A VETERANS LUNCH - NONAGENARIANS, ME AND YOUNGER ONES

The Delhi Navy Foundation hosted a lunch a few days ago welcoming the Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, Mrs Tripathi and a few other senior officers recently appointed to the Naval Headquarters. Apart from the welcome, the key feature was honouring nonagenarian veterans, 14 invited, 11 attended.

Navy Foundation get-togethers are fun as they transport one back in time evoking sweet memories of one's younger days. You meet shipmates young and old you haven't met for ages and recall incidents you shared together. I don't remember when I last met Brahma Swarup but we had no difficulty harking back to the time he was Cadet BS Wal and I was his Divisional Officer in 'Juliet' Squadron way back in 1964-65. 

Ashok Dewan and I recalled that special midnight watch on 20/21 July 1969 on board Trishul when we were at sea off Madras. I was the Officer of the Watch and he was my assistant working for his watchkeeping ticket. I had got the Voice of America radio commentary of Apollo 11 Space Voyage put on the Bridge intercom and we were thrilled when Neil Armstrong stepped on the Moon and spoke those memorable words, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

CP Sharma was my Communications Officer when I was commanding Katchall in 1977-78, Mohan, my Electrical Officer and Acharya, Secretary to Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF), when I was CO Trishul. We all had plenty to talk about the good, old days working up to present times.

With Sushil Ramsay, the very efficient President of Delhi Navy Foundation, my association goes beyond him. Our mothers were educators together in Beawar, Rajasthan, and his mother came over to visit Mummy when I was there during my summer vacation in 1957.from NDA. Sushil was just 10 and he did not come. May I bask in the assumption, perhaps false, that his mother liked the cadet she met so much that she became favourably inclined to the idea of her son joining the Navy!

In more recent past, Sushil's charming wife, Shirley, and I interacted frequently when she was Editor Quarterdeck.

A lady I was pleasantly surprised to meet was Nisha, wife of late Loveji Mehta. She was visiting her daughter in Gurgaon and was invited to the lunch. That again took me back to my DO days of '64-'65 in the NDA when Loveji, very fond of Western Classical music, used to invite bachelors Subodh Gupta and me to his house and we used to listen to discs sitting on his lawn while Nisha rustled up a Dhanshak lunch. 

On to the nonagenarians. First one miss; Cmde JS Virk and I were shipmates on Trishul in 1969 when he was the Supply Officer and I, Signals Communication Officer. We got along splendidly. After retirement, when I was settling in Delhi and looking for a house, Cmde Virk took me to his flat in 'D' Block Vasant Kunj and was very keen I buy one there. I almost did but finally went for Greenview Apartments, Sector 15A, NOIDA. It was a pity he couldn't come to the lunch as I would have loved to see him.

Being of a vintage close to the nonagenarians, I knew most of them either directly or through my two uncles in the Navy. Cmde KM Kumar and Vinnie Mama (Cmde VK Sharma) did Long 'G' together in Whale Island, Portsmouth, UK, and Vinnie Mama used to tell a story about him. On reaching UK, some of them went shopping for toiletries. Then Lt Kumar was very keen to buy a 'jeebhi' but didn't know how to say it in English. He tried to explain his requirement through physical action which drove the British salesman mad. Finally, Rajapan Bhalla, the seniormost officer, told Kumar to let go and just use the toothbrush for scraping his tongue. 

Shashi Mama (Cdr PK Sharma) and Vice Admiral Heathwood Johnson became good friends when they served together in Cochin, aided by the fact that they shared a UP background. Later, in 1987, Admiral Johnson, then (FOCWF) flying his flag on Udaygiri commanded by Captain Tony Sahney, who was also present at the lunch, visited Manila which was my turf as the Defence Advisor in Singapore accredited to Philippines. Sushil Ramsay was there too as the Admiral's Secretary. The Admiral expressed was very keen to see a popular faith healer on the outskirts of Manila. So off we went to this person's house and passed a long queue of people waiting to be treated by him. In the house we saw scenes the likes of which I had never seen nor, I suppose, will ever see again. A patient apparently with a stomach ailment was called in and told to lie down on a makeshift operating table. The healer proceeded to do something with his bare hands and we saw the patient's guts open up with blood oozing out from his innards. Something was then plucked out from the stomach and thrown after which the tummy was sealed up again with bare hands and the patient told to get up and go. The healer then moved to a patient on a chair and did something similar with his eye. We were witness to the eye being plucked out, treated, put back in place and the patient dismissed. Believe me, all this was done with bare hands and no instruments right in front of us without a squeak from the patients. The faith healer then came and chatted with us for a while before returning to the long line of patients.  

On my return from Singapore in 1988, I was appointed as Officer on Special Duty to the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command, Vice Admiral Tony Jain. I put in my papers seeking premature retirement and he tried to dissuade me but my mind was made up. He invited me to a farewell dinner and that was that. It was only after 2004 when Ruchir went to New York that I really got to know Admiral Jain. We got in touch as he used to come to US to visit his younger daughter who is married to Ajit Jain, the right-hand man of Warren Buffet, the billionaire head of Berkshire Hathaway, a top multinational conglomerate holding company. In 2015, Akhila and I were in New York and were invited by Admiral Jain for 4th of July US Independence Day celebrations at Ajit's beach house on the outskirts of New York. It was a lavish dinner which included many prominent people and the party ended with a display of brilliant fireworks. 4 July is also Akhila's birthday and Tony Jain frequently teases me by saying that he had outdone me by holding such a huge function for my wife's birthday!

Cdr KK Gulati and I were together in Cochin in 1970-71 when he was Secretary to Flag Officer Commanding Southern Naval Area, Rear Admiral Vasu Kamath, and I was Chief Instructor, Signal School. I will forever be indebted to him for his intervention when the Officer-in-Charge Signal School penned a grossly unfair confidential report against me. Cdr Gulati was instrumental in warning me of the OiC's action and getting the Admiral to overwrite the report.

Rear Admiral Ramendra Sharma and I have been the best of friends since 1960 and thereby hangs a tale. Ramen was a young Lieutenant in B&D School, Cochin, when I was living in the South Wardroom during my Sub Lt's courses. One afternoon, a sailor came and told me that Lt Sharma wanted to see me. I wondered why as I did not know him at all. On meeting him, he handed me a telegram from my grandfather that he and grandma were visiting Cochin shortly. Ramen was initially foxed but then correctly guessed that the postman had handed the telegram to the wrong R Sharma and sought me out. And that started a lifelong friendship buttressed by the fact that we have more things in common than just our initials.

AN ITALIAN WINS US OPEN SINGLES TENNIS TITLE AND I AM DELIGHTED

Jannik Sinner, an Italian with an unusual name particularly for someone from a country home to the Pope, has won the US Open Single's title. 

Surprised? One could be as Italians have not known to be world champions at Tennis but are passionate about Football. In 1976, on my first visit to Rome, Italy, my hosts asked me what I would like to do over the weekend. I had read in the papers that an Italian league match was scheduled between Roma and Lazio, so seizing on the opportunity, I said I would love to go and watch that game. My hosts were reluctant as apparently violence often broke out between the two fierce rivals, Roma who considered themselves urban and sophisticated, and Lazio, the regional team sneered at by Romans as lowly rustics. However, sensing my keenness, they took me to the game. 

The packed stadium was divided into two distinct sections of Roma and Lazio supporters. Our seats were chosen in a small neutral corner strategically placed for a quick exit. Throughout the match the crowd was boisterous, the two supporting groups trying to out cheer the other. Fortunately, the match ended peacefully in a goalless draw and my hosts heaved a huge sigh of relief as we made our way cautiously out of the stadium.

More than surprised, I was delighted with an Italian win. I have been fond of Italy right from my childhood days. From the time I started listening to Western music, I was enchanted by the Neapolitan songs sung by the likes of Enrico Caruso, Luciano Pavarotti and presently, blind Andrea Bocelli. "Santa Lucia", "O Sole Mio" and "Torna E Surriento" are timeless classics in an exclusive niche of their own. In more modern times, Jimmy Fontana's "Il Mondo", Emilio Pericoli's "Al Di La" and Umberto Tozzi's "Gloria"  have been unmatched in their appeal to touch one's heart.

And Italian women! The first to catch my attention was the vivacious Anna Magnani referred to as "La Lupa" ot "perennial toast of Rome" who was the first Italian to win the Best Actress Oscar award in 1955. Then came Silvana Magnano dancing her way into our hearts with "Anna", the catchy theme song of "Bitter Rice". Bewitching Sophia Loren was perhaps the most famous of all and won Oscars and Golden Globes but on the lighter side, who can forget her delightful duo with Peter Sellers "Goodness Gracious Me" with the 'boom boody-boom boody-boom boody-boom boody-boom boody-boom boody-boom-boom-boom' line.

I round off the list of women with the ravishing Gina Lollobrigida specially remembering her role with Rock Hudson in "Come September". On the men's side, Marcello Mastroianni is my exclusive favourite not the least because many friends, maybe just to lift my spirits, have said I resembled him!

But it's true that during my trips to Italy, many locals said I could pass as one of them. Brainwashed with all that, I have lured myself into believing I was an Italian in my previous life and always root for Italy in crucial matches. My joy knew no bounds when they won the 1982 World Cup led by the magical Paolo Rossi shortly after my visit to Genoa and Rome that summer.

No wonder then that I was delighted with an Italian victory. Italy did have some outstanding players early on though few and far between. Nicola Pietrangeli won the French title in 1959 and '60 and was world number 3 in those days. Then in 1976, Adriano Panatta won the French Open becoming the first Italian to win a grand slam title in the Open era. The highest rank he reached was No. 4 in '76. 

Italy had to wait 48 years for another grand slam winner when Sinner won the Australian Open. Shortly after, he became the first Italian to reach No. 1 world ranking though he was just 22. And now he is the US Open champion.

At the post match on-court interview after winning the US Open, he was asked, "You came into this tournament saying I am not sure I have very high expectations. For someone with low expectations....how did you get this done over two weeks?" His reply in the usual Italian lisping way, "I did pretty well I guess!"

A CONCERT AT CARNEGIE HALL

Though I have visited New York City many times, I had not attended a concert at the famous Carnegie Hall. It was always on my list but remained an omission till a few days ago.

I first came to know about this great venue for musical concerts more than 60 years ago when on board Khukri, we had a vinyl long playing disc, "Belafonte at Carnegie Hall", which was a recording of Harry Belafonte's live performance in 1959 at the famous Hall.  Belafonte sang many of his hit songs but the one that I shall always remember was "Matilda." A comic number, Belafonte added to the fun by extending it to nearly 13 minutes repeating again and again the catchy and humorous line, "Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela". He got every section of the audience singing that line exhorting them with calls like "Everybody", "Sing out the chorus", "Once again now," "Women over forty", "Sing a little louder", "Sing a little softer", etc. etc. From then on, I wanted to see the venue where he sang the song.

During my present visit, I looked at the events at Carnegie Hall and was happy to find that the National Youth Orchestra (NYO) of the USA was performing there and the program included two pieces I am familiar with, Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" and Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade." That set up the much overdue visit to this Mecca of concert halls.

Carnegie Hall has three auditoriums with the main one named Stern Hall after the famous violinist, Isaac Stern. It has a seating capacity of 2804. The moment Akhila and I entered the auditorium, we were charmed by the elegance of its imposing 6-storey design. For the audience, the seating begins on the ground level called 'Parquet' with 1021 seats. Above that, there are four tiers with the top one, Balcony, reachable by 137 steps. Not to worry, there are elevators so you don't have to climb! The first and second tiers consist of sixty-five boxes and the third tier is the Dress Circle. All four tiers are artistically shaped in an arc of around 300 degrees extending from one corner above the stage all the way back to the rear of the auditorium ending above the other end of the stage.

Soon, the members of the Orchestra made their appearance. The NYO consists of young musicians ages 16-19 from across the USA. It was a delight to see the youngsters trooping in with their instruments looking every bit seasoned and confident. There was at least one member of Indian origin, Rishabh Das, a 16-year old violinist, now a resident of Philadelphia. 

The conductor was an adult, Marin Alsop, well-known and experienced. The program began with Barber's Symphony No. 1, something I was not familiar but found very listenable. And then Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue, for which they wheeled in the biggest piano I have ever seen, a Steinway. It was played by another old-hand, Jean-Yves Thibauder, reputed to be one of the world's finest pianists. The Rhapsody, composed exactly 100 years ago, is like a jazz piano concerto and is particularly popular in the USA because of its American background. No wonder the audience lapped up the gusty playing of Thibauder ably accompanied by the enthusiastic young Orchestra.

An interval and then came the piece I was eagerly looking forward to. "Scheherazade" is one of the early compositions I listened to when I first developed an ear for Western classical music. In the early 1960s, the naval authorities allowed us to buy LP discs through our canteen at discounted prices. My first order of three LPs included "Scheherazade. Of course its composer, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, is very famous but maybe what further attracted me to his works like this one, "Capriccio Espagnol' and "Flight of the Bumblebee", was the fact that he had for a while served in the Russian Navy. His older brother by 22 years was a reputed naval officer and explorer and Nikolai admired him. That explains Rimsky-Korsakov's love for the ocean which is reflected in many of his works particularly in "Scheherazade".

This brings me to a humorous, though perhaps unfair, story Vinnie Mama told me. It was said that in the Russian Navy, Rimsky-Korsakov was reputed to be a poor naval officer but a brilliant musician while in the musical circles, he was known as a poor musician but a great naval officer!

Rimsky-Korsakov based his symphonic suite "Scheherazade" on "Tales From The Arabian Nights" the storyteller of which was the legendary queen who married Sultan Shahryar of Persia. Deceived by his first wife, the Sultan used to bed a new virgin every night and in the morning, chop her head off to prevent her from being unfaithful. When the Sultan picked Scheherazade, she decided to engage him with a story but withheld the ending. Upon the Sultan asking her to complete the story, she said it was late and she would complete it the next night. That night she would complete the story and begin a new one, again keeping the end for the next night. 1000 stories later on the 1001st night, Scheherazade told the Sultan she had no more stories to tell. But by then he had fallen in love with her, spared her life and peacefully drifted off to sleep.

The story is told in musical arrangements with the growling trombone and woodwinds portraying the stern Sultan and a solo violin and harp providing a sensual theme for Scheherazade. The Sultan's theme with the addition of percussion is later used near the end to represent the heaving seas and Sinbad the sailor's shipwreck. Similarly, the two recurring themes, deep and ponderous for the Sultan and light and lyrical for Scheherazade, are interwoven throughout the suite to tell the tales.

All that was superbly performed by the competent teenage artistes mature beyond their years. And in conclusion, unlike most classical pieces which end in a frenzied crescendo, here a solo violinist casts a spell with the soft, dreamy and sensuous Scheherazade theme which would haunt one well into the night.

CAPSIZING OF INS BRAHMAPUTRA

On 21 July, a fire broke out on the Indian Naval Ship, "Brahmaputra", a 3850-tonne missile frigate, while undergoing a refit in the Naval Dockyard at Mumbai. After a long fight, the fire was brought under control but the ship listed to its port side and finally toppled over to lie on its side against the jetty causing much damage to herself. The Navy is hopeful of righting the ship but it will take time, effort and money to salvage the ship and make it operational. 

A Board of Inquiry (BoI) headed by a Rear Admiral has been ordered to look into the incident, find out the causes, affix blame and recommend steps to avoid such incidents in the future. Simultaneously, the Chief of the Naval Staff has set up a special task force to review safety, security and standard operating procedures of Indian Navy.

The incident is a strange one; fires occur and are fought, brought under control quickly or get out of hand to cause much damage and destruction. However, in this case, the fire was doused but so much water was poured into the ship that it caused its listing and capsizing. The matter needs a thorough examination which the BoI would do. 

Subsequently, the Navy shall take corrective steps and punish the guilty.

But the media and armchair critics, with only a layman's knowledge of ships and the Navy and scant information of the incident, are already busy pre-judging the issue, bringing out supposed errors and incompetence, and laying blames on all and sundry from top to bottom of naval personnel. 

Some said Navy should not be losing ships in peacetime. Apart from the false premise of insinuating that too many accidents are happening, it is also like saying that an IAF aircraft should not crash in peacetime. Incidents can be due to age, malfunction or human error. The cause needs to be investigated and corrective and, if required, disciplinary action taken whether in war or in peace. 

The cost of salvaging and repairing the ship will be worked out. Loss of lives, however, is priceless and sadly the ship lost a sailor. We can console ourselves with that number but cannot replace the life lost.  

The present incident is serious and deserves close scrutiny and strict action. That is why we should wait for facts and authentic information to emerge rather than wildly passing judgement and pointing fingers which would only detract from the seriousness of the incident. There should be no fear of a cover-up as the matter is in public knowledge and cannot be hidden. Nor would the Navy wish to do that as it would be aware that sharing its findings and action taken would be in its own interest as the public would know that the Navy has nothing to hide and means business.

This brings to mind an incident which occurred 63 years ago when I had just been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. I was posted on board the frigate "Gomati" and the ship was due for a refit. The naval dockyard had its hands full with other ships and Gomati had to await her turn lying alongside idly. One day in July 1961, our Captain happened to be in the Command Headquarters when a distress message was received from a merchant vessel, "Maharashmi". For some reason which I can't recall, the ship had lost power and was lying helpless at anchor off Port Albert Victor in Gujarat, a few hours of sailing from Bombay.

Eager to be of use rather than inactive alongside, the Captain volunteered to sail to tow Maharashmi back to Bombay. He returned to Gomati a very happy man and ordered the ship to get ready to sail. 

We reached Port Albert Victor in the evening, located Maharashmi, communicated to her that we would take her in tow early morning, and anchored nearby. Our XO (second-in-command) went on the usual night rounds and discovered that there was a hole in the shipside causing water to leak in one of the aft magazines (ammunition compartment). Immediate action was taken to try and seal the leak and pump out water which, however, continued to leak in. After much effort and deliberation, it was decided that we should head back to Bombay independently before the situation worsened. We informed Maharashmi of our decision and set sail to Bombay.

Water continued to pour in faster than we could pump out and the stern of the ship kept going deeper into the sea. Along with stormy monsoon weather and rough seas, this affected the ship's speed which kept slowing down. The ship's staff worked constantly to keep patching up some new leaks and pumping out water. We managed to reach Bombay safely late into the next night with the seawater almost reaching our quarterdeck. We were immediately docked, the water pumped out and the leaks patched up. 

What if Gomati had sunk? ( There would have been casualties- I know there was at least one non-swimmer on board!) Would the ship's staff have been blamed for not knowing what to do in case of a leak? Should the Captain have foreseen that perhaps the ship had a weak hull and would develop leaks and not volunteered to take on the noble task of going to the aid of a stricken ship? Should the Headquarters have foreseen this and not allowed the ship to sail? 

Incidentally, it was finally decided that due to the heavy schedule of Naval Dockyard, Bombay, Gomati would undergo the refit at Garden Reach, Calcutta. After detailed examination, the ship was declared fit and we sailed from Bombay all the way to Calcutta stopping at Cochin, going around Sri Lanka and the choppy Gulf of Mannar on to Madras, and finally reaching our destination without any incident.

P.S. Admiral Chand would recall the Maharashmi incident; as a Lieutenant, he was the Navigating Officer (NO) on Gomati. 

I was the NO on the Bombay-Calcutta trip.

  

 

MY WALK ON SONGS THROUGH CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK

Thousands of people go to the Central Park in New York every day: walkers, runners, strollers, cyclers, picnickers, sightseers, lovers and all. Add one more whenever I am in New York, me. 

Ruchir's apartment being just across the road on the south-west corner of the Park makes it ideal for my evening walk. And I have another reason to do so: the many attractions in the Park make me recall some lovely songs which I hum as I walk by.

What better way to start than entering the Park from 72 W. Street and immediately sight the lovely circular 'Imagine Mosaic' created by masons in Naples as a memorial to The Beatles' John Lennon who was shot dead by a crazy man just 100 yards away. 'Imagine', as everyone knows, was Lennon's most popular song  wistfully dreaming of 'One World'-

"Imagine there's no countries, it isn't hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for, and no religion too....

Imagine all the people, sharing all the world,

You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

I hope someday you'll join us

And the world will live as one."

Imagine Mosaic is part of the 2.5 acre 'Strawberry Fields' which was given that name from The Beatles' number "Strawberry Fields Forever". Walking through the trees and shrubs with beautiful flowers, I hum-

"Let me take you down 'cause I'm going to strawberry fields'

Nothing is real and nothing to get hung about

Strawberry fields forever."

I reach a road, turn left, and soon hear joyful sounds of children enjoying themselves in 'Diana Ross Playground.' Diana Ross and The Supremes were big hits in 1960s and the song I remember, though admittedly not quite matching the mood of the Playground, is "You Keep Me Hanging On", perhaps because it was also sung by my favorite, Tom Jones. "Set me free, why don't you babe, get out of my life, why don't you babe, 'cause you don't really love me, you just keep me hangin' on"!

I reverse direction and on my left is 'Shakespeare Garden' which brings to mind the troubadour singing "What is Youth" in Franco Zeferelli's classic "Romeo and Juliet". And then the 'Cherry Hill Fountain' appears leading to the 'Cherry Park' where Cherry trees blossom in the spring. It is time to recall the 'King of Mambo', Perez Prado and his "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White - 'when your true lover  comes your way'"- with the exceptional undulating trumpet of Billy Regis. 

From Cherry Park and past Bethesda Fountain thronging with visitors playing music and dancing, I reach Conservatory Water and a bronze sculpture depicting characters from the Lewis Carroll classic "Alice in Wonderland". Nearby is a statue of Hans Christian Andersen with his hat by his side and reading his story "The Ugly Duckling" to, who else, a duckling! I remember the movie with Danny Kaye playing the main part and singing "I'm Hans Christian Andersen" and "Thumbelina-'What's the difference if you're very small, when your heart is full of love, you're nine feet tall.'"

Time to turn South and head for 'The Mall'. Though it is also called a 'Literary Walk', The Mall has a musical beginning from this end. On the right is a bust of Beethoven and I think of a light, short piece "Fur Elise" or, in a more serious mood, "Ode To Joy" which is the highlight of his 9th Symphony. 

Right opposite is 'Naumburg Bandshell' which provides the stage for concerts throughout the year. It has also featured in many movies, notably in the sweet "Breakfast At Tiffany's". And so I launch into-

"Moon River, wider than a mile, I'm crossing you in style someday....

Two drifters off to see the world, there's such a lovely world to see,

We're after the same rainbow's end, waiting 'round the bend....

Moon river and me."

At the end of The Mall is a statue of the Scottish poet, Robert Burns. Whether familiar with his poems or not, all of us know his famous work “Auld Lang Syne" which we unfailingly sing to bring in every new year.

Across the road and at the southern end of the Park, there is 'Wollman Rink', a popular venue for ice skating in winter and currently, in summer, for a new game I see for the first time, 'Pickleball', which seems akin to Tennis on a smaller and Table-Tennis on a larger scale. But I will always remember the Rink for its featuring in the heart-rending movie, "Love Story". The scene showed the two young lovers having fun in the ice rink with Francis Lai's 'Skating Theme' playing in the background. And if you think of "Love Story", would you be able to resist humming its beautiful theme, "Where Do I Begin"?

A turnaround to the interior of the Park brings me to the kids' favorite, 'Carousel', with beautifully painted handmade horses. I recall the Broadway musical of the same name with the unforgettable song "If I Loved You" and the emotional theme, ‘The Carousel Waltz’, which, like a carousel, goes round and round and up and down in my head.. 

A little further up, in the "Sheep Meadow" is the "Nell Singer Lilac Walk" which is a narrow path through a small grove of lilac trees with varieties from all over the world. At the height of its popularity in mid-1950s, there were many nice versions of the song "When the White Lilacs Bloom Again" and the best for me was by Lawrence Welk And His Sparkling Strings which invoked visions of bubbly champagne while admiring the lilacs.

It's been quite a walk and near the exit is "Tavern On The Green". I sit down and order a drink thinking of Mary Hopkin and her nostalgic "Those Were The Days":

"Once upon a time there was a tavern, where we used to raise a glass or two,

Remember how we laughed away the hours, think of all the great things we would do.

Those were the days my friend, we thought they'd never end, we'd sing and dance forever and a day

We'd live the life we choose, we'd fight and never lose, for we were young and sure to have our way...

Just tonight I stood before the tavern, nothing seemed the way it used to be,

In the glass I saw a strange reflection, was that lonely woman really me?"

And finally, a really old song which had its origin in 1883, "There's A Tavern In The Town "- 

"....where my true love sits him down, sits him down,

 And drinks his wine as merry as can be, and never, never thinks of me.

Fare thee well for I must leave thee, do not let this parting grieve thee

And remember that the best of friends must part, must part.

Adieu, adieu kind friends adieu, adieu, adieu,

I can no longer stay with you, stay with you

I will hang my harp on a weeping willow tree,

And may the world go well with thee."

ZURICH 2.0

A second trip to Zurich wasn't really on the cards; it just worked out that way. 

Akhila and I had ticked off Zurich on our list of travel destinations after a visit, albeit a short one, in 1987. Then this year, Shiven qualified for a 3-week Creative Writing course in Columbia University, New York, and Shumita made plans to visit US with her two boys. She wanted us to come and Ruchir insisted that we should also be in New York with them. He said he would book us by Swissair via Zurich and that tempted us to take a  break there. Ruchir, who loves Switzerland and has made a number of business trips there, has a good friend, Natasha, in Zurich and organised a car driven by Mahu-ud-Din, originally from Pakistan, for our stay.

Mahu-ud-Din met us at the airport on our arrival on a Sunday morning and drove us to our hotel, Mandarin Oriental, centrally located near the south-west bank of Limmat river which starts from Lake Zurich on the southern side of the city and flows northwards. That afternoon, Natasha met us and took us on a short walking tour by the bank of Limmat. It reminded us of our '87 visit when we had roamed around the same area and seen the (same?!) white swans swimming in Limmat. Our tour ended with a climb up to the hilltop park, Lindenhof, from where we could get a panoramic view of the old town of Altstadt, the 12th century twin-towered Grossmunster Church and the Limmat River. On that Sunday afternoon, Lindenhof was crowded as it is a favourite meeting point of people particularly chess players who flock to play the game in the serene surroundings.

We walked back to the hotel and as it was early enough, Natasha said we could do some out-of-town sightseeing that evening. So Mahu-ud-Din drove the three of us to the famous Rhine Falls, just over an hour away from Zurich. The Falls are the most powerful waterfalls in Europe with a height of 75 feet and width 490 feet near the border with Germany. The river flow is spectacular from a viewing platform accessed from the Laufen Castle which also houses a restaurant where we sat down to have a much needed Cappuccino.

On the way back, we took a detour to visit the ancient village, Stein am Rhine. Unfortunately, it started raining and became dark, so we headed back to Zurich and I made a mental note to visit the village on a later date if we had the time.

Natasha's Swiss husband, Adrian, joined us on our return to Zurich and they took us out to a lavish all-vegetarian buffet dinner which had the largest number of vegetarian dishes I have ever seen. Incidentally, Natasha has a Swiss mother and an Indian father and I was reminded of one Group Captain Sabhaney who did the NDC course in 1966 when I was there. The Group Captain had a Swiss wife and I wondered if there was any connection but there wasn't.

It had been raining a lot but we woke up in the morning to a fairly clear day. Mahu-ud-Din suggested we go to Engelberg for a cable car trip up Mount Titlis. We reached Engelberg in just over an hour and got into the cable car which took us to Trubsee, Stand and finally the summit of Klein Titlis above the glacier at an altitude of 10000 feet. We got out of the enclosed area where it was freezing cold at -5 degrees C. Fortunately, Mahu-ud-Din had lent me a jacket and Akhila had prudently rented one at a shop while buying the tickets. We then got into a rotating cable car, the first in the world, for a fascinating panoramic view of the peaks, glaciers and valleys. Back at the cable car station, we got into an illuminated glacier cave, actually inside a glacier, which was a unique but a shivering and slippery experience!

Outside the station there is a lifesize cardboard cutout of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol from their popular old movie "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge". This was Yash Chopra's favourite film shooting site and there is a shop selling souvenirs from his films. In fact, the place seems to have been taken over by Indians with restaurants and cafes serving Indian fare and many visitors from homeland.

We too had a bite there and then got into the cable car for the trip back. We took a break at Trubsee for a walk along the tranquil lake before returning to Engleberg.

Lucerne was not too far out of the way so I requested Mahu-ud-Din to take a little detour. We drove around the town looking at some traditional frescoed buildings and came to the big 'Welcome' gate opposite the train station. We walked to the Lucerne lake and the wooden Chapel Bridge dating back to the 14th century repeating what we had done in 1987. Once again, we were greeted by many graceful and friendly swans swimming in the lake.  

Having got our money's worth, happy but exhausted, we headed back to Zurich. 

The next day, Natasha advised us to go to Liechtenstein, again about an hour's drive from Zurich. Sound advice as it satisfied my ego of a self-styled traveller ticking off a new country. Officially named Principality of Liechtenstein, the country is the fourth smallest in Europe after the Vatican City, Monaco and San Marino, and the sixth smallest, after Nauru and Tuvalu, of all recognized countries in the world. It is just 25 kms long and 160 sq. kms. in area with a population of 39790. It is also the smallest country in the world to share a border with two countries, Switzerland and Austria. Boasting of the highest GDP per person in the world when adjusted for purchasing power parity, it is no wonder that its citizens are quite content with their independence and the tiny size of their country.

We visited its capital Vaduz which has as its landmark a medieval castle on top of a mountain peak overlooking the city. The head of state, Prince of Liechtenstein. resides here. With its origin dating back to the 12th century, it was expanded in the 17th century and underwent a major restoration in the early 20th century. We also saw the beautiful St. Florin Cathedral and the Planken municipality before bidding goodbye to Liechtenstein. In three hours including a break for lunch, we probably covered more than half of the country!

On the way back, we had decided to see the Lindt chocolate factory in Zurich but, en route, Mahu-ud-Din first took us to another famous one, Laderach. We did a quick round, tasting and buying before landing up at Lindt. It was a fascinating tour starting at a big chocolate fountain in the main hall. More tasting and buying and our tour was complete.

I don't think I had ever visited a chocolate factory till December 2022. Since then, in the last 1 1/2 years, we have done four: two small ones in Puducherry and Munnar, and now the giants, Lindt and Laderach. 

On the final day of our stay, we took the toy train, reminiscent of Simla and Darjeeling, for a 20-minute ride to Uetilberg mountain, which is the highest point in Zurich 451 metres above the city. To get to the top from the railway station, it is a 68 m. climb but worth the effort for a spectacular panoramic view of the whole of Zurich and its lake. To take in the scenery at leisure, there is enough seating all around and a hotel and restaurant for refreshments.

We were finished with Uetilberg early in the afternoon so I seized the opportunity to fulfill my desire to go back to Stein am Rhein and am glad we did. The small village, all of 6 sq kms with more than 75% of land used for agricultural purposes and forestry, lies by the banks of River Rhine.  The main street is like a fairyland with beautifully painted buildings dating back to the 12th century. No vehicles are permitted on the street and the river bank and the frescoes adorning the facade of the buildings are cute and lovable. The river bank is lined up with restaurants and cafes filled with tourists. And, of course, the white swans are here too!

Reluctantly, we left the village and drove back to Zurich. With the late summer sunset, there was time enough for a farewell stroll on the streets seeing the 853 A.D. Fraumunster Church distinguished by its green clocktower and famous for stained-glass windows by Marc Chagall added in 1970, the imposing Zurich Opera House, the high-end shopping street Bahnhofstrasse, and more swans in the Limmat.

Next morning, Mahu-ud-Din took us to the airport for our flight to Miami. He had been good company for the last 4 days keeping us entertained during the long drives with stories of his own adventurous life, three wives though not at the same time, and his views on the political situation in Pakistan. Right till he saw us off checking in at the airport, he was insistent that we stop over in Zurich on our way back to India with him making all arrangements. 

There surely is a lot more to Zurich than had met our eye at first sight.

LES SAVEURS DE LA FRANCE (THE FLAVOURS OF FRANCE)

Geography in school taught me that there was a country called France. Then I studied European history in which France played a major role. Two famous quotes from my history book are still fresh in my mind. Louis XV famously declared, "Apres moi, le deluge." Yes, I give a damn what happens after I'm gone!

The other one is probably even more famous- Marie Antoinette, the queen of France during the French Revolution, when apprised of the fact that the peasants had no bread to eat, is supposed to have said, "Let them eat cake." Nobody is certain whether she actually said so or not, but the words have been attributed to her to highlight the ignorance of the royalty of the hardships faced by ordinary French citizens of those times.

In the National Defence Academy, I studied French in my final year. I remember Mr. Paul, our teacher, acquainting us with the finer nuances of the language such as every noun having a gender and that the last consonant of a word is not pronounced unless the next word begins with a vowel in which case the consonant is conjoined with the vowel- 'Voulez vous?' 'Mais oui!' After the NDA, I lost touch with the language but can recognise some words and phrases to make sense of a written piece. I am glad that Shumita achieved a high level in French by studying at the Alliance Francaise in Delhi and can be my translator when required.

The radio introduced me to French songs. Among the earliest I remember are "La Mer" by Charles Tenet composed in 1943 during a train journey in South of France and Edith Piaf's "La Vie En Rose" written in 1945 to alleviate the mood of the French during World War II.

Originally a French hit, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and all well-known singers of those days, recorded their own version of the sweet, chic number, "Mademoiselle de Paris", aptly describing a French maiden-

"She's so chic and adorable

No one thinks it deplorable

When men all turn around just to see

Mademoiselle de Paree.

Ooh la la, oui oui oui

She's the spirit of spring in Paree."

Another French song, "Les Feuilles Morte" was popularised by Nat King Cole as "Autumn Leaves." Over the years, I have been enjoying Michel Legrand's compositions such as the sweet "I Love Paris", the haunting "I Will Wait For You" from "The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg" and "Windmills Of Your Mind", the theme from "The Thomas Crown Affair." Then there are Francis Lai's enchanting themes from "Un Homme Et Une Femme" and "Love Story", and Paul Mauriat's brilliant instrumental rendition of "L'amour Est Bleu."

I read some French fiction, translated into English, of course, but it gave me an insight into French history as well as their way of life and customs including the dreaded guillotine! I loved Alexandre Dumas' classics "The Three Musketeers", "The Count Of Monte Cristo" and "The Black Tulip". Victor Hugo was another favourite with "Les Miserables" and "The Hunchback Of Notre Dame." Jules Verne, 'father of science fiction', was ahead of his time with "Around The World In 80 Days" and "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea." "Cyrano de Bergerac" by Edmond Rostand was a heart-rending romance of a man in love but too shy to reveal his identity to his lover because of his extraordinarily long nose.

Movies and musical plays based on these books have been big hits too. 

Two Francoises grabbed my attention in late 1950s-'60s.  The first was an 18-year old author, Francoise Sagan, who made waves with her first book, "Bonjour Tristesse". The book was controversial but a gripping portrait of a coming-of-age girl aged 17 and her complex relationship with her father. It made Sagan famous and she followed it up with other popular books including "A Certain Smile" which was adapted into a film starring Rossano Brazzi and Christine Carere, an actress little known outside France. The story was of a teenage girl falling for a much older man. The theme song by Johnny Mathis went to the top of all music charts and was a personal favourite of mine.

The second Francoise was a young singer, Francoise Hardy. I was on Trishul when we visited Kuwait. We were invited to a party hosted by some young Palestinians who had a huge collection of music. There I heard Hardy for the first time and was enchanted by her voice. She also sang in English and I bought an LP with the unforgettable song "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" that keeps constantly reverberating in my ears.

In 1963, my ship Khukri visited Pondicherry. A visit to the French Quarter gave some idea of life in a French city. It was also my first introduction to the famous French bread, the long 'baguette'!

Still, it was only through movies that I could see France. "The Last Time I Saw Paris" starring two budding actors in Elizabeth Taylor and Roger Moore along with Van Jonson was a heart-rending tragedy with the haunting theme song sung by Odette. Another hit movie was the musical, "An American In Paris" with six Oscars to its credit including Best Picture. Gene Kelly was super with his tap dancing ably accompanied by Leslie Caron. A few years later came "Gigi", another superb musical winning the Best Picture award and 8 other Oscars. Its cast was mainly French with Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan and the one and only Maurice Chevalier. Who can forget his lovely song, "I'm Glad I'm Not Young Any More"?

Meanwhile two young stars were earning enormous popularity in France and beyond. Alain Delon with his striking good looks was winning female hearts. For men, there was Brigitte Bardot, the ultimate oomph girl. In "Doctor At Sea", she was brilliant, charming Dirk Bogarde with"Je Ne Sais Pas", 'there are many things I don't know but I do know this, that I love you love you love you, je ne sais.'

My first visit to France took place in 1982. I had been sent by NHQ to the Italian Naval Exhibition in Genoa, Italy. Our stay included a weekend and a local Indian friend offered to take me on a car drive to Cote d'Azur, the French Riviera. So we travelled through Monte Carlo and Nice to Cannes and St. Tropez and looked to spend the night there. It was the peak of summer and we could not find a hotel with a vacant room and kept driving on to Toulon and Marseilles. Still no luck, so we turned back and went inland a bit and soon found two rooms. 

The next day, it was a drive back with a few hours on the beaches of St. Tropez, Cannes and Monte Carlo. The drive along the sea coast was beautiful and reminded me of the car scenes in Alfred Hitchcock's "To Catch A Thief" with the difference that the car in the movie had Cary Grant and Grace Kelly with a love interest whereas we were just two males, simply friends! I made a mental note to correct that in the future. 

A visit to Paris materialised only in 1987. I was posted in Singapore as the Defence Attache and Akhila and I embarked on a trip to UK and Europe. Our 3-day stay in Paris was hectic as we wanted to cover all the famous tourist spots, Eiffel Tower and River Seine, Arc de Triomphe, a walk up and down Champs Elysees looking at famous designer shops such as Chanel, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Prada and many more, Louvre Museum with the sculpture 'Venus de Milo', and perhaps the most famous painting in the world, Leonardo da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa', Notre-Dame Cathedral, Moulin Rouge, and Versailles Palace and Garden. Phew!!!

The promised corrective action during the earlier trip to the French Riviera was executed with Ruchir organising a trip for Akhila and me in 2018. We spent four days based in Monte Carlo and going around Nice, Cannes and St. Tropez along with some smaller towns like Antibes, inland villages and vineyards.

Vive la France and hopefully, au revoir.

Tailpiece or pieces: During our stay in Paris, our host accompanied us for shopping. On return to his small car, we found two big limousines, one in front and one at the back, with almost no space for our host to manoeuvre his car out. Unperturbed, he started the car, put full wheel on one side and reversed till he hit the rear car. Then he put the wheel on the other side and drove forward hitting the front vehicle. He repeated these manoeuvres 4-5 times till he managed to eke his car out of the parking. Content, he drove on quite unconcerned at the damage and the hanging tailpiece of the car ahead.

 

Was that a typical French way of muscling out of tight spots? Maybe or maybe not. Our host was an Indian!