Set off by Coimbatore-Kurla Express which left Bangalore City Station at 12.30 PM. The less said about the company in the train, the better! Spent my time, reading half of the book "The Ape that Spoke". (Saved the other half for the return journey!) The book is interesting, about, how language has made all the difference between man and other animals! Also heard some music on my Walkman.
The train reached Pune at 8.30 AM. Pune-Bombay journey was interesting as the train passed through Lonawala, Khandala, etc. (Remember Khandala - the famous song in Ghulam?) There were lots of tunnels, lit by bulbs. The climate was pleasant and I stood on the doorway peeping out at times! (The Bombay leg is meant for circulation among friends, and not relatives, and hence I can be a little indiscrete!)
Finally, the train reached Kalyan Jn. around noon. I got off and took a Local electric train to Thane, where Manickam uncle (one of two brothers of my dad) stays. I went to my dad's sister's place in Mulund (next stop to Thane), for the night.
I was back in Thane, the next morning. In the afternoon, we (myself, uncle and my cousin Rahul) set off to Mahalakshmi. As the name indicates, there is a famous Lakshmi temple there. To reach that place, we caught a local train till Byculla, and from there a double-decker. The rides (train and bus) gave me an opportunity to get the feel of the place. I was fortunate to have landed during X'mas time, as most of the people in Bombay were on vacation!
We reached the temple around 5 PM, and had a darshan. The other brother of my dad, Chandran uncle and my cousin, Vidya, were waiting in the temple. The temple is located on the shores of Arabian Sea, and there is a spectacular view of the city and the sea from there.
We caught a bus to Prabhadevi, a few kilometres away. That houses the Siddivinayaka temple. (Just in case you haven't got it yet, people in Bombay are much more religious than the lesser mortals out here, as the rest of my narration will indicate!) This temple has been recently renovated and looks beautiful.
After the darshan, we decided to take a walk to Shivaji Park, nearby (around 3 km)! It was fun being with my uncles, one of whom was celebrating 25 years of life in Bombay and the other a year or two behind! We reached the place where the Ganesa immersions take place every year. The beach (if it could be called) looked pretty dirty, and we preferred to sit elsewhere. Had dinner at a place frequented by my uncles during their bachelorhood, near Dadar Railway Station.
I decided to go to Chandran uncle's place for the night, as it was the last day of a festival in the temple near their home. We left 2 trains (due to rush) before catching a train to Goregaon, where they stay. From the station, we took an auto to their home. Finally met my other cousin Vinay (Vidya's brother).
For those interested in local trains, they run from 4 AM to 12 midnight everyday. There are at least 4 tracks, and at least one train reaches one platform every minute. However, during peak office hours, it is virtually impossible for a novice to board the train, much less get down at some intermediate stops. The local people know, for each station, on which side, the platform comes, so that they can move towards that exit. Most of the infrastructure is that laid out by the British before they left the country!
After 10 PM, we went to the nearby temple, where the festival was on. We had a darshan of Lord Ayyappa. We also saw the temporarily erected structure for Ayyappan vilakku (an Ayyappa festival). There is a vast open space near the temple. The whole place wore a festive look. There were lots of people in the place, awaiting the procession which started from another temple (?) and wound its way finally here.
Before long, the procession was there - containing a group playing panchavadyam (a traditional Kerala instrumental), followed by two long lines of beautifully dressed girls - from the very young to those in their twenties, carrying in their hand, plate (called thalam) containing lamp, flowers, and other items for the Lord. They were followed by a vehicle, which had Lord Ayyappa's picture, tastefully decorated.
Lots of people were accompanying the procession. I felt as if I was transported back to Kerala - such was the similarity of the event. But what struck me most was the interest and sincerity of the people here - amidst their hectic day-to-day schedule, they were reliving their tradition in the best possible way!
Once the procession reached its destination, the panchavadyam climaxed. I was fortunate to watch the proceedings from close quarters, thanks to Chandran uncle's friend, Veeramani uncle, who showed as much enthusiasm for this, as a teenager!
Then followed a spectacular fire-works display. I had a front-seat for the show, as people preferred to move back at the sight and sound of crackers. (Being used to the Kerala fire-works, this was nothing new to me).
Back we were at home, after participating in a Bombay festival (in traditional Kerala style), but it was 1.30 AM, when we slept, my uncle narrating anecdotes about our distant relatives. (My uncle is an all-rounder in every sense of the term - he can fit into any company, any conversation, anywhere and come up trumps!)
We had to attend the 60th birthday celebration of my uncle's (and by extension, my dad's) cousin. I participated more so, because it gave me a chance to meet some of my relatives, than for any better reason. I discovered that my participation was worth the effort, as I found a lovely looking girl, who was my second cousin! (This is sincerely hoping this write-up doesn't go to the wrong hands!)
Most of my (to be precise, my dad's) Bombay relatives attended the function, and it was nice to meet them. After the function, we also dropped in to meet my dad's ailing uncle and aunt (my grandfather's brother and his wife).
Spent the morning, taking leave of my Thane relatives. Had lunch at my Mulund relative's and then caught a (Luxury) bus. I was in Goregaon by evening. Played badminton with Vinay for a while. Went to temples (after reaching Bombay, I guess, I've really taken to temples!). Had a dinner invitation at Veeramani uncle's place. The dinner was splendid. So were the company - not because it consisted of his daughters!
Took my cousins out for lunch. (The Credit card came of use, finally!) Killed three and a half hours by completing a Sidney Sheldon book "Tell me your dreams" (a lousy book, do not bother!).
Set off at 5.15 PM, to catch the train to Ahmedabad. My cousins were accompanying me. Our train left at 7.35 PM. Thus my Bombay visit concluded.
Woken up by fellow passengers, we (myself and my cousins Vidya and Vinay) found ourselves at Ahmedabad Junction at 4.50 AM. I'd finally landed in Gujarat - on my maiden visit! It was terribly cold and we didn't find Kannan, our cousin. His phone number had been conveniently forgotten! While we were having a refreshing cup of tea, he made his appearance.
After going home and the initial chit-chit, we decided to go for a walk. The place was Law Garden (rechristened Love Garden!). It's a beautifully maintained garden, large and green. We found lots of people walking or jogging.
Didn't go out anywhere that day. Not having learnt from previous experience, I went about completing another Sidney Sheldon novel "The Best Laid Plans". There was nothing good, much less, best about the book! Went out for a walk in the evening, trying our level best not to get lost! We discovered the vagaries of Ahmedabad roads, which curved and made nonsense of all sense of directions!
Once Kannan came from office, we decided to go to the ISKCON temple. It is a beautiful temple residing on the National Highway on the outskirts of the city. The idols are of ivory (in contrast to the gold-plated idols in the Bangalore temple). It's not as large as the Bangalore temple, but the layout and the general design is similar.
We started off at 10 AM to Geeta Mandir, from where State Transport (ST) buses start. We caught a bus to Akshardham, 30 odd km from Ahmedabad. It's in Gandhinagar, the capital of Gujarat.
It's only fair that I describe the bus in some detail. There is only one door, which is located in the middle. I didn't see any signs reserving seats for ladies. The seats are 3 and 2 per row. The driver is separated from the passengers by a partition, which extends from end to end.
The journey on the state highway was fast. It being a nice route, the driver had no hesitation stepping on the gas, notwithstanding the complaints from the hardware of the bus! Personally, I facilitated the sleep process of a 8 year old during the journey!
Once you reach Gandhinagar, it's, as if, you've come to a new place. There is no traffic signal, all traffic regulated by "Keep Left" signs. The intersections are circular.
Akshardham is the memorial of Swami Narayan, founder of the Swami Narayan sect (the followers claim, it's comparable to Buddhism/ Jainism). Swami Narayan (3 Apr 1781 - 1 Jun 1830) was a saint, in his own rights. His teachings form the book Vachanamruth. He expounded Navya Visishtadwaita - neo qualified non dualism (a la Sankaracharya's adwaita).
The monument is a fantastic construction - huge and superbly designed. The carvings on the walls are a treat to behold. The monument has an exhibition which gives the life and times of Swami Narayan.
In addition to the monument, there are 3 exhibitions, which are must see! Together they take around 2 and a half hours. We entered the first one, around noon.
The first exhibition houses more depictions of Swami Narayan. But more that what it depicts, the how is what matters. The images are realistic. The light and sound shows are terrific! Particularly, a scene in the Himalayas is so good, that you feel the cold and darkness around you.
The second exhibition has a screening, again on Swami Narayan. Though propounding their philosophy, it also has some message for the common man.
The third exhibition has scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharatha. In addition, there is a small musical concert using moving statues. It is done in such a realistic fashion, the lip movements almost look synchronised!
The food item to have there is kichdi, a mixture of rice and vegetables. There is also a garden, which has a few more carvings and exhibits. It also houses a small games park with rides. We saw a few students on picnic.
We finished the visit by 4 and caught a bus back.
We decided to visit IIM (Indian Institute of Management), a 20 minute walk from where my cousin stays. It was rather dark, when we reached the place. Still, we took a walk around the campus, admiring the buildings and the well-maintained gardens. We saw a few people in and around the campus. While we took an auto during the onward journey, we preferred to walk back.
After dinner, we decided to take to the streets to celebrate the New Year. New Year in Ahmedbabad was a revelation to me. The entire city folks were on the streets. Roads were jammed with traffic and the pavements were flooded with people. It must be remembered that Ahmedabad is a dry city (thanks to prohibition). Everyone was there with family - from the 8 month old to the 80 year old.
We braved the cold to have ice-creams and usher in the New Year at C.G. Road (equivalent of Bangalore's Brigade Road, but considerably longer!). There were bursting of crackers on the road-side, people shouting with pure joy. Cars were stopped and passengers' hands shaken. It was total unadulterated celebration.
Finally we decided to get back, after one more round through the streets at 1.30 AM.
We reached Lal Dharwaza at 8.30 AM, and tried to see, if we could get seats for the City sight-seeing. We didn't get tickets; instead, we got an autowallah who agreed to show us the same sights, as what the tour did.
We started with Bhadra Fort. It is an old fort with a large carved entrance. (No entry) We had a darshan of the devi, in the temple adjacent to it. (There is also a Kali temple inside the fort, which we couldn't go).
The next was Siddi Sayyid's mosque. This, we saw, from outside. It's also a very old structure.
We managed to get inside the next mosque, which was Rani Rupmati Mosque. It is a lovely structure, with three domes. The way sunlight enters the mosque is a complement to the architecture of those days.
The next was Akshar Mandir, a beautiful temple close to the main road.
It was followed by Hatheesingh Jain temple. It's a huge temple with intricate carvings on the walls. Apparently, its construction is similar to that present on Mt.Abu (Dilwara Jain temples). The roof-tops are traditional temple roof-tops with a sloping top and flags on top.
I discovered that the temples in Ahmedabad are all painted pale yellow/brown!
Continuing with temples, we also went to a Glass temple. This is a small temple built almost fully covered with glasses/mirrors, some of them coloured. It is a spectacular piece of construction.
Having had enough of temples (and having packed sandwiches for breakfast) we proceeded to Sabarmati Ashram - yes! the same place, where Gandhiji engineered our freedom movement.
The ashram is located on the banks of Sabarmati River. There is a small museum, which houses collections of Gandhiji's life and works, including letters and photographs. Gandhiji's residence is a small, modest three room house. We went into each room (including the kitchen!). We also went into the room, where Gandhiji met visitors, and which had a Charkha.
We found a couple of small houses adjacent to Gandhiji's house, for guests.
If Gandhiji stayed in Sabarmati, can Sardar Vallabhai be far behind? We went to the Sardar Vallabhai Patel Memorial, located nearby. It has several personal items of Sardar, and like in Gandhiji's case, photographs and writings.
The next visit was possibly to the best place of the lot - the step well. It is not a plain well. It is better viewed than explained in words! Several (90 to be precise) steps lead to the well. The well is designed in such a way that, the more the depth, you need to descend fewer steps. The architecture around the well are lovely. As you descend, it get cool. There was no water in the well, when we went.
We had one more mosque to cover - Sidi Bashiri Masjid, which has the famous Shaking Minarets. This is a twin-minaret, the speciality of which is that, if one is shaken, the vibration passes to the other, until both shake (in harmony!). We couldn't witness any shaking as this had been stopped (due to fear of collapse) long back!
The final sight-seeing spot was Kangaria Lake. This is a large lake where there is boating and yachting. There is a zoo adjacent to it, which was closed (it being Friday). There was also an aquarium, which we didn't bother to visit. However, we went inside a Children's park, though that doesn't have anything spectacular, other than a couple of rides.
But we waited till 2.30 PM, for a gate to be open. This was for a path which led to a small garden in the middle of the Lake. (It's called Nagina Wadi). The garden also has a construction, remains of some palace, I guess. We spent some time there, enjoying the view of the surroundings.
We were back home by 4 PM. The night's dinner was at Khau Galli. It's a narrow street, adjacent to Law Garden, which is packed with chaat shops. You have seats and can order and eat to your heart's, I mean, stomach's content. It's filled with diners, quite late at night (10 PM), who have come for some snacks after their dinner!
As we had to leave early the next day, we decided to get back, after ice-creams by 11.30 PM.
Got up at 3 AM. Watched the 1st day of Ind-NZL 3rd test for a few minutes. (Priorities in life!!! NZL were 2 wickets down for 0 runs in the 1st over!)
We left home at 4.50 AM on the 250 km journey to Udaipur - in Rajasthan - my first visit to Rajasthan!
We slept through the initial 100 km of the journey, before waking up close to the Rajasthan border for a much-needed tea. The weather was cold (around 8 degrees would be my guess), but I discarded the sweater to "get the feel of it"!
We crossed the border and went into Rajasthan. (There is a toll which has to be paid) The weather was pleasant. There was nothing special about the scenery, though the mountains and the cacti were interesting to see. The car was Ambassador - rock solid - and the driver never went beyond 65 kmph on empty road (NH 8)!
It was 10.15 AM, when we reached Udaipur - the City of Lakes (as it is called). We went straight to the RTDC (Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation) office located in the city, and enquired about the places to visit. We got a guide from there, and took him with us for the tour.
The first place we went to was, of course! a way-side restaurant for breakfast. Once done, we were ready for sight-seeing.
Saheliyom ki badi topped the list of places. It is a garden with some fountains. (You pay separately for the garden and the fountain!) As soon as you enter it, you feel the cool atmosphere inside. There is a small palace-like construction in the middle of the garden. The fountains are "natural", that is, not powered by motors, but generated by force of gravity!
The next stopover was at Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal, an exhibition of the art and culture of Rajasthan. It is a tourists' delight, for its sheer variety and splendour. We were summoned to watch the puppet show - possibly the most exciting thing to see! It's one thing, watching a puppet show on TV, and another, to see it live, before your eyes. The skill and dexterity required to manipulate the many parts of a puppet, and to synchronise it with the music is indeed a gift of God.
After the puppet show, we went to Pratap Memorial, located close to the Fateh Sagar lake. The Lake looks lovely, though it smells badly! You have to climb a winding drive to reach the Pratap Memorial, which has a large statue of Rana Pratap atop Chetak. The scenery from there is lovely, covering the entire town.
The piece de resistance of the sight-seeing was undoubtedly the City Palace. It is a large structure located in the centre of the city. It has a number of exquisitely designed and decorated rooms, each meant for different purposes. Some are filled with coloured mirrors and glasses, some others with decorations and carvings, others with paintings, and so on. They vary in size and shape, and the view they offer from their windows. Through one such window, we could see Lake Palace - a beautiful palace situated in the middle of the Lake. (It's now a Taj Hotel).
Our guide provided the details of each place, peppered with humour.
With the palace, our local sight-seeing came to an end, and we had lunch by Lake Pichhola.
We bid goodbye to our guide and proceeded to Nathdwara, 48 km from Udaipur. This houses the famous temple of Shri Nathji. En route, we played anthakshari for a while. Though we reached the temple by 4.30 PM, it was 6 PM, when we managed to have a glimpse of the Lord. Glimpse it was, indeed! thanks to massive crowd, which thronged the shrine. There was separate line for ladies, but their ordeal was as bad as ours.
It was time to begin our return trip, as we had 300 km to get back! We started at 6.45 PM, and had a halt for dinner around 180 km from Ahmedabad, around 9.45 PM. Called up home, giving them a shock! It was cool, and the place was good - the food was cheap.
Then, it was almost a non-stop drive (the driver taking a tea-break once).
Woke up late. Went to my cousin's office (did I tell he is the Branch Manager of HDFC Bank there?) Had lunch of Gujarati thali (the speciality of the place).
It was soon time to leave, and I caught the 6 PM Ahmedabad-Bangalore train with 5 minutes to spare. Kannan, Vidya and Vinay were there to see me off.
The train journey was uneventful. Most of the coach had been reserved by members of the Brahmakumari group, who had come to participate in their Diamond Jubilee Celebrations.
Spent the whole day, sleeping (making up for the hectic trip), listening to Walkman, and completing "The Ape that Spoke".
The train reached Bangalore Cantonment by 8.30 AM, and I was home in 15 minutes, none the worse for the journey. I was in office by 11 AM, back to the world of emails and computers!
A couple of observations before I let you go free! Old/Cut/Spoilt notes aren't accepted in Bombay. However, in Gujarat it is the other extreme. Cut notes put it small plastic covers are accepted as normal notes! (I've got a couple of them with me, for rememberance!)
Ahmedabad is comparable to Bangalore in terms of irregular traffic, number of two/four-wheelers, laziness of the people, et al. But the summer there is intolerable (45 degrees average!), and it can get very cold in winter. (This year is an exception, maybe, because I was visiting!)
I've got the snaps of most of the places I've mentioned. You are welcome to check them out.