Jingle Bells!

Dear Friends,

I just wanted to take a brief moment to wish you all a great holiday as well as a good kick start for the year 2008. May you celebrate in peace, eat like there is no tomorrow and have a good rest after all those holiday goodies. Enjoy the closeness of your loved ones, family, friends or what ever random company you are spending your holidays with. Christmas is becoming more and more precious in the modern world as it remains in many places the only annual period when one has the chance to meet family members and friends returning home from which ever part of the country or world they currently dwell.

For me, this Christmas is a chance to experience a different kind of tradition, in stead of reuniting with old friends I will get to share a versatile set of traditions and strengthen the sense of community with people I quite recently just met...and in a country where Christmas is not celebrated by the majority of people. Even though I'll miss being home with my family and friends, I still very much look forward to it. We'll be having a little party at our house and also go to the midnight mass in one of the catholic churches here.



So enjoy your time off and see you next year!

Pondering Along

I know, I’ve been talking quite enough about how different the culture and pace of life here is. Still, every day I seem to encounter something new I have been taking for granted but which here certainly isn’t that obvious. Take Nadeesha, my colleague for example. She just happily told me that her brother was visiting from the UK. And that was not just only another happy reunion, but it had been five years since she last saw him. I mean, think about not seeing a family member in five years...Quite rare where I come from, unless you are not talking to each other.



On Saturday we had a company function, a cricket tournament. Cricket here is holy. It’s like there is no other game. Where ever there is a piece of field there are always some youngsters batting the ball. Strangely enough the national sport of this country is volleyball…

So, there we were on the field, DJ spinning some tunes (actually, I’m sure there must be some kind of a universal DJ set, since the same stuff always gets played no matter the city, country or continent.) and people relaxing and enjoying each other’s company. Now, here I want to point out two differences. Firstly, the event was on a Saturday. Now let’s think about it. How many people in the West would voluntarily “sacrifice” one day of their weekend to do anything company related? I have to guess. Err…not that many. A good example: the outdoor activity day that we organized at Infosys. 9 co-workers out of 250 something actually showed up.

Secondly the cricket part was not there only as an excuse to booze and party (at least not for the majority). The first pitch was to be thrown at 7:30AM. All though there was a tap and the beer was free, you could only spot a few people actually enjoying this treat (including myself and Teresa, my German colleague-to-be). It was quite delightful for a change to attend a company social event where drinking was not the main issue. Or, you know how the supposed main issue is something you just look forward to getting done with (usually some boring official ceremony) to be able to move on to the climax of it all, that being the party afterwards.

Sing, Sing, Sing

I though of describing my current mindset through a selection of songs, namely the following:

Mercedes Benz - Janis Joplin

Janis sings about getting a bunch of fancy (useless) stuff to get happier. The boom of capitalism here is striking. Everyone advertising and selling... trying to pursue for a better life by utlizing the slightest possibility to make instant money. So it seems. And yes, in the middle of all the poverty & pollution, my mind wonders on all those cheap wonderful things I absolutely need to get to myself before I leave.

Welcome to the Jungle - Guns 'n' Roses

Ahhaha, this is obvious... Indeed, jungle it is. Everymorning I wake up to the sounds of god knows how many different birds' all but harmonous singing. The noices, the smells the thunder and rain, all in the middle of a busy capital city. Man, the only thing that lacks is Tarzan and his Jane. And, nope. Cannot "escape" it to the office. Just got freaked out by a cockroach next to my feet...

Car Wash - Rose Royce

Ok so, this is a bit dumb maybe, but remember the part where the chorus sings " Just work and work and work and work..." That's what I am doing. Quite a routine here, but it's cool. Like the song, cheerful not depressing.

Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien - Edith Piaf

Hmm... whatever the pain, there is always a gain. So no regrets!