Day 7

And so it was finally there. I saw it very closely. It was her smile, back on her beautiful face. All the pain and struggle I undertook to take this journey now seemed WORTH IT. What matters to me the most at the end of the day is that the person I love smiles, is happy and I am one of the reasons behind it.

As I had said earlier, I may not matter to her the most in her life yet but even if I can be a small reason for her happiness, I feel it is simply a great feeling.

I reached Hyderabad airport by about 9:20 AM and for the last leg of my journey, I took a cab straight to her guesthouse. I called her while on the way to ensure she stays in her room to receive her gift. The drive till we entered the main city of Hyderabad was picturesque filled with deccan plateau rocks on both sides of the road. Once we entered the city, it was just like any other metropolitan city of our country. I reached her guesthouse without much difficulty and I checked in. May be GOD was watching me. The room allotted to me turned out to be 215, just adjacent to 216, the room where she was staying. One might term it as a sheer coincidence but I just can't. May be it was destiny, may be it was love or may be something truly magical but definitely not "just coincidence".

Once I moved into my room, settled my luggage, I called her. While on phone, I asked her to close her eyes and pick her gift by opening the door. She was apprehensive but just as she came out, I held her hand, pulled both her inside her room and hugged her. Next 5 minutes cannot be described in words. They were magical moments.

Dear Pooja:

Umeed karta hun ki tumko tumhara gift pasand aaya hoga. I traveled more than 1500kms to spend those precious moments of togetherness. And for the first time, I did so much not for myself but for someone else. And that someone else is you. Most importantly I am happy about it. What pains me most is that I have to again say BYE to you. But I will wait and strongly hope to see you very soon with all your smiles, big eyes and even bigger gooooooooooooogles.

I won't spend much time in writing the blog today because I am here for you and would therefore prefer creating some memorable memories with you. Come closer and listen to my i-pod as it sings out loud: " if I was a flower going wild and free, all i want is you to be sweet honey bee". Enjoy

Day 6

Can you feel me? Yash chopra ki films mein jab hero heroine se thodi doori pe hota hai to zor se hawa chalti hai aur heroine hero ko feel kar leti hai. Too filmy, am I? But am just too close to you right now and you may not even realize that ever.

Today I completed the last portion of my journey and probably the toughest as well. I started early today on a bus, but it only took me to some distance closer to you. I then took a lift in a truck and covered the last leg of my journey for today on a shared cab. This trip has been the most green trip as I have tried almost all possible existing means of public transport. CHEERS to go GREEN.

And now - the real question is, where am I or where am I supposed to be and what am I supposed to be doing? Is this all a mere story of which two of us are just the characters or is this for real? Unfortunately I do not have the answers or may be I don't want to give them out.

Dear Pooja:
Its been 4 months we got engaged. CONGRATS. All days since the 16 feb have been great, each better than the previous. To celebrate this feeling of having someone special in my life, I have gift wrapped something and have sent it to you. It might not be the most treasured thing in your life, it might not be the most loved in your life, it might not be the most important, you may not care for it the most, you may not feel attached to it the most but I hope that it might just still bring a little smile on your face. I would feel all this was indeed WORTH it.

I need to sign off for the day but my ipod hangs on to me and sings out loud, " Nothing's gonna change my love for you....". Btw I just noticed, my ipod has been all romantic this trip, I wonder why? Good night!

Day 5

192 Kms on the National Highway No. 7 is all it would take me to reach my next destination - the city of Oranges, Nagpur. After covering more than 300 Kms a day earlier, I was dead tired to undertake another early morning journey. And so, I decided to take it a little easy today. I had to reach to her by Saturday, so I had enough time on my hands.

I woke up by 8AM, lazed around for a while, took a decent breakfast with an aloo parantha and then once again went back to sleep. Two hours later, I woke up to a partly cloudy sky, pleasant winds and a phone call from her. I was so close and yet it seemed so far. After the call, I decided to get ready and head towards my next destination. In this weather, I wanted to be closer to her and feel her. So, I packed my bags and took the first bus out of the city. Good weather for the first time during the trip helped cut though the journey easily.

On NH-7, it took us around 4 hours with one lunch break in between to reach Nagpur. I reached the city by about 4PM in the evening. Not many people might know it but a little wikipedia search tells me that Nagpur lies precisely at the center of the country with the ZERO MILE marker indicating the center of the country. This trip has not been much about seeing the places but about enjoying the journey of getting closer to her. As for seeing the places, I will reserve that for the next trip. Upon reaching the city, I checked into a lodge and then started waiting for her to come back from work so that I could speak to her. This time from 7PM in the evening till the time I sleep is soon beginning to become the most awaited and needless to say the best time of the day. Infact it already has become the best.

Dear Pooja:

Aaj bus mein main 65 year old ek couple se mila. Unki shaadi tab hui thi jab wo 25 saal ke the. Aur pichle 40 saalon se wo saath mein hain. Seeing them , all I could wish for us is to be together for another 50, 60, 70 years. It might be strange to say this, but I have a feeling and a very strong belief that this would be just a left hand's play for both of us. I trust you completely not just with your life but mine as well.

Tomorrow is another long day and tonight is a long wait. But I shall and I always would. My ipod says, " Everything I do, I do it for you.......", it appears a lot more meaningful today. Good Night!

Day 4

Today was supposed to be my longest day. I had to travel more than 300 Kms to reach a small town in Maharashtra called Lakhnadon. This would bring me much much more closer to you :).

I should have started the day earlier. However, since the past few days, I have just not been able to get up early even though I have always been one of those active ones. The moment I finally got up today at 8AM, I knew it would take me some great efforts to travel so much distance and that too in daylight. As before, I had been advised by locals not to travel much on the highway during nights.

I quickly got ready and boarded the bus by 10AM. It was a bit cloudy and I was expecting a bit of rain. It would have helped cool off the journey as well even if by little. We were soon speeding on the highway NH-26. I was looking out of the window. I was blank. No emotions, none at all. I guess I was just overwhelmed with the feeling of seeing her soon now. Yes, I was inching my way closer to her and by midnight today, I would be just around 600 kms away from her. Thankfully, nothing dramatic happened on the way and by late evening, I managed to reach Lakhnadon.

Dear Pooja:

Knowing you has been the most eventful and the best journey of my life till date. And also one journey of which I probably cherish each and every moment. Log aksar kehte hain mujhse, " I am crazy". I only have one thing to tell them, " THIS IS WORTH IT".

Before I sleep, my i-pod tells me, I can be a HERO too. Enrique just sings along, " I can be your hero baby, I can kiss away the pain, I can stand by you forever.....". Good Night.

Day 3

The day was supposed to begin early and it did as well when I woke up at 6:00 AM to wake her up. However, little did I realize that even though she would wake me up by 7:15AM, I was sleepy enough or may be tired enough from last night to still get late. Finally, I managed to wake up by 8:00AM to an extremely hot morning.

I am in Gwalior today and the plan was pretty laid-back. Moreover, the heat was taking a heavy toll on me and I wanted to save my energy for the longest part of my journey which begins tomorrow. So, I remained indoors most part of the day and spent the precious moments alone reflecting on the last few months that have gone by.

Dear Pooja: Soch raha tha ki is samay kya kar rahi hogi. Waise tumko batana chahta hun ki bahut khush hun main ki tumko wo karne ko mil raha hai jo tum karna chahti ho. Ultimately what I have realized is that a smile on your face has began to define my state of happiness as well. May be I am being selfish but seeing you happy is what I would always want to achieve in my life. I just hope and pray that I am able to do that. Agar kabhi na kar paon to meri koshish ko hamesha dhyaan mein rakhna.

After having a good lunch, I decided to head towards my next destination i.e. Jhansi. I have never been to this city but I still love it. And my reason for fascination is Rani Lakshmi Bai. I love history and she has been one of my favorite characters from India's Independence struggle. The courage that she stands for and her love towards her country and her people - I feel nothing can get bigger than this. And so I took the bus to Jhansi and as usual took the window seat. Total distance to Jhansi is 98 Kms and takes around 2 hours to reach from Gwalior.

When it comes to RP, guess somethings can never go right. My bus broke down midway somewhere near the toll plaza and we were left in the middle of nowhere. Jhansi was around 30 mins from here and I was not at all in a mood to wait in the heat for another bus to come.

And then suddenly, GOD comes calling. A sardar ji riding his bike agreed to offer me a lift till the city of Jhansi and so off we went. The highway was pretty smooth with not much troubles and we reached Jhansi 5 in the evening.

I checked into a city hotel and ordered lots of chilled lime juice for myself.

BTW Pooja, I am much more closer to you now with just about 800Kms left for me to cover. Before I sleep, my i-pod sings, " Everything I do, I do it for you................". Does it remind you of the Hindi version which we developed. :) Good Night.

Day 2:

The day started early and wonderfully too with me waking her up and then she waking me up :). My mornings have never been the same post 16 February, 2011. I need to speak to her the moment I get up else it just seems a little incomplete.

Anyhow, I woke up by 8:15 AM today, got ready, took a heavy breakfast and then headed straight to Taj Mahal. This is what I saw:

Beautiful and EXTRAORDINARY is what comes to mind. We all know it stands for love. I was however wondering how could someone possibly love someone so much that he ended up creating a piece of art which even in modern times stands tall and is revered by people from across the world. If you do not understand love, I suggest, come to Agra - there is a good possibility that you might be able to start your journey.

Pooja - main jaanta hun ki tumne ab tak Taj Mahal nahin dekha. Dua karta hun ki agli baar jab yahan aaon to tumhe apne saath laa sakun. Main chahta hun ki jab tum pehli baar ise dekho to main bhi tumhare saath ho sakun. And you very well know, if RP can dream it, he can do it as well.

My next destination was Gwalior. The total distance between Agra to Gwalior is around 125 Kms and by bus it would take me around 2-3 hours. I was advised by locals here to do the entire journey during day time as the route passes through the Chambal region. Though beautiful, it is often considered a little dangerous to travel in the night.

I loaded myself with lots of liquids and boarded the state roadways bus and we very soon hit National Highway number 3. The site was indeed picturesque and offered a number of excellent photographic points.

I reached Gwalior by 5 in the evening and the first thing I did was find this small, shady internet cafe in the city and write this post. I am planning to hang around in the city for a day, take some rest and leisurely reach Jhansi either by tomorrow evening or early morning the day after.

Dear Pooja:

Sometimes, somewhere in life you end up meeting someone who means to you much more than your own existence. And I feel that my time has indeed arrived. When it comes to you - numbers, distances, time, money just does matter. They seem irrelevant. There is absolutely no logic behind what I have felt for you and what I do for you.

It might not be your favorite song but I know you like it. My i-pod has just started humming, " Gulon mein rang bhare...baadlon bahaar chale, chale bhi aao ke gulshan ka,.....kaarvaan chale". Good night!

The biggest Journey of my life - Day 1

Yesterday while I was speaking to her and with one emotion leading to the another, she softly told me, "I wish we were together in this moment". Bas fir kya tha, usi moment decide kar liya ki ab to milna banta hai.

Day 1: 12:00 PM

The total distance between Delhi and my destination is approximately 1532 Kms. I had looked at flights yesterday- too expensive. Train tickets at such a short interval - just not possible. And so began the longest road journey of my life.

My first destination was Agra (on NH-2) - The land of Taj Mahal. I took the Mudrika bus service from Wazirpar (about 2 Kms from my home) and got down near Ashram. From Ashram, I took the State Roadways Bus and made myself comfortable at the window seat. I must tell you, it was extremely hot. As the bus engines rolled, a sudden realization happened - I was ACTUALLY on my way to meet her. This has to go down as the craziest thing I have ever done in my life so far. I was excited, a bit nervous but all SMILES.

" My State Roadways Bus"

Agra is close to 200 Kms from Delhi. Highway is good on most parts and it took me close to 5 hours to reach my destination with a 30 min break in between for lunch. Yummy paranthas on the highway along with daal makhani are always recommended. I reached Agra by about 6:30 in the evening and headed straight to my friend's place, Abhishek who just managed to be in Agra at that time. Thanks to him, I got to stay at his place and saved on a lot of cash. Next morning I plan to visit Taj Mahal and then head towards Gwalior - my next destination.

Dear Pooja:

Jab tumse pehli baar mila tha, tab aisa bilkul nahin socha tha ki ek din main aisa bhi kuch kar sakta hun. It has been close to 6 months that I have known you and in all these times, all you have done is come closer to me and unconsciously become an important part of my life.

7 din ho gaye hain tumko gaye aur roz apne aap se yahi sawaal karta hun ki, " pooja waapas kab aayegi". Tum aao ya na aao, main aa raha hun.

What I am doing today, is just for you.

As I sign out for the day, I dedicate this song to you as my i-pod sings out loud, " Na aaye ho...na aaoge..na phone pe bulaoge...na shaam ki karari chai labon se yun churaoge....gaye tum gaye ho kyun, raat baaki hai...gaye tum gaye ho kyun, saath baaki hai....gaye, tum gaye hum tham gaye, har baat baaki hai". Good Night