Then and Now.

How time flies! For me it flew faster than the plane I shall be boarding soon!

A very loyal reader has complained that I did not write anything on the Ganesh Puja this time. My sincere apology lady. But you will agree that unlike a cat, I do not have nine lives. I had squeezed out every ounce of experience about the various Ganesh Pujas in my life in one previous post and I doubt if there was anything new to add. But your wish is my command. So I am uploading a picture I took from the gallery of our apartment.

I looked at the merry dancers and marveled at their high energy. God is omnipresent and omniscient. He wouldn’t mind my not being in the procession. So I seek my blessings from the comfort of my home. Farewell, Lord. We eagerly await you next year.

The immersion or the Ganesh Visarjan as we call, has always been my favorite because I had got the chance to hold the hand of my first crush when I was lost in the crowd when I was a ten year old and this girl,accompanied by her parents, too was following the procession. She spotted me and held my hand! How I had prayed that the procession never ended and I was never spotted by my parents! The procession ended but the memory stayed.

Today the only hands I get to hold is maybe an old lady needing help to cross the road.

Development need not always be good. At least for a maverick like me. I find this whole air travel an affront to the joy of travel. Give me the old fashioned train travel any day. Train was so much fun. The joy of planning, the eager wait, the avalanche of human beings when the train arrived and then the long laidback travel. Reading novels and magazines, munching snacks and listening to music till sleep took over. Mumbai was where my business took me the most.

I remember the Grand Hotel and its large tubs.It used to be so relaxing to soak in the nice warm bath and feel all the muscles loosen. We joked that we should keep the door of the bath open else we could die if we slipped in it with no one to help us get out.

Getting down at the VT station and walk till the hotel was so much welcome after a long travel. A quick shower , break fast at the udipi and off to work. After finishing the work, we would explore the city. Distances were never a problem. We would travel from one end to the other. Signing off at night meant fruit juice at Haji Ali and back even if we were at Nariman point or santa cruz. Didn’t matter.

In the last one year, I went to all the major cities- Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai and now Bengalaru. Alas, all my favorite cities. Lots of happy memories attached. But each time it was just going by one flight and returning by another with a lunch thrown in. It really didn’t matter which city you were in since all you saw was the interior of some hotel.

Today was no different. I am sitting in the airport lounge in Bengalaru and thinking wistfully of Brigade road and the popular pubs and the lovely restaurants on MG Road. I have even forgotten the names. Its been so long. Never thought time would be at such a premium.

The boarding announcement has been made and I have to sign off. Tomorrow off to the serene and pretty Manipal, Karnataka, the educational city. This would be my first time and am naturally excited. I have the whole weekend in that idyllic place. No rush rush .I am so happy. Heard so many good things about the scenic beauty there. I cant wait.

Sister warned me to be careful as the Ayodhya verdict is due tomorrow. Does it matter any more? why are we in such a time warp? we are marching towards prosperity. why squabble over petty issues?