Run for cover !! I AM BACK !!!!

Finally I have sometime to post here in peace. Between unpacking 3 large suitcases (yeah, despite my resolution not to shop during my holiday, I did and I did a lot of it), finding space for all the new things, and restocking my fridge/freezer/bar/pantry plus sleeping off the holiday hangover and catching up with frieds, and not to mention the piled up work on my office desk, I have had no time to say a proper hello to you all.

So hello !! I am back, and hands up all those who missed me !! Tee Hee

The holiday started on a very optimistic note on the evening of the 19th itself when I went out for farewell drinks for a collegue of mine (he made his escape the lucky bastard) and carried on till late in the night. Having being a good boy and packed over the weekend itself, all I had to do was to collect my bags and get to the airport !!

Flying economy class after a number of years was giving me the creeps (I hate cost cutting, no more airmiles to fly business class free of cost) but in reality it was not that bad. But I did learn a few lessons which I had forgotten

- I am "seat 26K" not Mr. Gautam
- The choices of wine with the meal are "red or white"
- The choices of a meal is "veggie" or "non-veggie"
- JW Red Label is a crap whiskey
- Actually drinking any kind of drink out of a plastic cup is crap
- No matter how thin you are, or how short yr legs are, the seats are damn uncomfortable
- It really hurts when you read that channel 13-18 on yr TV are available in "business and first class only"
- The choices of your seat position is upright or upright
- Since your luggage does not have the "priority" tag attached to it, it comes out last

But being hungover from the previous evening, and the fact that I downed a bottle of champagne before boarding my flight (I still had access to executive lounge due to my frequent flier status) I slept most of the way to Delhi. The flight arrived 1 hr beofore time (will wonders never cease to happen ?) and as a result I had to wait for sometime before my parents came to pick me up.

But India is always great, despite the fact that it was HOT !!! I did not do much there except eat and sleep and shop. A perfect way to spend two weeks (and abt $5,000). The highlight of the trip was my folks new house - it is built like a frigging palace !! Though it is a bit small than our previous house, but my dad says that they do not need too much space as only my mom and dad are there - even then it is almost double in size of my house in London. All marble floors, the bathrooms are WOW (the one attached to my room is done in black marble), exotic rugs, you name it !!! And the best feature was a wall mural in the formal sitting room which is 9 x 6 feet, depicting the lord Ganesh. It is absolutely stunning. It was handmade by a local artist specially for our house -and apparently it is only one of its kind in the city !!

In India I always live like a king. There are servants and maids to do every work, a cook which is at your beck and call to prepare whatever you feel like eating (including endless cups of tea - which belive it or not is the best thirst quencher in the Indian heat), drivers to drive you around (the driver which dad allocated to me was great, he used to turn on the car a/c 15 minutes before I had to go somewhere - he got a hefty tip just for that !!) , the unformed guard at the gate who saltues you every time you enter or leave and open the gates for you...ahhhh pure bliss...!!!!

And the food !!! I ate out almost every evening, checking out new places which have opened or just going back to my old haunts much to the displeasure of my mother, who was constantly worried that I would fall sick (since it was the rainy season, outside food is a bit dicey !!)

And I shopped. Despite a pledge not to buy more clothes, I bought 24 new shirts I just could not resist. Plus the indian spices and condiments for my kitchen, leather bags, coat, gifts for my friends, a statue made out of sandalwood (my entire lounge smells of sandalwood now) and knicks and knacks.

And even though I miss all the comforts of home, I am glad to be back !!!