In vino veritas...

I skipped the usual weekend post this time I had to travel to Nashik. The journey itself was quite tiring, mainly because the roads aren't all that great. However, Nashik is a quaint little place.

The first thing I thought was "This is was Mumbai must've looked like in the 70s". Hardly any traffic on the roads, acres and acres of fields, just beyond the city limit, nice dry weather. Since it's winter, the evenings get cool, a little like Pune. Beautiful time to visit.

Since my stay was quit short, I could only visit a few places. One place I insisted on visiting was the Sula Vineyard. Nashik represents the Indian wine industry and I was keen to get a first-hand view of this fascinating subject. Coincidentally, our tour guide told us that the owner was a Stanford graduate and had brought a scientific attitude to the cultivation.

Most of the product is consumed locally. Some of it is exported as an economy wine to Europe, although they also produce a limited quantity of high-quality aged wine. Still, we have a long way to go before we can put India on the international wine map.

The tour was quite insightful. Sauvignon was the primary grape variety grown there. Almost 27 acres of vineyards dedicated to wine making. Awesome !! I shall be going back in March to witness the harvesting of both, the table and the wine grapes. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to indulge in some wine-tasting the next time around.

We also visited Trimbakeshwar. Like all other holy places, this one reeked of crowds, ceremonies and cowdung. I guess that's the price you pay for admission to heaven !! Still, it was better than some of the other places I've been to.

Overall a very satisfying trip. On an unrelated note, I officially submitted my resignation today. It feels a little weird to know that I won't have a job for the next 14 months. IBM has been a roller-coaster of a job and I'm glad I'll be leaving on a high.

I desperately wanted the sabbatical to fall into place as a backup for the placement season. However, the policy diktats don't measure up to my expectations. Perhaps, I'll be able to rejoin at a later date, I'm keeping the option open.

For the next few weeks, I'll be busy saying goodbyes at work...