Can I use the loo?

Thanks to the amount of travel I do and a phobia that I have, I have used public toilets at every airport I have been to. Let me tell you that in most cases, it has been an ordeal. There is nothing more repulsive than a dirty loo. I am glad that the government has privatized several airports in the country. Now some of the airports (especially Hyderabad, Bangalore, Delhi) have 5-star toilets!!! Mumbai has been a mixed bag. And Ahmedabad is at the bottom of the pyramid*.

Mr. Narendra Modi, I really liked your city. But please clean your loo. Either have more efficient staff in your loos or privatize the airport. For Heaven's Sake!!!

(*Please note that I haven't been to all the airports in India. There could be others which are worse)

Gurgaon, as a place to live

In my profession, there are not places in India where one can move to. The choices are pretty limited. Mumbai, Bangalore, NCR, Hyderabad and Chennai. People rotate around in these cities only. For me, the choice are even less since I did not like Bangalore....and Mumbai is too fast for me. NCR used to always attract me because of the proximity of several tourist places. You can plan so many things for the weekends.....Jaipur, Corbett, Dehradun, Vaishno Devi, Shimla...the choices are unlimited.

I spent the last 4 days at Gurgaon. Was there for an official visit. There, I got the flavor of the real Gurgaon. Let me share what I liked about the place and what I did not.

Things I liked (first impression);

• The city looked pretty spread-out. Though the city has more sky scrapers than most Indian cities, it does not look crowded
• Road infrastructure. Gurgaon has one of the best road infrastructure in the country
• Plenty of malls and shopping complexes
• Several multiplexes
• No dearth of "eye-candies"
• Great food joints

Things I did not like (first impression);

• People. Even the rickshaw wallah thinks he is the Prime Minister. More often than not, you will bumb into a rude and money-minded person
• Public Conveyance. Not everyone likes a ride in a six-seater auto or a cycle rickshaw!!! After a meeting, I spent more than an hour looking for a taxi. Residents agree that public conveyance is a huge pain point. If you do not have your own vehicle, you are in trouble
• Electricity. Not that I faced huge problems, however residents told me that power-cuts are regular phenomenon
• Weather. Too hot in summers, too cold in winters
• Costly

Overall, Gurgaon did not excite me a lot. It is not that I have been totally discouraged and wont consider it as an option. But I will definitely think twice.

A day at the airports

Date: 26 Aug 2009

Time: 1939 hrs

It has been a crazy day. Almost entire day has been spent on the airports. Yawn

0300 hrs: Got up in the morning

0415 hrs: Took the cab for the Shamshabad Airport (Hyderabad)

0500 hrs: Reached the airport

0500-0600 hrs: Sat on the airport, waiting for the flight

0600 hrs: Took the Indigo flight for Mumbai

0715 hrs: Reached Mumbai airport

0715 - 1050 hrs: Sat on the Mumbai airport, waiting for the Jet flight for Ahmedabad

1050 hrs: Took the Jet flight to Ahmedabad

1200 hrs: Reached Ahmedabad airport

1200-1430 hrs: Sat on the Ahmedabad Airport as my meeting was at 1630 hrs

1730 hrs-Now: Waiting for my Indigo flight for Delhi. The flight is at 2050 hrs

I will reach Delhi at 2240 hrs (if the flight is on time, indigo usually is on time).

I am feeling like Tom Hanks in the movie, "Terminal". Yawn