A Memorable Retreat - Kanha - I

9^th of February, 2-p.m, Howrah Station and all was in readiness for the much awaited ‘flight-off’. 6 out of a group of 8 ‘very close friends’ had decided after months of tedious planning, programming, budgeting and re-budgeting that ‘enough was enough’! And it was time we gave in to the will of the ‘more adventurous person’ inside us.

Destination – Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh.

Geetanjali Express was doing its reputation no harm by slicing through the night at great speed and before we even realized it was dinner-time. Having to make up with an inconvenient arrangement of 2 berths in S-8 and rest 4 in S-11 coach we took turns having our dinner in S-11. A profusion of home-made food emerged from our bags but only a few tiffin-boxes were emptied. The ‘morbid fear’ of train-toilets prompted such a judicious but otherwise unheard-of decision. ‘To avoid gorging on whatever goes by the name of FOOD’ ??? Unbelievable!

The light-sleeper that I am I find train journeys unfailing in robbing me off my share of six-seven hours of sleep. So, I decided instead to burn the midnight bulbs (coinage anyone?) along with Dudu, who though a ‘sleep aficionado’ of sorts had already started worrying about a timely touch-down at Gondia. (It’s pertinent to add here that we were to get off at Gondia in Maharashtra, a station where the train stops for only 2 minutes at 5:30 in the morning.) Gazing out into the dark hollow of the night, only to be interrupted once by a spectacle of hundreds of bulbs on what looked like a power-plant, I was enjoying the chilly air leaking into the compartment through my almost-shut glass-window. Dudu was visibly a bundle of nerves, anxious if 2 minutes could ever be enough time to let 6 humans and 16 luggage-items to offload. Leaving him to worry for the rest of the night I stole a few winks. Stations kept appearing and disappearing in front of us. Amongst few which Geetanjali regarded worthy of stopping at to take note of were Raigarh, Raipur, Bilaspur and penultimately (for us i.e) Rajnandgaon. The train was 30 odd minutes late and finally at 6:10 we got off at Gondia. The ‘Super 6’ was safely gracing the platform, commenting on the chill in the air and the puny size of the platform and the availability of hot piping tea somewhere nearby when Bedo was seen approaching us (hair slicked back in true mafia style). My childhood friend, Bedo, was asked to meet up with us, if possible, considering we were arriving at an unearthy hour by hostel-standards. He studies Engineering at Gondia and had taken the pain of riding his bike with that freezing morning-breeze boring into him so that he could intercept us on our way to Kanha. While I rode pillion to take a guided tour of his college and hostel premises and in the process keeping my morning correspondence with nature uninterrupted, the rest 5 sipped at cups of ‘re-energizing Central-Indian tea’. Bedo’s hostel was like a picturesque resort with a manicured football field which still bore the empty disappointment of having missed the august presence of the Honorable Prime Minister the previous day. Mr P.M was scheduled to visit their college on their Foundation Day, but due to the sad demise of Baba Amte the entire thing got canceled. 40 thousand brand new plastic chairs, a colossal steel canopy, and fresh coats of paint bore the testimony of a wasteful wait.

We (myself and Bedo) were now hurrying to go back to the station where a red Tata-Sumo would be waiting for me along with the other 5. Then we would be leaving for Kanha by road. A 165 kilometer long journey. All by the road.

To be continued.............................