North India Trip – Day One – Part 2

The drive on the Chand-Zikarpur bypass was slow.  This is Highway 22.  It was early evening so that probably didn’t help.  There were not only personal cars but also lorries and trucks.  The road up to Kalka is mostly double lane, one lane per direction.  So you have to drive the way people used to drive before roads got better in India.  You had to pass one car at a time by overtaking from the right and going into the opposite lane, which isn’t demarcated as such.  It could have just as easily been one lane.

There are lots of potholes.  You can’t really go faster than 30 to 40 km/hr in a Honda.  I guess when people tell you the road is “good”, that is all relative, although the roads have improved from 20 years ago.  To me, they weren’t all that great.  I was doing between 25 and 30 km/hr.  I didn’t want to mess up my car.  After all, I wasn’t in an SUV, I had my trusty Honda City!

As I drove to Kalka, the narrow road jogged old, mostly fond, memories.  This was the same road my Dad used to take my brother and myself on on our way to being dropped off at Bishop Cotton School in Shimla.  There was one specific junction that I remember quite well.  Once I get the pictures and videos off my camera (the transfer to my computer isn’t working), I’ll put them up.

McDonald’s conquers the world!  That’s right, there is a McDonald’s on the way to Shimla.  It’s in Jabli in Kausali district to be exact.  As much as I wanted to experience the local food and the local way-of-life, I had to stop!  I have been to a Mikey D’s throughout the United States and had to stop at this one also!  Here’s another example of the world becoming smaller and smaller.  The place was air-conditioned and very clean.  I really like the veggie burgers I can get here, good stuff (yes, I know I’m easily pleased).  Too bad the U.S. chain doesn’t carry them.

As it turned out, my next adventure was right around the corner, I didn’t have to wait very long.  Exiting the restaurant meant to go upstairs.  Lo and behold, it was raining!  I hadn’t noticed any clouds in the sky so the down pouring caught me off guard.  “Do I stop at a hotel now or do I continue to Shimla?”, I asked myself.  I decided to push on.  I drove another 20 km.  It was around 9:30 pm and I couldn’t see at all.  Not only was it pitch dark, it had started raining again. 

The darkness and the rain, going uphill, not being able to see all that well – all of it could have been manageable if I really wanted to push through it.  The thing though was that my wipers stopped working.  Well, they were working except that the driver’s side ones kept coming off.  This is something that has been happening since I got the original wipers changed a few months ago and I never got it properly fixed.  Now I was in a bad situation.  I was coming through small towns and tried to find an auto-parts store.  I soon learnt that while a few shops were open, only Maruti parts were available.  I wasn’t going to find anything for a Honda City.  There aren’t many of these cars up there so the demand doesn’t exist.

After asking a few people in two towns for auto shops and getting the same answers (shops closing or Maruti-only supplies), I decided to swap the wipers.  It was still drizzling so I had to get my light jacket out of the trunk (I was truly not expecting rain!).  I took the passenger side wipers off and put them on the driver’s side.  I left the passenger side empty and lifted the wiper rod so it wasn’t on the windshield and wouldn’t keep scratching it.  I knew I wouldn’t be able to see from that side.  That made me nervous because I had already found out I needed to be able to see from there or chance having my car falling into the left side curb, which in many parts were one foot below the rest of the road (i.e., the curb could be a ditch).  The whole ensemble looked really funny.  I was a bit embarrassed but not enough to not have it be that way.  Screw the people looking at me, I needed to be able to drive and drive (somewhat) safely.

After swapping the wipers, I got back on the road.  I was driving very slowly (10 to 15 km/hr), it was very dark, and now I had a small wiper on the driver’s side that didn’t clean the whole windshield and I couldn’t see from the passenger’s side.  All signs pointed to finding a hotel and stopping for the night.  Luckily, I wasn’t too far from Solan, about 45 to 50 kms from Shimla, and came across a hotel.  After very little negotiating, I decided to crash right there!

The rest of the night was relaxing.  I chatted with a friend on GChat and uploaded my camera pictures to my laptop.  I took a look at where I had reached and planned my day for tomorrow.  It became clear I should stay in Shimla one night.  And why not?!  I could go and visit good ol’ BCS!  I hadn’t planned to stop in my old stomping ground, but here I was!  Spontaneity (and adjustment to reality) was the mantra!

North India Trip – Day One – Part 1

I left for my Delhi-Shimla-Manali-Leh (and hopefully Srinagar-Jammu) trip on August 29.  I was very excited to finally get to see some of the amazing cities of north India.

I left about 12:45 PM after making final preparations of getting the spare tire (stepani) checked out.  This was one of the more important tasks as I was about to drive for miles.  It was good that I decided to do this, though I had just gotten it fixed a few weeks back, because the tire was indeed flat.  Apparently when I had a new tube put in, the guys didn’t do a good job of removing the debris from the tire and thus a new puncture happened.

I had gotten to Chandigarh without too much hassle.  It was a clear and now-familiar drive and I hit the usual speeds over 80 km/hr.  I hit 90 as much as I could.  The route to Chandigarh now has an exit off the left side of the highway.  In my previous trips up north, that wasn’t there.  You had to drive straight through and then hit a patch of bad roads until the Chandigarh/Amritsar/Panchkula bypass.  The immediate bypass area is still the same with construction going on but the route to it is much cleaner now.

Upon reaching this bypass point I had my first adventure of the trip.  There are two different roads to take from here.  I could go up to Chandigarh and go through Rupnagar and Bilaspur up to Sundernagar and further north.  This is Highway 21 and the road most people take on their way to Manali.  The second option was to take the Chand-Zikarpur bypass through Panchkula, Pinjore, Kalka, and Shimla before merging into Highway 21.

I had stopped and asked a couple of people the condition of the roads.  Apparently both roads were just fine.  Most people suggested to go through Chandigarh since that was the traditional route to Manali.  I had distant family living in Panchukla, a place I had never visited and didn’t know anything about, so I decided to drive through that and at least get a periphery idea of the town.  It was a small and superficial method of feeling connected to them, having “driven through” their town.  Now I know Panchkula has an army cantonment near it.  The first few kilometers on the Chand-Zikarpur bypass has banquet halls developing, some are already there and others are being constructed.  There is a lot of construction everywhere.  Roads, buildings, and hotels are being built.  I could see the big green road signs to the undoubtedly new sectors.  One hotel right at the beginning of the bypass, Hotel Sun Park, a 3-star venue, goes for Rs. 1795 double occupancy regular rate.  I could have gotten it for Rs. 1300 for single occupancy for that night.

But, to go back to my adventure at the bypass – I had stopped and pulled over at a point in the highway where going straight would take me to Chandigarh or a U-turn would put me on towards Panchkula.  I was off the road looking at the maps and considering which route to take.  It was clear the preferred route was through Chandigarh but I could just as easily go through Kalka and Shimla.  This is when a police officer decided to come up to me.  Apparently, I had stopped at a main point in the artery.  “Why are you stopped here?  Where are you coming from?”, he asked me after looking at my Delhi license plate.  I answered his questions.  He wasn’t satisfied.  He asked me to pull up to the police booth where 3-4 other cops were stationed. 

I was a bit perturbed and for a moment thought, “Hey, this guy is on foot.  I could easily just take off and he’d never catch me.  He could note my license plate and track me down or he could not bother.  I could chance it.”  Of course, I didn’t, too damn law-abiding I guess.  I took my car to the police booth, which meant I had to do the U-turn and be on the Panchkula route, and the guy drilled me again.  He said the fine for stopping on the highway like that was Rs. 2000.  I had no intention to argue with him but I asked him wasn’t it better that I pulled over to look at the map rather than driving and looking at it?  He was a bit taken back.  I guess that was too logical an answer to his soon to come bribe request.  I told him I was sorry, I was off the road, and just trying to figure out my route.  He then said I should give him Rs. 1000.  I almost gave him a couple hundred bucks but Rs. 1000 wasn’t going to happen.

We kept talking for a minute or two when one of his seniors came up to me and said, “Just give him whatever you’re going to give him and be on your way.”  This was a direct request for a bribe, more direct than I had expected.  I guess it was their turn to surprise me.  By now I was getting a bit pissed off.  If he was going to ticket me, then fine (yes, police officers on highways in India do ticket you!).  I wasn’t about to give him money for pulling over and being a safe driver, at least not yet and not as much as he wanted.  The cop was now being called back to the booth by the other police officers and was clearly also getting frustrated at me for not giving him some buksheesh.  Eventually, he said with part pissed-offness and part incredulous surprise (at my desire to not pay him) that I could go on my way.  Aha, finally!  Off I went to Panchkula!

Would my reaction to the police officer have been very different if I was a local desi?  Would I have been treated with less harshness or more (he didn’t know I was not local)?  Would I have given into him and paid him?  My way of handling the situation had to do with my stubborness to not pay this guy a bribe (especially for what I considered a good and safe driving practice of pulling over to read a map).  It probably also had to do with the fact that I have experienced North American life where bribes don’t happen (well, not in this manner anyway.  One can argue being a pretty girl smiling and apologizing to the cops who then let you off the hook was bribery/manipulation at some level).  If I broke the law and I was in California, I got a ticket, there wasn’t much to discuss.  If I broke the law and I was in Boston, I may have gotten off with a warning unless it was a major violation (which this wasn’t).

North India Trip – Overview

A few statements are in order as an overview of this trip before I proceed into the day-to-day happenings.

First, I knew I wanted to get to Leh via Manali.  I hadn’t determined the exact route to it yet.  I had my maps in the Outlook Traveller guides and knew of my options.  More so, I intended to stop and ask people for directions and, importantly, current road conditions before deciding.

Second, this was a trip that was not rigidly planned.  And it was like this by design.  The idea was to experience north India on my way to Leh, not just arrive at the destination and then “tour”.  I was a traveller, not a tourist.  And I intended to enjoy the full drive, not just Leh, which was the main destination although Kullu Manali were right up there also.

Third, and tied to the previous two points, this trip was about spontaneity.  I had a rough idea of the number of days I planned to stay at each place based on the sites to see when I got there but I intended to go with the flow.  I’ve done many trips with very tight plans.  Since I was taking the time off from work/business to do this, I wanted to do it right.

Fourth, I had intended to drive up to Leh via Manali but was hoping to drive back via Srinagar.  When I had left Delhi, the Amarnath crisis was still going on and Jammu and Srinagar were under curfew.  There were discussions going on at high levels to resolve the issue.  I had optimistically expected it would be solved by the time I was ready to leave Leh and that I could in fact come back via Srinagar.  This was a to-be-determined issue depending on existing conditions.

Fifth, while I could have stopped and visited family on this tour, I had no intention of doing that.  This was a trip for myself!

The Foundation of Love: Potential or an Illusion

Love is a strong word.  Real love.  True love.  Deep love.  It’s something that doesn’t happen often.  No, I am not in love, far from it.  But the fact I’m writing this post should tell you something!

Yes, for the first time in a long time, I feel the potential of love.  I am jumping the gun here.  I’ve only talked to this woman a few times now.  I haven’t even met her.  That’s how much I may be jumping the gun.  Yet, the fact remains that the potential feeling of synergy is there.  We communicate in similar ways, we have similar ideas, we laugh at similar things, we’re serious about similar things as well.  Many factors that contribute to the foundation of love, and a good marriage, are there.

Like any good love story, though, there has to be an obstacle.  Since this isn’t Bollywood, no third party human villain exists (at least not that I know of ).  Our obstacle is where we would live.  I am in New Delhi now, so is she.  She wants to stay here.  I have told her I am considering going back to the US.  In our first conversation I brought this up.  She said quite strongly she wanted to live in Delhi or Bombay but also said she needs to understand the full context before making a decision (i.e., are we really the ones for each other!).  I told her if she wants to stay in India and that’s the only option, then we should not proceed.  I wouldn’t want to waste her time (nor mine).  She felt we should keep talking and see how things go.

Today, she told me she is not so sure about it.  We were having such a great conversation and then out of nowhere she mentions her concern about location.  We both laughed at her timing on this.  I felt bummed out – it’s over before it started – and I told her so.  Because this was important and she had brought it up, I revisited the topic directly and asked her if she had already decided (she seemed to be strongly leaning towards Delhi) or if she’s still in the process and it was just a statement she was making (for whatever reason).  She said it was just a statement.  I took her word on it.  But now I wonder, only slightly, if I am putting too much faith in her, after all I barely know her.  If I am, so be it.  I wouldn’t do it any other way.  But if she had determined she could only live in India, we would have stopped talking.

After this discussion, we stayed on the phone for a while longer (another hour or so actually).  She said she was going to sleep on it.  It feels like the potential for love is gone even before it could become real.  Potential doesn’t seem like the right word now.  Illusion is more like it.  Or a mirage on the road – you think you see the road being wet but it’s just the sun’s reflection.

I hope I’m wrong.  I’d like to keep talking to this woman. 

Life repeats itself.  Sometimes by chance.  Sometimes by design.  Sometimes just 10 days to a month later.  (Uhm uhm!)  All I can do is know this silently and keep the talks going.  It is frustrating but what can one do.  If life is going to play a game with me, I’ll let her enjoy it and play along.  It will all come together if it is meant to.  Love will come my way if it’s supposed to – today or tomorrow.  It’s destiny.  It’s karma.

Why Are Indians Stuck So Much in the Past?

I find it interesting in reading news articles and hearing political commentators talk about activities in the 1950s or 1960s or 1980s.  And I sit there thinking, why are you comparing today to something so many years ago?  Again, it’s a matter of a degrees.  Once in a while to hear comparisons from way back is useful, instructive and appropriate.  It can even be nostalgic and have positive sentiments associated with it.  If it happens as frequently as it does, it’s not okay. 

It’s as if the politicians are stuck in yesteryear rather than today.  The world was completely different in the 60s.  Who cares what happened back then?  Take a look at this article.  Here, Mr. P.K. Doshi, director of the National Centre for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research, is comparing grain production from an era that has no comparison to today.  The population is no where near what it was then.  Food requirements are radically different.  The technology has changed.  How is it instructional to compare today’s issues with those of the 60s?

This isn’t a one-off thing.  It would have never caught my attention to begin with if it was.  It’s something that you hear from older people all the time.  I think it’s okay to remember the good times from the past, it’s our memories after all.  I also think reflecting back to history is positive, I do it myself.  But, it’s a completely different thing when you hear government leaders talk about daily life issues today and over 4-5 decades ago and making benchmark statements based on 40 to 50 year differences.

This is something symptomatic of the entire nation, it’s our culture, to look back into the past constantly.  I think India needs to readjust this and become more forward looking in more things more often.  There is a fine line between an instructional review of history and being content with today’s progress by considering the condition of things decades ago.