12th Nov 2004 – 16th Nov 2004: Delhi and around!!!
12th Nov 2004: First day in Delhi, I decide to spend with my sister and her family. In afternoon I contact Bora to meet up and ask about some good mechanic around Noida. He tells me about Jhon’s place near India gate. After lunch I decide to go and meet Papu to replace one of the blown bulbs in the speedo console. At papu’s place I also meet up with Bora. Papu seems to be a very well known guy as I see lots of bike parked at his place. After he has fixed the blown bulb and the faulty brake light switch, he refused to take any money, knowing that I’m out on a ride. Very rare to find such people in today’s world.
13th Nov 2004: In the morning I started off towards Ghaziabad to meet my Aunty. It is a bit cold here and thanks to the jacket gifted by my sister I’m not feeling much of it. Roads here are very nice as compared to back in Pune, though the same can not be said about people following traffic rules. People here also keep on jumping traffic lights as I experienced during my past few minutes riding on Noida roads. Riding as per the instructions I got from my bro in law, I’m soon out of Noida, heading towards Ghaziabad. Once I hit traffic, I’m surprised by the higher average riding speed here. It took me few km’s to get used to the difference in riding speeds, to what I’m used to. After riding for an hour or so, enjoying the weather and beautiful roads I enter my aunty’s place. Thankfully it is on the outskits of Ghaziabad, I’m saved riding into the traffic. They all are shocked when I told them that I have ridden all the way from Pune, on a bike. Having spent my whole childhood at her place in Delhi, she knew I’m crazy but I will do something like this she never thought off.
In eve we have to go to drop my cousin sister to her inlaws place, a small village some 60kms towards Bulandshahr. Having my own bike here, no way I’m going to travel in UP state buses. So I tied some of the lugguage on my bike and heads towards destination. Have never ridden in UP before and I’m advised to ride carefully as people here drive like maniacs. The road is quite good, a nice wide two lane with good surface. Some of the bus and car/jeep drivers are mad but then similar people do exists in and around Pune as well. I covered the distance at a slow pace in around 2 hrs. Rest of the day is spent talking to people here. In evening a relative, couldn’t curb his wish and aked me if he can ride the bullet for a small distance, couldn’t say no. Few minutes later, after having a small ride on the road made up of bricks and mud he comes back and nods his head before saying that, this is “the bike”, I just coudn’t say but smile. It seems he also wanted a bullet but the high cost and low mileage kept him off from buying it and he landed up buying a Enticer.
14th Nov 2004: Having spent the whole day at my sister’s in laws place, we started back to Ghaziabad late noon. Just few km’s to Ghaziabad it got dark and I lost my way. Sense of using high beam in dark over here is also not very good. Some how asking people for directions I reached my Aunty’s place in night. Two days of riding in UP has tempted me to come back sometime in future to ride more in this state.
15th Nov 2006: Today is a big day for me. I’ll be riding back to Delhi to meet up with all the people’s I have lost touch to. I started off early morning from Ghaziabad towards my school in Connaught Place. The route is not a problem as I have travelled on it for many months in DTC buses. After crossing Ghaziabad town, lots of development hapenning here as well, I’m on the highway riding towards Delhi. The road hasn’t changed much. I’m to enter Delhi from ITO side. Some road’s hasn’t changed and some have changed a lot. As I’m reaching near to Connaught Place, memories of old days are playing in fast forward mode in my mind. “Regal cinema hall” place where I have watched numerous movies with my school friends. Taste of that big yummy bread pakora, which we get inside cinema hall, I still can’t forget. “Shivaji stadium” the bus stand hasn’t changed much and the hockey stadium is still the same. Looking at these places, riding slowely I almost goes back in time. Soon I’m outside my school gate.
I park the bike outside and walk in the school. Guys in white school uniform are running around. I first move towards Principal office, our sir has retired and one of mam has taken the charge. I tried to remind her about my batch, since she hasn’t taught our division much, she faintly remember me. After spending few minutes talking with her I head towards teachers room and could only find one sir whom I know. From him I get to know that almost every sir and mam has retired and some of them had left us for ever. Suddenly I realise that lots of time has gone by. After a nice long talk with sir I move towards my Engineering drawing classroom, as that sir is still teaching. He still remembers me as I got to know by the smile on sir’s face as I enter the room.
This room is still the same, students using their drawing boards trying to draw cross-sectional view of some object. After spending some time with sir, refreshing old memories I head towards the canteen. It’s the same crew working there and the canteen guy still remimbers me, after all I probably would be one of the guys who used to eat the most of rajma-chawal and choley-chawal’s of his.
I came out of school with a heavy heart with destiny reminding me in a cruel way that a lot of time has passed since the day I last stepped out of the gates of this building. Next I’m heading towards my friend’s place right behind my school. Reaching there I’m dissapointed to know that they have moved to a new house whose address, these people don’t know. I now head towards my other friend’s house. I pass by the small, traffic rules training school where we used to ride cycles. I have to ride towards Karol Bagh and the route is firmly there in my mind. Riding on these roads, I used to travel for years in bus gave me a very nostalgic feeling. On reaching my friend’s house, disappointment is waitng for me, he also has moved to some new house with no one knowing the exact address. Next I head towards my aunty’s old house, where I used to live. Riding into the small lane on my bike, I never thought I will be doing that. The place hasn’t changed at all except for the small kids have grown big, some elderly people had left us and lots of new young faces. For lots of people when I left I was a small kid and many were not able to recognise me. Spending next few hours between these people reminded me of the good old days of my childhood. As sun started to move downwards, I decide to return back with reminding myself that I need to come back here once again. The ride back to Ghaziabad is full of mixed feelings but finally I did for what I have started from Pune few days back.
16th Nov 2004: There is a unexpected ride awaiting today for me, something which I have not planned for. Today I’ll be riding to a small town called “Gulaothi” which is some 36km’s from Hapur (36kms from Ghaziabad). The purpose of visit is to see a girl whom I might get married to (in case people wonder, I do got married to her in Feb the following year). Once again I refused to travel in the bus, my cousing brother and his young daughter were forced to come with me on my bike. We starts early in the morning so that we can return back in time, as next day I’m planing to ride towards Himachal Pradesh. With me on the rider’s seat and my brother in pillion seat and the little girl in middle of us, we start our ride towards Hapur. Unlike the road to Bulandshahr this road is very good, nice 4 lane road with divider in middle, after all it’s the GT Road. In around an hour we enter Hapur town and ask for directions towards Gulaothi. Once we are on the road to Gulaothi, for first few km’s the road is good and then it turns into a bumy surface. Thanks to the suspension of the bullet neither of us find it uncomfortable. It took us well over an hour to reach Gulaothi. Next few hours were spent doing the meeting etc. While returning, I’m told about alternate route that will avoid the bumpy road towards Hapur. This is a nice empty wide single lane state road with many small villages on the way. We are back in Ghaziabad after a nice small ride and after a small discussion; I start towards my sister’s house in Nodia, from where I’ll be heading towards Himachal Pradesh next day.
So far I have ridden for almost 570km’s, since I have arrived in Delhi, filling fuel at different places.
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