And So Stops The Game Of Hide & Seek…

For almost a week, the little town of Delft seemed like the perfect location to shoot a haunted movie more likely the sequel to “The Mist” (No prizes for guessing but this one would have been called “The Fog” :P)

The tall and famous landmark (EEMCS), which you cannot miss even if you try to, had completely vanished. You could not see the 22 floor mega-structure standing 10 meters in front of it. Maybe the fog is the secret to the famous vanishing acts. Something to ponder on don’t you think ;)

Such mysterious weather and how can we forget our beautiful Library? So my friend and I head over only to find a soothing glow emanating from the cone of the Library. To give this glow a more mystifying angle, let me simply put them in my friend’s words - it is the result of students getting enlightened :P

And how can the "Foolosopher" not talk  philosophy in such unique weather conditions ? ;)

So here goes : In life, the path is never clear. There are many uncertainties and bumps. So do not worry nor be discouraged. Have faith and move forward and take them on as they appear.

Guess I better run after my friend now and tell him to walk on the walking path just to be on the safer side :P

It sure was a fun week trying to figure out places, faculties and especially people. With layers of clothing, jacket and cap, the fog definitely did not help ease our plight in recognizing people. It happened only yesterday when a guy waved to me and I had to squint and really go close to figure out who he was :D

The fog has finally cleared and faces and buildings are again visible and so resumes my wait for the first snowy day :)

A Lesson Rightly Learnt :D

Kids, when someone tells you to dress as per the Onion Layer Theory (Dress in layers), you better heed their advice. I obviously found that out the hard way.

This happened to me on the 10^th of November 2011 a.k.a yesterday. Making full use of the last few days of my vacation period (exam period for others :P), I wake up at 1 PM only to find the sun shining brightly which was definitely a big surprise after the previous day’s cold and gloomy weather(General opinion). If truth be told, coming from a South Indian coastal city where it rains for 6-8 months in a year, I loved the weather :D

My friends and I decide to hit the Thursday market and I start dressing up based on the Onion Layer Theory. But the weather being so bright and sunny, I decide to put the theory to rest and dress up in a normal T and a half sleeved jacket which I am so gonna regret. But let’s save it for later ;)

On the way, for the first time I see the big bridge, between TU Delft and Centrum, open up. Quite a nice start for my day I think. Little did I know what was in store for me :D

We reach the market area only to be greeted by 4-8 flower shops. Wow, quite a bummer. So we head over to the St. Joseph’s church and it turns out to be magnificent. The architecture, the design, the atmosphere, everything blends in so well. It sure is a sight to marvel at.

We come out to find the weather turning around pretty quick. The sun was setting and the temperature dropping along with a ghastly misty effect. In short, the Dementor effect (Credits to Harry potter Encyclopedia ;)). So we enter our regular Turkish shop to catch a bite and the hot Kapsalon in that cold weather felt so good. It sure hit the right spot :D

When we come out, it has gotten worse. It is freezing cold and windy. It was like rubbing salt to our wounds :( Worse was to hear this duck quack out loud. Sounded more like “You forgot to get your jacket.. Qua, qua qua qua qua (Donald Duck Style)”. It really did sound that way :D

Thanks to a lovely puncture, I had to walk back home now. By the time we reached home, the mist had gotten so thick that the EEMCS building was looking more like an illusion than a real building and I couldn’t even feel my nose :D

All the way I kept wondering if I had shivered at any point of time. As I had read somewhere, your body shivers (vibrates) to generate heat. If it stops shivering, it means that the body is starting to give up. I know .. Gives you the creeps :D

Anyway, reached my warm humble abode in one cold popsicle piece and stuck myself to the heater which I am sure is gonna be my best buddy during winter :D

A lesson rightly learnt and in time too. I am so going to respect the Onion Layer Theory from now onwards. The weather forecast for the coming few days is 5, 5, 3, 2, 2 with possibilities of snow next Friday.. Now that is something to look forward to ;)

Well, I sure hope you know by now that you should not underestimate the weather :D

More updates after my weekend visit to Amsterdam .. Till then, a very warm good luck to all for a very cold winter season and the coming academic quarter :)

Ab9's Day Out - TEDxDELFT

This being my first official blog, I wanted to start with something unique about my university TU Delft and the people. I kept pondering for days and wondered how I shall convey my thoughts in a way that people will read and understand. Well, today is your lucky day because I just found out how :)

      On this cold, damp lazy morning, I finally wake up at 10 am after a night long (till 4 am :P) of research. As customary, I log on to my Facebook page and I find a message from my next door neighbor (Yea that’s how we communicate :D). He wanted me to have his ticket for TEDxDELFT event since he had exam that day.. I realize that it had started at 8 in the morning and I was already late. And so I finally walk out of my lil cozy spacebox (totally impressed by the concept :D) and walk out in the cold and windy afternoon.


    I reach the Aula Auditorium to find it swarming with cheery people. That’s a bit odd for Monday mornings. But oh well, I go in and explain to the registration guys about my friend’s ticket and they happily comply without questions (Now that’s something really new to me. No doubts ? Well, wasn’t lying anyway). So I move on to the grand lunch area where I lay my hands on some yummy Soufflé and orange juice. By the time I reach the main course, my friend calls me out for some urgent work and I miss the grand lunch (Sniff.. Sniff.. :( ).

    I do come back in time for the start of the second half of the event and I sit down wondering what TEDx is all about. An old lady comes and sits next to me and she is so full of energy and enthusiasm. Clapping actively and conversing with me. I listen to the talks and the crowd and there is this mysterious aura floating around in the room. After several talks and videos, we had the coffee break and off I went and had a good hot cup of coffee with some really good cookies and muffins. I meet Riccardo whom I had once met during the campus games and he introduced me to a bunch of people and suddenly we were discussing the “talks” and relating them with our own observations and experiences and before I knew it, our talks had become philosophical :D And once again I could feel that mysterious aura in the room only this time, it was starting to surround me too.

    Then something happened that kind of reminded me of my childhood. We were offered lollypops. Some might find this normal and some ridiculous. But this lollypop made my day :D

 

    And so I return to the auditorium all beaming and having conversations with people I don’t know and learning something new every minute. As the show began and the other speakers came on the stage and gave their talks, I finally figured out the cause for this mysterious aura. I noticed that every speaker, no matter what topic they spoke on, brought something unique to the table. They all successfully connected with the crowd and inspired them to do something with their lives. This mutual feeling resonated throughout the crowd and what we had was a group of people who are inspired like never before and brimming with ideas to do something. We had all in a way become connected to one another and become a part of something big and beautiful. 

   

Each one of us today, is taking back with them a unique experience maybe in the form of interaction with people or friendship or knowledge or maybe something else or maybe a combination of these. But one thing is for sure. We all came out as better and more confident individuals with a dream to excel in our respective fields.

    As the day came to an end we moved on to the evening drinks and talks. After a while, as I was about to leave, I come across this odd looking platter of chopped cubes with a black sauce. As a foodie, and imagining it to be cheese, I dig in. Only to realize that it was raw fish (Sushi!!). Even as I write this now, I can relive that moment, trying to get it down my throat as soon as possible. But as they say, you gotta try them at least once and I am glad that Sushi is off that list :D

    On an ending note, I would like to thank the TEDxDelft team and all the organizers and volunteers who made this event possible and in turn ensured its big success. You could see the pain and effort taken to piece this day together and I can only say, kudos to all of you :)

     I would also like to thank the team for their generous Oprah like gesture by giving each participant the lovely SENZ umbrella (Woohoooooooooooo!! :D)

    Last but not the least, I would like to thank my sweet neighbour ‘Hardik Pandya’ who made it possible for me to witness this great day in my life and also for being the reason why people I met kept staring at my name badge (bearing his name) with a puzzled face, trying to figure out why the name I told them sounds so different from the one they read :D

    Anyway, the next time you get a chance to go to events like TEDx, do not hesitate and experience for once how it feels to be a part of something big and unique.

That’s all for now folks. Do take care and we shall next interact when our paths cross once again :)

Until then, it’s nap time for the Foolosopher ;)