Marching to the drums

So after a break at home over the holiday period, I'm back in the land of confusion, curry and call centres. What did I do over the break? I'm glad you asked:

Went to Melbourne.

Mostly the reason was to attend the Boxing Day Test match - a much delayed birthday present for Shane, a friend of mine - and hopefully see Shane Warne's 700th Test wicket fall at his home ground. It was ridiculously cold for Day one. Even in Melbourne, home of bipolar (and sometimes just plain polar) weather, 10 degrees plus windchill on Boxing Day is just perverse. But we braved the conditions and were rewarded; Warnie's landmark achievement with a ball that perfectly captured his brilliance as a bowler.

Day two was much warmer and we had better seats (over the bowlers shoulder), so the comfort factor was much higher. Andrew Symond's first test century and overall batting dominance by Australia made for a enjoyable day.

We had a white Christmas, it hailed for a short while in the middle of the day, so that was a first for me. We also got seats to a late lunch sitting at Fifteen (thanks Kate!). For those who don't know, Fifteen was a restaurant formed at the end of TV program called Jamie's Kitchen with Jamie Oliver, celebrity chef, involving fifteen unemployed youths ( I think he started with more and whittled it down to fifteen). The original was in London, but he repeated the process, with some local help, in Melbourne and Fifteen Melbourne is the result. It was great afternoon: food service, decor, the whole things was excellent. Some of the girls had actually watched the show, so they knew who the face behind the food were and the layout of the place allowed us to watch the chefs at work. Recommended.

After Melbourne, I flew home and spent some time at home, catching up with friends and family, and generally doing as little thinking about work as possible. Anne stayed with me for those two week and convinced me to go ten pin bowling, something I haven't done in perhaps ten years. I wasn't nearly as bad as I feared I would be and I had a good enough time to go again with some other friends the following week. Of course my shoulder complained bitterly in the morning, but then thats just because I'm not fit.

Apparently, I'm something of a beach snob. I had commented to Anne that beaches alone are not enough reason for me to go somewhere, as I grew up living 20 minutes drive from some of the best beaches in the world. So I took her down to show her Burleigh Heads. She did her best to hide it, but I think secretly she was stunned at the gorgeous white sanded paradise that is Burleigh beach. Perhaps.

And now I'm back in India. There was some progress on the job in my absence, which was a pleasant surprise, but things are largely as they were in terms of local enthusiasm to finish the job. Might be home for Easter, but I would put money on it.


Arriving at the airport, Lachie, with his luggage ready, was keen to explore.


Jacqui on the other hand, stayed close to mum.


Freezing our tits (and other appendages) off at day one of the Boxing Day Test.


Dining at Fifteen as celebration of Katishe's birthday:
from l to r: Anne, David, Darius, Katishe, Tash, Shane, Kate

Here's a couple of photos I took of a water truck near the site the other day. The painted reliefs on the roof and doors was quite intricate and reminded me somewhat of the matatus (minivan taxis) I saw in Kenya - highly decorated and poorly maintained.





And then there is this:





















Oh and also check this out, it'll take while to load, but it's brilliant and funny and thought-provoking.