WOW KOREA! (PART-III)

Sight-seeing is the first that a visitor explores when traveling to foreign shores.Added to it,if one also happens to know about the local festivals that coincide with one's visit,then it's an enriching experience altogether when you partake in the revelry,celebrations and colors of their cultural and historical festivities.

As I continue with my virtual tour of Korea,I observed that this fascinating country has something to celebrate about all through the year...check out their calendar of events summarizing the festivals in a nutshell which I'm sure you as a wandering tourist wouldn't want to miss. And did I say...there are at least 16 such festivals if not more!

(For those of you who missed the previous two posts in this series of Wow Korea!,click to read Part-I, Part-II)

GOOD MORNING...IT'S BREAKFAST TIME!

There's an old adage that goes,"Breakfast like a king,lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper." If you took this adage literally,you'd keep guessing forever on what was actually in the author or writer 's mind when he penned it that's over the years become our mantra for all health goals.When you contextualize this saying from your health point of view,you'd observe that this arrangement of an ideal breakfast and a balance diet in small portions work wonders for your body in the long run. And this not only helps you keep your weight under check but reflects on your health, wellness and fitness levels as well.

We all discuss about what our lunch and dinner should or must consist of without giving a thought about the first meal we have of the day i.e. our breakfast - a highly anticipated one and sadly,the most neglected one too (with many of us even skipping our breakfast in the morning rush!). 

Why is it an anticipated one? It's because a good breakfast sets the tone for the day.Well at least that holds true for me.I find that the same breakfast menu served before me each day without even the slightest variation rings in a sense of monotony as the element of predictability sets in the routine.Then breakfast merely becomes a health term to oblige to in order to fulfill some health requirements within our system.

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS...LIES IN OUR HANDS!

I remember as a child singing this particular song,"The time to be happy is now, the place to be happy is here...".

However,I've observed that as we grow up we oft forget what it takes to be happy and seldom learn to even smile too! In this melee of our ever changing priorities,our definition of happiness too undergoes a sea-change. 

As a child we gurgled with laughter at small things that brought us great happiness! We would be elated when dad took the family for an outing or at the local parks and followed it up by a dinner at a restaurant. We enjoyed our little picnics in the vicinity or jumped with joy when our parents took us on a surprise trip to an amusement park.And a game of Carrom-board in our neighborhood would simply light us up and make our day!

But today,our definition of happiness has unfortunately turned very materialistic.The days when little things brought us happiness seems to have become a thing of the past.Today, our happiness quotient is directly proportional to our neighbor's possession.To elucidate my point further,for example-if our neighbor has a BMW car,an I-phone 6,the latest Bose speakers or for that matter has made a trip abroad for summer holidays...that is enough to make us restless and unhappy especially if we don't happen to own one (or for that matter all!) or haven't made a trip overseas yet.This has unfortunately become our yardstick of measuring happiness!`

TIME TO TRANSFORM THE BLUEPRINT OF INDIA'S DIGITAL FUTURE!

I have oft envisaged a time in our lives when digital governance would be the order of the day; where men and women would be equal drivers,part-takers and stakeholders towards the path of empowerment,reforms and progress in India's growth story.

In fact,I have even imagined that a time would also come when we would no longer be required to queue at government offices to avail customer-based services or file written complaints or suggestions.Instead,we would be sitting in front of our computers from any part of the world and filling up a standard procedural form or shooting an email to the concerned department that would suffice and promptly be attended to within 24 hours!

As hilarious it may sound to you at this moment,but I have also envisioned a scenario where my country would be the first to introduce e-courts! Court hearings would be streamed live through a password-driven website and everyone in the plaint would use their webcams and microphones to have their say in their pleas filed.And the judge/lawyers would be sitting in the chambers of their office or home giving judgments on the merits of the case as the lawyers of both parties would make their arguments on the defensive or offensive line of action.And what's more is that the dates of the next hearing would be alerted to the recipients via an email or a text message! Behold,justice would reign supreme in our country! Imagine the backlog of cases that would be cleared and the precious time it would save! 

Just imagine what would life be in a digitized India!

WOW KOREA! (PART-II)

Someone once rightly said-"A civilization without the knowledge of their past,origin and culture is like a tree with no roots." Our rich cultural heritage like the monuments,sculptures, architectures etc. that we inherit from our ancestors speaks to us about our glorious past.They talk to us about our history, culture, traditions, folk-lores, rituals and civilization - it enriches our lives with the knowledge of our past and origins that give us our sense of identity and belonging.According to me,a country with no cultural heritage,past or origin is like an island staying afloat waiting to be discovered! Yup, you can quote that as Sonaal says! :-)

And this time around in Part-II of this series (Read Part-I),I shall take you on a virtual tour of Korea as I share with you informational nuggets on at least five such cultural and natural heritage sites (of course there are more...time for you to explore!) that were inscribed in the World Heritage list at the UNESCO World Heritage Convention.

Before that,have a look (see pic) at some exciting Wow Korea merchandise and a warm congratulatory letter I received from the Korea Tourism Organization,New Delhi on making it to the Phase-I of the Wow Korea Supporter 2015!! Thank you! Kahm sa Hamnida!

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MY HAIR STORY DIARY: REVIEW OF GARNIER FRUCTIS TRIPLE NUTRITION SHAMPOO & CONDITIONER (CONCLUDING PART)

During the last four weeks,my hair was pampered in the luxuriant company of Garnier's powerful twosome-the Deep Action Fructis Triple Nutrition Strengthening Shampoo and Conditioner... and I guess my hair has finally found the answers it has long been looking for.And with just three days to go for the completion of Garnier Fructis 30 Days Happy Hair Challenge,I can triumphantly declare that my search has concluded with the Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Strengthening Shampoo and Conditioner!

So,here's the final part of this two post series on 'My Hair Story Diary' with the review of the all new Deep Action Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Strengthening Shampoo and Conditioner. (Click to read Part-I of this series)

When I first took up the 30 Days Happy Hair Challenge,I had my apprehensions on whether a shampoo could  be a one stop solution to address different problems like-hair fall,flaky scalp,dry,lusterless and dull hair.I had my doubts on whether a shampoo could at all promote longer,stronger and thicker hair right from the root to the tip since all other options had failed to live up to my expectations despite the claims they made.However,there's no denying about the fact that I have always loved Garnier's range of products primarily because I've had a good experience with them in the past and that's one of the key reasons that I agreed to take up this 30 days Happy Hair challenge!

NEW MEMORIES ARE BORN WHEN WE ARE...TOGETHER!

Sometimes,the place we need to be is in the company of people we love to enliven our spirits...to fill in those spaces of sadness, desolation, loneliness and pessimism with the joy of their presence,the warmth of their unconditional love and their unstinting support which in turn bring us great comfort and happiness.And together with encouraging words of wisdom on keeping hope, staying optimistic and being courageous...these are enough to hold us up as we set a sail on a journey called 'life'! And the people who lend the aura of their positivity and keep that beacon glowing in our lives are our Anchors - thus they are those whom we always (or rather must) treasure and value above all and beyond comparisons.

WOW KOREA! (PART-I)

Today,as I write to you about Korea,it must have set many of you wondering on how and why have I chosen to write about Korea as a tourist destination and why did it not occur to me to write about so many others countries and continents of the world like Europe, Australia, America, Middle-East etc. 

Ahoy!There's a good news here...I am among the 20 participants chosen pan-India for the Phase-I of the prestigious event of the WOW Korea Supporter 2015! Isn't that a wonderful news to share? Thus in Phase-I of this event,I have to make my way into the hearts of the people, readers and judges as I endeavor to fill you in with nuggets of information about a fascinating country we know as Korea.

Now, before I get discussing on the tourist destination and events taking place in Korea right now,let's take the first step towards it by doing some fact-finding about this enchanting country...

INCHING TOWARDS REALIZING A GOAL, SELF-DISCOVERY & CHANGE!

Many a times,it is the decisions we make that define the person we go on to be in our lives.Sometimes those decisions are hard to make because it involves those whom we love and care for so dearly that the thought of being apart from them makes it harder to take that step forward towards our goal which we desire and nurture so dearly in our lives. 

However,many a times it is those little sacrifices we make along the way that go on to bring that much needed big change in our lives.It is a change which empowers us;that adds value and meaning to our very purpose and existence. 

I believe that at the end of the day-each one of us...has a 'Start A New Life' story to tell! And here's my story that I am about to share...

OF HOPE, OPTIMISM & INSPIRATION: EACH OF US HAS A STORY TO TELL!

Everyone has at some point of time in their life envisioned a Utopian world...a world where food,clothing and shelter is the mandated right of every citizen.A world where equal opportunities prevail and free access to education,clean drinking water, hygiene, sanitation and basic health-care is the duty of the governments we elect who ensure in the well-being and welfare of their citizens.At least this is one of the recurring dreams I've had where I'm surrounded by many smiling faces brimming with joy,filled with contentment and happiness!

However when I wake up from that dream and I'm exposed to the happenings of the real world that's marred by greed,discontentment,cut-throat competition,unhappiness,corruption, crimes etc. is when I begin to realize that the idea of Utopia is a distant reality!