In search of myself...

I watched 'Swades' for the umpteenth time today - the first time outside India. The feeling after watching it, I promise, was very different from how it was when I watched it back home. Homesick asshole!

At Italy, asking for tomato sauce with Pizzas is considered an insult. I heard there have been cases where the restaurant owner has taken it as a personal insult and chucked his customers out when the latter asked for sauce. I tried asking, when I was warned by an Italian customer not to do so. And thanks to the owner's ignorance of English, I was saved from personal enlightenment! Oof! I miss Pizza hut! Saucing the pizza is fun! Lavish fun!

The previous Sunday was longer and more enjoyable than usual. It wasn't the usual chilled out routine that it could have been, thanks to the weeklong ennui. We (Vardhan, Saurabh and I - the Indian trio at Italy) decided to hit the slopes (exaggerated). Saurabh's place is about a kilometre from Porta Nuova (city centre, Torino). We walked from Porta Nuova and knocked at Saurabh's door at 11:00 a.m. We decided to take lunch and head for the hill (Superga). Lunch we had at a place with a name too complicated to be remembered (my memory is quite volatile though). It was the worst lunch I ever had - thanks to my vegetarianism. It was plain pasta with tomato sauce poured on it. But for the whole delicious chocolate truffle with the amazing strawberry after the meal, I would have puked. We then took a tram and I managed to travel the entire day with a ticket whose time had lapsed. Trusting that the European principle of not working on Sundays applied to checkers as well, we made o...

It's been little more than a week since I landed here at Torino. I am with another Anand, in the same apartment, but adjacent houses. We cook together (actually, he cooks!). The apartment is well furnished. The funniest thing I have found here in Italy is the second commode for defecation. I really don't know why it's there. But then, thats the way it is. The city is pretty. It is well connected by public transport. The METRO is just amazing. The best part is that a view from anywhere to the west offers pleasantries to the eye. The beautiful Alps! They stand tall and sturdy, with their snow-capped summits. A lovely sight, I must say. We had been to the city palace (palazzo) last weekend. Again, beautiful architecture. Sculptures are intricately detailed and the paintings make one speechless. Credit should be given to the efforts being put in to preserve them. Sunday was spent at a park called 'Valentino', on the banks of the river 'Po'. I believe 'Po...

There was this beautiful mail that my PL sent me. It was about what to and what not to expect from a job. There was of course, loads of advice associated with it. But the crux is what matters. The bottomline is too simple and offers just two choices: 1. You stay if you like the job. 2. You quit if you don't. But with some people here, I find that satisfaction from the job is lacking and they still hang on and discourage new joinees. Something that I despise. The first day I reached here, a guy asked me - "Why did you come here after studying at IIT?" How do I answer that question. This is something that was put to me the day I joined my previous employer too. I have found this question irritating. A question that shatters all hopes - further, something that also teaches you not to expect anything from the job being done. I also recollect that the day I joined IIT, there was a person who asked me why I was there though I had been employed by a prestigious organization. Com...

As Bangalore plunged into shock on Friday, the 25th of July 2008 after serial blasts, there were some like me who were happy at Chennai - happy for a reason. And it should be obvious from the shot above.

Got such a mail after ages, I believe. Totally refreshing. For a change, something that didn't carry the famous warning of ill luck on not forwarding. Enjoy.