Stress...

Stress is everywhere. Exam time - it's around even more. Everyone, everywhere, is going through 'shit'. So what all us "going-through-shit-ers" need is more stress. Confused? My theory - "Beyond a point, shit stress converts to fun stress, so get stressed above that point." I really don't know what I am saying.

"Calm is for wimps. Get real. Get stressed."

Some stress-increasing maneuvers:

1. Choose friends you don't like.
2. Be late. Always.
   
3. Behave like a sardar...
4. Go to the premiere of Casino Royale. Sit next to people. Talk loudly.
5. On your way out of the cinema, discuss the end of Casino Royale loud enough for the world to hear.
6. Record the sound of a dentist's drill. Play it at bedtime.
7. Recognize your limitations. Then ignore them.
8. Recognize other peoples' limitations. Then tell them what to do.
9. Before reaching the paying counter of Carrefour, remove all the bar-codes of your shopping so they won't scan.
10. If you can't do it, don't let others do it.
11. The best policy - Be honest. All the time. With everyone. About everything.
12. The better policy - Lie. All the time. To everyone. About everything.
13. Practise rudeness, not just to make others feel bad, but also to make you feel bad about yourself. It's a win-win situation.
14. Fart in confined spaces. But only if other people are present.
15. Burp, and then say "Bless Me".
16. Hear others burp, and then say "Bless You".
    
17. Whine daily.
18. Become a politician.
19. Have Red Bull before going to bed.
20. Never return things you borrow.
21. Get a job writing junk mail.
22. Blog about "how you open the bathroom door".
23. Take credit for successes you have nothing to do with.
24. Buy a multi-alarm clock. Set the alarm for every 30 minutes. Then go to sleep.
25. HFZ - Make yourself a Humour Free Zone. If you ever find yourself laughing, go to the bathroom and get yourself together.
26. Always borrow money from your friends. Forget or put off repaying them for as long as possible.
27. Make study schedules you cannot keep up with.
    
28. Leave everything to the last minute.
29. At family get-togethers, start talking about the following: sex.
30. Be a wet blanket.
31. Write down your worries. Read the list before you go to bed.
32. Learn to snore.
33. Shout at people at least twice a day.
34. Try your best to make every competitor know that you are licking ass to become a prefect.
35. Buy shoes one size too small.
36. Always criticize everyone's clothes.
37. Become like Karan. (sorry, I am in the mood)
38. Blame everyone else for your failure.
39. Remember that there is absolutely no point in talking about someone behind their back unless they get to hear about it.
40. Never have a bath.
41. Forget brushing your teeth.
42. Eat lots and lots of garlic, and then ask your crush for her number.
43. Make rumours. Spread them.
44. Intentionally fail in your exams.
    
45. Join the "best" school.
46. Try and enjoy the stress...
47. Do you have any more of these?
    

P.S. Gone are the stress-free days so make use of the stress-ful ones. Most of the above quotes were taken from "The Little Book Of Stress" written by Rohan Candappa. One of the quotes in it is, " Take credit for successes you have nothing to do with." Thanks Rohan.
No offense intended.

Oh Vice Captain, My Vice Captain!

One person I haven't formally thanked yet is Aaron Luke Gomes, my vice-captain. The deadliest finisher of our team who spear-heads the attack, Aaron has been great support throughout the 5 years that has ultimately led to this mammoth victory.

From the Al Diyafah U-16 Inter School Football Tournament victory, to all the Inter House Football victories, to last year's elimination, to this year's victory - Aaron has always been there beside me, and I have always prized his opinion. Besides that Aaron, our combination on the field has been more than deadly, and I love playing with you. This time 5 of the goals we scored were because of our combination!

Respect Aaron! Tomorrow, when we get the trophy in front of the school, the both of us will lift it, with the team and everyone else beside/behind/around us. =)

P.S. I did not forget, it just kind off slipped...

VICTORY!

Victory is sweet. It's the sweetest. There is nothing like total victory. We are champions. Champions. We are the best among those we compete with. And with conquering your opponents, you conquer your dreams and desires, and then the pure joy that flows out, the emotions, the passion, the sheer ecstasy is the best feeling anyone can have. A feeling that you are on top of the world, and nothing, nothing can stop you from feeling happy. The adrenalin is pumping, and you find this hidden energy within you, that comes bursting out. You reach the pinnacle of satisfaction, and at that moment, nothing seems better. You forget all other pleasures and woes. Sometimes it takes time for the victory to seep in, "shit we have actually won!". It seems like a dream, a dream you don't want to snap out of, and you don't snap out of it because that dream is now reality.

All the practices we had, during Ramadan, under Al Maktoum bridge, in Romit's play area where we endlessly tried to improve our volleys and touches, from grade 7 to now, that preparation, that hard-work, that commitment to the larger cause, that feeling that every time we played football, we played only to win that single tournament we take part in every year, for the biggest bang, the bang that is like a historic legacy in its own small way in the Dubai Modern High School for football, all the seemingly "years of preparation" has led us to a victory that we wanted the most. Screw the medals and the cups, what we wanted was the glory, the glory of victory, because it's that glory that makes everything seem worthwhile. We wanted it, we got it. Hell yeah!

As Captain, I have to specially thank a few people. I would like to thank my team, for their oneness, great spirit, great teamwork, great sportsmanship and for the respect they gave me. I respect you for that. Beyond all the glory-takers, i.e goal-scorers, a special thanks to an unsung hero - Neil Jonathan D'souza - our small Neil. He played with all his heart, and his determination, strength, speed and purposeful tackles played a major role in giving us that once-elusive victory. A special thanks also to Edwin Mathew for a gritty, strong and reliable role as Defensive Midfield. He was brilliant too.

On behalf of the team, I would like to thank all those students and teachers that supported us, from the frantic phone calls of Tejas and Govind, to the "good luck" comments on this blog, and on your MSN nicknames. Thank you - support is always good, and many a time, crucial. Lastly, we would like to thank our passionate and energetic coach - Mr Mahesh Sharma. Thank you sir - you got the best out of us, and made us believe in ourselves even more. Thanks for everything. A special thanks also goes out to Venu Sir, for attending every match, and giving us spurts of inspiration. Thank you sir!

Shit, it feels like the Oscars. I am going to stop. I didn't want this post to be too long, but hey, I really can't control myself at the moment!

More than winning, the whole campaign has been this enchanting and enriching experience of tackling people and emotions, literally and symbolically. Wow - it's been one hell of a roller-coaster, a roller-coaster that we have enjoyed so, so much.

P.S. The obvious song to listen too: "Queen - We Are The Champions"

Monotony?

Yes, the past posts have been a little monotonous - I'm sorry, we just can't stop winning. :P

No really, my posts have been monotonous - football, more football, more victories, more detailed goal explanations, more randomness, more Our-Own-Sharjah-Press-Reporter type posts.

The reason - these posts are for me, and to a certain extent our football team - to serve as pieces of memory, years down the line. The goal explanations are for me to visualize 10 years down the line, and chuckle away with sheer delight. Most of you haven't been able to read through all of them, and it's cool, I don't expect you too.

Selfish? Well this is my blog, so-

For those of you that have supported us, the football team, with your 'congratulations' and 'good luck' comments on this blog, along with your MSN nickname encouragements - RESPECT! Thank you, it is much appreciated - by me, and by the entire team, any support is.

P.S. For some reason, I loved writing this post.

Finals! - Finally...

Finals:

Modern: 4
Charan - 15'
Dusty - 20'
Anish - 33'
Charan - 40'

Indian High School, Dubai: 1
Some Dude - 50'

For the first time in 20 years, Modern High has won a senior inter-school football tournament. Actually, leave alone "won", for the first time in 20 years, Modern High has progressed to the next stage of an inter school senior football tournament, and boy, don't we feel proud having the honour of creating history.

The finals was interesting. The first 10 minutes saw Indian High dominate completely, and it seemed like they would score any minute. But a good counter-attack led to our first goal. Romit's cross from the right-flank was met by Charan, who slotted home another volley, this one involving less luck. It was taken really well, a great finish - thanks Charan!

The second goal was even better. I chipped in a ball for Dusty from the left flank, it rick-o-sheyed off a defender, and Dusty smacked (well volleyed) it home which was clearly the best goal of the game. The third goal came in the second half, where I outran the defence and push-passed it beyond the goal-keeper. The fourth goal was created by Dusty. He himself had an opportunity to score, but missed it. However he got hold of the rebound, and from the left flank, set up Charan. Charan thwarted it, and the ball went flying into the goal, after hitting a Indian High hand and experiencing several deflections. 4-0 to the good. Brilliant.

Ali got his second yellow card of the tournament, and it was yet another proud moment for him. However the resultant free kick resulted in a goal. So there, IHS got a consolation. Big deal. By the end of it all, we all seemed tired. "Seemed" because god knows where the energy came from for celebrating the way we did. We went officially bezerk. Hugs and kisses, and more hugs, and some uncomfortable handshakes, in addition to the victory lap and the jumping huddle, exemplified the pure ecstasy we were experiencing.

Personally, I would like to thank the 11ths and the 12ths that came and supported us today. It helps - it's encouraging - so thank you. Another thank you to Tejas and Govind for videotaping our match, hopefully they will give us edited copies. Yeah Tejas, I am hinting. Also, thanks to all the teachers that supported us through out.

Thanks everyone!

P.S. Right now I can't stop typing. We have frigging won! Brilliantly unbelievable!

Semifinals - HAH!

UPDATED: The Khaleej Times article on the semifinals...

Semifinals:

Modern: 1
Charan - 2'

NIMS, Sharjah: 0

We won, again. The match summary is simple. From the kick-off, within a couple of minutes, we raced into the lead. I received the ball on the right flank, went past a couple of defenders, and put in a cross. The ball got slightly deflected by one of the defenders, but it somehow reached Charan. The deflection obviously put him off a little, but he got his shin to the ball. The ball went towards the far post, struck it, and went in. It took time for us to actually realize that we scored, it was as if we were waiting for some kind of confirmation. I bet everyone asked themselves - 'did that actually go in?'. It did. One-nil to the good.

After that, however, we became Italy-like. We switched to defence mode, and our opponents switched to turbo attack mode. They struck the bar twice, and had an open goal to score into, but didn't convert any of their chances. Thank god. Luck was on our side, and I hope it stays with us for the finals too. And beyond the luck, our defence was pretty strong too. Our small Neil was simply brilliant. His pace, strength and determination underlines the fact that he is the best defender in our team. Hats off to him for a great display, not only today, but throughout the tournament. Attack-wise we had no real chances after our goal. The whole team was defending, and I guess that's a game of its own, a game lateral to the fast-flowing attacking that everyone likes to see. Anyway, it's the result that matters.

Our final is against Indian High School, Dubai. Now Indian High is one team that have been lucky throughout. They qualified from their group as the second place team without scoring any goals. 0 goals. How did they go through? They got a walk over and got 2 more points from 2 goalless draws. Their luck did not stop there. In the quarters, they faced arguably the best team of the tournament, Our Own, Al Warqaa. They beat them on penalties after playing out a 2-2 draw. It doesn't stop there either. In the semis, they faced Our Own Indian, Dubai. Indian High won on penalties, again. They had drawn 1-1 in normal time, and guess how they got their goal? The OOIS goalkeeper had the ball in his hand next to his goal. An IHS player nudged him, and the keeper dropped the ball into the goal. The referee did not see it. The goal stood. Unfair? Or plain lucky? Unbelievable, definitely.

So luck also seems to like IHS, but I guess it is less hypocritical towards them. To add to their luck, we have some sort of voodoo against them. In the past, we have always lost to them. 5-0 - when I was in 8th, 3-2 - when I was in 10th, 7-1 - when I was in 11th. This year, football wise, they are definitely not as good as they were in the past, and we are hungry for revenge. We want to kick their ass. That's it.

P.S. For those who don't know, the whole of 11th and 12th grade boys will get to see the finals on Sunday!

The Quarterfinals! YES!

Updated: The Khaleej Times article on the quarterfinals...

Quarterfinals:

Modern: 2
Anish - 32'
Charan - 58'

Delhi Private School, Jebel Ali: 1
The 'Captain' - 20'

Hypocritical luck was again hypocritical today. It didn't trip us, but it kicked Our Own, Al Warqaa out. Clearly the most dominating team, Our Own, Al Warqaa were devastated to be kicked out by the poor Indian High School team by the cruelest of settlers - the dreaded penalty shoot-out. A team that scored 10 goals in 3 matches lost to a team that scored 0 goals in their group matches. Unbelievable. Damn, I feel for them. Because of Our Own, Al Warqaa, we progressed through the group stages, and now we have progressed to the semis, while they have stumbled. So this bit is just a tribute to them. Well played guys, you were just unlucky.

Our match was different. A poor 1st half was capped by a 40 yard free-kick from the DPS, Sharjah captain that passed into the net over our goalkeeper. Annoyed and suppressed, we came out in the second half more pumped up then ever, almost as if to throw back the suppression on our opponents' face. And we did just that. A brilliant move, that involved a one-two between Aaron and me, led to our first goal. I won the ball in midfield, played it to Aaron, who supplied me a sublime, first-touch, backheeled pass, which I received on the run, I then glided past a couple of defenders and slotted home the equalizer. 2 minutes - that's all it took. From then on, the scenario changed completely. We dominated, winning more balls in midfield and by making less errors. Edwin put on a strong performance, anchoring the midfield and defence by not allowing any ball to seep through. The defence looked more solid, and Bharath made a couple of good reaction saves. On the other end, I hit the bar twice. The first instance was when Romit fed be lovely ball, and I tried to lift it over the goalkeeper, only to strike the bar. In the second instance, my pace beat the defence, but my finish could only hit the inside of the post. How that didn't go in? - I will never know! Charan also had a couple of brilliant chances. At one time, he was clean through with only the keeper to beat, but he stumbled under pressure. Aaron also came close with a volley. It seemed to be just one of those days.

Anyway, 2 minutes before the end, Dusty sweeped in a long ball from the right flank, and Charan pushed it into the goal with a left footed volley. Brilliant. A last minute stunner. We flipped. Nirmal, our young substitute, ran onto the field without the knowledge of the officials. Our coach flipped. Charan almost got squeezed to death. Everyone lost their voices, screaming - it was sheer jubilation, one of those moments where you feel like you cannot possibly be more happy and when you think that your lives truly rock.

However, what followed wasn't a merry sight. The referee put in 10 additional minutes. 10! Yes 10 whole minutes! Even professional matches don't add on so much time. Our coach was going insane on the touchline. All the passion and anger was oozing out. It almost seemed that the referees were against us. But we tried to derive as much pleasure as we could from the extra 10 minutes by employing all the possible time-wasting techniques. Aaron, Dusty and I took the ball to the corner flag and shielded it, annoying the hell out of the other team.

The final whistle was finally sounded, and we freaked out, like a bunch of teenage girls, hugging, kissing, laughing - and then we stretched - to warm down our worn out legs. We have our semi-finals tomorrow. Aaron has taken a knock, and almost everyone has some niggling pain or the other. But once we are on the field, the adrenalin rush is just too strong, all the pain seeps away, and we have this new 'josh' in ourselves.

Basically, I am really excited and cannot seem to stop typing. Let me just conclude by saying that we will try our best in the semis, and reaching the finals would be dream-like - so we'll give it our all. And guys, all of you, thank you so much for the support. It means a lot to us. I hope you guys can come to watch the match. Support is always good! But "you can't miss your classes". Obviously.

P.S. The long detailed post is for memory, a few years down the line, for me, and for the team. So please forgive and ignore if you are bored. =)

India At Its Controversial Best! (starring Sharad Pawar, Ricky Ponting & Damien Martyn)

Australia wins the ICC Champions Trophy like real champions. They go forth to lift the trophy that is being given to them by the BCCI head, Sharad Pawar. They acknowledge the trophy, nudge Sharad Pawar out of the way, and celebrate their victory for the press.

2 days later the mob of India notices this. They notice that Damien Martyn 'nudges' Sharad Pawar away. Obviously, there is an uproar everywhere. All across the country, there are riots and peaceful (hopefully) campaigns against the Australians. Donkeys are painted in Australian colours, and have Damien Martyn written on them. The message is clear - A bunch of donkeys kicked the "mighty" India out of the ICC Champions trophy. Right.

AAJ TAK makes even a bigger issue of this. Hey, anything controversial is good news for news television. They replay the incident a hundred times, literally. And obviously, they then get a couple of people to explain how terrible the act was, and how disrespectful the Aussies were and how they should apologize and how they should be fined, punished and what not. Then you see scenes of the mob chanting ferociously against the Australians. Ozzie flags are burnt and there are banners all around saying 'Australians Is Bad'. Right. A heated debate continues to flair up even more.

The nudged victim, Mr Pawar, steps forward, and provides a twist in the tale by not joining the country in mourning "the great nudge". He says that the Australians were excited, they did not realize what they were doing and they did not intend to do it, so the chapter is closed. Thank you, Mr Pawar for making sense.

But then, our very own super cool Yuvraj Singh wants to be in the news too, so he butts in with an opinion of his own, which is so not needed. Right. India. Obviously.

What I think? - Fine, the 'nudging' was disrespectful. It was not required and should not have been done. But it was not intended. Even Pawar gets it. Why make such a big deal out of it? There are so many other issues that require repetitive coverage, not this miserly incident. Why the hell does India have to blow up everything into this big 'tamasha'? Do we enjoy it? What about the poverty? What about the over-population? Who is raising awareness for that? The press , and yes AAJ TAK especially, are at fault for making such a big deal out of something that could have been made done by a side-column newspaper article. They know that the remaining part of the mob who weren't aware of this earlier will follow them. It's like they want to create chaos. Idiots.

P.S. I bet the Australians are laughing their asses off, not at what they did, but at the uproar they created.

Qualification!

Updated: The Khaleej Times article on the match...

3rd Group Match:

Modern: 1
Anish - 35'

SIS, Sharjah: 2
No. 6 Red Boots - 44'
Random Dude - 47'

Today, we lost, again. We were leading 1-0, again, and the SIS came back to win 2-1 by scoring a couple of goals late in the second half, again. Unlucky? Well luck was hypocritical today, like it always is. Due to a bizarre state of circumstances, we still made it into the quarterfinals as the second team from our group, even when we lost 2 of our 3 matches. Brilliantly lucky!




Today's match wasn't as entertaining as the one against Al Warqaa. Both teams started slow, and we did not really get to dominate SIS, even though their defense was really week. Half way into the second half, I shot us into the lead. Big Neil (i.e. of Grade 12) gave me a pass on the edge of the area, and the ball found its way in the back of the net. We had a good lead, partly deserved and should have kept it. But then things did not go our way. In the last 5 minutes SIS scored 2 quick goals. The first goal was quite brilliant. Their best player, known to us as 'No. 6 Red Boots', dribbled his way past the defense from the corner area, and slotted in a neat left foot shot past our goalkeeper. Their next goal was a little haphazard, and it somehow found its way in the back of the net. The linesman flagged for an offside, but as soon as the referee looked at him, he put his flag down, very cheekily. Anyway, those things happen, but sometimes it's so annoying. What was more annoying was that in the last minute of injury time, I was through on goal, only to slip and miskick the ball. The rebound fell to Romit, but his shot was blocked, and then before Aaron could slot home a last-minute-Drogba-vs-Barcelona-type equalizer, the defense cleared. Immediately after that, the final whistle resonated in our ears.

Our coach was understandably annoyed, and we were all disappointed in ourselves. Twice in two days - that's not good. We lacked aggression, and that 'no-fear' attitude. Skill-wise, we are good, but fitness and aggression wise, we are pretty poor. Our coach drilled that into us today in a long and intense after-match talk. I felt we were too defensive, and the after-match talk saw us all voicing our opinion and get everything cleared. It will only serve us good. There is nothing like talking everything out.

Anyway, Fate seemed to be teasing us. For us to qualify, Our Own Warqaa had to beat NIMS, Dubai, and they did, and we were through. We are through. Now the Warqaa team are like our brothers, but the fraternal love we share will all change if we end up facing them in the knock-out stages. Our principal spoke to us today and said that he wanted us to lose in the finals. Basically the goal is set - finals. Expectations are a little too high, and that's never good, but we will give it our all. Let's hope luck loses the hypocrisy and takes our side.

P.S. Hypocritical 'luck' or hypocritical 'fate' is an obvious example of how 'luck' and 'fate' don't really affect people, they just affect our mindset.

Football Update...

UPDATED: The Khaleej Times article on the match...

2nd Group Match:

Modern: 2
Aaron - 6'
Anish - 18'

Our Own English High School, Al Warqaa: 3
Isaq - 11'
Isaq - 27'
Naveed - 30'

Today, we lost. With a 2-1 lead at half time, we failed to hold on. Our 1st goal was a good finish from Aaron. I threaded a through ball, and Aaron took the goal quite brilliantly, like a true striker. They hit back with a typical cross-in-from-right-then-tap-in. We were then lucky to go up 2-1. I shot, frankly what was a shit shot, and it bounced off a rough patch in the goal area, and defied the goalkeeper. Then, we thought God had indeed blessed us.

But things changed in the second half. 2 quick goals in the from Al Warqaa settled the fray. However we went down fighting. While we were 3-2 down, we had numerous chances to equalize, however we lacked composure and luck when it came to the finishing. I missed 2 chances that I could have, should have taken. In one of the chances I was clean through, but I didn't completely realize that, and I shot feebly. But the best chance to equalize came in the last few seconds when I ran down the right flank, past a couple of defenders, and floated a ball into the center. Aaron came running forward, and jumped up for a header. His technique was perfect. He was 2 feet up in the air, in full momentum, ready to slot his header home. His head connected sweetly with the ball. The ball flew towards the goal, half of us thought it was in, and were on the brink of celebration, but it flew agonizingly off the bar. Damn. That was our story all morning. Our coach said we played poorly and lacked toughness. He said that we needed to make hard tackles, and prevent ourselves from making first-time tackles, for which I was personally to blame.

Anyway, all is not lost. We still have a very good chance of going through if we win tomorrow's match against SIS. NIMS, Dubai, who we beat 2-0, beat SIS 4-2. So technically we still have a very good chance of going through. And even if we fail to win tomorrow, we can move into the quarterfinals on a better goal difference depending on how other matches go. But we don't want to depend on anyone else. Let's hope we win convincingly tomorrow. We just have too.

Ms Dewey...

In the pits of adversity, when man has no hope, when there is absolutely no search engine in the world that will give you the required, relevant result for 'carenthopathiclamonist', it is then that Ms. Dewey will come to our rescue - www.msdewey.com.

Yes, it's a search engine, a search engine with a difference. I'm not saying you will get a required, relevant result for 'carenthopathiclamonist', actually I am sure you won't, but you will surely get entertained. Ms Dewey is this cyber-cleavage-showing babe who keeps knocking on your monitor-screen if you don't type anything in her search-bar. She is more of a man-eating-drool-creating chick who evades being annoying plainly because she is hot, and is a half-decent actor. And Ms Dewey, this new type of searh-engine, is apparently a Microsoft invention, so no illegal, explicit content here. Anyway I have to give this to Microsoft that 'she' is definitely an interesting concept, who has potential, but only in the future. A more user-friendly approach is better but when half the world doesn't have high speed internet, and a quarter of the world doesn't even have internet, this concept is definitely one not for today. Worth a visit though, in times of extreme boredom...

P.S. 'Carenthopathiclamonist' isn't really a word. So Shri, chill, don't panic, it doesn't exist. And also, credit to Deepali for introducing Ms. Dewey to me - visit her blog here.

Football Jerseys!

UPDATED - 4/11/2006

See the Khaleej Times article on the football tournament we are taking part in.

P.S. My middle name is Kishore.

*****

UPDATED - 3/11/2006

1st Group Match:

Modern: 2
Aaron - 6'
Anish - 26

NIMS, Dubai: 0'

A decent start to the campaign, but we played the easiest team in our group. Our coach gave us a 4/10, but we still won. I guess the most we got out of this match is the confidence and morale boost which is highly important and required. Anyway, the next 2 teams we will face (Our Own, Al Warqaa & SIS) are both tough, but hey, we need only one win to go through - and we want this too much.

Thanks guys, for your support.

*****

UPDATED - 1/11/2006 (not really, but we got our jerseys then)



Cool huh?

*****

If you are a part of the the Dubai Modern High School's Football team for 2006-2007, you are one lucky man, and it's confirmed - at the price of Dhs. 80/- only.

Yes, the school team, for the first time in twenty years, will have a non-Ajax, non-Man-Utd, non-blue, actual school jersey, with the players' names and numbers on the flipside. The front will bear a handsome, but simple school logo, along with the word 'M O D E R N'. It was previously going to be 'DMHS', but our principal put it right - 'DMHS' sounds rubbish. All over the world, it is 'Eton', 'Winchester' - so, we will have 'Modern'. And yes sir, I totally agree. 'Modern' does sound better.

That's what our jersey will look like, but without the logos and 'Nakheel'. It will have the school logo and "MODERN' printed on it instead.

We placed in an order for the jerseys today, and they should be ready on the eve of our first match, that is on the 1st of November. We'll look cool, proud and dignified, andthese jerseys will also serve as a piece of memory of the year that was (yeah it's still to get over, but hey...let's hope it's one to remember). So enjoy them. I'm bloody excited to get mine!

Shifting to Indian inter-school football in Dubai - it's pathetic. Every year there is only one, week-long, tournament to take part in. Only one. It's so sad. The Indian sporting infrastructure is poor, and that poorness is even pervading out to places like Dubai. Anyway we love the game, and it's for this reason that when this tournament does knock on the door, we all come rushing out. The excitement levels are immense. Anticipation and nervousness, along with the hunger to prove the discouraging claims of our school of 'we suck' wrong. However, year after year, we turn out to be the losers. With shameful defeats where goal differences reach double figures, to heart-breaking losses, over the years Modern has seen the worst of the Indian football scene in Dubai.

But there have been moments of pure bliss and amazement, like when the junior team of 2004, against all odds, came back winners of the U-16 Al Diyafah Inter School Football tournament for Indian schools. That junior team is today's senior team. It's our last year in school. This is our last tournament. However shit the Indian football scene in Dubai is, this tournament means a lot to us. We want to do well. We have to do well. Let us hope that we will do well. As captain, I would like to wish the entire team good luck, and remember - we play for the love of the game. So enjoy the football, and the result, whatever it is, will take care of itself. Modern High is not known for football. In fact, majority of our school ridicules it's own school football. Damn, it'll feel good to prove them wrong.

P.S. This post is dedicated to Mr. Biswas, our ex-coach, who I want to thank for moulding our football team into one cohesive unit. He coached us to our historic and unexpeceted U-16 Al Diyafah Inter School Football Tourney victory. Thank you sir.

My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade

Everyone has to listen to this album. It's like a fish out of water, but in a very good way. With a Mick-Jagger-ish Gerard Way on vocals accompanied by Mikey Way on bass, Bob Bryar on drums, Frank Lero on rhythm guitar and Ray Toro on the lead guitar.

From start to finish this album does not fail to impress. It just blows you away. The album starts with 'The End' - a short, but brilliant song, very different from what we normally hear today on the radio - good different. But the song that stands out the most, that everyone needs to have, is 'Welcome To The Black Parade'. It's the first single that the band has officially released from their album and it's kick-ass. It's so unique, and it's build up is just fantastic. Personally, I love the intro which is a soft build up, ultimately leading to a bigger bang (no pun intended). It's so beautifully composed, combining heavy rock, choir-like vocals, hair-standing acoustics, voice effects (not the lame-Cher-type ones, but those that actually sound classy), guitar solos, good lyrics, effective breaks, sudden and good-surprising riff changes and an overall excellent arrangement of everything. I can't stop listening to it. Get it! NOW!

The beauty of this album is that My Chemical Romance have dared to be different. They have chucked the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus formula and mounted on to a more anticipating approach to arranging music. They have combined different aspects, and experimented with a lot of different effects and combinations. They have emerged from among the ordinary, with something unique, just like Queen did when they took the world by storm with their mega-hit 'Bohemian Rhapsody', while everyone else seemed addicted to basic hard-core rock. Almost all songs on the album are worth a mention. 'Cancer', 'Mama', 'Sleep' and 'The Sharpest Lives' are all part of my 'listen-to-me-more-than-once' group.

This album is My Chemical Romance's third album. The first two were moderate hits. A song to listen to from their older album is 'Helena' - their biggest hit before 'Welcome To The Black Parade'. Anyway I am majorly in love with this album, and especially with that hell of a song. If you don't like it the first time, hear it again, give it some time - it'll grow on you, even though it's not a grows-on-song. It's just mind-blowingly brilliant.

Final Verdict: 9/10
It's an absolutely, brilliantly fantastic album, which is a must have for any rocker, or any person who likes the 'rock' genre of music. Enjoy it's uniqueness, and drift away into oblivion...


P.S. The last track is well, a 'hidden track'. It's really short and they have really messed around with it. They have given it a '40s feel to it. It's pretty cool - again brilliant. It's quite funny too. Have a listen... (hope I haven't over-praised the album - but hey, I am really enjoying it)

The 6th 007...

Well this is somewhat like a preview, in addition to my venting of the anticipation I have to watch Daniel Craig, leaving all homosexual feelings aside. Doesn't it excite everyone to see a heavily battered and initially criticized blonde dude actaully go against all odds and finally end up with the prospect of being of one the best Bonds ever?

Yes, the critics, as in the ones that mainly criticize everything, have actually framed Daniel Craig to be the best Bond since Connery, after intitally writing him off completely. Hypocrites. Quoting ANI, "Craig makes Brosnan look a bit girlie in comparison. " Really? I was quite a fan of Pierce (Brosnan).(Read this ANI article) Apparently, Craig portrays a much more Ian Flemming-envisioned Bond: strong, aggressive, gritty and really really cool. The trailer for Casino Royale is half-impressive - not bad. It leaves you full of anticipation. (watch trailer above)

Daniel's husky voice, good looks, blue eyes, one hell of a built frame and apparently his ability to kiss(don't ask - just read this) should leave all you girls drooling, especially after he kicks some bad-guy ass. There is this one shot, which is also there in the trailer, where he walks out of the sea in his skimpy underwear, exposing his this hunky body (similar to Halle Berry's infamous orange-bikini 'Die Another Day' shot). Dream on girls.

Anyway, keeping all that aside, personally I can't wait for Casino Royale to hit the theaters. For us guys, this year's Bond-Babe is Eva Green. She is pretty hot. See below:


But hey, I am still more excited about Daniel Craig. :P

And for all you people living in Dubai, check this out: Casino Royale is releasing in Dubai before worldwide release. Can you believe that? Brilliant.

Casino Royale Release Date - UAE - 16th November, 2006
Casino Royale Release Date - Worldwide - 17th November, 2006
SOURCE: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/casinoroyale/international/

P.S. Our school exams start on the 16th of November, 2006. Damn.

"Nupur's Party" Into Video Fun!

Diwali/Eid time - everyone is invited to some family friends' house or the other. We reluctant 'grown' up kids are forced to go there with our parents. If our dad's family friends have a hot son or daughter, we get a little excited. But normally that is never how it is. Anyway we go, enjoy some hearty fake laughs, have some fake, boring conversations and then go home ASAP. Well I was invited to one of these, actually my father was - and as mum wasn't around I had to go, "to give my dad company". It was at my dad's doctor-friends place - a very cool orthopedic doc who has helped fixing my bones many times, and I respect him. He has 2 daughters - one in 9th (I think) and one in 12th.

Anyway, the party began. I was late - you know why. There were 8 girls, one 6th grade boy from our school (who I personally love, but hell how much time can you spend with him?), their parents, and me. 8 girls? Well 8 much younger girls, so NO, its not as exciting as you think it is. Even trying to make conversation gets boring. So as the evening became more and more draggy, everyone was trying to think of something to do. I was just looking at my watch. Then it struck me - I have a bunch of excited girls who will listen to me if we do something fun - that's it! It's time to do what we do best - make videos!

"Let's make a video!" Now that was greeted with great joy. The excitement turned to over-excitement, and finally, I started enjoying. We thought of a story line, and in about 2 hours we finished shooting the video. They had an okay camera and a room which we could use. What else do you need?

The end product:



Okay, okay - the lighting was really bad, the camera resolution isn't too good. The story-line is really lame and "wannabe" - but hey it was for fun in the end, and we all did have fun that evening, so big shit! I enjoyed making the video. After so long I got a chance to edit a video for fun, and really mess around with it! Also the kids in the video loved it and are well quite thankful - so that's also cool!

So for a party where my dad said, "Anish you can leave by 10:30 PM", I ended up leaving at 1:00 AM. :P

Conclusions: All family friend party's are not boring. All you need is a camera. Shoot on!

P.S. Happy Diwali and Eid Mubarak to everyone!

Monalisa - The Confused, Obsessive Chick

Explain to me the beauty of this painting. Is it because it is actually, genuinely beautiful? Or is it because it has so much hype around it that the world has been convinced to think that the painting rocks! Whatever it is, I don't really care. I don't care if she is laughing or smiling, or whether 'she' is a portrait of Da Vinci himself, or how her stare follows you everywhere. I personally don't see anything great in it (believers of the contrary please convince me). But then, I am no art expert.

But what's interesting is the world's obsession with this painting. I came across a TIME article with regards to this, and just read how the world goes bezerk over her:

1. Monalisa Smile: "A Dutch emotion-recognition program determined that her non-grin is just 83% happy. She is also 9% disgusted, 6% fearful and 2% angry." **okay...**
2. Speak Up: "A Japanese forsenics expert claims that by analyzing her skeletal structure, he can accurately re-create her voice, which he said was low for a woman." **what? how?**
3. Smokin': Italian researchers say Leonardo used a blurring technique called sfumato, employing microscopic dots to create the smoky shadows near her eyes and mouth that make her stare so enigmatic." **what the hell!**
   
4. Mona Mia: "A Harvard symblolgist uncovered an anagram scrawled in invisible ink across the painting's face, which led to the discovery of a secret society..." **yeah, you've read a book about it...**

Note: The above information was taken from TIME magazine.

Can you believe the amount of research done on this chick? Wait, she is not even good-looking! I guess it is the enigma and controversy that surrounds the painting that makes it what it is. Christianity, Leonardo Da Vinci and the Illuminati are all very fascinating aspects. But so much hype? Really? But then again, imagine a world without the Monalisa...

P.S. Any other fascinating facts that have eluded me?

Bad Days

Today was one. We all have them and it is so annoying. Nothing, literally nothing seems to be going your way. But then that's being self centered, yeah? Ok fine, nothing seems to be going the right way? But then what is the right way? Your way, yeah?

Nevermind, it happens, and yes it so annoying. You keep trying to justify yourself when you shouldn't - some things are just too obvious. Egos clash and the worse part about it is when people get a wrong impression. But then do we really care? Yeah - at leastI do. If the people I care about start feeling the wrong way, then there is reason to worry. But then they deserve to feel that way about me. Don't they?

Contradicting myself is a very good sign of two things - I am confused and I have had a bad day. So what do I do about it? Move on, and let time handle itself, but at the same time make a constant, effective effort to correct all my perceptions of the "wrongs" I have done.

So for all you bad-day-havers: yes , life does suck and there's nothing you can do about it. But you can look at the postives of life, and move on, accepting the fact that today was a bad day.
Contradictory statements? - Yeah, well, that's the day...


P.S. The obvious song to listen to: Daniel Powter - Bad Day.


UPDATED (17/10/2006): Arsenal lost against CSKA Moscow today, 1-0. I did not get to watch it because I had not checked up the fact that it was an early kick-off. 85th minute - Henry scored, but the goal was disallowed for no visible reason. Henry was yellow-carded for a suspect handball, but replays show otherwise. Soccernet called it 'harsh'. Whatever.

FIFA 07 - A Footie Gamer's Review

That's just the trailer, watch the next video to be blown away!

When it come to computer games, I play only, and literally only, football (soccer) games! Basically, that means I am passionately follow my passion. Since 1999, I have had and mastered each and every EA Sports' "Fifa" gaming franchise. I just had to get my hands on their latest release - Fifa 07, because hell yeah, "This Is The Season"!

The Game: One thing constant about Fifa games is improvement, and this year it's the same. Improvement doesn't necessarily mean the game is awesome. Fifa 06 wasn't that good. I prefer Pro Evolution Soccer 4 to that.

Fifa 07 for irregular game players/newcomers/new football fans: Brilliant - you need to have/play this game to take your understanding of football to the next level and guess what, you can do it in fun way. It's very arcady, very easy and with enough realism to enjoy the world game that is football. It is fast-paced action with enough opportunities to score beautiful goals, from a 30-yard scorcher, to a 17-passes tap-in. Good background music with tunes from 'Keane' and more - you are entertained whilst making your squad and so on. A great online infrastructure only improves the playability of the game. Buy this game, it's fun to play - and you'll definitely enjoy it. Just check out what shit you can do (see video below) - it's brilliant! (Not that I can do any of it in the game - but what is possible)

Now wasn't that just brilliant? But hey don't ask me how to do that kind off stuff. Figure it out and tell me!

STOP! Only proceed if you are a veteran of the EA Sports' Fifa franchise...

Yes! Finally! EA Sports has improved the previously-shitty-irritating shooting system. This system has a much more realistic feel to it - at professional level anyway. The gameplay - it's pretty decent when it comes to skill level:Professional - very enjoyable. But when you switch to World Class, supernormal goal-keepers of the past versions return, and so do supernormal goals. You just wonder how a real footballer would do that in real life? As usual it gets too annoying because the computer-controlled team just has to equalize in the 90th minute. The whistle just won't blow until the computer scores. In that sense, the Pro Evolution Series is far superior, far more realistic. However the game does provide plenty of excitement. The crossing, shooting, passing and dribbling, yes the dribbling system especially, has improved. It's way more realistic and fun. You can actually go on mazy runs! The shooting-fakes is a good add on. Otherwise, the manager mode is pretty much the same. The transfer market system is very very poor. You only have 3 turns to finalize deals between seasons? Why EA Sports? Why? Why do you do things like that? The background music is good. The graphics are ordinary - Pro Evolution's is much better. Sound effects are good. Commentary is crap as usual, it has been for the past 5 years. I find that Fifa 99 had the best commentary.

But hey, the game is still addictive, and if you are a football buff, you NEED to have it. It's very arcady and very fun to play.

Final Verdict: - "A Good Game" - 8/10

• Graphics - 6/10
• Playability - 9/10
• Sound FX - 9/10
• Commentary - 5/10
• Gameplay - 8/10

P.S. It was high time that I shifted from serious grounds onto something more ordinary - so, what you get is this! Also, Fifa 07 players' feedback on the game is requested.

From Here, Where?

Everyone asks himself - what do I want to do with my life? As in, professionally. Amidst all the university rat races, all the football and all the "studies", I asked myself that same question. And it struck me immediately! My passion is football. I try to breathe it, and I know I love it! So what? Do I try and become a professional footballer? Honestly, no - it's too late for that. Then what?

If you ever ask me what my realistic dream is - it is to be Arsenal Football Club's Football Manager! Far-fetched? Indeed. But, so what? It's my dream. Why not attempt to come at least close to it? Who knows what will happen, but at least it's worth my time for I know it's something I desire, something I am hungry for. So I refuse to be over-safe, and over-protective about my career. I am going to hunt that dream down like it's my inherent destiny. Or more directly, I have decided on my major - Sports Management. It's a start. I'm following my heart. Will I enjoy it? I don't know - but it's highly likely. Will I struggle? Maybe. Will I want to quit? Maybe. Will I conquer my ambition? Maybe - and that's the 'maybe' that counts.

There is nothing like uniting your avocation and vocation! (thank you for that Mr. Frost) There is nothing like chasing your dreams. There is nothing like enjoying what you do. There is nothing like being satisfied. Hey, you are not guaranteed satisfaction, but it's worth a try - otherwise all you are left with is regret.

So what's you dream? Let me rephrase that, what's your realistic dream? Forget your inhibitions. Forget consequences. Forget parent and peer pressure. Realize your dream, or at least try to. Common, throw in all those wacky combinations!

P.S. Forgive me for anything that sounds cliched.

University Rat Race

It's time! Everyone desires to get into the best possible university with full scholarship. Everybody wants to know every single thing about every single university in the world (i.e. UK & USA). Everyone's "researching", getting recommendations, asking for career assistance, deciding on futures, doing social work, getting more extra-curriculars in, smooth-talking (i.e. sucking up) potential good-recommendation-givers, giving their SATs, SAT IIs, TOEFL, this, that - everyone wants everything.

The best part is when you hear stuff like, "Oh my God, he has already applied here and it's only October! Wow, he is so sure about his career!" and "Oh my God, he has been accepted here and there and has got scholarship!", when actually what that person has got is this irrelevant chain mail. However, this then spreads, and everyone goes "oooooh, aaaaaah" and "shit man, screwed!".

Everyone's trying to out do the other, get better recommendations, apply to more colleges and 'show', if not actually prove, their hunger to prepare themselves for the world stage. Everyone tries to show everyone else that they know the most about universities and its application processes. But then there are people who believe that 'life is like a leaf', and don't worry much about their future. Obviously these leafy people have moments of alarm when they realise they have no clue as to where their future lies, but then this 'alarm' subsides more quickly than 'everyone' else's does, and they return back to where they were - examining leaves. Everyone panics, momentarily, and then everyone's back to doing what they want, but at least 'everyone' gets some work done.

My point - nothing at all. I'm not trying to prove anything, just observing. It's fun to see the competitive nature, the worry, the genuine work and the moments of pure fake-ness. The funniest thing is when people get into IIT, or some high-funda college in the U.S. or U.K., but then suddenly, next year, you find them in the American University of Dubai, because, apparently, "IIT is difficult, you know."

I just want to enjoy this rat race, and be an integral part of it too. You know, be hypocritical. I'm learning from certain local educational institutions.


P.S. This 'everyone' refers to all Grade 12 students, yearning to get into universities. And hell, this is somewhat similar to the 'prefect' situation we had in Grade 11!

Lagey Raho Bollywood!

I know this is a little late, but Lagey Raho Munnabhai was one hell of a movie. You know how much I hate Bollywood, but this movie made me proud of India, Bollywood and Gandhi!

The story was unbelievably well crafted. Almost everything made sense, and in the end it did not leave the audience (and me) with an unrealistic feel. It was hysterically hilarious and the acting was brilliant. Arshad Warsi almost overshadowed Sanjay Dutt with his overly humorous portrayal of 'Circuit'. However Sanjay Dutt was not bad, pretty good actually, but 'Circuit' just had much better lines.

But what was most brilliant about this movie was that it delivered a strong, very strong message in the end about the Gandhian principles of patience, non-violence, truth and persistence. I feel there was no better way to bring out such a meaningful message. It hits you, hits you hard, in the end, and you really start wondering how can you take on the principles Gandhigiri. I mean what better way to bring out this message than making one of the most lovable 'gangster' characters of the recent past, a Gandhian believer.

It was brilliant, and for the first time in a long time I thoroughly enjoyed a Hindi movie. The last movie I saw was Krrish, and it was very poorly made, cliched and fake - and the response it got - that was shocking! It has been so over-rated. I did not even laugh at its fake-ness, I was embarrassed.

However, Bollywood has been brightened up by this sequel of Munnabhai M.B.B.S. I hope this film gets the due recognition it needs and I also hope that Bollywood learns from this film, and comes up with better movies, with better story lines in the future.

Final Verdict for Lagey Raho Munnabhai: Simply brilliant, a must see!

Conspiracy Theory: A Magical 9/11?

Don't we all love conspiracy theories? I do. Conspiracy theories never fail to amuse me, especially ones that are well documented. Did man land on the moon? Well I don't think so - the proof of the theory against that theory is killer. Call me easily swayed and naive - but have you seen the proof against it? Anyway, lets put that aside. Through the progression of time, new conspiracy theories arise, and this new one will, definitely, 100%, blow you away.

September 11, 2001 - the annihilation of the twin towers by a couple of airplanes. A hoax? Maybe! Maybe.

I would like to thank TIME magazine once again for this. 'Loose Change' is a 90 minute documentary made by a couple of college students on why 9/11 was a well rehearsed show for a few government officials, on why it was a 'cover up'. It debunks the fact that 9/11 was a terrorist act completely. In a nutshell it states that the always controversial United States of America hoaxed the collapse of the twin towers and blamed it on Al Qaida as an excuse to invade the Middle East, and foil the evil that "terrorism" would eventually bring along. Can you believe that? What the hell did the US of A really want from Middle East, the oil?

The documentary 'Loose Change' might have been made by amateur college students on a Laptop, but it's one hell of a professional video. With unbelievable footage, and even more illusionary concepts and ideas, this might just change the way you think as to what happened on the morning of 9/11.

Loose Change 2nd Edition, Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGEb40o17yE

Loose Change 2nd Edition, Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOVWBQKUpsU

Loose Change 2nd Edition, Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtV1uxYnu0w

What's even more amusing is that there is another documentary made debunking 'Loose Change'. It falsifies most, if not all, theories put forth by "Loose Change".

Screw Loose Change - Not Freakin' Again Edition
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_
videos&search_query=loose%20change%202nd%20edition
&search_sort=&search_category=0&page=1

However this other video just does that, it just falsifies some theories put forth by "Loose Change", but it doesn't completely prove that 9/11 was a terrorist act. The footage researched and showed by "Loose Change" is far more, well, convincing. But then again, I am still confused. I don't know what to believe. Do you?

A Tribute To 9/11...?

This is the first of a couple of posts on the infamous, tragic and literally unbelievable 11th of September, 2006.

Above is a picture of firefighter, Tiernach Cassidy of the United States of America, who took 9 months to complete that illusory tatoo. Yes, NINE months! Why? "The pain in my back was good for the pain in my head, " - that's why. The trauma of losing five of his firehouse's men will be imprinted on his back. The 'burning' towers, the five close friends and the memory - that's what the tatoo stands for, a tribute indeed.

Also, he got full news coverage for his pain. Even TIME covered his story, and that's how I got to know about this. But, wow.

Now imagine if 9/11 was a hoax.

Fantasy Premier League - DMHS 06

Thanks to Harendra Kapur, an abnormally aged, 18-year old, 12th Grade student of DMHS, DMHS has a Fantasy Premier League. Great intiative HaRRendra!

Harendra has told me to that he feels the league he has created will get a lot of publicity through this Blog. He wants you to do the following:

1. Create your team at http://fantasy.premierleague.com.
2. Join DMHS 06 Private League, by entering this code - 302564-132007.
3. Enjoy the league for the rest of the season.

Furthermore, Harendra wants to add that he apologizes for the late initiation of the league. He says that he felt it would be better that a league started after school began.


P.S. - Forgive the sarcasm, but enjoy the league - I love you Harry! :P

Thailand - KEANE!

After fighting it out with my parents, I "convinced" them that I had to go for this concert. And it was the best way to end a vacation.

Impact Arena - that's where the concert was held, some 30 km from my hotel and this was what bothered my parents. Anyways...

I arrived some 2 hours before the concert began, and was praying that tickets the tickets would be available. However, getting a ticket was not a problem, not at all a problem, in fact it was no where close to being sold out. I bought far standing tickets for about 1000B, which is like dhs 100 - quite cheap for a concert compared to Dubai.

Half an hour left for the concert to start, no one was lining up, no hullah ballah, everyone was in their own world, eating, drinking, laughing, sitting..:S. I was the lone person in the line, and the security was laughing at me - mumbling away in their complex language. Just then some news came in that all far- standing ticket holders had to move into the front-standing line - well because you don't want to have an empty front standing pit! So there I was, right in front, watching one of the best concerts I have ever seen.

Some Thai band opened the show, and the nervousness on their faces was more than evident - they were average, and funny - nothing can beat Thai singing.

Right in front of me, on the other side of the railing, were 3 girls and this one long haired guy - who were also in their own worlds. They came off really pretentious with their American accents and heavily made up faces. One was crazy, one was medium crazy, and the third girl felt she was the most beautiful girl in the world. The guy was high, and these people were really loud and seemed to be having a great time - so well kudos to them - but hell, the artificial-ity (if that's a word)...lord! The reason for the above paragraph is that, for the entire period of waiting for Keane to come on stage, these four characters really entertained me.

Next to me was this 10 year old girl, Nicola (i think), who had an English father and a Thai mum. She was fluent in both of her parents' languages, which was really cool. She loved Keane, and I was really fascinated by her, really innocent and down to earth, she was an opposite of the 3 girls in front of me.

Finally Keane began, and blew the hell outta Bangkok. Keane comprises only 3 members, one drummer, one AWESOME keyboardist, and one BLOODY AWESOME singer. Performance wise, they were perfect. Their music is awesome, and their stage presence was even better. The arena was three-quarters full, but the audience were amazing. It was unbelievable, Thai people who could hardly speak english, mouthing every single word of almost every single song. I was quite awestruck. "Somewhere Only We Know" was a sing along. But the song I enjoyed the most was "Bedshaped". They ended with it, and well I kind off dropped off into oblivion. It was really really well performed and the light arrangements made it even better.

After Robbie, Keane is the best concert I have been too. So if any of you get a chance to see them, don't miss out - they really rock!

Thailand - Food

Before I went, I was told that the food there is totally completely amazingly AWESOME! I expected that, and was really looking forward to it...

Now I am back, and I say the food was good. Thai Green Curry & Red Curry are awesome, and the Shrimps with asparagus and garlic is also very good. I enjoyed it, until I met with something called Gastritis. It's a disease, you know, of the stomach, which is well food poisoning. One day of sheer nausea, vomiting and passing outs was what it gave me, but that's it. One low point, but the food is still good, not totally completely amazingly AWESOME, but good - so enjoy it when you/if you go there, but don't over-expect.

Well one highlight of the trip was that I tried snake, and it was not that bad, pretty good actually. It's like chicken, but really chewy. Apart from that, I did try some sea food. We ordered fresh fish, and got it fried. We did get it fried. It had fried head, fried eyes, fried teeth, fried body, fried fins, and fried bones, and the fish itself was okay, but it often makes me sick when I envision something like that, and now I am off that sort of fish for eternity.