Winter Vacations

I've been in school for five consecutive quarters, save for a few days off here and there. My trip to India and another to New York being among them. It was high time that I got out of my cozy little hole in Columbus, that I have called home for the last 15 odd months and see the world.

Having friends who were graduating, provided the perfect opportunity. Not only could I meet them after god knows how long, but also see how different other universities were from Ohio State. My first stop this Christmas Break was Denver, CO. I have this unbelievable run of bad luck when it comes to flights. As usual, Columbus was covered in black ice the day I left. All flights up until the time I checked in were running on time. Was it that hard to expect that mine also would take off on time? As it so happens, it is! We had a delay of nearly 3 hours. Considering that I had to take a bus to the airport, I had left home nearly 6 hours before we actually took off!

Enough of me ranting about my airline experiences! I was picked up in the beautiful Denver International Airport (The main terminal has funny domes that are supposed to represent the Rocky Mountains!) by my friends and taken home for some yummy home cooked chicken curry (slurp!) and dosa (double slurp!). We drove to boulder the next day stopping at overlook points on the way. It was an awe inspiring sight to see the towering peaks all covered in snow. It certainly looked good enough to eat.



I've never been to an Air Force Academy before, but I was very impressed with what I saw. Joining the Air Force never fails to capture my interest, but I probably wouldn't even pass their physical. So I let my sleeping dreams lie and proceeded with friends to the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park. It was a fine example of man-made excellence intertwined with nature. The bridge stood close to a 1000 ft from the floor of the canyon. An ariel tram ride gave us an amazing view of the whole length of the bridge and the Arkansas river beneath. To supplement to this breath taking wonder, was the incline railway. Descending nearly 1000 ft into the canyon in about 15 mins, gave us an experience that we cannot forget. It got colder and darker as we went further into the canyon, descending almost vertically down the face of the cliff. The engineering that went into building that railway needs much appreciation. As we were walking across the bridge, I spied a crack between the boards and I had to look through it. Considering that I have a fear of heights, it wasn't such a good idea :D Well anyway, since they allowed cars across the bridge, we drove across it as well. The vibrations on the bridge were unbelievable when the car came across.



Red Rocks Amphitheater was nature at its best! The stone structures and the geology was fascinating. It was lovely looking into the amphitheater from the top, that we had to go down all the way to the stage. Coming back up however was a whole different ball game! The thin air, the high altitude and the lack of physical conditioning were all apparent as we made our way back up. Huffing and puffing was the way to go and we were thankful when we made it back up in one piece. Driving through the Rocky Mountains was an experience by itself. We drove through small towns, each with its own specialty. The weather however did not cooperate that day, snow and ice forced us to turn back home. What I saw was amazing. I would love to walk through the trails there someday.

That pretty much summed up phase one of my christmas break. I was on a plane the next morning to Austin, TX, the land of the longhorns.

My experiements with winter road trips ....

I thought I knew what snow was, living in Columbus. Yea right! A friend and I drove up to Cleveland a few days ago. As is customary, we checked the weather before we left and the forecast was cloudy with temperatures around the 25 F mark and 30% chance of snow. We had planned on leaving at 9 AM but we ended up leaving close to two hours later than planned. Not only that we had to stop off on the way to buy an AUX cable!

We got on the freeway and all seemed well. And then it started. We were going to pass an 18 wheel trailer and suddenly, a squiggle of the car! I was so sure we were going to end up under the trailer. But the car seemed to get back on track. Then it happened again. I've heard of bridges icing over in the cold, we little did we know that under the bridge also ices up! Yup! Under every bridge, was a pool of black ice. It was a lesson well learned.

The snow was crazy. All white and swirling around. Seems like every snow flake is heading straight for you, but it misses your car entirely. The roads are covered in snow and you don't know what is under it all. But you have no choice but to keep at the speed limit or risk being the cause of an accident.

When the highway appears to reflect light, beware! Ice alert .. I71 was the source of numerous accidents. Cars lined up at the divider as a result of sliding across the road. Flares light the road and cop cars as well. A 10 lane highway become s a 6 lane. Speed limits are down to 25 from 65. And even that makes your car slip and slide.

Thank god for GPS's. It was late at night and we felt the need for coffee. We got off the highway for coffee. Little did we know that we could not get back on :D Our trusty GPS took us far into the depths of the country, farms on either side, white with the snow that had been falling, christmas lights the only source of light on the narrow roads, and then there was a traffic light! Back to civilization and endless roads.

And that, concludes my experiments with winter road trips ....

Exams

I'm sitting by a window in the library in a pensive mood. I have a million thoughts that are running through my head. I'm watching the snow drift gently down, an occasional leaf flies by and all of a sudden the snow begins swirling around. Exam week is almost upon us. I've been through the same routine before, one year prior. I picture myself cuddled up on a couch beside a fire with a book in my hand, a cat on my lap and a cup of hot cocoa on the table beside me. Bliss! But reality strikes ...

Software Engineering .. My team was in a festive mood up until last night when our presentation came together. We ended up working late into the night, as late as 9:30 PM in our usual haunt on campus. It was back home for some food, more preparation and then much needed sleep. I looked at the clock, it was pushing 2:30 AM. I had been burning the midnight oil. 6 AM, an annoying buzz wakes me. I looked at my phone and I had got a text from a friend who hadn't slept that night. I called, only to find out that someone else had the exam blues too. That put me in a much better mood, I must say. I leave the house at 6:45 AM and its pitch dark. It had been raining through the night. It was freezing cold and I had forgotten my shawl. Brrr! I make it class only to find out that the professor wasn't there to let us in.

When it all finally began, I was pumped. Wanted to get this course over with so I could move on. My team went ahead with gusto and as a result impressed everyone, setting pretty high standards for the rest of the teams to follow. So that's one down with three more to go. Its going to be a long week! Looking on the bright side, I get vacations once I get done with the exams :D Can't wait! I'm travelling ... Yee Haa!!