Madurai Meenakshi Temple

After a magical time in Rameswaram, I decided to take the early morning bus to Madurai. 'Twas a 4hr ride to this beautiful temple city. On the ride, I was wondering where to head AFTER Madurai. The options were Trichy, Tranquebar & Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. In between reading up on these locations, I was trying also my level best to stay awake and watching the palm trees turn more and more into paddy fields. But the cool breeze streaming in through a crack in the window just hurried on the sleep. I awoke just before the bus was to enter Madurai and gathered that it was best to get off at the juction of the bypass and take a bus directly to the Meenakshi Temple (my first and only destination in Madurai)!

By the time I reached, it was 5 mins past noon and I was in a hurry to get inside the temple (which shuts at 1230). Dropping my luggage off at a nearby wholesale store (thanks to my P&G connections ;-)), I headed, bare-footed, into the temple.

Its fairly dark inside, some places looking brighter thanks to some diyas that have been lit by pilgrims. I see a looong line snaking into the main chamber, where the Meenakshi Amman idol stands. I start following the line towards its starting point, but to my dismay, I find myself walking for over 5 mins and the line doesn't end. So I drop the idea of having darshan of the main idol (Quite stupid, I know, considering I came all the way!). My quest for the starting point takes me to an altogether different part of the temple complex. Its not tough to see that the place is huge, awe-inspiring, and entirely confusing to a novice like me. (In my defense, though, I allowed myself to get lost :-) )

Within the complex, there are several several different little temples, sometimes even in the form of trees, each having a different deity. There is quite some noise around, of people talking, praying and generally moving about. Many are in a hurry, to enjoy darshans of every possible deity.

As I wander around, I find myself suddenly in a place from where some people are rushing out. I move in for a closer look, et voila, I find myself thrust into the line to see the main deity! And its right there, just a few meters away! What luck! I skipped the line to see Her! The calm, powerful, dark-coloured statue is visible just for a few moments. Its like one of those moments in the airplane, when your ears go pop, and you can't hear a thing. Everything just seems to go quiet. And you're looking right into those powerful eyes which hold you ever so briefly, and yet for an eternity, in a trance.

I'm really happy to get this opportunity even after deciding that I won't have time to wait in the queue all afternoon. Once I'm out, I choose to sit for a bit in a quieter corner, observe the people around me and soak-in the charged, yet calm, atmosphere. There are families, couples, groups of women, school students... it sometimes looks like a picnic spot. Everyone is happy, generally having a good time. Then there're the intensely devoted, deep in meditation, prayer. There're a few wonder-struck foreign tourists, being taken around for guided tours.

A call from an office colleague gets me out of the observation zone. A hungry tummy realizes, its waited longer than usual, and before I know it, I'm off looking for the nearest exit.

Rameswaram!!!

First, the bottomline. If you haven't been to Rameswaram yet, GO THERE. Go - for the ride across the sea, - for the swim on the beach, - for seeing The End of the World, - for the beautiful friendly smiling people, and last but not the least, go - for the truly awe-inspiring temple, & energy of the place.

A mid-week holiday (Wednesday) for Pongal/Sankranti, wasn't the ideal setting for traveling, but the decision (on Tuesday afternoon!) to take Thursday-Friday off and set out on a tour to Rameswaram, Madurai & Periyar wildlife sanctuary turned out to be a terrific one!

The first leg of the tour, of course, was Rameswaram. This holy city, known as the "Kasi (Varanasi) of the South" get millions of visitors every year. And, it has been on my mind (& travel radar) for quite a while. So when the opportunity presented itself, I just had to go. Of course, it didn't help that I decided so late, coz I had no train or hotel bookings whatsoever. Nevertheless, since I was traveling alone, I thought I'd manage one way or the other.

The Ride
The first bit, was easy as pie. Getting to Chennai from Tirupati. A short 4hr bus ride and I was there. Somesh's home for the night, and Wednesday evening was my train from Chennai Egmore Station for Rameswaram (No tickets!).

There are two trains from Chennai to Rameswaram (13 hrs), one at 5 in the evening and one at 8. You could take the 5 pm one if you want to be in time for the sunrise by the sea (might still not get you in time during summer I guess). The 8pm one will get you in a little later (9 am), but is sure to take you on the bridge across the sea in the early morning sun, and its sooo good, this itself makes the whole trip worth it.

Anyhow, I took the 8pm train. Got on with an unreserved ticket and thanks to the TC, got myself a seat in the 3tier AC compartment (no bribe!). This is not really a good thing to do for such a long ride. I was lucky to travel on a day when the crowd was less so could get a berth quite easily.

The train does not have a pantry car, so be sure you carry your own dinner or finish dinner before you start. I remember coz I had to make do with a couple of bananas and some juice!

I was up early in the morning so I could experience the ride across The Bridge. Rameswaram is actually an island off the east coast. Its the last bit of land, sandwiched between India and Sri Lanka. There's a bridge (abt 2km long, I think) connecting it to the mainland. As you can see in the pic, its simply awe-inspiring. The clean sea below and the cool morning breeze made this an unforgettable experience. Many of my friends who've been to Rameswaram when they were little kids remember this part of their journey very well. And twas easy to see why. (It kinda reminded me of the ride across the sea from Bombay to New Bombay, which I enjoy too. But the water there is hardly clean and the scenery is quite the opposite)

Getting around in Rameswaram, search for a room
I reached Rameswaram station at 9am and expectedly was swarmed by auto-rickshaw fellows. A ride to the temple costs about Rs25-30. But I decided to try something different and took a horse cart to a hotel suggested by the Lonely Planet guide (Hotel Tamil Nadu).

The ride was quite exciting and took me back to the days I used to ride horses close to my home in Bombay. (those 5 rs per trip thingies, who take u around for like 3 mins! =) ). Anyways, upon reaching Hotel Tamil Nadu, I learned two things : 1) The Governor of Tamil Nadu was scheduled to visit on that day (so no rooms available in that hotel due to security reasons) and 2) The Rameswaram police has a policy of not allowing single travellers to check into hotels.

Since I definitely wanted to stay the night, I headed for the police station to request for permission. The guys there helpful and decided to keep my driver's licence and my uncle's address in Chennai as 'security'. Then I went on and checked into a hotel called Island Star which is a 2 min walk from the temple. The rooms were spacious, but not very clean. At 400rs per 24hrs, it was a bit on the expensive side given the condition. (Some good hotels which were full at that time were Hotel Tamil Nadu & Rameswaram Guest house)

Snorkeling dreams
Once the room was done and dusted, I immediately headed for the (now erswhile) Children's Beach. I'd heard from friends who'd visited just over a year back that the fishermen folk there offer to take you out on a boat for some snorkeling! I was really looking forward to doing that myself. Upon reaching though, I was disappointed to learn that that had been stopped 8 months back because of an unfortunate accident where 2 lives were lost.

So I decided to pre-pone my plan of visiting the temple from the afternoon to the morning.

The Temple
The famous Ramanathaswamy temple is an imposing structure. The west facing side of the temple is the one that you first see while making your way from the station. Its quite a sight, especially with the sun in the background. The east facing side (in the pic here), was undergoing some renovation and was patched up with dry leaves. It kinda looked like the place where you would indeed find monkeys (ref Lord Hanuman).

The 'procedure' for visiting the temple is to start with a dip in the sea. Its a 2 min walk from the temple. After this, one directly proceeds to the temple and has a wash in each of the 22 wells that are there. It supposedly washes away all the sins you have committed. While I don't necessarily subscribe to that view, I still wanted to do it just to get a better feel of the place. The dip in the sea, around 1130 am, was rather cold, but fun. With wet clothes, I proceeded right to the temple. There is an entry fee of some 20 bucks and for 50-100rs per head, a 'guide' will offer to take you around each of the 22 wells and ensure you get head washed from each of em! Walking around with naked wet feet on the warm temple floor (which is open to the sky) felt awesome. The architecture inside the temple is simply breathtaking. One could get lost in the maze of long corridoors and intricate designs. After rushing through bathing from water from the 22 wells, I finally had some time to explore and feel the energy of the temple. There are several areas within it which were nice and quiet and give me a sense of deep peace. The mind stays alert and the eyes are wide open in wonder and awe. The place gives a poignant sense of being at some other place, at some other time.

The temple visit was certainly a high point of my Rameswaram trip. But there was more to come, entirely different experiences and thouroughly enjoyable all the same.

Lunch
The stomach started churning asking for its due after the soul stirring morning. Rameswaram has all (Indian) varieties of food on the menu - Gujarati, Punjabi, Bombay chaat, Bengali and of course traditional South Indian fare. For me the choice was (of course) South Indian meals replete with sambhar, rasam, curd, rice, curries and papads - the works!

Then, around 2ish, I took off for Dhanushkodi, a fishing village which is essentially the last inhabited point in India, before the sea divide with Sri Lanka. Its about a 1 hr ride out by the local town bus (number 3) from Rameswaram. Auto drivers will offer to drive you there and back for about 300rs, but it greatly limits your time and also costs a bomb compared to the bus which costs like 5-10rs.

Ride to Dhanushkodi
The bus to Dhanushkodi finally arrived at around 3pm. Apparently, because of the Governor's visit, buses were held up at the bus station. But after the hour or so's wait, the ride was quite fun. The people on the bus were warm and friendly and gave me tips on what to do once I reach the last stop. They told me that the bus actually doesn't go upto Dhanushkodi; rather it stops about 3 km before that. After that, there is no road and one needs to walk it up or take this ride on a van which costs about 100rs to and fro per person. 1km further down (so a total of 4km from where the bus drops you), is Sangam (the meeting place of the oceans), the 'End of the World'!! The vans will take you there as well (and back).

I also met a German couple on the bus and was shocked to know that the guy was a POSTMAN back in Germany and the girl was unemployed! I wondered to myself how many postmen from India have gone visiting any other state, forget another country a million miles away! (I also learned that the Oktoberfest in Germany is not really a good time to visit there as its crazy expensive and too crowded!)

Dhanushkodi (bus stand) to Sangam
Once I reached the bus stand, I had to squeeze myself onto a van departing from there to go to the Sangam. I was on a van with some 15nuns from a nearby Church! I sat next to the driver and although I got a really good view, the fumes spewing out of the engine box (between the driver and me) were quite scary!

At Sangam
This place is just mindblowingly beautiful. Sea on three sides, crystal clear water, cool breeze - if ever God wanted to give us people on Earth a feeler of Heaven, THIS was it.

Some of the birds I saw there reminded me of the ones I'd seen in Australia, with curved beaks et al. The whole experience was just surreal. Of course, I couldn't resist the urge to go for a swim in the water and headed straight in for a nice time in the sea. The water felt cool and combined with the sun shining in the horizon, the feeling was outta this world!!

Sangam to Dhanushkodi (the actual remnants of the village)
Once done, we headed back towards the bus stand before stopping on the remnants of the old village of Dhanushkodi. It was ravaged by a cyclone in '64 and has been uninhabited since. There're a couple of stalls selling beads, shells and the like, but all the stuff, Saravana Kumar, my friendly van-driver assister, tells me, is from Rameswaram. The trip back will remain in my mind for a long long time to come. After the scary seat next to the driver, I decided to be on TOP of the van for the return ride. It was absolutely unbelievable!! As the van snaked through the sandy beach and skirted over the water, I held on for dear life while watching the Sun set and ensuring I didn't get blown away by the breeze :-P

If you ever happen to go there, please DO make this ride on top of the van... It will be worth way waayyy more than the 100 bucks you'll pay for it!!

Back at the bus stand

On getting back, right on time for the sunset, I discovered a small canteen right on the beach selling parathas and omelet (11rs for one of each!). Sprinkled with some salt from the sea, it was the perfect end to the perfect day in Rameswaram.

As I waited for the bus (back to Rameswarm) to arrive, Saravana Kumar, the van-driver-assister told me a couple of things more about Dhanushkodi. He said the best time was to visit on a Monday, as it was always the least crowded on that day. He also got a bit philosophical as he was drawing water from a well, when he added "This is the life, sir... I like it... I'm so happy"

Ride back to Rameswaram

After the goodbyes to Saravana Kumar and the nuns, I boarded the bus back to Rameswaram which was choc-a-bloc full with locals headed back to 'the city'. The ride was peaceful all the same and I made it back to Rameswaram in time for dinner.

Next morning - sunrise

After a good night's sleep I was up early to catch the rising Sun. It is a must-have experience when you're in Rameswaram. A small crowd is gathered at the shore close to the temple to witness this daily event. For me, the experience was special. There was a calm about in the air and an anticipation and air of optimism and positiveness. You know you're going to be there, and you know you're going to witness something regular as well as special - made special by the place and the praying people around you.

And that, my friends, was Rameswaram, which now has a special place in my heart.

Train to Kurnool

(Wrote this like a coupla months back on a notepad... finally found its way to the blog...)

I met a cheerful old woman on the train from Hyd to Kurnool yesterday. Her face was calm and relaxed. Perhaps she reminded me of my grandmother, which is why I took an instant liking to her. She was dressed in an impeccable saree, the pleats neatly done up and looking never ever disturbed. Her hair was straight, white, and pinned up delicately. I watched as she went about checking all the pieces of luggage she had, as old people often do. She methodically went about cleaning her spectacles and keeping all the things in the places they ought to have been. Then she poked herself with a needle (insulin, I got to know later) rather nonchalantly.

Noticing my disappointment with the cold, dull, veg-biryani served on the train, she offered me a chapati, chhole and some curd-rice. My policy of not accepting anything to eat from anyone in a train went out of the window as I gleefully digged in. Then began the usual talk about where our families were, what I was doing, etc etc etc. Her command over English was exceptional and she spoke clearly and crisply.

We got talking about her family. 'Twas a typical Indian family for her generation; two sons, a daughter and their families, all well-settled. Everything seemed normal, until she told me about her husband. Sadly, he was paralysed and at home... for the last 18 years. My respect & admiration for her quadrupled after I heard this.

All this while, she had a warm smile on her glowing face. She'd pretty-much figured out how to smile through life despite all that it keeps throwing up.

A thing or two to reflect on, and learn, perhaps?

Condy, the three musketeers and what happened to the chick with the red top

Condi-pherry, Tindia.

Condy as its popularly known, was quite a unique destination. In a country where several people were obsessed with 'going abroad', it provided a cheaper and far easier alternative to experiencing a 'foreign' country life. The Trench had set foot in this place a few hundred years ago, and despite losing their colony to Tindia eventually, they had managed to leave a rich flavour of their culture behind. Not only that, several Trench people stayed on and were a 5000-strong community. The buildings and architecture in one part of the city was distinctly Trench. So much so that anyone visiting that area would definitely think he was in Trance rather than Tindia.

Condy was also known for its cheap liquor. It was, being a Union Territory, free from state taxes. Combined with its location by the sea, it made a strong case for a drunked weekend - Legend had it that after having a few glasses of Trench wine in Condy, people would be transported to the magical Trench Triviera, thousands of miles away. Of course, verification of this legend had to be done personally to satisfy ones curiosity.

Pseud Sing had been waiting for this trip for a loong time. His company (Fight Drank), was sending him to Condy to do a land valuation! It was going to be his first job-trip and he was pretty excited. But staying true to his 'I don't give a shit, life sucks' image, Pseud hid his excitement from his friends by playing it down as a purely business trip where he would be bored to death.

When Chromesh, Pseud's good friend from B-school got to know that Pseud will be in Condy, he immediately formulated a plan to meet-up and spend the long Christmas-weekend with him in Condy. Chromesh worked for an IT company in Dennai, which was just 3 hrs from Condy. Ever the sport for any travel activity, and a Condy-lover himself, the trip was an obviosity for Chromesh. He also called up his new-found partner-in-crime, Gopey and asked him to join them in Condy.

Gopey was from the same batch in B-school. He worked for an FMCG firm in Ghirupati, just 6 hours away from Condy. He'd already done Condy with Chromesh once, and loved the place. He'd recently been bitten by the travel bug and used to pack himself off to some place or the other on weekends. This, some felt, was more out of a desire to get out of a boring life in Ghirupati than to really travel and explore places. That, of course, was far from the reality. He was actually trying to run away from the hot women that used to surround him when he's in Ghirupati. The weekend was the only time he could squirm out with an excuse of meeting old friends. Much like Chromesh, who too was stuck with incredibly hot women in what is often called the 'Land where its easier to get a hot chick than to get a glass of water', Dennai.

Finally, the much awaited weekend arrived. Pseud Sing was the first to reach, before the weekend itself actually, for his work. Chromesh drove in from Dennai on his Bullet and joined Pseud on Thursday. Gopey meanwhile was busy pretending to be hard at work and decided to join them only on Friday evening.

The Thursday began for Chromesh & Pseud with a drinking binge of epic proportions. They had had so much beer in just a few hours that they had reached the magical Trench Triviera, which as we all know happens only after a few glasses of authentic Trench wine. Pseud couldn't have asked for a better start to the end of his first job-trip. Pseud was so proud for being among the first students from his B-school batch to go 'on-site' in another country - and this was not just any country, this was Trance! As they were riding around in the magical Trench Triviera, Chromesh realized that someone had sabotaged the back typre of his Bullet and it was punctured. He decided to pick a fight with one of the local goons and Pseud of course joined in. Luckily, Chromesh wasn't so angry and decided to let the criminal go with just a few strong words. Chromesh was well known for his extreme patience and it served to save this criminal from sure death... for Chromesh was strong, very strong. His new, and ongoing tryst, with a gym in Dennai had made him the only Super-Man on Dearth.

The trip to the magical Trench Triviera on Thursday was so fulfilling and intoxicating that Pseud and Chromesh didn't wake up on Friday morning. It was well into the afternoon when they awoke to Condy. Just about when Pseud was waking up, Gopey telephoned. He was acting pricey, saying that he won't be making the trip coz he was tired and that the travel would make him even tireder. (Of course, the real reason was that he'd fixed up a weekend date with one of the many hot women in Ghirupati, and he was strangely looking forward to it - possibly because she'd said 'This weekend or never'). Chromesh grabbed the phone from Pseud as soon as he heard rumblings of Gopey not coming. He fired Gopey left, right and center, telling him how the hell he could leave his friends and go off with some hot chick. Gopey had major introspection to do at this juncture and decided that friends were indeed more important. He chided himself for changing his mind so easily with the hollow promise of a 'now or never weekend-date'. He immediately picked up his weekend back-pack and left for Condy.

Gopey's ride to Condy was rather uneventful, apart from his bus running into a blacker-than-soot buffalo in the din of night. He finally reached Condy and greeted Pseud with his trademark "Pseuuuuuuuuud, wassup??" After the exchange of regular pleasantries, they decided it was too late in the night to make a trip to the magical Trench Triviera and just went to bed after a couple of beers.

The place they had for them was owned by a sweet Trench lady, Pascala. It was a room on the terrace of her house. Pseud was proud of himself for being able to use his legendary GLCSA (Good Looks, Charm & Sex Appeal) to get possession of the room. The lady had a very cute 8-year old daughter, Victoire. They had moved to Condy 2 years back. Pascala was so enamoured by this place that she'd left her native Trance to settle down in this dream-land. She was happy to have guests at home and treated them with utmost love and affection.

The bed was now really calling out to the gang. So much so, that they fell asleep even before they hit it. Pseud and Gopey were fast asleep when Chromesh felt a sudden urge to go to the magical Trench Triviera. Quietly he started gulping down all the remaining bottles of beer and drifted off to the magical Trench Triviera.

Saturday was going to be THE day. Gopey woke up early as usual and started fiddling with his laptop as soon as he'd finished his regular morning-activities. Realizing there was not much the laptop had to offer, especially since none of Gopey's hot girlfriends were online, he decided to make breakfast for himself. He was an accomplished chef and the aroma of the mouth-watering dish he was preparing woke Pseud up from his slumber. Chromesh though was still troddling around in the magical Trench Triviera and it would be a while before he returned.

Pseud and Gopey enjoyed the fantastic breakfast and waited for Chromesh to return. After a few hours, when he finally came back, they collectively decided to step out for lunch. They headed for Le Dupleix which was supposed to be the best Trench restaurant in town. They ordered salad, and pasta, and wine... it was a truly Trench experience. Chromesh though ordered local parathas and paneer subji as he felt the Trench food wouldn't ruffle his taste-buds.

After the awesome lunch, which lasted over 2 hours, they walked back to their place. They were greeted by some good news from Ms. Pascala. There was going to be a Trench party at night at a new place being opened by a friend of hers. Gopey was the mildly excited by the news and immediately started imagining himself surrounded by heavily-clad, somewhat hot Trench women - a welcome change from the usual rut of scantily clad, super-hot women in Ghirupati. Pseud was his usual self and acted as though this would be just another party that would make his already sucky life even suckier by reaffirming his 'single' status. But he was secretly hoping, and confident, that he would get back to his glory days where women used to swoon even the sight of a stamp-size photo of his left ear.

Chromesh's original plan was to leave back for Dennai in the evening itself before dinner as he had a very important 'meeting' to attend the next day. But upon hearing news of this party, Chromesh was the first to head to the bathroom to get ready, primed for assault!

As the three strode confidently towards the party-place, they could see people around them being blinded by their sheer presence. They were THE kings and they were going to RULE the night.

As they reached the scene, they found they were one of the first ones to arrive. They decided to start with a round of drinks and were joined by the cheerful Pascala almost just at the moment they were going to say "Cheers". She started telling stories about her life and how she loved Condy and how the world would have been an imperfect place if there was no Condy, etc, etc. The trio were rapt in attention to the colouful and vivacious Pascala. They failed to notice the heavily-clad, somewhat hot women who were streaming in. Pascala then took their leave as she had work to attend to and left the trio to themselves for the night.

By this time, all of them were down a few drinks, Gopey more so than the others. Pseud tried to look un-interested in the glances that were being thrown across the terrace by the white-top & hazel-eyed Trench girl. Gopey on the other hand was conveniently assuming that she was looking at him rather than Pseud. Chromesh was quietly surveying the scene as Pseud and Gopey exchanged glances with each other and then with the white-top. Gopey, confidently stode forward with what seemed to the others like a strong plan in mind. But after a few steps he veered off-course toward the food counter where he'd caught sight of the delicious prawn-idlys. Pseud finally decided he'd had enough of the arbitrary eye-exchanges and stepped right into the crowd of Trenchies. With his awesome grace and poise, he blended in with them as though he'd always belonged. He then called over Chromesh and Gopey to join him as he surveyed the scene. When they finally joined him, they actually found him to be animatedly in conversation with a tall white guy named Tim. He was from Banada, living and working in Dyena and down for a 'spiritual' trip to Tindia. Gopey tried to make his way toward the blue-top but Pseud called out to him and asked him to join them. Gopey grudgingly joined them as he was of the opinion that he'd have a good chance with blue-top, ever since that white-top had mysteriously disappeared from the scene.

So Pseud, Chromesh, Gopey & Tim were at their little group in front of the bar. Tim was an interesting chap and kept conversation flowing with some real wise-cracks. He declared that he was interested in the red-top but also that it had just not been his day till then, so he was not going to risk a move. The trio egged Tim on so that he would go for it. It had come to the point where it seemed like the trio were crazed fans cheering for their lone-striker to score the winning goal.

The drinks, meanwhile, were flowing... fast. Gopey had reached the brink of the magical Trench Triviera. He hobbled into the lone bathroom just by the side only to be surprisingly encountered by the white-top and the blue-top coming out of it… together. As soon as he looked at them, they gave him that 'deer caught in the headlights' look. Gopey faked the most fake 'Why hello, nice to meet you' smile and entered as they left. He came back out just in time for his refill of beer and his ticket to the magical Trench Triviera.

The gentle and patient Chromesh had been surveying the scene for a while and had decided that Purple-top was going to be his catch. But he found himself cheering Tim on. Later, he selflessly thought to himself. "Lets do this for Tim first". Pseud was so deeply involved in the cheering that he'd forgotten about white-top altogether. Tim FINALLY got up and walked towards red-top. The trio watched with anticipation and bated breath... Was their striker going to score?

The conversation started. Tim looked smooth. All that coaching and brain-washing from Pseud and Gopey seemed to be working. They saw Tim getting his fancy cell-phone out to take down a number as red-top spelled it out.

Gopey said, "Pseuuud, I think we've lost Tim for the night. You think you want to say hello to white-top?"

"Naah, I think I'd prefer to go to the magical Trench Triviera", Pseud giggled as he said.

"Can't agree more" added Chromesh "Lets make this a guy's night out... no more women! We stay together!"

And then they met soon in the magical Trench Triviera. This is what they'd come to Condy for.

--

Next morning, Chromesh had to leave early for his 'meeting'. Pseud and Gopey woke up later and packed their bags to go back. They bought little Victoire a big box of chocolates and said goodbye to Ms. Pascala, who promised to invite them for more Trench parties whenever they’d happen in town.

So ended the trio's trip to Condy, and not to mention, the magical Trench Triviera...

Au revoir!!

:-)

PS - All characters in this story are fictional and any resemblance to any person(s), living or dead, is purely coincidental

Happiness - II

In my first post on this topic, I had just about started exploring what is it that makes people happy. Its been over two months since that post...! (So much for trying to continue the series 'over the weekend'! How time flies..!)

Anyways, I had observed then that people in the towns and villages seemed visibly far happier than their big-city counterparts. I put this down to the lower expectations they had with their lives. Let me explore this notion a little further...

We're bombarded by information today. Be it the newspapers, television, internet or radio, they're all feeding us with reams and reams of data. This shapes the way perceive ourselves and the world around us, how we think, what we look forward to, what we detest...

Small town people live in relative oblivion. They're in their own little worlds - the place they live, their little locality and the place they work - things are generally very simple. When you speak with them, you're generally greeted by warm smiles and you can't help but notice their absolute zest and joy for life. (I came across a bunch of labourers in a small town close to Tirupati few days back... and these people were having a ball while working - passing around bricks and cement, singing songs and smiling ear to ear). One might argue that they're also exposed to a lot of information - Television & radio are now far more prevalent... Yes, but still, the language barrier means that they still watch and follow local programs. Their perceptions, thoughts, dreams are still largely, and very happily, local.

The situation is different for the city folk. My conjecture is that since city people are exposed to so much more information, they see a bigger world around them... They see that they're still not completely a part of this world.. Consequently, they want more money, a better job, more out of their relationships, better food... the list is endless.

Of course, there's nothing wrong in wanting it, is there? Everyone has ambitions. But the problem starts arising when they start expecting it, when they start saying "My life sucks coz I don't have x, y, z..." How often have we heard that statement? People live in frustration & denial of what they don't have yet... While, unfortunately, forgetting what they already have.

The concept of peer-pressure is also stronger in the city environment. Competition is intense, and no-one really wants to be left away from the crowd. Most people find it difficult to stay true to themselves in their eagerness to 'fit in' or 'get ahead'. This is where the city-folk differ most from their up-country counterparts. They are well and truly in the rat race to nowhere. They see people around them getting there and when they don't, it opens the door for Mr/Ms Unhappiness to walk right in.

--

Where does the discussion so far then leave us? Are we any closer to unraveling the mystery behind the small-town happiness?

(to be continued...)

The Sea & our hotel at Pondicherry...

When Pondy took the cherry

The agenda: Chill out (or... get wasted - depending how teetotaller-ly you are)

The place: Pondicherry (now Puducherry.. duh!)

The time: Weekend

We set out from Chennai early enough in the morning to hear the cock-a-doodle-do. The ride to Pondy is smooth and splendidly scenic. The road (East Coast Road, as its called) runs along the coast all the way and the cool sea-breeze is a fresh break from the Chennai heat. Going by bike, rather than taking a bus, is not a bad idea. It allows for stops on the way to just admire the vast sea, which is sometimes on both sides of the road! It takes us about 4 hours, but can be covered quicker in a car I guess.

Once we get there, we head straight for the dazzling rock beach promenade/ beach front. Its difficult not to fall in love with it... Its a complete experience; enchanting, powerful, graceful and dangerous at the same time...

There are a few hotels in the area to suit various budgets... We check into the Ajantha Guest House, for a room overlooking the beach. Its a steal for 700 bucks a night (non a/c)! The restaurant/bar alongside it, again called Ajantha (if I remember correctly), makes for a perfect afternoon by the sea.

Being a Union Territory, the booze in Pondy is dirt cheap. 65 bucks for a bottle of beer.. some 250 bucks for a pitcher! The weather is nice & warm and chilllled beer is certainly the drink of choice in the afternoon. The snacks to go along with it are delectable, fish tikka, assorted veggies, all are devoured during the course of the 'session'.

Along the promenade, a 5 minute walk from the Ajantha Guest House, is Le Café. This is the perfect place for breakfast. Good, inexpensive food and the view, outta this world! The mini idlis with sambhar are the best of the lot and I suggest you definitely give 'em a try. On the Sunday that we were there, there was a film being shot at this place and we got box seats (inside the café) alongside the actors after the shot was over!

On Saturday evening, we set off on a 1/2 hour ride to the world-famous Auroville. Along the beach front we could see some foreigners taking walks, but Auroville is teeming with them - Attracted by the promise of a peaceful, better, life... or doing some voluntary work for the local community... We meet people from Chile, Italy & Germany among other countries and they seem to have settled down quite well - an old German couple even bargains in TAMIL with a store-keeper! There's not much to see here otherwise...

The Auro beach is a great place to take an evening walk. If you're with your girl/guy, this place is a must-visit. I imagine it'd be quite a romantic experience... (Of course, I was with a drunk Somesh, who was too busy losing his slippers in the water - and crying that the sea took them away - until it threw the worthless crap back ashore :-P )

Dinner's at the chic Promenade hotel, on the promenade, again... Its a good place to have a nice, proper, sit-down family dinner types... There're two old French couples playing cards and generally having a good time, so I think you get the drift...

The next day we head to Arikamedu. This place about a half hour drive from Pondy is an archeological site and is supposed to have some Roman ruins. But there's absolutely nothing here and if you're archeologically inclined, you can make a trip to the museum which is said to contain most of the remains from these ruins.

So without wasting too much time amongst the ruins, we head straight for Paradise Beach (about 10 mins further down the road). Its advisable to leave for this place just around lunch time to give yourself enough time to spend at the beach. You've to park your vehicle, take a ticket for a ferry across to this island (about 10 mins on the ferry). The last ferry back is at about 4 pm, so plan accordingly. The beach itself is breathtaking. Its a touch crowded on weekends and the guy with the big speaker shouting out to public to stay away from the water can get to be quite a pain. Otherwise, the place really is paradise...!

Pondy was once a French colony, and there're several French restaurants dotting the city. We headed to Satsanga for a drink and snacks. The ambience is nice and quiet with enough light around coz of the open top. The service though is deplorable and the waiters are totally unresponsive. But once the beer & snacks are on the table, all this is easily forgotten :)

There's a beautiful Church, Church of Notre Dame, I think, and we spend some time there. I get to revise my french as I follow Jesus' story on the pictures on the walls. A good place for a nice peaceful afternoon...

After a final refill of food at Le Café, we head back to Chennai... The ride at night is completely different. The vast sea now is completely lost in the darkness and looks like an endless abyss. It'd have been different on a clear, star-lit night... But cloudy night, 'twas a touch unnerving & scary! There're also police checks on the way to ensure we're not carrying back cheap booze or drunk-driving.

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And so ended the perfectly chilled-out weekend... As it happens, P&G is now taking us for an offsite there this week!! Can't wait!!! Wuhhooo!!!

Jacaranda flowers in Brisbane!

Thanks to my lovely aunt for these pics...

Jacaranda trees in Brisbane... B E A utiful...!

Australia!!

(Written about 3 weeks back, completed today..!)
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Although I still had more to write on the 'Happiness series' that I started, my thoughts have been completely occupied with my first trip to Australia earlier this month. (I'm still recovering from the hangover of the 'high' that I received from the trip - to Brisbane, Singapore, Bombay & three weddings!)

Given that I was there only in Brisbane, and that too only for three days, which included the wedding (my cousin sis', wuhooo!), one can say that I've not really seen Australia at all. But the flavour that I got of it in this time has me convinced that I will go back there for more!!

Notes from Brisbane...

The first thing that strikes me about Brisbane, (as soon as I land) is the weather. Its just the start of summer here and its not too different from a regular Bombay day. The familiar humidity in the air is gladly welcomed. But then, unlike Bombay, there are hardly any people around. The roads are wide, all of them seeming freshly painted and traffic (whatever little there is) is very orderly.

My uncle turns on the GPS to get to our apartment and it immediately starts barking directions. I can't really imagine using GPS in the narrow roads in Bombay, (or chronicling all the addresses that are there!) but then I guess its already started happening.

The heart of Brisbane is the Brisbane river (innovative name eh!?). It runs through the city and most of the city's happening spots are dotted along it. Our apartment overlooks the river and gives a breathtaking view of the city from the 25th floor!! Its in an area called Quay (pronounced as just K). This also seems to be the office area with buildings of IBM, Oracle and several other big companies right next door.

The parties here sure seem quite a do, with people going around wearing weird costumes with especially fancy head-gear ('tis a Friday night).

There's something about the place which makes me feel instantly at ease. Perhaps its got to do with Australia's history itself, as a vast, welcoming land with people from several countries & continents and races & cultures making it their home. Talking of people, and welcoming, the folks here are simlar to back home in Bombay; always ready to lend a helping hand, give directions and speak with a cordial smile on their face (as opposed to Delhi, where people are cold and unhelpful - Sorry Delhi-lovers, couldn't resist a dig at your fav city :-P ).

When we make a trip to my sis' place, the landscape, awash with purple jacaranda flowers, is breath-taking! (I feel like such a dud not having taken any pics of it! I guess I was too busy admiring the scene!). In general, the residential areas, away from the city, are quiet and peaceful. They remind me of my uncle's place in Sunnyvale, California. Although they're a lot more greener... The neighbours dog is an ageing Golden Retriever and immediately offers himself for a petting. He's a lot bigger than my old pooch Jimmy, but has the same innocent eyes.

A short trip to the Gold Coast makes for a wonderful evening by the sea. There are truly weird looking birds around and about wherever I go. The beaks are almost always twisted at the tip, the for some reason; the birds themselves look stronger, sturdier, than back home.

The Aussies are crazy about fitness. Early in the morning I see several people walking, roller-blading, cycling on the streets... a 'regular' fitness thing I'm told. And with most of the country living very close to the coast, scuba-diving, snorkelling & surfing are also usual ways of keeping fit, and most importantly enjoying oneself while doing so! Folks also go 'bush-walking', taking treks into the bushes (foresty areas basically)!!

But apart from the way of speaking English (the Austraaalyan way), I can't really find much uniquely Australian. I meet people originally from Ireland, Argentina, Korea, England and a host of other nations and each bring about their own bit of flavour to Australia. One common thread though is that all of them truly love and enjoy their freedom.

A longer trip is now certainly on the cards, perhaps 3-4 years down the line... 'til then I'll have this post to reminisce the beautiful time spent in this world away from worlds...

Stop

Two unpublished drafts stare at my numb mind as I watch in shock at the events happening in Bombay. I'm sick in the stomach. Uncontrollable tears. Confusion. Anger. Despair.

Please stop. Please.

Happiness - I

Despite the lack of passion with studying finance theory from the books during my MBA, I've loved to follow the general goings on in the financial world. Especially, the crazy world of the equity markets. Its fun following it on TV, the likes of CNBC et al going "today has been a landmark day with the Sensex crossing the 20,000 mark..." etc etc.

Although what happens there doesn't directly affect me (I've no investments), the whole packaging and the passion involved in their reporting really captivates me. It also helps lift or in some cases even dim my spirits sometime! When there's a bull run, example, with all the smiling presenters going ga-ga over how great the economy is, it kinda rubs off on me too and I find myself smiling too. They say, smile and the world smiles with you... clear case of that I guess.

Off late, the gloom in the markets has the presenters coming in with gloomy faces and muffled voices. I feel the drop in their energy levels and its difficult not let it affect me as well.. Its like watching a sad movie praying there's a happy ending. I can't even begin to imagine what it is like for people whose investments have been hit. The same thing that made them happy a few months back is now stealing that happiness away from them. And... also those who've lost their jobs.

Because of some smart-ass derivatives structurers, people have had to part with their life earnings or the source of it. UNFAIR.

Sitting here, in a small town away from the mayhem, it makes me feel small and powerless. It would be easy to drown myself in the melancholy along with the rest of em... But I open my eyes and I also see happy locals all around as it is raining! The landscape is lush green (pics from my new phone soon :P )and the weather is near-perfect. (Apparently, since the rains were really bad this year, some major puja was done a coupla weeks back at Tirumala, specially to appease the Rain Gods - and now the whole most of South India is under threat from floods :-P )

Anyways, people around are happy and rejoicing, with Diwali also round the corner.... Happiness is most certainly about managing expectations... People here have only few (compared to what a city-dweller would for example).

Its probably a reason why we see so many happy faces in the villages and little towns... Something for us city-bred folk to think and reflect on perhaps...

Here's a link to Subbu's post, which along with a chat with him about this, got me thinking on this subject... More thoughts over the weekend perhaps...

xx

Desperate Measures

One month almost since my last post and my blog's started complaining that I ain't giving it enough time. A combination of a string of parties and of laziness rearing it ugly head again has forced me to take these desperate measures to get a post going. The thing with laziness is, it fires your creativity to give excuses to not do something with your time as well... like saying that I was too busy to write a post! Or worse still, I was suffering from a lack of motivation... writer's block... mental pneumonia or that my mind felt like it was being squeezed from all sides by a boa.

Anyways, as I sat to write this, I had to start fishing for what I'd write about. Hmm.. lets see..

*F1*- season's gotten boring, Schumy's long gone, and altho Vettel's looking exciting he's in the wrong car this season at least...

*Football*- Clubs are all off for the moment and nothing much apart from some uninteresting qualifiers going on...

*The economy* - So much said and so much read... from Iceland becoming worth a loaf of bread to a multi trillion $ bailout across European countries... The gift of foresight for coming into FMCG :-P

*Travels* - I've only been to campus, Bombay & Hyderabad. Bombay & Hyd there's not much to write about.. and if I start writing how awesome a time I had on campus, I'll prolly need a week's vacation to complete the post :-D

*Arbit fiction* - Two unfinished posts already and no way forward, sure to hit a roadblock, not something to take up when 'the flow' 's a bit iffy.

So after the round of presentations that each category made to the unimpressed blog post control center in my head, the decision still remained as open as before the presentations started.

And then, arrived the unknown presenter who wowed the singular audience with aplomb. 'Movies' made a spectacular surprise appearance with WALL-E... the super-cute love story about a robot and his visitor from space...

Now I must admit I'm a total sucker for cartoons and would probably find even an ok-ok cartoon movie pretty good. But this one was simply fantastic...

Hard-working as any robot should be, but with a touch of human romance about him, Wall-E is an instantly loveable character. The movie takes its time to describe Wall-E's motivations and the little nuances that make him what he is. His trusted mate, a little cockroach (yuck! I know! But still one can't help but like him!), is also portrayed wonderfully, which just adds to the feel-good factor at the start. (Scientific reason - even if all life has ended in the world, the likliest creature to survive would be the cockroach!) Anyways, the ride only just begins when Eve, the 'sexy'-robot-from-outer-space-looking-for-life, touches down and completely blows Wall-E away with her moves. After this its just an absolute roller-coaster as Wall-E follows her to a space station and while attempting to profess his love for her, ends up saving mankind as well...

The plot is simple, the execution is brilliant (Pixar! Need I say more!?) and its difficult not to fall in love with it all.

If you've seen this movie, lemme know how you liked it!? If you haven't seen this movie, get a copy and watch it and then lemme know. :-)

xx

Twenty-five already seen by me,
Many more I shall roam free!

Also a toast,
To many more a post.

xx