Category: Blog

I really like eating sandwiches. They’re some of my favourite foods when they’re made well. Board exam time was great for me because my mum used to concoct all these amazing ways to make sandwiches the best things in the world. Whether it was grilled cheese, veg salami (which is just grated carrot), cutlets, Bombay grilled, I basically had the world in my kitchen, with everything I wanted, in a sandwich.

In fact, the history of the sandwich in my family goes way back. Three generations, to be precise, each of whom appears to enjoy their own variant of the wonderful snack. I don’t like jams and sauces as much, but I know both my grandparents would happily chomp on either of those sandwiches. Especially mixed fruit jam – it really gives them a kick. My dad has a soft spot for the Bombay grilled – when it’s made without cheese at Haji Ali. Or made well,  generally. And my mum, she has a passion for all sandwiches, but has found her enjoyment of these sandwiches limited in recent years. My favourite weird concoction of hers is when she introduced me to the banana sandwich – something I didn’t quite think I would like, but I ended up loving.

So this morning we ate cheese sandwiches, and I ate mine with olives. We put butter on the grill and made the sandwiches like we would make grilled cheeses – and we toasted the bread.

And immediately, as I took that first bite, I was reminded of how, post swimming, my mum would sometimes have pizza or sandwiches ready for me to eat at home.

We had this triangular griller – I think – it basically made these perfect pockets of filled triangular sandwiches. And my mum used to whip up the best corn cheese sandwiches in those. All the leftover curry found themselves in sandwiches too. Warm and wholesome.

And now, all I want, is more sandwich.

I want to see my mother feeling a lot better when I leave. And if anything, I’ve figured that one way to do that is to ensure that I treat her the way I would if she had full energy. Unless she’s really tired, in which case I won’t.

So today, I spent the day with my mum, irritating her the way I did as a child – by flicking her nose, or pinching her arm.

I also watched a movie with her.

And we ate pasta.

Basically we did everything we would do for comfort at home. Mine, more than hers – but I know it made her feel better. On the inside.

I dropped my friend off to the airport this morning and came back home to my mother.

And we did nothing the entire day. My mum and I chilled, laid on the bed, and did absolutely nothing except wake up to eat and to bathe.

I then went out for dinner with my best friend’s parents. I really enjoy their company because I’ve seen them really take care of me over the years. My first sleepover at their house, I was a nervous, homesick wreck who puked out all the food he had eaten because he had overeaten. I stayed at their place for two weeks once. And then, as I grew older, Uncle and Aunty have kept me grounded – with their advice constantly reminding me that both my friend & I, we’re doing good – but we’ve just gotten going.

I wouldn’t trade that advice off for anything. It makes me feel optimistic, and it really makes me feel motivated to work harder. Knowing that if 20 years of my life has brought me this much – both joy, and disappointment, the rest of my life is a journey I have to look forward to and learn from.

I also got to eat really good paneer. I wouldn’t trade that off for much else either.

It’s already Shits’ last day.

Day 5: Shopping day. Headed to Rigga and Deira City Centre (mall), then headed to Atlantis, the Palm using Metro, Tram, and then Monorail. After that, visited La Mer Beach project – and ate pizza for dinner.

Highlight: Going in Monorail over the Palm. Finding Cheetos Cheese Puffs (a product we thought we would only get in America). Ate really good falafel.

Today was a day we spent a lot of time talking. And even if he might not admit to this, after we spent December 2018 together on campus, if anything, I think I realized that Shits and I can talk about everything under the sun – to spend time. It’s easy to converse, easy to gauge opinion, and honestly, even if we hold different opinions on things, it’s very respectful and enjoyable.

Today was also when my parents really took their host game up a notch – my mother was slightly better so decided to accompany us around a tour of where I grew up – something I did not anticipate at all.

I miss being a kid. I was fortunate to have a luxurious, happy childhood – and Dubai, for me, remains pleasant exclusively because of these memories. I can feel the cool sand of the sandpit in my apartment complex between my toes after the sun sets. I can still hear the apartment people yelling at my friends and I for playing football and cricket and hitting balls into their path. I can remember falling off my cycle – a lot, and losing my balance, and scraping my knees in the worst possible ways. And I can remember coming down to the grocery shop to get my mother things.

I remember hiding food I couldn’t consume, or rather, didn’t want to consume, and lying that I had eaten it. I can see my parents’ disappointment, my dad’s especially, when they found out I lied.

I can also see their faces of joy when they used to come home and see me chilling on the sofa or reading in my room. Or when they passed by me playing with my friends. And I can remember hugging them when they were standing, but only being able to hug my dad’s knees and my mother’s waist.

Shits got to see all that.

I had fun hosting him.

Day 4: Headed to the Gold Souq and went around old Deira and Bur Dubai Area. Then went for Desert Safari, with dune bashing, camel ride, falcon holding, and entertainment and food in the desert.

Highlight: Took an Abra (old boat) ride across the Creek between Bur Dubai and Deira Dubai. Shits found cheap perfumes. And wore traditional dress.

This is basically the Dubai you hear about when people visit.

Here’s a video (from someone far more adept at telling tales about travel):

We had fun. And ran into Kannadigas in the desert, which was quite the experience. Got a lot of photos too.

Day 3: Abu Dhabi day. We booked a package that picked us up and took us by bus to Abu Dhabi. Went to Miraj, saw expensive carpets. Then went to Sheikh Zayed Mosque, visited Abu Dhabi Corniche (the opening to the seaface), and then went to a dates market. After that, visited Ferrari World!

Highlight: Sat on the fastest rollercoaster in the world at Ferrari World, Formula Rossa. Speed of 240 km/h.

The advantage of having people visit you at home is that sometimes you get to have experiences you haven’t had before.

I think it’s difficult to visit the United Arab Emirates without seeing it’s capital. Even if Dubai is considered more popular, and is sometimes misconstrued as being the entire country, with Abu Dhabi as the capital, Abu Dhabi has developed in its own right – and has always had a vibe so distinct from Dubai that it’s led to severe ego matches about which Emirate is better – between the NRI’s who live and populate the place.

I’m biased. It’s Dubai.

Visiting the Sheikh Zayed Mosque was serene. It’s grand, beautiful, and very, very peaceful. It also allows you to soak in the Islamic culture of the country really easily.

Ferrari World was something else entirely. After sitting on that rollercoaster, both Shits & I could barely move. We had to settle for doing less adrenaline-heavy stuff after that. I can still feel my heart-rate rise, just thinking about the coaster. It was definitely worth it. I really enjoyed sitting in a Ferrari model car and driving around Europe (by driving I mean, being steered, and by Europe, I mean a cardboard model thing). And eating pizza.

On my way out we realized I had left my laptop charger in the Burj Khalifa luggage room and did everything we could to recover it. We ended up getting it after visiting Dubai Mall again – the third time in three days. And we came home after my dad’s bed-time.

Another small note: grocery shopping is the best thing in the world. Snacks bring a lot of happiness into my life, and Shits & I gorged on several of them.

Day 2: At the Top, Burj Khalifa, then came back home, had lunch with parents, and then dad drove us to Jumeirah and Global Village, which is a collection of stalls from around the world. Extremely fun day.

Highlight: Ate a lot of food at Global Village. Best thing was Blueberry Ice Cream at Bosnia stall. Saw Burj al Arab.

Going to the top of the Burj Khalifa was just an exercise of getting nice photographs and really savouring everything we did there. My favourite part of it had to be the part where I gave my laptop for servicing before going there – I’m hoping it comes back fully serviced. I’ve spent too much money and time trying to get the screen fixed.

Everyone who comes to Dubai needs to see the curved building that has adorned the skyline for several years, far before it was replaced by a bigger, taller, building. That curved building is considered the only seven-star hotel in the world, and although it may not be as big, it’s still as popular, because it stands out.

Shits got to sit in my dad’s nice car and dad drove him around – explaining to him his philosophy on various things, and giving him tid-bits of history about the city. My dad’s stayed there so many years, it’s amazing that he remembers these small details that tour guides won’t be able to offer you on a guided tour. I can listen to him narrate the same story to five different sets of audiences and not get bored. I think that’s what passion does to you. He’s called a place home for so long – it’s difficult not to be passionate about being there.

Finally, we headed to Global Village. Now, Global Village is a place I’ve grown to love. Literally. To describe it simply, it’s a massive area in the middle of nowhere in Dubai – off an exit on the main road, that contains stalls from around 30 countries/groups of countries around the world. Each stall attempts to present a unique experience of what visiting that particular country will be like. I hated this place as a child. My memories of it include the first time I held a snake, walking way too much, and seeing fireworks which made a noise I despised.

But as I grew up, what I learnt was that it exposed me to cultures from around the world, and I had some of my fondest memories with my parents here: eating cotton candy and this thing called a Turkish potato with my mum, visiting here with my mum’s colleagues and their children, buying a magic set, spending time with my dad. I can’t let go of those.

And the place itself is so beautiful.

Dubai, if anything, is extravagant. Also, we walked way too much today.

I’m visiting home – at a time when my father is returning from a foreign trip, a couple – to say the least, and when my mother is recovering from a bout of an illness that has made her rather weak. It’s an interesting time to be heading home, I think it always is interesting to go back home in the middle of the semester. But I joked with my mother that my presence would help her feel better, so let’s see how true that ends up being (spoiler alert: pretty true).

I still can’t get around my relationship with Dubai. One day I want to be able to describe everything I feel about the city, but to say the least, if my relationship with the city had to be captured in a relationship status, it would be “complicated” on Facebook, but rather easy in real-life. The drama in the relationship is probably just stuff I’ve manufactured in my brain to figure out whether or not I like the place. Whatever my relationship status is, it’s where my parents reside, which is home.

This trip also marked the first time I would be taking a guest home – my batchmate, Shits, who my parents have interacted with sufficiently, and who was eager for a break from campus, just as much as I was. What I’m really looking forward to is three things: first, hosting a friend at home, something I haven’t done in a very long time, second, showing a friend around where I grew up, and third, spending time with Shits. We had a lot of fun in America last year, and I enjoy his company – it appears to be mutual, so it should be a really good time.

Day 1 was basically this. Arrival in Dubai, Sleep, Dubai Frame (a frame museum thing), Al Fahidi Mosque, and then Dubai Mall. Highlight: we ate Shake Shack burger – a burger we both love and last shared in New York City.

Landing into Dubai, my father took Shits & I out for breakfast to a Kannadiga joint I used to frequent when I was young, albeit a different branch. And there’s nothing that can make you feel like home when you can hear your tongue spoken in a foreign land, and eat your own sambhar.

My realizations at the end of today were simple. First, that we’re more adaptable, and a lot faster than we thought we were – so this itinerary I’ve made is going to go through a lot of revisions over the next few days. Second, that Shake Shack is a really good burger. And third, that Dubai has done a good job of capturing the little, 40 year old history it does have. Whatever it does have is something that the Government has attempted to really, really highlight, and they’ve done it in a very extravagant way.

My last realization: the weather is weird here.

Catch-up day is here. Which is good, and bad. It means that the streak of daily writing came to an end, but it’s good because I’m doing catch up day before April 1st. Ensuring that I’m on track to start NaPoWriMo has been a goal of mine since the start of the year, so achieving that is something I’ll take a small amount of happiness out of.

Here’s a small video before I delve into what the last few days have been like.

I think it’s important to tell people when you think they’ve done a good job. It can make a really big difference to them. Or maybe it won’t matter at all. But, if there’s a possibility that you are likely to make them feel even the slightest bit better about the work they’ve done by telling them you thought it was good work – you definitely should.

And maybe not just a “good work”, but with something more nuanced. Tell them what you liked about their work in particular, and what stood out.

Maybe we need to start doing this more. Not just with work, but in general. Appreciate people and say positive things about them.

I say this fully knowing that I share an insult-based friendship with several friends of mine, including the latest subscriber to this blog.

I’ve begun an internship at IIM-Ahmedabad. I’m not sure if I’ve written about this on the blog before but I found this Professor here who takes interns on board to help with research and I thought it was a great opportunity for me to do a couple of things. Aside from the work experience I thought it would give me a good amount of time to get away from my campus and relax a little, and also give me access to resources of arguably one of the finest institutions in our country.

IIM-A is revered here. Across industries, in pop culture, WIMWI (and I’m not sure if outsiders like myself are allowed to use the term) is an institute that has captured the imagination of several in the country. Of course, admission is based on a test and an interview process. And of course, the test does demand an aptitude of Mathematics. But the entire procedure that IIM’s use to select the crop of students who get to spend two years here has been the subject of several enjoyable Quora threads and a lot of conversations. It’s probably one of the testing systems that receives the least amount of flack in India for the pressure that it puts on students. Whether that’s down to the fact that individuals who write the entrance to get into IIM-A are more mature than those writing the CET or the JEE, or the CLAT or several other abbreviated test papers, or down to the fact that there appears to be an element that accounts for an individual’s opportunity to express and be themselves, I’m not sure.

Whatever it is, the institution seems to produce leaders. Okay, forget leaders – because I think that’s too much pressure to place on individuals who graduate from an institution. The institution and it’s experience creates individuals who have perspective to offer to most conversations.

My experience of IIM-A alums is limited to two individuals I’ve had the luck to spend a fair amount of time with. My mom’s colleague and his wife saw me grow up from being a baby child in Grade 6, and I visit them even now when I’m in the same city as them. Of course, conversation was easier because of how many of our interests overlap, but the one thing I’ve always admired about them is how much and how widely they read, and how much of a different perspective they’re able to provide to everything I’m experiencing. I really enjoy that.

Anyway, I’ve been observing that up-close, now that I get to sit in the library here twice a week, and I think the institution itself facilitates a lot of that. Even my conversations with the professor supervising me feel different to the conversations I have with professors on campus – something I think is reflective of the culture of an institute.

It’s different – and I’m enjoying the difference.

Yesterday on the way back to campus my Uber driver was an individual who drove Ubers part-time – who was saving up for his daughter to go to Law school. When he saw my campus gate he commented “Yahaan nahi aane wali hai”, which translates to “She isn’t going to come here”. Defensively, I asked, “Toh kahaan?”, loosely meaning “So, where else?”, and he confidently said “Bangalore mein seat pakka milega”.

That belief in his daughter’s ability moved me. I know my parents have that belief in me as well, and I know how much of a difference it makes on days that I feel less motivated to do things, or to go to class, or even to put in less effort to activities I do perform.

I just hope it doesn’t overburden her with pressure. Pressure can obfuscate the difference between someone else’s expectations of you, and your own expectations of yourself – which I think is unfair when you’re trying to decide on your own career path and how you want to spend up to 5 years of your life.

 

Going back into classes after an entire week of exams is very disillusioning. The week spoilt me. I was able to sleep in the middle of the day, and choose when I wanted to concentrate and when I wanted to turn off. The dress code was relaxed because I knew nobody would care about me turning up in pyjamas to the exam hall. (To be honest, I don’t care about wearing pyjamas to class now either, but I wear jeans or pants to show some respect for the educational institution, or something – there’s no real reasoning behind it)

Especially those two holidays we had in the middle. Because I slept and didn’t keep any alarms, knowing that I wouldn’t miss an exam even if I slept in. My general exam sleep cycle means I don’t keep alarms at all – relying instead on an extended network of friends to wake me up on time. But this laziness appears to have carried forward to the week itself, because I haven’t kept my alarms, and found myself awake only because the sun hit my eyes and blinded me as soon as I opened them.

In any case, the weather in Ahmedabad/Gandhinagar (I’m still unsure what to call this) seems to have stabilized enough (by which I mean it is now warm/hot) for me to have a bath every morning, instead of picking whether to bathe in the afternoon based on the fluctuating weather and my mood. Having a bath in the morning is amazing, because it actually wakes you up. Like, physically. The bucket bath is also excellent exercise, and you’ll hear your knees crack at various points. Exciting.

Today also allowed me to go outside for dinner with my friends – something we used to do regularly in the first few semesters, but manage maybe only once or twice a semester now. It’s these trips that remind me how lucky I am to be in college, because I’m surrounded by people I like hanging out with, and people who are kind souls, people I’m hoping to be in touch with forever. It also allows us to explore the extents of our appetites and their capabilities. 5 of us, for example, consumed 10 Mango Lassis last night, spending an upward of 1000 rupees on these drinks.

What a joy we are.