Rants of a nerd
travel
9832 for the lottery?
2Returning from Bangalore last night (or perhaps it is more correct to say in the early hours this morning), I had the most peculiar experience. So there are these lines for the different car companies to get a taxi home and the first one had no cabs. The next line was long and the third (Mega Cabs) had only three people waiting. So I joined that.
When the guy in front of me got his cab booked the lady behind the counter helpfully leaned over and said that there were no more cabs. I had overheard that the guy in front of me was going near where I lived, so I asked him if I could share his cab. He said ok and we headed out to the pick-up point. Our cab was number 9832.
Sure enough, after a few minutes a 9832 cab pulled up. I loaded my bag in and my recent acquaintance was about to do the same when another man ran up and said this was his cab. He had a 9832 cab booked. He had a booking slip with the number too (as did my friend). I noticed at this time that this cab was an Easy Cab. And just opposite us another 9832 pulled up – a Mega Cabs one this time.
As we got in, I mentioned to the cab driver that there was a minor argument over the other side about two taxis with the same number (though from different taxi companies). He looked at me and said: you should play this number in the lottery then!
Perhaps I should, then.
Wither winter?
0Warm bordering on hot day in Bangalore and I was promised a nice cold day. Where is the winter?
It is cold in Delhi
0Though I was told about it, the cold still comes as a shock. Ten degrees celsius stepping out of the plane. Not as bad as the time they disembarked us on to the tarmac in Paris Charles de Gaulle in freezing conditions. But with the cold I’ve been running these past few days it feels colder than it is. Perhaps I should have brought the real winter wear?
Flower Girl Statue in Madrid
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Probably not the sight most people remember in Madrid. but this one was really good in a silhouette.
Traffic held hostage again
0Two hours from Nariman Point to Dadar. Welcome to the wonderful world of traffic management for VVIP movement, in this case the president’s visit. Just the other day, there was the story of how a man had died in an ambulance while traffic was stopped for the prime minister in Delhi. When are the police and others in charge going to realize that they need to allow people to live their lives and not stop everything in the name of giving easy passage for some politician?
And, why should all this happen during evening rush hour? Are they nuts? Do they not know the hardship this causes or is it done on purpose?
My suggestion to the president: take a chopper downtown next time and spare us poor citizens your presence on the roads.
Airport chaos
0Whatever one may hope for in terms of infrastructure in India, it always seems to over promise and under deliver. The Bombay airport this morning was a clear example of chaos and lack of management. Ugh.
On a more brighter note, the full moon is a wonderful sight early in the AM. Possibly feeling cleaned up and fresh after the eclipse.
Public transport in Bombay
1It has been a long while since I took a bus. Tonight is a rare occasion, perhaps not to be so rare in the future. The new air conditioned buses are pretty comfortable if not in spotless condition. The fare is a very reasonable Rs. 30 (about 75 cents) for a 15 kilometer ride. The question is only one of time. Well I will know soon!
At the Verandah
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This photo was taken on the recent trip to Kashid. Appu at the Verandah of the hotel at which we were staying.
Madrid Photos
0Finally got around to uploading a bunch of photos from my trip to Madrid. This was back in January and the first of the bad winter storms across Europe was under way. Temperatures were below freezing most of the time, and indeed when the temps hit 2 degrees my taxi driver remarked that it was a relatively warm day!
![One of the old gates \](http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4412409979_7cf03e2867_s.jpg "One of the old gates \")
There are a few photos from the Museo Raina Sofia. This was the only museum that I visited that allowed photography. However its collection is mostly crazy modern stuff. So I picked a few Picassos and Dalis here. Dali’s Girl at the Window is one of his best and is really worth the trip to the museum. Most people would visit it for Picasso’s Guernica – though I could not really find it to be extra special. The Guernica is one painting they do not allow anyone to photograph. In the neighbouring room, there is a study of the Guernica (included in the gallery above) along with many other details from the grand picture.
Among the three museums, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza was the one I liked best. Strangely, I found the collection of Carmen Thyssen to be the more interesting and nicer. The collection of paintings range from the 13th to the 20th centuries. They had a special exhibit called Lagrimas de Eros (Tears of Love), which featured famous art pieces depicting love and death.
I had very little time after this for the biggie: Museo del Prado. The importance of this museum is stressed in the fact that all three museums are connected by one road called Paseo del Prado. It has a good collection of Spanish art including many by Velasquez and Goya. I especially liked the painting called Las Melinas (The Young Girls), showing the daughters of the royal household.
Among other sights to be seen are Puerta del Sol (Gate of the Sun), Espana (where there is a memorial to Miguel de Cervantes – author of the Don Quixote story), some churches (Madrid Cathedral, San Francisco and San Andrea are in the gallery). Thanks to the extreme cold, I did not venture out into each of these places. I did brave the freezing conditions to get some snaps taken here and there. Was I ever happy to get back into the taxi and warm clothes then!
Right in the heart of the city is an Egyptian temple – Debod – taken out brick by brick and reassembled in Madrid. It was offered to Madrid by the Egyptian government as the temple would have been destroyed under the lake created by the Aswan Dam. Around the temple are some nice walkways (file away for a later visit in better weather) and a breathtaking view over some forests and the city.
For another trip to Spain, there is much to explore in Madrid. There are also the other cities like Barcelona and historical sites such as Alhambra to be seen. Till then…
