Home Sweet Home

Ok i'm back after a short but much needed break to my hometown.It would be an understatement if i just said that i missed this place and my co-bloggers here...and i'm certainly glad to be back doing what i enjoy doing most these days.
A brief update on the trip - Reached Delhi on 11th(Friday) and spent the next 2 days catching up with my college buddies there, and hanging around in Vasant Vihar,GK(M block) and Noida.
Thereafter reached home in Chandigarh on Sunday and enjoyed the usual royal treatment courtesy my doting mother.
On Monday i met up with 3 schooltime pals and almost immediately a plan was hatched up to do a trek to the closest hillstation to Chandigarh - Kasauli.
Chandigarh is basically a plain but is beautifully located right in the shadows of the Shivalik range of the mighty Himalayas.The hill station of Kasauli is actually visible from my rooftop at home...it's just a 2 hour drive away!
So on last Tuesday morning all friends gathered at my place at 6am (it was after ages that i woke up on tht unearthly hour) and i took dad's car and drove us down to Kalka which is a small town at the bottom of the hills on the Chandigarh-Shimla national highway.We left the car there and asked the locals for the mud track to Kasauli which was used under British rule as the only way to ferry goods.The track of about 20 kms meandered through thick vegetation and a steep gradient, and would've been pretty straightforward had it not been for the rough weather.
Initially no one felt the strain of the climb as we cracked jokes and recollected old memories along the way....the entire forest around us was lined up with himalayan monkeys and langurs...and an amusing incident was when 1 of them ran down and snatched a packet of Chips from my friend and went back up a tree...my friend had done the mistake of offering a few chips earlier. Afterall that's what the Chips' punchline in the ad says..."No one can eat just one." Lol
After about a third of the way, we were almost abruptly surrounded by a thick cloud cover all around us, so much so that the visibility was reduced to less than 10 feet.Though none of us was carrying any warm clothes, we were still enjoying that chilly walk in the clouds....but only until it started raining cats and dogs. We tried to take shelter under a rock on the hillside,but were soon dripping wet. The weather god's fury ended as soon as it had begun,but the damage was done and to make matters worse, icy cold gusts of wind kept blowing the remaining way, and when we finally reached our destination after the 5 hour long ordeal, we were all literally shivering in the freezing cold.
Kasauli being an army cantonement area, it's a small but extremely well maintained and beautiful place,untouched by commercialisation and most of the houses are legacies from the British Raj.Anyways we hurriedly found a decent resteaurant at the mall road and thought of warming up with some vodka. So we literally hogged at the piping hot lunch and washed it down with some Screwdrivers. Then we too tired for anymore sightseeing so simply took a cab down back to Kalka.
Wednesday was Holi...and after a loong rest,i was raring to go to celebrate the fest i was here for.
I got myself some gulal(coloured powder) of red,green and blue colours and after colouring my parents and elusive sister,i went straight to my friend Gaurav's place and we started the usual Holi plan...touring around the city visiting all old friend's homes and colouring everyone.Next Gaurav and i went to Rajneesh's place, then Amit,Shivani,Anshu,Radhika,Nishima and Sweety.
It being a rare cloudy Holi this time most people were not playing with water...but at Anshu's place it got different. We were looking for her when she crept up from behind carrying a bucket full of water to throw...i was quick to notice and caught hold of the bucket and poured it back on her! Lol. Suddenly her brother came out with another bucket and poured it on me...and then all hell broke loose and soon everyone was throwing water on everyone else.In the end we all were drenched and sat together enjoying sweet gujjia's with tea, and recollected which teachers we liked and hated in school...all the pranks we used to play etc.
Then we did some more rounds of the city and it was a joy to see the festive spirit around...guys and gals with unrecognisable multicoloured faces taking rounds and basking in the festive madness...it was like a desi version of Mardi Gras or the Rio carnival.
The remaining days were spent just checking out the old hangouts and meeting up other friends n relatives....most of whom seemed to have just 1 thing to talk about....my marriage plans. Lol, they seemed to be more interested than me!
Anyways i managed to escape unscathed this time too.Hehe...like i joked to them..."Abhi to mere hansne khelne ki umar hai!"
Another thing i noticed for the Nth number of time...why do these air-hostesses have to put up the biggest artificial smiles ever....it's amusing to see them change like a chameleon...grinning at 1 moment....frowning at each other the next!
Whatever said and done....one thing's for certain....there's nothing as sweet as Home.

(Pics - Top: Kasauli as seen from Chandigarh, Bottom: View from Kasauli)