XXX Olympics London 2012 - Let the games begin!

 Here we are; a fortnight before the biggest sporting event falling in this calendar year kicks off - Games of the XXX Olympiad or the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. Don’t take me wrong but it’s the first time since 2^nd April, 2011 that I am looking forward to the display of patriotism in India when it comes to sports (including me). Let’s be true to ourselves, we have always fought over Rafa, Djoker, Roger or Chelsea, Liverpool, ManU or Spain, Portugal, Italy and not to forget MI, CSK, KKR and the likes. The most exciting part of the next 17 days is the fact that 81 athletes from India will be competing against the likes of Jamie Dywer, Wang Yihan, Roger Federer, Dani Samuels and many more – the best in business to be more precise. However, this is one event where we let go our favoritism and support athletes from home irrespective of their rankings. Every Indian, avid sports follower or not, will come out and support that team or athlete – the one that belongs to India. Now, this is the beauty that makes Olympics not only the biggest sporting event of any year but THE biggest sporting event there ever was, is or ever will.

Liu Xiang

Roots of the Games date back to the 8^th century BC better known as the Ancient Olympic Games which saw a series of competitions held between representative of several city-states and kingdoms in ancient Greece. However, with shift of ruling powers, the Games experienced their demise by 5^th century AD.  By the 19^th century, the interested and wealthy were instrumental in the revival of the Olympic Games. Although the first games on revival took place in 1859, Pierre de Coubertin was influential in forming the governing body for the Games – International Olympic Committee (IOC). The first Games held under the auspices of the IOC were hosted in the Panathenaic stadium in Athens in 1896.  Growth of this event in the past 116 years can be understood by one factor alone – the number of participants in one edition of the Games. They have risen from 241 participants representing 14 nations in 1896 to just over 11,000 competitors from 204 countries at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Mo Farah

Looking back at Beijing 2008 will give us a fairer view of the fireworks we can expect in London. Taking into consideration the gold medal tally, China topped the list with 51 gold medals, followed by the USA with 36 and Russia with 23. However, taking into consideration the tally of total medals, USA topped with 110 medals followed by China with 100 and Russia with 73. China and USA clearly had a competition of their own. When it came to India, with both the men and women hockey teams failing to qualify for field hockey, the nation’s hopes rested on the tennis duo of Bhupati and Paes and Athens silver medalist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. Both events failing to make a mark, Abhinav Bindra was the first surprise for India by winning us our first individual gold medal till date. This was followed by one bronze medal each for Sushil Kumar and Vijender Kumar in wrestling and middleweight boxing respectively. Thus, with three medals, the last edition of the Games was the most successful till date for any Indian contingent.

The world experienced 43 new world records and 132 new Olympic records in Beijing. The most notable performances in Beijing were those of American swimmer Michael Phelps who broke the record for most gold medals in one Olympics and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt becoming the fastest man on the planet. These men remain favorites to defend their events in London. However, there are a few who have impressed over the last four years and have emerged as a threat.

  Ryan Lochte (left) and Michael Phelps (Right)

Michael Phelps, who has 16 Olympic medals to his credit including 14 gold medals, is clearly ‘the’ man to beat in his pet events. However, he faces a serious threat from his countryman Ryan Lochte who was named the 2011 World Swimmer of the year. Lochte won 5 gold medals in the 2011 world championships in which he beat Phelps in 200-meters freestyle and 200-meters individual medley. Although Phelps has withdrawn from 200-meters freestyle, keep an eye out for a final showdown between the two in 200-meters individual medley. Lochte will give Phelps a run for his money preventing a clean sweep in what Phelps has announced will be his last Olympic appearance.                                                                                                  

     Usain Bolt (left) and Yohan Blake (Right)

From one favorite to another, Usain Bolt – very difficult to look beyond this name in 100-meters dash and 200-meters. Another Jamaican bloke named Yohan Blake, just 22 years old has already proven Usain Bolt is good (ok maybe an understatement) but not God. Yes, Blake did beat Bolt in 100-meters in the world championships held at Daegu in 2011 for which he may be claimed lucky because of a Bolt false start, however he backed his performance by beating Bolt in both 100-meters and 200-meters in national championships. The finale of these two legs is going to be one of the best moments of London 2012.                                     

Yelena Isinbayeva

Moving on to one of my favorite sports, field hockey – couldn’t be more excited that India (well at least the men’s team) has qualified for the Olympics. India has a relatively inexperienced team with a coach who has not been with us for a long time either. India in pool B has tough competition in defending champions Germany, one of the best performers Netherlands and New Zealand. Going into the knock-out stages, India needs to put in brilliant performance to stay in the game. Realistically the tournament favorites have to be the world number one Australian team (more famously known as Kookaburras) which is led by five-time ‘hockey player of the year’ Jamie Dwyer. This team consists of a number of World All-Star team players and has won every major competition since 2010 (including the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games, 2010). Netherlands or Germany will be their likely rivals in the finals. Among the women, it is going to be a battle for gold between the Dutch and the Argentines. Netherlands will try to retain their gold while Argentina led by Lucina Aymar (referred to as he Maradona of hockey), seven time player of the year, will try to bring home the gold before she calls it a day.

Sally Pearson

For the ones who share my enthusiasm of the Olympic Games, keep an eye out for the following names - they will excite you. The journey of Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva would be a very interesting watch. She is the world record holder and looks good to break her own record yet again. A few other names to keep a track of would be Matthew Mitcham (diving), Sally Pearson (100m hurdles), Liu Xiang (110m hurdles), Sir Chris Hoy (track cyclist), Rebecca Adlington (swimming), Mo Farah (5000m) and last but not the least the Dream Team (basketball). Russia, China and USA sure remain at the top of my list for some interesting rivalries followed by USA and Australia in the pool. An interesting catfight would be in the pool between Australia’s golden girl from Beijing Stephanie Rice and their golden girl from Commonwealth Games in Delhi. 

Deepika Kumari - The one to watch

            India is sending her biggest contingent till date to the London Games. Considering our performance in the past 4 years, we have the best opportunities to win medals in badminton, boxing, wrestling, archery, mixed tennis and shooting. My biggest hopes lie on the world number one player in Archery- the 18 year old Deepika Kumari. It is not going to be an easy road to success for any of the athletes. Athletes from around the world will have a huge appetite to be on the podium but it will be the grit and determination over the next 17 days which will make the difference. With London 2012 right at the doorstep, it is safe to say that the Games are a bigger deal than they ever were. Now why am I saying that? It’s not because of the money or glamour involved in the staging of this edition of the Games but the dimensions covered by athletes involved in it. London 2012 will see the fastest man on earth, fastest man in water, highest vaulter, legends on the tennis court, magicians on the hockey field (just a handful figures out of many) ready to challenge the world. Defence versus emergence is going to be the royal battle in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.




(Shweta Vishwanath is an athlete by dawn, equity trader by noon, event manager by evening and blogger by mid-night. She is a sports enthusiast hoping to make a change. 
You can follow her on Twitter: @crazyindie1888 )

Bol Bachchan - The worst that you can get!!

                There are good films, there are bad films. And then there is Bol Bachchan. I generally am very choosy about what I watch and what I don't. And Bol Bachchan definitely came in the NEVER EVER kind of films. But I think it was just one of those days when my choices derailed. Bol Bachchan, in one word, was pathetic. In two words, absolutely horrendous. And this was in spite of the fact that, as advised, I kept my brains at the door step of the cinema hall. Frankly, it was unbearable to sit through the film. Both my brother and I were in a state of utter disgust.  We were at a stage where we were repulsed (and almost hyper- ventilating) that some people around us were actually laughing on the lame attempts at slapstick comedy!      

                At the outset, Bol Bachchan seemed to be a film made to fill in an otherwise dry Friday. With no story line, what the film was basically riding on was senseless comedy. But unfortunately, Rohit Shetty really went berserk with this film. Everything was wrong about this film. From casting to story line to dialogs. I mean, you cannot and I reiterate, CANNOT cast Abhishek Bachchan for a dance role. He is a miserable dancer. And it isn’t as if he has set the world on fire in the comedy genre. I think Rohit should have looked beyond the obligation and cast somebody else. A Sharman Joshi may have been good. Further, if you have Abhishek Bachchan as one of your joint leads, you cannot have Ajay Devgn as a comic lead. With all due respect to his recent successful record (read Golmaal series), he gives Kristen Stewart competition when it comes to his expressions. And he just could not fill up the void created by Abhishek. Mind you, I have not even commented about Krushna Abhishek, VIP and Archana Puran Singh. Prachi Desai and Asin Thottumkal really had no roles to speak about. A well polished table could have replaced them and we all would have been none the wiser (Actually the same can be said for Abhishek considering that a table also has two left feet!!! :P).

                Coming to the story line, what was presented on the platter was absurd. The character of Vikrant Raghuvanshi, Radhika Raghuvanshi, Sania Ali were not needed at all (I know I just took out half the characters. I also know that the film should not have been made in the first place. But this is damage control mode!) The insipid English dialogs by Ajay Devgn which were supposed to be the high points of the film were actually an eye sore. (A reference can be made to Sanjay Mishra’s character in Golmaal 3. He pulled off the broken English character to the T and was amusing to watch!) Frankly, after braving 3 traumatic hours of the film I felt that Rohit Shetty felt obliged to make something for his Comedy Circus comrades. I believe the writing credits should have been given to Krushna & VIP (the story genuinely seemed to be a rip- off from the stand- up acts that these two perform). It was senseless for sure, but contained no comedy.

                At the end of it all, I felt really disappointed with the kind of movie that was made. I know that it has been declared as a Box- Office hit. But in reality, such kind of films are an apartheid for Hindi Cinema. We, the viewers, really have to demand a better product from this industry. Eventually we are going to buy the same 100 - 150 rupees ticket. Why not spend it on some quality film? Films like Bol Bachchan are the reason why we are nowhere on the worldwide movie scene. We can get better from this industry. We deserve better from them. Let’s make this known to them. Let us not tolerate such asinine set of films. Only then shall this miserable condition abate.

Hoping that my film choices are back on track next time on.

This is the Sciolist.

Signing out!!!
     
(Pranav Vaidya, who goes under the pen name The Sciolist, is an avid reader, food enthusiast, zealous blogger, Lord of the Rings fanatic, Android addict, fervent writer and sporadic poet. To follow his other work, visit Sciolism, which is an advocacy of his perspectives.)

Goa in Monsoons

Goa. That piece of land with abundant sunshine, fresh sea breeze, gentle waves, cheaper-than-water alcohol and yes everything nice. Now picture this. Goa. The same piece of land but this time with a sun playing hide-n-seek with the clouds, light drizzles to heavy showers, sometimes a bright sunny day, roaring waves, the same old cheaper-than-water alcohol and yes everything resplendent in every possible hue of green. That my friend is Goa in Monsoons for you!

                The Europeans, desperate for some sunshine, throng Goa in the summer and winter seasons. It’s during the monsoons that Goa is much neglected. And that’s your chance to enjoy Goa as God made it – lush green grass, tall palm trees dotting every road, the fragrance of fresh wet soil, the beautiful sea made even grander by the rains and yes the more than benevolent Sun God! Take my word; this is the season to visit Goa! And as it has always happened, it didn’t rain on 2 out of the 3 days we went there. So you have the benefit of a crowdless and dearth cheap Goa but with added benefits of being closer to Nature than you ever can imagine here. Goa in monsoons transforms itself into a rare combination of Kerala and Uttarakhand. It’s sheer brilliance.

                So first you need to get your place of stay right. The North is the more popular one. The South is more on the calmer side. Never and I mean never stay at the Central Goan beaches as they are way too much in the west. So every time you need to go anywhere, you end up travelling 20kms by default.  My suggestion would be to either stick to the extreme South beaches or the extreme North beaches. Personally I feel South has not been much explored. So that’s a better place to stay as there are many places close by from there which are more than just beaches.

                Now that the location is sorted, let’s get down to business. Goa has seriously more things to offer than just the beaches. Yes beaches are important but one needs to realise that all beaches have the same water, the same sand and are pretty much the same. So what matters is you choose a cleaner, a less crowded beach. Go try the Palolem, Butterfly or the Colva beaches in South or the Candolim in the north. In monsoons, most shacks are shut and so also the water sports. So there is no point in going to Baga or Calungute or the likes as they won’t have anything more to offer in monsoons.  Butterfly beach has this nice little island and is quite a secluded beach.  Candolim is just besides Calangute but is still unadulterated. There is a permanent shack there called ‘Sunny side up’. It’s a must go for lunch. Good food coupled with a breezy table by the beach. That’s heaven!

                Try out good food places in Goa. ‘Martins’ is a very famous joint and the one very easily approachable is the one at Madgaon.  Then there are the local khaanavals which will serve you authentic Goan Konkani cuisine at really cheap prices. Try locating the one at Madgaon or any other town in Goa and you’ll be glad. The signature dishes to try are the Pork (or chicken if you don’t consume pork) Vindaloo or the Sarpotel. Fish is always welcome so try out some fresh salt water fish. When it comes to alcohol, you don’t have to go far. It sells so cheap there that it’s actually almost cheaper than water. The local feni made from cashewnuts is worth a try.

                Goa in the monsoons means the abundant greenery. Just hire bikes and roam around absorbing the greens which are such a rare species back home in the metros. Stop by temples in Phonda like Mangueshi and Shantadurga. These are pretty old temples and much revered by locals and tourists alike. The churches of Old Goa are a must visit if this is your first time. If you have the time and the patience to ride for 2-3 hours on the bikes then the Dudhsagar falls are a must visit. These majestic waterfalls right on the border of Goa and Karnataka are an awesome sight in monsoons. And then there are the wildlife sanctuaries in case you are a wildlife enthusiast. Cotigao or Dr. Salim Ali Sanctuary can be converted into a day trip. Also try out the River cruise on the Mandovi in the evening and catch the sunset on the horizon. Just ensure that you carry some spare fuel on you just in case your bike runs out of it. And mind the cops!

So all in all you won’t be left stranded on a beach. Goa gets more exciting in the monsoons and it’s upto you to explore the beauty.  Goa never disappoints. It always has something up its sleeves to charm you and make you fall in love with it all over again. I have been there around a dozen times and always want to go there again. That’s the charisma of Goa. It will bind you in a serene spell of freedom, zest and all things nice. Go Goa this Monsoon and especially in the Hindu month of Shravan as it rains relatively less. And remember – in Goa life is always sushegaat!

         Goa Tourism Site - Goa Tourism

Thank God @ TGI Friday's

TGIF

      Feeling lazy on a weekend? Or do you just want to chill with friends? How about enjoying the game and have some beer with great food? Then why not thank God for a Friday? TGI Friday's aka TGIF is located in Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. This place is a superb hangout place where neither the staff nor the patrons at the next table are bothered as to what’s going on (in a good way of course).

       When we went to the TGIF at Palladium Mall, Mumbai we thought we would have to wait for our table. But to our surprise the place is huge and we found ourselves in a very comfy booth in a couple of minutes. It took me some time to take in the ambience and adjust myself to the music. The place was very brightly light with the lamps in their trademark red and white. They had a dedicated smoking room which seemed more crowded than the restaurant itself. The walls contained all kinds of things right from super hero posters, idols, banners, helmets, bikes, jerseys and the likes. The décor really impresses and more often than not you find someone clicking photos of the interiors. The menu is very complicated with same dishes repeated at different parts of the menu.

Strawberry Lemonade

          We ordered a Vegetarian Platter & a Simply Veggie Pizza (SVP) to start with. Since I am a teetotaler I cannot recommend any cocktails but the Strawberry Lemonade was very smooth and so was the Green Apple Slush. Go in for an unlimited refill of Soft drinks which is priced at only Rs125. Although the rules say one can’t share the unlimited soft drinks but they are not so stringent about it so you can always share it with your friends. The Vegetarian Platter comprises of potato skins, fried mozzarella & vegetable pyramids (which are awesome), some salad and sauces. I am not a fan of thin crust pizzas but the SVP was surprisingly tasty and filling too. Caesar Salad is tasty but the size of the portions is not encouraging. The enchiladas were nice and so is the Pasta Arabiata. But the pick of the day was the Veg Garden Burger which I ordered after seeing it served at another table. And that was the best thing I ever did. The burger is huge (you can read about the same in my earlier blog post here ‘How I met the 'perfect' burger!!’). The burger comes with thick golden French fries. You will definitely need a drink and a friend to finish off the burger. For all ‘Snickers’ fans, the peanut butter crumble brownie is a safe and satisfying option.

Red & White theme @ TGIF

TGIF is an expensive place with an average bill for two without alcohol in the range of Rs 1350. The Veg Garden Burger is priced at a whopping Rs390++ but it’s totally worth the money and it easily suffices one. The prices on the menu are exclusive of any taxes, so you can safely add 15-20% to the menu price for taxes and service charges and taxes on service charges.  TGIF is a cool place to hang out with your friends or colleagues but it does leave a hole in your pocket. They are also running a promotion on Mondays – Fridays 7pm onwards. A two course set meal (with a good variety) for Rs299++ per person which certainly is good value for money. All in all I would rate this place an 8 on 10 and surely recommend it.

You can check TGIF out @ TGIF

Kolad - A white water rafting getaway.

  

In the Rapids

Think rafting and the first place to cross your mind is Rishikesh. Nestled in the Himalayas, with the mighty Ganga flowing by, Rishikesh is an ideal rafting spot. But then it’s not all that close by, is it? What if there were a place for white water rafting just a few hours’ drive from Mumbai? It might not have the same degree of rapids as Rishikesh but then at the end of the day you will have rafted, right? Enter Kolad. At a mere 135 odd km from Mumbai, Kolad is a small town close to where the Kundalika river flows. The river, aided by the water released by Tata Power Co. for its hydel power plant, is an ideal place for rafting. It’s mostly independent of the monsoon so it can be done all year round.

Rafting @ Kundalika

The rafting stretch is of about 12km and lasts for around 2.5 hours. The river has around 3-4 rapids. For first timers like me it was sheer joy with the waves crashing in on us in the rapids. The river meanders its way and there are a few calm stretches of water. Here the instructors allow you to jump into the river and let you swim. This I feel is one of the most exciting parts, after you are down with the rapids I mean. Simply floating in the river, buoyed up by the life vest that you are wearing, you hardly have to even move a leg to keep yourself afloat. You can swim, play around, dive, race, float or even try wading against the current. The instructor will then ask you to enter the raft after a while but you can always try to coax him into letting you be in there for some more time or even let you into the water at a different spot.

Rafting is surely tiring though and as you near the end most people in your raft won’t be rowing. So ensure you sit with people who are really enthusiastic else you will be left rowing the raft alone and that certainly is not an easy task. After alighting from the raft you need to carry it to the top of a small hillock with the help of your co-rafters. When you reach the top you will be greeted with piping hot vadas and pakodas with their super spicy chutni. Tea, coffee and other such stuff is also available so don’t forget to carry money on you. From there, you need to walk a little to each your vehicle. In case you have come with a driver, instruct the driver to come to this point. In case you don’t have a driver but have your vehicle, you’ll have to hitch a ride back to the starting point as that’s where your car would ideally be parked.

Our cottages @ Pooja's Farm

One session of rafting costs Rs650 on weekdays and Rs1250 on weekends. Rates may change in the monsoons. In case you are staying at one of the farm houses you need not pay the rafting guys there and can later pay the farm house guy, so no need to carry all the cash around. We stayed at Pooja’s farm and he arranged the rafting for us. I would strongly recommend Pooja’s farm for its sheer beauty and scenic surroundings. Check it here Pooja's farm. The owner, Mr. Dinesh Tawate,  is a very decent guy and will ensure your trip is sans hiccups.

Kayaking is fun!

Next day we went for water sports. This place is a little away on the road to Roha. Here the river is again pretty still and it offers not only water sports but tents by the Riviera too. That’s something to try out! You have kayaking, bumper rides, water biking, river crossing, etc. Mr. Sanap would help you with this. He can be contacted here Adventure Kolad. The same rules apply here regarding payment. Carry money if you are not staying at any of the nearby farmhouses. Else the farm house owners will guide you how to go about it. The costs per activity are different. Kayaking cost us Rs350 and the bumper rides Rs500 per head.

Tumbling on the Bumper Ride

Kolad is a good weekend getaway. You can either do a day trip by leaving very early in the morning and coming back a little exhausted or can space it out over 2 days like we did. The ideal thing is to leave Friday evening and come back Sunday night. This way you can enjoy the environment and the good food at Pooja’s farm as well. Just a word of advice – make sure you get the directions correct before proceeding. 

Directions for Pooja's farm - Google Maps

How I met the 'perfect' burger!!

McVeggie Burger

When I was a kid I used to see McDonald’s advertisements on TV and always end up dreaming and fantasizing about them. I come from a small town in the state of Chhattisgarh which didn’t have a McD store in our state let alone my town (Till date there is no McDonald’s in Chhattisgarh. McVeggie was the ultimate burger I wanted to have and every time I saw the advertisements there used to be a small tsunami in my mouth. My dream came true when I was in class VIth. We visited the dream city of Mumbai  and I was really excited. It was going to be my first rendezvous with McVeggie. We went to the McDonald’s store inside Water Kingdom (by the wave pool). Dad went and purchased McVeggie meals from the counter and I was running behind him till the time we settled down. I opened the cover of the burger and the first bite was heavenly. Oh boy! It was so tender and hot and crispy. The mayo oozed out of the burger and I caught on to the mayo and licked my fingers - my hunger was satiated. I felt complete.

Time passed by and as I grew older and shifted to Mumbai for studies. I realized that the Mcdonald’s McVeggie was not the only burger in town. And then I happened to watch this episode of How I Met Your Mother where Marshal is on a quest to find the ultimate burger in town. I was motivated. Even I made it a point to find out the best burger in Mumbai. I started trying out burgers from all the places I could but I never found that perfect burger. Being a vegetarian I did not have many options. I tried the Veg Snacker @ KFC which was good value for money but wasn’t all that great. I came across this place called Bembos (in Bandra) which serves only burgers. Their burgers were good and they served free extra Mayo (unlike McDonald’s). The search went on… I had burgers at various joints in Bandra but none came close to the burger I was looking for.

Relishing a Burger

Then one day my fellow quill-er ‘the soul searcher’ took me to a small joint in Bandra called ‘Hearsch Bakery’. The place is a bakery which also serves snacks like rolls, burgers, chicken lollipops. The Veg. Burger there was the best burger I ever had. The burger comprised of the normal thick aloo patty, onions, tomatoes, mayo, cheese and the buns and it came along with some potato chips. The ingredients sound like any other normal burger but there is something about this burger which leaves you satisfied. Priced at a meagre Rs50 the burger was the best till date. I thought my search had come to an end. Hearsch was ‘the’ place. Although I am a vegetarian I can safely vouch for their Chicken Burgers also which are equally good. One burger would fill your stomach but won’t fill your heart so share your second burger because you won’t be able to finish the second one off. Chilled Sweet Lime / Ginger Lime go well with the burgers.

Burger @ TGIF

All was going good till last week when I went to TGIF at the Palladium Mall. I had not gone to this place to eat burgers. As we were going through our meal I saw a waiter carrying what looked Iike an inflated burger and my eyes just popped out. Although we were full by that time I was adamant about ordering the Veg Garden burger (which by the way is priced at a whopping Rs 390++). The Burger was at least 4’ inches high and at least double the bun size of a normal burger. They serve the burger in a plate which has very little space for thick golden French fries as the bun takes the entire plate. The patty is at least 1’ thick and is better than any aloo tikki you would have at any chaatwala. They use those orange colored goat cheese slices which gives it an English look. With a decent helping of other veggies and mayo the larger than life burger is complete. I bet no one can eat the burger with one hand and that too without dropping any of the fillings. I used both my hands and opened my mouth as wide as I could and took in the first bite and it immediately took me back to that day in 2001 when I first ate the McVeggie. This burger was heavenly! The cheese coupled with the fried patty and those veggies just melted in my mouth and I felt like I had a mini ‘Burgasm’. It took me 25mins to finish the burger with the help of my friends and yes the soldier was finally down. The quest for the perfect burger had finally ended. The Veg Garden Burger at TGIF is ‘the’ burger you want to eat.

And this is the story of I how I met the ‘perfect’ burger!!!