100% Peculiar

It's been a week now at Amazon. It's going good. Of course, as has been repeatedly told to us, we are still in the honeymoon phase and in fact, yet to visit the floor (warehouse, for all the non-mechanical engineers out there). That's supposed to be a reality check and come Monday, we are supposed to get into the grind. Just in case I lose my starry eyed impression of my company in the harshness of the coming week, I thought of bringing forth some of the subtle things that really appealed to me over the past few weeks. I realize this blog is becoming more and more Amazon-centric, but bear with me. This is an exciting phase, and I love bringing out my perspective of things out here.
One interesting thing I noticed about Amazon, is there attention to the little things. I believe this is integral to the next interesting thing I noticed about Amazon, their rigorous faith in, and adherence to the company's culture and ideals. Let me illustrate:

1. The Virtuous Cycle: I won't get into the details, but broadly, this is the flowchart our company is based on. This speaks about how customers and sellers interact with each other and how that impacts various aspects of running our company. I'm sure almost all big companies have something of this sort, some sort of Vision-Mission statement which guides them. I am not aware of how much attention to pay the same, but it is worth mentioning that throughout the first week of orientation, we have gone through this at least thrice, which also included a group activity. Amazon really wants us to imbibe this model. So far, so normal. What I really liked about this is the following. Apparently, this idea came to Jeff Bezos while he was in a cafeteria (like I am right now), and when he suddenly hit upon this idea from a book he was reading, he quickly drew it out (roughly) on a tissue paper on his table. Every new hire who is taught this is shown the flowchart in Jeff's handwriting, exactly how it was written out on the tissue paper. I really appreciate that, and it gives a greater sense of awe to it, rather than it being just a management cycle.

2. The Door-Desk Award: Jeff Bezos opened Amazon (then named Cadabra) in his garage and was selling a few books back then. Of course, to pack and process the stuff he was sending out, he would need large desks. Owing to the lack of the same and to save costs, he brought out the doors in his garage and converted them into large desks which were the first precedent of today's packing stations. So far, so normal. But Amazon did not stop there. To commemorate this idea and any such ideas that have a huge positive impact on cost saving for the company, they have introduced the door desk award. In its history, only 200 people have won it throughout the world and it is something every Amazonian strives for. It is awarded by Jeff Bezos himself. My recruiter and manager happens to be on of the recipients of this award. *_*

3. The Wainwright Building:  This is a building in the International HQ at Seattle. This is named after John Wainwright, the first customer of Amazon.com, who bought the book, Fluid Concepts And Creative Analogies: Computer Models Of The Fundamental Mechanisms Of Thought by Douglas Hofstadter. This may seem a little silly, but it talks volumes about how much we value our customers, one of our chief tenets. Read: http://qr.ae/7XYzEM

These are just some of those things that really stood out to me that gives me the impression of a company which not only cares, but does it with a personalized and remarkable touch. I'm sure you could have read this over any websites, but if you read this for the first time, I hope you enjoyed it. To imbibe these 'peculiar' qualities into its employees, there exists a "Peculiar Quiz", scoring 100% in which gives you a 100% Peculiar PhonTool Icon (another idea that employees area crazy about). I gave it day before yesterday, and guess what? 100% Percent Peculiar! 
Until next time, then.
 

It's always Day One

"I'll be seeing you tomorrow in the Socrates Conference room at 8.30 am."
What I said: "Yes Ma'am, I'll be there."
What I was thinking: "How cool is it to name a conference room 'Socrates' ? Beats naming it something like Aryabhatta-II or Takshashila-B."
Yes, that's the first thing that came to mind when I thought about my first day at Amazon. Until I become mesmerized by how sleek my new laptop is, of course.
Yet again, I was stuck with the question of what this post should be about. While taking a late night shower, I thought of sharing some corporate flavor that I noticed on my first day. Mind, no specifics will be given since I'm supposed to remain confidential about the details of my job. (No, I do not fetch and pack the stuff that you order on Amazon. At least, not most of the times)

1. Infra is posh: Not to mention, my definition of posh changed today. Wow. Huge buildings, tall pillars, archways: they all give you a feel of being small, really small (considering how big I am). To get in anywhere you have to swipe IDs at automatic doors. Elevators are huge and spacious, and the upholstery in the offices are like something I read about in Digital Fortress.

2. People are always running: And I mean, literally. Even the ones that are sitting at the desks and at receptions appear so busy that their motion undergoes some kind of space-time warp and they seem like running. What I was glad to see was that at least most people had their phones inside their pockets and were having proper conversations in the stairwell, elevators and corridors. But, they were running. A little unnerving for me (for obvious reasons), but I think I can get used to it. Not the running. The dodging part.

3. Everything is Corporate-ish: Not that I have something against it as such. I may proclaimed myself a Marxist and Socialist before, but I leave my political ideology and philosophy in the cab and to Existential Comics, respectively. (Do check: http://existentialcomics.com/comic/82 )
The tiles have that sheen that you just do not see in the Bhilai Steel Plant, the clothes of the employees are somehow both informal and classy, the lunch packs given to us were packed too primly, with the chappatis rolled around in aluminium foil too well. You get my point. These things don't really scream up at you, but if you ever wonder what that tiny thing pricking your conscious is, this may be it.

4. In spite of what they say, everything is worked out: People often they say they like to be spontaneous, that they take on challenges as they come. I'm sure that this philosophy doesn't exist when it comes to the day-to-day functioning of corporations. Everything, from transport services, to TShirt sizes are carefully organized with protocols existing for all of them. It's really cool to see the blocks fall into place and things working out as intended.

It's only been Day 1. Some new facilities to visit tomorrow and new people to be met. My life seems to be at this interesting cross between Heidegger's Dasein and Plato's Metaphysics. The intent of the last line was just to show off the fact that I have just completed a course in Introductory Philosophy and how abstract it really is (in case you Googled Dasein). All I meant was my life seems to consist of both, elements of common life as well as something beyond than what I physically realize. Still too pompous? Lite, then.

Something that will stick with me for some time to come is this: there was this small caption at the bottom left corner of the Amazon slides that they were using for the Orientation today: "It's always Day One." Until next time!

What am I doing here?

Wow, it has been an extremely long time, hasn't it? I really dunno how I got back to writing for this thing (blog?) It took me almost 10 minutes to figure out the answer to the 'secret question' to unlock my account. You see even Google found it suspicious that I could come back to this blog! But here we are.
Not unlike someone having won a great award, I would like to take a moment to thank all the people who urged me to start blogging again (or at all). Special thanks are due to Abhijeet Jadhav and Shweta Naphade, since their 'pushes' was unique in their own way.
Now that conscience-clearing is done, lets get back to the intent of writing this post, which is: absolutely nothing, While I'm thinking of something cool to write about I would like you to visit my not half as active (which is saying something) blog, ItihaasPolitik (www.itihaaspolitik.weebly.com). It's got only one article, but I think I've got some cool stuff coming up there.
What, you are back already? Damn.
Ah, yes, I've got it. I became a college graduate five days ago. That's right, I'm in the phase of my life where my batch mates and friends are packing their bags for vacations to their hometowns or exotic locations where they take a well-deserved break before starting their jobs, further studies or in today's age of fellowships, teach school kids and administer schools. I'm packing my bags too, to go to Bangalore and start my new job. IN FIVE DAYS. Some vacation this has proven to be. But I try to remain positive. Starting so soon, helps me to keep my mind off college (or the future lack thereof). It's been a little different, you see? Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I have been moving around a lot, and starting new lives has been quite frequent. I never felt very weird while changing schools, leaving school or even junior college. This has been different though. Not that I am in the depths of depression, but unlike other major phases of my life, I am surprisingly envious of my friends who get to go back to college. Perhaps it's the sense of security of college and that of apprehension of my new job that triggers this. Or maybe it's the sense that everything's going to change from now. In casual retrospect, it doesn't seem like much, but lets take note of some of the things that will:
1. There'll be no more mess menus to memorize for the week, so as to ensure waking up early for Poha.
2. There'll be no more searching for brownie points and compliments to shower on your parents before asking them to refill your account with money.
3. There'll have to be uninstalling of Apex DC++ (Note to Mom; Yes, that is from where I got all those movies for you)
4. There'll be no more disgusted swearing at loos which look like places where a hippo lacking rectal control went amok.
5. There'll be no more exams to worry frantically about the Av and not give a damn about the highest marks of the course.
6. There'll be a certain order when it comes to times and schedules. No more showering at 3 am and no more brushing at 3 pm.
7. There'll be no more a sense of idleness and inertia about life. People around me are going to run, and however I hate it, I will have to run with them and most of the times, faster than them.
8. Quoting Shweta, there will be a huge identity crisis, what with a transition from being somebody, a senior at the very least in a small community such as your college, to an absolutely insignificant nobody in a huge city, having to constantly carve out a niche for yourself.

I could go on, but you get my vein of thought. I also realize that I am getting more philosophical and depressing by point. I suppose it'll be a good thing. To get out of your comfort zone could only do you good. Earning a good sum of money helps, of course. I'm looking forward to Amazon, just a little apprehensive. To quote the currently playing Jason Mraz song, I'm after all, Only Human,

I really hope you enjoyed this post and I really hope to get back to this blog with a new post. I won't make promises ( the last one to lose 5 kgs went down the drain), but keep checking. Perhaps all it'll take is to Shweta to call me again and typically bug me to no end to write a new post.
Until then, keep laughing!

AH-2. My hostel. People say that our hostels should have names. I like it this way. After one semester, I like the whole hostel the way it is. I liked it as much when I saw it for the first time, on a rainy July day. I still remember that moment. My new home. The focal point of my life in the coming four years. The best part, of course was it was right adjacent to the mess!  Climbing up to the first floor, I counted the rooms with bated breath till I reached room 221. Of course, I knew I was not going to have a room-mate, so I was not really worried about that. Nevertheless, I was nervous. My first impression of my room from outside wasn’t great. It was beside the bathroom and the water-cooler. But swallowing my slight disappointment, I pushed the door. The first thought that came to my mind was: “Whoa! This is small!” There was a small bed, a table and a cupboard. But then I opened my balcony door (ours is one of the only three hostels to have balconies), and then I decided, I loved my room. It had the most fantastic view ever! The Zuari River, almost at its mouth, the distant towers of Panjim and sheer greenery filled my mind with happiness.
I had always known that hostel life would change me, but I had no idea of the magnitude of the change. In that hostel, I discovered a new me, an independent, confident and responsible me. I had an amalgamation of guys around me. There was stolid Rahul opposite to me, crazy Mundra beside me, ever-dependable, monophobia-affected Arpit, neatness fanatic Shivanna, enigmatic Gandhar, carefree Giri and many others, who practically made our corridor a kind of melting pot.  
Quite a lot many things were going to change. First was a complete disregard to time as far as sleep was concerned. People slept at any time they wanted, woke up at any time they wanted too! I still remember a night in which I, Gandhar, Rahul and Giri had sat in my room, with only my little table-lamp on, with a cool breeze blowing in through the balcony door. We discussed man things that night: our future plans, belief in God, religious views, our hometowns etc. We went to sleep at 5 and woke up at 7:30 to attend classes!
Second, our different reactions to the sudden exposure to all the daily chores. I just went on with it. Washing my inners once a week, I just gave the others to laundry. Some people like Shivanna took a liking to detergent and like to clean their clothes every two days, all of them. Cleaning my room was a chore I really hated. Somehow, my tiny room seemed much larger as soon as I started sweeping it.  A chore I surprisingly liked was shopping. I took my parents advice of sparing no expenses when it came to food to my heart. Of course, I completely forgot about the second part, the part which said, “BUT DON’T OVEREAT!” Thus I’d go twice a month, and come out of the shopping complex, with my bag full of biscuits, cup noodles and the occasional shrikhand. In this context I must mention K.C. Akshay Giri. This guy is apparently hell-bent on spending his dad’s every penny on junk food and laundry. His average expenditure on food is approximately double of all of us, combined! 
A great revealing moment for all of us was our inter-hostel fest: Zephyr ’11. We were all eager to prove our mettle against all the senior hostels. Eager to shed the ‘kids’ tag. Every detail was meticulously planned. Our Hostel Representative, Josh, worked really hard for this. The best part was we all got to interact with each other in the hostel. This at least made us aware of the others’ characters, their way of thinking and their ideals. Even our hostel T took three rounds of voting. Therefore, it came as a disappointment to us when, in spite of winning quite a few events, we finished only 8th out of the fourteen hostels. Even our arch-rivals, AH-1 beat us. It was a disturbing moment for us, but looking at the positives, we got over it and now eagerly await Zephyr ’12.
Of course, life in hostel is not always about fun and enjoying. We have experienced testing times too. I’d like to include exams and acads in this, but I’m sure it’s the same in all hostels. So let me focus on the more difficult times we have faced. 
After T-1, we had all planned to go to the beach for some relaxation. However, for me it was more like a nightmare trip. I ended up fracturing my right little toe. Then came an endless list of things to do after coming back. The next day, I had to visit the doctor, who told me to come the next day to consult the orthopaedic specialist. The next day, I was instructed to go to the not-so-nearby hospital to get an X-ray done. After the X-ray was done I was told to come the next day, since the doctor was not available that day. However, that afternoon as I was going to take a nap, I got a call from the Med-C instructing me to come immediately since the Chief-Doc was calling me. Again I trooped to the Med-C (my right foot killing me the whole time). There Chief-Doc declared that I indeed had a fracture. The next day, the orthopedic guy told me, for precautionary reasons, I had to get my foot plastered. Problem was, it was to stay for a week. That week was one of the worst weeks in my BITSian life. No water, no bathing, no running, only hobbling from class to class. Thankfully, after one week it came off, and I was free again! 
Just before T-2, we had our second crisis. It all started with Arpit. He was running a slight fever since two days. The next day, his fever increased to 101. That evening, I had to go to the library. I left with strict instructions to Rahul to tell me if it increased beyond 102. At around 8, I got a call that Arpit’s fever had escalated to 103.5. I immediately returned to hostel, and we carried him to the Med-C. When his fever refused to abate, the doc told me they had to move him the hospital (where I had got my X-ray done). Josh volunteered to stay with him in the night. The rest of us returned to the hostel. Gandhar had also been running a fever, but he had not crossed 100 so I wasn't very worried. However, good friend that I am, I just decided to check up on him. Now, I am really thankful that I did, but at that time, I remember wishing I hadn't  He was nearing 104. The same procedure repeated. However, God was favorable this time, and his fever soon went down. All this time Rahul was unconditionally beside me. We helped each other out and took turns in taking our friends’ temperatures and giving them sponging and all. So I felt really insecure, when he himself started a fever two days after that. Thankfully, his fever went down in a day or two, without any emergencies. I and my parents thank my immune system and God, I was not affected.
What I wanted to express above that hostel life is not necessarily a bed of roses. Another tough time I faced was when I lost my wallet. It also involved endless running around from here to there, applying for a new ATM card, a new ID card and withdrawing money through withdrawal slips. I found my lost wallet eventually under Rahul’s broom in his room, but it was a good lesson learnt.
In spite of these hardships, hostel life suited me. The independence that I wanted since 10th class and the desire to make my own decisions, however small the implications may be, is what I cherish most. New friends have become a way of my life, having lived at three different places by now. But it is always a pleasure to make good, dependable and helpful friends. Working for clubs and departments is and will always be fun. It’s been just one semester into college life, and I’ve learnt so many new things. I both anticipate and apprehend what is waiting for me down the road, as I travel on this amazing expressway, I call ‘Engineering’. 
Cheers!
Sushobhan

In the land of the Sun, Sea and Sand!

“Hello Sir! O Bhai Sa’ab! Yes sir, yourself. You don’t look as if you belong to the hereabouts. Are you a tourist?”
”Yes. Can I help you?”
“Ha! I was going to ask you the same question. Where are you from, good friend?”
“Odisha.”
“Aah! The land of the temples, fish and anti-bongs. Perfect. Who better than an Odia to give food advice to, eh?”
“Food advice, huh? I’ll take it only if it is good and it is free”
“The best advice you’ll get around here and for a fellow fish-lover, it definitely is free.”
“Let’s hear it then.”
“Before we start, I have to know, are you vegetarian?”
“God no! In fact, I have come with a mind to try out some beef and pork dishes too!”
“Excellent! Let us begin then. First, you have to understand that Goan cuisine has been influenced by the large number of cultures, mainly by the Portuguese and the Konkani people who have lived here since a very long time. The most popular dishes of the cuisine therefore are a mixture of both Hindu and Christian food.”
“Sounds interesting already. Go on.”
“Okay, so let’s start with the appetizers. With a variety of stuffed papad and crunchies, you can definitely start your meal on a good note. They are often stuffed with mashed prawns, and taste delicious. Otherwise, if you want to start off with a heavy dish, you can try empadas which are small pork pies or even stuffed sardine. For your newly acquired taste for beef, do try Beef Rissole, which is basically minced meat rolled in bread crumbs and then deep fired.”
“Beef Rissole. Got it.”
“Good. Now for the main course. Here you come across a huge variety of choices. I’ll tell you about the most popular items. In fish dishes, the Goan Fish curry is unmatched. Typical of this place, it is known for its sour-spicy taste. The fruit ‘kokum’ is attributed for the sour taste and is definitely the most widely used fruit used around Goa. Next on the list is Fish Recheado or stuffed fish. This is a Portuguese dish, normally consisting of a whole pomfret or mackerel fish, slit in the middle and stuffed with the fiery-red Recheado masala, which is made of Kashmiri chillies, and other spices and ground to a paste using vinegar. A lip-smacking paste indeed.
Moving on to prawns. The famous local prawn dish is the Prawn Balchao, again a Portuguese dish. It is actually prawns cooked in a red tangy sauce, the paste for which is made of dried shrimp, Konkani spices and feni. I think that’s enough with the seafood, what say we move on to the pork dishes?”
“Definitely. My mouth is watering already.”
“Okay. You must have heard of the most famous pork dish here in Goa, Pork Vindaloo.  It is a spicy concoction, lots of red chilies, garlic, cooked with chunks of pork and Goan vinegar. Apart from vindaloo, there is the Sorpotel. It is a dish in which pork is diced and cooked in a thick and very spicy paste, of which vinegar is the most important ingredient. Apart from these dishes Chouricos or Goan sausages are also very popular and tasty here.
These dishes are the typical local dishes of Goa. Apart from these you must try Kalamari or squids and Xacuti dishes. Xacuti preparation exists in everything: Crabs, vegetables, fish, chicken all of them. It is made from plenty of spices and has a unique taste, not always liked by all.”
“And for the best part? The dessert?”
“The typical Odia question, eh? Don’t worry, we possess probably the most fantastic dish under the dessert menu. Enter, bebinca. Made of layer upon layer of coconut pancakes, this is the perfect end to any meal. Each layer is baked individually, and 16 such layers are brought together to make the dish. Do eat it with vanilla ice cream, it is the best combination the Goan has come up with! And in the end to wash it all down, you have to try a glass of the locally brewed Feni. It is most famous and enjoyed by practically everyone. Only be a little careful when getting up, haha!”
“I will be. Any special place you want me to try?”
“You can try this new restaurant at Velsao beach: Anoshka restaurant. It’s pretty good.”
“Right. Thank you so much for your advice.”
“A pleasure, my friend. Go, enjoy your holiday, in the land of sun, sea and sand!”

Day 6 (Srinagar-Pahelgam)

Hello people. Welcome!  So sorry I am so irregular. Honestly speaking, the last few days haven’t been really all that exciting so you really have not missed out on much. I’ll probably give an account of those days in the future. I have a really important article on handling the trip to the Mata VaishnoDevi Temple, so those keen on going there in the future, please keep reminding me about the article till it does not appear on this blog. Okay coming to today. Today was a transition day, from Srinagar to Pahelgam, a town situated in the hills, about two and a half hours from Srinagar. Similar to many of my previous trips, the travel itself proved to be a major and better part of the entire trip, and this was no different. Since this was especially eventful, let me discuss in detail.

The journey started commonly enough. Weaving through the unusually open roads of Srinagar, till we touched the highway.  In the outskirts of the city, about 12-15 km away from it, we came across a small town by the name of Pampone (or at least that is how our driver pronounced it). This is supposedly a very famous place since it is primarily a wholesale saffron market. As if emphasizing on this, there are acres and acres of saffron fields a little distance away. However, there were no flowers in bloom at this time of the year. Nearby these fields also were many shops who sold saffron at wholesale rates. Surprisingly these shops were named in a variety of strange names (how does one connect Kohinoor and Maharaja with saffron?). A little ahead, appeared a new kind of shops. Something which I liked, for a change. Guesses? CRICKET BATS!! Oh yeah, the famed Kashmiri Willow bats, exported to all major sport brands all over the world, are made there! We came to a town called Sangam, which had proper showrooms and manufacturing factories. We visited one that our driver knew of. It was pretty cool. We saw the stacks of willow, the newly made handles and other things like bat presses etc. Of course, with all these bats around, I could not resist the temptation. I bought a new bat (a Kookaburra), freshly made and designed in front of me (by design, I mean the sticking the stickers part). Harsha Koneru and Ripun Bhai, if you are reading this, you guys will really love it. After the eventful stop at the bat industry, we had a peaceful journey ahead.  There were a plethora of dhabas on the roadside, most of them sadly advertising Punjabi food. Not that I have anything against it, but I could have done with a little South Indian or Fish dishes. Since we had had a heavy breakfast, we did not stop at any of these dhabas and carried on. There was a heavy presence of both the Police and the Para-military all along the roads. As usual, they did not fail to impress me. Honestly speaking, it is a little reassuring too! There were also many cheesy road signs along the way put up by the BRO like “If you are married, then divorce speed” and stuff like that.

We entered Pahelgam against a backdrop of the high Himalayan Mountains set against a cloudy sky. Pahelgam proved to be a beautiful and scenic place. The river Lidder flows across the town and it is covered by beautiful and well maintained parks (most of them having the rare Lavender flowers). Our hotel was also wonderfully located, right on the riverside. Our room, although on the first floor, is directly facing the river, and has a wonderful view of the snow-capped peaks of beyond. After freshening up, me and Dad had a wonderful head massage apiece and took some photographs, before heading down to the restaurant for lunch. Directly after lunch, we set out for the local pony stand for hiring them to take us to the nearby sightseeing points. However Mom’s old I-am-falling-down-phobia came up again and she refused to sit on a horse. On her insisting, I and Dad set out on our horses. It proved the most wonderful journey ever! Again, words fail me. We mostly climbed up a mountain on horseback. My horse’s name was Raja while Dad’s was Lalu (LOL!) Because of the recent rains, the path was muddy and slushy. The scenery we got during the trip was heavenly. Lush green meadows, ponies grazing on them, tall snow-capped peaks and the river rushing along us all the time, it was lovely! The sun kept playing hide-n-seek and kept peeking at us from time to time. After negotiating a few steep slopes and turns we came to our destination. Here I would like to really apologise to the readers, but I forgot the name of this point. But it is also called mini-Switzerland. And though I have never been to Switzerland, I hardly think the name is an exaggeration. It was amazing! A great green plain with pine and fir trees bordering it, and the snow capped peaks seemingly only a little distance away, I have never been in a place more scenic. We took some photographs, had some hot Maggi and bought stuff for Mom. The distant rumble of thunder was our cue for returning back. It was after all, an almost two-hour ride on horseback. However, this time the weather was not with us, and it started pouring in the middle of the journey. Since the roads got really slippery, we descended with great apprehension. I suggest anybody who comes here to get his/her woollens and rain-coats, since the weather here is really unpredictable. After yet another hip-crumbling horse ride, we finally reached our hotel where mom was anxiously waiting for us.

Not much after we came back. We had some hot soup (since we were drenched), and then just sorted out pictures and stuff. Then we had a sumptuous dinner and now: SLEEP!  Goodnight all!

P.S. If anybody does come to Kashmir I really suggest you to spend at least 3-4 days here in Pahelgam, it is indeed a beautiful place.

Day 1 (Delhi-Jammu-Katra)

Okay, glad to have you back here. Reporting from Katra (sometimes pronounced as ‘Katda’), a scenic hill station in the foothills of the Himalayas, about 50 km from Jammu.  Although today was mostly spent in travel (actually for me, it was ONLY spent in travel), it was still an eventful and fun-filled day. Today kicked off with a late start, having slept late yesterday. Had a proper breakfast and then Dad went to the bank for some work. After he came back we all had lunch and started off from the guest house to catch our flight. After a few hiccoughs on the way (Dad had forgotten his shoes and we had to go back, wading through a traffic jam), we reached the newly renovated Terminal 1. Although not as impressive as T3, it was still pretty good and deserves appreciation.  Our flight was three quarters of an hour late, so we spent the time reading books and idling around. The flight was pretty boring, partly because the sandwich + coke   price had increased to Rs.150 and also there were no mountains to be seen from the flight. Apparently Jammu is on a plain (which is totally not acceptable since Jammu is in Jammu & Kashmir, and Jammu & Kashmir is supposed to be made of mountains.. L ) Also the Jammu airport proudly said that Jammu was the City of Temples, while I am sure that only Bhubaneswar is supposed to be called the City Of Temples! Copyright violation!! The drive to Katra (not a short one) lasted for an hour and a half and was unexpectedly beautiful. The mountains slowly appeared and the evening made them look even more enchanting.  A cool breeze blew all through and since the river was right beside us along, it made the drive even more scenic. We checked into our rooms in the hotel and then wandered about the surrounding lawns and swimming pool. The view from here is magnificent. We had a few snacks too. Returned to our rooms, had a quick bath and then headed down again for dinner. It was a quiet affair. Since we have a long day tomorrow, and have to wake up early too, I guess I’ll stop here. Tomorrow’s gonna be really exciting. Make sure you turn up. Keep reading.. Cheers!