Visit to Penns Caves PA and Center County Memorial Park, State College, PA on 07-Jul-2019

Penns Cave, PA is America's only all-water cavern & farm-nature-wildlife park. In 1885, Penn’s Cave opened as a commercial show cavern and the Penn’s Cave Hotel was built. Very fortunate to see this place and had very different experience. Nature takes it own course and the creation of the caves took millions  of years.

An astonishing and magnificent visit.... !!!! 

Visit to Braj Temple, Schuykill County, PA, USA on 06-Jul-2019

The Vraj Hindu Temple is located in Schuylkill County, in Pennsylvania, United States.  It is a multi-million-dollar temple or haveli covering 300 acres (1.2 km2) of the land. Vraj is also known as Noontan Nadalaya, and abode for God Shrinathji (a manifestation of Krishna). It is visited by an average of 100,000 Hindu pilgrims per year.  Nootan Nandalaya (Temple) is surrounded by hills and is situated on the bank of Chandra Sarovar (lake). The temple is having a very good canteen, gift shop and residence facilities. 

A very well developed complex which provides some peace of mind to the devotees and good to visit with family and friends. One can spend a day or two and lead a calm and peaceful life with dear ones.

Jay Shrikrishna ... !!!

Independence Day Parade on 04-Jul-2019

Got opportunity to attend Independence Day Parade, Towson MD USA. Had also attended National Independence Day Festival and Parade. Philadelphia, in 2015. A lot of enthusiasm and public participation showing their skills, vintage bikes and cars, showcasing of government departments in the parade which lasted for 2 hours. 

Visit to Mercer County Park and Radha Krishna Temple, Princeton on 29-Jun-2019

Mercer County Park, is a recreational park The park encompasses over 2,500 acres (10 square kms). The National Softball Association honored the Mercer County Park Commission with its "Outstanding Parks Award" for the softball fields and facilities in Mercer County Park. The park is having many facilities such as golf course, Two cricket pitches, Seven basketball courts, Ice skating center, 24 Tennis Courts, Nature trails, Picnic areas and so on. Perfect place for a day out with family and friends. Besides, sport facilities in the park offers an golden opportunity for the sportsmen. The day was very hot and later on after 4 pm the climate changed. The rain and strong wind started and weather become pleasant in 15 minutes. 

Visit to Annapolis, MD, USA and Thomas Point Park on 08-Jun-2019

Visited Annapolis, Maryland and Sandy Point State Park with Myra, Priyanka, Ankit, Sadhana and enjoyed an evening in the historic city. 

Annapolis is capital city of Maryland and famous mainly for 18th Century brick-houses United States Naval Academy, and Chesapeake Bay. It was temporary capital of USA in 1783-1784. A happening tourist place with nice traditional main street famous for ice-cream, chocolates and fudges. The place has rich heritage of arts, culture and theatre.  Had a good walk on the main street with music playing and market full of tourists, variety of cars and bikes. 

Visit to Baltimore Inner Harbor on 31-May-2015

Baltimore is one of America's oldest seaports. Baltimore's recently-renewed Inner Harbor is home to some of the city's best attractions, including the National Aquarium, Maryland Science Center, Port Discovery Children's Museum and Harbor place.

A happening tourist place with fantastic walk along the pier street music, historic ships, shops, games, parks, swiftly plying electric scooters, artist showing there skills, cultural events etc. Spent about 2-3 hours on the harbor in the evening. About 2 mile of scenic walk with Myra, Priyanka, Ankit, Sadhana was very refreshing.

  

Inner Harbor, Baltimore

Visit to the Aksharsham Temple, Robbinsville NJ on 27-May-2019

Visited the Swaminarayan Temple, Robbinsville Akshardham (Devnagari: स्वामिनारायण अक्षरधाम) in Robbinsville, New Jersey, is a Hindu temple complex. The complex is very big and a lot work is still in progress though the temple is complete. The inspiration to construct this temple came from Pramukh Swami Maharaj President, BAPS.

Visited the Swaminarayan Hindu Temple with the Paliwals which  is built using Italian marble.  The marble is cut and designed by the Rajasthani artists in India and sent to USA with serial number to be directly used in the construction. Very beautiful and delicate design of the pillars, main hall,and passages out side the temple. The temple has Aksharpith Book  & Souvenir Shop  and Shayaona Sweet and Snacks Center. A nice place to spend a day or half with family peacefully. 

Visit to Bushkill Waterfalls and Smithfield Beach on 26-May-2019

Bushkill Waterfalls is a series of eight privately owned waterfalls, the tallest of which cascades over 100 feet (30 m), located in Pocono Mountains in the United States. Beginning at the headwaters of the Little Bush Kill, the water descends the mountain, toward the Delaware River, forming Bushkill Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Bridesmaid Falls, Laurel Glen Falls, Pennell Falls, and three additional, unnamed falls. The place is also  popular for hiking and birdwatching. The area has a variety of trails and bridges that vary in length and difficulty. The fall is also known as "Niagara Falls of Pennsylvania."

Visited Bushkill Waterfalls and Smithfield Beach with Paliwals and Sadhna for 4-5 hours. Completed a trail for about 2 hours enjoying the waterfall and the nature around.

With ever smiling Paliwals in front of the waterfall

Visit to Roland Lake, Baltimore MD on 17-May-2019

Lake Roland Park, Baltimore MD is a city/county park encompassing over 500 acres of woodland, wetlands, serpentine barrens, rare plants and rocky plateaus surrounding Lake Roland in Baltimore County, Maryland. A hidden lush green gem in Towson MD for walking, cycle and running around the lake.

Little Myra, Priyanka, Sadhana and myself visited the park in  the evening for 2 hours. Nice beautiful place covering over 500 acres of woodland, wetlands, serpentine barrens, rare plants and rocky plateaus surrounding Lake Roland . Ideal for a day-out in the surroundings of lush green trees, tweeting birds, and trails.

Holi Celeberations in Greater Baltimore Temple on 23-Mar-2019

Attended Holi Festival at Greater Baltimore Temple celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm. Well-organized event which followed after the arati and refreshments. Reminded me the holi celebrations in very traditional way in Mahad 3-4 years before.

A Short Drive on Horses & Hound Scenic Byway on 12-Mar-2019

Today, I was very lucky to have a short drive for about an 30 minutes on  Horses and Hound Scenic Byway and was really enjoyed the snaky road and the nature around it. The byway is so named because of the fox hunting and horse breeding that has been a part of the culture in these hills and valleys.

Visit to Great Falls Park on 10-Mar-2019

Visited Great Falls Park along the Potomac River near Washington DC on 10-Mar-2019. Very nice place with nature's different flavor with tall leafless trees. We see here series of steep, jagged rocks making an idle place for kayaking.Easy to access from Washington DC and nice place to spare a few hours.

Shahs, Paliwals and Pathaks

A Snowy Day in Towson, MD on 20-Feb-2019

The weather was  pleasing and nature bestowed upon its best everywhere as snowfall continued through out the morning. The temperature was sub-zero. And anyhow with some determination, took an half-an-hour walk around the neighborhood and enjoyed the chill and nature's beautiful bounty.  Government vehicles were busy clearing the snow prompt using salt and me taking snaps and watching the scene -  नज़ारा. 

Visit to Timonium Motorcycle Show on 10 Feb-2019

Ankit, Priyanka, Sadhana and DY visited the Timonium Motorcycle Show at Lutherville, MD, USAshow on the same day of arrival from India to Towson, MD, USA.  I found myself very lucky to have look at hundreds of bikes in the last  1 hour and 30 minutes of the closure of the show. I had been to New Hope, PA, USA in 2014 village to enjoy season's fall and was astonished with a variety of bikes fantastically decorated on the main street of New Hope,  on a busy Sunday in summer. But the Timonium Feb-2019 show proved to be beyond my dreams

Visit to USA in 2019

Currently in USA and plan to move around  to places around Baltimore and Washington DC.  A few rides on a bike are in the offfing - may be on Harley-Davidson. And also to spent some time with my daughter Priyanka and son-in-law Ankit.  It is good winter here and hope to see nice summer as well. A perfect timing to visit USA.

This post will share my experience  during this stay about places, exhibition, etc. :

With Paliwals, Shah and Pathaks in USA

Visit to Ocean Park, Hong Kong on 02-Mar-2017

Ocean Park, Hong Kong  is a marine mammal park, oceanarium, animal theme park and amusement park situated in Wong Chuk Hang and Nam Long Shan, Hong Kong. It covers an area of 91.5 hectares (226 acres), the park is separated by a large mountain into two areas, The Summit (Headland) and The Waterfront (Lowland). These areas can be reached by a 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) cable car system, or the Ocean Express funicular railway. 

Spent one full day at the Park and enjoyed the rides, saw other attractions as mentioned above with Prabu and Ahmed. A must visit if you are in Hongkong.

Visit to Tian Tan Buddha and Makau Island on 06-Mar-2017

Tian Tan Buddha is a large bronze statue of Buddha Shakyamuni, completed in 1993, and located at Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, in Hong Kong. The statue is sited near Po Lin Monastery and symbolises the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and faith. It is a major centre of Buddhism in Hong Kong, and is also a tourist attraction.

Got an opportunity to visit this excellent scenic place near Hingkong with PMI colleague from Mumbai and Pune. Spent about 3 hours but one can stay here a couple of days in a serene environment and enjoy the nature and power of this sacred place.

Offering Prayers to Lord Buddha

Moving around in the Hong Kong City on 2, 3, 4 and 5 March, 2017

Hong Kong  is a special administrative region of China on the eastern side of the Pearl River estuary. With over 7.4 million people of various nationalities in a 1,104-square-kilometer (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is the world's fourth-most densely populated region.

Got some time in the evening to move around in the city and on the banks of River estuary. The local street market is full of varieties but one has to negotiate the prices a lot - may be to the extent of 1/3 of the price.

With Ahmed and Prabhu on the bank of Estuary River

Visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka as on 07-Mar-2016

Visited Colombo, Sri Lanka to attend the PMI LIM, 2016 and got one day to quickly move around the city.  With limited time at disposal Ahmed and me could visit Independence Square, Colombo, Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple, Colombo and local market.

Leaders from different countried for PMI LIM, 2016

Visit to USA in 2015

Traveled to USA to spent some time with Priyanka and Ankit. Was fortunate to see quite a few famous places on the eastern coast in four months' stay. Traveled more than 16000 km and visited places from Naigara Falls to Keywest Island i.e. north to south-most tip of USA.