I *heart* Bombay (and well..Boston)

I'm urban..in the way other people are mountain-people or tunafish junkies. I love city life...something about dreary concrete blocks and grumpy people totally gets my juices flowing. Ergo, this will be a blog about me, my two favourite cities (Bombay and Boston), my addiction to Vietnamese coffee and my views on Gregorian chant and it's efficacy in curing some types of tympannic membrane rupture. Enjoy!

Sunday, December 11, 2005

What I did this weekend...and other musings.


This was a fun weekend! It's been a long time since I've actually had an almost completely positive time...and that includes the insane amounts of sleep I've managed to catch up on. I must be seriously sleep deprived to be able to snore away like I have this weekend. I think it's because the weather has gotten nice and chilly (Bombay style..i.e. about 28C) over the last few days and snuggling up in a quilt with my favourite book du jour (I'm devouring each and every one of the "Adventures of the Five Find Outers and Dog" by Enid Blyton. Am I regressing to Vikster: Age 6?)

On a side note, I'm horrified that I think Pip from that series sounds hot. Hot like a British Public School boy who's being naughty...There must be a special place in hell reserved for people like me..people who find teenage boys in Enid Blyton books hot.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand (Jeez! I'm so easily distracted..what was that? Blueberry Cheesecake? - edit: Colleague was eating some at next table).

So on Saturday I had a party to go to..hosted very kindly by Guppie with the sole purpose of
1. Having fun
2. Meeting new, interesting, intelligent gay men
3. Getting us all laid.
While I realize that three points don't quite make it a "sole" purpose, I suppose I could combine them into one (Edit: Having fun getting laid by new, interesting, intelligent people). It was a "Come and bring a friend" type party so we could expand our "little black books" just that many more entries. So the party was at around 10 pm., but at about 8, Meenu calls me over to Zenzi for dinner with a bunch of people who I'd never met. And me being the sucker for not being alone at home on a Saturday night, and since I was already dressed up (at 8 for a 10 pm party..yes! My life is just that tragic), I went along.

And had a blast! They have the best tuna sashimi at Zenzi. What a pity it's an appetizer and not a main course (then again, with the prices there, I can only afford the odd appetizer..unless I depend upon the kindness of strangers). The conversation was fun, the compliments flew fast, furious and (runs out of alliterative F word). And my new facial hair was much approved by all. Well, the women seemed to like it (as did one guy...who "recognized me from my blog"..WHOA!). I didn't want to leave, but the promise of 20 hot men drew me away and into the wilderness that is tony Bandra (Not "Tony, Bandra" .. though weirdly, both would work). I got to the party to realize that the only people there besides the host and me were 2 old friends of mine...Anyway, began hitting the white wine rather early..and rather soon methinks..because before I know it, there's 20 people in the room and we're playing Twister and Truth or Dare (Yes. A room full of gay men in their late twenties pretty nearly equates to a private girls school dorm room in the 1970's).

Staggered out and back home to bed at 4 am. since I had to take an American visitor out to show her the city early the next morning. Spent a wonderful day with her and my friend Ro, walking thourgh Bombay Universtiy, talking about Indo-Gothic architecture and the law, and hanging out looking at tombs inside St. Thomas' Anglican Cathedral (very "High Church" indeed!). I managed to take some lovely pictures of the tombs and the interiors of the church. Here's a couple of them..The tombs themselves were very sad. Full of young civil servants in their 20's and young English brides in their teens dying in childbirth, of malaria, cholera and of "the heat", being murdered by bandits. Life in early 1800's Bombay must have been hard!

And then an awesome siesta followed by dinner with the folks (and the sister's in-laws). Talked about restaurants, movies and generic Konkani topics like sarees, old Mamamas and Ajjas and the various Amchigele caterers around Bombay.

This weekend was spent the way I like. With friends, with family, with food and with wine. With history, with interresting people to meet and talk to and with architechture. With dreams of Pip Hilton and visions of Ye Olde England. With flirtation, making up with friends-turned-foes and coffee with blog readers.

Suddenly my life doesn't seem as bad as I think it is mid-week. I'm happy.

Current Music:
Libera Me - Interview with a Vampire

Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna in die illa tremenda....Roswitha, you're about the only one reading I expect will know this..

15 Comments:

  • At 3:47 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    oh i love reading those old enid blytons.. five find outers, naughtiest girl at school etc.. reading them and my old roald dahls get me all nostalgic :)

     
  • At 5:17 AM, Blogger roswitha said…

    Et lux perpetua luceat eis, baby.

    The werebitch who occupies my body on Mondays was about to say that I was unaware of men who actually progressed beyond the emotional/moral/intellectual age of six, but since you quote Verdi (and the requiem, at that!) and mention me by name, I am forced to concede that this may be overlooking certain sections of the population. I'm amazed at how fluidly Verdi combines the menace and mercy of his god in this, aren't you? To be able to juxtapose the dies irae and this bit you quoted! Have you heard Rufus Wainwright sing Agnus Dei? A bit overwrought, like all Rufus, but incredibly moving, like almost all Rufus.

    Supriya,
    not babbling at all, whydoyouask.


    Cheers on the great weekend. I spent it quarrelling with my maidservant, bah.

     
  • At 5:24 AM, Blogger Vikster said…

    Ahh..See I prefer the Mozart Requiem more..the "Confutatis" bit and the "Kyrie Eleison" has me entralled when I hear it. Makes me realize that sometimes G-d is indeed a vengeful G-d. Then again, you're right when you say Verdi's "Dies Irae" is better.

    I LOVE Rufus singing Hallelujah. I could almost forgive him his lifestyle for how beautiful he sounds (why am I thinking of David's love for Jonathon when I hear that song I wonder!)

     
  • At 5:44 AM, Blogger shyam said…

    1970's, 20's and 1800's. Sigh, et tu a member of the wrong users of the apostrophe club Brute?

    I am convinced that if I end up in heaven it will be a mistake in God's computer, something like the Y2K bug. That said, hell is much more cooler in a hot way.

     
  • At 8:37 AM, Blogger Vijayeta said…

    Hello Codey, nice to find you here too ;)
    And you, Vik, mid-week going great guns, a weekend doing yr favorite things... Is it one of those moments when you really, truly, actually feel great about life? I wish i'd had the sense to pile onto you for the Sunday trip to town! Reading about it makes me very envious... Great architecture fascinates me immensely!
    When do u go again?
    :(

     
  • At 5:32 PM, Blogger Id it is said…

    Enid Blyton....I loved those too; Malory Towers, St. Claires...Fatty of the Mr. Goon fame... I too will revisit one of those.

     
  • At 7:22 PM, Blogger Toni Farley said…

    Yay for being happy! I'm totally on board with the Twister thing, but suck at truth or dare. The truths are a piece of cake (although sometimes a tad embarassing), but I always fail on the dares. I assume you play the version where you can pass your turn by removing an article of clothing?

     
  • At 9:59 AM, Blogger Rider on the Storm said…

    Requiem???

     
  • At 12:36 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    hey Vic--

    I'm glad you've been running around BOMBAY with your ass exposed in public having a merry old time. At least someone' s having fun, me I'm about to go out on this date with this guy and this old friend of mine said hey, make sure you shave down there --WHATTHEFUCK?

    what does my friend know about me down there anyway and i didn't even ask for the folicular ( is that a word even) help. But then his comment got me thinking --JEEZ who else knows about my BUSH and if it's kept or not. I mean i try to keep it from turning into a rainforest and all but damn the whole act of just makig it work is so cheesy --Where are the f'ing alien abductions when i neeed them --I could just leave a note by my bedside for the aliens to also shave my bikini area when they're done with their anal inspections.

    Well needless to say i broke down and did the job, and i have to admit I may just be one of those guys whose really into secondary sex traits so I kept it bushy -Like SARITA CHOUDARY in KAMASUTRA, man talk about a BUSH, shit! That woman's keeping it real!

    well that's all from me for now,

    You Favorite Homo,
    NEIL DIAMOND --no just kidding,

    DUNCAN HINES

     
  • At 12:51 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    SHAZAM!

    Why does I Male look so freaking hot! Is it because i can't see his head and can therefore substitute any head i chose, like Robby Benson, or HART BOCHNER from Apartment Zero? Okay maybe its just the fact that he's in those tight whites, he's a real go getter i suspect.
    Sorry Vic, i don't mean to lust after other dudes on your site. I am erasing HART/I MALE from my mind.....

    DUNCAN

     
  • At 7:47 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    For Duncan,
    Times of India, pg 1, story on "Mill Land Redevelopment Case", the middle column: "The judges had underlined the importance of open PUBIC spaces." (emphasis supplied)

    Plz tell me you knew they'd gone up in appeal on that one, or u'll be hauled up for contempt of court!! ;)

    Rohan

     
  • At 8:35 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    rohan-LOL

     
  • At 5:08 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    My, my, ro with a sense of humour.

    Vik, what blueberry cheesecake? where blueberry cheesecake?

    -Phal

     
  • At 3:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    I did quite fancy Ned. He was NANCY drew's boyfriend after all.

     
  • At 2:19 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    That was a really nicely written piece and I very much enjoyed reading it. I'm the same 'anonymous' who put in the last comment on your "An evening chez expats" blog. I like to think I'm being 'mysterious' even if its not working!

     

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