Govinda....

Govinda... Thats Lord Venkateshwara... The money God... Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam... In terms of money this place ranks after Vatican in the worldwide ranking... That should say something about the number of Venkateshwara devotees...Tirupati is just about 250 kms from Bangalore, where I am currently... And so Tirupati trip happened on feb 25 - feb 26 ' 2006...
It was some experience...
I am a believer in God.... though not a strict devotee...
For a fleeting (2 seconds if u are really lucky !) glance at the Lord's statue, one needs to
brave around 4 hr (Rs.50 q) long queue...
U learn a lot of things standing in the queue...
Patience...Money...That you really need to struggle to reach God... trying to be polite in the
queue for darshan gets u nowhere, just lands you in trouble...
for somebody trying to analyse human psychology ,it would be an interesting place... U get to see so many kinds of people n all... The 'laddus' which you get as blessings in the end, i put under the criteria of 'really needed'...
U really are physically drained after the queue experience though your mmind refuses to acknowlege it.... and the laddus taste awesome !
After roaming in and around Tirupati (The town at the base of Tirumala hill) and Tirumala (the
hill where the temple is actually located) , i also thought that our concept of cleanliness needs
to be redifened....There's a long way to go yet...
Me and my friends actually walked up from Tirupati to Tirumala (11 kms, took us around 3 and a half hrs, at a comfortable pace)....The climb was good... To begin with steep slope (though there are good stairs) tests you... As you move on it becomes easier...
Teaches you about life... The beginning is always tough !
The walkway takes you through a deer park n all... Makes the climb interesting...The clouds and nature around are also mesmerising... I also found the 'Gopurams' peeking out through the greenery fascinating...
guess i am moving towards spirituality !!
Since one of my friends has actually put the detailed trip in words, I take the luxury of just
putting up a weird collection of thoughts here... :)

HEaven....

Sat, 4th Feb'06 - Desperate to finish work... Don't want to work on Sun...
Sun, 5th Feb'06 - No work... :) Good.. :)
So can attend the 'Third Time Lucky' Brian Adams Rock Show...
This was the first time I attended a live show by a star, was all excited about it...
After a bit of trouble with our car and the driver, we reached Palace Grounds, Bangalore , the venue.. We, was Me, Visu n Nitin...
The atmosphere was all charged up... There was a huuge queue to get in... The actual entry gate was not even visible... Thats how long the queue was..
The crowd was young and already dancing..Airtel gave out head bands with the words 'I love Bryan Adams' painted..We were all set with those bands and all, just waiting to get in.. After an hour in the queue, a nominal security check and we were in...
A packet of lays (Lays happened to be one of the sponsors..) , a diet pepsi got us going...
To begin, some Indian Rock Band played some songs...
And then .......... BRYAN ADAMS and his troupe were on stage.... AWESOME..
The crowd was in a frenzy... There were screams and excitement all around...
It was a standing show and people were already dancing to his tunes...
Mr.Adams has tremendous energy...
18 till I die - well I believe him, doesnt look like he'll get any older ;)
Cuts like a knife.. Cant stop this thing we started.. Please forgive me.. Summer of 69..
Lets make a night to remember.. Everything I do.. Only thing that looks good on me is u...
Room Service..
He doled out songs for about two hours from 8 to 10 pm..
He kept the huge crowd hooked all the time...
The pace was just right.. groovy .. :) The night was starry n clear... The music was a treat for the senses... I can try n describe the whole experience in just two words - 'CAN'T DESCRIBE'! ...
What more can a mortal soul ask for..
To quote Mr. Adams 'It isn’t too hard to see We’re in heaven' ..... :))