TRAVEL BLOG

So...came up with a travel blog...here is the link...

www.milesandexperiences.blogspot.com

Around the Pillar...

So finally after twenty one years, I visited the small, obscure village (by the name Gedama), whose name sounds alien to most people even within Odisha. I still wonder why it took me so long to visit the place which I longed to visit during every holiday that childhood had offered.

As the door opened, out rushed a flurry of the lost moments…the earliest life memories… which had got somewhere distanced into a dormant pool of untapped thoughts

….a lone little three year old….probably his earliest memories…listening stories from his Mama (maternal grandmother) and waiting for his Aja (maternal grandfather) to return back home with a packet of gems…And thirty five years in between

….a  four  year old wrapping his hands around the round pillar, which supported the roof above, and unsuccessfully trying desperately to make the tip of fingers of both hands touch….a two  year old closely observing the activity with big, bold eyes with a red color toy in his hands….. And thirty four years in between

…a six year old, a four year old and two new babies…all busy displaying their respective chores around the pillar…And thirty one years in between

…a ten year old, an eight year old and two four year olds...being fed their respective delicacies prepared so lovingly by their grandparents…And twenty eight years in between

…a fourteen year old, a twelve year old, two eight year olds and a new baby….but probably the magic of the village was beginning to wane for each one of us and the duration of our stays reduced from weeks to days...And twenty four years in between

..a seventeen year old, a fifteen year old, two eleven year olds and a three year old attended the last wedding of the generation for one day and one night and with that ended the magical journeys of childhood….And twenty one years in between

Flashes of a hundred such images…each trying to claim their respective dominant moods of childhood…the paddy fields where we muddled and danced and jumped…the train station where we were taken to by our Grandfather to enjoy the view of the coal powered trains, the Pooja room where we all were taken to recite the evening chants, the red suitcase which always made us wonder what secrets it stored within, the terrace where we all gathered to count the infinite stars and later identify the known constellations, the guava and chickoo trees who played with us as we all grew together…the people who once existed and whose voices took us to the land of fairies and angels….and the anguish and tears which reached out once again as I was not present around the pillar on the last journey of my Aja…

Moments metamorphose to memories….memories live within us….so in a way the moments live within us….only to be enlivened with age.

While I was lost within myself, I saw my four year old son trying to wrap his hands around the pillar. He tried hard but there was a good few inches gap between the reaches of the fingers. I tried to live the reflexive smile…A smile which was just a physical manifestation of the memories of moments which took place in and around the pillar….

EXISTENCE

Do we have an existence beyond our bodies, social identities and thoughts?...while we are alive?

If yes, is it possible to connect with that level of existence?

A DECADE

Experience helps….mostly to understand people….moments collected exploring different cultures and different countries form the most prized possession of my decade old existence in the professional world…

Different countries, different languages, different cultures…same people…

…Angola…Austria…Brazil…Belgium…China…France…Gabon…Ghana...Germany…Japan…India…Italy…Liechtenstein…Netherlands…South Africa…South Korea…Spain…Sri Lanka…Switzerland…Thailand…United Arab Emirates…United Kingdom…Vatican...

Hope to increase the list with time...

THE SKY FROM ILHA DE LUANDA

Sun setting into the Atlantic...sometimes feel the sky is the most magical part of God's creation...

ALTANTIC FROM THE OTHER SIDE....

From Luanda, Angola.....

LINKS TO THE BOOK

E-Book
This is the direct link to Kindle edition (MOBI)
http://www.dogearsetc.com/book_details.jsp?resourceID=35637

This is the direct link to EPUB edition for PCs/laptops etc.
http://www.dogearsetc.com/book_details.jsp?resourceID=35633

FINALLY....

Finally..."45 YEARS AND 1 NIGHT" is ready

BEGINNING IS THE TOUGHEST

One of the must-dos of my life is to write a book and publish it.

One day, probably a year back while discussing with EM, decided to start writing about a topic. It took me one year just to get the skeleton of the theme ready. About 70 pages of rambling thoughts in one doc file.

I know the real effort commences from here on. But, the feeling of playing with this word file is so satisfying...

A SUNSET TO REMEMBER

One of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen....over the Atlantic Ocean.

(Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro)

SUGAR LOAF TO CORCOVADO

The hill chain of Rio starting from Sugar loaf on the left to Corcovado on the right...

(On a evening from Niteroi)

THE COUNTRY OF PAULO COELHO

Work and profession pulled me to Brazil. Since the last few days, I have been through Sao Paulo, walked through the streets of Rio de Janeiro, visited potential business partners in these hubs of Brazil, travelled through Niteroi appreciated the beauty of the Sugar Loaf and Corcovado mountains and have seen Ipanema and Copacabana amongst other places.

These are incidentally the names of some of the places which my favorite author Paulo Coelho frequently mentions in his books while describing Brazil, his home country. Feel like reopening those classics again and start reading especially after this experience.

SUN IN THE CLOUDS

Sun and the clouds playing with each other on the top of Corcovado in Rio. Loved the way sun acts as an halo to the hazily visible Cristo.

RIVER OF JANUARY

Currently, tens of thousands of miles away from near and dear ones, in a city whose English translation is River of January, I rediscover the magic India has...

BUDDHA

Difficult to believe a rock taking such an articulate pose of the meditating Buddha. That too on the top of Swiss Alps.

(Top of Mt. Titlis, Swiss Alps)

ALEPH

“…..letting himself be guided by signs, he travelled to various continents – Europe, Africa and Asia – on a journey through time and space, through past and present, in search of himself.”

I have developed a new fascination about this topic of time and space converging and surprisingly the books I am picking up randomly to read these days are also based on this theme. First the “Power of Now” and now “Aleph”.

In the beginning, Paulo Coelho reveals his frustration due to a crisis of faith he finds himself in. Typical Paulo Coelho, he once again uses extensive travel for the purpose of self discovery and in the process of reconnection with the universe. The medium of transport, this time, is the Trans Siberian rail across Europe and Asia from Moscow to Vladivostok. The book is about the author’s experiences during Trans Siberian train journey he took with his publishers and a girl whom he meets in the journey. This girl had shared a mysterical and mystical relationship with the author in one of their previous lives and the whole theme of the book revolved around Paulo Coelho and this girl.

This book uses the concept of reincarnation as the guiding philosophy. Like every other Paulo Coelho book, this is also about signs, omens, love and forgiveness with a sense of beauty of expression.

THE POWER OF NOW

A few months ago, I completed reading “The Power of Now” by Echarte Tolle. I spent almost a couple of months with this book trying my best to grasp the essence of the book. I am not the best person to comment on books of such genre.

Even though I am not successful in practicing what is presented in this book, yet it is intriguing to think about these concepts and practices. Extensive words like self, ego, deeper presence, separation, resistance, inner body, acceptance, surrender, infinity, eternity etc. might give the book an esoteric look. But as far as I understood, it’s a book on meditation techniques and meditation by its very nature stresses on the concept of “now”. The techniques are way beyond my levels of understanding. But one thing I can safely claim is that I am better off reading this book.

A line from the book:
"am I one or two? If I cannot live with myself, there must be two of me: the 'I' and the 'self' that 'I' cannot live with”
One more:
"Feel (your body) from within. Is it alive? Is there life in your hands, arms, legs, and feet? … Keep focusing on the feeling … Do not start to think about it. Feel it … Perhaps there is just a slight tingling in your hands or feet … the more attention you give it, the clearer and stronger it will become”.

If you think such lines and concepts appeal to you, then you will love this book. Even if it doesnot, no harm in trying to learn something new for good.

WORKPLACE

Was wondering how the employees of the office (in the photograph) must be feeling to walk into the office through the clouds.

(Swarovski Office under the Austrian, Alps)

AGE

There were times in the past when I had neglected my blog. But never before had I reached a situation wherein I have to search the links for a while to post a mail. With just one post this year, I realise that the most important reason in plain, simple laziness.

After a long time, I was reading my blog, especially the early posts penned down in 2006. Was wondering if it was I who wrote the posts. Age is a tricky stuff. An individual can always be defined as a function of his age. I remember in mathematics we define functions as f(x) where f(x) is a function of x and is dependent on x for its nature.

Similarly Sabya(x) is a variable function where x is the possible age. May be its not that easy to define Sabya as a function of x. It can be a function of many other things. But as in mathematics, simplicity is used to ellucidate facts.

Sabya(31) is so different now (while writing this post currently)....from Sabya (26)(when the blog commenced). I am myself surprised.

ONCE AGAIN

Last Saturday, I spent a day on a ship introducing her to one of her potential clients.

There was a time when I used to spend more time shuttling from one ship to another trying to understand her technicalities…. Trying to understand the giant machines, the beautiful hull forms, the frothy wake, enjoying the gentle roll of a beautiful day and tolerating the harshness during rough weather…

These days I visit ships occasionally and even when I do it’s for different reasons. Now, my first priority is my job is to ensure if the ship is employed….if the client is happy with the vessel…and if the revenues are good enough to beat the budgets.I moved out of the ship in a few hours…the client was happy…

As I watched the vessel distancing her on my way back from the anchorage to the jetty, I once again realised how life has changed after MBA. Once again, I realized the very purpose of business.