My secret indulgence

 Today I got a task from my secret Santa to write about my favourite food.

My favourite food.. I pondered and pondered.. Picking my favourite food was not the challenge. I think I know the dish all too well. But I pondered on how to tell it to this world. Wondering what this universe going to perceive of me?? 

I love all kinds of food. Trust me.. The biriyanis, the continental delights like steaks and sizzlers, the pastas, the momos, and the tandoori tikkas and kebabs..my native cuisine of idiyappams and appams.. the masala dosas and pongals of the south and also the chole and sarson ka saag.. almost everything. I am a foodie you see. But today I am gonna spell out my all time favourite food.., Annnndd ittttt isssss the 2 min Maggi noodles! Eeeeeks.. I said it!😳😳😳

Maybe it is the nostalgia. And also the taboo of it being a junk food. But it is a food that I keep craving when things get stressful.. and when things go great.. also when I get some 'me' time.. when I watch my favourite show.. when I want to finish up a pile of pending work.. when I have finished up an important late night call well.. You must have got the picture now. Almost all the time. 😕

The way I have been eating this is something that you need to know. Inorder to not misguide my children away from healthy eating habits, I have to do this in stealth mode. And also note that my husbands scorns if he finds me eating Maggi. Why don't you eat a banana if you are feeling hungry, he says. Yeah, right. Banana. Now you know why it is important to get into stealth mode.

I do 'it' late at night.. I do 'it' if husband and kids have gone out of the house for a short while. I do 'it' listening out for their footsteps.. sharpening my time management skills leaving enough time to hide the evidence before they come back.. praying that my kids don't sniff out my secret. 

So yes.. this remains my guilty pleasure.. my comfort food.. my favourite food.

Being a woman..

Another women's day passed by, throwing at me a variety of emotions.

I saw pretty posts in pink in facebook celebrating womanhood. I saw deals for women all over the place.  We women even got treats from our friends in office. :)  I was happy.

I wished all the important women in my life. But at the same time my mind was questioning me on what I was wishing them for. For being a woman? I was perplexed.

A gruesome incident of a 3 year old girl's rape also came up that day. I was horrified.

I was asking myself a very basic question. What is the status of a woman in this day and time? On one hand I see women growing everywhere. They are highly educated, financially independent, socially powerful. But at the same time they are as vulnerable as always to physical and mental humiliation by the male dominated world. Every minute that a lady lives here, she has to protect herself from being a victim to some crazy man passing by who may be in the 'mood' to get his hands on her. So pathetic!

Okay, leave the crazy guys. We'll talk about the gentlemen around. How many of the educated nice men we know really believe that their wives are their 'equal' counterparts in life. Isn't there a belief somewhere that their wives maybe pretty, smart and also earning well; but still they should be under their 'control'. I have noticed that women also mostly enjoy being under someone's control. Is this nature's design? Is it destined that women are better off in a man's shade than fighting for herself out there in this dirty world? Maybe it is!

I have realized over time that there is no point fighting against men for the liberation of women. It does not make sense in the bigger picture of things. Let the women live the way they want to. If she finds bliss at her husband's feet, then so be it. But ONLY if she wishes to. My wish on women's day is that all the women out there should get their share of 'respect' from everyone in this world. That I think is the most important thing that a woman can ask for.

Happy Diwali!

Diwali.. a very spirited festival of India! Perhaps Kerala is the only state of India which does not celebrate Diwali. I wonder why..

Sitting in an isolated office floor, hearing the distant booms of fireworks,  I was tempted to find an answer. Whom do I ask? Who else than the big G who is omnipresent, omniscient & omnipotent? Yes, I prayed to 'Google.com' and lo, I was heard and answered immediately.

I read someone's opinion on this. It reminded me that Kerala thrives on the peaceful and prosperous rule of Mahabali, the king of Asuras. He was strong and righteous ruler and a true devotee of Vishnu. When he defeated the Devas in battle and became the leader of the entire realm i.e. the bhoomi, swarga and pathala, the Devas ran to Vishnu for help. To help them,  Vishnu, adopted the avatar of Vamana, a small Brahmin boy, and approached Bali with a request for grant of land – only as much land as he could cover with three paces.

Despite the warnings of his advisor, Bali granted this boon. Vamana then grew to an immense size, and, with his first pace, traversed the all of the earth and the underworld. With his second pace, he covered Heaven in its entirety. Seeing that Vamana has no more room for his last step, Bali offered his own head as a stepping-stone. At this time asuras led a war. Bali blocked them and told these all living and non living things are of Vishnu's creation. He Himself gave all this to us and He, Lord Vishnu, now came to take this back. Seeing Bali's strong devotion Lord Vishnu blessed him and raised to Suthala, the supreme position than Indra's heaven. Bali was thus banished to the underworld. Due to his selfless devotion and unwavering dharma he was granted permission to visit his subjects once every year and that is the grandest festival of Kerala.. Onam!

Now coming back to Diwali.. It is actually a celebration of victory of Devas over the Asuras. And keralites are still not very happy with the way our dearest Asura king was cheated by the Devas and we were deprived of his golden rule. Hence it seems Kerala does not celebrate Diwali along with the rest of India.

I don't know how true the mythologies are, but the answer seems reasonable to me. ;) Having said that, its still difficult to stay away from the spirit of Diwali since I love celebrations of every kind. So I will celebrate Diwali.. I will light Diyas along with everyone.. I will burst crackers along with everyone.. I will make and eat sweets along with everyone.. But I will do it all for our great king Mahabali. He'll be happy, I hope. I will celebrate two festivals for him.. And I am sure he also loves celebrations like me! :D

For a change

It is vacation time. During my school days, my maternal grandparents were in Chennai. Every year when my vacation started, they came down to Kerala and took me with them to Chennai. I used to spend atleast a couple of weeks with them there. It was happiness unleashed. As everyone knows, grandparents know only to love and grandchildren almost always know how to make use of that weakness. ;) I used to get away with all my whims and fancies with them. I made them take me to all the beaches and amusement parks I loved. I made sure that I got all my favourite food to eat and anything I wanted to play with. That used to be the royal days of the year.. :)

For a change, it was my grandparents' turn for a small summer vacation. They came down to Bangalore last weekend. I cooked for them, took them around and made them as comfortable as I could. It was nothing compared to the happiness they have given me, but still, it was something.. At the end of their short stay, they were happy like little children, happiness well deserved.

Ellavarkkum Vishu Aashamsakal

Vishu is the festival that is closest to my heart. I have very fond memories of so many Vishu's as a child. All of us in the family; aunts, uncles, cousins.. all used to sleep side by side in a room waiting for the dawn. I used to be so excited that I hardly used to sleep. By 3 in the morning, elders would start going one by one to see the 'kani'. I used to eagerly wait for my turn holding my eyes tight. Then finally when I got my chance, I beamed with joy seeing the golden hue of the 'vishu kani'. Then came the part of getting all that 'kaineetam' from elders which used to be my money reserve for the next year. How can I forget the fireworks part.. Lots of sparklers, flower pots, the more dangerous bombs. And of course there would be a grand 'sadya' at noon. All in all, it used to be a day which was full of fun & prosperity.. And it brought hope that the full year would be the same.


This year it was different. We celebrated it in Bangalore and it was just the two of us. I did miss the fun of old-times, but it was a different kind of joy this time. We took a day off and spent the day at home. I prepared the 'Vishu kani' myself. This time also, I was eagerly waiting for the dawn.. Not to see the 'kani' myself.. but to see the expression on my husband's face. And that was priceless!



We went to the temple. We also had a small sadya including sambhar, avial, koottu-kari, thoran, pappadam & payasam. This was also the first sadya that I prepared myself which made it special.

Thus ends Vishu on a beautiful note and hopefully the whole year ahead will be like that too. :)

And it rained today...

I am not a classic rain lover.. I never dream of curling up under a blanket with rain flowing down my window. Instead I am the kind who loves a warm bright day when I can get out of my house and have some fun.

But today I realised what a scorching summer can do to people. Today, as I heard rain pouring outside, a wide smile came right out of my heart to my face. I ran along with many others to the nearest window. All of us just stood there for a good ten minutes till we saw the rain and heard the thunder to our heart's fill. The little more adventurous of our lot ventured out into the rain. Must say, that was tempting. :)

Anyways, I hope it rains more to bring down the heat & bring up the water level, to bring down the power cuts and bring a little joy in our parched hearts!

Looong time...

Such a long time that I have been thinking of penning down a few words here. I have a colleague who keeps pushing me to write. And I give a standard answer, 'This weekend, definitely!" And that never happened until today. Better late, than never. Ain't it? ;)

So, lets see.. Quite a lot happened in my life after my last post..

I got back to Bangalore, got married, we booked a flat, I flew to US 3 months after my marriage, spent a never-ending 6 months there, my hubby flew to Switzerland, I came back, then he came back just in time to celebrate our first anniversary together, we set up our home and are now living happily & hopefully ever-after too. :)

Wow, that was such a quick recap! Now I feel that I am update with my blog & I am going to genuinely try not to give up this time. I owe this to myself.

Can I speak?? ..asks Bangalore

I am Bangalore - The garden city. Now more popularly known as the Silicon Valley of India.

Its been a long time since I wanted to speak my mind out. Better late than never.

I love people. People from everywhere.
Everyday I heard them cry from different parts of the country. They wanted to come to me. Cries from the capital - Delhi, the commercial hub - Mumbai, the pearl city - Hyderabad, Metros - Chennai & Kolkata, from God's own country - Kerala. Cries from everywhere. I sometimes wondered what made them like me so much. Is it because I give them a salubrious climate throughout the year? Or because there is greenery flourishing all around me.. Maybe its the colonial ambiance.. Or maybe simply because I make their life; because I make them feel at home.

Whatever be the reason, I welcomed them. All of them.

There were new job opportunities created. Every piece of land was converted into houses. It was getting crowded. My heart bled when all the trees where cut down. But I held on.. for they wanted a place to live.

I still hear those cries. There are more people who want to be here.
Now there are tall apartments all over me. Every house has two or three cars. The smoke from the vehicles is turning me black. Its choking me. But I hope they are happy.

What am I hearing now? Why are my people cursing me?? Crowded? Polluted?? Is it really you who is saying this? You know, I was never like this.. You know, who did it all!

More people coming in. I see that they fight a lot for me.. take transfers, quit jobs and finally land here. Then they start their complaints. They crib about traffic. But then I see them adding their own vehicle into it. I see them having fun. They get paid well. They live in peace without people prying into their lives. I see that everybody has friends here! But still they whine all the time.

I am fed up guys! There is a limit to patience, isn't there? And I don't have anything more to offer you. If you feel that every other place is a heaven, please don't trouble yourself here. But as you leave, I ask a favour from all of you. Please spread the word that Bangalore has changed. Its congested, polluted, corrupted and whatever you want to add.

But there are somethings that has still not changed in me. I can still be the home to anyone who wants one. I can still make your life, if you want me to. I still love you!

Nimma Swantha, Bengaluru

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I don't know what Bangalore actually wants to tell. But this definitely is what I want to tell. :)
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Man proposes.. God disposes..

I was reminded of this saying the last week.. when a castle I had build up in air crashed down. No serious damage to dreams. Just a small plan injured a little.

Two weeks back I was asked to be prepared to travel on 2nd of Nov.. and I prepared, with all excitement. I shopped like crazy.. I packed my bags.. I planned that I would take a week's vacation.. I checked the tickets.. Chose my airlines and the route I would take.. I found a replacement for myself at my house.. Everything was going on well..

The next day they said.. 'Oh sorry, that didn't work out. Lets wait for the next opportunity.'

I did not blame anyone. It had lots of elements to it that was out of anyone's hand. I knew it could not be helped. But all the same, I couldn't accept it.. my mind wouldn't accept it. Though the injury was small, I brooded over it.. made unnecessary fuss over it..

But now the wound has almost healed. I have decided to be a bit more ready for all the change in plans that I'll have to make in life. A little more flexibility, I definitely need.
Maybe I needed a gentle reminder like this..

Rat-a-too-eeeeee

Ratatouille releases in UK this Friday. But there was a screening of the same this Monday.

I am not at all crazy about animated movies, but I went for it all the same.
And I tell you, its one cute movie everybody must see! I never thought rats could look cute, but I guess the movie proves that 'Anyone can cook' and 'Anyone can look cute!' ;)



Do watch it! :)

Lucky Who?

She was in a sour mood. Her spirits touched an all time low. She didn't know what to do. She walked out from her classroom. She had not heard a single word that was uttered by the professor. She had been lost in thoughts. She had had a fight with her mom that morning.. Why? She was not able to figure it out. It was as if she didn't need a reason to. Her school would be over in another month. What after that? Her best friend was going to another college. What would she do? She was not even able to study.. Thats not all, she thought. There are so many things troubling me now.

A classmate of hers passed by her.. She called out.. 'Rads, wanna join us for a coffee?' She waved saying no. She thought.. How does she manage to be so happy? Why am I the person who is always sad.. always bothered? She looked at her walking away.. Lucky her!, she thought. She sat alone for some time. Tears trickled down her eyes slowly..



It was growing dark. It was raining too.. She walked towards her bike. Plugged on her earphones. Her MP3 player had run out of charge. She gave her bike a kick. Nothing is supposed to be right with me today, she murmered. She didn't pull out her earphones.. She felt it would shield her from the world. She started her bike. She felt like the saddest person in the universe..

He was standing near his window and smoking. He felt like running away from this world. He gazed outside.. He saw a girl speeding through the rain in her bike. She was listening to music. Oh look at her.. She looks so free.. So happy.. I wish I could be that way too.. Lucky her!

No Reds.. No Greens.. Only Blues!!

What is happening to me now?
I am quite busy at work these days. Not really great work. But then onsite and good work rarely go together. Do they?

Jale Pe Namak: Have loads of documentation work. A process document for everything I do, a technical document as a contribution to knowledge sharing activities, a BoK as a centre of excellence initiative.. And of course, everything here works with deadlines. I’m dead.

More: There are lots of problem at home (here, I mean). Ego clashes, emotional clashes, ‘you-name-it’ clashes. So far I have managed to play just the part of the audience. And I’ll try my best to avoid being a participant. But just to have such a disturbed environment is a torture. I am incapable of solving these issues since I don’t know what the issue is. Also I don’t really know the people who are involved, I don’t know how they think, I don’t know what they feel. But how indifferent can I be to what is going around me. I feel weird.

I want to go back to India. And I am pushing a lot for that. Sometimes I feel that I am going to land into more trouble if I get back there.. Be it in the work front or the personal front.. Nevertheless, I chant the ‘I wanna go back’ mantra all the time. When will that happen? What will happen after that? I don’t know.

In between all this I go for movies, eat-out, visit places, go for project parties, crack jokes, have fun.. But once these hungamas are over. I feel blank. Emotionless.
And I am sure every person around me here feels the same.. All eyes have the same vacant look.. Everybody is tired..

Am I slowly losing myself to this crazy world? Or have I just stepped into the real world?

Chak De India!

Hey, don't you roll your eyes and think, 'Writing about Chak De now?'! Unfortunately, Chak De got released in Ipswich only this Sunday and I watched it yesterday. Yes, I loved it! :)



I am not a Shahrukh fan. Everything he does looks like 'acting' to me. He is a good actor.. but he always reminds me that he is just acting, and in case he starts crying, God save me!
Even in this movie, I feel that Shahrukh has done a good job. Nothing to 'Ooh Aah' about. But his team rocks! Every single girl is so different from each other.. So simple.. And so real.. Such faces makes it easier to relate to.. You feel that its the girl next door who is going out and proving her mettle to the world and then you feel so happy, so proud.

The film brings to our notice a few things..
* It shows how a small mistake makes an Indian crowd make dangerous judgements!
* The way we Indians still see ourselves divided in the name of states.
* The fate of hockey in India
* The fate of women as sports players. In fact, women in any career face difficulties. But a career in sports makes it worse..

I know its just a movie, but the fact that its inspired from a true story makes it a lot more closer to the heart. Hope all of you liked it too!

1 + 4 + 0 + 8 = 13

As you would have guessed, watched the movie 1408. It had been a long time since I watched a scary movie, and this one made up for it quite well.




In this movie, Michael Enslin(John Cusack) is a writer who writes about the 'supposedly' haunted locations. He is a non-believer and hence, goes into such hotels, stays there overnight and reveals to the world that its all made up. But for once, he is trapped in room 1408 of hotel Dolphin. And we go as crazy as him in trying to get out from there!
If you are looking for some thrill, go watch it.

Destiny or Accident?

I have always thought a lot about life; its meaning.. its purpose.. Even as a child, I used to do that. Maybe because I grew up hearing Dad tell about life, 'karma', different 'janma's' and so on. A lot of them made sense to me, a lot of them did not. There were heated debates on God between my Dad and my cousins, long discussions about these with my sister. And all this got me thinking.

And there is one question I ask myself many times.. Is life destined to be or is it just an accident?

It surely feels better to think of life as a destiny. To think that I had to be born to my parents.. that I had to grow up the way I did.. that everything I do is already destined. Of course, that does not mean that I do not try to do anything from my side. I try.. try hard for the best.. but understand that only that will happen, that what is destined.

On the other side, its inspiring to say that I make my own destiny. Its true that a vision, determination and hard work can achieve almost anything.. But isn't there an element of uncertainty everywhere in life? Can I even claim a single thing about future with 100% surety? I am afraid not. I cannot even say that I'll publish this post, because at the end, I am not sure of my life the next moment. So, that says that life is not in my hands.

I just watched Forrest Gump. And liked it a lot. That got me into writing all this. And as he finally says, I guess life is a mixture of both.. destiny and accidents, miracles and coincidences, luck and hard work. Ain't it?

Whats in a birthday?

This is what I asked myself on my birthday this year.

Birthdays used to be sooo exciting years ago. Hey, I never used to sleep the previous night! There was no blowing of candles, no cutting of cakes. There were no balloons or ribbons in the house and nobody was invited for a party. There were not even flowers or gifts! But still there was more that enough reason for excitement.. new dress, chocolates and greeting cards! :)

A week before my birthday, I used to calculate and re-calculate how many chocolates I needed. Strength of the class + atleast 5 chocs each for my best buddies + principal + all teachers + few friends from other divisions + bus mates + bus driver + cleaner + relatives + neighbours + .. The list went on. My mom would somehow convince me on cutting short the list. The next discussion was on which chocolate to buy. After all the arguments, the chocolates would arrive. I would get them all out of the packet.. on to the floor. And then the counting began! I would get them into separate boxes.. One for bus.. One for class.. One for teachers.. Phew.. And go to sleep late at night to end up not sleeping at all!

But I wouldn't be a bit tired the next day. Would trot around proudly with my new dress. I would smile at all the blue-n-white uniforms around. I was the star of the day! Would sit in class, full of excitement, and when the teacher walked in, would go to her with this box. And then the whole class got up and sang 'Happy Birthday To you....' Oh, how wonderful it felt.

But whatever I say, I did feel special even on this birthday with all the wishes from my loved ones. Thanks a lot for them. You made my day!

When it got sunny..

The last weekend was the warmest weekend of the year in UK! The temperature touched 30C in London!! We'll give a 'So?' as a response, but people here may almost faint.. So, this is what happened that weekend..

We lazy bums(Yeah, I am slowly graduating into one) did not even get out of the house. But we had the window open and on the warm Saturday noon, I sat by the window gazing at the small green park below. There were small kids in swimsuits. Why swimsuits, I thought. Maybe to get more of the sun, I guessed. But no.. The action had not yet started. All of them suddenly rushed to their homes on all four sides of the park. Whats happening? It was suspense time for me. Then, there came the first one.. a short n stout boy holding a pail of water.. Whats going on?? Then came two girls with two inflated baths.. a small one and a big one. Now I was getting the picture and that got me all hooked up. This boy poured his first bucket of water into the bath.. Then came out all the little darlings.. with how much ever water they could carry.. One in a milk can.. Another in a mug and a teeny weeny girl, in a glass!!! Yes she made some 10 trips home and back, slowly tiptoeing, carrying water in a glass!! I really felt like helping them.. But then I thought, they were enjoying every bit of what they were doing..



I guess this snap gives you a picture of my view from the window.. ;)

After lots of trips to and from their homes.. with water carriers of different shapes and sizes, their baths were nowhere near full. Its then that the parents decided to help them. And guess what.. They fitted a hosepipe for them into the park. Hurraay!



As you can see, things were quite easy now.. They thanked their parents by spraying water all over them with the hose. And started filling their baths too.. And yes as the baths got full, they were very impatient.. And so was I.. And finally.. Bloooom!!



And I wished, I could dive from my window and fall into that bath too.. ;)

Dedicated to my girlfriends..

Now, before you say a 'WHAAAAT?', the girlfriend here means a female friend and nothing more.

As I was 'timepassing' yesterday(as usual), I came to know that yesterday(Aug-1) was girlfriend's day. Oh, was there a day like that? I tried to find out what one was supposed to do on this day.. Guys giving gifts to their girlfriends? Not that they need a special-day to do that.. But still, one day dedicated for gifts is not a bad idea, either. ;) But I found that it was a much more girly affair.. And the next minute, I sent an e-card wishing all my girlfriends..

As I was doing that, I realised that I was blessed with great girlfriends. I remembered the times I spent with each of them.. The fun times.. The fight times.. The senti times.. Now, as I sit miles away from them and type this, I know what exactly I am missing. I have quarreled with them, but the bond only got better every time..
I look back and see that they have been with me at every step of my life..
They have warned me when I walked on dangerous paths.. and when I didn't listen.. They just walked along holding my hand..
They laughed with me.. cried with me.. They were with me, all the time..




Girlfriend's day or not, I wish you all deep from my heart,
Thankyou for being my friend!!

TGIS!

.. That was not a typo.. I meant 'Thank God, Its Sunday' and this is precisely what I felt as this weekend ended.

I don't think many people will be able to understand what bothers me, because these things probably bother me alone! Crazy me.. Poor me.. Anyways, this is how my weekend went..

Friday evening.. Its 7.. I reach home.. Our house is the 'get-together' place.. So, roomies and friends are all there.. We chat.. Its 8.. We think of dinner.. "Shall we go out?" Some say Yes, some say No.. Nobody listens.. We chat again.. Its 9. Okay, we'll have dinner at home. But no rice.. Sad! We chat.. Its 9:30.. The shop closes at 10. Emergency!! Two people rush to buy rice.. Its 10.. We start cooking.. Its 11.. We eat. Okay, now we'll play cards. Sorry, I am an early to bed.. early to rise person. But I feel that I shouldn't act like a spoilsport at least on weekends and I agree to join.. Its 12.. Its 1.. We continue to play.. Its 2.. Its 3.. We sleep..

Saturday morning, 7 am.. I wake up.. Curse myself and try to sleep again. Twist and turn and think and somehow manage to be in bed till 9. Phew.. Not bad..

I get up. There are people sleeping all over the place! Shh.. I should not wake them up.. So I do everything very quietly.. Its 10.. I have tea.. Its 11.. I have bread&jam.. No, can't cook anything else. I'll end up making a lot of noise. Its 12.. I am getting bored to death! Its 1.. Oh, somebody has woken up. Relief!! And then one by one.. one by one.. We chat.. Its 2.. We chat.. Its 3.. They decide to make upma. Its 4.. We have upma.. This is breakfast for them.. Lunch for me.. but actually, the time for tea?? Err.. I am lost.. Guess that's an unnecessary worry..

The kitchen is strewn with soiled dishes.. The house is like a dorm with people still sleeping.. There are duvets(a soft quilt which is used as a thick blanket) everywhere.. on the floor.. sofa.. beds.. You can never be sure if a person is sleeping beneath that.. Its 6.. Somebody says, "Lets go for a movie!" Somebody suggests the movie.. "Transformers!!" Brilliant idea.. Okay we have shows at 7:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 9:30 pm, 10:30 pm. Decided! The 7:30 show.. Lets cook dinner first. Chicken!! Mmm...Wow! We chat.. Its 7:00.. We move to the kitchen.. One cuts, another re-cuts. "Hey, we cannot make it to the 7:30 show.. We'll go at 8:30." No issues.. One small kitchen. Many many cooks.. One making chicken.. One making rasam.. Its 8:30.. One making bhaingan bhartha.. One making raitha.. Its 9:00.. One making rice.. Its 9:30.. We have dinner.. It was yummyy.. Its 10:00.. We run.. Pant! Pant! Gasp! Gasp! But surprise!!! We reach in time for the 10:30 show!!

Reach back home at 1:30. We start playing cards.. The saga continues..

At the end of Sunday.. I feel sick beacuse I know I have not had proper food at proper time.. I feel sleep deprived.. I feel guiddy when I see the kitchen and the house.. I feel extremely guilty for having spent my time most uselessly.. But then I give a long sigh and say, TGIS! Atleast I can spend the whole week getting the house back into shape.. sleeping well, getting fresh and be prepared for the next weekend..

A part of history..

The place: British Telecom Office, Adastral Park, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich, UK
Okay, a brief description about Adastral Park. It is the BT campus extending over 110 acres in Martlesham Heath.

Time: 1:00 pm. We were having lunch with the usual share of gossip and masti.

Topic of discussion: Bombscare in Martlesham!

K: Arey yahaan ke log bhi na! Ek pipe ko dekh ke ghabraa gaye!
A: Haan bhey.. Do ghante road block kiyan in logon ne..
Me: But you can't blame them! There are lots of bombs around these days. They are only being careful..
K: Koi aisi waisi bomb nahin.. World War II ka bomb samjha in logon ne..
S: Nothing surprising in that.. This area was once very much involved in World War II
A: Yes, thats right. Our campus was once an airbase.. Haven't you seen the photos in our food-court?
Me: Oh, really? Thats interesting..

I then get back to my desk and do some googling.. And am pretty much impressed with what I find!

Initially, an experimental airfield was opened in Martlesham Heath. After the end of World War I it was renamed as the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) of the Royal Air Force.

At the outbreak of the Second World War, the A&AEE was removed to another site owing to the proximity of Martlesham Heath to the East Coast and its vulnerability to enemy attack. The airfield then took on a new role as a base for fighter squadrons defending Britain!!

At the end of hostilities, there was no longer a role for Martlesham Heath as an operational RAF airfield and no prospect of the A&AEE returning, but the site was again used for a number of experiments with planes and armaments. However, its use declined in the 1950s, and the airfield was closed in the early 1960s.

In 1968, the Post Office purchased part of the airfield and surrounding farmland and announced that they would be relocating their Research Department to Martlesham Heath. Then the separation of British Telecom from the Post Office and the privatisation of British Telcommunications plc happened. In the 1980s, the facility was renamed as BT Labs and was subsequently developed into a high tech business park called Adastral Park in the 1990s.

Courtesy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martlesham_Heath

Quite a happening place, this was!! Let me see what I can dig out from here before I come back!