Wednesday, March 12, 2008

What has changed?

Yeah, I am acting a bit weird, a foreigner in my own motherland. Why so? Things have changed quite a bit in the last 2 years that I have been away. So I thought I make a list of things that have noticeably changed!

  1. Electricity load shedding up to 4 hours everyday. Its a pain, but I guess my city of Navi Mumbai is facing energy crisis, and electricity is actually being rationed for all of us here :( !!
  2. Toll for parking anywhere and everywhere!! I can't believe, but I have to pay toll at every place that I try to park my car. I mean, even my neighborhood grocery store parking is no longer free :( !!
  3. Huge malls and movie theaters everywhere. Before I went, my town just had a single theater and a single mall. Now there are more than 4 movie theaters with a gazillion screens, and yeah as I write there are 5 huge malls in my vicinity with 3 more coming up.
  4. Traffic. Now practically everyone in my neighborhood owns at least 2 cars. Traffic is a mess, and am scared of driving :( !!
  5. Mobile phones. They are ubiquitous. I am probably the only one in this country that doesn't own one now :) !!
  6. Mobile phone models. Yeah, in US you just drool over the iPhone, come to India and you have so many drop dead gorgeous phone models, that you end up wagging your tongue in the phone shop :P
  7. Pollution. Smog smog everywhere.
  8. Customer service. Yeah that was an unknown term for most of us. But now its amazing. Most people in the service sector have become amazingly courteous and friendly!
  9. Health clubs. Yeah, lots of choices now!!
  10. FM Stations. Yippeee... So many FM stations, its cool, entertainment on the run!! I haven't ever heard soo much radio and soo many Hindi songs, as I have in the last few days!!
  11. Internet speeds are increasing and prices are dropping. Yippeee... now I can actually thrive :) !! Imagine, I had the option to choose between ADSL, PPPoE over Ethernet, and a Wireless Internet connection protocol which I have no clue what it is, but they actually install a dish at your home!! Freaking awesome :) !!
  12. Mouthwatering food. I am rediscovering Indian cuisine, that I missed so much. I have been thriving on Vada Pav, Samosa, Masala Dosa, Indian Chinese, Tandoori and the rest. Huh, and I managed to regain all the 3 pounds that I had painstakingly burned off in the last 1 year. I am eating as if there is no tomorrow :) !!

3 comments:

  1. few comments :
    1. In India u dont take car to ur neighbourhood grocery store... in fact, avoid driving as much as possible. Ppl with low BP shud be advised to come and drive in India. First preference shud be for Delhi and then for Mumbai. It will be a medicine free remedy. Weak hearted folks shud avoid autos as well. Travel by trains...unless ofcourse u tend to be clautrophobic or asthamatic.
    2. yes, malls and multiplexes are ubiquitous. Here a mall, there a mall, everywhere a mall... good thing is that now u will always get movie tickets for the latest and the hottest movies.
    4. Customer service, mouthwatering food and FM channels were there even 2 yrs ago...Kuch bhi!!!
    5. Pollution and population were part n parcel of our country since ur grandad rode a tricycle :P. Stop acting so surprised on tht account. Get Real!!!

    Things to add...
    1. Dont u think that crime rate hs inceased and become more henious??? newspapers are full of shocking stories.

    2. Did u notice the no. of airlines we have now??? also how 99.99% percent flites are unable to stick to their schedules. Hmmm...tad early for u to notice that.

    3. IPL. its raining money in Cricket.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey, my response:

    Customer service has improved. My bank now treats me with respect. Earlier they treated me as if they were lending me my own money :) !! FM channels have increased 2 fold. And mouthwatering food, is more readily available in Navi Mumbai now, and is more hygienic than it was 2 years back!

    Pollution in my city wasn't as bad when my granddad rode a tricycle, as it is now (infact when he rode one, my city didn't exist on the map of India!). Same is the case with population (I wasn't talking bout India in general!).

    I don't know about crime rate, but I sure know that there are too many newspapers and channels now, and they have to make stories horrific to attract our attention.

    As far as airlines are concerned, I am too poor to even ride an auto rickshaw, airlines are still a dream for me :) !!

    ReplyDelete
  3. And yeah one more thing has changed - Girish has become little serious..

    It's not bad at all.. just that change at first place is never easy to accept u know.. but i m sure will accept this new one with open mind.. :)

    Krupa

    ReplyDelete