Notes taken at random during trip to USA in March
I don't like the red eye flights. I don't like waking up before dawn and going to the airport. This is despite the fact that I often wake up at the crack of dawn to go to the gym. It must be because going to the gym is almost a leisurely way of waking up, whereas going to the airport is very time sensitive. Sometimes I don't sleep well before an early morning flight. But one has to do what one has to do.
Fortunately, there is a certain predictability in going through Zürich airport, specially if one takes the train. No surprises, just smooth sailing, so to say. Following the advice of my better half, I did take the earlier train; and that was the right call.
Frankfurt airport (never one of my favourite airports in Europe) was another story. Not that I had any problems, but it seemed like I was going to walk to Houston. It was about 35-40 minutes of constant movement (mostly walking) to gate C15 from the gate I landed at in terminal A. It was faaar. And the whole system of getting to gate C15 appeared to be really complicated. In the end, I needed all the transit time available to me for, oh well, transiting.
A Boeing 747! Been a long time since I have been on one of these. I recall Swissair used to fly them and business class was upstairs with storage space by the window that you could also use to put up your feet. Then there was a KLM flight to Calcutta via New Delhi where I sat in the nose of the plane. Less comfortable than Swissair. Lufthansa is not quite Emirates or SQ, but having the seat next to me empty helps. Some of the other industry types were sitting in the nose, but I was a few rows back.
(By the way, the stewardesses are doing well in remembering my name. LX or LH is normally not great at this, unlike EK and SQ)
It's gonna be a long day. I woke up at 4:45 AM CET and am scheduled to land at 9:00 PM CET (3 pm local time). That's 16 hours already and I have most of the day in Houston still ahead of me. Ah well. Maybe I will meet an old friend.
(P.S. Video on demand sucks. Selection is ok. Screen quality is only good for tv shows)
So I had a little run-in with Hertz since they didn't have a satnav for the Yukon they gave me. I didn't want to wait and neither did I have a ladder to climb in, so I swapped it for a Mazda 5. The problem came later when Richard called it a Smart car and forced me to swap it back to a bigger one. Guess what? Hertz screwed it up again, and just didn't have my reservation! So we got a Ford Flex from Avis, which was big enough for His Majesty, but the booking agent screwed up the return location and I did not have the energy to fight the $50 extra charge they slapped on me. In other words, this trip was rental car hell.
I don't know if it was this or the pre-occupation with meetings, but it did not even occur to me to run by 31 Meadowridge Place, while I was at The Woodlands. To be frank, I think I would have skipped it even if it had occurred to me.
Socially, it was a strange NPRA. It felt like I had a lot of meetings, yet it felt that I did not meet anybody. I guess it was because I did not go to any of the parties or hang out in the lobby of the MRC. Actually, I had no meetings at the MRC at all, which must have been the first time ever!
(I have restarted writing this after a month's break, just being busy with stuff. So the memory fades ...)
The next part of my trip was eventful. The flights were from San Antonio to DC and then to La Guardia. As I boarded at DC, I thought that something was amiss. Wracking my brains for a few minutes, I realized that I had left my suit bag at the Starbucks in SA airport! 2 jackets and 2 ties in it. I am almost more upset at losing the ties ... I can't think what to do, so all I do is email Lois and Smita to tell them what happened. Then I fall into conversation with the person sitting next to me. He turns out to be a cop in Central Park, as well as a hobby-ist jazz musician. We spend a very enjoyable hour talking of all kinds of things: we both know at some level of consciousness that we will never meet again, or remember the things we talked about.
Three days at work in Darien and New York, and I am headed home in time to see the World Cup Final. India v. Sri Lanka. Would be fun.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Thursday, December 23, 2010
An evening in Zurich
"I think we may be the only Indians there tonight", I said as we got towards the end of the A3 to Zurich.
The wife works for a legal firm, and is always game for a debate; so she immediately responded saying "you think Credit Suisse has no other Indian clients?"
"I think there will be no other high net worth Indian clients that will be invited tonight."
"How do you know? How can you say that?"
"I must be wrong. I am sure there will be many others. Let's see if we know anyone." I give up easily. This discussion would not result in anything useful.
CS had done a good job in organizing this event. The Park Hyatt parking lot had been closed off except for invitees. We were forced to walk into the hotel through the front entrance (where a carpet had been laid) so that somebody could stop us and take an "official" photo. The lobby, bar and restaurant seemed to have been closed off to the general public and reserved for the Roger Federer charity event. That's where we checked in at about 6:15 PM on Monday the 20th of December, 2010.
It was already pretty crowded. Through the grapevine (read Edy) we had heard that there would be about 350 people invited. The objective was to collect money for Roger's charity for children in Africa. It seemed that many of the 350 were there already. People were milling about, imbibing from an impressive list of drinks. On the whole, the food and drink selection was very impressive as well. And did I mention the service staff? They were absolutely brilliant and impeccable. First Class.
Roger made an appearance about 7 PM and stayed there until about 11. He was charm personified. He mixed with everyone, fielded all kinds of questions, posed for photos, signed a thousand or more autographs. An amazing person. You can argue that it was a high end charity event for him, so he could not afford to be otherwise; but he smiled and was in good humor for all 4 hours. Could tennis or Switzerland wish for a better ambassador? If you did not love him so far, this evening would swing you fully into his camp.
Avid followers of mine on Facebook have already seen our pictures of this event, but the crowning glory was his contribution to Kiran who would have given her life to be there. He signed the invitation with a personalization for her after we told him that she had met him in Rotterdam in 2003, and the he agreed to speak to her by phone a couple of hours later. And to crown it all, he remembered and mentioned the meeting in Rotterdam. I think she fainted after he hung up.
Hats off Roger. We loved meeting you and will be your fans forever.
The wife works for a legal firm, and is always game for a debate; so she immediately responded saying "you think Credit Suisse has no other Indian clients?"
"I think there will be no other high net worth Indian clients that will be invited tonight."
"How do you know? How can you say that?"
"I must be wrong. I am sure there will be many others. Let's see if we know anyone." I give up easily. This discussion would not result in anything useful.
CS had done a good job in organizing this event. The Park Hyatt parking lot had been closed off except for invitees. We were forced to walk into the hotel through the front entrance (where a carpet had been laid) so that somebody could stop us and take an "official" photo. The lobby, bar and restaurant seemed to have been closed off to the general public and reserved for the Roger Federer charity event. That's where we checked in at about 6:15 PM on Monday the 20th of December, 2010.
It was already pretty crowded. Through the grapevine (read Edy) we had heard that there would be about 350 people invited. The objective was to collect money for Roger's charity for children in Africa. It seemed that many of the 350 were there already. People were milling about, imbibing from an impressive list of drinks. On the whole, the food and drink selection was very impressive as well. And did I mention the service staff? They were absolutely brilliant and impeccable. First Class.
Roger made an appearance about 7 PM and stayed there until about 11. He was charm personified. He mixed with everyone, fielded all kinds of questions, posed for photos, signed a thousand or more autographs. An amazing person. You can argue that it was a high end charity event for him, so he could not afford to be otherwise; but he smiled and was in good humor for all 4 hours. Could tennis or Switzerland wish for a better ambassador? If you did not love him so far, this evening would swing you fully into his camp.
Avid followers of mine on Facebook have already seen our pictures of this event, but the crowning glory was his contribution to Kiran who would have given her life to be there. He signed the invitation with a personalization for her after we told him that she had met him in Rotterdam in 2003, and the he agreed to speak to her by phone a couple of hours later. And to crown it all, he remembered and mentioned the meeting in Rotterdam. I think she fainted after he hung up.
Hats off Roger. We loved meeting you and will be your fans forever.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
TA End of Year Party
Yesterday was the TA end year party, and I was asked to make a speech one day ahead of the party. About a half hour before we left for the party, I remembered that I had to do this and quickly scribbled some notes, which came out as below (approximately):
Gosh, this is a hard act to follow. It was always Paul's job to make a speech at parties; and Senta told me that she had done her first and last speech at Paul's farewell. Anyway, here we are. It's December and it must be a Transammonia party.
It's great to have a party each year, the only problem being that as I get older, I cannot remember the last one. Did we have a party last year? Does anybody remember? Well, the good thing about a party is that if you have had a great year you can celebrate; and if it was not such a good one, then you can still have something to cheer about. Because TA NEVER has a bad year, right? TA NEVER HAS A BAD YEAR!
The TA family is growing. I am not a great one for socializing but it's wonderful to see everyone here. It's great to have spouses here since they often make us what we are and their understanding helps us in the long hours that we put in the office and the travel that we have to do. Sometimes they even provide lunch everyday.
Chris spoke about Zurich and Prime Tower and we have indeed come full circle. I understand that some of you have seen the premises and I am sure it will be nice to be there. Of the original office in Zurich, we only have Angela, Hans-Jorg and myself left now. But the spirit of Peter is with us. I always valued my interactions with him and the memory of my last meeting with him is still fresh in my mind.
A word for the girls of Trammochem. They are absolutely wonderful and the gasoline which keeps the engine of Trammochem running. Please take a bow Patricia, Hedi, Sybille, Sylvie, Senta, Jackie. It;s also great that we have a young team now. I remember when Paul and I used to meet customers we always said how much longevity there was amongst the employees of Trammochem. Now the team is young and I am sure will take Trammochem to the next stage of evolution and development.
Thanks to Cees and his team in IT for the wonderful organization and the Rockin' Hillbillies for the music. Thanks to everyone for coming and I wish all of you a wonderful Christmas!
(And as is typical for me, I forgot to say the punch line that I had written down: Oh yes, one last thing. Can someone please remind me on Monday if we had a party this year?)
Gosh, this is a hard act to follow. It was always Paul's job to make a speech at parties; and Senta told me that she had done her first and last speech at Paul's farewell. Anyway, here we are. It's December and it must be a Transammonia party.
It's great to have a party each year, the only problem being that as I get older, I cannot remember the last one. Did we have a party last year? Does anybody remember? Well, the good thing about a party is that if you have had a great year you can celebrate; and if it was not such a good one, then you can still have something to cheer about. Because TA NEVER has a bad year, right? TA NEVER HAS A BAD YEAR!
The TA family is growing. I am not a great one for socializing but it's wonderful to see everyone here. It's great to have spouses here since they often make us what we are and their understanding helps us in the long hours that we put in the office and the travel that we have to do. Sometimes they even provide lunch everyday.
Chris spoke about Zurich and Prime Tower and we have indeed come full circle. I understand that some of you have seen the premises and I am sure it will be nice to be there. Of the original office in Zurich, we only have Angela, Hans-Jorg and myself left now. But the spirit of Peter is with us. I always valued my interactions with him and the memory of my last meeting with him is still fresh in my mind.
A word for the girls of Trammochem. They are absolutely wonderful and the gasoline which keeps the engine of Trammochem running. Please take a bow Patricia, Hedi, Sybille, Sylvie, Senta, Jackie. It;s also great that we have a young team now. I remember when Paul and I used to meet customers we always said how much longevity there was amongst the employees of Trammochem. Now the team is young and I am sure will take Trammochem to the next stage of evolution and development.
Thanks to Cees and his team in IT for the wonderful organization and the Rockin' Hillbillies for the music. Thanks to everyone for coming and I wish all of you a wonderful Christmas!
(And as is typical for me, I forgot to say the punch line that I had written down: Oh yes, one last thing. Can someone please remind me on Monday if we had a party this year?)
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hard Facts: Oct 2010 Edition
This post is only for my hard-core followers and those that are interested in hard facts. It contains absolutely no substance. None whatsoever.
(Listening to "Sajda" from "My name is Khan", an absolutely brilliant song from a movie of superbly memorable songs)
Travel Facts:
Cities visited: Budapest, Florence, Pisa, Essen, Leverkusen, Cologne, Ludwigshafen, New York, Darien, Stamford.
Miles earned: 9928 (Swiss & Helvetic airways)
Hotel nights: 14 (Intercontinental, Tornabuoni, Sheraton, Waldorf-Astoria)
Kms driven: 2600 approx (excluding usual daily driving)
Workout facts: My activities are mostly in the gym and my personal record keeper says that (during October) I did
30.4 mi biking
21.1 mi elliptical
9.1 mi walking
(excludes 3 sessions with weights/aerobic combo)
[Don't tell me that I did not warn you!]
(Listening to "Sajda" from "My name is Khan", an absolutely brilliant song from a movie of superbly memorable songs)
Travel Facts:
Cities visited: Budapest, Florence, Pisa, Essen, Leverkusen, Cologne, Ludwigshafen, New York, Darien, Stamford.
Miles earned: 9928 (Swiss & Helvetic airways)
Hotel nights: 14 (Intercontinental, Tornabuoni, Sheraton, Waldorf-Astoria)
Kms driven: 2600 approx (excluding usual daily driving)
Workout facts: My activities are mostly in the gym and my personal record keeper says that (during October) I did
30.4 mi biking
21.1 mi elliptical
9.1 mi walking
(excludes 3 sessions with weights/aerobic combo)
[Don't tell me that I did not warn you!]
Now that I am officially "old" ...
... I wonder what I should do differently. I do like to write, so one resolution is to write more regularly and also record my comings and goings. It's not really to create a following, but more like a chronicle or journal. The girls came with a bunch of ideas and gave me the most wonderful photo album with memories.
Memories makes me think of a play I saw on Friday evening in Singapore. "The Blue Mug" was directed by Atul Kumar and partly based on a book that I owned (but only partly read) back in the mid 80's called "The man who mistook his wife for a hat" by Oliver Sacks. It was a very simple production, but the structure was based on the memories of its characters in a semi-autobiographical kind of way. There was a bunch of stuff that anybody who has grown up in India could identify with. In the end the memories come together and unite the characters, who forget what they are there for.
It is funny that a lot of what we remember goes back a number of years. I find that I do not remember most things which have occurred in the most recent past. Why is that? I think it's because we have the most intense reactions with our experiences when we are young. You know how a child plays with the same toy endlessly? How (s)he wants to listen to the same 4 page story day after day, night after night? They find something new in each repetition and that is perhaps what sinks deep into our memories. At my age, I suppose I am skeptical, cynical and uncaring about many of the things that touch me. Or my mind is too cluttered to experience each moment with intensity. Or I am not expressive emotionally (for a variety of reasons). Or, quite simply, it's ADD.
Technology has created a lot of simple ways to record our experiences. Facebook is perhaps the best example. It has made us willingly want to share moments of our life that we would not have dreamed of sharing, at least not with all 678 of our friends. Perhaps with 6 or 7 or 8 in an intimate moment. But this is 2010, and hey, a lot of our daily conversations also revolve around "Did you see what XYZ wrote on FB?" I must admit that it is addictive in a voyeur-ish kind of way. As far as gossip rags go, I am not a big fan (Twitter excepted), but FB is all about gossip from people we actually know, rather than people we want to know!
I am meandering ... From memories of the past to voyeurism. But that's the fun ... nobody to control or stop what I am writing! On to the next!
Memories makes me think of a play I saw on Friday evening in Singapore. "The Blue Mug" was directed by Atul Kumar and partly based on a book that I owned (but only partly read) back in the mid 80's called "The man who mistook his wife for a hat" by Oliver Sacks. It was a very simple production, but the structure was based on the memories of its characters in a semi-autobiographical kind of way. There was a bunch of stuff that anybody who has grown up in India could identify with. In the end the memories come together and unite the characters, who forget what they are there for.
It is funny that a lot of what we remember goes back a number of years. I find that I do not remember most things which have occurred in the most recent past. Why is that? I think it's because we have the most intense reactions with our experiences when we are young. You know how a child plays with the same toy endlessly? How (s)he wants to listen to the same 4 page story day after day, night after night? They find something new in each repetition and that is perhaps what sinks deep into our memories. At my age, I suppose I am skeptical, cynical and uncaring about many of the things that touch me. Or my mind is too cluttered to experience each moment with intensity. Or I am not expressive emotionally (for a variety of reasons). Or, quite simply, it's ADD.
Technology has created a lot of simple ways to record our experiences. Facebook is perhaps the best example. It has made us willingly want to share moments of our life that we would not have dreamed of sharing, at least not with all 678 of our friends. Perhaps with 6 or 7 or 8 in an intimate moment. But this is 2010, and hey, a lot of our daily conversations also revolve around "Did you see what XYZ wrote on FB?" I must admit that it is addictive in a voyeur-ish kind of way. As far as gossip rags go, I am not a big fan (Twitter excepted), but FB is all about gossip from people we actually know, rather than people we want to know!
I am meandering ... From memories of the past to voyeurism. But that's the fun ... nobody to control or stop what I am writing! On to the next!
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Invitation to a Bat Mitzvah - and a cuppa tea
It all happened by chance. I had received the invitation from the Stanton family (my first ever to a Bat Mitzvah) and had thought no more of it. But one thing led to another, and finding myself in Manhattan for work, I called Oliver and accepted the invitation. The occasion called for "festive dress" and was clarified to be a suit.
Now for the gift that Smita reminded me I should not forget to take with me. Not knowing anything about Mitzvah traditions (I have been to a Jewish wedding, but that's another story). I did some research and came up with the appropriate gift : cash. How Indian! And there are traditions to determine the amount!
On a beautiful, sunny Saturday, I made my way to the Spanish & Portuguese Synagogue on the Upper West Side. This is the first time I am at a Synagogue (and on Shabath, no less!) and am amazed by the building, both outside and inside. It looks very ornate and I sit through the service with a cap on my head and a cloth around my shoulders (you can Google to see what they are called). Alex appears about an hour after I get there and goes through the ceremony. Oliver says that she wrote her Thank You speech herself. All very American. The ceremony consisted of her reading through some prayers and then her speech followed by Oliver.
We repaired to a Kidush lunch downstairs. Some jostling and grabbing of seats took place. I lost the one I had put my book on. Being the polite sort, I ate standing up rather than make a fuss. I don't need to Google this because I was there : the food was mainly salads and cold fish dishes plus fruits and desserts. The Rabbi said something like grace first, following which we swallowed thimble sized glasses of red wine; before fighting for a place in the buffet.
The dinner was simply spectacular. Hosted at the St. Regis on 55th and 5th, it was a teenage birthday party to beat anything I have ever seen. Describing it all would probably make y'all glassy eyed. Lots of thank yous and I love yous in the speeches. All American.
Starting at 7, we got our main course at 10. About 11, I was so tired that I was ready to fall asleep at the table (had walked about 3 miles in the afternoon) when I discovered "Energy Jetlag AM" tea at the back.
Magical. I am a new person in two sips. A new quest begins.
Now for the gift that Smita reminded me I should not forget to take with me. Not knowing anything about Mitzvah traditions (I have been to a Jewish wedding, but that's another story). I did some research and came up with the appropriate gift : cash. How Indian! And there are traditions to determine the amount!
On a beautiful, sunny Saturday, I made my way to the Spanish & Portuguese Synagogue on the Upper West Side. This is the first time I am at a Synagogue (and on Shabath, no less!) and am amazed by the building, both outside and inside. It looks very ornate and I sit through the service with a cap on my head and a cloth around my shoulders (you can Google to see what they are called). Alex appears about an hour after I get there and goes through the ceremony. Oliver says that she wrote her Thank You speech herself. All very American. The ceremony consisted of her reading through some prayers and then her speech followed by Oliver.
We repaired to a Kidush lunch downstairs. Some jostling and grabbing of seats took place. I lost the one I had put my book on. Being the polite sort, I ate standing up rather than make a fuss. I don't need to Google this because I was there : the food was mainly salads and cold fish dishes plus fruits and desserts. The Rabbi said something like grace first, following which we swallowed thimble sized glasses of red wine; before fighting for a place in the buffet.
The dinner was simply spectacular. Hosted at the St. Regis on 55th and 5th, it was a teenage birthday party to beat anything I have ever seen. Describing it all would probably make y'all glassy eyed. Lots of thank yous and I love yous in the speeches. All American.
Starting at 7, we got our main course at 10. About 11, I was so tired that I was ready to fall asleep at the table (had walked about 3 miles in the afternoon) when I discovered "Energy Jetlag AM" tea at the back.
Magical. I am a new person in two sips. A new quest begins.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Stuck for words
Its getting on to a couple of months but no inspiration has struck me enough to write about and share with my fans, as they are, out there.
I had the most wonderful birthday day, but that was followed by some intense traveling and activity, which threatens to continue apace. Probably what I need the most is a long holiday at this point in time. Firenze was short, but at least I managed to stay off the email. Now there is a work-in-progress ...
The girls gave me a wonderful album with pictures and writing tips, but I am missing inspiration. To some extent, the ADD that has been afflicting me is to blame. I think I need to find ways to concentrate and focus. Life is not about flitting from one subject to another and, in my view, multi-tasking is an attribute that is vastly over-rated.
So all I am going to do today is leave my footprint on the blog but not really talk about anything. Hope to see y'all again sometime soon with something meaningful!
Adios.
I had the most wonderful birthday day, but that was followed by some intense traveling and activity, which threatens to continue apace. Probably what I need the most is a long holiday at this point in time. Firenze was short, but at least I managed to stay off the email. Now there is a work-in-progress ...
The girls gave me a wonderful album with pictures and writing tips, but I am missing inspiration. To some extent, the ADD that has been afflicting me is to blame. I think I need to find ways to concentrate and focus. Life is not about flitting from one subject to another and, in my view, multi-tasking is an attribute that is vastly over-rated.
So all I am going to do today is leave my footprint on the blog but not really talk about anything. Hope to see y'all again sometime soon with something meaningful!
Adios.
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