Wrist shot Compilation - Summer 2016

As you may already know, I love watches and thought of kicking off a compilation blog post with every season to include the best wrist shots from my adventures.

For more wrist shots, please follow my page @weightnwatch on instagram! 

Any thoughts, comments and feedback is much appreciated.

Cheers,

Adi

Location: Maroon Bells, Colorado

Location: Downtown Chicago, Illinois



Location: Space Needle, Seattle


Location: Empire State, NYC

Location: Monument, Washington DC

My love for Graffiti Walls #paintemall

They are there in abundance, just find them and click them #snipsnapsnoop

“People say graffiti is ugly, irresponsible and childish... but that's only if it's done properly.” ― Banksy, Wall and Piece

Here are some of my personal favorites, hope you guys like it!

Cheers,

Adi

Location : Lower East Side, NYC

Location : Ann Arbor, Michigan

Location : Midtown West, NYC

Location : Lower East Side, NYC

Location : Gum Wall, Seattle

Location : Midtown West, NYC

Location : Lower East Side, NYC

Location : Hell's Kitchen, NYC

Location : Chinatown, NYC

Location : Lower East Side, NYC

Location : Lower East Side, NYC

Travel Blog Post #3 - Boarding Pass (Tips on how to maximize your in-flight productivity)

Boarding Pass: "Bored"-ing pass

In-flight time could mean a couple of hours to yourself without anyone disturbing you and complete cut off from the social and mobile world for the most part. This basically means you can give undivided attention to any task you indulge in once on-board. As a frequent traveler I'd say, it could be frustrating just sitting on a plane for a couple hours and staring at the ceiling, outside the window or at your co-passenger. How about turning this around into a good in-flight experience and making the most off your flying time?

I have penned down some of the things a traveler could do or engage in once on-board to make his/her flying experience more pleasurable and fulfilling. As always, I am open to hearing your thoughts on this would love to add on to this list with your thoughts and suggestions.

• Rest - catch up on some much needed nap time. For some folks it might not be as easy as the others to nap on a flight, but try and shut your eyes and relax. Trust me, this helps!
• Catch up on the book, magazine or any form of reading you've been wanting to read for a while
• Brainstorm on a topic you've been struggling to find an answer to
• Create a to-do list to organize your next few days better. This will help you hit the ground running once you reach the destination
• Reflect on yourself on a personal and/or professional front. See where you are at and figure out if you're on the right track. If not, identify any improvement opportunities for yourself
• Learn about your co-passenger and their story. There are times you will run into co-passengers who would rather be quiet during their flight time, but some are very friendly; make the most of this
• Complete that pending Blog post or Article or any form of writing you've been waiting to finish up (This is my personal favorite ;) )
• Type up all the email communications you have to send out during your flight time - It will help save time for you on the ground
• Write a note to someone dear to you - could be your parents, your better half or anybody else and tell them how much they mean to you. In a flight filled with unknown faces you do tend to miss your loved ones more than otherwise
• Shop - make use of in-flight Wi-Fi or the flight magazine and find yourself a deal on something you've been wanting to purchase
• Watch a movie, TV serial, podcast or anything else you might prefer. Helps de-stress
• Listen to some relaxing music, definitely helps calm your nerves on a long flight
• Plan a diet and exercise regime for yourself. Is there a better time to improve your lifestyle, eh?
• Memorize and learn a new word, bonus points if it is not English
• Prepare - for that big upcoming meeting you have lined up
• Finish up any pending work (personal or professional) to better manage your time on the ground
• Provide feedback to the airlines. If you're a loyal and passionate frequent traveler of that preferred airline carrier, let them know what they can improve upon and they'd appreciate it.

Cheers,
Adi

Travel Blog Post #2 - Don't be that Traveler

It was a fairly light travel year for me in 2015. I spent almost 30% of my year being in and around the tri-state area supporting local client engagements. By the end 2015, I traveled to 5 countries, over 50 cities, round about 75,000 miles and a little more than 125 nights on the road for work and leisure in total.

Recently, I thought about putting my travel experiences into good use and began with the 1st set of my travel blog posts about my visit to the emirates (Link). The next set of posts will focus on people and interactions, improving your overall travel experience and in-transit productivity. If there are any additional topics you'd like me to cover, feel free to comment below or shoot me a personal message.

I am in the process of putting together details around my Turkey visit too, so watch out for this space for some picturesque updates! 

Folks, over the course of my travel experience (and your’ s too, I'm sure) you come across a wide variety of individuals and personalities right from the time you go through security, to waiting for the flight, in-flight and during baggage claim. In fact I am writing this article in-flight (as a part of my maximize your in-flight time - blog post to follow) and sitting next to a no. 7 personality #notaverypleasurabletravel:

Don't be that traveler:

1. The Line Breaker - These individuals will find every opportunity - during security check, while boarding, or buying food @ the airport shops to break the line and get ahead (and no, it’s not a New York thing!). If you are in such a hurry to get somewhere, why don't you just buy your own chartered flight, right?
2. The Loud Speaker - Nope, we don't want to know about how great you are, or how much you miss your family, or how frustrated you are about the 15 minute airline delay. All of us might have been there and done that! You'd rather be cognizant of people around you and lower your voice. Thank you!
3. Let me board in an earlier zone - Interestingly, such people do exist. I do see why they would do it, but I guess it comes down to their ethics and conscience. So, it’s your choice.
4. Let me try and carry more than two carry on bags - As you know, most of the airlines allow only one carry on and one personal item, but these looney tunes will try and carry more than two and challenge the check in officer. I mean, why would you do that and necessarily hold up the others during the flight boarding process, why?
5. Only I have the right on my overhead space - You will see these people way more than often. They tend to be overly possessive about their overhead space and will try to spread and place their bags in such an inefficient manner that it occupies the full overhead space.
6. Hey Air-hostess, let me help you by shutting the overhead bin - I have never been able to understand the thought process of these people, honestly! Usually a large population of the no. 5's naturally flow into being no. 6. Even if there might be additional room in the overhead bin, they will go ahead and shut the bin only to make sure no one else can stuff their baggage in. Also, they turn into self-appointed overhead bin inspectors i.e. if anyone tries to open the closed bin to check for space, they will holla at them and let them know the bin is full. God bless these people!
7. I have paid for one seat, but is it okay if I use two? I can confidently say, every traveler has had an experience with such a person, need I say more? #thankgodforairlineupgrades
8. Oops, I spilled it again - Sorry! - These notorious individuals know that they are messy by nature and with the added in-flight turbulence they will spill more food than otherwise but still won’t take any precautionary measures. Carry some dry food, and some extra napkins the next time please?
9. Nope, I will not gate check my over-sized carry on! These are the individuals who you will see dragging their bag down the flight after everyone is done boarding. Yes, they were warned by the flight check in officer that it would be wise to gate check their bag but they chose to ignore this and here you go, they are doing just that after they failed to find a place / fit their carry-on bag into an overhead bin.
10. I know I have a snoring problem, but I can sleep best in-flight: You guys should get your snoring problem fixed, or take measures to ensure you don't disturb your co-passengers in-flight! I have some good friends, who make a conscious effort to stay awake during their flight journey just because they have a snoring problem - respect!
11. "Oh, can you help me get my bag as I keep texting someone" - Sure, why not? That’s precisely why I am at the baggage claim for! Sometimes, I feel walking out of such situations is best, at least these phone-aholics will realize who are they dealing with.
12. "I'm in a hurry, let me get out before you" (once the flight lands) - Sometimes people do have legit reasons and helping them out would be a good thing. But most of the times people just want to rush out of the flight out of turn by pushing and bypassing their co-passengers. Really, would 5 minutes make such a big difference guys?

We have all become so selfish, that we will put ourselves before others and won't leave any occasion to discomfort our co-travelers. Take a step back and ask yourself if there is anything significant you will gain if you decide to be "that traveler". Let me give you the answers, you will not. All your co-travelers have paid an amount for the flight ticket (maybe more than yours) so please be respectful of that and avoid putting anyone through unnecessary inconvenience. If some people will argue, it was a ticket booking through reward points / miles - oh common, they traveled enough to accrue those points/miles to book it!

Make travel a pleasure, not only for yourself but for the people around you too!

Cheers,
Adi

21 ways to be a better person - Three Week Challenge! #2017Goals --- Coming Soon!

How to wear your formal footwear, casually!

As you already know, I am big on experimentation! Last evening, I thought of giving something a shot. It’s conventional when you can pair off a formal wear accessory with your formal wear attire, but when you can pull it off with casual attire - it is an ART! 

A few weeks ago, I acquired a box of Johnston and Murphy colored shoe laces (Ping me for a discount code on this) and threw a poll out on the blog about the option of wearing colored laces with dress shoes. Got a ton of yay's for this one, haha!

So here you go, I wanted to sport a casual attire and couple it up with my black dress shoes (Wingtips with brogues), but off course not with the black laces - yes, it would look funny! The polo was of a teal shade and yes the socks were teal too - so blue/green laces would have been a little too mainstream, right?

I thought of matching the color of the Ralph Lauren logo with the color of my shoe lace, yes that is yellow! This is quite quirky, but too my surprise - it turned out very well!

Here is a snap shot of it:

As always, any thoughts/comments/feedback are much appreciated!

Cheers,

Adi

Travel Blog Post #1 - Your go-to guide as you go about planning your next BIG visit to Dubai and Abu Dhabi!

Folks – Previously, I have published two posts about my visit to the Emirates (Which pretty much shows how much I loved my visit ;)). Before I jump on planning my upcoming trip to Turkey, I wanted to document some of the pre-requisites if you plan on visiting Dubai and Abu Dhabi and want to plan it out yourself. I had gotten multiple requests for my Dubai itinerary so I thought of putting this piece together to help you guys better navigate as you go about planning your next big trip.

PS: I got a ton of help from locals to help me plan this up and this is purely based on my own experience from my recent visit.  

Visa- If you book through Emirates they will have an option on their portal itself to apply for the visa (Once you book your tickets). You have to different visas - depends on how many days you plan on visiting:

Visa type	Validity
96-hour	96 hours from arrival date
Tourist - short term (one entry)	30 days from arrival date

Air Tickets - direct flights with Emirates and other local airlines (Air India, Indigo, etc.) Nonstop as well as One Stop flights (Good Price Point - Rs. 12,500 to Rs. 25,000 - peak season)

Ground Transportation - Dubai is very well connected in terms of public transportation (Trains, cabs, etc.). They are reasonably prices and the taxi cabs operate by meter.

Foreign Exchange Fees (VERY IMPORTANT):

Since this will be considered as a foreign transaction for you, you might incur foreign exchange fees based on your payment method. Try to find ways to avoid incurring these fees - typically cards like American Express waive of foreign exchange fees which will help save a considerable amount.

Accommodation -

Old Dubai: Budget accommodation available here - very similar to Mumbai (Lot of Indian immigrant population as well as good food options). Well connected to major parts of the city by metro as well as public transport. Look at Bur Dubai, Karama, etc. for hotel options.

New Dubai: Accommodation on slightly higher price range available here - Good restaurant options available close by. Well connected to major parts of the city.  Well connected to major parts of the city by metro as well as public transport.

List of Local Restaurants (Which I personally visited - MUST TRY):

http://adityasharangdhar.blogspot.com/2015/02/dubai-food-delight.html

The groupons and snapdeals of Dubai - Keep an eye out for tour deals on this site (You should be able to find deals for all the tours I have mentioned below at a very good rate compared to any tour agency). We did a couple of our tours from here - the quality and service is similar to the normal tour, it’s just at a discounted rate. Very similar to the way Groupon or Snapdeal operates in India:

1. Yallabanana.com

2. Cobone.com

PS: The tours on these sites are operated by local tour agencies itself. Usually the site will tell you this tour is operated by “XYZ agency” and you can reach out to these agencies on the side and ask for additional discount (Since you are by passing yallabanana/cobone, they are saving on the middle man cost and will usually give you some discount ;) J )

Suggested Tours - (I have added some rough time estimates, to help you customize the plan - try to do all of these if you have enough time)

1.      Half day Dubai City tour - This is a standard package offered by most of the tour agency, doesn't vary too much. All the tours will show you around new and old Dubai and all the historic places, etc. Try and finish this up on Day 1 itself, so you have a decent idea about your whereabouts. (Time: 9 am to 2 pm)

2.      Dubai Marina evening Dhow Cruise with buffet dinner - Take this cruise over the other option i.e. Dhow Cruise. This is a better experience in terms of the cruise itself, the places they take you, food, etc. (Time: 6 pm to End of Day)

3.      Top of the Burj Khalifa - Purchase the ticket from the Burj Khalifa website itself (Tour agents will charge you more). Make sure you get it at the right time else the time slots will run it. Don't buy the ticket on the spot; it will be around three times the price. A good time to get the ticket would be around 45 minutes before the sunset. That way you can witness the day and night views. Step out of Burj and try to stop by for the water show - they have timings allocated to it, and it is a very nice show to see. (Time - 6 pm - 9 pm)

4.      Dessert Safari with Quad Biking - This will be a one day activity - totally worth it. They will take you through the dessert, do the safari and then have a traditional Arabic setup with food, shisha, dances, etc. Try to get the one with Quad Biking - it’s a very nice experience. (Time: 3pm - End of Day)

5.      Abu Dhabi City tour with Ferrari world - Spend about a day visiting Abu Dhabi and Ferrari world. This might be a slightly hectic day since you will leave fairly early and visit Abu Dhabi (1.5 hours from Dubai). Overall a good experience and you can look at a packaged deal of the city tour with Ferrari world - will turn out economical.

6.      Dubai Mall - You can spend about half a day exploring the Dubai Mall (Depends on your agenda - if you want to shop there, etc.). The mall has a really nice aquarium which is a MUST visit. Really good experience - take the combo package which includes the underwater aquarium tour, the boat ride and the zoo. Worth the price. This would be about a 3 - 4 hour experience, so if you want to shop - set aside one day for Dubai Mall itself.

Sample Email to send Tour operators while asking for quotes, etc.:

Hi There,

I am reaching out to request a quote for the below tour options on Jan 6th and Jan 8th, 2015 for Three Adults.

1. Dubai City Tour

2. Dhow Cruise

3. Dessert Safari with Quad Biking

4. Abu Dhabi tour with Ferrari world

I am open to the open of packaging one or more of the about tour options.

Awaiting your response.

Thank you,

Your Name here

Local Tour Operator Emails (The ones I had reached out to for a quote):

24x7@sharaftravel.com

info@utravel.ae

alrais@emirates.net.ae

Info@welcomettc.com

info@travelginie.com

aadops@emirates.com - This is Emirates Airline's tour agency

reservations@godubai.com

support@isango.com

As always, feel free to reach out to me for any additional help / information.

Cheers,

Adi