Caught on auto yesterday morning. It was drizzling. The driver asked me a zillion questions. Where I worked, my marital status, whether I own my home, how much is the rent. He didnt ask my opinion on kushboo's comment thankfully. A bus splashed dirty water all over me. I miss the clean, wide roads and orderly traffic of California more than anything on a rainy day. Translation of a counter point poem.
Asphalt gleams. No
puddles, no troubles.
And no smell of earth.
Friday, November 25, 2005
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Tamil culture
I am looking for the guys who wrote this 'agananuru' or whats that 'kurunthogai'. Good god! How could they possibly imply tamil girls had (gasp) pre-marital sex!! Che! I want to file twenty or thirty defamation cases against each of the authors. What a degradation!
Yes, that was a sarcastic post inspired by the cases against actress Kushboo for her statements on pre-marital sex.
Yes, that was a sarcastic post inspired by the cases against actress Kushboo for her statements on pre-marital sex.
Friday, November 11, 2005
Back home
Two more days and I am heading home. This time I should write a travellogue. I wish I had written about my other trips. Not that this is something posterity would remember me by. Its more to remind myself in my old age when I become senile and forget things.
Day 12 : “Allow me to request, Sir, your indulgence”
I didnt have a particular plan for the day now that I was back in London. I thought it would be nice to go to Greenwich.
AC and CC accompanied and off we went. Caught the tube and then a light rail, this was the more modern part of London, I observed. The buildings were contemporary design, glass and steel.
Greenwich was beautiful, it was a sunny day again. What a blessing! We walked in the park, towards the observatory. Took a mandatory picture standing on the greenwich meridian, spent the better part of the morning walking about slowly in the park, admiring the view from the royal observatory. Longitude.
Saw a beautiful globe, but it was more pounds than I could handle - money and weight both.
Got back to a market near shakespeare’s globe theater, wandered a bit, trying the wares. Had lunch sitting on a bench in the banks of the thames watching clouds and the river go by. It was a very inward moment. It was surprisingly not too crowded.
I decided I wanted to walk across the millennium bridge. So trudged along. Thought the St.Paul’s facade they had put up while they were redoing it was hilariously touristy.
Spent most of the day soaking in the ambiance wandering aimlessly, making a memory.
Spent some time near St.Pauls. More tourists there definitely. How awe-inspiring to have been able to design an icon like this.
Went shopping in Oxford street. AC wanted to go to his weekly ISCKON meeting, so accompanied them to the temple. Was amazed to learn that a group of men and women go around the area singing bhanjans every week or something.
Caught a bus back to CC’s house since I wanted to travel by bus, after all the tube travel.
Headed back to India next morning in the official inaugral flight of British airways. I thought that was a nice ending.
I didnt get window seat, so no glimpse of the Tigris. Got out to dawn lights in Bangalore city.
AC and CC accompanied and off we went. Caught the tube and then a light rail, this was the more modern part of London, I observed. The buildings were contemporary design, glass and steel.
Greenwich was beautiful, it was a sunny day again. What a blessing! We walked in the park, towards the observatory. Took a mandatory picture standing on the greenwich meridian, spent the better part of the morning walking about slowly in the park, admiring the view from the royal observatory. Longitude.
Saw a beautiful globe, but it was more pounds than I could handle - money and weight both.
Got back to a market near shakespeare’s globe theater, wandered a bit, trying the wares. Had lunch sitting on a bench in the banks of the thames watching clouds and the river go by. It was a very inward moment. It was surprisingly not too crowded.
I decided I wanted to walk across the millennium bridge. So trudged along. Thought the St.Paul’s facade they had put up while they were redoing it was hilariously touristy.
Spent most of the day soaking in the ambiance wandering aimlessly, making a memory.
Spent some time near St.Pauls. More tourists there definitely. How awe-inspiring to have been able to design an icon like this.
Went shopping in Oxford street. AC wanted to go to his weekly ISCKON meeting, so accompanied them to the temple. Was amazed to learn that a group of men and women go around the area singing bhanjans every week or something.
Caught a bus back to CC’s house since I wanted to travel by bus, after all the tube travel.
Headed back to India next morning in the official inaugral flight of British airways. I thought that was a nice ending.
I didnt get window seat, so no glimpse of the Tigris. Got out to dawn lights in Bangalore city.
Day 11 : Back to Pavilion
Woke up late the next morning.
Only two more days, and I have to head back to the daily grind. It was a tiring feeling to realize the vacation was coming to an end. I no longer have to say - visiting an English village - was one of my desires. When something you have wanted to do actually comes and goes, it isnt a pleasant feeling, I concluded.
We headed towards Cambridge on the way to London. Stopped in between in one of the houses that acted in ‘Pride and Prejudice’. This was Lady Catherine De Bourgh’s house in the adaptation. I walked about a bit. When I had originally decided to go on this trip, my first thought was to make sure I visited each and every one of those castles or manors that appeared in the Jane Austen adaptations. But when I finally drew up the plan, it had reduced to one or two. In reality though I had dropped most of it in favour of other attractions. There was one more pretty close by - Should I give up the one day in London for it? No, not really, I decided.
Perhaps it was my mood influenced by the impending end of the trip, or perhaps I didnt see the right places, perhaps my imagination wasnt cooperating. I didnt spend too much time in Cambridge. We drove around for sometime, stopped for a few photographs and then decided to head back.
Soon, we caught the motorway and headed towards London. I put my feet up and watched the undulating landscape, peeling skin off my burnt lips, remaining silent most of the trip.
We arrived near London but I managed to misguide and loose my sense of direction. After a few U-turns, finally got it right. A kind black gentleman repeated patiently that we had to take a U turn. So is it politically correct to say black or should it be African-English? Couldnt avoid the congestion fee, but had the experience of travelling inside London in a car during peak hours. It was a piece of cake ofcourse for someone from Bangalore.
I got stressed about how to pay the congestion fee. SR said he would pay it through the internet. Apparently photographs are taken and then matched with the payment details.
Caught a cab and arrived at CC’s house. Warm welcome, warm food. The mild dal was most soothing to my badly chapped, bloodied lips. Went to bed, feeling depressed about the end of the trip.
Only two more days, and I have to head back to the daily grind. It was a tiring feeling to realize the vacation was coming to an end. I no longer have to say - visiting an English village - was one of my desires. When something you have wanted to do actually comes and goes, it isnt a pleasant feeling, I concluded.
We headed towards Cambridge on the way to London. Stopped in between in one of the houses that acted in ‘Pride and Prejudice’. This was Lady Catherine De Bourgh’s house in the adaptation. I walked about a bit. When I had originally decided to go on this trip, my first thought was to make sure I visited each and every one of those castles or manors that appeared in the Jane Austen adaptations. But when I finally drew up the plan, it had reduced to one or two. In reality though I had dropped most of it in favour of other attractions. There was one more pretty close by - Should I give up the one day in London for it? No, not really, I decided.
Perhaps it was my mood influenced by the impending end of the trip, or perhaps I didnt see the right places, perhaps my imagination wasnt cooperating. I didnt spend too much time in Cambridge. We drove around for sometime, stopped for a few photographs and then decided to head back.
Soon, we caught the motorway and headed towards London. I put my feet up and watched the undulating landscape, peeling skin off my burnt lips, remaining silent most of the trip.
We arrived near London but I managed to misguide and loose my sense of direction. After a few U-turns, finally got it right. A kind black gentleman repeated patiently that we had to take a U turn. So is it politically correct to say black or should it be African-English? Couldnt avoid the congestion fee, but had the experience of travelling inside London in a car during peak hours. It was a piece of cake ofcourse for someone from Bangalore.
I got stressed about how to pay the congestion fee. SR said he would pay it through the internet. Apparently photographs are taken and then matched with the payment details.
Caught a cab and arrived at CC’s house. Warm welcome, warm food. The mild dal was most soothing to my badly chapped, bloodied lips. Went to bed, feeling depressed about the end of the trip.
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