ipad 2 glass replacement in Chennai India: cost and my experience

I have had an Apple 2 iPad 64GB (Wi-Fi + 3G) for about a year. Last week I was juggling between doodle jump and a haircut and dropped the ipad on my foot and then the floor :-(

The glass cracked though thanks to the screen protector there were no fragments fallen off and the whole piece continued to work as normal.

After 1 week of staring at a bad screen, I pulled myself to call the iStore and asked them if they will repair. On the phone, they said it would cost around 12K but when I visited, they said a phone replacement was 12K and an ipad was 20K and 1 week.

In fact the service engineer suggested its better I buy a new one.

I decided to call on crescent cell city (on TTK road, Alwarpet, Chennai) and he told me it would cost be about 6K and would be ready in 3 hrs. He checked the ipad model (and it seems the glass varies as per memory or atleast thats what he told me - maybe the thickness did - he gets it from a Bangalore vendor and does the fixing himself)

Not wanting to wipe off the emails and photos, I decided to go for the 6K option. Voila, in 3 hrs the screen was as good as new!

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Tall trees is a great place - review and photos

Where to stay in Munnar ?  I stayed at Tall trees and found it to be a great place



This is a very nice place. Nestled inside a near 70 acre forest greenery and a little away from the Munnar town (approx 4 km) 


They offer beautiful cottages that overlook a green forested hill side. The campus is tastefully done and the staff is helpful. Its very peaceful..... note that I did not say silent - the cicadas and birds and frogs go all day long but I am sure you dont mind it ;-). The cottages are well done and furnished / maintained well.

Reception

 They have a small shop that sells knick-knacks too - chips, ceigarettes et al.

 The  way to the restaurant

 Brooks inside the campus....

 Glass roof dining at the restraunt .... very nice ambience and very friendly staff

They have a restaurant "Hill spice" that served Buffet Dinner and Breakfast. Very unique setting with glass ceilings. The only downside is that you need to walk up a hill (by city people standards) about 300-600 m to reach the restaurant .... well it builds up an apetite

There are lots of things for the children to do too - TT/Carrom/Rock Climbing/Play area/Shuttle and for some grown up types too - Ayurveda , Fitness walk

They help you hire an auto or a car to to to town or sight seeing in Munnar respectively.

(PS: I even heard Edavapathi movie is being shot in Munnar when we were there. Wonder what the movie name means!)

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Flowers: Photographs at Coonoor

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

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Sims Park: Coonoor: Photo essay and some details

This was the second time to Sims park. Its  YAP (Yet Another Park) in the hills except that its set up in 1874 and has more than 200+ generas. Its not very big. Only one tip for people with kids - The park slopes down and the kids play area is right at the bottom , so.... its fun to go down but very difficult to come up!!

History and Details of Sims Park

From 201104_Conoor

Pond at the bottom of the park

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

A log of who visited Sims park on bamboo

From 201104_Conoor

General pictures of trees and walkways

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

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A visit to the Tea Factory: How is tea made - Plant to cup process

This factory is about 2 kms from Coonoor Sims park. I found it very interesting and thought I should share the process of making tea

From 201104_Conoor

Tea is made in a 6 step process of
1. Plucking
2. Weathering
3. Tearing
4. Fermenting
5. Drying/roasting
6. Grading

Types of tea: CTC, Orange Pekoe, Green and White
1. Plucking: Tender tea leaf buds picked at a time of the day , twice a year is used for white tea. Tender leaf buds picked any time of the year is used for green tea and orange pekoe. The tea leaves picked through the year are used for CTC. Generally, lower in the stem and mature leaves are avoided as they have higher caffeine.

From 201104_Conoor

2. Weathering: Tea leaves are placed on a flat bed with air (cool/normal temp) blowing from below for about 12 hours. This removes about 30% moisture. This process is required to ensure that during the next CTC step, the leaves dont become pulpy but tear neatly.

From 201104_Conoor

3. CTC/Orthodox tearing: Cutting , Tearing and Curling (CTC) - this is the most preferred tea in India. The CTC process does just as it expands - cut, tear and curl, transforming the leaves into finer bits.

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

In the orthodox process , instead of CTC, the leaves are ground through a sieve. This process is used for orange pekoe and green tea. This process is preferred for exports.

From 201104_Conoor

4. Fermenting: In this process, the leaves are processed through a rotating drum and hydrated with a water spreay. This is where they pick up the brownish color and aroma. The process is usually for 1 hour , with an additional 2 hrs in open tray fermntation. There is no fermentation process for Green, Orange pekoe and white tea.

From 201104_Conoor

5. Roasting/Drying: A 250 degree roast is done for the CTC and 30 degree to 80 degree for green and orange pekoe teas respectively. Generally white teas may not be roasted except mildly.

From 201104_Conoor

6. Grading: Teas are sieve graded into 11 categories - 6 leaves and 5 dusts. The Super fine dust is typically used in the tea bags. It is not superior or inferior grades, but graded for the purpose they will be used. Many commercial teas are blended for best results. For example, granular gives strong, a ablend is used by hotels etc.

From 201104_Conoor

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Wellington Gymkhana and Golf course: Pictures

This place has an 18 hole golf course and a couple of cottages. The club was established in 1873 and belongs to the armed forces. The greens are beautiful against the backdrop of the hills and I have taken a few photographs here.

The main club

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

Golf greens - beautiful sight

From 201104_Conoor

From 201104_Conoor

The club also has a website http://wellingtongymkhanaclub.com/

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Places to stay in Vaitheeswaran Koil: Hotel Akshardham: A review

Sadhabhishekam is a very popular staying place (and only decent one) at Vaitheeswaran Koil - Until now. Recently, they have opened another hotel , Akshardham. We ourselves were quite surprised with this place and we stayed here in Apr 2011.

The hotel is new and the rooms are clean. They are also fitted up well and the staff is relatively helpful. They get coffee and tea to the room and you may have to walk across to the Sadhabhishekam hotels restraunt for breakfast, lunch or dinner or other places nearby - see my post

The place is still under construction as they plan new cottages for people intending to stay longer.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

Phone number: Contact persons Ayyappan or Senthil - 04364 - 279014

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Places to eat in Vaitheeswaran Koil: Thaiyalnayaki , Durga Bhavan and Sadhabhishekam : A review

Anyone starting from Chennai early morning will know that they will land up hungry by the time they arrive at Vaitheeswaran Koil. There are few eateries there that serve a decen vegetarian meal. I am listing 3 that do
1. Durga Mess - a recent find of ours. From the main entrance it is just 2 ~ 3 shops away on the main road opposite the temple entrance. They serve good south indian food on a plantain leaf, albeit a bit spicy. They also get you curd from a shop for curd rice if you want.
2. Thaiyalnayaki mess - Again a good place to eat whih serves south indian food on a plantain leaf. They are less spicy. We have been eating here for the last 10 + years but the standard of food has recently fallen.
3. Sadhabhishekam - A more upmarket place to eat. They serve north and south indian, chinese food!! The place is a little far off from the temple , especially if you try walking in the hot sun.

From Blogger Pictures

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Places to stay in Tiruvarur: Hotel Royal Park: Review

We have been staying at Hotel Royal Park on the outskirts of Tiruvarur (also Thiruvarur) for neaarly 3 times we have been there. Latest being Apr 2011. It is just after the flyover in Tiruvarur and you have to take a rickshaw to reach. It is a good place to stay if you have your own conveyance.

Rooms: They have both AC and Non-AC and cost around Rs.1250 per double room. The toilets and bed are clean and thats about it. Dont expect Luxury or running hot water throughout the day. You need to book in advance as it often gets filled out. The best part of the hotel is its sorroundings - its got place for walking around in the front and sides. It is located outside the city , so relatively calm and in the middle of some fields.

Food: They do serve coffee and tea in the room and have recently got a veg restraunt too. Earlier it was Non-Veg and did not have too much of a crowd, now it is veg and still does not have too much of a crowd - probably because it is a little outside the city and not in the bus stand. The food is at best ok and the restraunt gets its crowd in weekends and festive holidays.

Tip: If you want hot water in the morning, please ensure you tell the reception the night before and also mention the number of buckets. They usually deliver it in the room in the morning.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

Typically, if you want to visit Vaitheeswaran koil and do not get a room in Hotel Sathabishekam, this is a good alternative place to stay and visit the temple.

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Places to eat: Mayavaram : Kaliyakudi - original one in Mayavaram

A very old and known name for eating out. Its lost a lot of its old sheen but the coffee and the tiffen was still good. One of its branches is in Chennai - Madipakkam

Heres a photo of the original. Legend has it that the erstwhile landlords, advocates and intelligentia of the Mayiladuthurai, Kumbakonam, Tiruvarur districts would eat here.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

The Kaliyakudi hotel is situated in the famous Pattamangalam street, Mayiladuthurai.

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Chola temples: A picture log: Ettukudi and Tiruvaymur

These are typical temples of the south. Ettukudi and Tiruvaymur are near Nagai (or more current reference - Thirukkuvalai - Birthplace of Mr. Karunanidhi). Ettukudi is a very beautiful Murugan temple.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

Here is a pic of the Idumban and Kadamban temple - local village gods.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

Thirvaymur is one of the saptha vitankas and has a beautiful tank opposite the temple.

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

The above are the 4 saints - Appar, Sundarar, Manickavasgar and Thirugnanasambandar at Tiruvaymur

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

From 201104_VaitheeswaranKoil

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