Bhopal
Some things reminded me of good old days of Bhopal, been in Bombay for 13 years, but that city never left my mind. It has a charm of its own and the closeness to heart because I grew up there since I was 1. Had my first hill trek, just behind my house the first time, experienced the Bhopal gas tragedy, had the first nerve tingling visit to the sanctuary :Kanha Kisli, the first cultural endeavor Bharat Bhavan (thanks to my artist Ma), and the first ever running off the dentists chair eperience when he brought out the big injection. I still love the feel of growing up in that small but at times busy town. I have no photos of these memories, except in mind. Behind my house was a water tank and I used to rush there in the mornings and stand on it to catch the sunrise once a while from behind the hill, oh! how much I loved it....I reminded mom to wake me up early for that. I used to sit there for hours reading the fav Famous five, which filled my afternoons as if I wished I had a case to crack too :) I loved looking at that hammock our neighbor had and still wish to have one today. Our house veranda and vehicle parking area around it was always filled with flower and vegetable plants, as my mom loved gardening. "Mogra" was my fav flower, back then. I think I can reproduce a couple of pictures with those flowers. We had a parrot and our neighbours had a dog and the neighbors kids (vivek and nivedita) always jumped across the common wall with their dog to scare my parents wits and play with us :P..
The vivid memories are of school St. Joseph and favourite blue house. I used to rush with my best friends lily and mary and gurpreet to the the school ground to climb the best possible tree to sit and have lunch. It was certaily a beautiful view of school from the tree top and the railway track where a train passed by every few minutes. The thought of boarding one of the trains to visit Dadu in Nagpur was always their at the back of my mind though I did fear the scolding of my parents later.
ANother memory of school is, I was a really dumb student in language Hindi. I had to learn kabir ke dohe some of which still are fresh in my mind, but back then I was more so was more interested in mischiefs. So I failed my hindi paper on of the exams and the principal said he would not take us to the class picnic as a punishment. As scared I was to tell that to my mom. I got my mom pack my lunch for the school picnic and as everyone left on picnic, I managed to make 2 of my friends stay back with me in school and play in the huge school ground all day, OMG what a day. I realized that day school was so much fun. Cmon after all I was only in std 3.
The principal though very strict was one of my favorite persons while growing up. I adored that person in every way and wanted to be like him.
Winters had a fun of its own, the hill station feel, I remember experiences the first hail storm in Bhopal. We went out and kept a big vessel to collect hail :)The monkey caps, the sleet, the jittery teeth while waiting for school bus to arrive....
When I look back, I really feel greatful for having a chance to grow in that city.
Mumbai was nothing like it. The lying on grass atop a small hill, looking at the clear skies, Mumbai it all ended at a skyscrapper. But I got to be in that city at right time, career years.
You never get to see the natural beauty, the different seasons, peace of mind and people have no time to wait and watch, but you never have a boring moment in that city. And you get to meet a plethora of people from all over India. This blog is dedicated to Bhopal so I will not speak much of Bombay.
Bhopal, still fresh in my mind, with a lot more stories. I wonder if I will ever get a chance to go visit it once and see the school, the house, kanha kisli, 10 no. :).....but still I love that picture in my mind.
Sounds like a ruskin bond place....:D
Well and now that I write this blog I realize,....the b's never left me: From Bhopal to Bombay to Bangalore to Birmingham...wonder where I will go next :P
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