Riya's Ramblings Riya

I just saw a movie on Netflix (True Spirit) about Jessica Watson and wanted to recommend you see it too.

She is the youngest solo sailor to circumnavigate the world - unassisted and non-stop.

That means no one can help her and she can't pull into port.

She sailed for 200 days from Oct 18 2009 (before I was born!) to May 15 2010!



But what really annoyed me was that she was told that she was under 18 and so it wouldn't count as an official record.

Can you believe it? Too young!

That makes me so mad for her!



I didn't realize that if there's no wind - she's stuck! The sailboat is stuck! No movement. All day, every day, till the winds start blowing again.

No phone! No friends! Can you imagine?



She was inspired by Jesse Martin's book - "Lionheart, the journey of the human spirit"

I haven't read the book but I do plan to read it. Have you read it?



Also, her family lived on a boat! Can you imagine that? Crazy!



She got some criticism for her adventure - she was young and in a trial run she had an accident with a freight ship.

But she proved all her critics wrong. Good for her! By the end of the movie, we were all rooting for her





She is such an inspiration!,

I really want to interview her.

Ms. Watson - if you are listening/reading, please email me - RiyaRamblings@gmail.com



If you know her or have a way to contact her, please let me know.

I would love to talk to her directly for this podcast.



You can learn more about her on Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Watson - and on her own website - https://www.jessicawatson.com.au/

As always, email me with your questions and comments. And, Listen, Rate, and Share!

My email is: RiyaRamblings@gmail.com

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. And wish you all the best for the new year!

Let's get started with a 'knock-knock' joke:



Knock-knock

Who’s there?

Razor

Razor who?

Raise your glass to the new year! Woo hoo!



Over Christmas break, we spent 6 days in an all-inclusive resort in Cancun, Mexico.

Honestly, the beach next to the resort was meh – but the resort itself was really good.

Lots of food, many pools and unlimited drinks. I mean, come on!



We also met my uncle - my dad's brother - and his family. We saw them after almost 5 years so it was fun to catch up and just hang out.



The resort had many different options for food - from a buffet to a cafe bar and many restaurants.

For dinner we went to a few restaurants in the resort. We had a variety of cuisines to choose from – Yucatan (the local area), Italian, Japanese etc.

And they were all good.

Interestingly, we didn’t eat a lot of Mexican food :)



We went to visit the Chichen Itza – an ancient Mayan city about 3 hours by road from Cancun.

The complex had a sports arena where the ancients played challenging sports. And can you believe that the winner was sacrificed? 

That just sounds like a good reason not to be good at something.



On the way back, we stopped by a cenote.  A cenote is a natural sink-hole – a natural pool. It was beautiful!

We also spent a couple of hours in a town called Villadolid. The town was very lively and we got to see some traditional dances there. One of the dances was impressive where the dancers put a glass bottle on their forehead during the dance.

That was a long day but it was a lot of fun to visit one of the 7 wonders and learn about Mayan history.



We also did yoga on the beach and biked around the resort.



On the last day, we went on another excursion. To be honest, I was a little nervous about this but I am really glad I did it.

We swam in a cenote – actually in an underground cave. That was a first for me!

It was so pretty! We got to float through a cave where the water was more than 150 ft deep!

And then it got even more fun – we went snorkeling! I got to see some cool fish up close, really close.

I had a great time doing things I hadn’t done before.

Cancun is a fun place – with a lot of options. Of course, you can spend the entire day at the resort but there’s a lot of things to do outside.

What has branches but no fruits, trunk or leaves?

Answer: The government – because it has 3 branches – executive, legislative and judicial.



Here's some more jokes!

Where can you find comedians on NYE?

Waiting on the punch line!

An iPhone and a firework were arrested on NYE. One was charged and the other was left off.



As always, email me: RiyaRamblings@gmail.com with your questions, comments and feedback.



What did you do on your Christmas break? And have you been to Cancun? What was the best part?

A Terrific Trip to Tyler, TX
I had a 4-day weekend at school recently and we wanted to travel but we didn’t want to fly.

So, we went to – Tyler, Texas

It’s a couple of hours of driving for us and isn’t your typical tourist destination, but it was a lot of fun!

Here’s what we did:

1. Hiked in the Tyler State Park – this is a wonderful state park with great trails and lovely tall trees. It was very beautiful!! We walked a bunch. Fair warning: the waterfall is cool but not a big one.

I also saw a big spider that scared me!

Learned more about the park: https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/tyler

2. Went to the Caldwell zoo – this zoo is the perfect size. Not too big, not too small. A few things I really liked were:

· Feeding the giraffes

· African area – with lions, elephants

· Bird feeding – it was so cool to feed them right out of my hand

· Watching the turtles just hang out – they were so cool!

A must-visit place if you are ever in the area!

More details: https://caldwellzoo.org/

3. Rose garden – we visited it the weekend before the famous Rose festival and had very high expectation. To be honest, It was a little underwhelming, but still beautiful.

My mom loved the plants and my dad loved the fountains.

Good gift shop for rose-scented soaps etc.

I was a little unsure when my mom first suggested Tyler for our vacation but I loved it. I realized that it’s not necessary to go to famous places.

Find local spots to enjoy your vacation!

Benefit - less crowds, great places,

If you have been there or if you live in Tyler, what did we miss?

Email me: RiyaRamblings@gmail.com

Puzzle: I have branches but no fruits, trunk or leaves. What am I? Email me your answer at RiyaRamblings@gmail.com

You get a shoutout when you email me too!

I recently visited Philadelphia with my family.

Listen to Episode 59 to learn all about Philly!



Philadelphia has many locations and museums about Ben Franklin and I learned a lot.



A few amazing facts about this founding father (who wasn’t a US president)

- He didn’t have a formal education but was always curious

- He had a printing press in Philadelphia

- He loved chess – because of the strategy and thinking involved

- He was a prolific inventor


He created the lightning rod in 1752 as part of his experiments related to electricity. This invention saved many lives by preventing fires caused during storms
He proved his theory about lightning by doing the kite experiment
He also invented bifocals
Divided soup plate – this is a fun invention specifically designed for eating soup on ships.

- His grave is visible from the sidewalk


People throw coins on his grave. Can you guess why? He is on the $100 bill and I don’t think many folks will throw those. 😊

Be sure to visit the Ben Franklin museum and other related sites like the Constitution Museum when you visit Philly

Riddle: What has many ears but can’t hear?

Answer: Corn!

Shout-out to Shruti, Emma and Samuel for your emails with the answers!

Email me: RiyaRamblings@gmail.comwith your questions, comments and suggestions.

This episode is a fun chat with my cousins who are visiting from Baltimore. In this episode, we talk about the city of Dallas. We talk about some food places, some fun attractions, and so much more!

These are the same cousins from "Episode 49 - We started a business, you can too!" where we discussed how we have our own doggie treat businesses - theirs is called "V&S Doggies Treats" (in Baltimore) and mine is called "Pupilicious" (in Dallas)

You can listen to it at: https://anchor.fm/riyasramblings/episodes/Riyas-Ramblings-Ep-49---We-started-a-business--you-can-too-e17h0nl



Here is what we talked about in this episode:

- What is our favorite restaurant to eat at?

- Braums, and Which Wich – we love the ice-creams at Braums and the customizable sandwiches at Which Wich

- We also love Honest, which is a restaurant for all kinds of Indian food

- What do we love about the Dallas area?

Doesn't rain all the time - sunny makes it easier to get stuff done but it’s really hot this time

It's easier to cool down and to warm up

We can go to the rec center and swim

- Favorite memory from previous visits to Dallas?

Road trips - Houston – our visit to the NASA center, Waco – where we visited Dr. Pepper Museum and tasted different sodas

- What attractions do we want to visit in Dallas every year?

We all love to go to water parks, arcades, and play laser tag, and we go every couple visits.

- What indoor activities do we do to keep entertained?

We love playing the Wii, the Nintendo switch, watch TV, and play some super fun indoor games.

- What outdoor activities do we enjoy?

It’s super hot, so the only time we can play is after dinner. After dinner sometimes, we would go play basketball in my nearby [ark, or maybe even play cricket, and it was really fun!

What do we do to keep cool in the Texas heat?

Since it was super hot outside, we loved getting cold treats like ice cream and froyo! Another thing we loved was going to the Plano Recreation Centers to workout or swim in their indoor pools, i=since it was a great way to get energy out and still stay cool!

We used the same riddle as the last two episodes, since it will be the riddle for my three part series, I didn’t want to change it up.

The Riddle: I have many ears, but I can’t hear?

If you know the answer, email me at RiyaRamblings@gmail.com, or email ways that you still cool in the heat! You will get a shoutout!

Have a great day, and make sure to Listen, rate, and share.

This is part 2 of the 3 part series of my vacation. This episode will be about all the things I did in New York City, so enjoy!!

We are gonna use the same riddle for this whole series so you have time! The riddle was: what has many ears but can’t hear?

Email me your answer at RiyaRamblings@gmail.com.

We drove from Philly to New York. You can listen to my previous episode to learn about my adventures in Philadelphia.

We used City Pass which is like a combo ticket for many places which helps to avoid long lines. I recommend it!

We stayed in a hotel very close to Times Square. 19th floor!

And we took the train to get around. That plus a LOT of walking.

If you have visited NYC, send me email with place you saw and places you wished you had seen.

Here’s the places we visited:

Times Square:

- I agree with it's "cross roads of the world" title - a fun place to visit

- The site of the annual new year’s eve ball drop, which began in 1907! It’s super fun to see on TV

Broadway:

- We got discounted, same-day tickets for "Dear Evan Hansen" at the booth in Times Square.

- It was very good and emotional, and it was an experience I’ll never forget

Statue of Liberty:

- We took a ferry to liberty island, and that same ferry also stops at ellis island

- The museum had a really good mini movie about the process of making Lady Liberty

- The statue of liberty was given to America by the French on June 17, 1885 by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi

- The status has broken ankle shackles to represent freedom from slavery, a torch to light up the world, and a tablet with America’s independence day

Zucotti Park:

- It had a ton of small mom and pop street food carts with various flavors and cuisines

- If you go to NY city, be on the lookout for these beautiful areas, you’ll really enjoy them!

9/11 memorial/museum:

- We visited the memorial for the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001

- It taught me so much, and made me realize how hard it must have been

- There was a panel surrounding the Twin Reflecting Pools with all the names of those who lost their lives

Empire state building

- It was the tallest building when it was built in March 1930

- it is now an observatory deck on the 86th floor and you can pay extra go to the 102nd floor

- The view was breathtaking, but make sure to go on a clear day, or a sunset!

Central Park:

- 843 acres of trees and trails in the middle of a city!! Beautiful!

- We entered the park from the Strawberry Fields, which is not an area where you pick strawberries! It’s a memorial to a British rock musician, John Lennon, who was part of the Beatles.

Food

We had fantastic falafels from food trucks, great NY style pizza and also some over-priced, not-so-good meals. Make sure you eat the street food!

Brooklyn

One of my fav Bollywood stars - Shah Rukh Khan - shot a famous movie near the Brooklyn bridge. So I loved seeing that at night and take beautiful photos

We are gonna use the same riddle for this whole series so you have time! 

The riddle was: what has many ears but can’t hear?

Email me at RiyaRamblings@gmail.com