Ma Beirut Odyssey

8/14/2019 Ma Beirut Odyssey

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MaBeirutodysseyUh!NotreallyAlbert,comeletsreviewthatdrawing

Ijustjumpedoutofmyseat.Ohshit!Itwasoneofmydaydreams!!!!Mamhasnot

calledme yet. It has been quite a few days like this, to be precise, from the day Iwas

inductedtothecoreteamofshopdrawingreviewers. InfactIwasoneofthefounding

membersofthisteam.Thejobsoundssimple,allwehavetodoistofindsomemistakesin

the shop drawing made by the contractor so that we can sent in backwith revise &

resubmit stamp. But the easiness makes the drawing her least priority, and her least

prioritytasks

are

scheduled

for

after

hours

which

is

after

6:30

in

theevening.Soduringthe

day, i.e. frommorning8Oclock till6:30pmweusedtoreview thedrawingsourselves

and later intheeveningweusedtoreview italongwithMamtill10Oclock inthenight

(kindof4guysdatinganaunty).Itwasatoneofthosereviewinghourtodaywhenyou

justsawmejumpingoutofmyseat.

WhatshallIdonow?

Itried

reading

about

ma

bike

&

wrote

areview

myself.

Recently

Ihad

bought

anew

bike. I tried to learnaccounting, tried tosolveothersproblems throughgoogle,chitchat,

andeventriedtoilet(went13timesinaday,record.ThesweeperstaredatmewhenIwent

for13th

time),triedsomeseriousreading(electricalstuff).Butintheendeverythingturned

outtobeboring.

Howaboutscribblingaboutsomething?

Yeah,lets

give

it

atry.

But

what

shall

Iwrite

about?

Ihave

zero

experience

in

writing.Other than those essayswhich Iwrote in exams,which are not so creative (my

marksproveso),Ihavenotwrittenanythingelse. Buteveryonestartsfromzero,soletme

write. Lets seewho among those celebratedwriters hasmore creativity thanme huh!.

Bravome!!!!!!!

IhaveaninterestingthingtowriteaboutMaBeirutodysseyuh!Notreally.Itwas

justan

official

trip.


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Wait there, Illbebackafter sometime. Ihave to takepart in themost important

ceremony intheofficeTheLunch!Idont like it.,Ijust love it!!!!!!!!!!!!! Iwillbe

rightback.

Yep Iamback.ComingbacktoourBeiruttrip.Oh letmegiveyouthebackgroundof

the story. I am awell fed (I prefer this usage than overweight)well brought upwell

educatedyounghandsomegentlemanworkinginoneofthecompaniesinoneofthemajor

ITparks in India.Weare the Indiandesignarmofa foreignMNCconsulting firmdoing

largecommercialresidential&infrastructureprojectsbasedinBeirut.Iwassentalongwith

othertwoengineerstoBeirutofficeforsomegoddamnreason(employeeexchange).

It was in one of those nights when we (my mallu roomies) were having our regular

discussionabouteverythingunderthesun girls&aunties,Igotaphonecall.Thenumber

lookedcompletelyunfamiliartome, fromsomewhereoutside India. Ithought itwouldbe

mybrother.Butthevoicewasthatofawoman,yeahthesameoldMam,whowasonher

vacation in her home town inBeirut. Iwill not say that its not exciting to visit another

foreigncountry,butitwasthefactthatIllbeawayfromherclutchesforanother3months

whichfilled

my

heart

with

overwhelming

joy.

All

paper

works

were

completed

within

no

time, theyve verygood contacts in Lebaneseministryof internalaffairs.Visawas issued

withintwodaysandticketscamethenextdayandwewerescheduledtoflyon22/06/2009,

morning6:30am,fromMumbaiviaBahraininGulfair.

21stjune2009,Allsettogo.Itwasabeautifulnightinjunethattooinpunewiththe

skyfilledwithdarkclouds,notevenasinglestarintheview.Westartedataround1:30am

frompunetoMumbai.Thistravelwasnotanoteworthytravel.Allthreeofuswereexcited.

Theother twoengineerswereSankhe&goggu.Weknoweachotherverywellandwere

quitenormal, lazyguyscompared to thoseworkaholics inouroffice.Thatwasoneof the

bestthingaboutthisgroup.ItwouldhavebeenanunpleasantstayinBeirut,ifitwerewith

oneofthoseworkaholics.Bothofthemwereinterestingcharacters,Ill letyouknowmore

about themas thestorylinedevelops.Sankhehadmultiplegirlfriendsandmanages them

verywell.Allhisgirlfriendsknoweachotherandaregoodfriends(oooooh!!!hesamacho


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man,butmaintainsa lowprofile).Gogguhadhismarriagefixed,sotherewasnoscopeof

havinggirlfriends.

Westarted

our

baggage

screening.

The

sarkari

babu

on

duty

was

very

curious

about

us.ThreeengineersgoingtoBeirutforinductionprogram(whichcompanyofearthwillhave

theirheadoffice inBeirut).Somehowwemanagedtoconvincehimandproceededtothe

checkin.

Whichseatdoyouprefersir

Thatseatnexttoyou.Imutteredinmymind.

Anyseatwilldo,butthreeofusshouldbetogether

Noproblemsir

Andasusualtheseatsallottedtouswereonthethreecornersoftheflight.

We proceeded to thewaiting area andwaitedpatiently for the security check to

commence.MumbaiairportiscomparabletoanyotherinternationalairportinMiddleEast

andbetter

than

both

Cairo

and

Beirut

airports.

Isaw

the

coffee

shop

from

where

Idrank

coffeeforRs125,whiletravellingtoDubaiwithRony.Thistimewedidntventureintothat

coffeeshopsincetherewasnoRonywithustopay.RonyisourLebanesegroupleaderwho

getspaidhandsomelyforcomingallthewayfromBeiruttoanunderdevelopedcountry

likeIndia.Sankhewasonphone,asusual,tryingtoconsolemultiplegirlfriendsaskingthem

totakecareofeachother.Gogguisindeepsleeptiredofimaginingfunctions,ceremonies&

otherarrangementsformarriage.Iamtheoddoneoutandwaswatchingthepeoplesitting

inthewaitingarea.

Afterwaitingforsometimethesecuritycheckstartedandweweredeclaredcleanto

beboarded.ThesecuritypersontherehadadubiouslookatmeasifIwassometerroristor

as ifIwastooheavytobetransportedbyapassengeraircraft.Ithinkhesnotveryhappy

withthegovt.decisiontohaveseparatefemalesecuritystafftoscreenfemalepassengers.

Againwaiting!!!!!!!!.Afteraboutanhourtheyannouncedboarding.Wehurriedtothebus

asifwe

were

flying

for

the

first

time.

But

the

initial

acceleration

during

takeoff

is

really


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breathtaking. Iamalwaysfascinatedbythat.Duringmychildhood Iusedtothinkthatthe

entirepowerduring the flight comes from that initial thrust,just like ahandmadepaper

airplane.Thankgod,itwaswrong.OtherwiseIwouldhavebeenrippedapartbythatinitial

thrust.Nowwedecidedtointerchangeourseatssincetherewasnotemptingbeautysitting

next to anyone of us, and our co passengers were cooperative though they were

uninteresting tous.So Ishifted to theseatnext toSankheandGoggushifted to theseat

behindus.

Toourgreat luck the flightattendant responsible foroursectionwasahandsome

mid aged man! I decided not to eat if hes going to serve me. Manhood is a big

disqualificationfor

aflight

attendant.

It

could

be

another

measure

to

cut

cost

by

that

ailing

airlinescompany.Theonlyconsolation foruswas theregular tripsbyattendants inother

area,especiallytheoneservingbusinessclass.SinceIwasintheedgeseat,Ialwaystriedto

squeezeinwhileshespassing,butyouknowitsnotmyfaultthatImbitoverbuilt.Asusual

thesafetyinstructionsillustrationstarted.IleanedforwardtofindifIcouldseeanythingin

business class. Theywere serving black tea& candy to the esteemed passengers. Those

were the last few glimpses of business class. After sometime the curtain was closed,

interruptingmyview.

Theflightwasapleasantone.There isnotmuchworthmentioninghereaboutthe

flight.We had to transit atBahrain airport. In the flight fromBahrain toBeirut, Imet a

youngladyfromNepal.ShewasgoingtoBeiruttoworkasdomesticlabourbutshewasnot

verymuchinterestedtogotoBeirut.Itmightbetheconditionsbackhomethatforcedher

towork there.TherearemanyNepaleseandBangladeshisworking inBeirutasdomestic

help.Another

interesting

fact

about

Lebanon

is

that

it

has

got

only

two

permanent

resident

Indians. 181 countries out of 183 countries recognized by UN have got Indians residing

permanently,outofwhichLebanonenjoys181stpositionwithjust2Indiansaspermanent

residents.

As the crewprepared for landing, theenchantingaerial viewofBeirutwas slowly

uncovered through the windows. It was different, definitely different from all other

countriesin

Middle

East.

As

you

touch

down

any

other

airport

in

Middle

East,

the

first


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glimpsesofthedesertcitywillmakeyoureluctantto landthere.ButBeirutwasdefinitely

different,notevenasmallpieceoflandwascoveredwithsand.Itwasfullgreenwithpine,

pear tree,orange treeand themost important,TheCedars.The landscape isuniquewith

thecitylocatedinbetweentheseaandmountain.Insomeareasthemountaintouchesthe

seaforminghighcliffsthatsthebeautyof it.Thesevalleysarenotdesertedbyhumans,

everyinchinthoseslopesarepopulatedwithbeautifulhomesandsmalltowns.OurMam

livesinoneofthose.Butunfortunately,thisthickvegetationwasusedbydifferentmilitaries

andmilitiasasacoverfortheirguerillatacticsfromtimetotime.

Assoonas the flighttoucheddownandhaltedwedisembarkedandmovedto the

immigration.It

was

about

3O

clock

in

the

evening.

We

bought

the

stamp

for

$34

and

queuedfortheimmigrationofficertostamp.Hetookatleasthalfanhourforanindividual,

even though the processwas computerized.After immigration and baggage pick up,we

cameoutsidetheairportwhereourdriverswerewaitingforus.

AhlanAhlan

Theyshoutedatus.SincetherewerenootherIndianstravellingtoBeirutotherthan

those worked in our company, they were damn sure that we were their guests. They

showedusway to thecarandput the luggage inside thebootwhilewe slipped into the

seat.Thecitywasimpressive,youwontfeellikethecitywasdestroyedandreconstructed

frequently.Thestreetswerecleanandwellmaintained.Thebuildingsweretallandpainted

unlikeCairowheretheexteriorofthebuildingisnotpainted.Thepedestrianswereallwell

dressed & beautiful. The Lebanese beauty is world famous. After twenty minutes we

reachedTheParadiseResidency,thehotelwhereouraccommodationwasarranged.

16 hours travel is really tiring for any human being. This is true even for aDar

employee.Sowedecidedtotakeanapinrespectiveroomsinthecomfortofthickmattress,

madeinBeirut,Iguess.

Doyouthinkthatitsgoingtobeatrueandhonesttraveloguedepictingonlymyreal

experiencesandevents? Ifyouguessedsothenyouremistaken. Itllbeboring if Ido the

way

you

expect.

There

will

be

only

a

thin

line

separating

the

real

events

and

events

evolved


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outofmyimagination.Apersonwhosclosetomemightbeabletofilteroutonefromthe

other.ButwhyshouldyoubothertodosoifIamastrangertoyou.

Wewent

to

the

office

next

day

morning

and

reported

to

Mr.

Boss

there.

Since

Mr.

Bigbosswasonleave,wehadtoreportonlytoMr.Boss.Assoonaswetoldhimournames,

hestartedexplainingabouttheprojectwithoutpayinganyattentiontoourbewilderment.

Itsnotsurprisingforthosewhoknowhimalready.Hehadaspecialinterestinmebecause

ofmypredecessorwhohasportrayedmeasahardworking,humble,knowledgeable&loyal

employee.Thoughhisdescriptionwasmostlytrue, thevolumeofworkdumpedonme

washuge. Iwouldvebeatenhim todeath ifhewerenearme.Others in theofficewere

reallygood

and

helpful.

We

met

everyone

and

the

rest

of

the

day

went

without

much

excitement.WealsometsomeIndiansalreadyworkingthereandwentforlunchwiththem.

Itwasreallyexpensive.Beirut isgenerallyanexpensivecityduetohugevolumeofforeign

currencyflowingfromtheNonresidentcitizens.Somehowwemanagedtocontroloururge

toseeBeirutandspentourtimeinsidetheofficetillevening5Oclock.At6pmsharp,we

wenttoMr.Bosstotellhimthatwewereleaving.Toourastonishmenthewassurprisedto

seeusleavingsoearly!!!!!!!!!!!

Somehowwemanagedtoescapefromtheofficewentbacktothehotel.Illtakea

breakhere.Yousawhowmyfirstdaywas;nowyoucaneasilyguesswhathappenedduring

therestofourstayinBeirut.Sobeit,GuessthestorytillImback.


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Chapter2

Beirut city stands tall among all other cities in the Middle East with its exceptionally

beautifulgreeneriesandexoticbeaches.ThewholeLebaneseareveryproudofthefactthat

theyretheonlygreencountry inthewholeMiddleEast.Eventheirnationalflaghasgota

tree on it, The Cedar. Youmight envy Cedars for its lifespan. There are some cedars in

Lebanonwhicharemorethan3000yearsold.Butthemostinterestingthingtousisnotany

of these but the girls there. Lebanon has got themost beautiful girls in theworld, and

majorityofthemdoesnotliketohideit!!!!!!Ihailfromacountry,especiallyastatewhere

beauty is considered a divine gift and it is not to be exposed. So itwas a rejuvenating

experience.ThenaturalbeautyofLebanonwasofcourseofnomuch interest tome.The

Lebaneseeconomyismainlybasedontheinflowofforeignreceiptsbytheexpatriates.The

currency inLebanon isLirawhosevalue isalmostfixedagainstUSD($1=1500Liras).Living

expensesis

equal

or

more

than

any

other

developed

cities

of

the

west.

Food

is

mainly

non

vegetarian.Avegetarianwillreallyfinditdifficulttofindfood.AllkindsofArabicfoodsare

availableabundantly.Butyouvetopayalotmore,morethanevenDubaicity.

Ourfirstoutinginthecitywastoanearbypublicbeachatawalkabledistancefrom

ouroffice. Itwas the first Saturdayafternoon inBeirut.Asusualwewent therewithout

passport.Beirut isconsideredtobeavigilantstate.Butourpassportswereneverchecked

duringourentirestay thereunlikeCairo.Wehada trackhistoryofbeingarrestedby the


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policeinCairofornotcarryingpassport(theofficerdidntrecorditanyway).Thebeachwas

notsobeautifulsince itwasapublicbeach.Thecrowdwasnotuptoourexpectations. It

wasmostly fully covered aunties and associated living things (husbands and kids). There

weremoderatewavesandtheguardsweretryingtostoppeoplegoingdeep intothesea.

This part ofMediterraneanwas not as beautiful as that of Alexandria, but better than

Chavakkadu kadappuram. Thewaterwas lightbluewithmanyboats and yachts in the

view.Theskylinewasamazing.ButnaturallyIwasnotmuchinterestedinthose.

Withoutwastingmuch time inthebeach,wedecided towalktillpigeonrocknear

rouche. Itwasasteepclimbuphillbytheroadside.AsusualSankhewasnot interested in

anythingbut

photo

shoot.

He

might

have

made

at

least

hundred

self

portraits

with

my

camera (pleasenotehere that itwasmycameranothis).Wecould identifyonebuilding

amongallothers,theonedesignedbyourbelovedMam,ourMamsbrainchild.Anyway

thebuildingwasnotsouglyasexpected!Idontknowwhohasreallydonethearchitectural

design.ToappreciatethedesigndonebyourMam, Iwillhavetoseethe interiorsofthe

building.Forthetimebeingourchancesarezero forthat, itsa luxuryapartmentbuilding

withoffices in the lower floors.Withhalfanhours timewepassedby thatbuildingand

reachedourdestinationThepigeonrock.

Thepigeonrock isacoupleofrocks,huge insize, locatedinthesea likean island,withan

archshapedopening through it.Youcango inaboatthrough theopening.Thesearenot

theonlyrocksinthatregion;theentirebeachitselfisrocky.Itsnotevenactuallybeach,its

acliff,notsosteepbutbitsloppycliff.Ithasmanyplacesinvisiblefromtheoutside;hence

manycoupleswerethere.Theresa lotofscopeforpeepingtoms.Wewenttooneofthe

rocks(not

the

pigeon

rocks)

and

sat

there

for

some

time.

There

was

asmall

group

of

natives

swimming between the rocks.Unfortunatelywe had no swimming gears. Therewas an

abandonedboat,Imnotreallysurewhetheritsabandonedornot.Butthewaterwasclear

soclearwithabluishshadeandyoucaneasilyspotfishandothercreatures inside.Toget

youaclearpicturethescenewassomethingsimilartothatbeachinthemovieCastaway.

It believed that those caves were inhabited by those early human beings (Mams


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forefathers).They reallymusthavehada tough& roughskin tosustain those roughrock

surfaces.

Againwe

started

photo

shoot.

There

is

one

thing

common

among

all

those

photos

whichwecapturedthere,Sankhesface!Whenwestartedourreturnjourneyitwasaround

6intheevening.Iwasreallyhungry,butnooneagreedtotheideaofeatingfromoutside

(tooexpensive).Thereisonemoreproblem,thegroupconsistedoftwomoreIndianother

than threeofus. There is a typicalproblemwhen agroupofnot so close friendsgo for

outing.Eatingwillbeenjoyable,but the issuearisesat the timeofpayment (Whollpay).

Thechanceofgettingmoneybackfromnotsoclosefriendsisveryless.HenceIdidnttake

moreinterest

in

taking

all

the

5of

us

to

arestaurant.

Wewalked for somemore distance andhired a taxi tillour hotel. There are two

types of taxis in Beirut service taxi and normal taxi.Normal taxies arejust like a taxi

anywhereelseintheworld.Hewillallowonlythosewhohiredthetaxitogetin.Butincase

ofaservicetaxi,youllhavetopayperpersonandtherewillbemanypeoplegettinginand

outof the taxionyourway,and theyremuchcheaper.This timewe tooka service taxi.

After15

minutes

bargaining

we

agreed

on

2000

Lira

($1.25)

per

person

for

hardly

10

minutesdrive.Aftertakingsomerest inourhotelsuiteweagainwentouttoourregular

internettelephonecenter.

Theinternettelephonecenterisaplaceworthmentioninghere.Thecommunication

systemandtheinfrastructureinBeirutarepathetic.Phonecallchargesareexorbitantlyhigh

andtheinternetisneitherfastnorreliable.Buttheseinternettelephonecentersarereally

cheap.Their ratesarecomparable to those IndianSTD rates.Theymusthavedone some

Jugad (sorry for Indiancolloquial)with the internet.Another interesting fact is thatyou

can find people from all over theworld gathering at those centers. Youll find Indians,

Bangladeshis, Africans, srilankans etc there. EvenAmericans come there tomake phone

calls.Theguythereisreallysmartandmanagesthesehugecrowdsatease.Butmostofthe

people coming there are domestic workers (female). You can identify Sinhalese and

Bangladeshisamongthemveryeasily.ButalltheAfricanslookalikeandtheiralllanguages


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soundsimilar.EventhosenativeLebanesealsocometheretotalktotheirrelativesoutside

thecountry.

EverySaturday

we

spent

around

2hours

there.

Dont

think

that

Ispend

the

whole

timetalkingtomyfriendsandfamily. Iusedtotalkformaximum30minutesandwaitfor

SankheandGoggufortherest1.5hours.ButInevergotboredwaitingthere.Lotofpeople

&lotsoflanguages.Mostofthecustomersarewomen.Itseemsthatthenatureofwomen

is thesameallaround theworld.There isanorange treenext to thatshop. Ialways talk

overphonestandingbesidethatorangetree.Theorangetreemusthavewitnessedallthose

conversations. Had it been a human being, he wouldve learned many languages. We

finishedthe

business

by

around

8pm

and

reached

our

hotels

by

about

8:30

pm.

It

was

a

goodeveninganyways,1weekafterourarrival;wecouldseeatleastsomepartsofBeirut.

Themajorarea inthecity isstillremainingwaiting forusDowntown. Ittookaround1.5

monthswaitingtoreachdowntown.

Thisjunkwriting is really boring. I have enrolled inNaNoWriMo (NationalNovel

WritingMonth).Theirguidingprincipleisverysimpleyoukeeponwriting&writingjunk,

donot

stop,

at

some

point

of

time

these

junks

will

pave

pay

to

beautiful

pieces

of

art.

To

takepartintheircontest,Ishouldwriteatleast50000wordsamonthor1666wordsaday.

Youhavetouploadyourworkattheendofthismonth.TodayIamdue8335words,buttill

nowmywordcount isshowingonly3708.Still longwaytogo.But it isreallyagoodtime

pass,especiallywhenyouhavenothingtodointheoffice.Letmetrytoavoidshortformsto

increasethewordcount.

Ouroffice inBeirut isreallygood,butnotasspaciousasour Indianoffice.Theattitudeof

the native employees towards Indians is not like that of Lebanese expatriates in India. I

didntgetmuchtimetomakefriendsthereduetoworkpressure.Buttherea fewpeople

with interesting characters.Themost strangepersonwhom Ihavemet there ismyboss

itself.HeisbornandbroughtupinLebanonbutwasPalestinianbyorigin.Hehadarefugee

passportwhichhefeltalotbadabout.Icannotevenimaginehowitwillbetobearefugee.

HencehewastryingtomigratetoCanada.He ismarriedtoaLebanesewomanwhomwe

havenever

met,

and

had

3children.

He

owns

aprado,

amotor

bike

(600

cc)

and

a5


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11

bedroomflat inthemiddleofthecity.Thiswillgiveyouan ideaabouthisfinancialstatus.

ButhewasnothappywithhissocialstatusinLebanon.

Ourboss

works

hard

and

sits

late

night

every

day.

At

least

this

was

our

idea

about

himtillwesawhistimecard.Thankstoabuginthetimemanagementsystem;anyonewho

ishavingalogincanseeeveryonestimeentries.Wereallydonotknowwhetheritisabug

ornot.OurMamwhowasstillapprovingourtimecardswasverystrictaboutthetimecard

entries.Itshouldbeveryaccurate.Sowehadtosomehowgettheexacttimingsofourentry

and exit. One of our friends somehow managed to find a hyperlink to access this

information. But the accesswas not a simple http access; itwas an ftp access to some

directoriesin

the

server.

Curious

to

know

more

about

the

ftp

site,

Istarted

browsing

through the ftp site. It tookjust5minutes forme to locateeveryones timeentries.Our

bossusedcometoofficeregularlyat9amandleaveofficebefore6pmtillourarrival.Any

dayonwhichwe stayed longhealso stayed longwithusand left theoffice immediately

afterus(Caughtredhanded).

Healwaysusedtotellus,Iamsittinglate,whyyoucantsit?Aftertheaboveevent

wenever

took

this

comment

seriously.

Iwas

surprised

by

his

behavior

on

the

first

day.

The

officetimingwasonlytill5pm.Atabout6pmwenttohimtotellhimthatwewereleaving.

BeingthefirstdayinBeirutandinofficeweweretired.Iventuredtoinformhim.

Sir,Weareleaving

Why?,whysoearly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Inthepast4years,Ihaveworkedwithmanybosses.ButIneverfacedsuchaboss.

Wecouldnotevenblamehim,becausehehadputhimself insuchabadsituation.Hewas

handlingaround15buildings,alldue tobesubmittedwithinamonths time.Mostof the

engineershadbadexperienceswithhimandnoneofthemwasreadytoworkwithhim.

Boss sits in a closet (Closetmeans a closed room separated from themainoffice

space)alongwithanotherseniorengineernamedPier.He isaniceguy.Theyusedtofight

some time for silly issues likeACbladesdirection,openingor closingwindows&panes,

mobilemusic

volume

etc.

Pier

is

aworkaholic

and

afoodaholic.

He

sits

late

night

everyday


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andeats throughout theday.Since theydonthaveheavymealsat fixed time,healways

eatssomething.Healmosthasafoodstorebelowhisdesk,butalwaysoffersmewhatever

heeats. Ialways rejecthisofferpolitelyand itmakeshimoffermeconfidently.Heonce

gavemethephonenumberofthebesttawookshopinLebanonMalakaltawook,theking

oftawook.Itrieditonce;itwasreallygoodbuthuge.Hehasintroducedmanydelicaciesof

Beiruttome.ButIforgotmostofthenames.HewasproudofLebanesecuisine.

My boss used to push me too much for getting his work done. With my prior

experienceofabossbehavior,IwascertainthatifIdonotrespondthepushwillkeepon

increasingandIllendupasanoverloadeddonkeyjustlikehim.SoIdecidedtoretaliateand

waitedfor

the

most

appropriate

time.

The

timing

of

the

retaliation

is

very

important.

He

shouldnotfeelthatIamoverreacting.Ihadseenafemalecolleaguefightingwithhimafew

daysback.

MyLebanesepeersweresummonedtohisofficeonaMondayforleavingtheoffice

early on previous Saturday evening. One of the biggest drawbacks of bosswas that he

cannotraisehisvoiceorhehasnotrealizedthetechniqueorraisingvoicetooverpowerthe

subordinate.All

what

he

does

is

abusing

their

work

that

too

in

his

normal

voice.

It

was

then

thegirlstartedshoutingback.Themoment thegirlopenedhermouth,bossstoppedand

started listening toher likeanattentivestudent.Shewenton talking forabout2hours! I

didntreallyunderstandwhattheyweretalkingabout.Butallthosewhowereoutsidehis

cabincouldeasilyhearherandallofthemhadasmiling face.Theywerebehavingas if it

was not a first time event and that was true. In the end my boss came out with a

wonderfullybadface.AnywaywhenImethimintheroomlaterthatday,Ididntforgetto

showmy

sympathy

towards

him

for

her

misbehavior

(My

silly

buttering

technique).

His

conclusionwas:

Thatslife

Poorboss!ButanywayIdecidedtogoaheadwithmydecisiontogiveanhonestfeedback

to vent my anger. Still there are more things to be studied before striking. The most

importantthingwashisinfluenceinhisbossandguysabovehim.Therearenottoomanyof


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13

them. He had an immediate boss,whowas our HOD and above him, our director. The

directorknowsmewell.He isthepersonwho interviewedmeduringrecruitment.Butthe

HODofBeirutofficewasacompletestrangertome.Withhisover30yearsofexperience,

he isaseasonedplayer inofficedynamics.Butmybossdidnothaveagoodrapportwith

him.IrealizedthiswhenIheardtheirconversationonedayinsidemybosscabin.

Itwasanormaldaylikeanyotherday.Ataround10am,Iwaspreparinganexcelfile

relatedtotheelevators.Bosshadsentamailtotheentireteamtosubmitthedetailsand

quantityoftheelevators intheirrespectivebuildings.LiketherestoftheteammembersI

hadsleptonthisissueforaweek.Butunlikeothers,Irememberedthismailafteroneweek

andstarted

preparing

the

document.

While

making

that

naturally

Ihad

some

doubts

regarding theexactcontentof thedocument. Idecided todiscusswithbossabout itand

went insidehiscabin.When Ienteredtheroom,hewastalkingtosomebodyoverphone.

After about 5minutes, he finished his conversation and started attendingmy query.He

didnt showmuch interest tomy questions; it seemed that his brain in preoccupied is

somethingelse,somethingwhichismoreimportant.Aswewerediscussing,hegotaphone

callfromHOD.SincePierwasnotthere intheroomatthattime,heputthephone inthe

speakerphonemode.Though Ididntunderstandhim clearly, itwasdamn sure that the

HOD is shouting athim.Bossdidnthaveany controlor influenceoverhim.Hewasjust

listening&whisperingtayibtayib(OkOK).

With thisevent, itwasclear that the influencehehasoverHOD issameaswhat I

haveonhim,whichwasabsolutelynothing.Itfurtherincreasedmyconfidence.Nowitsthe

timing.IhadnootheroptionbuttowaittillIgetachance.Iwaswaitingforaneventwhere

hebehaves

foolishly.

Inever

thought

such

abeautiful

erroneous

behavior

from

boss

wouldoccursosoon.Healwaysusedtoaskmetomakemysubordinatessit late. Inever

liked the ideaofmaking them sitting late. Theunderlyingprinciplewasplain& simple

greedtransformedyoutoanoverloadeddonkey;Iamnotthatgreedy.Iwantneitherme

normysubordinatestobeanotherdonkeylikeyou.ThisgreatprincipleIhadlearnedfrom

myboss in thepreviouscompanywhere Iworked. Ineverpressedmysubordinates tosit

late.Hewasnotveryhappywithmeforthis.


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14

OneSaturdayevening,weIndiansandveryfewLebanesewereworkingintheoffice.

Bosshadgoneoutside forhis lunch&oversleeping.Onhisreturnhe foundnoneofmy

subordinatesintheoffice.Sincehisverybasicnaturedidntallowhimtoshowhisangerby

heatedwords,heshowedhisdisappointmentbyabusingme.

Iheardthatyouareencouragingotherstoleavetheofficeearly,hehehe

Alightningflashstruckinmymind.Thisisthechance!!!!!!!!!Thetimeisripeandthe

ignition sparkwas generated. Ijust smiled at himjust like any other guy and sat there

saliently.Istartedplanningtheevent.IfIrespondquickly,itwillbeconsideredjustaweak

guys response.Never takeadecisionwhenyoureupset. I toldmy Indiancounterparts

abouthowIfeelaboutthisinaveryfirmvoiceandtone.Theydidntlaughatmeandtried

to support me. They also felt bad about his comment. Then I started planning the

conversationwhich I should havewith him once he comes out of his cabin. I carefully

articulatedthewholeevent.

He came back to us after about an hour. Hewas talking to goggu and Sankhe,

standingby thesideofmyseat.Hewasnoteven lookingatme.Once they finished their

conversation,Istarted:

Sir,Iamhurt,Iwanttogohomeandrelax

Why,whathappened(thoughheknewtheissue)

Iwasnot infuriatedbyhisresponse. Ineverbehavethatway; itsanywaymybasicnature

(Overlymaturedguy).Iwasmaintainedmycalmandsaid:

Allthethreeofusworkhereeverydaytilllateevening.Theonlydrivingforcewhichmakes

us do that is the tight submission schedule of project.We are ready to contribute the

maximumextentpossibletoachievethesubmissiondatesandwearealreadydoing that.

Whenwearehavingsuchanattitude, ifyoublameus forothers irresponsibility Iwillbe

hurtnaturally.

Noalbert, Ididntmean tohurtyou. Iwasjustjoking. Iknow thatyouworkhardevery

day.And

abig

lecture

followed.


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15

Thatsit;myarrowhashititsintendedtarget.Thereweretwobenefitsfromthisevent.He

nevermisbehavedwithmeandIbecamemorecourageousandconfidentwhiledealinghim.

ProbablehewasscaredthatIllcomplainabouthimtotheHODordirectorlikemanyothers

amongmy peers. Anyway this time Iwon thematch. I hereby expressmy gratitude to

Sankheandgoggufortheirtimelysupportivebehavior.

Chapter3

Our next trip after the pigeon rockswas to a cedar preserve called Shouf cedar

preserve at the north of Lebanon. We were not that scared to travel towards north

compared to travellingsouth.Southern regionofLebanon isadisturbedareawith lotsof

Palestinian camps. Some of our colleagues come from these camps. Lebanons southern

border is sharedwith Israel and lotsof Palestinian refugees used to infiltrate into Israel

throughthatborder.Beforethetrip, Iwas ignorantaboutthedetailsoftrip. Ididnteven

knowwhowillbeaccompanyingus,allIwastoldisthatIhavetoreachtheofficeat6amon

Sunday!Iwasnotverylenienttowakeupatsuchoddhourstogotoatreereserveforest.I

shouldbereadyby5:45inaSundaymorning.Itshardforme.OnanySunday,togetmeup

evenat

8O

clock

is

very

hard.

Back

home,

when

Iwas

akid,

Pappa

used

to

try

it

every

SundayforSundaymass.Buthissuccessratewaslessthan5%.ButthistimeIhavenoother

optionsbuttowakeupat5am.

Itwasonthepreviousdayevening,wehadourprevioustriptothepigeonrocks.So

naturallywewere a bit tired.But allour Lebanese colleagues used to talk about cedars

excitedly.TheonlyexceptiontothatwasoneofourLebanesegroupleadersbackinIndian

office.Thesurvivaltechniquesofcedarsareawellstudiedbyscientistsallaroundtheworld.

Letusnotdiscussaboutthosetechniqueshere.Oneormanyamongthemmaybepatented

orcopyrightedbythem.Thankstocopyrights.Cedarsgrowinmountainregions,Ithinkso.

TheyarenativetothemountainsofthewesternHimalayaandtheMediterraneanregion,

occurring at altitudes of 1,5003,200m in the Himalaya and 1,0002,200m in the

Mediterranean.[1]ThankstoWikipedia.


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16

SomehowImanagedtowakeupat5:30andfinishedallthemorningformalitiesand

gotreadyby6am.Uhwearelate.Istillhavetoeatbreakfastandwalktilltheoffice.Inany

case I cannot skip breakfast. Its not that I am obsessedwith food, but for the fear of

diseaseswhichmayaffectusifwedonteatbreakfast.ItisarulewhichIhavenotbrokenin

mylifetime.kaanamvittumbreakfastkazhikkanam(Eatbreakfastevenifyouhavetosell

your innerwear for purchasing it). Experts talk only about regular breakfast. But as a

responsible citizen of India, I dont want to overload public healthcare system hence

extendedthisexpertadvicetolunch,eveninghighteaanddinner.

Timewasrunningout. Idecidedtohavea lightbreakfastnowandtohaveaheavy

breakfastonce

we

reach

one

of

the

destinations.

Ipoured

juice

to

the

glass,

took

out

two

apricots andon peach from fridge and spreadjam on the bread loaves. Finished all the

abovewithin5minuteswhilesankheandgogguwerebangingonmydoor.Weleftourhotel

andhurriedtotheoffice.Wemighthavereachedtheofficebyaround6:15am.Wesawtwo

vacantbusesparkedneartheofficewithnoonevisibleinthevicinity!

Mybreakfast!MyunfinishedsleepItisgone.

At6:30amthetourorganizerfromtheIndiansidearrivedwithaninnocentsmileon

hisface.Heisalwayslikethatanyway.

Whereareothers?

Ah,theywillcome.Letuswait

Ooh thatwasareallycomfortinganswer.Byaround7ameveryonecameandwe

startedour

travel

by

about

7:15

am.

There

was

abig

bus

and

asmall

bus.

All

Lebanese

and

AmericanswereinbigbusandtheIndianswereinsmallbus.Sinceitwasnotanofficialtrip

noonetookanypaintominglewithothernationalities.Butstilltherewereveryfewpeople

whom Imetduring the trip.The travelwastooboringand irritating,becauseof fewover

smartindividualsinourgroup.AnywaysIdontwanttomentionaboutithere.Theyarestill

myhaibyebuddies.


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17

Ourfirststopwasatafamouschurch.Idontknowwhatitisfamousfor.Anywaythe

spiritualambiancewasgoodinsidethechurch.Butthelocationlackedgoodfoodshops.AllI

got toeatwassomestupidhalfbakedbread (similar towheatada).SankheandGoggu

blamedthemselvesfornothavingbreakfastatthehotel.Noonewastheretoguideorto

explainus.ThemainorganizerwasaLebaneseguy.Hehadalargenose.HereafterIllrefer

hisasMookken(Meansapersonwith largenose inmymothertongue). Allweusedto

hearfromhimwasthis:

They demanded us X dollars, but I bargainedwith them for you and reduced it to X1

dollars

Heisanywayafunnyguywithlargenose,buthadaverygoodrapportwithallofthem.

Ournext locationwasBeiteddineopen air theatre. Ihaveheard about thisevent

fromourMam.ShehadexplainedusaboutthingstoseeinBeirut.Whenwereachedthere

theywerepreparingthevenuefortheeventwhichisscheduledtobeginafter1week.Itis

actuallyapalaceofsomekinginBeirut.ThesehistoricallyimportantplacesarerareinBeirut

becauseofthelargenumberofwarsfoughtintheheartofLebanon.Sotheyvaluetothose

monuments.Therewasasmallmuseuminsidethepalace.Imeta ladyinourgroupcalled

Fridaatthatmuseum.Shefoundamade in Indiapistolandnotifiedmeabout it.Allthe

artifactsarebeautifullydisplayed thereand therewere fewguyswhowork thereas free

guidetothetourists.NoneoftheartifactsweremadeinLebanon,probablytheydontenjoy

making,andrathertheyenjoybreaking.

Therewasacourtyardoutsideandawellmaintainedgarden. Itwasbeautiful.We

shotacouple

of

photos

there

and

helped

Frida

for

hers.

Two

newly

wed

couples

came

there

forphoto shoot in theirwestern stylewedding costumes alongwith a cameraman. They

werebitdisturbedbyourpresencethere.Someoftheguystriedtotakepictureswiththem.

AnywayIwasnotinterested,IwasconcentratingonFrida.WecameoutsidetheBeiteddine

soon.Outsideitwasverycoolsinceitwasonamountainside.Thereweresomeconiferous

treesthere.Ithinkthatwaspinetrees.Itriedtoexplorethatarea,butnooneelseshowed

anyinterest.


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18

Whilewaiting forothers,wedranksomewaterfromanearbysmallstream. Itwas

pureandsweet.Waterresourcesareanotherasset(sometimesaliability)ofLebanon.Butit

doesnthaveanymajorrivers.Watersourceismainlythesespringsandgroundwaterwhich

getsreplenishedeveryyearbyregularrains.Theyneverhavetopurifyseawaterfortheir

needs.Waterisalsobeingexportedtootherpoorcountrieswhocannotafforddesalination

plants.Thesefactsanywaydidntcheermeupwhiledrinking.Iwasstillthinkingofmylost

breakfast,sleepandnottomention Frida.

Westartedagainfromthereandeverythingwassame inthebusexceptthatsome

of the irritants were tired and was not irritating anymore. But till now Lebanese and

Americanswere

in

the

big

bus

and

Indians

were

in

the

small

bus.

Bus

was

taking

us

to

higher

andhigheraltitudesthroughthemountainranges.Varietyoftreesisnotasdiverseasthat

ofanIndianmountainrange,ratheritismonotonous.Youwillfindsametypeoftreefora

longstretchandanothertypeinthenextstretchwhichcreatesafeelingthatthesetreesare

cultivatedbysomeone likearubberestate inkerala. Journeycontinued foranhourorso

andfinallywereachedShoufCedarpreserve.

Ihave

never

gone

atree

preserve

or

areserved

forest

in

India.

There

are

quite

a

numberofreserved forests in India,butno treepreserve,at least Ihavenotheardabout

anytreepreserves in India.Butthistreepreserve is likeaplantationofcedars. Ithasonly

cedars insideandthemost importantthetemperature isreally low likeOoty in India.The

ground is softwithmany layers of decomposed leaves and other organic deposits. This

entire regionwill be covered in snow during thewintermonths. But being summer you

wontfindanysnowthere inthevicinity.TheoldestCedar inthispreserve isaround3000

yearsold.

We

enquired

about

this

Cedar

to

the

guide.

But

he

said

it

is

located

in

the

interior

oftheforestanditwilltakeadayifwehavetocoverthatdistancebywalkcrisscrossingthis

forest.IonlyhopethattheageoftheoldestCedarisnotamyth.Icouldnotevenimagine

itssizeifithasgrownforallthese3000years.ButIheardsomebodytellingmethatCedars

stop growing at some point of time and stays there for the rest of the life like those

creaturesinanimalkingdom.


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19

I noticed the Americans in our group. Most of them were known to me. I had

attendedameetingwith them theweekbefore.But Ihad a little interactionwith them.

Theyhaveinvolvedthemselvesinshootingpictureindifferentangles,quiteuninterestedin

othersinthegroup,thenaturalAmericanway.Wewerewalkingthoughthepathwayinside

the forest.Wearesupposedtotravelonly throughthispathwayandarenotsupposedto

exploretherestoftheforestourselves.Thisisageneralruleforthatpreserveandwewere

innomoodofbreakingrulessincetherewasnopropergovernment.Sometimesbreaking

rules inLebanonmightcostyouyourtime,careerandeven life.Thereweremanyrulesto

befollowedinsidetheseforestssoIwasnotreallykeentobeinside.Theguidewithuskept

on

explaining

all

about

cedars

and

this

preserve

in

particular,

even

though

no

one

was

interested.Buteveryonepaidattentiontohimwhichencouragedhimtospitoutevenmore

crap.OneoftheLebanesemembersvolunteeredtotranslatetheguidetoEnglish.Butwe

understoodtheguidebetterthanhim.

Attheendeveryonestartedconcentratedinphotoshoot.Inthebeginningofdigital

cameraera,onlyoneortwopersonshadcameras.Soeveryonewillpesterhimwithrequest

forphotos.Butnowdigicamshavebecomeverycommonandalmosteveryonehadone.All

ofthemwereconcentratingofcapturingphotosintheirowncreativewayandhenceitwas

verydifficulttogatherthemforgroupphotos.OurMookkenstartedshoutingatallofus

togatherus foragroupphoto.Butagaintherewerediscussionsregardingwhosecamera

hastobeused. Itcannotbeshotwithallcameras.Sothediscussionwentonandon,and

ultimatelyhiscamera itselfwasshortlisted.Heshotfirstthewholegroupthensubgroups

andsubsubgroupsandshottillhisthirstforgroupphotossubsidedaway.AnywayIdidnt

evenbothertocollectthosephotosafterwards.

Afterthephotosession, itwastimetogo.Themostattractivethingaboutthistrip

wasthatwedidntknowwhereweareheadingto.EvenourIndianorganizerdidnthavea

clue about. I admired him for taking this challenge of organizing a trip without any

informationaboutthelocation.Wehadalreadygotboredandwereinamoodtogobackto

ourhotelandtakerest.Butthetripwasonlyhalfwaythrough.Thenextlocationwasalake

theCaraounLake.Idonotknowthesignificanceofthislake.Probablythisistheonlyone


20/27

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20

lake in whole Lebanon. Though Lebanon is a land of stream and rivers, there are no

navigable rivers in Lebanon.Myminddidntpondermore intowaterbodies in Lebanon,

respectingthestomachscall. IwantedMookkentotakeustoanearbyHotel.But Iwas

surethatitisonlyadistanthope.Theywillneverhavefoodontime.

Tomysurprisethebusstoppedintheparkinglotofarestaurant.Therestaurantwas

inanoddplacebutwasfilledwithtourists.Therewasnothingneartoitexceptwasteland.I

preparedmymind to have a huge lunch,went inside the hotel quicklywith Mookken

beforehefinishedeverything inthekitchen.IwaitedtherewhileMookkentalkedtothe

waiter inArabic.Timewentonandtherewasnooutputpractically, theywentonandon

talking.My

stomach

urged

me

to

interrupt

them.

Whatisgoingon?

Nonothingwearefinalizingthemenuandprice.Theyhavevegetarianandnonvegetarian

lunchbutnonvegetarianswillhavetoeatbeef

Oooooooooooooooh!!!!!!!!!!AdeepsighofangereruptedfromIndianside.Fiftypercentof

non

vegetarians

were

converted

to

vegetarian

on

the

spot.

DontyouhavejustchickeninnonvegmenuIventuredtoask

Yessir,wecanserveyouchickenandsomeextravegdishesinsteadofbeef

75%ofthoseofconvertedvegetariansareconvertedbacktononvegetarianism.But25%

remainedasvegetariansdubiousofextradishes.Mookkenfinalizedthepricewithgreat

difficulty.WhileIwasabouttogotothewashroom,Mookkenannounced:

Guys,letsgotothelakenow

Whatthehell!!!!Whydoeshewanttogoto lakenow?Letseat.Ooh!Theseguys

willneverchange. Iwashelpless;therewasnoonetosupportmy ideaofeating firstand

latergoingtothelake.MylibertyisbeingquestionedhereandIamboundtogotothelake

concedingtothepressure.HoweverIdonthaveanyotheroptionbuttogowiththem.So

beit.Letusgotothelake.


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21

Thelakewasveryneartothehotel.Wereachedtherewithin5minutes.Itwasjusta

lake.Isearchedallaroundtofindsomethinginteresting.Buttherewasnothing.Justalake.

Ohsorry,thereweresomeboatstoo.Sowhat.

Okguys,letsgoback

Iwantedtoshoutatthem,butdidnt.Tomylucknooneshowedanyinterstogofor

boatingorevenworsefishing.Wespentaround15minutesatthe lakesitewithoutdoing

anythingbutallowingthechickentobecookedbackinthatrestaurant.Wewentbacktothe

restaurant soon and settled down at tables as usual, Indians at one table, Lebanese at

another tableandAmericansatanother.Theguywhos servinghad least respect forour

hunger.Hebrought some salad first.This ishow younormallyget served inanyhotel in

BeirutintunewiththeculinarycustomsofLebanon.Mainmealstheyeatslowlywhichgoes

onforabout2hours.Therewerenotmucheatablesinthefirstsetofsalads.Itwasacollage

ofgreenvegetables.Icouldidentifycucumberandtomatoinit,buttherestofthemlooked

likegrass&shrubscutfromthefieldoutside.

Ifeltreallysorryforthevegetarians.Iknewfromthebeginningitselfthatvegetarian

food in Lebanonmeans green salads and green saladsonly.Butmostofour Indian tour

mates were not really cognizant about this. They were still eagerly waiting for more

deliciousimaginaryLebanesevegetariandisheswhileIatevegetablesonebyonealongwith

Lebanesebreaddipped inhummus.Hummus isnothingbutpeaspaste,made fromour

sameoldwhitepeas(Channa).TheyproudlysayitisaLebaneseDish.Thenextcoursewas

somecooked/friedLebanesedishes.Stillchickenwasvisibleonly in thenearbycourtyard,

nowhere inanyofthetables.Otherswerechattingandcommentingaboutthefood.They

didntshowmuchinterestinthefood.Thankgod.

Indianswillanyway faceproblemof food ifhe traveloutside Indian subcontinent.

SpicesarenotusedsolavishlyinanyotherplaceexceptinIndia.ForaLebaneseguyitwill

beatorturetohavesuchaspicyfood.MycolleagueintheBeirutofficeeventriedonceto

testmy spice tolerancebyorderingdoubleextraspicyMexicanchickensandwichwhich I

told him was average spicy as per Indian standards. By the time chicken arrived, our


22/27

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22

appetitewasalmostfinishedandwasinnomoodtoeatfurther.Itwasgrilledchicken,same

asthatofeverywhereinMiddleEast.Vegetarianswerestillwaitingfortheirimaginarymain

course.Iwishedgoodlucktothemandstartedattackingchicken.

MealcametoanendwhenIfinishedchickenandthevegetariansconcluded

thatthereisnomoredishcomingup.Fruitskeptcominginoncewefinishedourmainmeal

and thewaiterswerevery liberal.Theymighthavenoticeduseatingalmostnothing.Our

mealwasoverwithinonehourandwelookedaroundtogetup.ButforLebaneseithasjust

started. Theywere still eating their salads! Some of them had even ordered argheela

(Hookka).Wedecidedtogetupanyway.Wegotupandwhilewewerewalkingtowardsthe

entrancethe

head

waiter

noticed

us

and

being

the

biggest

guy

in

the

group

he

asked

me:

Whydidyoufinishearly?Didntyoulikethefood?

Whatthe ?Weateforaboutanhourandhestellingearly.Thiswastheoneof

theslowestlunchIeverhadinmylife.

Nono, the foodwasexcellent,weare Indiansand Indianseat fast if the food is

good

Ohthankyousir

Youaremostwelcome,whereistherestroom

Towardsyourrightsir

WehadtowaitthereforanotherhourtogetLebaneseoutofthehotelandanotherhalfan

hourto

start

our

journey

to

some

icream

shop.

Thats

what

we

understood

from

our

Mookken

Wewillnowgotoasmalltownnearby;itisfamousforicecream

God!Whenwill I reach back tomy hotel? I dont remember anyonementioning about

travellingforawholedaytogotoanicecreamshop.MostofthemintheIndiangroupwas

havingsamethoughts.Anywaywehadonlyashortstayattheicecreamtown.


23/27


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24

howtoearnacodeBonhisdrawings.Fromhisfeedbackonourcomments,welearntthat

weshouldcommenthisdrawingsinArabicinsteadofEnglish.

AnywayIam

not

the

one

singled

out

here,

most

of

the

engineers

and

draftsmen

feel

likethewayIfeel,relaxedwithnotmuchtodointheoffice.Mamalsoisquiterelaxedand

spentmostof thetime insidehercabin.Shecomesoutjust tosuperviseandoversee

thejuniorswhojustjoinedtheorganization.Theambience intheofficehaschangedever

sinceIjoinedhere1.5yearsback.Itwasasmallofficewithjustover100employees.Nowit

hasgrowntoamoderatelybigorganizationwitharound400employees.Butforourlife in

pune,therewasnomuchchange.Ofcourseweliveinaduplexrowhouseveryfarfromthe

officeand

own

abike

which

increases

my

mobility

or

in

other

way

freedom

to

travel.

Wewatchmoviesalmosteveryweek.Onweekdayswedontprefer togooutside

owingtothehugeworkloadwaitingforusnextdayintheoffice.Mytypicaldayschedule

anyweekdaygoeslikethisWakeupatanytimebetween6amtill6:30am,finishmorning

necessities,leavehomeby7:30am,eatbreakfast,reachofficeby8am,drinkteaandwait

fornexttea,drinkteaat11am,waitfor lunch, eat lunchandbrowse inthe lunchbreak,

waitfor

tea

at

3pm,

drink

tea

and

wait

till

5:30

to

leave

office,

leave

office,

buy

vegetables,

cookfood,eat,talktofriends andsleepby10pm.Howeverwehavetoplantheactivities

fornextweek.OurgreatMam istakingoneweek leavetoroamaround in India.Her last

twoplanswereditchedbythefearofswineflu.Butthistimeshehasnootheroptionbutto

gosinceherrelativeshavecometoseeIndia.

Beirut is not the only international tripwhich I havemadewith the grace ofmy

organization. IhadbeentoCairo in thenameoftraining forabout6monthsandbeento

dubai for aweek for the purpose of attending an exhibition. But how the Beirut trip is

differentisthatitistheonlyplacewhereIworkedintheoffice.DuringthestayinCairoall

whatwehavetodowastogotoofficejustforthesakeofshowingourfacesintheoffice.

The timing in the officewas also excellent, from 8 am till 3 in the evening. Even inmy

college Ididnthave the luxuryofcominghomeat3pm.Weused tohaveparties, trips,

moviesandhelllotoffunaftertheoffice.Eveninofficeweusedtohavefun.Wethreeofus


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25

weresitting insideaclosedroomblockedfromtheviewofothersbybrickwallsandthere

wasasecretarysittingnexttoourdoorkeepingourdoorshutallthetime.

Careerwise,

the

Cairo

stay

was

adisaster.

After

working

in

L&T

for

about

2.5

years,

beingengagedinworkforthroughouttheworkinghourshadbecometheorderoftheday.

The shift fromheavyworkload toapracticallynullworkhashaddrivenmecrazy. Igrew

fattierdaybyday.IfIhadnotjoinedgyminCairo,Iwouldhavelookedlikeacouchpotato

onmyreturntoIndia.Idontknoweventodayaboutthemanagementspurposeofsending

us to Cairo for enjoying life. Probably itwould have been their part of corporate social

responsibilityprogram.Howeverweenjoyedittillthelastdrop.

WehadashortstintintheEgyptianpolicestationalso.Ihadittwice.Onceas

avictimwhen theyarrestedus fornotcarryingpassportandoncetocomplainaboutpick

pocketing. In factwewere travelling to anearby tourist sport inCairowithoutpassport.

Actually themanagerof thehotelwhereweweresupposed tostay tookus to thepolice

stationsincehewasaresponsiblecitizenofEgyptandsuspectedusforterroristactivities.

Overallresultwaswetravelled150kilometersjusttogotoapolicestation!Funnyhuh!But

policein

Egypt

is

not

like

the

police

in

India.

Theyre

very

polite,

kind,

and

lovable

people.

He

wassmilingatuswhenhearrestedus. Iwouldnotsaythathearrestedus,heletusenjoy

hishospitality.

The other occasion when I went to police station was to complaint about pick

pocketing.Somebodypickpocketedmy friend.Hewas ina trauma immediatelyafter the

event. ItwasonaThursdayevening. Ihadcomebackfromofficeandstartedbrowsing in

mylaptop.Igotacallfrommyfriend

DaIlosteverything

Ohwhat?YousurrenderedyourvirginitytoanEgyptianbeauty!Greatyaar

DaIlostmypurse

What?Youarepickpocketed?Howwhenwhere?

Nearmy

apartment,

Ilost

my

cards,

money.

What

to

do

now?


26/27

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26

Dontworrycomeherewelldisableyourcardsfromhere

Iwas horrified anyway by his voice. It seemed like hewas going to cry. After 5

minuteshe

came

in

with

agrief

stricken

face

while

Iwas

searching

for

his

banks

card

theft

reportingnumbers.He lostsomemoney,considerableamountandthecards.Hetalkedto

hisbrother in law inKeralaandentrustedhim forblocking thecards.Aftersometimehis

mood changed.Once he gained back his stance and started thinking about catching the

thief.Pickpocketingincairoisnotarareevent.Someofourcolleagueswerepickpocketed

before.Butnoonehadtoldmeasuccessfulattemptofcatchingthethief.

Ienquiredoneofourcolleaguesabouttheprocedureofcomplainingthepolice.We

knowthepolicestation.Itwasnexttoasupermarketwhereweusedtogoforbuyingdaily

supplies.

Anganevittalengana?Ihavetocatchhim

AnywayIconcededtohisrepeatedattemptsforpursuingmetocomplainaboutthe

theft.We had to get the petitionwritten in Arabic sowewent to the office and got it

written

and

one

of

the

Egyptian

colleagues

accompanied

us

to

the

police

station.

We

went

insideandhetalkedsomethingtothemandthepolicemansmiledatus.Wesattherefora

longtimetillthepolicemantookourcase.TheArabicengineerhelpedusconversingwith

thepoliceandtheytookmy friend intoanotherroomtoshowsomephotographsof local

thieves.He has not seen the thief; he had not even realized that hewas pick pocketed

before reaching theapartment.While theywent toanother room in thepolice station, I

cameoutofthestationandwaitedoutside.Sincethesupermarketandabrowsingcenter

werethere

next

to

the

police

station,

it

was

adaily

commuting

road

for

many

Indian

engineers.

Ourcolleagueskeptoncoming inwithdubious looksandstartedenquiring

about the reason forme standing in frontofapolice station. Ididntexplain themwhat

reallyhashappened indetail. If Ihaddoneso thesmallcongregationof foreignerswould

haveformedwhichirritatesthenatives.Egyptiansareyouyourbestfriendsiftheyreleftun


27/27

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27

irritated. Istoodwaiting there forabout1hour.My friendcameoutwith thepoliceman

andtoldme:

Iam

going

with

them

to

the

main

police

station

forwhat

They have some thieves caught fresh today. Theywill conduct an identification

paradeforme

Areyounuts?

Ihave

to

catch

the

thief

Goodlord!Talktoyourparentsbeforeyourhunt.

Ok

Allofthemgotintoacarandspedaway.

Tobecontinued..

Ma Beirut Odyssey

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