As the Sun prepares to set at that distant place, where the sea meets the sky, the handsome dude stretches out his lazy muscular hands. He is on the beach, his legs stretched out towards the sea, as he looks relaxedly at his laptop. An angelic woman in a flimsy but colorful wrap around walks towards him, with an elegant glass in her hand, filled with a color fluid. She offers it to him, as he smiles at her. As she turns back, and moves, we see the exotic resort with palm trees, and swimming pools behind the man.
"24 hours Internet facility, to be in touch, all the time," echoes the voice for the TV commercial.
BEING IN TOUCH ALL THE TIME!!!
THAT IS REEL LIFE!!!
"Hello," croaked the rough voice of Shiva, who had just woken up.
"The code abended. You have missed a test case!!!" the shaky voice on the other end spoke hesitantly. A chill struck Shiva's spine, as he was jolted into the real world from the date with Aish, which he had been living the whole night.
With no laptop, or internet connection, Shiva dictated to his colleague hundreds of miles away, to browse through his test cases, carefully perusing the application, bit by bit, as he bathed, got into his beach gear, and finally drove us from Fort Lauderdale to Miami South Beach. BEING IN TOUCH ALL THE TIME???
THIS IS REAL LIFE!!!
As Shiva ended his very long long-distance call, we had reached the Miami. A futile search for the elusive 'Shiva Indian Restaurant' (pompously flashed on Google during our initial research) seemed to have disappeared overnight.
Alrightey. We will go to an Italian Restaurant, for lunch, we decided.
And that is when it all started.
On entering the Italian restaurant, a 'drop dead gorgeous' female, the chief waitress, approached us, asking if she could help us. I did not pay much interest to her, but noticed that she had worn a white top, black skirt, and black slippers. Well, I did not pay much interest to her, but, just noticed that she had pulled her hair back tightly, having tied it together, and a leaving it back to rest till her nape. Well, that's it!!! Just to add, she had a very clean complexion, and thin gold colored neckwear. Also, manicured nails with the polish of color.... oh! Crap!!!
Never paid much attention to her. ;-)
The hotel's architecture was quaint, with modern pieces of furniture of metals, and glass tables.
An Italian thin Pizza, which carried the word 'Special' amidst the words of its long name, tempted us to order for that. The woman 'to whom I did not pay much attention' had called out for another waitress attired in black, who was equally stunning. This lass, who could clear the Infy HR round without much of an effort, stood there, with a pen and a pad, taking out our orders for the Pizza with Mozarella cheese.
The pizza was horrifyingly different than the regular American Pizza, and had some weird toppings on a very thin crust, which appeared something like a desi 'papad'. This pizza was disappointing, and thank heavens, we were not made to eat these original pizzas at our Pizza Huts!!!
"Buddy, now don't look at her immediately, but whenever I look towards her, she is smiling at me," said Shiva while munching on that pathetic pizza. Ouch!!! I could feel the familiar feeling of jealously. I casually turned towards her, and she flashed that brilliant smile.
I smiled back. My soul will rest in peace!!!
Shiva gave me that 'Didn't I tell you not to look at her?' glare.
I gave him that 'I am stupid, as always' smile.
Meal finished, bill paid, and it was time to go out.
Shiva asked the waitress in black, some directions to go to the South Beach. The damsel leaned down towards him closely, and started out with the directions.
Shiva asked some very ignorant questions, which I am sure he would not remember now!!!
Then she began to give directions with her immaculately presented fingers, about the numerous turns to take. I mentally memorized the instructions, pretty much sure that her magnetic field would have erased out any data that Shiva's memory would be trying to load.
Then, it was time to say it!!! C'mon Shiva SAY IT!!! BLURT IT OUT!!! SCREAM IT OUT TO HER!!!
(No, it is not what you think........ we had already paid the bill ;-) )
He did not say. So, the onus was on me.
"You are very beautiful," I mentioned it as we were getting out. I hated to steal Shiva's limelight, but that is the least I could do, when we had not given her any TIP!!!
After we came out, "I had thought of saying that," Shiva said, also imagining me with hands and legs tied to two parallel poles, as he shot at me with an AK 47. Before his imaginations could get more creative, and grouse, "So, remember any of the instructions?" I asked.
"No," he smiled.
Miami beach.
Certainly, not as clean as those bewitching beaches of Goa, but the beach made up for it with a back drop of skyscrapers. It certainly had loads of men and women, with very, very less amount of clothing.
I thought of those ill paid export textile workers in India, who would be ruined if this trend continued. [Didn't think about them then, but am thinking about them now. Does it make a difference? ;-)]
No David Hasselhoff, or the lady Anderson. But, it certainly had some able bodied male Life Guards, but ....hey ladies!!! Don't start imagining things. Most of them had their shirts on.
The Sun was hot, and the beach goers were allowed to go only till a limited distance into the ocean, where there were floating markers for boundary. I appreciated the system after a glance.
Two great hours later, drenched in salty water, I took a shower at the beach. Soon it was time to battle out the rush hour traffic to Fort Lauderdale, toggling between helplessness and hope against reaching in time to catch our flight back to our homes.
Frantically, I rushed from one escalator, to another, shuffling in between different floors of the airport of Fort Lauderdale, finally pulling my carryon luggage bag to the check in counter. Ten minutes to the departure.
"No sir, you cannot board now," said the dark lady behind the desk. "You have to be here atleast fifteen minutes before departure," she added.
I missed that knowledge.
I stood there shocked. Stranded at a great distance from my comfort zone, with a wasted air ticket, I cursed myself for not having turned up earlier. 'Why does it always happen to me?' this is one question that I did not ask, because I knew beforehand about why it happened to me. I had missed the flight in Bangalore, and I had once again missed the flight now. The message was clear. I HAD SCREWED UP!!!
No excuses. I felt I deserved this, atleast to wake me up from the complacency, and jolt me into planning things better. Is this a reflection of the things that have been going on in my life? Always realize the facts late, to realize that I have missed the bus. And this time, it was the plane.
It was hightime that I took charge of my life, and decide its course, else, would have to be satisfied with the course that the life decides for me. Something that I had known for a while, but had been postponing to think about. Life has its way of teaching us of its nature, I realized. IN TIME!!! I breathed a sigh of relief that it had been a small price to pay for this rude awakening. I was definitely thankful to the almighty for this.
"But, the plane would not have left yet. Can't you make this one exception this time? I did not know the rules," I said.
The huge woman was in no mood to be chivalrous and listen to my 'damsel in distress' story. She said I could go ahead, and call the airline helpline.
The airline helpline was not much of a help, but gave me a choice to select between a set of planes starting at 9 in the same night (presently it was almost 6pm), or another one starting at 7 in the next morn. The one starting at 9pm, would cost me 273$ more, but the one starting next day morn would cost me only 50$ more.
Any guesses of my choice????
But, I would have to land up at Minneapolis at 12 noon, on a weekday!!!
Well, I COULD STAY IN FLORIDA FOR A DAY MORE!!! ( positive thinking.... ;-) )
Sandy was a great help in contacting the different hotels, with a combination of 'airport pickup' and the price for a night. As I bade him farewell, I had myself booked in Comfort Inn, a twenty minutes drive from the airport, with the 'airport pickup' facility. For 63$ a night, it was a steal!!!
The movie on TNT was interesting, but could not help my hunger. The cozy room of the artful hotel had me channel surfing for a while. Then, I pulled myself out to grab a grub in some nearby super store (as most of the eatouts here either have junk food, or non-vegetarian). On enquiry, I was directed over a nearby bridge, on the other side of which I would be able to find some stores. As I ventured out into the night, on the wide road, showered with orange light from sodium vapor lamp, I was unnerved by the desertedness of the place. There was not a single human anywhere in sight, but occasionally a huge car or a truck, zooming along the road at uncomfortable speeds.
Nowhere before in India, I have had this fear of being mugged, because I always had my huge structure for comfort. But in here, where I am one among the millions to have a height more than 6 ft, that could not be quoted as an advantage. Also, I remembered the headlines being flashed all over the US when I had just come. It was a school shootout by an adolescent, in Minnesota state. Guns were not very extra ordinary here. This had added to the generic fear.
But, then, it was thrilling too.
Just when I was on the bridge, I turned to look down below. Freeways, and state highways merging, and forking out, all drenched in orange streetlights looked awesome. Temptation to take a picture resulted in an interesting photograph.
A few more minutes of walk down the bridge, I came across a superstore, where I grabbed a quart (1 Litre approx) of milk, along with some buns, and came out. While going back, I was walking behind two guys, an obese white, and a tall, muscular black, talking loudly as they walked. Suddenly, they stopped in their tracks, and looked at me.
"You go ahead," said the black.
Carefully, I trudged ahead, and as they started walking behind me, I could hear the black speak out, "I don't like a tall man tailing me. It gives me the nerves. He has broad shoulders......." he said to his friend, and shouted out, "Ma'an, YOU WORK OUT, DON'T YOU???"
CONGRATULATIONS, MR THEJAS!!! YOU HAVE DONE A HAT TRICK OF BEING CHECKED OUT BY MEN!!!
First it was that fellow Indian, who had identified me by my pants, in the workplace cafeteria. Then, it was the long bearded man in the Minneapolis Skyway, who had mentioned 'You have nice eyes', to my embarrassment when with my colleagues. Now, the ill luck had followed me all the way to Florida!!! :-))))
Anyway, I turned back with a smile, and joined them in their idle talk on my walk back to the hotel.
Early in the morning, the hotel’s escort dropped me at the airport. A flight to Cincinnati, and another flight to Minneapolis, left me staring at the Minneapolis Downtown from air, with a deep breath of relief.
The most exciting trip and finally come to an end. And what an end it was!!!
Thank you for accompanying us on this adventurous and tumultuous journey to the most sought after vacation of the US.
Hoping to see you all sometime soon, someplace soon, somehow.
Thanks,
Have a great week ahead.
with warm regards,
Teju
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Saturday, June 25, 2005
"Hey... kewl sword...where didja buy it???" asked Shiva... "At 'price cut' sale in Walmart," said his egyptian friend
Friday, June 24, 2005
Universal Studios, a trip to Florida part 3
I was yanked about wildly, and as my vision cleared, a huge skull formed at an altitude, lit with green and yellow colours. A path of colourful fires lit towards us from the skull, and we were climbing up at break neck speed towards the gigantic skull, which was screaming in earth shattering voices. As it guffawed, we screamed, as we were being hauled into the enormous, green smoke filled mouth of the skull. As the shrieks of the females in our cart reached its zenith, to my horror, we were pushed into the mouth of the skull, and all I saw was green, green and greener smoke. Suddenly, everything went black, as we had been hauled into an endless pit, which did not seem to end. Within the batting of an eyelid, we were scooped up, and thrown into a maze of caves through which our cart scurried around, and finally halted to view the smiling face of Brendon Frazer on a flat screen, declaring the end of the ride .
"Hope you liked the Mummy Ride" he says. Believe me, he has no idea how much I liked it.
The most attractive of all rides, for me, at Orlando were the Mummy ride, and the Back To The Future. Visit them the last, if you wanna enjoy the other rides :-)
Earlier, in the day, we had managed to get out of the hotel by half past seven, with Sandy getting out earlier than the previous day. He had given up on swimming practice I guess ;-)
A little more than three hours drive in the Ford Focus, by the gentleman driver Shiva (he did manage to break the speed limits, going at about 110 miles an hour, but only when challenged by that blonde in that red convertible ;-) ). No stopping for trash disposal, or rest rooms. There was no time to lose, and everything had to be carried to Orlando.
At Orlando, we parked the car in the huge parking lot, where one can easily lose track of where one has parked it. As we moved towards the entrance, I was entranced by this world, which was different from the world outside. A wave of nostalgia swept over me, reminding me of the summer of 89, when a friend of mine had narrated me his adventure at the Disney World of California. I had been listening to his story with such devotion that, though I do not remember the complex (?) circuits of Basic Electronics of my engineering student days, but definitely remember every line of his ancient story. And this was supposed to be better than that one.
The tickets cost a whopping 70$. There was an offer too. If one would buy tickets for two days i.e 140$, he would get three additional days free.
We bought tickets for a single day.
Though, the tickets cost a lot, there is no ticket for the individual rides inside. The rides can be taken unlimited number of times. But, to finish all the rides, one would require almost a day. But, one would have to be quick to move from one ride to another, as there is a waiting time of fifteen minutes to thirty minutes for every ride (displayed outside the rides).
Ah! Yes. Shiva met his old buddy, and the buddy was envious that Shiva had developed skin since they last met. ;-)
We started off with the Twister experience.
You are taken through a series of torn down rooms of a house (one of them has a car wrecked into the roof of the room, still dangling dangerously), while continuously being enlightened by the Twister movie stars Helen Hunt, and Bill Paxton, through giant screens, about the havoc that tornadoes can create. Then you are taken into a setting where the tornado is recreated, right in front of you. Ripping electric poles, breaking light boards, heavy rains make way to the slender, but dangerous tornado, with flying cows, and crushing roofs. You are not witnessing it. You are right there in the middle, experiencing it.
Mummy is an experience beyond description. The mysterious structures, the falling shutter, the popping mummies, and then there is the dash into the devil's cave, which shames all other rides on this planet.
Terminator is a show, which involves the wearing of 3-D goggles. As the story of Terminator unfolds, the on screen drama makes way to the offscreen, on-stage actors, as the story toggles between the reel and the real. The war between the men and the machines is not what you see on the screen, but in the war field where you are at the center.
The Men In Black ride had us shooting at aliens, and scoring points. This is purely for the kids. (As Sandy outrageously beat me, I would refrain from sharing my tips with you. Also, it has made me hate the ride, for life ;-) )
A pizza at the Pizza place, ( $3 off says the sign, but nobody's speaking about the 'on' price X-( ), and we were off to the Shark Adventure. A boat ride with an enterprising boat woman into a lake swarming with sharks, popping now and then, the fun was more in getting drenched when the boat tilted to and fro, whenever a shark popped up from below.
And before my friends start worrying about my life, and 'cruel' friends start worrying about my Life Insurance amounts, I would want to reveal to you that the Sharks were all wooden. ;-)
The 'EarthQuake' ride has all the passengers of a train right in the middle of a 8.0 earth quake. At an underground station, the earthquake starts off mildly, then there is the breaking of the water supply pipeline, gushing waters all over the station, the blinking tubelights, the short circuited roof's electrical linings, and finally the roof of the underground station breaks loose, with a road above falling down into the station, bringing along with it an oil tanker, which comes close to hitting the train on which one would be seated at the edge of his seat.
The Back To the Future takes off where the last movie of the series [Back To the future 1,2, and 3] left off. Here, we are chasing Biff ( the villian) in a car which can not only move between different times, but can also slide, fly and rip through the building boards, tower clocks, and hover over oceans. We chase Biff's car at different times of history, present and future, over mountains, ridges, heavy traffic city streets, and into the waterfalls.
This is nothing but the best.
And all these things by the car, are simulated!!! Such realistic is the simulation that Shiva developed motion sickness, and refused to come a second time, though actually the car had not moved an inch. It had just turned at different angles, and moved in sync with the dome screen in front of us.
In between all these busy rides, Sandy still managed to hunt a shark, and steal its soda.
At about half past five, we started on our walk back towards the huge parking lot, to find the car, and zip away towards our sojourn at Fort Lauderdale.
Tomorrow: Do not miss the trip to the Miami South Beach, the exotic beach of the world. Also, Shiva's love story with his cell phone, as misses out on the love story, which could have been with a stunning girl. And again, my nerve wreaking experience - I MISS THE PLANE BACK HOME.
Have a great day.
with warm regards,
Teju
the pictures of the trip at
http://community.webshots.com/album/322459456dLVbhf
"Hope you liked the Mummy Ride" he says. Believe me, he has no idea how much I liked it.
The most attractive of all rides, for me, at Orlando were the Mummy ride, and the Back To The Future. Visit them the last, if you wanna enjoy the other rides :-)
Earlier, in the day, we had managed to get out of the hotel by half past seven, with Sandy getting out earlier than the previous day. He had given up on swimming practice I guess ;-)
A little more than three hours drive in the Ford Focus, by the gentleman driver Shiva (he did manage to break the speed limits, going at about 110 miles an hour, but only when challenged by that blonde in that red convertible ;-) ). No stopping for trash disposal, or rest rooms. There was no time to lose, and everything had to be carried to Orlando.
At Orlando, we parked the car in the huge parking lot, where one can easily lose track of where one has parked it. As we moved towards the entrance, I was entranced by this world, which was different from the world outside. A wave of nostalgia swept over me, reminding me of the summer of 89, when a friend of mine had narrated me his adventure at the Disney World of California. I had been listening to his story with such devotion that, though I do not remember the complex (?) circuits of Basic Electronics of my engineering student days, but definitely remember every line of his ancient story. And this was supposed to be better than that one.
The tickets cost a whopping 70$. There was an offer too. If one would buy tickets for two days i.e 140$, he would get three additional days free.
We bought tickets for a single day.
Though, the tickets cost a lot, there is no ticket for the individual rides inside. The rides can be taken unlimited number of times. But, to finish all the rides, one would require almost a day. But, one would have to be quick to move from one ride to another, as there is a waiting time of fifteen minutes to thirty minutes for every ride (displayed outside the rides).
Ah! Yes. Shiva met his old buddy, and the buddy was envious that Shiva had developed skin since they last met. ;-)
We started off with the Twister experience.
You are taken through a series of torn down rooms of a house (one of them has a car wrecked into the roof of the room, still dangling dangerously), while continuously being enlightened by the Twister movie stars Helen Hunt, and Bill Paxton, through giant screens, about the havoc that tornadoes can create. Then you are taken into a setting where the tornado is recreated, right in front of you. Ripping electric poles, breaking light boards, heavy rains make way to the slender, but dangerous tornado, with flying cows, and crushing roofs. You are not witnessing it. You are right there in the middle, experiencing it.
Mummy is an experience beyond description. The mysterious structures, the falling shutter, the popping mummies, and then there is the dash into the devil's cave, which shames all other rides on this planet.
Terminator is a show, which involves the wearing of 3-D goggles. As the story of Terminator unfolds, the on screen drama makes way to the offscreen, on-stage actors, as the story toggles between the reel and the real. The war between the men and the machines is not what you see on the screen, but in the war field where you are at the center.
The Men In Black ride had us shooting at aliens, and scoring points. This is purely for the kids. (As Sandy outrageously beat me, I would refrain from sharing my tips with you. Also, it has made me hate the ride, for life ;-) )
A pizza at the Pizza place, ( $3 off says the sign, but nobody's speaking about the 'on' price X-( ), and we were off to the Shark Adventure. A boat ride with an enterprising boat woman into a lake swarming with sharks, popping now and then, the fun was more in getting drenched when the boat tilted to and fro, whenever a shark popped up from below.
And before my friends start worrying about my life, and 'cruel' friends start worrying about my Life Insurance amounts, I would want to reveal to you that the Sharks were all wooden. ;-)
The 'EarthQuake' ride has all the passengers of a train right in the middle of a 8.0 earth quake. At an underground station, the earthquake starts off mildly, then there is the breaking of the water supply pipeline, gushing waters all over the station, the blinking tubelights, the short circuited roof's electrical linings, and finally the roof of the underground station breaks loose, with a road above falling down into the station, bringing along with it an oil tanker, which comes close to hitting the train on which one would be seated at the edge of his seat.
The Back To the Future takes off where the last movie of the series [Back To the future 1,2, and 3] left off. Here, we are chasing Biff ( the villian) in a car which can not only move between different times, but can also slide, fly and rip through the building boards, tower clocks, and hover over oceans. We chase Biff's car at different times of history, present and future, over mountains, ridges, heavy traffic city streets, and into the waterfalls.
This is nothing but the best.
And all these things by the car, are simulated!!! Such realistic is the simulation that Shiva developed motion sickness, and refused to come a second time, though actually the car had not moved an inch. It had just turned at different angles, and moved in sync with the dome screen in front of us.
In between all these busy rides, Sandy still managed to hunt a shark, and steal its soda.
At about half past five, we started on our walk back towards the huge parking lot, to find the car, and zip away towards our sojourn at Fort Lauderdale.
Tomorrow: Do not miss the trip to the Miami South Beach, the exotic beach of the world. Also, Shiva's love story with his cell phone, as misses out on the love story, which could have been with a stunning girl. And again, my nerve wreaking experience - I MISS THE PLANE BACK HOME.
Have a great day.
with warm regards,
Teju
the pictures of the trip at
http://community.webshots.com/album/322459456dLVbhf
Thursday, June 16, 2005
The snorkeling dream – a trip to Florida part 2
"O Hum Dum" BANG BANG, " O Hum Dum Suniyore" blared the Rahman's tunes from the surround speakers of the Ford focus car, as it cruised along at a comfortable 70 miles (I am tired of multiplying by 1.6 X-( ) an hour, on the straight road, which stretched out to miles without even a small bend. The surroundings had great visuals, with intermittent ranches in between the grasslands. The ambience was just electric.
And inside the car we were ...... rocking??? err.....
Well, let's be practical guys. With five hours of sleep, Sandy had not been able to resist stealing a nap at the rear seats. Shiva was the only one with the insurance, and hence had to keep himself awake to drive. I was torn in a dilemma* which guys experience later in life. The straight road was leaving no stones unturned to make me drowsy, but, I had deemed it my 'duty' to stay awake to morally support my friend at the wheel.
Now, why is it a dilemma for guys later in life??? Well, haven't you heard the phrase, "Ma'an, I wanted to sleep, but she would not let me...." pleease people, this is a decent blog. Don't jump into conclusions!!! Let me complete the phrase " ...until I wash the dishes."
A drive which started at 10:45 am from Fort Lauderdale, took us to Key Largo (some distance towards the south), by 1:45 afternoon. After driving to and fro, we stopped at a shop by the state highway, where they were offering 'snorkeling trips'.
"Our last departure is at 1pm," the huge American in a casual shirt, told us. "But, if you would go straight ahead for three miles, on the right side you can get the 'snorkeling trips' which would start at 3 pm. Believe me, do not try anywhere else, just go there, as most of the trips would have left by 1pm," he volunteered information, with a lot of empathy, and gestures.
"People here are so accurate in communicating, isn't it?" I noted. "Yes, he so accurately pointed the direction, full gestures and all," Shiva added. "First of all, we must appreciate that he volunteered information, and just not ended the conversation by saying that he cannot help us," I became more appreciative. The silent Sandy did not speak.
Driving for three miles, we drove for three more miles. And then we drove on for three miles more.
No sign of any trip services.
THE FOOL HAD GIVEN US WRONG DIRECTIONS!!!
The silent Sandy enjoyed a feeling of victory. He had not joined us in appreciating the fatty!!!
We drove back for some distance.
And finally we were able to enter the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.
As we parked the vehicle and came to the ticket counter, I was overwhelmed by the numerous men and women in skimpy swimwear. Something, that I had only experienced when I had seen the Infy building for the first time ;-)
Standing at the ticket counter, we talked to the ticket vendor about the price, which was 28$ per head, size irrespective. But, there was one glitch.
One must know swimming to go snorkeling.
Shiva and me were certainly not as good swimmers as those sculpted bodied men of Baywatch, who dove to rescue cute victims time and again. But, we could manage.
Sandy declared that he could not swim!!!
Was he trying to practice in the last minute in the bath tub this morning??? Is that why he took the maximum time at the bath room??? It is still a mystery.....
The snorkeling dream had drowned !!!
The rest of the late afternoon was spent on the alternative glass bottomed boat, through which we were supposed to spot the corals, and fishes in awkward angles. After a little while of watching the green structures (because the glass bottom had a green tint ) , I dozed off. We were supposed to have witnessed the second largest coral structures of the world, running upto 22 miles. Some guys did manage to click pictures, but I did not try as I knew Webshots ;-).
We did manage to spot some interesting water birds on the way back to the land.
Some of these services included parasailing, and other water adventure activities, but we were late for anything. Hence, we decided that we would try to drive till Key West, the southern most tip of the US (at approximate latitude of New Delhi).
Amidst all the spiritual talks of 'What's the worth of money in life?' to the entertainment talks about 'Who amongst us is going to get married first?', we had some spirited discussions about 'Career Goals' too. The discussions had a lot of persuasive statements by Shiva for us to get married before this year-end, so that he could get married by the next year-end.
The logic still stupefies me. Anyway, since Shiva joined the Testing job he has lost track of logic, I smirked.
We stopped at a scenic place to take some pictures, especially the one with Sandy looking over the ocean. We could immediately guess the purpose of this picture, and who is getting married first amongst all of us ;-)
Further, we drove on till the Sun set, took another nice picture from a bridge.
A long drive back to Fort Lauderdale, and but we had grabbed the Subway dinner on the way. (Subway dinner has a type of 6 inch bread, with a lot of salads in between , and salad dressing, also some sauce. Yes, something even the impoverished would not want for a routine in our swades :-( ....... not the movie!!! )
Next day: UNIVERSAL STUDIOS, ORLANDO!!! Mummies..... Demons..... Valiant Heroes.... Adorable Heroines... And more......
Till Monday,
Have a great weekend!!!
With warm regards,
Teju
And inside the car we were ...... rocking??? err.....
Well, let's be practical guys. With five hours of sleep, Sandy had not been able to resist stealing a nap at the rear seats. Shiva was the only one with the insurance, and hence had to keep himself awake to drive. I was torn in a dilemma* which guys experience later in life. The straight road was leaving no stones unturned to make me drowsy, but, I had deemed it my 'duty' to stay awake to morally support my friend at the wheel.
Now, why is it a dilemma for guys later in life??? Well, haven't you heard the phrase, "Ma'an, I wanted to sleep, but she would not let me...." pleease people, this is a decent blog. Don't jump into conclusions!!! Let me complete the phrase " ...until I wash the dishes."
A drive which started at 10:45 am from Fort Lauderdale, took us to Key Largo (some distance towards the south), by 1:45 afternoon. After driving to and fro, we stopped at a shop by the state highway, where they were offering 'snorkeling trips'.
"Our last departure is at 1pm," the huge American in a casual shirt, told us. "But, if you would go straight ahead for three miles, on the right side you can get the 'snorkeling trips' which would start at 3 pm. Believe me, do not try anywhere else, just go there, as most of the trips would have left by 1pm," he volunteered information, with a lot of empathy, and gestures.
"People here are so accurate in communicating, isn't it?" I noted. "Yes, he so accurately pointed the direction, full gestures and all," Shiva added. "First of all, we must appreciate that he volunteered information, and just not ended the conversation by saying that he cannot help us," I became more appreciative. The silent Sandy did not speak.
Driving for three miles, we drove for three more miles. And then we drove on for three miles more.
No sign of any trip services.
THE FOOL HAD GIVEN US WRONG DIRECTIONS!!!
The silent Sandy enjoyed a feeling of victory. He had not joined us in appreciating the fatty!!!
We drove back for some distance.
And finally we were able to enter the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.
As we parked the vehicle and came to the ticket counter, I was overwhelmed by the numerous men and women in skimpy swimwear. Something, that I had only experienced when I had seen the Infy building for the first time ;-)
Standing at the ticket counter, we talked to the ticket vendor about the price, which was 28$ per head, size irrespective. But, there was one glitch.
One must know swimming to go snorkeling.
Shiva and me were certainly not as good swimmers as those sculpted bodied men of Baywatch, who dove to rescue cute victims time and again. But, we could manage.
Sandy declared that he could not swim!!!
Was he trying to practice in the last minute in the bath tub this morning??? Is that why he took the maximum time at the bath room??? It is still a mystery.....
The snorkeling dream had drowned !!!
The rest of the late afternoon was spent on the alternative glass bottomed boat, through which we were supposed to spot the corals, and fishes in awkward angles. After a little while of watching the green structures (because the glass bottom had a green tint ) , I dozed off. We were supposed to have witnessed the second largest coral structures of the world, running upto 22 miles. Some guys did manage to click pictures, but I did not try as I knew Webshots ;-).
We did manage to spot some interesting water birds on the way back to the land.
Some of these services included parasailing, and other water adventure activities, but we were late for anything. Hence, we decided that we would try to drive till Key West, the southern most tip of the US (at approximate latitude of New Delhi).
Amidst all the spiritual talks of 'What's the worth of money in life?' to the entertainment talks about 'Who amongst us is going to get married first?', we had some spirited discussions about 'Career Goals' too. The discussions had a lot of persuasive statements by Shiva for us to get married before this year-end, so that he could get married by the next year-end.
The logic still stupefies me. Anyway, since Shiva joined the Testing job he has lost track of logic, I smirked.
We stopped at a scenic place to take some pictures, especially the one with Sandy looking over the ocean. We could immediately guess the purpose of this picture, and who is getting married first amongst all of us ;-)
Further, we drove on till the Sun set, took another nice picture from a bridge.
A long drive back to Fort Lauderdale, and but we had grabbed the Subway dinner on the way. (Subway dinner has a type of 6 inch bread, with a lot of salads in between , and salad dressing, also some sauce. Yes, something even the impoverished would not want for a routine in our swades :-( ....... not the movie!!! )
Next day: UNIVERSAL STUDIOS, ORLANDO!!! Mummies..... Demons..... Valiant Heroes.... Adorable Heroines... And more......
Till Monday,
Have a great weekend!!!
With warm regards,
Teju
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
1. The Case of the Missing Professionals
"Holmes", the grave voice of Dr Watson was heard, as he entered the smoke filled room of the legendary detective, on the Baker Street of London. "Did you hear about the strange case of missing professionals?" the doctor attired in dark coat and a hat, held out the London times of the 12th April, 2005. Amidst the fog, the doctor could see the lean detective, as he flashed a glance at the newspaper, and returned back his stare onto the large window overlooking the Baker Street, while a slender figure less burst of smoke escaped his dry lips.
"Holmes," the doctor urged, "This is important. These professionals are most important. One of them works for HP of Boston, the other for Capital One in Richmond, and the third professional works at ING, Minneapolis. They should be found at once, and this case requires your immediate attention."
The detective spoke without a trace of emotion, "They are at Miami, South Beach, dear friend."
"How can you be so sure of that?" Watson asked taken aback at the detective's awe-inspiring capabilities.
"Elementary, doctor Watson. It is elementary," the detective now turned to the doctor. "It is the spring break, and all the nubile creatures of the States would definitely find themselves at Miami," he smiled. "And pardon me to intimate you at this short notice, but I would have to ask you to join me for a trip immediately."
"And interesting case?" there was excitement in Watson's voice.
"No. A VACATION TRIP TO MIAMI," smiled the deft detective.
The October of 2001 was an eventful month filled with tours all over Karnataka, for the four lads from Bangalore. A casual Shiva, a calculating Suzy (the name of a male), a 'chill-out' Sandy, and a cool Teju stood in front of the Abbi falls and had their picture clicked by a passing uncle. Later, the picture carried the caption 'Someday, it will be Niagara'. (Well, surely, these were one of those days when Comp Sci students regarded the reaching the US at the ultimate sign of success in life). Success or not, all the four of them had indeed reached the New Found Land, and three of them were meeting each other, flying from different cities of the US. And a place to meet, that was!!! Fort Lauderdale, Florida state (remember the Bay Watch ;-) ). 6 hours from Boston (Sandy), 5 hours from Richmond (Shiva), and 6 hours from Minneapolis(me).
Fort Lauderdale, on Florida's coast, glitters like the golden cradle, in contrast to the dark waters of the ocean, at night from air.
A truly spectacular city.
A brief flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta had taken me from a freezing city to a warmer one. The bigger airport had huge lot of stores, but almost none of them were open which could give me a decent grub. Finally, I settled for a huge Vanilla milk shake, with 'no Ice' ( hey, if you say 'without ice', you are asked back 'What does that mean?'. You have to say 'no ice', because that is the it is the Tradition ;-) ). Sandy was supposed to join me in Atlanta, in half hour. A thought of waiting for him passed by me. But it passed away.
Thankfully, and I decided to get one for myself.
Two hours later, as the people started boarding for the Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale flight, some of them already in their short dresses, ready for the Miami spirit, I spotted Sandy moving hurriedly towards the boarding entrance. He was moving with determined steps, a man with a mission.
An Arabic name would have had him interrogated by the Feds. Such was the intensity.
"Sandy" I screamed. He stopped in his tracks, and turned to me with that genuine smile. And was I ever glad in my recent past!!!
Later, he told me that his previous flight had been delayed by more than an hour, and his angst had made him rush towards this flight with such ferociousness.
The flight flied right past the golden cradle, into the dark ocean, and then took a 'U' turn towards the land, and glided towards the almost invisible runway. As we moved past the numerous corridors, gliding doors, and escalators, at the exit was the effervescent Shiva, with a smile that would put the Rani Mukherjee back to honing her skills. The outstretched hands were taken by both of us.
Had we missed each other?
Body language was never better displayed.
A short drive through the vibrant Fort Lauderdale, to a local Mc Donald's, and I had begun noticing the difference between the warmer South, and our cold North. And ofcourse, lots of palm trees :-).
French fries, and Vanilla milk shake, size 'big' (which is little less than a litre) were our dinners as we drove towards our hotel.
We chat till three in the morning, (and finally decided who will sleep on the bed, and who will on the floor ;-) ).
Tomorrow, it was DESTINATION KEYWEST, snorkelling, parasailing, and a trip to the southern most part of the US.
Watch out this space.
With warm regards,
Teju
"Holmes," the doctor urged, "This is important. These professionals are most important. One of them works for HP of Boston, the other for Capital One in Richmond, and the third professional works at ING, Minneapolis. They should be found at once, and this case requires your immediate attention."
The detective spoke without a trace of emotion, "They are at Miami, South Beach, dear friend."
"How can you be so sure of that?" Watson asked taken aback at the detective's awe-inspiring capabilities.
"Elementary, doctor Watson. It is elementary," the detective now turned to the doctor. "It is the spring break, and all the nubile creatures of the States would definitely find themselves at Miami," he smiled. "And pardon me to intimate you at this short notice, but I would have to ask you to join me for a trip immediately."
"And interesting case?" there was excitement in Watson's voice.
"No. A VACATION TRIP TO MIAMI," smiled the deft detective.
The October of 2001 was an eventful month filled with tours all over Karnataka, for the four lads from Bangalore. A casual Shiva, a calculating Suzy (the name of a male), a 'chill-out' Sandy, and a cool Teju stood in front of the Abbi falls and had their picture clicked by a passing uncle. Later, the picture carried the caption 'Someday, it will be Niagara'. (Well, surely, these were one of those days when Comp Sci students regarded the reaching the US at the ultimate sign of success in life). Success or not, all the four of them had indeed reached the New Found Land, and three of them were meeting each other, flying from different cities of the US. And a place to meet, that was!!! Fort Lauderdale, Florida state (remember the Bay Watch ;-) ). 6 hours from Boston (Sandy), 5 hours from Richmond (Shiva), and 6 hours from Minneapolis(me).
Fort Lauderdale, on Florida's coast, glitters like the golden cradle, in contrast to the dark waters of the ocean, at night from air.
A truly spectacular city.
A brief flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta had taken me from a freezing city to a warmer one. The bigger airport had huge lot of stores, but almost none of them were open which could give me a decent grub. Finally, I settled for a huge Vanilla milk shake, with 'no Ice' ( hey, if you say 'without ice', you are asked back 'What does that mean?'. You have to say 'no ice', because that is the it is the Tradition ;-) ). Sandy was supposed to join me in Atlanta, in half hour. A thought of waiting for him passed by me. But it passed away.
Thankfully, and I decided to get one for myself.
Two hours later, as the people started boarding for the Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale flight, some of them already in their short dresses, ready for the Miami spirit, I spotted Sandy moving hurriedly towards the boarding entrance. He was moving with determined steps, a man with a mission.
An Arabic name would have had him interrogated by the Feds. Such was the intensity.
"Sandy" I screamed. He stopped in his tracks, and turned to me with that genuine smile. And was I ever glad in my recent past!!!
Later, he told me that his previous flight had been delayed by more than an hour, and his angst had made him rush towards this flight with such ferociousness.
The flight flied right past the golden cradle, into the dark ocean, and then took a 'U' turn towards the land, and glided towards the almost invisible runway. As we moved past the numerous corridors, gliding doors, and escalators, at the exit was the effervescent Shiva, with a smile that would put the Rani Mukherjee back to honing her skills. The outstretched hands were taken by both of us.
Had we missed each other?
Body language was never better displayed.
A short drive through the vibrant Fort Lauderdale, to a local Mc Donald's, and I had begun noticing the difference between the warmer South, and our cold North. And ofcourse, lots of palm trees :-).
French fries, and Vanilla milk shake, size 'big' (which is little less than a litre) were our dinners as we drove towards our hotel.
We chat till three in the morning, (and finally decided who will sleep on the bed, and who will on the floor ;-) ).
Tomorrow, it was DESTINATION KEYWEST, snorkelling, parasailing, and a trip to the southern most part of the US.
Watch out this space.
With warm regards,
Teju
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