:::A tongue and cheek story on migration & working abroad:::
Chapter I : From Goa to the Stars
"Hi buddy, tell us something about Canada," I snapped at Jose Alipio who had opted for a 'greener pasture' in Toronto after spending much of his life in Kuwait.
On another day, Alipio would crow with pride about his adopted country. But the ambience at Salcette's 'Susegad' restaurant did not permit that. The owner Mr. Medeira ensured his great grandfather's wisdomic epigram, 'A Goan will speak the truth if he is 'shit' scared or 'dead' drunk' was spot on to the 'kick' of 'feni'.
Most in the group were already 'rocking', nobody spoke deceptive. The occasion was the regular 'razzmatazz' of alumni friends, but it looked more of an annual convention of NRI Goans. The topic of debate was on 'the best place on earth to migrate'.
"Canada is the second largest country in the world...although it has a population only as big as Bombay. It's a great country, stylish lifestyle.. Happy-go-lucky!"
"Falar-a verdadé.. don't sell us the Frans-Mingel tabs." Mr. Medeira, the amusing barman trumpeted from behind his bar with a friendly tenor. Some of the neighborhood drunkards cackled at the jibe knowing that Frans Mingel was one of Goa's top bluff masters.
"Our Lady of the snows," continued Alipio disregarding the barman, "is how Rudyard Kipling refers to Canada in one of his great poems… It sums up the harsh winters of that country... Do you know how cold it is there?.. Just at the beginning of winter some 'provinces' are already at minus 30 degree Celsius … so much for a few loonie-toonies.."
"Habibi, in Oman," said Ramsey Antao, based in Muscat for over two decades, "when it is November, it's winter... but it is still warm and everything stays the same much of Christmas and New Year. A few sweaters come out, but the winter passes by without notice into summer..."
"Oh, in Canada it's different. All of your senses experience winter," confirmed Alipio with a shrug of shoulders and shudder of cheeks. "Visually the snow is beautiful.. but.."
"But.. what..!!" we almost asked in a chorus.
"...you wake up and see this white sheet reflecting the sun's light and making everything appear 'deceptively' warm from the comfort of the room. But the skin protests and revolts when walking out into the cold..."
"It's so bad?.. Why do so many people struggle to migrate there, then...!" Mr. Medeira was inquisitive.
"Even when you protect yourself," continued Alipio, "with multiple layers of clothing, boots and gloves, the nose remains exposed and registers its dissent sending a continuous stream of fluid down it. To increase your embarrassment, the skin looses all feeling and you realize there is 'snot' only when it reaches your mouth..."
"Talking about snow and ice, 'ammi'..., we once had a hail-storm in Saudi, you know?" said Roque Martins sporting a thick 22 carat gold 'bracelet' and an even thicker gold chain and gold rings worth a king's ransom. I'd concluded the total weight of gold on his body to be atleast one and a half kilo.
"It rained ice-cubes there, would you believe it?.." Roque continued, "Yeah, I remember, it was in January last. I was right down the building when I felt the pelting of ice..."
"Perhaps it was someone disposing frosted ice from their refrigerator out the windows which fell on you.." I commented lightly, "We had the hail in Kuwait, never heard anything about other GCC countries though..in recent times.."
"Well, that is not something strange," said Seby Coelho working in the Cayman Islands. "I was once hauled up in the sky as high as the kite by a hurricane in George Town last October and spun down, luckily in a nearby swimming pool.."
Nobody laughed, nobody even blinked an eyelid. Everyone probably wanted to know more about Canada, the place most people wanted to be..!
>>> To be continued: Part II - Something Understood
On another day, Alipio would crow with pride about his adopted country. But the ambience at Salcette's 'Susegad' restaurant did not permit that. The owner Mr. Medeira ensured his great grandfather's wisdomic epigram, 'A Goan will speak the truth if he is 'shit' scared or 'dead' drunk' was spot on to the 'kick' of 'feni'.
Most in the group were already 'rocking', nobody spoke deceptive. The occasion was the regular 'razzmatazz' of alumni friends, but it looked more of an annual convention of NRI Goans. The topic of debate was on 'the best place on earth to migrate'.
"Canada is the second largest country in the world...although it has a population only as big as Bombay. It's a great country, stylish lifestyle.. Happy-go-lucky!"
"Falar-a verdadé.. don't sell us the Frans-Mingel tabs." Mr. Medeira, the amusing barman trumpeted from behind his bar with a friendly tenor. Some of the neighborhood drunkards cackled at the jibe knowing that Frans Mingel was one of Goa's top bluff masters.
"Our Lady of the snows," continued Alipio disregarding the barman, "is how Rudyard Kipling refers to Canada in one of his great poems… It sums up the harsh winters of that country... Do you know how cold it is there?.. Just at the beginning of winter some 'provinces' are already at minus 30 degree Celsius … so much for a few loonie-toonies.."
"Habibi, in Oman," said Ramsey Antao, based in Muscat for over two decades, "when it is November, it's winter... but it is still warm and everything stays the same much of Christmas and New Year. A few sweaters come out, but the winter passes by without notice into summer..."
"Oh, in Canada it's different. All of your senses experience winter," confirmed Alipio with a shrug of shoulders and shudder of cheeks. "Visually the snow is beautiful.. but.."
"But.. what..!!" we almost asked in a chorus.
"...you wake up and see this white sheet reflecting the sun's light and making everything appear 'deceptively' warm from the comfort of the room. But the skin protests and revolts when walking out into the cold..."
"It's so bad?.. Why do so many people struggle to migrate there, then...!" Mr. Medeira was inquisitive.
"Even when you protect yourself," continued Alipio, "with multiple layers of clothing, boots and gloves, the nose remains exposed and registers its dissent sending a continuous stream of fluid down it. To increase your embarrassment, the skin looses all feeling and you realize there is 'snot' only when it reaches your mouth..."
"Talking about snow and ice, 'ammi'..., we once had a hail-storm in Saudi, you know?" said Roque Martins sporting a thick 22 carat gold 'bracelet' and an even thicker gold chain and gold rings worth a king's ransom. I'd concluded the total weight of gold on his body to be atleast one and a half kilo.
"It rained ice-cubes there, would you believe it?.." Roque continued, "Yeah, I remember, it was in January last. I was right down the building when I felt the pelting of ice..."
"Perhaps it was someone disposing frosted ice from their refrigerator out the windows which fell on you.." I commented lightly, "We had the hail in Kuwait, never heard anything about other GCC countries though..in recent times.."
"Well, that is not something strange," said Seby Coelho working in the Cayman Islands. "I was once hauled up in the sky as high as the kite by a hurricane in George Town last October and spun down, luckily in a nearby swimming pool.."
Nobody laughed, nobody even blinked an eyelid. Everyone probably wanted to know more about Canada, the place most people wanted to be..!
>>> To be continued: Part II - Something Understood
Exclusive on http://gaspersworld.blogspot.com/
:::The story is dedicated to the 'Class of 90s' friends:::
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