The Coastal Line Experience

After a hectic, tense & emotional week with my parents, it was time to spend my second week with my second set of parents (in-laws). I decided to take the bus route just to explore the progress made in India with regards to Public transport, punctuality, etc. These days bus tickets are all available at Make my trip.com which is a boon to internet users like us. This not only saves time but also saves you money as the ticket price varies from agent to agent depending on the demand vs supply scenario. It was a long journey of 18 hours with a stopover at my home town Bangalore which was never in my travel agenda. This was brought to my notice only when I boarded the bus by the driver. I did not waste time and messaged all my best friends, it was worth it even if the stopover was less than 30 minutes. The bus driver was immensely speedy and covered the Chennai-Bangalore distance in less than 6 hours which is quite commendable. Met my friend, business partner & confidant Madhu along with his children and Rashmi (his wife) who will always have a special place in my life. Venky my other associate could not make it on time but did come in when the bus made its move, after that we could only speak to each other over the phone for more than 30 mts catching up. Business we normally do it on a regular basis, but this was purely personal nostalgic talks. Missed out on Bafna and Preetham, but will try to meet them at some point of time in a much more planned manner. After almost 4 years, had a sumptuous dinner in one of the restaurants at Anand Rao Circle which is known for its taste and started my onward journey to Karwar.

When you live in USA, your friends and colleagues are your extended family. A lot of times, we miss their presence in our lives due to job changes, relocation or just purely winding up and going back to India. Once such family was the Karanths. The other two being the Kotians and Kapoors who unfortunately for me have also moved out of Portland, but again it’s a matter of personal choice which I totally respect and wish them the very best always. Fortunately for me Karanths live in Bangalore, hence made up a master plan of meeting them up in the Mangalore/Karwar belt. They just jumped into the idea like fish taking to water. We suggested them to come over to Karwar and from there we were supposed to lay out further plans, basically the idea was to meet and rest was supposed to like GO WITH THE TIDE types.

The day I arrived which was a Sunday, Mom had already started cooking. Welcome to the land of coconut, shrimps, crabs & sweets. I being a vegetarian and Shweta being a non-vegetarian, my MIL till date has never done any partiality on the menu. There is equal opportunity to both of us to relish the home food. My FIL happens to be a doctor and serves almost 75% of the community in that town. He also does philanthropical work by managing an eye hospital funded by his relatives in USA. I do not want to give out much detail as this is a social forum and my writing should not look like an advertisement. Having said that, if any of you want to do some charity at some point of time, please do donate a small portion of your plans to this organization, contact me at that point, I will be more than glad to help. The thrill of living in smaller towns is to have a hair cut for Rs. 15 (30 cents), an authentic Ayurvedic massage for less than $12 which is quite an experience. I was enjoying my stay with handling my India emails in real time which was a renewed experience after 4 years :- )

The hospital saga continued here as well with our pet, Leo – a Labrador falling sick and had to be consulted with a vet doctor. This dog is a gentle giant who loves kids and bullies the cows from a distance. He loves to eat and likes me a lot as I feed him with whatever I eat :- ) Middle of the week, Shweta had to visit a doctor in Hubli for which we decided to drive down. I was driving a manual geared vehicle with a right hand drive but driven on the left side. Fortunately, it was not such a paradigm shift, went smooth as most the journey, the roads were all maintained. The hot summer season could be a reason as once the monsoon starts, the roads on the coastal line gets really bad. We came back, rested and next day took a journey to Kukke Subramanya – a famous pilgrimage center down south. We wanted to experience the train this time, took a train to Mangalore where the Bangera family had made arrangements for a taxi right at the railway station and also taken care of the pooja/darshan of the deity at the center. Again, just cannot imagine my life without friends. Sincerely thank God for the same. While driving to the temple, we stopped by at a small restaurant in Kalkada named Lakshmi Nivas which is famous for GHEE DOSA & KT (a tea with a special look), relished the same. After the darshan, we were dropped off at the rail station. Wanted to verify the quality of the food available at the railway canteen, was very disappointed to find no change whatsoever in the past 4 years. This is what happens when the Railway minister gets sacked for increasing the prices only to improve the quality of the service!!! In the train, we met some interesting friends – one of them was an Infosys techie and the other was a current entrepreneur who has taken a VRS from the western railway. We narrated each other our various experiences, 4 hours never went by so fast in our lives. We came back home tired but completed a fulfilling journey without any problems.

It’s Friday - which is a big day since Karanths are visiting us. We were eagerly waiting for them as they were. My FIL had booked a resort by name Devbagh which is an island near Karwar. This is also the place where the ferocious river Kali and the Arabian sea meet as well. It’s a great place to be in and is managed by Jungle Lodges & Resorts. Please do visit their website to know more about them and suggest all my India friends to purse this holiday package depending on your proximity and feasibility of the various locations. It being a Friday, we had a pleasant surprise of having the beach and the resort to just the 4 of us ! Great time and place to catch up I should admit with Signature making its way to the campfire and beach dinner. This was clearly the winning moment of our trip. We did some adventure sports by the name of Banana ride where in you sit on a narrow canoe and pulled by a motor boat. At some point the boat driver sways and you are forced into the vast expanse of water. It’s a 3-4 second adrenaline pumping moment, before you realize you are floating due to the life jackets and will be hailed back on to the canoe by the experts. The thrill was amazing. We also did some archery where Rajaram faired pretty high and I failed miserably, lucky for me there were no passer bys as the arrows were flying all over the place except hitting the target board. We did a nature/river trek where in we saw some amazing birds. It was great way to begin the day due to the exercise factor which we badly needed after the food riot we were having. The food served in the resort was of great quality and we ate like the malnourished natives of Somalia. After a good 2 day stay, we were dropped off at the Karwar bus stop from where we took the public transport bus back home and were amazed by the savings which we did when compared to the driver drop off at the beginning of the tour. I urge all of you to use Public transport whenever you are visiting, so that you would keep yourself abreast with the progress of that particular city/country. We came back to do some more temples the next day and saw off Karanths with a heavy heart but promised each other to meet up as and when we get a chance.

Mom had some plans cut out when it came to temples; Idugunji Ganesha, Dhareshwar Temple, Koli Beerappa, Mahalsa Devi & Kamakshi temple in Goa. Parents bid adieu at the Goa airport and we arrived in Chennai, checked into a hotel which we had booked online. Alas, if only people were true in presenting themselves virtually, we had a terrible experience and had to vacate the hotel forfeiting our amount too! But no regrets, we moved to the heart of the city which was much more accessible to sweets & savories shop, restaurants. Shweta did some last minute shopping before we boarded the flight to Dubai. Emirates somehow are very confusing with their assurances on print. They had promised to take the sports goods free of cost, but when I went there with my cricket bat and badminton accessories, they came up with a US rule of not allowing more than 2 baggage but can be allowed if charged, did not understand the logic here. The cost of my sporting equipment Rs. 6,500 ($125) but I had to pay $175 to bring them along with me!!! Shweta did throw some tantrums asking me to just give away the bat to someone else and buy something in USA even though it is costly, but me being me, did not relent and ended up paying the same. Finally it was agreed that the money is coming straight out of my Scotch budget for the next two months – sometimes women(wife category) are ridiculous.

We both boarded the flight to Dubai, the flight was pretty good. We had a 3 hour layover before we boarded the 15 hr nonstop to Seattle. While walking around the duty free shops, we were in for a pleasant surprise – I saw somebody familiar - tall, dark & handsome cricketer who had made India proud with his exceptional cricketing talent and most importantly we remember him for bringing the world cup to India in 1983. He is none other than our great Kapil Paaji !!! It was a great moment when we shook hands with him and he also did not throw any tantrums, agreed to pose with us which I proudly uploaded on FB to get some instant mileage :- ) Shweta was equally thrilled to see him and pose with him for a snap.

We boarded the flight with me coughing and sneezing – what a way to move out of a vacation. Had a couple of cognac shots which has made me feel better and complete this blog. If you find any grammatical & spelling errors, please blame it on Hennessey. As I am finishing this piece of writing, we are 4 hours from Seattle. Long live inventions, long live researchers who help us travel around the globe with such ease. My wishful thinking at the end of the journey is, there should only be one class in the airplane – business class :- ) Still envy those who can afford it, the treatment is amazingly significant and evident.

Landed in Seattle, took a rental car started relishing the disciplined driving, yielding, etc and came back home just a while ago. Thank you all for reading and commenting which gave me a lot of confidence to write more of my experiences. Take care and God bless us all. Snaps to follow… please give me 24-36 hours to come out of jet lag :- )

A week in Chennai

After surprising my parents with my arrival, we decided to bring them with us to Chennai where I had the Visa appointment scheduled. Upon finishing the immigration formalities, we had planned to take them on a pilgrimage down south and to Shirdi (a little towards north of India). My famous note comes to my mind - LIFE HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE BUSY MAKING PLANS !!! My parents were aged when I left to USA 4 years ago, they continued to age in my absence which I was totally oblivious of ! It was a pleasant surprise to them no doubt, but for me it was a total shocker to see them old and weak. They traveled only on my suggestion; probably I would not have done that in their place. They admit it was definitely troublesome for them to travel but it was all worth it since they got a surprise visit from me. God bless them with much more years, more than anything a peaceful and healthy life ahead.

We arrived in Chennai and took up a service apartment (if anybody needs more information on this, please email me, i will be more than glad to share) and it was like setting up a new home. Groceries, vegetables, etc. A special mention has to be made here about inflation. I was not able to beleive what I was seeing and spending. My friends who had recently visited had warned me, but was ignored by me completely. We did not see a single person who came to the mall or a restaurant from not removing a Rs. 500 currency note which at some point of time was quite a big thing to carry or flaunt in your purse !!! The 500 Rupee currency note is no longer a big deal. Every other person in Chennai is changing one for a purchase or at an eatery. I was wondering whether it was due to inflation or people’s earning which has increased, when enquired with a friend – he says BOTH!!! I did not know where to look from that answer. Nobody knows the importance of NOT having money better than me. It can be either from a situation of NO money at all or losing money after having a lot of money, I have undergone both the situations. May people learn to spend wisely and save a bit for the rainy days as well. Once we set up the house, Mom began her cooking process - dont they get tired of feeding their children ??? I was flabbergasted by her energy levels even though she was unwell and tired. We used to go out and come back for Lunch, Dinner as normally how we would live life in our home town Bangalore. I was beginning to feel the trousers slightly growing tight - you know where :- ) Wait... one cannot wear trousers in Chennai on a holiday, it was my shorts :- ) We flew out from 0 degree to 40 degree Celsius straight !!! My US colleague Betty even commented “why do you guys need to pack clothes, all you need are a couple of sleeveless top and a shorts " which was so true. Chennai was/is hot, humid and dusty due to the metro rail project as in the other cities of India. Not that I am complaining or comparing, but would like to see some real fast progress without any political bottle necks to see the country through. Huge cut outs of movie stars, politicians and aspiring politicians still prevail and dominate most of Chennai roads & bylanes. Autorickshaws are still playing a havoc and cause most of the damage to your pocket. Hope someday, they learn their lesson and be more professional and ethic oriented.

One day into my Holiday of contemplating as to how best I can spend the days with my parents, we got a shocker too soon. My father amidst 40 degrees of heat was feeling cold and started shivering. I did not know what and how to react in the first place; did I commit a blunder of having them over??? Lot of thoughts were going on in my mind, even though Chennai is a second home to me, I drew a complete blank as to what to do next. At that exact time, my friend Vidya’s aunt called in to check whether we had arrived safely and wanted to invite us over for dinner. I expressed my unavailability and quickly latched on to her for support by explaining her our situation. She suggested Vijaya Hospitals which was right next door but I was completely unaware due to the circumstantial problems of mine. I thanked her and promised her a visit at a later point of time, quickly called Vijaya Hospitals and took him there. They immediately took him in, ran some tests and diagnosed some kind of lung infection. By the time we reached the hospital, my Dad had kind of settled down, with a couple of injections and tablets, he was alright and was set free with a promise that he would undergo further tests in Bangalore.

We had our Visa interview on Wednesday which we were always dreading till now, but due to other issues, it had taken a complete back seat. I had to travel from Thirumangalam to Anna Salai, but had decided not to make the auto fellows richer any more, hence tried to take a share auto or even a bus, hence left early. I met an elderly gentleman by name Mani on my way to the bus stand, he suggested me a share auto stand which was nearby and walked me right into it as well. While walking he claimed to working at TVS Lucas for more than 25 years and took a VRS to marry of his daughter! Isn’t Dowry a crime? I began to wonder, thanked him, took his number, he wished us good luck and assured us that he would pray for our well being as well. He also has son who is into hotel management, may God bless that family and settle them soon.

The Visa interview was as smooth like putting a sharp knife on butter, more questions were directed to me than my beloved, which she was happy about. I cracked a couple of one liners at the officer and got away with an approval :- ) we came back home, had another feast cooked by Mom and left for some shopping. This is where we ended up buying nothing but spent a good deal studying the economy. But I was glad to see a lot of people in a book store at the mall, meaning people are getting into the habit of reading which seems to be a great sign of progress. That night, I insisted that we would cook for my parents which they reluctantly agreed. We cooked Potato curry and Chapatis (wheat tortillas), not too sure whether they liked the taste but they ate and said it was nice which was a great relief for Shweta & me.

It’s Thursday and Shweta is travelling to her native (I am all excited of being a temporary bachelor). She got picked up by the cab driver and left. I saw her off and came in only to see some red colour stains on the floor of the home, when traced to the origin, I was shocked to see my father’s toe bleeding. When enquired, he has completely ignored the wound and thought it would cure by itself miraculously. Good luck with his diabetes I told and immediately rushed him to a nursing home nearby for a thorough investigation. The duty doctor lets me know that they have to perform a minor surgery to arrest a major damage!!! Well, what should I say, I came to India to give them a surprise, finish my immigration and take them around; here I was taking them to hospitals and performing all sorts of tests. Not that I am complaining, because I feel it’s the nice thing to happen since I was around to take care of them at the right time. But it still hurts at some point of time. The surgery went well; he was discharged in a couple of hours and was asked to come back for a cleanup and dressing every day. Back to mom cooked meal :- )

After meeting a couple of clients in Chennai for my India business, a few friends called in late in the evening and we decided to meet, jammed up in Hotel Aruna Inn where the pub is having a great ambience. We were the first to enter and started talking about economy, Sachin Tendulkar, salaries, inflation, US & India life, etc. The best thing about having a drink in a Chennai bar is you get a lot of freebies which include Idli upma, sundal, green salad, boiled peanuts, hot snacks… man, and you will be half filled before you order the actual meal. Had a good time and wound up with a sumptuous dinner, kind of a criminal act considering that a great meal could have been cooked at home by Mom, then again, need to give a respite to Mom as well you see :- )

Thank God its Friday – went to the hospital for my Dad’s dressing, fortunately nothing more was serious, he was kind of doing alright but definitely was advised more care and cleaning everyday even when he reaches Bangalore. My parents wanted some worshipping items which will be a luxury otherwise, hence took them out and they purchased to their heart’s content – sometimes we try to give them an expensive phone/watch/tv, but little things like these would be missed which we would not have been aware of at all. Glad was able to do this and wound up for the evening.

It was Saturday and time to part with my parents and move on to my other set of parents home towards the coastal line of Karnataka – Mangalore – Karwar belt.

Next topic would be – One week on the Karnataka Coast !!!

2012 India Travel - 05-03 - Day 3 Tirupathi

We hired a taxi(Indica) from Chennai to Tirupathi – round trip costing us around INR 5,000 which included the interstate permit of 2K as well. I found it quite reasonable. The only issue was the driver who does not believe in lower speed levels, minimum for him in the bylanes and the 4 lane highway was 60KM and Maximum being 110 !!! Attaching a few snaps and a video which proves in India, you need not yield while driving, you just need some guts to drive and of course the bigger the automobile you drive, the better :- ) Also I found a hotel in Kalahasti (a place near Tirupathi) which is of the same name as our own MGM Grand !!! Wondering of its genuinity or even more, what is a Casino giant is doing in a pilgrimage center :- ) We also came across a major accident, hoping that all of them survived, encountered a truck repair right in the middle of road not caring about the other road users, ducks crossing the road at their will where in all the motorists were in a stand-still position, some snaps up the road to the Seven Hills God, could not get any snaps from the actual center as it is illegal and not allowed, hence did not do it.

I had planned it in such a way that my visit would be a surprise for my parents. More than them, I wanted to gift myself a nice gift on my Birthday as well :- ) All the way, took Ravi & Vidya’s name and out of the blue sprang ourselves in. They were in utter surprise & tears as they could not believe it was Shweta & me. Thanks to my ISCKON membership, we managed to get them a room in Tirupathi before we joined them from Chennai. I should admit that ISCKON has grown leaps and bounds, it has a beautiful guest house, temple, free prasad(food offerings to God before giving it to public) distribution centre and vegetarian restaurant. I suggest all of you to become members of ISCKON, they have some nice payment plans. If at some point of time you are off to a pilgrimage with your parents, this membership would help as they have their centers pretty much in all the major pilgrimage centers in India and Abroad. For the records, I share the same name as the God of Seven hills along with the liability status of the God as per the mythology as well :- ) This God has a daily collection from his followers which is close to or exceeded the collections at the Vatican as per the 2011 status check. Lets hope I make atleast a percentage of that kind of monies at some point of time in my life. My good friend Madhusudhan had arranged our Darshan in Tirupathi. A special mention has to be made here about Madhu, Rajesh Bafna and Venky without whose presence in my life, it would not have been so smooth at times. They have been the pillars of my glorious past and also most importantly have supported me all through my resurrection phase after my family’s business loss. I hope to make them proud some day soon. Coming back to Tirupathi, this place is special to me in many ways, every time I have been there, things have turned out be well for the next phase. There is something about the Sanctum Sanctorum which beats all the irregularities outside the temple premises. Having said that, I should admit that things have changed a lot in Tirupathi after some new committee members took over, facilities are also improving for old aged and handicapped which is a rarity. I feel thrilled about the progress of this place. We also visited Tiruchanoor which is also considered a must visit when we go to Tirupathi. This was again a pleasant visit for my mom who is a big devotee of this deity, I can see the thrill on their faces for which I can travel the seven seas atleast once in a year for sure, but I have to keep in mind of my big mother Marilyn (my US employer) and convince her of atleast a week to 10 days every year if not 3 weeks like this time. After the Darshans, we had a sumptuous lunch at Bhimas – my favorite restaurant in Tirupathi for its Spicy Dosas (Crepes made out of Rice & Lentils) and drove back to the Country of Chennai !!!

"A week in Chennai" would be the next topic, stay tuned.....

2012 India Travel - 05-03 - Day 3

Day 3 - whatever happened to day 2 ???? Well, it got lost in transit. That's what happens when you fly from North West over North Pole into Asia - you lose a day !!!!! Ok, ok I will not brag :- )

It was a long 15 hr flight during which we saw 2 sunsets, one sun rise before descending into Dubai. Attaching a few snaps which explains the route shown on the in house flight tracker, a snap when we were over the North Pole, the flight how it looks from inside with a starry lit passage and of course the beautifully lit Dubai skyline. As we were checking in for the final phase into Chennai, we got a pleasant surprise of a seat up gradation to BC. It was a good way to end our travel after a couple of materialistic losses.

Chennai welcomed us with a lot of warmth (read as heat). Checked into a club, thanks to my Dad's Coimbatore club membership, we got this, whatever I could have done without him, beginning to wonder.

2012 India Travel - 03-03 - Day 1

When my wife & I decided in 2007 to make our career upgrade by moving to USA, little did we know that I will not be able to see my parents for atleast 3 years, 3 months & 27 days !!!! As most US aspirants would understand, it just was not possible for us, projects got shelved, relocation, visa extensions, last but not the least the airfare just kept us from not doing this elusive travel. We finally had to visit due to immigration needs, which gives us a chance to be with our parents once again even though for a short time. A lot goes through them when their children are away seeking greener pastures, I suggest we should & must visit them once a year instead of taking those trips to Las Vegas or if circumstances permit, please do both a holiday and a family visit.

We are about to board the flight now after a long ordeal of security check. The Emirates initial security check did not allow us to take in a carry on luggage as it did not fit in the specifications of the new carry on guidelines !!! There was only one way to take it in by paying $175 extra :-( It was very emotional to just throw away a bag which had globe trotted with me all my life. Finally when we sat down and waiting for our turn to board the flight, I saw Shweta's face to realize she did not have one if her ear rings. When enquired she was startled as she had actually lost one of them !!! Poor she, fortunately for me, the happiness of being with the family has superseded the sorrow. Guess I have to work a little extra when I am back to make up for the loss and present her with another set :-)

It is a Boeing 777, am super excited to get onto the 15 hour flight to Dubai and looking forward to hi-fi wi-fi flight due to which I will be poking & pinging my friends from an altitude of 40000 ft.

The next few blogs are going to be my travel experiences in India. Stay tuned for some snaps & exciting moments.

An Eventful Trip

It all started with Shweta discovering the route from Colorado to Mt. Rushmore. Thanks to her we would not have had a time of our lives so far.

FRIDAY:

After a hectic day at work, we met at BEACHES – a bar at the Portland International Airport for a happy hour before we took off to Denver. Downed a couple of Rum shots and ate some tasty snacks, were ready to leave, waited for the check, surprisingly the waitress says “You are all paid up” :- ) we insisted for her to verify, but in vain. We got lucky for the first time on this trip.

FLIGHT:

Boarded the flight, an Airbus 319, excellent take off, nicely cruising at 41,000 ft, I would say one could not ask for more. There was this option of cable TV which we had to pay $6 each. Out of the blue, the attendant comes and swipes the card and says we four have already paid for this! Our luck seems to be growing – 2^nd time. As we were approaching Denver flying over Rocky Mountains, the pilot announced strictly to wear seat belts as we could expect a lot of turbulence. We assumed it was just a precautionary warning and were settling down. The plan nosedived(almost) and took off again something very similar to a roller-coaster ride – the difference - we were in thin air at 41,000 ft ! The turbulence was for 8-10 mts, when it ended – the captain announced – YOU GUYS THOUGHT THAT I WAS KIDDING :- ) All our heartbeats were racing like a Schumi’s Ferrari. Got lucky – 3^rd time.

CAR RENTAL:

After a long queue for the rental car, we had a free upgrade from a full size to a SUV :- ) we are too impressed with our luck. One of the four is carrying some luck, remains to be seen who the one is. (Shweta is claiming to be the lady luck)

DRIVE TO MT. RUSHMORE:

The total drive is around 380 miles one way. I took over the reins as the speed limit is 75 MPH. Frankly I had completely forgotten speeds beyond 60 MPH after we moved to the west coast. Mid way when I offered to fill in gasoline for the car, Sudip resisted saying it is costly, wonder why he said that and wonder why I agreed to fill it up later. After 10 mts, the vehicle comes to a complete stop just 2 miles before the gas station! The road is empty with no one to help us. There was a truck standing by with a lady using her phone. Our JUGAD Sudip went and explained the situation. She called her husband who was near the gas station and requested him to bring a 5 gallon haul of gasoline. As luck was on our side, we got the gasoline, continued to gas station to top it up and move on. At this point the GPS was indicating 90 miles to destination; I offered the drive to the other drivers wanting to take a nap before we hit the Mount. Everybody except the driver was supposed to be sleeping. All of a sudden, I see we are spinning, Shweta is over me, the navigator is speechless, the driver is desperately trying to control the car as he had dozed off for a second and almost went down the trench, he came out successfully on to the road, took us all for a spin again by jamming the brakes hard, ABS is in place by now, vehicle comes to a bouncing halt facing the other side of the road! Lucky for us there was no other vehicle coming in, else I would not be writing this email to you guys. The Driver had his legs cramped, navigator hurt his finger, myself ended up with a sprained shoulder, Shweta was in a trance and could not believe it happened to us. Thanks to God above, most importantly the driver who recovered, controlled/composed himself and the car bringing it to halt in a upright and not upside down position :- ) Lucky again …

Mt. RUSHMORE:

I would not say that the monument took us into a complete rapture, but yes it is indeed a great piece of sculpture. We all had a good time with the snaps and wound up. Contemplating whether to take the drive back or not, we decided to go back to Denver; the more confident drivers completed journey backwards.

ROYAL GORGE BRIDGE and SKY DIVING:

The Royal Gorge Bridge is 1200 ft high built bridge. An absolute wonder to human eye I should say. Our JUGAD had plans to sky dive piggy backing on a trained jumper. It was quite a sight to watch a 150 kg sack bag falling out of the sky from a 10,000 ft, the trainer accompanying him was doing somersaults and finally both landed with a huge thud making a big hole in the landing area : - )

PIKES PEAK & GARDEN OF GODS:

On our way back, we did the museum of RARE and BIG INSECTS, moved on to see Pikes Peak. Unfortunately the roads were closed at 6 pm, we reached at 6.30 pm. Later we came to know that the weather was extremely dangerous with thunder storms and lightning on the Pikes Peak drive. Lucky again!!!! We went into Garden of Gods which is made of natural formed rocks and some spectacular view points. Our photography expert Ravi had a field day capturing all the good looking stones and also captured a beautiful rainbow as well.

Returned to Denver and watched DELHI BELLY, the latest Indian made English flick. An absolute entertainer with SUDIP errr NITIN (character of that movie) being the complete winner. Please watch this movie and compare NITIN with our SUDIP. You will know what I am talking about. After that we had dinner at 1.30 am in a Mediterranean restaurant which is surprisingly doing business till 4 AM in the morning everyday!

ROCKY MOUNTAINS:

Our final day began with a good breakfast at I-Hops and drove down to Rocky Mountains. There is a 50 mile road called TRAIL RIDGE ROAD which is scenic with a lot of small falls and the Ice still trying to melt on either side of the road. We drove about 13,000 ft, highlight of the drive being the unguarded sides of the road - don’t you dare look on your right or left side while driving, the mishaps can never be imagined and possibly fatal. Survived the drive safely and hit a Nepali cuisine which is nothing but an Indian cuisine joint. Had our stomach full and headed back to our final flight back to Portland.

RETURN FLIGHT:

This was very dreadful again, as usual the Denver weather over the Rocky Mountains was very rough and vibrating the whole plane. Finally it settled down at 40K ft altitude and cruised well into Portland. I guess ATR flights are not my cup of tea as it sends lot of chilling shivers down my spine and stomach was rumbling all along the flight making bigger noises than the snoring of my co-passengers and turbulence of the plane.

Finally landed, took a cab and reached home to sleep like a log on Monday night.