First movie in Addis

The first thing you need to know is that shifting to Addis is entirely my idea, so of course if anything goes wrong,then the responsibility is completely mine,at least in my head. As Vishal has very few requirements to keep him happy, I was hoping at least part of his list would be available.Before leaving Delhi, I went almost crazy trying to dredge the internet for details on internet speed ( I get the irony) and which, if any theatres would be playing Hollywood movies.So, weeks before arriving in Addis I knew about the Matti Multiplex which had opened a few months back and screened three different English movies at any given time! They even had a website where I checked out what shows were playing while I was in Delhi. Vishal was mightily relieved to realise that John Carter was on and which meant that every cheesy, special effect crammed, nonsensical, big budget extravaganza would be seen in Addis pretty much as soon as it was released.

Yesterday, we went to check the quality of the popcorn. Matti multiplex is located in the Edna Mall near the Bole Medhnalayam church. We took a taxi which cost us 60 Birr ( 180 Rs)but needn’t have bothered as it is actually a pleasant  15 min walk. The tickets cost 40 Birr (120 Rs ) on weekdays and 45 Birr on weekends. The theatre was small but with comfortable seats. There were barely 15 people in the theatre which was expected, considering that it was a weekday afternoon and the movie was a sappy chick-flick with a rating of 20% on Rotten Tomatoes. The only thing which was different was that the trailers of forthcoming movies had subtitles in both Amharic and French although the main feature didn’t. Disconcertingly, the upper third of the screen was fuzzy and blurred during the trailers but cleared up soon thereafter. Maybe someone cleaned the projector lens. A good time was had by one and all although the movie was on the awful side of the spectrum. And the popcorn? We didn’t get to try it because there was no interval.

On the subject of popcorn, we brought about half a dozen packets of Act II microwave popcorn with us and of course, we don’t have a microwave. Yesterday evening,it rained and was perfect popcorn weather so I popped the corn in the pressure cooker and what do you know, better than when microwaved. No charred paper and burnt bits at all, although I did have popcorn flying all over the kitchen when I opened the lid prematurely.You live and you learn.
P.S. The popcorn and Pepsi at Matti multiplex are decent and tickets for 3D flicks cost 90 Birr (270 Rs) with an additional 50 Birr deposit for the 3D glasses. You have to return the glasses and collect your deposit at the end of the movie. For real.    

5,4,3,2,1,1,1,1

I've been telling everyone that I'll be leaving by the 15th of March once all our certificates are attested and bank formalities completed. We got the all-clear from the bank on the 16th of March and asked our company to book tickets for the 19th, so we could arrive in Addis on a Monday. They took some time to confirm but finally  called to tell us that the first available tickets were for 20th (Tue) We were thrilled to spend another day wallowing at home but spent all day Monday in a final frantic round of repacking and getting last minute attestations. However, just to prolong the anticipation, we didn't receive the tickets till 5.00 p.m. And what I saw was this.

Flight Information

22 Mar 2012 Ethiopian Air Lines  (ET)  687 Economy (V)   Ethiopian Air Lines Confirmation Number: FGLODC   Depart: Delhi Indira Gandhi Intl (DEL) , Terminal 3 2:45 AM *Baggage: 40 Kilos Fare Basis: VEERTINA Arrive: Bole Airport (ADD), Terminal 2 Addis Ababa 7:10 AM *Contact airline to confirm  baggage allowance. So,of course we promptly stopped all the packing and commenced yet another round of farewells. The brilliant thing is Vishal and Rahul both got to celebrate their joint birthdays together again ( 21st) Also, I contacted a friend of a friend of a friend who is travelling on the same flight and he graciously agreed to take some of our baggage. You would be surprised how less 80 kgs actually is when you are attempting to transport six different types of  dal along with six different textbooks across the Indian Ocean. This is really my last post from Delhi. I swear. See you on the other side.

Holiday in the hills

(Written between 31.1.12 - 4.2.12 and posted today - an insight into my modus operandi)

Now obviously I should be writing about my sisters wedding which took place on Monday but I’d rather write about that when I have the photos to upload which won’t be till i reach Delhi. Meanwhile, Vishal and I are in Munnar for two days before proceeding to Cochin for the All India Ophthalmic Society annual meet. We are staying at the Club Mahindra, Munnar which is a rather cool five star-ish place. We have a semi detached cottage to ourself, the views and the buffet meals are fantastic all adding up to a great mini break. The only issue I have is that the walls are paper thin. I woke up with a start this afternoon when my neighbours phone rang, I am not even going to think about what he can hear. ( Afternoon naps – benchmark of any holiday )

Towels arranged as kissing swans on bed. Barf !  

We’ve mostly been lazing around in the resort but set off to visit the Kolukkumalai tea factory this morning. This tea factory was established by the British in 1936 and is situated on top of a mountain accessible only by jeep. I need to mention that the road leading to the factory is a mud track strewn with boulders which makes for an extremely bumpy ride lasting 8 km or around half hour. However the views are great with multiple tea garden photo-ops on the way. The tea garden itself was quaint, they still process tea partially by hand and with the original, century old machines. The place had a sleepy, forgotten and mildly sad air about it with the few women working and the men wandering around already drunk at noon. A far cry from the briskly efficient Warren tea factories I have seen in Tinsukhia. 

"Enclosed by tea leaves" photo taken by our jeep driver. In reality we are standing by the road side behind one scrawny tea bush. DIY trick photography. 

Aforementioned instrument of torture

I was supposed to have posted that two days back but didn’t. The day after the jeep ride I woke up with every muscle in my torso and back stretched and sore. So if you are loosely jointed with poorly toned musculature, I would advise giving the trip a miss.

We next reached Cochin by road. Due to usual hospital inefficiency, we didn’t have any accommodation booked but I’d asked my father to book us a room at the Railway rest house. This turned out to be right next to Ernakulam Junction so we ended up wandering on to the station to buy newspapers and coffee. All for 32 Rs a day. Made me rather nostalgic for the good old Indian Govt parasite days.

It was great meeting all our friends again, face it, AIOS is definitely more about socializing than higher intellectual pursuit. No small amount of Ethanol has traversed my system in the past week. First, Roshnis cocktail party, then at Munnar ( Its a tea plantation hill station, the ghosts of the erstwhile planters expect you to get mildly pickled after sundown ) and then all the reunion dinners. Vishal is continuing the party at an alumni dinner on a ferry with all the usual suspects.

I last visited Cochin almost 10 years back and I have a residual memory of Chinese fishing nets against the sunset and a lazy backwater cruise winding slowly  between sleepy villages. Kids ran along the boat on the banks while the firangs tanned on the decks. On this visit, the city seemed a lot more grubby with more touts and dreadlocked Israeli tourists. The food in the Fort Cochin Goa-esque shacks were nothing much to write about either. I really couldn’t understand the appeal of the city to all the tourists either, unless they use it as a base for short trips to Allepey or Munnar.

Oh, my talks went off well. As well as can be expected with an audience of ten people in a hall with a capacity of three hundred . The lethal combination of paediatric ophthalmology and community ophthalmology helped to exponentially decrease the level of popularity of the course and keep the audience at bay. It didn’t help matters that the AIOS quiz was taking place simultaneously. Oh well.

I am in Cochin airport waiting for my flight back to Delhi. For the first time, I’ve really missed Vihaan over the last couple couple of days and am looking forward to cuddling up with him tonight. A world with soft cheeks , curly hair and that indefinably sweet baby smell is a good place to be in.