On a pleasant rainy Sunday.
Couldn't figure out what to do today.
Wanted to be alone with me & myself.
Didn't want another Sunday to just go away!
My mind tried to wander beyond the four walls.
It finally dawned, I didn't want another yawn.
Got on my bike, made a few calls.
Rode to a destination we didn't know at all.
Feeling the mild rain off our skins,
Inhaling the cool breeze, whilst speeding with a big fat grin.
We rode miles & miles away from home,
Through rain & through shine did we roam.
Long straights and unending turns,
I wished the road would go on and on.
The glistening tarmac's warm welcome,
Hugging the rubber, like it was it's own.
My new best friend didn't feel alone.
She escorted me all through this journey,
Never once, did she lose sight of me.
I hope to see her soon, maybe for a longer noon!!!
In love with this road as long as I live.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Trek to Heaven!!!
It feels so good, back after an awesome trek to the Sahyadri Hills. It was the perfect weather since it was monsoons and the climate was ever so pleasing, though we were a lil disappointed with no rains on our entire trek. But overall it was good fun.
With our busy office schedules and leaving late being a hated habit, few of us still managed to make much before time to VT station from where we were gonna board the train to Lonavala which was scheduled to leave at 10.45PM. I have been on few treks before, but never was it during the monsoons so the anticipation was filled with more of an excitement knowing it would be a lil more dangerous. So all of us got comfortable in the train and we reached Lonavla ten minutes prior to our scheduled arrival, which was 2.00AM in the morning. As per our initial plan we had decided that at the break of dawn we would start our trek, but then we decided that we would start immediately in the dead of the night.
As we started our 17Km walk to Rajmachi fort through the streets of Lonavala, which is a well renowned hill station in Maharashtra, we were wondering how commercial it has become over the years, its beauty has lost its true essence. People or rather tourists who dont give a damn, just keep fucking the place around. As we walked towards the base village, Vaishakhare, I was wondering how wonderful it would have been if it was a full moon night, but then nevertheless I was enjoying every moment of it.
Few from our group have been to this place on a number of occassions and this was atleast say 8-9 yrs back so due to a lot of development in Lonavala my friends kinda got lost which direction to take. After enquiring with the night watchman he guided us and showed us the path and we were back in action. After walking for almost 3 hrs we had reach a point where we decided to take a break and wait till there was some daylight for us to proceed.
Me being a not so regular trekker, started experiencing backache due to the heavy weight of my backpack and was almost wanting a break every ten minutes, but then just the thrill of being amidst clouds, lush greenery, beautiful waterfalls, snaky streams of fresh water kept me going on. My lungs were finding it hard to breathe clean pure air which took me some time to get adjusted to, but it was so refreshing, my lungs must have expanded to accommodate as much as it could. Wish we could have this privilege in the city too. After walking for almost 5-6 hours we came across this stream which was more like a large shallow river, we decided to let our hair down and get wet. We all stripped down to our undies and took a dip in the river. The water was so damn cold it took us a while for our bodies to adjust to the temperature of the water. By the time we got out, our bodies were shivering so much we wished we had carried blankets to warm us up instantly. After spending time by the river we decided to move on and not take any more breaks. But then eventually taking breaks are part of any trek, its how long is that break that matters.
We reached the point from where we could see the Rajmachi fort in all its glory, and some part of it covered with clouds, only a valley separated us. We were close to our destination, like they say "so close yet so far apart". It was a good 2-2 1/2 hrs from where we could see the fort. 
We came across this point from where we could see the largest waterfall on our whole trek and it was such an awesome sight, wish we could have been under the fall that very instant. The base of the fall had eroded and cut through the rocks carving it like a horseshoe. It was so magnificent at the way nature beautifies itself every now and then. It was such a mesmerizing feeling, wish it would last a lifetime.
After enjoying the view of the waterfalls we headed towards the Rajmachi village which was at the base of the Rajmachi Fort where we looked for accommodation. It took us another 2 hrs from the point where we could see the fort. After walking for nearly 10hrs we reached the place at 12:30PM totally famished and eagerly waiting when we can have lunch. Our legs had gone numb after such a long walk... we just wanted to crash. We hurried through our lunches and then just dozed off thinking that we would do some sight-seeing after taking a nap in the afternoon.
In the middle of our doze the owner decided to fix the non-existent door to our rooms, and in the commotion I lost my sleep, which was very surprising. I guess i wasn't fast asleep which is why I woke up, and then couldn't push myself to sleep again. So i decided to wander around and try my hand at photography, which kinda helped me stay awake. And the best thing was that I was the only one who was wide awake while the rest were dozing off to glory. How could these guys sleep with all the chiseling, hammering, nailing, etc. etc.??
At around 4.30PM while everybody was awake we decided to visit an old temple which was a sight for soar eyes. It was so beautiful, a temple made out of stone amidst all the lush greenery. Besides the temple was an artificial lake where you had the usual picnickers (boys) who were taking a dip in the lake, few of them drunk like they have never had alcohol at such a high altitude. It was totally fucking up the ambience of being over there with the greenery the temple ruins, etc. It just was so shameful that people had to fuck up the serenity of the place.
Soon it was dinner time and we headed to the village to the owners house where we were served an awesome dinner, the taste of which still lingers on in my system. A simple basic meal was what made the trip so much more interesting, the simplicity of the village people taking pains to provide us meals and their hospitality was always a welcome. I just loved every moment.
Next day we woke up to a perfect weather, the kind where in you just feel like lazing around, doing nothing, but then we had a task at hand: we had to climb down the treacherous route towards the direction of Karjat. We had our breakfast and started our descent at around 9AM.
The descent was risky, the rocks wet & foggy, and my shoes were screaming for a tar road. It was just refusing to grip the surface below, and was tearing apart with every step. The view from the top of the cliff was just amazing and we had to take a deep breath to realize how much we had to travel down. One things for sure on any trek, the climb up may be very tiring, exhausting, you have to have a power horse of a heart to get you to the top, but then the descent is more dangerous & slippery and especially during the monsoon the risk is 5 times the normal. Each step has to be calculated and cannot be taken for granted, cause one wrong step and you would end up down the cliff which could be fatal.
On our way we came across some caves whose architecture was so magnificent. We decided to spend some time exploring the caves, looking at the minute sculptures, all chiseled through molten rock. It was so damn amazing. Except for the modern art ie. people labeling their personal interests on rock with their names and the names of their loved ones. It kinda made us feel the dumbness of few people in this country who do not appreciate basic civic sense. Anyway this is India and it doesn't make me any more proud of being an Indian when I come across such vandalism on our historic & archaeological sites.
We reach the base of the mountain at around 1-1.30PM and we decided to take a break by chilling at the river bank. We spent an hour or so out there and headed towards Karjat station from where we headed back to our individual homes.
As I was reaching home the sights & sounds of this amazing journey on the hills, the lil rivulets, streams, waterfalls, the greenery, walk amidst the clouds, the awesome dinner just rushed through my head like chapters of my favorite novel. I wish I could have spent more time on the hills, explored the place a lil more, but then just the thought of getting back to work the next day didn't seem that exciting at all!!!
With our busy office schedules and leaving late being a hated habit, few of us still managed to make much before time to VT station from where we were gonna board the train to Lonavala which was scheduled to leave at 10.45PM. I have been on few treks before, but never was it during the monsoons so the anticipation was filled with more of an excitement knowing it would be a lil more dangerous. So all of us got comfortable in the train and we reached Lonavla ten minutes prior to our scheduled arrival, which was 2.00AM in the morning. As per our initial plan we had decided that at the break of dawn we would start our trek, but then we decided that we would start immediately in the dead of the night.
As we started our 17Km walk to Rajmachi fort through the streets of Lonavala, which is a well renowned hill station in Maharashtra, we were wondering how commercial it has become over the years, its beauty has lost its true essence. People or rather tourists who dont give a damn, just keep fucking the place around. As we walked towards the base village, Vaishakhare, I was wondering how wonderful it would have been if it was a full moon night, but then nevertheless I was enjoying every moment of it.
Few from our group have been to this place on a number of occassions and this was atleast say 8-9 yrs back so due to a lot of development in Lonavala my friends kinda got lost which direction to take. After enquiring with the night watchman he guided us and showed us the path and we were back in action. After walking for almost 3 hrs we had reach a point where we decided to take a break and wait till there was some daylight for us to proceed.
Me being a not so regular trekker, started experiencing backache due to the heavy weight of my backpack and was almost wanting a break every ten minutes, but then just the thrill of being amidst clouds, lush greenery, beautiful waterfalls, snaky streams of fresh water kept me going on. My lungs were finding it hard to breathe clean pure air which took me some time to get adjusted to, but it was so refreshing, my lungs must have expanded to accommodate as much as it could. Wish we could have this privilege in the city too. After walking for almost 5-6 hours we came across this stream which was more like a large shallow river, we decided to let our hair down and get wet. We all stripped down to our undies and took a dip in the river. The water was so damn cold it took us a while for our bodies to adjust to the temperature of the water. By the time we got out, our bodies were shivering so much we wished we had carried blankets to warm us up instantly. After spending time by the river we decided to move on and not take any more breaks. But then eventually taking breaks are part of any trek, its how long is that break that matters.
We reached the point from where we could see the Rajmachi fort in all its glory, and some part of it covered with clouds, only a valley separated us. We were close to our destination, like they say "so close yet so far apart". It was a good 2-2 1/2 hrs from where we could see the fort. 
We came across this point from where we could see the largest waterfall on our whole trek and it was such an awesome sight, wish we could have been under the fall that very instant. The base of the fall had eroded and cut through the rocks carving it like a horseshoe. It was so magnificent at the way nature beautifies itself every now and then. It was such a mesmerizing feeling, wish it would last a lifetime.
After enjoying the view of the waterfalls we headed towards the Rajmachi village which was at the base of the Rajmachi Fort where we looked for accommodation. It took us another 2 hrs from the point where we could see the fort. After walking for nearly 10hrs we reached the place at 12:30PM totally famished and eagerly waiting when we can have lunch. Our legs had gone numb after such a long walk... we just wanted to crash. We hurried through our lunches and then just dozed off thinking that we would do some sight-seeing after taking a nap in the afternoon.In the middle of our doze the owner decided to fix the non-existent door to our rooms, and in the commotion I lost my sleep, which was very surprising. I guess i wasn't fast asleep which is why I woke up, and then couldn't push myself to sleep again. So i decided to wander around and try my hand at photography, which kinda helped me stay awake. And the best thing was that I was the only one who was wide awake while the rest were dozing off to glory. How could these guys sleep with all the chiseling, hammering, nailing, etc. etc.??
At around 4.30PM while everybody was awake we decided to visit an old temple which was a sight for soar eyes. It was so beautiful, a temple made out of stone amidst all the lush greenery. Besides the temple was an artificial lake where you had the usual picnickers (boys) who were taking a dip in the lake, few of them drunk like they have never had alcohol at such a high altitude. It was totally fucking up the ambience of being over there with the greenery the temple ruins, etc. It just was so shameful that people had to fuck up the serenity of the place.Soon it was dinner time and we headed to the village to the owners house where we were served an awesome dinner, the taste of which still lingers on in my system. A simple basic meal was what made the trip so much more interesting, the simplicity of the village people taking pains to provide us meals and their hospitality was always a welcome. I just loved every moment.
Next day we woke up to a perfect weather, the kind where in you just feel like lazing around, doing nothing, but then we had a task at hand: we had to climb down the treacherous route towards the direction of Karjat. We had our breakfast and started our descent at around 9AM.
The descent was risky, the rocks wet & foggy, and my shoes were screaming for a tar road. It was just refusing to grip the surface below, and was tearing apart with every step. The view from the top of the cliff was just amazing and we had to take a deep breath to realize how much we had to travel down. One things for sure on any trek, the climb up may be very tiring, exhausting, you have to have a power horse of a heart to get you to the top, but then the descent is more dangerous & slippery and especially during the monsoon the risk is 5 times the normal. Each step has to be calculated and cannot be taken for granted, cause one wrong step and you would end up down the cliff which could be fatal.
On our way we came across some caves whose architecture was so magnificent. We decided to spend some time exploring the caves, looking at the minute sculptures, all chiseled through molten rock. It was so damn amazing. Except for the modern art ie. people labeling their personal interests on rock with their names and the names of their loved ones. It kinda made us feel the dumbness of few people in this country who do not appreciate basic civic sense. Anyway this is India and it doesn't make me any more proud of being an Indian when I come across such vandalism on our historic & archaeological sites.We reach the base of the mountain at around 1-1.30PM and we decided to take a break by chilling at the river bank. We spent an hour or so out there and headed towards Karjat station from where we headed back to our individual homes.
As I was reaching home the sights & sounds of this amazing journey on the hills, the lil rivulets, streams, waterfalls, the greenery, walk amidst the clouds, the awesome dinner just rushed through my head like chapters of my favorite novel. I wish I could have spent more time on the hills, explored the place a lil more, but then just the thought of getting back to work the next day didn't seem that exciting at all!!!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Moments of happiness!!!
Happiest moments don't last longer,
They just seem to linger on.
Life keeps playing games,
How do we deal with so many names.
Few make a difference,
And it becomes hard to reference.
The lasting effect has been created,
Which might last a lifetime.
We get branded with our emotions,
And we end up moving in circular motions.
Figuring a way out of this commotion.
Time passes by - seconds, minutes, hours... sometimes days!
Slowly we delve into what becomes "memories".
Some of which make us laugh, some make us ponder,
...whether it was all worth-a-while?
Experiences make us stronger,
Its how we apply them makes,
Our lives meaningful & bolder.
Today is another day,
Tomorrow should'nt be a yesterday.
They just seem to linger on.
Life keeps playing games,
How do we deal with so many names.
Few make a difference,
And it becomes hard to reference.
The lasting effect has been created,
Which might last a lifetime.
We get branded with our emotions,
And we end up moving in circular motions.
Figuring a way out of this commotion.
Time passes by - seconds, minutes, hours... sometimes days!
Slowly we delve into what becomes "memories".
Some of which make us laugh, some make us ponder,
...whether it was all worth-a-while?
Experiences make us stronger,
Its how we apply them makes,
Our lives meaningful & bolder.
Today is another day,
Tomorrow should'nt be a yesterday.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Day-to-day... Reverse!!!
The night is long, before we move to the early dawn.
We forgo our struggle, looking for a breather.
Have we achieved what we set out for?
The evening was another hurdle, wanting to break out.
Looking through the mess, making no sense,
I wish I could just leave it all.
Between strict schedules & tight deadlines
I try to find myself without hope,
I look at the ceiling, hoping it would come crashing down.
Another day, hunger doesn't seem to make no difference at all.
Embroiled in your daily dose of stress, I look for some pretense.
Just to make my self happy,
Knowing its going to be another long day.
Mornings are fun, if you didn't have to earn,
Else its a fight to reach your destination on time.
We wake up with hope & anxiety.
And believe today is a great day.
Our dreams are forgotten at the break of dawn.
As we lay, we try to forget our today,
Contemplating for a better tomorrow.
I hope this scene changes once and for all.
We forgo our struggle, looking for a breather.
Have we achieved what we set out for?
The evening was another hurdle, wanting to break out.
Looking through the mess, making no sense,
I wish I could just leave it all.
Between strict schedules & tight deadlines
I try to find myself without hope,
I look at the ceiling, hoping it would come crashing down.
Another day, hunger doesn't seem to make no difference at all.
Embroiled in your daily dose of stress, I look for some pretense.
Just to make my self happy,
Knowing its going to be another long day.
Mornings are fun, if you didn't have to earn,
Else its a fight to reach your destination on time.
We wake up with hope & anxiety.
And believe today is a great day.
Our dreams are forgotten at the break of dawn.
As we lay, we try to forget our today,
Contemplating for a better tomorrow.
I hope this scene changes once and for all.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Six feet under...sea!
Well hadn't taken a break in a long time and it was the longest weekend holiday that we got in ages ever since I started working in Percept /H. Me and a couple of my buddies decided that we would take a trip to a place where we have never been before. After traveling half of Maharashtra on Google Maps we finally settled for Tarkarli which is a beach 5-6km from Malvan off the NH-17 .
Next was making arrangements for our stay and every dam place was full. Was feeling a lil guilty since the first holiday was for the general elections happening in our state and me and my friends would not be present to cast our votes. Anyway we went about looking for more options for our stay but couldn't find any. We finally decided that we would head out to that place and figure out our stay once we got there.
We left on Thursday night in a rush since me and my other friend were leaving from office and he was stuck in a meeting which he couldn't leave on time. We left in a rush and forgot to pick up alcohol for our trip, but then anyway i guess it was most important that we don't miss the bus. We reached the place where the bus would pick us up and the bus arrived over there in the next ten minutes. Man that was so close, else our trip would have been to the local bar on all the 4 days of chutti.
It was a long time since I ever traveled by bus to such a far off place, well this place was just 4 hours from Goa and during the journey we were contemplating to cancel our trip to Tarkarli and head over to Goa. But then we wanted to explore the new place and that was our only motivation. The bus journey as expected wasn't that great, the most uncomfortable journey in the recent past. It was so damn painful and dirty just couldn't get enough of a nap in the whole journey. We reach our so called resort at 11am and so damn hungry we decided to freshen up and go to the nearby MTDC resort to have our brunch.
The MTDC Resort was a beautiful place except for the heat at this time of the year, and man it was so fucking hot.
Its unbelievable and being nearby to the sea has some disadvantages, the humidity itself will make you commit suicide. So we head to Malvan to pick up some beers to chill our heated flesh & bones. The sad part was in Tarkarli there was no "Restaurant & Bar" for which we had to make this daunting trip in the freaking maddening heat. Once over there, Just holding the chilled bottle of beer before we headed back to our resort was sacrosanct for that precise moment. Once we downed our beers, it felt like winter inside our bodies which gave us such a relief, it was better than sex.
Anyway our vacation was just gonna be so much more fun.... and it felt good really good to be away from home & work, nobody to bother you, no calls, no boss screaming at you, no reporting to work on time.
The highlight of our trip to Tarkarli was yet to befall on us. We were over there for 3 days and our main objective was to do something which neither of us had experienced..... that was Snorkeling. Just the thought of it would excite me so much and it still does. A day before our departure, Ghanshyam the guy who was arranging our snorkeling trip called on us and said that we would have to meet him at his resort at 7:30PM from where we would head out into the sea to the spot where we would park ourselves and go snorkeling. We got onto our boat and headed out into the sea all excited that we are finally gonna snorkel after 2 days of not doing much on our trip. Apart from us three, there were four others along with us who were gonna snorkel. As we reached the spot our excitement couldn't stop us from diving into the sea, well we knew swimming so we could take the chance unless some shark came and attacked us. The feeling of swimming in the sea was such an awesome high, its not the same, swimming close to the shore I tell you. Me and Mozzam were going all crazy just swimming around the boat. It felt so so so good. If for some reason i couldn't snorkel that day I wouldn't have been dissapointed cause the swim in the sea, kilometers from the shore itself was amazing.
These underwater images will flash for a longtime to come I wish to do it soon... really soon!
Next was making arrangements for our stay and every dam place was full. Was feeling a lil guilty since the first holiday was for the general elections happening in our state and me and my friends would not be present to cast our votes. Anyway we went about looking for more options for our stay but couldn't find any. We finally decided that we would head out to that place and figure out our stay once we got there.
We left on Thursday night in a rush since me and my other friend were leaving from office and he was stuck in a meeting which he couldn't leave on time. We left in a rush and forgot to pick up alcohol for our trip, but then anyway i guess it was most important that we don't miss the bus. We reached the place where the bus would pick us up and the bus arrived over there in the next ten minutes. Man that was so close, else our trip would have been to the local bar on all the 4 days of chutti.
It was a long time since I ever traveled by bus to such a far off place, well this place was just 4 hours from Goa and during the journey we were contemplating to cancel our trip to Tarkarli and head over to Goa. But then we wanted to explore the new place and that was our only motivation. The bus journey as expected wasn't that great, the most uncomfortable journey in the recent past. It was so damn painful and dirty just couldn't get enough of a nap in the whole journey. We reach our so called resort at 11am and so damn hungry we decided to freshen up and go to the nearby MTDC resort to have our brunch.
The MTDC Resort was a beautiful place except for the heat at this time of the year, and man it was so fucking hot.
Its unbelievable and being nearby to the sea has some disadvantages, the humidity itself will make you commit suicide. So we head to Malvan to pick up some beers to chill our heated flesh & bones. The sad part was in Tarkarli there was no "Restaurant & Bar" for which we had to make this daunting trip in the freaking maddening heat. Once over there, Just holding the chilled bottle of beer before we headed back to our resort was sacrosanct for that precise moment. Once we downed our beers, it felt like winter inside our bodies which gave us such a relief, it was better than sex.Anyway our vacation was just gonna be so much more fun.... and it felt good really good to be away from home & work, nobody to bother you, no calls, no boss screaming at you, no reporting to work on time.
The highlight of our trip to Tarkarli was yet to befall on us. We were over there for 3 days and our main objective was to do something which neither of us had experienced..... that was Snorkeling. Just the thought of it would excite me so much and it still does. A day before our departure, Ghanshyam the guy who was arranging our snorkeling trip called on us and said that we would have to meet him at his resort at 7:30PM from where we would head out into the sea to the spot where we would park ourselves and go snorkeling. We got onto our boat and headed out into the sea all excited that we are finally gonna snorkel after 2 days of not doing much on our trip. Apart from us three, there were four others along with us who were gonna snorkel. As we reached the spot our excitement couldn't stop us from diving into the sea, well we knew swimming so we could take the chance unless some shark came and attacked us. The feeling of swimming in the sea was such an awesome high, its not the same, swimming close to the shore I tell you. Me and Mozzam were going all crazy just swimming around the boat. It felt so so so good. If for some reason i couldn't snorkel that day I wouldn't have been dissapointed cause the swim in the sea, kilometers from the shore itself was amazing.
It was our turn to put on the Snorkel gear and at first it was difficult to get used to it since you had to breathe with your mouth and not with your nose. Once we reached the shallow waters I could see the reef in all its beauty, it was so amazing, looking through the clear water the corals, and the fishes. This was the best feeling in my whole trip, looking at the flora & fauna just so damn beautiful, so pristine. I wish I was a fish was the thought going through my head. I was thanking the Creator for creating such beautiful undisturbed haven's which we do not have the opportunity to explore in our day-to-day lives. Amazing fishes, the natural contours of the sea bed, the corals, all so wonderful to watch. Nature at its bestest..... Love it man. Loved every moment of my being six feet under the sea.
These underwater images will flash for a longtime to come I wish to do it soon... really soon!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Move on
We try to make the most of our little lives,
Happiness & sorrow are no longer parallel lines.
We seek for simple pleasures,
And hope one day we find some treasure.
What we become one day,
Is what we did in our yesterdays.
We overcome our suppression,
And end up taking pills to avoid acute depression.
Life keeps playing games,
And our assumptions don't see much of a change.
"Move On" is what we tell ourselves,
Just to give a feeling of overcoming our fake sorrows.
Happiness & sorrow are no longer parallel lines.
We seek for simple pleasures,
And hope one day we find some treasure.
What we become one day,
Is what we did in our yesterdays.
We overcome our suppression,
And end up taking pills to avoid acute depression.
Life keeps playing games,
And our assumptions don't see much of a change.
"Move On" is what we tell ourselves,
Just to give a feeling of overcoming our fake sorrows.
Career
Working without any glory,
Is like History,
Reminds you of your good & bad stories.
Everyday is a race towards success,
Not wanting any process.
You strive to climb up the ladder,
Taking stress as bad as your loaded bladder.
We wake up every morning and sign out every evening,
And realize we just have been working.
We want to take a break,
So that we can rejuvenate,
And somewhere...
Do not end up committing the same mistakes.
Is like History,
Reminds you of your good & bad stories.
Everyday is a race towards success,
Not wanting any process.
You strive to climb up the ladder,
Taking stress as bad as your loaded bladder.
We wake up every morning and sign out every evening,
And realize we just have been working.
We want to take a break,
So that we can rejuvenate,
And somewhere...
Do not end up committing the same mistakes.
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