I find myself in London today! For the very first time!! Considering my sight seeing is limited to cab rides from airport to office to hotel to office and back to airport, I am in no position to write a lot about it. But it being my first trip and all, some random thoughts are warranted.

1. I can understand everything everywhere! People speak English! I just realised that I haven’t been to a country where English is widely spoken for a very very long time. People don’t hate me here, just because they have to speak a different language for me! I could whoop for joy!

2. They drive on the right, right as in correct, side of the road! I mean, whoever thought up driving on the right hand side of the road!

3. Its past midnight,I am eating a lovely meal of chicken tikka, mini papads and mango chutney, which is one of the few foods available 24 hours. And the TV is playing something bollywood-ish! How much more closer to home can I get?

4. Every other person I asked for directions on the road ( I went to get coffee mid day and promptly got lost) today spoke in a different accent. Cosmopolitanism, do you have a better spokesperson?

5. I love the cabs! And the cabbies! I got a 30 minute crash course on London’s history and the development to Eastend from docklands to a residential place. And the best part is, he didn’t drop me off at the wrong place and give the excuse that he didn’t understand me. You see, he speaks English! Oh, have I said that before?

Enough of delirious posting! People who live in lands where they know what is going on, don’t judge me till you have had to bribe your neighbours to read letters from your insurer! Now, let me try and figure out what the Sardar on my TV is ranting about!

Continuing from the last post on Rouen, lets get on with the walking tour around the city.

A short walk from the Notre Dame cathedral will bring you to the L’aître Saint-Maclou. But on the way, be sure to observe the beautiful half-timbered houses (below).

The houses are characteristic of this area of France, but you will see some of the best specimens in this area. Also, if you look carefully, in one of the buildings, you will find a way of building in which each floor juts more into the street than the one below - giving the building the appearance of an upside down staircase, and this has since been banned in France. You will also pass by a small courtyard, which seems as nondescript as any other, but was popularly known as the Booksellers courtyard and is where all the literati came to get fodder for their brains. We also passed by some street singers dressed in period French costumes.

Before you finally reach the Aître Saint-Maclou , you will also pass by the St.Maclou church (below), built between 1437 and 1521. Built in a flamboyant Gothic style, the most notable feature of this church is its five paneled facade, arranged in the arc of a circle and is composed of a pyramid-like succession of triangular lines that give it its own special grace and charm.

The Aître Saint-Maclou (below) has a strange history - It dates back to the Great Plague of 1348. The Great Plague also known as The Black Death, was a devastating pandemic that first struck Europe in the mid-late-14th century, killing between a third and two thirds of Europe’s population. There was unprecedented demand for burial grounds, and the Aître Saint-Maclou was one of the buildings built to meet this demand.

The building is now home to a Regional Fine Arts school, but the morbidity of its original purpose is well reflected in the macabre carvings of human skulls, bones, hourglasses and gravediggers tools on the half-timbered building that surrounds the central courtyard. Look carefully, and you will also find a cat’s skeleton that was later found in the walls, eerily preserved under a glass case.

From the ghoulish Aître Saint-Maclou, a not-so-long walk brought us to the St. Ouen’s abbey (below), one of the most powerful Benedictine monasteries in the Normandy region. The abbey is said to have been founded in 750AD, and it remained an active monastery till the late 18th century, after which it was used as Rouen’s town hall for a short period of time, while the power of the monastery was at its peak. Built mainly in Gothic style, the inside of the abbey is impressive for its bareness, huge size and exceptional lighting. The narrow pillars, the use of vertical lines and the absence of any chapels in the nave further accentuate the perception of size, while the large windows on three levels gives it the unusual lighting.

Dig a bit into Rouen’s history and there is a chapter that most locals won’t be proud of, and that is the burning of Joan of Arc in the city’s market square on 30 May 1431, in the midst of the hundred years’ war. A heroine at 17, Joan was convicted of heresy at 19, and burnt at the stake at this very place.

The old market square still exist, even though it has changed since. But you will also find a a memorial site here, which includes a huge cross, a statue of Joan of Arc, a church and a small museum.

In the next installment, we will go outside Rouen to explore its scenic surroundings.

S&I started out on late Friday afternoon, around 5:30 pm, and thanks to the horrendous Friday evening Amsterdam traffic, reached Rouen, our first stop, around 1am. Despite the occasional drizzle and the emails I had to send out from my car before I left the Netherlands, it was a beautiful drive. Plain open fields with cows, sheep and the occasional horses, interrupted once in a while with windmills - the Netherlands is definitely a beautiful country to drive through. Enter Belgium, and suddenly the quality of roads goes down by several notches - blame it on the roads or the weather, but I was pretty happy when we hit France - I am not a fan of paying high tolls, but they certainly keep their roads well. They even have resting places near the highways, which would be such a luxury in the Netherlands. We drove into Rouen past midnight, with a very impressive view of the Notre Dame cathedral, which made the decision of where to start the visit the next morning a very easy one.

After a good night’s sleep, we set out to explore Rouen city. Now, I am not sure what you have heard of the French, but I was completely surprised by how nice they were. Maybe its just the Rouen people and I shouldn’t be too quick to contradict popular opinion , but when two language-ignorant foreigners stumble onto a bus stop, its not in every country that the general population volunteers to help them out. Armed only with a pamphlet on Rouen’s cathedral, “Bonjour” and “Merci”, we must have looked very helpless, for a bunch of passengers took it upon themselves to make sure that we reached our first stop. From the yellow lady who talked to the bus driver for us, to the old man who looked back at every stop to make sure we didn’t get out ahead of time, to the Moroccan woman who the yellow lady put in charge when she had to get out, the bus trip was one big adventure for everyone else, while S&I decided to relax with no worry of getting to the right place.

The old city centre is a maze of quaint old streets lined with beautiful half-timbered buildings. The occasional beautiful ornate doors and walls and bright flowers hanging from the windows add a special charm and beauty to the streets. The numerous antique shops with their collections, artisans hard at work in the shops where they dispay their wares and the art shops carrying old French paitings to contemporary art and street singers entertaining the crowds all make a walk through the streets a pleasant experience. Most of the monuments in the city are within walking distance and a pleasant walking tour could easily cover most of what Rouen has to offer.

The Rouen cathedral (above), which has been the subject of many renowened paintings, most notably by Monet, is a a classic Gothic example of ecclesiastical architecture. Its construction was started in the 13th century, but continued till late 16th century and according to Wikipedia, was the tallest building in the world from 1876 to 1880. Does’t the glory sound more like an Olympic title valid for 4 years? But the church tower has managed to hold on to the title of being the tallest church tower in France.

The architectural beauty and grandoise of the cathedral is best appreciated during the day, but do not miss the light show at night, which starts at 10pm every night in August (it starts at 9pm in the other summer months) - complete with music that befits each segment of the light show, it is an amazing spectacle that often makes you look around the crowd just to reassure yourself that you are still in Rouen in the 21st century - not in a spooky 12th century desolate building, not in someone’s M&M factory outlet, not in the middle of a striped nightmare. Thanks to modern lighting technologies, inspiration from Monet’s colourful impressions of the cathedral and the Rouen tourism bodies, the visitors are treated to a delightful visual spectacle of a monument of varied shades and hues.

After our morning tour of the cathedral, we walked through the Rue du Gros Horloge, a lively shopping street, with many shops still housed in traditional half-timbered buildings. A short detour took us to the Palais de Jusitce, or Hall of Justice, a beautiful example of civil architecture from the Late Middle Ages. Near the Palace of Justice, is the metro station, during the construction of which, archaeologists discovered the remains of a 3rd century Gallo-Roman settlement at the very spot.

The Gros Horloge (above), which literally means a ‘big clock’ is really that, but very ornate and beautiful. The clock archway, which has an amazing representation of the Rouen court of arms, and the clock faces that only have a single hand to indicate the hour, date back to 16th century. At the bottom of the clock near the number VI, the divinity associated with the day of the week is supposed to appear on a chariot at noon. Unfortunately, we were not at the right place at the right time. On the top of the clock, a globe indicates the phase of the moon.

More on the beauties of this wonderful city coming up soon.

We planned to go to Italy. We planned and planned again. And planned over again. And then, we ended up in France. Normandy to be exact, with a small detour to Brittany. Nevertheless,the holidays were lovely, as they always are. Normandy has a lot to offer - from sun kissed beaches to historical D-Day monuments to marvellous cathedrals and châteaus (more on them later). But after 2327 kilometres on the road in a span of 10 days, it feels good to be back home. Good to come back to the unfailingly gloomy Dutch weather, which almost always surprises you with a glint of sunshine, just at the moment when you have completely given up on it.

And its really good because I have five more days before I start work again - one more glorious week of doing what I may please. I woke up today morning to a lovely cup of coffee (the French make terrible coffee, BTW, and for one week, my caffeine thirsty soul have just about been hanging in there) and a audio rendition of Naranath Brandhan - if you are not from Kerala, chances are you have no clue what that is - it is a famous poem by V. Madhusoodanan Nair, and literally means the mad man of Naranath.

Now, lets not really read too much into why I am attracted to mad men the first thing on my free Monday morning (free Monday morning!yoo hoo! Sorry, I can’t seem to get over it). Be that as it may, Naranath Brandhan is a very interesting character in Kerala folklore (and if you understand Malayalam, I would highly recommend the poem).

He was one of the twelve sons of Vararuchi, one of the nine wise men (Navaratnas) of Vikramaditya’s court. To make a very interesting story short ( I will hopefully get to the long version sometime), Vararuchi married a Parachi, one of the low castes of the time. They went on a trip (the ancient version of honeymoon, I presume), during which they had 12 children (I wonder at which stupid period in our history we decided to shorten honeymoons), whom Vararuchi insisted they abandon on the banks of Nila river. The 12 children, subsequently, grew up in 12 different home, in 12 stratas of the society, from the highest to the lowest. And every year they came together for annual family gatherings and such(so much for the caste system, really). And all 12 of them have their own stories, but Naranath Brandhan remains my all time favourite.

If you are in Kerala and would like to trod the untrodden path and not just the backwaters and the beaches and the tea resorts, make a day trip to visit the places of the 12 kids of Vararuchi - the amazing thing is you still find vestiges to most of the stories when you go back to the places where Vararuchi’s wife abandoned them. And the locals and the direct descendants of these families would be happy (or they were, several years back) to regale you with very interesting stories and tales of family traditions.

Well, enough of France and Kerala. Amsterdam is where I am. With this filler post, I leave you till I get some time to sort through the pictures and write some travel notes (if intentions ever come to fruition).

Easter holidays are not that far and its a long long weekend! Obviously, it’s too late to get cheap tickets anywhere (thanks to all the annoying people who can plan ahead), but that’s not going to stop me from making a list of places I would like to go to. After all as Eco says, there is nothing more wonderful than a list, instrument of wondrous hypotyposis.

1) Athens - the Acropolis, the Parthenon, Plaka, Ancient Agora, Syntagma, Ermou Street, Kalimarmaro Stadium, Mt. Lykavitos, Kolonaki - its definitely on the top of my list!

2) Copenhagen - I haven’t read all that much about Copenhagen, but it look so nice in all the pictures! And I have never been to any of the Scandinavian countries and this would be a great first! Have you seen the city bikes there - wonder if they would let me export one back to Amsterdam?

3) Venice - Who hasn’t dreamt of visiting Venice? I think my fascination probably began many years ago when I first came across the Merchant of Venice - it was one of the few European cities I had heard about at that time. Anyways, summer, apparently, is not the best time to visit Venice - so if not this time, won’t be till the later part of the year.

4) Prague - Everybody seems to be going to Prague these days, and coming back with rave reviews. I want to see it too!!

5) Istanbul - if Turkey doesn’t figure in the list, my better half is not coming to the travel agent with me. Not that I don’t like it, just that he is so insistent on it, I just like to play the devil’s advocate. And I have to admit that Venkat’s travel notes have made me really reconsider Istanbul and it has finally squeezed its way into my top ten list!

6) Berlin - I know! I know! I cannot believe it too that I used to live in Germany and haven’t visited Berlin. As part of my German class assignment, I had to write a long essay on a German city and I cheated and picked Berlin, even though I had never been there. So now, I have to go!! Its a question of my conscience! Also, I HAVE to see the Berlin wall and the huge glass cupola inside the Reichstag. And of course, have a refreshing cup of coffee “Unter den Linden” (under the Linden trees), because that’s what I had done in my rather futuristic essay.

7) Nice - Because I need to experience the French Riviera and Transavia usually offers cheap flights to Nice. I have lived near beaches all (or almost all) my life, and its been almost two years since I have been on a really warm sunny beach! The sea, the sand and the sun - I can almost hear the waves!

8) The midnight sun - I know easter is too early to see the midnight sun, but I really hope to catch it this summer. And I should be able to get tickets to any one of the seven places above - and then I intend to use this list for the rest of the summer trips - and the midnight sun definitely figures in that. Haven’t decided where to go yet - Sweden, Finland and Norway experience the midnight sun - so it will be one of the three.

9)Aurora Borealis - Now that the list has sort of lost its original purpose of Easter holiday choices and disintegrated into possible things to do this year, let me add watching Aurora Borealis to it. It’s been on my mind ever since I saw those out of the world pictures some time back, which I was so tempted to blame on someone’s Photoshop misadventures - yet are so real, and so beautiful. I never really got around to finding out how to be at the right place at the right time. I should keep an eye on these - Aurora Forecasts and IRF. If you have “been there done that”, any suggestions on picking the place and the best time to go would be most appreciated.

10) CSI Miami - Last but not least, a trip to Miami! Did I mention I miss beaches? Have you tried searching for US and tourism in google - why does Chicago come up tops?

That’s it for now! Now I keep my fingers crossed that I’ll get some tix for Easter..

Nope, I didn’t make that up - thats what the Social Security people (I don’t remember the exact French name) say! Just saw an ad on Belgian TV which says that if you want to break a leg, you should go to Belgium where you have excellent social security, you can consult a doctor without even providing your credit card number (they didn’t say anything about insurance though), and it only costs 20 EUR.

Really, what is that ad supposed to mean? If I were a resident paying a large part of my pay towards social security, the last thing I want to know is that the government is inviting foreigners to use that up. If I am not a resident, the last thing I would think of when I am falling down from a tree is to take a flight to Brussels?

What am I missing here?

A dear colleague is off to work in Singapore for a few months and yours truly, who has lived in Singapore for more than her fair share of time, was duly called upon to impart her wisdom on how to make a great impression on Singaporean business associates. After my attempts to convince him that adding a lah to every other sentence would make him an immediate darling of the Singapore office fell flat, I was forced to oil a certain part of my brain that had begun to rust (my last post on Singapore was quite some time back) and give some decent sounding advice on how to navigate the landmine that is the Singapore and the Singapore business landscape (ok, I admit, I love to exaggerate and terrify people on that front - it works so beautifully every time, especially when you mention capital punishment and caning).

Since I had to rack my brains anyway, I thought I might as well put it down in here, so that the poor souls who google for Singapore business etiquette would have something real to read (the one that you get now tells you that you should always be punctual in Singapore! Maybe my expectations have been raised by Germans, but if you are going to heed the be punctual advice for Singapore, you should also carry a book with you forever, so that you have something to read when you wait for your Singaporean friends to arrive. (Don’t be too late either - following the IST (Indian Stretchable Time) will get you into trouble in Leoland. There is just the right amount of lateness that you should follow in Singapore (which varies depending on the situation and the impression you want to make), and that, I am afraid, you will learn only with time spent in the landmine field.

But heres some good advice I can give you:

The way to a Singaporean’s heart is through his stomach. Take your colleagues or staff to a wonderful lunch, where they can eat well and they will love you. I don’t mean this in a bad way, they have a good taste for food - numerous are the times when we have hunted down the most remote hawker center to have that one special char kway teow, while I would have gladly grabbed a sandwich and returned to my desk. But don’t mistake good food for expensive food - no, its the taste and only the taste that matters. Ambience could well go for a toss, unless you are organising a fancy dinner, in which case, be careful to pick the “right” place.Singaporeans are “materialistically aware” - they know which places are hard to get a booking in, how much they cost etc - and before you know they would have judged how much you are willing to spend on that relationship and how much effort you put into it, based on just the location selection.

Be nice. Singaporeans are nice, most of the time. At least ,outwardly. Could be because of the courtsey campaigns, but there aren’t many times I can remember when a complete stranger was rude to me. That is, if they had deigned to talk to me in the first place. Indifference - that’s a different ball game altogether. If you consider not talking rudeness, you are in for some rude shock. People will not, in general, greet you in the sidewalks or lifts or even at office (if you don’t know them). Remember, its nothing personal.

Don’t talk politics unless you have to. Most Singaporeans do have their opinions, but may not be comfortable airing them in front of strangers or foreigners. Don’t pull them into those awkward situations.

Be aware of some local superstitions and customs. Don’t gift someone a clock, because that means they will die soon. Don’t put your feet on a table, even while you are having a relaxed coffee at the local cafe with your friends. Don’t throw litter on the floor (its not just about the 1000 dollar fine!). Do not jump queues - queueing up is a sacred national hobby. Don’t speak in an extra loud voice - Singaporeans are soft voiced by nature and even if you don’t realise it, your voice may be the only one booming through the room. Filial responsibilities are important in Asia - don’t make snide remarks about a grown up man still living with his parents etc. Kiasu is a term that is commonly used in Singapore, and for good reason. Understand what that behavior entails, and you will not be annoyed or shocked by certain actions which may otherwise seem unnecessary.

I have tried to give you most of the don’ts - so I ended up writing a rather negative post. Let me clarify - that was definitely not my intention, just that I don’t have to warn you of the good things, you can discover those on your own. Let me reassure you lest you cancel that flight ticket to Changi (which my colleague almost did),that it’s a great place to work. Take it from someone who hasn’t always had it so easy, Singapore is one of the easiest and most convenient places to adjust to if you are a foreigner - the infrastructure works, people are sweet and receptive to aliens, and almost everyone speaks English (a word of caution though - familiarity with Singlish would definitely help. If you can understand what “CAN ALSO CAN CANNOT ALSO CAN LAH” means, you pass the Singlish basics test. If you don’t get it, well, good luck to you!) . Last but not least, enjoy the warm sunshine (and stop complaining about the humidity! - I am freezing in the bloody winter..)

Looks like my internet access will be very irregular this week. Am afraid this postcard is all I can manage for now!

The last time I was here, I never got around to writing about this beautiful city, one of my all-time favorites. Wont happen this time. I don’t have much touristic things on my agenda in this trip, but I will pool together my travel notes and make up for the lack of updates with a nice travelog after I am back!

Till then, Au revoir!

Dutch Diary wishes all its readers a Merry Christmas, with lots of good food, many wonderful gifts and fabulous time with your families.

We are spending Christmas in neighbouring Germany, and below is a picture of the nativity scene, handcrafted by an artisan at the Christmas market.

Christmas Markets are a favourite part of Christmas for me. And nowhere does it get any better than in Germany.

For the uninitiated, Christmas markets here start from the First Advent (the first Sunday after Nov 26) and last till Dec 23. If you thought consumerism was a new addition to Christmas, you would be surprised to find that Christmas markets date back to the 15th century. The first Christmas market was in Dresden in 1434, where they started with selling Striezel (now known as Stollen), a kind of fruitcake. Then it grew to accommodate villagers who found it a good way to sell their Christmas wares. Soon, artisans and craftsmen joined in the Christmas market frenzy and they are all now are an integral part of the markets. Over the centuries, this tradition has survived as it brings together people in a joyous celebration and adds colour and warmth to the dreary winter nights.

Christmas markets in Germany have an indescribable charm of their own. Standing under the starlight, munching on Cinnamon stars and watching the artisans work, you might be forgiven for wondering if you have timetravelled to medieval times. Christmas markets don’t just amaze you with the beautiful sights, but the wonderful smells can blow your “nose” away - the warm smell of baked gingerbread (Magenbrot and Lebkuchen) and the traditional Chrisstollen (the cake that started it all), the aroma of freshly fried nuts of varied kinds, and the unmistakable faint fruity scent of the slowly mulled Glühwein all add to a glorious olfactory experience. Throw in some festive music and the occasional marching bands of Santa Claus, and you have an exhilarating all-round Christmas experience, not to be missed.

The annoying thing about those really cheap deals that you see advertised on the travel agents offices is that more often than not, they are geared towards the lazy traveller. No offence meant here, it’s just that the best deals are to one location, often to a 4 or 5 star hotel which is in a nice suburb, where you will stay put the next 7 days, wallowing in the beautiful jacuzzi and the green hotel surroundings, basking in the pampering of the hotel staff. Now this is perfect if that’s all you are looking for - but if you are looking for some adventure, to get a sense of the real culture of the places you visit, understand the locals a little bit more than the stereotypes you have read about them, and travel to possibly more than one city in a country - we think alike! And here are just some things which I wish someone had told me before I learned them the hard way or after much effort. (This post might be more relevant for travel within or to Europe, though some general stuff may be true for all budget travellers.)

- Choose your time of travel carefully. It is best to choose the fringes of the peak season for your travels. Avoid the winter, because it’s just too cold, a lot of attractions may be closed and you may not have enough daylight to maximise your visit. In most countries in Central and Western Europe, the high tourist season tends to be June-August, which will of course be the best times in terms of weather, but the cons are that everything tends to be a lot more expensive, you will meet more tourists than locals and its hard to find good accommodation unless you plan very well in advance. So, the months of April, May, Sep and Oct tend to be a better choice.

- There are several backpacker inns, where you can get cheap bunk beds. A good place to look for them is gomio. If you are travelling as a less than 4 person group and you need to share the room with strangers, dont rely on the goodness of people - ask for a locker (a lot of the places have free lockers) to keep your valuables when you go gallivanting. And valuables on a backpacking trip are not just those that are expensive, but anything, if lost, would make the next legs of your journey miserable. However, if you are travelling as a couple, some of the low-end and mid-range hotels, can offer you a ’small’ double, which may be cheaper than two beds in a youth hostel. This is especially true in the off-season, because the youth hostel prices don’t vary too much across the seasons, but the hotel tariffs do. But that said, you meet less colourful people at hotels as compared to backpacker inns. You often get the best travel tips, adventure stories and fun times at these places - so make your own trade off.

- In many European countries, special fares are available for those below 26. This is true for trains, museum entries, hostel stays and so on. Ask for them, because even if you look your age, the person at the counter may just be absent-minded and forgetful. On some train routes (esp. Thalys and Deutsche Bahn), even if you won’t get a cheaper fare, you may get upgraded to first class for a marginally higher fare - and thats really worth it too.

- If you are from outside Europe, the easiest way to get around, is often to get a rail pass, available at Eurail . But if you reside anywhere in EU, you can’t buy that, and you have to resort to Interrail. But make sure you travel enough to make it worth it. I can’t say one is better than the other because it depends on individual itineraries. But in the last two trips we planned, it turned out to be cheaper to buy train tickets separately. This is especially the case if you are planning on night trains (not all night train routes are served by rail passes) and if you are planning to go off the beaten path (often the train routes in the places less travelled to tend to be sparse and infrequent), making it a convenient option to go by buses or to rent a car.

- Make the effort to learn a few words in the language of the place you are visiting. Even if the only words you can mutter are ‘Sie’, ‘Merci’, ‘Guten Tag’, and you come off as linguistically-challenged tourist, your efforts will be appreciated and you will be better off than a linguistically-indifferent tourist. And you never know when you will be in a place where you absolutely have no way out without some local language and some words are better than no words.

- Eat heavy breakfasts and lunches and save on dinner. May be this one is really for the shoe string traveller, but I firmly believe that the less I spend on a particular trip, the more places I can cover with my fixed travel budget and so every penny counts. Bed & breakfast places tend to be good value for money, with a decent (don’t expect the impressive breakfast spreads like they have in most Asian hotels) breakfast of breads, cold meats and dairy products. Most cities have good lunch menus which are filling and cheap. And dinners are just over the top! So, get to the local supermarket and buy a loaf of bread or some soup to keep yourself satiated till morning. And if you are a real foodie, a little research beforehand will ensure you find the best of any city’s cuisine.

- When you are booking hotels, first try the ‘aggregator’ sites that search several hotels. Good ones are allukhotels, activehotels , hotel.com. There are several others specific to regions or countries, which can easily found by a google search. Not only do they save you time, but also they tend to offer slightly cheaper deals than booking directly at the hotels. Internet booking usually tends to be cheaper, but there are sometimes hidden gems in most cities that have no online presence and hence can be known only through word of mouth. Best places to find them - backpackers’ travelogues and travel forums.

This post has turned out to be much longer than I intended. Am too tired to go back and edit. But if you are still reading, I hope you could find at least one little tip to make all that reading worth your while!