Singapore Story....

Singapore Diary

18-10-2007



Here I am in a Foreign Country for the First ever in my life. I landed sleepy eyed at the airport. Airport was too different than what you find in India …well how different can a airport be….Soon was facing the immigration official..routine questions answered, custom checks done, I was speeding away in a taxi. Nothin seems than what you have seen in India, It only seems better. The pockets of neatness, order and greenery which you see in India are spread over the place. And what beautiful roads….they would be such a pleasure to drive. No one even shifts lanes without using the indicator. Traffic just zooms about, yet very silent. It was so long but I was yet to hear anyone honk. It took a vehicle blocking the road to elicit a few honks. Buses were comfortable and orderly and zoomed with an abandon yet unseen by me.

So many Indian faces around, more so tamilians……the taxi driver was blaring tamil FM and tamil songs. Soon we were in the hotel. Nothing different here. Same as you find a 5 Star hotel anywhere in the hotel. The most boring place was the hotel room . It was luxurious, was great to have rest. But that was not why we were here.

So we went out. Amazing orderliness. Iam yet to see a cop around this place. Traffic is managed with such amazing efficiency. Signals are so cool , Especially pedestrian signals. Everyone follows the rules. The cars stop to let the pedestrians go at certain yellow signals. Skyscrapers were amazing. We sat at a café at roadside in a busy traffic junction at a prominent office point here. Yet silence reigned around. Cars just zoomed past silently. Winds keep blowing giving such a calm feeling. Had some tasty Chinese food. Had my starbucks debut. Realised that my office is just a few mins walk from the hotel. And there is food plaza sort of place near my office. It had all kinds of food- Japanese, Chinese, Thai Indian, Western …and so on at very affordable prices. We would be having a food festival over the time of our stay.

That’s for the day..Lets see how the tour shapes up . Office starts tomorrow… 

19-10-2007

The First day in Singapore office. Wherever you go in the world, office does not change ..rt?? ..  Anyways it did manage to make a difference, it was not as good as the Bangalore office. Iam yet to make sense of the coffee machine and the tea bags over there. Only thing I could get right in the pantry was the Coke. Rest all the attempts to make coffee and tea went haywire.

The lifts here send your ears buzzing when they go down. At that speed it is natural, when you have to go some 20 floors in less than a minute it is almost like a free fall.

Today tried some Chinese dishes at the Food place, iam yet to register its name. Food was not too great , not too bad either. Work was cool, well it always is when it starts. Then after some time it starts strangling. And you lose interest in maintaining the same enthusiasm and would want to finish it off as soon as you can. Anyways lets see how this turns out. People at office were quite cool.

Lets see how the weekend goes about.

20-10-2007



Hey here is the first weekend in a foreign country… the urge to party was tempered with an apprehension about the unknown……and the fact that I watched movies late into night did not help matters. So by the time I got up it was lunch time. So had lunch and spilled out into the city.

Decided to explore “Little India”….. And landed up at the nearest Metro Rail Transport station…. It was really cool….. very neat, organized and pretty affordable and fast. Reminded me of Delhi and its Metro…... pretty much the same in fact.

Landed in Little India. Well felt like I was back in India… seems like in all respects…even saw a cop for first time in Singapore ….he was givin a parking ticket to someone looking like of Indian origin…  …anyways it had everythin like India ….more like south India….temple all Indian restaurants.,…..visited Musthafa shoppin centre……it had everythin….except a place to sit…by the time we were done goin around it…we were exhausted with all the walking……so wrapped it up with some food and were on the way back……

As I go about this country, I have noticed a lot of things…people are very cordial….everyone is treated with respect irrespective of their profession…manners is adhered to…….

Everything out of line is fined…and fined heavily…….that may go a long way in ensuring things are in order…but lot of stuff is internal as well..people do have the internal motivation to adhere to rules…..its more a respect for the rule rather than the fear of fine on violation which seems to be driving the orderliness….

Anyways a day of weekend as gone by….lets see how tomorrow goes by……

21-10-2007

Second day of the weekend…..Its a Sunday and we realized that most shops are closed here on Sundays….So decided to goto Paulo Ubin….Heard a lot about it….its island off the Singapore coast…..and renowned for its natural beauty ….

So we hired a taxi and went to Changi village….From there took a ferry to Paulo ubin……it was quissentially an dtropical island…..and it remined me so much of kerala…..well nothing much difference here between the two places…..

We hired a couple of bicycles and went about exploring the place…….it was quite fun goin around cycling and also taking our snaps…..Had quite some fun….but it was not a new discovery …felt like we were back in india…….spent some time sitting at the beach…..but this was not much of it when compared to beaches back home .,....Anyways the tiring journey had its toll..soon we were in a mood to land back home….The taxi driver while goin back was the talkative sort….He kept harping on about good stuff in singapore…was quite the informative sort……..

Anyways the fun has ended …it is time to get back to work from tomorrow..lets see how the week goes by……………. 

22-10-2007

Another of those weekdays…but first Monday in the foreign land……was not a great start…rainy day..and we were late to start……perfect settin for those Monday mornin blues…decided to hire a taxi to office…but soon realized..tht in tht peak hours with traffic signals..it would have been quick and ofcourse cheaper to walk..so from tomorrow..strictly walking……to the office I mean…

Office was cool..we were will and truly into work……it was quite fun…..so on tht front it is quite cool till now.,…..we were the last guys to leave from the office……

Today atlast the coffee machine puzzle was solved……..had some gud coffe…( better than the last 2 days..even if not entirely good…..  …. )

This place has got very little dust content…..even the shine on smy shoe has not gone even after a couple of days after polishing…..Clean water and clean air are issues which seem to be given importance….low noise too… 

23-10-2007

Another of those routine weekdays..even being in a foreign country makes no difference…I think it makes it even more worse…no social life..no friends…..no bindas attitude….nothin…work…and come to the room…got to explore this place further..neighbourhoods are done…..soon have to go further……

Lots of work would be fine..opportunity to learn

Lets see how the rest of the week rolls up………



24-10-2007

Funny day..nothin much rolled up today..some work….then it petered out..then it was cool for most of the day…..had some fun with the mails ..and snaps….It was birthday time at office and they got some thai food today…..it was nice…not too good..may be not for a first timer…..enjoyed it………

I observed that here lifts travel very fast…even when there are not many floors to be traveled….also the elevator..its not the comfortable cruise as in India..but it is more of a thing in hurry to carry people to their destinations…even in the malls and not only in the metro rail stations where such a hurry is warranted…..may be it reflects ths style of the people….

25-10-2007

One more day in this land…and life goes on…office and stuff….its all the same……well lemme luk for little things that are different here……people here are nice in their own little ways..for a couple of days running…some one or other comes and keeps givin me new kinds of sweets….iam getting to test new kinds of culinary delights here…..thats nice…

26-10-2007

Another similar day at office…work , mails and stuff……life goes on..weekend has come..lets see if it brings about any difference….. …here I get to go on lots an dlot of escalators..and I broke the record for the longest escalator I ever got on to …so many times over and over again…..I miss driving a bike overe here….may be it’s the longest break I ever had from drivin a bike…for ..wht like 7 years…may be…..and by the end of this trip…may be longest break from drivin I guess…ever since I was a kid…..

I went to a Chinese restaurant today…….and ordered some thing called crispy noodles..what I got was some thing like American chopseuy drowned….in some egg yolk kind of a solution…….it was all in all..some kind of stuff..which I could not even comprehend,……but in any case..managed to eat it..as I cud not afford to be hungry…..had to do with fruit juice..when I returned to the hotel room….

27-10-2007

Today is the weekend …..one more weekend in the foreign land…..this time decided to explore Chinatown here……this was a nice little quaint place….full of shoppin for little items…at cheap prices….more like the sarojini nagar market of delhi…

There was also a Mariamman temple at this place….and we also visited a Buddhist temple….it was quite beautifully built and …was quite a peek into the Buddhist culture and mythology…the stories the tell of Buddha are quite different from what is told in india…..well they do have a much fancier version of the story..but it is expected..everyone does have their versions of same story…what is mythology for one is religion for someone else……..

Then we did some roaming around…and were back soon into the hotel…with some more time to kill…we hit the pool….it was quite a small pool..but we had a relaxing stint at the pool….

End of one day of the weekend..lets see how the next one goes about…….

28-10-2007

2nd Sunday in this foreign land…..today decided to explore the ever famous Sentosa islands ……We took a mrt….and then took a monorail to the islands……..

We headed straight to the beach….lots of people who were having a good time there….but I think we could not find these beaches quite attractive….i realized today that waves are quite the same here….these are very calms beaches…more of the backwater types…..and the heat was also quite oppressive so decided to explore other things….

This island had different kind of stuff…there was 4 d magix…which was a sci fi adventure rides of sorts…….then there was luge ride and skyride……which was a mix of go karting and bikin..more a thrilss fare..then there was images of Singapore which takes you through the history fo Singapore…there was fort silos..which gave a insight into the fort styles of early English people who settled here…….also merlian which was a fantasy of its kind….then there was the underwater world..which gave quite an insight into the water world….it was quite fun with the underwater beings all around you……there was also the butterfly park which had around 1500 varieties of butterflies…….and at the end of it we saw a dolphin show…it was quite remarkable…seeing these sea beings doing all sorts of tricks……jumping through the loop..playing with the ball…kind of stuff…..

We went quite ballistic with the photographs..as usual…..on the way back had quite some good seafood….it was nice experimenting…it was my friends turn to get stuck..with sticky watery kind of stuff….but anyways…..he waded through it…literally

But it was quite a fun day……its back to office from tomorrow..lets see how this week goes about…..

29-10-2007

Hey here is Monday again….but instead of the usual Monday morning blues…I had a good and spirited start to a day……I don’t know why……..but soon all the enthusiasm fizzled out…… because the access deadlock still continues……and it is not quite fun anymore…but are we ready for the other slog…..still don’t know..will manage it I feel when we come to it…..

Towards the end of the day….the team from office invited us to a outing for evening snacks…had some nice satay….and some good chinese dishes……..came back…had a nice bath……and a nice dinner to finish it off…one more day goes by…. 

30-10-2007

Another boring day goes by……..had breakfast for a change…..and then had pizzas for lunch…for a change..again…..and then had dinner by 730 …for a change again……discovered a shop..which had a sorta clearance sale….had good deals all over…gotto visit it sometime to buy somethings…..got a new goggles….it was quite nice…..nice deal…..anyways one more day rolls over……

31-10-2007

After another routine day at office…we decided to goto Little india once again…we hit the Mustafa centre once again…this time we also went to the other side of it……..such a large shopping centre…and so many milling crowds……..

We hit the shopping racks again…and we bought some things this time…Got some good deals…..and we were so exhausted at the end of the day…well after walking all over such a large shopping place..we were bound to….and then we had such a hard time waiting for a taxi…..such a long queue and no taxi was lining up………finally managed to get one….and soon we were back at homer..and soon sound asleep…

1-11-2007

Hey a new day..and a new month..suddenly realized the year is rolling to a close…..this year seems to have rolled by so soon…not many things have sttled down or changed…that’s what it seems surprising that such a long time has passed…thinking of the day…today was a holiday back home..every year I used to cry that I don’t get this holiday in Delhi…and I thought I would get this once iam back in Bangalore or Hyderabad…but no use….nothing this time also…

We met our new boss today..seems like a cool fellow…..

2-11-2007

Another routine day………..at the office…towards the end of the day our boss and some other colleaugues invited us for some drinks…….had to have some beer…and it was too good in any case…..

After that had dinner and went walking …and realized that this place is quite small…we reached Chinatown after just walkin a few paces…….went around the place and came back and watched some movies..before sleeping off……

3-11-2007

Another weekend…and we do not seem to be going to malaysia anyways……so this time we went to Clarke quay….atlast went to a plce which seemed different and distinctly Singaporean…….this was besides the River…and such a beautiful place to hang out.. and lot of nice restaurants and bars……so much of a chic crowd…..there was such a beautiful view across the river…..had a good time….and atlast had something distinctly new……..

Came back to Lao pao sat……..and tried out some seafood..one of my friends ….tried oyster rice,…with some not so good results………..anyways he ate it all……and lets see what happens with him.. :P.. 

4-11-2007

Seems like the last Sunday in Singapore……not much to do…..went to Orchard road …such a nice shoppin place…….lots and lots of malls…with lots of stuff to shop………that is if you have something to shop….if u r really ina mood with cash to boot…here we go…so much of it…

As for viewing pleasure.,..it was good..but not too great…since its all there in India now…..;nothn new..nothin to be astonished at…….anyways….had good fun going around..as sual had problems finding a taxi…..shoppin places…u cannot help…..

Anyways came back tired..and down and out..end of the day….last week in singapore..  lets see how it goes about….

5-11-2007

One more Monday…well today things seem to be moving..a training program…and it took all the day…some progress on the access front…….so stuff moves on…did some shopping at last on the sale thing….spent a quite an amount..lets see how it goes about….


6-11-2007

One more day at training…and it was quite cool…..today by end of the day..there was a twist in the tale…..it seems that we may have to stay longer in Singapore…or may be come back later..lets see ho it goes….

We went to the Fullerton hotel side…..it was besides the river and a lion spewing out water…it was quite a view and we had quite agood time with the photographs…..the scenario was beautiful and breathtaking….. 

7-11-2007

Looks sure that iam gonna return by this weekend…..and boss said he is gonna discuss about the next trip on Friday…lets see how that turns up……

So we landed up at Little india to complete the final round of shopping…..we went around picking up all the things needed…..and lot more unneeded…and anyways after all that….came back exhausted…lucky to find a taxi much sooner than the last time…..the previous outing had braced us well…and today was a much focused shopping operation…
2 more days to go..lets see how it turns out.. 

8-11-2007

Hey its diwali time….and here iam ina foreign country…..they celebrate it here also..but not the cracker show as we have it back there……

Anyways we cancelled the zoo trip..as we were not in the mood and anyways we were gonna come back again……so we will have this later…..Went to orchard road..as my friend needed to have some last round up done…..had some nice Japanese food…..

So onemore day left in this country…atleast for this trip……so lets see how it goes….. 

Last day was as uneventful as it goes...... we planned our return journey to airport as we do back in india..and ended up landin in airport a good 2 hrs ahead of schedule....had an uneventful flight journey.and landed back home well and good and having enjoyed a nice trip to a lovely country....

To Chandigarh, Shimla and Beyond....

Life as is its wont..takes amazing twists and turns...So as it happened it was time for me to move from Delhi to Bangalore.....A new beginning excited me...leavin the comfort of my friends and fun i got used to in Delhi was haunting me....In between all this there was time for one more trip... We firmly decided that this time it would be a small entourage and trip would primary to chillout and have a road trip rather than a sojourn to anyplace in particular.

So we set out on an early morning onto the road leading to Shimla. It was just three of us, me Vicky and Kb. Qamby was supposed to land up but could not do so due to his "client commitments"...So it was we three at the end.

After we crossed Delhi and were out on the hinterland , the road strecthed out in its exquisite glory. This was one of the least hyped roads. By the time we reached ambala it had started to rain heavily. But as we zoomed ahead in rains in decreasing visibilty and increasing windspeeds, it was an experience to savour, a sight which cannot be captured in any camera or reel.

After the passing of the storm we went through the fields of punjab haryana and crossed Chandigarh and were soon on the hilly road to Shimla. So by the time we reached Shimla it was again lashing out hard. Shimla with its thin roads and pouring rainfall did not help much in our struggle to find a hotel with decent accomodation and parking space. After modifying our budget by around 3 times , we found a room and were soon asleep, our plans to tour the city in the evenin forgotten in the blissful bed of sleep. The vagaries of the journey and late night plans of the yesterday combined to trick us into sleepin till it was late into night. Brushing of the loss of a day aside, we retired for the day.

The next day we were off to see a golf course and other attractions of the city. More than the destination, the route fascinated us and we ended up stopping at various places and having our photo sessions. this trip was particularly enjoyable for our photo sessions, taking our interest and talents to a different level. After going around all the day to places around shimla we returned to the main city area and went around admiring the architecture of buildings near the Mall road. there ended our sightseeing in shimla....Shimla was not such a great treat to watch especially with so much crowds, but it does have its own charm about it.

The next day we were off in the morning to Chandigarh . We went around Rock garden , but the sweltering heat took away the connoisseur in us, and we were running for cover. We landed back in Sector 17 for the much hyped about "bird watching", but it too ended in dissapointment. Perhaps the afternoon timing had something to do with it. Chandigarh would be a very nice place to live with its planned approach to the city and organized way the public places and life is carried about.

Soon we were back to Delhi by the same route , the journey which passed about peacefully. Thus ended perhaps the best trip in my life so far. It was good not because we went to some great places, but when it comes to unwinding with friends it was the best. And when it came to our photographic instincts, we had gone berserk and enjoyed ourselves. Whenever i want to think of a happy moment in life, I close my eyes and see three of us zooming on the Ambala road highway with winds blowing and greenery on both sides of the road swaying around. Its an amazing feelin which cannot be perhaps be recounted. At that moment i felt i was in peace with the world.

Pink City Panorama

Its time for one more trip......this time we were off to jaipur......this was a 3-4 hr drive from delhi...so arnd 8 of us set off in a couple of cars...............this weekend was supposed to get exciting as we started off early in the morning....Delhi - Jaipur highway was a smooth going....as even gurgaon stretch was not chaotic as usually it would be.... considering it was early in the weekend.......

sooon we were entering rajasthan and it was breakfast time.....we stopped at a resort, where we were welcomed by a sight of a group of rajasthani singers and dancers giving shape to their artforms...scenic surroundings set apart the place and soon we were zoomin on our way again...............Jaipur beckoned us soon and we started off at amer fort..which housed asia's largest cannon....it was said it was used only once and the cannon ball fell some 35 kms away in a village.....the fort was amazing built.....to resist any sort of attack with its multilayered defences........on the outers it was tough and rugged looking whereas inside it was an architectural delight with aesthetic designs and structures. we could only wonder at the opulence of the maharajas who inhabited it....

after the fort we went into the interiors of jaipur .....where a heavy duty splash of pink greeted us......here every house building and shop are supposed to be painted only in pink, even shades are considered to be violations...we saw the hawa mahal...which supposedly built for the royal ladies to see processions goin on with out them being seen outside......we saw the jaipur gate, the Le meridian hotel at jaipur....the jal mahal which was in quite a dilapidated condition.........in the evening we went to the jaipur musuem...which was closed ...but we did bribe our way in....which helped us as we could enjoy the place in isolation.......this was another example of jaipur 's aesthetic beauty......but time kept ticking away and we had to move on...



next was Chouki daani..this was a village resort....which had simulated village settings of rajasthan with village people taking care of you with all graciousnessof a host....it had a entry fee..otherwise once inside it was as if you had stepped into a world of rustic rajasthan....it was a village fair with puppet shows, camel rides, gameson offer, palmists and fortune tellers, magicians, people sellin lot of accessory stuff, rajasthani dancers dancing away to glory........it was one heady cocktail of village vivaciousness....after tht it was time to have food.....food was real sumptous and they were really being the hosts, forcing us to have more and more of the food....we ate till we felt we would burst and till they left forcing us to have more...but food was really tasty with lots of ghee, butter and lots more healthy stuff......we whiled some more time enjoyin the rustic scenery of rajasthan and playin marbles and asking palmists and looking around the different facets of the village fair...

the next day it was wrappin up time as we made shortworkof other visual treats to be enjoyed......also we had rajasthani traditional sweets....which were really yummy and good.......and after munch time it was shoppin time and ladies were real excited.......and people splurged....and why would they not..with such beautiful items on sale.......and by the time they were done....it was time to leave.....the way back wasuneventful except th average speed went up by 20 kmph and we were reacing with different vehicles......and we made it back safe and sound....and it would be business as usual from tomorrow...but this was one experience to treasure.....

Muktheswar Rendezvous

This trip was something I was looking forward to. But it almost got cancelled due to variety of reasons that don’t need a mention here. But I am really happy that it finally happened.

We set out on a Innova at 10 pm on Friday zooming through on the highways on breakneck speed. The driver really had an penchant for speed. He went on a minimum of 60 even on hilly roads. He seemed to be taking a pride in all the accidents he had precipitated while he was driving a car, a bus, stories about which he related to us. With movies on the dvd player and endless talk we never knew how time flew and we were soon on the rocky terrains. Himalayas with their breathtaking ambience were before us. You can keep watching the view of mountains stretching out in the morning sun.

We reached the hill station Muktheswar. It was a really sleepy and relaxed town. People walked about with out any hurry. They were laidback in everything they did. Their manners were cordial and their patience seemed unlimited. I wished I could set up an technology park in that place and recruit these people and spoil and destroy all the calm and tranquility existing in that place. Put them in an deadline mode.

We checked into the resort. Well those people do deserve a special mention. They just fell over each other to care for the customers. There was a warmth in the way they behaved. They provided us with anything we asked for especially food and stuff with out sulking like the hotelier staff of the cities or putting up absurd rules to trouble the customer.

Soon we were ready for the adventure sports stuff. First we went to a place called chauthi jaali. Here a 500 ft cliff jutted out of 25000 ft mountain . So when u stand on the cliff and look down it is all empty down there u look straight into a valley thousands of feet deep. Quite scary imagining the possibilities. So it was near this place we were gonna indulge in our adventure sports.

First was Rappelling. This was about going down a rock .on the whole it was easy. But the first few steps do scare you heavily. U just have lean back going perpendicular to the rock with a rope for support with only air under you and depths of rocky cliff waiting for you below. So taking those initial steps when u shift from a vertical position to an horizontal position perpendicular to rocky slope is the toughest part. After that u will enjoy going down the rocks.

Next was rock climbing. This was tougher but was not as frightening as the first one. But when u are right in the middle of the climb it could get scary when you struggle for handgrips and footholds. But it sure is exciting. There are times when u have to remove your left foot from a foothold and put in your right foot there with only ur hands in small apertures in rock for support so in that moment when both ur feet are in air it does get exhilarating. This was great fun.

And towards the later part in the day we went on a night trek when it got dark. This place was absolutely dark when the sun went down. With the torch lights for direction we started out into the wild vegetation on the hills. There were places where it was greatly slippery and wet. It was imperative you don’t slip to your sides which were the sloppy hillsides. You could go rolling several feet down. But after doing this you cannot stop being excited. Then we reached the top. The view here was amazing. And the starry sky was a feast for the eyes. At that height the sky was much clearer the stars felt closer. But the best part was the Milky Way, which really looked like the highway to the heaven as described in the mythologies. This was amazing and you felt one with stars and amazed at your irrelevance in the vast universe.

And we came back to the resort and sat enjoying the view of sky in the cool confines. It really was a relaxing experience for the mind.

Next day all recharged we went for the River crossing on the rope. This was again exciting as you went your way tied to a rope and using the rope tied across the banks to cross a river, which gurgled past us from a waterfall. This was an exciting and zooming experience. Going across the rope as the river roared its way down hill was an experience to remember.

After that we spent the day on rocks as some of my friends spent the day going rappelling to greater depths. Then we had the view of sunset in the mountains which was an ethereal feeling also we watched the mountains of nandadevi, trishul and many more which left you wondering at the intricacies of the nature.

The next day we started for nainital. This place with its lake and mountains is a tourist destination. We enjoyed the boating especially the pedaling thing. The calm waters of the lake are so different from the seawaters I am used to. After that we wanted to go by a cable car to enjoy the view of the mountains and scenic beauty of nainital, but exigencies of time never left us with an option.

So after that great trip we were back on the journey back home. This was the only thing perhaps which left us tired. After the great experience and lots of photographic memories, which we managed to capture in the digicams, we were back to the daily routine of jobs and stuff and a mountain of work again awaits you. After this trip you sure are rejenuvated and raring to go for more and no mountains of work are gonna bog us down. Here we go....

Trip to Vaishnodevi

Its been a long time since I had gone out on tour like this…….

Aah what a trip it was…..i had never gone on a trip so very unplanned…… never had the guts to do so…..whenever I went on a tour it was chalked out to last detail. But this time it was all different. I was never sure whether I would go even half an hour before I started on the tour. Suddenly a presentation came up on the days on which we were supposed to be on tour and I was ready to drop out. But surprisingly my prof agreed to postpone the presentation for us. God factor at work.

So we were off……ahoy….we set sail…( not literally)…..but we hit the first road block. The buses were full. It was peak time. 3 days holidays , exams time had just finished and auspicious days of pournami etc had all conspired to come together and we had scores of people traveling to vaishno devi. Just when things looked bleak, we got a bus , a pretty rickety one with just the number of seats needed for us. So we were over another hurdle.

The journey was a literal pain. The bus was so very old and badly maintained that I could not get any sleep. Even as people around me were snoring away to glory, I was just sitting there lying awake exploring the possibilities of escape, just in case if the parts of the bus decided to get disentangled. But as I realized me lying awake was a boon in disguise. I would have missed such beauties of nature. As the bus winded through Haryana and Punjab, in the full moon the view of vast stretches of wheat fielded were such a scene to behold. The gentle and cool breeze hit my face, the moonlight was mesmeric and I was in love ….all over again…with nature.

But again disaster struck. The bus as I was fearing decided to give in and we had a breakdown. We were struck in village in Punjab. As people were cursing their luck I decided to look and explore around. It was a pretty stereotypical Punjabi village. But it seemed to be filled with damsels. Every girl was a pretty one and it seemed that the kind of “discovering damsels in villages” kinda stuff they show in the movies seemed to be true after all. Ah ..how I wished I had been in that Punjabi village. But as all good things come to n end, bus was put back in shape….at least that’s what the driver thought and we started on our journey again.

Soon we had entered Jammu and Kashmir. And mountains on the horizon welcomed us. Snow capped peaks in distance were really a sight to behold. But all around us were armed personnel. There were bunkers all around, a soldier was stationed at every few feet standing around shops and houses, a few were searching the fields and a lot more. But the funniest thing was how people seemed to be not minding them. Teenagers were sitting around and chatting just a little distance away from gunned men. Children were playing cricket and others were going on about their businesses. I realized whatever may happen life had to move on. And these people have learned that in a bitter way.

as i was exploring the sceneries around our bus had different ideas. it decided to break down again and this time the driver decided it was useless. he got us into a passing bus which looked like theone shahrukh took in swades. And passing through umpteen security checks we were at vaishno devi. We had reached more than 9 hours late. the bus had started at 9 pm the previous night and we reached katra, which is the footstep of vaisnodevi at 6 pm the next day.Soon we had refreshed ourselves and we were joined by our friends who had taken the train route. And we were ready to start the trek to top.

Now came the most fun part and most memorable part of our journey. This trek involved climbing by walk 6.5 km walk to Ard kuvaari which had the garb gufa. And then another 6.5 km walk to bhavan, where we had the main temple. And then we had to go to Bhairon temple another 1.5 km up with out which the trip was considered incomplete. So we were ready and raring to go. It was really fun trekking with friends and by the time we started from the room it was 12 in the night and by time we reached the footsteps and completed all the formalities it was 2 am and we started our climb.

Though I am making it sound all fun, there were people who were going barefooted, some people going on with out a break, some people going on rolling. Different manifestations of bhakthi. Old and infirm people were also walking braving their failing energies. Lot many people were using mules, horses and palanquins to carry them to the top. And there were people who were carrying others on their backs.

As we went climbing, the air got colder. We had great fun. Going with friends has this advantage. You don’t feel the tiredness of the trip. Soon it was dawn and as the first rays of sunlight came down, we were greeted by the breathtaking view of the mountains. They had edges like some one had cut them smoothly with a knife. And when we reached the top the view below was simply superb. The valley deep down seemed inviting. I felt jumping down and gliding like a bird, only it was not quite plausible. I felt like sitting there enjoying the breeze taking don the visual delight available out there. But we had to move and we did.

We reached the temple and we were in a shock. We took our tokens and realized that our turn was not due for another 14 to 15 hours. There were people who were waiting for so long for their turns. They were sleeping all along the halls and the pathways. This place was a great leveler. However rich, poor or powerful or desolate you may be. You had to wait for your turn. We had to find a way out otherwise our plans for way back would have to be seriously affected. One of our friends was son of a major general in army. Army people had a concession here. People with army passes had a special entrance which reduced the waiting time by quite some distance. So, due to our friend our passes were made and we were able to finish the whole thing in another couple of hours.

As we went in, it was a very minute fraction of the second that we were allowed to have a glimpse of God. After finishing darshan we went to bhairon temple and then we trekked back down to katra, that is down to the place where we started. So the trekking part ended there. Even though we were tired it was the most memorable trekof my life.

The adventure of the journey did not end there. As we came back to board the bus for which we had already booked, we realized that, the guy in travels had made a botch up and booked the same seats for more than couple of people. In the melee that followed it came down that we were left only a couple of sleeper berths. So 4 guys came back in a double sleeper and of course that ensured a almost sleepless night for me. By the next day we were back in IIT and it was “throw the bags aside and get to bed” time.

So this is the story of one of the most memorable trips of my life. As one of my friends quipped “ in our very small life, we had done a supposedly big thing, we had visited vaishnodevi…..”