Winner of the HUGO and the NEBULA awards, 'Dune' rivals the Foundation series in the quality of writing and imagination. I love science fiction, so when a friend mentioned this book as possibly one of the best of the genre, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. The story is an semi-religious epic set in planet of Arrakis, supposedly a few millenia in the future. Most interesting are the proverbs scattered along the book. Sample this:
"Any road followed precisely to its end leads precisely nowhere"
"Greatness is a transitory experience…. It depends in part upon the myth-making imagination of humankind."
"What do you despise? By this you are truly known"
"Deep in human unconsciousness is a pervasive need for a logical universe that makes sense. But the real universe is always one step beyond logic"
I wonder where the line between science fiction and fantasy lies. As Arthur C. Clarke once said, any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. And almost all of religious writing/prophesy involves conjuring up some form of fantasy & some reference to super-heroism. Dune lies on a blurring edge spanning science fiction, fantasy and religion.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Monday, May 08, 2006
The Yetis of Yelagiri

The Yelagiri hills is a range of mountains approximately 250 kms from Chennai on the Chennai-Bangalore route. Taking advantage of the three-day weekend and to have some respite from the blistering heat in Chennai, we decided to try out the hill station.
We caught a bus to Tirupattur at the Koyambedu bus stand. This is the first time I've been to Koyambedu - its certainly the best bus stand in capacity I've seen, but is poorly administered with helpdesk personnel missing and no one to guide around. The bus we caught had a pathetic top speed of 30 kms/hr and took an exhausting 7 hrs to cross the 250 kilometers to Tirupattur (via Vellore, Walaja, Vaniyambadi, Jolarpet and Tirupattur).
Tirupattur is a crowded, dusty town with a really dirty bus stand. The ride up the Yelagiri hills took a leisurely 2 hours. The route has 14 hair-pin bends and the night-time view of the surrounding towns during the climb is breathtakingly beautiful.
Yelagiri is a small hamlet with a single main road and a few scattered houses. However, holiday resorts abound and maybe even outnumber the resident houses. There is a small lake in which boating is allowed. A few kilometers from the town center is a trekking location called swamimalai (No, do not mistake it for its more famous namesake).

Apart from the lake and the trek, there's very little to do in Yelagiri. It seems to have become a favorite weekend resort for people from Bangalore, given its proximity - almost all rooms are booked on weekends - people land up in cars with family/friends. The weather is pretty chill even in mid summer and is a good place to beat the heat.
Recommendations for people wishing to follow our trail: Take the train to/fro Jolarpettai from Chennai/Bangalore or drive - NEVER take the bus, the journey is very tiring. Its actually better if you land there in a vehicle, since public transport is not that frequent and is also pathetically slow. Call up hotels and book in advance if you plan to land there on a weekend - most good resorts are fully booked on weekends and the remainder fleece you taking advantage of the situation. In sum, a good weekend getaway for people from Bangalore, a stretch for people from Chennai - worth visiting once.
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