Anisuthide Yaako Indu - Translation

A look at the hit counters on my blog made me realize the amount of people who are searching for a Kannada to English translation of the song "Anisuthide Yaako Indu" from the Kannada movie Mungaaru MaLe. So, here is an attempt to translate the song to English. But, I would like to mention that the essence of the original song is not there in the translated version.

This translation is specifically dedicated to that one particular soul who googled for "May I get the english translation of Anisuthide". Never before have I heard of anyone being so polite to a search engine :))

Anisuthide yaako indu, neenenay nannavaLendu
maayada lokadinda, nanagaagi bandavaLendu
Aaaha yentha madhuraa yaathane
kollu hudugi ommay nanna, haagay summanay

There is a feeling at this instant, which makes me wonder, whether are you the one for me ?
Are you the one, who has descended from the land of illusion just for me?
Oh! It is such a pleasurable sensation.
Come on girl, let me be in this feeling forever.

Suriyuva soneyu suuside ninnaday parimaLa
Inyaara kanasalu, neenu hoedaray taLamaLa
PoorNa chandira rajaa haakida ninneya mogavanu kanDa kshaNa
naa khydi neene seremanay
tappi nanna appiko ommay, haagay summanay
Anisuthide yaako indu........

This drizzle is dripping with your fragrance.
Your presence in someone else's dream makes me very restless
The full moon went on a holiday after setting sight on you face
Girl, I am the prisoner in the prison of your love
Give me a hug atleast once, just like that.

TutigaLa hoovali, aaDada maatina sihiyide
manasina puTadali kevala ninnaday sahi ide
haNeyali bareyada ninna hesara hrudayadi naane korediruvay
ninagunTe idara kalpanay ?
nanna hesara koogay ommay haagay summanay

There is the sweetness of the unspoken words on your soft lips
My mind/heart is filled with you
Although you are not in my destiny, I have carved your name in my heart/mind
Oh Girl, are you aware of this ?
Call out my name atleast once, Just like that!

Anisuthide yaako indu, neenene nannavaLendu
maayada lokadinda, nanagaagi bandavaLendu
aaaha yentha madhuraa yaathane
kollu hudugi omme nanna haagay summanay

There is a feeling at this instant, which makes me wonder whether are you the one for me ?
Are you the one who has descended from the land of illusion just for ?
Oh! It is such a pleasurable sensation.
Come on girl, let me be forever in this feeling.

As I mentioned before, the translated version does not have the essence of the original. You must know kannada to completely understand the essence and to feel the soul of this song. The best part about the song is its simplicity and straight from the heart feeling. Hats off to the lyricist, Jayanth Kaykani for coming up with this awesome song, the music director, Mano Murthy for composing the music and the playback singer, Sonu Nigam for rendering it in such a way that it conveys the emotion behind it extremely well!

Local Exotic Sweet

The title sounds contradictory, doesn't it ? But, by the end of the post you will understand.

I am talking about a sweet called as "GiNNu" in kannada. It is one among my favourite sweets and it is made from cow's milk. But, it cannot be made from milk that is got everyday. The milk has to be obtained from the cow just after it has given birth to a calf. Only the milk got in the first two/three milkings will be suitable to make GiNNu. I am not sure why, but I am guessing that it has got something to do with the consistency of the milk.

You can call it a local sweet because apparently not many people have heard about it. Many of my friends (from different parts of India) at work did not know that something of this sort existed. Hardly one or two among my friends knew about it. It can also be called as exotic as it is not available at any sweet shop because, the main ingredient is not readily available. Its not like a Gulab Jamun or a Jalebi that I can purchase and eat whenever I want. Infact, I have eaten it just twice in my entire life - the first time being about 14 years back and the second time being today. I had gone for the house warming ceremony of a colleague and it was served there. I was extremely surprised to see it there. I am still quite shocked as to how the catering agency managed to procure enough numbers of it to serve to around 50+ people.

Ginnu looks like a cream coloured jelly and has the same consistency but it is not translucent as a jelly generally is. It is made by mixing the milk with sugar and cooking it in a pressure cooker and then flavouring it with elaichi. I am guessing it can be made is some other ways too, but this is the only one I am aware of. It tastes very much like thickened sweetened milk and just melts in your mouth.

Do try it out, if you do get an oppourtunity. Regarding its availability, ask those people who have cows in their house. They might be able to provide you with the sweet. But do keep in mind that by using that milk for making a sweet, you are denying the newborn calf its food.

Not Again!

I saw the trailer/song of the movie Ta Ra Rum Pum on TV and realised that it is one more movie which is based in New York City. There was Kal Ho Na Ho, Jaaneman, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and now Ta Ra Rum Pum. What's with this "Big Apple" addiction that Bollywood had gotten into ? Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against NYC. Infact, it is one of the cities in the world that I want to visit desperately having heard and seen lots about it (thanks to Hollywood and American TV).

Btw, you should listen to the song "Hey Shona" from the same movie. I totally loved it :)

Cheese and its kind

There is a dog in our street (lets call her Cheese) and she has delivered a litter of puppies in our back yard. There are 7 of them and you should hear them trying to make some sound with their extremely feeble voices. They look so adorable and tiny. Infact, they cant even walk. All of them will be lying like a pile of stones against their mother's body. I tried to take a photo of them, but have not been able to get a good shot. They are all piled up in one corner behind a tree. Cheese is apparently very very comfortable with me and my family and is hardly bothered by our presence. It has become a daily ritual for me to give her bread and milk.

I have always wanted to have pets at home. My parents though are quite against it for two reasons -

1. Its not good to keep any animal bound or tied. They should be let free.
2. They will have do all the taking care part of it. I will be excited for a few days, but then due to other constraints like time and effort, I would soon lose interest.
   

I do agree with them now, but as kids it was a different story. No amount of reasoning could convince me or my brother. Then my mom got a super-duper idea and told us that its either the "Pet" or us. Promptly, my brother and I shut up and have not raised that topic ever since. But, to till this day I wish I could have a pet without feeling guilty that I am curbing its freedom. Infact, an ideal pet would be a baby elephant. Yes, you read it right, A BABY ELEPHANT!. Ever since I saw some on NGC, I want to have one around me and in my house. Oookay, you can stop laughing now :P

Btw, what do you guys think I should name the puppies ? Mozzarella, Riccotta, Feta, Parmesan, Gouda, Cottage, etc.. :))

VC, I Love You

I really do and I am saying so from the bottom of my heart. I am sure anyone who has used MSVC debugger will agree with me whole heartedly. It is such a pleasure using it. Makes work a lot simpler and faster. For someone who has been using a debugger to debug an embedded application or firmware, using VC is like a walk in the clouds!

Embers @ Nandana Grand

A very impromptu decision to go out for lunch led us to Embers @ Nandana Grand in Koramangala. The catch phrase of this restaurant is "Global Cuisine" and hence I was quite skeptical about how good the food is going to be. I generally feel that many of these multi-cuisine places tend to screw up some cuisines and have had many practical experiences as proof of this. It is much better at times to find a niche and stick to it. In other words, its not gonna suffice if you are "Jack of all trades". You need to be a master of at least one of them.

Coming back to the review, all the items turned out to be surprisingly quite good at the buffet lunch. They had a good spread comprising of Chinese, Italian (just one dish), North and South Indian dishes in this lunch buffet priced at Rs 149 + taxes. We started of with "Cream of Spinach" soup, which was quite well done and was served at the right consistency and temperature. This was followed by a generous helping of Babycorn manchurian (they called it Shanghai Babycorn). I totally loved the manchurian. The taste was just how I expect a manchurian to taste i.e., not too much of ginger-garlic-soy sauce masala.

There were three salads. One was the regular green salad. The second one was a mixed vegetable salad in a nice vinegar based dressing. The third one was a pineapple-paneer salad of which I ate only the pineapple :D I am somehow not a huge fan of Paneer. I prefer Cheese :D

For the main course, there was Penne in a vegetable and cream sauce and again it was the just the way I like my Pasta to be. Among the north-indian stuff, there were Aloo mutter and Dal fry. Both were very well done. There were two non-veg gravies also. Rotis were served directly at your table and were soft and warm. Among the rice items, there was Chicken Biryani, Vegetable Schezuan Fried rice, Plain rice along with Rasam and Curds. Accompaniments like papads were also present.

Dessert comprised of a yummy tasting carrot halwa and fruit salad. Needless to say, all the items on the menu were very well done. Of course, I cannot give first hand opinion of the non-veg dishes as I am a vegetarian, but my friend did say that the non-veg dishes were quite good too.

Should you go there? YES! A perfect place to take a foreign dignitary for lunch as the food was not very spicy and there was just the perfect amount of variety among the Indian fare.

PS: Almost forgot to mention. Another "My kinda restaurant".

(Don't) Picture This

Time : Around 6.30 am
Location : Somewhere enroute to Hyderabad
In : Train

I wake up to a beautiful morning with a nice breeze blowing in from the window. I think "Wow! It feels so nice to wake up early in the morning and watch the country side go by. Oh! Just in time for Sunrise. God knows when was the last time I saw the sun rise!! Hmmmm...."

Then, the inevitable happens. (Warning: Read ahead only at your risk) I see a half naked man in the fields doing err.... his business.

Ewwwwwwwwwww!!!! Why god Why ??????

PS: Had been on a trip to Hyderabad over the weekend. Post coming up if I am not feeling lazy to type :)

A familiar feeling

You think its been 3-4 years. Things would have changed. I would have moved on. Those feelings would have gone by now. But hey, What do you know ?!! When I saw her recently, all I could think of was "God! She is so Beautiful!". She still manages to make my heart beat faster. I just could not help but admire her.

I feel that everyone sub-consciously has a mental image of what their perfect woman/man should look like. Many might be aware of it and some may not be. When we actually meet someone who matches this image, the infatuation just happens. In my case, I dont think I will be able to get over it any time in the near future (I have had this infatuation from the past 7.5 years). I am not repenting or anything of that sort. I am very much aware of the practicalities of life and enjoying my life at present very much. But, each time I see her, she just takes my breath away!!

I so relate to this song right now -
Anisuthide Yaako Indu
Neenene Nannavalendu
Maayada lokadinda
Nanagaagi bandavalendu
Aahaa yentha madhuraa yaathane..

I dont want to translate the above lines to English as I dont think I will do a good job of the translation and it wont be able to capture the meaning of this song as intended. So, the readers of my blog who don't understand Kannada, Please Excuse :)

Indi Joe - 2

I had been to Indi Joe for lunch today and I came back feeling so satisfied. It never fails to satisfy my foodie brain. I am so thankful that this restaurant exists in Bangalore! Incase, you have not yet realized, it is among my favourite restaurant in Bangalore.

Mungaaru MaLe

Finally!!! A decent kannada movie with dignified kannada being spoken!

I had heard a lot about this movie and watched it on tuesday evening. Its a simple love story with just the right amount of characters. No extra characters in the movie for the purpose of comedy. The photography(or is it cinematography ?) is amazing! Very scenic locations, all within Karnataka. No songs or sequences being shot abroad. The best part of the movie for me was the way in which Kannada was spoken. It was so dignified and cultured. Generally, among the kannada movies being released of late, the style in which the language is spoken is so crass and pathetic. It actually hurts me to hear my language being spoken that way. In this aspect, this movie delighted me to the core. Would definitely love to watch the movie again to hear such nice kannada :)

Mungaaru MaLe means "pre-monsoon rains". The entire story takes place over a period of 8-9 days in the pre-monsoon season. Set mainly is Madikeri, the story revolves around Pritham (played by Ganesh) and his love for Nandini (played by Sanjana). It has just the right amount of emotional drama without being over dramatic/melodramatic.

The scenic locations and cinematography are the things to lookout for. Truly spectacular. The music is also very good. The songs and the lyrics are straight from the heart and describes the feelings very very well. Must hear songs are "Anisuthide Yaako Indu", "Onde Ondu Saari" and "Kunidu Kunidu Baare".

Go watch the movie if you are a ardent kannada movie fan. It is a breath of fresh air amongst the typical remakes and gangster movies.

Ha Ha Ha

Last week, when I went to the salon for a haircut, I saw that they had renovated the place. The old salon was gone and in its place stood two salons - one for the men and the other for the ladies. Any guess what they had named the two salons ?

The men's salon was called as "Abhishek Men's Salon" while the ladies salon was called as "Aishwarya Ladies Beauty Parlour" :O For a second I did not know what to say and then I burst out laughing loudly on the road :)) Jesus christ!! People and their thoughts!! They had even put up posters of the stars on the respective salon doors.

A Typical Conversation

This is how a typical conversation between Shub and me goes.....

--------------------------------------------------
From: PizzaDude
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 2:50 PM
To: Shub
Subject: foodies delight ...

I bet u didnt know abt this!!!
B-)

http://www.tastespotting.com/page/7


-------------------------------------------------
From: Shub
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 2:54 PM
To: PizzaDude
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

nooooooooooo!
looks awesommmmmmmmmmmmmme! :D
happy now? :P
I've decided I'm gonna make something special every weekend...starting this weekend...wanna start baking! :)
wish you were here to taste the stuff ! :D


--------------------------------------------------
From: PizzaDude
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:02 PM
To: Shub
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

Buhahahahahahahaha.. :P

Total drool material.. That too we now have 17 inch LCD monitors in office.. every photo at the site looks equally big and much more droolicious :D

All the best with ur baking adventures.. keep me updated.. what r u planning to start with ? I so wish I was there to taste all the stuff... kinda reminds me one of the episode from "Joey" where he is judging the lasagna made by one of the characters in the show :D


--------------------------------------------------
From: Shub
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:06 PM
To: PizzaDude
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

planning to start with carrot cake ( remember the one we ate at coffee bean? Yumm :D )
I also have a 17 inch lcd monitor!:D

Did I tell you I made lasagna once about 3 months back?! turned out quite nice...should try it again!


--------------------------------------------------
From: PizzaDude
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:16 PM
To: Shub
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

The only thing I remember eating at Coffe bean was the "Apple Cinnamon cheesecake".. the rest is a blur... Did we eat the carrot cake the first or the second time ? I think it was the first time.. I was too overwhelmed by the cheesecake to rememeber anything else... Oooookay, now I want to eat that cheesecake.. Waaaaah! :'(

u remember the photo I took @ coffee bean in holland village where I posed next to the array of baked goodies.. reminds me of photographs people take standing next to famous tourist spots/monuments... =))

You made lasagna ????? Wow!!! sounds def interesting... We both should be apartment mates.... you cook and I taste and vice-versa :D Am jus thnkg how mast it would be.. hee hee... We will be two fat people in no time at all.. hey wait a min.. we would be exercising buddies too then... rememeber the friday-lunch-is-a-treat-by-person-who-does-not-go-to-gym-ateast-4-times-a-week rule ? And how I used to lose almost every other week...


--------------------------------------------------
From: Shub
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:24 PM
To: PizzaDude
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

yeah chinnu totally! we'd be great as flatmates! Totally on the eating and working out part! wah how cool taht would be! :D
first time at coffee bean : cheesecake and thousand layer choc cake!( can't forget that!)
2nd time mushroom quiche and carrot cake!! aaahhhhh! :D
how can YOU forget such stuff?! SHAME on you! an insult to the food if you ask me :P


--------------------------------------------------
From: PizzaDude
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:32 PM
To: Shub
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

Like I told you, I was toooooo overwhelmed by the cheese cake to remember anything else... Btw, the second time, we also had another cheesecake.. I think it was a blueberry one.. Oh yeah!! I now rememeber the chocolate cake.. and also that cheese and tomato sandwich we had at boat quay.... and then we had gone to Lau Pa Sat for dinner... dutta n danny had some meal combination, while we had a mango ice-kachang and a banana split... we took photos too.... see.... I rememeber B-)


--------------------------------------------------
From: Shub
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 3:33 PM
To: PizzaDude
Subject: Re: foodies delight ...

yeah yeah ! :) By the way remember your BLOG? POST then! :P
I just did :D


And that is why this post came into existence :D

Taam falafels

By now, the regular readers of my blog must have realized how much I like to try out different kinds of food and visiting new restaurants. The restaurant I visited recently as part of my new-year-resolution to visit-many-more-new-restaurants is called "Taam Falafels". I spotted this place quite some time ago and was dying to go there. And the day finally arrived recently and man, was I thrilled!!! :D

The restaurant is set in a quiet part of residential Koramangala. Its on the first floor in a corner building, with the front done completely in Glass. This lets in ample amount of sunlight, giving the whole place a fresh and cheerful feeling. The place is done in the shades of Yellow and Green which further add to that bright atmosphere. At tables next to the glass wall, you can enjoy your Mediterranean meal while basking in the glory of the sun on a bright sunny afternoon.

This is a completely vegetarian place. The main item in the menu is obviously Falafels, accompanied by pita breads and hummus. They did have many dishes, but the prominent items in almost all the dishes were the ones mentioned before. I ordered a "Vegetarian Platter" which consisted of eight different kinds of salads, two pita breads, two falafels, hummus, some vegetables and an assortment of 6-7 chutneys and dips. The salads and the accompanied dressings were really good. The pita bread was extremely soft and were a treat to eat. I also liked the hummus and Falafels, but since this was my first time in a Mediterranean restaurant, I cannot comment on its authenticity. But I totally enjoyed the food. In fact, I felt that the meal was quite healthy too as not much oil was used in the preparation.

Apart from the meal combinations, you can also have some individual items, pita bread sandwiches, juices, coffee, etc... Nice place I must say, but maybe a bit expensive. On considering the locality it is situated in, it seems quite obvious to be priced on the higher side. A complete meal for two may cost you about Rs. 350. A nice break from the regular grind of Roti-Curry or Rice-Dal.

Ta`am falafel, #565, 4th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore-560034
Ph: 41469595, 41169868

Crazy Kiya Re

I always wonder why is it that I start liking songs much more only after I see the video. :-?

I had purchased the audio CD of Dhoom 2 about a month back and did not find the songs all that great or catchy. But after seeing the movie last weekend, I have not been able to get those songs out of my head.. Not that I am complaining (infact, I am playing them over and over on my PC). The song "Crazy Kiya Re" would be quite appropriate in describing the effect the songs have had on me since yesterday. This is not the first time that I have observed such a thing.

Has this happened to you too ?

Engaged

I am not talking about myself, but about two close friends of mine. Both were my class mates in college and are now soon to be Mr and Mrs. I am feeling all god-fatherly about this latest turn of events. Its like their love blossomed right before your eyes and now it has grown and matured. Hee Hee. I am so happy for them!!

Before they officially told us about their relationship in college, a couple of us kind of knew that things were definitely going to happen between them. There are certain signs you see. Like going by themselves to the samosa stall during the break, the conversations between them in class.. and lots of such minute but very obvious behaviour patterns!!

So, come this weekend, Mr B and Ms R are all set to get offcially engaged! All the best you guys and a warm HUG to both of you.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S Contest -2

Update: Answers Published!!

1. In the episode "The One That could have been - Parts 1 and 2", what was Phoebe's profession ?
Answer: Stock broker

2. Who were the nap partners ?
Answer: Joey and Ross.

3. Who plays the part on Chandler's Dad ?
Answer: Kathleen turner

4. Joey had an imaginary childhood friend called Maurice. What was his profession ?
Answer: Space Cowboy

5. "Well, if you cant talk dirty to me, how you gonna talk dirty to her ? Now tell me you want to caress my butt". Who tells this to whom ?
Answer: This is told by Joey to Ross. Ross is dating a girl who likes to talk dirty and Joey tells this when he is prepping up Ross for it.

6. What is Janice's full name ?
Answer: Janice Litman Goralnik née Hosenstein

7. What was Monica's nickname in High school ?
Answer: Big fat goalie

8. Which actor dated Jennifer Aniston on FRIENDS and also in real life ?
Answer: Tate Donovan, who played the character of Joshua Bergin. He was a client of hers at Bloomingdales. They dated for a couple of episodes on the show.

9. Ross and Monica used to take part in an annual Football match. What was it called ?
Answer: Geller-Bowl. This continued until one year Monica broke Ross' nose, and their parents forbade them from ever playing football again.

10. What was Ross's score in SAT ?
Answer: 1250 out of 1600. He tells that he got 1450, when Monica corrects him.

ISYS

The first thing that struck me on entering this swanky and cosmopolitan restaurant at the President Hotel, Jayanagar is the colour Blue and the ambience. It reminded me of the restaurants at New York or LA which are generally shown on Discovery TLC. They serve Continental, Indian, Chinese and Thai cuisines and do a pretty good job in all of them. When we entered, we were promptly shown to a table. At that time, the restaurant was quite empty. It started filling up steadily and after an hour it was full with families, couples, kids and all variety.

We started of with some cocktails. I ordered a Mimosa (Orange juice and Red Wine). For my friend, the waiter suggested a "Jumaroo", which supposedly is the bartender's speciality. Curiosity got the better of us and we placed the order for it and it arrived soon with lots of drama. About 3 waiters came to prepare the drink while some 3 more waiters were around watching apart from the people seated around us. It is made from Orange Juice, Red wine and Blue Curacao. The waiter started off with orange juice in a wide mouthed glass. In another glass, he took the Blue Curacao and lighted it using a lighter. It started burning with a thin and almost invisible flame. He then placed a small pair of tongs over the glass containing orange juice, over which he placed two small inverted glasses. Over this he poured the slightly flaming Blue Curacao such that it gently falls onto the Orange juice without mixing with it. So, you have two layers of juice. The orange juice is at the bottom and the blue curacao on the top. He then took a glass of red wine and poured it over the orange juice + blue curacao from a height. The result - the wine went and sat at the bottom of the glass. So, we now have "Jumaroo" which contains three layers of liquid - blue curacao on top, orange juice in the middle and red wine at the bottom. How much do you think this costs ? Take a guess!!!


After relaxing over our respective cocktails and mocktails, we ordered soup and starters. I had a Gazpacho. Not very great. I have tasted better. Nothing exceptional of the other starters either. They were the regular indian stuff. Along with the starters, we got a complimentary bread basket. The bread was wonderful. Soft and sweet. The bowl in which the bread was served is worth mentioning. The bowl itself looks so eatable. Check out the picture below.


For the main course, Dutta and me shared an american chopsuey, while Dannyboy had a mutton biriyani. Both were quite good. I was quite satisfied with the food and the ambience. I must check out how good their continental stuff is.

One thing that bothered us was the noise. Once the restaurant got filled up, it became quite noisy. The music playing in the background was hardly heard and it did little to make the atmosphere more relaxed. But otherwise it is a nice place. Quite sophisticated and maybe quite ideal for a lovely and cosy date, barring the noise. Other thing that I observed was the wash basin in the restroom, or to be more accurate the absence of it. There was no basin under the tap. Under the tap, there was a slab of marble which was slightly slanted so that the water drains away. It was the first time I saw something of that sort in a restaurant in Bangalore.

Price wise, it was quite worth it. A lunch for three cost us about Rs 1200, with drinks. Quite reasonable by Bangalore standards. You should definitely check out this restaurant sometime.

ISYS, The President hotel, Jayanagar 3rd block, Bangalore.

Kannada Film Names

This came to me as a forward and I must say, its one the hilarious forwards I have received.

After the huge success of kannada film MENTAL MANJA, people suggested the below names for the recent/upcoming kannada films..
Sentimental Seena
Nightout Nagamani
Loose Laila
Kari Basya
Kalla Narayana
Blade Baira
Dabba Rathni
Dicchi Suresha
90 Kumara
Kaddi Kallesha
Mental maja.. Daridra nanja
Tikkalu Timmanna
Tukaali tammanna
Dingchak Daamini

The last one was my favourite =))

Dharwad Trip

There is some kind of thrill in deciding for a trip impromptu. I have always had loads of fun on trips decided like that. My Singapore trip was one such kind(although we decided and booked tickets one month before the actual date of departure, we decided on it, got leave and booked tickets in a day or two... you get the point?). Trip to Dharwad was also one such thing. Decided on it, booked tickets almost instantly and luckily even got confirmed tickets :D

It was supposed to be a two day trip, but eventually turned into a three day one. We left Bangalore on a saturday night and reached Dharwad on Sunday morning. The ongoing journey by train was very pleasant. Surprisingly, the train was quite empty. My friend, lets call him as 'S' and I were up quite late and were generally talking. The train was to reach dharwad at 6.45 am and since we were up quite late, were wondering if we would get up on time to get down at Dharwad. Nothing of that sort happenend though (it would have been fun if that would have happened). Woke up quite early and it was still dark outside. Saw the sunrise after a really loooooooooong time! God knows when was the last time I saw one. A friend (who also happens to be my colleague and boss) had come to receive us at the station and he took us to his home. It was such a pleasure to be out of Bangalore. The life there went on at its own pace and I was totally enjoying the relaxed atmosphere and lifestyle. Not that I hate the lifestyle in Bangalore, but everyone likes change every now and then.

I ate lots of new stuff. There is such a marked difference in the food between Bangalore-Mysore region and Hubli-Dharwad region, the latter being very much influenced by maharashtrian cuisine. Even Chaats also tasted quite different to the ones available in Bangalore. Enjoyed that too. :D

We visited quite a few places around. The first was a village called Saundatti. Its quite famous for the "Yellamma Temple" and also for the devadasi system. Nearby there is this dam on the Malaprabha river. Its built mainly for irrigation purposes. We visited it in the evening, just in time for sunset. Spent more than an hour over there taking photos and soaking up the serene environment around. The other major place we visited was the Magod Falls. Its about 80-100 kilometres from Dharwad. Its quite popular and I realised why after seeing it. The falls are extremely magnificent, cascading down in two stages. I dont know if there is path leading to the waterfall. The actual viewing spot is at a distance from the waterfall. The waterfall is amazing!!! I could not help but stare and be awed by the sheer power of water and the beauty of nature and forests around. The only sound was the roar of the waterfall. The photo below definitely does not do justice to the actual waterfall. It looks even more spectacular in real.

Learning to drive a Car

Yup, that's what I have been trying to do since the last three days. Been planning to learn it from quite sometime. It materialized recently. Through the course of the classes, I realised that I am more scared of hitting someone on the road than on being hit by someone. Ofcourse this is even more compounded by my fear of huge vehicles on the road, the erractic bangalore traffic and the concern that I will cause a traffic jam!! Man, I have issues (read that as lots).

Plus, learning to drive a car apparently makes me very very thirsty!!