Memories in spate.

'Be careful what you set your heart upon- for it will surely be yours.'- James A. Baldwin

When your family happens to be at the receiving end of the good things you'd invested in, the attainment of bliss is indescribable. It began with getting the VIP entry upon exulting the three-word label, "Times Of India" and the guard, straightening up his back, bowed and allowed our car to enter the arena.The passes were verified and we were shown the way to the auditorium. Though it was jam packed, we (me and my family) managed to scooch in and sit on some just another seats in the last row. But spotting the heads in the crowd, I managed to see Mr. Manpal Tiwana (the organizer of the event) and went up to see him. Gladly greeting, to my surprise, he informed that the special seats were booked for me in the front row. And when the row had a label of 'PRESS' by its side, I had all the reasons to make merry. Taking my people to the near-to-the-stage row, I am unable to find words that might do justice to the beautiful feeling I experienced. Nooran Sisters, Coke Studio fame, were here in the city to perform and I was here to cover the event on the behalf of ToI. Unbelievable much? Suddenly it felt like being in the Tri-wizard tournament and finding the Goblet of Fire just at an arm's distance.

On stage Nooran Sisters

Apart from the soothing of ears, the two gorgeous girls soothed everyone's souls as well. Sufi music, as it is said, is liberating in its own way. It was visible as Jyoti Nooran sang with all the energy, soul and vigour. The crests and troughs that the sisters created in the air of the Harpal Tiwaana Centre of Performing Arts, it felt like someone had used the Stupefy spell on us. The evening ended on even a higher note. In lieu of the interview, I got to share some candid moments with the celebrities of the evening and what made it so beautiful was the their stark simplicity that they possessed.

Apart from travelling through the streets of Pakistan through their songs as they get the noor of their voice from Bibi Nooran (their grandmother) from that place, I got to see Kashmir and Srinagar as well. No, it wasn't an impromptu vacation. Instead, I got to meet the academic head of Career Launcher who was here in the shortest month of the year yet got himself registered in my memory with the longest list of adjectives besides his name. Mr. Vijay Kalyan Jha, meeting whom revived the dormant learning that when you got to achieve something, you must get away with the deadlocks at all costs. Braving the derogatory remarks, the bloodshed, unannounced curfews, India-Pakistan rivalry et al. Shocking instead of surprising, I learnt how the locals of the state would demarcate in being the residents of Pakistan instead of India. The ordeal to set up a CL center in the region where they won't allow a male to step inside a girls college, leave alone a fact of having a knowledge and interactive session with the students. CL is a company of impeccable heads put together, I tell you!

The past few months have indeed been a blessing in disguise where apart from exploring various avenues of interest, I have explored so many different shades of my personality which least did I know even existed. From being an inch closer to the English language to being able to taste the flavour of something which I always wanted to pursue as a full time profession, Journalism. God has really been great and I just hope that the grace continues. With a destiny-changing mail pouring in a few days ago, I experienced a bittersweet moment. Being made to read 'A Daughter leaving home' by Ray Hansell, I cried like a baby when the first thought of leaving home actualized in front of my eyes. I'll be flying down south in just a couple of days. Along with apprehensions of an entirely new place, new horizon, new latitude and longitude, I'm trying to remove dust from my box of excitement and thrill before I let it open. Apart from all the love and care of my family what I'll miss the most is my first job; wherein a part of me would always stay. Those known faces, smiles, tears, laughter sessions, hugs, sessions, classes and a couple of students. Career Launcher has been far far more than just being a folder's name in one of the drives of my laptop. From a student to a faculty, it has been a long yet a fruitful journey. I wish I had Hermoine's time turner to re-live a few moments before I finally let go of everything I had been holding till now or rather the things which held me together and let me put my head high. Truth to be told, I'm going to miss this baby like a heroin addict out of a failed rehab effort.

Chill outside. Nudging warmth within.

It all began with some parting hugs lending a feeling of incompleteness to the soul because I was set to embark a trip sans my family. But a tiny shining streak of the dormant excitement was enough to sustain my energies. With all such things, I was set for a 3 day road trip to Manali. Just as the phoenix rises from ashes, this trip was planned in one of the lowest moments and this actually made my soul rise like a phoenix. The tigress was back in action. 

Though it's just another place yet another world. Manali. Mountains have always fascinated me.It leaves me wondering about the kind of therapeutic effect they have on my soul. This time, they triggered a photographer in me. I brought home some spectacular clicks to cherish for the times ahead.

En route to Manali

The journey began from Chandigarh in the wee hours of 25th January when the landscape was such that a glimpse outside let some of the nostalgic moments knock my heart instead of the mind. 6 am in the morning, the hour of the day when even nature is at peace. The fleeting car kept on gulping large distances of the bare road sooner than my camera could capture them. The first bout of excitement spurted when we stopped at 'The Hill Top'. The moment I stepped out of the car to stretch myself, I found that the hotel was actually built on the top of the hill and going downhill were those tiny, curvy and self turning roads that exuded of adventure.  I wish I had a small cottage nearby with my daily chore to walk on those roads up the hill to write my dream book. Ah!

 

At breakfast destination.

Choosing to skip this flashy restaurant for a roadside dhaba, we moved further. The reason was that least did we want even the walls of any hotel to act as a barrier between our souls and mother nature. Home-made paranthas (Yes, we are Punjabis and this is our trademark breakfast!) coupled with chai (not tea) in those small pahaari glasses was the breakfast for the day. Jumping onto the terrace of the dhaba and relishing the breakfast with sunlight cutting through the clouds and distant snow capped mountains giving us company, I just felt one thing, "This is what heaven must feel like!" :)
 

Reservoir of Beas

But lesser we knew that we'd yet stepped onto just the wrapping sheet of the gift. The journey had just begun. From passing the Govind Sagar Lake to the very first view of mighty Beas, nature was at its intoxicating best where I managed to click some pictures which will continue gracing my home-screen for days to follow. Going by the belief, we stopped to bow head at Hanogi Mata mandir. It is believed that earlier the cars just used to vanish beyond this point of NH-22. Then this temple was built and by just paying obeisance at this place used to cut the devilish hurdles in the journey. It really did. (Read on to know!) Anyway, I love when Pandits apply the tikka on your temple. It feels like carrying the blessings of the place along with you. 

I skipped putting on my iPod shuffler for the entire journey because I wanted absorb the voices, faces, colours of HP and divulge in them with my 100% awareness. Just a distance further, I came across a very simple thing which was very unique for a person like me who has spent almost of quarter of my life living in plains. Cable car. Though it was not one of those tourist attraction sites but a rickety steel box that was used by locals to cross the Beas. Talking to a local lady dawned upon us how disparate life in hills is. It took her almost 2 hours to climb the entire mountain and then another hour cross the river through this. After all this, she finally could step on the road that connected her to the normal, speeding life. And we thought it was only difficult travelling in metros for hours to reach the destination. Ha!  

Captivating mountains with Manali airport in front

An unforeseen incident deflected our path for a while. In lieu of saving a sick jeep which, I guess, was trying to clear his another level of RoadRash in real, our speeding car came to the unwanted halt when zaaaap, it crashed with a truck. A narrow escape! Our good karma thought of being nice to us. To absorb what had just happened and plan for the trip ahead, we landed at the cutest house in my recent memory. Location: Kullu, here we were. What a scenic beauty the place possesses! Though I'm not a person who'd generally go into finer details of the architecture of the house but believe me, this simply filled the missing links of the oh-so-perfect landscape. The wooden furniture in the wooden house mesmerized me as much as did the small Manali airport with which the house shared a common wall. A large curtain-covered glass window in the living room was the only barrier between me and the writer-provoking mother nature. (I'm running out of adjectives to be used for nature.) Upon drawing the curtains aside, extravagant distant snow-capped mountains greet you. I got to sip my favourite green tea while sitting on a wooden rocking chair and fantasizing the snow capped mountains. It felt good. The temperature of Kullu is inversely proportional to the warmth people bestow upon you.

In the hotel garden.

After spending a while there, the journey to Manali continued. It all began with jumping with excitement upon seeing traces of snow on the sides as our car cut through the silent roads that led to heaven (read Manali). I simply wish to take those scenic snapshots with me to grave. Checking in the hotel and finding out that the entire hotel was submerged in snow was a smile harbinger. The 'distant snow capped' mountains were replaced with the feeling of being IN the snow. There was just a glass window of my room barring me from the adventure that could be had. If not on the beach-sand, I finally fulfilled my #BeforeIDie wish of scribbling my name on the snow. After being a night old in Manali and taking a walk on the Mall Road for a number of times, I practiced the art of walking on snow. Easy as it looks, a tiny trip and stumble of the foot sent a shrill down my spine. The balancing act enforced a belief in me that I wouldn't mind trying a walking-on-the-rope activity in a circus now.

Perfectly laid snow blanket.

26th January. National holidays were never this much fun. The next bright sunny day of the adventure began with a plan to go to Solang Valley and enjoy some winter sports but due to the thick blanket of snow we were unable to. There was a perfectly spread snow blanket forming its own crests and troughs in such beautiful way that I got a feeling that the Manali snow has a Do-Not-Disturb board attached to it. You do not feel like fiddling with the icing that nature has put forth for you. Instead of just snow-capped mountains there were entire snow slabs on our sides. And as our car moved, it felt as if a Bollywood flick was being shot and we being the protagonists. Because on paying close attention, nature plays a self-created melody for you that acts as the perfect background score complementing the scene. I felt requesting nature to play 'Katiya Karun' for me. Stopping the car mid-way, we had our snow-playing session. Snowballs were thrown at, snowman was made. I was never sure if the step I'll take will come back to the surface or will get dumped in the 4 feet snow blanket. Unbelievable but the snow was extremely dry and cotton-y soft which made playing in the snow all the more enjoyable. Without forgetting to mention, I got to fulfill another die-hard wish of skiing at another mountain of snow on the other side. Though I sucked terribly at it but it did not harm; taking a try by getting in skiing shoes, holding ski sticks and posing for some pictures to be kept as a memory. And the moment I just took a step, I had a mighty fall with lower half of my body totally in snow. Despite the numerous falls on snow, the smile didn't leave me. Wish the falls in life were this liberating and smile-evoking.

Yeh haseen waadiya.. yeh khula asmaan!

The final day. I woke up in a normal tempo but just a sneak-peek from my hotel room made me smile as if there was a hanger stuck in my mouth. Packing our luggage and checking out of the hotel, we set for a final sight-seeing place. The famous Hadimba Temple where I got to see some Angoora rabbits and yaks that triggered a childhood memory. It was one place where the minus temperature could actually be felt by the innermost bone of my body. The location and landscape was similar to Harry Potter's Hogsmeade. Just the missing links were my Ron and Hermoine and some butter beers. Nevertheless, I got to step on the specific location where the beautiful movie Roja was shot. I guess AR Rehman actually sat there to compose the song. It felt as if you have to play a treasure hunt game to just search for a 'play' button and every object would start humming this song for you.

How can my blog post be complete without a mention of food and cuisines I hogged onto. The restaurants there had exotic names. From Honey Hut and Chopsticks to Lazy Dog and Viscos, these are few nouns that got registered in my memory conquering their own special place.

Yes, I couldn't actually believe that it's snow in my hands!

Nature communicates to you. Be patient enough to listen. Manali presents a perfect ambiance for that patience to knock, enter and dwell in us. And Oh! Those captivating snapshots. Leave alone my soul, even my camera was grateful to the scenic beauty of the Manali. Looking back at the pictures, I'm yet to believe that I actually stepped onto and created some wonderful memories in that heaven out there. A vacation far more than what I had envisaged.