Ramblings and Musings

Monday, October 8, 2012

Salt Lake City - Day 1

We just got back from an exciting four day weekend trip to Yellowstone National Park. It was one of the most amazing trips I have ever experienced. We returned to Boise late last night ( 7th October'2012). I am still dizzy, dazed & tipsy from the trip and I expect to remain in this state of inebriation for a while.
But first let me fill you in on the rest of the trip to Salt Lake City undertaken last week. Continuing from my last post on Shoshone falls, we motored on to Salt Lake City (Utah) and stopped by at a highly recommended African Restaurant on South Redwood Road for lunch. The flavour of the menu is from the Oromian region in Ethiopia. We were received by a short statured docile but smiling African girl ( presumably she cooks here) and a tall strapping well built pleasant looking African male took our order. We ordered a Vegetarian Combo (Wal Maka) plate for each of us.The thin bread named Budeena is the staple food:Thin, spongy pancake-like flatbread made from barley, rice and wheat flour and fermented over night for flavor. When available, Budenna is made with imported Tafii flour. The side dishes are served right on top of the pancake are. They have unique names like Ashakilitii, Alishaa Misira, Kochee Misira, Kochee Shiro, Raafuu, Dimaa & Dabaquila. Cannot remember which ones were served that day. Similar combos are available for non vegetarians - which has all the veggie dishes and in addition chicken or meat is served. The vegetarian dish is pictured below: ( for more details you may log on to : www.africanrestaurant.org)

If you want to have a taste of African cuisine this is a fine place to visit. From thereon we went to down town for furniture shopping for furnishing the new house in Boise. Below is a picture of Mira our grand daughter sitting atop a table with a poignant expression.
Next we checked into Hotel Homewood Suites located on Rio Grande Street,where we had prior reservation. The accomodation was huge with two immense double bedded rooms with nice window view facing the Rio Grande Depot where you can visit to get a slice of Utah State History. Facilities included drawing room and a small kitchenette, complete with refrigerator, coffee maker and microwave. All rooms have wi-fi connectivity and large screen digital TV.

For details of Rio Grande Depot log onto: www.riogallery.org

After a good bit of rest and relaxation we drove to a place called Jordan in the evening and visited the Krishna Temple there. It was like finding an oasis in a desert country - a nice colourful beautiful temple where the primary deity is Lord Krishna and other deities installed are Rama,Sita,Lakshmana, Venkatachalapathy, Saraswathy, Shiva,Parvathy,Dattatraya,Nava Grahas. There was a modest gathering of devotees there - a mix of South and North Indians. Amazingly we even found an American devotee .There were two priests both hailing from Chennai. A Satyanarayana puja was in progress during our visit. We received prasadam of "kesari". Laddoos were available in packets of two at $.2.00/packet. We picked up 2 packets.

The temple visit was spritually energizing. It was late evening and we had by now a healthy appetite. It was time to locate a good eatery.We were delighted when spotted a nice Indian restaurant "Saffron Valley" very close to the temple - which served Indian Street Food. So we walked right in and found ourselves a nice table. The place is owned and run by an Indian lady Lavanya Mahate a green card holder who has been in the US for many years -a person with a lot of energy and a warm and cheerful demeanour.The menu was mouth watering and we ordered respectively dahi puri,garlic cheese naan, paneer wrap, ghee dosa and gobi paratha.The food was delicious and we had a wonderful and fulfilling evening. Two young boys from Chennai were waiting on us : Sankaran and Saravanan both well mannered and courteous. Overall it a great first day at Sal Lake City. Pics taken there are posted below:

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Shoshone Falls - Twin Falls County (Idaho)

On 29th morning we drove off towards Salt Lake City, Utah. We left around 6.00 am and it was pitch dark then. Enroute,approx.120 miles from Boise, we took an exit from the highway to Twin Falls and drove into a Starbucks outlet for hot steaming cups of Mocha/Capuccino. Twin Falls is the largest city in Idaho's Magic Valley Region. Carrying our beverages in big paper cups we drove on to Shoshone Falls which is around 5 miles east of Twin Falls. It is a waterfall on the Snake River and at a height of 212 ft is sometimes referred to as the "Niagara of the East".
Even though we had come during off season and there was very little water falling, the views were magnificent and spectacular.There was a cool draught of wind blowing and a nice chill in the air. The atmosphere was exhilarating. We breakfasted on Idlis/Molakapodi and Muli Parathas. Our appetitite satiated we returned to the highway and continued towards our destination - Salt Lake City.

Rohit (son in law) & Mira

The Twin Falls Park

Relaxing after breakfast

Boise River Walk

Surprisingly I was not as weary as one should have expected after such a long flight. The "jet lag" effect was minimal. Retired to bed early after dinner. Was awake at 3.00 am next morning and couldn't sleep thereafter. So I picked up a book "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri and read till till 6.00 am. Then slept again for an hour and got up again at 7.00 am.Was feeling fully refreshed and energized. After a steaming cup of Starbucks coffee followed by light breakfast accompanied Mira, our charming & sprightly little grand daughter, to the Riverside Elementary School located about a mile from home. From there we drove to Bowns Road, parked the car and walked on the Green Belt route along the Boise River - which falls under Ada County Wildlife Habitat area. There are select tracks for pedestrians and cyclists. Boise River abounds in trout and year long fishing is permitted - subject to 2 trout and 25 white fish per day.
The weather was cool and pleasant and the atmosphere exhilirating. Autumn has begun to set in and leaves started yellowing. We saw many wild flowers and berries and many different kinds of trees. We saw a group of wood ducks , a falcon,a few terns,a couple of magpies and a solitary osprey. I believe there are over 250 species of birds in Boise area. There were many joggers and walkers some with the dogs on leash. Invariably we were greeted with beaming smiles and a loud "Hi" or "How are you doing". On our return we went to Starbucks Drive Thru to pick some coffee powder.
Pictures taken during the walk are posted below.

Monday, October 1, 2012

I am in Boise - Idaho

Hi folks
I am in Boise Idaho now and will be here for 4 weeks. Left Chennai in the wee hours (4.15 am) of 27th and after a marathon 30 hours of flying reached Boise on 27th evening around 7.00 pm. Traveled Emirates on Chennai-Dubai-Seattle leg & Alaska Airlines Seattle-Boise. The stretch from Dubai-Seattle was the longest : 15 hrs and 12000 Kms. Luckily had a good seat,could stretch my legs and had no companions next to me.Spent most of the time eating,drinking wine & juices,sleeping,walking the aisle to exercise & watching movies.
Transit time at Dubai was around 2 hrs. Dubai airport is very modern,of contemporary design & monumental in size and there were several travelators to transort you to various terminals . It is like a huge shopping mall and I spent time browsing through the Dubai Duty Free and the various retail outlets and clicking pictures.
From Dubai we flew right up across Europe and over the North Pole and down to Canada and into Seattle. While flying over the N.Pole the sun hovered on the horizon in virtually the same position for several hours. When we flew into Seattle the view of the Pacific Ocean back waters and the Olympic mountain peaks was breath taking.
Compared to Dubai, Seattle Airport was more more modest,less monumental,less impressive but neat & clean and well organized. One had to travel on underground trains to move to various terminals. First I had to collect my checked in baggage since I had to pass through immigration here. This process went smoothely and very few questions were asked. I had to travel in 3 different trains to reach C Terminal from where I had to catch the Alaska Airlines , whose primary hub is in Seattle.
After another transit of around 2 hrs in Seattle I finally boarded a smaller turbo prop aircraft for Boise and finally landed in Boise after a one and half hour flight. Slept right throughout and woke up only when the plane landed with a thud.Here are some pics taken at Dubai,Seattle and Boise airports