Dharamshala Triund Laka Glacier Trek

India is a beautiful country with variety in culture, people, geographical regions, travels and their modes, education, flora and fauna, foods, and so many things. My specific interest in traveling to a known location through a different way, fascinated me. My husband who has some experience of trekking to various locations in and around Mumbai; suggested the Dharamshala Triund Laka Glacier Trek. I had no experience in trekking as well as the fun and discipline that it involves. So with more of anticipation of the unknown, I confirmed my travel and together we made the reservations for the trek during the summer season. Preparations started as soon as the bookings were confirmed. Firstly, we both started going on practice walks on roads and hilly terrain. Secondly, we started planning our back pack and day pack which would have just the enough weight for us to carry and enough things to see us through the trek. This balance proved difficult to achieve and even more to carry.

The hot summer sun could not dim the gusto of the 12 trekkers and their leader. The two day train journey with fun and never ending rounds of eatables and cold water, finally saw all alight at the Nizamuddin railway station. A 5 minute walk on the melting asphalted Delhi road, saw us standing at the warm door of the AC volvo bus. All eagerly got in the bus and five minutes in the cool bus, rejuvenated everybody's sapped energy and after 30 minutes, we all arrived at the hotel for a refreshing bath and lunch that saw us off on our overnight journey from Delhi to Dharamshala. A quick 20 minute car ride in the cool fresh morning air, a contradiction of Delhi air; brought us to the Mac Leodganj Hotel, The Ashoka International Hotel.

Trek Day 1 : We had arrived at 2082 meters above sea level and our group was taken on a trial trek for acclimatization before noon. The short trip was enjoyed by all for it helped to stretch our legs, take in the beautiful view of valleys and mountains. It also made the entire group hungry and all finished the wonderful preparation in no time. In the evening, we all went to see the pagoda and the serenity of the place along with the contrasting temple decorations and offerings (biscuits and cold drinks included !), brought us to Dalai Lama's absolutely simple room. It dawned on us that beauty of nature combined with simple living, enriches the human mind beyond compare. The overcast sky; a result of approaching storm, was no dampener but it did induce sleep and all were snoring by 10 pm !

Trek Day 2 : Our instructions were quite clear and precise, 'Be ready by 7:00 am, take breakfast by 7:30 am, carry our days' supplies of water, poncho, a set of clothes, lunch bag that included a fruit, keep the main bag for the mules to carry'. Most important instruction "No bath for the next 4 days ??!!". At 8:00, we all started up the steep incline right after the hotel and I already began to wonder of my ability to go the entire trek. The cheering from us all, brightened me and off we all started step by step. My husband, perspired so much that his sweater got all wet and we wondered if there was a leak in the bottle of water ! We all were strictly instructed to keep moving and sip water from time to time and never to sit till the destination for the day had been reached ! By 11:30, we were too exhausted to be hungry, but thirsty ? - yes, all sipped on the fruit juice and ate the fruit with much relish. A short rest and we were off to our camp at Triund. In between, we were over taken by the mules carrying our belongings. They looked fresh after a distance exhausting to us ! Anyway, the trek does get difficult at times but the absence of vehicles and mobile networks, makes up for a life time experience. The Triund camp / cottage was situated high up at an altitude of 2850 m and we all sat in the sun for some time to catch our breath. Later we all enjoyed our lunch at 1:30 pm and were greeted by some drizzle. The drizzle turned into quite some rain and by night, after our dinner, it was decided to wait till the weather improved.

Trek Day 3 : The dark sky and incessant rain, made us stay put inside the cottage and we all bonded, a group of bubbling teenagers and effervesce-ting adults ! The hot cups of tea and hot food coupled with indoor games of cards and dumb charades, saw us through the day. At night, the rain fell on the cottage roof and its sound lulled us all to sleep.

Trek Day 4 : The morning brought sun rays and light and warmth and hope for we all trekkers. We all started at 9:00 in the morning to reach Laka Glacier. The previous days rest did us all good but it also meant extra miles for the day. The effort caused two groups, that of children and adults. My sister, though an adult, was among the children ! The trek to Laka Glacier tested our patience and strength, but one step at a time saw us overlooking the great Himalayan range. The beauty of nature is breathtaking. The greens, blues and whites with intermittent colors of reds, yellows, purple and pink; is a sight to behold. The clean environment, fresh air, ample sunlight and some fruit juice; were enough to walk us through a difficult incline spread with rocks. We were finally at Laka Glacier walking and climbing through the snow trying to beat the approaching dark clouds. (There was news that Delhi and parts of Rajasthan had witnessed a heavy dust storm followed by rains.) Our hastening steps on slippery ice and the drizzle of rain, both was a bad combination to move further. All of took shelter in a cave and waited for the rain to stop. A trekker even recollected stories of trekking expeditions in wild weather. Such is the impact of bad weather, that we all had to make an effort in staying calm inside the cave that was cold and dripping with water. We had no food supplies with us but could see them just 400 m away from us. After about 40 minutes, the rain slowed, the entire grass was covered in snow; it appeared that Laka Glacier came to meet us !! Our guide instructed us all to climb down and start for the tents camped a little away. The climb down was even more difficult cause the ground had become too slippery. Slowly we all reached our tents and were welcomed with some sunlight. That night, all had a snack of bread pakoda and hearty meal followed by a bonfire where all gathered to warm themselves up. Our chatting at the bonfire revealed Salil's birthday saw us all celebrating with a pancake that panditji (cook) prepared at a short notice. The star studded night sky added to the celebrations and all  and slept soundly in the teeth chattering cold.

Trek Day 5 : Our trek support was excellent, the food, camping services and route operator, were all experts and jovial. Even the mules carrying our luggage also felt our own in such a remote place. The morning felt fresh after a sound sleep and after having enjoyed the sun (remember, we had no bath since leaving MacLeod ganj), we all had a steep slope to climb down. The path down was scary and I was unsure of taking on the challenge. But as they say, 'birds of a feather flock together', we all trekkers, started one step at a time. The journey down from Laka Glacier to Triund and further down a different path, gave us a breathtaking view of all the landscape including the Dharamshala cricket stadium. Slowly and steadily we started for the village where our campsite had been planned. Along 2 hours into the walk, we were overtaken by the mules carrying our luggage. Their confidence and stability along with their coordination, surprised us, reassuring my belief that humans had a lot to learn from nature.

Along the way we met many French and Spanish citizens who were impressed with the terrain and beauty of our country. Few interactions with them brought us all together in our common objective and finally we all trekkers reached Mana village. The trek down had been exhausting compared to going up. My husband's shoes hurt his toes really bad; his nail probably got dislodged. At the campsite, all plopped down on the green grass unable to move or talk for a full 15 minutes. After some rest, we all drank 'electrol' water and regained our strength for some chit chat and games. All looked forward to sleeping at the hotel the next night, in a warm cozy bed after a refreshing bath.

Trek Day 6 : The morning brought with it an eagerness in our stride to reach the hotel after visiting a water fall - 'The Nag Falls'. The soreness of leg muscles and fatigue of the four days was overcome at the sight of clear cold gushing stream water. All trekkers joined in spraying water on each other. It was just not imaginable for me to get in the cold water as I sat on a rock soaking in the sun. An hour and a half and we started for our Ashoka International Hotel. We all were anticipating the road we had taken to visit the pagoda and I was trying to manage my energy for the road was quite long. But lo and behold ! we saw a market and there stood our hotel ! Just look at all the smiling faces ! All were so glad to know that the road was a different one and our destination had been reached with memories of hardships and fatigue all fading away and being replaced by hunger pangs and a warm bath. After a sumptuous lunch, we were horrified to look at our faces in the mirror, all had darkened beyond recognition. A hot bath and some rest was enough to rejuvenate us for exploring the local market and especially, the momos !

Trek Day 7 : A sight seeing trip to Dharamshala that included tea garden, botanical park, cricket stadium and in between stop overs at all street food joints. All enjoyed the local sight seeing.

Our return journey to Delhi and back to Pune was mostly spent in sleeping our weariness and tiredness off. The trekking experience provided an insight into our grit and determination. The serene and peaceful environment of Triund in the back drop of a heavy summer storm at Delhi, added to the contrasting adventure and it provided us all with life time memories.

Outsourcing - 'sweet & sour'

As per the definition on TechTarget, "Outsourcing is a practice in which an individual or company performs tasks, provides services or manufactures products for another company -- functions that could have been or is usually done in-house. Outsourcing is typically used by companies to save costs."

Jobs getting outsourced is not uncommon. The costs and benefits realized from outsourcing has truly brought in cultural diversity. People relocate with respect to regions, country and even continents in search of greener pastures. Such a crowd struggles to prove their worth and find acceptability in their new home along with enjoying its locales and amenities. They assimilate traditional customs of their new home while at the same time try to practice their religious and traditional beliefs. The increase in number of such hard working professionals has also made an adverse impact and impressions on the local population.The cost of such migration and assimilation is what the world is still trying work out.

The same situation is seen in the service industry where services related to machines, work etc gets outsourced. This facility has benefited the customers in terms of ease in getting things done. A faulty electrical connection or a leaky tap; gets fixed in no time, all thanks to service providers. The customer does have to bear an additional cost for the home service but it hardly matters when compared to the convenience that it provides.

The Internet Service Provider commands a special mention as this service has become a part of our social and professional life. Adults and kids, all alike would find it difficult without this addiction of social networking. Internet or gaming or a virtual personality addiction; is something that has found acceptability as a problem and will also surely find the solutions. The total cost in such cases may not be completely understood till the change of entire generation and its attitude towards the world ceases to exist.

With so many outsourcing domains, what caught my eye was the concept on 'surrogate mother'. The idea of motherhood has now been 'outsourced' to cope up with a few problems ranging from medical to personal to convenience. Its strange to read about people who opt for this procedure in order to become parents; reasons are best laid at rest. The cost of such a practice is now in the process of getting identified and laws getting written in order to cope with the issues involving this.


God has his ways of running the world. Ancient scriptures do mention about medical marvels. Modern man boasts of discovering and inventing. It is the society that has to realize the pros and cons of outsourcing.

Happy Streets @ Kothrud

'Happy Steets' - an event started by Times of India on Sundays for the residents of various parts of Pune city; is some thing that every individual looks forward to. I was no different. I wanted to feel the event on all the 3 Sundays when it was first announced to take place in our area. The first day, I got up all refreshed and raring to go on the street upon hearing the loud music. 

The activities going on as part of the event ie zumba, cycling, football, skating, drawing etc added to the  energy of one and all. I was especially interested in zumba dance as it involved light exercise and dance movements; both. All youngsters were dancing away to glory and so I too joined them for enjoying the moment and coordinating the steps with the stage dancers. Though, I had little experience as a dancer and with two left feet, I enjoyed the jumping and movement. This activity proved to be refreshing for me as  I was required to keep up with the others and at the same time soak in the happiness all around.

Sure, people are happy happy to be part of happy streets as the streets provide for a vehicle free and relaxed sunday morning. 

My First International Flight

"Hey Mom ! Pack my favorite toy !" called my daughter at the top of her voice. "You know, I cannot go to South Africa without 'Patch' !", was her soft explanation. I had no choice but to pack a small soft toy dog. I had strict instructions from my husband on what things he wanted after a gap of couple of months of enjoying the tastiest home cooked Indian dishes. My parents had their say of having me pack medicines, snacks to add to the heavy luggage. I had my views of packing some trendy clothes. And so it went, till the two bags were full and a third got added ! So many things to take care of, things had to be sorted as per hand bags and bags that would be handed to the airline.

All this packing and handling was onto me; my daughter being just a eight year old. But brave that she is, she told me "Hey mom, don't worry, I will carry one of the bags !". With her reassurance, we started off in our already booked airport pick up vehicle from Pune to Mumbai. Both of us were going abroad for the first time and it made us excited, nervous, apprehensive and a bundle of energy. We reached the airport and were directed to the luggage cart. "It doesn't move !". I applied all my strength. By that time, my daughter got curious and put her hand on the handle and the cart moved. Oh ! so this was the mechanism, off we went inside the airport through numerous gates and security checks, till we had nothing to do but wait for our flight and that too for three hours. In our excitement and over eagerness, we had reached early, had completed our formalities early and exhausted our energy early !

After a long wait, we found ourselves on the bus to the air plane. A short welcome and greetings, and both of us were comfortably seated with the window seat as a bonus. But then everything was dark due to the early morning flight. We enjoyed our one hour looking at people, the air hostesses, the food, the chairs, the instructions. And then, we watched a movie. People around us were sleeping soundly, but the two of us, try as we might, we could catch only the proverbial forty winks. The time difference added just the right ingredient to make us even more confused when we finally landed at Johannesburg. The fetching of our baggage which includes going to the particular 'carousel' and picking up our heavy bags was an activity where my daughter took full responsibility of spotting our bags and running with them !

The usual 'Hello', 'How are you ?'; sounded distant to me. Indians are used to not being greeted and here the two of were acknowledging some of the 'Hellos'. At the security check, I took time to adjust to the new accent and for once both of us wanted some hot 'upama' or 'poha'. Finally, after some quick steps we were there waiting for my husband at the circle. He was very happy to see the two of us all fit and fine and grinning from ear to ear. "Mom, now you need not worry. We are with Baba" said my daughter and I knew how right she was.

My first flight to South Africa was over and so were my apprehensions. We enjoyed our stay and the different food and the small garden in our courtyard added the colour to our trip.

Theory Of Relativity

Great, indeed is Albert Einstein to have formulated such mind boggling theories in Physics at a very nascent scientific age.

   "Man's imagination in the beyond, his faith within and his ability to prove things is truly surprising and inspiring"

His gray hair and casual style are as confounding as are his scientific theories intriguing. One wonders of his day to day simplicity in living and his complexities in thinking. As a reader, I also savored most of the stories on him and his unpredictability. No wonder that most of his kindergarten teachers found the little boy not like other kids. Oddity can be a specialty or a disability; who can predict the potential within.

So many thoughts on the Greatness of a human being, came to my mind, but hey ! I need to keep my blog on track too. What interests me is the title ie Theory of Relativity. This title is also so much relative just like the theory itself. The theory speaks of the movement of objects in trying to explain the concept. Even my thoughts about this is in line with the actual theory but instead of the objects the focus for me is a person in two different situations.

I still remember the city I grew up in, the city with its familiar people; the daily vegetable vendors, the shopkeepers, the sweepers, our maid and not to forget my set of friends who made me define myself and my place in this world. I always cherish memories of having a 'cutting' chai and the spicy Indianised Chinese food along with my friends constantly discussing either the problems as faced by a teenager or the aspirations of the young generation. I also cannot forget the good parts of bad roads or the bad parts of good roads ! How traveling was enjoyed due to the good spirit and a longing for the 'yet to have'.

All this suddenly changed when after a decade, I stood all motionless in an 'unknown' part of the city that I so proudly call my home. The location was all same, but I was out of place. No familiar faces, no recognizable buildings, no friend to share the chai, no road having that familiar pothole; in short, nothing that I could relate to. The city had moved leaving me back in time. Only a select few people were there to actually make me understand the reference.

Standing there, watching the world go by made me realize that the people had indeed moved quite far ahead, I still remained a decade back. I surely was among the fast and moving person in the new city that I currently stay, but going back made me feel completely out of place. I was still living in a world that was 10 years old and people around me had reached a new destination in time.

This made me wonder whether Einstein's theory was any different. And frankly speaking just like the two objects, its people who either stay behind or move forward. Theory of Relativity is indeed a relative subject; at times talking of objects as subjects and some times talking of subjects as objects.

I am Magnificent

I am Magnificent

Standing tall on the mountainous slopes of the Konkan region, I breathe with pride the fresh air and the warmth of the newly watered soil. The first rain has been a boon for me and my baked and cracked skin. Ah! Those hot summer days! They send a shiver down my spine. Birds around me would be so happy in the mornings to welcome the sun and a new day but by midday, they would all retire in their cozy nests, away from the sun’s glare.

I have no other place to go except to be on the slopes, holding the soil in place and watching the day break and sun set. No other similar friend in the vicinity to talk to me and hear me talk of my thoughts.

“I long to go out and play,
and sway my arms to the music, all day.
How I wish I could also jump with joy
and run like the lanky boy. “

The Konkan Express passes me by everyday. The train is such an elegant piece of man’s creation! With such dignity and majestic stature, the train breezes past the landscape, bringing life to all and I swell with pride just waving at it. That’s life. Life is indeed strange, I can only stand and wave!

What is it that pulls me down? Why not I climb mountains and cross the rivers? The greens and browns are sure for me, but why not I wish for the reds and blues of thee?

It is only when something holds me for support and climbs up and up, that I feel happy to have lent support. It is only when something grows near me that I find a friend and a companion. I am indeed happy to have them and the trains moving past me everyday. They whistle and huff and puff and I feel lucky to be there waving at so many passengers.

Life is indeed beautiful and I am also a part of it. So many souls look around to get a glimpse of the beautiful landscape and exclaim in delight, “wow! Such a magnificent tree!” Yes. Indeed I m the big and beautiful tamarind tree. Kids love to come and have the sour fruit. I bear with dignity their attempts at getting the fruit. Its so nice to feel wanted and at the same time want all to come to me, build homes on my branches and sing to the world. Mother nature has always been fascinating to me.

Ghoom Barabar Ghoom

Our Trip : Ghoom Barabar Ghoom

The idea of going independently on a tour was so fascinating that plans started to take a concrete shape even before we realized it. The discussion ranged from a shopping list to what one would be actually wearing and doing. No stone was left unturned as to the activities which would entertain us. It may not be wrong on part to say that our group enjoyed talking nineteen to the dozen.


Frantic phone calls between the group members as to the amount of luggage and that too ‘smart’ luggage preoccupied our thoughts and the amount of discussion and interest ensured that we were on our way; for now at least to the railway station. Indeed, the Vadodara railway station has such a grand look, one feels invited; feels as if we need to go and travel.

The Dehradun Express, a train which takes a very long time but was very convenient for our group. The morning of 18th Dec saw a very busy time for 10 families to see their children on the tour. Can you imagine, younger siblings giving advice to the older ones!!

The bright lights of the oncoming train filled our hearts with excitement and as the rolling wheels of the train stopped, time stopped!! Our bogie was nowhere in sight. Surely there must be some mistake.

“arrreee… who S2 toh wahan hai, ekdum last” called Vijay, our friend.

This sentence created a hectic activity among at least 25 people who started to rush. The number of people to see us ‘off’ was more than the actual travelers.

Everybody got in but now the train would not budge. Satisfaction is rare. If the train does not come, it is a problem. If the train comes and you don’t it’s a big problem. But when the train does not move when you are seated, it sure means wishing ‘goodbye’ every 2 minutes!!

I always say ‘tata..ta…..ta..’ when leaving but this time Aai(mother) got so fed up that my parents left before the train could leave the platform. Even Sheetal was supposed to report for her work. She did all the packing and I hope I’ll remember where she has kept what. Even her list is very complicated. “Bring me dry mehendi coloured bandhani saree” said she and the other day she showed me another brown shade.

“Hmmm ..ph” !! people and their idea of shades.

Shefali’s sister came after her birthday bash and examinations. See Mona’s sister, giving her last minute instructions of not eating anything ‘baharwala’ or talking to strangers. Those “what would my big sister do without me” was all I read in those 3; Sheetal, Sonu and Vasudha. These 3 sure make a flock.

Only Poonam scores in case of bossing. I whish I had a sister like Mili – so cute and obedient or may be the grass is greener on the other side. Poonam felt so much of responsibility, she came 45 minutes early, may be because we are going to stay at her home.

All of us had prepared very well for the journey. Proper blankets and snacks would surely see us through. But at what time was the train going to start? Wasn’t it late already?

Ah, the movement of the train and we were moving. ‘Bye Goodbye…’ so it went. We were laughing and having fun when we decided to play a game where any word related to computers is to be told. This was invented by Lavanya, the ever bright and her own self person. she always joked about how her father was burdened with a child like her. She sure had the ability to laugh at herself.

The game was obviously being dominated by the Java people, NT (Neerav Thakkar) and Lokesh. NT wouldn’t lose a chance to win and Lokesh would always find some out of the blue solution. Poonam and Lavanya stuck to their C++ concepts and Shefu and myself explored VB for carrying on the game. But where was Nimit?? Peacefully sleeping! Wonder what had got into him. Some problem, I suppose he is those types who do not believe that talking lessens your problems. I hope he is his normal self again, after all a tour without his soul would be the worst thing.

And look at Neerav Shah (Dada), with eyes closed and ears all attendtion, he would give us some solution. But dada has not sense. He sleeps with his spectacles or may be he wants to see clearer dreams. I heard wearing coloured lens makes your dreams of that colour. God!! And my doctor advised me to remove the lens before going to bed. What confusions!!

The game ended finally and we played Antakshari for some time, before one of the passengers offered us a tabla as back ground music. Must say it was a “musical dabba”. In between, we had many singers and dancers with the asbestos as their musical instruments.

By the way, after the breakfast of bread, jam, butter, we had revitalized our energy and it showed in ur next game of continents. Then came the delicious spicy pulao brought by NT. Remember, those ants in Africa which devour anything that comes in their path. You could say the same about us.

Sitting here in Ratlam, I can already feel my stomach’s demands. Poonam, Shefu, NT, Nimit are standing on the platform or on steady ground and I am writing this sitting in the train and hearing my stomach. Lavanya and Mona are sleeping peacefully and Purvi is writing her own diary not allowing me to read y own to others lest our thoughts get mixed up.

19th December, 1999

Wonder the amount of food we can eat! No limit. We finished off sandwiches, pulao, puri bhaji, tea, chikki etc in one day.

Today’s day dawned with a refreshing smile on everybody’s lips except Shefu, who was on the verge of crying because we woke her up. Ha..ha..ha….

Mona had threee cups of tea in less than half an hour and I had two. Lavanya got up at 9:00 blabbering about some ‘blue box’. I think she might be dreaming about her won blue sweater. NT had some problem sleeping; could be because of no blanket or the torch and lens case kept near him. To top it all he brought a ’20 brushing toothpaste’ which was given to all to check the 20 times theory. Wow! Such generosity at the cost of proving his theory or was it the other way round?

Neerav was the sleeping beauty of the group with a sleeping bag and Poonam’s jacket and Mona’s slippers. He is those ‘udharu types’, Lokesh the ‘fireman’ and Nimit the ‘Sherlock Holmes’ types with his unique cap.

Poonam has now asked Lavanya to keep silent for 45 minutes. Now there is no fun without her chatter, but thankfully I am getting time to continue with my writing. Everybody else is also quiet and poor me, I am quiet and busy writing. Nevertheless our group is a very good mix of all types, the silent, the chirpy, the naughty, the enthusiastic, the smart and what not; all have a special place in my heart.

With 4 of our group playing Crazy 8 and Napolean, the others passed time chatting and soon there was time for Shefu’s thepla which were over in no time. Then the chips and popcorn were done away with.

Suddenly, there was a change in the scenery, with Dehradun approaching, the air became more and more pure and the trees and flowers increased and most of all, our spirits rose. I hope I don’t sound like ‘the dead rising’

The train screeched to a halt at 6:00 pm and Uncle and his friend, Mr Goel were at the station who were simply surprised at the amount of luggage we were carrying. Anyway, the 10 of us with 26 bags managed to squeeze ourselves in 2 cars (the WinZip facility as they say).

A refreshing snack of freshly baked pastries and namkeen and adrak ki chai added a pink colour to our cold nose and cheeks. By 9:00, everybody had had a bath and felt warm and snug and dinner was the best part. Aunty’s rajma was too good with steaming rice and salad and pickle.

21st December, 1999

As planned on 20th, the sumo arrived on time at 8:00 am and we were all to go to Mussoorie. Confusion starts at the beginning and that is what happened. Getting ready then having a breakfast, not to mention the constant chatter, Uncle and Aunty managed to see us off by 8:30 am. So far, so good.

The first place of visit was the lake where many of us were feeling giddy. But the boating in the lake made everybody feel fine. Everybody was taking photographs of somebody or we were just banging into each others boats and shouting and then came the time to alight from the boat. Shouts of ‘oh, the waters so cold’, ‘it’s too deep’, ‘there are aquatic plants’ filled the air.

The next stop was at Kempty Falls where water turns into milk and flows though mountains by cutting them and carving a path of its own. The splash of water, the feel of water droplets on our face because of the fall, gave such a nice feeling; we took photographs and then moved towards our sumo.

The next destination was the company garden which very few people were interested to see so we moved to Mussoorie Mall. The shops in Mussoorie were nice, there was the roadside painting hawker who prices each painting at 1200/-. Too much!! Then there were woolens and softies. Lavanya and myself purchased the same sweater at 150/- and then the rest bought 11 sweaters or jackets of the same type for themselves or their friends.

Poonam, Lavanya and myself went till the end of the mall and walking back was a big effort. The chill was biting and piercing and at that time, Harish’s words rang in our ears – “you will need to wear 3 sweaters in all”.

23rd December, 1999

The first day when we did not see the dawn, and slept tile 9:30 am was a very normal day to be explored. Reading the ‘The Times of India’, in the filtering sunlight, sitting on the chair was a very warm experience in the chilling cold.

A heavy breakfast at 11:00 and a Vikram to Paltan bazaar found us in the bargaining market of Dehradun. The whole length of the street was colourful with this and that and one wished to buy some of this and that.

Purvi started off for her windcheater. I was trying to locate a saree blouse for my mother. Lavanya was trying hard to pass time and appear interested in others. Poonam had decided to stay with her mother. Shefu had made good bargains regarding her own shopping list. And what about Nimit, NT, Lokesh and Neerav? Busy in finding a gift for Poonam and Lokesh, each was running here and there trying to get the best bargain.

Such confusion ruled over us that each was going in a different direction. In this scenario, Nimit was sitting quietly, eating a pastry in front of Gaylords. We all gathered around Nimit and Purvi asked Neerav to try on her wind cheater.

“There’s a fault with this piece” said NS. One should have seen Purvi’s wide eyed surprised face. See her quick footsteps and see others concerned look. What to oversee and what not, so LG and myself went to some other part of the street.

After some time, Shefu, Purvi, LG and me had Chinese. I wonder if it was Chinese Chinese or Punjabi Chinese? All Punjabi masala and no garlic ginger paste, made it taste different.

Wonder of wonders! While going towards Gaylords, we met the gift searching party with a good proposal of telephones. Anyway, we were least interested in the technical portion and so having left the selection procedure(comes often as one appears for campus interviews) to this group, we went to Gaylords for a hearty snack of pastries. Ooh, the delicious pastries, chocolate, pineapple etc ; all were mouth watering. And damn cheap too! Unlike Baroda.

“Let’s go to the fancy store” called Poonam, our guide and host. “You are sure to get nice sweaters”

And off we went.

I selected a sweater for Baba and so did Shefu. Purvi went for a cardigan for her mother. Lokesh was busy selecting from the kids wear for Gudiya, his niece. That done, we realized we had no time sense; no time table to stick to. It was already 6:30 well past 4:30 when we were supposed to visit the computer division at ONGC. Anyway, we always enjoy shopping and bargaining.

This is life; eat, sleep, shop and enjoy!

At night after a dinner of hot chhole and rice, we again carried on with our ‘group discussion’. “Trrrr iingg…..” rang the telephone. It was Mona, telling us to pack her bags for her to travel to Jaipur. She would jin us later. What a mess. Each had enough on oneself and then to carry something extra. Oh no, so the whole burden was shifted to LG only because both were project partners.

24th December, 1999

Alas! The day to leave Dehradun arrived. Our plan was to go to Jaipur by a bus. But there was no organization on part of the travelers. Few were ready well on time but then what about the others on the other side? Hah. Dressing, eating, talking, hurrying, shouting, packing all at once! Uncle and Auntie made us hurry so as to catch the bus and reach Delhi on time.

The us journey was peaceful, except for half an hours traffic jam. Our bus also failed and all men had to get down and ‘maaro dhakka’. They huffed and puffed and then the bus budged and rolled and was thus started.

After some time, we reached Cheetal Grand, a resort worth watching and being watched at that place. The place is too good. The flowers, the music, the people, the ‘mahoal’ was just out of this world. There was a cage for birds who where eating so much grain that they looked obese.

We reached Delhi at around 3:30pm and went straight to Bikaner House to catch a bus to Jaipur. After the reservations, it was time to have some lunch at the Dhaba opposite to the Bikaner House.

The bus journey in Silverline was too silent except for the seats at the back.