'Just do it' - One Random Thought !

The famous Nike campaign was really a good consumer insight that pulled in brain wave towards the brand. Among its many manifestation, I see two meanings thats prevalent - carving out of two consumer behaviour types: 'thinkers' and 'doers'

As we know, these are two sets of broad behaviour patterns that we see among us. One, who is a quality stickler and hence takes time thinking to execute any particular activity. He misses timelines but (tries to) delivers quality by putting attention to detail... The other who likes executing activities faster without much pendulum. There is always a second chance to improve, is perhaps the thought. Finishing is the priority for them.

'Just Do It' in my mind manifests into different meanings for these two kinds of people. The quality stickler says 'Just Do It... enough of masterbation'. Deadline is well past, shit. The finisher says 'Just Do It... get over it and start the next in line tomorrow. I am done for the day. Beer.. yeah!!'

Creativity as a profession, I feel, should fall into the laps of the former kinds. However, as it is with the world, everthing is in a equillibrium.

So creativity is also practiced by the second variety. They are good at it. Prolific. Fast. Money spinners. Quality.... never mind. There is a second chance!! With 'Son of the soil Vs Son of a gun' hoardings all over Mumbai city and '100% de dhana dhan' full page spread in DNA, it gets really depressing. And funny.

Creativity is in the wrong hands. Money is also in those wrong hands. People without any creative aptitude but with the right 'just do it' attitude is clearly polluting out-of-the-box lateral thinking. I want to curse them saying, "May they go to hell called empty houses...

But life is about variety. Accepting and ignoring variety is the rule. Evolve and lead your own life and just do your own thing. Be happy.

Homo-sexuality - isnt it like insanity?

I have no strong negative emotion against homo-sexuality. In fact I have been very close to such behaviour, as I have studied in an all boys school from pre-puberty to adulthood. And we hear of so many rumours.. et al
However, I certainly think that it is an anomaly.

If the celina jaetlys of the world professes that homo-sexuality is natural, it simply means to me that like insanity, homo-sexuality is also natural. So do we allow insanes to roam around freely on our roads performing insanity.

As for freedom of expression goes, yes everyone should have the freedom of expressing oneself. It is not a crime like insanity is not.

Having said that, we should not encourage homo-sexuality and more so encourage breeding of homosexual behaviour. It is not natural...it is not according to the fundamentals of human civilization.

Just to take an analogy, yesterday I saw an unfortunate gentleman nude below his torso. He seems well behaved and normal otherwise. Perhaps he is a peace loving, not harmful to society and a normal person who has just lost his sense of shame to hide his genitals.

So if we imagine that this kind of insanity spreads wide into our lives and becomes prevalent, would we allow activism to start to allow them to roam around freely on our roads? Would you encourage them to show their genitals in public?

We need to councel them, take care of them and bring them to the normal decency of life. Same goes for homo-sexuality.

Dope on Kashmir - the real tourism destiny

God knows how the fake IPL player writes one blog every day... perhaps because he does not have a permanent job. My frequency, sadly has become lesser than one blog post in a month! 

Good that he is not being picked up to be in the field by KKR (or it could be any team??), we are getting to read an interesting blog !!

Sorry, I am here to write about Kashmir. I am not into writing travelogues but it is my belief that Kashmir is the best tourist destination in India, which is making me write something about my travel to Kashmir. The simple reason is that you just can't get bored of the variety of natural beauty in Kashmir even if you stay for a month... there are so many different and beautiful scenery and places to tour that it is never ending. 

Best Time to Visit
The best time to visit is the end of March. Snow melts and Kashmir becomes drive friendly and tourist friendly in terms of costs and convenience. To enumerate the reasons for discipline:

1. The roads are clear of snow and travel is not a problem
2. The temperature is moderate. Daytime is one sweater cold and nights are 3 blankets cold. So you actually get to experience the cold.
3. Gulmarg is filled with snow. There is a Gandola ride that cant be missed and it is no less than switzerland. See it to believe it guys.
4. Other snow destinations like Yusufmarg, Sonemarg etc are snowclad and can even overwhelm an icelander.
5. Pahalgam is green. Snow is gone and the meadows are beautifully viewable. Horse ride is possible and a must do there.
6. Most importantly, March is the last off-season month. You can enjoy the off-season prices and the best facilities, as everything is renovated and made ready for the coming season and the rush of kids and 'gujarati' families.

More on Prices...
The main occupation is tourism and so every family is doing something or the other for the tourist. There is abundance of houseboats, hotels, Shikaras (boats), rent taxis (qualis/sumo) and the other necessities. Basically supply is definitely more than demand in the beautiful month of March.
Okay, if you are loaded with black money and can throw cash without the slightest guilt or if you are unfit or lazy to do some 'mehnat' to bargain for the best bet at multiple places, then it is your call. For some, vacation is complete relaxation, extravagance and becoming fat (piggish). They can ignore this section of this blog on pricing and cost management.
Some tips of how to get the best bargain. Enumerated again for the disciplined reader:

1. Do not book any packages. Let me repeat, do not book any packages through your hometown travel agent (tourism consultant as they call themselves).
2. The smaller houseboats will give you a room for Rs. 700/- and the bigger ones will come for not more than 1200/-. This is including breakfast and dinner. Yes of course, non veg included!!
3. Water Skiing in Dal Lake is a must and that would come for 300/- per person. Its fun so you may give the nice guys a few hundred more for a longer session of wateraxia...
4. Skikara is the only mode of transport in the Dal. They would come free with the houseboats. Twice in a day they will take you to the city and back. They have a shikara ride session and that will cost Rs. 400-500 for the whole day of floating on the Dal.
5. In Kashmir, you should stay in the Dal. Take a houseboat in the middle of the lake and swallow the experience. Hotels are costly and it would be foolish to stay in them.
6. You need to hire a qualis to travel around the valley. A good qualis with AC comes at Rs. 1000 a day. You take it anywhere and drive it till you get tired.
7. Do not stay in Gulmarg. It is best to be a one day detour. It is the most beautiful snow capped place and the worst in terms of 'guide' menace. Gulmarg has pony ride all over the snow or human pulled sledge rides. Do not take any of their services. They are a difficult race and even your taxi driver wont utter a word for you in front of them. They will say that upfront before you reach Gulmarg. What you need to take is a pair of what you call gumboots or snow boots for Rs. 100.
8. In Pahalgam, you may stay a day or two. We stayed in Mountview and it was quite a nice stay in Rs. 1500 per night. Horse ride will take one full day and should cost you not more than 400 per horse.

So enough about prices... cant remember anything else. Its more than a month that I saw Kashmir. I will add anything that comes to my mind.... Keep visiting...
Some recommendations to end this blog...

1. We stayed in a houseboat called "Young Bombay" owned by Noor bhaisaab. An extreme gentleman and the service is excellent. It is a small houseboat but surely worth for Rs. 700/- bucks per night of hugging 'hot water bottles'. Quite interestingly, during this time of the year, most of the houseboats do not operate their heaters. They give you hot water bags that we normally use for back sprains. They put it inside your blankets when you are having dinner and that keeps the bed warm to get into. Staying in Mumbai, it sounds so unbelievable. Sleeping with hot water bags inside 3 thick blankets. That will be suicide by dehydration in Mumbai.
2. We rented a qualis owned by one dear gentleman by the name "Nazir". Great guide, Great Qualis and completely dependable. Worth your 1000 bucks per day. You can call him at 9906937297 and inform about your arrival. Again, do not book a package with him. Pay him by the day. Projectwise costing as we say in the corporate world
3. We had a great fun-filled horse ride in Pahalgam. Cant remember the names of the guys who were our guides but enclosing a photograph and you can ask for him. Sweet chap, endearing to see him all red when you joke with him...

Why did I delay my writing this blog... cant remember much. I was planning to write over 10 blogs on Kashmir but now I cant even finish one... procrastination is sin.
Anyways, I will add in whenever I remember anything more... till then adios...

Towards Kashmir...

For some reason, Kashmir has always been a fantasy. Beautiful and inaccessible.
For my wife, Kashmir is a dream. First choice for a vacation.
Its for her dream that today impossible is becoming a reality. I am waiting to board a flight to Srinagar.
Its a queasy feeling for me. Not easy. Not believable.
Six fellow passengers in Arabic white kurta with the headgear - all looking like yasser arafat to me. Most of the passengers are talking in Kashmiri and that sounds to me like Arabic. For the first time in my life, we have been told to identify our baggages after all the elaborate security checks.
Am I just just imagining an unjustified apprehensive silence or is it actually there?
Perhaps that's the feeling people experience when they travel towards my home state - Assam... O Lord!