Rest of the story..

So, the day after that last entry of mine, we set out for Kedarnath. A drive of about 10- 15 minutes brought us to the base camp from which one had to proceed by walk or pony. We chose the pony since we had to cover about 14 kilometers each way. As we climbed higher, it got chillier and foggier. The light but stingingly cold drizzle that had begun didn't help matters. We were freezing by the time we reached the top. The kids had begun to cry since the oxygen level had also dropped. Thankfully, we had had the foresight to carry a tiny oxygen cylinder with us. The kids began to feel better after a few puffs of pure oxygen. We stripped off our wet clothes for the fear of catching a cold and got into bed. Although having gotten under two really thick blankets hadn't stopped my teeth from chattering, I managed to fall asleep.

We woke up in the evening in order to go to the temple for a darshan of Lord Shiva. Since the people who lead the ponies had told us not to get too much luggage, I had taken only an extra t- shirt planning to wear it with the same jeans. But the jeans hadn't dried during my nap and putting on those wet, ice cold jeans again was the hardest thing I've done in my life ever. But my trials for the day were not over yet. It is forbidden to enter a Hindu temple with footwear on. So, we had to walk into the temple barefoot in the freezing night. Dinner however was served hot right to our beds and we fell asleep completely swaddled in sheets and blankets.

The next morning, having washed our faces with ice cold water, we began the descent. The saddle on my pony was rather hard and the guy leading it refused to get me an extra blanket. It was agony to stay in that saddle and finally with just two kilometers to go, I could take it no more. I asked the guy leading the pony to let me get off. As I was getting off that stupid pony, it moved so that I no longer had a foothold. I was now half off the pony and half on it. I tightened my grip on the hoop that is provided for the rider to hold on to, so that I may not fall. The guy leading the pony behind mine came running to help me which I guess frightened the horse. The horse took off at top speed. I felt myself slipping off the horse and was dragged along for a good ten meters before the horse was stopped. The next thing I knew was sitting on the ground looking at my right thumb which had a gash halfway around it with the broken bone showing.

I was made to sit on a different pony and taken to the First Aid station which was 15- 20 minutes ride away. The gash was stitched up and I was told to go to the nearest hospital which was 76 kilometers away. On those winding mountain roads, that would take nearly three hours to cover. If this had happened in my home town, I would have received the best medical care in the country within 20 minutes. 76 kilometers to receive basic medical attention? It was ridiculous but we had no other option. Three hours of agony, anxiety and 'what ifs' somehow passed and we arrived at the clinic of an Orthopedician who set the bone and put the thumb in a cast but warned me to get home within 48 hours as the thumb would have to be operated upon.

We reached our hotel three hours later and had to stay there for the night as the fog made it impossible to travel that day. We set out early next day bound for Delhi, which we reached at two in the night. The next available flight was at nine in the morning. We took it and reached within 48 hours to have the bone set once again (The orthopedician hadn't done it right and no operation was necessary- the guy must've been an idiot) in my home town. And that is the story of how my wish to sleep in my own bed was granted within 48 hours..  

9 Impressions

17/8/2010

Leaving that quaint, little town of Uttarkashi, we took to the road once again, this time bound for Kedarnath. Although we've been travelling on and amidst mountains for nearly a week now, the sight of those majestic mountains of the Tehri- Gadhwal region never fails to thrill. Those sinister looking mountains made only slightly friendly by a clothing of the evergreen forests and terrace cultivations make me think of Heathcliff as Mr. Lockwood first found him- A brute made civil looking by a gentleman's clothes and possessions. Adding to this fierce beauty are the numerous beautiful yet powerful waterfalls and the puffs of clouds held captive by branches of trees. 

Towards afternoon, we approached the Tehri dam. Initially, we could see only the reservoir side of the dam. I confess I was rather disappointed. The dam I had heard so many stories about (the Chipko movement) as a kid was this tiny structure? But the true story was revealed only on the other side. It is a huge dam (8th highest in the world, as I found out later) with a very picturesque road running on top of it and coming down one of its faces towards the base in a zig- zag manner. It only looked tiny from the other side since there was so much water in the reservoir.

Today's journey seemed really long and tedious but finally, we reached Sitapur, where we were to halt, around eight in the night. Our driver seemed unusually glad to have gotten here and the reason was made clear when he told us that this is his hometown. I could clearly see a glimpse of the joy and excitement within his heart on his face on being able to come home. Having missed home a lot today, I could truly empathize with him and wish I could fly home too, maybe just for tonight to sleep peacefully on my very own bed..

8 Impressions

16/8/2010

I was woken up at the crack of dawn since we had nearly a hundred kilometers to travel in order to reach our next destination- Gangotri, the source of river Ganga. Barely has we covered thirty kilometers when another obstacle barred our paths. A huge section of the road had collapsed but unlike the day before yesterday, the way around it was a one mile trek through the surrounding forests and then a transfer to another vehicle for the rest of the seventy kilometers. There was no way to know how comfortable that other vehicle would be or how many people would be crammed into it. So, we dropped the plan for the day and turned back.

After a while, my bro decided to take his kids for a walk.. all the way down to the Bhagirathi river, which was now noisily flowing parallel to the road. The walk was fun but we couldn't approach the river because the path we took had huge boulders barring it that the kids wouldn't be able to cross. They had fun using a hand pump for the first time on the way back though.

It being Monday, the day of Lord Shiva, we decided to pay another visit to Lord Vishwanath in the evening and go see the Kedareshwar Ghat, a ghat near the Kedarnath temple. The Bhagirathi is a fearsome and awe inspiring sight there at this time of the year. The turbulent waves and mighty splashes of the river against the ghat had an almost hypnotic quality. We stood mesmerized by the sight of the mighty river till it was time to return.

7 Impressions

15/8/2010

I was so thankful to leave that tiny, cramped village hotel room that we were staying in. Our next stop was at the temple town of Uttarkashi. The guest house here is slightly better than the previous one. After freshening up, we went to have Kashi Vishwanath's darshan. The temple was a quaint and ancient structure and unlike most temples, you could go right into the sanctum sanctorum and touch the Lingam- the form in which Lord Shiva is worshiped. After strolling around the market, we returned to rest our poor muscles which were still stiff and sore from the pony ride.

6 Impressions

14/8/2010

I awoke, as I'd fallen asleep, to the soothing sounds of the rushing Yamuna waters. With the bracing wind keeping us alert to appreciate the breath taking views, we traveled onward through the now familiar winding roads. Familiar, yet unfamiliar because of the now dense evergreen vegetation lining it. Firs, Pines and Deodar trees were now abundant. The roads got steeper, narrower and rockier as we neared our destination. Scary signs depicting narrow roads (as if they could get any narrower!), landslides and cars running off the road into the river, now greeted us. Numerous waterfalls cascaded down the craggy faces of the mountains to one side of the road and in places, the water ran in streams, right across the road.

As we neared Ranachetti, a nasty surprise awaited us.. A portion of the road had sunk and crumbled off. We had to leave our vehicle on one side of the damaged section of the road , walk very gingerly on the part that had collapsed and hire another vehicle on the other side- quite an adventure. Reaching the base of the path to Yamunotri marked the beginning of yet another adventure- my first time on a horse- or rather a crossbreed of the horse and the donkey. It was a fun experience but not a very comfortable one. My pony, Chetak, took me safely up to the temple of Yamunotri. What was a revelation in the temple premises (having neglected to read up on it) was the presence of hot water springs. Many devotees dip cloth bags of uncooked rice into the springs and by the time they are done with their Darshan (viewing God's idol), the rice is cooked and ready to be consumed. 

Having warmed our hands and feet in the springs, we began the journey downwards. Tired, cold and ravenously hungry, visions of hot, soupy Maggi began dancing in my head. Thankfully, everyone in my family suffers from Maggi mania. After having some spicy, Masala Maggi, thrilled to have had so many adventures yet thankful that there were no more to be had today, we turned our steps homeward or rather, hotelward..

5 Impressions

13/8/2010

I opened my curtains first thing in the morning to behold a magnificent view- majestic hills covered with jewels of vegetation ranging in every shade from pale jade to deep, deep emerald.. The terraces of the mountains filled with more jewels, looking like the very stairway to heaven.. The wispy clouds that had stopped romancing the rest of the mountains and were kissing just their very tips- forgive me if this sounds like it's full of cliches but the English language does not have enough adjectives that can help me describe that enchanting view.

When I reluctantly tore myself away from this view framed by my hotel window, little did I know that I would later find myself travelling up and down those very mountains on some twisting, turning, scary and dangerous looking in places yet picturesque roads on the way to Karadi near Barkot. Merrily accompanying us down in the valleys was the river Yamuna. We followed that playful river upstream as she grew narrower and more turbulent. Tomorrow we shall visit her birthplace. 

On the way, we took a diversion to visit Lakhamandal, the place where according to legend, the Pandavas were tricked into visiting a palace made of lac built by the Kauravas, who then locked the palace and burnt it down. The Pandavas, however, escaped through an underground tunnel that opens into some caves on the hills opposite to the place. The area is protected by the Archeological Survey of India and the locals claim that digging anywhere in that region is sure to turn up idols of Gods, tiny mantaps that house them and other artefacts. The ancient temple, housing idols of Shiva- Paravti and more idols found in later excavations is said to have been built by the Pandavas and  gives one a feel of the timeless. The legends narrated by the wizened old priest of the temple as though the incidents happened only yesterday come alive and haunt your thoughts for many hours thereafter..

More winding roads, going uphill and now lined by Pine trees have brought us to the sleepy little village of Karadi where we have halted, the night to be spent in anticipation of the memories that will be made tomorrow..

Image from here..

The few readers that my humble blog has may have noticed a deviation from my normal manner of posting in my Impressions series, namely, that of not using (what I like to think of as-) an apt image to illustrate my words at the beginning of every post. The reason for this is that I love to paint pictures and evoke images with my words.. There are scores of images of the places I visited available over the 'net.. You might even have visited those places yourself.. But through my journal pages, I want to show you what I saw and hopefully, make you feel what I felt :)

Image from here.

4 Impressions

12/8/2010

A long commute, uphill all the way through many a twist and turn and hairpin bends brought us via Dehradun to Mussorie- Hill Queen- the honeymooner's paradise. The first thing we saw here, on our way to the iconic Mall Road was the band stand which led me to imagine Mussorie as it must have been during the times of the British rule. Smartly turned out British officers with their elegant ladies must have enjoyed the ragtime  tunes of yore and danced those long hours of the evening away..

Shaking myself from this reverie, as I entered the Mall Road, more reminders of the British era greeted me. Wrought iron railings and beautiful lamp posts reminiscent of a people who wanted to see aesthetic elegance in every object  around them, even something as inconsequential as a lamp post.

Walking through the Mall Road, through swirling mists, enchanting as it was, reminded me powerfully of my beloved.. The trip up the rope way to Gun Hill, even more so. Mussorie is not called the honeymooner's paradise for nothing. The breathtaking mountain views- now astonishingly clear, now hidden by veils of clouds, the swirling mist, the chill in the air- everything is meant to be enjoyed by two- or so it seems to people in love..

3 Impressions

11/8/2010

The day I entered God's doors- Haridwar and my first sight of the holiest of holy rivers- the Ganges, although from a distance. The commute from Delhi to Haridwar took up most of the day and the only thing that could be squeezed into the time left was a visit to the ashram of our spiritual guru. Sadly, we couldn't have a darshan (meet the guru). I felt like the day hadn't been utilised to the fullest but was consoled by the fact that we would be returning to the holy city on our way back, to witness a holy spectacle- the sacred Ganga Aarti.

2 Impressions

10/8/2010

We began the tour with sightseeing in Delhi. The places we visited, the monuments, were not new to me but I find that every time I visit, my feelings, thoughts and impressions become more profound. I was filled a greater sense of awe and wonder on beholding the Qutub Minar and other monuments in that complex yet another time. Those magnificent monuments, the superbly intricate carving, the sheer scale of the structures transported me to another time, a time of Kings and Queens, a time when the Moghuls had the technology and immense manpower to proclaim their Kings' might and benevolence, a more romantic time..

1 Impression

9/8/2010

I flew for the first time by Kingfisher airlines today.. I must say, I was pretty impressed. My dad has always been a fan of Dr. Vijay Mallya and I joined the ranks today. The plane had comfy seats, personal entertainment systems and truly good looking and friendly cabin crew. The only fly in the ointment however, was the food. Though the presentation was amazing, the taste was awful. Why is it that airline food is uniformly horrible throughout the world? Now that's some food for thought ;)

I'm back..

I returned from my trip yesterday.. Ten days earlier than I was supposed to, due to an accident that I shall talk about in it's proper place and time. While on the Chardham yatra (Four destination pilgrimage, of which I could visit only two), I maintained a journal but instead of recording every tiny detail of the day, I used to only write about some of my experiences that made an impression on my mind, at the end of the day. In addition to my normal, daily posts, I shall put up one page from my journal everyday, which will form the Impressions series..

Image from here.