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The Irony of Destiny...( Part 2)
Please read part 1 to enjoy this part...
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How I longed to go on a trip like this. The longing to escape from those chains of remorse being tied to a job that I never really enjoyed. I was getting suffocated by following a routine, as that was not my cup of tea. It felt like someone had cut off the oxygen supply to all parts of my body. I had to break free. I needed to breathe. The universe had heard my silent cry. The universe had cast it's magic spell upon me and here I was on this wonderful journey passing through nature's picturesque serenity to find my lost soul. Every moment was being cherished and a small smirk escaped my tightly sealed lips.
All my thoughts disappeared when I turned to my left and sat gazing at Lora. I caught myself smiling at the thought that Lora might just be related to North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un for she kept breathing fire the entire journey. Now with her by my side, I felt different. I had never travelled with a companion before, leave alone travelling with a beautiful girl. I was enjoying every bit of this ride.
Pune is known for it's schools and colleges. We passed many while driving through. There were many students walking along the footpath with their bags on their shoulders and a few of them with books in hand. A few boys and girls were standing under a tree having a good laugh while a few boys were showing off their biking skills. This sight brought back memories of my school days. Eating in class, playing until the teacher arrived, having two report cards, waiting to run out and play during the breaks, carrying book covers in the back pocket, using a single notebook for all subjects, frequent visits to the principal's office etc.. my batch would always be remembered as a notorious batch. I recalled one such event that no one would ever forget.
'It was during a PT (Physical Training) period that my close friends and I stood watching the girls play baseball from our classroom. My best friend, who was well over a 100 kilos, was holding onto the door while another friend and I stood behind him. We stood there gaping. All of a sudden, the girl who was batting swung her bat so hard that the ball came flying towards us. The way my friend who held the door jerked, my friend and I lost balance and went crashing onto the benches. We lifted ourselves onto our feet while swearing only to find one half of the door in my friend's hand. Just then a teacher happened to pass by and we all were soon on our way to the Principal's office. We returned rubbing our bottoms vigorously and laughing at each other. We were also made to replace the door. From then on, we were blacklisted examples for future batches. I almost burst out laughing in the bus and had to pinch myself to avoid any embarrassment. It is rightly said that some memories would last a lifetime.
The bus came to a sudden halt on the Pune - Mumbai corridor. All the passengers had a puzzled look on their faces and so did Lora. On enquiry we were told that Mumbai had had a heavy downpour the previous night and a fallen tree had caused the traffic jam. There would not be a happier man than me in such a scenario for I knew it would be a while before we got on the road again. Lady luck was smiling on me - I got to spend some extra time with Lora. It got a bit humid in the bus and I excused myself to stretch, get some fresh air and cool off. I walked to where the tree had fallen and found a few men trying to push the tree aside to make way for cars and bikes to pass. I quickly sprung into action and began helping them. On seeing me, a few stunt men who were shooting closeby also came forward to help. In no time, with all our might, we got the tree to a side and the small vehicles started moving. Everyone thanked us for our heroism and some bikers even honked as a sign of respect.
I clicked a selfie near the tree to savor this moment. Once back in the bus I took out the diary from my bag. All happy moments from my trips were recorded in this diary of mine. I renamed the picture on my phone and made a note of it in the diary - I would print it out and stick it in the diary once I returned home. All the while, Lora sat quietly observing me. I scrolled through the pictures on my phone and recollected all the happy memories that I encountered on my many trips. This brought a feeling of bliss within me. I felt my soul reaching out to me and thanked the universe for these moments.
Lora finally spoke in a most appealing tone. She had observed the events that transpired earlier and appreciated me for my efforts. I acknowledged her appreciation with a smile. She wanted to know how long we would be stranded here before getting back on road. I told her it would take a while before we got moving. She heaved a sigh. We started chatting and began getting comfortable with each other. She wasn't as furious as she seemed earlier. I got to know that Lora was the branch head at Cox and Kings, a leading tourism company in India. She too loved travelling and that was the reason why she was on the bus and was reading a book on travel and tourism written by W.G.Sebald. I told her about the purpose of my trip and about all my past adventures. We talked for quite awhile as we both shared the same passion. Curiosity got the better of her and she wanted to know what I had written in my diary. I told her how I had captured fond memories of all my adventures I'd been on in my diary and without a moment's hesitation gave it to her to read. While she flipped through the pages of the diary, I related the adventures. A particular picture caught her attention - a picture of a wall. She was determined to know the story behind that wall. I turned red with embarrassment as I had totally forgotten about that picture. You could see the curiosity in her eyes. Very shyly, I began the story; the picture was taken on one of my trips to a hill station. I had urgently needed to relieve myself and had literally begged the driver to pull over. I found this wall close by and began to ease myself, when out of the blue, an ambulance arrived. The roads were very narrow and the bus had to move to let the ambulance pass. The driver kept honking. I did not know whether to continue or zip my pants and run to the bus. I continued spraying the wall and nearly wet my pants. Thankfully the ambulance was not in a hurry. I had pulled up my zip and was truly relieved. I also told her I wished God had installed a pause button in such situations. Lora could not withhold herself and laughed out loud while I hid my blushing face with my bag. I strongly believed that the universe brings people with similar interests together and this instance was no different as Lora too had the habit of recording her memories in a diary. She handed me her diary. We did not realise how time passed - the road block had been cleared and we finally got moving. A look of relief spread across her face.
The drive to Mumbai was indeed a treat to the eyes. The green hills on either sides and the misty weather reminded us of a hill station. Lora and I spoke of the adventures she had recorded in her diary. She had travelled abroad quite a lot. Being her favourite destination, Lora visited Israel quite frequently. She had taken pictures at the Sea of Galilee, the Ein Hedi Reserve, the Mahane Yehuda Market, Mount Zion, the Baha'i' Gardens and many other places. She had a story for each picture, and I, who usually had the attention span of a kid, was all ears listening to her stories. The sweetness of her voice made me fall in love with her even more. I just sat there admiring her as she spoke.
Before I knew it, the bus pulled up at Mumbai. It was our stopover for lunch. As I got down I cantillated aloud 'Mumbai the city of Dreams' but for me the ' City of Food'. We entered a multi cuisine restaurant. Lora and I sat at the same table. I kept thanking the universe for all it's help. We were handed the menu and Lora ordered the Vada Pav and Pav Bhajji which was the local cuisine. I looked at her surprisingly - 'when in Rome do as the Romans do' was her reply. I remembered a famous Iranian Parsi dish that I had seen on TV that was served in Mumbai, it was called 'Kheema Ghotala'. I looked it up in the menu and ordered it. It was a flavorful mess of mince and eggs served with buns. It was indeed finger licking good. Despite our on going conversation, I spent most of the time admiring her as she ate. We took a small stroll around and ate some Sweet Paan which is also a famous delicacy here. We were enjoying each other's company.
'You and me were meant to be, in the great out doors forever free' was the song I was listening to and singing softly while looking out the window as the bus sped through Surat. It was a dry and hot day. Trucks contributed to the heavy traffic on the highway. Lora and I exchanged seats as it got really humid inside the bus. Sweat dripped off her forehead. I handed her a few wet wipes. The heat had us bogged down. To lighten the situation and pass time, she asked me if we could play a game. My enthusiasm came alive like that of a child's. She told me the game was called 'Ending Letters'. The first player would have to say a word and the opponent would have to come up with another word starting with the ending letter of the first word within 5 seconds. The player who failed to come up with a word would lose. She promised me it would be fun. I readily agreed - who would deny the opportunity to be able to play a game with the girl you were head over heels in love with. Being a gentleman, I asked her to begin. She looked around and came up with the word happy, to which I replied yawn. We went on with north, humid, dog, goat.... until she said the word 'top'. I looked around for a word beginning with P and saw a couple feeding their kid and I shouted out 'parents' before time ran out. With no reply from her I realized I had won and started celebrating like a child. I looked at Lora and found her lost in thought. Her sudden silence and saddened face worried me... had I done something or said something wrong? Through her sadness she told me that the word 'parents' had brought back memories of her own parents. She then told me that she had lost her parents in an accident a couple of years ago, just a few days after her birthday. The top that she was wearing was their last gift to her and was the reason why it was her favourite. Now I understood why she was upset and kept going 'bow bow bow' earlier. I tried consoling her and did my best to cheer her up, all by behaving a little childish. She had wanted to listen to some music and asked me for one of the earphones. Listening to the music and resting her head on my shoulder, we rode to Ahmedabad. My joy knew no bounds - I was over the moon.
Ahmedabad was a city known for many things, it was the textile hub of India and was known for it's excellent street food, Lal Darwaja Market, one of the busiest markets in India, and also for it's sweets. The bus stopped at Ahmedabad for dinner which was also our final pitstop for the journey. Looking at me Lora said she wasn't in a mood to eat. I got down to have something. To my luck, the bus stopped at Manek Chowk, one the famous street food places in Ahmedabad. I couldn't enjoy this alone. I bought some Fafda, a famous Gujarati snack and some Jalebis and headed back to the bus. I made sure Lora ate some as I was in the habit of making people around me eat. She could not resist the Jalebis and wore a sheepish smile. I savoured this moment.
We were on the final leg of our journey. We were headed towards Jodhpur through Udaipur. Lora and I exchanged seats. Udaipur, all lit up, looked like it was celebrating Diwali everyday. Beautiful palaces, royal residences and artificial lakes decorated either sides of the road. The moonlight reflecting off the water was a spectacle to behold. Spell bound, Lora and I just sat staring out the window, admiring nature at it's very best. We wished this sight never faded. Lora fell asleep on my shoulder and at that very moment I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. I felt she completed me. For a while I sat up just admiring her as she slept. I wished the night never ended.
After almost 40 hours of travel we finally landed at Jodhpur - popularly known as the Blue city. The drive from Udaipur to Jodhpur was serene. We passed a few palaces, forts, a few other heritage sites and rocky terrain. The bus came to a halt. Lora was still asleep on my shoulder. Despite reality, I hoped this wasn't the end of our journey. I admired her for a couple more minutes before waking her. Although I captured fond memories of all my trips, I did not take any pictures of her nor with her - I did not want her to be just a fond memory, I wanted her to be MY REALITY.
All good things must come to an end, I told myself, but the thought that I would not be seeing Lora again wouldn't sink in. We both got down and she collected her baggage. She was surprised to see me with nothing but a backpack. I assured her that the best way to enjoy a journey was to travel lightand she truly agreed with me. With a sheepish smile, she said that although she had gotten to know a lot about me, she didn't know my name. This thought hadn't crossed my mind either. Knowing that she visted Israel often, I asked her to guess my name which in Hebrew translated to 'To Save' or 'Salvation of the Lord'. She hoped aloud that my name wasn't Jesus sending us both into splits of laughter. I gave her another chance. Google came to her aid and said aloud 'Joshua'. Blushing and smiling, I nodded. Neither of us felt like leaving and we both realised that there was something between us.
Lora enquired as to how long I would be staying in Jodhpur. I told her that I would be staying for a day or two until my sore bottoms were ready for another journey. Amidst the dust, she hid her laughter behind her handkerchief. Out of the blue and breaking all odds, she, a girl, asked me to join her for dinner that night. She had a sparkle in her eyes and no man in his right senses would have rejected that request. My heart was racing as fast as a Ferrari and before I realised it I had said yes. I wanted to jump in delight. All she had managed to say was 'see you tonight' to which I only nodded and we parted ways.
Later that afternoon, I went hunting for an appropriate outfit for the evening. I had too woo her. As luck would have it, I found just what I was looking for. Dressed like a gentleman in every meaning of the word, I made my way to Kankariya Heritage, the hotel Lora had texted. I reached there on time. There she was standing at the entrance in a red silk dress with high heels. She did not look anything like the Lora on the bus. I just stood there for a couple of seconds mesmerised by her beauty. I thanked my lucky moles and the universe that made her chose me. I could hear my heart beat as I walked slowly towards her. She too was taken up with me and we complimented each other. She had made reservations for us and led me to the roof top. The view from the hotel added to the thrill of the moment. We walked in as a couple, hand in hand.
'You may choose your path, but the universe decides your destiny.'
- - - The Irony of Destiny - - -
I would like to thank all you readers for taking the time to read my story. Hope you'll enjoyed it and would greatly appreciate for you'll to pass on your comments..😁😁
© Joshua Rodrigues
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How I longed to go on a trip like this. The longing to escape from those chains of remorse being tied to a job that I never really enjoyed. I was getting suffocated by following a routine, as that was not my cup of tea. It felt like someone had cut off the oxygen supply to all parts of my body. I had to break free. I needed to breathe. The universe had heard my silent cry. The universe had cast it's magic spell upon me and here I was on this wonderful journey passing through nature's picturesque serenity to find my lost soul. Every moment was being cherished and a small smirk escaped my tightly sealed lips.
All my thoughts disappeared when I turned to my left and sat gazing at Lora. I caught myself smiling at the thought that Lora might just be related to North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un for she kept breathing fire the entire journey. Now with her by my side, I felt different. I had never travelled with a companion before, leave alone travelling with a beautiful girl. I was enjoying every bit of this ride.
Pune is known for it's schools and colleges. We passed many while driving through. There were many students walking along the footpath with their bags on their shoulders and a few of them with books in hand. A few boys and girls were standing under a tree having a good laugh while a few boys were showing off their biking skills. This sight brought back memories of my school days. Eating in class, playing until the teacher arrived, having two report cards, waiting to run out and play during the breaks, carrying book covers in the back pocket, using a single notebook for all subjects, frequent visits to the principal's office etc.. my batch would always be remembered as a notorious batch. I recalled one such event that no one would ever forget.
'It was during a PT (Physical Training) period that my close friends and I stood watching the girls play baseball from our classroom. My best friend, who was well over a 100 kilos, was holding onto the door while another friend and I stood behind him. We stood there gaping. All of a sudden, the girl who was batting swung her bat so hard that the ball came flying towards us. The way my friend who held the door jerked, my friend and I lost balance and went crashing onto the benches. We lifted ourselves onto our feet while swearing only to find one half of the door in my friend's hand. Just then a teacher happened to pass by and we all were soon on our way to the Principal's office. We returned rubbing our bottoms vigorously and laughing at each other. We were also made to replace the door. From then on, we were blacklisted examples for future batches. I almost burst out laughing in the bus and had to pinch myself to avoid any embarrassment. It is rightly said that some memories would last a lifetime.
The bus came to a sudden halt on the Pune - Mumbai corridor. All the passengers had a puzzled look on their faces and so did Lora. On enquiry we were told that Mumbai had had a heavy downpour the previous night and a fallen tree had caused the traffic jam. There would not be a happier man than me in such a scenario for I knew it would be a while before we got on the road again. Lady luck was smiling on me - I got to spend some extra time with Lora. It got a bit humid in the bus and I excused myself to stretch, get some fresh air and cool off. I walked to where the tree had fallen and found a few men trying to push the tree aside to make way for cars and bikes to pass. I quickly sprung into action and began helping them. On seeing me, a few stunt men who were shooting closeby also came forward to help. In no time, with all our might, we got the tree to a side and the small vehicles started moving. Everyone thanked us for our heroism and some bikers even honked as a sign of respect.
I clicked a selfie near the tree to savor this moment. Once back in the bus I took out the diary from my bag. All happy moments from my trips were recorded in this diary of mine. I renamed the picture on my phone and made a note of it in the diary - I would print it out and stick it in the diary once I returned home. All the while, Lora sat quietly observing me. I scrolled through the pictures on my phone and recollected all the happy memories that I encountered on my many trips. This brought a feeling of bliss within me. I felt my soul reaching out to me and thanked the universe for these moments.
Lora finally spoke in a most appealing tone. She had observed the events that transpired earlier and appreciated me for my efforts. I acknowledged her appreciation with a smile. She wanted to know how long we would be stranded here before getting back on road. I told her it would take a while before we got moving. She heaved a sigh. We started chatting and began getting comfortable with each other. She wasn't as furious as she seemed earlier. I got to know that Lora was the branch head at Cox and Kings, a leading tourism company in India. She too loved travelling and that was the reason why she was on the bus and was reading a book on travel and tourism written by W.G.Sebald. I told her about the purpose of my trip and about all my past adventures. We talked for quite awhile as we both shared the same passion. Curiosity got the better of her and she wanted to know what I had written in my diary. I told her how I had captured fond memories of all my adventures I'd been on in my diary and without a moment's hesitation gave it to her to read. While she flipped through the pages of the diary, I related the adventures. A particular picture caught her attention - a picture of a wall. She was determined to know the story behind that wall. I turned red with embarrassment as I had totally forgotten about that picture. You could see the curiosity in her eyes. Very shyly, I began the story; the picture was taken on one of my trips to a hill station. I had urgently needed to relieve myself and had literally begged the driver to pull over. I found this wall close by and began to ease myself, when out of the blue, an ambulance arrived. The roads were very narrow and the bus had to move to let the ambulance pass. The driver kept honking. I did not know whether to continue or zip my pants and run to the bus. I continued spraying the wall and nearly wet my pants. Thankfully the ambulance was not in a hurry. I had pulled up my zip and was truly relieved. I also told her I wished God had installed a pause button in such situations. Lora could not withhold herself and laughed out loud while I hid my blushing face with my bag. I strongly believed that the universe brings people with similar interests together and this instance was no different as Lora too had the habit of recording her memories in a diary. She handed me her diary. We did not realise how time passed - the road block had been cleared and we finally got moving. A look of relief spread across her face.
The drive to Mumbai was indeed a treat to the eyes. The green hills on either sides and the misty weather reminded us of a hill station. Lora and I spoke of the adventures she had recorded in her diary. She had travelled abroad quite a lot. Being her favourite destination, Lora visited Israel quite frequently. She had taken pictures at the Sea of Galilee, the Ein Hedi Reserve, the Mahane Yehuda Market, Mount Zion, the Baha'i' Gardens and many other places. She had a story for each picture, and I, who usually had the attention span of a kid, was all ears listening to her stories. The sweetness of her voice made me fall in love with her even more. I just sat there admiring her as she spoke.
Before I knew it, the bus pulled up at Mumbai. It was our stopover for lunch. As I got down I cantillated aloud 'Mumbai the city of Dreams' but for me the ' City of Food'. We entered a multi cuisine restaurant. Lora and I sat at the same table. I kept thanking the universe for all it's help. We were handed the menu and Lora ordered the Vada Pav and Pav Bhajji which was the local cuisine. I looked at her surprisingly - 'when in Rome do as the Romans do' was her reply. I remembered a famous Iranian Parsi dish that I had seen on TV that was served in Mumbai, it was called 'Kheema Ghotala'. I looked it up in the menu and ordered it. It was a flavorful mess of mince and eggs served with buns. It was indeed finger licking good. Despite our on going conversation, I spent most of the time admiring her as she ate. We took a small stroll around and ate some Sweet Paan which is also a famous delicacy here. We were enjoying each other's company.
'You and me were meant to be, in the great out doors forever free' was the song I was listening to and singing softly while looking out the window as the bus sped through Surat. It was a dry and hot day. Trucks contributed to the heavy traffic on the highway. Lora and I exchanged seats as it got really humid inside the bus. Sweat dripped off her forehead. I handed her a few wet wipes. The heat had us bogged down. To lighten the situation and pass time, she asked me if we could play a game. My enthusiasm came alive like that of a child's. She told me the game was called 'Ending Letters'. The first player would have to say a word and the opponent would have to come up with another word starting with the ending letter of the first word within 5 seconds. The player who failed to come up with a word would lose. She promised me it would be fun. I readily agreed - who would deny the opportunity to be able to play a game with the girl you were head over heels in love with. Being a gentleman, I asked her to begin. She looked around and came up with the word happy, to which I replied yawn. We went on with north, humid, dog, goat.... until she said the word 'top'. I looked around for a word beginning with P and saw a couple feeding their kid and I shouted out 'parents' before time ran out. With no reply from her I realized I had won and started celebrating like a child. I looked at Lora and found her lost in thought. Her sudden silence and saddened face worried me... had I done something or said something wrong? Through her sadness she told me that the word 'parents' had brought back memories of her own parents. She then told me that she had lost her parents in an accident a couple of years ago, just a few days after her birthday. The top that she was wearing was their last gift to her and was the reason why it was her favourite. Now I understood why she was upset and kept going 'bow bow bow' earlier. I tried consoling her and did my best to cheer her up, all by behaving a little childish. She had wanted to listen to some music and asked me for one of the earphones. Listening to the music and resting her head on my shoulder, we rode to Ahmedabad. My joy knew no bounds - I was over the moon.
Ahmedabad was a city known for many things, it was the textile hub of India and was known for it's excellent street food, Lal Darwaja Market, one of the busiest markets in India, and also for it's sweets. The bus stopped at Ahmedabad for dinner which was also our final pitstop for the journey. Looking at me Lora said she wasn't in a mood to eat. I got down to have something. To my luck, the bus stopped at Manek Chowk, one the famous street food places in Ahmedabad. I couldn't enjoy this alone. I bought some Fafda, a famous Gujarati snack and some Jalebis and headed back to the bus. I made sure Lora ate some as I was in the habit of making people around me eat. She could not resist the Jalebis and wore a sheepish smile. I savoured this moment.
We were on the final leg of our journey. We were headed towards Jodhpur through Udaipur. Lora and I exchanged seats. Udaipur, all lit up, looked like it was celebrating Diwali everyday. Beautiful palaces, royal residences and artificial lakes decorated either sides of the road. The moonlight reflecting off the water was a spectacle to behold. Spell bound, Lora and I just sat staring out the window, admiring nature at it's very best. We wished this sight never faded. Lora fell asleep on my shoulder and at that very moment I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. I felt she completed me. For a while I sat up just admiring her as she slept. I wished the night never ended.
After almost 40 hours of travel we finally landed at Jodhpur - popularly known as the Blue city. The drive from Udaipur to Jodhpur was serene. We passed a few palaces, forts, a few other heritage sites and rocky terrain. The bus came to a halt. Lora was still asleep on my shoulder. Despite reality, I hoped this wasn't the end of our journey. I admired her for a couple more minutes before waking her. Although I captured fond memories of all my trips, I did not take any pictures of her nor with her - I did not want her to be just a fond memory, I wanted her to be MY REALITY.
All good things must come to an end, I told myself, but the thought that I would not be seeing Lora again wouldn't sink in. We both got down and she collected her baggage. She was surprised to see me with nothing but a backpack. I assured her that the best way to enjoy a journey was to travel lightand she truly agreed with me. With a sheepish smile, she said that although she had gotten to know a lot about me, she didn't know my name. This thought hadn't crossed my mind either. Knowing that she visted Israel often, I asked her to guess my name which in Hebrew translated to 'To Save' or 'Salvation of the Lord'. She hoped aloud that my name wasn't Jesus sending us both into splits of laughter. I gave her another chance. Google came to her aid and said aloud 'Joshua'. Blushing and smiling, I nodded. Neither of us felt like leaving and we both realised that there was something between us.
Lora enquired as to how long I would be staying in Jodhpur. I told her that I would be staying for a day or two until my sore bottoms were ready for another journey. Amidst the dust, she hid her laughter behind her handkerchief. Out of the blue and breaking all odds, she, a girl, asked me to join her for dinner that night. She had a sparkle in her eyes and no man in his right senses would have rejected that request. My heart was racing as fast as a Ferrari and before I realised it I had said yes. I wanted to jump in delight. All she had managed to say was 'see you tonight' to which I only nodded and we parted ways.
Later that afternoon, I went hunting for an appropriate outfit for the evening. I had too woo her. As luck would have it, I found just what I was looking for. Dressed like a gentleman in every meaning of the word, I made my way to Kankariya Heritage, the hotel Lora had texted. I reached there on time. There she was standing at the entrance in a red silk dress with high heels. She did not look anything like the Lora on the bus. I just stood there for a couple of seconds mesmerised by her beauty. I thanked my lucky moles and the universe that made her chose me. I could hear my heart beat as I walked slowly towards her. She too was taken up with me and we complimented each other. She had made reservations for us and led me to the roof top. The view from the hotel added to the thrill of the moment. We walked in as a couple, hand in hand.
'You may choose your path, but the universe decides your destiny.'
- - - The Irony of Destiny - - -
I would like to thank all you readers for taking the time to read my story. Hope you'll enjoyed it and would greatly appreciate for you'll to pass on your comments..😁😁
© Joshua Rodrigues
