My first monsoon roadtrip:
Here’s the route -> Pune – Wai – Panchgani – Mahabaleshwar – Poladpur – Mahad – Mangaon – Tamhini – Mulshi – Pune
When leaving the misty winding road behind is as sad as leaving memories behind....
Wait for the travelogue n the pics …:)
Flood the left and attack from the right.
Hmmm , While this strategy discussion can go on and on, about how Chelsea should setup against the Catalans, I thought I might just put up a formation strategy (a rather wierd looking 4-2-1-3) to know more viewpoints on them. While we realize that the tie at Nou Camp could just decide the semifinal (a poor performance there would cost us dear), we need to be counter-attacking well on the flanks to make sure, we dont give a ManUtd like performance (last year’s CL semis). But what this has this forced me to do – Leave out Ballack of the starting eleven. Although this doesnt mean, he is left out for the 90 mins, he will be primary substitution for either Anelka/Malouda if and when that happens. So lets get straight into the analysis :
Main Strategy : Clog the left and attack through the right
1 . Defence – This is the most important piece of the jigsaw for us. Our main worries is through Messi on the left without Ashley Cole. This one of the reasons I have depolyed both Mikel and Essien in the starting XI. Mikel can slow down the game and stop Messi running and cutting into the box from the left. We need an experienced defender as left-back who has pace and grit. The only two who fit this are : Riccy Carvalho and The Machine – Bosingwa. I assume Riccy can play left-foot, and would be my first choice to start left-back. If Bosingwa is fit and ready to start, I would not hesitate putting him into left-back , and playing Carvalho center-back. But, this makes us lose Alex, whose aerial threat from set-pieces is immense considering Barca’s stunted players. Ivanovic is first-choice on the right to counter Henry’s smart runs, and Terry-Alex can counter the pace and aerial threat of Eto’o.
2 . Midfield – While we miss Ballack for his attacking duties, the main reason I leave him out is the fact that, he doesnt defend as well as the younger legs and gives the ball away at times. With Barca’s midfield waiting to pounce on such let-aways, I feel it might be a gamble worth taking and keeping him afresh for the second leg at the Bridge. Essien gives us the strength in right-midfield and Frank as usual will be the knight controlling it. Essien can counter Iniesta, just the way he marked Gerrard earlier, and Lampard can nail Barca’s holding midfielder – Xavi. The midfield and defence are going to nail the story for us.
3 . Attack – Nothing changes much here. Drogba to aerially and physically attack Puyol and Milito. Anelka’s’/Kalou’s place can cause major problems for Abidal and Malouda will need to fight it out without Ashley’s services against Dani Alves. The reason I put Deco as an option for Malouda is sheerly to put the talisman against his former players, so that there is a sense of waryness and know-how 
.
Advantages : Our aerial strength with Alex, Ivanovic, Bosingwa, JT, Drogba, Anelka, and physical strength with Ivanovic (The Rock), Essien, Mikel, Anelka and Drogba ofcrs .
Disadvantages : Messi can make it reallllllly Messy. If Henry and Messi switch flanks (which is unlikely to happen), then we might be caught napping, but we too might need to switch our fullbacks. Also, we need to combine man and zonal-marking. While we would need to man-mark the Messi-Eto’o-Iniesta triangle, we might need to zonally mark Henry- Xavi and their free-kicks. We have to be realllllly careful with the way we defend Messi (We need to make sure the 90K crowd doesnt influence the referees to award a PEN in favour of Messi).
WHAT GUUS MIGHT DECIDE TO DO:
I would not be surprised if he switches to a 4-4-2, in case he plays Ballack into the midfield. That will leave us without Malouda and Kalou. But that would mean extra-clogging of the midfield which is good (from a defence pt of view) and bad( more difficult to create spaces and get that vital away goal). Whatever it is, We are in gr8 form, and the presence of JT and Lamps should see us through this tie at the Camp Nou.
My heart says : 1-1
Welllllllllll, I dont quite recollect since when Maandardevi was loooming, but since the time my office colleague almost skid off the driving line enroute Maandardevi (All was well in the end) , I wanted to be there ! Maandardevi, an age-old temple known for its infamous stampede which killed hundreds of innocent people, is not quite the best way it would want to be remembered. I n Yogi, had not hit it off for a loooong time, and this time we decided it was happening whether he had company or not ! Yogi came to my place at 6:15 in the morning, and we then put on our jackets and headed straight to the Bangalore bypass. A couple of photos here and there near the Katraj viaduct, and we were on hitting 90kmph (Well I had decided not to overshoot this time).
This was a typical bag-packers trip and therefore apart from Maandardevi, had no agenda to it. When we turned right from Nasrapur into Bhor, we found some beautiful fields and flowers, that we could not identify at speed. We got down, and got a closer look, but still did not manage to find the answer =:D .. Then there was a man, who charged hurriedly towards us, fearing we were pricking on his yeild. I dont think we look as bad 
. After a few words here and there, we managed to gather his belief. Then came the answer we were looking for – Carrot ! . It was impossible to believe Carrots wouls spawn would have such lovely flowers ..
Flowers off carrot roots
The pleasure to drive terrain ..
After driving on for 20 more minutes, we came to the scenic drop where River Neera forms a snake-like structure ( See my post – Panoramic Snake). Both of us adventure-lovers decided to climb down the hill to get a dip into the beautiful river. More so, we also spotted a Wire-tailed swallow and a vibrant green Bee-eater. It was time then to grind the car through curvaceous turns of the Maandardevi ghat – roads to which seemed recently done up. It is a 45-min climb, and an enjoyable one for any moto-enthusiast. After visiting the ancient temple and sipping on two cool “Salted Nimbu Sharbat(Lemon Juice)”, we left on our way to drop down into Wai. Beautiful countryside roads nestled with greenery even in the scorching heat, this is a good drive back. I haddddd to come back to my favorite countryside setting – “The Menavli Ghat”. If you are around Satara and dont know what to do to kill time – Do Come here. A temple on the banks of a backwater body, and village kids diving as if they were the next Phelps, is a treat to be. After clicking a few gravity-defying pics of the school kids, We gave intothe temptation ourselves – Jumped right into the water to beat the scorching heat ! This rounded off a lovely day filled with grinding roads, scorching sun, a beautiful river and a pristine countryside.
The kids and their aqua-antics!
Anfield !!! No less than a battlefield as I call it. We had been here three previous times in the last three years and had never won there, with the best result a 1-1 draw last year under Avram Grant. When I run through the minds of the players, I am sure they would be saying – “Its difficult to go there and even play, forget about winning, but we need to go there with a philosophy that we have never taken to Anfield”. I believe, they exactly practised what they preached before the game, that of going to Anfield and not bogged down by tha occasion.. While, they all left their positions to move forward, there was one man who Guus Hiddink, handed the responsibility of shielding JT n the back line, from the threat of Gerrard and Torres – Micheal Essien.
I am just going to do what I love doing – ripping apart the strategies and tactical difference the teams played out yesterday.
1 . If Guus Hiddink had played John Obi Mikel, it would have been yet another Chelsea-Liverpool encounter, a tie that played out similar ways in the last 3 years. With due respect to Mikel, he is a wonderful holding midfielder, but what would have happened is the formation of the clogged midfield with Ballack, Gerrard, Lampard, Alonso and Mikel. Rafa Benitez played Gerrard in his customary European Rule – a shade behind Torres, to work triangles with Arbeloa, Torres, and Kuyt. Now since there was no Mikel there to hold him, it had to be someone who not only can move into defensize positions alongside Gerrard, but also one who could open the pitch out when demanded. That is what Essien did – made Gerrard look like yet another marked Talisman and provided the assists that Frank, Kalou and Malouda required.
2 .This meant Chelsea did not have attacking options that they would normally have with Essien playing out attack. Ballack, also held himself back, which meant Gerrard and Alonso did not get any creative license to move around. The questions now is – “How did Chelsea manage to attack the way they did?”. Essien typically played out long balls to Malouda, which meant the left hand side of Liverpool was exposed. Drogba got two balls from the left flank, both of which he missed 
. All this looks very easy to talk – but execution is always difficult. Hiddink is a great tactician, but if you were to go back and analyse our inclinations – it was clear. Gerrard and Alonso had to get cut out from the game, which happened. But what worked in our favour was the dual role played by Essien – attack and defense. Most of the corners came from assists from Lampard and Essien and those produced two crisply struck headers from Ivanovic.
So, have we won it ? NO, WE HAVENT ! But it sure gives us great cushion to take to the Bridge. The Merseyside have the ability to bounce back. This brings us to a delicate situation as to whether do we sit back and defend at the Bridge ? NOOOO ! .. We have to play normally, but with immsense caution, in order to suck them into submission. Flanks will surely be strong, in order to convert counters. Nevertheless, the next leg will be as tactical as this one and I am sure, we would not get down to complaecency ! Hail Chelse hail !
Till then, I am just going to tap down n celebrate – I just took my colleagues out for a dessert as I normally do when the Blues turn it around . This is how my workplace looks today
Painted the workplace blue !!
I was so so happy to see this report from SearchStorage, the first official regulation from any country on the use and maintenance of data centers. I am sure, all we green IT enthusiasts would love to hear something similar from the US as well ..
The Sustainable Development and Energy Innovation of the U.K.’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, has challenged the IT industry to prevent further climate change with the official launch of the EU Code of Conduct for Data Centers on November 19.
The Code of Conduct was created in response to increasing energy consumption in data centers and the need to reduce the related environmental, economic and energy supply impacts. It was developed with collaboration from the British Computer Society, AMD, APC, Dell, Fujitsu, Gartner, HP, IBM, Intel, and many others.
Those who choose to abide by the voluntary Code of Conduct will have to implement energy efficiency best practices, meet minimum procurement standards, and report energy consumption every year.
The UK is also the first country in the world to approve legally binding climate change laws to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; data centers in the U.K. are responsible for about 3% of electricity use, and the goal is an 80% reduction in greenhouse gasses by 2050.
America is far behind Europe with climate change policies, but it looks like it might finally be getting its act together in terms of protecting the planet. Climate change legislation and carbon emission regulations promise to become a reality under President-elect Barack Obama, who has pledged to enact global-warming legislation.
Unfortunately, the legislation would impose a cap-and-trade system on utility companies that could raise the price of power an estimated 20% across the board, so getting as efficient as possible before the legislation takes effect would be a wise move.
To that end, vendors have come up with highly efficient servers and lower watt CPUs that perform just as well as their higher power predecessors. There is also software to control power consumption and to cap server power usage, and finally reliable virtualization software to increase server utilization, so there really are no excuses for running under-utilized systems these days
The battle of battles !
Whoaaaaaaa ! I still remember the day when I was in Bombay, waiting anxiously for the knockout draws to be rolled out. The one thing that I wished against (bcos I seriously felt it would turn true) was drawing two of my favourite teams together. And that’s what happened – Chelsea were drawn to play against Juventus – a match I may so dearly miss than see one of my loved teams go out. Its such a mixed feeling for me as it is for the players to see themselves compete against Juve. I love ADP aka Alessandro Del Piero and the Chelsea players are very respectful towards former manager Claudio Ranieri. But, its just not for the Chelsea-Juve tie that makes this year’s Champions League knockouts more than interesting. A rivalry everyone would like to see renew is the Mourinho- Sir Alex rivalry and goddddddddd, they got that. In fact Mourinho was heard screaming before the draw that he would rather be drawn against the champions than anyone else. What guts man ! I still admire the man for the confidence he oozes.
One of the other mouth-watering clashes is the Liverpool-Real Madrid contest. I seirously dont feel Liverpool are going to have it easy this time as Madrid are facing a drought of impressive CL results off lately and they would be more than eager to erase that.
The fixtures start today and I would be excited to see how my predictions fare
Inter 1 – 0 Man Utd ( San Siro)
Chelsea 1 – 0 Juve (Stamford Bridge)
Liverpool – 1 -2 Real Madrid (Bernabeu)
Wondering what this new thing under the sun is ?? Well, that’s exactly what it actually does – It is this new thing “under the sun” that is a potential solution to what is called “urban heat islands”. For those who dont know, what these are,here is a link to help you out – Urban Heat islands …
When we just thought that Adiga’s novel was a little too harsh, real and raw for Indian audiences, we have been presented with a near artifact of one that has striking resemblances to the award-winning novel.
Although Balram Halwai, the protagonist of Adiga’s book, a village simpleton, who goes through painful ordeals to become a succesfull so-called “entrepreneur”, India’s very own Ramalinga Raju, hasn’t done any less than Balram. Although the circumstances may be distinctively different, the treachery done through deceitful methods seems to bear striking resemblances. I had read the book a week back, and probably the psychology seems to wander around my thinking hats. But, nevertheless, it is not only a tarnish on India’s reputation as a business conglomerate, but also a severe hit to the nation’s contribution to the technological economy through “Services” ( intended to be taken in the true sense of the word).
There is a lot attached to forgery and deceitful corporate governance in India, and I cant recollect one of this stature before. But what would be interesting to see unravel, is the hand of the ultimate power ( politicians ofcrs 
), and the way such big auditors have manipulated sheets.
I think lastly, it is only the beginning of a stricter regime process for corporate governance, which might just unearth some neatly tucked loopholes in the biggest of companies. It just goes to say, how much even a IT Stalwart can do to increase business visibility and viability.
Nevertheless, Adiga’s was a good book and might take you into the journey of a typical bread-earner in India. While those in the West, have applauded the book for seeing what they want to see in an Indian storyline, we would want to read it for a wholely different perspective.
My Review:
****
The expressions speak for themselves.. Copyright Getty Images
87:45 minutes into the game @ Stamford Bridge and the score board read -> Chelsea 0 – 1 Stoke City . I was cursing myself to believe the Chelsea had recovered from their woes with a soulful performance against Southend in the FA Cup, but had started to feel that they still werent upto Premier League quality !
That is when Belletti, brought on for Kalou after 80 mins and Chelsea’s guardian at times, scored an equaliser much to the relief of the crowd and the manager Big Phil. I know we had 200 chances throughout the game, but … 
… But when we were just nearing the final whistle and Chelsea pushing and pushing till the end, Frank came up with a near unstoppable strike from 20 yards away that banged against the net and there they went – SW6 had erupted ! Frank the captain for the game had led his side to a thrilling nerve-sapping victory in the last minute of playable time. Whoaaa , what a match !
I know we are within a chance, and one feels its off to those games against Liverpool and Arsenal that will decide our Premier League fate …
Go on Lamps, You definitely the 400 you have played for the Blues ..
As we go into a grim 2009, burdened with the thought of fighting off a growing clout of recession amongst other bigger challenges like war, terrorism, I can feel an air of bated anticipation. 2008 for India and for the world, was nothing less than a year of surprises and drama. From Adiga’s much-debated booker to the stock markets that crumbled like a pack of cards, 2009 is going to be a continued fight towards a better being. Although Adiga reminded us of the life and circumstances that evade modern India, we still cannot afford to forget the success that has brought India in the field of technology and innovation. Although we are still low on innovation-based entrepreneurship, I believe a recessionary year will be more than an appetizer for people wanting to make the cut and start something of their own.
Professionally, the year has been good, with Zmanda attempting to break even with fresh orders and revenues from people who are starting to believe – Open-Source and Low-Cost will do and is worth a try. Personally, Travel and Photography have taken front seat, with trips to places ranging from an aquatic Tarkarli, Karde, forts like Lohgadh, lakes like Pavna, caves like Bedse, Bhaje etc.
Beautiful blue ..
Due to an accident of one of our friends, Ani, we were really not in the mood to celebrate the new year with pomp. However, we decided to give the peacocks, near Pune a visit . and how sweet they were. If you haven’t visited Morachi Chincholi, please do. Its a lovely natural habitat for the torquoise blue-birds. Although we coudln’t get to see them spread their feathers, it was a treat ! Moreover, it was all the more adventurous when we decided to barge into their territory to see how it is there in their habitat:) . The trip rounded off with a trip to Nighoj, which are Asia’s largest basalt rock formtions, which create potholes under the water. Although, these look much better in pictures, I was disappointed to see the beauty hands-on. Lastly, we decided to give the gods a visit at Ranjangaon – Ashtavinayak, (this is only the 2nd out of the 8 that I have visited so far).
Although the year started off traveling, I hope remains this way and provides much more in terms of what I have been wanting to do and fulfill since a long time . Well , I l leave that to you to guess
The top electricity fuel sources listed in order of largest to smallest carbon footprint are:
Coal: Around 50% of the electricity generated normally comes from coal, which is an ecological nightmare to mine. When coal is burned, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury compounds are released.
Natural gas: Burning natural gas produces far less carbon emissions than coal. Though methane, a nasty greenhouse gas, can be emitted into the air when natural gas is not burned completely or as the result of leaks and losses during transportation. Natural gas wells and pipelines can be ecologically disruptive, but have nowhere near the potential for environmental devastation that coal mining does.
Nuclear power: Accounting for nearly 20% of our electricity generation, nuclear power is practically greenhouse gas-free. If only we could figure out what to do with the spent uranium! The biggest problem lies in disposing off the nuclear waste.
Hydropower: It’s renewable and cost effective, but many operators in are facing hefty upgrades to equipment to make their operations more fish-friendly.
Malaka Spice – spice, flavour , taste, tangy , candle-light, the perfect setting for brouhaha with friends, and all in all a beautiful place to dine. The evolution of “malaka spice” has been such a story – the story about two culturalists who travelled around South-east Asia, picking up the dishes and cuisines they loved. Its so interesting to taste the cuisines and dishes they loved – although most of them brilliant pickings. The other interesting fact about Malaka Spice, is the that, the owner of the restaurant happens to one of my friend’s uncle. Although, I still haven’t spoken to him, but I definitely would want to speak to him and congratulate on the wonderful concept of the restaurant. A restaurant ultimately, is not just about the food it serves, but also about the culture, theme and history it brings along with it. Malaka Spice scores here bigtime !!
Indian audiences, love spicy food, amalgamated in lovely aroma and flavour and Malaka Spice is the best place you can find that will serve you such food. The cuisines, range from Vietnamese to Indonesian to Chinese to Japanese … I definitely have some favourites over the 5 years I have visited this place and I bet, you too will, if you are decently regular.. The wines are pretty reasonable as compared to the other places, and you can manage to get a Chantilli for 100 a glass ,, Isnt that fantastic ?? !! Another beverage “The Dessert Wine” , aimed to be a dessert beverage is paisa vasool @ 50 odd bucks.. The inner seating arrangement is not as happening as the one outside. The outer arrangement too cant seat a big amount of people, and that probably is the only con of the place.The “Laksa” soup is a good try, so is the “Sambal Crunchu vegetables” curry. Dont miss out on the aroma-filled rice bowls, for e.g the Indonesian Nasi Goreng . The upside of the resto is the affordability and that is what makes it such a preferred destination for the college junta as well as food lovers.
Name : Malaka Spice
Location : Lane 6 , North Main Road – what I call diners street …
Ambiance:7/10. Affordability:7/10. Service:7/10. Food: 8.5/10 Overall Rating: 8/10.
Things you may try : Laksa Soup, Steamed Dimsums, Barbeque Tempuras, Aroma-fresh rice – Nasi Goreng , Sambal Crunchy vegetables , Vietnamese Curry ….
History in flames ..
Nightmarish ! Shocking !
I cant seem to believe all that has been happening since yesterday night.The night-long encounter might have left us really red-eyed, but there is much more to the red-eyedness that we have been left with. We have been damaged by the immense loss of two high-profile cops, one who is the Chief of the Anti-terror squad , which only seems to suggest how strong-minded the attackers are.
To all those relatives of people who have lost their lives, my heart cant seem to console. As much as they would want to go there and make a statement, I am sure all Mumbaikars and Indians, will be wanting as much to go there and fight it out themselves and lay to rest all those creatures, in whom no sense of humanity prevails.
There remains little sense to go back and keep analysing the circumstances and situations under which the dastardly act took place. It is definitely a failure of the intelligence and the so-called system, but what we need to undermine here is the sense of nationhood and unity that needs to come through. All of us, have had enough promises made earlier, but something like this always seems haphazardly easy for the terror-makers to implement.
I do not know how all this is going to pan out and where this is going to lead us, but the anticipation amongst all of us here, seems to be showing through the humongous posts/updates on twitter and other technology bricks. It is time we unite and make sure we rather perish than live in such an inhuman environment. The media is basking in the shining SUN, and I am sure the politicians too will after some time, but we need to make sure, nobody needs to make unwanted hay while the SUN shines.
As far as the rest goes, I hope this ends soon with lesser lives lost and more hostage freed, and of course , the terrorists killed, but the entire episode looks much more difficult than it actually is.
La Pizzeria – Its pretty difficult to describe La Pizzeria for me , as it is associated with a lot of memories,both good and bad times of me in Pune. Good because, I always wanted to cherish my good moments here. Bad times, because, I without a doubt would come here and get myself pepped up .
When I came down to Pune in 2000, little did I know that, this resto, would be so habitual for me to come to, month-in,month-out,year-in,year-out. After so many years in Pune(more than seven ) ,its so nostalgic for me to put down my moments @ Le Pizzeria, although not forgetting the culinary brilliance of the place. This was without doubt, the one place, I loved to bring my parents to, whenever they came down , or bring Kals or my friends to. If my friends hadnt visited the place, they would never be given an an option to dine elsewhere. La Pizzeria, was,is and will always be my best restaurant in Pune, not taking away anything from the other good restos I speak about).
With Aditi @ La Pizzeria ...
Both the seating arrangements offer lovely ambiances, in their own right. The outside candle-lit seating arrangement is perfect, when you want to take your girl along .. The inner arrangement with a neatly architected bar, is a more formal one, with exotic legendary wines on display. Not much has changed since so many years @ La Pizzeria, and for all the lovers of La Pizzeria, you wouldn’t want that to change either – because you hardly can complain about anything. Finally coming to the food, the first 6-8 times I came here, I ended up taking the same dishes, because I firstly, more than loved the cuisine and secondly, was not daring enough to try other dishes primarily because of the holes made in my pocket . I would agree that, the rates here definitely made holes in my pocket, considering I was a student then. But, like so many loyal lovers of La Pizzeria, its difficult to turn your back on it, once you are an addict of the place.
Your evening can get started with a lovely wine. They have a wide variety of wines, from French to Spanish.The soups are mighty rich, and make you feel royally started .”Zuppa di Broccoli” and “Creame di Funghi” might be a tad bland for indian audiences, but all worth a try. Antipasti or breads are the perfect way to appetize – Bruschetta, Caprese and the indian-loved “Garlic bread” are all good takes.
The pastas and pizzas are authentically Italian, and only give you an as-is affinity for rich food in Italy. The popular “Sicilia”,Fantasy,Rustic, are all delicious pizzas. You might be able to explore and experiment much more, if you are a pasta-freak. Alla Arrabiata,Ai 4 Formaggi,Pasta barbaresca( a deliciously spicy preparation) and by far my favourite – Puttanseca with Penne are all must-haves.I can go on and on with the dishes here, because their menu has by far the richest and the largest implementaion of the Italian cuisine, I have ever seen. You might end your evening with the italian dessert “Tiramisu” or even the Choc. Mousse Cake.
It has been a lovely journey for me at La Pizzeria, and I wish, it never ends. There are still so many dishes, that I still havent ventured into, but I know I soon will … BON APPETITE.
Name : La Pizzeria.
Location : The right before Pune Central,Bund Garden,Pune.
Rating: 10/10 for everything you may ask me for. ( Might be a bit biased here, but cant help )
Must-try: Zuppa di Broccoli, Garlic bread with cheese and Tobasco sauce, Pasta barbaresca, Puttanseca, Sicilia Pizza.
A scintillating sea of boats as viewed from the Bbay harbour
L-R Kals,me,Aditi, Yogi @ Sigree...for the sunday brunch on my bday ...
Finally, an Indian restaurant that made my mouth water at the outset. Sigree – an uptown Indian restaurant has made waves with its infamous Sunday brunch and buffet, most of it which is totally deserved … Sigree means a big indian vessel to cook up dishes for festivities. The theme to Sigree is surprisingly cosmopolitan, and upmarket.. But atleast, it has one …Situated in the upmarket Dhole Patil Road, its very easy to get carried away with the environment, but Sigree delivers right and delivers good !
An ideal place for a Sunday brunch, the buffet is pleasingly worth it ..Priced @ around 400 bucks, the Sigree Buffet, is worth the hole in your pocket.The buffet does not necessarily have a lot of dishes on its menu, but that, according to me is the strength of the place. The authentic and ghee-peppered dishes might make you feel heavy at the end of it, but the experience is truly authentic and rich … The kebabs made at the counter by a griller, are addictive…
Go ahead and spend on a splendid brunch …. Sigree scores and scores well …
Name : Sigree
Location : City Point, Dhole Patil Road, Pune
Ambiance:8/10. Affordability:7/10. Service:8/10. Food: 8.5/10 Overall Rating: 9/10.
The sunday brunch/buffet are popular.
The winners of the “Best South Indian Cusine 2008″ by Pune Times Food Guide, Soul Curry situated on the Pune-Mumbai bypass, are an innovative yet, varied South Indian resto. Old for me will always be “Gold”, if you ask me, Soul Curry, have worked to create the following they have in the last few months. They have a varied cuisine that, enumerates from Tamil Nadu to Lower karnataka to Northern tamil-induced Kerala to the core Southern Kerala. The dishes here are well-prepared, but somehow failed to convince me on the authenticity front. They sure are popular, primarily because of the fact that, the core South Indian cuisine (except the normal dosa-idli stuff) is fast gaining some ground. Although, they dont serve you anything on a banana leaf, I still felt the absence of the “original” stamp here.
It surely will have takers, especially for people driving through Pune to Bombay on the bypass..But, what we are reviewing here is the food, rather than the business it will do. They are definitely much more varied than say a “Southern Spice”, and service too seemed to be prompt. But I hope, what i wanted to convey has come across. The place looked as if they wanted to “commercialise” core South Indian cuisine , of course taking nothing away from their success …
Name : Soul Curry
Location : Mumbai-Pune bypass, 3 kms ahead of Hinjewadi flyover…
Ambiance:5/10. Affordability:7/10. Service:7/10. Food: 7/10 Overall Rating: 6.5/10.
Things to try : Bisibelle bath, Chettinad Bhendi, Avial, Onion Sambhar, Appams ….
In the highly changing world with highly challenging and daunting specifications to conform to, “Green Campuses” offer the latest change, varsities are implementing, in order to meet sustainability and green initiatives worldwide. So how does a campus really go green and what can you do to make a certain component of your building/infrastructure “GREEN” in the true sense ..
These are components of your infrastructure that can really make the difference -
One brilliant example is the University Of Minnesota, the site of which I came across the other day. There is definitely a huge investment in terms of capital, money, and effort, but the long-term advantage it entitles you with is definitely a booster. In summary, all energy consumption in the varsity is self-generated by green technologies like wind power, biomass gasification, green transport, green water conversation, and green disposal through recycling. Link to the Varsity website is http://www.morris.umn.edu/greencampus/
Its feels really nice that ground-root institutions around the world are implementing greener pasteurs, so that the students that graduate out of them pass out with an inherited green education. Not to forget, this incentive is also being implemented by legacy centers like Harvard..
A helpless Scolari during the 1-0 loss @ the Bridge...Copyright - Dailymail , Andy Hooper..
When I thought that, probably this is a record that I wouldnt be able to see getting broken throughout my lifetime, it just gave way. Yes, it had to get broken some day. But it sure is something any club, rather any Chelsea supporter would have cherished to live with. After 4 years 8 months and 86 games of successfully defending home territory, Stamford Bridge finally saw itself getting invaded by Merseyside. In a tight defensive contest (as expected), a cheeky deflected Liverpool goal in the tenth minute was enough to separate the two sides. It was but natural, how Liverpool would approach the match after that, more so after the first half which remained at advantage to Liverpool.
Somehow, I was left really depressed and anguished at the end of it, not because of the record, but because of the finishing of some of the players especially Malouda. We always tend to look at the negatives after a loss, but this is something I have been wanting to write for the last 2-3 games.
All said and done, the reds played well, dishing out Chelsea their own medicine and probably avenging their Champions League semis loss early this year .. ! Needless to say, I still feel we are on our way towards a Premier League title ..I m heading out for a drink guyz
The Stunner from Juliano Belletti ! Copyright - Getty images.
If you thought , Chelsea played the football of the season in the Premier League against Aston Villa @ the Bridge, you probably might have been right …. Not to take away anything from The Blues, who absolutely, trashed Boro away , a 5-0 scoreline might not necessarily talk how well Chelsea played , rather how badly Boro played …. It was a wayward performance from Middlesborough, considering their splendid performance early this year(2008) against Man Utd…That performance against Man Utd, almost dented their title chances last season, when Boro levelled 2-2 at home against the then table toppers ..
My analysis of the match might sound a bit critiqued, but only a true Chelsea critique who probably doesnt term all their performances as “best” is one who is not blind.. The five Chelsea goals were scored by Kalou(2) , Belletti , Lampard and Malouda, three of which were cheeky/deflections/blemishes from the opponents . The Belletti strike was absolutely stunning – from almost 30 yards out from goal by a defender who has not been regularly played under either Avram Grant or Jose Mourinho …
Technical Analysis : Chelsea started well by doing what they do best – Keep Possession. Rotate the flanks. Control Midfield. Create chances. They eventually scored with Kalou in the 13th min, which actually deflected off a Boro defender.Malouda and Lampard, both missed golden chances, probably Malouda missing more than a “college-level-strike” into goal.It was 1-0 at halftime, when we all knew the home side would bounce back. That did happen, but what then followed was a truly stunning piece of football. Boro had just started to get into their stride when – The brazilian and experienced veteran – Belletti scored 30 yards from goal with a strike that bent the other way. The result had been probably decided then, the Belletti strike had taken the poison out of Boro. Lampard too setup a lovely goal, crafting his way through a tired Boro defense, eventually heading it in..
So, I guess most EPL pundits by now, have and are betting on the Blues, So Am I,as I always do . But I am sure most of you are asking the same question – “WHAT HAVE CHELSEA DONE TO PLAY THE WAY THEY ARE, AND WHAT HAS CHANGED ?? “. Well I only have three answers, which I should be able to reason till the end of the league.
1 . Without a doubt – The Big “Phil”osophy behind Chelsea – Luiz Felipe Scolari ..
2 . Midfield creativity through Deco and the Speed of the right flank through Bosingwa.
3 . Last, but not the least – “CHANGE” which probably never really changed for the last two years at the club !
I always have had a fantasy to zooooom through the Monte Carlo tunnel,Monaco F1 GP, with a Formula1 one-seater at a speed , which my retinas will be able to absorb and make sense of …
However, with the monaco dream still in sight, but far away, I said to myself, the Kambhatki tunnel near Pune is still not a bad place to try it …Here I go, with my Hyundai Santro at a meagre speed of over 100 kmph on my way back from Tarkarli ..
Me @ SFD,PICT for the Open-Source + MySQL talk ...
PICT (Pune Institute of Computer Technology), one of the better known academia names across Pune, had organized “Software Freedom Day” on Sep19th to mark the importance and relevance of open source in today’s digital world.Having been associated with open source associations like Zmanda (the organization I work for) and POSUG( the Pune OpenSolaris User Group, which spreads awareness about Open Source and OpenSolaris in Pune), I was thoroughly looking forward to the noble event…
This has always been something, that I have loved doing ..’Spreading awareness’… It was nice to hear some very student-like questions (can’t blame them for tht) like, “Why do companies decide to go open-source when they can earn more “? … But these are valid questions in their own right. What needs to be put across is the philosophy and the community behind Open Source that backs it .. The talk basically revolved around MySQL, but what really clicked was the open-source discussion … I also got to talk about POSUG and the way students can collaborate and contribute through it…All in all, a nice interactive discussion @ ground-root..
Have you ever consciously pondered at the fact that the winters make your hair,skin and you in general, feel much more better than what summers do ?? Well , true , but there is a reason to it –
Air quality decreases during times of hot temperatures because the heat and sunlight essentially cook the air along with all the chemical compounds lingering within it. This chemical soup combines with the naturally occurring nitrogen oxide in the air, creating a “smog” of ground-level ozone gas.Urban areas are the most susceptible because of all the pollution being emitted from cars, trucks and buses.
This is how you can do your bit –
The interiors @ Casa de Goa...
The rumba-samba , the goan music and the festive atmosphere dont really come alive @ Casa-de-goa, an exotic Goan restaurant, but it somehow still manages to leave you wanting for more…Casa-de-goa situated in the plush Kalyani Nagar, is an exotic seafood-speciality restaurant, but never mind if you are a vegetarian like me, it doesn’t disappoint you either.. Your initial wait before your food arrives, will probably make you feel a bit incomplete about the ambiance. You wish, it had been a bit more goan n coastal in ambaince, with lovely colorful dim lighting. But nevertheless, the food pretty much makes up for its incompleteness. The soups, especially the ones with a coconut milk base for e.g. “Caldo Vardis” , starts your coastal journey on a light, subtle note. The starters, cooked with a “koli” orientation, are tangling for your taste buds. Ditto with fish, you might be able to do a lot of experimentation there. Just ask the folks there for a customized dish, and they will be ready to help you out .
The resto is a perfect one for the ones with an orientation for spicy food. The spicy folks might try the original Goan “vindaloos”, be it Chicken, Fish or Paneer Vindaloo. Its a delight to see the non-veg folks relish the Goan pomfret and the Goan surmai, dont get irritated if they dont indulge in any conversation, because they are “submitted” to a truly original goan cuisine.
But the highlight, of any main course @ Casa De Goa is the lovely amalgamation of flavours of coastal spices made in a coconut grated gravy - “The Xacuti”. This dish, in chicken,fish or veg, orientations is a Goan speciality. I am sure all those Goa lovers, like me,would know well about the Xacuti, and how well it blends with, what Casa De Goa calls “Pau” . You probably never looked at the “pau” (indian bread) in a similar fashion before, than when you visited Casa De Goa. So all you coconut-cuisine lovers, go for it @ Casa De Goa.
Name : Casa De Goa
Location : 50 mtrs ahead of Gold Adlabs, enroute Bishops.
Ambiance:6/10. Affordability:7/10. Service:7/10. Food: 8/10 Overall Rating: 8/10.
Things you may try : Caldo Vardis,Spinach in Potato broth soup,Fish/Paneer Koliwada, Fish/Paneer Vindaloo, Pomfret/Surmai, “Xacuti wid Pau”.
Pics from the beautiful ,yet ancient temple @ Bhuleshwar ...
Harin, my friend from bombay had come down to Pune after a really looong time to spend some nice time at what he calls ” the weekend paradise” (Pune)…. So we (Me,Kals,Harin, Yogi) decided to go to a spot nearby Pune, typically one which would allow us to come back before dusk …
I had heard quite a bit about Bhuleshwar, the ancient temple near Yavat off the Pune-Solapur road .. The two facts about Bhuleshwar made all of us, excited and curious to get there .
1 . Goddess Parvati danced for Lord Shiva @ Bhuleshwar, before they got married and went to Kailas..
2 . The temple has been existent from the time the “Pandavas” existed on earth..
Since , we were without a vehicle, we decided to take a chance by going to Hadapsar, before climbing into a laal dabba or probably anything which would oblige taking us along… Thankfully , the second option was a sweet disguise, when a shared jeep came across to offer us an interesting ride down to Yavat…The vehcile dropped us off @ yavat, where we took a much needed lunch break , before embarking on the uphill ride to Bhuleshwar…A road, parallel to that of the highway (on the right), is from where you might end up getting shared vehicles to go upto the temple. The road uphill is really bad, and you can expect the ride to be pretty unnerving, also taking into account the state of vehicles here …But nevertheless, it took us about 15 minutes to get to the temple, the view from where is absolutely beautiful and panoramic .. But what was come to , was absolutely spell-binding and fantabulous !! ….
The carvings inside make you feel so tied to mythology but at the same time make you realise how unskilled you might be … The most interesting thing about the temple is that – all idols are in female forms. Be it Lord Ganesh ( called Ganeshi here), Shiva, Karthik etc.. No one except the main priest here knows the secret behind this, so if you are able to talk to him and extract this information – gr8 ! We were not fortunate enough to get the priest to talk to us, as as he was pretty tied up with the offerings and pujas @ the temple.
But the pillars, the carvings, statues, and the architecture of the temple is magnanimous..People here say – it took really long to build …. However, you wish that the carvings and the art on display here, had been preserved much more responsibly and carefully..Sadly, a lot of statues here are broken .. A fact, that makes your heart go out to all those who worked their hearts out to create such beautiful sculptures . Nevertheless, a lovely place to visit around Pune, in about 4 hours ..
Go Green, stay Green !
How environmentally responsible are you ??
Its very easy to get carried away in today’s world, where you have so many gadgets, so many computer-driven tools to assist you in whatever they can. But make no mistake, they aren’t assisting the environment go greener… There is so much that you do in a day, and its only good to be a little aware as to how much energy you are using up, and how much are you contributing to what is the global warming scenario today ..
Here are some links as to how you can calculate your carbon footprint and how you can make yourself only a little more environmentally responsible :
http://bie.berkeley.edu/calculator.html
http://www.earthlab.com/
http://www.carbonfootprint.com/
