Met a friend at Changi airport just

NEW YEAR'S DJ PARTY ON 31ST DEC'2007

Bollywood Rocks in Shanghai

Indian Association's annual charity event "Bollywood Rocks",rocked Shanghai on Dec 1. Though a little cliched and overpriced ( @ 800/pax), the event organisers managed to sellout all the tables. It was a black-tie event ( though some came in plain jeans also), newly tailored tuxedos could be seen.A few gems were present in the silent auction ( Bund painting and a panoramic b/w view of the bund by reknowed photographer 'Gang of one'). The dance ensemble presented by 'Jazz the Funk' troupe on bollywood theme was a smashing hit with the crowd and helped in loosening their purse strings in the following live auction event. Bollywood DJ's have become a regular feature in Shanghai's bar scene and seems like b'wood is here to stay for some time.

Casino Royale @ Bukhara

'To each , his own" - DD chose casino theme party for his year ending gala dhamaka. Fresh from venetian Macau, this was to be expected. Counters were handed out to all the guests at the entrance and for a change there was less chit-chat. Most of the guests and ladies for a change tried their hands at the Black Jack and Russian roulettes which were manned by experienced pros. Some of them were fast learners and managed to swoop a couple of prizes. Food as usual was above par and especially prepared for the event. Wonder what will be the next theme be - indoor golf par 9 course?

Diwali at SAS Shanghai

Kumar Sanu Avaya Diwali Nite 2007

Diwali Nite is the most awaited event in the IA community and IA association spares no effort in making it a success. D-nites since 2001 have grown bigger and better.

This year, Kumar Sanu was the main attraction. Although there were some inhibitions initially but those were dispelled once he got into his groove and belted out some of the choicest foot thumping songs from a repertoire of 14000 songs he has recorded till date. Diwali tickets were all sold out weeks before show, another endorsement to its growing popularity. The organisers may have to find a bigger venue or split diwali over 2 days, next year around as Shangrila cannot accommodate more than 800 people.

Nehal, manish, Mayank and others worked very hard in ensuring a smooth event
and all kudos to them!

Macau

As usual, we made another last minute plan for a holiday trip and this time it was to Macau. Cheap flights were available through Ctrip ( via Shenzhen) and managed to get hotel booking at the Venetian hotel. The Venetian Hotel is the 2nd largest building in the world. Its an amazing hotel cum Casino with venice type canals inside the hotel. The hotel itself features as a tourist destination for travelers to Macau.

Books

For a longtime I was thinking about cataloging my books alongwith ratings, reviews etc. Something like itunes for books. After a brief search, stumbled across  “Books”, a MacOSX program. It’s a freeware and has all the desired featured which one will need for cataloging. One of the coolest feature is “quickfill” – just type in the ISBN no. of your book and all the important details of your book alongwith the coverflow is downloaded from various sources on the net.

Bellagio's

There must be something about this restaurant as it is always crowded and noisy even if located in a residential area in Changning distt of Shanghai.

Being a taiwanese restaurant, it has a large taiwanese clientele followed by other South Asian expats. The dishes are spicy and very tasty especially hotplate onion chicken with garlic. The shaved ice mango and coconut ice cream is a speciality of Bellagios and many stroll-in after dinner to Bellagio's for desserts. The waiters can speak basic english and the chef can take in special customised orders from customers. Especially useful when you are a vegetarian.

Address:	778 Huangjin Cheng Dao (by Gubei Nan Lu)
Phone:	6278 0722
Cards Accepted:
Nearest Metro:	None
名称	鹿港小镇
地址	黄金城道 778 号近古北南路
电话	6278 0722

Kapial Dev in Shanghai

Finally, managed to attend the dinner hosted by Indian Assoc for the inauguration of Avaya Kapil Dev Cricket tournament. I must say it turned out to be a surprisingly pleasant event. Kapil seems to have seasoned over time and fielded the questions with a witty and genuine candor. His auctioneering ability also helped IA to raise close to RMB 60,000 rmb. Much beyond what IA could have expected. A sample of some of the Q&A’s from the evening:

Q: Why India cannot develop a genuine fast bowler?

A: Indians do not have the physique.

Q: Why have ICL?

A: Competition will be better for sport. Especially when BCCI and CBI do not take the initiative in using expertise of more experienced players.

Q: Minority reservation in sports?

A: Would you like a minority doctor to attend to you when you are sick. Limit reservation to Education only.

Q: Most embarrassing moment?

A: Locked up in a closet for 40 mins while a female fan was in the room.

Q: Words said in locker room before taking field in 1983 world cup?

A: Jawano ladna hai.

Q: Why cant we have an Indian coach for team India?

A: No need for a coach at that level.

Q: Why India cannot win matches?

A: Players are not committed enough ( as a team)

Q: Why was the rivalry with Sunny G?

A: Both played with diff objectives. One for drawing the match and the other went for a win.

Photoblog

Another new blogging tool for reaching out faster. This time using the mobile phone with a good pixel camera. You can subscribe to photoblog and the mms your pics directly from your phone to the blogsite. Max 20 pics per day. Check out taranya's photoblog

INDIAN cricket legend Kapil Dev will be in Shanghai at the end of the month to pitch for the sport that is still in its infancy in China.

The ICC and the Asian Cricket Council have been earnestly promoting the game on the mainland and the Chinese Cricket Association was set up two years ago. The World Cup winning captain will host a cricket camp for kids and new buffs of the game on September 1, while a team made up of local and expat players will get a look at Kapil's deadly inswingers at the Biyun grounds on September 2.

Zyb - Mobile Phone backup

I have more than 200 contacts on my cell and a lot of addons. While i do
keep a backup of my phone contacts at my home computer, it would be
unthinkable to loose my phone , while i was on a business trip or vacation (
which happens in most of the cases). Zyb helps users to back up all your
contacts, SMS, Cal online and sync using SyncML over GPRS. So go loose your
mobile ..and try out Zyb. Caution: If you are paranoid about privacy..check
out the disclaimer first.

Kite flying

Kite flying at century park during the labor week.

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Originally uploaded by Ek Chin Tan.

Sur Shanghai

Its been a long time ( again!) since the last post. Changes in posting process/ laptops etc takes its toll. Meanwhile many things happened...eg: another edition of Sur Shanghai. For those who missed it here is a link to the songs/ artists/ performance.

The New Look IA team

President: S S Naik
G Sec ( Business): S Joshi
G Sec ( Activities): Mayank
G Sec ( Culture ) : Nehal

One of the best conducted AGMs. Though attendance was thin, the minds were fully 'irrigated' and the main farmer was Prakash Mennon. Best of lucks to the new team.

Indian Association AGM

Once again the time has come to select a new president for of IA and surprise surprise... 2 of our close buddies have been nominated for GSec posts this time. Though, rumor has it that an IA post is an exit invitation from china, we hope the new team stays for a longer time and takes IA to newer heights. Final results later...

Tianran Natural Health Vegetarian Restaurant

Off late, many chinese vegetarian ( yes! you heard it right) restaurants have cropped up in Shanghai. Some of them have become popular too. A couple of them mould their menu and dishes similar to the popular non-veg ones in color, flavor and shape. Some of the newer ones have authentic chinese veggie dishes.

Tianran Natural Veggie ( Nanhe Hotel - Named after a river near Nanjing) on Nanjing Dong Lu ( Nanhe Hotel, 442 Nanjing Rd. E., near Shanxi Rd. Tel: 63612059) ranks amongst one of the top veggie joints ( wonder if there has been a ranking of VG joints yet!). Though the restaurant getup is nothing ornate , the location, taste and cost of the dishes more than make up for the lack of ambience ( But lookout for the nice oil painting of erstwhile Nanjing lu, just as you get out of the lift on the 8th floor). We ordered Spicy soup, bamboo shoots, tofu ( 2 varities), chilli brinjol, fried rice, noodle soups..etc. The veggies in our group devoured everything and did acknowledge the spread laid out.

Xin Nian Kuai Le! 2007

Chinese New Year Eve is kinda like Diwali! All the similarities are there ( family get-together, gift exchanges, fruit baskets , Fireworks, gala-dinner etc). The roads of Shanghai are empty and streets are deserted. Incase someone lands up in Shanghai in CNY eve, they are sure to look around and suspect something amiss.

The chinese fireworks are 'la jawab' ..They are precise, cheap and give a good bang for the money spent. Good bye dog and welcome ye Pigs! The chinese population and wealth is all set to explode this year.

Roger Waters - The Dark Side of Moon - World Tour

The sixties rocked! There is some kind of magic about '60s music which still persists and manages to fill up a stadium. Eric Clapton and now Pink Floyd - both had the crowd eating out of their hands. The contrast between the 2 artists was quite pronounced. While EC (Eric Clapton) was clinical and stuck to his new music and guitaring feats, RG ( Roger Waters ) was humane , his show had a theme - America, Iran War, GB etc. The excellent video / lighting & acoustics ( not to mention the inflatable moon walker and pig) - was something which the Shanghainese may have come across for the first time. RG belted out all the popular numbers..people especially liked his new Lebanon song. THE WALL anthem was sung secong last - and when it came , all the people in the stadium sang along on the top of their voice..i call it an anthem 'coz everyone seems to know it by heart.

Eric Clapton - Shanghai

Who is the most popular artist amongst the following:

- David Copperfield
- Air Supply
- Eric Clapton
- Deep Purple

Judging from the crowd which turned up yesterday at Grand Theater, in the misty rain, Eric Clapton sure has a star rating amongst the Shanghainse. The Grand Theater was full of expats who swayed to prodigal guitaring of the trio on stage ( Eric Clapton, Doyle Brahma - Guitar II, Derek Trucks). Unfortunately EC did not play 2 of their most popular songs - Cocaine & Layla.

Toys R Us

70541928.jpg
Originally uploaded by Ek Chin Tan.

Finally, Toys r Us makes its debut in Shanghai. Located in Super brand Mall (Chanda guanghang) in Pudond, the store has toys which have chinese instructions to go with. Thus, the range is somewhat limited. However, from the crowd thronging there, i wont be surprised if they open another one within the year in Puxi.

New Years Eve

Its been a long time since the last blog. Shall try to be more frequent with weblogs in 2007. The new Years Bukhara party rocked... what with black and silver sashays and p'pino maids doing the rounds. Though , the wings came out after the clock struck 12. 70 -80 odd gatherings tapped to DJ Bosco's music. Happy New Year to all.. May this year be prosperous and Peaceful for all on earth!