Bemused…

Which is the biggest ship?

Got re-connected with one of my old buds (God bless Orkut) this week - Abraham Noble. Major Abraham Noble. Even while at school, he was one person who was clear about what he wanted to do with his life. He would join the force and defend our great nation. He was always passionate about it. I still remember him recounting stories of his relatives who had given their lives defending the country. I am happy that he has lived his dream, and I am honored to have a friend like him. Way to go, Abe.

While on this topic, let me list below links to the blogs of some of my friends:

1. Nishant’s blog: Guy is a business consultant. You know what to expect
2. Nagraj’s blog: Lot of political viewpoints. Interesting read. (Got this link from Taps)
3. Neha’s blog: Ramblings on life.
4. Nirmal’s blog: Geeky. Very popular
5. Iqbal’s blog: Just got bitten by the blog-bug.
6. Varun’s blog: I misplaced the link. Varun if you see this post, do send me again.
7. Here’s one more - Ashutosh’s Blog. Ashu is from Bulandshehar (Hope i got the spelling right. ) Big into politics, and almost any topic under the sun. Will be an interesting read!

Ashte* for now.

Notes:
1. ‘Ashte’ means ‘Thats it’ in Kannada.
2. Puzzled about the subject line? Well, This post took me back to my school days… and this was one of those (silly - now) school days puzzles. Answer to this question: ‘Friendship’. Now that you probably are in the mood for more, I’ll leave you with another one - Which’s the biggest city?

Technorati Tags: friend

Posted in Life | 3 Comments »

People’s Car or Richman’s 2nd Car?

The much awaited 1 lakh car was finally unveiled at the Delhi Auto expo yesterday. Despite the increased input costs and inflation during the 4 years of its making, it’s amazing that the price (for the basic version) remains Rs 1 lakh (dealer price)!. Tata Nano is here.

Before seeing the news yesterday, here’s what I had heard about the car (Rumors from various sources):

- It would be 2 door, 2 seater car.
- Top speed would be relatively low
- Safety would be compromised to keep manufacturing costs low
- No Airconditioning
- Power nothing (as in power steering, power windows et al)

Given all this, who would buy this car, I thought. Would we, the Indian middle class, buy a car that has compromised on a lot of ‘regular’ car features? Especially in a ‘loan driven’ market where one could buy a ‘regular’ car for affordable EMIs, and with the second hand market being very appealing.

Add to these the following considerations (derived from rumors above):
- it cannot be driven for long distances and is primarily a city drive car.
- It can carry only 2 people and has limited luggage space.
- People buy 2 wheelers not only because of their affordability, but also for convenience (given our crowded roads)

My thinking was that the market for this car would primarily be:
- folks who need a second car primarily for city driving.
- youngsters (on whom this will be forced upon by parents. A 4 wheeler is more safe than 2 wheelers, right? )

I wasn’t sure if the consumers for whom this car has been designed for (typical middle class families with 4 members) would form the bulk of the owner community, given that they aren’t getting anything much extra other than two additional wheels and a roof.

Now, here’s the reality:
- It is a 4 door, 4 seater car
- Top speed is 60 kmph (as quoted here)
- It has met all safety standards
- Air conditioning in Deluxe versions
- Larger interior space than Maruti 800
- Power ? (I’m not sure)
… and it looks cute!

Though it is much better than what the rumor mills predicted, the base Rs 1 lakh model is still not going to be a ‘regular car’. But it definitely would be a convenient, beautiful city car. But I am still confused about whether this is going to be a ‘people’s car’ or a ‘rich man’s second car’. Lets wait and see. But one thing is for sure - We will all get more Radio Mirchi time in traffic once the Nano hits the roads.

Posted in Cars n Bikes | 4 Comments »

A couch potato’s trip to nepal

This is my backlog from 2007 - an article on my trip to Nepal. Allow me to clear this one off before stepping into 2008.

It was a lazy saturday afternoon, when my customary afternoon siesta (lying on the floor of my living room with TV going on in full blast) was interrupted by a phone call from Ganesh. Struggling to shrug away the sleep from my eyes, I was soon jolted to full consciousness by ganesh’s words: ” I am planning a Nepal trip next month. Do you want to join in?”.
Nepal? Of all the places, Nepal? - I thought to myself. I was planning on a vacation, but Nepal was the last holiday destination I would have thought of - given that my idea of vacation usually is lying around in some exotic location engulfing myself in luxury. What the heck - i thought, I would never see Nepal in my life if I dont go now. Hence I agreed to the proposition, though half heartedly.

With just one month to go, the plans were made in haste, Ganesh chalking out an 8 day plan referring to the ultimate travel guide on Nepal from lonely planet. I should admit that I still wasnt fully enthused about the trip. We had a 3 hop flight to Kathmandu: Mangalore- Bangalore, Bangalore-Delhi and Delhi-Kathmandu. The last leg from Delhi to Kathmandu was by Druk Air (Bhutan air), and was the best part of the onward journey. The sight of Himalayan incisors peeping above the clouds is goose-bumps material, and you are suddenly filled with a sense of anticipation, humility and various other feelings that cant be described. Coming face-to-face with the most forbidable mountain range, of which you grown up hearing or learning about is sure to evoke emotions in you that you’ve never had.

We touched down at Kathmandu and was soon out of the airport after the immigaration formalities, to be surrounded by porters who helped to transport our baggages to the waiting taxi a few feet away for a ‘nominal’ tip of INR 100 only. As we soon found out, tipping would be one of the biggest expense item one has to budget for if one intends to tour nepal.

Nagarkot
We drove straight to Nagarkot - a hill top resort village that offers stunning sun rise views and checked into Club Himalaya - the best facility available there. We explored the surroundings a bit that day, had coffee at Berghouse cafe, and went back to the hotel once the village closed shops (around 8 PM). The next day we hiked to Changu Narayan temple - a very refreshing 4 hour walk from our hotel cutting across various communities settled along the valley.Leaving aside the gory details (like the food we had, time we went to bed etc) this is all we did at Nagarkot! So far, so good!

Pokhara
The following morning, we checked out of Nagarkot to catch a flight to Pokhara. Carriers: Budha air. Pokhara greeted us with a slight drizzle that we were not equipped to handle. Extremely scenic, this place is situated between a very calm ‘Phewa Tal’ lake and the snow capped Mt. Machhapuchhare (a Himalayan Peak - meaning ‘Fish tail’ - name derived from its looks). Fish tail lodge was our home to be for the next 2 days. Getting to fish tail lodge was itself an experience - a rope drawn pontoon ferried people across the lake to this beatiful cottege hotel.

Getting around Pokhara is easy - one just needs to follow the lake shore. The shore is lined with shops selling CDs, cashmere, prayer flags, khukris and other Nepali artefacts, playing ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ throughout the day. To complete the setting, I would suggest you pick up any of the Everest expedition stories for your night reading. This surely will transport you to different mental realm altogether (I picked up ‘Into Thin Air’ by Jon Krakeur on reco from savitri). Dinner at Lhasa - a hotel that serves Tibetan food. Early next morning we drove to Sarangkot to catch a glimpse of the rising sun, but was deprived of the pleasure thanks to a very cloudy morning.

Our tour guide - Tenzen, a chirpy stockily built bloke took us around on a 5 point trip - Devi’s falls, Seti gorge, Mahendra cave, Vidya darshini temple and the old houses. We rented bikes in the evening and went around that evening. Tea and chocolate cakes from the famous German bakery raised our spirits a great deal, and the night was spent shopping. Most bikes and cars in Nepal are imports from neighboring countries. Bajaj Pulsar is a very sought after bike over there, and rentals for this is usually higher than the others.Apparently the prices of the bikes and cars are almost double that in India ‘cos of import duties. So, even a Maruti 800 is priced pretty high in Nepal.
Another thing we did at Pokhara was a trek to Peace Pagoda - built by Japanese monks to promote world peace. (Couch potato warning: This short steep trek can create some uneasiness in you. Symptoms include breathlessness and a general inability to climb.).

Last stop - Kathmandu
Well, Kathmandu was like getting back to reality - the hustle and bustle, the mad rush to catch up with a crazy life, the dust et al. It was a mixed experience for us here - a mix of spirituality and pleasures of modern life. While visits to Swayambunath, Pasupathinath and Bodhnath brought us peace, shopping at Thamel and visits to casinos reminded us that we still are pretty ordinary humans going after material pleasures of life.

And then… the flight back to India. Very quiet. With each one thinking about going back to work the next day. (Sorry for ending this abruptly- just that I lost my patience a bit. Guess I am not a great travelogue writer)

So, here’s a summary:
Shopping - What we bought: Tibetan stuff (hand held Prayer wheels etc), Shawls, CDs (!).
Shopping - What we didnt buy: Khukri (Gorkha dagger), Masks, Thangka paintings
Food - What we liked best: Fried Momos (kinda like the samosas we get in India), Food at Lhasa restaurant, Pokhara
Food - What we didnt like: Tibetan drink (I forget the name)
Sights - What we liked: Everything!
Sights - What sucked: Crowded streets of Kathmandu

Would I go to Nepal again?: Definitely. 200% positive!

Note: More photos from this trip <Here>

Technorati Tags: Nepal trip, Nepal, vacation, holiday destination, Kathmandu, Himalaya, Nagarkot, Berghouse cafe, Pokhara, Machhapuchhare, Into Thin Air, Pasupathinath

Posted in HUmor, Life, Nepal, Travel | No Comments »

Back!

Am back.
Its been more than 3 months now since i stopped blogging here. Meanwhile, here’s what I did:

1. I got myself a domain. So, i will no longer be using funbag.wordpress.com. Rather i will be blogging here.
2. Took care of some personal stuff
3. Travelled a bit

Thats it! 3 months of my life summarized in 3 sentances. Isnt that saddening :).
I also plan to write a bit about Mangalore - a place that has been home for me (though on and off) ever since I left Cochin. Thats the other page you see on my site.

Posted in Life, Mangalore | 4 Comments »