"There is no moment of delight in any pilgrimage like the beginning of it." -- Charles Dudley Warner

All of a sudden , my parents decided to visit my aunt, who resides in Kukke Subramanya , a small village in the Western Ghats of Karnataka, some 100 odd kms from Mangalore. My mom wanted to go on Friday and I tagged along. Getting bus tickets was a nightmare. I was thrilled that we got seats right next to the driver, 1 2 and 3. I love to look at the curves ( for the decent people out there , I mean the roads). So there I found myself , as the coolie , ( someone once said that men are born for just 2 things, the first ofcourse is to be the “Coolie” and the second is to “take all the blame”) waiting for the 10.10pm SPECIAL bus and my eyes popped out when I found that the BUS had just 1 door, the back door and ahem ahem we had to pass 50 other seats to find our 1, 2 and 3 comfy seats ,right next to the engine bonnet ( it’s that thing right next to the gear box). Mom and Dad occupied 1 and 2 and I got the number 3 seat. Since the dude who booked 4 didn’t make it, a 10 year old kid was given that seat. His father came every 20 mintues to check on him and to pamper him with chips, chokis , mineral water and a shawl. Aaaaaaah to be 10 again and NO I did not ask for chokis, I had my gum, oh rats!! I didn’t give him any. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the gear box/handle, it was missing a knob (which is used for grip) and when the driver started the bus and used both his hands to put the bus in first gear, I started praying.I won’t even describe the sounds that the engine made, the rumor was that , the bus was supposed to be scraped but due to the sudden rush to Kukke ( some special pooja), they decided that it was fit for one more trip. The conductor was a young chap who jumped on the bonnet and started talking to the driver. I later realized that he was trying to keep the driver awake.I had the most interesting journey, especially when the lil kid used my shoulder as a pillow, he thought I was some sort of teddy bear !! grr.. and the newly wedded couple aaaaha, they were acting like..a a..a.. newly wedded couples ? Well the lil kid did share his popcorn with me ;) and the best part was the conductor,yappppppa he used the bonnet as his personal bed, yep he had his own bedsheet !! I counted 8 different postures. The journey took a twist , when the conductor and driver started looking at “boards” and trying to find the right road to Kukke. Gulp!! and then the driver smiles and said “ This is the first time I am driving on this route, my regular route is Majestic to Banerghatta road “ . He even pointed out rabbits and peacocks on the way, not to mention scary stories that he had heard about Elephants blocking the road. After one of the coffee breaks , he told us that the other bus which was following us had met with an accident and unfortunately a few passengers had moved on to the other side, after hearing this my mom did not sleep a wink :) . It was amazing how this dude drove us safely to our destination, especially in the fog, the visibility was zero and the conductor was continuously cleaning the mirror, acting like a wiper, but the driver took the hairpin curves beautifully. Haiiiiiiiiii We reached the temple and lo behold !! it was like KR market, people everywhere. Grr and here I was hoping for a nice quiet break. The “pooja” that we , ok ok it was for me, grr, that I was supposed to perform , took a long time and then we decided to visit my aunt’s house. When we were passing a couple of Kalyana Mantappa’s, my dad pointed out and said “ Hey isn’t that the place where we got married”, that’s when I realized that on that day, 35 years ago, my parents had jumped into the well called matrimony. GRR..it was all planned !! and then they said..” It’s all for you kannaaa“ aaaha .. parents!! Oh the pooja was fun especially the chain pooja ….if you are performing the rituals, all your family members form a chain…ahem ahem.. that was weird.It was as if the human body conducts “blessings”. ( shakes his head)…We then went to my aunt’s house. My aunt’s house is that typical farmhouse you find in rural India, with a barn, a well and lots of coconut trees. They even have a nice verandah and lots of places to sit and chit chat. That’s what the elders were doing, while I was snapping pics. I overheard a story in which they were discussing how at the age of 2 , I sat on the edge of the well and was looking down at my own reflection in the clear water . My mom was terrified but she didn’t scream, for fear that the sudden sound would propel me into the well :) . So she came over and gave me a whack !. grr grr…all I was doing was trying to solve the Pythagoras theorem. In the evening we decided to pack our bags and the return journey was even more “ loos”. As always ( I’m not that lucky with seats ) we were seated just above the rear wheel and the driver drove as if he had to catch a plane. Grr.. When everyone was seated, this dude in front of me, says “ So who is going to tell a story”. I waited and waited and GRRR no story no bhel puri …Maybe I should have told them my life story ;)