[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by ms001

yes please bring it on!! your German sasural pics, we never get bored of pictures

It isn't that I forgot, it's just that I was busy.

So we continue.

We check out of this gorgeous hotel the next morning. Indeed, mixed feelings. Ordinarily we would have been sad that a beautiful holiday has come to an end.

But we're going to Bad Nauheim.

I often wonder what it must feel like for Jenny. I mean I get all excited and smiley when I hear I'm going there. On the other hand here is this lady who was born there. Spent her whole life there...

Ah beautiful Bad Nauheim.

1.5 hours later we touch down in Frankfurt and are picked up by happy, smiling faces.

Welcome here says the little paper sign, painted and stuck on the door. The children have tried in English, I am very touched.


The weather is definitely warmer than it was in Greece. That is amusing. I get my denim shorts out and flippety flops and prepare for the barbeque this evening.

[Sam Kapasi]

Ice Skating again!

I will never forget the first time for me on the ice. It was a couple of years ago, when I was introduced for the first time to TheOne®'s family.

She thought it would be a fun idea to meet them for the first time in a relaxed and casual atmosphere. So they could see I was just a regular guy, no different from the men they knew...

What?
Yeah, they're all meeting us at the Eisstadion.
Ice Skating?
Yeah, it will be fun.
Are you mad? What am I going to say. Hello nice to meet you BAM and fall on my butt?
You won't fall, it is the same as inline skating.
As what? Rollerblading?
Yeah! It's the same.
Yes. I have never done that either.
Oh. Hmm...

And so that was how I met the German family. Either standing in one place, knock-kneed like I needed to pee badly or moving slightly and then flapping my arms like a hyperactive stork that couldn't fly while squealing like a puppy.

That was when they knew I was the man for Jenny.

---------------------------------------------------------------

But today my situation on the ice is quite different. Today I still flap my arms like a demented stork but have stopped squealing completely.

And I am able to move forward. I move like C3PO, knees fully taut and arms straight up. But I am able to move forward. That's until I lose my balance and then start the flapping. That looks like a serious twitch cause by circuit failure sometimes. Doing the funky robot, then the demented stork and back to the funky robot.

But this time we must go. The little girl is doing her first dance on ice, like a little ballerina in a few days and she needs to practice her moves. So we all go to the ice stadium.
Finding a pair of skates that fit me is never a problem here.




A few minutes later, I'm on the ice again.


Ahhh uuuuhhhh ooohhhhhh. Look Deutschland, I am doing the flapping again.

Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. People pass me by as they skate away.
Whoosh.
The good thing is that nobody is really being unkind. If this was India somebody would have shouted Abey, Andha hai kya saale, alibag se aaya kya, aata nahi hai toh ghar jaa Langur!
And those would have been the kind people who would not invoke my sister and mother.

No over here, people go whoosh, they sort of pass around me and skate on. The GOOD thing is that even if they are snickering at me, I can't see, cos after they pass me, I see their backs. So I imagine some kind of grudging respect to the man from India trying to do the swan lake here. I know it probably isn't happening, but it makes a better mental image.

Whoosh.

The grown ups don't bother me. It's the 2 and 3 year olds. That's just shameful when they go past me, around me and from between my legs. There I am teetering and waving like the idiot giant while they giggle and whoosh past me.

I look around to see the little girl practice her movies. Oh she is beautiful!



Come on honey, stop standing on the side holding that wall, you look pathetic. Come on, this is so much FUNN!!!! WHEE!!

She whooshes past me but turns around and starts skating BACKWARDS and waves. Oh great. Rub my nose in it why don't you?


Come baby let me show you, move like this, like this, like this.
She holds my hand and we start moving.
Heyyyy, not bad, I grin.
See and now faster, faster.
Heyyyy, I grin.
SEE?

I don't.

As soon as she leaves my side, the flapping stork arms turn into the windmills from hell. The only whooshing I now hear is the rustling of my jacket as I rotate my arms round and round at the speed of light before...

SPLAT!

The only sound I hear now is the whoosh of Germany passing me by and the groaning that is coming from my mouth.

I think my butt-bone just broke.

[Sam Kapasi]

Summer and the Easter Market.


Summer has begun and it is time to enjoy the sun. What better place than to go to the cafe by the lake, where we find a little Easter Market. Easter is in 2 weeks.















And so here it is where we spend most of the day. As predictable as predictable can be. We sit at a table, and friends and family come by.
People come to say hello, they order something to eat and drink and we chat.

Some stay, some leave, the kids play and buy silly stuff and everyone enjoys the sun.

What amazes me is how peaceful it still is. I could sit here until the sun goes down. I love the sun, really I do. Deeply.

Ahhhh beautiful Bad Nauheim. Simple joys.

[Sam Kapasi]

Time to walk home

The little boy, Jenny and I decide to take the scenic route home. Walking.

And so we walk along the stream, swinging arms and chatting. In the town where my wife was born.







Walking under the trees of all shapes and hues.




That's Apple Blossom.


And Cherry Blossom. God summer is so beautiful.











And we walk along the stream, at peace with the world. Tomorrow I will leave for Mumbai, leaving Jenny here for a few more days, so she can enjoy her time at her maika.
I will see her in a few days, but it will be many more days before I return to Germany again.

A weekend is not enough. Not even to say goodbye.

I fall behind and watch wistfully. Now, my holiday is over.



THE END

[Sam Kapasi]

I think the greatest thing about a travelogue is the ability to share the joy for weeks (or months, in my case)

There is however something that I need to do - that is to thank you for reading and enjoying.

All the members here with their unabashed affection and appreciation. It means a lot to me. And the ones who bump into me in real life.

• The lovely couple from McDonalds (pune-mumbai expressway). Thank you for reading. Your kind words meant a lot.
• The young lady from Bangalore airport. For making me feel like a star. I've never signed someone's boarding card before.
• The guy with a cool glasses at Mumbai airport. Thanks for reading man.
• You, the one who emailed me with the cool unfinished story. You know who you are. Finish it, write it. It's great!
• All of those who email me. I know I promise to answer all, but sometimes I fail to do it on time.
• The people who try to add me on FaceBook. I'm sorry I don't add people I don't know. My FaceBook account contains private photos and stuff. You know. I'm sorry.

And the rest of the people who I bump into consistently. Both members of this forum and non-members too. And the NUMBER of non-members who read!!! It is both scary and humbling, the reach and power of a few words on the internet.

I'm trying not too sound pompous and full of myself, but this vote of thanks sounds like I just won a bloody Oscar, lol. Who do I think I am?
I'm sorry I don't mean to sound stupid, I love hearing from you and I love meeting you on the streets and I love reading what you write to me.

My email is my first name @team-bhp.com.

I hope my travelogues make it easier for you to visit new places and enjoy them.

Once again, my humble thanks for reading.

Love,
Sam. AKA The Yeti®.

[amitwlele]

@Sam - Now i know why you were not at the meet. You were busy putting up this beautiful piece for our reading pleasure.

My humble thanks for taking us to greece and a wee bit of Germany.

[justwheels]

If there is anything that is splendid and captivating to read on the internet, it is Sam's travelogue.
It might get updated after a months or months, but that one mail in your inbox about the update and you go shooting into TBHP just read the new. And when it is topped with beautiful landscapes of Greece and Germany, its like a Family Meal on the platter for free.

Thanks Sam for making us visit the places we have never been to and revisit the places we have been to. A great masterpiece again!

[ms001]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

It isn't that I forgot, it's just that I was busy.

So we continue.

Thanks Sam for sharing all these lovely stories , bundles of joy for your numerous readers . Hope to bump into you in some airport /McD/anywhere

[praful]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I think the greatest thing about a travelogue is the ability to share the joy for weeks (or months, in my case)

There is however something that I need to do - that is to thank you for reading and enjoying.

All the members here with their unabashed affection and appreciation. It means a lot to me. And the ones who bump into me in real life.

• The young lady from Bangalore airport. For making me feel like a star. I've never signed someone's boarding card before.

That young lady is not a member of TBhp, but she is one of your biggest fans. I think she has read almost every thread that you've made on Tbhp!

It all started with me sending her one of your travelogues about a year or so ago, she's a close friend of mine.

I hope this is not too major an OT in this lovely thread of yours

This has been said a million times before, but I will say it again... You must write a book someday!

[adalvi]

Hi Sam, thanks for this wonderful travelogue. After reading some of your travelogues, it inspired me to pen down my Greece experience through my "Discover Greece" blog (not even close to yours though ).

You truly said that "the greatest thing about a travelogue is the ability to share the joy for weeks". It takes you back in time to the places you have visited, to the moments you have shared with your loved ones, the pleasure, joy and fun you had, to cherish them for life.

Hope to meet you sometime during Mumbai-Pune meets.

[emkay456]

Was away from the forum for more than 3 months. And seeing the piled up threads decided to just search for Sam Kapasi and here I am. Btw Sam, we in India have a Santorini connection. The MV Tipu Sultan plying for Lakshadweep was originally Santorini when it was operating in Europe.

[ms001]

hey Sam here are some great visuals from greece, have a look

YouTube - ‪Summer Hits 2011 MADE IN GREECE by GIORGIOSST‬‏

[roadie_swift]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

A brief retrospection.

I drift off into a reverie of sorts...

...And yet here I am, driving through the lanes of an island in the south Aegean sea.

Simply because I can.

...And as I drive through these beautiful roads I grin at myself, smiling and nodding and thinking like an old man, thinking of life in general and how mundane it could have been if I had made some other choices...

If I was religious, I would have prayed this afternoon.

This, to me, captures the essence of all your travelogues, Sam.

Not many of us manage to retain this perspective, as we run after things. This feeling of quiet gratitude, of a remembrance of all things that got you where you are today, even while you enjoy the day.

I have never been to Greece, and may yet never go there, inspired though I am by your awesome imagery. But this thought clings to me when I enjoy the other things that life has made possible for me.

I would want to try and keep my eyes open, and drink of Life - when and where possible, instead of waiting for that one day when I will reach a peak, sit down and then take a look back - Too much may have misted up by then to allow me to see again all the things that I may have missed on the way up.

Once again, thanks a million for sharing this beautiful part of your life, and your thoughts, with us, and here's to many more YetiBlogs!

Cheers,
R_S

[n_mouli]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

That was when they knew I was the man for Jenny.

Very hilarious. Made my day!!

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

The grown ups don't bother me. It's the 2 and 3 year olds. That's just shameful when they go past me, around me and from between my legs. There I am teetering and waving like the idiot giant while they giggle and whoosh past me.

Very true. I felt very silly when that happened to me but it was very funny as well to keep falling all over the ice!!