bleak winter

i took these pics from the plane as we flew over the North Atlantic, off the coast of Newfoundland

shuffle-o to buffalo

so one day i'm browsing through the bookshelf, and suddenly i realize i cannot find any of my andy mcnab's!! now those of you who don't know me too well probably also don't know how much i love his books, and so it really bothered me to also realize that the books were still in a box back in my old apartment in buffalo! so then i got a-thinking about what the heck else i had left back there! it appeared that there was actually a good chunk of my wardrobe and books and other important documents still back at old 122H..

then i also got thinking, that it would be fantastic to go go check out the Buffalo Sabres play at home, surrounded by raving raging buffalonians rather than in the stodgy confines of boston, in enemy territory! by the miracles of ebay and travelocity, credit card info was transferred and tickets were bought, and before you could say "let's go Sabres" we were headed off to buffalo to watch the Sabres play the Capitals, with the added bonus of watching Ovechkin play - his rugged jawline makes the gf swoon, apparently..



unfortunately the Sabres lost, but the rest of the two-day whirlwind trip was fantastic, despite the snowstorms and biting cold. i retrieved all my missing stuff, had strong sensations of deja vu walking the streets of University heights, past 33H and 122H, eating at Just Pizza, dropping by the library i worked at, peering into classrooms that i rarely sat in and finally meeting up with my thesis advisor and being surprised by how warmly he welcomed me back!


one final note, these small puddle-jumpers for local direct flights make for some rough flying in bad weather, definitely not for the queasy ones!

up at Mile High

was up north of Denver some time ago to commission some new equipment we were buying.. that's beautiful country up there, east is flat all the way to Ohio, and looming large on the west is the Rocky Mountain range. the air is nice and clean, albeit thin.. not the best place for people with breathing troubles. of course, the altitude also means that the alcohol kicks you faster! is it a coincidence that there is a vast proliferation of microbreweries out there? there's a bunch of them, and many of them are pretty good too..




thanks to the Fleetwood-Goldco-Wyard-Ambec conglomerate, that took care of food, drink, travel and other entertainment while we were up there! ;-)


oh yeah, there was a small matter of commissioning a machine too.. well, we already own #001 of the line, and they put in whatever we learned on that into #002.. so that was that..

RoboMax 002

The Big Easy, Part Troi

the overdue final instalment of pictures..

not the kind of nympho or mermaid you expected!!

let's do some shots shall we!

oh yeah.. girls girls girls

balcony parties are where it's at.. throw us some beads!

one of the many bars on the Bourbon strip

The Big Easy, Part Deux

and now for the second instalment of pics

this is one of the classic jazz preserves, right in the heart of the madness that reigns on Bourbon Street


still on Bourbon Street, among the numerous live bands that play every night, there's Big Al & The Blues Masters playing at The Funky Pirate (and yes, Big Al is really big!)


here's a plate of spicy Cajun crawfish, the local speciality.. shell and eat the tail, suck the heads!


and you can't leave before you eat another staple.. seafood gumbo! the one at Coop's Place is jazzed up some with rabbit and sausage too


here we're feeding an alligator, but they made some good eating too.. diced up and stir-fried with Creole seasoning. even better tasting than crocodile i felt!

The Big Easy, Part Une

"Laissez les bons temps rouler!"

yes, let the good times roll, as i bring you pics of New Orleans..

here's sunrise over the Mississippi, as it winds its way down to the deltas and the Gulf of Mexico


this is the India House hostel, where we stayed


the tram.. a novelty, slow yet fun to ride


going down to the swamps, serene by day, nightmarish by night.. what demons, ghouls and beasts haunt these seemingly placid waters?


the sun sets over this busy bustling port city

yup, still here

got back from New Orleans on Sunday, and dived straight back into the deep end. i had an absolutely awesome time, as the pics i will post soon shall attest. as will all the stories. some of them at least, heh!

will upload the pics and type out a few posts soon.. hang in there

spring break baby!

yes, i'm off for spring break! i'm using my one week of vacation from work to go down to The Big Easy, aka New Orleans! we're gonna eat, drink and make merry in Nawlins, hang out with all the nekkid boobies on Bourbon Street, haunt with the ghosts in the French Quarter.. see you when i get back!

journey through suburbia

as far as long distance public transport goes, i have flown in this country, been on the bus, and now taken the train too. i will have to say that by far the train ride has been the most comfortable to travel. the itinerary is pretty limited, but the service is excellent. like trains everywhere, they tend to run a bit late, but as long as you have no pressing need to be somewhere else you will enjoy it. the seats are like the ones in airliner business class, with ample legroom and a 2-2 layout. and then here is where it starts to get really comfy.. the seat goes pretty far back, plus there is a bottom panel you can raise to support your calves too.. basically you have a Laz-Y-Boy (remember the Joeychairs from 'Friends'?) and oh yeah, it works out cheaper than bus or flights too.

the good thing with this under-appreciated mode of transport is that so few people use it, so the Amtrak tends to be half-empty, and you can spread yourself out on a pair of seats! the dining cars tend to operate at big city prices, but the quality is pretty good, so nothing to complain about there. that brings us to the point that really impressed me. the staff, right from the station staff to the onboard conductors and ushers, is a unit that can give itself a pat on the back. never have i been treated at such a 5-star level, by people with genuine smiles on their faces and always willing to stop by to chat. of course, the other times i have had to pay 5-star prices for that kind of service, but that's another story! you can check in your luggage which then goes to the luggage car, so that ensures no cramping of the main cabin space, exactly like in a flight. the conductors put these little tabs with your destination above your seat, and then come by to wake you up 5-10 min. before your stop, as well as keeping everyone informed on the intercom about delays and stuff like that!

last time i was on the train i met the sweetest old lady ever. she boarded with me at Buffalo (having seen me through the tribulations of having to redistribute my luggage in two extra boxes as all three of my bags were over the 50 lb. limit) and was headed to Mass. Granma Carol (as she insisted I should call her) probably was just looking for company to while away time, but she was fun to talk to, and reminded me a lot about what i liked most in both my granmas.

coming to the title of this post.. from Buffalo the train goes through Rochester, Syracuse, Utica, Albany, Springfield and then Boston. around 50 years ago, the northeast was the pioneer in industry, with the most-developed infrastructure and all that. the three states of NY, Mass. & Penn. were the place to be for all manufacturing industries. however, this has declined drastically especially in the last couple of decades, and now downtowns in lots of cities comprise boarded-up windows, rundown buildings and empty-shell factories. the rail line passes through the downtown areas of most cities, and it's a shame to see the rotting, rusting and rambling heaps that are left now. every town we passed by had a town dump on its outskirts, and that alone told a lot about the town.

outside the towns, most houses that were visible were the typical northeast kind, with south-facing windows and not too much glass cos that becomes a real heat-loss problem in winter. one- or two-storey, with a barbecue grill on the deck out back, and a little rubber pool for the kids to splash about in. often i wondered what it would be like to live in a place like this - far enough from the town/city to be quiet and peaceful, yet close enough that you don't have to drive for hours to get basic provisions and stuff. the place i have moved to outside Boston is like that, let's see how that works out.

Cape Cod

had met up with a fellow blogger (The-Think) last weekend on a trip to Boston, we headed out to Cape Cod with friends of hers. it was a bit of a drive, but beautiful. now a bit about the history of Cape Cod..

Most explorers who chanced upon the northeastern shores of America landed on or around Cape Cod. Later, the Pilgrims first landed in America on the tip of lower Cape Cod after they were turned back from their more southerly destination by shoals between Cape Cod and Nantucket Island. On Cape Cod, they found potable water and food and had their first fight with the natives.

The Pilgrims, however, decided that this land was too sandy to support them, and they sailed across Cape Cod Bay to establish Plymouth. Today, the natural landscape of Cape Cod is little changed. Small villages are separated by large areas of forest, dune, beach, and marsh. Much of the East-facing Atlantic seacoast of Cape Cod consists of wide, sandy beaches. In 1961, a significant portion of this coastline was made a part of the Cape Cod National Seashore by President John F. Kennedy, and is thus protected from development. This unspoiled natural beauty makes Cape Cod one of the most favored vacation areas for the people living in the thickly settled northeastern States.

for lovers of seafood, it was a heavenly experience.. plus it was a bit early in the season, so the crowds hadn't hit the area yet thank God! the wind was whipping about but the sun was pleasantly warm enough to allow walking along the beach.





there is something about the sea, that brings out different feelings and elements in each of us.. what does looking at, and listening to the sea make you feel?

settling in

the last few days have been really hectic.. packing up and moving, travelling to come here, and then getting here, running around to find an apartment during the day, and then pub hopping at night.. it's been a whirl of food and drink, places and people.

the place i will be working and staying at is a little suburban town, outside Boston proper. it's one of those little towns, with Main Street being two blocks long, and no chain stores, all being the mom n' pop kind of stores. i got me a pretty nice one-bedroom apartment, and have been busy trying to furnish it. it's such a quiet and peaceful little town that when i take the train into Boston and am back in this maelstrom of noise and chaos, it's momentarily disorienting.

the one thing that i have done is really seen the Boston party life.. clubs, pubs, restaurants and cafes.. and there's still so much more to see. but i need to start working for that, cos my pockets are not cavernous by any stretch of the imagination!! and when i have to start paying $9 for a jack n' coke then somehow even the eye-candy available in plenty does not redeem the place. i would recommend the Middlesex Lounge cos it's pretty cool, and the waitresses are hot.. the Joshua Tree Bar is kinda too much hype, doesn't have the irish pub feel for me, the service was pretty poor too, definitely not worth a second visit.. Caprice has potential to be a really good nightclub and lounge, attracts a pretty young and hot crowd, we didn't head into Underbar, which is the afterhours section of the club, but the Moroccan-themed lounge upstairs was pretty cool.

all in all it's been a great weekend, but now it's time toset up house, and get ready for monday morning.. cos here comes work!

boston recap

just a quick look back at the trip to Boston, and a bit of a gripe as well. i like the way NYC and Washington DC have well-planned out roads, at least in the city center. Boston however gave the town planners too much leeway, and allowed them to go wild. not only did they let them off the hook, they proceeded to give them the fishing rod and net as well! the city is so easy to get lost in when driving around. not only do half the roads change name without warning, it is quite easy to find streets with the same names (that do not even meet) in adjoining suburbs too!! so in Boston and Cambridge (across the River Charles, and home to Harvard and MIT), it's quite easy to find a Beacon St., and a Washington St., and a Brookline St. too, none of which even are remotely near the other, and helluva lot confusing when you have no idea where you are cos half the streets are not properly signposted either!!

we spent a great Saturday walking along the R. Charles from Harvard up to MIT, then crossed the river into Boston and walked along the fancy-pants Newbury St. before ending up at Penang in Chinatown for some awesome Malaysian food.. enjoy the pics!

here's the Harvard Business School and the MIT main entrance:

and the Boston skyline by day and by night:

NB: i guess i can say i have mingled with some of the smartest brains in the country now, having had the dubious honor of taking a leak in the bathrooms at both Harvard and MIT!!

out in the sticks

spent an excellent day in the city yesterday.. one thing i really like about Boston is that it is a very walkable city, and conducive to pedestrians. at least every time i try to cross the street the drivers aren't staring at me with menacing growls, licking their chops like Wile E. Coyote does looking at the Road Runner!

the rest of the brownie gang made it (finally) into Boston from Buffalo, which turned into an adventure on it's own cos Boston has this bad habit of renaming roads halfway down the length of the road, like they just got bored or something! and then with all the suburbs so close together, it gets more than a bit confusing cos you have the same street names in every suburb..

we had a couple of drinks at the Asgard, one of the upmarket pubs in the MIT area, this place is crawling with yuppies and 'suits'! after which we went to watch the Blue Man Group at night.. believe it or not, instead of paying the $40 entry, if you usher for the show you can watch it for free! the show itself was excellent, we had an awesome time! if you can make it to the show, do it.. or else look for the DVD, it has to be seen and heard to be really enjoyed. (read more about them)

drove out late at night to New Hampshire to crash at a friend's place.. i tell you this place is really in the sticks! apparently not only do you not have to wear a seatbelt in this state, but it's okay to not have car insurance either!! the roads only get plowed once a day in the middle fo winter also, and salting is not that frequent either. and the clincher.. the damned deer keep thinking the interstate highway is their local pub where they can meet up and chew the cud.. sample this
Deer 1: "hey hey, did you check out the new doe in Purchasing?"
Deer 2: "ooooh yeah, what a rack she.. BAM!!!"
and before you know it you are eating deer for the next two weeks!

these Harvard types!

came out of the metro (called the 'T' here) tunnel at Harvard Square, and found myself in a whole different world! impromptu bands sitting around playing music, coffees and cigarettes everywhere, intellectual talk (i'm assuming!) around the sidewalk tables.. a man could get used to hanging out with these types!

at night we went out to Wally's, which has become a landmark of the Boston nightlife, and listened to some decent jazz. had a couple of beers and wings at John Harvard's, which is another landmark of Boston.. so all in all it's a meet-the-city tour, going pretty good. like all big cities, the night time skyline along the river is beautiful.. i kinda forgot how big cities can be like living in Buffalo as i have been!

a walk through the Harvard campus late at night, admiring very vast libraries, very ancient buildings and some very comic stories about Harvard myths rounded off the tour. today i go on a walking trip around Cambridge, which is the other half of Boston city across the Charles River.. i've heard good things about a Punjabi restaurant around here, plus i gotta hit the other hallowed institution, MIT!!

apologies for the lack of pics, still don't have a camera

Bos·ton (bô'stən)

The capital and largest city of Massachusetts, in the eastern part of the state on Boston Bay, an arm of Massachusetts Bay. Founded in the 17th century, it was a leading center of agitation against England in the 18th century and a stronghold of abolitionist thought in the 19th century. Today it is a major commercial, financial, and educational hub. Population: 574,283.

yes, you read correctly.. The Outlaw Torn is in the land of the dreaded enemies of the Buffalo Bills, here in the heartland of the New England Patriots for the next few days. i havent seen much of the city yet, the whole episode of getting here has been quite breathless, but will get out and see more tomorrow. i have to say that the trains were really comfortable, i love that about big cities.. the punctuality of the out of town trains was a bit off, but i shall let that slide.

stay tuned for more stories and pictures of the impromptu holiday in Boston!

Allegany pics

the brownie gang had gone hiking last week to the Allegany National Park.. it was a bit early in the season, so it was nice and quiet, and we had a really good time! here's me near the lake, doing my frat-boy impersonation.. it was a brilliantly clear day, a mite chilly though

we started of in the lighter forest, but climbed to the evergreen forest.. quite a change from the stark and barren trees to then see the green again. there is hardly any wildlife left in the Allegany region now unfortunately.

let's go see the world

one of my favorite shows on tv is 'Globe Trekker' (formerly 'Lonely Planet').. for travel buffs it's the Holy Grail. i've lived on three continents, and what i find is the more i see the more i wanna explore. in fact, often i watch places on the show that i have been to, and didn't get to see quite a lot of things they show.. there's just so much to discover about a place, and the people, and everything around it!

the thing i like about the show is that they don't do the usual touristy stuff; instead, they often go off the beaten path, digging up different things to do and little tidbits that you would never know unless you lived at a place. the tv show is based on the 'Lonely Planet' books, which are often the Bible for backpackers and hikers, and are replete with the kind of information that people like you and me need.. i.e those who don't have their own tropical island complete with airstrip and a Lear jet, and a 150-foot yacht anchored at the marina.

from the list of dream jobs, being a host on this show is definitely one of the top choices. to be paid to see and enjoy a place.. what could be better than that! in fact, one of the targets in life that i still aim at is to be able to work for 11 months a year, and for the remaining month just toss a few essentials into a backpack and go away for a month. with one trip a year starting now, i figure i'd still be able to tick off quite a few places from the list before my oft-abused body gives up on me. oh yeah, if anyone knows someone who is in the travel show production business, please please let me know!

off to Motor City

The Outlaw will be out of town this weekend..
the gang is headed to Detroit for a short vacation.



have a great weekend, and be good while i'm gone! heh!