Home

It was 6 months out in a place I had only ever been to once before, that when I was 3. Now that's done and dusted, and it feels great to be home and on my time where there are no work commitments, deadlines or clients. Less than 24 hours in and I'm already feeling the disorganized chaos that is Colombo, where my brother drives like a maniac, brother 2 is in bed with a cast, everything must stop for politicians and buses, and so on. I liked my stint out there. A lot of people warned me that i'd be bored after 2 weeks. But, as is the case anywhere, you gotta keep your self doing things, and you will love it. It helped that I found myself in the midst of a great bunch of people. My cousin (the one that RD knows in London) once was telling me that, to people living abroad, friends are their family. Now, although that may seem like stating the obvious, it definitely is true. So, for four months i'll be here, soaking up my homeland. Then to a not-so-new family. But first, tonight to Chaar-max's bachelor party!

The Long Road Home

Sri Lankan roads aren't all that confusing now are they? See, the longest drive within the city is going to take you about 30 minutes at most (add 10-15 more for traffic). So why's it that trishaw drivers always mess up a simple point A to point B trip? Here's the deal. This morning, I walked about half a kilometer from home to where Kirimandala Road meets Nawala Road (point A). Found a bright blue trishaw there. Saw a man standing next to it. Went up to it and said I need to go to Braybrooke Place (point B). He thinks for a while, tells me to take the 176 from there and change at Borella. I look at him blankly and point towards the trishaw. He laughs and points me to the driver who is standing further away. I smile meekly and move on to negotiate with the actual driver. But that's not the story. So having told him what the best route is and negotiated an apparently reasonable fair of 250 bucks from A to B, I get in and we're on our way. I still haven't gotten over the fact that in Bangalore trishaws charge only 6 INR (roughly around 18 SLR) per km while over here in SL i'm paying close upon 50 bucks a km! While heading down Kirimandala he suggests a different route which is slightly longer, which other trishaws have taken before, so I say to him "yeah ok if that's what you wanna do". So we head up Thimbirigasyaya Road instead of going down Baseline Road towards Kanatte. Generally, the Thimba route involves us turning into the lane opposite Sunethra Lane near the church on Thimba Road, then heading past CR&FC and towards independence square. While I was sitting there with my ipod plugged in I see that turn off pass us by. Then we turn right into Torrington Avenue. This was a new route! So when Torrington ended on Bullers Road I expected him to take one of 2 options, both of which ended up near independence square. But I was wrong, AGAIN! He goes towards Thunmulla along the one way, goes all the way around and comes back towards Lionel Wendt and the Museum and finally to Braybrooke place, adding at least an extra 10 minutes to a 20 minute ride. I would've thought he might've saved more cash, and me more time, if he actually listened to me and went on the route that has been identified to be the shortest, at least by me! But these trishaws, they've got their own GPS which apparently you can't fool.

Chakde Bangalore!

Underworked and underpaid, so when a free ticket came my way I wasn't one to say no. Took off on Friday to Bangalore, India, having convinced my manager to give me Monday off so that I had a nice long weekend of 4 days. It's been almost a year since I boarded a flight and I almost had forgotten how much I loved to fly. Travelling alone and finding myself sitting at BIA waiting for the boarding call, I quickly glanced around to check whether there were any RDs satisfying a kink for people watching, only soon to realize I was doing the same. Oh well. So anyway an hour later I was in India. The last time I had been there was 8 years ago as a scrawny schoolboy on a (wait for it...ahem) cricket tour with the College junior team. At the time, I was rather proud of it and when people asked me where I was going, I'd turn my nose in the air and say "cricket tour" in a too-cool-for-school tone. Now I realize junior cricket tours are a dime a dozen. Egad! I digress. So 8 years ago I was staying at the YMCA youth sports hostel, playing cricket on 4 of the 7 days we were there, having to tag along to saree shops with other kids' parents who were apparently coming as 'chaperones', much like the lot from the sports ministry who were planning on heading to japan to support our only athlete. So yes, 14 kids, 20 parents, a coach and 2 masters in charge did not help make the trip a delightful one. So yes, my impression of India was not a very good one. 8 years on I was stunned. People portray India to be a tough place to live in, and maybe it's true. But it's a great place to visit. The myth of the land is no myth at all on the faces of its people. Coming from Sri Lanka, I'm quite used to people dragging their feet. But in Bangalore, there was such a spring to their step. Brigade Road, which became my favourite hangout, reminded me of Oxford Street where you'd have people piling through each other while the biggest brands stare down upon them from their vantage points. Much like Oxford Street, people were laughing and chattering and walking with such purpose. It's greatly energetic and that energy is infectious. I was introduced to this quaint little pub off Brigade Road named "Peckos" which is dark and mysterious and plays the best alt rock at just the right volume; not too loud to drown you out but not too soft for you to lose interest. The place has murals of the likes of Elvis Presley Jimi Hendrix on the walls and ceilings and what not. I hear the food is great there, but I didn't try it, although I can vouch for their lime soda. I could fall in love with a place like that. Maybe I have. Just accross the street from Peckos is "Le Rock" where the preliminaries to Nokia I-Rock XXII were being held on Saturday night. Who am I to say no to a chance to see some bands. The show was kick started by After Burn, an outfit that was very grunge, very in-your-face and very damn good. The guitarist was fuckin kick arse! The next 2 bands were rather boring. I was told that one of them was the biggest band in Bangalore or something but it was a death metal band and there's only so much of a screaming grandmother with a sore throat i can take. But I must say, the musicians were great in all the bands. Sri Lanka has a long way to go, original music wise. But anyway, digressions apart, the last band was Caesar's Palace. By golly, I kid you not, they were magnificently incredibly awe inspiring. Comprising of an 18 year old drummer who is undoubtedly better than any drummer I have seen in Sri Lanka, a fatty on bass who, i'm sure, plays bass faster and with more precision than he would devour a plate of burgers, a fender strat clad guitarist who I'm told can play anything put before him and a super, yet down to earth, vocalist. Kishan, Kenny, Anurag and Unni certainly were not unknown to the crowd as I found myself in the midst of a swarm that knew all the words and all the breaks to all their songs. Simply scintillating. Reminded me a lot of Incubus. Great stuff On Monday morning I headed to 'The Forum' to catch Ratatouille on the big screen. You wouldn't believe it, but at 9:30 in the morning i'm almost positive that at the cinema I saw as many teenagers you'd see in the whole of Sri Lanka! Ok maybe not that many. But too many to count surely! The movie itself was great too. Pixar has created an animation masterpiece! A must-watch. So what struck me the most is the fact that young people in Bangalore are so lucky to have such a lively city. Although everything shuts down at 11:30pm as per state orders, until that time the city is still alive, the streets are full and the lights on. Colombo on the other hand is fast asleep by sunset, and please don't blame that on our island culture. I had a blast. 4 days was not long enough for me to get bored of Bangalore, but not short enough so that I'd miss the essentials. I shall write more about it as and when I remember. Pictures shall come up at some point too. It's definitely a place I'd visit again. But nehi diya tho?