The Shifting Sands

I have had Chartre in my top ten must do for 11 years now and it was only on what must now be my tenth or twelfth trip to Paris that I finally got all my connections in line.  Child free and a Friday.  Sadly the famous (to me anyways) Labyrinth was closed to foot traffic and I had to settle for an informative tour by the somewhat famous Malcolm Miller, who has written several books and lectured world wide on the significant structure that is Chartre Cathedral.   T hose that know me might be mistaken to think that I was taking a hike back to my catholic upbringing but truth is this place is way more than a big church dedicated to Notre Dame, Our Lady.  This is the most significant medievel stricture for windows and sacred achitecture and divine feminine and soul of education that is easily accessible to you and me.   I stood in the middle of the sacred labyrinth and walked the passages in my mind.  I felt like the being there was a journey completed.  A wonderful lady from paris,

Gearing up with Col du Chardonnet in the background Although I was flying between Berlin and Denver for work I was still desperate to fulfill a life long objective, to ski the Haute Route.  Unfortunately I was unable to fit it into my schedule and I was almost at the point of giving up when the volcano  Eyjafjallajokull   erupted in Iceland.  This resulted in international flights to the U.S. stopping and effectively marooning me in Europe.  Which gave me the perfect window of opportunity to ski the Route. I signed on with a guided trip with some trepidation, packed my bags and drove our Land Rover Discovery II to Chamonix. The stairs leading down from the Grand Montet telepherique I met the rest of the group that evening and went thorough the briefing, gear checks and paperwork.  We had time for a few bonding beers before getting to bed. The next day we loaded into the Guide's van and drover to Argentierre for a ride up the Grand Montet telephe

The major festival of the Hindu calendar is Diwali, celebrating the victory of light over darkness. It is known for decorative lights and fireworks.  However, amongst expats Diwali seems to celebrate the victory of noise over silence as the main form of celebration is letting off small and large bombs that make the city sound like a war zone.  Put in point with Korlai Fort on the peninsula in the background To avoid the worst of the noise, we decided to spend the weekend in Alibaug at Kihim Beach about 100km south of Mumbai. Since moving to India, I had been keen to get the kayak down to Alibaug to explore the coast and this was the ideal opportunity.  Mansoor and I set off early on a Saturday morning with Kate and Ada following with some friends on the ferry later in the day. The 100 km to Alibaug takes about 2.5 hours with an additional hour to travel further south to Korlai. A lone fisherman paddling into shore. The view south after launching at Ko