My man, Friday could not get me a ticket for Thiruvananthapuram on any one of today's trains of my choice even on 'tatkal'! He'd sadly informed me about it last night and I'd told him that I'd my plan 'B', just in case of a similar situation. Had called up Hamid accordingly.
Lekha had woken me up at a half past 5, as she went down to the kitchen to rustle up my breakfast of dosas and chutney. Was ready well within time and Hamid, along with his auto rickshaw, was at our gate by a trifle past 7. Not only did he drop me at the road transport corporation bus stand but he also helped me with my overnighter, damn sweet of him!
The superfast to Kattakkada left the stand by a trifle after 0730 hrs and Saju, the driver - came to know his name when I'd conversed with him after I'd disembarked at the Vyttila Mobility Hub. Came to know that he used to drive the 'Minnal'( Means lightning) which are long distance buses that clock high speeds. I saw him exercising his restraint over errant motorists but what I wasn't quite happy about his driving was that he used the vehicle's horn a bit too frequently.
At the toll plaza in the outskirts of Thrissur town, there were a lot of drivers who maneuvered their vehicles and jumped the queue much to his chagrin. As he watched helplessly, he muttered under his breath that he'd teach them a lesson or two on the subsequent stretch. That was the time I realised that many of us do test this tribe's patience, quite often, completely forgetting the fact that they are at their difficult job of transferring passengers from one place to the other almost round the clock, barring the off days that they get from their duty! I, for one, give the RTC buses and the ambulances a wide berth while I'm behind the wheel. I congratulated Saju for his driving skills but advised him to show restraint on the use of the horn - he didn't seem to mind my observations and gave me a wide smile as he went away!
After easing my urinary bladder and having a snack at the bus stand, I'd boarded a low floor a/c bus to Thiruvananthapuram passing through Alappuzha, at a quarter past 11. It was again packed to capacity and I'd to stand during the entire stretch of about 60 km, till Alappuzha. Had Lekha's packed lunch of dosas and chutney, around a half past 1, at the Kayankulam bus stand. The bus fetched up at its destination by a half past 5. Since Maman was having a bout of pain in his legs, he was at home and I had to find my way to his house by the line bus. Since I'd never taken the bus route, I'd to don the role of 'Vasco-de-Gama' to board the right bus and reach the house.
Maman's pain had subsided by then as he'd taken the antidote and therefore, didn't require to be shifted to the hospital to meet up with his doctor. We ended up with firming up our programme for tomorrow as we go to KIMS Hospital for tests right in the morning to be followed by the doctor's review in the afternoon.
Saw the cricket match between India and England in the World Cup. Didn't like the way we played!
Tailpiece.
1. Mini, Mithun's mother and Achu had reached 'The Quarterdeck' around lunch time. They will return after the 'darshan' of the good Lord! Ammu is expecting a transfer, on promotion, to Bangalore and Mithun, too, has asked to be shifted there. It should materialise by mid-Jul....it was good that we'd made it to their place at Coimbatore last month!
2. Found to my utter horror that I'd forgotten the water and the bottle in the bus. Rajeev, it shows your carelessness. Sad and not acceptable!!
Lekha had woken me up at a half past 5, as she went down to the kitchen to rustle up my breakfast of dosas and chutney. Was ready well within time and Hamid, along with his auto rickshaw, was at our gate by a trifle past 7. Not only did he drop me at the road transport corporation bus stand but he also helped me with my overnighter, damn sweet of him!
The superfast to Kattakkada left the stand by a trifle after 0730 hrs and Saju, the driver - came to know his name when I'd conversed with him after I'd disembarked at the Vyttila Mobility Hub. Came to know that he used to drive the 'Minnal'( Means lightning) which are long distance buses that clock high speeds. I saw him exercising his restraint over errant motorists but what I wasn't quite happy about his driving was that he used the vehicle's horn a bit too frequently.
At the toll plaza in the outskirts of Thrissur town, there were a lot of drivers who maneuvered their vehicles and jumped the queue much to his chagrin. As he watched helplessly, he muttered under his breath that he'd teach them a lesson or two on the subsequent stretch. That was the time I realised that many of us do test this tribe's patience, quite often, completely forgetting the fact that they are at their difficult job of transferring passengers from one place to the other almost round the clock, barring the off days that they get from their duty! I, for one, give the RTC buses and the ambulances a wide berth while I'm behind the wheel. I congratulated Saju for his driving skills but advised him to show restraint on the use of the horn - he didn't seem to mind my observations and gave me a wide smile as he went away!
After easing my urinary bladder and having a snack at the bus stand, I'd boarded a low floor a/c bus to Thiruvananthapuram passing through Alappuzha, at a quarter past 11. It was again packed to capacity and I'd to stand during the entire stretch of about 60 km, till Alappuzha. Had Lekha's packed lunch of dosas and chutney, around a half past 1, at the Kayankulam bus stand. The bus fetched up at its destination by a half past 5. Since Maman was having a bout of pain in his legs, he was at home and I had to find my way to his house by the line bus. Since I'd never taken the bus route, I'd to don the role of 'Vasco-de-Gama' to board the right bus and reach the house.
Maman's pain had subsided by then as he'd taken the antidote and therefore, didn't require to be shifted to the hospital to meet up with his doctor. We ended up with firming up our programme for tomorrow as we go to KIMS Hospital for tests right in the morning to be followed by the doctor's review in the afternoon.
Saw the cricket match between India and England in the World Cup. Didn't like the way we played!
Tailpiece.
1. Mini, Mithun's mother and Achu had reached 'The Quarterdeck' around lunch time. They will return after the 'darshan' of the good Lord! Ammu is expecting a transfer, on promotion, to Bangalore and Mithun, too, has asked to be shifted there. It should materialise by mid-Jul....it was good that we'd made it to their place at Coimbatore last month!
2. Found to my utter horror that I'd forgotten the water and the bottle in the bus. Rajeev, it shows your carelessness. Sad and not acceptable!!
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