I pumped gas!!

Last evening, for the first time in my life I pumped gas! And I'm feeling super thrilled! 

Until I came to Canada I only had Gas Attendants pumping gas for me but that was how it was in all the countries that I had lived so far.

Ever since I got my car last October, I've had friends/work colleagues coming along and helping me in getting gas. They did the work while I looked. Few months back after getting detailed instructions from a work colleague as to what I should do as soon as I slide into a Gas Pump I was all ready to do it by myself. However it so happened that the Gas Station I went to on my way back home had a Full Service that I was not aware of. This meant someone doing it for me! Since then I had been going to this particular Gas Station.

However yesterday I was at another Gas Station. Was feeling a bit apprehensive if I would get it right. I got out of my car. Tried to open the Gas Tank lid but it just wouldn't open! Ultimately had to ask for help to the Truck guy pumping gas just beside my car. Made me look so incompetent?! Then I lifted the Gas Pump Nozzle....selected the type of gas I wanted....put the nozzle in the tank and squeezed the trigger and felt the gasoline flowing into the gas tank! Yay!! I pumped gas!!! Finally! Whew!!!

Once again....

It's been a while since I wrote anything here.....but here I am. Let me just try bringing up to speed.

2011 - I moved to Dubai...a new job in a company who expected me to live and breath it 24/7. Never have I been so stressed not knowing when I would get a call on the weekends to ask about the Brand that I was managing, about the sales & its performance and which store/mall I was personally overlooking to check all is well!

The silver lining was that I got to travel 2 new countries - United States of America and Italy! Even though it was a business trip I did manage to do some sight seeing and it was wonderful!

2012 - The year began with hectic business travel (Buying) to Frankfurt, Germany....just a day after my Birthday. Even though I had visited Germany way back in 1997, I hadn't been to Frankfurt. The early morning walk down by the River Main....down the bridge festooned with many love locks....it was lovely but at the same time felt it would have been much better if I was with a friend. I also climbed right up to the top of the winding stairs in Frankfurt Cathedral from where I too this shot. It was worth the climb!

During the EID holidays, took a road trip to Oman with an Irish man and a Singaporean lady. It was so much fun! Can't believe reaching a hotel middle of the night and that too a quaint one which was not that expensive only driving away as the Irish found it too expensive for his taste to spend for a few hours! But again...no complain. It was a blissful 3 days trip and I feel the other two too enjoyed the trip as much as I did!

Then in November taking advantage of the Al Hajra holiday just before the weekend booked myself for a Group Trip to Jordan a country I was eager to visit to see one of the Wonders of the World, Petra! I also got to see a friend and his family, a Jordanian who befriended us way back when we were college students in Delhi. It's always lovely to see a familiar face. Who would have thought that after all these years I would visit his country and see him and his family?!

I was also busy looking for another job even thinking of relocating to far flung places like Singapore!

2013 - This was a year of learning I can say on hindsight. In January, I got to travel to Lebanon, a country full of history and many civilisations. The Phoenicians were here and the Romans too. Earliest civilisation dates more than 7000 years back! The ruins of Baalbeck, Anjar, Byblos, Tyre, Sidon....were all so awesome!

Then I left my job. Couldn't take it anymore and by June I was finally out. This time I decided to do my own thing. And I decided to do it right here in the Middle East all by myself! The registration of a company and getting a new visa....the paperworks....I did it all! I also engaged a friend even though her charges were pretty high as I just like her creative side for getting my website done. It's been quite an experience. The website is still under construction as of today! 

I also travelled extensively in India visiting places that I have always wanted to go. First to the Andamans right after Cyclone Phailin passed by. I nearly cancelled my flight but thankfully the Cyclone passed away without much damage. The Andaman islands are still untouched. Out of about 532 islands or so, only a few are inhabited. I would love to go back again.

Finally in November I travelled to God's Own Country, Kerala. I travelled extensively using the public transport, the State Bus. It wasn't easy as I was lugging 2 suitcases filled to the brim and an equally heavy handbag on my shoulders! On one of my trips, the bus I was travelling in broke down and we were asked to get off and catch another one! Of course all buses passing by were packed and now you have us trying to climb in and finding space. I managed with great difficulty as someone was kind enough to lend a hand with my suitcases! It was a nightmare!

For future travelling....I plan to buy a good backpack and consciously pack accordingly! "Pack half the clothes and carry twice the money" I aim to follow this going forward.

Coming to Kerala, I landed in Kochi (Cochin) and was off to Palamatam straight away. After a few days caught a Bus for Munnar to see the lovely tea estates. Then to Thekkady and Periyar for a couple of days before proceeding to Alleppey and Kumarakom. Thereafter took a really long bus trip down to Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum). The Kovalam Beach was not exactly what I expected it to be like but I just wish I had spent more time looking around. From here I travelled back to Kochi to see the city, look at the Chinese nets (see photo below) and finally headed to Kozhikode from where I took a flight back home.

2014 - Just realised January seems to be a favoured month for travelling/leisure. Is it because it's my Birthday month?! Ha ha!

This January I travelled to Yemen the mainland as well as to Socotra an island quite isolated and a third of its life plant is found nowhere else in the world. Here I digress....just a day before I flew to Yemen I conducted my first meet up for my company. It was a start.....again no regrets. I have learnt quite a bit since.

And in April, I took my first group to Socotra. The trip was a success if I may say so. Everything went off well. Inshallah there will be many more!

My 6 months celebration to the day when things started happening....not much of a celebration celebration but just remembering the day....the evening in Starbucks in Ibn Batuta hosting my first meetup, the drive, furious packing for my travel to Yemen the next day....thought I had it all. Some food, a glass of wine, watching movies on the telly and then I got a rude awakening!

It's 13 days since. Waiting for visas to be sorted out.....should be soon. Looking forward to working in a nice place....getting good vibes from a recent contact.

How does it get better than this? What else is possible? What is right about this I am not getting? All of life comes to me with ease, joy and glory.

Life goes on.....

My New Car!

I finally got myself a car! At last! I went, I saw and I bought....a car....all by myself!

Over the years, the cars that I have had .....2 were Company cars that I was driving and the last one that I had, was bought after I got my friend to see, check and comment on it.

This time I had nobody with me. Forced to do things all by myself ...something which tradionally has been a man's domain....it's been tough deciding.....which make/brand....model...features. Now that I have done it all by myself and commended by my male friends as "good choice", this purchase has been real sweet!

I'm alive!

I know, I know it's been quite sometime since I have been active here. Been busy, barely enough time to indulge in a lil bit of writing?....nah....just plain lazy!

Then this morning I get one of this inspirational quotes in my Inbox from a friend in far away California.

Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens, not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life.

A postive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst, a spark that creates extraordinary results. Let's change to make a change!

When it rains, most birds head for shelter; the eagle is the only bird that in order to avoid the rain, starts flying above the cloud. Winners win by pushing their limits until pushing their limits becomes their norm.

The Eagle Story. I begin to read more....about the eagle who lives to be 70 years old. For the first 40 years of it's life, the eagle has no worries. It flies, using it's talons it hunts for its prey and eats with it's sharp beak.

But at 40, age begins to tell. It's beak becomes bent and its talons dull so it can no longer hunt. Its feathers are so thick making its wing stick to its chest. It cannot fly like it used to. Now the eagle has 2 choices - either to remain in such a state and get weak & old or it can re-invent itself that will take 150 days or about 5 months to do so.

To re-invent itself the eagle must fly to the top of a very tall mountain and sit on its nest. There it will hit its beak against a rock until the old beak drops off and wait for a new beak to grow. When the beak has grown back the eagle plucks off its talons. When its talons have grown back, it plucks out its feathers one by one and wait for them to grow all back. Can you imagine the pain it must go through?

Finally after 5 months when its feathers have all grown back, the eagle stretches its wings and takes off to the sky again...flying & hunting for another 30 years before finally dying.

The story reminds me of my life too a bit. Still single and fending for myself, I need to re-invent myself. With this in mind, just 2 days back I joined the local gym. Need to shed the extra kilos I have put on over the years. And guess what?! I am picking up a brand new car! I'm alive!

Movie marathon!

It's been a movie watching spree once again. I guess watching the Golden Globes Award Ceremony the other night encouraged me to download  these wonderful movies!

First, Despicable Me. This is an animated movie and the main role is played by Steve Carell. Just love watching Steve. He's good. Well, the story is of a Supervillian who plans to use 3 orphan girls in his evil scheme only to find that their innocent love is profoundly changing him! It's a cute movie. I loved it. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film (Golden Globe).

Next, it was the Little Fockers. This is the sequel to Meet the Parents & Meet the Fockers. Jack begins to have health issues and so decides to appoint Greg as the new head of the family, the "Godfocker". Then Jack begins to have doubts and Greg has to prove his capability in looking after the family. Personally I prefered the earlier movies.

Next in line was the most talked about movie that I totally wanted to see The Social Network.  It won the Golden Globe Award for the Best Motion Picture - Drama. It also won the Golden Globe Awards for the Best Director, Best Screenplay & Best Scoreboard. This is about the founding of the ever growing most popular networking website Facebook and the resulting lawsuits. The movie is totally gripping. Brilliantly made. Loved it.

Grown Ups a buddy comedy starring Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade & Rob Schneider was next. A story of 5 childhood friends who meet years later at their Coach's funeral. Cute & funny. Pretty entertaining. The rented lake house looked gorgeous! I would love to holiday in one of those lakeside cottages someday if I could......go for a walk, have a picnic, go swimming, go boating....it would be wonderful!

More are being downloaded! :)

Screw it, Let's do it

The Dept Secy dropped off the latest issue of "Qatar Today" on my table couple of days back. Flicking through, came to the Books Review Page when I spied this fantastic title, "Screw it, Let's do it" by Richard Branson. Through the years, reading Richard's exploits and how he took on British Airways (a Giant!), his attitude, his spunk, I have been a great admirer of the man. This Book is really a quick read but gives wonderful insights to the philosophies and leadership that drive the man and the Brand. It's utterly absorbing and above all inspiring!

A quick run of the chapters...in a nutshell!

1. Just Do It! - Believe whatever you want to achieve can be achieved.

2. Have Fun! - Have a positive outlook and when something stops being fun, move on.

3. Be Bold - Take calculated risks.

4. Challenge Yourself - Aim high, try new things.

5. Stand On Your Own Two Feet - Rely on yourself. Chase your dreams but live in the real world.

6. Live the Moment - Love life and live it to the full.

7. Value Family and Friends - Put Family & Team first. Money is for making things happen.  

8. Have Respect - "Respect is how to treat everyone, not just those you want to impress."

9. Gaia Capitalism - Gaia is the Greek version of "Mother Nature" or the Earth Goddess. Go Green!

10. Sex Appeal - Create excitement in everything you do.

11. Be Innovative - The system is not sacred. Think creatively.

12. Do Some Good - Change the world, even in a small way.

13. Pow! Shazam! - Richard's dream of flying civilians to space with Virgin Galactic's spaceship! Anything is possible!

14. Think Young - Have a youthful approach to life!

I just did it! I quit my job.....no longer fun it was.....and am moving on! What am I going to do next? Where will I be? Only Time will tell!

PS:- Look for clues where I am in my Future Posts! :)

Happy 2011!

This year 2010 has been pretty eventful as well as interesting.

My Boss had been sacked just at the end of last year. One of my colleagues got removed from the office unceremoniously and legal suit filed against both of them. Change of Management brought in uncertainty as to where the company was heading to.....not that there was any direction earlier. It was time to move on....

Starting end September I took off for about 6 weeks to do a bit of travelling to places I had never been. I spent around 10 days with a friend I hadn't seen in 13-14 years in Java, Indonesia. The meeting was awesome. We hadn't kept in touch all these years but my friend finally tracked me down this year on Facebook! Even though she is now married and with a son, our friendship has withstood the time gap. It was just like yesterday. She took me all around Java and showed me some of the most beautiful Buddhist temples.

And of course, visit to Indonesia couldn't be complete without going to Bali! Bali was fantastic. So laid back and relaxed. I loved it and I am glad I stayed where I stayed...in Kuta! Sandy beach just walking distance, loads of restaurants, shops galore and opened till late late into the night!

From Bali, flew to Singapore to spend 3 days exploring the city. The city is really organized and once I got the hang of using the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit or the Railway System in Singapore) it was cheap travelling around. Taxi service here I guess is one of the best in the world if I may say so. There are these Taxi Stands and everyone stands in a queue to take the next taxi which comes along. The Taxi guy takes you straight to your destination and charges exactly what the meter shows! No haggling...no cheating...no extra charges!

Then onward to Thailand! Phuket, Phi Phi Island, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Bangkok, Ayutthaya, yes did all the touristic places as much as I could squeeze in. It's been so much fun travelling around, seeing new places and meeting new people. Staying near Khaosan Road too was a good decision. It is such a lively area with loads of tourists!

Then it was off to India to visit my Parents. Mom's been bed ridden for now 3 years or so. She hasn't improved much and it's awful seeing her like this. Dad's too getting old. Even our dog who always used to bounce up & down whenever I was down there no longer recognizes me. She's gone blind & deaf too I believe. She shuffles around barely. It was a depressing sight....

Coming back to work, there were more people gone from the company on one pretext or the other. No one seemed to be happy with the way things were going on. Work was getting to be really stressful. So last week, I put in my resignation.

Another year comes to an end. As always, New Year brings hope, dreams and lots of good wishes!!

Cheers!!!

I quit!

Had enough of the circus, so this morning I quit my job. Not a hasty decision.....I had been thinking about quitting for quite sometime now.

Thought I would first have an job offer in hand and then quit but just couldn't wait as another year passes by. What professionalism can you expect from a Company, owned by a Sheikha and is being run by one of her Secretary?! Yes, welcome to the Middle East!

Have given a month's notice as per my contract. The hunt for another job is now seriously on. If I don't have a job by Jan 2011, am thinking of terrorizing my lil nieces (5 of them!) if I were to go and live with my Parents! This would be really wicked of me....so wish me luck for a New Job with a Fat Salary soon!

Jogja Again!

Second day in Jogja and it's temple hopping once again!

We first headed to Prambanan Temple constructed in the 10th century. It has 3 main temples dedicated to Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva and each had a temple facing it dedicated to their "vahan" or chariot. Garuda for Vishnu, Nandini for Shiva and Angsa for Brahma.

Candi Sewu, another temple built in the 8th century is the second larget Buddhist temple in Central Java. After the massive earthquake, restoration work was going on in full scale. The temple guards were real imposing.

Then off we went to Candi Kalasan, a Buddhist temple built in the 8th century. It didn't look like it had many visitors and the temple was in a poor condition.

The last of the temple visited in Jogja was that of Candi Sambisari. This was built about 8th century but through the years it was abandoned and then lay buried for centuries until it was discovered in the late 1960s. The temple was dugged up from the ground! This is a small temple and it's three sides are flanked by the statues of Lord Ganesha, a Rishi (don't know who) and Goddess Parvati? Inside the temple, we find a ShivLinga.

Amazing that Hinduism flourished so far away!

Jogja!

Jakarta was the point of entry but immediately on landing, I was whisked away to Cikarang, capital of Bekasi Regency by my friend. After a good night sleep, we caught a flight from Jakarta to Yogyakarta or Jogjakarta or Jogja as the locals say, the very next day. Jogja I am told is well known for its strong Javanese culture and tradition.

After breakfast of "Paratha" (Indian Bread) made by the Indonesian Cook we headed to Borobudur, a world heritage monument. It was huge! No! It was humungous! This is both a shrine to Lord Buddha as well as a place for Buddhist pilgimage. This was built in the 9th century.

Borobudur Stupas!

Next stop was Mendut again a 9th century temple located just close to Borobudur. The temple contains 3 statues of Buddhas - one to liberate devotees from bodily karma, the other to liberate from the karma of speech and the third to liberate from the karma of thought.

Adjoining to the Mendut is a monastery/library. A beautiful place with lots of Buddha statues everywhere.

A lovely day well spent seeing these beautiful monuments from long long ago!