My first Diesel Burnout!

It'll take a while for me to take FIAT seriously. I can recall the numerous FIATs (the good ol' premier Padmini) my father had. The story was the same: sell the aging FIAT, move to a new place and buy another second hand FIAT. Then, there was something more besides Ambassador and FIAT. It was called Maruti Suzuki and we have never looked back to FIAT ever since. I tried to convince my father to get the FIAT Uno or the Sienna but then the Accent turned out to be the new kid ruling our hearts.. Nevertheless, one can hardly ignore the way FIAT has made a comeback. The crumpling partnership with an industrial tools company, failed service network- FIAT has finally put that ll behind and collaborated with the TATA’s to come back with a bang!

Sorry to mislead you guys all this while, but the car I’m gonna talk about here is not a Fiat. What follows comes from my experience of driving a Maruti Suzuki with a FIAT heart. Ironic isn’t it? FIAT is supplying a heart to the brand that was responsible for obliterating it in the 90s..

The story starts from the G-8 summit in my hometown. Now don't ask about G-8; that's the silly name we've given to our elite gang. When we stepped out of the restaurant after a merry time, I was zapped to see a shining new Suzuki Ritz. The modest, humble and the true gentleman- KT the lawyer had failed to mention that he's got a new car! I was on KT's head congratulating him and cursing him for not giving this news earlier!

KT threw me the keys in a filmy style and I clumsily missed them & picked them up from the ground. Clumsy start; but thankfully I am a bit better handling the wheel and the gearbox. I find the Ritz quite hideous looking. They've done a superb job optimizing space, but the car is almost as box'y as the Wagon-R. The headlamps make it look a little dumb and the rear would be more suitable to bring up the rear of a MPV on a Van. Since I did not take a full look of the vehicle and jumped to the driver's seat instantly, I had missed a big point by missing the small badge at the rear. Only when I cranked the ignition that it struck me- 'IT's DIESEL!!!'

This changed a lot of things instantly. I was wondering why KT didn't go for the i-10, but now my pulse was racing fast as it dawned to me that I finally had an opportunity to drive the world famous FIAT 1.3L Multijet! The 2005's "Engine of the year (1.0-1.4L category)"- the one that powers legendry cars like Fiat Punto, Ford Ka, Opel Astra, Lancia Musa, Alfa Romeo 159, & Fiat 500. Though most of the above mentioned cars have spruced this engine up with a turbo-charger, the cost sensitive ones at home don't have that luxury. Suzuki Swift, Suzuki Ritz, Fiat Palio, Punto , Indica Vista (Quadrajet-ted) come with the original unit while the recently launched FIAT 500 is the only one supposed to get a turbo charger.

As I pressed the accelerator, the response was immediate. You expect a lag in diesels when almost by definition- torque is supposed to kick in at higher RPM's. That too; needs to be augmented with a turbo charger. But right now, there was adequate punch. To be honest, I felt I was driving on gasoline! KT was talking about what superb mileage this car gives while something else was on my mind. Something I had never tried on a diesel driven vehicle. I told KT about it. KT thought for a second, asked me if I'd done this before and gave me a go ahead. In midst of the conversation, we hadn't yet realized that we were almost at our old school gate. Emotions heightened.. The memories of guys showing off their cars n bikes under the gates of 'Delhi Public School' came back. And so did the feeling of absolute hatred, jealousy and pain. We were decent kids remember? Borrowing dad or mom's car was out of question before 18. All we could do was gawk at these cool kids and admire their wheels.

Well, call it fate or whatever- we had stopped right in front of those gates, years later in the dead of the night. And at our disposal was a modest 75bhp engine with loads of torque beating the higher bhp engines.

The road was empty and I eased to a halt in the middle of the road. I engaged the handbrake slowly and built up the revs. When the tacho reached 4500rpm, I gripped the wheel tight, started releasing the clutch. As the power peaked and it felt the brakes could take no more, I released the handbrake instantly to greet the screeching tires as they screamed for grip.

The accelerator was floored and the speed of 35kmph was attained with the front tires still bellowing smoke and deafening screech. I engaged gear 2 and the transmission once again met the engine at excess of 4500rpm. The burnout continued a little more until grip was restored and the car continued accelerating remarkably on the straight road. Inside the cockpit, words of astonishment and abuses came up depending on one's manner of expressing awe at what the car had just done. I noticed that I was still clutching the steering tight. Then I remembered how I had fought for control in the last few seconds. Expected from the Suzuki package. Load a lot of features and numbers for us Indians. Nobody bothers about having a true car with a proper chassis.

Next Naman took the wheel. One of the top two maniacal drivers amongst us (No we didn't give it to Ayush next). While he drove, we verified the 0-100 acceleration and the braking figures and the car's maneuverability. It does feel a bit life threatening at some fast turns but that's a fair trade-off when you have tons of space..

We soon were dropped off while KT zipped away in his gleaming car. A good car with a brilliant engine!!

The magnificent 1.3!!

The tale of Wayanad and the Baleno

My cubicle was killing me. My google keywords were 'drive', 'travel', 'places around Bangalore' rather than MFC calls or MAPI error codes. That urge to travel had once more reached dangerous levels.

Hence after some googling and consulting, Wayanad was zeroed in. Then came the news of rain, landslides and the resultant catastrophe in the Nilgiris. But there was also one piece of good news: the 2004 Baleno parked in my aunt's garage was looking for someone who'd put it to good use. Hence, last moment plans were made, CDs were burnt and the 200cc monster was dumped where the Baleno was once parked.

5:20am, The streets of Bangalore:: The skies were dark, the roads were wet and the winds were howling. The silver Baleno whizzed silently across the roads of Bangalore. In half an hour, we were out of Bangalore and the sun lit up the Mysore highway as soon as we passed kengeri. Generous words about this road have already been stated at many instances here. The next stop was the 24X7 Mc. Donalds just after Channapatna. After refuelling our stomachs and the car, I decided to reconfigure the tyre pressure. I was running 29/29 on the Bridgestones till now and I pumped it up to 32/31 knowing that speeds will be down in a while.

We wade through the Mysore city on the double road. The drive from Mysore to Nanjangud was the only painful stretch with local traffic comprising of maniacal KA-09 numberplates (Mysore regd) creating havoc. It felt as if a law had been passed recently mandating that all psychotics of the town to oscillate between Nanjangud and Mysore for the rest of their lives.

After Nanjangud, the road was majestic, the traffic was sparse, view was awesome and there were plenty of tender coconut vendors on the roadside. We crossed Gundulpet and took the right turn towards Bandipur. Drive to Bandipur is absolutely fascinating and the best I had on this trip. We stopped when we spotted some deer. The roads are winding and flanked by dense forests. I'd heard of Zebra crossings but out here I saw places marked as 'Elephant crossings', 'some other creature crossings'.. We rolled down the widows and enjoyed the fragrance of the forest. The Kerala check post is a big nuisance with trucks parked royally on the national highway reducing it to half a lane for both way traffic. From here, the Wayanad district starts and we drove for an hour in the hilly terrain of the ghat section to reach Kalpetta. Rain welcomed us in Kerala and made the view all the more greener.

To be honest, my first reaction on upon reaching Kalpetta was disappointment. I was expecting a hilly terrain with n number of hair pin bends, nerve crackling climbs n all. However, the entire drive presented moderate slopes. The search for a place to stay began. Our quest to stay outside the city took us to various places which turned out to be either too expensive, or too 'inside the city'. We decided to search later and headed to the Pookot lake and Lakdi trail. The visit to the lake was a pleasant experience. On a boat, in middle of the lake- we got what we had come for. Serenity, chirping of birds, peace, pure air. All these luxuries- simple but still so far in the maddening crowd of the city..

Monkeys are very decent here (yes, I cannot forget the time when I had to fight with the monkeys to retain my bag at Sivagange). The lake is formed in the valley of a number of hills and you can be assured of a majestic sight.

As we started back, the weather changed once again (and again and again in the next hour), we witnessed clouds descending from the tea gardens right onto us. We had to stop for pictures twice. I was happy that my initial inhibitions about the place were washed away thanks to the rain.

Reaching Kalpetta once again, the search for a place to stay continued. This got us to another resort called 'Haritagiri'. We still were not satisfied and after having a late lunch here (with complimentary pink ayurvedic water), the search continued. We finally landed at Green gates resort- credit goes to our persistence, our expertise in sign language (helped us ask for directions) and our craziness. But we knew our efforts have paid off as soon as we entered the resort. Located on a hill, with the drive from its gate to the actual place steep enough to keep old underpowered cars away- is the regal green gates resort. I was initially a bit wary as I had little hope that I'd find this grand place way out of my budget. The smiling staff at the reception welcomed us and as we heard the tariff, we almost pounced on them! There's no way we were going to search for any other place now that we were getting this beautiful place at such a reasonable price. With breakfast too..

This was one of the first for me: where the resort turns out to be better than the place. Located on a hill, there was ample to explore here. We took a couple of walks here and each breath was exhilarating. The air so pure, the surroundings so green and all the amenities!

We explored the resort for the rest of the day. Though we did go out in the evening – determined to explore the place and eat somewhere. However, yet again every place we went to reminded us that we could go to a better place- by going back. Hence, we returned and had dinner at the resort’s restaurant under the starry sky.

In all, the trip turned out to be a wonderful one with the prime reasons being the resort, the Baleno and the roads..

About the Baleno:

++ :)

- Confidence of taking it anywhere thanks to assured presence of a Maruti service station everywhere

- One of India’s favorite ‘mod-ded’ cars. Surely has potential. I drove the stock one with decent acceleration but have been outrun splendidly by some modded Balenos in Bangalore. A K&N filter coupled with free flow exhaust system can do wonders.

- Mileage. The big word in Indian motoring. Since my aunt’s driver cribs that this car manages only 10.5 kmpl in the city, I was expecting the trip to burn a big hole in pocket. I was amazed when calculations at the end of the trip revealed a figure of 15.8kmpl. I’ve checked, rechecked and re-rechecked. Guess need to have a word with Mr driver and ask him if he can change his driving style. Mind it- I did switch off the engine when I was coming downhill at times. Something that is not a very wise thing to do in a hilly terrain. And yes, I am a miser driver as well. The car ran between 1000-1900rpm for most of the journey. The higher tyre pressure also helped.

- Fuly loaded: I was driving the Vxi model and for that price; getting a Sony Xplod system, electric mirrors, alloys and a spoiler is just wonderful. A ‘value for money’ car.

- Riding height: I love being close to the road. No explanations needed for that!

-- :(

- Maruti engineering. Well it lasts but is always coupled with a couple of squeaks and rattles that refuse to die.

- Lacks precision: Though the basics are right: engine, chassis and suspension can take on Indian roads, but…. You miss precision engineering. A couple of tight corners, feedback from the steering- you drive it long and you know its not perfect.

- Space: I am convinced that Santro or i-10 could beat it in terms of cabin space. Two tall people- one in the driver’s seat and the other behind hime are bound to have a fight regarding pushing back the seats.

- Riding height- yes I did mention that I love being low, fast and close to the road. But given the condition of our roads, this is a big problem. Sickening crunches or chassis scrapes are painful noises even to the non- automotive population.

Road Trip- Salem and back..

As Vivek handed me his wedding invitation and declared that his wedding was on a Sunday just 200Kms away, I knew that I had to go. So a week before, preparations were on. I got a new sprocket chain assembly and new sparks for my Pulsar 200. Though there was no problem as such, but I like to treat it well. And hypothetically, I am determined to keep my bike Ladakh ready. If an opportunity to drive down to the toughest motorable road in the world comes up, 'my bike is just not ready yet' is the last bahaana I want.

Thanks to my extravagance, I had just enough money to buy fuel to drive me to Salem and back. Saturday evening, I get a call from my office people that they would not be able to make it. Yes, I would convey their wishes and no, I would not take their advice and take the bus instead of driving alone.

I suspect all readers will point out my madness. I'm used to it-"driving down??!! On a highway?? On a bike?? Too far; Its way too risky!!!". I'm used to comments of this sort.. And I won't deny that. Riding a motorcycle is risky. Period.

But if you are a cautious driver, I believe that driving on some highways is safer than driving in the city. I do find out the details of the roads I have to travel before undertaking an adventure. I would never dare to drive the highways on Delhi/UP/Harayana on two wheels. Driving cars is risky enough there. Thanks to some first hand experiences from people as well as some well maintained blogs, I knew the highway (NH-7 to Salem) and its stretches fairly well. The roads were good and the traffic is moderate. And most importantly, my bike is in top condition. And it is a reliable and proven highway machine. Attempting such a feat on a Yamaha-YBX or Caliber is stupid.

The events of Saturday night though entertaining, did not turn out to be in line with my pre-road trip schedule. I returned late and found the fuel pump shut. Contrary to my plans of sleeping early, it was midnight by the time I slept.

I got up at 4:30am and started getting ready. By the time I had had a light breakfast and mounted the bike, it was 5:20. The new helmet and the gloves gifted to me were a boon, they were one of the reasons I was in a mood to ride forever today.

It was still dark outside and I cruised the bike at moderate speeds of 60-70 on the Hosur road. This is the major part of NH-7 where construction is still on. At 6am, I saw the first rays of the November sun. As the road lit up, I opened the throttle and was riding around 90-100. Occasional drops were thanks to fog at some places. Though I was looking for fuel pumps ever since I started, none were open yet. Heights of stupidity! On a National Highway you don't have any 24X7 pumps! Our usual early morning fill-ups on NH's and SH's whenever I'm on a road trip with my parents had got me a bit overconfident about fuel availability. NH1,24,2,8,10, 58, 91- I can recall filling up early every time. Though I had enough fuel for another good 150Km's or so, I like to prepared. Plus, I also had in mind to stabilize my bike further by adding weight to the tank. Here are a couple of other things I'd done xtra to be xtra careful knowing that I was riding alone:

1. Kept the tyre pressure low (a unit or two below my standard figure) for more grip

2. Add more weight to the front (for most of the journey) with lots of fuel.

3. Never bend down. I do this at 3 digit speeds to cut down the drag and increase the mileage & speed. But today, caution was paramount.

Finally, at 6:30, I found a pump open at the other side of the road. I had to go a couple of KM's extra for the U turn, but I did.

Now everything was the way I wanted to be. Since all the specs and rules in my notebook were checked, I opened up the throttle. I was cruising at 100-115Kmph for most of the time. Though there are enough of crazy maniacs here, the density of stupidity is low thanks to the low population density across the highway. Soon, I was the only KA registered vehicle amongst the sea of TN number plates. I might as well have replaced it with a plate called ‘tourist from outer town’. However the traffic was moderate and mostly comprised of trucks and buses. The only good vehicles that overtook me for the entire journey was one Skoda and a Honda CRV. The Marutis and Indiacas could never catch up. However, I slowed down whenever I felt I was approaching a village or any miniscule habitation. I strongly advise anyone who drives on this highway to not to waver from this rule. Also, don't be shy using the horn. I usually slow down even if the road crossing candidate has stopped to allow me to pass. However, this was seen as a sign of weakness and people would start running when they noticed me slow down a bit. Honking furiously helped to maintain aggression from my side and keep these candidates off the road. The variety of antics people put up are hard to describe in words. Here is some stuff I noticed & I suspect most are rules for the people here. I have noted down some of the local rules followed religiously by people here:

- Never look before you cross the road

- Overtaking is never dependent on the vehicle you drive. For eg- It does not matter if you are driving a TVS champ and you want to overtake a BMW on a highway. If Rajnikanth can do it, so can you.

- Attempt overtaking everytime. Whether its possible or not, we'll see later. That there is a bus coming the wrong way, you must still attempt the impossible overtake maneuver and back out at the last life threatening moment.

- If you are a lorry driver driving at the top speed of 40Kmph and there is another lorry driving at 39.75Kmph, thou shall not reduce the speed by 0.25kmph and follow it. Thou shall take 3 full minutes to overtake it. For 3 minutes, you shall race the slow-poke parallelly and jam the highway in the process. Rajini saar never reduces his speed when he's driving.

- If any other driver shows signs of caution, he is a weasel (specially the one on the blue Pulsar 200). Carry on with your crossing the road, evasive movement, etc. He is no match for your bravery.

- If going on the wrong side of the road saves you 10 meters, in that case- driving on the wrong side is your birth right.

- Rear view mirror is a useless device. And changing lanes doesn't mean you have to bother about others. They'll take care of themselves if they can. (Again, using the horn to declare my presence helped a lot while overtaking lane changing trucks)

By 8:10, I was entering the ghaats area. The odo said I'd done around 160Kms. I stopped for a while for fuel and took a couple of pictures. The ride through the ghats is majestic. It is by far the widest road I've seen in a hilly region. The roads are well banked and I was doing around 50-70 without compromising on safety. The interspersed speed breakers in this area are well marked so not a problem. I entered Salem city at 8:30 and opened my second google map print out of the city of Salem (the first one was about the NH7). I was at the venue at 8:45 without ever asking for directions. Jay google devaaya namah! It took me 5 minutes to take off my alien attire (helmet, gloves, jacket) and packing it up. Thankfully a former colleague found me and educated me about the rituals and do's and do-nots as soon as I entered. I liked the event immediately. Everything was simple and on time. When the thread ceremony was over, I stood up. Having mastered my line breaking skills in UP & Delhi, I ran up on the stage from the other side and greeted Vivek. And yes, he was visibly happy and astonished to see me. The photographers ordered me to pose and I complied while they blinded us with their flashes.

Vivek's father then directed me for the 'thindi'. As food kept on coming on the banana leaf, Keanu Reeve's Matrix voice echoed in my head "There is no Spoon...!!". In my case, it was less about philosophy & self-realization and more to do with lack of the metallic object. Since the way I eat using my hands is as good as my tongue blabbering Greek, I was in bit of a fix. However, I carefully observed the actions of the gentlemen sitting next to me. I managed pretty well and the food was great. However, when the people next to me left, I noticed that they had left the leaf cleaner than I had. After jogging my brains for a while, I requested for one more dosa and swept my leaf clean. I left the table happy and pride to continue taking pictures. As people were leaving, I reckoned I should make a move as well.

I started around 9:30 and stopped in the ghaat region to take pictures. Soon after I made a stop at the BP A2B plaza. This is the best place for stopping with a proper restaurant, washroom, etc. I bought as much fuel as I could. The high octane fuel is around 2 bucks cheaper in Tamil Nadu. After this I drove continuously and enjoyed all the way. In one of the routine rituals: i.e.- taking off a glove and touching the engine to note the temperature; I figured it was heating up. I had been driving for more than 90 minutes at 115kmph so this was something expected. The 200 Pulsar has a partially oil cooled engine. The engine base is cooled by circulated oil and the rest is air cooled. That I had managed to run the engine continuously at 7000-8000rpm for this duration without a problem astonished me. Noting the heat levels now, I carried out the standard series of tests:

1. Close the throttle and open it again. There was a miniscule lag.

2. Reduce speed to 60, shift a gear down and accelerate. There was a small drop in power (around 5% if you concentrate) as well.

Both are signs of excess engine heat. I made a stop and chatted on the phone with my dad for around 10 minutes allowing the faithful engine to cool down.

Though I agree the engine did heat up, I am still impressed that it took so much time. My experience with air cooled bikes is far worse. The CBZ and Fiero would overheat in around 10 minutes if they were run at anything more than 90 on the NH-24 to Noida. I've heard stories about the Apache as well. Hence, this bike did me proud. Though I do wish I could have the liquid cooling system like the new R-15.

Henceforth, the ride was pretty easy and I covered the next 40Kms fast. The traffic after Hosur ensures that you limit your speed to 60Kmph. I was home by 12:30 pm.

I will not be able to provide accurate mileage logs as I filled up excess fuel from TN. In the initial run upto Hosur in the morning, the P-200 returned a mileage of 46.7 Km/litre. However, I know that the bike gives around 39-43kmpl when I'm driving at 3 digit speeds. The numerous runs on Mysore road certify this.

Travelling 435Kms, attending a marriage, stopping for pics- all in 7 hours 10 minutes.. Not bad at all!!

Apna desi Jason Bourne

Yep, that's right. Our Colonel Menon is no less than the silent, street smart and lone operative created by Robert Ludlum.

I have been repeatedly impressed by Indian fiction of late. Shashi Warrier: with his book- 'The Orphan Diaries' (formerly know as 'the Orphan') creates a superb fugitive on the loose adventure. You have got military precision, the political games and emotions that drive people. The title of the book is revealed only at the end.

Warrier has truly created a hero you'll start to respect: the 39 year old- about to retire- Colonel Menon. He is not without problems though: his inability to connect with the political figures, times when he's possessed by emotions and his never ending injuries. Again- all this makes him more real.

Highly recommended read. Rating 8/10...

What not to do at Diwali..

However realistic and rational you may be, no matter how much one may laugh off the emotions during festivals; it is impossible to not fall prey to the festive spirit. I might be considered a toned down version of the 'humbug' muttering, Christmas hating Scrooge. As Diwali approached, I could not help feeling disgusted about the way people splurge money and the retailers create and capitilize the 'feel good' attitude to drive their sales figures. Moreover, mummy’s orders meant that I had to fly to my home at an inflated fare thanks to the festive season. Blasphemy!

Reaching home, life settled into the expected routine. Got very little time to talk to my parents initially thanks to the inflow of well wishers and my parents visiting friends and family as well. I grumbled when I was asked to accompany. But with time, I enjoyed this and was soon looking forward to more visits.

Friday night we had a cards game scheduled at our place. I was responsible for entertaining the younger generation. Since the brain I possess works in line of chaos, I purchased immense firepower for the evening.

The proceedings of the evening were spectacular and in a way many were inspired to continue the trend the next day. Our gang was there- Ayush, Ritesh, Rachita, Vaibhav bhaiya and me. @Akshat, Richa, Piyush- missed you guys terribly..

It's time to spread the word.. And the word is: CHAOS..

So here's on what NOT to do at Diwali:

1. Tying 2 hydro bombs (no not the fission one; the local ones with fashionable name) and placing them in a closed box:

The results we experienced were quite majestic. The box blew off and landed 10 seconds later. We repeated this until it finally flew into our neighbor's house. Fearing that this might have caused some damage to their vehicle, we never attempted to ring the bell to retrieve it.

We graduated to tying three of such bombs together. The scary part was when we heard two blasts and the search for the third began. Seconds later, it was found at the ramp where we were standing. The blast from the previous two must have thrown it here. Fortunately, we ran just before it exploded. Ayush didn't have to though, he's the guy who's already a kilometre away after lighting something.

2. Trying stuff with rockets:

The bunch of us consider lighting rockets a waste if they are aimed upwards. Credit goes to Richa for enlightening us some years back. Ritesh played the daredevil here along with Mukesh.

2.1

A hydro foil bomb was tied to the rocket. The Hunter (a doodley sparkler) was responsible for the ignition system.

It was exciting to see the rocket take off in one direction and turn thanks to the explosion.

2.2

Next we tied a ladi aka chatai- a mat made of small bombs tied together. This time, it was more treacherous.

The rocket took off and bent thanks to the weight. The ongoing blasts kept wavering the rocket until it decided to come down with the chatai still crackling to a bush. A small fire came into being in the dry bush but was doused immediately thanks to the bucket of water we had.

2.3

We tied two rockets together. Aligned them so that the two face different directions. Watched the rockets fight mid air- each one trying to tug the other in its direction.

2.4

Finally, we headed to the park with our left over rockets. Out here, we tested and understood all concepts of a missile system. Miraculously, one of these featured a homing device. It took a u-turn mid way to head towards Ritesh. Though Ritesh did take a minor hit, hats off to his courage. Nothing stopped him to let the chaos reign.

3. Lighting up chakkars on stretched arms with sparkler ends

There is a chance that you discover holes in your sleeves the next day.

4. Havan

This is our finale: where we burn the leftovers in the ‘havan’ fire. The fun part is when you go to drop a handful of crackers: you have to analyze and judge if any of the previous feed will burst as you approach.

Wish you all a very happy and prosperous Diwali!!

Note:

The author will not entertain any words of criticism from the environment friendlies as the author firmly believes his contributions to protect the climate and reduce his carbon footprint make up for a lot. The author saves fuel and energy whenever he can thanks to his miserly nature. He is also a firm believer of upholding Diwali tradition. Lights, crackers n joy included.

Malaysia: the nation

I was still high on the smoking rubber, monstrous sounds of the F1 engines I had greeted the last evening. Now we were heading towards Johr Bahru: the border town in Malaysia. It took us almost 30 minutes to clear the immigration.

The GPS took us through the city and we blinded followed. However, this is not what I'll regret. I got to see the Johr city. The cities in Malaysia are a unique blend of classic and modern characteristics. There's a majestic town hall, city centres to take care of the classic part. Parallely, the cities are powered by a grand infrastructure. The highways, city roads, superstructures: you've got 'em all. We spotted an Indian restaurant just outside Johr and stopped here. Surprisingly, the only thing they had for vegetarians here was a meal with the main star as ghee rice. Nevertheless, after the meal we were singing about this.

We continued on the Kuala Lumpur highway and made a stop to switch the wheel. Mama offered me to drive. I was ecstasic! On a highway in Malaysia with the might of the Nissan Sunny. My excitement soon wore off as I neared boredom in a while.

2 reasons:

First, the highway was too good. I could have slept on the wheel and we would have reached our destination in the same time safely. I mean, at least give the driver a chance! At places, even the slight turns were banked in such a manner that you'll hardly need to turn the wheel.

Second, the Sunny: mighty as it may be was still automatic transmission. So while overtaking (one of the few tasks demanding the driver's brain here), I miss the sequence: Clutch, shift, release, accelerate. All this was compressed to a single step: press the accelerator.

However driving is a pain thanks to all the rules and regulated humans here. If you change your lane without announcing to the world you’ll create havoc. Rear view check, indicator, steer, indicator off. The driving method we're used to is: every man for himself; expect the worst from everyone. The game is fundamentally different here where every other driver depends on you and that thou shall never break the regulations or deviate from the text book rules. That thou shall not change lanes, thou shall stop from 100kmph just to let one pedestrian cross, thou shall not be reckless. Quite a challenging proposition for the Indian drivers.

The beauty of the countryside is just unbelievable. One of the big advantages the nation has is its population. The population density figures are absymally low. Credit also goes for the people and the government for conserving their resources and vegetation. I have seen endless green lands in some of the remote places I've been to in India. But out here, the sheer size and density of vegetation creates a different effect. Not a spot of brown or even a shade deviating from lush green was found in the 100Kms we covered. There are also several 'Rehats' spaced at appropriate distances on the highways. Imagine a structure with a well planned mall, fuel station and a food court every 50 Kms you travel! We reached the Melaca district in 2 hours (A few sign boards declared that we had; the scenery was still the same). After exiting the highway, a complicated set of roads took us to A'FaMosa resort. The resort is visible from a distance thanks to its size.

We checked into the 'room'. To my surprise, what they called a room was a fully furnished retreat with 2 rooms, a drawing-dining, a kitchen and picturesque balconies.

As the sun went down, we headed for the 'cowboy town'.

There was a 4-D movie. We managed to catch 'Horror stories in the office'. We then headed for the 'Red Indian' show. The performers were spectacular. Lots of fire breathing, a small play involving the audience.

This was followed by the carnival. This is something that is very very hard to put in words. The number of things that happened in the next 40 minutes is too much. The camera ran out of battery, my fingers might faint with exhaustion if I start writing. The highlights were the animals, Malay ladies in lovely attires, vehicles, planes, birds and everything else you can think of. The firecracker show was the grand finale.

But more than that what touched me was seeing the Malaysia flag at the event. Agreed, carrying a flag is not a decree of being patriotic. But talking to people, you generally get the idea that the people love their country. More than that, they are nice to you and tell you how tourism is important for their country and eventually for the people. Thinking from your country's perspective and then about yourself- that's something that needs a lot of deep thought.

Since we were assured that we won't get anything vegetarian here at this middle of nowhere resort, we headed for the Melaca town in search for food. The drive was somewhat scary since I'm so used to seeing traffic or people or some fool while driving. Out here, we were just a car, 2 headlamps and zillion trees around us lit by the moon in a spooky manner. We found a Pizza hut in this tiny town called Melaca and gorged all that was veg on the menu.

The next day, we had breakfast in one of the restaurants of Cowboy town and headed for animal world. Now the size of the resort found its true identity. It took us almost 15 minutes of driving at decent speeds within the resort to reach the place. We came across lovely lakes, golf courses (yes, there's more than 1), paintball, paragliding and other adventure sports area.

At animal world, we attended the elephant show, the animal show and the bird show. I do not very much enjoy this but they put up a great show. Though I am very much against such kind of training for animals but I have to admire the platform the people and animals get.. I can't help comparing the state in my country. I've read of the condition of the bhallu dance, bandar dance wallahs once this kind of stuff was banned. Of course, animals belong in the jungle but what if they can't be protected the outlaws or poachers? Here we have the second best option that comes into picture. The animals are protected and the people make a living. And yes, art or skill gets a stage, where it can be appreciated by the world.

We then went for the safari. They put us in a caged van and took us to the animals' habitat. The lions were shouting to their cubs- ‘who dekho aadmi, who dekho aadmi ka cub’. There were giraffes, tigers, bears, leapords but the cute girl sitting in front of me was interested in antics of some other creature. ME.

Lastly was the monkey island. We took a boat to this place and came across a humorous board.

Among other creatures, I noticed one peculiar kind. These monkeys are the most disciplined creatures I've ever seen. They were eating in a proper manner. Never did they attempt any mischief, just accepted food in an orderly fashion from us.

In the evening, we headed back for Singapore. I saw families driving cheerfully around in their tiny Perodua's and Protons. I recalled Proton motors as the company which recently bought the prestigious British Lotus cars. The Malaysian government is the majority stakeholder in Proton. Even I'm proud of the PSU's of my nation: DRDO, ISRO, BHEL, Coal India. But looking here, I see there could have been more. The government here had the hindsight to create highly competitive (export oriented as well) companies to create wealth and providing employment. This backed by rapid infrastructure development brought in investors as well. The result is right in front of us: A country that gained independence 10 years later than us, had a lot more to worry than what we had at the same time grew rapidly to be an industrial superpower.

Everybody has a car here, I mean everybody. Be it a nurse, shopkeeper, janitor. Difficulty in finding people to attend to at gas stations and restaurants led to the so called 'brainy' Indians to take up these jobs. The local people are happy working for their nation. Come on, you can't say you've never heard of PETRONAS (does Sauber- Petronas F1 team ring a bell) and I can assure you that you'll hear of Proton soon. Also, the efforts of leadership have finally paid off with investors lining up creating more jobs.

I could not help contemplating: While the Gandhi family was busy convincing people that infrastructure is meant for rich 'seths' and their motor cars, implementing schemes based on populist measures to take care of immediate problems and votes. Not far away, Mahathir Mohammed was working to give people what they deserved: a better future. I can't help saluting to this man who truly describes the power of human nature. One man can build a nation!!

Worshipping the ultimate Automobile..F1 @ Singapore

Come Friday. After admiring the 4 passes for the 20th time, the grin on my face widened as I realized that it was time to leave for the big event. Though the practice was to start at 6, I had pestered Mami and Shreya to start early so I could worship the race track. We parked the car at a mall and took the MRT to the city centre- Raffle's place.

It was a peculiar feeling- strolling on the otherwise busy roads packed with Mercs and Bentleys ferrying the bankers, executives to and fro the central business district. The race season meant that the CBD roads were either gobbled up by the race circuit or open to the general public minus vehicles. So it was either race cars or none at all.

As we neared the entrance, I heard the sound of engines! I literally ran as I inferred that the Formula-BMW qualifying had started. The security guys frisked my bag and stated that we weren't allowed to carry cans inside. I could dispose them off at the bin over there.

Dispose them??!! Didn't those silly people realize that I'm an Indian??

I ran out and finished off two cans of the flavored milk. We rushed again to the circuit to catch the junior champs whirring their BMW engines. The Formula BMW is based on cars somewhat similar to Formula 3 and the winner gets a place as a test or reserve driver in Formula 1 the next year. The boys are a fun to watch coz at times, you can catch certain level of immaturity- late braking, near misses and lots of wheel locking. Mami commented on how noisy the cars were and I started blabbering on the kind of pressure the engine is in at 18000RPM and the job here is to extract as much power as you can from that engine rather than focusing on noise reduction. Shreya skillfully stopped my car talk bombardment. Yes, a tough task to stop a fellow whose aim in life is to educate people about the greatness of the automobile.

After the qualifying was over, the track marshals made a round in the stunning BMW X-6. Is it an SUV? A sedan? BMW doesn't have the answer and calls it a 'cross-over'. But the real star was the AMG Mercedes safety car that came out later. The distinct angry howl of the motor is difficult to forget.

We then walked down the perimeter of the Zone 4. I was awed by what I saw. Had I been alone, I am sure I would have bent down and kissed the ground. Not to embarrass my family, my happiness was limited to my mind and my smile. We caught Vijay Mallya speaking on how Fisichella's exit won't be a problem for Force India and Sutil could carry on as the lead driver pretty well.

Just before the start, we took places at the straight. The track was just around 3 metres away from us separated by a metal mesh.

A few minutes past 6, we heard the roar of a monster. A monster: eager, ready and with power beyond imagination. As the roar neared, I kept my eyes trained at the corner. Soon enough a shining purple dot was seen coming out of the corner and heading straight towards us. The roar was growing to a thunder. In time best described in millisecond units, the purple Red Bull RB5 thundered past us. When it flew past us, everyone was looking at everyone else in a shock. I remember the mystic look on Mami's face. The unspoken words between us were something like: 'And we thought the formula BMW cars were loud'!! Though the passes clearly stated that having ear plugs is a must in this zone, we never bothered. Other people around us were struck by similar revelations. As the second Red bull whizzed past and the Renault was coming in, people were already retrieving their ear plugs or heading to the counter selling the same. Mami took out her heaphones to abate the thundering monsters.

They say nothing can capture the majestic thunder of F1 engines. Agreed. But more than that, nothing can come even close to being with the cars in a circuit. I remembered a couple of friends laughing off at the prospect of me missing the race: no overtaking, no winner and so on. But beat this. I am on the circuit, close to the racers and the cars than I can ever be. The smell of the burning rubber, the faint odor of fuel and the wind created by man made phenomenon!! The heat, sparks, the flames from the exhaust at gear shifts. The Singapore 2009 tagline says it all- 'NOTHING ELSE COMES CLOSE'.

Mama joined us in a while. His office is a couple of blocks away and he walked down. At about the same time, Luizzi came out in the Force India car. No matter how much I hate Mallya and Luizzi, I have to thank them. I am no patriotic zealot but my chest swelled with pride as I saw the tricolor on the Force India car.

By this time, one Ferrari and both the Williams had also come out. Night had also arrived. Being the only night circuit in the world, this does add a lot of thrill and glamour. Alonso had commented before the practice that all drivers had complained of headaches as well as bruises on their feet after the Singapore GP last year. We headed to the corner where the Singapore river meets the Marina bay. Chance to roam around the track beats all awesomeness! At the corner, its a different story. While on the straights I was amazed by the phenomenal acceleration, here the braking took me. One can actually see the brake disks turning orange as the metal heats up to red. Soon enough, the Renault did something similar to last year and Grosjean upheld the tradition by spinning out at the same place. The smoking tires were quite entertaining if you have a knack for automotive humor. Another McLaren caught my eye. The golden visor helmet in it had to belong to Hamilton. Even at a distance, there is no mistaking that the McLaren is being driven by Lewis Hamilton. The car was pretty low and we saw a couple of sparks as it negotiated curves on minor invisible bumps. At one instance, Hamilton even drifted at the Esplanade turn. Speed must have definitely been 140-180 at that time.

As the first session of practice ended, we had food and roamed around to soak in more of the F1 festivities. The Esplanade upheld its grandeur for this event and a F1 village had also been set up.

Before I knew it, the 1st practice session was over. We had to wait until 9:30 for the second session to start. But, the circuit would be used for the practice session of the Porsche Carrera championship. Most people found the Carreras slow after having seen the Formula 1 cars in action, it was still fun to watch as again, I got to see a lot more skids, screeches and drifting.

For the second session, we headed for the longer straight. As Kovalinnen drove through, I figured the reason why we can't have F-1 in India. Singapore is a very clean city and I remember being astonished on not finding dust on my clothes after a day long excursion on my first visit. However, the drivers complained of dust last year at Singapore. This year, I saw it with my own eyes! As the cars crossed the 250 kmph mark, we could see the dust being streamlined from the frond wings upto the rear! U had to look hard to find this live lesson of aerodynamics at display.

As we headed home in our more sane Nissan Sunny, images still flashed in my head. That I had witnessed the greatest engineering marvels in action, the ultimate machines on one of the most glamorous tracks of the world! It seemed that life had a meaning now, a dream fulfilled, memories to cherish. The dark skies, sparkling circuit and the machines! They say you feel like that when you bask in glory, when you are in love; but here it was just a man and his respect for the automobile.