Travelogue – Chimagalur a beautiful sojourn

After days of hectic work schedule it was time to take a break! And a long weekend was just the cherry on the icing. We went on a destination search spree to ensure we land up in a great place… and Chikmagalur it was to be!! Though as many of the things happen at the last moment with me… this trip was supposed to be no different.

After finalizing the destination we started calling the hotels for accommodation and to our despair, the week we decided to go to Chimagalur, half the world seemed to be headed that way. There were no rooms available. After some nth calls we finally managed to get bookings at a lodge. Next was the traveling issue and as luck could have it all the local buses heading that way were full… so we were literally in a soup! However another common friend was traveling to Chikmagalur for a relaxed weekend in his car and he was gracious enough to take us along.

On the D-day, early morning weather in Bangalore is amazing and I am already in a holiday mood, however my dreamy escapade is cut short by the heavy downpour that lashes the city. I console myself that Chikmagalur would be better. We hop into the car at 8… after some calling around as the decided time was 7 and as these guys didn’t turn up I thought they changed their decision of taking us and gave us a slip [:O] By then the Bangalore traffic was at its worst and we were stuck in slow moving traffic…. Though we were stuck only for half and hour but because my mind was racing way ahead I felt it took ages and by the time we got out our stomachs started to growl…sadly there was no hotel where we could stop and nurture our famished beings. So off we went on our journey….

The roads after we left Bangalore were just beautiful. The ride was so amazing that we literally fought to be front seat riders. As we reached closer to Chikmagalur the beautiful landscapes and serene surroundings just left us spell - bound. I again went on my day dreaming trip… dreaming the beautiful locations/points that lay ahead once we reached Chikmagalur…

Chikmagalur literally means ‘younger daughters village’ It is said that the Chieftain of a close by place called ‘Sakarepetha’ had given this place in dowry to his younger daughter. Just before you reach Chikmagalur there is a perpendicular road taking you to ‘Hiremagalur’ i.e elder daughters village.

We reached Chikmagalur by evening and after settling in our lodge decided to roam about the town or any close by place, but there was some religious procession in full swing and by the time that cleared we were informed by locals that there was no local transport in the evening to Mulyangiri and back- the place we wanted to visit.

As we had hired a cab for the whole next day and we decided to squeeze Mulyangiri in on the same day. After some more walks through the small roads of Chikmagalur we went for dinner at a place called Planters Court. The other thing I realized about Chikmagalur was that these guys like things quite hot! The food at the hotel literally brought tears in my eyes and smoke through my ears! After some dinner and lots of water we came out of the hotel and realized another thing, people in Chikmagalur sleep very early and hence we could not manage to get a single ‘rick’ back and that meant walking all the way… but it was fun roaming on the streets on an unknown town…. and after that we decided to call it a day.

One more thing beautiful about this place is its people. They are utmost hospitable and extremely friendly. For the very short time that we were there, they helped us in so many things- from getting directions to hiring a cab.

Well the next day, the much-hyped (by me of course!) day of trip was a complete washout… it was pouring on that day. We still dared to go and try our luck and went in the cab to Mulyangiri. By the time we reached, clouds and heavy downpour covered it! After trying our luck at ID peetha we decided to call it quits and returned to our hotel… too dejected! The picture here is the one shot by a friend of mine*

On the way, however we decided to try Belur- Halebid and that was the place we headed next. As we headed for the Heritage site our driver started showing us his driving skills! The way he was driving I wondered if we were part of a Formula1 race :D We roamed about these heritage monuments and clicking photos holding umbrellas was quite a task that we managed!

After returning we went to ‘Taj Retreat’ a Taj resort in Chikmagalur. If you are looking for a relaxed weekend, you can certainly think about going to Taj. So to sum it all, visiting Chikmagalur was basically a wonderful drive, lots of relaxed time and some fun getting wet and roaming around! However from the glimpses of Chikmagalur that I got to see, I am certainly about to make some more trips there in the near future.

*Photo by- Divya Ostwal, amateur photographer

..... and I wonder why!

A note of admiration to the likes of Sarabjit singh’s and Kashmir Singh’s wives. The women come from modest backgrounds and have been facing hardships for years now, yet they are the only ones who seem to be sane when the media goes into frenzy.

They were the women who were the most affected by these arrests while the media, the nation as a whole was blissfully unaware for a long time of their state. When the matter snowballed they were the women who spoke with utmost clarity and a calm outlook while others vociferously spoke, fought and voiced their anger- many a times not even based on factual information.

Something similar was seen in the not so old- Dr. Haneef incident. This makes me wonder are we being blinded by the media glare that we refuse to see the facts. Why is it that matters like what Kashmir singh ate and where did he go after his release make it to the headlines after his release?

Is the media so insensitive in today’s world that they don’t understand the importance of privacy in the life of a man who has not seen the world outside, his friends, family, his home for 35 long years? A life that was his to enjoy, but couldn’t…
How can we barge into the life of a person who himself is meeting life after a long time and claim to be a witness of that event? …. I wonder why and how!

Sarabjit- Mercy/no mercy?

The Sarabjit Singh mercy plea saga has been making the headlines for quite some time. Read an article about that on rediff today http://www.rediff.com/news/2005/sep/14guest2.htm

I was happy that finally I could read some clear, crisp and unbiased information. The media hype around the Sarabjit case was too much to bear. The ill-informed media (sadly that’s the only right term that comes to my mind) is wasting no time in trying to clinch those all the most important TRP ratings! Whatever happened to ‘responsible journalism’?

The hype is so much that the media is making a hero out of him. His sister’s version of the story is that he had strayed accidentally in the Pakistan territory and was later caught by the Pakistan police and framed in the Lahore bomb blast case of 1990.

The Pakistan version says that he is a RAW agent and he masterminded four bomb blasts in Pakistan. He is also said to have confessed on record about the same. The state owned news channel also played the video. The video was later termed fake, so I wont have a say on that however assuming that he is innocent - yet can’t the media do anything other that just create hype around the story?

Also if we consider he is guilty, then is it right on our part – a terrorism victim nation to empathize with a terrorist? Would we leave a terrorist who is responsible for the deaths of many innocents scot – free?

Considering the fact that the Pakistan Supreme Court had convicted him and later rejected his plea also means we cant’ expect the Pakistan authorities to release him. We can’t and shouldn’t doubt the judgment, as the highest judicial authority in Pakistan took it. Doubting that would mean doubting the governance there, which is a little far stretched.

He has already languished in the jail for around 18 years and that in itself is more than a life-term. I support the idea of converting his term to life imprisonment, as a life once lost cannot be retrieved, even if we prove his innocence later.

Life in a Metro!

Whew…the many facets of life in a Metro… The best is traffic. While driving to office, if I am stuck in a jam or a long signal (which is usually the case) I get some time to look around and amuse myself with the funny/weird reactions people have while riding! Traveling in these cities is a pain and especially during office hours. The roads are choked and everybody wants to get out of the traffic congestion at the same time and then the weird incidents start :)


People feel speaking on the mobile phone is more important than looking left-right before crossing the road! Can somebody please take them to kindergarden again; where you are taught “Look to your right- Look to your left and if the signal is red wait!”

People are so busy gossiping/bitching about their collegues/friends or etc etc that they jump in the middle of the road- right in front of a speeding cab. Once the car driver has blabbered his share of ‘gaalis’ they take off after mumbling a simple “SORRY”

Women, especially on a two-wheeler with their flowing sarees and dupattas merrily ride in the middle of the road! Where the hell are others supposed to be driving?

A single lane road suddenly is converted into a four-lane road with office hours coming to a closure.

People with their helmets on and a mobile phone tucked between are busy completing some deals or fighting with somebody. The result is violent hand gestures, which lead to automatic and unannounced lane changes!! If you are close enough and survived then you can also here some high-pitched discussions, which leave you puzzled – if this was for you or the other person on the phone!

In the process of overtaking others, people forget that a particular road is two- way and there are vehicles coming from the other end too!

While traveling to office today, I saw a man zipping on the roads at high speed, without bothering to follow the lane discipline of-course! In metros this has become a common scene, so you might say what’s new in it!

I agree…but it just made me think, do we take our lives so casually; that we are least bothered about it! If you lose a limb or end up being the cause of someone else’s death or lifelong disability, would these cheap thrills and fun matter then? Would reaching to your destination 2 min early matter then?

Food for thought!!

And the lyrics go… “Tu dhoop hai.. cham se bikhar… tu hai naadi…oh bekhabar” from the latest hit “Tare Zameen par”.

The song always leaves me elated. A beautiful thought that says “you are special!” How I wish we could practice it in our daily lives.

Sadly, these days its very common of people racing in time to ensure they are at the top of corporate/business/management and god alone knows how many other ladders! When was the last time we stopped and said “you are special” to our near ones? We take our near and dear ones for granted… They are always there or they know it… no reason to say it loud!

But… wouldn’t we like it when someone tells us that we are special to them… or they like me!! Of course I would love it… then why do we end up being a miser with words… Hmm…some thing to think about!

Also, if everyone is special… why do we not help or atleast be on amicable terms with our colleagues/neighbours or any other acquaintance? I agree you can’t be great chums with everybody around you… but is it necessary to look down upon them or not behave rationally and politely with them?

I am not saying I am great at this or I have never flawed… but now I will try and practice as much as possible…. And this post will act as a reminder :)

B’day bash for some… chills and nightmares for others!!

Back to the blogosphere after a lonnnnnngggggggg time… I know that long was a little exaggerated but.. its fair when u have been working hard everyday without an off for the past 15 days!!

Not kidding! Some king decides to celebrate his b’day in pomp… He also feels that he is the latest literature guru on the English language horizon and wants every tiny bit going on his website/brochure/calender etc etc etc… to be checked by him and him alone or his aide if he is too too buzy!

So what do we do? We land up every third day on his doorstep getting the content and other stuff approved. After long hauls of meetings and discussions with him we finally start seeing the daylight at the end of the tunnel, assuming that the work will soon be done, but alas that’s not the case to be!! In our absence he has gone on a dictating spree (as he doesn’t write, its his assistant… he just dictates the matter!) and the next time we meet him he comes up with pages and pages of matter to be uploaded in a four page tiny handout :O How on earth can you do that…. Especially when the function is just 2 days away!!!

Well what happened next is anybody’s guess… Our lives went for a toss… the many things being done for him started to have last minute hiccups and we are having some sleepless nights….. Well, monarchy side effects never seem to change! Sigh…