.

 . By T.V. Antony Raj
.

I took these photos on January 14 and 15, 2012, while traveling in my younger son Subas Raj’s car.

Initially, while occupying the front seat while my son drove his Honda CRV smoothly between 60 and 70 mph, I felt a bit jittery, being not used to left-hand driving.

I really admire the clean streets over here in the United States—not a bit of paper or piled garbage could be seen. The roads are smooth and devoid of potholes—no bumpy roads, and so no backache.

No town buses. So, everyone has a car or two. The drivers are road-conscious, polite towards other drivers, and stop and give way to pedestrians crossing the road. No harsh driving, no unnecessary road hogging, and no rash overtaking—everyone obeys the road rules. All use the fantastic GPS for guidance and direction.

A spacious, non-congested landscape with houses built with light materials looks bleak and drab outside. Almost all houses look alike, mostly painted—no vivid or vasthu colors that we see in India.

Since it is winter, not much green foliage can be seen.

Though the sun is shining, the outside temperature chills the bones. Here are the lowest temperatures in degrees Celsius for the past 4 days: 13th: -2, 14th: -3, 15th: -4, and today (16th) it was -7 at 8 a.m. (it would have been colder outside while we slept), and now at noon it is -1. Inside the car, we need the heater for warmth. Inside the house, a steady temperature of 68 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit is maintained throughout the day and night.