Ajji wears a fresh bindi after her bath, Bobo will make Ajji carry her, then she will point at her bindi, touch and feel it, try (in vain) to remove it, make all sorts of noises and sounds to indicate how interesting it all is, and this goes on for quite some time.

Ask Bobo where a bindi is worn and she will painstakingly point to somewhere between her right eye and nose. Perhaps it is still beyond her capability to point to a precise position on her own face! She even tries to convince me and Ajoba how it would be great if we wore bindis too, by pointing to the "bindi spot" on our noses!

Imagine Bobo's excitement when Ajji made her wear a bindi of her own last morning. She stood in the mirror admiring it for the longest of times. It all seemed very cute at that time. But somehow, co-incidentally (or not), she indulged in so much masti and mischief for the rest of the day that I am convinced the bindi triggered off some accupressure point on her forehead and brought out some hidden energy within her. I've literally begged my mother not to do it again :)