I had laughed my guts out when i had heard this for the first time in the context of people talking about flunking in some engineering exam , FAFL i suppose. But then these were the lines that I remembered when i had to travel all alone to France for two weeks . Being a person who hasn't traveled even 100 kms without family/friends, managing myself for 2 weeks was indeed a memorable experience.This blog is for every Individual who might face this situation , A message to convey that it is not really that bad :) .
The minute I had to leave my parents behind in airport and boarded the flight fear engulfed me , probably a bird learning to fly might have experienced the same feeling when the only way was to to trust its wings .After my uneventful flight from Bangalore to Dubai , I was super excited to have got a window seat (Which i always prefer) from Dubai to Nice..As it always helps me experience what a bird might feel when it is flying up in the air , crossing clouds to reach the serene sky up above.Funny thing is Nice Airport is situated just besides the sea and it appears as though the flight is going to crash into the sea but to relief it does land smoothly on ground with sea gulls flocking around!.
It was only when i collected my baggage did i realize that i was all alone in an unknown country where i was a complete stranger to everyone around and was living my worst nightmare! But first words i remembered were that of my mom's "Dhairyam sarvatra sadhanam" which means "you can win world with courage".It helped me get back to normalcy and proceeded to my hotel room.
My room was one beautiful place overlooking Alps , My life was half back when i could connect to internet and talk to my folks :) . But then i needed water to get my other half of life back .. So i ventured out looking for a supermarket.As i was clueless and i have great respect for my direction skills ;) i decided to ask an old couple.Their confused expression made me realize that they were clueless about what i was talking in English and they only spoke french, Inspite of that they were encouraging and wanted me to use more words , so i made a gesture of chocolates and water and then they realized and i can never forget what they did , they walked all the way with me for about 300mts till the supermarket, pointed me to it and left saying good evening (bon soir) child .. I was no longer a stranger there .
My office experience was equally cherishable, It was nice to see people i talk/work with over email in person, [It is this factor that will not put airline business under loss :P at least for timebeing].But the quality i admired was their ability to get into the depth of the subject, irrespective of how significant it might appear , Probably my comp sci friends can relate to, when i say they were debating enum over #define , or considering a single int variable's impact at the system level. yet another amazing attitude is , every one belongs there to one team , if you don't get what i mean , many a times we get so damn bogged down by our domain that we don't bother what happens in others module/driver/domain , which was not the case there! if your neighbor is facing an issue no matter what team he/she belongs to , they discuss the problem , try their best to help out . All i could see there was passion for what they were doing.
Then came the weekend which I didn't want to sit brooding over my state so decided to explore old nice , Monaco , old nice over the weekend .Although its fun to explore a place only with family or friends , it was an altogether new experience to travel around the city alone .I , being a person who can lose my way from a known street in Bangalore was actually surprised that i traveled alone with a map and a simple but great tip :D given by a colleague of mine [whenever you think you are lost walk towards the sea and you will find your way!] .Probably that's why it is "Necessity is the mother of invention/learning".
One person i cannot forget to mention in this blog is a lady by name Evelyne who was my taxi driver for 2 weeks. One who always talked to me for 30 mins journey to make sure i was ok, One who got me maps and told how i could get to places over weekend. With her accent she called me mythro [ i didnt correct her as it meant the same a friend]. It was only one day when she told that she was a lawyer by profession for 30 years and then was retired but still continued to drive taxi to support her mentally retarded brother , and told me that she also worked as a lawyer for free to help poor when not driving her taxi!, one thing what she said that i will always remember is "Mythro it doesnt matter what work you do as long as you are content and giving your best , I dont think i have to tell this to someone from the land of spirituality"
Finally i was done with my 2 weeks stay and had to head back home :) ,I was bustling with joy but at the same time I had an experience to remember. But my ipod touch is getting smarter day by day , as shuffle of songs started playing "Baaro sadhana kerige song by bendre" on my flight back :) , I have still not been able to find an answer for why people leave India[Birth country] and move out. My humble request to whosoever stumbles across this blog and have reached till here to grow and thrive the society that had thrived you!.
checkout for some pics from my camy dearest in here :
Nice
Old Nice
Monaco
St Laurent du var
The minute I had to leave my parents behind in airport and boarded the flight fear engulfed me , probably a bird learning to fly might have experienced the same feeling when the only way was to to trust its wings .After my uneventful flight from Bangalore to Dubai , I was super excited to have got a window seat (Which i always prefer) from Dubai to Nice..As it always helps me experience what a bird might feel when it is flying up in the air , crossing clouds to reach the serene sky up above.Funny thing is Nice Airport is situated just besides the sea and it appears as though the flight is going to crash into the sea but to relief it does land smoothly on ground with sea gulls flocking around!.
It was only when i collected my baggage did i realize that i was all alone in an unknown country where i was a complete stranger to everyone around and was living my worst nightmare! But first words i remembered were that of my mom's "Dhairyam sarvatra sadhanam" which means "you can win world with courage".It helped me get back to normalcy and proceeded to my hotel room.
My room was one beautiful place overlooking Alps , My life was half back when i could connect to internet and talk to my folks :) . But then i needed water to get my other half of life back .. So i ventured out looking for a supermarket.As i was clueless and i have great respect for my direction skills ;) i decided to ask an old couple.Their confused expression made me realize that they were clueless about what i was talking in English and they only spoke french, Inspite of that they were encouraging and wanted me to use more words , so i made a gesture of chocolates and water and then they realized and i can never forget what they did , they walked all the way with me for about 300mts till the supermarket, pointed me to it and left saying good evening (bon soir) child .. I was no longer a stranger there .
My office experience was equally cherishable, It was nice to see people i talk/work with over email in person, [It is this factor that will not put airline business under loss :P at least for timebeing].But the quality i admired was their ability to get into the depth of the subject, irrespective of how significant it might appear , Probably my comp sci friends can relate to, when i say they were debating enum over #define , or considering a single int variable's impact at the system level. yet another amazing attitude is , every one belongs there to one team , if you don't get what i mean , many a times we get so damn bogged down by our domain that we don't bother what happens in others module/driver/domain , which was not the case there! if your neighbor is facing an issue no matter what team he/she belongs to , they discuss the problem , try their best to help out . All i could see there was passion for what they were doing.
Then came the weekend which I didn't want to sit brooding over my state so decided to explore old nice , Monaco , old nice over the weekend .Although its fun to explore a place only with family or friends , it was an altogether new experience to travel around the city alone .I , being a person who can lose my way from a known street in Bangalore was actually surprised that i traveled alone with a map and a simple but great tip :D given by a colleague of mine [whenever you think you are lost walk towards the sea and you will find your way!] .Probably that's why it is "Necessity is the mother of invention/learning".
One person i cannot forget to mention in this blog is a lady by name Evelyne who was my taxi driver for 2 weeks. One who always talked to me for 30 mins journey to make sure i was ok, One who got me maps and told how i could get to places over weekend. With her accent she called me mythro [ i didnt correct her as it meant the same a friend]. It was only one day when she told that she was a lawyer by profession for 30 years and then was retired but still continued to drive taxi to support her mentally retarded brother , and told me that she also worked as a lawyer for free to help poor when not driving her taxi!, one thing what she said that i will always remember is "Mythro it doesnt matter what work you do as long as you are content and giving your best , I dont think i have to tell this to someone from the land of spirituality"
Finally i was done with my 2 weeks stay and had to head back home :) ,I was bustling with joy but at the same time I had an experience to remember. But my ipod touch is getting smarter day by day , as shuffle of songs started playing "Baaro sadhana kerige song by bendre" on my flight back :) , I have still not been able to find an answer for why people leave India[Birth country] and move out. My humble request to whosoever stumbles across this blog and have reached till here to grow and thrive the society that had thrived you!.
checkout for some pics from my camy dearest in here :
Nice
Old Nice
Monaco
St Laurent du var
Posts
That was a good read My3! :) i like the passion in it again! This stint on your own would surely have helped in knowing new things about yourself.
ReplyDeleteYes, i notice that 'attention to detail' quality in Germans too!
Overall seems like it was one enlightening trip :)
@Dee I always knw a bit more abt myself everyday :) , but yes trip was a good exp!
ReplyDeleteBtw when i put camy dearest i had to thnk twice :P camy ..