Long forgotten parentage and occupation.

Till some years ago, the phenomenon of having stickers on cars (on the rear windshields
usually) was something alien to Kerala. It was more of a fad in Tamilnadu (and up North)
where the top favourites were to :

1. have the names of all kids in the family, with their initials intact, plastered all over the car.
2. have a religious message "Jesus saves" or "I am Jesus' favourite" or "Hare Rama, Hare Rama; Rama Rama Hare Hare" or "Jai Mata Di" etc
3. Up North, it would be like "Munnu Chunni di gaddi" (meaning, Munnu and Chunnu's vehicle).

Looks like it has caught on in Kerala too where I now see kid's names, religious stuff etc on
the rear windshields. But what I saw on the rear of a Suzuki Alto last week, was, to put it
mildly, really different.

It read, "MY BOSS IS A JEWISH CARPENTER"

Took me a few seconds to understand what he/she was implying. Put this across to a couple
of my Christian friends, but they could not make any sense of it. Looks like over the years,
the Jewish parentage of Jesus and his initial occupation of carpentry is forgotten as far as
modern day Christians are concerned. For them, maybe he is simply the son of God.

How low can we get ?

This came in the Malayala Manorama (a Malayalam newspaper) yesterday.


Picture courtesy : Malayala Manorama, Kollam edition, dtd 29-Oct-2007.

Those that can read Malayalam, can make out what the picture is about.

For those that don't know Malayalam, here goes the translation.

The news headline says "An advertising model for its own death".

The paper stuck on the buffalo reads as :
Local buffalo meat
1 K.G. for Rs.110
Available at Pazhayarinkuzhi Junction.

Hmm. There is no limit to man's cruelty, it seems.

A serious case of paranoia ? :-)

To say that I am crazy about my car, would be a serious understatement. I can rather be
called car-fanatic or paranoid or some such serious name. The very first car accessory that
I bought the day I got my baby (yeah, that's my car) home from the dealer's was a full body
car cover. Mainly because my flat in Chennai did not have covered parking facility.

The guy I bought it from, used terms like 'parachute material' to describe the fabric from
which the cover was supposedly made of. Implying that it is really strong, durable etc etc.
Ofcourse there is nothing that a pen knife can't do to cause a tear in it. Or, maybe the sharp
handle-bars of a cycle ridden by a girl, as I was to discover soon.

Anyway, in the 938 days (ok, I made up that number - it's like 31 months) that my car
has been with me, there has not been a single day when the car was left uncovered. Rain
or shine, the car would be covered, when parked in our apartment complex.

I would have loved to keep it covered when parked at the office complex too. But, even
for my paranoid mind, that was taking it a little too far. So, had to make do with leaving
it uncovered and just giving it a glance-over every 2 hours when I would come down to
the basement to have a coffee. You know, just to ensure that she is safe and fine.

I thought I had no competition whatsoever in being paranoid about my vehicle. But,
that was only till I saw this at Yonago airport in Japan. Click on the pic to get a clear
picture.



Heck, I did not even know that there were helicopter-covers available in the market.

Hmm. Now this is surely a case of taking love to new heights. :-)

Better late than never.

I had mentioned here about how the billboard advertisement for the Deccan Chronicle was
grammatically incorrect. Looks like there were others who noticed it (like I did) and maybe someone pointed it out to them because the billboards as I see them today have been corrected.

In place of the old copy, which read as "sometimes two letters denotes an era", what I see
now is "sometimes two letters denote an era".

Hmm. Good for them.

Am back after a hectic few weeks.

The last few weeks have been terribly busy for me. Forgot all about the blog
due to this cute guy who came into our life 2 weeks ago. Camera-shy, ain't he ?

Will try to resume regular posting soon. "Soon" being a very relative term.

Lost in Tokyo. And guess what I found.

After the late Saturday night at the karaoke bar, I wake up only close to noon on Sunday.
As I wake up, it hits me that most of my shopping is still pending. I need to visit the
electronics shop at Shinjuku (Yodobashi camera) to check out DVD-handycams.

Usually, I would just take the Hilton shuttle that operates every few minutes (depending
on the time of the day) between the hotel and Shinjuku station. However, the next shuttle
is some 15 minutes away. I reckon that it would be faster to walk to the metro station and
catch the metro to Shinjuku.

I reach Shinjuku, and walk out towards what I think is the exit. Given the underground
maze that Tokyo is, I come up to level ground and look around to find that it is a placeI
have never seen before. Yes, for all I know, I could have been in Dublin.

I assure myself that if I walk around a bit, I will come across a landmark that I have seen
before and will be able to find my way to Yodobashi. But no. I have been walking for atleast
an hour and 2-3 kms without seeing anything that I even faintly recollect to be associated
with Shinjuku.

Slowly, discouragement starts setting in. Ofcourse, I know that I have 2 last options. I could
just look for a Metro sign, which is almost all over the place, go down and catch a Metro to the station near the hotel. Or hail a taxi and get to the Hilton. Ofcourse, taxi being a costly option
in Tokyo, will be only the last resort.

I have difficulty admitting I am lost (common human male behaviour all over the world) and decide to give it another try before hitting the Metro. I turn a corner and this is what I see.



The Indian tricolor waving in the Tokyo breeze.

There is a rush of emotions - surprise at seeing our flag in Japan, a sudden thought of home
and overall a happy feeling. Can't resist taking a snap. I see that there is an Indian restaurant
in that building and most probably the flag is there because of them. I guess, more to attract Indian patrons than for patriotism.

Anyway, I turn the corner and still the place is as unfamiliar as it was an hour ago. Finally, I convince myself to ask for directions and after checking with a few people, I succeed in getting directions to Yodobashi, from where it is easy.

It seems, instead of taking the West exit out of the metro, I took the East exit, which resulted
in my getting lost. Hopefully I will get it right the next time, though I won't bet on it, given the maze that the Tokyo underground is.

Another Karaoke night.

Finally after 3 weeks here, I got to visit the karaoke bar last Saturday night. Since I have
been there only once during my previous visit and do not seem to remember the way, I get directions to the Champion karaoke from friends.

I follow the directions, which could not be any more precise. Turn left out of the Hilton,
walk to Nishi-Shinjuku metro station, cross the main road, turn right and keep walking till
you pass a Mister Donut, turn left, walk a block and you are there.

However, by mistake, I take the left just in front of the Mister Donut, instead of the left
after passing it. I am assuming that walking a block would lead me to the bar.The time is
11PM and the whole place is swarming with people. It is as if it is daytime, such are the
crowds of people, mainly young guys and girls.

I walk through the crowds on the street. A pretty good-looking Japanese girl (actually most
Japanese girls look cute and doll-like) is standing on the pavement. As I near her, she smiles
and the following conversation takes place between us.

Girl : Hi.
Me : Hi. Do we know each other ?

Girl : Would you like a massage ?
Me : Massage ? No thank you.

Girl : A massage and much more. Only 10000 Yen.
Me : Sorry. I am not interested.

I move on. There are guys sitting on the pavement railings. One of them jumps in front of me.

Guy : Hi. You need nice Japanese girls ?
Me : What ? Sorry, I am not looking for that.

Guy : It's very cheap.
Me : Doesn't matter. Not interested, Thanks.

He must have seen me talking with that girl and assumed that I might be a potential customer.

From there on, it is all about fending off these guys, who are soliciting customers. It's all done
in the open, with no fear of the law. Maybe it is not illegal here, who knows. Anyway, while trying to avoid these people, I walk more than a block, but do not see the Champion bar.

So, I cross the road (to avoid walking through the soliciting crowd again) and walk back
towards Mr.Donuts. I am halfway across a small street, when a black guy comes over.
I had seen him last time I was here and know that he also is looking for customers for his
club (an euphemism for brothels).

Actually, I had taken a snap of him then. See attached photo - a little blurred though.



I try to avoid his outstretched hands and try to walk past with a smile. But he would not
have it that way.

Guy : Hi, man. What's up ?
Me : Nothing, man. Just looking for a karaoke bar.

Guy : Man, you can atleast give a handshake. Nothing wrong in that, right ?
Me : Okay. And we shake hands.

Guy : Where are you from, man ?
Me : India.

Guy : India ? Cool man, we play cricket with you guys.
Me : Yeah, man. The West Indies are a pretty good team.

Note : Actually I care zilch about cricket, given the kind of guys we have for our cricketers,
who care two hoots for the country. All they care for is the endorsements coming their way.

More shakehands due to this cricket thing.

Guy : OK, let me tell you. You can have a real nice time. And very cheap too.
Me : Sorry, man. I am not looking for that.

Guy : Are you sure, man ? I can get the best girls and won't cost you much.
Me : No, man. I am meeting some friends at a karaoke bar, but can't seem to find the place.
Do you know where the Champion's bar is ?

Guy : Champions bar ? Its over there.
Me : Thanks a lot, man.

We were actually standing and talking a few metres from the bar.

I am relieved to get inside the bar, where it is business as usual. A mostly white crowd with
a few Japanese girls and a really drunk young Japanese guy. Get myself a beer and just stand watching the action. Many English songs are being sung by the crowd, but I don't seem to
know or have even heard them before. Then a guy sings a Japanese song, followed by a girl
who again opts for a Japanese song.

They used to have a couple of chairs around a round table, at one end of the bar. While the
table is still there, the chairs are not available. So, unlike last time, I have to stand. After
some time, I lean against the wall. A white guy, who has been singing for some time, takes
his drink and comes over to the round table.

Guy : Hi man, are you the bouncer ?
Me : What was that again ?

Guy : I mean, are you the bouncer of this club ? Asking because you have been standing at
the corner watching all the action.
Me : No, man. I am just here for a few beers and to hear some good karaoke.

Guy : Oh, sorry, my mistake.
Me : Thats fine.

Guy : So where are you from ?
Me : India.

Guy : India ? Cool. I grew up in Trinidad and had lots of Indian friends. Many of them are in Bangalore.
Me : That's cool.

Guy : Yeah. I attended an Indian wedding once - my first one. No one told me that they do
not serve liquor at Indian weddings. So anyone that drinks (which is, most of the guests)
goes out, has a drink and comes back. It was funny. And man, no one also told me that it
goes on for 8 hours.
Me : Yeah, Indian weddings can be long. Infact some communities have it spread over 2-3 days.

Guy : 2-3 days ? Thats amazing. BTW, how do you like Tokyo ?
Me : Nice and safe place. Like it.

Guy : Yeah, the safest place I have ever been to. I sometimes get up at 4AM and go for a jog. If I try the same thing in the U.S. where I live now, I could get mugged or even shot.

Then, Martin and his friend Akki come over to our table. He is from England and been here
for 12 years now. Speaks fluent Japanese. His friend Akki, however is yet to master English
as fluently as he knows Japanese. She starts off in English, but gets stuck every so often and switches to her native tongue.

Then there was the Dubya look-alike (a little bit older though), who just knew how to get
exactly between my camera and whoever it is that I was photographing. Frustrating guy.
And to top it, he had to smoke a cigar (a stinking one at that) inside a closed bar measuring
at the max some 100 sq. feet. God, how I wished I could yank that cigar and throw it out.

I spend around 2 hours there and finally decide to head back to the hotel at around 1:30AM. The black guy is still there at the cross-road.

Guy : Hi man. So how was it ?
Me : Good, man. Had some beer and karaoke.

Guy : What do they do there, man ?
Me : They let you sing karaoke and also have beer / liquor.

Guy : You sure thats the only thing ? Or do they have drugs ?
Me : Drugs ? No man. None that I could see.

Guy : So, how about the girls I told you earlier ?
Me : No man. I am not looking for that. Good night, man.

Guy : Good night, man.

I walk the 1.5 km or so distance back to the hotel. I am tired, and all I look forward to
is the soft bed of the Hilton Tokyo. The place that has been home for the last 3 weeks
and for another week to come.

Switching mentally between Dollars, Yen, Euros and the Indian Rupee.

While in India, shopping is something I do as a last resort. Either because I have run out
of something and can't proceed any further without it or because someone wants me to
buy something. I hate the crowds at the shopping centres, I hate the lack of parking and
the actual shopping experience is also nothing much to talk about. So, I stay away, unless
I have no options.

But the moment I am in a foreign country, I change into an avid shopper. I am on the
lookout for shops that have local souveniers that I can gift people back home. Or for
chocolates for the kiddies back home. Or I check out specific gifts for people like digicams
or watches etc. I also shop for dresses for my nieces. In short, I love shopping when I am
outside India. Ofcourse, the Japanese shopping experience has not been that much fun due
to not knowing local language and also due to them labelling most of the stuff in Japanese.

I love the way business is done in the US and Europe. You go to a shop, they have all the
models displayed, with the price alongside. You check out the product that best matches
your requirements and buy the one that has the price which you think is right. And, to top
it, we have the online versions of their shops, where you can browse from home, see the
various options available, zero-in on the correct match and just go get it from the shop.

Contrast this with the Indian shopping experience. Online retailing, while it surely is catching
up, is nowhere near the BestBuy.com or CircuitCity.com experience. And the actual brick-and-mortar shops display only a few models, limiting your choice. Prices might or might not be tagged on the products. In short, its not a fun experience zero-ing in on the product of your choice.

One inconvenience though, of shopping abroad is the difference in rates of the currency used
for trade in the country you visit and the one in your country. This requires quite some quick mental calculations to ensure that the price indicated on the product in local currency is infact
a good deal when converted to your currency (Indian Rupee a.k.a INR in my case).

While in the US, this would require me to multiply the price by 45 (1$ was equal toRs.45 in 2005 when I was last in the US - today it is only Rs40). So you find the right product and
then need to do some quick calculations so as to compare with the price you would pay in
India for the same or equivalent product. Or if it is something that is not available in India,
you would still need to convert it to rupees to be sure that it is worth the money and also in some cases to ensure that it falls in the budget you have in mind for that product.

In Japan, its the other way round. The INR is stronger than the Yen, and 1 rupee equals
3 Yen, and so here you need to divide the price in Yen by 3. Comparitively easier and faster than multiplying random numbers with 45.

So, for Indians shopping abroad, it mostly involves multiplication because except for a few currencies like the Japanese Yen, most currencies are stronger than the INR. And while the
fact that the INR is weaker might seem a weakness, the business community, especially the exporters from India, would prefer to have it that way. Already, with the rupee appreciating
in value against the dollar, we have all our software majors crying out loud - it hurts their bottom line you see.

For every $ worth of export, instead of Rs45 that they were getting till recently, they are
now getting only Rs40. Imagine the reduction in revenue (in INR) for a firm that exports,
say 1billion dollars worth of software or software services a year. A straight reduction of
5 billion INR from their revenue. No wonder the Premji's and Nilekani's of the Indian
software industry are making a big noise about the appreciating rupee.

Anyway, getting back to the original topic of this post, the one place where I could shop
without multiplying or dividing the price in local currency to arrive at the equivalent in
INR, was Belgium, in the pre-Euro period. The Belgium Franc (BEF) had a value almost
same as the INR. So if the price tag of that nice French wine I was checking out, read as
950 BEF, it meant that it is also 950INR. No division, no multiplication, no nothing. Just
plain and simple hassle-free shopping.

Maybe one day, there will be only one currency for the world. That does sound like a fun situation, and not just for shoppers in foreign countries. It would surely make life easy for
lots of people - no exchanging currency on landing at a foreign place, no carrying around
banknotes or coins of different countries.

Ofcourse, I don't think people who make a living out of the existence of different currencies (forex dealers, traders etc) would be too happy about this.

It's TTT (Typhoon Time in Tokyo) :-)

Yes, for the past couple of days, we were hearing our Japanese co-workers tell us about
the typhoon that's gonna hit Tokyo soon. Today afternoon, they said it's going to hit tonight
and by evening, it was getting real rainy and windy.

Most offices in Japan, I am told, have a kind of small balcony for employees to go out
and have a smoke. How I wish, we had something like this in India. Anyway, while leaving
for the day (and early at that), our Japanese co-workers had only one thing to say, "Avoid
going to the balcony". Meaning, you could be swept off from there, to God only knows where,
by the typhoon.

Hmm. But, what's life without an occasional smoke ? So, I gear up to go to the balcony and
the usually easy-to-open door would just not budge - it was being pushed by the force of
the wind. Anyway, that was sign enough for me to use my common-sense and avoid the
balcony. I try the stairway, and after some effort the door opens, but the wind is blowing
the rain all over the place.

Anyway, inspite of the danger of being drenched (and even swept away), habit prevails
and I somehow manage to hold on (to the door) for the 10-odd minutes I need for having
a cigarette.

While all co-workers have left early for home, due to the impending typhoon, I have to
stay back to finish some stuff that was long overdue. The wind gets louder and wilder.
I am worried as to how I would be able to make it to the hotel. Finally, at 10:30PM, I
am done and cautiously head to the street to make it to the hotel.

Well, there are people walking on the street, cabs are plying, the metro is running - so
life is going on as usual. Catch the metro, get to the hotel and am home. From the hotel
room, I can still hear the wind howling and the rain hitting the windows. But atleast I
am safe home (if you can call the hotel your home).

But then, who knows. I go to sleep now on the 23rd floor of the Hilton and might wake up somewhere on the ground far away, carried courtesy the typhoon. All I ask for is that, if
it is so destined to happen, let it happen when I am asleep, for I am afraid of heights.

Amazing coincidence this.

When it comes to mobile phones, every visitor to Japan is treated the same. You could be
from the US or Europe or India or Somalia, you could be having GSM or CDMA or whatever,
it simply won't work here. Period.

The alternative is renting out a mobile phone for the duration of your stay here. Rates vary depending on where you rent from. The Hilton charges 1000Yen for a day as rental, while I have seen ads in the Metro trains offering as cheap as 250Yen per day. Since a mobile phone
is more of a necessity than the luxury it was some years ago, I rent one when I am here.

The hotel's rental range is all Sony Ericsson camera mobiles. Since I have a digital camera to take snaps and also because the hotel does not provide the cable to transfer images to your
PC, I do not use the camera on the mobile. Last time I was here, I did try out some snaps just for the heck of it and to check out the image quality.

So, this time around also, when I rented out a phone, I just stuck to using the phone only for making /receiving calls and never used it to take snaps. Yesterday I was feeling bored and
was just fiddling around with the phone's menu and end up at the data folder where images
are stored.

I see 30-odd images in the folder which must have been taken by the person who rented
this phone out earlier. I go through them and see that most of them have been taken in some pub / karaoke / hotel room etc and some of them are pretty personal with a few also having intimate moments of a couple (a Caucasian male and a Japanese female).

I am surprised how people could be so careless to leave their personal stuff on something as public as a rental mobile. I scroll through the images to see the girl dancing, the guy and girl sitting in a bar, he with his hands around her and then they move on to some serious stuff.

After some 15 such snaps, the images change from the couple to buildings, hotels and cars.
There is a snap of the Metropolitan building (one of the tallest here) taken from ground level looking up to its dizzying heights. I can't help thinking to myself that I would have tried this angle when I visited the building during my last visit. And there is a snap of a lovely black
Lexus and a sexy black Merc S-class convertible. I again think, "Hmmm, someone who likes cars as much as me".

But then I notice that the cars are parked at the Hilton. Intuition kicks in and I get this
feeling that these snaps are too familiar. I go through more of them and yes, there are more Hondas, BMWs and Suzukis. By now I am sure that these were taken by me last time when I was here. Just to confirm, I check the date on the snaps and yes, they were during the time I was here last.

No wonder they looked familiar. I don't know how many phones the Hilton rents out in total,
but it was such an amazing coincidence that I got the same phone that I had got when I was here a couple of months ago.

And yes, I will delete the personal snaps of the couple, before it gets into the hands of some prankster.

When life throws us lemons, most sulk. The motivated few make lemonade.

I had mentioned here about how a self-motivated and go-getter like Dr.Jacob Thomas I.P.S.,
is not going to sit sulking because he was moved away from Supplyco where he had brought
in stellar changes for the organisation, resulting in better service to the common man.

He has proven me right (does not surprise me though), as this link posted by an anonymous reader indicates. Whoever this 'anonymous' commenter is, I need to tell you that I am glad
you brought this to my attention. I was wondering what Dr.Jacob was upto in his new job.

Here is a man, who put in months of effort to turn Supplyco from the den of corruption and
inefficiency it was, to an organisation that was not only serving the purpose for which it was
setup, but also managed to turn around and post some profits. While the profit part is not
really important (because it was not intended to make profits in the first place), it does tell
something about the man and the effort he put into his job.

And then, instead of being rewarded for a job superbly done, he is removed from the CEO's
chair at Supplyco and put in charge of an almost defunct institution like the Kerala State
Film Development Corporation (KSFDC).

If it was any average man, the response would have been to sulk, given the demotivating
transfer to KSFDC. But then, Dr.Jacob is not your average guy, in any sense of the term.
He sees opportunity even in adverse situations, the opportunity to put in effort to bring
about change - change for the better.

So, he sets out to work on the Chitranjali Studio, which over the years had not been
serving the purpose for which it was built - to help filmmakers make movies without
hassles. He has taken the employees into confidence and motivated them to work with
him on the project.

"If all goes well, by the end of 2008, a filmmaker can enter the Chitranjali grounds with
an idea and walk out with the prints of the film, ” says Mr. Thomas.

That sums up in brief what he has in mind. For a full read of the work he is doing at
KSFDC, check out the link below.
http://www.hindu.com/pp/2007/08/18/stories/2007081850340100.htm

I, for one, know that all will go well, as long as the pesky politicians do not play their
dirty tricks.

Finally stumbled upon a flaw in the Japanese.

It is really tough to find flaws in the Japanese. They are extremely courteous, patient,
good listeners, very intelligent, punctual, hard-working, drive sanely, accord the utmost importance to cleanliness and very eager to help. I could just go on - there are just too
many desirable traits in them.

During my last visit here, some months ago, I couldn't help wondering whether they do
not have atleast one flaw in them, some behaviour which could be seen as wrong. But no,
could not find even one.

This time around, I seem to have finally stumbled upon something. An important client
was coming over to our office with a couple of his subordinates to discuss about the project
that we were working on for them. I was told that I would need to be there at the meeting
which was scheduled for 11AM. Apart from me, my organisationwould be represented by
our local office manager and another engineer who works at our Tokyo office.

Knowing the Japanese penchant for punctuality, I was in the conference room 5 minutes
before the meeting, making some quick notes about the points on the agenda. As if by magic,
as soon as the office clock showed 11AM, the clients trooped in. To say that I was amazed by
the timing, would be a gross understatement. I have seen their metro trains arrive at the scheduled time, to the exact minute. But this was incredible.

Ofcourse, my deviant Indian mind, could not help thinking, "What if they had arrived some
5-10 mins earlier and were just waiting downstairs, having a smoke or something and then walked in at the exact time? " Even if this were to be the case, it is neither wrong nor does
it take away anything from their penchant for punctuality, because they still took the effort
to be at our place before the scheduled time of the meeting.

Anyway, they troop into the conference room and after the normal introductions and
exchange of business cards, we get down to business. We start of in English, but soon
I see (or rather hear) that they have switched to Japanese to converse among themselves.
So, while the group of 5 are animatedly discussing among themselves, I am sitting there wondering what the heck is happening. All I am able to make out are some tech-jargon
which they have kindly decided to retain in its English form.

I think that it's a temporary thing and that they will switch back to English, but even as
time goes by, I do not see any chance of it happening. If this were to happen in India, it
would be considered seriously rude behaviour. And it was not a one-off thing, because I
saw it happening again.

However, after that first experience, I have wisened up to the act. As soon as I see them
move to Japanese, I excuse myself and tell them that I have to get back to work and will
only be glad to come when I am required. Otherwise, I don't think I will be able to get any
work done here, if I remain in the conference room for hours, wasting my time in a meeting where I am just a mute spectator, and not a contributor that I am supposed to be.

Back again in "the safest city in the world".

Yes, am back in Tokyo for another 3-week visit on work (how I wish I could be here on
vacation). But then, if wishes were horses, software engineers would fly.

Anyway, was looking forward to seeing new stuff and also blogging about them.
But this trip looks like it would be hectic. Am already on the 4th day here and I
am yet to do 3 things that I love and which I usually do when I visit a new place.

In no particular order, they are "walking around the city and taking in the sights",
"photographing anything interesting" and "trying out the local beer". But then I did
not factor in the hectic schedule that awaited me here. Suffice it to say that my
walking shoes are yet to be unpacked, the camera has not been touched and I am
yet to drink even one beer.

Hey Will, if you are reading this, I miss the fun we had during the last visit here, the
trying out various cuisines, the karaoke bars etc.

All I hope is atleast I get to indulge in the three activities during the weekend.
And ofcourse be able to blog once in a while.

A lazy Sunday photo-blog

Had been to Kerala again last week for 4 days. Main reason for the visit to attend a friend's wedding - yes, the friend about whom I had posted here, who wanted only a nurse as his wife. And yes, he did finally get a nurse as his wife.

Since the trip was planned at the last moment, I did not get reservations in the usual train
which arrives at my home-station at a normal 9AM. Instead, had to take a train that would deposit me there at an ungodly 5AM. Set an alarm on the mobile phone for 4:30AM and
went off to sleep. However was woken up much earlier by the ruckus created by passengers who had to detrain at stations before mine. Anyway, reached home at 5:30AM with not much sleep.

Normally I would've just hit the bed, but decided to go for a long leisurely walk through the countryside. The plan was to take a route that I have never taken before. Even though it's
my hometown, there still are lots of places I have never been.

So, off I hit the road with my camera. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I would let
my camera do the talking.

1) Lotus blooming in the field.




2) Don't let the water and canoe misle you into thinking that this is a river.
It's a field that got submerged in the heavy monsoon that Kerala gets every year.




3) People taking the boat to attend Sunday mass. Yeah, like you and me would take the bus or train. :-)

4) The boatman rows across the river to get the next set of people.




5) This young chap was all along watching me with curiosity and was sportive when I asked him to pose for a snap.

6) Nothing to beat some fishing on a Sunday. What say ?

7) Our parish church - awaiting the faithful on a Sunday morning.




All in all, it was worth the time and effort. Should do more of such exploring next time I am there.

How about walking the talk, preacher ?

I was in church last Sunday after a long time. Over the years, I have managed to avoid
Sunday mass, while still remaining a believer. What turned me off was the quality (or
actually the lack of it) in the sermons that are, according to me, the meat of the one hour
(typical duration of a Catholic mass) spent in church.

As far as Catholic services go, the mass will be the same anywhere, line-by-line, with the
sermon given by the priest being the only differentiator. My time would have been spent
wisely on an otherwise lazy Sunday, if the sermon makes me think and does even a tiny
bit to make me a better human being. If it lacks that spark, I would rather stay at home.

At my parish church, we used to have a priest who was not only good with words but also
the content was educative and informative. As long as he was the parish priest, I would religiously attend Sunday mass. He got transferred to another parish and the replacement
did not really get my attention and thus I stopped attending mass for some time. However,
I would still drop in at church during late evenings to spend some time in solitude, conversing with the power above.

The current priest left on a temporary deputation and so we had a new priest as a stop-gap arrangement. I decided to check out the new incumbent, thinking,"What if he is good with sermons ?".

So, I sacrifice my usual late-into-the-morning Sunday sleep and haul myself to church.
When we get to the sermon part, I am impressed by the priest's speaking skills and the
subject he had chosen to speak on. He mentioned about today's mad rush world, with
people busy with work and making more and more money. And in the process they not
only fail to look around them and appreciate the joys of nature, but are also increasingly becoming indifferent to other human beings, including their own family members.

He urged people to take time out to converse with people, to take genuine interest in
those that are suffering from disease or other problems, to spend time with the elderly
who are lonely and to help those that are not as blessed in life like us. Sounded good to
me, given that our daily lives have become so routine and machine-like that we don't
even have the time or the interest to think of others.

I am enthused enough to start making plans of how I could make a difference to others
and think in terms of doing something for charity - maybe visit the orphanage nearby
or try to volunteer some time for an old-age home and so on. So, while the priest continues
with his sermon, I am actually mentally debating what I should be doing.

I am brought back to the church from my mental meanderings by a loud shout. It takes
me some time to understand where the shout came from and at whom it was directed.
It seems that a mentally challenged boy (looked like in his early teens) who was sitting in
the front row, decided that the sermon was getting too long and boring for him. So, he
leaves his seat and walks around near the altar, resulting in the whole gathering looking
at him and whispering amongst themselves.

This seems to have enraged the priest, who till a few seconds ago was talking about caring
for and understanding others, lost his cool and screamed at the poor kid. So much for all
his talk on being considerate to others etc etc. All the time and effort that he spent on
preaching to the audience, was to me a complete waste of time, if he could not himself do
what he preached to others. All he needed to do was walk the talk and the audience would
have got the message, than by his giving an hour-long sermon, which he himself does not
believe in practicing.

Anyway, looks like I would not need to waste time at the Church on a sunday morning
for some time to come. A morning walk should do me more good.

Blood is thicker than water ? Think again.

Read about this lady in a weekly magazine. She is a native of Orissa and had been married
for something like 8 years. Life was good to the couple except for the fact that they were not blessed with a kid. They tried all the usual avenues - gynaecs, fertility clinics etc etc, without any success.

Finally they decided that they have had enough of it and decided to adopt a kid. They got
in touch with an adoption agency and soon were able to adopt a kid. The baby brought joy
to them and gave a new meaning to their life. However, what they had not factored in was
societal opposition to adoption. Her parents, inlaws and other relatives were all against
them adopting a kid and tried their best to convince them against it.

However, they stood by their decision and soon the cute baby turned all its detractors into ardent admirers. All those that had been against bringing the baby home, were now waiting
for a chance to hold the baby and spend time watching its kiddy behaviour.

The kid grows up with love from all quarters and soon no one is even thinking that it is
an adopted kid. Ofcourse destiny has to put in a turn of events to rock the boat. The lady becomes pregnant. To say that the couple are surprised would be putting it real mildly.
All these years they had tried every means to have a kid of their own, without any success.
And now when they had given up hope, they get blessed out of the blue.

The whole family is happy about this development, except for the lady herself who is in
two minds now. While she is happy that she is going to be a mother, she is also worried
that once her biological kid comes, her love for the adopted one would diminish, which
definitely is a possibility given the way normal human behaviour goes.

As days go by, she is more and more agitated about this unexpected turn of events and
tries to get a handle on how the future would look like, when her baby would join the family. Though she feels that she would treat both the kids similarly and fairly, she still cannot rule
out the small possibility of being more closer to her biological kid.

She finally decides that if she indeed happens to love her own kid more than the adopted
one in the future, it would not be fair to the bundle of joy that helped give a new meaning
to their life some years ago, when they were all down due to not having kids.

So, she does something which would be unimaginable for any normal woman in her place.
She terminates her months-old pregnancy. I was purely zapped reading this article and
amazed at the sacrifice that she did for the sake of anotherhuman being who is not even connected biologically to her.

Looks like blood is not thicker than water, as we have been led to believe.

You want who ? A nurse ? OK, get in line.

Was talking with a friend while at Kerala last week. He works in Saudi Arabia (or the 'Gelf'
as any self-respecting Mallu would say) and was in Kerala on a well-deserved 3-month
vacation after some 2 years of slogging it out there. Primary intention of the visit was to find himself a wife.

We meet over a few whiskey-and-sodas and our conversation went something like below :

Me : So, you are having fun at home. 3 months of vacation sounds cool to guys like us, who
have to do with occasional visits of few days.
Friend-1 : Yeah, but even if your duration of stay is less, you get to come whenever you
feel like, while we get to come only once in 2-3 years. So, sort of evens out, doesn't it ?

Me : Thats true. We get to make more frequent trips, though short ones.
Friend-1 : Anyway already 2 months went by so fast. And still no success on getting a wife, even after some 10 bride-seeing visits. I have only 1 month leave left.

Me : Why did none of the 10 girls work out ? You did not like any of them ?
Friend-1 : Well, some of them I did not consider - mainly because they were not working.
And the ones I preferred, the girl's side did not respond after that - maybe they did not like
me or my job or something. Anyway, its been a pain, this bride searching.

Me : What are your priorities when you consider a girl to be your future wife ?
Friend-1 : Well, looks is definitely important, though I am not looking for a beauty queen. Looks compatible with mine should be more than enough. And what is important is
that she should be working, preferably a nurse. I would prefer a girl with a B.Sc. (Nursing)
degree, though if push comes to shove, I can make do with someone having a General Nursing degree also.

Me : In that case, why did you not look around at all the Keralite girls working as nurses in Saudi Arabia itself ? Would have saved you the trouble of going around here looking for a bride.
Friend-1 : Nice suggestion, but there are issues with that. For one, those girls earn big money there (nurses are highly paid in the Gulf countries) and would therefore look only at guys who earn much more than them. And secondly, the good ones would already behitched to someone.

Me : OK, so thats not a viable option. So what is the plan of action for you now ?
Friend-1 : I have some more bride-seeing visits lined up in the coming days. Hoping one of them works out.

Me : Best of luck with your search and hope you find a suitable mate soon.

Since he has to go the next day on another bride-seeing session, he decides it better to
stop after one large peg and pushes off. While I am left alone at our awesome open-air bar,
enjoying my second drink, another friend comes along.

Me : Hey, every other girl in Kerala is a nurse, or so it seems. Then why is it so tough for
guys to get a bride who is a nurse ?
Friend-2 : That's so easy. You know what ? Our guys who work in the Gulf, all want only nurses as brides. But do you know what the nurses are angling for ? They want doctors as husbands. That's the whole issue. :-)

Hmm. Quite logical thinking on our girl's part, right ?

P.S: Have been thinking of a post on our open-air bar for a long time. Should do it soon.

Comments on the blog post on Dr.Jacob and my response

As promised in my previous post, here follows the comment (quoted verbatim) by Viswanthan on my initial blog post on Dr.Jacob Thomas. Be warned that it is going to be a long read.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Viswanthan said...
It is nice to see this blog. As of today what has happened. Where is the author.

Mr. Jacob Thomas IPS was sacked. I think in January this year(or December last year?).
It gained some media attention. But what so. The 'anonymous' shall remain proud to be Indian.

However, I, being a regular customer of Supplyco and a college lecturer was interested in the sudden changes that could be perceived then. I was happy that the public enterprise is going in the right direction. But what so.Who is there to support him. Only powerless public among a few who are aware of the real situation.

But to know the real situation is an onerous task even if one wishes so. Why? Because ordinary citizens are more involved in trivial matters. They also strive to thrive in this world by reaching to get their own rights viz., basic necessities. In between this struggle who has to provide them with the correct information. Sure, it is the elite political class especially in Kerala. Alas, what is the state of affairs of this political class in Kerala. Well. They are increasingly goaded by the hidden philosophy and principles of acquing more money. It would be worthy to note down that the great left politicians who want 'eradication of corruption' played the pivotal role in throwing out him.

Many medias in that time had told about the connections between both the left and right in ousting him mercilessly. Actually, is he who was mercilessly stamped out. No and never. He is an IPS officer, who can very well prove himself and change another bad scenario into good. So the merciless attack was on the common people of the Kerala State. Please read the recent political developments in Kerala where corruption in different fields was highlighted. This would definitely give us an idea of how the recent political class has become classless.

Even the left front who has the history of pro poor has proven to exist so but in words alone. Then who should have had brought the issue to lime light. Yes it was the media. Did media play correct role. No. Why? May be because they have to protect their own interests. Or they were not knowing the actual situation. But are we so naive to assume that our elite media was not knowing the actual situation. No we are not. Media are interested in protecting only their own interests. Isn't it.

I would even say that the media group that had then apparently supported Mr. Jacob Thomas IPS was doing so not because of their love for a corruption free Public distribution system. Instead they were doing that simply because somehow their larger interests were meeting with these.

Will the world ever change. May be. When will we change into a dignified society. God knows. Why these politicians are speaking about 'understanding the reality' now and then so as to highlight their stances to be correct in the existing circumstances. Doesn't they have any role in creating a real situation. In reality, isn't that our own actions lead to reality. Are our political class and the bureaucrats, to a lesser extent, so ignorant and short sighted. Yes. I feel so.

This is an era where people initiate into politics as a career unlike our great past leaders who had dropped their career and entered into politics, raising voice against injustice and fighting brutalities. Then it was not politricks. Now, the political elite - even in the so much acclaimed educated Kerala - are the main perpetrators of injustice. What they all have to show off and cover up is nothing but their own hypocrisy.

Can a Jacob Thomas uproot the rotted system alone. In order to achieve an egalitarian society we need a responsive youth that cannot be bend or mend by political, religious, class, race or any such affiliations. Instead we need, those who values human beings as human beings rather than manipulative objects and who loves their fellow beings, if we have to revolutionise ourselves into an egalitarian society.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And this was my response :

incaRed said...
viswanthan,
I appreciate your comment on my post and more so your concern for the state in which
India is today. I also share your helplessness in being unable to do much to change the scenario.

However, each of us, however powerless we might seem individually, can surely make a difference, if we try to ie. You being a college lecturer can actually do a lot. I have had the good fortune of having teachers who did not just teach stuff from the book, but also inculcated in me ethics and pride of being an Indian.

I am sure you could also deviate occasionally from the textbooks to impart knowledge to your students which would make them a better human being. I on my part would continue trying to bring out to the world gems like Dr.Jacob Thomas who are trying in their own way to make a difference. Apart from walking my talk.

Hoping for a better India.
Thanks.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And this was another comment on the post, which is quoted here only because Viswanthan
refers to it in his comment :

Anonymous said...
proud to say I'm an INDIAN.........after reading this

An update on Dr.Jacob Thomas I.P.S.

I had written here in February 2006, about Dr. Jacob Thomas, who happens to be one
of the very few honest and committed officers that India is fortunate to have. I have had
a few visitors reach this blog searching for "Dr Jacob Thomas I.P.S" on google. However
over time, the interest in Dr. Jacob diminished.

But the last few days have seen a resurgence in interest in him, though I had no clue why.
It became clear when I talked to my people in Kerala. Yesterday, the PDP leader Maudhani
was exonerated for a crime he was supposed to have committed and for which he had been
in jail for the past 9 years or so. I have no love lost for Maudhani or for any one who uses
religion in politics. But, is it fair to have a person put in jail for 9 long years due to political revenge on false cases ? I think not.

Anyway, what is the connection between Maudhani and Dr.Jacob ?
It seems, 9 years ago, when Dr.Jacob happened to be the police commisioner of Cochin
city, the ruling Left coalition at that time wanted him to arrest Maudhani without any
valid reason. Since Dr.Jacob was one who went by the law and because he knew that
arresting a leader who enjoyed considerable support among the Muslim community in
Kerala would lead to serious law and order problems, he refused to arrest Maudhani.

Indian politicians being what they are, they could not tolerate an officer who refused to
do their bidding. So, the same night he was removed from the post of police commisioner
and the government went ahead and had Maudhani arrested by some other pliant police
officer.

Now that the courts have ruled that Maudhani is innocent, Dr.Jacob has been proven right
in the stand he took many years ago. A newspaper in Kerala had published this and thus
the renewed interest in Dr.Jacob.

Anyway, much water has flowed down the Pampa river since my initial post on him
and his work as M.D. of SupplyCo, which prompted me to do this update on Dr.Jacob.
Another thing that prompted me to do this update was a comment on my original post
by a concerned citizen from Kerala (Mr.Viswanthan) who happens to be a college lecturer
and a long time consumer of Supplyco. I will post his comment and my reply in another post.

As I had mentioned in my initial post, Dr.Jacob put in lot of effort and time to streamline Supplyco's operations and to transform it from a government organisation rooted in
corruption to one that actually worked for the people, as it was intended to.

However, along the way, a new Government (left front again) came to power in Kerala.
We, like other people aware of Dr.Jacob's work, expected the communist government to continue giving him a free hand to carry on his good work. After all, communists are
supposed to be for the poor and the down trodden, right ?

But, nothing could be farther from this point of view. The left parties in India today are
just another political party, with most leaders out to line their pockets when they get a
chance in power. They remember the poor and downtrodden only when they need crowds
for their rallies and demonstrations.

So, within a few months of coming to power, they had Dr.Jacob removed from his post
as Managing Director of Supplyco and instead posted him as the head of Kerala State
Film Development Corporation (KSFDC), which clearly was a move to demotivate him
by assigning a competent officer a function where he would not have a chance to put in
use his skills.

When he was moved to KSFDC some months ago, all I thought was that the corrupt
elements who were dislodged from Supplyco would have pulled the strings to have him
removed so that they can get back and enjoy the fruits of corruption which Dr.Jacob had
denied them. But now that we know the Maudhani connection, I would not be surprised
if the lefties had him removed as a revenge for not arresting Maudhani when they were
in power last time.

Anyway, knowing Dr.Jacob, I am sure that he is not one to sit sulking at KSFDC.
He would instead channelise his energy to make that organisation a better one.
Our best wishes to him.

Supplyco's loss would only be KSFDC's gain.

Star sighting at Chennai

Had gone to the basement parking area for a coffee break with colleagues, when I saw a
familiar-looking woman walking to the Suzuki Zen that was parked near where we were standing.

Did not really need to rack my memory to connect the face with the personality, even
though it was a long time since I had seen her. It was Rekha Menon, who at one time
used to host a very interesting quiz programme called FTQ (Family Tele Quiz) on a
Malayalam channel. For all I know, it could still be on TV today.

FTQ used to be pretty big with the Malayalam viewers who could call a phone number
and take the rapid-fire kind of quiz on questions involving general knowledge. I remember trying a lot to get across to that phone number, without any success though.

There used to be some kind of prizes for the winners. But more than the lure of the prize,
I think it was the talent of the hostess (Rekha) that made the show popular. People loved
the way Rekha hosted the program. She was lively and interesting and to top it all, the
highlight was her Trichur accent.

Trichur (pronounced as Trishur) is a district in Kerala, where the people speak Malayalam
in a special way. Actually they seem to sing the language rather than speak it, which has
always been amusing and entertaining for us Mallus from the rest of Kerala.

And ofcourse, she looks good and has a nice Mallu girl look to her, which could have also
worked in her favour. I even know a Tamil friend (I am sure he would read this as he
drops in occasionally to this blog) who used to be a regular viewer of the program
inspite of not understanding Malayalam. I am not sure, but her looks could have
been more of a factor in luring him to the program than interest in quizzing. :-)

Trichur has another claim to fame among Keralites. The girls from Trichur are supposed
to be the most beautiful among Keralite girls. This might be a very broad generalisation,
but somehow all the Trichur girls I know look great. So maybe there is some truth to it.

Anyway, I see her and without realising it, keep staring at her. She notices this
continous stare which makes me turn my gaze away. She might have mentally
made a note, "Another Mallu in Chennai who happens to have seen my program".

And you know what, she looks much better than she actually looks on TV. Infact, she
looked really good in person. Googled for an image of hers to put here and this is what
I came up with. However, this picture does not really do justice to her looks.


Picture courtesy : www.esquareworld.com

So, what was she doing in a complex housing IT companies?

A friend tells me that apart from hosting programmes on TV, she also works for an IT
company at Trivandrum (Kerala), which happens to have a development centre in our
building. So, most probably an official visit to Chennai.

Anyway wish her all success and luck and may her program be more popular with viewers.

Damn smart, these kids of today...

One of the unavoidable tasks that need to be attended to, each time I visit Kerala is doing
the rounds of some close relative's homes. If you don't do it, they get offended. So, I usually make it a point to keep apart some time for a brief visit at the homes of some close relatives (especially my Godparents) almost every time I visit Kerala.

Yesterday I was at my godparent's home in the evening for a quick visit. We talk shop -
mostly about the rains, the recently receded flood waters, which had entered their home
(an annual occurence) forcing them to move to the rooms on the first floor, etc etc.

I can hear the TV in the adjoining room and walk in to see my cousin's son watching an
English movie on Star Movies. The movie has Vin Diesel starring in it and the kid (he
would be like 9 years old) is watching it quite intently. Am not sure whether he really understands the American English or just watching it for any stunt/fight scenes.

Anyway, I make some small talk with him about his studies and then check with him if
he has seen the famous Vin Diesel movie (The Fast and the Furious) - I am guessing he
would like car racing movies like most young boys. He has not even heard of it. Hmmm.

Anyway, I sit with him for some time and try to make sense of the movie playing on TV.
A good looking young girl/lady joins the action and Vin Diesel is talking to her. From the
body language, I know that what is going to follow soon is a kiss. I am now thinking, should
I get up and move on before the kiss happens, to avoid both of us the embarassment ?

By western standards, a kiss is nothing big, especially in a movie. But, this is India and a
kiss, even if on-screen is not something that two generations would be comfortable
watching together. The sequence of events that followed were quite surprising.

Just as I am thinking of whether to get up and move to the living room, he also somehow
understands that a kiss is about to follow and immediately switches to the Cartoon Network
(CN) channel. He stays a few seconds at the CN channel and then switches back to the movie.

But the kiss had not yet happened and actually was going to happen only now. Another
touch of the remote buttons and we are back at CN channel, where he again lingers for a
few seconds before returning back to the movie. By this time, the kiss has been done and finished with.

I am zapped, to say the least. How did he know that a kiss is about to follow ? Nothing in the preceding dialogues indicated it. And even if the dialogues indicated it, he would anyway not
be able to make sense of the English dialogue, leave alone the American English, given his limited exposure to English.

What I presume is that from constant watching of English movies, he was able to know by
the body language that intimacy is expected. Quite smart. Anyway, it saved me the embarassment of having to endure an intimate moment on TV with my nephew.

Kids sure are a lot smarter today than we were at that age. Hmm.

Of floods, reptiles and presence of mind...

While the monsoons are welcome in Kerala each year, they bring along a host of problems
with them. The rivers get flooded first, followed by the low-lying fields and small streams / canals. And depending on how close to the river or fields you are, your house would be
affected accordingly.

Most houses in our neighbourhood had ankle deep water around them. Some of them had
water entering the home, leading the residents to either go up to the first floor (if they had
one) or relocating temporarily to the homes of relatives. We are lucky to be located such
that the flood water only reaches till our paddy field that borders our home.

While rains and floods are looked upon as unavoidable problems, one fallout of floods is that reptiles get driven out of their usual abodes and enter human residences, which to be frank
is quite unnerving. Would you like to wake up at night and see a cobra or viper alongside you? Definitely not my idea of a good night.

When I was young and had not heard of wildlife protection and the value of each animal in
the eco-system, snakes for me were something to be hunted down. My uncle, at that time,
used to be a distributor for roof tiles and he used to stock the tiles in our compound.

The tiles would remain undisturbed for a long time, till some buyer came to get some.
When the tiles were disturbed, almost every time, there would be a snake slithering out.
I loved those times. I would be ready with a stick (made of chural - a tree from the bamboo family) which my Grandfather used to keep for such uses.

I don't know what snakes they were, or whether they were poisonous, but in most cases,
I would have managed to kill them. Today, I am wiser, after knowing their role in nature
and would not go after one. Ofcourse, if me or my loved ones were facing a threat from one,
I would still not hesitate to kill it.

Anyway, killing a snake is no big deal if you are armed and also are expecting it. What is
daring is to take one head-on when you least expect it, like it happened to my friend
Vijayan a couple of days ago.

Vijayan's home borders the paddyfield on one side and a small canal on the other. Due to
the location, the area gets flooded each year and this year also was no exception. Since the
water was creeping up daily and was threatening to enter his home, he sent his wife and
kids to his in-laws place and stayed back to guard the house - thieves get active during
such times, you see.

So, one evening, he is at home sitting and reading a magazine, when he picks up a towel
lying on the floor. The next thing he knows is an anali (malayalam for Viper - venomous
snake) has bitten his hand and is hanging on. As per Vijayan, most snakes usually bite you
only long enough to inject the venom, but the anali is like a dog - it will hang on after biting.
The snake was only 2 feet long, but is venomous.

If I had been in his place, I would have been really afraid. But what Vijayan did next was remarkable. He killed the snake using a wooden log he found nearby. Not because it angered him by biting, but because he knows that when he goes for treatment, it would be very helpful for the doctors to administer the right anti-venom, if they know which snake bit him.

So, he killed the snake and took it along with him when he went to the hospital at Kottayam, some 35kms from our place. Its a pity that a person has to travel so far for anti-venom in a state, which has such a lot of snakes and I assume quite some snake-bite cases.

Anyway, his presence of mind was helpful to the doctors to administer the right anti-venom
and combined with the help from friends who donated blood for him, he is alive today. Looks much leaner and weak than how he looked when I saw him a few months ago, but atleast alive.

Kerala Tourism - masters in promoting God's Own Country

If I had to name one state in India that has marketed tourism brilliantly and
have taken the effort to think out of the box, it would without any doubt be Kerala.
The government organisation responsible for this is Kerala Tourism.

Kerala Tourism have been pioneers in marketing the most well-known asset of Kerala
- the scenic beauty of the state. Sun, sea, beaches, backwaters, hills etc etc - you name
it, Kerala has it. The only thing missing is snow. But then, if God gave Kerala that also,
it would be grossly unfair to the other states.

Thanks to Kerala Tourism, the term "God's Own Country" is famous the world over.
You could argue that it's not really a big deal selling a place that is blessed by nature.
I would have agreed with you, till a year or so ago, because Kerala does not really
need selling, given the beauty it posesses.

But, they won my admiration when they did something out of the ordinary - selling
the normally tourist-unfriendly monsoon season. Kerala is blessed with abundant
rainfall. While this is a good thing as far as meeting the water requirements of the
state goes, it is not really a good thing for tourism.

Tourists usually don't like roaming around wet or with umbrellas or raincoats while
they are on vacation. Rains would be the last thing they would like to have. But with
rains being a round-the-year phenomenon and atleast a couple or more months of
hardcore monsoons, too much was at stake, as far as loss in tourism revenues were
concerned.

That is when the bright guys at Kerala Tourism came up with the idea of selling the
monsoons itself. And what a brilliant execution it was. I would just let the picture do
the talking. Have a look at one of their promotional campaigns for monsoon tourism.
The text copy "Sometimes it takes water to kindle a fire" coupled with the apt picture
of a couple, would lure anyone to try out the romantic getaway promised by the state.




If you still harbour any doubts about their ability, do check out their brilliant website.
The way it is designed, the text that forms the site, the graphics/video/pictures used,
the language options provided for the foreign tourist etc make it stand out.

At times I am even surprised that Kerala Tourism is a government organisation.

Why does God have to take away the good ones so soon ?

Yesterday night I get a call from my Dad, which is quite unusual, because it is me who
calls up home regularly. He usually only calls up when he needs to convey something
or when he wants me to do something.

His voice is quite low, which is again unusual, because that's not the normal tone of speech
for him. He tells about the heavy rains there (nothing unusual, given the monsoon in Kerala)
and the flood caused by the nearby river being in spate. Floods are also almost a yearly phenomenon there, with river waters entering the low-lying fields that are not even
hundred metres from our home. But mercifully, they do not usually advance any further.

He then tells me that my second cousin, Shanti (means peace in many Indian languages)
who was down with pneumonia, expired just a few hours ago in Bangalore, where she was staying with her husband. I am shocked. I dont know what to say. He says that her mom
and brother had been there with her and will be bringing her to Kerala today.

No one could have had a more apt name than my cousin. She was peace personified. All of maybe 30 years, she always had a sweet smile on her face, was well-mannered, courteous
and humble. She would be any parent's dream daughter.

As a kid, she had some medical problems with her heart and used to be thin and weak,
but that smile would always be there on her lips. Over the years, she overcame most of
the medical issues and was a healthy girl. She dutifully married the boy her parents
found for her and soon was the mother of a 2-year old kid.

I am still unable to confront the reality that she will no longer be around. I can't imagine
the sorrow of her parents and brothers who doted on her. I am worried about the young
kid that lost a mother at such a tender age.

Why does God have to take away the good ones sooner ? Because he loves them more ?
But that is not fair to the people who love them and will miss them for ever.

Shanti, may you rest in peace.

You will always remain in my memories as the best sister I ever had.

Trust in the city.

As promised, I get a missed call from the hairdresser at around 2:30PM. After the usual
heavy Sunday lunch, I am busy with my favourite Sunday activity - reading the Sunday supplement of The New Indian Express, which in my opinion, is the most balanced and
fun read for a Sunday.

Even though I am not really in the mood to venture out in the hot sun, I leave the comfort
of my couch to have my hair cut. Get to the bike, only to see that the rear tyre is punctured.

Hmmm.

I could just walk to the barbershop, which is only like a kilometre (km) away. But I have
some friends coming over in the evening and need the bike to run some errands. I push
the bike to the neighborhood puncture shop. The lady who owns the place says that the
guy who fixes punctures does not come in on Sundays and there is nothing much she can
do about it.

The other places I know are quite far and there is no way I am going to push a punctured
bike all that way. So, I try a workaround. I fill the tyre with air, pay her and drive to the
other shop, hoping that the air will not run out before I reach the shop. Unfortunately, the
shop is closed, due to being a Sunday.

I rush to the next one that I know and luckily he is open. I heave a sigh of relief. Meanwhile
I get 2 more missed calls from the saloon. I call him and tell him that I am stuck with a flat
tyre and it will take some more time before I can come over.

Now the tyre guy removes the rear wheel from the bike, and takes out the tube. He is quite
a talkative guy and just loves chatting, while I, in contrast am the silent type, who would just want him to fix the puncture and let me move on. But I have no option other than listenting to him and replying wherever necessary. He is all admiration for my 12-year old bike saying
that the older ones are much better than the ones churned out today and give more mileage
per litre of petrol and are more reliable and so on.

Then he asks if I am a Malayali (from the state of Kerala in India).

I am a little miffed because having spent more than half my life in Tamilnadu, I have come
to think of myself more as a Tamilian than a Malayali. And I was damn sure that my command over the Tamil language was so good that no one would be able to make out my state of origin from my flawless Tamil. Looks like I still need to work on it.

Anyway, now he takes the tube, examines it minutely and asks me what air pressure I
normally use for the tyre. I reply that for the sake of a cushioned ride on the bumpy roads,
I use lower pressure than what's recommended by the manufacturer. He says that its wrong practice and that due to filling lesser than recommended air in the tyre, the sides of the tube have got damaged.

Also, there is a reasonably big puncture near the valve head. So, given the overall condition
of the tube, the only way out for me is to replace the tube. Which was not what I expected
when I rode to the puncture shop, because I had changed both tyres and tubes only a few thousand kms ago.

I was expecting it to be only a small puncture and had only 30 odd rupees with me, which
would have been enough to pay for fixing a puncture. Now the tube itself cost 140Rs and
his labour would be another 20Rs. I tell him that I dont have that much money on me.

He says, "No problem, sir. You don't bother about the money. You can pay me later."

I am surprised. Because he does not know me or know where I stay. What if I go and never return with the money ? There is no way he can trace me. Maybe his instincts tell him that
I would return with the money.

So, I ride off with a new tube and paying nothing. I go home, get the money and return to
pay him. He smiles, maybe thinking to himself, that he did not go wrong in his asessment.

I return home, still wondering how people trust others in a city where in most cases we
dont even know the next door neighbour. OK, the amount involved (like 4$), could be
termed trivial, but for that guy, I am sure its a decent part of his daily income.

If this happened in my home town in Kerala, I would not be surprised because everyone
knows everyone else. But, in a city, such trust does not cease to surprise me.

Indian ingenuity at work. Again.

I had posted here about how we Indians make use of the missed call feature.

Came across another one yesterday. I had been to my hairdresser's saloon,
a few blocks from home, for a long overdue haircut.

I reach there to see that there are already 4 guys waiting in line. Since it would
take atleast 2 hours for my turn to come, I tell the guy that I will come later in
the afternoon when it will hopefully be not so busy.

He replies, "Sir, just leave your mobile number. I will give you a missed call,
when it becomes relatively free".

Hmm. Cellphones do make life easy, don't they ?

And he did give me a missed call around 2PM. But I still could not make it, due to
a surprise puncture of my bike tyre. Inspite of the trouble that a punctured tyre
puts you to (especially on a Sunday afternoon), something good did come out of it.

I will post about that soon.

What you see (in the ad) is what you get

Saw this billboard advertisement for the Deccan Chronicle (DC) newspaper on
Cathedral road, on my way to work.

AD

BC

sometimes

two letters

denotes

an era

The ad, as you can see, is a play on their acronym (DC). But I fail to figure out what the newspaper has to do with either AD or BC or an era.

As I mentioned in one post earlier, calling the DC a newspaper would be an insult to actual newspapers like The Hindu, that do a great job of reporting news and educating the readers.
The DC on the other hand is for those that love to get the latest gossip on movie stars and
the likes of Paris Hilton, Britney Spears et al. Its just a tabloid, if you will.

However, this post is not about the DC's quality (or actually the lack of it). This post is about
the copy of their advertisement itself, which gives a fair indication of what you will get in the
newspaper.

I am no grammar expert, but somehow the wordings of the advertisement don't sound
correct to me. Is "sometimes two letters denotes an era" grammatically correct ?
I would think it should be "sometimes two letters denote an era".

But, even if they have it wrong, it would not come as a surprise to me because that is exactly
the way their newspaper reads - shoddy English, grammatical mistakes all over the place,
sentences that abruptly end without completion and so on. Sometimes I wonder whether they
actually have someone proof-reading the contents before it goes to press.

I would have expected them to be careful atleast while advertising. Maybe its an in-house
advertisement. I don't think a professional advertising agency would have made this mistake.

Inspite of all this, DC sales are soaring in Chennai, atleast if I am to believe their claims.
Not surprising given that they price the paper at Rs1.50 (some months ago it was only
1 Rupee). Add to it our interest in gossip, movie news and Page3 personalities. And at the
end of the month, it fetches more when you sell off the old newspapers to the recycler.

After all, we Indians love anything that is VFM (Value For Money).

What one arm of governance does, the other promptly undoes.

I had commented here about how good a thing it was that helmets were made compulsory
for bikers (and wearing seatbelts for car users) in TamilNadu (T.N.).

But looks like I spoke a little too early. While on the day of implementation, I could see
almost 100% use of helmets among the biking population, now it is back to the usual
Chennai scene - only those that anyway used to wear a helmet before the rule came
into force can be seen wearing one.

While it took a Public Interest Litigation and years of follow-up by a concerned citizen
to make the High Court order the T.N. Govt. to make helmets compulsory, all it took
to undo it was a couple of irresponsible statements by none other than the Chief
Minister (CM) of T.N..

A couple of days after D-day (1st June 2007), the CM issues a press statement, the gist
of which is "While the new rule is good and all, we would not want the public to be harassed
by the cops for not wearing helmet. We would like the cops to take a lenient view while
enforcing this rule".

Hmm. A person who is supposed to provide an example and direction to the public tells
the cops to be lenient. What would you expect to happen ? Ofcourse the public is happy
that they do not have to wear helmets and can now have their heads damaged well and
proper in the event of an accident.

A day or so later comes another statement. "Women/children riding pillion should not
be penalised for not wearing helmets. Just enforce helmets only for the rider".

How more illogical can you get ? It has been proved that in the event of accidents, it is
the pillion rider who suffers major injuries than the rider. Also, are the lives of women
and children not important enough ?

But why blame the politicians alone ? It has been rightly said that people get the leaders
they deserve. The fact that it takes a Court directive and a government law to make us do something that we should have been doing of our own accord and for our own safety, shows
us for the people we are. Given that, this is the only leadership we deserve.

Anyway, I have personally benefitted from this rule. While earlier, I would use the seat
belts only on the highway drives, me and my car-pool mate now belt up even within the city.

Going the extra mile - a natural Japanese trait.

The more I looked around and observed seemingly minor and normal things, the more
I understood why Japan is where it is today - at the top. For them quality is a continous
mission that can be achieved only with discipline and perserverance. Not something you
can slap on to a product, like an attachment or accessory, as an after-thought.

Add the trait of "respect for one's work" and you get a nation that will succeed in the face
of any adversity. I am sure there is no other race in the world that respects work more
than the Japanese do.

The Europeans come pretty close - the guys I worked with in Belgium were amazing.
They would come in sharp at 8AM (or earlier) and get down to work till 5PM, with just
a lunch break in between. And yeah, 2 visits to the coffee maker to get tall mugs of
black coffee.

But come 5PM, the office would be empty - you see, they respect their personal time
just like they respect work. And try asking about working on weekends ? They will
stare at you like you were nuts. Thats a strict no-no. The only people you will find in
the office onweekends would be the security personnel.

But, the Japanese beat them because of their trait of going the extra mile. Doing one's
assigned job is something that is expected of you. Doing your job well is appreciable.
But doing that extra bit, which is not really your responsibility, and that too of your
own choice is something that deserves real admiration. Let me list just two examples
that I noticed during my stay there.

We are sitting in the super-efficient and ultra-punctual Tokyo Metro on our way to
work and we see the conductor walk from one end of the vestibuled train to the other.
As he walks along, his eyes dart around each compartment, looking for any trash that
does not belong in the train. He picks up a newspaper left by a passenger from a seat,
then sees a empty can of coke on the floor which he picks up. Same for some paper
lying on the floor. I can't imagine a train conductor in India doing this. No wonder our
public places are the way they are.

Heck, why blame only the conductor ? I can't imagine any Indian citizen doing this. But
to befair to Indians, of late, we are seeing awareness in atleast not dirtying public places.
People look for a trash bin to drop the trash. If not available, I know people who will keep
the trash in their bag/pockets instead of littering public places. I also joined the ranks of
such people after my first exposure many years ago to such good practices followed by responsible citizens in other countries and am proud of the small difference this makes
to my country.

I witnessed the second instance at the Hilton Hotel. At the main entrance to the hotel
reception, there is the bell boy with his tall desk, helping guests, organising traffic etc.
His job would be done if he just sticks to doing these tasks efficiently.

While waiting for the hotel shuttle near him, I noticed that whenever he got some respite
from his work, he would take a permanent marker pen and use that to sort of paint up
the exposed edges of his wooden desk, from where the varnish/paint had peeled off.
This is not part of his job description and most likely the work of some service staff.

But, for him, it is about avoiding the guests from seeing it, and getting a bad impression
about the organisation he works for. His temporary fix would do the job till the service
staff get around to fix it.

Now, this is pride in one's work and about going the extra mile, without any expectations - monetary or otherwise. Was able to snap him in action - see attached picture.





No wonder the Japs rule. And one more reason affirming my existing faith in Japanese
products.

Karaoke bars - unique to the Tokyo night life.

Can a city be complete without some good nightlife, both for the residents and tourists ?
And Tokyo was no exception. Infact, I should say it offered a wide range of options for
people with varied tastes.


Pic 1 : Tokyo at night - bustling with people even at midnight.

Ofcourse, they had the usual pubs, bars, strip clubs etc that you find in any major city in the world - India is not there yet though. But one entertainment option that I have never seen anywhere else was the Karaoke bars of Tokyo.

I had heard a lot about the very popular karaoke bars in Tokyo and one Saturday, had the opportunity to go see one for real with a colleague. Let's call him Will. Will has been coming
to Japan for a couple of years now and loves everything about Japan. He likes the place, the variety of cuisine available here, loves travelling around. And last but not the least, he loves karaoke bars.

But, what separates his love for karaoke bars from that of a normal visitor to the bar (me,
for example) is that the guy can sing real well and is an active participant in the karaoke bar. Most patrons, however are there for the music, the drinks, the fun of being in a cool hangout place etc. So, we go to this karaoke bar called "Champions" in Shinjuku at like 10PM on a Saturday.


Pic 2 : The entrance to Champions Karaoke bar, Shinjuku, Tokyo

The place is bustling with people, but we still manage to find ourselves a small table.
A Karaoke bar looks like a normal watering hole, with bartenders (usually attractive
women) serving patrons from behind the bar.



Pic 3 : The lovely bartenders at work - another busy night.

What is different is that they have the option of letting you unleash your singing talent, to an audience consisting of other patrons like you, who appreciate music and are very encouraging.
They have these huge books (thick as telephone directories) which have most English (and Japanese) songs listed. You select the song you would like to sing and note its number on a karaoke slip and hand it over to the bartender. If I remember right, it was 100 Yen for
singing one song.

Once your turn comes, the soundtrack of the song is played, plus the video is shown on the
TV along with the lyrics scrolling at the bottom. And you sing along. As simple as that. The
only catch being that you need to be good at it and also time yourselves properly with the
music.

Since I can't hold a tune, the only option for me was to do what I do best - enjoy my
beer, sit back and enjoy the music and admire the guys and girls that were able to sing
oh-so-beautifully. Some of them really did a great job of singing karaoke and to me it
almost sounded as good as if the original album itself was being played.

My friend Will is blessed with an awesome voice and did a great job of belting out some
really nice tracks. No wonder he built himself a huge fan following there and got some
real applause, which he ofcourse deserved.


Pic 4 : Will singing, while an enraptured audience looks on.



Pic 5 : Will having a fun time singing karaoke.

I did not have my video camera on me - something that I regret as I could not take
a video of the karaoke fun. Pictures really cannot do justice to the fun we had there.
Still, hope the few pictures I have posted alongside do their bit to show the fun that
we had.



Pic 6 : This girl also sang well. Cute girl too, ain't she ?




Pic 7 : Will gets some company for a song.

Finally at around 3:30AM, the bartenders wanted to call it a day and we were back on the streets after a night well spent. Now, thats one place I would like to go back to again, if I
get to be in Japan again.

P.S. : The Karaoke bars are one fun way to spend the night away. But make sure you do it on a Friday or Saturday because by the time you finish, it would be the early hours of morning and you won't be in a frame of mind to haul yourselves to work, all hung over and tired.