Friday, February 29, 2008

No More an Iron Maiden!

So, I'm going to get all the metal implants in my left elbow (result of a surgery that I had about 3 years back for a complex fracture) removed tomorrow. The less I talk about how tense I am, the better! I should be back here in a few days...

P.S. I've added one of those mood-expressing emoticons too; look below my profile snapshot. I'm waiting to change it to a "Relieved" face!

Monday, February 25, 2008

Beatrix and Anne

I've been obsessed with 2 things over the last few days:










Pics Courtesy: Wikipedia

Bloody and gory, but so engaging and impressive! Uma Thurman truly rocks!


Pic courtesy: Amazon
A book so disarmingly simple, yet poignant through and through!

Thursday, February 21, 2008

By All Means, a Fine City!!!

Singapore was pretty much how I'd imagined it would be. Very clean, spotlessly so! However, what amazed me is the amount of greenery that has been preserved! High rise buildings and stylish malls may be aplenty, but it was heartening to see that the importance of having lush trees hadn't been forgotten! To me, it almost felt like a civilization inside a jungle! Not kidding, lovely forests bordered both sides of almost all roads that we drove across, on our way to the hotel, from the airport! Barring the abundance of plants and trees, being in Singapore felt a lot like being in Dubai. Similar stringent laws, similar proliferation of shopping malls and stylish buildings, and the like!
The new year just having begun, and our hotel being in one of the most happening streets, Orchard Road, rendered it possible for us to see the myriad decorations and lights that were strung high up, almost everywhere we turned! Singapore definitely has all the trappings of a first-world country. Another interesting thing about the place is that everywhere we went, we were told how fines were a part of every day life! "Singapore is a fine city!" is a dictum we heard over a hundred times while we were there! Apparently, Big Brother keeps a close watch on everyone's activities and the moment you litter or make a nuisance of yourself, down swoop the cameras and catch your every guilty move; and believe me, cameras were all over the place! What a nice concept, eh?!? I remember our guide telling me that even loudly banging a door could lead to a fine! I'm not sure how true that is; maybe Mush or Idah can clarify this!
In the neighbouring country of Malaysia, and even in Singapore itself, we saw quite a bit of ridiculing of this fine policy by means of cheeky writing on tees, other apparels, coffee mugs and the like! It's always good to see a sense of humour in things that are not funny on the outside!

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Batu Caves

Temples built within hills and caves that have been hollowed out, make for some lovely pictures! Batu Caves, near KL, were no exception!

We were out of breath when we reached the top, but it was certainly worth it!


Thursday, February 14, 2008

My Library is Growing This Valentine's Day!!!

With 2 more books (this and this) added to my library, this Valentine's Day sure is good for me!

Thanks, A!

Hope all of you have a good one too! :-)

I also hope that I have a huge library soon enough! :-D

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Malaysian New Year

Lights - Beautiful
Sounds - A continuous buzz and excited murmur in the air!
Decorations - Lovely
Fireworks - Stunning
New Year's Eve - The best ever!!!



































Monday, February 11, 2008

A "Know Me Better" Tag!

As instructed by Miss Iyer, I'm taking a break from my vacation stories and posting the meme she wanted me to attempt!

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Nope. My name was chosen by one of my paternal aunts. I was first to be called "Tripti", which means "satisfaction"; but a maternal aunt of mine waxed eloquent about how that was a fitting name considering my parents hadn't had any sons and weren't planning for another baby after me! Of course, that pissed my mother off a great deal (no points for guessing that!) and she promptly ran another name through my dad, "Priya". As luck would have it (I don't like the name, "Priya"!), there was a girl in the neighbourhood with the same name and that was dropped as well! So was I stuck with my current name! Not that I like it much either!

Also, of course, like many other Indian names, my name too is part of a morning prayer/song.

P.S. Don't have any illusions about how much I like that maternal aunt! :-/

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Well, err; I turn on the tap quite easily. So to answer the question; last Friday! :-/

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes, I do! I'm a little presumptuous that way!

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Chicken; I don't/can't venture beyond it. Other meat make me squirmy!

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Well, maybe! Let me explain that before there are exclamations all around! I have a little girl, like Monica had her imaginary boyfriend!

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I certainly hope so! See, I can NOT be presumptuous too! :-D

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Absolutely!

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes, I do! Looking at the number of people having tonsil problems at some point or the other in their lives, I'm hoping they stay obediently malaise free, forever!

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I certainly hope I do when the time comes! I can't let A be one up on me, now, can I!?! :-D

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? I haven't tasted many yet, so it has to be "Chocos" for now! I'm sure there are many more sugary, chocolaty ones waiting to be devoured by me!

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Oh please! That'll be like the end of the world!!!

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Yes. I have some metal in me to back me up too!

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Chocolate and Butterscotch; athough, my absolute favourite is chocolate ice cream on chocolate cake! It can't get yummier than that!

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? I'm not sure about this one! I hope to remember to remember this when I next meet a stranger!

15. RED OR PINK? Ha! Need I even answer this one! It's not for nothing that almost every belonging of mine is first bought in pink!

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? My impatience; it's legendary!

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Right now A's away on some work and I'm pretty bored when I'm alone at home for more than a day, so it has to be A!

18. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Pants, blue (denim); shoes, black (for a change!)

19. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Rice and gravy

20. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? A loud conversation in a neighbouring cubicle; in my head though, "Life is a rollercoaster" is playing!

21. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? I'm thinking pink, but then, I'd rather be able to see pink stuff, than be just another of those stuff! So, going by that, I'd like to be a silvery hue!

22. FAVORITE SMELLS? Damp earth, A's cologne, babies, new books, chocolates, delicious, steamy food...

23. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? A

24. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Gymnastics, Cricket, Tennis

25. HAIR COLOR? Dark brown

26. EYE COLOR? I've heard that all black pupils are actually dark brown; so, dark brown...

27. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No, I don't. Although, I must admit that I quite like the coloured ones!

28. FAVORITE FOOD? Again, chocolate ice cream on chocolate cake!

29. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Scary movies; even though I drag A EVERYWHERE after watching one!

30. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Mithya and I am Legend

31. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Green and silver

32. SUMMER OR WINTER? Winter! Any day, anytime!!! I abhorrrrrrrrr Summer!

33. HUGS OR KISSES? Depends on who's giving them! Hugs mainly, though!

34. FAVORITE DESSERT? Good God! I have the same answer for 3 questions! Chocolate ice cream on chocolate cake wins yet again!

35. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? Anne Frank - The Diary of a Young Girl

36. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? I don't use one; they are too cumbersome!

37. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? The last thing I watched was a silly movie. I was watching a cricket match for most of the day, though!

38. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Babies; not when they start howling, of course!

39. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Rolling Stones, though I really don't have a strong liking for either!

40. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Middle East

41. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I have a very weird one; I can bend my left thumb backwards; yes, all the way!

42. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Kerala, India; I was taken to Calcutta when I was just 20 days old, though! So for me, it's always Calcutta!

Oh, I'm done! That was good fun! Please do take it up if you feel like it! It'll be fun reading each one's answers! :-)

P.S. Mush, I stand corrected! Singapore is 900 kms farther away than Dubai, from here! Sorry!

Friday, February 08, 2008

A No(i)sy Affair!!!

Did I forget to mention that Himesh Reshammiya and his damn nose followed us all the way to Safari World, Bangkok?!? Yes, he sure did! Gauging that a truckload of Indians had deigned that very day to descend upon the world of animals, the organizers of a certain show decided to play a patriotic Hindi film song, followed by a popular song in the now horrendously famous nasal twang! What followed had to be seen to be believed! While there were scattered cheers and enthusiastic clapping during the patriotic song, the second one had most of my compatriots in the crowd up on their feet, swaying and stomping there way to mucousy glory!
P.S. Not that I don't like the man's compositions; I just wish he wouldn't sing the songs himself!!!

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Sunway Lagoon















Sunway Lagoon is this amusement park that we went to, in Malaysia. It is mainly a water theme park, and I was so busy playing in the water that was all around us that I forgot to click too many pictures! Not that I could've taken my precious camera into the area at all, what with fountains springing up at every step and buckets of water raining down on us with every move!!!

The adjoining resort that we stayed at also played host to Sunway Pyramid, a massive shopping mall, with an ice skating rink being the icing on the cake! I'll let the pictures do the talking now! Well, not that once I started scouring the shops, I took too many pictures here either! :-D










Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Genting Highlands

Malaysia is home to this amazing place, high above the normal land level; Genting Highlands! In the midst of the sweltering Malaysian heat, these highlands are akin to paradise! To my absolute delight, the temperature was icy cold when we were there! Just the way I like it! We took a bus to reach the top, but for our descent the next day, we used the Genting Skyway. It was, without doubt, the most amazing cable car ride I've ever had! Giving the feeling of helping you plummet to your death, the cable cars move quite swiftly down (world's fastest and South East Asia's longest cable car), covering a view so panoramic and beautiful that it seemed straight out of a painting! Genting also plays host to the world's largest hotel, First World Hotel.

There are two theme parks in Genting, an outdoor one and an indoor one. The indoor one, especially, is beautifully lit up and decorated. Of course, it being the holiday season, everything was doubly lit and glowing! Rides are aplenty in both the theme parks, and we managed to ride a few of them.

Genting also has two casinos and needless to say, we spent quite a number of hours in one of them! I won just 2 Malaysian Ringgits more than we gambled with, but it was a win nevertheless!

The craziest thing we did in Genting, though, was to get wax models of our hands clasped together! There was this stall where they were doing this, and of course, I had to get it done! The couple's hands are positioned together in different stances and then dipped into warm wax and cold water, in turn. After a few such dips, the wax forms a thick coating on the hands and can be easily removed! A few minutes of solidification and colouring, and voilà, our very own wax hands were ready to be proudly displayed in our showcase back home! :-D

Friday, February 01, 2008

Thean Hou Temple

We went to this beautiful Chinese temple in Malaysia, called Thean Hou. What fascinated me, other than the gorgeous architecture and beautiful idols, was the mechanism for knowing each person's future! There were these 3 huge steel cylinders, with a number of drawers built into each. A hole in the cylinders holds some sticks, each of a different length. Each fortune seeker needs to bunch up all the sticks together, hold them a little aloft and then release them so that the bunch falls into the hole and scatters a bit! The person then needs to pick out the longest stick (the one protruding out the most) and read the number written on it. She/he then needs to look for the drawer having the same number, open it and read the chit placed inside! Voilà! There's what your future holds!

Doing this ritual was a lot of fun and I ended up doing it thrice, not being pleased with the first two predictions! The third one pleased me immensely. I guess I did it right only the third time! :-D :-D :-D

Everything about the temple was beautiful; the idols (Goddess of Mercy), the little prayer stools that I so fell in love with, the architecture, the lamps, the joss sticks; all these gave the temple a nice, serene feel! The outside garden even had all the animals of the Chinese zodiac neatly lined up!