Mahi does Kolkata

The 4th of June marked my first (of many, I'm sure) trip to my future-maybe-home of Kolkata.

Wait, what?!
Reeewind...........

So my dear Avi is currently based in Kolkata and so it would seem that in Kolkata, is where my future lies!
I'll be honest, the thought of moving of India kinda scares the living daylights out of me, but when I stop to think about it - hasn't my whole life been about moving and adapting? And so the Mahi shall move, adapt and bring her own brand of crazy to Kolkata (or wherever else I end up).
:)

This trip was the first of many, many things:

1) My first time taking a certain flight carier to India, all alone.
And what a maiden voyage it was. So I boarded the rickety little flight to Kolkata. The word 'rickety' should pretty much clue you in on the state of the plane. I won't mention the flight carrier but I reeeally wish I could just so that none of you guys have to suffer like I did. The food was awful. It's never a good sign when you can't quite identify what you're eating - "Is the sandwich filled with cheese? Egg-white? Mayonnaise? Foam? Puffy white clouds from hell?
Here's the kicker - the toilets were unisex. (Oh.My.God.)* I know this comes off as awfully racist but come on, we all know the state of the loos on flights packed with Indians.
And of course I always end up in the seat either in a row of crying babies or in this case - diagonally behind a very concerned perv who kept turning around to check if my chest was still where it should be.
*Okay, so it's been brought to my attention that ALL flights have unisex toilets. I really am living on my own planet. Sorry, crappy flight carrier. This still doesn't take away from the fact that your overall service, seats and food sucks!!
After that, I thought hey...things can't get worse, I've landed safe and sound, yay! So, imagine my surprise when I realised the airport didn't have trolleys...yep, no trolleys. So I'm there,  with all my baggage, but nothing to put it on! I struggled, BROKE A NAIL, listened with silent, mean, joy as a disgruntled 70 year old woman ripped the airport officials a new one, as she ranted about the lack of trolleys. Thankfully, I soon rested my eyes upon Avi waiting for me. An oasis in the desert and what relief, bliss, happiness, joy, love and peace, I experienced! All was fine once again :)

2) My first time tasting the food in Kolkata
Wow. Wow. Wow. Good stuff and great service but damn, these guys really like their chilli don't they? Drinking copious amounts to douse the fire on my tongue and in my belly aside, the food was delish and the desserts were delish-er! Also, I don't think I've ever had so much tea in my life, people here are very passionate about their food and drink. I think I'll fit right in ;)

3) My first time visiting the Kalighat temple
Located in a bit of a dodgy area, this temple was quite an eye-opener! While it felt incredibly powerful, it was  so unlike any other temple I had been to - animal sacrifices, women in trances, dogs and rats running around....I'm not sure I'd visit it again but I'm glad I saw it this time around.

4) My first time shopping in Kolkata
So I realised I'm really not much of a shopper. Show me 5 outfits and tell me to pick one - no problem. But start bringing in outfit after outfit after outfit...and it messes my head up! I'm likely to pick one just to end the process. When I finally do my wedding shopping, I'm taking Mom with me - let her pick and make me choose. Freedom of will (in this case) is so overrated.
Some of the shopkeepers were a little too pushy for my liking - one lady shoved a punjabi suit into my hands and instructed about 5 times "You take this."
"Ummm, no thank you?"
On the upside - I made the shopkeepers happy because they finally had a customer tall enough to wear the outfits. It's like outfits were made for me! I felt so special and princessy trying on the first 8-10 outfits...after that, I just got downright tired.

5) My first visit to the apartment we'll be living in
I visited the beautiful cosy apartment we'll be living in. I could hardly believe I was in the house in which I'd probably be raising my kids in. How time flies and how grown-up I felt!
I also managed to offload a quarter of my luggage in the apartment. Consisting mostly of home accessories and a few clothes - it was my little way of Mahi-fying the house!

6) My first time having a cockroach crawl up leg
I don't come across roaches in Singapore often and getting upclose and personal with one was NOT an experience I relished, I can tell ya that. One particularly adventurous roach decided to climb Mount Mahi while I was taking a shower. The silent shock, horror and repulsion I experienced was mindblowing and almost like a bit of a spiritual experience.
*Shuddddddder*

So Kolkatta wasn't a bed of roses but I feel lucky because when I do move there, I'll have Avi by my side and some very lovely people as friends! I'd like to think I'll not only make the most of my stay there, but even enjoy it quite a bit :) (fingers crossed!)

Home, Sweet Home.

So I've made a couple of overseas trips this year, in fact I just landed in Singapore this morning, after a super short trip, and I made an interesting observation on both occasions.

Nothing, absolutely nothing (not even chocolate) compares to the feeling of happiness that borders on insanity, that one gets upon reaching home...

...no matter where home might be :)

The One where Mahi goes to Chennai!

Wow it's been ages since I've updated this baby, hasn't it?
I've been a shitty-arsed blog visitor too, please forgive me..you still love me right?

(I know you do.)

Anyway!
I'm back from my short trip to Chennai (thats in South India for those of who couldn't give a rat's ass about geography).
My mom and I went for my second cousins thread ceremony. Along with meeting up with long lost relatives Mom also thought it would be an opportune time to unleash Mahi onto the unsuspecting public. Heh heh. Good ol' Mom.

I don't quite know where to begin...
Most of you know that I've always had this slight fear of India..you know too much noise, too many people, too much everything (but then again, compared to Singapore, any place would seem like too much). But this time around I found myself enjoying the hustle and bustle of the life there.

The place had character. The traffic sucked big time though. There was no concept of staying in one line or actually glancing at the traffic signal. There was liberal use of full-on flood lights, followed by liberal temporary blindness which was followed by liberal near-death experiences.
Cool!

Speaking of 'cool!', I met Mom's side of the family after nearly 8 years.
I've always been very fond of all of Mom's cousins and their kids and her aunts and uncles. They're an affectionate lot. It's a huge family and all of them make it a point to have a sort of reunion every now and then. It's amazing how much the family has expanded. One of my grand-aunts now has 10 grandchildren! Thats 10 second cousins in a flash! I've got to work overtime on my family tree now.
It's our custom to touch the feet of the elders and every time I did that, they would bless me with the utterance "May you get a good husband." I guess in this day and age, it's not such a bad blessing to receive, eh?

All of them speak Tulu and I found myself drifting to a pleasant place while all of them spoke rapid-fire Tulu. Sort of like a babbling brook. It was so nice to hear, even though I didn't understand 90% of what they said. 4 days ago I could speak only a smattering- just enough to tell the people at these functions to stop loading my banana leaf with food. I would just smile and nod and mutter the occasional "Yes, yes correct" or "No, no!" (complete with an edge of panic in my voice) and that seemed to please them. But something weird happened- as if by osmosis, or diffusion for those of you who are anal about these terms, I started to actually speak a few phrases of Tulu. A few well formed phrases at that! Enough to make decent conversation! Mom and her aunts and cousins were shocked. God bless the unconscious absorbtion of information.

Speaking of banana leaves, sitting on the ground to eat with your hands can be a real bitch for someone who sits at a table and eats with a fork, knife and spoon 99.9% of the time. I managed to eat whatever came my way with measured small handfuls (fingerfuls?). Of course there were the usual 5..10.. 50 people laughing at my sad attempts all the way. But I like to think I did good.

Speaking of 'good', it was nice to realise that good looks run in the family too.
Heh heh heheh heheh.
(What? I never said I was modest!)
Mom's side of the family had people with pink skin and amber-green eyes.
What the hell? I've got brown eyes and brown skin.
Goddamn you, Genetics!
*Mahi shakes a fist*
But then again, even the ones without those feline features were pretty damn good looking too.
I know, I know, I'm being superficial and all that, but I like to give credit where it's due, okay?

Speaking of 'pretty damn good', let's talk about FOOD, people.
Singapore is forever calling itself as a foodie's paradise but compared to the food in India, it's just downright insipid.
The food there was completely and utterly mindblowing! I told Mom I would move there just for the food. At this point I could practically hear Mom gleefully thinking "Hee hee, single eligible bachelors in India, get readyyyyyyy!"

And finally speaking of bachelors, I didn't see many of them around but I did see their mothers and grandmothers around. These ladies are a force to be reckoned with.
They scare me.
There was a lot of whispering and hush-hush talk about prospective grooms and all that.
C'est la vie.
*Shrugs*

Oh and I shopped too.
Hehehe

The flights sucked ass but all in all I had an amazing time.

Here's to family ties
-clink-

Crazy Girl Rants..about stuff. (there's a tag too)

This is gonna be one of those posts that has a bit of everything..

---Begin Referral Rant---
I know a lot of bloggers have done this - checked referrals and seen really weird shit that leads readers to their site..and I'm no different :) Except that the number of readers is irrelevant to me..honest..I'm just so tickled by what pops up on referrals.

Anyway this is mostly what i got these past 2 days.. here goes:
mahima legs (why..thank you.)
made mahima dev appreciation day (Deeev....was this you? :P)
these are the days of our lives tv theme (who is THIS lame!? I want to SHOOT you for watching this show.)
indians are lazy (damn right.)
skybombers
mahima boobs (like I'd honestly ever put that up.)
man beaters (wtf? who's been watching me)
bursting bladder (oh-kaay..you need a urologist or something..I don't think I'm qualified for this stuff...)
hindus believe in hell (yes. i do. its called the Australian embassy..it's alternate site is the Indian embassy)
hot mahima (so sweet.)

Come out, come out, wherever you are...bloody freakshows.
:P
---End Referral Rant---


---Begin Period Rant---
I just remembered something, in Australia a male friend of mine asked about a girl's period and why we get cramps..now I'm no doctor but I did do biology (um..in 10th grade) and here's what I want to tell you clueless men and women out there-
1) It's not dirty blood. There is no such thing as 'dirty blood'. There's only 'oxygenated' and 'deoxygenated' blood. It's the uterus lining that's being shed. You know? The lining that the fertilized egg attaches itself to?
And here's a big FUCK YOU if you still go around exempting women (and yourself) from carrying out their daily business with the lame ass excuse of "No. You are dirty." (This does not apply to gym class :P)
2) Don't tell us to 'deal with it' when we complain about cramps. Not unless you want to get punched in the face. It's real, it's not just a state of mind.

No I'm not PMSing. Does EVERYTHING have to be attributed to PMS??! GO AWAY!
---End Period Rant---


---Begin Melbourne Rant---
I've been thinking about THE FUTURE.
(My future..not yours :P)

Maybe this is my post-holiday blues talking but I REALLY would like to settle down in Melbourne. Sure I know there are better places, and sure I know I probably haven't seen any better...but it's Melbourne for now.
I just went grocery shopping today and it totally pissed me off to see a handful of button mushrooms cost more than a Starbucks coffee. Mushrooms three times the quantity of this cost half the price in Melbourne. Ditto for Basil leaves.
(I made pesto..it rocked-
2-3 cups basil leaves, packed
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
couple of tablespoons olive oil
about 80-100 grams pine nuts
Method - Blend it all together..couple of minutes on a pan with mushrooms if you want, serve with pasta anyway you want..knock yourself out!)
It's little things like that ya know?
The annoying cashier who doesn't smile back pissed me off too and bought back memories of witty conversations with waiters and waitresses in Melbourne. Sure they probably didn't give a rats ass if I liked my triple chocolate caramel cake or why I turned vegetarian, but at least they ASKED!
Okay the shopping here is cheaper, but so what.
And what is with the WEATHER. I could feel my organs jostling for more breathing room (oh you know what I mean), my hair getting poofier and my smoothie becoming an insipid, room temperaturey-watery drink in like 2 seconds.

Thank God at least cabs here are cheaper (FOR NOW)
---End Melbourne Rant---


---Begin Bored Rant---
I'm beginning to get that feeling again..(no not that lovin' feeling.)
You know..I just need to do SOMETHING but I don't know what. It's something artistic but there's a block that preventing me from seeing what it is I need to do. And I'm kinda lazy.
---End Bored Rant---


---Begin Music Rant---
Dev was nice enough to burn me a CD of mostly Aussie Music (I'm not sure if ALL these artists are Aussie tho). I'd like to spread the love and tell you guys which ones I love (and why)-

Pete Murray - Fly With You (very sexy. I LOVE this one..it's been on repeat)
Pete Murray - Opportunity (this one is very special and never fails to bring back memories of all of us singing this in the car to wherever, always. This was the song Dev played on the guitar and I sang, on that lovely night of Mafia playing, mad inspirational dancing and tarot card reading)
Eskimo Joe - Black Fingernails Red Wine (on the aussie radio ALL THE DAMN TIME.)
Eskimo Joe - London Bombs ( Heartbreaking.)
Ben Lee - Gamble Everything for Love ( Dev suggested I get over my issues when it came to affairs of the heart and put this song on..I think it might have helped :) )
Gnarls Barkley - Crazy (this one played when um...I got over my issues :P)
---End Music Rant---


And now for my tag from (which will be kinda short coz this entry has been kinda longish) the lovely Cee Kay, the now *cough* defunct 4WD and my chalu sistah Megha-

I am thinking about..
This annoying upper back pain I'm experiencing..I feel like someone out there has a Mahi voodoo doll and twists it viciously at least 3 times a day.

I said…
Some pretty bold things in Melbourne...sober! =D
Worked pretty well in my favour I think. Note to self - Be more bold, more often.

I want to…
Go back to Melbourne (oh like you didn't see that coming.) I know things won't always stay the same but I know its natural to long to be somewhere else..so I'm just going with the flow..I know I'll get over my Melbourne-sickness....I think.

I wish…
I wasn't in this country sometimes..I think sometimes I'd be happier anywhere else.

I hear…
What people don't have to say. But sometimes I pretend I don't.

I wonder..
when I'll meet a nice, intelligent, hot man. (they always end up having 2 out of the 3)..No scratch that I HAVE known men like that, but I wonder when I'll actually end up with one (who's not gay.)

I Regret..
Nothing.

I am...
Confident, stubborn, selfish, funny, smart, empathic, a good conversationalist, someone you'd want to know..........when it suits me.

I dance..
best after 3 drinks. :)

I sing..
all the time and everywhere. I cook best when there's music playing in the background.

I cry..
once in a blue moon and rarely in front of other people. Please don't psychoanalyse that...I just don't!

I am not always..
such a joy to know

I make with my hands..
my art. Every piece of art has a piece of my soul and a little spiritual guidance in it.

I write ..
stuff on this blog mainly for me to read after say...30 years. Just to see how much I've changed.

I confuse...
road directions really often. If you're lost PLEASE don't call me for directions..you'll end up in Timbuktu.

I need..
a place that feels like home...and a nice intelligent hot straight man to call my own :D

And finally...
this post is DONE!
Hope you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!


(You KNOW there's only one correct response to that statement :P)

Oh and I tag no one to do this :)
(But if you want to do it anyway, you have my blessings)

Pictures from Down Under

Seeing that everyone wanted pictures of this trip, I have decided to indulge you guys :)


Dev's Birthday Present






Not too shabby for a day's work!











I tried keeping the portrait a secret and instead told Dev I had got him a book. Meanwhile...just a couple of minutes before this pic was taken, Sheetal's (who I stayed with) Mom says "Oh Dev! Have you seen your portrait??"

I smacked my forehead. I literally SMACKED my forehead.



Dev's Mexican Themed Birthday Party



Overall an INCREDIBLY fun night! I met the whole gang, my make-up was nice and there was plenty of booze and back massages (oops) to go around!
And in case you doubted that the theme was 'Mexican', I say to you...









EAT DIRT because there was a SOMBRERO! and ..











A GIANT MARGHARITA!

(And Sangria and Enchillada's which I didn't photograph because I was too busy consuming it in all its Mexican goodness.)

Ola! Arrriiiiba! Andale Andale Eeeba! La Cucaracha Baby!

The Boathouse Dinner

This was a dinner at a boathouse. It was a family affair- Dev's family and Sheetal's family.We had good food, good laughs, a couple of tipsy Dad's and a wardrobe malfunction (Not me..Arpu). I've said it before and I'll say it again - God Bless Safety Pins.
Ahhh all in a days work =)









This is at the dinner table...where I demonstrated my left profile with great gusto. It was obviously contagious. Look at Ravi! See how happy the left profile makes him?
Indulge.. in Your Left Profile.







The Skybombers Gig


As mentioned in the previous post, Dev's brother Ravi is in a band called....you guessed it, Skybombers!
We went for the gig, see there's the poster if you don't believe me!












That's Hugh (the lead singer) and Ravi (who plays bass guitar and does back up vocals)









That's Ravi again who decided to take it all off...well just his jacket at least.










Samson Hill Vineyard



I say screw the wine...look at the cheese platter!
That, my friends, is a magic plate of happiness (and a heart attack).
*happy sigh*










That's the vineyard..believe me when I say it was a BEAUTIFUL day...






It's sights like these that make me believe that such beauty couldn't possibly be a mere coincidence of 'being at the right place at the right time' or just the simple physics of condensing water vapour being heated up and allowing the sun's rays to sear through.

My camera rocks.




Mornington Peninsula






This place is gorgeous..











We were blackmailed into posing like this. It was totally involuntary! OH damn you Dev and your....evil...blackmail material!
*shakes a fist*









Bye bye Mornington Peninsula :(









A Party!


Sheetal's Dad was the star of the show. Not only did he keep dishing out the most heavenly Midori Illusions, he is THE pro at strawberry margharita's.

On a completeley unrelated note- there was crazy dancing, drink spillage on carpets and pool tables and furniture breakage.

The End

Is it just me, or are sunsets in Australia waaay better than the ones here?

Hot, Steamy Days Down Under.

Teehee.

Okay Okay we'll wait till you get your mind out of the gutter and then I'll tell you about the trip.

Done?
Cool.

Ok firstly the flight sucked ass.
It was filled with stinky Europeans. I'm not being racist, it's a fact. The flight began in London and had a stopover at Singapore..hence stinky Europeans.
Not only was it stinky but I got a bloody window seat. I didn't have the heart to disturb the eldery couple next to me so I basically pee-ed when they needed to pee (which was annoyingly not often enough.)
I also wish there was so rule about how taller people should get the emergency exit seats. I was like an overgrown sardine in a stinky can.

But Melbourne rocked. It was cold but bloody awesome!
In my previous post, loyal reader and good pal Dev gave you all an update, so I'll elaborate-

Dev said
quick mahi update to her loyal readers:
1) she lost my brithday present but found it.
2) she lost her camera btut found it.
3) she drew me and AWESOME PICTURE of my face for me...wowsers
4) she did a body shot of tequilla !! lol
5) a total of 97 photos have been taken with mahima in it somehow...which averages 19.4 photos per day.
6) we're off to watch italy vs australia tonight at federation square (outdoors with 20,000 supporters at 2am tonight!)
7) and yes, mahi's still on the MAN-HUNT (well, lets see how shw goes with 20,000 drunk fans tonight).

1) I misplaced Dev's very expensive present (which wasn't even from me, but from another friend), proceeded to have a mini heart attack, turned the whole house upside down and then finally found it in Arpu's suitcase. I don't know whether to feel terrible for going through Arpu's stuff or wonder why on earth was it in her suitcase in the first place. :P
Okay okay she's not a klepto, the truth is our stuff was all over the place and things get misplaced.
(Ahem.)
Dev's Mexican themed party rocked and I'm sure he wouldn't mind me putting up a few pictures!


2) I misplaced my camera, my phone, my money, my hairbrush, my towel..and everything else at least 3 times every day. Makes me wonder where my mind is or if I just automatically turn blonde everytime I land in Melbourne.

3) I drew Dev's portrait after being told 2 days before my departure that someone had already given him a white shirt and a scarf. It turned out surprisingly good especially since I had not done any portraits after nearly 4 years!
[Blogger is being a bitch and not uploading my pictures. So maybe I'll upload them later..be back to check!]

4) Ooh. Next.

5) Pfft. 19.4 photos per day. As if. More like 30. :D

6) Yes. Mahi watched a soccer match. Miracles do happen.
It was FREEZING so I had to wrap myself up and ended up looking like a shapeless mass. SO unattractive. My sexy seduction plans flew out the window that night.
And since I'm safely in Singapore I can say this - Arpu jinxed the match. Just before the final shot she says "I'm so cold! I wish Italy would just score so we could go home." and BOOM! Italy scored. Well done Arpu.
(Dear Aussies reading this -Please send all hate mail to Arpu.)

7) Please refer to point no. 6

8) I'm convinced I am flypaper for freaks.
Arpu and I were outside a mall waiting for a friend. We were watching 3 men play the Spanish guitar (v.v. sexy) and I started dancing..ok not dancing, more like swaying..yknow...step, step, sway..gettit?
Anyway some dude walked around me and pretended to grab my butt. And he wasn't even CUTE. He had the nerve to turn around and grin at me as he walked away. Asshole.
2 minutes later, Arpu said something funny, I cracked up and a stinky homeless dude walks upto me and says "It's okay to laugh, love! It's Tuesday..uh...Thursday!" And as if that wasn't weird enough he proceeded to pat me on the back...
Keep in mind that he was STINKY!!!!!
ONE minute later, this well dressed, bespectacled, 50-something, suitcase-carrying and drunk-out-of-his-mind guy stumbles upto us and says "Fucking Indians! Go home!"
I don't know why but that cracked me up so badly coz this dude could hardly stand straight and looked like such a moron. Arpu held my hand and he said "Yeh! Of course you Indians love each other, of COURSE you love each other." And stumbled off. I was so tempted to say "Thank you, come again" with a silly headshake.
Most ironic bit?
When he fell down, a Chinese guy helped him back up.
*Shakes head*
Prick.

9) Dev's younger brother Ravi is in a band called Skybombers. We went for a couple of their gigs and they were bloody awesome and the crowd was mad!
Not only is their music VERY cool but they're also a really cute looking bunch and overall very likeable guys. And I'm not saying that coz I'm obligated to just coz a friend is in the band..They really are good.
So give 'em your support, buy the single (it's out already in Melbourne I think) and make em rich.
(Ravi, I'm really pissed off that I didn't get the free CD.)

10) We visited a vineyard. It just took us like 3 hours to get there coz we drove around in circles.
Well, what else do you get when you put together 4 girls in a car. :P
The vineyard made me very happy not because of the wine but because I had a cheese platter for lunch. I love me my cheese platter.
*sigh*

11) And of course we went around bar hopping too. Mahi has to go bar hopping in a foreign land. The bartender at the Long Room made me very happy too coz I asked him for something sweet and potent and he came back with some orange drink that was sweet and after a few sips and I didn't give a shit about what was in it..so yea it was potent too :D

12) We organised a trip to Mornington Peninsula which is a beautiful spot at the Southernmost tip of Melbourne (this is what I was told I didn't really check any map). It was absolutely breathtaking.
Of course, Dev being Dev couldn't resist taking dirty shots.
We were blackmailed and told to look happy in them.
I swear.

13) We had a smashing party at my friend Sheetal's house. There was booze, music, damage done to furniture and spillage on carpets.
Ahh good times!
And of course funny pictures...some of which I cannot, nay..WILL not put up!

14) We saw Russell Peter’s in action!! This dude is amazing. He’s the funniest brown man I’ve ever come across. I laughed like hell…his opening act (some dude called Yoshi) started off funny but then started on deaf and dumb people and the disabled….and that just wasn’t really funny at all.
But hey! Way to go, Russell!


There was so much more, but I think the most important thing for me was that this trip was an education for me. A real eye opener.
I learnt so much about the human nature...about the evil in people and on the flip side..the goodness of man. I was amazed to find that hardship, when dealt with in a healthy way, makes a person warmer, sensitive and more aware rather than cold and stone-hearted. It brings out strength in you that you never knew existed.

I learnt that some people just make you feel like you've come home and home doesn't have to be somewhere you've lived for ages..it's a feeling.

I learnt things about myself that I wasn't even aware of- things that shocked me (in a nice way) and things that made me smile.

But MOST importantly...I learnt that I really am a good cook and I make a mindblowing Apple Pie and Bread & Butter Pudding.
Martha Stewart can kiss my ass.


‘Ere’s to Melbourne, mates!
-clink-

So Long! Farewell! I hate to say Goodbye, MATE!

Ho Ho HO
The Time has Arrived.
(Okay, well, not REALLY...another *checks* 23 more hours to go, but if I don't do this post now, I'll never get it done!)

Oooh where was I?
Ah yes...
I'M LEAVING FOR MELBOURNE in 23 HOURS!

Woohooooooooo
Come on People, do the Happy Dance with me... do it.
Do It.

Okay now that that's outta the way, here's some typical Mahi randomness-

I've noticed that most bloggers seem to hate Anonymous commentors. Some make a big hoo-ha about them and shower very choice words on em and some even admit that anonymous commentors are a pain in the arse...my question is this - if you hate anonymous commentors so much, then why can't you just disable anonymous commenting? .
The way I see it, you're just begging and gagging for it.
And while we're at it, what makes you think non-anon commentors will be any nicer?

You must understand that this is totally different from answering legit queries or what-not from anon commentors
Now I don't mind anonymous commentors and even those who prefer to leave a name but not a website url, unless of course, they say mean things about me on my own blog. Most of the time I reply back but once in a blue moon I can't be arsed to reply. So in the trash the comment goes.


Secondly...the Indian embassy here sucks ASS.
Mink and I just spent like 1.5 hours waiting (9.30am onwards) for our number to be called..and when it WAS finally called, we got told very gruffly to "come later."
"Why?"
"Because you're passport is only ready for collection at 4.15pm"
"But we were told to come in the morning." [Insert visual of Mahi seething when she realises she could've have spent all that time sleeping]
"Come at 4.15pm" Stupid rude embassy bitch points at her watch like the two 20-something year olds in front of her still haven't learnt to read time.
"But we've been waiting here since the past 1.5 hours. That woman *points* told us to come in the morning."
"Come at 4.15pm."
"Bitch."
Jeezlouise. What is WITH these people? Would kill them to crack a smile? Would it kill them to have a vending machine around?


Now as you must've noticed, World Cup fever seems to have gripped this planet (har-dee-har-har talk about understatement of the century). Now I know I'm gonna draw a lot of flak for this, but here goes -
1) I'll only watch a match if there's a hot guy playing.
2) The only thing I know about the World Cup is this - Germany and Brazil are supposed to be the best. How do I know this? Because I have Monopoly- the World Cup 1998 edition. And Brazil and Germany are the dark blue spaces and they're the most expensive to build stadiums/terraces. So THERE.


I was feeling a little guilty, actually, about going to Australia.
Mahi...you're gonna waste your parent's money on nothing but booze and partying and road trips and Russell Peters (Yup!I'm going for his show! And if you haven't heard of him then..somebody gonna getahurt reaaaaal bad. hehehe)..how could you?
And then it hit me.
I WORKED for that money dammit! I didn't take didley from my parents!
And allll was right with the world again =D



Oh, have I mentioned I'm leaving for Australia in 23 hours?
:D

I'm off..I need to do some last minute packing, unpacking and repacking...

I'll definitely try to update the blog while I'm there and I'll definitely be checking in on some of your blogs...
Take care, all!


Muuuah!
[Now wish me 'Bon Voyage.' Do it. Do it.]

I got my Viiiiiisa!

As the title hints...I GOT MY AUSSIE VISA!
Woohooo!!!

Now I know a lot of you are going "Big deal" but trust me ..it is.

You see I don't have much luck when it comes to all this ticketing and visa business, mostly because I often forget to bring along a couple of important documents or I arrive late or I forget to confirm my tickets or I end up with psycho travel agents..which reminds me of how ballistic the agent went coz I blamed him for not being a competent agent (well I didn't say THAT word-for-word but I said it nicely..)

Anyway he started screaming and shouting and all that time I was staring, petrified, at the 3 menacing clay Eagle figurines behind him...he looked like he could turn around at any minute, grab one figurine at a time and hurl it straight at mine, Mink's and Arpu's heads, knocking us down like bowling pins...
And thats some scary shit.

And then there's the evil bitch of a visa officer at the Aussie embassy...you would think that the Aussie's being such friendly, outgoing people would have a friendly, outgoing officer but NOOOO.
This one was capable of shrivelling up balls with one look.
She's the same officer I got last year too..and she made my life hell. I was there at the embassy so often that even the guards started giving me sympathetic looks.

But this time I went prepared.
Yessiree.
I made list after list after list and I checked it twice.

While I was waiting for my turn I saw her execute her ball-shrivelling stare at a poor foreign student.
"Evidence of funds?? But I'm carrying this much money with me! Why didn't you tell me I had to bring an evidence-of-funds letter??"

Ahhh my Indian brother. That shrivelled ball looks painful.

I felt really bad for him, but I did chuckle a bit too coz the expression on his face was really funny. I know. I'm going to hell.
Oh wait. I was in hell last year!
It's called THE AUSSIE EMBASSY!

OK but anyway I got my visa there and then..she was SO looking for a something to trip me up, but ha-ha visa bitch - I OUTSMARTED YOU!
Can't touch this na-nana-na, can't touch this

I want to extend a hearty 'THANK YOU' and 'I LOVE YOUUUU' to Mink who faithfully accompanied me...I think she was the good luck charm..even though she said "Mahi I was so expecting you to come back and say 'Goddamit!! I can't believe I forgot THAT document!! Arrrrrrrgh!!!!I'll KILL that visa-bitch!!!!' "

WOohoo Australia, here I come (for real this time)
I can't wait.


About 6 weeks left...

I think I'll start packing.


=D

*Tap..Tap* I should've had more fun today..Oh Well- Pictures!

My exams are over.
Yay!

Okay this is super messed up, but on the last day of the exams I was meant to have have cheered and day-dreamed about my Aussie trip and gone out for dinner and maybe drinks and partied the night away.

Instead what I did do was walk down to the 'New Zealand Ice Cream' shop at my uni, get ditched for Dinner (Thanks alot Kutti Mink.), get me a Berries of the Forest (or something like..whatever..I'm so addicted to it) Sorbet, head back home, checked my mail..watched TV, checked my mail, played with my dog, had an hour long talk with Dad regarding The Future And How I Was Not Doing The Best That I Was Capable Of Doing Because I Really Am Quite Intelligent But Extremely Lazy.
So the conversation ended with an uncharacteristic uneasiness inside of me.
Dammit I hate dissonance! I hate it with a vengeance.

Its also really frustrating when you check your mail and all you have is Hotmail telling you that your account size has increased. Delete. Thank you for that Hotmail, hopped onto the bandwagon a little late didn't we. Tell you what Hotmail; I'll hang onto my Gmail Account anyway..But really. Keep up the good work.

No I'm not PMS-ing.
And even if I were, the above are still good excuses to whine.

On the other hand..I am feeling a little uplifted thinking about how my friends are actually looking forward to me visiting Australia (Yes, they are and No, I'm not delusional, dammit!)

I'll be going in June for about 3 weeks..Last year was such a blast it would've been a travesty not to do it again!
So here's a small pictoral trip down memory lane...

This was at Flinder's Street Station. There's a bus there that says "Melbourne" many times over, in case you happen to forget where you are. Seriously though the station looks lovely and I think there's a story about how the designs for this station and the design for another station in India got mixed up (designed by the same guy), hence Flinder's St Station has a supposedly Indian look about it. If I'm wrong please send all blame mail to Arpu. She told me the story.

This pic might look familiar..t'was my old profile picture..anyway there's me, Dev and Siddhart (Dev's friend). Arpu you capture my left profile so well! This was at a pub we visited after we went salsa dancing. So there we were, tired, happy, hungry and drinking...

And here's the moral of the story.
Don't Drink on an Empty Stomach. Especially not when there's a camera around to capture stuff that you do. Thank you Dev. You capture my moustache profile so well!
Hey..don't look at me. Some guy's are into this sorta thing *shrugs*


This was where I had my little pant debacle. If you're ever at Fitzroy street, PLEASE do yourself a favour and visit 'Monroe's'. Their dessert is OUT of this WORLD. Best sticky date pudding I ever had. Also the ghost images in this pic are SO COOL. I was telling the waiter how to click ("JUST HOLD THE BUTTON DOWN!") He STILL didn't get the technique quite right but hey..makes for a cool pic!


Okay So Arpu and I were in the city, really bored. So we came across this place - The Immigration Museum.
Mm'kay.
No. Not going inside. I'd rather spend that money on drinks.
"Arpu just take a pic of me outside the museum. At least I can show my parents that I did something educational."



I love this pic! It has such a nice monochrome tone to it..it's the colours! Anyway that's Arpu, Me and Dev's brother Ravi (who, by the way, plays bass guitar in a band called 'Skybombers' they're relatively new and not on radio yet..I think.. but they're on myspace.com so check 'em out!) in the city.


This is the BEST. This was when we had all driven down to see the 12 Apostles..seriously people...look up breath-taking in the dictionary and you'll see the 12 Apostles. One of the most amazing sights you'll ever see. I went mad with joy there (this involved a lot of running and jumping and laughing and squealing..which under normal circumstances you will not see me do a lot of..well except the laughing bit.) This pic is a keeper!


AAh there's so much more but blogger's picture uploading tool is such a bitch and I can't be arsed to sit and wait for this to load. Maybe later..

But I am a lot more cheered up now, thanks! =D


Take care guys and have an awesome weekend!
-Muah-