At the New York University

September 22, 2015: Late night today I am returning home. There are a series of meetings lined up for the next few days. Since I started visiting New York some two decades ago, this is my busiest trip ever.

At the New York University

Yesterday I went to the New York University where I gave a presentation on “Tourism and Conservation in Tiger Land” at the Department of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, Hagop Kevorkian Library. 

I really enjoyed interacting with the students after the presentation.

Prof Gabriela Nik Ilieva, Clinical Professor, Coordinator, Hindi and Urdu Programme, Department of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, had requested me if I could give four to six presentations in a year. 

Delivering presentation on Tourism & Conservation in Tiger Land

After the presentation, I had a discussion with some of the faculty members of the University at a nearby restaurant. In the evening I went to another Indian restaurant called Tamarind located in the Tribeca area located in a different part of New York City.

This restaurant, situated at 99 Hudson Street, is quite a big one and serves Indian fusion food. This restaurant is worth trying for its delicious food and ambiance. Thanks to hotelier and doctor Rajiv Mehta for inviting me for an evening there. On the way to the hotel, I dropped in at an Apple Store on the 5th Avenue.

The area surrounding the hotel had been barricaded becase of the Pope's visit to the United States. Cities of US, especially New York and Washington, have made elaborate preparations for Pope Francis' six-day-three-city trip with scores of events lined up.

The New York Times in a page one report called the papal trip “a cross between military operation, diplomatic mission and an arena rock tour” and “a mammoth, traffic-snarling security circus in its own right” and so on. The police had placed barricades at an entrance to the Central Park. The visit has been timed to allow the Pope to address the United Nations General Assembly.

I shall complete some more meetings and go directly to the airport for my flight back to India via Dubai.

ess bee