This was long long pending. I love travel and have been going around quite a bit for the past couple of years or so. Ive already posted some of my travel experiences previously.
The title, Travelogue may not be completely appropriate for the stuff I would be writing. Do not expect me to provide you with the best set itenary here...I will try to nevertheless; but then this will be more of what I did, places visited and some interesting trivia.
Travelogue
Movie Reviews
I am a total movie buff and I watch pretty much all genres of films. So, I've decided to start off writing about my own useless take on movies...be it Hindi, English, Kannada, Tamil or Telugu (Well, thats pretty much the languages I know / understand).
Selecting the first movie review I wanted to write about wasnt all that tough. But then, you cannot consider it totally a review as such as its an old one and one of my favourites. "Forrest Gump..."
So guys, watch space to savour the different chocos that life..err..movies have to offer....!
Book reviews
Finally, ive decided to share my views and thoughts on all the books I read / have read.
Being a true book lover, Ive finally managed to get back to reading books, definitely not at the pace I used to read once upon a time. Nevertheless, its a start Ive made all over again.
I was a bit undecided till now as to whether I needed to start off a new blog for the reviews alone. But then, considering the person I am, I decided to keep it simple and plain. One blog, different avatars! (read categories by the way :) )
I will religiously post all links of my book reviews in this page so it consists of a consolidated list at any given point in time.
Next, coming to that one book for which I want to write my first review...Well, it was an extremely difficult task to assay from such a large list. But Ive finally zeroed in on one - Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte).
Ive read this book atleast 4-5 times right from school. And every time I read it, it makes a mark on me that lasts for quite a while. So, watch out for it soon :)
Posted by Tej at 4:19 PM
Labels: book review, books
20 Seconds to Green....
She had a beautiful face. Just like any other girl of her age would. Her height, weight and physical appearance looked like she would probably be below 10 years of age. But for her eyes. They coxed a very different feeling in you. I would never imagine a 10 year old if I were to see just her eyes….
I couldn’t help but stare at her. She had a slim lean body. Her eyes were very intense. But there was something very sad about it. It looked like she was completely shattered. Yet, at the same time, it seemed she had a burning desire for something!
I wondered what her name was, where and how she lived. She for one, was in deft of dancing, dancing like there was no tomorrow. She was dancing for everyone to watch her, for them to give her some money. No one would be able to gauge for what or where the money would go. Perhaps toddy for the drinking father, or medicine for an ailing mother, or to some bigger group misusing these desolate children or perhaps just food for the day.
The agility with which she seemed to flex her body reminded me of a video that I watched on youtube sometime back where one guy does the so called ‘Robo’ dance in some American dance competition. This little girl seemed to match just as much talent if not more. She seemed to mix acrobats with dancing steps and all possible gimmicks to attract the slightest possible attention. If given proper care and support, she could perhaps win us a medal at the Olympics! If only she got noticed that is.
She smiled now and then; she looked intensely at anyone who showed some interest in her, perhaps with the hope that they would give something. My obsequious looks sure did turn some heads around too. I was feeling extremely guilty for no reason and my mind seemed to go blank. The tenacious grip on the steering wheels didn’t help either.
Suddenly, she turned and our eyes met. The feeling was very uneasy. I quickly turned away but was able to watch her with the corner of my eye. I knew she was walking and inching closer towards my car. I was getting restless and I clutched the steering even further. I didn’t want to ignore her. I wanted to help but definitely not with money.
I wondered how one should react to situations like this. There are lots of people who come begging for alms. I, more often than not, end up giving away a few rupees. However, this seemed different. My heart felt heavy and my mind seemed rigid. This girl and her eyes! They seemed to have a haunting effect on me.
I desperately watched the signal time ticking away. The Ad board above showed a very happy picture of a father and daughter. I don’t remember the ad now, perhaps it was about some insurance policy. That increased the vacuum feeling even further. I wanted to know her full life story and consciously I knew it would have more events than mine.
20 seconds and the traffic signal turned green. I hit the accelerator and sped away, leaving her to try her luck again another time, another place……
Adios Amigos Dada…………
The Maharaja of Bengal retired on a wonderful note. An amazing victory for the team and a good test series for him as an individual. To all those who may not like him, two hoots!! One thing’s certain – You can hate him or you can love him. You just cannot ignore him. That’s Dada for you!
Ive been an ardent fan of Saurav ever since he made an impact on the field . I hardly even knew what cricket really was at the time when he made his debut way back in the ’90s. What perhaps stands out is his debut at Lords and the magnificent century he scored. I was so bored of hearing Sachin’s name always. Every second person loved Sachin. I was itching for someone in the Indian team who was not Sachin yet had the flair to be one. The answer was Saurav Chandidas Ganguly.
There was something in him that struck me instantaneously. I hardly bother about the technicalities of cricket, infact I still do not understand how you judge an LBW. Still, I felt something strong that made him stand out, way above the rest….
People have lots of opinion about him. Well, who doesn’t? You may call him arrogant, I term it attitude!!
I’ve enjoyed the shorter version of the game and given Ganguly’s been most dominant in that, I just couldn’t stop loving him. Frankly, I’ve never found support in any circle. It would either be groups of Sachin fans or Dravid fans. I would stand out all the time for being Saurav’s fan and that too in Bangalore. I never really cared. Well, I had the rest of West Bengal for support surely :)
Saurav has always managed to do things his own way. India’s most successful captain and answer to aggression, passion and pure elegance. Be it the lofty sixes or his off side strokes or his captaining skills, he always stood out. And I always loved it.
All through, I’ve linked incidents and circumstances in my life with something to do with Dada. Here are a few ;-)
1997-98: This was perhaps Dada’s best year. Winning every other man of the match award. Winning matches for India; not just with his batting, but with the ball too. This was also the year where I topped my state level exams and also found my soul mate.
Tch Tch!
2000: Ganguly becomes the captain of the Indian Cricket team. I succeed in my entrance exams and land a medical and an engineering seat in two of Bangalore’s top colleges.
Ahem!
2004: Ganguly got the Padma Shri and I was one of the toppers for my branch with two jobs in hand.
Bliss!
2006: Ganguly makes one of the most dramatic comebacks ever. I, who was on the verge of boredom received a promotion and change in role @ my workplace.
Duh!
Ganguly’s saga will continue in some form or the other for years to come. A touching finale and my only reason to watch cricket! He surely will be missed.
Saurav Dada, you will always rock!!!
One day in a life time...
6:00 AM: Gloomy, lazy, snooze the alarm
“Get up now”
6:30 AM: Gloomy, lazy, stop the alarm
“Get up now”
7:15 AM: Glob, Burp, hurry, running like crazy
“Run, Run, Run”
8:10 AM: Gloomy, lazy, stare at the monitor
“Yawn’
9:10 AM: Horror, sadness, joy, News reading
“Want to become a social worker.”
10:10 AM: Smile, check time, smile, check time
“When will the meeting end?”
11:10 AM: Gloomy, lazy, do some work
“Hungry kya?”
12:30 PM: Famished, famished, famished
“Lunch time is here”
2:00 PM: Games, entertainment news, some soothing music
“La la la…tar ara...”
3:30 PM: Sleepy, lazy, do some work
“Another 1.5 hrs still?”
5:00 PM: Happy, happy, smiling, done for the day
“What plans for the evening?”
6:15 PM: Happy, happy smiling
“What’s there to eat?”
7:15 PM: Surfing, chatting, mailing
“If only they don’t block these at office too…”
9:15 PM: Sleepy, smiling, sleepy
“Finally, your home sweetheart!”
10:00 PM: Eat, drink, sleeeepy
“Lets go to bed please…”
12:00 midnight Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Posted by Tej at 3:36 PM
SUPERCALIFRAGILISTIC - ESPIALIDOCIOUS
It felt very strange to be sleeping and yet not asleep. It was not my room. The bed was hard and I had refused to use the available pillow. The previous occupants had probably slept with their mouth open. I tried hard to sleep but thoughts kept coming back to me. It felt like I would wake up tomorrow to an entirely new world…life changed drastically. There seemed to be some sort of anxiety. I looked around and saw my mother sleeping peacefully. I kissed her and took another dupatta next to her to cover my pillow.
This still didn’t seem to get me my sleep back. I was getting to worry now. My mind and heart seemed to be having tiffs within. I checked the alarm piece, it was 2 AM in the morning and I had been tossing and turning for the past 2.5 hrs.
I heard familiar voices outside. I had a dream of being taken to a room very similar to the one I was at present. I had the most wonderful face smiling down at me and it didn’t matter where I was, what I did, where I slept, what I ate or what I drank!
The next thing I know, my mom is vigorously waking me up. I checked the alarm piece and it showed 5 AM. Wha? The anxious journey was actually just going to begin…..
Looking at the mirror, I wondered if it was the same me. I looked different, very different. Things were moving way too quickly. It seemed like yesterday when I was a small girl riding my bicycle to school. I could very vividly recollect all the wonderful moments of my tuition classes. That was where I had met him. It had all begun there. Friendship, love, life ...all had a new beginning. We shared a very different and wonderful relationship. We would never meet, never talk in public, yet we knew exactly what was happening every second of our life. Thanks to some 18,000 secs/day that was religiously spent on the phone (wink!).
The class room so bright, he would sit with his back to the wall, facing me on the other side. Adrenaline rush each time our eyes met, followed by more stares until our friends started to feel the heat ;-)
The golden years of PU and engineering are still very fresh in my mind. Fun, laughter and just plain time-pass. My TASK group was really born there. The crazy days consisting of this-is-the-last-time trips aplenty, mind blowing night outs, long walks and constant talks…
I was jolted out of my thoughts by my Dad. He looked half his age and more so like my elder brother. We hugged for a brief instance and I let the tears just flow. Mommy appeared ever so busy and tensed. I had to pull her and pinch her cheeks. She cried with excitement and she cried. My tears hadn’t stopped flowing by the way.
My jingo-bang TASK came along (with me, the T already present for once). I looked at them and realised that almost a decade had passed since we’d met and the spark that first got us together was still very much visible. It was a big change coming for me and for all of us after today. I wondered if that would actually tame and sober me down….. (….truth is, it hasn’t and probably never will….).
My attire did not let me move around normally and there were too many people giving me way too many instructions. I was racing to complete tens of transactions per minute. Surprisingly my accuracy was 0.00001 percent.
Everyone around seemed to be very happy!. And what did I feel ?? I was happy. I was very happy. I was glad. I was anxious. I was nervous. I was confident. I was sad. I was excited. I was scared. I was not “I”. It struck me then…would I remain to be myself? Would I continue to be “me” after this day?
I had never lived away from Mom and Dad. I had never taken care of anybody other than myself. I had never shared a wardrobe. I had never shared a blanket. I had never shared a room!!! Surely, I knew it would be different. I love change, but this?!?
Amidst all the thought process that was going on within, lightning flashes of photography was in progress. If only they could capture my thoughts too, I wondered…
Cranking hard, the same wonderful face was sneaking up to the room to catch a glimpse of me. I pushed aside everything and walked straight up to the entrance. All my anxiety, all my fears and all the nervousness that was prevalent thus far, magically disappeared. I had found my soul mate, I had found my friend, I had found myself!
I now, just waited for the almost whimsical love story to complete for yet another new beginning.
My wedding, the most memorable event of my life last year.
Its still the same “me” and its still the same “us”. Thank you God. Thank you All.
Another whimsical one year just completed…..
Posted by Tej at 5:55 PM
Parii…lle-de-France!!
7 months since my trip to Paris and I still cant get over it!!
I hit gold and got lucky, I should say. Life was full of uncertainties at one stage and this happened - I flew to the city of love. Life could not have got better! Arc de Triomphe!!!
I visited my uncle there and stayed for 10 whole days. What did I visit on my first day there? Well, I visited the cemetery…aha, before you can think I went to pay my condolences to someone, let me tell you. It was the cemetery of Père Lachaise where some great people like Oscar Wilde, Rossini and hold your breath JIM MORRISON! have been buried. I but naturally visited the last one…cause it’s the Mojo Rising ;-)
Champs-Elysees!! It’s called the la plus belle avenue du monde, meaning the most beautiful avenue in the world. True to its name, it sure was a treat. Walking down the street got my hormones working overtime. A new kinda kick to see a “Vespa” , overwhelming to see the picture of “Taj Mahal” in one of the showrooms, a high buzz on a single glass of champagne (that too shared between two)….Life was everything but ordinary there!!
Shopping was done mainly on the streets and in small souvenir shops. Galleries Lafayette was an amazing experience but just to watch the others shop. I was somewhat proud to see the face of Aishwarya Rai on the L’Oreal counters in one of Paris’ biggest shopping arena.
I did full justice to the Da Vince Code and got to pose for a photo near the so called “holy grail”. Muse de Louvre was massive. They say it takes months for someone to see the entire museum. I spent just an hour inside and more than 2 hours outside the museum. For obvious reasons, the only things I saw there were – the “Mona Lisa” , Madonna of the Rocks, Venus de Milo and a couple of Michael Angelo sculptures.
Pyramids and fountains, French fries (called just fries there by the way) in one hand and boyfriend in the other, would I care to look at paintings?!
I’ve never fussed about visiting any religious monument. Be it temple, a mosque or a church. So, why would I miss out on seeing one of the world’s oldest and beautiful churches – Notre Dame. I should mention that Basilique du Sacre Ceur in Montmartre was a beautiful church as well. We had to climb up the steps of a small hill to get to the church. Each platform had someone performing something….dancing, singing, a comedy show…
Having mentioned about museums, churches, streets et al, I have to talk about the most visited monument in Paris – Eiffel Tower!! I prefer to call it “My baby” (wink!)
Contrary to the popular saying, “First impression is the last impression”, my first impression of the tower was not very good. I was extremely bored to stand in such a long queue to go to the top. Too many people and somehow it did not match up to what I imagined it to be…I had had a peak from my plane window when I was landing in Paris and that had set off way too many expectations. But, when I got there on the top, and had a view of the city, it was breath taking!!
I had always wondered why they named a metal structure a lovers destination….I had my doubts cleared that day!
I got to become Alice in Wonderland an entire day. I haven’t visited the Disney World in the U.S of A and was awe struck with the sheer color and joy that Euro Disney had to offer. Pretty little children, colorful atmosphere and a world of disney characters you have grown up reading. If I can recollect correctly, I had my mouth open for the first half an hour or so….
I had never seen snow in my life until the day we went to Chamonix. It’s a small place bordering France and overlooks Switzerland. We drove non-stop for 9 hours from Paris to Chamonix and the fact that Im here writing about it is sheer luck and by God’s grace. That drive was a marathon and the most frightening one at that. At one point, everyone in the car (driver included) had dozed off and we realized we had gone a few kms just like that!! The next morning I woke up to a panoramic view of the snow capped French Alps. Apart from playing in the snow with one just one hand (yeah, we were so ill-prepared that 4 of us had to share one pair of gloves in turns), I also went to this place called Mer-du-Glance. It’s an ice mountain which had many different structures carved out.
All said and done, it’s truly a pleasure just walking around the city, taking the metro and chilling! I have this in my list of places to be “visited again” ,“visited again and again” , “visited again and again and again”……….
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