[Imported from Blogdrive]A Trip To Connemara — Circling the City

 

A Trip To Connemara — Circling the City
Today was Saturday and since quite a few nights I had been staying late, I got up late today after some sleep. Just casually dropped in my workplace since I had some work too and in one of the discussion lists, I came to know of Ahobilam Divyadesa Yatra and Parikkal Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Yagnam. I have gathered details regarding the same and have blogged them in my Sri Vaishnava weblog.
I had some books due to return to Connemara Public Library and before dropping at my work, took the almost long route bus 1 (Tambaram to Tiruvottiyur), got down in Central and came to the library. I had some interesting books to read and then came to my workplace.
Now feeling bit tired and trying to get some sleep and rest. <!–
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        Posted at 06:44 pm by Deepak Kumar Vasudevan
 

 

 

 

  Original BlogDrive Post on Saturday, July 29, 2006

[Imported from Blogdrive]Weekend of Infotainment

Weekend of Infotainment
This was a markedly different weekend without wasting much time chatting away or sleeping. Actually, I had some schedules in the morning to visit my bank, get the passbooks updated. Then I had to go to Connemara Public Library in Egmore since some of the books that I have lent from them about two weeks back were running overdue heavily. It was about 11 AM when I entered the library.
After I returned the book, instead of just searching for a new set of books, I sat there and was reading through some of the books there. I found a nice book on Titanic. This book, instead of just mentioning the story of Titanic from Southampton Port into the New York. It was also analysing the various internals besides the aftermath investigation of the wreckage. Quite interestingly, on Sunday, there was a live review of Poseidon — Titanic II in Sun News Hollywood Times. Perhaps whatever was read on Saturday and the internals was shown there. The book was really excellent and it was in Tamil also, that even the way the incident has been narrated is so lucid that it brings us the incident right in front of our eyes and it sens chill waves down our spines. That should make the reader understand how nightmarish would have been for the actual victims of the wreckage.
I had some work in the office and after spending about an hour and a half in the library, came back to office and started home at about quarter to seven. Sunday was just roaming around Tambaram circle and with my friends. My friend was having Airtel BroadBand near Pallavaram and hence some blogging out from there.
After a brief wink of sleep on&nbsp; Sunday’s night, now to the next week with more rejuvenation and freshness.

[Imported from Blogdrive]Weekend with a difference

Weekend with a difference
This weekend had been a bit difference. Though not hectic but in fact refreshing to the mind. In the mornings, I had certain domestic shopping tasks to make. Along with that my other book lent from Connemara Public Library&nbsp;has been running overdue for significantly long time. Hence visited the library, returned the book and took some new book there.
While casually browsing through the archives, I found a nice book on Titanic. Unlike the usual films and books that described Titanic, this book had an indepth coverage of the aftermath investigation of the survivors, the shipping company and so on and so forth. The narration of the incidents from the mouths of the survivors, is so well-written that it sends down chill waves down the readers’ spines and which can be a salient testimony of the amount of devastating wreckage the mammoth ship has succumbed to.
I had some brief work and just came back to workplace and a bit of blog now.

[Imported from Blogdrive]Trip to Tiruvottiyur on Sunday

Trip to Tiruvottiyur on Sunday
This sunday has been a holy pilgrimage for me.&nbsp; I was at my workplace in the afternoon since I had some small work and something I was thinking that I should visit Thiruvotriyur. At about 4 PM, I started from Guindy and reached Parrys. For some reason, I could’nt take my lunch and I was feeling lazy in the scorching sultry sun of Chennai in the month of Aadi. Hence I took some quick bites in Shankar Cafe in Parrys corner. This is really a very old hotel in Parrys.
I remember my college days when I had to board the Vellore bus, I had to get some tiffin parcel from this hotel. After that, I was looking out for the bus to Tiruvotriyur. A traffic cop guided me to the new bus stands. Entire Parrys corner has a new look bus terminuses since long distances buses have been moved to Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus&nbsp;(CMBT) in Koyambedu. It was about a half-an-hour journey to reach Tiruvotriyur from Parrys.
It was&nbsp;a peaceful darshan in the temple. When I entered the temple, it was almost like entering my favorite Thiruvanaikka temple in Tiruchi. I felt as if Thiruchi fondly entered my hearts and whispered "Buddy. You have’nt visited me for long". I regularly visit Thiruchi and her temples almost every six months to one year.&nbsp;
Well. Coming back to Tiruvotriyur, the temple is very excellent and it has a Lord of Shivalingams and the Lordess temple is near the entrance. After about an hour in the temple, I started from there at about 8 PM to reach Velacherry and Tambaram from there. I have also collected information about neigboring temples from the priests and temple officials besides gathering information from various websites. I have posted these to http://deepakvasudevan.blogspot.com/ The most interesting thing was the number of different Shivalingams in the temple.<!–
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        Posted at 10:10 pm by Deepak Kumar Vasudevan
 

 

 

 

  Original BlogDrive Post on Monday, July 24, 2006

[Imported from Blogdrive]Distinctly Different Trip to Tiruvallikeni

Distinctly Different Trip to Tiruvallikeni
Today is Thursday. Yesterday was Wednesday. So what. My MSN Hotmail Calendar reminds me on Wednesday night "Dude. Tomorrow is Thursday. Your Temple Schedule. Don’t keep chatting away and forget it".
Today the climate was bit rainy also towards afternoon. I had some work in HSBC Bank and hence went to its Adyar branch. I am trying to rejuvenate the policy of Priority to Savings rather than to debit. At least to present a visual emphasis on that, which gives us a psychological comfort towards the initiative, the amount, I divided into four bank challans and deposited. This would show up as at least separate credits right.&nbsp; Though a very trivial thing, it does present a comfortable and a proven encouragement. There was some offer in HSBC that you can fill about a short questionairre profile and you would get a HSBC Pen. Just filled it and got a nice looking HSBC Pen too.&nbsp; Then I had some good lunch over there in a small restaurant before I returned to my workplace at about half past two, spending about 45 minutes in Adyar.
This time, I was thinking to have the Triplicane temple towards late evening and thank God, the climate was also a welcome showers at three o clock making it a real pleasurable and cool travel. I was reminded of the following song that celebrates the pleasant view of Nature in the evening from the film Nizhalgal in Tamil.&nbsp;
I would like to give some of the famous lines (may not be in the right order though)

Idhu oru pon maalai pozhudhu Vaana magal naanugiraalVaeru udai poonugiraal
Aayiram nirangal jaalamidumRaathiri vaasalil kolamidumVaanam iravukku paalamidumPaadum paravaigal thalamidumPoomarangal saamarangal…
The temple was also greeting with lesser crowd&nbsp; and a privileged entry into all the sanctum sanctorums.&nbsp; After about an hour or two, I caught a bus to Guindy [45 B] and returned to my workplace. The evening weather was really cool after pleasant summer showers that I was almost sleeping during the travel from Saidapet till the bus reached TVS bus stop. After that I had to get up since there was a heavy crowd through which I had to wade away and come out to alight at Shanthi Theater bus stop to catch the next bus to Tiruvallikeni.

[Imported from Blogdrive]Weekend of Infotainment

Weekend of Infotainment
This was a markedly different weekend without wasting much time chatting away or sleeping. Actually, I had some schedules in the morning to visit my bank, get the passbooks updated. Then I had to go to Connemara Public Library in Egmore since some of the books that I have lent from them about two weeks back were running overdue heavily. It was about 11 AM when I entered the library.
After I returned the book, instead of just searching for a new set of books, I sat there and was reading through some of the books there. I found a nice book on Titanic. This book, instead of just mentioning the story of Titanic from Southampton Port into the New York. It was also analysing the various internals besides the aftermath investigation of the wreckage. Quite interestingly, on Sunday, there was a live review of Poseidon — Titanic II in Sun News Hollywood Times. Perhaps whatever was read on Saturday and the internals was shown there. The book was really excellent and it was in Tamil also, that even the way the incident has been narrated is so lucid that it brings us the incident right in front of our eyes and it sens chill waves down our spines. That should make the reader understand how nightmarish would have been for the actual victims of the wreckage.
I had some work in the office and after spending about an hour and a half in the library, came back to office and started home at about quarter to seven. Sunday was just roaming around Tambaram circle and with my friends. My friend was having Airtel BroadBand near Pallavaram and hence some blogging out from there.
After a brief wink of sleep on&nbsp; Sunday’s night, now to the next week with more rejuvenation and freshness.

[Imported from Blogdrive]An Helpful Traffic Jam

An Helpful Traffic Jam
A Traffic Jam is always a most disgusting one for anybody on earth. Is’nt it? But there is a Tamil Proverb that whatever thing we call it as most disgusting and useless, also turns to be useful in some ways or another.&nbsp;The actual Tamil Proverb is "Siru Thurumbum Pal Kuththa Udhavum" — the literal meaning being even a little bit of wood or its splinter can be used clear the teeth or the item stuck between, after a sumptous lunch.
Today, I had a plan of paying the fees for my MBA Second Year (Third Semester) examination to my study center.&nbsp; The following were some of the religious observations that needed to be obeyed, since it is a long-run investment:

Observe the 12 to 1:30 Rahu Kalam of Wednesday. [Started at 1:32]
Tomorrow is Aani month starting and hence try pushing off the payment today and get the books. [Books in reciept]
While I started, I thought and was of the opinion that I can reach Anna Nagar Thirumangalam Study center in less than 40 minutes since it was a straight traversal of Jawaharlal Nehru road. However, I totally forgot the initial plan that the annual fees normally I pay via State Bank of India I thought in the interim that I could choose any of the banks never minding of the bit high DD commissions. The Kathipara road till Kasi theater seems to have been experiencing a tight traffic jam and as my share auto was reaching near the NSIC campus near the Ekkatuthangal overbridged, I sighted a State Bank of India branch. So the following were the benefits of the traffic jam, which I could comprehend.

The original vision plan was reminded by the traffic jam and adhered to, in using the State Bank payment services.
The risk of running late to the study center and searching for a bank in its vicinity and finding it ‘Door Locked’ due to bank closure timings was avoided.
One more sweet recall — Traffic Jams are never always disgusting. There is a hotel called ‘Traffic Jam’ in Adyar Sardar Patel road. Regular users of this section would tell you that this section is prone to traffic jam always and it has also been an untold bus stop and you can always be sure of getting down or catching a bus which traverses this route, nevertheless, whether there is a bus stop there or not. People have stopped lamenting about a traffic jam here rather it has become a significant landmark for the area. Fortunately, real estate guys have not still used this to increase the land values stating that the land value has increased because of proximity to Traffic Jam. Adyar real estate value anyway is on the high. But that is another story.
Well! After getting the books and making the payment, I reached back to my workplace after about some an hour and a half.

[Imported from Blogdrive]Spiritual Weekend

Spiritual Weekend
This weekend has been a religious or a spirtual weekend. As has been scheduled in my MSN Calendar, I started off to Melmaruvathur at about 9 AM. While Tambaram bus stand was overflowing with crowd, by God’s grace, I got a bus bound to Tindivanam, which was having&nbsp;seats available. It was about an hour’s journey to Melmaruvathur through serene greenery the moment the bus crossed the concrete jungle of city at Tambaram through Chengalput, Madurantakam and other small villages and towns.
At about half past eleven, I reached Melmaruvathur. In the shoe stall, I was informed that the sanctum sanctorum, would be closed at one on Saturdays. During a inquiry inside, I understood Saturdays and Thursdays also follow this schedule. There was’nt much rush and hence I calmly had one circumambulation, worshipping the Lordess. When I came out of the sanctum sanctorum, there was an instinct&nbsp; on why should’nt we enter again, since anyway the crowd is not there. Well! I had one more darshan, with the blessings of the Lordess.
I got some prasadams from there and after a brief bite of lunch at a restaurant in the town itself, started off to Chennai back. I reached Kathipara junction sometime about half past two and now just writing off a small and quick travelog — a compendium of the various places visited and travel narrations. There are also some more observations during this trip:

The route between Chennai and Tindivanam is kind of very speedy highway. Drivers must exercise extra caution while using this and we should try avoiding this for late night journeys. On my way back, I found a lorry laden with industry packages had overturned in Chengalput bypass road and since it was a median-divider bound road, the stretch had been cordoned off by the traffic police for about two kilometers and only the onward stretch was available for commuting in both directions.
I found one more small town and a temple called Vada Thirunallar. Thirunallar is a very popular shrine for Lord Saturn (Planet Saturn). I would try collecting more details. Meanwhile, if some reader has information on this temple, please feel free to share for the benefit of other readers.
Adhiparasakthi Siddar Peetam, Melmaruvathur is not only famous for the deity but the trust has a lot of other services too. They have medical colleges that offer free to subsidised treatement for the economically challenged and a state-of-the-art engineering college. Check out the trust information here.
Melmaruvathur has very important poojas during the month of Aadi. Check out Sakthi Peetam website for more details.