On The Racing Tracks in Cairo

As usual I am in the navigator's seat.  Sitting next to me was K, one of the fastest Formula-1 drivers in Egypt.

Our car got off to a screaming start from the pit, with the wheels spinning in a furious cloud of dust.  But the other cars were faster, bigger and more powerful - and raced ahead of us splattering dust and mud on us.  It was clear that the situation was desperate, and we will probably end up last if desperate measures are not immediately resorted to.

K's face was grim - he flashed me the inverted V sign - it means this is an emergency.  In Racing parlance this sign indicates that the driver assumes total command until the situation is retrieved. The navigator then assumes a passive role until our car once again gets back into a favorable position in the race.

He switched into 3rd and the deep throb of the turbo engines filled the entire cabin with a deafening din.  An oil tanker suddenly loomed ahead of us - don't know what these oil tankers are doing on a racing track.  K deftly twisted the steering handle and missed the huge truck by a few inches.  The truck driver blared his horns belligerently and tried to block our progress - but K is a pro - he jumped over the road divider, and shot ahead of the truck.

We were now screaming ahead and fast closing the gap.  The other cars may have more powerful engines, but they cannot match K's driving skills - a classic man vs machine contest.  We raced ahead - with K swerving the car rapidly between the other cars with astonishing skills.

Now there was only 1 car ahead of us - a black Ferrari.  But the Ferrari was far too ahead of us - so K switched on all cylinders.  We were racing so fast that the track was now a mere blur - and the gap between us and the Black Ferrari rapidly reduced, until the Ferrari was only a few inches ahead of us.

And then it happened.  The Ferrari suddenly braked.

K hit the brakes, and our car did a cart-wheel as K desperately tried to regain control.  The high pitched squeal of tortured brakes accompanied by the acrid smell of burning rubber filled the air, and the car came to a miraculous stop just millimeters from the Black Ferrari.

But the other cars behind had inexperienced drivers - their reaction time was simply too slow,  and they rammed into us, one after the other.  It was a classic 7 car pile-up on the race-track.

I got out the car to survey the damage.  No personal injury for me apart from a minor neck sprain due to the whip-lash action from the collision.  But the car was badly damaged.

I let K sort out the arguments with the drivers of the other damaged cars.  I hailed a taxi and left the scene.  One more routine day on the way to office.

My "Big Moment" Finally Happened

Big Moments are rare in my life - so forgive me if I give you a lengthy description of a momentous event that took place recently...

The setting : Cairo Airport.  I was on my way to Dubai, my harmonium in tow.

The security person in the Cairo airport responsible for frisking passengers requested for a small "gift" from my wallet which I - as usual - politely refused.  Normally the refusal is taken in good humor, but this time it was different ....

"Open that box" he commanded, pointing to my harmonium case.  Since my harmonium needs to be checked in - and given its delicate nature - I had spent a couple of hours packing it in bubble-sheets, foam, cloth etc.

"It is a music instrument - you just saw it on the X-ray scan, right?" I said.  That harmonium has gone through the same airport countless number of times without being stopped.

"Please open it" he said firmly.  I cut open one side of the packing that I had spent hours packing, and showed him the harmonium from the side so that he can see the keyboard.

"See - it is a music instrument - like a small piano" I said in an appealing voice, not wanting to remove all the packing.

"Open it fully" he said firmly, and seeing that I was struggling with the packing, he helpfully gave me a pen-knife so that I can tear the packing open.

There it lay open now devoid of all packing - my harmonium in its full glory surrounded by 3 policemen.

"Is this actually a music instrument?" said one knocking the keyboard vigorously.

"Wait" I said.  "it is a delicate instrument - it will break if you do that....."

The proof of the music instrument is in its playing...

Seizing the moment I sat down, opened the harmonium bellows and started playing.  My fingers moved smoothly, and I really belted it out on the harmonium : the presence of the policemen around me certainly gave me a protective feeling - in normal circumstances I have to play under a threatening atmosphere full of tomatoes.

So I played - sitting right there in the middle of the check-in lounge of the airport, with curious passengers walking past me.  Cairo airport reverberated for the first time ever to the sound of a harmonium.

And not a single rotten tomato this time - must have been quite a performance. In fact, the performance of my lifetime.   I was all set for a standing ovation.

Standing the policemen were - but no applause. Their attention was focused on a portly Police Officer who was hurrying towards us looking highly irritated - their boss, no doubt. Obviously listening to Indian music is not high on his priority, unlike for his subordinates.

"Indian music" said the policeman in an apologetic voice to his glowering boss by way of explanation. And then turning to me he said "You go".  

"Did you like it?" I asked him, still eagerly hoping that there will be a round of applause for my performance.  After all, it is not every day that one gets a chance to perform in a public place, and that too to a very appreciative international audience.

Alas, there was no response. Instead as a symbolic gesture, he summoned a porter, gave him 1 Egyptian pound, and asked him to help me pack up the harmonium.

New York in 4 days

For me exploring a city is all about understanding how the local people relate to, and live in, that city. If you have a similar interest, then a surprising lot can be achieved in 4-5 days - provided of course you start the day early and end the day late, and go back to the hotel room only at night merely to sleep.  Essentially what I did in 4 full days (and 5 nights) - and which I would recommend any tourist visiting New York - is the following:

1. took some time off to understand the subway system (the metro) - how it works - how to connect etc.  The New York Metro is a great boon to a tourist - safe and affordable - though it can be confusing at times.
2. walk the streets - especially the streets that I had heard and read much about - 5th Avenue, Broadway, Park Avenue, Madison Avenue
3. Explore Central Park - I went there on 3 days and spent a couple of hours each day exploring different corners of the huge 850 acre Park - both on foot and on a rented bicycle, and ogled at the swank buildings & apartments over-looking Central Park.
4. New York is synonymous with Broadway - so see at least one play/musical on Broadway (I saw "Phantom of the Opera" - one of the longest running plays on Broadway).  Buy tickets on Times Square at a steep discount on the day of the show. 
5. visit the famous districts such as Greenwich village, Meat-Packing district, Washington Square, Sheridan square - all of which have a marvelous atmosphere, and are excellent for walking
6. spend a couple of evenings hopping across various jazz clubs/pubs near Sheridan square - and enjoying the different jazs jamming sessions which go on till late in the night
7. go on a very relaxing cruise to Staten Island using the free Public ferry service from Battery park - and in that process see the Statue of Liberty (from a distance), and the Manhattan skyline
8. explore certain "living" land-marks and do some "serious people watching " at places such as the Grand Central, Penn station & Times Square
9. Visit the 2 museums worth visiting : Museum of Modern Art and American Museum of Natural History  
10. take a walk on the High Line - the resurrected over-head rail line now converted into a mile long green park
11. explore the financial district on foot, and see the venerable buildings that have featured in many a movie about life on Wall Street
12. and - totally optionally - try to visit a night club to understand how the upper crust of New York (with money to burn) spend their evenings.

I also briefly saw (from the outside) - the Rockefeller tower, the Empire State Building, and the site of the WTC where the new "Freedom Towers" is almost ready.  I did not spend much time on these Buildings, and did not spend the small fortune required to enter the viewing galleries on those buildings.

And of course, if, like me, you have never ever experienced snow, then Central Park in New York is the best place to do so.

Alas, I am not much of a foodie - so I did not explore the many cafe's and restaurants that abound all over mid-town New York. For a foodie, New York is paradise - and I suspect I missed out on one of the most crucial aspects about New York because of my limited gastronomical interests.

US Visit

Am currently at Winton, US undergoing a training.  Winton is a small town about 50 miles outside New York. Very peaceful and relaxed town.

Encountered my first snow - or what was left of it the next morning;

And the temperature indicated below in not in Centigrade - but in Fahrenheit.

That is the equivalent of 5 degrees centigrade - and this was in the afternoon.

This is not just my 1st visit to the US - it is also my first exposure to the Nielsen BASES global team.

The interiors were pretty nifty too

 

And I could get a Vegetarian sandwich in the cafeteria downstairs!