Its here
Nice to see that finally people around the world are sitting up and taking notice of what Indian engineering talent can do. IEEE Spectrum is a magazine least likely to write junk and it was nice to see something familiar in it for a change.
If you notice carefully, on that page two different cars are featured. One is the Tata Nano and the other is a Jaguar. Both from the Tata stable.
Oh well. Jaguar has been an acquisition and not something to be so proud about but still...
(Psst Psst...I did not quite like the reasons why that Jaguar has been featured in that list. I do not want sundry slots opening in my car when I wave my hand...)
Monday, April 21, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
One day in China....
I like blogging. I like putting down on this piece of "property" I have on the internet experiences, anecdotes and opinions. Its my way of communicating with the friends and well-wishers I have been fortunate to have across the globe without unnecessary hassle. Its nice to let them know of the newest scrape I have been in
A few events though do happen to me which are too painful to recall and sometimes I am tempted to bottle them up inside me. But they need to be told because I will be doing people a disservice if I don't warn them of what might be their experience as well.
Like what happened to me in China this week.
I was supposed to be in Shenzhen (China) this week. Shenzhen (if you have not heard of it) is a metropolis right across the lagoon from Hong Kong in Chinese sovereign territory. I was supposed to attend a business meeting there. The plans were made in a rush and I had to scramble to get air-tickets and hotel rooms. I had checked up on the Visa regulations and they appeared to be a breeze. Shenzhen is an SEZ. All Indians have to do is land up and queue up for a visa on arrival and they are given a single entry 5-day Shenzhen-only visa. No hassle. No questions asked.
Since I was flying in through Hong Kong, I checked up on its visa regulations as well and they were also a breeze. Just land up. Your passport is stamped a 14-day visa.
So my itinerary was going to be:
1. Land at HK
2. Clear HK immigration
3. Take a train to Lo Wu check-point on the border between HK and Shenzhen
4. Get a visa on arrival at Lo Wu
5. Clear Shenzhen immigration
6. Take a taxi to the hotel
7. Attend the meeting
8. Go back to HK after three days
9. Take the flight back to Singapore
Simple enough.
Or so I thought....
Getting into Hong Kong was simplicity itself. Landed up. Queued up for immigration. Got my passport stamped. Also got a smile and candies from the lady at the immigration plus detailed directions to Lo Wu.
I double-checked the directions to Lo Wu at a bus counter and the lady there was all-smiles and insisted on escorting me to the elevator and gave me detailed scribbled directions.
Got into the Bus to this train station. Got to the train station without incident. Caught the local train to Lo Wu and there I was.
No hassles in clearing the HK immigration. Walked over across no-man's land to China. Asked for directions to the visa issuing office. Filled the form (very simple...no photo necessary), got the cash ready and queued up.
When my turn came, I handed everything to the lady at the counter. The lady at the counter looks at my passport, says, "Indian Passport" and hands it to a policeman. The policeman comes out of the counter, bids me to follow him to complete certain procedures. I follow him out. We walk back to the no-man's land. He hands my passport to another officer who notes all the details down using a scanner and then hands it back to the first officer. The first officer now hands me my passport back, points towards Hong Kong and tells me, "That's the way to Hong Kong. Thank you very much. Go back!"
For five seconds I felt like a bomb had hit me. I was too stunned to react.
I collected my wits and asked him what the matter was. He repeated his stock phrase, "That's the way to Hong Kong. Thank you very much. Go back!". I asked him again. Then this guy pushed me to Hong Kong and said the same thing. I walked back towards HK, then decided to try again. I walked back towards Shenzhen and now this policeman caught hold of another of his colleagues, and they both summarily blocked me and prepared to man-handle me. No further words came from them.
Deciding that I could do nothing, I called up my Shenzhen colleagues and told them of the situation. Since I was still in no-man's land, both the guys kept watch over me and given any provocation would have literally kicked me out. I walked back to Hong Kong feeling like a complete waif.
I did not know where I was going to sleep at night. I had no plane tickets to get back and I was depending on my credit card to bail me out of any cash crunch. Plus I was spitting mad!
The Hong Kong authorities were not surprised to see me ejected out of China. They were pretty helpful and let me in. I called up my Boss and let him know of the situation. My colleagues in Shenzhen, Singapore and UK were very helpful in calming me down and helping me to figure out the situation. I caught the bus and train back to Hong Kong airport, took the first flight back to Singapore and was back in less than 24 hours of leaving Singapore.
It appears that China, angered by the anti-Tibetan protest in India had unilaterally decided to revoke visa on arrival to Indians. And while doing that, they very helpfully refused to tell anyone about it. Plus they brought into play their customary rudeness, high-handedness and arrogance.
In response to all this, India in a spirit of non-violence, world peace and brotherly love to their Chinese Communist brethren did precisely nothing. Actually, the government in West Bengal banned anti-China protests! But of course! They were acting on orders from Beijing...
Had they told me of the situation in Shenzhen I would have been angry but would have understood. They simply ejected me out like a ruffian.
And to add insult to injury, I called up the Indian Consulate in Hong Kong. There some guy picked up the phone, impatiently listened to my account for five seconds and shouted at me asking what I expected him to do. Then he politely banged the phone down without waiting for a response. That's ok. I never expected any help from Indians anyway. Had I spoken in Chinese he probably would have been more polite out of his brotherly love.
Guys, two lessons:
1. Never go to China
2. Never expect any help from your own government if you are in any trouble
When I got back to Singapore my conversation with the immigration official was like this:
O: Welcome back to Singapore Mr. Saurabh. Do you have anything to declare?
Me: Yes, don't go to China!
A few events though do happen to me which are too painful to recall and sometimes I am tempted to bottle them up inside me. But they need to be told because I will be doing people a disservice if I don't warn them of what might be their experience as well.
Like what happened to me in China this week.
I was supposed to be in Shenzhen (China) this week. Shenzhen (if you have not heard of it) is a metropolis right across the lagoon from Hong Kong in Chinese sovereign territory. I was supposed to attend a business meeting there. The plans were made in a rush and I had to scramble to get air-tickets and hotel rooms. I had checked up on the Visa regulations and they appeared to be a breeze. Shenzhen is an SEZ. All Indians have to do is land up and queue up for a visa on arrival and they are given a single entry 5-day Shenzhen-only visa. No hassle. No questions asked.
Since I was flying in through Hong Kong, I checked up on its visa regulations as well and they were also a breeze. Just land up. Your passport is stamped a 14-day visa.
So my itinerary was going to be:
1. Land at HK
2. Clear HK immigration
3. Take a train to Lo Wu check-point on the border between HK and Shenzhen
4. Get a visa on arrival at Lo Wu
5. Clear Shenzhen immigration
6. Take a taxi to the hotel
7. Attend the meeting
8. Go back to HK after three days
9. Take the flight back to Singapore
Simple enough.
Or so I thought....
Getting into Hong Kong was simplicity itself. Landed up. Queued up for immigration. Got my passport stamped. Also got a smile and candies from the lady at the immigration plus detailed directions to Lo Wu.
I double-checked the directions to Lo Wu at a bus counter and the lady there was all-smiles and insisted on escorting me to the elevator and gave me detailed scribbled directions.
Got into the Bus to this train station. Got to the train station without incident. Caught the local train to Lo Wu and there I was.
No hassles in clearing the HK immigration. Walked over across no-man's land to China. Asked for directions to the visa issuing office. Filled the form (very simple...no photo necessary), got the cash ready and queued up.
When my turn came, I handed everything to the lady at the counter. The lady at the counter looks at my passport, says, "Indian Passport" and hands it to a policeman. The policeman comes out of the counter, bids me to follow him to complete certain procedures. I follow him out. We walk back to the no-man's land. He hands my passport to another officer who notes all the details down using a scanner and then hands it back to the first officer. The first officer now hands me my passport back, points towards Hong Kong and tells me, "That's the way to Hong Kong. Thank you very much. Go back!"
For five seconds I felt like a bomb had hit me. I was too stunned to react.
I collected my wits and asked him what the matter was. He repeated his stock phrase, "That's the way to Hong Kong. Thank you very much. Go back!". I asked him again. Then this guy pushed me to Hong Kong and said the same thing. I walked back towards HK, then decided to try again. I walked back towards Shenzhen and now this policeman caught hold of another of his colleagues, and they both summarily blocked me and prepared to man-handle me. No further words came from them.
Deciding that I could do nothing, I called up my Shenzhen colleagues and told them of the situation. Since I was still in no-man's land, both the guys kept watch over me and given any provocation would have literally kicked me out. I walked back to Hong Kong feeling like a complete waif.
I did not know where I was going to sleep at night. I had no plane tickets to get back and I was depending on my credit card to bail me out of any cash crunch. Plus I was spitting mad!
The Hong Kong authorities were not surprised to see me ejected out of China. They were pretty helpful and let me in. I called up my Boss and let him know of the situation. My colleagues in Shenzhen, Singapore and UK were very helpful in calming me down and helping me to figure out the situation. I caught the bus and train back to Hong Kong airport, took the first flight back to Singapore and was back in less than 24 hours of leaving Singapore.
It appears that China, angered by the anti-Tibetan protest in India had unilaterally decided to revoke visa on arrival to Indians. And while doing that, they very helpfully refused to tell anyone about it. Plus they brought into play their customary rudeness, high-handedness and arrogance.
In response to all this, India in a spirit of non-violence, world peace and brotherly love to their Chinese Communist brethren did precisely nothing. Actually, the government in West Bengal banned anti-China protests! But of course! They were acting on orders from Beijing...
Had they told me of the situation in Shenzhen I would have been angry but would have understood. They simply ejected me out like a ruffian.
And to add insult to injury, I called up the Indian Consulate in Hong Kong. There some guy picked up the phone, impatiently listened to my account for five seconds and shouted at me asking what I expected him to do. Then he politely banged the phone down without waiting for a response. That's ok. I never expected any help from Indians anyway. Had I spoken in Chinese he probably would have been more polite out of his brotherly love.
Guys, two lessons:
1. Never go to China
2. Never expect any help from your own government if you are in any trouble
When I got back to Singapore my conversation with the immigration official was like this:
O: Welcome back to Singapore Mr. Saurabh. Do you have anything to declare?
Me: Yes, don't go to China!
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