Monday, May 30, 2005

Phew, am back :-)

I am back to my good old furnace. Every year I wish vacations never come to an end, but as always it's gone in a jiffy :-(

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Shimla

A good 7 hours travel from Delhi. I had luckily managed not to evaporate during the journey. Don't waste money on A/C vehicles coz unless it is fitted with a 2 tonne A/C, you will know the A/C is on only after seeing the switch! At the same time, don't try for any top-open vechicles like a jeep coz there is a very high probability that you may need to include Kutralam in your itenerary. In short, avoid travel.

The guides here irritate you. They run along with the car, cling on to it and try to get some commision for this monkey act. They don't deserve even a banana.

No idea how this place is popular. Nothing much to see and the climate is just like Kodaikanal, nothing special.


Khufri point is supposed to be the main attraction here. But you have to reach the place only on horses, which I suspect, were last given bath before the assasination of Rajiv Gandhi. Nobody informed us about this and we had not taken any oxygen masks with us.


There is a big zoo in Shimla with lots of trees and around 13 animals, out of which 8 are barking deers which never bark, 2 are black bears, 2 are brown bears and one is a snow leopard. The snow leapord is a very shy. It prefers to stay in its inner cage sipping away milk. Snow leapord illa adhu, periya size poonai.

English is a very funny language, yeah. But it is even funnier in Shimla. "Brown Beer", "Chilled Bear", "Brakefast", "Dineer" are some of the common boards you'll see here. The authorities, I guess, have completed a Vivekananda Rapid English course. Not only is it rapid, it is also revoultionary.

The place outside the zoo has lotsa small shops. Shirts, sweaters, blankets, fruits, handicrafts and what not. Probably a good place to get your friends a small gift.

There is also a big market area here. You reach there by a flight of stairs or by an elevator ride which would cost you 7 bucks. 1000ft market-nu build up vittanga, paartha 4 storeys height dhaan irukkum. Pongada-nu vanthuttom.



That innocent pic of mine was taken in the hotel at Shimla. Idhai paarthaavathu naan evalo nallavan-nu ellarum purinjukittu en pugazhai parappunga :-)


No shortage of beautiful trees and flowers though, the only thing which keeps reassuring you that this is indeed a hill station.

Manali

A truly amazing place. The ice cold Biyas river adds to the beauty of the place. The journey from Shimla to Manali was very long but I never felt a thing thanks to the lovely locations I kept staring at.

On the way to Manali


Evening Shadows


Sunset


The hotel we stayed on was on the banks of the Biyas river. We could hear it flowing even from inside our rooms. Caught a decent video of the river flowing, will upload it to some space if possible. Any suggestions?

Guides bother you here too. They try to get you into some hotel and as a result get some commision. But by now, I had enough experience to handle the situation. They ask you stuff even when you sit inside your car.

Guide : Aapko hotel booking chaahiye? (Need hotel booking?)
Me : Booking hai hamaarey paas. (Already booked?)
Guide : Kis hotel mein hai, bathaayiye naa? (Can u tell me which hotel?)
Me : Hotel Subramani mein hain, check kariye na! (Hotel Subramani, check if u wish too)



Snow point was great fun. The last time I had seen something close to snow, on a small scale, was ten years ago before we disposed our Godrej fridge. Played a lot with snow, throwing it at people. It was a great task to walk on snow and reach a lil bit of height. From there we came sliding on snow. No skiing, just sliding on out bottoms! It was great fun minus the fact that there was no blood circulation on our rears. Too much of fun in snow left me shivering that night. I was wearing a jerkin, a sweater, two shawls, a pair of gloves, a pair of socks and two quilts on top of me. But still managed to shiver! Crocin poattu kuppara kavunthu paduthuttaen :-)

Our next stop was at some temple. I still quite don't know which temple that was. Said to be a Shiva temple, but I went in to find out "Bhagwan Vasisht" in it. Two other temples were next to it. One Ram temple and the other Durga I believe. These temples have hot water springs. The water is super hot and people take bath in there. Me no like that much of freedom :-)





A bunch of temples form the main tourist attraction in Manali except for Chennaiites like me for who snow is prohibited even in dreams. Paragliding and horseride are somethings we skipped. Paragliding here is more than twice as expensive as in Bangkok! We did relax ourselves in a Club House which offered TT, Snooker tables, Badminton courts etc.

Kulu was not part of our itenerary. We did not have much time on hands either. So we skipped rafting on the river at Kulu.

Chandigarh

Very less time spent here. It was just a transit from Manali to Delhi. Stayed over one night. A beautifully planned city with superb roads. Just as I was saying Chandigarh is a lot better than Chennai, there was power cut. It seems thats a common problem those people face. Unakku Chennai dhaanda naaye laayakku-nu tellings :-)

The boards in Chandigarh had funnier English than the ones in Shimla.Both capital cities!



We stopped at Pinjore gardens on our way to Chandigarh. The above is a pic of Sivagami computers outside the garden :-)





The gardens were lovely with beautiful flowers and fountains. Would have been more effective at night. We unfortunately did not have enough time on our hands to stay there till night. Rose gardens and Rock gardens are supposedly a must see in Chandigarh, but again as I said Chandigarh was just a stop-by.


Reached Delhi on Friday afternoon and managed a few hours of shopping and sight-seeing. The India Gate offers a spectacular sight at night. The Red Fort, from outside, is just a big red wall like E-2 Police Station. Not possible to be covered by the lens!



Left for Agra early morning. Managed to capture the sunrise from the car. I was unsually brisk inspite of just a few hours of sleep.


Visited Krishna Janma Bhoomi at Mathura on the way. The jail, were Lord Krishna was supposedly born, led to some interesting discussions.

Uncle : Vasudev was imprisoned by Kamsa coz the eigth child of Vasudev and Devaki would kill Kamsa.
Cousin : Devaki was also imprisoned for the same reason.
Me : It is because Vasudev and Devaki were left in the same prison that eight children were born.
Cousin : Yaen different prison-na eight children pirakkatha?
Me : Err..no.
Cousin : Why?
Me : Dei over-a pesaatha, adhu vaasthu shaastram padi appadi dhaan.


The road leading to Taj Mahal is no better than those at Dumil Kuppam. Sewage water and garbage on the already rugged roads did not do justice to a world wonder. People wait with entry tickets under the hot sun and high above their heads, on the entrance is a bulb which is normally seen in public toilets. Inspite of all this, Taj Mahal did not fail to fascinate me. Walking without shoes is next to impossible, but people did not mind that. Inside the Taj Mahal, however, it was very cool as if the A/C had been swicthed on. The carvings on the walls were simply out of the world. Agra MLA kai-la kadaicha seruppala adichiruppaen. Avanum kidaikkala, kai-la seruppum kidaikkala.



Our last stop was at Qutub Minar. Just a dash before we could go and catch the flight.

On the whole, yet another enjoyable tour. Last year it was Singapore, Bangkok and Malaysia. This year, North India. Next year hope to make it to Colombo.

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Thursday, May 19, 2005

I'm outtie!!

Exams are finally over. Have been stressed out due to a number of factors. Factors other than exams, which I shall not write about. So why am I saying it if am not gonna write about it? To confuse you :-D

Did my exams pretty well considering the fact that I had to sit in a furnace and write it! Not well for a couple of exams and I was out of my senses while writing some answers...I started interchanging the points for a couple of answers, when suddenly I realised something was wrong and woke up :-D

Okie, am collecting lotsa kutti stuff in this post...

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How about a bloggers meet in Chennai? Prabhu and Vani, two busy aapeesars are in Chennai. (Psst Vani...unnai ellam busy sonnathukku enakku nichayama treat vaenum!)

Prabhu had called up yesterday and he has an extremely tight schedule here. So he said he would try to squeeze in atleast for a small meet. How about you guys? Anybody interested?

My cell has currently gone out of the validity period and so is lying useless, so drop things into the comment box! Thought of giving Curses' number, but then you could call up and say just a yes or no. Conversations, especially if it's about the route, are strictly prohibited :-)

Any date after the 29th of May is good for me, coz before that I'll be outta town :-)

And here are details about another bloggers meet. On the 22nd of May. Ennala vara mudiyaathu :-(

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Wanted to change this template for quite some. Though I love the black background, people say it's diffcult to read etc. Any suggestion about that?

And sidebars on two sides? Ok-va? Not ok-va?

Thees ees cushtomer feedback :-D

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Viduthalai viduthalai viduthalai from Chennai heat today. A ten day tour covering Delhi-Simla-Kulu-Manali-Agra. Will be back on the 29th.

Any bloggers in the Manali region? If so, lets meet up. Come to malai uchi dressed in manja pant, pachai sattai, monkey cap and say "Manali-la ottagathukku kuliraatha?". You can identify me by my innocent face which speaks a lot about me! Good boy me!

Seeya guys! :-)

P.S. : I'm outtie copyrights to Kay. But I took the right to copy :-)

P.P.S : Me not able to visit this blog! Tagboard never loads!! What is the prechanai??

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Wednesday, May 11, 2005

HEAT

If the Tsunami had happened in this time of the year, it would have simply evaporated on its way. The sweltering Chennai heat is back. I would have melted by now if I were something which exhibits metallic properties, Laloo's skull for instance. Unfortunately, I am human and I have no choice but to witness the roads glisten under the scorching sun, wondering what would happen if somebody fell on their bums on melting tar.

You only have two choices. One, stay at home and prevent further damage to your brain. Two, step outside and turn into a roasted duck like in one of those Tom and Jerry cartoons or the Aduppula Venda Saami in Indian. If you choose the latter, it means you are either a buffalo or a Romeo waiting for your Juliet at a hot-spot like a beach, which buffloes normally stay away from to avoid sunburns. It is thus advisable to stay at home.

Ramar mattum vanavaasathukku Chennai area-la engayavathu poi irundha, Bharatan seruppu kaettathukku adhalaye piyya piyya adichirupparu! Seruppu illama nadantha half boil dhaan!

The Chennai Corporation had decided long back that trees hamper the free flow of traffic in the city and chopped down anything on the way as part of the "Singara Chennai" project. The few trees which had escaped the eye of the "town-planners" were uprooted in last weeks gale. Mottai adichaachu, sandhanam thelikkarthu dhaan baakki. So finding shade is not as easy as getting Ganguly out in the slips. Though parks have a lot of shrubs to aid the clandestine meeting of the lovers (read Chennai Erumais), they do have trees to maintain the greenery of the landscape. However, relaxing on a park bench is not such a good idea. Unless you are wearing a dozen jeans pants, heat boils are sure to surface, after which you will be able to sit undisturbed only on a Western toilet.

Speaking of toilets..going to loo is irritating. A couple of more degrees (temperature!) and there is a very good chance of the urine evaporating before it reaches the toilet bowl. Bloody madras veyyil! Ennavo Swiss Alps maelanthu valanthavan maadhiri pesaraen ninaikkatheenga, avan avanukku vandha dhaan theriyum vedhanai. :-)

Everybody takes bath twice a day. Once in the morning in chlorinated corporation water which is believed to affect the complexion of vayasu girls according to their mothers. Appadiye idhukku munnadi Kushboo colour-la irundha maadhiri oru effect kodupaanga paarkanumae! And once in sweat. People who skip the former smell like public toilets minus the phenyl, which is ofcourse very bad and intolderable. So it is better to follow certain disciplines instead of being chased out of your colony.

Air conditioners are no longer a luxury. If you don't have an AC at home, atleast get to a shopping complex nearby which has one. A girls shopping area is obviously a very good choice. But make sure it is not in the 1km radius from Pondy Bazar. You may be happy there but you are also assured death. Money back guarantee!

One thing encouraging about summer is that girls like to wear smaller clothes. This has both economic benifits and entertainment values. From an economic point of view, this helps conserving our limited resources. Gandhiji, with his charkha, would have weaved pieces of cloth twice as fast. People often remark that only dhothis would suit our climate and we are only aping the western culture by changing to pants. I, speaking for the girls, feel that two piece suit our climate much better than the 6 yard sarees. What are they? Mummies? (the Egyptian mummy I mean!) Go gals go! You rock! Hmm..yeah, if you are a boy and have still not understood the entertainment aspects, then in all probability, you are not a boy.

It is a pity that I have got used to wearing jeans pants. Not just me, most guys. Rain or shine, we wear the same old torn jean :-(, without washing :-D

Juicy fruits are in great demand. Watermelons and tender coconuts especially. I somehow don't like watermelons. Haven't tasted it. But looking at people eat it with the juice dripping from their mouth, gives me a feeling that I'll look like a pakki if I eat one. Am not a fan of tender coconuts either. I like it, but I don't relish it. A few of years back there was a rumour that you would get AIDS if you drink tender coconut water! Pannara matter ellam pannitu yaenda elaneer maela pazhiya podareenga? I prefer cool drinks and icecreams anyday. But with this bloody cold I am having, only hot water tastes good! :-(

Kids are given vacations to enjoy i.e. get the hell out of this place and go to some hilly region. Atleast Parangi Malai. Whoever started the concept of Summer Coaching Camps, I am sure has been cursed enough by kids to have died by now. Parents find it really attractive to put their kids in some training camp to develop some extra-curricular activities, but all kids develop is a tan. Idhellam pannitu appuram en pullai Aravind Swamy colour-la irundhaan-nu solli enna use? Ammavasai maadhiri dhaan irupaan!

College schedule sucks. Writing 3 hours of junk is not appreciated even if the exam hall is completely air conditioned. It is a pain in the neck to give your exams in this stupid heat. Pity me!

Am waiting for the weekend. Sun TV is playing Captain's Rajjiyam as part of their "Vidumurai Kondattam" series. My only hope to chill out!

Ofcourse I love Chennai, but veyyil thaangala da saami!!

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Saturday, May 07, 2005

Funny way to remember

Computer Networks...bloody huge subject. Helps to have shortcuts to remember stuff.

OSI Reference model has 7 layers - Application, Presentation, Session, Transport, Network, Data and Physical.

My friend, this guy, devised an easy way to remember it, bless him.

APpa Sonnaru Thatha Naethi Damalnu Poitaaru

:-)

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Wednesday, May 04, 2005

Vaango Vaango Vaango

I was really surprised when I saw how people got to this blog. So I decided to blog about that this thingy when I am extremely busy since this is a really kutti blog. Adhaavathu naan romba busy-a irukkaen-nu solla varaen, adhu dhaan important-a neenga purinjukka vaendiyathu :-)

Google and Yahoo search. Both lead lotsa people to my site when they search anything related to Chandramukhi. All the other search keys are atrocious!

1) Trisha kuli scene : Avunga kulikkarthukkum en blog-kum ennaya sammandham?? Indha Google saniyan en kooda romba vilayaaduthu. En edhaavathu MMS case-la pudichu ulla poattanga-na, neenga yaaravathu dhaan enna bail-la edukkanum :-)

2) Mallika Sherawat vital statistics : Idhayum oruthan Google search panni irukaan paarunga, avana sollanum! Dei adha therinju nee enna pora illa adha pathi blog panni dhaan naan enna panna poraen?! Cha!

3) Mallika Sherawat hot pics, Jyothika hot pics, Nayanthara hot pics : Naatula evalo paer alayaraanunga-nu ippo dhaan theriyuthu :-) Anyways...search panninavanukku oru advice...Mallika Sherawat-nu search pannaley hot pics-a dhaan varum..indha big brother advice..anubavathula sollaraen thambi kaettuko :-)

4) Vani pics : Enna ezhavu da idhu? Vani pics-kum en blog-kum enna sammandham?? Google kaaran mattum en kai-la kedacha seruppala adippaen...edho Google Ads-la revenue varuthu-nu summa vittu vekkaraen avana :-)

5) Wet white saree pics : Idhu great insult! Evalo rejent-a blog pannitu irukkaen, Udaya TV range-ku kondu poitaan enna! Dei yaaruda idhellam search pannareenga??? :-))

6) Underskirt pics : Enna karmamo! Naan enna inga voyeur cams vechu show-a kaatittu irukkaen. Captain kitta pugaar kodukka poraen idhu pathi!

7) Naidu hall owner : Naan-a? Naan-a?? Naan-a?? Naan-a?? (say in Chandramukhi Jothika style!) Oru Dupatta blog panna Naidu hall owner-a da! Idhaiyuma google pannuveenga? Edhaavathu discount vaenumna en blog dhaan kedachutha ungalukkellam! Biloody doggies!

8) Aathichuvadi : Ramadas idhellam paartha perumai paduvaar :-D

9) Dikkilona : Aaha, ivunga alambal thaanga mudiyala pa! Jalabalajanx dikkilona-nu ellam-a search pannuvaanga? Rendu vellai pura joingunu paranthu poachu-nu adutha evanavathu search panna poraan! :-)

10) Aana aavanna : Nannan maadhiri aakiteengada dei! :-)

Ivalo paer blog vanthu enna prayojanam, Google ads-a evanum amukka maataengraan :-(

Indha maadhiri niraya comedy search results-ku en blog dhaan kidaikkuthu! Ellam time! Ippothikku ivalo dhaan gnabagam keethu, so ippo me escape! :-)

Btw...innikku Trisha birthday-vaam. Happy Birthday darling :-D

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