Berlin U-bahn

Berlin is a big city and considered to be one of the best cities in Europe in terms of what you can do for fun.

You can come across a lot of people ( really diverse ) just by travelling by one of the umpteen U bahn trains or whatever you can call them . Now , U bahn means underground train .

One can learn a lot about people here by just observing people while you are on one of those trains . For instance, there was this black man or rather a mulatto listening to music and throwing his hands in the air as if he was beating on drums . Was he really enjoying the music he was listening to so much that he was oblivious to people around him or is he one of those show offs who want to get the attention of people ?

At another end , there were young girls ( Can I call them prepubescent? ) whose actions suggested that they were in their mid 20’s . One girl was making a lot of gestures while on the train apparently to one of her friends who was on one of the platforms . She was frantically making some hand gestures and there was this man who looked like he was a paedophile. He was staring at her so blatantly that I wondered if the girl noticed. Don’t get me wrong . I am not saying that he was a paedophile for sure . But , the way he looked at her made me feel that he was one . I was observing this man . Was anyone observing me ? I am not sure but I had like to believe that I am very subtle when it comes to staring at people or rather observing people. Oh then , you have the Turkish boys ( young ones at that ) and some German young girls who don’t think music has to be only heard by them . They think they should make everyone else on the train hear it too . : )

If we like it , so should the others …….

Last but not the least, there are the grumpy old women and men who give you stares that make you think they are racists but in reality they are not .
Strange how you can see a lot in just a ten minutes ride from point A to point B but this is Berlin , a city that most Germans consider to be another country .

In short , all I can say is Dolce Vita

Greece ( May 2009 )

I have been to almost 20 countries . Wait.I am not boasting but of all the countries I have visited in the last two years, I liked Greece the most . I am not talking about the countries I lived in .

Greece is very similar to India . Very similar . Take a look at picture no 3. I am sure I can show you places like that in India .

In Greece in general , people are friendly like us Indians and the situation on the roads can be as chaotic as on the roads in India .

There are many places in Greece that have Indian toilets in public places instead of Western toilets . There was an outbreak of some disease long back in Greece which spread through soiled Western toilet seats and hence the change .

However, in many public places, there are Western toilets without seat covers. How are people supposed to use them ? There are many people who look like Indians there . Must be the sun or something . If you intend to leave a tip for a waiter , make sure you leave the money behind like in India

Greece is one of the European countries where you still have people to fill your petrol tank for you just as it is in India . You can never see this in Germany

Greece depends a lot on tourism and some of its Islands are really cool . I was on Hydra Island during my visit in May . Not the best Island but it is more of an island for families. Technically , no vehicles are allowed and you can ride on donkeys to get from point A to point B or you can walk . And yes, Indians can get tanned too . he he . The water is crystal clear there . Notice the green tinge .

Italy has a lot of similarities with India too but maybe I will post on that later

In fact , I noticed that I get along very well with the Greeks and Italians . My best friends at work are two Greeks …Do all Indians get along with the Greeks and the Italians .I do not know but I think not .

Is God a figment of one's imagination ?

This is a question that has been asked over and over again that it sometimes bores you to death and yet I chose to get back to it .

I am no atheist and I blog often on sites hosted by atheists. Am I religious ? I think I am but my actions do not necessarily confirm that . I am not a regular churchgoer

I question my own religion quite a lot . Christianity that is . Wasn’t religion created to make people better and the world a better place ? Did it ? I do not think it did so overall .

So many atrocities have been committed in the name of religion . Christianity , Islam and Hinduism .

I think religion has been misused by narcissists to get to positions of power and there were many people who were dumb enough to fall for their machinations.

Haven’t you thought how powerful religion can be when people who have no proof that God exists go to great lengths to do anything to please this God ?

Does God exist ? I have no solid proof yet I have faith and one cannot prove belief. I believe because there are so many unexplained answers and because of personal experiences. Were these experiences just coincidence or were they indeed from God?
Many atheists tell me that science has almost all the answers. Almost is not all and not only that , we have not been able to create life yet . I do not mean primitive forms of bacteria or viruses that were supposedly created ( no real proof for that too ) .I mean beings like us . Of course, they have an excuse that they need more time . Take all the time you need. Yet, I am not sure they will get there.

I am not quoting the theory of intelligent design to support the notion that God exists.

At this point in time , I have my questions .

Why would God show special interest in only some people or at least why does it seem that he does ? Why does not God heal amputees anymore ? Why are children born with AIDS for no fault of theirs ?

All this does make me think and I am no mainstream Christian . I could even be deemed a heretic by Christian fundamentalists. That is not the point. The point of this post was to make you think and come up with answers if you have any .

Who is a racist?

This is a question that always comes to my mind .

If a waiter who waits on me does not serve me the way I would expect him to serve me , do I brand him a racist ? He happens to be in a white dominated country and I am not white . He happens to be white . Is he a racist ? Well , I could assume he was one but I am not sure he is one . If a police officer at the airport stops me and only people of colour like me in EU zones when I am flying from one European Union country ( Schengen ) to another Schengen country , and he or she does so to check if we are illegal immigrants when technically , there is no passport control , then hell yeah , this police office is racist or at least thinks people of colour are not as good as white people . Yet, when you highlight racism issues to some people including people of colour , they say that you are only trying to play the victim and what you have experienced is not racism but it is just a figment of your own imagination . That is what I call baloney . I think the people who accuse people of colour of raising false racism issues when they really have a point are either contributing indirectly to the cause of racists or are dumb ..I am being nice by stopping at dumb.

I mean if a guy came over to me and said, say that German waiter over there is racist because he served me late or did not say thank you , I would ask him to think again . Of course, he would be better off not going to that restaurant again because either way he stands only to gain . He can avoid poor service and he can also avoid probably being confronted by a real racist. But , if a guy says that he was harassed by the Police based on his colour and when it is clear given what he says , to brand this person as delusional is childish . Don’t get me wrong . I am not branding all white people racist . They are simply not . I have some very good friends who happen to be white but I have noticed a lot of racism is rampant in the developed world . Yet , when I do bring this up to a few whites, they get all defensive and some even get aggressive . Not all whites think stupidly though. They forget that all that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing .

Why is racism so rampant ? Is it a fear of the unknown ? Is it because they want to believe that people of colour cannot be better than them ? Or is it because they have a problem with their genes ?

I think in the developed world , if you happen to be too nice to people for instance at work , you are thought to be weak . Strange isn’t it ? Well , people here assume that if you are too nice , you are trying to cover up some of your disabilities. Twisted concept to say the least.

It also has to do with the inferiority complex of many people of colour . When they go abroad or they are with some white people , they try to do everything in the world to be like the white man or to please the white man .

Before I conclude with this post for the day , I want to say that I meant no offense but I know that I am not far from the truth . Am I an exceptional person of colour who has my own identity ? Am I a role model ? That is not for me to say . Can we combat racism ? Maybe, to an extent yes. You can either leave the country where racism is rampant or you can have your own identity and put a check on racism in places like say your work place by being assertive and by also giving the impression that you will not take shit .

Last but not the least, some of you who might come across this post of mine may say ,if I think racism is rampant in the country where I am , why am I here . Well , I was born in a foreign country and raised there. I have been to almost 20 countries . I like the international experience. I am not in love with the country that is my adopted home for now . I am just here to make money . This can never be my home . My home will always be the country which issued me a passport