On Left and Rights

I recently saw a girl playing bowling at FunTantra and struggling. I thought of guiding her and told her to raise her RIGHT hand. She looked back at me with a confused look and said - "This one or this one ?"

Something like this does not amaze me, as Rubal, who is one of the smartest people I know amuses me with her inability to distinguish between left and right so often. She'd solve the most complicated puzzles and when I ask her to turn right in the car - she'd look back with anger and say - "WHICH SIDE?! Your side or my side ?!"

One of the favorite incidents related to this is from my friend Kuldeep. He was out shopping with Rubal and Tina and when they were walking out of the store Kuldeep told them we are going 'Right' next.

As soon as they walked out a shocked Kuldeep saw that he was alone and the two girls were walking in the opposite direction. Confused for a moment and double checking the direction - he concluded it was the left and rights dilemma. The girls in their own innocent minds were mad at Kuldeep for telling them to go right and then going in the wrong direction!

Another incident from last year was when Rubal and I were driving to Tina's house. I asked Tina for directions from the main road and she said - "Take two rights and then a left, its very easy".

So I did that and landed up in some village.

Then I called Tina again and she said 'let me explain it to Rubal'. She told Rubal "Take two rights and then a left, its very easy". So Rubal guided me the rest of the way and surely enough after two left turns and one right turn we reached Tina's place!

Interesting Customers

A conversation from our new Gaming Center - FunTantra

http://www.facebook.com/FunTantra

Customer:'Awesome place! Can I buy that gaming system from here?'
Rubal : 'Yup'
Cust : What's the cost of that system?
Rubal: That's a PS3 with move, its around Rs 23k
Cust: Will I get a LCD with that? (pointing towards the 90k Full HD 50" screen)
Rubal: No, you can attach it to your own TV.
Cust: Oh, okay. Will I get that wheel with it? (Pointing towards the force feedback simulation racing wheel)

Rubal : No, sir - thats a separate accessory.

Cust: Oh, then what will I get for Rs 23k ??

Rubal : You will get the PS3 console with Move controller

Cust: What's a console ?

Rubal(Now getting frustrated) : Its that thing you put a game CD in.

Cust : oh Okay! Then can I put it in my own DVD Player ? I mean I put DVDs in it all the time.

And that was the last time Rubal visited FunTantra.

Creepy Collections Management

Creepy Collections Story from yesterday.

Got a call in the morning telling me that my Tata photon broadband bill was due today.
I said - 'I am out today and I'll get it deposited on Monday.'  
The lady said, but then you will have to pay the overdue amount.
I said - 'Well thanks for rubbing it in, I understand. Its okay.' 
So she says - 'I can somebody to collect the payment, when will you be back'. 
I told her - 'In the evening.'
So she says - 'Okay, our guy will be there at 5 PM'. 

5 PM, I was still out, so got another call. 'Sir, are you back'. 
I told her - 'Nope, I am still out. I will get the bill deposited on Monday.' 
'Okay, Sir but the bill is due today'
I said - 'Hey - I understand that, I've paid all my bills on time. I don't have time today, I'll pay the overdue amount as well. Please stop bugging me, I am having lunch'
She says - 'I am sorry sir, but where are you having lunch?'
'At Nandos'
'Alright I will send somebody to collect the payment from there. Just give me the address' 

I gave the address, and said - 'I'll eat my lunch and leave'. I was in the center of Chandigarh, and Tata's office that I dealt with was in Mohali, a fair distance. Crazy lady - I thought. 
However - In 5 MINUTES there was a guy outside the restaurant ready to collect the payment.

I gave a cheque to be safe, and when the lady called again to confirm - I told her if we ever hire somebody for collections management, she'd be the first person we ask!

When do you trust ?

I need your feedback on something.

Today in the afternoon I got a call from "Shyam Sundar ", he identified himself as Batch of 99 EnTC pass-out from my college AIT, and asked me if I was in Mumbai. When I told him, I was not, he said he was stuck in Mumbai, his wallet had been stolen in the local train and his phone was not charged. He had just 30-40 rupees which he was using to call me because he thought I was in Mumbai.

He said he tried Pravab first, saying he used to be in NITI, but looks like he is no longer in Mumbai. I did have a batchmate named Pranab at AIT.

He asked me if I had an online account, and my instinctive reaction was to say “No”.

He sounded so disappointed, said he was stuck in Mumbai and it was raining heavily. He said he needed just about Rs. 1400 for an overnight bus to Bangalore from Mumbai.  I told him I have a friend who does, and he might be able to help.

He told me that he'd call me back - he would ask some passerby outside an ATM and give me his account details and then he would pay me back as soon as he reached Bangalore. He called me after 30 minutes and said he still had not found anybody as it was raining heavily.

He called me again after an hour saying he still had not found anybody outside this ATM and was going to try another ATM.

After that he did not call me.

Do any of you know this particular person from AIT?

My dad was around when I got one of these calls and he said its a scam. Actually he said it like this - IT IS A SCAM, son.

From the call and the urgency it didn't seem like one, but I am not too sure.

However, it was too convenient for this person to be a 1999 pass out, where as I joined college in 1999. What I do know is if this person had called back again, I might just have transferred the money. Am I really naive ?

What they don’t tell you about Surprise Parties in the Movies

We organized a surprise birthday party last night. The plan was simple – have a party at midnight (the typical, lights off, people hiding in the room, and SURPRISE… when the subject walks in). You have the picture, its in every movie, right ?

Let me tell you what they don’t tell you in the movie. Here’s what happened.

The party was going to be a shock as most of the participants were above 50, and it was well past their bed time.

It was 11.30 PM, I was the decoy, I kept the target(birthday girl - Chetna) busy while everybody else gathered in the drawing room. I am not really good at small talk, so I just spoke about technical things, and after 5 minutes I got pretty uncomfortable. Here I was, talking technology at 11.35 PM, for the first time, while her husband was getting ready(actually organizing things). No way, she is buying it – I was thinking.

And then there was a slight knock  on our door. I tried to ignore it, but there it was again, the slight knock. That knock in itself spoke out – hey I am a secret knock.

So I opened the door, and it was my dad. He didn’t know the location of the target and was coming to meet me. So here’s the first rule -

#1 Everybody needs to know the location of the target.

My dad looked at me, looked at Chetna, and then his expression was priceless. It was a combination of - “Oh Man!!!!!” and “I just woke up and suddenly I have all TV cameras on me and I am wearing just my pajamas”.  Plus his eyes were all red for being awake at 11.40 PM.

He was speechless.

The best I could come up with was - “Ah so you came to give me something … ”

He said - “Oh yeah, right”, and relaxed for a moment.

Then I looked at the watch, I don’t know why, and said - “At 11.40 PM….”

My dad had his expression back on. Chetna had burst into laughter at this point, so I kind of gave up and said - “I guess you got late at work”.

He said - “Oh yeah, right”.

The second rule

#2 Have a backup plan or line ready, in case you slip up

I didn’t know what to do next so I told Chetna, her husband was calling her. So she went to Kuldeep and asked - “Jivi told me that you called me?”

And he says blankly –“No I didn’t call you”

She was rolling with laughter at this point. Our stories were so un-coordinated.

The third rule -

Don’t forget you are in the middle of a secret operation, when under pressure

Though at this point she knew we were planning something, she didn’t really think everybody was in the house already. We had faked that we would go out.

Kuldeep kept one small light on in the drawing room, and we starting going out. Normally Chetna would always turn off the extra light, even if it meant us getting late for a train. Today she just missed it, and walked right past.

We all got outside and Kuldeep looked at me desperately somehow saying it all with his eyes - “Oh Man, she wouldn’t even turn off the light today”

Last Rule -

Don’t count on the target to do those little things, they do everyday, on their birthday

So he faked leaving a key. We went inside, found the key and he turned on another extra light.

Now when we pretended to leave, she said “let me turn that light off”

And then SURPRISE !!!! Happy Birthday!

For what its worth, she was still shocked :)

South Goa – Palolem, Patnem and Agonda (the beach shacks have come of age)

Palolem, Patnem and Agonda are beautiful beaches in South Goa. There aren’t any big hotels here (apart from the 5 star Lalit Intercontinental in Rajbag), so the beaches are comparatively less crowded and have a lot of scenic beauty. Every year the beach shacks are setup from scratch and dismantled during the monsoons! That probably explains why Palolem is often rated the most beautiful beach in India.

We had shortlisted a few places from Outlook Traveler, and Lonely Planet in south Goa – Cuba, Allessandra, Village Guest House, Sandy Feet, Ordo Sounsar, Bhakti Kutir, Dream Catcher, Ciaran’s Camp, White Sand, Sand and Waves and Agonda Paradise.

Agonda

Agonda is supposedly less crowded compared to Palolem, so we went here first. We debated going to Agonda via the coastal road from Assolna (which Lonely Planet said was one of the most beautiful roads in Goa). However, considering our already long route from central Goa, we decided to go on the highway (NH17). The asses were definitely grateful the next morning that another couple of hours riding were avoided, and the ride on NH17 was delightful.

Agonda had a nice beach, with a lot of beach shacks but nothing stood out. Cuba was nice, and H20 looked nice as well. We highlighted these two on our list and proceeded to Palolem.

In hindsight, if all you are looking for is some peace by the beach, it can’t get any better than Agonda. If you want a little action – Palolem is better.

Palolem

Palolem is a beautiful beach, we thought it was the prettiest beach in Goa. It has an island and a stream on one side, and a rocky bay on the other. It is crescent shaped with beautiful clear water and looked like a place right out of a dream. This is where the first 15 minutes of Bourne Supremacy were shot. It was a little crowded even though it was just about the end of season. The locals told us that there is hardly any place to step on the beach in December and January. Here in the end of March, it didn’t seem overwhelming.

There were two places here that were on the top of my list - Dreamcatcher, which is about 100 metres off from the beach, and on the side of a stream, and Ciaran’s camp.

Ciaran’s camp has the best reviews on TripAdvisor, and looked pretty good. We fell in love with Dreamcatcher though - it had something for everybody. Its laid back from the beach so you have your privacy, and the stream and the view of the island makes up for it. We stayed at the Honeymoon Suite, which has two floors including a balcony which overlooks the stream. The off season rate was just around Rs. 3500 per night, which is still expensive compared to the other beach shacks in Palolem which vary between 700 and 3000.

It was definitely one of the most romantic places I have ever seen. The only downside is that there is one huge bathroom, with a bathtub, on the ground floor, and the bedroom is on the first floor, so I burnt a lot of calories running up and down in the three days we stayed here. The stunning thing about this place is that it is dismantled every year and built up from scratch. I think they should make it a national heritage site based on that fact alone!

The restaurant is by the stream, overlooking the small hill and though I had a lot of restaurants on my list for Palolem, we were drawn back to it every day for its stunning views.

This is the honeymoon suite – this fantastic structure is built from scratch every year!

 

About Palolem From Wikipedia -

“The beach is featured as the Indian residence of Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) in the film The Bourne Supremacy (2004). The initial footage in the movie gives a good idea of the natural beauty of the beach - the distinctive tree covered rocks at one end (known locally as Monkey Island - to which tours are run) and beach shacks.”

 

 

Patnem

A nice walk down from Palolem and passing Colomb on the way is the Patnem beach. It is less crowded than Palolem and people seeking more privacy throng here. Its a beautiful beach too and looked great for surfing.

The interesting thing about this beach is that there are hardly any Indians here. I guess Indians like staying in nice hotels, and I guess the heat wouldn’t be as inviting to most of us as it is to the Europeans.

The photograph below is from the beautiful Patnem beach

Here is a fantastic reference from Outlook Traveler about the beach shacks all over Goa – Small Vagator, Aswem, Morjim (All North Goa), Palolem, Agonda and Patnem. It has the rates and tariffs for each, though you will be able to negotiate your way a lot, from the website rates, during the off season.

http://travel.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?264085

Goa’s beach shacks come of age. Here are some - both posh and not - that made the grade this season.

North Goa Restaurant Map – 1 (Baga, Calangute and Candolim)

Eating out in Goa can give somebody who has trouble making choices a head-ache. There are tens of thousands of restaurants, and standard of food varies widely. Considering the fact that an average vacation of 10 days would give you just about 20 restaurants to try – you have to be prepared to work hard and choose.

I generally look up Tripadvisor restaurant reviews, Lonely Planet and Times food guide – in addition to word of mouth. This is often a project in itself that has to be meticulously planned if you are a foodie like me.

Last time we were in Goa – we had the MapMyIndia GPS, Addresses from Restaurant websites and maps from Travel books to find our way to the restaurants. It felt like a tedious task considering we were always on a bike. So I made a note to self to make a Goa restaurants map. Here’s the first version for Candolim, Calangute and Baga.

Here are my favorites on a map –

Local Flavor

Souza Lobo, with its awesome sea food, right on Calangute beach is a local favorite. Be prepared to wait or go a little late or early. This is the place you want to try your Goan specialities like Xacuti, Cafreal and Vindaloo. Reviews

Britto’s on Baga beach for its atmosphere and sea food platters. There’s always a live band or Karaoke to keep you entertained while you wait for the food.

After Seven and East Meets West both have a wide variety of options in their main course

World Food

Tibetian Kitchen for its spicy as hell sauces. If you get a long waiting at Souza Lobo, this is an excellent alternative a few steps away. Try the momos.

Banyan Tree – This is a fantastic Thai restaurant inside the Taj Holiday Village Campus. The green curries and the salads were fantastic. 

Fine Dining

A Reverie for atmosphere and options on the menu that I always have trouble reading out loud.

Republic of Noodles – One of the top 100 restaurants of Asia.

View North Goa Restaurants - 1 (Baga, Calangute, Candolim) in a larger map

Afternoon Snacks

You will find both these places open when all other restaurants are closed in the afternoons or early evening.

Infantaria is a great option with good food and Bebinca to die for. I have seen the locals get their cakes and pastries packed from here.

Cinnabar is right beside the Acron Arcade, has a variety of options from Burgers to Biryanis and Goan bread.

Deserts

There’s the irresistible Cafe Chocolatti with its chocolate strawberry mousse and other fine pastries. Natural’s Ice- cream near the Calangute beach is awesome, as it is anywhere else in India. I can never have enough of Natural’s Coconut ice-cream. East Meets West and A Reverie have great deserts to follow the meals.

Coffee

There are a couple of Cafe Coffee Day outlets, a Barista outlet in Calangute. There’s a Subway on the Baga road.

Vegetarian

There are lots of options for vegetarians, but I’ve only tried one.

Sharanam Green – This restaurant has more options for Vegetarians than I have seen anywhere in India. Worth checking out.

Here are some useful links if you are looking for more Vegetarian options

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g306995-i9760-k3307448-Vegetarian_Food-Calangute_Goa.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g297604-i9241-k2306928-Vegetarian_Resturant_Calgunate_Area_Goa-Goa.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g297604-i6045-k2413535-Help_Vegetarian_Healthy_Eating_North_Goa-Goa.html

Others

I have never been disappointed with any Shack I have eaten at – Pete’s Shack, St Anthony’s Shack,  Shining Star Beach Shack. It is impossible not to love the food with a gentle breeze,  looking out at the sea. There are other north Indian restaurants like – Indian Spice and Indian Kitchen which are good as well, if you want to go to a North Indian restaurant in Goa . We once tried the tandoori prawn at Indian Spice and loved it.

I have never had a chance to go to J & A’s Little Italy and Le Poisson Rouge, though I have read good things about them. They open only in the evening, and we were always at the beach in the evenings.

Did I miss any big ones ?

More Info -

Here is a nice list of restaurants : The hungry beach bum's guide to 25 of north Goa's best restaurants

http://www.cnngo.com/mumbai/none/definitive-guide-north-goas-25-best-restaurants-386742

Another nice summary list : http://www.gogoa.com/restaurants-cuisines.html

Tripadvisor Restaurant Reviews

Baga Restaurants : http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g635747-Baga_Goa.html

Calangute Restaurants : http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g306995-Calangute_Goa.html

Candolim Restaurants : http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g297605-Candolim_Goa.html