Zen Black, Zen White

“This new bamboo shoot hangs over my neighbours wall – hasn’t yet learned about boundaries.” Satish Gupta Whenever I land in Delhi, the first thing I do is go to Connaught Place and walk around until I find a newspaper wallah to buy a copy of...

Waiting list

“You’re on the waiting list,” I heard from the other side of the check-in counter. “What the hell?” I thought, I bought the ticket online and it wasn’t a discounted ticket. “What’s going on here?” So many things...

Face mapping in Hongkong

Hong Kong. I was really tired after finishing a trip that started in Beijing two weeks ago, but I had to spend most of the day on the computer to finish the administration. In the evening I was desperate to get some fresh air and have some fun, so I went to Temple...

Jetleg in Delhi

It has been raining all day, the damp winter chill creeping into my bones. I only landed in Delhi three hours ago. The best thing to do is watch TV in bed under the blanket, but when I turn it on it just hums and buzzes, the screen looks grey and misty like the...

Malaria dream

I arrived in Kolkata yesterday morning. On the train I read The Calcutta Chromosome by Amitav Ghosh, an exciting book about malaria, delirium and nightmares, coincidence and synchronicity. As I began my rounds of the city, I met an Italian woman, a personal disciple...

Nature and imagination

I am back in Banaras after a trip to Tibet, but my mind is still there, trying to relive the moments, the smells, the colours, the sounds. There is one image that comes to mind often these days, the moment we were about to reach Nyalam (a Tibetan village near the...