Udaan (Day 1)

How strange is this combination of proximity and separation.  That ground - seconds away - thousands of miles away.  ~Charles A. Lindbergh


The above lines describe how I was feeling when I boarded my second flight (BLR- DEL) with my college friend Vivek. Boarding the flight was our first step towards a ten day long vacation. Friday, the 12th of August 2011, I boarded my second flight and as we entered we thought to ourselves, lets not expect anything out of this most awaited trip which was planned just in two days. There was another friend of mine who was flying at the same time but on an international airline for his higher studies and that is Pramod Natraj. 

Spicejet


The flight being Vivek’s first, he took the seat next to the window hoping to capture Bird’s eye view of Bangalore. As the metal bird took off, the most admired Nikon SLR was out only to make us realize that the battery power had drained out. Hope its not an ‘Omen’ we thought and managed to capture few snaps from Samsung phones. Experiencing the minor turbulences, within no time we had dozed off. I woke up with a ear block and the flight circling around the Delhi airport. After a few circles, the bird protruded its claws and held firmly the asphalt led track made for it. And so we were in DELHI. (12 noon)
Utkal Express


A cab from the airport to H.Nizamuddin Railway station gave us a feel of the Delhi traffic and its wide roads. At 1.30 PM, we made it to the station and had a quick lunch to board the Utkal Express at 2.30 PM. Then began the long, really long wait for the train to arrive. The rain gods showered their blessings in excess, I was forced to sit with all our luggage on my lap and Vivek was busy charging the camera’s drained out battery. Finally the train arrived at around 5.45 PM and I really don’t remember when it departed. At 2 AM in the morning we reached Haridwar, the land of the holy River Ganga and the scary ‘Aghoris’. Luckily for us Shankar, a SAP professional once upon a time had booked a room for us. 

Hotel in Haridwar



We entered the room, dropped our luggage and got some Biscuits + Tea as our dinner, breakfast. A four hour short nap and then a quick bath, we were back at the Haridwar Railway station to meet the other 14 strangers and begin our journey towards wonderland.

Haridwar Railway Station

Additional Details:
BLR-DEL Airfare : Rs.3300/- (Spice Jet)
Del Airport to Nizamuddin Station : Rs. 280/-
Utkal Express (To Haridwar) : Rs. 141/-

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