Walk Of Life

AAkriti's first birthday

2011-07-20T16:24:00.002+05:30

Its been ages since i have updated my blog.Aariti' s first birthday was celebrated on the 3rd of july in karthick estate( actually she was born on the 1st july but since 3rd was a sunday we thought it would be convenient for all to attend ).

We had great fun and the after party that evening was even better with suchi and friends.I would like to thank all especially suchi and his friends from belagum for helping us make the event memorable. As for the blog i think i must make it a point to update it atleast once a month.

2009-01-05T14:27:00.000+05:30

I am married

2008-12-19T18:05:00.002+05:30

Its been a long time time since i have updated my blog. I thought there cant be a better occasion for me to update my blog but now.

I am married to Sounalya .My Wedding was on the 3rd of December in Banaglore .I will upload some pictures soon.

New Job

2008-05-14T12:16:00.002+05:30

I have joined birla sun life Insurance as branch manager at chikmagalur.Things will change after i take up this job not much time to travel but i hope to travel when where i get the time.Before it was about time and money and now its about time.Its going to be a big challeange for the next few months as lot of work has to be done .
The first thing is to set up a Team
improve the infrastructure in the office
Train these guys to be efficient at work and improve their skills
Set goals for each to them(to achive targets)
Finally complete my target for this financial year (Not less then 100%)

2008

2008-01-06T19:05:00.000+05:30

The year 2007 i would say was not a great year personally or professionally.
Hope 2008 is going to be better.

Highlights of 2007

Lot of drinking
Trip to thailand
New boss at office ( Ram mohan)

Plans for 2008

To travel to europe
Get a promotion
Reduce drinking and smoking
Make some money
Reunion in egypt(Joe, me and dragos end of 2008)

one year with Icici Prudential

2007-09-20T18:46:00.000+05:30

Its been a year since i started working for I-Pru.Its been a very difficult year but the amount of experience i have gained is immence.

I dont know how long i will be with I-Pru only time will tell.

Things i have learnt from this job: too many to write

U turn

2006-12-01T18:54:00.000+05:30

Its been a while since i wrote anything in my blog.I have so many things to write about and also upload egypt photos.This month was a very bad month personally i did a major mistake i dont know why i did it.My life has taken a complete u-turn.Its time to forget the past and look forward.

I am going to goa with my friends tommorow.I will write about the trip when i come back.

Hey dragos really sorry i will upload the snaps very soon.

Sunday in the Mountains

2006-09-26T20:31:00.000+05:30

We met these guys on our way back and they offered us mutton(which was not bad at all).I wonder how they managed to cook in that heavy rain.
Breathe taking stuff.....
Me and Kempi enjoying the amazing view.

Flowers Every where(Kurinji Flower)

2006-09-26T13:50:00.000+05:30

The Strobilanthes(Kurinji Flowers) is flowering after 16 years in the BB range(Chickmagalur) of western ghats. This last happened in 1990.This has become a major tourist attraction for people around this region.

Last sunday, me and a couple of my friends went for a drive to see these flowers.We left chickmagalur at 1 pm as soon as we reached the mountains its started pouring and nothing was visible because of the thick fog cover.

All of us were disappointed and dint know what to do.My camera battries also gave in so we decided to go back to the town.On our way back we met a few people and they told us that the weather was much better a few miles from where we were.We turned back and drove for a few miles in to the mountains.

The weather became better as we drove further and the sight was amazing.The entire place was covered with flowers and the view was unbeliveable.The pictures i have uploaded does not do justice.The day was great and well worth all that trouble.

Back Home

2006-08-26T13:34:00.000+05:30

Its been a very long time since i have updated my blog.I started my blog in Turkey and I hope to update it as often as i can.After my Egypt tour i came back to India on the 11 of May.Not much has happened after i have come back.I dint do anything for 3 months.The best part about coming back home was food and i have been eating all those things that i missed eating when i was in turkey.I now work with ICICI insurance company.

I felt nice for a few days but i miss my traineeship days i only realised this after i came back.When i think back now i feel i had an amazing experince and i dont thing i will ever get a chance to go on traineeship agian(wish i did).

I live in Chickmagalur(South India) the nearest city is Bangalore.I will be writing about my town and my life in the coming weeks.

Dr Raj Kumar

2006-04-12T21:31:00.000+05:30

kannada film legend Dr Raj Kumar passed away today at the age of 77.

Cyprus

2006-04-07T23:33:00.000+05:30

Its been three days since i have come to Cyprus.My first impression of Cyprus was not actually great or may be i have not seen the best places.I have a few more places to visit. lets see.But Its a nice place and the first thing i noticed was the number of cars.I think there are more cars then people.

I should add the beaches are great!

My farewell

2006-03-27T18:22:00.000+05:30

My Farewell party started off at home and finished at bad leak(Pub).The night was great with all of us drunk and going crazy in the pub.It dint feel like my farewell at all because all of us had so much fun.

Even though the night was great the week was not.I am struggling to get my visa.Hopefully,I get it in a few days or else will have to postpone my Europe trip and go back home to india.

Seven Months

2006-03-15T21:34:00.000+05:30

It seems like yesterday when I came here but seven months have passed and so many thing have happened.Time has gone so fast and I cant believe I will be leaving Mersin in 2 weeks.

I felt like a kid when I came here dint know the language,people and everything was so very different.After seven months I know a bit of Turkish and I have friends here and things have changed.I have had a fantastic experience.

There is going to be a solar eclipes in Turkey on the 28th of march at 2 pm and my last trip in Turkey would to a place on the path of totality.

The Week

2006-03-10T20:23:00.000+05:30

The week started off with loads work in office and has ended with work actually not quite still one more day to go.My salsa is getting better and next week will be the last week of my salsa class.I am actually enjoying my classes but cannot continue as I will have to make plans and prepare for my Europe trip.

I will be going to Ankara on Thursday to apply for my visa.I plan to make it a day trip.Take a overnight bus and get back the next day after applying for my visa.Joe is back in mersin.He has brought me a lonely planet book(Europe on a shoestring) and an authenic aboriginal boomarang from Australia. Thanks Joe.

Tonight me,Joe and Peter(Joe's Australian friend) will be going out for a drink.It should be fun.This week nothing interesting happened.I hope the last few weeks that I am in Turkey turn out to be a little more interesting.

Latin Night's

2006-03-04T17:52:00.000+05:30

This week i was very busy with loads of work in office.Salsa classes are going on well but iam not good at it. I guess I need to put in more effort.The weather in mersin is getting better by the day.Its getting warmer and the daytime temperature is in the early 20's.

Our salsa club organizes Latin nights very Friday so I went last night.The entry was 5 bucks and no drinks.The theme was salsa so they played only salsa music and people who knew salsa well showed their salsa skills.Our dance teacher was in full flow showing off his skills and all the complex salsa steps.The party was interesting and the place where the party was held was cool.If you asked me if, I would be going to Latin night again. I would have second thoughts about it.

Top of the Mountain

2006-02-27T14:23:00.000+05:30

This weekend Me,Imran and Hani went to Bursa for a tour organized by Bursa LC.The journey took us 13 hours. After we reached Bursa we left for Uludag which is a ski resort town(one hour from Bursa).There were about 40 trainees from all over the world who joined this tour and the tour was called'Top Of the Mountain'.

The drive form Bursa to Uludag was very slow as it was snowing heavily.I had never seen so much snow before.After we reached the hotel we checked in and left for a barbecue party.As it was snowing we had to move in to a nearby pub and have our lunch.Then we went out in the snow and had a coaster raid.It snowed heavily the whole day and we were all wet but the coaster raid was fun.Then we went back to the hotel to change as there was a party after dinner.The party was fun but as I was tired I went to bed early.

The next day all the other guys went out skiing but me and my friends went around the town taking snaps,snow fighting and making a snowman.The landscape of this place was amazing.As I had to be in mersin the next morning we left Uludag at 2 in the afternoon and took a overnight bus from bursa and reached mersin this morning at 7 AM.The tour was fun had the weather been better it would have been excellent.The best part about the trip was I got to meet a lot of people and was a much needed brake from Mersin.

First Love

2006-02-18T19:10:00.000+05:30

My first love.What can i say about her.I don't have the words to express the feelings I have for her.when she laughs I am happy when she cries I cry with her.

The moments we spent together will always stay with me forever.Its hard to imagine or even compare her to anyone else.Its even harder to think of life without her but then I have to move on and so does she.

I keep asking myself will I ever fall in love again.

Salsa

2006-02-13T19:06:00.000+05:30

Finally I have registered for salsa classes with the help of my friend Eda.Today is my first salsa class.Its once a week on Monday's.I hope to learn as much as possible for the 4 weeks I have registered.This was actually suggested by my friend and I thought it was a great idea as I do nothing after work.
I will write more about it later this week.

Six Months

2006-02-13T18:49:00.000+05:30

I complete 6 months in Turkey today.Looking back I think I have had a great experience but it was not always easy.I have gone through some tough times and personal lows.I have less then two months to go after which I will be in Europe for five weeks and back to Istanbul on my way to India.
The highlights Would be....

Meeting so many interesting people
The party with bob and Ronnie
My traveling around Turkey
Trying to learn Turkish
Experiencing snow for the first time.
Washing dishes in office.
Saturday Night's at Bad leak.
salsa classes
Getting caught by the cops
Starting this blog

Bad Weather

2006-02-08T20:09:00.000+05:30

In the last few days the weather in Mersin has been very bad.Its been raining all day.The weather in mersin is actually much better compared to other parts of Turkey where its been snowing heavily and in Istanbul the situation is so bad the people are not stepping out of their homes.

Even though its raining here, surprisingly the temperature has not come down.I hope this is the sign that its going to be spring soon.

Jethro Tull in Bangalore

2006-02-06T15:34:00.000+05:30

The legendary Jethro Tull performed in Bangalore yesterday.The band now is mainly Ian Anderson( the guy who plays the flute) and they will be performing in Mumbai as well.Even though i am not a huge fan of Jethro tull I would have loved to see them play live but unfortunately i missed the concert as I am in Turkey.

On this Sunday Bryan Adams will be performing in Bangalore. Seems like Bangalore is rocking !!

Is Sachin's career nearing its end?

2006-02-02T21:55:00.000+05:30

India have lost the series to Pakistan after playing so well in the first two tests.I was very disappointed with the result.I read this article'Endulkar of Sachin' today talking about how sachin is not playing well and he is scared of Shoaib Akhtar.I totally disagree with this.

Everyone knows how great a player he is and not one to be scared of any bowler.The one day Internationals between india and pakistan are soon coming up so its hope sachin is back in form and proves everyone wrong and shows the world what a class batsmen he is !

The sNOw picnic

2006-01-31T21:22:00.000+05:30

This Sunday all the staff members of my company including myself went for a picnic to Gozne(25 km from Mersin).This was meant to be a snow picnic but unfortunately there was only patches of snow so i thought to myself(when the hell will i get to play with snow)As i have never experienced snow before except for some little patches of snow in cappadokai.After we reached Gozne we walked around the place.Its a nice place, green and surrounded by hills.Then we had a round of good barbecued sausage and meat.

Then my boss got a call that the office security alarm had gone off and nobody knew as to why it had gone off so we had to leave early.The security alarms were recently installed in our office as there was a break-in and fortunately there was not much damage.The picnic even though short was nice, more snow would have made the day much better.

New Flatmate

2006-01-30T19:17:00.000+05:30

Finally we have a flatmate.Its been over 2 months since we started searching for a new flatmate but even after great effort we dint find anyone(preparing an advert,distributing the advert among friends and students,informing everyone)I actually met him in a pub the night we were caught by the cops .He is a cool guy who knows very little English but is keen to learn English so lets hope I will be able to help him with it.

He moved in last week and he brought with him a TV and receiver which has a 1000 channels.The best part of him moving in is we now have a good TV and 1000 channels to select from.All these days I would come back home and had to read a book as I had nothing else to do but now TV gives me a 1000 options other then reading.

Life

2006-01-20T20:04:00.000+05:30

Some interesting quotations i came across today.

Hope smiles on the threshold of the year to come, whispering that it will be happier.

Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers.

The greater man the greater courtesy.

The happiness of a man in this life does not consist in the absence but in the mastery of his passions.

Ah, what shall I be at fifty,should nature keep me alive,if I find the world so bitterwhen I am but twenty-five?

I hold it true, whate'er befall;I feel it, when I sorrow most;'Tis better to have loved and lostThan never to have loved at all.

Alfred Lord Tennyson The English Poet (1809 - 1892)

Rendezvous with Turkish Police

2006-01-19T20:44:00.000+05:30

Last Saturday me and a friend got drunk in a pub in mersin and were walking back home.A police car stopped by and asked us for our identification but both us had left our passports at home so we were escorted to the police station.By the time we reached the police station i was a little sober.I explained to the police officer that i had left my passport at home but nobody seemed to bother and for 2 hours both us were sitting in the police station and just looking at each other.

After 2 hours a officer took us home in his car but i had a difficult time giving him directions as i was drunk and dint know how to give directions in Turkish.We reached home around 3 in the morning then he checked our papers and left after telling us to carry our documents at all times.After this we had a few more beers and went to bed.The moral of the story carry your documents at all times and drink lots of beer !

Holiday in Cappadokia

2006-01-18T18:41:00.000+05:30

Since it was Ramazan i had a week off from work so me and imran decided to travel.We decided to travel to Ankara and Cappadokia .We reached Ankara early in the morning and it was freezing, easily below zero.The main reason for visiting ankara was for my European visa but unfortunately all the embassies were closed and some had closed minutes before arrived.Ankara is the modern capital city of Turkey.Its a very nice city but not much to do has a tourist so we took a overnight bus to cappadokia/Goreme and reached around 11 pm.The place we stayed was a cave carved out of the fairy chimney(large stone structures).

We stayed in cappadokia for 3 days and we had a great time.we met a lot of people and surprisingly met a few Aiesec trainees who were staying in a hotel next to ours.All of us partied at night and on the second day took the daily bus tour.The tour was great .They took us to the most popular places in cappadokia.The places we went to were impressive especially the underground city at kaymakli and the Valley really beautiful .I must say cappadokia is really a special place in Turkey.The landscape is amazing.Even though it was very tiring i enjoyed every moment of it.Cappadokia is a land, which seems to be a fantasy. Words are inadequate to describe the beauty and charm of this place you must experience it for yourself. It will certainly take a particular place in your memories and in your photograph album.

Ephesus

2006-01-03T18:49:00.000+05:30

2 weeks ago I went to the conference in kusadasi(western Turkey) with adana aiesecers but unfortunately it was cancelled because the anakra LC people were involved in a bus accident and 2 people lost their lives. It was really sad to see everyone disappointed and hurt. I hope the families of the people who lost their lives cope with this great tragic loss.

Since the conference was cancelled I decided to go to Izmir to visit Fari(Turkish friend) and i stayed with him for 3 days.I should say it is an impressive city.The next day did a day trip to Ephesus.Efes the famous turkish beer is actually named after Ephesus.It is an ancient roman city with lots of impressive structures.The most impressive was the Great Ephesus Theater with a capacity of 25000 people(Picture of the Theater).The town near efes is selcuk.which i thought was very pretty.In selcuk i meet a local guy.Who showed me around Efes and even took me home for a cup of tea.

The next day went around Izmir and explored the main parts of the city with fari.By the end of it all i was really tired and dint want to do anything the next day so i relaxed the whole day went for a movie and bought the most expensive bus ticket to mersin as i dint want to tire myself as i had to be in office the next morning.The bus was very impressive with two decks,comfortable seats and excellent service.On the whole the trip to Izmir was not great but I was happy that i atleast saw and travelled to a diffrent part of turkey.

New Year or christmas

2006-01-02T00:00:00.000+05:30

Last night we had a party at Mete's summer house.The party was fun. All of us had the punch made by joe.The punch was really spicy and not many liked it but me,joe and imran thought it was good.Some even went on to say it was like cough syrup.

After the punch we danced for sometime and when the clock hit 12 everyone started wishing each other.Some people cameup to me and acually said marry christmas which i thought was funny.Sadly not many people in Turkey know the difference between newyear and christmas.They think both are the same.

Istanbul is Great

2005-12-30T22:39:00.000+05:30

I happened to visit Istanbul last month.Its a great city.Istanbul ,one of the great historical cities of the world, is the only city in the world located upon two continents with one arm reaching out to Asia and the other arm to Europe. Through the city's heart runs the sea channel called the Bosphorus(the sea that divides istanbul) which reaches north to The Black Sea and south to the Marmara Sea.

The old city, where the majority of historical monuments are found, lies along the Golden Horn. The most famous of these monuments are St.Sophia, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, The Wall of Theodosius, Topkapi Palace, Suleymaniye Mosque, Underground Cistern, St.Eirene, St.Saviour in Chora, Archeological Museum, Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. (The picture is from the famous Istiklal Cad in Taksim)

It's as modern as any other city in the world. It has great location and great night life.The streets of Istanbul are full of life even after midnight(taksim) .There are lots of places to hang out and i still cant get over the city even though its been over a month since i have been there.I had a great time and hope to stay there for some time on my way back to india.

My turkish

2005-12-30T14:58:00.000+05:30

This a very interesting topic because considering the length of time i have spent in Turkey.My Turkish is not getting any better.I know the language enough to survive but nothing much.I think i need to put a little more effort to learn the language.It would be very interesting to see how much of turkish i actually know before i get back home.

To learn any language you need a lot of motivation and a very good memory power to remember all the complex words the language has to offer.So I have come up with a strategy .I have a few local friends who own shops or cafes near my appartment.So i have decided to practice my turkish with them in the evenings or when ever i get the time.Lets see if this works.The reason for this is they actually enjoy talking to me and find it really fun when i make hand signs accompanied by some great expression.

It's getting cold

2005-12-11T22:15:00.000+05:30

Its early december and nearly 4 months since i have come to Turkey.I have picked up a little bit of Turkish and gotten used to the food.The weather is Turkey is strange.Its very hot in summer and cold winters.In the last weeks the weather has changed from being cool to cold.So the warm clothes are every where,unfortunately i did not know turkey would get this cold and brought only a few warm clothes from india.

My trip to Antalya

2005-11-11T19:34:00.000+05:30

The first place i visted in Turkey is Antalya .Its 500 kms from Mersin.After 10 Hours of travelling in a bus thorugh winding roads i finally reached Antalya.This tour was organised by Aiesec. The organisation iam associated with in Turkey.There were two people from Aiesec, who picked me up from the bus station (autogar).We then caught a service bus( which is provided free by the bus company) to Akdeniz University. where all of us were supposed to assemble and leave for olumpos.

The road from Antalya to Olumpos was beautiful with the coast on one side , Mountians and forest on the other.It was a two hour drive and i thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.olumpos is a very interesting place with tree houses suitated in the middle of no where and the beach just a few minutes away from the tree house.They had arranged for us to stay at the tree house called Kabir's,With 5 of us sharing a small cottage and very cold showers in the moring( which i will never forget).I thought it was pretty good start.

We started off the day exploring the ancient city of olumpos.It is supposed to be an old roman city.The city is really ancient and there is not much of it left today,but ruiens.What fasinated me the most was the location of this place.It had everything you wanted as a tourist the sea,history,nature.As we tracked through the old city there was a narrow passage between two small hills,as i passed the passage appeared the great olumpos beach(considered one of the best beaches in Turkey).Its was a breathe taking view,with the sea as blue as ever and crystal clear waters.That afternoon we did some water sports and went back to the tree house to get some rest as it was a very exhasting day.That evening they took us to a place which amazed me even more .Its called the eternal fire,Due to the natural mixture of gases the fire that burns on these rock never goes off.I had never heard or seen something like this.

Then we came back to the tree house and had a great party with games,dancing.singing.The next day unfortunely it rained the whole day and we had to go back to Antalya.Since i had time i thought i will go around the city for some time.Its a nice city Espescially the old part of town and the sea behind it was really beautiful.After all that fun, the time had come for me to get back on the bus to Mersin and be in office on monday morning to start another boring week of work.

2005-11-08T15:37:00.000+05:30

Chappathi in Turkey...Had to use a bottle no chappathi making equipment:))

2005-11-08T15:18:00.000+05:30

Me and Dragos my friend from romaina.(My first week in Turkey)

Turkish food

2005-11-07T18:03:00.000+05:30

The turks like their Kabab's and Chay rather then the western fast food.When the whole world is going for the pizzas and burgers you hardly find western Food in Turkey(except the Tourist places).

They love their kababs which you can find on every street.They have a large verity of food and sweets. The ones i like are Dolma(rice stuffed in capsicum)Kababs and the Bucklava (sweet).
When i first came here i had a tough time getting used to their food because theirs is bread based food and i have been eating rice all my life .In my region in india it is only the people who are sick(fever,Flu) that actualy eat bread. Now i have not only got used to the Turkish food but also started liking it.

Its Been 2 interesting months in Turkey

2005-11-07T16:37:00.000+05:30

Its been 2 months and some days since i have come to Turkey.There is a different feel to the air these days.When i first came here the weather was hot and humid.The people were diffrent,food and everything so strange but now everything looks and feels so familiar.

I live in a small city called Mersin on the Mediterranean coast.Its a small but nice place and the people here are warm and friendly.The company i work for is called IES-Intervega.Its a education abroad agency.The work keeps me busy during most part of the day.I live with an australian guy(Joe) and there was an other guy from Romaina(Who left Turkey yesterday).So its me and the australian guy Who Share the appartment.The apartment is nice and big but nothing luxirious about it.

Till now its Been an interesting two months getting used to the food,people,language(hardly anyone speaks English) but its helped me learn and experience a lot of new things.I will be in Turkey Till May 2006.Hope my Stay in Turkey gets better and its an experience of a life time.

MERSIN

Mersin (Greek Μερσίνη) is the capital city of Mersin province in Turkey (named İçel province until 2002). It is located in the South Anatolia Region, to the south of the country, south of the Taurus Mountains, by the Mediterranean coast. It had a population of 537,842 according to the 2000 census.

Mersin port is the major source of economic livelihood. There are 23 piers in the docks built in a total port area of 786,000 m² (194 acres), with a total capacity of 3,800 ships per year.

Also located adjacent to the port is Mersin Free Zone established in 1986 where warehouses, social services, manufacturing, trade, banking, insurance, packing-repacking, labeling, maintenance, assembly-disassembly, engineering, leasing, renting and exhibition facilities are situated. The zone territory is publicly owned and the zone is a center for foreign investors with proximity to major international markets (Middle East, North Africa, East and West Europe, Russian Federation and Central Asian Republics). The Mersin Free Zone is the first free zone established in Turkey. The trading volume of the free zone was USD 1.6 billion in 2002.

Transportation to the city is possible through alternative methods. The city has highway connections to all provinces, also is connected to the southern railroad hub. Transportation by sea is also possible through the Mersin Port to more than 100 international ports. The international Adana airport is at a distance of 69 km (43 miles). 60% of the male population and 16% of the female population is employed. Unemployment is about 22.7%.