Bang to Chennai, Chennai to Bang, Via US...

World is sometimes such a small place to live in, In the last one year, my company has defined a new route for me. I am from Bangalore and was asked to work out of Chennai office, but the project wanted me to travel to the US before joining Chennai office.

So the route taken, Bangalore to Chennai Via Columbus, Ohio(Oh he yo, thats what my grandma calls..) United States. My passport has got few scribbles, some stamps with a color picture on it and a lady holding a torch infront of the sea. Looks decorated :-) I am now a part of a big bunch of s/w people who had been ONSITE. Basically, Onsite reminds me that we have to cook & Clean each day., I guess, the education minister should take a note of this and make 'Cooking' a compulsory subject for Engineering and Science/Maths students. All of them in this field end up with software and at some point of time and also travel onsite. this turns out to be another little reason back at home to demand a little more from the Wud-Be Bride's family, the guy knows to cook too. (FYI.. That makes it clear that i am still unmarried..)

Welcome to Columbus. The city close to the "Birth place of Aviation". Its just not that, In any case if you are an Indian, Life gives you an Extra 9.5 hours to be alive on this earth., If only all wishes were true and as a close follower of astrology, I would have liked to be born in NZ and join the majority in the Seattle, US. That gives almost an extra day of what god did allot to me on this earth.

Was surprised on quite a lot of things, Firstly, it was 1 car / head, no much of motor bikes and just because me being an Indian, found it strange that all of them follow traffic rules. I had to even press the 'Walk' Button before crossing the road. All these stories were told to everyone who liked to hear about US. And most of all, boasted about the fact that never ever did the current go off in the US.

Time passed by, hours turned to days, days bloomed and faded, coz it was end of summer and beginning of fall., suddenly life seemed bright, the leaves had turned yellow and orange and as a part of Fall, leaves too fell. Thank god, Adam and Eve doesn't exsist on earth. it was okay to handle summer, but what they would have done during fall ?.

Next came snow, it was just amazing, we were so thrilled that we used to constantly keep a watch on http://www.weather.com/ and keep a check on what time is the snow going to fall. Finally, it did snow and within a day, snow turned Ice. It was an experience of a lifetime to see 3 seasons within a span of less than 3 months and also the temperature reading in minusus, but in between all these happenings, India was somewhere missed. 'Swades' was the life saver, I've even seen that movie thrice in a week, luckily those days were almost ending and mid decemeber, was coming back to India.

Mera desh... meri darti.. was touched before christmas and then a total new venture., Chennai office, Out from a fridge to an oven. Winter was 32 degree celcius. Had to make new friends, which i luckily could and work with a team whom i had never met before. Days passed, turned out months, it did not convert to a year before the project got over and I was released. Was sure that i was returning to Bangalore, when the routing struck.... "Never forget the way that you travelled...", just like father in the church say on a Ash wednesday "You are ash and will return into ash...".

Life had to get me back to Columbus, yet for another project, another transition. This time Columbus had something special to give me a grand welcome. I reached on a saturday here and a little breeze was in the air, by sunday morning, it started being windy., as the day progressed, it started getting heavy. Columbus made sure that, this time, i shall tell people back home that when electricity in US goes, it doesn't return for even a week. The wind struck bad, trees fell, took off power, few had trees falling on their houses etc, All in all, the city wasn't too happy about me landing i suppose.

Life goes on.... so does trips..., This trip hasn't ended yet, I am looking forward to what has fall and winter in store for me ? is it going to be any special like my welcome ? I guess so, coz, i heard a friend of mine saying that the winter is going to be at its peak. Its not strange, it happens when LEGENDS walk in.

I shall keep you updated if at all, nature plays some one sided game.

Till then.... its me signing off.....
Dhinu!!