Sport on Scratch Survey.
As part of my Dissertation Production, I have set up a survey to find out what sports fans want from radio sports shows. Sport on Scratch is a new sports show for Scratch Radio and we would be interested to hear your thoughts on radio sports shows.
The long wait to go to India for the first time finally came to an end on July 20th 2010.
As the years ticked by, the wait continued and I was actually thinking to myself will I ever get the chance to go.
My first ever experience of India might have lasted for only two weeks but it will be fourteen days I can look back at with fond memories.
It was also my Sister’s first experience of India and she loved it (Despite the fact she was scared of the lizards that she saw at our Grandmother’s home in Samapur)! My Father had been two years ago and it was my Mother’s first visit to India in 25 years.
We spent three nights in Delhi including one in Jaipur before heading to my hometown Samapur.
Lucky
Ahead of my flight to India, I was told to keep an open mind of what to expect and some of the things I saw on the way to the hotel from Delhi airport was in some way a reality check. This was only Day 1!
Life On The Street
Actually seeing children as well as families living on the streets made me realise how lucky and grateful I am to be living in a home that has clean water, central heating etc. If I had to live like them I don’t think I would last one day never mind two weeks.
As well as fulfilling my career ambitions, I would love to help those who do live in poverty not only in India but also across the globe if given the opportunity. It’s just not fair that people have to live in poor conditions. Why couldn’t the world be a better place hey?
It’s fair to say that it was pretty humid and when I got off the plane at Delhi the humidity hit me straight away.
Tiredness
Within an hour after arriving at the hotel, we were back on the road. We went to Akshardam temple, Gateway of India as well as the President’s Palace.
The architecture within the temple at Akshardam was out of this world and to be honest with you it is difficult to put it into words in terms of how to describe it. Unfortunately photography was prohibited so I was not able to take any photos.
We spent at least 2-3 hours there and we were not disappointed with what we saw. Just a shame I was not able to take any photos. The Gateway of India is without doubt a popular place for tourists and I was able to take some pretty good snaps.
Presidential Palace
Gateway of India
To end the day, we went to Rashtrapati Bhavan (President’s Palace). Overall a decent but tiring day.
The next day we left the hotel at 6:00 am to go to Haridwar. I slept through most of the four hour journey since I was really tired. Just as we arrived at Haridwar the heavens opened and it started to rain heavily. Just exactly what I needed after getting up at 5:00am!
We were trying to find a cable car that went to the Mansi Devi Mandir near the top of the town. It would have taken us an hour to get to the Mandir if we walked it but since my Sister was feeling tired we had no other choice but to get the cable car.
Close Up Of Gateway Of India
Dad decided to go along a street that was totally flooded when looking for the cable car. End Result = Trainers get soaked as well as my socks! Thanks.
Eventually we did find the cable car and we got to the Mandir. Just as we left Haridwar, we did see the River Ganga and Mum and Dad decided to soak their feet in the river.
To cap off Day 2: Not a bad day but my trainers and socks were totally drenched!
Sweat
We arrived in Jaipur, Rajasthan, the following day and it was a scorcher. It was a really hot day and at the end of the day I have to admit I was drained. I could not stop sweating for the whole day.
We went to the Amber Fort and the scenery was second to none. The architecture yet again was amazing. We did have a tour guide and he came across as very knowledgeable about the places we went to in Jaipur in my opinion anyway. Not sure what the rest of my family thought of him.
Thankfully we were in Jaipur that week because it was raining the following week and there was even flooding.
Overall impressions of Jaipur and Rajasthan: Personally I was impressed with what I saw. Plenty of history about Jaipur that kept me interested and I would recommend people go there because it is a beautiful city. If I had the opportunity again I would go back and spend more time there.
Finally to cap off our mini tour, we went to Agra to visit one of the world’s most famous attractions: The Taj Mahal. Yet again we had another tour guide who proved to know his stuff.
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal
Like Jaipur, there is a lot of history based around the Taj Mahal and no wonder it is popular tourist spot. Once again the architecture was phenomenal and visiting the Taj Mahal was the highlight of the tour.
It was another scorching day and I ended up sweating like I had never done before. Despite the heavy rain in Haridwar, I thoroughly enjoyed the mini tour and I definitely want to go back to India and tour other parts of the country.
Uncomfortable
It was now time to head towards my hometown of Samapur. We caught the morning flight from Delhi to Mumbai and then our relatives picked us up from the airport to take us to Samapur.
The car journey was long and the roads were not great either which made our journey longer. I have never seen so many potholes in my life! To be honest I will not even attempt to drive in India because of this as well as another reason.
The way people drive in India is beyond belief. If there was a driver in another lane and he/she saw half a car length between you and the car in front then they would try and get into that gap.
Even if the gap was a couple of inches then they would try and get into it. That is how manic it is! I could so easily write an essay on how people drove in India but I’m sure that would bore you.
The constant beeping of horns was worse than the vuvuzelas at this years FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
Samapur
Like my Sister, I have to admit I was worried about going to my Grandmother’s home in terms of what to expect.
But the house turned out to be better than I expected even though there were a lot of insects. 
To keep the insects and mosquitoes away from me whilst I slept, I had a mosquito net put up so none of the creepy crawlies could get in. It worked a treat! With the mosquito net as well as the fan right above me, I was able to sleep well.
My Sister as well as my Mum jumped every time they saw a lizard. I didn’t exactly jump when I saw one but I did move away.
We did do our fair bit of shopping in Navsari but I ended up staying at home for most of the time. I remember one of the days, I was bored out of my mind whilst in Navsari and I spent 4-5 hours doing zilch.
Shop assistants as well as other individuals I found out are very persistent which was very frustrating. Classic example of this was when you don’t want to go into a shop and yet the assistant/shopkeeper will continue to persuade you.
One of the evenings I went to see some of my relatives by going in a rickshaw. It was daylight when we were going there but when we were going back home it was pitch black. I was scared going back home in the dark in a rickshaw. But I still got home and that’s all that mattered.
My Grandma’s food was very spicy to start with but towards the end of the week it started to become less spicy much more to my liking. Food was great don’t get me wrong but it was too spicy at times.
The TV only had two channels so I ended up watching DVD’s when I was bored. One of the channels was a 24/7 news channel similar to BBC News 24, Sky News etc so I was able to keep up with the latest international news.
On the penalutimate day, we went to a prawn farm that was close to our home. It was actually quite interesting and I didn’t think I would say that. This will sound crazy but I held a live prawn! How stupid does that sound!
Reflection
I had a great time in India and will take many memories away from my time there. But at the same time I did want to get back to the UK. Mainly because I missed two Grand Prix’s despite the fact I knew who won them and saw brief highlights!
When I look back at the two weeks, as well as it being a holiday it was also for me a reality check. It just made me realise and appreciate that I do have a house and that I have loving parents as well as an irritating but sweet Sister.
There are children as I saw in India who have to fend for themselves and this just made me want to cry. Like I said earlier I would love to do something that would help the homeless and those who live in poverty.
The stewardesses on Kingfisher Airlines were pretty good looking too. Flights to Delhi and London were fine. Still a bit tired but I will recover soon.
It does feel good to be back in England and hopefully I will have a great second half of 2010.
What an exciting experience! I took part in my first ever podcast and to be honest it could have been so much worse. The podcast itself actually went quite well although there were one or two blips.
Since I am focusing on the Technology side of things for Birmingham Recycled, our podcast focused on our specialist subject. Those who were also covering Technology took part in the podcast. We discussed three main issues in the lead up to Birmingham 2026 (Cars, Buses and Wind). This campaign will aim to make Birmingham the first UK city to have a low-carbo energy infrastructure.
The first issue we talked about was cars and how they were being scrapped. We also looked at how West Midlands Police were now starting to use electric cars. Based on this we made points about the fact that these are cars for the future and manufacturers are starting to take note of what other manufacturers are doing.
The second issue we tackled was buses. We came up with ideas based on the fact that double deckers should only be used during the rush hour in the mornings and evenings as well as when students go to school/college etc. We also asked the question whether buses are essential in the late evenings.
The final issue focused on wind. The Wind and Energy Association have said that wind could power half of UK homes by 2020 and this led us onto a discussion about whether this is a good or bad thing and how it may have an effect on the people of Birmingham. We also touched on the fact that Mitsubishi have introduced plans to test the largest wind turbines in the world.
The only negative of the podcast was that when we got on to one issue, we did not say anything for about a minute until someone made a point. Apart from that, the podcast went pretty well.
Out edited version will be available to listen to online soon.
My second article is complete! Yippee! Managed to get some really good quotes from the officer I spoke to yesterday. Hopefully I might be able to write another article before the weekend. Who knows.
Anyway here is my latest article for Birmingham Recycled ‘Electric cars ‘a hit’ with the police‘
Hope you like it and let me know what you think. Are electric/green cars, cars for the future?
Having come across some interesting articles during the week, there are one or two stories that I might try and chase up on.
My first inital idea is based on Mitsubishi’s attempts to test the largest wind turbines in the world. This story broke out on Sky News last Thursday. I am considering getting in touch with Mitubishi dealers in Birmingham/West Midlands to see whether they can provide me with some more information about this issue and get their own perspective. 200 jobs are set to be made available and I could try and see how this may have an effect on people in Birmingham (this may be difficult). Personally I feel there is potential with this story. Only time will tell.
Click the following link to find out more. ‘Mitsubishi and Wind Turbines‘
Huge sigh of relief after my first article has now been published on Birmingham Recycled. Hope you like it.
Hiya all!
I came across some really interesting articles associated with the ‘Technology’ side of the enviornment. Firstly, the government have come up with an initiative to make Britain’s homes greener and have made £17 million available to test different low-carbon housing technologies in projects in the UK. If you want to find out more visit the following link: http://bit.ly/ccTn1R
Another article I found interesting was Mitsubishi’s attempts to find several sites in the UK to build a factory to test the largest wind turbines in the world. 200 jobs would be created if this plan materialises. Follow the link to read more about it: http://bit.ly/auHGa6
Let me know what you think. Reading these articles may provide some inspiration for stories. Hope this helps.
Local car dealerships, green technologies, eco homes etc are some of the issues I will be tackling for Birmingham Recycled.
I will be using this website to blog about Technology for Birmingham Recycled.
