It's difficult to say what I like best about reunions... Old memories, reliving those moments your friends made absolute fools of themselves, watching them make absolute fools of themselves even now or enjoying the fact that even though we've been apart for six months, nothing has changed.
Whatever it is, reunions give me this amazing feeling. It's like there's a whole new part of me that comes back to life when I meet old friends. And I hope that even after years go by, we'll be able to meet up and feel time melt away...
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Upto No Good? Hardly!
I can honestly say (after a long time) that I have barely been upto no good these past few day. Here's a list of things to back that claim.
Test results are out. Though I've slipped by a couple of marks, my average is enough to stop the lazy person that I am from taking the third set of tests.I finished a killer 200-problem electronics assignment in less than a week. And then finished a 20 page Chemistry assignment in a day (which is not very large but considering it was Chem, I'm very proud of myself!)
I can now speak coherent sentences in French. Unfortunately, I spent ages trying to pronounce 'franc' properly, telling myself that it'd come in handy sometime. After almost perfecting the pronunciation, realised that the currency of France is now the Euro!!! 
I have been sleeping only from 11.30 to 6 everyday! (Laugh all you want to at this apparent lack of achievement but bear in mind that for my whole life, I've survived on nine or more hours of sleep a day!)
I can now draw integrated and differentiated versions of waveforms!
I have been increasing my knowledge of jazz music and other such amazing genres by listenening to a dedicated music show.
I can drive without injuring anyone (almost). Just need a Tuesday or Thursday off to go for my Permanent licence test!
And last but what I'm really proud of, I've never in my life studied as much as I am now. (Before you get excited about this one, it's not saying much. I've never been one of those people to sit down and study for long hours at a stretch. My idea of a long study session is an hour and a half!)
So there's my story... My blog now sounds like a Red Hot Chilli Peppers fan site!
Test results are out. Though I've slipped by a couple of marks, my average is enough to stop the lazy person that I am from taking the third set of tests.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Sad, ba!
(Here I've taken the liberty of using a copyrighted phrase for my title!)
After a really long break from the internet (some ten days), I returned today to my mail checking and found to my utter disappointment that I had only 71 e-mails in my inbox! Most of them were forwards. There were only two e-mails which were actually letters!
It just feels weird that all of us are willing to send forwards to each other (some more than once) but somehow don't find the time to send out a meaningful e-mail to a friend. And I'm absolutely guilty of the same thing. It's fine to say we're going to be in touch with all our friends but to do that, it takes more than forwarding an e-mail about how the earth's going to swallow you up if you don't forward it soon enough.
I just read through what I've written so far and it probably sounds highly weird, but the fact of the matter is that I'm sick. Sick of opening my inbox only to find it flooded with silly forwards from the same people who haven't yet replied to an e-mail I'd sent out three months back asking for their contact details!!!
Besides that, nothing much happening. I tried to get more studies done by getting online less, but turns out that the time I'm not spending on the comp ends up being spent in front of the TV!
After a really long break from the internet (some ten days), I returned today to my mail checking and found to my utter disappointment that I had only 71 e-mails in my inbox! Most of them were forwards. There were only two e-mails which were actually letters!
It just feels weird that all of us are willing to send forwards to each other (some more than once) but somehow don't find the time to send out a meaningful e-mail to a friend. And I'm absolutely guilty of the same thing. It's fine to say we're going to be in touch with all our friends but to do that, it takes more than forwarding an e-mail about how the earth's going to swallow you up if you don't forward it soon enough.
I just read through what I've written so far and it probably sounds highly weird, but the fact of the matter is that I'm sick. Sick of opening my inbox only to find it flooded with silly forwards from the same people who haven't yet replied to an e-mail I'd sent out three months back asking for their contact details!!!
Besides that, nothing much happening. I tried to get more studies done by getting online less, but turns out that the time I'm not spending on the comp ends up being spent in front of the TV!
Friday, November 10, 2006
Tests... Again!
Just when you think you've got your nose far enough away from the grindstone, the dreaded word 'T2' begins to float around in your college calendar under dangerously close dates... And that grindstone almost magnetically pulls your nose right back. Somewhere in (or between the lines of???) that convoluted sentence lies the fact that I shall, once more, be forced to write less and less in my blog and study more and more. Okay, pretend to study. So until then we meet again, au revoir!
P.S. T2 stands for second internal tests and, as you've probably figured out from previous blog entries, I learn French!
P.S. T2 stands for second internal tests and, as you've probably figured out from previous blog entries, I learn French!
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Never On A Sunday!
This is the second time college has made us work on Sunday. Surprisingly, though, I was (and am) in an exceptionally good mood today! No idea why. And in spite of the fact that Australia is currently shaking the sillies out of India, my mood is maintained. Such a level has my mood attained that I stepped up to post this blog entry though I have nothing to post about! Ah bientôt!
Saturday, October 21, 2006
'A' Rated!
I think that I'm finally beginning to become the adult that my birth certificate says I am. A lot of people who know me well enough (read 12 Sci-ians) are probably 'LOL'ing right now. To them, I say... I'm as surprised as you are! I never thought I could be anything but the child (or baby, rather) that I've been for the past 18 years, but I guess I was wrong.
I've begun to feel a lot that I've never felt before. Like responsibility. And when I say responsibility, I am not referring to doing my homework on time or performing prefect duty without fail. I'm talking more in terms of the feeling that in four year's time, I will be working (hopefully!), and someone will be using what I make, and I will be answerable if anything goes wrong. And that someone's life might actually depend on the stuff that I make. I know four years seems like forever, but it seems like just yesterday that I was my sister's age! Which brings me to another point.
Even till a few months back, I would find it funny when my parents said stuff like 'Oh, how time flies! It seems like just yesterday when we were little kids!' or when relatives came up to me and went 'The last time I saw you, you were soooooo small. How tall you've become!'. But yesterday, I found myself saying just that to a ex-neighbour I'd met after two years. I also feel (like I've mentioned earlier in this article) that time flies. I feel nostalgic about school. Though I'm still a student, I no longer feel like a schoolgirl. Yesterday, when my neighbour of three years wished me a happy diwali and commented on how grown up I looked in a 'salwar kameez' (Ref. next paragraph), for the first time, I didn't feel that she was ancient.
Until a few months back, I made sure I shopped for clothes that looked 'cool', whatever that is. Part of this policy was buying clothes that made sure my friends also considered me 'cool'. Really! But now I've sorta reached a point where I'm realising that it really doesn't matter that much. Funnily enough, I realised this when I saw a Full House episode I'd seen some thrice earlier. I'd recognised the theme of the episode all the time, but I'd never really FELT it till I saw it for the fourth time. Now, I suddenly don't mind dressing up in an ethnic dress (and that means salwar kameez with dupatta, not kurta and jeans!) even for casual occasions. In fact, I'm proud of it.
I'm proud because it brings out my Indian-ness. As days go by, I feel more and more patriotic. I know now that being an Indian doesn't just mean that I live here and speak the language. There are ties that bind. It's a deep running bond that links you to your country, and that can never change no matter where you choose to live. When my parents used to grumble that we never speak out mother tongue at home, I would wonder why they made such a big deal of it. But I now find myself worrying that my language (notice the feeling of belonging!), which is already not widely spoken, might be lost in the generations to come. I find myself promising myself that I will teach my children my language.
My children! Gosh! I often realise, much to my surprise, that I'm telling myself exactly how I'll bring up my kids. I've also begun to feel an emotion that's been totally alien to me till now - motherliness (I don't know if that's a word, but that best describes how I feel). I've never really been one to 'cutesify ' babies - in fact, I used to find babies whiny, smelly and heavy - but of late, I've begun to love holding infants. And I really feel something I can't put into words. It's just something that you feel that makes you feel incredibly happy - the innocence in those little eyes that look up to you, and the fact that they're relying on you. It just makes you feel really good about life. Also, when my mum always worried about me or my sister, I used to find it weird. I mean, the chances of us getting into trouble are much lower than the chances of us NOT getting into trouble, right? Though that still seems perfectly logical to me, lately, I've been worrying a whole lot about my loved ones. (Though this might not be such a new thing - I think I've worried about a lot of my closest friends in the past year...)
But the one thing that I notice that has changed the most about me, that, perhaps, was bound to happen sooner or later - I've outgrown childish crushes. I think I've come to a stage when I can tell the difference between mere attraction and the real thing. Or at least I have enough confidence in myself to know that I'm not going to chase every little infatuation I have. I see lots and lots of really good looking men on TV et al, but now, that's all there is to them. I don't really feel very much more. I know that there's a little something more that I need to find. I'm not sure a hundred percent sure that I know what that something is quite yet, but I am sure that I will know for sure someday.
I think the last six months have really shaped me as a person. I've learned a lot from my experiences (more from the bad ones!). I've made some wise decisions, and some horrendous mistakes. But I've lived through them, and I KNOW I'm wiser now. The world seems an entirely new place, suddenly. But you know, things really aren't very different now. It's just that I've begun to see them differently.
P.S. I also would never write a blog entry like this one a year back!
I've begun to feel a lot that I've never felt before. Like responsibility. And when I say responsibility, I am not referring to doing my homework on time or performing prefect duty without fail. I'm talking more in terms of the feeling that in four year's time, I will be working (hopefully!), and someone will be using what I make, and I will be answerable if anything goes wrong. And that someone's life might actually depend on the stuff that I make. I know four years seems like forever, but it seems like just yesterday that I was my sister's age! Which brings me to another point.
Even till a few months back, I would find it funny when my parents said stuff like 'Oh, how time flies! It seems like just yesterday when we were little kids!' or when relatives came up to me and went 'The last time I saw you, you were soooooo small. How tall you've become!'. But yesterday, I found myself saying just that to a ex-neighbour I'd met after two years. I also feel (like I've mentioned earlier in this article) that time flies. I feel nostalgic about school. Though I'm still a student, I no longer feel like a schoolgirl. Yesterday, when my neighbour of three years wished me a happy diwali and commented on how grown up I looked in a 'salwar kameez' (Ref. next paragraph), for the first time, I didn't feel that she was ancient.
Until a few months back, I made sure I shopped for clothes that looked 'cool', whatever that is. Part of this policy was buying clothes that made sure my friends also considered me 'cool'. Really! But now I've sorta reached a point where I'm realising that it really doesn't matter that much. Funnily enough, I realised this when I saw a Full House episode I'd seen some thrice earlier. I'd recognised the theme of the episode all the time, but I'd never really FELT it till I saw it for the fourth time. Now, I suddenly don't mind dressing up in an ethnic dress (and that means salwar kameez with dupatta, not kurta and jeans!) even for casual occasions. In fact, I'm proud of it.
I'm proud because it brings out my Indian-ness. As days go by, I feel more and more patriotic. I know now that being an Indian doesn't just mean that I live here and speak the language. There are ties that bind. It's a deep running bond that links you to your country, and that can never change no matter where you choose to live. When my parents used to grumble that we never speak out mother tongue at home, I would wonder why they made such a big deal of it. But I now find myself worrying that my language (notice the feeling of belonging!), which is already not widely spoken, might be lost in the generations to come. I find myself promising myself that I will teach my children my language.
My children! Gosh! I often realise, much to my surprise, that I'm telling myself exactly how I'll bring up my kids. I've also begun to feel an emotion that's been totally alien to me till now - motherliness (I don't know if that's a word, but that best describes how I feel). I've never really been one to 'cutesify ' babies - in fact, I used to find babies whiny, smelly and heavy - but of late, I've begun to love holding infants. And I really feel something I can't put into words. It's just something that you feel that makes you feel incredibly happy - the innocence in those little eyes that look up to you, and the fact that they're relying on you. It just makes you feel really good about life. Also, when my mum always worried about me or my sister, I used to find it weird. I mean, the chances of us getting into trouble are much lower than the chances of us NOT getting into trouble, right? Though that still seems perfectly logical to me, lately, I've been worrying a whole lot about my loved ones. (Though this might not be such a new thing - I think I've worried about a lot of my closest friends in the past year...)
But the one thing that I notice that has changed the most about me, that, perhaps, was bound to happen sooner or later - I've outgrown childish crushes. I think I've come to a stage when I can tell the difference between mere attraction and the real thing. Or at least I have enough confidence in myself to know that I'm not going to chase every little infatuation I have. I see lots and lots of really good looking men on TV et al, but now, that's all there is to them. I don't really feel very much more. I know that there's a little something more that I need to find. I'm not sure a hundred percent sure that I know what that something is quite yet, but I am sure that I will know for sure someday.
I think the last six months have really shaped me as a person. I've learned a lot from my experiences (more from the bad ones!). I've made some wise decisions, and some horrendous mistakes. But I've lived through them, and I KNOW I'm wiser now. The world seems an entirely new place, suddenly. But you know, things really aren't very different now. It's just that I've begun to see them differently.
P.S. I also would never write a blog entry like this one a year back!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Phew!
As predicted by many, but nevertheless absolutely unexpected for me, I sorta kinda did well in my first internals. Here goes...
Environmental Education - Writing about this gives me a kick even though it doesn't get counted in the total. All I had to do was pass and I did. And without studying at that! I got a (sad) 42 on 50 but was highly thrilled since I'd studied absolutely nothing!
Math - Thought I'd messed up the question I corrected in the last minute but my teacher took away only one mark for that (stupid arithmetic error... -32-4=-28 if I'm not mistaken) so I got a 49 on 50. However, since the marks appear on 25, I get a 25/25 for that one! God bless the dude (or dudette) who thought of rounding off!
Chem - This was one I wasn't too worried about. (Weird, huh? Chem is normally my bugbear!) This, as expected, was my best paper, with me getting 'out of out' (a new bit of Bengaluru lingo I've learned after joining college) so another 25, only this time I deserved it!
Comp - This again I wasn't too worried about but our teacher was a little strict so I lost out three marks which translates to a 24 on 25, but I was a little bugged because I lost out on a flowchart. I think this feeling will be familiar to certain 12 Sci-ians who irritated computer teacher[(s)???] to give them extra marks since there was absolutely nothing wrong with the logic. I however, refused to beg.
Tronics - This one was the most scary of the lot. Partly because even though our teacher is brilliant (or perhaps because he is brilliant), he expects high funda answers from us. Partly because it was an easy paper and I messed it up. And partly because Tronics is supposed to be my specialisation but I'd done the worst in that. To make matters worse, when I gave in an assignment to our teacher, he pointedly asked 'What happened to you in the paper?'. I spent one whole iday n tension. The next morning in class, he kept staring at my book and asking me questions. When he discussed the paper, I realised I'd pretty much done everything he didn't want us to do. I thought I was doomed for sure. After another really nervous day, I mustered up the courage to go look at my paper. Just when I thought I could make it, I heard these classmates of mine inside his office. One guy asked him why he'd marked a question wrong. Out teacher (who's a MAJOR genius) asked him what his mother tongue was. When the guy replied Tamil, out teacher blasted him in Tamil. I have no idea what he said but that was enough to make me almost have a nervous breakdown. Turns out I got a very respectable 23 on 25. But got yelled at anyway for using whitener. (Apparently VTU strictly bans use of whitener in the exams...) My mum was not very happy with me for putting myself through tension unnecessarily. Like I was telling everyone, she's probably the only mother who yells at her kid for doing better than expected!
So I get a 97% which is WAY beyond what I expected. So all those who left all those comments on my previous blog entry - go ahead. Jeer.
Environmental Education - Writing about this gives me a kick even though it doesn't get counted in the total. All I had to do was pass and I did. And without studying at that! I got a (sad) 42 on 50 but was highly thrilled since I'd studied absolutely nothing!
Math - Thought I'd messed up the question I corrected in the last minute but my teacher took away only one mark for that (stupid arithmetic error... -32-4=-28 if I'm not mistaken) so I got a 49 on 50. However, since the marks appear on 25, I get a 25/25 for that one! God bless the dude (or dudette) who thought of rounding off!
Chem - This was one I wasn't too worried about. (Weird, huh? Chem is normally my bugbear!) This, as expected, was my best paper, with me getting 'out of out' (a new bit of Bengaluru lingo I've learned after joining college) so another 25, only this time I deserved it!
Comp - This again I wasn't too worried about but our teacher was a little strict so I lost out three marks which translates to a 24 on 25, but I was a little bugged because I lost out on a flowchart. I think this feeling will be familiar to certain 12 Sci-ians who irritated computer teacher[(s)???] to give them extra marks since there was absolutely nothing wrong with the logic. I however, refused to beg.
Tronics - This one was the most scary of the lot. Partly because even though our teacher is brilliant (or perhaps because he is brilliant), he expects high funda answers from us. Partly because it was an easy paper and I messed it up. And partly because Tronics is supposed to be my specialisation but I'd done the worst in that. To make matters worse, when I gave in an assignment to our teacher, he pointedly asked 'What happened to you in the paper?'. I spent one whole iday n tension. The next morning in class, he kept staring at my book and asking me questions. When he discussed the paper, I realised I'd pretty much done everything he didn't want us to do. I thought I was doomed for sure. After another really nervous day, I mustered up the courage to go look at my paper. Just when I thought I could make it, I heard these classmates of mine inside his office. One guy asked him why he'd marked a question wrong. Out teacher (who's a MAJOR genius) asked him what his mother tongue was. When the guy replied Tamil, out teacher blasted him in Tamil. I have no idea what he said but that was enough to make me almost have a nervous breakdown. Turns out I got a very respectable 23 on 25. But got yelled at anyway for using whitener. (Apparently VTU strictly bans use of whitener in the exams...) My mum was not very happy with me for putting myself through tension unnecessarily. Like I was telling everyone, she's probably the only mother who yells at her kid for doing better than expected!
So I get a 97% which is WAY beyond what I expected. So all those who left all those comments on my previous blog entry - go ahead. Jeer.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Post - Internals (a.k.a. Post Mortem)
As anyone with any sort of medical knowledge and/or common sense will tell you, I'm pretty much dead. As a result of the First Internals at college. (Don't let their capital letters fool you... They're pure evil!) Maths was bad. Not that it was difficult to crack or anything, but it was way too long for a one-and-a-half hour paper. Chem was better, but still fast from good. Comp was not too bad, but still could have been better. Electronics was the worst. Because in spite of it being the easiest paper, I managed to mess it up! Glad we didn't have practicals for first internals. I probably would have messed those u pas well! The most painful paper, though, was Environmental Studies, which we had today. I left for college early to beat the traffic, and ended up reaching at 8.00 a.m. for a 12.30 p.m. paper. Which I finished at 12.40 p.m. And left the examination hall at 12.50 p.m. (Some weird rule about not leaving early... I spent the remaining 10 minutes embellishing the tick marks on the objective paper. Who's brilliant idea was it to have 50 minutes for a 50-question MCQ paper, anyway?) So that's the way tests went.
I left college at about 2 or so and did an entire Bangalore (or should I say Bengaluru?) darshan (having taken the wrong bus!) and reached home at approximately quarter to four. And here I am.
Have been looking forward to Expressions for the past week. Going to school to see that tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have a better blog entry to put up in 24 hours!
I left college at about 2 or so and did an entire Bangalore (or should I say Bengaluru?) darshan (having taken the wrong bus!) and reached home at approximately quarter to four. And here I am.
Have been looking forward to Expressions for the past week. Going to school to see that tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have a better blog entry to put up in 24 hours!
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Sigh!
College just seems to have started and we're already in full swing, what with the first set of tests in a week! Because of these I have to give up the Freshers' party, the INXS concert, the Ramaiah quiz and (waaah!) tons of TV. But worst, I have to (yet again!) put the brake on hard on this (already quite stationary) vehicle that is my blog.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Cleaning Out My Closet...
I guess everyone who's reading this blog knows that I've just started college. As a result, I had to (literally) clean out my closet. In the process of doing so, I stumbled upon my old English Language notebook. I started reading my essays and realised that I'm really quite proud (you'll read more about this in the essay!) of this one and hence decided to post it. For your 411, we were supposed to write an essay about ourselves. This is what I wrote:
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One of my favourite childhood songs, 'Special' has some of the most simple, yet meaningful lyrics. It has led me, right from the age of five, to believe that I am unique. I know that everyone is on Earth for a purpose, and that no matter what anybody says or does, every single person stands out from the crown in his or her own way.
What are those qualities in me which set me apart? For one, I'm an eternal optimist. I'm the sort of person who believes that my favourite can win a tennis match even if his opponent is serving for the match. Perhaps as a consequence of my optimism, I am always happy. I sometimes joke that I don't drink tea, coffee or cola, as I don't need caffeine to be on a high, permanently. My perpetual excitability is the butt of jokes from my friends, but it doesn't bother me because I know it is an important part of me.
One aspect of me that is quite different from most people my age is the fact that I am a "play-by-the-rules type", to quote a friend. My overworked conscience and will power work in my favour most of the times - I rarely get into trouble, and when I do, it's rarely serious. These same attributes work against me sometimes - I hardly take risks, and still have not experienced the thrill of "living life on the edge". I enjoy studying, much to the shock of most people, and am often labelled a "nerd" or a "geek".
I enjoy all kinds of music, across genres and languages, something which very few other people can say. I'm also an incurable eater, and an enthusiastic reader. Music, food and books are possibly the three most important things in my life.
As for my social life, I prefer having a small circle of extremely close-knit friends to a huge circle of acquaintances. This might make me unpopular, but I don't mind. Though my friends are few, they are true.
I have a long list of things I'd like to change about myself. For one, I would probably give myself some more humility. As my essay probably suggests, I am quite full of myself. I know that over-confidence kills, but somehow, I still seem to think that I'm really good at whatever I do. Perhaps my overconfidence is just an extension of my optimism...
Another thing I would like to change about me is my naïvete. I sometimes get shocked by the mildest of offensive language or vulgarity, which my friends consider harmless. This results in me getting scandalised about five times a minute during a normal conversation - something I would love to live without.
There are many facets to my personality - hopeless romantic, eternal optimist, hyperactivity personified, boring geek, goody-two-shoes, swollen-headed idiot... the list goes on. When people call me weird, I feel proud because I know "weird" is just another way of saying that I stand out from the crown - that I'm unique.
------------------------------------------------------
I've posted this one without editing it, and I wrote this more than a year back, so excuse any discrepancies! If I gave myself the licence to edit it, I would probably remove the cheesy 'Barney & Friends' song! By the way, Poovaiah gave me a 'Very Good' for this one. I normally think she over-rates me, but here I think I must agree with her.
Told you I was full of myself!
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WEIRD AND PROUD OF IT!
"You are special, you're the only one,
You're the only one like you,
There isn't another in the whole wide world,
Who can do the things you do."
"You are special, you're the only one,
You're the only one like you,
There isn't another in the whole wide world,
Who can do the things you do."
One of my favourite childhood songs, 'Special' has some of the most simple, yet meaningful lyrics. It has led me, right from the age of five, to believe that I am unique. I know that everyone is on Earth for a purpose, and that no matter what anybody says or does, every single person stands out from the crown in his or her own way.
What are those qualities in me which set me apart? For one, I'm an eternal optimist. I'm the sort of person who believes that my favourite can win a tennis match even if his opponent is serving for the match. Perhaps as a consequence of my optimism, I am always happy. I sometimes joke that I don't drink tea, coffee or cola, as I don't need caffeine to be on a high, permanently. My perpetual excitability is the butt of jokes from my friends, but it doesn't bother me because I know it is an important part of me.
One aspect of me that is quite different from most people my age is the fact that I am a "play-by-the-rules type", to quote a friend. My overworked conscience and will power work in my favour most of the times - I rarely get into trouble, and when I do, it's rarely serious. These same attributes work against me sometimes - I hardly take risks, and still have not experienced the thrill of "living life on the edge". I enjoy studying, much to the shock of most people, and am often labelled a "nerd" or a "geek".
I enjoy all kinds of music, across genres and languages, something which very few other people can say. I'm also an incurable eater, and an enthusiastic reader. Music, food and books are possibly the three most important things in my life.
As for my social life, I prefer having a small circle of extremely close-knit friends to a huge circle of acquaintances. This might make me unpopular, but I don't mind. Though my friends are few, they are true.
I have a long list of things I'd like to change about myself. For one, I would probably give myself some more humility. As my essay probably suggests, I am quite full of myself. I know that over-confidence kills, but somehow, I still seem to think that I'm really good at whatever I do. Perhaps my overconfidence is just an extension of my optimism...
Another thing I would like to change about me is my naïvete. I sometimes get shocked by the mildest of offensive language or vulgarity, which my friends consider harmless. This results in me getting scandalised about five times a minute during a normal conversation - something I would love to live without.
There are many facets to my personality - hopeless romantic, eternal optimist, hyperactivity personified, boring geek, goody-two-shoes, swollen-headed idiot... the list goes on. When people call me weird, I feel proud because I know "weird" is just another way of saying that I stand out from the crown - that I'm unique.
------------------------------------------------------
I've posted this one without editing it, and I wrote this more than a year back, so excuse any discrepancies! If I gave myself the licence to edit it, I would probably remove the cheesy 'Barney & Friends' song! By the way, Poovaiah gave me a 'Very Good' for this one. I normally think she over-rates me, but here I think I must agree with her.
Told you I was full of myself!
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
On Campus!
I have now finished a whole week at college and am now qualified enough to right a blog entry about it. College life is amazing. Perhaps it's because my school life absolutely ruled, but somehow, I don't quite find college as great as school. Nonetheless, it's great to look forward to not having to walk around everywhere in line (Okay, we never did that in school, but here it's perfectly legal!) or sit in the place the teachers assign (Man! We never did that either!) or wear a uniform. It is also amazing the way there is a shift in the way of teaching - they just EXPECT us to understand stuff!
Besides the prescribed syllabus, the college insists we learn a foreign language (I picked French!). We had our first language lab today - rather interesting. Our instructor (you can't really call her a teacher - she's just there to take attendance and give us our tapes since we learn through linguaphone) started talking to us about how our listening skills aren't good enough and offered 200 bucks to anyone who could name all 82 people present today. I got 72 which was way more than she expected and hence am the proud owner of 200 bucks! Later, I realised that I'd been gypped since the guys who had the same class yesterday got 300 bucks and the guys who had it on Friday, 500 bucks! Anyway, I feel rich!
Another bunch of stuff on college that's weird and/or cool:
We have 4 companies on campus in keeping with PESIT's industry learning policies. The guys' and girls' loos are located on the same balcony! The teachers take attendance for every class. Our building (the 'A' block) has a glass elevator. (Which we're not allowed to use - we can only use the plain one, and it's rarely empty. As a result, I end up climbing four floors and coming back down about twice a day.) We stated off Computer Concepts Lab with a Microsoft Word assignment! The 'E' block which houses the courses other than BE, a couple of companies and the Biotech and Comp Sci departments is an awesome building whic has an open central atrium with an absolutely ugly piece of modern art in the centre and a covering made of orange rods which reminds me of the Suntec City Mall (I think that's what it's called) in Singapore. It's a challenge just to get around campus since the whole place is hilly. Our building looks like a hi-fi software company's office! There is a HUGE auditorium with three levels of seating (capacity about 2000) which doubles up as an indoor mini-stadium. The library is amazing! The entire campus is FULL of people! The rooms are all well numbered by block, room and floor. For example, my classroom is A 407 - the seventh room on the fourth floor of the 'A' block. I find this entire concept highly cool. The teachers are all really strict! Our English course starts with our 2nd standard portions. (And this one's my favourite...) There's this buzz of life and spirit that's always there in the air on campus... Which is fantastic!
I've had just one week of college and I'm loving it already... I just hope that, like school did, it gets better and better!
Besides the prescribed syllabus, the college insists we learn a foreign language (I picked French!). We had our first language lab today - rather interesting. Our instructor (you can't really call her a teacher - she's just there to take attendance and give us our tapes since we learn through linguaphone) started talking to us about how our listening skills aren't good enough and offered 200 bucks to anyone who could name all 82 people present today. I got 72 which was way more than she expected and hence am the proud owner of 200 bucks! Later, I realised that I'd been gypped since the guys who had the same class yesterday got 300 bucks and the guys who had it on Friday, 500 bucks! Anyway, I feel rich!
Another bunch of stuff on college that's weird and/or cool:
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
College Begins!
Having written the second longest blog entry in my life, I don't feel guilty about writing this one... Truth is, college has started and that means fewer and less frequent blog entries. (And you thought that wasn't possible!) But fear not, I will definitely keep you updated on college!
What A Trip (And A Blog Entry To Match!)
This holiday was something all of us needed really bad - all of us had been so caught up in our daily life that we just needed something entirely out of the ordinary. Well, we asked for it and we got it! We were out from the 1st to the 8th of September, and went to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. Here's an account.
Day 1:
Rithiks finished her last exam of the term in the morning, and in the afternoon, we got onto a plane to Delhi. We were supposed to reach at 6:50 in the evening but ended up reaching at 8:15 (most of the excess time being spent circling above the Indira Gandhi Airport in Delhi since there was too much air traffic!). We then reached the guest house in Gurgaon where we were put up, and fell asleep really soon!
Day 2:
At about 6 in the morning, we set off for Agra. I slept through most of the journey there and back, but was woken up at regular intervals. The first one of those was at a Dhaba for breakfast. As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw a clown standing just outside the car window, waving vigourously. Talk about rude awakenings! Turns out it's some sort of small town version of a publicity stunt for the Dhaba. We enjoyed a typical Dhaba breakfast (Paneer paranthas with pickle and HUGE blobs of butter that made my dad's eyes pop out of his head) and then proceeded. I fell asleep. I next woke up when we were entering Agra, and all I can remember of that instant is LOTS of people and minarets everywhere. I pointed out one of many petha shops to my folks and was told that we'd come back to it in the evening for a snack, but that didn't happen. We decided to go to Fatehpur Sikri before Agra, and I battled to keep awake.
On the road to Sikri, we got caught up in a traffic jam that made us Bangaloreans feel entirely at home. Apparently there was a truck accident there. Well, atleast traffic jams in UP don't start for no reason at all!
As we entered the town (or village, rather) of Fatehpur Sikri, the shop density began to grow thicker and thicker. The one thing about these shops that struck me as strange was the fact that though their signboards were written in the purest Hindi script, their names were all English! (Imagine 'Fine Jewellers' and 'Modern Enterprises' written in Hindi!)
We entered the protected area to a flood of guides who offered us better and better rates for a tour of Fatehpur Sikri. My dad chose on of them (at random, I think). We got a detailed tour of Buland Darwaza (which is HUGE, by the way, and gives one a slight sensation of inverse vertigo). My sister chose to look out for the beehives right on top!
Inside, we went around the enclosure, ending up at Salim Chisti's Dargah made of marble, and which had these really cool wall murals made of shell, and looked multicoloured in the light. After avoiding a whole lot of vendors, we went back to Agra.
We got off at the Agra fort not really expecting much. We were pleasantly surprised since the Agra fort in not only very beacutiful, but well maintained at well. The whole structure is impressive, right from the drawbridge across the moat. The other things that I loved about the fort were the information boards that were put up everywhere which makes guides obsolete, the greenery everywhere and the fantastic view of the Taj Mahal from the high galleries. We sat on the pedestal where a handful of the Mughal rulers actually sat, and took our own sweet time in seeing the fort. We then came back down, had some bananas and set off for the Taj Mahal.
At the road leading up to the Taj Mahal, we got a cycle rickshaw ride halfway to the gate. As I saw the Taj Mahal, I was awestruck. No matter how much you've heard about it, read about it or seen pictures of it, the Taj Mahal has a way of keeping you spellbound, whether by its tip-top condition due to constant restoration or by its sheer workmanship, or by its lovely gardens, or by its wonderful marble flooring which is cool even at the height of the afternoon heat in spite of being exposed to the sun the whole day. It leaves you, well, speechless. (Until you come back home, that is, and ramble on and on about it in your blog!)
On our journey back to Delhi, I was rather sleepy and I dozed off (yet again). I woke up when we were somewhere past Mathura, and by that time all of us were ravenous. My mum said we could stop at a McD's she and my sister had seen, and I was thrilled. I waited eagerly for the joint to arrive. And waited. And waited some more. But no, the McD's outlet seemed to have vanished into thin air! By which time it had started to pour cats and dogs, so stopping for food was completely out of the question. (And let me remind you that all I'd had the whole day was water, a couple of sips of mango juice, 3 biscuits and a couple of bananas!)
As we got into Faridabad, we saw that the roads were flooded and jammed. Luckily, our driver is a native of Faridabad and knew all the shortcuts to get us out of the mess. We were relieved that we were on a diesel SUV rather than a small petrol car (which we saw breaking down by the dozen!) and our driver was positively thrilled about his vehicle's superiority!
Reached the guest house after 10. I don't remember much more except eating and hitting the sack!
Day 3:
The day dawned bright and clear (though I wasn't awake to see it) and we went off for a Delhi Darshan with my dad's ex-classmate, Mukundan Uncle, and his son Govind. They'd rented a cab which, coincidentally, turned out to be the same one we'd rented the day before!
Our first stop (having seen the semi-demolished buildings of Gurgaon) was the National Arts and Crafts museum at Pragati Maidan, which was simply mind blowing. Besides traditional pottery, metal work, wood crafts and ivory carvings, there was a whole section dedicated to textiles from all around India, which I especially enjoyed. There was even a section dedicated to each region in India, and the Karnataka section had a set of humungous jackfruit tree statues, which I had no idea about in spite of the fact that I'm a native of Karnataka and have lived here almost all my life! A fantastic place - I think we spent almost three hours here!
By now, we could hear growling stomachs, so we set off for lunch. The lunch, too was a great experience. We ate at a Greek restaurant (complete with pictures of Greek costumes and traditional Greek music!), filling ourselves up to the brim with feta cheese and olives! And no meal in Connaught Place is complete without a dessert from Nirula's, and who are we to challenge such a rule? We hogged some more at Nirula's.
Our next sightseeing venture was the Rail Museum. (Which is just behind the Bhutan Embassy - we could see their laundry!). This again, was fascinating. Not only did we see models of locomotives, but actual engines and coaches as well (including the Fairy Queen!), and managed to sneak in a two minute 'Joyride' on a tiny train reminiscent of our own Cubbon Park toy train.
We wound up the day with a drink of tea and went back to the guest house. Had a bath after two days and went off to sleep.
Day 4:
We went around Delhi again. We started the day by doing a round of shopping at Dilli Haat, which was awesome. Though we didn't really buy much, it was great fun to see all the handicrafts. But what I enjoyed most at Dilli Haat was the food - momos, fruit beer and missi roti with aloo-gobi!
The next thing we saw was Lodhi Gardens (so called because it's built around Sikander Lodhi's tomb), but didn't spend much time here since we had quite a lot planned for the day. Safdarjung's tomb, too, was quick-in-quick-out.
We then set off for the Lotus Temple, which was really far away. On the way we saw the Akshardham temple, which was, in a word, huge! Unfortunately, we couldn't go in since it was closed. Apparently they have Asia's larget IMAX theatre in there, and Disneyland-like rides. On reaching the Lotus Temple, we got off and went towards the gate, only to find that that too was closed on Mondays!
The last bit of sightseeing for the day was the Qutub Minar. It was fantastic, especially in the evening just-pre-sunset sun. What I liked most about it was not the Qutub Minar itself but rather the ruins behind it. More interesting somehow. Sadly, the Iron Pillar has been enclosed, so I couldn't see if my hands went around it...
We braved a pack of wildly barking dogs to leave the site and set off for Hauz Khas Village. The entire road looked like something straight out of the Mediterranean, and we were all set to go to a Bistro when we noticed a huge crowd, including a bunch of policemen. We made a quick exit. Instead, we satisfied ourselves with a burger and an icecream each from a nearby McDonald's. As we went toward the car again, we noticed a procession coming that would certainly have delayed our departure had we not jumped into the car and zommed in the opposite direction. We were delayed by a little, but not too much. The driver laughed and said to us 'Aapki kismat hi kharaab hai!'.
We met up with another ex-classmate of my dad's, Manjul Uncle. Rithiks and I hit it off really well with his daughters Juhi and Ila, who are about the same ages as us. We had a fantastic dinner of chaat followed by gelatos. On returning to Gurgaon, all of us just popped off. (Quite a routine now, eh?)
Day 5:
Woke up at 4.30 in the morning, I think, and set off for Jaipur on the Shatabdi Express. We reached at around 11 in the morning and were immediately flooded with better and better offers from various taxi drivers. We reached the hotel, freshened up and went to do some sightseeing.
First, we had a really yum lunch at the legendary LMB. Then, we saw the Hawa Mahal (so called because the crown shaped top part of the palace has little windows that lets in winds).
We were bent on shopping for some traditional Rajasthani clothes. We got a little bugged with the driver who tried to push us into some highly seedy shop (owned by a friend of his, perhaps) and proceeded instead to the shops below the Hawa Mahal, which were nicer.
We returned to the hotel, again, and freshened up, again, and set off, again. This time, we went to the Birla Lakshminarayan Temple, which is made almost entirely out of marble. But my favourite part of the day was our visit to Chokhi Dhani on the outskirts of Jaipur.
Chokhi Dhani is a typical Rajasthani village recreated, complete with a resort at the back. They have horse rides, camel rides (which Rithiks and I tried!), village artisans, performers and most importantly, good food. We had a traditional dinner here, served by the men of the village, who kept serving you even if you told them to stop! We sat on the floor and ate off earthenware and leaves. Brilliant. Besides these, I ate a kulfi and a gola and drank jaljeera. Fanstastic stuff. As usual, returned home and dropped off.
Day 6:
We began the day with a typical South Indian breakfast, which we had sort of grown to miss. Nothing in the world like a dosa, I say!
We then went on to a tour of the Ambar fort, a little outside Jaipur. The loveliest part was Sheesh Mahal or the palace of mirrors, which had wallsful of mirror designs. Also rather interesting was the natural airconditioning, as I like to call it, in the palace. No idea how they did that! But the most amazing part of this fort is, funnily enough, not a part of the fort at all. They are the guides, who show around the foreign tourists and speak to them in their own language. Cool, huh?
We then saw the City Palace of Jaipur (where the Maharaja and his family still live). This included a small apparel museum and a museum of weapons, and a display including the world's largest silver bowl! Then, we crossed the road to see the Jantar Mantar, which is my favourite monument of the ones we visited throughout the trip. We saw all these really cool contraptions built 200-300 years ago (or more!) and they fascinated me. Even though it rained, I walked all around the place seeing all the amazing sundials (including one which is accurate upto 2 seconds!) and wiry mechanisms. They rule!
We then had a quick lunch (South Indian again!) and headed back to Delhi.
We reached Gurgaon at about 11 at night, and were taken to the guest house by a taxi (who royally gypped us - 250 bucks for a 5 minute ride!).
Day 7:
This day consisted mainly of shopping... Sarojini Market in the morning (honourable mention - the masala soda we had here - fantastic!), then an auto to Central Secretariat Metro station and then to Connaught Place. Here, much to my despair, my folks decided to get into Palika Bazaar. I think we spent a sumtotal of 2 minutes in Palika Bazaar - we got in, searched for the nearest exit (which, by sheer luck, was the Janpath one) and ended up using Palika Bazaar more as a subway! It was then off to Janpath for shopping, by which time we were so sick of it that we just finished off quickly and went to Nirula's and had ice-cream for lunch.
That done, we took the metro to Dwarka. By the way, for those who haven't gone on the Delhi Metro, go. It's amazing, almost exactly like the Singapore MRT, only better - they reuse the tickets in Delhi, and don't in Singapore. And then, we went to Najafgarh by some weird tiny feeder bus. At Najafgarh, we caught a private Haryana roadways bus and in two hours reached the rural part of Gurgaon (Gudganva, with a nice accent!). From there, we took a phatphatiya back to the guest house and slept. (I'll bet you knew that!)
Day 8:
It was time to come back home, and we were frankly quite relieved. Since the plane was scheduled to take off at 9.50 a.m., we got up early and reached the airport early and all. We sniggered at the Kingfisher Airlines flight that was supposed to take off for Bangalore at the same time as us, but had got delayed by 40 minutes. At security check, my sister said something about a flight to Bangalore being delayed and taking off only at 11.30 and we pooh-poohed her. Well, turns out she was partially right. Our flight was delayed, but didn't nearly take off at 11.30.
After enjoying a free snack courtesy Indian Airlines, we were all set for the flight announcement, but when it came, it was to announce a further delay of 30 minutes. At 11.50, when we (finally) boarded the flight, and we thought we were positively at the end of our patience, someone decided to disprove us.
When we were about to take off, the pilot announced that there was a technical problem and that he would have to take the plane back to the docking station for a patch-up. Everyone groaned and deboarded.
But looking on the bright side, we got an OC meal at Indian Airlines' expense at the ITC restaurant in the airport. We were scheduled to take off at 3.00 p.m. When we finally, FINALLY took off, it was 3.40! And let me tell you, it has never felt as good to land in Bangalore!
If there was one thing the trip was not, that's boring. From close escapes (four people were found to have suffocated to death in a car in Faridabad the morning after we braved the floods right there, and houses in Jaipur were flooded the day after we left) to making it to the newspaper (the bistro we were planning to go to in Hauz Khas village had been sealed, leading to the commotion, and later the same day, the procession had halted traffic for a long time. So we made it to the newspaper twice in a day. Not bad, eh?) to using tons of different modes of transport (Plane, a proper train, a toy train, the metro, taxi, three different models of cars, a mini bus, a normal bus, a long distance luxury bus, an auto, a phatphatiya, a cycle rickshaw and even a camel! And, of course, the evergreen mode - by foot! ) to just experiences (the flight back, need I say more?) the trip kept us on our feet at all time!
Day 1:
Rithiks finished her last exam of the term in the morning, and in the afternoon, we got onto a plane to Delhi. We were supposed to reach at 6:50 in the evening but ended up reaching at 8:15 (most of the excess time being spent circling above the Indira Gandhi Airport in Delhi since there was too much air traffic!). We then reached the guest house in Gurgaon where we were put up, and fell asleep really soon!
Day 2:
At about 6 in the morning, we set off for Agra. I slept through most of the journey there and back, but was woken up at regular intervals. The first one of those was at a Dhaba for breakfast. As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw a clown standing just outside the car window, waving vigourously. Talk about rude awakenings! Turns out it's some sort of small town version of a publicity stunt for the Dhaba. We enjoyed a typical Dhaba breakfast (Paneer paranthas with pickle and HUGE blobs of butter that made my dad's eyes pop out of his head) and then proceeded. I fell asleep. I next woke up when we were entering Agra, and all I can remember of that instant is LOTS of people and minarets everywhere. I pointed out one of many petha shops to my folks and was told that we'd come back to it in the evening for a snack, but that didn't happen. We decided to go to Fatehpur Sikri before Agra, and I battled to keep awake.
On the road to Sikri, we got caught up in a traffic jam that made us Bangaloreans feel entirely at home. Apparently there was a truck accident there. Well, atleast traffic jams in UP don't start for no reason at all!
As we entered the town (or village, rather) of Fatehpur Sikri, the shop density began to grow thicker and thicker. The one thing about these shops that struck me as strange was the fact that though their signboards were written in the purest Hindi script, their names were all English! (Imagine 'Fine Jewellers' and 'Modern Enterprises' written in Hindi!)
We entered the protected area to a flood of guides who offered us better and better rates for a tour of Fatehpur Sikri. My dad chose on of them (at random, I think). We got a detailed tour of Buland Darwaza (which is HUGE, by the way, and gives one a slight sensation of inverse vertigo). My sister chose to look out for the beehives right on top!
Inside, we went around the enclosure, ending up at Salim Chisti's Dargah made of marble, and which had these really cool wall murals made of shell, and looked multicoloured in the light. After avoiding a whole lot of vendors, we went back to Agra.
We got off at the Agra fort not really expecting much. We were pleasantly surprised since the Agra fort in not only very beacutiful, but well maintained at well. The whole structure is impressive, right from the drawbridge across the moat. The other things that I loved about the fort were the information boards that were put up everywhere which makes guides obsolete, the greenery everywhere and the fantastic view of the Taj Mahal from the high galleries. We sat on the pedestal where a handful of the Mughal rulers actually sat, and took our own sweet time in seeing the fort. We then came back down, had some bananas and set off for the Taj Mahal.
At the road leading up to the Taj Mahal, we got a cycle rickshaw ride halfway to the gate. As I saw the Taj Mahal, I was awestruck. No matter how much you've heard about it, read about it or seen pictures of it, the Taj Mahal has a way of keeping you spellbound, whether by its tip-top condition due to constant restoration or by its sheer workmanship, or by its lovely gardens, or by its wonderful marble flooring which is cool even at the height of the afternoon heat in spite of being exposed to the sun the whole day. It leaves you, well, speechless. (Until you come back home, that is, and ramble on and on about it in your blog!)
On our journey back to Delhi, I was rather sleepy and I dozed off (yet again). I woke up when we were somewhere past Mathura, and by that time all of us were ravenous. My mum said we could stop at a McD's she and my sister had seen, and I was thrilled. I waited eagerly for the joint to arrive. And waited. And waited some more. But no, the McD's outlet seemed to have vanished into thin air! By which time it had started to pour cats and dogs, so stopping for food was completely out of the question. (And let me remind you that all I'd had the whole day was water, a couple of sips of mango juice, 3 biscuits and a couple of bananas!)
As we got into Faridabad, we saw that the roads were flooded and jammed. Luckily, our driver is a native of Faridabad and knew all the shortcuts to get us out of the mess. We were relieved that we were on a diesel SUV rather than a small petrol car (which we saw breaking down by the dozen!) and our driver was positively thrilled about his vehicle's superiority!
Reached the guest house after 10. I don't remember much more except eating and hitting the sack!
Day 3:
The day dawned bright and clear (though I wasn't awake to see it) and we went off for a Delhi Darshan with my dad's ex-classmate, Mukundan Uncle, and his son Govind. They'd rented a cab which, coincidentally, turned out to be the same one we'd rented the day before!
Our first stop (having seen the semi-demolished buildings of Gurgaon) was the National Arts and Crafts museum at Pragati Maidan, which was simply mind blowing. Besides traditional pottery, metal work, wood crafts and ivory carvings, there was a whole section dedicated to textiles from all around India, which I especially enjoyed. There was even a section dedicated to each region in India, and the Karnataka section had a set of humungous jackfruit tree statues, which I had no idea about in spite of the fact that I'm a native of Karnataka and have lived here almost all my life! A fantastic place - I think we spent almost three hours here!
By now, we could hear growling stomachs, so we set off for lunch. The lunch, too was a great experience. We ate at a Greek restaurant (complete with pictures of Greek costumes and traditional Greek music!), filling ourselves up to the brim with feta cheese and olives! And no meal in Connaught Place is complete without a dessert from Nirula's, and who are we to challenge such a rule? We hogged some more at Nirula's.
Our next sightseeing venture was the Rail Museum. (Which is just behind the Bhutan Embassy - we could see their laundry!). This again, was fascinating. Not only did we see models of locomotives, but actual engines and coaches as well (including the Fairy Queen!), and managed to sneak in a two minute 'Joyride' on a tiny train reminiscent of our own Cubbon Park toy train.
We wound up the day with a drink of tea and went back to the guest house. Had a bath after two days and went off to sleep.
Day 4:
We went around Delhi again. We started the day by doing a round of shopping at Dilli Haat, which was awesome. Though we didn't really buy much, it was great fun to see all the handicrafts. But what I enjoyed most at Dilli Haat was the food - momos, fruit beer and missi roti with aloo-gobi!
The next thing we saw was Lodhi Gardens (so called because it's built around Sikander Lodhi's tomb), but didn't spend much time here since we had quite a lot planned for the day. Safdarjung's tomb, too, was quick-in-quick-out.
We then set off for the Lotus Temple, which was really far away. On the way we saw the Akshardham temple, which was, in a word, huge! Unfortunately, we couldn't go in since it was closed. Apparently they have Asia's larget IMAX theatre in there, and Disneyland-like rides. On reaching the Lotus Temple, we got off and went towards the gate, only to find that that too was closed on Mondays!
The last bit of sightseeing for the day was the Qutub Minar. It was fantastic, especially in the evening just-pre-sunset sun. What I liked most about it was not the Qutub Minar itself but rather the ruins behind it. More interesting somehow. Sadly, the Iron Pillar has been enclosed, so I couldn't see if my hands went around it...
We braved a pack of wildly barking dogs to leave the site and set off for Hauz Khas Village. The entire road looked like something straight out of the Mediterranean, and we were all set to go to a Bistro when we noticed a huge crowd, including a bunch of policemen. We made a quick exit. Instead, we satisfied ourselves with a burger and an icecream each from a nearby McDonald's. As we went toward the car again, we noticed a procession coming that would certainly have delayed our departure had we not jumped into the car and zommed in the opposite direction. We were delayed by a little, but not too much. The driver laughed and said to us 'Aapki kismat hi kharaab hai!'.
We met up with another ex-classmate of my dad's, Manjul Uncle. Rithiks and I hit it off really well with his daughters Juhi and Ila, who are about the same ages as us. We had a fantastic dinner of chaat followed by gelatos. On returning to Gurgaon, all of us just popped off. (Quite a routine now, eh?)
Day 5:
Woke up at 4.30 in the morning, I think, and set off for Jaipur on the Shatabdi Express. We reached at around 11 in the morning and were immediately flooded with better and better offers from various taxi drivers. We reached the hotel, freshened up and went to do some sightseeing.
First, we had a really yum lunch at the legendary LMB. Then, we saw the Hawa Mahal (so called because the crown shaped top part of the palace has little windows that lets in winds).
We were bent on shopping for some traditional Rajasthani clothes. We got a little bugged with the driver who tried to push us into some highly seedy shop (owned by a friend of his, perhaps) and proceeded instead to the shops below the Hawa Mahal, which were nicer.
We returned to the hotel, again, and freshened up, again, and set off, again. This time, we went to the Birla Lakshminarayan Temple, which is made almost entirely out of marble. But my favourite part of the day was our visit to Chokhi Dhani on the outskirts of Jaipur.
Chokhi Dhani is a typical Rajasthani village recreated, complete with a resort at the back. They have horse rides, camel rides (which Rithiks and I tried!), village artisans, performers and most importantly, good food. We had a traditional dinner here, served by the men of the village, who kept serving you even if you told them to stop! We sat on the floor and ate off earthenware and leaves. Brilliant. Besides these, I ate a kulfi and a gola and drank jaljeera. Fanstastic stuff. As usual, returned home and dropped off.
Day 6:
We began the day with a typical South Indian breakfast, which we had sort of grown to miss. Nothing in the world like a dosa, I say!
We then went on to a tour of the Ambar fort, a little outside Jaipur. The loveliest part was Sheesh Mahal or the palace of mirrors, which had wallsful of mirror designs. Also rather interesting was the natural airconditioning, as I like to call it, in the palace. No idea how they did that! But the most amazing part of this fort is, funnily enough, not a part of the fort at all. They are the guides, who show around the foreign tourists and speak to them in their own language. Cool, huh?
We then saw the City Palace of Jaipur (where the Maharaja and his family still live). This included a small apparel museum and a museum of weapons, and a display including the world's largest silver bowl! Then, we crossed the road to see the Jantar Mantar, which is my favourite monument of the ones we visited throughout the trip. We saw all these really cool contraptions built 200-300 years ago (or more!) and they fascinated me. Even though it rained, I walked all around the place seeing all the amazing sundials (including one which is accurate upto 2 seconds!) and wiry mechanisms. They rule!
We then had a quick lunch (South Indian again!) and headed back to Delhi.
We reached Gurgaon at about 11 at night, and were taken to the guest house by a taxi (who royally gypped us - 250 bucks for a 5 minute ride!).
Day 7:
This day consisted mainly of shopping... Sarojini Market in the morning (honourable mention - the masala soda we had here - fantastic!), then an auto to Central Secretariat Metro station and then to Connaught Place. Here, much to my despair, my folks decided to get into Palika Bazaar. I think we spent a sumtotal of 2 minutes in Palika Bazaar - we got in, searched for the nearest exit (which, by sheer luck, was the Janpath one) and ended up using Palika Bazaar more as a subway! It was then off to Janpath for shopping, by which time we were so sick of it that we just finished off quickly and went to Nirula's and had ice-cream for lunch.
That done, we took the metro to Dwarka. By the way, for those who haven't gone on the Delhi Metro, go. It's amazing, almost exactly like the Singapore MRT, only better - they reuse the tickets in Delhi, and don't in Singapore. And then, we went to Najafgarh by some weird tiny feeder bus. At Najafgarh, we caught a private Haryana roadways bus and in two hours reached the rural part of Gurgaon (Gudganva, with a nice accent!). From there, we took a phatphatiya back to the guest house and slept. (I'll bet you knew that!)
Day 8:
It was time to come back home, and we were frankly quite relieved. Since the plane was scheduled to take off at 9.50 a.m., we got up early and reached the airport early and all. We sniggered at the Kingfisher Airlines flight that was supposed to take off for Bangalore at the same time as us, but had got delayed by 40 minutes. At security check, my sister said something about a flight to Bangalore being delayed and taking off only at 11.30 and we pooh-poohed her. Well, turns out she was partially right. Our flight was delayed, but didn't nearly take off at 11.30.
After enjoying a free snack courtesy Indian Airlines, we were all set for the flight announcement, but when it came, it was to announce a further delay of 30 minutes. At 11.50, when we (finally) boarded the flight, and we thought we were positively at the end of our patience, someone decided to disprove us.
When we were about to take off, the pilot announced that there was a technical problem and that he would have to take the plane back to the docking station for a patch-up. Everyone groaned and deboarded.
But looking on the bright side, we got an OC meal at Indian Airlines' expense at the ITC restaurant in the airport. We were scheduled to take off at 3.00 p.m. When we finally, FINALLY took off, it was 3.40! And let me tell you, it has never felt as good to land in Bangalore!
If there was one thing the trip was not, that's boring. From close escapes (four people were found to have suffocated to death in a car in Faridabad the morning after we braved the floods right there, and houses in Jaipur were flooded the day after we left) to making it to the newspaper (the bistro we were planning to go to in Hauz Khas village had been sealed, leading to the commotion, and later the same day, the procession had halted traffic for a long time. So we made it to the newspaper twice in a day. Not bad, eh?) to using tons of different modes of transport (Plane, a proper train, a toy train, the metro, taxi, three different models of cars, a mini bus, a normal bus, a long distance luxury bus, an auto, a phatphatiya, a cycle rickshaw and even a camel! And, of course, the evergreen mode - by foot! ) to just experiences (the flight back, need I say more?) the trip kept us on our feet at all time!
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Temporary Lay-off
This blog entry is just to tell everyone that I won't be writing in my blog till the 8th of September since I'll be on holiday till then. Hopefully when I return I'll have pictures to show and more interesting stuff to write about! So toodeloo for a while!
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Time Goes By...
No... My blog does NOT refer to the lyrics of some Madonna song... Nor does it refer to a song from Casablanca... It just reminds everyone of the fact that that's all that's happening in my life. (Was that too many 'that's?). Time is going by... That's it. Every day I wake up and cut another day off the calendar. (Okay, you got me there - I'm too lazy to do it on the calendar so I just do it mentally!) But, for once, I can say that there's plenty to look forward to in the near future.
First, from the 1st of September to the 8th, a trip to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur - that ought to be fun. Never seen the Red Fort or Fatehpur Sikri or Taj Mahal or Jaipur, so that'll definitely give me kicks. Also, plenty of shopping and Nirula's ice cream eating likely to take place in Delhi, so I've got plenty to look forward to.
Within 2 days of getting back home, it's time for college to start, so I am going to be doing a 180° flip from complete utter joblessness to having WAY too much to do... And I am looking forward to it completely!
P.S. The initial blabbing about Madonna and Frank Sinatra songs was just to add some volume to my blog entry and to waste some time. It seems I have succeeded in doing that yet again by writing this post script!
First, from the 1st of September to the 8th, a trip to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur - that ought to be fun. Never seen the Red Fort or Fatehpur Sikri or Taj Mahal or Jaipur, so that'll definitely give me kicks. Also, plenty of shopping and Nirula's ice cream eating likely to take place in Delhi, so I've got plenty to look forward to.
Within 2 days of getting back home, it's time for college to start, so I am going to be doing a 180° flip from complete utter joblessness to having WAY too much to do... And I am looking forward to it completely!
P.S. The initial blabbing about Madonna and Frank Sinatra songs was just to add some volume to my blog entry and to waste some time. It seems I have succeeded in doing that yet again by writing this post script!
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Just My Luck - A Review (***/*****)
If you're a sucker for chick flicks like I am, Just My Luck is rather enjoyable. Lucky girl with a perfect life, unlucky boy whose life is in shambles, boy meets girl and all else is magic. As boring as it may sound to those who swear off romantic comedies, to me it's supreme entertainment.
Before I saw the movie, I expected it to annoy me a la New York Minute. I always associate Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen with Lindsay Lohan because of the striking similarities between the two (or should I say three!) - child artistes turned Hollywood wild girls with loads of problems. Besides that, New York Minute and Just My Luck are almost identical as far as setting goes. But I was pleasantly surprised by Just My Luck actually didn't annoy me - quite the contrary, it'ss tons of fun and was over before I knew it. Even though it has more fantasy than New York Minute, it's more believable! Perhaps one of the reasons for that is that Lindsay Lohan is cast as a character close to her real life character. (C'mon, Ashley Olsen the geek, yeah right! Almost as bad as Britney Spears the geek, but let me not get a third movie involved in the review.) And Lindsay Lohan is a really good actress and really gets into character - when she's in a mess , she's in overalls and not miniskirts. Olsen twins, are you watching?
Chris Pine has become a much more respectable shape than he was in Princess Diaries 2. And his character, Jake, is one of those delightful ones you just fall in love with right at the beginning - from a can't-do-anything-right jinx to a hotshot band manager, without losing his innocence and naïvete.
One reason I may be slightly biased in this review is the fact that it stars McFly. I absolutely adore McFly and their music, which plays throughout the movie, and seeing them in it was a pleasant surprise.
All-in-all, entertaining (which is the point of movies anyway!). If you're the type that enjoyed 13 Going On 30, you should definitely watch Just My Luck.
Before I saw the movie, I expected it to annoy me a la New York Minute. I always associate Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen with Lindsay Lohan because of the striking similarities between the two (or should I say three!) - child artistes turned Hollywood wild girls with loads of problems. Besides that, New York Minute and Just My Luck are almost identical as far as setting goes. But I was pleasantly surprised by Just My Luck actually didn't annoy me - quite the contrary, it'ss tons of fun and was over before I knew it. Even though it has more fantasy than New York Minute, it's more believable! Perhaps one of the reasons for that is that Lindsay Lohan is cast as a character close to her real life character. (C'mon, Ashley Olsen the geek, yeah right! Almost as bad as Britney Spears the geek, but let me not get a third movie involved in the review.) And Lindsay Lohan is a really good actress and really gets into character - when she's in a mess , she's in overalls and not miniskirts. Olsen twins, are you watching?
Chris Pine has become a much more respectable shape than he was in Princess Diaries 2. And his character, Jake, is one of those delightful ones you just fall in love with right at the beginning - from a can't-do-anything-right jinx to a hotshot band manager, without losing his innocence and naïvete.
One reason I may be slightly biased in this review is the fact that it stars McFly. I absolutely adore McFly and their music, which plays throughout the movie, and seeing them in it was a pleasant surprise.
All-in-all, entertaining (which is the point of movies anyway!). If you're the type that enjoyed 13 Going On 30, you should definitely watch Just My Luck.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Indian, And Proud Of It!
We have so often heard the media and our parents talk about 'How patriotic is Gen-X?' and the so-called death of patriotism. Everytime I hear something like this, I feel like angrily retorting, 'I love my country as much as anyone even 60 years older than me!', but I bite my tongue. Perhaps no one else of my age feels the way I do. I cannot speak for everyone of my generation, but I can definitely speak for me. I am very, VERY patriotic. I can endlessly argue for India (Sound familiar, Yao?), and this is not because I am trying to prove a point, but because I actually believe it wholeheartedly. It always hurts when people put down India in some way or another, because, though many do not realise it, life here is amazing.
India - the world's largest democracy. Amazing voter turnouts have resulted in even the most powerful governments being dethroned, and that just reestablishes the fact that power lies with the people. Our intelligence and ability to reinvent is world renowned. And however disappointed we are with our performances on the sports field, we never lose hope - even a failing Indian cricket team always finds supporters; regardless of how many first round exits she faces or which part of the world she's playing in, Sania Mirza's next first round match always is chock full with loyal Indian (resident or otherwise) supporters; we gloat over our nation's single Olympic (silver) medal while even individuals from other countries have 5 golds - and this is an amazing quality. Bollywood, to put it simply, rules. Indian cinemas see 23 million viewers daily while the US has to make do with 20 million. Nowhere else in the world can we find such fantastic masala movies. Talking about masala, nowhere else in the world can we find such brilliant food. We've an fabulous way of life in every way - not only do we have tons and tons of languages, cultures, religions et al, but we have this knack of co-existing. Our country's seen legends in many fields, including science and literature. And no matter how much we grumble about crooked politicians or insufficient infrastructure, India is amazing. Because home is where the heart is. (I clearly remember returning to India after a long holiday abroad. We'd flown over quite a few countries through the day, and at about 9.00 p.m., we were scheduled to fly over the Wagah border. I remember every second of it. The entire border was lit up. I cannot even attempt to describe the feeling that came over me once we crossed the border, even if it was only in the air.) To quote Salman Khan, East or West, India is the Best!
Jai Hind!
Happy Independence Day!
India - the world's largest democracy. Amazing voter turnouts have resulted in even the most powerful governments being dethroned, and that just reestablishes the fact that power lies with the people. Our intelligence and ability to reinvent is world renowned. And however disappointed we are with our performances on the sports field, we never lose hope - even a failing Indian cricket team always finds supporters; regardless of how many first round exits she faces or which part of the world she's playing in, Sania Mirza's next first round match always is chock full with loyal Indian (resident or otherwise) supporters; we gloat over our nation's single Olympic (silver) medal while even individuals from other countries have 5 golds - and this is an amazing quality. Bollywood, to put it simply, rules. Indian cinemas see 23 million viewers daily while the US has to make do with 20 million. Nowhere else in the world can we find such fantastic masala movies. Talking about masala, nowhere else in the world can we find such brilliant food. We've an fabulous way of life in every way - not only do we have tons and tons of languages, cultures, religions et al, but we have this knack of co-existing. Our country's seen legends in many fields, including science and literature. And no matter how much we grumble about crooked politicians or insufficient infrastructure, India is amazing. Because home is where the heart is. (I clearly remember returning to India after a long holiday abroad. We'd flown over quite a few countries through the day, and at about 9.00 p.m., we were scheduled to fly over the Wagah border. I remember every second of it. The entire border was lit up. I cannot even attempt to describe the feeling that came over me once we crossed the border, even if it was only in the air.) To quote Salman Khan, East or West, India is the Best!
Jai Hind!
Happy Independence Day!
Friday, August 11, 2006
Oh Brother!
This morning, I had one of those entirely dangerous feelings. You know, one of those when you just HAVE to get up and write a long blog entry. But you're stumped, owing to the fact that you have nothing to write about. (Anyone who reads between the lines of my blog, nay, reads my blog at all, should know that I have absolutely no useful work in life as of now, and as a result, I have nothing to write about, and hence, my blog is stagnating.) But my noble intentions did not let me peacefully get up and have yet another blog-free day. I simple HAD to do something about the feeling. And then it hit me! (No, no, 'it' wasn't anything hard... I'm still alive!)
Today's Rakhi, and I decided to write a little segment on my blog for my five fantastic cousin brothers. (Unfortunately, I don't have a brother, but these five cousins more than make up for my lack of brother). So here goes nothing...
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Rohit (Anna)
How we're related: He's my mom's oldest sister's son.
What I love most about him: The fact that even though he's really caught up at work and with his own friends, he's affectionate enough to always take time off to be with us, his family. Also, he has some rather amusing anecdotes to relate, and he's always buzzing with information on the food and eateries front.
I aspire to be like him: For his quizzing talent. I wish I knew even half of the weird little facts that he knows.
Ajay (Anna)
How we're related: He's my mom's second sister's son.
What I love most about him: He's great fun to be around - you can rely on him not only to laugh at your jokes, but to crack a fair number himself. He has a brilliant sense of humour. (Ref. http://jaydedforlife.blogspot.com/2006/07/krrish.html) He gets along with anyone. He's one of those people who always has a smile for you, and every time you meet him or speak to him, you somehow feel lighter.
I aspire to be like him: Because he's just so affectionate. He's probably the most affectionate person I know, and I wish I could be like that.
Arjun
How we're related: He's my mom's second sister's younger son.
What I love most about him: He's always got something up his sleeve. He has this permanent mischievous glint in his eyes, and is always wondering how to tease or taunt someone. But we all know that in spite of all his antics, he's actually a real softie inside. Besides that, our likes and dislikes are really similar as far as books, music, movies and TV shows are concerned. Perhaps this is because we're less than two years apart...
I aspire to be like him: One word. Height.
Shirish
How we're related: He's my dad's sister's son.
What I love most about him: Unfortunately, I've met him very few times. But whenever we've got together, we've got along very well. Again, this is probably because of the age factor - he's less than six months younger than me.
I aspire to be like him: Like I said earlier, I really don't know much about him, at least not enough to do justice to this write-up. However, one thing he has that I seriously do not mind having is supreme knowledge on the Harry Potter series.
Sohum
How we're related: He's my dad's brother's son.
What I love most about him: (Besides the fact that he's my littlest cousin at almost 6!) Everything about him is adorable - his naïve comments, his superhero aspirations or his movie dialogues. His general demeanour is just so endearing, he's attracting attention all the time without meaning to or knowing that he is.
I aspire to be like him: Because of his attitude in life. He's always happy, and he does his own thing without caring what anyone thinks or says or does.
So those are my five phenomenal cousin bros. I owe so much to them all in some way or the other. It's impossible for me to say how much I love them all. This entry doesn't even come close to describing how amazing they actually are. At this point in time, I'm just happy to have all of them!
Today's Rakhi, and I decided to write a little segment on my blog for my five fantastic cousin brothers. (Unfortunately, I don't have a brother, but these five cousins more than make up for my lack of brother). So here goes nothing...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rohit (Anna)
How we're related: He's my mom's oldest sister's son.
What I love most about him: The fact that even though he's really caught up at work and with his own friends, he's affectionate enough to always take time off to be with us, his family. Also, he has some rather amusing anecdotes to relate, and he's always buzzing with information on the food and eateries front.
I aspire to be like him: For his quizzing talent. I wish I knew even half of the weird little facts that he knows.
Ajay (Anna)
How we're related: He's my mom's second sister's son.
What I love most about him: He's great fun to be around - you can rely on him not only to laugh at your jokes, but to crack a fair number himself. He has a brilliant sense of humour. (Ref. http://jaydedforlife.blogspot.com/2006/07/krrish.html) He gets along with anyone. He's one of those people who always has a smile for you, and every time you meet him or speak to him, you somehow feel lighter.
I aspire to be like him: Because he's just so affectionate. He's probably the most affectionate person I know, and I wish I could be like that.
Arjun
How we're related: He's my mom's second sister's younger son.
What I love most about him: He's always got something up his sleeve. He has this permanent mischievous glint in his eyes, and is always wondering how to tease or taunt someone. But we all know that in spite of all his antics, he's actually a real softie inside. Besides that, our likes and dislikes are really similar as far as books, music, movies and TV shows are concerned. Perhaps this is because we're less than two years apart...
I aspire to be like him: One word. Height.
Shirish
How we're related: He's my dad's sister's son.
What I love most about him: Unfortunately, I've met him very few times. But whenever we've got together, we've got along very well. Again, this is probably because of the age factor - he's less than six months younger than me.
I aspire to be like him: Like I said earlier, I really don't know much about him, at least not enough to do justice to this write-up. However, one thing he has that I seriously do not mind having is supreme knowledge on the Harry Potter series.
Sohum
How we're related: He's my dad's brother's son.
What I love most about him: (Besides the fact that he's my littlest cousin at almost 6!) Everything about him is adorable - his naïve comments, his superhero aspirations or his movie dialogues. His general demeanour is just so endearing, he's attracting attention all the time without meaning to or knowing that he is.
I aspire to be like him: Because of his attitude in life. He's always happy, and he does his own thing without caring what anyone thinks or says or does.
So those are my five phenomenal cousin bros. I owe so much to them all in some way or the other. It's impossible for me to say how much I love them all. This entry doesn't even come close to describing how amazing they actually are. At this point in time, I'm just happy to have all of them!
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Important Update!
Okay... So it's not THAT important!!! It's just the only thing worth writing about that's happened to me over the past two months! Anyway, I've started driving lessons. Had my first lesson today. Was allowed to touch only the indicator controls, the steering wheel and the accelerator. Anyway, it felt amazing to be in control. Maybe I'm a control freak... Or maybe I've been so starved of excitement that I hang on to every little thing...
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Don't You Just Love Surprises?
Don't you just LOVE surprises? It's even better when the surprisee, if I may call him that, is so surprised, he's shell shocked. And can't speak for the next two minutes. Better still, when everyone in his family (including his 5 year old sister!) pitches in to avoid someone from ruining the surprise!!! In any case, a surprise farewell party always takes a little pain out of the farewell.
Boy... Farewell party... I've had a fair number of those in the past few months. And regardless of who you're bidding farewell to, the feeling is always pretty much the same - a rush of self-admiration when your guest of honour is surprised (or at least pretends to be!) even if you were not even remotely involved in the planning. This is soon followed by a rush of memories of times you've shared with the person, often with an attached conversation and laugh. Enjoying the food, then. (Most important part of the party!) And then there's this inexplicable empty sorta feeling. You know that there are tons of ways to keep in touch with anyone who's anywhere remotely close to an internet connection (and that's about 90% of the world!). Yet you know there's something about each and every person that you're going to miss... It could be a funny nickname, a weird mannersism, an idiosyncracy, a lack of talent in a particular field... Something that enjoyed seeing/ hearing over a few years, but have somehow taken for granted, assuming that these daily 'phenomena' would always be there. One day you wake up and find that someone you've relyed on for both support and laughs is far, far away. You e-mail them all the time. Messengers make sure you never have to run short of chats. But there's something missing... The difference between a 'u' from a keyboard and an almost musical 'YOU???!!!' from a sweet voice that lingers in your ears and then in your head... I've felt this so many times, I've lost count.
But then you suddenly get a rush of blood to the head when you realise that no matter how far away he or she is from you, there's an invisible, infinitely stretchable bond that ties the two of you together. No matter how long he or she goes without sending you an e-mail or phoning you, you can rest assured that he or she is thinking about you just as you are thinking about him or her. And that that strong bond can never be broken. Because it's been built on years of solid trust and affection. And that distances are nothing when you can just close your eyes and see that smiling face every single day.
Like I've said earlier, I've had a fair number of goodbyes to say over the past few months. But everyday, I close my eyes for a minute and visualise something that reminds of each of these wonderful people who're FAR, FAR away. Most of the time, I end up laughing. I open my eyes and find that we're not that far away after all.
Boy... Farewell party... I've had a fair number of those in the past few months. And regardless of who you're bidding farewell to, the feeling is always pretty much the same - a rush of self-admiration when your guest of honour is surprised (or at least pretends to be!) even if you were not even remotely involved in the planning. This is soon followed by a rush of memories of times you've shared with the person, often with an attached conversation and laugh. Enjoying the food, then. (Most important part of the party!) And then there's this inexplicable empty sorta feeling. You know that there are tons of ways to keep in touch with anyone who's anywhere remotely close to an internet connection (and that's about 90% of the world!). Yet you know there's something about each and every person that you're going to miss... It could be a funny nickname, a weird mannersism, an idiosyncracy, a lack of talent in a particular field... Something that enjoyed seeing/ hearing over a few years, but have somehow taken for granted, assuming that these daily 'phenomena' would always be there. One day you wake up and find that someone you've relyed on for both support and laughs is far, far away. You e-mail them all the time. Messengers make sure you never have to run short of chats. But there's something missing... The difference between a 'u' from a keyboard and an almost musical 'YOU???!!!' from a sweet voice that lingers in your ears and then in your head... I've felt this so many times, I've lost count.
But then you suddenly get a rush of blood to the head when you realise that no matter how far away he or she is from you, there's an invisible, infinitely stretchable bond that ties the two of you together. No matter how long he or she goes without sending you an e-mail or phoning you, you can rest assured that he or she is thinking about you just as you are thinking about him or her. And that that strong bond can never be broken. Because it's been built on years of solid trust and affection. And that distances are nothing when you can just close your eyes and see that smiling face every single day.
Like I've said earlier, I've had a fair number of goodbyes to say over the past few months. But everyday, I close my eyes for a minute and visualise something that reminds of each of these wonderful people who're FAR, FAR away. Most of the time, I end up laughing. I open my eyes and find that we're not that far away after all.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Superman Returns - A Review (* / *****)
I'm not a very big fan of superhero movies, and I had (very wisely) decided to give Superman Returns a skip. But when a friend called up and said an enitre gang of people was meeting up to go and see the movie, I reluctantly agreed. (Reluctantly because Love, Actually was running on TV that day, and in order to reach the theatre on time, I would have to miss out on the last 5-10 minutes of Love, Actually.) So hence began the saga of me watching Superman Returns!
Movie opens with an rich, old woman dying and a clearly evil guy taking her entire fortune, and her thanking him for something he did after she got him out of jail. I was already confused. But continued to listen and watch. Ms. Highly Old Lady breathes her last, and out walks our anti-hero with a briefcase full of solid cash. He whips off his wig, and voila! Lex Luthor Returns! (i.e., Before Superman. I think the scriptwriter got the title of the movie a weetle bit wrong.) Kids scream, lightining strikes, thunder rumbles and even the stupidest person in the world has no choice but to realise that out man Lex is EEE-vil.
I will refrain from paining you further by giving you too many more plot details. (By the way, if you thought reading my review is painful, you ain't seen nothing! Go see the movie!) Basically, Krypton was not entirely destroyed, but hardly fit to live on anymore, so 'Superman Returns!'. And, so does Clark Kent. (And how thick can people get not to realise the coincidence??? Sheesh!) He saves Lois and a ton of others from yet another near-death experience. He expects everything to go back to the way it used to be, but does it? Neuoooo!!! Apparently, Lois Lane is now a mommy (Ain't that cute?) and a Pulitzer Prize winner, and refuses to believe that the world needs Superman. Lex Luthor's evil plan to take over the world unfurls.
Things I liked about the movie:
* Popcorn. Okay, so it wasn't a part of the movie, but it was the best part of the two-and-a-half hours.
* Brandon Routh. If he was not as good looking as he was, I don't think I could have got through the movie. He actually looks nice even in spects!
* Lois Lane's hair. Because it gave me hope! Now I know that there's SOMEONE in this world who's hair is less manageable than mine.
* Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Because he's bald. I love a shiny pate.
* Kal Penn. (Whose real name, incidentally, is Kalpen Modi!) There was all this hype about a person of Indian origin acting in SR and all, so I kept a look out for him. Loved his sheer *duh*-ness, which was all I loved about him, really.
* The New Adventures of Lois and Clark. Again, not a part of the movie, but something the movie made me appreciate. I'll even put up with Teri Hatcher's bimbo-oscity in the TV show rather than see the movie again.
* The part of the movie when Lois gets into the private yacht-ship-ish thingy and goes "Hello?". Because a kid sitting behind me loudly went "HI!" and that by far was the most entertaining part of the movie.
There's nothing to be said about the movie except that it sucks... Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No! It's the rotten tomatoes people are chucking at the silver screen!
Movie opens with an rich, old woman dying and a clearly evil guy taking her entire fortune, and her thanking him for something he did after she got him out of jail. I was already confused. But continued to listen and watch. Ms. Highly Old Lady breathes her last, and out walks our anti-hero with a briefcase full of solid cash. He whips off his wig, and voila! Lex Luthor Returns! (i.e., Before Superman. I think the scriptwriter got the title of the movie a weetle bit wrong.) Kids scream, lightining strikes, thunder rumbles and even the stupidest person in the world has no choice but to realise that out man Lex is EEE-vil.
I will refrain from paining you further by giving you too many more plot details. (By the way, if you thought reading my review is painful, you ain't seen nothing! Go see the movie!) Basically, Krypton was not entirely destroyed, but hardly fit to live on anymore, so 'Superman Returns!'. And, so does Clark Kent. (And how thick can people get not to realise the coincidence??? Sheesh!) He saves Lois and a ton of others from yet another near-death experience. He expects everything to go back to the way it used to be, but does it? Neuoooo!!! Apparently, Lois Lane is now a mommy (Ain't that cute?) and a Pulitzer Prize winner, and refuses to believe that the world needs Superman. Lex Luthor's evil plan to take over the world unfurls.
Things I liked about the movie:
* Popcorn. Okay, so it wasn't a part of the movie, but it was the best part of the two-and-a-half hours.
* Brandon Routh. If he was not as good looking as he was, I don't think I could have got through the movie. He actually looks nice even in spects!
* Lois Lane's hair. Because it gave me hope! Now I know that there's SOMEONE in this world who's hair is less manageable than mine.
* Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Because he's bald. I love a shiny pate.
* Kal Penn. (Whose real name, incidentally, is Kalpen Modi!) There was all this hype about a person of Indian origin acting in SR and all, so I kept a look out for him. Loved his sheer *duh*-ness, which was all I loved about him, really.
* The New Adventures of Lois and Clark. Again, not a part of the movie, but something the movie made me appreciate. I'll even put up with Teri Hatcher's bimbo-oscity in the TV show rather than see the movie again.
* The part of the movie when Lois gets into the private yacht-ship-ish thingy and goes "Hello?". Because a kid sitting behind me loudly went "HI!" and that by far was the most entertaining part of the movie.
There's nothing to be said about the movie except that it sucks... Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No! It's the rotten tomatoes people are chucking at the silver screen!
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Back!!! (Sorta...)
Let me start by saying that I had this great blog entry planned out about three days back and I was raring to go. In full josh, I typed my name and password and logged in to blogger. Entirely thrilled that I had somehow managed to outsmart the Government, I clicked on the link that takes me to the place where I can start posting, and waited. And waited. Aaaaaaand...... waited. Apparently either I'm not as smart as I think I am, or the Government is WAY smarter than I thought! Well, anyway, now that everything is back to normal, all I can say is, God bless the Indian Government for giving me back my lifeline - my blog!!! (Yeah, yeah... you out there! I know what you're thinking - 'This idiot calls her blog her lifeline and at the best of times she posts about 3 blog entries in a month!'. But there's this sentence in a lesson called 'Without Glasses' that we had in 10th standard (by a guy called Robert Lynd) that I never really fully understood till the aforementioned blog-blocking took place. Mr. Lynd wrote that he didn't need his spects at all time, but he felt lost without them, for the simple reason that he needed to know that if he wished to read, he could just take out his spects and read. I now think that Lynd:Spects :: Me:Blog. )
Blogs apart, my life has been well... uneventful to say the least. Not that I'm complaining! Like I keep telling everyone, for the first time in my life, I'm actually enjoying doing absolutely nothing! My day goes something like this... Wake up, eat, see TV, get onto the comp, listen to music, sleep. (In various permutations and combinations!) College starts on September 1st and everyone worth their salt has got into a college that starts a lot before that, so I'm the only jobless freak left here. I thought I'd spend a whole lot of time replenish my wardrobe since college has a dress code, but it turns out college doesn't, and my wardrobe is well equipped to deal with college. So that's one job down the drain. Grandad suggested that he'd teach me some math from my first year portions, but he was apparently just kidding. He has since ordered me not to study till college starts. So that's the story of my life. And am I loving it! To quote Stephanie from Full House, "I LOVE my life!".
So here ends another blog entry that really doesn't tell you very much. And here goes me, terribly guilty about not blogging more, but at the same time, lost for things to blog about!
Blogs apart, my life has been well... uneventful to say the least. Not that I'm complaining! Like I keep telling everyone, for the first time in my life, I'm actually enjoying doing absolutely nothing! My day goes something like this... Wake up, eat, see TV, get onto the comp, listen to music, sleep. (In various permutations and combinations!) College starts on September 1st and everyone worth their salt has got into a college that starts a lot before that, so I'm the only jobless freak left here. I thought I'd spend a whole lot of time replenish my wardrobe since college has a dress code, but it turns out college doesn't, and my wardrobe is well equipped to deal with college. So that's one job down the drain. Grandad suggested that he'd teach me some math from my first year portions, but he was apparently just kidding. He has since ordered me not to study till college starts. So that's the story of my life. And am I loving it! To quote Stephanie from Full House, "I LOVE my life!".
So here ends another blog entry that really doesn't tell you very much. And here goes me, terribly guilty about not blogging more, but at the same time, lost for things to blog about!
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Sorry!
This is for all those people who are still jobless enought to visit my blog... You may have noticed a sudden lack of entries. The reason is this - my comp has officially decided to give haath. I am now in a cyber cafe justifying myself to no one (I believe the number of people who read my blog is zero) and missing out on TV. What have I been reduced to???
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Friday, June 16, 2006
Whattay Match!
My third and last entry today is on the Argentina - S&M match. If you didn't see it, you really missed out on something great. Argentina won 6-0, and the players from S&M were reduced to mere spectators.
First goal - Rodriguez - 6'. Nice goal. Nothing sensational.
Second goal - Cambiasso - 31'. Brilliant goal. Ball was passed 24 times amongst the Argentinians as they slowly advanced towards the goal and suddenly attacked. Fab stuff.
Third goal - Rodriguez again - 41'. Lovely touch. Got the ball into the goal at an amazing angle, and the ball ensured that it stayed there by way of a deflection off the goalpost. And so the score was 3-0 at half time.
A little late into the second half, Lionel Messi was brought in. Diego Maradona cheered heartily from the stands. In less than five minutes, he engineered a goal for Argentina. Finally, however, it was credited to Crespo, though I still think it's an own goal.
Fifth goal - Tevez - 84'. Sublime. Simply sublime. My favourite goal of the match. Tevez single handedly got the ball through two defenders and the goalie and into the goal, in the process making them look like idiots of the highest order.
Sixth goal - Messi - 88'. Messi's first world cup finals goal, making him not only the youngest to play for Argentina in the World Cup Finals, but the youngest Argentinian to score a goal in the WCF as well.
S&M were left shell-shocked while the spectators enjoyed the one-sided game played by the artistic Argentinians. These guys are good!
First goal - Rodriguez - 6'. Nice goal. Nothing sensational.
Second goal - Cambiasso - 31'. Brilliant goal. Ball was passed 24 times amongst the Argentinians as they slowly advanced towards the goal and suddenly attacked. Fab stuff.
Third goal - Rodriguez again - 41'. Lovely touch. Got the ball into the goal at an amazing angle, and the ball ensured that it stayed there by way of a deflection off the goalpost. And so the score was 3-0 at half time.
A little late into the second half, Lionel Messi was brought in. Diego Maradona cheered heartily from the stands. In less than five minutes, he engineered a goal for Argentina. Finally, however, it was credited to Crespo, though I still think it's an own goal.
Fifth goal - Tevez - 84'. Sublime. Simply sublime. My favourite goal of the match. Tevez single handedly got the ball through two defenders and the goalie and into the goal, in the process making them look like idiots of the highest order.
Sixth goal - Messi - 88'. Messi's first world cup finals goal, making him not only the youngest to play for Argentina in the World Cup Finals, but the youngest Argentinian to score a goal in the WCF as well.
S&M were left shell-shocked while the spectators enjoyed the one-sided game played by the artistic Argentinians. These guys are good!
Sohum-isms!
If you've just read my previous blog entry, you would probably think that watching the French Open was what took up most of my time over the last weekend. But no, I had something as much, if not more, enjoyable! My uncle and his family came to visit from the US, and Sohum was part of the package deal. Sohum, aged 5 (Almost 6, he reminds me at every possible instance), is perhaps the most adorable kid to ever walk the planet. So much so that he grabs attention wherever he goes. A little description... He's 4 feet tall ("I'm 48 inches and so I'm not allowed into the deep end of the pool"), just a couple of inches shorter that his sister Maya, two years older than him. He adores Shahrukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan, and aspires to have his hair styled like Hrithik's. He leaves no opportunity to admire himself in the mirror, and doesn't mind if you watch him while he does so. Adores movies of all sorts and is usually quoting some dialogue from some movie. Can laugh at himself and is very affectionate - the two things I really admire in him. I've tried to make a list of the adorable-est things he's said. Here's my compilation. (To get the full effect, all Sohumisms muct be read/ imagined in an American accent.)
On the first day they were here, we rented Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. From the 2nd minute of the movie, he was dying to know if Rahul would get remarried. My mum sat down to watch the movie when it was about halfway done, and he tried to fill her in on the details - "His wife is going to be Anjali and his daughter is Anjali. One Anjali and one Anjali. TWO ANJALIS!!!".
After falling off a chair, sternly to himself, "You gotta be careful!".
On Sunday, we went on a shopping spree. My mum promised to buy him and Maya whatever they wanted. He had his heart set on a basketball. My uncle said it would be difficult to carry it with them, but Sohum's mind was set. He didn't want anything else. I tried showing him a dozen different beach balls, and even tons of colouful basketballs. But he wanted the very first one he had seen - a classic orange B-ball. When his parents agreed to let him have it, he went down and picked it up. And then he quietly said to himself, "I've never had one before!". Maya and my uncle and aunt picked out their stuff. Throughout this time, he kept saying to himself "This is the best ball in the world!". He was very reluctant to give it to my mum when she needed to get it billed. When we got it done, we came outside and gave it to him. He was thrilled. "Mhave (Aunt in konkani) buyed it for me?", he asked. He went down to play that evening, and didn't let go of his beloved basketball. When he came back up, he told me that he had already learnt a new move.
Outside on the balcony, he got up onto our balcony, raised his arms and said, "I am Karma. There is no one stronger than me!". He is still under the impression that my mum was a super-villian he cured.
He wrote down his name in running hand, in Hindi and in block lettering and announced that he had written his name in three languages - Cursive, Hindi and American.
This one isn't something he said - it's something he did. He polished off two helpings of vanilla ice-cream with chocolate sauce faster than anyone else I've seen (And let me tell you I've seen some fast 'uns!) In fact, he is such a chocolate freak that he had a sip of chocolate sauce as if it were water, and then went 'Mmmmmm'! Actually, he enjoys food of all sorts. Must run in the family...
When my uncle first told us he'd be visiting us, I was very scared that the Sohum we had grown to adore two years back would have changed. I wasn't entirely wrong in this, and Sohum's actually changed in two ways - he's lost his lisp, and he's grown even more adorable. Even though he's all of five and a half and forty-eight inches tall, we all have a lot to learn from that little kid.
On the first day they were here, we rented Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. From the 2nd minute of the movie, he was dying to know if Rahul would get remarried. My mum sat down to watch the movie when it was about halfway done, and he tried to fill her in on the details - "His wife is going to be Anjali and his daughter is Anjali. One Anjali and one Anjali. TWO ANJALIS!!!".
After falling off a chair, sternly to himself, "You gotta be careful!".
On Sunday, we went on a shopping spree. My mum promised to buy him and Maya whatever they wanted. He had his heart set on a basketball. My uncle said it would be difficult to carry it with them, but Sohum's mind was set. He didn't want anything else. I tried showing him a dozen different beach balls, and even tons of colouful basketballs. But he wanted the very first one he had seen - a classic orange B-ball. When his parents agreed to let him have it, he went down and picked it up. And then he quietly said to himself, "I've never had one before!". Maya and my uncle and aunt picked out their stuff. Throughout this time, he kept saying to himself "This is the best ball in the world!". He was very reluctant to give it to my mum when she needed to get it billed. When we got it done, we came outside and gave it to him. He was thrilled. "Mhave (Aunt in konkani) buyed it for me?", he asked. He went down to play that evening, and didn't let go of his beloved basketball. When he came back up, he told me that he had already learnt a new move.
Outside on the balcony, he got up onto our balcony, raised his arms and said, "I am Karma. There is no one stronger than me!". He is still under the impression that my mum was a super-villian he cured.
He wrote down his name in running hand, in Hindi and in block lettering and announced that he had written his name in three languages - Cursive, Hindi and American.
This one isn't something he said - it's something he did. He polished off two helpings of vanilla ice-cream with chocolate sauce faster than anyone else I've seen (And let me tell you I've seen some fast 'uns!) In fact, he is such a chocolate freak that he had a sip of chocolate sauce as if it were water, and then went 'Mmmmmm'! Actually, he enjoys food of all sorts. Must run in the family...
When my uncle first told us he'd be visiting us, I was very scared that the Sohum we had grown to adore two years back would have changed. I wasn't entirely wrong in this, and Sohum's actually changed in two ways - he's lost his lisp, and he's grown even more adorable. Even though he's all of five and a half and forty-eight inches tall, we all have a lot to learn from that little kid.
Not One, Not Two, But Three!
Okay... I did some serious soul searching, and decided that instead of one killer entry, I'd post three normal ones. The story goes something like this.
My original plan (before Nadal won, and when I had a nasty feeling that he would win!) was to post a really huge blog entry about him and the match. Then, my cousins came here for a few days, and I just HAD to put in some Sohumisms. But I decided it would be unfair to both Rafa and Sohum - they both merit their very own blog entry. So it became TWO blog entries. I started writing this earlier this evening, and stopped in the middle, saying I'd put in snippets of the Argentina - Serbia & Montenegro match into one of the blog entries. But, as luck would have it, the Argentinians played SO well that I have to give them their very own blog entry as well! So here goes...
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Rafa is first without a doubt!!!! Rafa won!!! He 'just did it'! (Living up to Nike slogan and all.) After one whole year of waiting, I got to see Rafa magic at Roland Garros again. There's something about Rafa - my darling little cousin was sweet enough to remind me that he's absolutely ugly and I agreed - that just makes me feel all light and happy. He's just... Amazing!
Before I go on to the big one - the finals - let me run through the matches I haven't yet run through on my blog.
Quarterfinals:
Beat Novak Djokovic, an equally adorable 19-year-old from Serbia & Montenegro. Most painful match of Roland Garros for me. Djokovic was down 6-4, 6-4 and 0-15 (I think!) when he retired due to a bad back. I was heartbroken. I wanted it to be a five setter with Rafa winning. Djokovic looks like a player to look out for in the next few years - tons of promise!
Semifinals:
For the first time since 1985 (Not too sure about this), the final four in the Men's singles draw were the top four seeds, and everypone expected an intense match, but it was not to be. Rafa made short work of Ljubicic, beating him 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (9-7). I, for one, thouroughly enjoyed the match. Rafa got through Ljubicic's amazing service and ended up finally winning quite easily. That left Rafa to contend with the Fed-Ex in the finals...
Finals:
Thrilling match, to say the least. One of the only times in my life when I actually said "Food is secondary"! Feddy thrashed Rafa in the first set. 6-1, I believe the score was. One of the most dreadful parts of the French Open (Close second to Djokovic's exit). I think I was close to tears at this point of time. My little cousin Maya was actually quite shocked to see me in that state, and tried to console me by saying that she'd support Rafa as well. I just prayed and prayed that Rafa'd come back. And he did. With a bang. Returning the favour. By taking the second set 6-1. The match was absolutely even at that point of time. I was so thrilled with Rafa's re-entry into the match that I had started yelling "Vamos Rafa!" at the top of my voice. By this time, my aunt was also shocked - I don't think she's ever seen this hooligan side of me before! Third set was quite tight. Rafa won 6-4. My confidence got a boost. Rafa got an early break in the fourth set and hung on to it for quite some time. I was full happy and all. I thought the match was sealed when Rafa was serving for the match at 5-3. But for some reason, (nerves, I guess) Rafa lost his concentration and his service game. The match was back on. I was at the edge of my seat. At 6-all, the tie break began. Feddy got an early mini-break and I was disappointed. (Not that I loved Feddy less, but that I loved Rafa more!) But Rafa being Rafa, he got a double mini-break back and went up one mini-break. On his first match point, he won the tie-breaker 7-4, the set 7-6, and the match [1-6], 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). He collapsed in trademark fashion on court as the entire stadium, nay, the entire world cheered him on. Nadal's record against Federer has now gone up to 6-1, and Nadal's current tally has gone up to 60 consecutive match wins on clay! (More records at http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/articles/2006-06-11/200606111150044467719.html )
Rafa, in spite of his superior record against Feddy, still is completely in awe of him. (Feddy does that to people!) And that is just one of the many things that add to Rafa's charm!
My original plan (before Nadal won, and when I had a nasty feeling that he would win!) was to post a really huge blog entry about him and the match. Then, my cousins came here for a few days, and I just HAD to put in some Sohumisms. But I decided it would be unfair to both Rafa and Sohum - they both merit their very own blog entry. So it became TWO blog entries. I started writing this earlier this evening, and stopped in the middle, saying I'd put in snippets of the Argentina - Serbia & Montenegro match into one of the blog entries. But, as luck would have it, the Argentinians played SO well that I have to give them their very own blog entry as well! So here goes...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rafa is first without a doubt!!!! Rafa won!!! He 'just did it'! (Living up to Nike slogan and all.) After one whole year of waiting, I got to see Rafa magic at Roland Garros again. There's something about Rafa - my darling little cousin was sweet enough to remind me that he's absolutely ugly and I agreed - that just makes me feel all light and happy. He's just... Amazing!
Before I go on to the big one - the finals - let me run through the matches I haven't yet run through on my blog.
Quarterfinals:
Beat Novak Djokovic, an equally adorable 19-year-old from Serbia & Montenegro. Most painful match of Roland Garros for me. Djokovic was down 6-4, 6-4 and 0-15 (I think!) when he retired due to a bad back. I was heartbroken. I wanted it to be a five setter with Rafa winning. Djokovic looks like a player to look out for in the next few years - tons of promise!
Semifinals:
For the first time since 1985 (Not too sure about this), the final four in the Men's singles draw were the top four seeds, and everypone expected an intense match, but it was not to be. Rafa made short work of Ljubicic, beating him 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (9-7). I, for one, thouroughly enjoyed the match. Rafa got through Ljubicic's amazing service and ended up finally winning quite easily. That left Rafa to contend with the Fed-Ex in the finals...
Finals:
Thrilling match, to say the least. One of the only times in my life when I actually said "Food is secondary"! Feddy thrashed Rafa in the first set. 6-1, I believe the score was. One of the most dreadful parts of the French Open (Close second to Djokovic's exit). I think I was close to tears at this point of time. My little cousin Maya was actually quite shocked to see me in that state, and tried to console me by saying that she'd support Rafa as well. I just prayed and prayed that Rafa'd come back. And he did. With a bang. Returning the favour. By taking the second set 6-1. The match was absolutely even at that point of time. I was so thrilled with Rafa's re-entry into the match that I had started yelling "Vamos Rafa!" at the top of my voice. By this time, my aunt was also shocked - I don't think she's ever seen this hooligan side of me before! Third set was quite tight. Rafa won 6-4. My confidence got a boost. Rafa got an early break in the fourth set and hung on to it for quite some time. I was full happy and all. I thought the match was sealed when Rafa was serving for the match at 5-3. But for some reason, (nerves, I guess) Rafa lost his concentration and his service game. The match was back on. I was at the edge of my seat. At 6-all, the tie break began. Feddy got an early mini-break and I was disappointed. (Not that I loved Feddy less, but that I loved Rafa more!) But Rafa being Rafa, he got a double mini-break back and went up one mini-break. On his first match point, he won the tie-breaker 7-4, the set 7-6, and the match [1-6], 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). He collapsed in trademark fashion on court as the entire stadium, nay, the entire world cheered him on. Nadal's record against Federer has now gone up to 6-1, and Nadal's current tally has gone up to 60 consecutive match wins on clay! (More records at http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/articles/2006-06-11/200606111150044467719.html )
Rafa, in spite of his superior record against Feddy, still is completely in awe of him. (Feddy does that to people!) And that is just one of the many things that add to Rafa's charm!
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Rafa Won!!!
Rafa won!!!!! I'm really busy now but I promise to come out with a killer blog entry really soon!!!
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Vamos Rafa!
Well, well, well... I think I have disappointed some frequent blog-readers of mine by going through 3 whole matches of Nadal winning without any blog entry on the aforementioned. Well... This makes up for it all, I guess. Plus, I have a very valid reason for not having posted any blog entries. My cousins are expected tomorrow, and as a result of the confirmation of their trip, our entire household has gone into spring cleaning. I can actually see the bottom of my study table after approximately 2 years. Also, I can see the corner of my room after approximately 2 years having kindly donated the large IIT books obstucting the view to a poor unsupecting junior! And, the little time I have online, I spend looking at the official Roland Garros site. ( http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/index.html if anyone's interested!) In fact, I have been spending do much time on the site and seeing the Open that my mind has invlountarily started noticing weird things, like the logo of Roland Garros, besides being and R and a G with two lines, actually resembles a player running to reach a drop shot. I have begun to admire (the name of the person who designed the logo... no idea who he or she is) greatly, because, as anyone who ever tried to design a logo will tell you, it is no easy task to combine letters and include a relavent graphic at the same time!
Now onto the real stuff... A brief review of Nadal's round 2,3 and 4 matches, one by one.
Round 2:
Some almost 30-year-old American Chink called Kevin Kim for an opponent. I got a little scared for some time, considering this Kim dude had striking similarities to Michael Chang, and no need for me to remind everyone of the fact that Michael Chang won the French Open. Later realised that the poor guy has been taking part in grand slams since '96, and has got past the 2nd round only once. And that his career high singles rank was 63, some one and a half years back. Nadal belted him 6-2, 6-1, 6-4. I believe I brought Rafa a fair bit of luck by making my headband between points.
Round 3:
Rafa's first encounter with a seed, it also happened to be on his 20th birthday. I was fully scared, and I am justified in being so. Paul Henri-Mathieu. Seed 29. Age 24. Current rank of 32. Played a particularly good match last year in Roland Garros in the 3rd round against Guillermo Canas, I think. I was quite scared for Rafa. My sister did not help matters with her continuous "I have a FEELING that Mathieu is gonna beat Nadal!". Match started quite badly for Rafa. First (super-tight) set ended in Mathieu winning it by the skin of his teeth - 7-5. I was really disappointed but continued to root for Nadal. (Duh!) Second set went Rafa's way and he ended up taking it 6-4. But I could see that he wasn't going to have the match easily. When Rafa was serving for the third set at 5-4, 15-all, he suddenly walked to the chair and pointed to his throat. I was heart broken. But it turned out that Rafa had just got a banana piece stuck in his throat! He took the set 6-4. As the fourth set grew older and older, I could see that Nadal was tiring out. As my sister reminded me, he's not used to long matches - if it's clay, he belts and if it's not, he gets belted. Crowd by this time was gunning for Rafa's throat. Somehow, he hung on, and sanity prevailed. He wrapped up the fourth set 6-4.
I was on the edge of my seat throughout the match. Each point was so hard fought for by both players! It was an amazing piece of tennis, and I'm sure I would've enjoyed the match tons more if I hadn't been such a big Nadal supporter!
Saw Rafa celbrating his birthday later on. He had this huge birthday cake with these two huge candles, and he almost got the entire cake splattered onto his face by Nicolas Massu. Belated Happy Birthday, Rafa!
Round 4:
Lleyton Hewitt! Need I say more? I was s***-scared, to say the least. I mean, a former world number one, 2 time (?) grand slam champion, and one of the grittiest players ever. Gosh! My fear was somewhat diluted when Rafa won the first set 6-2. I was just beginning to feel confident and all when Hewitt won the second set on a freak point. My sister again began her "I think Rafa's gonna lose" stints. After that it was pretty much belting. Rafa won the next two sets 6-4, 6-2 to advance into the quarters. He now faces Novak Djokovic, whom I find absolutely adorable, but hope he loses to Rafa in spite of that.
Somewhere towards the end of Rafa's Hewitt match, he really warmed my heart. (He never fails to do that!) On the verge of winning, Rafa began to point to one corner of the stadium. I thought that he was pointing into the crowd because someone had a distracting ringtone or something. Chair umpire started saying something but Rafa continued to point. Chair umpire Maria Pascaul (A guy. Seriously!) got off and he and Rafa had an animated discussion and began to look in the direction in which Rafa had pointed. I was properly curious now. The next thing I knew, this tiny ballboy comes scuttling along with blood pouring out of his nose and the chair umpire tells him to go and get treated. Apparently the ballboys aren't allowed to leave the court unless the chair umpire tells them to do so. So Nadal saved a life!
(Yeah, yeah, I know it's a silly thing to write about, but one overlooks such facts when the person in question is Rafael Nadal!)
My time spent with the French Open has also led me to start noticing and realising weird things, as I said. One of them is that Rafa's left shoe has "Vamos" written at the back and the right one has "Rafa". When read continuously, his shoes read "Vamos Rafa" which is Spanish for "Go Rafa!". Also, April 8th last year (which happens to be my birthday!) heralded the start of a new era for Rafa. He hasn't lost a match on clay since that day.
As you can see folks, I'm very busy doing absolutely nothing. I'm still open to suggestions for movies to watch/ books to read/ anything to do.
Now onto the real stuff... A brief review of Nadal's round 2,3 and 4 matches, one by one.
Round 2:
Some almost 30-year-old American Chink called Kevin Kim for an opponent. I got a little scared for some time, considering this Kim dude had striking similarities to Michael Chang, and no need for me to remind everyone of the fact that Michael Chang won the French Open. Later realised that the poor guy has been taking part in grand slams since '96, and has got past the 2nd round only once. And that his career high singles rank was 63, some one and a half years back. Nadal belted him 6-2, 6-1, 6-4. I believe I brought Rafa a fair bit of luck by making my headband between points.
Round 3:
Rafa's first encounter with a seed, it also happened to be on his 20th birthday. I was fully scared, and I am justified in being so. Paul Henri-Mathieu. Seed 29. Age 24. Current rank of 32. Played a particularly good match last year in Roland Garros in the 3rd round against Guillermo Canas, I think. I was quite scared for Rafa. My sister did not help matters with her continuous "I have a FEELING that Mathieu is gonna beat Nadal!". Match started quite badly for Rafa. First (super-tight) set ended in Mathieu winning it by the skin of his teeth - 7-5. I was really disappointed but continued to root for Nadal. (Duh!) Second set went Rafa's way and he ended up taking it 6-4. But I could see that he wasn't going to have the match easily. When Rafa was serving for the third set at 5-4, 15-all, he suddenly walked to the chair and pointed to his throat. I was heart broken. But it turned out that Rafa had just got a banana piece stuck in his throat! He took the set 6-4. As the fourth set grew older and older, I could see that Nadal was tiring out. As my sister reminded me, he's not used to long matches - if it's clay, he belts and if it's not, he gets belted. Crowd by this time was gunning for Rafa's throat. Somehow, he hung on, and sanity prevailed. He wrapped up the fourth set 6-4.
I was on the edge of my seat throughout the match. Each point was so hard fought for by both players! It was an amazing piece of tennis, and I'm sure I would've enjoyed the match tons more if I hadn't been such a big Nadal supporter!
Saw Rafa celbrating his birthday later on. He had this huge birthday cake with these two huge candles, and he almost got the entire cake splattered onto his face by Nicolas Massu. Belated Happy Birthday, Rafa!
Round 4:
Lleyton Hewitt! Need I say more? I was s***-scared, to say the least. I mean, a former world number one, 2 time (?) grand slam champion, and one of the grittiest players ever. Gosh! My fear was somewhat diluted when Rafa won the first set 6-2. I was just beginning to feel confident and all when Hewitt won the second set on a freak point. My sister again began her "I think Rafa's gonna lose" stints. After that it was pretty much belting. Rafa won the next two sets 6-4, 6-2 to advance into the quarters. He now faces Novak Djokovic, whom I find absolutely adorable, but hope he loses to Rafa in spite of that.
Somewhere towards the end of Rafa's Hewitt match, he really warmed my heart. (He never fails to do that!) On the verge of winning, Rafa began to point to one corner of the stadium. I thought that he was pointing into the crowd because someone had a distracting ringtone or something. Chair umpire started saying something but Rafa continued to point. Chair umpire Maria Pascaul (A guy. Seriously!) got off and he and Rafa had an animated discussion and began to look in the direction in which Rafa had pointed. I was properly curious now. The next thing I knew, this tiny ballboy comes scuttling along with blood pouring out of his nose and the chair umpire tells him to go and get treated. Apparently the ballboys aren't allowed to leave the court unless the chair umpire tells them to do so. So Nadal saved a life!
(Yeah, yeah, I know it's a silly thing to write about, but one overlooks such facts when the person in question is Rafael Nadal!)My time spent with the French Open has also led me to start noticing and realising weird things, as I said. One of them is that Rafa's left shoe has "Vamos" written at the back and the right one has "Rafa". When read continuously, his shoes read "Vamos Rafa" which is Spanish for "Go Rafa!". Also, April 8th last year (which happens to be my birthday!) heralded the start of a new era for Rafa. He hasn't lost a match on clay since that day.
As you can see folks, I'm very busy doing absolutely nothing. I'm still open to suggestions for movies to watch/ books to read/ anything to do.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Freedom!!!
Albert Einstein once said "Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labour in freedom." And, as is better known with us ISC-ians, the monster Caliban from Shakespeare's "Tempest" sang (and here he have to admire both his vocabulary and his eloquence!), "Freedom! High day! High day! Freedom! Freedom! High day! Freedom!". I could throw in part of a Beatles song as well, but my highly genial readers will inflict injury upon me if I do, and I like my current state of health very much, so I will refrain. Anyway, bottom line is, I'm free!!! Not another entrance exam for atleast another 3 years! Woo hoo!
Now, I have reached a state where I am not compelled to do anything at all (Except clean my room - the one bad thing to come out of end of exams, since I now have no excuse left for no clearing my room!). This leaves me time to...
(a) Scream "No exams!!! Muahahaha!!!!" approximately a million times a day.
(b) Read a whole lot of books for the god-knows-whicheth time.
(c) Spend the whole day making weird accesories that I assure myself I will wear, but know deep in my heart I will never end up wearing.
(d) Increase my weight by way of excess consumption and lack pf physical exercise.
(e) Catch up on tons of movies that I never really wanted to see.
(f) Start following millions of serials.
(g) Do such useless things online as listen to certain songs played backwards so that I may hear the satanic verses my friends have told me about.
(h) Constantly remind myself that even though my boards went off extremely well, I got my behind kicked in all the entrance exams, and my board exam marks will get me nowhere decent, and I will probably end up studying in some halli* college.
(i) Follow the French Open, aaaaaaaaand... (Drumroll!!!)
(j) [And this one oughta be familiar to all those who read my blog a year ago
] Go gaga over Rafael Nadal in the hope that he defends his French Open title!!! (Yeah yeah... I'm aware of the fact that the last statement just lost me 89.579% of readership!)
So that, my friends, is an account of what has kept me busy (Or not!) over the past 3 days. Any suggestions of movies to watch, books to read, food to try, websites to surf and/or serials to follow are welcome!
*halli - A word from practically all south Indian languages meaning 'village'. More popularly, a generic term used to describe everything that's slightly backward/ a little slow on the uptake/ all-in-all not that great. Eg. "That girl, aah? She's a halli one!" expresses disdain over the fact that the aforementioned girl is a little village-y.
Now, I have reached a state where I am not compelled to do anything at all (Except clean my room - the one bad thing to come out of end of exams, since I now have no excuse left for no clearing my room!). This leaves me time to...
(a) Scream "No exams!!! Muahahaha!!!!" approximately a million times a day.
(b) Read a whole lot of books for the god-knows-whicheth time.
(c) Spend the whole day making weird accesories that I assure myself I will wear, but know deep in my heart I will never end up wearing.
(d) Increase my weight by way of excess consumption and lack pf physical exercise.
(e) Catch up on tons of movies that I never really wanted to see.
(f) Start following millions of serials.
(g) Do such useless things online as listen to certain songs played backwards so that I may hear the satanic verses my friends have told me about.
(h) Constantly remind myself that even though my boards went off extremely well, I got my behind kicked in all the entrance exams, and my board exam marks will get me nowhere decent, and I will probably end up studying in some halli* college.
(i) Follow the French Open, aaaaaaaaand... (Drumroll!!!)
(j) [And this one oughta be familiar to all those who read my blog a year ago
] Go gaga over Rafael Nadal in the hope that he defends his French Open title!!! (Yeah yeah... I'm aware of the fact that the last statement just lost me 89.579% of readership!)So that, my friends, is an account of what has kept me busy (Or not!) over the past 3 days. Any suggestions of movies to watch, books to read, food to try, websites to surf and/or serials to follow are welcome!
*halli - A word from practically all south Indian languages meaning 'village'. More popularly, a generic term used to describe everything that's slightly backward/ a little slow on the uptake/ all-in-all not that great. Eg. "That girl, aah? She's a halli one!" expresses disdain over the fact that the aforementioned girl is a little village-y.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
Rhetorical Questions...
It's time to put down some of the philosophical, deep thoughts that have been running through my mind... Like how much partying is too much partying? Especially if two of those parties are surprise parties, on two consecutive days? And when there are exams just 'round the corner? How come I never get sick of chocolate cake? Will I ever stop getting pleasure out of smearing my friends' faces with perfectly good chocolate icing? And when will I learn that no matter how loud I sing, I will not be heard above the music system at a party?
When will surprise parties cease to be surprising? Isn't it obvious when people whisper when you're around that there's something fishy going on? Or when the person who's taking you to your surprise party keeps getting calls on his mobile phone asking where the two of you are? Or even when your mother keeps you locked inside your room for an hour telling you to study while the guests stream in? And do people prefer surprise parties to all other types of parties?
When will people realise that while they were all battling it out for a glass of soft drinks each, I, the head of the anti-aerated brigade, had downed three and a half glasses of apple juice? And that there were two unfinished packets of potato chips in the kitchen? Won't the fact that bird flu is lurking stop people from eating chicken pizza? (When oh when will the bird flu go away and allow me to eat chicken???)
Why don't some people (me included), in spite of the fact that they know they can't dance for nuts, continue to do so? And how come their dance steps never fail to raise a laugh? Pray when will I learn that headbanging music is not for people with shoulder-length hair?
And why do boys get thrills out of taking the hair bands/clips off girls' hair? Or, for that matter, stealing their sandals? Or giving a chum birthday bumps even though they already did the previous day?
Is there such a thing as a quiet get-together with friends? When will people stop inviting themselves to parties? Is it THAT difficult to shut up before yelling 'Surprise!'? What's the highest decibel level any party has reached? How close were we to the record? Will all of us ever get together as a class again? Will throwing a good-bye party for a friend give her the wrong idea? Will the pain of saying good-bye to a close friend be eclipsed by the joy of meeting up with an old friend? And does turning 18 mean that all of us will stop being silly? (Was I overdressed?)
Does everyone in my class realise how much fun they all are, especially all together? Will I ever meet people like them again?
Am I ranting? Am I going mad? Have I driven myself round the bend? Will I ever be perfectly normal again?
Renuka, a.k.a. Ron, a.k.a. Bubbly
P.S. I cannot answer a lot of the questions I thought of, but I can definitely answer the first and the last... This much, and no!
When will surprise parties cease to be surprising? Isn't it obvious when people whisper when you're around that there's something fishy going on? Or when the person who's taking you to your surprise party keeps getting calls on his mobile phone asking where the two of you are? Or even when your mother keeps you locked inside your room for an hour telling you to study while the guests stream in? And do people prefer surprise parties to all other types of parties?
When will people realise that while they were all battling it out for a glass of soft drinks each, I, the head of the anti-aerated brigade, had downed three and a half glasses of apple juice? And that there were two unfinished packets of potato chips in the kitchen? Won't the fact that bird flu is lurking stop people from eating chicken pizza? (When oh when will the bird flu go away and allow me to eat chicken???)
Why don't some people (me included), in spite of the fact that they know they can't dance for nuts, continue to do so? And how come their dance steps never fail to raise a laugh? Pray when will I learn that headbanging music is not for people with shoulder-length hair?
And why do boys get thrills out of taking the hair bands/clips off girls' hair? Or, for that matter, stealing their sandals? Or giving a chum birthday bumps even though they already did the previous day?
Is there such a thing as a quiet get-together with friends? When will people stop inviting themselves to parties? Is it THAT difficult to shut up before yelling 'Surprise!'? What's the highest decibel level any party has reached? How close were we to the record? Will all of us ever get together as a class again? Will throwing a good-bye party for a friend give her the wrong idea? Will the pain of saying good-bye to a close friend be eclipsed by the joy of meeting up with an old friend? And does turning 18 mean that all of us will stop being silly? (Was I overdressed?)
Does everyone in my class realise how much fun they all are, especially all together? Will I ever meet people like them again?
Am I ranting? Am I going mad? Have I driven myself round the bend? Will I ever be perfectly normal again?
Renuka, a.k.a. Ron, a.k.a. Bubbly
P.S. I cannot answer a lot of the questions I thought of, but I can definitely answer the first and the last... This much, and no!
Friday, April 14, 2006
JEE Capers!
Okay... I guess the IIT-JEE would be as good a moment as any to start a new blog, huh? Well, what can one say? It's probably the most important day of any Indian engineer or aspiring engineer's life. It's arguably the most competitive exam ever - 300,000 people vying for 3000-odd seats! It's also enough to make even the smartest person on the planet feel like a complete dodo (so I don't even want to start thinking about where that puts me!). And also the additional pressure of two years' hard work (Or not, in my case!) coming down to that one day...
The worst thing about the JEE (by far!) is the fact that there are two 2-hour breaks, one each in the gap between the three papers. And while most people were studying, I was (a) Visiting a relative in the first break and (b) Eating lunch (and even shopping!) in the second break. Also one sad thing about the JEE is that it is held in April. That meant that by the end of the day, the weather along with the mental exercise had got me so pooped out that I could barely stay awake! But my complaint to the JEE committee is this... Why oh WHY couldn't it have been a week earlier??? That way I could've celebrated my birthday in peace!
But for some odd reason, I actually enjoyed the JEE. It is completely beyond my realm of understanding to realise why I enjoyed it, but I did. Maybe it was the fact that no one has any expectation from me in this exam. Or the fact that I snuck in chocolate and an ice-cream between papers. Or the fact that India won the Davis Cup tie against Pakistan that day. (???) [This last comment I owe solely to the fact that I have been living in close proximity of my sister for the last 13-odd years!]. Or maybe simply because I expected it to be tons worse! Anyway, in spite of the grumbling in the previous paragraph, and the fact that I know how much of a chance I stand of getting into IIT (and trust me, this is not a good thing!), JEE was fun.
Renuka, a.k.a. Ron, a.k.a. Bubbly
P.S. I just read through this post and realised I haven't talked about the papers.
Typical me to forget the most important stuff. In case anyone is still interested, I (unlike most other people) actually found Math quite okay and Physics tougher. However, almost everyone seems to agree that Chem was the easiest. I am still in shock over this fact!
The worst thing about the JEE (by far!) is the fact that there are two 2-hour breaks, one each in the gap between the three papers. And while most people were studying, I was (a) Visiting a relative in the first break and (b) Eating lunch (and even shopping!) in the second break. Also one sad thing about the JEE is that it is held in April. That meant that by the end of the day, the weather along with the mental exercise had got me so pooped out that I could barely stay awake! But my complaint to the JEE committee is this... Why oh WHY couldn't it have been a week earlier??? That way I could've celebrated my birthday in peace!
But for some odd reason, I actually enjoyed the JEE. It is completely beyond my realm of understanding to realise why I enjoyed it, but I did. Maybe it was the fact that no one has any expectation from me in this exam. Or the fact that I snuck in chocolate and an ice-cream between papers. Or the fact that India won the Davis Cup tie against Pakistan that day. (???) [This last comment I owe solely to the fact that I have been living in close proximity of my sister for the last 13-odd years!]. Or maybe simply because I expected it to be tons worse! Anyway, in spite of the grumbling in the previous paragraph, and the fact that I know how much of a chance I stand of getting into IIT (and trust me, this is not a good thing!), JEE was fun.
Renuka, a.k.a. Ron, a.k.a. Bubbly
P.S. I just read through this post and realised I haven't talked about the papers.
Typical me to forget the most important stuff. In case anyone is still interested, I (unlike most other people) actually found Math quite okay and Physics tougher. However, almost everyone seems to agree that Chem was the easiest. I am still in shock over this fact!
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