Wednesday, April 25, 2007

My First Trek with Kshitij Trekkers

My First Trek with Kshitij:

Bored of the monotony of office life, I called up Apte Kaka, with whom I had done a couple of treks for Chakram Hikers. When he mentioned that there were no immediate treks, I was a bit disheartened since I was really looking towards reconnecting with Mother Nature and getting away from the monotony of daily life. However, he asked me to look at one other organization – Kshitij and mentioned that they have a website – trekshitiz.com (I wonder how people would have survived in the age before the Internet and Google!). Anyway, I surfed the Kshitij website & found that there was indeed a trek on 22nd April & was very happy. What made me happier was all the information that the Kshitij website contained – maps of the Sahyadri forts, songs on Shivaji Maharaj and also links to other trekking groups. This gave me some insight into the values of the organization & its commitment to creating a sense of pride in the youth about Marathi culture & tradition. The other heartening fact was that all the information was simultaneously available in Marathi & English – there are several organizations who do trekking & hiking but very few (like Chakram and Kshitij) are committed to use trekking as a means to enable character development & positive change in the youth of today – this is very much like Lokmanya Tilak using the Ganeshotsav festival as a means to organize the masses against the British empire.
The next task was to book a place for the trek & I tried calling the leader, Swapnil Kelkar. During the remaining course of the week, we played the highly amusing game of ‘missed call-missed call’ before finally getting through. Swapnil put me and a friend of mine on the waitlist given the high demand for the trek. I prayed that I would get to go & luckily I did! (my friend however, could not make it due to a medical emergence in the family). Having confirmed my spot, the next step was packing – lunch, some ‘satar-phatar’, money etc. and also sleeping early since I had to wake up at 4:15 AM the next day to reach Dombivili from Thane by 5:30 AM. One does not want to be late for the first trek with a new group.
Waking up at 4:20 AM, I stepped out of the house by 4:40 AM – caught a bus to Thane station & was in Dombivili by 5:20 AM. Then came the Sherlock Homes act – searching for the ‘Godrej showroom’ (since I had not been to Dombivili in the last 2 years). But then, as is said – ‘shodha mhanje sapdel’, I finally made it in time to the designated spot. And low behold! the trek leader was himself late – anyway, Swapnil soon came and took charge of the situation & we were zooming in the 2 Sumos by 6:10 AM.
Well, since none of the drivers knew the exact way, we did several turns & re-turns and about-turns before finally finding the road to Khopoli (and consequently to Pune). By now, the crows were croaking in people’s stomachs & we stopped to have breakfast at the Manashakti Kendra’s hotel in Lonavla. Breakfast was Batata wadas & tea - on all the treks I have been to, there have primarily been only 3 items for breakfast – Batata wada, Misal or kanda Poha – please let me know if you have ever eaten a 4th item. Anyway, the breakfast was delicious. I also got to see a bit of the Manashakti Kendra book stall etc. There were several books on stress management, living in harmony, goal-setting etc. that focused on the process of finding inner happiness in today’s high-stress world. Seeing the various books & talking to the volunteers, I started wondering:


Man today has all the Joy,
And money, the final goal, oh Boy!
But his life is often a living hell,
With so many obstacles to fell,
How many riches do we really need?
Or is it pure lust & greed?


“Adhi Potoba mag Vithoba” – after our stomachs were full, we once again began our journey to Vadhu. It was at this time that we realized the driving skills of our ‘sarathi’ – the driver hesitated to cross even 60 kms on a free NH 4 – we almost had to take a photograph of the speedometer when after a long time, it finally touched 80 kms. I guess, the driver was a true follower of the adage – “Better late than hurry, Better safe than sorry”. Hence it took us almost 6 hrs to reach Vadhu.
At Vadhu, Swapnil made us form a circle and we had a formal introduction – Swapnil then explained the background and goals of Kshitij & of our specific trek, which was tro visit those historical places that have been neglected or have not risen to prominence, inspite of their importance in history. Next we went inside into the Samadhi Smarak of King Sambhaji. As the story goes, the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb tortured Sambhaji Maharaj and his friend Kavi Kalash & left them to die at Tulapur. However, the villagers of Vadhu, with great courage, brought Sambhaji’s body to Vadhu and performed the final rites. There are several inspirational quotes at the Smarak on Sambhaji – my favourite one is:

Desh Dharma par mitanewala, Sher Shiva ka Chawa tha,
Parampratapi, Mahaprakrami, Ek hi Shambhu Raja tha.

Also, when Sambhaji & Kavi Kalash were brought in front of Auragzeb and were facing certain death, Kavi Kalash composed a short poem in praise of Sambhaji Maharaj as follows:

Yawan Ravan ki Sabha mein, Shambhu Vandhyo Bajarang,
Lahu Lasat sam Tan, Jaise Khel khelyo Ranarang,
Ravi Chabhi Teri, Khadyot hot Badarang,
Tawa Tej Dekh ke, Tyakt Tyajo Aurang.

Meaning:
“Like Hanuman stood in the court of Rawana, so does Sambhaji stand in front of the Mughal;
His body is flowing with blood, as if he has just played the game of War;
His brilliance is like that of the Sun and darkens everything around Him;
Seeing His luster, Aurangzeb is already giving up his throne”

As Swapnil recanted the story of the 32-year old son of Shivaji, it made me wonder – this great man achieved immortality at such an young age – what do we do throughout our lives to achieve half as much? At the age of 22, when we are just beginning to understand life, Sambhaji had the responsibility of the entire Maratha empire thrust on him. How would we have coped with something like that? A thousand salutes to Sambhaji!

From Vadhu, we took a very bumpy road to Tulapur & reached Tulapur around 1:00 PM. Swapnil, like a good trek leader, again explained the historical significance and details about the place - Tulapur derives its name from an incident in the life of Murar Jagdev, a lieutenant of Adil Shah, who had himself weighed in gold on a pan balance – hence the name ‘tula’ (i.e., pan balance). Tulapur is also the ‘sangam’ (confluence) of 3 rivers – Bhima, Bhama & Indrayani. After seeing the memorial dedicated to Sambhaji, we went to the banks of the Indrayani and chatted for a while and also did a few photo sessions. People were bathing in the river and also enjoying the joys of boating down the river. Then we had ‘kairiche panhe’ at the canteen and went for the darshan of Lord Shiva at the Sangameshwar Temple. The whole premises is managed by the Nirgudkar family. The sad part of the place was that this historic monument has now become a picnic spot – people were having lunches in the garden (though there were notices explicitly prohibiting the same), playing cricket and there were also lovers amongst the trees – how sad that we have forgotten the spirit of the great Maratha at the very place where he sacrificed himself!
From Tulapur, we left for the land fort of Chakan & reached there by 2:45 PM. Unlike other ‘mountain forts’, Chakan is a land fort & a relatively small one – moreover, it is in a very dilapidated condition and no care is being taken of the premises at all. It was also the site of the historic battle between the forces of Shaistekhan and Firangoji Narsale, Shivaji’s commander-in-charge of the fort. We went around the entire fort and then had lunch in the shade of the Hanuman temple near the fort. One of the joys of trekking is the sharing of lunch (sandwiches, pooris, idlis, batata bhaji, theple, dosas, fruits – amazing menu!) – like Lord Krishna’s ‘gopal-kala’. After lunch, Saket Jog narrated the history of the entire fort and the battle that was fought there in a very eloquent manner. As the history goes, Shaistekhan had an army of ~35,000 soldiers fighting against ~250 Marathas who did not give up for 2 whole months, when the enemy army had laid siege to the fort. Finally, Shaistekhan blew up the fort ramparts by constructing an underground passage – even then the Marathas held out for 1 whole day against the Mughal army. Shaistekhan, in admiration of Firangji’s valour, let him go back to Shivaji rather than kill him. Though the battle was won by the Mughals, history will never forget the bravery of the 250 Marathas who made the Mughal army fight for every inch – hence the name of the fort was also changed to Sangramgad. After lunch, we walked to the Chakreshwar temple, 5 mins away from Chakan Fort. The unique thing about this temple, that I saw, was a crematorium in the temple yard itself – first time I had seen such a crematorium within the temple premises. We then filled our water bottles and started walking back for our return journey.
A sad thought crossed my mind as we left the broken down Chakan Fort – we have let our rich heritage (forts, palaces, temples) to rot & decay over time – internationally, Governments & private organizations truly take pride in historical monuments and preserve them as a mark of respect to the times gone by. It is only in our country that the Samadhi of Maharashtra’s greatest son, Sambhaji is completely ignored, a fort like Chakan which bore witness to a legendary battle is breaking down each day and we, as Maharashtrians are doing NOTHING about it. When will this situation change OR more importantly, will this situation ever change?

Oh Marathas, please hear the call of your own History,
Else all will vanish into nothingness,
Our culture, our pride, our existence
Might soon be an unsolvable Mystery


On the way back to Mumbai, we stopped to see the land fort & residence of Senapati Dabhade at Talegaon. The fort is in much better condition than Chakan & we visited the beautiful temple that lies inside the Fort. We also took a walk to see various areas of the fort and experienced the cool breeze that had started blowing, given the evening time. Soon it was time to ‘call it a day’ and head back to Mumbai in our ‘Formula 1’ vehicle. The driver was still as cautious as ever and even rickshaws & tempos were overtaking our Sumo - but then, what could one do about it? On the way back, we listened to a few songs and also tried to catch up on some sleep. It had been a long day and all were quite tired by now.
A few of us got down and parted from the larger group at Panvel – had ‘misal pav’ at Hotel Rahul and then took the Panvel-Thane bus (always an eventful ride given the various fights between different passengers on a variety of issues – truly as Sri Krishna said – Shravan Bhakti is also a great way to achieve Moksha).

Thus ended my first trek (and definitely not my last!) trek with Kshitij.

Monday, April 16, 2007

Indian Banking - why I might prefer a money lender instead

Over the past 6 months, I have had to interact with several private & public sector banks as a customer. Normally, I avoid going/dealing with these institutions (i let my wife and my mother take charge) but this time I had no choice. SOme of the "interesting experiences" I had were as follows:

1) A large Government Bank that has several subsidiaries: I wanted a simple certificate stating that my PPF account balance is Rs.XX - I went into the bank at 10:30 AM in the morning. I was told that the concerned officer will come at 12 PM. I came back again at 12:15 PM and was introduced to the officer. The fat, burly, moustachioed guy was not interested even in looking at who was in front of the counter. On knowing my request, he told me that it can't be done today but will have to wait for 2-3 days since the records will need to be checked. KNowing the "standard procedure" in this bank (having worked as a consultant to them), I insisted on speaking to the manager in charge, who was fortunately a kind guy and asked the officer to help me. Reluctantly, the officer opened my records & suddenly chuckled with glee,"Your PPF account was opened when u were a minor & it still shows that u are a minor. So first get an application for the account to be converted to a major. Then, we can issue the certificate." He calmly closed the records and went away to talk about the cricket match. Thankfully, I had a few contacts who were senior officers in the head Office & I got them to reprimand the branch manager who instructed the officer to issue the certificate to me immediately. I thought that my ordeal was over - but I was a fool to think so. The officer told me that the charges for this certificate are Rs.500 - I asked him to show me the service charges register (Thank God I know how banks operate!) - he said that the service charges register is located downstairs & i should go & see it myself. WHen I went down & brought the register for him to see with the charges as Rs.300 - he said that there was a new circular ammending the register. I asked him to show it to me & he said that he cant find it. By now, I was livid with rage - it had been over 2 hrs and still my simple work was not over. I raised my voice & accussed him of delaying the whole procedure & asked for the complaints register. The manager interevened and himself gave me the certificate but the staffer concerned did not bother to even move a muscle for doing real work.

Another instance with this same bank was that when my mother went to enquire about deposit rates, the concerned lady officer was reading the morning newspaper. She did not even greet my mother & ignored her existence completely. My mother asked the same question 3 times - the lady had no choice but to reply - reluctantly she said that the new scheme will start from Monday & that the rate was 10.25%. My mother then asked if she could still subscribe to the scheme & invest in the deposits is she did not have an account with that branch. Curtly, she was told, "If you do not have an account with our branch, please dont ask us for new products. Please open an account first"

2) A foreign Bank that prides itself on its Operations & Technology: I have normally found it easy to transact with this bank given their efficiency. But my last experience has shaken me up. In the first instance, the bank had charged me 2 times for the same transaction on my credit card. It was for a movie ticket. I contacted the call centre and pointed out the error. I was told that the request for checking had been put into the system & that I need not worry. To my chagrin, when I got my card statement, it had the same charges with no change at all. I called the call centre again & was told that I had been sent the relevant documents for me to prove my statement but since I had not replied, I was at fault. I asked to speak to the superior but was put on hold. I tried connecting 3 times but at no stage did I get through. Finally, I paid the correct amount and told the call centre about my action - I also got the proof documents faxed (at my cost) to the bank's operations unit & had my charge reversed.

3) A State-owned bank having its HQ in the city of the Peshwas: I had to transfer money to my wife in UK. I gave the bank all the required details (account number, sort code, branch identifier code etc.) - this was to the foreign exchange branch of the bank that was supposed to be "expert" in all this international tranfer business. The bank called me up 2 days later only to tell me that the transfer was not successful since I had not provided the correct information. On checking again & again with the bank as well as with my wife's bank in UK, I found, to my horror that the State-owned bank's foreign exchange branch had tried to transfer the money without putting the bank account number of my wife on the tranfer message! I was charged ~Rs.6000 for the transaction failure first time (~3300 by my wife's branch in UK as a penalty & remaining amount by the "efficient FX branch" as their commission) - on top of it, I was asked to come and repeat the same procedure again if I wanted the transfer. Thankfully again, I had some contacts in the bank who intervened and managed to resolve the situation

I just wonder:
a) If one does not have contacts, can one get his/her work done with a public sector bank?
b) Can public sector banks ever become customer friendly? Or will it be only the advertisements?
c) Will foreign banks ever be able to provide the human touch?
d) Should I shift to the barter system? Should I start going to the NBFCs and the sahukars for my banking needs?
e) (in case you have reached so far..) Why are you reading all this? If you feel strongly about banks' unresponsiveness, how can we all do something about it?

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

The Landing - My story of Airports, Customs & Immigrations

The Landing

“Travel makes a man wise”, said my grandmother – my own addition, after having experienced international travel, over the past several years is that the experience of Landing after international travel at the Chattrapati Shivaji Airport is a step better for it makes a man not just wise but an embodiment of all the virtues in the Indian scriptures.
Having floated in the air for several hours, I am brought to the ground with the thud of the aircraft landing on the ground. Soon there begins a jostling contest, a no holds barred battle for the exit, the Ultimate Prize being a 30 lead heading out of the aircraft door. Contestants, like WWE wrestlers, have mastered the “elb(l)ow”, the knee hit and the shoulder nudge. Others are blocking the path by placing their luggage (or their children) strategically in the aisle. And then the buzz begins – mobiles start ringing incessantly for the near and dear ones are anxious to know the exact timing of landing & where the passenger is at that very moment. This (con)fusion of language closely resembles the Tower of Babel and yet each passenger is able to comprehend his own communication clearly – had heard of Divine Vision but this is the first case of Divine Hearing that I have come across. Since international arrivals are often during the wee hours of midnight, most passengers are having a tough time staying awake –hence they arrive like zombies with slumber written wide on their eyes. And then the real fun begins, thereby shaking the passengers and refreshing them up!

Disembarkation forms are not given on the flight and the ground staff has just decided to ration these to devotedly support the cause of the Amazon rain forests. Hence there ensues an interesting night chat between the disgruntled passengers and the dedicated staff. World over, I have never seen forms not being available in the flight during the time of disembarkation or even on the ground on arrival – as the (other)wise say,” It happens only in India”. Well, mea culpa¸-the forms are available but for that, one has to walk 1 km (or atleast that’s what it seems to me at midnight). Passengers are unnecessarily getting irritated since walking is one of the best exercises after meals and the Airport Authorities is dedicated to the cause of a healthy nation; moreover, isn’t Mumbai famous for its night caps and night birds – so what’s wrong in a night walk (albeit at the airport?)

Standing in the immigration queue, I am at the receiving end of several ‘Q’ing techniques (ever wonder why James Bond’s weapon & devices expert was called Q?). A lady brushes past me, looking at me with sympathy (as if I was a Somalian refugee) and says,” Sorry, I am actually with my family which is standing ahead.” I have yet to see the invisible family. Another man breaks the queue directly and says, “Its an emergency – my wife called up”. I let him pass to see another woman in tow – now that is really an emergency. A third man walks past, barely recognizing my existence, and walks to the diplomatic channel – after all he is the third cousin of the chef of the Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Plantations. When it finally my turn at immigration (yes, I do get that lucky!), the officer scrutinizes my mug shot on the passport trying to discern the similarities. Then I am asked to remove my glasses and smile (since the photo is smiling and I am not – for obvious reasons!). Then enlightenment dawns and a ‘match’ is struck.

After immigration clearance, comes the luggage retrieval part – there is already a crowd gathered at the conveyor belt waiting for their stuff – Imtihaan ho gayi, intezaar ki, aayi na kuch khabar mere samaan ki. Some have given up hope of seeing their luggage and are seen enquiring about the formalities of complaining etc. My eyes light up since my Little Precious (as Gollum would say) arrives – but ‘It’ has to be cleared through customs for which there is another queue. Although there are 4 X-ray machines in sight, only 1 is operational. Seeing the length of the queue, I innocently ask the officer,” Why don’t u start the other X-ray machine?” Pat comes the reply, “That one is reserved for Red Channel”. I persist and say, ”But nobody is going through Red Channel yet.” “But what if somebody has to? We are ready for all eventualities” (the man was obviously a Boy Scout with the Be Prepared motto). Then I ask him about the third X-ray machine – “Does not work and has not worked for the last year”. I give up and take my position in the line – tolerance is a great virtue but an even greater excuse, especially when one can’t change things for the better.

Finally, I get out of the airport and am cruising home – comparing my experience with what I have undergone at other airports globally. I am about to start cribbing about my country, the infrastructure, the attitude, the politics (yes, the usual blah blah) when a sanguine thought comes into my heart - with all its difficulties, my country is making great strides & is the envy of the globe (in fact, I am returning from one of the those India Shining conferences) – just imagine, if India were to break from these shackles of laz(y)ocracy, corruptocracy and excusocracy, we will truly become the world’s greatest democracy - Saare Jahaan se Accha, Hindustan Hamara..

Yes, like Pandora, the Landing gives me hope!

Monday, April 9, 2007

My Love, My Valentine - poem for my special person

Once upon a twilight,
Twelve long years ago,
I saw a beautiful sight,
A lovely lady on a bike

Her voice, sweet honey,
Her long legs, her tender lips,
With ‘that’ look in her eyes,
She asked will you be mine?

How could anyone refuse her,
With pure love in her heart,
And a twinkle in her smile
I said, “Yes I will”

Thus began a life-long romance,
Of ups & downs & troubles & trials,
She was always there for me,
My only Love, My Dear Valentine

We have been together,
We have grown together,
We have loved others,
And yet always loved each other

She is my inspiration,
To stand up tall,
She is my care-taker,
Who lifts me when I fall

I lust for her body,
And love her kind soul,
I care for her happiness,
And pray for her goal

Her honesty is like morning dew,
Her courage, like the mountain lion,
She is Goddess Durga & Rati combined,
She is my only Love, My Dear Valentine

We fight like cats & dogs,
We hate each other a lot
We cant stand so many habits,
And yet we can’t live apart

Though distance separates us,
And we cant physically touch one another,
We know we are there as One
And our hearts beat together

It will soon be two years,
Since we got in the bondage of marriage,
Both of us have grown a lot,
As a couple & as individual people

I pray to you Lord,
May she always be happy,
Give her my joys & me her sorrows,
For she is my only Love, My Dear Valentine

Travel Description of my tours & travails to Scotland

  • Brief description of my travels & travails to Bristol & the Scottish Highlands:

    This is a true, unedited version of my travel log – the only censorship applied by me has been to leave out instances that are Adult in content or are likely to hurt people’s feelings

    Mar 22nd:
    § The day has finally arrived & I am eager to go to UK to meet Deepti, my sweet wife after 70 days of wait.
    § The usually unreliable car hire operator Sherekar has again given the slip, thus confirming his reliable unreliability – also tried to con us by sending the higher priced Qualis over the pre-ordered Indica. Then my father (and my mother, who was surprisingly wide awake at 11:30 PM) dropped me to the Check Naka from where I took a cab for the airport
    § Being 5 hours early for my flight (the early bird catches the worm and also loses sleep at airports!), I bought a Jeffrey Archer (yes, the jailbird & famous author) novel to kill time. But what better way to pass time than to observe the interesting happenings at the airport
    o A ‘first-time’ traveler running (as if in the Marathon) at 2:00 AM & being kicked around like a football by the courteous airport authorities since he did not know which counter to go to
    o Half-asleep international travelers trying to wake up, see the time & go back to sleep again

    Mar 23rd:
    § I check in & find a place to sleep on one of the reclining seats in the departure area where I find it difficult to sleep given the snoring of a burly passenger & the constant aerial attacks by a couple of enterprising mosquitoes
    § AI 125 is announced for boarding – finally! (my novel is almost over – what a waste of money)
    § I climb the flight & get myself introduced to Ms.AS, my Mama’s reference (who promises to upgrade me to First Class – whipeeeeee). But requests me to sit in my current seat for some time.
    § To my surprise, my seat is already taken by a member of a 4-member all Ladies Gujarati family. The issue is that their seats were not allotted together by Air India and the family has decided to do the re-allocation themselves – how easy! I protest & finally get my own seat. Since I am now a criminal in their eyes, they start their torture – the Granny starts passing khakras to her grand-daughter (who had to move to the other side of the aisle because of me), then water is passed, then another round of bhel (all this at 6:35 AM in the morning). Finally Ms. S comes like an angel & upgrades me
    § I am lucky to leave the Economy class by this time since various battle lines have been drawn already:
    o Passenger vs. passenger: The issues on hand are luggage compartments, seat reclination etc.
    o Passengers vs. Staff: The key issue seems to be the mosquitoes on the flight & the passengers are insisting that they have not paid for the mosquitoes but only for the seats!
    § As I walk into the First class, all eyes are on me, as if saying,” Here comes the Freebie Guy” – but I am nonchalant about it all & take my seat – its my birthright after all.
    § Then I go to sleep on the reclining seats till lunch (which is a yummy lobsters and red wine), have a long chat with Ms.S about Air India, her kid and life in general. She offers to take me to the cock-pit (smth which has been offered to me several times but just does not materialize – ever) and I happily accede. She checks with the pilot who says,”Ok, but after lunch”.
    § By then, it is already time to land & my cock-pit wish continues to remain a dream. Meanwhile, I am already several liquids (of the non-alcoholic variety) down and feeling fresh to take on Her Majesty’s forces.
    § After landing, I am constantly watching my shoulder for Her Majesty’s agents who might try to catch me for carrying some liquor into London (a city, which incidentally has 33,500 pubs in the central district itself)
    § Other incidents:
    o An Indian, who claimed to be from Vashi, and has an export-import business in London borrowed my phone to make a missed call to his wife, who was waiting outside for him at the airport, so as to signal her. The missed call went on for 2 mins!
    o Heathrow Airport looked like the melting pot of global culture with so many different types of people there. One can of course, identify people by just observing their activities
    § The Brits, always looking tense, as if the EU integration issue is burning on their minds
    § The care-free Yankees with super-size McBurgers and Diet Coke (to cut down on the calories)
    § Mao’s armies (the Chinese never travel in groups of less than 8 – is there a bulk discount for which the Communist coffers are used to subsidize international travel)
    § The Japanese photographers who are trying to catch everything from the airport tower to the loo on their Sony camera
    § The Indians – wont say anything for fear of being branded unpatriotic
    § Once out of the airport, I take the National Express coach from Heathrow to Bristol (where my sweet wife is waiting for me) – the bus departs sharply at 12:45 PM (the bus service in UK is a pleasure with the efficiency & punctuality et all)
    § At Bristol, I hug my wife & take a cab to Chantry Court, her residence where a delicious snack of hot poha and coffee is waiting for me.
    § After a long nap, we go to the Students Union Building for Deepti’s Annual Telethon (place where she works part-time to raise donations for the University of Bristol) Prize Distribution & party. The party has pizzas and more pizzas and still more pizzas on the menu (with alcohol of course!). Deepti does not like the pizza and hits on the alcohol (which gets her on a high immediately)
    o Deepti was the star of the evening since she won 4 prizes – Best caller of the Term (most prestigious award), maximum nos. of calls made, outstanding commitment & Best Caller of the Week (for 1 particular week); everybody was congratulating her for the terrific work done by her. And to think that this was the same girl who, until 6 months back was so under-confident & depressed since she could not get a single donation – people improve under the right circumstances and life changes for the better. This was a great lesson for me.
    § We also visit Amar & Rohan (Deepti’s friends) for dinner (and drinks of course! Especially since Deepti had won a wine bottle as one of her 4 prizes) & head-back home at 2 AM for sleep.

    Mar 24th:
    § The day began a bit late with Deepti’s hangover – so there was no new preparation for breakfast. Had poha and coffee.
    § Went to South Indian Hotel, Krishna for lunch & over-ordered. So had to pack 2 potato wadas and 2 medu wadas back home.
    § In the evening, Joan, Rohini & Jamal (Deepti’s friends) came over to meet us. The dinner party also included Deepti’s neighbour Paige. So it was a truly multi-national party – Rohini (Singapore), Jamal (Pakistan), Joan (Barbados), Paige (US) and the 2 Indians (Deeps & yours truly).
    · It was truly refreshing to talk to Jamal about Indo-Pak relations and to find out that people on the other side of the border also are tired of the war/conflict and want peace. Alas, if only the politicians would listen!
    · Deeps had prepared mouthwatering tomato rice & raita for us – her hand has magic & it tasted delicious
    § Slept at 12 AM after packing for our much-awaited Scotland vacation, which was planned by Deepti with assistance from Abhijit Agate (native of Glasgow for last 1 yr thanks to Mahindra-BT)

    Mar 25th:
    § The day of reckoning finally is here – I have been forced to get up at 5:30 AM, which is not too pleasant a feeling on a leisure vacation, while my wife sleeps on. With a hot bath etc & the morning ablutions done, we take a taxi to the Bristol Airport. The driver gives us an early morning discount of 3 pounds (every penny saved is a bonus for me – ha ha ha).
    § Easy Jet check-in is like Air Deccan – a loooooong queue. The gruff lady begins her Inquisition – What do u have in the bag? Did anybody else help u to pack it? Do u have liquids in the bag?
    § Post the check-in, we settle down at the Caffe to sip a hot coffee & butter croissant.
    § Finally at 9:00 AM, we take off for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland which a 1 hr journey. On landing at Edinburgh Airport, we take a shuttle to St.Andrews Bus Station (where we will be depositing our luggage for the day before our evening bus to Fort Williams – interesting system in which for 3 pounds, u can book a locker for 1 day)
    § The moment one enters Edinburgh City centre, u feel like being transported back in time, 200 years atleast. Everything in the city is from 1600s, 1700s and 1800s – there are beautiful monuments in the Victorian style, houses where literary greats lived like Robert Burns, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson etc and current heroes like Sean Connery. Edinburgh also has the Holyrood Palace (Queen’s residence when she comes here), the Scottish Parliament (which is aptly build on a site that earlier had a brewery) and dozens of pubs. The reason that all these historic buildings still stand is that Hitler wanted to make Edinburgh his capital after the conquest of England – hence he did not bomb Edinburgh unlike London (or maybe he just fell in love with Scottish malts & whiskies)
    § Scotland also has a history of bloody murders – the 2 husbands of Mary Queen of Scots, William Hare and Burke (these gentlemen murdered people for their bodies which they sold to hospitals/scientific laboratories for research purposes since bodies were in short supply), a family full of cannibals (whose name I cant remember) – we bought a book on these murders to discover the ‘other side’ of human nature
    § We took a 0.5 day tour of Edinburgh city – the most beautiful thing we visited was a place called Dynamic Earth, that contains the Earth’s history from the Big Bang and traces the evolution of life on our planet.
    § The weather was so cold that I was freezing inspite of 2 sweaters, thermals & 1 muffler – thankfully there was no rain.
    § Lunch was in a classy Italian restaurant – the pizza and bruschetta were yummy. After this, we went to the bus station to leave for Fort Williams, our next stop.
    § The journey to Fort Williams was a scenic one through ‘lochs and glens’ (or lakes & forests) and the greenery was just amazing. The cows grazing, the streams flowing – it almost felt like stepping into a beautiful painting or a scene from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge
    § We reached Fort Williams at 9:30 PM (~5 hrs journey) and had a good meal at an Indian restaurant (yes, there are 3 of these even in Fort Williams), post which we took a taxi to the Youth Hostel, which was to be our halt for 2 nights.
    § The hostel had a lot of trekkers from various countries, all there to climb Ben Nevis, the tallest peak in Scotland. We could see Ben Nevis from just outside our hostel – snowclad, scenic and yet hospitable, like all the Scotsmen we had met.
    § One key lesson that we learned in tour planning is not to book a cheap accommodation away from the City Centre since one has to come to the city centre for all things (especially in smaller towns) & the travel costs nullify the accommodation differential – one has to use a TCO (total cost of ownership) calculation

    Mar 26th:
    § After an early morning breakfast at the village inn (consisting of egg rolls and coffee while Deeps had a vegetarian one), we hired mountain bicycles from Offbeat Bikes, the main bicycle shop in Fort Williams. Incidentally, a good bicycle costs ~500 pounds to buy while a second hand car costs ~300-500 pounds – strange that these high-tech bicycles should cost so much. Luckily, we only had to hire them for a day and not buy them.
    § Then we started on our ‘ambitious’ journey to Gairlochy on the Great Glenn Canal route (smth which should take us ~4 hrs as per the bicycle shop guy). Our first stop point was Banavis, a small village that was supposed to be the ‘start’ of the mountain trail – reaching Banavis for us was like the mid-point of our stamina (and to think both of us were National level sportsmen as well as avid fitness freaks). By this time, our butts were paining like crazy and we realized why bicycling is an intense exercise.
    § Anyway, the scenery was so beautiful – the canals of Scotland on one side and the farm-houses on the other. We met with several cyclists going to Gairlochy and also trekkers. We were also learning the use of the gears of the bicycles since we had never driven these cycles ever (and ordinary ones for the last 15 years atleast!)
    § We did the journey at our own pace – stopping to catch our breath as well as to observe the beauty of Nature, we were thinking,
    · “The face of Scotland, a sight to beholdAnd let Mother Nature’s secret unfoldOne so lovely, pretty & fair,That Time itself should just stop & stare”
    § We really hoped that Time would stand still & we could savour each other’s company (for we are separated by ~7500 kms as Deeps studies in Bristol) as well as the fresh air – after all, that is one claim that Mumbai can never hope to have.
    § We never managed to reached Gairlochy – we turned back when ~2 miles from the place since we were running out of time on our bicycles – if the shop closed before we returned, my driving licence would be with them (and we had a 6:45 AM bus the next morning – my wife is really making sure that I get up really early each day – Revenge is a dish best served cold & the mornings are really, really cold)
    § We had lunch on the way at a pub – potatoes, hot soup & omlette – tasty but too heavy. And we cycled back slowly, taking lots of pictures, and came back to the shop
    § Having returned the bicycles, we strolled in the market place & bought takeaway dinner (since we desperately wanted to go back & sleep) – we returned to the hostel at around 6:00 PM, had coffee and relaxed for a while.
    § We had an early dinner & turned it since the next day was again an early starter.
    § Key lesson – mountain cycling is a terrific way to maintain fitness & enhance the love between partners; I would highly recommend this to couples who are game for a vigorous vacation (outdoors one, obviously!)

  • Mar 27th:
    § We got up at 5:30 AM & reached the bus station for catching a bus to Inverness from which we would be taking a train to Culrain for Carbisdale Castle (our final destination)
    § It was so cold waiting for the bus in the morning that:
    · “My teeth chattered and my limbs quaked,My mouth let out smoke,Father Winter had me grounded,How I wished for the Mumbai heat – relax, this is only a joke!
    § We had breakfast at the Inverness Rail Station and proceeded by train to Culrain. On reaching Culrain at ~12:30 PM, we trekked to Carbisdale Castle. This was like a fairy tale come true – the castle stands on top of a hill & has been converted into a Youth Hostel. It was donated by the generous Lord Salvesen to the Scottish Youth Hostel in the 1960s.
    § The insides of the castle are truly breath-taking – chandeliers, paintings, library, the statues. The cafeteria serves great food & we had paninis for lunch. Our room was on the ground floor itself & after lunch we immediately set out for a tour of the castle. There is also a ghost room in the castle where several varities of ghosts (old ladies, beheaded Knight etc.) have been sighted but Deeps never let us venture anywhere close by.
    § In the afternoon, we took a walk in the forest – although we had a map & there were sign posts at most places in the forest, we still managed to get lost – yet the objective of the walk was never to reach a particular destination but to seep in the atmosphere & the feeling of togetherness
    · Key lesson: Sometimes we focus so much on the end that we never realize that the journey is over. That’s what life is – a beautiful journey – so lets enjoy it fully since we live only once
    § At coffee time, we found all about the new coffee machine bought by the hostel – the coffee was great & we savoured the aroma/taste for quite a while.
    · Key lesson: The joy of coffee is sometimes unmatched – there is nothing like sipping a latte with chocolate & cinnamon in a castle surrounded by coniferous trees. On the other hand, a hot Madrasi coffee (from Mani’s at Matunga, can also give one the same joy)
    § After a beautiful walk in the forest, we returned by dinner time – Deepti has a simple funda of life – “Khau Piu Zindabad” – that is why she also loves Anubhav travels & Kesari travels which ensure a constant supply of delicious food to the tourists.The kind cook, Tommy, gave us stir-fried vegetables (since Deepti did not like the vegetarian food on offering & I was not hungry anyway). We also interacted a lot with Patrick & Coletted (staff) who were staying in the castle for the last 3 years. Patrick is a divorcee who is not having a relationship with Colette – both enjoy outdoor activities & often do mountaineering, surfing, cycling etc. together across Scotland, Their job at the Castle also enables them to pursue their hobbies/passion for the outdoors
    · Key lesson: Often we separate work and pleasure as distinct activities – how can we find that vocation which is both a pleasure & work at the same time? Life would be so interesting then since we will never have to work a single day!
    § The library was amazing – the books were English classics – I took the Perfect Murder (HRF Keating) to read and did so for ~2 hrs till it was bed-time. Deeps studied her Financial Statement Analysis & I helped her out occasionally.

    Mar 28th:
    § We got up at 8:30 since breakfast closes at 9:00 AM – had our breakfast and then went back to bed again – all Deeps’s fault – after all, I had specifically told her to wake me up in 15 mins from my meditation!
    § We got up at around 12:00 PM and again hired bicycles to head out for Bonar Birch ( ~9 kms from the Castle) – the counter guy Alex, started laughing when he heard where we were going for our bicycle tour, reason being that he stays at Bonar Birch and cycles everyday to work at the castle. However, we knew our ‘cycling limits’ & decided not to be more adventurous.
    § The ride to Bonar Birch was very beautiful again – past farmhouses, cows, sheep, yaks (yes!) and river streams. Of course, we stopped 2-3 times for resting & reached Ard Gay (the main village) where we saw Scottish school children, village square etc. Then onwards we went to Bonar Birch and looked out for a place to have lunch. We settled on a CafĂ© based on the menu that contained vegetarian food. We had soup, garlic bread & mushroom omlette with lemonade.
    § After taking some snaps at the bridge, we started on our tour back to the castle, again stopping to rest & watch the surroundings.
    § The Scottish Highlands are so peaceful & fresh that the experience is almost like a trance – there are so many shades of green that Nature has created that it is not possible to capture them on canvass. Also, the cows & sheep seem so blissful, that I wonder, why cant Man be so? Why is it that only we have tensions & stress?
    § We return to the Castle for coffee & then continue our Library reading/studies till dinner. Dinner is ok-ok – macaroni cheese for Deeps & chicken noodles for me but the dessert (don’t know its name) was excellent
    § Again, we retired early for bed – u guessed it right, we had a 6:30 AM train back to Culrain the next day

  • Mar 29th:
    § We wake up at 5:30 AM & head back to Culrain & catch our train back to Inverness. Culrain, being a small station has no ticket windows etc – one has to take out the ticket inside the train using the ticket collector’s hand-held device – amazing what technology can do to replace people
    § At Inverness, we have our breakfast & catch our bus back to Edinburgh
    · I am somewhat saddened to have to pay 20 pence for using the toilet at Inverness station – this is a common practice in developed countries, something I have to still come to terms with given my upbringing. To top it all, the ladies toilet was free since the turnstile was broken – to talk of gender equality!
    § The route back to Edinburgh was even more scenic as we traveled through snow-clad mountains – wish we had our own car so that we could have stopped for more time amongst the mountains.
    § We reach Edinburgh at around 1:00 PM and deposit our luggage back in the lockers of St.Andrews Station & head back as per Deeps’ Travel Principle No.1 – “Live to Eat”. So we go back to the same Italian restaurant & have the same pizza but take a different soup.
    § Then we take another tour of Edinburgh – this time on a different route. Again we are amazed at the historical monuments that we see – Edinburgh is a place no historian can afford to miss.
    § After the tour is complete, we do some window shopping for most of our time & some real shopping (which is mostly books) & head back to Edinburgh airport.
    § On the shuttle back to the airport, seated opposite to us were 2 scary Scottishmen
    · One was scar-face who tried to make conversation with us – he looked so dangerous that Deeps & I felt scared talking to him
    · The other was Mr.Hulk – tall & hefty but spoke nothing
    · Thank God nothing untoward happened – maybe nothing would ever have happened but we imagined so much that it was no funny. That’s also the thing with life – we are always prejudiced – a scarface means a thug and a tall, hefty person will always try to bully us. Unfortunately, the people whom we should be concerned about are all around us, decked in coats & ties and maybe khadis & khakis
    § Anyway, we had coffee at the airport & did some shopping – Deeps bought 2 watches (2 for 1 offer) and we boarded our flight back to Bristol
    § On landing at Bristol, we did not know how to take a taxi back – there was a looooooong queue at the stand & the taxi system was quite weird – you would have to share a cab with somebody going to the same location and you would not get a cab till you have found somebody to share it with (the system automatically paired people going to the same destination). Finally, tired of the wait, we decided to take the bus back & headed home for a late night sleep. Also, we had Maggi noodles for dinner and watched Karamchand & CID episodes (site: http://www.indiaforum.com/) before finally falling asleep.

    Mar 30th:
    § Today was for relaxation & unwinding after the hectic Scotland tour – we got up quite late & had to ditch our earlier plans for having poha as breakfast & settled on coffee & Indian namkeen snacks.
    § Then we went out for lunch to Beijing Bistro, a good Chinese joint frequented by students. Post lunch, we went to the Odeon multiplex to watch Mr.Bean’s Holiday (a bad decision since the movie is funny only in parts & one cannot watch Mr. Bean’s same routines & laugh for hours on end – gets boring at times); incidentally in Bristol, a 2:15 PM movie actually starts only at 2:45 PM – there are 30 mins of advertisement/trailers – this is clearly one aspect in which Indian theatres are a lot better
    § After the movie, we went to the National Express Coach station & got our tickets to London. Then we went to Borders to buy a few more books (and also use the gift voucher received by Deepti as her prize)
    § In the evening, Deepti’s friends Purva, Tushar, Samyukta & Ankita had come over for dinner. Deepti had prepared Alu Parathas & raita. Paige (Deepti’s flatmate who is doing her M.Sc in Garden History, which can also be a very interesting subject as I found out during my conversations with her) made chocolate cookies for all of us. We also had Chinese dumpling, thanx to Sheffie (girlfriend of another of Deepti’s flat-mate, Leo)

    Mar 31st:
    § Today morning, Samyukta had come to prepare South-Indian upma for Deeps & me – upma was yummy & spicy. Then we left for London on the coach – we are staying at Lavin Kotian’s place (Lavin is a college friend of mine & works in an IT company which requires him to travel all over the globe; he has also just got engaged to his school crush & is planning to get married next year)
    § We arrived in London, Victoria at 12:30 PM and then navigated through the various rail lines (Piccadily, Northern, Jubilee etc.) & reached Lavin’s apartment at Borough – it was an excellent flat with all the required amenities.
    § We went for lunch at a nearby Indian joint & then left to visit another friend of mine, Vikram Soni, whose wife was in hospital – the earlier plan was also to visit the London Dungeon but on seeing the long queue there, we gave up the plan completely. We finished our hospital visit by 7:00 PM (btw, the hospital at Stanmore was more like a vast township & full of greenery –really good atmosphere for treatment & rehabilitation)
    § Next we landed at Leister Squaure, the hot-bed of movies, theatres & restaurants. The earlier plan was to see a movie but Deeps was not feeling too well & hence we decided to tuck in for dinner (especially since we had not had our afternoon snacks/coffee) – dinner was Italian pasta & prawns with red wine (interestingly, this Italian place did not serve pizzas at all)
    § Post dinner, we returned home for the night & talked for a couple of hours on life – the past, the future & something else

    April 1st:

    § We got up at around 9:00 AM – Lavin made excellent omlettes for us (he does have an alternative career in cooking, I must say)
    § Deepti & I decided to take a walk to see the London Bridge, which is quite close from Lavin’s place. The weather was sunny & windy – hence I was feeling extremely cold while Deeps was very comfortable, not even wearing her thermals
    § The Bridge was beautiful (though I had seen it several times before, I was again amazed to see its splendour) – we clicked several snaps of me, Deeps & us together at various vantage points & returned home
    § Lavin’s friend Dhiraj Asrani (working for TCS) also joined us for lunch (he moved in with Lavin that morning for the next 3-4 days before his return to India). Lavin had cooked egg curry & fried chicken for lunch & got nan & dal from outside. I was again feeling a bit groggy & did not eat much though Lavin’s chicken was very authentic Manglorean style.
    § By this time, it was already 1PM and time for me to leave for the airport – the team did an analysis of several options & finally concluded that the best option is for me to take a coach from Victoria Station to Heathrow. The key criteria used for decision-making were time taken, no. of changes needed, amount of walking needed for the change-overs and obviously, the cost of the options.
    § The target was to take the 2:30 PM coach from Victoria and we barely made it in time – I was the last person on the coach; the sad part was that I did not even get to say a proper good-bye to Deeps (whom I will probably see only in June, unless some miracle happens – yes, I do believe in miracles)
    § On arriving at Heathrow & finding my way to Terminal 3 for my Air India flight, I was shocked to see a very looooooooooong queue for the check-in. It was the longest check-in queue I have ever stood in during the last 12 years of my international traveling career. So I took out my Agatha Christie novel and finished 2 stories by the time I came for check-in. But it was definitely more interesting to watch the various passer-bys express their shock/surprise/disgust/admiration etc etc at the loooooong queue. The obviously, there were the ‘smarts’ who tried to break the queue under one pretext or the other and were put in place by the London airport staff.
    § After checking-in, I had coffee again at Costa Coffee, purchased some souvenirs for friends in India and was strolling in the Duty Free shops area. I had overheard that my flight was delayed by 1 hr & hence felt that I had plenty of time. Suddenly, I get jolted by the call of Final Closing of my flight gate – I had to rush to the gate & barely made it in time.
    § Again, thanx to Mama, I was introduced to Mr.UD & Mr.V (flight crew), who upgraded me & ensured that I have a safe journey home. My stomach was a bit upset & hence I could not savour the various delicacies of the flight but restricted myself to fruits & juices
    § I kept praying for a long time since my luggage took ages to come – this is India not Heathrow where luggage comes in 10 mins of arrival – Welcome Home!
    § Getting into my taxi, I called all my relatives to announce my home-coming and started thinking of the road ahead

    Adios Amigos & Good Bye!

A Tale of Death - inspirational poem to 'Live, Laugh & Love'

o The Tale of Death

I lay ill on my bed,
Stricken with unending sorrow,
No solace can the doctors give me,
There might never be a Tomorrow.

And there I see a green light,
My heart misses a beat,
A dark image is hovering,
Death Herself has come to greet

Death says -
“My child, fear me not,
For I am a part of Life,
When all that is yours is gone,
I will still be your Wife

Do you grieve all you leave behind?
Do you miss your glory?
Do you feel alone & unwanted?
With ‘The End’ to your story?”

I say –
Oh Mighty Lady,
I am scared that soon,
My body will be burnt,
And the ‘I’ in me will be gone

I will miss them - hope they miss me all,
I will love them – hope they love me all,
Soon I will be hanging,
A desolate photo on a wall.

She says -
“I can understand,
That one fears what he knows not,
But this is certain,
That the body has to rot

Be you a hero or a sparrow,
Be you a king or a subject,
I am your final Destination,
Then dear friend, why do you object?


Cry not over your going,
Cry if at all, on your doing,
Did you do all you had to,
Or was something left unfinished of your coming?

Did you play with joy?
Did you have a heart?
Did you kiss your wife?
And love her till I do you apart?

Did you work like hell?
Did you go on a high?
Did you laugh on and on,
Till you fall with a sigh?

Did you bleed for the poor?
And work for your country?
Did you do your duties?
To you, your family and the gentry?

Did you thank those who kissed you?
Did you wish those who passed you?
Did you catch the small joys,
That my Sister, Life, tossed you?”

I say –
“Give me another chance,
Oh please do me so,
Leave me alone this time,
Let me have another go.

I promise this time over,
I will do all that you say,
And be very much ready,
On another dark & gloomy day”

She says -
“Often Man understands,
The meaning of Life at Death,
And repents over the past,
On the chances he misseth

I let u go but this one time,
Do what you want,
But I will come again soon,
And then refuse me you can’t”

I am overjoyed on the close shave,
An year of Life do I gain,
Nothing changes & I am back to being myself,
And suddenly, in my chest, I get a pain

On my bed, I lie again,
Waiting for her return,Thinking of all the things to say,
With my life back to earn

And then suddenly He arrives,
All Fair & Handsome,
Taking my hand he looks at me,
Indicating that the exit time has come

I say –
“Who are you lovely angel?
And why are you here?
I expected Her to come - what a relief anyway,
But thanx - for gone is my fear”

He says -
“Don’t you know me, young Man?
I am Him – the Ultimate End
I am Death, the Green Reaper,
Here, for your life to expend

By now, I am full of fear & shock,
But also do I wonder,
Who then was the Lady,
That appeared so much kinder?

He says –
“I know what you are thinking,
And let me tell you this,
I am cruel & spare no one – never!,
Who then was that Dear Miss?

She is my inseparable twin,
My other half ‘n soul mate,
The One who makes me complete,
She was Life, who was here to keep her date

She requested me for a substitution,
And forced me to change my stance,
So that you could be warned & live,
To get another chance

She wanted you to enjoy her,
And understand her to the full,
But you wasted the opportunity, my Man,
She liked you a lot – hence she let you Live
Now, I like you a lot and hence your soul shall you give.

Author: Toshan Tamhane