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Saturday, March 28, 2015

Pastry and Chocolate Art


"What could that be?", I wondered, when I first heard about the Academy of Pastry Arts, India. 

The sweet-toothed foodie in me urged me to check out this absolutely new concept - an institute set up for chefs and food lovers to discover the art of pastry making, decoration and more. So long, the term "pastry" would mean black forest or chocolate truffle (my favourite) - this expedition was quite an eye opener for me!

We were greeted by smiling chefs, Ewald Notter (World Pastry Champion), Tay Chee Siand and Tan Wei Loo (Asia Pastry champions) and Niklesh Sharma (Director) who demonstrated their expertise - leaving us open mouthed, and short of words, even to ask questions that were knocking around in our heads. 


A delectable pallete of pastries were laid out for us to taste .. they taste yummier than they look!

Award winning chefs from across the globe are associated with this venture, who shall bring their experience to us. Similar institutes are being launched in different countries. There are different modules of courses available for you to choose from, depending on your interest. Amazingly, the fee structure is also quite reasonable.

Chefs of 5 star hotels have benefitted from the institutes abroad. Now its your turn, in your own country, in Udyog Vihar, Gurgaon.
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Photographs: Supratik Bhowmick
 

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

With Cricket comes Travel !!

Cricket is in the air again with the ongoing World Cup tournament. Everyone at my home loves the game, so there is never a fight over the channel on television when a match is on. We try to watch as many games as possible... apart from our zeal for the game, the added attractions are the glimpses of the city we get as the camera zooms out and pans around during breaks. I felt so proud when my city, Calcutta, was showcased during the 1996 World Cup, which was hosted in India.

Isn’t that a wonderful way to build interest about and boost the tourism of a place? Think of the reach – your audience becomes global, where you can create lasting impressions.

The countries hosting the current World Cup are Australia and New Zealand, both of which are full of picturesque destinations, ideal for travel enthusiasts.

Alongside television, radio, and internet, following the World Cup has become a notch more convenient with the launch of mobile-based applications that offer information about teams, fixtures, etc. Also, details of each venue are available, along with a city guide. This includes snippets of places to visit for sightseeing, shopping, and things to do while you are in the city and not watching the match. There are tips for you to keep in mind on the D-day, such as traffic diversions and other arrangements, public transport routes, availability of parking of personal vehicles and cycles. So, if you are in Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Auckland or any city hosting a cricket match, you have all necessary information to find a venue or your way around.

Travel has become so much a part of cricket that even ICC, or International Cricket Council have launched a website, for facilitating those who wish to travel to catch a match live. Tickets can be booked through this website and various offers such as stay in hotels for a defined period, city travel passes and more!

So you see, travelling to watch a cricket match live in the venue has many additional benefits!
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