YES!! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! Oh God YES!!

After years and years of being here in the US as a student, and suffering the indignities and the inconveniences of being given only a single-entry 3-month entry visa for Bhutanese students, this piece of news is so so welcome.

U.S. visas for Bhutanese upgraded

22 December, 2007 - Bhutanese students, exchange visitors, and their spouses and children travelling to the U.S. will now get a two-year visa from U.S. embassies and consulates anywhere in the world, says a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The two-year visas of the two categories have also been upgraded to “multiple entries,” which means Bhutanese students in the U.S. can come home for holidays and go back without having to apply for another visa, so long as it is within the two-year period.

Before, U.S. visas for the two categories were “single entry” and could only be availed from the U.S. embassy in New Delhi, India.

The press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that the revised visa rule was made by the U.S. State Department and came into effect from December 3, 2007.

“This collaboration is a reflection of the existing friendly relations between Bhutan and the United States and the growing cooperation between the two countries,” according to the press release

In all the years that I've been here it has been such a massive undertaking to plan a trip home. Or to even leave the country to visit some other country. Everytime I went back home I had to plan a trip to New Delhi, reserve a date for a visa interview well in advance, re-prepare all my paperwork, and then apply for a student visa.. just so that I could come back to the US to continue my program. That always took a good week or so off of my vacation!!

This major impractical inconvenience made travel such a pain. It made me feel like I was in exile, restricted within the borders of this country coz I didn't even have the freedom to travel, or the freedom to go home when I pleased. I'm sure I speak for all the Bhutanese students when I say all this. This single-entry visa policy effectively ruined whatever travel dreams I had, be it a trip back home, or a trip anywhere else.

But now that has changed! Good heavens, what a relief. A little late for me now, but it will help a whole new generation of students to be closer to home. A multiple-entry, 2-year visa for Bhutanese students should have been the norm decades ago. But, better late than never.

I applaud this effort on part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US State Department. Hope some of those letters I wrote had an effect on this decision.

PHEW.

YAYYYY.

Camping in Cape Cod

Went down to Cape Cod last weekend.
Was a windy weekend.

Went to 'Old Silver Beach' in North Falmouth. Great water and sand.
Camped at Peters Pond Park at Sandwich.
Campfire + Guitars + Beer + cooking wai wai = good times.

Went to Craigville Beach. Still damn windy!!

fun weekend...

Home

I am home.

After a long and eventful travel
over many oceans and strange lands.
Many days of journeying
through cities
rich and poor,
tropical and temperamental.
And...
Meeting friends and family
and more.

Tempus fugit,
but till then
Home Sweet Home.

San Francisco, California

Thank God the city lived up to my expectations!! :D.. I'd been hankering to visit SanFran for so long, and I finally got the opportunity last week. I was there for the 50th Annual Meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. So yes, work. But I did play too..

Did the usual tourist things.. Hangin out at Fisherman's Wharf, walking in Chinatown, cable cars, SFMOMA. Also watchin Tia Carroll at Biscuits and Blues, hanging out doing nothing at Haight-Ashbury. Lunch at Belden Place.. at Plouf. Lunch at Mt. Everest Restarant in Berkeley, which I strongly strongly recommend to anyone truly homesick for home kinda food. :D. The Golden Gate Park.. too bad I was too late to enter the Japanese Tea Garden. Well, there's always a next time. The best part was undoubtedly riding the Powell-Hyde Cable Car line (at night, multiple times).. AND biking across the Golden Gate bridge in the dusk. A hell of a ride (I totally underestimated the initial climb) but well worth the effort. Luckily it wasn't freezing or foggy ... Well, I wouldn't really have minded foggy I think. The weather was gloriously perfect the whole week.

Here are some photographs...

San Francisco

Pictures - Camping at Acadia National Park

There were a number of cameras out there in Maine.

So , I've collected the links to the various albums from the happy campers. :)
The photo below each link is only a sample.. click on the links for the full albums!

don's gallery -1 and don's gallery-2 (p/w acadians)

chris's chris' chrises christian's album

lisa's album

elena's flickr

and anuj's gallery

Enjoy!!!!

Freedom Of The Seas

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines' Freedom of the Seas is the largest cruise ship in the world, just recently taking away that crown from Cunard's Queen Mary 2.

Lucky me... coz my uncle was assigned to this ship and hence I had the opportunity to check out this ship last weekend while it was docked in Boston for its "publicity cruises".

So last Sunday, 21st of May, Lava and I went aboard the ship and spent 5 glorious hours taking in the almost Disney-like luxury of the cruise ship.. The word huge does not even begin to describe the ship.. 15 decks of luxury! A boxing ring, and ice-skating rink, a rock climbing wall, a wave surfing pool, golf greens, full sized basket ball court, casino, night club, a 3-storied dining hall, a theatre, a promenade through the middle of the ship, a cantilevered whirlpool... well, we really did not have the time to explore all areas of this humongous floating resort.. And I think that might have been coz we were busy with the free (EXCELLENT) food and free booze from the numerous bars scattered all over the ship! :)

Here is a photograph of the ship..



and this link will take you to more (lots of) photographs...

http://www.anujpradhan.com/CruiseShip05-21-06

back from DC

Have been in Washinton DC since early Saturday for the TRB conference ..
Just got back last night, just in time for Tuesday night bowling. :)

My talk was pretty good.. was well received, with great interaction from the audience. And no, I didn't have sweaty palms this time. So maybe it helps preparing the slides a day before the presentation is due huh? :)

What else is new with me?? leseeee... hmmmm... reading a lot.. as you can see from my list. And that's about it. Nothing earth shattering to record. No pictures either..


Am kicking myself for leaving my camera behind at the hotel when I went up to the National Zoo in DC. Did get lucky and managed to see the Panda Baby.. Tai Shan, which means "peaceful mountain" in Chinese. (The pic is from the national zoo's website)

Also the regular exhibits.. lions and tigers and bears.. and reptiles.. hadn't been to a zoo in such a long time so t'was nice. And the weather was just beautiful. Lucky me .

New York City...

From across the river...