Kensington Market, Toronto

One of the sojourns while here in Toronto was to the Kensington Market.
It is surely one of the most vibrant and diverse places in Toronto. It can be called the 'khau gali' of Toronto but offering much more than just food.
On entering, the Market looks deceptively small. You'd be dismayed by the few options and hoping that there are more inside. And were there more?!
Kensington Market is bounded by Nassau Street, Spadina Avenue, College Street and Dundas Street on its four sides. It abounds with restaurants, eateries and patios offering cuisines of many countries....Moroccan, Tex-Mex, Middle Eastern, Italian, Latin American, Chinese, Indian... and even three vegetarian restaurants! There are many beer & wine shops spread across the Market.
On a leisurely trip, we sauntered along, planning to first assess the market and then decide on what to have. Soon we realized that viewing and remembering the selection was not as easy as we thought. So, we started with a soup in one of the vegetarian eateries. Continuing on our journey, we next had a cheese garlic bread. Priced at $ 3.50, it was a foot long .Warm from the oven, it exuded a heavenly baked taste.

Cheese garlic bread, Kensington Market

After  a 45 minute walk, we went to an Asian eatery where we ordered a salad. The salad, though exorbitantly priced at $11, was a splendid example of how fresh, tasty and crunchy a salad can be. Apart from the many vegetables, it also came with sesame seeds, and the crunch of Ramen noodles.

Asian Salad, Kensington Market

Further on our journey, we discovered an alley that encouraged graffiti. Among the many graffiti on the streets was this one that took our breath away.

Graffiti, Kensington Market

In front of the spectacular wall was this car in which grass and plants were allowed to grow. From what I discovered later, the graffiti on the car is changed every once in a while.

Graffiti, Kensington Market

The meandering walk took us to the adjoining China Town. We entered the street and saw the many Chinese eateries and clothes. Not really in the mood to explore further, we turned back to the Market and walked into a bakery to have churros priced at $1.25. After another 30-minute walk, we entered our last eatery for the day, a gelato shop which offered two scoops for $5. The variety of gelatos and yogurts were amazing.
We walked eagerly into a restaurant named, 'Vegetarian Restaurant' and discovered to our great amusement that their 'vegetarian' concept included the sea food as well! Well, new things to be learned from new places.
For the wine and meat lovers, the  Kensington Market offers mind-blowing options.The market also abounds with the freshest vegetables and fruits that range from the most common to the most unconventional choices.
There were other shops that dealt with clothes, spices, natural products, incenses, tattoos etc.
Towards evening, we viewed a small band of three singing and playing on their instrument, catering to the requests of the audience.

Music, Kensington Market

On Sunday evenings, we were told, that the street remains closed to vehicles and entertaining acts are performed.
Two things I'd suggest: Go with an empty stomach and a full pocket. The place is not inexpensive.

100 days of Bangalore: and coming home

For someone who never really had an opportunity to stay away from home...EVER, to look for a place away from home and staying there for a prolonged period is a big deal. I was excited about going and staying in a new place and have no regrets about the decision. But the 100-day stay made me long for home like never before.

It was the 24th June and the last day of my project. I spent a sleepless night, so overwhelmed was I with the thought of returning home.My countdown had begun 15 days before.I felt swamped about the incessant rain, the huge volume of luggage, the traffic, the auto fare, the coolie. I didn't want anything to jeopardize my return home.
But then as though destined to, everything went smooth. I got an autowallah who charged as per meter despite the showers and the resultant traffic jam. The coolie I got loaded my luggage into the train at a very reasonable rate, and without haggling. My mood was all set wonderfully for a return home.
A big smile broke across my face when I got down from the train and saw the station name in Telugu. My phone told me that we could finally do away with roaming charges
Stepping into my home and looking at all familiar sights felt awesome!
The first big advantage was that when I opened my suitcases I could take things out or leave them as they are. My home, my wish!
In Bangalore every morning as I left my room, I had to gather all my belongings and lock them up in the cupboard .You just cant afford to leave your laptops, chargers, blankets...anything around as the room key was handed to the cleaning person.I would need to take them all out once I was back  And I had just one plug point to charge everything...so the two laptops and the mobile would need to take turns getting the services!
Food is the next big advantage.
1. No more climbing up and down the stairs to access the kitchen.
2. Leaving the vessels in the kitchen sink till I am in the mood of washing.
3. Having all that I need to cook my meals with, in their proper dabbas neatly arranged in the kitchen shelves....including the lighter. Yes, I had to go out to buy a match-box when I realized that a kitchen does not necessarily come with its lighter!
4. The luxury of eating what I wanted to: the flexibility to throw together a few things for a simple meal or make time and space for cooking up an elaborate one.
5. To chuck the leftovers into the fridge without the fear of it getting eaten by someone else.
6. I can cook meals between watching TV and/or working on my laptop.

When I open the taps in the bathroom, the luxury of having hot water gushing through the taps unlike the thin trickle of hot water from an instant geyser whose temperature drops just after filling one bucket!
The luxury of traveling in your own vehicle. When I wanted to have food from nearby restaurants, I would have to walk if time permitted or forced to take an auto during my short lunch breaks. My scooty does wonders for me in attending to the necessary chores in the neighborhood.

The blessing of having a washing machine! I can just dump all my clothes into it and get the task done! I have the lines for drying clothes inside the balconies of my home. When I leave for work, I have no fear of them getting wet. I can bring them in whenever I am free to. There were many instances there when I would put the clothes out to dry and they would be thoroughly drenched by the time I came back.
Though there wasn't really much time, and I dont watch TV much, but I missed the familiarity of having the channels which my home TV had. I missed the comfort of options, whether availed or no..
I like eating out and I realize that it happens because I rarely do so.But when  you eat out three times a day, the heart cries for simple home-cooked food..Hence, if I had any friends/relatives inviting me home, I would accept unabashedly.
Though the accommodation itself was not uncomfortable, yet home is a home. there is an ease of accessibility to all that you need. You set up your home according to your needs and don't have to depend on others. Coming back, I realized that there are so many things that we take for granted and we know their true value only when denied those facilities.

100 days of Bangalore: the hits and the misses

In continuation of my previous post...

The Hits
FOOD:
Though there were practically just two places for breakfast near my residence, I had plenty of options at Malleshwaram, at distances of 2-3 kilometers. In fact, there were so many options that I did not visit a place more than 2-3 times in  the 100 days of my stay, and eating only once at a non-veg eatery. Most of these are the Udipi kind of places where you have tables to stand at and eat...and at times, just stand and eat.... and pretty decently priced for the quality they offer. I will especially miss all those varieties of awesome dosas there. The neatness and hygiene of all eateries, big and small, was indeed  laudable!
THE WEATHER:
Initially , in summer, I slept with the doors and windows thrown wide open but towards April end, when the rains started, I started sleeping with the doors closed, then, gradually with windows closed, then fans shut off, then covering myself with two blankets and later, just before my return, shivering despite that. The weather was just so delicious!
Despite a much cooler weather when compared to Hyderabad, I found myself getting tanned whenever I stepped out in the sun. The clothes hanged to dry out would all fade quickly. Because of the higher altitude?
But yes, a pretty escape from Hyderabad summer!
COMMUTE:
Of course, I'd miss walking to office and reaching within 15 minutes of starting from home.
TREES:
I don't remember, especially after coming to Hyderabad, being surrounded by so many trees. The green landscape all around was such a heartening sight. This, I am told, after being shorn of at least 50% of its green cover.
ROADS:
Most of the main roads I saw were so wide and clean! Of course, the by-lanes  with their potholes are a reminder that I was still very much in India. Few rains and the roads get washed out. And, same like in my city, one drizzle and the traffic would come to a stand still.
The biggest relief was not finding roads splattered with those deep, red paan stains!
AUTOS
Unlike Hyderabad autowallahs, I found the auto drivers there more agreeable to commuting short distances.
70%  of the time, the meters were accurate but if the distances were greater, the drivers would have a gala time literally taking you for a long ride thus upping the meter reading.The GPS on my mobile would be scoffed at. They would lay a claim to better knowledge of the streets and the one-ways.
BUSES:
The buses in number and frequency were commendable, making it easy (and an inexpensive option) to visit friends and relatives staying in far corners of the city. The AC buses were even more comfortable.The average waiting time would not be more then 5 minutes, unless you happen to stay in a remote part of the city.
LANGUAGE:
With Telugu as my mother tongue, I had a smooth sail in Bangalore. I could have got by with Hindi too. But to interact with the autowallahs, the office house keeping staff, the small kirana shops, Telugu helped a lot.
When I said I speak Telugu, many of them would claim to be from AP too...from Rayalseema/Ananthpur areas. They speak a very accentuated Telugu with an abundance of Kannada words thrown in but it was good enough for us to understand one another.
It was amazing to see the office colleagues too slip from one language to another with equal ease and proficiency.
MALLS:
A mall is a mall...anywhere in India...nothing new there... but there is a difference...
I happened to visit the mall once during a weekday and was pretty amazed to find it near-empty. I have never seen malls being empty on weekends or weekdays in mana Hyderabad. That made me wonder...is almost the entire population in Bangalore employed? If the majority indeed happens to be employed, that  is such a heartening thing to happen!

And the misses:
CINEMA TICKETS:
Very weird! Imagine tickets being sold for 800-900 rupees for a new release unlike the flat rates in Hyderabad. My habit of a first day, first show was quickly dumped.
REGIONAL vs ENGLISH MOVIES:
Popular Indian movies run to full houses in Hyderabad, especially during weekends. On the other hand, in Bangalore all movie halls showing regional ones run half-empty till these high prices last (for a couple of weekends or more). But the English movie tickets are all almost sold out from day 1!
RESTAURANTS' CLOSING TIME:
Is it because I stayed in the older and more conservative part of the city or is it the norm? The few eateries I found on my way back from office would down their shutters by 9-9.30 pm. If I happened to reach around that time, all that were left, were the scraps.
EXPENSES:
It is a city of the rich. Practically, everything is 20% higher than the prices back home.
TIME:
Where did all my time go in Bangalore? I had so proudly claimed that I was  not going to waste any time on weekends but go exploring the city and the outskirts but then my very hectic work load drained me of any energy to venture out during the weekends. My escapades were limited to food adventures confined to a 5-6 kilometers radius from my residence.

As you can see, many things I liked about the city and very few things to complaint about.

16th July, our Carmel Feast

Those were the days, my friend!

Carmel School. Picture taken on my last visit to school  in 2010.

We celebrated Teachers' Day, Childrens' day, Annual Day ...etc. in our school but Carmel Feast  was a very, very special day for us.The whole year we'd be looking forward to celebrating this wonderful day.
Preparation would begin at least a week before. The class teacher would help plan the dishes for the day. About 10 dishes or so to be divided among the thirty of us. The feast would have varied and special items from each state we were from. There would be puris, the aloo bhaajis, sambar, pulavs, rice etc etc. We would raise hands to volunteer for the dishes. Those were not the days when we ever thought of buying anything. It was all labor of love (the mothers' obviously).

The day of the feast...there were no classes that day!
I recall distinctly the one we celebrated when we were in the 6th class. The desks were all lined against the wall, leaving a vacant square in the middle of the room. A few desks were arranged in the center. Each of us bought a piece of white cloth from our home and used it to cover the desktops. Some girls made an elaborate rangoli at the entrance. The food itself was presented in some pretty dishes on the center table. All those uncouth newspapers, and vessels the food came in were stuffed behind the desks, out of sight.
Plans to decorate the classes were made in advance. We used flowers, balloons , ribbons ...whatever we could find at home and mothers permitted us, to bedeck the classroom. The artists of the class drew elaborate welcome  messages and designs on the blackboard using white and color chalks. After we were done, it was our turn to peep into other classes to see how the competition was faring...the other section being our biggest rival in this case.
We now waited  excitedly for the teachers to come in. 3-4 teachers visited each classroom. They evaluated us on the decoration and presentation of the room. We girls all sat in a very disciplined manner at our desks waiting as they ranked us.The quiet discipline didn't last long though. "Miss! Miss!" we cried out pointing to various small things that the teachers might miss...so desperate were we that the prize for the best presentation be ours!
It was only after the teachers  tasted our food and left, did we have our lunch. The variety of food was indeed a feast. I remember distinctly a Kashmiri girl in our class bringing Dum Aloo...big stuffed potatoes in a magnificent gravy! Till date, the memory of that awesome taste lingers.
The warmth, the exuberance, the sincerity and especially the non-commercial way in which we celebrated this feast evokes fragrant memories which will last forever and ever.
Miss you, Carmel Feast and all those lovely school days!

100 days of Bangalore: the stay

Around the first week of February, I was asked if I was willing to go to Bangalore for a new project, working with a new client.
I may not exactly have jumped at the idea but the prospect of working in a new city and the possibility of learning something new was quite exciting. I said an emphatic 'yes' to the idea and started looking forward to this stint in Bangalore.
When I was packing, I didn't know  where I would stay and when I would find a place for myself. I booked myself into a hotel for the first week hoping to find something by the end of it.
When I saw Bangalore flats and flatmates groups on facebook, I thought that all I needed to do was post in the group and I would find a place. Foolish me! The search wasn't going to be that easy. The office being in Kumara Park West, there weren't many places for renting. Kumara Park West is close to Malleshwaram and both these places are known to be conventional, residential areas. You have many more options in the Marthahalli, Whitefield, Electronic City side of the city.
Renting an independent room in these areas seemed next to impossible as, of the few available options, no one was willing to give a room for 100 days. The minimum expected stay was six months...with a one month deposit to boot (and no guarantee of getting it back).
Finally, I found something that looked custom-made for me. A newly constructed room with an attached bathroom on the terrace of a PG. The whole terrace was mine.There was a TV and a WiFi connection exclusive for my use.
I reveled in the comfort of exclusivity and privacy but at the same time, I didn't realize how tough it was going to be to access the kitchen on a floor below.What separated the terrace from the kitchen was a steep, open staircase. So, if one were to use the kitchen, one would have to carry all ingredients/groceries from the room to the kitchen below. Not having vessels to cook in also added to the woes. I managed to cook bread, Magi and tea at times. Having a fridge and a microwave helped to an extent but then there was a jostle for space to use these assets. And because of this arrangement, I had to have all the three meals outside home. But at least I had some semblance of a home.
The office, headquartered at Belgium, was definitely a great place to work where the employee comfort was well taken care of. The product I documented was vast and challenging. But what fun if you don't get a challenging project?! The work was invigorating but also pretty demanding
My working time was from 11 am to 8 pm. I would need to complete my morning chores, get ready and decide on a place to eat before I could step out. There were very few options around the place I stayed.
The time till 11 was ruled out and coming home at around 9 ish also ruled out any possibility of venturing out, watch movies or even explore places.
It was on weekends only that I could clean, wash clothes, attend mails/bills, visit friends and relatives and search for decent lunch places for that weekend.
The commute was the best part of staying in Bangalore. Having a permanent address in Hyderabad may not allow me to stay close to office, but that was not so in Bangalore. I could rent a place, less than a kilometer from my office. The commute time, on foot, was just about fifteen minutes...a bliss for every office-goer. To top it, walking under a canopy of trees helped ward off the hot sun till I reached office.
Trees all around my residence also meant waking up to chirping birds...instead of wakening to the rude hoots and rumbles of passing vehicles...something that I have not experienced since my childhood days.
Well, back to home sweet home now.

Ki & Ka

The movie begins with a very restrained start…no frills…no dhamaka. For me, this set the tone of the movie... hoping it is more realistic.
Ki & Ka are Kiya and Kabir (Kareena and Arjun).
The movie has broached an interesting topic, viz. the role reversal. In households where both work, do we even have those strict lines anymore? To balance their professional and personal lives, men and women do share household chores. But yes, this movie goes a step further where you have a stay-at-home husband and an ambitious wife who yearns to climb the corporate ladder, and fast.
For an Indian actor, Arjun Kapoor displays courage by accepting this very unconventional role. Kareena Kapoor, at 36, looks great...no more of the size 0 nonsense… and has carried the role of an ambitious Marketing Manager with an élan.
Arjun Kapoor, reflective of his real life, plays the son of a rich but estranged father and misses his deceased mom. He surprises Kareena when he confesses that he wishes to be like his mom. He believes that a woman is no less an artist as she juggles to keep the house running. How I wish Balki, the director, had delved more into this concept exploring the different facets of home-making. Also that Arjun could display more of the skills that come from an IIM graduate. An educated home-maker makes a whole world of difference to a home. The actual house-keeping that Arjun is so passionate about is not explored as much as it should be. It also is convenient that they choose not to have kids. Would be interesting to watch, if they had.
In the second half of the movie, we get to see that Arjun doesn’t have a problem playing a unconventional stay-at-home husband, but Kareena does. She introduces her husband as an artist who is at home writing a book.
Eventually,when Arjun gets interviewed, gets invited to TED talks, endorses household products, and becomes popular, Kareena is unable to take it. Arjun supports and revels in her success but she isn’t able to handle his, as she expects him to be at home and take care of it. She hits back, blaming Arjun with anything and everything that goes wrong in her life and their relationship.
The build-up in the first half is impressive but the second half seems to go off on a tangent. There seem to be two things happening in the same movie: the man-woman role reversal and the ‘Abhimaan’ kind of scenario where one partner is intolerant of the other’s success.
Swaroop Sampat as Kareena’s mother impresses with a very honest performance. Her dialog towards the end of the movie ties up all loose ends and brings a closure of sorts to the debate.
The movie is surely a one-time watch and doesn’t fail in entertaining you. The lead pair has done its best to sustain the interest.
A 3/5 rating from me.

Krishna Gaadi Veera Prema Gadha

Nani's name in Telugu movies evokes a lot of expectation. I may need to tone it down a bit, I guess.
His latest release "Krishna gaadi veera prema gaadha" reinforces my belief.
The movie isn't bad, dull or boring, but just doesn't live up to the expectation from Nani's films.
The movie begins with a violent action scene and before you think this movie is about family feuds, you see the hero break into a song and dance. The context is anyone's guess.
In the next scene we have the hero-heroine romancing. Then there is the terrorist angle.
The director has tried a bit of this and a bit of that, comedy, action, romance...

Having said that, what's good in the movie?
1. Nani's energetic and convincing performance
2. The kids, especially the youngest, add to the cute factor and win our hearts
3. Murali Sharma's amazing comic timing. He is borrowed from Nani's previous film, where he had played a scientist. He was brilliant in his brief role. He is well-supported by Prithvi who is bettering himself at comedy with every film.
Sampath is good in the role of a fearless policemen.

And what's not all that great is the inability of the director to sew all these various story lines into a seamless whole. Even before you finish oohing and aahing about one aspect of the movie, you are thrown into the next. Had the director, Hanu Raghavapudi, not tried to add so many hues, the film would have had a great story.The film might still draw crowds but I am not sure that he has proved himself after his disastrous debut (Andaala Rakshasi).
Well, the story in brief is about Nani being  a coward and how he is unable to ask the heroine's brother for her hand, and therefore his love has to remain a secret. It is also about his transformation from a timid man, who when he realizes he is losing what he cherishes the most, turns into a lion to protect his woman.
The children are assigned to Nani's safekeeping when they get caught in the midst of a violent family feud. Their road journey is well-written. The kids, thank goodness, are like your normal kids unlike the super smart kids that we see in movies these days.
Nani seems to be moving towards commercial  movies unlike his previous selection of the more simple and true-to-life stories.
No great works in the cinematographic area. The songs look forced too. The movie is brilliant in parts . Go watch. You will not be bored.