Sunday, October 18, 2009
Lesson to learn
Another trip something to write about.
This time we visited Shirdi. The visit was long due and this time it was special as we wanted Baba to grant us a special favour, one which meant a lot to us.
The D-day was Saturday wife had a holiday and I decided to take a half day. We had reserved seats on the Aurangabad Janshatabdi leaving CST at 1350. Wife and kids joined me at CST at around 1 pm. We had lunch at the new cafeteria at the local concourse and then proceeded to the train. The journey was comfortable and we reached Nasik around 1710. We got a bus to Shirdi and arrived there at around 1930. It took about an hour and half for us to finish the darshan. Then wife decided she had visit the other shrines around and also do some shopping (the religious kind of course). We managed to wind up by 22.30 and had our dinner at Woodlands near the main road. The food was good and we managed to finish in half an hour. Once done we decided to proceed home. I had planned to take the 2330 Asiad bus to Parel and get down at Thane, hence did not force wife to rush through our chores. But my calculations were wrong. The last bus left at 2300. We waited till 12 am to enquire about alternative sources of transport. But none were available. It was 12.30 am by the time we came back to the bus stand. The kids had slept by this time. We then took a bus to Manmad stn which is two hours from Shirdi and planned to catch the 0435 Manmad - Pune express. It reached Kopargaon at around 2 am. Our troubles were not over yet. The driver had some issues with the brakes and hence wanted the passengers to take another bus. We got down and took another bus which came after an hour. My family of four participated in a blood donation drive in that one hour. The beneficiaries were the mosquitoes.
Finally we reached Manmad around 3.30 am and got a seat in the nearly empty train and deserted platform. We reached Kalyan around 8 am and took a local to Ambernath.
We would like to thank Baba for helping us reach home safely. However, I have decided never ever to leave on any journey without a plan. This would not only save us from discomfort but also avoid situations which could be dangerous.
OM SAI RAM
This time we visited Shirdi. The visit was long due and this time it was special as we wanted Baba to grant us a special favour, one which meant a lot to us.
The D-day was Saturday wife had a holiday and I decided to take a half day. We had reserved seats on the Aurangabad Janshatabdi leaving CST at 1350. Wife and kids joined me at CST at around 1 pm. We had lunch at the new cafeteria at the local concourse and then proceeded to the train. The journey was comfortable and we reached Nasik around 1710. We got a bus to Shirdi and arrived there at around 1930. It took about an hour and half for us to finish the darshan. Then wife decided she had visit the other shrines around and also do some shopping (the religious kind of course). We managed to wind up by 22.30 and had our dinner at Woodlands near the main road. The food was good and we managed to finish in half an hour. Once done we decided to proceed home. I had planned to take the 2330 Asiad bus to Parel and get down at Thane, hence did not force wife to rush through our chores. But my calculations were wrong. The last bus left at 2300. We waited till 12 am to enquire about alternative sources of transport. But none were available. It was 12.30 am by the time we came back to the bus stand. The kids had slept by this time. We then took a bus to Manmad stn which is two hours from Shirdi and planned to catch the 0435 Manmad - Pune express. It reached Kopargaon at around 2 am. Our troubles were not over yet. The driver had some issues with the brakes and hence wanted the passengers to take another bus. We got down and took another bus which came after an hour. My family of four participated in a blood donation drive in that one hour. The beneficiaries were the mosquitoes.
Finally we reached Manmad around 3.30 am and got a seat in the nearly empty train and deserted platform. We reached Kalyan around 8 am and took a local to Ambernath.
We would like to thank Baba for helping us reach home safely. However, I have decided never ever to leave on any journey without a plan. This would not only save us from discomfort but also avoid situations which could be dangerous.
OM SAI RAM
Labels: 2330 Asiad bus, Aurangabad Janshatbdi, Manmad- Pune express
