Blissfully exhausted...

Adi called up last night and asked me to be at simi's place by 6.30 in the morning, I thought he was nuts... whos gonna get up at 5.30 in the morning and drive 20 kms to treck in the jungle on a SUNDAY morning?????????

Well "me" ofcourse!!!!!!!!!!!!!! coz me a nut tooo (he..he..he)

And it was a morning well spent (i am so happy)..... atleast better than sweating it out on a treadmill. We went to our university. I love the place, there are just too many fond memories. As soon as I enter the campus the time spent during my stay comes hurrying towards me and stays with me till long after I have left....

The whole while we walked (thats adi, siraj, simi n me....) the only things we could talk about was how beautiful the place is and why is it that we dont do this more often. Since the monsoons the place has become quite dense and considering that we could not find the path that led us inside, and it was obvious that not many people had been there in a long time. We had to crawl through (and i mean quite literaly we were on our fours trying to get past the thorny bushes) And as usual we were on the look out for snakes, bees and wasps - the general flora and fauna we usually encounter. In our past adventures we have come across snakes, peacocks and to our amazement a tortise tooo. It was a good thing we didn't encounter anything dangerous this time round. The thorns did enough damage as it is. We climbed the rocks (these are actually mini hillocks and not very easy to climb). Its not funny when you are trying to jump from one rock to another and there is a gap between the two... and the drop is ateast fifty feet down.... But then, when has that ever stopped us (all we need is two guys to pull us up and help us down) .

I think of all the trips we have made up the cascade ( its a brick wall built to keep the water from the lake flooding the rest of the place during the monsoons) around the lake (here is where we do our major crawling and ofcourse all the monkeying around on the trees) and then through the grass lands (thats where we follow the freshly made tracks by the buffaloes - if you know what I mean) finally to the rocky areas ( where we do most of the climbing and show of our athletic.... nah... gymnastic skills)........ This was the best ever.

Ju-Le

I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

…………………………………………

………………………………………

……………………………………………

I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

These words so aptly describe exactly what I feel about Leh. It’s been over two months but even to this day I just have to close my eyes and I am standing in the middle of the street, lined by shops and far into the horizon the majestic Himalayas swathed in snow. Clear blue skies and the cool breeze caressing my face as I breathe in deeply taking in, the very essence of the place.

Dad has been traveling for ever and I caught the bug from him… I am so glad that he one day decided out of the blue to go book tickets for the trip. I was pretty skeptical about making it for the trip. I should thank my sweetheart of a boss who made sure that my leave was approved. We reached Delhi in the afternoon and that very evening started our journey to Manali by bus. There were some hiccups on the way n we reached around 4 to 5 hours later than what was expected. These were my first glimpses of the mountains and slowly the rest of the world sank away............

I guess that was the best part…. I actually managed to leave everything behind for this brief interlude, and was truly happy. It was surreal that I could remember most of Manali from my last trip 7 years back. Not much has changed out there except that it was a bit more crowded especially by vehicles. That evening we headed into the market and got lost in the local revelry. We ate our dinner at a Chinese restraint. Had soup, steaming hot – delicious momo’s washed down by a glass of refreshing cool plum wine. I was a little tipsy walking back to the hotel though (he..he..). On our way back we surveyed the local veggie market and bought apples (crispy and slightly tangy) and peaches and cherries. I had not slept as soundly in ages as I did that day.

The next day we began our sojourn to the ultimate destination – “LEH”. The bus journey was exciting and very exhausting but worth all the pain and nausea that I had to endure. It took us two days to reach Ladakh. On the way I was first amazed then, astounded, stunned, dumbfounded and in the end simply resigned to the fact that if I keep trying to describe in words every view that every new turn took us too, I will – drive my self nuts. So…….. I stopped.

The evening we reached Leh I was too exhausted to think, just happy that we had finally reached. We went to our hotel which turned out to be a cozy little place tucked away in the corner of the town. Mom, dad and my aunty n uncle went out in search of dinner while me n my brother relaxed. They brought back with them the yummiest mushroom soup I have ever had.

The next day we decided to explore the place. We walked up the narrow winding streets. I tried absorbing every little thing that I saw. Our destination was the Leh Palace that could be seen from every corner of the town. It was an exhausting trek. The palace rests on a hillock in the centre of the town. You can either go up by a vehicle or simply walk around discovering your own way up the hill. We just decided to walk in the direction of the palace and with a little help from the local people found a cobbled lane going up the hill. It was not the exact route to be taken; nevertheless we did reach our manzil. We spent an hour exploring the place. All these structures in Leh have a temple inside with mammoth statue of Lord Buddha inside. These temples are at least two storied. It’s almost as if the rest of the place is built above and around the temple. We then went to a local Buddhist place of worship. At the temple I was confused and at a loss to understand the rituals that are followed. Luckily I found three very sweet girls in their school uniforms. I think my puzzled expression very clearly explained my dilemma. They took my hand took me around the temple explaining the prayer ritual.

That evening we went window shopping. Now, Leh has Kashmiris who have very specific features and can be instantly recognized and an equal number of Tibetans. They can also be very easily identified. And the rest are the Nepalis and a huge number of European tourists. Of course the rest of the crowd are the tourist. While we were returning back to the Hotel we stopped by some Tibetan shops. They were selling various artifacts and a lot of jewelry. I have never been fascinated by Turquoise before but I found myself staring at a beautiful turquoise necklace in silver. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And I obsessed about it for the rest of the trip.

The next day we went to the Pangong Lake. It was definitely the most beautiful vista. I won’t delve into it further, and from the picture you will know why. On the third day we went white water rafting, my first brush with any kind of adventure sport. Needless to say it was the most exciting stuff. And it has left me panting for more…..

On the last day we decided to go to all the monasteries in and around the town. We went to the Hemis and Thiksey monasteries. We returned in the afternoon and went around shopping. And this time make no mistake I did pick up the necklace I had been dreaming of. I felt sad leaving the place next day but then “Everything that’s has a beginning has an end”. So there ended my magical journey.

I am glad that I went and grateful for all the memories that I shall cherish for the rest of my life…

Leh me down ;)

OKAY... its alll bout leh.......... i am in love with the place.....

heaven!!!!!!

Yay yay!!!!!!!!!! The ban is finally removed....though it did put all my plans for the blog in a mess.... so well there is a lot more from ladakh that will be comin up... hopefully it will be done by the end of the week....

But the whole fiasco was really sad... i was pissed off when they imposed the ban... but am glad they got their senses back... anywho.... willl get back to posting ASAP

Pangong

Well day two in ladakh... we went to pangong lake a lil more than 100 kms away from Leh. 140 Kms long with 75% of the water in China the lake is 60 feet deep....it is said that China sent mini submarines through this lake in the 1962 war

Dunno about that but the lake sure did catch my imagination.... it was nothing like i had imagined... It was much much more. Cant believe I was there, it now seems like a distant dream

Kodak Moment !

I saw an old couple yesterday... the whole scene was sooo adorable...

Why?????

This was on my way back home yesterday... had an okay day n was in a hurry to get back home, n the traffis sucks was getting completely irritated with the poisnous fumes and the honking that generally tends to submerge every other sound within itself, n I see an old couple - may not be that old - uncle looked like he was atleast in the early 60's. He had white hair and was wearing a kurta paijama - I think it was off-white. on the other hand aunty had pepperd hair and she was wearing a bright red saree, but what really caught my fancy was that - both were on a scooty, aunty was riding it and uncle was sitting behind holding for his dear life... the whole scene was just too cute (a phrase that i seem to borrow from my boss).

I wishI had a camera then n there, but then now that I have my own pensieve I really dont need to worry now, do I ?!?!?!

another day

at work... completely jobless and bored, been thru www.boredatwork.com though there aint anything great in it or about it.

did my daily survey of orkut, finished the perfunctory round of pleasantries in the office, sat through a rather interesting presentation on e-papers, done with the finishing touches on a presentation and had a good lunch.... n now what?!?!?!

so the only other activity that i could think of was to write (he he he)

here i am...

lemme begin with thanking all those who stopped by the blog and appreciated it....
thank you soooooo much guyz (hugs)

today a fren sent over "his" review of the book "Gone with the wind" thats another thing that he wrote a fabulous review and i complemented him for that... but what struck a chord was that the probable reason why he writes so well is the fact that he reads a lot. now i dont say that only those who read are the ones who write well- there may be a lot of people who have the natural flair for it, but then to hone it, i think reading is an absolute must...

infact i received a letter yesterday... n the reason why i mention it is coz he wrote it sooooo well, and also i dont recieve any letters, dont think many of us do and the feeling is great.. the letter was from a friend, lemme call him "poet" coz he is one. now the poet is in the nilgiris and he wrote to me describing the beauty of the mountains n comparing the sounds to the classical music of mozart and beethovan. he truly appreciates natural beauty and the good things in life and when he writes everything comes alive and that is wahat i want to do too. i can write about mundane stuff but to truly be able to write i have to become much better. n for me the only way of doing that is to read. the problem?????? time...

time is probably the biggest constraint that i face today.. n what ever i get of it i spend it lazying around. i have around 5 to 6 books that i have very confidently, and may i also add with utter stupidity, started reading n now i find myself in the middle of varied plots and half baked characters muddled into complete chaos and confusion.

then there is the blogger, another confidante i have known, who's also good at what he does n then there are other acquaintance, there aint any respite in the office either... surrounded by all these "writers" actually makes me work harder, i am not pushed to the brink of jealousy but they do inspire me to do better.

so i guess there is a lot more reading stored for me in the future... n well if someone out there does have suggestions please do write in :-)

why???

a lil late in the day... but thought of penning down my thoughts.... as to why a new blog

well the old one... i was not very sure as to why i started it... i wanted it to be cool, funny and readable... but then that dint happen. the problem was in the purpose behind it and it was all wrong. so deleted it. n now have picked up the courage of starting a new one

its a commitment i know... intend to keep it though..... (for now i guess)

n what is it all about this time?!?!?!?!

remember the seive that dumbledore used to store his memories... well thats what i intend to do... have a record of the smallest and insignificant event that i want to remember.... the people i come across everyday and anything else that touches my life :)

n i guess fountainhead is the apt name for it... coz it is afterall a new begining

musing under the sycamore...

am not actually sitting under the tree. but for the lack of opportunity, i would have been.. the weather is beautiful. i can just imagine myself sitting under the chequered shade of a huge tree by a lake with the breeze caressing my face...mmmmmmmmmmmm

i have had a good day today... pretty relaxed. there are changes happenin as i speak though. the coming week brings in new opportunities..... am looking forward to it and at the same time apprehensive.

past week has taught me a lot of things. time spent has re-emphasised the importance of friendship. i am so glad that the avenues have broadened themselves. some old forgotten lanes have been revisited and some new pathways have been paved. not very sure though if i should tread on them or trot. that was actually a rhetorical question. coz i kno the "right answer" to it.

whatever be the unforseen i am happy for what "is"

am smiling right now and feel.. i dont know what word to use coz none of them describe what i feel...

have this fuzzy warm feeling... and at the same time am completely calm and at ease with everything around

soooo....i look happy u ask??????

hain na... is what i answer

here's to a new begining

Have been screaming for almost a year that I... "want" , "need" , "am dying" for a break ... have to get out of the city... n it came as a partial blessing... i went to tirupati n had a blast