War and Peace
When spite and mockery run amok,
When indifference looms at every turn,
When trust yields humiliation,
When cries go unheard,
When Nature makes her rare mistake,
When life begs for death,
When the whole world shuns......
The frail arms of a loved one......
Bliss indeed.
Coimbatore, Change
It had been ages since I visited Coimbatore, one and a half years. The city had lost, gained and retained its many qualities but thankfully it still felt like Coimbatore.
My discoveries and ideas:-
1. Water is available 24 hours a day at the turn of a tap.
2. Roads can be confidently walked on without worries of stepping on spit or shit.
3. Mayflowers, chitrakani and rain tree blossoms adorn numerous trees and avenues at the onset of summer. A truly beautiful sight.
4. People use a language indicative of respect towards the second and third person. I witnessed two car drivers get stuck on a narrow road, and accuse each other in respectful terms. Seemed strange after having been exposed to Chennai abuses for a long time.
5. Conversations with strangers are natural.
6. Buses have seats and entry/exit points for ladies at the front and gentlemen at the back.
7. A shopping spree or a walk is bound to see one meet at least three acquaintances by chance.
8. All housing and apartment complexes have kids playing together in the evenings. The residents are well acquainted and intimate with their neighbours. The emphasis is on the word 'all'. A minimum degree of error cannot be eliminated.
9. Hill stations, sanctuaries, waterfalls, theme parks, lakes, dams, tourist spots exist within a 100 km of the small city.
10. The climate is definitely better than most regions of Tamilnadu. Maybe that's why the city is nicknamed 'Poor man's Ooty'.
11. For those interested in statistics, Coimbatore clinched the fourth spot in the list of friendly cities 3 years ago.
12. The city has a multi lingual and multi cultural crowd.
13. Many eminent Indian citizens hail from Coimbatore.
14. The resilience is amazing. After having suffered a series of bomb blasts and religious tensions in 1999, I still haven't come across a person accusing or contemptful towards another religion.
15. Washing one's face doesn't yield gray coloured foam unless the person has stood in the middle of Raja Street for 12 hours straight.
16. The 'Manchester of South India' has many textile establishments.
I noticed that branches of some big clothes and accesories shops at Chennai had sprung up, Pizza Corner, Marry Brown, Domino's and a couple of 'big name' coffee shops added to the big list of hangouts. Thanks to that, I got to meet around 15 of my friends by sheer coincindence. A multinational IT company had set up its office in the outskirts. I saw more concrete gardens added to the cityscape.
Were these the early signs of metropolisation? I could only pray that....
