Wednesday 25 July 2007

Showers in London are exciting!!

Its been over a month since I last wrote...
Brithday came and went and deadlines were met...eventful rains!! Back home I loved it when it rained for the first time. The warm scent of earth would usually wake me up even in the middle of the night. I would draw the curtain right above my head to look at the little pearls rippling the loose soil in my backyard. Rains were never as eventful though, it rained continously and the smell of wet clothes would put me off. Besides garam samosas and coffee there was nothing more exciting, I just never wanted to step out.
This july it rained in London like it usually does in India, sometimes non-stop drizzle otherwise heavy and sudden showers! I wanted to miss home but work schedules never let me, however it did make me miss my bus.
Oh another story...After the final project's submission I had a bit of time on my hand, therefore planned to visit my sister in Eely (small town in Cambridgeshire), also it was a trip to celbrate my birthday with sm1 from the family. So EEly it was. I booked my tickets on July 22nd a sunday night, infact a monday morning (12:30 am) for tuesday the 23rd....oh wait a second did i say tuesday...yes tht was my first mistake, considering Tuesday as 23rd. Despite waking up early next morning, I burdened myself with loads of tiny little bits of work which was my second mistake....had to burn 2 DVDs of my final project, return 3 hard drives, buy sweet for parul, deposit money in the bank and PACK...yes tht wasn't done either. Of course with this much work piled up who could have ever caught a bus on time?? The race started in the library where I burnt 2 DVDs in as much time as it takes to burn five. Thanx to the wierd audio track that went out of sync on the first two.
After help from a lebanese friend from class and a madrasi friend from work I was able to burn 2 DVDs of my project, return 2 of the 3 hard drives and get sweet that my sister had asked home delivered! Grazie Mille!! Fianlly I rush to my hall at 12:45, pack in 10-12 minutes and leave at 3:00 to catch the coach from Victoria that leaves at 3:30...A RACE AGAINST TIME...every 30 seconds I would look at the seconds hand in my wrist watch. Every 10 seconds at the tube map drawn right in front of my eyes. I knew I couldn't make it, but it was exciting to wait and watch...To just hope I would...Adrenaline pumping, eyelashes flickering in prayer and legs going tipsy toe...I nudged, excused ran on the escalator skated and phewed to reach victoria coach station at 3:32 with my watch showing a little over time as its 10 minutes fast. I missed it....SIGH...Still I looked around went from one platform to another from one information counter to another in desperation to find some information that the bus has been delayed. NOTHING!! At 5 minutes to 4:00 I decided to take the next bus but conditioned myself only to pay 4£ pounds for this ticket too...The queue in front of the coach ticket counter was never ending...it took me 40 minutes of dragging a backpack, carrying a laptop bag and the takeaway food package in that queue to reach the ticket counter. I knew a Punjabi friend had once managed to buy an e-ticket from the same counter, how did he managed to do that I don't know but he did and I couldn't. I was told to pay 10 quids for a new one... I chose to let go off the offer despite all the wait...Watch shows 4:35(remember it's 10 mins fast). I change from one foot to another, think hard and decide against making a call to anyone even after taking out the 20 p coin in hand to ask what to do next. I wanted to take my own decision. I ran outside the coach station asked the London lite newspaper seller standing outside in the rain for the nearest internet cafe. It was a 2 minute climb right across the street. Watch shows- 4:42. I go in ask for a machine and see a woman just taking the last one in front of me...I sigh...asked to wait 10 minutes, I give a dreaded look....I don't have 10 minutes~~ A man is trying to take the same eticket print out from one of the machines as I wanted to...he takes 5 minutes to take that print...I get the machine at 4:47. Nationalexpress.co.uk and then click click click click....darn why do I panick so much...."deep breath" I tell myself and then shout out loud..."excuse me, can I simply just give a print command , hello excuse me"....all the eyes in that 10X10 feet space turn to me...sheepishly I avoid the looks...Ctrl P and I pick my bag, my laptop bag, my package and try to move out...dhdoommm... the chair falls off.. I pay 50 p with the paper pressed between my lips ... Shout "sorwyy I'm in bit of a hurry"....and fling open the door...I run like I have death chasing me, I cross the light without waiting for the traffic to pass...India flickers...and avoiding the newspaper seller's gaze I rush into the station...check for a sec CAMBRIDGE...platform 10...I glance at my watch it was 5:01, darn I would have missed this one too, i should have taken that 10£ ticket itself, oh man Parul's gonna eat me alive, I won't attend her call, I run and with everything in my body still flickering in motion I ask the Indian looking guy at the end of a queue...is this to cambridge?? He says yes!! Ahhhhhhhhhh what a relief!! I keep shaking for the next 5 minutes and then decide to pick parul's call, tell her everything, smile and wait...then I look at my watch it is 5:15 darn Why does it happen to me...when I am late the bus is early when I am early why is the bus always late....disgust!! I decide to shove down the emotions with a samosa...buy one, finish eating one, and then some polo as well. The tyres start to roll only at 5:40...What the heck!! the driver is lost...I take my seat, look out of the window... showers!! Showers in London are exciting...