I have been in US for the past 2 months. The most striking change from India is that the people here respect, follow the rules and of course expect others to follow the same.

The traffic system is pretty organised. The word junction in India used to remind of chaos. Here, it reminds us of discipline even at places without signals . People wait at the STOP signs, wait in turn for the first person who reached the junction from other direction to go and then only take the vehicle.

I miss the sound of the Indian horn here!!! Dont mistake what I just said to be a bird like a hornbill or so..It is the Indian Honk!! Honking is rare and is generally considered an abuse. Have a kind of feeling that in India we always yell at each other, the moment we start a vehicle!

The government offices have people who have a very good helping mentality. Clears all the doubts and is considers everyone as a customer independent of race or nationality.

I was witness to a scene which I think would have never happened in India. One day I was walking in the park near my apartment. There was this old lady, probably in her mid 60’s, who had come with her grand children to park. She was playing like a kid, swinging, doing the see-saw,  slipping down the slide etc. Full Masti..We would have said, “Muthassi, vere paniyonnum ille…Oridathengan irunnoode!!”

My dear friend, while you are reading this, you would be thinking, Just 2 months and this is  the case, full jaada, what if he stays for more time!! Hold On..I didn’t complete..Read On..

Even with all these positives there is some hollowness somewhere built in here!!! Many times we feel that the reactions are very artificial. No good neighbours who we can talk/quarrel with .  

Again on the flip side, each time I eat a vegetable or a fruit I feel how fortunate we are to be in India to have such a fertile land which produces 1000 times tastier eatables compared to here. Do we make use of it in India, especially in Kerala!!!

Summing it up with the “New Things” which I found over here..

1.  No kilometers and litres..It’s miles and Gallons

2.. RIGHT is always right. While you Drive..While you Walk..

3.  The concept of credit history!!! (Pretty Weird!!)

4.  Day Light Savings TIme.

5.  Working on weekends/Late Night : Very Rare

6. The traffic law enforcements : If you slip past a STOP sign and the cop catches you, 200 dollars gone..Yes, with the charge sheet!!

  Pankaj Udhas delighted the music lovers at  Kochi on Aug9 with his Ghazal night “Stolen Moments” at the JTPAC auditorium at Thripunithara. The auditorium with its wonderful acoustics and good seating arrangements added to the quality!!!

I have not been a big fan of Pankaj Udhas except for the evergreen hit “Chitthi Aayi Hai” and the beautiful  “Na Kajre Ki Dhar..”.

Will it be worth the money? The question pondered..

The evening turned out to be worthwhile..The Ghazal maestro enchanted the audience with his melodious songs. He shared jokes and also accepted audience requests for his  songs.

The accompanying artists on Mandolin, tabla, keyboard, violin and flute where at their very best and captivated the audience in three hour programme.

Ai Ghame Zindagi, Chandi jaisa rang hai thera, Sabko maloom hain mein sharaabi nahin, Thodi Thodi piya karo, Na Kajre ki Dhar, Ek tharaf uska ghar, jeeye to jeeye kaise Chitti aayi hai watan se : It was a like a monsoon shower!!!!

Music Lovers…, for upcoming events, refer http://www.jtpac.org/

People who have watched Andy Roddick in the previous Wimbledon finals with Federer could easily notice the difference…Roddick is a completely changed man!!!  The odds were totally against him with Federer leading (18-2) in the clashes. Still, he oozed confidence!!! He missed this year’s title by a whisker.

Roddick was at his career best as he took on the mighty Federer. Roddick deserved a win on the Sunday showstopper.  He conceded only one service break, but..that was the decider!!

“I will be back next year”, were the comments of visibly depressed Roddick to the crowd before he left the Centre Court.

Quote : Permanence, perseverance and persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragement, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak” : Thomas Carlyle

Its time for the Aces, Deuces and some ear-breaking howls!!!!! Yes it is another Wimbledon season!!!! The most prestigious Grandslam title!!!

Here’s a bird’s eye view …

Eighties used to see spirited matches,  with Ivan Lendl (Sreenivasn made him famous among Malayalis for his “back hand shot” in the film Mukundetta Sumithra Vilikkunu!!), non relenting Boris Becker, master craftsman Steffan Edberg and aggressive John McEnroe. The main clashes were between Edberg and Becker. Becker and his dives reminds of fielding of the likes of JohntyRhodes. Women’s tennis was ruled by Navaratilova during the early eighties. 

 The pace of the game changed during the late eighties and it was Boom-Boom nineties with the arrival of Pete Sampras and the ACE master Goran Ivanisevic.  The only person who seemed to have survived during the  onslaught seems to be Andre Agassi. The finals always used to be close finishes with Sampras getting the honours most of the time. The finals between Sampras-Agassi, Sampras-Ivanisevic, Ivanisevic-Agassi are still instilled in memories of all who love the game. Sampras won the title 7 times whereas Ivanisevic and Agassi won it once.

 Womens tennis also some great battles between Steffi Graff and Monica Seles. This was more or less an even battle. Monica was at her peak of her game when she was forced to withdraw from the game after a Graff fan stabbed her. One tragic moment in tennis  history!!!!

  Sampras, Agassi and Graf leaving the game and the absence of spirited rivalaries cost the game a good number of viewers in the dawn of the century. The game is again back to limelight with the Federer-Nadal duals.  Womens tennis now have a lot of players with no clear favourite.  The Williams sisters,  Dinara Safina,  AnaIvanovic, Sharapova……………………….

For this year, Federer is  happy man after his much sought after French open title and is the clear favourite with Nadal withdrawing .  Federer is all set to overtake Sampras’ achievement of 14 grandslam titles.

 An intersting fact which makes this sport different from others is that ,most of the people ,who are ardent followers of this game, never even touches the tennis racket in their lifetime.  (Thanks to the gorgeous Sebatinis, Graffs and Kournikovas and our very own Sanias!!!!)

 Get Glued to  TV for watching  this year’s WIMBLEDON magic!!

RAIN!!!!!!!!!!

Rain is something which have fascinated me right from childhood days, not only me, most of us. For me, it brings in a lot of nostalgic memories. Bicycle rides, fully drenched in rain…. Bath in the Manimala river, with the mind filled with the fear of getting swept away. Now.. Enjoying rain has now become an audio-visual experience rather than a thrill. Fear of getting some well named fever supercedes other thrills!!!! The monsoon rain brings to life its own share of pleasant and enchanting music too… 

It’s Raining … Some photos taken by Victor George avaialble at this link depicts the different facets of life in Kerala……….

http://www.scribd.com/doc/203284/-Victors-its-raining-
For the two months of April and May people curse nature for the extreme hot climate and the drying up of water in wells…And when, atlast, Varuna relents and brings in the drops of joy, mindset changes..”Ithenthoru mazhayanu!!!!”

DISCOVERY!!!!

Browsed through some e-papers. Found a new word, “Onentalists”. Couldnt find the meaning of it even in google (I might get an award!!) and in the Chambers dictionary..Send me a note if you know..

Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn!
Look to this Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life….
In its brief course lie all the Verities and Realities of your Existence.
The Bliss of Growth;
The Glory of Action;
The Splendor of Beauty;
For, Yesterday is but a Dream,And To-morrow is only a Vision;
But To-day well lived makes every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness,
And every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!

Folks.. Wishing you a great day…………..