A pierced nose

I was always fascinated by the diamond stud my mom wore on her nose. From past many years I also wanted one. I expressed my wish to my mother. She discouraged saying it’s not worth it & it’s very difficult to manage. In our customs, just before marriage a girl’s nose is pierced. My mother had to go through it against her wishes so she is biased about it. I mentioned it to my aunt. She shared agreed with my mother. I left it there.

A few months ago, I brought back the topic. She didn’t react to it. Yesterday, we happened to visit a jewellery store. I asked her again. She started to persuade me against it again. But a long argument & a mild tantrum later, she agreed. I got my nose pierced. It was painful for a few minutes.

Now I am getting used to a foreign object in the otherwise plain nose. I love it. Hope my opinion will not change with time.

Lonavala

My parents decided to celebrate their 25 years of togetherness in Lonavala, which is a small hill station near Mumbai, with the entire family. So around 12 of us left for lonavala on the 10th of July. Lonavala is around a 1 ½ hour drive on the Mumbai - Pune expressway from our place. The road is very laid, so the car can be driven at more than 100 Kmph. Its monsoon season in Mumbai. It was pouring during most of the drive. The hills were covered with clouds and the weather was incredible.

The resort we had booked for our stay was on a hill. The road leading to it was damaged badly due to bad maintenance and heavy rains. The view from the room I decided to stay was that of the hills far away. We went to the bushy dam after lunch and a little rest. It was very crowded for a weekday. Mom, I & my cousin S went in to enjoy the cold water hitting our back. Later my aunts joined us. We spent the night playing cards and pulling each other’s legs.

The sunrise marked the 25th year of marital bliss for my parents. Also this day last year bomb blasts killed hundreds in the local trains of Mumbai.

A swim and meal later we went on a drive to the Amby valley city, which is around 12KM for lonavala. We drove through clouds all our way. We stopped at few places to enjoy the wind and rain. Only elite customers are allowed through the gates of the Amby valley city, so we drove back.

Two great days later we were back home to start the boring daily routine again from Thursday. I hope my parents celebrate their golden wedding anniversary in a similar way.

Shantaram

Shantaram is the book that is keeping me busy right now. It’s the auto biography of Gregory David Roberts. I heard many friends of mine discuss the book & praise it. I wrote it on the back of my mind that I have to read it. When I saw the book at my uncle’s place in Chennai, I borrowed it. The book is 936 pages long. I started to read it to just see how it begins.

The first page hooked me to the book and finished few chapters at a stretch. I read it whenever I could in the bus, in the office, and at home. I have finished 1/3rd of the book and I liked it so far. Usually books with very detailed description bore me, but this is very different probably because it is real. The descriptions of early Bombay, the slums, etc are engrossing. I hope to finish this book soon & post a review here.

Oonjal (Swing)

Whenever I enter my mama’s (uncle’s) house in Chennai, the first thing I notice or sit on is the oonjal they have in their living room. It’s strategically place in such a way that it does not hit any furniture around it even when swung very fast. I sleep there, I eat there, and I read there. Wish I can have one here in Mumbai. Unfortunately flats in Mumbai do not offer the luxury of space.

My Trip to Tirupati

History

My mother decided to visit Tirupati by walk, if my brother gets into IIT. He did, three years ago. We could plan the trip only now. We reached Tirupati by train.

The climb begins

After registering the luggage through their transportation service, we started our journey at 2pm. The hills were steep and initial climb was only through steps. We took breaks every 250 steps initially but it decreased to 100 later. We saw people with kids and infants walking up. Some were applying haldi & kumkum to every step. Some were lighting camphor on each step. It was hot & tiring. After 2300 steps & 2 km later the journey looked easy when I saw a road.

Shock

My parents, who have taken this journey before, assured me that the next few km will be through the road. But we saw lots of steps after a small walk, which seemed like an impossible task now. But another 500 steps later came the promised easy route. There were long and small steps. It was cool & there was breeze. We also saw a deer park on the way. It started to rain & the next 3 km climb was very enjoyable.

The mountains

As we moved up, we joined the road that can be taken if one is not willing to climb. Small droplets of water fell on our face; there was a breathtaking view of the mountains from the road. All the exhaustion vanished, but the legs were still aching. Around 2 km of walk & 2900 steps later we reached a big gopuram.

Another set of stairs

These final stretches of stairs were the worst. We were all very very tired. But we started to walk up with the final bit of energy we had. The following 400 steps almost killed my legs. Then we started to walk up the slope with longer steps. The final walk took us to the seventh hill where lord Balaji resides.

Total steps: 3600
Total length: 9 km
Total time: 4 hours 15 minutes
Lesson learnt: My parents have more stamina than me. I really need to work on it.

The Temple

After a night stay, we went to the temple at 4-45 am. Thousands of people visit this temple every day. The way the management manages accommodation and Darshan is simply amazing. After one and half hours of walking along a queue, we got a darshan of 1 sec. The entire shrine was plated in gold. People were standing in queue to donate money in the hundi. Lord Balaji is rich!