Wikipedia: Mahabalipuram
Mahabalipuram is also known as Mamallapuram is about 45 KM from Chennai. Famous for temples going back to 7th century (I am still confused if we are in 20th century or the 21st).
Sunday evening, Chumma (Tamil for "Just like that") I decided that I would bike to Mahabalipuram and come back. Picked up my bike, got the fuel and off I was.
Just before I left Chennai, I lost my cellphone. A friend called up and I saw his name and put the phone back into the pocket and when I stopped to call him back, the phone wasnt there anymore. I went back to the spot where I had put it in the pocket and I couldn't find it. Its now about 24 hours without the phone and life hasn't stopped.
And I was away biking on the ECR, lost in the scenic beauty of the roads (I was driving parallel to the sea shore all the time). For the first 20 odd minutes I was worried about my phone and what all to be done but after that .. I got lost. Lost in thoughts, arbit things, sights, analysis of other drivers, competitions with another highway raider.
I reached Mahabalipuram in about an hour. It had loads of tourists milling around. I dint see a lot of it but yes I saw the Krishna Butter ball (a huge rock boulder sitting on the hill) and alight house. I have always fancies about lighthouses but have never been in one. I so wanted to go in but they dont allow you inside. May be next time.
Apart from all the temples and sculptures and beaches, walks etc., Mahabalipuram is a good place to shop around for miniature replicas of gods, goddesses, demons etc. The best part about the shopping is the shopkeepers. They can speak English, Hindi, French, German, Telugu, Gujrati and of course Tamil. And if you ask prices of any object, they would reply "The price is XYZ and you can bargain!".
Monday, February 26, 2007
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Caught !
Today I was driving on the road leading to Spencer's plaza and the cops caught me. Since my bike is registered in Delhi, I thought I would have to shell out some 1500 bucks and get my bike impounded. But surprise ... the cop caught me for driving in the bus lane and I paid just 100. For the first time in my life I have heard that you could be fined for driving in the bus lane.
I tried using my power of influence to somehow get him on my side and not pay the fine but I failed miserably. I told him that I am a mere sales trainee with limited resources and am new to Chennai. I also asked if this is how they treated their guests. I gave him all the gyaan about not knowing the rules and being careful in the future but he was not ready to listen to anything. Then I used the last trick in my bag and said actually I was searching for an address and that's why I was driving in the slow lane and this time he stared at me. I thought I better get myself fined before he impounds my bike and I am left stranded in heat without a bike.
And no he didn't check any other necessary documents that I should have had on the bike. In all thumbs up to Chennai traffic police. They are so much better than cops on Delhi roads.
I tried using my power of influence to somehow get him on my side and not pay the fine but I failed miserably. I told him that I am a mere sales trainee with limited resources and am new to Chennai. I also asked if this is how they treated their guests. I gave him all the gyaan about not knowing the rules and being careful in the future but he was not ready to listen to anything. Then I used the last trick in my bag and said actually I was searching for an address and that's why I was driving in the slow lane and this time he stared at me. I thought I better get myself fined before he impounds my bike and I am left stranded in heat without a bike.
And no he didn't check any other necessary documents that I should have had on the bike. In all thumbs up to Chennai traffic police. They are so much better than cops on Delhi roads.
Sunday, February 4, 2007
Life and Death - The show must go on !!!!
People are happy when someone new comes to a family. A birth, a wedding, the new house etc., all are welcomed and celebrated in grand fashion. Parties are thrown out, friends are invited, everyone has a grand celebration.
If someone leaves, all the celebration is replaced by sorrow and pain. You leave for a different city; your entire family (cousins, friends, friend’s friends, neighbors and everyone you ever knew) would send you with sadness and tears in their eyes. Worst is when someone dies. We mourn like there is no tomorrow. If it’s a celebrity, we mourn the demise for seven days and entire nation comes to a stand still.
Here in Chennai I saw something very different from what I have seen in North India.
When people die in Chennai, they celebrate. There are no tears, no sorrow but it’s a huge ball. I am not implying that kin are happy about someone dying but the way they look at it is entirely different.
A typical funeral procession is lead by group of people throwing flowers on the road. They make something like a flowerbed that the procession walks on. Just behind is an army of drums, percussion instruments and a group of people dancing fanatically. Next is the body of deceased. Following this are the next of kin and everyone who has gathered to pay the last homage to the deceased.
First time I saw it, I thought someone was getting married. And no, this is not meant to be funny.
For a change I like this deviation from North India. The world moves on, the clock ticks away, nothing changes when people die. Mourning is not the way to send someone to his heavenly abode. (And yes I am an atheist). Lesson to be learnt.
Someone once said ... The Show Must Go On.
If someone leaves, all the celebration is replaced by sorrow and pain. You leave for a different city; your entire family (cousins, friends, friend’s friends, neighbors and everyone you ever knew) would send you with sadness and tears in their eyes. Worst is when someone dies. We mourn like there is no tomorrow. If it’s a celebrity, we mourn the demise for seven days and entire nation comes to a stand still.
Here in Chennai I saw something very different from what I have seen in North India.
When people die in Chennai, they celebrate. There are no tears, no sorrow but it’s a huge ball. I am not implying that kin are happy about someone dying but the way they look at it is entirely different.
A typical funeral procession is lead by group of people throwing flowers on the road. They make something like a flowerbed that the procession walks on. Just behind is an army of drums, percussion instruments and a group of people dancing fanatically. Next is the body of deceased. Following this are the next of kin and everyone who has gathered to pay the last homage to the deceased.
First time I saw it, I thought someone was getting married. And no, this is not meant to be funny.
For a change I like this deviation from North India. The world moves on, the clock ticks away, nothing changes when people die. Mourning is not the way to send someone to his heavenly abode. (And yes I am an atheist). Lesson to be learnt.
Someone once said ... The Show Must Go On.
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