From the Pink City to that of the Nawabs, and everything in between... Part I

Safety Paranoia

I was travelling from Jaipur to Delhi and the bus had stopped at the Midway. When the customary twenty minutes were over, the driver started the bus and revved the engine. He was all set to go but there was a slight problem; a couple of passengers were missing. The conductor made his enquiries, the driver honked his horn but to no avail. The passengers were getting restless. It was then that the issue of the luggage of those passengers came up. Apparently there were a couple of unclaimed bags in the bus. And lo! The passengers were after the conductor to dump them off, who after his initial relucatace, complied with their wishes. For the first time I saw first-hand what the recent terror strikes had done; they had instilled fear in the people's mind. They were simply too afraid to proceed with some unclaimed baggage in their bus. It was only after the baggage was dumped and a call made to the nearest police station that the bus moved on. I wonder if this fuss had been there a few years back...

Cafe Bikaner

For all the foodies out there, do try out the new restaurant at Bikaner House. It's at Pandara road and serves excellent food. Rozz recommends paneer lababdar.

And hey, the hardcore non-veggies don't be disappointed.. for it serves non-veg too.. and jab paneer itna accha tha, toh socho chicken kitna accha hoga.. ;P

Su-do-ku chicklet

This is one of my best memories of the trip. I was in the Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi quite content reading my borrowed copy of Maximum City. The seat in front of me, on both sides of the aisle, was occupied by a Sikh family. There was this cute young chick, naa chick is not right, chicklet is more like it, the youngest member of the family, who was enjoying herself a lot. Hopping around from one side to the another, posing questions to her dad, she was the epitome of innocence and free spirit. Her dad was busy with his newspaper and I guess she caught sight of a su-do-ku in it and for some reason was fascinated by it. And there she was shouting suu-do-kuu, suu-do-kuuu on the top of her voice. I looked up from my book, grinning. Our eyes met, and suddenly she was conscious of herself. For the next couple of seconds we continued to gaze into each other's eyes even as her voice trailed off and she shied away and hid in her father's lap.

This little chicklet once again made me realize how much I like being around with kids. I would have loved to have her as my younger sis... she was cho chweet..... :)

Hmmm Home...

Just some random things that make homecoming so special.. :)

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Its 4:30 in the morning. I lean out of the fast moving train as it slows down to stop at the outer signal. After a brief hiatus it moves on again, gaining speed and I stand there enjoying the pleasant chill against my face even as the wind blows through my hair, pushing them back in the way I like. As it enters the terminal I lean even further, hoping to catch a glimpse of my parents. And there they are, both of them, ready to take me home. Let me be honest with you. No sight in the world beats the sight of seeing your parents after a long time.

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Its 5 in the morning as you drive out of the station. The roads are almost empty. Papa has brought his own car ( he assumed I was bringing back lots of luggage..lolz :P) and not my (ohk it's not mine. Technically it's mom's.. ;P) cute little 800. As we move to Ajmer Road, I put the car into the 5th gear and press down the accelerator. The speedometer crosses 100. Wow!

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Hardly ten minutes later I am home. And guess what? Bua has cooked me awesome methi ke paranthein ... yummm!!!

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I have been to a couple of weddings in the short stay here. And hey, weddings are fun this time of the year. Pleasant weather, good food, and oh well, this time the chicks weren't half bad either.. ;P. Ok but that wasn't the main point (however important and relevant it might be ;) ). The thing is, I get to spend some quality time with my family away from home. Oh that reminds me, am heading to simla for a week!! :D Finally a vacation with my family after nearly six and a half years!

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Hot water baths!!! you can't even begin to imagine how much I like these. And ghar pe I don't even have to wake up early to have one (unlike the hostel, where the hot water runs out at 10 in the morning, that is, if there was any at all )

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Breakfast in bed!! :D

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I like to read a newspaper first thing in the morning. It hardly ever happens in the hostel. At home, I wake up daily to find my ToI lying besides me.. :)

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And oh, how can I not mention home cooked food! Seriously people before heading to college I was fed up of it. Now I just can't get enough of it. I guess that's the same with everyone though...

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Home Calling!!!

ohk fellas... am off to home finally.......

come this monday, and i wud be off to my favourite place.. to my favourite city....

And as quite a few of you were expecting, no these are NOT my last days in college.. don't know wat the future has in store... but one thing is for certain.. would be coming back.. whether for the last time or not.. dunno...

48 hours to deaprture.. yipee!! :)

Hmm..

Had my first hot water bath of the winters yesterday morning... :)