Last Sunday I was in Los Angeles area and I visited one of my college classmate after nearly a decade. He works in Downtown L.A. and moved there from Pasadena (CA) for shorter commute (bicycle) to work. I was under the impression that Downtown in L.A. was not so safe a place and very few Desi Indians lived there, especially due to lack of good school districts. But here was my friend living here and he says he is enjoying the time saved due to zero commute. He has rented an apartment in Downtown and he told me the one he has rented is called as Loft’s here. Loft for me in India meant a shelf or chamber provided for storage in a raised position in a building. Here Loft means open floor space rented for residence as un-partitioned floor area, which you can divide into rooms any way you please. The walls were not plastered, AC ducts were open and visible. But the place had a serene, natural feeling to it.
Late evening when we walked few blocks away from his apartment for dinner, we were approached by at least half a dozen homeless people living in the streets for money (change). When travelling in USA, I normally ignore these people for fear of my safety and keep walking away. My friend said he feels it is more humane and safer as well to just acknowledge them, say sorry or I have no money and keep walking. You learn something new everyday.
He took me for dinner to Curry House restaurant in Little Tokyo. I presumed Curry House meant Indian food but it turned out to be a popular Japanese chain. I was happy I got vegetarian meal complete with Soup, Starters and a spicy curry to go with Rice. I liked the food, it was tasty and I have added this to my list of (vegetarian) cuisines I have tasted so far & liked.
I am here in LA region this week for Microsoft’s Build conference. Today to get from Simi Valley to Anaheim (where the conference is going to start from tomorrow) I decided to take the train. Yes, I said it right, Trains do run in USA and they are pretty good and frequent especially in California around Bay Area and Los Angeles. Any day I will prefer to do this in USA than to sit in a car for hours seeing nothing but Tar roads and concrete falls on side of Freeways. In my last visit to USA I had travelled in local metro train in Bay Area (from Cupertino to Downtown SFO) and they are the cheapest (costs around $10 compared to $120 by Taxi for the same journey) and some times faster (due to traffic in peak hours in roads) mode of transport. Previous to that in 2007 I had travelled in Amtrak from Seattle to Vancouver, Canada.
The travel by Amtrak from Simi Valley to Anaheim (CA) took about 2 hours (starting at 10:51AM and arriving around 1:05PM), took a 20 minutes stop in LA Union station. It was convenient, I could seats easily in Unreserved cabin itself, there was power sockets to charge your laptop or iPad and costed only $22 per trip.
I have been a Microsoft Regional Director from 1999 and I cherish the opportunity to get to know the legends of IT Industry especially in Microsoft Technologies. Regional Directors aren’t Microsoft employees–they’re independent developers, architects, trainers, and other professionals who provide a vital link between Microsoft and the developer community.
Today the day before Microsoft Build conference, we all had a party in Carlsbad, CA at one of our fellow RD’s mansion (OK, not really a mansion but a Track home). I have been to Carlsbad, CA few times before it is a lovely city in San Diego county and is popular for its lovely beaches, Golf courses visited by celebrities and of course Legoland.
The party was held at the house belonging to Tim Huckaby, Founder of Interknowlogy & well known technology speaker. TimH is popular in Microsoft circles for throwing the parties which are exceptionally fun to attend and this one was no exception. We had tasty Mexican catering with snacks, drinks and juices on plenty. At the end of the party with burdened hearts & tons of fond memories we all bid farewell to our RD Manager at Microsoft – Kevin Schuler.
Today I travelled from Chennai to Los Angeles with transit in London by British Airways. The in-flight entertainment choices in BA are limited, for the whole month they have only few movies and just one episode each of Comedy TV Series like BigBang Theory & 30 Rock. And it is the same choices for in-bound and out-bound flights, so I am sure when I am returning from US I won’t have any options to watch. In Business they have power outlets on each seat so I am sure I will watch something in my Laptop. The service by in-flight crew was fine, but still short of what Asian Airlines like Singapore or Jet Airways or Cathay-Pacific offers.
I have travelled through Heathrow many times from 1998, but still I am not a big fan of LHR. The Airport is huge and takes lot of time to travel from one terminal to another and the monorail system is limited compared to Singapore Changi Airport. The BA lounge in London had good facilities like Shower, Wi-Fi, Lots of PCs to work with headphones, good selection of food and drinks.
Few days back out of blue, I got an email from one “Robert Ziegler” from Berlin,Germany. In the email what caught my attention was inclusion of two photographs of me taken in 1999 inside World Trade Center, New York and another taken with WTC behind me in the horizon. I remembered that I had posted these two photographs in blog under a post titled “my USA 1999 Photos”.
The email said “Three years ago we -Robert Ziegler and Stefka Ammon- started working on our private project MY_WTC. It is our goal to explore the question of the site’ s myth via (mostly) tourists’ photographs of the World Trade Center in New York City (August 5th 1966 – September 10th 2001). Also we would like to find out why so many people took pictures of themselves in front, on top of, inside or next to the WTC. Our project is about exploring the “specific aura” of the World Trade Center from the angle of tourists from all over the world”.
Interested, I went to the site and found it to be neatly done with wonderful photographs and comments from people around the world and it was fascinating to see how WTC as a common connection was getting them in one place here. Immediately I submitted higher resolution of the two photos (1, 2) I had taken and Robert quickly got them approved and made them live. I then exchanged few emails with Robert, learned nice titbits about Berlin from him and I told him how to say “Hello” in my mother tongue Tamil – it is said as “Vanakkam” (shared him a link to a song on Vanakkam from Madrasapattinam Tamil movie). What a small world we are living in!
Yesterday while returning from Singapore to Chennai in SQ flight I saw this Egyptian movie “Khaltet Fawzeya” (Fawzia’s Secret Recipe). Hollywood and Kollywood movies are always there, but if you are lucky you get to watch wonderful hand-picked movies in Flight Entertainment and most often Singapore Airlines comes with good selections. The movie was described as “Fawzia is a poor woman, who has a magical, secret recipe for achieving happiness in life. She marries five men and lives with her large family in her small home”. The movie didn’t disappoint & was true to this description as well.
The first few scenes start off on a high comedy note, with Fawzia shouting in the midnight complaining about her present husband, then the whole neighbourhood coming to her support and she demanding and getting Divorce from her husband. She then asks the next man to help her to marry her and the whole sequence repeating for 4 times. The story happens entirely in a small Egyptian neighbourhood (though a slum it is shown clean and friendly, no gangsters or dark lanes) where Fawzia who has been divorced four times live with all her kids alone in a small house of her own. Each Thursday all her former husbands join for a family dinner bringing with them gifts and foods, each father taking care of his Son/Daughter. All her former husbands admire Fawzia for her strong will, caring nature and they show true affection and respect to her after divorce, she calls them affectionately as her brothers!. Fawzia has earned the love and respect of her small locality, she helps the ladies to prepare Jam in her house as a community activity, then distributing them free to kids around the graveyard, takes care of a fallen from fame dancer, a single lady friend of hers who is struggling to live after her love dies. Fawzia’s fifth husband learns her liking for a private bathroom (now all of them sharing a community bathroom), constructs a private one for her but authorities demolish it for they lack money/power.
The movie is directed by Egyptian Director Majdy Ahmed Ali, and Ilham Shaheen (the main cast who did the Fawzia character) has done a great performance in bringing out a down-to-earth practical lady with a strong will. Her will is tested by events and deaths (of her former husband, her good friend ‘dancer’, her first son) but after initial pain and sorrow, she overcomes them with resilience. The movie has many small fine touches by the director, like the scene where two men driving into their street seeing Fawzia’s large family eating together mistaking it for a Ramdan community dinner and joining them without being asked or asking; the last scene where all her former & present husband join together in building a beautiful bathroom (again!) for Fawzia with each one of them bringing something special to it; a wealthy rich lady leaving a flower bouquet in the grave of her loved one, then immediately the kids around picking it up and selling it; when Hood (fifth husband) complains that Fawzia’s mother didn’t come to their marrige, Fawzia countering that his sister too didn’t come.
Overall a comedy movie but an undertone message about how to take on life as it comes and how to care for others around you. Don’t miss watching this fine cinema. You can see a trailer of the movie (in Arabic without subtitles) here.
Apart from this movie, the other International Movies from the KrisWorld listings that I was interested to watch were: Two Girls from Egypt, I love Hong Kong, 20 Cigarettes & Outside the Law. I hope I find those movies too sooner.
Outside India, I am very familiar with Singapore. I have been there many many times and that’s due to having few relatives & friends there and that I usually stop-over en-route to my US trips. Also Singapore is a shoppers heaven for Electronics & Gadgets. The last I travelled to Singapore was in November 2010 and this week for business meetings. In the last few trips the craze for me on shopping gadgets has come down, for example when I went to the famous Funan IT Mall this time around I didn’t buy anytime – which is first for me!. This could be because I have most of the devices already (iPhone4, iPad2 from US, Kinect for XBOX360 bought in India, Apple TV and so on). Second most of the devices you get in India (Croma or Reliance Digital and so on) and the price difference is very less – buying in India saves you hassles of carrying them, warranty & customs duty in Airport. I have noticed that low-end & previous generation gadgets which move in volumes are now cheaper in India and on top of it you have to pay Singapore Taxes (of course you can get GST refund, but why the hassle).
While in Singapore one of the days for Lunch I went to Cedele by The Bakery Depot, a popular bakery & soup shop in Singapore. I was introduced to their shop in Raffles Quay (Basement 2 in Raffles Place MRT) by one of my friends in Singapore. For the lunch I had a lovely Moroccan Spiced Carrot (Vegetarian and without cream) and some breads. I noticed they sell many organic and fresh varieties of Ice Cream, Pastries and Salads as well.
Later, I went to the Marina Bay Sands Casino & Hotels. It seems you got to take your Passport & VISA to enter the Casino “free” as a foreigner (localities are required to pay SGD100) and the bouncers didn’t accept my Soft copy in iPhone. So instead I went to the Skypark (54th Floor) after paying SGD 20. From the top you get a great view of the city, but nothing spectacular.
One of the days my Uncle took me to the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in Serangoon Road (Little India) where there was a Homam (Offerings Hindu Ritual) to Lord Sudharshanar happening, I had a good Darshan.
And every description of a trip to Singapore is incomplete without the praise to Changi Airport. I landed in the new Terminal 3 which is new and sparklingly clean, amazing how Singapore does it time and again.
After our stay in Langkawi we went to Kuala Lumpur (capital of Malaysia), a metropolis I love to travel to. On our trip from Chennai to KL itself I noticed the colourful seats that Malaysian Airlines have in their flights, lovely.
And KLIA (KL International Airport) is one of the fine airports in Asia. I found the nice small Boardwalk (open to sky) inside the airport in the centre with a little waterfall to be refreshing and breaking the claustrophobic feel inside the air-conditioned airport.
Though the Airport to City Centre is quite far (50Kms) – “KLIA Express” the high speed train is very efficient, taking just 25-30 Minutes each way. While returning from City you can drop your bags and check-in the KL Centre terminal, board the KL Express and travel conveniently & eco-friendly.
We spent a good part of a day in the famous KL Bird Park. The kids enjoyed seeing so many birds roaming freely – lovely peacocks, parrots, Eagles, Owls, Macaws, Emus and more. We took a photo with our camera for RM 30 with about half-a-dozen birds on our laps and hands – great experience. The kids loved the bird show and my son volunteered to hold a pole with a meat-piece, an eagle elegantly came flying and snatched it, was great to see. After Bird Park we went to near-by Butterfly park, but since it was evening we found very few butterflies (all gone to sleep?) and so it was not worth the entry fee.
Other than the Bird Park we didn’t do much in KL, just relaxed and lazy’d around the malls – going to China Town, Times Square Mall (the foot court here has a fine selection of Mock Fish/Chicken/Meat dishes) & Pavilion Mall.
One of the days in the evening we went for a dinner in Middle Eastern restaurant by name “Tarbush” which was at walking distance from The Westin where we stayed, the food was lovely. Then we took a ride in the KL Monorail – it was quite crowded with city commute but we were riding it for fun!
The last time I went to Langkawi (the beautiful island near the Andaman Sea & Thailand) was about 10 years back with my wife, the place held a serene feel to it. Last month we went there again for our summer vacation, this time with our Son & a friend’s family with their little boy. When we landed we were surprised by seeing lot of new developments in the island – bigger new airport, huge Police Academy, new buildings, shops, wide ring roads, what a difference 10 years has brought to the island. Still the resorts in the island were beautiful and relaxing, the people continuing to be very friendly.
When doing our booking for the stay after much selection we opted for The Andaman Resorts which is on the North-West of the Langkawi Island, inside a Million year old Rain Forest and on the shores of The Datai Bay (formed by a Meteor hit) in the Andaman Sea (hence the name). It turned out to be a good choice. But remember the Resort to City centre and shops are a good 25 Kms and you certainly need a car to commune. And that’s what we did, we rented a car. Since we were a group of 4 Adults and 2 Kids we opted for Toyota Innova – which costs about RM 600 for 48 Hours plus fuel (which is much cheaper in Malaysia compared to India). Your way within the island is easy, there is an outer ring road like structure (not a full circle and overall around 75-80 Kms) and few main roads – all neatly marked in the Tourist Map. All points of interest are dotted around the island.
Inside the Resort itself there were nice little 1 Hour Nature Walk tour twice every day conducted by a trained nature guide, bird watch tours and more activities. I took one of the nature walks in the morning and enjoyed it thoroughly. In the evening we went for a small trek into the near-by forest cover, the trek in the cleared path takes about 30-40 minutes and you reach a nice little stream and a lovely pond. After few minutes of hesitation I jumped (I should say got pushed by my wife) into the pond and it felt great. No man made swimming pool can come closer to mother nature!
Before the trip I saw this program in NDTV GoodTimes by gorgeous Arlette on a Boat ride in Langkawi & got impressed with it, so we did the same. We took a boat to go into the river and then to the open ocean to see the Mangroves, Crocodile Cave, Bat Caves & the Kilim Geoforest park. Apart from the great food in the Resort itself we dined outside in two Indian Restaurants – one day at Tandoor (great lunch) and second day for a great dinner at Papadam Ria (we remembered this place from our earlier trip 10 years back and the friendly owner).
Next we went to the famous Underwater world in Langkawi. This has one of the large collections of marine animals in Malaysia and over the years seems to have grown bigger. Overall a memorable trip, I just wish we stayed longer in Langkawi.
The WikiTravel page has useful tips for tourists – recommend you check it out for planning your activities while in the island.
This Monday myself and my friend E.Ravi decided to take off the next day and go for a drive away from Chennai. That’s how we ended up going to Sholingur this Tuesday (15th March). Sholingur is a town in Vellore District of Tamil Nadu, near to Arakonam and Thiruthani. The town is famous for its Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple on a big hilltop and Yoga Hanuman Temple on a smaller hilltop. From Chennai you have two routes to go to Sholingur town. One is NH4 (Chennai-Bangalore Highway) going up to Walajapet and then proceeding to Sholingur, this is a longer route (131 Kms) and we were told by people who go there frequently that road from Walajapet to Sholingur is not that good. So we took the other route which is NH205 (this is the road you take to go to Tirupathi from Poonamalle) and SH54 which in total turns out to be a distance of about 120 Kms from T.Nagar, Chennai. Travelling on NH205 once you reach Thiruthani go towards Railway station and get on to road (left) to go to Vellore via Chithoor, this is SH54 and then follow on signs for Sholingur. Once you are near the town you start to see the HillTop and easily find your way towards the base car parking.
Once you reach the base, you need to leave your footwear and start your climb up the big hill barefoot (thank the good souls who have sponsored and put up a metal-sheet ceiling all through the path to protect the pilgrims from the heat). Climbing by foot is the only way to reach the temple, I was told a cable car has been planned in the next few years by local authorities. The steps are pretty steep, but can be climbed by all able people with some effort. In our enthusiasm to reach up quickly, we both hurried up the steps and after few hundred steps found ourselves slowed down considerably, resting every few steps and gasping for breath. As you climb your way up, I kept wondering how the priests and others working in the temple do this trip every day. After nearly an one hour and climbing 1305 steps on hard rock, you reach the beautiful temple.
There are hundreds of Monkeys all through the path and in the temple corridors, so you need to be careful on your belongings. Especially if you are carrying anything the Monkeys consider as food (Bananas, Jasmine flowers) you got to be extra careful in covering them completely. Some Monkeys seem to have the ability to spot out people carrying items of interest to them more easily than others, even when the items are covered. We were warned about the monkeys in the flower shop at the base and were given a long wooden stick “free” to protect us (it is more to scare the monkeys, I can never get myself to beat these cute monkeys). We had our offerings, water bottle and flowers covered and hidden safely inside a “gym” bag and had little problem. On our way up and down, we found that as long as you mind your own business, don’t tease or stare them on their eyes, the Monkeys don’t trouble you.
While coming down we hurried very fast and made it down in about 5-10 minutes, so in the last hundred feet found our feet trembling on the pressure. It would have been better to do the climb up and down more slowly with rests to prevent any strain and exhaustion. Carry plenty of water with you and with a light stomach (you do get Sodas & Fresh Lime Juice in a shop near the 600th step).
We started from Chennai at 8AM we reached Sholingur town at around 10.45AM (a 20-30 Minute stop for breakfast in Motel Highway at Nazarathpet). Started the return from Sholingur at 1PM and reached Chennai before 4PM (a 30 Minute stop for Lunch in Motel Highway again). If you are planning to go to Sholingur, enjoy the trip and have a great Darshan.
The content of this site are my own personal opinions and do not represent my employer's view in anyway. In addition, my thoughts and opinions often change, and as a weblog is intended to provide a semi-permanent point in time snapshot you should not consider out of date posts to reflect my current thoughts and opinions.
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