Keesaragutta Trip

Going to Keesaragutta on a Sunday morning would not need any prior planning, especially if you are not a Baxogen. But for a Baxogen, Plans are as imperative as the trips themselves. In fact, plans are more important than the trips for us. So, it was planned that Pradeep, Murali, Mahi and I would start to Keesaragutta at 6:00AM, on the night before the day of the trip. If not for the dubious distinction of missing double the number of trips that were planned, the night would have been a normal one for all of us.
Although 6:00 AM on a Sunday morning was rather too ambitious, we set our alarms to 5:30Am, as we have told you; we were very particular about planning.

The clock was not as lethargic as we all were. It was prompt and started ringing on time, as though it was very excited about the trip. Mahi was the first one to wake up. After 20 minutes of passing the alarm to one another, we finally woke up.

It was all going perfectly as planned, much to our surprise. We have started on 2 bikes, from Kukatpalli and picked up my Handy Cam at my home in IDPL Colony. We could not believe the whole thing, going to a place where we have planned was going to be historic given our record, and the excitement was quite evident in all of us. The reason might be a notion that taking chances with Lord Shiva was not all that a great Idea.

Nothing unusual happened until, Pradeep and Murali took the flyover at the Tarnaka chowrasta, instead of taking a left. Mahi and I called them up only to find that, Pradeep’s Pulsar broke down owing to a malfunction in the Clutch cable. Quite surprisingly we almost had a sense of eerie satisfaction, when this happened. It was 8:30 Am then.

We managed to get the bike to a mechanic shop, but only to find it closed. When we finally found one, the mechanics were not in yet. Finally when the mechanics were in, the automobile spare parts shops were not open.

After a painstaking 30 minute search, we found a shop where we bought the cable for Bajaj Pulsar only to know that it was not meant for DTSI. Finally, the mechanic fixed the cable with the same cable, somehow.

The sun was not beating hard at us, and as we moved out of the city limits, the breeze became cooler. The road made us slightly nostalgic, as we remembered our first trip to Keesara almost 5 years back, with our Engineering classmates.

For the first time in Baxogens’ travel history, a Handy Cam was used to capture the moments. In fact it is worth mentioning here, the gradual improvement in technology that we have employed in our trips. It was a Kodak analog photo camera to start with, which was later replaced by the K-Series Sony Ericsson mobile cameras. Later we have used some digital photo cameras. We have captured some videos on the road to Keesaragutta.

It was about 11AM by the time we reached the temple. The memories of getting down from the excursion bus were still afresh when we first saw the premises and faintly remembered all our old friends and memories associated with the place. The familiar feeling of nostalgia greeted us warmly as we entered the sanctum sanatorium. It was not just the nostalgia that welcomed us, but a good number of monkeys welcomed us with brotherly love…J although they were slightly disappointed to miss all the rest of J(a)NTU(s)..

The temple was spotted with a good number of pilgrims, at least enough numbers to say that it was not sparse. We could almost visualize the scenes of our previous visit looking at the interiors of the temple. We had the Darshan and customarily sat down to let the feeling of piousness of the surroundings sink into us. We then moved out of the temple complex to the other side of the temple. The hill, although not the tallest, gave a wonderful 360-degree-view of the surroundings. We have captured the view of the landscape and after a brief photo session at the temple’s steps, went on to have our lunch at Punnami, the restaurant.

After the light lunch, we went into the park that looked like newly renovated by HUDA. The huge Banyan Tree, under which we have played Tambola and other games, in our earlier trip, was one of the few things that were unchanged by the renovation. We have left nothing, the see-saws, the swings and the wave shaped slides and what not!! We played to our hearts’ content and I must say, the pick of them all was the amazing feat by me... :) And the skit that preceded the feat. The feat was to walk over the semi circular arch without the use of hands..:D..Do not dismiss this feat as childish, even the mighty Mahi couldn’t do that.. :)….

After a hearty laughing session in the park, we headed back to the city for the 40 Km journey back to KPHB, with a tired pair of legs but an invigorated spirit of the traveler in all of us.

LA Trip

This thanksgiving….

Get ready for some high speed action…

Fasten your seat belts for an exhilarating experience…

An Experience that leaves you asking for more…..

This thanksgiving….

The weekend will not be same again…

From the writer of “The Point Reyes trip” and “Sangam-Mekedatu Bike Trip”, …Here comes an account of yet another outstandingly refreshing trip….A trip to the abode of the American Stars…The largest city of the California State…The entertainment capital of USA…Los Angeles..starring Raj, Ravi, Arvind and the Debutant Ram Prasad.

It was the afternoon before the Thanksgiving Day and we were slowly giving into the thought of working on the Holidays, when everybody else was probably planning their vacations in some exotic location.

“Where are you going to, this long weekend?”

This was not something we have anticipated from our manager.

“LA.” We echoed in Unison, although none of us had any idea of how to get there, especially on the biggest holiday season in the US, that too with such a short notice.

The excitement was evident in each one of us and we have booked the flight tickets and the hotel on the Thursday morning. The flight was at 5:10 in the evening and soon we were all set to embark onto the journey that would imprint an indelible impression of the great city and the memories associated with it.

We got down at the domestic terminal of the LAX airport and the hotel hospitality service picked up from the airport. The super 8 Motel was about 2 miles from the airport. It was a small one, but we did not have the luxury of whining about the bad quality of the hotel room, because we were probably lucky to get even that room.

As bad luck would have it, we did not get any good restaurent, let alone any good INDIAN restaurent, because all of them were closed due to Thanks giving day. But we did manage to find some restaurent, where we ate something that I wouldn't even bother to describe. We came back to the Motel by 10PM and it was when Ram Prasad and I decided to do something that I would probably mention in another blog.

We barely managed to catch the Day Tour Bus that came to pick us at 9 'O Clock on the Friday morning, wherein the American Hospitality got a taste of Indian Punctuality..:P. We were transferred to another bus which took us to the first of our destinations, the Universal Studios.

The Universal studio is a state-of-the-art factory of film making , which was conveniently modified as a Theme park and an entertainment center. It is aptly titled the entertainment capital of Los Angeles, the shows, rides and other attractions would leave the visitors wonder in awe. The film nagar of the gore log, tells you a story of its own. The story of the film makers, film making , the stars and all the people behind the celluloid. A story which is no less interesting that any of the Hollywood flicks themselves.

If the 3-D experience of the futuristic panorama of Terminator makes you yell "Asta la vista baby", the Shrek experience would make you feel as if you were a part of the movie. If the Jurassic ride takes you through a voyage into the Jurassic era, that you can ever forget for sure, the revenge of the Mummy would make your adrenaline rush as fast as the ride itself.

The 45 minute studio trip takes the visitors in a motorized tram through the various different studios, each specializing in a different category. The trip shows the glimpses of film making techniques like, flash floods in some Mediterranean suburb, cars somersaulting on the freeways, Giant Gorilla attacking a hanging bridge, an earthquake in an American Subway, Deadly Shark attacks in the middle of a lake, the debris of an Boeing flight and many others.

By the time you realize it, you will find the meaning of the phrase "Time flies". It indeed does at Universal Studios.

Another bus picked us outside the Studio at 8PM, to take us to an excursion of the other attractions of the City. On our way to the Rodeo Drive, the Driver/Guide took us through the world famous Beverly Hills, and the Sunset Blvd amongst other important places. Alongside the roads were houses of the famous stars and/or the shops owned by them.
The bus stopped in the Rodeo Drive, where we have got down to have a stroll along the "Walk of fame" , where the Names of the famous Hollywood Legends were engraved on the footpath within a star. The whole avenue is a neon lit zone that aptly symbolizes the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. As you walk along the "Walk of fame" , you can see the Kodak Theatre which hosts the Oscars, the Guiness Center, Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum and the Wax museum.

We were dropped back at the hotel at 11PM after being taken through the Roads of the LA downtown. After the long day, we slipped into a deep sleep before even we knew it.

Day-2

The day started at 9 O Clock , a rather late time on any given day, let alone the day when we have to take the evening flight.After no more deliberation, we have started to the Disneyland, which is located at about 40 Miles from the place where we took the hotel. As it turned out to be, you will regret going to such a nice place under extremely tight deadlines. It is one of those places where you can spend any length of the time, without getting bored, and still come out with a feeling that you would have spend some more time .

Disneyland is comprised of two different parks, On one side is the park with all the classic rides and on the other side, is the new and the high speed rides section. We chose the classical one for no particular reason. Disneyland is every kid's dream and if you are not a kid, then there is every chance that you will either relive your chilldhood, or would think of getting your kids when you have them atleast.

Tha fantastic atmosphere, with Disney characters greeting you from everyplace would make you forget that they are afterall lifeless objects. The Water based ride through the antique setting in the background of the Pirates of the Carribbean will give an experience I bet you would not have had before. The 50 foot free fall in the Splash Mountain would reintroduce the familiar weightless feeling that is associated with the Swings and Giant Wheels.

The toy train that plies through the Disneyland took us next to the Tomorrow Land, which was a futuristic representation of the imagination of the Creative genius Walt Disney himself.It comprises of the shows, themes and rides that take you to the next level of entertainment. The Bobsleds is a High-speed turbulent roller coaster type ride through Matter Horn Mountain that includes sharp turns and sudden drops and stops. You can help Finding Nemo by the means of an underwater ride in a Submarine, that takes you to a virtually realistic world that exists deep down, and the creatures that survive there. The ASIMO robot built by Honda Corporation shows a glimpse of what the future has in store for us.

After all the merriment , it was time to call it a Day Disneyland and pack our bags, back to San Jose.

And Yes, This Thanksgiving, the was weekend was indeed a special one.

THE END.