Alcohol and the human elephant conflict!

Over 70% of those killed by elephants are drunk men.
Did you know that? Neither did I!
This was one of the many interesting facts which I have learnt after talking to several experts in the field of elephant conservation.
To me you have to be a special kind of idiot to venture out in the dead of night wearing bright colored clothing, very well knowing that their is a definite threat out their. I am told that most of the time they step out of the house for something trivial. As into buy some sugar or get some beedi. Something which could have easily been postponed for the next day. But then fools go where angels fear to tread.
I always thought by educating people about the perils of going out during the night one could overcome this problem.
But I heard quite a different opinion from the lady who is in charge of the Human Elephant conflict in the Department of Wildlife.
Her opinion was that if we are to make a really credible impact on the number of people killed by elephants. Then we have to do some community outreach and counselling programs which would reduce the use of alcohol among people living in elephant infested areas.
Wow I thought to myself. That is indeed a very workable opinion. And a great example of lateral thinking.
Something I definitely did not expect coming out from the mouth of a government servant. Nevertheless a point well worth considering.

The Orlando effect aka the reverse butterfly effect

It is said that the flutter of a butterfly's wings in Brazil can cause a tornado in Tokyo. It seems that I am experiencing the reverse of it at my work place.
The metaphorical tornado is of course the "Orlando" shooting. And the butterfly's wings that are flapping is one of my colleagues.
My colleague was acting more angsty and irritable than usual. Even the slightest of misunderstandings could trigger an over reaction of gigantic proportions.
For the life of us we could not understand why?
When someone said it is because of Orlando we thought it was someones idea of a bad joke. But having listened to his point of view and giving it some thought I realized that their could be some truth in it.
As you know the Orlando incident resulted in a lot of anti gay rhetoric in the online world. Our colleague - who was a champion of Gay and LGBT rights - was aggressively responding to some these negative statements. He never realized that he was getting too involved. And all the negativity he was experiencing in the virtual world was leading to toxic relationships in the real world.
Who would have thought that this tragedy would have such far reaching effects.
One thing is for sure, I never did.

A lovely little place to stay in Vienna… Springer Apartments!

You can’t find it on AirBnB. Neither can you find it in Tripadvisor. Hence my post on here. But this is a gem of a place right in the heart of the diplomatic district of Vienna. It is less than a minutes’ walk to the HaupBhanoff station. To call it a station is an understatement. Technically it is a giant shopping mall in which you can also catch trains. It has a lovely super market, food court, all types of clothing stores as well as a star bucks. This place is like a little self-contained universe. I could not think of a more conveniently located digs.
The apartment that I stayed in was lovely. It was large, comfortable as well as very artistically designed. And it had everything which would help me to live comfortable including fridge, oven, washing machine toaster and even a dish washer.
There was one down side. Which is that they don’t clean the place till you leave and you have to remove your own garbage. Similar establishments I have stayed in before clean apartments once a week and remove the garbage for you daily.
But to be honest I didn’t mind cleaning a bit myself because the apartment even comes with a vacuum cleaner.
And the best part is that I paid less than 50 Euros a day as I stayed here for over three weeks. I am posting some pics from their website which is here.
I sincerely hope that someone out there found this information useful. J

The Power of perception!

Actually the heading “The problem of perception” would have been better suited for this post. Whilst thinking of how to start this post my thoughts took a trip down memory lane. It was to an advertising campaign done by the Rolling Stone magazine. Not to sell more magazines. But rather to educate potential clients that their perception of the magazine’s audience has transformed over time.
Well my encounter with wrong perception happened with Cake and pies and all things nice.
We all know that Mitsi’s is a place which is renowned for their delicious cakes and other sweet treats. In fact their reputation for dessert was so strong that I never thought they did any other type of dishes. Boy wasn’t I wrong. 

Mixed Grill

Grilled Cheese quite delicous!

Recently I was taken there for lunch and much to my delight I realized that they have an amazing range of savory and meat dishes. Quite similar to German Restaurant. We had a mixed grill which was really out of this world. Though it is not the typical portion served in local restaurants with a fried egg on top. Regardless it was wonderful. Some of their other dishes were also pretty good such as their grilled cheese. Overall I was quite impressed with the food as well as the price which was far easier on the purse than the trusty German Restaurant. However there is one fly in the ointment which is that they don’t have any pork dishes available out of respect for their muslim clients I guess. Regardless of this I am looking to explore the menu further with great relish. Expect more posts on the savory delights at Mitsis.

One of the loveliest places to have a beer….

What an amazing view

 I rarely drink beer these days. But that doesn’t stop me from making notes of ideal places to have a beer when I am travelling.
Guess old habits die hard.
We were at the tail end of a thousand kilometer road trip and making our way from Tangalle to Matara in order to enter the high way.
I wonder if you have ever noticed the beautiful stretch of beach which greets you as you take the bend passing Tangalle town? . It always amazes me that a beach in such close proximity to a town could look so untouched.
I have noticed it many times. And each time I pass it I say damn I wish I could sit here and chill for a while; sipping on a beer.
Now they have a shop. And they have beer! And one of the loveliest and windiest sit out areas with a magnificent view.
But the good news stops their.
The food is horribly expensive. The menu doesn’t have that much variety. And the quality of the food and cooking quite poor for the money they charge.

Horribley expensive less than average food. The cuttle fish in the pic was meant to be hot butter cuttle fish

The next time I pass this place I am still going to stop. As the view is too good to be avoided. But I shall sit and consume only a drink and go for lunch elsewhere. So my stomach will not accuse me of torture.
I believe they also have a few rooms to let on top of the premises. I must say it would be heavenly to wake up in the morning and admire the view with strong gusts of wind brushing against your body. Well it does seem like a dream as long as you don’t have your meals there. In that case it would turn into a nightmare.
The name of the place is called “Emmalaya rockview” and you can find them on TripAdvisor.

The comfort of your presence....

The comfort of your presence...

sometimes it's all I need....

just to feel you close....

so eyes can meet via mirrors

making soft lips transform into a smile

even though rarely a word is exchanged

it makes me feel warm inside.