We started at 0715 hrs from Sachin Kher’s place. Sachin’s company – Alten Expert Global – is helping Mukesh’s NGO with some of their Karjat projects. We left the expressway at the Khalapur exit – and then went under the expressway towards Karjat. We joined the old Pune Mumbai highway and had a breakfast pit-stop … Read more

Breakfast was a smoothie, followed by self made gajar ka halwa. Usually I do my dessert experiments at night, but wanted to gift the younger daughter something sweet before I left, hence the early morning kitchen duty. Cycled to the mandai to buy 3 kg oranges and 2 kg guava. Reached Town hall, off Tilak … Read more

If you look at Google Maps and trace a straight line between Pune and Nasik, you realise that there is a route, slightly shorter than the highway route, running through village roads. In the 20 years that I have been going to Nasik on work trips, I have never ventured outside of the highway. Abki … Read more

Took a bla bla cab to Mumbai at 0615 hours from agricultural college chowk. The driver, Irfan, was a very interesting guy. He works in a placement agency during the weekdays, recruiting investment bankers. And drives the cab over weekends, typically on the Ghatkopar Pune route. Irfan was a Gulfie for sometime, before deciding to … Read more

1. The Reva is essentially a city car – she loves city traffic and jams. So taking it on a 500 km highway trip from its old Akola home to its new Pune home was an interesting adventure. In a long distance trip, the constraint is having a town which is approximately 100 km from … Read more

The Humsafar express is a new train by the Indian Railways, a fully AC train, with newer coaches and a premium flexi-pricing. There are no ticket concessions available on this train. Flexi-pricing has led to an increase in revenue, but a fall in occupancy. Would be an interesting study for an economics student – studying … Read more

The title is pure click-bait. Well, now that you have started, carry on reading to find out the little truth inside the title. Because of bad planning on my part, I landed up at Dehradun on a work trip, in the middle of Dussehra holidays. Not having too much to do, called up my friend … Read more

Coorg stands for coffee and Coorg stands for the army. So we set about deciding to meet these martial race on their own coffee grounds (pun intended). Our army made a gentle advance – halting two days in Mysore after a leisurely amble from Bangalore. And then circumambulated the enemy territory – Hunsur, Goniloppal, Poonampet and finally met … Read more

The Sheonath Express was late by an hour. Walked down to Rahul’s Tikrapara house in Bilaspur via the DRM office. Did not find any fruit sellers on the way, so gifted Deepaji two coconuts, purchased from a local kirana shop. Had a cup of tea at the house. Chatted with Aarvi, who wants to be … Read more

Normally when you have to drive 600 km to reach your destination, you start early. (Had planned to be in Bijapur by evening.) But if you the journey is your destination, then you don’t. We started by enjoying a  sumptuous breakfast at South Indian Mess with Arun Nair (School friend who was free) at Rasta … Read more