Sri Lankan Bliss

OK this is it, you can stop searching now - your next family holiday awaits at The Ad Astra Villa in Wadduwa, West Coast, Sri Lanka. 


Colombo is only a 2 1/2 hour flight from Mumbai or 3 hours from Singapore - it's quick & painless to get there but the roads are busy so it's another 2 1/2 hours in the car until you reach "home". But it is far closer to Colombo than the more popular South Coast and well worth the effort.


The Ad Astra Villa's consist of 4 private villa's, of which 2 are rented out. They share a large swimming pool & kids pool, lawn tennis court and security guards. The rental villa's come staffed with a Driver (Rex) who meets you at the airport, a full time Cook (Pushpa) who can cater for both adults & kids, a Cleaning Maid and a House Manager (Thilak) who does the grocery shopping, suggests day trips & rustles up lobster, crabs & prawns plus makes cup's of tea for the early risers.


We had a fantastic week relaxing in the pool and being pampered by the staff (a real holiday for Mum's also). We loved the fresh seafood both at home and also at the nearby Blue Water Hotel.


Tip's
- Buy alcohol at the Duty Free when you arrive in Sri Lanka  (good prices for international wines)
- Stop at a larger supermarket on the way to the villa if you have any special requirements (Rex will know where). 
- There is a small supermarket close to the villa and Thilak will get all the fresh fruit, vege & seafood you need from there or the markets.
- Visit the nearby Blue Water Hotel for cocktails, lunch or dinner. The Sunday brunch looked devine (Approx $30 USD)
- Take a day trip to the old fort town of Galle & gorgeous beach at Unawatune
- You can swim day, night, rain, shine in your own private pool
- Bring Mozzie spray - they seemed to like Izzie most.
- Monica the Elephant comes along the beach every few days and will stop for photos for a few bucks.
- One of the Villa's has a Ayurveda table and a therapist can be arranged for home visits.
- All the staff love kids and I am sure a nanny or babysitter could be easily arranged.
- Bring buckets & spades. The beach directly out of the front of the villa is small due to a rock break-wall but walk 50m further up and you will come to a great stretch of golden sand & palm tree's.

- The owner is great to deal with and will answer any questions you have or suggest things to do.
- The Coffee Bean Cafe at Colombo Airport is the better food option when departing..
- Most of all relax & take it easy : )

Sensory Overload

Izzie and I are back from our lovely month long monsoon escape to London.  We really loved seeing friends, clean green streets, orderly traffic and shopping in Waitrose : ) but then again we missed the chaos and un-expected that each day brings in India.


Sensory overload on a trip into Mumbai this week. In one hour & a half we saw:

• 4 men playing cards in the middle of a paddock between the highways
• Rubbish on the roof of houses - storage space or holding it down in the monsoon winds?
• A man selling old fashioned Gramophones on the side of the highway in the middle of no where
• Tiny kids all alone on a school bus - maybe 18 months old
• People riding & sleeping on fruit & vege in the back of tuk tuk trucks
• People holding up umbrella's while riding motor & push bikes
• Kids asleep on motorbikes
• Ladies carrying a weeks worth of shopping on their heads
• Stray & pet cows wondering the roads & footpaths
• Nude kids
• Kids doing their number 2 business on the footpath
• Stray dogs hanging out in packs discussing their next meal
• Everyone using plastic bags instead of handbags/backpacks
• A million tuk tuk's buzzing in and out of traffic
• Traffic police helping (hindering) traffic flow
• Overloaded bicycles and hand carts with all sorts of weird & wonderful objects
• A new fashion - bubble wrap jackets
• Various sized Ganesha idols being transported in trucks to ponds or the sea accompanied by drummers & people dancing
• Loads of washing hanging on the safety rails in the middle of the road
• Pot holes the size of  Izzie's paddling pool
• Man having a wash in a bucket on a busy street
• Gross paan masala being spat everywhere

We reached our expat bubble (fancy pants hotel) & enjoyed a well deserved coffee after our accidental sightseeing journey.

Review: Nashik Valley Wine Weekend

It was DP's birthday last weekend so we planned a trip to the Napa Valley of India with a few friends.  Just a 3 hour drive from Navi Mumbai (approx 2 hours from Powai)Nashik it's an achievable weekend break.


We stayed at The Gateway Ambad in Nashik which was great value for money and being a Taj Hotel it had a good level of service & a spa : ) The Express Inn is across the way from The Gateway - it's a newer building & a similar price.


Nashik is still working on developing it's wine tourism but give it another year or two...it could be raking in the Mumbai weekend dollars.


If you are looking for a refreshment stop along the way apparently Manas Resort at the bottom of the hilly road at Igatpuri is worth a stop. This is about 50km out from Nashik. The scenery during monsoon was great.


If you are heading up for one night only  I would suggest stopping at Zampa / Valle de Vin and Vallonne wineries on the way. Set the clock for 25km on from Manas and take a left hand turn at a landmark called Wadivarhe Phata. The turn off is between a bunch of small stalls and a popular stop for trucks and is easy to miss on the highway.  There are no signs (as apparently the locals steal them for roofing & firewood) but Zampa is 7km along the road.  Zampa is set up for tourists with a large lounge area and tasting bar, it's open 7 days from 11am to 5pm. Despite the reviews I tasted the Champagne and it wasn't too bad - perhaps I have been in India too long : )


Head back about 200m towards the highway and take the first right to Vallonne boutique winery. It is about a 10 minute drive from Zampa.  Again no signage so just ask the locals and they will tell you to keep driving. The Vallonne winery & accommodation is not yet completed but when finished will have an amazing views as you are sipping wine on the terrace overlooking the lush monsoon valley & lake. So we experienced the wine tasting in the tank room, barrel room and lab.  It was a special experience tasting wine straight out of the tank & barrels and many bottles were brought. Phone +91 927 222 777 to let them know you are on your way and they will organise the wine maker or assistant wine maker to take you through the tastings.


The Gateway Hotel is about 30-40 minutes from Vallonne and is pretty easy to find as it is on the highway on the left hand side.  Spend the rest of the afternoon checking out the pool and spa services or head to the outdoor balcony bar at Sula for sunset drinks (apparently the best in Nashik). Dinner could be back at Panchratna at The Gateway for local Indian or Chinese or stay on at Sula.


After a hearty breakfast & sneaky pedicure check out of The Gateway & head to York Winery (opens at 12 midday) to taste some of their award winning wines such as the Reserve Shiraz & Cab Sauv. Follow the yellow signs for Sula then drive a further 5 minutes on.  They are set up for wine tourism with a bar and restaurant with views and a great lawn for the kids to run around on. They are open 7 days from 12 to 10pm.


Next stop Sula - the most commercial of them all. It's about 20 minutes from The Gateway hotel and is sign posted most of the way. You can view the bottling plant, buy Sula merchandise along with tasting. The Sauvignon Blanc is my favourite but has nothing on a good kiwi Sauv.  
There are two good choices for lunch - the Veg "Little Italy" or Veg/Non Veg Indian "Soma".  We had a fab lunch at Soma overlooking the vineyards with a few bottles of Dindori Reserve Shiraz.


If you have an extra day try a few of the inconvenient vineyards which are a bit harder to get to.  I would recommend that you ask the hotel for a driver/guide to accompany you and save a few hours of pain & suffering in the car.
We drove an hour north of Nashik along State Highway 17 to Chateau d'Ori in the Dindori district as I read that the 2007 Cabernet Merlot was voted best in India. The amazingly large domed building is not yet completed but the wine tasting is set up in the huge circular tank room. Most wines are tasted out of the bottle and others straight out of the tank. Another unique experience and I am sure it will only get better when the building and the plans for tasting lounge, water sports and luxury accommodation are completed. Phone ahead to check open +91 22 65064933.


Reveilo is a big name but another elusive vineyard to find. We didn't have time to visit but it's about an hour east of Nashik off the Aurangabad Highway near Niphad. Open Mon to Sat 9am to 6pm but phone ahead on +91 253 246 9840. 


The Aussie travel writer for About.com has written this helpful Guide to Nashik Vineyards with tasting rooms
and another good reference is this Itinerary/Article from Oenophilia


Would thoroughly recommend it as a relaxing weekend away with family &/or friends!

Great Gluten Free, Dairy Free Bread Sticks

Recently I came across a great Blog called Pig in the Kitchen. She has some great recipes including this one for Allergy friendly Bread Sticks.


100g / 1 cup cornflour
50g / 1/2 cup of potato flour
100g / 1 cup brown rice flour
1.5tsp dried yeast
0.5 tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp sugar
0.5 tsp salt
50g / scant 1/4 cup dairy free spread
180ml (approx) tepid water

• Heat the oven to 190 degrees celsius and line a baking tray (or two) with baking parchment
• Put the cornflour, potato flour, rice flour, dried yeast, xanthan gum, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix with a mini whisk to ensure even distribution of ingredients
• Put the dairy free spread into the bowl, and rub it in to the flours until the mix resembles fine breadcrumbs  
• Add the tepid water a little at a time, you may not need it all. You should end up with a thick mix, a bit like a thick cake mix. Beat with a wooden spoon for a minute or so, to incorporate all the ingredients and to get rid of any lumps
• Now, take a piping bag and choose a thin nozzle; mine measures about 5mm in diameter
• Dollop some mix into your piping bag and very gently pipe long, elegant breadsticks onto the baking trays
• Pour some olive oil into a bowl and painstakingly brush the surface of each stick with oil. I used my finger, but one of those silicone pastry brushes would probably be quicker. If you want to season the sticks, sprinkle over some sea salt and black pepper
• By the time you've piped out all of the mixture and daubed the sticks in oil, you can put the baking tray straight into the oven - no need to leave them to prove
• Bake for about 10 minutes or until they are golden brown
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool

All the tea in India

Lots of people ask what is it like living in India ... it's actually really hard to explain as it's a minute by minute roller coaster of calm, chaos, happy, sad, contentment and frustration but overall its a wonderful experience that I would not trade for all the tea in India ...

This morning I had so little faith in Indian bureaucracy that I sent our driver to the FRRO office at the police station with my paperwork (as I needed to update them my new passport information). I sent him for many reasons including;  1) I didn't want to spend 2 hours sitting around trying to entertain Izzie in a dirty waiting room, 2) Because I was sure they would send me away to get some additional un-necessary paperwork  3) If they saw me they would probably want a "gift" to proceed, 4) Pure laziness. Uh oh I am getting way used to this "staff" thing.

Obviously Izzie and I had far better things to get on with like going to the Veggie shop which is conveniently located at the front gate of our complex.
We were choosing mango's when all of a sudden a man emerged from under the table ... he had been asleep but the delivery truck had arrived and his job was to unload it.  Another man hopped under the table & proceeded to roll out dough for chapatti's on the smallest wooden board which meant the dough was going on the floor where I was practically standing.
The Veggie shop men always laugh at me because I buy such a small amount - 2 carrots, 6 potato's, 1 egg plant etc they are used to Indian house wives who buy at a 1kg minimum.
As we were going to a lunch later in the day we stopped by the "florist" (a man sitting out the front of the family beauty salon) and brought a beautiful basket of red & white roses for Rs100 or $2.

Izzie wanted to check out the new playground as they have recently replaced the broken & rusty 1950's equipment with nice shinny new plastic swings & slides. We were however a great source of entertainment for the men who were digging a massive hole in the ground with a garden shovel.  They all stopped to watch until it became all too uncomfortable. Digging random holes is one of the great Indian pass time.

Next up we were attending the Navi Mumbai Expat Ladies lunch in Belapur. We met our new neighbour at the gate so her dodgy driver could follow us and not get lost.  He is an agency driver and tends to get "lost" often as he is paid by the kilometre.
Anyway the ladies lunch was lovely and it was great to mix with the various nationalities and hear of their adventures & share our frustrations. We now have 23 members and 3 children.
It's going to be a hard act to follow as Deborah (half Kiwi/Dutch) had a beautiful big apartment and cooked up a storm.

We ended the day with goat chops on the BBQ & a nice India Shiraz. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Review : Road Trip to Alibaug

Our first Indian road trip was to the beaches within the bounds of our local state of Maharashtra to what's called "Poor Man's Goa".

We drove down about 4 hours as far as Murud to see the Janjira Fort. The fort stands 2km from shore and is a pretty impressive sight. You can get to it by sail boat from the Rajpuri village pier for Rs 20 (15 minute trip). Here are some good photos of the Fort.

We stopped for lunch at the Golden Swan Beach Resort in Murud which had a nice enough Indian/Chinese buffet and no one got sick : ). We could not find the one that was recommended called "New Sea Rock Restaurant". A couple of other options are the famous "Patil Khanaval" Restaurant where you can eat alfresco under the coconut trees - supposed to be cheap and yummy seafood served konkan style and "Patel Inn" which also serves great seafood. 

After lunch we drove back up the coast to Kashid Beach which we had passed along the way. There are heaps of  cute bar shacks on the edge of the beach where you can lay in a hammock and sip fresh coconut milk all day.  The beach was clean but the sand was way to hot to stand on and the water was the colour of poo (apparently only because it was high tide) but I am a sucker for a hammock any day.

Onto the Radisson Alibaug for 2 night where we were pleasantly surprised with an upgrade to a Sap Villa which was more like a small house than a hotel suite. The pool was huge and had a good sized children's pool. 

Some of the ground floor rooms had direct access from the garden to the pool - nice!  

Managed to indulge in a trip to the Spa - who could say no to 65% of a facial and 50% of a massage : ).  

The main restaurant was 24 hours and had a large Indian buffet and also a la carte menu which included Aussie lamb chops & local lobster. My favourite was the Masala Dosa station at breakfast.

The wine service was pretty bad on the first night in the fine dining restaurant but by night two they had straighten things out.  I don't think they had seen any foreigners for a while : ).

We didn't make it to the beaches at Alibaug but apparently Kashid is the nicest so we didn't feel so bad about chilling by the pool some more. Akshi Beach and Kihim Beach are supposed to be undiscovered and unpolluted and both close to Alibaug - maybe next time!

Overall would recommend it as a quick weekend away from Mumbai but expect to empty your wallet at the Radisson. Apparently there is a couple of tent resorts among the palm tree's at Kihim & Mandwa beaches which might be a fun and cheaper option. 

One Month Down

In a way it feels like we have been here a lot longer than a month and both DP and I are showing the signs of a busy & frustrating month. To my horror I seemed to have gathered a few more wrinkles and DP has a lot more grey hair since leaving London only one month ago. I think an early night or two might help the situation.

I am really craving some peace and quiet in my own home but am not likely to get that any time soon with the demo team arriving this morning to re-tile the downstairs bathroom which looked like a grubby public toilet in Brixton.
When I wake up the Driver is here to take DP to work, next up the Rubbish man arrives then it's the Ironing man coming to collect the clothes, the electrician, the carpenter and on and on it goes all day and just when I think I might get some quite time;  in comes the Cook and her "sister" (but really cousin) who cleans the floors. It really does feel like Waterloo Station around here. I reckon Western women are pretty amazing to do the work of at least half a dozen people in India.

But this week I have realised it is pointless to complain about such trivial things especially as family and friends come to terms with the devastation of the Christchurch earthquake. Thankfully they are all safe but other's not so lucky. It is heart breaking to think of what some families are going through right now : (

Funny little things that made me laugh & highlights of the week:

• Only in India can you reverse down main streets, back into roundabouts (circles) and double park outside a shop that you fancy popping into. It's like we own the road or something.
• I love how the washing dries in 3 minutes compared to 3 days in London
• Most big shops have so many shop assistants its kinda ridiculous as they all stand around gossiping or each doing a small part of a simple job that makes buying anything a long and painful process. 
• On the other hand shopping in smaller local shops can be a bit embarrassing as assistants jump the counter to come and assist and as much as I try and inconspicuously wait in the queue they serve me first and make everyone else wait - I would be so annoyed at me if I was the other shoppers!
• I brought an ultra colourful Indian bed sheet to wrap up my daily ironing in at the recommendation of the Cook. The man counts the items then ties it up into a colourful parcel. Its is delivered back the next day for 2.5 INR per item. So 5 shirts is 15p compared to 10 quid in London.
• I find Indian's can be quite brutally honest... the Cook was looking at some of our photos and when she saw one of me holding Izzie at 4 weeks old she said "you are very fat" ha made me laugh out loud!
• I asked the cook to make a spicy spaghetti bolognaise. She tasted it and nearly threw up cause it wasn't salty enough. In her interview she told me she cooked pasta for the previous Swiss family - I now know it was the Maggie all in one packet variety - note to self next time ask more in-depth questions.
• I wanted to walk Izzie in the buggy when I was out shopping in Powai so she could have a nap before Playgroup.  I didn't know the way to the Nature's Basket shop so the Driver drove ahead slowly so I could follow - I guess  you had to be there but I felt like such a princess.
• The dishwasher finally got installed after 10 days of false starts but later that evening a pipe starting leaking and we had to shut the water off until the next afternoon - back to washing dishes in the bathroom sink!
• The toddler pool at the "Club House" is also a giant pigeon bath ... I wonder should I really be bothering to put swim nappies on Izzie when the whole pool is already a cesspit. Anyway have decided to avoid it altogether after reading about the many diseases we could catch...eeeewhhhhhh
• DP had to get weighed for his medical.  They did not have enough weight on the scales to measure him so they had to run off and find some heavy objects to get an accurate reading.  Apparently he needs to either lose 40kg or grow 19 inches - not sure that is going to happen any time soon with all this good Indian food.
• I went out and brought a load of different brooms, mops and products in preparation for the Cleaner starting this week. She however is not impressed and prefers to squat down and hand wash the floor with a rag. She requested a traditional Indian coconut broom for 50p.
• So finally after the Dishwasher was actually installed the man gave me a "lesson" on how to work it.  I couldn't help giggling as he was earnestly explaining how the glasses go here and the plates here and this is where the detergent goes. The Cook and Cleaner are scared of the dishwasher and think it's a waste of time.
• Izzie has high jacked my laptop to watch CBeebies via Expat Shield http://expatshield.com/.  I am reduced to typing on the iPhone. 2 year olds!!!
• Everything is a bit wonky in our apartment - the tradesmen have tried their hardest I am sure but some of the curtains are 6 inches off the floor and some are not, the electrical sockets & coat hooks are all screwif and the mosquito nets are there for decoration only.
• Tata Sky was installed this week and I watched TV last night for the first time in about 6 weeks
•  Izzie is toilet training at the moment - it's so cute to see her trundle off to the loo and thank god for tiled floors in India when she forgets.
• DP was speaking to someone in a local call centre the other night and they asked him to speak English and he said "but I am" and they said no speak English with an Indian accent.

Looking forward to a day out in central Mumbai tomorrow - haircuts, lunch & swimming at the Taj