For CiL
Vinay
Can you please tell me a little bit about the food scene in Chennai. The
best dosas, the best thalis etc. I hear there is also some place where you
eat and pay what you feel like (you pay what you think the food is worth).
Run by some religious institution. Food is supposed to be great.
Vinay
Salil
One North Indian place you might enjoy there, if you like kebabs in
particular - Bukhara at Clarke Quay - excellent restaurant (if you go
there for the lunch buffet - the spread is amazing).
Salil
And yes, my parents live in Singapore. I'm a college student in the US
right now - will be headed back there for the summer holidays in about
6-7 weeks though.
CiL
its called Annalakshmi. And I am afraid, I cant say much abt the food
scene here, as I wrote earlier, not much of a foodie and very rarely go out
to eat. just prefer to get laid n watch cricket.
Vinay
"CiL" <cricke...@rediffmail.com> wrote in message
news:14j8vhx05vxhy.1dlf9k1gdhfag$.dlg@40tude.net...
>> Vinay
> its called Annalakshmi. And I am afraid, I cant say much abt the food
> scene here, as I wrote earlier, not much of a foodie and very rarely go
> out
> to eat. just prefer to get laid n watch cricket.
But Cil, whats up with the Chennai traffic dude? I mean all my conceptions
of very civilized south Indian culture were destroyed when I saw that. Folks
driving like mad max, and swearing at pedestrians etc. Frankly, I thought it
was even worse than Delhi. My taxiwallah nearly sent two aged folks to their
maker, and then to my horror cursed them. He continued this all day, and
other taxiwallahs exchanged pleasantried with him throughout the day.
My earliest recollection of South Indian culture was quite different - when
I was a kid, we went south, and in the train there was a big argument
between two groups of people who had been accidentally booked into the same
seats. There were loud voices used etc. But when my old grandmother walked
through the aisle, one of the ringleaders said "old lady is coming" and they
all respectfully kept quiet till she was gone. This impressed the heck out
of me. I thought to myself "man these guys are civilized." But these chennai
desperadoes changed my mind.
Vinay
Vinay
tuol...@yahoo.com
Aditya Basrur wrote:
> "CiL" <cricke...@rediffmail.com> wrote in message
> news:14j8vhx05vxhy.1dlf9k1gdhfag$.dlg@40tude.net...
> > not much of a foodie and very rarely go out
> > n watch cricket.
I didnt know that CiL was a Lara Datta fan.
>
> Typos corrected.
>
> Aditya
CiL
> But Cil, whats up with the Chennai traffic dude? I mean all my conceptions
> of very civilized south Indian culture were destroyed when I saw that. Folks
> driving like mad max, and swearing at pedestrians etc. Frankly, I thought it
> was even worse than Delhi. My taxiwallah nearly sent two aged folks to their
> maker, and then to my horror cursed them. He continued this all day, and
> other taxiwallahs exchanged pleasantried with him throughout the day.
>
> My earliest recollection of South Indian culture was quite different - when
> I was a kid, we went south, and in the train there was a big argument
> between two groups of people who had been accidentally booked into the same
> seats. There were loud voices used etc. But when my old grandmother walked
> through the aisle, one of the ringleaders said "old lady is coming" and they
> all respectfully kept quiet till she was gone. This impressed the heck out
> of me. I thought to myself "man these guys are civilized." But these chennai
> desperadoes changed my mind.
It will be proper if I let Arjun Pandit, the student of chennai culture to
answer this query.
Gafoor
I have heard that he has had to drop out of the course, because
of a lack of subject matter to study.
Southpaw
I lived in Chennai all my life. The worst traffic I ever saw was in
Bangalore. I used to go to BLR quite often actually. Before I left,
everyone in Madras used to ask me to be careful of the traffic there.
(Even though I was traveling solely by walk/auto, not driving myself or
anything!) I still have nightmares about the light turning green on
Kempegowda Rd (a one-way street), and a gush of automobiles thundering
down.
Even Brigade Rd./MG Rd. I thought it was laughable that these places
were so popular for nightlife. It was like a marsh-pit at a No Doubt
concert, only thing there were not only people, but
cars/bikes/scooters/autos also in the marsh-pit.
In Chennai of course, I used to drive.
Most people I know will actually gladly travel by auto in BLR. Compared
to the thieves in Madras, the auto-drivers in BLR are dirt cheap. We
have great respect for them. They are much more polite than in Chennai,
their autos are worse (there used to be many old front-engine autos in
BLR, struggling up the hills, but none in Chennai, where there aren't
any hills), and they have to deal with much worse traffic. *Yet* they
charge much less than the Chennai auto drivers: less by a factor of 3
or 4 in fact.
-Samarth.
>
> Vinay
> Vinay
Gafoor
> Most people I know will actually gladly travel by auto in BLR.
> Compared to the thieves in Madras, the auto-drivers in BLR are dirt
> cheap.
Have you tried auto-rickshaws in Bombay?
Southpaw
Gafoor wrote:
> Southpaw wrote:
> > Most people I know will actually gladly travel by auto in BLR.
> > Compared to the thieves in Madras, the auto-drivers in BLR are dirt
> > cheap.
>
> Have you tried auto-rickshaws in Bombay?
Yes, but rarely. Mostly I would travel by relatives' car, BEST (useless
compared to Chennai bus service), or suburban trains (Chennai trains
are empty by comparison - rush hour is a joke... train not even half
full).
-Samarth.
Gafoor
> Gafoor wrote:
>> Southpaw wrote:
>>> Most people I know will actually gladly travel by auto in BLR.
>>> Compared to the thieves in Madras, the auto-drivers in BLR are dirt
>>> cheap.
>>
>> Have you tried auto-rickshaws in Bombay?
>
> Yes, but rarely. Mostly I would travel by relatives' car, BEST
> (useless compared to Chennai bus service), or suburban trains
> (Chennai trains are empty by comparison - rush hour is a joke...
> train not even half full).
Have travelled in rickshaws in Bombay, Delhi & Bangalore.
The Bombay rickshaw experience is so much better than
the other two that it's not even worth comparing. The only
bad thing is that 1/2 the city isn't covered by rickshaws.
Southpaw
Chennai rickshaws are worst. That is well known. When I go from US to
India, most everyday items seem cheap. The only cost that you feel is
really pinching, even when you earn in USD, is Chennai rickshaw. And
that too after all that haggling. The metered rates are exorbitant
compared to Bangalore or Ahmedabad (where also I traveled a lot by
rickshaw). Yet nobody respects the meter. The driver will just ask you
some random amount that comes into his head. After lots of haggling,
the best you can hope for is that he will settle on some amount that is
a *function* of the metered price. E.g., meter + 10 or meter + 15. You
have no hope of paying somewhere around the metered price. Add to that
trouble for finding rickshaws for short distances, meter-rigging, etc.
-Samarth.
yeskay
I don't think they ever turn the meters on. It's always some fixed
price that they set magically. I used the pre-paid taxi in the Airport
and I was somewhat sure of what I would pay. Plus, they are satans
driving on the road. The worst I have experienced. With the medians on
most roads, they would invariably use the wrong side of the road to
get to their destination.
If you are ever in B'lore, you should use CITY TAXIs. Even they are
metered, and slightly costlier than autos, but still affordable than
Chennai autos. Plus, the ride is definitely smoother. The only problem
is you have to call them before getting on them.
Take it easy
news:1112040059.9...@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com:
>
> Gafoor wrote:
>> Southpaw wrote:
>> > Gafoor wrote:
>> >> Southpaw wrote:
>> >>> Most people I know will actually gladly travel by auto in
>> >>> BLR. Compared to the thieves in Madras, the auto-drivers in
>> >>> BLR are dirt cheap.
>> >>
>> >> Have you tried auto-rickshaws in Bombay?
>> >
>> > Yes, but rarely. Mostly I would travel by relatives' car, BEST
>> > (useless compared to Chennai bus service), or suburban trains
>> > (Chennai trains are empty by comparison - rush hour is a
>> > joke... train not even half full).
>>
>>
>> Have travelled in rickshaws in Bombay, Delhi & Bangalore.
>> The Bombay rickshaw experience is so much better than
>> the other two that it's not even worth comparing. The only bad
>> thing is that 1/2 the city isn't covered by rickshaws.
>
> Chennai rickshaws are worst. That is well known. When I go from US
> to India, most everyday items seem cheap. The only cost that you
> feel is really pinching, even when you earn in USD, is Chennai
> rickshaw. And that too after all that haggling. The metered rates
You have to qualify what "metered" means. Officially it is say 3.50
Rs per km (7 for the first two km), it is for the untampered meter,
which is very hard to find in any auto. The guy will agree for meter
+ something, but for 6 km, the meter will read something like 55 Rs
as against 21 Rs as it should. Then 15 Rs over it will be 70 Rs. It
is outright robbery. And you never know how worse it is tampered and
hence people used to agree for fixed amount like 60 Rs for the above
eg. If they agree for meter + 15, they might end up paying 80 Rs.
> are exorbitant compared to Bangalore or Ahmedabad (where also I
> traveled a lot by rickshaw).
I once traveled in Hyderabad. I was shocked when the autowalla was
trying to search for 50 paise or so to return to me (the meter was
around 14.xx Rs). When I said keep the change, he was a bit confused.
> Yet nobody respects the meter.
Actually people started avoiding meter because it was tampered beyond
belief. Many times between the same two endpoints, the meter will
show quite different charges. Now people were comfortable fixing the
amount in advance (for an average tampered meter) and get rid of one
worry in their mind while travelling (of course they keep praying for
their lives).
Initially the autowallas firmly resisted electronic meters since they
cannot be tampered (or atleast not easy). Nowadays I see electronic
meters but they don't agree to use it I think.
> The driver will just ask you some random amount that comes into his
> head. After lots of haggling, the best you can hope for is that he
> will settle on some amount that is a *function* of the metered
> price. E.g., meter + 10 or meter + 15. You have no hope of paying
> somewhere around the metered price. Add to that trouble for
> finding rickshaws for short distances, meter-rigging, etc.
And long distance too. If it is quite far, they will ask for double
the charge saying they have to come back empty !!!! Apart from
dangerous driving, auto travel is the most uncomfortable in the world
I might say. Even bullock carts might be better since they go in
lesser speed. Autos travel over the potholes, bad roads (lot in
chennai), at the same speed. They zig zag like anything putting so
much sideways movement, you have to keep holding carefully. It is no
way a comfortable ride.
I liked the call taxis very much. One thing is you pay what you have
to pay. No haggling, no cheating. Decent drivers, helpful with the
luggage etc. Much comfortable than autos, less dangerous. It is a bit
pricy for shorted distance for everybody, but for medium to long
distance it is even cheaper (and more so if 4/5 have to travel).
Another problem is peak hour response. Longer waits. And if you don't
have cell, it is difficult to get a call taxi on road.
Takeiteasy.
> -Samarth.
Southpaw
Agreed fully. I cannot remember the last time I paid an autowalla Rs.
14.xx in Madras. Only in BLR have I bothered looking for a 5-rupee note
for an autowalla. In Chennai, for short distances that fetch the
autowalla less than Rs. 30, he will refuse to take you.
-Samarth.
Jayen
yeskay wrote:
<snip>
>
>
> If you are ever in B'lore, you should use CITY TAXIs. Even they are
> metered, and slightly costlier than autos, but still affordable than
> Chennai autos. Plus, the ride is definitely smoother. The only
problem
> is you have to call them before getting on them.
Strangely enough, Chennai taxis are better than the Bangalore ones. The
way the situation is reversed is actually funny.
Chennai cabs are battered ambassadors (similar in quality to Bangalore
front-engine autos), but (in general) they stick to the rate amd are
polite. The Bangalore guys, in my experience, are thugs. They crib, try
their best to convert the meter rate to a 2-hour-200-rupee fixed cost
(even if the meter rate is likely to be less) and in general show a
blatant disregard for the meter. Unlike the generally civil residents
of the city, they are frequently rude.
Chennai autos are nowadays operating at about Rs. 7/km (non-metered)
and taxis at Rs. 9/km. One more price increase for autos and the price
would be level with taxis. That's when the demand for autos would crash
and we would see a change. Let's see :-).
Regards,
Jayen