True Hero - KC Sharma, Delhi Police

In today's information explosion, readers and viewers are bogged down with so much information that there just isn't time or leisure for the news to sink in. No sooner than one "breaking news" flashes that another crashes the headlines and sates the ravenous appetite of the media monsters. Two days back, it was Lehman brothers and sudden drop of the stock market; a week ago, it was the Ike catastrophe, the Bangladesh floods. One after another, the so called "breaking news" bogged down the daily news reader and before one could fully process the information, another came along.
Amidst the more popular hit headlines, the news of the chivalry sacrifice of the seven gallantry award winning Delhi Police Officer KC Sharma in the daring daylight encounter filled the Indian news headlines. Yes, it was definitely flashing news, but the sacrifice and the bravery behind this news deserve more thought and time than any other flashing news that filled the headlines. Who is to be blamed for this incident, the Indian Intelligence, the International Diplomatic Policies tactics of few that foster more terrorists, the dirty politics of the politicians, or the negligence of the authorities? Undoubtedly, this will be debated by all the above for their own personal selfish reasons and nothing else. Amidst all this, the grieving family is left alone to face the loss of its dear one: a mother, a daughter, a son are robbed of the head of the family. . Who will comfort his son fighting dengue in the hospital? What justice can be brought to them? Who brings that justice and who is responsible for their future? The life without KC Sharma will not be the same for his wife and kids. His act was quite exemplary and has left lessons to learn not only to the Police Department but for every Indian citizen. He is definitely a 'Hero'. He is really a Celebrity. His actions are to be celebrated by the whole nation. Their family is not a grieving family but a celebrity family.
President Pratibha Patil said KC Sharma's act was a "supreme act of sacrifice, courage and bravery and he would be always remembered by the nation." How many of us remember the past courageous actions, or names of the soldiers who made the headlines in the past, let alone those unfortunate few who didn't. The very fact that these days only Celebrities last in the news K.C Sharma could become a celebrity who will last long in the nation's hearts for the good reason. Surely, the Government shall make K.C.Sharma a celebrity. It shall make his life history a documentary and broadcast it across the whole country using the same media where instant celebrities are being produced without any effort. Sponsorers, who sponsor 'Saas Bahu" serials shall look back and reform their funding policies. This will bring motivation to the Police department and also encourage more brave youngsters join the police force. This is a true homage to the martyr who sacrificed his life for the sake of the country battling terrorism. These acts are real condolences to the grieving family.

My Politics Test

I got the idea from Mr. Yogi's post:

Here are my results:

You are a Social Liberal (86% permissive) and an... Economic Moderate (55% permissive) You are best described as a: Strong Democrat Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid

Hiking Mount Washington

This is our third trip to White Mountains in New Hampshire. In July 2004 we wanted to climb Mount Washington, however we reached the National Forest in the afternoon, and couldn’t even get close to the parking lot because of heavy traffic. Instead, we hiked Mount Hedgehog. We hiked 2400 feet to the top of Hedgehog in about 8 hours round trip. It was good introduction to White Mountains, and it was highest we reached till that date.

In August 2006, we ventured again, this time we did little bit more research, but not enough. By the time we started hiking from ‘Pinkham Notch Visitor Center’ (PNVC), on Tuckerman Ravine’s Trail (TUX), it was close to afternoon. However, we were able to hike up to Hermit Lake Shelters (HLS), 1,800 feet, 2.4 miles. It probably took us about 4 hours to reach HLS and took Raymond Trail on the way back, which was more scenic, however, it was getting dark, and bit scary at times. One has to be really careful on the trail, you can easily get lost.

This time September 2008, our third trip to White Mountains, we successfully climbed Mount Washington by TUX in less than 6 hours that is 4300 feet and 4.2 miles.

Preparation:

We knew the temperatures on the summit are going to be in Low 50’s; therefore each of us got multiple layers to cover us (winter clothes). We had ponchos to protect us from rain. We put our hiking shoes away, and used our running sneakers instead. We had two hiking poles for each of us. Finally, we packed food, plenty of it. We packed about 3 liters of liquid for each of us which includes water and Gatorade. We packed buns, cheese, varieties of dipping, and potato chips. We also packed food for the morning, bagels and cream cheese.

Arrival:

We started from home at 4:00am and reached PNVC at about 7:15AM. We had our breakfast, cold bagels (that were toasted in the morning at home) with cream cheese, and it was quite a filling. We stopped by visitor center to buy a map and ask few last minute questions. The person who answered our questions, suggested us to go up via Lion’s Head Trail (LHT), which he said would be easier to climb, would have better views and we could use to TUX to get down, that would be less difficult compare to LHT.

Hiking:
We took a group pictures and started our hike at 8:05AM. The TUX gets steep really quick; I had to take more breaks, than my brother and my nephew, both who are physically better shape than me. In less than 2 hours we reached Hermit Lake Shelters (HLS) where the trail split. Without pondering much we took LHT. 

We quickly realized, even though this route is more scenic and much more difficult too. We were bit scared and didn’t know

 what more to expect on LHT, but our fellow hiker’s assured us that it can’t be anymore difficult than what we went through thus far.

Certainly the trail looked more difficult than what it really is. 

However, we have to be really careful, any careless step would not only will cause injuries, it would be REALLY would be difficult to get down or go up, in a sense you would get stuck. 

We packed our hiking poles, and literally started to crawl, tried to be closer to the ground. Couples of things to point here, even though it was scary for us, many of the hikers around us were climbing without much of difficulty or worry. In fact, we came across hiker who was coming down on LHT, with two hand crutches. There were 10 to 13 year old Kids going up and down the mountain along with their parents like a breeze.

At one place on LHT, we came across huge boulder and all hikers have to get over this boulder, and otherwise you won’t be able to continue your hiking. 

There was a young couple, ahead of us trying to get over this boulder. The young lady managed to climb-up the rock and go to the other side of it very easily. However, the young fellow was having trouble climbing over it. Even though he was smiling, he was scared and you could see it in his face. My brother and nephew went behind him to lend him a hand. They advised him to crawl over the rock, instead of trying to walk over the boulder. With that advised, he was able to crawl out of the situation and he was quite happy.

The time cam for us to maneuver around the boulder. My nephew was able to cross the boulder without much effort (his height could have helped him a bit). Now, it's my turn; I noticed couple of small holes to just left of the boulder. My brother gave me little push and I was up the boulder and crawled out easily. My brother managed to do the same after me. There were more than couple of places like these on LHT.

It took us about 2 hours to climb last 1 mile, because of terrain we had to watch each step carefully (also because of lack of fitness on my part).

In the last half hour stretch we could hear Cogway whistles. As you can see in the pictures, rock piles show the path we should follow. In the last stretch I was really tired and we started aiming for rock piles and taking break at each one of them. 

This part of the trail also where we faced most amount of traffic, probably for more than couple of reasons. One, this is the only way to get up to the summit for all the trails that were around. Second, by this time of the crowds built-up on the trails, people were not just going up, they started to turn back quick, as it was really chilly on the top of the summit, 50F. We were also surprised to see dogs 

on this part of the trail, without leash.

On the Summit, at last!
After almost 6 hours of hiking we reached the summit, and we quickly made reservation for our ride to get us down, $30/head (excluding tip, the cashier insisted). Then we were on our way to cafe, as expected the place was fully crowded and it was peak hour of the lunch. 

We managed to find a table after few minutes of scouting. There were long lines at the rest rooms. I wanted to wash my hands and face, but that had to wait until we got down. We eagerly ate-up sandwich bungs with cheese and dip. We also have plenty of liquid left over, therefore we didn't have to wait in the lines to get any thing from the food counter. We shared our table with a family that is recently moved from Mass to NH and the mother of the two young kids said she loves the place. She is also very enthusiastic about politics and wasted no time to sharing her thoughts and support of Presidential Candidate Ron Paul. 

We drove 3 hours, and reached home by 7:00pm exausted, but we were full of exuberance and great sense of achivement.

memories

I lived 17 years in India before moving to USA. I have great many fond memories of those days. I know the new generation can't imagine the time when there aren't any cameras (not to mention cameras which use 35mm film). Until 1988 we didn't have a camera of our own, even then none of us used to use the cameras as carelessly as we do now.

Therefore I turned to pencil and paper to recreate the early years of my life. I share these memories not just with my family, but also with my close relatives and friends.

A flute type of toy my grandparents used to have... Given to them by uncle in 1970's, who lives in Chicago.











A ball which look like an elephant.... Ended-up playing cricket with it...












1986 Guidvada, House of 'Manikyala Rao' garu













2nd Grade in Thotapalli, India, left of the picture with floor benches (1982)












Gajula Ramayya gari house, Thotapalli, India. We used live in the left side portion of the house (1982)












My grandparent's house's backyard in Khammam, India (Circa 1981)












Ramakrishna Vidayalam in Khammam, India (Circa 1984)












Kitchen in my grandparent's house (Circa 1990)

Where a friend of mine stands... who wishes to be anonymous

You are a Social Liberal (66% permissive) and an... Economic Moderate (56% permissive) You are best described as a: Centrist Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also : The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

Guess Where I Stand In Realm Of Politics

You are a Social Liberal (66% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (18% permissive) You are best described as a: Socialist Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also : The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

A Down Under Adventure - Hobart, Tasmania

Disclaimer: I apologize for spelling and grammatical errors, as I don’t have sufficient time to correct them. But, I am going to correct them, I promise.

Day 1

We arrived Hobart at 10:00am. I didn't reserve a car and all the rental agencies are fully booked. I enquired quickly and found out that we didn't need a car, if our stay is going to be only for 3 days. We took airport shuttle to hotel and made our way to the city (30 minutes walk or 10 minute bus ride). We learned about various tours they provide and made booking for 3 tours.

We had our lunch at La Panchetta, italian restaurant and wondered around rest of the day. Oh, btw, the only thing available in the evening was Thai Massage. I had a tension relief massage for 30 minutes and Sirisha had foot massage for 30 minutes. Can't tell if it's worth the money, but the massage was good.

Day 2

Mt. Wellington Tour:

A bus picked us up in the morning. It was cloudy; we didn’t expect to see much from the mountain. But, the tour guide was very friendly and it was very educational. Apparently, Wellington, a British general for whom the mountain was named after never came to Tasmania.

We also stopped at Women’s Factory as part of the tour. Apparently it’s where women convicts were kept. Places like these show the sad history of Australia. You have to give credit to Australian’s to keep such a sad part of their history alive.

Cadbury Tour:

We had our lunch at an Indian restaurant, Annapurna, and hopped a bus for Cadbury tour. It was a disappointing and time wasting tour. I won’t recommend it for anyone, people who came along with us also felt the same way. However, we stopped at Royal Botanical Gardens of Hobart and we were pleasantly surprised by the beauty of the gardens.

Wrest Casino:

Accidentally we stopped by the Wrest Casino, the oldest casino in Australia. The casino is situated, right across where we were staying. I played express roulette and won $40 bucks with $10 investment. They also had a very scenic view from the food court, along with some juicy (oily) snacks in their menu.

Day 3

Got out little late from our motel, and headed for famous Salamanca market. Salamanca market is open only Saturdays where local merchants can sell their goods directly without any middle men. Even then I haven’t find anything cheap in the market, everything is at least 20 to 30 percent over priced. We had two hours of shopping and had our lunch at usual Italian restaurant. We then headed for wild life sanctuary to watch Tasmanian Devils.

Wild Life Sanctuary:

This is a privately owned sanctuary that takes care of animals that are danger in anyway and orphans that were found by general public. Our tour guide showed us Wombats, Koala bears and Kangaroos.

A Down Under Adventure - Melbourne

Disclaimer: I apologize for spelling and grammatical errors, as I don’t have sufficient time to correct them. But, I am going to correct them, I promise.

Took an early flight from Newark to St. Louis (3 hours) .

Connection flight to St. Louis delayed by an hour and reached L.A. at 10:30pm (local time)

Boarded Qantas 150 to Sydney 11:55pm(local time) . I am very glad that I reserved a double seater, thanks to seatguru.com and my collegue, Chandra. Rarely do you get a window seat and the aisle seat when traveling on International flight.









We finished our customs in Sydney at a record pace. Landed at 10:10am and got out of the flight at 10:30am because we were at the end of the plane. Hey... you got to pay somewhere for your comforts.

Our connection flight to Melbourne is scheduled to leave at 11:00am and we reached the domestic check-in counter by 11:00am, ergo we missed the flight.










We took the next connection flight, which has 2 seats, that is 1:00pm and landed at Melbourne airport 3:00pm.










We realized later, that this modern sculpture is an 'opening zipper', inviting people to visit. On the way back the same sculpture gives an impression of 'closing zipper'


Melbourne Day1

Got into shared cab, checked into the hotel and we were in the hotel room by 4:15pm. Television showed that Australia is down by 6 wickets (I saw the sixth wicket).

We freshened-up and got ready quick. I printed our MCG tickets at the hotel and on our way to MCG by 5:00pm

We walked into the stadium and the Australian innings was just ended.

We could't find any empty seats at the first level (ground), our tickets allowed us to get onto 4th level. There were plenty of seats available on the 4th level and views were much better as well. We got direct sunlight until 07:30pm (8:30pm is sunset) and which made it difficult to take good pictures. As sun went down, views were much eye pleasing.






Indian fans on the feet celebrating the victory around the stadium.

Melbourne Day 2

Got out of the hotel around 10:00am to explore the city. We bought ourselves a days pass for the Trams. Got on old and new Trams to get around.

Trams are very convininient and easy to use.

We got out of the hotel around 10:00am to explore the city. We bought ourselves a day pass for the Trams. We got on old and new Trams to get around. Trams are very convenient and easy to use.

City is very easy to get around, because of the grid layout, just like NYC. We had subway sandwich as brunch to get us going. Instead of veggie patty as we get in USA, they have a choice of potato based patty (same as in India). We walked through China-town and didn’t find anything extraordinary. The previous day they had huge New Year day celebrations, I think this Year animal is mouse. We walked in and out of several stores, and all of them seem to be very nice and expensive.

We stopped at café Dopio (illy branch) where we tasted local favorite coffees, Macchiato and Latte. There were couple of Indian restaurants and we had our snacks at one of them and headed to Federation Square. Federation Square is a hub for various activities, such as screening shows, showing live television events and providing tourist information. The information center is quite useful and provided us maps and relative information. We realized that if we have to go to Port Campbell the next day, we have to make changes to our travel plans. We strolled around near by Yerra River and went back to hotel to make plans for next few days.

We were able to find accommodation at Apollo Bay for next day night. Since we were heading to ‘Great Ocean Drive’ we wanted to rent a convertible car, and a convertible is only available at the airport location. I have made this reservation earlier, and all we had to do is to go to the airport and get the car. We used public transportation to get to airport and rented a car with a GPS. Road signs, highway system is very similar to US, and only different in two aspects. Australians drive on the left side of the road, and use Kilometers instead of miles as in US. Without much difficulty I was able to drive to hotel and parked the car. We went back to CBD again to catch fireballs near the casino by the Yerra river.

Melbourne Day 3

We got up early and headed to Queen’s Victoria Market, which is open only every other weekday. We found lot of bargains (at least thought so). I came across very good original oil paintings, however sadly I don’t have budget for them in this trip.

We headed to Great Ocean Road at 11:30pm, and the plan was to drive to ‘Geelong’, ‘Lorne’, ‘Apollo Bay’, and Port Campbell. It should take us 4 hours to get to Port Campbell. ‘Great Ocean Road’ drive is more than what hopped it would be, we stopped by a lighthouse and stopped at various places to enjoy the views and take pictures. We reached Apollo Bay by 4:00pm, we checked into the hotel and took few minutes of rest before we hitting the road again towards Port Campbell. It soon started to rain, soon after we abandoned our plans to visit Port Campbell.

Melbourne Day 4

We got up early in the morning and headed for 12 Apostles. In an hour we reached 12 Apostles, and views were fantastic, even though it was a cloudy day. We took a shorter route to get back to Melbourne, and by 1:00pm we arrived. We stopped at Geelong on the way to Melbourne, where we took pictures with ‘Bollards’. We used GPS to find a restaurant we saw couple of days ago, called ‘Gopal’s Vegetarian Restaurant’, which turned out to be managed by ISCON. It’s a well maintained restaurant, and offers unique experience. We enquired and found out that they have similar restaurant in Sydney called ‘Govindas’, we plan to visit that as well.
We returned the car at city location instead of returning at the airport saving $30. We booked a cab to give us ride to airport, same airport shuttle service which dropped us from the airport; it is $20 cheaper than the regular cab. We need to be ready at the hotel by 6:30am to catch 8:30am flight to Hobart, Tasmania.