Delhi Driving: This is madness ….

PS – I drafted this post on 11th January, but never got time to publish it as you can read here.

Hence I am publishing it now on 24th May. 🙂

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I am back to India.

I have taken two week off from my office to take some well deserved rest and also to finish out some personal chores and visit relatives – but that is not what I want to blog about in this post.

I guess I just want to vent out my frustrations on driving in Delhi. Each morning I set out of home, there is nothing that prepares me to face one of my worst possible fears.

It is not the first time I am driving at Delhi, but either the Delhi jungle traffic has become much more complicated now (after almost 2 years since I drove last here) or maybe my subconscious is now always comparing it to “American Driving”.

During 80% of journey, the traffic moves inch by inch, where every vehicle will try to overtake you in the most illogical way – causing me to vent out in best possible way, depending on who is in the car with me. If it is mom, dad or even wifey – I manage with “saala yeh kar kya raha hai” and “kya to pagalpanthi hai”. If I am all by myself, I can let the strings loose to visit my old friends of F’s, MC’s and BC’s.

There are so many things which frustrate me as I gaze around from the driving seat – Why all kind of vehicles are running on the same lane?
Tapping nervously on my car steering and seeing rivers of cars, trucks, buses, scooters, cows, bicycles, auto rickshaws and pedestrians – all flow in all possible directoins – without any rule.

I have heard and read that things will get much more deteriorated in coming years. I start tapping nervously on my car steering, change the gears and make myself mentally ready to get into the jungle.

Ps – I thought to propose some “solutions” in this post – but then I shrugged thinking “it is not my job, it is government’s job”. I heard Gayatri Joshi in my subconscious – “hum sab sarkar ka hissa hain, jab tak hum aage badh kar cheezon ko nahin badlenge”

India

Everytime when I return to India after a satisfying project stint abroad, I find myself filled with many good thoughts related to “going back home” 🙂 .. I feel somewhat patriotic, somewhat nostalgic, somewhat filled with memories and images about my childhood.

I also feel the urge to invite my friends whom I have worked with abroad to visit us at India if they havent till now – I am sure it will be a lifetime experience and eye opener in many ways.

Above video showcases, some of the places you can goto, if you come to India – from majestic Himalayas and Jammu Kashmir in North India, to Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh, to lovely Kerala Backwaters and sceneric Tamilnadu in south india … and lots of other sceneric beauties. Email me, if and when you plan a visit, I will be delighted to help you out with a plan and places to see and things to do – and if I have time (most probably I will not) I may accompany you as a guide on this exploration.

The song being played in the background of above video is Vande Mataram which is our national song, not to confused with our national anthem Jana Gana Mana.
Since we are hearing it from , it evokes all patriotic thoughts and emotions and fills heart of every Indian like me with love and sense of duty towards the country. (I think it will also evoke a sense of curiosity as well as respect to the heart of people who has never been to India.)

Bon Voyage!!