Namaste London

I had not thought even in my wildest dreams that i would visit London one day.In fact it was not even on my list of cities to visit in Europe.I dont know, the fate had it or should i say -"London was Calling ", i visited the city.Infact i had a personal prejudice against this city , because it is the people from this land that ruled over us for over a century and did what not to keep our country under their reigns.It is the same people who looted our country and took back so many things to their land including our Kohinoor as war bounty.I already had some vague idea of how the city would be.Thanks to movies like DDLJ,London dreams,Namaste London and not to forget those Gurinder chadda films like It's a wonderfull AfterLife.After landing in London, i realised that London is definitely what it is shown to be in the movies.What i had seen in the films was not a glorified or hyped up version of London.This is how London is .A truly vibrant and modern city.

One of the things that strikes you the most after landing in London, is the the presence of a large Indian diaspora.Indians are everywhere .Right from the Taxi driver, the man at the ticketing counter in the Tubes,McDonalds to every other imaginable place.If you look around in the tube on a typical weekday rush hour, you will see atleast 4 in every 10 people is an indian.And, they have established themselves in the city in such a way that you instantly see that indian flavour and colour in it.Like keeping the fruits and vegetables for display in the footpaths in front of the stores and pukka Indian like Road rage.You will see people driving like hell like they do back in our country , without giving a damn to the traffic rules and pedestrians.Loved the masala dosa,vada,mysore masala dosa's from "Aaha Dosa"- a typical south indian restuarant in Hounslow suburb.Especially when i was seeing all these after quite a long time.

One of the experiences that anyone visiting London will have to go through (almost ritual like) is "The London Tube experience".What a huge and complicated network it has.You will be intimidated by the complex maps,colour codings and terms like picadally Line,district line,victoria line and what not.You will feel like scratching your head.But, this is only on the first day.The next day onwards you will comfortably interpret the Maps ,change stations and reach your destination in no time.One thing that i observed in the Tubes is that no one cares what the other person is doing or thinking about you.Everyone is immersed in his/her own world.You will see one person busy listening to his ipod, the other reading the newspaper and couples involved in a liplock in a crowded rush hour train.

There is a piece of history in every brick in London and that is what makes London stand out from the crowd.Take the London tube for example .It is one of the oldest underground railway in the world and also served as a shelter to the citizens of London during the world war 2 airstrikes on London.Another example is the the London bridge.It was completely destroyed in the late 18th century and was rebuilt again later.Another example is the Hyde park and Sherlock Holme's Bakers street,which you will find mentioned in many novels.
There is a sense of awe in most of the places you see in London.I was really awestruck seeing the Coronation throne in Westminister's abbey, after realizing the grandiose scale in which the coronation ceremony takes place.Another major attraction that cast a spell on me was the Kohinoor diamond in the Tower of London.I could not believe the fact that the world famous Kohinoor diamond was inches before my eyes.I was really ecstatic after seeing the kohinoor diamond.I wanted to tell the whole world that i had seen the famous stone.I felt as if i had accomplished something in life.

There is an air of romance in most of the places in London and no wonder couples have a great time wandering through the city at their own pace, without attracting eyeballs unlike our country.I have no words to describe my feelings walking the night on the Banks of river Thames, with London Eye completely lit up with blue lights on one side and the Parliament house and the Big Ben on the other.The song/dance ,silent street performances added up to the already lively atmosphere.Really wished i had a girlfriend by my side, so that we could hold hands and endlessly stroll the whole night ,obsorbing the romantic vibes and looking at the night sky.
There are so many facets of this city and so many experiences to be had, that you feel there is still so much more left to be discovered .This city has given me so many wonderfull memories that i will cherish for life.I really have to thank London for that.I am getting filmy now and i have to say this dialogue(modified a bit though) of Akshay Kumar from Namaste London-

"Coming from a Land of a 2000 year old civilization, we bow to you and thank you London with folded hands, as we think that we are not below or above anyone ".

"Namaste London !!!"

An Afternoon in Dublin(A Photo Blog)



Trinity College

 "Hello.I am not feeling well today.So ,will be on sick leave "-i said to my manager on phone while on a bus to Dublin.This is how i started my journey to Dublin on one fine weekday when every one else was toiling in office and here i was enjoying my sick leave.










After finishing some personal work i had, it was time to scan the city as much as possible in whetever little time i had.

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I started my lonely tour with Trinity College.

This is the college where great people like Jonthan swift roamed around the campus as students.

What a vast campus it has !!!

 Looking at the campus and the people from different cultures, i felt i should have gone for Higher education in a college like this.

 Right at the moment where i was going back to my college days, a girl walking from the opposite direction stopped before me and asked-"Do you know where the Berkley Library is ??".

I said-"Sorry.Even i am new here" , as if i was a new student there.

Felt good.

For a moment atleast , i was a College Student,not a Software Engineer.

 Came out of Trinity College to take a stroll on the  O 'Connell Street

Dublin is truly a cosmopolitan city.You get to see people of all nationalities, of all shapes,sizes,complexions, speaking different languages.Here and there  while travelling in the local buses, it felt good to hear hindi/tamil/telugu randomly.







 Serene Lippy river flowing through the heart of the city.

 It was 2 'O Clock.My stomach was completely empty.Just barged into SuperMacs and had a Burger Meal.

Felt really bad to spend 6 Euros for a Bun and finger chips, while i had spent 2 Euros to Travel 200 Kms.

 One of the many statues on O 'Connell Street

 The spire on O ' Connell Street

Waited for 10 minutes in the intersection just to take a snap of one of the High tech trams on O ' Connell Street.


The Trams reminded me of our very own trams in Kolkata.

Just barged into every other mall in one of the many shopping bylanes on O'Connell Street.


It was already 3:55 pm and had to run to catch my Bus at 4.

Sitting in the Bus back home, i promised myself that i would come back to Dublin again some day(as if it was impossible to get back to Dublin) and experience various aspects of this beatiful city-A city which truly made me feel that i was in Europe.

Its the Journey, not the Destination that matters



Destination

We are obssesed with our dreams.We are always in a hurry to reach our destination.In this hurry-burry we tend to forget the path we traversed to reach our destination.We forget the people we met , the experiences we had, the lessons we learnt during our journey. These are the people whom we will meet again at some point of time and then we will realise how important they were and the role they played in you reaching your destination.The same is the case with the experiences both good and bad that we had during our journey.So, i would say that -"It is the journey, not the destination that matters". I literally  learnt the true meaning of this phrase yesterday.

We had planned for a small weekend picnic at a nearby place.We had to walk for about 6 kms to reach the place.Our plan to start at 11 got delayed due to various circumstances and finally we started at 3,knowing the fact that it would get dark in another 2 hours.The walk  was truly memorable, as this was the first time i was exploring a foreign country and that too on foot.The chill weather coupled with mist added even more colour to the atmosphere.Then started our photo sessions with each one of us posing in different ways looking in different directions.As we moved on, we started entering the uncharted teritorry with some lonely houses here and there, completely  decked up for christmas celebrations with little cowardly dogs barking at us intruders , who had spoilt the calm atmosphere with our continous chatter.

The roads started getting narrower and narrower with the light going dimmer and dimmer.Then came the graveyard with spooky trees all around .We tried to click some pictures there and got some smoky figures in the photo.Offcourse it was the fog, but it gave us a new topic to start using our imagination and weave some stories of paranormal activity.We also found some old deserted houses with no human being till kilometers ahead.Then there were crows sitting on the electric wires, which reminded me of the movie: Jeepers-Creepers.In doing all this we had almost forgotten that we had some destination to reach.But, it was too late as the sun had gone down completely and it was not safe to go ahead anymore.

We were not at all dissapointed that we could not reach our destination because we had so many sweet little memories all through our journey ,that the destination did not matter much.One of us was even of the opinion that we had already crossed our destination.We also had plans of telling everyone that we reached our destination and the walk was really good,but unfortunately that did not happen.Our long walk was worth it, even though we did not achieve what we had set out to.

The same is the case with our lives. We need to set our goals,but we should not be blind to the things that we come across while walking towards our goal.It is these people,experiences both good and bad that makes us realise the true meaning of achieving our goal. These are the ones that show us a different path, in case we dont reach our set goal.

So, i say it again-"It is the Journey, not the destination that matters".

Bye Bye Great Souls

(ನನ್ನ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ ಅಜ್ಜಿ )

ಕಳೆದ ವಾರ ನಾನು ನನ್ನ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ ಅಜ್ಜಿಯನ್ನು ಕಳಕೊಂಡೆ.ಅವರ ಕೊನೆಯ ಗಳಿಗೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನು ಅವರ ಹತ್ತಿರ ಇರಬೇಕಾಗಿತ್ತು ಅಂತ ಅಂತ ತುಂಬಾ ಅನಿಸುತಿದೆ. Atleast ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಬರೋಕೆ ಮುಂಚೆ ಅವರ ಜೊತೆ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಸಮಯ ಕಳದೆ ಅಂತ ಆದರು satisfaction ಇದೆ .
ನೆನ್ನೆ ತಾನೇ ನಮ್ ಜೊತೆ ಇದ್ದೋರು, ಇವತ್ತು ಇಲ್ಲ ಅಂದ್ರೆ ನಂಬೋಕೆ ಆಗ್ತಾ ಇಲ್ಲ.ಒಂದು ವಿಷಯ ನನ್ನನ ಕಾಡ್ತಾ ಇರೋದು ಅಂದ್ರೆ, ನಂಗೆ ತುಂಬಾ ಬೇಕಾದವರು ನನ್ನ ಅಗಲುವ ಮುಂಚೆ ನಾನು ಅವರನ್ನ ನೋಡಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಮಾತಡ್ಸ್ಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಅಂತ. ನನ್ನ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಅಜ್ಜಿ ಸತ್ಹಾಗಲು ಇದೆ ಥರ ಆಗಿತ್ತು.


ಚಿಕ್ಕ ವಯಸಿನಿಂದ್ಲು ನಾನು ಅವ್ರ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಆತಡ್ಕೊಂಡು ಬೆಲ್ದೆ. ಮಗು ಆಗಿದಾಗ ನಾನು ಅವರ ಅಡುಗೆ ಮನೆಗೆ canteen ಅಂತ ಕರಿತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ. "ಅಜ್ಜಿ ನಿನ್  canteen ಆಯ್ತಾ??.ಮಲ್ಕೊಳೋಣ" ಅಂತ ಕೇಳ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ. ಮಧ್ಯಾನ ಅವರ canteen ಮುಗಿದ ಮೇಲೆ ಒಂದು ಚಾಪೆ ಎಲೋಕೊಂದು ಬಂದು-"ಅಜ್ಜಿ ಬಾ ತಾಚೋಲನ" ಅಂತ ಇದ್ದೆ. ಇವ್ವತ್ತು ನಂಗೆ ಗ್ಯಪಕ ಇರೋದು ಅಂದ್ರೆ , ಅವರು ಅಡುಗೆ ಮಾಡ್ಬೇಕಾದ್ರೆ ಅಡುಗೆ ಕತ್ತೆ ಮೇಲೆ ಕೂತ್ಕೊಂಡು ಪುರಾಣ ಬಿಚ್ತ ಇದ್ದೆ. ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ವಿಷಯ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಗ್ಯಪಕ ಇರೋದು ಅಂದ್ರೆ , ನಾನು ಯಾವಾಗ್ಲೂ ಪಕ್ಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಕೂತ್ಕೊಂಡು, ಅವರ  ಕ್ಯೆ ಬಲೆಗಳೊಂದಿಗೆ ಆತಾಡ್ತಿದ್ದೆ.ಅವರ soft soft  ಕ್ಯೆಗಳು ಇನ್ನ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಗ್ಯಪಕ ಇದೆ." ಅಜ್ಜಿ .ಕಥೆ ಹೇಳು" ಅಂತ ಅವರ ಕ್ಯೆಗೆ ಸುಧಾ magazine ನ ತಂಕೊಡ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ.

ಹಬ್ಬ ಹರಿದಿನ ಅಂದ್ರೆ ನಮ್ಮಜ್ಜಿ ನೆ chief cook. ಅವರ ಸಾರಥ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲ ಸೊಸೆಯರು ಸೇರಿ ಅಡಿಗೆ ಮಾಡ್ತಾ ಇದ್ರೂ. ಅವರು ಮಾಡ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದ bisibele baath  ಇವಾಗ್ಲು ಬಾಯಲ್ಲಿ ನೀರು ತರುತ್ತೆ.ಹಾಲು ಬಾಯಿ , ಅವರು ಮಾಡುತಿದ್ದ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು special sweet.ಅವರಿಗೆ ಹೂವು ಮುದಿಯುವುದು ತುಂಬಾ ಇಷ್ಟ. ನಮ್ ತಾತ ಸತ್ತ ಮೇಲೆ , ಹೂವು ಮುದುಯುವ ಹಾಗಿಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ ತುಂಬಾ ಬೇಜಾರ್ ಮಾಡ್ಕೊಲೋರು.

ಕಳೆದ ವರ್ಷ ನಮ್ಮನ ಅಗಲಿದ ಮತೊಬ್ಬ ಅಜ್ಜಿಗೂ ನನ್ನ ಮನಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಶೇಷ ಜಾಗವಿದೆ.ಪ್ರೆಥಿಯಿಂದ ಗುಡ್ಡದಹಳ್ಳಿ ಅಜ್ಜಿ , ಅಂತ ಕರಿತ ಇದ್ದೆ.ತುಂಬಾ ಶಾಂತ ಸ್ವಭಾವದ,ಅದಮ್ಬರವಿಲ್ಲದ ಹೆಂಗ್ಗಸು.ಆಗಿನ ಕಾಲದಲ್ಲಿ 10th standard  ಓದಿದ್ದ ನನ್ ಅಜ್ಜಿ, ನಾನು 4th standard ನಲ್ಲೂ ಸಹ ನನಗೆ maths ಹೇಳಿಕೊಡುವಷ್ಟು ಬುದ್ಧಿವಂತೆ.ಮಗುವಗಿದಾಗ -"ಅಜ್ಜಿ..ಅಜ್ಜಿ ಎತ್ಕೋ..ದೋಸೆ ತೋರ್ಸು" ಅಂತ ಹೇಳಿ ಅವರ ಕ್ಯಲ್ಲಿ ಎತ್ತಿಸಿ ಕೊಂದು ಅವರು ದೋಸೆ ಬಿಡೋದು ನೋಡ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ.ಅವರು ಮಾಡಿದ ದೋಸೆ ನಂಗೆ ತುಂಬಾ ಇಷ್ಟ.ಅಡ್ಡಕ್ಕೆ, ನಾನ್ Engineering ಓದುವಾಗಲು ಸಂಜೆ ಬಿಸಿ ಬಿಸಿ ದೋಸೆ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ನಮ್ ತಾತನ ಕ್ಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಲ್ಸ್ತ ಇದ್ರು.ಕೊನೆ ಗಾಲದಲ್ಲಿ Parkinsons ಇಂದ ಬಹಳ ನರಳಿದರು.
ಇನ್ನು ಮುಂದೆ ಅವರುಗಲ್ಲೆಲ್ಲರು ನನ್ನ ನೆನಪಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾತ್ರ ಉಳಿಯುವರು.ಒಂದು point  ನಂಗೆ ಅನ್ಸೋದು ಅಂದ್ರೆ , ಇವರು ಬದುಕಿದ್ದಾಗ ಇವರ ಜೊತೆ ಎರಡು ನಿಮಿಷ ಕೂತು ಮಾತು ಕೂಡ ಆಡಲಿಲ್ಲ ನಾವು. ಚಿಕ್ಕ ವಯಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಬೇಕಾದ ಸೇವೆಯಲ್ಲ ಮಾಡಿಸಿಕೊಂಡು , ಅವರ ಕೊನೆಗಾಲದಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರನ್ನ ಅಷ್ಟು neglect  ಮಾಡ್ತಿವಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ ಬೇಜಾರ್ ಆಗತ್ತೆ.ಪಾಪ ಪ್ರಜ್ಞೆ ಕಾಡುತ್ತೆ.

ಅದ್ದಕ್ಕೆ ಹೇಳ್ತೀನಿ, ನಿಮ್ ಅಜ್ಜಿ-ತಾತ ಯಾರಾದ್ರೂ ಇದ್ರೆ ಅವರ ಪಕ್ಕ ಕೂತು ಒಂದೆರಡು ಮಾತಾಡಿ.ನಿಮ್ಮನು ಎತ್ತಿ ಆಡಿಸಿದ ಆ ಹಿರಿಯ ಜೀವಗಳಿಗೆ ಪ್ರೀತಿ ಬೇಕೇ ಹೊರತು ದುಡ್ಡಲ್ಲ. ಅವರು ಇರುವ ವರೆಗಾದ್ರು ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ನೋಡ್ಕೊಳ್ಳಿ, ಇಲ್ಲದಿದ್ರೆ ಆಮೇಲೆ ತಿಥಿ ಮಾಡಿದ್ರು ಅಲ್ಲ, ಅವರ ಹೆಸರಲ್ಲಿ trust ಓಪನ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ರು , ಏನು ಉಪಯೋಗ ಎಲ್ಲ..

Hum Aise Hi Hai

All these days i had heard from people/watched on television channels about Indians being discriminated against.I had seen some great people make racist comments against indians.I am trying to understand the reason behind such incidents and what is it that makes some people look down upon us indians as a whole.In this post i would like to share some of the instances that  have come across personally, which might bring out the answers to my questions.

Cooking inside a Hotel Room is banned,especially if it is a 3-star hotel..you know what i mean.I heard of an incident  where one indian guy was found cooking inside the hotel room(3-star).He had been doing this from the past 1 week, despite knowing the fact that it should not be done.So, The Hotel took up the issue with the employer and put a blanket ban on indians from entering the hotel.They have virtually put up a board "Indians Not Allowed".The question is -"Is this the right way of dealing with the issue.Does it mean that if one indian does something wrong, does it mean that all the indians will do the same? Is it correct to generalise the issue from an individual to the whole?

We indians are very good at crossing the roads.We dont look for the Zebra crossing to get to the other side of the road.Whenever we feel like crossing the road, we just cross.Some of us look on the either sides and then go ahead, while some of us just go ahead without giving a dam for the oncoming Traffic.Some of us are even right in crossing the roads in this manner because, the concept of pedesetrian crossing is completely absent .Another thing is if wait for the incoming traffic to slow down to cross the road, it might just be impossible to get to the other side in our country.There are  offcourse exceptions to the above.So, if we have have a particular road culture, there is a strong reason for that and it is hard to let go of it.We carry the same thing when we visit some other countries where people are hypersensitive to issues like this.

Another issue that deserves mention here is that of personal space.We indians are used to crowded places, where you cannot even think of maintaining personal space. Think of travelling in local Trains, buses where your hand will be on someone else's shoulders and his legs will be over yours. And i need not talk about the various scents and smells in such conditions.But , people else where have a completely different definition for this personal space. I personally came across a situation like this very recently.I came into the changing room after the gym.I found that some guy was standing in front of the my locker. There was very  little space behind him.But, i just managed to squeeze myself in that space to reach my locker."Stay There..."- the guy said with angry look.It was then i realised that i had got too close to him(As per his definition.As per my standards, i was maintaining a good distance from him, as i had not touched him).

We love anything and everything that comes free.We grab whatever that comes free .Whether it is of any use to us or not is a different question.I heard of instances where some of our indian friends being sent back to the parent company from the client location for taking the small milk cans in the pantry to use them later, taking a bunch of office stationary for personal use at home.

And , last but not the least it is a fact that we indians are making in roads in every field leaving every one behind. We are good technically, we can speak good English and more than anything the way we were brought up and the kind of environment in which we have grown up makes us see the positive aspects of everything and we feel that everything is so easy out here.Take for example, driving a car in a western country.If you have driven a car in any of our metros , then driving on silk smooth roads where every one follows the traffic rules should not be a big deal.The same is the case with many other things.

Therefore, i believe it is our -"Hum Aise Hi Hai" attitude and others feeling jealous of our progress that makes outsiders look at us in the way they do.Some of them go to the extreme and become racist.

My First Travel Abroad

I had never been on a flight before and here i was ready to board an international flight, change 2 flights and 1 bus in a foriegn country i had never been to.All the immigration,checkin,security procedures seemed very intimidating.Travel briefing in the company, tips from collegues /friends seemed to turn the situation even more tense.With so many things going on in my mind , i finally came to BIAL to board a flight to Frankfurt along with my family. That added an extra emotional baggage to  my already overloaded mind.

Finally it was time to checkin at the aiport and say goodbye to my family. I had thought that i would cry at this moment, but i dont know why and how , but was able to control my emotions , especially in front of my mom  who was on the brink of breaking down. Then went inside the airport only to find that all the intimidating procedures were simple formalities to be finsished and did not seem complicated any more. Later came boarding the plane.To my surprise it was a Boeing 747, which i had seen only in Discovery Channel and was really excited to board this mighty Beast.It was time for take off finally.The only thing that came to my mind was the program "Air Crash Investigations" on National Geographic Channel. The take off was very smooth and without even realising, the plane was already in air.

I wanted to take out the seat belts only to find that i did not know how to take it off.I looked around to take some help from the Air Hostesses, only to find none. Then i hesitatingly asked my fellow German Passenger  grinningly.She was more then ready to help me out with a friendly smile. Then came the time to eat the so called Hindu Vegetarian meal on board.There was something that resemled idli, seviyan along with black coffe,butter and fruit paste. Horrible food coupled with reapeted landings/takeoffs turned my stomach into biogas plant.Finally i landed in Dublin.The aiport was looking completely empty. I was really surprised to find an aiport with so little people.It looked more like a 3 star hotel, than an aiport.

Came out of the Airport to take the bus to Dublin. The buses were really superb. I got onto one of the Scania buses and sat in the front row itself so that i could talk to the driver about where/when to get down." Could you pls tell me when Athlone comes?"- i asked the driver with a smile.He returned with a prompt reply -"Sure..It will be about 4 in the evening by the time we reach Athlone".One thing that struck me was everyone entering the bus wished the driver and even the driver prompltly replied back with a friendly smile.Do we ever do this in our country? Even if we wish the driver, do you think that we will ever recieve any reply, let alone a friendly smile.

The travel from Dublin to Athlone was a memorable one.I did not want the journey to end as the scenery around was really superb.There was endless greenery on either sides of the road.One thing that struck me was there were only green pastures all over, i did not find fields growing vegetables,rice or anything else. Later i came to know from people here that they dont grow anything except apples.Everything is got into the country from outside.Finally , i reached my destination Athlone.But, still i could not realise that i was in fact in a foreign country and not india.Everything around me was looking like a scene from a yash chopra film.

Even after spending 3 days here at Athlone, i am not reallly feeling that i am in a foreign land which i used to see in the movies.

Making a Village Self Sufficient : Employment

• Each Village to have a registry of workers under different categories like agricultural workers,carpenters,black smiths,mechanics,painters,etc. Complete details along with contact information is to be maintained properly.Any one searching for labour can access this registry and contact the respective people.This registry can be maintained at the local Gram Panchayat office.The same can be used for schemes like NREGA.
• Each Village is to have Transportation facilities to the taluk headquarters and the neighbouring villages.This can be achieved by operating Vans of suitable capacity between the Villages.This job can be taken up by a group of village youth.Loans can be provided under PMRY scheme.This will provide employment oppurtunities to the village youth.
• There is a great demand for certain skilled workers like gardeners,etc in the cities.People who have some specialised knowledge about agriculture can accept contracts with individual residences in the nearby cities for looking after their gardens for a suitable monthly fee.They can fix a definite schedule and travel to the cities, finish their work and return back to their homes.Such people can register into a Registry after which their contact information will be put up on a website.People in Urban areas can get the contact information from the website and get their work done.
• Every district should have large no. of industries which can provide employment oppurtunities to the educated youth in their respective districts.This would prevent large scale migration of youth to the cities in search of jobs.They should be able to travel to work on a daily basis.