Last Sunday

I wanted to ride today. I like Sunday morning rides. The evenings, if spent indoors are filled with a rather wistful realization that the weekend's over. The ride in a way makes up for it. I rode the same route I did last Sunday. This time, it was without any stops and even a drop of water. In fact, I was sad as the journey ended and I think I could have done another round of the same route without a break. I took half as much time as I did before. It was almost like falling in love. In fact, it was much the same; a whole new world seemed to open up suddenly and I could speed across the roads like a child! I was using a friend's Merida Sub10 MTB. To say that the bike handles like a charm is an understatement. I was ecstatic with what it could do. That's the one I want to buy. Seems to fit my budget rather perfectly. The other thing that might have helped is, I wasn't carrying my backpack. No camera either.

Adda called to invite me for lunch. He was finally cooking chicken and this was a long overdue invite. Sadly I had to turn him down as I had a prior invitation to R's place. The interim period was was a fulfilling mix of reading and the guitar. Much of that mysterious shaky feeling I had mentioned seemed to have dissipated and I felt more like myself. Played some table-tennis in his apartment complex until I was almost starving. Bumped into another ex-colleague there.

The lunch was a home-made South Indian dosa called Addai. With loads of interesting chutneys native to this region of the country. I don't think I have ever had home made food of this variety which was even half as good. Even the filter coffee, with a hand-picked mixture of beans was delicious. His younger daughter even performed a bit of tradtional Bharatnatiyam and sang a couple of lines of Carnatic music for us! I had been apprehensive about the formality in meetings like these and made clear, that I wanted it avoided as much as we could. Everything was simple and the food delicious. Things to remember.

Despite the delay, which was to be anticipated, S & I met up with Adda and my group of photographer friends from office. Apparently communal riots had hit the city and four mosques were burnt, so we were told. The old city, considered communally sensitive was swarmed with police and the heavily armed CRPF. Not the day for photography really. Everything seemed hushed. Shops had their shutters down. The gentle easy-going tourist-friend chaotic old Hyderabad had put up a grim face. We weren't sure if we should really take out our cameras. We walked awhile before deciding that perhaps we could. But not everyone was assured. Neither did everyone find the setting adequate for photography. But what I like about busy market areas like that is the dynamism and the constant movement of people. I like to station myself at a single suitable spot and simply observe what comes by and attempt to capture a scene that changes by the second. In a way, I forego quantity and variety to experience little. That is the style I am comfortable with. It gives me so much to see and often more to dwell upon.

We followed it up with dinner though none were really hungry. I for one, was rather full after the most sumptuous lunch. We began slowly and spent more than two and a half hours at Angeethi! Loads of silly conversation followed. There were stutters and breaks, not everyone were their quick-witted selves. The mood in the old city today had perhaps had its bearing. There would be a host of factors, some more imminent than others. There is a lot of unspoken conversation too in situations like this, which is interesting to hear and remember. It was the simple dal and rice that I enjoyed the most - hope that's not a sign that I'm growing old, since I'd like to think there aren't many others!

When we were about to reach home, Adda said, "I don't feel like going to office tomorrow." To me, that says a lot about the evening though circumstances were far from perfect.

P.S. When viewed from the opposite direction, the street looks like this.