Saturday 1 August 2015

The Alphabet Club - A is for Aarambh & Asha...

Its the first Saturday of the Month and time to post first entry for the Alphabet Club hosted by Chiara at the Grey Tail.

In June, when Chiara and Jo came up with this idea, I literally jumped on the wagon. I thought this can be a great opportunity to introduce my fellow bloggers to the rich culture of India , my home land; and Kuwait, the country I now call home. Also I can talk about my hobbies such as cross stitch, travel and food using the Alphabets of languages I know (except English): Hindi, Punjabi and Marathi. Hindi is the main language of India and is written in Devanagiri script.

So here is my choice of words :

Aarambh (आरंभ , aa-rum-bh) is a Hindi word for beginning. I chose this word as I feel life is series of beginnings. Birth, first day at school, first day of college, marriage ,moving to a new location... aren't these all small beginnings. Beginnings bring "Asha" .
Asha (आशा , aa-sha) is a Hindi word for Hope. Hope of learning new things at school and College. Hope of a beautiful/life long/secure relationship through marriage.Don't you agree Aarambh and Asha go hand in hand ?

Amritsar (About this sound pronunciation ; Punjabi: ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤਸਰ; Punjabi pronunciation: [əmːɾɪt̪səɾ]) : One of my favourite cities in India, it is home to the Harmandir Sahib (commonly known as the Golden Temple), the spiritual and cultural center for the Sikh religion.
Image source:Wikipedia

I like being at Golden temple not because of religious reasons but the calm and peace which surrounds me whenever I'm there. The temple domes may be covered with gold sheets but its the place where people act most selflessly- cleaning shoes of visitors, mopping the floor, cooking food for strangers. The Langar (community kitchen) at the temple serves free food to millions of people from every race, religion, creed everyday.

A traditional local market for buying cloth in Amritsar. Image source:Internet

Not to forget the yummylicious street food available in Amritsar- kulche (naturally fermented flat bread), pinni (a sweet made of roasted lentils), bun tikki (Indian version of burger) and Aabu Challi (corn on the cob roasted in sand).Oh taking about these reminds me of wonderful time spent I had there during childhood.
It's also the best place to buy ethnic Indian attire Salwar kameez.


Oh yes I can also show you a cross stitch related item, I thinks this entry should qualify as the text starts with an "A" ;)

I hope I have not bored you with a long post ....I'm off to check out what other members of the club are up to

9 comments:

  1. Great first post Mini! Love that cross stitch piece :)

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  2. Thank you for sharing all those informations, I'm happy to learn so much with this Alphabet Club. Must leave you to finish my own post. xxx

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  3. It's a nice post Mini. Hearing it for the first time about the club.

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  4. Wonderful post! I'm learning so many new languages through this SAL already!
    Love the Cheese stitch too.

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  5. Ooooh this is a neat idea!!! The Golden Temple is stunning reflecting off the water. You are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place! And I love your cheese cross stitch. Very cute!!

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  6. Nice post!! I have been planning to visit Punjab for two reasons, the Golden temple and Wagah border parade but sadly Wagah has been closed now. I have always loved the Gurudwaras, they are all so quiet and peaceful and clean.

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  7. What a great post! I am so going to enjoy reading these every month - I love your idea of showing off India and Kuwait.
    Cute stitching for the letter A as well :o)
    Hugs xx

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  8. Very interesting facts! Asha - I like that as my oldest daughter's name is Hope. Hee, hee, love the Age stitching!

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  9. Fascinating, Asha - I loved learning about these words and your culture.

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