Trip-Last Part:Good ole Baroda

(Click to enlarge)

Thought for the day:

When you are successful
Your well wishers know who you are
When you are unsuccessful
You know who your well wishers are
.............................. ..............
Another thought:
Falling down is not defeat...
Defeat is when you refuse to get up...

I always wax eloquent about Baroda and each time I visit there, so, this time I’ll quickly skim through the details of the visit- the highlights, so to speak:

- Getting up at 5-515 AM, going to the EME Temple for the morning prayers.
What was interesting one day, was seeing the Panditji (priest) in spotless white jogging shorts and T-shirt. On this day, even though I (like the others) reached at 0535 AM, the prayers were midway already. After they ended, the Panditji came and said’ from today we will have prayers at 515 instead of 545, because the HQ feels that people involved in religious activity also have to be fit and fine. So, he would be going for morning exercises right after the prayers and learning how to shoot, as well.

How cool is that?
BTW, Austy, I managed to get at least one(maximum three) salutes from rookies each time I was leaving from there..haha.
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- Going for a walk after the prayers, stopping at my regular chai ki larri(tea stall) on the way for the ‘special masala tea’, with adrak and all. One day he asked me why I come only for a few days then no visits for a lot of days. When I told him I stay in Dubai, he was suitably impressed- and the tea rate went up one rupee the next day. LOL.

- The walks in the park were great as ever, even though it was somewhat humid. I did take some pics. And, yes, I finally decided to try out the concoction the guy outside gives, nee, sells , just outside the park, in teeny steel glasses. I tried the ‘pancharatna’, which was a mix of juices of adrak, tulsi, and three other things. The first day, it tasted Ugh, but made me feel pretty good later.(Why is it that things that are good for you are always tasteless or of horrible taste?). So, that’s something I’ll surely make a regular routine once I’m back in Baroda.
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- Visiting my city haunts. First was the good ole watch repairer, who’s shop is in our hereditary home(not ours, now). He repaired both my watches for a sum of just Rs. 20/-. Out here, they charge 5 dirhams(65 bucks)to just check a watch and then the balance are repair charges.

Next was Canara Coffee House, which is that quaint ole place where you still get idlis for Rs 10/-, but, more famous is their Poona Misal(Sprouts with onion, sev, et al) for just Rs. 15/-. Amazing.

Next was Gurudev, which, like it’s name, is closed on Guruvaar(Thursdays)..another place maintaining it’s prices for South Indian food.

Next was Samrat IceCream, where I always forget my diet and take a Full Cold Drink with Icecream, Vanilla. It’s probably the only icecream I cannot resist, even with a diet going on. A must-try for all Baroda visitors. Of course, I walked an extra half hour those evenings, to take care of the extra kilo-ries.

Visiting this new place in Alkapuri, called ‘Varie-Tea’. They have all kinds of tea being served, besides other things. And, I naturally took the ‘matki chai’. Nice taste, naturally- nice price,too- 35 bucks.hehe..but, once in a while, sab chalta hai, I guess. And, India’s also reaching international levels, so why not for tea? Everyone else took something different- from Cold Coffee to hot chocolate, etc.
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- The visit to that haunt for book-lovers, Crossword bookshop. You can browse in peace, no pesky salesmen pestering you to decide, have a cuppa tea/coffee(Not this time, though, it was under renovation-that means, changed management. Since The Taj pastry shop, will have become Café Coffee Day by the time I visit next.

- The equally interesting haunt near the station, the Agarwal bookshop guy who still gives me 10% discount on any books/mags I buy and accommodates me 10/12 days visits by reducing the monthly reading charges.

- The two larri-based booksellers who sell copied or second-hand versions of famous books for less than 100 bucks. I got 5 copies of ‘The Secret’(Post on that coming up later) for people in India and here.(even though I have it’s pdf version for IT-literate people who don’t mind reading books on PC monitors)
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I also visited 7 Seas Mall in Fatehgunj, checked out some empty shops, imagined how a BookShop would look.(remember my plans) and flourish there. (‘thoughts become things’…quote for that moment)
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- Day of return- Ahmedabad airport. Like last time, I entered the check-in area early, and was able to observe the people coming in for a security check, and, like last time, I wasn’t disappointed. Like seeing the guy who couldn’t help feeling tickled when the security guy frisked him. Like the rotund guy in whose case the security guy lifted his shirt to see what metal was on him, and found that it was the buckle, and, it was, well, quite unreachable due to the guy’s girth. The rest was a pleasant journey back, with nice memories. (Nah, no Business Class this time. Not enough luggage to justify to myself, you see. LOL).
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Heard of 3D ads? Well, they’ve begun making their mark. See this link. And, see the youtube video below, of how they’ll fool people with both eyes operational.

Coming up in the next post- shhh..it’s a secret.

Goa trip

View from the Resort Room..notice the free coconuts?
One of the fountains at the resort
Outside view of a room at the Resort
The entrance to The Resort

Thought for the day: Thoughts Become Things!

Day 2 in Goa:

The day dawned nice and bright. A lazy waking up, a nice half hour walk around the Resort and off to breakfast, which was as sumptuous as the day before. The rest of the day flew by, courtesy the wedding festivities. In the evening, there was another program, which began with two experienced salsa dancers demonstrating their skills for the first three dances and then demonstrated to those wanting to learn some basic steps. Great fun for all!

Then, the wedding- remember the pic I put up sometime back asking you to guess what the location was used for? Well, the wedding mandap was put up on it, with toughened glass top and all. Amazing! And, someone wondered what would happen if the fountains started suddenly.

That was day 2.

Day 3 was our ‘extra’ day at the Resort. Most people were leaving in the morning. We left a bit early, to do a tour of ‘South Goa’. Went to Agorda Fort, which is a nice historical fort from the outside, but the inside is just an empty area, with grass growing and all. As always, I enjoyed walking on the ramparts, imagining how they must’ve protected themselves at times of an invasion, and wondering how many people had fallen into the moat just outside. Then we went to 2-3beaches, Varca and Colva, if I’m not mistaken(There’re so many in a line- take a look!! It made me wonder how they named beaches differently, if they’re in one full stretch of ‘beachy area’. Since it was high tide, people were not allowed to go much into the water. Nor were the water sports allowed, which stop each year when monsoon begins.

We were met at one beach by a guy who asked us to scratch a card, and said we'd won 1 out of 3 prizes- an iPod or a portable DVD or a voucher to stay at one of their places, but, we'd have to go to his place of work to scratch the card, i.e. the resort for whom he did this promotion. I immediately said 'no need to scratch- it'll be the third option only, attached with various conditions, and we'll spend a boring hour listening to their resort talk'...and,that's what it was-but,we were able to get out quickly, after scratching the card proved what I'd said.

After this, we just stopped by to buy the local delicacies and returned to the hotel.

In the evening, we rented Honda Activas and had a good round of Goa- from the Resort to the Leela to Holiday Inn- grand lobbies these Hotels have, as well.( though I prefer the cottages kind of places. More cozy and realistic:))

Next day morning was our direct return train to Baroda-we bid adieu to all our relatives who were staying back a day or two more, and reached the station at 945 AM, turned out the train timing had been changed that day only, to 11 AM (from 1045 AM)..I was looking forward to this trip, since it's ages since I had a day journey in a train. And, good fun it was, except for the cramped space in AC III tier- coz the side seats have had a middle berth added and nothing could be more uncomfy than that. Anway, amidst tea/soups/lunch/dinner/bhujia/kheera(cucumber local),et al,a whole lot of tunnels and a 'start to finish' reading of 'The Secret'(Separate post on that coming up) with breaks in between, it was night time. Luckily, the train was late, so,instead of 3 AM, we reached at 6 AM. Not good, of course, for someone like me- I woke up at 300 thanks to my mental alarm and saw a station-thought it was Baroda, turned out it was only Valsad. I wonder why they have fast trains and then, make them stop for 1-1 hour at stations, if they're early? And, once they stop, they get delayed..arghh!!

Conclusions:
-If you go to Goa, don't book your hotel. Travel light, move around and find the place that suits you best.
- Don't hire a tourist taxi- take a 2 wheeler(Even cars are given on rent) and have a nice time exploring.

Ah well, that was Goa. Baroda part of the trip follows soon!!Have a nice day.

Good ole H2O

Thought for the day:: Every decision you make - every decision - is not a decision about what to do. It's a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do.
Neale Donald Walsch

- Would you buy a bottle of water for AED 250/-( @Rs 3250/-), even if it was crystal encrusted? Even I contributed my two bits to the article(See comment by ‘ayeayeal’) . Some of the other comments were very interesting.

What do you think? Are such status symbols worth it? The brand even has a 10000 Swarovski crystals encrusted bottle for those interested, costing just AED 15000/(Rs. 1,95,000/-).

I can imagine some of hoipolloi in our part of the world as well, having a kiddy, nee, kitty party(not much difference) and saying ‘Beta, zara woh do lakh waali paani ki bottle to laana’. (Son, could you bring that Rs 2 lakhs bottle of water?)
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The trip posts continue next time. Till then, cheerio!

Oh, here's another quote for the day:Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or to lose…..Lyndon B. Johnson

Trip part 3: Day 1 in Goa

Hope is like a road in the country; there wasn't ever a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence....Lin Yutang

To continue from the last ‘Trip post’, there we were, enjoying the Goan greenery whilst on the way to the hotel, nee, resort. (Thanks to google, I’d already checked that it was about 10 kms from Madgaon Station, etc).

Finally, we pulled into the Resort(Incidentally, it’s name is The Resort, by Zuri. Here’re some links for it: 1 2. The best description( for those who want to read more) I could find was right here.

As soon as we alighted, we saw a group of people at the entrance and a band began playing- I thought that the groom’s party was right behind us, hence the band baaza and so, quickly moved to the side. But, it wasn’t so- the band was for us, as it was for all the guests at the wedding. And that was just a taste of things to come. It was quite a thrill to see so many relatives-cousins, Uncles, et al, after ages(Ages= minimum 7.5 years, which is the period since which I’ve been in Dubai. Add: More years to when I last saw them.).

Well, we went in, exchanged pleasantries, our bags were given tag numbers, and a smiling guy took us to our room 314- they even had a golf cart to transport you to your area, but, we didn’t use it and preferred the scenic route- there was a swimming pool, lots of greenery and some lovely fountains on the way.

The room was like a furnished luxurious 1 BHK- a fairly nice drawing room with a 32”plasma TV on the wall, soft lighting, a safe to keep your valuables, blah blah. Have a look at the pic.

A quick freshening up and we went down for breakfast. Someone said that there was a Goa tour arranged in ½ hr and so we rushed right through the multi-cuisine breakfast which had everything from Idlis to poha to juices to cakes to toast(The pics I upload later this week will justify what I’m saying. Ahem!). So, we finished and off we went to join the tour bus.

A few minutes after we left, it began raining…and, the first surprise- the Resort had arranged for an A/C leaky bus- which had water streaming in from the sides and even ready-made rain from the ceiling. It had me wondering whether this is what the ads mean when they say ‘Enjoy Goa in the rains’.

However, there were just six-seven people who’d come in for the tour, so, we were able to select the dry seats. *smile, smile*-when you’re in a lovely place like Goa, such trivial problems don’t really matter.

Well, we reached the first Church, rather, the location for both Churches was in the same area and only three people(me included) were in the mood to walk in the drizzle to the Church. So, off we went- again, both these places need photos to do them justice.

The evening dinner was at the other location of The Resort-White Sands, where the groom’s side were staying. An entertaining evening of live performances of songs, dances from both sides and it was time for dinner and a return to our hotel. (It was still raining, btw).

And that was day 1 in Goa. Day 2 coming up shortly.

It's Monday

Hi,all!A Very Happy Monday to you, specially to those starting a new working week..we already began our week yesterday..haha!!:) The net's not been cooperating too much lately, hence, just trying to post in word and then copy paste it as soon as it works...so, hang in there. Next part of Goa post coming up later today.

Cheerio!

PS: The above pic's from The Resort, at Goa.More coming up later. Guess what this was used for?(And, puhlease-be imaginative-don't say 'swimming pool'.:)

Of Goa and Resorts and Beaches: Part II

Hi,all!Back to pavilion, nee, back to Dubai! Returned on 20th morning! Caught up on work backlog, et al. And today, after a nice 10 hours of sleep, I feel pretty normal. Ahem!

So, let's go back! Part II of the trip. We went from Baroda to Mumbai by my favourite train, Baroda Express- many's the time I've travelled by this train, and very rarely is it late at either end. Reached Mumbai at the bright hour of 4 AM, took a local to Andheri and the rest of the day just flew by. Left for VT at 8, to catch the train for Goa- Madgaon to be precise. While at VT station, I felt a bit tense, just imagining the situation back in November when there was an attack here. Seeing the crowd at the place, I could imagine the commotion that must have ensued when the first bullets came roaring in. (Sigh!Wonder why anyone would want to reduce another person's life expectancy which is as such pretty small?). Well, our train finally rolled into the platform and soon rolled out of it!!(I don't want to elaborate the usual luggage thingies)

After another pleasant journey(Note: This was my third travelling night- first Dubai to Abad to Baroda, then, Baroda to Mumbai and then Mumbai to Madgaon), we reached Goa by 9 AM. The Hotel had arranged for a pickup for all the guests coming for the wedding, so we also went and stood outside the platform where the resort's guy with a placard in hand was standing. Our number came and we were soon on the way to the resort. On the way, I couldn't help marvelling at the immense greenery all around us. Almost reminiscent of our Kerala trip. It didn't seem like a crowded place, either.(*PS- I noted this down as one more retirement option- so, it's now Baroda, Pune, Matheran, Kodai, Madgaon*..LOL...though, I know it'll finally be Baroda only).

More coming up very soon...how we reached the resort, the band, the resort itself, etc. Have yet to sort out and upload the snaps..will do so pretty soon!

Thought for the day:

Cheerfulness can make any face look beautiful. It is an inexpensive way to improve your looks! ---- Joke for the day: The young Swedish-American couple, having the same last names, went to the marriage license bureau. The clerk began to fill out the license form. "Your name?" he asked the prospective bride-groom. "Ole Yonson." "And your name?" the clerk asked the bride-to-be. "Hilda Yonson." "Any relation?" asked the clerk. "Yust vunce," Hilda blushed. "Ve couldn't vait." Till next time, keep smiling!

Hi all

Hi all! As usual, time's flying by a mite too fast out here..So, will be back with the next and the next and the next parts of my trip, very soon..hang in there.

And, in the meantime, think over this phrase- a jovial cousin of mine said it during the wedding and we all burst out laughing. Can you guess the 'original' Hindi version of this?

' The chicken of the house is like the lentils'

Happy pondering!