.....On Ur Marks.......Get set........!!!!!

.....the curtains  r  being  arranged  , soon to  be  pulled  over a marathon first  half  of  the  yr.....three more days  & the Consult Room 4 wil witness  a temporary  Lull....the door &  its  hinges  will  take  a  much  needed brk  &  welcome  Rest.....as we fly to South East  Asia on  24th  instant....the Rendezvous with the  Gautama Lands......& Angkor Wat.....a dream  nearing  its fruition.....as  thr  is  a torrential  downpour  of Rain God's  of  a  steady  SW Monsoonal  breeze  gaining  strength  day  by  day augmented  by an overflowing  Morn  & Eve Clinic....hands  r  ful....too  ful  to handle.....as  the  sign  out process  is  being  commenced frm  the  archipelago .....my frnds  &  patients.....painstakingly  I  explain I will be back  quickly  after Eid....thr  face  lighting  up amidst  tired  contours.....the  trust  &  the bond  so  established over  the yrs , get  strengthened ....sailing  together day in &  day  out......as I siff  thru the  papers on S E Asia....."The Burma Road " read recently  fresh... with  the  "Bridge  over  the River  Kwai"  at  striking distance  in Thailand.....the Death Railway  is  still  operational.....!!! , I am informed....I am  happy to  be  in  the  Budhhist Circuit  again.....nd  needless  to  say  .....yes  they  r  back.....the  Butterflies  , a  host  many  of  thm  .....doing  the  rounds  in  the  abdomen.....!!!!

....Faith tht binds....

.....Faithfully  the Holy  mnth  of Ramadaan  is underway.....everybody  to  the  best  of abilities.....the  piety  &  devoutness palpable....nd  overflowing  Eve  Clinic.....the  term  End  vacations r  on  for  the children.....thr  was a picture framed  in  mind's eye of  a dense  jungle straight  frm  the  history  books  of  the  Secondary....with  towering spires nd  hidden  temples in  a  jungle....tht  the Indic culture was  far  flung ....tht  we  played  a  pivotal  role  in its  spread  both  Left  & Right  of our main land....!!!....my  umpteenth  time  visits  to  "RajaGriha" : Rajgir  the  seat  of  the  powerful  Magadhan  Empire with  Bimbisara  & Ajathashatru  wel  imprinted  in  our  childhood  knowledge  of  the  terrain.....tht  Budhdha could  do  a penance  in  Gridhdhakuta  range .....still  the  environs  thr  maintained  diligently by  the  monks....the  cool  breeze  on  top  of  the  range  overseeing  the  Pagoda  of  a Serene  Gautama .....tht  Budhdha held  a permanent  sway  over  the  mind  nd  how  wel  entrenched  his  picture  of  a  composure  defining   world peace.......thank  the  Lord  for  letting  us  feel  &  inhale  the  pristine  , eternal  holiness  of  the  Land....whrto  we  r  rooted  permanently.........the  Jalmandir  at Pawapuri  of  the  Jain Tirthankaras,  not  far, with  the  epic  university  of Nalanda .....as  we  grew  up  nd  imbibed  frm  this  environment ; cud  I  not  say, now ,how  lucky  we  were !!!....the  freq  trips  to  Bodh  gaya & vaishali  reaffirming  this  faith ....the Falgu  with  its  streak  of  an  eternal  river steeped  in Mythology  &  our  Faith so  ever  encompassing....Glad  tht  I was  born  in this  region  of India ....as Angkor Wat Ruins  ever  mesmerised  the  young  mind  of  a  far  flung  Indian  reach  in  Cambodia....it  was  a desire  to  pay  a  visit  ever  since, hidden  , well  nurtured  waiting  patiently  to  see  the  light of  the  day ...!!!...24th instant  is  the D day  of  a  cherished  dream to  visit  the  South east Asia .....Thailand  &  Cambodia  bound.....as  the A 321 "Maldivian" will  take  us  directly  to Bangkok reaching  at  the  dead  of  nite  in Thailand....!!!!.....a week  long  stay @ Bangkok & around.........nd  thn  forward  to  Cambodia , crossing  over  frm  Thailand  thru  the  land  Route  to Siem Reap  the  platform  for  the Angkor Wat  ruins......the Khmer Hindu , Budhdhist kings ......of Jayavarman , Rajendravarman.....!!!!.....of French IndoChina capital  of Pnom Penh....!!!!!...possibly  Sihanouk ville, & finally delving  down South  thru  Road to  the  Gulf  of  Thailand  @  Pattaya ....whn  the  sea is thr  the  "Children  of  the  Sea"  can't  be  far  behind....!!!!!

......The Indian Ocean Diary...

.

.....Thr is a screeching halt now...a welcome Holiday for Ushering in the First day of Ramadaan.....Screeching....bcos unprecedented long hrs on the wrk frnt for last 3 wks....its Left & its Right....its Up & its Down....mostly expats , both frm Male' & the Atolls , beleaguered ......the Remoteness & ailment crushing thr hearts....Bravehearts....involved in the Reconstruction of this "More Sea than land" archipelago....time to say a huge Tnx to the Team here@hosp & equal support frm the home frnt.....

......the advent of the Holy Mnth.....!!!!

.....The Holy mnth  of Ramadaan is  round  the  corner, with  salutary "Mahey

Foon" of  community  partaking  of  meals  in  final stages....with  unprecedented rush in  Mkt places ,  hectic shopping  &  feverish  cash withdrawals frm ATMs....thr  is  a  nagging Neck  &  Lumbosacral  Strain now..... as last Couple  of days  hv  been  al  abt  churning  prescriptions  with  equally  feverish  typing  on the Key board  for  the  ailing who  hv turned  up  in  gr8 strengths  throwing  the  hosp  schedule  off gear....as thr  r  long  hrs  now.....tomorn's  imminent Friday  is  the  silver  lining for  a  much  needed  recovery &  rest nd reply  to  pending  notifications.....amidst  these  mad  rush  .....M K Gandhi's  "My Experiments  with  Truth"  hv cast  a spell, tht ,its  regular  read , fires u  nd charges u up in  no  uncertain measure.....I am torn  terribly  now between  Nehru's "Glimpses of World  History"....Daniel Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe"  nd  M K Gandhi's "My Experiments  with Truth"....all unfolding  nd riveting....these ageless  books  wud  fell  me  down......!!!! ; despite  being  surrounded  by,  modern  day Communication  gadgetry , was  beyond  my  comprehension....as  , the  yr  is  approaching its  half  way  mark  , the  mandatory  Term  vacations r  to  be met ....plans  r  afoot  for  end  of the  mnth  vacationing trip, for  which  hectic  parleys  r  on  with  other  stalwarts of the fmly   viz;  Nanu  , Doel &  Archana.....as they  hv the  steering nd  definitely,  not  India  this  time , which  is  of course mandatorily slated  for routine  Nov  end Final Term .......!!!!