Banksy versus the Bristol Museum

Wiki Intro: Banksy is a pseudo-anonymous English graffiti artist. He is believed to be a native of Yate, South Gloucestershire, near Bristol and to have been born in 1974, but there is substantial public uncertainty about his identity and personal and biographical details. According to Tristan Manco, Banksy "was born in 1974 and raised in Bristol, England. The son of a photocopier technician, he trained as a butcher but became involved in graffiti during the great Bristol aerosol boom of the late 1980s." His artworks are often satirical pieces of art on topics such as politics, culture, and ethics. His street art, which combines graffiti writing with a distinctive stencilling technique, is similar to Blek le Rat, who began to work with stencils in 1981 in Paris and members of the anarcho-punk band Crass who maintained a graffiti stencil campaign on the London Tube System in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His art has appeared in cities around the world. Banksy's work was born out of the Bristol underground scene which involved collaborations between artists and musicians.
Banksy does not sell photos of street graffiti or mount exhibitions of screenprints in commercial galleries. Art auctioneers have been known to attempt to sell his street art on location and leave the problem of its removal in the hands of the winning bidder.

Banksy versus Bristol Museum
June-13 to August-31 2009
Bristol Museum,
Queen's Road, Bristol

Open Daily 10AM to 5PM
Free Entry

Watch Trailer:

Group reservations @ Absolut Ice-Bar

Dear Andy,

Thank you for your interest in our venue.

Please call us if you wish to make a booking. Reservation lines are open seven days a week; we are currently taking bookings up to 28 days in advance, reservations for July 04th will open on June 06th.

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The belowzero Wolf bar is open daily from 12:30pm, 3:30 on Sundays and Mondays. The belowzero Moose dining room + Reindeer Lounge are open Tuesday to Saturday from 5:45pm for dinner and drinks. ABSOLUT ICEBAR LONDON is open from 3:30pm Sunday to Friday and 12:30pm Saturdays. A new timeslot in ABSOLUT ICEBAR starts every 45 minutes. The latest slot during the week is 11pm, on Thursdays, 11.45pm and Friday and Saturdays 12.30 am and on a Sunday 10:15pm. Each timeslot runs for 40 minutes.

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Within You Without You

We were talking - about the space between us all
And the people - who hide themselves behind a wall of illusion
Never glimpse the truth - then it's far too late - when they pass away

We were talking - about the love we all could share - when we find it
To try our best to hold it there - with our love.
With our love - We could save the world - if they only knew...
Try to realise it's all within yourself, no one else can make you change

And to see you're really only very small
and life flows on within you and without you

We were talking - about the love that's gone so cold and the people,
Who gain the world and lose their soul.
They don't know. They can't see. Are you one of them?
When you see beyond yourself then you may find,
peace of mind, is waiting there

And the time will come when you see we're all one,
and life flows on within you and without you

Giving has never been more convenient

Not so long ago, it was a commonplace to come by excuses like - "Oh, donations are not transparent. You never know where your money goes", "I want to give, but I'm just too busy to spend the time and put in the effort" etc. A powerful synergy of technology and an innovative business model gives a straight forward solution - a seamless, integrated, transparent, easy-to-use, global philanthropic tool.


Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world. The way it works is simple:
1. You give money to a NGO anywhere in the world
2. NGO collects the money from you and others who loaned
3. NGO gives all the money to the local poor entrepreneur who needs it
4. Entrepreneur makes the investment and repays the loan to local NGO
5. Local NGO repays the loan back to you - you may withdraw or re-invest the money back to another entrepreneur!
All you do is actually login to a website, choose an entrepreneur, make the loan and carry on with your life - can it get simpler?!!


One of my friend had mentioned -

Kiva is creating an impact. This week alone Kiva lent out nearly $800,000, and 7000 more people started lending. The default rate is 2.85 percent and the delinquency rate is 2.21 percent. Incredible. I looked at some interesting benchmarks. The average Kiva lender has lent $134 to date and received $75 back through 3.6 loans. This isn't the total amount lent out. It includes all the loans through money that was recycled. $59 is still in the system and in June there are 400,000 lenders, which means Kiva has $24MM in the system right now. One billionnaire could increase that amount 50 times. Even at a 2-3 percent delinquency rate, that is a 25 percent better return than the Nasdaq. The personal social return is priceless.

Now that makes not just personal satisfaction, but even a rational business sense!


Kiva was founded by Harvard and Stanford graduates and the management & administration team cannot be more qualified or experienced - this is a sharp contrast to most NGOs I've come across. Social Entrepreneurship, Community Service organizations, SHGs, NGOs are professional business organizations and have to be run with a discipline of any business organization. It took a Kiva to make the world understand this. In short, if you are not pretty damn good enough, you just cannot be a part of a community initiative no matter how noble your thoughts are. Kiva is here to make a difference to this world and has people who actually can do that, not just anybody. Kiva is supported by most of the Fortune 100 companies of the likes of Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Paypal, Intel and even companies that touch your everyday lives like Starbucks, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube etc.

Giving cannot get simpler or more transparent. Visit Kiva by clicking on any of the Kiva banners on this post and I bet you will spend at least half hour just WOWing at the numerous things you can do with Kiva - from lending to volunteering. Anything you do with Kiva has a measurable impact. Visit my Kiva lender page to know what impact I made, how much, when and where - everything!

Angel in the Night

You are my light in the dark
You are the beating in my heart
But that is not enough
Will I ever be by your side

Your hair is dancing in the wind
Your eyes are burning off my skin
And I'm so happy when I see
That you are smiling back at me

You're living burn marks on the ground
Thank you God for what I've found
I don't know how, I don't know why
That you're my angel in the night

You are my light in the dark
You are the beating in my heart
Let me hold you now
Just like days before you start to cry

You are my light in the dark
You are the beating in my heart
But that is not enough
Will I ever be by your side

I try my best to satisfy
But all you do is where we make it right
I don't know what I'm gonna do
But I'm so crazy about you

Even if I don't know where to start
Even if my love is tearing me apart
I just know that you and me
We were always meant to be

You are my light in the dark
You are the beating in my heart
Let me hold you now
Just like days before you stopped to cry

You are my light in the dark
You are the beating in my heart
But that is not enough
Will I ever be by your side

You're my angel in the night

NewYear 2009 - Indonesia!

NewYear is like a birthday for planet earth. Talking of birthdays, I never gave a damn about them ever - at least not for my birthdays. I've always wondered why, to some (especially girls that I know) it is a huge deal - the cake, the gifts, the party, the surprise of a birthday. To me it is just another day, a reminder that you are getting old.

-----> Sunset in Kuta Beach

Going by that ideology, the new year day (earth's 2009th birthday) should have been just another day to me. This time around, it felt different. It felt like a day to reflect on the past year, look forward to the year ahead and reason out to myself what is it I'm going to do differently to make this a year of progression overall.

-----> Balinese SunSet

It is my family tradition to spend the 31st night on sharing each other's New Year resolutions. Those days when I used to cuddle around with my parents and sister, trying to propose my own resolution as if I'm an adult are a distant memory now. Thanks to boarding school and a job that takes me around all corners of the world, it has been years since I spent new year with my family.

-----> Pool Volley Ball @ Hard Rock Hotel

This time around, I made a concious effort to revive that tradition of resolutions for the new year after an honest retrospection of the passing year - which resulted in the following:
* Travel to a new country for every new year!
* Stay more organised at home and work
* Try not to be too lazy
* Eat healthy and work out regularly
* Stay in touch with all my friends and family
Realistic and achievable they are, I'd hope to do some justice to them.

-----> Steep Fall into the Ocean at a South Bali temple

This new year took me to Bali, Indonesia. With this I have technically travelled in 30 countries in my life. The following are those 30 countries from North America, Europe, Middle East and finally Asia.
1. USA
2. Canada
3. UK
4. Rep. of Ireland
5. France
6. The Netherlands
7. Belgium
8. Luxembourg
9. Switzerland
10. Spain
11. Italy & The Vatican
12. Austria
13. Hungary
14. Czech Republic
15. Slovakia
16. Slovenia
17. Croatia
18. Poland
19. Turkey
20. Russia
21. UAE
22. Oman
23. India
24. Malaysia
25. Singapore
26. Thailand
27. Cambodia
28. Laos
29. Myanmar
30. Indonesia

-----> Stroke of the NewYear @ Hard Rock!!

Most to whom I've told about my travels think travel might not be so adventurous as it was the first time I went outside of my country. They can't be more wrong - from India, Britain (where I've spent considerable time of my life) to Myanmar (where I spent a total of 12 hours by accident without visa) I have distinct memories of all those 30 countries, all colourful with a flavour of its own. Indonesia, the country I went recently is no short of things that made me WOW! Following are a few glimpses of this beautiful country:
* 1 USD = 10,400 IDR (Indonesian Rupiah)
* Shopping Malls and High Streets have tons of D&G, Polo and the likes - all FAKE!
* You can buy an Indonesian/International driving license in a day
* You still have to bribe the corrupt traffic police
* Temple domes are called Pagodas
* Hinduism is the major religion of Bali Island
* The girl in a hair salon said, I look like an Indonesian cinema actor [LOL]
* Bintang = Star; Pintu = Door; Selamat Datang = Welcome; Apa Kaba = How're you
* 99% of tourists in Indonesia = Australians + Russians
* I bought 2 ice-creams at Haagen Das for 100,000 (ahem in IDRs)
* You can't go to temples in shorts; if you end up in a temple in shorts you will have to rent an Indonesian batik!!
* Monkeys are common in Indonesian temples

-----> Elephant Safari Park

-----> Elephant Safari Park

-----> Pagodas of Balinese Hindu Temple

-----> Entrance of a Balinese Hindu Temple

-----> Volcano!! [the first one I saw in my life]

-----> Ocean View from Tanah Lot Temple

-----> Ocean View from Tanah Lot Temple

-----> Elephant Safari Park

The Winners Song

I started with nothing
Now I have something
I proved them all they were wrong
So glad I kept fighting
And I never stopped trying
Been waiting to sing for so long
My winners song!

I couldn't carry on
I thought my chance had gone
I was ready to stop and give in
I thought I'd give it one last try
Look this moment in the eye
Then maybe who knows I could win
I dreamed about this for a lifetime
But I could not imagine
What it feels like standing here right now

I started with nothing
Now I have something
I proved them all they were wrong
So glad I kept fighting
And I never stopped trying
Been waiting to sing for so long
My winners song!

This journey's been incredible
Now standing in the light
I hope this last for more than one night
ONE NIGHT

I started with nothing
Now I have something
I proved them all they were wrong
So glad I could find it
And I never stop trying
Been waiting to sing for so long
My winners song

Been waiting to sing for so long
My winners song

Destination Unknown

I've been partying too much of late in Edinburgh and there is a list of songs I keep hearing in the clubs. My favorite of them all is the one below - Destination Unknown :)



My favorite of all the nights are Wednesday nights at Opal Lounge :)) They call it the Chambles and i've been going there for the last 3 weeks straight!





Woohoo, can't wait until tomorrow.. Coz its wednesday night again and I'll be in Opal Lounge again, so its Destination Known known known.. hehe!!

Online Adverts

Google revolutionized online adverts by coming up with a patented relevant-ads algorithm which actually places ads related to what you are actually using the internet for. Google started it and Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo and all the other internet companies followed suit. By now, it’s no more a topic for discussion.



But what is, is the level of insanity of some of these online adverts – I was using facebook today and see the ad that was placed on my profile page :)

Wealth Creation – Time to wake up!

There are only 2 flavors of opinions about Wealth Creation –
Category 1: I am not materialistic; all I want is a simple yet content life, doesn’t get better
Category 2: I want to create wealth, lots of it; life opens up every time I thinks this is it

You must fall in one of the above categories of people. I am opinionated and have to give my thoughts however idiotic they might sound on every thing I lay my hands or mind on. So flows my thoughts on wealth creation..

Category 1 – I’m not materialistic: Excuse for being incompetent and lazy I reckon; it is fuzzy and interchangeable to say – how much more you want AND how much you don’t want. If a person says, I don’t want to create wealth coz I have enough and I’m contented – then how much is enough? There is a fine line between capacity (the lack of it, I mean) and satisfaction; in most cases the former leads to the later. But the good thing is capacity is expansive in nature; the only impediment to this nature of capacity is mere laziness. Summarizing the intentionally philosophical afore-mentioned statements: LAZINESS -> [shrinks] -> CAPACITY -> [leads to] -> SATISFACTION. It provokes anger and shame to find the result of the wonderings about the Category 1 people leads to identifying something as silly as “laziness” being the root cause of making the world’s majority the way they are – over spoken & under achieving.

Category 2 – I want to create wealth: They are normal people according to me; I belong to this category myself. So I can talk about my life instead of giving opinions. At every stage of my life I had dreams. Eventually when I either achieved or got closer to a dream, the dream got bigger and I didn’t achieve it or got farther from my dream -> a pull-push sort of phenomenon; but never have I got complete satisfaction as there is always something out there. I can’t explain better, try and imagine this: Let’s say living a life is to reach out to the circle around us, then you do it only to realize there is a bigger circle behind it, you reach out to the bigger circle, an even bigger circle that makes the previous big circle a small circle – this continues endlessly. I call it the “Life Opening Up” phenomenon. Creating wealth is not bad for those of you who just didn’t get what I said – it is good. In fact it is so good that in the process of creating this wealth, it is almost imperative that 2 great things happen – a) you create value (b) many more people around you create wealth and in turn create value and make even more people create wealth and so on. Fortunately, this is like a chain reaction massively compensating for the thoughtlessness of the Category 1 majority in this planet.

What Category 1 think about Category 2? I don’t know if Category 2 is special, may be to Category 1 people it might seem like it. Some Category 1 people might even think the wealth creators are greedy and bad people, without fun, a happy life and peace of mind. Consolation - for what they could not achieve. Excuse - for not drifting out of their comfort zone of “laziness”.

This is not to show off, but to emphasize my point –
I traveled in over 30 countries
I have a swiss watch, iPhone, Gucci wallet, Prada shades, 2 cars
I enjoyed operas, ballets and concerts around the world
I bank offshore in 5 different currencies
I missed intl flights just because I was having a good time with friends
I donated thousands of dollars on charity
I traveled continents just to meet up with a friend and have a coffee
I have been to many great museums, appreciate world art and music
I am 24 and
I think I have done nothing!

You think I am a show-off, bad and greedy, you could just do so. I don’t care. But what you read are things many people even after retirement could only dream of. Think again! You think it is all worth losing just because of something as silly as “laziness”, I’d say TIME TO WAKE THE HELL UP!

Moscow

I'm randomly posting photos and videos from Russia for quick view - I will edit the post once I go back to London. For now, just take a look at the pictures and videos and enjoy :))

211 Things a bright boy can do

This is one of those books you discover from an old pile of crap on the loft of your childhood home or something. This one though, I found in the middle of dust lined stock of reservoir engineering and geology books in my office. I was convinced it has something to do with predicting hydrocarbon formations with better accuracy – until I opened it!

That and 210 other equally interesting tricks which is quintessential for boys of all ages could be found here. I am not even sure if this Tom Cutler’s (whoever he is) masterpiece could be found on book stores or Amazon – but this is just one of those books you discover.. bla bla bla.. or something; I’m lucky to have found this. Now that I have it, it is only a matter of time I become a bright boy.

Just like all amazing things, this one doesn’t go without a caveat – I checked it on google; so far there are no books by the name “211 Things a bright girl can do that expose the bright boy tricks and make him look like an idiot”. But the girls can always buy a copy of this book and be aware of the tricks; that will spoil everything.

So I strongly warn the boys to keep this clandestine from the girls and earnestly request the girls to forget about this whole post, pretend not to know anything and be genuinely impressed with the boys who put some of these tricks into play. Cheers to all of you who will soon become bright boys – woo hoo :)

On the picture - Vladimir, Margarita, Viktor, Elena. We already had a 211 things party up here - hehe!

Russia – my first time ever!

Woo hoo! I’m going to Moscow on 07-SEP and I’m excited & nervous at the same time. I have read quite a bit about Moscow and St. Petersburg on travel forums – overall I find the people friendly and some have even offered to help me while I’m there. Recent war with Georgia and language problem still makes me nervous. Vladimir, Elena, Viktor, Margarita – they are all close friends & colleagues of mine from Russia. The last week I’ve been partying big time with them and this is what I found:

1. The people in Moscow complain about St. Petersburg and vice versa. Vlad is from Moscow and Margarita is from St. Petersburg and you should see them talk :)
2. Vlad & Elena asked me not to travel long on the Trans-Siberian; Moscow to Vladivostok takes a week and it is not very safe. But I still want to explore a little bit of it.
3. Viktor advised me not to go clubbing alone in Moscow – which I will not. I would be with my friends and other people from training.
4. Tim & Veronika, friends from Hospitality Club advised me to bring jacket, swim suit and umbrella to Russia – I hope the weather is not too cruel in September; but hey, it can’t be worse than Britain hehe!

I’ll have to wait until I reach Russia to really comment on those. But I’m doing my own homework as well – I just received my Amazon order of books on Russia [look at the picture above]. I’m excited and reading all of them here and there.

I’m flying Swiss Air and reach Moscow on Sunday afternoon – I would stay at the Holiday Inn Suschevsky until the 13-SEP where I’ll take a training to be a good manager (LOL) and then my plans are really open. I intend to take a train to St. Petersburg on the 15-SEP and spend a week there and then visit some villages on the Trans Siberian later on before flying back to London.

Visa Tip: For those who want to travel in Russia and needs a visa; please keep in mind that you have to apply at least a month before you intend to travel. The procedure is different and complicated – but simple if you apply on time. You have to apply for a business or tourist visa in Moscow and after processing your application you will receive a Letter of Invitation (LOI) by DHL – this takes 20 working days. Then you take this original LOI and file another application at the Russian embassy in your resident country along with your photo, resident card, insurance policy and a cover letter from the employer – the visa is issued normally on the same day that you apply.

This would be the first of many posts to come on Russia and my experiences there – watch out for this space and wish me good luck in my travels there.

The Great Angkor Wat

I went with a colleague for a holiday in Thailand last year – after a week in Thailand, she had a flight to Melbourne and my flight to London was 4 days later. During our flight from Phuket to Bangkok the in-flight magazine had an article on the great Angkor Wat temple ruins in Seam Reap, Cambodia. It was an experience of a famous French photographer who made as many as 10 trips to Cambodia in the 90’s to take photographs using an infra red camera, of one of the greatest temple ruins on earth. His pictures show-cased on the magazine were breathtaking and the infra-red camera shots resembled the ones I take on Sepia mode of my camera. He used an infra red camera for 2 reasons – a) it completely eliminates the effect of tree leaves that might come in the way (b) taking a picture using a color camera already puts a date to the photo; IR/Sepia pictures suggests something antique. Take a look at some of the Sepia-mode pictures I shot in Cambodian Angkor to know it yourself. On arrival at Bangkok, I saw her off to Australia and took a $40 Bangkok Airways flight to Seam Reap, Cambodia – I had no idea what I was in for!

Hindu God of Creation – Vishnu at the entrance of the Angkor Wat main temple. Angkor Wat is a set of 30 temples (many more unexplored, they say) on the outskirts of Seam Reap – a town on the Northern part of Cambodia. You can buy a 3 day temple visit pass for $40 and a 1 day pass cost you $20. You’d need at least 3 days to explore the Angkor and there are tourists that rent apartments to stay in Seam Reap for longer periods and explore the ruins in leisure.

Angkor Wat – the main temple and its reflection on the pond in the front. There is a strange phenomenon that happens only in this part of the world. The ocean floods the forests surrounding the Angkor during the rainy months and recedes in summer. The locals say that’s how they managed to build these massive stone temples in the middle of nowhere – the stones must have arrived on boats when the forests flood.

The Face temple – the faces represent king Jeyavarman whose face meant terror to the enemies. This temple was actually scary in broad day light!


There are lots of eerie trees all around Angkor and for tree watchers this place is a paradise. Observe the ones above, where the trees and the temple form a single formation.

Cat Temple – of course that is not its name; but the shape of the series of temples resembles a cat sitting down.

Stone rubbles are a common scene in this age old temple ruins. Some are really worth taking a close look at. The greenish tinge on the black rocks on a green background makes a good contrast and is pleasing to the eyes.



Kids kids kids – you will find them all around the temples and in Seam Reap town. Most bug tourists for money selling T-shirts, bronze figurines etc. Some like in the pictures above just play, swim, fish, randomly walk and enjoy their childhood in one of the most stunning works of the yesteryears. Angkor – I’d say is the mother of all hindu temples in the world.

There is plenty of opportunities for tourists to do community work in Seam Reap. When you still have time and energy after exploring the Angkor, you can consider visiting the following –
* Artisans D’angkor is an French organization that encourages and helps talented Angkor sculptors to continue the khmer art & tradition - http://www.artisansdangkor.com/
* The National Museum has been renovated and looks great
* There is a famous landmine museum [Cambodia has a deep landmine history – google to know more]
* Every night performances of Apsara [heavenly dance girl/charmer] dancers in Seam Reap restaurants
* Floating forests – definitely a must-see; you can even canoe in the thick forests [mind your head - take care there could be a branch or a root right in the front]
* Hiking Spots with plenty of waterfalls with stone sculpture ruins
* Army Shooting range – you could try AK-47, Mortar bombs, Pistols and other artillery that you fancy for dirt cheap price!

Sun & Sand – Shengoop

Middle East indeed has quite a lot of either and more – a unique culture. During the times that I’ve never traveled to that part of the world, I had a very different impression of the Arab world – mostly from travel channel shows of Morocco and Egypt. The problem with those shows is they are taken in Morocco & Egypt and they cover mostly tourist places which are not many and definitely not mainstream.

So visiting the Middle East was easily a culture shock to me and it took quite a bit to understand a lot of things there. Few other things still remain a mystery. On the above picture is Shengoop, me and Ali Mussalem in Oman that is trying to mobilize a Schlumberger unit for a job on a land rig involving secondary high explosives to perforate the oil well. Shengoop meaning “crap” is the nickname for Seif – I wouldn’t be surprised coz on our drive from Fahud to Sahmah, Shengoop was narrating his experience of getting lost in the sands and ending up over a border police check-post in Saudi Arabia with radio-active sources, which was originally sent to a rig in Oman – hehe!

Frequent break of journeys to sit around in a circle and enjoy the sunset with frequent shots of Omani coffee & fresh-picked home dates is commonplace in this country. Business and people in Oman is pretty laid back – fair enough for an oil rich country with population less than most metropolitan cities in the world. Observe the Oman Chips carton (I kind of have a thing for this chips, very different in taste & flavor), 1.4 D Explosives placard (the 1.4 D is a universal explosives classification code – in this case referring to a Secondary High Explosives, which are the most deadly of all) and the nothingness of the background! The desert in Oman is not like the usual ones with sand dunes you would imagine (though Oman does have some places with dunes) – they are mostly granular sands and rock formations.

That is Shengoop at a closer angle – it was fun working with him during that job; he just lost the key for the pick-up truck during that job – but hey, at least we didn’t end up in Saudi Arabia :-)

Back in the Petrogas camp in Sahmah, we got to stand-by for a day before they wanted Schlumberger crew in the rig. I stole (really) a bike from the camp and was so excited to ride it on the camp corridors.

And ended up like this…!