Monthly Archives: July 2006

Enchanting Salalah

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Which is the favourite holiday destination of Arabs in Saudi, Kuwait, Dubai, etc at this time of the year? It is not the Far East, nor Europe, nor the sub-continent, but a place called Salalah in Oman. Located at a distance of around 1000 km from Muscat, the city is known for its moderate climate throughout the year.
The Khareef season stretching from the fourth week of June to the third week of September is the best time to visit Salalah which is nestled between beautiful landscaped mountains and surrounded by coconut groves. The Khareef festival is held from July 15 to August 31 every year in a weather of drizzles and fogs. In fact, a host of fresh vegetables and fruits are grown in Salalah, and supplied to major outlets in Muscat and elsewhere.
Pic source: Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Blasts Aftermath: “Quote… Unquote”

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We should take precautions to avert such incidents in future: Shivraj Patil
Can you brief more on those precautions? Are you hinting that Mumbaikars should stop travelling in trains, avoid evening rush hours, or quit work and stay at home?

BJP said on Wednesday it would hold a national protest over the weekend against the government’s “failure” to prevent attacks like the Mumbai blasts.
Thank you very much. We ‘miss you’ at the helm. Please get over ‘protest hangover’ and do something meaningful.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday declared that the government would work to defeat the evil designs of terrorists and not allow them to succeed and appealed to the people to maintain calm.
Work to defeat in the present term or sometime around 2050? Dear PM, people of your country have no other choice than to maintain calm and get on with their lives.

In a scathing attack on the Congress-led governments at the Centre and Maharashtra, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Wednesday said the people would not hesitate to dislodge the governments if the peace and security atmosphere continued to go out of control.
Correctly said, I guess it comes from your own experience in Maharashtra. Thanks for not making inflammatory statements.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) on Tuesday night condemned and denied its involvement in the Mumbai serial blasts and the five grenade explosions in Srinagar.
Do we expect you to say “We’ve done it!”. If possible help the cops in finding the real culprits.

…and finally as Mumbai limps back to normalcy after the horrendous train blasts, just spare a thought for the people of Baghdad (Iraq) where scores die in blasts, almost everyday.

Newspaper War Heats Up

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Bangalore is witnessing a flurry of newspaper activity these days. Mid-Day has started operations, Times of India has bought Vijayanand Printers (One English and Two Kannada dailies), and Deccan Chronicle is contemplating an edition. With Vijay Times in its fold, it will be interesting to watch the strategy adopted by TOI towards its rivals. I feel there is no room for 7-8 English dailies to survive in the market. With television and FM channels making a beeline for the advertising pie, it will be a tough call for newspaper owners. Meanwhile, the journos are all smiles. Good times are back again for them.

Slow And Steady Wins The Race

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With no high-profile player in their line-up, Italy has just proved that teamwork, self-belief, consistency, and never-say-die approach are vital to tame soccer giants. And, they have proved it to perfection. Going by their first round performances, both Italy and France looked very unlikely in quarters, forget the final showdown.
Unlike the previous finals, this time around the match was equally poised. Both teams had their share of hits and misses, and finally the penalty shootout sealed France’s hopes. Adding to the injury was Zidane’s not-so-glorious red-card exit in the final stages of the game. I was shell shocked that a player of Zizou’s calibre could indulge in such a nasty show of temper. For the entire tournament, he looked cool and mature, and rarely displayed his emotions. Not sure, what lead to the final burst up with Materazzi. He wouldn’t want to say goodbye to his career in this way. Would he?
I will remember 2006 World Cup for two reasons –– Ronaldinho for being the biggest flop and Portugal’s goalkeeper Ricardo for making breathtaking penalty saves.

Action Off The Soccer Pitch

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The Germany-Portugal match offered a lot of goal-mouth excitement. Although the two teams played equally well, Germany converted when it mattered. For once, Portugal looked like they have forgotten to score goals.

Scolari and Klinsmann: It is a treat to watch both Scolari and Klinsmann during a match as they were full of antics. The ooohs, aaahs, fist clinching, occasional jumps, nodding their head in disbelief, giving instructions, they have plenty of them. I am sure their antics will influence referees’ decision to some extent.

Ricardo: I would rate him as the best goalkeeper of the tournament although he let in some easy goals now and then. His reflexes and anticipation are exceptional. If you have any doubts, watch the penalty shootout action against England a couple of times.

Stewards: They only people who are in the stadium always and never get to watch a match. With their back to the pitch, they keep an eye on the spectators to prevent any untoward incident during the match. But during some games, I noticed some stewards following the action when corners/flagkicks were awarded. Such is the magic of the game that you cannot just ignore it!

Finally, Figo has called it quits. Portugal will miss him for sure…

Bangalore chokes, Muscat rocks

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Last month, I had been to Bangalore with my family on a vacation. Nothing much has changed now. Except for key roads, rest of the roads still sport deep-rooted pot holes, choc-a-bloc traffic stifles you at peak hours, nauseating pollution chokes your breath. For some reason I had to travel between Indiranagar and Koramangala four times at a go, and the journey consumed three hours in an autorickshaw!


Bustling traffic off Airport Road.

Adding to the chaos was the flyover work at the Airport Road intersection. After staying in Muscat (Oman) for 1.6 years, I can vouch for the fact that Bangaloreans have little or absolutely no traffic sense. Much of the credit much be accredited to autorickshaw wallahs and two wheelers riders, who care two hoots about traffic and lane discipline. From left to right to centre, they are all over the place.


Airport Road flyvoer work on progress

When I first landed in Muscat, I was at awe looking at the traffic discipline and conduct. In the initial few months, I used to walk to office, and it came to me as a pleasant surprise that pedestrians were treated so well in this part of the world. I could never imagine that a majestic looking four-wheel drive could come into a screeching halt just to let me cross the road. Phew!