Tonight We Have The Stars at LaVaSa

Do not worry if you have built your castles in the air. They are where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.
-Henry David Thoreau

I came. I saw. I was mesmerized. I decided to settle down. I made my retirement plans. I made my castles in the air. I leased out my future home from Lavasa Corporation. I will now utilize the rest of my life in putting the foundations to my dreams at Lavasa. With a playground that covers the whole valley, outdoors that start right at your doorstep, chances are you will run out of excuses to live life at Lavasa. Nature trails that zigzag across the hills, offer a perfect recreational activity for nature lovers. Parks at Lavasa offer countless relaxation and leisure activities for its residents. For those of you following my Lavasa Life, let me today write about the night-life at Lavasa.

How good is the night sky over your house? How well can you see the stars? How many stars can you see from your house? If you really want to see the beauty of the night sky, drive down to Lavasa. Many factors determine how well you can see the night sky. Natural weather patterns have an obvious effect. But even when clouds are not seen, high haze, which may well be invisible to you, can obscure many stars. Humidity causes air to scatter light, reducing the contrast between the "black” sky and the stars, making fainter stars harder to see and stars close together difficult to distinguish. What you might see as three stars on a clear, dark night may look like only one with high levels of humidity in the air. But by far the biggest thief of the night sky is light pollution. Light pollution won't cause physical or mental health problems. It won't give you cancer, but it is a cancer on the beauty of the night sky. It robs us of a natural treasure. City-folks, you don't know what you are missing. I did not too till I saw the night sky at Lavasa. It was one of those rare clear-sky nights during the monsoons at Lavasa (I think the most beautiful season of the year at Lavasa).

The International Dark-Sky Association ( www.darksky.org) defines light pollution as "any adverse effect of manmade light. It is often used to denote urban sky glow.” The association describes several types of light pollution, including glare, light trespass and energy waste. All forms of light pollution deal with light going to places where it is not needed or wanted. Some forms of light pollution, while intended to make you safer at night, actually do more harm than good. Environmental sensitivity is one of the driving factors in the development of Lavasa. Modern technologies merged with time tested ideas have been deployed to maintain the natural settings of the environment. The Environment Management Plan (EMP) addresses several initiatives to protect and enhance the green cover. As far as I know, only 12% of the total area of 25,000 hectares will be developed. The remainder will be left as it is. Presently Ekaant -the Lodge is the only tourist recreational facility at Dasve. You see small clusters of lights at night from Ekaant in villages comprising of 15-20 tenements. The only other lights seen in the valley are the street lamps over the road made on the Warasgaon Dam.

The long, warm nights of August provide some dazzling sights. The Milky Way arcs high overhead, adding a soft glow to the dark sky -- but only if you are away from pesky city lights. The constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius are at their best, anchoring the southern end of the Milky Way. Jupiter points the way to Sagittarius. Mars and Saturn drop from sight in the glare of sunset, where Venus and Mercury already lurk. That leaves Jupiter as the only naked-eye planet easily visible for most of the month. if you have a telescope, this is the place to see the stars at night, especially on a warm dry night at Lavasa.

The lights bring out the character of Ekaant. Strong, Silent, Handsome & Eternal. Look at the pictures. I fell in love all over again, once again:) with the stars & the night-lights of Lavasa. I had some friends writing to me from Israel asking if they can buy a retreat at Lavasa. Must remember to forward their enquiries to Nathan & colleagues. I wish these visionaries had started this project in the 70s. Anyways my children and their children will enjoy the fruits of people who are shaping the future modern India.

The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.
-William James

Doctors Never Laugh

...the Doctor replied 'Of course I won't laugh, I'm a professional. In
over twenty years I've never laughed at a patient.'

'Okay then,' Bob said, and proceeded to drop his trousers, revealing the
tiniest 'whoo-ha' the doctor had ever seen.

It couldn't have been bigger than the size of a AAA battery.

Unable to control himself, the doctor started giggling, then fell laughing
to the floor. Ten minutes later he was able to struggle to his feet and
regain his composure.

'I'm so sorry,' said the doctor. 'I really am. I don't know what came over
me. On my honor as a doctor and a gentleman, I promise it won't happen
again. Now, what seems to be the problem?'

'It's swollen,' Bob replied.

Creativity Unleashed

Michaelangelo's David Returned Back To Italy After His Sponsored Trip To the USA

Soy foods 'reduce sperm numbers'

A group of US researchers have found a potential link between high
levels of soya in the diet and low sperm concentration. The findings were
reported in the journal Human Reproduction.
Dr Jorge Chavarro led the study at the Department of Nutrition at
Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, which looked at 99 men who had
visited a fertility treatment clinic for fertility evaluation between 2000
and 2006. They were asked how often and how much soy-based food they had
eaten in three months, including tofu or soy sausages, bacon and mince, soy
milk, cheese and yoghurt.
The men were divided into four groups according to their intake of soy
foods and, after adjusting for other factors such as age, BMI, alcohol and
caffeine intake and smoking, Chavarro found that men in the highest intake
category had on average 41 million sperm per millilitre less than men who
did not consume soy products. The 'normal' sperm concentration is between 80
and 120 million sperm per millilitre.
The study 'suggests that soy foods could have some deleterious effect on
the reproductive system and especially on sperm production', said Chavarro.
The correlation was also exacerbated in men who were overweight or obese.
The findings do not explain why soy foods have this effect on sperm
concentration, but Chavarro speculates that it could be because of the
levels of 'isoflavones'; plant-derived compounds with oestrogenic effects,
something that may affect sperm production by interfering with hormonal
signals. Obese men have higher levels of natural oestrogen in their body,
further supporting the theory of a hormonal role.
In other parts of the world such as Asia, however, the normal intake of
soya is much higher than in the study, and there is no evidence of higher
levels of infertility in these areas. Chavarro said that this study is not
sufficient to draw firm conclusions and further larger studies would be
needed to determine whether soy intake has implications in infertility.

The Deck at LaVaSa

In architecture, a deck is a flat surface capable of supporting weight, similar to a floor, but typically constructed outdoors, often elevated from the ground, and usually connected to a building. The term is a generalization of decks as found on ships. The Deck at Lavasa is special. It talks to the clouds & is friends with the pristine mountain air and the early morning fragrant mist from the Mose valley! Maybe I have this Obsessive Compulsive Disorder about Lavasa and the deck at Lavasa! Let me educate you all about Lavasa. Lavasa, free India’s largest Hill Station, embodies the spirit of human nature to Live, Work, Learn and Play.Nature trails that zigzag across the hills, offer a perfect recreational activity for nature lovers.

Imagine a home nestled in a picturesque valley, where the tranquil old world blends seamlessly with the cosmopolitan way of life. Lavasa offers a vibrant, self-contained world which is part of 25,000 acres of land (almost 1/4th the size of Mumbai) declared as Hill Station with an extensive Master Plan covering half that area. The rest of the region is left untouched to preserve the natural beauty. Cradled in the heart of mystic Sahyadri mountain range, Lavasa is well connected to both Pune and Mumbai.
Envisioned as a complete Hill Station offering a balanced life in harmony with nature, Lavasa is an aspirational destination for lifestyle seekers. 
Lavasa is located at an altitude of 2000-3000 feet above sea level, with state-of-the-art roads, robust infrastructure and a salubrious climate all year round. It is the largest Hill Station to be planned and developed using the Geographical Information System (GIS).An exhaustive GIS architecture has been designed which would integrate into other systems such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Document Management Systems (DMS) and Customer Relationship Management System (CRM). Through GIS, accurate information will be provided to its facility managers anywhere in the world regarding the status of the Hill Station. Lavasa is located on a hilly terrain, which was one of the basic reasons for the development of a digital elevation model. Nature trails have been mapped with GPS and points of interest are described. A significant contribution has been made towards trail guides highlighting the rich diversity of flora and fauna at Lavasa. I could go on and on about the technology embedded into this Indian hill-station , which will be a show-case to the world. Move over first world, the new India beckons!

Coming back to the Deck. This is my favorite haunt with an unopposed view of the swelling Warasgaon lake & the Mose Valley. The pristine green valley overlooking the placid lake is a perfect setting to rejuvenate and refresh your mind, body and spirit. Lavasa is home to the Karvi flower also called the blue bloom, which blooms only once in 7 years- 2007 was the year of the bloom. The Malabar Whistiling Thrush, the singer bird of Lavasa is popularly called the "whistling Schoolboy". This deck with the view,crops out from the multicuisine restarant that serves World cuisine. Sushi, Beer & roasted almonds & the Whistling Schoolboy alongwith with 50 inches of rain last Saturday made the "deck" a semi-permanent home for this writer. The Lavasa deck would beat any "Deck of The Month" hollow! Check them out on http://www.decks.com/DeckOfMonth.aspx

The Deck introduces you to nature & the clouds. Nature is at its best in the monsoons in this part of the world. Standing on the Deck and bathing with the rolling moisture laden clouds that almost caress you is a sublime experience that causes a neural crackling & hyperactivity in the satiety centers in the human brain. You are numbed and be-numbed time and again thinking that just three hours out of Mumbai and you get a fresh lease of life on the Deck! Just look at the photographs and admire the deck changing its appearance with the different hours of the day - almost like the four seasons of mother nature! The Walk in the Clouds just got better!

I doff my hat and salute the people with the vision to make a new India & Lavasa! Jai Hind & Jai Maharashtra!

Angelina Jolie's Twins Conceived Through In Vitro

Angelina Jolie's new born twins Knox and Vivienne were conceived through in vitro (IVF) treatment, it has been revealed.

According to American magazine US Weekly, Jolie, 33, turned to fertility treatments in order to conceive quicker.

A source tells the publication, "They conceived through in vitro fertilization

"They both desperately wanted more babies soon."

The chance of having fraternal twins naturally at Angelina's age is under 1 percent; with in vitro, the chances are 25 percent. Says Dr. Arthur Wisot of L.A.'s Reproductive Medical Group (who did not treat the couple), "We live in an era of reproductive freedom, so anybody can do anything they want within legal limits."

The oldest patient reported to deliver after IVF was Omkari Panwar, a 70 year old woman from India who delivered a set of twins in 2008.

The Tomb Raider star chose the procedure -- which can cost around $12,000-a-time -- so "she wouldn't have to deal with the stress of trying to get pregnant," the source said. "She could just knock it out."

Jolie -- who also has three adopted children, Maddox, Pax, and Zahara, as well as her eldest biological child, Shiloh, with partner Brad Pitt -- recently spoke of her desire to have a large family at a young age.

She told Elle U.K., "If we're going to have 10 kids, we'd like to raise them while we're young."

A source adds, "They were too impatient."