A City of Extremes

.. NY continues.

NY is often referred to as the "City of Extremes". In my brief vist to the city I was able to experience both.

Incident 1: "Which way is the PATH station?"
If you have a basic idea of the NY city's layout (Street and Avenue), getting lost or loosing your sense of direction is something that’s very difficult.
Just finished our "Empire Estate" trip and we had to get to the PATH station that would take us back to NewJersy.
We knew the PATH terminus was nearby but did not know exactly where the entrance was. There was no one standing around so we decide to ask the people passing by. For 15 minutes no one even so much as slowed down to check what we wanted. People were just passing by totally oblivious to our existence. Later we spotted an NYPD officer who courteously guided us to our destination.

Incident 2: "Those are nice shoes"
I was sitting in the bus, on our way to the Liberty State Park where a Ferry would take us to the Ellis Island (Statue of Liberty Island).The lady sitting next to me was talking on the phone. This the conversation that I had with a total stranger

Lady: Excuse me, can I see your shoes.
Me: (a little awkwardly, not knowing how to respond pushed my foot out)
Lady: Those are nice shoes, I like them.
Me: (still unable to get hold of my bearings, blurted) What?
Lady: The shoes that you are wearing, those are nice sneakers.
Me: Thanks.
(she continued with her conversation on the phone, telling the person on phone about a pair of shoes she liked).
When I got down from the bus the raised brow on my face gave way to a smile...

It’s only in NY (and Mumbai :-) ) you'll find people who'll leave you totally bewildered by their absolute indifference, at same time a total stranger will pass a casual compliment and make your day......

(PS: I too think my shoes are cool .... the absurdly high price that I had paid for them when I got them in India, somehow now feels justified. :-). Next time when you feel like complimenting someone, throw caution to wind, go ahead and give them a compliment. Worst that you will get is a raised eyebrow, but it might also bring smile to a stranger’s face)

New York

NY…….IT ROCKS.

The thing that hits you when you first visit it, is its shear size. Its HUGE.

Since the day I first visited this city, I always wanted to write about it, but always shyed away. So many people writers, poets, philosophers have already capture the essence of this city in their writing.

This was my 5^th visit to the city my 4^th month of stay in US. Today I garner up the courage to make a fool of myself and write about NY. I open up the laptop screen, rest my fingers on the keypad to start typing, they just lay there, not a word for 10 minutes. Its not because I cant think of anything to write, refreshing the memories of the city takes you on a Joy Ride. So I have decide to take "Baby Steps" :-). Will write about my experiences in the city without any inference.

Saturday at 5

I was standing on my balcony, sipping a hot cup of tea. The horizon had a tinge of amber, beckoning the end of night sky’s realm. The atmosphere was heavy, there was a slight murmur in the trees, dew drops were hanging on to grass tip. At that moment I felt some tension in the atmosphere, like a coiled spring ready to explode, or like a sprinter ready to burst out of the starting blocks at the sound of the gunshot.

Just then sun rays trickle through the leaves and spread over the dew-lit grass, and the day exploded to life, the air was filled with warmth and the murmur was replaced by the sweet sound of birds chirping, saw a few squirrels scurrying around too. Though the dew drops were still there, their days(minutes) we numbered, soon the sun’s rays would reach out and vaporise them. The sun filled the sky with amazing colours.

It feels like each day GOD says “Let there be light” and then the sun rises, as if each day is blessed.

Some would say what’s so great about a dawn, it happens each day and has been happening for around 4.5 billion years (google jindabad). Though I am a dusk lover theres something about watching a dawn that make the whole experience so beautiful and enlivening. It might also be that, being a nocturnal myself, there are not many dawn that I have seen, add to it the probability of the day being a Saturday.

For a few moments I basked in the sun, too a deep breath, and started packing. After all the reason that I woke up this early was for the Toronto trip (normally on Saturdays, this time on the day is midnight for me).

PS: Would I wake up daily to enjoy this mesmerizing experience each day????.... HELL NO :)

My First Blog

This bog was initially created with the sole purpose of sharing photos that I would take on my trips in US, with my family and friends. So I aptly titled it "My Pictures",
But then I read the blog of a friend of mine, ( Harsha Rao do read his blog if u have the time). They are amazing, so after a lot of deliberation, i have decide to take up this hobby, lets see how long its lasts.

I still have not garnered the courage to publish my personal writings. So to start with I will publish one of my favourite quotes.

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." -
-- Albert Einstein