What NOT to do at Mt. Diablo

Disclaimer: The facts that you are about to read are all based on my personal experience-nothing is imaginary! I might try to tempt or confuse you with the way I narrate the details-it is upto you if you really wanna fall into the trap! I should not be held responsible for the consequences!! :D 

So here we go!!

• Dont look for any information beforehand.
  

Whats the fun in being a nerd and jotting down all the information like how the place is and how much time will it take to reach to the top or what is the difficulty level stamina/strength wise..Pump the gas and hit the road-why care about those boring stats!!

• Start trekking without a trail map.
  

Well if you are those adventurous kind of creature then you might wanna try what we did: Landing up without any trail map! Where's the "surprise element" if you know exactly which way are you going and what you will face along the way to the summit! There's no other thrill like getting lost! Oh and btw you'll find many "natural artifacts" engraved on your way to the top(pic below)-these might not help you in any way but some of the comments will surely entertain you! (Btw I thought these things happen only in India-I was wrong!!)

• Go without the required trekking gear.
  

If you are well covered and well prepared, equipped with proper gears; then would you really get the "feel" of adventure?? Naaah!! Be natural and walk out the way you do when you go out to stroll in the park..Now thats how you get "in-tune" with the nature and feel its "beauty"!

• When in doubt; ask the wrong guy!
  

I'm sure you must have also experienced that whenever you get lost or need any information, the first person you ask will never have any clue!! Salute to Mr.Murphy-his laws appear more Universal to me than anything else! Coming back to our instructions for the hardcore trekker; never ask more than two people at these times..You get to see "more" and have varied "experience" when you get lost-So cheer up: your journey will surely get more exciting!!

Well thats all about what NOT to do-Now here's what to do:

Always have a good group like ours so that you never stop till you have achieved what you targetted when you stepped out of the home. As you can make out, we mis-judged this one-we thought it will be small 3 hour trek but it turned out to be an entire day trek which really tested our patience and stamina! We trekked continuously for 10 hours; but when we reached the top, it was all worthwhile! We had a blast all along the way! It was fun!!

Personally I really enjoyed the whole experience..the view from the summit(3850 ft.) was fantastic! We treeked from the southern side and I wish to do the same from the north side (which looked picturesque)  during winters when it'll be covered with snow!

Finally, if you are still set out to go to a place that you know nothing about, then atleast try to find out the what the name of that place actually means! We ourselves could have saved a lot of trouble if we would have known this little piece of information beforehand:: Diablo is a spanish word which means "Devil"!!

Alms for peace

It was 7 years back..the twilight dusk was settling down and distant sun was diminishing fast on the horizon..I was having my evening cup of tea at my hometown in India when I witnessed one of the most devastating event in the history of mankind unfold live on my television set..Although the holocaust was happening at the other corner of the world, there was a heartfelt feeling of grief and sorrow watching one of the world's most well-known landmarks go down like a pack of cards..It was 9/11, and I thought-or rather prayed-that I wont be seeing a terrorist incident like this in the future..

As fate would have it, barely one month after flying off from Mumbai to the US; here I was again sitting in front of my television watching the city of Mumbai being engulfed in terror and bloodshed..It was hard to believe and difficult to see what was happening at those places where I was roaming freely just a few weeks back..


There was a sense of anger and strong feeling of pain watching the plight of the places and people which hold so dear to me..Feeling of helplessness took over because I knew that the best I could do was just hope and pray-as I did 7 years back-nothing seems to have changed except the place and time..

Lets hope the world gets united against this evil of terrorism..Lets steer the world clean of all those people who brainwash the minds of innocent youth to make them join the forces formed to destroy the peace and integrity in the world for their baseless, self-centerd and norrow-minded objectives..Lets hope we never ever have to see such a carnage again-anywhere in the world..Let the world stay in peace..Let the brotherhood prevail..

Amen!

Jet, Set, Fly!

Oct 22nd~ Three days before the flight:

I met with the deadliest accident of my life..a speeding car lost total control while taking a turn and hit me from the side..the bloody driver didn't even stop and ran away..thank God I had helmet and jacket on otherwise there could have been serious harm..yet it was a miracle that I was safe and surprisingly the only place I got injured was my left shoulder..even my bike was unsketched except for the leg guards(both the sides) and governor..

Oct 23rd~ Two days before the flight:

My very good friend Shandy had a nightmare..He had an H1 interview the day I was supposed to fly and this day all his important stuff: His Passport, petition docs, original marksheets, certificates, laptop-everything got stolen..lodged an FIR but the damage was already done..He was supposed to fly on the 1st week of november..hope he gets his things right asap..

Oct 24th~ One day before the flight:

I had an early morning flight on 26th so had to move at around 11:30 in the night..I had plenty of things to do and eventually I was left with almost no time for packing...I had placed a request for a company cab for my drop to the airport..and right on the time of leaving my room I realized that instead of one, two cabs were sent..I then figured that both the vendors we had at the office had sent their cars to pick me up and now both of them were persuading me to use their service..Then there was this "CID" guy who called to figure out how this confusion occured and I had to literally stop him saying that it was about time that I leave to catch my flight on time..I somehow chose one option and went for it..

Oct 25th~ The day to Fly: 

I reached the airport at around 2:30 midnight..My flight was supposed to take off at 06:05 AM..but the ground staff did not start issuing the boarding pass so I figured that something was wrong..eventually the flight was 6 hours late! One Air India flight was 9 hours late and all the passengers of that flight took to protest shouting "Air India Haai Haai" and started swearing in a way which I cannot describe here :D Then it occured to me that I'll be missing my connecting flight from Hong Kong..I asked the person to check for flights available with any airline but none were available..The first available flight was on the next day...So they finally arranged for my hotel accomodation in Hong Kong and trust me-it was worth it! That hotel was ranked the world's best airport hotel 2008 and I really enjoyed my stay there..

I finally boarded my plane on Oct 26th from Hongkong and reached San Francisco at noon time..It was amazing-after we crossed Japan it was pitch dark and two to three hours after crossing the international date line I was able to see the dawning day! It was beautiful! It was a bright sunny day with a cool breeze..My driver Christina came to pick me up and finally I reached my new home in US! Phew long story this isn't it! But I thoroughlly enjoyed living it! It was a wonderful experience!

Looking forward to "better" experiences though~lets see what US has in store for me!

Life at Crossroads

There comes a moment in your life when you have to weigh up your options and make a firm decision-a decision that can change your life for better or for worse eventually; but it surely brings about the much required change that you crave for..

I've been faced with one such crossroad and I've made my decision which I'm positively sure will be fun, exciting and full of new adventures!

Will keep you guys posted-keep watching this space for more.. :)

Cheers!

Michael Phelps at a very young age ~ Rare pic

For you Sis!

When I was young, I always used to sulk come this day..I felt sad and gloomy and then my mom used to come to cheer me up and tie me a rakhi! Yes I'm talking about Rakshabandhan. This is the festival that celebrates the relationship between brothers and sisters wherein the sister ties a rakhi on the wrist of the brother and brother gives a gift to her sister.

I don't have a sister thats why I felt sad when I was a child. I guess I missed out on one beautiful relationship-the sisterly love and the catty fights and all those things you know..But don't get confused about my mom tying me a rakhi-she's an all-rounder-she's my mom-my friend-my sister-she's all in one!

During the primary school-upto the 5th or 6th grade, I was sort of a favorite candidate to tie a rakhi to and my entire right hand used to be filled up upto the elbow..But then the count stated to dwindle each year so rapidly that I was left with only 2 Rakhis when I reached my 10th grade-Looking back I know my classmates we getting mature faster than me!

Rakhi used to be a kind of weapon for the girls-trust me-to break the hearts of those who had a crush on them. They'll wait an entire year for this day to come only to find that the guy has not turned up to the school! Nevermind; she'll bring the rakhi next day too and the poor fellow will have no option left other than run away, or stay locked in the loo!

During the college time I remember I came up with an idea to spice up the valentine day celebrations. In a typical rose day celebration, if a boy likes a girl then he can give a rose(goes both ways)-if she likes him then she accepts or she dumps-but whats the fun in that!! To spice it up, in our plan; if a girl likes the guy then she accepts and if she doesn't, well then-she ties a rakhi to him! I named it "Rose day Rakhi day"! Now hows that!! I thought it was a fantastic idea, but it came as no surprise to me that my plan couldn't get the approval from the committee!! :P

This festival still fills me up with joy and all the childhood memories come rushing to my mind when this day arrives. Today is that day and here's wishing everyone a very Happy Rakhshabandhan!

Peace!

Rendezvous!

It has been more than 2 years since we guys last met..call it fate or blame it on destiny-but each one of us sailed in different directions set to different lands. And it was a homecoming when we finally met!

Yes! It was a great rendezvous of old college time pals cum room-mates. Felt like going back in time while we recalled past amusing incidents and funny "accidents" of one another! Were fun-filled 2 days!

We guys know each other for about 8 years now but nobody seems to have changed one bit-not even the stints abroad! But that what matters and you can feel the warmth of true freindship which stands the test of time..Thanks Mitul for arranging my stay and making this trip happen!

Hope we all meet again soon! :)

Rains in Pune : Without Words

Prison Break!

Well rarely do i watch any TV series as i prefer more of sports, music and news on the idiot box. Another reason being that you don't get that kind of stuff which captures your imagination and keeps you hooked up. But that all changed recently as i started watching Prison Break on my brother's recommendation.

It is an awesome series which starts off with a man named Michael Scofield(played by Wentworth Miller) deliberately making his way to the prison to help escape his innocent elder brother who is framed wrongly for the murder of vice-president's brother. Micheal is one hell of a character-he is smart, witty, intelligent and most importantly stays unruffled in difficult and unforeseen circumstances. Ah and did i tell you my brother thinks that i resemble him-dunno how true is that though! :P

Other characters like Fernando Sucre, T-Bag and Sarah are equally interesting. I'll recommend this series to everyone and i bet you wont be disappointed!

PS : The fourth season is going to start off this September!

And oh it was my birthday yesterday and the smell of black forest doesn't seem to have parted itself completely from my face as yet as i write but it was fun. The best surprises come when you least expect it! Well do pray for me and I'll keep my fingers crossed hoping that this will be the year that makes a lot of positive difference to whats gonna happen in the future! Cheers!

Once again!! Phew!!

Once again i missed it! Once again i had to pound my fist in rage and kick my shoes on the ground in despair..Once again it eluded me..Once again i felt helpless to my fate..Once again i felt the power of nature and the "unknown force" that controls it..Once again i realized that there was nothing that i could do other than wait for the right opportunity and COME BACK!!


Well don't take it too seriously guys-all my ranting is about my missed chance to do para gliding! This is the 2nd time in past 8 months that I'd reached the spot and couldn't do it. The villain this time was low air pressure..gosh!!
But anyways the trip was nice and we had a bowl!! But still i can't wait to tuck up that glider and jump off the cliff to sail into the clouds!! God knows when that day will come-hope it comes soon! :)

The week that was!

The past week has been “strangely funny” and some moments were too funny to describe but here are a few of those which I could pen down and I’m sure you’ll enjoy!

“Facing” Reality

The other day I was at the small kirana store(general provisional store) near my place to get some milk. There was a young construction worker there asking rates for a particular brand of hair oil. Looking at her I felt how much these people have to think before spending even for small little things like that. These poor souls earn as little as $4 to $5 on the days that they get some work-so I always kinda look at them with a mellow heart.

"bade wale ka kitta hai?" she asked pointing to the hair oil bottle in her hand.("How much (is the rate) for the one bigger than this?")

"20 Rupees" said the shopkeeper.

"To eeeii nahi chaiyye" she said giving back the small bottle.("Then I don't want this")

"Chal ek pher n lubly de de" she demanded handing out the cash ("C'mon gimme one Fair & Lovely")

My God I was shocked-I never expected that beauty cosmetic creams would have penetrated even this market segment!! My goodness me-these Ads and marketing gimmicks do work-even if their products don’t!! :D



International Uncle

I was at my friend's place. His neighbor had just returned from the US-coming back after meeting his son who is fairly settled on the distant land. He quirked at me on knowing that I’m a vegetarian.

"You people follow all these things here but if you go outside then you can't follow it" he kinda mocked at me boasting of his "international experience".

He said proudly-trying to 'hurt' my ignorance " You know when in US, I even went to Mc. Donalds but couldn't find anything vegetarian even there!!"

Now who can explain this uncleji-who I guess must be a big fan of aka very own Mc Allo Tikki-about the predominant business structure of Mc. Donalds and its smart tactics to turn to new veg "beef-less" menu to engulf Indian markets! No wonder I had a nice time talking with him! hehe



Bone Jerkers

Yesterday my roomie fell off his bike and got heavy bruises on his hands and legs and on some parts which I cannot describe here :P

Well that makes it the 2 for the week! There’s another very good friend of mine-Shands-aka Abhishek Shandilya whom I also call Abhi-“Shrek” sometimes as he resembles that wonderful character Shrek and stays animated like him all the time J Well he too fell off his bike and got injured in the process.

Now these two guys are special and “talented” in their own ways (:)) but they have nothing in common as such (except me ofcourse!) but the thing to observe from both of these incidents is that both were having a female companion sitting at their back! Shands had his sister while my roomie-Kundan Kumar urf Mr. KK was accompanied by his female friend.

So folks; the moral of the story is: Stay away from women and alcohol when you drive!

Valentine Blues - II

"US is the best place to be!!" my friend exclaimed suddenly..

"Why so?"i asked-unaware of what i was getting myself into..

"Look at their sex ratio man..there are more females there than males..about 1024 females per 1000 males to be precise" he poured out..

"So.....??" i wondered what he was upto now..

"So what!!" he barked "It means more options dude-it means females would have been in competition for me instead of me chasing them all the time"
"Simply put-it means if i would have been in US i wouldn't have been like i am now : helpless, hapless and hopeless : SINGLE" he added

I started laughing and rolling like a popcorn on a hot stove. He glared at me like an hurt animal so i started to talk some serious stuff to make him feel better.

"Its not like that man" i said "Love-Life-Luck : Its all about timing!"
"Your time will come-sooner or later and you'll find that perfect person" i added.

"Yeah and you'll live happily ever after...blah blah blah" he retorted angrily "There's no such thing as love..in today's world love is nothing but the license to sex"

Wow!! Now this guy really meant "business"-it occurred to me.

"Listen dude if you are nice then you'll find a good person-believe me" i said in an honest tone..

"Wah! what a crap" he shot back "Just look at you dude..you are a good person and on top of that you neither smoke nor drink and still you are single..aren't you?"

"Well yeah i am single but i dont know actually..i dont know if i'm really looking for love..frankly speaking i dont know which way i'm heading to..there are a lot of other things happening all the time dude.." i said measuring my words "And I don't consider smoking or drinking a vice-i just don't feel like polluting my body.."


"But i'm sure if you stay true to yourself and remain good as you are then definitely you'll find your soul mate" i tried to lift his spirits..

But he was in no mood to relent..in fact the things he said later zipped my mouth completely.

"Aaaahhh dont start again!!" he screamed "I'm still a virgin dude!! You know i feel like a loser each day i wake up!!"

"Good for you dude..you maintained your celibacy-your wife will be lucky indeed" i tried to comfort him.

"Virginity is not a virtue...it is just the lack of opportunity" he replied mockingly


Although I did'nt agree; I felt like laughing but i controlled myself and left it at that..Here's wishing everyone a very happy valentine day-i know it is belated but each day must be celebrated in the same spirit of love and affection for all! Keep smiling and keep loving!
Cheers!

One "Knight" at Raigarh

I've so far attempted plenty of adventurous stuff and thanks to the guys around we keep doing new things each time. The latest being the night trek at Raigarh.


This is the largest fort in Maharastra-as per my knowledge-and it was the capital of the Great Maratha warrior Shivaji Maharaj. This place is located in the heart of Shahyadri mountains-nearly 100 miles from Pune. We set out on our couple of bikes for the hunt and it is a beautiful ride all the way to the place.

We reached around sunset-left the bikes there and we started trekking to the top after having a light dinner. It was dark around but with full moon day around it was beautiful. The main fort is at the top-at the height of around 2850 meters from the sea level. The fort is surrounded from all sides by high rising mountains but this particular mountain is naturally cut-off from the rest of the giants-and thats probably the reason this place got the nod for the impregnable fort.

It was tougher to trek here-which we didn't expect and we ran out of "gas" every now and then-so we had to take plenty of stoppages. A steep climb of nearly 1450 steps and three and a half hours of extreme demands on your physical stamina, leaves you too exhausted. The cool winter night breeze proved to be a real boon for us as it negated all the sweating and it kept us fresh. Finally we reached the top and the feeling was worth all the stamina and effort spent.


We "slept" there in the fort-and those inverts over that word is because although my other two pals slept pretty well(i think you can snore only when you're having a pretty good sleep :D ) i barely managed to doze at all. Nevertheless we got up at the sunrise and saw the entire fort and its landscape-spread in over one acre of mountain top.

Views are breath taking and the design is amazing-considering that the fort was built over 350 years ago. Caught the glimpse of old-age "cubicles"(Image below: Left) built for the ministers and viewing one of the oldest attached restroom in india's history(Image below: Right)-the one that was almost talking to the clouds from where it stood was astounding!



There's a lot that can be described(but i think this much is enough as of now~isn't it!) about this place and its brave warrior who captured it at the tender age of 14! There's only one word to say about all this: "Fascinating"!

Hats off to the knight!

Republic Day Tribute

I know I'm a few days late to post this but i guess you cant do much with a running nose accompanied by world's most "beautiful" ailment known as conjunctivitis! phew!!

We recently celebrated our 59th Republic day on 26th January and there couldn't be a more apt time-for me personally-to remember the Father of this great nation. Although i differ to give him the entire credit for the freedom of India; i seldom have any doubt about his importance in the struggle.

Let me take you to the place which was-in a sense the cradle of freedom struggle-or a capital of the revolutionary movement-because the great man lived here. Yes I'm talking about the Sabarmati Ashram! Located on the banks of Sabarmati river in the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat; this place still inspires millions of people and their thoughts around the globe who come over here to get enlightened.

I can only imagine how much history those spectacles have seen getting unfold first hand and how many ideas were created in this quiet room alongside the "charkha"..All i know for sure is how virtuous this great man was-who stood his ground amongst all odds..

Well about his principles..they are hard to follow in today's bad-bad world-especially the one's talking about Truth and Non-violence. But here's what you can do to "follow" them in these times:

Non-Violence : Dont raise a hand at anyone but bully everyone such that no one dares take a wrong step in your direction ;)

Truth : Someone said that "Too much truth is uncouth" but i don't agree-infact i feel truth is beautifull-as long as it is pleasant that is-Don't lie on stuff that you cant say truly-just try to avoid it!

And finally about those 3 principles; here's what i gotta say:

See no Evil : Avoid Baywatch / Desperate Housewives

Hear no Evil : Throw away those Eminem records you've got!

Speak no Evil : Now that you've thrown away his records-no need to sing his songs anymore!! ;)

That was said in a lighter vein. Lets try to follow his principles and lets be true to ourselves and the world-Let the peace prevail!

New Year Thoughts

Hey its new Year folks! Wish you very happy times ahead. On a personal note i never make any resolutions and i don't think i can stick to it anyways! But here's few things i wish to do.

*Devote more time to my mom and family-my personal life. I feel i have always achieved professional accolades but i have really not given much attention to my personal life and i wish to mend that.

*Last year's trip abroad did me a lot of good besides giving me a welcome break from the professional front. Wish to continue doing that to different destinations on the earth.

*Lessen cyber social networking-i must say i feel saturated now and wanna cut-off from the world in this aspect. I believe those who are close to you shall be in touch with you anyhow ( & vice-versa)and scraps don't define relationships-I'm not someone up for superficial bonds. So expect to see me less from now on in orkut and facebook.

*Reading is something i have always loved and ill like to continue that also with my main passion:Music. I hope to make a better use of my rusting guitar in coming days-and maybe get a new one now!

*Spirituality is one of the ingredients which i feel I'm lacking(lessened will be more apt word to describe) in my life now a days. I wanna get my self back on the track in this aspect.

Above all-being happy and making others around feel special-bringing smiles to their face will be the best thing to do/continue in the new year. Here's wishing you all the very best for everything!

Keep rocking and keep smylin! :)

PS : "I'm a legend"-thats right-thats one of the best movies i've seen in a while and the idea of being the last man standing on the earth is enthralling in this world of social networking. I have to admit that as a kid i found myself in the same conditions many a times-but that was only in my dreams! The only difference being that all others were turned into vampires and not mutated by a virus. By the way thats exactly how the story is narrated in the original novel which i recently finished reading.

Very excellent flick which i'll recommend to everyone. Do watch it!