Travel to Ranchi

 Travel to Ranchi

It has been a while since I travelled without any purpose and this is me who flies each week. It is an afternoon flight on Sunday. Airport is relatively empty and everything is slow. Our flight got delayed and folks started getting annoyed as if they had a heart operation to perform and they were getting late. 

Both my big one who is now an adult has gone to nyc to study at Columbia and my younger one is also going to follow suit. The relationship with New York continues with the next generation. Wifey is working on new things and as I say she is an enthusiastic person always trying to build new things or work on new things. As for me I continue to sell software for a living and enjoy mentoring various companies / individuals for no fee. My thought is that if I can help someone achieve his or her dreams and it results in positive growth of the person then why not. Maybe it will also spawn off new jobs and businesses. 

My health journey continues and finally come to this realisation that exercise is important but more than that is food and even more is mental relaxation. Most fall ill due to stress hormones and in ability to control thoughts and emotions.  These past 2-3 years have made me read much on health and most of the information available on the internet is outrightly incorrect and false. 

I have been reading all kinds of things but thoroughly bored with current events and politics it has become too predictable and uninteresting. Been watching lots of movies specifically European ones which I believe are a class apart and very well made. Highly recommend Borgen, these movies and shows gives one a window info foreign society and their thought process. 

This new year will be all about reading new books and I have decided to learn some new technologies and also pick up some new skills (maybe a language). Time continues to fly by.

Enjoy the holidays.

Thanks,

Shiva

Life Post Covid

Life is almost back to normal but peoples habits have changed. 

In the business world most of the companies are very comfortable doing online video meetings and don’t request in person meetings like they used to. Travel is now a revenge travel i.e. almost all hotels/ flights are full and folks are travelling like there is no tomorrow. Hotels like Taj which pre-covid time used to cost around 12K per night is now quoting 25K to 50K per night and even then it is not available. People have come to a belief of YOLO - You Only Live Once, so over-all life has changed.

From the economic perspective in India, something known as the ‘K’ curve has kicked in. Those with higher education (english education) and comfortable using the computer are doing very well, salaries are rising and lots of good job opportunities, these make up around 100 million odd folks but for the others who are more from the vernacular medium, things have become tougher as smaller companies or entities have almost collapsed, salaries have stagnated and jobs are tougher. Hence the K curve, for a section of society it is rocking and for the majority things are tough. The Government of India is giving free food to almost 800 million people (we are socialism at a different level). The sale of high end cars, apartments, motorcycles etc is going on in full swing but the entry level products are not selling. Even Colgate had a loss in sale this past quarter (hence the poorer not brushing as they used to). 

In Mumbai lots of things are happening, the real estate sector is booming (specially high end) and YOLO factor is kicking in with folks spending crazy money on weddings and other items or travelling to expensive places like Maldives etc.

On my side, I continue to work from in the software area and life is chugging along with new customers of all types. The son has turned 18 years old and the daughter is now 16+. One is finalising his college for the USA and other one is also in the process. Wifey is doing her fund management and she has become an expert in both the equity and to some extent the fixed income markets. My parents are doing good and they have recently bought a lovely Toyota SUV which is a unique product for the emerging ASEAN market.

So all in all I have no complaints and finally I might have lost some weight (not because of anything but not eating out of home that much), lots of home cooked food. This year I plan on doing some small trips (long trips are hard as kids don’t have time). 

I have become very active in the building management ever since I won the building election, spent lots of time on the elevator, fire fighting systems, building wiring, water systems etc. My civil engineering education is underway and it is good fun to learn something absolute new with no official or economic purpose. I stopped by Yoga and plan to re-start it hopefully in April types. What else, hmmm… younger generation is still figuring out how to migrate to USA/Canada/Australia etc (I had thought this will stop but the migration continues unabated).

Till the next blog when ever that happens.

Adios,

Shiva

18th Months Post Covid - Corona - From Mumbai

 Corona and Beyond -

It is Oct 2021 and the disease known as Covid or Corona has created havoc over the past 18 months. It has killed millions and rendered many jobless. It has made many people go online and start buying things online on places such as Amazon or Flipkart. Various money transactions have started happening online via things like Google Pay, UPI (Government of India’s Unified payment interface). Companies that could go digital have gone and picked up market share from companies that are mostly offline.

Last year when Corona started and most of us were not allowed to go to office, most of India started working from home (folks that work on computer systems). I landed up joining a new generation startup called Sibros Technologies out of San Jose California. It is a new age company working in connected automotive eco-system i.e. it is able to facilitate data movement from sensors in the vehicle to the cloud server and it is able to refresh or OTA - Over the Air update the sensors in the vehicle. The vehicle can be bike, car, truck, bus, tractor etc across IC, EV or H2 products.

My job is to get business for Sibros and help evangelise this to the Automotive ecosystem. Over the past year, we have made much progress and have spoken with hundreds of automotive OEM or system suppliers across Asia, EU and USA. This year we have started rolling out our solutions.

So kids have not gone to school for over 1.5 years, my son finished his 10th exams without giving his boards (ICSE) and the board system came up with some logic to give them final marks based on various criteria. The daughter has not met her classmates. Wifey is working from home and keeps buying selling shares on the stock market. Incidentally the stock market after initially collapsing has now almost 2X in value and volume and has hit all time high. All those who were vested in the market have made a killing in the share market. Since most folks in Bombay/ Mumbai invest in the share market, this has resulted in huge financial windfalls for the city residents.

So in a nut shell, travel ended, most of India was in curfew for many months, people lost jobs but those in digital industries gained jobs and huge salaries. Online became a way of life and various online collaboration tools got generated. Kids learned to learn over tools like Zoom/Google Meet etc. Small kids got lost as it is almost impossible for them to learn via mobile phones or laptops. Older people have gone through high depression as they cannot leave homes (due to covid infection). Every family lost some loved one to the covid virus (specially in India). 

As for me, it has been a different time, I joined a company where I have not met many of my colleagues, started doing business across all continents, learned various new technologies and rebooted my life for the next set of adventures. 

So where do we go from here, my take it things will go back to normal, I am right now on a domestic Indian flight (after almost 18 months) and it is a full flight, people are travelling wearing masks and people keep washing their hands with sanitisers to avoid contact and corona. I will restart my travel as and when customers are willing to meet and countries allow Indian nationals to travel to their areas. I have kept up with my Yoga and started walking, not lost much weight but I believe my fitness levels must have surely improved. The son went to the USA for the summer of 2021 and played various tennis tournaments, he loved California and wants to study and settle down in the States and as usual the daughter will follow the elder brother and she too shall move to USA. 

So till then from a new world order rattled by Covid over the past year or so, I sign off and will meet soon. 

Sayonara,

Shiva

New Work and Change of Thinking

A few months ago I moved out operationally from MapmyIndia day to day role. It was a big change since I had been at it for almost 12 years, which is long enough for anyone. Change is scary but more than anything else is change is moving away from routine and into something new. As

Over the years I have been deeply involved into software sales and deployment across all sorts of technologies/industries/areas. I have decided to continue down this path as I love technology and the changes it brings along with it.

Initial few days was very different not knowing what to do with the time so I binged watched NetFlix. Slowly but surely I have been slowing down my pace of life and eventually I dont need to travel like an idiotic anymore. I believe I have paid my fair share for travel away from family. Next few years will be critical as kids will go through their high school.

The son is playing tennis away at a camp and he is loving it. The Younger girl is now enrolled in high stakes Maths/Physics classes and she likes it. Even gives me problems which I cannot solve. Summer has ended here in Bombay and now rains have started today.

I am in the self discovery phase of what to kick start now, been working on some cloud/internet technologies but it will take some more time to mature.

Shall keep you updated.
Ciao,
Shiva

Ageing and pace of life

As time is going by, I am ageing in terms of health and stamina and things I could do maybe 10 years ago. Most dont acknowledge and most dont agree with the concept but ageing is part of life. It is best to accept and accordingly tune ones life to enjoy the same.

I have been consistently traveling around 150+ flights for the last 5-6 years both in India and abroad. It has been great from a point of view of business travel and meeting people, going places experiencing the world, but as one ages one starts to think what is the need of so much travel, is it worth it? I have finally decided to end exploratory travel and work on building business in Mumbai and travel to different places for specific needs.

Something I have started over the year is Yoga, I think this is the best thing my wife and my friend convinced me to do. I am not the best Yogic but it has helped me in terms of strength and focus/stamina. The goal is now to keep this going.

What else?? India is going through change with elections being held in MP, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Telengana/Mizoram with Congress making inroads and is finally winning against BJP, but the interesting thing is that BJP vote share has not fallen much. Lots of construction in Mumbai with metro lines, new roads, water works etc. City seems to be completely under construction.
Business front my new venture is still figuring out how to sell specialized cloud services, I am sure I will figure it out, needs continuous push.

The boy of mine is playing tennis nationally and has made great progress. Girl has now turned 12 and is regularly playing Basketball for school. She gets up at 5.30 Am each morning. Wifey is running her financial fund and is commuting to suburbs of Mumbai facing traffic/commute of 1-2 hours each day.

I am trying to slow pace of life, working on specific projects and not random chasing things in life. Trying to get a balance. Next year plan on spending some time doing interesting travel. I am at the mid-point of my life and it is time to experiment with some new places, things, concepts.

Adios,
Shiva

On a late evening flight

These are thoughts on a flight

I am writing after some months. Just finished an exciting trip to Japan and back. It was nice. Met my Japanese partner, and along with them met up with some interesting companies. Mostly in the automotive space. Every time I go to Japan the thing that strikes out to me is the cleanliness and the honesty of the people. I am convinced if I need to buy something and it needs to last sometime, I am going to buy Japanese. The effort they put into their products and service is mind boggling. I have not seen it in any Indian company. Here is all 'Chalta Hai'.

Right now on a flight from Delhi to Bombay, it was a day trip, got up at 5.30AM in the morning and have been travelling the entire day but it was a fruitful, went for some internal discussions. Today in India, the Congress/TDP parties led a no-confidence motion against the BJP led government, completely for optics as BJP has absolute majority in the Indian parliament. It will be interesting to see what happens in the coming elections, it is a real toss up.

Technology is really changing in India, have gotten Amazon Prime membership and one can download movies, music etc onto the mobile device and even without internet connectivity, one can enjoy some nice content. I am sure in a few years, all planes etc will streaming content. The flight on the way from India to Japan had live Satellite TV, I landed up watching the World Cup Football 2018 match. Technology has come a long way and it has a long way to go. Pollution/energy needs are still very basic stuff that tech has to take care of. It too shall change if we give it enough time.

So what is happening around in India - Well Indians who have some money are very pessimistic about India that the country will fail and are leaving in big numbers. Funny enough each time they come to India they get shocked with the kind of wealth being built in India. It is following the China model and people in India in the next 20 years will have crazy money across most strata of society. I think in 2040 it will kick into full gear as a new generation comes up educated. They will be more demanding and will most likely push more. Most of the world would have aged by them and will be looking to Robots to help them out. India will be kicking in high gear despite all our corruption and nepotism.

Most people are trying to find the meaning of life, trying to live healthy etc. Wholesome life. Most dont realize, we are on a time clock, do what the hell gives you a kick keeping in mind that you dont hurt someones sentiments and are not selfish. In my world, eat good food with enough sleep and have some good conversations. Rest just plays out itself, one cannot control or channel it. I was reading some of my posts from 10 years back and it was interesting to see what has changed. Literally nothing except I have gotten 10 years older, kids are growing up and working towards academics, sports etc as it is. I have been trying to do yoga in a small little way no expert but I believe it is a poor mans exercise. Maybe running is a better exercise but for those who are ok doing basic things, yoga works well. I am sure at a senior level Yoga will be mind boggling but that is beyond my physical limits.

Anyways, enough ranting, more to come in some months or years as the case maybe. Keep reading whoever you are.

Ciao,
Shiva

Summer of 2018 in Mumbai

It has been a really long time since I have posted. I believe there are various reasons for the same, mostly the amount of time spent on a laptop/computer has greatly reduced. Most of the work is done via tablets or smartphones and it is difficult to write long posts via small devices.

The Indian summer of Western India is here and it is hot and sweaty. Schools are closed and over-all traffic has reduced. The mango season is in place. Life has picked up a good cadence and days are passing by. It is summer of hope and change.

My little ones have moved into grades 8th and 7th respectively. Both have done well academically. The boy is playing good tennis and has represented Maharashtra in the National Tennis tournament (held at Hyderabad). The girl is also doing her Bharat Natyam and is getting to be more creative each day. Over-all cannot complain. Wife is now running a investment fund and is doing well in her professional life and teaching me a bit or two about shares/bonds/stocks etc. On the business side we had the best year ever and have become a decent brand in what we do. It has been a struggle over the years but the last few years things have started falling into place and now the idea is to find the next set of things to do for growth. I have some ideas and will share.

So what is new in India. BJP is running the country and has won literally all state elections and also has absolute in the national parliament. They are trying to do many things but has have a singular view of the cultural world which irritates and hurts many. Lets see how things shape out in the next national elections (Indian elections are really intriguing and fun). Politics, cricket, movies and good food is what Indian life is made up of.

The affluent are all trying to send their kids abroad to study (USA/Canada/Australia/UK/EU etc) and most of the folks I know dont even make it to national competitive exams like we did. Not sure how does studying abroad make life any better or worse. Most cannot even work in the countries they study so it makes them more frustrated and when they come back their degrees dont have much value in the Indian marketplace. Lets see in a few years we as a family also have to decide where my kids should study.

Travelled alot for work over the last 2 odd years and made some good business deals. Also learned much about the culture of various countries and at the end of the day it is all the same. All trying to make a living and figuring out how to work the least.

Will resume posting again. Hope you enjoy the reads.

Thanks,
Shiva

Visit to Japan for a conference

21st Oct 2016
Tokyo, Japan

This has been an interesting trip to Japan as I have been able to get in touch with so many persons who I otherwise would not be able to meet. The trip was interesting in essence because of the fact that I was able to operate independently on my own without any help of Japanese partners or customers. Japan is a very organized society and as long as one knows the rules of engagement he/she will be able to operate seamlessly. I believe I will be coming down to Japan many times and will build good lasting relationships. In my personal capacity I get along very well with Japanese people, they are similar to the older generation Indians who seek order and respect.

This trip was about visiting a conference at the Westin, Tokyo. I stayed at a hotel called MyStay, which was in a part called Gotanda. Took the ANA flight into Narita and then took the return trip (advanced paid) train ticket to the city. The Narita Express train drops one off at different points in the city and then one has to change trains to reach their destination. There are many train companies in Tokyo / Japan and each of them operate independently, i.e. the ticket system is different for each of them. Broadly, the JR Rail (Yamamoto line or something like that) and the Tokoi Metro are the main train lines. In addition to this, there are commuter train lines known as Hitachi Express, etc. The bullet train is known as the Shinkasen and is broadly operates between major cities (it also has a classification of levels slow, faster, fastest known as Nozomi).

The first day I went walking over to the Westin Hotel and had a chance to see the nice high end areas like Meguro (I am assuming it is high end because of the presence of consultates / embassies - normally the foreign offices in a city are in the nicer areas). On the way learned that the Google maps are not always right (it showed Westin almost 500 meteres off, which is a nightmare in a country where you dont know the language). The Westin was like how the TAJ Bombay used to be many years ago, rich and elegant. Over the next 2 days I had the chance to meet the many companies operating in the Automotive and next generation technologies (autonomous driving, connected system, 5G network roll outs, self healing systems etc). Japanese folks like anything American and I realized it is better to sell to the American companies when I want to reach out to the Japanese. I guess history never changes (used to the same almost 150 years ago).

Spent 2 full days at the conference, was also a speaker and explained to the audience what I have been doing in the Autonomous (driverless car area), it seems in this eco-system most of the players are still trying to find their sweet spot. Met bunch of nice folks (many from Seattle). Anyways I have planned a trip to Seattle to meet up with some of these companies. Next day I had the chance to meet my investors Zenrin, Ltd and it was nice to meet old friends. Also landed up meeting some of the leading software companies of Japan and realized nothing is different between USA  - India - Japan and all is the same only the price points differ.

Right now in the Narita express on the way to the airport listening to Coldplay and Adele. Been a good trip and now next week to Singapore to meet potential customers and my sisters (both of whom live in Singapore).

Sayonara,
Adious,
Shiva

Assam, North East, Shillong, Dawki, Cherrapunji, Manas National Park

I had been planning a trip to the the North East for a long time but nothing used to come of it. The Wifey was like I am all fine to join the trip but you have to plan and execute the same. Nothing came of it and the time went by. Sometime last year around december 2015, I met up with the Mishra's and Jambekars (Friends of ours) and asked them would they be interested in going for a trip to the North East. Both the parties were keen for the trip and the next step was to determine which place in North east to visit. I for one, was keen on Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. It has been a place I have always wanted to visit since I started driving around in India.

The Mishra's and Jambekars henceforth I will refer to them as M and J were not sure about the long trip to Tawang as the facilities are limited and it is a long drive from Guwahati to Tawang, so finally the plan to Tawan was scrapped and we signed up for a trip of Lower Assam including Kaziranga, Shillong and Meghalaya. Now came the main part of planning the trip where to stay, what to visit and how to pace the trip. Here the Wifey had a uncle who was posted in the eastern part of India and he connected us to a travel agency called Brahmaputra Jungle Resort, which organizes trips and excursions in the North East. Wife gave me a contact number to take the discussions forward but me being me, got lazy and busy and forgot about the same. Months passed and I did nothing. Finally it dawned on me to enlist Mr. M as a fellow planner as he is great as organizing things and has a penchant for it. M spoke with the travel operator at leangth and planned out the itinenrany, hotels, stays cars and all. So thanks to wifey and Mr M, the trip got organized and we bought our flight tickets to Gawhati. All in all, we were 3 families with 4 members each so 12 persons

On a Thursday morning we took a early morning flight from Bombay to Gawhati (thanks to Indigo airlines it was non-stop). Felt good to be taking a flight where I was not a time crunch and was all relaxed to take a vacation to the North east.

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We landed at Gawhati but the J family was coming via another flight and were running 4 hours behind us. At the airport the tour operator was present and he arranged 2 Yoyota Innovas for us (it must be said Toyota Innova is the best and most comfortable vehicle for long road trips). We hopped on the vehicles and bypassed Guwahati and took the highway to Kaziranga. The roads were definitely better than Bombay roads and now were also better than delhi roads but then the roads of big cities in india are quite pathetic and useless (filled with potholes). The kids, Wifey and I sitting in the car starting seeing the landscape of Assam. It is breathtaking and with limited traffic on the highway it was a smooth ride. We stopped for traditional Assamese lunch along the way and it reminded me of food similar to what we eat at home, very Bihari/Bengali in nature with limited spices (kinda sick of eating North Indian spicy masala food). I relished the food and all enjoyed except the boy who kind of likes to eat only plain boiled rice (he is going the Japanese way), the girl loved to eat the fish (she must have been a fisherwoman in her previous life) and after the sumptuous meal we drove off to Kaziranga. We had booked the Iora Resort which is a nice clean place with a pool etc. On the way when we entered the Kaziranga areas, we saw Rhino's alongside the highway, it was a sight to see. It is one thing to see Rhinos in movies/TV an another thing to see it in real life. Wifey was in Photo mode and along with Mrs M, they took a zillion pics. That night we rested and the J family also joined us for dinner.

Next day we went off to a nearby Orchid garden where traditonal Assamese dances, food etc is available. A very quaint place and something I enjoyed. I landed up buying "Bel Fruit Juice) and enjoyed another Assamese lunch. Mr. J who is also a fish lover got special fish made for himself (something he did on all meals where fish was available, he loves a good fish dish). In the afternoon, we went for a jungle safari in open jeeps. Men/Boys in one jeep and women/girls in the other one. We drove all over Kaziranga park and had numerous sightings of Rhinos who were roaming around in good numbers. Master J is a avid bird watcher and was able to identify many birds and fauna of the place. We also saw various elephants in the forest. All in all a good day, which I will cherish for many years to come.

The next morning went for the famous Kaziranga Elephant safari. It must be noted that the safari starts at 5.30 Am and oen should go early in the moring for good animal sighting. We went back to Kaziranga via another gate and had a 1 hour elephant safari which is different from a Jeep safari was elephant takes you into the marshy area etc and one gets a closer look at the wild animals. That day we checked out and drove to Shillong (Meghalaya), which is aound a 6-7 hour drive.

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Meghlaya is broadly divided into three group of hills Khasi, Garo and Jantia. Shillong is in the Khasi side.

We reached Shillong and the first thing I noticed was traffic. It seems the traffic in Shillong is no better than the traffic in Bombay and might be even worse. We checked into a hotel called Tripura Castle, which is a very nice hotels (oh I forgot it was chilly in Shillong and basic shawls or jumpers were needed). Tripura Castle is what the doctor ordered and we checked into our fancy hotels rooms (i think the room was half my apartment size from Bombay). There was a nice cafe and the crowd was eclectic. I fell in love with Shillong and personally believe all who like to travel should definitely visit Shillong for its cafes/music and food. The 6 kids had a blast. Next morning we went to the Elephant falls where I had a good work out walking from the top of the falls to the bottom and then all the way back up. Lazy me is not used to walking so much, I dont think the kind of life I lead if I even burn any calories. We did all the touristy things like going to the hilltop which is inside an airforce station and the wifey and all the J and M junta clicked a zillion pictures. The kids dressed up in Khasi outfits. Evening again we were at the hotel were living music was playing good numbers from Coldplay and the types (light rock) and with the fresh air of the city, good food and company, it was a blast.

From Shillong we drove to Cherrapunjee, which used to get the highest rainfall in the world, that honor is now another place around 50KM from Cherrapunjee. On the way to Cherrapunjee we visited a cave which was aorund 3 KM long and must be millions of years old with fossils in the cave. It was kind scary and cave had a small water system running through it. We got drenched but enjoyed the experience. Now Meghalaya is very similar to Scotland, the landscape is very similar to Scottish Highlands only I believe it is better (most of india has not found the place yet). We reached Cherrapunjee around lunch time and checked into a hotel called Polo Orchid, it was very foggy with 10 meter visibility. Thank God for the experienced drivers. We had a chance to see the 7 sisters waterfall it is one of its kind in the world. That night it rained cats and dogs and winds howling at 70KMPH or more, I was sure the hotel will fall down but luckily it survived. There was no electricity for the last 3 days but the local diesel genset was doing the honors. We survived the night and next morning we went to Mawlynoong, which is the cleanest village in Asia and has the world famous Living Roots Bridge (it is a bridge where the trees from both side have intertwined to make a natural river crossing). We reached Mawlynoong and enjoyed a great Khasi lunch. From here I convinced the M and J family to drive down to Dawki, the India-Bangaladesh border, which was around 40 KM away. Initially every one was skeptical as they wanted to go back to Shillong but being the persuasive me, we went to the border town of Dawki, took a few snaps with the BSF folks and were told not to cross the open border (one can just walk around and one will reach Bangladesh - by crossing the rice fields). it is surreal.
From Dawki we drove back to Barapani (famous for its lake) and we checked into another beautiful property which is also managed by Tripura Castle folks. We rested for the night and early next morning the ever active Mr. M took us for a long hike (again difficult for lazy me but I endured). From Barapani we drove to Gawahati and checked into the newly opened Taj Vivanta on the edge of Guwahati.

Trip to USA East Coast May 2014- Disney - Part 3

So onward our trip started, rambling along the I-95 interstate system. It is the road artery of the Eastern United States and God alone knows the number of people who use it each. We had chosen La Quinta Inn, at Edgewood, Maryland. After lots of research, I came to the conclusion that if you can afford it and need to stay with family but are not willing spend on a full blown hotel chain, then La Quinta and Hiltons Hampton Inn are very good places to stay at. Rooms are clean, breakfast is good, and in general these are safe. So LaQuinta it was. I was quite proud of myself and all the troops along with me that after a long flight from India, renting a gigantic van, we drove some 200 odd miles and checked into a motel. Ms. Friend and her kids were very tired, Mr. Friend, my Wifey and kids all went for a American dinner at the local iHop. Most people dont like iHop because of its calorie loading, artery choking food but I love their pancakes and food in general.

11th May
Next day, we drove from the Inn we drove into the great city of Washington DC (which unfortunately is not represented in the US congress - taxation without representation). Myself being paranoid about parking, we looked for various locations to park our Van and once the task was completed, we went to check out President Obama's house, the White House. It being a lovely day, we got a bunch of pictures. Suddenly at this point, my Friend, who is a fitness person, decided to take a small jog around the garden in front of the white house, it went off without incidents and some of the kids also joined him. Myself, being the lazy bones I am, took a small stroll and found myself a good bench. We roamed around the White House area, and checked out the National Monument, Lincoln Memorial etc in the neighborhood and then called it quits. Our next stop was Goldsboro, North Carolina. The home of my aunt and uncle. I have a very strong emotional attachment to this state as I have spent good number of my vacations in the past at the aunts/uncle and over-all Goldsboro is a very warm and loving place. It is middle America where most people dont lock their houses and people at the grocery store still care for their customers. We reached Goldsboro late in the evening and called it day.

Over the next few days, all we did was shop and shop and shop and shop some more. Ms Friend, who is a art collector and image consultant, loved the fact that all the malls, shopping outlets were within 1 mile of my aunts place and she freaked out with the shopping. In addition we had a good outlet in a place called Smithfield, which carries a bunch of stores like Gap, Polo etc. We took the kids strawberry picking and also brought up a good barbeque.  Felt nice spending time at Goldsboro and catching up aunt and uncle. My older one, the Son learnt how to wash dishes and over-all liked the fact that he could help out... I was happy with the fact that at least someone is keen to do household work.

So in a few more days, after a well deserved rest, we moved towards our destination Orlando, but decided to stop by at Savannah, Georgia. It is a beautiful town if not visited, I highly recommend the place. It carries the old world charm of the South but other than the base, it looked a bit run down. The downtown though is very happening and we visited the water - river promenade. Thought about doing the horsey ride, but it was too damm expensive and hence the thought was summarily dismissed. From Savannah Georgia we went further South and reached the great city of Orlando. Along the way Mr. Friend also took a dig at driving and easily got the hang of driving the Van, this reduced some of the driving pressure on myself and for a change, I put up my feet and enjoyed the sites of the North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Btw we did stop at South Carolina and checked out the Waffle House food joint. A good southern place, with a traditional diner feeling.

The Wifey made me drive a extra 100 miles because we drove into Orlando, picked up Universal Theme parks tickets and then drove to the Nasa Kennedy space station (bloody expensive). It was raining, but the traffic was sparse and we had a good time at Nasa. Had the chance to meet up with Astronaut Jim Reilly. Kids were excited though Son thought it was just 'Time-Pass' since as per him anyone can go to space. With SpaceX coming up, in a few years I believe even that should be possible. The little one was more enthusiastic, and found the entire experience very cool.

From Nasa we drove back to Orlando and reached our service hotel. Basically it was an apartment with 2 rooms, washer - dryer, kitchen, living rooms etc. A fully functional house. Wifey was smart to pick up this place and it saved us tonnes of money. I personally became a fan of Suits (this one is run by Holiday Inn). From here onwards, the Wifey and Mr. Friend took charge and started planning out the Disney/Universal adventure (Fast Pass, rides, parking and what not).. something that does not enthuse me, but as they say, for Wifey/Kids one has to sacrifice. Early next morning, we drove to Universal - Island of Adventure where we were hit with a $17 parking fee.. image one is paying $100 odd bucks per person and the dodos also charge for parking.. yucks. Our first ride at universal was the Hulk Roller Coaster. The little girl did not make the height cut but the little boy/ Wifey came for the ride, it was a good ride and my first roller coaster ride of my life.. took a good 45 minutes waiting to get to the ride. In the meanwhile Mr/Ms. Friend and their kids and little girl went to a bunch of rides and generally enjoyed the Universal theme park. Over the course of the day we did a bunch of rides, Harry Potter, Spiderman etc. Spidey as per me was the most technical ride.

Next day, we landed up at Disney World, Orlando, the mecca of how to make money out of nothing and that too in good numbers. We walked all over the park, saw a bunch of rides by Disney princesses and the kids soaked it all in. Ate some over-priced food, and ticked off on my 'Things in Life to Do - Visit Disney". the train ride around the Disney park is interesting and I am sure this is something the kids will enjoy. The Disney park next day was followed up by the Epcot Center park, which was the most lame excuse for a park, it seems everything  here is stuck in the 1980's. In a few more decades it will come across as a musuem for kids of how life used to be. Disney also owns this park and should decide if they want to  continue this park. They might be better of making some movie studio out of the location, will generate better returns on investment. On the 4th day, we split up with the Friends and family and we landed up at the Disney Water Park. The parking here was free, the crowds were limited and I really enjoyed the lazy river.. I highly recommend this park to all those who visit Disney / Orlando, it is a good DE-stresser compared to the crap one has to go through Disney parks. We swam in the water pond (salt water) where we saw baby sharks, and other sea animals.. also enjoyed the Giant Wave Pool.. over-all a fun experience.

Orlando was followed through by going to Miami.. something I have been thinking about for a long time. Wifey was gracious enough to get us a hotel at South Beach and we stayed at the Kimpton Inn (moderately over-priced for the fact it is in Miami - South Beach). We immediately hit the beach, but not before I had my first McDonalds.. I for one love McDonalds (though it is fashionable for everyone these days to hate it). The kids and I went to McDonalds, the Wifey/Friends/Ms went to some Cuban Joint. The taste of McDonalds is standard across the world. I have been to a McDonald in every country I have ever been (except Belgium). Miami beach is a mix between rich Jewish folks, lots of folks from New York and local folks mostly of Cuban or South American descent. It is a melting pot of various cultures and it is the party capital of the world. It was at South Beach, where I saw my first Tesla Car (actually sat in it etc), and I loved it. It is a rich mans' toy but it will change the game of automobiles in the years go come (I also think Apple will buy out Tesla but that is another story). Our two days in Miami were well spent and I am sure I will go there again this time without kids and for a longer time, no more to say.

In my follow up post I will mention how we drove up from Miami, Florida to Newark, New Jersey and then to New York city.

Adios,
Shiva

Trip to USA East Coast May 2014- including Disney - Part 2

Situation till now -Trip planned, packing done, at the airport

We took the good ol Meru cabs to reach the airport and wow what a nice airport. I love India for the fact that for 70 million travelers (annually) all across India, we have spent in excess of $8 billion but for the , 8.9 billion train traveling people we spend nothing and literally each month we have a fatal train accident. Even after this, most upper / rich Indians keep cribbing how bad the airports are..One day, I hope in my lifetime, Indian train stations also become world class like Grand Central or Amsterdam or Tokyo or Shanghai.

Coming back to the trip (I touched a favorite topic of mine), we went to the Jet Airways check in counter, where Wifey gave the check in agents a piece of her mind and screamed at them for all the issues she faced. Agents were like "Whatever".. We briefly walked around the airport and landed up going to the Jet Lounge. Here we were joined by our Friends and the Friends kids. We had a blast in the lounge as we all filled up on food (not sure if Jet would provide food, going by the experience so far). Late in the middle of the night we boarded our plane, exhausted, kids tried and parents more tired.

Early next morning we landed up Brussels (airport much worse than most Indian airports) and our flight was late. We exited the plane and ran towards our connection (Traveller advise - if you can take direct flights, please do so). Somehow we made our way to the plane and plonked ourselves in our seats. Kids were least bothered as they had access to the TV screen in the flight and were not bothered as long as they were fed and entertained.

Mid Saturday our flight landed up in Newark, a airport which has not been upgraded since the communism fell in the Soviet Union. We cleared immigration along with gazillions of other passengers speaking tens of different languages and then took forever to clear customs as the luggage handling at Newark is not equipped to handle this kind of traffic.

From the airport we went to the rental where we picked up a Ford 350 (called truck).. it was like driving a milk van in India (temp traveller is smaller than this thing). Wifey and Friend were reasonable and we packed the kids in the car seats that had been bought from India (courtesy - Ms. Friend).  MapnyIndia GPS was implanted and off we went on our USA road trip to cover the eastern sea board from New York area to Miami in a white bodied white F350 people mover truck.. This would be our home away from home for many days.

Trip to USA East Coast May 2014- including Disney - Part 1

It started with the wifey asking if we should go to the US for a vacation. Now vacations have always interested me and I am the kind of person who likes nothing more than to do nothing. I readily agreed to her grand plans for a US vacation along with the kids, who are now aged 9.5 and 7.5 years each. The boy and the girl were both very interested. Wifey wanted to take the kids to Disney in Orlando, now it is a different matter that I hate theme parks but wifey had these fond memories from her childhood and she wanted the kids to have the same.

As we took our decision forward, we discussed our open ended thoughts with some friends of ours and as it came out, one of our close friends were also planning a similar trip but were not sure how to go about the same. We decided to do a joint trip as they also had kids in the same group and both our sets of kids are also close friends (helps if kids study in same school, classes and section). I made my thoughts clear to the Wifey, I ain't doing no planning but will be gracious enough to drive the troops (4 kids, 3 adults and myself) around wherever required. Wifey anyways had no expectation and went about planning the trip (she loves to plan all these itineraries).  The other family (I will refer to him as Friend and Ms.Friend), Friend is also someone who likes to delve into the details of all planning, so I was like great , now I really dont have to do anything.

Months passed and I totally forgot about the trip, but the Friend, Ms. Friend and wifey were regularly discussing the sequence of events and had more of less decided the itinerary. The plan was to land in New York, drive to Orlando (Florida), check out new places, meet up with friends and family in the US and then come back to New York. Our flight carrier was Jet Airways (more on that later) and we were to fly out of Mumbai to Newark (New Jersey) via Brussels.

Ms. Friend made sure we packed up all sorts of Indian foods for the trip, clothes were bought, hotels were finalized, car was arranged (here I stepped in), and all the usual routine was checked off. 2 days were left for the trip. Wifey being Wifey checked up on the seat assignments of all of us. She called the call center only to find out that the great Jet Airways (going the Air-India way), has reset all our seating arrangements because they had changed the plane configuration. All four of us were in 4 corners of the plane. Wifey was fuming as she had been planning for the trip for a long time. Anyways to cut a long story short, I was called into action to "Fix" things, which I had no choice but to agree to if I wanted to maintain marital harmony. Called up the Jet call center and threw my weight around (How I contribute lots of money to Jet via frequent flights etc), but all that was useless, then I came to senses and begged the call center agent who was kind enough to get us 4 seats together in the end of the plane. Advise to people on vacation - Please block seats way in advance and keep checking up on them, airlines have a way to screw up, nothing new in this

So we had not even started our journey but were already getting hammered by the airline company, I was dreading at the 20 day trip as itinerary was jam packed with no room for error (missed flights, weather etc). Anyways, we prayed to the Gods, packed the house and off we went to the new Mumbai airport.

Where do we go from here ?

Half the year is over and now I am writing..so that is not good, shows how lazy or busy I have been either ways it works. My intention of walking every day was a complete failure and I did not live up to my promise.

So what is new in India?

On the professional front, India is facing lots of issues, lots of challenges due to lack of leadership and inability to come up with good ideas and execution programs. Most of the politicians, industrialists, business leaders, government people are all interested in one thing, i.e. how to make more money for themselves and their families, society and country in general does not matter. I m  not sure how long this can last. Countries like Nigeria , Rwanda etc went though similar situations, but then we are so many people and a large market so we will drag a few more years.

I believe in the next 5-7 years a new set of leaders will come forced through by the desire of Indians to get something better, if Bihar can improve from Lalu Yadav's time then anything can. So business is tough and it feels like the late 80s or early 90s, where things are slow and the energy of growth cannot be felt anywhere, but I believe this is where the good prosper and the weak die.

On the personal front - my young son is growing up, and he is playing some tennis, he is also reading but most of time he loves to watch and play games on the Apple iPad (it seems in the next generation will stop watching television and consume content from mobile or personlized devices). Daughter is learning how to dance and is in love with Deepika Paduokone a leading Indian actress.

Overall no complaints, just that exercise is not happening and the economy is crashing but then I have seen a very different India when I was younger and am sure we can adapt to the same.

Happy reading,
Adios,
Shiva

Start of a new year

This is the winter of 2013 in Mumbai, where the definition of winter is that the temperature goes to 18 odd degrees Celcius :)

Welcome to my blog, where I will be writing exciting new observations this year from my perspective and I will start about it with myself. I m based out of Bombay, love to travel, continuously keep meeting new people, due to the nature of my job.

This year of 2013 is interesting, since I have christened it as the year of the health. I am making conscious effort to improve the quality of my physical human body, which over the years has completely degraded and detoriated in to the absymals depths one cannot even imagine.

So what have I done?? I started the year by getting a new iPhone 5 smartphone, and loaded a few applications of software that tracks my health activity and I have started walking, yes you heard it right walking. After tremendous research both online, offline etc, I have come to the conclusion that 45 minutes or 3 miles approx 5 KM of walking daily or even 4 times a week, will help reduce weight by almost 15 Kgs and is better than running / weight lifting etc, which can hurt your body in ways you cannot even imagine.

Due to my travel, I have started carrying a pair of sneakers which I just put on and go for a walk in the neighborhood and my little handy app on the smartphone keeps a track of what all I have done. I make a conscious choice in the kinds of foods I put into my body, so have become a bit more finicky on food.

So lets us see, if I can make progress, it is the first month, the goal is to continue this till the end of the year, I shall keep reporting and keep letting you know on what happens.

Thanks,
Shiva

An Indian in Japan ....

My Trip to Japan and its interesting surrroundings

I landed into Japan via Malaysia on a late sunday evening and then was picked up by the Cabbie at the Narita Airport. Incidentally the City of Tokyo has 2 major airports with the Narita being the main one. The airport is around 65 KM from the main city and hence I got ready for a long ride into the city. The tolls are horrendous, I really pity the local residents on paying these high tolls but then heck so is life. My cabbie dropped me to a hotel called Presso Inn and I checked in. The hotel was around 100$ per night but the hotel room is very very small, but it was cute and nice. Lots of electronics in the room from multiple alarms etc. Heck there is a machine to press your trousers each morning outside on the floor of the room.

Post my check in, I went to Dennys's (Yes the same USA one), for dinner, but was in for a interesting surprise, the Dennys in Japan only serves Japanese food. So had a early dinner and then went off to bed.

Next morning or rather early afternoon, went to meet my Japanese colleagues at their head office, which was only 100 metres away, so not too bad. Met many folks and they were very nice and polite. We discussed some business and moved out for dinner at night.

Dinner was a traditional sit down Japanese dinner with lots of Sake and many different types of Sashimi and Tuna/Sushi etc. It was a very different dinner, last time I had something like this was in Detroit around 2003, so almost 9 years earlier. Dinner went late and I got to understand the Japanese culture, people drink pretty heavily in Japan and can really pack it, I could not drink so much (but then again I am not much of a drinker, only some beer). Post dinner went home and tried out the high speed internet at the hotel. Frankly I had heard so much of the internet speed in Japan but no where have I experienced very very high speed including various offices I have been to, it is just a myth. My internet speed at home is as fast as this. The fastest speed I have experienced is at universities in the USA.

Next day I went to Yokohama, which is home to a automotive company. Along the way I had a fried Eel with Rice, again something I have never eaten before. The business folks were very polite and acknowledge the fact that I am a foreigner and greet you with much respect. The same day it was announced on TV that Tokyo is going to have a huge storm such that there was huge panic everywhere, but then nothing happened so it was a 'Phusssssss'. I guess the folks are paranoid after what happened during the Tsunami!!

Next day, I went to another customer and was surprised how much the people trust each other, you can carry your wallet open in your laptop bag open, and no one at the train station will flick it. Imagine doing this in Mumbai... heck by the time you reach home your account would also have been hacked. That night we travelled to Nagoya and had some interesting Chinese Dim Sum. In most of the Japanese cities for business travellers there are good hotels at the stations and the eating joints are also at the train stations.

Early next morning, took a commuter train to meet some more customers. I must say that most of the Japanese customers are very well informed in what is happenning in different parts of the world, something the Indian customers have little idea about. I was pleasantly surprised, but the trick is they dont let you know anything and hold the cards close to their chest. Post my meeting, I am on a bullet train going back to Tokyo.. heck the trains are very very expensive, a typical 300 KM travel on the bullet train costs around Rs6500/- around 120$. Even the local metro / subway is quite expensive and I thought that London was expensive hahahahahah.

Over-all my experience in Japan has been very pleasant, the people are very polite and very very very hardworking. A typical Japanese office goer leaves home at around 6 Am to catch a train to come work in Tokyo and then leaves office at around 9 PM and reaches home around 11 PM when he has dinner at home.. normally he sees his family only on the weekends. MOst Japanese folks dont take more than 5 days holidays and work continuously. It is a matter of pride if you take no vacation days in a year. Unbelievable but then that is why they are one of the most advanced countries in the world. All possible combinations and permutations of doing business is thought through, even my dinner items were thought through 1 week in advance (compare this with India where we are not even sure if we go to office tomorrow or not or if the customer will change his/her mind on a important project). Big cultural difference and I hope one day India also rises up to this level of committment and hardwork.

Day after tomorrow I travel to Mumbai via Malaysia again and will keep you posted on any new developments that might be worth a mention.

Bye,
Shiva