I look forward to my Wednesdays! Not just the interactions with like minded people, not only the array of delectable treats, but also the learning that comes from these beautifully pared-down talks. Kabul and Kandahar and their respective roles in the trade along the Silk Route, was our first talk for the day. The story …
The new Study Group has begun! And it’s on a topic that appeals to the romantic, in each one of us- the Silk Route. There was an overwhelming response, and in the space of a mere couple of weeks we had 24 people who signed up to research on myriad aspects of the Silk Route. …
This week’s presentations were on five women. Three of whom I’d never heard of! Golda Meir, The Soong sisters Sirimao Bandaranaike It was fascinating to hear the story of Golda Meir a Ukrainian refugee whose family migrated to the US when she was a young girl. Who resisted her mother’s attempt to get her married …
I have fallen way back in writing about our Study Group presentations. Six nine presentations have been done since I last wrote. Five women of steel have had their stories told. Women who inspired poetry, women who shaped their nations; women who supported their husbands, women who took to the battlefield. Women who dealt with …
Study Group Wednesday again! And this time two presentations on two amazing women. Two Persian women, separated by 350 years of history. One who stood by her man through intrigues and the dirty court politics of Mughal India; and the other, whose man stood by her, lending her his quiet strength and support through the …
Our presentation this week was on Edwina Mountbatten. Countess of Burma, Vicereine of India! Portrait by Philip de Laszlo. A did a fabulous job of presenting this very conflicted woman with deep insecurities, in a sympathetic light. An heiress with a privileged childhood, Edwina’s early life was one of hedonistic excesses. An early marriage to …
Study Group Wednesdays have started again! Our topic this time is Women. Women in a Man’s World. Women who have been players in the Political arenas of their countries or kingdoms. Women who have made a difference. Women who have swayed history! Our first meeting was at my place and the first presentation was on …
Study Group Wednesdays are starting again! We begin on 30th January, with a group of 16 enthusiastic ladies, who’ve been reading up on their favourite historical woman- famous and infamous! Here is what we wrote for the ‘Passage’: History is defined by powerful men. Conquerors and conquistadors, explorers and emperors, pioneers and philosophers. Biographies have …
Malacca! ; Once the busiest entrepôt in Southeast Asia. A melting pot of cultures….Chinese, Indian, Arab, African, European- all jostling for trade and power. ; Godowns and bazaars, cheek by jowl with bordellos and opium dens. A babel of different tongues- Tamil, Arabic, Gujarati, Hokkien, Bengali, Teochew. Shrines to Mazu and the Guanyin, elaborately carved …
My Wednesdays for the last two months have been fun. There have been stories from all over Asia, an insight into different cultures and the values they cherish and a wonderful sense of camaraderie and sharing. Yesterday was our last day of the current Study Group on Creation Myths. We decided to celebrate our friendship …