Strange Ramblings

Simply put, you don't need to look for inspiration. It is all around you, it will find you, and when it does, you should be ready to greet it with both arms. Herein lies the tale of a much unknown Chateau de Vizille, France, and this particular room in the chateau. And a promise that I made to a certain German, and how a random trip in the serenity of India reminded me of it, and gave me possibly a location. And how it all just inspires life out of you. An odd morning, the first month of Euro Trip, when we were just trying to get by and know each other. The group, that traveled to the Chateau, I meant. Lying on the outskirts of Grenoble, a true country side place this was. And much like other stuff that I had a feel of, in Europe, by this time, this too was alien, beautiful beyond comprehension, not the castle probably, but the grounds. It almost felt like injustice, that God had somehow blessed these places with that extra colour, extra brightness, and extra vib...

Flick. Fly. Fumble. Fall. Flash. Finish. That was me, playing with the idea of this. I had wondered, a good few months after the 1.0 chapter ended, what would it be like to be on the other side. Vague theories and unreasonable visions are what I got. But it all amounted to the fact that the conceptualization of the whole event, would be nothing less than adrenaline pumping rush. Such are my vested interest in the event. And for good reason . I remember what we used to say about the host last year. Let me just put it this way, it was like someone had left a mad dog after us, who even kept wagging his tongue and showing his teeth now and then. Such was the craziness that he brought to the table. I just hope that I was not that same dog, rather a pacified one, baring my teeth only to smile. But one thing that I remember is him commending me on the way we went about it this year, and he had only a small glimpse into the big picture. And it simply wouldn't have been the same witho...

Just reminiscing the amount of travelling I have been doing since 2009, makes me swoon. I am a vaguely introspective person and like placing my fingers exactly on the future. It is not to make it more predictable, rather it is to ground me by just making me realize how wrong I was, am and will be, and how much there is still to take in. Knowledge, might have become flat, with all the technology around, but our capacity to absorb it remains the same, and hence there is always plenty in this cosmic world. In 2009, if anyone would have come up to me and said that you are going to travel 18 countries in the next 2.5 years, I would have asked that person to take a hike. Nevertheless, somewhere I must have had an inkling, which prompted me to renew my passport, a good 1.5 years before it was set to expire, just in case. Truly cosmic. And the same power played its role aplenty in this short, outrageously fast trip. My expectations were pretty much balanced, didn’t expect much, especially aft...

Form is temporary, but class is permanent. There is nothing more befitting to a man of his stature. The Wall , is one of the many names that the man commands, probably the most popular. But what Timeless Steel  has done is given him a name that is truer to him, even more than  amrit . I use such praise only because, all said and done, Tendulkar still being my favorite player miles ahead of others, Dravid provided me and host of other people in my generation with something that is harder than steel. His Will. His Mettle. His Poise. His Grace. And that Don Bradman Oration. He was probably the last cricketer of his generation, to have that, oh so wonderful, classical style of playing the game that is followed by so many, and fervently at that in the country of the crazy irrational billion. What makes his case even more strong is his graph, I bet he has more peaks and falls than even the great Himalayas, and that proves his ability to cultivate  that leap time and again....

There are plenty of studies conducted on whether animals show emotions.  While humans have had differing views of animal emotion, the scientific examination of animal emotion has led to information beyond a recognition that animals have the capacity for pain, fear, and such responses as are needed for survival. Being termed as 'Animal Sentience', this probably is one of the most exciting study areas in Biology at the moment. What separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom is our ability to have self control and override our primal instincts for the better good. When we see the other side of the coin though, all this self control acts as a fair  determent  to the way we interact with the world, not limiting to the all the fake that it brings along.  I hate people who are not emotional. I am not saying you started crying me buckets or laugh hysterically to the point of tears when we meet next time, but a trickle of emotion cannot hurt. And what stems from th...

(Courtesy: www.phdcomics.com ) We all go through it. Why run from it. Embrace it.

I would have loved that. You would too. But it turned to more of a Catalonia Armada. And dare I say, it was more than satisfying. You know that saying, "when in Rome, do as the Romans do", try that, and then when in Barcelona, do as the Catalans do. It's like a city wide party, they surely must hold some kind of Guinness record for that. If not, they should get one. Fabulous. We wanted to cover a few cities in Spain. The mistake that we made though was going to Barcelona first up. And once you are there, there is no going back, there is no visiting any other city and there, in almost all probability, is nothing more that you want more than spending your life around, atleast for a week ;) Every city in Europe is different and yet similar. After the first round of travelling across Europe, it came down to visiting select things, things that are unique. No more of Castles, no more of churches, no more of museums. Its all the same, especially when an art and architectu...

Warning: This post puts the T in Tacky, the M in Mushy, the G in Gooey, yada yada.. I Hate Goodbyes. Period. And the only thing that makes them bearable are the smiles. After all, you want to leave the person in front of you with a last smiling memory. I guess its hard for all of us at some level. Exchange was a big part of my MBA plans. I had this rosy picture in my mind, of how I would be an amazing experience to meet people from all across the world, to travel all across Europe, to see some of the history that made studying 'History' interesting. Did it live up to it, you ask? Much, much more. The bliss on making it through the selection for exchange program was something else. I remember that instant when I got the call quite clearly. I couldn't stop smiling the whole day, and to cap that more good news followed ( more.. ), I was blessed. That ting in your voice, when you see a kid getting excited over candy, that sparkle in your eye, same as when a kid gets exci...

Beauty that is Europe! My first tryst with an actual photo journal. Let's see how it pans out. Places on display: Brussels, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Bratislava, Cologne and around.... Manneken Pis. Literally meaning Little Man Pee , is one of the most fascinating thing that one encounters on visiting the enchanting Belgium. Look beyond the famous Belgian beers and chocolates and they are aplenty across town dressed in varied outfits. This particular one was dressed as an Indian style Maharaja. There are enough stories surrounding the myth that could keep you glued enough for hours. Well your guess is as good as mine, but this is trademark to that place, yes you guessed it correct. And if Merlin's beard (how geeky could i get ;)) you failed to guess the place then you are just not worthy enough to live. Amsterdam. Any more words would be diluting the craziness that is Amsterdam. One remark before I move on though...

'Minus 26 and still HOT' Oh Yes. It was hot. Never mind the apparent chill. And that was all about the IHD. Naah... I have been edgy to write about this ever since it got over, not that i'm going to forget anything anytime soon, but rather to make it more memorable. The issue with all of it is though that words simply aren't enough, you have to live it to know it. I had taken a liking to Finnish people from the start , and more so after the week. It was special this week. I got a glimpse into the culture that is Finn. Perhaps limited to the student culture, but nevertheless, enough to make up my mind that they all would go places. Work to Live, they value there free time immensely, and that's how it is supposed to be. I heard somethings about Finns not being happy etc, not from what   I saw, and if they believe in the philosophy, I doubt anyone could be unhappy for long. And if anyone had doubts about their work ethic, they just have to look at the IHD tea...

View Euro Trip #1 in a larger map  Take that. The itch will finally be satisfied. Countries being touched: France -> Belgium -> Netherlands -> Sweden -> Finland -> Denmark -> Germany -> Czech Republic -> Austria -> Germany -> France 31st of January -> 21st of February 2012 \m/ JOIN IN :)