I've been reading a book titled"Wise and Otherwise"....by Sudha Murthy..........its not a novel.....not short stories either.....but experiences that she has had since she's started observing.Nice in the sense that she's a keen witness to a lot of things that can pass.In fact some of her observations are pretty close to what I've thought of many a time......In one she talks about a middle-aged man coming with a much older man to put him in a old age home and also saying that he'd found the old person in a bus-stop and no money to go anywhere....at the end it turns out that they were father and son........he LIED because his wife didn't like the father-in-law and the house belonged to her......Things like this are so much in common.Wonder how the mentality changes.Wonder why they don't realize what its to be alone.........wonder how it feels to be abandoned by someone who could'nt get any closer.........hmmm........i dont want to repeat one thing....thats "he'll undergo the same from his son when he's old"......hmmm.....maybe just not that,....think of the present....is it what someone needs to return??? hmmm...okie...am stopping...might end up like a typical emotional saga......
others r pretty witty...or what i've read so far have been....parallel to that am reading God of small things....guess for the 5th time....very dark and sweltered way of writing.......too much of analogy,too many thoughts......it feels like creepers all around when i read it.......or...call it creepers with pretty flowers.....cuz its both nice and scary at once.....and while reading all of these books i do get a feeling that on observations and some skill of expressing its not difficult to write......a lot of books are born out of experiences......maybe i should start looking for some too to get my dream come true....
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Saturday, July 21, 2007
COOOOLLLEEEGGEE.......
hmm.....am over with my FIRST week in final yr!!! sigh!!!! am already depressed!!!!well...this year...everyone's nice to everyone else!!! (first observation)........suddenly the whole class is talking and playing pranks and wat not!!!!hmm....NICER!!!
guess wat!!! for the first time a elected as a class rep ;)...hehehehe.....my friends chose me to be the "bakri" of the year....one week down and am all responsible......puzzled??dont be.....i've been forced to change....have to keep meeting the class advisor for anything and everything....get some teacher......not let ppl roam around the corridor....(fear of the HOD!!) he might end up engaging the free hours!!!! hmmm.......feeels nice in a weird way....cuz i used to do all what am not letting others do......and all of a sudden....i cant sleep in class anymore!!! i cant scream for a free period!!!! i cant walk around the corridors!!!!! WHAT SACRIFICES!!!but yeah.....its fine....been having lot of fun in class....this yr we've got the subject of environmental sciences...and a fresher after pg is our staff......and all she knows is to SCREAM!!!! imagine yelling at a bunch of 21 yrs olds.....funny....then's our planning for the Industrial visit.....hehehe....64 in class......50 opinions!!!!gouri and i in class......anju,aishu,anu and i in hostel!!!!!!mornings r crazy'ly funny....and evenings r funnier..... i cant imagine my life next year......i cant imagine without these people....without having to go to college....maybe...i'd like staying here for long...(if the studying part could be removed ;) )i'll miss college like anything....infact i get a feel its gonna be more than school.......the dressing up to canteen.....the evening walks....the beautiful sky...the evening star....my yoga class.....the crazy photoshoots....hmmm.....some life.....
guess wat!!! for the first time a elected as a class rep ;)...hehehehe.....my friends chose me to be the "bakri" of the year....one week down and am all responsible......puzzled??dont be.....i've been forced to change....have to keep meeting the class advisor for anything and everything....get some teacher......not let ppl roam around the corridor....(fear of the HOD!!) he might end up engaging the free hours!!!! hmmm.......feeels nice in a weird way....cuz i used to do all what am not letting others do......and all of a sudden....i cant sleep in class anymore!!! i cant scream for a free period!!!! i cant walk around the corridors!!!!! WHAT SACRIFICES!!!but yeah.....its fine....been having lot of fun in class....this yr we've got the subject of environmental sciences...and a fresher after pg is our staff......and all she knows is to SCREAM!!!! imagine yelling at a bunch of 21 yrs olds.....funny....then's our planning for the Industrial visit.....hehehe....64 in class......50 opinions!!!!gouri and i in class......anju,aishu,anu and i in hostel!!!!!!mornings r crazy'ly funny....and evenings r funnier..... i cant imagine my life next year......i cant imagine without these people....without having to go to college....maybe...i'd like staying here for long...(if the studying part could be removed ;) )i'll miss college like anything....infact i get a feel its gonna be more than school.......the dressing up to canteen.....the evening walks....the beautiful sky...the evening star....my yoga class.....the crazy photoshoots....hmmm.....some life.....
Monday, July 2, 2007
Wat we might want to do.......
Well...i had planned to write something so totally different to what i am going to. This post is totally because of a web page that i just read...its a census report by the UNICEF regarding the abuse on children. It was quiet a interesting report.Not that i was not aware of what was told....which includes children who r trafficked for the obvious,children who were simply abused both mentally and physically,children who were victims of war(both for fighting in the army and suffering the war consequences).
So.....that was it. Well come to think of it.....when did this trafficking and abusing and hurting start.Its no mafia of today....no "under-world" don got it done over night...it goes back to olden days that started with slavery which is still continuing.I fail to understand why this never does to an end.Everyone knows about such things........ and well something that i cant comprehend is with the mind set of the "middle class" society of India. The UNICEF report only spoke of children who were most likely to have had been under privileged.But thats not it.....the factor of child abuse does not end there.....its not the monetary status that decides. Lot of examples that i'
d want to quote......
1.Peak summer time in kerala.......Engineering and Medical entrance coaching class in a vacant government school.......timings:morning 7 to evening 4 with half an hour break session....now that itself "sounds" draining.....imagine....the heat of about 40 deg and fans switched off....(sounds like am kidding???? NO)...i had my niece going to that place and half of the student's would end up dozing.Now...the interesting bit.....WHY WERE THE FANS NEVER SWITCHED ON???? well..simple ans...they wanted to cut down the bill...and the fee charged was a big amount with which they could have easily payed the bill!! they dont have the expenses other than the salary of the staff and the rent of the building!! Isnt that inhuman.....outrageous?? and NO parent still complains....why??? CHILDREN R SUPPOSED TO GO THERE AND STUDY.....and not enjoy the fan!!!! (DUH!!!) Its "somehow or the other get into an engineering/medical colg and get a job" attitude thats gripping them.No one raised their voice....and i dont think anyone would ever as well..
2.Another entrance exam coaching ctr in kerala..... All glory to "methodology" of teaching.well......inside that place....i'd call it a hell hole.....a concentration camp......This person divides(guy who runs it) the students in few batches....and the classification being by their 10th board scores. and the toppers batch get the best faculty and....the following get by their respective grades.....(WOW).....ok....then....the "elite" group of people taught by this man get abused...he yells what ever horrible things that comes to his mind...yeah!!!! outright....no concession for ur parents as well..even with their names involved!!!!!!!(still maddening rush to get into that place).then the hostels......food.. horrible.....if u want to reduce more than half ur weight dont look for any gym or diets...just enroll in this place......and....in the hostel....u can talk to ur fellow room mates for "10 minutes a day" and 10 students have a warden and share a dormitory.I mean....which sane parent would want that????For all i care i'd have yelled at the owner of this institution and got him beaten up and locked him up in the prison long back....(if i had the power to).Now...thats not the whole point.......why does he do it?? why doesn't anyone react??? why r they still sending kids to that place....(answer in the above pt).
3.Children at home....at school....no freedom of thought....THINK WAT UR TOLD TO!. is the rule of the day....no innovativeness.... no one's creative.I have neighbors,whose kids are in kinder garden.....go for tuitions!!!! Is it an age to go for tuitions??? I really feel terrible thinking about that fellow...gets back from school at 4 and runs to the coaching ctr within half an hour....i mean,some effort from home should save the kids....no....nothings done about it.
Well....dunno how relevant i might sound....but these r some...rather few things i'd want to change.....i hate the way things go on here....about marks...about it being a question of ego....increasing or infusing unnecessary competitiveness among kids...kids who could have been friends end up fighting.....how some parents boast about the 99.99's their kids score.....is it all necessary....should the whole world know what goes on at ur home???even worse how the "other" parents screw up their kids life because of so many 99.99's......it doesnt even sound natural to me......i hope things change.....but.....its again a hope against hope....i know of some friends who've already thought of sending their kids to IIT!!!!!!!!(heights of...i donno what to call it!!!!!)......its not a crime to be ambitious.....but not over a line....there r no priorities for any little things in life.....thankfully i never had such a childhood....maybe thats why am reacting...or if u want...call it over-reacting....i hope to find people with similar mindset so that whats going on now doesn't continue.....it'll end up bad......life expectancy might come down to 30/35 in a while!!!!!!!
possibly i want to stop...might continue in another post far too disturbed to go on....
So.....that was it. Well come to think of it.....when did this trafficking and abusing and hurting start.Its no mafia of today....no "under-world" don got it done over night...it goes back to olden days that started with slavery which is still continuing.I fail to understand why this never does to an end.Everyone knows about such things........ and well something that i cant comprehend is with the mind set of the "middle class" society of India. The UNICEF report only spoke of children who were most likely to have had been under privileged.But thats not it.....the factor of child abuse does not end there.....its not the monetary status that decides. Lot of examples that i'
d want to quote......
1.Peak summer time in kerala.......Engineering and Medical entrance coaching class in a vacant government school.......timings:morning 7 to evening 4 with half an hour break session....now that itself "sounds" draining.....imagine....the heat of about 40 deg and fans switched off....(sounds like am kidding???? NO)...i had my niece going to that place and half of the student's would end up dozing.Now...the interesting bit.....WHY WERE THE FANS NEVER SWITCHED ON???? well..simple ans...they wanted to cut down the bill...and the fee charged was a big amount with which they could have easily payed the bill!! they dont have the expenses other than the salary of the staff and the rent of the building!! Isnt that inhuman.....outrageous?? and NO parent still complains....why??? CHILDREN R SUPPOSED TO GO THERE AND STUDY.....and not enjoy the fan!!!! (DUH!!!) Its "somehow or the other get into an engineering/medical colg and get a job" attitude thats gripping them.No one raised their voice....and i dont think anyone would ever as well..
2.Another entrance exam coaching ctr in kerala..... All glory to "methodology" of teaching.well......inside that place....i'd call it a hell hole.....a concentration camp......This person divides(guy who runs it) the students in few batches....and the classification being by their 10th board scores. and the toppers batch get the best faculty and....the following get by their respective grades.....(WOW).....ok....then....the "elite" group of people taught by this man get abused...he yells what ever horrible things that comes to his mind...yeah!!!! outright....no concession for ur parents as well..even with their names involved!!!!!!!(still maddening rush to get into that place).then the hostels......food.. horrible.....if u want to reduce more than half ur weight dont look for any gym or diets...just enroll in this place......and....in the hostel....u can talk to ur fellow room mates for "10 minutes a day" and 10 students have a warden and share a dormitory.I mean....which sane parent would want that????For all i care i'd have yelled at the owner of this institution and got him beaten up and locked him up in the prison long back....(if i had the power to).Now...thats not the whole point.......why does he do it?? why doesn't anyone react??? why r they still sending kids to that place....(answer in the above pt).
3.Children at home....at school....no freedom of thought....THINK WAT UR TOLD TO!. is the rule of the day....no innovativeness.... no one's creative.I have neighbors,whose kids are in kinder garden.....go for tuitions!!!! Is it an age to go for tuitions??? I really feel terrible thinking about that fellow...gets back from school at 4 and runs to the coaching ctr within half an hour....i mean,some effort from home should save the kids....no....nothings done about it.
Well....dunno how relevant i might sound....but these r some...rather few things i'd want to change.....i hate the way things go on here....about marks...about it being a question of ego....increasing or infusing unnecessary competitiveness among kids...kids who could have been friends end up fighting.....how some parents boast about the 99.99's their kids score.....is it all necessary....should the whole world know what goes on at ur home???even worse how the "other" parents screw up their kids life because of so many 99.99's......it doesnt even sound natural to me......i hope things change.....but.....its again a hope against hope....i know of some friends who've already thought of sending their kids to IIT!!!!!!!!(heights of...i donno what to call it!!!!!)......its not a crime to be ambitious.....but not over a line....there r no priorities for any little things in life.....thankfully i never had such a childhood....maybe thats why am reacting...or if u want...call it over-reacting....i hope to find people with similar mindset so that whats going on now doesn't continue.....it'll end up bad......life expectancy might come down to 30/35 in a while!!!!!!!
possibly i want to stop...might continue in another post far too disturbed to go on....
Sunday, July 1, 2007
woooh!!!! my BEAUtiful sunday!
RAINSS!!!!!!!......yeah....looooong awaited rains....but now that it's set off...and yeah....i mean....SET OFF!!!! can it not rain anymore....okie...if not anymore...for like just 2 days!phew....staying at home for 5 whole days...u know...knowing nothing than the periphery of my house...that would'nt even include the exterior gates,a walk through the streets of kalpathy can mean a lot.
Doing that had always been a routine....a nice bath to fresh up....pray and Yes! hit the road! ;)...ahem...i mean....walk on the road.... :D...but yeah....monsoon has deprived me of that privilage as well!!! i mean....it'd been a basic necessity and now i felt all locked up in prison!!!!!!
T.V,computer....(precisely orkut and coolgoose)and few books...
Coming to tv.......almost everything i'd like watching are air-head shows......unless am in the state of mind where-in am all info grabing!!!but...yeah otherwise....its let's go...mtv select....top 10....interviews....and....yes...obviously movies....but it can get so totally monotonous....then's orkut,i'd positively want to say its boring! i mean....none of my friends who i'd want to catch up come...and whoever come r those who'r like me...nothing to do....leave a scrap....u know what the expected reply is...and yet!! ah!! the saga continues...so i've lost the charm on it that was once EVER GLOWING!!!
OK...and my last life saver.....novels...i did read quiet some good ones these holidays...but yeah....I HAVE READ !!! so that makes it past-tense! i dont have anything that can stick me onto it!!!!!unless i wanna read some of them again....(nice thought...under serious considerations)
hmmm.....so today...rather this evening i thought....NO i cant be stuck at home! i need to get out....at least to the temple....hmm....no its not "atleast" it is TO THE TEMPLE!....i need to pray for a divine intervention! i needed some gimmicks done by HIM!.....so i need to perform my share of coaxing ;)...
so.....i got out.....something made me not wear my slippers today....i normally dont do that...considering the fact that its rough outside....and my "well cared" delicate feet [;) ] might get hurt...so i've never gone bare foot....but i guess the rain and the little pools of water that's there on roads made me consider and yes! am proud of my intuitions!!!! it was brilliant.....the slippery roads....the little pools of water,the drizzle and the absolutely gray sky got the romantic out of me! :D
went to the temple....felt wonderful...felt long that i've been to one...(actually yes)....something nice.then...i started walking.....beautiful winds,the clouds above getting darker by the minute....woah....there i go!I could not help but keep smile....i felt so happy....i guess i havent felt this happy in...lets say...for about 20 days!!!(yeah last time...ie 20 days back i was frighteningly happy)....but today was special....something like meeting a long lost friend.i loved every second of it......i kept having that idiotic grin on my face and am pretty sure that i noticed few ppl looking at my stupidity...i mean...who wouldnt!!!! its raining cats and dogs....ppl r shutting the doors and windows cursing the sky! and there goes someone who's grinning...must be nuts ;)
i ended up smiling in the temple!!(wierder)
Further down the road the winds became more fierce,heavy downpour.....oh yeah! my thirst was sure quenched!! and yea....i was frighteningly happy again!!!i thought i might end up hysterical....but thankfully i didnt!
....i guess He did hear! atleast made me smile for like 30 mins and feel good about it for LONG!!!!
ah.....what more can i ask!!!
Doing that had always been a routine....a nice bath to fresh up....pray and Yes! hit the road! ;)...ahem...i mean....walk on the road.... :D...but yeah....monsoon has deprived me of that privilage as well!!! i mean....it'd been a basic necessity and now i felt all locked up in prison!!!!!!
T.V,computer....(precisely orkut and coolgoose)and few books...
Coming to tv.......almost everything i'd like watching are air-head shows......unless am in the state of mind where-in am all info grabing!!!but...yeah otherwise....its let's go...mtv select....top 10....interviews....and....yes...obviously movies....but it can get so totally monotonous....then's orkut,i'd positively want to say its boring! i mean....none of my friends who i'd want to catch up come...and whoever come r those who'r like me...nothing to do....leave a scrap....u know what the expected reply is...and yet!! ah!! the saga continues...so i've lost the charm on it that was once EVER GLOWING!!!
OK...and my last life saver.....novels...i did read quiet some good ones these holidays...but yeah....I HAVE READ !!! so that makes it past-tense! i dont have anything that can stick me onto it!!!!!unless i wanna read some of them again....(nice thought...under serious considerations)
hmmm.....so today...rather this evening i thought....NO i cant be stuck at home! i need to get out....at least to the temple....hmm....no its not "atleast" it is TO THE TEMPLE!....i need to pray for a divine intervention! i needed some gimmicks done by HIM!.....so i need to perform my share of coaxing ;)...
so.....i got out.....something made me not wear my slippers today....i normally dont do that...considering the fact that its rough outside....and my "well cared" delicate feet [;) ] might get hurt...so i've never gone bare foot....but i guess the rain and the little pools of water that's there on roads made me consider and yes! am proud of my intuitions!!!! it was brilliant.....the slippery roads....the little pools of water,the drizzle and the absolutely gray sky got the romantic out of me! :D
went to the temple....felt wonderful...felt long that i've been to one...(actually yes)....something nice.then...i started walking.....beautiful winds,the clouds above getting darker by the minute....woah....there i go!I could not help but keep smile....i felt so happy....i guess i havent felt this happy in...lets say...for about 20 days!!!(yeah last time...ie 20 days back i was frighteningly happy)....but today was special....something like meeting a long lost friend.i loved every second of it......i kept having that idiotic grin on my face and am pretty sure that i noticed few ppl looking at my stupidity...i mean...who wouldnt!!!! its raining cats and dogs....ppl r shutting the doors and windows cursing the sky! and there goes someone who's grinning...must be nuts ;)
i ended up smiling in the temple!!(wierder)
Further down the road the winds became more fierce,heavy downpour.....oh yeah! my thirst was sure quenched!! and yea....i was frighteningly happy again!!!i thought i might end up hysterical....but thankfully i didnt!
....i guess He did hear! atleast made me smile for like 30 mins and feel good about it for LONG!!!!
ah.....what more can i ask!!!
RIYADH.......ah.....i just love u!
hmm...been quiet a few days that writing about Riyadh's been on my mind.well.......Riyadh....thats where i've spent a large chunk of my life.A place i would call.....urrmm...not exactly home....but a little inferior to it.i'd say that because....
1.I HAD TO WEAR PURDAH'S.......(ok....part of me did enjoy the black flowy garment)
2.THERE WERE NO WATER BODIES......(i still hate Riyadh for being a land locked area)
3.LESS RAIN!!!!!!(another reason.....)
ok....but..yeah apart from that i love that place.i still remember the first time i'd landed on the KING KHALID INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT....my mom,brother and i.it was a long journey for me ans...yes it was a wonder.
Now.....its a wonder because till then...(i.e till i was abt 3and half) i'd been in a village or if ur familiar with the usage of agraharams...yes...i used to live in one...in Palakkad....where nothing or no one's ever busy.From there was where my journey started....to Bombay....woah! the whooping crowd and traffic!I was stunned looking at the ever growing buildings(which ended up looking horrid later).Don't remember much happenings in Bombay though....then....YES...it started.....my 4 and half hr journey to Riyadh.The longest time i'd been on a plane.i was excited but yeah...scared cuz its not supported by roads or railway lines...but yeah.....i dozed off if my memory's right(now...i don want to sound like suffering from amnesia...so thats the best line).
ENCHANTED....AWE-STRUCK ....all these are the words that i'd want to say about that mammoth sized airport.golden-cream marbles all around me untouched steel rails(or ever polished)........tall in house plants......and to top it all......AN ENORMOUS FOUNTAIN!!!!.....What more can astound a kid.....why a kid...anyone who'd seen nothing close to all that.....somehow it all looked like a fairy tale......(except for the khaki suited men who kept screaming what made no sense to me)and from the slight openings of the door my mom pointed that my father was waiting for our arrival....hmm....now.......i was going to meet....or yes stay with someone who i'd never been with.....well i was an infant when my father was there at home and....now...yeah....he was COMPLETE stranger to me.....i didnt know much...rather anything.....and....was scared of the impending meeting(which melted like ice on a hot tava in a bloody short while)..... i saw a man in beige coat and pants and kept gaping.....wooh! so....this is my NEW HOME!
well.....for months....since i'd got there in the month of august,i could'nt join school so my mom tutored me(now am not supposed to be wasting time) and my brother continued his 8th.......it was some place.....the shopping malls! yeah.....!!!!! the amount of toys that were heaped....the chocolates....and biscuits!!!! gosh!......its all an experience!.....i still remember i wanted to tag with dad just like my brother to where ever he would go....now that includes the office as well.i still remember.....when he'd get back from work...thats like by 3:30 in the after-noon his first job will be to FIND me....(hehehe...it was a small hide and seek game that i can never forget playing)......i used to hide behind doors....under the table.....and yeah...it was like magic....he'd find me in an instant!!!!(sigh...i hate growing up!)
Mom used to pin me with books in the morning.....now....it wasn't laborious so am not one bit grumbling.......then came a lot of South-Indian family friends....one being my dad's second cousin.....a small circle of friends....(mind u i haven't yet joined school).....finally the BIG DAY.....my first day in school.....wasn't cranky.....because it wasn't my FIRST school....so was fine...but yeah...ALL new faces did get me a wee bit uneasy. i didn't know anyone! In fact....i didn't even know enough English to communicate!(horrible pang of hopelessness)....just few bits and pieces and not much of malayalam either....all i knew was THALAYALAM(the pkd tamil)...now who on earth would know that....yes...inspite of being in an INDIAN school...
I picked up the language pretty fast.....made some good friends fast......luckily had a bunch of MALLU'S AROUND!!!!so....THE GANG was formed fast,....teachers complaining about the talkative mallu kids in class.....i dreaded the parent teacher meetings!!! kept me wondering....DIDN'T THEY HAVE ANYTHING NICE TO TELL ABOUT ME?????(cu my marks cards were never impressive).....even more horrible to hear "all praise" about my brother....but i guess "i dont give a damn" attitude has infused in my since my birth so the J factor never did come up.....
i dont remember much of my first trip back to India after an year...but yeah...somehow i hated going back...i cudnt see my uncle's or aunts....or my granny!!!! or even my best friend in my village....oh...i forgot to mention...i had a best friend back then....wonder where he's now....but...yeah he was my first friend.
days passed....years passed....and my brother was done with his 10th.....and...he was to continue his studying in kerala!!! (LARGEST SIGH OF RELIEF)....cuz it was always like nothing but fight was our mode of communication......(which still does continue).....i mean it sounds strange....a 15 yr old boy fighting with a 7 yr old kid!!!!!but....when i had ACTUALLY leave him behind in kerala and come back.......i do not want to imagine......was pathetic...i felt horrible....the first time i realized how much i loved him....was bad at home...NOW I DIDN'T HAVE ANYONE TO FIGHT WITH!.....i missed him....and ever since that trip to date i haven't lived a whole year with him or even worse he with all of us!!Year after year....i used to look forward for the "about 45 days" holidays in India......things were always the same back there in Riyadh....my school routine....Wednesday was THE DAY!....mom made amazing lunch by the time I'd be back from school.....(never the conventional south Indian food).Invariably we'd go to a mall...(i'd never let my parents drive to the little kerala store called "kairali").....NO WAY!!! come on....its a wednesday for God's sake...we cant be going there!!!!!.....ao whether required or not we'd go to a super market.....and....my all time favorite being one...called"EUROMARCHE".......i wouldn't agree with tamimi or al-jazira(other malls)......i LOVED euromarche....(i still do)....was huge.....had a huge gaming place......yeah....precisely all that anyone would want.......then a thursday....mild day of the weekend....still manage to go out SOMEWHERE!....then came the horrid utterly boring friday.....no outing!!!and...yeah...sat...back to school....
There was this park just behind my house......invariably everyday i used to go there(yes when i a kid...)which existed for few years....and later on rumored to be haunted by a bangladeshi "bhoot" or was it just a way to cajole me of not going there....still haven't got that figured.
i've had some BEAU-tiful birthday parties to remember......one being when i guess what about 8.was brilliant....mom's skill of cooking at the pinnacle!zenith! name whatever!.....my house was flooded with people!Lot of family friends.....a beautifully huge strawberry and plain cream cake......(though i still wonder how i managed to eat that.....oh....btw i hate strawberries)
Speaking of another remarkable thing in riyadh was the vegetable "sookh"....or "chantha" in mallu....and....yes.....a market.....heard of vegetable floods....yes....that was it! nothing but it...i wouldnt call it eventful to go there but nice....something different which i can recollect....
10th.....exams....busy.....quiet some tensions...i really never cared much about the 90's so wouldnt call hyper-tension....yeah managed a decent and good score....11th.....horrible!!!! wanted to just get away from that institution!!! horrible teachers....horrible subjects....i've always disliked chemistry....never my cup of tea......don't even want to call it my teaspoon of tonic!!!
then....yes.....finally my final yr of schooling.....never did realize that it'd been 13 yrs of living in Riyadh!!!!! gosh.....I'd grown used to purdahs......i still remember how i prized my 2nd purdah....cuz i loathed the first one! i demanded the new one wrt to my performance of 10th boards!!!! come on....if not good colors...at least BLACK needs to look beautiful!!!! and with the emerging fashions in "abhaya" i longed for it!!!! and...yes i found the purdah of my dreams!!!! was the flowy black kind with Chinese arms..and with some brilliant embroidery..(making no sense??!@#$%^).....that was the in thing....(wonder whats it these days!).....but....yeah....not for long....after my 12th I'd to get back for further studying.....
Till then i didn't realize that I'd been in love with that place.......it was something living there....i feel like i was a totally different person ......there was something about me that i don't remember now.....the lifestyle that i have now is not one bit like how it was back then......i couldn't imagine that one day I'd have to leave Riyadh for good...it simply never crossed my mind....i never realized that Saudi-Arabia is not my country!!!!!
The last time i saw Riyadh was 2 years ago.......when I'd gone there for my ONAM holidays....my last one week......was painful....was horrid....no....no more....i dont want to think about it.....
But yeah....to all those who think saudi arabia to be a horrid nation with even more horrid laws.....i'd quiet want to re-define......it's a beautiful place.....just like every nation it has some rules and laws that quiet makes it unique......i kept peeping from my window seat trying to catch a last glimpse of the vast expanse of desert........and yeah if ever i'd get a chance to go there again....i'll do nothing but....GRAB THAT OPPORTUNITY!!!!
1.I HAD TO WEAR PURDAH'S.......(ok....part of me did enjoy the black flowy garment)
2.THERE WERE NO WATER BODIES......(i still hate Riyadh for being a land locked area)
3.LESS RAIN!!!!!!(another reason.....)
ok....but..yeah apart from that i love that place.i still remember the first time i'd landed on the KING KHALID INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT....my mom,brother and i.it was a long journey for me ans...yes it was a wonder.
Now.....its a wonder because till then...(i.e till i was abt 3and half) i'd been in a village or if ur familiar with the usage of agraharams...yes...i used to live in one...in Palakkad....where nothing or no one's ever busy.From there was where my journey started....to Bombay....woah! the whooping crowd and traffic!I was stunned looking at the ever growing buildings(which ended up looking horrid later).Don't remember much happenings in Bombay though....then....YES...it started.....my 4 and half hr journey to Riyadh.The longest time i'd been on a plane.i was excited but yeah...scared cuz its not supported by roads or railway lines...but yeah.....i dozed off if my memory's right(now...i don want to sound like suffering from amnesia...so thats the best line).
ENCHANTED....AWE-STRUCK ....all these are the words that i'd want to say about that mammoth sized airport.golden-cream marbles all around me untouched steel rails(or ever polished)........tall in house plants......and to top it all......AN ENORMOUS FOUNTAIN!!!!.....What more can astound a kid.....why a kid...anyone who'd seen nothing close to all that.....somehow it all looked like a fairy tale......(except for the khaki suited men who kept screaming what made no sense to me)and from the slight openings of the door my mom pointed that my father was waiting for our arrival....hmm....now.......i was going to meet....or yes stay with someone who i'd never been with.....well i was an infant when my father was there at home and....now...yeah....he was COMPLETE stranger to me.....i didnt know much...rather anything.....and....was scared of the impending meeting(which melted like ice on a hot tava in a bloody short while)..... i saw a man in beige coat and pants and kept gaping.....wooh! so....this is my NEW HOME!
well.....for months....since i'd got there in the month of august,i could'nt join school so my mom tutored me(now am not supposed to be wasting time) and my brother continued his 8th.......it was some place.....the shopping malls! yeah.....!!!!! the amount of toys that were heaped....the chocolates....and biscuits!!!! gosh!......its all an experience!.....i still remember i wanted to tag with dad just like my brother to where ever he would go....now that includes the office as well.i still remember.....when he'd get back from work...thats like by 3:30 in the after-noon his first job will be to FIND me....(hehehe...it was a small hide and seek game that i can never forget playing)......i used to hide behind doors....under the table.....and yeah...it was like magic....he'd find me in an instant!!!!(sigh...i hate growing up!)
Mom used to pin me with books in the morning.....now....it wasn't laborious so am not one bit grumbling.......then came a lot of South-Indian family friends....one being my dad's second cousin.....a small circle of friends....(mind u i haven't yet joined school).....finally the BIG DAY.....my first day in school.....wasn't cranky.....because it wasn't my FIRST school....so was fine...but yeah...ALL new faces did get me a wee bit uneasy. i didn't know anyone! In fact....i didn't even know enough English to communicate!(horrible pang of hopelessness)....just few bits and pieces and not much of malayalam either....all i knew was THALAYALAM(the pkd tamil)...now who on earth would know that....yes...inspite of being in an INDIAN school...
I picked up the language pretty fast.....made some good friends fast......luckily had a bunch of MALLU'S AROUND!!!!so....THE GANG was formed fast,....teachers complaining about the talkative mallu kids in class.....i dreaded the parent teacher meetings!!! kept me wondering....DIDN'T THEY HAVE ANYTHING NICE TO TELL ABOUT ME?????(cu my marks cards were never impressive).....even more horrible to hear "all praise" about my brother....but i guess "i dont give a damn" attitude has infused in my since my birth so the J factor never did come up.....
i dont remember much of my first trip back to India after an year...but yeah...somehow i hated going back...i cudnt see my uncle's or aunts....or my granny!!!! or even my best friend in my village....oh...i forgot to mention...i had a best friend back then....wonder where he's now....but...yeah he was my first friend.
days passed....years passed....and my brother was done with his 10th.....and...he was to continue his studying in kerala!!! (LARGEST SIGH OF RELIEF)....cuz it was always like nothing but fight was our mode of communication......(which still does continue).....i mean it sounds strange....a 15 yr old boy fighting with a 7 yr old kid!!!!!but....when i had ACTUALLY leave him behind in kerala and come back.......i do not want to imagine......was pathetic...i felt horrible....the first time i realized how much i loved him....was bad at home...NOW I DIDN'T HAVE ANYONE TO FIGHT WITH!.....i missed him....and ever since that trip to date i haven't lived a whole year with him or even worse he with all of us!!Year after year....i used to look forward for the "about 45 days" holidays in India......things were always the same back there in Riyadh....my school routine....Wednesday was THE DAY!....mom made amazing lunch by the time I'd be back from school.....(never the conventional south Indian food).Invariably we'd go to a mall...(i'd never let my parents drive to the little kerala store called "kairali").....NO WAY!!! come on....its a wednesday for God's sake...we cant be going there!!!!!.....ao whether required or not we'd go to a super market.....and....my all time favorite being one...called"EUROMARCHE".......i wouldn't agree with tamimi or al-jazira(other malls)......i LOVED euromarche....(i still do)....was huge.....had a huge gaming place......yeah....precisely all that anyone would want.......then a thursday....mild day of the weekend....still manage to go out SOMEWHERE!....then came the horrid utterly boring friday.....no outing!!!and...yeah...sat...back to school....
There was this park just behind my house......invariably everyday i used to go there(yes when i a kid...)which existed for few years....and later on rumored to be haunted by a bangladeshi "bhoot" or was it just a way to cajole me of not going there....still haven't got that figured.
i've had some BEAU-tiful birthday parties to remember......one being when i guess what about 8.was brilliant....mom's skill of cooking at the pinnacle!zenith! name whatever!.....my house was flooded with people!Lot of family friends.....a beautifully huge strawberry and plain cream cake......(though i still wonder how i managed to eat that.....oh....btw i hate strawberries)
Speaking of another remarkable thing in riyadh was the vegetable "sookh"....or "chantha" in mallu....and....yes.....a market.....heard of vegetable floods....yes....that was it! nothing but it...i wouldnt call it eventful to go there but nice....something different which i can recollect....
10th.....exams....busy.....quiet some tensions...i really never cared much about the 90's so wouldnt call hyper-tension....yeah managed a decent and good score....11th.....horrible!!!! wanted to just get away from that institution!!! horrible teachers....horrible subjects....i've always disliked chemistry....never my cup of tea......don't even want to call it my teaspoon of tonic!!!
then....yes.....finally my final yr of schooling.....never did realize that it'd been 13 yrs of living in Riyadh!!!!! gosh.....I'd grown used to purdahs......i still remember how i prized my 2nd purdah....cuz i loathed the first one! i demanded the new one wrt to my performance of 10th boards!!!! come on....if not good colors...at least BLACK needs to look beautiful!!!! and with the emerging fashions in "abhaya" i longed for it!!!! and...yes i found the purdah of my dreams!!!! was the flowy black kind with Chinese arms..and with some brilliant embroidery..(making no sense??!@#$%^).....that was the in thing....(wonder whats it these days!).....but....yeah....not for long....after my 12th I'd to get back for further studying.....
Till then i didn't realize that I'd been in love with that place.......it was something living there....i feel like i was a totally different person ......there was something about me that i don't remember now.....the lifestyle that i have now is not one bit like how it was back then......i couldn't imagine that one day I'd have to leave Riyadh for good...it simply never crossed my mind....i never realized that Saudi-Arabia is not my country!!!!!
The last time i saw Riyadh was 2 years ago.......when I'd gone there for my ONAM holidays....my last one week......was painful....was horrid....no....no more....i dont want to think about it.....
But yeah....to all those who think saudi arabia to be a horrid nation with even more horrid laws.....i'd quiet want to re-define......it's a beautiful place.....just like every nation it has some rules and laws that quiet makes it unique......i kept peeping from my window seat trying to catch a last glimpse of the vast expanse of desert........and yeah if ever i'd get a chance to go there again....i'll do nothing but....GRAB THAT OPPORTUNITY!!!!
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