Stories from my conversation with Cab Drivers: A Body Guard and Uncle of a famous rap artist

In one of my Chicago trip last year, I was in a rush to the Airport (a peculiar phenomenon with me) I ordered Lyft (my preferred medium for my transport in the United States). It was about noon and from Magnificent mile to Airport was showing about 35 minutes. So had about two and a half hours between me leaving and the flight taking off. I was pleasantly surprised to get allocated a GMC SUV. I am also a big sucker for SUV cars, comfort, and space are vital criteria.

I had to visit a Seven-Eleven to pick a few items before I was in going to the Airport. I requested my Lyft driver that can we make a quick stop to Seven-Eleven as in the city; there were many showing up on the map and asked him to make a decision. He happily obliged and got me to a nearby Seven-Eleven. While it was lunchtime, I asked him whether he wanted something, he then requested that if I can pick some chicken wings as in that specific store, they made it well.

In a quick snap, I was back with my stuff along with the chicken wings. The chicken wings did the trick, and we started talking. I asked straight up, is driving a Lyft was his full-time gig, and the answer he gave and what followed was a fantastic story. He revealed to me that he is a personal Body Guard and also Uncle for Chief Keef. My ignorance on Hip-Hop didn't make me recollect the name, but I quickly did my search on Google, and I got acquainted with Chief. In the meantime, he also shared it on his iPhone Itunes Store.

The fine gentleman went to talk about how he had to pack his Nephew over to Los Angeles, as his life was under threat. Since Chief Keef songs were little edgy and had words that were offensive, many took it in the wrong way. Also, the cops had booked Chief Keef with multiple charges; he was worried about him. He did share many other things, and to respect his privacy, I would be careful about what I write here.

However, there were many other stories he did share on how in the formidable years, he ensured that his Nephew doesn't take any incorrect steps that would hurt either Nephew or his career. He also shared the dark side of Chicago - Drugs, Guns, and many other things. It was a little overwhelming for me, and probably was almost a movie script being recited to me.

Earlier this week, I was listening to one of my favorite Podcast - Turnaround with Jesse Thorn and in that he interviews Reggie Ossé whom himself runs Combat Jack Podcast. They do talk about Chief Keef in that, and it was a deja-vu moment for me and compelled me to write this connection with this Lyft driver.

Each one of us has a great story in our rights, and we must express or share it with the larger world. I continue in my quest to strike conversations and also document the fun and interesting ones. Chao...

Business Travel Apps: before you go on your next trip to United States

Travel is fun for some, daunting for some, and for some, it is just another day. The United States is one of the premium destinations attracting professionals and tourist traffic. As per Statista, travelers added contributed nearly 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars to the country’s gross domestic product in 2018 alone. But, travel can be tricky for the first time and even frequent travelers. Over the last 15 years, I have been traveling globally and spend 100+ nights in the United States itself. My work takes me to different cities and states, which means there are various things which I need to take care of:

• Commuting

• Food

• Travel

• Unwind

• Personal errands

Definitely, one of the travel tenets is to be agile, expect the unexpected, and be ready to course-correct based on situations. Mobile Apps have been a big help for me and have helped me make travel easy. If you have unique apps that you often use for personal or professional needs, do share. Chao..

Here is the list of recommended apps from my side: 

Lyft

Rideshare App

SkyScanner

For all flight options

Hotel Tonight

For last minute hotel needs and deals

Yelp

For all food needs

Workfrom

Find great workspaces & wifi anywhere.

Eventbrite

Find exciting events near you

Polarsteps

Great travel diary

Product Review: Bose Noise Cancelling Wireless Bluetooth Headphones 700, with Alexa Voice Control, Black

I am a big fan of Bose for over the last decade and have always loved their engineering, focus on improving sound and enhancing the experience for the buyers of the platform. Though with every version they have evolved and Bose has been a market leader in the noise-canceling category for a long time. Though they have faced stiff competition from other big technology giants however they never were uprooted from the throne. It was saddening for me to see they shutting most of their physical stores in the United States, but it is definitely a great strategy as they have strategic tie-ups with key technology focussed retailers who have excellent shelf space for Bose. 

The brand Bose is synonymous with noise-canceling, and if you are an avid traveler, I would highly recommend the Bose headsets over any other brands. I have used other brands like Sony, Audio Technica, Jabra, Beats, etc. but none of them come closer to the sound technology as Bose. Why choose a noise-canceling headset? Well, if you are someone like me, who needs to be in their zone and want to cut off the outside noise, then it is beneficial to get one headset. However, the issue with the previous generations of Bose headset has been that you aren't able to control the noise levels as well as you need your phone or other devices to control the audio. With the newer generations, Bose has evolved the technology to include the sound management feature on the headset itself. In the new Bose 700 NC, with the technology enabling Audio Augmented Reality Headphones, the experience is of the next level. You can control the audio with swipe gestures on the right mic. 

I have used Bose Quite 35 before, but my biggest issue with that was:

1. My ears would be warm and ache after wearing for a few hours

2. It was bulkier for me, and I started getting headaches

3. The foam on the headband had completely deteriorated 

Some of the great features of the new Bose 700 NC are which has made me write this product review:

1. Battery life: Yes, it can go up to 20 hours of continuous playback. With just 15 minutes of charge, it can give you a juice of 2 hours plus. 

2. Gesture Control:  I really like the gesture control to manage volume, playback and switching the audio as necessary

3. Controllable Noise Cancellation: It is required many times when you want to be aware of the surrounding sounds or when you have just sat in the plane. You would like to keep a tab of the announcements or conversations around you. For, e.g., in the flight, the announcements by a flight attendant or the captain. Bose 700 NC has three levels 0, 5, and 10. 

4. Virtual Assistant: Another cool feature of the new Bose headset is the integration of your favorite Google or Alexa voice assistant. 

The only drawback of the Bose headphones is the Bose App. I am not a big fan of it, and it doesn't add much value. Though on the expensive side, the headphone is a big win for me personally and would recommend anyone who is looking to make an investment in 2020 for noise-canceling headphones. If you have bought this headset, do share your experience by leaving a comment or two, Chao.. #BoseHeadphones

Stories from my conversation with Cab Drivers: A lost African Tribe in India

A tale of an individual from a lost African tribe in India

I have always maintained that India is a diverse land of culture, languages, religions, caste. Over the years, India, with open arms, welcomed individuals from different parts of the world. The statement got further stemmed when I met this interesting individual during one of my return trips, and when I ordered took a local cab at Mumbai International Airport, Terminal 2.

Travel tip: If you land at Mumbai International Airport (Terminal 2) - Don't take Ola or Uber services, go and take the local Taxi service. They are more reliable, quick and also has a variety of options (A/C, Non-A/C and Women only Cabs)

My ritual when I sit in the cab is to ask the cab driver how is it going? When did they start their day? Be prepared, that sometimes you would not get an answer, and I have experienced that due to whatever reasons, the individual has chosen to give a curt response or ignore.

So this trip and day would not have been different, and as soon as I settled down, I asked my key question. He mentioned to me that he had started his day at 10 pm (I had landed at 11 pm on an International flight) and would continue till 5 or 6 am. He went to mention that he is a widower, with sons working and he wants to remain independent and working. Without prompting, he said that he is 72 years old.

Post this brief talk, I was confident that he is open for a conversation, and then I asked him where is he from? He asked me straight up, why did I ask that? I was a little taken aback and felt that I probably offended him in asking that question. After a few seconds of pause, I asked him did I offend him, and the answer from his side was 'No'. He quickly smiled and said that he is an African. At this time, I was astonished, silent, and all sorts of thoughts started running in my head. He smiled again, don't worry, I am very much a legal citizen and born in India. He said that the very less known fact in India is that there has been a small African community of sixty thousand plus individuals living in India, known as Siddi. In the early years, this community had settled and created their habitat in the southern part of India, however with urbanization, it dispersed the majority of them across India. He said that his wife was a Gujarati, and his children have each chosen religion of their choice rather than enforcing something on them. 

My ride home from Mumbai International Airport (Terminal 2) is not more than 25 minutes, so I was nearing the end of the conversation. Before I could reach home, I asked him, so how does it feel to be in India? The answer he gave made me feel proud, humbled, and beaming with a smile, his response - "I am a legal and proud citizen of India with an African origin." 

He made my day, and I wanted to spend more time and have a conversation with a friendly and fantastic individual. However, to my dismay, my trip ended and had to say 'Goodbye' to him.

I continue to have such conversations and like to take notes from such exciting interviews with the cab drivers. I look forward to sharing them with you more in my future blog post. Chao..

Stories from my conversation with Cab Drivers: A Sri Lankan Refugee

A tale of Sri Lankan Refugee

During my trip to London, I ordered a Lyft from Terminal 2 (Queens Terminal) and had been allocated this gentleman. When I sat in the cab, we started having a conversation. We exchanged notes from where each one of us was from. He did say that he is from SriLanka. Then my curiosity sparked, and I asked how long have you been in the UK. He then got excited to tell his story. He did mention that he was in Mumbai for a couple of months before he got on a flight outside the country. His first pit stop was to be Paris (France), his agent had mentioned to him that before they land, he needs to visit the restroom and tear the passport and flush it in the toilet. Whattt….

Anyways, he was scared to do that and he didn’t end up tearing the passport. Apparently, when a Sri Lankan lands in Paris, he can claim that he doesn’t have any documents and claim refugee status. However since he did have the passport, his final destination was a place in Africa, he was shipped to the African continent. When he landed there, he didn’t speak french and went to a cab stop. A good samaritan cab driver found him and took him to a nearby hotel. There a lady (whom he later said that she was like his mother), who took him in and took care of him. He worked with the lady for about 3 years, and one of his guests who arrived at the leg end of the three years asked him what he was doing. He recited his story and mentioned that he wanted to go to UK, however, what happened to him in Paris. Apparently the guest was on a honeymoon and mentioned that he used to work in Dubai, UAE at a hotel. The owner of that hotel in UAE was a Sri Lankan, who had ensured that his (the guest) job is always safe even through the recession. The guest told my cab driver that since you are a Sri Lankan, I would sponsor your trip to London. So now this time, he did not commit the same mistake and before he landed in the UK, he tore his passport and flushed it. When he approached the immigration, he claimed no documents and was given a refugee status with a work permit in six months within the UK.

So my inquisitiveness grew and I asked him where did he stay and survive for 6 months before he could actually work. He then proudly said, that today in the UK there are approximately more than 500k Sri Lankans with uncles, aunties, and friends who are helpful and also took care of him. Then I asked him, how much did he pay initially and what does it take to come to the UK from Sri Lankan. Apparently the agents used to take 22 years ago 30,000 Pounds and now it has gone up to 50,000 Pounds.

There were many other topics we spoke off, about the politics in SriLanka, his perspective on Brexit and many other things. One of the other interesting facts he mentioned that many Indians who are Tamilians are also adopting the same path of claiming that they are Sri Lankans. Since many international destinations do not know the difference between Indian and Sri Lankans. Only a Sri Lankan or Indian knows the difference by the minute differences in the dialect.

At then he did say, that over the years he has been blessed to be helped by many people and he is really thankful to them. With a sense of gratitude, today he tries to do the same and help anyone whom he comes across who needs help and do whatever it takes in his capacity to help.

When he dropped me, I was astonished, happy, and anxious at the same time.

I would continue to add to the stories series. If you have come across an interesting story from your experience speaking to a cab driver, please do share. Chao..