टाको सलाद और इचिदाहा

हमारे ऑफिस का कैफेटेरिया विभिन्न देश एवं प्रदेशों के व्यंजन बनाने के लिए जाना जाता है। इसके सूचना-पट्ट पर रोज एक नए और ख़ास व्यंजन का जिक्र होता है। आज एक मेक्सिकन व्यंजन था: टाको सलाद। कुछ पूछ ताछ के उपरांत उसे खा लिया। काफ़ी अच्छा लगा।

इसे आप शाकाहारी और मांसाहारी दोनों श्रेणियों में रख सकते हैं। मर्ज़ी है आपकी। मैंने उसमे हल्का सा मुर्गा मिलाने की अनुमति दे दी...और स्वाद अच्छा लगा। बाद में इन्टरनेट पर इसके बनाने की विधि पढ़ी जो ये है:

The taco salad is a Mexican inspired dish। The salad is a fried flour tortilla shell stuffed with shredded iceberg lettuce and topped with diced tomato, shredded Cheddar cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and/or salsa। The salad is topped with taco meat(ground beef)। Chicken is sometimes used instead. Often the salad has refried beans on the shell before the lettuce is added.A "bowl" is a bed of Spanish rice and refried beans dressed out similar to the taco salad.

टाको सलाद अमेरिका में सबसे पहले १९६० में आया.

दो दिनों पहले एक और मेक्सिकन व्यंजन चखा: इचिदाहा। ठीक ठाक सा ही लगा.

देश: हमारा और उनका

As a whole US is such an inspirational place to live in। I don’t care about the bad things here because they are everywhere. I’ll take only that is required. I and my country and in fact everybody needs good things in life and so I have no problem in praising this place. It has a lot that we can take and vice-versa. Most of us know consciously or subconsciously what we have to give to the world. Consciously, because we see and know those things, subconsciously because we love our country and this makes ‘Her’ great for us. By living here even for one day one glaring thing that I noticed is extremely advanced civic systems and maintenance. Back in India, when US-returned manager used to tell me that there is no dust here it was hard to believe. Now I see it is true. They have covered every inch of the land either with plush greenery or with concrete. Grass have hidden in them very small sprinklers that start automatically and controll the growth of grass. In India, we use to learn in primary classes how to cross the road. It is like ‘pehle bayen dekho fir dayen dekho fir sarak paar karo’. Here I think motordrivers have to learn this lesson. Unlike India, pedestrians have first right to cross the road here…and lights just don’t matter so much. Of course you have to obey the traffic lights but if you’re on road and the lights get green, no vehicle can start untill you cross the complete road. It is really amazing to see the faces of pedestrians and driver here which is quite opposite to our country. In India, we cross roads fearing motors may not come and here motorists drive slow watching carefully on turns if there is a pedestrian…and if there is any you just can’t move ahead. Even if you started moving and then stopped and this makes the pedestrian fear, cameras can put you on traffic cops eyes.

There is just so much of camera here at every place a person would be fearing violating any rule even if there is no camera at that place.
I asked one NRI here “don’t they have power cuts here?” and he said,”oh yes! I can not remember exactly but few years back there was a power cut for a minute or two and the nation was in shock. Like what happened? Is there some kind of attack? Etc etc”.

लॉस एंजिलिस में

Now I really understand the meaning and feel the song “Hum to hain pardesh mein, desh mein niklaa hogaa chand”
When I was in Delhi, I never missed so much living out of home. In LA, things are different though.
For me the most appealing thing about any place is The People. Then come the system, institutions, architectures etc. Since my routine here is too busy to see the town and interact with different types of people I can not say anything with authority about the people and place here but to whatever extent I do interact, some feedback seem glaring. I may sound bizarre or fool while explaining about this country but I have my own reasons behind it. It may be otherwise but this is what makes us different.

आश्चर्य किंतु सत्य

There have been some surprises also. I have been talking to the people from Delhi and when I see them here it’s a surprise. Like my manager had told me that Michell is black but she is white and I used to think about Chris that he would be a white but I find he is a ६.५ feet high black and comes office in short and T-shirt.

दिनचर्या

Here we have no hindi channels and no news channels except BBC and CNN. Everyday I wake up at 6 and rush to kitchen after bath. Prepare lunch (rice sabji) and then take breakfast (toast, juice, maggi etc) and then get ready for office at 8:15. Since I couldn’t get my driving license in delhi on time I have to take lift from one of my colleagues who drives. Office is 30 minutes from home and approx 25 miles. There is no fix time of return. Mostly we come back around 7 or 8 and then go to nearby Indian restaurant. Here people have no fix time of work as I told you before. Neither have they needed permission to stay at home. Y’day one person did not come but she was working from home.Here sun sets at 8:30 PM.
Today we are going to a restaurant for a welcome treat। We’ll be served flavoured yoghurt and fruits.

ये जो देश है मेरा, स्वदेश है मेरा

To be honest, sometimes I remember my country for some weird reasons too. देशी कचरे की याद बहुत आती है।अहा !!! वो गन्दगी वो नाले की बदबू वो करप्शन की किचकिच। ये सब यहाँ कहाँ? वो बस के ड्राइवरों और कंडक्टरोँ की व्यर्थ बातें और उनकी गालियाँ की बौछार की याद बहुत आती है। ये सब यहाँ खोजने से भी नहीं मिलता। इनकी गालियाँ अलग किस्म की हैं ।
It is true all these things represent a bad mad world but afterall they are linked to ‘my’ countrty. However bad they may seem, I’m part of it. That is me. If it is bad I am bad.

अमेरिका में पहला कदम

Life is too busy here…. and we are not the exception. We reached here Sunday afternoon May २५ and therer was holiday on Monday due to Memorial Day. Tuesday was our first day and we got introduced to our US bosses who control software development worldwide.

We are yet to get a PC at home so can not upload pics now for some time. I have started taken snaps from flight itself. On Delhi airport we saw The Great Khali who was going to France, but I missed taking his snap. From the window seat in flight I did take lots of snaps of places I used to read about in geography books in school like Ice laden Iceland, London and some parts of Europe . While crossing Atlantic Ocean there was another plane from Air France flying beside us and I took its pics.That route is so busy that you can actually see lots of planes going side by side like cars moving on the road. Our plane was moving at the speed of 1000 kilometers per hour at the height of 12 kilometers. at this height Surrounding air temperature was about minus 50 degrees celsius
Locality is very much different. You can find beautiful gardens and buildings and roads but not a single people. For everything you have got some machine. Every tap opens leftward and rightward for hot and cold water. Did some shopping for groceries and cooking at home. There is no fix work time in office. If you have work stay late or go home. There is no concept of filling late slip etc. you’ll be accountable for task completion within specified time period. No matter how and when you do it. Similarly I found people come wearing shorts in office.
एक दिन सब्जी में छौंक लगाते समय धुआं उठा और फायर अलार्म बज गयी . Before police and firefighters could arrive we opened the gates and moved the smoke out and it went off.
Weatherwise it’s cold here. Sea wind becomes chilled at sometimes. So have to wear sweater plus jacket. Moisturiser is a must here both in hair and on skin.
Here houses have wooden walls but seem as they are made from bricks and mortars. This fact we discovered when once Anil said “यार , nahaate समय मेरा हाथ deewaar से Takraa gayaa लेकिन चोट नहीं लगी. ” And then we knocked on walls and found that they are wooden

Our flat has three TVs :one in each bedroom and one in drawing room, but there is no channel in hindi or any channel that we used to see in India. SO hardly able to see it except when you want to see movies.
Once I get a PC at home I’ll keep you sending more pics and the details of US life around my locality. In front of my house is sea shore and on the left of my campus is Los Angeles Intl Airport. On the right of our campus is Tandoor-e-india where you can listen hindi music and enjoy Indian dishes.
In nutshell, life is hard and tough here but compensated by good weather and some ‘other’ good things as well (will tell you later) ;)

Not started seeing the town yet as we have got a lot of work here and can not go anywhere during weekdays. It’ll be possible only on weekends.
So keep tuned-in.