6 PM on a Sunday evening, and me and my friend, Hazer are chatting away at our usual hangout – the parking lane in between the museum and Kanakakunnu palace in Trivandrum. Not knowing what to do next, we decide on going for a movie. Now, the best part of Trivandrum city is that there are atleast 15 cinemas that you can browse through during a 2km drive. I have read somewhere that probably Trivandrum has the highest density of movie theatres of all! So we screen movie by movie en route and finally reach the New Theatre which was showing ‘Kites’. Just about managed to get a ticket in the non-balcony section, with 5 minutes to go for the movie.

After so much fanfare the movie ended up being a disappointment. As the movie started I had this feeling (which I seem to get regularly while watching Hindi movies nowadays) that I have seen all this somewhere before. After some hard thinking, it turned out that the starting plot of the movie was eerily similar to Woody Allen’s ‘Match Point’. But somewhere on the way it started deviating from that plot and merged into the plot of Quentin Tarantino’s ‘True Romance’. Bollywood script writers are getting smart these days. Blending and mixing. If only they knew how to do it better! The last 15 minutes were the worst! It was slower than watching paint dry. You knew what was going to happen, and the director seemed to be bent on killing you softly while unveiling his masala melodrama. Ouch!

Outside after the show, it was raining heavily. And that ended up making me totally over the moon with nostalgia. That regular routine we had almost every other evening after college – dropping off my friends at their homes, the lonely 10km drive to my house, the sound of the rain drops and the perfect old mallu songs on the radio. Atleast the movie gave me a chance to do all that once again. The saving grace!

02:15 am, National Highway 63, around 15 kilometers before Hubli…

A Mahindra Bolero screeched to a stand-still on the other side of the road. As we got out of the vehicle, I could see 2 burly guys in white shirts holding something that looked like a hockey stick. My skin went pale and I could feel a cold chill pass through my spine. Scared to death, but the first thing I thought of? ‘Finally, the “blog” incident I needed for this trip!’

Two days earlier…

This was going to be my third Goa trip in 6 months. But I was always thrilled by Goa’s atmosphere, moreover we were driving and it was my first chance to try the Scorpio. So I could safely say that I was all excited in anticipation.

For the onward journey, we had taken a rather unconventional route from Bangalore, via Belgaum into Maharashtra (Sawantwadi) and then to Goa. The roads were narrow and mountainous after we crossed the Maharashtra border. But it was decently maintained and had low traffic with the added plus of a scenic drive through the villages and mountains. We reached Goa by about 10. The next two days was spent on experiencing the things that you come to Goa for – the beaches and the booze! My co-travelers were also much luckier than me with the casinos and managed to win around 5k!

But the real adventure started after we left Goa. We took the more standard route back, via Karwar and Hubli. Somewhere on the forest roads towards Hubli, after Yellapur, our headlights started to dim out. We first thought the battery had gone weak and then realized that the alternator had burnt out. The electrical systems in the car started failing one by one and finally our headlights were gone and we were left with just one feeble park-light. There were no big settlements before reaching Hubli, which was still around 50-60 kms away. It was already 11PM and our best chance would have been to get to Hubli somehow and find a mechanic there. So we stuck to the first truck we could find with a proper enough backlight and tailed along with it, with no lights of our own at all.

After a few kilometers of tagging along, the truck driver in front of us stopped as he realized that we were in trouble. He came to have a look but there was nothing he could fix. Hubli was still 25 km away and the driver told us to keep following him, and that he’ll guide us to Hubli. So we went along. 10 km ahead and our engine cut off. There was not enough power to even drive the control unit of the engine. :( Tough luck. The same technology that is bread and butter for me via Bosch, made us get stuck in the middle of nowhere.

We asked the truck driver to carry on, since there was nothing more he could do. We pushed the car to the side of the road and tried in vain to reach everyone (the limited few) whom we knew of, in Hubli. We called up the Hubli traffic police and informed them of our situation. But they couldn’t do anything either till morning. We couldn’t even lock the car, because the battery didn’t have enough power to roll the car windows back up. We were basically stuck; without food or water till morning which was still 8 hours away. So we set up camp inside the car. The mood was still ok, with everyone joking about all that happened. Then came the Bolero; just after 2 o’clock while we were still sitting and chatting.

…

The two big guys rushed towards us and asked me something in Kannada. I told him I don’t understand the language very well. He gave me a cold stare, and then proceeded to go through all of our luggage. We (atleast me) were still scared to speak much. Suddenly as the Bolero moved to cross the road into our side, I noticed a green board with the lettering ‘Police’. I breathed a big sigh of relief! They asked us a lot of questions and still looked very intimidating. They told us that the road is not very safe, but what could we do – we cannot abandon the car there and go. They told us to stay there at our own risk and then get a mechanic in the morning. Then they took away 3 bottles of port wine that we had bought in Goa telling that it wasn’t legal (my @#%#)! But loosing a bit of wine was way better than what I had thought would happen initially; so it wasn’t that bad ;). We were terribly disappointed by the attitude they showed to us; though. Not even showing a hint of helpfulness.

After this incident I guess we all started to get tense. Only then we started to realize how much of a risk we were taking staying at that place. There were too many what-ifs running through my mind. What if the an overtaking truck knock us off the highway? What if a group of thugs come and beat us up? etc etc. I couldn’t sleep for even a bit, till the sun came back out.

Morning came as a relief of all of us. Ranjith suggested that we push start the vehicle. It didn’t seem a great idea to me; since the engine could cut off while running at any moment the battery dies out. But we decided to try and then limp ahead to Hubli some 15 more kilometers ahead. We pulled out all the equipment that could take away even a milliamp of power – the horn, the music system, the brake-light, the indicators – everything, leaving the engine control unit all the bits of power it could get to make the engine running for atleast 30 minutes. We push started the car and went as fast as we could to Hubli. And we made it! 8.30 am and we were finally back in civilization and in the Hubli railway station parking lot. We got a mechanic to repair our alternator. It took us 5 or 6 more hours; but finally we had the car repaired; all roaring to go. No worries left, we reached Bangalore, just before midnight.

All’s well that ends well! :)

Map of the route we took. Marker ‘F’ is approximately the place we got stuck.

Goa photos coming soon!

Goa has been in my mind for quite a long time and each time we have planned a Goa trip; something or the other would eventually block the trip somehow. So the other day two of my colleagues Arun and Gummy (Goutam) came and asked me whether I knew any place where to get a self drive rental car to go to Goa, I joked that I’ll get them one if they take me along too. In the end; we eventually left in Gummy’s Swift and not the rented car; but I still managed to get a seat along with Gummy, Mathew and their two room-mates Rakesh and Rakshak.

We started off from Bangalore in the evening; a bit apprehensive about the road conditions and driving at night. However almost everything went along smoothly except for some stretches of bad roads in between and some scary maneuvering by ‘some’ of the drivers just to make sure that the ABS works ;) We had begun a round of betting in the car as to when we would reach Goa. Bids ranged from 4.30 AM to 8.30 AM, but Rakesh got it perfect at 8. Once in Goa we had a brilliant government guest house to host us; courtesy Mr. Mathew. Along with an A/C room; a complimentary breakfast all for the price of Rs 40 per head. Now that’s what I call value for money!

After dozing off till evening; we were ready for our first (mis)adventure. We went to the Casino! I know you would be already guessing as to where this story is heading to… and yeah you are right! We went all-in and we returned all-out! But as we consoled ourselves after the fiasco; it was indeed a different experience. Now we can say that we have tasted sweet victory in a casino despite the bigger bite of bitterness in the end. Next destination was Baga beach. The shack restaurants on the beach were awesome. The atmosphere with the IPL matches going on in one place and karaoke in another one with people dancing all around was amazing. We had initially planned to go to a disc and even got entry into one (using Mr. Mathew’s influence off course). But then we were so comfortable at the shacks that we decided to drop out on that. The other reason could also be interpreted as the lack in willingness to go in a disc as a stag and drool over the hot chicks while they were dancing with other guys.. ahh.. no .. we didn’t want to look like losers! :p So we stayed at the shack very late into the night and finally came back to Panaji (were our guesthouse was) and crashed into bed.

Next day was quite the same pattern with us sleeping most of the day. Afternoon we went up to Wagathore beach where Aamir Khan and his buddies had done their gig in ‘Dil Chahtha He’. It was a short trek up to a fort near the beach. The view from there was spectacular; covered on three sides with the sea and nice looking beaches. After a few photos we headed back down. The scorching sun sucked all the energy out of us and at one point it seemed that it was impossible to move a muscle! But we overcame that and headed towards Condolim beach to do some water sports. But it was way too expensive there; so we headed to Calangute were the prices were much better. We did a round of parasailing (which is awesome; you should try it once) and also a trip on the water scooters (which is not so great; unless you convince the guy to let you drive the scooter). After that we crashed back to Baga which was not that far away.

We stayed on at the shack long into the night and then after we were convinced that we were drunk enough we headed back to Panaji. On reaching Panaji; Gummy and Mathew wanted to go back. Now that wouldn’t have been a crazy idea if Baga wasn’t 25 km away and it was already 2.30 am. But anyway I was game for it too; and Gummy, Mathew and I went back. We were caught by the police thrice; and I’m really impressed with the user-friendliness of the Goa Police. They just asked me for my driving license and when I produced it; one guy just quipped whether I was sure that it’s my photo in the DL (it was taken 6 or 7 years back you see). But that was it! They just waved us off. Cool! The trip back was really worth it and a feast to our eyes. The carnival atmosphere was still going strong even at 4′o clock in the morning! After a satisfying and ‘educational’ trip we headed back home.

Next day was our last in Goa and after filling up the car with the legal amount of liquor we were allowed to carry back we returned back to a mostly uneventful drive back. On the way we also had a short stopover at Old Goa were we visited the church of St. Francis Xavier. I had heard of this person in a Social Studies lesson in third standard and always wanted to visit his grave; where his body still lies preserved after 500 years. One more tick in my checklist. The guys also put on some temporary tattoos on their hands; I wasn’t that wild enough to do that; even though I should have tried something like that.

That was it. Our Goa trip. And in the end I can say that Goa is simply awesome. Don’t ever miss a chance to go there! If somebody asks you to arrange a self-drive car to go to Goa; always say Yes!

A few weeks ago one of my German friends, Juergen had come over to India. I spend a few days driving him around and showing him places. Well as for any foreigner it did take a while for him to trust the way we drive – it progressed from a scary horror thriller to ‘I don’t know how, but I won’t get hurt’. He used to even call me ‘hell-raiser’ when it comes to driving, even though that upped my ego a bit, I don’t think I am that good :D . One of the things he was confused from day one and something that he never quite got used to is our seemingly random honking. He used to ask me, last time when we went on this road you honked at least once every 5 seconds, but now you didn’t honk for an hour – why? Well he hasn’t quite caught up to the method in all the chaos and I see that there is no authentic guide to honking in India, anywhere on the net. So I have decided to take up the challenge and here you have it.

1. Presence Honking
This particular type of honk is usually of short amplitude and used with high frequency. It is a very polite way of telling the others on the road that you are ‘there’. It is kind of like an animal marking his or her territory. The meaning of it varies with the size of the vehicle too. If it is a bus that is using it, it means – if you cross my path you are dead. If its a motorbike – if you cross my path I am dead. All other variants come in between.

2. What-the-****-are-you-doing Honking
This is a rather impolite but effective way of abusing your fellow road users. It is second in frequency only to Presence honking. Using it always gives a boost to your ego, declaring it yourself to the people around you, that you know everything there is to know, when it comes to driving. This is best done in short bursts of very high loudness and honk-length.

3. Traffic-Light Honking
This is used in many different scenarios at the traffic light. One use is when you think that the person in front of you is blind and has not started moving yet when there is only 5 seconds to go for the light to turn green. Another is rather supernatural or spiritual. It is based on the belief that if you honk a few times, the red light will turn to green faster. It doesn’t harm you to try it does it?

4. The Enquiry Honk
This is even more polite than variant 1. A very polite way to enquire whether you get the right of way. It is used while you try to overtake or is not sure who has the right of way in an intersection. The answers you get and the manner in which you get them can be very varied. You must have the presence of mind to choose the appropriate path of action very quickly or alas you are again dead.

5. The Pointless Honk
Ok, this happens usually when you are annoyed with your boss, or had a quarrel with your wife. You use this horn to vent out your inner troubles. But be very careful as to when you use this. If timing is wrong this type of honking can be easily mistaken for any of the above four variants and cause unexpected page faults. (sorry had to put in a Com. Sci. PJ in somewhere :D )

Yup, that would have prepared you a bit to take on the roads in India. Now all you need is quite a huge amount of courage and a lot of luck. All the best!

PS: Hell.. they should start giving out PhDs for driving in India. It has so much of science and art in it! :D

We planned and even started off the latest in the series of ‘Keeral’ trips with the destination set to Goa. We even booked a place to stay there for a change, but circumstances (to be specific ‘Traffic’ and professional unpunctuality) made us end up at Chikmagalur, a good 700 kilometres away! First of all, we were left hung out to dry by some idiot in Calicut who had promised to rent us an Innova. We were delayed by around 8 hours when finally we managed to get a replacement car (a Qualis!). The plan was that Kurian and Hazer drove to Bangalore, meet the rest of the gang here and leave in the evening. But we ended up leaving Bangalore at 11.30 PM instead. And to our luck all the roads were jam packed with lorries and buses owing to the Diwali rush. So we made a quick decision to change routes and head towards Chikmagalur without having much of an idea about what to expect there.

Bad luck didn’t seem to end with the traffic though. It was around 5am now and I had been driving for around 3hrs and thinking about handing over the wheel to Hazer. But then the roads became suddenly better and I thought maybe a little bit more. Well bad judgement! As we were cruising along the superb roads, suddenly a huge gutter appeared from nowhere and before anything could be done, the car was in it with a huge thud. I knew something was wrong then and there as the steering suddenly had a jerk. We had to stop and luckily the town of Hassan was just 4 km away. We decided to limp on till there and get help. But that would mean another 3 or 4 more hours lost because the earliest of the earliest workshop guy would open shop max at 9. So we decided to do a gamble and change the front tyres because we had a feeling that the problem was that the wheel-rim was bent. Bad luck didn’t end there either, we did not have a lifting jack in the car to prop it up and change tyres. A good lorry driver lent us one though and we managed to do it and bingo problem solved! :(

The road from Hassan to Chikmagalur was awesome and picturesque. We stopped over at the town, had our breakfast, still having no clue as to what to do next. We called up Kurians friend and he told us about a few worthwhile places around. So we set off to the first one in the list – ‘Kemmangundi’. The road was all kaput, but the spectacular vistas made up for it more than enough. It took us a lot of time to traverse the 50 km to the place, but I would say it was great to be forced to drive slow as we could soak in the brilliant atmosphere around. We booked a place to stay there and head off to a place called ‘Point Z’. The road was motorable only for a little bit and after that you have to trek. I went along for a while but seeing the steepness of the mountains to climb I chickened out and went back to the car while the others continued. It wasn’t much of a miss though, since the peak was covered with mist. The one hour I spent waiting in the car was a totally different experience! It was mystical, alone in the forest, no access to mobile networks, knowing the nearest human is at least 5km away. I tried to soak in the experience as much as I could before my tiredness got the better off me and pushed me to sleep.

The night was spent in a dilapidated cottage playing cards and gossiping. Two years on and we still had something about college to talk about! The food was not that great and damn expensive – but that didn’t stop us from spending close to a thousand bucks there! The other major incident was the fight against the leeches. Each time somebody removes one from his leg, the next guy would start yelling ‘Leech!’ It seemed to go on endlessly. After a lot of blood and a lot of salt we managed to win the battle (it seemed).

Next day morning the plan was laid to go off to Kudremukh. We stopped over again at Chikmagalur town to have lunch and continued on to the next leg of the trip. We ended up driving most of the day, but again the roads were good and the surroundings smashtacular! At Kudremukh we went to this place called as Gangamoola which is the place were the mighty Tungabhadra river starts. It was again a nice place, but with more leeches. This time we were more careful and didn’t let too many of the slimy little things to prey on us. The only place to stay in Kudremukh is a forest department dormitory unless you are an employee of the iron ore company there. It was a very cheap option and also had the added thrill of staying right in the middle of the forest, though nothing noteworthy really happened there.

Next day was an early start since the guys had to reach back in Calicut by atleast 8PM before dropping us in Mysore. The roads again were beautiful by all means. We were able to do 200 km easily in 2-2.5 hours. By lunch time we had reached Mysore, had food at a mallu hotel there and it was time for us to split. Being totally unplanned we weren’t able to enjoy all the places to the fullest. We calculated that out of the 84 hours of the trip, around 50 was spent driving! But I’m not complaining at all! :) All the places we went to had a lot more to offer and I’m sure we’ll be back, well prepared next time!

Album @ Picasa