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Friday, March 24, 2006

MY ADVENTURE TRIP!!!

Few days back just before Holi, I got an oppurtunity of leaving behind the hustles of city life and experience the divinity in the lap of nature. I along with my friends Havish and Gaurav went to Chikhaldara, a hillstation which is 300 kms from Nagpur.


I call it an adventure trip coz we planned it just within few hours and by the time we realized that we had to leave it was already 10 pm. But then it is said that fortune favours the brave and hence we set out on this journey and left for Amravati at 11 pm by bus. we reached Amravati at 3 am and just like any typical Indian town, were waiting desperately for a cab to take us to the Bus Stop. till we could find any conveyence, we strolled around and found ourselves in the Campus of Punjabrao Deshmukh Medical College. The night was chilly and even though we were completely covered with our jackets, we were still shivering. Later we examined the campus for few minutes and then decided to continue our search for the cab.Finally we got an autorickshaw and reached the bus stop at 3.45 am. After we had a painful short nap (since we were tired) we contitued our journey for Chikhaldara on a new Bus at 6.45 am.



The route to Chikhaldara was completely through the forest of Melghat. All along the journey we travelled through Ghats and jungles. The bus took small stops in small villages and people from local tribes joined us in our journey. They were going to Chikhaldara on account of the Holi Market, which crops up every year. During our journey we saw extensive and beautiful fields. The scenic view was much better than any other screensaver available in the market. We reached the place at 10.30 am and started our search for a hotel room (since the journey was unplanned). We could figure out that there were 2 confereces going on andd hence all the rooms in good hotels were booked. This time both tired and hungry we continued our search for an houranf finally got a roomin the best hotel available.


After getting fresh and having a peaceful meal, we continued our journey and set out for the panoramic view of valleys and waterfalls present around. We saw the local Forest Museum and got acquainted with the local animals and tribes living in the nearby forest area. We continued to move further and saw Devi Point, a temple inside a creepy cave. Later we went to an echo point called Panch Bol ( Five words), were one can here the echo of a single word atleast five times. I must say we were completely taken over by the marvelous experience of nature.








Further we saw some valleys and forests. Some of the valleys were so deep that we could not even look at its bottom, due to the fear of falling inside (now dont think I am a coward, but those who know me know it well how adventurous I am). We experienced the virgin beauty of waterfalls and forests. The sound of gushing water was equivalent to that of any other jet present in todays era.


The next day we left on an adventure trip towards Kalalkund. It is called so because of the extensive depth of the waterfall and the depth of the valley. In our 8 km trek, we came across different small streams rocky terrains. Believe me the experience of climbimg those rolly hills with any supportive gear was mind blowing. Also the rocks were completely vertical and the thrill of climbing them was like a journey to hell and back, all alive and in single piece. After a 2 km trek we saw a beautiful fall which originated from a big piece of rock, probably equivalent to a mountain. I was the first one to climb that rocky mountain and trust me my feelings were even more powerful than what must have been felt by Leonardo Di Caprio and Kate winslet in Titanic.


Our trip became even more enthusiastic when we realized that two more people have joined us. These magnificient personalities were Kenny and Rama. Kenny was 74 years old and Ex-Vice President, Hewlett Packard, India, while his wife Rama, 68 years old was a housewife. Looking at their courage we were determined to do every possible activity and feel the extremes of nature's fury. However, one man who increased our experience multiple times was our Guide Veerappan. He had a moustache more than 1 feet long. He was the best guide one could ask for since he was a native of a nearby village and knew the region more than any one else could.


Moving ahead, we came across another fall which was probably 4 times the size of the first fall. Initially I was reluctant, but later I could muster enogh courage to climb it and dude, I AM THE KING OF THE WORLD! Looking at me Havish and Gaurav too overcame this daring feat and later the incident became and inseperable part of my life. Though Kenny and Rama never climbed any hill, on the contrary the movements of Veerappan were so swift that he could climb the hill without any support within just few minutes.


Finally we reached Kalalkund and I was thrilled to see this amazing face of nature. The water of all the previous falls combined to form a river and this river further fell into Kalalkund, a valley with a depth of more than 2000 feet. Inorder to get a feel of its depth we tried all possible moves but still couldnt find a suitable view. Finally we moved further on a different hill and from there we could see the strength of Nature. We were so thrilled that we nearly forgot all other things in this world. The sound of the fall of water was deafening and was powerful enough to break anything in its way into pieces. After this awful experience we returned to our basecamp, our hotel.

While I was packing my bags, I could feel a desire growing inside me to stay back and spend some more time in the lap of mother earth, and maybe build my own house near a fall. I know it sounds childish, but mother earth has truly inspired the child in me. And just like a small baby I too wanted to have the care and affection of my mother. So with a sad heart we left the place but firm desire to return again and pay my respects to my Mother Earth!

Friday, March 10, 2006

We just had TRADITIONAL DAY in our college. I thought that its a good idea to express our regards to our culture. Also its fun to be a part of such event. I was dressed like a Marwadi Seth. Here's my pic. Do check it out! Posted by Picasa