Travel Blog 2: Honeymoon @ Mauritius

Well before I start telling you about our trip to Mauritius, I should tell you that I got married (or you may have some bad ideas!). Briefly - I got married to a Software Engineer, Vinayak Murthy. I was going around with this guy for 5 years and some months (before marriage), plus currently 10 months (after marriage). Of course, it will hopefully continue for some more time ;)

Anyways, coming to the more interesting part; after marriage Vinay and I went on a Honeymoon trip to Mauritius. And what follows is an account of this trip.

Mauritius is a small but beautiful country. The roads are clean, traffic is well controlled and, to top it all, the people are real nice! We booked our trip through a travel agent but it would be worth to explore it by oneself. So when we arrived at the Mauritius airport, we were picked up in a nice big car by our escort, who dropped us at our resort - Hotel Klondike. The resort was fabulous! Our room was facing the beach; awesome breeze and a beautiful view. The food, however, was not very good (maybe we just didn't fancy African food).

Day 1: First evening, we took it light with a walk on the beach and a romantic dinner (no details about what happened in the night).

Day 2: Second day on, we went out to explore the country. The first place we visited was the Casela zoological park. We got to see peacocks, tortoises, different kinds of birds and fishes and even monkeys. It was like any ordinary zoo and we thought there is nothing much to expect. Then we heard that there was a special tour that we could take if we could part with a few more Mauritian dollars. We took it just for fun, not knowing what was in store. There was this long bus journey through some green forest-like areas and finally we arrived at our destination. And what do you think we found there? Lions! Living and breathing and right in front of us! We were in a group and were given a stick for protection (would you ever have guessed a lion could be frightened of a teeny-weeny stick?). We were then taken one after the other to pose near the lions. It was fascinating to show off later but I was damn scared sitting next to a lion!! We got to see cheetahs as well.

Day 3: The third day, we visited a bottle making company where we had a chance to observe how bottles are made from glass. We also posed before the 'magic mirrors' that made us look fatter and shorter than we actually are. Quite funny! After that, we went to a ship making company and saw very small to titanic-size ships on display. Then we went on a long drive and stopped to take pictures of beautiful views on the way. We visited the drinking water reservoir of Mauritius. Amazing to see how that small reservoir could quench the thirst of all the Mauritians put together! Afterwards, we went to a shiva temple where there was a huge Shiva Statue right in front. Magnificent structure. Then we went to the Black River park with a mountain view, followed by a visit to the water fall (I was very scared of the height!). Finally we went to see the seven colour sand (volcanic area). After a long and exciting day we went back to the resort to relax on the beach

Day 4: We met with some relatives living in Mauritius who were very nice and took us out to visit more places. We went with them to Port Louis which is the capital of Mauritius. We saw the ships in the harbour. Then we went to Le Caudan Waterfront; a mall in Port Louis. It was like the city centre and had many people walking around. We went to a casino there and I won two Mauritian dollars! Afterwards, we went to a racing course and watched an exciting horse race. At the end of the day, we went to our relatives place and together with their family, went out for dinner. During dinner, our relatives surprised us with a cake with lighted crackers and a Mauritian traditional dance by the waiters! It was very nice.

Day 5: On the fifth day of our visit, we went to another island near Mauritius. We took a motor boat ride to that island. On the way we did adventure sports like para sailing, undersea walk and tube ride. Para sailing was very exciting and it helped bring down my fear of heights. Undersea walk was a walk with nature. We got to touch the fishes! The gear was too heavy for our tiny heads but we didn't feel the weight at all under the water. Finally, the tube ride was exhilarating!

Day 6: On the final day of our Honeymoon trip, we went to meet our relative who took us for a tour of the Pepsi company. We saw how Pepsi produced and marketed its various drinks. After that, there were more family visits. Finally the trip came to a sad end at the airport and we took our return flight back to our homeland.

So folks, that is how our honeymoon trip went by. You may be wondering whether we had time to do the real stuff but believe me we did! It was fun unlimited!!! :)

Guilty or not guilty?

How do you determine whether you are guilty or not?

Simple, ask these questions to yourself:-

1. Who is the person(s) I respect the most?
2. Will I tell this person(s) that I did such and such thing?

If the answer is yes for the second question, then you are 'not guilty'.

From time immemorial, we have been deciding what is 'good' and 'bad' and what is 'right' and 'wrong' based on the views of our near and dear. My mom thinks drinking is bad for health so I feel guilty when I drink. My dad thinks going out with boyfriends is taboo so I feel guilty when I go out with my guy friends. One would have experienced these feelings more often than not.

But what really decides guilt should not be the opinion of others, it should be the right thing according to our values and opinions. If I think taking drugs is really injurious to health, I will never take it. On the other hand, if I think taking drugs is not injurious to health, but I feel my mom wouldn't like it, I will just take drugs and not tell my mom. So which is more effective?

Self realization matters.

I rest my case!

...

Oh there goes the green light,
Now it has changed to red,
Oh, I need, I need, the green light,
So I can go early to bed.

It's raining

It is raining, I see,
But I maybe hallucinating,
It is raining, I feel,
But I maybe hallucinating,
The clouds are dark, on sky blue,
Drops of dew on flowers anew,
Is it raining? I ask,
You are contemplating...

My Baby Shot Me Down

I was five and he was six,
We rode on horses made of sticks,
He wore black and I wore white,
He would always win the fight,

Bang bang, he shot me down,
Bang bang, I hit the ground,
Bang bang, that awful sound,
Bang bang, my baby shot me down.

Seasons came and changed the time,
When I grew up, I called him mine,
He would laugh and always say,
Remember the time we used to play,

Bang bang, I shot you down,
Bang bang, you hit the ground,
Bang bang, that awful sound,
Bang bang, I used to shoot you down.

Music played and people sang,
Just for me the church bells rang.

Now he’s gone I don’t know why,
And till this day I sometimes cry,
He didn’t even say goodbye,
He didn’t take the time to lie,

Bang bang, he shot me down,
Bang bang, I hit the ground,
Bang bang, that awful sound,
Bang bang, my baby shot me down.

Life is like a box of chocolates.. you never know what you are gonna get..

'Hi, my name is Forrest Guuuump'..

The first movie I bought on my own (as opposed to borrowing and downloading)..

He is stupid but he gets the best things in life.. the movie tells us something.. that we unnecessarily give importance to unwanted things in life..

Money.. Those green (or maybe blue or pink) notes only buy unhappiness.. we prefer money to our friends and loved ones.. we run behind money all our life but never realise we cannot take it with us to wherever we go after death (don't wanna get into that!).. Forrest never went behind money, money always followed Forrest wherever he went.. but me? I always care about my bank balance and am tight-fisted.. why? because I am not stupid like Forrest :)

Love.. The greatest thing in life.. is just bullshit in real life.. Forrest had unconditional love for Jenny.. he was there for her whatever she went through and however she treated him.. but we are always trying to change this and that in our loved one.. we choose the shirt they wear.. the friends they have.. even the way they talk and walk.. I would never allow my guy to sleep with another girl and still care for him if he comes back to me all shattered and crestfallen.. why? because I am not stupid like Forrest :)

Friendship.. Yes, a promise made to a friend is more important than life itself.. Forrest keeps the promise he made to his friend even after the friend dies in the Vietnam war.. I do make promises to my friends.. all of 'em.. do I keep any? Maybe one or two insignificant and easy ones.. why? because I am not stupid like Forrest :)

Power.. politicians are not the only ones power hungry.. me and you, we are no different.. we want to control everything.. Forrest ran to the ends of the world and people worshipped him for that.. they gave him power in a silver platter.. he did not even acknowledge it.. If you give me a teeny bit of power, I will act as if I am the King of this world! why? because I am not stupid like Forrest :)

Yes, I am not like Forrest but would love to be.. Someday..

Rahim Ka Doha

Rahiman dhaaga prem ka, mat torai chatkaye

Tootai to phir na jurai, jurain gaanth pad jaye

(Rahim says don't break the thread of love impulsively, for if it breaks it cannot be joined together. And even if it is joined back there will always be a knot.)

Long ago there was a poet (?) named..

hmm.. wondering where she went?? nope she didn't go nowhere.. here she is!!!!

All the while I was thinking,
Does it really help?
When the whole world is shrinking,
Who cares about your self?

Problems are aplenty in life,
Happiness, what we crave,
We pass many a strife,
Until we reach the grave.

We carry our sorrows and pain,
On our weak shoulders,
When we know we have much to gain,
By being an enthusiastic blogger!

'Write on', it tells me,
'Pour your heart out,
It makes you feel free,
Without any doubt',

And so I am here at last,
Where I truly belong,
Ready to have a blast,
Ready to sing my song...

Happy blogging to me :)

Travel Blog 1: Trip to Agra

Good afternoon buddies. This is your friend 'rising from the dead'. I am going to narrate a very interesting and mind boggling incident now. Please hold on to your seats!

So you know my good-for-nothing (!) colleague Jessica right? Oh you don't eh? OK, she is just...good-for-nothing :)...OK sorry Jessica (in case you are reading this)...Now lets get back to the story...You know my good-for...Oh god, not again you say? OK OK I am getting on with it...

So I went to Delhi with Ms. Jessica Wade on an official trip. Suddenly she gets this wild idea to visit Agra so as to capture the brilliance of one of the seven wonders of the world. And we decided to go. Mind you, this was totally unplanned and we had no idea what we were getting into!

After we were done with our meeting at UNIDO, we planned to take an auto to Connought Place (spelling maybe a little off the mark :)). This was supposed to be this posh place with a lot of posh buses which will take us to the destination in style and comfort. But the auto guy we approached said "Oh you should go to ISBT instead. You get buses every ten minutes". We said "But we want deluxe AC buses, yeah?". And he said "Oh yeah, you get deluxe buses too". We said "OK, then lets go there". And he took us to ISBT. All the way there, he was saying how he was supposed to get some commission if he goes to Connought and how he sacrificed this for our goodwill. Then after an hour or so, we reached ISBT. And lo and behold, there are NO deluxe buses in that place. Apparently, it was a lot further from UNIDO than Connought and the auto guy just wanted to get the extra fare!! You do find all kinds of people in Delhi, don't you?

So we had to take this run-down local bus to Agra. And I got the aisle seat (guess how??)! The entire five hours was a nightmare! People were stamping my foot all the time, hot air was rushing into my face (windows had to be kept open or we would have sweat to death), baby howling, men farting and the list goes on!

And in the end of what seemed like a lifetime, we reached Agra. And we spent the night at a dinghy hotel with a 'out of the world' air conditioner. The next morning, the g-f-n (you know who) colleague of mine woke me up at 5 A.M. (can you believe that??!!) so that we can see the sunrise on the Taj. I get ready and all that (come on that's true OK) and go to the East gate and the guard says it will open only at SIX!! I could have murdered the g-f-n &*^%!! Then we went in and took some snaps and came back to the hotel by 10 A.M. Now we had to catch the flight back to Chennai from the Delhi airport at 4 P.M. and we hadn't made any plans on how to reach Delhi from Agra. We gulped down a breakfast (with ants in it) and rushed to the Railway Station.

As soon as we entered the station, we came to a counter which said "Unreserved Second Class Booking Counter". This was what was recommended by our kind hotel manager and so we decided to get a ticket from this counter. We went in and said "Two tickets for a super fast train please". And the clerk handed us two tickets and said "it's leaving immediately". We ran with our backpacks (which were heavy mind you) and finally got into the train just before it started. Five minutes in that train and we wanted to commit suicide!

Have you ever travelled in a second class unreserved compartment? I would think not. It so happens that only dirt-crested, nitpicking, drooling ANIMALS travel in these compartments. We went through hell. I don't wanna say more friends. It brings back DIRTY memories!

After 5 hours of such torture, we reached Delhi and took the flight back home. And the fact that I am writing this blog says that I am back to normal (or does it?).

Death

Here he lies as he wanted to be,

Home is the sailor, home from sea,

Home is the hunter from treacherous hills.

Here he rests his soul at peace,

Home is the leaf from the autumn breeze,

Home is the farmer from dried tills.

Here he stays, he goes nowhere,

Home is the merchant from selling his ware,

Home is the thread from the cotton mills.

Here he sleeps, he will not wake,

Home is the gambler after losing his stake,

Home is the sandwich from the flaming grills.

His journey has now come to an end,

So why show pity, why pretend?

His life was full of foes and friends,

To Heaven now does he ascend.

The God in Me...

My eyes they only saw, what they want to see
My ears heard only praise, the words of praise
Tasting, smelling, touching only what is here and wrong
And wondering why the hunger, thirst and longing went on
Lost in vanity and pretence
My five senses made no sense
Only through this man, so kind and chaste
Through him you can get a glimpse of grace, a glimpse of grace…

What Me Weird?

I was tagged by a character of least intelligence who fails to differentiate between right and wrong, good and bad, and finally between normal and WEIRD! So unfortunately I end up here, bringing to you the most amazing facts about me that have never been disclosed before and would have remained so, had not an interfering idiot forced it upon me.

So here are the six things about me that are, ahem, supposed to be 'weird'!

I wake up everyday around 9:00 A.M. and get ready to start a lovely day at the office (which starts at 9:30 A.M. meaning I run late most days, but hey, that's not weird!)

My mom brings me my breakfast and soya milk and I have them in my bed (of course I brush my teeth!). My mom used to feed me until a few years ago but then I told her it is high time I did it myself. After all my mother-in-law may not be willing to feed me!

People say I have six eyes cos I wear glasses on top of my contact lens. So? That makes me a six eyed creature, not weird!

I do not like potatoes and am crazy about cheese.

I have this habit of looking at an imaginary figure and complaining about someone near me.

But guys, all this is perfectly normal and I cannot think of anything weird about me even though I have tried my level best to think something that is. I would say the fact that I have been working on this good-for-nothing post for an hour or so is more weird than anything listed above.

But the MOST WEIRD thing about me, is my choice of FRIENDS!

One has already tagged me and I shall now proceed to tag some of the rest...(unfortunately none of them are bloggers)

Sri (She is weird all right!) Babe tell us about your "eat anything, sleep anywhere" stuff!

Mithra (She is sitting right beside me) So lets hear it from the Master!!

Divya (She is sane sometimes but weird most of the time) The stage is yours..

Asha (She is hmmm...VETTI) He He...

Jitha (WEIRD!!) Hope you exploit this opportunity to the fullest :-)

You guys can just write in to me or you could record your weirdness in my 'comments' area. Be my guest!!

Research Associate!!

Meet...... Preethi Rao, Research Associate, SEFC, IFMR!!

So guys, beleive it or not.....I am a Researcher!! My work is hectic but real fun (and most importantly, my kinda job). My colleagues are from France and Brittain and America and Greece and ....so on.....:) I am two weeks into the job and looking forward to more fun with them ;)

So if you guys want an appointment with me.....Please do call me....ha ha

Final Countdown

Often in this world,
Strangers meet,
But before recognized,
They become obsolete.

Almighty is a big cheat,
He joins hearts,
And one fine day,
He does them apart.

Thousand and one times,
The same thing happens,
We lose our friends,
And are rendered heartbroken.

Is it necessary always,
For God to cheat,
If friends are to become strangers,
Then why do they meet?


I have come to the end of the long winding road of student life. I turn back to see colorful memories - memories that make me laugh, memories that make me cry. But most importantly, I see my friends - the angels from heaven who made my life worth living. Today I realized that the final countdown has begun. My friends are leaving one by one. Bas aaj ki raat hai zindagi...kal hum kahan tum kahan!

So All the Best sweet friends, may god bless you all.

If I never see you again.....Adios Amigo!

'Nice' is Out..

Does anyone call you a nice guy?? Then beware! They are, in fact, cursing you. Puzzled?? Yes, for all purposes, Nice is Out. The world today is filled with opportunists, hypocrites and the kind. Selflessness is history and if you care about others it just means you are liable to be branded a 'nut'. Oh! I am not for one minute indicating that I am good. I am no less an hypocrite than any other Tom, Dick and Harry roaming the streets. After all I am human and its in our blood. But there are limits to machiavellism and hypocrisy. Of course the limits are set by oneself and differs from person to person. But limitless opportunism has become the 'in-thing' like bottomless coke :) Ok ok I know I am getting a little boring, but where else can I 'voice it out' :) Just one advice guys: BE SELFISH AND OPPORTUNISTIC...YOU WILL PROSPER!! Ciao...

Shakespeare or Me???

My Friend, Oh Friend!

Thou art my love,
My sweet and clove,
The sun will shine on thee.

Dearest my friend,
Thy upon depends,
My life and my glee.

Neither rain nor drought,
Or any ill thought,
Can make thy love bent.

I care for thee,
Thou ought to see,
Thy love givest me strength.

Up above the sky,
When I say goodbye,
To reach the divine abode.

I will still remember thee,
Thou wilt me,
By reading my little ode.

Kodaikanal....Heaven on Earth!

Find Me :)

Excerpt from my Autobiography
Manu's folks had a guesthouse in Kodaikanal, the beautiful hill station. Every quarter we (i.e. the Mohan family and me) used to camp there for a week or two. They were also member of the English Club, which was the most prestigious club out there. So my holidays were marked by trekking trips, boating in the lake, mountaineering, executive lunches, late night disco parties and what not! We also had this 'Kodai Gang' which mostly comprised of English Club members who were essentially rich snobs but fun to hang around with. For the first time in my life, as part of this 'elite' group, I boozed and smoked. But I consider that as a great experience and not a fatal slip because I had total control over my actions. I used to have wine just for company and smoked occasionally when I felt like it and of course I ate non-vegetarian food though I was a pure vegetarian by birth. Of course I could have gone into drugs or worse things but I loved myself too much to have enough sense to know my limits! So thats as adventurous as one can get, is it not!

Kodaikanal...the place where friend meets friend...the place where there is never a moment of gloom....the place where you can be yourself! Heaven on Earth...Kashmir?? Naaah....it is none other than Kodai for you!

Not everytime one gets to "enjoy life to its fullest". I am lucky to have had many such moments. Thank God for small favors!!

My First Poem!!!

NATURE

God has created this world awkwardly,

Things are strewn about haphazardly,

The soft rose has a prickly thorn,

With a calcareous shell, the tortoise is born.

The flowers bloom bright and gay,

Oh! What a difference between night and day!

The deep blue of the ocean,

The sunrise provides a wonderful vision.

Birds spread their colorful plumage,

The hapless ones remain inside the cage,

But to criticize this is premature,

After all, these are all a part of NATURE!!

.

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This was my first poem composed as early as in my 6th standard :)