The Swamp

Gators rule the swamp. To the uninitiated, the Swamp is the Gator football (not soccer) field in Gainesville, FL. This season, we haven't lost a single game in the swamp. The stupid Auburn team beat us.

Why am I writing about the swamp? When I said that I might go to Atlanta for a few days this Christmas vacation, Reshma asked me what was to see and do in Atlanta? Well, there aint no beach there for sure (thats why I live in Florida). Plus, I get to see the ocassional Lamborghini and Ferrari in Atlanta which is why I never looked further. Her argument was that in India, if you go from Bombay to Pune, there are new things to see and do. Puneites do some things that you can never see in Bombay and vice versa. So, I went on to explain her the whole thing about the three main cultures of the mid-eastern United States: southern, yankee and people from Texas. Other than that, you pretty much get the same food, clothes, language and way of life all over North America.

Then, there is the Ikea store in Atlanta : the National Gallery in my world, the Coca Cola Bldg etc. I wasn't happy giving these miniscule evidences of diversity. I went to work the following Monday wearing my Gators polo shirt and I was the star. Then I realized: Sports is the culture here. And there is so much variety: college football, NBA, NFL, NHL, PGA and on and on. Just like we have one Cricket in India, they have a dozen sports here.