Some memories are for lifetime. This is my experience at one of the platforms.
The setting of the scene:
Characters: A group of 16 members, 4 men and their wives with 8 kids(Refer to first Blog for details).
Place: Bangalore Railway station
Date/Time: December End / Early morning
Background: Tired members, after more than 40 hours of train journey and sleep deprived coz everybody had a great time. The TC, irritated with complaints of disturbances about us on both nights in the train.
Scene:
After getting down at Bangalore, we all were very happy as that was the longest train journey we all had taken together. The train journey was wonderful with playing games, reading comics, singing songs and telling jokes. But, everybody was looking forward to a long bath and lying on the bed that would not move. Busy looking around with excitement suddenly, we saw the elders’ group breaking in two and 2 men going towards the exit, my dad and Preet Uncle (Our Head). We started running towards them but were asked to stay back. Mahinder Uncle and Maharaj ji (the kids’ supporter) informed us that..."they had gone to find a hotel to stay! "…Imagine travelling 2500 kms in such a large group with no advance hotel booking done and that too in the year end.
Now what should we do? First the kid’s party went for a walk and surveyed things as if on inspection, but nicknamed devils’ party such innocent time pass bored us very soon. We came back to where the elders were waiting i.e. the same platform wherein the train was still standing and decided to play. Taking lead were Rajat (the biggest prankster now a happily married guy) and Mudit (The evergreen naughty chap) who found a bag filled with mineral water bags (those hygienic packing in polythene) & decided to play “catch it”. It looked fun so we all joined , the most enjoyable part was when those packets broke showering us and the platform with mineral water.
But those cruel railway officials, no doubt instigated by our train TC, came over. They couldn’t see the kids enjoying, after all what had we done except wasting a few packets (OK maybe more than a few).. But , Did their complaining stop us? No, we started again; coz that bag was still lying unattended at the platform. This went on a few more times till we got bored. By now we had spent about 2 hours at the platform. The cell phones were not common then (1994), so we had no update. The mothers decided to rein us but we wanted to explore the station and went off leaving them shouting at us to stay close. One more hour passed, and we became the cranky party with no signs of members who had gone for the hotel booking. That platform became our living room and the luggage our sofa. We used it to the fullest; lying, singing, fighting, screaming, with all those around thinking as if we were from Mars, (as if we cared).
Looking back now, we laugh at our antics and the wait. It took uncle and dad 4 hours, to get a hotel which could accommodate all of us, as we wanted 5 rooms, a separate one for the kids. This was just the start and it happened to us every time and the whole group now loves the platforms as they are an integral part of the memories of our trips. And every time we discuss the trips, the platform makes an appearance in the discussion.
Dedicated to the whole group: Rajat, Abhishek, Bhai, Mudit, Aditi(s) and Swati ; though the last two were very young to remember the incident.
1 comment:
Good One Rach...!!!
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