Anecdote #54

The bright and blazing sun was kind enough to shine upon Cambridge. The final week had commenced and the last round of excursions began. That day our itinerary included a visit to the Polar Museum. Though we were very pumped to go, it turned out to be a 20 minute long walk. We thought we’d be too tired to explore the museum but the solace of the air conditioning was our main source of respite.When we regained our energy to explore the exhibits, the historian in me came back to life and I assimilated all that was around me.The museum not only had models of kayaks which historically were the primary mode of transport and videos of the polar region but real life items from expeditions. 
Honestly, the space in which the museum was built was absolutely charming. It was cosy but it managed to capture the essence of the poles in a heavily British manner. The feel was of an English tea room especially due to the spacing of all the galleries and hallways.After half an hour of exploring the museum, we headed back. It’s quite strange that whenever we’re returning from a place the distance seems much shorter compared to when we were going!
The subsequent afternoon was dedicated to our classes. We had a three hour session and the professor covered a wide range of topics such as the relationship between American and British Intelligence as well as famous spies who came out of Cambridge. Quite interestingly we got to know that Hollywood ensembles such as Bond were inspired by some of these real life heroes! I was enthralled by the session and couldn't wait to share all that I had learnt with my friends. When they finally got done with their classes and we met up for dinner  updated each other about our day.  Our assessments were due on Friday so we had to get going with our preparations We stayed up that night and studied in the lobby of Cripps Court. On the right hand of the lobby was a lounge area where there were extremely comfy sofas. There was no to disturb us and we could spend two hours on studies.We wrapped up in two hours and while we were there, our Junior Dean Danny Pan spotted us. He was probably going out and was not expecting to encounter any students. He gotten taken aback to see us that late and was red with embarrassment. It was understandable that he did not want to see his students to see him go out at night which made the situation even more comical. While he was leaving we continued to flash mischievous smiles at each other embarrassing him further. We even tried to trespass into the teacher's quarters after he left, just for the thrill. By then we were completely hysterical acting more like teenagers rather than adults.Our antics would not have ended unless the caretaker asked us to leave. Frankly it was late and we definitely needed to energise ourselves for the next day, after all we had a lot more laughing to do.

Anecdote #53

Just when I thought I had quit writing, I find myself at this page again. Last year I had my mind fixed on only one goal which is still my main ambition but I left my blog at the cost of that.

My knack for writing comes from my father who was very regular with his pieces but like me became disillusioned with the pen.

 It is probably the other way around, like my father I became disillusioned with writing.

So why come back now, when my aim in life is not be a writer?

It is because I forgot what writing did to me. I forgot how cathartic the process was, I forgot how effortlessly it came to me and mostly I forgot that it is a gift which I did not cherish.

After pestering my father incessantly to get back to writing I realised the irony of the situation and I found myself logging into my page again.

First things first, let us bring the Cambridge journey to an end.

My last post ended with some wishful thinking. I really wished for a dorm at Cripps Court as I wanted to be around my friends Urmeen and Manmeen. Both of them were aware of my concerns as well so we hatched a plan to write to the Dean, Amanda. I called my father and the strategy was that he would write to Amanda while I convinced the counselor, Ellen on ground.
While I made my plea my father penned the perfect mail and guess what by the afternoon I got a single suite with an attached bathroom at Cripps Court!
I was ecstatic but had very little time to process the information as I was given a limited window to settle into the new room. I ran with Urmeen to my old dorm almost a kilometer away and we began packing my suitcases.
The two of us not only packed my luggage which included a separate suitcase just full of Indian food but lugged it down two stories of the building and on top of that carried it all the way back to Cripps Court!

It was a tiring task and without Urmeen it definitely would not have been possible.

Now that I was all unpacked, the happiness finally kicked in! I could finally go to the mess in casuals and lounge with my girls!
That day was definitely incredible for me, adding to my already lifted spirits there was a fun quiz held in the evening where the three of us all along with Danny (if you have read my previous posts you'll recognise him) were clubbed in a team. To make the quiz more interesting we named our team Danny's Prodigies. But surprisingly the person who had the most answers was Danny.
He completely exceeded our expectations and we stood second in the quiz!

All the activity in evening had gotten the three of us in a supremely great mood. We chatted endlessly for hours on and enjoyed Jasmine tea together in the verandah. The pleasant weather, hot tea and beautiful company gave me indescribable peace.

It was that day I realised that the simplest pleasures are the most memorable ones and good hearted people can be the best source of comfort when family is not around.

Anecdote #52

Another week begins at Magdalene College. It is also my last week here, the days went by so fast that I wonder where the time went. I began a new course that week based on the history of espionage. The course sounded very fascinating and it was something I had never studied.The professor, Dr. David Fowler informed us that after the retirement of a scholar who specialised in teaching this course it was not even available at the undergraduate level.We felt very privileged to receive this opportunity of studying this unique course which very few people have access to! Dr. David Fowler floored us with his knowledge. He knew each and every detail related to the topic. From the lecture we gauged that most of the spies in the UK were recruited from Cambridge! These spies worked as codebreakers near Cambridge in a place called Bletchley Park.It was a surreal feeling to know that some of the sharpest and most dapper people in the world, possibly even the inspiration behind James Bond walked the same streets as us!The lecture left all of us intrigued and we couldn’t help but ponder over all the facts we had gone over in class.
This was one thing I couldn’t wrap my head around was the behaviour of Mr. Fowler. Though he had a phenomenal hold over the subject yet he was (if I had to be subtle) eccentric. 
During the lecture the two Americans in our class were seated right in front of him and he majorly spoke to them. The rest of us siting behind which consisted of only the Chinese and one Indian (ie me) were non existent to him.
At one point while he was explaining a concept he asked us to refer to youtube to watch videos related to it. Subsequently he looked at the Americans and said, “You guys can teach them how to use Youtube.”
Apart from them the class only had Asians. We immediately understood where he was coming from and what he had implied intentionally or unintentionally. All of us exchanged glances of shock and disappointment.
I firmly resolved that I wouldn’t participate in his class henceforth.

 
It was that day I realised how it felt to be treated unequally.

As I had afternoon classes, it was five by the time we got free. I decided to go for a stroll to Jesus Greens with Urmeen and Manmeen. I told them all that had happened. 
They did not let me be upset for too long as they kept my mind preoccupied with their humour. The next thing I knew, we were back to our favourite hobby, cracking jokes.
Incidentally that day the table tennis playing area was empty. We couldn’t contain our excitement as it is was always occupied. 
Seizing this golden opportunity we played for quite sometime while playing Hindi music. 
The fun and games kept my mind engaged and I forgot about what had happened.

That day when I went back to my room the only thing I was upset about was my dorm. How I wished I lived in Cripps Court. The evenings always felt like an abrupt goodbye because I had to leave my friends early to go back to my dorm. I wanted to sit and chat with them, discuss every part of my experiences in detail. Though I gave them an inkling about how I felt, I never truly admitted to it. I was afraid that if I said it out loud, the loneliness I was repressing would emerge out of the shadows.

I did not know then that the next day would bring a solution to this problem too.

Stay tuned to find out how.

Anecdote #51

We got an entirely free day! On Sunday we got the freedom to explore Cambridge ourselves. 
In the morning we began with shopping for our family. Cambridge is typically not a place for shopping but it had some boutique brands which are not easily  available in India. 
In the summer a lot of the stores provide stupendous discounts. Taking advantage of this we spent generously and bought quite a few goodies.
Although it had only been a week in Cambridge, home food was something I missed dearly. I was determined to hunt down an Indian restaurant today and eat there. Fortunately, there was one in Regent Street called, “Tiffin Truck.” I am delighted to say that the food was pretty authentic and all of us Indians wiped our plates clean.
Subsequently we went for a stroll on Regent street. We spotted Downing College and went inside to check it out. It was absolutely mesmerising with expansive gardens and romanesque architecture. Personally my it was favourite college in Cambridge. There was also an exhibition going on there by a Japanese artist called Yoko. It was a unique experience for us and the people showing us around were really warm. At the end of the display there was a tree where we were supposed to tie a tag with a wish written on it. I was very fascinated with this and wrote down a one as a memory.
Regent street was a long walk from Magdalene College from where our programme ran. We desperately some rest after our morning adventures. 
The closest option was to sit down on the vibrant and grassy grounds of Trinity Garden. This was modelled on the same lines as Jesus Gardens, covering a huge area endowed with greenery. It was the ideal place to rest. Although every thing was going well that day, including the food, shopping and surrounding something felt amiss. 
We had not seen Danny and there was a certain emptiness we felt upon being unable to meet him. Who do we make fun of now?  At who’s expense do we laugh now? 
We decided not to disturb him and reminisced the jokes we had cracked at his expense over the course of the last few days.
It was only the next day that we realised he was much worse off than us. Apparently he was at six hours at one pub whiling away time. The poor man was allergic to alcohol and hence he had to sip on hot chocolate as he had no alternative.
Like I said Danny’s antics never led us to believe that he was the Junior Dean. When he narrated the sad story of his Sunday we only laughed at his face.

Afterwards the next thing we decided to do was tour the prestigious campus of King’s College. 
We had been informed by our Programme Advisors that we should tell the porters of the college that we are prospective students to get free entry. This was imperative because the entry fee was twenty pounds. Naturally after all the money we had spent that day, the former option felt the most feasible. 
What we didn’t anticipate though was how the porter would behave with us. When we told him we were prospective students, which we quite evidently were (Why else would we come for a summer programme? ). Just to trouble us this man claimed he did not believe us and had the audacity to say “convince me.”
When he said those words my blood started boiling. I replied spontaneously, “You should convince us, we’ll be paying you money to study here.”
That seemed to sort him out because all of a sudden there was a shift in his attitude.
He too realised like the ladies from the Italian restaurant of the previous day that we weren’t afraid to speak up.

Suffice to say that the tour to King’s College didn’t go as expected. We had felt let down due to this experience. Yet we were not those kind of people who would let others ruin our happiness. After all we were Punjabis at heart.
 To brighten our mood we decided to head to Aromi. 
Aromi was hands down our most favourite place in Cambridge. It was introduced to me by my friend’s brother who had stopped in his tracks while he was giving a short tour of the City. He swore by their Gelato and said that he had never had anything quite like it before. Apart from the authentic Italian Gelato they offered many other amazing lip smacking Italian classics. Interestingly they had only one outlet in the whole of UK, in the heart of Cambridge. 
It’s safe to say he was absolutely right. The pistachio gelato which I ate loyally could never be matched by any other restaurant. We had been to other Italian cafes as well but the consistency, texture and taste of their Gelato was unmatched. It was as though the flavours in our mouths were right out of Italy.  
After gobbling up the delightful Gelatos our heads had cooled down and now we were only discussing how much we loved Aromi.

By the evening we were still facing the repercussions of having a heavy meal in the after noon and of course the after effects of our indulgence at Aroma. We could not eat a full meal again so I choose to have a hotpot soup at an Asian place called “Itsu.” It was just what I needed and now I was ready to hit the sack. 
As I lay in bed, I had a huge smile on my face because I was very pleased with the day I had. Apart from the laughs Manmeen, Urmeen and I were sharing experiences. Our friendship was getting stronger by the day but we did not feel so because the process happened organically and seamlessly. They were my home away from home. With them the bad days became good and I didn’t miss home as badly anymore.

Anecdote #50

Ever since we arrived, Saturday was one day that was always on our mind. It was not only our day off but we were going to London for an excursion. All of us were pumped in the morning to explore the capital of United Kingdom. It was my third time in the UK so it was not London that had got me excited. I was looking forward to experience London with Manmeen and Urmeen. I knew that together we’d manage to cook up a storm there too!A coach was booked for all the students going to London. Apart from London there were excursions to Stratford-Upon-Avon and The Great Yarmouth. London was an hour and a half long ride from our accommodation. We left around 9 AM and I have to admit, the beautiful countryside provided the most pleasing background.The ride felt so tranquil that Urmeen and I slept for a good hour. Though the motorways brought us to the City in an hour, the traffic within London was ruthless and we only got off at 12. 

The coach stopped at the designated spot and a tour of the city was what we started with. We covered a large part of central London on foot and got to hear interesting anecdotes related to monumental structures such as the Buckingham Palace. The tour ended conveniently at Oxford street. The only problem was we had covered the entire area of central London on foot and it was 2 PM by the time the tour guide left us. The entire distance we covered on foot that day was 14 km (as read on our smartphones). The next half of the story will help you understand why.

At Oxford Street we were desperately looking for a place to eat. We are fussy eaters and our minds and hearts were set on eating at a good Italian restaurant. We began searching Oxford street for one. I think you may have a question, why weren’t we using the internet? Well my friends had finished their top up of 20 pounds in just two days and my Data pack only had the first 5 GB free for the entire trip. 
On our search for a place to eat we made a stop at Kingdom of Sweets. I was so famished that I started picking candies and began gobbling them at the store hoping no one would spot me. My friends decided to exit the store quickly. After all it would be embarrassing to get arrested over  candy.
The trip to Kingdom of sweets turned out to be fruitful because finally we found a good looking place.

The restaurant, Granoia was established in 1874 and offered a fine dining experience. 
We did not think twice before going there as we had eaten out at fine dining restaurants several times back home but apparently the hosts had a problem.
Our Indian accents had given us away and the hosts acting extremely high handed. They gave us a table with extreme difficulty. 
They had problem with attaching an extra chair to a two seater table which they had given to other customers. Alternatively we asked to be seated at a 5 seater table which honestly was not big enough accommodate five people but again, they refused. By this time we were irritated, I finally told asked them with a whiff of anger, “It seems as though you don’t like having customers at your restaurant.”
This did the trick. They realised that we were not afraid to speak up.

We ordered our food at last and it was exactly what we were craving, authentic Italian food. We’ll always remember that restaurant for their wonderful but small portions and the bad ambience.

After lunch we realised that we were not left with much time. It was quarter to three and our coach would leave at four from the designated spot which was half an hour away.

Our minds were set on shopping but our destiny was not the right accompaniment. The purpose of coming to London was leisurely spending time at Hugo, Massimo and shopping at these luxury brands during the season of discounts and offers. Now, window shopping was our only option as there was no time to try on stuff. Coming in and out of Massimo Dutti, looking at the rare bargains and not being able to buy anything due to the lack of time was the most heartbreaking.

We thought of consoling ourselves with a Gelato and ran to the closest store. Sadly it was packed and so crowded that we decided to not risk it and head back. By now it was almost 330 and we were nowhere close to Victoria Garden, from where our coach was leaving. 

Danny who was sent with students was irresponsible enough to leave us go.
There was only one option. R U N.
 
The scene was as follows, three young girl sprinting through the streets of London jumping red lights as if it they were in their common neighbourhood. 

Naturally like anyone else in the world jumping red lights was the highlight of the day for us. It was our source for cheap thrills and the adrenaline pumped through our body uncontrollably such that bouts of laughter were inevitable. 
At this point of the story let me give you a health warning, laughing and running can be the most exhausting exercise in the world. It is cardio at it’s best.

Our touristy spirit fortunately or unfortunately was still undiminished. When we saw a palace guard on a horse in the street, we made sure to stop and get our pictures clicked. You could call us daredevils for playing with time. 
Thankfully, when we reached the last leg and we increased our speed and reached Victoria guard with everything except our breath. Danny stood there nonchalantly with no sympathy. We asked him were the coach was and guess what, it was late!

The entire experience of London with my friends was not only fun but deepened our bonds. When you learn to laugh freely without any inhibitions with, you finally let loose. The unison of our laughs still rings vividly in my ears.
The way we talked about London from that day onwards made us feel that some part of London was our’s too, etched securely in our hearts.

Anecdote #49

It was Assessment day today! All of us were a bundle of nerves in the morning as we were anxious to do well. Thankfully as it was in the morning hence the stress was short-lived. 

It was the first time I was giving a test without my entire support system that is the Malhotras. Mom or Dad always sent the driver who would drop me to college. Then I would call them  to inform them that I had reached. After settling in the examination hall I would call my grandparents who told me to relax and assured me that I had their blessing. Finally I would call my parents again just before we had to keep away our phone and start the examination.

That day in I walked from  accommodation to Cripps Court for breakfast as usual but it felt unusual to not have the same test day drill as the one back home. When I sat down at the breakfast table I remembered how at times I got so anxious during exams that I went to school on an empty stomache. I remembered how my mom tried to make me laugh before my board exams, cracking nonsensical jokes to keep me from stressing. She would take a holiday from office and created a highly conducive environment while not exercising any kind of pressure on me. That day I missed and reminisced those moments repeatedly.I wanted to do my parents proud today and prayed that I would not forget the complicated theories of International Security.While these thoughts were racing through my mind Urmeen and Manmeen came and sat on the dining table. They had a class presentation instead of a test. They told me that a group member of their’s, a boy from Mexico had not sent in the work and their presentation was only half an hour away. Somehow the seriousness of the situation had not settled in because instead of worrying we started cracking jokes at his expense. We had never seen him at the mess so we conjured some crazy theories about his absence. The hysteria that came with laughter started peaking and we were in splits. Incidentally it was at this very moment that this guy decided to walk in. Despite coming in this he was oozing with confidence telling their group how well they’d do. I was amazed at his guts. Firstly this guy had vanished, not sent his work on time and was really late and now he was acting like he had everything together. I had not yet recovered from the laughing spell so experienced my amazement decided to express itself through laughter. The Mexican guy must have wondered what was wrong with me. As I kept looking at my friends, their laughs further instigated me further. This went on until it was time to give the test.

The best part was that this laughing spree chased away my anxiety completely and I gave the test with a calm head. I was able to tackle the tough questions and when the test was over I rushed to my friends.Incidentally, I found them with Danny Pan the Junior Dean of the programme. He was telling them about his family in China and how strict his father was. When he saw me he immediately remembered meeting my father who had reprimanded him badly the day I had received my accommodation. In my father’s defence he was trying to get me a room in Cripp’s Court. Danny then asked all three of us if our fathers hit any of us. We were shocked that he even asked such a question and refuted it vehemently. Turns out, Danny had been slapped a lot as a kid by his father but he was talking about it quite humorously so Manmeen remarked casually, “Your father must have played squash on your face.” After that comment it was natural that the three of us started laughing uncontrollably, yet again.

Now all we wanted to do now was celebrate that the assessment was over.The Programme Organisers had made sure of that as we had sports later in the day. The venue was the very beautiful and aesthetic garden ‘Jesus Greens.’ Although it is a garden it is huge, lined with lush trees. Provisions for different kinds of sports were made available hence we could play as per our preference. My friends and I played football and naturally we were on Danny’s team.  Sadly he abandoned us in the middle as he began clicking pictures of everybody. You could say that the loss was on Danny. 

Post games, in the evening we had more activities planned but the one everyone was the most excited about was the pub crawl.  As we had gone out for shopping and gelato right after sports we had not changed and were still in our athletic attires. We had made it just in time for the pub crawl so while the others were formally dressed in shirts, dresses, heels we were in our tracksuits.I told my friends that they should not worry, after all athleisure is currently trending.Needless to say we burst into laughter again and that was the mood for the evening. After all being teetotallers we had to keep ourselves engaged while everyone was chugging their pints.

There we were in a pub in Cambridge having hot chocolate but acting like the drunkest people in the house.It was by far the best day.

Anecdote #48

Laundry Time

The warm and bright sun shone upon Cambridge today. It was our last class for Approaches to International Security in the 21st Century and we had an assessment the next day. We were given revision time from 9 to 12 in the day and hence the first half of the day went in preparation for the assessment. After lunch we had our last session for the week. Doubts were cleared and we also had an informal interaction with our professor, Dr. Ayse Zarakol. It was extremely gracious of her to create an environment where we could raise our doubts anytime and encouraged discussions in the class.

Today was a unique for another reason. I did my own laundry for the very first time! Although it does not seem to be an immense achievement, it was definitely empowering to be self sufficient. My laundry story was an interesting one too. The Indian girl next door had promised that we’d do laundry together. That morning I had confirmed with her that we would go to Benson court (a beautiful complex where accommodation had been arranged but we were not lucky enough to get it) where the laundry room was. On the first day she had been sweet enough to say that I did not have to buy detergent as she had brought some with her. After classes I called her up to do laundry and it turns out she had gone for shopping and wouldn’t be back anytime soon. 

Honestly I was a little irritated. I had a test the next day and wanted to get done with the laundry as fast as I could. With her gone now I would have waste another twenty minutes in getting the detergent. More than the detergent I was relying upon her support to help me with the machine, after all it was my first time. Yes I have never washed my clothes in my life. Heck I didn’t even fold them myself. This made me more anxious about the laundry than test on the following day. When I reached the supermarket to buy the detergent, I found out that in the UK Ariel detergent (which I use at home) is available in the form of pods which apparently disintegrated in the tumbler. It was madly perplexing, I had never seen this before and spent a good ten minutes mulling over the packaging.

Why is God taking the test of my life I thought to myself. Even the detergent was not normal. As I was at the cashier thinking about video calling mom from the laundry room for help it suddenly struck me that Xintong lived in Benson! I rang her up quickly and she was extremely forthcoming.The moment I walked inside she rushed and carried my laundry bag, she could see that I was struggling. This small act of kindness helped me get over my woes.Though she too was a novice like me, she was kind enough to ask her friend how to use the machine and taught me. I was full of gratitude and deep in my heart felt that she was God sent.

The clothes were in the machine now and there was some time to kill. I couldn’t study in the laundry room so the natural alternative was to call each member of my family and tell them about my astonishing feat. I know it was rather silly of me but I felt a sense of freedom, accomplishment and empowerment. 

After successfully phoning all the Malhotras and taking out my clothes from the washing machine, dryer and folding them methodically I headed for dinner.I shared my adventures for the day with my friends and by now I was laughing about the entire experience. It’s funny how a bit of time can change your perspective. The chore had started out as a challenge but became memorable by the end of it.

I was thoroughly satisfied with day and I realised that being in Cambridge taught me how productive I could be in a day and balance studies with chores. From being a damsel in distress and having no knowledge of house chores, I was improving and that did wonders for my confidence.