AmreekanDesi » Photos

Jugaad Zindabad!

amreekandesi — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:37:06 +0000

What is Jugaad, did you ask? Well, it is the lifeblood on which India runs.

Sample this.

A less Jugaadu person might have tried to get a mechanic, or petrol. But why bother when you have a friend with a strong leg?

Swanky, Swankier, Swankiest

amreekandesi — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 14:37:49 +0000

This post is about Gurgaon, a little town in Haryana just outside Delhi. Till a month back, i had never been to that part of town. These days, i spend quite a lot of time there.

First time to Gurgaon, and i was pleasantly surprised. I felt like i had suddenly come to a new land. It’s a veritable jungle mein mangal. There is some amazing architecture on display in the swanky office buildings coming up all over Gurgaon.

As you cross the Toll plaza, here’s what the view looks like.

Is it a building? Is it a ship? Its the ship building!!

The ship beckons you into Cyber City – and suddenly you are in a different land.

A land of shiny towers and architectural marvels. It’s a little stretch of land, but a lot of imagination. Each building has its own character, its own persona.

It’s unlike anything i had seen elsewhere in India. My jaw dropped the first time i was in the area.

Somehow i get reminded of the Las Vegas Strip, a strip of very unique looking casinos. This road could well be a different sort of strip. There’s Ericsson, Sapient, Standard Chartered, RBS, PWC, Oracle, HP, and more technology powerhouses in those gleaming towers.

The fabulous architecture isn’t just limited to the Strip. Elsewhere in Gurgaon, such beautiful buildings are coming up all over. This one’s one of my favorites.

The funny thing is, people tell me Gurgaon isn’t for living. It’s dusty, transport is a big problem, amenities are an issue, etc.

Looking at all those shiny buildings, you would think it’s a world class city in the making.

The Dollar is our Best Friend

amreekandesi — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:57:49 +0000

Walking through the mall the other day, i was pleasantly horrified to see this:

WTH is a Dollar store doing in Delhi? First the prices everywhere seem to be directly converted from dollars, and now this?

Somebody please tell someone that people in India earn in Rupees, not Dollars.

The Great Depression of 2009

amreekandesi — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 06:02:50 +0000

Eighty years later, life comes full circle.

Two pictures, same struggle.

1929

Hungry Americans waiting in line for food during the great depression.

(Image courtesy: reformation.org)

2009

Desperate job seekers waiting in line just to get into a bursting-at-the-seams job fair in New york city. Picture taken on 24 Feb 2009 in midtown Manhattan by me.

Also see:

Byaadu for some, not too bad for others
How happy am i with my job

Travelogy – Disney World Magic Kingdom

amreekandesi — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 06:47:57 +0000

In Central Florida lies this little town called Orlando. Orlando’s claim to fame – Amusement Parks.

Walt Disney started the trend a few decades back with Disney World, and since then this city has become an entertainment hub with Disney, Universal studios, and myriad other amusement parks and other attractions.

Disney world is spread over some 27000 acres of land, roughly the size of San Fransisco. It comprises of four theme parks, two water parks, and, hold your breath, twenty three hotels. It is the largest single site employer in the US providing employment to some 65000 people.

Here’s an account of our recent trip to Disney World. Part 1 covers the most famous amusement park, known as Magic Kingdom. Part 2 coming up next will cover Epcot, Disney’s space themed park.

There’s us driving through the parking gates. The parking is huge, so be sure to remember where you parked your car or you could spend the night trying to find your lost car!

After you park the car, you get a tram to take you to the entry terminals. There you take either a ferry or a monorail to reach the actual park.

We chose the ferry.

The view from the ferry. The park is centered around Cinderella’s castle, which you would notice in the background.

There’s the castle.

The Magic Kingdom received some 17 million visitors in 2007 making it the most famous amusement park in the whole world. To put this in perspective, this number is a multiple of the total number of foreign tourist arrivals in all of India on an annual basis.

Another beautiful shot taken with my wonderful Canon S5 camera.

First ride of the day. Go Kart meets Disney. It turned out kinda lame in the end. Great fun for kids, which is the whole point of this theme park.

I never thought i’d live to see this day. That board over there says – Stroller Parking. There were strollers and kids all over the place. Luckily they all seemed happy. Imagine 20k kids crying in symphony.

That’s a little river through which runs a river boat. Not really a thrill ride, but good to rest your legs and take a short break. In the background is the Haunted House which was pretty cool.

The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. This roller coaster is probably the park’s most action packed ride for adrenaline junkies.

This one is the coolest. Splash Mountain. Experience a free fall from five stories high. Doesnt sound like much till you actually do it. What they dont tell you is that before the big fall there are a couple of smaller, but very exciting similar falls.

We obviously didnt do much kid stuff, but there’s the usual merry go around rides.

A day at Magic Kingdom is full of walking and planning if you want to cover everything. If you dont plan well, you will be stuck waiting at all the rides. Wait times can be as high as an hour for the most popular ones such as the Splash Mountain.

To help reduce the wait, they let you get a Fast Pass at some of the attractions. These let you skip ahead of the line, like an MP driving on Delhi roads. The caveat is that you can only get one fast pass at a time. If you mix wait times and fast passes, you can manage everything.

I know we did.

Make sure you take along some comfortable shoes! There’s going to be a lot of walking at this place.

How good am i at photography! The blue skies, the setting sun, the reflection in the water, the bird soaring away. Wow!

Every evening there is a fancy parade in the park. There are a whole bunch of fancy colorful floats with all the famous Disney characters that i dont get, and kids seem to adore.

The day we went, it was jam packed. We watched the parade perched atop a lamppost.

The crowd reminded me of the 4th of July celebrations. Only, this happens there every day.

During the night the castle looks amazing. The lighting keeps changing illuminating the castle in different color schemes of blues, greens and other colors i cant name.

All this culminates in a grand fireworks show that might even be better than the one we saw in New york on Independence day! Pretty damn spectacular.

At the Magic Kingdom they certainly create some magic. Its like a different world far away from the hassles of life. Its an awe inspiring spectacle that drives the little kids crazy, as also the older ones.

This was it from Magic Kingdom. Epcot comes up soon. Stay tuned!

Travelogy – Miami

amreekandesi — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 06:23:37 +0000

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then number 99 is going to be my longest post yet.

Me and the missus decided to beat the retreat to that tropical heaven called Miami. Our anniversary week was spent in Florida in a bid to escape the New York chill. As luck would have it, New York got warm during that week, and Florida kinda cold. Life is so full of little mercies.

Here’s an account of our Miami trip, starting with an aerial shot of Miami from the airplane. Note the waters in hues of blue and green, the skyscrapers of downtown Miami, and the little islands southwards.

Spoiler alert: Miami is awesome. You may turn the color of the water after viewing these pictures.

The clear blue waters of the Atlantic ocean. The water was so clear you could see your feet underwater. Never saw that on our own Juhu Beach!

We didn’t waste much time getting to the beach. It was too cold to get in the water so the time was (well) spent taking these amazing pictures.

The streets of Miami – narrow and crowded. Parking is a pain, and sorta expensive. Our hotel charged $35 for one night for parking the car.

That’s a lifeguards station. You may have seen some of these on that famous TV show..what was its name

A lot of cruises operate from Miami, owing to its proximity to the Caribbean. This was a Royal Caribbean ship, all festive and huge.

Back to the beach on a sunnier day, and we finally got to hit the ocean.

Nighttime was spent on a cruise around the city’s coast. This shot at the marina, where all the millionaires park their yachts.

Yachts such as these. Readers may want to compliment me for the awesome photography skills displayed in this and the other pictures.

What can i say? Cranes take my breath away! (Long sigh…)

Fisher island is apparently one of the most elusive addresses in the US. It is only accessible by ferry or helicopter – there’s no road access to the island.

Picture perfect shot of some random buildings.

This yacht is worth over $50 million.

Back at the marina with an attempt to capture the lights reflecting in the water.

Florida travelogy continues next with an account of our Disney World trip.

Spreading the Holiday Cheer

amreekandesi — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 06:04:47 +0000

2008 was an eventful year.

America went into an economic depression. Indian firms started feeling the heat, and layoffs are a routine affair now. Mumbai saw the worst terror attacks India has ever seen. America got a new and very dynamic leader in Barrack Obama. India sent a mission to the moon. India managed a nuclear deal with the US despite the left’s best efforts to disrupt the deal. Manmohan Singh managed to last his entire term in office.

In sports, China celebrated its coming-of-age party in the shape of the most lavish Olympics ever. India managed to win not one, but three individual medals. Vishwanathan Anand became the undisputed world chess champion. Recently the Indian cricket team walloped England.

Hopefully 2009 will be a little less eventful. Hopefully the economic situation will improve. Hopefully India’ will keep going on the road to progress. Hopefully the elections will give us a stable, strong government that will work on improving the infrastructure and keep up the GDP growth. Hopefully the terrorists will get jobs that lead to retirement and give up their guns for keyboards and mice.

Happy New Year everybody! Hopefully the new year will bring cheer and good health to our lives.

Here’s some pictures taken from all over New york city to brighten up otherwise dull times.

Holiday decorations at Macy’s

The lighting at Bloomingdales – simple yet stunning.

The famous Rockefeller center Christmas tree – probably the most famous Christmas tree in all of New york.

Midtown is the place to be at this time of the year – the decorations are awesome, and the tourists are always so entertaining.

We loved the faux Christmas tree outside Radio City music hall. The Christmas Spectacular show was interesting.

This would be our favorite Christmas tree this season (and last). Secluded hotel in midtown. Hidden gem not yet plundered by tourism.

Christmas tree made of LCD TVs at the Grand Central station.

Times Square is always crowded but right now it is unbelievable. It is like Chandni Chowk right before Diwali. 31st night expects a million people in that little space. Those brave souls will stand in the bitter cold and ravaging winds. They will be put in pens with nowhere to go. No food to buy. No loo to pee. All this to see a crystal ball go down an aluminium pole. We say that calls for a bravery award.

Serendipity 3 is one of the gems of Newyork. The past few times we went there we were surprised by the half hour wait time at this famous dessert place. This week they have wait times of over three hours. We made a booking and then watched a movie at nearby Imaginasian. This Christmas tree was spectacular.

Once again, Happy New Year to our dear readers. Stay warm. Stay safe. Dont drink and drive. If you must, drink a lot of water, and stay clear of the cops. You dont want to get arrested on new year’s day!

Fall Colors in Central Park

amreekandesi — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:53:37 +0000

The onset of fall season brings out a phenomenon i believe doesn’t happen in India, we being a semi tropical country.

The colors of fall.

Vibrant hues of red, yellow, orange, green. A smorgasbord of colors. Leaves on trees start acquiring bright, beautiful colors. It is their way of saying goodbye. In a few weeks the tree would be bare. For the next few months, life would be dull, cold, and color less. It’s a season’s quota of color, shrunk wrap in a few weeks.

Unfortunately, yours truly was indisposed during the time when the colors were at their best, thanks to a gaping hole in one of the (two) feet. Got back to life in time for a quick trip to the Central Park, right here in the center of New York.

Didnt catch a lot of fall colors. By the time i got to taking these pictures mostly the yellows were left. Still good enough for some mighty impressive pictures. All of these pictures were taken using my prehistoric Samsung mobile phone.

Here we go.

The grass is green
skies are blue
some trees are lean
and some are through.

Leaves are falling, but the colors are striking.

Here, all leaves have gone hiking. Picture, still striking.

And there they are. Tall, Gorgeous, very colorful.

Here’s a shot along the upper reservoir. 1.6 miles of waterfront path that has seen a lot of wear and tear from yours truly’s running shoes.

Another shot. Notice the tall midtown buildings in the background.

Not all’s yellow though. Some outliers still refusing to give up.

Finally, we spotted some red.

Like the Congress and BJP, we stand together despite our differences.

By now it was getting dark.

And this hunk of a tree started getting a little, heavy on us. Time to leave.

These pictures are about a month old. By now, all trees are bare. Fall colors came like a whiff of fresh air, and now it is just the cold, chilly winds of winter that keep pounding us, sometimes threatening to blow us off the road entirely.

Fall colors were nice. The winter blues, not so much!

Basmati’s Got Company

amreekandesi — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:57:14 +0000

Readers might rewind their brains to many years ago, when there was this huge outcry about an American company acquiring patent rights over Basmati rice.

Yes, the very same Basmati rice that we Indians have been cultivating for, for, forever. How dare they? Basmati is India, spelt in seven letters.

Well, they were told to stick it, and after a big campaign, most of the patents were revoked. More importantly, Ricetec lost the right to claim the Basmati brand.

Trust American ingenuity to come up with alternatives.

Presenting, for our very own readers, for the first time, here’s Basmati’s American cousins.

Big brothers Kasmati and Texmati.

Kasmati is Indian Style Basmati. Texmati is Long Grain American Basmati

Jasmati is the little Long Grain American Jasmine sister. Sweet like Jasmine, white like milk, and with a mati of her own.

Available at a grocery store near you!

Turn of the Tide

amreekandesi — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:43:51 +0000

They say a picture is worth a million words.

This one was discovered in a discount household store in Newyork.

So far we had only seen Indian stores selling stuff with prices printed in rupees. A non desi store selling Tide detergent for Rs 23 was, let’s just say, exciting.

(Just to clarify, these prices might be printed in rupees, but the beauty is that you pay in dollars, and the dollar price has no relation to the conversion rate)

God bless whoever thought up camera phones!