Amsterdam Marathon 2010

Well, I made my decision to run my first international run exactly one month back and I registered for the Amsterdam half marathon on 18 Sept 2010 (just 1 day before the closing date). Right from the day when I had registered I was quite thrilled and was waiting anxiously for the D day.

On sunday 17 Oct 2010 myself, my roomies (two Chinese students) and another classmate of mine boarded the train to Amsterdam from Delft. They were coming all the way to Amsterdam to cheer for me and I really appreciate that. We boarded the train at 9:03 from Delft and then reached Amsterdam Zuid at 10:45. I must admit the train service in The Netherlands is simply amazing.

We then navigated our way from the station to Sporthallen Zuid, this was the place where the marathon expo was being held and also the place where the running bibs were being distributed. I collected my running number from the designated counter and asked for the 'goodie bag'. But the lady at the counter couldn't understand the meaning of 'goodie bag', she thought it was some kind of brand. Then I explained that usually a bag with lots of stuff is distributed whenever a marathon is conducted but it seems Amsterdam Marathon doesn't give out any stuff like this. May be this is one of the reasons it is still rated 'Silver Class' by the IAAF.

I had about 2 hours left before the start of the run. Thankfully it was a cold and sunny day and the Sun God was merciful in showing his face all day long. I changed my clothes and had a quick meal (bread+biscuits+banana). We then proceeded towards the 'STARTVAK' the dutch term for starting point. I handed over my bags and belongings to my friends and did my warm up session. This is the first time I was running a half marathon in the afternoon. The runners were divided into 4-5 packs and I was in the last pack. The time was 13:30 and our pack still had not started, I was getting a bit anxious. Finally our pack was flagged off at 13:45. I waved to my friends and started on a positive note.

The route was superb and the climate excellent. But at many places the route was quite narrow and the runners had to squeeze through or slow down so that they don't bump into one another. I had set my mind for a finish under 2 hours but the last three miles were tough. I had to slow down my pace in the end. Usually when one doesn't have any friends taking part in the run he/she sets another runner as his/her target and then follows/overtakes the target. In my case I had set my target on a girl, who was pretty good. It soon became like a cat and mouse game. I overtaking her and then she overtaking me then again I overtook her only to find that she was just behind my heels and overtook me after the tenth mile. I couldn't catch up with her after 10 miles.

I finally reached the olympic stadium, this is where the finish point was and completed my run with a net timing of 2:08:26 hrs. Oh man, I was at the olympic stadium and that was a wonderful feeling, may be once in a life time opportunity. I received my finisher's medal and was looking out for my friends but couldn't find them. I joined them back at the same place from where I had collected my running number. They were happy for me that i finished the run successfully.

RUNNING NUMBER: 31321

NET FINISH TIME: 2:08:26

THIS IS MY 8TH HALF MARATHON AND MY FIRST INTERNATIONAL ONE.

How to make WHEAT DOSA

Ingredients required:

Wheat flour ( use qty according to number of persons)

Salt ( as per one’s requirement)

Onions, finely chopped

Green chillies, finely chopped

Mustard ( 1 teaspoon)

Cumin seeds (1 teaspoon)

Asafoetida (for taste and smell)

Procedure:

1. Take sufficient quantity of wheat flour for required number of persons.

2. Add water to the wheat flour till a watery mixture is formed. ( NOTE: do not add too much water thereby making the mixture very dilute)

3. Add the finely chopped onions and green chillies to the above mixture.

4. Add salt to suit one’s taste and as per one’s requirement.

5. In a separate small ‘kadai’ pour some oil and wait till the oil heats. Now add mustard, cumin seeds and asafoetida.

6. Pour the above spices into the flour mixture. Now your batter is ready.

7. Take a flat pan (tawa) and heat it up. Add some oil on the pan and spread it evenly throughout the pan (this is needed to prevent the dosa from sticking to the pan).

8. Pour the batter onto the flat pan in small quantities and spread it evenly on the pan. Add small quantities of oil on top so that the batter is cooked properly.

9. After you start seeing holes beginning to be formed on top of the batter, invert the batter to the other side (flip it over by an angle of 180 degrees). Wait till the other side is cooked. Now you may remove the batter from the pan.

10. Repeat the above step to make as many dosas as you want.

11. Your ‘Wheat Dosas’ are ready now. You can serve them with coconut chutney or molaga podi (chilly powder), mint chutney or plain tomato sauce.

Cycling trip to den Hague

Myself and five of my friends decided to do some biking yesterday ( 28 Aug 2010 ). I woke up at 6:30 had my bath and also had my breakfast and was ready to hit the roads of Delft & den Hague. I was clad in the proper cycling attire. The others were dressed up in jeans,sweaters and jackets. The initial plan was to start at 7:30 but usual delays pulled us back and we started from our place (Poptahof Noord) at 8:30.

We took the longer biking route adjacent to the highways. It was really amazing to ride down such a beautiful path. We crisscrossed many lakes and canals and then went staright ahead down the road. It is in fact just a straight road from Delft to den Hague. We cycled for about 90 minutes and we reached den hague. We could have reached there faster but we stopped now and then for taking photographs. The route was so scenic that we just couldn't stop admiring the beauty.

Once we reached den hague we decided to cycle another 5 miles to scheveningen beach. The day was quite sunny and little cold, perfect conditions for biking. We reached the beach at around 10:45 and parked our bikes on the hilltop. All of us were quite tired and decided to munch on some food before getting down into the sand. Vishwa and Praveen had packed some sandwiches, Bhramesh had got some fruit cake and I carried some bottles of water. We had nice little snack and then went down to the beach. It was the North Sea that we were looking at. The waters and the waves were quite serene compared to the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal.

All of a sudden the climate changed suddenly and we hit by some heavy showers. We could in fact see the clouds coming in from the see and envelope us. Thank God I had packed a raincoat inside my backpack. All of us had our raincoats and we were all well protected. The Dutch weather is very unpredictable so never mistake a sunny day thinking the weather will be fine all day.

After having a good time at the beach we decided to pay a visit to the Haagse Markt. This market is very famous in den Hague because we get good for comparatively cheaper prices than in the supermarkets. But one needs to make a cautious choice when selecting items because the items bought do not come with a receipt and its very alluring to buy more as the prices are very less. We also visited a small Indian grocery shop called "India Gate" from where I bought Moong Dal and Rice Flakes (for making poha or avul upma). It costed me 8.95 euros for these two items.

All of us were quite tired after this long cycle ride,visit to the beach and walking down the Haagse Markt. We decided to get back home and followed the tram route, we reached Delft in a shorter time. This was the first time I had biked for so long and it was truly an amazing experience. The separate bike roads, cold climate and natural greenery by the roads make biking a truly enjoyable experience in The Netherlands.

6 Aug 2010-My last day at Ashok Leyland

Its been 3 years 2 months and 6 days at Ashok Leyland, India's second largest commercial vehicle manufacturing firm and on the 6th of August 2010 my profesional career at Ashok Leyland came to an end. Foof ! thats was quite a long time at this fantastic organization. AL as it is unofficially known has given me a solid foundation to kick start my professional career.

From now on no more getting up at 5:00 in the morning, no more pacing up the road to board the bus at 6:30 am and no more healthy breakfast at the AL canteen. Oh my God ! things are turning around so quickly. It looks like I just joined AL as a GET (Graduate Engineer Trainee) some time back but coming back to reality I have come a long way. Got promoted to the post of Deputy Manager, worked on some important bus projects and handled additional responsibilities.

Work life at Ashok Leyland was really cool, the working hours being 7:45 to 16:00 hrs. It was entirely up to you to stay back after 16:00 hrs and only on rare occasions would office work force you to stay very late. The work life balance at Ashok Leyland is one of the best in the industry and I must admit that whole heartedly.

My seat in my office was the corner seat and what an amazing view of the greenery can one see from outside the window. The job at AL is one of the dream jobs for every aspiring engineer  wanting to work in the auto industry. I was associated with the Vehicle Electrical group at AL's product development centre. This group was a small group with about ten people when I joined, but as more and more electronic features were being incorporated in the vehicle the group strength kept on increasing because there were new projects to work on and more manpower was needed. My group strength is close to thirty now.

I will always be proud that I was associated with AL and I have no qualms is returning to this wonderful organization sometime in the furture. GETs are given special treatment and are nurtured to be the next leaders in the organization. But unfortunately many of them leave at the end of their bond period, mostly to pursue their higher studies. I too am going to The Netherlands to pursue my higher studies in Sustainable Energy Technology.

Mr Ghose or DG as we call him is a very cool boss and amazing fellow. He has chided me, applauded me, nurtured me during my stay at AL. Being my first boss I'll never forget him. The to & fro trip to Alwar will be etched in memeory for ever. I learned a lot from my on duty travel trips and got meet amazing people and see amazing places. My GET friends at AL, oops the number has come down to five from ten,will always remain close to my heart.

At the end of the day it was a choice between financial security and growth. The pay at AL was too good to leave the organization but it was my decision to pursue my higher studies. I could have done this part time but there is no fun in doing a part time study. One cannot do justice to work and study in this case, atleast this my opinion. Well, I hope I have made the right decision and look forward to bigger and better things in the future.

I can say I have forged some very stong bonds with this great organization and its people.

How to make Tomato pasta?

Ingredients required:


Pasta packet (any type such as fusili, elbow macaroni, rotini can be used)
Mustard ( 1 tea spoons)
Turmeric ( ½ tea spoon)
Refined Oil (2 tea spoons)
Chopped Onions
Chopped Tomatoes
Cumin seeds

Asafetida

Sambhar powder (2 tea spoons)

Red chilly powder (1/2 tea spoon)

Coriander leaves, finely chopped

Method:

1. Empty the Pasta packet containing the hard raw material into a vessel and fill the vessel with water (use only drinking water).
2. Boil the pasta till it becomes soft, then drain the water and keep the pasta aside. Remember to add salt as per your requirement.

3. In a separate vessel add the refined oil and wait for the oil to heat up. Then add the mustard seeds, turmeric and cumin seeds. Sprinkle some Asafetida for taste.

4. The mustard and cumin seeds will start spluttering. When the spluttering stops add the chopped onions and fry till the onions become brown in colour. Now add the chopped tomatoes.
5. Mix them well with the help of a ladle.
6. Now add the Pasta to the above mixture. Also add sambhar powder, red chilly powder and coriander leaves.

7. Add water in to the above mixture so that the pasta is floating in it. Mix the whole contents well. Use more water if you like your pasta to consist of more gravy.

8. Serve hot with sauce( if you like sauce)

 

 

THIS IS HOW IT LOOKED AFTER I MADE IT

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

La Roja triumphs

Netherlands vs Spain - World Cup Final 2010,11 July 2010
Soccer City, Johannesburg

Thirty two nations, ten venues, 64 matches and a month long of football fever- all these came to an end on the 11th of July 2010 when Spain reigned supreme and lifted its maiden world cup title. The final between the Dutch and the Spaniards was deemed to be a tough one for both the sides. The Netherlands were the dark horses to win the tournament but Spain were indeed one among the favourites to win the tournament.

The closing ceremony at the Soccer City, Johannesburg was a real delight to watch. The stadium designed in the shape of a 'Calabash'- the Afrikan pot was occupied 100 percent. The ground was turned into a giant screen with the aerial lights providing some eye catching visual imagery. The hour long closing ceremony will remain in the minds of the millions of television viewers and spectators who were present there. Former president Nelson Mandela graced the occasion by making his presence felt along with his wife. Columbian singer Shakira entertained the spectators with her sleezy hip movements, dancing, shaking and singing along with the African local band and the whole crowd was dancing to the tune of  WAKA WAKA. Africa's wildlife was presented with dummy elephants making their way to the water hole. The best moments in this month long soccer feast were also displayed and at last the whole of Africa said Thank You in a number of different languages, this being a sign of faith that the FIFA had in Africa for hosting the world cup tournament.

The Netherlands and Spain were in for a tough task ahead of them. Both these teams were vying to get their hands on the trophy for the very first time, the only difference being that the Dutch were in the finals on two previous occasions but failed to lay their hands on the most coveted prize in football. The Spaniards on the other hand were never in a world cup final.

The Dutch played really physical football right from the time the whistle was blown to start the game. Van Persie, Nigel Di Jong and Van Bommel receiving yellow cards within the first half hour of the game. Nigel Di Jong must have been shown a staright red but a nasty stamp on Xabi Alonso's chest in the first half. Spain too had its share of yellow cards, Puyol and Ramos getting into the referees books.

Spain were dominant, keeping the ball to themselves and playing possession football. Iniesta and Xavi the midfield maestros were simply superb, showcasing perfect power,skill,balance and technique. The Dutch rattled the Spanish players with constant fowls and giving away freekicks now and then. Robben had the best shot on goal in the first half, cutting in  from the right and drilling the ball hard into the near post with his powerful left foot but Iker Casillas had his eyes wide open and he had to because its The most important match and mistakes will cost either team dearly.

Half time gone both the teams were locked up with a 0-0 scoreline, neither side being able to break the deadlock.

Fifteen minutes after the first half both teams were out on the pitch, refreshed and raring to go at one another. As the match progressed it became more and more nastier. Constant fowls, display of the yellow cards and clashes among players marred the free flowing nature of this beautiful game. The Dutch received five more yellow cards and the Spaniards received three.

Robben broke free from the defence and was one on one with the Spanish goalkeeper but couldn't put the ball into the Spanish net. The trailing left foot of Casillas denying Robben his goal. The Dutch were distraught and Robben just couldn't believe it. All Robben had to do was chip the ball over Casillas' head instead he went for the shot and thereby ruined his country's chances to go ahead. Ramos on the other end couldn't keep the header down in the 77th minute from a corner kick. The Dutch were confused by the Spanish set piece and Ramos was suddenly left all by himself.

Robben missed another chance in the 83rd minute when he raced past Puyol to get to the ball but failed to control it properly and put it past Casillas. Puyol must have been sent off at this point of time but the referee didn't quite seem to notice the foul he had committed. Robben was tugged from behind and pulled by Puyol,preventing him to regain his balance to take the shot. Horrendous refereeing indeed and when Robben protested he was shown the yellow card. That just summed up Robben's and Netherland's day.

Full time gone and not a single goal on the score cards the game went into extra time. The players were indeed weary and tired but thats the price you pay for playing your hands on the coveted trophy in football.
Fabregas was brought in in place of Alonso and he too missed his chance of giving Spain the lead in Extra time.

Both the goalkeepers (Stekelenburg and Casillas) were indeed heroes and deserve a lot of credit.

in the 119th minute Heitinga received his second yellow and was sent off. The Dutch were down to ten men and seemed to succumb to the marauding Spanish Aramada. When it looked like the match would indeed be settled on penalities Andries Iniesta lunges forward and drill in a shot into the far post and into the Dutch goal, breaking Dutch hearts all over the world.

Spain had achieved the impossible, the reigning EURO champions were crowned the World Champions. Spain went beserk the fans got even more crazier and the whole nation went into a state of euphoria.

Spain became the second nation after West Germany to lift the EURO and World Cup titles back to back. They were the better side indeed, they played sublime football, showed great character and displayed courage at the highest stage.

Germans too good for Maradona's team

Argentina vs Germany - World Cup Quarter-Finals 2010

The clash of the titans in football is always awaited with much anticipation. The press, media and other sport talk shows get into all sorts of comparison, pulling out statistics and discussing tactics with the football pundits as to who would emerge 'The Winner'.

This particular quarter final saw one of the best European nations taking on one of the finest South American Nations. Germany with their young squad were up against Maradona's well experienced team with the world's footballer of the year Lionel Messi leading the forefront for the Argentinians. The venue was set in the coastal city of South Africa- Cape Town. The Germans were clad in their other kit, sporting the black and golden colours where as the Argentinians were in their traditional sky blue and white stripe shirts.

Germany got off to a dream start when Bastian Schweinsteiger took the free kick and delivered the ball right into the six yard box for the 20 year old Thomas Muller to head the ball right into the Argentinian goalkeeper's legs and then deflected into the net. Three minutes gone and the Germans were upbeat and in the lead. For the first in this world cup Mr. Maradona looked a worried man and it was also the first time that Argentina were behind.

The Germans could have easily doubled their lead but Klose miscued the shot and it went over the cross bar. Argentina were in top form in later part of the first half, launching onslaught after onslaught but the solid German defence denied them anything. Tevez, Messi and Higuain looked unimpressive. First half gone Germany were in the lead.

Argentina regrouped themselves and showed some attacking football in the second half. They needed a goal to come back in the game and take the game to Germany. Crisp defending by Lahm denied the Argentinians a chance to score, had Lahm not cleared the ball at the vital moment Argentina would have gone level. The young German squad were in top form in this world cup, destroying their opponents ruthlessly. Miroslav Klose scored the second goal for the Germans in the 67th minute and virtually sealed any comebacks for Argentina.

The Argentinians needed some magic from their hero Messi. Messi tried hard,dribbled well, took on the German defenders single handed but luck was not on his side. He couldn't find the back of the German net. Argentina's woes got worse as the game progresses. In the process to score goals their defence was exposed and was lackadaisical. Schweinsteiger making an easy run into the box and delivered a low pass to Friedrich who tapped the ball into the Argentinian net.

The scoreline read Argentina 0 Germany 3.

The German onslaught didn't stop end there. Their hunger for goals and the desire to kill their opponents produced another goal from Klose in the 89th minute. The Germans had reserved their berth for the semis and were on cloud nine. The Argentinians were distraught.

Another South American was sent home packing. They follow the shoes of Brazil who exited the world cup yesterday when they were ousted by Netherlands.

Could the Germans win the world cup for the fourth time? They await either Paraguay or Spain in the semis. If they continue this killer form then Germany could go all the way and come out with top laurels and the $30 million prize at South Africa.

FINAL SCORE LINE: GERMANY 4 ARGENTINA 0