News

The Hindu : y>Many exciting offers to plan your vacation

SEASON’s offering Choose the best

Fort JadhavGadh, a heritage Hotel, has announced the weekend getaway. This heritage “Fort Hotel” is promoted by Kamat Hotels and is located in the hills of Saswad, 22 km. from Pune, in hamlet called Jadhav Wadi.

Fort JadhavGadh was made in the year 1710 as a place of residence as well as a safe haven from marauding enemies.

As magnanimous as other Maratha Forts like SinhaGadh, JadhavGadh had quite a few architectural similarities and a fine example of Maratha craftsmanship. The inside of the fort is divided into the outer walled area and an inner structure where the women resided.

This area is believed to be utilised for rainwater harvesting.

The 300-year-old structure is preserved so that the rooms of the hotel have been laid out in to seem to fit in naturally on the side walls of the fortress.

You can even find in places, the original stoned wall as a part of the rooms, say the organisers.

The weekend packages at this fort include a two-day itinerary for Rs. 10,000, which includes breakfast, lunch or dinner. For reservations call 9886702576 or e-mail:pritam.choudhury@orchidhotel.com

*** There is a weekend hiking trip to Kottebetta between February 13 and 15. This is the third highest peak in northern Coorg at 5,451 ft (1652 mts). The trek takes you through Shola forest and grasslands in undisturbed pristine wilderness. Camping will be on grasslands and streamside patches with fresh food served close to the villages, say the organisers. Travellers are to carry tents, sleeping bags and first-aid kits as “it is a self-sustained trip therefore; participants will have to carry their own gear.” Tour is priced at Rs. 3,500 per person includes. The trip cost can change if the number of people are below minimum, say the organisers. For details log on towww.getoffurass.com or www. fringeford.com.

Getoffurass is also organising a four-day photography…More

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McDonald’s has unveiled the Spiderman Happy Meal for children. McDonald’s young guests will receive one of the eight toys from “The Spectacular Spiderman – Animated Series”, with the purchase of every Happy Meal. The eight action characters includes two Spiderman toys, out of which one toy can stick to any flat surfaces and another toy fires a plastic web missile, they add. There are also Spidey adversary toys like the Green Goblin who is attached to his battle glider, and Dr. Octopus who spreads menace with his terrible tentacles.

These toys are available from February 1 at all McDonald’s outlets.

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The Hindu : y>Some cricket and sight-seeing too

EXCITEMENT In the air

Tourism New Zealand has come up with great offers for the India-New Zealand National Bank Cricket Series 2009 from February-end to April.

The man in blue are touring the country after six years, and it promises to be a series with nail-biting finishes and great action.

To help you catch all the excitement live, Tourism New Zealand offers attractive, early bird Cricket Fever offers on its website,www.newzealand.com, in association with leading airlines and tour operators. Packages start from Rs. 70, 000 for four days and go up to Rs. 1,10,000 for seven days, covering individual game regions or multiple locations from cosmopolitan harbour cities Auckland and Wellington, Christchurch and Rotorua.

When you’re not cheering on your favourite team in a swanky cricket stadium, indulge in some of New Zealand’s finest pastimes. Drift along the South Pacific blue sky in a hot air balloon over towering snow clad peaks, glistening lakes and sprawling meadows in Christchurch, catch sweeping views of the city and the harbour aboard a restored, historic cable car in Wellington or get a chance to interact with nature at the Karori Sanctuary, plunge into azure waters amidst Auckland’s cosmopolitan skyline in a bungee jump, experience a 15,000 feet skydive in Rotorua or an indulgent hot soak in healing mineral hot pools. And, there is the local nightlife!

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The Hindu : y>While Paris Hilton is doing her bit for the economy by shopping, AYESHA MATTHAN discovers we Indians are a canny lot. Recession or not, we wait for sales before indulging in retail therapy

The U.S. economy plummeted because of it. And now, heiress Paris Hilton will do anything with her plastic cards to salvage it. She will shop only U.S-designed clothes. Paris feels she is doing her bit, with her retail therapy. “I’m playing my part in helping by shopping wherever I go,” assures Paris.

Advertisements lured with heady, sky-high tales of villa and SUV loans. The employed joined the unemployment brigade, and fat paycheques were neatly sliced into halves or quarters.

But most shops haven’t downed their shutters. It is said that depressed Americans are still shopping with a renewed force. And psychiatrists have found an existing and invented mental health disease, shopaholism. In a recent New York Times article, the obsessive-compulsive disorder was coined first “in the early 1900s by Eugene Bleuler and Emil Kraepelin…as oniomania (Greek for sale — to refer to those obsessed with making purchases).” And according to University of Iowa psychiatry professor Donald Black, the victims facing the brunt of all attacks are “women who have had relatives also predisposed to buying binges.” Now, Indians too are learning to live within their means…

Raj Subramanian, an MBA grad and co-founder of a retail-technology start-up, got married last year, went on a honeymoon to Maldives, bought a penthouse on a loan and renovated his parents’ home. He says while recession has not affected him or his lifestyle, it has definitely affected the retail market and hospitality industry. “Whenever I go to malls and fine-dining restaurants on weekends, there seems to a sharp decrease in the number of potential consumers. Partying and dining out seems to have been pushed back in the list of priorities.”

Assistant professor in Economics at Christ University,…More

The Hindu :

Fate stepped in for the studious Faith Pandey, a student in Bangalore, who is going to the Miss India pageant

Photo: Bhagya Prakash k.ON A WILDCARD Faith was forced by her friends to participate

Faith Pandey, a second year psychology student at St. Joseph’ s College had never expected her life to change, when she entered a contest for a wildcard entry to a beauty pageant, Femina Miss India South.

However, a lot did change. She got the wildcard, and went on to win the Miss India South pageant. She is currently preparing for the Miss India pageant, slated to be held in March.

“I had come to cheer a friend, who was participating in a contest, Nivea Visage Princess, that promised a wildcard entry to the pageant. I was forced by my friends to participate. I felt that I was not prepared. I was the only contestant who had participated wearing sandals! It was unbelievable to win the contest and get the wildcard entry,” she says.

Her parents were initially taken aback, when they heard about the entry. “They were surprised, since I was always very studious. They never thought I would participate in a beauty contest. They have been very supportive.”

“I was overjoyed, when I won the pageant. When I had started to practice, I did not know the catwalk and other skills needed. However, I was helped by friends and many others, who taught me to walk the ramp and other mannerisms required to win the pageant.”

Faith feels that her confidence has grown by leaps and bounds after being crowned Miss India south.

“I am much more confident now. I am practicing for the Miss India pageant and hope that I am successful.”

The second year psychology student feels that time management has become a major issue. “Earlier, I was only concerned about my studies. I have to manage my practice sessions and…More

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Dig in Gorge on the latest range of pizzas stuffed with tempting fillings

Whoever said the way to the heart is through the stomach was on to something. One has heard of chocolate, candy and moonlight dinners to celebrate love, but you could just be slightly different this Valentine’s Day and celebrate with pizzas. Pizza Hut is offering a new, delectable range of golden surprise pizzas.

The pizzas are stuffed with a tempting filling baked with golden cheddar melted on top, so that you ‘Enjoy It Backwards’. You can choose from two scrumptious fillings – Fresh Cajun paneer and spicy chicken sausage baked into the pizza, with a sprinkling of golden cheddar cheese.

The golden surprise range offers four non-vegetarian and four vegetarian pizzas including veggie lovers, country feast, Chicken n’ Spicy, and Chicken Supreme etc.

Prices start from Rs. 265.

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The Hindu :

Jazz musicians Barbessol and Giordano love to play with other musicians

Harmony The musicians feel that creating something is like a new beginning

It is time to meet jazz musicians – Cyril Barbessol and Cyrille Giordano. As you step in to the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association, Cubbon Park, the musicians are already on stage doing a sound check.

The music is foot tapping.Babessol is on the piano while Giordano is on the flute with their Indian counterparts on the drums and the bass. They were here for the Black Dog Indigo and Blues Jazz Festival.

After 20 minutes they are ready to talk. “Your India is very hot,” starts Barbessol, whose face has turned red from the afternoon sun.

Something about the way he speaks and his expression warns you that he’s in a humorous mood and is not going to take the interview seriously.

Ask him when he started to play the piano, he scratches his chin and squints before replying: “Hmm… yesterday. No, no… make it this morning. Okay, okay serious. I learnt to play the piano when I was ten.”

Not willing to give up, you try again. What does he thinks of the jazz scene in India?

“Oh! I came here just last night so… Let me seriously answer your question. Jazz is the international language of music. Go to any country and you will find it. I am fascinated by every kind of music and like to collaborate with local artistes.”

Barbessol has studied piano at Paris’s Schola Cantorum and jazz at C.I.M. and at the American School of Modern Music.

He studied harmony, orchestration and arrangement techniques with Ivan Julien and Bernard Maury. He has performed with musicians from Cuba and Africa too.

What does he think of collaborating with other musicians? “Depends on the people you meet. I like to play with jazz musicians. We met the drummer and the bassist here two…More

The Hindu :

The two-day Black Dog and Radio Indigo Jazz Festival held last week was mostly good and some superlative

Interesting An eclectic set of musicians performed to a rather sparse audience

It wasn’t as international as it appeared at first sight, but Black Dog and Radio Indigo did manage to assemble between them a fairly eclectic cast of musicians who, over two days (January 31 and February 1), treated a somewhat sparse audience at the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association stadium to some ten hours of jazz, much of it good and some superlative.

Having said that, it seems only fitting to mention a couple of disappointments. And since they came on the Sunday, their effect was anticlimactic after Saturday’s promise. First off, the leader of Masala Dosa from France (on sitar) seemed to have just one riff in his musical repertoire and he punctuated his brief returns to it with spells of punching the air and jumping around the stage, possibly injuring himself seriously when he jumped clear off it. If it wasn’t for Rajiv Chandra Kulur’s redemptive flute playing in support of his act, it would’ve been a total write-off.

The other disappointment on Sunday was Wanayran Angerer from Honduras (supported by Svetlana on keyboard and Suchet Malhotra on percussion). Blessed with a great voice, she could become an accomplished singer but whether she will do so in jazz is questionable on the evidence of straightforward and brief renditions of popular and Latin standards devoid of any improvisation, either vocal or instrumental.

In sharp contrast was Marilena Paradisi’s performance on the first day. This woman is one hell of singer, with fantastic improvising ability adding to a terrific voice. Her intro to Duke Ellington’s “Caravan”, with its take-off on a camel, brought the house down. She was brilliantly supported by Louis Banks on keyboard/ piano, his son Gino Banks on drums and Sheldon D’Souza…More

The Hindu : SUBHA J RAO

It’s a great way to discover the country. With some help, you should be able to tide over minor issues

Plan in advance

Bookings

It makes more sense to travel with a confirmed ticket if you are on a holiday. Avoid last-minute tension over wait-listed tickets; it can ruin everything.Beat the queue

Opt for online booking. You beat the queue at the booking centre and can use the facility till late night (it closes at 11 p.m.)Binge

Check out the luxury trains in the country. They are expensive, but offer a novel experience. Ask those who can’t stop raving about it online. The top luxury trains are The Deccan Odyssey, Heritage On Wheels, Palace On Wheels and Golden Chariot.Health issues

Carry water from home or buy bottled water.

A hand sanitiser and wet tissues are a great idea, especially if you don’t trust water outside.

Take a basic medicine kit with cures for ordinary headaches, aches, cold and fever.Food matters

If you’re travelling in a group, it makes sense to pack food from home. Not only is it tastier, it adds to the whole experience.

On longer journeys, prepare relatively dry food such as idlis and rotis or fried stuff such as puris. Handle the food using a ladle; it lasts longer.

If taking kids along, carry some juices, chocolates and bread and butter/jam.

If eating outside, choose something that is steamed or boiled. Idlis are harmless. Stay clear of fried stuff unless it is served piping hot. The puri vendors in North Indian railway stations usually have a fan following for their sizzling puris.Safety concerns

Avoid accepting anything from strangers. Despite warnings, people still fall prey to the “biscuit” trick and find themselves looted of all their belongings.

Lock your luggage with a chain even if you are travelling in an A/C compartment.

If you are wearing jewellery, don’t display it to the…More

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To celebrate its first anniversary Spectrum is organising one-year free classes for students, housewives and executives in interior design, fashion design and beauty care.

Venue: Spectrum, Sheshadripuram

Date: Starts today

Contact: 23468685/9900704933

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