Back From Bangalore

Just came back from Bangalore.
Not sure what I like about the city.
Think the votes will go to Suddhu and Shiv.

The trip can be safely labelled as eventful.
Four days and the world went twirling around.

For those who don't know yet, Bangalore is where my 'sweetheart' (ahem!) stays and since I have been a complete brat about my unwillingness to travel, the trip was long overdue. But since he has been coming here rather regularly, I don't think I need to feel guilty. OK... I do!

Anyway, those were the less important things. What is to follow will hold supreme importance in the scheme of things (or so I safely believe.)

So, this Mr. Shiv is usually a clean person. So clean that your mornings will be marked by a half-hour thunder-like sounds of brushing, gargling, scrubbing and so on.... His clothes always smell neat. Tiniest of spots on his trousers make him sick.

This background will come in handy now. In Bangalore, I obviously stayed at his place. The 'place', as I entered the house, looked like it came out of hell or something. I hope I have told him that, else we'll have to say I am bitching... sigh...

So this place was UNTOUCHED since the time it was got and I will not hesitate to say it was rather a handful. Under normal circumstances love suffices but not in a house where the only clean spot is the bed ( with a dirty dusty brown rug at your feet.)

The owner must have been a really coulorful person since the house was painted in garish blues and greens...aaaarrgghh! But like a nice girl I breathed hard and mentally prepared myself for a good clean the next day. And oh, by the way, the water only shows it's face as early as six in the morning! So the people in that house will have to get up at six, drag themselves to a bath and go back to sleep again. Well...

So a significant part of my trip went in redoing the house, which I think looks smashing now. Loads of curtans and colouful cushion covers and some neat combination of bedsheets, and yes, my favourite Jaipuri razais did the trick. The house looks pretty now, more like kitschy, and even my superbly-critical brother approved of it (poof!).

So that was one of the major events.

Other, involved a lot of drama and balling on my part. My ususally black-cat-commandoish alert sweetheart forgot our bag in the auto (OK because of 'my' friend). I was balling my heart out.
Fuck the camera (OK that was Ruks'), the bag had my favourite pink shoes, a green top that fits me like a dream, my fav pair of jeans, my DOVE BODY SILK and my sunscreen!!

God! I have never felt such a sense of material loss. I think I was hollering right in the middle of a (deserted) street. Then began this long haul of getting the bag back and I really think it was my loud sobs that put everyone bang on action.

For once, I love technology! And I don't hate autowallas with Mobile phones. We finally got the bag back at 11: 30 pm in the night. Not to mention the endless scenarios that were discussed in the event of things going missing from the bag!

The last part was my trip back!
I HATE INDIAN AIRLINES!!

First, I am absolutely paranoid about reaching the airport in time. I hate having to run around at the last minute. My stomach was a mixer while the others were hogging and pouring Cafe Day coffees down their throats...huh!

Finally I said my byes and reached inside to find there was nobody at the counter to check passengers in. People who had flights before me were simply losing it. After yelling and screaming at all IA-looking people, we finally got a boarding pass (and I must say it looks dirty!)
My woes had just begun.

After passing the security check, I entered into this lounge, which looked like a railway station. There was no place to stand and I could hear a man screaming "But where the hell is the ground staff?" repeatedly. The scene was that IA had three consecutive flights boarding through the same gate. They were all late. There were no announcements. There was no ground staff. Fish!

I grabbed a corner since there was still time for my flight, and the next thing I saw was the same man standing on the sofa and yelling about the same thing over and over again. Within no time people started pushing at the boarding gates and I was like...Whhhaatt?? I really dint understand what they were tring to do - get on to the runway and board the planes on their own???

People were falling over each other with boarding passes flying in the air.

I simply made a call and told Shiv I might be coming back home.

Finally, the police had to be called and IA staff had to come and control the crowd and make them board respective flights. I still didn't understand the behavior of the crowd there. Like IA was going to fly people on the sly without announcing!

Anyway, finally our flight was announced and to everyone's surprise that same man was to board my flight, which was anyway later! So he was just agitated about the fact that no announcements were made !??!! God! Beats me...

Then finally we boarded the aircraft. Soon the air-hostesses were spraying some aerosol - only to drive all the hidden mosquitoes out! Yuck! I had the last seat and I swear I could hear all the engine sounds from where I was. The plane was more than wobbly and landing and takeoff was an experince to savour!

God knows I've never been more scared on a flight! Finally we hit Mumbai at 11 (was supposed to be a 9:30 landing!). I collected my luggage only to find a kilometre-long line for autos... (you know you are in Mumbai!). Then the auto guy fucked up and I swear I dint know where I was in the middle of the night. Somehow I managed to direct him in the right direction and reached home at 12:30!

My Nattu cat sprang from the TV top and I thought wow! A second later I realised she was more interested in my suitcase. What a bitch of a cat!

But you know, I d still go over all of this just to see Shiv again :)