The Potion
When we were little, my brother and I dreaded falling ill. Not because of the fever that gave us chills or the cough that made our ribs hurt or a million visits to the bathroom that left us dehydrated. … Read the rest
Love on the Shores of India
I was 15 when grand aunt Evgenia Khovanskaya died in 1975, leaving her home to my mother and me since she had no children of her own. Her younger sister was my maternal grandmother. Shortly after, I went to the
Our Old School
I can remember Grantchester Road where I lived for under a year, I was 6 going on 7, I remember the flowers and the grass, and the ponies and the fields. But most importantly, I remember the school.
At first, … Read the rest
A Journey in Various Moods
A day-long journey along the Black Sea from Russia to Georgia can be quite an experience for anybody. The journey I took on this route, left an everlasting impression on me in many ways. Before coming to the USSR for … Read the rest
Freedom, Food and the Tragedy of Deaths
I came to live in Coochbehar with my parents- in- law after I was married. Coochbehar, 700 kilometres north of Calcutta, used to be an independent kingdom governed by a Maharaja till it merged with the Indian Republic in 1949, … Read the rest
Buffalo Horns: An Unhappy Trophy
My introduction to buffalo hunting started soon after I arrived in Australia in 1960 as a Ten Pound Pom. After various jobs in the southern States, I hitch-hiked up to the Northern Territory and got a job as chief cook
A Winter’s Tale
My particular memory goes back some 90 years to when I was living with my rather troubled family in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. I was born six years after the end of the First World War. One chilly morning in December,
Encounters at Harvard
In 1955 I was offered a two-year scholarship to Harvard University, to get my MA in English Literature. It was the first time in my life that I was travelling on an aeroplane. I was not afraid, but rather anxious
Ghosts in the House
Whenever I am haunted by memories of the past, our house in Jabalpur[note]A city in the central Indian province of Madhya Pradesh. It has a large cantonment that dates back to the 19th century[/note]. invariably floats in to my mind.