Blog://Shriram.net

Updates coming!

2011-09-09T09:05:00.002-04:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have made a conscious decision to revive this blog. I will strive to keep posting stuff that's happening. I feel like I've left this blog stale long enough and I'm no longer willing to keep it that way.

So, here we go...more updates and posts coming very soon!

A concerted effort...

2011-02-21T17:29:00.004-05:00

A Concerted Effort - that's what's needed to keep this blog running. With the advent of Facebook, there's no need to write a detailed essay on my thoughts. The "status" boxes of the Facebooks, the Orkuts, the Twitters have essentially became a think-out-loud, write-out-short kind of communication mediums (media, for the non-American speakers). And suddenly, writing a blog seems so -- what to say -- "yesterday's in thing", so "mid 2000s", so "back in the day".

While lethargy and laziness could be blamed to a certain extent in my case for not writing blog entries, the very motive and the usefulness of personal blogs is questionable, debatable, and useful. While the social media lets me instantly share my "thoughts" to my friends and "friends" around the world, blogs -- especially personal blogs -- seem to me like their predecessory ancestors. But as a person working more or less in the academia, I still believe there is some sexiness in writing up a paragraph or two (or even an essay) about what you consider most important. Having said that, I'm genuinely scared for the next generation of kids, who seem to write anything and everything as if they are writing a text message (u c wat i meen?). But hey, who knows, may be the text-message version of English will become the standard lingua anglica by time we get old. We can then tell our grand kids how people used to write up blogs with words, sentences, paragraphs -- all to be read by people on their "fast" internet connections.

That should make a good story.

2011!

2011-01-01T21:12:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!
С Новым Годом!

Annual Spring Beauty of DC

2010-04-11T17:56:00.004-04:00

Yet another year, yet another spring, yet another post on Cherry Blossoms. The annual Cherry Blossom festival just concluded in Washington, DC this weekend. This annual event of breathtakingly beautiful proportions turns Washington in to a tourist hotspot with millions descending down on to the town. I gladly make my way downtown each year, donning my tourist hat and enjoying the hustle-bustle and large crowds that I long forgot since I left India. This year the festival coincided with the "National Pillow Fight" (yes! it is mad!). Pictures from this event and also the National Kite Festival are included in the album below...

Here are pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2532395&id=5734033&l=7bc0dc6249

Choices, Choices, Choices.

2010-03-23T21:15:00.003-04:00

During the course of our lives, we encounter times when we have to make choices. Believe it or not, it is my opinion that choices related to lifestyle changes and place changes are the hardest to make. Over the past two years, I have come across situations where I had to make choices. To make it even worse, there were more than three GOOD choices to make. My mind went around and around simulating various scenarios: choose 1, this will be good. choose 2, something else is good. choose 3, it might include choice 2, but will have something uncool. I've had repeat experiences with choosing - choosing place, choosing a job vs going to school, choosing to stay put or change...it ain't easy. To pick among too many choices - good choices at that - is never easy. I've realized that the best way to move forward is to think hard, measure positives vs. negatives, and make a hard choices. If all choices are good, whatever you choose will turn out OK. Doesn't it? ; )

2010!

2010-01-02T01:07:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year!

С Новым Годом!

Ice Skating Progress Updates...

2009-12-24T17:54:00.003-05:00

After this Spring, I returned to the skating rink to slide, to glide, and to go wild. I must say that I've improved quite a bit compared to the last time.

Here are some latest updates:

Hope you enjoyed these videos : ) L

Home Sweet Home!

2009-10-15T12:07:00.005-04:00

I have just returned from a trip home to India. Boy, what a trip that was! For starters, there were two additions of our family: one, my two-year-old nephew who was born just after I returned from India last time, and two, my newly born niece. It was a long time sine I was home last time, and frankly, it is a shame that I haven't seen my little nephew and niece. Not to mention, my mom was asking me every other day about my plans to visit home.

So, I did. I went home for about 10 days. since I wasn't home for two years, my plan was to just stay home and NOT go anywhere. No aunts, no uncles, no friends, no acquaintances. My 10-day trip was too short to miss out on spending time with my mother and the two little ones. Plus, 10 days is too little to gobble up all my favorite home-cooked food. My trip went something like this: Airport in the USA - Airport in India - Drive home - STAY AT HOME - Drive back to airport - Airport in India - Airport in USA. That's all - airport to airport to home!

I returned back to the 'States after a well-deserved and well-enjoyed vacation with my lovely family and FANTASTIC food.

Hello from Tuscany!

2009-08-02T17:35:00.005-04:00

I'm in Tuscany for the weekend! What a beautiful place this is! I must say that this place definitely stands up to its reputation as a beautiful place with its maginificent landscape, along with its hills and villas and plazas and piazzas and fountains. I took a high-speed train from Rome to Pisa in Tuscany. I had always wanted to see the Leaning Tower since my childhood. So naturally, I was quite excited to get a glimpse of it. I didn't climb the tower itself as the maddening crowds of the summer season were lining up. Besides, I was enjoying it more from the outside. I walked around the Tower, and the adjacent Duomo (Dome/Cathedral). I later grabbed a sandwich and sat down for a mini picnic in the shade of the tower.

A few hours later, I boarded the train to head to Florence. My! What an incredible town it is! On the way to my hotel from the train station, I walked past the humongous Florence Duomo, admiring the mind-blowing scale of both the cathedral dome and the tower. After a quick rest, I headed to see the town. As it is very common in Italy, every single street, piazza, and river bank is incredibly beautiful!

As I made my way through the city, I saw Michelangelo's David, the famous Florence Uffizzi museum, etc., etc. But ladies and gentlemen, the best panoramic view I saw in my life is at the Piazzale Michelangelo (Read about it on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piazzale_Michelangelo). You must see the sunset from here and I tell you, it is one of the most romantic spots you'd ever see. In terms of "romantic-ness", this place will certainly beat out the likes of the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, or the Golden Gate Bridge. Here's a picture of Piazzale Michelangelo and you'll see what I'm getting at:

Check out more pictures here:

Florence: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2453269&id=5734033&l=36fb3b46ea

Pisa: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2443381&id=5734033&l=651d1053d3

Off to the beach!

2009-07-21T15:45:00.004-04:00

What else is better than going to the beach in Summer! What else is even better? Living close (OK, close enough) to the beach. The beach is just a 2-3 hour drive away from where I live. Now there's no excuse for not going to the beach, is there? : )

My Birthday!

2009-07-17T11:54:00.004-04:00

I'm 28 on July 15!

[ Me, in Georgetown ]

July 4th - Independence Day in the Nation's Capital

2009-07-11T01:43:00.005-04:00

Well, July 4th is always a festive time in Washington. Throngs of people arrive to the National Mall just in time to enjoy the spectacle of fireworks, some of the best you'd ever see. As residents of the D.C. metro area, we are luck every year to just drive down 20 minutes to see America celebrate its birthday. We've arrived at the Lincoln memorial as seen to the right.

I found just the right place to set up my tripod on its short legs. As you can see it is just a perfect spot to photograph. The feeling was surreal once the fireworks began. Since we were sitting on the Lincoln's memorial's raised platform, the fireworks felt as if they were going off right in front of our eyes. Check out the picture to see what I mean!

Here are a few pictures from my camera. More pics, as usual, are on my Facebook. Just follow the link below:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2432284&id=5734033&l=a2d204b5e4

GRE-fied!

2009-06-24T17:28:00.005-04:00

Recently, I took the GRE general test. (Note: it is NOT "GREs". *The* GRE is singular, FYI). Why? I will tell you, but just not yet!

The results of the test surprised me in one aspect. Here's how: I did poorly in the Math section! I still can't believe that my score in the Math section is unmentionably low - especially for a computer science graduate! But you know, this is very well compensated by my verbal section, where I scored in the 94th percentile, and got an almost perfect score in the analytical writing section (5.5 out of a possible 6.0).

Considering my preparation was for about 20 days, I'm quite satisfied with the result. Thankfully for me, this GRE is just an "attempt"; I'm grateful I got a decent score.

Parking "Infraction" : Toronto Style!

2009-06-16T08:21:00.006-04:00

Sign implies: No parking enforced between 9 PM and 8 AM...

However....

Officer Cockburn (that's a real name!) thinks otherwise:

(click to enlarge)

Yours truly thinks: This is DUMB!

DC's Annual Spring Beauty! (2009 Edition)

2009-05-11T16:07:00.005-04:00

Come April, DC turns in to a blossoming beauty, thanks to the numerous cherry blossom trees. The city (and the country) marks this event by holding a festival, aptly named Annual Cherry Blossom Festival. Throngs of crowds pour down in to DC to watch the legendary blossoms, enjoy the free museums, and make trips to the Capitol and other attractions in town. Needless to say, I really enjoy watching the blossoms and feel proud to be living in this town, and call the power center of the world to be "my" town! Pictures are coming shortly...enjoy.

Recent Travels: Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Tucson

2009-05-08T23:19:00.013-04:00

Las Vegas.

I attended the annual Association of American Geographers' conference in Vegas. While I was mostly at the conference during the day, nighttime was an entirely different deal. I had a chance to walk the famed Las Vegas strip many, many times and enjoy the glitz and glamor of Las Vegas' nightscape. Leisurely walking along the strip with my camera and tripod, I had a nice chance to capture the eye-dazzling Las Vegas lights. I had posted some of these photos to my Facebook; As always, here's the link to my Facebook album:

View Photos: Glitz: Las Vegas at Night

The Grand Canyon.

Well, what can I say about the Grand Canyon. This is one of the places that I have always wanted to visit even before coming to America. I have long been waiting to go visit the Grand Canyon, and I finally had a chance last month. We drove from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon and stayed overnight, so that we can catch the Sunset and enjoy the canyon during the morning time. the Grand Canyon amazed me with it's sheer expanse and awe-striking views - like the view of the Canyon at the sunset, when the red shades of the canyon are brought out by the setting sun. Another memorable experience was the night sky at the Canyon - it was the brightest sky I have ever seen! I have never really seen so many bright stars in the sky! When back from the Canyon, the brightness of the stars was so striking that I pulled over to enjoy a quick moment looking at the sky. Well, overall, it was such a great experience! For my next trip, I would like to stay longer and hike the Canyon.

View Photos: Grand Canyon's South Rim

Tucson, AZ

After the pleasant stays in Vegas and the Grand Canyon village, I drove to Tucson to meet my UNI friends Masha and Val. The last time I met Masha was in Russia; I still remember that bitter color November day! Masha gave me a beautiful tour of the Peter-Paul Cathedral - even as she was freezing! Anyhow, it was wonderful to see her and her hubby, my friend Val in the warm and sunny Tucson. I loved the landscape and the environs of Tucson. We visited the University of Arizona campus and then headed off to see the Desert Museum. We spent a day and half in Tucson, when we had to (grudgingly) drive back to Las Vegas to catch the flights back to Washington. For a moment, I just wanted to stay back in Tucson - the sun, the desert, the town...all seemed to be so different and attractive that I just didn't feel like coming back at all! : )

View Photos: Tucson, AZ

AAG 2009 Conference

2009-04-03T15:52:00.007-04:00

I was in Las Vegas for the annual Association of American Geographers' conference. Boy, the conference was great; I learned quite a bit from the conference. However, the sheer number of presentations in this conference makes it impossible to attend all the interesting presentations. Also, I really dislike (yes, dislike) Las Vegas as a conference venue. Whoever thought that we can walk through smoke-filled casinos with drunks and their margarita bongs, and proceed to the conference halls for intellectual conversations!!

I participated in a panel discussion on Open Source GIS and I also gave a presentation about the research I am working on. I just found today that somebody took our picture while at the panel discussion. Here it is...

Anyhow, post-conference, we drove to the Grand Canyon's South Rim. Boy, was it wonderful or WHAT! I will reserve that topic for another blog post. We also traveled to Tucson, AZ to see a couple of friends of mine. It was total fun.

Greetings from the fabulous Las Vegas!!

2009-03-24T17:56:00.001-04:00

I'm in Vegas for a week for the annual meeting of the Association of American Geographers. The conference is great..and the city is OK too. Believe it or not, I'm not a big fan of Vegas! Since I've been here already last year, there is not a lot of excitement. But since I have a nice SLR camera, I'm having fun capturing the dizzying glitz of night-time Vegas. Photos will be available soon. :)

Ice Skating Video #2.

2009-03-16T12:55:00.004-04:00

This video is from Week #4 of my ice skating lessons. I see a visible improvement, do you? : ) Now, I am happy to announce that I achieved my goal of "navigating" on ice. I can stand, stop, move, glide... overall, I can skate OK now. I plan to buy my own skates soon and plan to skate through the summer in one of them indoor skating rinks.

(video coming soon)

My First Steps on Ice

2009-03-14T18:50:00.003-04:00

Here's a short, 8-sec clip of my first steps on ice. As I've been reporting, I've been taking lessons for ice-skating. Here's my progress so far:

So far, so good. I have gotten much better than what you see in this video, but I thought my first steps on ice are always fun to watch. Enjoy.

More blogging?

2009-03-11T17:29:00.003-04:00

Of late, I feel the urge to blog more often. Write down random thoughts and emotions. But then again, I stop and think... who the heck would be interested in reading all the pouring details of my personal life. I figured when I feel the urge to blog ever-so-often, I'd first draft it and then leave it in "incubation" for a while. After a week or so, I look at it again, and see if it is ready for "graduation" on to the blogosphere. This approach has been working real well for me!

PS: This blog post didn't go through the "incubation" process. It is one of those straight-to-blog gems. Cheers!

Microblogging? What?! And more importantly, why?

2009-03-05T15:49:00.002-05:00

I'm writing this blog article risking being thought of as "old school". Anyhow, here's what I think about the latest rage, Microblogging. Microblogging is essentially blogging, but just with a limited number of characters. You just update your "status", essentially telling your followers what are you up to right now, what are you doing, etc. You can also post a question, ask for opinions, etc. The advent of our smart phones made microblogging a huge crazy rage.

Now, my issue with microblogging is that we might risk the art of writing once and for all. As it is right now, handwriting is something that most of us do not do on a daily basis (When was the last time you wrote a letter.. I mean on a paper, with a pen?). Apart from my research papers, my blog is my only place where I write once in a while. I'm afraid this microblogging thingey will take us farther apart from our writing abilities. Now, I'm in no way recommending to write on paper. However, electronic writing is something that I grew fond of and it should not be replaced anytime soon :) While microblogging is wonderfully sweet and extremely userful, I think it should not replace blogging.

Vegas Calling....again!

2009-03-04T11:22:00.001-05:00

This year's annual geography conference (AAG) will be in Vegas. That means I will be in Vegas for a week; I look forward to the conference, AND spending some time photographing the beautiful vegas at night time. Look out for photos and stories.

Reporting some progress on the Ice....

2009-03-04T11:17:00.006-05:00

It has been two sessions of my ice skating classes so far and I'm glad to say that I made some process on the ice. The skating lessons are around 10:30 every Saturday morning (Yup, what better reason to get up a bit early on Saturdays!) The first lesson was pretty much walking around the ice and get a feel for it. My instructor called it "marching" on the ice. It felt a bit funny to walk around the ice ever so slowly, trying to balance myself. That's how it must have felt when I tried to walk and balance as a baby. Of course, not to mention a little embarrassment to see little kids on the other end of the rink skating, gliding, and doing all sort of figure skating stuff. But hey, I'm not ashamed or anything. In fact, I'm happy to get a chance to take lessons from certified trainers. I have a feeling I will be able to skate OK by the end of my 6-class session. I will post updates, photos, and perhaps a video or two here.

Ice Skating....

2009-02-18T14:06:00.003-05:00

After years (at least four) of being "determined" about learning how to skate on ice, I have finally signed up for ice-skating lessons. Evidently, growing up in the tropical belt of our Earth in India, the only time I saw any "ice" was in my refrigerator. Hence it goes without saying that after arriving in the United States, when I saw people ice skating and enjoying it, I figured I should give it a try. Heck, it seems quite a bit of fun and as I later discovered, there's a lot of fun in enjoying a nice winter evening ice skating, followed by a hot cup of hot chocolate.

Now, I tried skating on ice on a few occasions. I must say I didn't do all that well, but I didn't suck either. On my first try, I was able to balance, stand, "navigate", and stand-back-up after falling. The craziest experience was in Moscow, where I went with my friends to the "Moscow Skating Rink", where people's skill ranged from a hardened hockey player to a pro-level figure skater. I was the only newbie, not to mention the only non Russian there. People were generally OK, but it was crazy to see a 4-year old whizz by, skating past me. I also skated here in Washington a few times, each time improving my walking abilities on skates and ice.

After much postponing, I decided to sign up for the ice skating lessons. There is a skating rink nearby, but their lesson schedules are out of whack, and they offer lessons only once a week. I found another rink that's about a 30-minute drive from my home; better still, they were offering lessons on a very convenient schedule!

I'm looking forward to making some progress in being able to skate on ice. Anything more than just walking on the ice would be just wonderful! Oh, if I could glide, slide, and actually skate, that would be pure bliss!

Fifteen minutes of Power-cut in the USA.

2009-02-13T16:00:00.004-05:00

Sounds like a mystery novel title, doesn't it? Well, even though very rare, sometimes we lose power here in the USA (Yes!). Most of the times it is weather related. Like, for example, we had power loss for about 15 minutes and pandemonium ensued. While this had happened a few times, the yesterday's power cut gave me a chance to think about our collective dependency on electricity; we as a human race - well, most of the human race anyway - has become so "power"-dependent that it is superbly impossible to carry on the most minor tasks without electricity. Here were my experiences from yesterday:

The power went off at office. I looked around and before I knew every single UPS in the entire building started beeping. Annoying is a very simple word here. I shut down the computer and made my way out of my office, thanks to the emergency lighting that pointed me to the exit.

While walking out, I heard that people were stuck in the elevators and they were frantically dialing the emergency numbers. In the meantime, outside on the street, there were emergency vehicles - ambulances, fire trucks, etc - were running every which way with their noisy squeaky sirens on. As I started walking home (I live within a 5 min walking distance), I saw all the traffic lights not working. Usually in these situations, the intersection is considered an all-way stop and the first person reaching the intersection has the right-of-way. But then again, this is DC. Nobody bothered to slow down on the main streets, let alone allow peds to cross. I even saw cop cruisers just whizzing past (without lights or sirens). I finally was able to cross the street and took a look back...it was chaos! Sirens, emergency vehicles, people honking for not stopping, jeeez....it is just amazing to see how much our lives are inter-linked with electricity.

Photos from Orlando and Kennedy Space Center

2009-02-07T11:08:00.005-05:00

Enjoy the photos from Orlando and Kennedy Space Center from my recent trip to Florida...

Orlando (Click here)

Kennedy Space Center (Click here)

Miami Photos...

2009-01-19T11:50:00.003-05:00

Check out the wonderful photos from Miami. Photos from Orlando will be available soon.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2361254&l=41c74&id=5734033

Historic Time in Washington!

2009-01-18T00:18:00.004-05:00

The mood in Washington, DC is festive and cheerful in preparation for Obama's inauguration. Why not? After all, Americans so overwhelmingly picked Obama and are celebrating the history-making inauguration of their new president.

There is no other place to be at this time, but Washington. I consider myself supremely lucky to be living in the Washington metro area! In fact, I was plain thrilled to be in downtown DC on the election night and be a part of the Obama victory celebrations. People were opening champagne bottles in the city squares and circles, drivers honking horns, strangers greeting and cheering - it is as if everybody, I mean everybody, was happy with the result.

As the big inauguration day approaches, crowds in millions are descending down on the town. TV and radio stations are busy guesstimating how many millions will be attending, advising on the
road and Metro closures, warning repeatedly about possible cellphone circuit jams, helping figure out best ways to get to the parade route...Washington is getting ready, eager with anticipation.

They say the weather is going to be in the low 30s for the inauguration. I'm not sure I'll be attending the inauguration...but, I must say that I'm having fun just being an audience to preparation for such a historic event. Being a resident of the Washington area, I feel like I'm one of the millions personally playing host to the new president and the millions coming to town.

As you can clearly see, I'm excited, excited, excited!

Time Flies....

2009-01-16T19:53:00.004-05:00

Are we really in the year 2009? Wow! Time *DOES* fly by! As the new year dawned, I couldn't stop but think about how quickly years are passing by, how quickly things that seem to have happened not so long ago...ahem, actually happened a long time ago. You see my point? For example, it seems so surreal that it has been almost six years since I came to the USA. It has been 10 years since I finished my polytechnic (technical) school that prepped me for my undergrad! Work wise, it is quite hard to believe that it has been three years since I have obtained a full-time work visa, and four years since I started working! Oh gee, time surely is passing by real fast.

Beginning the New Year...Florida Style..

2009-01-15T15:51:00.011-05:00

Shortly after the New Year's, I headed off to the sunny and warm Florida. We first flew in to Orlando, spent a day there and drove off to Miami. While in Miami, we visited the Florida Keys as a day trip, and a couple of days in Miami proper. We went to the beach, checked out the city, and overall had fun.

It was a welcome break from the cold winter weather in DC. Even though Washington's winters are not that harsh, it was still a wonderful welcome break from the cold. It was quite comforting to change over from coats and scarfs to shorts and beachwear, overnight! I must say, never before in my life did I enjoy/appreciate the tropical weather this much...part of it is because I was born and grew-up in tropical temperate climate in India. I especially loved being in the Florida Keys - we stopped at the last Key, Key West. Key West is the Southern-most land mass of the continental USA (the "lower 48"). And in the process, we saw and stood at the southern-most part of the USA.

After four days and three nights in Florida, I returned to Orlando for two more days. We visited Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral. It was a great experience for me as space science and rockets fascinated me ever since I was a child. While at the Kennedy Space Center, we checked out the simulated space shuttle launch experience. It was an OK experience, but worth trying it anyway. Wish I were a kid while trying it, so that I enjoyed it..instead of figuring out the the "physics" of simulation and how they created it. Oh well, the joys of being grown ups, and the joys of being a research scientist.

We haven't been to the Disney and Universal theme parks in Orlando, but walked around the parks in their specialized shopping areas. Disney has a "boardwalk" with shops and nice walking area. Universal has a bunch of shops and walking area, similar to Disney. Overall, the feeling I got was that these same theme parks in California were much more busier than those in Florida.

We stayed in a very upscale, 4-star hotel in a very cool neighborhood known as Coconut Grove. Most people tend to choose hotels near the beach, especially near South Beach but I stayed away since I found a better deal for this hotel, and also I felt the beach-front hotels are overly pricey, not worth their price. By the way, the picture on the right is a view of sunrise from my hotel room balcony. What say you, eh?!

I enjoyed Florida so much that I am even tempted to move there in the future. Perhaps California is a better choice, but hey, the Floridian tropical heaven is no less!

I will post photos from my Facebook albums soon. Keep checking this page.

Greetings from warm Miami, Florida!

2009-01-05T23:59:00.003-05:00

I'm vacationing in Miami ...in the warm environs of Florida! Details and photos to follow...

2009!

2008-12-31T17:17:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!

С Новым Годом!

Bonne Année

To Everyone. From Me.

Merry Christmas and Season's Best!

2008-12-25T14:14:00.004-05:00

For once, I'm celebrating Christmas in a real way - I bought a Christmas tree, decorated it, and I'm having friends over from Iowa to celebrate. We are also going to a dinner at friends', so over all it is a nice and merry Christmas.

Now, I wish you all out there a very merry Christmas and Season's best!

A word on my beloved Bombay....

2008-12-02T13:09:00.004-05:00

Thinking about my beloved Mumbai in the wake of the recent terrible events....

I'm sure Bombay will be resurgent as ever, and NOTHING will break our spirit as Bombayiites (or Mumbaikars) or as Indians, living in a pluralistic, civil, democratic, and free society. Love you, Bombay!

What's been happenin' in my life recently?... A whole bunch!

2008-11-24T17:35:00.022-05:00

OK. I have not been quite up-to-date with most of you about what's been going on with my life. Over the past two months or so, I got quite a bit busy (read lazy) and I have just postponed posting things here. Now that I'm back on the Interwebs, I shall promptly update you with what has been happening with my life recently. The major thing, as you already know, is the move from Iowa to Washington DC. Apart from that, there have been parties, events, trips, and a whole lot more.

Here's a brief photo summary of the happenings of the past few months:

Had many, many "Russian parties" ...

Enjoyed UNI football games..

Danced "Garba" and "Dandiya" for the Indian festival of Navratri...

See more... http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2323015&l=17b1b&id=5734033

Visited Madison and LOVED it!...

See more... http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2326066&l=aabd0&id=5734033

Been on TV five times for the UNI Family weekend football game...

Had my "Returning to Washington DC" Party...

Had super-duper fun for Halloween...

Resuming life in Washington DC...

2008-11-22T20:57:00.003-05:00

So, I have been back here in Washington for almost a couple of weeks now! It feels really nice to be back! As I mentioned in my earlier post, I am now reacquainted to the crowds and especially the infamous DC traffic. I'm still in talks with my peers and mentors here regarding my move toward a PhD. Somehow I still am not convinced that I should make the plunge - at this point of time. But it could change at any point of time.

Life has been steadily busy, as you might expect living in a big city. While getting together with friends and dear ones is occupying my evenings, I'm busy with work during the day. I quite relish being back here in my own office ( a new office with more windows. nothing exciting there as every single windows looks out to a dull parking lot). I have also set up my apartment finally - I bought all the furniture (again) and set up my place. I had also got at Internet connection at home, FINALLY. I still am waiting to buy a TV; I'm tempted to hit the stores on the "Black Friday" - for the day-after-Thanksgiving sales. Once I obtain the TV, my apartment will be 'complete' and I shall be able to hold parties and invite people over.

Overall, it is quite good being back, just as I expected. It is good. And now I'm having fun, loads of it.

Back to DC...

2008-10-20T20:11:00.003-04:00

I had finally made up my mind to move back to DC at the end of this month. It has been wonderful living in Iowa, and working from home has proven to be quite exciting. I had grown to appreciate the ease and the "do-stuff-when-you-like" kind of opportunity. But it makes more sense for me to be where my job is, and apparently that's what my bosses want too : ) So, off I go back to DC at the end of this month. I'll be back to the good old grind - crazy traffic, busy roads, wonderful museums, loads of stuff to do in the weekends, etc.

I'll miss Cedar Falls and my friends here. And oh, what should I say about the parties here. But anyhow, I traveled and moved enough from place to place to realize that it is just a matter of time before I get adjusted back to the pace there in DC.

Fall Colors in Madison

2008-10-16T13:22:00.003-04:00

Madison, Wisconsin - the "Mad town"...the home of University of Wisconsin. What a beautiful little town it is!

I went to Madison in Wisconsin this past weekend, primarily to check out the town and to see the fall colors. What a treat it was to see the blazing fall colors - the yellows, the maroons, the reds, and the oranges. And the weather turned out to be just GREAT! It was a very warm day, perhaps even reminiscent of a nice sunny summer day. I really liked the town and the cool, calm university district, and especially the State street. Check out the photos and you will see what I mean!

This is the picture I took while sitting at a cafe, outdoors. With warm outdoors, a nice cup of cappuccino, golden fall foliage on the street, and a nice breeze - that's a nice and ideal day in Madison.

Here are the photos:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2326066&l=aabd0&id=5734033

To PhD or Not to PhD! That's the BIG question!

2008-10-08T23:41:00.006-04:00

"To do a PhD or not? Now or later? Why now? Why not later?"

Well, that pretty much sums up my thoughts over the past few weeks. In other words, I'm entangled in a maze of thoughts about whether or not to do a PhD. My boss has always been encouraging me to go for a PhD degree since I joined Maryland back in 2005. I chose not to do it, until now. Over a recent conversation with my boss, he brought this up and encouraged me to start the PhD program as soon as possible.

During my two year graduate program and my current work at Maryland, I have grown to appreciate the academic way of work, research, and life. And by the way, I have completed 3 years service in my current position at the Maryland and I feel quite happy about it. : ) The projects that I'm working on are major successes and are internationally recognized! I'm waaaay content, and happy, and honored to have been working here.

Now back to my PhD... I am more or less convinced that working in academia is the way to go ahead for me. And as everybody knows, unless one has a PhD, growing professionally in the academic arena is real tough. This is one of those rare fields where having "just" a Master's degree won't cut it. So, I will be doing a PhD for sure...the question of the hour is - now or later? Now is always better, but keeping in mind my other priorities in life, I'm thinking on postponing it for a couple of years.

PhD requires a lot of commitment in terms of time, energy, and intellect. Quite frankly, I feel I'm ready for it! And it seems my friends are more confident about my abilities to succeed in a PhD program than I am : )

Overall, I'm leaning more toward going for a PhD, starting this January. I'm reviewing some literature to pick up a topic, or at least choose a direction for my research and dissertation topic....and perhaps even for my career. I'm gonna make my decision soon, and I will post that here soon.

In Washington, for a week.

2008-09-24T14:11:00.006-04:00

I flew here to Washington, DC to be on campus for a week. It has been a while since I'm here and now, and now I'm back to my old, established life style here. I'm getting to finally sit in my office and work straight at my computer - no need to remote-connect to work! Also, I've been meeting my friends and having a great time. My schedule is pretty packed and full.... too much to do and too little time. Lunches and dinners, meetings and greeting, and those "hey-we-are-glad-you-are-back" shout-outs I hear from people.

In a way, it is great to be back here in Washington. After all, I have lived here for more than three years and I enjoyed things here a lot. I love the life here; It is filled with events, get-togethers, or taking walks at night near the monuments, or going to the museums. In another way, I have to move back again, pack stuff and just drop all my friends and life there in Iowa and come back here. It is the exact opposite of what I went through when I was moving to Iowa - a kind of feeling that I'm leaving home and going back to a placed I called home earlier. In any case I think too much of moving is not fun at all : )

But I'm glad I have these opportunities to be flexible in terms of work. If I will be moving back, I will be glad to be back here, but will definitely miss what is by now my established life in Iowa. And of course, I will miss those parties too! : )

In any case, I will keep you posted for sure!

Mt. Rainier National Park....a Piece of Paradise!

2008-09-08T12:32:00.006-04:00

On my trip to Seattle, I also visited Mt. Rainier National Park. As you can see from the photos, it is a little piece of heaven! Great sights and stunningly beautiful scenery. While in the park, I saw the weather change quite rapidly - we saw rain, sun, and clouds. Clouds stayed around mostly, so I didn't get a chance to see Mt. Rainier itself. But the park itself is just a beauty. Enjoy the photos..

Mt. Rainier National Park Album

Seattle Sights...

2008-09-04T19:11:00.003-04:00

So, I finally made it to Seattle. It is one of those places that I've always wanted to visit. Finally, a friend of mine invited me so graciously that I had to go visit this great city. Well, what can I say how wonderful the trip was! The city of Seattle itself was great, and we also went to the Mt. Rainier National Park. It is a little piece of heaven sitting outside Seattle. If anybody is visiting Seattle, I really recommend visiting the Mt. Rainier NP. Though cloudy, it was very, very scenic. I couldn't get a glimpse of Mt. Rainier itself, but there are plentiful of other beauties you enjoy.

Here are the first set of photos from Seattle. Check them out:

Seattle Sights

Pictures from Mt. Rainier will follow soon. Keep it here.

Toronto Photos...

2008-09-02T02:26:00.012-04:00

Summer in Toronto looks amazing! Many festivals, art shows, street-side concerts - it is just amazing! This time around, we did a lot of multi-cultural things! We went to the Russian district, the Indian district, Chinatown, Korea town, Japanese village, etc. I loved this trip to Toronto. And oh, we also went to Niagara - just to check it out. The last few times I went there was freeeezing cold! It is refreshing to see Niagara Falls while it is warm outside.

Check out the photos here:

Toronto in Summer

More Toronto Summer Sights

I'm sure you will like these photos. And oh, I went to Seattle after returning from Toronto. Those photos from Seattle, Spokane, and Mt. Rainier National Park are coming. Stay tuned!

In Toronto...

2008-08-18T13:29:00.003-04:00

I'm in Toronto again, this time for about a week. I'm having a great time here as always and enjoying the urban life that I so dearly miss in Iowa. And oh, I drove here from Iowa - a cool 13-hour drive. It was real fun driving here as I seemed to have picked a near-perfect day to drive - a beautiful sunny day and a bright moonlit night.

Anyhow, I will post some cool exciting photos once I'm back in the States!

Birthday Video!

2008-08-01T14:29:00.005-04:00

Here's one of the videos from my birthday: "The Cake"! Check it out. My friends sang me the "happy birthday" in SEVEN languages - English, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Ukrainian, and Nepali! Pretty cool, huh!

Click on the image below to see the video, or just click on the link. The video is from Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=5734033&k=YXC4Q6R5QW3MYDAFWK24X

PS: I LOVE my friends for making my birthday such fun! : )

I'm an year older...again!

2008-07-28T02:00:00.007-04:00

OK. So, I turned a year older on July 15, just like every other year! But this year's birthday was something VERY special. I have had so much fun for this birthday, that I can say that this is one of the best, or probably the best birthday I ever had. I spent a lot of time with friends on the 15th; We went out for dinner with some close friends and then gathered with some other friends to have a drink. And later that week, I had a party at my house. Boy, what can I say about that party! It was a "Russian" theme party (to profess my love for Russian language and culture) and it was a BLAST! Everybody had a great time! Be sure to check out the photos!! The party also doubled as a good-bye party to my friends Lera and Vika, who left for Russia that same weekend. So long friends, we will meet in Russia soon!

My Birthday: Album 1

My Birthday: Album 2

I would like to thank those of you who sent me your warm, caring messages via cards, emails, SMS, and phone calls. Much love to you guys!

Check out the photos. I will post a few videos soon!

South Dakota: Beautiful Places, Beautiful Faces!

2008-07-11T12:35:00.008-04:00

Ahh, South Dakota! What a beautiful state it is. Quite frankly, when I set out from Iowa to drive out west, I thought South Dakota will be just plain boring, with a flat landscape and quite a boring drive until I reach the mountains out west! I couldn't have been more wrong, and I'm quite happy I was wrong.

South Dakota surprised me so much with beautiful landscapes, rolling plains, lots of attractions, and of course, the majestic mountains. I also got a real taste of the "wild west" while visiting one of the tourist attractions named "1880 Town". I loved South Dakota so much that we prolonged our journey for one more day and stayed back to take all that South Dakota offers, as much as we can!

Our route went through Iowa, Minnesota, and the entire length of South Dakota. We drove for about 1500 miles (~ 2400+ kilometers) in all! Along the highway were the ads for a certain "Corn Palace", something named "Wall Drug", 1880 Town and countless other tourist attractions. We figured we should first read about them and visit them on the way back.

My main goal was to visit Mt. Rushmore and see the July 4 fireworks. So, we started off early in the morning and reached Keystone, SD where Mt. Rushmore is. We were told that the parking lots up the mountain were full at 9 AM for the 10 PM fireworks! So, we ended up trekking up 3 miles up the mountain, to an elevation of 800 feet. It was quite a great experience. Finally, we were well in time for the fireworks. I leisurely chose a nice spot, set up my tripod and shot some nice shots.

Over the next two days, we set out to see the Crazy Horse memorial, Custer State Park, Black Hills, and Badlands National Parks, while stopping over in the nice little picturesque hilly towns along the way. One the way back, we made sure we stopped at the "1880 town" and got a taste of the wild west of the 1800s. We also stopped at the corn place and enjoyed the beautiful corn-made murals! Overall, it was one of the greatest trips I ever made! No kidding!

Trip highlights for me were: 1. The fireworks at Mt. Rushmore 2. Native American ("Indian") dances 3. Badlands National Park.

What a beautiful trip it was! This will stay as one of the most memorable trips. Be sure to check out the following 3 albums:

South Dakota Postcards: Mount Rushmore

South Dakota: Beautiful Places and Faces

Bad, bad lands of South Dakota

July 4 Travel: Mt. Rushmore.

2008-06-27T16:34:00.003-04:00

My summer domestic travel continues to yet another mid-Western destination - this time to the popular Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. Mt. Rushmore is one of the most prominent landmarks of America, and quite possibly one of the most notable monuments in the world along side the Statue of Liberty, The Taj Mahal, The Great Wall of China, etc.

I've always wanted to visit Mt. Rushmore, more so for the US independence day (July 4th) fireworks. I have seen the fireworks light up the sky, right behind the monument and I always wanted to check it out. Now that I have a cool camera, I am training myself in various camera setting to get that perfect picture of the monument and fireworks. Let us see how that turns out : )

I will also visit a bunch of other destinations along the way, such as the Bad Lands national park, the black hills, and even perhaps crossing over to Wyoming! My guesstimate is that I will be driving 1400+ miles (~ 2300 KM), crossing Iowa, Minnesota, and South Dakota...and may be in to Wyoming and back! It should be quite an exciting trip, a long time coming! I will post the photos for sure! Keep tuned.

Small town charms!

2008-06-19T12:40:00.004-04:00

Ever since I moved to rural Iowa, I have been traveling around quite often to the towns and cities around Iowa. As much as I enjoy cities, small towns are my all-time favorites. The past weekend, I made a trip out to Galena in Illinois and Dubuque in Iowa. Both are small, charming towns with beautiful main streets and picture perfect scenery. Dubuque and Galena are neighboring cities at the border of Iowa and Illinois, separated by the Mississippi river. Here are some of the photos. Check them out!

Galena is quite Victorian, while Dubuque looks more like an all-American mid sized town. Click below to see for your self.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2280012&l=b6e40&id=5734033

St. Louis was fun!

2008-06-04T00:18:00.006-04:00

I visited St. Louis the past weekend with a couple of my friends. I have been planning to visit St. Louis for a long time and see the famous Gateway Arch and the Anheuser Busch Brewery. We drove down there via Illinois and stopped along the way to check out the highway-side attractions. On the way back, we drove straight up from Missouri to Iowa. It was a great trip and a great weekend overall. Check out the photos!

More photos:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2275017&l=e578c&id=5734033

Takin' Up Golf. Big Time.

2008-05-28T16:08:00.004-04:00

So, how do you keep yourself busy in a small town? Well, first get tons of friends to hang out in the weekends. Sure. I have many good friends and acquaintances here in Cedar Falls. And my weekends here are busier than those of in DC! The week-day evenings also have been quite OK. I am quite occupied on some evenings - working on my "other" job at UMD, going to Wal-Mart, and basically driving around.

I finally took up golfing big time here in Iowa. I'm loving golfing so much so that I went ahead and invested in a pretty slick golf kit. I'm hitting the driving range quite often - more often than in Maryland. Also, I've been taking formal golf lessons just because! The prices for golf lessons are practically free compared to those of the DC prices. The golf courses here are pretty pristine and not busy at all. So, I've been enjoying my golfing adventures quite a bit. I've also been taking a few of my buddies here who have never been golfing. Overall, it is working out nice!

In DC for the weekend...

2008-05-10T21:15:00.002-04:00

I'm in DC for 3 days and I can't be more excited! I had a meeting at
UMD on Friday and I'm staying over for the weekend.

Some random thoughts...

It is quite interesting how your perception of "home" changes,
depending on where you live and for how long. I had lived in Iowa for
two years and it was always "home" for me. Now that I had lived in DC
for three years, I now consider it home!!

I love being back here, I love enjoying the DC sunshine, and I just
love my life and my friends here!

As I sit outside this wonderful outdoor cafe enjoying a drink with my
friends, I realize how much I miss my life here.

Surviving Iowa...Once Again!

2008-04-27T22:43:00.005-04:00

So, for the past couple of weeks, I've been slowly settling down here in Iowa. I have a whole bunch of mixed feelings - some exciting, some not so interesting, yet some...very pleasant ones. Ever since I moved back here, I have a whole bunch of "deja-vu" feelings. Since I had lived here before, adjusting to a small town environment is definitely not a problem. It just takes a little time to fall back in to the "usual" routine. As you can imagine, I am starting it all over again here...

I rented a nice apartment (a town house - two floors! Don't imagine anything super...it is just a student housing apartment) close to campus. I bought a new bed, some new furniture, and started decorating the place. I'm seeing some of my old friends and it is just awesome! Also, I'm being reconnected to the lovely international student community, and I've also been loving speaking ("practicing") Russian.

This place also brings me a host of wonderful memories from my student life - the places, the hang out spots, some nice moments ...it is quite interesting! It is almost surreal in a sense that I almost feel that I never left this place at all!! Well, there are a few differences from the time I was a student here. Things have changed, I have changed! I no longer have to drive a crappy car and live on a measly grad assistant stipend, for example! : )

Work-wise, it has been plain OK so far. I *definitely* miss my job in UMD and the freedom I enjoyed. Now, I must also say that since I've been here only for two weeks, my thoughts about work will always be skewed toward DC. I will wait to see how things will unfold here. I'm going to give it six months to see if I will like my job. If I do, I will stick around. If not, I plan to go back to my job in UMD.

Let us see how this "Iowa Experiment" of mine will turn out! Wish me luck!

Now, back to some photos from Paris!

2008-04-23T09:44:00.004-04:00

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2260350&l=a339e&id=5734033

Here are some night-time photos from Paris. Hope you enjoy!

In Iowa...

2008-04-14T16:34:00.003-04:00

I reached Iowa Saturday night, and ever since I didn't get a chance to post here. I will some interesting photos though! I will post them once I find/set up my own place!

See ya!

Day 2: Starting from Wauseon, OH

2008-04-12T10:34:00.001-04:00

So, day #2 begins! I rested overnight in a tiny town called "Wauseon,
OH" - population: a whopping 7000! Of course, for even a small town of
that size, there was a walmart supercenter.

I'm currently in Indiana at a rest stop. See you from Illinois!

In Ohio...

2008-04-11T17:06:00.000-04:00

> I just crossed into Ohio! It already seems a bit flat and more Iowa-
> like!

> Welcome to the Midwest!

Off to Iowa: LIVE from the road!

2008-04-11T12:45:00.001-04:00

Greetings from the Maryland / Pennsylvania border. I started driving
out to Iowa this morning and I plan to drive 50% of the route today.

I'll post updates whenever I stop at a rest area along the highway. I
didnt figure out how to post photos to blogger from my iPhone. I'll
try that when I stop for lunch in a couple of hours.

Ciao.

Moving to Iowa!!!

2008-04-08T19:39:00.004-04:00

Hello Y'all! I have some news for all of you. Some of you know this already, but here it is for all of you:

I am moving to Iowa!

Yes, really! I'm moving out to the mid-west to start a new job there! I have accepted an exciting opportunity in Iowa at my alma mater and I will be moving there in a couple of days. I look forward to my new job and the other exciting research opportunities that might come way.

It is kind of sad leaving the wonderful DC metro area, my friends here, and all kinds of social activities I'm involved in. I will also definitely miss the DC weather, especially in Winter!

Now, I must also tell you that I will continue working at the University of Maryland, part-time! I will be working from Iowa and will be visiting DC once in a while. I'm really glad that I will still have the opportunity to meet my friends over here.

If you feel like visiting large corn fields or if you ever want to meet the most friendliest people in the world, come visit me in Iowa! It will be a lot of fun :-)

DC's Spring Beauty!

2008-04-05T18:29:00.002-04:00

DC transforms into a blossoming beauty every spring. The world famous DC cherry blossoms come to full bloom every spring in April and thousands flock to watch them. If I were to pick one single natural "must-see" thing, I'd pick cherry blossoms.

I'll soon post more fantastic views of the DC cherry blossoms this year.

Photos from Rome...

2008-04-03T14:02:00.010-04:00

Hello Folks, I am back from Europe and I must say that I had a WONDERFUL time in both Rome and Paris. Both cities are quite a treat to the eye in terms of art, architecture, and culture. While Rome has an ancient and (quite rightfully) historic feel, Paris had this glamorous and glitzy look.

Here are some low-res photos from Rome. I hope you like them. Don't forget to check out my Facebook album too! Photos from Paris are coming soon.

Facebook Album: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2253074&l=1b2a6&id=5734033

Ciao!

Ciao from Rome!

2008-03-25T11:25:00.003-04:00

I've come to Rome for a week on business. I'm currently working at the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization's (UN FAO) office. This huge office building is located just one block from the famous Circus Maximus, the Palantine Hill, the Colosseum, and all the other ancient Roman ruins. The views out of the office windows and cafeteria doors/terraces are just incredible! These people are so man lucky to be working in such a wonderful setting. I'm clearly jealous of these folks here!

Here is what I think about Rome: Awesome! I just can't explain how wonderful this city is! Every single street, plaza, piazza, monuments are just breath-taking. No matter where you walk, there is something great to look at. I tell you, if one can measure a place's beauty by how photogenic it is, Rome is photogenic almost every single inch of the city area. And I'm not kidding you.

As usual, I'm taking loads of photos and I will post them as soon as I return to the USA. Until then, as the Italians says, "ciao!"

PS: Here's an insider joke on UN FAO.

Me: "Wow! This [FAO] building seems ginormous! How many people work here?"

Them: "About 50% of the people"

: - )

Testing mobile blogging!!

2008-03-16T13:09:00.000-04:00

Computers are SO yesterday, right?!! Now that I got an iPhone - and
I'm using it for practically everything from giving directions to
strangers to googling the crap out of everything - I've decided to
switch to mobile blogging. This means more (random) posts, more funny
photos, and even more (hopefully) interesting stories!

Enjoy!

(Sent from my mobile phone. Ahem-Ahem!! )

Looking forward to ROME and PARIS!!

2008-02-26T19:57:00.004-05:00

The Europe trip that I have been waiting for a long time is being materialized now! After being postponed since December, we found finally some time that is good for all parties. So...I will soon be heading out to Rome for about a week for work. I will be working at the UN Food and Agricultural Organziation (UN FAO) installing a system that I developed at UMD. I am very excited to go work there and work there. Of course, I am hoping that I will have enough time to check out Rome! I've already begun reading about Rome and place to visit around there ; )

Now, on the way back, I will be visiting Paaarrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiissssss! I'm so freaking excited about going there and FINALLY seeing Paris. I have a couple of very good friends there that I will be seeing. It should be just awesome!! I will post the details about the trip before I fly, and LOADS of photos after the trip.

Coming Up: Some Big Changes!

2008-02-19T14:34:00.004-05:00

Buckle up, people! I have some news about news regarding my life!

There are a few big changes coming up in my life...professional life, that is. Over the past few month, I have come across several exciting new opportunities in terms of my next professional moves. I have finally decided to take up on some of these opportunities for the better good of my professional goals and this will certainly herald quite a big change. I will post the details very soon in another post, but for now, it seems like I will be taking up a new position, in a new (but familiar) place. If that happens, I'm surely going to miss Washington DC and my lovely job here. However, the prospects are in such a way that I will have the opportunity to be in DC once in a while. Confused? Curious? Well, you just have to wait until I post all the details. But for now, just know that I will be taking up a new job soon and there are some changes coming up in my professional career!

What's so "wise" about wisdom teeth, anyway!

2008-02-08T12:37:00.000-05:00

What is so "wise" about these damn wisdom tooth anyway? The booklet in my doctors office said that these "wisdom" tooth developed in early humans because of their raw diet. Why didn't they consider being vegetarian, I thought for a second. But then, it is easy to figure out what to eat while it is moving, rather than trying each and every plant and fruit out there.

Anyhow...

I have reached that part of my life where my wisdom teeth (at least one for now) started bothering me. If you did not know, I have never-ever been to a dentist in my life. Part of it is because it was never necessary. Over the past few years, my teeth started showing a bit of wear :) But still I promptly skipped going to the dentist, even though I suspect one of my teeth to have a cavity! It was always "next month". My postponement and laziness promptly resulted in a strong toothaches every now and then. Now that my upper jaw started giving me a shooting pain, I finally went to the dentist. After all the x-rays and panoramic analysis, they figured I need to get all four of my wisdom tooth removed. One of them is out, and is easy to remove. Good part is that this is the tooth that is bothering me. The other three are inside the jaw, and need a surgery to get them out.

Anyway, I had my first "bothering" wisdom tooth removed. It was not a big deal, but was certainly an experience! I messed up with the "apply the pressure" part with the gauze to stem the blood flow. I realized this late that evening, so I the blood didn't clot till evening. After not eating the whole day, I finally managed to "eat" a very bland, soft diet.

Figuring out what to eat was fun. My biggest surprise came when I googled "what to eat after getting wisdom tooth removed". There is a whole wide audience forming groups, forums, and informative websites. It seems like almost every one of us has this issue. I went shopping late that evening and I found myself shopping like an 80-year old, looking for soft foods like pudding, yogurt, and other soft stuff. I figured bananas could be another choice. One of the internet forums said Indian food is good, since most of the curries are full of soft gravy - the only requirement being the curries should be bland. No problemo there!

The bigger nuisance will come when they will remove the rest of three at one go! The knowledge I gained from the Internet said I can't eat for 4/5 days, has to be careful with little bits of food getting stuck in my mouth, etc, etc. I guess I'm ready for this relatively minor nuisance for the longer good!

After my wisdom tooth, I head on to get some work done on my cavity, then get the entire stuff examined and cleaned. So, here I am! Saddled up and ready to head out get stuff in place with my dental health. Small price to pay, considering my tooth supported me without issues for the first 26 years of their existence! Bravo my teeth, Bravo!

Vegas Photos....

2008-02-01T10:46:00.001-05:00

Here are the photos from and surrounding Vegas. Check them out:

Vegas

Red Rock Canyon and Hoover Dam

Coming Up: Las$$$ Vega$$$!

2008-01-24T10:26:00.001-05:00

Hurrah!! I'm heading to Vegas tomorrow. I will be there for about 3 three days. Plans include checking out the eye-dazzling Las Vegas Strip, a little casino hopping, and if possible, check out the some show. Now, I'm NOT a big fan of gambling or any other thing that the Sin City is famous for. I'm purely going there for the fun of it.

We also have some outside-the-city trips planned: one to the famous Hoover dam, the other to the Red Rock canyon. Hoover dam is a "sure" on our trip - I have dreamed of visiting it for a long time. We will see about the Red Rock, and time permitting, we will go there.

As always, I shall post the photos soon! Keep your attentions right here!

A New York Weekend!

2008-01-14T14:52:00.001-05:00

Yeah! We decided to go to New York for the weekend and have ourselves a good time! With its proximity to DC, New York makes a nice weekend get away - let it be for hanging out, sightseeing, or for shopping. Even better, I have a friend who has a bachelor uncle to host us! We had a nice time in NYC! Check out the photos.

Facebook Album:

http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2225702&l=b278d&id=5734033

No such thing as free beer? Think again!

2008-01-10T15:38:00.000-05:00

OK..OK! We have heard this cliche phrase many times - "There is no such thing as free lunch" or, mostly in a guys' world, "There is no such thing as free beer!". Well, my friends! think again. I won not only free beer, but free drinks for a couple of hours! In other words, I won a happy hour in one of the DC bars! Story?, you might ask. Here it is...

A month or so ago, a friend of mine won this happy hour and invited all of us to join her. We joined her and while in the bar, the waitress asked us if we would like to sign up for the "sweepstakes" so that we can win a happy hour just like our dear little friend. I laughed out loud, and asked her if it is a "scheme" to sell our personal information. She assured me that it will be used only for drawing a winner. I signed up jokingly.

Well, about a week ago, I got an email saying I won the happy hour! I get free drinks, and my friends get their drinks for $1 each. Not a bad way to get together and celebrate the beginning of the new year, eh?! : )

Disclaimer: Of course, I will be drinking in moderation, and I suggest you do so too! : )

Montréal was great!

2008-01-06T19:46:00.000-05:00

Montréal is like mini-France with North American look. It is a mix of little European city and a large North American downtown. Since most people in Montréal, or Québec for that matter, speak French, I had a chance to practice my broken French a little bit, but I guess I got by just fine. Being a northern city, it has cold winters with lots of snow, and this along with the holiday lighting and atmosphere made it look like a little winter wonderland. Of course, I would love to go back there in Summer and enjoy a leisure lunch at a bistro with a glass of wine. Also, it'd be awesome to see some green and flower pots. Check out the photos!

Montréal: Accès Interdit (photos):
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2222427&l=dd8f3&id=5734033

Here are a couple of photos:

2008!

2007-12-31T13:52:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!
С Новым Годом!
Bonne Annee!

To All of You. From Me.

Off to Montreal for the holidays!!!

2007-12-25T11:03:00.000-05:00

I'm heading off to Canada again for the holidays. This time, I am VERY excited to visit Montreal in the French-speaking Quebec province. Even though I was in Quebec earlier, I have been planning to go deep in to French Canada. I will post photos, as always, when I return on the 2nd of January.

Happy Holidays!

Russia's Magnificent Palaces in Photos!

2007-12-14T12:44:00.000-05:00

Check out these spectacular palaces of Russia! It will leave you just awe-struck!

Catherine's Palace in Pushkin (Tsarskoe Selo) and Mariinsky Theatre
Peterhof Palace
Yusupovsky Palace and Russian Museum

Photos from Russia: Piter

2007-12-03T15:53:00.000-05:00

Here are the photos from St. Petersburg. Enjoy!

St. Petersburg :

St. Petersburg: Here we go...
St. Petersburg at Night: Just beautiful!
More....coming soon!

PS: Facebook messed up the quality of my hi-res photos. Check out a few of these photos on Flickr.

Russia: High-Resolution Photos on Flickr!

2007-12-02T22:55:00.000-05:00

I had uploaded a very few hi-res photos to my Flickr. Check them out on the Flickr banner or click here for :

Moscow

St. Petersburg

PS: Don't forget, there are PLENTY of photos on my Facebook. Check out the links above and below this post!

Photos from Russia: Moscow

2007-11-30T14:31:00.000-05:00

Here are just a few photos from my trip to Russia. I took a total of 2800 photos. So, as you can imagine, it is a heck of a task to choose "the best of Russia". I uploaded a few photos to my Facebook albums. Click on the links and check out the photos...

Moscow:

Moscow ~ Москва
More of Moskva
Moscow Metro Deserves an Album!
More Photos Coming!!

PS: Facebook messed up the quality of my hi-res photos. Check out a few of these photos on Flickr.

My experiences in Яussiа

2007-11-30T11:32:00.000-05:00

I have returned back from Russia last Monday. Put simply, this trip was the best holiday I have had so far in my life. I first flew to St. Petersburg and then traveled to Moscow for a few days. Russia is beautiful, especially in Winter. I loved many aspects of Russia. It was the Russia that I like, the Russia that I read about, the Russia whose culture is a matter of interest to me. It is the Russia I've imagined, the Russia I've expected. I have experience all the "Russian experiences" I wanted to experience - like drinking chai with blini, vodka with friends, wearing those crazy shoe-covers in the museum, ice-skating, riding a Marshrukta (a small taxi van), going to theater, coat-checks at literally every single place, babushkas, ..... and I can go on with examples like this! I left a couple of quintessential Russian experiences like Banya for my next trip. I did way too much in my two-week trip, but we simply were running out of time for doing more things : )

I first stated my Russian tour in St. Petersburg, perhaps one of the best cities in the world. I explored the marvels at the State Hermitage museum, walked all around the St. Petersburg on those beautiful bridges, enjoyed the small cafes and museums, explored the history of the city. I am not sure how to put this in words, but I was quite impressed by the city. St. Petersburg looks wonderful at night. The Neva river was frozen solid and it gave the city even a more beautiful look! I was awe-struck each time I visited the palaces of the Russian Czars, like the ones in Pushkin (Tsarkoe Selo), or the Yusopovsky Palace (Yusupovsky Dvorets), or the palace at Peterhof (Petrodvorets). Perhaps these Czars and emperors lived the grandest life possible! I definitely can't describe how grand these are in words, but I have many photos that will give you an idea of it! And what can I say about the ornate and architecturally-marvelous Russian Orthodox Churches!

I headed off to Moscow for three days. Watching Red Square at night was one of the highlights of my trip! I saw almost ALL sights in Moscow - Kremlin, Red Sqaure, Moscow Metro, Bolshoi, Moscow State University, Novodevichy monastery, Arbat, Kitai-gorod ... just to name a few! My next trip will include the towns around Moscow that form the "Golden Ring".

It was an unbelievable experience to see the sights and places that I was wanting to see for a long time. And of course, it was wonderful to see my old friends and some make new friends. Everything went exactly as I planned, and I would say thing turned out even better. I took many photos, I mean PLENTY. After my trip, the last count of photos came to around 2800 photos.

As you can imagine, I was kind of sad to leave Russia. But I know for a fact that Russia is a place I can not live in. Unfortunately. In short-term, I would have loved to stay there for at least 6 months or a year, but I am concerned about a few things. First, the skin-head violence targeting people with dark skin color. (Yup, a small minority of idiots are messing up the reputation of such a great country!). Another thing that I'm concerned with is the constant "harassment" of cops by stopping people with dark skin color and asking for documents. I know they are not racist and they do it for bribes. But there is a limit - I can't put up with it. Just in case you were wondering, the cops DID stop us and asked me *specifically* for documents. Yup!

Overall, I would say I fell in love with Russia. It is just a great, great, great country. I was plainly thrilled to see my friends who took care of me in just an unbelievable way! I would definitely visit back as soon as I can.

До скорого, Россия!

In Russia!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-11-21T02:02:00.000-05:00

Yo yo yo!! I'm in Russia for just over a week now and I still can't believe it! Needless to say, I'm having just an AWEEEEESOME time here. Gosh! what a beautiful country this is! I was in love with her (Russia) even before coming here, and by coming here I just reaffirmed my love with Russia! : )

Get ready for LOTS of stories, day-by-day accounts, and thousands of photos! I am too busy to write detailed blogs or to upload photos. I will do that as soon as I return to the states.

Cheers!

Ready for Russia!

2007-11-11T20:02:00.001-05:00

Here it comes! My trip to Russia!! I'm leaving for Russia tomorrow (Monday, 12th November) for about two weeks.

I have been planning to visit this country for about a year and half. Russia is one country that has fascinated me ever since I was a child. I was and am a big fan of the Soviet/Russian space technology! We Indians almost always have a universally good feelings toward Russia, and I'm no exception. My fascination with Russia came full circle when I moved to America for my graduate school. Ever since my initial friendship began with Russians early during my graduate school, I have been fascinated by the history, culture, and language of Russia. I do not know exactly why, but I continued to bond particularly well with the Russians. Some of the best friends I made are Russians. Even today, majority of my friends are Russians, and I am now participating in more Russian cultural events than any other cultural events. Many people are telling me how "almost Russian" I am! May be, I was a Russian in my previous life (if there were to be a previous life!). HAHAHA!

Tough as it is, I'm persevering to continue my pursuit of learning the Russian language. I am very happy to say that I'm semi-proficient in Russian, and by the compliment-showers that I get from native speakers, I think I have a "neutral" accent and not such-a-bad vocabulary! I'm very happy with my effort of the 3-semester Russian language study, and I will continue to pursue it as long as I can.

Another thing that I grew close to in the past few years is the Russian culture, the Russian way-of-life, thought, etc. Learning a language not just entails learning to conjugate verbs, or memorizing vocabulary, but also involves deeply understanding a culture. Then and only then, can one claim to be a "master" of a certain language. No wonder many people do a Study Abroad program when majoring in a language. Unfortunately, I can't do a study abroad program, but I will take this two-week opportunity to visit Russia to see everything I learned about with my own eyes!

It will be great to finally see the places that I read about, the places that I heard descriptions about, the cultural aspects that were taught in the class, etc! Most importantly, it will be great to catch up with some old friends. Wow, how exciting this whole thing is! Overall, I'm VERY excited to visit Russia. This is THE place I always wanted to visit, and I just can't wait for the firsthand experience of Russian culture!

I will be flying first to St. Petersburg, one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Then, I will go to Moscow for about 3 or 4 days, and return back to St. Petersburg. The entire trip duration is about 13 days. I'm looking forward to enjoying every bit of it.

PS: I *will* update the popular "Russo-Travelo-Meter" once I reach Russia. I look forward to making it 100%. ; )

Halloooweeeeen....

2007-11-01T17:02:00.001-04:00

In line with my real life theme of "Russian-ness", my Halloween theme fro this year has something to do with Russia. As you can see from this scary photo, I was wearing the mask of Putin, or as I named attire "Vladimir VladimiroWITCH" - a play on words on Putin's first name and his patronymic. What better way to scare people than an Indian guy wearing Putin's mask and speaking Russian!! ; - )

Here are two other photos - one as a Soviet officer and the other with Boris Nikolaivitch (Yeltsin).. : )

iMesmerized!

2007-10-29T11:20:00.000-04:00

So, I got the iPhone finally (as you can see from the following post)! No doubts, it is just awesome and I'm loving every bit of it! Now, here's the interesting part. Whenever I'm in public talking on the phone, or just listening to music, people inadvertently stop me and ask me if it is as great as it is (Google for "Jesus phone" and you will know!) I just hand them over the Phone (observe the uppercase "P"), and they are just awe-struck!

Example? Here you go...this morning I was at a local Starbucks replying a call. I just finished talking when my turn came up in the line. Having finished my call, I followed the usual routine of hanging up (yawn!) and sliding the phone in to my pockets. That is when I saw a very eager curiosity on the face of the Starbucks employee. "So", he went, "Is it as good as everybody saying it is?!". I just handed out the phone to him and said "Check it out for yourself". He was so freakin' impressed by the phone, he gave me a free iTunes download card! Talk about the "perks" that come with having a cool phone! ; ) Another female employee there admired the phone and started questioning me how can the phone be so small, yet so cool! I told her that I'm not Jesus, and therefore I'm not obliged to answer anything about the Jesus Phone. : )

Now I guess I can TOTALLY and officially flaunt my iPhone in public more often and grab attention from people, especially the female folk, eh? ; ) Just kidding!

The iPhone Tempatation

2007-10-28T19:07:00.000-04:00

The iPhone temptation was too hard for me to resist! After waiting for about four months, I finally got myself an iPhone. Needless to say, it is an amazing piece of hardware. I'm just loving the experience of surfing the Internet, reading email, watching YouTube videos -- all on this new device. Oh, I forgot! There is a phone in the same device. : )

I cant believe I waited this long to get this beauty! Awesome deal overall!!

PS: I wrote this blog entry from my new iPhone ; ) Cheers!

Yevgeny Yevtushenko

2007-10-26T00:13:00.000-04:00

Yevgeny Yevtushenko, a famous Russian poet, was here at the University of Maryland. Today, he read some of his own poems in Russian! What a great event it was. Just imagine! a great Russian poet reading his own works...it is an experience you have to, well, experience yourself. Here's a photo of him reading one of his poems. He is a passionate man - just like a typical Russian writer.

Here's a poem of his I loved!! He read this poem to us today, just THE way it should be read.

Я люблю тебя больше природы,
Ибо ты как природа сама.
Я люблю тебя больше свободы –
Без тебя и свобода – тюрьма.
Я люблю тебя неосторожно,
Словно пропасть, а не колею.
Я люблю тебя больше, чем можно, -
Больше, чем невозможно, люблю.
Я люблю безоглядно, бессрочно,
Даже пьянствуя, даже грубя,
И уж больше себя – это точно,
Даже больше, чем просто тебя.
Я люблю тебя больше Шекспира,
Больше всей на земле красоты,
Даже больше всей музыки мира,
Ибо книга и музыка – это ты.
Я люблю тебя больше, чем славу,
Даже в будущие времена,
Чем заржавленную державу,
Ибо Родина – ты, не она.
Ты несчастна? Ты просишь участья?
Бога просьбами ты не гневи.
Я люблю тебя больше счастья,
Я люблю тебя больше любви.

/Евгений Евтушенко/

Are dreams real? Or is reality a dream?

2007-10-23T17:31:00.001-04:00

I saw a very strange dream recently. In my dream. I saw something that felt very much like real life. Something refreshing, something made me feel great, and something that I cherished a lot.

I wrote the entire story here, but then I decided to remove it all since it is very personal. Anyway, I just kept thinking why some real things feel like a dream, while sometimes dream feel like real life. Paradoxical? Perhaps! I just lost in thought for a few days!

From Iowa...

2007-10-13T12:15:00.001-04:00

The trip to Iowa was awesome, as always! I went there for my alma mater's (University of Northern Iowa, or UNI for short) Homecoming. Boy, oh boy! Was that fun or what! It was very nice to see old friends and make new friends. And oh, we won the Homecoming football game 30-24 against South Illinois University. It was great in all aspects!

I will post new photos when I get a chance. Stay tuned.

>> Here are some photos from my Facebook album:
http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2196466&l=bc2d7&id=5734033

Garba 2007

2007-10-07T14:47:00.000-04:00

If I were to pick one favorite festival of mine out of the many Indian festivals, I'd definitely pick the festival of "Navratri" (Click to read more on this from Wikipedia). Perhaps, this is the only time of the year when I do NOT hesitate to go dancing, even though most of these dances are traditional.

Ever since I came to the US, this festival has become even more important to me because this gives me the ONLY opportunity to participate enthusiastically in an Indian cultural event, all dressed up in traditional Indian clothes.

And speaking of traditional clothes, I think we Indians have THE best traditional clothes in the world. Period. Bar none. Check out the colorful photos to see how vibrant my homeland is! I'm sure that you'll agree with me!

More photos...

Check out some of the photos from that evening. It is TOTAL fun!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2193691&l=db86d&id=5734033

Victoria and Vancouver: Photos

2007-10-04T00:38:00.000-04:00

I was in the beautiful western Canadian province of British Columbia. I had an awesome conference in the little city of Victoria and then traveled to Vancouver for a day! Overall, it was an awesome trip. Story is definitely coming up, soon. Here are the photos.

Vancouver, BC: New!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2193178&l=75546&id=5734033

Victoria, BC:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2192897&l=2f995&id=5734033

Stay tuned for updates and story.

Форум - ЗАРЯ

2007-09-25T12:56:00.000-04:00

фотки из форума - ЗАРЯ (Зарубежная Ассоциация Русскоязычной Молодёжи)

Посмотрите ещё фотки...

Fun, Frolicking, and Kayaking ...

2007-09-18T21:32:00.000-04:00

The Washington DC area is just an unbelievable area for all kinds of activities - fun, outdoors, indoors, theatre, sports, and just about any kind of conceivable activity that can be considered a "fun" activity! It has been two years since I moved to the area, and I'm not even about close to seeing half of what this area has got to offer. Every now and then, I "discover" some of the many wonderful things are this area has to offer.

The past weekend, I went Kayaking with a couple of my friends. Knowing the DC area, I was expecting very busy waters, with people with kayaks all over the place, just like they do with their cars on the I-495 freeway. Boy, did it turned out to be a small little wonder! The place that I visited was the Mason Neck State Park in Lorton, Virginia. Not really far away from urban Virginia and the Pentagon and tucked away in the woods, this place was serene with beautiful wildlife (this place is a heaven for birdwatchers!) and calm waters that are just ideal for kayaking and having a relaxing day out on the waters. Adding to this beauty, the weather was just perfect and we had a great day. At the end of the day, we had a nice little "Russian" picnic to celebrate one of my Russian friend's birthday. Turned out to be an awesome day!

Washington DC never seems to stop me from being excited! Check out these photos.

i,Photographer!

2007-09-13T15:53:00.001-04:00

I really enjoy taking photos. Lots and lots of them. Each time I travel, I try to snap something that grabs my attention. Although in no way I'm close to being a pro photographer, I think I do a pretty decent job on some photographs. Of late, I've been getting some really good feedback on a few shots, thanks for my digital camera. Although I'm ready to graduate to a better, bigger, and costlier camera, my little Nikon camera holds up quite well in taking some high quality shots.

Recently, I received the following email from a Web-based travel guide company (they are a startup, I think), Schmap, asking me the permission to include one of my older photos when I was in San Antonio. The email reads:

Hi Shriram,

I am writing to let you know that one of your photos has been short-listed for inclusion in the third edition of our Schmap San Antonio Guide, to be published later this month.
...
While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure, and are free of charge to readers. Photos are published at a maximum width of 150 pixels, are clearly attributed, and link to high-resolution originals at Flickr.
...

Best regards,

Emma W-------,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides

The photo that was chosen was this one, taken with my film camera way back in 2005!

Apparently, they searched Flickr for interesting (I hope) photos of San Antonio and found my photo. I'm quite glad that somebody else liked my photo, just considering the number of excellent "pro" photographers out there on Flickr! And this photo was taken with a very low resolution film camera! Anyway, I gave them the go-ahead to include this image in their travel guides. Again, while this is NOT a huge recognition of my "work", the very fact that somebody else considered my photo over 1000s of others make me feel good.

Sweet Mother of God..

2007-09-05T14:50:00.001-04:00

Need say anything more? Apple just dropped the 8GB iPhone price from $599 to $399. I was gonna buy this last week. Thank GOODNESS, I didn't buy it for $600 bucks!

Now I know for sure I'm buying this baby!

My Impressions of South Africa

2007-09-02T14:35:00.000-04:00

Oh, let me start by saying that South Africa is a magnificent country. South Africa, I felt, is an interesting combination of a first-world and a third-world country. There were certain times I felt the same way I would have in the US, yet at certain times I felt otherwise. The culture is unique - a combination of Afrikaans (Dutch-ish), African, along with a strong Indian influence create a unique "South African" culture. Further, beautiful landscapes, great people, and a very interesting culture, combined with great opportunities for outdoor recreation make it a wonderful place to visit. Sure, South Africa has both good and bad - just like any other place. Unfortunately, the bad sometimes wins over the good, and that's the way the world goes. Everything I say here is just MY opinion and in no way must be construed as the "gospel" on South Africa.

Like I mentioned earlier, South Africa is a BEAUTIFUL country. You should have gotten a good idea looking at my photos in this blog. I stayed in Pretoria (SA's capital), about 30 miles north of Johannesburg. I also had a chance to drive out to the countryside and see some sights. On my way back, I had a brief opportunity to visit Johannesburg and visit the apartheid museum. Most of the South African countryside I visited is pristine with rolling mountains and great variety of wildlife (because of it's proximity to the Kruger National Park). I was told that most of the South Africa's coastline and the beaches are pretty much untouched, and that the diving experience there is quite unbelievable. I wanted to see quite a lot, but since my trip was short and work-related, I couldn't do any outdoor activities. Neither could I visit the Kruger National Park. But hey, I'm certainly going back there to visit sometime.

The unfortunate thing about South Africa is the unbelievable amount of crime. I was repeatedly warned by my colleagues and friends not even to roll down the windows when in the car, or not to even dare to step out of the car when in downtown Pretoria or Johannesburg. I was quite reluctant to believe that it could be THAT bad. But trust me, they are true! My guide book told me that carjackings are pretty common in SA. But I didn't quite believe it until I saw warning signs at traffic lights to be alert and to roll up the windows. I even saw signs that said "Crime Alert" and "Carjacking hotspot". Driving through certain areas, my car GPS beeped and alerted to be watchful. Here is an example of how bad the crime situation is.... one guy told me the story of a police station employing private security agency so that they could properly do their "policing" jobs!! Whatever that means. Yup! What a pity for such a beautiful country.

Another sad thing in SA is that racism is alive and well (in my opinion). I heard many comments and jokes from the taxi drivers who drove me around. Every person they saw who's not of lighter skin color was inferior to him. (sigh!). Visiting from the most politically-correct country (USA), I couldn't believe my ears what I was hearing! I found some people using the terms "white" and "black" without a slight discomfort. Every where I visited, I could clearly see the physical divide between the races in the cities between the "rich" and "poor" neighborhoods. The first few days were pretty uncomfortable, but the more I looked in to the social malaise of racial segregation - or apartheid - that was in place until the early 90s, I more I understood the deep rooted problems that SA faces - poverty and crime. Once these are addressed and dealt with strongly, South Africa will be even better as a nation and a tourist destination.

I realize that it takes time for South Africa to "normalize" and move ahead. I saw a great potential for SA to become one of the best places in the world to visit and live. I'm sure as time passes, this will certainly happen. I'm positive about it.

More Photos from South Africa...

2007-08-22T09:22:00.001-04:00

Here are some more photos...

Johannesburg and the Apartheid Museum < < new!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2179746&l=56431&id=5734033

Photos from South Africa

2007-08-20T20:54:00.000-04:00

Boy! Where should I begin? I am not sure! I'm really NOT! I have SO MANY thoughts, impressions, opinions, and memories to write here. I have already starting doing it and I will produce that in full here when I am done writing it.

In the meanwhile. check out the photos. I will continually upload more and more photos. Keep coming back and check out these interesting photos.

Pretoria: South Africa's Capital

http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2177859&l=054ff&id=5734033

A few hi-res photos:

From South Africa...

2007-08-13T14:51:00.000-04:00

Hello - Hello! "How is it" from South Africa! I'm here for a week, on a business trip. Man, do I have stories to tell or what! It has been just a day, and I already have many stories!! I will post these, and hopefully some photos from here pretty soon. And oh, I am visiting Johannesburg and Pretoria (the administrative capital of South Africa). This place is awesome, the weather's just perfect. The "winter" weather here is more like Spring weather in America - very mild during the day, and slightly chilly at nights. Stay tuned, as always, for stories and photos.

PS: Did you know ..."How is it?" is the traditional South African greeting (in English, anyway), something like "What's up? / How's it goin'?" in the US? Peace.

London Photos: Updated!

2007-08-07T12:04:00.000-04:00

Just an update...I uploaded a bunch of hi-resolution photos from London. Scroll down, or click here to go to the post directly.

Russo-Travelo-Meter: Almost There!

2007-08-07T11:30:00.001-04:00

Yup, the Russian visa adventure has gone smoothly so far and I finally got the visa! YaaY! No, seriously, yaay! The Meter now stands at 99%, almost complete.

I look forward to visiting Russia - perhaps this Fall, between October and November. Let's see!

Just for the heck of it, I'm posting this photo of the visa - completely blurred for obvious "security" reasons! So..... my dear Россия! here I come. Very soon. Love.

Mumbai Photos and Updates...

2007-08-06T12:20:00.001-04:00

Here are some of the photos from Mumbai. They are awesome!! A few full-res photos are below. Check out the rest of them on my Facebook.

Mumbai
http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2172151&l=84548&id=5734033

Mumbai - More Photos
http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2172736&l=8b762&id=5734033

Monsoon Time Mumbai
http://umd.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2173175&l=47107&id=5734033

The Gateway of India

Mumbai's Rush hour

Mumbai's Skyline

Mumbai's Buses

The Bombay Stock Exchange

What's Mumbai without the monsoon?