I always thought Bangalore had great places to eat out..the opinion being partly created out of a short stint during my internship when I stayed in the city for two months. The night curfew thing is a tad (or more !) sad though and completely rules out any hopes of spending a good weekend with friends over a couple of drinks and good music. So when a friend from Mumbai was visiting over the weekend , I decided to explore eating out in Bangalore (selling the idea of night life in Bangalore to a Mumbaiite is a complete no no:)). Here are our three picks over the weekend:
Fiorano Ristorante, Koramangala:
This quaint Italian restaurant gives a very Mediterranean feel the moment you enter it with a chic yet soothing ambience. The black furniture contrasts stylishly with the whitewashed walls. The highlight of the restaurant is the complementary plate of bruschetta which you are supposed to put together on your own. If you do not know how ( like the two of us who kept giggling at the loaves and ended up eating all the tomatoes till the friendly chef offered to enlighten us) , just ask the waiters around , or better still , scroll down to read ' how to make your own bruschetta':). The starters are good , especially the minestrone soup. Try the Gnocchi Cream and Mushroom sinfully dipped in cheese for your main course if you prefer vegetarian. The non vegetarian is good too , but the vegetarian options on the menu are truly extensive.The mocktails are passable. Sadly enough, this otherwise authentic Italian restaurant does not serve wine ( I wonder what an Italian would say to that!). All in all – highly recommended for the food , ambience and the very friendly staff!
MTR, Lalbagh:
If you want some great south Indian food in Bangalore, head to the Mavalli Tiffin rooms in Lalbagh. Housed in a small building, MTR does not have the ambience of today's restaurants but the food more than speaks for itself. Our initial plan was for lunch , but we reached late only in time for the afternoon snacks. A marathon run of idli , dosas, upma and filter coffee later , we had turned into complete MTR loyalists. In case you want to get lunch here , you would need to register and wait for your turn. An absolute must go for anyone visiting Bangalore and totally worth the wait!!
The Zen, Leela Palace Kempinski:
The Zen is the pan Asian restaurant at the Leela serving a range of cuisines – Chinese, Korean , Japanese and Thai. Options are not too extensive , especially for the Korean. The Chinese here is your best bet. Food is reasonably good , but I am sure Bangalore has better options for Pan Asian food. The dessert was the high point of the evening. In case you are looking for South east asian cuisine, this would definitely not be the most preferred place.
*How to make your own bruschetta?
Here is what you need: Warm, fresh bread, roasted garlic pods, basil leaves,cherry tomatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Rub the garlic pods on the bread and spread evenly. Follow this up with rolled basil leaves and sprinkle some salt and pepper. Drizzle the olive oil and then rub the cherry tomatoes. Your fresh bruschetta is ready. Deliziosa!!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Cairo Diary
[This is actually an old post written during my Cairo visit in February as a note on fb, I did not have this blog then. Just thought it would be a good idea to have all the travel notes on the blog.]
28th February,2009
I thought I would write down a diary on my Cairo visit since I had nothing better to do sitting in my hotel room on a rainy Saturday afternoon. The Cairo trip was on the cards since December ever since our client in Cairo wanted us to come down on a project but kept postponing till February end when he finally told me “we are ready for you now”(err???) . So I got my visa and tickets done and flew down to Cairo (the only sad part -I miss my flatmate’s most awaited big fat wedding in Delhi which is today).
My initial itinerary was to cover the pyramids and as much as I could of Cairo on the weekend since I was flying to Dubai the week after. But I would now probably be in Cairo longer , which means I can even hopefully try and plug in Alexandria/Luxor as well.For the trip to the pyramids I decided to use the hotel concierge services, something I normally do not do when I am traveling since I prefer working out the logistics myself using the public transportation system as it lends a lot of flexibility and I normally avoid guides. But a language barrier (now I regret not being more diligent about learning Arabic as a kid) and the fact that the pyramids were away from the city made it a good idea to use the hotel services for transportation.
My first halt was at Saqqara, the site for Egypt’s oldest pyramids, which lies south of Cairo. The most famous feature here is the Step pyramid for King Djoser which was overseen by his architect Imhotep. A lot of the site is still under excavation. Although Egyptians are, genuinely very friendly and hospitable people, it helps to be a be a tad careful of the friendly smiles in these tourist spots which may be mostly motivated by prospects of money (almost in the same way that foreign tourists are fleeced in India). Near Saqqara,, there are also a lot of carpet weaving schools which teach the children staying in the villages to weave Egyptian wool and silk carpets. It makes for an interesting visit and the carpets woven are truly beautiful although very very expensive. The proprietor tried hard to convince me to buy one (with a 30% discount especially for special Indian “friends”) , unfortunately without any success.After the carpet weaving school , I noticed my guide would non chalantly drop every now and then into a series of shops selling papyrus paintings , Egyptian essences , Egyptian cotton on the way. Sadly for him, I was an Indian , and no amount of convincing would help (although I did buy a papyrus painting for my parents, one of the few things which I thought was worth a purchase:)).
My guide and I also had several intellectually stimulating conversations on the way to Giza:
Conversation Sample 1 (note high level of deductive reasoning):
Guide:” You know why India and Egypt are friends…you know?”
Me: “ Umm..no well.. why?”
Guide: “Because Egypt has camels and India has elephants. Camel and elephant – friends ,so Egypt and India – friends”
Me: “I see “
Conversation Sample 2 (note high level of cultural awareness and guide’s never ending curiosity for elephants):
Guide: "Are elephants expensive in India?"
Me: "Not sure, I have never bought one."
Guide: "But will they be more expensive than camels?"
Me: "Yea, maybe"
Guide: "So elephants are roaming around on the roads?"
Me: "Yea , part of the traffic problem is because of them."
Giza is magnificent , especially when you are driving down the roads with the pyramids on the sides. I was not awed in the same way as I remember when I had first seen the Taj , but there is something about the fact of so much history being buried all around in the sands that makes it very thrilling. I would love to go to Giza after sundown, maybe I will catch the light and sound show if I am here longer. The sphinx on the other hand is disappointing , much less magnificent than what I imagined.
Today I decided to see old Cairo. Cairo is a chaotic city , especially the traffic. There are also areas of downtown Cairo which reminded me of North Calcutta:). Old Cairo is well…very very old! It has some of the oldest mosques, churches and also a very old Jewish synagogue. If you want to see old Cairo, take along someone who knows about the history of the area. I managed to get a very interesting guide , a bright, young lady named Maie , who is an Egyptologist currently doing her Phd at the Cairo university. Thanks to Maie, I would rate my Old Cairo visit one of my most interesting tours.
If you are interested in history/architecture/religion/symobology, do make a trip to this area. The hitch here is you cannot shoot much since photography is not allowed inside most of the oldest buildings in the interest of preservation. The area is a hotpot of culture and religion - Ottoman mosques built around 1400 A.D, Coptic Churches , ruins of Roman fortifications and one of the oldest synagogues. Coptic Cairo was the stronghold of Christianity in Egypt till the Islamic era. A must visit here is Abu Serga – the church built on the spot where Mary and Jesus were hiding from the Romans, the hanging Church and the Coptic museum – relatively lesser known compared to the more famous Egyptian museum but worth a visit. You can also stop by for breakfast at one of the street shops selling falafel:).
My trip to old Cairo in the morning made me realize I need a refresher in Egyptian history. So I ditched my intial plans of going to the Egyptian museum to see King Tut’s antiquities and got down to read up on Egyptian history instead. So my rest of the day will be spent reading Egyptian history (any references on the net would be very helpful:)) , and a walk down the Nile in front of the hotel around sunset. Maybe I will get some good shots unless it stays as cloudy!
28th February,2009
I thought I would write down a diary on my Cairo visit since I had nothing better to do sitting in my hotel room on a rainy Saturday afternoon. The Cairo trip was on the cards since December ever since our client in Cairo wanted us to come down on a project but kept postponing till February end when he finally told me “we are ready for you now”(err???) . So I got my visa and tickets done and flew down to Cairo (the only sad part -I miss my flatmate’s most awaited big fat wedding in Delhi which is today).
My initial itinerary was to cover the pyramids and as much as I could of Cairo on the weekend since I was flying to Dubai the week after. But I would now probably be in Cairo longer , which means I can even hopefully try and plug in Alexandria/Luxor as well.For the trip to the pyramids I decided to use the hotel concierge services, something I normally do not do when I am traveling since I prefer working out the logistics myself using the public transportation system as it lends a lot of flexibility and I normally avoid guides. But a language barrier (now I regret not being more diligent about learning Arabic as a kid) and the fact that the pyramids were away from the city made it a good idea to use the hotel services for transportation.
My first halt was at Saqqara, the site for Egypt’s oldest pyramids, which lies south of Cairo. The most famous feature here is the Step pyramid for King Djoser which was overseen by his architect Imhotep. A lot of the site is still under excavation. Although Egyptians are, genuinely very friendly and hospitable people, it helps to be a be a tad careful of the friendly smiles in these tourist spots which may be mostly motivated by prospects of money (almost in the same way that foreign tourists are fleeced in India). Near Saqqara,, there are also a lot of carpet weaving schools which teach the children staying in the villages to weave Egyptian wool and silk carpets. It makes for an interesting visit and the carpets woven are truly beautiful although very very expensive. The proprietor tried hard to convince me to buy one (with a 30% discount especially for special Indian “friends”) , unfortunately without any success.After the carpet weaving school , I noticed my guide would non chalantly drop every now and then into a series of shops selling papyrus paintings , Egyptian essences , Egyptian cotton on the way. Sadly for him, I was an Indian , and no amount of convincing would help (although I did buy a papyrus painting for my parents, one of the few things which I thought was worth a purchase:)).
My guide and I also had several intellectually stimulating conversations on the way to Giza:
Conversation Sample 1 (note high level of deductive reasoning):
Guide:” You know why India and Egypt are friends…you know?”
Me: “ Umm..no well.. why?”
Guide: “Because Egypt has camels and India has elephants. Camel and elephant – friends ,so Egypt and India – friends”
Me: “I see “
Conversation Sample 2 (note high level of cultural awareness and guide’s never ending curiosity for elephants):
Guide: "Are elephants expensive in India?"
Me: "Not sure, I have never bought one."
Guide: "But will they be more expensive than camels?"
Me: "Yea, maybe"
Guide: "So elephants are roaming around on the roads?"
Me: "Yea , part of the traffic problem is because of them."
Giza is magnificent , especially when you are driving down the roads with the pyramids on the sides. I was not awed in the same way as I remember when I had first seen the Taj , but there is something about the fact of so much history being buried all around in the sands that makes it very thrilling. I would love to go to Giza after sundown, maybe I will catch the light and sound show if I am here longer. The sphinx on the other hand is disappointing , much less magnificent than what I imagined.
Today I decided to see old Cairo. Cairo is a chaotic city , especially the traffic. There are also areas of downtown Cairo which reminded me of North Calcutta:). Old Cairo is well…very very old! It has some of the oldest mosques, churches and also a very old Jewish synagogue. If you want to see old Cairo, take along someone who knows about the history of the area. I managed to get a very interesting guide , a bright, young lady named Maie , who is an Egyptologist currently doing her Phd at the Cairo university. Thanks to Maie, I would rate my Old Cairo visit one of my most interesting tours.
If you are interested in history/architecture/religion/symobology, do make a trip to this area. The hitch here is you cannot shoot much since photography is not allowed inside most of the oldest buildings in the interest of preservation. The area is a hotpot of culture and religion - Ottoman mosques built around 1400 A.D, Coptic Churches , ruins of Roman fortifications and one of the oldest synagogues. Coptic Cairo was the stronghold of Christianity in Egypt till the Islamic era. A must visit here is Abu Serga – the church built on the spot where Mary and Jesus were hiding from the Romans, the hanging Church and the Coptic museum – relatively lesser known compared to the more famous Egyptian museum but worth a visit. You can also stop by for breakfast at one of the street shops selling falafel:).
My trip to old Cairo in the morning made me realize I need a refresher in Egyptian history. So I ditched my intial plans of going to the Egyptian museum to see King Tut’s antiquities and got down to read up on Egyptian history instead. So my rest of the day will be spent reading Egyptian history (any references on the net would be very helpful:)) , and a walk down the Nile in front of the hotel around sunset. Maybe I will get some good shots unless it stays as cloudy!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Backwaters brief
I was just two weeks into Bangalore with a huge to do list as I was trying to settle down into my new flat when a colleague of mine informed me about the photography club in office and an imminent weekend trip to watch the snake boat race at Alleppey in Kerala. “Would you be interested?” , “of course”- pat came the reply, putting flat in order can wait:D!!. A few email exchanges and a short break out session later the itinerary was fixed. We left Friday evening for Alleppey in a tempo traveller with especially inadequate leg space (the only close proxy I could think of are DTDC buses plying between Sarai Kale Khan,Delhi and Bharatpur). A mostly sleepless night (interspersed with a Munnabhai show and attempts to watch a Tam movie) later, we reached Alleppey at around 8 a.m in the morning and headed towards the Punnamada boat jetty. A boat from the resort where we had booked ourselves picked us up from the jetty. As we made our way to the resort through the water channel, I got my first glimpses of the incredibly beautiful backwaters.A short boat trip later, we got off on a small island where a giant thatched hut like structure greeted us. The resort was a collection of bamboo cottages connected by an overhead walkway with an unrestricted view of the seemingly endless water and ricefields. The bamboo structure and the big open spaces blend seamlessly with the environment outside lending a natural aura to it (more inside info on the resort later;).
We quickly freshened up , had breakfast and headed out for the boat race with a couple of other photographers (part of a workshop in progress at the resort , some of whom had camera equipment we kept leching at throughout). Although the race started late in the afternoon , we arrived early to get our preferred slot. Gradually, people started trickling in. The colours, sounds and sights of an entire town out to watch the boat race was quite enthralling. A long wait later , the race started. It was exciting to see the boats battle against each other to photo finish while the rowers rowed in complete harmony. The race also had its share of overenthusiastic and slightly inebriated cheerleaders who entertained the crowds with their antics in the water. Unfortunately for them , they also had to face the baton with the Kerala police on the prowl . The cop boat also had a mascot somewhat resembling a Zebra which kept waving to the crowds as the boat panned the stretch of the race picking up rowdy cheerleaders;).
As the entertaining and fun filled race got over , we headed back to our resort around sunset. Evening was spent on the open terrace in the resort over drinks and discussing plans for forthcoming trips.We decided to spend the first half of the next day doing a tour of the nearby villages followed by a quick trip to Kochi before we headed back to Bangalore.
Next morning, we checked out of the resort after breakfast and started on our tour of the backwaters. For those of you who still have not been to the backwaters, just GO!!:) It’s absolute bliss just sitting on the roof of the boat with the vast expanse of water and lush greenery all around.In case you love to eat anything with fins or which swims, there are options galore. Stop by one of the local shops on the banks to savour some of the local fish served with tapioca (you may end up overpaying though as a tourist:)).
After the tour , we came back to the Punnamada boat jetty and headed towards Kochi. An hour and a half later we arrived in Kochi just in time for lunch. We stopped at the Grand hotel for a taste of Kerala cuisine. And some lunch we had!! We ended up spending 2 hours over a huge gorgeous spread of squids, prawns, fish – you name it and we ate it:)! Post lunch, we decided to do a quick tour of the Jew town and then to the beach to click the Chinese fishing nets at sunset. The clouds played spoilsport , we did get some shots nevertheless. As the sun set on the Arabian sea, we headed back to Bangalore.
A brief stint with the backwaters, a fun filled and colourful boat race smattered with some sumptuous food in truly God’s own country – thats what I call a weekend well spent!
[Inside info on the resort (Bamboostix): Very backpacker styled (except for the price;) with bunker beds and rooms right on the waterfront. Carry your own towels and toiletries ( in case you want a smoke or a drink , carry them as well since there is nothing that you get here). All in all – great location , bad food , overpriced for the entire proposition]
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Flashback@Presidency
Each department in the college had it’s place in a percieved value chain born out of past history and the college grapevine. Eco was quite high up with a certain element of glamour ( I am not sure why, probably the girls :), I wouldn’t believe if someone told me it was because of the guys, except for two batches senior:)). Batch sizes were typically small and an incredible student teacher camaraderie existed. Sadly enough, the college has been a victim of the state’s poor education policy, a reason why it falls short of good infrastructure and fails to retain the best faculty.
I turn left from the portico.I notice Derozio has been coloured a disappointing blue and stands a tad incongruously now. Inside the department, things are pretty much the same except for a new computer lab which occupies part of the erstwhile office. I stand around in the corridors for a while , how it just seems like yesterday!! The library looks better organised. I meet Balmiki da, our favourite assistant librarian and saviour to many an errant student. He tells me most of the old faculty has left and laments at what many think Presidency needs the most – good teachers. There is a new lady librarian in the EPL library. She looks up to me and asks “ Ei, first year? Library card nebe?”( First year?, looking for your library card?). I nod, murmur a soft no and walk out. There is something I must absolutely check before I go back. I walk into one of the lecture rooms, where a couple of young students are vociferously discussing Harris Todaro. I wave a hi and walk straight to the last row. My eyes look searchingly for that one last bench. Ah, there it is! I run my fingers on the rough inscription on it: “This bench is dedicated to the memory of those who died waiting for the bell to ring”. I look around the scores of names till I find mine etched somewhere in the corner. Atleast somethings in life remain just the way you remember when you left them last:). I smile to myself and walk away.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Hasta La Vista Delhi
I came down to Delhi for my postgraduation 6 years back. Ever since it has been a love hate relationship with this city – a place mired in history, power and a struggle to survive. I am not exactly sure right now what I love about the city (except for the truly amazing roads) or whether I have a sense of belonging but there is something about the city which exudes power – as the political capital of the country or the fact that historically it has been the centre of all battles to the seat of power, and there is something which induces a necessary dose of aggression for everyone who comes to create a space of his/her own.
As a child, I used to move places quite often since my father had a transferable job. There was always a sense of sadness of leaving behind places and friends but the thrill of moving to a new place and meeting new people more than made up for the farewell blues. I also had an extremely quirky habit of saying goodbye to all pieces of furniture (I am not sure why I had an inexplicable sense of emotional connection with furniture) and would roam around the house saying my goodbyes to every single piece of furniture till my parents were forced to drag me outside. As I leave Delhi , I thought I would say my random goodbyes and thank yous to few places ,people and events which will always be a huge part of my Dilli memories (no , not to furniture this time, age has made me saner I think):
JNU Campus days, night outs at PSR rocks watching the planes fly overhead and wishing that life would just stop; Sarojini Nagar, Janpath,Lajpat for all the street shopping and lessons in the art of haggling (Delhi autowalas deserve special mention here); the drives around India gate at night and the sudden rush of pride; the noises, crowds and smells of Parathe wali Gali and Chandni Chowk, the Galotis,Burras and kebabs at Karims’ and Al Kauser (you made me realise the true sense of gastronomic pleasure); fruit beers at Dilli Haat ; Connaught Place (for the eternal knowledge that no matter how well you know this place, it takes a minimum of two rounds to locate any damn thing, four if you are with Ankita) ; the nip in the air as winter approaches; the nights spent at Silver Oaks playing the same boardgames over and over again (I realised I suck at drawing, I lose all my money in Monopoly, I can hardly get over my laughter fits to be able to act remotely for Dumbcharade and I have the highest tendency to cheat) ; Ronnie,Babu, Tanuj, Buddha (I know you are smiling), Peejay, Adi, Shweta, Varun,Boru for the amazing weekend times ; Garga, Joy, Anal, Ankit and all the kids for the birthday surprises and the party sessions;Tanuj and Babu for converting me to Alcoholics Anonymous; Babu for the drives down Faridabad Highway (sorry for err..puking in the car) and my first camera lessons.
So untill next time Delhi..see you! Mmuah:)
As a child, I used to move places quite often since my father had a transferable job. There was always a sense of sadness of leaving behind places and friends but the thrill of moving to a new place and meeting new people more than made up for the farewell blues. I also had an extremely quirky habit of saying goodbye to all pieces of furniture (I am not sure why I had an inexplicable sense of emotional connection with furniture) and would roam around the house saying my goodbyes to every single piece of furniture till my parents were forced to drag me outside. As I leave Delhi , I thought I would say my random goodbyes and thank yous to few places ,people and events which will always be a huge part of my Dilli memories (no , not to furniture this time, age has made me saner I think):
JNU Campus days, night outs at PSR rocks watching the planes fly overhead and wishing that life would just stop; Sarojini Nagar, Janpath,Lajpat for all the street shopping and lessons in the art of haggling (Delhi autowalas deserve special mention here); the drives around India gate at night and the sudden rush of pride; the noises, crowds and smells of Parathe wali Gali and Chandni Chowk, the Galotis,Burras and kebabs at Karims’ and Al Kauser (you made me realise the true sense of gastronomic pleasure); fruit beers at Dilli Haat ; Connaught Place (for the eternal knowledge that no matter how well you know this place, it takes a minimum of two rounds to locate any damn thing, four if you are with Ankita) ; the nip in the air as winter approaches; the nights spent at Silver Oaks playing the same boardgames over and over again (I realised I suck at drawing, I lose all my money in Monopoly, I can hardly get over my laughter fits to be able to act remotely for Dumbcharade and I have the highest tendency to cheat) ; Ronnie,Babu, Tanuj, Buddha (I know you are smiling), Peejay, Adi, Shweta, Varun,Boru for the amazing weekend times ; Garga, Joy, Anal, Ankit and all the kids for the birthday surprises and the party sessions;Tanuj and Babu for converting me to Alcoholics Anonymous; Babu for the drives down Faridabad Highway (sorry for err..puking in the car) and my first camera lessons.
So untill next time Delhi..see you! Mmuah:)
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Run Lola Run!
Experiences in self defence – some suggestions in hindsight and supporting anecdotes for fellow women:
Bangalore, May 2004
I was in Bangalore for two months for an internship with two of my friends– Rathi and Apu. One of the weekends we decided to hang out in the evening ( I think it was some birthday celebration thing). So we go, gorge at some restaurant , have one of those girls night out kind of time and finally decide to head home. It was slightly late and it was getting difficult to get an auto. We finally managed to get one , told the autowala where we wanted to go and went back to our random conversations . Now women chattering away have a habit of losing sense of time and direction which we soon did , not to mention our severely limited knowledge of Bangalore geography. I suddenly realized we were travelling in the auto for an unusually long time .I poked Rathi to check the route with the autowala ( she is a fake half kannad woman who can only count till 10 but nevertheless the most qualified to converse with our shady autowala). He muttered something incomprehensible and before we realized we were inside a dark alley with not a soul around. Our highly suspicious autowala stops, jumps out and vanishes inside what looks like …err..a house with pink curtains leaving the three of us quite baffled about what is it that we should do. Apu is the first one who notices the pink curtains, I mention that I find those pink curtains incredibly shady, while Rathi thinks we should run ( smart she is I tell you, that fake half kannad woman). Apu was the one who was most averse to the idea of running , I thought it wasn’t a particularly bad idea plus we even save on the auto fare. So there we were , three girls running in a dark Bangalore alley one summer night. Rathi was the fastest , quite commendable given that she was the only one in a skirt. Apu was the pessimistic one who kept telling us running would be of no use since the autowala could catch up with us in no time. We ran till we reached what looked like a main road, got another auto and reached home while giggling hysterically all the way , much to the consternation of our new auto guy:)
Yeh dilli hai mere yaar!
JNU, New Delhi ,March 2005
It was my final year in JNU and the season of hostel festivals. The JNU campus is incredibly huge and vast areas of the campus are under natural forest cover. Outsider entry is somewhat unrestricted and sometimes results in security issues although the campus brims with life till late night (Night life at JNU is also one of the most incredible memories for anyone who has been a part of the campus). I was attending a dinner and dance night at one of the hostels and decided to take a stroll down the ring road ( the road which circles the entire campus ) with two of my friends. It was late and a lot of the security was diverted to the hostel festivals leaving some other parts of the campus unmonitored. We were walking along a particular stretch which was quite desolate and the only populated area was the campus school area which was somewhat ahead. One of my friends –a strong , well built Punju girl was telling us about a self defence course she recently took from the Delhi Police. Suddenly, a car comes and stops near us with some drunk ,jeering Delhi brats. While we try to ignore them and walk faster , the car does a U turn , goes back and a while later we could hear its screeching brakes to turn back again.
Two of us turn to our Punju friend reassuredly:” Hey, you took the self defence course didn’t you?
Punju friend:” Yea, I know, but girls, right now..JUST RUN!”
My other friend suggests hiding in the bushes. We overrule it completely , you might just end up landing on a cobra’s tail for all you know.
So there I was , running again on JNU roads , hoping we could beat the car and reach the school area ( which we did , or maybe the brats decided not to drive all the way)!
The Italian job
Milan, June 2006
I was in Milan for a couple of months on work and I would take a trip off to see some place in Europe every weekend. This particular weekend I had gone to Barcelona and was returning back to Milan. When I reached the airport in the night, I realized there was a taxi strike and the only way to get to the city was the shuttle which would go till the Central railway station. I was so used to taking the cabs to work and back that I had completely ignored on exploring the public transport system in the city , especially the subway. So I took the shuttle and reached the Central Railway Station. I realized there was a subway station nearby , but had no idea how to get to my place. I figured the best way would be to reach the Piazza Duomo (the square in the heart of the city) and then walk back home from there. I found the subway station quite empty, partly because it was late and partly because there was a soccer match that night. I noticed two men (who looked very Indian to me) loitering around in the station. They got in the same compartment of the train I boarded and got down at the Piazza station with me. I realized I was being followed but fortunately for me I knew the Piazza very well. I also knew there would be a huge crowd at the square to watch the soccer match on the giant screen. This is a perfect situation for what I call the Brownian motion walk – walk extremely fast with high degree of unpredictability in direction. Once I reached the square, I lost myself in the crowd and the two blokes as well and a while later walked back to reach my apartment safely:)
- When in doubt run (If you are in stilettos, God save you girl. Else wait for available superheroes)
- Get a sense of local geography. Keep a map in handy if you are highly prone to get drunk/stoned/both
- Get a hang of public transport and routes if you are travelling or moving to a new place. It helps not to be a lazy bum who only sticks to using cabs
- Master the art of walking fast in Brownian motion (Theoretically , it helps if you have a slender frame as it minimizes drag)
Bangalore, May 2004
I was in Bangalore for two months for an internship with two of my friends– Rathi and Apu. One of the weekends we decided to hang out in the evening ( I think it was some birthday celebration thing). So we go, gorge at some restaurant , have one of those girls night out kind of time and finally decide to head home. It was slightly late and it was getting difficult to get an auto. We finally managed to get one , told the autowala where we wanted to go and went back to our random conversations . Now women chattering away have a habit of losing sense of time and direction which we soon did , not to mention our severely limited knowledge of Bangalore geography. I suddenly realized we were travelling in the auto for an unusually long time .I poked Rathi to check the route with the autowala ( she is a fake half kannad woman who can only count till 10 but nevertheless the most qualified to converse with our shady autowala). He muttered something incomprehensible and before we realized we were inside a dark alley with not a soul around. Our highly suspicious autowala stops, jumps out and vanishes inside what looks like …err..a house with pink curtains leaving the three of us quite baffled about what is it that we should do. Apu is the first one who notices the pink curtains, I mention that I find those pink curtains incredibly shady, while Rathi thinks we should run ( smart she is I tell you, that fake half kannad woman). Apu was the one who was most averse to the idea of running , I thought it wasn’t a particularly bad idea plus we even save on the auto fare. So there we were , three girls running in a dark Bangalore alley one summer night. Rathi was the fastest , quite commendable given that she was the only one in a skirt. Apu was the pessimistic one who kept telling us running would be of no use since the autowala could catch up with us in no time. We ran till we reached what looked like a main road, got another auto and reached home while giggling hysterically all the way , much to the consternation of our new auto guy:)
Yeh dilli hai mere yaar!
JNU, New Delhi ,March 2005
It was my final year in JNU and the season of hostel festivals. The JNU campus is incredibly huge and vast areas of the campus are under natural forest cover. Outsider entry is somewhat unrestricted and sometimes results in security issues although the campus brims with life till late night (Night life at JNU is also one of the most incredible memories for anyone who has been a part of the campus). I was attending a dinner and dance night at one of the hostels and decided to take a stroll down the ring road ( the road which circles the entire campus ) with two of my friends. It was late and a lot of the security was diverted to the hostel festivals leaving some other parts of the campus unmonitored. We were walking along a particular stretch which was quite desolate and the only populated area was the campus school area which was somewhat ahead. One of my friends –a strong , well built Punju girl was telling us about a self defence course she recently took from the Delhi Police. Suddenly, a car comes and stops near us with some drunk ,jeering Delhi brats. While we try to ignore them and walk faster , the car does a U turn , goes back and a while later we could hear its screeching brakes to turn back again.
Two of us turn to our Punju friend reassuredly:” Hey, you took the self defence course didn’t you?
Punju friend:” Yea, I know, but girls, right now..JUST RUN!”
My other friend suggests hiding in the bushes. We overrule it completely , you might just end up landing on a cobra’s tail for all you know.
So there I was , running again on JNU roads , hoping we could beat the car and reach the school area ( which we did , or maybe the brats decided not to drive all the way)!
The Italian job
Milan, June 2006
I was in Milan for a couple of months on work and I would take a trip off to see some place in Europe every weekend. This particular weekend I had gone to Barcelona and was returning back to Milan. When I reached the airport in the night, I realized there was a taxi strike and the only way to get to the city was the shuttle which would go till the Central railway station. I was so used to taking the cabs to work and back that I had completely ignored on exploring the public transport system in the city , especially the subway. So I took the shuttle and reached the Central Railway Station. I realized there was a subway station nearby , but had no idea how to get to my place. I figured the best way would be to reach the Piazza Duomo (the square in the heart of the city) and then walk back home from there. I found the subway station quite empty, partly because it was late and partly because there was a soccer match that night. I noticed two men (who looked very Indian to me) loitering around in the station. They got in the same compartment of the train I boarded and got down at the Piazza station with me. I realized I was being followed but fortunately for me I knew the Piazza very well. I also knew there would be a huge crowd at the square to watch the soccer match on the giant screen. This is a perfect situation for what I call the Brownian motion walk – walk extremely fast with high degree of unpredictability in direction. Once I reached the square, I lost myself in the crowd and the two blokes as well and a while later walked back to reach my apartment safely:)
Friday, May 8, 2009
Billions of blue blistering barnacles!
A friend of mine recently asked me when was the last time I felt truly happy ( she was trying to explain to me that after a certain point of time in life happiness becomes "relative"..err..she is profound , ain't she?). So here goes the conversation:
Profound friend: Think of it..when was the last time you felt truly happy ?
Me ( think ..think..think ): Oh..when I went home two weeks back and I bought myself a Tintin comics from the local bookstore....its a sequel to this another comic I was looking for..bla..bla ..bla..
Profound friend (rolls eyes):*Oh my God.. so she is actually nuts!
I cant remember a single moment in the entire chronology of my life when a Tintin comics did not make me truly thrilled. It was my dad who actually introduced me to Tintin , he being a obsessed fan of the series too ( I therfore call it genetic:)).As a child, I used to wait eagerly for my Dad to visit Calcutta since there was a bookstore at Howrah station where he used to get the Tintin books from. The book was expensive and hence supply was rationed. Another source was a local bookstore in my mom's hometown which used to offer cheaper prices. It was part of a program of cultural exchange between Soviet Russia and the West Bengal Government. The collapse of the USSR however , left me with the sole Howrah bookstore option.
I used to pride myself at my carefully built up inventory of Tintin comics and put them to greater use:). One of the boys in the neighbourhood had an amazing toy - a Leo racing circuit with a set of cars which I thought was fantastic ( That I thought he was a dumb,fat brat worth being socked was a different thing). I used to bargain one Tintin comic a week (or till he finished reading it) for using the Leo racing circuit 2-3 hours everyday during the entire period. He was a damn slow reader and the bargain worked beautifully:). I often used to overshoot my daily usage quota and everytime I did so , I would go to his mom to return the toy . Fat brat was obviously not pleased but his mom was a big fan of mine ( I used to play the nice, model kid with elan and it worked;) and would just brush away any objections he had with my blatant violations of the contract. Oh., and by the way , I also made him sign something resembling a contract ( I wrote a long drawn sentence in English which I thought was complicated and hence sounded very legal and made him sign it). Fat brat left the neighbourhood after some time as his dad got transferred . I thoroughly missed exploiting him:).
I still collect Tintin comics now , they are readily available now everywhere.I realise the utility levels have gone down ever since the huge demand supply mismatch ceased to exist. Nevertheless, the gleam in my eyes and the restlessness to finish reading it off has stayed intact ( or so my mother says). And I do realise what it is to be truly happy when I have one in my hand!
* Author's version of unvocalised thoughts
P.S: For other Tintin fans , here is an interesting link http://www.tintinologist.org/guides/lists/curses.html
List of all curses used by Captain Haddock:)
Profound friend: Think of it..when was the last time you felt truly happy ?
Me ( think ..think..think ): Oh..when I went home two weeks back and I bought myself a Tintin comics from the local bookstore....its a sequel to this another comic I was looking for..bla..bla ..bla..
Profound friend (rolls eyes):*Oh my God.. so she is actually nuts!
I cant remember a single moment in the entire chronology of my life when a Tintin comics did not make me truly thrilled. It was my dad who actually introduced me to Tintin , he being a obsessed fan of the series too ( I therfore call it genetic:)).As a child, I used to wait eagerly for my Dad to visit Calcutta since there was a bookstore at Howrah station where he used to get the Tintin books from. The book was expensive and hence supply was rationed. Another source was a local bookstore in my mom's hometown which used to offer cheaper prices. It was part of a program of cultural exchange between Soviet Russia and the West Bengal Government. The collapse of the USSR however , left me with the sole Howrah bookstore option.
I used to pride myself at my carefully built up inventory of Tintin comics and put them to greater use:). One of the boys in the neighbourhood had an amazing toy - a Leo racing circuit with a set of cars which I thought was fantastic ( That I thought he was a dumb,fat brat worth being socked was a different thing). I used to bargain one Tintin comic a week (or till he finished reading it) for using the Leo racing circuit 2-3 hours everyday during the entire period. He was a damn slow reader and the bargain worked beautifully:). I often used to overshoot my daily usage quota and everytime I did so , I would go to his mom to return the toy . Fat brat was obviously not pleased but his mom was a big fan of mine ( I used to play the nice, model kid with elan and it worked;) and would just brush away any objections he had with my blatant violations of the contract. Oh., and by the way , I also made him sign something resembling a contract ( I wrote a long drawn sentence in English which I thought was complicated and hence sounded very legal and made him sign it). Fat brat left the neighbourhood after some time as his dad got transferred . I thoroughly missed exploiting him:).
I still collect Tintin comics now , they are readily available now everywhere.I realise the utility levels have gone down ever since the huge demand supply mismatch ceased to exist. Nevertheless, the gleam in my eyes and the restlessness to finish reading it off has stayed intact ( or so my mother says). And I do realise what it is to be truly happy when I have one in my hand!
* Author's version of unvocalised thoughts
P.S: For other Tintin fans , here is an interesting link http://www.tintinologist.org/guides/lists/curses.html
List of all curses used by Captain Haddock:)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)