As the date shows it’s been quite a while since my last diary – three weeks to be precise. So to compensate for that this has to be a big one. Lots of events have taken place in that period, the most notable change being in the temperatures. It was still snowing heavily with the temperatures barely touching 0 when my last blog was published. While I write this, the white has given way to the green, snow has been replaced by the occasional rain and bright sunshine and temperatures have risen to proportions which can be seen in a typical Indian north Indian winter. In addition to this Mr. George Bush and the Olympic torch both touched the country during the last three weeks. And yes I did not hear any protests regarding the torch.

With the complete absence of Indian masala channels from the TV network we have no option but to watch CNN which happens to be the only English Channel available. This has enabled us to show our concern for the elections in Zimbabwe and also the run up to the US elections – the Hillary-Obama fight being the highlight. Also we were made to think whether the so-called eastern bloc bound by the Warsaw pact should bow to Bush and join the NATO or not. Luckily president Putin played down the significance of the NATO in the present time and stopped any further points of discussion.

In the three weekends we went to a no. of places, thus increasing the no. of photos in our picasa albums and giving more and more options for Orkut/Facebook uploads.

We visited Tsaritsino Park just opposite our hotel where the snow started melting enabling us to have a lovely walk towards the castle. We took snap after snap and did not even bother to know the history of the castle. A major part of the lake was still frozen which has now melted. People from long distances had come to the park for their first spring picnic and you could make out the relief in their faces as spring set in.

Next on our itinerary was a visit to the famous shopping complex in the far-away place Ashan which happened the following weekend. The entire 14-member squad turned up minus Kokila and Mathews as they were busy rescuing Finacle in the office. We left early (yes even I managed to wake up early and not be the last person to be ready to go) as we had to cover a long distance by train followed by bus. Both the journeys took 45 mins with 30 mins in between to locate the exact point from which the yellow colored bus to Ashan left from the metro station – which happens to be the last station on the green line. As we reached, first plan of action was to eat. The vegetarians and Raj Bhai proceeded to Pizza Hut and the non-veggies and Poorna proceeded to KFC (incidentally both Raj bhai and Poorna are vegetarians on Saturdays without fail). And then the shopping started. We entered a super market and I have never seen a larger market than this. There was hardly anything under the sun that was not available out there. Since it was supposedly cheaper than the city rates our guys went on to top gear. From football to vodka nothing was left behind. All the gifts for people back home were being bought and I only wondered how we are going to carry them back.

Finally when the bus arrived to take us back to the metro station we saw that the crowd was as much as a Mumbai local train station so fittingly when I boarded the bus I had to put in very little effort as I was pushed in and nearly squashed. Venu’s camera went missing and it happened at the very last minute (like an injury time goal) so we could do nothing to get it back. And the polythene packet in which I was carrying someone’s stuff was torn in no time – the stuff inside it was thankfully still there. I restrained myself and did not shop much. A pair of slippers to wear at home (previously I was travelling from one room to another barefoot) and a toy shot gun to add to our sporting activities during dinner time. Though, I must say that another visit is mandatory before we leave.

Next on the plan was Moscow University which duly happened the next weekend i.e. yesterday. We got down at the red line station just before the university which is on a bridge on the river. It was a beautiful sight and we could see the Lusinki stadium just on the opposite bank of the river where the UEFA champions league final is scheduled on the 21st of May (my entire onsite allowance will not get me a ticket for that match). We walked across the river bank and needless to say took a no. of snaps (Sujith now has a record 1 GB of snaps which has himself in different poses and most of them solo). It was a beautiful sight as most of it was green by now. We had to go up a slope and reach the university area. This was a tourist spot overlooking the whole of Moscow from a height and souvenirs were sold by the road side – most of them having CCCP and the communist symbol marked on it. The university building was beautiful just like most of the buildings out here and Vishwa mentioned that it looks the same from all the 4 directions. The walk from the University to the nearest metro station was quite a bit and on the way we met a couple of Indian students studying astro-physics here. They were Tamilians and were too happy to meet my fellow Tamil teammates. They happily directed us to the metro station and we started our long walk. Red line, brown line and then green – we were back to our hotel. After this tiresome trip (climbing the slope and the long walk), needed a couple of beers to round off a satisfying Saturday.

Now on to Hotel Tsaritsino news – the most significant being that our tour guide Subhashish left for India (We still managed to board the correct metros and did not confuse the lines). The quality and quantity of food that we are having is increasing day by day. We have already broken the record for the maximum no. of pooris consumed in Russia and no one – bachelor or a family person would be having this much variety as we have in our dinner – all thanks to the Poori specialist ‘Poor (i)’na and the ‘belan’ specialist Alan. They are well on their way to having their name in the record books as far as poori making is concerned. The poori concept started due the fact that it takes more time to make a chapatti than a poori and with maida poori is a better bet (As a Bengali luchi fan, I will be the first one to vouch for that). Other members of the cooking team – Vishwa, Sujith and Raj can definitely come back to Russia and start off a dhaba if Infosys imposes any 90-day cooling period restriction on them (You have to stay for the same no. of days in India as you stayed here to be eligible to come back for 90 more days).