The article below is by my friend Priya Subramanian. Some of her experiences in Chennai and places to visit. Very useful for people wanting to know more places they can shop, eat out etc. Enjoy!

Last time while I was at Chennai, I totally went nuts on eating out, shopping and hanging out with my best-est-est friends. Many of my friends and family here in the US have been asking me for info on all the ‘wheres’, so I just thought I’d pen it here rather than sending individual emails.

Restaurants:

~ Cream Centre (near Chennai Kaliappa/Billroth Hospital) - for awesome parathas and chaats
~ Sigri (in Quality Inn, Aruna) - for yummee starters, dum Biryanis etc
~ Tangerine Restaurant (Alwarpet) - for spicy Paneer Kababs
~ Ajnabhi Mithai Ghar (Egmore Fountain Plaza) - for Chaat
~ Shree Mithai (Spencers or Chetpet) - for Channa Baturas, pedas, kathlis, bengali sweets etc
~ Copper Chimney (near Music Academy) - just about everything’s good!
~ Annalakshmi (Mount Road) - for exotic juices and thaalis! Lovely ambience too!!
~ Dakshin (Park Sheraton) - for Aapams and stew
~ GRT Grand Days and Mathsya - good buffets (at Mathsya, kids eat for free)

Of course, there’s the usual Vrindavan, Murugan Idli shop (yummee kutty vengaya uthappams), Saravana Bhavan, Gangotree, Mansukh etc. Don’t forget to grab Pan Kajur at Mansukh for a scrumptious post-meal experience!! Coffee Day at Kasturba Nagar houses delectable veggie tikka sandwiches.

Clothes:

This designer’s name is Mrs.Bhuvana Ramanan and she runs an ethnic boutique, ‘Vasthara’ in Thiruvanmiyur. Her numbers are:
9940388815
9790977773
She pretty much does everything from salwars to kurtas to kurtis to sarees to just dupattas etc etc and has her own fabric. I totally fell in love with every inch of clothing she designed for me this time.

Trinkets and other paraphernalia:

~ Seventh Sense (Mrs. Kanchana Ganesh) - you get really neat terracotta sets and gifts here.
~ Sundari Silks (t.nagar) - my favorites for ethnic pavadais for kids, ethnic gifts, jewellery, ethnic skirts, tops, podavais etc.
~ Golu Bommais - there is this great guy in Saidapet who makes his own bommais and packs them up really nicely for shipping to the US. His bommais have really sharp features and his sets are quite different/novel. I will post his number soon..
~ Cane and Bamboo (Ethiraj salai, Egmore) - http://www.caneandbamboo.in/

Temples:

~ There is a beautiful Shirdi Sai Baba temple at Injambakkam, Chennai (near Prarthana open air theatre). Try to visit if you can.
~ Shri Muralidhara Swamiji’s ashram at Manimangalam/Malaipattu graamam (just past thambaram) houses a lovely Gurukulam/Veda Paatashala/Goshaala and its such a pleasant retreat of sorts for any visitor.

Movie Theatres:

~ INOX in Chennai City Center and Sathyam Theatres are my favorites for a phenomenal audio/video and overall experience. Oh and they both have online booking and home delivery of tickets too!

I would really encourage y’all to add more to my list above.

I wish you an enjoyable trip to the glamorous and one and only Singaara Chennai!!

Please read the first part - Click here.

Well it was the final day and was the day when dreams came true or came crashing down! But for us in the audience, was one of the best moments we would ever experience. Before the results were announced, the people who made DTAC happen were recognized. The Best Club Newsletter was also announced. Finally the District 79 Newsletter was released by the Toastmasters International Director Mohammed Murad. It was a great feeling that the newsletter I designed was to be released to so many Toastmasters. I was the happiest guy on stage that day. It was even sweeter when everyone liked it! What a feeling!

Well, the results of the DTAC 2009 held in Abu Dhabi, were announced and hence here are the results.

Table Topics

1. Sujit Sukumaran
2. Hemalata Thawani
3. Abraham Thomas

Humorous Speech

1. Mohammed Essa
2. Tariq Al Qahtani
3. Mohamed Abdulla Isa

International Speech

1. Koka Prasad
2. Mohammed Essa
3. Loy Machedo

Mathew was placed in the top 5. He did a splendid speech and we in Lagoon Toastmasters are really proud of him. It is no laughing matter, is it?!

Loy Machedo came 3rd, but his performance was world class. His was the ONLY speech which stood out from the rest. Congratulations Loy! You “ROCK”!

Speaking about the winners, they were of course the best. Koka Prasad will now be representing our District in the US. All the best to him. Incidentally he won the DTAC last year too and had represented us then also.

Well that’s it for now.

It was a wonderful 3 days of exhilarating contests and keynote speeches. With more than 700 registrations for this event, it was one of the most exciting DTAC conferences ever in the GCC. It was indeed a “Journey towards Excellence”.

This would not have been possible without these people - Nasef Dhafari, DTAC Chairman and his team and Radhakrishnan Karantharath (RK), the District Governor and his team.

Day 1 was held in India Social Center. It was the day of qualifying for the finals of the Humorous, Table Topic and the International speech contests. Our club the Lagoon Toastmasters was participating in the Humorous (TM Mathew Jacob) and the International (TM Loy Machedo) speech contests. The did an amazing job and qualified. A lot of speakers were very good. One of my favourites apart from Loy and Mathew was TM Sujith Sukumaran in Table Topics. I will post videos if I get them. Some of the brilliant ones were V P Menon, Mohammed Al Essa, Mohamed Abdulla Isa and Tariq Al Qahtani in Humorous. Sridhar Sampath, Jiju Varghese, Koka Prasad, Mohammed Al Essa, Reginaldo Maga Jr, Jamsheed Hamza and Asif Daudi in International. Rajendra Varma. Sujit Sukumaran, Abraham Thomas and Hemalata Thawani in Tabe Topics.

Day 2 was held in the Intercontinental Hotel. The Finals of the Humorous and the Table Topics contests.Keynote speeches by two World Champions of Public Speaking, Ed Tate and Darren LaCroix was very educative and a great learning experience. The contests were held and everyone gave their best performances. The District Council Meeting was also held and it was an eye opener for me. So many enthusiastic Toastmasters wanting to take up Leadership roles to lead their Division and District. A real election process with lots of joy and disappointments. But as it is in Toastmasters, we take it in the right spirit and all support given to the winners! True Toastmasters Spirit.

Day 3 same hotel. The Finals of the International contest. The release of the District 79 Magazine. The Awards ceremony. After the keynote address by Ed Tate, which btw way was on ‘how to make stories in minutes’ and was brilliant, was the International Speech Contest. This is one of the main events because the winner here represents this region Internationally in August in the USA. Whoever wins becomes the World Champion of Public Speaking! The speakers were Sridhar Sampath, Jiju Varghese, Koka Prasad, Mohammed Essa, Loy Machedo and Asif Daudi.

Every speaker put up his best show and emotions were high. The crowds escatic. The fans eager. Everybody on their toes as each contestant spoke, the audience hung on to every word, every action, every emotion, every pause. So intense so beautiful.

We came back to our senses only after the contest was over!

Please read the second part - Click here.

I should have written this sooner. One of the main events for the Toastmasters in this part of the region. The District Toastmasters Annual Conference or DTAC as it is commonly referred to in Toastmasters circles is a platform for speakers of different nationalities to come on stage and try to compete with each other to become champions of the district.

This DTAC will be held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Abu Dhabi from 21st to 23rd May 2009 for the first time. More than 800 Toastmasters from the 13 Divisions and 7 countries making up District 79 are expected to attend the 21 - 23 May DTAC. The theme for DTAC 2009 is: Developing Leadership & Communication Towards Achieving Strategies. Anyone can attend. Details can be found in the DTAC website.

Two amazing speakers are giving speeches, Darren Lacroix and Ed Tate.

Darren is the 2001 World Champion of Public Speaking. He has traveled the world demystifying the process of creating a powerful speech. He has roused audiences in faraway places like Oman, Malaysia, and Taiwan with his inspirational journey from first-rate chump to first-class champ, proving anything is possible if you are willing to work for it.

Ed Tate is the 2000 World Championship of Public Speaking. Ed is an international keynote speaker, author, trainer and facilitator for Fortune 500 companies and associations worldwide. Ed has spoken in 13 countries, and on five continents.

You can contact DTAC officials here.

It was a reminder for me today about friends. We take for granted nearly all things that we have by default. Our family, work, friends etc. Although family in top priority I wont be talking on that.

Friends!

We all have friends one time or the other throughout our lives. Some we have for a few days perhaps and some for a lifetime. We remember some old friends when we were in our young school days. Most of these lasted till we left that particular school. At that time, when we thought that they were our best and closest friend, exist no more! A few who we never imagined to be our best pals are the ones still with us and seem inseparable!

We all need friends and so should you be one. For good times and bad, they are the ones we celebrate with. A shoulder to cry on when we have lost a loved one, a pet, when hurt, when the world seems to be against us. To celebrate a victory, a birthday, new job, new life, a promotion.

In every step of our lives only friends help us through most of the time.

I am trying to search for all friends I have known when I was in school and college. Back then there was no Facebook or Orkut or any other socializing networks. Luckily I have found many, thanks to these websites and Google.

Look back into your life and remember the friends you had and the good times or bad you had together and reminiscence those moments. Find your lost friend. Thank your friends for all they have done. Life is short and we should not forget to thank those who were with us in sorrow and joy.

This is a lovely song and is a tribute to all my friends.

That’s What Friends Are For Lyrics
song performed by Dionne Warwick in the album Dionne Warwick - Greatest Hits (1979-1990)

And I never thought I’d feel this way
And as far as I’m concerned
I’m glad I got the chance to say
That I do believe I love you

And if I should ever go away
Well then close your eyes and try
To feel the way we do today
And then if you can remember

**
Keep smiling, keep shining
Knowing you can always count on me, for sure
That’s what friends are for
For/In good times and/in bad times
I’ll be on your side forever more
That’s what friends are for

Well you came and opened me
And now there’s so much more I see
And so by the way I thank you

And then for the times when we’re apart
Well then close your eyes and know
These words are coming from my hearts
And then if you can remember

** Repeat three times

Recently I came across this on the web. This technology has been here for quite a while, but only a few would have seen this. I am amazed at how people could think like this! Just brilliant. Creative advertising has gone wild. Gone are the days when advertisers controlled what they wanted consumers to see. Now consumers can interact and learn with these types of technology.

Here, the print ad uses a technology created by metaio called augmented reality in which digital content, such as 3D animations or movies, can be viewed in the real world in real-time. The ad campaign was created by Munich, Germany agencies Buzzin Monkey and die agentour GmbH.

Here’s how the technology is activated. Consumers remove the print ad from a magazine, type in a URL online, then hold the ad in front of their Web cam.

What happens next is really amazing. The MINI convertible will appear in 3D on top of the Web page, making it appear that it’s sitting atop of the ad the user is holding. When the user moves the print ad, the 3D MINI moves too, in real-time. Viewers can get a bird’s-eye view of the front, back and interior of the car.

Now for the bad news. This only works on a PC; users need to install a 3D-plugin and activate their Web cam to experience augmented reality. In short, we’re a ways away from instant gratification. However, metaio is working on an upgraded version of the technology that will run completely on Flash and cut out installation steps currently needed.

Augmented Reality technology, according to metaio, has existed on an academic level since 1990, but remains in early adoption mode for commercial use, having first been used in late 2006.

Book publishers, toy companies and car manufacturers have been quick to embrace the technology. While it’s too early to determine how many people will interact with the ad, it’s never to early for guesstimates.

I still havent tried the ad yet, but its quite easy. All you need is a copy of the ad, a webcam, and a web browser (sorry, Internet Explorer/ActiveX only) to view the 3-D AR effect. It won’t hurt if you can read German too.

Please do give it a try and post your comments .

For the past few days i have killed nearly 5! I am not writing from jail and certainly I am not wanted by the police! It’s mosquitoes that were killed! 5! Is that even a count? I’ve been in Sharjah, UAE for nearly 6 years and haven’t seen any mosquitoes!… until now that is. The favourite pet pest in the UAE is the famous bachelors bug or the bed bug. It thrives oh heat and of course blood! It likes bachelor pads for the single reason because they are very clean and hygienic! If you kill one you bring 100’s more. Only a few ways to get rid of them, drown them in water, scotch tape them, bomb them (they have a special bomb where you place the bomb in the room and seal the room so that no air escapes…it works - be gone for 24 hrs, else you go with the bugs!), or leave the country! We have come to live with them, drowning, taping and bombing them frequently.

The recent rain has brought a new pe(s)t - Mosquitoes! I don’t think they will last the summer but the point is- they have arrived! Brings back memories of home - nets, good night liquid, tortoise coils…

Welcome my friends. Have a great summer!

Not many know what “Muthaba” is. If you are from Tamil Nadu, Malaysia or  Singapore you would know. Murthaba is a very common dish in these parts especially with the Muslim community. The word is possibly derived from the word “Murtabak”. Generally it is a dish where meat/vegetables are stuffed into bread forms and cooked/baked. Many say it originated in India and was taken to other places by traders during the Muslim rule. Different places have different versions, but none compared to the “Murthaba”! Some would disagree if I said it belongs to Koothanallur, a village somewhere near Thanjavur in South India. It’s actually the place where I was born. It’s mailny a Muslim community and famous for a variety of delicious mouth watering cuisines! We believe in the saying that the way to the heart is through the stomach!

The Murrthaba is basically a filling of mutton, chicken or vegetables wrapped in dough and pan cooked over a slow fire with lots of ghee! It is very filling and of course amazingly very very delicious!

The reason I thought of writing about it is because of Imthiaz’s mother-in-law or “mami”. Last night I went to visit them in Deira, Dubai. It was just a casual unexpected visit and I was in luck. Mami prepared another version of the murthaba called “Jaaler Murthaba”. Jaaler is another dish made by dripping watery flour mix directly onto the pan which forms a net like pancake.  The filling is then folded into a few of the Jaalers and pan cooked. It is similar but has a different taste. Nonetheless it was a treat! Very tasty and I ate all I could. It fills you up pretty fast. I have to thank her for the wonderful Murthabas.

Mom is also a superb cook and she always prepares all these dishes whenever possible. Whether the Murthaba originated in Koothanallur, I don’t know. …but it prospers very well over there! If you do plan to visit us in Koothanallur please don’t forget to ask for… you know what!

Before you get any funny ideas let’s get to know what it exactly is!

What is Toastmasters?

From a humble beginning in 1924 at the YMCA in Santa Ana, California, Toastmasters International has grown to become a world leader in helping people become more competent and comfortable in front of an audience. The nonprofit organization now has nearly 235,000 members in 12,036 clubs in 106 countries, offering a proven – and enjoyable! – way to practice and hone communication and leadership skills.

Most Toastmasters meetings are comprised of approximately 20 people who meet weekly for an hour or two. Participants practice and learn skills by filling a meeting role, ranging from giving a prepared speech or an impromptu one to serving as timer, evaluator or grammarian.

There is no instructor; instead, each speech and meeting is critiqued by a member in a positive manner, focusing on what was done right and what could be improved.

Good communicators tend to be good leaders. (http://www.toastmasters.org/)

I have been with Toastmasters since 2004 and it has been a fantastic time. I found out about Toastmasters from a friend of mine, Zaheer who attended one in Saudi Arabia. I immediately searched for it, found out what it was and attended a meeting near my house in Sharjah.

I didn’t know what to expect, so I just went ahead and played along. It was a group of roughly 15-20 like minded people gathered for a sole reason. To develop their personal speaking and leadership skills by helping each other.

The mission of a Toastmasters Club is as follows:

The mission of a Toastmasters club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every member has the opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

There were  engineers, accountants, businessmen, students and even housewifes. These people wanted to develop their speaking skills and to develop self confidence. Self confidence is something most of us lack in. This is mainly due to fear. Fear of what people think of us, how we are performing, fear of the unknown and a whole lot of fears. We now live in a world where people see us by the way we communicate. Communication plays a major role in our homes as well as the work place.

I went that day expecting it to be just another useless meeting trying to lure people into something. This was a club called Lagoon Toastmasters Club (http://lagoontoastmasters.com/). This club is based in Sharjah, UAE. Everyone I met there were very friendly and were constantly encouraging one another. Every small effort was appreciated by all. Speaking in front of many people is not a joke. Some literally wet their pants! I was asked to introduce myself in front of all and I did it with a little difficulty. A lot of things crossed my mind - what will they say, think, am I talking nonsense etc. I don’t know what I said. But in the end, everyone just clapped and made me feel that I had achieved something great. One thing led to another and in the end I ended up joining the club as a member. There are so many experiences which have had an effect on me after I became a regular.

The best way is for you to find out yourself. So go to a club near you and make use of this wonderful organization to help yourself to overcome fear and develop self confidence.

To find the nearest club in your area please click this link - http://www.toastmasters.org/find/

Toastmaster Clubs in Sharjah, Toastmaster Clubs in Dubai, Toastmaster Clubs in Abu Dhabi

We all miss the rains here in UAE. It’s because being from the subcontinent, we are used to the rain. Riding on bikes, with no helmet on, crossing puddles of water, surviving open drainage, with buses happily spaying us with a mixture of rain water, sewage, mud, rose petals, jasmine (the rose and jasmine - leftovers from a funeral procession of course!), it is so much fun and excitement. Getting fully soaked is a good feeling. The ultimate part is when the water starts to flow from the shirt into the pants! What a feeling! lol

The rain brings us back to all our childhood memories and the fun we all had together as children. Rain is beautiful. The first raindrops on the dry earth brings our an aroma that cannot be described! What a smell! Like the famous Titanic phrase there is a similar one… It’s been 84 months and I can still smell the wonderful smell of rain on soil! I know it sounds horrible.. but who cares! It’s just to say rain bring in a lot of pleasant memories.

Rain in UAE. Now that is a total different thing. First of all it is a desert and rain is not there in the UAE dictionary. Or so it seemed to be until a few years ago. Now it is becoming a regular event! Here a slight rain clogs up the roads. What else would you expect when throughout the year you have sand blowing everywhere and filling up every drainage hole. Now here rain water and fine sand is not good. Slush! Luckily over here most of us drive around in cars. Bikes are not common because of the heat. The only thing we experience here from the rain is - TRAFFIC JAMS!

Recently in the past few days we have had heavy rain, hail stones as big as marbles and SNOW also! You can view more of this in the Gulf News. This climate change surely has something to do with global warming. UAE cannot withstand rain like this. Let’s hope everything is back to normal soon. Certainly this rain does not bring any memories back but only fear - fear of traffic jams! …especially driving to and fro between Dubai and Sharjah.

Rain rain go away, little johnny wants to go to work!