The lost symbol- A review.

Doesn't this book cover look enticing?:P

I've always wondered why it's taken Dan Brown six odd years to pen another book.Angels and Demons was a very different read, yet engrossing in a way Da Vinci put him in the limelight in a big way. It was a great book, probably one of the best ever written. So one would definitely wonder, what was with the hiatus?

But as you read the Last Symbol, you'd really appreciate the amount of research into symbology, science, and art. The attention to detail is probably more captivating than his previous books.
The thing with Dan Brown is, even though he has drawn onto him, a fair share of criticism from cynics, who i think are just jealous of his writing skills, The Lost Symbol, like it's predecessors, will encourage some healthy debate among the masses.

The Characters-
Robert Langdon- His usual mystical self, now a bit more famous as a result of his previous escapades.His brain tinkering with symbology and it's different forms, interpreting shit where others probably don't see shit:). And always on the move. When he's toying with symbols, it's almost as though the reader is inside him, rooting for him. And considering that Mr Dan Brown ideas for about 12 future books featuring Langdon, i can't fathom the realm of possibilities.
I despise the theory of relativity even more!!

Mal'akh- This guy reminds me of Kevin Spacey in 'Seven'. No brutality to that extent though. Nevertheless, he is a genius in every sense, and often will baffle you as you read. But seriously, he's the weakest character in the book, even though in a sense, he's very mystical. You'll know as you read.:)

Peter Solomon- A brilliant man, very well cultured, 'Rich' in every sense. A man of immense power, A Mason of the highest degree, who's very passionate about his Brotherhood and the boundaries he draws about the extents he can go to in the interest of his Brotherhood. This book revolves around him.

Katherine Solomon- An amazing scientist, doing research on things that will change the way Mankind portrays Science. Her character reminds me of Sophie Neveu. Strong motivations and intentions, and that's all i'll say.

Warren Bellamy- He doesn't have that big a role to play. But he doesn't disappoint.

Sato- A C.I.A dame, you think a 4 feet 11 inch frame is not imposing, think again:P

This novel is on par with Da Vinci, if not better. There will be a few WTF's, but more whoa's , but the epilogue is very captivating. It evokes Imagery that even Da Vinci couldn't. This book is not about Symbology, art, science, God or Humans. It is something more.

As you read, you realise the amount of homework Brown's done with this. The only weak part is the character of Mal'akh, but all great books have weak characters.
The thing with good reads is that the characters never disappoint, the plots never goes astray. Be it Godfather, The Harry Potter series or The Fist of God, the plots have all been page turners.
As you read the final chapters, you'll applaud the book for what it is, and smile to yourself because, Dan Brown has pulled it off again.

P:S- Happy Diwali people, do read the book. You surely will see the 'light' in all this 'darkness'

class trip, part 2:)

Before i proceed with my ramblings on the Mallali falls part of the trip, I'd like to mention a little joke our class guys shared before boarding ze bus. We had decided that the best we could do with the leftovers from food was to feed them to the dogs there:). We then observed how them scavengers savagely gulped down curd rice, with absolutely no regard for table manners.
Someone decided that the pickle shouldn't go to waste, so we left it in the open and joked about how the dogs would have loose stools for months:).
It was a good laugh, and even now, remembering that incident always brings a smile to my face. So much so that, i even do so in the most boring of classes, when i'm not playing bingo, staring at my watch or pretending to listen.
It was almost around 4 odd when we left the pushpagiri base. Just about 3km to Mallali, but we managed to reach only by 4.45, the reason for which is-

1) Our very experienced driver-bhai-saab, whose driving skills were almost obsolete in every sense.
2) The roads, which were mighty fine in that there was hardly a road:)
3) The 'placing a stone behind the rear wheel' method, which i've mentioned in the previous post. 4) He tried convincing us that the brake doesn't work if he doesn't drive in first gear on a down slope.

We stopped the bus about 3 km from the falls, at the only 'homely' home in the vicinity. A coorgi uncle told us that it was hardly a 2km trek. But one thing i've learnt in these places is that
'x' km= '2x' km:)
The trek was through some dense forest. The trail was clearly marked, very wide, mainly because of incessant usage by four wheel drives (who am i kidding). A while into our descent, there were two paths diverged in the green woods. Adhip and myself did not take the one less travelled by, and that did make all the difference:P. However, the others somehow managed to do so, and didn't realise they did for quite a while. (more on this later)
We could now hear the water roaring. I didn't have any expectations from these falls. It's not very well known, it's very remote, and hard to reach. However, I must say that it's quite a sight.









I've seen the Niagara up close in all its glory. But everytime I close my eyes and try conjuring up a vivid Image, my memory fails me. This is not the case with Mallali. It's sight is so mystical, with mountains in the background, Steep rock faces, Mist cover, The tree cover, and the clouds floating just above. An absolute beauty. In a way, the remoteness of this place actually makes it more mystical. Marvellous place to visit. A must.It's really a shame it's not promoted that well. But then again, isn't Niagara all about hype? I definitely think so. I regret us not having gone there in the morning itself.
It was getting dark, Nearly around 5:30 when we got a view of Mallali. It really doesn't seem like a 62 m drop! Bite me. I wanted to take in every moment. It was almost as though I didn't know where to look, at the roaring water, or the clouds above, the mist floating across, slowly covering the falls in a blanket, as if to say- You don't deserve to watch:)

A farmer nearby said that no one had crossed his path apart from the few of us. This was worrying. About twenty from our class had apparently gone the wrong way. (the detour at the beginning). Another very adventurous fellow decided to go descend further down, by making his own paths and inviting his own doom. I'm sure i'm speaking for everybody when i say that we were more tensed than we'd be during exams.
Meanwhile, Bus-driver-macha cantered along from the distance and told us that the Bus was stuck in slosh. The rear wheel was giving us heat. So, only one word now being processed by us.
HOGE.

About five of us struggled uphill towards the bus, and to our horror, considered coming to terms with the impending doom, and make alternate arrangements.
Around seven odd, the girls were back from their other 'trip', they did get to see the falls!( good for em). So a burden off our shoulders. But we kept wondering about the whereabouts of adventurous fellow. (Not using his name).
To our relief, he was back! And soon he found himself at the receiving end of some serious wrath,that went something like this-
#@^@HOGE@#$^@FUCK#%R@^@! THNK@# @@#$!!!!!!

Our bus was going nowhere. Nature had decided to fuck with us:). Our bus driver had a few ideas which he failed to implement. Now i was prepared for the worst. It was pitch dark, so Adarsh and myself decided to walk the girls back to that 'homely' home, and arrange for a tow truck or tractor. Adrenalin was pumping hard. We tried to act all Manly and fearless, but in reality, we were peeing in our pants!
But to our relief, the other ec boys managed to use some logic with inertia and momentum and the bus was released. So on we hopped onto the bus, joking about our little mis-adventure and how easily it could've screwed us up. We finally reached mysore by around eleven, and I soon realised that the comfort of sleep is more joyful than 'beauty' in any form:)

Conclusions and lessons learnt-
1) Life's a bitch sometimes
2) Life is fun sometimes.
3) Don't fuck with nature, it'll fuck you harder.
4) You give the term 'beauty' many meanings, and derive many meanings, but when you're actually encapsulated in something so real and fresh, you take in every moment. That's because you know 'beauty' when you see it
5) some memories are meant to be preserved forever, whilst some aren't:)
6) You try drawing a line between reality and frugality.
7) Paisa Vasool. 275 RS/- per head. Including 400 extra that we ended up paying driver for exorbitant diesel usage.
8) Laughter is contagious:)
9) Stray dogs copulate like rats! Someone please introduce contraceptives:P
10) The western ghats are out of this world.

P:S- Blogger's been acting like a bitch, so this post is still incomplete. Next post- missing parts.

Oblivion

It was a little after five; I entered the coffee house only to find a significant number of people already standing in queue for takeout. It was almost closing time. Damn. I was already running late on a few errands. I figured i could get my way easy by chatting up the cute cashier guy. But as i started moving forward, a miserly old man told me to get back in line.
Not another wise-ass I thought, not in the least paying heed to his age or his 'principles'.
So there i was, already late, and now impatient. I noticed how a few heads were turned in my direction, and i must say i wasn't surprised.

The gaze of one particular man caught my attention. There he was, sitting cross-legged at a table a few feet away from me. I could sense his eyes scanning my rocking body. Only, i couldn't see his eyes. It was safely hidden behind a set of shades. Maybe to filter the haze from the sun, i thought.
I knew he was constantly looking, taking in the sights. But i didn't have the pleasure of knowing, for sure, that he was guilty of it. My self imposed smugness was slowly building. And why not.
I was wearing a knee length skirt, the hem of which kept flickering upwards whenever the door to the coffee house opened, and a chilling breeze floated across. Anyone would sight this "sight".I didn't mind this at all.
I had gorgeous skin; olive and silky to the touch. Guys who perpetually ogle me, tell me that i remind them of Ana Ivanovic. No bullshit. My ego was sky high.
The yellow pull-over was not doing a good job of concealing the skin above my waist. And i must say, i tried very hard to not do any shielding.
Obviously, this accentuated the lust and longing i could so easily see in the eyes around me.
This was my zone now. Suddenly, time seemed so relative.

My thought-ego process was abruptly halted. A little girl in front of me turned back and asked the man in the shades: ' Dad, do you want a cup-cake?'
He nodded inattentively.His gaze was still fixated on me.
I thought to myself: ' A married man? With a kid! Does he not love his life? Maybe his sex life is a failure. I couldn't picture him to be a happy family man. The lust i thought i 'sensed', gave it all away. Ah! What did i care!!'
I paid for my take-out, gave the man another look, only to get one back. I walked out onto the street.
As the sun began its journey to set on the horizon, my complacency and ego started to rise again.

P:S- The man in the shades gathered his walking stick, and called out to his daughter. Together, they meandered out onto the open road. He was blind.
The woman's ego was not a high rise building. It merely was a stack of dominos:)

Peas in a pod.

All was set for take off. Traffic control had given him the go ahead, and he was number two on the runaway. His co-pilot John then checked the suction gauge, transponder, fuel gauge and Radio. Check. All was well. They were ready to hit the skies.
Three minutes later, they received clearance from ATC.

This was nothing new to Captain Ochim or his co-pilot. Oc having trained in the finest flying school in Britain. He had the distinction of doing sorties with R.A.F personnel. He was a mighty proud man. His Dedication was legendary. In flying circles, he was known as the Hawk-eye. The precision and control with which he 'tamed' his machines in the air, was often the talk for hours together in parties which he often graced with his lovely wife and kids.Oc was content with what he had. Life wasn't easy. He used to work two shifts in a Public Library to make ends meet. And yet, he barely managed. Flying School was where he was headed. Pilot he was destined to be.

Ten years later, he had done it all. He made good money. Decent enough to make his wife and kids happy. He was a content man, siphoning happiness from the smaller things in life. After a hard day's work, he'd just want to watch a movie with the kids, a cold beer by his side. Flying and family. The two things that mattered the most to Oc. He couldn't be away from his Family for long. But his hands would itch if he wasn't behind the controls of a Plane for long. Two peas in a pod.

Another routine flight. Today, he was testing a cessna for a friend. The plan was to fly over the desert for a few hours. Test the plane for possible flaws.
John hit the primer and master switch. Oc pushed the throttle. The engine roared into life. The wheels were set into motion. Slowly gathering momentum, The plane hit the take-off threshold a few hundred metres from the end of the tarmac. Thousand feet above the ground, they made a sharp left, and drifted towards the Great Canyon, into the setting sun...
Twenty minutes into the flight, John made a routine check on all functions. They were talking about having some nice meat later for dinner. Little did they know that they were going to be 'meat'. Without warning, the propeller gave away, and they were headed in a spiral downwards. All was lost. They hit rock bottom. John was dead. Oc had lost all senses waist downwards.

Oc awoke with a start, hoping it was all just a blurry dream. One that didn't mean anything.
Instead, he awoke to the worst possible palpability. Sometimes there is only one pea in a pod, he realised, as his wife Lily set down a glass of juice on his table, and wiped away the salty tears from his rough cheeks.