Well Squishy came back last night. He was up to something be hind the fridge for a while. Not sure what it was. I didn’t want to ask. I figured that some things are best kept private. A bit later he scurried off behind the cupboard.
I met the landlady tonight. What a lovely person. She came over to say hello and see if I needed anything. We talked for a while. She has a very clear English accent. She has only just had the house built but she moves around a lot because of her job. She’s only just come back from Delhi.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
29 October 2009
No students today. I’m not sure what happened to the one that was going to start today. It wasn’t a total lose though. I spent the day brushing up on Blender.
I had a visitor last night. It was about 15cm long and liked to scurry. I think I’ll call him Squishy. It was a lizard. I first saw him whilst I was watching a movie. He was zipping around the floor catching a fly for dinner. Having organised his meal he ducked under the TV table to tuck in. A little later I saw him defying gravity, running along the wall at ceiling height heading for the kitchen. I think he must have exited through the kitchen extractor fan. When I went into the kitchen he was gone.
It was nice to have known him for a moment.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
27 Oct 2009
Today was a bit of an odd one. My student didn’t turn up. The staff gave him a call and he arrived around 10am. I asked him if he had started the assignment I had set him and he told me he went and played soccer instead. I wasn’t too impressed but thought we could redeem the situation by sending him out to do the task. It turns out after a bit of discussion wth myself and Ashutosh that he didn’t want to do the assignment. He said that it was too hard for him. So, I think that is that. He is quiting the course. Well, at least, I think he is. I thought that two days ago and he turned up again the next day.
One consolation is that there may be another student starting tomorrow and another on Monday. We’ll see what happens this time.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
26 Oct 2009
So today is Monday. (I think) And you are having a holiday. I guess I can’t complain really, I just had Diwali. Those of you that enjoy planting the veges today, watch out for the frosts. They caught me out lat year.
Diwali celebrations are similar to our guy fawkes in a way. The crackers go on for days afterwards. I was enjoying a quiet day off yesterday reading my daughter’s book when someone let of some fireworks in the park. As I mentioned before, when the Indians let of fireworks, it sounds like the invasion of the Teleban or something. Combine this with the fact that I now live in an area with a high concentration of high court judges complete with security guards and you can probably appreciate that I didn’t go out and investigate. My solace was in the fact that there were no police sirens after the expolsions.
I figured out something whilst I was waiting for the driver this morning. For the last three or four nights I have been hearing what I thought was a cricket chirping away outside the flat. Well now, I think I may have got it all wrong. There was a squirrel ambling along in fence that surrounds the park and each time the same cricket sound chirped the squirrel’s tail bobbed up and down. Coincidence? I think not. The squirrel obviously has a squeaky tail. You see, that’s deductive reasoning for you. Of course, it could be that the squirrel thinks it’s a cricket, in which case he’s probably going to get a surprise when his prospective mate comes along.
I figured out something else whilst I was waiting. (The driver took a while to arrive.) It doesn’t seem to matter which country or culture you are in, a laugh is a laugh and a cry is a cry. The universal language. I have it on good authority that the ‘Lucas-pedia’ has all the hot gen on the issue. You should ask him. Wait until lunchtime though. You’ll get a fuller answer.
So today is Monday. (I think) And you are having a holiday. I guess I can’t complain really, I just had Diwali. Those of you that enjoy planting the veges today, watch out for the frosts. They caught me out lat year.
Diwali celebrations are similar to our guy fawkes in a way. The crackers go on for days afterwards. I was enjoying a quiet day off yesterday reading my daughter’s book when someone let of some fireworks in the park. As I mentioned before, when the Indians let of fireworks, it sounds like the invasion of the Teleban or something. Combine this with the fact that I now live in an area with a high concentration of high court judges complete with security guards and you can probably appreciate that I didn’t go out and investigate. My solace was in the fact that there were no police sirens after the expolsions.
I figured out something whilst I was waiting for the driver this morning. For the last three or four nights I have been hearing what I thought was a cricket chirping away outside the flat. Well now, I think I may have got it all wrong. There was a squirrel ambling along in fence that surrounds the park and each time the same cricket sound chirped the squirrel’s tail bobbed up and down. Coincidence? I think not. The squirrel obviously has a squeaky tail. You see, that’s deductive reasoning for you. Of course, it could be that the squirrel thinks it’s a cricket, in which case he’s probably going to get a surprise when his prospective mate comes along.
I figured out something else whilst I was waiting. (The driver took a while to arrive.) It doesn’t seem to matter which country or culture you are in, a laugh is a laugh and a cry is a cry. The universal language. I have it on good authority that the ‘Lucas-pedia’ has all the hot gen on the issue. You should ask him. Wait until lunchtime though. You’ll get a fuller answer.
Friday, October 23, 2009
23 Oct 2009
My class of one and I went for a walk today. We were looking for Shapes that resembled letters. Whilst we were out we saw a number of suitable candidates. We also saw a tree growing on the side of a building and a squirrel. The tree was probably around 3 metres tall and its roots were clinging to the bricks. It was about 6 metres up from the ground, but not quite at the top of the building. There are trees here in India that grow really quickly. Some English settlements that were abandoned at the turn of the last century (1900s) now look like ancient ruins. This building has been here less than sixty years. Possibly less than that.
The squirrel was quite happily minding its own business, zipping here and there. We were right in the middle of the square.
The drive back to my new apartment takes me along a motorway that points directly towards the Himalayas. Its just like you would be pointing West to drive to the Ranges. It seems just as close. I could be wrong. They are quite a lot bigger than our ranges. Still, I didin’t think I was that close.
My class of one and I went for a walk today. We were looking for Shapes that resembled letters. Whilst we were out we saw a number of suitable candidates. We also saw a tree growing on the side of a building and a squirrel. The tree was probably around 3 metres tall and its roots were clinging to the bricks. It was about 6 metres up from the ground, but not quite at the top of the building. There are trees here in India that grow really quickly. Some English settlements that were abandoned at the turn of the last century (1900s) now look like ancient ruins. This building has been here less than sixty years. Possibly less than that.
The squirrel was quite happily minding its own business, zipping here and there. We were right in the middle of the square.
The drive back to my new apartment takes me along a motorway that points directly towards the Himalayas. Its just like you would be pointing West to drive to the Ranges. It seems just as close. I could be wrong. They are quite a lot bigger than our ranges. Still, I didin’t think I was that close.
22 Oct 2009
It would seem that the previous tenant was Korean. He seemed to have left in a hurry. Quite a few of his belongings are still here. Mainly books, including a rather expensive leather bound bible. My guess would be that he worked for Hyundai and that he was here on some kind of sales tour. Ooooooh. Intrique. And what about those entries in the diary. About whether he could love an older woman, or that someone got beaten up. I sense a novel coming up. ‘The case of the missing asian in India’. (He was probably practicing his English.) He he.
The market is close by. I just have to walk across the park. Ashutosh has instructed me to not go after dark. He’s keen to make sure I stay alive. In that I’m not sure whether its him being cautious or that’s the way of things here, I think I’ll plan my trips to the shops during the day.
It would seem that the previous tenant was Korean. He seemed to have left in a hurry. Quite a few of his belongings are still here. Mainly books, including a rather expensive leather bound bible. My guess would be that he worked for Hyundai and that he was here on some kind of sales tour. Ooooooh. Intrique. And what about those entries in the diary. About whether he could love an older woman, or that someone got beaten up. I sense a novel coming up. ‘The case of the missing asian in India’. (He was probably practicing his English.) He he.
The market is close by. I just have to walk across the park. Ashutosh has instructed me to not go after dark. He’s keen to make sure I stay alive. In that I’m not sure whether its him being cautious or that’s the way of things here, I think I’ll plan my trips to the shops during the day.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
21 Oct 2009
Today was a very interesting day. We spent the morning working in the Lab as usual. Around 11.30, Ashutosh rang me to ask if I could come and look at a flat he had arranged for me. (My time at the hotel had run out) The driver took me through some really nice areas of town arriving at this really fancy house that was empty. Ashutosh was there with two other men. He took me up behind the house two an apartment. It is a one bedroom apartment with on suite and kitchen. It’s quite nice. Certainly better then the hotel. More light and space. The hotel felt a bit more like a prison cell. I told Ashutosh that I liked it and he started the negotiations with the landlords.
We then headed over to the hotel and retrieved my bags and said my goodbyes.
Before heading back to the College we had lunch at a restaurant called BJ’s (I think). The food there was really nice. I think Sue may have been there with Ashutosh. Whilst we were there a gaggle of ladies were having their weekly bingo tournament. Apparently the custom used to be (According to Ashutosh) that ladies used to gather at each others house to gossip. That developed into going to restaurants and paying them to provide the catering and atmosphere.
Once the day had finished, Ashutosh took me to the apartment. Problem was the lady who lives there as the housekeeper wasn’t at home. It turns out she was away at the market getting vegetables. So we waited. Then we waited some more. Then we went and waited with a coffee in our hands. We finally went back to the flat and waited some more. About 10pm the lady and her daughter arrived. Phew!!
Finally climbed into bed around 10.30pm. It’s amazing what you hear when you are new to a place. The lady downstairs talking to her family, the cricket outside, (Now I could be wrong here. It could have been a squeaky fan or something. It squawked its way through the night.) the people next door.
Today was a very interesting day. We spent the morning working in the Lab as usual. Around 11.30, Ashutosh rang me to ask if I could come and look at a flat he had arranged for me. (My time at the hotel had run out) The driver took me through some really nice areas of town arriving at this really fancy house that was empty. Ashutosh was there with two other men. He took me up behind the house two an apartment. It is a one bedroom apartment with on suite and kitchen. It’s quite nice. Certainly better then the hotel. More light and space. The hotel felt a bit more like a prison cell. I told Ashutosh that I liked it and he started the negotiations with the landlords.
We then headed over to the hotel and retrieved my bags and said my goodbyes.
Before heading back to the College we had lunch at a restaurant called BJ’s (I think). The food there was really nice. I think Sue may have been there with Ashutosh. Whilst we were there a gaggle of ladies were having their weekly bingo tournament. Apparently the custom used to be (According to Ashutosh) that ladies used to gather at each others house to gossip. That developed into going to restaurants and paying them to provide the catering and atmosphere.
Once the day had finished, Ashutosh took me to the apartment. Problem was the lady who lives there as the housekeeper wasn’t at home. It turns out she was away at the market getting vegetables. So we waited. Then we waited some more. Then we went and waited with a coffee in our hands. We finally went back to the flat and waited some more. About 10pm the lady and her daughter arrived. Phew!!
Finally climbed into bed around 10.30pm. It’s amazing what you hear when you are new to a place. The lady downstairs talking to her family, the cricket outside, (Now I could be wrong here. It could have been a squeaky fan or something. It squawked its way through the night.) the people next door.
19 Oct 2009
Today was a bit of a hard day. I wasn’t picked up until nearly 10am. My student was already waiting to start. One of the co-ordinators wanted to make sure the room was clear, so I said I would just go check my emails in the meantime. She didn’t come back and tell me she had cleared the room. A short time later she came in to remind me that the student was waiting.
So I trotted of down to the lab with my one student and proceeded to start the class. The lab had some budding animators already in there. An army of ants. Every time I looked at the mouse to start my demo I was confronted with an ant or two, or three. So I took my student out for a wee walk and asked reception to see if their cleaning lads could do a purge. Unfortunately I can’t speak Ant, otherwise I may have invited them to join in.
As we were walking around outside I noticed that my army of ants were the small variety. There were some whoppers milling around. Just one of these ones could have eaten my whole army and still been hungry. When we returned, they were all gone. (Must have finished their lesson.)
Over here you have to really slow down when you are speaking. At one point my student said that you can speak normally if you like. So I did. He soon changed his mind. Later in the day, I met one of the staff. She wanted to use the office to make a phone call. I was speaking slowly as usual, until I realised that her English was very good. It turned out that she had lived in England for a while and nearly every school she had been to, she had been taught by New Zealanders.
20 Oct 2009
I had Maya in the class today. That’s Ashutosh’s wife. She will be coming as often as she can so that she can take over when I go home. I guess we will have to see how that goes. She seems as busy as Ashutosh. I arrived earlier today. 8.30 am. So I had a few moments to catch up on emails and settle in for the day.
I’m not sure how much we can get through in any given day. The language barrier is not too bad but the comprehension of the use of the language can be challenging. Design terms and computer technology terms. They all use words that say another thing in normal English. Still, Maya seemed to pick things up fairly quickly.
Today was a bit of a hard day. I wasn’t picked up until nearly 10am. My student was already waiting to start. One of the co-ordinators wanted to make sure the room was clear, so I said I would just go check my emails in the meantime. She didn’t come back and tell me she had cleared the room. A short time later she came in to remind me that the student was waiting.
So I trotted of down to the lab with my one student and proceeded to start the class. The lab had some budding animators already in there. An army of ants. Every time I looked at the mouse to start my demo I was confronted with an ant or two, or three. So I took my student out for a wee walk and asked reception to see if their cleaning lads could do a purge. Unfortunately I can’t speak Ant, otherwise I may have invited them to join in.
As we were walking around outside I noticed that my army of ants were the small variety. There were some whoppers milling around. Just one of these ones could have eaten my whole army and still been hungry. When we returned, they were all gone. (Must have finished their lesson.)
Over here you have to really slow down when you are speaking. At one point my student said that you can speak normally if you like. So I did. He soon changed his mind. Later in the day, I met one of the staff. She wanted to use the office to make a phone call. I was speaking slowly as usual, until I realised that her English was very good. It turned out that she had lived in England for a while and nearly every school she had been to, she had been taught by New Zealanders.
20 Oct 2009
I had Maya in the class today. That’s Ashutosh’s wife. She will be coming as often as she can so that she can take over when I go home. I guess we will have to see how that goes. She seems as busy as Ashutosh. I arrived earlier today. 8.30 am. So I had a few moments to catch up on emails and settle in for the day.
I’m not sure how much we can get through in any given day. The language barrier is not too bad but the comprehension of the use of the language can be challenging. Design terms and computer technology terms. They all use words that say another thing in normal English. Still, Maya seemed to pick things up fairly quickly.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
16 Oct 2009
Today was a holiday. It seems that there are various forms of Diwali. Most of India seem to celebrate Diwali on the same date but there are regional and religious differences associated with the days around the day.
I was in my room most of the day. It was nice to have some quiet time. It was also nice that later in the evening, Ashutosh and his family, along with the friends, took me to a fair ground. He said that this was the only time of the year that the fair was in town, so rather than go to the Rock gardens, this was a better option. It was a lovely evening. My legs were starting to tighten up with all the inactivity. (I didn’t realise how sore I was until I started walking around. The main spectacle was the motorbike ring. It certainly drew the crowds. It was this giant circular wall where the bikes would zoom around and do stunts. It took a while for our turn to come up to go up into the stands to watch. Ashutosh’s son Aramon would have preferred to go for a ride on the dragon train but he was really good about it. Then, once we were up there, it took about 20 minutes or so before the show started. I think they wanted maximum spectators. All this time the music was playing through the speakers at ear splitting levels. You could tell it was uncomfortable for the children. But, the moment came and the bikes started whizzing around the bowl. Some of the spectators would hold out some money for the riders to grab on the way past. Once the riders had finished their performance, the cars revved up and started whizzing around the track. Yep, cars. Four of them. The drivers got up to speed and then climbed partially out of the cars through the windows. They’re nuts, I tell you. Stark raving bonkers.
Once the show was over we headed over to the dragon train. By this stage Aramon and his young friend were not that interested. They chose instead to go for a ride on a jeep-go-round. There was this little girl on the ride just prior to Aramon who was absolutely ecstatic. She was beaming. (I think her parents will have to watch when she grows up.) The boys weren’t quite as animated but they did enjoy the ride. I had a go at shooting small balloons with an air-rifle. That was the most ridiculous thing I’ve done in a while. Be a marksman in the Airforce in my far distant past, you get to know how to point a rifle at your target and shoot. Well I think the rifle I was using this time had a bent barrel or something. It didn’t seem to matter how hard I tried to hit something, that balloon survived. (I was only three feet away. I could have poked it with the end of the barrel and hit it better.) I think if the barrel had been just a little more bent, the caretakers of the stall may have had a few wounds.
We didn’t stay long after the boys had finished their car ride. We headed home via an ice cream shop. This was about 9pm. Ashutosh dropped me off back at the hotel and headed home. The evening was still young for them.
It turns out that Ashutosh and his friend enjoy going to the movies. So I may be going along as well. Ashutosh told his friend that I wouldn’t like Indian movies but, I dunno. It could be interesting. There’s one coming up that’s called London Dream that could be worth taking a look.
17 Oct 2009
Well, if you think it can get fairly load on November 5th, you should try Diwali. The explosions are rocking the hotel room. If I didn’t know it was the festival season, I would think we were being invaded by the Teliban or something. I was thinking that I might go downstairs for tea. Now I think I might skip tea. I’ve got my Jaffas. (Thanks Neil.) That should keep me going until morning.
Well, the Indians love to celebrate. I’m not sure what time of the morning the fireworks stopped. It was well after midnight. The ones closet to me (Outside my room, in the garden, on the balcony in the next room, in the car park, on the landing) finished a little earlier. Thereafter I could hear the rumbling way of into the distance. It was a little like a good thunderstorm without the rain, or a clam day in Baghdad.
18 Oct 2009
Thought it might be safe to go down to dinner tonight. It was a lot better. Still sounded like world war three out there, but at least in wasn’t on the hotel grounds. I was glad that I did go to dinner. The meal was quite nice. Plus, they had icecream to finish. They are my best pals now.
Whilst I was having dinner the TV was on. It was playing one of the Music channels. It was actually quite interesting to watch. What amused me most though was they were playing an Indian version of rap. Would you credit it.
Today was a holiday. It seems that there are various forms of Diwali. Most of India seem to celebrate Diwali on the same date but there are regional and religious differences associated with the days around the day.
I was in my room most of the day. It was nice to have some quiet time. It was also nice that later in the evening, Ashutosh and his family, along with the friends, took me to a fair ground. He said that this was the only time of the year that the fair was in town, so rather than go to the Rock gardens, this was a better option. It was a lovely evening. My legs were starting to tighten up with all the inactivity. (I didn’t realise how sore I was until I started walking around. The main spectacle was the motorbike ring. It certainly drew the crowds. It was this giant circular wall where the bikes would zoom around and do stunts. It took a while for our turn to come up to go up into the stands to watch. Ashutosh’s son Aramon would have preferred to go for a ride on the dragon train but he was really good about it. Then, once we were up there, it took about 20 minutes or so before the show started. I think they wanted maximum spectators. All this time the music was playing through the speakers at ear splitting levels. You could tell it was uncomfortable for the children. But, the moment came and the bikes started whizzing around the bowl. Some of the spectators would hold out some money for the riders to grab on the way past. Once the riders had finished their performance, the cars revved up and started whizzing around the track. Yep, cars. Four of them. The drivers got up to speed and then climbed partially out of the cars through the windows. They’re nuts, I tell you. Stark raving bonkers.
Once the show was over we headed over to the dragon train. By this stage Aramon and his young friend were not that interested. They chose instead to go for a ride on a jeep-go-round. There was this little girl on the ride just prior to Aramon who was absolutely ecstatic. She was beaming. (I think her parents will have to watch when she grows up.) The boys weren’t quite as animated but they did enjoy the ride. I had a go at shooting small balloons with an air-rifle. That was the most ridiculous thing I’ve done in a while. Be a marksman in the Airforce in my far distant past, you get to know how to point a rifle at your target and shoot. Well I think the rifle I was using this time had a bent barrel or something. It didn’t seem to matter how hard I tried to hit something, that balloon survived. (I was only three feet away. I could have poked it with the end of the barrel and hit it better.) I think if the barrel had been just a little more bent, the caretakers of the stall may have had a few wounds.
We didn’t stay long after the boys had finished their car ride. We headed home via an ice cream shop. This was about 9pm. Ashutosh dropped me off back at the hotel and headed home. The evening was still young for them.
It turns out that Ashutosh and his friend enjoy going to the movies. So I may be going along as well. Ashutosh told his friend that I wouldn’t like Indian movies but, I dunno. It could be interesting. There’s one coming up that’s called London Dream that could be worth taking a look.
17 Oct 2009
Well, if you think it can get fairly load on November 5th, you should try Diwali. The explosions are rocking the hotel room. If I didn’t know it was the festival season, I would think we were being invaded by the Teliban or something. I was thinking that I might go downstairs for tea. Now I think I might skip tea. I’ve got my Jaffas. (Thanks Neil.) That should keep me going until morning.
Well, the Indians love to celebrate. I’m not sure what time of the morning the fireworks stopped. It was well after midnight. The ones closet to me (Outside my room, in the garden, on the balcony in the next room, in the car park, on the landing) finished a little earlier. Thereafter I could hear the rumbling way of into the distance. It was a little like a good thunderstorm without the rain, or a clam day in Baghdad.
18 Oct 2009
Thought it might be safe to go down to dinner tonight. It was a lot better. Still sounded like world war three out there, but at least in wasn’t on the hotel grounds. I was glad that I did go to dinner. The meal was quite nice. Plus, they had icecream to finish. They are my best pals now.
Whilst I was having dinner the TV was on. It was playing one of the Music channels. It was actually quite interesting to watch. What amused me most though was they were playing an Indian version of rap. Would you credit it.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
15 Oct 2009
A bit frustrating today. Late yesterday, the internet started getting really flakey. It kept dropping out. Today its worse. I get part way through replying to an email and the connection drops again. I’ve lost count how many times I started replying to Dave. So, we’ll see what happens. It may take a while for the next instalment.
He he. I was just imagining how I would go if I was on safari. No internet when you’re out chasing lions. ‘Hold still hippo, I need to strap an aerial to your behind. No, not in the water!!!’
‘Hey, what about a giraffe. They have a long neck. Maybe I’ll get a better reception. Come here Mr. giraffe. Hey, where you running to!!’
‘Bloody baboons. They ate my mouse!! What a technological life we live.
I went out on the town this lunchtime. A young man from work chaperoned me. He’s quite excited about the up coming holidays. There’s some big sales on. Mostly clothes. I saw a gentleman trying on a suit jacket which had ‘Punk Chic’ written in big letters on the back.
Sector 17, the central business district, is a bit like Christchurch central. Lots of open space, tiled, with fountains. One of which lights up with different colours at night. Lots of activity. There were people selling belts, others selling wallets, others selling coloured string about a metre in length. There was an elderly lady selling roasted nuts. She was using the nuts to roast the nuts in a pot. Its quite warm out today. Not nasty. Just warm. Similar to home during summer I guess.
This holiday starting tomorrow is celebrated by most Indians. Its called Diwali. Also known as the ‘festival of lights’. Its celebrating victory over ones own evil. Not a bad festival. Maybe the rest of the world should take it up and mean it. Might finally put things into perspective. (Oh, that was heavy. OK, stopping now)
So, I’m probably not going to be near the internet over the next three days. (I’m on Safari. He he) Catch yer in four days.
A bit frustrating today. Late yesterday, the internet started getting really flakey. It kept dropping out. Today its worse. I get part way through replying to an email and the connection drops again. I’ve lost count how many times I started replying to Dave. So, we’ll see what happens. It may take a while for the next instalment.
He he. I was just imagining how I would go if I was on safari. No internet when you’re out chasing lions. ‘Hold still hippo, I need to strap an aerial to your behind. No, not in the water!!!’
‘Hey, what about a giraffe. They have a long neck. Maybe I’ll get a better reception. Come here Mr. giraffe. Hey, where you running to!!’
‘Bloody baboons. They ate my mouse!! What a technological life we live.
I went out on the town this lunchtime. A young man from work chaperoned me. He’s quite excited about the up coming holidays. There’s some big sales on. Mostly clothes. I saw a gentleman trying on a suit jacket which had ‘Punk Chic’ written in big letters on the back.
Sector 17, the central business district, is a bit like Christchurch central. Lots of open space, tiled, with fountains. One of which lights up with different colours at night. Lots of activity. There were people selling belts, others selling wallets, others selling coloured string about a metre in length. There was an elderly lady selling roasted nuts. She was using the nuts to roast the nuts in a pot. Its quite warm out today. Not nasty. Just warm. Similar to home during summer I guess.
This holiday starting tomorrow is celebrated by most Indians. Its called Diwali. Also known as the ‘festival of lights’. Its celebrating victory over ones own evil. Not a bad festival. Maybe the rest of the world should take it up and mean it. Might finally put things into perspective. (Oh, that was heavy. OK, stopping now)
So, I’m probably not going to be near the internet over the next three days. (I’m on Safari. He he) Catch yer in four days.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
14 Oct 2009
I had a really solid sleep. Woke up once but not for long.
Its amazing what the lads can put on their three wheeled bicycles. Today I saw a man and his step through motorbike on the passenger tray of a tricycle.
We went to one of the first malls in Asia today. Ashutosh wanted to show me where one of his advertisements was showing. I also needed to go for a bit of a walk. I have been sitting down for the last two days. I had a yoghurt icecream at the mall. It would seem that it’s a fairly new thing here. It was really nice. It had real fruit sprinkled on it.
After the mall visit we did a most curious thing. Ashutosh took me to a local river. (You get the impression that the river can flood in the right season). Now you may be wondering what’s so odd about going to a local river? Well, I’m not really sure what it was all about. Ashutosh said that he wanted to go and feed the fish. On the way, he had popped into a shop and come out with a bag full of saffron coloured something or other. Maybe bread crumbs? So when we got to the bridge we stopped on the side and walked down to the river’s flow. When we got there Ashutosh emptied the bag into the river and we walked back.
I get the impression that there was more to this than feeding fish, but Ashutosh wasn’t inclined to discuss it and I have no desire to interfere. What I did notice was that there were people on the bridge throwing things into the river. Looked like rubbish to me. But, when I think about the whole incidence and the fact that there is this amazing temple in the far distance, but still close to the river, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was some religious significance to the river.
The computers are nearly ready. We just have one more piece of software to install and that’s it. The computer lab is quite small. I hope we don’t have any beefy Indian lads on the course. They may have trouble getting down the stairs and into the room. Its going to get really close if we get ten students. I hope they like each other.
The offices are around four floors up in the central area of the city. To get there you can either take the lift or the stairs. If you take a lift, there is enough room for maybe two and the bell boy. The notion of a bell boy is rather gorgeous. I hope the poor lad doesn’t have to big an imagination, he’d go stark raving bonkers sitting in that lift all day. The students aren’t allowed to use the lift. So he doesn’t get the pleasure of their company. Still. One thing I have learnt over here is that unless you have a job, you don’t have a living. (No welfare) Thus you are on the street, or your family is extremely wealthy. So any job is better than no job at all. I counted six waiters in the dining room this morning. There was only one guest for a time. Me. Then about 6 or 7 other guests came in. I read in the newspaper that the government are considering changing the ‘poor’ level. This is an amount earned per month, a bit like our minimum wage, except there is no guarantee of a minimum wage here. The new ‘poor’ level is considered to be 2000 Rupies a month for rural and 2500 Rupies for town folk. Now you do the maths and say that one NZD is equal to 3.4 Rupies, you’ll get a bit of an idea what the poor level is. Since I have a currency calculator I’ll save you the bother. It about $73 a month.
I had a really solid sleep. Woke up once but not for long.
Its amazing what the lads can put on their three wheeled bicycles. Today I saw a man and his step through motorbike on the passenger tray of a tricycle.
We went to one of the first malls in Asia today. Ashutosh wanted to show me where one of his advertisements was showing. I also needed to go for a bit of a walk. I have been sitting down for the last two days. I had a yoghurt icecream at the mall. It would seem that it’s a fairly new thing here. It was really nice. It had real fruit sprinkled on it.
After the mall visit we did a most curious thing. Ashutosh took me to a local river. (You get the impression that the river can flood in the right season). Now you may be wondering what’s so odd about going to a local river? Well, I’m not really sure what it was all about. Ashutosh said that he wanted to go and feed the fish. On the way, he had popped into a shop and come out with a bag full of saffron coloured something or other. Maybe bread crumbs? So when we got to the bridge we stopped on the side and walked down to the river’s flow. When we got there Ashutosh emptied the bag into the river and we walked back.
I get the impression that there was more to this than feeding fish, but Ashutosh wasn’t inclined to discuss it and I have no desire to interfere. What I did notice was that there were people on the bridge throwing things into the river. Looked like rubbish to me. But, when I think about the whole incidence and the fact that there is this amazing temple in the far distance, but still close to the river, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was some religious significance to the river.
The computers are nearly ready. We just have one more piece of software to install and that’s it. The computer lab is quite small. I hope we don’t have any beefy Indian lads on the course. They may have trouble getting down the stairs and into the room. Its going to get really close if we get ten students. I hope they like each other.
The offices are around four floors up in the central area of the city. To get there you can either take the lift or the stairs. If you take a lift, there is enough room for maybe two and the bell boy. The notion of a bell boy is rather gorgeous. I hope the poor lad doesn’t have to big an imagination, he’d go stark raving bonkers sitting in that lift all day. The students aren’t allowed to use the lift. So he doesn’t get the pleasure of their company. Still. One thing I have learnt over here is that unless you have a job, you don’t have a living. (No welfare) Thus you are on the street, or your family is extremely wealthy. So any job is better than no job at all. I counted six waiters in the dining room this morning. There was only one guest for a time. Me. Then about 6 or 7 other guests came in. I read in the newspaper that the government are considering changing the ‘poor’ level. This is an amount earned per month, a bit like our minimum wage, except there is no guarantee of a minimum wage here. The new ‘poor’ level is considered to be 2000 Rupies a month for rural and 2500 Rupies for town folk. Now you do the maths and say that one NZD is equal to 3.4 Rupies, you’ll get a bit of an idea what the poor level is. Since I have a currency calculator I’ll save you the bother. It about $73 a month.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
13 Oct 2009
I slept reasonably well last night. Woke about 2am and again at 5am. Hopefully of to the office today. Ashutosh informed me that Thursday and Friday are an Indian Holiday called Ramali. So there will be only one day of the course before the students break for a long weekend.
I met one of the students today. Nice lad. Really good at drawing. A bit unsure of himself. We’ll se how he goes. Probably needs someone to believe in him.
Ashutosh is a very gracious person. He has made me feel very welcome. He showed me around his offices and classrooms. He is an extremely busy person. We he picked me up at around 9.30, he had already been to another of his offices somewhere else. He often starts work around 5am. In his office he has two phones and he carries two cellphones. Its not unusual for him to be talking on any two at one time.
The rooms we will be using are being painted. Ashutosh thinks they will be ready by the morning. The computer technician was in last night putting in the machines and cabling. In the CP room, the students will have a glass top table each with a light underneath it. Ashutosh spent some time thinking this over. The individual tables are quite small. A little bigger than what we would expect in Primary school. But he also has some longer versions. The computer room is a row of benches around the wall.
I got home around 7pm and crashed. Boy was I tired.
I slept reasonably well last night. Woke about 2am and again at 5am. Hopefully of to the office today. Ashutosh informed me that Thursday and Friday are an Indian Holiday called Ramali. So there will be only one day of the course before the students break for a long weekend.
I met one of the students today. Nice lad. Really good at drawing. A bit unsure of himself. We’ll se how he goes. Probably needs someone to believe in him.
Ashutosh is a very gracious person. He has made me feel very welcome. He showed me around his offices and classrooms. He is an extremely busy person. We he picked me up at around 9.30, he had already been to another of his offices somewhere else. He often starts work around 5am. In his office he has two phones and he carries two cellphones. Its not unusual for him to be talking on any two at one time.
The rooms we will be using are being painted. Ashutosh thinks they will be ready by the morning. The computer technician was in last night putting in the machines and cabling. In the CP room, the students will have a glass top table each with a light underneath it. Ashutosh spent some time thinking this over. The individual tables are quite small. A little bigger than what we would expect in Primary school. But he also has some longer versions. The computer room is a row of benches around the wall.
I got home around 7pm and crashed. Boy was I tired.
10 Oct 09
So, here I am on Saturday morning waiting in the departure lounge for the boarding call. I arrived at about 9am with the thought that I could beat the maddening hordes. For once I got it right. There were a handful of the really keen and, ha, me. I whizzed through check in and spent the next half hour or so with Fiona and Beaulah. In that time we sat and watched as the airport started filling up. People everywhere.
I think the luggage that people have can be most entertaining. As people were passing us we could see all shapes and sizes of luggage. Extremely long and narrow. Fiona imagined someone’s granny being in that one. Then there was this tiny little suitcase attached to a handle pretending that it was grown up. Some fella in a business suit was towing that one behind him. Then there was the multi-coloured one that looked like ‘Flower Power’ was back. There were the suitcases that looked like they could easily drive themselves. Some on two wheels, others on four. Then there were the, ‘lets all look the same cause we are part of a tourist group’ variety. The most spectacular one was the suitcase that had pictures of various places around the world on the outside of it. You certainly got the impression that this person had travelled a lot. That is until you realised the suitcase was scratch and dent free. Then there was a fella that looked as though his every possession was on the trolley he was pushing. A young girl about four years old was towing a teddy bear behind her. And of course the compulsory Thomas the Tank Engine.
Can you imagine getting a window seat where there is no window? Yes? No? Well, I couldn’t, … until today. Now, as you can probably guess, it takes quite a while to get to Singapore. (It’s about 10 hours and what seems like another hour to taxi to the terminal) What can you do when you are in a window seat with no window and a full plane. Ah, I know, lets watch movies.
At least the two ladies sitting next to me were gracious. They let me scramble past when I needed to, and when you are starting to move along in age like me (A fella to boot) you’ll need to scramble more than others. The two ladies were Krishna in religious persuasion. Not sure whether that would make them Nuns? They were heading to India. I saw them again later on the flight to Delhi. It’s kinda odd to see one of the girls typing away on her MacBook. About as odd as a Buddist monk busily walking down the street with a cellphone attached to his ear.
We had about an hour once we landed to get to the next gate. Which is just as well. Another NZ lady and I were heading off in the wrong direction. We would have landed up at gate 54 realising that gate 60 just happens to be on the other pier. But, the staff at the airport were very helpful, and off we trekked. I must admit, I needed the walk.
So, another five hours in a plane. At least it was an Isle seat this time. It also seemed a little more spacious. Could be wrong. Around about now, it’s way past my bed time. But planes are not the most comfortable place the sleep. Ah, there’s always another movie. I was sitting next to a young Indian lad who was going home for his sister’s wedding. At the start of the flight, he asked if I would swap places with his uncle. When he told me his uncle was in a middle seat, I had to politely refuse. He was really good about it. It was about 10 pm local time when we arrived, (5am NZ time). Just prior to landing the cabin crew got out their spray cans and dosed the whole cabin. I felt like curling up and twitching my legs. The Indian government are very worried about the swine flu.
11 Oct 2009
My room is very comfortable. I packed my own pillow. Hotels always have fat pillows and very rarely have skinny substitutes. I slept for a while until the natural alarm clock went off. ‘Time to get up now!!!!!’ What. Nar. Can’t be. Its still dark outside. Silly alarm clock. I swear it went off at least four times during the night.
Finally surfaced around 9am. Feeling a little jaded.
There’s nothing quite like taking a trip out into the Delhi day. I thought I might stick to tradition and be the ‘mad Englishman going out in the midday sun’. A bit of a tour around some of the famous place and all that. Problem is, everyone else thought they might do the same. I guess its because its Sunday.
You know how some people say you only put your hand in the fire once before you learn. Well, I must be a bit thick. Last time I was here the driver took me to a whole lot of carpet shops. I thought that was a bit eccentric. This time, after telling the person arranging my trip to explain to the driver that I wanted to go to a funny t-shirt shop, I landed up visiting a whole lot of craft shops. Not that I’m complaining you understand. The craftsmanship of some of the items was quite something. I saw carvings of elephants inside elephants inside hollowed out latticework balls. All in stone. (Must have taken them weeks). Coasters made of marble with intricate coloured artwork engraved into them. Fancy jewellery. Fortunately I didn’t need any of that, plus I have to watch my weight. (Baggage, that is).
Out in the yard was a mini Taj Mahal (about 2 foot tall).
We managed to visit a place called Isa Khan tomb. Its quite old. It’s a large area surrounded by a stone and mortar wall. Not sure how good the mortar was but there are lots of areas where the wall is crumbling. My driver seemed to think it was about 400 years old. Further down a long pathway is a mosque. Similar in looks to the Taj Mahal. Quite grand.
And that was it really. Because of the traffic, we didn’t get to see very much at all. There was one other place that we went to. It was some kind of tall tower thingy. But we didn’t get in. It was closed for renovation. All part of preparing for the Commonwealth games next year. And, yep, you guessed it, no funny t-shirt shops.
12 Oct 2009
Today started somewhere in the early hours of the morning. I had set the alarm for 6am. But there’s still that good old faithful natural one. Persistent little blighter.
The domestic airport at Delhi is quite something. You arrive of the motorway to a barrage of soldiers in what seems like an average of of building. Once you’ve ‘politely’ worked your way past the non-smiling fellas with guns, you enter into an airport similar but grander than the one a Wellington. As you look out over the runway you see planes of all sizes as far as the eye can see. (That’s actually not that far this morning. There’s a haze in the air on a par with the recent Sydney dust storm)
My boarding call came close to schedule and I headed down to Gate 13. There to meet us was a bus. It’s sole purpose in life is to ferry us to the plane. Sterling job it did too. For all of thirty yards. (That’s how far the plane was from the terminal) The plane wasn’t very big. My biggest worry was that someone forgot to feed it’s wings. They were thin scrawny things!!! They couldn’t possibly hold up the plane. I had visions of the two propeller engines taking of without us!!
Ah. But no. Those engines followed us all the way to Chandigarh. I was a little curious during the flight as to whether the pilot knew where he was going. It seemed that he made a number of course corrections along the way. We were only in the air for about 45 minutes. I was tossing up whether he was thinking ‘let’s see what this baby can do’, or ‘let’s play tip the cabin crew over’. In the end I considered the possibility that he was avoiding military airspace.
The got a window seat (which probably wouldn’t have mattered on this plane. There are no middle rows) The view was really interesting. Flat land stretching to the horizon. Pockets of towns and villages. Mostly cultivated countryside. I pondered how all this land gets its water. We only passed a few small rivers here and there. But, then this is monsoon country I suppose.
Chandigarh airport is a small, rather quaint place similar to Palmerston North. Its biggest contingent of planes were all military. In talking to Ashutosh (The person I had come all this way to work with), he told me that the airport was being upgraded to an international status. Looking over to the side of the existing terminal I could see a fancy looking shell, which I guessed, was the beginning of the make over.
I met Ashutosh at the airport. We were soon on our way into the city. We chatted a little on the way in. Discussed some of the plans for the course. He dropped me off at a hotel and suggested I rest until the morning. I was grateful. I was quite tired. My room is quite big. It’s a twin. It’s fairly basic. A few light bulbs missing. A cupboard door with no handle. An air conditioning unit that only works on full. He he. Never a dull moment.
So, here I am on Saturday morning waiting in the departure lounge for the boarding call. I arrived at about 9am with the thought that I could beat the maddening hordes. For once I got it right. There were a handful of the really keen and, ha, me. I whizzed through check in and spent the next half hour or so with Fiona and Beaulah. In that time we sat and watched as the airport started filling up. People everywhere.
I think the luggage that people have can be most entertaining. As people were passing us we could see all shapes and sizes of luggage. Extremely long and narrow. Fiona imagined someone’s granny being in that one. Then there was this tiny little suitcase attached to a handle pretending that it was grown up. Some fella in a business suit was towing that one behind him. Then there was the multi-coloured one that looked like ‘Flower Power’ was back. There were the suitcases that looked like they could easily drive themselves. Some on two wheels, others on four. Then there were the, ‘lets all look the same cause we are part of a tourist group’ variety. The most spectacular one was the suitcase that had pictures of various places around the world on the outside of it. You certainly got the impression that this person had travelled a lot. That is until you realised the suitcase was scratch and dent free. Then there was a fella that looked as though his every possession was on the trolley he was pushing. A young girl about four years old was towing a teddy bear behind her. And of course the compulsory Thomas the Tank Engine.
Can you imagine getting a window seat where there is no window? Yes? No? Well, I couldn’t, … until today. Now, as you can probably guess, it takes quite a while to get to Singapore. (It’s about 10 hours and what seems like another hour to taxi to the terminal) What can you do when you are in a window seat with no window and a full plane. Ah, I know, lets watch movies.
At least the two ladies sitting next to me were gracious. They let me scramble past when I needed to, and when you are starting to move along in age like me (A fella to boot) you’ll need to scramble more than others. The two ladies were Krishna in religious persuasion. Not sure whether that would make them Nuns? They were heading to India. I saw them again later on the flight to Delhi. It’s kinda odd to see one of the girls typing away on her MacBook. About as odd as a Buddist monk busily walking down the street with a cellphone attached to his ear.
We had about an hour once we landed to get to the next gate. Which is just as well. Another NZ lady and I were heading off in the wrong direction. We would have landed up at gate 54 realising that gate 60 just happens to be on the other pier. But, the staff at the airport were very helpful, and off we trekked. I must admit, I needed the walk.
So, another five hours in a plane. At least it was an Isle seat this time. It also seemed a little more spacious. Could be wrong. Around about now, it’s way past my bed time. But planes are not the most comfortable place the sleep. Ah, there’s always another movie. I was sitting next to a young Indian lad who was going home for his sister’s wedding. At the start of the flight, he asked if I would swap places with his uncle. When he told me his uncle was in a middle seat, I had to politely refuse. He was really good about it. It was about 10 pm local time when we arrived, (5am NZ time). Just prior to landing the cabin crew got out their spray cans and dosed the whole cabin. I felt like curling up and twitching my legs. The Indian government are very worried about the swine flu.
11 Oct 2009
My room is very comfortable. I packed my own pillow. Hotels always have fat pillows and very rarely have skinny substitutes. I slept for a while until the natural alarm clock went off. ‘Time to get up now!!!!!’ What. Nar. Can’t be. Its still dark outside. Silly alarm clock. I swear it went off at least four times during the night.
Finally surfaced around 9am. Feeling a little jaded.
There’s nothing quite like taking a trip out into the Delhi day. I thought I might stick to tradition and be the ‘mad Englishman going out in the midday sun’. A bit of a tour around some of the famous place and all that. Problem is, everyone else thought they might do the same. I guess its because its Sunday.
You know how some people say you only put your hand in the fire once before you learn. Well, I must be a bit thick. Last time I was here the driver took me to a whole lot of carpet shops. I thought that was a bit eccentric. This time, after telling the person arranging my trip to explain to the driver that I wanted to go to a funny t-shirt shop, I landed up visiting a whole lot of craft shops. Not that I’m complaining you understand. The craftsmanship of some of the items was quite something. I saw carvings of elephants inside elephants inside hollowed out latticework balls. All in stone. (Must have taken them weeks). Coasters made of marble with intricate coloured artwork engraved into them. Fancy jewellery. Fortunately I didn’t need any of that, plus I have to watch my weight. (Baggage, that is).
Out in the yard was a mini Taj Mahal (about 2 foot tall).
We managed to visit a place called Isa Khan tomb. Its quite old. It’s a large area surrounded by a stone and mortar wall. Not sure how good the mortar was but there are lots of areas where the wall is crumbling. My driver seemed to think it was about 400 years old. Further down a long pathway is a mosque. Similar in looks to the Taj Mahal. Quite grand.
And that was it really. Because of the traffic, we didn’t get to see very much at all. There was one other place that we went to. It was some kind of tall tower thingy. But we didn’t get in. It was closed for renovation. All part of preparing for the Commonwealth games next year. And, yep, you guessed it, no funny t-shirt shops.
12 Oct 2009
Today started somewhere in the early hours of the morning. I had set the alarm for 6am. But there’s still that good old faithful natural one. Persistent little blighter.
The domestic airport at Delhi is quite something. You arrive of the motorway to a barrage of soldiers in what seems like an average of of building. Once you’ve ‘politely’ worked your way past the non-smiling fellas with guns, you enter into an airport similar but grander than the one a Wellington. As you look out over the runway you see planes of all sizes as far as the eye can see. (That’s actually not that far this morning. There’s a haze in the air on a par with the recent Sydney dust storm)
My boarding call came close to schedule and I headed down to Gate 13. There to meet us was a bus. It’s sole purpose in life is to ferry us to the plane. Sterling job it did too. For all of thirty yards. (That’s how far the plane was from the terminal) The plane wasn’t very big. My biggest worry was that someone forgot to feed it’s wings. They were thin scrawny things!!! They couldn’t possibly hold up the plane. I had visions of the two propeller engines taking of without us!!
Ah. But no. Those engines followed us all the way to Chandigarh. I was a little curious during the flight as to whether the pilot knew where he was going. It seemed that he made a number of course corrections along the way. We were only in the air for about 45 minutes. I was tossing up whether he was thinking ‘let’s see what this baby can do’, or ‘let’s play tip the cabin crew over’. In the end I considered the possibility that he was avoiding military airspace.
The got a window seat (which probably wouldn’t have mattered on this plane. There are no middle rows) The view was really interesting. Flat land stretching to the horizon. Pockets of towns and villages. Mostly cultivated countryside. I pondered how all this land gets its water. We only passed a few small rivers here and there. But, then this is monsoon country I suppose.
Chandigarh airport is a small, rather quaint place similar to Palmerston North. Its biggest contingent of planes were all military. In talking to Ashutosh (The person I had come all this way to work with), he told me that the airport was being upgraded to an international status. Looking over to the side of the existing terminal I could see a fancy looking shell, which I guessed, was the beginning of the make over.
I met Ashutosh at the airport. We were soon on our way into the city. We chatted a little on the way in. Discussed some of the plans for the course. He dropped me off at a hotel and suggested I rest until the morning. I was grateful. I was quite tired. My room is quite big. It’s a twin. It’s fairly basic. A few light bulbs missing. A cupboard door with no handle. An air conditioning unit that only works on full. He he. Never a dull moment.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
So, I'm off to India again.
This time I'm going to Chandigarh.
It's a city that was designed and built after the seperation of Pakistan and India.( http://www.travelchandigarh.com/chandigarhBlog/tag/chandigarh-history )
Looking forward to setting out.
More coming soon :)
This time I'm going to Chandigarh.
It's a city that was designed and built after the seperation of Pakistan and India.( http://www.travelchandigarh.com/chandigarhBlog/tag/chandigarh-history )
Looking forward to setting out.
More coming soon :)
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