Friends, Unplanned Road Trip, Experiences, Adventures, Food, Drive, Letting heart beat a different rhythm and finally back to busy life with a soul different from the one that existed thus far. A perfect script of a blockbuster Bollywood tale. And this is my blockbuster Tale.
A rainy evening, a troop driving home after a medical diagnosis, group of confused minds, mercury well past the 100 mark on the thermometer and questions pooping out trying to figure out permutations & combinations. In hand were Examination Admit Card, Reserved Railway Ticket for the following morning and most importantly a Blood report which said the count of CRP which read 98.6 mg / L. The report meant the biological reference range of C-Reactive Protein was 20 times more than what is ideally suggested; 0-5 mg / L. This also meant he had to be put on a drip, have an IV-Cannula on either of his two wrists and given a couple of injections every 4 hrs. And it finally all this implies that he was unfit to take a 12 hour train journey and make it to the exam a couple of days later. Then said someone; lets go by 'CAR', Start early tomorrow, carry all the necessary medical stuff, get the pharmaceutical therapy uninterrupted, let him complete the exam and let us take his responsibility. That statement was just a quip until his parents gave a surprising nod and the journey began as early as 6 the following morning. The first song that was played made all the sense as Shankar Mahadevan sang "Hum na Rahe khabi Yaaroke Bin................
If all the introduction made you think of a Merc, BMW, or at least a 6 seater Indian Made SUV, I can only sponsor you an ounce of goodwill. It was a Maroon Color Alto. And the best part of the tale is, the car ran on CNG which meant whole of the place that was allocated to luggage in normal petrol cars was only occupied by a hefty CNG tank. So we headed towards the outer ring road in an Alto with all the luggage on our lap, laptop and camera finding the safest place in that cramped car. But that was the theme of our voyage. It was no luxury trip with one of us really ill, but we had all the virtual space on this earth throughout the journey. I personally learnt what space is . It is not always measurable. Space is something more than luxury. It is emotional playing ground that you and others share rather than a limited boundary. And we five shared an endless emotional space.
It is a story written with five characters, where each one had a definite role to play . Bharath was our pilot and really adamant when it came to decisions he made. There were 3 people who could drive, but believe me, me and goutham were mere spectators through out. After every 100 kms we would look at bharath and he would quietly ignore us. And then came the famous decision of taking a detour for 100 kms just to find CNG station. At an unknown town, we were circumambulating all around to find the CNG station that too dead night. All 4 of us asked, warned, threatened, begged him to stop searching for CNG . But he was never playing yes to drive on Petrol. Then there was Karthik. Long ago sometime he did travel that route by road. And every time we passed through a place, or read a name board, he would jump into conversation and say, yes this is the correct way. He was obsessed to say the least about the places we traveled through. Kranti was Virat Kholi of our group. I called him kholi for two reasons. One because he doesn't like cricket and Two because he can never start or complete a sentence with out having a Censored word or two. Goutham was a mere spectator through out the trip. He is one of the best drivers on board and never got to ride throughout the trip. He was like a kid who though his dad would buy him a chocolate in the next stop. But Bharath was his dad and he never got to sit behind the wheel.
Sakethursforever : )
A rainy evening, a troop driving home after a medical diagnosis, group of confused minds, mercury well past the 100 mark on the thermometer and questions pooping out trying to figure out permutations & combinations. In hand were Examination Admit Card, Reserved Railway Ticket for the following morning and most importantly a Blood report which said the count of CRP which read 98.6 mg / L. The report meant the biological reference range of C-Reactive Protein was 20 times more than what is ideally suggested; 0-5 mg / L. This also meant he had to be put on a drip, have an IV-Cannula on either of his two wrists and given a couple of injections every 4 hrs. And it finally all this implies that he was unfit to take a 12 hour train journey and make it to the exam a couple of days later. Then said someone; lets go by 'CAR', Start early tomorrow, carry all the necessary medical stuff, get the pharmaceutical therapy uninterrupted, let him complete the exam and let us take his responsibility. That statement was just a quip until his parents gave a surprising nod and the journey began as early as 6 the following morning. The first song that was played made all the sense as Shankar Mahadevan sang "Hum na Rahe khabi Yaaroke Bin................
If all the introduction made you think of a Merc, BMW, or at least a 6 seater Indian Made SUV, I can only sponsor you an ounce of goodwill. It was a Maroon Color Alto. And the best part of the tale is, the car ran on CNG which meant whole of the place that was allocated to luggage in normal petrol cars was only occupied by a hefty CNG tank. So we headed towards the outer ring road in an Alto with all the luggage on our lap, laptop and camera finding the safest place in that cramped car. But that was the theme of our voyage. It was no luxury trip with one of us really ill, but we had all the virtual space on this earth throughout the journey. I personally learnt what space is . It is not always measurable. Space is something more than luxury. It is emotional playing ground that you and others share rather than a limited boundary. And we five shared an endless emotional space.
Everything was like a jig-saw puzzle with five different people, different mind set and with different ways of thinking. But everything was driven by a divine force and I felt as if everything fell into place. When you have 5 people on an unplanned trip which is not so luxurious, the possibility of everything happening correct is a rare probability. It is like having that unique combination of stars aligned in a particular order once in hundred years.
It is a story written with five characters, where each one had a definite role to play . Bharath was our pilot and really adamant when it came to decisions he made. There were 3 people who could drive, but believe me, me and goutham were mere spectators through out. After every 100 kms we would look at bharath and he would quietly ignore us. And then came the famous decision of taking a detour for 100 kms just to find CNG station. At an unknown town, we were circumambulating all around to find the CNG station that too dead night. All 4 of us asked, warned, threatened, begged him to stop searching for CNG . But he was never playing yes to drive on Petrol. Then there was Karthik. Long ago sometime he did travel that route by road. And every time we passed through a place, or read a name board, he would jump into conversation and say, yes this is the correct way. He was obsessed to say the least about the places we traveled through. Kranti was Virat Kholi of our group. I called him kholi for two reasons. One because he doesn't like cricket and Two because he can never start or complete a sentence with out having a Censored word or two. Goutham was a mere spectator through out the trip. He is one of the best drivers on board and never got to ride throughout the trip. He was like a kid who though his dad would buy him a chocolate in the next stop. But Bharath was his dad and he never got to sit behind the wheel. 
Every moment let us experience something new. Glitter in our eyes at the beach, enjoyment we had at bay of bengal was fantastic. Food at one of the famous hotel was yet another surprise . Believe me even Google maps played its part in giving us a share experiences. When we checked for navigation, google guided into small towns rather than taking us to the express highway. Thanks to maps we experienced what is it like to be on an old barrage in the dark with water gushing beneath us. And how can I not quote that unexpected guest on the highway who asked us a lift.
Someone said you experience the best when it is unplanned and when everything you experience is a surprise. I would brag that someone with the wealthiest regards because he is spot on with his statement. More than anything what the trip has done is it brought 5 souls wandering together. It gave us bags of memories and I try to save few on this blog. We now have tales about each five of us which would really spice up the environment when we get to meet the better halfs of each one of us. I would thank every virtue out there which made this trip what it has been. Every time we think of a road trip, every time we think of Vizag, everytime we meetup the memories come crashing back. Thankyou Bharath, Kranthi, Karthik, Goutham for giving an experience which we would cherish for a long time.
This is one of those blogs which I can never put a full stop to, so leave it without one
Sakethursforever : )
2 comments:
I was waiting until the end of your post,hoping that you will provide details about hotel....That was the funniest and frustrating bit of your voyage ;)
very emotional... While reading this blog, i felt as if I am also there in that alto on a fun trip. Start with dil chahta h seens apt. You were going to write exams, all people in different frame of mind, no one knows what will happen next, carefree u attempted this tough voyage which turned out to be a wonderful experience for all of us and for all yours readers. Thanks for sharing ur photos too. Do write about more such trips.
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