Linguistic barrier...

Hey folks, a strange incident occured to me today which made me write this article.I just finished my errands and was waiting in the Don Mills subway station. It was then i met an Indian lady annd her canadian friend. They have recently moved from Windsor. They were not sure about their routes and seeked my help. The lady recognized me as an Indian and started talking to me in Hindi. I'm from Tamilnadu(southern part of India) and i'm not very fluent in Hindi. I can understand but couldnt speak. When i told her that, her friend(Canadian) was really surprised. Then both of us explained him that there are so many languages. I also told him that people of different states converese in English. He then said in a funny way that inspite of having so many languages in your country you guys still need English.On a serious note, i felt really embarassed. I couldnt help but think about this on my way back home. There are so many discussions going around in Tamilnadu about making Hindi as a compulsory language at schools. In most of the states in India, people learn Hindi at school. Tamilnadu is an exception. It is very unfortunate that we are not able to learn our national language.
Actually speaking, this is not the first time i fellt bad for not knowing HIndi. I would like to quote one more incident on this behalf. Earlier i was working in Bangalore(India). There were so many people from different states. All the comments, gossips and jokes will be made in Hindi. Though i was able to understand it i will not be able to enjoy it. i always loose the essence. I'm sure that this might have happened to many other Tamilians as well. I really dont understand what justification, the tamilnadu government has for not making Hindi as a compulsory language at schools like other states.
I'm really proud to be an Tamilian, but first I'm an Indian. What has happened to our unity in diversity. I love my language(Tamil) and i'm proud of its history too. But that should'nt in any way be a hurddle to learn a new language. After all that's also an Indian language - our National language.
Our language(Tamil), has an amzing history. There are numerous ways to protect it. Clearly this is not the right way. It is high time to make changes in this regard now. Because it does not only affect people like me but also some of the members of Parliament(MP)from tamilnadu. They are having hard time during the discussions in the parliament. Just imagine the condition of an MP in a parliament without knowing Hindi. Atleast now the government should take some stteps to incorporate Hindi at schools.
On the otherhand , we also shouldn't just wait for them to take steps. There are so many ways to learn a language. The parents should see to it that their kids know the language. You have no idea where they might end up. Moreover they know an additional language. The next genration should not face this issue. Believe me guys. It is essential. Initially i was also very much annoyed with the system in tamilnadu. But there's no point in just being annoyed. Instead of trying to pass the blame on the system or government lets see what we can do. Ther are numerous ways to learn the language, through books or internet or private tuitions. Lets find a suitable way to learn Hindi.
Feel free to comment about your views on this. If you have any incident to share in this regards, please do so. It can be serios or funny or enbarassing....

Life's a vacation....(Life abroad)

Born in India.

Moved to Canada(temporarily)...Just like everyone, i was also fascinated by the way people treat their life.Lotz have been discussed about how independent they are even in their 80s or how much importance they give for pet animals(cats nd dogs) or their weekend parties or the way they enjoy their summer. Just like most of the indians here, for me also friends became everything. Most of the weekends will be spent with friends. The weekends will be scheduled like movie nights, barbeques, game nights, taking trips during the long weekends, etc...We also try and find some reason for a gathering. Here, i would like to share some of my experience while traveling to some amazing places.


Niagara::
I have always dreamt about going to Niagara with my "Someone Special". Well, what to say my dream came true. I've heard people always say "Love is in the air". I could literally feel it there.It was an breath taking view. It took few moments for me to come to reality. There i was, standing in front of the lake, holding his hands and enjoying the view. The ride in the cruise(Maid of the mist) was awesome. The weather was perfect. The boat was so close to the falls, it felt like we were in the middle of the Tornado. The journey behind the falls was also amzing. In the night we had a pleasent walk and enjoyed the spectacular fireworks. It couldnt be any better.

Thousand Island:
My next trip was to Thousand island. Vow is the word that comes to my mind when i think about this trip. You could say this is where Canada and US meet. It is undoubtedly one of the most amazing place in this planet. It has a very unique combination of a the gorgeous green woods and cool water. For people who know Scuba diving or any other water sports , it is a perfect place. I enjoyed the ride in the cruise and the gorgeous scenery. I even learnt fishing here (but couldnt catch any). It is defenitely a romantic place. I was having a real nice time with my sweetheart , enjoying the spectacular view.

Ottawa:

This place is special to me just because of the fact that it is thr first international place that i've ever visited. There are so many amazing places to visit in Ottawa but i would just like to highlight my favourites. Its the Tulip festival and the Rideau lake.I love the view of the lake especially in winter. It will be completely frozen and people skate there. In summer we can see people canoeing, boating and fishing. The tulip festival is definetly worth the wait till spring. It is the highlight of the spring season in Ottawa. The romantic view of the bright tulips is such a pleasant treat for the eyes. This is captured and utilised well by various Indian directors for their films.

Quebec:

Quebec is a lovely city. I felt as if i was in a completely different country there. Most of the people speak French. We spent our valentines day in Quebec city. What shall i say, my nubby picked the right place . Even the streets in quebec city is worth watching. There's a French touch in everything. We spent the day in the museum and whale watching and we spent the evening having romantic, candle light french dinner. Initially i was reluctant to go to the museum but believe me guys it should not be missed. It is definetly not boring as it sounds. The whale watching was great too.

Toronto:

There are plenty of great places to visit in Toronto. I just want to share my favorite places. First one is Durga temple. The temple gives a feeling as if we are in India. Whenevr i feel sad, i'll visit the temple and my heart lightens. I love the beach here. Whenever the weather is good we go to the beach. Its the best place to relax. We pack the picnic baskets with Chicken drumsticks, corns etc...we find the beach as a place to reduce stress.Then ofcourse the CN tower. The birds eye view from the CN tower is a spectacular view. How many ever times i go to CN tower, i still feel little scared to look in the glass floor there.Above i like the view from my balcony in the evening.





So, these are just a few places which i've enjoyed. There are plenty of amzing places still to be visited. Vancouver is one among them. Hopefully that would be the next destination. The intresting part is that these places have to be visited in right season. However any place is an intresting place when we are with our love ones. Isn't it?....

The way i c my life

When i look at my life, it sure feels like a roller coaster ride. Hmmmm where shal i start, well may be i'll start quoting Desmond Tutu "You dont choose your family. They are god's gift to you as you are to them". Yes my parents definetly considered me as a precious gift, as i was their first born. For most of us, childhood will be the best days of our life. It surely is for me too. Growing up in a joint family i have tons of memories, like the gatherings on my B'day, playing with the puppy in the evenings, waiting for the last exam, praying to jesus for postponing the class tests, welcoming my sweet little sister to this beautiful world, fighting with my cousins, my dad being upset with me for doing my maths test bad inspite of teaching me throughout the night, helping my sis to hide when my mom was searching for her to punish, learning to ride bicycle. I coudnt help but smile and feel happy when i think about this.
My dad has been and still is a superhero for me. He knows the secret to make us light hearted whenever we are depressed. The best part is he has taught us how to deal with our bad days without leting us know what bad days are. Whenever i have any issues, be it work or family he has solution for everything. There's nothing that i cannot discuss with my dad.My mom is the essence of my family. We mean the world to her. Her thoughts revolve around the four of us. Oops no its five now(including my sweetheart). I doubt if i can be a great mom like her. It wouldnt be fair if i dint mention about her cooking talent. She's an amzing cook. Right from chettinad to chinese she's an expert. Now comes my sis. Apart from sharing so many things we share our birthdays too(great coincidence). We are more like friends. We are partners in crime too. At times she plays good cop and turns me in. I know that she'll be genuinely happy for me in my good times and will do anything to let me out in my bad times. I still remember her eyes filled with tears the day after my wedding.I've always told her that she'll be my first kid. Thats true she will always be.
Ta da....here comes Prince Charming. Yes every girl would definetly live in a fantasy world during a certain period. Everyone of us would have dreamt about our Prince Charming. I'm not an exception. During college days i was a small town girl. My college taught me so many things apart from the subjects. I learnt to be very careful but after making so many mistakes. Afterall its my life, i've to commit my own mistakes. There are millions of amazing experiences. I still can remember the first time going to the movie bunking class, asking permission from mom to stay in friend's place, passing chits during class, possessive fights between friends, forming gangs(sweet six), teasing frenemies, long night chats with roomies,uncountable trips and outings, combine studies before exams, etc... i wandered in the college not knowing that my prince charming was right there. I might have met him in the library or in the culturals but i didnt. Of all the three years i was there i was only dreaming about him without even knowing that he's there for me. He came into my life slowly and softly. There's so many coulda, woulda and shoulda in everyone's life. We often hear people saying "i would have been a dancer if i was not married so early" or "i could have been an engineer if i hav studied well" but we need to understand that everything happens for a reason. i do not have any regrets in life. My Prince Charming has joined me in the ride of my life and its going on smoothly. Mine is an arranged marraige. People go to casinos for the same reason the agree for arranged marraige -->hoping to hit jackpot. Well, what to say, i got lucky and hit jackpot(not in casino). We definetly have our differences. If two people have only one thought between them something is seriosly wrong. We just happen to know how to tackle the differences. To be a couple do we have to give up our single self?. Nope. Not really.
I believe i've just taken you through my life. These are some of the zha zsa zho s of my life. Just the way i like it. I hope you like it too.