My friend George Abraham and his lovely wife Lona invited me over to the wedding of their son Vilas with Suneela Tandra, September 5, 2015. Though the venue of the wedding was an hour plus drive from my Long Island residence, I decided in favor of attending the wedding. As I  let it be known that I would join at the wedding reception, if not at the wedding ceremony, two of my friends, Malini Shah and Sudha Acharya called up to say they would take a ride with me. And you don’t say “no” to good company. So, we set off around 4 in the afternoon, to be with the Abrahams , a neat 45 miles away. The drive was smooth and we made it in a little over an hour. As we drove, Sudha Acharya admired the greenery and the topography. I am myself a lover of hills and tall trees and any scenic beauty quite thrills me. In India, Shimla and Dalhousie were my favorite escapades.

Once at the venue of the wedding, we were simply thrilled. The  lone house on a hillock which had  a lake behind it with  hills all around the lake was an altogether different world for us who have been living in crowded New York . The sylvan surroundings added to the  happy experience of all, I believe. Many people were seen taking photographs with the background of the lake and the hills. And, as the Sun went down, it created a psychedelic atmosphere with its changing hues. Great experience in deed. Wordsworth would have loved it. Readers might like to know what this  charming place was. Well, here it is: Monteverde at Oldstone in Cortland Manor, New York.

Good food, a lot of dancing and singing and the warmth of hospitality of Abrahams were the other pleasant experiences.

It was quite late in the evening when we drove back. And it was not an easy drive. Malini was uncomfortable with the enveloping dark and was quite afraid of the speed  at which I drove. All the way she was tense, clutching the seat  on either side. Poor girl! Next time, I have to give somebody a ride I am going to ask whether the person would let me drive at the speed I like and whether the person  had the paranoia of any thing.

And before I forget in my speed to tell you  a little more about the families that got together in the happy bond, here we go. Vilas Abraham is the elder  son to George Abraham, a former Chief Technology Officer with the  United Nations & Chairman, Indian National Overseas Congress, USA, and Lona Abraham, Asst. Director, Coler Memorial Hospital   in New York. They are  originally from Kerala is Equity Research Analyst with Nomura Securities International, New York.

The bride Dr. Suneela Tandra is a Pediatrician from New Jersey. She is a daughter of Drs. Usha and Brahmaiah Tandra. Both are Physicians from Cleveland, Ohio, originally from Andhra Pradesh.

Present on the occasion were family and friends. The more notable were Abrahams’   younger son Steven and his wife Danielle. Also present was Prof. P. J. Kurien, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.

Congratulations, Abrahams and Tandras!