As I see myself

Soltitude
Nov 25, 2008

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 7:05 PM 0 comments    

Putrajaya
Nov 6, 2008

Wikipedia says that Putrajaya is the federal capital of Malaysia, the hub of all administration activity, the center of politics in thiHoping to bump into some famous and powerful malaysians, me rashi and rohit took the long drive out of KL one weekend. The prime motivation was to witness the Malaysian International Fireworks Competitoin (MIFC08)!

The buildings were huge and mighty at Putrajaya, and they are all mostly government offices. They look new, design was nice, roads were spacious, lamppost and traffic lights had new designs too. Cool! I shall not however mention how much each lamppost cost….as to what i heard about it.

But once you get over the awe of looking at eye-popping designs of bridges (there are 9 bridges built over an artifical lake thats 600acres) and start looking around you feel a sense of eeriness. The federal capital has no population on a weekend!!!.

Yes, for a town that was designed to hold 5million people, only 50000 stay there.

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 6:17 PM 0 comments    

K-Lites
Oct 22, 2008

Its easy to see why I love KL!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 5:16 PM 0 comments    

Pulau Pangkor
Sep 14, 2008

I finally went off the beaten track here in Malaysia. After 40 days amongst buildings, buildings and more buildings, I decided I have had enough of concrete.

And thus I set off on a journey to Pulau Pangkor. I took a bus costing just 18ringgets to Lumut, the place where jetties leave for Pangkor regularly. the journey through Selangor and Perak by bus took more than 4hrs as the driver was not breaking even on his investment with only one passenger going to Lumut. He stopped at every damn bus stop to pick up people for short rides! I didn't complain though. I was mesmerized by the occasional waterfall, and some really HUGE cave temples on the way to Ipoh, the capital of Perak.

I finally reached Lumut in the afternoon. Lumut is a nice small town with a beautiful water front and chinese temples and a clark quayish beach road with KFC, pizza huts and numerous pubs. I walked from the bus stand to the main dock and booked a return ticket to Pangkor on a small boat. The boat ride was for about 30minutes with a stop in between at Sungai Pinang Basil, the fishing village on Pangkor island. I got of the Pangkor town jetty and was instantly surrounded by the taxi drivers. And the taxis were infact minivans, painted PINK!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 10:34 AM 0 comments    

A thing of beauty is joy forever
Sep 5, 2008

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 9:24 PM 0 comments    

Remember 126
Aug 18, 2008

This weekend was really thrilling, and enlightening. Thrilling because we went to Genting, the city of entertainment in Malaysia. And enlightening as we spent a nice and quiet evening with an elderly malay-chinese.

Thrill

The theme park in Genting led me to do some of the things I have always dreamt of. Falling freely and feeling the power of gravity on the space shot, corkscrwed and going through loops of a roller coaster and what not! Some things are best said in pictures. Check my flickr stream for more.



Enlightenment

Sean-Lok was the chinese colleague who drove us to Genting in his car. We met his father, a 40yr veteran of Exxon. The evening spent with them in the "126 restaurant" was great.It was my first real interaction with a chinese family. I had authentic chinese food, not the Indian chinese, but chinese chinese! Rice and prawns with soya sauce and chillies washed down with a cup full of chinese tea.

During the course of our conversation, I realised vegetarianism was an alien concept to Malaysia. Sean's dad was surprised to see "healthy" Indians (my friends) who were veggies. He always believed veggies are lean and skinny and very frail. They were further surprised to realise that my friends family had been veggies from times immemorial. A tradition, a lineage of veggies! That was simply incomprehensible. He felt impressed and inspired by them and decided to learn cooking pure veggie food.

By the way, 126 in chinese means "no less, no more"

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 6:25 PM 0 comments    

Labels: chinese, genting

Batumalai Sri Subramaniar Swamy Devasthanam
Aug 12, 2008

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 7:21 PM 0 comments    

Skybridge Walk
Aug 9, 2008

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 8:56 AM 0 comments    

08:08:08 08/08/08
Aug 8, 2008

And it has finally happened! The moment the whole world was waiting for the past four years atleast! LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!

I am back in my hotel witnessing the live coverage of the inauguration ceremony with Chinese commentary.

A pretty eventful day today. An early morning walk to the office with a bunch of Malaysian kids is a complete stress buster. I realised that today. Most of the office day, as usual, was spent indulging in the pursuit of excellence in furnace design! Sigh! Mid way during the day Su Be came up to me and asked what date it was. And then I realised, it was the day whole of Malaysia was looking forward to. For a country that has won a sum total of three medals in all the Olympics it has taken part in the past, that is quite unique. It reinforces the Dutch proverb that says " Wining is great, but its the spirit of participation that counts!" Brilliant.





Evening arrived, and with it awoke the epicurean in me. I decided to indulge myself by treating myself to a 7* meal. I walked into Hotel Nikko and went straight to the buffet table. HUGE is a small word to describe the length of the buffet! I counted 18 different animals in the food, and I was still half way through the line! 90++ ringgits for a a dinner made me feel slightly jittery. I finally decided against it and walked out. On my way out I bumped into a pack of photographers running helter skelter trying to get the picture of a Malay celeb. I decided to join in and ran along with them! A Silver-Grey Bentley slowly made its way through the crowd towards the entrance. The nameplate read "SUPERSTAR" and I half expected Rajini to walk out. Heavy expectations! Out popped an obese lady. The locals were shouting out something strange and a few shook hands with her as she briskly made her way into the hotel. I still do not know who she is!

After this slight detour, I walked into Shin Nichin on Jln Ampang. Cuisine for today: JAPANESE!

I walked in very gingerly. The hostess, who understood that it was my first time in a traditional Japanese restaurant, walked up to me and wished me. She escorted me to a nice spot in the middle of the room and offered me some snails which she informed were appetisers. She then served me some mango juice and a green colour fluid that was supposed to be a substitute for water in a Japanese meal.

I found a fancy name on the menu and pointed it to her. She smiled and was back in a jiffy with a small pot with white jelly like material in it. I hesitated to ask her the contents and fiddled with the spoon. She walked over to me, mumbled something that sounded like "stem ekk" and at the same time pointing towards my spoon and mouth. I fished out some of the jelly from the pot and dumped it into my mouth. EGG EGG EGG!!! It was steamed egg in some weird translucent sauce. Tasted as much weird.



Finally my main course came in and the look of it was worth the wait. Some Japanese soup that I drank straight out of the bowl and another weird sauce. Grilled chicken on a side plate that was marvelous, just the correct smell, the correct colour and the perfect taste!Beside it were two huge prawns, golden fried, dipped in another white sauce that resembled mayonnaise. And finally some fruits to finish it off. Japanese food was a revelation. It had rice, it was spicy, and it was mouth watering (except for the snails part)

On my return to the hotel I found a Malaysian Government vehicle waiting with 20 police bikers as a convoy. I rushed in and found an important Malay minister (whose name I forgot!!Damn!) escort his old mother into the car. I was too late to get his picture :(



I could get the royal car.

I pretty tiring day. Lots of running across the roads involved! An hours swimming with a bunch of kids from Kuwait! Japanese food! Chinese Celeb! and a Malay minister!

Tomorrow is my first weekend in KL and I hope to take complete advantage of it.

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 6:06 PM 0 comments    

Labels: cuisine, japanese, kualalumpur, malaysia

KLing
Aug 7, 2008

I attended the Lifestyle Expo'08 in KLCC today. Highlight of the day: The world's largest LCD at 108" priced at a modest RM388,888 + taxes!!!

After an eventful day of culinary pursuits I realised two awkward truths.

Awkward truth 1: If I am going to stay in a foreign country and not be with foreign food, then what's the whole point of living here.

Awkward truth 2: I cannot survive with malaysian food.

A logical derivation from both the statements would be that I can survive with a foreign food other than malay in KL :)

And thus I made a list of restaurants with varied cusines. Thai, Indonesian, Sundanese, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Burmese (even they have a cuisine :O ), Lebanese, Syrian and basically every Asian country other than India. No wonder they say Malaysia is truly Asia. Its hard to kill the gourmet in me you see. You can suffocate and strangle it, but it always re-emerges like a phoenix. And thus I began my culinary adventures with Al-Marjan, the taste of Lebanon. Some chicken cooked in various sauces, some fish (I never knew Lebanon had a coast!!) in white sauce, Lebanese Coffee, meat in eggplant stew, some cookies and deserts to finish it off.

Tomorrow Vietnamese!!!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 7:22 PM 0 comments    

With the man who saved UPA
Aug 6, 2008

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 7:00 PM 2 comments    

Nasi saves the day
Aug 5, 2008

It took me just 30 minutes into KL to realise that my famous tummy wasn't invincible after all. The gourmet in me was laid to rest on my first breakfast in KL. The look made it shiver, the smell suffocated it and finally the feel killed it. I had to suffice with chocos and some strange blanche fluid which they called low fat milk.

I rushed to my office and looked forward to eat something more sane during lunch. After all it was Shell. Another horrible truth dawned on me. Offices in Petronas towers aren't allowed to have their own canteens. To top it all, my team mates took me out to have a proper malay meal. Char Kua Teow, that is what I had. A concoction of noodles, prawns and cockels in vinegar and thai sauce. I gulped it down with some coke. I decided I have had enough of malay splendour and decided to treat myself to some good old crispy chicken in KFC. But as all things malay, even that had a sweety slimy touch to it.

Breakfast today was also like yesterday. Some chocos and low fat milk. I resigned myself to the fact that malay food is not for me. And just when hope hit rock bottom, I discovered Nasi! Malay for Rice!

I found two restaurants, nasi penang and nasi blah blah blah, both within a kilometer of my hotel. I gorged on Nasi and chicken for lunch and dinner today for as cheap as RM6.5 = 80 INR!!! :)

Loong live Nasi!!!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 6:30 PM 0 comments    

Where Eagles Dare
Jul 1, 2008

Somehow this pic and the caption seem to be perfect for the next few weeks of my life!

From the last week as a student and a free citizen on India, I now move onto bonded labour with a Dutch Oil company. They promised me to take places where only eagles dare!!!

That has me scared and excited at the same moment!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 1:51 PM 1 comments    

Phoney stuff
Jun 16, 2008

Since i am nw laptop deprived most of my online presence is due 2 my amazing motorokr! This is my first blog from my phone! Helomoto!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 12:36 PM 0 comments    

Labels: Cell, hello, helomoto t, motorola, phone

Goodbye to a faithful servant!
Jun 13, 2008

My dear old lappy, the ever faithful IBM Lenovo T-60 bids a tearful farewell to me

It has served me relentlessly and sincerely for over eleven months,

It never gave up, never ever in rain, nor when the sun shone bright,

It smiled in glee when I copied series after series

It laughed in joy when I saw movie after movie

And it danced in ecstasy when I installed software after software

In the end all that was left were my nimble fingerprints on its oil and curry stained monitor and faded keystrokes on its tiny little keyboard.

My dear old lappy will always remember me, even if the IT guy formats and re-installs windows!

Bye Bye Bye!

Logging Off

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 1:47 PM 1 comments    

Divinity
Jun 12, 2008

Saddugunta Palya, a lesser known locality of koramangla, sprung a surprise last month when the Lord Rama came out to in all his glory to meet his mortal devotees on his way to marry his divine consort Sitadevi!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 11:59 PM 0 comments    

Yes We Can!!!
Jun 11, 2008

Remarks of Senator Barack Obama - New Hampshire Primary
(January 8th, 2008)


I want to congratulate Senator Clinton on a hard-fought victory here in New Hampshire.

A few weeks ago, no one imagined that we'd have accomplished what we did here tonight. For most of this campaign, we were far behind, and we always knew our climb would be steep. But in record numbers, you came out and spoke up for change. And with your voices and your votes, you made it clear that at this moment – in this election – there is something happening in America.



There is something happening when men and women in Des Moines and Davenport; in Lebanon and Concord come out in the snows of January to wait in lines that stretch block after block because they believe in what this country can be.

There is something happening when Americans who are young in age and in spirit – who have never before participated in politics – turn out in numbers we've never seen because they know in their hearts that this time must be different.

There is something happening when people vote not just for the party they belong to but the hopes they hold in common – that whether we are rich or poor; black or white; Latino or Asian; whether we hail from Iowa or New Hampshire, Nevada or South Carolina, we are ready to take this country in a fundamentally new direction. That is what's happening in America right now. Change is what's happening in America.

You can be the new majority who can lead this nation out of a long political darkness – Democrats, Independents and Republicans who are tired of the division and distraction that has clouded Washington; who know that we can disagree without being disagreeable; who understand that if we mobilize our voices to challenge the money and influence that's stood in our way and challenge ourselves to reach for something better, there's no problem we can't solve – no destiny we cannot fulfill.

Our new American majority can end the outrage of unaffordable, unavailable health care in our time. We can bring doctors and patients; workers and businesses, Democrats and Republicans together; and we can tell the drug and insurance industry that while they'll get a seat at the table, they don't get to buy every chair. Not this time. Not now. Our new majority can end the tax breaks for corporations that ship our jobs overseas and put a middle-class tax cut into the pockets of the working Americans who deserve it.

We can stop sending our children to schools with corridors of shame and start putting them on a pathway to success. We can stop talking about how great teachers are and start rewarding them for their greatness. We can do this with our new majority.

We can harness the ingenuity of farmers and scientists; citizens and entrepreneurs to free this nation from the tyranny of oil and save our planet from a point of no return. And when I am President, we will end this war in Iraq and bring our troops home; we will finish the job against al Qaeda in Afghanistan; we will care for our veterans; we will restore our moral standing in the world; and we will never use 9/11 as a way to scare up votes, because it is not a tactic to win an election, it is a challenge that should unite America and the world against the common threats of the twenty-first century: terrorism and nuclear weapons; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease.

All of the candidates in this race share these goals. All have good ideas. And all are patriots who serve this country honorably.

But the reason our campaign has always been different is because it's not just about what I will do as President, it's also about what you, the people who love this country, can do to change it.

That's why tonight belongs to you.

It belongs to the organizers and the volunteers and the staff who believed in our improbable journey and rallied so many others to join.

We know the battle ahead will be long, but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way, nothing can withstand the power of millions of voices calling for change. We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics who will only grow louder and more dissonant in the weeks to come.

We've been asked to pause for a reality check. We've been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope. For when we have faced down impossible odds; when we've been told that we're not ready, or that we shouldn't try, or that we can't, generations of Americans have responded with a simple creed that sums up the spirit of a people.



Yes we can.

It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.

Yes we can.

It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom through the darkest of nights.

Yes we can.

It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.

Yes we can.

It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for the ballot; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the Promised Land.

Yes we can to justice and equality. Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity. Yes we can heal this nation. Yes we can repair this world. Yes we can.

And so tomorrow, as we take this campaign South and West; as we learn that the struggles of the textile worker in Spartanburg are not so different than the plight of the dishwasher in Las Vegas; that the hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA; we will remember that there is something happening in America; that we are not as divided as our politics suggests; that we are one people; we are one nation; and together, we will begin the next great chapter in America's story with three words that will ring from coast to coast; from sea to shining sea – Yes. We. Can.

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 7:28 PM 0 comments    

BITS Pilani
Jun 8, 2008

Heaven on earth, Oasis in a desert, paradise for students...call it what you may,

BITS Pilani, my second home, my alma mater! :)

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 8:23 PM 1 comments    

CHANGE

Four years ago, in 2004, a nondescript young black politician was called on by the Democrats to present a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention to proclaim John Kerry as their undisputed Presidential Nominee. This afro-american guy was himself hoping to run for Senator of Illinois.

"My presence on this stage is pretty unlikely," --he said

Check the following two videos of that speech





A little over four years from then, he's running for president!!!

People like this are rarely found in this country. It is guys like OBAMA that truly are the harbringers of CHANGE!!!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 12:27 AM 0 comments    

Travel!!!
Jun 7, 2008

Finally a snap to depict everything that has happened in my life over the past few months.

I have been traveling recklessly with an eye on whatever has been happening around me...just like the rear view mirror

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 10:58 PM 2 comments    

Mighty Kaveri
Jun 4, 2008

Last week I was in Hogenakkal, which literally means Smoking Rocks. The mighty falls create a smoky smog over the rocks and hence the name. But what interested me most was the turbulence after the falls. It was serene and dangerous at the same time. I sooo wanted to walk through this shallow part of the river, but my dad prevented me from doing so!

More snaps @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/s_r_sandeep/

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 2:40 PM 2 comments    

No Title
May 22, 2008

Its 10:30 in the night. Usually I would be watching a TV series that I so dutifully download from one of those piracyKing websites. These days I am watching scrubs season 3. But things got very boring and I decided to update my blog. Not that anyone would miss it, but still.....

I wanted to do some live blogging last night from a super cool football match. But the on-field action was so nerve-wracking that I couldn't think of sentences to write. I did twitter a bit in the middle and almost dropped my laptop once when Drogba hit the goal-post. As i pointed out before, I never expected Chelsea to win the match...but so close...hooof! Screw you John Terry!

Well, something cool just started on NatGEo. I will watch it for sometime and hit the sack. I have no idea why I started this blog. It leads no where and If you have come reading this far...THANK YOU :)

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 10:23 PM 1 comments    

Labels: chelsea, football, idle, john, scrubs, terry, tv

Back on Blogger
May 21, 2008

The only reason why I am back on blogger is because every other blogging site disallows javascript. And I sooooo wanted to have my google reader stuff on this right sidebar that I switched back from wordpress to blogger.

Hail the googlers who make blogger a better place to write in.

Talking of user friendly space, I have a major issue with the gang@twitter. I always dump in whatever I feel in twitter hoping someone will read it and send something back to me. But last night twitter had its own tweet "We are temporarily disabled". The same happened even last week. If these guys do not have the right skills to get their act straight soon, I , and other frustrated users like me ( I am sure there are millions of them), will shift to something else. Facebook's own status message isn't a bad idea (Though it carries the weight of a bloated social network).

Office has been pretty much crappy this week since the research paper went out. Last week was like the most hectic week of PS (put in 20hours of work, OMG). Its like the whole PS2 work was done in those 6 days (yes, dropped in even on a saturday, and again OMG). At least now I spend more time on Google reader and trying to figure out which of those blogospheres is best for a newbie like me.

Tonight is a special night. The aunty of all football matches, the Champions league finals, takes place. Of course the mother of them all is the World Cup finale. Let the whole world cheer for manU, I dont care. I love the chelskis and their blue! I don't mind even if they lose (Which has a pretty high probability). I still get to shout *&@#$^@#&*$^*(@ at the united players. Yes, the chelsea fans have been rated as the worst supporters.

I also have my new cam with me now. A scintillating peice of technical marvel. The Canon Powershot S5 IS. So expect more of my flickr updates and subscribe to the feeds if you love them. Flickr page will be updated starting this monday.

Will try and do some live blogging from 2nite's match (just for the heck of it)

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 5:47 PM 1 comments    

Status Message Gyan

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 4:36 PM 1 comments    

Labels: google talk, messenger, status message, yahoo

I am back!
May 17, 2008

I thought I would sound like Sylar or Spidy when they said it. Not quite so dramatic :(

Watching an old Telugu film full of special effects (Ref: Bhairava Dweepam) and listening to a failed pop singer (Ref: Smita) while blogging is not exactly a great set up. But when it is spiced up with some good food (Courtesy: CISCO mess) and a cranky roommate who specializes in pouranika geetalu and knows by heart all the dialogues in an old film things become so much more interesting.

Lots of things churning in my head now. Will think about what to write and how to write and will come back soon.

Atleast the first hurdle of getting back to my blog is crossed!

Posted bySandeep Sekharamantri at 1:40 PM 0 comments    

Labels: Comeback, friends, idle