After spending a week at my place, it was time to get moving and explore some places in India.
The reason for me traveling to different places in India was the timing of my visit. I was never a fan of the Indian summer, and since I was visiting during the wintertime, I knew I had to make most of it.
The plan was to visit my Uncle’s place in Morshi, which is a small town in the district of Amaravati in the state of Maharashtra. After spending a night at my uncle’s place, I had a train reservation from Amaravati to Pune, where I was going to spend a couple nights at my college roommates’ place. At their request, I had brought a couple bottles of *some* whiskey and the plan was to finish it off over the weekend.
Getting back to my stay at my uncle’s place, the journey was nothing short of drama. I chose to take the different route to Morshi because of everyone’s recommendation. After spending more than a year in the US, I had forgotten how crowded and populated Indian cities are. That’s why when I reached the bus station to catch my bus, I was dumbfounded to look at the competition to get into the bus. Thinking I am too soft for this kind of behavior, I chose to wait for my turn, which was a dumb decision.
After letting go of that bus, I had to wait at least 30 more minutes to get on another bus, which was again jam-packed with fellow travelers. It took me extreme patience and calmness to get to a city from where I was supposed to pick up another bus that would take me to Morshi.
As it was 4PM, the bus depot was buzzing with a number of people, ranging from students, working-class professionals, and daily wage earners who were traveling after retiring for the day. In the middle of all this, I was there, alone and by myself, figuring things out. The scene was no different than the previous one and this time, I had to force myself in the bus to get at least a space to stand inside the bus. The journey was just an hour, so I told myself to get to my uncle’s place, even if that means I had to face some hardship.
It’s funny how my definition of struggle changed after spending only a year in the US. Living a cozy and comfortable life in the US has made me a softer person, I must say!
Anyway, this bus ride was filled with potholes and sweat. Even though it was wintertime, the temperatures were in 70Fs. At this temperature, it was hard to keep the sweat off and I was extremely uncomfortable because of this. I was just counting the minutes for Morshi to show up so that I can take a shower and just lie on the bed. The day seemed to stretch longer by the minute.
It was almost dark when I reached Morshi and I called my cousin to pick me up. Oh man, it was such a good feeling to see him after many years and I was yearning more for the home-cooked food now. After reaching home, I took a shower and had dinner with the family. It was soon that I closed my eyes and just slept on the bed in the living room.
The next morning was quite pleasant and enjoyable. I had my favorite tea and some Indian food for breakfast. I took a quick shower as I wanted to explore the town a little bit and meet a couple friends before heading to Pune. I took my uncle’s motorcycle and went from one place to another. I needed my cousin’s help to navigate through the streets, but eventually, I got to where I wanted.
I wanted to visit a family of a close friend of mine who were living in Morshi and it was such a warm feeling when I got to see them. I realized so many things had changed over the last decade, but was happy to see their smiling faces and ever encouraging Indian hospitality. They didn’t mind me dropping by their place surprisingly after so many years and were courteous enough to feed me some awesome Indian food.
After this endeavor, it was time to head back to my uncle’s place and bid a final goodbye before heading to the bus station to go to Amaravati Railway Station to catch a train to Pune. It was not a long journey and fortunately not filled with people.
At the end of the day, I realized, this trip was better than I expected as I got to see my family and friends after years and I got a taste of how many things have changed in India ever since I left.
Next stop – Pune, Maharashtra, India!
stochasticity 