November 2009
1 post
How many engineers does it take to ....
I was proud of myself … I had finally managed to plan my Friday such that I could get home at a decent time .. I would leave office at around 530pm, take 1 call in the car, and the last 1 at home, and I’d be ready to start my weekend at 7pm! Perfect … if things actually went according to plan, that is … I got to the office parking lot only to find that I had a flat tyre! .....
July 2009
1 post
Hiccups, lifts & matchpoint!
I am having a serious case of the hiccups!! I dont remember when I had it last. I’m sure it was very long back! .. I find this oddly amusing .. Who could be thinking of me st this hour!!
I happened to be at a hospital recently … its amazing how hospitals can change your perspective on everyday things .. I was sitting at a lounge outside a lift-area .. and noticed that not everyone who...
June 2009
1 post
Link-back ..
https://www-146.ibm.com/corporateservicecorps/cscuser/tanzania
I thought it made sense to leave this link here .. I just went and read my official CSC posts … Good times ! Good memories!
May 2009
6 posts
I'm back .. Closing a chapter ...
After almost a week of no-internet, a bus ride to Dar and a flight via Dubai, I am now back in India after a fantastic month at Dodoma .. This has definitely been a month of memories I will cherish for long .. Thanks for sharing this experience with me!
April 2009
26 posts
Mistress of Spice ... and Mikumi plans ...
I caught a bit of the ‘Mistress of Spice’ on the movie channel today.. When ur away from India for 2wks, you tend to appreciate even an Ash movie … The story was weird and different .. but it was ok to watch once… especially coz the photography is excellent!!.. its mainly in an Indian spice shop in the US.. and they’ve done neat stuff with the colours there.. enjoyed...
I'm almost at the halfway mark ...
And how do I know?? … - Well, my laundry’s piled up ..Getting laundry done at the hotel is expensive .. so the essentials get preferential treatment … The rest get on the Blr ‘waiting-list’ - My toothpaste is half empty … I should regulate my usage for the rest of the stay! :D - My Dabur Chavanprash is half full .. or half empty .. I must confess that I never...
There are '10' kinds of Africans ...
There are 10 kinds of people in the world .. Those that understand binary, and those that dont! :) Along similar lines, there are 10 kinds of Africans in TZ … The ones with really short hair, and the ones who have beautiful braids .. This applies to both men and women! Its amazing what they do with their hair .. In India we plait our hair into one or two partitions .. Now try doing this over...
IPL on TV finally !
So it’s usually football on the Sports channel .. Today I see we have the Mumbai Indians vs the Kolkota Knight Riders!! I’m excited! Among other things, its good to see Saurav Ganguly playing the game rather than judging a cheergirl-selection reality show!! I have some work I need to finish .. but hopefully I should be able to complete that quick and tune in for a photo-finish! Oh maan...
It happens only in TZ ...
I’ve spent just a few days here, and there are some things I have not found in any place I’ve been to so far .. (i’ll keep adding to this section as I find new stuff)
- At the university, if students want to study by themselves outside the classroom, they have chairs placed on different floors where there is enough open space .. but when they study, they turn the chairs to face...
A typical day in Dodoma ...
My day starts early .. at least earlier than it does in Bangalore… We were getting picked up from the hotel at 9am for the 1st 2days .. and now we’ve advanced it by 30mins … So I’ve been barely making it to the breakfast-table before I rush to catch our Univ cabs .. Breakfast is toast, eggs and fruit … Its fine .. we’ll be doing it everyday, but I think this...
Kadayee subzee, paratha & biriyani ....
On my last post, you might have noticed that I did not miss Indian food .. This can be attributed to 3 reasons .. 1. Its only been 5days .. it takes longer for my cravings to get to any measurable degree 2. I had Indian food for dinner today. My team ordered biriyani, chicken makhanwala, kadai sabzi, paratha, etc .. Of course I was picked to explain the dishes and recommend good ones.. I’m...
Things I miss ...
Ok .. so I know its not even been a week … and I’m not complaining .. I’m just making a list of things that I’ve otherwise taken for granted .. This is not in any particular order …
- I miss not being able to wash my mouth with tap-water whenever I want to.. We’ve been told that we should probably use bottled water to brush our teeth .. I think I might be...
Jambo ... Habari Gani?
Swahili for - Hello, How are you? I set foot in Dar Es Salaam, TZ on Fri Apr17 … It was in ‘07 that the thought of visiting Africa was 1st planted in my mind … Those plans never worked out .. So I’m thankful that I have got this opportunity to set foot here. I had no issues getting in .. We’re put up at a nice hotel in Dar thats by the beach… 8 of the 10-member...
Dubai .. Gateway to the Gulf ..
That’s the title of a book I browsed through at the airport …
I dint catch too much sleep on the 1st leg of my flight from Blr to Dubai .. Caught 5mins of Rock-On and 10mins of 7Pounds … and I’ve decided I need to watch both movies at some point .. With help from a certain colleague who downloads movies by the dozen, I think this should be one of those wishes that just...
All my bags are packed ...
… And I’m ready to go … Made my list .. and checked it twice … Now all I need is a big yellow taxi .. and I should be on my way ..
I was watching ‘Dan in real life’ last night … I like Steve Carell movies … like I do Steve Martin’s movies … I can watch any movie of theirs, at any time .. and any number of times … I liked how the...
'Collaboration' is a long word ...
On my way to work today, I happened to hear the by-now famous ‘Jai-ho’ on the radio.. But it wasnt the version I was used to .. This was ‘Jai-Ho .. by A.R.Rahman, and the Pussy Cat Dolls’!!! …
The company I work for has been engaged in a program which forms groups of about 10 employees from its offices all over the world, to work on a project in a developing...
Packing woes ....
I have 2 days before I leave for TZ .. and I am hit by the standard challenge of the travel-procrastinator… How do you transfer a 3ft x 6ft x 4ft collection of items from your bed, to a 1ft x 1ft x 4ft space .. otherwise called a suitcase … and keep the entire weight to 20kg … this with what feels like a 3kg suitcase!
A wise man shared a useful packing tip with me yesterday...
First time ... First Post
Its Monday the 13th … Hopefully not an inauspicious day to create a place to blog .. My 1st few posts will probably be my experiments with this site.. and my attempts to find out if the tumblr is half empty .. or half full …