Oman, a safe haven.....

It was just another day for me to make a living. It was snowing heavily. The chilling cold had slowed my pace of everything to get ready to work. As I enter the company campus, there are a series of parallel things-to-do running in my mind. Well, things are not of saving-the-world in nature. It is mostly checking the Application, Database etc. I sigh and let go of my body to freefall on a cushioned chair. To my surprise, I am denied access to the Computer Network. Come on, now!! I control everything in the computer systems. I might have typed the password wrong. As I carefully retype my user credentials, I could sense somebody approaching from behind. In a haste, as I turned, the first thing that I saw was a huge belly and a holster with a gun. A deep voice said, “Sir, can I escort you to the Director’s office”. Guess what? I was being laid off. I said to myself, ”Welcome to America”. (Well, there is good side of America as well.) This was my Boston days in 2002. It was post-911 and finding a job was difficult than conquering Mount Everest. Anyways, I shrugged off the problems and got through somehow. But, this incident made a strong impact in my simple, humble history.

Now, having moved to Oman, in an effort to escape the rat race, explore other cultures and not lose control of my life, I can appreciate the Omani Beauty. Orderly life, no social unrest, no mass layoffs, stable economy, almost perfectly balanced family life, assured annual vacations, not much of traffic jams, a country that truly admires her leader etc. The list is very, very long. Oman has developed to be a very peaceful and progressive country because of a well planned and architected vision by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said.

Most of all, I am truly impressed with the Omani people. The kind of respect that the Omani people show to the expatriates is incredible. I am very grateful to Omani people for such show respect and hospitality. I am sure most of the expatriates feel that way.

Having worked in other extreme conditions, I am perhaps one of the very few that appreciate Oman life than most people living in Oman, including Omanis. I guess, Oman life is the other extreme of a chaotic, machine life. I call it my safe haven.

During 2008, when the after effects of the bubble-burst in the American economy was still shaking the World economy, most of the countries were panicking to clean up their backyard filled with the garbage of financial mismanagement. Even during these turbulent times, while many other countries were trying to hold themselves together to survive, Oman was rated as one of the top ten countries in the world that was immune to the disastrous financial shockwaves that rocked the World economy (It still is). Now, that is something to be proud of. Kudos to Oman, especially to its leader, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said!!

The Chief of United Nations, Ban ki-Moon, said “The progress the Omani people have achieved in 40 years is commendable and it is a shining light among the rest of the Arab countries. It is an enviable example to follow.”

Hillary Rodham Clinton, The United States Secretary of State, on her recent visit to Oman said “If I could take the magic formula of Oman’s growth in a bottle, I will take it to other countries in the region.”

Well, Oman’s success could not have been certified better!!

I came to Oman to explore and also take control of my life even if it meant compromising my professional growth and money potential. I am really glad that I found exactly what I wanted in this beautiful Safe Haven. Like many other expatriates who have ended up living in Oman for over 2 to 3 decades, I wish to live in this Safe Haven for a long time, if not for decades.

Vacationing in a Coastal Wonderland…..

I feel like I need a long vacation because I came back from my vacation just last week. This is such a cliché. Isn’t it? The vacation was great!! Very gratifying!!
Wonderland? Yes. A small coastal village located at the southern tip of the Indian Peninsula that has history of over 450 years. Christianity blossomed in the village as early as 1534. The village is called as Virpandianpatnam. In short, Patnam. Patnam has mostly Catholic population with over 6000 people and is sandwiched between a Hindu town in the south and a Muslim town in the North. The beauty of it is that all have lived together harmoniously for centuries.
Patnam is an intriguing place from all perspectives. The entire population is Catholic except for the floating population. There are over 10 churches. One of the churches is 125 years old. Almost all are related to one another, as most of the marriages are arranged among the villagers. For any wedding, almost half of the village is invited. For any funeral, the entire village is there to support. Every morning the villagers attend the mass at 5.15 am. For every Christmas, all the villagers living in different cities and countries make it a point to spend their Christmas vacation in Patnam. So it is not uncommon to see Patnam born Americans, Canadians, Australians, Singaporeans, Malaysians etc. roaming around Patnam during Christmas.
Yes, I grew up in this beautiful Patnam for over 18 years. When I visited Disney Land, Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, The Alps, it was a great feeling. But, honestly, to be in Patnam, the feeling is priceless. I intend to retire in Patnam someday. I hope my dream comes true.

Credit Card Scams at Hotels

Human weakness is a hacker's paradise. Human weakness?! Pride, Overconfidence, Ignorance etc. And, I am not even talking about high-tech hacking. Common sense is good enough to qualify as a hacker. Here is a real-time example of how anyone with a fairly decent common sense can avail human weakness.

You arrive at your hotel and check in at the front desk. When checking in, you give the front desk your credit card (for all the charges for your room). You get to your room and settle in. Someone calls the front desk and asked for (example) Room 620 (which happens to be your room).

Your phone rings in your room. You answer and the person on the other end says the following, 'This is the front desk. When checking in, we came across a problem with your charge card information. Please re-read me your credit card number and verify the last 3 digits numbers at the reverse side of your charge card.

Without much thought, you might give this person your information, since the call seems to come from the front desk. But actually, it is a scam of someone calling from outside the hotel/front desk. They ask for a random room number. Then, ask you for credit card information and address information. Sounding so professional that you do think you are talking to the front desk.

If you ever encounter this problem on your vacation, tell the caller that you will be down at the front desk to clear up any problems. Then, go to the front desk and ask if there was a problem. If there was none, inform the manager of the hotel that someone called to scam you of your credit card information acting like a front desk employee.

Never underestimate such fraudsters. They specialize in Human Weakness and they will get to you before you know it.