Mysore Mayhem- Part 4

The trip to the Mysore Palace itself was a new experience for me. Something I most definitely wouldnt have done if I had gone to Mysore with my own parents. They would most probably freak to think their little princess walked the streets of an unknown city alongside a tonga carrying the others. It was hardly a fifteen minutes walk. Plus the best way to discover any city was to walk through it. Yet they (referring to my uncle and his family) wished to try something new. I would have jumped at the opportunity too but considering that Id have to live the rest of my life with the guilt of having contributed to the ill health of an already under-fed,over-worked horse, I opted out of it after clicking a few photos sitting in it.

I must confess though I had started walking with the intention of absorbing the city, my thoughts and sight were constantly on the tonga. One reason was not to lose way and the other one was imagining how life must have been when tongas were the fastest means of transportation. It had also struck me that possibly it wouldnt have been as difficult then because they hadnt known of the modern means of transportation we know now and the horses may have been better fed assuming the rich greenery described in every textbook to be true.

Once we reached the Palace in all its lit glory, I knew I was in love. Not just with the palace but with the energy surrounding it, the beauty enveloping it and the history. The energy was astounding as compared to the beauty or the history. Standing in front of the whole palace,the energy inserted images in my mind which I doubt Im capable of bringing to my mind otherwise. I could imagine the pretty girls draped in fine clothes and finer jewels glowing in their natural beauty and innocence run down the corridors. I could see the King in his majestic form and attire conduct his court. I could see the little kids run as if the palace was their world and there was none to stop them. I could envisage the fine furnishings seating the royals being a quiet witness to all the joys,the grief,the births, the deaths, the romances, the power and its rise and fall. I turned and instead of seeing the cement plane we were standing on, I imagined the dust roads, the overflowing greenery, the numerous servants. Startling to realise that the boundaries of the palace were in fact much bigger than they are today. To bring into one's understanding that this magnificent building was in reality, centuries ago home. Just like yours and mine. Only to a greater number of people.I agree there are grander palaces, forts etc in India but one cant deny this palace definitely makes its mark on memory. At least its impacted me, with all its over whelming energy.

That night, after a long time I had restful sleep despite it being filled with happy, revitalising, powerful dreams.

Mysore Mayhem- Part 3

It was with much relief that I stepped onto the Mysore railway station.

Let me correct that.

I believed it would be with much relief that I would step onto the Mysore Railway Station.

Sigh. The minute I disembarked from the train luggage and all, I look up to see that our coach is at the farthest platform from the taxi stand. Ordinarily this wouldnt have been a problem but when im supposed to tag along the heavy luggage of a younger sis who seems to have packed more than I have in a carry luggage I had no choice but to grunt while I wheel both of our luggages till the taxi stand.

Finally we check into a posh suite.I didnt see the reasoning behind spending so much for something you wouldnt be enjoying. If you have come to a city for sight seeing why would you need a filthy expensive place to refresh yourself?I did attempt pointing it out to my uncle but looks like the man has more money than I thought to waste and in we went to the suite.

I stepped in and had to pause to absorb the beauty of the furniture. Im no trained eye in furnishings but I do know what pleases me and this definitely did. What I saw in front of me was a smartly lit room decorated in dark teak wood, engraved and embossed with metal and stones. Amazed I was. It took me a while to get a grip on myself, tear myself away from the many dreams I had started to daydream and proceed to refreshing myself to get started on the sight seeing starting off with the famous Mysore Palace.

I still managed to get ready before the others whom I doubt figured how enamouring the furniture was and how tasteful the lighting was (considering the way the little monkey was resting on the furniture, I seriously doubt it)

Aah..who am I to complain? After all, it all came breeeeeeeeeeeeeee :D

Mysore Mayhem- Part 2

Finally the well known Hubli express comes jutting onto platform number 3 amidst the chaos of delayed announcements and reserved seat passengers scampering to get in first.

After a much dramatic yell from my uncle, I tug my luggage into the railway carriage to face the familiar stench of kid's vomit. Sigh. I guess I cant quite get away. With much strain I managed to throw my baggage onto its rightful place (on the overhead rack of the seat some 2 rows in front of me) and seated myself leaning onto the closed window.

Aah! I would have traded my seats with anyone that minute- well except for the ones right next to the puking kid. 2 plump women well into their forties but barely realising their age or size plomped onto the seats next to me taking a generous portion of my seat as well. I let a few minutes pass thinking they were settling down and once settled, they would shuffle and give me my space. Only once the train started moving and the aunties turned (how they managed in that space I dont know) shoving their generous bosoms up my face questioning me of my personal details did I realise that these “aunties” were indeed well settled and Id have to suffer the next few hours stuck with 2 sweaty aunties talking into my ear irrespective of whether I pretend to sleep or read the book I had carried along or even if I pretended deaf, I doubt if anything would have saved me of the experience.

By the time the train reached Mysore my identity as an undergrad student at a reputed university was lost and replaced by that of a 12th standard student at one of the most depressing colleges in a stream id never even considered.

Mysore Mayhem- Part 1

A spur of a moment decision it was to hop along with my cousins as they went for their Mysore Trip. Of course the idea of an all expenses paid (minus shopping) didn't hurt either ;)

Thus, I left at 12pm Sunday for a 2 pm departing train. Something completely foreign to me. My habit has always been to leave an hour in advance which would give me ten minutes after traveling time. “More than sufficient” I used to tell my mom who used to get worried that we would miss the train and here I was standing at Platform 3 an hour in advance.

“Hello? Ma? (pause) Im going to Mysore.(pause) No, no its an official trip ma, I'll be back in a few days. (pause)” said a husky voice. With nothing else to do I turned to observe the drama unfolding. Very interesting “official trip” this young chap of roughly his mid-twenties was going to have with his arm around his- should I say secretary? ;)

Smiling to myself, I stretched once again to check if by any stroke of luck, the train had come early. WHACK! On my back my lil dahling of a cuz sis gave me on my back bringing me back to reality and once I was done glaring at her (I couldnt do much more to the pampered twerp) I scrambled to check for my own ticket and was delighted to find thanks to my last minute decision, I managed to get a window seat away from my cousins' family. I love their company I really do but I wouldnt complain of getting my personal time.

In any case, I loved train journeys right from when I was a kid. I never knew why and of course all through childhood I was too busy to wonder why and now as a young adult utterly jobless its not that difficult to sit and list out reasons why I do the smallest things I do ;)

Train journeys I believe spur in me an excitement of the unknown, a possibility im yet to encounter but a joy iv experienced several times over.

If only I knew what this journey had in store for me :)

My First Night

BAM!BAM! WHAM!

Woohoo!!

Alright now, get your minds off the dirty track! That was me slamming a dozen or more cockroaches into the walls of my new house.

Iv shifted several houses till date but this must be one of the most memorable of the first nights in the new houses iv had. I can distinctly remember only 2 others- one where my brother and I (around 13 yrs)got the big comfortable leather sofas to rest the night and we ended up sleeping as though we are sharing the railway berth and the other was the first time I had a room all to myself (not to worry, as usual it was taken away from me asap) clean,neat,soft with a balcony and a barbie lollipop(C'mon! I was nine then)

After 6 long years iv finally had another memorable first night spent past midnight slamming cockroaches into the wall working out the (lack of) frustration built over the day spent with kids who made it a point to make quite a mess of me ;) Past midnight, the night was spent staring at the fan in the dark wondering what funny noises meant and whether there was any chance of the fan falling on my already injured leg and ofcourse, keeping alert in case of any more cockroaches who planned to share the bed with me :D

I must add though, with a little imagination even hitting cockroaches is fun :D