Cosmopolitan and coincidences

September 17, 2026 SFLeave a comment

London is an incredible mix of people and cultures.

Manjula was amazed when she first visited U.K. and especially Brixton where there’s a great mix of people of different nations/ethnicity/races/colours….

On my bus now, less than 50% are white. I think that’s great and even the white people are a big mix mainly as the place (pre UK) was invaded by many others for a thousand years before the last take over by the Normans in 1066.

Coincidentally that invasion is featured in an amazing tapestry currently on loan from France and exhibited in London.

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Today I have noticed the following restaurants in just a few minutes from the bus travelling through London…..

Eritrean, Keralan, Lebanese, French, Bangladeshi, ‘Indian’ mostly run by Bangladeshis), English (whatever that means), American (so many fast food joints mainly selling burgers and chicken), you name it… every country is represented in the restaurants and just last week there was a big event celebrating Asia

With street food, entertainment and shoppping.

Just look at the people in the city.

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Teasing

Can you name any of the characters, in the window?

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Just to prove what an amazing place the world is ..

I was out with my son Ben today and we bumped into Rhonda from Australia, at the National Portrait Gallery, who was a guest at Mysore Bed and Breakfast.

How cool is that?

The sparrow has landed….

August 13, 2026August 13, 2026 SFLeave a comment

Clearly not an Eagle.

Gina and I tried to capture images of the eclipse without looking at the sun.

I’m staying with my good friends Angus and Gina in Brixton South London

Close to their house are lots of community facilities and a corner shop run by Indians that MAnjula discovered on her first visit here. In fact the whole Brixton area is a great diverse mix of people from all around the world.

I can hear people playing bingo in the community centre next to me.

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The layout.

Different worlds

November 29, 2024November 29, 2024 SFLeave a comment

Ganesh, originally bought from the stone carvers in Tamil Nadu with representations of — (from the left) the moon, earth and sun.

I’ve adapted one of his key stories to share with Kaveri and Radhika.

It traditionally goes like this …

Ganesh and his brother have a race round the world to prove who’s fastest.

If we were asked to predict who would win we’d think his brother, as Ganesh aka Ganpati isn’t lithe and doesn’t look fit. Plus .. He eats a lot!

His brother is shocked to find Ganesh already there when he breathlessly reaches the finishing line.

It turns out Ganesh raced around his world (his parents) and his brother raced around the whole world (planet earth).

My addition.

There’s no right or wrong here, both raced around important worlds. Fact is — we occupy many worlds— at school, where we live, amongst our friends, work. It’s important for us to realise these different worlds — an understanding of which — helps us realise how people see things differently.

Only then … can we — Be Kind— (a regular message to Kaveri), as that depends on us understanding how each person sees things. No point ‘being kind’ in ways that ‘the other’ person doesn’t value or recognise.

Factoid !?

Kartikeya ), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha and Murugan, is the Hindu god of war. He is generally described as the son of the deities Shiva and Parvati and the brother of Ganesha.

Lifted off the t’internet

All images are in Mysore Bed and Breakfast but non of his brother as he’s still racing around the world.

Help – Break the crate..

November 29, 2024November 29, 2024 SFLeave a comment

Revealing possibilities

Broadening Horizons

Passing through Barriers

Help girls (and boys) prepare for adult life by introducing yourself and sharing your insights.

Manjula’s Mysore is inviting its guests and members of its monthly meeting: ‘reflective space’ to create a short Introductory video — talking to camera — to reveal what’s possible.

I often use the story of Ganesh and his brother racing each other to reveal to young people that we live in many different worlds — with our immediate family, at home, with friends, at work, our extended family, while travelling.

It’s important to recognise and value difference reflected in those different worlds. That helps us to realise what wide variety of opportunities exist for us.

Many young people don’t understand how different their lives could be.

If we know more, we’re more enlightened and can better choose the life we wish to have, and find what suits us best.

Breaking the crate.

It might mean challenging the status quo and breaking away from what’s traditionally expected of us.

Sharing examples gives others strength.

This idea came from how much Kaveri learned about other people’s worlds by meeting guests of all ages — from India and around the world—- at Mysore Bed and Breakfast.

I hope this helps broaden her horizons and seize opportunities

Manjula realised — that even with a limited education, from a poor background having experienced so many difficult challenges throughout her life — she could create a wonderful home, share it with people from around the world, become a company director, manage our business and teach a Firangi a thing or two!! (Many things actually)