c u on top - satyabrata dam

During my Naval career, I was fortunate enough to have had several foreign postings, many deputations and occasional circumnavigation and ocean sailing expeditions thrown in for good measure, besides of course climbing all over the world, for which my bosses always allowed me to go; even at the cost of operational commitments. And now when I sit back and gaze at that wonderful period of my life I am often led to believe that perhaps my Commanding Officers were actually glad to get me out of their systems, else how can one explain that never once were my leave applications turned down or my request to go climbing or sailing while on deputation. Perhaps more bizarre, absurd and dangerous my expeditions were, more they were merry as they could have hoped that I won’t return and they had seen the last of me and what a benign and legal way of getting rid of a real pain in the butt; for I was that for sure. But jokes apart I am primarily thankful to the Indian Navy and to all my superiors a...

This is the jolly festive season of Christmas and all things good so let me today tell you how and where I met the grand man in red suit and what happened thereafter. To begin with, I have three distinct links to Santa Claus: (a) Our first names start with identical alphabet (b) Quite like him most of my life I have spent in extreme cold and snow laden places and in Polar Regions (c) We both travel the world spreading joy and cheer and smiles at strange and dark places. To my knowledge he never went to South Pole and here I actually outpace him. All this definitely makes me Santa’s country-cousin if not a direct descendent. Just like any of you, especially when you were a child (and I hope you still are), I have always wondered about the things that Santa is known for. His red suit, elves and reindeers, his gifts, why does he come through the chimney, did he ever fight with his wife, why does he go Ho Ho etc, and above all why is he so fat. So I always knew that if I ever met him I am ...

We were on our way to the North Pole, but the weather was bad and we were holed up in the northernmost habitation in the world – Longyearbyen, the main city of the Svalbard Archipelago of Norway. This was one of the few places on Earth, where a Polar Bear had the right of the way on a road. The gun laws were ludicrous at the best. With Polar Bears often straying close to civilization, it is mandatory to carry a gun when venturing out anywhere, even slightly out of the town lights. To hire a gun from a shop, all one needs is a photo id and demonstrate that one knows the general direction the gun barrel must be pointing when one is pulling the trigger. But that doesn’t mean that one can rampantly kill a Polar Bear. Surprisingly, but obviously, if a shooting accident happens and a Polar bear does get seriously damaged or dead, then the benefit of the doubt is awarded to the bear. So after you kill a bear, you have to conclusively prove in the court that the bear had every intent...