Dubai in December

Spent a few days around the New Years in Dubai. This was our first visit. We were dazzled by the newer and shiny buildings everywhere.

Before Day 1, I was apprehensive of dress code - both weather wise & culturally. Turns out I was mistaken. Dubai turned out to be mid-way between India & US - midway in every way. In December, the temps were 18C to 22C; very pleasant, never cold or hot. And the general crowd was touristy, well-groomed, dressed in the fashionable western styles.

December turned out to the be most pleasant & costliest time to visit Dubai.

Gevora Hotel

We stayed on Al Zayed stretch in Genova Hotel.

Heavy traffic but always flowing. Taxies and app based cars abound. Food, restaurants, pharmacy everywhere. Dotted lines on road. become wavier near the stop. First I thought melted tar because of heat. Turned out that,s the pattern everywhere.

Metro line right outside the hotel. Wonderful view of Dubai. Got to see the Bean-shaped The Museum of The Future in Dubai at Sheikh Zayed Road and Dubai Frame through all our drives around the city.

Vape & Shikha & smoke everywhere. Smell overload with cigarettes, perfumes, room freshener & car smoke etc. Remember to bring your inhaler if you need it.

Gold Souk in Old Dubai

Sight to behold - with gold on display everywhere. Shops in 2-3 streets.

We did the showy Turkish ice-cream experience here. The adjoining streets are all kinds of souk - Mattress souk, etc. Reminded of Cottonpet-Chickpet area near State Bank & Majestic of Bangalore.

Dubai Mall

Dubai Mall is easy to get lost in. No markers or maps. Go at your own risk or if you just want to get lost & spend relaxing time. 

For New Years viewing, we walked from the Hotel to the mall. Traffic had been stopped and taxis stopped ferrying by noon itself.

Large crowds this time as Sharjah fireworks were cancelled. Spent the entire half of the day waiting for midnight. It was fun with the crowds.

And we were rewarded with an heartwarming fireworks & laser display on Bruj Khalifa.

Burj Khalifa

Tour to the observatory for a birds eye view of Dubai.

Dubai Marina

Visited the marina for a booked yacht tour. 

The tour took us our of the area and around Palm Jumeriah and lobal village.

It became dark & night while returning. So got the night view of the places as well.

Very enjoyable tour.

Abu Dhabi

We took a day trip to Abu Dhabi city and visited the sights.

Sheikh Zayed Mosque - largest mosque in the region and beautifully made.

Royal Palace.

Beautiful memories

Waterfalls & Trails of Gerogia (2023)

I managed to visited numerous Waterfalls & Trails of Georgia in 2023. For comparison, all State Parks have an entrance fee, something that's not up North. But in the South, we can visit all year round without freezing off, atleast when not slippery. Here are my notes on 7 of these places.

(1) Amicalola Falls & Trails

There are 3 major overlook points for Amicalola. If with family, its faster to drive up to each of those points.

Trails between these points are completely uphill with safe steps built in. I am yet to explore the trails. Someday.

Beautiful view from the Lodge, of Fall sunset.

(2) Anna Ruby Falls & Unchoi State Park

Anna Ruby falls is somewhere near Helen. It has ample parking area with all facilities. Then a walk up to the falls. Though they have a closing time of 5pm - something that brings out a shrug & surprise.

Next, drive down to Unchoi State Park beach. Great place on a hot day.

(3) Tallulah Gorge State Park

Now this was a unique experience. Rec center is at the top of the mountain. There are numerous overlooks giving gorgeous views of the Gorge from different angles. 

Then its the thousand steps taking down to the bridge and further down the Gorge. 

We went here during the Thanksgiving week. There are campgrounds here too, I want to explore camping here someday.

(4) Sweet Creek Trails

What a fun day it was ! Went there impromptu with a friend. Turns out a lot of Hunger Games & other  movie shooting happened in this park.

We picked the White Trail 5M loop, as that was the only open one that day. Most beautiful woods.

At exactly the mid-point, there is water; stream with lot of stones. Perfect for pictures.. 

We stopped every few meters for pictures. That's why it took nearly 2 & half hour to complete the 5 miles.

(5) Cauley Creek

Address: 7255 Bell Road

It was a bit hard to find. GPS doesn't take us to the entrance of the park, to its parking lot, let alone to the walking trail. But when I eventually found it, oh what a perfect trail it was.

The route was exactly 5K loop. The trail was made of soft rubber material; extremely gentle on treads & knees. Took through lovely varying views, including a bridge with enchanting river view.

(6) Jones Bridge Trail - part of Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area

Address: Jones Bridge Unit Access Rd, Jones Creek, GA 30022

Went in Nov 2022 and again in February 2023. In the Fall, the drive through the Reserve was gorgeous fall colors. And in Spring, the driving route to the Reserve was lovely, with multiple trees with white Dogwood flowers.

One of the first trails I went to. It has a $5 entrance fee. The very beginning has a lovely step down to the river. It was briming that day, after a week of rain.

The path then takes through heavy overgrowth and almost slippery clay path. Then at a mile point, goes through woods, a sort uphill, to cross-over to the other side of woods. 

Fun path.

(7) Indian Seats, Suwanee Mountain

Address: 2500 Bettis Tribble Gap Rd, Cumming, GA 30040. 

Went in Oct 2022 and then again in February 2023 on a warm afternoon and was greeted with a magnificent view at the top of the mountain.

It has the perfect parking lot.

This trail is marked strongly by incline. The path winds up the mountain, but gradually so. Its completely clay path. This trail is the one that convinced me to buy dedicated hiking shoes - the ones with spikes on sole for grip.

This is the trail that got me into Hiking Georgia; so I love it so.

Run and Fitness Report 2023

2023 Running has been interesting, every month. I finally let go of my mental Minnesota weather calendar. I experienced Spring running. Summer was not as hot & humid as last year. And Fall was crisp but not too chilly.

I got 474 miles of Running this year. Pretty pretty close to the miles total from last year, but 5-8 miles more than last year.

 

June & July were hot but not too hot.

Sep & Oct have been great perfect weather. Very few rainy mornings and absolutely no heat-humidity.

Races were mostly for fun and to experience the race atmosphere.

1. Windward July 4th 5k
2. SKV Temple 5k in August
3. Dream Mile 10K at Peachtree Parkway on 17-Sep-2023 - Detailed post here.

Got  85 miles of walking this year. I joined a few ladies Hiking groups and explored a few trails. Nothing long but 3-4 miles of greenery and clay trails. Jones Bridge Park trail, Cauley Creek park.

Jones Bridge Park trail

Cross-training comprised of strength -training and yoga.

All of my yearly Run Reports are here.

Wish you all a very Happy & Prosperous New Year !

Movies beheld in 2023

 We saw some movies in theater and a lot of movies on TV. But this list is only about the ones that stick on the mind.

Generally, a lot of hit films can only be watched in theaters. On TV or phone screen, in the middle of daily life struggles, they loose their magic or we don't have the patience to gobble a mammoth. Like Sholay, Kantara, RRR and everything in between.

TULU

Circus - Georgia's Bunts Sangha organized a showing of Tulu movie Circus staring Roopesh Shetty, Bolar and more familiar faces. Was a good experience and unique one for my kids. 

Entertaining, clean, masala movie with twists and full of Tulu humor. I personally know 5 teenagers who were reluctant to come, but by the end of movie they were all laughing. That’s the power of communal movie watching in theaters. 

KANNADA

Achar & Co - full on old world Bangalore nostalgia.

Kshamisi Nimma Khaatheyalli Hanavilla -  Diganth movie. Movie where an underdog fights his own case in the court of law on an issue others think are minor inconvenience.

TAMIL

Gutta Khusti - fun movie even for the one with dealing with toxic masculinity. Maybe because they covered a hundred perspectives via the numerous side-characters each with their own angle.

Thiruchitrambalam - Dhanush & Nitya in a sweet film with numerous conflicts and all resolving one by one.

MALAYALAM

Gold - was uneven in the spread of comedy or crime caper.

HINDI

Tiger 3 - Saw in theatre to keep the franchise going with family. 
Great ariel stunts. Theatre was blurry so, not sure if CGI or real. Katrina stunts were perfect. This is almost the only Hindi franchise movie where they continue the females lead. 
No catchy good songs; maybe only the end credits one. They kill off many important characters. 
Collateral damage killings were massive as expected; they put mask on all like stormtroopers.
The only unbelievable part was every sequence hero takes the long route of escape, when he could just turn around & leave fast. Again & again. On paper its supposed to show MC Herogiri; like when bullets never touch him. 
Anyway, Tiger 1 (Ek Tha Tiger) is always the best.

Rocky Rani Ki Prem Kahani - Saw in theatres within the 2nd week, so to avoid all spoilers showing up in SM. Didnt need word-of-mouth or reviews to decide on this movie; trailer was enough. It was obvious from the trailer what to expect and so went to see exactly that. Needed this type of entertainer as its a rare thing nowadays. 

Went for Alia's sarees, blouses and jewelry, Ranveer's sweetness and movie's drama. Lot of camoes for eye candy plus Sheeba, Akashdeep & "Aja meri gadi mein baitja" song. And then the mid-section was totally taken over by old songs for like an hour. Then more songs were spread out through the movie. Next day I had craving for some of those songs and lo behold Youtube had the Vintage playlist. Next they also put the Songs medley video as well. That's very thoughtful. Now if they can upload "Abhi Na Jao Chod Kar", that will be all we need (which they eventually did).

Apart from songs, there were many "something borrowed". Rocky name is obviously a hat-tip to Shammi Kapoor's name in Teesri Manzil. "Tum Kya Mile" is also a Pooja Bhatt songs in Satwa Aasman.

Shabana's Bengali accent was so right. Churni & Tota were so endearing.  Plus a huge lot of lead and supporting characters and thousands of extras in many scenes. Delhi & Kashmir. Every scene was packed with interesting scenes & dialoges. 

To crib about, the last 20-30 minutes were all serious and angry confrontations, ending with resolution and a wedding. 

Oh yes the movie was packed with multiple topical issues. I called it "krantikari movie" to someone on phone call on the way back from the theatre. Now the wedding was not 2 states, it was in latest bollywood weddings pastel fashion while I waited for a Bengali bride. And yes a lot of unabsahed kizzings.

That this production house made such a movie should not be a surprise. They have all the tools, cast, crew, connections and knowledge bank to make such a movie. The fact that audience needs such movies from time to time, so such productions with all the capability should make these periodically.

Jawan - in theatre ofcourse. Completely South movie on raising public awareness to holding government accountable. Combine with SRK magic. How could we resist. Me & girlfriend went to the theatre for the first weekend show.

Every scene in the movie had violent scene; reminding very much of  80s/90s south movie which scarred my brain very badly. But this one I watched as full grown adult and that for a thankful change, there were no violence on women. There was all other kind of violence and women were in the center of it all as impacted parties.

There was lot of love shown to women especially daughters - Kali's, Nayantara's, Farmers, and more.

OMG2 - what could have been cringe, was not. Elevated watching experience thanks to Pankaj Tripathi, adorable, loving & respectful depiction of God and interesting unfolding of court arguments & sequence.

Bhediya - Biggest pull was the Arunachal wilderness, funny repartees between the 3-4 male characters, Kriti was good.

Tarla - Needed to be made.

Bawaal on Prime. Good one. Varun Dhawan is best in this gen. Made by directors of Dangal & Bareily ki Barfi. Good situations. Allahabad & Europe cities.  Mix of comedy & seriousness. 

Thank God - Siddarth Malhothra was charming as ever. And as entertaining with emotions as you can expect for Inder Kumar movie.

Ghoomer - rattling new way along with jaded yuppiness of ad makers.

Friday Nigh Plan - cute Babil & cute Juhi

Kathal - Sania can carry a movie on her own.

Tumse Na Ho Payega - watched for Ishwak Singh and movie was not boring at all.

Pippa - adding to the Bangladesh creation stories.

ENGLISH

She Said - The most impressive. For many reasons. It showed an office environment as is. Not the made up Hollywood made up showing of how a corporate office space is. This one was like real life. After 3 years of WFH, I latched on to this movie for the soaking up this sight. Next, for the very premise of young adults starting work. When Lauren says, "I was 21. I lost my voice just when I was beginning to find one." How very profound summation. 

Titanic - (In Theatre). They released the remastered copy. It was only in 3D and 3D was totally unnecessary. But this was the only way to see it again with my kid in theater & chatter about nostalgia.

Avataar - Definitely a theatre movie but wont see it more than once. All the water, colors and intricate parts of the animation was mindblowing. Promptly followed it up with Titanic in theatre.

Your Place Or Mine (2023 Netflix) - Endearing actors as we remember even if they have aged with us. Most of the talk was real-life like stuff; no overacting or imaginary problems. No background music in some scenes (which i disagree with). Set in bright locations in beautiful cities and every frame looking stunning - like SF, NYC apartment and Manhatten Bridge scene styled like Paris usually is. Overall felt very glad after watching this movie.

Monk & the Last Case (Peacock) - Natalie in Atlanta !!! My city !Atlantic sea & hotel. Randy Disher project & Lego model scene were good. Natalie says Huh while holding the dog. Dr Bell said Patient A to D are composite of his different patients. Btw the villain is a composite of we know who all. Bartender scene. Molly, “He is with a woman “; Monk, “She saved my life”. Monk punchlines were good. Molly was good actress. Welcome to Monk world. Missed some epic music until that song came on. That emotional scene at park bench brought tears in my eyes.  Missed Julie & Benjy

My Yearly Movies List here.