Mumbai to Muraura by Car - Day 3

The plan was to leave for Sanchi at 07:00. Like disciplined tourists we stuck to our schedule and were at Sanchi by 08:00.

            Sanchi is famous for the Stupas constructed by King Ashoka. The Archaeological Survey of India has done a great job in resurrecting and maintaining the age old Stupas. For a detailed tour of Buddhist ruins you are welcome to our village (no charges apply).

We spent around one hour at Sanchi and were back to Bhopal by 10:00. Car cleaning, stocking up on water and breakfast of toast and omelette taken care of, we were ready to leave for Jabalpur by 11:00.

Bhopal to Jabalpur

Route

Bhopal – Obaidullaganj – Bari – Udaipura – Shahpura – Jabalpur

            The approx. 250 Km drive from Bhopal to Jabalpur was fairly uneventful though gradually the landscape turned hilly and more picturesque. The trees wore a barren look after shedding their leaves, but there was a stretch where we saw lots of trees (don’t know which) which were laden with yellow green flowers even though they did not have a single leaf.

We did not risk having another terrible lunch in a dhaba and munched on chips and cookies etc. while driving. By and by we reached Jabalpur at 17:00 and were at the Narmada Jacksons hotel by 18:00 (the mandatory one hour search!) where arrangements for our stay had been organised. The hotel is part of a chain of hotels across India owned jointly by ITC and the Maharaja of Jodhpur. It has been in existence since British days when it was known as Jacksons Hotel.

            As we had not had lunch our stomachs were grumbling, so we had an early dinner of some delicious Chapli Kabab, Tandoori Chicken, Dal & Roti and after finalising the details of visiting Bheda Ghat early the next morning went off to sleep in the cool confines of our room. The plan was to pack up and leave the hotel at 07:00 the next day, visit Bheda Ghat and drive on to Kanha National Park.

Mumbai to Muraura by Car - Day 2

            The plan was to visit a few more temples in the morning. There is a temple called the “Kaal Bhairav” temple where the deity is offered liquor. Rituraj decided that he just had to offer liquor to this great God. So we went there, bought a small bottle of liquor, which along with other offerings is sold right outside the temple and dutifully offered it to the deity. The priest poured the liquor in a plate and placed it against the open lips of the deity who seemed to hungrily gulp it down. We were told that the deity has been “drinking” for hundreds of years and no one seems to know where the countless gallons of liquor has gone!!! Rituraj was mighty thrilled with the liquor drinking deity and promptly proclaimed that he shall worship this deity by imbibing some liquor every evening (which he is dutifully doing too).

            Ujjain also has a temple dedicated to “Mangal” (Mars), as it is supposed to have been the birth place of the planet. It is said that this is the only place where people born “Manglik” can get rid of the ill effects caused by the angry planet. We wondered as to why Aishwarya Rai did not offer prayers here rather than getting married to a tree before her actual marriage to Abhishek!!! Or maybe she did. These stars can do crazy things!

            Lord Krishna is also associated with Ujjain.  He is supposed to have studied along with Sudama at the Ashram of Guru Sandipani. Ujjain also has a solar observatory like Delhi’s Jantar Mantar built by Sawai Jai Singh and is still functional.

            To cut a long story short Ujjain is a historical and holy city and in case someone is religiously inclined, he can spend quite some time just visiting the various temples and earn eternal salvation. Ujjain is most famous, however, due to its association with Shiva – the Destroyer. For a detailed discourse on Shiva seek a prior appointment with Rituraj (charges shall apply).

            Temple trotting was over by 10:00 hrs and by now our stomachs were angrily growling in protest, so we went to the city and had a hearty breakfast of Chhole Bhature. This was in an area called “Freeganj”. During the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi had appealed to the Scindias of Gwalior (yes the very same) for help against the British. However, the Scindias had demurred, aligned as they were with the British. Consequently, in the immediate aftermath, they were shunned by the Indians. Apparently, the capital of the Sindhias used to be Ujjain before being shifted to Gwalior later on. The then Maharaja had built a huge clock tower in Ujjain, but the stigma was strong and it was ignored. In order to make the clock tower the centre of attraction and to remove the stigma the Maharaja offered land to all and sundry free of cost around the tower. That is how “Freeganj” came into existence!! Today, however, it is one of the most sought after localities of Ujjain. The 150 year old munificence has turned the present generation into multi-millionaires.

            Fortified by this amusing anecdote and the hot and tasty Chhole Bhature, the road to Bhopal beckoned.

Ujjain to Bhopal (23rd March, 2010)

Route

Ujjain – Dewas – Ashta – Sehore – Bhopal

            We finally left Ujjain at 11:00 hrs for the approximately 200 Kms journey to Bhopal. Apprehensive of the road conditions we mentally prepared ourselves for another arduous journey with a disastrous lunch thrown in.

            However, the road was amazing. Despite being only a State Highway it was four laned and as good as the best four lane National Highways. And there was practically no traffic. The drive, therefore, was a breeze. And the surprise did not end with the road either. Near a small hamlet called Dodi we found a lovely Motel (Highway Retreat) run by the MP Tourism. Unfortunately we were not hungry as yet, but we stopped and had a quick cup of tea.

            Nugget of wisdom : While planning a drive do not be enamoured only with national highways. Take local advice. It is worth much more than the effort.

            The road continued to beat all expectations and we were in the IPS Officers’ Mess, Bhopal by 14:30 hrs notwithstanding the mandatory one hour search!!

            Bhopal is famous for its mosques, old palaces, havelis, the Nawabs (Nawab Pataudi and his son Saif Ali Khan belong to Bhopal) and the two huge lakes located bang within the city. We were now going to behave like avid tourists and so by 17:00 we were on the streets of Bhopal soaking in the sights. Our guide was a talkative police inspector who took us to some really vantage points, and we could view the lakes and the city in all its evening splendour.

Bhopal also has the distinction of having the largest mosque in Asia (and the third largest in the world) which can seat 1,16,000 people at a time. We did visit the Mosque called Taj-ul-Masajid (it is actually called Masajid rather than Masjid) but did not go really within the building fearing objections to a jeans clad Jenny being seen in a Mosque!! The crowning glory of our sight seeing was from atop a hillock, where a Birla Mandir (Birlas have constructed temples all over the country) is situated. No we did not go to the temple but could see the lights of Bhopal from this vantage point. This is a must see for anyone who ever visits Bhopal.

            It was 20:00 by now and the tourist in us was quite satiated by the sights. Our stomachs were to be satiated soon hereafter. Rishi Shukla and his genial wife hosted us to a wholesome Chinese dinner as we finalised plans to visit Sanchi in the morning.

            Back in the Officers’ Mess we saw a beautifully lit up temple across the lake, its reflection shimmering in the still waters. The photographer in Rituraj was awakened immediately. However, the results of this nocturnal adventure are not very promising, partly because he is not a great photographer anyway and partly due to the effects of rum sloshing in his stomach!!!

Mumbai to Muraura by Car - Day 1

The journey from Muraura to Mumbai had remained confined to driving, resting at night and more driving. For the return journey, though, we wanted to explore the magnificent Madhya Pradesh. We researched on the internet, spent countless hours on google, read umpteen tourist brochures and charted a tentative route. Rishi Shukla derisively laughed and consigned it to the dustbin in a jiffy! He then charted an entirely new route in a couple of minutes!!

Day 1 (22^nd March)

Route

Mumbai – Thane – Bihwandi – Nashik – Dhule – Indore – Ujjain

            Left Ketaki’s flat in Andheri at 04:00 and were able to get out of Mumbai in double quick time. Jenny had packed some sandwiches, chips & cookies, which we ate while driving. As the morning sun rose from behind the hills before Nashik we had happily covered almost 150 Kms. We crossed a somnolent Nashik and thereafter stopped for a cup of tea, and for buying grapes and raisins being sold in copious quantities along the road.

            After Dhule the road became 2 laned and the road conditions remained barely satisfactory. As the day progressed the sun became scorching and for miles upon miles we just saw a sun tortured, desolate landscape while we crossed some small towns and hamlets. The monotony was occasionally broken by hills and some very steep ghats. Indeed, one particular ghat was so steep that trucks laden with various merchandise were barely crawling – their engines groaning. Infact, one monstrous multi axle trailer laden with heavy machinery had to repeatedly stop. And there were policemen to regulate the movement in the ghat! But despite the steep slopes there were temples in the hills. Throughout our journey we had been noticing temples atop hills & hillocks. It is not easy after all to accommodate 33 crore deities of the Hindu pantheon in the plains itself. If you come across a hill, can a temple be far away!!

            We were constantly on the look out for a good dhaba to have lunch but that was not to be and the dhaba we finally stopped at gave us insipid, salt less dal and chicken!!! When Jenny pointed it out, they even had the temerity to justify it by saying that they put less salt on purpose!! May be the owner, the cook or both were patients of High Blood Pressure. Anyway, we were almost convinced that lunch in dhabas was going to be a uniform disaster throughout our journey.

Nugget of wisdom : Carry chips, cookies, murkku, chocolates etc. to munch on during a long drive. You will be able to manage the pangs of hunger reasonably well.

            After an uneventful journey we crossed Indore and proceeded towards Ujjain. Our GPS (yes we had bought one at Mumbai) played a trick on us and took us to Ujjain through a village route which probably had been a road once upon a time. Right now it was a Herculean effort to make out where the fields ended and the road began and the gigantic craters taxed the car and the driver both. So much for the advancement of science and technology!!!

            We finally reached Ujjain after switching off the GPS and asking for directions in the time tested manner. After the mandatory one hour search for the place of stay, we finally were in the the Police Officers’ Mess at around 18:30 hrs after a drive of about 630 Kms.

            Situated on the banks of River Kshipra, Ujjain is a huge centre of pilgrimage for the Hindus and is dotted with temples. It is also one of the four places in the country which has a “Kumbh Mela” (the other three being Allahabad, Haridwar and Nashik). For detailed information on why Kumbh is organised only at these four places and as to why it is called “Kumbh” seek a prior appointment with Rituraj (charges may apply).

Ujjain has 84 different temples of Shiva himself, the most famous being the “Maha Kaal” temple to signify that He is Eternal and timeless.  Maha Kaal or Maha Kaaleshwar is also a “Jyotirlinga”. Temples of Shiva are dotted all over the country but the twelve most powerful ones are called “Jyotirlinga”. 

If we hurried we could see the evening “Shringar” of Maha Kaal, we were told. So we hurried. Unlike most other temples the Maha Kaal temple is extremely clean, well kept and neat and the crowd of devotees was well behaved and orderly. Soon we were in the Sanctum Sanctorum and were paying our obeisance to Maha Kaal. The idol had been beautifully decorated and fully covered with “Bhang”. “Bhang” is one of the products of the plant Cannabis Indica and has remained associated with Shiva since time immemorial.

Sceptical about Rituraj’s likely behaviour in a temple, Jenny was amazed to see him observing and performing the rituals like a true believer. This being only the second time in her 28 year old married life that she was seeing her husband enter a temple, the amazement was pretty justified. When she later quizzed Rituraj, his reply was, “I just felt like it”. Probably “Maha Kaaleshwar” had silently motivated him or had made the agnostic in him dormant for the time being!!

Ujjain also has a temple dedicated to the Goddess Kali in one of her avatars called the “Harsidhi Temple” (Har=Shiva; Sidhi=to fulfil the wish of). Two gigantic “Deep Stambhs” (Deep=Lamp; Stambh=Tower) catch your eye the moment you step inside the precincts. These are supposed to have been constructed by King Vikramaditya whose seat of power was Ujjain, by the way. The towers were dazzling in the light of the oil lamps. We were told that lighting of the lamps is the prerogative of a particular family only and they climb up the oil smeared pillars without the aid of any ladder or other external aid. That none of them have ever met with an accident is either a tribute to their dexterity or the blessings of the Goddess (choose whichever suits your fancy). Today being ”Ashtami” the beautifully decorated temple was thronging with devotees. We (yes, Rituraj once again rose to the occasion, so to say) performed a quick puja, rued the fact that we did not have the camera to take pics of the ”Deep Stambhs”, dutifully collected the “Prasad” and left.

Back in the Officers’ Mess we had a simple but extremely tasty dinner and retired for the night. It had been a long day indeed.  

Muraura to Mumbai by car - Day 4

Day 4 (6^th March)

Route

Nashik – Igatpuri – Bhiwandi – Thane – Mumbai

Last evening, Ketaki had conveyed the dampening news that, despite the weekend, she would be attending a workshop. And we did not have spare keys of her flat. It seemed we would have to delay our departure from Nashik. Rituraj, however, wanted to leave early to avoid peak traffic. Thanks to his in-laws, he could!  Jerome (Jenny’s brother) and his family live in Thane. A quick phone call to Jerome and we were able to stick to our schedule of leaving early in the morning.

As compared to Nagpur, the streets of Nashik were not completely deserted at 05:15 hrs. Good for us, for we needed directions to the highway. A couple of helpful morning walkers solved that problem and by 05:30 we were on the highway, cruising towards Mumbai.

            As dawn gradually emerged through the shackles of darkness, we negotiated a beautiful stretch of ghats. The scenic beauty of the ghats and the smooth curves of the superb road, translated into a very pleasurable drive. This pristine beauty was, however, soon to be lost in the early morning smog suspended over the industrial belt of Bhiwandi. We were approaching Mumbai!  

            Thanks to the early start from Nashik, we managed to beat the rush hour traffic and reached Hiranandani Estate, Thane by 08:00. Jerome was not a home but Shobha (his wife) welcomed us with a warm smile, a hot cup of tea and mouth watering dosas. She would also end up cooking lunch for us!

            We finally left for Andheri at 16:30 hrs. Despite the detailed directions given by Jerome, we promptly lost our way in the maze of Mumbai traffic and it was only after seeking directions from a host of auto drivers and policemen that we managed to reach Ketaki’s place around 18:00 hrs.

             Muraura to Mumbai had been successfully completed after covering 2048 kms.

Muraura to Mumbai by car - Day 3

Day 3 (5^th March)

Route

Nagpur  – Amravati – Jalgaon – Dhule – Malegaon – Nashik

The day started rather early and we were on the road (pun not intended) at 05:00. Leaving early has its own advantages and the deserted roads of Nagpur ensured that we were out of the city in a jiffy. It also helped that Rituraj had repeatedly and laboriously asked the route out of the city from the night guard.

            The initial 100 Kms was four lane and with minimal traffic the drive was a pleasure. The sun had barely risen when we negotiated a steep but scenic ghat and drove past Malegaon soon thereafter. Severely chastened by the experiences of the previous two days we stopped at the first decent looking dhaba. It was only 07:00 and the dhaba was in the process of being cleaned. However, they promised to give us Sambhar – Vada if we were willing to wait a little. Certainly we would wait, we told them and avidly watched the cook grind fresh chutney, cut vegetables for sambhar, and prepare fresh batter for the vada. By and by, we heard the unmistakeable sizzling sound of batter being immersed in hot oil. We were salivating by the time the piping hot sambhar – vada was served, and gorged on it without further ado. A cup of typical dhaba tea – thick, sweet, lots of milk, no flavour – completed the breakfast.

This was orange country and scores of verdant orchards dotted the landscape. Our desire to take pictures of trees laden with ripe fruits, could not, however, materialise. The fruits had either been harvested or they were still green! Confounded by this conundrum we drove on, expecting to see heaps of oranges along the highway. However, only near Akola did we see come across heaps of oranges being sold.

Gradually the orchards were replaced by large farmlands of cotton. The crop was maturing and the plants were dotted with white. While we could not see cotton being plucked, probably because of the intense heat, we did drive past mounds of cotton – in warehouses, on trucks, on tractors and on bullock carts.

            From Nagpur we had taken NH 6 (Kolkata to Surat) and as the day progressed the truck traffic increased. The road was not four laned either, and often the long line of oncoming trucks forced us to reduce speed and patiently wait for a suitable break before overtaking the equally long line of trucks ahead of us. Despite this handicap, the journey remained comfortable and the progress satisfactory.

            By 13:00 hrs we were approaching Jalgaon and saw a plethora of hotels as we negotiated our way out of the town. We almost stopped at one of them for lunch but the dense traffic dissuaded us and apprehensive about our lunch we slowly got out of the town. Only a few kilometres beyond Jalgaon we spotted two dhabas – Sher-e-Punjab Dhaba and Khalsa Dhaba. The dhabas looked decidedly better than what we had encountered in this journey. We parked in front of Sher-e-Punjab. It could very well have been Khalsa instead – they were practically identical. Lunch was ordered – Chicken Curry, Dal Fry and Roti. The chicken curry and Roti were reasonably OK. But no dal came – they had run out of dal!! This dhaba seemed to be in great demand – but we have had much better dhaba food.

            As we drove further, the landscape turned arid and desolate. For miles upon miles we only saw a desolate sun beaten land. Hardly any trees dotted the landscape either, the only vegetation being the hardy shrubs and bushes. Our tired eyes craved for soothing green, but it would we only after Dhule that they would get some respite.

            Dhule is on the intersection of NH 3 (Agra – Mumbai) and NH 6. At 15:50 hrs we bid a tired good bye to NH 6 and turned onto NH 3.  And what a dramatic turn (pun intended) it was going to prove! The road as well as the landscape suddenly transformed. We were now driving on a swanky four lane and the barren, desolate landscape turned green as if by magic. The desolation of barren fields was now replaced by lush green crops and hills and hillocks dotted the skyline. Refreshed and energised by this magical change we carried on towards Nashik – the smooth four lane ensuring good speed as well.

You know that you are passing through the onion heartland when you see sacks of them along the highway. A bad crop here has often brought tears in the eyes of the average Indian and has led to the downfall of govts!   This area is also famous for its wines and soon we started spotting large vineyards laden with maturing grapes. As one drives closer to Nashik, the vineyards mushroom as do roadside stalls of grapes. We dutifully stopped and bought some grapes and onions.

The long day and drive were coming to an end now, we were on the outskirts of Nashik city. The standard procedure of asking for directions began in right earnest. We were now seeking directions to the Maharashtra Police Academy. No one seemed to have a clue. No wonder, we thought, police is not the most respected of institutions in our country anyway. We started looking for policemen now. After a long wait a couple of traffic cops were spotted. They were courteous and gave us the directions as well as the locality of the Academy. Now we were better armed and asked for directions to the locality. A few more direction seeking stops helped us finding the destination. We had negotiated 703 kms in 14 hours.

                And Mumbai, which had been a daunting 2100 kms  when we started, was less than 200 kms now!  

Muraura to Mumbai by car - Day 2

Day 2 (4^th March, 2010)

Route

Maihar – Katni – Jabalpur – Seoni – Nagpur

The Maihar Cement complex is located about 10 kms from Maihar town. Driving towards the town at 06:30, we saw the temple of Goddess Shaarda atop the Trikuta hill. Maihar would have remained another unknown and obscure town, but for the temple and Ustad Allauddin Khan – the grand old man of Hindustani classical music.

            Legend has it that Maihar derives its name from Mai(Mother) and Haar(Necklace) because the necklace of Sati is supposed to have fallen atop the hill. Ustad Allauddin Khan – the founder of Maihar Gharana – was a devotee of the Goddess and climbed up the hill (1063 steps) every day. Now, of course, one has the luxury of driving up the hill or using the ropeway. We did not have the time to go atop the hill so we just took a couple of pics from afar and carried on towards Katni.

            Our hearts sank and the horrid experience of yesterday started haunting us once again when we encountered bad roads just beyond Maihar. However, the bad stretch was limited to a few kilometres. We relaxed and started enjoying the picturesque drive.

            A reasonably decent looking dhaba was spotted and not willing to take chances, we stopped for breakfast. It was only 08:00 and the dhaba was just about coming to life. We enjoyed the morning breeze under the shade of a garden umbrella as hot Kanda Poha was prepared for us. It was a tasty and sumptuous breakfast followed by a cup of reasonably OK tea.

            As we drove further south into Madhya Pradesh, the roads kept improving. The traffic was not very heavy either and much to our pleasant surprise there were stretches of extremely good four lane roads as well. In some sections, the road signs indicating the name of the village gave statistics of population as well. What made it interesting, though, were the low population figures of each village. Hardly did we see a sign indicating the population to be beyond 1,000. If only the other Indians could learn from these simple villagers!!!

            We noticed another interesting fact. The total absence of speed breakers. In Bihar, on the other hand, speed breakers – often car breakers – literally litter the roads. They serve a variety of purposes, apart from performing their primary duty of reducing the speed of vehicles. They announce to the world that the village has muscle, so to say, and should not be taken lightly. They also facilitate forcible stoppage of buses and trucks – for free travel. The speed breakers have also been notoriously, though gainfully, employed for looting vehicles at night, though in all fairness, this is not so prevalent now. And last but not the least, the speed breakers come in handy for collecting “donations” for “religious” purposes. These could either be an approaching festival or a temple being constructed. The most common deity presiding over this blatant land grab?  Bajrangbali, reduced by the evil forces of Kaliyug to being the God of Encroachment!!

We kept crossing the cities, towns, villages, hamlets without any problem. Bye passes around the bigger cities and towns helping us save precious time. Driving through the towns without a bye pass was not a problem either – thanks to the absence of congestion on the roads. By 10:00 hrs we were driving through the Jabalpur bye pass. Some enterprising families were engaged in a novel business activity on one of the crossings. They were selling old – indeed, very old and torn as well – cotton saris etc. These cotton rags are great for washing and wiping vehicles. Obviously they had realised this and had made a small business out of it! The ingenuity and business sense of the often illiterate Indians beats the best management gurus!!

 The entire drive was pretty picturesque with stretches of hills, ghats and forests. We would also be driving through the Pench National Park where Rudyard Kipling is supposed to have conceived The Jungle Book. Indeed, if we recall correctly, the town of Seoni is mentioned in The Jungle Book. Seoni is the closest town from this forest which spans across MP as well as Maharashtra.

            Manmeet Singh, the DIG of Police, Seoni had repeatedly suggested that we have lunch at Seoni circuit house. We had, however, demurred. “Don’t worry, we will have lunch somewhere in a dhaba”, we had confidently proclaimed. Aaaah, the misplaced confidence of the ignorant!!!

The Seoni bye pass was only partially complete. So we started looking for a hotel, motel, dhaba, fast food joint – any eating place – as we negotiated through a part of the town. None could be located. Unfazed, Rituraj was confidence personified and declared, “No problems, we will find a good dhaba ahead”. It was approaching 13:00 hrs as we drove out of Seoni. The hunt for a good dhaba had begun.

The stretch between Seoni and Nagpur had a lot of dhabas, but the bevy of trucks parked around these deterred us from stopping. We had, by now, forgotten the joys of enjoying the scenic beauty; were keenly eyeing each passing dhaba instead and started noticing their names. The ubiquitous, Sher-e-Punjab Dhaba and Khalsa Dhaba were of course there. But so were Bengal Tiger Dhaba, Kaithal Haryana Dhaba, Mathurawale UP Dhaba and even one Bihar Calcutta Dhaba! Practically all the States were represented, except the four South Indian and the seven North Eastern States. Probably the dhabas proclaimed their state of origin to attract the fellow truckers, we surmised. But why were these states not mentioned? We could not, however, find any answer to the riddle. Any help in solving it would be highly appreciated.

The primary goal of having lunch still evaded us. We did come across some dhabas which were not swarming with trucks. However, when Rituraj enquired, “Should we stop”, Jenny gave the classic statement “शेर भूखा मर जाएगा पर घास नहीं खायेगा" (A tiger would rather die than eat grass)! And so we drove on, reading the name of each dhaba and trying to locate a dhaba good enough for the “शेरनी” (Tigress)!!

None could be found though. It was almost 14:00 hrs. We did not have any sandwiches and kebabs either. Suddenly, we saw a dhaba without a single vehicle. A forlorn bicycle adorned the large parking area.  “Let us stop here”, Jenny said and dutifully the driver obeyed the command of the navigator.

“खाना मिलेगा?” (Can you provide lunch?), elicited an indolent but affirmative nod. A rather more energetic reply came to the query, “क्या - क्या है?” (What all is available?), and a long list was rattled off. We ordered the simplest items, and settled down to wait amidst the blaring sound of a TV. A few men languidly watched some inane Hindi film (nothing strange – most of them are inane anyway). We politely requested them to lower the volume. They impassively stared back. We gesticulated and we mimed. In unison they swivelled their heads back towards the TV. Obviously they did not believe in the dictum, “Customer is king”!! Resignedly we waited for lunch.

Lunch consisted of dal fry, aloo gobi, anda bhurji, roti and mineral water. The tastiest items – mineral water and Roti!! Pangs of hunger had forced the "शेर"  and "शेरनी" (Tiger & Tigress) to eat grass!!! 

Nugget of wisdom : Do not be overconfident when driving on unknown routes.

            After Pench National Park we were in Maharashtra and speed breakers now sprang up with a vengeance! Every town, village and hamlet had at least two sets of rumble strips. Other than this irritant, the journey remained pleasant even in the intense afternoon heat.

 We were to stay at the Guest House of Western Coalfields and knew that it was in the Civil Lines. So we kept asking for directions from polite traffic cops and not so polite auto drivers. We reached Civil Lines alright, but finding the guest house was not going to be easy. Up and down we drove, when suddenly the navigator rose to the occasion and shouted, “There it is”. We were bang opposite the guest house.

By 16:15 we were in the room after covering a distance of 456 kms. Not in a mood to venture out in the intense dry heat of Nagpur we enjoyed a siesta instead. A leisurely evening of watching TV and a tasty, wholesome dinner concluded our second day of adventure. Despite the siesta we slept early – tomorrow was going to be a long day indeed.

Muraura to Mumbai by car - Day 1

            Rituraj wanted a proper run in for the vehicle before embarking on a truly long drive. Muraura – Jamshedpur – Muraura took care of that and we were now ready for our first long drive. It was going to be Muraura – Mumbai.

            Everyone who heard was bewildered, aghast and sceptical (not necessarily in that order). Their reactions were enough to have deterred the weak. We were made of stronger stuff though.

However, Holi was approaching. The departure date had to be after Holi to avoid the hooliganism, unruly behaviour and public drunkenness. Preparations picked up speed – we now had a deadline to keep. Gradually, the route was identified, places of night halt earmarked, the logistics worked out, and we were ready. Rituraj contacted his old friend, Rishi Shukla of MP cadre. Rishi was going to be of great help throughout our journey. No words of gratitude can describe the genial hospitality displayed by him. Thank you Rishi Shukla.

Day 1 (3^rd March, 2010)

Route

Muraura – Varanasi – Mirzapur – Rewa – Maihar

When planning to drive 650 kms, it makes sense to stretch the day. The departure was scheduled for 05:00 hrs. Rituraj was up at 03:00. His day starts with a long gestation!! Despite the early hour a couple of our relatives came to see us off. These touching gestures now limited only to rural India. We finally left at 05:15 hrs. – 15 minutes behind schedule but on our way.

It was still dark and a cool gentle breeze made the early morning chilly. In a few minutes we were crossing the town of Biharsharif. A typical, congested, overcrowded town of Bihar. But there were people – lots of them – on the road, even this early. Most of them headed either towards the bus stand or the station. Holi had been celebrated on 1^st and they were now returning. Trains and buses were going to remain packed for a couple of days.

Negotiating through the winding lanes of Biharsharif takes almost half an hour during the day. The early morning hour, however, ensured that we were on the highway within a few minutes. We would soon be driving past the ruins of the ancient Nalanda University and through Rajgir (Rajgriha) the capital of mighty Mauryan Empire and the place where Chanankya wrote Arthashashtra, his timeless treatise on statecraft. 

Nalanda is a nondescript village now – far removed from glorious past. Rajgir is somewhat better off, thanks to the Hot Springs and the interest of the Buddhists from across the world. But a sad commentary on what it was, to what it has been reduced to. It is difficult to visualise that these nondescript places once reverberated with the sound of intellectually stimulating debate attracting scholars from all civilisations. Equally hard is it to imagine that this area – of around 20 kms diameter – had attracted both Buddha and Mahavira. Pawapuri, where Mahavira attained nirvana, is as nondescript as Nalanda.

Today, however, the district of Nalanda – home to Rajgir, Nalanda, Pawapuri etc. – is notorious for illegal arms manufacturing and has the dubious distinction of being home to Ranjeet Don – the mastermind behind the medical entrance scam. What a fall!! Weep my poor district, weep. What you were and what you have been reduced to!!

By 07:00 we were cruising past Bodh Gaya, the place where Buddha attained wisdom. The steeple of the Mahabodhi temple was resplendent in the early morning sunlight. We drove past the temples of Japan, Thailand, Sri Lanka, China and once again marvelled at the rich cultural heritage of these areas.

Immediately thereafter, we were on NH 2, merrily enjoying the early morning drive on the four lane Golden Quadrilateral as the Tavera kept devouring kilometres. We could not but remember our earlier sojourns on the same road – about 15 years back. Rituraj was then posted as the Supdt. Police of Rohtas district and we used to take the same route for our visits home. The drive used to be a pain then. The roads used to be narrow, full of gigantic pot holes and often clogged with heavy traffic. Thanks to GQ and the NHAI we could now bury the ghosts of the past and cruise in comfort.

Jenny had packed some sandwiches, kebabs and some tea in an insulated mug. Some of the tea spilled out and the rest became almost cold – so much for the insulated mug. We had it nonetheless. We also tried sandwiches and kebabs but it was too early for breakfast.

As we drove across the 4 km long bridge across the River Sone nostalgia set in. The attempts at trying to locate the residence of SP Rohtas, however, failed. Sasaram would come soon we knew. But the NH 2 now skirts around Sasaram and it was only when we reached Shivsagar did we realise that we have crossed Sasaram. Sasaram, by the way, is famous for the Tomb of Shershah.

Suddenly, just beyond Shivsagar we saw a closed Reliance outlet with a functional A-1. We drove in to be welcomed with warm greetings. The warmth of the greeting and the cleanliness of the place turned the proposed tea break into a breakfast break of sumptuous aloo parathas and curd. Jenny sadly wondered as to the fate of sandwiches and kebabs. Much later would we realise and appreciate their true worth!

By 10:30 we were approaching Varanasi. We were to leave NH 2 at Varanasi and take NH 7 to Mirzapur. Jenny, the navigator, was hawk eyed. But nothing indicated a turn for Mirzapur. Confident that the NHAI would surely have a signage we kept driving and were on the bridge over River Ganges. As he drove onto the bridge, Rituraj mumbled dejectedly, “The turn was probably before the bridge”. “But there was no signage”, replied Jenny. And so we drove on, expecting to see a sign indicating a turn for Mirzapur. No sign guided us though. We asked for directions at the toll booth. And the grumpy fellow told us the turn was ahead. Either he had fought with his wife, or his superior had shouted at him, or he was constipated, or all three – he had led us in the opposite direction!!!

Nugget of wisdom : Don’t be shy of repeatedly asking for directions.

The outskirts of Varanasi arrived, but obviously we could not find the turn – it was by now quite far behind us. Totally confused, we went to a fuel station and asked for directions. The attendant was decent enough to confess his ignorance. Varanasi was well and truly behind us by now. We had managed to lose our way!! We were flummoxed, so in true corporate style, the driver and the navigator held a brain storming cum strategy session.

The outcome : do not reverse, carry on till Allahabad on NH 2 and go straight to Rewa from there. Allahabad was less than 100 kms and soon we reached the bye pass.  Sobered by our experience, we were now asking for directions with a vengeance. We were directed to leave the bye pass and drive towards Allahabad city.

This road was a far cry from the NH and was ill maintained too. Stoically we carried on – what else could we have done anyway!! It would have been too demoralizing to get lost a second time. So, we sought directions at a Police Station, beseeched some auto drivers, disappointed a few fuel pump attendants and pestered a couple of traffic constables. The upshot of it all was that we were on the road to Rewa!!!

Our elation – doubled by a superb four lane road – was going to evaporate soon. After a deceptive few kilometres the road turned bad, gradually became worse and suddenly vanished altogether. It was nothing but monstrous craters now. The clouds of dust often forcing us to stop completely. With the windows rolled up and the AC switched on, we were safe from the dust in our cocoon, but not from being jolted continuously. This apology of a road was going to hound us almost till Mangawan – 100 kms from Allahabad! 3 hours of pure anguish!! And no dhaba where we could stop!!! We truly appreciated the sandwiches and kebabs now. The only solace to our battered bodies and grumbling tummies!

From Mangawan we joined NH 7 – yes the very same that we should have taken at Varanasi. The road was better now. However, we were to remain sceptical till after we had crossed Rewa. By now our tired bodies craved tea. So we stopped at a decrepit dhaba and thoroughly enjoyed the rotten tea. Rituraj utilised the time to give the windshield a thorough wash and thus refreshed we carried on towards Maihar.

Despite having lost a lot of time we reached Maihar at 18:40. Locating the place of stay was however going to take some more time and by the time we reached the Maihar Cement complex it was 19:30. Distance covered 708 Kms in 14+ hours. Not bad at all, we thought. A relaxing bath, a sumptuous vegetarian dinner and blissful slumber followed in quick succession.

Tomorrow would be a better day.