Super machi!

Plans. We make them, and when things work out, feel pleased with ourselves. Not thinking anything of all those things we never considered that never went differently. It's pretty cool really, when you think about it, when things just go to plan :-).

But I think it's probably even cooler in some ways when they don't! Case in point being our current involuntary holiday in Doha. A bit over a month ago I had no plans to be anywhere but home. Then my friend tells me of his upcoming wedding, so the new plan takes shape, a week in India. Attend the wedding, say hello to a bunch of friends from uni I hadn't seen in years, and then a quick trip to see the parents then back.

Most of that worked out really well! Met a lot more folks than I'd expected. Four days of mostly chilled out catching up punctuated by frantic planning of the next meal or dance practice for the Sangeet. Or helping the groom get ready while trying to get him to relax :-). So all the usual wedding stuff.

The trip home was even more relaxed! But then on the trip back a combination of things led to us making it to the terminal at Doha minutes after the gate had closed for our Oslo flight :-(. And here we had things so well planned out, get back to Asker mid afternoon, the car waiting for us to avoid the hassle of the last leg, all the good stuff.

Instead, we've ended up with the day in the city I've transited through often enough, but never stepped out into. The complimentary hotel turned out to be a short walk away from the water as well as a whole bunch of sights! So we dropped our bags, grabbed our complimentary breakfast and set off.

Searching for footpaths can lead to a bit of confusion, we found, but in the end we made it to the promenade by the water and before long, the Museum of Islamic Art. An impressive building from the outside (and one you see constantly on the on-board entertainment screens if you fly Qatar :-D) but the really impressive stuff is found inside! We spent a few hours exploring, the building as much as the exhibitions, before returning to the cool confines of our hotel.

We ventured out in the evening to the Qatari National Museum, a building seemingly built to mimic mesmerising desert rose formations. This time however, we decided to pass on the inside :-).

So here we are, watching the many lights of night-time Doha, hoping to catch the flight to Oslo early tomorrow. Who knows where our plans are going to lead us to next!

An early spring

I'm beginning to get that distinct feeling of time getting away from me again :). I mean, this month just went by so fast!! It really feels just like yesterday that we were driving through what felt like a blizzard to get to Hafjell at the beginning of the month :).

It's rapidly becoming something of a favourite of mine, Hafjell. Especially since this time we managed to get a cabin that allowed us to get on and off the slopes without having to drive! Not quite ski-in ski-out, but I'll not complain about a two minute walk! And the weather was gorgeous too! For at least two of the four day we were on the slopes.

So far that's been the only foray into downhill, but I'm not too disappointed really. It's strange, for the last couple of years I feel I've no longer got quite the same burning desire to clock up those vertical meters :). I'm extremely happy to have the chance to use my board, but quality, not quantity seems to be the thing...

Cross country skiing also did happen, right up until the beginning of February, and then for some reason we ended up in a big thaw :(. Temperatures in the high single digits during the day make for rather treacherous walking conditions! Ice everywhere, sometimes covered by the thinnest layer of fresh snow, which is even worse. Luckily things are getting better. Unfortunately, only because it's been warm enough for things to keep on melting. A bit more of a winter would be kinda nice, but I guess we shall see.

Last weekend though, was time to head back to the UK. This time to say a certain goodbye. What can I say? It is humbling to be in the presence of great emotion, I find. It is not always easy to climb out from under the weight of one's own, but if one is able, then sharing makes it all so much more bearable, joyful even. It was a lovely sunny day. More than just a hint of spring in the air.

Life moves on, and it takes us along with it. The trains, after being rather discombobulated by some heavy snow at the beginning of the month have, since, been more or less predictable. I had at least one day when the train I was hoping to catch got cancelled, because they couldn't get it defrosted enough to run! You've gotto smile, haven't you :).

It's taken me a bit over a month, but aided by a little bit of extra reading time on the flights over the weekend, I managed to get to the end of House of Chains this morning. The more I read, the more fascinating I find it. Not just the layers upon layers of the tales and histories. There's also such a variety to the telling. I don't think I've ever read a series where the canvas moves quite in such a way. The times and the places. To say nothing of the people. Well, when I say people, means all sorts of things. But then again, we are speaking of high fantasy here, so.

I have to say though, moving from one book the the next isn't an easy leap with the Malazan Book of the Fallen. It is almost as if the end of each book invites a certain introspection. A certain amount of space to gather one's thoughts. Before embarking upon a new journey. I must also say here that my first assessment of Steven Erikson vis-a-vis GRRM was probably a bit premature :).

I was also wrong, I have realized since, in thinking that I could read these books alternating with others! And since it would have been impossible to get my fellow book club members to read nothing but fantasy for the foreseeable future, I have taken a bit of a hiatus from it. For now.

Of sunrises, seen and unseen

An interesting month. Well, that was an understatement and a half :). Lots and lots of completely new things, people, routines. And some old habits found hiding in unexpected places.

I'm back at work, and so far, it has been going rather well. But the whole heading out in the morning and then coming back, leaving only a few hours at home, this is a rather odd thing to have to get used to all over again :). Don't remember this being an issue when I first started in Asker after the couple of months off in Kolkata! But then again, at that point, more or less everything about an office job was new. So I guess there's that.

One very new thing now is of course the hour long commute. But I've settled into it, more or less. Taking the train means at least about an hour of reading! Which means I'm making good headway through book four of the Malazan Book of the Fallen :).

And in the middle there was the whirlwind trip to London to catch up with some of the American family. Note to self, late Sunday flights make for a sleepy Monday morning commute to work :).

There's some unexpected positives of an office right on the edge of the fjord, of course. The photos, for instance. And now that it's gotten somewhat properly cold, it's also interesting to see the mist coming off the water as the sun rises to make things just a little bit warmer.

Fresh snow has also meant a bit of cross country skiing. And the downhill season is expected to open in (hopefully) grand style with a long weekend at Hafjell! If last year is anything to go by, that should be an entertaining experience indeed :).

Reflections on still water

At no point of time in the last twelve odd years did I think that I would be happy to take a year off work, without any specific plans, just have a bit of a long break. That just wasn't my style! Not my way of thinking. I liked breaks, enjoyed travelling, meeting people, seeing places, doing things and all that. But at the back of my mind there was always the thought that such a thing couldn't really go on forever. Or even for a limited but unknown period of time.

Having spent the best part of this past year doing just that, though, I've found myself enjoying the experience immensely!! Who would have thought, right, eleven months of relaxing and travelling and visiting family and learning a language and reading and re-discovering my love for PC gaming could be so much fun? :-)

I jest of course, though only in part. Having no clue about what's about to happen in life can be a disconcerting experience. And even believing in God, as I do, trusting Him to know what he's doing and just enjoying each day as it comes can be difficult. As human beings, I feel, we aren't best pleased when feeling completely put of control of our future. But managing to get my eyes away from focusing too much on the future has rather helped me get more involved with the present!

--

It has indeed been a fantastic year! Weddings, successfully attended and otherwise, and a funeral. Trips to places known and unknown. Finding a sense of home that only time can build. Getting to know Norway a little better through the language. It has all been a slow accumulation, along with the occasional clusters of real high point! :-)

I even got a little closer to writing more. I know, I never really finished that series of posts I'd planned about our road trip around Vestlandet, but who knows, that might yet happen :-). But I feel, after a gap of some years, I am back to expressing my thoughts more clearly through written words rather than resorting to just a succession of recountings.

All this takes time. And over time different things competing over those never-changing twenty-four hours leads to some being muscled out by others. Some obviously and/or noticeably, others less so. There's also the issue of too much happening, that stirs up the general state of life. Reflecting is best done over calm waters, as is evidenced by many hundreds of photos I have taken at sea. The same can be said of the mind I think. A bit of time can go a long way :-). The trick of course is finding a way to it regularly enough.

The end of this year has been somewhat representative of the rest. Periods of time spent busily, others leisurely. Time spent with family. Time spent travelling and experiencing new things. The last couple of weeks in England with family for Christmas has been simultaneously eventful and yet relaxing. A sort of a holiday to end the holiday :-).

With one major exception. I knew in December that January means a return to the 5-day work week. What that means is of course yet to be seen, but I'm extremely optimistic:-). And that is a feeling I hope is one that dominates the coming year!

Forgotten flavours

Swirls rising, driven by forces unseen, yet seemingly of their own accord. What are these puppeteers' strings that pull this way and that? Where do they come from, where do they go? Whether the swirls be of dust, snow or thoughts, these are questions without answers. Or so it seems.

One might believe that close observation or introspection would provide answers. But is that merely egotism? Then again, do we really gain much from answers to such queries? :) Let's follow one of these swirls then, and ignore for the moment where it has come from, or why.

Visiting old places, by which I mean places I used to be familiar with at one time but am no longer, has over the last few years given me the strongest feelings of melancholy. Memories from the past overshadowing the happenings of the present and thus making the latter feel poorer by comparison.

Last week, however, I had something of an epiphany. Today's happenings are tomorrow's memories. Knowing this, why would I tinge my future memories with sadness when the alternative exists?! Now the harder question. Is realisation of a choice enough to be able to exercise it? I guess at least it's a step in the right direction. :)

It's been a good trip this! Despite the realisation that I've now become more used to the climate in Asker than Kolkata. Granted, the heightened levels of particulates and smoke in the city this winter, thanks to less than usual monsoon rains, had something to do with that. Still. Acceptance demands humility. But acceptance in turn provides peace.

Case in point, I can no longer drive through Kolkata traffic as quickly as I used to. On the other hand, I enjoy driving here a great deal more... Fair trade. :)

It is, however, now time to head back. Speaking of which, it appears snow has made it's way to Asker already, and this time seems to be sticking around. Hopefully long enough to give the cross country skis a bit of an outing in the week that we're in Norway!

In a year that has been liberally punctuated with travel, the end seems to be happily chuntering along to an appropriate finale. :)