Friday, July 30, 2010

Friendship Day

Dearest Friend,

Blogging is a new hobby for me. Now I am at a milestone - to post my 300th post!

Sachin, when asked about his 300 runs milestone, he said,'it will come if it has to' ! I am not being so dispassionate about this achievement. I was fulfilling a childhood dream of becoming a writer, thru my blog. God-willing, I will graduate to the level of an author of a book.

God has been very kind me, I have lived in so many different places. Every where I got a set of great friends. Indeed, life would have been incomplete without all those friends.

A big thanks to you for being there, in past, present and future too. May God bless you, hey friend. If God had given more people, more friends like you, this world would have been better place to live in...

Count your age with friends but not with years - Anonymous


Let us spread the Spirit of True Friendship





Thursday, July 29, 2010

A Short Trip to Kuwait, Officially

clicked while driving past this popular
structure @ Kuwait -IPhone !
Made a short, official trip to Kuwait, early this month. I am not fond of travelling, really. But once I reach the destination, I love it, for the new experience.. Kuwait was no exception. Enjoyed the week-long stay!

Kuwait was hotter, and also humid, unlike my karmabhoomi. Humidity was attributed to Indian monsoon though :)
Loved the place for its sheer variety and limited-openness ( better vis-a-vis Dubai, which is 'too open'!) The sheer variety of cars on roads.... wow! Saw many driving my fav car, Porche Cayenne.
Kuwait can definitely boast of a high proportion of women drivers.
A friend made an interesting observation, 'most mallus drive Pajero'. Perhaps one of the mallu-super-stars (mammotty/mohanlal/suresh gopi) may be driving a Pajero, with folded dhoti/mundu ! :)

In spite of high temperature during the day, I went to the Udupi restaurant ( veggie only!), for lunch, not once but for three consecutive days!
A friend took me to the Japanese restaurant. Great location, but not a veggie's delight !

Hotel Marina seen from Marina Mall
Was unable to check out Asha's, supposed to be one of the best Indian restaurants, owned by Asha Bhonsle, at Marina Mall.
(Ashaji has joined the bandwagon demanding a Bharat Ratna for Sachin Tendulkar!! No comments !!)
Stayed at Hotel Marina, one of the best places I have stayed in recent past. Great location, fantastic sea-view, great people & service. I was pleasantly surprised when the GM, who was at the lobby, passed by to greet and exchange pleasantries. But, veg-option in menu was a disappointment and the chef did not bother to help either, when requested. But hope to come back with family...

The term, Success, always fascinated me. Like so many other things in our lives, 'Success' means different things to different people. One of the parameters of success I consider is the number of self-less friends we can count on. God has been very kind to me,  on this front too. Kuwait visit was memorable, thanks to some old friends and new friends through them...

Vacation 2010 @ Incredible India!

Middle East hit consistently 50 degrees plus. Friends confirm this is hottest summer, and we are just peaking! So, the timing of my vacation turned out to be almost perfect. 'Almost' because, it is raining cats & dogs in amchi Mumbai ! ( Hence the new blog design-template with monsoon-touch. Pls let me have your feedback)

A short pilgrimage to PSN. Back filled with peace and tranquility. Still counting my blessings....
Thanks to good monsoon all over, even the drought prone areas are green...Was part of the alumni-group to plant a few saplings...My usual lip-service to Green campaign ( I earn my bread from car finance!)
We need to do so much more to sustain the environment. We can not forget our environmental responsibility...Our children deserve a greener earth!

Samastha Loka Sukhino Bhavanthu, I pray fervently. . .

Vacation 2010 @ Incredible India!

Sachin hit a double! I am a die-hard fan of the cricketer and the person. We have mortals to look up to. . .
Loved the article on ToI, which indicated why Sachin is so successful, for so many years. (Chk out link : Sachin's 300 )
  • Discipline  ( he went to bed on wed @ 830 pm, was up early, etc!)
  • 300 runs..'will come, if it has to': that is practical SSSpirituality!
  • He played like the debutant at other end, Suresh Raina - 'every day is a new day in the life of a great artist'!
Inspiring stuff!

PS : While batsmen from both sides happily accumulated runs, test cricket hit a new low....:( Test cricket needs better pitches. ICC needs to step in. Sharad Pawar can start from home...

Thursday, July 01, 2010

The green food movement - Culture - livemint.com

This is one of the most inspiring articles I have come across recently, on this topic that has a direct impact on all of our lives...and also, on future generations...

The difference is, while many of us just restrict ourselves to convenient levels of 'Green'-activities, Oswal has gone ahead and taken the challenge to EXECUTE the thoughts....

Hats off to Oswal... we need hundreds of such initiatives to save our environment.

The green food movement - Culture - livemint.com

CHECK OUT THE LINKhttp://www.livemint.com/2010/06/28215806/The-green-food-movement.html

The green food movement

With a menu and decor that aims to control carbon footprint, a new fast food outlet in New York started by an Indian, is a vegetarian restaurant with an environment-friendly twist