The UpSiDe of the UpBeAt Naval Life

2013 !  New Year !  New beginnings !  Filled with Hope and Joyful Anticipation ! 

I too decided to start the first post of this year on a positive note :)

If there are any senior naval officers or ladies reading this - Please bear with me. This is one of the “Join the Navy and See the World” kind of a post :)

Young ladies – to you all I can say I have lived both lives (navy and civilian) for a good period of time and I assure you that I am giving a very honest perspective :)

There is always a new beginning!

I lived all my childhood, adolescence in ONE house. My school was within 3 km, college within 15 km, even got married within a 2 Km radius of that house. Some may call it nice and settled but for a girl who loved to travel, it spelled – boring, boring, boring. Once I entered wedlock. Phew! All restraints off! I traveled to my heart’s content. You settle somewhere, more often than not; it becomes kind of mundane after a year. How do you like it if you can simply pack your bags and be off to a whole new place and whole new start! I mean no one can question you for having the wanderlust because we move under Government orders and so it is OFFICIAL ;)

Everything is paid for – you really see the world at almost no cost ;)

Your transfer (which includes packing, unpacking and tickets) is paid for by the Government. When people mocked at us for our frequent transfers I said – “Hey we get to see lovely places and stay there for free. So what is the big deal?”

Amazing places and even more amazing houses

Navy houses are awesome and ALWAYS situated at prime areas, away from the busy cities, in the most picturesque locations and sometimes as an added perk even near celebrities. How cool is it when your cousin calls and you can say – “You know I can see Ambani’s house from my sit out!” ;)

Beautiful neighborhoods

Unless you were born in a remote mountain you can never have a neighborhood like that available (within major cities) especially for the defense people. When I go to my parent’s house I have to drive for half an hour to reach the place where I can walk freely without fear of being run over by a vehicle. Where as in naval houses I simply have to step out of the door and start jogging

Better environment for children

You will cry if you see the condition of most of the public children’s parks. No offense to anyone. Some are good but most aren’t. Whereas in Navy I have never lived in a house which dint have at least 2 or 3 really good parks in the vicinity of your home. There is so much better security for the kids and plus they get to meet their own classmates when they go out. So they end up becoming socially more active and comfortable

Better relationship with neighbors

In civil life there is a tendency to stay closeted inside one’s house all the time. Sometimes people don’t even know who lives next door. But it is not so in Navy. Evening walks, gym, parties, canteen – somewhere or the other you will meet your neighbors and have a good social life

Easy admission in schools

If you have a 3 year old kid you have to be ready to part with a few Lakhs for a mere admission in a good school. Plus you need to be ultra alert to know the admission season and wait from 5 am near the counter. I am not mocking people who are struggling this way. I had to go through the same thing with my sister’s kid. It’s crazy out there. But for defense people, it’s simply a matter of few thousands and our kids can join the Navy Children School or KV any time of the year

Lot of freedom

This can have a flipside too. But the way I see it, the easy going party culture actually gives you a taste of the no-restrictions life. While at the same time giving you the freedom to choose! You experience a variety of things in this naval life. And then you can choose to stay in the good zone NOT because your parents force you to or because that is the only socially acceptable behavior BUT because you as a responsible adult made your own personal choice. That’s the way it worked for me. I started measuring my character to see what influence I wanted to have on my child then dropped off habits that I dint want my child to pick up and learnt new ones that I did want my  child to learn

Easy pursuit of hobbies

From reading, swimming, yachting, playing golf, squash, tennis, foot ball, basket ball – you name it Navy would have a well maintained venue for the pursuit of your hobbies and that too within a stone’s throw from the Naval quarters. I think many adults would lead a much happier life if only they had a hobby. Navy definitely encourages its people in this too :)

Adventurous life

You get to snorkel, scuba dive, live in a boat house, drive through snow and through sand dunes and on and on. You name it people in the Navy would have done it. There is no such thing called boredom once you enter Navy

Better Health

An active lifestyle is the second nature of anyone in the Navy. There are very few people in the Navy with problems of obesity, cholesterol and other lifestyle diseases. Even the ones that have such problems can be seen taking active steps to come out of it. This is partly because they are expected to be fit as part of their work. They are screened every year and any signs of disease is detected early and treated well. I must add the naval hospitals are good, well staffed and definitely affordable than most private hospitals

A novel blend of timeless traditions and broadminded modernism

You can rely on this culture to keep you happily engaged with a versatile lifestyle. Navy doesn’t let go a chance to have a good time. Be it the traditional welcoming party for a shy young bride and her new husband or sending off an officer by tossing him in the air with a LOUD rendition of “He’s a jolly good fellow!” Be it The New Year Ball or Ship’s Picnic. Be it the May Ball or the Rain Dance. The Navy Ball or the breakfast while betting on the officers’ yachting teams. Navy manages to skillfully combine the old and new and does it in style too !

I hope you enjoyed reading this post. This is not an exhaustive list of the many facets of Indian Navy Life but it most certainly gives an honest perspective of someone who lived it and appreciates it a lot.