11!!

11 is considered to be an auspicious number in the Hindu tradition. Doesn't come as a surprise that the 11th country I visited is my favourite place so far. Earlier this month, I went to New Zealand and fell deeply in love with the country. Apart from an awesome company, there were many things which I loved about my trip to New Zealand. Let me try to summarize it in 11 points.

1. The place is an untouched paradise. It is too beautiful to be believed and very well preserved. It seems that all the beautiful photos of scenery and houses have been pasted right in front of my eyes.
2. The people surely are very helpful. They always give way, help people out and the place is quite safe.
3. I did skydiving from 15,000 ft at Queenstown with an amazing view
4. Nevis bungy from 134 m, in between the mountains and falling just above a fast flowing river
5. White water rafting in Rapids of class IV even when I have just started learning how to swim
6. Got a speeding ticket of a good amount and burst into laughing about it
7. Drove like crazy for 10 days but the drive was totally worth it with beautiful scenery all around
8. Stayed in all kinds of accommodation ranging from 5 star hotel to haunted palace to home stay
9. Saw Haka Dance by actual Maori live in front of me
10. Saw very distinct animals and plants, and of course cattle grazing on the mountains like in Bollywood movies
11. With this, I cover all inhabited continents of the world.

New Zealand is definitely a must visit place from my side.

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Increasing Excitement!!

“I learned that the richness of life is found in adventure. . . . It develops self-reliance and independence. Life then teems with excitement. There is stagnation only in security.” - William Orville Douglas

Its exactly 4 weeks before I leave for Africa which means that I need to start taking my Malaria prevention pills from today! Wow!! Finally taking pills and all.. Thankfully, all the vaccination shots are done and I survived them :)

The excitement is on a constant increase nowadays. I have been introduced to some people in Kenya and I can already relate to what everybody has been telling me about the warmth of the people there. Anyone and everyone who has ever gone to Africa tells me that I am going to have an experience of a lifetime, something that I will cherish forever..

I particularly liked Jovin's response - "shub, here's why you should NOT go to africa!

- you will me mesmerized! you would not want to return to the lion city, after you'd have courted the real lions!
- you will see the soccer talents, take up women's soccer, and show them how you can juggle with many balls at once
- last but not the least, the wonderful people you'd meet would break your stereotypes on hospitality and love and seduction!

you want not be a victim of all this in your one and only youth, do you?"

Makes me want to leave right away.. Sharing a video which Muti (a Kenyan friend of mine) shared with me to introduce magical Kenya..

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In Love with 'Macha'!!

Well.. If you have met me in the past 3-4 days then you will know what I am referring to.. 'Macha', 'Da', 'Chumma' have been added to my vocabulary and have been placed in a special function which is run every time I communicate.. Now its not that I had never heard these words, but one of my colleagues does complete justice to these words when he uses them and since then I have started liking them.. Specially Macha.. I think it is a very very cute word :P

Now I think that its such a cute word that I should not waste it on everyone, specially the people who get irritated when I use it.. So I have finally shortlisted 3 machas :)

• Preeti Macha: Apart from the fact that she has to be a part of everything I do, I think the way I use Macha for her is different from how I use it with everyone else.. I don't remember now whether I caught the habit of Macha by her over-using it or was it the other way round, but now we both use it a lot.. Our SMSes are Awesome Macha, tell me when you are back da.. Macha, I am hungry.. and even one of our emails was titled Macha!!!! So, my top Macha is Preeti :)
• Shankar Macha: Well, being a South Indian himself, Shankar understands the importance of the word.. And also, I like the way he laughs when we use Macha coz a lot of times we use it in a wrong way or are over-using it..
  
• Bharat Macha: I think Macha suits him more than his name (The name is very good but he is such a Macha :) ).. And I just realized that I have never called him Bharat, I have been calling him Macha only..
  

But being a Google Era girl, I googled Macha, which gave me weird results. Then I googled, Macha South India and my favourite favourite Urban Dictionary enlightened me..
Here are some of the meanings:

• Literally is term for brother-in-law (wife's brother). Used more commonly as an addressal to friends - So its more like Saala in North India.. I don't like using Abusive words for addressing friends so I will neglect my knowledge of this meaning. Just like how I call Ker Ying a Chikopeck coz both Ker Ying and the word Chikopeck are cute.. Although Chikopeck means a lecher and he is always conscious of where I use that word :P
• Slang for a friend, basically means cousin
  
• A term of endearment used by homosexual and bisexual males hailing from South India - hahahhahahahahhahhahha.. Is this the reason why some people get irritated when I call them Macha?

I don't think I care much about the meaning of the word.. For me its a word I use with people I think deserve the word.. So if I have called you 'Macha', its just coz I think you deserve that..

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APGN Pre-meeting

Last year pre-meeting played a big role in deciding the direction of my IC XP, in instilling me with the high spirits that lasted through IC and in making some wonderful friends, so this year I was really looking forward to it. I just love the energy AP creates as a GN and makes sure that every member of the AP family gets immersed into this energy. The roll calls it showcases, the warmth it emits and the diversity it unites inspires me (and I am sure a lot of other people as well) and motivates me for giving my 100% to this GN and whatever I do in life. Another important aspect of Pre-meet which I simply love is the opportunity to talk about the hard-core AIESEC stuff with AIESECers from all the countries (at least most of them turn up for the pre-meet).

The most inspiring part of this year’s pre-meeting was the session on Talent Management run by Daz, the Talent Management Unit (TMU) Chair, exclusively for the VP Talent Management and Local Committee Presidents of the AP region. Those who know about my work life will definitely know that my topmost priority for this year’s IC was to develop a comprehensive Tracking template with quantitative and qualitative tracking. This session gave me very cool ideas about the tracking template and a lot of other things to motivate me to work harder. But the way the session was run by Daz really inspired and touched me through and through. I reached a new level of passion which I have never experienced before. I always thought that my passion for AIESEC is already at the maximum level possible, but I would say that this session proved me wrong.

Last year, I was thinking of heading for the future after my LCP term and go for the NOC programme of NUS. I remember very clearly that during Pre-meeting, something struck me and I decided that I will run for Vice President Talent Management. And here I am, Vice President Talent Management AIESEC Singapore 08/09. A similar thing happened to me this year during the pre-meeting. I thought that I will not be going to the exchange part of the AIESEC XP. The pre-meeting was very much focused on exchange and they presented Vijit Bhaiya’s case study. There I saw how my brother is not only impacting his life but also the lives of so many different people in both his internships in Poland and Austria. How people from all the countries come and ask me if I am Vijit’s sister! And ask if I am going to have the same kind of wholesome AIESEC XP. And this inspired me to finally decide that I will be going for an internship, even if its only DT for a couple of months. I will complete my AIESEC XP because that not only impacts my life but the lives of so many different people.

So with renewed energy and passion, I thought that I was prepared to experience AIESEC International Congress 2008 (Responsible Youth. Sustainable Future)

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Rio De Janeiro!

If Sao Paulo was about being introduced to the Brazilian culture, then Rio was about being awed and shocked by the culture, beauty and reality of Brazil all at the same time. The loud music, the most exotic beaches, a warmer weather, bus breakdowns a number of times and one of the seven wonders of the world present a striking contrast between the 2 cities.

Journey to Rio: So we joined the Study Tour to Rio on 15^th (which is also the independence day of India) and reached Rio at 10 pm. However, it being a Friday night we all went to a club. It was great to see the live culture of Brazil. One striking difference between the clubs in Singapore and in Brazil is the music. While in Singapore we dance on world popular songs, the Brazilians enjoy dancing to Samba music. Samba is a very close couple dance. I was introduced to the open and fun culture of Brazil. I am not sure if its true but from my observation, I think that if a guy wants to approach a girl here, he passes her a flying kiss. If the girl shows welcoming signs then they start dancing together. Another thing which I observed about Samba is that it usually ends in people kissing each other and many times being more physically intimate. It is also not uncommon to have more than 1 Samba partner on the same night. I could also see some budding AIESEC couples in all the festive mood J

The next day (Happy Raksha Bandhan to all the brothers and sisters of the world) started with a bang (no perversion intended) at the Copacabana Beach. Copacabana is one of the Best and most famous beaches in the world, and I would definitely give my vote to it. The sand was super cozy. I could just sleep on it (if the sunshine wasn’t so staunching). The water was crystal clear and to my great relief was quite cold. The waves were also quite high and I enjoyed watching some people water surfing. There were a lot of people wearing too scantily-covering bikinis on the beach which as an Asian is a rare sight for me. I also savoured the Best Coconut milk I have drunk till now on the beach.

Our next destination was the Maracana Stadium which is the largest Football stadium in the world and will be hosting the finals of FIFA world cup 2014. The finals were held in 1958 in which Brazil was defeated by Uruguay and they are now all looking forward to win the world cup in 2014 to get back their pride. We also went to the changing rooms of the players (my first time in a football team’s changing room). I had certain shots from the movie ‘Remember the Titans’ running in my mind. And when I was entering the field from the changing room, I had goose bumps.

Our next destination was Sugar Loaf. For this we could either go by cable car or hike up the mountain. Esvi and I decided to hike up (very tiring but a cool experience). The hiking was all worth it. The sight from the sugar loaf was mesmerizing. We could see the entire city of Rio De Janeiro from the top.

The next day started by going to Ipanema Hippie Fair where I did a lot of shopping. And then boom - We saw the most inspiring sight of our tour – the Christ Redeemer. I don’t think I can describe the experience in words, but it truly is one of the seven wonders of the world. (So, now I have seen 2 wonders of the modern world).

Another key highlight of the tour was striking a lot of friendships, 2 of which are quite close – with Joey (LCP, New Zealand) and Pedro (LC VP Finance, Brazil). Also, I came to know the weird Mathematics practice in Brazil. They interchange the use of decimal point and comma in numerals. Example, 1.230 is one thousand two hundred and thirty while 1,230 is one point two three.

The OC had done a great job and they were all very warm people. But now was time to move on for the Asia Pacific Growth Network Pre-Meeting (APGN Pre-meeting) which was to be held in Hotel Del Verde, Sao Paulo.

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Just Like That!

Hmm... I have been super lazy to update blog :P I was back in Singapore on 1st August and am a bit more learned than when I went to India.. I have learnt driving and microwave cooking... hee hee..

Birthday Bloopers


From a Different angle (My paternal side)
Vijit Bhaiya, you were missed a lot :D

India was fun as always, I didn't want to come back at all *hiks hiks* There was full masti and I went to Jaipur also... Amazing trip with my maternal family.. otherwise just chilling at home, meeting people and eating eating eating... gained a lot of weight :P

Mausi and Me (City Palace)

Most of us (Hawa Mahal)



Elephant ride with Anu (Chowki Dhaani)

The best part of the trip was the fact that my Best Friend, Rashika, was also in Agra at that time :D Which made it the most relaxed time of my life after so long... Those cooking classes where we made fun of everyone, going to eat random stuff, playing with aadi-diaa, going to school in a big gang, or just doing nothing at all :P Most cherishable memories!! :D The day when we all went out for Kismat Konnection.. Amazing and unexpected... Me having accidents :P... hahahaha..

Rashika and me (My place)

Aadi-Diaa (Rakhi at Rashika's)

And now, I am just a day away from leaving for Brazil! More fun awaits for sure~

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Woo Hoo!!!

Hola!! I just can't resist myself from sharing all the good news I got today from my Indian peeps *muah...

My bro, Atin (I stayed in a joint family with his family), is getting married on 4th March.... I wanna go, wanna go, wanna go... It is an Inter-religion Love Marriage *The third marriage in my generation and till now all have been inter-caste/religion love marriages...hiks hiks! But I won't be able to go there... buhuhuhu! Anyways, I am sooooooooo happy for him!

My another bro, Vijit, might be coming to Malaysia for work! *But there is a biiiiiiiiiiiig might in between :( If he comes, I'll be in Malaysia every second week and he will be in Singapore when I am not there... I just can't imagine how cool it will be! No more home-sickness *ok lor, atleast to a bit less extent...

I talked to Rashika, my best friend, after a long time for a long time... Hehe! And got very interesting updates from her... *Muah, love ya honey!

For all you peeps, stay happy and safe! Live life, love life!

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My first Ang Pau!!!!

Yay! I got my very first Ang Pau today! For the benefit of the non-Chinese people let me explain what is an Ang Pau *Disclaimer: I am not sure if my info is accurate, but this is what I understand!

As you may know (or may not know), 7th and 8th February is the Lunar New Year or Chinese New Year! So, to celebrate the New Year people go to visit each other. Traditionally, people take 2 oranges while going to each others house. Oranges signify prosperity! People also give their guests money in red envelope. This red envelope (with its contents inside) is known as Ang Pau..... I hope whatever I wrote is correct!


My very First Ang Pau!! *Huhuhu

And today I got my first Ang Pau! And it is so special for me because it was given by one of my favourite lecturers in NUS - Dr. Winston Kwok, my FNA lecturer. I just love his way of teaching and attending his lectures is so much fun. He gave Ang Pau to 6 people in that full LT... which made it even more special! He also sang us a Chinese New Year song in the lecture. And to be honest, he sings superbly well! I think after Dr. Faizal Bin Yahya, my Singapore Studies lecturer, if I like a lecturer so much, then it is Dr. Winston Kwok :)

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Family Again Finally!!

There are some moments in ur life which touch u and change ur life forever!! The period from 16-26 March can definitely pass as one of those for me. The experience started for me at Changi...where I had a not-so-good experience....nevertheless, it made me a bit more mature and a lot more strong!!!!

Anyways, I was going to meet my family after a long gap of 9 months...so I was very very excited. Finally, I reached my motherland, India! My ma-pa, and sis, Saloni, were there at the airport. There was a sudden gush of so many feelings when I saw them.. I had turned completely red!! Oh, what a moment it was! I gave my Ma "jadoo ki jhappi" (a warm magical hug).... And suddenly I felt so much stronger! I was full of courage, full of power, full of energy.... This is the "Power Of Love"... I was nearly on the verge of a break down just before meeting them, but seeing them rejuvenated me and I was all ready again to face all the challenges....

Since it was quite late at night, my parents asked me to sleep...But who could sleep then. Saloni and I were awake the whole night.... Laughing like mad people on the most non-sensical and lamest jokes.. Sharing the ups and downs which we had experienced in the course of these months.. I felt a bit weird!! I could see that my stupid, immature, baby sister has suddenly matured so much, perhaps beyond her age! She will be 12 on 16th April but she was talking such deep stuff! I don't know whether I should be happy about it or not... She told me that for her, good times were no longer that enjoyable coz I wasn't present, and my absence made the bad times even worse... I know that I am her secret box, best friend, partner-in-crime, role model (I am scared to be this), guide and the only person to whom she speaks her mind out without thinking.. And now my baby doesn't have all these factors around her all the time!! But she will definitely become very strong because she is taking it quite positively! :)

The next day, I had a lot of fun with my family- we talked a lot, took a quick tour of the city, and ate delicious Indian Food (Golguppe!! Hehe). Pa and I had a competition as to who will eat the maximum number of ice cream cups. The flavour was Butter Scotch (Our favourite flavour, unfortunately unavailable in Singapore :( ).. Well, it was a tie between the both of us, but I am happy that my capacity to eat ice creams has not decreased.... Oh, what a day it was!! Though I just spent 32 hours with my family, I am happy that I met them after such a long time!! After a long long time I did not worry about anything.... Life looked perfect!

I am looking forward to meet them soon hopefully!!

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