The *Crustaceans*

It's a norm to see beggars on the streets of Delhi and Kolkutta. These cities are in a very devastating state where you can see mothers feeding their kids on the busy street despite of the dusty and hot weather. The kids are mostly bare footed with dirty clothes. Not mentioning about education, they don't even have a roof over theirs' head. I just wonder where would they go at night during winter times or rainy seasons. Daren't to imagine that. How lucky we are packed with all the basic necessities back home.

There was once, while I was on the way to Kolkutta airport, I saw many people was sleeping on the curb and divider of the freeway. I asked the driver astonishly, "Why are these people sleeping on the divider? It's so dangerous. Further, they would've caught cold in this cold weather! What happens if it's going to rain?" The driver casually answered me, "Madam, these people don't recognise summer or winter. For them, everyday is the same as long as they've something to fill their stomach. It's lucky if they get through the day." My heart was wretched with sorrow. I was ashamed of myself to worry about all the unnecessary things all the times.

I didn't see many beggars on the streets in Bangalore. At least, people has enough to live in peace, I think. Everyone seemed to have their basic necessities and have more decent life here. On the contrary, in Delhi, there are kids dancing and performing some kind of acrobatic under the hot sun right in front of your car and come knocking on your window with a hope of appreciation in money. It's gloomy to see kids finding their own unique ways of begging for money to get food. Some even sell broken pens or old postcards to you just to get RSP10 which is only equivalent to RM1. Whilst the others approach you with their small God's statue on their palms and ask for a donation.

One day, while I was in the car, a deformed face child was knocking on my window. When I looked at her, I was almost in tears and I prayed in my heart, please, God, bless this child. May she gets her daily bread and live healthily. I quickly handed RSP10 to her. I asked the driver how much does a RSP10 worth. Would she able to buy food? He said yes. If I were given a chance, I'd like to help the poor children in India. At least, shelter them with food, clothings, education and others basic of living. What can we buy with RM1 nowadays? Can't even fill up our stomach.

In Kolkutta, there're so many homeless people. Some just sleep on the street and make a tent and cook just right there. Besides, those cab drivers, they actually sleep at the backseat of their car at night and get back to work in the morning. I designate them as Crustaceans, as hard as shells. We always complain about not having enough money for this or that. But, the Crustaceans think about how to get through every single day and struggle with their might and strength hoping to survive on this planet. They have my full respect and honour for that.

A Change for Good?

I always hear people say, hey, you've gotta think out of the box! It's easy to say rather than done. It's hard to change when you're already in your very own comfort zone. Honestly, I daren't to make any changes in my life.

That was the reason I came to Bangalore. I'm still struggling with my own reasons and refused to change. Still, I'm hungering to change! I looked people around me. They're doing so well. I wish I could be like others too. Decide and move forward. It's really hard to jump out of the *box*.

I think it's the will. I just can't face the truth. I need to let go and go for a change!!!

What the heck?

I want my Double Cheese Burger... They don't serve beef in McDonald's in India!

Wanna get some colorful food? ;-p

The Hospital

My wrist has been painful for about a month. I don't really know the cause for it. I've seen some chinese traditional doctors but it didn't work out. The pain came on and off. It was agitating and irritating especially in my work where I need to type a lot and frustrating because it hurts everytime I lift up something with my thumb. It was so unbearable especially in the morning!

I went to Dr Ong in Gleneagles 2 weeks ago(no choice, I've to go Bangalore that very week and he's in Apollo only on Mondays). I've already prepared how much it would cost me this time. Sigh... True enough, I've spent about RM450 for consultation and ultrasound.

However, I left for Bangalore that Friday. I need to actually go for the ultrasound for another 8 days. I didn't care because it was too much for me to pay! I took some painkillers just to ignore the pain. I'll sort some other solutions later, I thought.

When I was in Bangalore, the pain attacked me severely. Maybe it's because of the cold weather. It's pulling all my muscles and came up to my arm. So, Joh Jiun suggested me to go to a very famous hospital in Bangalore, Manipal Hospital. I thought, what? I'm not going to any of the hospital here. My thoughts of the war movies came into my mind! You know those hospitals are very dirty and bloody everywhere. Gosh... He explained to me that's a very good hospital and clean. It's something like our Gleaneagles.

Alright, finally I gave it a try. So, he sent a driver to fetch me. Remember, don't ever drive yourself in any parts of India. It's dangerous. Really. You won't believe it till you see the driving condition here. It's uncultural and totally a mess. Pedestrian will just rush out crossing the street and act nothing happen. Bikes are like King of the Road. They do what they like. You don't need to buckle up, not even the driver! Trust me.

Anyway, the hospital is about 15 minutes drive from our condo. When I reached there, it was crowded. True enough. Hold on. There was something wrong here. People were greeting patients in front of the main entrance. Some nurses stood by to help the disableds. Some valet staffs were standing to keep the traffic flowing as it's a busy hospital. I was having a wrong perception of the hospital here.

The hospital is very clean instead. So, I proceeded to the registration counter. The reception was very helpful and polite. They speak good manner of English. I was really impressed. After registering, I went to the Orthopaedic department. The doctor is very helpful and patience to all my questions. Instead, he explained what could've happened to my wrist. I had a swollen tendon. I might have overworked or used my left hand too much. He suggested me to wear a splint and go for ultrasound and wax bath. Wax bath? yeah...I'll explain that later. He also had me to do a full blood test count, given some gel to apply and painkillers.

The registrations, consultations, blood tests, medications, ultrasound only cost me less than RM300! The service provided is excellent and they're quite professional in terms of the attitudes and responsiveness. Also, they always smile. It doesn't gives you a fear of going to the hospital like those days, government hospital in our country. Oh...you won't want to talk about it. Shame. So, I went on with all my tests and collected the prescribed medications.

The whole thing took me about 2 1/2 hours. I think it's pretty reasonable. While I was waiting, I need to go to the loo but I tried to hold it because I was afraid of the dirty toilet. After an hour, I can't hold it anymore. I really need to go. I went in and I was shocked. The toilet is totally clean and smelled good too! I was totally impressed with their efforts of providing good service to the patients. It's not a big deal in KL but in Bangalore, what would you think? I was having a bit of guilty feelings the way I perceived India. Really. It opened my eyes after just a few visits to public places.

After 3 sessions of ultrasound and wax bath, I could see the improvements. Now, it's getting better. The wax bath. At first, I was wondering, why wax bath? It's actually soaking your hands or any affected parts of your body into this melted wax in a big metal box thingy, which is really hot but it's comfortable once you soaked in. We use this method for beauty back home. I didn't know that it actually helps to soothe down the swell too.

Different culture, different method, as long as it heals. It doesn't matter what method at all.

Italian Food in Bangalore!

After cooking for so many days, Joh Jiun and his colleague, Gan took me out for an Italian dinner two days ago. It's nothing special, but, in Bangalore? Another surprise for me!

It gave me another shock when I reached the restaurant. The interior of the restaurant is quite impressive. It's very modern inside. The servers are all neatly dolled up. The restaurant was quite crowded.

We were seated down and started looking at the menu. There were so much food from appetizer to main course, and... yummy, DESSERTS!! I actually doubted the food quality (my bad, I know!) and ordered something real simple, seafood spaghetti. Joh Jiun ordered veggie pasta and Gan had pasta with Salmon.

Before serving our main course, we were served with bread on a wood platter. There were French bread (french??? yes.), basil leaves, garlic, olive oil and balsamic on a wood platter. Honestly, I was impressed with the presentation of the starter. I like the wood platter. Normally, Italian restaurant serves warm and soft bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This was something different.

(Sorry for the bad photography here....I forgot to bring camera. Guess phone camera will do... my bad!)

So, the server showed us how to start with the stuffs on the platter. First, you'll need to *rub* the raw garlic on the bread until the surface of the bread is cover by the garlic. Then, *rub* the basil leaves on it till the surface of the bread becomes greeny. Hmm...it's very appetizing because aroma of the garlic and basil was strong as you *rub* onto the bread. Becareful, not too hard because you'll break the bread! haha...Oh...I haven't finish. Subsequently, you can add in salt and pepper on the bread and finally, the olive oil. Hmmm...It's delicious especially when you dip in the balsamic vinegar. I'm going to try this at home when I go back to KL. I love trying new thing.

As I was enjoying the starter, I observed around. There were many Indian diners that night. Apart from the poverty in India, there're many rich people in India as you can see most of them are living in luxury. Restaurants are growing like mushrooms here, in Bangalore. Also, the city is modern, in the sense of their standard of living, big malls, good hospital, etc. I'll tell about the hospital in another blog.

So, when the food came, it smelled good. We digged in and whoa...it was yummy! Just a bit oily but acceptable. The taste is there. The Spaghetti was cooked just right - not too soft or hard. Just nice. Seafood is quite fresh - the mussel taste a bit weird, shrimps are alright. Thing I like pastas is the parsley and spaghetti. I love to put a lot of parsley and I just love the combination of it.

The portion of the food in Bangalore is quite big. So, we missed the desserts. However, the desserts looked good behind the glass. I'm going to try them next time! ;-p

Bangalore

Today is my 4th day in Bangalore. It's my hideouts from everyone. I didn't expect anything good from this trip.

The weather in Bangalore is like a woman's mood swing! haha...it rains for 10 minutes (I meant, cats and dogs) and stops totally. Sometimes, you don't know whether you should carry an umbrella. It's very windy and cold in the evening. Well, it's 20 C, just enough to keep you comfortable at bedtimes.

Most people don't really like to live in India, all parts of it. I think it's livable, trust me. It's actually like Malaysia 10 years ago. We've went through the 10 or 20 years. So, it's as though whether you're willing to go back to the jungle and live with natures. Despite of the hot weather in Delhi and Kolkutta (the only place in India I went to) others are quite alright. Transports are inconvenient but you can walk or take a tut-tut (3 wheeled vehicle) to anywhere. Cabs will slit your throat at any times!

Delhi has a more modern, decent malls where you can find good food, entertainments - cinemas, bowling, etc., clothings (traditionals), materials and many more. You would be surprised. When you heard India - what would you think of? haha...I know! I think you've to change your mind now. Besides, their Bollywood would keep you entertained at home. Switch on your TV and you can watch whole lots of movies - in Hindi language. Anyhow, their MTVs are not bad though. I don't actually watch Hindi Bollywood movies, dancing or singing. It's just not my thing. A few movies had caught my attention though, really. That totally changed my perception towards Bollywood. I have some of my respect for them. Apparently, they've improved a lot. Those days, you can see plump Bollywood actors and actresses but these days...they can be compared to Hollywood. Not speaking of their English. Some of them speak fluent English!

Bangalore on the other hands, is a bit different from the big city, Delhi. People here are more towards themselves. I meant they do their own business. It gives me a safer feeling. Also, they don't give you one kind of a look. I went to a Japanese restaurant on my second day. It gave me an ooh for the outlook of the restaurant and an aah for its food! It was my first decent restaurant visit in India. The next day, I went to Hard Rock cafe. It wasn't bad at all. Food is yummy and quite up to the standard, I meant acceptable and worth a second visit. I managed to pick some nice T-Shirts and fridge magnets! Then, I went to a foodcourt in a mall just next to our condo. I had some traditional food - means beans, beans, beans with curry! Also, they've this Dosa (like our chapati) which was filling. It wasn't bad but maybe I'm craving for meat. There's this Minute Maid Pulpy Orange which has been my favourite drink in India. Just like I like Chocomel in Germany, Oolong Tea in Japan, etc. The dairy products here are better than ours. For example, their butter is really good and rich. Yummy! Sorry, I don't drink milk. So, I didn't try.

The Superb Casts

MY LIFE HAS A SUPERB CAST
I STILL CAN'T FIGURE OUT
THE ACTUAL PLOT...
tHAT MAKEs me Wonder....

whether I ever have a PLOT... in my Life...!

Puggy

Hey, what's up? I'm Puggy and today's my one year old birthday. I'm not really a party person but a piece of cake is not too much, huh?




Mommy, may I have a piece of cake.....pleaseeee....for my
birthday, please????










pleaseeee.....just one piece. I wont ask more, I promise....




oh...God, I'm so sleepy now...
The cake is so damn good but I
can only have it once a year!
:-(

The Big Apple Experience

It's been a year I haven't been writing. Life's been busy and makes me wonder the my purpose to be here. I've been thinking all day what I'm going to start with.

I'm going to start with my traveling story two months ago. I went to the States for business. This time, I get to go to New York. The big apple where everyone wants to be there! What would you think if you're going to New York? Manhattan? the 5th Avenue? The Brooklyn Bridge? the smoking manholes on the street? or fashionistas like the popular TV Show, Sex & The City show?

The thoughts were smashed completely when I actually had an awful experience in New York and Washington. We arrived New York that late evening from San Francisco and started searching for decent food (I had food poisoning in San Francisco!). We were walking on a quieter street from the hotel. As we were walking, I saw three men front of us, about 100 metres away. They were looking at us while talking. As when I walked passed them, the last thing I heard was, "Hey, my dinner!!" I looked back and saw a take-away box with a few dried ribs on the floor. I still remember the ribs were not in a decent look and I don't think anyone would eat them. I looked at the man and apologised but I'm not sure whether I knock them off on the floor. Then, I continued to walk and the man shouted at me again, "Hey, lady, that was my dinner!! You knocked them off and just walked away with Sorry?" This time, he freaked me out with his horribly angry look. I was so scared and stunt. I didn't know what to do many thoughts came flowing into my mind and I just stood there, have no idea what I should do. Then, my boss said, "Esther, pick them up". "No pick it up madam!" Gosh! I can feel the chill down my spine and weakness in my knee. Then, my colleage handed a $20 note to him and apologised. phew!! He wanted the money. We opined that this was another trick or technique from them to get some bucks for a glass of drink.

The next day, we continued our journey to Washington DC. It's a very nice and clean city. Very green and good weather. The people here seems to be more carefree as most of them were jogging in the afternoon, walking dogs in the garden, sitting on the benches and reading books. It's a very laid-back life. I didn't really walk around as I didn't have much time for myself as this wasn't a leisure trip. Just drove around. I encountered another fearful experience again, a 'deja vu'...hahha... That night, I was walking towards a pharmacy located almost at the end of the Washington street. There was this woman in front of me talking to a man while crossing the street. This car was turning into a lane and her hands were actually hit the back of the car. It wasn't that hard and I don't think there's any scratch though. The car suddenly stopped. I was thinking, "Oh my God, again? It wasn't me!" Then, the driver winded down the window and shouted, "F**k you, b****h!", throwing some obscene body languages at the lady! It really surprised me. I thought this is a very cultured and well-mannered society in this country. I had a cultured shock and it was almost unbelievable!

However, I managed to get my things from the pharmacy and walked back to the hotel. It made me wonder whether I should come back again for leisure. Second thought, I don't think so. I prefer California. Yeah.