This sketch of the 'Log' was done by Javie Dsouza. This picture has been picked from the original website he had created; which unfortunately has been taken down by Yahoo!.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Musings of a Gulfie

My first memory of someone coming back from "abroad" (i mean foreign here... i learnt about guys coming back from a "broad" much later in life) was possibly the same time i heard about TR (or transfer of residence), of Air conditioning with ducting for all rooms and of Mazda as a foreign car- in particular a silver hatchback.

For those who haven’t caught on yet, I’m referring to the return of Dr Cedric and family from Doha - this was a event where as kids we stood and watched trucks coming in with boxes after boxes after boxes that were unloaded and carried up to their house. It would have taken years to open all those boxes and it probably did.

The contents of those boxes revealed wonders to some of us who had never been exposed; to the first glimpse of a coulour TV, a VCR, VHS & Betamax cassettes, push button telephones, sofas (which were not double beds) a cooking range. Today all the above are found in every home, but for a kid in the late 70’s early 80’s this was a revelation; something that he could boast about and ridicule his peers who had no clue about what he was talking.

While in most albums of the early gulfies, there would always be a photo of the guy (in goggles - most probably Ray Ban) standing next to a swanky looking car – in all probability a Datsun, a Mazda or some Huge American gass guzzler with tail fins. (this was much before Toyota & Honda became popular and before Datsun became Nissan) and you always admired the car and envied the guy for the same - so to see Dr Cedric’s Mazda in real life, to ride in it and feel the cold air from the A/c was definitely a dream come true.

So thank you Dr Cedric and family for providing me these experiences very early in life; I write this blog sitting in Doha where I have come to work, a good 30 years after you have left. I keep wondering how different the place would have been then, as compared to now and whether you would like it as much now as you did then.

To Gillian ( Raymond Lopez’s) daughter who has preceded me in Doha, thank you for the warm Marinagar welcome you have given me, for making me feel comfortable, helping me look for a house and showing me the restaurant where i can get kheema like Paramount. Thank you.

1 comment:

Nestor said...

Hey Niru, Its been long since you have added a new post.. :)