4...3...2...1...Bungeeeeeee

Finally!! I had uploaded the bungee videos when I was in B'lore itself. But wasn't able to post them. Check mine out here and Sri's at here. Only problem is that you need the Divx Player or the latest Divx codecs if you are using windows media player. I would suggest right-clicking the links, save target as, downloading the videos and then viewing them with Divx :)

And here's a photo of us after our bungee jumps :-D

We came, we saw, we JUMPED!!!

My Lexington home

Okay I uploaded my new home photos. Click on the pic below to see my new home :) Again offer available only for some days :-D

So Happy..

My happiness

Not in villages, not in cities
Not with world's all facilities

Not in cottages, not in castles
Not in mansions without any hassles

Not with diamonds, not with gold
Not with plenty of jewels to hold

Not with positions, not with ranks
Not with million riches in the banks

Not as a genius, not as a fool
Not as a queen with people to rule

Not by politeness, not by charms
I'm happy, my dear, when I'm in your arms

Around the world in 34 hours :-D

Lookie lookie at the right panel!! Yup I'm in Lexington, KY and will be here atleast for 6 months :) Wanted to write a Babye Bangalore blog before I left, but didn't have time at all what with all the packing to do, stuff to remember and all that ;-) Ok I'm just giving excuses :-p :) I came to Lexington on Friday the 13th May 2005, 10:00 PM PST. Friday the 13th sure turned out to be lucky for me :) Moreover as my mom pointed out the date was exactly 6 months from the day Sri and I met ;-) :)) Here's an account of my tedious and tiring journey whether you want it or not :-p

Bangalore

On the dark, not-so-cold night of 12th May 2005, I set off to accomplish the impossible task (:-D) of crossing 2 oceans ;-) The first phase of my long journey was to catch a Sahara airways flight from Bangalore to Bombay. As soon as we (me, my parents, in-laws, Darsh, Lekha and my chikappa's family) reached the airport and dumped my two each-weighing-31-Kg-suitcases into the check-in, we found that the common phenomenon of flight delay had occurred. Since I had a 4-hour wait in Bombay which I had resigned on spending alone, this looked like a blessing in disguise as I could wait the wait with my family + had gotten about an hour to spend with them :) After the very sad parting with my family (don't want to go into details of that one, as its still capable of making my eyes water), I was on my own...

Mumbai

At the mumbai airport, I stepped confidently towards the baggage claim. I knew what to do thanks to my hubby and our honeymoon trip to South Africa (henceforth referred to as HMT). Lifting my heavy baggages was not easy done as easy said :-p Somehow managed it and headed towards the door to catch an inter-terminal bus to the international airport :) Imagine my shock when I see almost 80 people waiting in a queue for the same!!! Since the buses were scheduled evey half an hour and could take only 35 people at one go, I had to wait about 1.5 hours for my turn!! By the time I reached the international airport, there was only 1.5 hours for my British Airways flight to leave. As the standard reporting time is about 3 hours before the flight, the airline officials made a fuss. I had to explain and sort things out. Later immigration and security check-in weren't a hassle at all (refer HMT :-D). Only after clearing security check-in, did I notice that there were no STD/ISD booths after that point! How sad can an airport get!! I had promised to call up my parents and I knew they'd be worried if they didn't get my call. Finally, managed to borrow a mobile from some lady and call up. Phew! Thanks lady, whoever you are :) I also had promised Sri that I'd call him up. But he'd told me that he wouldn't expect a call as anything might happen. Oof, glad he said that, otherwise I'd be feeling guilty as hell :)

I had always eyed Boeing 747. This British airways double-decker flight was the one I had wanted to fly in for a long time :) Though the first floor was only for the executive class, it didn't lessen my excitement. After settling comfortably in the window seat, with an Indian couple next to me, I trifled with the monitor in front of me and the channels on my armrest. Was excited but apprehensive at the same time. At the expected time, i.e 2:15 AM early 13th May morning IST, the plane rocketed into the skies tossing me into a new wave of sadness. As I watched the receding mumbai shore, the only thought in my head was "My land gone, dunno when I'll be back" :(

London

The flight to London was a 9-hour one. I slept for more than 6 hours which was good. British airways lived up to its name of being the best flight across the Atlantic, with good food and good service. The best part was that I was able to make out the snow covered alps from the plane :) Landing and formalities at London were no problem at all. The problem was the 5-hour wait to my connecting British Airways flight to Chicago.

London Heathrow airport is sooooooooooooo huggggggge man! I landed in Terminal 4 and since my connecting flight was also at the same terminal, I wasn't allowed to go anywhere else. Terminal 4 itself is sssssssso big! I first freshened up and then window shopped for about 2 hours. God!! So many shops! I had actually told mom that I'd try to call her up if possible. But the payphones there accepted only pounds :( I didn't want additional hassles of foreign exchange. There were a few coin foreign exchange machines, but all 3 of them didn't work!!! And this was London!!! Looks like London bridge is falling down :-p I gave up! Decided to call mom only after I reach Lexington :)

My flight was scheduled to leave from Gate 24. It was a 15 min walk from the main terminal to the gate!! You have horizonatal conveyor belts and beautiful photographs all along the passage way. I was like a kid with candy :-D And man!! The planes!!! There were about 15 Boeing 747s visible together from the lounges. Wow!! Flights taking off 1 min after another, flights arriving one min after another, God!! That was a sight to see :)) I just laid down my head on my vanity bag watching the take-offs and to my shock, fell fast asleep. I woke up with a start to realize that I had slept for 1 hour with my cabin luggage unattended in front of me!! Then splashed some cold water on my face and walked here and there just to avoid sleeping.

There were again no problems getting into my next flight. I was hoping my luggage had also had no problems ;-) I met a nice couple on this flight Sherry and David. They had just spent their 25th anniversary (realllllllllly uncommon in Americans ;-) ) in Paris and were returning home to New Mexico :) Spent a long time talking to Sherry :) Also watched 2 Robert De Niro movies - "Meet the Fockers" and "Hide and Seek" and enjoyed them both. Filled up the I-94 and Customs forms as directed by Sri (So sweet of him to download sample forms, fill them up, scan them and send them across to me :). He had also given me step-by-step instructions on what to do when, where to go, how etc. What more can I ask for in a hubby? :-D) and kept them ready for landing. Had a headache but couldn't sleep at all, except for an hour or so :(

Chicago

My flight landed in Chicago on 13th May 2005 noon at about 3:30 PM PST. The weather was not so good, so we had a couple of turbulences before we reached there. It was as if somebody was shaking the plane like a milk shake :-D Man, that was fun (I said this to one of my friends, Chans, that's you and she said "Lady, your idea of fun is weird" :-D). Once landed, I said my goodbyes to Sherry and David and proceeded towards immigration. I was so excited as now I was only about 5 hours away from Sri :) There was a looooooong queue for immigration, but the I-94 stamping as such didn't take any time at all. Next was the baggage claim. Boy!! Was I glad to see my 31-kg-each suitcases intact ;-) After a struggle to download them (hehehe computer term) into the trolley, I was off towards customs. Didn't even have to go into the green channel. The lady there asked me what kind of food was I carrying (I had declared food in the customs form), I said "processed food, no meat" and she allowed me to pass. Then I had to check-in my luggage in the American Airways counter at the international terminal itself and there was another loooooooong queue there. After removing the locks on my luggages (its a rule here) I waited for my turn and got them checked by the officials there (they wipe a tissue and subject it to some check, guess for some microbes etc). I was glad again to notice none of the uppinakai (pickles) (that mom had packed despite loud protests from me) had leaked ;-) :) Ok luggage dumped. Now had to dump myself :-D

I had to take a transit system to the domestic airport from the international one in Chicago. Which was absolutely no problem :) I loved the monorail. It was way cool, though the trip was very short. After reaching my terminal, had to walk a bit to reach the gate my plane was stationed at. There were huge crowds flying to all sorts of places (probably as it was Friday). Security check-in took about an hour due to the queue :-p. Had about an hour to my Lexington flight. Sri had given me calling card details, so called him up from there :) Also, my flight had been delayed by 0.5 hours then, informed him of that ;-) Spent rest of the time window-shopping. Went to a food court to have coffee and was shocked at the prices (my friends tell me this is the initial dollar-to-rupee-conversion-syndrome :-p). I love Cafe Mocha and was shocked to know it costs almost Rs. 200, while even in the costly Coffee day shops of India its only Rs.60 :-p Had a Rs. 60 worth Espresso :) Will definitely take some time getting used to it :-p. My flight came in at about 7:00PM 13th May 2005 PST. I was supposed to land at Lexington at about 9:30 PM. But the bad weather was continuing and the plane was delayed by another half an hour :( This after I climbed the plane, so couldn't even inform Sri! The plane was a small plane and the seat next to me was empty. So could sleep for about half an hour :)

Lexington

As the plane neared Lexington, I couldn't contain my excitement. I would be seeing Sri after 40 whole days :) Atleast he had gotten to see my latest photos :-p I had nothing but a voice on phone for more than a whole month :( There was a feeling of thrill, apprehensivenes and joy - all churning one-by-one inside me. I got down an escalator towards baggage claim and there he was, my dearest hubby, standing right where he had promised to be. As soon as I saw him, I knew.

I WAS HOME :)

Keys to my heart :-D

Ok Ok I'm a copy cat. Found this on some other blog. Nevertheless interesting and mostly apt :-D

The Keys to Your Heart

You are attracted to those who have a split personality - cold as ice on the outside but hot as fire in the heart.

In love, you feel the most alive when things are straight-forward, and you're told that you're loved.

You'd like to your lover to think you are stylish and alluring.

You would be forced to break up with someone who was ruthless, cold-blooded, and sarcastic.

Your ideal relationship is open. Both of you can talk about everything... no secrets.

Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment.

You think of marriage as something precious. You'll treasure marriage and treat it as sacred.

In this moment, you think of love as something you thirst for. You'll do anything for love, but you won't fall for it easily.

Find out The Keys To Your Heart

To be here or to be there?

Is not the question I know. After all, how can I leave Sri there alone in peace without anybody to trouble him? :-D But right now, if you ask me to describe my feelings in one word, the answer has to be "Torn" :(

Why does life always give us choices? Why this or that? Why can't it be both? Why, when on one side there is happiness, there is also a tinge of sadness? Why can't it all be uncomplicated and easy? And why can't I be satisified with what I get? Why, when I am getting a lot more than I expected? Why do I have to ask for more? Why do people always have to ask for more? And why am I writing all this?

A kannada song by P.B.S describes man's attitude very aptly:

Baanigondu elle ellide?
Ninnaasegelli kone ide?
Yeke kanasu kaanuve?
Nidhanisu, nidhanisu.

Translates into "Is there a limit to sky? Is there a limit to your needs? Why do you dream for more? Slow down, slow down". We want it all and we can't have it. Maybe its good that we can't. What's the fun in life if you get all you asked for? I say this too and I say that too. What can I do if my feelings fluctuate like a pendulum.

Everything's great as explained in my previous post. The only sad part is that I'm going to be so far away from dad, mom and Darsh in about a week. It'll be totally different from what it previously was. When I got married, I was sad to be apart from them. But since we were in the same city, I could visit them whenever I wanted. They could visit me whenever they/I wanted. I could call them up without worrying about the time and talk for hours. We could catch up at functions or wherever, whenever. In one week, everything will be totally different :(.

My problem is that I've never been away from my parents. I have been very lucky not having to stay in hostels or relatives' places (some people might disagree about the 'lucky' part, but it applies to me). I now call it a problem because its probably more difficult to be apart at this point of time. Some people may say I'm too dependent or that I'm pampered. But that's not the case. Yup I am emotionally dependent on them. How can I not be when they have been the ones with me, through pain and pleasure, through joy and sorrow, through special and irritating moments, through scoldings and loving words for almost 25 long years? How can I forget all that in an instant and say bye-bye? And pampered, I'm not. My mom and dad have moulded me into the woman I am today. They have struggled a lot to make me and Darsh what we are today. I'm so proud of them and proud of all that they have achieved.

Am I making a big issue out of it? These days communications have improved a lot. I can talk/chat/even see them through computers. And I have to think about Sri. Bechaara, he's all alone there right now. Atleast I was with my parents while we've been apart. And the simple truth is that I just can't bear to be away from him as I've found out in the past month. But it still won't be the same living on the other side of the world without my parents :(.

I know I'll get adjusted to it after some time. Maybe, it'll take a few days, a few weeks or maybe a few months. But, right now, I'm torn.......

Ok now the real deal :)

It all started one bright March 14th Monday morning when Sri was informed that he might be sent on a 6-month project to Lexington, Kentucky, U.S. Yup my Que Sera Sera :-" post was due to that ;-). He called me up to ask me whther I had any problems with the whole thing. What could I say? Our plan was to be here atleast till about 6 months after our marriage and then maybe go to U.S for about 2 years. Later come back here to Bangalore. But life doesn't always go according to our plans. Sri had already refused too many onsite travel opportunities due to our marriage, now he wasn't really in a position to refuse one more. Plus the project sounded great for his career as well. All plus for him.

All minus for me. I was totally stuck. Didn't have a clue what to do! 6 months was too long to be apart, so it meant I couldn't stay here and had to go along. Go on leave? I didn't have that much leave and only option was loss-of-pay, but I wasn't sure my workplace would agree to that. Moreover the project may get extended and that meant longer leave. It also meant me doing nothing and staying at home for the whole period. Next option was resignation. It meant I could try for a job there, but it isn't easy when you are going on a dependant visa. I had to look at studying options too and studying in U.S is costly man, unless you get a scholarship or some sort of aid which is again very improbable. Third option was getting a transfer from my work place to U.S. This would be the prefect solution but was an almost-impossibility as the transfers to U.S from India are very rare. Moreover even if I got a transfer I'd be in one corner of U.S while Sri would be in another. Which meant its almost equivalent to me staying in India. Just perfect!! My options were limited. I had to accept that the bottomline was my resignation option :(

Another problem was that the client was making some noises and the project was fluctuating from 1-6 months though it was first said to be a 6-month project. Usually a workplace agrees to sponsor an employee's spouse's dependant visa, only if the project is for minimum 6 months. So my visa was also in a fix. The processing, hence, would start only after Sri would go there and determine that the project is for 6 months. How problematic could life get???

Sri left for KY on Apr 2nd, exactly a month back. And we hadn't even completed 2-full months after our marriage :( The first week, the person he was supposed to co-ordinate with was on vacation, so no decision about the duration of the project could be made. Only in the second week did Sri know that it was going to be a 6-month project. Then started my head aches. I had to collect/submit forms, call up various people regarding my visa, collect tickets and what not. Meanwhile, also had to attend gruhapraveshas and weddings ;-) I also had to inform my workplace regarding my problem.

I called up my manager in U.S 2 weeks ago. Before I could even say the word "transfer", she herself said she didn't want to lose me and would I like to consider a transfer!! Oh Boy, would I now!! You betcha ma'am :) But she had to clear up things with a Senior director and that would take some time... But I was so glad. It sure feels good when you know how appreciated you are...

My visa stamping was without any hitches last week as explained in the previous post :-D Next day I was informed by my manager that the senior director has approved my transfer!!! Also, that my case was an exception :)) The formalities have already begun :) Man, how things work out!! The best part is that I can work from Sri's corner of U.S (Tele-commute) :-D Oof everything is so good that it is almost scary!! I'm only praying that everything will continue to be good...

So now I shouldn't have any problems right? Not exactly :( I have just had a major fight with Sri, but that's another story.....

Update: The so-called major fight has been resolved (for now :-p), so alls well again :-D :)))