Off to Delhi

The thing I miss most about my previous post is the relentless travel that I had to do. Almost every day I travelled to villages that used to get progressively smaller the deeper I went in. I went to villages that had no roads, to villages that had no building worth looking at and also visited villages far, far away from towns and cities. The only way to reach these villages was by bike or by bus. It was dreary to make these trips that were back breaking. It was worth visiting the villages if only to observe at close quarters how rural India lived. Most of the time I actually looked forward to those visits that took me to newer villages and newer faces almost everyday. However, on several occasions I wished I were somewhere else other than in a dusty village square talking to farmers. I wondered if there’d ever be any change in the way I traveled and also the places I traveled to. I used to dream of zipping around in a car. I did not, however, dream of flying in planes on work. That dream is almost coming true this week.

In my present posting at Hyderabad, confined to my desk, I wondered if I would get to travel anywhere apart from the twenty minute ride to and from office every day. Until yesterday I was fantasizing of going away somewhere faraway in a plane. I never imagined the dream would be coming true so quickly. Yesterday I had been told to be ready to fly to Delhi on office work, so tomorrow I am off to Delhi for a three day trip. It isn't that I am going on some high level meeting but on an errand that someone has to make. For the second time in a year I am visiting Delhi which is something of a record for me because I don't usually visit Delhi so often. The last time I was in Delhi was on my way to Mashobra. I am very keen to take a look at how Delhi has changed after the CWG. Last time the work on the flyovers and other structures was going on. I want to see how Connaught Place has been transformed.

I am told the people in Delhi are staying indoors on Thursday, the last day of the CW Games and the same day I'd be landing in Delhi. It seems the whole city would be shut down. I'll be stepping out on Friday only and after completing my official errand I plan to go around a few places. I want to check the second hand booksellers at Connaught Place and also at Nehru Place if I get the time. The next posts would be on the trip to Delhi.