I was recently dealing with a typical syndrome, on discussing with a neighbour friend he termed it as "Travel Withdrawal Syndrome". I never heard about it from anyone and for sure this isn't a medically sound one too, on probing he says " A person who had been travel for over a month and is now back to reality if often seen rethinking about his life and where its heading right now. The reason is simple, having tasted the joy of meeting new people and seeing places being stagnant is now haunting". This whole lecture was referring to my recent Euro trip in Nov 2019. I will write about it in future but for now let me 'comeback' to this blog. It was in same night during discussion I realized what I had started 12 years ago and let it go because of rat race of life is something which I have been passionate about, WRITING. It was then I made up my mind that I will come back to this blogging site and pick up from where I have left off. If you go back you will see some blog pages about my travelogue. I did complete it in word file but never posted it here. If you want to make a comeback, it has to be from reflect on your thinking back then and discover your own evolution over a decade. This will not only help me keep my syndrome away but also bring back the small dosage of happiness. Love to all!
It’s rightly said “If you want to see the real India nothing is as good as a Train Journey and that too in a second class compartment”.
I was enjoying the various sights from where the train had crossed, be it rivers, bridges, fields, barren land, forts, cities, plateaus, forests and what ever you can think of in your mind. Everybody in my family slept in the hot noon coz of exhaustion even I was tempted to sleep for a while. When there is certain degree of warmness around me I tend to be more lethargic and get engulfed in drowsiness. But I fought back to see my countryside. Its not every day that you travel to far of destinations and sleep could be caught up in night when nothing is visible outside.
It was also the place to do some sight seeing and get tempted seeing the Hot Jats...Muscular, tall and handsome ppl…The ppl whom you fancy in your mind are now in front of you. I wished I had someone then with whom I could share my feelings and flirt with few of them forming a team with my buddy... Temptations become dangerous especially when your family is round the corner and you have Ur limitations set by them. A small walk down the train could also make them suspicious about your whereabouts. Silly ppl I must say.
I have passed through the famous cities like Gwalior and have see the renowned Ghats of MP which also has approval by Hindi cinemas “Chambal ki Ghati”..Land of thieves and train robbers of 60s and 70s. I was anticipating to see few thieves and my wild mind already created a motion picture of my train on the verge of being looted by the Dakus who are chasing this super express train on their horses…lolz…Vacations are really the time to let your self loose and this mirage was just the beginning… The day had passed soon with my eyes striving for more of countryside.
Next day morning I got up at 5 am and the train was slowing down as it was approaching the station. Like a kid I was peeping with excitement to check which of our country we have reached. I was Jhansi…The land of the famous Rani Lakshmi Bai from our First war of Independence. I didn’t get down but bowed my head in her respect for her sacrifice…Feels good to be associated with Modern Indian History. It took me to the time when we had studied about her in school.
Journey seems to be never ending as the sunlight filled the compartment making temperatures high… We reached Agra Cantt...I don’t remember that I was here two decades earlier after I got my mundan done. I was three years old then...Lolz... Only pics of that time confirm that I was in Agra then to see Taj Mahal...I was trying to relive my childhood but in vain…After few hours came Okhla station…It’s the Industrial area just outside New Delhi. This is place where my Office is Head-quartered. Career Launcher was started here… Journey takes unusual course as it connects to every aspect of one’s life. New Delhi, capital of our country was our next station. Two decades separated my visit...Appu Ghar, India Gate was prominent on my mind and it’s this city where I first shaved my Head. My Mundan was ceremony here…Excitement never seems to clam down. It’s thriving for more and by gods grace I’m not disappointed either.
I decided to take a small nap after Delhi but the extreme temps didn’t allow me to sleep for longer duration. When I woke up it was another historic town ….it was Panipat…the famous historic battle will be remembered by every Indian. Man I could not get back to sleep…As the train left the station I have seen vast stretches of plane land of both the sides... Its true Panipat indeed is a place where battles were fought for kingdoms in ancient India. Next was even more ancient and more significant town….the battle field of Pandavas…..Land of Bhavad Gita…..It was Kurukshetra…Before Agra Catt there was one station, Mathura…Lord Krishna played a vital role in both the places…Secretly I’m a devotee of Lord Krishna and my hidden secret made me feel proud of this moment and I bowed again in due respect for the Lord.
Journey seems to more and more interesting as we were heading towards west Amristar…Next was Ambala cantt...Majority of ppl in defense are trained here in NDA...The station was half filled with ppl in uniform and from here the cultural diversity caught my attention. It reminded me to the land where I was heading too, Punjab and the I could see from there on at every station how Punjabis prepared water huts for the travelers by providing them chilled water in this hot summer. I was tempted to be a part of this service but on the receiving end. I refilled my half empty mineral water bottle with the cold water served there at the station…Then came a station which got its due attention recently, an unfortunate accident of space shuttle Columbia brought it to limelight…Unknowingly to the world a young astronaut Late Mrs. Kalpana Chawla was born here, yes you guessed it right it was Karnal….We Indians have this habit of eating a share of limelight..Even when you weren’t there when she climbed her success ladder…Ludhiyana station came around 5 pm and was followed small stations which I can’t recollect now. Next was Jalandar…hardcore Jats are found here, a walk down the station confirmed the same….It already dark and when my train finally stopped ,It was Amritsar …A town in the extreme end of our country and close to our neighboring country Pakistan. It’s also the land of Gurunanak’s world renowned GoldenTemple.
My journey to north India got finalized in March. Little did I know then that this journey would change so much in me. So much so that, it would be a pilgrimage to the world’s most secluded place and also a place where one would be true to self.
Life has its own share of up’s and down and before my journey got fixed life was pretty gay and satisfied…and the events which followed was in my destiny which made me take refuge in the arms of my lord. That’s the first place why lord fixed my prior appointment with her coz she knew what’s goanna happen next would make him undertake this pilgrimage of his life.
I got more determined to see my lord and was eagerly waiting for my trip to begin. Let me now share with you my experiences from the right from Deccan part of India to high snow covered mountains.
Day 1, I was on Nampally Railway station setting up my luggage in my compartment…Buz...Buz...Goes my mobile and I get a call from a good friend of mine, Rohit. He calls me once in a blue moon and I was wondering what made him give me a call. Over the phone he declares proudly that he is inviting me for his engagement which was scheduled 2 days later…I was always waiting for this news to come but it came at the time when I couldn’t even be in his vicinity…You decide now is it fate or its just bad timing…. With my best wishes and apologies I hung up the call…
The next day when I reached Solapur I was getting ready to leave for Aurangabad that night for we have to board the train till Amritsar, My first stop in my long trip ahead. A day later we reached Aurangabad and since we had time till noon we have whole morning to be killed…we all decide to head towards ‘Bibi Ka Makbara’, which is an ancient monument built by Aurangzeb for is beloved mother…Man these Moguls were so spendthrift…This man out of jealousy tried to replicate what his father did in Agra which is now among the Seven Wonders of the World…Taj Mahal…This mausoleum is popularly known as “Taj Mahal Of South India”.
I’ve visited this monument more than a decade ago but then I wasn’t interested in its significance it was just a boring place where my family has come for killing the summer vacation....This time I was geared up with my Sony Ericsson Mobile and Sony Handy Cam to Shoot the stuff and click some very nice pics..I was never a photogenic guy, never did I smiled in front of cam when snaps were taken. There was a new found self confidence in me this time around which made me take my own wonderful snaps. I owe this to my friend Vinay for infusing this confidence in me...Muuhhhaaahh ;-)
Later that noon, when we have entered the railway station, I never felt so happy about being on that platform…Though it was just a platform but it’s very rare that you see whole of Punjab waiting eagerly to go to their homeland…The whether was irritatingly very hot and humid.. And it was driving me nuts there…the delayed train added to my woes…Finally when the train arrived I was relaxed…I cursed my younger brother then for not allowing us to book AC tickets in this blistering hot summer…but now I cannot thank him enough for doing so...Coz what followed was a mesmerizing 32 hours journey to Amritsar.
