Letter to Sebastian Paul, Our MP

Dear Member of Parliament – Covering Varapuzha,

Hope you are doing well. None of us have neither seen you nor heard of you for a very long time, to be precise we have not seen you after the last elections. Our roads in the heart of the city (Ernakulam) are all broken up. WAste is piling up every where. People are falling sick. Every day atleast 10 people are dying.  I am down with fever and the hospital I went was  crowded with similar cases. In fact I first went to Dr.Zacharias clinic and it was full so I went to the hospital at Koonammavu. These are the news from here. You may not be aware of all these, since you are busy at Delhi, representing us.

Dont worry about us and our welfare.  Keep enjoying. Go hell with people. We need them only during the next election. Till then make merry.

Cheers !

Citizens of Kerala

Please go on a vacation for 1 year – We will pay

Recently on the TV in one of those fun channels they were showing a competition to elect the best politician by Keralites over SMS. To the surprise of every one Acuthanthan, Pinarai, RAmesh Chennithala, Oomen Chandy got the same number of votes, and were forced to go for a long vacation.

It has great meaning. We will be better without these leaders. Come and see the plight of the roads in Kerala. Anyone in charge of this will be ashamed. See the 10+ deaths every day in the state due to fever. See the crwds in every hospital suffering from fever. See the piling waste within the Cochin City !

People of Kerala are slowly realizing that, they want real leaders, who can work for the betterment of the society, not the chocolate leaders.

Varapuzha under the grip of chicken guniea?

Varapuzha is under the grip of fever. No one is sure whether it is chicken guniea or not. All the hospitals here are full with patients. I am not surprised. I think that this just the beginning of much worser epidemics. Last week the entire Cochin city was filled with waste. The corporation authorities did not remove the waste in the city for days together. The Cochinites were literally covering their nose, while near the heaps of waste.  The God’s own contry’s roads are another site to watch these days. Roads in the entire state is in pathetic condition.

Whom to ask?. Whom to complain?. I feel literally helpless. I think we already learned to live in this filth.  My Dogs own country….. Next election we will forget all these and again elect our representatives to the assemblies and parliaments…for What?……To improve their quality of life?

An email from my cousin in Muscat

Muscat is very special to me, becuase that is the first country I visited outside India and I lived there for 2 years. A beutiful place, full of beaches and a kind of slow life. That is how I am remebering the place. Here is an email from my cousin, which explains what the common man Oman is undergoing after the onslaught of ‘Gonu’.

 Dear Abrachan,
 
Thanks for your mail.
 
Sorry for the delay in replying. Here things are getting back to normal
 but slowly. The devastation is terrific. Fortunately our area was not
 affected as it is not low lying and not close to the rivers. Only a few
 trees fell in the place where I am stating that ie Wadi Kabir. But about
5 km from here about 15 people died as the building they were standing
was swept away by the flooding waters. The roads were badly damaged, cars
were swept away, I was told in thousands. I have never seen such a thing
in my life. 
 
Now we ahve power but no water. We were told that the normal suppplies
will be established in 5 to 10 days time. The last 4 days it was holidays
and hence my main job was to fetch potable water. So far we have never
felt the shortage of water even in the midst of worst summer. Now the
situation is water water every where, not a drop to drink at all. 
 
Not much damage was doen to our store except that the out house’s (where
our watch man and his family was staying) roof top was flown away by the
 wind.   Many of the shops & ware houses were completely destroyed by the
 floods and mud. Thank God nothing happened to ur Office & ware house.
 Fortunately one of Lewin’s Exam was over two days before the cyclone and
 the next two are after 3 days. by that time I hope the main roads will be
repaired . 
 
Bye now.
 
With best regards
 Willy Palocaren

Freedom lost and found

Nightmare is over!. I lost my passport at the Dubai airport on the 16th, and ever since, it was a night mare till yesterday, when the Dubai police called me and told me about them receiving it. In fact I lost at the Dubai international airport. While checking in at the hotel, I realized that I lost it. Since I am a known guest, the hotel guys gave me a room, otherwise it would have been impossible even to get a room at Dubai without a passport. Then it was a mad rush to the police, court and immigration offices. Without my passport there was no way to even go back to my home country. It was as if Iam imprisoned in a foreign country.

At this stage, the techings of Prof. Morrie helped. I just accepted the fact that I lost my passport and I cannot get out of the country without one. I was mentally prepared to take what it takes to resolve. I lodged a complaint with the Dubai Police. To my suprise I found the Dubai police as very nice people. They infact even made tea for me. This was in full contradiction to the image of police I had. In my native land, when kids dont eat well, parents threaten them by saying ‘I will call the police’ and almost every kid grows up with a feeling that ‘Police’ as bad guys and Police stations as the place for bad guys. So whenever I enter a police station I am very nervous and in this case, I found a set of very friendly and helpful gentlemen at the Dubai airport police station. My special thanks to them.

I knelt down and prayed to Mother Mary and St.Antony and to Jesus. The very thought of my 83 year old mother and the possibility of her health deteriorating further and my inability to get out of the country had a compunded negative effect on me. It was draning me out of my peace and energy. I kept on praying, and at the same time was getting the paper work for a new passport done with the help of Mr.Bali, my friend. In Dubai, without a vehicle it is very difficult to get things done and in many places it is very difficult to get a taxi. Mr.Bali accompanied me to all these offices, proving once again that ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’!.

I did not communicate this bad news home, to avoid them getting anxious about all these. Finally one day I decided to call them tell them all that is happening to me. I picked up my mobile and dialled my home number. The call did not go through as I did not have sufficient credit. Within seconds I got a call from the Dubai police informing me the good news….’someone has deposited my lost passport at the lost and found section of dubai police at the airport’. Oh dear, the nightmare is over.  

This experience made me realize the value of freedom. Now I understand much better the agony of the masses who do not have freedom. It is miserable.  Now I understand better the power of prayer, when there is no hope…. 

If you loose ypur passport, the key steps to be done immediately;

1) Lodge a compalint to the police. This will help to avoid others misusing your passport and at the same time, police will be able to contact you, if they receive the passport.

2) Advertise in the local news paper about the loss of your passport

3) Get a letter from the police department, stating that you lost your passport

4) Contact the embassy of your country, in the country where you lost your passport. They will guide you with the subsequent formalities.

5) As far as possible, try to get a new temporary passport.  Another option available is to get an outpass. Normally outpass is used for deportation, and can make your re-entry to the country difficult, hence it is always better to get a temporary new passport.

A BIG thanks to the Kerala Police

Like any other organization, there can be good and bad people within the Kerala Police also, and very often only the bad stuff gets highlighted. I am sure that every day they are doing thousands of good deeds, which never gets highlighted, where as most of the bad ones gets a front page coverage in news papers.

Again coming back to Malayala manorama dated 21/Apr/2007, the front page caption is Abhishek Bachan’s wedding with Aishwarya Rai.. and the next column is the suicide attempt by Abhishek’s old flame. I am sorry to see Manorama scooping to this level, to increase their circulation.

I think Iam deviating from the main topic. The good deeds by the Kerala Police. Yesterday I was driving down to Kochi from Coimbatore and it was raining heavily. One the way, there was a road block becuase a trailer lorry met with an accident and blocked the whole road. It was pouring heavily, and a young team of Kerala police swung into action, when all of us were just taking shelter from the heavy rains in our vehicles. Within one hour the entire road block was cleared by these smart young guys from the Kerala Police. Thanks a ton to them, for their brilliant work, to serve the public.

Here is a caption written on the plice jeep ‘POLITE and FIRM’

Keep up the good work, dear friends!

From the Monk who sold his Ferrari…..

When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all of your thoughts break their bonds: your mind transcends limitations, your cosciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person than you ever dreamed yourself to be.

Our dear post man

I know him for the past 25 years, yet I dont know his name. He is a very honest and committed person. He does his job with utmost commitment. I consider him as a perfect gentle man and have tons of respect and affection for him. He is about to retire after 35 years of selfless service. Wish him peace and happiness in the years to come. See the photos….  Have a great day !

A very proud moment for Varapuzha

Dr. B Paul Thaliath, won the Padma Shree Award for the year 2007, for his meritorious community work (cancer research) done in Allahabad. On behalf of all of us, I congratulate you. Let more youngsters get motivated by this noble act, and bring in more laurels for our dear village.

More details of 2007 awards are available at

 http://mha.nic.in/press-release/2007/pr310107Padma.pdf

See the photos section for some photos on this.

Smartcity – Gone forever?

Is the smartcity gone forever?. Rather if it happens, I will be surprised. Another example of irresponsible and unprofessional approach by the politicians involved. Recently I was in Hyderabad and I was told that in Hyderabad, the ex CM (Chandrababu Naidu), ensures that the investors get a red carpet welcome, when they come to the state. Sometimes, he himself goes to the airport to receive them. Something, the leaders from Kerala need to learn. If the loss of smartcity is true, it is a great injustice, this old ingnorant regime doing to the youth of Kerala. Comments are welcome from those, who have atleast come time working for corporates. I think it can be a good idea to establish some minimum education levels and work experience (other than politics), as an entry criteria into politics.

Unsung citizens – Remembering Varthu

Whenver I see him, I use to greet him by saying ‘Varthe veruthe kallu kudikkaruthe….’ (dont drink toddy without any reason…).  Varuthu was our dear worker (in the farm), who was always in a drunken state. He had enough reasons to drink. He was a widower, who looked after their one and only daughter. In fact his entire life was for only his daughter, just to see her married to a decent guy (in kerala, dowry system is even now very strong). Every body liked varthu becuase he never complained about anything, he never hurt any one…. he just worked hard and drank harder. He could see his daughter married. One day he fell down into a stream, when he was fully drunk and died. I loved Varthu when he was alive (I was a boy then). He had  a special place in me, even now he has. I still remember his innocent smile. I just love him. I cannot forget him. I am sure that he is enjoying in heaven, with the Lord. He could only love others.

The Gents beauty parlour @ Mannamthuruth

The service is great!

We have only one gents barbar shop at Mannamthuruth, which is a one manshow. The man who owns the shop is a living encyclopedia of malayalam movies. While he freaks out on your head, the discussions can range between the life styles of Mamooty and Mohanlal the super heroes to their mannerisms, likes and dislikes and a narration on the latest movies, why it is a flop or a hit, what kind of roles will fit whom…….to morality, religion, alcoholism, Bush’s policy on Iraq, The volley ball giant Pappan etc…etc…. Even others waiting for the next cut will take part in these discussions, and the babar shop gets converted into a platform for discussing social, cultural and political issues…… If I have to rate this babarshop…it is a five star babarshop not due to the convenience part (it is actually a small room), but due to the depth of the discussions happening there, and the hair cut happens by its own……Overall a very pleasant experience….. Oh, i forgot to add this…An hair cut and shave together costs you Rs.35/-

A refreshing boat journey @ Rs 6.50

Once upon a time, there were more than 15 boats plying between Varapuzha and Kochi, the nearest city. This was the only mode of transport for the islanders living on the banks of river Periyar. Now most of these islands are connected by road (bridges), hence the number of boats have reduced to just 3 now. It is a very refreshing experience. You can witness the life on the banks of Periyar, the chinese nets, the churches, the coracles, yachts, and the soothing cold breeze. I have posted some of the photos taken by me during my recent boat journey between Varapuzha and Kochi on flickr. Click on the photos on the right.

Wish you all a very happy 2007

On behalf of all from Varapuzha, I wish you a very happy new year 2007.

I am just thinking about the impact of new year on me. Usually people consider New year as a time for new beginnings. People make resolutions. I am no exception. When I look back to see the effect of these resolutions, the results are not that encouraging. So far none of these resolutions had any long lasting impact on me.

Something that is really working for me is my quest to discover something better. And when this happens, I loose my craving for the lesser. This way I am able to maintain a very positive state most of the time.

This new year, for a change do not make any big resolutions. Dare to experiment with the better. And when you find something better, do not hesitate to say bye to the lesser and the same time be grateful to the lesser.

Wish you a very happy year 2007 !

Kuttiyum Kolum

Recently I met Burnos in a barber shop (the one and only barbershop) at Mannamthuruth, which is a province of Varapuzha. This triggered a discussion on the well fought “kuttiyum kolum” matches we played right infront of Barnos’s house during our childhoods (may be 30-35 years back).

Kuttiyum kolum is something similar to cricket. Instead of a ball and bat, we had a long stick – referred to as kole, and a short stick – referred to as kutti. A kole is used by the batter and the bowler throws the kutti at the batsman. The batsman hits the kutti with the kole. If the rebounce is caught or if the batsman fails to hit, he gets out. Now I think this village sport is extinct.

As usual the key players during my time include Sabu,Jose,George (brothers), Barnos, Velayudhan (no more), Myself, Barnos’s brother (Iam unable to remember his name)

A beautiful evening @ Cherai beach – once again

Cherai beach is just 16 kilo meters from Varapuzha. This is a very wide beach, clean and not that crowded, especially  during mornings. In the evenings it gets crowded with tourists and still you can escape from the crowds, by going away from the main entrance. If you are lucky, you can spot dolphins. If you want to spend one night at the beatch, there are resorts adjoining the beach, where you can take a room and relax. Alcohol and cigarette smoking is prohibited on the beach. In a nutshell, an ideal get away to unwind. Enjoy

laughter & forgiveness of plain people

We lived our childhood kingsize, in the undivided land of Varapuzha. Now it is all fragmented and is  full of boundaries built by men. Thoothan is a simple soul from yester years, who still belongs to the past. He is the only person who remembers the onakkali songs, pana – a kind of christian devotional songs. My efforts to record them get postponed as both me and Thuthan are busy and have lots of better things to do. Of late we fought over a small issue and after that could not meet for a while. Before christmas I wanted to talk to him and could not as he was in deep sleep under the influence of alcohol. To my surprise he came to my house today morning, gave me a beedi (local cigar) to smoke and said sorry. We shared a piece of cake ans thats it…both are again in laughter…..laughter of plain people….it comes easy……..To see a photo of Thoothan, click on the flicr photos on the right

A morning trip to the nearby churches on 25/12/2006

It is christmas time again, and this time I thought of celebrating it slightly different from yester years . We attended the mid night mass at the Koonammavu monstry and by 10.a.m i just ventured out to have look at the christmas trees and the cribs at the nearby churches. I visited our Parish St.George’s (puthenpally) and the one and only Varapuzha church. Both these churches are more than 200 years old has a special charm about them. It is very calm and quiet and gives you the soothing feeling. To see some of the pictures taken, click on the photos on the right.

Christmas time at Varapuzha

Greetings to All !

It is Christmas time again at Varapuzha. The houses are decorated with stars and decorative lamps. As usual special services in the churches. Tha carols are very active. Contrary to the Carols in the big cities, these carols here are organized by not so rich and at the same time, the message it communicates and the warmth it delivers during this cold December evenings are phenominal. It is celebration time all over here. I have posted some of the carol pictures I have taken at flickr (see the tab on the right). I take this opportunity to wish you and all your dear and near ones a very special Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

God Bless You !

Abrachan

Better look and feel for Varapuzha.com

Last week I met Jose Ullattikkulam by chance and he was in all praises for the varapuzha.com initiative. That was the first time, when someone from varapuzha spotted varapuzha.com and reverted back. That was a really motivating moment. With the wordpress format I believe that this blog can add more value and at the same time dont want to loose all the collections made ober the years. So the current blog and it’s contents are maintained as a link on the right side of this blog. Trust that this new format will help us to interact better.