Heaven from all Creatures hides the Book of Fate - So true.

It was a typical Tuesday, atleast it seemed so to me. The battle that I fight in vain to get up at 6 AM having had a restless sleep after a hefty share of tossing and turning, next came the job to put on the bath water onto the stove to boil. You may ask, no geyser a? Geyser hai, but working nahi hai – I will answer promptly. You see, when the geyser broke down a few months back I devised a clever plan (much like King Julian from Madagascar) to not fix it and hence have the motivation that I needed to get up a few minutes early. Now I am going, what the hell was I thinking? Clever, schmever! Bah!!

The water’s on the stove and next comes “What should I make for lunch?”. I consider the options.

*Skip lunch – Contributes to weight loss (acidity? What? Who?); I can sleep for another 10 minutes but I look down at my tummy and can literally hear the future rumbling at 12.30 PM.

*Buy Dabba – I can sleep for another 9 minutes; my very very thin purse catches my eye (thin cuz it’s the month end and the working class know the depleting nature of the currency as the month end looms threateningly); again hear the future tummy rumbling.

Sadly I pick up a couple of vessels and prepare them for cooking um..”food”. Hustle, bustle and 45 mins later – bath water is ready, lunch is packed with yummy doshas and thenga chutney and I grab the towel and rush to put my 10 mins bath water prepping to good use. The bath has helped clear up the sleepy fogginess and 20 mins later, I am all dressed up and ready to rush out of the door – almost. I had forgotten to plug in my music companions firmly in my ears before I begin my walk to catch my ever so faithful but damn so chilly AC bus.

“Super mama. Ready?! One two three four..” I am at the bus stop ready to wait out the 5 mins before my AS 77 EXP slugs along. Fortunately, Dhanush after having kept me company graciously moved aside to let Surya perform “Yellae Lama..” (in my head of course – I mean the picturization). I had Surya in this lovely blue and black jacket in my head when the bus came. Got my usual “window” seat under the -1 deg C air blasting damned AC. Sometimes I wonder how "thick skinned" people should be to survive 60 mins of the air blast THAT cold.

The 60 mins went by as uneventful as ever, unless you count my bundling into a warm cocoon as an “event”. Yadda yadda yadda, work work work, yadda yadda yadda, its 4.45 PM. Time to catch the – wait for it – LOCAL. Brrrrr, always sends a spine down my back or maybe it was the AC on my way out the door. Anyway, being in Mumbai and travelling by the local train is a task fit for gladiators. Travellers commuting by the local on a daily basis should be honoured with a Nobel prize or something for “Endurance”. Trust me, it IS that difficult. Its next to impossible. I know I sound like 'Miss. Glass is half empty' but I would prefer giving out a word of caution than see any of you put through the test. But this day, this fateful Tuesday I had no choice but to risk it. The horrors in store for me -Heaven from all creatures hides the Book of Fate.

The part where you reach the Bandra east station itself is equivalent to climbing The Everest. The journey from where the bus drops you to climbing the station bridge to getting onto the right platform is just that – a JOURNEY.

Mohit Chauhan crooned “Naadan Parinday ghar aa ja..” while the Borivali bound train slowly threatens its way towards us. I say threatened cuz the commuters who are Bandra bound and ON the train already have adapted this style of throwing themselves off the train before the train comes to a complete halt. I wouldn’t blame them cuz if they dint, they would probably be able to get off the train only at the last stop, what with the wave of commuters looking to board the train. I had learnt a thing or two to Poondhax my way through crowds – thanks to the short breaks, small windows and always crowded Avila canteen – and I used my Poondhax way to squeeze myself (bag and all) into the ladies compartment without breaking a rib or a bone.

Sandwiched between two noisy maushis, I waited for an opening to use good old Poondhax again and gain some breathing space. Meanwhile, Enrique: It must be Love…, shuffled my leg a bit…

Maushi 1: What do you think you are doing? Cant you stay in one place.

Me: *closest impression of an Owl I could put up*

Maushi 2: Why do you come into this train with all this bags and stuff? (Her bag must weigh atleast a ton, of course I aint counting all the space her butt was occupying)

Me: “Switty Switty Switty tera pyaar chahida..” *if you listened closely you could hear my teeth making this grinding noise*

Maushi 1: See how she is pretending she doesn’t hear us? Kids these days, sacchi. Such a shame to their parents. *shaking her head and giving a few good shoves with her 2 tonne bag*

Maushi 2: Oh my god! Now that she is comfortably in the train, she is not only pretending not to hear us, she is pushing me also. (With her butt taking up all the space, I simply couldnt comprehend how anyone wasn’t pushing her)

Me: “Aalochana vasthane…”

Maushi 1: *staring daggers* we made the mistake by letting her in. No manners or basic courtesy at all.

Now all of you should know something about me, I am not the one who would walk about picking fights in public. In private, yes I can be categorized the “Don’t take me for granted, you sleazeball” types but in public, I prefer being impassive and concentrate on Siddharth and Surya and Ashwin and Balaji and their million dollar smiles to distract myself in situation such as the one I was facing then. But this time, the butt space, the tonnage, the very sound of their pointless tongues wagging snapped something in me. The rest of the conversation was pretty one-sided – the one side being mine. Sample is as follows:

Me to Maushi 1: Ennadi nenachitirukka un manasula? Local train ellam unga appa sotha, ni mattum 10 bag vechu eraruthuku. Appdina proof kudu di, myir! Pesa vandhittalum. Unnaku sohusa ponum na sonthama mandala irukara masala vechu, train a manufacture pannu, jammunu 10 bago 20 bago thookitu po.

Me to Maushi 2: Apram ni, unnaku enna manasula Playboy model nu nenappa. 150 kg irunthutu, 25 kg alavukku scena podra. Niyum bag a thookitu thana nikra? Ivlo edatha un gundu body edutha pinna eppdi di thallama nippanga? Arivu irukka enna? Nan pesama iruntha, enna venalum pesuvaya.

Me to both: Engalukkum vai irukku. Ithuku mela oru vartha pesuneenga *violent gestures with my hand* nadakarathae vera. Samjhe na?

I took a deep breath and realized that I had reached Borivali. I got down with a jump in my step after the train slowed down, arranged my face into a menacing stare and gave the two maushis a face they wouldn’t forget in a beat. I turned to the west side with this big smile that went from ear-to-ear. Little did I know, I would get so much satisfaction by speaking Tamil to people who dint even understand a word of it.

Heaven from all creatures hides the Book of Fate - Govinda Govinda. :D

One Night @ Marine Drive!

If you are expecting some kind of supernatural story types judging from the title, then I am sorry to disappoint you guys. This is a real life anecdote that I would like to dedicate to one of my BFFs Soup. Its an anecdote which describes two individuals’ trip to Marine Drive – a much yearned, a much detained and finally made trip.

Vids and Soup have always been of the same “wavelength”, if you know what I mean. They could read other others’ minds, literally. They knew each others’ interests and disinterests like the back of each others’ hands, I believe. They even like the same “assorted Danish Cookies” but knew how to stick to their own favorites. Etcetera etcetera. Vids had been to marine drive like a million times, sometimes alone and sometimes with friends, but never at night (that’s when you can actually add the tagline “adventure” to the whole trip). And she was longing for a night 'sashay' and that’s when Soup landed at Mumbai and expressed the very same idea. She expressed it to Vids cuz she knew she wouldn’t be judged or her idea would be objected to. So they just hopped onto the first train to Churchgate. We all know that the best adventures come when unplanned and uncalled for and that’s exactly what they did.

It must have been 9 PM when they reached Churchgate from where they took a taxi to Marive Drive. The roads were empty except for a few cars hurrying by but they weren’t scared. They were all excited to finally strike one thing off their “bucket lists” and to enjoy doing it together. After getting dropped off beside “Not Just Jazz By The Bay” they figured they should take a stroll by the sea admist the number of families and couples strolling or sitting on the pavement. They picked a spot where they could sit and look out into the sea. The moon was out; casting a dim glow over the black waters of the sea. Their hearts were at peace and they were thinking the same thing, “Wish this moment would go on forever”.

“Chai lelo. Chai” – the cry broke the silence. They were feeling cold and a cup of hot cutting Chai seemed like the perfect cure to the cold. 10 rupees later – still cold but serene and awe struck by the sight in front of them: a calm and picturesque night by the sea, something that’s almost impossible to enjoy in ever-buzzing Mumbai. During the next half an hour, they contemplated getting their portraits sketched by a “sea-side” artist for something to remember the night by (like they were gonna forget) and decide against it, admired the sea a bit more and hesitated to part with their cold yet comfortable seat for fear of losing the serenity that they now commanded. The area in and around Marine Drive is supposed to be the most expensive place for offices, shops, establishments and the like and their nocturnal adventure just about answered the “Why?” part. Who wouldn’t want to work in an office looking out to the sea? When all you need to do to take a breather is walk a few steps and Voila!

Moving on, the next step was to listen to a live band while pizza-ing. Jump in “Pizzaria” – one of the oldest pizza places in Mumbai – visited by celebrities and general public alike. The live band idea turned out to be “most – unlikely” to happen as the band playing that night sucked. So they settled for Pizza-ing with a live chat show, something both of them were proficient in. Pizza-ing and Jazz-ing done, they cared enough to look at the watch and it was midnight!!! They were in an almost parallel world – Mumbai being so big and all. To top that, they had to use the public transport. Leaving it all to the fates, they moved on to a Baskin Robbins parlour (open at midnight too!!) and bought medium sized scoops of ice cream and start walking to the station – uneventfully but very much enjoying their ice creams. At the station they jumped into the first correct train they see. Then the lights went out – just like that. For a minute there, their brave souls fluttered a bit and then came the voice, “Yeh gadi nahi jayegi, bagal mein jo gadi khadi hai, usme chado.” It was like sunshine through dreary clouds.

The train was almost empty except for, literally, a handful. The whole ladies compartment was for them. They walked around and talked, stood next to the doors and talked, laughed their asses off – in short they had a wonderful time. One of the best times in their life and one entry scratched right off their bucket lists.

Its funny how doing the most "stupidest" of stupid things with your friend ends up being so memorable and so much fun. Well I guess that’s why all of us are sort of "authorized" to do stupid things with FRIENDS. Hope all of you have done something stupid with your friend that makes you ROFL every single time you think about it. If not, its high time you did it.

This is for you Soup, my laaav :D

Simple pleasures!!

When is that we stop being children? When is that we stop yearning for the little things in life which gave us the “evil” smiles and the “puppy dog” looks? The answer you are looking for is never. Its been a year now since I left college, 5 years since I left school and a million years ago I had abandoned what was and is the best part of my life – Infanthood. But as I grow up I am beginning to ask myself the question, which is impossible to answer, a million times over –

What if time had stopped when…

…I had still been an infant and everyone would just fawn over every little detail of yours like your eyes, ears, nose, mouth, for God’s sake, even the little split bubble you let out so inconspicuously yet so jovially. Over the years in my life, when I have had trouble adjusting to the realities of the harsh world with “clichéd” words like “immature” and ”irresponsible” hang over my head like a giant signboard, I have longed for the days where I was still a baby in a cradle. I would listen to aunties and uncles and grandpas and grandmas cooing at me more often than not, I would look at million different faces and colours and things and still not be able to make head or tail of what I was looking at, I would be adorned in pretty like frocks and dresses. But the best would have to be when I bawl my eyes out for no reason and wait for my mom to pick me up and smother me in her warmth and sing to me till I eventually fall asleep in the nook of her arms or over her shoulders with my hands clutched tightly over saree folds. Sigh, those were the times.

…I had still been in my fifth grade when I had everyone I needed around me to play with, to talk to and to pat our backs with. Like Phoebe says “the politics and mind games” were just part of growing up and adorning the Monkey caps and walking around school just because a few notes were passed around was plain “enjoyment”. The joy of flunking in Geography eventhough you knew all the answers was “then” a feather in my cap. The fracture I showed off for 2 weeks was like showing off a diamond that I had unearthed on my own.

…I had stayed in my ninth grade where I ruled my class (literally) as the class rep. Soaked up all the attention our class teacher was giving us and setting sight on our favorite teacher to be for the very first time. I still remember getting caught on camera playing an innocent yet rather virulent game of “Running and Catching”. Oh the lectures we heard! But our ever so sweetest class teacher was by our side the whole time; giving us her much needed support and pampering. We had established several games of “paper-ball” cricket inside the class and despite being caught by an eagle eyed teacher from a “far off” building, we weren’t ready to give them up. The incidents where we sneaked in portable radios during tests when we could listen to cricket commentaries still remain fresh in my mind.

…when we realized how great we were as a team and how much things are gonna change when we move into the first separation phase of our lives, eleventh grade. I had to let many of my bonds go and embrace many new ones who I realized later where going to strengthen my beliefs and roots. Those endless “periodic table songs” and model tests and cycle tests and what not, frustrated us but we stuck by it and went on to the second phase of “separation” – College.

…before I said those horrible words to a very good friend, which I knew would hurt her inevitably but said it anyway. If I had a paise for everytime I wished I could take those words back, I would have raised quite a small fortune. But I kept making the same mistake over and over till I finally realized that some things are best left alone. “Tis for the best” – I consoled myself.

…when it rained all those hailstones. I could have just sat and listened to the pelt of the stones all day, breathing in the soothing scent of the rains on the fresh dirt. Those were the times when you wish you had the time and place where you could just curl up under the blanket with a hot cup of tea beside you and your favorite book over your head. More often than not, the time and place options are not very favoring. After my recent shift to Mumbai, forget pleasant rains, I don’t get to curl up or drink tea or read my favorite book or do all 3 together cuz I find myself drenched from head to toe from the raging monsoons and end up taking a hot shower and sleeping through the rains only to wake up to go to work the next morning.

…when the clock struck 12 at midnight on my birthday when I was still in college. My phone would be on the buzz ever so continuously flooding with calls and messages from my loved ones wishing me on my bday. These days, I dread my bday coming up in about a month. That’s the day I feel the loneliest, so far away from friends and family. Sigh!

…when we finished our final year project and waited around to scribble nothings on each others’ shirts and overcoats. We never realized how hard it would for us to meet afterwards, never realized how much we were gonna miss each other. The fun lasted a whole day and it was hard to digest that the place we had gone gotten up so early in the morning to go to, everyday (almost) for 4 years of our life, wasn’t expecting us the next day onwards. Took some time to sink in and for some of us, it still has not.

…when I got my silver medal as THE proof that I had beaten my brother’s records for academics in college. That very moment I was beaming with pride and joy and what not. A little sad that I had missed my dream of getting a gold medal by points yet so very ebullient that I could just scream. The photo sessions afterward where I proudly showed off and “scene vittufied” my silver medal and “two certificates”.

I could just go on and on with this. But my point is, there are a lot of things in life that give us simple pleasures. Treasure them cuz there are a lot of times we would wish we could re do them from time to time. Its quite easy to say this but we must learn to put them into practice. I am not trying to preach, dudes and dudettes. Let it sink, mull it over, stew this thought in your brains and hey, it might make you see things in a different perspective. I know I did, Live in the moment you guys. Cheers!!

Aamchi Mumbai - Part 2 - How I did and do survive!

I was accommodated at my cousin’s place my first day in Mumbai – the commercial capital of India. Mumbai I discovered was a city of extremes. Extreme opulence and extreme paucity were distinguished by almost no boundaries. Tall buildings, heavy pollution and my, oh my, heavy traffic jams are THE characteristics that describe this city that many tag as “THE city to be in if you wanna taste SUCCESS”. As soon as I settled into my cousin’s small yet cozy living room and got into a lively conversation with them, I found that Mumbai had a “killer” real estate business. And I do mean that literally. The real estate prices were so high that individuals had to pay 50% of their five figured salary on rent and this is just the story for a 1 BHK. I was appalled and my heart went out to the hundreds of families living in “Jhoppadpattis”. Oh before I forget, still no tears.

My cousin took my dad and me out for a spin with the inspection of my future hostel at the top of the agenda. The location of my hostel was named Bandra and is described as being a total chic “flick”. You know- actors, models, the like. Sachin Tendulkar, the God of Cricket, lives in Bandra. “SMIRK SMIRK” My office was in the second most expensive commercial hub in Mumbai – Bandra Kurla Complex. After trying to locate my office and failing miserably, we decided to scout for my hostel. We reached at the address given by the warden uneventfully and found ourselves in this whole other part of Mumbai. Green and quiet, I loved it almost as soon as I saw the locale (I wish I could have put my ridiculously big foot into my even bigger mouth). The hostel was at a walkable distance from the beach and the most sought after ECONOMIC, by which I mean road-side, shops. Well, the EXTERIOR of the hostel was nice, bright and cheery, so I went in with high hopes. My bad! The INTERIOR was dark and dingy and BLECH. But I was determined to not let my hopes down. The warden was a total *beep* and my dad agrees “GRIN”. She went on and on and on about rules and I could just about picture myself living in a hell- hole. But I resolved to be optimistic and signed myself in. We left the place after opti ng myself into a bunk bed.

We reached Goregaon (my cousin’s place) where my dad and the cousins fell into a conversation about this and that which left me alone with my thoughts. That’s when it all came crashing down on me. The change, the loneliness and then came the tears. Liquids have this way of gaining volume when acted upon by pressure and that’s exactly what happened with me. Once the tears started there was no way I could stop them. My cousins tried, my mom all the way over from CBE tried, my dad tried – for God’s sake, I tried too but nope – the tears kept flowing in. Then something happened. I realized that come next morning, I would be starting my career in something that I spent 4 years of my life preparing for. I switched into “nervous” mode. Tears would have been so much better. All said and done, I convinced myself to fall asleep so that I can have a fresh start the next day.

Next day, bright and sunny, nothing amiss except for the fact that I seemed to have misplaced my heart in my mouth. We (my dad, cousin and I) set out early to finish the office hunt before I became the first person in the world to reach office late on his very first day. An hour later, my dad and I were welcomed by the security at my office entrance and given ID cards for use inside the office. My dad and I spoke in hushed voices when this trio sitting before broke into loud conversations. I hadn’t known then that I had just seen my future DADA in the company - the small, lanky, IIM-A graduate with a thing for chicks – Mohit. More about him, later, probably.

Then came the time where I had to bid my dad adieu and I was heralded into something called a “Huddle Room” and was asked to fill bundles of forms. Apparently, my first day would involve a lot of texts. I had no idea what I was gonna do for my lunch when the person who interviewed me showed up at the door. Vipul told me that I was to join him for lunch and I tagged along. In the lift lobby, I met Swati, my future confidante and sister figure. I called her “ma’am” (habit from college) and Vipul, sir and I was promptly shushed by both. I had my first lunch with my team mates (which I was unaware of then) and my boss, Vipul (again, dint have the slightest idea) at Hyatt.

Hyatt was the kind of hotel I had only seen in movies. It took me a lot of time to drink in my surroundings. The lunch buffet was exquisite but Italian, so I satisfied myself with dessert. Oh and the funny thing was, when everybody got up to load up their plates for the main course, I got up to leave thinking that the lunch was done; having never had a four course meal in my life. Our meals usually consist of rice and gravy and some pickles or vegetables, etc. Embarrassing!! This gave me the cue that Swati and I were gonna hit it off. What happened, Swati and I, will take to our graves. *SHINY GRIN*

After lunch, it was back to the office. And Vandana showed me around the office and escorted me to my very own “Workstation” which means my desk. I loved it. It had my name on it. Yayy!! For the first few days, or atleast till I got my laptop, I was advised to polish my networking skills. The rest is silence.

That’s how eventful my first day went. My dad left to CBE, my home sweet home, the next day. And poor me, was left to stew my feelings in that God forbidden hostel which I must say, was built to torture girls. The rooms were small and dingy and I don’t even wanna get started on the bathrooms. I missed my cozy room like hell when I almost lost my finger to the ceiling fan which hovered dangerously over my head (I had the top bunk). I loved my office and my colleagues and couldn’t wait to reach office every morning (could you blame me with my other option being the TORTURE CHAMBER?) Nine days after I booked into the hostel, I decided to call it quits there. Refund or no refund, I was getting out of there. That’s when I moved into my nine month PG room at Andheri. It was a lovely locale and the room where I owned half a bed and a cupboard and bathroom was much better than the TORTURE CHAMBER.

I got myself settled in over a period of time and weekends found me exploring Mumbai to the extent of Elephanta Caves. HA! Why that’s a big deal? Cuz even Mumbaikaars haven’t been there! My b’day that year is the most depressing b’day I have ever had. No family, no friends and sick in bed. No gifts, no cards, nothing – ZILCH. But I got over it and moved on. August 15, Indian Independence Day was also my Independence Day cuz I finally went home, BY FLIGHT, for the first time after 2 months. And it was heavenly. It was like a much needed “spa vacation”. Meanwhile, back in the office I had been given a project which required my travels to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and the like to meet customers and familiarize myself with the business and the like. And during my travels might I mention, I met Namitha (the south Indian actress of Billa fame), Tamanna (of Paiyaa fame), Manju Warrier (from the Mallu film industry) and a few others.

Meanwhile Swati and I were hitting it off and I had made some real good friends too. Unmesh was like THE guy I knew who could tell you anything about Mumbai. And I hit it off with him as well. And my social networking skills paid off as I eventually made a whole bunch of friends in Mumbai – be it the next door neighbor or the gym instructor.

December, the month where I travelled abroad for the first time in my life, will always remain close to my heart. I had always thought that my first international visit would be to US or the UK but it was in fact to China. It was for a couple of days of training and I was all hyped about it. Shanghai is one of the most fascinating cities in the world. The infrastructure is simply mind-boggling. The weather was gelid and forced me to wrap myself in layers but I loved it. The only problem was the many different forms of non-vegetarian food that they served there and I hence chose to eat my Ready-To-Eat meals and smoking samosas that they served at Radisson, New World. Nanjing road is THE place to be in. From yummy Haagen-Dazs to steaming Starbucks coffees to street performances, you name it and you can find it on the Nanjing Road walkway. I spent two of the evenings taking a stroll down the Nanjing road walkway enjoying the cold and taking in the culture and indulging myself in hot mochas from Starbucks loaded with chocolate and Haagen Dazs’ ice creams, eventhough the temperature was like 2 degrees. The Huangpu River separating Pudong and Puxi was exquisite and so well lit. The river is a divide between the modern Pudong and the archaic Puxi and the Pudong skyline at night was so worth the near-frostbite that I got. Being almost Christmas time, everywhere I turned I could see beautiful Christmas trees that escalated the joy and warmth of the season. The specialty of China is I think the fact that they served Corn juice like they serve water in India –an unlimited and a much welcomed pre-drink. I could just go on and on about China but I will zip it.

Now Hong Kong strangely didn’t ensnare my interest at all. On the contrary, I found Hong Kong a lot like Mumbai except for the Laser Show which was simply out of this world. And the metro system – WOW. I could sing praises for it and still not be able to put it in the right perspective. Its so neat and clean and organized and fast. Get this: the HK airport is on the sea or something and to get to the airport from the city you gotta take a metro which is dedicated to commuters to and from the airport only AND you can check in your baggage at the metro station and quit worrying about it till after you get down from the plane at your destination. Cool, hanh?? I should mention this ,being a frequent air traveler, there are no stupid baggage tags that you have to attach to your carry in bags which is a huge relief and the security check is over in a ZAP. AND there is a Disney store at the airport (I was drooling all over the store, sigh). Oh and the chocolates – lip smackingly heavenly. Aji Ichiban is the most popular candy and chocolate store in HK and they have every kind of chocolate and candy in every different kind of shape and size and colour. When I returned to India I had some holiday weight on me and Aji Ichiban – totally responsible for that. “GOOFY GRIN” All good things must come to an end and so did my China trip. I was back in India before I even knew it but somehow I found that I had missed the place.

My work was going as enjoyable as ever. When my landlord at my PG started creating ruckus and I called it quits there as well and decided that it was high time that I had gotten an apartment on my own where I can cook and clean up after myself and thus ended up in a cozy little place in Borivali west. February flew by so fast that I began to doubt if I was sleep walking. And now it’s March of 2011. I survive in this fast moving city that I have come to know and LOVE (there, I have said it), cooking on my own, reading books, hanging out with friends, travelling around and working my ass off while loving it.

That’s about my stint in Mumbai as of now and looking forward to more adventures as long as I am here. Of course, I miss my friends but that doesn’t stop me from making new ones. Thanks to all my colleagues and friends and their families who have made my life in Mumbai from “EAAAAGH” to “BRING IT ON”.

After 10 months, here goes my status update:

1) Waking up to the sound of pigeons “coo-ing” outside my window.

2) Breakfast made with my own hands – however measly it is.

3) A brisk walk to the bus stop – briefly stopping to get my hand licked by this adorable Great Dane who is as tall as I am.

4) An hour in the freezing AC bus catching up with my reading or unfinished naps “WINK”

5) 9 hours at the office doing something I love with the people I love.

6) Another hour in the AC bus – this time drooling and snoring – never realizing that my mouth is agape the whole way.

7) A stroll back to my apartment greeted by countless cats (there is a fish market on the way to my place).

8) A nice hot cup of tea.

9) Stress relieving hour at the gym.

10) Some Facebooking and reading and/or writing, etc.

11) Dinner – the South Indian way.

12) A wonderful 8 hour sleep.

13) Loving it, loving it and LOVING IT!!!

THE END