Matharu's Rants and Raves

Stonehenge. Known but unknown.

This photograph was taken in November 2008 on a cold and windswept Salisbury Plain.

Click on the image for a larger photograph.

Copyright © 2008 Kulvinder Singh Matharu – All Rights Reserved

Just spend a few days (23 May – 27 May) in New York City for a reunion with fellow travellers from the 2007 Antarctica trip. The weather cooperated too! The motley crew consisted mostly of this lot (showing our first tentative steps at building a snowman in Antarctica):

Anyway, the views from our host’s apartment were pretty decent, both night and day!

Apartment night view – Brooklyn Bridge:

Apartment night view – Brooklyn Bridge:

Of course I’m going to come back…I want to see those views again! I think that I was last here in 1993. Now that was a long time ago!

I suppose the NYC trip can best be summed up in a few words. Food, drinks, and more food and drinks

There was more to it than that of course. There was a bit of shopping in which everyone participated. The girls went shopping for clothes and shoes; the guys went shopping for gadgets and software! Is that stereotyped or what!

Having said all that, Audrey did go looking for a good point-and-shoot digital camera. And I think the girls certainly bought some some cool clothes, oh yea!

So, what do you do on a hot day in New York City? Go to Central Park!

And for something a bit more adventurous, you go to Coney Island!

Now that was fun! The roller-coaster “Cyclone”…oh yes! And a centrifugal contraption, oh boy! Thanks Michelle, I loved that centrifuge!

So, thank you Audrey, Raldi, Jason, Michelle and Laura! It was great meeting up with you all and exchanging our stories from the Antarctica trip, etc. Can’t wait for the next meet!

On the last day I was mostly on my own, with everyone having gone to prior engagements (eg working!). So went on a bit of a walkabout in lower Manhattan and got some shopping done at the J&R software store. Oh my poor achey feet! Made it OK to JFK (hey, love that Internet check-in, saves so much time from queuing!).

And so, goodbye New York City, and goodbye to that Americanised French chick

Copyright © 2008 Kulvinder Singh Matharu – All Rights Reserved

I recently returned from the Borneo Orangutan Adventure. The picures are now online at my website.

This was a charity-based adventure trip organised by “Sepilok Orangutan Appeal UK” who work with the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre in the Sabah district of Malaysian Borneo. The trip had elements of white-water rafting, cycling, trekking, crossing rivers waist-deep, swimming, river cruises, village stays, evening fun (karaoke!) and, of course, seeing wildlife. I was pretty much mosquito and leech food but it was a small sacrifice. The adventure was damn good fun, educational and for a good cause too!

Copyright © 2008 Kulvinder Singh Matharu – All Rights Reserved

Devil Tree re-imagined, 2008. An updated version of the 2001 copy.

Copyright © 2008 Kulvinder Singh Matharu – All Rights Reserved

There’s a lot of really good music being given airtime by a number of UK-based radio stations such as London’s “Capital Radio”. I do also listen to a lot of classical music, blues and some jazz through Internet-based radio stations but I did want to say something about some songs that I particularly liked at the moment. And why not!

OK, here we go.

• Relax (Take IT Easy) – by Mika
• Chasing Pavements - by Adele
• Superstar - by Lupe Fiasco
• Rockstar - by Nickelback
• Valerie - by Mark Ronson with Amy Winehouse (I like anything with Amy Winehouse!)
• Run – by Amy MacDonald
• Sun Goes Down  - by David Jordan – fun
• Ride It - by Jay Sean
• Homecoming - by Kanye West
• Carry You Home – by James Blunt (also “1973″ is still being played!)

Check them out! 

Next problem. My dilemma is regarding the purchase of my next MP3 player to replace my Sony MP3 player which has hit maximum capacity on its 20GB drive. I was thinking of getting an iPod but the lack of a built-in radio receiver put me off. The new Zune MP3 players from Microsoft do have FM radios built in and the units do seem to have some very good reviews. They look kinda cool too. Unfortunately the Zunes are not officially available in the UK and if I need to use the Zune Marketplace then I need to be a bit creative with my Internet set up to access the Zune Marketplace from the UK. Also, the iPods have a huge array of accessories available. Dilemmas! I think that I’d also lose any option of getting the Zune customised with those graphics on the back of the units. The word on the street is that the Zunes will be launched in the UK in Christmas 2008! I don’t think that I can wait that long even if we do get new and improved Zunes by that time! I’ll try and get myself an 80GB Zune. Unless anyone has a strong objection!

Copyright © 2008 Kulvinder Singh Matharu – All Rights Reserved