Angkor Wat : The colossal pride of Cambodia

It was always my dream to visit this splendor of architecture since few years. Finally, we managed to visit the unthinkable creation of old age human species.

Why Angkor Wat?

Ever since I finished reading the great tamil novel Ponniyin Selvan, I was deeply interested to research the old age south Indian kings and their achievements. Some how I encountered this place called Angkor Wat which has a lot of influence from Chola Kings both interms of Kingdom and the architecture. There are lots of research that says the kings of Khmer dynasty where once part of Cholas from South India who ruled many parts of South East Asia (including Vietnam, Malaysia (Kedah), Indonesia (Bali) etc.,) After knowing that Angkor Wat is the worlds largest Hindu temple complex, my curiosity only increased.

Travel Facts:

Gifted being in Singapore, got cheap tickets to reach Siem Reap in Cambodia. The ticket price is less than 200 SGD (to and fro). I got this package deal of around 700 SGD per head for 4 Days vacation that includes flight (from Singapore), accommodation in 3 star hotel, food, Sight Seeing with Guide and airport transfers. The price is cheap considering we went during Christmas week.

I found its weird and funny that the people in Cambodia drive on the right side of the road. I believe it’s the only country in South East Asia having this regulation. The reason is because they were once protected by France from the invasion of other countries and the Cambodians accepted the French regulation with open hands.

The currency is officialy Rials but US dollars are accepted every where (even in small petty shops) You need to be extremely careful with what ever services or products you buy, you have to bargain almost for anything where you have to spend.

From our experience, safety doesn’t seem to be a issue there. The locals say that the city Siem Reap is quiet safe. Since the country is full of Jungles, always have your mosquito repellants. Mosquitos are biggest threat there.

Food didn’t seem to be an issue. Since we are vegetarians, we made a pre arrangement for our Lunchs and Dinners at Indian restaurants around the city. A bowl of steam rice costs about 1 USD in a decent Indian Restaurant.

History:

Let me keep it short. The king Suryavarman (the name sounds like Indian right) build the first phase of Angkor Wat making it as Vishnu Temple (Contrary to the fact that the kings of that time are Shiva devotees) with enormous sculptures and carvings around the walls. The signature settings are those 5 towers at the cardinal points of the temple. You can see 3 towers from any side of the temple which is the picture embedded in Cambodian flags. Then the country went under lots of wars and internal problems. Later, king Jayavarman VII took the throne and resumed to build other temples around Angkor Wat. Since he was a Buddhist, he changed all the hindu gods in the temple to Buddha statues. Hence, the original Hindu temple called Angkor Wat changed to Budhha temple till date.

Wow Factors:

The enormous size of the complex which is 3.2 kms long on each sides.

The numerous tower like structures that has Brahma’s 4 faces (which is scary though) in Bayon Temple.

 The brilliance of Angkor Wat main temple architecture.The carvings along the walls that explains Mahabaratha, Ramayana and Churning of Milk (basically addressing the incarnations of Vishnu as Rama, Krishna and the Tortoise form).

The Top Prahm temple which is completely embedded with trees and its roots. Its nice to see both the trees and temple walls are strong enough to support each other.

The beautiful shiva temple at the top of Bakheng hill.

It took only 32 years, 30,000 elephants and 50,000 men to build the temple. The modern civil gurus still confused and not sure if they can achieve the same in this period with technically advanced world they got.

There were no Cambodian beggars we encountered in the whole Siem Reap. But, what let me down was when the airport immigration officials were asking for Tips : ( They are the first impression about the nation and this is a shame.

The look and feel of the city is not much different from Indian cities. Felt like I was in a well developed Indian Non-Metro city.

Planning:

We took the one day pass only to see 4-5 temples out of 52 temples in the Angkor Wat. This is a demanding activity as you have to walk a lot fighting the hot and humid climate in Cambodia. If you are serious about history and architecture, get a 3 day pass atleast and try to cover as much. You can even get 1 week pass if you want to know the details to point perfect.

Other Attractions of Siem Reap:

We took half a day to visit the Floating village in the Tonle Sap lake. This is the largest lake in South East Asia. This lake is full of Vietnamese immigrants. Though Cambodia doesn’t encourage the invasion of foreign immigrants, they are finding tough to control the flow of immigrants from Laos and Vietnam through the lake. The Vietnamese were primarily fisherman who lives on the boats along the banks of the lake. It is quiet devastating to see the tough life they are living. I felt a bit heavy looking at a girl who makes her living with a snake in her small bucket like boat paddling herself to attract tourists and get money. Apart from that it’s a different and nice experience boating around and get some good clicks.

The Night market is the best place for buying Souveniers and other handicrafts. I tested my best bargaining abilities there and partly succeeded. Fridge magnets, paintings, wall hangs, hats etc., Nice place to chill out. There is a pub street near by with full of pubs and night life.

There is this Cambodian cultural village where you can hang around and check out various performances from Camboidan arts group pretty much explaining their tradition. The Cambodians were once part of Thai Kingdom and you cant see much of more exclusive Cambodian tradition which is different from Thai. By the way, I felt their traditional dances a bit boring after watching complex steps that Barathanatiyams or Kuchipudis in India can make.

Verdict:

If you love history, if you like Indian achievements in the past, if you want to experience the heights of architectural wonders that old age people achieved, if you are passionate about travelling and exploring new cultures, THIS IS YOUR CUP OF TEA : )

P.S: If you visit Angkor Wat, please do take up the Balloon ride (120 USD for 1 hour) or Helicopter ride (90 USD for 15 Minutes) I regret that I haven’t added this to my itenary. The best way to enjoy the complete Angkor Wat view : )

*** Happy New Year ***

Project Aquarium

Having bought a new house, my wife and i always think of improvising it to get the interior look better. We always liked the factor called fish (not as food, as a pet) I tossed the idea of ‘why not’...án aquarium  : ) she immediately agreed and my son was equally enthusiastic. So, i researched about aquarium shops and through my colleague came to know about this huge n famous fishing farm thatz like 2-3 kms away from my home.

The place name is Qian Hu Fish Farm. They infact provide free shuttle from Choa Chu Kang bus interchange. You can find all details in this link. Two weeks ago, we made this decision to set up an aquarium and promptly reached the aquarium with little knowledge on aquarium fundamentals. The place is so huge and well maintained. The humungous collection of fishes just made my jaw drop. There is a separate huge place for just accessories where you can find all required ingredients to set up an aquarium.

The complete Tank

Now, lets move on to the fundamental things you need to set up an aquarium. The above picture might give a fair idea about the contents of an aquarium. Let me try and explain stuffs  you need to buy.

The Tank:

I wanted to buy reasonably huge tank but i preferred frameless rectangular, short and wide glass tank. The shop also sells readymade tank where you don’t need to set up anything, just plug n play.  So, we decided to assemble our own aquarium to suit our taste and comfort by hand picking items. I roughly believe my tank is 60 cms length, 30 cms breadth and 40 cms height. This can hold atleast 3 buckets of water. The tank cost is 60$. Good start

 

Gravel:

The next must have item is the gravel layer. There were lots of choices in all colours. I liked the assorted mix of few colours.  If you decide to plug in real plants, you need to buy those fertilizers, sand accordingly. I thought better stick to gravel first and plug artificial stuffs to begin with.

Fillers:

The next is the decorative fillers inside the tank. Normally, people go for artificial plants to place everywhere in tank. Since my tank is considerably huge, we decided to buy this real wood and place it inside.

Rock:

The friendly staffs from the shop advised that the wood i selected will actually float in the aquarium and i need to buy a rock in order to fix the wood firmly to aquarium base. Hence, i chose a strong rock as a wood-dragger-weight to my aquarium.

Over head light:

To me, this is very important for aquarium. The fishes don’t like heat but definitely likes light. Especially, when they have to eat. Also, a well illuminated tank is a beauty indeed.

Water Filter:

This is the most important element of your aquarium. No matter how perfectly you maintain an aquarium, you can never replicate the natural environment the fish lives in a river or pond or sea. All we do in aquarium is to bring the best we could to provide a good life to the tenants. The tap water we fill in aquarium is not ideal for fishes due to the pH level and the presence of chlorine. Hence, its required to fix the filter and get it running for a week or so before you add fishes in.  The filter basically sucks the water in filter it out using the chemical medium and sends the cleaned water back in aquarium. The fish in the aquarium eat a lot and apparently poops a lot too. They also release tons of ammonia from the body. The filter also cleans the water to an extent to filter out the ammonia and excretion. On top of using filter, its still required to change 20-30% of water every week from the aquarium to allow fresh clean water to accommodate. Remember, this ammonium rich water is the favorite food for PLANTS.

So far, we went through the basic items needed for aquarium set up. I also picked minor stuffs like Water guard liquid (to reduce chlorine content) , Artificial plants (for decoration)

The next step, get all the stuffs back home safely with out a crack. Then rinse all the items well in the tap water and soak the rock,  wood and gravel in a separate bucket for over night. The next day, fill the tank with layered gravel, wood and rock. Fill water, switch on filter and let it run for a week. This is to prepare the water for the tenants next week.

One week later, i went back to same farm this time to buy fishes. Its now matter of visiting each tank and pick your favourites. Once you are done with your choices, just confirm with the staff there to make sure if all your picks will be ok to live in a same enclosure. Don’t forget to buy the fish food (flakes) and net along.  To begin with, i just picked all those less expensive fishes to test out the set up.

Over all, its been close to 3 weeks and we (my wife, my son and i) never regret setting up the aquarium. We enjoy feeding them, regular cleaning of filters, checking out the fishes. Slowly create a bonding.  Last week, one of the fish’s layed dozens of eggs. There were few tinies popped out swimming everywhere. Sadly, all got eaten by the other big tenants before we take any action.

Thuppaki : Fired well

Many years ago, I saw the tamil flick called Badri and I have become a fan of Vijay for his next door looks and charm. There was no stopping until his blockbuster Ghilli. Almost, I admired him in every movie. Some are pathetic but mostly he retained his fans for his hit songs and mass hero appearance. It all started in Kuruvi where I totally pissed off with his stereotype performances and didn’t give much of an attention to him. Off late, his decent performances in Kavalan and Nanban showed glimpses of improvisation and finally Thuppaki got me back : ) This post is the review of the recently running super hit movie Thuppaki

Next to Sankar its AR Murugadoss who knows the pulse of tamil movie audience very well. I always liked his narration technique in all his movies from Dheena till 7 aam Arivu. Though the telugu flick Stallin is not up to the mark. Thuppaki story plot is similar to the 1981 tamil movie Ranuva Veeran starring Rajinikanth and Chiranjeevi. Nothing big about it. An army man returns home for his leaves and cleaning up the city from the hands of sleeper cell. It’s the screenplay and the oomph factor called Vijay kept Thuppaki every one on the edge of the seats all over the movie.

Let downs:

Since I wanted to finish the post in positive note, let me list down those that I felt a bit like uhhhhh – cud have been better

Songs : This is a huge let down for such a hi profile movie. Though the producer found the right music man, I felt listening to same jingles for umpteenth time. I always liked Harris music (including Maatraan) just for the fact that it feels nice to hear though repetitive. But in Thuppaki, he didn’t get the attention. Partly because the story itself travels with all the thrills and ooh-haas. This movie will still be wonderful with out songs.

Kajal Agarwal : Its not about Kajal Agarwal, but she took quiet too much time in the movie which dented the pace to an extent. Its perfectly understandable that a movie these days will not work with out a charming leading lady but could have saved some bucks with minimum scenes.

Old age Arm fix technology : All izz well until the climax. The climax fight could have been better if the protagonist fighted with brain more than muscle as he was already beaten up bad. The scene where vijay fixes his broken arm with a twist-shrug action is like WTF…

Lifters:

What made this movie so good though the story is a vintage one ? Vijay did his usual role, what made him stand out ?

Screenplay:

This is the top notch item that lifted the movie. Easily, its AR Murugadoss’ favorite ground too. He crafted the screen play scene by scene. He did good research to justify many scenes. Like how sleeper cell work etc., My favourite scene on this was when captain jagadeesh and co goes on to kill all the 12 terrorist on same time. Understandably, its not the practical thing that happens but this is exactly the cinema, this is exactly the presentation, this is exactly the james bonds or Jason bournes of Hollywood. Infact the Indian version is far better for Indians.

Background Music:

The bgm carries a special mention. The scenes where Vijay and co follows the 12 guys and many other places. The BGM just lifts the excitement. Though songs are let downs, BGM surely lifted it up.

Dialogues:

The famous ‘I am Waiting’ though taken from TAKEN, sounds and gels a lot better when it comes from Vijay. Another sequence was when vijay explains the security guy on his house terrace with the guns on the table. The whole dialogue flow was so emotional and well crafted. Apart from those, the funny instances where Satyan utters ‘Betormax lightayy than venuma’ and ofcourse Jairam’s delivery with his sweet malyalam accent all added beauty.

Vijay:

This is the man who stands out with the help of all other above mentioned factors. Its impressive the way he tuned his body, still retained his charm and most of all acted well with out punch dialogues. This is the vijay any one wanted to see. I believe he understood now that he don’t need punch dialogues to prove his mettle. He don’t need gravity defying sequences to reach the masses. I believe he learnt his lesson and be more matured in selecting future movies. I am sure Waiting : )

Overall, this is a clean entertainment who loves action, thrill, sentiment and a bit of comedy. Don’t try to analyse too much on the logic part. If you do so, then do it for your favourite james bonds, mission impossibles and bournes first ;)

OMG – a much needed awareness (For God Sake)

Recently watched another fantastic bollywood flick Oh My God and here are my thoughts about the master piece. This movie is certainly sensational on the likes of Munna Bhais, 3 Idiots, Chak De India etc., What particularly I liked about the movie is the theme called GOD.

Firstly, appreciate the creators for having the heart to appreciate the right source for the actual concept. The movie is basically the story of an atheist who wanted to sue the myth called GOD for the loss he encountered due to earth quake. The lead characters also the producers, Akshay and Paresh carried the movie all the way with their own style and succeeded too. The dialogues in the movie carry a special mention. The Go Go Govinda song choreographed and danced by Prabhu Deva is a delight.

The movie specifically addresses the religious atrocities created by people in the name of God. Though the movie is brilliant in terms of screen play, we should still accept the real meaning of those customary procedures followed in religions all over the world. Since I am a Hindu, I did a few research on the traditional Hindu way of worshiping and the rationale behind it.

The temples constructed in ancient India is not mere stones and walls, it’s a genius of construction techniques and lots of thought process have been put for each act made on God’s name (am more specifically referring to the temples and procedures followed 1000s of years ago) The temples are considered as the place of public gathering to exhibit the artistic skills of individuals. Be it Sculptures, paintings, dance, music, you got it there. Its basically an arena for all the gladiators. The temples themselves are built on the basis of vasthu sasthra (like Feng Shui in Chineese) which means scientifically, gives positive energy to people visiting the place in many ways.

The Garpagraha (the God’s room) is not just a stone idol enclosed by four walls. The metal plates buried underneath are the source of energy and distributed to the devotees around during the gathering (pooja). The camphor, the lights, the tulasi water (holy water) all does their part medically a healthy factor to human body. Rationally speaking, the concept of religion itself is to inculcate the self discipline in to people and get automated governance in the country. Morally speaking, the concept called ‘God’ is a brilliant idea and I whole heartedly appreciate it.

Getting back to modern day and the movie, though the story emphasize the existence of God, the factor that I liked very much about the movie is that the clear delivery of message, ‘ God never wanted any one to offer money or prayers for their fortune’. God made just the people and not religion (which is exactly my view about God) and God has no favoritism between Atheists or Theists. I agree with Mithun’s dialogue that there are only ‘God-fearing people and NO God-loving people’ in this world. Which the hypocrites (otherwise #$#$@#) used it to their advantage to make a living out of it.

The key reason for the movie’s success is that there is a hidden Kanji bhai in everybody and when we see this in the screen we have a ‘oh-nice’ factor and eventually that persuades us to agree with the points delivered in the movie. Again I am neither a staunch atheist nor a self proclaimed rational scholar, am just an agnostic dude who really not interested if god exists or not. If exists, so be it, I will still remain living the same life : )

Disclaimer : The post is purely my opinion about movie and GOD, I am sorry if this hurts any one’s sentiments and I always respect all religions and the worshiping ways assuming there will always be some rationale.

A Quiet and Memorable Day with Mr. Jayaprakash

Back in Singapore after a stressfull 2.5 weeks... This time it was a unique experience... We started our own production house lead by my own brother Ravindar Chandrasekaran under the name of Libra Productions... We did a decent photo shoot and scheduled the movie launch of our first product 'Nalanum Nandhiniyum' on 12/09/2012 in Accord Metropolitan... The star cast includes Vijay TV - Jodi No. 1 fame Michael and Attakathi fame Nandita in lead roles. Besides, we got Jayaprakash (Pasanga fame), Azhagam Perumal (Director of Dum Dum Dum) , Renuka (from KB's school), Raaji (Bold victim mother in Yudham Sei), Sujatha (Pasanga fame), Chaams (Comedian in Payanam), Madhumitha(Thenadai in OKOK) and Soori (Parotta fame in VKK).. During these 2 weeks, happend to have few conversation with Mr. Jayaprakash and thanks to his down to earth character, he was really nice and kind with me..

During Ravi's marriage, i casually mentioned that i live in Singapore please do come over when you are there.. I never thought he will remember but to my surprise the next day he mentioned that he is visiting Singapore and he would like to meet up some where... I still thought he will be too busy to visit an ordinary man like me... To my shock, he called me up yesterday and mentioned that we can meet up for lunch today... My goodness, i couldnt believe myself... Yesterday, he called and mentioned that he will come for lunch on Saturday... Sadly, my family is not in town as well.. I felt the same way how Arjun felt in Mudhalvan before he met the CM... I first started to clean the house, my family will be whole heartedly happy that for once i did some home work.. Then ordered vegetarian lunch from Ananda Bhavan... Later, stuck with an idea...Why not ?? Why not let me make my signature dish - PASTA ;) The cream of my friends alrdy had intrstng moments with my Pasta in the past ;)

I went to super market and carefully got all the ingredients... Butter, Cheese, Carrots, Mushroom, Past sauce, Corn Pepper Grinder, Yoghurt etc., I carefully took my time and cooked with extreme patience to make sure there are no flaws.. Honestly, came out so well... Thankfully, Mr. Jayaprakash came a bit late which helped me to organize well... He came around 1.30 and we talked for a while.. Later served him my signature dish and unsurprisingly, he liked it ;) (Confidence machiiii Confidence ;))

We had good long chat about movies movies and a bit of personal talk... Here i posed some of the questions i asked in general and his friendly replies...

Me: Me and my friends feel your Yudham Sei was the best performance till date, how was the feedback that you recieved from all directions ?
Mr. JP : Thanks a lot. Yudham Sei reached well and appreciated mainly in Cities but people liked me a lot in Pasanga and Nadodigal in all places as every one could easily relate themselves in the movies and hence it worked well.

Me: Which you consider as your best movie ?
Mr. JP : There is no such thing as best movie. I will gladly accept positive feedbacks, thats all.

Me: You are very modest sir, so you treat all movies and act in same way
Mr. JP : Not really, some movies, some technicians, some directors even some producers influence me a lot with their work style which will motivate me to give my best. To be honest, i am not giving 100% in every single movie.

 Me : I am still shocked that you sacrificed some of your time that too when you are in holidays for me... I feel lot guilty that if i am disturbing you...
Mr. JP : Please dont be, i am just another man. As long as i meet nice people on my way i always love to be a good friend.

Me : Thats very nice of you. We are doing our first movie and glad that you are also part of it. Whats your advice for beginners-producers ?
Mr. JP : Its not an easy job for sure, however if you have right team, actors, technicians and planning. All you need will be gods grace to make it successfull... Dont indulge in silly issues on your pursuit to achieve something big... Hold the cost only where it is necessary.. Mr. Venkatesan (Director of Nalanum Nandhiniyum) is quiet able and talented guy... Give him all the space he need and get him to involve in cost cutting... Develop a good rapport with the director and success will follow for sure...

Me : Indeed. How do you manage your privacy when you are out in public ? Arent you annoyed with public disturbing you ?
Mr. JP : Definetly not, Firstly i dont hide myself any where as there is no need for it... Not just me but most of the actors/celebrities also behave the same way.. As long as you feel that your are normal man every thing around you will be normal... This applies for both you and me :)

Me : How was my pasta ?
Mr. JP : Was fantastic, the best, awesome and never ever tasted before. Thanks a lot Aravindh.

Except for the last question and answer, every thing else are true snapshot of our conversation ;) The last answer might be slightly exaturated for the writer's comfort :)

 

Later, we had a good long 15 mins walk to the taxi stand and sent him off... Thanks a lot Sir for your time, it was a honour to host you :)

If you are still wondering who this man is, check the following link

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jayaprakash
 

Photography Updates

Oh nice !!! Been to Coimbatore for a couple of days and felt so rejuvenated by the chill climate, cool breeze, warm people... The basic purpose of the trip is to accompany the newly wed couple (My brother and his wife) to the Bride's home for the customary stay (2 days) after marriage... Used this time to re-start my so called 'Photography'...

 

 The typical Banana-Leaf Food

 



The decoration lights hanged outside the home

The Raw Bananas Show

Its greenly-green all the way

 

Crispy Fried Fish

 

The soldier at gate

A Frustrating Journey: Converting Foreign License to Singapore Driving License

Ever since I returned back from South Africa, I had one thing in my mind. Get Singapore driving license for its instant recognition worldwide. This post doesn’t teach you on how to convert your foreign license to Singapore driving license. This is the long path that I took to obtain this. It could have been faster IF IF IF, I researched the procedure well and be a bit more active. Reminds me the famous quote from the dashing cricket player Sidhu, ''If ifs and buts were pots and pans, there would have been no tinkers''

January 2012:

With my lazy googling, I found that my first step is to register myself for a BTT (Basic Theory Test). I also found that there is a Traffic Police office (Branch) in Ang Mo Kio which is quiet close to my place. I believed that I can do this registration and went there on a Saturday morning only to know that I have to go personally to any of the following driving centers to register and get an appointment.

• Woodlands Driving Test Centre, level 1, co-located with the Singapore Safety Driving Centre ( http://www.ssdcl.com.sg/ ) at 2, Woodlands Industrial Park E4 Singapore 757387.

• Bukit Batok Driving Test Centre, level 2, co-located with the Bukit Batok Driving Centre (http://www.bbdc.sg ) at 815 Bukit Batok West Ave 5 Singapore 659085.

• Kampong Ubi Test Centre, level 2, co-located with ComfortDelgro Driving Centre (http://www.cdc.com.sg) at 205, Ubi Ave 4 Singapore 408805.

The worst part is that I have to go either weekdays or Saturday before 12 PM. The time is 11 already and I have no choice but to wait for next Saturday.

The following Saturday:

I reached Woodlands Driving Test Centre (you have to take a shuttle bus from Marsling MRT) right away in the morning and managed to register for BTT. Also, bought a theory book on Singapore Traffic rules and driving guidelines for 5 SGD. The appointment was given 2 Months later from that point on a Wednesday at 8 PM. I sincerely studied the book for next 30 mins while I am on bus and totally forgot this. Luckily I marked the date as reminder in my outlook.

2 Months Later:

I saw my outlook that I got a test to attend the same evening. I haven’t read that book at all. I was a bit worried that I might fail. I left the office on same evening with worried face. I was at my best speed reading the book all the way in the train. It was altogether 1.5 hours journey from Tanjong pagar to Woodlands driving center. I used the time quiet well and I started memorizing a lot in typical Madras university exams preparation style. I reached on time. The test was for 40 minutes or so. There will be 50 objective type questions and you have to get 45 correct. The challenge is not with the questions being tough. Its with questions being too easy that will make you to give less attention. I finished them in 20 minutes and yuhooo !!! 49/50. I was so happy seeing result ever since I saw my university results. The movie is not over yet. I was told to visit any of the Driving Centers during office hours or Saturday mornings to submit conversion license form. I was really excited. Later, I have to walk 2 Kilometers to get back to MRT (as the shuttle bus arrives only 30 minutes later and I was damn hungry) then travelled another 1 hour or so to reach my temporary accommodation in Queenstown.

2 Weeks Later:

On another Saturday morning, I went to Comfort Delgro Driving Center in Ubi Avenue as It was a easy access from queenstown for license application. I took a copy of all my documents (Passport, Indian Driving License, PR card, BTT result) I took the queue ticket, waited for an hour and was told that I have to bring the original copy of my Re Entry Permit that was issued along with PR. I never used this permit ever since I received it. It was not mentioned in the required documents list as well. I was totally frustrated. I have no choice but to go back home. I can not return the same day as the office is only till 12 PM. Darn !!!

2 Weeks Later:

Yet another Saturday morning. I went again with all required documents. Waited for an hour and finally the officer accepted all documents and returned the original form to me. I was puzzled. She mentioned that I need to get License verification letter from Indian Embassy as a proof that the Indian license I submitted is genuine. Bloody hell !!! The Indian embassy process is even more complex. I thought Mustafa Center can do the trick and immediately rushed there to submit the request for verification letter. To my agony, Mustafa don’t do this service alone. I just returned home with pain.

2 Days Later:

I was googling for an easy way of getting this verification letter and found this VFS office located around 10 minutes walk from office. Yesss, I walked to the office during lunch and submitted the form with relevant photocopies. When I enquired on how long it will take, she mentioned that the normal come back time is around 1 month and sometimes go more than that. Ayyylaamaaa !!! Its all uncertainties. That time one of my friend told that you may not get the letter at all for ages as it happened to his wife. I was worried, not that I may not get license but I thought all my efforts so far goes for a toss.

2 Months later:

After numerous follow ups, I got a call from VFS that I got the letter. When I asked if I can come right away and get the letter, she mentioned that I need to provide all the document copies and make payment first. I rightfully went and made the payment. She told me to come and collect the letter after 3 days. By this time, I was on my client site in Alexandra road. It was all pain commuting during office hours. I have to sacrifice my lunch times for all these. 3 Days later I got the letter and once again there was useless smile on my face.

1 Week later:

Saturday morning, reached the Ubi Avenue office to provide the letter, other documents and original form. As I said, the movie is not over yet. I was only shocked to know that I can submit this letter only during the weekdays as the system is locked on weekends to accept the final form. For once, I started swearing at this non-friendly Singapore procedure. No choice, I have to fight my way in the heavy rain to get back home. Did I mentioned that I shifted to Yew Tee home which is like 1.5 hour travel from the Driving Center.

2 Days later:

I made up my mind that I should get this damn license at any cost and hence left home like 7 AM to reach as the first person around 8.30 AM in driving center. Oh well… Finally… Finally… All went well. I submitted the form and got the temporary license. She mentioned that I will get the communication by post in a month’s time regarding my Permanent License card.

A month later:

Just the day before the registered post arrived, my family left to India. This means, there was a note left at my home stated that I have to go personally to collect the license card. Why… Why… When I just thought all was done. I have to google the post office location in Choa Chu Kang, reached there, waited in a long queue and Finally (Its really final now) the license card is in my hand. In total, it was an astonishing 8 months effort. 

My Oscar of the year ;)

For one last time, I Smiled :)

கவிதை கிறுக்கல்

படத்துக்கு  பாட்டு எழுதறது ரொம்ப கஷ்ட்டமான விஷயம் தான் ... ஆனாலும் ஆசை யார விட்டுது ... ரயில்ல வீட்டுக்கு போயிட்டு இருக்கும்போது சிந்தனைய தட்டி விட்டேன் ;)  பட்டுன்னு வந்த பாட்டு ..

  

ஆண்:

இதயம் உண் கண்ணில் மெதுவா
உருகும் அந்த தருணம் இதுவா

வெண்ணிலவே உந்தன் பிம்பம்
கண்டிடவே நெஞ்சம் ஏங்கும்
நடு சாமத்திலே உள்ளம் வாடும்

பெண்:

காதல் சொல்லவே மனது ஏங்க
நாணம் மெல்ல நிறுத்தி போக
மௌன மொழிகள் உனக்கு கேக்காதோ !!!

ஆண்:

சொப்பனங்கள் செத்து விழ உன் நினைவு வட்டம் இட
நானோ இல்லை யாரோ
தேனோ உன் பேரோ

பெண்:

நெஞ்சுக்குள்ள சோகம் இல்ல உன் நினைவே போதும் வெல்ல
ஏனோ பிழை ஏதோ
கூறு பதில் கூறு

ஆண்:

இதயம் உன் கண்ணில் மெதுவா
உருகும் அந்த தருணம் இதுவா

பெண்:

பூக்களே என் காதினில் கொஞ்சும்
உன் கைகளில் என் வாழ்வும் தஞ்சம்

ஆண்:

என் வானிலே ஒரு கோடி பூக்களும் விழுந்ததுவோ
காதோரம் சலங்கைகள் மணி சத்தம் எழுந்ததுவோ

ஆண் - பெண் (Chorus):

காலன் கூட பக்கம் வர எண்ணம் இல்ல
கொண்ட காதல்
கொஞ்சும் பாடல்
நெஞ்ச கொண்டு
கொள்ளை போக

ஆண்:

இளவேனில் கானம் ஒன்று
உன் இதயம் தேடும் அன்று
என் வானம் விடியும் என்று !!!

ஆண்::

இதயம் உண் கண்ணில் மெதுவா
உருகும் அந்த தருணம் இதுவா ...!!!

****

பிழைய பொறுத்து பாட்ட படிச்சதுக்கு நன்றி நன்றி நன்றி :)

Buying a HDB flat in Singapore

After months of hard toiling, I have finally managed to buy a flat in Singapore. This article might be handy if you considering buying a hdb (resale) flat in Singapore.

 What is HDB?

HDB stands for Housing Development Board which is a government organization that builds and sells the houses to the Singapore residents. The government basically controls the valuation price of the house and takes the responsibility to maintain the HDB buildings. More than 80% of Singapore population lives in HDB flats.

Eligiblity : To buy a HDB flat, your spouse and you should be a Singapore PR or Citizens (if your age is less than 35). You can still buy a HDB flat if you are a PR, Single and above 35 years of age. Also note, Singaporean PRs are eligible to buy a resale flat only. Only citizens can buy newly built flats in Singapore.

Prerequisites:

You need to make sure you plan the following prerequisites before even you start your house hunting.

No Overseas Properties : This will let many people down but recently HDB added this rule that if you want to buy a HDB flat in Singapore, you have to declare that you dont have any other property anywhere else in the world. I am not sure how will they find out or if they will find out or not but if you are proven guilty, you will have to face worst time of your life :(

Housing Loan Eligiblity & 20% Down payment: For PRs, you can only get 80% of the valuation price as a loan. However, Singapore housing loan interest is very cheap compared to India and many countries. The remaining 20% can be a combination of cash and CPF (Central Provident Fund) savings that you have accumulated all the time in Singapore. The suggested advice is to research on the banks and their interest rates, apply for in principal loan approval. This means, the bank will issue a letter to you on the maximum loan you can avail, interest rates etc.,

COV: You also should have enough buffers for this funny element called COV (Cash over Value). This amount could be anywhere from 0 to 100000 dollars on top of the valuation price. Basically, this is the negotiation part where a buyer can usually get engaged with the seller. This COV concept evolved only few years ago as few sellers felt the valuation price is far too low for the flat and therefore the government does not interfere with this amount. Buyer has to research himself to make sure the COV amount is reasonable enough for the house. For eg., if the house is well renovated, you may want to consider giving the expected COV otherwise try and negotiate to get the best deal. Ofcourse, COV will not be part of the housing loan in any bank. Means, you need to pay the COV completely from your pocket. However, its 100% legal and will be added to valuation price.

Stamp Fee : You normally end up paying roughly around 10K for a 500K worth house (very approximate calculation)

Agent Fee: Buyer should pay 1% of total house value (excluding GST) as an Agent fee. Normally, it’s a hectic process if you prefer to buy a house without an agent’s help unless you have humongous patience and enormous time.

Renovation Fee: This is subjective. If the house is in perfect moving-in condition, you don’t need to worry about. Even if there is a renovation needed, there are one million banks ready to offer renovation loan.

Procedure:

Here is the step by step procedure to buy HDB flat once you planned the money part.

Step 1: Engage agents and start house hunt

Have a budget in mind and start researching the market. I was greatly benefited by the site www.propertyguru.com.sg to know about the current market condition. Also start fixing the viewing appointment. Ever viewing is a new learning. Try and view as many to know more about the market.

Step 2: Negotiation

Once you feel the house is good enough, you can start making your offer and engage in negotiation. The agent is the mediator. Ideally, you won’t negotiate the amount face to face with the seller. The agent will act as a mediator between seller’s agent and you. Normally, there will b a seller’s agent (who gets his commission from seller) and a buyer’s agent (who will get the commission from buyer) who talks to their clients during the whole negotiation process. Basically, you cannot negotiate on the valuation price part as it’s fixed by government. The only negotiation happens will be on COV only.

Step 3: 1000$ payment

Once you are happy with the price, place a 1000$ deposit (this is part of your 20% down payment/ COV amount) and sign the option to purchase document. This means you have 2 weeks time to get your loan approved and get the required documents from bank. Also, incase if you change your mind, you can chose not to buy the house but you won’t get the 1000$ deposit back.

Step 4: Exercise the option

This is the first critical step you do in the house buying process. After 2 weeks from the date you signed the option to purchase, you have to pay 4000 SGD (again, part of your COV/20% down payment) to confirm that you intend to buy the house and no turning back after that. You will further sign the Exercise the option document along with your spouse. Immediately after signing the document, the agent will get in touch with HDB and get the first appointment date to go physically and sign further documents in front of HDB officers. Meanwhile, the bank will also engage their lawyers to do the legal formalities for you. There will be a small legal fee for this (around 600 SGD)

Step 5: HDB appointment

Roughly 5-6 weeks later, your spouse and you should go to HDB hub along with the agents, sellers to sign the agreement to buy and sell. At that point the HDB officer will announce the house completion date. After that you need to visit the lawyers (your agent will help you arrange) to sign further documents that explains legal fee, cpf contribution to your housing loans etc., The agent will let you know the stamp fee amount for which you need to bring a cheque in the name of ‘Commissioner of Stamp Duties’ to be handed over to the law firm. The law firm will let you know exactly by when you need to settle the entire balance amount and the exact amount as well. Normally, you need to hand the complete balance cheque to law firm 1 or 2 days before completion date. The completion date will normally be 5-6 weeks after this point.

Step 6 : Hand over

Basically, after Step 5 all you need to do is to get the balance amount ready in your bank and get the cheque ready on time before the completion date. 1 or 2 days before the completion, you can fix an inspection appointment with the current owners to make sure the house is in the same condition as you have seen before. Neither HDB nor the owners will take responsibility of any damages that you find after the completion date. You can also use this 5-6 weeks period to plan you renovation, furniture shopping etc., during the completion date, you need to visit the law firm again to collect the house keys and the house is all yours.


Keep in mind:

The whole process from Step 1 to 6 will be typically around 4-6 months depends on the mutual agreement between the buyer and seller, hdb work load etc.,

You don’t own the house until the completion date and therefore you can not disturb the current owners time to time in the name of repeated viewing etc., unless the seller is kind enough to allow you.

Renovation plan is the key. You won’t be able to renovate once you move in due to the complexities involved. So, plan your renovation bit carefully and make sure you got your money/paper works ready before completion date so you don’t waste any time.

Organize yourself well and keep the documents safe and ready all the times. You may have to take copies and submit them time to time.

Most importantly, buying private properties in Singapore has lots of variation from what I mentioned here. If you plan to buy private flats, you are reading wrong post ;)

Feel free to contact me if you need any references for House Agent, Banks for House loan, Renovation loans, Renovation contractors etc., Personally I felt satisfied with the quality of work though I am not 100% sure if I paid killer-deal money to get there services.

All I posted in this article are purely my experience and research output only. Don’t whack me if you have different experience ;) everyone is unique and you may have different experience. The purpose of this post is to give you a high level idea on buying an hdb flat in Singapore.

5 Reasons why I like Samsung Galaxy S2 over Iphone 4S

Was used to iphone'ing and ipad'ing for more than a year, I thought life was cool with those millions of free apps in istore and their unique way of working. Then, I met Android powered Samsung S2. Here are some bullet points that are attractive about Samsung S2

- Bigger screen for a phone, lesser weight compare to iphone. The slim structure and broader screen impresses any one with the first look.

- Android : I wouldn’t rate this as advantage but I felt android’s UI is far more attractive and easy to use. The voice command (I think its not android specific) in samsung s2 really impressed me and the way I can text my contact without touching the phone made me jaw-drop

- File transfer : You don’t have to convert your videos/mp3 to any common format to use in S2. Infact S2 plays more video files than many devices.

- Speed : The processor is just super fast. Can handle multiple applications well at a time. Very impressed with the internet speed. I don’t use my laptop these days. I prefer using my s2 to watch online videos than my laptop or ipad

- Pictures/Videos : The picture and video clarity I noticed is better than iphone/ipad.

The major let down factor about S2 is the battery period which I felt is relatively low compared to apple products but if you are not all-the-time-in-the-phone guy, am sure S2 will attract you well : ) Thanks to my brother who gifted the wonderful gadget when i was constantly behind Nokia N9 as my next phone : )

Charismatic Chetan

Chetan Bagath, one name that every second youth in India is definitely aware of. He was my first inspiration to get in to the world of writing called BLOGGING. I know I am doing no justification for taking him as role model but nevertheless he is sure an inspiration to many. As of last week, I finished reading his latest book Revolution 2020 and here are consolidated views about the writer and his books.

What makes him special ? Firstly, his style. He keeps things simple, thinks and writes it from heart making the narration very much practical with good blend of humour and sarcasm. He understands the pulse of current generation readers and follows a writing style that reaches any average literate effortlessly. Secondly, his thoughts speaks. He was an IIM product and settled in one of the dream life at HongKong. His passion for writing and urge to reform the Indian society is what made him more admirable. He now migrated back to India after a decades money-making-spree in HK.

I have read all his 5 books that came out so far and here are my feedback. Obviously, I enjoyed all of them with jus few ups and downs.

Five point Some one : His first book and arguably, his best book so far. I thought I should start blogging after reading first few pages of this book and I haven’t stopped blogging since then. I know it takes a lot to write well but am happy I started : ) To me, the book was more enjoyable than the movie 3 idiots itself. This book is a must read for every one.

One Night @the Call Center : The book didn’t do well like his first one but I found this one intresting too. May be its me but in theory, this had a wonderful plot for a classic fiction. This is about life of many Call center dudes and what happens one night. Read this if you like Chetan Bagath

The 3 Mistakes of my Life : This for me is the lowest ranked book of Chetan Bagath. The story of 2 friends who goes through ups and downs in making a young hopeless school boy to a great cricketer. Though CB’s narration was the only relief, everything else wasn’t so great. Still you can read once.

2 States: The story of my Marriage : This is totally a fresh story line and mostly inspired from his own life. It has lots humour, few emotions and so much practical. It’s a full length love story of a couple hailing for extreme corners of India and they need their family’s approval to get married. Must read book and am sure you will love it.

Revoltuon 2020 : I was having huge hopes on this book as the topic was very sensitive but turned out to be a 1980s Rajnikanth movie style book. A young chap poor in studies went successful with life by taking wrong route eventually becoming good person at the end. His friend, topper in studies wanted to bring a change in the society and struggling in his life. They have one common problem ‘Aarti’. Read it for the writer’s genuine intentions and don’t expect huge drama that you never seen in the past ; )

A Public Service Post ;)

Been to 0ne of my favourite place in India on a yet another road trip. Its Tirupathi... I always love to take the 3-4 hours walk to the top enjoying all the way with green surroudings, devotees' loud chants, deers and the exercise. Certain things never changed in Tirupathi in all these years and some of them are sick though.... I have clicked few of them on my mobile and please note, i dont target any particulare race or community with my comments, Tirupathi is a multi cultural place and i just care much about this world's richest Hindu Temple.

Trust me, this is an information stone that is supposed to say 3 KMS and people made it as another god :) (எத்தன விவேக் வந்தாலும் உங்கள திருத்த முடியாது !!!)


I am sorry Mr. Manu, neither Hamsa nor the god you pray will be happy with your love intentions.

One of the pillars on the way... Infact most of the pillars looks the same... (எப்ப நீங்க திருந்த போறீங்க )

This happend right in front of my eyes, a big family totally ignored the litter bins placed almost every 10 meters... ( அர்ரெஸ்ட் பண்ணுங்க சார் அவங்கள )

No one knows why people tie these clothes on trees :) I am sorry if there is any belief and if i insulted it. To my knowledge, there is nothing specific about this funny practice

Yet another Belief !!! (This only reminds the 7 stones game that i play'd during childhood)