Star Cruise -Hong Kong 2

Star Cruise - Pisces

What's all this cruise about ?
Only thing that was known to me about cruise was staying in the ship. Though I have heard about swimming pool, cafes, separate rooms like hotels etc in ship,  the curiosity to have the first hand experience of the Cruise was building up within me. Little did I know that  the cruise experience would have such a deep impact on me.

Waiting at Hong Kong airport.

On June 16, Saturday,  we reached the Hong Kong airport via Bangkok . And we had to wait for a group member to join us at the airport after collecting our baggage .
We all were seemingly looking tired due to the lack of sleep previous night. But , we were all ready for the excitements awaiting us.

Moving walkway in HK airport

 At this juncture, need to mention about the Hong Kong airport,  which is very huge and massive , with 2 terminals  , about 66 boarding gates and constructed on an island . It's actually a hub for many say 100 international  airlines . The airport is very posh, neatly maintained and has a strikingly  impressive look housing many duty free shops decorated with bright yellow lights similar to a mall , lounges, multi cuisine restaurants etc. The crowd mostly looked like Chinese  people .  And to move inside the airport , the moving walkways are provided end to end , where we stand with our luggages , it just carries us to to the other end. We just can't compare to the Chennai airport in terms of size and the maintenance. Such an awesome airport !!

Massive Honk Kong airport

Mall like appearance in HK airport

The air traffic is very high at the airport , heard somone in our group commenting , "Hey!  This is like Koyembedu bus stand of Chennai ya !!" 
True, one plane after the other keeps landing ,one behind the other. And on the other side,  we see the planes taking off one after the other without any time gap .We all soon found ourself stuck to our mobile in no time , as there was a free wifi available in airport.
One night Cruise booking was already booked at Star Cruises Hongkong from June, 16to 17. Also we had made arrangements  for to and fro within the city to move around all places as per our tour itinerary with the Crimson travel agency. They also took care of  hotel stay and other ticket bookings at all sight seeing places.

So,  by June 16  afternoon , we reached the Pisces, it's the name of the Star Cruise we were about to stay.

Cruise seen at the inset

There was a very strict security check to gain entry to the Cruise ,even they had withheld our  passport & visa with them during our stay there and gave us an access card to move around the cruise ,complimentary  food and and stay in the room.  The room can be described as very compact, yet with all facilities like dressing table, a 2 tier cot & a single cot with one optional under-cot extension in case to accommodate any small kid , a slim portable ladder to climb to the upper berth, wardrobe, TV,  dining table, 2 chairs etc, along with separate shower room,  wash basin with dressing mirror , WC etc.Ours was a normal &  standard room. I could not contain my amazement like how they could accommodate everything in such a tiny room and the cruise could accommodate about 1000 people. The local TV  was demonstrating the safety procedures in case of emergency and also the amenities available in cruise like swimming pool, restaturants , entertainments etc.

Standard room for 3 accomodation

Single large window in room to look through  

There was a single large closed & transparent  glass window which gave a beautiful view of the sea outside and the high rise buildings on the shore.

High rise buildings viewed from the cruise 

 The cruise started moving at the onset of the evening. The high rise buildings on the shore started to give a different look , so dazzling with different color bright lights. The view was spectacular in that pleasant windy evening creating more & more awe in us . It was a real feast to the eyes. We had a more enhanced view from the topmost deck of the ship.

Spectacular view from the upper deck of the cruise in the evening.

View from the upper deck of cruise

We all had a great time , walking around the top deck, enjoying the sea breeze,gazing at the far away mountains, well lit up high rise buildings , sea water , vast dark sky which encompassed us on all sides like a thick blanket.

And that was a very special day , Ramzan day and easily we could spot the significant crescent and the star by it's side , more prominent in the clear dark sky.  Could capture those celestial objects in the camera too.  Wished heartily "Id Mubarak " for all the loving beings celebrating Ramzan .

Crescent moon & star captured on Ramzan day 

Star Cruise -Pisces name plate on the Cruise at top deck

On the uppermost deck,  we could spot the name Pisces of the cruise and also could take a full round of the ship,  having a better and different view  of the ship with flags and peculiar structures .  Benches and tables were spread around on the deck  to sit and enjoy . Even I was tempted to sit there on the bench to enjoy the cold , calm & windy night .Very soon I found myself slipping into meditation for a few moment as the environment was conducive enough to go for it.  An open  swimming pool was in the 11th floor of the cruise. After 9'o clock,  they had restricted the entry to the top deck on all sides, for safety reasons, I think.

Dining place decorated , dazzling and busy 

The lunch,  dinner, supper and breakfast all were inclusive in the one night package. The Cruise dining place was in the 6th floor.The lift facility was there to reach there apart from the stairs.The food was arranged in a buffet setup.The ambience was just rightly set up with dazzling lights , decorative items,  and live dance performances to suit the luxury look of the cruise .  The Indian food was available in specified time schedule  as it was a weekend .




There were a lot of sea food delicacies which people especially kids seemed to savour and relish them to their heart's content.I just peeped in out of curiosity at all th items spread over there. Excited to find the prawns, duckmeat based dishes,  shelled oysters,  crabs,  pork, different type of eggs,shrimps, baked fish and many more unidentifiable seafood delicacies . The way they ate oysters was a great  sight to watch . They collected a small heap of them in their plates  ,they ate the cooked flesh inside and threw out the shells like how we used to eat peanuts and throw out the peanut shells. They seemed to have used mustard oil for  cooking which gave a peculiar taste & flavor to the food . Varieties of baked buns, pastries,  biscuits,  cakes were present in the buffet. I already had a very bad experience earlier tasting them during my China visit long back. So,  I safely avoided them and picked only the food stuffs which I was sure of  pure veg and consumed after having double confirmation with the chef over  there . Good that almost all were able to converse well in English in Hong Kong.

The late night slowly crept in. The Cruise 🚢 continued its journey deep inside the sea . But the Cruise was well awake with no signs of resting or sleeping. People were seen busy spending time in casinos, bars, entertainment zones ,dining areas etc  . The supper time was  11pm to 1.30am.The view was little more breathtaking, when glanced through the glass window in the room. We could see the waves of water surrounding the ship rubbing & clashing one against the other as the ship made its way into the deep sea far away from the island ,piercing the deep seas.  Also, one more unusual thing we experienced was the ship had started shaking intensely and we could feel the shake especially while moving around in the ship. I felt as though I was, walking like a drunkard.  Others in our group felt even more uneasy with the visible shakes and my husband was feeling very much uncomfortable due to that even while lying down.  And one in our group felt sea sickness too like she felt like vomiting, dizziness etc.But for others, the night sleep was very deep, as we felt like we were being rocked in a cradle .


Is that the cruise all about?
No, the center of attraction obviously was the casino , where people get themselves lost in gambling , drinking and smoking.. People were there till 5 am , it looked like .
 There were many other activities in the cruise like shops which sell jewelleries,  perfumes, lotions and watches, alcoholic drinks etc. There were entertainment zones which comprise of bars, dancing , multi cuisine restaurants etc.  Even there was a bollywood theme , dance performances etc.

The safety boat could be seen behind tied to the cruise  

For safety purpose during emergency conditions, there was a small boat tied on to the side of the cruise , which could be viewed from  one  window of the cruise.

The crowd also included lot of kids , who accompanied  their parents , were  enjoying  their  stay and the food very much. Even the elderly ones or the senior citizens seemed to enjoy the cruise as well.

We got an acquaintance with an Indian couple from Rajasthan ,who live in Hongkong for the last 8 years and had come there to spend their weekend in cruise for the first time. They said they are chartered accountants. They said Saravana bhavan and Sangeetha are their famous Indian eateries.

We also got to meet another youth from Surat , who does Diamond business in Hong Kong. He said he would stay 15days a month in HK for doing business and he added he would get visa for 15 days per month , once he would spend a night in cruise on  monthly basis.



Next day  very early morning, the cruise started it's way back to the shore and by the morning around 10am, it reached the shore.  I could manage to do my daily yoga and sudarshan Kriya practice in the morning  .The check out time is 11am. There was not much activity in the morning except to have breakfast and have a clear morning view of the sunrise in the midst of the breeze on the top deck clubbed with photo sessions . The yachts,  the speeding small boats, ships n the seas thrilled us the most when viewed from the top deck.

The topmost deck of the cruise

The cruise experience also invariably brought to my memory ,the childhood non detail story , Sindbad the sailor, wherein he would settle down on a small island on a ship wreckage in one of his voyages and at one point of time , he would find the island starting to  move , only after that he would realize, that was actually a big blue whale , which he had mistaken for an island. Can the cruise be compared to the moving island similar to that ? Yes said my heart. " No " said my mind. You see, the heart dwells in imagination and mind in actuality. 

  


We made sure we  collected our passports and visas before checking out of the cruise and left the cruise with such an awe  feeling of having had the much talked about cruise experience for the first time ever in life and would remain as a lasting experience for the rest of our lives.



Bye Bye the majestic Pisces..
Thanks for your hospitality and fascinating presence...

The Regal oriental hotel of Hong Kong eagerly awaited our arrival that day late afternoon . 

To check the earlier post ,

http://suvethagopal.blogspot.com/2018/06/heading-for-hang-around-in-hongkong.htm

Heading for a hang around in Hongkong & Macau

  

Heading for a hang around in Hongkong & Macau

Tour Group to Hong Kong June 15,2018

The plan to 8 days trip to Hong Kong and Macau as a group of 15 ,all materialised with the initiative and a strong drive from a couple of people in the group, one needs a special mention .He is Mr. Ravi, who is my husband's Neyveli school friend , based in Bangalore now . He had already done many visits to Mount Kailash, Leh , Vaishnudevi,  Egypt tours , Europe tours, Singapore  etc and loves more adventures, trekking etc. 

We have joined  many trips with his family as a group earlier too within and outside India .

Mr. Ravi

Mr. Ravi has an innate ability to guide and lead the group efficiently throughout the trips in a very cool manner and with a smiling face too .

Friends from Chennai,  Bangalore,  Delhi, Dubai all gathered and joined to form  group of 5 families of 3 each ,all together  15 people at Hong Kong  with energy,  enthusiasm and excitement . Interesting to note that people with different mother tongues like Tamil,  Telugu,  Kannada & Baduga and belonging to  multiple  faiths all  got set on same path to experience fun  ,ready to kick start the tour. 

A small naughty  boy aged 12 years , two sweet and beautiful teen aged girls , one of whom is studying Biotech engg. in BITS,  Dubai  and two energetic young  boys and  a Paediatric Doctor from Dubai were all part of the group. 

Since we anticipated the difficulty of getting our native food of India over there , we already had packed some ready to eat food stuffs  in good amounts as a precautionary measure. Also we were prepared for a rainy and a very humid weather in Hong Kong as per the weather forecast of Google Man and were  carrying umbrellas, rain coats , Light clothes etc. 

Though initially,  I was a bit reluctant to join the tour,  my husband forcibly booked the tickets online and I slowly gained the momentum to set my foot  too on the track and prepared myself to get the best out of it.  

The first experience that was planned for us  was the one day Cruise experience in Hong Kong , soon after our  landing  in Hong Kong on June 16 . What's so special about the cruise?  

Let's see in the next post.. 

My Mumbai experience in 1990s

My Mumbai experience 

India Gate, Mumbai

My Mumbai experience all started after marriage for nearly 2 years ,1993-1995.

Before stepping on the soil of Mumbai  in 1993 , my Bangalore friends warned me , "Mumbai is a fast city unlike Bangalore which goes to sleep early and starts the day late going with the weather ".
The all new life after marriage started with a thrill in the new place filled with lots of excitements. The company
allotted flat in Santa Cruz west welcomed me with both hands . A couple of Punjabi neighbours had become very friendly not to leave Sheila aunty,  a Lahore based Punjabi old lady,70yrs old .She insisted she needs to be called as, aunty not Maaji ,as it would make her feel old. I had a great admiration for her.  Her personality,  the tall physique, glowing complexion, her lips smeared with light pink lipstick,  her neatly pressed Punjabi salwar suits she used for her daily wear, which made her look like a beauty,  her impressive English and Hindi pronunciation and stylish language, her disciplined way of life ,staying all alone very boldly  .She used to give right advice at the right time for me.  .Another was a girl in her early twenties ,who accompanied me for shopping and other places and helped me to get a feel of North Indian style of living.

Soon I saw my costume sense changed from Saree to Salwar for first time and found it convenient too. Then,   I started learning Hindi,  by looking to Hindi serials and talking to vegetable vendors , maids & shopkeepers, bargaining  in butler Hindi,  for which my husband used to get angry with me. My basic intention was to learn Hindi fast that way.

Juhu beach was very nearby, just 5mins walk from our home. Most of our evenings will be spent there. Pattice,  Pav Bhaji,  Vada pav,  Bread sandwich , chats are the new inclusions during our outings, which stands in my memory .

Delicious Mumbai Vegetable sandwich

Lip smacking Vada Pav

The waves when compared to Chennai seemed calm and gentle . Standing barefoot ,knee deep in Chennai beaches , gazing at the fast approaching waves is something which always I yearn for . It brings a shift in the consciousness . Juhu beach doesn't have that type of rising waves. However, spending time in the beach was much relaxing and fun.

Juhu beach, Mumbai

Hotels & Bungalows on Juhu beach side

Crowded Mumbai local train 

Next,  the Mumbai local  train experience ,I found it very interesting. We would stand at the entrance of the coach and soon we would see ourselves in the middle , without any effort of ours. The crowd does the magic. Due to heavy rush,  we would think we'd catch next train especially during my periods of pregnancy but again every other train would be the same. Before the arrival of the train ,the crowd would be scattered. Once the train stops in the station,  just like the bee cluster at the beehive entrance ,we would witness a huge crowd appearing from nowhere and would block the train entrance. Somehow  learnt the tactics how to gain entry in those trains. And inside the train, found it interesting to see people coming with folded mini plastic chairs and they would make their place to unfold it and sit comfortably  and read or sleep.

The cooking, though not my passion, becoming  part of the daily family commitment , all started in Mumbai .As some sort of chemistry lab experience, looking into the recipe book, experimenting. There were moments, dish becoming salty or deprived of some basic ingredients, messed up dishes etc.. got to learn some of the North Indian cuisines like variety of lip smacking stuffed Parathas and side dishes  from the Punjabi neighbours.

Ganesha idol immersion procession in Mumbai during Ganesha festival.

The Ganesh Chaturthy festival celebration is one thing that amazed me most in Mumbai. A 10 day long fasting and celebration,  the Ganesh idol immersion procession, which went on for day long to the Juhu beach,  non stop in small groups, carrying their own idols and music bands, dancing and enjoying. shouting Ganapathi Bappa Moriya !!

Other memories include the different models of cars in various colours ,which is a spectacular sight to watch from our flat on 6th floor window facing the road,  the flights flying at a low height could be seen near our windows ,as the air port is in Santa Cruz , the full fledged platform shops in huge numbers near every train station, the Satsang concept ( Radha Baes)  , attended for the first time and got to get a feel of it.
Then, the door to door,prawn sale in

Fresh Sea Prawns

baskets by the Marathi ladies , play area for the kids in every apartment , chance to see some serial actors near Juhu like Manoj Bajpai, Ashutosh Rana who became famous movie actors later , the servant maids

Marathi maid /Bai

called as Bai 's who are  trustworthy to handover the house keys in our absence and their efficient way of working etc.

Overall, Mumbai has left a lasting impression on me for the rest of the life time to cherish for ever. 

What is a Bhajan or Satsang ?

For me, Bhajans ( sharing the divine)  means

1.closing the eyes

2. Get inside myself

3. Give your 100percent in singing , irrespective of the voice is pleasing to others or not. 

B'cos bhajans is not one person singing and others listening & enjoying like in a concert. It's all singing together. 

4. Synchronise with the group

5. Only the divine stays, other things vanishes or takes back seat. 

6. Either singing the bhajans would lead to a meditative state or sing the bhajans in meditative state. 

7.Once after the bhajan gets over,  could see the energy level raised up noticeably making us to feel more positive. 

8.The environment filled up with positive vibrations. 

9. Happiness can be seen all the faces of the people who participate in bhajans. 

10. Can even see the animals like dogs would come and sit nearby to feel the peace. 

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravishankar says, 

" When we talk or just sit together,  each one's mind would think differently.  Different thought waves would be there in the environment. But, when we sing with one pointed devotion,  each one's mouth would chant the same name or praises of the divine and same divine thought would only be in each mind and the same divine energy reflects in each one's consciousness."

This causes a total upliftment of energy for all .

Hence,  in kaliyuga, it is advised to sing or do spiritual practises in groups to gain the group energy. 

We also call as Satsang, sat ( truth)  -sangha( group) .

Being in the company of truth. We are in the company of the divine when we sing bhajan or share knowledge. 

Jai Gurudev 🙏😊

Animals don't like that..

This forwarded video caught my attention so much that the small girl made me to watch this video again and again.
First of all that simple and pure innocence of the small one touches the heart. Secondly,  the way she emotes on expressing the reason for not eating the chicken or mutton is so beautiful and lovely.  It comes from deep inside her. The way she enquires if Fish an animal shows the spirit of enquiry in her.

The one seed of thought instilled in her as,  " The animals have similar life like us, they have likes & dislikes too,  have feelings like us!  " had kindled her so much that she started having the deep concern for the other lives.  This particular aspect prompted me to probe deeply on her attitude and the reasons for this peculiar or unusual  behaviour of hers  .

In Bhagwad Gita, Lord Krishna says,  " A person just continues his next life spiritually from the point where he had exactly stopped in his previous life ! " meaning the small girl would have  been a pure vegetarian in her earlier birth and in the present birth,  she could easily catch hold on to that particular thought in her mind stored as a strong impression , once a hint was thrown on her perhaps by someone , school teacher  about the existence of life in animals.

With this strong impression in her consciousness ,  she only could act upon that and would continue to move forward caring for the other lives , considering them as precious and sacred . This can also be considered  as the prarabdha karma,  the karma which is carried forward from our past lives and makes a deep impact in our present lives .

Jai Gurudev!!

What does Lord Shiva posture indicate?

Lord Shiva in this picture is seen in a very calm and pleasing posture with eyes open.  Normally he would be seen depicted with eyes fully or partially closed in meditative posture or in Natrajar posture ( dancing). The eyes open state represents the waking state of the divine consciousness.  

A demon is seen under Lord Shiva's feet.  This symbolically represents the negativities , which are kept under the control of divine consciousness.  Lord Shiva is also the lord of all the 5 elements called as Panchaboothas. Hence, on chanting Om Nama shivaya , we can bring down the ill effects of nine planets and negative forces and negative thoughts. He is also instrumental in bringing the transformation of the mind to a positive change and hence he is also called as the Lord of destruction. At the end of life,  he brings liberation to the souls by detaching the soul from the body. 

Secondly,  the sages are seen sitting near His feet. This symbolically represents His devotees,  who always keep Lord Shiva in their heart and keep chanting His name , praising His deeds and always stay at His feet , seeking His blessings. 

Lord Shiva in this picture is also seen with scriptures inscribed palm leaves  in one of the four hands and His right hand is  in Abhaya mudra ,a  blessing posture . This means He blesses  the sages or devotees by bestowing them with knowledge and wisdom. 

In the other two hands,  one holds the dumroo,  representing the infinite nature of the world and the consciousness and the other hand is with the torch or light meaning the one who gives the direction to our lives. 

Lord Shiva also has the crescent moon in his head . Moon represents the mind. As He is in state of meditation most of the times, His mind attains an  almost a thoughtless state with very minimal thoughts to sustain  the present moment ,which is denoted by the thin crescent 🌙 on His head.  It also marks the state of one who has a say over His mind or thoughts in mind. 

Jai Gurudev !

Light the lamp !!

The other day I happened to meet Bhanu didi,  Gurudev's sister,  when she addressed the volunteers of International women's conference in the Art of living Ashram at Bangalore. 

This was the first time I met her at such a close proximity. Such a divine beauty & simplicity ..love & radiance emanating from her.  She was down to earth and was chatting with us.  She mentioned about her facebook post on the reason for lighting the oil lamps at home or during any celebrations/ puja.  

So beautifully she had put it across the various aspects involved in lighting the small oil or ghee lamps. Even she had asked us to add our own views on that too. 

To read Bhanu didi's post :

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1590192967716994&id=145013855568253&_rdr

Thinking on those lines, I started visualising my own experiences , how I feel while lighting the oil lamps. From childhood days,  having brought up in the family of Hindu tradition,  we have the habit of lighting the lamp both in the mornings & evenings in Puja room and on  every special occasions  like birthdays,  festivals, functions etc.  Also we light a lot of lamps during Karthik  Deepam festival  ,when Thiruvannamalai Deepam is on.  After the huge ghee lamp is lit up on the holy Thiruvannamalai hill, all houses will be lit with small mud lamps and placed decoratively all around the houses,  on the rangoli/ kolam pattern ,  in the front doorway, on windows,  compound  walls etc. It will be such a visual delight to watch , that too when viewed from a distance, it will be spectacular. And it brings in lots of joy & enthusiasm within us. 

Just before lighting the lamp in the Puja room,  we ensur that first our body is cleaned by the daily bath , we wear clean and neat clothes and the place is also cleaned thoroughly, no dusts visible around and the lamp is also washed well. If it's a copper or brass lamp,  then we use the tamarind pulp and the special powder to make it sparkling clean. Secondly , we also chant the known mantras ,songs , keeping our favourite God in mind , not giving any place for any negative thoughts to crop in our mind,  with complete focus on one's own self and 100 percent in the present moment 

 , we do the act of lighting the lamp with a sacred feeling. 

Once the lamp is lighted, the characteristic striking glow of fire brings in some brightness to the environment  , visibly driving away the darkness.  It symbolically signifies the removal of darkness of ignorance within our consciousness and  brings in the light of knowledge and wisdom in us.  Our consciousness gets an uplift,  no matter how low it was. 

The lamp lit with ghee or sesame oil has its own fragrance,  purifying the atmosphere.  On the  day of Ugadhi, when I had been to the powerful  Banashankari devi temple in Bangalore for attending Swami Suryapadji's  Satsang,  the strong smell of the thousands lamps lit on cut squeezed Lemons  by the devotees engulfed the whole area, spreading the positive energy. 

Sitting in front of the lighted lamp , chanting prayers and doing meditation has a definite impact on our consciousness, no doubt. 

Let the practise of lifting the oil/ghee lamps in houses continue among the present younger generations and let the knowledge & wisdom dawn upon them with all its glory!! 

Gurudev says " Light the lamp of love in the hearts of the people! And only a lit candle can light the unlit candle!!  "

Jai Gurudev !