decades...

I have been thinking about this.
Now that I have entered the 4th decade of my life, I look back to see how things have been so far, and look forward to see what awaits me. And I am glad to see that instead of fearing the gradual approach of greying hair and sagging flesh, I am actually happy about the passing years. Because I feel I have actually gotten better with age. And because, to me, the years to come seem very promising. And because I believe, the best is simply yet to come. So here's a re-cap of the years gone by

0-9: Loneliness
Sadly that is the only memory I have of my first decade. I was (and still am) an only child - and that fact that I was a quiet and reticent one didnt help matters. I did have friends, but nothing could fill the gap the way a sibling would have. Strangely, I did not pine for a sibling then. But when I look back, I think having one would have surely helped. Still remember how incomplete our family felt - just my father, mother and me. But it wasn't as if I was unhappy. My only grouse is that having a sibling probably would have strengthened me in many ways. Anyway, at least my daughters wouldn't complain!

10-19: Insecurity
Yes, what I remember from those turbulent years can be summarised by the word "insecurity". Mostly throughout the decade, I performed well academically and did a decent job at certain extra curricular activities (speech, essay, story writing etc. were my forte), no doubt. But unlike certain classmates of mine, people who I envied and admired, I was not a pro at singing, dancing, sports and making friends - much needed qualities to be this teen "diva". My circle of friends was small. I was this nerdy, quiet and stout child with a bad sense of dressing (some of which I still retain). Especially my "non-talkativeness" ashamed me most. My relatives perpetually saw me as this quiet and timid girl.
And whenever I was in the company of my bolder, well-dressed, hindi-speaking cousins, I always felt inferior. "Good at studies" was the only adjective I tightly held on to, but only till the point I entered college. "Good at studies" did not naturally translate to "good at engineering" in my case, which I sadly began realizing. My grades dropped and I was a miserable failure in getting along with other girls in the hostel. Result, I quit hostel and forced my mom to move in with me. The only bright spot towards the latter part of my teenage was that I became a serious fan of Hanuman :) and I still am one.

20-29: Uncomfortable
Throughout my early 20's I was uncomfortable with who I was. There was a wide gap between who I was (quiet, restrained) and who I wanted to be (vivacious and dynamic) I was rather a simple person, my socializing skills were limited and I lacked guile. My limited exposure to various wordly ways was another added disadvantage. So much so, that I did not even realize that I came across as under-confident at times. Professionally, I was doing okay and there was nothing to complain about. But there was some amount of resentment and anger inside me, and a whole lot of immaturity.
In my twenties, came something dramatic - marriage. It was a good change that had to happen, and I am glad it did early in my life. It exposed me to a whole new world, very different and one that I didn't have any awareness of. The best lesson that marriage has taught me is that it is okay to have flaws. I have learnt that one needs to relax, and not be uptight always. And that it is ok to seek enjoyment and let your hair down once in a while. And now, my children are teaching me a whole set of new lessons - patience is one of the first chapters.

30... Wisdom, perhaps?
The last few years of the past decade have been ones of revelation. At last, I think I am moving towards being at peace with who I am. I am getting comfortable in my skin. I have come to accept that I am not infallible, and don't hold myself guilty for it. I am less defensive, less angry about who I am. I AM a lot more AWARE - and is awareness not where everything starts?
Yet, there is lot more to do, a million improvements to be made, but I have also understood that they can't happen overnight. I know I have started moving in, what I think is, the right direction.

So, after writing what by far is my longest post, I am finally beginning to "postively feel postive". 30's has kicked off what I am hoping will be the most enjoyable phase of my life. Watch out for updates as I continue my journey...

Self Image

VISION - More human, more efficient, more loving!

An individual who

1. Smiles more often
2. is Assertive - not afraid of speaking out
3. is Less panicky, less afraid of the uncertain
4. Faces turbulence and change bravely
5. is More hardworking (exercise)
6. is Not risk-averse
7. is More patient with the kids
8. is Smartly dressed
9. Achieves all that she intends to - a nice, comfortable home, two-healthly well-brought up kids, pursuing hobbies (painting, sketching), engaged in linguistic pursuits

Re-visit

It's been almost 3.5 months since the last post on this blog. And I am checking to see where I stand.
Self Image - another posting soon

Grades

• Smile more - C
• read more - B
• listen to more music - C
• Increase in intake of fruits/vegetables - B-
• impressive dressing/demeanour - C
• Exercise - C
• Religious - B-
• Additionally Sudoku - B
• Yoga + Everything else - should wait!

clearly immediate needs - smile, music, impressive dressing, exercise
increase tempo in - fruits/veg/religious activities
carry on well - Read, Sudoku

Image

Thoughts Courtesy: http://www.ishafoundation.org/news/columns/2009/CompleteWellBeing_Nov2009.pdf

Love Sadhguru's columns (they tend to unsettle me sometimes, though!)
Came across the above link from the Isha Dec '09 Newsletter. Loved the section on self-image. Important points mentioned here:

• The self image one has built unconsciously has usually nothing to do with reality - it is according to the kind of pattern or external situation one has fallen into
• I can create a new self image consciously - the way I really want to be
• The new self image is subtle, yet tremendously forceful - think about it for 2-3 days before sitting to create it
• Close your eyes and visualise how other people should experience you - give attention to details
• New image should be more human, more efficient, more loving!

Pranams!

The list below is what I had posted way back in Sep 2008. Haven't made too much of progress, but it struck me that marking timelines against each is as important as the goal itself. Now that things are bound to change and there is going to be a lot of ups and downs, it has become all the more important to know what is to be tackled in short time and what in long time. So here are fresh updates (oh, how I love planning!)

• Practise breathing exercises regularly -> Anulom-vilom, Kapal Bhati, Pranayama

April/May 2010: This will be Yoga - full 40 mins of Yoga

• Practise sadhana/meditation -> calm your senses and find peace; increase concentration, sharpness and agility

Covered by above (onde kallu, eradu mavinkai)

• Do about 20 mins of rigorous running - everyday on the treadmill

July 2010

• Maintain clean surroundings - orderly and planned living

Aug 2011

• Cut down on bad food and increase intake of fruits, vegetables and fibres

Feb 2010

• Maintain records - whenever, wherever possible and of course, make them easily accessible

Ongoing/May 2010

• Service household equipment regularly -treadmill, chimney

Ongoing/May 2010

• Fill your home with fresh and good things - flowers, scents, inspiring wall decorations etc.

January 2012

• Paint - Indulge in art as much as you'd want to. Make it a point to gift art work to close friends and relatives

January 2014

• Music - learn to listen to and appreciate all forms of music (international included)

Ongoing/April 2010

• Religious activities - visit temples regularly, chant mantras at home and fulfill all your religious necessities

May 2010

• Reading and Writing - Read at least 1 book a month and start writing again (am I not doing it already :))

Ongoing/December 2010

• Network and socialise - start interacting more with people; dont shy away from company; Add: Smile more; Be impressive in dressing & demeanour

Ongoing/April 2010

So here's the order of priority then:

• Ongoing - Smile more, Read more, listen to Music
• Feb 2010 - Cut down on bad food and increase intake of fruits, vegetables and fibres
• April 2010/May 2010 - Be impressive in dressing & demeanour; Yoga; More music; Maintain records; Service household equipment regularly; Religious activities
• July 2010 - Treadmill
• December 2010 - Write more
• August 2011 - Maintain clean surroundings - orderly and planned living
• January 2012 - Fill your home with fresh and good things
• January 2014 - Paint

April-May, going to be one busy season!

Ok, now for what I can think for the the much distant future (5-10 year plan)

• Learn French/Sanskrit
• Learn Tanjore Painting

The Wonderful world

Thank God for the wonderful parallel universe (no, I don’t mean Pandora) and the numerous citizens that dwell in there, I am having no short supply of fun these days. And having found some extra time to indulge in uninhibited, free browsing, I am discovering whole new colonies out there. I am talking about blogs and bloggers that come in all forms and sizes.

Look at the way it has made celebrated writers of ordinary people and the kind of opportunities it has opened up for people to communicate - amazing. From the inconsequential rants of numerous faceless people to the well followed blogs of celebrities, we have a totally astounding range. Personally, I enjoy the whole variety.
Movie/book critiques, bollywood gossip, blogs on topics ranging from interiors to cooking, celebrity blogs, funny ones, philosophical ones, social commentries and just about anything under the sun.

Recently stumbled upon Coconut Chutney’s blog. Hilarious! Cannot believe that this a twenty year old who pens such riotously humorous posts.

Hey chutney case, if you happen to visit my blog, leave a note or two! I'd be happy!

BFN!

Equilibirum

I am not in the best of moods today. So much so, that I got into that 'shut off' mode where I shut myself off, direct my anger at someone and ignore him/her completely. It was the result of something that happened yesterday. Here are thoughts around the incident -
Bad side - BS - of me (often the one that rules) and good side (GS) have this one of many dialogues:
BS - Why are you being sidelined? treated differently?GS - To me, it seems perception... maybe you are using tinted glasses?BS - tinted glasses? nitpicking, letting you always have the worse of the 2 things bought, not once appreciating what you do or give, never once asking 'how are things with you' or 'are you okay' or saying words like 'be careful', 'eat on time' - this and that while generously doling it out to the other party - is that all my assumption? how about the time when you came back tired after 24 hours of air travel and were asked to make chapatis, while the other person who just returned from a 'shopping' trip was asked if she was tired and asked to rest? or when always what the other party liked was identified and got things prepared accordingly, while your likes and dislikes were ignored? you mean these never happened? or even when silly things done by
GS - Listen, I dont deny these (I still give the benefit of the doubt - maybe it was all unintentional) BS - Unintentional? Who are you kidding?
GS - Maybe you seem unapproachable and belligerent to people. Learn to smile more and do more PRBS - Why is it always, irrespective of root cause, the solution always lies with me?GS - Alright - point taken - So, by getting all worked up, what is the benefit you get?BS - I am not doing this by choice. I am angry when this happens. And that is unavoidableGS - Remember - you are not doing anyone any favour by upsetting yourself over thisBS - I know that!GS - So listen to me. Let us revisit the concept of responsibility.
responsibility = ability to respond. When angry, you lose the ability to respond. You only REACT - which is what you've been doing
Many ways you can respond through:
- Talk about it to the perpetrator (not possible now or ever)- talk about it to the 3rd party witness (useless, will not listen or bother)- Blog it out :) and eventually learn to condition yourself to ignore (difficult but possible) and direct your energies elsewhere. Benefits of ignoring:
- you dont get BP or spoil your health - you dont waste precious time thinking about this - you dont direct the anger at someone else
Basically the reason for all this is - you are insecure. Insecure that someone else is treated better than you. And that in turn to you implies that person's greatness.
Think hard and deep. In what way is someone's treatment of you going to affect you? Will it take away or give you something? what will diminish materialistically? even otherwise? Think and it might help you remain secure.
Suggest you stop this unreasonable behavior. Draw inspiration from the 3rd party witness himself. He is a true Sthitaprajna.
Gita's essence for Sthitaprajna - Shri Krishna’s ideal human being is Sthitaprajna. Prajna is mind, intellect, wisdom. Sthita means stable. Sthitaprajna is a person whose mind has stabilized. Whether he has faith in the divine is immaterial, as long as he is in a state of equilibrium while facing the ups and downs of life.
Difficult but achieveble. What do you say?
BS - I dont know, will try! All I know is I have to try and be a Sthitaprajna.
Thanks for listening.

Result -
Continue with your quest to remain "lotus in a muddy pond - a Sthitaprajna"

Year Plan... what to do

Sep - Sort out financials

Sep-Oct - clear up clutter; donate toys/clothes/books

Nov - ?

Dec - ?

Some pictures shot on our trip to Europe last summer

Innsbruck

Lush meadow on the way to Shwangau

Innsbruck in Euro '08 Fever

A mallard in the idyllic waters of Lake Eibsee

Entrance to the Swarovski Crystal Museum

Reading-Painting-Blogging...

...three of my passions, which I thought, had been doused lately.

Even as I keep looking around trying to gather inspiration for reviving interest in these, which is seemingly dimming, I think I have started to find it in somes nooks and corners of the internet. Thanks, Bidata!

I recently (after a long, long gap) actually took up a book for reading and even managed to put it down after reading it to the end. "The Blind Faith" by Sagarika Ghose (the popular journo)

I should admit I wasn't disappointed by the book, though I had some trouble continuing to read it when it started. Once the story picked up through the introduction of characters namely Vik and Indi, the tempo picked and there was no stopping.

Personally though, I wouldn't know if you'd find characters like Indi. I mean, a successful woman, yes, but one who tramples (not literally) her own son due to deep animosity? And characters like Justin - who shower selfless love on someone like Indi, who doesn't even acknowledge it righfully? Maybe they exist and I just don't know.

That, to me, is the only complaint. I couldn't relate to the characters, but the book made for a good read.

I am hoping to read a lot more, paint a lot, write a lot, and blog a lot in the coming weeks.

Gyan - recount

- Anger is a symptom of Fear and in turn, of helplessness and insecurity
- Anger/Fear can be rooted out by accepting that every moment is inevitable and keeping that deep in your consciousness
- You are not the body - you are the Divine playing the role of the body. An actor playing the role of Bheema needs to remember that he is not Bheema, he is just enacting. He can't walk around with a mace forever claiming to be Bheema
- Remember you make everyday as joyous as possible. Every moment/day is unique and you cannot get it back
- Real freedom is when your body or mind does not insist on any particular thing to follow. Freedom is when you can choose. Remember the Shankaran Pillai example.

Isha Workshop

I've been attending an Isha Workshop over the past few days and without getting too much into the specifics, would want to jot down a few points here for the benefit of posterity

(though I sincerely hope they get ingrained in me)

- The concepts of acceptance and "response+ability"
Very powerful and just what I needed

- The concept of how many people can you show parental love towards

- The concepts of "Am I the body?" or "Is the body mine?"

- The concept of freedom Vs. Bondage, Karma and how they tie to acceptance

All mind blowing stuff.

Other impressive things:

- The positive pranic food, uncooked food
- Rudraksh and its benefits
- Asanas, kriyas and benefits
- Chakras
- Ancient Indian history

And the list goes on...

Aum Shanti!

Thoughtful...

Of late I have been plagued a lot with feelings of incompetence, desperation and restlessness. I get bothered by thoughts like

- am I a good mother (can I handle my child well and bring her up well all by myself without depending much on my parents and spouse as I do now)
- am I a good wife (why is it that my house is always messy, things disorganised and handling of home related matter haphazard? Why is it that there is no guarantee that I can cook even a half decent meal?)
- am I a good professional (do I address all my developments needs well and on time? how visible am I in office as a capable professional? why do I get ruffled and troubled easily?)

And needless to say, I am forever seeking solutions.

And incidentally, I happened to have stumbled upon a solution. It is no magic potion, but to me at least seems to be a silver lining.

As I explore the possibilities of utilising it and benefitting from it, I am keeping my fingers crossed. Hope the beacon of light doesn't fade away, hope my wishes dont vanish in a whiff of smoke... hoping and hoping...

BFN!

Notes to myself

Excuse me, Hugh Prather - but I couldn't think of a better title myself.

Partly becuase I am slightly upset today - upset or should I say disappointed? Well, either ways, I had to return to this arena - which is my retreat during troubled times.

So what do I do? I dashed off a letter of grievings to God, but that is all I can do for the moment, no?

For a long term however, I think I know the answers - meditate, gain control over your feelings (at least to some extent) and learn to accept certain inevitable things gracefully!

For me, my immediate needs are:

- need to be calm in the face of all issues
- need to develop better control over mind
- need to adopt a better lifestyle


Ciao!

-

Matters of the Mind

Some lessons (gathered from www.gurumaa.com)
- Learn to love yourself, accept yourself as you are and meditate. Learning to be in the moment, accepting it with full gratitude, gives us a fresh, new zeal to live with awareness. Breathe deeply, look outside the window, at the tree or the sky, shut your eyes with the deep resolve that you have taken this opportunity of a lifetime, that you have taken the responsibility for your life. Let the mind be free of all the pretensions and assumptions. Be natural, be in the moment – the moment that is called LIFE!

- Pain, anxiety, desires, stress, tensions, worries, resentments – all forms of fear – are caused by living unconsciously. These happen because we are attached to the past and by being future-oriented. If you are living your life perpetually wishing for something, then you are giving rise to various kinds of turmoil in your mind.

Mapping the Mind... (gathered from www.lifepositive.com)

Both the mind and the body are made up of the 'Five Great Elements' (Panchabhutas) of earth (prithvi), water (jal), fire (agni or tej), air (vayu) and ether or space (akash).

But in spite of such composition, they have absolutely opposite elemental structures. While the body is made up of the heavier elements of earth and water, it functions through the lighter elements of fire (pitta) and air (vata)
The mind, meanwhile, is composed of air and ether. And our mental functions proceed through the heavier elements of fire, water and earth.

Ashtanga Yoga - Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, Samadhi
Dharana, the sixth limb of the Yoga philosopher Patanjali's Ashtanga Yoga, literally means 'immovable concentration of the mind'.Dhyana, the seventh limb of Ashtanga Yoga, means worship, or profound and abstract religious meditation. It is perfect contemplation. It involves concentration upon a point of focus with the intention of knowing the truth about it.

Benefits of Meditation

Notes on meditation... captured from various sources ~

WHY MEDITATION?

"Meditation is being with our true self; being able to control all activities of the mind and senses a well as making the right choices. Meditation is an antidote to the mounting stress and tension. The tremendous transformation that meditation can bring to you can be derived only by delving into its experiences with the child-like innocence."
-- www.gurumaa.com


HOW TO MEDITATE?
"The first stage of meditation is to stop distractions and make our mind clearer and more lucid. This can be accomplished by practising a simple breathing meditation. We choose a quiet place to meditate and sit in a comfortable position. We can sit in the traditional cross-legged posture or in any other position that is comfortable. If we wish, we can sit in a chair. The most important thing is to keep our back straight to prevent our mind from becoming sluggish or sleepy. We sit with our eyes partially closed and turn our attention to our breathing. We breathe naturally, preferably through the nostrils, without attempting to control our breath, and we try to become aware of the sensation of the breath as it enters and leaves the nostrils. This sensation is our object of meditation. We should try to concentrate on it to the exclusion of everything else. At first, our mind will be very busy, and we might even feel that the meditation is making our mind busier; but in reality we are just becoming more aware of how busy our mind actually is. There will be a great temptation to follow the different thoughts as they arise, but we should resist this and remain focused single-pointedly on the sensation of the breath. If we discover that our mind has wandered and is following our thoughts, we should immediately return it to the breath. We should repeat this as many times as necessary until the mind settles on the breath."

-- www.how-to-meditate.org

BENEFITS?

"When the turbulence of distracting thoughts subsides and our mind becomes still, a deep happiness and contentment naturally arises from within. This feeling of contentment and well-being helps us to cope with the busyness and difficulties of daily life. So much of the stress and tension we normally experience comes from our mind, and many of the problems we experience, including ill health, are caused or aggravated by this stress. Just by doing breathing meditation for ten or fifteen minutes each day, we will be able to reduce this stress. We will experience a calm, spacious feeling in the mind, and many of our usual problems will fall away. Difficult situations will become easier to deal with, we will naturally feel warm and well disposed towards other people, and our relationships with others will gradually improve."

-- www.how-to-meditate.org

"We start by paying attention to our breathing. The practical effort to focus completely on our breathing takes our minds away from the "mind clutter" that constantly tries to invade our mind and eliminate feelings that will lead to a time of calm. With repeated effort the goal of clearing your mind – to think of nothing, does occur and the process of meditation takes on its own energy. The result is, and I guarantee this, peace, serenity, calmness, eventually opening yourself to new insights."

-- www.learningmeditation.com

Continued

Continuing with the last post below, these are not New Year resolutions - for me everyday is a new day (My target is tactic, never strategic - that is my weekness as well)

Let me take stock 2 weeks down the line and assess again. I hope to improve upon as many points as possible.

Till then,
Ciao!

Where am I?

2 months past my last assessment - and let us see where I stand

Breathing exercises - irregular; can do better

- MARK IN CALENDAR

Sadhana - Outright bad; need to work on it immediately

- MARK IN CALENDAR

20 mins of running - irregular; can do better

- MARK IN CALENDAR

clean surroundings - trying

Bad food - irregular; can do better

- AVOID SWEETS, SUGARY STUFF AND CHOCOLATES

Fruits intake - Outright bad; need to work on it immediately

- 1 FRUIT A DAY

Records - irregular; can do better


- SET IT RIGHT BEFORE JAN 1 AND MAINTAIN

Service Household equipment - outright bad; need to work on it immediately

- MAINTAIN RECORD

Home decor - trying
Paint - trying

Music - irregular; can do better

- ONLY E

Religious activities - irregular; can do better


- SET ASIDE 10 MINS ON WEEKDAYS AND 20-30 MINS ON WEEKENDS

Network and socialise - irregular; can do better

- ??

(NEW!)Tea intake - limit to 1 cup a day

- START RIGHTAWAY

(NEW!) Use Stairs - at least 2 times a day

- MARK IN CALENDAR

Time for a status check

Hello!

About 1.5 months back, I had listed a set of objectives that I'd lined up for myself. Now, it's time to rate. The scale is simple and is:
A -- doing well
B -- doing so so
C -- real bad

• Practise breathing exercises regularly -> Anulom-vilom, Kapal Bhati, Pranayama

A... doing all of this regularly!

• Practise sadhana/meditation -> calm your senses and find peace; increase concentration, sharpness and agility

A... doing all of this regularly!

• Do about 20 mins of rigorous running - everyday on the treadmill

A... doing all of this regularly!

• Maintain clean surroundings - orderly and planned living

C... not at all at the level I'd want to be in. Will keep trying.

• Cut down on bad food and increase intake of fruits, vegetables and fibres

C... My intake of chocolates and junk has been on a record high the past week. Let me start getting better at this!

• Maintain records - whenever, wherever possible and of course, make them easily accessible

C... Ok, at least I am starting to record updates on my calendar. A long way to go, but at least I have started, haven't I?

• Service household equipment regularly -treadmill, chimney

B... It is A for the treadmill and C for the chimney, so that makes it a B. And I took efforts to fix the Electric Meter today. So that is not bad either.

• Fill your home with fresh and good things - flowers, scents, inspiring wall decorations etc.

B... Another average score again. Hope to reach 'A' soon.

• Paint - Indulge in art as much as you'd want to. Make it a point to gift art work to close friends and relatives

B... Restarted painting classes and was inspired by the exhibits I saw. Hope to do some amazing painting before the inspiration evaporates.

• Music - learn to listen to and appreciate all forms of music (international included)

C... To be fair to myself, I am trying. 'EE' Rule helps this cause - EE btw is 'Evening English' while I travel back by car

• Religious activities - visit temples regularly, chant mantras at home and fulfill all your religious necessities

C... God(the irony of it!) - a C again! Long way to go :(

• Reading and Writing - Read at least 1 book a month and start writing again (am I not doing it already :))

C... Nowhere close to where I want to be.

• Network and socialise - start interacting more with people; dont shy away from company

C... yet to start, that exoplains it all!

So the scores today read 3 As, 3 Bs and 7 Cs. Aim next is to hold on to As and slowly convert the Bs to As and wherever possible, Cs to Bs.

Watch out this space for more updates after a month!

Ciao!

Travel

In summer this year (Apr-May '08) I went on my first visit to the west -
Germany/Austria, with family.

While it'd have been a good idea to record notes from my travel almost
immediately, I believe retrospecting four months down the line and
recording it is not bad either. Better late than never. So here we go.

The first point of our stay was a non descript hotel in the Seefeld area
in Austria bordering Germany, where we stayed for almost a week. That the
caretaker of the place could talk only Deutsche was only
a small inconvenience. Stunning locale, right in the lap of the alps. How
many times in life will you get to be greeted by a snowclad peak when you
pull open the curtains of your window?

We visited Neuschwanstein- the famed castle that's come to
sysmbolise Disney, Wattens - housing the world-famous crystal museum,
Zugspitze - Germanay's highest mountain, Innsbruck (Euro-2008) all only an
hour's drive (with roads, called Autobahns, as good as the ones in
Germany, you can cover upto 150 kms easily in an hour)

The second week was fun as well. Stayed in a small town called
Mitterfels, an hour's drive away from Munich. Enjoyed lovely drives around
countryside, traveled to Passau (where we went on a nice boat ride on the
Danube/Inn rivers and visited the magnificent St. Stephen's Cathedral) and shopped in the famous Marianne Platz.

Amidst all the fun, I have to admit we had a fair share of "adventures" as
well - we were caught without our passports by a pair of German cops on
one occassion, and in another, were completely lost for two hours circling
all possible wrong routes from Innsbruck, almost losing hope of making it
back, drove to a near empty tank till we managed to find a petrol station
in the nick of time and more.

Unlike what most vegetarian travelers complain of, food was not a particular problem while we traveled, simply because we had our utensils, cooked and carried food everyday before setting off on sightseeing. Renting a car was another wise decision. We covered nearly
3000 kms in ten days without (gasp!) a backache and hassles of finding
transport to move around.

In short, the points I liked best - sheer beauty of the countries,
excellent infrastructure, friendliness of people and what (and not many) I found inconvenient - you are handicapped without a car and not many speak English.