look around !

- A kilo of Rice is Rs50/- while Sim cards are Free !
- Pizzas reach home faster than the ambulance & police.

- Being active on Facebook is considered more important than being active for real.
- Car loans offered have lesser interest rates than Education loans.
- Students with 45% get into Elite Institutions through the quota system & those with 90% lose out because of inadequate  merit.

- Fuel prices increase with every sunrise and sunset.

- A billionaire builds a 27 story mansion which is surrounded by slums.
- Two IPL teams were auctioned at Rs 3300 crores & we are still a poor country where people starve without two square meals.
- Our footwear is sold in A/C showrooms, but the vegetables that we eat are sold on the footpath.
- Everybody wants to be famous.
- Assembly/Party complex buildings get ready within a year, while flyovers/underpasses/Metro Rail take several years.
- We make lemon juice with artificial flavours,& dishwash liquids are made with real lemon.
- Our politicians, actors & industrialists get instant bail & are seen enjoying themselves thus making an open mockery of our system while on the other hand Terrorists who have attacked the Parliament, Taj hotel & gunned down some of our best policemen are still enjoying in jail although death sentence for them has been passed giving them time to make all sorts of appeals to evade. 

So, u break the law you are safe ONLY if you are rich or a serious national threat !

am I parked in the wrong place ?

Year 1995, I must have been about ten years old, it was 5' o clock in the morning, I had been up since 3 AM looking out into the darkness of the highway I was on, feeling the breeze in my face through the tiny creek in the window, as I was allowed to open only so much with the lady sitting behind me in the bus I was on more worried about what the wind would do to her hair than anything else constantly was keeping a watch on me if I opened the window any more than what I had all through the night...

It was my first time up north and was on my way to Rishikesh from Delhi, I had only read or seen pics of the Himalayas or the Ganges but I would be seeing it for the first time..

As I was little and did not have much geographic knowledge about the Himalayas or the rivers or knowing anything about altitude where the snowcapped giants could be seen from or any other detail, I frankly did not know what to expect. The only things that i knew were that the Ganges flows down from the Gangotri Glacier and Rishikesh has the rapid Ganges flowing through it and is surrounded by the foothills of the Himalayas.

It was pitch dark, and our white bus that of Paniker Travels we had hopped on to with registration numbers DL 1C P 5577... lol... **[I can never forget the Registration Number of the bus as this was the very first thing the person who was guiding us on the tour had spoken about and to make it clear that we were heading to a tourist place with hundreds of tourist busses which looked exactly like ours would be parked everywhere and this key information was very very important.. so, to make it easy for us to remember, this punjabi chap who was guiding us said "The bus number is Delhi(DL) First Class Paniker Travels (1C P) Fifty Five Seventy Seven (5577) ]** comes to a halt after about 6-7 hrs of journey and all I can see is a small chai shop with incandescent lights lighting up only the shop and nothing else and a couple running the shop making cups of tea amidst the sweet smell of boiling milk.. I get out of the bus with my mum holding my hand tightly so that i do not run away somewhere and go near the chai shop, as my mum ordered chai for herself and a cup of milk for me.. I managed to slip from her clutches and walk around :) I was very confident that I would not get lost as there was nothing else around that was visible except for that one chai shop + I also knew the registration number of our bus !

As i finished mu cup of milk... I assured my mum that I would be in her sight and she could watch me from where she was sitting and I wanted to walk around, it was still dark and there were smooth pebbles on the ground everywhere... I found it very amusing and we could hear the river but not see it.. as I walked away from the chai shop the sound of the river began to get louder and with a few more steps i felt water as i stepped into the river... I got scared that i would be dragged away with the current and ran back to where my mum was sitting and not tell her about my discovery, because it was my mum who had told me that the river has a very powerful current an how kids should not go near the river without adult supervision..

15-20 mins later as the sun began to rise we could see where we were.. the bus was parked on the river bed and so was the little chai shop... the mighty Ganges was flowing around us and we were surrounded by lush green mountains, the pebbles were pure white in colour and the river bed had this grey sand with lots and lots of mica in it which was shining and the river was crystal clear and fast ! It was breath taking and was the most scenic place i had been to ever !

I cannot recall much but all i can remember is that view that I saw from where the bus was parked and how I wanted to stand forever on lakshman Jhula brigde and skip breakfast looking down onto the river and going giddy.

We carried on to visit Haridwar which I did not like at all as there were too many people, the Ganges was green in colour, even though Haridwar is just about 25 Kms away from Rishikesh I could not believe the Ganges was polluted so much by then..

From Haridwar we ended up at Mussoorie which is at the foot hills of the Garhwal Himalayan Ranges, which hosts Gangotri and Yamunotri Glaciers, we spent a couple of days here and I remember climbing up this little hillock called Gun Hill which is supposed to be one of the highest points in Mussoorie from where i got my first glimpse of snow capped peaks, I was thrilled and jaw dropped and did not feel like leaving... if only anything was in my hands and had any sorts of decision making powers...

We returned back to Delhi and was back to Bangalore in a couple of weeks, back to school, back to doing homework and taking up tests and exams..  
We made another short trip to Delhi in 1996 but we did not go anywhere up further up North and spent the entire 3.5 weeks we were there in and around Delhi.

Now 15 yrs later after dreaming endlessly of the mountains talking to friends whom I have made who are equally mad about the snow caps and traveling and after visiting the mountains at least once a year for the last two years, I just cannot wait to GO BACK !!

Monday Morning Just wrapped up work for the day and all I can think off is to RELOCATE ! 

Bangalore traffic JAM scene !

A city like Bangalore, a typical unplanned metropolitan city in India, that grew with a need for random growth, as the govt. plans and grants taxpayers money for construction of underpasses, road widening by chopping trees, flyovers and improvement of public transport taking into account the growth of population in the city + the increased employment scenario + the rising number of new vehicles adding up to the traffic on the roads everyday + the volume of red, blue, green and orange busses and PHS vehicles + Auto rickshaws + our beloved green and white cabs and thousands of bicycles, motorbikes and scooters. 

But if you see all these are just numbers on paper ! Its not necessary that all the vehicles in Bangalore that have been registered to ply on the roads, venture out at the same time of day, everybody do not get out of their homes at the same time as if the city runs by the same clock ! 

Then why do we face Traffic Jams ?

 

After being born and brought up in Bangalore and having seen the city grow into what it is today and having driven around the city at all times of day and night and having an insight and experience in the work culture of the city, by observation, the city's traffic chaos is directly related to the movement of working professionals in the city which is totally controlled by the work culture and behavior of the masses when it comes to getting to work and coming back home between Monday and Friday.

Here is something that explains this and is to a certain extent true if verified...

Saturday and Sunday is when Bangalore celebrates, rests, parties does everything in the books and beyond just to feel refreshed as everybody need to get back to work on Monday morning weather they want it or not !

This is something that goes through most of our heads if we have to get to work first thing in the morning !

Monday Morning - Heavy Slow Traffic Flow

Its Monday morning, time to Panic !!! however early one gets up, getting late to work cannot be escaped, last week's pending work, all sorts of blues makes sure that you end up leaving to work in a groggy mood with the endless things to do list reeling in your head ! happens to almost everyone and you cannot skip getting to work Monday morning, just like everyone else !   

Monday Evening - Heavy Slow Traffic Flow

You've had an extremely slow Monday, mostly no work has happened, you know that there is still an entire week to complete all the assigned work. So the plan of staying at work for longer and finishing off everything is scrapped and the plan to leave office at sharp 6pm is on, just like everyone else !

Tuesday Morning - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

You've come back early on Monday, you've had a good time catching some old highlights or a movie on TV, nice dinner getting to work the following day completely depends on how much pressure you have on your head you either get up early and leave or ease off and leave home late on Tuesday morning, making you not leave home at the same time you left on Monday morning ! everybody ends up leaving home at different times.

Tuesday Evening - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

You end up staying back at work longer if you have got in late or you end up leaving early if you have left home early in the morning there by bringing down the traffic build up on the roads.

Wednesday Morning - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

Those of you who eased off on Tuesday end up getting to work early on Wednesday and those who slogged on Tuesday end up easing off on getting to work on Wednesday.

Wednesday Evening - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

Same as Tuesday evenings, Wednesday evenings also have 50% less traffic compared to Monday evenings for the same reasons

Thursday Morning - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

So, slogging your butt off on either Tuesday or Wednesday gives you a feeling of great accomplishment and achievement and most of you would end up taking Thursday morning too easy or slow... only after getting to work you realise nothing much has actually happened !

Thursday Evening - Heavy Slow Traffic Flow

As soon as you get to work the first thing that goes on in your head is that there is loads and loads of work pending and its already Thursday, you end up being very efficient all through the day and by 6pm the only thing you want to do is GO HOME !

Friday Morning - Heavy Slow Traffic Flow

Last day of the week you have to get to work, you've already heard at least twice from your boss this week to get to work on time ! There is lots of work pending + its Friday, u've already made plans with friends or family for the evening ! You gotta get to work early and finish off everything ! Very Ambitious ! Just like everyone else !

Friday Evening - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow till 7pm Mad Rush post 7pm

You are luck enough and even your Boss has to go out somewhere and you are spared you end up getting off early, otherwise u'd even risk getting fired and leave work by 7pm because the weekend is here !!

Saturday Morning - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

Its a holiday and nobody is in a hurry to get to anywhere

Saturday Evening - Heavy Fast Traffic Flow

Party Time !!!

Sunday Morning thru Evening - Peaceful Fast Traffic Flow

Hangover ! Late Brunch ! Sleep !

All this on an ideal week in Bangalore !

Everything above changes if it happens to Rain or BDA decides they need a new flyover or underpass on a major road or any politician wants to get to the airport because he is going off on a holiday or there is an accident involving an auto rickshaw or a cab or if the cops decide to use their brains to manage traffic !

More in my next !! LOL !!!