Monday, March 31, 2008

Fish@fishland

This blog is not for veggie ‘s……….

Fishland is a very old hotel in Majestic that has been satisfying the appetite for fish and other seafood to thousands of people for the last 3-4 decades. Its not a hotel with some great ambience etc, Simple wooden table, fixed chairs, old small usha fans and a traditional lord balaji’s photo welcomes you at the entrance. This place is diagonally opposite to Kamat Yatri nivas and to be more precise it is a hotel adjoining “ STATUS BAR & RESTAURANT” .

Vinayak has been a regular customer to this hotel from his very early days in Bangalore. When we got married he took me to this place. And my first impression of it - dingy, shady and somehow I felt very uncomfortable. But managed to go up, and order for food. And now its been over 8 years that I have been going to this place atleast 2 Sundays a month.

I was sitting there yesterday and relishing fish and was just wondering what’s in this place that looked so dingy to me once seems one of the best restaurants now. It’s the fish that is cooked here, that I get a taste no where else. The menu card has no extra ordinary items but is just printed on a single sheet that is laminated. Infact the waiters are the same with no change. The moment we go, the welcome we receive as though we are their lifetime members is something that feels nice, the extra care and they get our first item even without our ordering as they know it by heart. I am sure this is something I would never get elsewhere.

The Fish fry, mangalore style curry are something’s worth eating apart from their other sea food delicacies I believe, but I have never tasted the others as I am just a fishiterian!!!!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Biligiri Rangana Betta ( BR Hills)

Biligiri Rangaiah, neene helaiah

Ranganayakiya chandulli chaluvaiah…


( Oh! Lord of the Biligiri hills, you tell me , Oh handsome charmer of Goddess Ranganayaki)....

This is a famous song from the movie “ sharapanjara” released in the mid 70’s , directed by non other than the great director Puttana Kanagal and enacted by the Queen of kannada movies of the 70’s Kalpana

Well, I used to hear this song many a times and see the beauty of BR hills in the Eastman colour movie…and it looked beautiful on screen and when I visited this place for the first time last week, I knew why the song was made that way… coz this place deserves those very words

It was a three day trip to BR hills, pouring weather, ,managed to get a govt guest house on a hill top, and what more it was just living in heaven, walk in the clouds…

This place is absolutely non commercialized and therefore the beauty is still intact.
Jungle lodges is the only resort as such which is located in K Gudi, 20kms from where we stayed on BR hills and apart from that it is only the various govt guest houses such as PWD, Forest Officer’s guest house,. Tribals are the population around and growing medicinal plants is one key occupation in this place. There is the famous biligiri Ranganatha Swamy temple which is the peak point of this place and named after him. An ancient temple not very big, but well placed on the hillock.
We were not able to spot animals, coz it was just pouring due to the cyclone effect in the BAY… but that weather made it more memorable of that place.

We spotted so many birds, few of which I don’t even know their names. An absolute visual treat.

Hey and after all this, while coming down the hill, we had Mr Rahul Gandhi climb up the hill. What security ,,,,, 8 cars and his SUV in the middle zooming up the hill. We also saw his helicopter later in a school premise in Kollegal...

Some tips
How to reach there - We took the route via maddur- kollegal- yelladur and BR Hills

This was just about 188 kms from my place in rajajinagar. The roads are not great, but you can manage.

If you are lucky , it is best to call the Aranya bhavan in chamarajanagar and see if rooms are available. The contact number is 08226222059.

below is the link where i have loaded some snaps.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21876589@N02/

Monday, March 10, 2008

Don't have a reason

There are days while you just begin to think of the few good people you have known and what is it that they have value added in your life, work and society... today is one of those days for me, while i just sit to recollect those few good souls who have been a part of my past& present ... future is a ?... as i do not know what future holds for me...

Don’t have a reason
Do I need a reason anyway!
Difficult to express,
Wished things stayed this way

Little known is the fact,
That I began to realize,
There are only a few good souls
And the rest, a disguise

It’s a magical world,
And the magicians rule
Some are really humble
And few are really cruel

Angels I have known
And whom I Respect
Their sense and simplicity
Casting an impeccable effect

Its not just a poem
That I am trying to rhyme,
But a simple truth
That’s stood the test of time!!!!!

Friday, March 7, 2008

ride on victoria road

I am still not able to sit properly while I sit infront of my laptop to check my mails
Today I decided to take my bike “ Suzuki access” to the office instead of my car…
The reason was to reach home earlier as I had to catch up with a few things at home.
I left office at 6.00 and my journey started from airport road..I decided not to take the MG road route, coz work near the winsor manor bridge has caused too much traffic..
So I decided to take the Victoria road ( where lifestyle is located) and reach home….
Victoria,… the name sounds so royal.. but what a ride….and what a feeling…
I suddenly started feeling like Queen Victoria, on a bumpy horse on a dingy road…
All my muscles and bones have had a nice massage.. the effect may live for a few more days..

Now I need to figure out no MG road, no Victoria road, no majestic…. No sampige road. How do I reach home….

May be I got to sign up for a helicopter – service 

Air JAM would be happening next!!!! Watch out

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

change is only constant....

Change is only constant,
Though this is not instant
I feel reluctant, even hesitant
But the truth is
Change is only constant

Fear on my mind
For reasons unknown
Is this my imagination?
That has just grown

Mind that bothers
Over little things
Feeling the weather
As though it stings

Thinking alone,
I began to realize
Acceptance to change
May be a blessing in disguise….

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Alchemist....?

I ran many miles
Wanted to rest a while.
But at the midst of the desert,
And the sun shining bright.

Looking at a distance,
Searching for shelter,
There was only cactus
And cursing weather.

I headed towards the pyramids
Just like the Alchemist.
Not for the treasure.
But searching....the meaning of life and its pleasure.

Desert is like our life.
Cactus, the milestones,
We, the gift of god
Fighting against the dunes
And the pyramids...
The final attainment of life with its tunes

Sunday, March 2, 2008

treadmill .....

It has been over two months that a treadmill has landed in my house…

This has been primarily got, with an attempt to reduce my day by day overgrowing weight. The first two days that it was got… an excitement to get started or rather overdo…

Post that it was more “ law of diminishing marginal utility”. It all started with everyday 1 hour, then 30 min alternate days and then by the third week, it had vanished…

Vinayak had been using it regularly but for the last few weeks, he has been travelling .

I have many people at home who have tried to put in “ weight fear” into me.. they have tried hard by constant pushing , comparing … pinching and poking… and finally pleading ...and looks like I may oblige them…

The look of the treadmill also seems to say… “krups pls don’t use me like a towel hanger, Please use me for what I am”… please please…

I hope to get up tomorrow that is 3rd march...and get started … hoping this time there would be no other theory acting on me... :-)

technology tantrums

We just subscribed for the Harvard business review annual subscription and with that we received an apple ipod nano FREE!!!!
I am not a very technology savvy person and patience in me to read detailed manuals is less….well I can say “ not in history” but….. On a Saturday night, while I did not get sleep, I decided to get my nano started with all my favorite numbers,…
I began following instructions and downloaded the itunes…but somehow the installation never got completed… I wondered why… read the manual online again…
Spent at least 1 hour installing /reinstalling and de-installing the whole thing…
Then I began to look thru the website very keenly and saw a tutorial and in that when I clicked there was a video tutorial on how to install…. And guess what…. I had not mentioned my mail id at the rock bottom of the site before I began installing….
The system did neither stop me...nor warn me…. So why these tantrums on poor souls like me

After 2 hours of juggling.. I have successfully put my playlist in place and am listening to my favorite song….The joy of finally having done it on my own….after having taken all techno tantrums… is cool…..

“ the Kick is different” … hey check out the time is already half past mid night....