Botanical Tour thru Ozone

Being middle of winter back home and in the single digits, I thought that I would try to brighten your day with a botanical tour of Ozone.

Every weekend I take a long walk thru the neighborhood and enjoy the fresh crisp morning air, and take in the lovely sights and sounds of Ozone. It starts with the crows crowing and drowning out the sounds of the birds. The sights are all kids of things... flowers galore, green trees, lush grass, and fruits on trees!! Occasionally the sounds will include a whistle or two from pressure cookers. All Indians know that the sound of the pressure cooker is a daily occurrence.... Then you can smell the fresh crisp air and the hint of the flowers as you pass them by. Occasionally you will get a wiff of something that is not natural.... but some good ol curry cooking... it is enough to make your mouth water. I pass and wonder... hmm, what are they making!!!

After the walk, I am refreshed, energized, and hungry from smelling the various curries cooking as I pass the houses.

The 'Lunghi'

Does anyone know what a 'Lunghi' is?? This is the male version of a 'saree'. Essentially it is a long piece of fabric wrapped like a sarong or a skirt. Yes, you can call it a 'man skirt'!!

Well in south India this is common street wear for men. At least 40-50% of the men walking on the streets are sporting the 'man skirt'. I am sure that it is more comfortable and probably cooler than pants on a hot sunny day. But still, it is a skirt... on a man!! Further... they are worn at different lengths. The full length is down to the ankles and some men that are feeling a little daring (or just a little hot) wear the mini-version.

The question is how many men back home feel confident enough to sport the 'man skirt'!! And more so.... how many of you can sport it walking arm in arm with another man!! See the picture below!!



Now just so you know... Vim wants a man skirt!! And he wants to wear it to a family wedding!! (Sorry Roopa, that would be your wedding that he is referring too!) I am sure that he is going to want to walk arm in arm with another man wearing the 'man skirt' too!!

Time is Flying By!

OK.... does anyone know how long we have been here???? OK, it is 5 months!!! (Some of you that were paying close attention would notice that in Nov, I incorrectly reported that we were here 5 months.... It was a test to see if anyone caught my mistake!!)

The interesting thing to note that it was just over a year ago that we had planted this 'Bangalore Seed'. It was November last year that I was first approached about this opportunity. It took a long time to go from that initial discussion with the Director to approvals, interviews, and all that stuff!! Now, a year later, here we are!!! Who knows what is ahead.... most of you have heard the news about GM. Not sure if that will impact us, or the assignment. We will keep enjoying each day and cherishing the opportunity!!

So, 5 months away from Michigan!! It has really flown by!! It does not feel like December here!! I suppose the fact that it is 80 and sunny every day has something to do with it!!

We are off to the Maldives next week Wednesday for 4 days!! YEAH!! After we return we will have visitors!! It will be a great way to wrap up the year!!

The Dentist

The trip to the dentist was 'great'.... OK as great as a trip to the dentist can be!! The office was clean and they used all the same 'technology' that we are used to back at home. The dentist was young and very friendly. Actually here, the dentist did all the procedures and cleaning as opposed to having a hygienist. Vim and kids have their appointment already scheduled! I think we have found our family dentist!

A new experience in Bangalore

Today I am going somewhere where I have never been to in Bangalore.... I am going to the Dentist! I am serving as the family 'guinea pig' and testing out a place that has been recommended by a few ex-pats like us.

Needless to say, I am a bit nervous.

I don't like trips to the dentists to begin with, now couple this with the 'uncertainty' of the practices and standards here in India. It is a little frightening!

Well, off I go! Hopefully I won't have any horror stories to report post mortem (heee, Like the choice of word there!!)!!

Christmas Cards!!

OK... I have to admit... one of the great thing about the holidays.... getting Christmas Cards... Especially those with 'pictures'!! So, being all the way over here, we did not want to miss out on the picture cards!! We want to 'see' everyone!! And this will be as close as we can get to 'seeing' everyone!!

I am giving my address below. This is a local address for all of you back in the States and a single stamp should do the trick (what is it, $.47 now?). From this address the bundle it all up and ship it to Bangalore. It is a pretty slick set-up.

Devyani Patel
C/O GM Bangalore
P.O. Box 9022
Warren, MI 48090-9022


So, there is no pressure, really! One word of caution... they only take cards/letters, etc at this address. You can not mail a 'care-package' or anything. Sorry... they have strict rules!!

Anyways... If I get on the ball... maybe I will send cards too... Or maybe do the e-card thing!! We will see!!

Slithering Things

OK.... for those with a deep fear of slithering things, please stop reading! The rest of you.... hold on tight!! : )

So, the slithering things that I am referring to are snakes!! Ew, is right!! Now, a little background about snakes and our family. There is someone in our family that has a deep fear of snakes!! I don't think that I need to tell you all who it is... most of you well know, it is Vim!! Anyways, in our house back home, we would frequently get 'garden' snakes in our back yard b/c of the woods. This would freak Vim out!! We would occasionally hear a high pitched scream when Vim was cutting the grass, and we knew that it was b/c he saw a snake!! Over time, he was starting to get used to the snakes, and instead of screaming.... he would call the neighbors over to 'check-it-out'!

Coming to India, we knew that snakes were more plentiful!! The major difference being.... these were not 'garden variety' snakes!! So when we were here for our trip in May looking at houses, Vim would occasionally ask 'Do you get any snakes here?'. He quickly learned that there were a few snake sightings in the 'gated communities'. This put him on guard!

Well it was about 2 weeks ago, our driver informed Vim that someone found a snake in Ozone (this is our gated community). To make things better, another driver was able to get it all on his 'video-feature' on his cell phone!! So, now Vim was able to watch the 'capturing' of the snake!! I watched the video and let me tell you... I was freaked out!! The snake was 6 feet long!! It was found in a grassy area near one of the play areas. The thing is that when I go for my walks, I pass this same area... I am within 2 feet of it!! A little too close for comfort!!!

OK, so this 'snake-sighting' had created a big buzz in the hood! It was the talk of the town for at least 2 or 3 days. This then sprouted all the other stories about previous snake sightings/encounters! We learned that someone actually had a snake in their house!! yikes!! Anyways.... it creeped Vim out, and I have to admit, it creeped me out too!!

So, as soon as we saw the video, the next question was, what kind of snake was it!! At first Vim said it was a 'king' cobra. I did not think so. Then he said it was an Anaconda. Again, this theory was quickly discounted when we realized that Anacondas are only in South America!! Now, the latest verdict is - boa constrictor!

So, a 6 foot boa constrictor had taken up home in Ozone!! Now the question is, what would Vim do if he came face to face with this snake??? I know what I would do.... scream and run for my life!!