Hai in Hyderabad We got together in Hyderabad a little over three years ago. And we have been travelling together on most occasions since. A Hyderabad to hometown in Kerala once every two months for a year before we came to Delhi was a given. Starting at 4am, we would cover over 1200km and reach Kottayam district close to 11 the same night. And we stuck to the scenic route - Bangalore - Mysore - Sultan's Battery - Calicut - Cochin - home. We also used to drive down to all the destinations in Andhra Pradesh - Arakku Valley, Vizag, etc. Park and Pant A scarily memorable incident happened during our trip to Kashmir on a film work. We got a friend's car and was driving around the valley and there was some resurgent incident prompting the Army to do its 'show of strength' at 3pm; where all mammoth trucks and jeeps lined along the road. Being a first timer in Kashmir, I started to overtake the vehicles one by one not knowing that civilian vehicles were not supposed to be on the road during this parade - more a security precaution for the layman than the Army personnel. To make a long one short, we stopped just short of getting actually shot at by the suspecting soldiers. Love 'em Drivers Travel has to be by road - preferably car, at least train / bus. (No, Minu doesn't actually approve of me and my Bullet going alone. I believe more than being scared for my safety - as she tells me - it is got more to do with being jealous of the man-machine bonding happening here :). We have covered the entire North and North East of which the North East was done over a month in a hired SUV - the driver of which gladly retired to the backest seat with his pint bottle of rice wine which he managed to procure somehow, everytime he ran out. Abroad, Alone Europe and Africa we did separately; Minu in Europe on work and me in Africa with my folks. But since this is something we didn't do together, I don't see the fun in enumerating about it here at this forum. Gimme More I am sure that the GDC will bring in very many more interesting incidents, episodes, anecdotes which we can share with all of you. Like for example, when I came from Hyderabad to Delhi on my bike, I stopped by a roadside dhaba run by a lady whom I helped to connect the gas connection so she could cook for me. Getting talking, she tells me, "Hum Dubey hain." Being not very adept at conversation-Hindi, I replied, " Wow, Mein bhi Dubai main tha..." Needless to say, the aunty just stared at me and went about making the phulkas. Sea of Experience, Land of Love Before I wrap up, there is one travel I want to make a passing mention here. It is about our trip to Pauna - a small mountain village in Uttarakhand, 28km by foot from the last motorable point near Chamoli. We went to this remote place in quest of hemp which was legally cultivated in these parts. Despite abject poverty, the folks here live up to the 'pahaadi' reputation: so much was their generosity that they we still remember them as the best hosts we ever had. Roti after steaming roti with sabzi for dinner and the yummiest kheer for breakfast the next morning. Well, it was divine for us as we had trekked up the distance through bone chilling snow and we were in such bad shape that we thought we might have to airlifted out of Pauna by rescue helicopters, ala Babel. Guys, swear, here the guest is still god! Getting Started The 'Pauna' trip was also incidentally my first travelogue which was published in the April issue of Jetwings. Yes, with GDC, I hope to do more of travel writing / blogging.
