Why Pachmarhi. Pachmarhi was on my mind since 1989. 22 yrs. That's a
long time to have something on your mind and not do anything about it.
When I was 21, I was working with a computer maintenance company. We used to have a lot of trainees come in , on projects, for periods ranging from a month to about 3 months. And since our age groups matched, as also our status of nebwbies, I would usually bond with the bunch. On one occasion we had this student from an Engg College at Chembur, but who hailed from Bhopal. A gentle guy with the softest look in his eyes. His name was uncommon too. Vibhor. In the course of our interactions , I heard him talk about a hill Station in Madhya Pradesh. The rustic sounding name attracted me to the place and it remained in my mind, stuck. And I had decided, kabhie na kabhie Pachmarhi toh jaana hee hai. Until then all I wanted to see in Madhya Pradesh, was the Mandu fort, thanks to the movie Kinaara and the song, 'naam gum jayega' which was picturised there.
Then there was also the issue of the Avantika Express. After my graduation, I had taken up a Diploma in Marketing and Sales Management and Advertising at the Bhavan's college in Andheri. It was a part time course, held each evening from 6.30 to 8.00 pm. After class as I waited for my train to Malad, the Avantika express would pass us by. There was something about it which attracted me.. ... probably the name, AVANTIKA. A beautiful name, too good for a train.
So as the vacation plans were being discussed, my only inputs - 1. Pachmarhi. 2. wahan jahaan Avantika le chale............Chalo, atleast one of my wishes was fulfilled.
An observation, while in Jabalpur, was how beautifully they spoke the Hindi language. We asked our driver, how far our hotel was from the airport. he replied , 'doosre chhor par'. A reply in the affirmative would be Ji Ji. And if he wanted to hear a question again, it would be Ji? A snatch of conversation I overheard between our guide in Jabalpur and a vendor... Our guide was looking for a metal plate. And when he probably was asked the dimensions, he replied, 'motey motey taur par ye samajh lijiye......" Another phrase was 'koi dikkat nahi.' How conveniently we have allowed words and phrases from English to intrude into our conversation and take over.
Our second day in Pachmarhi was a relaxed one again. We went around the town, to the Pachmarhi Jheel. The water, glimmering and shimmering with the soft winter sun rays. The lake adorned with beautiful pink lotus
From here we drove on to Dhoopgarh to catch the
sunset. It is about 10 kms frm Pachmarhi and a nice drive. I found
this funny.. the drives to all the points we visited were more
satisfying than the points themsellves..... what is that they say, the
journey being more fulfilling than the destination!
At Dhoopgarh there are 2 separate points. One , for the sunrise and the other for the sunset.
The sunset in December this year was at about 5.45 pm. And as the dark set in, so did the chill. The sky changes colour from a bright blue of the early noon to the gray of the post noon. A dull yellow and shades of bright orange till the sun sets. and after that a reddish orange mixed with a blue and then a pitch darkness. And as you look up to the sky, it looks straight out of a glossy magazine. a squeaky clean pitch black cloudless sky and stars. so many of them that i am somehow reminded of silver glitter being strewn up there.
The son picks up his laptop and out we go into an open ground near the resort. No tall structures and we get an uninterrupted view of the vast black canvas - the sky. We locate 3 stars in a row and try to compare it with the star map he has on his laptop. Simple joys , for which we have no time otherwise.
When I was 21, I was working with a computer maintenance company. We used to have a lot of trainees come in , on projects, for periods ranging from a month to about 3 months. And since our age groups matched, as also our status of nebwbies, I would usually bond with the bunch. On one occasion we had this student from an Engg College at Chembur, but who hailed from Bhopal. A gentle guy with the softest look in his eyes. His name was uncommon too. Vibhor. In the course of our interactions , I heard him talk about a hill Station in Madhya Pradesh. The rustic sounding name attracted me to the place and it remained in my mind, stuck. And I had decided, kabhie na kabhie Pachmarhi toh jaana hee hai. Until then all I wanted to see in Madhya Pradesh, was the Mandu fort, thanks to the movie Kinaara and the song, 'naam gum jayega' which was picturised there.
Then there was also the issue of the Avantika Express. After my graduation, I had taken up a Diploma in Marketing and Sales Management and Advertising at the Bhavan's college in Andheri. It was a part time course, held each evening from 6.30 to 8.00 pm. After class as I waited for my train to Malad, the Avantika express would pass us by. There was something about it which attracted me.. ... probably the name, AVANTIKA. A beautiful name, too good for a train.
So as the vacation plans were being discussed, my only inputs - 1. Pachmarhi. 2. wahan jahaan Avantika le chale............Chalo, atleast one of my wishes was fulfilled.
An observation, while in Jabalpur, was how beautifully they spoke the Hindi language. We asked our driver, how far our hotel was from the airport. he replied , 'doosre chhor par'. A reply in the affirmative would be Ji Ji. And if he wanted to hear a question again, it would be Ji? A snatch of conversation I overheard between our guide in Jabalpur and a vendor... Our guide was looking for a metal plate. And when he probably was asked the dimensions, he replied, 'motey motey taur par ye samajh lijiye......" Another phrase was 'koi dikkat nahi.' How conveniently we have allowed words and phrases from English to intrude into our conversation and take over.
Our second day in Pachmarhi was a relaxed one again. We went around the town, to the Pachmarhi Jheel. The water, glimmering and shimmering with the soft winter sun rays. The lake adorned with beautiful pink lotus
- lotus , on the Pachmarhi Jheel
.
All
the rooms at our resort had beautiful painting, sketches or prints.
There was one painting depicting one of the oldest Protestant churches
in Pachmarhi.
And
when we passed by this church we were thoroughly charmed. The
Protestant Church. It was typical old world. The bricks, the structure,
.. everything about it was like as if it was from a fairytale. Here
are some pictures of the church.
The
afternoon saw us visiting the Bee Falls. It is said that the water
falls with such force that it when it hits you, it stings. Like a
bee sting. The drive to this place was a treat to the eyes. Greeery
everywhere. The trees were old and the vegetation, fairly untouched.
At one point, one has to board the GYPSY's made available there, as
they are ideal to negotiate the hairpin bends as we descend
downhill.
- walking
towards the waterfall. About 400 steps lead to the waterfall below. I
took one
look at it from above and decided against going. The family was keen to go closer to the falls.
- the view from the top.
- my
family having trekked down to the waterfall, were absolutely
disappointed.
the fall left them unimpressed. It wasn't a roaring thundering waterfall. totally not worth the
effort, nor the hype.
At Dhoopgarh there are 2 separate points. One , for the sunrise and the other for the sunset.
The sunset in December this year was at about 5.45 pm. And as the dark set in, so did the chill. The sky changes colour from a bright blue of the early noon to the gray of the post noon. A dull yellow and shades of bright orange till the sun sets. and after that a reddish orange mixed with a blue and then a pitch darkness. And as you look up to the sky, it looks straight out of a glossy magazine. a squeaky clean pitch black cloudless sky and stars. so many of them that i am somehow reminded of silver glitter being strewn up there.
The son picks up his laptop and out we go into an open ground near the resort. No tall structures and we get an uninterrupted view of the vast black canvas - the sky. We locate 3 stars in a row and try to compare it with the star map he has on his laptop. Simple joys , for which we have no time otherwise.
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