Definition of Good Friday

I waited for the 'right' job for more than 10 months. But when it came along, it did so in a snap. All the things that did not work out have left me very unsure about how 'right' this one really is, but logic and sense say that it is. And for now we are leaving it at that.

So, this Friday I went in for induction and a meeting. It was a rather important meeting and I felt great being a part of it. I was not expecting day 1 to bring anything spectacular with it, so it felt even cooler just being there in the moment.

The awesomeness of the day continued with managing a seat on the metro on my way back. My iPod also saw light of day after really long. It had the old playlist in it which brought back a lot of memories from Pune, both good and not-so-good, but it was nice feeling that music again.

I came home and made a number of phone calls to the people who helped during the struggle. The highlight was talking to my grandparents. All four of them. Making them happy is an overwhelming feeling. Every single time.

Then I connected with a few cousins, and next thing we knew.. it was 1:30 am, and four of us were driving out for some official celebration! Things like these do not happen with me in Delhi. Neither for the two other girls with me. We had to make up a few stories, bring in a few confidantes, and the mood got rolling!

We first went to Cibo at Janpath. Apparently it is one of the better places to party these days. But what we saw when we went in was the last thing we'd have expected to see. There was a big group of surds dancing to hardcore punjabi music. The kind that is easily detestable. But we decided to stick around for a while because things were slightly bearable thanks to the punju connection. More so because it was too late to think of going some place else. We drank. We danced. And in the end, when the DJ played corny Bollywood tracks, we were happy too. :)

It was around 3:00 am when we left from there. Nidhi thought we should look for food now. Samridhi and I felt we should look to move home now. But Agneesh felt we should try to get into Agnee at The Park for some extended fun. Especially because the scene at Cibo wasn't particularly what we had set out for. And the moment we entered Agnee the past hour felt like such a waste! The music was great, the ambience was good, and there weren't any shady surds dancing with a glowing mobile phone set in their belt. We danced like crazy for the next one hour. I know I for sure was having the time of my life. Definite glances from two cute guys made it even more entertaining. :D

We left from there around 4:15 am. First we were to drop Nidhi and Samridhi back. I act responsibly 9.9 out of 10 times, so it was tooooo much fun speeding and singing out loud in chorus (no, the windows were not rolled down), on empty roads.

After that we quietly left my brother's car back at my place, picked Agneesh's bike, and moved to his place. So, just as I thought that I had had the perfect few minutes on the road, the 5:00 am cold air hit me hard on my face!

Yes, Delhi is festive again. And I do not feel left out.

Would not have been possible to move out had he not come over to congratulate! :)

PS - I do NOT like beer. Yes, I have tried those fancy brands too. :

When CWG & Cheese Made My Sunday!

When you have a crappy day, life does give you a good day too. I have had crappy 10 months and cannot wait to begin my awesome 10 either. For now, let me just give you an account of the one good day that I had after a super-sucky Saturday.

After some decent sleep after several days, I woke up around noon this Sunday to be ready in time for my lunch appointment with Ridhima and Swetha. The two women I literally lived with for the past two years. I was seeing them after six months. I am tired of saying that time flies, but yes, it does.

So, CP, the central place was inaccessible and kinda closed because of the CWG cycling event and we had to find another location to meet. I forgot that I had sworn to not visit the Rajouri malls on a Sunday and agreed to meet them there for lunch. I then waded through to the West Gate Mall to see them at TGIF. I don't know why, but I had never visited that restaurant earlier and had an impression that it has good ambience. Well, that wasn't true but the food certainly did not disappoint.

It was good to see the girls after so long. We talked, and could have gone on for the rest of the day, but I had more plans for the evening. But before leaving, I did shop for a rather smart sweater with them. :D

Ridhima and I took the same train towards CP. She was going home, and I was headed towards the Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium. We boarded the women's coach, a first for me. It felt a little odd, but was certainly more comfortable than the rest of the train. While I did not get space to sit, at least I got to stand in peace. Then I switched the train at CP, and then at Central Secretariat. At C. Sec, there seemed to be no directions near the platforms regarding how to make the switch. It took me a while and a few more clueless people to figure that I should move one level up if I want any information at all. I finally saw the new platform and got shoved into the train thanks to the maddening crowd. It seemed like the whole world was going to the same stadium to watch the same event. And I was not wrong. The stadium with a capacity of 60,000 was almost full. Most people used the Metro to get there. I do not want to criticise, but the well-managed venue missed the metal around my leg. The Metro guys had missed it too today. Yep, loopholes.

The packed stadium

I was there to watch some athletics with two of my cousins. While we were walking in to find a place to sit, the noise was unbelievable. Of course, had to be an Indian doing well. At discus throw this time. The sport might not be exciting, but with that kind of numbers cheering together, everything becomes exciting.

With Daksh, Bhrigu and our make-do phone camera

There were many events running simultaneously. India was doing well in men's discus throw, and women's long jump. We got a silver in both. But the loudest cheering happened for Tintu Luka who won an 800 m race. It was one of the heats, but her margin was supercool!

Men's 400m hurdles

Women's 200m final

Parasports

A very rare but heartening sight. The picture is blurred, but people stood for every nation's anthem every single time.

We were there till around 8:30 pm. We kept hoping for a chance to hear our own anthem, and long jump did seem promising for a gold until almost the last jump, but we were not in luck. So we decided to move for dinner. This time at Flavors in Defence Colony. That's another place which never disappoints with its food. Nice, authentic-ish, Italian stuff. And for the perfect end, we shared a perfect chocolate mousse.

Blurred long jump in action :)

These last two pictures are from Friday's weightlifting event that I had managed to attend with Daksh again.

A day well spent.

The Peepli Weekend

This was a long weekend. Mostly nice. On Thursday, I got the mind-numbingly expensive knee support that the latest doctor prescribed. It is my last hope to save the surgery. It helps me walk. Almost as much as I want to. So, on Friday afternoon I set out for a shopping bonanza to test it. Not only could I walk, I could walk fast (just the way I like to), and I was on my feet for close to two hours. This injury has been one of the many humbling experiences of the recent past.

I bought things that excite me most after silver jewellery. Bags!! Yes, plural. You can consider it a lottery. Moreover, the peace that doing such things alone gives evens out the madness. Therefore the word 'bonanza'. :D

The evening had a Teej-related dinner at someone's place. Highlight of the rather annoying gathering was the fact that an absolutely unrelated oldie located far, far away from here sent me personalised blessings. Felt good.

On Saturday morning I spotted a hot-looking guy at the hospital. Perks of an injury which takes you to places visited by fit people who play sports and get injured too. :P

I got home to learn that family had booked tickets for Peepli Live. What a movie! Beautifully made, edited with precision, awesome details, and a wonderful take on the horrible situation in the country. And of course, God bless Indian Ocean! Never thought Des Mera could also take such a filmi turn.

Saturday also saw my hair looking so killer(!) that I fell in love with it all over again.

On Sunday, Independence Day, I decided to hear what that prime minister had to say to us. It had been several years since I either watched the Red Fort programme or heard anyone give speeches the way it happened in school. It was so unfortunate to listen to the uninspiring Dr. Manmohan Singh use words that were literally used by Hindi teachers back in standard 5th. I say this because the nation is also in not too different a state since 1995 (on several levels). His speech was defensive for crying out loud! It was politics, not nation-building. Previous night's Peepli was flashing in my head as I heard him go on about one yojna after the other. Nonetheless, I still celebrated independence with extended family through rest of the day. Good food, long drive, bowling, camera flashes, and some smiles. :-)

I had followed the first three seasons of Indian Idol and always thought that a singer better than the winner got left out. But justice happened in Indian Idol 5. I am glad. :)

I expect the next one to be The Freedom Weekend. Hope to tell you why.

Road Trip to Amritsar

My brother and his wife had planned a two-day trip to Golden Temple, Amritsar right after the wedding. But something got into them and they asked all cousins on both sides to accompany them. They insisted, and the party got extended by two more days.

We were 20 people in four cars ready to drive all the way to Amritsar on 24th morning. A very eventful road trip, it had accidents, flat tyres, loud music, lots of laughter, even more sleepy heads, chaat, lassi, punjabi radio, crazy bus drivers, crazier truckers, insane video recordings, and endless drama.

Both ways the drive took longer than expected because of various reasons. One obvious one being way too much coordination required between all the cars.

For a few scores of kilometres, while my cousin Nidhi drove one of the cars, I exchanged places with Swaroop and sat in the seat next to her. The drama that followed led to me showing the finger to one of the many assholes that didn't give way or acted crazy simply because we were two women in the front. Other ways of getting back at them included not giving way after overtaking either. :D

It was my first visit to Amritsar and to the Golden Temple. As expected, there was a great rush and no peace. We stayed there till the time Guru Granth Sahib was 'put to sleep', and then headed out for some nice dinner. The restaurant we ate at, Crystal, also had a bunch of typical punju boys celebrating a birthday over food and drinks. From a distance itself they met the stereotype so beautifully that it amused us. The 'pangebaaz keeda' in me was itching to have some fun but I succumbed to pressure of behaving in front of family members. :P

I did not see the Wagah Border, didn't have any Amritsari kulche or papad, or even buy any punjabi jutti. But I do not know if I'll ever go back there again. Way too much chaos to handle!

One good thing - my monthly tripping is going well. I would like to tweak last month's entry in the list by putting a Pune-Delhi trip on it. :P

Rest is all good!

Oh oh... while we were going from our hotel to the Golden Temple, I saw a man on a cycle-rickshaw enjoying a can of Carlsberg. His wife sat next to him. :D

Earthly

Nothing can be defined as 'effort' if not waking up at 6:30 am on a Sunday morning. But like some efforts are totally worth every penny, or as I'd like to say, every minute of precious sleep, so was today's for me!

Daksh, my cousin, and I had planned a trip to Rajasthan for my first week in Delhi this time. But my father often plays spoilsport. And so he did this time too. So, as Sariska waits for me, a green patch en route to my current office greeted us this morning. Asola Wildlife Sanctuary was once home to a host of animals including the leopard. Today, it is said that there are more birds than anything else over there.

We did know the route, just had to ask around to find the entrance to the वन. At a check post I asked a police guy for the route, and he was surprisingly sweet enough to offer us tea too. ;-)

We reached just when the sunlight was perfect. But it took us a while to spot our first friend for the morning. Huuge peacocks, lots of deer, white camels, pretty butterflies, some animals whose names I did not know, and unfortunately very few birds - they were all there!
Moreover, I had good company in human form too.

His father was nice enough to let him take his car on his 22nd birthday! :D

Poor guys were scared!

And I was super-excited! Not because of the thorns and wild twigs in my jeans though. :|

I read somewhere that Pune also has a little wildlife sanctuary. I'll have to check on that soon. But a good, bigger national park can't be kept waiting for too long. The itch is getting too much!

P.S. - Every morning should be like a Sunday morning for Mathura Road and the B.R.T. corridor. The drive was dreamy!

Before I forget

An account of what happened last evening has to be registered before I forget the details.

Daksh, my cousin, and I had gone to Old Fort for a shoot last time I was in Delhi. Had had a lot of fun as well. Then, during my second term in college, I saw some pictures he had uploaded on Facebook, which is when we decided that we'd go for another shoot when I am in Delhi during summers. But these engineering students have way too many exams in life which last for way too many weeks. Therefore, by the time we found time to execute our plan, I didn't have much time left. So, on Monday night we decided on a place and figured that we'd have to do it after my work on one of my last few weekdays here. This meant I'd have to run from work to get some decent shots while there's still some daylight left.

Wednesday afternoon: raining like it's monsoons.
Wednesday late afternoon: no signs of the sun.
Wednesday evening: asked to stay back at work a little longer.

And then I ran. Daksh was waiting for me at my place. We had planned to take a trip on the local trains in Delhi. It would have been double fun 'coz neither of us had been on one of those ever before, and of course, for the few pictures we hoped to manage on the same.

We thought of taking the train from Sarojini Nagar towards Rail Museum and beyond, but when we reached the ticket counter, we were informed that the last train on that route had already left. We were a little surprised to hear that 'coz it was still only 7:15 p.m. So we asked the lady if there was any train going in the other direction some time soon. She figured we just wanted a ride on the train. So gave us a ticket from SN to Nizamuddin.

The Sarojini Nagar Station

2 bucks each. We were highly amused to see such a low fare. The minimum fare even on a local bus is 3 bucks. Anyway. We took our ticket and walked the foot-over bridge to the platform on the other side. Waited for a couple of minutes for the train... and there it was!!! I was excited as ever when it comes to trains approaching a platform. I think this last one was an incorrect sentence.

Sadly, the light had dimmed too much for me to get any good shots. Managed just about a handful of so-so frames, and concentrated on enjoying my little ride through the city. :)














We passed by Sewa Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, etc to reach Hazrat Nizamuddin in about 15 minutes, I think. Certainly didn't take more time than that.

Daksh

Uncle on the train

Since Nizamuddin is a big station with long-distance trains going through it, the number of people there were also obviously that many more. I clicked around a bit before we decided to leave. The auto took 41 bucks back to my place. It was hilarious thinking we paid 20 bucks to get to the first station, 4 bucks for our ride, and then a relatively massive 41 to get back. :D

At Nizamuddin Station

An exit that we almost took before deciding to roam about at the station for a little longer


At Nizamuddin Station

Doggu :)

All the stuff (other than Vodafone) that I could not comprehend or read without my glasses

The same story - a different narration

Sister power!

At our second pit stop

Vaishali Vaishnav dhaba

Priya, Avan, me, Samridhi, and Nidhi

It's a bad shot. I know. But I saw the glasses and was reminded of the one and only chai ki dukaan I know of.

Priya talking of Congress and BJP

The doggu throwing tantrums


Our camp site

Education for all!

The sad waterfall for which we trekked

And the breaks to catch a breath were utilised for posing

After a LOT of drama, Avan, Shagun and I entered this chilly pool of water. It was funnn! :D

There was no looking back for Avan. She did not mind the weird, ugly men around her either.

Nobody enjoyed water as much as Priya did during the entire trip

When I tried to run away with her cigarettes

Everytime I ask a group of people to stand together for my camera, invariably I get an Angels pose

The camps in the evening

The dry pits :|

The Watson Wyatt girls after dinner :P

Shagun, Avan, and the noorie in them

The hardcore journalist and the super-passionate golfer

Siblings of a kind

Avan at play

Avan's fluke with my camera :P

There was a big whirlpool right in front of our tents. The river was scary.

While we waited for our breakfast and our raft

Chhoti. And the group in the background which also had a Richa, Avan, Shagun and a Chhoti. :)

Finally!

There goes Priya leaving the raft behind. Samridhi's enjoying the cold water too!

:P Water went up my nose.

Can you spot Priya?

Ten minutes before this, Avan was threatening the guide to pull her up lest her mom will kill him

The final pose

The fresh lime soda we had here could give the best of places a run for their money

Poor owners of this house had to write that their rooms were not available for rent :)

The Ram Jhula

Our car and the driver at Cheetal on our way back

I will remember for life how sick the cheese sandwich there was


And by the end, the whole body had started hurting. Avan put on her shady glasses to give me a massage.