Razzaq Mohammed

Razzaq Mohammed

I am Razzaq. I work in the energy efficiency sector. I love travelling, reading books and blogging about both. I am also a big fan of Victorian era Gothic horror; both books and movies. This website is an amalgamation of all my previous blogs (all 4 for them). It is a one stop place for all my different types of readers. Here I write about my travels, books that I have read, energy, horror, history and anything else that catches my fancy! The section 'Random thoughts' will take you to more topics there. Hope you enjoy it!

Latest posts

Print & the Urdu Public || A 10 point book review

Print & the Urdu Public || A 10 point book review

Madinah was an Urdu newspaper which was published from a small town called Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh, India from 1912 till 1973. This book is primarily a study of this hugely influential newspaper and the time and space of its existence. The author, Megan Eaton Robb, who is an Associate Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania looks at the prevailing political and religious climate of the early 1900s India and how Muslims of small localities or qasbahs used newspapers printed in their qasbahs to create a discourse unique to them and went on to become an influential voice nationally as well as internationally. This book is also a good reminder of the role played by Muslims in India's freedom struggle. Read More "Print & the Urdu Public || A 10 point book review"
Hike to Kennedy Falls, North Vancouver, BC, Canada

Hike to Kennedy Falls, North Vancouver, BC, Canada

This year's hiking season started with a short hike to Kennedy Falls located in North Vancouver. It was a simple, straightforward hike, a good first one for the year. Read More "Hike to Kennedy Falls, North Vancouver, BC, Canada"
Ice Ghosts || A 10 point book review

Ice Ghosts || A 10 point book review

The disappearance of the 1845 Franklin expedition, with two ships, HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, to find the Northwest Passage remained a mystery for more than 150 years. What happened to those ships? Did anyone survive? Could the wrecks ever be found? These questions, along with hundreds others, remained unanswered until finally in 2014, the first breakthrough came. In an expedition led by Parks Canada, Inuit communities and other researchers, the wreck of HMS Erebus was found. Two years later, in 2016, the wreck of HMS Terror was found. This book traces the history of the all the expeditions that were undertaken to find what happened to the two ships from the first one after the disappearance till the one in 2016. Featuring a diverse set of characters, officials with government support, arm chair researchers, everyday people with an intense interest in the Franklin expedition, Inuit communities and military, Ice Ghosts reads like an adventure novel. Read More "Ice Ghosts || A 10 point book review"

My Travels

Malaysia
Peru
USA
Canada
Bhutan
India
All travel posts

I travel whenever and wherever I can. Travel for me is not the glamorous Instagram type pics. A walk in a neighboring nondescript village is also travel. Squeezing in a 3 hour sightseeing with a 20 hour journey is also travel. I do what I can with what I have. Sometimes its elaborate with week long trips. Sometimes its just a bus ride between two places. I try to enjoy whatever experiences I am privileged and lucky to experience. I have travelled a lot in my home country India. More than average I would say. Covered 15 states out of 29. Internationally I have been to only USA and Bhutan apart from my country of residence India and Canada. Presently I am based in the beautiful province of British Columbia in Canada and am trying to explore it as much as I can.

Malaysia

I went on my first trip with my wife to this stunning country.

Malaysia

Peru

I did the 4 Day Inca Trail to Machu Pichu in this beautiful country.

4 Day Inca Trail to Machu Pichu, Peru

Bhutan

I did a multiday trek in this beautiful country.

Druk Path Trek

USA

I went on two trips to the United States so far.

Colorado
Oregon
Texas
All USA posts
Train trip across USA

Canada

I arrived in Vancouver, British Columbia in December 2018. Since then I went on a couple of multi day road trips and many day trips in BC. I also spent a year and a half in the sunny Okanagan region which gave me nice opportunity to explore the Interior regions of BC.

British columbia
alberta
ontario
quebec

India

The country of my Birth, India is a country like no other. With its population of a billion people and the vast variety in landscapes and history, India is a place where even if you spend your entire lifetime in exploring it, it wont be enough. In my own limited capacity I travelled a bit in this beautiful country. I did 3 different multi day treks in the Himalayas which still remain some of the best travel experiences of my life. I visited 15 out of the 29 states.

andhra pradesh
chhattisgarh
jharkhand
kerala
karnataka
maharashtra
Madhya pradesh
orissa
pondicherry
telangana
tamil nadu
uttar pradesh
uttarakhand
west bengal
treks

Multi Day Trekking

4 Day Inca Trail to Machu Pichu, Peru
5 Day Druk Path Trek, Bhutan
5 Day Roopkund Trek, India
3 Day Nag Tibba Trek, India

Adventure activities

Bungee Jumping
Scuba Diving
Zip Lining
River rafting
Via Ferrata

Energy

All Energy posts
Energy books
Efficiency Canada Feature

Here, I write about energy related topics.

I began my energy career in 2013 with working in a 4 x 600 MW Subcritical thermal power plant and later worked in 2 x 660MW supercritical thermal power plant. In these positions where I gained experience in various areas including commissioning, operation, as well as energy conservation. With the climate change crisis we find ourselves in, I wanted to leave behind fossil fuel power plants and pursue a field which would make an impact in alleviating some aspect of the climate change. What better area than energy conservation and improving energy efficiency. I moved to Canada in 2018 to pursue Master of Engineering Leadership in Clean Energy Engineering program at the University of British Columbia (UBC). From 2021 I have been working in the energy efficiency sector of Canada.

Here is a link to an Efficiency Canada feature published in 2022.

Mentoring for new Immigrants to BC, Canada

Are you new in BC and/or are a student looking for a job in the energy management/efficiency sector? Are you looking for any pointers from someone already in the industry? I would be happy to chat with you for 30 mins and share my thoughts and advice with you. Please fill out the form below.

Meeting Request Form
2024Leave a comment
Featured

Celebrating 15 years of my blogging journey!

I recently completed 15 years of my blogging journey! My very first post was back in 2008, made while I was in my 12th grade. It simply had a list of names of our group of friends. I started off my blogging journey by sharing stories of the activities our group of friends did together like trips, parties etc. Later I started writing about my individual travel trips. Full story here. Since then I have come a long way. My blog (the travel one) was featured on multiple websites and platforms, I was interviewed by a top travel podcast channel, a newspaper printed my photos and best of all I received countless words of appreciation from friends and readers! Over the course of 15 years I was also fortunate to have traveled in 5 countries including India. The others being Canada, United States, Bhutan and Peru. A bit more detailed story of my blogging journey can be found here which I wrote when I had completed 400 posts in 2022.

At this milestone point I am doing a Reader survey. It would be great if you, the reader, can fill it out! Thank you!
Here is the link: https://forms.gle/L222WkTvgY7vG25e7

Some of my popular travel posts:

  1. 4 Days Inca Trail to Machu Pichu: https://razzaqmohammed.com/4-days-inca-trail-to-machu-pichu-peru/
  2. Roopkund Trek Day 4 : https://razzaqmohammed.com/roopkund-trekuttarakhand-day-4-summit-day-pathalnachni-to-roopkund-lake/
  3. USA Train Trip: https://razzaqmohammed.com/75-hours-3-nights-aboard-usas-2-most-scenic-train-routes-california-zephyr-and-coast-starlight-in-coach/
  4. Canada Train Trip: https://razzaqmohammed.com/canada-on-rails-4-days-train-trip-from-toronto-to-vancouver-day-1/
  5. Bhutan Trek: https://razzaqmohammed.com/bhutans-druk-path-trek-day-1/
  6. Ib: https://razzaqmohammed.com/iborissa-the-shortest-railway-station-name-in-india/

Some of my popular book posts:

  1. Jungle of Stone : https://razzaqmohammed.com/jungle-of-stone-book-post/
  2. Einstein’s Fridge: https://razzaqmohammed.com/einsteins-fridge/
  3. Genghis Khan and the making of the Modern World: https://razzaqmohammed.com/10-things-i-learned-from-the-book-genghis-khan-and-the-making-of-the-modern-world/
  4. A History of Creation: https://razzaqmohammed.com/book-post-20-a-brief-history-of-creation-by-bill-mesler-and-h-james-cleaves/
  5. The China Syndrome: https://razzaqmohammed.com/book-post-12-china-syndrome-the-true-story-of-21st-centurys-first-great-epidemic/
2025 Book Posts Book Reviews BooksLeave a comment

Print & the Urdu Public || A 10 point book review

Madinah was an Urdu newspaper which was published from a small town called Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh, India from 1912 till 1973. This book is primarily a study of this hugely influential newspaper and the time and space of its existence. The author, Megan Eaton Robb, who is an Associate Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania looks at the prevailing political and religious climate of the early 1900s India and how Muslims of small localities or qasbahs used newspapers printed in their qasbahs to create a discourse unique to them and went on to become an influential voice nationally as well as internationally. This book is also a good reminder of the role played by Muslims in India’s freedom struggle.

2025 Book Posts Book Reviews BooksLeave a comment

Ice Ghosts || A 10 point book review

The disappearance of the 1845 Franklin expedition, with two ships, HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, to find the Northwest Passage remained a mystery for more than 150 years. What happened to those ships? Did anyone survive? Could the wrecks ever be found? These questions, along with hundreds others, remained unanswered until finally in 2014, the first breakthrough came. In an expedition led by Parks Canada, Inuit communities and other researchers, the wreck of HMS Erebus was found. Two years later, in 2016, the wreck of HMS Terror was found. This book traces the history of the all the expeditions that were undertaken to find what happened to the two ships from the first one after the disappearance till the one in 2016. Featuring a diverse set of characters, officials with government support, arm chair researchers, everyday people with an intense interest in the Franklin expedition, Inuit communities and military, Ice Ghosts reads like an adventure novel.

2025 Malaysia Travel Travel and FoodLeave a comment

Mesmerizing Malaysia: 4 Days of Stunning Views, Culture, and a New Chapter

Red and Yellow – these two colors dominated everything on the ground against the vast blue sky. The rooftops, the crown of the pagoda, the lights, the decorations – all bathed in yellow. The Chinese lanterns hanging everywhere – all a brilliant red. It was mesmerizing. I was standing at the stunning Kek Lok Si Temple in Penang, Malaysia, with my wife, taking it all in. This trip was unlike any other I had taken – it was my first trip with my wife. A new phase, a new way of traveling, and a new perspective on choosing destinations. It wasn’t just about exploring a place; it was also about learning more about each other along the way.

2025 Book Posts Book Reviews Books Energy Energy BooksLeave a comment

A Question of Power || A 10 point book review

Electricity is one of the key drivers of today’s economies and societies, without which life as we know it will collapse. In A Question of Power, energy analyst and journalist Robert Bryce examines the various aspects associated with Electricity; its generation, its history, energy poverty, challenges with the aging grid, the impact of reliable electricity on human development indices, generation through renewables and other points. Robert travels to many countries around the world including India, Iceland, Lebanon, Puerto Rico to get an on-the-ground look at various issues. He shows that our very lives and our future depend on electricity.

2025 Book Posts Book Reviews Books HistoryLeave a comment

A History of Canada in Ten Maps || A 10 point book review

I once did a train journey across Canada from one end to another, which was around 4500 kms and took 5 days to cover. This shows how huge Canada is. In A History of Canada in Ten Maps, Adam shows how this huge country was mapped by courageous explorers and adventurers. As the name suggests, Adam takes 10 famous maps of Canada starting from the 1500s till 1820s and takes us behind to the stories and journeys of exploration which resulted in these maps.

2025 Book Posts Book Reviews BooksLeave a comment

Ulema’s Role in India’s Freedom Movements || A 10 point book review

The word ‘Ulema’ has been given such a negative connotation these days that the general public has no idea what exactly it means but only that its Muslim and bad. This book is a much needed English language work that details the contributions of Ulema i.e. Muslim Scholars during years before the first war of Independence of 1857, during it and later. It mentions eminent personalities like Shah Abdul Aziz, Shaikhul Hind, Ubaidullah Sindhi and others. It also details movements like the Faraizi movement and the Silk Letter movement.

2024 British Columbia Canada2 Comments

A Weekend on the Water: 3-Day Houseboat Adventure on Shuswap Lake, BC, Canada

As the boat hummed along, cutting across the calm waters of the lake, I looked outside the window to take in the view. Swathes of trees on the land passed by, broken only by big rocks scattered here and there. The sky was crystal blue with no winds blowing. At the front, the lake stretched far away bordered by distant low hills. I could spot another houseboat which only looked like a speck on the horizon. My binoculars gave me a better view. Inside the boat, Ram and Akshaya were at the steering wheel, navigating the boat while chatting, Dwaraka was reading a book and Divu was taking a nap. The gentle rocking of the boat was lulling me into sleep as well. It was all so relaxing and calming. We were on a 3 Day houseboat trip in the Shuswap Lake near Sicamous, BC, which calls itself the houseboat capital of Canada.

Random thoughts

all posts
history
horror (books & movies)
Movies
science
life
engineering
school memories
Heritage hyderabad

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