Moving

Before anyone gets to excited, I'm not the one moving. My cousin was moving from Northville to Canton over the weekend. But there was a twist to the moving, I had to help him with the move. But I did not mind until I got to his apartment. He sort of rushed into this moving, where not everything was packed, and just sitting in the rooms as is. He wanted the whole place cleaned out in two days, and basically nothing was packed. So we packed and moved things at the same time. So he with many others, including my brother, started Saturday and I joined in on Sunday. I had to work on Saturday, and did not get home until 7:00 PM. This was one of the most tiring Sundays of my life, we were moving furniture, packing and cleaning the apartment. On top of all that once we filled the cargo van, we drove to Canton, and took everything out and put it in his condo, going up a flight of stairs to reach his front door! So a 150 lb tv was the hardest thing to move, and I am still feeling the pain today!

Eid Al Adha

Well in Islam, we have two holidays, Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha. Back on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, we had our Eid Al-Adha. So this being a very holy day, we had to go to a special prayer, which was at 9:30 in the morning. So we had to get up at seven in the morning and leave to house at 8:30. So we get to the banquet hall around 9:00 AM. We pray our Eid prayers in a banquet hall because our mosque cannot fit the number of people that come and pray, the numbers are in the thousands. Well the prayer did not start till 10:00 AM. There is this running joke, desi standard time, which basically says that all Indian and Pakistanis are always late for things. 

After the prayer we are meeting people, wishing them a happy Eid, then the problem came. There is one entrance and exit, which the same thing, in this place. So there are thousands of people trying to leave this place at once, which caused gridlock. It took us about a half hour to get out of this place. But finally we did and then the day finally began. 

The rest of the day comprised of meeting various family and friends. We went to see many people, and many people came to see us. The day was topped off with a huge family gathering at my uncles home in Rochester Michigan. We got to the gathering at around 7:00 PM, and did not leave until 1:30 AM. So got home and slept and got up at 8:00 for work!

Ashoka Indian Cuisine

Being of Indian decent, my family and I generally go out and eat Indian food. As much as we love eating Indian food, we love criticizing the food and the service. Now what better review would I do other than Indian food? I decided to go to Ashoka, a local Indian restaurant in Canton, Michigan. Once I entered the restaurant, I was greeted by mannered employees, who, it seems, have been trained quite well. Decorated with paintings of old times in India, the mood was set at a way that one feels relaxed. I was seated at a booth, along with my family, and was feeling really good about this restaurant. The cleanliness was good, and there were enough wait staff for a good experience. There were a lot of people there, from a young couple to elderly people with their grand kids, so this restaurant is family friendly. Being an Indian restaurant, there was much diversity, with people from every continent. No doubt this is a family restaurant, there is also a bar, with imported liquor from India and Europe.

The food, I think, is quite pricey, even for Indian food standards; the average price for an entre is about fifteen dollars. With a party of five, and ordering three dishes with dessert and appetizers, the bill was around $70. We must remember that this is not a fine-dining restaurant, but an average looking restaurant--a bit higher-class than a Max and Ermas. Aside from the price, the food was delicious. Especially the Indian Chinese food; I would actually come here for Fried Rice instead of a Chinese restaurant. My family and I ordered Chilli Chicken, Chicken Haka Noodles, and Lamb Biryani. These dishes are by far the best Indian Food I have had at a restaurant, hands down. Haka Noodles are stir fry noodles with a choice of meat or vegetables. The Lamb Biryani is a savory dish with meat and rice. Finally Chilli Chicken is this delectable spicy chicken that will leave the eater begging for more. The dessert was very authentic--the Gulab Jamun was amazing, and each bite was complemented with a soft and warm feeling. Gulab Jamun is fried bread with syrup. Indian food, usually being spicy, can be difficult for some to eat. Ashoka offers three grades of spice, mild, medium, or hot; with that everyone's spice level is met.

But aside from the food, the one thing that sort of got to me was the wait time. Having a restaurant full to its max, the food took some time to get to us. Also the food was not hot or cold, it was warm, which is a bit of a turn off to some, but I did not mind. They could hire more waiters and waitresses, even though there were like seven, they looked a bit frantic. The wait staff worked hard and got all orders right and got the orders to the people as fast as they could, it was just that the restaurant was full. My family and I were quite fortunate, after we were seated there was a line of people waiting to be seated, along with many carry out orders.

All in all, this restaurant was very good, if someone wants to drop $70-$100 for Indian food. The food, by far, was the best restaurant-style Indian food. The service was good, the restaurant was clean, and the food was exceptional. The only thing that I did not like was the pricing, there are other Indian restaurants in Metro Detroit that offer food for less money, but as the saying goes; what you pay for is what you get.

Important Information

2100 Haggerty Road

Canton MI, 48187

Phone Number: (734) 844-3100

Hours :

Lunch: Monday thru Friday 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM

Lunch: Saturday and Sunday 11:30 AM - 3:00 PM

Dinner: Monday Thru Thursday 5:30 PM- 10:00 PM

Dinner: Friday and Saturday 5:30 PM-10:30 PM

Dinner: Sunday 5:30PM- 9:00 PM

http://www.ashokaindiancuisine.com

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Motor Trend Car of the Year

Motor Trend recently announced their pick for car of the year, which is the 2010 Ford Fusion. Before everyone starts berating me and writing this American car off, just hear me out. This car, since its arrival, has been highly rated as a midsize average car, its not a luxurously car, but a car that is practical and that is also affordable. This car's competition is the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and the Chevy Malibu. I've rode a last generation Fusion, and it is a solid car, a huge improvement from the older American cars. I really believe that many American cars are written off, because of past models, but Americans cars have come a long way and I think thaat they are competible with the Japanese cars. Just give them a chance. 

Lions

Well its official, there is still hope. The lions have improved 200% this year, by winning two games. After last years debacle, winning one game was the goal this year, but amazingly the worst team in the United States won two games! I am not an avid pro football follower, but even for me this is a happy thing. I just feel bad for the Browns, knowing the fact that they lost to the worst team in the league. 

But Being a basketball fan, I rather would not talk about the pistons... 

Sample restaurant review

I found one on italian food 

http://detroit.metromix.com/restaurants/restaurant_review/first-taste-lolas/893662/content

Hard week

This week is by far the hardest week, I have a chem exam on friday, a econ exam on thurs, a math exam on mon, and finally a comp paper due on monday. This, I guess, is gearing me up for what lies ahead. College is not supposed to be easy, so I just have to get used to it.

Well I gotta go and study......

my third paper

my third paper was by far the most thoughtful one. I had just a little difficulty writing it, but writing papers is getting a bit easier. I still think writing papers is by far the hardest thing I have to do.  But it is just one of those things that one must learn to do, and do well. Our way of communicating is by writing, so just do it. 

Studying in the library

Well when i first started to study in the campus library I would usually study in the 1st floor, or the second floor. But with time, also comes wisdom, and I came to realize that you cannot get work done on the first two floors. The second floor is like the socializing floor, where people get together and talk. I found myself finding people and doing more unproductive things, so I went to the third floor. This is a great floor to be doing homework and studying. My productivity was so much better because the third floor is a quiet study place, where I guess no one is allowed to talk, and it works wonders. If someone need to study hardcore, go to the third floor. But I still have yet to see the fourth floor.

Wedding Part 2

Well I was saturday Nov 7, and another cousin of mine was getting engaged, so again I had to work from 11 am -7 pm. So I had to be nice to rude customers for 8 hrs, then finally when I get off work, I had to drive myself home, take a shower, put on some presentable clothes, and once again drive 1 hour to this party. I finally get there at around 9:20 and everyone was eating dinner. Remembering my last late appearance, many of my family members already had food ready on a plate! Then when the festivities where over, which was like 1:30 in the morning, I drove back home, but it took a lot less time getting home, due to the fact that no one drives on the highway at 2 in the morning, so I had like no traffic, and was averaging like 90-95 mph. This story does seem made up, but I assure all the readers that it is not. My dad has like 11 siblings, and he is # 11 of 12, so there are many cousins that are older than me, and are around the same age. I just hope that I don't have to go to another party after work in a long time. 

Campus

well looking at the umd campus, I see alot of diversity. I came from Canton, where I thought was alot a diversity, but I was wrong until I came here. I see many caucasians, african americans, asian (eastern asian, indian, middle eastern) here on the campus. I really like it because now I can learn more about people without taking a class!