Its November already

Come you for jobbing? So asked my cabbie Yup, will be here for 2 days. Answered I in my pseudo american twang Not long. Where from? Buzzed my chubby driver as proceed to take out a cigarette and light it (after he offered me one). Munich, Germany.  'Sprechen sie deutsche?' in a flawless accent and thus continued my ignominy for the lack of german communication inspite of being in Greece. So far Athens seems like a calculus class gone really bad. My language classes are progressing to an extent where I think my hearing and understanding have progressed however I still sound retarded when barking my germanic litany. Its interesting though, its really does feel like learning something new especially when you are struggling with homework (which I refer to as Hausaufgabe). Lets see how long I put up with it before I give up. They have started showing some real news again on TV instead of the indepth analysis of Bradley effect and why the world does not need another republican. Economy and the new doom and gloom story seem to be the new mantra. We had an action packed weekend, on TV. 6 episodes of 24 and Quantum of Solace left my better half stir crazy. The movie was outstanding for its graphics and stunts but very poor on storyline and perhaps even light on hot women. Mr. Bond continues to be enigmatic. The name sucks though. Sunday was great weatherwise, picnicked in the Engligh Garten and walked around town.

New President

We have a new black President and its not in Africa. Time to change. Popular sentiment was for change however the last 2 elections did not reflect my popular sentiment so I must say there was always a nagging doubt till I saw confirmation this morning. Howevert the big question is if God will continue to bless America? Comments that I have heard so far in Germany Secretary - ' Its a speacial day, I am very happy.' Colleague - 'Is he really black or just partially black' Colleague - 'Congratulations America' Friend - 'Can he deliver?' Family member - 'Not bad dude' I made my first porcini risotto last night, it was a halfway success. The flavouring was more or less spot on however I had trouble timing the dish, as is always with my italian dishes, so final show was not upto to the mark. Next time. Though I did enjoy the complimenting bottle of Casalferro. Its risotto for rest of the week till I get it right :)

We were in Amsterdam last weekend

We were in esteemed company last weekend and under patronage of our Sino-Bavarian friends in Amsterdam. Since the Bavarian has become a landlord we figured that it will be a good idea to see prosperity can do to good friends. Prosperity has certainly caught up with his mid-section. Our only itinerary item was to get our fill of Chinese food so no museums, no sight seeing and no coffee shops. We still think we can move to Amsterdam however not sure if we are upto another new language. We left with the intention to return to test the grill next summer. No traveling for several weeks has left lots of time for me to pick up my squash game, though I am not sure my knees will hold up if I continue playing. Played some tennis also last week but weather conditions now require looking for indoor courts. Work is balanced nowadays, however the car showroom designer is all knotted up in line drawing stress. Her parturiency pains with her new project seem to make my job seem zimble. We cooked and celebrated the recent engagement of K & B this friday by polishing a bottle of Champagne, two fine bottles of Hofstatter Gewurztraminer and a Vin Santo (complete with Almond cookies). We went to the BMW Welt, BMW's signature showroom for all its latest and greatest models, and the new BMW Museum. Not for the faint hearted and light pocketed but but dreaming permitted. Exited the premises with my dream of dreaming of these dream machines intact. The coup d'etat was an installation at the BMW museum, you have to see it to beleive it.

Breaking news

Due to recent budget cuts and the cost of electricity, gas and oil, as well as current market conditions and the continued decline of  the U.S. economy, The Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off.  We apologize for the inconvenience.

Blog Number 101 - Book Update

For some of us the easy way to keep our sanity in financially troubled times is to simply stay away from predator lenders (I love that term), the stockmarkets and shop at discount stores. For some others, its to run. For those who remember the Pathan (atleast he likes to think he is) who valiantly ran 650km across my homeland has once again embarked on another crazy adventure. Staying true to his vision, if I can walk it then he can run it, he is going to run through Lebanon. And he convinced his foolhardy cameraman, Des, to click his spurt through Beirut. Stay tuned here to record their progress. Between work reading, articles from friends, the Economist and my regular newspaper digests when travelling I don't seem to be able get much time for casual reading. I also seem to be shifting more towards non-fictional reading and biographies. The designer on the other hand continues to devours volumes by the dozen. We are thinking of investing in new shelves. It was not part of the dowry kitty. The Agony and the Ecstasy - One word summarises this book for me - Inspirational. It records the painful toil of a great human being dedicated to only his work and who lived for his family. Inspite of being set in trecherous times, he seemed to coast above it and fulfill what he beleived in. I find it inspirational because of his work ethic and his focus on his vision on how things were to be done. No easy road for this man. However it is often tinged with his seemingly egotistical thinking which is often manifested in his temper. The book is often a bit patronizing such that sometime you get the impression that its written by a lover and not a biographer. Its also the best book to read before visiting the renaissance city of Florence. Inspite of not knowing a lot about the region, I think I would like to read a few more book about this period and its artists. This is definitely a top 10 book for me. There is however a lot of detail in book so it can be a hard read especially about his formative years. Warning - you may be left with the feeling that you're leading a passionless life after reading this book, such is the investment Michelangelo makes in what he beleives in. I would like to read this book again sometime. The Elephanta Suite - This is not a feel good book. Its also the perfect book for the narcisstic Indian. I often meet brethren who cannot shut about what a fantastic place they come from and continue to extol the fine virtues of Indian to their attentive future euro/dollar pimping tourists friends . There have been many books to that effect also. This is perhaps one of the few that is against the tide. Not sure I am excited about the book but like it for it being different. Its a compilation of short stories, I would have changed the order of the stories, the latter stories are a bit more interesting. It needles together the religous rioting, the suave Indian career bugger, animals, the godmen, poverty, the uninitiated fumbling male and many other things that make my country special. Overall a book worth my time but a poor to read for those who are trying to glean some input to build a mental picture of India. Or maybe it is? Disgrace - Coetzee is a well known author and is distinguished by winning the booker prize twice and in which Disgrace being the cause the second time around. Its a very hard book describe. It debases humanity's own very soul but it also is the sad truth that many refuse to acknowledge. Its conceivable storyline, especially if you are familiar with the new South Africa, is harsh and the contrasts it brings forward are even less palatable. Its comparable with the new South Africa. It seems like the country has moved ahead but forgot to read a few chapters in between but at the sametime grateful its ahead. It describes the clash of times in rural Africa. For example, rape at which one would balk at harshly but instead the argument seems to be between whethers its the price to pay for living in rural Africa or is it payment for the attrocities commited in the past. I think Coetzee has done a remarkable job in presenting the thinking of both races well and also the distinction in attitudes in the 2 different generations in these races. I connect with a lot that is in the book because it is in someway the Africa I knew while I was growing up and the Africa that I saw when I was there last. Verdict - Very nice but not for everyone.

Alto Adige

I was depressed for all of September and all blame falls squarely on the truant weather gods. 2 Degrees in September is cruel and unfair. So for those who were wondering whats up with lazy fingers, you know why. Courtesy Reunification day (do we need a holiday thanking the Americans and Russians for dividing us?), we enjoyed a 3 day weekend in the mountains in South Tyrol (Sud Tyrol). One of the strong appeals of living in Munich is its location, a couple of hours and u can be in very different locations. Italy being one of the popular and Sud Tyrol being the closest in it, popular logic would think we would have been there a couple of times. Alas this was the first time, we subscribe to converse logic. For a change the line drawer organized the roadtrip. As marks most of our Italian vacation, wine was a high point of our agenda. I have graduated to underrated and fantastic Alto Adige region, my grand plan was to explore the famous white wines of the region during the summer as I tend to partial to white in warm weather. No such luck, more beer than wine this summer. Main difference from my other favourite region (Tuscany) being that instead of rolling hills you have steep mountains. Its afterall the Alpine region. For starters, there is nothing Italian about this place, its very German. The food is very heavy, the accent is thick and everything is very orderly unlike my usual italian experience of a sing-song language, filling food and what seems like organized confusion. However top marks for the locations and crisp alpine air. A very comfortable bed and breakfast was our abode which also boasted a very good chef with whome we dined for the first evening. The heavy rains and bumper to bumper traffic did not leave much time to explore the first night. A late breakfast gave us the perfect excuse not to start the day with any hiking and instead explore vineyards ( I am still smirking about that one). First stop, Hofkellerei. Small vineyard but more famous for its family imports and I am not talking grapes here. Elena Walch married into the family that runs Hofkellerei and then went to build one of the best vineyards in the region now under her own name, Elena Walch. The line drawer got a thrill out of knowing that she was also a former architect. Her husband also runs his own Winery called Willem Walch. Several tasting and hundreds of euros later we decided to explore one of the Vineyards and so we headed to Castel Rindberg. After lots of grapes, steep slopes, green apples and multi-hued lizards we decided it was good time to break for lunch. We hit the lake, Lago Di Caldaro, later in the afternoon. Dinner was at the J. Hoffstätter estate restaurant, a simple meal of pasta and liquid gold. On the second day my excuses did not find much appeal, I finally had to trek up the mountain. Lunch was in Bolzano at a restaurant to which we seemed going back to often though I am not sure why. We were back in time in Munich to go to P's Favourite indian restaurant for her fix of dosas. My curry was disappointing.

Happy Birthday!

Another year, another 9/9 down and none the wiser (she is still sticking around!). My Aurora Borealis continues to sparkle and shine when I manage to send the right electrons across (I am getting better at this) and rest of the time continues to be my northern light. Life with wife is definitely better than life without wife. Conversation with a Pharmacist in Cairo Me - Coughing and with a spinning head I say - ' Excuse me' Pharmacist - 'Aiwa' Me - 'I think I have bad cold, I ate some strepsils but its not helping and now I have a headache. It could also be a fever' Pharmacist - Looks at me blankly Me - Can you give some Tylenol Flu or some sort of Flu medicine' Pharmacist - 'Can you speak English' Me - Was my fever that bad that I could not speak english anymore. Not wanting to look like a fool, I ask my colleague to translate my language into English. Ihab obliges. Pharmacist chuckles to my colleagues and says - 'Don't tell me he does not have an accent' Moral of the story- When a Mallu is sick in Pyramid land, get a translator.