When 686 muscles in your body scream ADVENTURE !!

This is where I was  just 24 hours ago.. Look again.

I, now understand , how Neil Armstrong might have felt stepping on the moon. Ofcourse he didn't have to deal with 4 hours of a dangerous climb , 2 falls & 1 serious case of fatigue attack to get up there.

This peak where i am standing, is Kalsubai,1646 meters above the sea level, the highest in the Sayadhris. Named after a woman, whose story was never explained to us. Believe me we tried getting into the bottom of the "i won't wash the dishes" lady time and again. But in vain.  Along with sore muscles we came back with doubts, " why was she considered GOD ? "  "why won't she wash the dishes ? "  "if she aint a GOD, then why the temple right at the top ?"

{BGM: Rocky}

An actor, a director , a media guy , a dancer , an assistant director, a banker and I decided to climb Kalsubai. Started of our climb at 3.30 am. Now there is something about us, our online research gave us lot of info about climbing this mountain but in the Day. Now , the Rajnikant in us made us start in the night !

Since , none of us one was familiar the route, we had to find a guide. Time was spent googling , just dialing, researching contact numbers of guides. Apparently ,we got a few, but none of them agreed to trekking at night. [hmm.. now i know why] We did not take this as a sign at all. All hell bent on climbing at an odd hour with no natural light, we spent time on getting extra batteries for our torches. The guide's refusal got me thinking , a person who can probably do this blindfolded refuses to climb at night.  So when we got to they foot of the hill, we had no guide and perhaps no idea what we were to go through. 

A sleepy chap woke up as we contemplated what to carry and what should be left in the car. And agreed to be our barefoot embodiment of a mountain goat. 

Four hours, 2345 breaks , crossing of streams barefoot, 2 litters of water & gatorade later we caught a glimpse of the top. 

The sun rose at 6.12 am. The colors of the skies were magical.  The cold breeze livened up every cell in our body. And why not , after all we were standing at the top most point accessible to human kind in the state of Maharashtra. [yeah baby] The clouds below you look like cotton candy, the lake was calm... A sight i will always cherish. 

It felt amazing. My body aches as i type this post, but the pain has not made my ear-to-ear smile vanish.

I promise, every hardship you endure during your way up there and descent will be forgotten.  Pack you bags now.. and head to Bari. 

My Tips to Kalsubai Trekkers

Please Note : I am no Milkha Siingh, no sportsperson, not a brilliant swimmer and not a GYM freak.

If you are any of the above, then this trek shall be a cakewalk for you..

These are tips that the other blogs miss out on. 

• First and foremost, DO NOT believe all the other blogs / websites that state that Kalsubai's rate of difficulty : "Simple and Easy".

• When you reach Bari Village at night , make some noise, until a local wakes up and asks you if you whether you need a guide. Trust me you do.

• You will FALL. once maybe even a couple of times.

• Do not lose focus when you see a little girl half your size, thin , barefoot  trek up the mountain  and with a giant nimbu paani can over her head.. DO NOT. Your morale will be crushed, you will hold your breath until she is out of sight to not let her know of your panting. So , my advise, when you spot someone , look the other way, admire the flowers ,  distract yourself, sing a song.

• If it rains... Its your BAD KARMA. Trekking up the dried up water streams is as it is difficult. With rains this shall be highly dangerous. So before you head off to Kalsu, feed the poor, help a blind man cross, or atleast respect your elders.

• You will TAN. [Psst : Fair and Lovely ke naye offer main ab milega 40% extra. HURRY !]

• every time you see a giant boulder at a height and you think  'thats it.. that has to be the peak' .. you will be deceived. This will happen 3 - 4 times. Keep Calm , and keep Panting.. 

• You will be BITTEN by some exotic insects. once twice maybe even a couple of times. Take those friends along who will give you some sympathy for it. ;-)

• It takes ages to get to the first metal stairs.. and i have reasons to believe that these are the ones that must be in HELL.

• if going up is a BITCH , then mind you getting down is a Super BITCH.  [Reasons: Mention 'Please note']

• Having 3 glasses of wine on the night of the trek will make Nausea your new best friend.

• Wear a t-shirt which has name of your home city printed on it. Every stranger takes keen interest on where you are coming from. It is just something they ought to know or else their life will not function as normal. And while all your concentration is on avoiding moss laden rock, questions are not well received. 

• You will not be able to go to work the next day. Take two days off.

• Spot the 'mountain goat ' of your group. ADMIRE THEM.

• Travel with friends you love. Fatigue is worthwhile when shared. :-)

Bon Anniversaire , la Bloggie

6th SEPTEMBER , 2011

How did i miss this date ! SILLY me !!! The day i created this blog, is a very special tor me. 

Cause thats the day , I met you... and you read me. :-).. We have made through one long year.. 

" And then I heard youYou made me long forTo be a part ofSomething that I can't seeA life that is beyondSomething that I can't fearTo be a part ofThe story - It belongs to you

Something you said wasAbout the pen and the paperYou can always write itIt is something you'll have to doGathering storiesA story - It belongs to you " 
[Written and sung by Jonsi]

Lights.. Camera.. Action !! " Err.. talkin to me ? "

"When did not being able to relate to the persona of a mistress/ seductress become a bad thing?" I asked.

"Imagine.. this man has  brought you home... to cheat on his wife and you find a gun in his room.. Imagine.." I was told.

I repeat to myself enough times to make myself believe, "I am a mistress... i am a mistress... i am a mistress"

Last week, my dearest darling sister Sharu , pursuing a career in film-making has a task on her head - to make a short film for her school. After days of brainstorming, she realized this was going nowhere. And that is when we pressed the SOS button.   A dear friend , also a power house of talent stepped in like a knight on a white horse while we stood stranded a midst a desert storm..   [BGM : Baazigarr ohhh Baazigar... Tu hai bada Jaadugar]

And thats when , we had a script , a story , the props , location review, costume photos, the lights, check-lists (im not kidding), a gun ,fake blood and all that was needed for this film. When it came to part about acting, I was told they were looking for a bitchy character, someone who smirks more than smiles. Astonishingly , the crew believed i was the one.. and that was BULL-Tatti. Initially , i rubbed it off as a joke. I knew that in the end they'd get someone how knows how to act suitable for this bitchy role.  3- 4 hours of who is doing what.. the role of the mistress still remained undecided.

I looked at Sharu's puppy eyes, her face melted in to the cutest persuasive frown. This film is important to her, her first behind the camera experience. I had to contribute with more than just emotional support. Thats it, i stepped up..  "Lets do this mistressy thing" How hard could it be ?   Apparently VERY.

I quite literally, struggled through it. I couldnT get a single shot in one go, even if it was as simple as picking up the gun ! Thats when i knew, It was going to be a long night. At the beginning, I was told none of it was going to be difficult since its a well thought script and I was aware of each and every development along the way...

It took ages to get the shot ready. Hair make up , lights, fights.. There was not a single person in the group who wasnt battling a grudge against the other.In the meanwhile, our DOP was the center of attention and a "victim" of casual flirting. There was not a single item in that room that was not stepped/ climbed / on for a perfect shot.

The effort that goes behind making a film is just beyond a lay man's imagination. Post the shoot , in less than 24 hours the shots were selected , edited , dubbed. We got a friend to work on the sound , on the special effects, dubbing. 

Two days of being in front of the camera has made me respect every artist on planet earth ! Even so that i, now, respect my bai who usually puts up a good    'my mother-in-law died' show quite frequently.

If you ACT, I RESPECT !

One gem gone missing..

On 2nd December 2011, LHR,  terminal 4 , three friends stood in despair, each one battling their tears, and never wanting to say goodbye..never wanting to let go this phase.. Lives were about to change. And that is exactly what happened. 
And i was confident that that evening wasn't going to a final goodbye. I knew this wasn't the end.
I always thought,there was more to come.. more to achieve ... more to love.. more to learn..  more to live for..  I didn't know this was going to be it. The bond, so close to my heart, that I was so sure of has proven me wrong..  A reason unknown. A stumble into reality. When they said, it will never be the same... now i knoe what that meant.
We have many more places to visit, ohh so many songs to sing.. so many ideas to share.. so many fights to not care.. you still have a point to prove, find videos in which a snake eats a poisonous frog and the poison kills the snake and after a struggle a warrior emerges out of the snakes mouth..
A story that i'd never believed. a video that you could never find on youtube. where are you my friend ?   
" just how Akbar has nine gems in his crown, and each one symbolizes an important person, you are one of them... now that i have found you, i shall never lose you "

Wherever you are... I pray that you still have 'internal happiness', good health, faith in goodness, a calm mind, a loving heart, a shoulder to cry on, a caring hand to hold, someone to share stories untold..  what ever you do.. I pray for you.. for your dreams to come true..

Your 'past'  is waiting for you !

the hand that rocks the cradle..

Get your copy of 'Bitter Chocolate'.. It highlights the bitter truths of our lives CHILD ABUSE.  Stories that touch your heart.  It is no way an easy read. You will cry.. cry for being so ignorant.. so arrogant.. so disconnected.

A child is pure.. pure as GOD.. and ordeal they go through tears my heart.. Hontestly, I couldn't read more than 5-10 pages at once. I had two options, (i) put it back in my bookshelf and never let it meet my eye (ii) Read it through and make a difference, even if its a drop in the ocean.

So i chose option (ii), I read the book and wrote the letters against these crimes to the addresses mentioned at the back of the book. We have to stand up this cause. We have some ridiculous law in India.  Some of the stories describes the inhumane nature of our prosecutors. You have got to read it. Pinki Virani, you have won my heart. I wish you succeed in every walk of life.. You have truly made us realize how selfish have be become in this rat race. 

After reading your book, I will never be the same again.. 

Photo Month

Inspired by my dear friend Ellie,  I declare December to be the photo month for my blog. Each day of the month I would upload a picture that would depict my mood , my thoughts , my surroundings...  anything..

Sound like fun ?   No.. ?  not even a lil bit.. hmph          anyway..

December 1 we start.  Ellie does this for her blog every May.  Her photographs are of top class.
Check Ellie's fantastic writing abilities out and her fab clicks..  http://resqellie.blogspot.in/

She is AWESOME !

Ghosts of Host

This dates back to my university days in the UK.  One fine evening, some of us friends were discussing the HOST program that the uni offers us 'international' students to experience a weekend under the hospitality of the British. [there aint none but lets not jump the gun]. I thought to myself, a weekend with a strange old couple would be weird. Thats when my dearest of dearest Eliza said "lets go together".
4 - 5 of my friends had been through this program and visited isolated pockets of Great Britan. They all had stories to tell which quite honestly depicted all sorts of emotions.. bitter sweet awkward and some were very cordial. 

So thats when Eliza and I registered ourselves to spend a weekend away with a family who would host us. 
Our preferences were not easy, now an excessive beef sausage 'lukumade' eater, eliza was then a strict vegan. i cannot tell you how many evenings we had pumpernickel with tahini for lunch breakfast and dinner. i was almost a vegan ! [Pumpernickel is a pumpkin seed and other weird seeds bread with contains no dairy no sugar no yeast no oil.. YUMM.. at first you feel a bomb just exploded in your mouth but then u get used to it]

Weeks after registering we got a call. A couple Laurie & Sandra invited us to Christchurch, few miles away from bournemouth.  I managed to book some cheap train tickets to get there. Bags were packed.
   
(clear throat)

let me come to the point...

we ditched the couple !!!!!!!!!

when we first got to bournemouth, the lady, sandra came to pick us up.. Made us both sit on the back seat with seat belts on. Her shivering hands had not enough strength as she struggled to pull the seat belt close to the clasp.

In my head ,"this is not weird... this is not weird... this is not weird" is playing on repeat.  She drove us to her home.. Moments after sitting into the car she listed all deficiencies and illnesses she possesses.  With all that excess or deficient in her body she still makes an effort to seatbelt us.. quite a fighter i must say.

Cigarettes killed my sister 

She told us about how her children live 2 mins away from her and never bother to visit.. and how her lesbian daughter ignores her blah blah 
Me "This is not weird.. this is not weird.. This lady is homophobic.. this lady is homophobic"

well christchurch is a beautiful village in the suburbs of bournemouth. i have always wanted to visit bournemouth

especially after seeing saiko's video n the balloon ride... i got tad bit disappointed after actually seeing the "hot air balloon" i thought it would travel around.. but it was this big balloon wit thousand cables attached ... anyways.. 

let me tell u guys the story as it happened.

so we reached Christchurch... the man Laurie wasnt there..We learnt later that he went practicing for his trombone performance. So the lady took us home.. at first it was all very nice..the house was cosy enough.. the lady seemed alright.. it was a lil weird to stay in someone else's house.. 

when eliza removed her cigarette manufacturing tools, sandra jumped of her seat and said "my sister died of smoking" and then the next 17 min we heard the sister's life story... the couple is 67.. they look much older though..  everything was borderline ok..

 the man walked in later that evening.. we sat down for dinner.. the portions were tiny.. when i say tiny.. i mean tiny...  all through the evening sandra went on and on about how she buys cheap mushrooms, onions and tomatoes close to expiry date to save money.. *bon appetite*

there was one small bowl of pasta for the four of us !    A bowl small enough to pass for a single serving. The uni canteen serves bigger portions !

i was trying to fit in the scenario... eliza just looked dazed..  this was the place where nobody would listen to her... A place where  she could  not jump and scream or even break in to a sirtaki dance.. things weren't going her way.. Whenever she would  step out to smoke a cigarette, the dead sister's story would commence... she felt trapped !  She has a presentation in austria the following week for she had prepare and  she was carrying her laptop to work on it atleast a little bit ;-)      so eliza asked laurie.. "do u have internet ?" just this simple question and waiting for a simple yes or no. 

that man asked her which year was she born... eliza said 1986 why ? laurie.. went on and on about how he owned a computer even before eliza was born.. dunno why he took it as an offense..  thats how we wasted another 23 odd mins of our lives.. 

eliza would ask something and the lady would reply smething totally out of topic.. she asked abt museums in bournemouth.. sandra explained us the musical historyof bournemouth..  Sandra reminded us of the old lady  from the movie requiem for a dream !!  we were fast approaching depression.. i dont know how  my friends managed by themselves... ! We sat in the living room after dinner. Sandra sat on a armchair to the right talking to us looking upwards in the opposite direction..  

In such situations Eliza need a smoke.. And the lady would keep repeating "Cigarettes killed my sister.. so it shall kill you too"

The old man was rude.  He was so proud of the english culture and would ask us about how life was in our respective "under developed" countries.. this went on until the evening... and then they put us to bed at 9.00 pm !  lights switched off. its bed time. Me"  

This is bloddy weird.. this is bloody weird... this is bloody weird !!1"

So the both of us,in our sleeping bags,  lay down in bed at 9 pm with growling stomachs..And because english houses have walls thinner than paper.. we couldnt even talk properly we were silently murmuring things..and trying to lip read wat the other person is saying.

I couldn't sleep the night , as Eliza had told me the old man was about to enter the room while she was changing clothes.. And that he knew she was going in to change. WTF.  She labelled him a pervert and that just kept coming back to me. 

The last nail on the coffin..

next morning was sooo boring..    eliza couldnt stand them a minute.. i was ok really. not the happiest bt i couldnt manage another 24 hours. Also this was the last weekend  in uk.. eliza and i were to leave for home on the following week.. and be back only be back for graduation. So this wasnt the ideal time we imagined to spend that too on beautiful sunny days in bournemouth... !!!!! *frustrating*

Morning breakfast, the same old tiny bowl was presented. this time with some cereals. And we headed to a charity event where laurie was playing the trombone.  in a brass band.. *facepalm*

*DISCOMFORT  DETECTED*

The couple is a part of a program called University of the third age. Where, retired people come together sing , play music ,  sew, knit , paint and do all sorts of activities that makes them feel pretty cool.  

Eliza and I had thought of telling the couple after breakfast that 'this isn't working for us.. you have been lovely..  lets part ways.. Ciao Ciao'    But that didn't quite happen. Neither of us knew how to bring this up.  So through the breakfast , car ride to  trombone playing concert or whatever, and through the performance eliza and i kept nudging each other to speak up first. 

The day was beautiful.. we walked to the beach. Lil kids running around, parents and children with tiny fishing rods sitting on small boats, birds chirping and us and the weird couple saying  "Cigarettes killed my sister.. so it shall kill you too"  .. 

sir, can have a coffee ? "NO."

Eliza suggested for a coffee in some beautiful beach side cafe.. the man said no no lets walk and head home..   ELIZA WAS DENIED HER COFFEE...Nobody denies her of her coffee.. she was fuming.. could have murdered him easily ..

eliza and i had a plan to ditch them... but now it was time to execute it.. 

so we faked some phonecalls.. we said we have a friend... she has fever we got to go.. The couple didn't listen and said, by the time you go back to home she would be better and probably hospitalized. 

Thats when i faked a phone call and hung up .. looked straight into the old man's eyes and said "SARAH is  now is spitting BLOOD... We have to go.. " to make this believable we gave our oscar winning performances..  this went on  for 5 hours..

But it worked !

we planned we'll take a train from christchurch to bournemouth ... find a hostel.. enjoy life.. and go back the next day as scheduled.

despite all our efforts... they dropped us to bournemouth train station.. and waited till we bloody board the train..now bournemouth station is small tiny room.. where u can see through the platforms even while standing outside the station. even after goodbyes..and thank yous.. they stood there to watch us board the bloody train..  

the man even insisted he would talk to the train office guys to change our tickets.. urghhhhhhh

sticky situation..!  so we bought tickets to the next station.. from the ticket machines.. and acted as though we boarded the train..

later we hid for 15 mins behind the platform wall waiting for the car to leave.  when they left.. 

We were freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee !

We walked on the streets of Bournmeouth.. It was getting dark.. We had no idea where to go.. what to do.. we just felt FREE..  We sat in a taxi , asked him to take us to a hostel. A few shady looking hostels crawl later, we settled into a BnB.

Stormed into mexican restaurant..  had full size meals ..  The waiter wondered why we ordered 4 full mains. 

Later , went to a club where we danced with some men dressed like the toy story crew.. i wonder why.. walked all around bournemouth..   sat on some twister rides on the beach at midnight, ... WE AINT SLEEPING AT 9 PM BITCHES !

eliza happily rolled ciggarettes whenver she wanted.. she could sing and dance now.. she could scream and smoke now... sat on the balloon ride.. had coffees on the beach... got broke.. We barely had some change left to get us to the train station.

had a blast..    so this how we cheated the hosts.. 

love,

one of the worst candidate for host

the other one is rolling cigarettes in Greece.