I was one angle of a love triangle… and a serious one too…
I was in love…
aur ab………
oh.. and people.. check this out…
my new long post…
a still from “the elephanta caves”…Dec 28th samay hua hai raat ke 10 baje… aur ab padiye itmeenaan se aaj ki kahani…
ok.. so MahaLakshmi it is.. and we enter inside.. the gates right now are closed i guess for some aarti or something and after a wait of about 15 minutes ensures that we are inside one of the only temples in the world dedicated to the Goddess of Wealth… is that one of the reasons why Mumbai is called the Financial Capital of India….
anyway.. out of the temple and then took a cab to the Sidhdhi Vinayak Temple… we were warned of the crowd we were to see there… but then you have to see it to beleive it… the line had atleast 200 hundred people only outside the temple… and then a look inside… which proved that there were another 200 hundred inside the temple in a queue which was not moving at all… and then we saw the entry which had a 50 buck ticket… we joined that line.. and then we saw another entry which was dedicated to the Gold and Silver card members… this is the first time i have seen something like this… Free Line, 50 bucks, Silver Card, Gold Card, and one more Yearly Pass.. hey wait.. i have seen this funda in the Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati too… a line with 2 bucks as the ticket, one with 50 bucks.. and a third with 500 bucks and VIPs….
look at the name.. uff…ok so the temple is crowded like hell inside.. and i just managed to tell Goddie God that i would stay away from the crowd.. and would not really fight my way inside to the main statue… we get out in about an hours time… and that can be called a record of sorts… and then take a cab to Dadar.. which was about 15 minutes away… both of us were hungry and were looking for a place to eat at 2330 hours…
the marine drive in the night…this is where we discussed a few good things about mumbai restaurants…
~ there is a small Temple in most of the restaurants….
~ in some of the restaurants, they will not refill your water glasses, but would just replace the glass with a full glass of water…
~ all the restaurants are washed properly every night…
nice… very nice… I like this… i feel i am getting a lot of things to crib about when i get back to delhi 😛
about today… 28th Dec…. the day began late.. very late infact…. i got up at 1000 hrs.. and then took my time to get ready… was out of the hotel room by 1200 hrs… took the first local to VT… oops.. Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus.. and then a taxi to the Gateway of India… a 120 rupee ticket to the ferry to the Elephanta Caves.. and boarded the ferry from the gate # 4 behind the Gateway of India… had to shell out another 10 buks to sit on the upper deck… and it was WORTH it… talked to the person who was driving the ferry… stood on the upper deck like Leonardo D’Caprio in titanic.. the only difference being, i did not a Kate Winslet to kiss or draw and the ferry was not sinking because of an Iceberg…
marine drive…the speed was slow… and the view exciting… it was my first exp of a journey in the sea.. Elephanta Caves are on a island about 11 nautical miles away from the coast… and it takes about 1 hour to reach there…
got down at the island.. to see that there was a small train to take some way towards the caves… saves about 10 minutes of walk… and it costs 8 bucks for a return ticket… i chose to walk.. and then had to shell out another 5 bucks as a part of the revenue being generated for the village which is there on the island… and then a walk up the 120 stairs… now what i hated about the place was it had a million people and about half a million shops.. ok ok i am exhagerating, but then it had more people then required.. and definitely the number of shops could reduce…
a 10 rupee ticket and the money i guess this time goes to the ASI lets me enter the hillock where the caves are….. and what do i see !!!
well.. marine drive again… Woh !!! Manh !!!!
i cannot describe anything that experienced for the next two hours in words… today i am feeling that my vocabulary is not really good.. my expression of joy, excitement, surprise ends with a very fews words… any some of the pictures might help me say what i want to… huge statues man made, out of stone, huge caves, beautiful !!! just kept walking around the island and reached the Canon Hill.. where there is a huge Canon kept … the view from this point was great.. i could see the place where i got down of the boat at a distance.. and the sea all around !!! beautiful….
the vada pao ka outlet…walk back to the boats… you can take any boat back to mumbai from here… and i did.. and paid 10 bucks again to sit on the upper deck !!! and this time the view was worth a million bucks.. i have seen the sun setting in the sea.. but only in pictures.. and this time.. i was looking at the sun for over 45 minutes ending his day.. and setting in the horizon… i was happy.. my heart was full of joy.. and i had already finished over two rolls of film… and i could not stop clicking… manh.. why don’t i have a digital SLR… i could have taken atleast 500 fotos today.. but my fotos were limited… and i am sure i could not have done what i have done with a digital point and shoot…. i need a DSLR… mom dad someone is going to pester you on his burthday….
back on the Gateway of India after a good half a day off INDIA… do you realise that.. i realise that.. i was not on the mainland for the first time ever in my life… God this is great !!! Thank you…
then my usual walk to the bus stand.. and then a cab to VT… and then a 10 minute line to the ticket from VT to Dadar.. and surprisingly a local where i could get a seat.. what is this happening… i getting a seat too regularly now in the local trains now…. and getting down pretty easy too.. i keep my bags at the hotel room.. and rush out with my laptop to find a cyber cafe.. and the ones that i find do not allow me to connect the lappie to their network.. assholes… they were afraid that i am going to infect their network.. i assured them that the computer is running a anti-spyware, a firewall, and an anti-virus software all updated.. but they did not care… i called up Gautam and requested him to send the email i was supposed to send !!! thanks Gautam…
and then back to the hotel.. kept the laptop.. grabbed a hundred rupee note.. and went out of the hotel to hunt for a good Vada Pao… i had seen the Jumbo Vada Pao stall yesterday.. and i headed for that… Vada Pao, the indian burger… and i love it.. its 1000 times better then the McDonald’s burgers… and then i have some good lassi at a shop… back to the hotel… plan to watch “Gone in 60 seconds” with my favorite Nicolas Cage and Angelina “umm lips” Jolie… but thought that i should first write about the day before i catch up with the movie… and here i was.. with the post.. will upload it whenever i get time sometime later… till then… ta ta people…
umm… and the day today is 29th Dec, my mom’s birthday… and the time right now is 2132 hrs… i am not taking any chances by not writing about today for a couple of days coz i am afraid i might miss out on somethings… so here i go about how the day was on thursday, the 29th of Dec.
the day starts late like yesterday… and what really wakes me up is a phone call from office… finish that… and then pack my stuff.. this time it looks like i have matured as a packer.. and my stuff is nicely tucked up in the two bags that i have…
on foot.. and inside the train…i get out of the hotel.. grab a vada pao… and then take a local to Churchgate… seat again… 🙂 i am the Local Train God !!! a walk around churchgate… had lotsa juice.. different types… Pineapple, Water Melon, cheeku shake lots of them.. and then i find my way towards the Khau Galli… to be frank it turned out to be a dissapointment….
the double deckers in mumbai…on second thoughts it was not that bad… about 15 odd shops… serving all sorts of mumbai specials… and this time i do not eat anything but had some Ganne Ka Rass, and some mango lassi and then went to a nearby ground where there were a few cricket matches on.. and enjoyed that for about 45 minutes, before I decide to get away to Marine Drive… it was quite near… i had thought it would be far.. passed by the Mocha.. Priyangini had suggested that i should go there to check out the hottie hott babes of mumbai… umm… i have seen better in delhi… you know what i think in Delhi hott gurls are present around some specific places only… unlike mumbai.. where you can definitely spot some cool girls around anywhere… anytime…
anyway.. i make way for myself to marine drive.. and i decide to spend the rest of the day there.. walking from one end of the Necklace of the Queen to the other.. and back… that makes it a total of about 8 kms… i just kept walking.. enjoying the sun.. and the weather… reached Chowpati.. had some bhelpuri there.. and then started walking back… to catch the sunset i always had been waiting for in my life.. but hey… the sun did not go set in the sea.. it was a good inch above the horizon.. not fair 🙁 i was thinking i would be able to see half the sun inside water.. and the other half above it.. well never mind.. it was good enough… some good snaps there… and then the lights came on… it for sure was beautiful.. and the number of people now had started increasing.. so i decided to make a move back.. oh… i forgot.. i also went to an aquarium there.. it was nice… took the local back to dadar.. went to the ATM.. settled my bill.. and then went out to see what can i do after i have to check out of the hotel tmrw morning.. there is this small cinema hall near the hotel.. i think i will catch the matinee show there Bluff Master is the movie.. and that would keep me busy for three hours..and i can leave Dadar at 1600 hrs… thats still kinda early for the flight.. but i guess i rather leave then wasting time around !!!
so that was how the second last day in mumbai was spent… eating and drinking…
a few things about mumbai that i love to love
~ the strong.. very very strong public transport system, the locals, the buses, the taxis….
~ the double decker buses are still running here.. i love it…
~ there are so many juice corners around this city.. and really cheap… i loved that part…
~ looks like most of this city runs on time… this is good…
city minus the traffic… great city…
saturday 0120 hrs; last day of the year 2005 starts… and what did i do in the second last day of the year 2005… here is what i did….
the day started a li’il early then the last two days… around 0900 hrs.. i had to get up.. and pack all my stuff… and then leave for a movie… to kill time for atleast 3 hours… and around 1000 hrs i was done with my packing… and i got a message from Priya.. who was kinda free for lunch… so i thought good… i don’t have to waste time watching the movie.. i get ready.. leave my stuff with the hotel wala guys… take a local to VT and meet up with priya for lunch… her office is on DN Road… beautiful… why was i not here before… anyway… we meet outside her office.. i get her a few flowers just to thank her for whatever she had done while i was in mumbai.. i could not have got a place if priya was not around… we go to a very very decent chinese restaurant near her office itself… and they serve more then what two people can eat.. we ordered for just one noodles.. and we ate .. and had enough to pack and take away too.. but then neither was in keen on a parcel.. and she too was not interested.. so we had to waste about one third of the food and move out… i thanked her again and then rushed to dadar… picked up my stuff…and took a taxi to the airport.. and the fare this time 🙁 120 bucks.. and how much did i spend the last time.. i guess it was around 350 bucks.. i came out well of mumbai.. and it turns out that its one of the cities i like to like…
sushant called in.. and told me that he is going to meet me… i checked in.. also was happy with the fact that the flight was an hour late.. which meant i had more time… and rushed to Bandra… where Sushant was waiting for me… it was so good to see him after so long.. he has been a good friend always… and talking to him is always great.. we move to the Ban Stand Bandra, i see the deserted fort.. and we just hang out there only for a while… till the sun sets.. and then moved to the cafe coffee day.. and then search for Shahrukh.. he called but he did not give me his address.. however he being a famous cine star.. it was not hard to find Mannat, his bunglow… bang in front of the sea.. i envy him for the breeze he gets in the evenings…
so now i think i had covered all the places that Priyangini had mentioned in her comment on the post… oh.. and i also had the green chana chaat.. this time the third time… i had it the first time at the juhu..and again there only…
reached the airport… through the typical mumbai traffic… i will keep cribbing about that all the time… and the flight this time was not delayed further… and whoa !!! the jet was huuuuuuuuge… this was the first time i managed to sit in the Indian Airlines and not the Alliance Air… the plane was an Airbus 300 and it had 10 seats in every row.. and also had a executive class section… the air hostesses were slightly better… had a nice dinner on board.. mumbai looks beautiful in the night.. i could figure out where the Marine Drive was, thanks to the Air India Building near the Nariman Point… i think i liked Delhi better when the plane took off for Bhopal.. anyway.. i have also started reading the City of Djinns by William Dalrymple… interesting book….
Saturday 31-Dec-2005 2118 hrs…. chennai @ Deepak’s Residence…
what to expect in the next few paragraphs… the trip to MahaBalipuram and Pondy !!!
today is what? the second of january 2006 !!! and i have not posted anything for about a week.. actually i have been writing .. and keeping it with me.. did not have any access to the emails
ok… 03 Jan 2006… i have not wished anyone a happy new year.. i have not posted anything on the site.. and i did not tell anyone about what happened in Chennai.. shame on me…
here is the flashback…
a church in pondicherry…
the shore temple Mahabalipuram.. and more…reached chennai late… and left early for Mahabali Puram… saw the entire place.. and then went to pondi and came back… shit.. i am not really feeling like writing right now… i think i will stop here… and write about my Pondi and Mahabalipuram Trip sometime later.. it was too good to be missed out…
this is how i would describe sunday evening…
finished off with the training by 1530 hrs.. and then went to a small restaurant to have tea… boss was coming to mumbai to i had to go to the stations.. oops the airport to pick him up… and Anis had to to the airport as he was leaving for ahmedabad… so i thought i will leave with him.. and come back with boss….
we left from Lower Parel around 1645 hrs… and then went to the Linking Road. bandra…
oh my God !!! so many shops for only gurl’s footwear… what the heck !!!! and what crowd… quality quantity together… sahi hai baap !!! is this a high end version of Sarojini Nagar.. that is what i kept thinking all the time.. while trying to walk around… the kinda crowd we have in delhi at the trade fair… looks like mumbai lives with that amount of people per square metre of land !!!
the linking road…khair.. Anis was getting late and i was not really sure if i wanted to hang around that place… there were too many missiles for gurls there to hurl at me if anyone felt bad about my existance in mumbai 😛
so we catch an auto.. and ask him to fly to the airport… well.. poor guy could not do anything about speed.. the traffic limits everything around.. so we reached the airport just about 20 minutes before anis had to leave.. i am sure the flight was delayed and i hope he had enough time to check in and all !!!!
what next.. Atul calls and tells me he has reached as well.. and i walk to the arrivals… met him… the cab came… first time sat in a honda city nai wali… very comfy car.. and then to his hotel…Hyatt Regency…
now you guys might be shocked but this was the first time i was in the room of a five star hotel.. first time i saw a wash basin made out of glass… first time i saw an ironing board in a hotel room… first time i saw at least 12 towels of various sizes in a hotel room… phew so many firsts… the view from the hotel room was beautiful too…
view from boss’s room at the Hyatt…and then boss and me went to joohoo… i am not going to crib about the traffic any more now.. please assume that whenever i write i went anywhere i met loads and loads of traffic… juhu beach… woops.. so many shops serving.. Pao Bhaji, Jain Bhaji, Kala Khatta, Pani Puri ( Golgappe or Paani ke Batashe), Sev Poori, Bhel Poori, alaa Poori and Balaa Poori… and then some sand… and then i saw the sea the second time in my life… the small waves… the air… looked like a purr-fect place to be with someone special… sea side… ok.. back to the ground reality… i was with boss.. and he has stayed in mumbai for about 5 years… so he could tell me whats good where… i ate the green chane.. and then the pao bhaji.. and then some bhelpoori… to be frank.. the Bhelpoori was not really as i expected it would be.. i have eaten better stuff in Delhi !!!
joohoo…why is the juhu beach dirty like hell.. more polybags and kachra then a waste pit… people should not do it… this is one place where a lot of outsiders would carry some impression from.. and when i notice that most of mumbai is pretty disciplined, this part should not have been neglected !!!
the pao-bhaji stall at the joohoo beach !!!next i find myself in an auto for santa cruz station… a 4 rupee ticket again.. he he.. i somehow knew alredy the ticket is going to be 4 bucks !!! hehehe.. and then a seat to put my ass on in the local !!!! wow dream come true… it was 2215 hrs.. and trust me there was no dearth of people around… the city for sure never sleeps… i reach Dadar pretty quick. move out of the station.. swimming my way out of the ocean of people on the overbrige.. reach my hotel.. and find out that i have to change a room again in the morning.. this is twice now… anyway…. i keep my stuff in the room.. and rushed out to find out about how i can go to shirdi..
400 bucks for a volvo ticket…
6 hours drive..
not bad.. i might go with boss !!!
slept nice in the night… for some reason being alone is not pinching me.. i am kinda enjoying the time i get with myself these days… just doing nothing.. being with myself on my own…
woke up in the morning… and got ready with ease.. went to the station.. and went to the platform… the train came.. i was able to enter it just fine.. and then i noticed the compartment was kinda different then the usual ones so far..
no no no.. i was not in the ladies compartment.. but the first class one.. the cushioned seats.. the less crowd.. it was different really.. and i did not have that ticket for that compartment ofcourse.. so like a good citizen.. and to avoid a ticket and the free embarassment that comes with it in an new city i got down at the next station.. and got into the usually crowded one… ok.. this feels better… and i also intelligently made my way to the middle of the compartment where i could stand with ease…
and guess what..
there was nandita das in that train.. there was shooting going on in that compartment…
hehehe.. just kidding..
nothing big happened.. i got a seat again this time… this was as big a surprise as seeing nandita in person when you were least expecting it… i was looking at the rail map.. and counting the number of stations.. so that i know where to get down… intelligent me also knew how to get down from the train as well this time..
just stand in front of someone who has to get down on the station you have to get down on.. and make sure you have someone in front of you who looks ready to do anything to get down as soon as the station comes.. the trick worked.. and there was just out in a second.. smooth like jack daniels !!!!
the crowd in the mumbai local trains is like the strong wind.. is like the huge wave… is like that force of nature that does not let you stand in front.. you have to mind it.. have to move with it.. you would be intelligent if you face the side where the crowd is going and let this unnaturally natural force of nature do the rest for you !!!
a 25 minute drive in an auto after that.. and i reach mind-space.. the new age concrete jungle in mumbai… malad west is where this is… cewl.. the entire day in the office.. monday heat.. loads of work.. number of meetings… lotsa tool demos… and waiting for the day to get over…
i wanted to meet priya today.. but looks like i will be late.. i asked her if she could accompany me to marine drive… but looks like thats not possible… will meet her in dadar sometime later in the week.. thanks priya for being around in mumbai.. you’ve been a great help here !!!
i think i will be able to post this only on tuesday, that is 27-Dec… ta tu for the day today !!! will write something about the monday evening as well !!!
initiate post part II => tuesday…27th Dec’05 1100 hrs
so what did i write yesterday… thta i am not going to talk about traffic.. ok… well i think i cannot stay without writing about it.. left office around 1930 hrs… Malad(W) near the Iorbit Mall…. and reached Andher(W) in an hour and 15 minutes… smoke, traffic, uff !!!! sick !!!! and that looks like a normal traffic.. not because there was an accident or something like that… the traffic was just there.. not ready to move !!! anyway… took the local from Andheri to Dadar….got a seat again… and reached hotel around 2200 hrs…
morning started late… but it took less time to reach office today.. the train compartment i entered was kinda empty.. i could stand with ease… and then got a seat at the andheri station too… for some strange reason.. even though the seats in the compartment were empty people were not willing to sit… instead they were quite happy clogging the gates like hell !!! but then as i wrote last night.. i am wiser now.. i just need to stand in between two people who have to get down… make sure i do not loose my balance.. and getting out is a peice of cake…
in the office right now.. might go to the InORBIT mall tonight.. lets see what is so special about that too… i am not really keen to enter any malls coz i already have an overdose of malls in delhi.. gurgaon, delhi, and now kaushambi has more malls then i can handle !!! but lets see….
the next post would come in a li’il late… not sure when.. i guess when i am in banglore.. or if i get net access anywhere near Dadar.. and they allow me to use my laptop !!!
posting this from the office at 1100 hrs on sunday….
flashback…
what is the time right now.. lemme check… 2245 hrs… in my room… and the date today is 24th Dec… i have more about mumbai today to write… but before that.. something about what i have been doing in the last two days…
flashback…
yesterday…
usual office.. nothing great.. came back late from the office… had dinner at a restaurant near the hotel… came to the room.. watched “Gods must be crazy” and slept… i think i have written this in the last post too… so nothing new…
inside the office building…this is the reflection in a mirror on the floor of the roof…today… went to the office late… did not feel like getting out of the blanket… for people who are missing me in delhi.. i am using an AC in this room full blow… and mom told me yesterday that she had not seen the sun for three days..
and the son for about two weeks now… love you mom.. love you pa… your son is just fine… do not worry… he is more of a loner kinda guy so being alone is not killing him at all.. he has a mind to think.. eyes to keep looking around….and loads of work which keeps him really busy the entire day and gives him enough reasons to sleep peacefully….
so back to today…. did the training just fine… thank God we had three people with laptops in the training which meant good amount of hands on done.. otherwise it was just my laptop that was being used for hands on by the team.. the training was not that effective yesterday coz the people really needed to work on the tool to understand ( i realise that but i cannot really anything about it…) but today it turned out to the best session so far in the 4 sessions i have completed so far… the entire north has been trained… west would be completed tmrw.. and then i move to south and then to east !!! funn… eh !!!
was able to get over todays agenda by 1830 hrs.. and then came to know that Prasanna ( the IT guy from Mobility Maharashtra, Pune) was planning to go to the MahaLakshmi Temple… and he asked me.. and i was more then happy to say yes !!! he is an IBMer so he can hire a cab from Hertz.. and pay using his AMEX… i do not have that option.. and what did we have for a cab today.. a black Mitsubishi Lancer… i like that car.. its sleek….
so first stop… mahalakshmi temple… drove next to the race course as well… and then walked down to Haji Ali… and saw the sea in the night… scary !!!! it is… really…. second time i saw the sea now… i am not sure what direction i was looking at now…was it the west or the east or what the hell… coz when i went to Gateway of India that day.. the sun was setting opposite to the sea.. and i was totally confused.. it was supposed to set in the sea here !!!! why was it setting ina different direction… a quick look at the map helped me understand how the coast was structured…
phew but trust me i usually good with directions.. but i am taking more time then usual here in mumbai with that… this is not me !!! need to read more…
anyway about today.. MahaLakshmi and then Haji Ali..
the Haji-Ali Dargah…
inside the Dargah !!!
the road next to the sea… B E A U T I F U Land then what next… one major temple left.. the Sidhdi Vinayak Temple, PrabhaDevi Mumbai !!!! so we head towards that temple…
one of the busy mumbai roads…all sins taken care of… all Gods happy.. and i am an angel now… with wings.. and i did not even drink Red Bull !!!
one of the roads in worli…then a great dinner at a restaurant called the Shobha Restaurant in Mahim !!! and a taxi back to the hotel…
now my observations about the city…
~ its fast… no i am not complaining… this is just an observation…. i still walk at my own pace here…
~ its crowded… no matter what time of the day it is.. you will be in the middle of traffic… and a sea of people…
~ it has lots and lots of taxies…. all FIAT… mmmmmmmuah 🙂
~ you have to be careful before you ask a taxi-wallah to take you anywhere… always walk for a minute or two in the direction you have to go… and then stop a taxi going in that direction… that helps !!! the first thing that the driver would do is turn down the metre.. and go where you has asked him to go.. no arguments nothing.. at the destination he will check the meter tell you the fare.. you give him the fare… greet him.. and smile.. and get out of the cab.. simple… Dilli mein meter and auto.. wishful thinking eh !!! and thrice the amount from the hotel to the office and back was exact 37 bucks.. which means that the meters also work just fine !!!!
~ do not look like a stranger to the city… just be yourself… just look busy and in a hurry…
~ mumbai has a lot of shops.. or probably the route that i take has too many of them. dadar, parel, lower parel… only shops and shops both sides of the road…
~ there is no way that the roads can expand in mumbai.. which means more vehicles are going to add to the length of the jams… and nothing can be done to increase the number of lanes the jam is in…
~ there are very few two wheelers.. i have atleast struggled to find a lot of them… unlike bhopal and delhi.. where there is an equal number of two wheelers as the 4-wheelers… oh.. and bhopal.. definitely twice the number of 2-wheelers then cars etc…
what else…
oh and yes…
i ate the pao bhaji.. good.. but for some reaon was extra red and not because of the chilly.. i guess more tamatar… or tomoto for people who do not understand the hindi…
i ate the vada pao.. i was thinking it would have the vada of idli-vada in it.. but no it was a pao with an aalu bonda in it… now my next question.. what the hell do people call that vada here… then found out.. its called Melu Vada…
ever heard of cutting chai… well i have.. and i saw the term being used today too… maza aaya sunker… “ek cutting chai dena :)” mast ekdum… oh and yes… i saw a lot of people coming to the restaurants having a quick tea and leaving.. good hai.. dilli mein nai hota ye… and guess what they have the tea in a cup and a plate.. the saucer.. and then pour the tea from the cup to the saucer and then drink.. wow… i used to do that in college whenever i could.. and here its done too.. loved that view…
the pic says it all…i had the kolhapuri veg today.. spicy.. ek dum good…
i have not been able to use the SLR a lot so far in mumbai.. probably tmrw.. sunday.. when i move around the markets checking for stuff i can capture in the cam !!! thanks to my phone.. most of what i am seeing i can capture and its good enough to go on the blog…
will stop now… need to sleep.. with post the post tmrw morning after i reach office.. till then shabba khair.. keep travelling with me…..
Ok… i am in my room in mumbai right now.. and the time is 1951 hrs… and today is 22nd dec..i think i will be able to post this only tmrw after training.. which means on the 23rd sometime in the day… lemme start from where i left the last post… i am not sure but i guess i wrote it in indore from the office..
ok…
flashback…
office indore… TSD training done and implementation initiation… the first leg of the training over… and i am ill… fever.. and some infection on the face… which means that i should not be going to Ujjain in the night as planned earlier.. i should be seeing a doc and sleeping … and leave for ujjain as soon as possible in the morning… so i meet a doc after office on 20th evening… he says that the infection is because of cold and that i have a cold bite… which led to all the red marks on the face.. some tabs for cold and some anti-biotics meant that i should be fine in two days… looks like i am… so just ate some idhar udhar ka stuff around instead of a proper meal.. and went to bed.. and what do i see.. AXN is airing Fast and the Furious.. one of the movies i always wanted to watch.. and i sit down to see the movie.. which means that i cannot sleep before 0015 hrs… and what makes anyone in the world think that i will get up by 0300 hrs as i wanted… anyway.. i sleep around 0030 hrs and inspite of the alarms ringing at least 5 times.. and i snoozing it off every single time i did not get up early… i finally woke up at 0700 and rushed out of the hotel… i checked out.. and went to the bus stand in indore… there are regular buses to Ujjain from Indore.. the fare is Rs. 30.. pretty comfortable private buses which have under MPRTC, the Madhya Pradesh Road Transport Corp… the bus would not move at a snail’s pace till its full… which means about 45 minutes inside the city itself.. a distance which can be covered in 1 hrs takes about 1.5 to 2 hours to complete… i had to visit the Mahakal Temple in ujjain which meant that I get down on the flyover just before the bus stand… i did… walked down to the mahakal temple… bought some prasadam… and went inside… lovely temple.. and one of the 12 jyotislingas in india… this one is also a Swayambhu Shivling, which means that it appeared on its own.. this jyotirling is also called Dakshineshwar, which means that its facing the South… was fortunate enough to reach when there was a Shringar going on followed by a Mahaarti… if you really want to visit the Mahakal Temple, then the right time is about 0400 hrs when there is Bhasm Aarti being performed… a ritual when the shivling is decorated with human ashes…
inside the Mahakal temple complex in Ujjain…
keep walking…
the pillars in one of the temples in ujjain…
Daal ke bafle ki dukaan.. i had never even heard of this before…
for people who wondered what the cow-dung cakes are used for…i moved out of the temple in about an hours time.. and then took a local tempo to the bus stand… and then had a light heavy breakfast.. and then took the bus to Indore… was in Indore by 1430 hrs.. which meant that i could leave for Bhopal very much on time.. and i did… took a bus at 1500 hours and reached Bhopal at 2000 hrs… the bus was late by about 30 minutes… took an auto.. reached the same hotel in the new market… kept my bag in the room and rushed out to eat my last bit in bhopal… had pan, had shrikhand, had some kalakand, and some indli wada sambhar… came back to the hotel…. and slept peacefully…
Osho…. there is something about his eyes…
Bhopal.. the Upper Lake… beautiful morning sun…reached the airport in the morning and as expected the Indian Airlines flight was late… hey but i realised that i was again not travelling by IA.. it was Alliance Air.. what has netconnect done? have they given me all the tickets for the worst airline or what… anyway.. not bad to start with i guess…
Allianz Air again…aaargh !!!
the earth is round for sure… i had to reach that level and know it for sure !!! now i know…i reached mumbai early afternoon….
round and round…welcome to the financial capital of India mr. Prashant Bhardwaj… and if you were thinking that the auto-wallas in mumbai are the most honest guys in india.. then wake up.. you are about to be cheated big time… well yes.. this guy wanted to charge 250 bucks for the distance between Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport and Dadar Central… which looked more to me but then i was not sure.. and then he tells me that he cannot go that side of mumbai and that he would drop me at the taxi stand and i could take the taxi.. no need to pay anything to the taxi wala guy as he would pay him the fare.. well obviously he was lying.. i ended up paying 100 more bucks to the taxi wala guy after some argument… i hate it.. i should have talked to both the drivers when i switched vehicles… and this would not have happened… anyway.. i will be careful next time.. coz no one is going to leave any opportunity to overcharge and cheat around here… thanks Mumbai for this warm welcome !!!
anyway i managed to see a completely other side of mumbai as well and that too not in a long time… i will come back to it..
the gateway of india…i reach the hotel i was to check in.. and what do i find out.. there is no room available.. i am zapped… i had a confirmed booking.. what the fcuk.. called up my friend who had helped me get the room.. she said she will check and call me back.. poor soul.. she must be feeling bad about this… sorry baby… anyway the hotel wala guys gave me a room for a night.. and i rushed out as soon as i kept my bags inside to find a hotel.. after i check out where my office is…
the office is in Lower Parel.. i am in Dadar.. i have to take a western railway and go south… one station after dadar is lower parel… ticket fare – 4 bucks.. long line… loads of people… and no dearth of change with the ticket lady… good… i find out the platform.. its number 2.. the good thing about dadar is that i can take the locals which run on the central line as well as the ones on the western lines… good…
i check out where my office is in Lower Parel.. this is Peninsula Towers, Wing A.. not too far away from the station.. about 5 minutes of walk… chalega.. i can stay put in dadar itself… i come back to Dadar… and this time in a bus.. bright red BEST bus… it drops me at the dadar bus stand.. and i reach my hotel after walking through one of the biggest and busiest flower markets i have seen.. what a pretty smell… ummmmm… lovely… and then the overbridge.. ppl… rush… sun… traffic.. and me… looking around for a place to stay in… after 22nd… phew.. its tough i could not find anything…
and then a message from that darling friend..she wanted me to call her friend in mumbai who had arranged for the room.. i called her up.. she is priya by the way.. sweet voice… she told me the the issue had been sorted out.. and i could stay put at the anand lodge itself…. good.. this is a good place to be in…
so my next smallie trip starts after i know where I am staying.. i have a few hours… and i can see something in mumbai.. what to see? umm… camera is calling me.. do something dude… so i check out the map that i bought a while ago.. checked the train routes.. and decided i would go to Chatrapati Shivali Terminus and from there to the Gateway of India… second exp with the local trains in Mumbai… reach CST in about 20 minutes.. fare again 4 bucks… and then i go out.. and try to find a way to go to the Gateway… i asked his man on the bike about the way.. and he said he will drop me there.. very good.. this is what i was talking about.. the other side of mumbai.. hostipatility.. thank you again.. this guy was a part of the police here.. CID to be precise… and dropped me at the Mumbai Police Headquarters.. and from there I walkdown to the GOI… hmm… ok… nice… looks better in fotos.. nothing great… too crowded… too much too much.. i hate this… and this is where i see the ocean for the first time… the earth really is round… hey.. that reminds me.. today i was able to see how the horizon from my plane window.. white and blue.. B E A U T I F U L…
The Taj …awesome..stayed there for a while… and then just walked around.. saw the TAJ Hotel… phew.. huge.. beautiful.. royale… mast ekdum… a walk around the place and then back to the station… this time i thought i will take a bus… and on my way i saw the National Gallery for Modern Art.. thought why not just go in.. and i made one of the best decisions ever by doing this.. the place had on exhibition works of some German Artists.. WOW is the word !!! WOW…
red red bus !!! 🙂 BESTand then out to the bus stand… lots of BEST buses.. and me not sure which one to take.. so this is what i do.. i take out my handbook again.. and see where can i go.. i cannot find the list of buses that will go to CST so i look for an alternative.. and Churchgate is the alternative… so i take the bus number 122 to Churchgate.. and the fare again 4 bucks.. is that a lucky number with mumbai or what? anyway.. saw the Mumbai Vidhyapeeth and the High court on the way to Churchgate… i am not sure what architecture that is.. but its too beautiful !!! i wish i had a college with such a building.. i want to go there again.. lets see when…
oh.. look.. the bus without a driver !!!Churchgate Station… 6 bucks this time for Dadar…. fast train… and i reach dadar in about 30 minutes.. eat some light food.. and enter the hotel… just take care of my baggage and all.. and then sit down to write this post down.. long eh… somethoughts that i have about mumbai…
mumbai…
fast… too fast…
delhi is slower.. bhopal was the slowest of them all so far.. and the most relaxing !!!
ok back to mumbai…
everyone is in a rush to reach somewhere…
thousands of people moving around..
crowded…
the gurls are hott.. and lots of them too…
dedicated compartments for ladies in the local trains.. very good !!! helps avoid situations which are not very happy to be in…
i will take time to adjust to the hustle bustle of the city…
i read somewhere that in the peak hours the crowd of the local trains will take you inside the train and take out out of it as well.. and i really experienced that when i was coming back to Dadar from Churchgate…
how could i not click this.. the mumbai local from Churchgate to Dadar !!!all these names.. dadar, borivalli, churchgate, VT, etc etc used to reach my ears through movies so far… and i was there today.. felt good about that.. felt i have come a long way… and that made me walk slow for some reason.. i do not want to rush ahead in my life.. i want it to move at its own pace.. and i promise to speed up if need be..
thank you life.. thank you God.. i have a lot to be happy about… some to be sad about too.. but more reasons to smile then frown !!!
hey.. just wanted to write down the states and some cities i have been to… feel good factor you see
Delhi
UP
Uttranchal ( Kausani, Bageshwar, Binsar, Patal Bhuvneshwar, Almora, Ram Nagar, Jim Corbett National Park, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Nainital, Chamba, Dhanaulti, Mossourie etc etc)
Himachal Pradesh ( Shimla, Badog, Solan etc etc)
Punjab ( Chandigarh, Amritsar )
Haryana ( Kurukshetra)
Jammu & Kashmir ( Vaishno Devi)
Assam ( Guwahati and Jagi Road)
Shillong
Rajasthan ( Jaipur)
Madhya Pradesh ( Indore, Bhopal and Ujjain)
Maharashtra ( Mumbai)
not too bad a track record eh !!!
and hey can i count the cities i flew over 😛 😀 when i was in the flight !!!
i like this song from Bluff Master… Right Here Right Now… makes me feel like dancing !!! jusst whatt i likke !!!
and the post finally comes to an end at 2057 hrs on the 22nd of Dec.
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new day 23-Dec-05 …. starts at 0700 hrs… with a standard alarm.. and one snooze !!!
was thinking of going to the cafe coffee day yesterday evening… but chose not to.. just rested in my room… saw a movie i had recently bought… The Gods must be Crazy Part I ; ekdum masta movie hai….
was in the office by 0900 hrs… and the training started around 1015 hrs… now a break…
phew mumbai traffic in the morning… Delhi i feel is better.. i don’t think anyone can drive for pleasure here… its just to reach from here to there.. and back… everyone is moving.. going somewhere… I hope they find what they are looking for…
Indore… supposed to be the business capital of Madhya Pradesh… this is where I am today…
curtains in the room in Bhopal…left office around 1700 hours yesterday… and collected my bag and rushed to the bus stand… so this helps me see the other side of Bhopal.. the crowded, with bad roads, and irritating traffic… and i realise that no city is india is different from any other city…
the nicely decorated meter in an auto in bhopali was feeling as if i was moving around in the Transport nagar near the sadar bazaar in delhi.. what traffic man !!! uff… the auto walas drive the same way as in delhi…. zig zag zoom…
so i reach the bus stand in 30 minutes… and i love it.. this was the core city.. lots of loud people trying to pull passengers to their buses… lots of mess !!! 🙂
Bhopal Bus stand…ekdum mast !!!just what I was missing for a few days !!! i chose to just walk around the place for a while before I take a bus… so i just walk around.. feeling at home.. and at the other exit of the bus stand i see an AC coach.. looking just like a volvo…
love this feeling.. i know i can reach indore comfortably now… so i take the bus… nice big bus.. bigg seats… and comfortable too.. and to top it all.. Video Coach.. and AV… looks like i would be just fine…
the bus did not take long to move.. just about 10 minutes and it was on its way to Indore.. Around 1800 is when the bus started…
just outside the bus-stand.. about to take the highway to Indore…it just had one break in between around 1930 hrs… and reached Indore at 2145 hrs… this is when the conductor also had promised.. the bus on time.. and the movies played on the way… SuryaVansham.. and No Entry.. not bad eh !!! but too loud !!! however i was tired and i could sleep as well for a while.. missed a few phone calls too on the way !!!
so in Indore… and the first impression… nothing great.. just like any other city i have been to.. but there was on thing that i noticed.. the Autos in bhopal were hell lot better… and this time i was looking at old autos.. real old ones… the ones with the engines in the front !!! i get down of the bus.. and pay 20 bucks to reach the hotel… Hotel RajShahi… nice very nice… one of the best that i have stayed in so far…
i sleep after a light dinner.. and when i woke up in the morning i had fever… took some breakfast and then a crocin.. feeling better while i am writing this… i also have something on my face.. kuch gadbad lag rahi hai.. i think i will see a doc in the evening..
i was checking out in the morning… when Abhishek who arranged for my stay suggested that i stay put in the hotel and leave for ujjain in the morning only.. which made sense looking at my halat in the morning.. so i did not check out… my bags are there itself.. and i will leave for Ujjain tmrw morning.. early morning around 0500 hrs…
i will get back to work now.. getting the implementation done here in Indore today.. might meet Pawan as well in the evening… he does not meet me when he is in Delhi.. i might meet him when i am in Indore…
so finally after thee days i get a chance to do some local sightseeing…
being a sunday most of the ppl who attended the training were not really keen on staying for the whole 8 hours… so we did some good case studies and were free by 1500 hrs… i was tired after 3 days of hectic schedule.. and just wanted to sleep.. but then i have to go to Indore tonight for implementation and then go ujjain and then come back to Bhopal and then take a flight to Mumbai.. hectic eh !!!
anyway… autos in Bhopal are awefully expensive… almost 8 bucks per km.. and trust me bargaining does not help.. they probably run at this rate only… delhi suddenly looked better in terms of autos.. but then there is one thing which i really liked… the autos have been kept very well… nicely painted… with plush seats.. a lot of them have decorated them very beautifully… i like it…
did not see a lot of clinics around.. but saw a lot of ayurvedic centres.. looks like this city is more about the age old genuine therapies… good again !!! so back to the hotel around 1530 and very tired… just packed my stuff for indore and then moved out with my cam…
wanted to go to the bus stand to find out about the bus to indore… and managed to get all the information from an auto-walah itself… went to the bank and then to the Bhopal Jheel… or the Bhopal Lake or the Upper Lake also called the Bada Talaab !!! very nice place.. and huge.. HUGE… really… could see the other side of it from one angle.. wow !!!
and lotsa boats in in… paddle boats… rowing boats… speed boats… kayaks… very nice.. and the membership to the water sports club is very economical too… was just wondering how would it feel to actually stay back for a few months here.. and just spend time there… either learning how to row.. or doing something or the other.. there were so many soo many ducks are there too…
Just near the lake are two more places which were of interest to me but i did not have time to visit them.. one is the Van Vihar ( the Zoo) which is spread over 445 hectares of land near the upper lake and Bharat Bhawan which is supposed to be a centre of Performing and Visual Arts… has a museum as well.. the place looked nice.. but i had to rush to the Airport to meet boss… so i left in a hurry after spending about and hour and a half at the lake..
sunset at the upper lakethe evening spent with boss… walked around a place called Bhopal Haat where the Saras Mela was there.. nice place.. and then came to new market.. just roamed around for a while.. and then back to the hotel after dinner !!! so all in all a nice evening…
Bhopal looks like a nice city to me.. very calm.. green… and with goood roads…
am in the office now… will work till around 1700 hrs and then rush for indore… from there to ujjain tomorrow night.. and then come back to bhopal by wednesday night.. and catch a flight to mumbai….
its been nice so far… hoping for the best ahead….
ok… i am in bhopal now… and here is the flashback for yesterday…
1130 hrs i get a call from netconnect that my tickets have arrived.. and i can go to pick them up.. the flight was at 1645 hrs so i though tushar bhai would drop me to to GK and then i will take an auto from there and go to the hawai-adda to catch my plane…
i am sure its a pain to find out what platform the plane is leaving from when you have so many airlines in play… was wondering if the pilots also have the word pilot written on the door of the cockpit … like the bus drivers used to have PILOT written on the door of the buses…
wondering why they call a cockpit a cockpit? hehehe.. anyway…
so i leave home around 1315 hrs.. after packing my stuff and eating my food.. and saying ta tu to my parents.. who looked fine with me going out for a month.. but i could feel mom was kinda not comfortable about her boy being outta home for that long… i hope she is just fine now.. she called me in the morning as well… and i think that must have made her feel better…
tushar cheated for me.. he just swiped his card on his office door and did not go in.. coz he had to drop me to the netconnect office… thanks d00d.. your name goes in the red history book of mine for being the guy who was with me when i got my first flight tickets…
ok.. i reach netconnect.. and i get a call from banglore office of netconnect.. to tell me that the flight was delayed… woops… i was warned of this by amit… be prepared for delays if you are travelling with IA…. well it happened to start the trip itself !!! never mind..
aro come over to the airport to see me off.. and was there till 1700 hrs and that is when i entered the airport to take the bus to bhopal…. oops. the flight… still not used to writing that word !!!
the auto-wala dropped me outside a place with a huge board which said… Indira Gandhi International Airport… i was wondering how come domestic flights take off from an international airport.. probably the board was never taken off… anyway…
aro comes after a while.. and says that he does not think i am at the right place to take my flight.. it was terminal 1-B and then we checked.. ok…. he checked.. and we found out that i had to go to terminal 1-A to take the plight.. oops the flight !!!
we walk down to the 1-A.. talking loud as always… and had much to talk about.. richa called.. and it was fun talking to her too… being with aro is in anycase one of the nicer things i do to myself… he is a gem of a friend…
and i met vandy… a hott girl who was in my college.. she was as pretty as she used to be… i think she had a tough time remembering my name… neva mind.. beautiful girls at times are short on memory and skirts.. hehehe…. anyway…
i saw Raju Srivastava…. and i saw Manasi Scott… for ppl who do not know them neva mind… and fyi… raju is a stand up comedian… and is regular with the great indian laughter champions.. and manasi scott is a singer with one solo album to her name.. she sings very well.. but the album did not do pretty well.. i think she should sing more in english.. she is good at it…
ok.. inside the airport now.. ta ta bye bye to friends… and me on my own… i asked the guard to find out where to go.. and he directed me to an xray machine.. i put my baggage on a belt.. and its scanned and then tied up… so that no one can open it… ok good.. what next…
go to one of the 37 counters of IA in the airport.. hey but only 6 are functional… IA is it.. yes… neva mind… wait of about 20 minutes.. and they weigh the baggage.. and mark it.. and put it on another belt which would take it to the plane…
i keep my laptop with me only.. and put a IA cabin baggage tag on it… self service very nice.. i also ask the guy to gimme a window seat.. and he gives me a 9F… window it is… in front of the emergency exit.. so i can see the wing too.. mast view… small windows.. very very very small.. and cramped leg room… volvo is better.. sach mein..
the flight is delayed.. and the plight is delayed… i am tired and hungry… and finally take the bus to bhopal.. oops the plane at 1845 hrs…. and then the place takes off.. what a feel… i could feel that accelaration on that seat.. wow…. thrilling… and then suddenly it takes of.. and then i see so many small lights… moving and still.. and delhi suddenly looks beautiful.. the best that i know so far… lovely.. and then after a while its too high and its too dark to see outside… the plane continues changing heights.. and gives that feel of being in a giant wheel… some toffees, a apple juice and a refreshing snack later… i am looking at bhopal from a high now.. quick it was… and then the plane deaccelerates.. breaks hard.. oops.. it felt as if its gonna stop right in the middle of the air… but it did not.. i guess the momentum was too much for it to stop.. so it kept moving ahead.. and then went low.. and then lower.. and then lower.. and then suddenly a loud boom… lotsa vibrations in the plane… and we are safely on the runway… phew.. it was good… i liked it for the first time atleast… thrill again…
it suddenly took a u turn.. and then moved to the platform quickly… out of the plane.. nice weather….. costly auto… hotel.. room nice.. blah… dinner.. blah…..a few phone calls.. blah… sleep..blah… morning… nice huge glass window in the room… good view outside.. blah… chilly morning.. blah… 5 minute walk to the office.. blah…. long training day…blah…. bad throat used to the limit.. blah… pain in the throat as of now.. blah… and the end of this post… phew…
this is what has happened… i wanted to go to the bhopal jheel today.. dun’t think can make it.. so will just pick up the cam and the tripod and roam around in the new market where my hotel is…
ta tu blog.. ta tu friends… will write more.. and hey.. here is the ticket fotos.. my first flight tickets.. and tushar’s thumb !!!!
my last night in noida in 2005… loong work trip ahead of me for the next one month !!!
i am off to Bhopal tmrw evening.. and then to mumbai.. and then to chennai… and then to banglore.. and then to kolkata…
and back home.. on the 15th of Jan morning…
long time eh…
looking forward to a lot of learning on this trip !!! Thank you God for making this possible…
am excited… and thoda sa nervous too…