The next day wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. The effects of the previous night weren't all that bad. Except for the fact that we got a little less sleep due to the late night it wasn't all that bad. We were in Pondy and not going to Auroville was a crime in itself. One of my cousins, who is an architect herself told me so.
So our plan that day was to explore the roads of Pondy that lead us to Auroville. So we were up by 8 in the morning as we had to leave early to get there early. I think Akshay and myself were the last to wake up. We were the oldest Brahmacharis of the lot*excluding Krit coz he is a VERY bad excuse for one*. Talk of irony!
We all were ready in a while and decided to leave without breakfast, hoping to get some at Auroville or on the way there. We were in a hurry because Auroville wasn't exactly in Pondy. It is about an hour's drive from Pondy. It was sort of fun to get to Auroville.
We left the main city, and asked our way to the highway from fellow riders and pedestrians. Once we got onto the highway it was a really nice experience. As I have specified earlier on, the fact that we didn't have to wear helmets on the Pondy roads was sheer pleasure. The wind in your face, the hand on the throttle, and the wide 6 lanes all to yourself and your bike. WOW. I do not know about the others, but I was alone on my bike and I enjoyed it fully.
A little ahead was the toll gate. Another of the small pleasures: no toll for two wheelers. We passed the toll gates and moved a little ahead to a crossroads. To the right was the road to Auroville. It was a narrow single lane road. The traffic on this road was almost zero. The road was calm and quiet. And deserted.
Here I did my first true wheelie on a bike. The super fat rear tire of the FZ was perfect for it. I am no pro at it. So I am pretty sure that was it not for the rear tire, I was sure to have fallen! The bike is tailor made for beginners. Just the right power, and that huge rear tire. A boon. I have to thank Yamaha for it. Now I wish I owned that bike.
Back to getting to Auroville. The 7 of us headed to the architectural wonder. The place is surprisingly well organised. The parking lot begins as soon as you enter. It has a nominal rate of 5 bucks per vehicle. No motor vehicles are allowed inside Auroville. The walk to the main gate is nice. We are surrounded by a green forest, with a path worn through by lots of visitors. Once you get to the gate, you are exposed to a torrent of people, both devotees and visitors. If it wasn't for the heat, it would have been something else.
There is a big and very clearly illustrated map to guide you through the place. The best part is, the cafeteria is situated just next to the gates. To us hungry boys, that was like a gift of the decade. The excitement was soon extinguished by the prices and the fact that nothing was available. We were too late. Breakfast time was over. But we were all hungry enough to make the best of what was there. We munched on the puffs and sweets available in the counter and paid what seemed like a fortune for the junk we were having.
After eating just enough to keep our minds away from food, we moved ahead to have a look at the Matrimandir. We truly were cheated by the circumstances. After enduring a long walk in the hot sun, we found out that it was closed for visitors due to some maintenance work. Sad. But we enjoyed a view of many "other" beautiful things*boys will know*!
After cooling off, we left Auroville for the beach. This is what all of us were looking forward to. True we had already seen the sea. But we had yet to get wet. In about 45 min we got our wish. We arrived at the Auroville beach, after riding through little winding kachha roads. The entrance is unlike any I've seen before. On a beach where drinking, smoking and drugs are prohibited, we were shocked when we were confronted by a drunk man coming out of the section of the gate which said "for devotees and their guests only". What is the world coming to?
But we weren't there to worry about all that. We were there to have fun and get wet. So we let the insolent B@#$%!d get by and hurried to the beach .I must say it felt pretty rude that the way to the beach for visitors was so narrow and cluttered with a lot of waste. But who am I to ask!
We made our way to the beach. Its a small beach. The water in the distance is pure blue, like in the movies. But closer in, it is as dirty as any other beach I've seen. When you look at the beach, its rough in places and clam in places. Nonetheless, there were people all over who were enjoying themselves thoroughly in the water. Vendors were on the beach with ice cream and tender coconuts. We walked a little distance and found a spot to put our stuff down. We sat there for a while before walking into the water. And then we lost ourselves in the water.
So our plan that day was to explore the roads of Pondy that lead us to Auroville. So we were up by 8 in the morning as we had to leave early to get there early. I think Akshay and myself were the last to wake up. We were the oldest Brahmacharis of the lot*excluding Krit coz he is a VERY bad excuse for one*. Talk of irony!
We all were ready in a while and decided to leave without breakfast, hoping to get some at Auroville or on the way there. We were in a hurry because Auroville wasn't exactly in Pondy. It is about an hour's drive from Pondy. It was sort of fun to get to Auroville.
We left the main city, and asked our way to the highway from fellow riders and pedestrians. Once we got onto the highway it was a really nice experience. As I have specified earlier on, the fact that we didn't have to wear helmets on the Pondy roads was sheer pleasure. The wind in your face, the hand on the throttle, and the wide 6 lanes all to yourself and your bike. WOW. I do not know about the others, but I was alone on my bike and I enjoyed it fully.
A little ahead was the toll gate. Another of the small pleasures: no toll for two wheelers. We passed the toll gates and moved a little ahead to a crossroads. To the right was the road to Auroville. It was a narrow single lane road. The traffic on this road was almost zero. The road was calm and quiet. And deserted.
Here I did my first true wheelie on a bike. The super fat rear tire of the FZ was perfect for it. I am no pro at it. So I am pretty sure that was it not for the rear tire, I was sure to have fallen! The bike is tailor made for beginners. Just the right power, and that huge rear tire. A boon. I have to thank Yamaha for it. Now I wish I owned that bike.
Back to getting to Auroville. The 7 of us headed to the architectural wonder. The place is surprisingly well organised. The parking lot begins as soon as you enter. It has a nominal rate of 5 bucks per vehicle. No motor vehicles are allowed inside Auroville. The walk to the main gate is nice. We are surrounded by a green forest, with a path worn through by lots of visitors. Once you get to the gate, you are exposed to a torrent of people, both devotees and visitors. If it wasn't for the heat, it would have been something else.
There is a big and very clearly illustrated map to guide you through the place. The best part is, the cafeteria is situated just next to the gates. To us hungry boys, that was like a gift of the decade. The excitement was soon extinguished by the prices and the fact that nothing was available. We were too late. Breakfast time was over. But we were all hungry enough to make the best of what was there. We munched on the puffs and sweets available in the counter and paid what seemed like a fortune for the junk we were having.
After eating just enough to keep our minds away from food, we moved ahead to have a look at the Matrimandir. We truly were cheated by the circumstances. After enduring a long walk in the hot sun, we found out that it was closed for visitors due to some maintenance work. Sad. But we enjoyed a view of many "other" beautiful things*boys will know*!
After cooling off, we left Auroville for the beach. This is what all of us were looking forward to. True we had already seen the sea. But we had yet to get wet. In about 45 min we got our wish. We arrived at the Auroville beach, after riding through little winding kachha roads. The entrance is unlike any I've seen before. On a beach where drinking, smoking and drugs are prohibited, we were shocked when we were confronted by a drunk man coming out of the section of the gate which said "for devotees and their guests only". What is the world coming to?
But we weren't there to worry about all that. We were there to have fun and get wet. So we let the insolent B@#$%!d get by and hurried to the beach .I must say it felt pretty rude that the way to the beach for visitors was so narrow and cluttered with a lot of waste. But who am I to ask!
We made our way to the beach. Its a small beach. The water in the distance is pure blue, like in the movies. But closer in, it is as dirty as any other beach I've seen. When you look at the beach, its rough in places and clam in places. Nonetheless, there were people all over who were enjoying themselves thoroughly in the water. Vendors were on the beach with ice cream and tender coconuts. We walked a little distance and found a spot to put our stuff down. We sat there for a while before walking into the water. And then we lost ourselves in the water.
No comments:
Post a Comment