Seattle Desi

We have visited Vancouver, BC numerous times over the past 20+ years. Among other things, we like the Surrey & Vancouver area for its good Indian restaurants. Here are a few of our  favorites  (and some recommended by our friends) - updated in 2025. If you have been to Surrey many times & want to try a different place - Abbotsford, BC has some good number of restaurants & eateries (not as many as Surrey though). Driving time from Seattle to Abbotsford is almost the same as driving to Surrey. Here's a list for Abbotsford .

Do you want your kids to learn Kannada from experienced teachers? Do you want your kids to get exposure to Kannada/Indian culture? Do you want your kids to qualify for the “ Kannada World Language Credits ” (helps with high-school requirements)? Do you want your kids (& family) to connect with other Kannada families?       If yes to any of these – consider enrolling your kids in Kannada Gurukul .  Pre-registrations are now open for classes starting in September 2022 .    Kids will enjoy (& benefit from) in-person classes. If the COVID situation continues to ease – in-person classes could restart .    More info at http://www.gurukul-wa.org/ (or reach out to kannada@gurukul-wa.org )         ---------------------------------------------------------------------------     Some highlights of the Kannada Gurukul program follow.   Content   Spoken & written Kannada classes for kids (5 years & up)...

Recently, I switched to a new iPhone & tried to set it up by restoring data/apps from my older iPhone. During this process, all my non-Apple apps were stuck in the "loading..." state for multiple hours. I tried multiple approaches to resolve the issue without luck. The approach that finally worked - switch to iPhone App Library & click on one of the icons that was in the "loading" state. You can find the  App Library  on your  iPhone's  very last Home screen. To get to it, unlock your  iPhone  and swipe left until you see the search bar and neatly organized stacks of  apps .    Here are some steps that I tried unsuccessfully Restart the phone multiple times Signed-out of the App Store; and signed back in Tried to install the apps from the App Store Pause/restart the app-install

 Below are some useful links  https://www.sewausa.org/Donate-for-Covid-19-Support-Bharath-Fundraiser https://staging29.aidindia.org/donate/covid-relief-fund/ https://covid.giveindia.org/support-families/ https://justgiving.com/campaign/mobileICU https://www.bapscharities.org/usa/covid-19/

Finding the right (honest and reasonably-priced) professional to help with your home repair/improvement projects can make all the difference. Here are some websites that can help your search. NextDoor is the neighborhood social network. You can seek recommendations from your neighbors.  Yelp  lets you discover & connect with local services & professionals.  CheckBook  is a paid website that publishes "unbiased reviews and undercover price research on Local Services & professionals". Think of it as a higher-quality version of Yelp for finding your professional/service. I have found this service useful. Thumbtack  let's homeowners post their projects. Contractors can choose which home improvement jobs interest them & reach out to the homeowner. Houzz  lets contractors create profiles/portfolios (with pictures and information) about their business in order to market themselves to potential customers. Homeowners can also create profiles an...

If you are looking for someone to help your child with SSAT or the ISEE - here are some suggestions. For classroom coaching (group or 1x1 setting) in the Seattle area - local centers such as Sandweiss, Huntington, MercerEd, are options. Another list is at https://www.expertise.com/wa/seattle/math-tutoring For online tutors -  https://www.wyzant.com , https://takelessons.com/ or https://thumbtack.com or CraigsList could be a way to find a tutor Most SAT tutors should be able to help with SSAT test prep, since the tests are somewhat similar (with a different degree of difficulty) https://ssatpracticetest.com/ offers a premium practice package If a good high schooler or a college student who prepared for PSAT or SSAT could be of help –  NextDoor could help in finding someone local. A teacher in your kid’s current school who’s looking for some extra money may be an option as well Pricing varies heavily – from about $20 to $400 per hour  (at least for 1x1 test p...