Holidays

Its again the of  the year to take a well deserved break and a vacation, I haven't still gotten over the fact that I had to travel to Vienna the same time last year with 2 empty seats besides me as Ranjini and Samiksha couldn't join me in Germany on time for this trip. These tickets being low fared and no cancel, I actually made this trip from Cologne to Vienna and back with 33% occupancy and this probably ranks to be my weirdest plane trip in my life so far. This years' vacation was all included including our newest addition to the family, Pradyumna. With this vacation break, Pradyumna had his first real outing when we took him out to a Jungle lodge in Masinagudi followed by a 3 night stay in a tea plantation resort at Wayanad. Needless to mention, Ranjini and I were more than worried about how he would take to being in a car for nearly 800 KMs spread across 5 days. The itinerary itself was planned and carefully designed to keep his patience and fatigue levels spread across many days with Ranjini spending an equal number of days, if not more preparing for the outing. She ensured we picked enough clothes,baby feed, diapers, medicines and other paraphernalia carefully packed against a checklist (Mission critical, you see!). Samiksha on the other hand was all excited at the thought of eating out for a week, and having her cousins for company. The whole thought of being able to carry her 'stuff' in a separate bag was enough motivation for her to declare to all that she was old and independent enough now to manage her things by herself. Looking back, I can tell you that she managed herself very well and also most of the times helped watch over Pradyumna when the roads and the weather turned harsher to his comfort

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  We reached 'Inn the Wild' after a 6 hour drive with Samiksha throwing up in the middle of the reserve forest where even stopping the car is not permitted for the fear of wild animals and more practically because of potentially blocking the narrow road. Once at the resort, we were pleasantly settled into a cosy tribal hut (with all amenities!) overlooking the lake and the thick forests. The next couple of days were spent getting into the forests in search of wildlife,night safaris, morning and evening treks to the lake and the surrounding marshlands . The Tiger as in my previous visits remained elusive to my tough luck but this time around managed to spot fresh pugmarks in the soft mud deep in the Singara reserve park range. But as always the Bandipur-Mudumalai-Nagarhole range never disappoints a visitor. We saw plenty of wildlife - Elephants, Bisons,Langurs,Wild Boar,Peacocks,Antelopes,Giant Malabar Squirrels not to mention atleast 25 unique species of birds. The highlights of the sightings were the elephants, ever so majestic, with calves in tow and extremely dangerous when intimidated. Samiksha enjoyed every bit of the stay in the wild and was always eager to step out with me or Ranjini whenever her loyal and faithful cousin Pratyush allowed her.The evenings at the resort were fun too with socialising around the bon fire and then a midnight safari to the waterholes to spot nocturnal creatures before retiring into the comforts of the rooms. The nights were always full of suspense with howling winds,visiting animals. On both the nights we stayed there, there were visitors from the jungles. Bison,Deer and Elephants would come very close to the rooms where we stayed. I guess this is what makes this resort so special and why city dwellers like me flock to savour the crisp mountain air free from of dust and vehicle fumes and watch wild life up close.

We left Masinagudi on the next leg of our stay at Wayanad in Kerala at a plantation resort called Meenmutty Heights. The route was a 100 Km winding road through Elephant country and tea and coffee plantation. We had to stop en route multiple times to give way for the crossing pachyderms. The Gudalur-Ooty road is a sight to see when the elephants are on the highway. We reached Sultan Bathery in the evening before and our gracious host Jacob who was waiting patiently for us picked us from the Calicut highway and led us to the Meenmutty Heights resort after a 35 KM drive. The resort itself is perched on a pretty tea plantation overlooking the mighty Chembra peak. This resort has some amazing cottages and bungalows which have a quaint mix of British era and

Chettinad architecture blended beautifully to provide a stupendous accommodation with a view. The resort layout appealed to me at first sight given the different levels (each a few 100 feet apart) the amenities and facilities are laid out. The dining area, restaurant, the cottages, the riverside, the waterfalls the viewpoint and the tea plantation are all so aesthetically planned. Three days here did us a lot of good to my lungs and the knees though it was quite difficult for my Father in Law Dr Sitaram.  But the best part to this is one can literally take the car to any point in the resort and the plantation. So walking around is completely optional. Luttappi, The villain from the comic Magic Pot is immortalised in cement here and for a change, looked cuter than in the magazine (Although the resort manager could never explain the rationale for singling out and glorifying a horrible character

from the comics).Samiksha had a blast in this place as it also happened to be Christmas eve and the resort managing to arrange a cake and a stand-up Santa (much skinnier than the ones we are used to). Ranajini's obvious and not to forget comment was that I was best suited to play Santa Claus that evening. That definitely reminds me that I have been away from the Gym for some time now! Ranjni has a subtle but sure way of constantly reminding me of my waistline..!

The next 3 days were mostly spent lazing around the resort with each meal becoming heavier on the palate and almost predictable. Samiksha was probably the only one who was enjoying at the dining table. On our part, the Glenmorangie that I had picked up at Edinburgh years ago entertained Mahesh and I. Great Scotch tastes best anywhere in the world,Kerala included!

The ride back home was very typical stopping a few places to pick up Kerala spices, banana chips and sundry. A final thanksgiving to the master at Himvad Gopalswamy Betta near Gundlupet was much needed before we hit the urban landscape- The landscape that holds our precarious dreams and aspirations. The months ahead in the new year when school,work takes priority to tire the soul again only to enthuse us to return to the hills,seas or to yet another serene corner of the world. Until then, work and the rat race beckons..

Being Green from our days

(This was posted on a friend's wall on Facebook which I found very interesting and humorous), Read on.....

Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment. 

The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days." 

The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."

She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.

Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were truely recycled.

But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our schoolbooks. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.

But too bad we didn't do the green thing back then.

We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.

But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.

Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throwaway kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that young lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But we didn't have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.

But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

Please recommend this on to another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation from a smartass young person. We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to piss us off :)

Happy Independence Day

Best wishes to everyone on the occasion of the 66th Independence Day. A mid week holiday with the day beginning with the flag hoisting ceremony at our apartment complex followed by children singing the national anthem and patriotic songs. It was a nice gathering of the neighborhood with most friends dressed up in national colors and costumes.  Have you noticed Google's Independence day doodle today. I think its cool and very well captures the rich colours and diversity of our nation. Thanks for that!

India is currently at a cross road of sorts where public frustration and anger at rising prices and corruption are showing up in the form of street protests and revolution against the government. As an Indian, I wish that the nation emerges stronger and the government works itself out of this crisis to provide every citizen a safe and prosperous living, promote tolerance towards others, bridging the gender equality gap and take steps to prevent corruption in public life Three cheers to my country, May the force be with us...

I wish all my friends everywhere in the world, visitors to my blog a very happy Indian Independence day. Cheers!

Keep Calm and Carry on - Life Goes on..

Another of those 2 week business trips coming to an end as I tirelessly end 15 days of living off hotels and suitcases. Packing my bags to leave the wonderful city of Leeds, Yorkshire England without almost unaffected by the incoming surge of passengers into Britain for the Olympics. I wish I was here to watch the games that the UK is so passionately hosting.  As I complete my stay full two weeks on the calendar in Leeds with small breaks in the weekend. The first one being a trip to the spa town of Scarborough on the Yorkshire coast including a 2 mile cruise on the high sea in the North Bay off the coast

Walking the meadows around the Scarborough Castle




The second one joining a group of casual walkers accompanying them on a 15km hike in the Yorkshire Dales. 

Castle and Bay, Scarborough,Yorkshire

Pics from  the Dales walk from Aysgarth Falls to Hawes

Another View of the Dales under a passing cloud

Both these trips were on pleasant and sunny days defying the unpredictable English weather which quite nicely held up on these days. Work, meanwhile  has been hectic as always with a lot of fun and living a consultant life is not too bad. I was in Leeds to support the startup of a new project we begin for a large retailer in the UK. Neil, my colleague and counterpart from IBM UK making me feel as comfortable as it could get and ofcourse always providing local insights into everything I was interested. And, if its Yorkshire, there has to be a mention of the game that has India on its knees-Cricket. Just as in India, Yorkshire villages have a lot of kids playing cricket on the weekend. And like in most cities in the UK, Leeds too has its fair share of desi diaspora. The Yorkshire Post, a newspaper that I have started reading along with the Daily Telegraph is high on cricket to my delight. The TV is full of cricket with praises everywhere for Alistair Cook for his cameo knock against the Proteas. And, a wonderful dinner at a traditional English restaurant ,courtesy Neil. My choice of dish this evening was a sumptuous meal of roasted almonds and goat cheese along with a mushroom pie at the Browns.

Home beckons and I am excited to go back to my kids. And in the meantime a parting message to the UK
Keep Calm and Carry On team GB and Good luck for a successful and peaceful Games ; Be back soon -Ciao

Citius, Altius, Fortius

My Hotel Room,Leeds ,UK, 2012.

The earliest memory of the Olympic games I have is from the 23rd Olympiad at Los Angeles in 1984. The hazy recollections from the games of 1984 was been that of landing at the neighbors’' home uninvited to watch a 15 minute highlights of the Olympiad on Doordarshan, the state run TV in India. This was medieval days when cable TV and multichannel television broadcast was unheard of in my city. Television anyways was too insignificant for most people then although many aspired to buy one soon. I was too young to remember anything specific about the games other than a rush of 'proud' adrenaline every time an Indian athlete competed. As every evening passed by that fortnight, it was clear that India wasn't going to be in the medal table. And on one evening, it was supreme disappointment to hear from everyone around us that PT Usha has missed the bronze medal by a whisker. Quantifying a whisker those days did not make any sense to a primary school boy. Time, then for me was counted in intervals of 45 minutes per subject in the class. And remarkably, and the same 45 minutes on the playground somehow seemed cruelly short. Seniors in school had theories on what went wrong and how PT Usha could have avoided a situation like that. 

It is again another Olympics and once more the games are undoubtedly the greatest sporting event on the planet with London playing the gracious host to the Olympics this year. As I write this, I am at Leeds,Yorkshire having arrived a few hours earlier to Manchester on business. Yeah, my job involves travelling to some of the most beautiful cities in the world and of course helps my customers implement and integrate various software systems that can help achieve their business objectives and financial goals. The entire country is  going gaga over the Olympics and no organisation wants to miss the share of the large opportunity that an event of this scale can potentially impact their balance sheets. Londoners are already complaining about the surging crowds and also the choking up of the city's infrastructure. The Times carried one such letter from a 'holed up' at home reader who had booked a room across the city ahead of a planned family outing so that the cycling road races did not spoil their plans. The times also reported another joke about how relieved Parisians were when they lost the bid to London. 

The Joy the Olymipans brought while growing up are stars who have left such impact in the sporting world. Every athlete a hero by their own standards. These fantastic men and women who have gone beyond the ordinary and bettered previously set benchmarks of human endurance, discipline and excellence. My favourite Olymipians of all times are Carl Lewis,Sergei Bubka, Greg Louganis,Daley Thomson,Mark Spitz,Ian Thorpe,Michael Phelps,Steven Redgrave,Sebastian Coe,Micheal Johnson, Ed Moses, Jackie Joyner Kersee, Flo Joyner,Yelena Isinbaya, Javier Sotomayor, Alexander Popov, Leader Paes,Wilma Rudolph, Paavo Nurmi,Matt Biondi,Alexei Nemov,Natalie Coughlin,Sawao Kato,Nadia Comaneci,Jessie Owens,Larisa Semyonovna Latynina,Vladimir Artemov,Vitaly Scherbo. Truly unforgettable names for the joy,passion and perfection they displayed all during their performing days.

OS Blues

Something I found this morning. Confirms the belief that UNIX rocks anytime. Hibernating folks, wake up and smell the coffee. There is more to it than Ctrl+Alt+Del and the mac

$ "UNIX Critics"

UNIX Critics: not found

:-) Have a great day!

New Arrival!

Our bundle of joy

We are pleased to announce the birth of our son this yesterday at Bangalore. The little fella weighed 3.7 kilos at birth and both he and Ranjini are doing fine. Samiksha, of course is super thrilled at having a baby brother and cannot wait to see him be able to talk and play with her. We thank our large group of friends and well wishes for all your good wishes. A special thanks to all at the SSM DRM hospital for all the support and help.

Cheerio!