Dear Reader,
I am extremely sorry!!, I could not update the blog as per my promise. Firstly, i do not know why the Mobile blogging service is not working (it says "message undeliverable"). I later planned to update it from a cyber cafe, but either i did not have time or energy to do so, but today i have both.
For those of you who are looking just for my ride experience please scroll down and go to Day 1, as Day -1 and Day 0 talks about how i transported the cycle to Kanyakumari..
Day -1 ..... Circus
As i had to log in at 2, I got up at 7 in the morning and rode my bicycle to majestic to get it shipped. I was there by 8 and an old man helped me cover the frame and saddle with a peace of cloth to avoid scratches for 40 Rs, meanwhile i went and finished the formalities of filling the form. When I submitted the form he said he would accept the parcel only post 6 in the evening as my train was at 11. This was ridiculous!! I didn't not have any other choice and I immediately decide to take the risk of parking it in the bus stop and I went home.
I took the 5 PM log off cab from the office and got dropped in Majestic. I was really glad to see my bicycle being parked where i had left it in the morning, I even thanked the parking guy for taking care of the cycle which was not locked, and as he heard the words "not locked" he gave a strange look and started blasting me telling, he would be blamed for our carelessness, he was right but I did not have any other choice. As i went and submitted the same form in the parcel counter he asked for my travel ticket, another blunder, I did not carry the e- ticket with me. This time I went to the same parking guy and explained him my condition and he agreed to take care of the cycle. I had to walk close to 2 km near the railway station to find a Internet parlor. Finally the form was submitted, the inspector near the gate asked for 30 bugs just to open the gate and let the cycle inside the platform, but he settled for 20.
I came back home, made a quick check if i had forgotten anything, everything looked alright. At 10.15 I said good bye to my tensed and angry mother and took a Rick to Yesventpur railway station.
Day 0 .... Confusion
My train arrived to Nagercoil at 4.30 (late by 2 hrs) and my cycle was about to reach by 5.30 in Island express. I waited in the station for an hour and finally the train arrived. I was waiting near the parcel office to immediately collect the parcel and push off to kanyakumari, but there was no sign of my cycle. When I enquired in the counter, I was told that the guy who clears the luggage was on leave and I was suppose to go and collect in Kanyakumari!! I immediately boarded a bus to Kanyakumari and finally collected it. The co passenger who travelled with me in the bus was a member in Viveknanda kendra and promised me to get a room there. I agreed without a second thought and got a neat room for just 50Rs. I had my dinner in Saravana Bhavan and hit the bed at 10.30 PM as i had an early start.
Day 1.. The struggle
The alarm woke me up at 3.30 in the morning and i was ready and out on the street by 4.30. The clouds were clear and after 5 Kms I heard a devotional Malayalam song played in a tea shop, Kerala was at least 50 Km away!!From then on, very few people understood Tamil, most of them spoke Malayan..I will not be surprised if there is a border dispute. By 5.15, I was movingg in a good rhythm, but.......... it started to drizzle, and the drizzle transformed to a pouring rain within few minutes. I knew I had a long distance to cover, so took my rain jacket and proceeded towards padhmanabhapuram palace. The rain jacket was of no use, I was dripping wet. When I checked my odometer it really scared me, i had just covered 15 km in 2 hrs!! My normal speed would be 20 km/ hr. Blame the uneven roads and the rain. I reached the palace by 7 and the watch man was very kind to let me in looking at my condition (it normally opens at 9). It went around the palace and started to proceed towards Trivandrum. The rain was playing a spoilsport, when i was getting used to the rain it used to stop and the temp would shoot up, when i was trying to get used to the humid condition, the rain would come into play out of nowhere. I was really getting sick as i was getting splashings from all directions. I reached Trivandrum at 11 and i had 80 more Km's to cover. I visited Kovalam and I took the bypass road form Trivandrum and started to proceed towards Kollam, my final destination. On the way to Kollam I was surprised to see a huge Infosys building!!
Initially the roads were pretty even and i was hoping it to remain the same, but it didnt. I stopped in a shop and ordered for orange juice and just closed my eye for a moment, blank!!! When i opened my eye I realised i had slepty for 35 mins and the orange juice had become warm. I had the juice and few pieces of dates that i carried and started fresh to knockoff the remaining 50 Km. Initial 15 km's was fine, later I did not want to fight with these mercy less uphills and i shifted to "granny's gears" (meaning, even a granny walking beside can overtake you) and moved in snail's pace. Took few more breaks and finally reached Kollam at 6 in the evening. I found a decent looking lodge for Rs 150, threw my luggage in the room, had my dinner (idyappam and chicken curry costing just 55 Rs) and was in deep sleep by 8.
Total Distance - 178 Km
Time - 13 hrs
Water - 8 Ltrs
Day 2... Mesmerising Allapy
I got up by 7, and rushed to the backwaters in Kollam.The guy in the counter demanded 300 Rs for a ride till allapy, but I negotiated and settled to pay 200 as i would be getting down in Haripad. We were just 8 of us in the boat and 4 of them were foreigners. 1 from Japan, I really tried hard to pronounce his name, but I am sorry, I gave up.. but he was a very enthusiastic man, looking in his 40's but he is actually 65. He owns a Casino in Japan and shared his card (which is in Japanese). The other 2 were a sweet young french couples who had come to attend a wedding in Bangalore. I was zapped to know the guy was a Supply chain forecaster in Boeing!!! The boat ride was fun and I finally waved them a good buy and got down in Haripad. From there i went to Kuttanad, the rice bowl of kerala. Beautiful rice fields welcomed me. I had heard from many that this place was famous for duck roast and when i enquired few people all directed me towards a toddy shop. I entered the shop an ordered rice and duck roast. I saw 2 people half drunk and one already drunk. The one who was already drunk started the conversation with me asking where was I from, when I told him Bangalore he started taking about Devegowda and in a while he proudly said that the current CM was from Kuttanad, i just gave a friendly smile. His next question was, which party I support, i knew this would be a very controversial topic and that too with a man who is half drunk, i finished off my lunch soon. I reached Allapy at 6.30 in the evening and Kochi was 60 more Km's. With few more water and Juice breaks I reached Fort kochy at 11PM.
I have uploaded feww pics here
Total Distance - 96
Time - 8 Hrs
Water - 6 Ltrs
Monday, May 31, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Tour De Monsoon
• Tour De Monsoon
This monsoon I will be touring on my bicycle, starting from Kanyakumari and proceed along the west coast from 28th of May. I do not have a destination yet to end the tour but I have planned the tour for 10 days and planning to approximately cover 1000 Kms. I will be travelling to Nagercoil with my bicycle by Bangalore - Nagercoil Express on 27th May and reaching Nagercoil on 28th noon. I will have a small warm-up ride till Kanyakumari (20Kms) before I kick start the tour. I have reserved a normal sleeper class ticket as I want to keep this trip as economical as possible, not because I have a financial constraint, but I want to avoid Luxury as much as possible (I have given so much luxury to my body that my waist size has been increasing by multiples of 2 for the past 2 years). This would be a good 10 days test on my body to observe how much pain it can take. I have decided to completely rule out the consumption of bottled mineral water unless and until I come across a situation where I do not have any other choice, I will be drinking the water the locals drink, having the food the locals have. I will be staying in hostels, houses of worship, paddy fields or even a police station if I do not feel safe (I am carrying a sleeping mat).
Coming to the fun part, as most of the places I will be visiting has a strong history (were once ruled by the British, Portuguese ..etc), I will get to see a lot of temples, Palaces, forts, beaches, churches, Jew synagogue, Chinese fishing nets, ports.. etc. I will be staying in a house boat, will be camping wherever possible, cooking my own dinner (not a 7 course meal, I meant something like Maggie noodles) and many in store for me as surprise. I get to ride in between the rubber estates, paddy fields, and lanes passing along the sea and backwaters in the rain. This is all I know as of now.
• My Bike
It’s Rockrider 5.2 from Decathlon. I fitted a rare carriage to accommodate my backpack and sleeping bag. I have already fitted the head lamp, tail lamp and odometer. Other specifications remain the same that comes with this model. For more information about the bike you can visit the Decathlon web site.
• What will I carry
1. 3 pair of shorts and T Shirt, 1 Jeans, A pair of Gloves, my sun glass to ride in the hot sun and a water proof Jacket to ride in the rain.
2. Camera
3. Sleeping bag
4. 2 Water bottles (1Ltr)
5. Enough batteries to keep my headlamp and my tail lamp glowing for 10 days
6. 10 Packets of Electoral to overcome the loss due to dehydration.
7. 2 packets of lion dates as a quick energy booster (will keep replenishing if needed)
8. Mobile phone and charger, card reader and Pen drive.
9. IPod loaded with songs to its maximum capacity.
10. Toothbrush, paste and Soap
11. Johnson’s Baby Powder to avoid saddle sores
12. A book and pen.
13. Cable lock
14. Sunscreen and Vaseline
15. Repair tools (Spanner, Puncture kit, hand pump.. etc) and an extra tube.
16. Hard copy of the maps taken form Google Maps and the route plan.
17. Petrol and lighter for camping
18. Last but not the least “$#^^” Rs
• Why am I going on this tour?
“I am not doing this tour for any Social Cause!!”. So if you are looking for some kind of motivational story to work on a social issue like global warming, I am sorry to disappoint you. Then why am I going for this tour? To be honest I do not have a very clear answer, but I do have few unclear ones like,
1. I like to push my body to test its limit. For example I like feel the terrain in my muscles as I climb and when I am dripping wet after the climb I get a down hill as a gift. It’s a lovely experience and the smell of air I breathe is unexplainable!!
2. Admiring nature while cycling is all together a different experience (that too during the monsoon)! You are neither to fast to miss the beautiful view around nor too slow so that you loose out on time.
3. It’s a confidence booster!
4. It’s a thrilling experience to be left all alone just with a bicycle and 3 pair of cloths in an unknown place where you do not even understand their language.
5. Last, but not the least, who does not want to spend a long vacation in the Sun, Sand, and Sea.
• What to look for from this Blog
I will be blogging from my mobile (thanks to BlogSpot for mobile blogging option). I will post lot of stories about the places I travel, the kind of people I come across, and the challenges I face (especially with my cycle and language. I am learning few words in Malayalam like Buttermilk, Orange, tender coconut water.. etc as most of the days will be spent in Kerala). This is all I know as of now. I will be posting the updates, routes and pictures as and when they come.
This monsoon I will be touring on my bicycle, starting from Kanyakumari and proceed along the west coast from 28th of May. I do not have a destination yet to end the tour but I have planned the tour for 10 days and planning to approximately cover 1000 Kms. I will be travelling to Nagercoil with my bicycle by Bangalore - Nagercoil Express on 27th May and reaching Nagercoil on 28th noon. I will have a small warm-up ride till Kanyakumari (20Kms) before I kick start the tour. I have reserved a normal sleeper class ticket as I want to keep this trip as economical as possible, not because I have a financial constraint, but I want to avoid Luxury as much as possible (I have given so much luxury to my body that my waist size has been increasing by multiples of 2 for the past 2 years). This would be a good 10 days test on my body to observe how much pain it can take. I have decided to completely rule out the consumption of bottled mineral water unless and until I come across a situation where I do not have any other choice, I will be drinking the water the locals drink, having the food the locals have. I will be staying in hostels, houses of worship, paddy fields or even a police station if I do not feel safe (I am carrying a sleeping mat).
Coming to the fun part, as most of the places I will be visiting has a strong history (were once ruled by the British, Portuguese ..etc), I will get to see a lot of temples, Palaces, forts, beaches, churches, Jew synagogue, Chinese fishing nets, ports.. etc. I will be staying in a house boat, will be camping wherever possible, cooking my own dinner (not a 7 course meal, I meant something like Maggie noodles) and many in store for me as surprise. I get to ride in between the rubber estates, paddy fields, and lanes passing along the sea and backwaters in the rain. This is all I know as of now.
• My Bike
It’s Rockrider 5.2 from Decathlon. I fitted a rare carriage to accommodate my backpack and sleeping bag. I have already fitted the head lamp, tail lamp and odometer. Other specifications remain the same that comes with this model. For more information about the bike you can visit the Decathlon web site.
• What will I carry
1. 3 pair of shorts and T Shirt, 1 Jeans, A pair of Gloves, my sun glass to ride in the hot sun and a water proof Jacket to ride in the rain.
2. Camera
3. Sleeping bag
4. 2 Water bottles (1Ltr)
5. Enough batteries to keep my headlamp and my tail lamp glowing for 10 days
6. 10 Packets of Electoral to overcome the loss due to dehydration.
7. 2 packets of lion dates as a quick energy booster (will keep replenishing if needed)
8. Mobile phone and charger, card reader and Pen drive.
9. IPod loaded with songs to its maximum capacity.
10. Toothbrush, paste and Soap
11. Johnson’s Baby Powder to avoid saddle sores
12. A book and pen.
13. Cable lock
14. Sunscreen and Vaseline
15. Repair tools (Spanner, Puncture kit, hand pump.. etc) and an extra tube.
16. Hard copy of the maps taken form Google Maps and the route plan.
17. Petrol and lighter for camping
18. Last but not the least “$#^^” Rs
• Why am I going on this tour?
“I am not doing this tour for any Social Cause!!”. So if you are looking for some kind of motivational story to work on a social issue like global warming, I am sorry to disappoint you. Then why am I going for this tour? To be honest I do not have a very clear answer, but I do have few unclear ones like,
1. I like to push my body to test its limit. For example I like feel the terrain in my muscles as I climb and when I am dripping wet after the climb I get a down hill as a gift. It’s a lovely experience and the smell of air I breathe is unexplainable!!
2. Admiring nature while cycling is all together a different experience (that too during the monsoon)! You are neither to fast to miss the beautiful view around nor too slow so that you loose out on time.
3. It’s a confidence booster!
4. It’s a thrilling experience to be left all alone just with a bicycle and 3 pair of cloths in an unknown place where you do not even understand their language.
5. Last, but not the least, who does not want to spend a long vacation in the Sun, Sand, and Sea.
• What to look for from this Blog
I will be blogging from my mobile (thanks to BlogSpot for mobile blogging option). I will post lot of stories about the places I travel, the kind of people I come across, and the challenges I face (especially with my cycle and language. I am learning few words in Malayalam like Buttermilk, Orange, tender coconut water.. etc as most of the days will be spent in Kerala). This is all I know as of now. I will be posting the updates, routes and pictures as and when they come.
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