Monday, July 26, 2004
Of Yellow jerseys and Yellow wristbands
Lance Amstrong wins his sixth Tour de' France... supported by his ever dependable US Postal Service team.
This is from a man who in 1996 was diagnosed with testicular cancer and was given just 3 months to live.
read more
And whats more... he will be back next year, however there will be change in the dark blue US Postal jerseys.....as Discovery channel are the new sponsors for the team.
When he says WEAR YELLOW, he is not just talking about the Yellow jersey, althought thats what keeps him going. There is more yellow than that....the yellow wristbands are a means to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation for Cancer patients
This is from a man who in 1996 was diagnosed with testicular cancer and was given just 3 months to live.
read more
And whats more... he will be back next year, however there will be change in the dark blue US Postal jerseys.....as Discovery channel are the new sponsors for the team.
When he says WEAR YELLOW, he is not just talking about the Yellow jersey, althought thats what keeps him going. There is more yellow than that....the yellow wristbands are a means to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation for Cancer patients
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
Snapshots
Well, I am really happy today, for a reason off course
I had read somewhere that
“One should not be happy for a reason, cause the reason can be taken away from you. One should be happy without a reason”
But I am taking the gamble here; cause somewhere deep within there is a belief that this time around the reason will not be taken away.
Anyways…just something extra from my end…:-)
I would like to share a few snapshots from the lives of some of the people I met during my journey. Wasn’t planning to blog them separately, but then why not.
Well these might come out as very ordinary people if you see them on the road. We in our hurry and worries of everyday life just walk past them. But if you stop and speak to them you realize what their dreams are, how strong are their beliefs, and how much they have to offer in terms of life’s little learning.
Gondiraj, age 14yrs, I met him en-route from Chennai to Pondicherry, he was selling coconut water on the roadside. Well got chatting with him trying to know more about him. He is in the 11th grade at a local school. He could not speak or understand English very well, but we managed with sign language and little broken English. In his holidays he would help him father in selling the produce from his small farm, and that’s what he was doing. I took out my SLR to take a snap , he was so excited, that before I could remove the lens cover, he was already posing. He requested if he could hold the camera as he had never done, so I let him take a snap of mine doing his job, which thrilled him beyond belief. The only sad part was that I didn’t have a camera which could capture the his joy.
Vellu , age 15 yrs, working as room boy in a lodge at Pondicherry. Well I had spent quite sometime searching for a decently priced acco to stay in Pondicherry, when I was directed to this lodge where Vellu worked. Within five minutes of my meeting him, I wasn’t really bothered as to how much I had to shell out for the acco. He was full of energy that I just forgot how hard the ride had been and how hot it was outside. He was ever smiling and all excited seeing my state and the bike. Somehow I had this feeling that there a lot of question in his mind and a lot he wanted to talk about, and then the dam burst. He went on talking about how he single handedly managed things in the lodge, how he would play cricket on Sundays and that he was a spinner, became sad when he spoke of his father’s demise, but bounced back and told me about Pondicherry. He said that he would like to come to Pune some day. All this was again in broken English, tamil, and the universal sign language. Even with all his worries he was so full of life, which I found really something creditable.
Stanlin, age 25 yrs, fisherman by profession. I met him in Rameshwaram at the guest house where I was staying. He was there to sell me a Snorkeling experience around the coral reefs which were just off the coast from where I was staying. At the prices he offered it was hard for me to say no. So off we were snorkeling was real fun, but during the couple of hours that I spent with them at sea, we talked about a lot of things right from tsnorkeling, to the coral reefs, to the LTTE tigers (Jaffana is just 16km from Rrameshwaram by sea.), to the ways of life in a fishing village, his early morning adventures in the sea, to how happy he was not married so that he could do what he wanted to. His dreams, he wanted to own a Trawler one day and export fish , corals and pearls. But what hit me most was, he said he would continue to teach people snorkeling, as he himself loved to do it , and that where else would he get to meet people from far off worlds where he could not go and learn about them
‘Aniley’ , age 50+ yrs, Actually ‘Aniley’ is not her name , it means ‘Aunty’ in Laddakhi, she said to call her that, so I don’t know her name. Met her in Pang , 1300ft above msl, she was managing a kitchen tent where I stayed en-route to Leh. What I remember most is her ever smiling and pleasant face. Well a fellow mate was down with High Altitude Sickness, she made soup and woke him up and made him drink that, saying that he would feel better. I just thought what was her relation with him, why did she do it, but I found no answer, I guess its just her. If only others would learn and help each other without trying to search for a reason for doing it. I don’t think I will ever forget her ever-smiling wrinkled face and I am sure the next time I am crossing Pang I will stay with her.
Kale early 30s , daily wage farm labourer. I met him en-route from Agra to Gwalior.
Well stuck in a dust storm, took refuge in a tea shack by the road. As usual got chatting with the locals. When I spoke to this guy about the dust storm thinking he was a local, it turned out that this guy was from Dhule , Maharashtra. Was really amazed to hear what brought him hear. This guy had been to Agra on foot from Dhule, a journey which took him around 45 days. He has been doing these trips around the country for quite sometime now, on foot and at most by bicycle. The best part was yet to come, he would study each place he went, the culture and customs, the political situation, history. We went on talking about the education system in India and in maharashtra in particular. This guy had learned so much without any formal education that he made the saying (which goes something like this) come true ”One learns more by traveling a 100miles than by studying a 1000books”
A few of the many I met. Just goes on to show that how much is there to learn from each other if only we decide to keep our eyes, ears and mind open. During my biking adventures apart from the joy the riding the bike, these experiences are what excite me the most and Solo rides are the best for this.
I had read somewhere that
“One should not be happy for a reason, cause the reason can be taken away from you. One should be happy without a reason”
But I am taking the gamble here; cause somewhere deep within there is a belief that this time around the reason will not be taken away.
Anyways…just something extra from my end…:-)
I would like to share a few snapshots from the lives of some of the people I met during my journey. Wasn’t planning to blog them separately, but then why not.
Well these might come out as very ordinary people if you see them on the road. We in our hurry and worries of everyday life just walk past them. But if you stop and speak to them you realize what their dreams are, how strong are their beliefs, and how much they have to offer in terms of life’s little learning.
Gondiraj, age 14yrs, I met him en-route from Chennai to Pondicherry, he was selling coconut water on the roadside. Well got chatting with him trying to know more about him. He is in the 11th grade at a local school. He could not speak or understand English very well, but we managed with sign language and little broken English. In his holidays he would help him father in selling the produce from his small farm, and that’s what he was doing. I took out my SLR to take a snap , he was so excited, that before I could remove the lens cover, he was already posing. He requested if he could hold the camera as he had never done, so I let him take a snap of mine doing his job, which thrilled him beyond belief. The only sad part was that I didn’t have a camera which could capture the his joy.
Vellu , age 15 yrs, working as room boy in a lodge at Pondicherry. Well I had spent quite sometime searching for a decently priced acco to stay in Pondicherry, when I was directed to this lodge where Vellu worked. Within five minutes of my meeting him, I wasn’t really bothered as to how much I had to shell out for the acco. He was full of energy that I just forgot how hard the ride had been and how hot it was outside. He was ever smiling and all excited seeing my state and the bike. Somehow I had this feeling that there a lot of question in his mind and a lot he wanted to talk about, and then the dam burst. He went on talking about how he single handedly managed things in the lodge, how he would play cricket on Sundays and that he was a spinner, became sad when he spoke of his father’s demise, but bounced back and told me about Pondicherry. He said that he would like to come to Pune some day. All this was again in broken English, tamil, and the universal sign language. Even with all his worries he was so full of life, which I found really something creditable.
Stanlin, age 25 yrs, fisherman by profession. I met him in Rameshwaram at the guest house where I was staying. He was there to sell me a Snorkeling experience around the coral reefs which were just off the coast from where I was staying. At the prices he offered it was hard for me to say no. So off we were snorkeling was real fun, but during the couple of hours that I spent with them at sea, we talked about a lot of things right from tsnorkeling, to the coral reefs, to the LTTE tigers (Jaffana is just 16km from Rrameshwaram by sea.), to the ways of life in a fishing village, his early morning adventures in the sea, to how happy he was not married so that he could do what he wanted to. His dreams, he wanted to own a Trawler one day and export fish , corals and pearls. But what hit me most was, he said he would continue to teach people snorkeling, as he himself loved to do it , and that where else would he get to meet people from far off worlds where he could not go and learn about them
‘Aniley’ , age 50+ yrs, Actually ‘Aniley’ is not her name , it means ‘Aunty’ in Laddakhi, she said to call her that, so I don’t know her name. Met her in Pang , 1300ft above msl, she was managing a kitchen tent where I stayed en-route to Leh. What I remember most is her ever smiling and pleasant face. Well a fellow mate was down with High Altitude Sickness, she made soup and woke him up and made him drink that, saying that he would feel better. I just thought what was her relation with him, why did she do it, but I found no answer, I guess its just her. If only others would learn and help each other without trying to search for a reason for doing it. I don’t think I will ever forget her ever-smiling wrinkled face and I am sure the next time I am crossing Pang I will stay with her.
Kale early 30s , daily wage farm labourer. I met him en-route from Agra to Gwalior.
Well stuck in a dust storm, took refuge in a tea shack by the road. As usual got chatting with the locals. When I spoke to this guy about the dust storm thinking he was a local, it turned out that this guy was from Dhule , Maharashtra. Was really amazed to hear what brought him hear. This guy had been to Agra on foot from Dhule, a journey which took him around 45 days. He has been doing these trips around the country for quite sometime now, on foot and at most by bicycle. The best part was yet to come, he would study each place he went, the culture and customs, the political situation, history. We went on talking about the education system in India and in maharashtra in particular. This guy had learned so much without any formal education that he made the saying (which goes something like this) come true ”One learns more by traveling a 100miles than by studying a 1000books”
A few of the many I met. Just goes on to show that how much is there to learn from each other if only we decide to keep our eyes, ears and mind open. During my biking adventures apart from the joy the riding the bike, these experiences are what excite me the most and Solo rides are the best for this.
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Sporting round up....
Well that elusive write up is still coming...
Actually haven't got in the mood of writing it ..and don't want it to be a sham of a travalogue...so i guess it will have to wait....
In the meanwhile a lot of things happening on the sporting arena...
Euro 2004-- Was a real treat ...The games were real fast plays..as if you were watching the English League.....Saw Greece coming from no where to clinch the title....Great show ....France and Italy were dissapointing...
Formula 1-- Schumi is as usual on a roll..6th Grand Prix win..The last race saw Ferrari and Schumi teaming up for a brilliant Pit strategy to win the race..McLaren/Mercedes have finally started to finish races...
The true sparks this season seem to be Renault team and both Alonso and Trulli....
Tour De France-- sees Lance Armstrong getting into his stride....winning the Yellow jersey on the second day....US Postal again the favs this season.....T- mobile with Jan Ullrich ,Euskaltel/Euskadi with Iban Mayo and Phonak with Tyler Hamilton are other teams and riders to look at ....
Wibledon--Saw stunning victories by Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova.
The next big thing i guess is the Athens Olympics...
At the end i would like to say that...the dry patch is over...i mean on the blogs...(Rain clouds are still not seen on the horizon..which is sad...)
Actually haven't got in the mood of writing it ..and don't want it to be a sham of a travalogue...so i guess it will have to wait....
In the meanwhile a lot of things happening on the sporting arena...
Euro 2004-- Was a real treat ...The games were real fast plays..as if you were watching the English League.....Saw Greece coming from no where to clinch the title....Great show ....France and Italy were dissapointing...
Formula 1-- Schumi is as usual on a roll..6th Grand Prix win..The last race saw Ferrari and Schumi teaming up for a brilliant Pit strategy to win the race..McLaren/Mercedes have finally started to finish races...
The true sparks this season seem to be Renault team and both Alonso and Trulli....
Tour De France-- sees Lance Armstrong getting into his stride....winning the Yellow jersey on the second day....US Postal again the favs this season.....T- mobile with Jan Ullrich ,Euskaltel/Euskadi with Iban Mayo and Phonak with Tyler Hamilton are other teams and riders to look at ....
Wibledon--Saw stunning victories by Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova.
The next big thing i guess is the Athens Olympics...
At the end i would like to say that...the dry patch is over...i mean on the blogs...(Rain clouds are still not seen on the horizon..which is sad...)
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