French statesman Talleyrand has truly said: “Black as the devil, hot as hell, pure as an angel, sweet as love.”
Smell it and you would like to devour it…or just be so mesmerized to let it flow down your throat slowly and gradually….till it’s in your system and you feel as if you have never been so awake in the whole day!! Just a cup of hot coffee makes such a difference!!
It’s a ritual for many of us every day - the reasons might be many – to ward off sleep or just for the taste of it or to share a late afternoon office gossip.
It is of course not a cup of tea for non-coffee lovers - its simply bitter liquid which would be better off in the dust-bin! But talk to the babus in the government offices in the southern part of India and “coffee” has many faithful lovers – its almost in competition of sorts with their wives. It’s the cocaine of the day- with drugs not allowed at the office premise – ask a coffee addict and he will surely agree!!
I got the real taste when I migrated to this “then-beautiful” city of the ‘then Bangalore’ – when the coffee vendor at my office used to pass through the cubicles at exact 3 pm (it was like a wake up alarm of our post-lunch siesta) – offering us ‘filter-coffee’ in steel glasses. No vending machines – no plastic/paper cups – no adulteration – but just pure coffee pleasure!!! And since then – I have been a coffee lover – be it filter/instant – any unadulterated form!
Coffee, was originated in Ethiopia(where to start with the coffee beans were chewed) and traveled all the way to India in the middle 1600s with the hills of Karnataka being the largest coffee producer today in our country. Bangalore surely boasts of a happening coffee culture with the many ‘Café Coffee days’ and ‘Baristas’ opening even in the far-flung areas – surely we see a lot more happening over coffee these days! It has undisputedly taken in the international look (as well as price!) like any other thing in Bangalore – with the Hawaiian/Kenyan Safari flavors doing their best.
Travel to places around Bangalore – such as Coorg or Chikmaglur or the like and you find this drink in its purest form – a coffee connoisseur can have a time of his life. It undoubtedly connects us back to our history - least affected by the so-called distortion in the name of growth and development. I call this culture because it has changed with us but not lost its authenticity…hope we can say the same about Bangalore in years to come.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Time to Rise India!
India is a land of the rising…with the maximum number of youths anywhere else in the world. Call it the lack of family planning of our previous generations – but the result is loud and clear ..”India is young”….with lots of dreams and ambitions it has set on the journey to make a mark.
We are the lucky ones to be born in these times. We have transitioned from small town education to large city high paying jobs – or we are the ones to simply have the courage to leave our high paying jobs and be an entrepreneur or just work for the good of the society. Thanks to the stage India is in today.
India is at its thoughtful best – exploring the situations to its benefit – may it be our stand in IAEA or our diplomatic policies or the amount we can today boast of spending on defence.
India is at its economic best till now – with the business coming home from the power-giants to this humble nation as the “rest of the world” economy tumbling down. We are surely better off – a long travel from the times of “license raj” to having a term called “bangalored” in the Oxford Dictionary! We have seen our parents working limited hours in government offices stagnation written all around, to ‘us’ having the ability and opportunity to just open our wings, with jobs in all directions. We have seen the upcoming and the uprising!
India has surely arrived – it is recognized not just for Gandhi or Nehru or the innumerable mythological Gods or its history for which it was earlier, but for its able youth as a land of opportunities!
This is the time to move forward, to make the giant leap like an athlete at the end of its race. If we stop now – we will be left far behind. If we become satiated – we will have to write the story all over again! Let us exploit this situation to our advantage and work hard towards the aim of uplifting the rest of us to be at par with the developed nations. Let us not just be happy reaping the fruits of our previous struggles – but sow the seeds for the years to come.
The canvas is wide and only half filled, Independence is not just having a government of its own – still 30% are struggling to make their ends meet – still 33% don’t know how to read and write – we still have the highest female infanticide in the world, we still need a better infrastructure to move any further, still there is no or minimal social security for the old – to cite just a few.
India cant just sit to take a breath at this stage – the list is long and we have miles to go before we actually celebrate being independent!!
We are the lucky ones to be born in these times. We have transitioned from small town education to large city high paying jobs – or we are the ones to simply have the courage to leave our high paying jobs and be an entrepreneur or just work for the good of the society. Thanks to the stage India is in today.
India is at its thoughtful best – exploring the situations to its benefit – may it be our stand in IAEA or our diplomatic policies or the amount we can today boast of spending on defence.
India is at its economic best till now – with the business coming home from the power-giants to this humble nation as the “rest of the world” economy tumbling down. We are surely better off – a long travel from the times of “license raj” to having a term called “bangalored” in the Oxford Dictionary! We have seen our parents working limited hours in government offices stagnation written all around, to ‘us’ having the ability and opportunity to just open our wings, with jobs in all directions. We have seen the upcoming and the uprising!
India has surely arrived – it is recognized not just for Gandhi or Nehru or the innumerable mythological Gods or its history for which it was earlier, but for its able youth as a land of opportunities!
This is the time to move forward, to make the giant leap like an athlete at the end of its race. If we stop now – we will be left far behind. If we become satiated – we will have to write the story all over again! Let us exploit this situation to our advantage and work hard towards the aim of uplifting the rest of us to be at par with the developed nations. Let us not just be happy reaping the fruits of our previous struggles – but sow the seeds for the years to come.
The canvas is wide and only half filled, Independence is not just having a government of its own – still 30% are struggling to make their ends meet – still 33% don’t know how to read and write – we still have the highest female infanticide in the world, we still need a better infrastructure to move any further, still there is no or minimal social security for the old – to cite just a few.
India cant just sit to take a breath at this stage – the list is long and we have miles to go before we actually celebrate being independent!!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
In search of paths for the feet in Bangalore
It was just another day at work with a slight difference that I had to step out to buy a few medicines at a local medicine shop just down the road – Wind Tunnel Road to be exact. This road cuts through a prime locality and is perpendicular to the old Airport Road and boasts of high real estate prices. The location is great as its near many Tech parks and great shopping malls, hospitals and hotels.
I took a 10 min break from work in the otherwise sleepy hours of mid afternoon and set off to finish the task.
The medicine shop was just 500 meters and it was the typical Bangalore weather of these days - with the monsoon clouds dancing in the sky without shedding any precious water. It had been quite long since I had ambled along that road and today, I could really notice its alarming condition. There was no footpath – the road was used as everything – footpath, parking zone, hawker’s stop and of course road! I jumped above the potholes to find firm land beneath my shoes – to realize that the car behind me was honking incessantly asking me to get off from his way – but to where?.
To say it was a two laned road would be injustice – it had one usable lane (with vehicles parked/open potholes/dug land on either side) which disappeared whenever a bus stopped for a pickup or a drop or when the huge tempos backed out on the road from their respective standing areas inside godowns (or whatever) that dot both sides of the road. As if this was not enough, there was a huge pile of all kinds of garbage forcing me to block my nostrils to reduce the stench hitting my system. Every now and then an autowallah would manage to stop and ask if the pedestrians needed a ride much to the disdain of the traffic behind.
Having picked up the medicines, I started my walk back to be greeted by strong-gusty winds making the air mobile with dust all around and now my eyes bore the brunt. People had started rushing to shelters (under the tree branches, thanks nature for providing us with that and thanks to mankind for sparing at least a few till now!) to avoid the impending rain. The journey back was swift as I raced to my office noticing how difficult it was to find just 100 meters of leveled land on this supposedly metalled road.
This ten minute sojourn was an eye-opener for me about the difficulties faced by pedestrians in Bangalore while we move around in our four wheelers on the non-existing Bangalore roads, footpaths surely look like a far-fetched possibility!!!
I took a 10 min break from work in the otherwise sleepy hours of mid afternoon and set off to finish the task.
The medicine shop was just 500 meters and it was the typical Bangalore weather of these days - with the monsoon clouds dancing in the sky without shedding any precious water. It had been quite long since I had ambled along that road and today, I could really notice its alarming condition. There was no footpath – the road was used as everything – footpath, parking zone, hawker’s stop and of course road! I jumped above the potholes to find firm land beneath my shoes – to realize that the car behind me was honking incessantly asking me to get off from his way – but to where?.
To say it was a two laned road would be injustice – it had one usable lane (with vehicles parked/open potholes/dug land on either side) which disappeared whenever a bus stopped for a pickup or a drop or when the huge tempos backed out on the road from their respective standing areas inside godowns (or whatever) that dot both sides of the road. As if this was not enough, there was a huge pile of all kinds of garbage forcing me to block my nostrils to reduce the stench hitting my system. Every now and then an autowallah would manage to stop and ask if the pedestrians needed a ride much to the disdain of the traffic behind.
Having picked up the medicines, I started my walk back to be greeted by strong-gusty winds making the air mobile with dust all around and now my eyes bore the brunt. People had started rushing to shelters (under the tree branches, thanks nature for providing us with that and thanks to mankind for sparing at least a few till now!) to avoid the impending rain. The journey back was swift as I raced to my office noticing how difficult it was to find just 100 meters of leveled land on this supposedly metalled road.
This ten minute sojourn was an eye-opener for me about the difficulties faced by pedestrians in Bangalore while we move around in our four wheelers on the non-existing Bangalore roads, footpaths surely look like a far-fetched possibility!!!
Monday, August 11, 2008
zzzzzzzzzzzzz..............
It was one of the very very rare weekdays when I had to take an off because of some work. Luckily things got sorted out real soon and by noon I was all free though a bit wound up. I headed towards home-so unlikely to go in that direction at this hour of the weekday. My mind was racing and making a long list of ‘to do’ tasks which could be completed now that I had the power of time with me. The sun was bright and happy and you could call it a warm afternoon if not hot. It reminded you of the college days when you could just sleep through the afternoon lab practicals without even a shred of guilt to mar the sheer joy…
As soon as I entered by house, I realized that indeed the sun was a bit too high and the cool of my house welcomed me. I suddenly had amnesia and my mind trashed the list into the recycle bin..the only signal my brain communicated was zzzzzz….Now was the time to just close my eyes and go into deep sleep , while the rest of the world worked hard for their living. Oh what a pleasure it is…to know you have a whole long afternoon stretched in front of you to just sleep…no chores , no todo’s…just idle sleep…no monsters waking you up…the simple basic pleasure o life yielding a million bucks…as more abstract and yet irrevertible though not valued forms of money…one’s health.
When was it last that today’s common, independent, rising and shining men/women had a straight eight hours of sleep without a single thought of the next days list of Herculean tasks? There are things all around us which need time..the luxuries/passions of life..but all mere things…we are living in a maze of objects which we cant do without..its the same hollywood dream/nightmare come true when machines start controlling the human species..though in a less dramatic and more subtle way…The long queues at cinema halls, the mad rush in the malls, the traffic jams on the road, the competition to be ahead….where is the pleasure of listening to naani’s bedtime stories when kids can play video games or watch endless cartoons…where is the satisfaction in just having a relaxed late morning cup of tea when the previous day we had hit the disc till the wee hours(Bangalore is lucky to be awake only till 11:30 pm!)or slogged our brains to the extreme in our offices…
How our minds and souls plead us to slow down, savour the moments of life..invest with undisturbed and undisputed sleep…so they feel taken care of for a long-lasting healthy return called “life”…..
As soon as I entered by house, I realized that indeed the sun was a bit too high and the cool of my house welcomed me. I suddenly had amnesia and my mind trashed the list into the recycle bin..the only signal my brain communicated was zzzzzz….Now was the time to just close my eyes and go into deep sleep , while the rest of the world worked hard for their living. Oh what a pleasure it is…to know you have a whole long afternoon stretched in front of you to just sleep…no chores , no todo’s…just idle sleep…no monsters waking you up…the simple basic pleasure o life yielding a million bucks…as more abstract and yet irrevertible though not valued forms of money…one’s health.
When was it last that today’s common, independent, rising and shining men/women had a straight eight hours of sleep without a single thought of the next days list of Herculean tasks? There are things all around us which need time..the luxuries/passions of life..but all mere things…we are living in a maze of objects which we cant do without..its the same hollywood dream/nightmare come true when machines start controlling the human species..though in a less dramatic and more subtle way…The long queues at cinema halls, the mad rush in the malls, the traffic jams on the road, the competition to be ahead….where is the pleasure of listening to naani’s bedtime stories when kids can play video games or watch endless cartoons…where is the satisfaction in just having a relaxed late morning cup of tea when the previous day we had hit the disc till the wee hours(Bangalore is lucky to be awake only till 11:30 pm!)or slogged our brains to the extreme in our offices…
How our minds and souls plead us to slow down, savour the moments of life..invest with undisturbed and undisputed sleep…so they feel taken care of for a long-lasting healthy return called “life”…..
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Travelogue - Our trip to Wayanad
A trip outside Bangalore was long on cards, so my husband, Nishant and I decided why don’t we visit Kerala and the general consensus was why not Wayanad, the district of Kerala that nestled in the green hills – the pros being it is not that far from Bangalore (its around 300 kms) and as it is not on the coast it won’t be that warm and humid in April. Hence, one of the best parts of the trip-that is planning- began – how, when and where- were the questions. Like every other person in the software industry, we camped on the net. The rates were exorbitant for most of the jungle lodges and resorts – hence we could very easily filter out quite a few and didn’t face much difficulty in choosing the final destination – The Rain Country resort in Wayanad district – that promised accommodation and services at not a very expensive rate. As, it was available only on Sunday and Monday (it being a long weekend), we decided to shorten the trip from three days to two.
So, all were set to start from Bangalore at the wake of the dawn - to save time and also so that our little one, Myra would cover most of the journey sleeping. Surprisingly , Nishant , Nishant’s mom and I were ready nearly on time and our mean black machine- Scorpio left the den at 5:40 am sharp – off to the hills and jungles of Wayanad, via Mysore.
We could zip-zap-zoom from Marthahalli to Mysore road in mere 20 mins- which otherwise in sane hours would have taken an insane 1 hour at least. The Bangalore-Mysore highway was smooth as a butter top and the gentle cool breeze put me to sound melodious sleep. So my daughter (she is 9 months old) and I took the advantage of being in the back and slept for a good one hour. We passed through Kamat and Coffee day – the winding road looking like a giant snake still sleeping in the early morning hours.
We entered Mysore ring road by 8:30 am and just after crossing Mysore made our first stop at a small coffee shop- that served steaming hot coffee. I was not wide awake still and not in much mood to have coffee – so it was snacks for me – ‘thepla’ and some other stuff which we had picked up from Nilgiris a day before. Myra was wide awake by now -we could really catch her amused expression after seeing the surroundings.
After a break of half an hour there, we were all set to attack the next 170 kms. We crossed the edge of Bandipur sanctuary by taking right from Gundulpet(it is around 60 kms from Mysore). To our dismay it was more of outskirts of the sanctuary and we didn’t see any wild life except some monkeys jumping on the road side in anticipation of some food from the passers-by. The road was not too good with some humps and potholes here and there – so we had to slow down a bit. We passed by a few over-adventurous people parking their cars in the “no stopping zone” of the forest area. It really showed how much we humans love to disturb the wild life just for the fun of it.
The good roads marked our entry to Kerala – as against the bumpy ride in and around Bandipur. We entered the Muthanga wildlife sanctuary (in Kerala), which is around 100 kms from Mysore at around 11:30 am. It was another 1 hour drive to Sultan Bathery a small town on the foothills of Wayanad. The greenery of Kerala was soothing to the eyes and we couldn’t wait to reach our resort.
We reached Wayanad at around 12:45 pm and contacted the resort person. He asked us to reach the Indian institute of hotel management, where he met us in his jeep. We were then informed that our Scorpio wont go till the resort because of lack of any access road till there.
We parked our Scorpio there and jumped into his jeep which off-roaded for the next 3 kms through the jungles of Wayanad – the jeep jumping up and down the undulating terrain, the thick vegetation around making the ride a welcoming change from the broad smooth highways back there.
The resort had a few Kerala style traditional cottages that were quite spacious and beautifully constructed. Our cottage was on a small hillock that overlooked a small lake where two geese were lazing around. There was a small stream flowing on one side of our cottage, the falling water giving a melodious background score to the very scenic setup. It was 2 in the afternoon now and we ordered for lunch at our cottage itself. Traditional and delicious Kerala food was served and we enjoyed our first meal thoroughly. It was time for some relaxation – while the sun slowly set behind the hills, the twilight giving the resort a halo. After the siesta at around 5 pm, we enjoyed our evening coffee and sandwich at the verandah outside the cottage. It was then time for a short walk around the lake. A hammock slung across the branches of two trees on the lake-side, while a swing lazily perched itself on another tree branch. We clicked a few snaps and just ambled around. Myra thoroughly enjoyed watching the geese making sounds and tip toeing around the lake. The resort lights had started glowing now and we headed back towards our cottage.
The dinner was palatable and after an early one we were off to sleep in the bit chilly and a very silent night – a refreshing and much needed change from the noisy IT city. We woke up to the birds chirping – with south Indian breakfast served in our cottage. After this it was time for some gup-shup over coffee while we gradually got ready for our journey back home.
While going back through the jungles- we could see a couple of vehicles that had stopped in the middle of the trail- we were told that they had seen a python and king cobra- going into the thick green. The mention of the creepy crawlies was enough for us to hop out of the jeep in hope of seeing one- but I guess we were a bit late. Anyway, our journey till the parking was eventless and we headed back to Bangalore at around 12:30 pm- our eyes still feasting on the scenes of the beautiful green hills. Though we wanted to stay there for at least a few more days, it was time to get back to daily grill. We stopped at “coffee shop” near Gundulpet for our lunch – it served tasty dosa, biryani and egg masala.
We entered Bangalore at around 7 pm and were back at home in another 1 hour. It was an overall rejuvenating though short trip with fond of God’s own country.
Friday, August 1, 2008
My four-wheeled two-wheeler drive -A dedication
“The deal is done…We agree to pay that much..” – the new master said to me and she was sold…My first car, with whom I have spent five precious years of my life, was to have a new owner in a couple of days. That day I drove from my office in a strange mood…living all the memories this machine has given me. I had been more or less the sole driver of this silver Santro LS Zip Plus.My husband had driven home this relationship in May 2003 - THE first big buy when you fish out all your savings but still feel happy as you drive your first car from the showroom to the mandir..so what if you had to wait for 3-4 hrs at the showroom just to get the keys and the final papers. You suddenly feel rich behind the wheels when the pandit congratulates you on your achievement – as if he is not at all bothered about the dakshina that was to follow…
For a road-traveller like us, our car has been really reliable and tough…bravely putting across the potholed roads- even in those times when there were never-ending “no-road” patches in Bangalore – when the going was real tough as the Dharam Singh government had refused to release funds for the Bangalore infrastructure (or probably they were released but went to wrong pockets ). The highway drives were adventurous especially once when I was trying to overtake a few trucks in a row with the Santro packed to full capacity and all of a sudden a few ominous looking gigantic trucks came from the opposite side – face to face with my sophisticated front-wheel drive. I had nearly made up my mind (if at all I was thinking at that time!!) to hide beneath the truck on the left – when my husband reminded me that it was no a video game and we might really be hurt. The power brakes were really useful and very very effective at that time and later we could afford to just laugh it off. Don’t take me as a bad driver (nobody has ever complained when I am behind the wheels), as there can be times like this when you think you can never get out of it in a single piece. Like once when we were returning from Ooty cruising on the famous 36 hair-pin bend roads (this time my husband had decided to take the driver seat) – and suddenly my husband declared that he was not able to put the brakes. Its worth imagining what the look on our faces would have been when we got to hear this going downhill at an angle of nearly 45 degrees!! Later he realized that it was his mind not the brakes playing the game – mind it - it can surely happen on that road!!
For the past couple of years my Santro has played an important role as a ‘city car’ – its as convenient as driving a bike with the added advantage of having an AC cooling your mind in the Bangalore traffic. Parking it is a marvel – anywhere and everywhere – it will just silently wait for you while you inhale the black smoke on the Bangalore roads or just jostle yourself inside the busy malls all in the name of shopping or entertainment. There were times when you just come back and see it scratched by an adventurous bike or slightly bumped just because somebody couldn’t maneuver their vehicle with adept…but then it is bound to happen in Bangalore. Even though I really appreciate the patience of our people here but there are times when luck is not with you even though your license is. Specially the month-ends- when the policemen are prowling like hungry tigers to cut as many slips as possible – just stopping on a footpath (ofcourse when you are ‘inside’ the car) can earn you a traffic ticket – the only relief is the low charges which we Bangaloreans don’t mind as much we mind following the traffic rules.
It’s just a few hours now before the new owner will take her away from me , never to turn back(hopefully not- its always difficult to give back the money you just put in your pockets)…I will be wandering ‘becar’ (in Volvos/autos/taxis) ofcourse only till my next Hyundai comes fully loaded - all set for action on “namma Bangaluru” roads!!!
For a road-traveller like us, our car has been really reliable and tough…bravely putting across the potholed roads- even in those times when there were never-ending “no-road” patches in Bangalore – when the going was real tough as the Dharam Singh government had refused to release funds for the Bangalore infrastructure (or probably they were released but went to wrong pockets ). The highway drives were adventurous especially once when I was trying to overtake a few trucks in a row with the Santro packed to full capacity and all of a sudden a few ominous looking gigantic trucks came from the opposite side – face to face with my sophisticated front-wheel drive. I had nearly made up my mind (if at all I was thinking at that time!!) to hide beneath the truck on the left – when my husband reminded me that it was no a video game and we might really be hurt. The power brakes were really useful and very very effective at that time and later we could afford to just laugh it off. Don’t take me as a bad driver (nobody has ever complained when I am behind the wheels), as there can be times like this when you think you can never get out of it in a single piece. Like once when we were returning from Ooty cruising on the famous 36 hair-pin bend roads (this time my husband had decided to take the driver seat) – and suddenly my husband declared that he was not able to put the brakes. Its worth imagining what the look on our faces would have been when we got to hear this going downhill at an angle of nearly 45 degrees!! Later he realized that it was his mind not the brakes playing the game – mind it - it can surely happen on that road!!
For the past couple of years my Santro has played an important role as a ‘city car’ – its as convenient as driving a bike with the added advantage of having an AC cooling your mind in the Bangalore traffic. Parking it is a marvel – anywhere and everywhere – it will just silently wait for you while you inhale the black smoke on the Bangalore roads or just jostle yourself inside the busy malls all in the name of shopping or entertainment. There were times when you just come back and see it scratched by an adventurous bike or slightly bumped just because somebody couldn’t maneuver their vehicle with adept…but then it is bound to happen in Bangalore. Even though I really appreciate the patience of our people here but there are times when luck is not with you even though your license is. Specially the month-ends- when the policemen are prowling like hungry tigers to cut as many slips as possible – just stopping on a footpath (ofcourse when you are ‘inside’ the car) can earn you a traffic ticket – the only relief is the low charges which we Bangaloreans don’t mind as much we mind following the traffic rules.
It’s just a few hours now before the new owner will take her away from me , never to turn back(hopefully not- its always difficult to give back the money you just put in your pockets)…I will be wandering ‘becar’ (in Volvos/autos/taxis) ofcourse only till my next Hyundai comes fully loaded - all set for action on “namma Bangaluru” roads!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)