Over the moon to get the Prabal Gurung parcel

I have to start this blog first by thanking Tincup, Kalibird and my dearest friend SD. Because without them my dream of owning my own Prabal Gurung dress would have been just a dream.

Anyway, I am sure you know from my post here and here that Prabal Gurung collection for Target was out recently. And I am sure you know how disappointed I was when I realised that Target in Australia was not going to have his collection.

But thanks to dear friends, who I met via my blog, Tincup and Kalibird and my good friend SD, I now have 3 dresses, a shoe and a bag by Prabal Gurung 🙂

Let me give you the whole story from the start. When I realised that Target here were not getting these dresses, I thought it was still going to be ok. I will buy all the stuff I wanted online and then get it shipped here. Even though  I was not sure about the sizes I decided on size 4 and mentally prepared what I wanted and how much I was going to spend. So on the day these dresses came online, I went to target US site. But unfortunately, most of the dresses I wanted were not available online. Out of everything I wanted I would only be able to get a bag so I decided not to get anything at all. I was very disappointed, annoyed, sad, and so depressed that day that my husband was doing his best to console me. And to top it off, all my friends in the US were uploading their PG dresses on Facebook.

I didn’t want to bother anyone in the US at first as I knew it would be a hassle for them to go shopping for me. But I had no choice and so emailed my friend SD. She didn’t get back to me in a few hours so I didn’t know what to do. It was really nice of Tincup and Kalibaird to offer to help me after reading my blog. And I am really grateful that they trusted me and offered to buy me stuff even they have never met me and know me only through the blog.

As I didn’t see any other way to get those dresses, I emailed them back and asked them to check a few things for me. I was kind of sure it would be very hard to get them as I was reading online how most of the dresses were out of stock in the first few hours. But it must be my good luck that Kalibird was able to get me a dress and shoes that I wanted. Thanks a lot girl, you made my day.

In the meantime my friend SD called from US and I told her what I wanted. I also told her that I already got a dress and  shoes. So she went shopping for me and sent me a few photos of dresses and bags which were available in the Target store that she went to. I so wished I was there to be able to try those dresses but I had no choice but to hope for the best and asked here to pick the dresses in size 4. I asked her to pick up ruffle dress in lime (I really wanted this dress in red) and a clutch.

Prabal Gurung Dresses

All of them offered to look for more but I told them not to. I knew most of the items I wanted were gone anyway and it would be a waste of their time. And I ready had two dresses, shoes and a bag.

But SD being the great friend she is, kept looking and was able to get another dress, the one with Meet the Parents Print.

Kalibird shipped the stuff she bought to SD and SD shipped everything to me.

Finally all the stuffs are here and I am over the moon. I was so excited when I opened the parcel.

Prabal Gurung Dresses

I was like a child opening a birthday present. Loved all of them and feel blessed to have so many nice people round me who went to extra length to make my dream come true Thank you everyone. I love you all.

You may also like :

*More stars shines under Prabal Gurung’s collection *Prabal Gurung : A Fashion designer from Nepal *Aastha Pokharel representing Nepal on Asia’s Next Top Model

Manakamana Temple: Nepal

Manakamana is the temple of Goddess Durga (Hindu Goddess), situated in Gorkha District of Nepal. Manakamana means the “Wishes from the heart”. It is believed that Goddess Manakaman fulfils the wishes of the ones who worship her with a pure heart.

The Manakamana temple lies 12 Km south of the town of Gorkha. The temple is located on a distinguished ridge 1302 meters above sea level and overlooks the river valleys of Trisuli in the south and Marsyangdi in the west. The spectacular views of the Manaslu- Himachali and Annapurna ranges can be seen to the north of the temple. The temple is approximately a 104 Km drive from Kathmandu.

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Initially we were planning to visit the temple on our way back from Pokhara so that we would get lots of time to spend there but while my FIL was reading the paper in the car, he came across a notice that the day we were planning to visit the temple, cable car to the temple would be closed for maintenance so we made the decision to visit the temple on the way to Pokhara. I hadn’t been there for over 7 years so it was nice to visit the temple. I was with AS, MIL and FIL.

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Once we parked the car, we bought the cable car ticket and joined the queue. The queue was not too long so we got our turn in a cable car quite quickly. We had the car to ourselves.

Manakamana Cable Car has 31 passenger Gondolas and 3 freight carriers. The time of travel from the station below at Kurintar to the top station situated at Manakamana is only 10 minutes. The Cable Car can hold 6 adults or 480 Kg and has doors that close and open automatically and the system is one of the most modern and is totally computerized.

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Once we got off the cable car, we have to walk for a while before we reached the temple. On the way there various vendors were trying to sell their products to us. They used the same dialogue “It is the best.” Or “It is the cheapest you can find”.  My MIL bought Puja stuffs from one of the vendors and we went to the temple.

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Manakamana is a Hindu Goddess so she is worshiped with offerings of flower, sound, scent, dress, make-ups and colours. There is a tradition of sacrificing animals at the temple. Devotees stand in line for even 5-10 hours during festivals. The line starts from the temple gate is longer than a few kilometres sometimes, especially during festivals. People can be seen standing in line with pooja samagri (worship materials) in hand and some of them carrying duck, cock or goat with them. People seem to enjoy standing in the line without food, some even with no water.

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 The legend of Manakamana Goddess dates back to the reign of the Gorkha king Ram Shah during the 17th century. It is said that his queen possessed divine powers, which only her devotee Lakhan Thapa knew about. One day, the king witnessed his queen in Goddess incarnation, and Lakhan Thapa in the form of a lion. Upon mentioning the revelation to his queen, a mysterious death befell the king. As per the custom of that time, the queen committed sati (ritual immolation) on her husband’s funeral pyre. Before, her sati the queen had assured Lakhan Thapa that she would reappear in the near future. Six months later, a farmer while ploughing his fields cleaved a stone. From the stone he saw a stream of blood and milk flow. When Lakhan heard an account of this event, he immediately started performing Hindu tantric rituals at the site where the stone had been discovered thus ceasing the flow of blood and milk. The site became the foundation of the present shrine. According to tradition, the priest at the temple must be a descendent of Lakhan Thapa

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The day we were there, there was not a long queue but it may still have taken us an hour to reach the front door of the temple.

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As we were on our way to Pokhara and short of time, we decided  not to stand in line and just prayed from the outside. My MIL did some puja and lit some diyo too.

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As the cable car was going to shut down for lunch we didn’t want to get stuck at the top for an hour so we decided to go back down and have our lunch in the restaurant there.

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The ride down was equally spectacular and I really enjoyed it. Down by the river, in the restaurant we had typical Nepali lunch with dal (lentil), bhat (rice), tarkari (vegies), achar (pickle) and masu (meat). It was really yummy.

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After lunch we made our way to Pokhara.

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You may also like :

*Paragliding in paradise *Zoo visit in Nepal *Swayambhunath: Kathmandu, Nepal

Easter Long weekend trip

This Easter we decided to go on a trip to the South coast of NSW. We had beautiful days with nice blue sky and warm sun.

We went there with my brother’s family and one of my friend’s families. Altogether, it was 6 adults and 2 kids.

Ulladulla

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We started our trip in Sydney and our first stop was Ulladulla. Ulladulla is around 180 km south of Sydney. The trip started smoothly as we were on the road before 9am. The morning was overcast but it cleared up for a pleasant day. It took us over 3 hours to reach Ulladulla boat harbour as we stopped on the way at McDonalds and also there was big traffic jam for over 2 km when we were near Ulladulla city centre.

Ulladulla boat harbour

As we parked the car and saw the view at Ulladulla boat harbour, I was really happy as the drive was worth the view I was in front of.

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There were not many people there but the view was just amazing with blue water, green trees and lots of boats and the sun shining down. It was just a blessing to enjoy such an incredible view in the perfect weather.

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We had our home cooked lunch there and relaxed there for a while. The food tasted better as all of us were hungry. The kids were having great time; one of them was running around chasing birds and the other one super happy to be out and about.

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We walked around the beach area, took photos and simply relaxed and enjoyed the day. From there we went to our next stop, Warden Head Lighthouse

Warden Head Lighthouse

Warden Head Lighthouse was built in Ulladulla in 1873 and re-erected at the present site in 1889. Made of iron and designed by a contemporary colonial architect the original optical apparatus is intact and still in operation. Fishing off the nearby rocks is excellent and there are good views of the harbour and surrounds. light house (7)

As I have seen lots of bigger light houses, I found it a bit small but the view from there was great as well. We just sat down and listen to the waves hitting the rocks. There were a few other cars but not that many people so it was a peaceful place to enjoy the nature.

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It is also the best lookout for Whale spotting but unfortunately we didn’t see any that day. There are many tracks in the area, some with proper lookouts but it was a bit scary as there were no railings, just the cliff edge. There are also a lot of birdlife in this area. light house (6) light house (1)

From there we decided to go to our hotel. The hotel was in front of Batesman bay and from our room we could see the bridge, water and boats. All of us rested for a while and went for an evening drive to Batesman Bay.

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Batesman bay

We drove past the Clyde River Bridge which is a 55-year-old lifting span bridge. As it was a public holiday, parking was free. Then we walked down the road to the town by the river. We sat on one of the benches and enjoyed the sunset. It was a beautiful evening.

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As it was getting dark and everyone was hungry we went to domino for some pizzas and dessert. It was very unhealthy but amazingly tasty 🙂

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The next morning we work up early and watch the sunrise by the pool.

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The resort has a lovely pool area and me and AS were just watching the sun and taking a few pics. Then we went to have some breakfast. It was a bit chilly morning but AS decided to go for a swim.

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I didn’t join him but just went to dip my feet. The water was warm but not warm enough for me to jump in. I just relaxed by the pool while AS was doing his laps.

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By that time everyone else was ready and they went for breakfast. We took our little nephew and went to the entertainment room in the resort. It was really nice to see the little one enjoying so much on the pool table as well in the rides they had.

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Then we decided to walk around the area. There is a great Lookout from where we could see mountain ranges and thickly timbered slopes. Looking to the east and we saw the river pass under the bridge into the town of Batemans Bay, and then continue until it meets the Pacific Ocean.

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NSW South has always fascinated me and every time I visit it, I fall more in love with the area. May be when we retire, that is one place we can go and live 🙂

Mogo Village

Just ten minutes up the road from Batemans Bay is the little village of Mogo. That is where we decided to go on the last day in Batesman Bay.

Originally a booming 1850s gold rush settlement, Mogo’s heyday didn’t last too long, and it became a quiet little hamlet. In the 1980s a number of artists and craftspeople arrived, and it has since evolved into a hub of galleries, shops and cafes, largely catering to tourists. Some of the original cottages have survived, and other shops and houses have been built in sympathetic designs.

First stop was old Mogo town. We need to pay $18 for the entry and you can look at the old town with a guided tour, pan for gold and enjoy the train, explore the mine tunnel , check out the digger’s camp , see the antique machinery display,  enjoy a picnic by the lake, watch working craftspeople and much more.

Old Mogo Town is an amazing re-creation of Mogo as it was believed to be in the heady Gold Rush days.

The guided tour was an hour away so we went inside to where you can dress up as people from 1800s and take photos. Look at some of our photos. We had a great time and the lady who took our photo was very nice allowing us to take photos from our own camera as well.

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Then we went back to the meeting point where the guided tour had stared.

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The guide first explained how to pan for gold and then took us to an old shaft of the mines. The tunnel was well lit and he made the history sound very interesting.

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As we walked around Old Mogo Town, we noticed some interesting signs and cottages. At the Inn, there were beds with a sign of what… and what not …..you were allowed to do.

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This was one interesting one will Hair cut Or Teeth Pulled done by the same Surgeon, who just happened to be the Undertaker (I’d never go to him to get my hair done!). Then there was a Toilet, “Dunny”, “Loo”, “Thunderbox” which had only a can inside………imagine carrying a lantern to the backyard where there are plenty of spiders out at night time.

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It was a really nice place and Old Mogo Town had on-site bush retreat style accommodation as well.

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Initially we wanted to go to Mogo zoo as well but as it was past lunchtime and everyone was hungry, we drove back to Batesman bay and had our lunch there. From there we decide to go to Hyams Beach on the way back to Sydney.

Image source Destination NSW

I have been there before and Hyams beach is beautiful with white sand and the water crystal clear and a lovely blue. But unfortunately that day, the road to the beach was closed due to bushfire in the area. So we went back to the main road and headed to Kiama instead to take a break and relax before going home.

Kiama

Kiama is situated 121km South of Sydney and has a population of about 12,000. It was the site of two strong volcanic flows, called the Gerringong Volcanic, which came out of Saddleback Mountain, now a collapsed volcanic vent.

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When we arrived at Kiama it was still daylight so we decided to explore a little further and visit some of the local attractions, one of which was the “Kiama Blowhole” where the ocean pushes with great force through a fault in the rock and is considered one of Australia’s best known natural phenomen.

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Whilst we were there we did see a few impressive blasts but one need lots of patience as a good blast comes only every 5 minutes or so. When it does come, it looks beautiful and everyone watching it will go “Awwww”.kiama (4)

After resting there for a whole we came home and it was after 8pm. We were tired so we just rest for a while and went to bed concluding our Easter break.

Hope all of you had a great Easter break too.

 You may also like :

*Sculpture by the sea *Helensburgh Hindu temple *Snowy Mountains: Australia

Vote for Best Australian Blogs 2013: People’s choice

Dear readers,

First of all thanks a lot for following and reading my blog. I am really happy to share my life’s journey with all of you.

My blog nepaliaustralian has been nominated for the Best Australian Blog 2013 People’s Choice award which is judged by… YOU so please help me win by voting for this blog. It’s really easy and takes less than 5 minutes.

 It’s open until the 30th of April, but why not to do it right now?

Process to vote:

  1. Please click here
  2. Click on Vote here image.
  3. Click “Next” two times until you get to Page three: L – N (Blogs are listed alphabetically and split across five pages. My blog is on page 3 as nepaliaustralian)
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Thanks for your support!!!

Khandeko mula ko achar (Pickled radish)

Here is another pickle recipe I learned in Nepal.

Ingredients

  •     1 litre glass jar
  •     1/2 kg white radish cut into inch
  •     Garlic 50 gms chopped
  •     Ginger 20 gms chopped
  •     3 Green chilli chopped
  •     1.5 teaspoons Cumin powder
  •     1.5 teaspoons Coriander powder
  •     1.5 teaspoons Red chilli powder
  •     1.5 teaspoons Turmeric powder
  •     2 teaspoons Mustard seed powder
  •     2 teaspoons Salt
  •     2 teaspoons Mustard oil

I used a glass jar which came with 1kg honey estimating it’ll hold around 1 litre of water. The idea is to fill it with the ingredients with a bit of space to spare. The radish should fill about 80% of the jar and the ginger and garlic 10% with 10% empty. Chilli is to taste.

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Process:

  • Cut the radish into 1/2 inch block and chop Garlic, Ginger and Green chillies and put them in a large bowl.

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  • Add the spices as mentioned in the ingredients and mix them all together.

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  • Fill the glass jar to around 90%.

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  • Put a clean wrap or plastic bag on the month of the jar and close it tightly so no air can enter.

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  • Leave the jar where it can get direct sunlight.
  • Every few days, open the jar and move the tomatoes around. Close the jar, tightly.

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  • The pickle will be ready in 4-5 days. Enjoy!

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*Khandeko golbenda ko achar *Aloo ko achar  *Aloo dum