Singh & the Windy City

 “ Welcome Mr Singh,  I think you have come at the BEST time to visit Chicago!” , the taxi driver told me , on my way from Airport to Chicago downtown. I smiled back at him and then at myself, as the taxi vroomed into the Chicago skyline and my heart skipped a beat. I was feeling excited and amused about my amazing tryst with this  city. I had landed at Chicago Airport three times earlier (2007 – 2009) but never got a chance to go out of the confines of the terminal and explore the city.

Call it sweet co-incidence, having joined Capgemini last July, I was on-boarded into the CNA account and was part Knowledge Transition program to be conducted from CNA Office in Chicago.

“ Summers is the most celebrated time in Chicagoland ! “ I was told. Indeed, it was a celebration of life. During my twin trips within a span of 3 months, I fell in love with ‘She-Ka-Go’, the Windy City ! 

Free musical concerts at Millenium Park ; Having Coffee at the 94^th floor of Hancock Tower, award winning Broadway shows at iconic Chicago theatre ; sun , surf and sand at the North Avenue beach ; fun, frolic and splash at the interactive Crown Fountain; making friends ‘on-the-way’ home;  watching the maverick ‘Blue Man Grroup’ at the Briar Street Theatre, going back  in time to watch ‘Sue’ the largest dinosaur at the Field Musuem of Natural History, watching sea life at the Shedd Aquarium, enjoying the best view of the skyline at Adler lakeside and picturing myself as the King of Chicagoland against the backdrop of majestic and historic Buckingham Fountain...are some of the memories that are still vivid in my heart.  

I feel lucky to have experienced the most amazing things that this city had to offer, both during the my first trip in summer (July-August) and then shortly after in fall (October-November). Through this pages, I relive some of those magic moments.

Drop Zone @ Chicago Air and Water show. The Chicago Air & Water Show was the most spectacular surprise event for me. It was thrilling to see over a million people packed on to the shores of Lake Michigan to witness the free extravaganza.  The day before the show starts was the “practice day” and in downtown could hear jets roaring overhead!  And during the show, there was sun, sand and some jaw dropping aerial acrobatics. 

An evening @ John Hancock center :  Soaring at 1,000 feet above the Windy City it offered breathtaking views of the city and lake.  Having Coffee at the 94^th floor and watching the sun go down on the Chicago horizon and the lights lit up the city below was like once in a lifetime experience!

Salsa @Chicago Summer Dance Festival : Walking back home one evening , I noticed a huge crowd  swinging at the Spirit of Music Garden in Grant Park on S. Michigan Avenue, hardly two blocks from CNA building. As I stood there capturing the revelry, a lady approached me and asked me sweetly, ‘Shall We Dance?”.I was on cloud number nine for the next one hour as I practised Salsa with her, trying to match her grace and perfection and in the process, living my ‘dance’ dream! 

Sunday Game @ Wrigley Field :  One of the oldest  baseball stadium that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916 named after chewing gum magnate, William Wrigley, Jr. Though I never followed the game , I wanted to enjoy the atmosphere in this iconic stadium. So I booked my ticket for a Sunday game and Voila ! I was amidst the crowd ,right from the train station where I boarded to my seat inside the stadium.  It was more like a picnic for families with fun, laughter, music and food mixed with the excitement of live action baseball. That was a pure’ American ‘ experience.

Unforgettable Chicago river n lake tour : The signature’ Wandella’ boat tour provided unique perspectives of the magnificent buildings and architecture along the Chicago River before venturing out to Lake Michigan where guests are treated to a rich view of the entire skyline. Apparently, for the odd 90 minute tour, I felt ‘transported’ into a different time-zone with panoramas that would remain etched forever in my mindscape.

On Top of USA @ Willis Tower : How does it feel to stand on all-glass boxes and look through the floor to the street 1,353 feet (412 m) below? Heart-stopping! For a moment, you might feel you are walking, on air and at that height; you are literally on the top of the tallest building in USA, which in fact was the tallest in the world a few years back! And what breathtaking views of the city and beyond: matchless!

Go A Little Overboard @ Navy pier :  From spectacular firework displays that lit up the night with color and sound  to the dashing Cirque Shanghai acrobatics, to the ride up on the giant ferris wheel,Navy Pier is host to an unparalleled array of events and entertainment including jugglers, magicians, marching bands, as well as cultural groups performing music and dance. In my 3 visits to this lakefront playground, I was overwhelmed by its sheer vivacity !

Falling in Love with Fall :  Amazing how in a short interval of less than 2 months the city had got into a new look and on my return to Chicago during October –November , the trees and leaves had changed color, there was chill in the air and the wind often whipped off from Lake Michigan. All this made me fall in love all over again with this beautiful colors of life . Some of the hues near the Cloud Gate (the Bean) structure and the Lincoln Park were breathtaking !

The BA@ CNA : One of the most common questions one gets around here is, "Hey! What's that big red building in the middle of the Chicago skyline?" Well, the answer is CNA Center.
It's not a massive structure but its position on Wabash Avenue, set back just one block from Michigan Avenue and the vast greenspace of Grant Park, makes it stand out like a fire alarm in the skyline.

“Where Do yo work”?

“Over there!” I could stand anywhere in downtown and point towards the ‘Red’  building with pride.

And inside CNA , I took pride in representing Capgemini  as the team who took the challange to transition one of the toughest applications in the shortest time frames , and that too , straight from the horses mouth!

Despite the strict KT schedule and the constant pressure to ‘learn and deliver’, I think our efforts paid off and for me, those interactions with some of the leaders and the SMEs resulted in strenthening the relationship as well as the confidence needed in such client –engagement. 

Well, it turned out to be an  amazing rendezvous  with this city and its wonderful people for me during both my short trips.

 My smile never ceases as I fondly recall those memories .  

“Mr Singh, One photo please ?!“

“Sure ! , My Pleasure !”

(To Chicago, With Love).

The Last Letter !

Letters to Juliet

I think in the conventional hum-drum of typical Hollywood rom-coms, this particular story comes like a whiff of fresh air. There is a beauty in its depiction, an almost lyrical flow of events and ofcoure, no matter how many times we have might have seen a pre-ordained ending; its treatment is quite flavoured in this movie. 

The story was nicely paced, the de-tour to Italy and its various scenic panoramas coupled with an engaging background music kept the interest alive till the last frame.

All most all the characters have given a superb performance. Amanda as the fact-checker turned letter-writer turned ‘search’ assistant, Sophie, is super-cute; I could not really take my eyes off her in the entire screenplay, while Vanessa Redgrave redefines grace and glamour at her age.  The male leads have nothing much to deliver except sticking to their dialogues as demanded by the script; however Christopher Egan as Charlie does get  to play the hard as nuts yet soft as a softie tight-lipped ‘realist’ Brit boy. And no, I didn’t like his chemistry with Amanda, even as they enacted ‘miss-the-kiss’ coy. 

The message of the story, that ‘true love’ survives, almost manages to convincingly make its way into our heart, despite the cliché’s. There are some beautiful moments where it resonates and tickles, leaving memories untwined. You almost become the part of the search and revel with joy at the re-union of Claire and Lorenzo. Interestingly, Vanessa Redgrave who plays Claire and Franco Nero who plays Lorenzo are both real life couple. It feels amazing how both actors live their character on-screen with such finesse and conviction. 

However, the only glitch I found was the turn of events that happen between Sophie and Charlie. During the search for the original Lorenzo, it was clearly made evident that Sophie had a void with her boyfriend, Victor, and that she would eventually get attracted to the un-despicable boyish charm of Charlie. But whether this attraction would replace her commitment for Victor, was surely the surprise I dint wait to watch. I did not find her reason convincing enough to leave Victor and go back to Charlie. And by the way, what was that “cousin with the same girlfriend name”, Patricia, doing in that scheme of thing? It might seem romantic, this part of the ‘true’ love story, but personally I was disappointed.

Question one :, when she choose Victor as her boyfriend, presuming she was madly in love with him , despite his imperfections, even planning a honeymoon without a wedding, how can she dump him like that , saying “I have changed” ?

Question two : Now that , destiny (read marriage invitation)  brings her back to meet Charlie, how does she convince me , that he is going to be his true and ultimate love and she is not going to dump him , let’s say, unless she finds another charmer lurching around ?

I would have rated it very high, almost on the lines of ‘The Notebook’, had it retained its purity and originality. It did, almost to a certain extent, by showing us the tradition of writing letters to Juliet and waiting for fifty long years to get an answer and then, like a vagabond, searching for your love with an undying faith.

Only, yeah, if only, it didn’t do the theatrical staging of Romeo and Juliet in Juliet’s balcony in the end, in the form of Sophie and Charlie and that entire masquerade thrown around.

Till that point, I had enjoyed a beautiful romantic movie. Suddenly I realized, it was a comedy too. 

Nevertheless, the movie is a reminiscence of the last love letter.  

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