Bakthi pazham

So.. it all started two months back when mom started pestering me about going to Velankanni.  It took two months for us to decide on a date.. credit for the delay goes to my father and brother who always pretend that they are the only person working in their office.  The day finally came.. and I swear to god my mom dint even hint me that it’s not a P2P from chennai to velankanni…  you guessed it right.. we will have to cover all the temples en route. (That is Vaitheeswaran temple, thirunallar sanneswaran temple, Kaaraikal ammayar temple,  Nagur Dargah and Velankanni.. too much secularism I know)

My dad is very particular when it comes to timings and I’m very particular in not following it.  The plan was to hit the roads @ 5 AM and cover at least 3 temples before lunch.  And yes we started @ 8 AM.  To start with the roads.. Chennai – Pondy (via thindeevanam) in just 2 hours.. Good roads has its own disadvantages.  You’ll have to deal with lot of freaky maniacs.  To quote few instances:

Driving a Nano with alloy wheels and cool stickers doesn’t make it a Ferrari.. its still an Auto for me..no matter what you do… so racing with me only makes you an idiot.

For the people who are planning to cross the road:  I do stop for elderly people, small children’s and laborers who cross the road carrying heavy stuffs.. if you are not falling in any one of the above category.. I won’t even think for a second before scarring you.

To those brilliant & sensible lorry drivers.. I don’t know what joy you get driving right in middle of the road @ 30Km / hour… it’s like driving through a maze for me.

And things get worst when two such sensible lorry drivers meet… they literally drive together at same speed for at least 5 mins.  It’s only a two lane road.. and please have some mercy on the people behind you.  We will have to separate these pair by consistently honking for 5 mins… do you think it’s my Job??

Bike riders: I understand your frustration when I overtake you from behind just like that without any effort.. trust me I’ve been on the other side.  But don’t expect me to respect you and stay behind you all the time.

So called bike racers: Driving on a splendor @ 100+ kms… do you even know what will happen if you hit the brakes suddenly? To my knowledge there is no ABS in any 100 CC bike.. or am I missing anything here?

The experience got even worse after pondy when I realized that it’s going to be a single track without any median going forward.  So.. its going to be only 50Km/hour max.. but at least it will keep me awake (my brother gave me a dirty look when I told this while driving).  But the drive was peaceful.. with Illayaraja and A.R Rahman accompanying us all till the end.

We managed to cover all the temples we intend to and reached velankanni at 9 PM. We were extremely tired and everyone slept like a baby for the next 10 hours. 

Day 2: Dad strictly said we need to start at least by 6 AM and return to the hotel before 10 AM.. so that we can reach Chennai before 7.30. We stepped out of hotel @ 9.30 AM and came back to hotel @ 1.  Reached Chennai @ 10 PM.

Each of us had our own issues /commitments for the next day and was talking about the same while driving back:

Dad : “I’m already sitting with lot of pending work.. Now this audit is literally going to kill me for the next 3 weeks”

Brother : “Not sure how I’m going to stay awake tonight after this tiring ride.. Need to do something about changing my shifts permanently”

Me: “If I had booked the tickets for tonight..i would have taken care of the open issues in the flat tomorrow”

Mom: “I dono what happened to the two fish in our fishpond.. I hope I’ve fed them sufficiently for these two days”

She went straight to the fishpond after entering our home… And they survived!! Love you amma!!

In to the Wild..

“Wild life safari would be the last thing in the world that would amuse me”… this statement would be true if I’ve said it before Feb 23^rd.  A trip into the Wild and now I’m wondering how much I’ve wasted in my life without exploring “this world”.  With very little time left, I’m craving to find someone with whom I can explore this world. 

When my friend asked me if I could join this trip the only reason I said yes was to shoot some pics...  It’s been 2 months since I’ve touched my camera and thought it would be a good opportunity to dust it at least.  What was planned as a photo walk has now become one of my most favored places.  Two days at Kabini Jungle lodges & Resort has made all the difference. 

I’m trying my best not to make this a travelogue.. but I fear I would end up doing exactly the same.  The place has lots to talk about.. lot of good things…never expected such an ambience / cleanliness / quality in a government maintained resort.  Or is it the people that are making the difference here?  It’s definitely a new experience to see the wildlife out in open air… I’ve did few safaris before but like they say… you need to experience the right thing at the right time. 

During the entire safari (close to 6 hours) we sighted lots of Langurs, spotted deers, Indian Gaur, sambar, wild boar, varieties of birds (specifically owls and eagles) and of course the squirrels.  But we were really after the big cats.. Though one part of me was eagerly waiting to sight the big cats the other part of me was completely scared and thrilled thinking what he/she would do on seeing us. 

Whenever I see any animal eye to eye, I see the same signature look.. Reminded me of Vivek’s joke in whistle in which a dog says “Why are these guys watching us? Have we ever done this to them”.  Though my friends were re-assuring me about the safety procedures, I always had a hunch that something would happen.. Luckily nothing happened and we dint see any tigers/cheetahs too.  There was couple of close encounters.. nothing worth mentioning.  Looks like Kabini wants me to come back again.

Anyone game?

  

Sherlock – mAdE mE CrAzY!!

Sherlock!! Made me blog again after 12 months... Really can’t resist from blogging my thoughts bout this beautiful TV series.  What once started as a time pass has now become a pure addiction!!  At one point, I was mercilessly watching season 2 for nearly 3.5 hours (2.25 episodes b2b) only to realize that my iPod had only 5% battery left.  I was cursing apple the next 4 hours for not manufacturing iPods that can stand for 5 hours.  I even went to the extent of searching charging sockets in the next coach @ 3.50AM… and I was travelling from B’lore to Chennai!  After realizing that I was being watched by at least 5 pair of eyes for the past 10 min, I had to return back to my berth.  No other thoughts crossed my mind until I resumed watching the final episode of season 2.

It’s a sheer master piece and I've never enjoyed anything like this recently.  Sherlock has topped my all time fav list @ number two after the Dark knight series. Everything from the screenplay, pace, concept, twist… Man it’s awesome!! Need to find something to keep me occupied till they air the next season.

Did I tell you that last year I've watched 176 movies in total (excluding TV series) Well... once I saw the stats I was shocked and it was a wake-up call.  I promised myself not to watch more than 2 movies a month this year….  And I've already utilized the June month’s quota J.  May be some things aren't meant to be changed. 

P.S: If you are planning to comment that season 2 is “Just OK” and not a dream girl (Vijay’s slang)… be prepared for a fight!