Day 5 to 15 – Swimming

So, I finally learnt how to swim. I don’t sink like a ship that has hit an iceberg any more when thrown into a pool; nor do I flail around screaming like I’m dying. Now that I have learnt how to swim, I can only wonder how it did not occur to me to learn earlier. Love the water. Learnt the butterfly stroke. Can float on my back forever, but not very confident of my backstroke as yet. When I am floating on my back, I am simply unable to just turn around and start swimming. That’s something I need to work on.

Really enjoyed my vacation at Goa, thanks to my newly acquired skill set. Kept plate of mashed potatoes at one end of the pool. Swam to and fro, ate mashed potatoes, played ‘let’s see how long we can hold our breath’ games with friends, lounged on the beach and generally had a blast. Yay to learning how to swim! One more item off the bucket list.

 

 

 

 

Free lunch, etc.

I read this somewhere a while back: ‘A group of Sikhs stopped our bus in the middle of the highway to offer everyone chilled roohafza. Unparalleled hospitality, only in Punjab.’

Very nice and all that, but if I had been travelling on a bus and someone waylaid the bus to offer me roohafza, I would be paranoid to no small extent. I would suspect they were dacoits and had laced the drink with sleeping pills to rob us. Perhaps I am overly cynical by nature, but I find it strange to think someone I don’t know would be generous without meaning any harm to me or wanting something in return. Wonder if it is just me or skepticism that I share with my generation.

Day 4 – Swimming

It felt like I’d forgotten how to stay afloat in the last one week. Fell like a sack of potatoes to the floor. It’s always the nerves, isn’t it. In a bit though, with the help of the float board, was paddling around again.

Coach gave us the noodle floats and the old gentleman with a zen smile coaxed me to abandon my float board and paddle around with the noodle float tucked under my arms. It was not so bad actually, except that when I ran out of breath and tried to stand up, my hands went all awry and I keeled. Zen gentleman made me do it thrice till I learnt how to stand up straight when I stopped, instead of flailing around in panic.

My only problem remains that no matter how much I kick, splash and move my ankles around, I just don’t move. Coach said I should do the leg movements for this class, till I get it right. Shallow kicks. Loose ankle. Don’t bend knees. And yet, I don’t move.

It’s really disappointing to surface and see that you’ve hardly moved a few inches from the wall, when in your head you were imagining you must have covered one-thirds of the pool. It shall take time I guess. Patience is there.

Day 3 – Swimming

I missed it. I missed Day 3 of swimming on Tuesday. And just as my luck would have it, the pool was closed for maintenance on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Hope I still remember how to breathe on Monday.

Meanwhile, this.

Spiga, Bangalore

Being back in Bangalore has been altogether, a strange experience for me. Having lived in another part of Bangalore before and then having lived elsewhere for a whole five years, I now feel like I am back home, but living in a whole different city. Now living in central Bangalore, I am hearing of a great many places that my peers seem familiar with, but I have no clue about.

I have heard many a foodie rave about the old Spiga. The new Spiga though, elicited a lukewarm response from fans of the old Spiga and good reviews from some. Last night, the firm hosted a girls night out at Spiga, on the occasion of Women’s day, and I got to see for myself.

Conveniently located above Giovani on St. Marks Road, Spiga has a medditeranean feel going for it. Comfortable seating, very dim candle light, the cool breeze and the moonlight spilling over every smooth surface on the terrace, ups the romance quotient of the place.

Drinks were ordered – a variety of martinis, of course. The Thai martini, with lemon grass was quite spicy and tangy all the same. Though it tasted very interesting, it was too strong a taste and A could not have more than a few sips of it. While the peach martinis and strawberry martinis were nothing to boast about, the vodka chocotini ordered by V and me, got much love from the ladies. A thick concoction of vodka and
chocolate, with a topping of white chocolate shavings, it got better and thicker towards the bottom.

Of the vegetarian starters, H and I were quite excited about the spicy onion and corn hummus with pita bread, but it was a major let down. The hummus had no taste and the pita bread was chewy, at the best. A paneer tikka-like starter (I forget what it is called) suggested by the maitre d’ was really good, though.

The other D, had waxed eloquent about the non-cheesy pasta alfredo at Spiga. As long as it consists of white sauce and has mushrooms, I am a big fan. I really liked the pasta alfredo. The mushrooms were just right, the white sauce was light and delightful and the sundried tomatoes were poached from my plate.

For desserts, we ordered a blueberry cheesecake, an oreo cheesecake and a chocolate fudge cake. The oreo cheesecake found many fans, the blueberry cheesecake was monopolised by me and the chocolate fudge cake was uniformly neglected, in the ensuing grab-your-spoons-and-get-to-the-plate race. We called for a second round of the oreo cheesecake and the blueberry cheesecake. Enough said.

On the whole, it was really enjoyable evening out with the girls, at a beautiful place. I am loving Spiga and I am definitely going there again.

Day 2 – Swimming

None of the sports shops around MG Road sells swimming caps. Did you know that? And all of them only sell this one red high-leg speedo swimsuit that could only be worn by Pamela Anderson in Baywatch. Is it because no one swims in this city? That cannot be. There are infinite clubs and that many pools. Perhaps only people who already have swimsuits venture into these pools. Whatever it is, this lack of swimsuits and particularly, swimming caps is not very conducive for beginners.

Today started off with pushing off from the wall and trying to stay afloat, while breathing underwater. Managed somehow. Was breathing underwater, eyes were open and was not drowning. Small joys.

Then those floating boards were handed out. I have always been wary of these boards. I have always been under the impression that if one were to rely upon them and swim, one’s weight would submerge the board and one would drown along with the board. Turns out that is true after all. And turns out, you should not put your weight completely on the board. It is only like a guiding hand – just something there to make you believe you have something stable to hold on to. First was holding the base of the board and pushing self off the wall of the pool. Small kicks on the surface of the water, with the ankle propelled one forward. I was so surprised that I was semi-swimming that I forgot to breathe out and breathed in instead. A whole lot of pool water rushed up my head, but I was grinning when I surfaced. I semi-swimmed again and again and again. And then, the board was taken away from me. I did it without the board this time and was surprised that I could do it! One third of the width of the pool is all I can do though. People were doing half and some with ginormous lung power did the entire length! Coach asked me to practice holding the breath for a little bit and then begin to breathe under water, when semi-swimming. With that, I managed near half the width of the pool.

Then was swimming with boards, with your head above the water. This time, holding the top of the board and resting elbow at the near bottom of the board. That just did not happen for me.

The freestyle hand motions were taught to the rest while another and I were asked to stick to the kicking for today.

I am happy! Finally, I am able to lift feet off the ground and suspend self on water, without support of hard surface and more importantly, without panicking. Yay. 🙂

Day 1 – Swimming

Hold on to the wall. Gasp. Dunk head. Breathe through the nose. Bubbles blind me as I bend my head to look at my stomach, so that my legs will lift up and I will be floating straight. Except, my legs refuse to lift up.

Step away from the wall. Do the breathing routine. Float towards the wall. Do not hold on to the wall. Except, I can’t wait to feel the wall. I don’t mind placing just my fingertips on the wall and doing the routine. As long as I know the wall is there.

Stand against wall. Push off from the wall. Hands straight, against the ears. It is a matter of seconds before I panic, bend my knees to my stomach and stretch my legs, placing my feet firmly on the bottom of the pool.

First day of swimming class. Adult beginners only. Only person who didn’t have the brains to get one of those caps. Coach lent me hers. That round thing in the pool making a fool of itself. Hi, can you teach me how to swim?

This. And that.

Never ending bottle of Nutella. Perfectly brewed coffee every morning. Your bike on a road like an infinity loop around the world. Sunday morning. Slight lift of the skirt in the wind. Smokey dreams. Hope makes the world go around.

Taste of steel when you have licked all the chocolate off the spoon. Bottom of the mug when you are done drinking the Bailey’s coffee. End of the highway, when the mud road takes over. Going to sleep on Sunday night and waking up to the beeping Blackberry on Monday morning. Love handles. The last cigarette in the pack. Good things don’t last forever.

Scarlet letters

I love reviewing documents in track mode. The more the red changes I get to make, the more giddy I get with happiness. It is a sense of power, quite like what my second standard class teacher had over my home work notebook.

Chouchouchouch.

I had a whole pear this afternoon after real long. My teeth feel like they have rearranged themselves and are settling down in their new houses. If you have ever had to wear braces, you will know what I mean.