GP pule ...continued..

But as all questions have there answers...so did these ones.
We found a very good place called Morya Lodge(if i remember it correctly) and it offered pretty decent accomodations with luxuries like balcony as well.Once the place was all set, it was time to take that much fought for sleep...which had shown its true colors throught the drive.
Both myself and rathore simply migrated from this world of mortals for the next few hours.I being an ardent sunset fan wanted to grasp a view at GP pule too...but my body had some other plans.It was wandering in the void of my dreams when our dear sun was throwing its last lite.

Sunset gone..we finally woke up somewhere close to 7 or 7.30 in the evening.And pretty obviously the first thing that we thought off was food.and so it was time to hunt for the same. Started off rather candidly with some local chivda and moongfali...then on the beach we had some nariyal Pani(coconut water)...but there was no sign off , as rathore puts it,tan ko lagne wala khana. Battle weiry we decieded to take a break from the hunt...and found ourselfs some decent rocks by the sea for contemplating our future course of actions.

Here let me describe you the whole scene,its a full moon ,in front of us is the vast and endless expanse of the sea...we ourselves are on a stretch of a white sand beach...audience to the this great jugalbandi of nature. There is nothing more that I can express in words.It was mesmerising.
Not a place where anything could trouble you rite....wrong...we and rathore in particular has this magical ability of creating trouble out of thin air.His wallet probably wanted some fresh air too and Mr. Rathore the good human that he is...just let his wallet out in the fresh air and put it on the rocks, where we were sitting. Eventually our stomachs got the better of the surroundings and we decieded to continue with our hunt..also we needed to make a couple of fone calls. Now when it was time to pay for the same...dear Rathore thankfully discovered that he had let the wallet have a little too much air...and had forgot it on the rocks. Now here was a man with his a** on fire...and theres no other option left in such a position then to run and so he did...and later confirmed that those were the fastest few hundred meters of his life.Thankfully we weren't entirely out of luck..and found the wallet safe and sound...and can joke abt it now.

(Mis)Adventure done...we were looking for a place to eat..walked across the whole town and finally decieded to eat at the MTDC restaurant after a short break at our abode.Had a sumptuous whole hearted dinner...and it was time to go back to the beach. After a little wading(as rathore chose to name our walk on the beach) we found ourselves some more rocks to lie upon. Finally returned back to our abode at arnd 1 in the nite. the other tourists were supposed to join us sometime in the nite..till then we were just finalising onm our plans for the next day.We had found of a place called jaigarh fort in the vicinity..and although rathore and myself being such ardent critics of Shivaji Maharaj's forts..planned to have a look at this one too.
Early to rise was the motto...but yet again it was foiled when we woke up at almost 8 and came to know that our other tourists had some other plans.They wanted us to join them in their holi celebrations on the beach...rathore and me just looked at each other and smiled...Left our fellow troopers(thats what I am goin to call them from now on) to get ready and we headed straite for the beach.Went to our pet rock..and loused.Our troopers joined us there and we had some nasty fun in the sea.Definitely a unique way to celebrate our holi.Clicked some Dil Chahte hai style snaps...with me posing to eat the Stars keys in place of the fish that aamir khan disguised to eat and the likes.Had a quick break fast again at MTDC...and went back to our abode to change as we had got skin wet.and also to pick up some stuff.Till then the troopers too were back from the beach.
We parted ways with them and headed for Jaigarh.Jaigrah is some 33kms from Ganpatipule...the fort itself is not all too scenic from inside...but the view from its out posts is amazing....some branch of the sea makes its way to bottom of the port and adds to its beauty.Another incident..as rathore has mentioned somewhere in his prior posts in relation to the camera itself...I quote "the severity of the itch will be maximum at the part where it is difficult for your hand to reach"..and this time the place was impossible to reach by hand. Our camera role got over and there was nothing remotely similar to a camera role that could be bought in the vicinty. So we finally mourned on it by sitting on the entrance of the fort listening to some Kishore Kumar classics(thanks to my sony walkman).We have had a few glimpses of the sea enrout to the fort...and on our return we decieded to explore one such trail to the sea...and it turned out to be a treasure of sorts. In the backside of a small habitation almost sitting there like a kitchengarden was an untouched beach...just lied down in the sparkling clear waters of the sea with our backs to the sun. Thankfully we were short of camera roles...otherwise the censor board wud have come hard on us for this one.Reached back at our abode and to our surpsirse our troppers were taking a hike somewhere.Went and had our unch at MTDC...and were forced for a real looooooooooooong walk on the beach in the overhead sun.Another experience of sorts.Our troopers were finally back and with some confused plans for the evening we retreated to a deep slumber..

final part to follow...

GP pule....Part 1

This may seem like a devilish ploy but its one way to bring the proceedings to an end...Deep Purple @ the end of a wild concert.

And so is this travelogue...a devilish ploy.This adventure as all other prior ones had its own share of madness and magic.
So here I go...

I kicked off with a routine day to office on thursday...and was already packed to go to rathore 's place at Vashi directly from office. Picked up Rathore from his office somehwere between 8.30 and 9 dropped my bag at his place,and set off yet again for a little pre trip shopping. But it turned out a lot more than mere pre trip stuff that I shopped...imagine...I bought a cell phone...JLT.

Now the plan was to start as early as possible, because we were anticipating some 7 hrs of driving...to cross over the 350 kms to ganpatipule. Now what qualifies as early for any sane character...5...4.30...4....no,not for us mad characters. We dozed off late at arnd 1.30...but I can say for myself I effectively slept for just 1 hr...Thanks to those flying blood suckers...and part to the excitement of the trip..I was already up by 3..and to my surprise even rathore was awake. Now I was raring to go...but Rathore induced some sanity...and we finally were ready by 4.30 after a mast chai.

Kickstarted the Star to life...and just let it warm up.The trip meter was set to 0..and we were all set.That was 15 minutes to 5.After almost an hour of riding through the darknes and early morning(lateeee nite) chill...both of us were craving for the sunrise.Rathore more so..because he didn't have the warmth of the biker jacket that I was wearing. Topped up the Star at some 81 kms after start from a Reliance filling station.The sun was just rising in the east and the Stars headlites were still shining when we ripped through Magathane at almost 80 Kmph..Must definitely have woken up a few sleepy residents there.

The clean tarmac was helping my cause quiet a bit...as I quiet often touched 100kmph..and even managed to remain at that pace for some time.First stop was a little prior to Mahad after 157 kms of continious driving. topped up our stomachs this time with some Idli ,dosa's and the likes...and yeah...definitely some mast chai.Me opting for a coffee though. Started again after chilling out there for close to 45 minutes.

Now we had hardly gone 30 or so kms when we had to stop yet again on the middle of the ghat.Reasons are as starnge as they come....I dozed off ...while driving...not once but twice.And at the second one I actually spotted a chai wala when my eyes opened.Rathore too had dozed off more than a couple of times..so this was a welcome respite.
In the process we had already crossed over the left turn to m'baleshwar that we had taken the last time.And we were on uncharted territory now. There on it was ghats and more ghats...atleast 4 as per my count.But the road was a beauty....with its smooth twists and turns...and fading green and yellow trees all arnd. i never needed to slow down.
Next stop was 50 odd kms prior to Ganapatipule at a place before or after Sangameshwar.And the customary Bhurji Pav followed. Also there hadn't been any foto sessions...and the photographer in Rathore spotted a perfect spot behind the eating place to inagurate the foto shoot. Click click click click...the shutter snapped and the three of us were captured on film forever.
Rode on , it was somewhere close to 11 or 11.30 in the morning.Looking for rite turn to ganpatipule ,crossed another small ghat...and when the turn finally was there...we missed it..and went ahead...but not too...far because I soon realised...and a little inquiry confirmed my doubts.Turned back...and took a left turn instead of the actual right.
The surroundings changed drastically here....till now we had been through roads which had lots and lots of vegetation arnd...but this one ,SH106 was almost like in the middle of nowhere.Small hillocks and vast plain on both sides of the road...with the distinct red/orange konkan soil keeping company.
Reached finally at 1, but only after another round of poses infront of a milestone. Rathore later explained to me that, he had something going with these milestones...so he always made us pose infront of atleast one.
Now before we could drop of to sleep we first needed a place to do that.Also we needed to book room's for another grp of tourists...rathores roommates...and some frnds of frnds,who were supposed to join us there sometime in the night I guess.Now its already tuff to find a place to stay for just the 2 of us on a long weekend , imagine finding a place for all of 14 ppl.The prospect of a couple of nites on the beach were looming large on us yet again.We even checked out a tent on the Beach..offered by MTDC..by far the most lucrative option...was hopelessly available just for a day.
Question marks all around.... to be continued...

here we go again....!!

Thump Thump Thump....Such a sweet sound....blend it with some black tarmac beside the sea...and give it a couple of crazy but adventurous free spirits..
A perfectly heady cocktail...
So thats how its gonna be this weekend...this cocktail is gonna flow on the beaches of Ganpatipule and the likes...over a duration of 2 and 1/2 riding + static days.
Ganapatipule as the name rightly suggests is more a holy spot rather than being a party lovers paradise.But the free spirit requires peace and calm...and there is no better place in the vicinity(or atleast I think so...:-)
And at some 350 Kms from the bustling mumbai...it just could turn out to be a bikers paradise.

Cheers...to The Star, rathore and myself...and may we return with many a wild stories to tell!!

So,Here we go....Thump Thump Thump...!!!

Vela vows...

Its another vela day at office...with no work what so ever. I just wonder a little too frequently these days, that how does my company afford to carry me as an extra baggage for free.
Although the bagage doesn't care until it gets its salary credited on every 28th..but still...heres a hazard of a thinking baggage.

Anyways...there are so many things beyond (no) work in life....like having fun. And I sure know how to extract that to the fullest. Will flash back a little.
Weekend was totally inactive, with the exception of a cool movie in the evening on Saturday with Neha..and a time killing ,window shopping expedition with my cousin on Sunday. but there wasn't any exception in atleast one thing...the amount of money spent in the weekend was almost equal if not more to the amount of money I happen to spend on a happening riding weekend of mine. And it is all the more painful since I didn't do anything...sad ,real sad!!

Come monday....I was a little apprehensive on my work front with my new project not yet decieded....and me still waiting to get a confirmation on certain things that were pending. Uneventful . Tuesday was no better either to start with....but I didn't want to give it the very same sad ending as my other previous days. So called up Rathore. He wasn't feeling all that well that day...but I insisted , he said YES as usual and I was on my way to Vashi. Rathore still hadn't shifted gears to the wake up mode when I reached Vashi half an hour later...so I too decieded to laze a bit...started watching 'What women want'...real nice movie...and I definitely wud like to have Mel Gibson' s power to know what women are thinking...imagine...too good!!

Finally Mr. Khumbhakaran Rathore decieded to break his slumber and woke up to this world with a hungry stomach as always. As usual decieded to go to McD's..but not the easy way...we decieded to go all the way to Panvel..some 20 odd kms from there to put off our hungry stomachs. This is what is the definition of fun....thump arnd on the Star just for the heck of it.
Had a real refreshing drive...and the star left us craving for more... ended the day with a cool flick...'socha na tha'..I find the leading lady of this movie...Ayesha Takia kinda sweet. I had liked her in 'Dil maange More' as well.

Come Wednesday and after a non happening day at office...I was back to Vashi. And there we accidentally discovered a cool shopping place called Megamart...it has all the brands at a reduced price....and both of us just plundered the place...me buying a gab ,a biker jacket(Yes..finally!) and a couple of T- shirts. Rathore too dug in with a couple more T- shirts.
Yet again ate at the McD's albeit at the vashi one today after a visit to planet M.
Ended the day with looking for the highlights of Sehwag's heroics in todays session of the match and finally watching Lakshya and reading....

PS: Rathore's guitar is sounding perfect now...miraculously.

Lite at the end of the tunnel...

The title says it all...
After a brief stint of disgust...life seems to be throwing some sunshine for me.
Will like to cut paste something that a friend of mine sent me....pretty relevant I think...
here goes....I quote...

Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they
were meant to be there...to serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or help figure out who you are or who you want to become. You neverknow who these people may be but you lock eyes with them, you know that very moment that they will affect your life in some profound way. And sometimes things happen to you at the time that may seem horrible,
painful and unfair, but in reflection you realize that withoutovercoming those obstacles you would never realize your potential, strength, will power or heart. Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens by chance or by meansof luck. Illness, love, lost moments of true greatness and sheer stupidity all occur to test limits of your soul. Without these small tests, life would be like a smoothly paved,straight, flat road to nowhere safe and comfortable but dull and utterlypointless. The people you meet affect your life. The successes and downfalls thatyou experience can create whom you are, and the bad experiences can belearned from. In fact they are probably the most poignant and important ones.If someone hurts you, betrays you or breaks your heart, forgive thembecause they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious to whom you open your heart. If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they love you, but also because they are teaching you to love and open your heart and eyes to little things. Make every day count. Appreciate everything that you possibly can, for you may never experience it again. Talk to people whom you have ever talked to before, and actually listen. Let yourself fall in love, break free and set your sights high. Holdyou head up because you have every right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, for if you don't believe in yourself, no one else will believe in you. Create your own life and then go out and live it.

"If you take your eyes off your goals, all you see is obstacles."

...the end.

Life definitely has its small lessons and they are spread everywhere...and at most points in our life we are so engrossed in the winning and losing part of it that we miss out on these subtlities.

This may sound like a loser s excuse to non competence, but its all about reading between the lines. For now I just hope to defy Metallica's famous lines "and it seems to be a soothing lite at the end of your tunnel...is just a freight train coming your way"
To hell with Optimism!!!

Cheers...

Rude Awakening

Its actually just a minor glitch in the otherwise peaceful and smooth life of mine, if you look at it from the higher plain. But deep down its something that has shaken me.
Yesterday I undertook a Client Interview...as in the client was trying to judge me if I was good enough to work on his project..and it so happened that he found me unfit for the same.
Simple ...rite? But I know what that actually means. He asked me certain basic questions about what I happen to boast off on my CV. I was visibly confused abt them ...and un convincing to myself while answering them. And I was still secretly hoping till yesterday that...I just mite clear the interview on my Luck. And it was really good of my lady luck to desert me on this....because it showed me my real standing as far as my professional credentials are concerned.
I am not a really ambitious person...and I am fairly happy when I am a little busy with some decent work. But I do believe and want my self to follow is that...whatever I do i do it the very best way that it can be done...and I guess i have failed myself on that.
Bottomline....study man study!!!