Day 06 - 17000 ft.

Day six we woke up in the hotel and Laching and drew the curtains and OH MY GOD! The view was breathtaking! Snow capped mountains and the early morning sunlight glinting off it making it look golden! And it was still 4.00 am. The sunrise is early in the east in Sikkim. Its so far up north too. Its the top of a mountain. Looking north!

And then we left.. To go see the snow and the place where the road goes into the mountains and stops. This is called Zero Point. At an altitude of 17,000 Feet above sea level. On the way we stopped at a place called Yama-sam-dong (did I get that right?) This is the place where there are a lot of wooden huts during the tourist season and serves as a base of trekking expeditions. We hired boots, had breakfast of stramed bread with butter and jam and moved on. It was still 7 in the morning and bitterly cold. But already the place was teeming with cars and people on their way to zero point.

 

This was the place where we saw the himalayan mountain yak. And we passed through a advanced army base camp. We were not allowed to photograph as we passed through the army camp but here are the pics of the yak and zero point where we played in the snow and had tea. the small stream had ice cold water and i didnt dip my hand in. so i took pictures. My father and brother put their hand in and were unable to move their fingers for 20 minutes..

The road was steep winding and desolate

This is where the road ends and you have to turn back - Zero Point. 17,000 Ft

And then we started back. We came back to Lachung, packed our bags and made our way back to Gangtok. the journey was again for the whole day and tiring. My brother tried to drive the Scorpio for some time and he almost went off the road! The driver was fast and rash as usual and were thankful he brought us back to Gangtok safely!

But These two days in North Sikkim were the best we had yet. We were sad that we didnt get permission to visit Changu Lake and Nathu-La, but this was fun too.. Tomorrow we will visit teagardens and markets, have visitors and visit a few temples. Then we will see camp in a farmhouse out-building and finally make our way back to West Bengal to catch the flight home three days later...

Day 05 - North Sikkim

Northern Sikkim is closer to China. And when we started that day, we had a Mahinda Scorpio with a young driver. And by god, he was fast and rash. I got a feeling I was in the Army and was on a army jeep on my way into China. It was a wonderful day and we headed north.

As we left the city, we stared to go into smaller roads that led higher up into the mauntains. The river Teesta is a river that flows into sikkim from china. We followed the river up the valley and saw landslides and boulders and small camps and army trucks. We passed through an army base and at one point left the normal road and took a road that is maintained by the army. It is built by the BRO - Border Roads Organisation.

The roads are so tough and used so much by the army that thay have to be maintained round the clock. And if there is a landslide they have to move in and clear it and repair it. We saw bulldozers, tractors, lorries and roadrollers that were there all the time, keeping the roads open and the army trucks moving all the time.

We got stuck in a landslide and had to wait two hours for the bulldozer to come and clear the boulders from the road. but we had some amazing sights and the views all round the valley was breathtaking. Here are some pictures..

The last two pictures are of the most amazing refuelling stop I have ever seen in my life! you see a cottage, stop. honk. out comes a man with a jerrycan of diesel for the vehicle. he has a funnel and a old piece of dirty cloth. he filters the diesel using the cloth and the funnel and fills your tank. pay him for the can of diesel and move on. Fun!

We finally reached a place called Lachung at about 7 in the evening. and just as we reached the hotel we saw the snow on the mountains in front of us. But we were tired and we had dinner in the room and went to bed early. It was a full day drive and a tiring one.

Day 04 - Around Gangtok

Gangtok is on a hill and is spread over two adjacent peaks. And there is lots to see, and we saw the following places. We later realized that we missed out on some of the more well known tourist places and saw the lesser places. I am not complaining. We didnt plan to be typical tourists and enjoyed the offbeat places.

First was the bhakthang falls just outside Gangtok where the river Ranipool falls into the gorge. here are two pictures. one of the water and the other of the gorge!





This is where my brother tried on some exotic local lepcha clothes.. He looks funny eh?



Then we went around seeing some temples and a monastery. a comparatively new one. It was a challenge for me because it is far below the road level and the only access is down a steep footpath. I made it down and up again in one piece..



Then we went to Tashi View Point. A high point in Gangtok from where you can get a 360 degree view of the hills..



Then it was afternoon. We had lunch and climbed on the ropeway between the two peaks of Gangtok..



Here is an amazing thing! You can see that clouds also throw shadows! Notice the sunlight is dappled on the hillside. The dark patches are actually the shadows of the clouds on the mountainside..





Last but not the least we went and saw the Do-Drul Chorten Monastery, and then headed back to dinner and bed.. It was a long day.. Tomorrow we will visit North Sikkim..

Day 03 - Gangtok

The next day started with a good omen. As soon as we got up, had a bath and went out to the dining room for breakfast, we saw Mount. Kanchenjunga. There it was in all its glory, right in front of the dining room door.. After clicking photos and eating breakfast, we left for Gangtok, the main destination of our trip.



Mount Kanchenjunga from The Swiss Hotel

See my picasa web album to find out where mount Kanchenjunga is..

The road goes down into the Teesta valley and crosses it into sikkim. Darjeeling is in West Bengal, There is some talk about a separate state called Gorkkhaland. And Sikkim and Gangtok are on the other bank of Teests. And the road only crosses into Sikkim at the bottom of the valley. And Gangtok is again on the hill. So you go all the way down and cross the river and climb all the way back up into Gangtok.



Tea Gardens on the way down from Darjeeling



The winding road down.

Then we reached Gangtok in the evening and were welcomed in the traditional way with silk khatas as a token of welcome and goodwill. The Hotel Delamere is a unique boutique hotel and we felt welcome and immediately relaxed. The drive from Darjeeling was a long and strenuous one with a mad driver. Then er went up to M G Marg for dinner, came back and to bed. Tomorrow we would see more of Gangtok and Sikkim. Two very interesting things about Gangtok.

1. No taxis from outside Gangtok are allowed in the city. We reached the outskirts of Gangtok and had to get out of the Tata Sumo. Then we got into a local Maruti Omni Taxi and reached the Hotel Delamere. That is to make sure that people in Gangtok get the best of the tourist traffic. otherwise People can hire a taxi somewhere outside and roam about Sikkim without sparing a pie for the people of Gangtok!

2. Traffic is banned in M G Marg. It is a walk only zone. What a pleasure to see such a place. I wish we had roads and places like that in Bangalore. Where you can walk without fear of being run over by some lunatic on a kinetic.. (The Walkway beside M G Road in Bangalore is gone to make way for the Metro.)

More coming up after the break, stay tuned to EOTM

Day 02 - Darjeeling

The night was cold and weary from travel, but the day dawned at 4.30 and we didnt feel it was early! We got a shock when we saw the clock and realised it was so early. Darjeeling is in the eastern part of India and so the sun rises earler. and to add to that it is a hill station and it is summer now. so sunlight is longer and comes earlier than usual!

We got up, got ready and left after breakfast. That was in the wooden floored dining room in the hotel which has a beautiful old fireplace. sadly it is no longer used. By the way the hotel had wooden flooring in all the rooms and the false ceiling is also of wood. the real ceiling on top is of shingles.

First was the Japanese Peace Pagoda and the meditation center.. A calm old place with a wooden staircase and paintings of bamboo in brush and ink, hanging on the walls in the upper rooms. Surprisingly there are no grills in the windows. If you lean out far enough, you can fall to your death. It was quite scary for my mom, who has a fear of heights (acrophobia)


The Japanese Inscription


Brush and Ink sketches in the typical Japanese style.


The entrance to the meditation center, with a picture and statue of the founder.


The pagoda itself.

Next we moved on to the waterfalls. down into the valley amidst the tea gardens and rocks, and had three cups of the most beautiful tea I have ever had in my life! Then we came back up again and we bought the same tea for friends and family, some three kilograms of it for about a thousand rupees. divided by five people paying, it didnt cost much..

My brother as usual got carried away and tried to so some stunts standing in the flowing water from the waterfalls and promptly fell into it. Came out dripping wet in ice cold water and downed some three cups of tea at the roadside shop.

Then we roamed around the Indira Gandhi zoo, which didnt have much, tried to see the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute which was closed and came back to the hotel. Then we went out walking into the market street in the late evening. My grandmother had locked her bag and lost the key. We broke the lock and went looking for a new one. We found that and also some warm woolen knitted caps, and a wonderful knife that is carried traditionally by the gorkhas.. It is called a kukri..


The way to the waterfalls where my brother fell into the water trying some stunts, standing in the ice cold water.



My brother dripping wet from head to toe and the driver of the jeep drinking tea


The mist-cloud shrouded tea gardens from the hut where they were selling the tea, which we got.

Then back to the hotel, dinner and bed.. We had to leave early next morning to Gangtok in Sikkim!

Day 01 - Travel

The original plan was that we would go to Jayanagar 4th Block Bus Stand and catch the Vayu Vajra BIAS 5 or BIAS 12, at 6 am on 21 May 2011. But true to Indian Standard Time Schedule, we reached the place at 6:40. And my dad was anxious that we will be late to catch the flight. So we caught a taxi on the road and made it to the airport in less than an hour.

We checked in before 8 for a 9.15 flight and loitered around the departure terminal eating breakfast (which my mother had made and packed the previous night) and watched other people loitering. At 9.10 my mother decided she needed a coffee before takeoff and we had to wait for 15 minutes for her to finish the coffee. And we ended up making the aircraft wait and we were the last people on board! What an roller-coaster!

That is how we started the holiday and it was a bad omen for things to come..

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain, from the flight deck. We have just taken off from Bangalore International Airport (Thanks, we did'nt know) and are flying in a north-north-westward direction, at an altitude of 37000 feet, at 850 kmph. The outside temperature is -47 Decrees Celsius! Enjoy your flight.. (ya right!)

And my father started telling me that the destination was Hyderabad. I thought we were flying to NSCBIA,(Netaji Subash Chandra Bose International Airport) Kolkota! Its like the Sardarji Joke.. What technology! One plane, two destinations! Then after landing he tells me.. He thought there was a stopover in Hyderabad. But thank god no, we reached Kolkota in exactly 3 hours (12:30). The landing was rough and the plane bounced twice before rolling down the runway and taxing to the domestic terminal..

Time Time Time

Window with a wingtip

NSCBIA Gate 3A

Room Kanchenjunga, The Swiss Hotel, Darjeeling

Some idiot of a travel agent had booked us on a separate plane from Kolkota to Bagdogra. NOT a connecting flight. So we had to check out, collect our baggage in Kolkota and walk all the way around and check in at the departure gate again for the flight to Bagdogra! What a colossal waste of time!

Then we took off from Kolkota late (14:30). We were loitering in Gate 3A for nearly an hour for the flight! The gate was not even open, the aircraft was not even in the airport! Then we reached Bagdogra at 15:30, and started to look for the taxi which was supposed to be waiting to take us to Darjeeling.

We found it at 16:00 and started the drive, having momos in a small wayside tea stall at 17:00 (5 pm) finally lunch! And after a five hour drive up the mountain we reached the Swiss Hotel in Gorkhaland (Darjeeling) at 9 pm and to our chagrin discovered that there was no dinner and had to wait one hour for them to cook it. It was cold and we were tired. my mother who is diabetic started to go hypoglycemic. we scrambled for a glass of milk, gulped down some hard rotis and went to sleep in a icebox of a hotel room..

Thus ended the first day of our travel.. we had arrived battered and bruised in Darjeeling at the height of the tourist season! what rotten luck!

Introduction to Sikkim Trip

It had been a long time since we took a holiday.. And so we just started thinking of places to visit at the end of April. Both me and my brother had holidays and Mr. Anil (My dad) discovered his Leave Travel Concession was due.. Kazhiranga National Park is closed. No. Ranthambore was very hot. No. Madhurai and Kanyakumari are hot. No. Ooty and Kodaikanal are summer resorts, too many people! No.

So where? Sikkim! Thanks to Ms. Ira Pradhan! It was all planned and arranged in a matter of days. We knew nothing of the place and had no idea what to see and do. But thanks to a friend of Ira's, Mr. Bhanu Pratap, it was all arranged for us beautifully and conveniently. Sadly we didnt get to meet Bhanu, as he was very busy and we were roaming. But thanks to Mr. Vikram and Mr. Ajay, who met us and guided us, we had a lot less to worry about and were able to enjoy the places better.

So here goes a big thank you to..

Ira Pradhan,
Bhanu Pratap,
Mr Vikram Thapa,
Mr Ajay,
And everybody else who made this an unforgettable holiday!

The whole thing was ten days and I am going to write about each day in a separate post. Photos in my Picasa Album here. 10 days in 100 pictures.

Books I have read and NOT enjoyed

I have read a lot of books in the last few years, even more when I was not well, and there have been only a few that I would NOT care to recommend to others. People come up with all kinds of suggestions for what you SHOULD read, so I thought I would make a list of the ones I did not like and ask others not to waste their time. So here we go..

1. As you like it, by Shakespeare.
This was a textbook in college for English Literature. Its one of those Pastoral Comedy stuff, dont bother.

2. Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte.
This was also a textbook in college, depressing dark and boring. Don't even think about it.

3. Far From The Madding Crowd, by Thomas Hardy.
Same textbook stuff, useless meaningless drivel, but people will start cursing me so i wish to answer them. go to the end of this post.

4. A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams.
Ya right, this is also a textbook, so forget it.

Now comes the more interesting and important part. The above four will serve my analysis perfectly.

All textbooks and award winning literature is bad. And there is a reason for this. Book reviewers and academicians who select texts for young people to study, are depressed sadists and take pleasure in torturing others, maybe because they themselves suffer in life. There are a lot of people out there who feel that suffering is good. And it is an elevating experience that a young man has to undergo to "grow up". Dont get fooled. Its a big load of trash.

Let us see what people say when they talk about the award winning book. They say that the book or story is a faithful portrayal of life and its hardships. Its a brilliant critical analysis of the fallacies of mankind. It serves as a mirror to society by showing it whats wrong with it. It talks about what is and not what should be... etc etc etc..

Now dont get all worried if you didn't get even one word of it. Its not meant to be understood its only meant to make you feel its something important and highly intellectual. And they succeed in giving you that feeling. Dont get fooled.

Now let us see what it is and what it means. They say that mankind can improve only if you show them what they are and tell them what they are doing wrong, By criticism and evoking thought, dynamic change and a lot of other high flown words to go with it.. Add anything you can think of..

But the point I am trying to make is this.

You can never change mankind and the way the people think by showing them their own ugliness. they will only get revolted by it, cover it up, but move on WITH it. What you can do is this. Show them the beauty of life, the hope, the enjoyment, the fun and the excitement. but send a message - in a captivating story about morals and ethics and principle and whatever you hold sacred and dear.

Simply put its this. Jeffery Archer, Alistair McLean and John Grisham can teach a lesson and make people swallow a bitter pill far more effectively than Shakespeare or the Brontes or Jane Austen.

This applies as much to Literature as to the study of literature in college, Authors like Richard Steele, John Donne, Jonson, Johnson, Chaucer or any old coot is bound to bore students.

Conan Doyle, Edgar Allen Poe, Chesterton, Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Agatha Christie, and other exciting authors are far more effective. If you dig deep enough, you will find authors in every period of history who told exciting stories and at the same time have a lesson to teach, below all the superficial excitement..

-----

Oh god that was a long one, Tell me what you think, I would love to discuss this with anybody who is interested. comment and email me at maitreya . jagalur @ gmail . com

Neglect

I am extending my apologies to my blog, keyboard and head, for not coming up with something interesting for a long time now. My blog archive consists of 29 posts including this one and I have written posts in 8 months, in 3 years.. This is unacceptable! I am studying Journalism and hope to do something with my language and kidney (Kidney = Brain, an old joke at home) abilities in life..

So I am now making a new year resolution (yugadi) to write at least a post a week, and be more productive. A khushwant singh joke comes to mind. A journalist interviewing him on his 90th birthday "How can you be so productive, even at 90?" and he replied "Nobody has invented a condom for the pen you see!" :-)

Muzik Tag

I came across this and thought i would write my own list. And I have chosen from my favorite artists..

Thank you Anusha for following my blog and getting me to that post..

My List

Opening credits: Ballad Of A Teenage Queen - Johnny Cash

Waking up: Prabhati - Yehudi Menuhin

Average day: Take It As It Comes - Jim Morrison

First date: The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face - Celine Dion

Falling in love: Ring of Fire - Johnny Cash

Love scene: Light Me Fire - Jim Morrison

Fight scene: London Calling - The Clash

Breaking up: Endless Summer Nights - Richard Marx

Getting back together: Keep Coming Back - Richard Marx

Secret love: Remember Me (I'm The One Who Loves You) - Johnny Cash

Life's okay: Satisfied - Richard Marx

Mental breakdown: Desperado - Eagles

Driving: I've been Everywhere - Johnny Cash

Learning a lesson: Should've Known Better - Richard Marx

Deep thought: Riders On The Storm - Jim Morrison

Flashback: It's All Coming Back to Me Now - Celine Dion

Partying: Twisting By The Pool - Dire Straits

Happy dance: Expresso Love - Dire Straits

Regretting: Angelia - Richard Marx

Long night alone: So Far Away - Dire Straits

Death scene: Die Die My Darling - Metallica

Closing credits: The End - Jim Morrison

I am going to put up links to the songs and make a compilation CD. If you want the CD email me at maitreya . jagalur @ gmail . com

Govt's top award for firemen bravery: Rs 100

New Delhi: How much reward does a fire fighter get for one of the most difficult relief and rescue operations in recent times? That too in a major air crash, the worst in a decade. Karnataka government thinks that Rs 100 is the best reward!

The 85 fire department personnel who worked non stop for 12 hours and remained at the crash site for 5 days have got certificates with an instruction to collect a cash reward of Rs 100 each from district treasury in Mangalore....
IBN Read the story here

IPL Nonsense

I just feel that this whole thing about cricket is nonsense. Just a lot of hype, and a little prick the bubble is going to burst. It would have, if India had lost in the final to Sri Lanka or to Australia even.

World Cup I can understand, its a world event and its a old traditionn, but i dont care much for IPL. I think its like a village fair followed by a village festival. you buy and sell cattle, produce, and whatever you can think of dishing up and then you go out and play some stupid game for a few hours.

And to add to that the money that is in the whole business. we are all being cheated in broad daylight and we are blind enough not to even notice its going on.

Boycott IPL join the anti rubbish gang. switch off you tv and listen to music. I will come up with my favourite tracks on a playlist soon.. till then.. BBC W S

Ramblings

I feel like rambling on today about all kinds of stuff. So let me do it. What the hell? I have lost the habit of writing something just for the fun of it! I am getting a lot of thoughts and memories of my stay in Mysore. I don't know why and i don't care but they were good times I had. I seem to be in a kind of limbo right now.. where am I going and what am I doing I have no idea.

I feel lost and totally at sea in this life of mine. I just consulted the orthopaedic surgeon who did my surgeries and he says i have to undergo another stupid treatment for strengthening my bones. I am totally mad. I dont want it and i dont like it. I had thought all that rubbish was behind me. but it seems its not to be, I am still undergoing it and it will last till I die I guess. I am fed up and tired of all this medicine, treatment, hospitals doctors and all that sort of thing. I want to feel normal like any other guy.

But this stupid world does not let you be that. it always throws something in your way. its so frustrating and all the people in the world start advising you how to lead your life when that starts to happen. they keep telling you what you should be doing in that situation and they dont know what they are talking about. I would for once like to see what all those people will be like when and if something like this happens to them. That would be fun to see, seriously..

thats it for today.. time for dinner....

A New Day Has Come

An appeal to Celine, please dont sue me for the plagiarism, Its not worth the effort, I have no money.

Ah good to get that over with, now for something interesting.

Another list. Music and Artists.**

01 Richard Marx
02 Celine Dion
03 Johnny Cash
04 The Doors
05 Dire Straits
06 Eagles
07 Maharajapuram Santhanam
08 K V Narayanaswamy
09 Bhimsen Joshi
10 T N Krishnan
11 Dwaram Venkataswamy Naidu
12 N Rajam

**Conditions Apply. Some people are going to say that its madness to put all those names in the same place at once. But what the hell! its my list, if you dont like it, go elsewhere!

On a more serious note, I find this whole listing idea very intriguing. What exactly makes people make lists? I am going to sound like Samuel Coleridge here, please bear with me.

People can make lists for various reasons.

1 It might be to help remember a lot of things to be done or to get done, like shopping lists.
2 Or it might serve as motivation to better oneself or achieve goals. Like wish lists.
3 It might serve as a powerful arguement tool. When you want to fight someone and win.
(it makes sense to make a list of the other persons shortcomings beforehand and then go on to blast the hell out of that person when actually engaged in war. Use the gyaan at your own risk. Injurious to health.)
4 It might serve as a guide, like listing out the points when you want to write an official letter or essay or anything.
5 Then it might help you in taking stock of what you hava and not have. Like inventories, giving you definite pointers to look at areas neglected, that need attention and care.
6 Last but not the least, it can be great fun!

So enjoy making lists!

Finally

This post is something that i have been putting off all these days, telling myself that i am going to get around to it sometime. It has been lying in my drafts folder for more than a few months now. So today i decided to wipe the whole thing off and start over.

It looks like i have found something to write about. This last month I have been enjoying the holidays and a week ago this monday I started my second year of college. Everybody has not turned up and the classes have not started in earnest and i am here, finding some free time. I know, I know.. I had the time, but never felt like writing, this last month. I have a lazy streak in me.

Anyway, I have been watching quite a few movies and am going to write about them. First things first. How I watch a movie. I NEVER sit in front of the TV, not even for news, I get that from the newspaper. Dont ask me what real news is there in the media these days though. If my lecturer in journalism reads this, she is going to kill me. I am going to go ahead and hope she does not read this. So, I watch movies only when somebody recommends them and I get the CD or DVD.

Somehow I have never watched many movies on the spur of the moment and in theatres. I hear about a movie, see the review and talk to friends who have seen it and then decide and watch them, which doesnt mean that I have not gone to the theatres, I have, But thats only a fraction of the movies I have seen. Most have been on the CD or DVD and many during the time I had health problems and I was in the hospitals.

Now for some movies I saw recently ( I love lists, just like my cousin kailash ) **

01 Schindler's List (there goes the word again!)
02 Saving Private Ryan
03 Italian Job
04 A Walk to Remember
05 Step Up (1)
06 Defiance
07 Black Hawk Down
08 Hurt Locker
09 All The Presidents Men
10 Shattered Glass
11 Charulatha - The Lonely Wife (Sathyajit Ray)
12 Karthik Calling Karthik

**Conditions apply. The list is not in any particular order, And no inference is to be drawn or opinions formed based on the order (or the lack of it) I am not even saying that I liked those movies. A list is a list. Watch them at your own risk!

Still Alive

I am still alive.. what have i been doing?

bought a new mobile phone (M W230)
searching for my ipod (have I lost it?)
Exams this week.. so studying (ha ha.. joke)

In short I dont know what I am doing.. No time to think

logging off....

Inspiration

I got the following in an e-mail. Have a nice day after reading it. It is really inspiring!

Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries shares his inspirational encounter with a rickshaw driver in Mumbai:

Last Sunday, my wife, kid, and I had to travel to Andheri from Bandra. When I waved at a passing auto rickshaw, little did I expect that this ride would be any different...

As we set off, my eyes fell on a few magazines (kept in an aircraft style pouch) behind the driver's back rest.



I looked in front and there was a small TV. The driver had put on the Doordarshan channel.



My wife and I looked at each other with disbelief and amusement. In front of me was a small first-aid box with cotton, dettol and some medicines. This was enough for me to realise that I was in a special vehicle.

Then I looked round again, and discovered more - there was a radio, fire extinguisher, wall clock, calendar, and pictures and symbols of all faiths - from Islam and Christianity to Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism.

There were also pictures of the heroes of 26/11- Kamte, Salaskar, Karkare and Unnikrishnan.

I realised that not only my vehicle, but also my driver was special.

I started chatting with him and the initial sense of ridicule and disbelief gradually diminished.

I gathered that he had been driving an auto rickshaw for the past 8-9 years; he had lost his job when his employer's plastic company was shut down.

He had two school-going children, and he drove from 8 in the morning till 10 at night.

No break unless he was unwell. "Sahab, ghar mein baith ke T.V dekh kar kya faida? Do paisa income karega toh future mein kaam aayega."

We realised that we had come across a man who represents Mumbai – the spirit of work, the spirit of travel and the spirit of excelling in life. I asked him whether he does anything else as I figured that he did not have too much spare time.

He said that he goes to an old age home for women in Andheri once a week or whenever he has some extra income, where he donates tooth brushes, toothpastes, soap, hair oil, and other items of daily use.

He pointed out to a painted message below the meter that read: "25 per cent discount on metered fare for the handicapped.

Free rides for blind passengers up to Rs. 50.



My wife and I were struck with awe. The man was a HERO!

A hero who deserves all our respect!!!

Our journey came to an end;

45 minutes of a lesson in humility, selflessness, and of a hero-worshipping Mumbai, my temporary home.

We disembarked, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a free ride for a blind man.

I hope, one day, you too have a chance to meet Mr Sandeep Bachhe in his auto rickshaw: MH-02-Z-8508.

D-Day

Two days ago, Saturday June 6th, was the 65th Anniversary of the famous Normandy Landings on the northern coast of France by the allied troops. It was the beginning of the end of World War II.

Read about Operation Neptune and Operation Overlord here and D-Day here and the report in the Times here

Info thanks to wikipedia - the best!

Ya you are right, I am a history buff! :)

Shadows

The windscreens and body of cars are all convex. They are all highly reflective and reflect bright sunlight almost like mirrors. Now the shadows formed by light reflected by convex surfaces are particularly sharp..

Here are examples. There was a car parked in front of our house, against the sun. Our front door was open. These are pictures of shadows on the opposite wall..

This Day - Last Nine Years

It has been a while since I posted the last one, So here goes again!

Events on this day the last 9 years (June 1 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008.)

2000 – The Patent Law Treaty (PLT) is signed.

2001 – Dipendra of Nepal slaughters his family during dinner.

2001 – Dolphinarium massacre: an Hamas suicide bomber kills 21 at a disco in Tel Aviv.

2003 – The People's Republic of China begins filling the reservoir behind the Three Gorges Dam.

2005 – The Dutch referendum on the European Constitution results in its rejection.

2005 – The longest oil/natural gas explosion in the Houston, Texas area occurs in Crosby, Texas. The drill was owned by the Louisiana Oil and Gas Company.

2007 – Jack Kevorkian is released from prison after serving eight years of his 10-25 year prison term for second-degree murder in the 1998 death of Thomas Youk, 52, of Oakland County, Michigan.

2007 – Smoking is banned from England's public places.

2008 – A fire at the backlot of Universal Studios Hollywood destroys several icons from movies, such as Courthouse Square, the clock tower from Back to the Future, and the King Kong exhibit on the studio tour.