A “LOVE”LY JOURNEY

Even a needle prick,when you were with me,did not provoke a flinch
Without you,sweet angel,even cotton hurts,inch by inch
Seeing my predicament,even the “teddy” in your shelf would weep
I care not for nightmares,for I have lost my sleep

The clock grins sarcastically,forever refusing to budge
I feel as helpless as an innocent rabbit caught in a deep sludge
For your convinience,everything else in my life took a backseat
Now I walk on thorns,with blisters adorning my weary feet

You asked for its feathers,but I gifted you the peacock
Like a pauper among princes,here am I for all to mock
We didn’t commute using trains,for then the tracks would part
Thinking of it right now,gloom descends on my heavy heart

With rose in hand,when I proposed,you were all smiles
Hand in hand,oh princess,we could even walk a thousand miles
Flowers,rings,salwars,chocolates: I have gifted them all
Curse my stars:what did I do to deserve this mighty fall??

Suddenly,it was all over.. you just walked away
A tremendous yet tender romance had gone astray
“You seem more inclined towards someone else”,you said
Do not doubt my loyalty dear:even milk would turn red

Though fatal,the moth still hovers around fire:why??
You,for sure know that I can’t stop thinking about you:can I??
You wept my tears and filled my dreams:my delicate miss
Oh!that sweet kiss is still fresh in memory;a saddening bliss

The world keeps moving;the above meloncholic work was scripted a few years ago
We are now happily married:we still have a long way to go
Out of the blue,you hugged and said”I’m sorry for what I have done”
Do not worry my honey;we will go back to where it had all begun

With our wedding anniversary approaching,I thought hard about a worthy gift
I pondered over them all;from lustrous diamonds to “Maruti Swift”
But I thought why not give this good old ode..to take you back a few years
My adorable darling..as you read this..I know you would struggle to hold back your tears.

ps: it took me 120 solid minutes to pen this..!

4/1/07-Agra

We started early in the morning to catch the “taj express”..around evening we reached the Agra Fort where we had nice fun.. but the Taj was definitely a sight to behold..there have been rumours that it is a Hindu temple( and i too am convinced) but if, as our history textbooks say,the Taj was really built by shah jehan ..my god.. he must have dearly coveted his lady love..One could go on about its beauty..We left the place with pleasant memories..

5/1/07

The return train journey too was amazing..We had some nice discussions.. and in the evening we had a fun poll about the most preferred gals from my class(i ll stop here)..But like all good things..this wonderful trip too had to come to an end..There were a lot of positives..Me n Srikanth (logic) really share a good rapport and this tour brought us even closer( i hope this friendship stays on for long)..Spending 10 days with friends with whom you had played together,eaten together,had fun ..all this would definitely be missed in the years to come..”saavadikadhada”,”saatha”,”saapdei” ….. will remain etched in memory for long..

1/1/07..Shimla

1/1/07

shimla

We spent almost the entire day travelling..we just stopped once for breakfast and found to our surprise a pleasant little lake near by..( it was much better than some spots in the original itenary..) and it was almost midnight by the time we reached shimla..and freezing conditions kept following us..
2/1/07..
But for its beautiful hill scape.. there is nothing much to write about Shimla..and some of us with famine stricken purses preffered to give the ass/horse rides a skip( they charge rs 250 for a trip ) to visit some temple..(which according to those who visited it was again a big bore).a few “healthy ones” had to be administered with drips on the way back..and then we left for Delhi..

3/1/07

Back to good old Saravanaa Bhavan..and by the time we finished .. the plates looked as though they had just been put to wash.We then visited a few shoppin spots( chandni chowk,karol bagh) and we thoroughly enjoyed our Delhi Metro journey.The schedule tracker which gives the present station at which the next train is lodged as well as the time it would take to make it to the other stations.. the scroll inside the train and the sweet announcer’s voice that give out the next station..the doors which defenitely prevent the footstep accidents that are so frequent with electric trains all add up to its impressive performance.We made desperate attempts to purchase a few sarees n salwars to people back home..but the shop keepers instantly tried to capitalise on our limited knowledge about their varieties and we returned empty handed..(a kind advice .. dont forget to take your female friends when you go next time to shop for such things.. we definitely missed them..) .We returned to our hotel rooms pretty soon to watch the cricket match but Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla piled on the agony..

31/12/2006-Manali

At last we began the day with some good South Indian breakfast.. and we had a hyper enthusuastic kid who attended to us( i have read of such boys only in RUSKIN BOND’s novels).We hired jeeps for the day’s outing..Our First pitstop was at the IcePoint.This place is worth a visit..We tried our hand at ice-skating and after a few skids and falls,we managed to come to grips with the art.Others with heavy purses pursued para-gliding.We were next taken to a spot where we were supposed to see some hot springs( dont waste time.. even a hot water tap is a better substitute)..We then proceeded to a temple( one that featured in the film “Roja”).It was party time in the evening with some loud music,dance and of course cricket..Braving the cold became an uphill task( as if MANALI isnt uphill enough!) and one lady( my good friend) lost a bet trying to remain stand still for a minute..(gals are gals.. she maintains till date that she was swaying to the party tunes..!)..As the new year dawned..it was a heartwarming feeling.. welcoming the first day with your best buddies for one last time..and soon a few “”Napoleons” who were ready for a “Royal Challenge”" decided that it was no use being an “Old Monk”.. Amps were tripped ,unparliamentary( or modern parliamentary) words were uttered,bottles flew and it was time to return indoors..

30/12/06-KuluManali

We were in for a cold welcome..we could hardly get down from our buses in the morning..but by the time we reached the hotel, the weather turned pretty pleasant…(from 9 a.m to 3.00 p.m it remained the same). It was a “rest” day for us( if you could call it one) and we were more than happy to get rid of those layers of warmers and shift to tracks and t-shirts..we had a nice walk of abt 6 kms in the afternoon and we had a chance to look at the local life.. it did not seem to be a very cosy living area but the kids were still cheerfully smiling and playing around ..the toddlers with their smooth complexion and rosy cheeks struck an instand chord..by the time it was around four in the evening, the mercury started dipping rapidly.. and we were forced indoors.. the view from our hotel was eye catching… and as the sun settled down..we kept piling on layers of warmers( 5 was the base line).Rumours that the temperature was -4 degress were spreading thick and fast( my god..even a refrigerator wud have been better)..

29/12/06-Chandigarh

A perfectly planned city..the roads were thoughtfully laid out..and this was the day of the orange brigade( we had decided the previous night that majority of us would be sporting orange).Most of the camera batteries were exhausted by the time we finished.. our first spot for the day was the Rock Gardens.. a place built with scraps( who cares??).The entrance and exit arcs give the impression that the place was constructed strictly for the lilliputans..and it was really comical to watch the movements of a 200 cm tall gentle giant and some other heavy weights from our gang..from there we proceeded to a lake were a few had a nice time testing their rowing skills..our last stop was Pinjore Gardens and it was dark by the time we made it .. the place did not seem to interest any of us..and we spent a few minutes playing catch and bowling under sodium vapour lights.. We boarded the buses to leave to Kulu Manali..