Wrote a Poem for my MOM
Thursday, 28 May 2015
Experiences of my first trip alone
Mumbai Trip
I had slept early the previous night. After all the next day was a pretty big day in my life. I woke up at 5 all excited and exuberant. It was the day I was going to travel all alone for the first time.
The weather seemed pleasant and it was a bit cloudy with a hint of sunshine here and there. I got up and dressed way before time. Even though my friends’ plan of playing got cancelled, I was in a pretty good mood. Which is quite rare for me.
I took my luggage to the car and started our journey towards the airport. I felt nothing strange or out of the blue that day.
We reached the airport quite early and there were very few people entering. My parents took a last minute quiz to check whether I still remembered the proper procedure for boarding an airplane.
By the time I entered past the gate, the crowd started to appear. After I was past the gate, I felt a bit alone. I searched the GoAir counter but failed to do so. I asked a person at the information desk who pointed towards his extreme left.
“Counter B, that side.” He said.
“Thanks a lot” I replied walking towards that direction.
I found the counter but was surprised to see a large line in front of most of the counters. I took the one with the least number of people but due to Murphy’s Law our line was the slowest.
I collected my boarding pass and went towards the security check. After my check, I decided to roam around as the boarding didn’t start for another 45 minutes. There were various stores around including KFC and Pizza Hut. I was thinking of grabbing a quick bite but after seeing the large line, I changed my mind.
I was about to proceed towards my gate when I realised I had lost my baggage tag. I tried not to panic and calm down but it’s our instinct to panic in such moments. It’s coded into our systems to think of the worst case scenario that could happen. And in my case it was no different. I imagined missing my flight and staying in Gurgaon.
I tried to use my brains first and retraced my steps but I was not able to find it. I went to the information desk and inquired about the issue.
The person told me to report it to a policeman standing near the security counter. I went up to him and told him the issue. He took my bag and put it on the scanner one more time before giving me a new tag.
I proceeded towards my gate quite mad at me for being so stupid. I bought a coke and waited for another 10 minutes. After this I boarded the bus and we started for the plane. It was quite windy by the time I boarded the flight. I sat on my seat and sent a message to my parents.
The flight took off after another 10 minutes or so. There was a senior citizen and his wife next to me. Their son was on the adjacent seat.
I listened to music and played on my PSP but it became boring after some time. I decided not to sleep as I was afraid to fall asleep and not wake up on time. I was quite mad at the cabin crew as the person in front of me had his phone on the entire flight and that too not on silent.
The captain announced that we were 90 km north of Mumbai and advised us to switch off our electronic devices. I thought we had about 5 minutes before the flight landed but I was wrong. The airport was visible in just 1 minute.
We landed and were advised to let the business class passengers exit first. I went straight to the baggage collection counter. I was afraid someone might take my bag so I stood right next to the starting.
It seemed like forever before my bag finally came. I quickly took it and went towards the exit. I went outside into an extremely hot area and starting sweating almost immediately. I spotted mausaji’s car and went up to it.
This is how my first trip all alone went. It could not have been possible without the constant helping but very irritating calls by my parents.
I was thinking of all the things that could happen like the plane being hijacked, it crashing, me missing the flight, everything but as soon as I left the airport so did the absurd thoughts out of my head.
I had slept early the previous night. After all the next day was a pretty big day in my life. I woke up at 5 all excited and exuberant. It was the day I was going to travel all alone for the first time.
The weather seemed pleasant and it was a bit cloudy with a hint of sunshine here and there. I got up and dressed way before time. Even though my friends’ plan of playing got cancelled, I was in a pretty good mood. Which is quite rare for me.
I took my luggage to the car and started our journey towards the airport. I felt nothing strange or out of the blue that day.
We reached the airport quite early and there were very few people entering. My parents took a last minute quiz to check whether I still remembered the proper procedure for boarding an airplane.
By the time I entered past the gate, the crowd started to appear. After I was past the gate, I felt a bit alone. I searched the GoAir counter but failed to do so. I asked a person at the information desk who pointed towards his extreme left.
“Counter B, that side.” He said.
“Thanks a lot” I replied walking towards that direction.
I found the counter but was surprised to see a large line in front of most of the counters. I took the one with the least number of people but due to Murphy’s Law our line was the slowest.
I collected my boarding pass and went towards the security check. After my check, I decided to roam around as the boarding didn’t start for another 45 minutes. There were various stores around including KFC and Pizza Hut. I was thinking of grabbing a quick bite but after seeing the large line, I changed my mind.
I was about to proceed towards my gate when I realised I had lost my baggage tag. I tried not to panic and calm down but it’s our instinct to panic in such moments. It’s coded into our systems to think of the worst case scenario that could happen. And in my case it was no different. I imagined missing my flight and staying in Gurgaon.
I tried to use my brains first and retraced my steps but I was not able to find it. I went to the information desk and inquired about the issue.
The person told me to report it to a policeman standing near the security counter. I went up to him and told him the issue. He took my bag and put it on the scanner one more time before giving me a new tag.
I proceeded towards my gate quite mad at me for being so stupid. I bought a coke and waited for another 10 minutes. After this I boarded the bus and we started for the plane. It was quite windy by the time I boarded the flight. I sat on my seat and sent a message to my parents.
The flight took off after another 10 minutes or so. There was a senior citizen and his wife next to me. Their son was on the adjacent seat.
I listened to music and played on my PSP but it became boring after some time. I decided not to sleep as I was afraid to fall asleep and not wake up on time. I was quite mad at the cabin crew as the person in front of me had his phone on the entire flight and that too not on silent.
The captain announced that we were 90 km north of Mumbai and advised us to switch off our electronic devices. I thought we had about 5 minutes before the flight landed but I was wrong. The airport was visible in just 1 minute.
We landed and were advised to let the business class passengers exit first. I went straight to the baggage collection counter. I was afraid someone might take my bag so I stood right next to the starting.
It seemed like forever before my bag finally came. I quickly took it and went towards the exit. I went outside into an extremely hot area and starting sweating almost immediately. I spotted mausaji’s car and went up to it.
This is how my first trip all alone went. It could not have been possible without the constant helping but very irritating calls by my parents.
I was thinking of all the things that could happen like the plane being hijacked, it crashing, me missing the flight, everything but as soon as I left the airport so did the absurd thoughts out of my head.
LOST IN VENICE - A short story
“What do you mean that you don’t have my luggage?” Jason Brown shouted on his IPhone.
“I transferred….to Hotel Danieli…” the phone fell silent.
“Ugh… Damn this network. There is no signal anywhere in Italy.” He said with a hint of fear appearing on his face.
The sky was a mellow orange over ‘Don’s Fresco’ and the setting sun created a mesmerizing effect on the water in the canals of Venice.
Jason hurriedly finished his mocha coffee and quickly left after throwing a tip on the table.
“Wonderful, now I am stuck in this city without my passport.” He muttered to himself.
He hired a water taxi and guided the driver to his hotel.
“This is the street, signor.” The driver said putting his hand forward expecting his payment. “That would be 25€.”
“Are you sure this is the right street? It doesn’t seem familiar at all.”
Jason asked.
“Si, it is the Piazza San Marco.” He said monotonously.
“Alright then, here’s your 25 bucks.”
“Grazie.”
The water taxi noisily sped away and Jason started searching for his hotel.
He took out a piece of paper on which the name and address of his hotel were scribbled.
“Umm… let’s see… Hotel Danieli on….what’s this….Riva Degli Schiavoni.” He blurted out loud while squinting to make out the words properly.
“Looks like I will have to ask someone for the directions.”
He spotted an elderly man seated at a café nearby.
“Signor… do you know which way Riva Degli Schiavoni is?” he asked impatient for an answer.e stranger said nothing still busy with his newspaper and pointed towards a street with his finger.
“Thank you sir.” Jason said as he dashed away in the direction of the street.
He admired the scenery as he walked past the Basilica di San Marco. Thousands of tourists were wandering around the front of the church. Some taking a tour, some clicking photos and some just strolling.
I should be there having fun rather than finding my damn passport. He thought.
The sun was swiftly setting overhead and the night just seemed to approach.
It was not much time before Jason came to the Riva Degli Schiavoni.
“Now I just need to find where hotel Danieli is.” He muttered looking around for directions.
“Umm. Do you know where Hotel Danieli is? He asked a young man standing nearby.
“Perdono.” He said removing his headphones.
“Hotel Danieli, do you know where it is?”
“Hmm… stupido” he said putting his headphones back on.
Queer guy. I asked him a question. He wondered moving on.
“Umm do you know where hotel Danieli is?” he asked a gentleman in his young 50s.
“It used to be there.” He said pointing towards a recently renovated building.
“Thanks”
‘Used to’. Italians really need to work on their English. He wondered approaching the building.
“Is this the Hotel Danieli? There’s no board outside.” He asked the man at the front desk.
“Was” he replied without looking up from his work.
“Pardon me?” Jason looked perplexed.
“It was Hotel Danieli.” He replied this time facing Jason.
“What do you mean?”
“Hotel Danieli was shut down in 1983 due to financial crisis. This is no longer Hotel Danieli.”
https://creativehappinessjournal.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/lost-in-venice/
“I transferred….to Hotel Danieli…” the phone fell silent.
“Ugh… Damn this network. There is no signal anywhere in Italy.” He said with a hint of fear appearing on his face.
The sky was a mellow orange over ‘Don’s Fresco’ and the setting sun created a mesmerizing effect on the water in the canals of Venice.
Jason hurriedly finished his mocha coffee and quickly left after throwing a tip on the table.
“Wonderful, now I am stuck in this city without my passport.” He muttered to himself.
He hired a water taxi and guided the driver to his hotel.
“This is the street, signor.” The driver said putting his hand forward expecting his payment. “That would be 25€.”
“Are you sure this is the right street? It doesn’t seem familiar at all.”
Jason asked.
“Si, it is the Piazza San Marco.” He said monotonously.
“Alright then, here’s your 25 bucks.”
“Grazie.”
The water taxi noisily sped away and Jason started searching for his hotel.
He took out a piece of paper on which the name and address of his hotel were scribbled.
“Umm… let’s see… Hotel Danieli on….what’s this….Riva Degli Schiavoni.” He blurted out loud while squinting to make out the words properly.
“Looks like I will have to ask someone for the directions.”
He spotted an elderly man seated at a café nearby.
“Signor… do you know which way Riva Degli Schiavoni is?” he asked impatient for an answer.e stranger said nothing still busy with his newspaper and pointed towards a street with his finger.
“Thank you sir.” Jason said as he dashed away in the direction of the street.
He admired the scenery as he walked past the Basilica di San Marco. Thousands of tourists were wandering around the front of the church. Some taking a tour, some clicking photos and some just strolling.
I should be there having fun rather than finding my damn passport. He thought.
The sun was swiftly setting overhead and the night just seemed to approach.
It was not much time before Jason came to the Riva Degli Schiavoni.
“Now I just need to find where hotel Danieli is.” He muttered looking around for directions.
“Umm. Do you know where Hotel Danieli is? He asked a young man standing nearby.
“Perdono.” He said removing his headphones.
“Hotel Danieli, do you know where it is?”
“Hmm… stupido” he said putting his headphones back on.
Queer guy. I asked him a question. He wondered moving on.
“Umm do you know where hotel Danieli is?” he asked a gentleman in his young 50s.
“It used to be there.” He said pointing towards a recently renovated building.
“Thanks”
‘Used to’. Italians really need to work on their English. He wondered approaching the building.
“Is this the Hotel Danieli? There’s no board outside.” He asked the man at the front desk.
“Was” he replied without looking up from his work.
“Pardon me?” Jason looked perplexed.
“It was Hotel Danieli.” He replied this time facing Jason.
“What do you mean?”
“Hotel Danieli was shut down in 1983 due to financial crisis. This is no longer Hotel Danieli.”
https://creativehappinessjournal.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/lost-in-venice/
Sharks
It was 2011 and I was in Cape Town in South Africa. I had decided to go deep sea diving and shark watching where you go underwater in a cage with sharks all around. Even though I was a bit afraid of sharks, I decided to do it.
The day finally came when I was all ready in scuba diving gear and was about to go in the cage along with an instructor. I noticed that the lock was a bit loose.
“Ummmm ummm umm um uummmm!” I said the mouthpiece still in.
“What?” he asked.
“The lock is a little loose.” I said while pointing towards the lock.
“Oh don’t you worry sir, its tight enough.” He assured me.
I thought that he was right as he was a professional and must know what he was talking about. We went in the cage and started to go underwater. At first we saw the scenic corals and the picturesque blue water.
Soon we went further down and the water became darker and frightening. After another 50 meters or so, we stopped and the instructor threw a chunk of meat outside the cage.
Suddenly, out of nowhere a group of sharks came out of the dark waters and ate the meat.
The fish were humongous and must have been about the size of a school bus. They were dark grey in colour with razor sharp teeth that could tear a human into pieces within seconds.
The sharks were still hovering around the cage and clearly wanted more. However, there was overly greedy shark who so close to the cage that I could feel its sharp odour.
The instructor threw another chunk out which grazed the lock a bit.
The overly greedy shark hit the lock with its teeth and instantly it gave away. A cold shiver went through my spine. I panicked and for the first time in my life realised how deadly a shark could be.
I tried to keep calm and think how to save myself but when you are with hungry sharks, you don’t give a damn about calm.
I knew I was not a good swimmer and couldn’t out swim them. The instructor panicked and tried to swim out of the cage but the sharks were no fools and instantly tore him into pieces. The water turned red with blood. I realised that I was soaked in cold sweat.
One shark tried to get in but was too big and got stuck mid-way. My only escape route was blocked and I had to think of other ways. I took the instructor’s oxygen cylinder and bashed it as hard as I could on the shark’s head. The shark cried with agony and got out of the cage.
I quickly closed the cage door but I was no match for them. This time the door opened towards the outside and I was halfway out of the cage.
As I was trying to get back inside the cage, one of the sharks bit my right arm off.
A sharp pain shot through me and it felt like being shot 100 times. Blood spurted all around and I could see the sharks fighting for my flesh.
I started to black out and crashed into the cage’s bar. I struggled to get in with whatever energy was left in me. I slowly got in but was still feeling drowsy.
I crashed into the bars again and slowly sank to the bottom of the cage and blacked out with the sharks still hovering outside the cage.
Luckily for me, the instructor on the beach who had lowered us down in the cage felt the tugs on the cage and then saw the red water. He immediately pulled the cage up.
When I regained consciousness, I was lying on a hospital bed with bandages around my left arm. The doctor gave me a newspaper and I saw that I was on the cover page. I felt proud of myself for facing my fear and that too so courageously.
https://creativehappinessjournal.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/sharks/
The day finally came when I was all ready in scuba diving gear and was about to go in the cage along with an instructor. I noticed that the lock was a bit loose.
“Ummmm ummm umm um uummmm!” I said the mouthpiece still in.
“What?” he asked.
“The lock is a little loose.” I said while pointing towards the lock.
“Oh don’t you worry sir, its tight enough.” He assured me.
I thought that he was right as he was a professional and must know what he was talking about. We went in the cage and started to go underwater. At first we saw the scenic corals and the picturesque blue water.
Soon we went further down and the water became darker and frightening. After another 50 meters or so, we stopped and the instructor threw a chunk of meat outside the cage.
Suddenly, out of nowhere a group of sharks came out of the dark waters and ate the meat.
The fish were humongous and must have been about the size of a school bus. They were dark grey in colour with razor sharp teeth that could tear a human into pieces within seconds.
The sharks were still hovering around the cage and clearly wanted more. However, there was overly greedy shark who so close to the cage that I could feel its sharp odour.
The instructor threw another chunk out which grazed the lock a bit.
The overly greedy shark hit the lock with its teeth and instantly it gave away. A cold shiver went through my spine. I panicked and for the first time in my life realised how deadly a shark could be.
I tried to keep calm and think how to save myself but when you are with hungry sharks, you don’t give a damn about calm.
I knew I was not a good swimmer and couldn’t out swim them. The instructor panicked and tried to swim out of the cage but the sharks were no fools and instantly tore him into pieces. The water turned red with blood. I realised that I was soaked in cold sweat.
One shark tried to get in but was too big and got stuck mid-way. My only escape route was blocked and I had to think of other ways. I took the instructor’s oxygen cylinder and bashed it as hard as I could on the shark’s head. The shark cried with agony and got out of the cage.
I quickly closed the cage door but I was no match for them. This time the door opened towards the outside and I was halfway out of the cage.
As I was trying to get back inside the cage, one of the sharks bit my right arm off.
A sharp pain shot through me and it felt like being shot 100 times. Blood spurted all around and I could see the sharks fighting for my flesh.
I started to black out and crashed into the cage’s bar. I struggled to get in with whatever energy was left in me. I slowly got in but was still feeling drowsy.
I crashed into the bars again and slowly sank to the bottom of the cage and blacked out with the sharks still hovering outside the cage.
Luckily for me, the instructor on the beach who had lowered us down in the cage felt the tugs on the cage and then saw the red water. He immediately pulled the cage up.
When I regained consciousness, I was lying on a hospital bed with bandages around my left arm. The doctor gave me a newspaper and I saw that I was on the cover page. I felt proud of myself for facing my fear and that too so courageously.
https://creativehappinessjournal.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/sharks/
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