Hello Again Guys...

Its been what, 1month and 16 days since i last published anything... blame it on the i-net connection back in India...11 people connected to the net, all sharing a 56.6k modem... Ridiculous, ain't it?

Anyway, had a great trip with lots of pictures of weddings (No I didn't get married... nor did I go to look for a wife... and the next idiot who tells me that is going to get a punch where the sun don't shine...)

Anyways, saw a lot of things back home in India.... there has been a lot of changes in India... for better and for worse. Saw funny things, and saw things that were thought-provoking and heartbreaking. The top 5 list of each (from 5 being least funny to 1 being the most) is below...

Top 5 crazy funny things:

5) Traffic lights are now present in India... Now if only they removed the policemen who sit at the traffic light to manually change the colour from green to red... .

4) Someone should tell the drivers there that overtaking by crossing into the path of oncoming vehicles is both illegal and hazardous to health... of all concerned...

3) Why is it that the cleanest place i saw in Kolkata was the public rubbish bin?

2)The fire alarm going off at the wedding... and watching everyones reaction...

1) Shri-shri Larry Maharaj ji...this i gotta tell you in person... its too wordy for me to type...

Top 5 awe inspiring things...

5) The plane ride from Pokhara to Kathmandu...flying in a 19 seater propellor plane and travelling btw the mountains...jurassic park style... flying below the level of the hill tops, and waving up to those people on those hills...

4) The elephant safari at Chitwan... saw animals up close like I've never seen them before, from the Indian rhino, to countless deers and peacocks...

3) The people of Chitwan...So warm and friendly, despite all the hardships that they face...forever cheerful...

2) The chitwan night sky... a celestial painting showing me the beauty that exists in life...the complexity in apparent simplicity, the beauty of the dark void amidst the chirps of crickets and the moans of elephants... .

1) The beauty of the himalayas... awe inspiring. I was reduced to insignificance next to them( not that I have much significance yet) Their majesty will blow your breath away... . Be it the magnificent windy,sunset at Nagarkot, the acres of mustard fields, or the temple-in-the-lake at pokhara... The himalayas stood above them all, a silent sentinel.

Top 3 depressing, heart-wrenching things

3) Grandma...where are you? She was the soul of the house... a 5ft tall giant, whose absence makes the once big house seem so tiny.I miss her, her wisdom, and her love...

2) Watching the poor suffer...especially the kids. I might not be able to do much now... but i will, come hell or high water i WILL.

1) I saw a paraphlegic boy...sitting on his rusty old wheelchair in a dirty sweater, on the road, next to a muddy pond, trying to dry his nose... and I almost broke down. That struck a chord in me so deep, made me realise how truly,wonderfully lucky I am.