think-free ~ Pic of the Day

Sun vs Moon

2006-05-11T13:10:00.000-07:00

This is one of my recent favs. These two pics were shot at two different times, but mostly from the exact location and same angle. The first one was taken during the evening and the second when the darkness crawled in. See the difference between Sun vs Moon... and the wonders that light can do to our eyes..

Bacardi Blast!

2006-03-22T06:21:00.000-08:00

Place: Athena, Leela Palace (Bangalore)
Time: 09:00 PM, a recent Friday!

Got a very cordial invite from a friend, and hence set out to a pub during the weekend. Three of us were there, so was not sure whether one will be kicked out since we aren't 'couples'. Decided to go to Athena, one of the 5* hotels in B'lore. Stopped on the way, pulled over besides a liquor shop and we 3 shared one Bacardi half. Finally reached Leela, half-drunk and the entry fee was only Rs. 1000/- per couple (cough.. cough..)!! But they were generous enough to give coupons worth 800/- for drinks and we had none left when we were out. Trying to gather from my vague memory, a Bacardi large with Sprite was around Rs 230!

Lucky that I reached home safe and sound. My friends said that I was little too excited after the beer and the all the Bacardi I gulped! No wonder if I was a little over social. The crowd was classy, and had a mix of most of the nationalities. I still remember meeting some Canadian and French girls ...

Magical Tank

2006-03-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

Can water stay without any borders? Take a look at these...

So what do you say now?

House Boat

2006-02-19T06:50:00.000-08:00

Would you like to float around the backwaters of the one of the '50 must see places' of the world by National Geographic Channel? I am talking about Kerala, a small state in India, which was called by NatGeo as 'Paradise Found'. The pictures are of house boats, which are like a floating house. You have beds, dining table, kitchen and what else you want? They catch fish as you glide and within minutes you will get the 'freshest' fish in front of you in a plate. Sounds yummy? Read on:

http://www.indiatravelite.com/accommodations/keralahouseboat.htm
http://www.kerala-tourism.net/kerala-house-boats.html
http://keralatourpackages.com/Pages/HouseboatHolidays/HouseboatHolidays.htm
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/kerala.html

Scary House - Garuda Mall, Blore

2006-01-31T12:00:00.000-08:00

Have you been to Garuda Mall (Bangalore, India) lately? I went with couple of friends, couple of weeks back. Actually we thought of watching some movie at the Inox theatre, but we were too early for the show, and the tickets were already sold out too. Saw something called 'Scary House' (in the 3rd floor if I remember right). Dropped movie plans and in the next minute, me and a friend was standing in the queue for tickets, leaving the chickens at the entrance. Scary House is a two storied thriller house, once belonged to a horror story writer (as the story goes), but now occupied by some ghosts, his family members, before they were attacked. Well not bad, but wasn't too much exciting for me who hasn't missed any horror movie so far ;) But we saw many gals and kids screaming and running to get out of it ASAP (As Soon As Possible). Only one ghost could at least excite me a bit, everything else were welcomed with a warm smile.. lol. Still I would say, give it a try!

More info?
http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Garuda_Mall-88785-1.html
http://www.inoxmovies.com/

Go karting...

2006-01-22T10:55:00.000-08:00

Finally we went for karting! We were planning this since a few months. This is in Bangalore, India. It seems there were 3 karting tracks in Bangalore, one near ITPL (Speed Zone), one in Palace Grounds (Freeway 19) and the other in RT Nagar (Race Pace). Found that Speed Zone closed in mid 2005 from a forum. We went to Freeway 19, but it is also closed since last 3 months. Luckily the Race Pace was close by (another 3-4 kms), so headed there.. and finally did race... two rounds (6 laps each).

More info on 'go karting':
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kart_racing
http://www.karnatakatourism.org/sites/gokatting.html
http://www.onlinebangalore.com/feat/goka.html

The mom and the twins!

2006-01-19T09:23:00.000-08:00

Itz again doggy time... Was just browsing through the Gigs of pics I have, and found these touching ones... What is more pure and arrant than the love of a mom, a shoulder where you can always lay your head, no matter how old you are! Perhaps the only person who started loving you even before seeing you, when you were dozing in the comfort of the most safest place on earth, her womb!

Wonder La - Bangalore

2006-01-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

This is Wonder La, claimed to be the largest amusement theme park in India. Spread over 82 acres, 30 km from Bangalore, India. Has around 50 rides (dry & water) and can accommodate approx 6000 people. Starting with the Hurricane (looked quite gentle when shut down!), we tried almost everything, including Maverick, Techno Jump, Drop Zone, Sky Wheel... the list goes on, it was a whole day of fun. The Music Fountain and the Laser Show as well as the Cine Magic too were fun. Having seen the Six Flags (US), Essel World (Mumbai) , Appu Ghar (Delhi), Black Thunder (Ooty) etc.. I should say, not bad!

http://wonderla.com
http://www.sixflags.com
http://www.esselworld.com/

Silent Night

2006-01-11T12:55:00.000-08:00

This is the Reliant Stadium in Houston downtown, a pretty big one! Reliant Stadium seats a total of 69,500, 44,000 of which is sideline seating. Its retractable roof, the first in an NFL stadium, can open or close in 10 minutes. Reliant Stadium is part of Reliant Park, the largest event complex in the U.S., which also includes the Reliant Astrodome, Reliant Center and Reliant Arena. The Park hosts a range of sports events, concerts and conventions, including the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (The Cowboy Show). The second pic is a shot of the sunset, with the stadium on the left. See the third link for satellite pictures.

http://www.hlsr.com/
http://www.reliantpark.com/
http://www.globalsecurity.org/eye/reliant-stadium.htm

Kerala - Land of Coconuts

2006-01-08T12:27:00.000-08:00

This is another beautiful shot from Kerala, India. The word Kerala is derived from 'Keralam', which means the land of coconuts. Visit Kerala, and you can't find a place without coconut trees. Coconut is used to extract oil and is also added to make yummy dishes. Coir is made from the coconut shell. The leaves of the tree are at times used to weave roof for huts. Coconut water is the most delicious natural cool drink you can have in summer. Coconut wood also is used, to make furniture. Quite interesting tree, isn't it?

More details on coconut water:
http://coconutboard.nic.in/tendnutr.htm
http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-B00001-01c20oF.html

The unfortunate accident!

2006-01-02T23:06:00.000-08:00

This happened on 27 Dec 05, at around 8+ in the evening; in Kerala, India. A state public transport bus was hit by a lorry, causing 9 people to die on the spot! It seems both the vehicles were speeding and the lorry driver seems to have lost control of the vehicle. It hit the bus on the side, just after the 3rd seat from the driver, and crushed into the bus, taking one side of the bus and its passengers. The lorry driver didn't stop and fled away, but later police found the lorry abandoned, a few kilometers away. The unfortunate incident took around 15 lives, mostly women and children. When I happen to visit the spot after a few hours, the road was full of human blood and body parts!! Just in front of me, an accident victim's ear was collected by police, which was stamped by the crowd! May god save the deceased souls...

Harmony of the Rival Giants

2005-12-30T07:15:00.000-08:00

They are big, they are influential, but they are the greatest rivals. You guessed right, I am referring to Microsoft and IBM (The Big Blue). But finally they found harmony in a campus in India, on the same building. The second shot is of the frightened crowd, just after the employees were evacuated due to a bomb threat today!

The European Vacation - in India

2005-12-29T11:20:00.000-08:00

Spotted a European family of three, in a small electric car in Bangalore, India. The car is a 2-door, only electric car available in India, called Reva. It has 4 seats (3, I would say, with 2 full and 2 halves), meant for 2 adults and 2 kids. I wonder how they managed to fit in 3 adults (the two guys in the front were well built, and a chic in the back) in that ultra compact car! I hope they enjoyed their vacation, in the Indian way… It wasn't easy to take the pic with one hand... and the other on the wheel...

For more info:
http://www.revaindia.com/design/index.htm

Gleam of Heaven

2005-12-23T02:55:00.000-08:00

This picture was taken sometime back, from the sky. Can you see the gleam of heaven from the clouds? Itz Christmas time... it was on Christmas day that a new hope was born for our human race, the way to salvation. Wish you all merry Xmas and a blissful new year! Happy vacations...

Letz go for bowling

2005-12-21T03:30:00.000-08:00

Ready... set... go...

Let the balls roll! Bowling is a great entertainer as well as a good physical and mental exercise. It seems the roots of the game date back to ancient Egypt. The most popular version of current times is the American version called Ten-pin bowling. Pins are the bottle like structures you can see at the end of the alley.

For more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowling
http://www.bowling.com/

Letz go to God's own Country - Kerala

2005-12-18T10:48:00.000-08:00

This is Kerala, a beautiful state in India, known as the 'God's own country'. Kerala is full of backwaters, rivers, lakes, hills, paddy fields, rubber, coconut, coffee, tea, elephants, boat races, beaches, palaces... what not! It is also the land of ayurveda (herbal medicine). Kerala is culturally very rich too. It has many traditional forms of dances and music.

For more info:
http://www.keralatourism.org/
http://www.ktdc.com/
http://www.keralatourism.com/
http://www.goodhealthnyou.com/alternative/ayurveda1.php3
http://www.everydayayurveda.org/

Letz play with the pups

2005-12-17T02:17:00.000-08:00

Ever tried taking a pic of 5 puppies, all together? I would say, almost impossible! We tried to get a group photo of these 5 cute siblings, before two of them were going to their new house. It was interesting and exhilarating, but cumbersome and frustrating at the same time. Even with the help of two guys, we could not manage to get a smiling pic... lol. I tried say cheese, chicken.. everything.. but in vain! Finally the nanny of the pups decided to hold the departing ones close to her bosom... voila! Look how innocently they are posing for the shot ;-)

Note: Apologize for the grainy pics. These were taken with my Nokia 6230i, under bad lighting conditions... and in a hurry (the models were too busy)!

Letz go for a ride in the countryside

2005-12-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

You might have heard of the Road to Perdition or the Road to El Dorado. How about the road to Heaven? Any guesses where this place is? If you thought it is again New Orleans, sorry! This is a place which is diagonally opposite to nola in the globe. This is a countryside, little off from an emerging city in India, called Bangalore. Bangalore is fastly growing as one of the major IT hubs in the world. This place is actually in Tamilnadu, and is on the way to Thirupathur (Vellore) from Bangalore.

For more info on Bangalore:
http://www.bangaloreit.in
http://www.virtualbangalore.com/GenInf/index.php

Letz go to the sea - a Rig!

2005-12-14T22:54:00.000-08:00

These are some of my favorite shots. It was taken from a helicopter. This is an offshore platform of one of the Oil giants, in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. We had to travel for more than an hour in a helicopter to reach here. If you think it is a small one, look again! What you see next to it is a small ship, which is usually used to carry cargo or waste in and out. This oil rig can house more than 150 people and belongs to the tension legged type (it floats!!). The platform is fitted with a rig (the tall metal frame you see in the centre), which is used to drill under the sea bed. You might get scary about the see-through netted floor in the work area (to reduce wind drift) and the loosely chained small posts in the balconies (supposed to prevent you at the edges?). It has multiple helipads. Even the blueness of the ocean is different in the deepness. I stayed there for one night; hmm... the food is yummy! They even have satellite TV and internet access. Only thing you might miss is a... you know it... the fairer sex :-)

Find more info here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_platform
http://www.naturalgas.org/naturalgas/extraction_offshore.asp

Letz go for a ride - Streetcars

2005-12-14T00:42:00.000-08:00

Note: Click on the picture to see a bigger version.

New Orleans (Louisiana) is the second American city to have streetcars. They first came into being in 1835. It is the oldest continuously operating streetcar in the world! The mahogany seats, brass fittings and exposed ceiling light bulbs are from a day when plastic seats and aluminum rails were not even a thought. Rumbling around the ''neutral ground'' of St. Charles and Carrollton avenues for more than 150 years, the streetcar symbolizes the charm and romance of the City of New Orleans.

History sleeps here. A place in US where you will feel you are totally out of US. New Orleans is a Southern city known for its multicultural heritage (especially French, Spanish and African American influences) and its music (especially Jazz) and cuisine (Cajun). It was once a french colony and was bought by US for 3 cent per acre ($15 million in total, in 1803).

Whatever you do, dont call these street cars 'Trolleys' in front of them. They say: ''Streetcars'' rolled through New Orleans for more than 60 years before the ''trolley''.

Find more info here:
http://www.neworleansonline.com/tours-attractions/tours/streetcars.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Orleans

Letz Gamble - Harrah's Casino

2005-12-13T01:03:00.000-08:00

This is the Harrah's Casino in Canal Street, New Orleans (US). This pic was taken sometime in May 03. Cameras are not allowed inside the casino, but somehow I managed to take couple of pics. The casino is always crowded and Harrah's has a big chain of casinos all over US. The casino is really huge, and lot of ppl spends a whole day there. They serve great buffet (multi-continental) for less rates. Most of the people are elders, who visit almost daily. It's like a job for them, a way to spend time and to earn money, if lucky. But sometimes, I felt they are being forced by their children to go there and make money, rather than doing it on their own will! God save them...

More details:
http://www.harrahs.com/

Letz start with prayers! St Louis Church, New Orleans

2005-12-12T07:45:00.000-08:00

This is the St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, the oldest in US, built in 1760s. A local friend told that you have to book more than an year in advance to have a wedding here! It's cemetery is notorious and is an unavoidable part of every 'Ghost Tour'.

Find more info here:
http://www.nps.gov/jeff/history.htm
http://frenchquarter.neworleans.com/history.html
http://cml.upenn.edu/nola/14history/L2historypgnola.html
http://www.hauntedhistorytours.com/Voodoo.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Orleans,_Louisiana
http://www.neworleanschurches.com/stlouiscath/stlouiscath.htm

I hope this would become a successful platform for me to show off my electronic eyeshots. After all, they say : "A picture is worth about 20 blog posts". Enjoy ;-)