Heidelberg is a sleepy little town. I got down at Marktpatz. It was cold and windy. Few people walked the street. As I walked on stone paved roads towards the castle I admired the beautifully decorated shops. Christmas 2007 was a month away. I had come today having heard about seeing snow in heidelberg.
As I crossed the last of the shops I took a right turn which lead to Bergbahn. It is a small station. I collected my tickets after showing my monthly pass. As I waited for my train I wondered around the meuseum. I only did picture reading as the text was in German. The train which came was magnificient and modern. I took an window seat. The trained climbed up. Ride was amazing as the climb was steep. Midway up the hill we reached a small but thins time an old lookin station. Here after some wait i saw what i had come to see. A very old loco much behind our times climb down into the station. It was being pulled by huge pulleys and metal ropes. As one loco climbed down the other climbed up and both connected by this metal rope. The door shut and we were huddled into the loco carriages. The glass windows with wooden and metallic frames closed. The loco started to climb slowly once we had filled after it could accomodate mo more. The wind was getting chill. I had to keep wiping the moisture of the glass. The color had changed from green to white when pur loco came to a halt.
Chilling gusts of wind welocme us as we got down the loco. I missed by gloves which i had lost @my hotel. I quickly tucked my hands into my pockets. Walked out of the station into the wild. The walk through the white jungle was amazing. Kids were playing in the snow. Dogs ran down the down and some crazy guys were even jogging in their shots. I held some snow in my hands till i could hold no longer. My hands went numb. I blew hot air into them for the rest of my walk till the end of the walk before it bent down. The walk back was rather brisk. I had seen it all. I had planned to cook a good meal to kill time this evening. Earlier in the day I had a hearty Chicken Biryani and a glass of wine at the Indian restaurant in Heidelberg. It was neat place and well decorated though i can not recollect its name. But the cold had got me that evening and hence i dropped the idea to cook. Back in Mannheim I walked into Burgerking and grabbed a burger.
The day had come to an end. I had to do some reading for my Project but I would keep this to another day. The day had been lonely but I had felt the company of strange good experiences. I eased into my sofa sipping Martini.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
A Marriage
Blink. Journeys which I enjoyed most were the ones which I never planned. They just happen.
A marriage between a Thakur boy from the UP heartland and a Catholic girl from Cochin. Here was a chance to be part of an event of which great tales are made off. But what made this so inviting was the love of adventure the love for the highways . The bike trail to nearlyooty had started it all. This time it would be a car.
The journey from Bangalore to Allepy and back is roughly 1200 kms. The Santro had clocked a mere 1000Kms. The drivers new. Mid Monsoon. All this added that extra bit of adventure. P
acked a few casuals. http://maps.live.com/
Day 1
We start at 2 pm from office. Since the entire team knew of our journey we had a grand farewell. It took sometime before we hit the highway to Mysore. Getting used to the highways took sometime.
But slowly we picked pace with experience. Crossed Mysore at 5:30. The evening was fast approaching and our destination Coimbatore was still far. Driving on State Highways from Mysore to Coimbatore in night would be the first hurdle. Nanjangud(25Kms south Mysore) is a temple town with a beautiful Shiva temple. From Nanjangud , to make matters worse we took the wrong exit towards Gundulpet while we should have been heading for Chamrajnagar. The road was deserted. I enjoyed the sunset from the backseat of the Santro. For dinner we halt at Chamrajnagar. This would be our last halt before Coimbatore. The terrain was now getting hilly. The roads curvy. We now only meet trucks on the road. A typical problem of driving in the night is most vehicles use high beam. So it was very difficult when we cross vehicles coming from opposite direction. As we near Satyamangalam the road now climbs through the hills. From the top of the hills Satyamangalam glitters. We are running out of time so we give it a miss. We take a bypass to Coimbatore. After nearly 10 hours of starting from bangalore we reach coimbatore. The night we spend at a hotel. Snores and body aches. Well nothing can stop sleep tonite.
Day 2
Early morning we start after a light breakfast. Kerala border is 15 Kms. It takes us nearly 30 minutes before we can get out of the heavy traffic. The roads get narrow and crowded. The way is scenic. We stop for breakfast 100 Kms from Cochin. I have never been a fan of the Kerala style of cooking. While Himanshu and Sidharth feast on appam with egg curry I turn to the tried and tested masala Dosa. This sounds a warning of things to come.
We hurry for the marriage. Reach the church where the ceremony has already started. Unlike Hindu marriages its fast. But the ceremony ends without any drama you would expect from a movie plot. We head staright for the reception. Bolghatty Palace is set in the middle of the back waters. Beautifully decorated, great food. This time its the desert. Shadi karo ta aisa karo.
From here we head for Allepy aka Allapuzha. Its 60 Kms to the south of Cochin. Known for its houseboats and backwaters. We book a house boat. Beware of thugs. At the Boat ferry we meet characters. Most Drunk. Very rude and very cunning. Bargain as much as you can. For Re 3000 we find ourselves a spacious and decent houseboat. Legs spread. Light breeze. Pale sky. The boat glides over the clear waters. Scenic Kerala. People returning from their work on their canoes carved out of coconut trunks. We wonder for a moment on the their life. Later in the evening we chat long hours. Our chef does wonders with the fish fry on board, chicken curry.
Day 3
Woke up a
fresh morning. The day is beautiful. Motorised boats are the means of transport. Kids jumping into the waters. We hungrily eat our bread and omelet. A light drizzle starts. It was one of the best coffees as we kept refilling my cups. The backwaters has this mystique appeal. As I bid adios to Allepy my heart yearns for more. I promise to return.
The day is long. We had taken roughly 15 hours to reach Allepy. We had gained some experience. We hoped to make the trip back in quick time. We decide to avoid the Satyamangalam route as the hilly tracks had taken a lot of time. This time we take the Salem (pronounce as Selam) route. Though we did not find the road to our delight. The most difficult part of a trip is the return journey. Exhausted. Longing to back to the comfort of the bedroom. But we did pretty well. We kept up the fun mood. The santro didn't have a music system but still we enjoyed the drive. This time we take nearly 14 hours.
My discovery still remains incomplete. It has just begun..
A marriage between a Thakur boy from the UP heartland and a Catholic girl from Cochin. Here was a chance to be part of an event of which great tales are made off. But what made this so inviting was the love of adventure the love for the highways . The bike trail to nearlyooty had started it all. This time it would be a car.
The journey from Bangalore to Allepy and back is roughly 1200 kms. The Santro had clocked a mere 1000Kms. The drivers new. Mid Monsoon. All this added that extra bit of adventure. P
acked a few casuals. http://maps.live.com/Day 1
We start at 2 pm from office. Since the entire team knew of our journey we had a grand farewell. It took sometime before we hit the highway to Mysore. Getting used to the highways took sometime.
But slowly we picked pace with experience. Crossed Mysore at 5:30. The evening was fast approaching and our destination Coimbatore was still far. Driving on State Highways from Mysore to Coimbatore in night would be the first hurdle. Nanjangud(25Kms south Mysore) is a temple town with a beautiful Shiva temple. From Nanjangud , to make matters worse we took the wrong exit towards Gundulpet while we should have been heading for Chamrajnagar. The road was deserted. I enjoyed the sunset from the backseat of the Santro. For dinner we halt at Chamrajnagar. This would be our last halt before Coimbatore. The terrain was now getting hilly. The roads curvy. We now only meet trucks on the road. A typical problem of driving in the night is most vehicles use high beam. So it was very difficult when we cross vehicles coming from opposite direction. As we near Satyamangalam the road now climbs through the hills. From the top of the hills Satyamangalam glitters. We are running out of time so we give it a miss. We take a bypass to Coimbatore. After nearly 10 hours of starting from bangalore we reach coimbatore. The night we spend at a hotel. Snores and body aches. Well nothing can stop sleep tonite.
Day 2
Early morning we start after a light breakfast. Kerala border is 15 Kms. It takes us nearly 30 minutes before we can get out of the heavy traffic. The roads get narrow and crowded. The way is scenic. We stop for breakfast 100 Kms from Cochin. I have never been a fan of the Kerala style of cooking. While Himanshu and Sidharth feast on appam with egg curry I turn to the tried and tested masala Dosa. This sounds a warning of things to come.
We hurry for the marriage. Reach the church where the ceremony has already started. Unlike Hindu marriages its fast. But the ceremony ends without any drama you would expect from a movie plot. We head staright for the reception. Bolghatty Palace is set in the middle of the back waters. Beautifully decorated, great food. This time its the desert. Shadi karo ta aisa karo.
From here we head for Allepy aka Allapuzha. Its 60 Kms to the south of Cochin. Known for its houseboats and backwaters. We book a house boat. Beware of thugs. At the Boat ferry we meet characters. Most Drunk. Very rude and very cunning. Bargain as much as you can. For Re 3000 we find ourselves a spacious and decent houseboat. Legs spread. Light breeze. Pale sky. The boat glides over the clear waters. Scenic Kerala. People returning from their work on their canoes carved out of coconut trunks. We wonder for a moment on the their life. Later in the evening we chat long hours. Our chef does wonders with the fish fry on board, chicken curry.
Day 3
Woke up a
fresh morning. The day is beautiful. Motorised boats are the means of transport. Kids jumping into the waters. We hungrily eat our bread and omelet. A light drizzle starts. It was one of the best coffees as we kept refilling my cups. The backwaters has this mystique appeal. As I bid adios to Allepy my heart yearns for more. I promise to return.The day is long. We had taken roughly 15 hours to reach Allepy. We had gained some experience. We hoped to make the trip back in quick time. We decide to avoid the Satyamangalam route as the hilly tracks had taken a lot of time. This time we take the Salem (pronounce as Selam) route. Though we did not find the road to our delight. The most difficult part of a trip is the return journey. Exhausted. Longing to back to the comfort of the bedroom. But we did pretty well. We kept up the fun mood. The santro didn't have a music system but still we enjoyed the drive. This time we take nearly 14 hours.
My discovery still remains incomplete. It has just begun..
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Nearly Ooty
"How can you be nearly headless ?" asks Hermione Granger.The ghost of Sir Nicholas just flips open his head while it remains hinged on one side.
Our trip was similar in many respects. It was nearly Ooty yet not Ooty. It was a tough gruelling yet so much fun and adevnture. To sum it up ....6 guys 3 bikes 2 days 1 night.
This journey is special. Remains very close to heart.
Naba , Charlez , Bibhuti , Sujeet , Girija and of course myself.
Pulsar 180, Unicorn, Apache. It would be a real test of our endurance as much as it would be for the bikes. The time was winter.
My Pulsar responds exceptionally to the ride conditions. The Apache which had just clocked 900 Kms caused some concern with its over heating engine. It also had that extra bit of vibration @60Kmph. But as we go on the engine comes to terms with the conditions. The Unicorn I would try another day.
The Bangalore ~ Mysore highway is superb. My only regret, as soon as you have picked up speed and cruising you come across a small roadside town or village.
From Mysore to Ooty the road is good in parts. The hills stand tall and beautiful. The best part of the journey is through the Bandipur and Madumalai forests. On our way we spot wild elephants , deer, wild hens, gaurs. If you are a pillion rider the roads through Bandipur (Karnataka) might unseat you. The roads through Madumalai(Tamil Nadu) are a notch better. We pay a friendly tip to the cops on the Tamil Nadu border.
Early morning next day we have a safari. We spot some wild elephants. It wasn't a memorable safari as we couldn't venture deep into the forest. On our return journey we visit the Brindaban gardens. Diwans of Mysore planned and built the gardens in connection with the construction of the dam. Known for its musical fountain. A wonderful engineering marvel of mordern India.
It remains to date my most memorable bike trek.
Our trip was similar in many respects. It was nearly Ooty yet not Ooty. It was a tough gruelling yet so much fun and adevnture. To sum it up ....6 guys 3 bikes 2 days 1 night.
This journey is special. Remains very close to heart.
Naba , Charlez , Bibhuti , Sujeet , Girija and of course myself.
Pulsar 180, Unicorn, Apache. It would be a real test of our endurance as much as it would be for the bikes. The time was winter.My Pulsar responds exceptionally to the ride conditions. The Apache which had just clocked 900 Kms caused some concern with its over heating engine. It also had that extra bit of vibration @60Kmph. But as we go on the engine comes to terms with the conditions. The Unicorn I would try another day.
The Bangalore ~ Mysore highway is superb. My only regret, as soon as you have picked up speed and cruising you come across a small roadside town or village.
From Mysore to Ooty the road is good in parts. The hills stand tall and beautiful. The best part of the journey is through the Bandipur and Madumalai forests. On our way we spot wild elephants , deer, wild hens, gaurs. If you are a pillion rider the roads through Bandipur (Karnataka) might unseat you. The roads through Madumalai(Tamil Nadu) are a notch better. We pay a friendly tip to the cops on the Tamil Nadu border.
Early morning next day we have a safari. We spot some wild elephants. It wasn't a memorable safari as we couldn't venture deep into the forest. On our return journey we visit the Brindaban gardens. Diwans of Mysore planned and built the gardens in connection with the construction of the dam. Known for its musical fountain. A wonderful engineering marvel of mordern India.
It remains to date my most memorable bike trek.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Goa in Rain
My first visit to Goa was in the winter of 2000. I was in my 3rd year. After that I returned twice. Once in 2004. My last visit was in 2006 during prime monsoon season.
All my visits have been special. The Company of my friends. The beautiful beaches. The sunset. The seafood. The unique architecture. The parties. The adventure. Above all the spirit of Goa.
Candolim , Bagha are good beaches to relax. Try out sea food while basking in the sun. Crabs are a speciality here. Juicy and delicious. Goa was where I learnt how to swim.
All my visits have been special. The Company of my friends. The beautiful beaches. The sunset. The seafood. The unique architecture. The parties. The adventure. Above all the spirit of Goa.
Candolim , Bagha are good beaches to relax. Try out sea food while basking in the sun. Crabs are a speciality here. Juicy and delicious. Goa was where I learnt how to swim.
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