Category: Travels with Twinny!

Hi folks!Twinny’s back!

As promised ..

From Grand Central station , New York !

Grand from the outside

Grand from the inside

Grand by design!!

Seen from the outside … One can’t help but notice the magnificent clock .. The biggest Tiffany clock in the world …

Enter and one is stunned..

With the magnificent concourse

The starstudded aquamarine zodiac ceiling

With the marble staircases

And glittering chandeliers

With the sheer size

… Of the BIGGEST  STATION in the whole world …

The interesting fact about grand central station is that all the departure times on the display boards show a time different by one minute!!

Purposefully!!

So if the departure time is 12.15 … The train would actually leave at 12.16…

This is to ensure safety… So no accidents occur while the crowds rush to their respective trains… Ingenious I say!

Built in 1913 by multimillionaire VANDERBILT.

The station covers close to 50 acres …

Boasts 67 tracks and 44 platforms…

All buzzing with activity except track 61 .. Used for the entry and exit of VIPs in and out of newyork… Example president Franklin Delano Roosevelt routinely in and out , shrouded in secrecy because he had polio…

Here’s a picture of the president as he was .. 

And another in his Washington home , covered. With a cape…

So with this example one learns that ….. There is always always a reason behind everything! Cape covering president Roosevelt … For a reason…!

But in grand central station there are places made for NO reason at all!! Just there for fun!

…..Tennis courts ( now owned by Donald trump).. Where John McEnroe has played

……. Opulent hidden bars to just hang out…

…..A whispering gallery ….not the best place to whisper sweet nothings … would be heard 200 feet away!

…..a kissing gallery( er…not to be taken too seriously!)
…. And a secret room… For clandestine activities in world war 2 .. Where entry strictly prohibited.. Though nothing going on there now!!

Here’s a picture of the whispering gallery…Made by mistake or by design .. One not too sure…

Now right outside grand central station is the Helmsley building.. This belonged to hotel magnate Leona Helmsley …who despite her gargantuan wealth (owner of 23 hotels and hold your breath… The Empire State Building!) used to evade taxes!!!

Tyrannical ,stingy and mean…

. She was called ‘the queen of mean!’.

When she died in 2007 she bequeathed 12 million dollars of her wealth to … Guess who ??

Her pet Maltese dog.. Named Trouble!!

This move was labelled ‘the 3rd dumbest business decision of 2007 ‘by fortune magazine!

. See her transformation over the years ..into the quintessential ‘wicked witch..’which even tons of Botox couldn’t fix!

Americans sure dedicated to their pets ..!

And now to beat the heat in Bbay …my own pet preparation …

Pomegranate ice cream..!.

Made like Americans make hot dogs ….they take a hot sausage and put it inside a warm bun… Voila ‘hot dog ‘!
For pomegranate Ice cream..,

Take a dollop of Amul vanilla ice cream

Sprinkle ‘anaar ‘ Danaa on it…

Voila!! Pomegranate ice cream!!!!😊😊

Slurp !! Gelato deliciasato!!!

As you may infer..

Twinnys cooking skills ….seriously limited!!!

Byeeee! See you next week at the White House ,DC!!

Who will be Americas next president ???

Donald/ Hilary ?

Trump/ Clinton ??

Your guess as good as mine…😎!

Byeeee!!

Hi all! Welcome to Thursday’s date with Twinny…!

Bridges in China may be longer, higher , larger… But many regard The Brooklyn Bridge … The most beautiful in the world…

It was the worlds FIRST   STEEL WIRED SUSPENSION  BRIDGE  and has inspired painters like Andy Warhol

Playwrights like Arthur Miller

Movies like Spider-Man and Moonstruck… Advertisers have used this bridge to sell just about anything from Vaseline to absolute vodka…

Completed after14 years the bridge opened in 1883 with much celebration… A shout from the crowd that the bridge was collapsing caused mayhem and the trampling death of 12 pedestrians..,

The following year 21 elephants walked over the bridge to prove that indeed it was very strong……. not only strong.. it is spectacular .. an engineering marvel!!

Here’s a classic photo of painters posing on the bridges wires…

And another of   earphones and scrunchies tied to the bridges strong steel wires to commemorate a couples love…

I 
Our Mumbai sealink is also an architectural marvel but lacks the promenade of the Brooklyn bridge… For walkers and cyclists … Which the architect JOHN ROEBLING felt would have ‘incalculable’ value in later years.. What foresight! It certainly did!!
How beautiful and romantic is it to walk hand in hand on the bridge… Or for that matter anywhere..!!No rush no worry no care!!!

Here’s a picture of the PEREGRINE  FALCON  ‘at home’ on the Brooklyn bridge..these are the fastest flying birds on earth reaching speeds of 200 miles per hour , diving and catching their prey midair!

They are seen nesting on Newyork bridges and skyscrapers … Were declared endangered because of DDT poisoning.. This insecticide was banned in the USA in 1972 despite being a star product of world war 2 …. The person who invented DDT was in fact awarded the Nobel prize in 1948!

DDT is banned in India too ..since 1989 , but we still use….Because it is cheap, effective and our bugs too many!!

The peregrine falcon is Not to be confused with the BALD EAGLE which is the NATIONAL bird of America …… Whyever do the Yankees call it bald ??! So many feathers on its distinctive white head!!!

And now am off … See you next week same time … At Grand Central station New York !!!

Just some trivia before I leave….

The Lost and Found dept in GRAND  CENTRAL  Station  has probably the best ‘return rate ‘ in the world… If you loose anything ..your specs, your wallet, your i- phone….. You find it!!

Wow!!

Not sure I want to find …

… The 300 gms I have just lost!!!!

Byyyyye!!

Hi folks ! Twinny returns!!

Still in newyork… More precisely..Manhattan ….which incidentally means’ place of general inebriation’….
Let’s go straight to  MADISON SQUARE GARDEN…. This is the hugest multipurpose indoor arena in the world!!

Evolving continuously , reinventing itself since the 1880’s…

It’s the convention centre where PM Modi famously gave his speech last year…

It’s the sports arena where Mohammad Ali and Joe Frazier had their first boxing fight…

Where world class ice hockey and basketball matches are played, where international dog shows held…

..where the worlds biggest concerts staged… Madonna has performed here a record 31 times !!!

Then there is RADIO CITY MUSIC  HALL… Part of Rockefeller centre …this huge entertainment centre opened in 1932 at the height of the Great Depression…made in elegant Art Deco style with a grand stage resembling the setting sun… This hall has the best acoustics and the best audience …..according to Elton John who played here for the 60 th time on his 60 th birthday …


It houses the giant Wurlitzer organ … .. It’s the Biggest in the whole world!

Just like we consider going to Hardwar for a holy dip in the Ganga a must do …

So also every newyorkers  dream is to witness a concert once in their lifetime at  Radio City MusicHall !

Julie Andrews  sang recently on her 70 th birthday… Right here on this stage …! Here is the gracious lady herself…

And the parodied lyrics of the song ‘My

Favourite Things’…..Enjoy!!!

Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,

Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings, Bundles of magazines tied up in string,

These are a few of my favourite things.

Cadillacs and cataracts and hearing aids and glasses, Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in glasses, Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings,

These are a few of my favourite things.
When the pipes leak, When the bones creak, When the knees go bad, I simply remember my favourite things, And then I don’t feel so bad.
Hot tea and crumpets, and corn pads for bunions, No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions, Bathrobes and heat pads and hot meals they bring,

These are a few of my favourite things.
Back pains, confused brains, and no fear of sinnin’, Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin’, And we won’t mention our short shrunken frames, When we remember our favorite things.
When the joints ache, when the hips break, When the eyes grow dim, Then I remember the great life I’ve had, And then I don’t feel so bad.

Next is the razzle dazzle of the New York Theatre district .. For BROAdWAY and off -Broadway shows…where the lights shimmer bright , where glittering marquees open to glitzy productions , vaudevilles , musicals , what have you !!
Where the first talking movie was shown ( in 1927) …” The jazz singer !”

In India we not too far behind…. ”Alam Ara” 1931….. Was the first Indian talkie!!

Strangely enough Asians omnipresent in all spheres of New York life ….other than in the theatre world… Just an observation …!

What I definitely learnt is that New York … The land of ”immigrants”definitely allows you to display your talents and earn from doing so… HOUDINI  did it in the 1930’s as an ‘escape artist’

Escaping from all sorts of locks and chains , from water torture cells ,freeing himself even from strait jackets suspended upside down in front of crowds numbering thousands … On Coney Island … Performing the same act ….Sometimes 20 times a day!!!

What nerves of steel and physical prowess!!

What drive ! What ambition…! What amazing sleight of hand!!! Simply amazing ….

Was mesmerised completely by an illusionist… Didn’t see him perform Live but his feats amazing … DAVID COPPERFIELD—-The most commercially successful magician and illusionist ever!!! He became a lecturer in magic at the American School of Magic at age 16! That’s tantamount to legendary !!

Magician of the millennium and winner of some 21 Emmy awards , owner of 11 islands of the Bahamas ! Started ‘project magic ‘for rehabilitation of physically handicapped !

He made the Statue of Liberty ‘vanish!!’. What would take 26 helicopters to accomplish . … He did in seconds …how???

Of course it was all a well orchestrated trick!

That’s what I found out … All magic is a trick!!

Superbly planned with precision and genius!

Whether it is Chriss Angels.. Mind Freak…

Or David Blaines ”endurance acts”……

Or our own PC Sorcar Jr.’s illusion of making the Taj Mahal disappear…!

MAGIC is an ILLUSION!!

Didn’t know whether to be happy or sad…

To know my bubble of belief had just burst !!!

So that’s all folks!!
Leaving you all with plenty to chew on…try a magic trick or two …

They Not easy!!

Meanwhile …Twinny will do a special act…

…Its Called ‘Twinny’s DISAPPEARING  act’!!

But only till next Thursday !!

Will be back … Tune in!

Hi all!Twinny returns!!

This time from Central Park , New York !

Made in the 1880’s !

Which great visionaire would make a park so huge with so much foresight… At a time when the city was not so humongous … Ingenious !.., A huge haven … An oasis of calm… Some 3.5 square miles…. Surrounded by beautiful skyscrapers .. As though in a valley…Completely man made … With a 22 acre lake in the centre…

Truly beautiful !

Made for all .. To rest relax rejuvenate … Open all day till 1am morning
You can sit and just do nothing under the trees, cycle around…

Play chess

Walk your dog in special enclosures

Take a boat ride

Listen to musicians play

Sit around an amphitheatre and watch street performers do their act

Eat

Have your picture painted

Take a horsecart ride

Just walk around….

or even exchange your wedding vows…!

The part of Central Park I just love is a triangular section called ‘STRAWBERRY FEILDS ‘. It has trees donated by various countries and a special mosaic from Naples … dedicated to the iconic singer songwriter and musician John Lennon .. Called ‘imagine’..

The amazing peace activist and best voice of the Beatles … Was shot in 1980…

Outside his Dakota home … Opposite Central Park where he and his wife yoko Ono would often walk…..

He was just 40 yrs old!

Quickwitted ,extremely sharp… No one loved Yoko Ono the way he did… He even made his name John Ono Lennon!

On the day of his death he gave

an interview and nude photo shoot to the Rolling Stones magazine which became the best cover ever…

Ya that’s john and yoko!!!

And here the iconic Beatles…

Here are the lyrics of and the actual song … Imagine!

Amazing isn’t it?
The album won quite a few awards ..and was one of the best 500 songs ever written…

John Lennon and his simple Philosophy…

Here’s a picture of the newyork library …. Huger than it looks.. And Superbly beautiful with an exhaustive collection… Didn’t enter it !! Too enamoured from outside itself!

And here is the ‘library way’ leading upto the New York library …

Paved with interesting inspirational sayings… To read on …. Have a look

And one more…

And finally …

So true!

Twinny will be back .. more stories ,

More lifetruths….

Byeeee!