The Great Smoky Mountains, Tenessee

My first long drive in the United States! It was a scenic drive in Spring! Smokies is a must visit during Fall, when you can see multi-colored leaves.

Smokies - Scenic beauty

Gatlinburg downtown

We visited Gatlinburg and happened to stay right in the downtown. Didn't have to drive to get to the trails. Also, the area is covered with tourists all-year round except winter. We hiked on two trails and  one of them included a waterfall! There are lot of things to do in downtown (Skylift Park, Mountain Coaster etc) but you need a plan to cover most of the stuff in optimal amount of time (also including the wait-time for the rides+traffic). If you are a nature lover, the top priority is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park! The park is super clean and serene; has lot of visitor/information centers, stores; the trails are provided with good maps/directions.

Gatlinburg downtown

Stream along one of the Gatlinburg trails

Sugarlands Vistor Center (museum) in Gatlinburg

Rangers at Sugarlands Visitor Center were very helpful in giving optimal directions and provided park maps; the Center had a museum, a bookstore and also offered an informative 20-minute film.

We drove to Cherokee later via Newfound Gap. We hiked to observation tower on the highest peak in the Smokies - Clingmans Dome. Along the paved trail until you reach the top, the scenery is breathtaking!

Information about Clingmans Dome

4th of July fireworks in Knoxvlle, Tenessee

Second time when we visited Smokies was during 4th of July long weekend. Specially went to see the mesmerizing Ruby falls in Chattanooga, Tenessee. In fact, it was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!! :) One of my dear friends gave the awesome suggestion. It's a must visit in off-season to escape holidays rush. The observation tower at Ruby Falls provides an astounding panaromic view. It's an 145-foot tall underground waterfall inside a limestone cavern in Lookout Mountain; has well-planned lit route inside the cave leading up to the waterfall and back. There are guided tours for various activities and the guides are super-amusing and informative.

Panaromic view from Ruby Falls, Lookout Mountain

Ruby Falls, Chattanooga, Tenessee

Downtown Chattanooga is also serene town set along the Tenessee river; had awesome eateries. It is popular for trolley-like Incline Railway scaling steep Lookout Mountain, Ruby Falls waterfall and Rock City, featuring sweeping views, sandstone formations and gardens. Provided you have a whole day, you might be able to cover these prime sites in Chattanooga. We also covered few trails in Gatlinburg and also happened to see a bear family (mamma + 3 cubs)!

Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg are most-visited towns in Smokies; both have awesome restaurants with variety of cuisines and well-planned accessible roads.

Ruby Falls, underground waterfall

Stalactites and stalagmites, underground cave tour, Ruby Falls

Stay tuned for more updates on other places visited in US during past 2.5 years..

Lawrence, Kansas

Kansas fields

(Updated: Nov. 3, 2020)

I have lived in Kansas for 2 years, but couldn't write about it until now. For those who don't know Kansas, I would to like to remind you that Superman's story originated in Smallville, Kansas! ;) :D Though Smallville is a fictional place, there were some geeks who tried to a make a real Kansas town into Man of Steel's boyhood home. So, only on June 21st, the town of Smallville, Kansas officially exists now! :D

Kansas, known as the Sunflower State, is located in the Midwestern United States. Kansas is named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south wind", though it isn't the original meaning. It's capital city is Topeka and Wichita, Overland Park and Kansas City are the most populated cities.

One of the drawbacks is that affordable and safer public transportation for traveling long distances in the MidWest region of the US is the hardest to find. In some towns, you might be lucky to even get an Uber or Lyft. You need to be able to drive atleast a rental/personal car to go for groceries or work or traveling for pleasure. If you are a student staying near University campus, it is possible to go around town via shuttles, but it gets worse if you are working for an internship or a full-time job and you have to travel frequently to the workplace via shared rides or your car. Though Lawrence has an Amtrak station, the rates are almost the same as a flight ticket. It might be expensive and take longer time than flight. Surprisingly, I have found affordable train tickets and public transportation (buses) in places near the West Coast of the USA. 

I have graduated as Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kansas. University of Kansas's ranking in the 2017 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 118.
Here are some of the pictures I clicked over two years span:

Snow Hall

The Oread Hotel

Kansas Union

Watson library

Inside Watson library

Memorial Stadium

Budig Hall

Kansas  Union

Strong Hall

I have seen Lawrence in all of the seasons. It's amazing how a single place can have so much beauty in it!

Lawrence at it's best! :)

I have visited many places nearby (Overland Park, Kansas City, Topeka, Wichita). I'll be writing about them soon. Kansas is bordered by Colorado, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Missouri states, each of which has wonderful spots to visit over long weekend trips. Sure do visit Kansas and have a great time! :)

How good are my GRE and TOEFL/IELTS scores?

Updated: Sept. 24, 2019

I have been asked this question "How good are my GRE and TOEFL/IELTS scores?" a lot of times! Specifically the students from Engineering or Medical background who doubt the verbal test for being the criteria for the technical major.

From my experience and reading, for getting an admit in top-rank (top 50) school in U.S., you will need (other requirements explained in my other blog post (Decision-Making ..coming soon)):
-- GRE score more than 320/340, specifically
    Analytical writing (AW) score more than 4.0/6.0,
    Math score more than 160/170,
    Verbal score more than 160/170.

-- TOEFL score more than 100/120, specifically
    Speaking section score more than 20/25.

Depending on Departmental/University requirements, you can take either TOEFL or IELTS test. International students need to demonstrate their English abilities through AW scores and TOEFL/IELTS scores. Also, if you intend to apply for Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA) in the University, you will need good scores in the speaking section of TOEFL/IELTS.
I have found the following link to be useful-for those who seek to apply for US universities for MS (Master of Science).

http://www.msinus.com/content/gre-universities-486/#.U8Tnz5SSw4E

Please see the official webpage for GRE , TOEFL and IELTS for more details.

Please see my website for knowing about my research and work experience.

Bengaluru, India (Internship and more!)

HAL

This is Christmas time of the year. It reminded me of the time I spent in Bangalore three years ago!
I had stayed in Bengaluru (or Bangalore) for a month. I do not know in detail about the place (besides being an IT hub, place for research institutes like HAL and NAL, IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore), but I would definitely recommend it for visiting atleast once.

After doing bit of research, I did find out! :D
Located in the centre of southern India, in the heart of the Mysore plateau at an altitude of 920m, Bangalore is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Its official name is Bengaluru, with Bangalore being the anglicised version of it. Due to its high elevation Bangalore enjoys a mild climate throughout the year, one of the best climates in south Asia.

 I had all kinds of experiences in that one month-period. I and my teammates used to be working in HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.) for the whole day and would go exploring the city in the evenings and on weekends!

So funny! :D
At a Punjabi restaurant there.

We had tried lot of eateries in that month, which I had never heard of before!! I loved Shavarma specifically!! :) Mysorepak was one of the major delights!
I also did learn few words in Kannada, which is the language spoken by the majority.


Having lived in Pune my entire life, I did find lot of similarities between the two cities! Even the places had ditto names (MG Road, Shivajinagar)! :D


It was also my first time spending Christmas, not with my family! But we did manage to reach back home (Pune) on 31st! :) :D We visited this wonderful church St. Mary's Basilica in Shivajinagar!

Brigade Road

While traveling, I also got to see "Majestic bus station", large one in central Bangalore! It has this peculiar semi circular layout. It reminded me of Swargate station in Pune! :)
We visited various places for shopping! The main one and the busiest one was Brigade Road!



We also visited the Heritage Centre and Aerospace Museum at HAL Airport Road. It houses a library on Aerospace and displays various kinds of aircraft models. It also has a motion simulator which gives the realistic feel of flying fighter jets and commerical aircrafts!

Mysore and Ooty are close to Bangalore. We thought of visiting those places, but couldn't fit it in our schedule then. I couldn't see all of Bangalore too. But I would definitely love to go next time whenever I am in India. In the meantime, please look up the hyperlinks too! Only a month stay in Bangalore impressed me a lot! You will surely love it! :)

Another new phase of life: Cincinnati, Ohio!!

Another fresh beginning.. A new year has started.. This time in Cincinnati!

It's been a year since I didn't write anything. I had been busy with lot of stuff in the past year. But I somehow managed to find time to write about this new place and new experiences.

Lot of people I met, didn't know about Cincinnati. It's in Ohio and is bigger and more populated city than Lawrence, Kansas! The facilities and the services are definitely better.

The New York Times has called the university "one of the most architecturally dynamic campuses in America today." It's not surprising, perhaps, given its renowned College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP). The university is in the uptown area in the rolling hills above Downtown, adjacent to the neighborhoods of Corryville, Clifton Heights, Clifton, and Avondale. (Click to view more!)

Here are some snapshots of the University..

McMicken Hall

Baldwin Hall - The Engineering building

Inside Tangeman University Center (TUC)

Panoramic view of TUC and Recreation center

Panoramic view of McMicken Hall, TUC and University Pavilion

Langsam library and ERC.

Rhodes Hall - The Engineering building

Nippert Stadium

I also got few days before classes began, to roam around downtown Cincinnati. Tall buildings and all, which I didn't find in Lawrence! I was delighted to see the administrative building of Kroger, which has the headquarters here. Kroger is the favorite for all the people, specially students whose first choice in groceries is the Kroger product! ;) :D

Downtown Cincinnati

Graeter's at Ludlow Avenue..
When in Cincinnati, never miss Graeter's Ice-cream !!

Calhoun Street

Also went for shopping to malls. Kenwood mall is certainly a good place to eat and shop and roam and have fun! :)

Labor Day Fireworks at the Newport on the Levee!

The best fireworks I have seen in my life till now, were here in Kentucky! The place is approx. 20 minutes drive from UCincy. They lasted for more than half an hour! I heard that they are the best in the mid-West!

Beautiful views during sunset

This is just the beginning.. Have a lot to explore! I'll keep updating the blog as and when I do! :)

Pack your bags and get ready for Cincinnati vacation! ;)

Beautiful views during sunset