Four Chapathis of Gowrikund

There is a popular saying in Tirupati-going-crowd from Madras... "He will take away all your money and will leave you with only what is required for your return journey".

A few starters:

This post intends to capture an interesting chain of events that happened on Thursday - May 25, 2017. But before we roll to that date, there are a few discrete events that will set the tone of the passage. We started from Madras on Saturday - May 20, 2017. Plan was simple and the expectations were less - just three divyadesams and three paadal petra sthalams in Uttarakhand - popularly known as dho dham of the chardhams (Badrinath and Kedarnath). Just as I was wrapping up my day at office on the preceding Friday, there were direct messages flowing in whatsapp - 'massive landslide in Vishnu Prayag, all pilgrims stranded at Badrinath'. I took a determined call to stay put whatever happens and the plan is 'On'. He will take care of everything, whatever happens will be for a reason. Ultimately, the road was repaired in two days before we crossed it.

One of the risks that a pilgrim bound for Kedarnath takes is a ride in the helicopter. While the ride as such is safe, it is the weather that plays a spoil sport. It so happens that you have pleasant weather while you ascend and an inclement one while you are boarding for the return from the temple. This means we have to stay in Kedarnath temple area until when services resume - but imagine the crowd that would have got accumulated by then!

May 23, 2017:

We were exhausted by the time we started from Badrinath that morning. I had some breathing issues the earlier evening and had to use an oxygen spray as a just-in-case. Vidhya identified the issue quickly - my jeans that was drenched in rain. Cold cloth on the body has aggravated the issue! 200 km of whirlwind journey traversing through the majestic himalayan mountains that offer breath-taking views especially in the stretch from View point to Vishnu Prayag, the awesome crossing of Alakananda at Chamoli, the drive through the reserve forest at Chopta ghat did not make me enjoy the trip fully as I was in a corner of my mind worrying about what would be in store at Kedarnath.

Luckily for me our driver took the direct route from Chamoli to Gupt Kashi instead of going all the way to Rudra Prayag (although it is not as strenuous as the former). The direct route goes via Ukhimutt, where the idols of Kedarnath temple are worshipped during the winter break. I was trying to convince myself that in a worst case scenario if we abandon our Kedarnath plan, we should be contended with the darshan at Ukhimutt as it will technically count as 'visited-Kedarnath'. True to my prayers, we had an excellent darshan at Ukhimutt. A detailed sankalpam and archanai by the priest really was the best one could ask for. We then rode downhill from Ukhimutt to reach the banks of River Mandakini, crossed the river over a girder bridge and went uphill to reach Gupt Kashi.

We had not booked any helicopters for Kedarnath visit as it was a bit expensive compared to my budget. But then, after the tiresome journey from Haridwar to Badrinath and to Gupt Kashi, everybody was exhausted. We were literally not prepared for the journey to Kedarnath on a pony or a horse (as was the original plan). We decided to call the trip off and stay put at Gupt Kashi. The real issue was that we have booked room for that night only at Gupt Kashi and the next night stay was planned at Kedarnath town. We will be literally 'on the road' if we do not get any room for the next night... May is the peak season after all. I made the call to my tour agent and retired for the day with a trust that He will take care of us. The night went off peacefully with mercury not crossing more than 10 deg C.

May 24, 2017:

Sun rises very early in this part of India during summer. We were woken up at 5 AM by the loud noise of helicopters flying above our head, literally, as there was a helipad on the opposite side of the road next to our resort. It was a clear day with no drizzles to dampen our spirits. After a sound sleep overnight and the routine morning coffee, we decided to visit Kedarnath by putting the 'baaram' on Him. We did not realise then that it was actually too late for us to take that call...

After informing the tour agent that we are sticking to our original plan, we left for Son Prayag in our car. We finished our breakfast at the resort and reached Son Prayag around 10 AM, crossing Phata enroute, where a good majority of the helipads are. We were cursing ourselves for not having booked a helicopter. A few random inquiries at their offices revealed that the booking are more than capacity due to season overload. Son Prayag is the final stop where private vehicles are stopped. The 4 km stretch to Gaurikund should be covered either by foot or by the government owned jeeps. The adventure for us started at 10.30 AM at Son Prayag when we stood in the serpentine queue for the jeeps. It took an hour and 45 minutes to get the jeep. We reached Gaurikund at 1 PM with one bag with 5 oxygen bottles (more like large size deo spray bottles), spare clothes, snacks, cash, water bottles and additional winter wear as the weather forecast for the night was 0 - 3 deg C.

The pony problem:

The first of the bomb shells we encountered was that the bookings for ponies and horses from the authorized counter is closed. One has to stand overnight in the queue and get the booking done as early as 3 or 4 AM to get a confirmed one. Else, trek uphill by foot. It is a 16 km uphill trek as we understood then - with some bravery fetched out of nowhere, we decided to climb uphill. Luckily for us, two men in their 20s approached us offering help - they mentioned that they have two kandis like this which we can use to carry our bags (the main backpack along with the ladies' bags) and Vaibhav. We negotiated for a price for return journey as well; with this the ascent began from Gaurikund. We worshipped Kedarnath swami to bless us with a peaceful journey at the welcome arch (i.e. step/ padi number 1) and started.

The pathway through the (small) town is covered with shops on the left side and a deep valley (paadhaalam) of River Mandakini on the right. Entire pathway from Gaurikund to Kedarnath temple had water dispensers every 250m, toilet facilities every 500m, medical camps every 1 km and rest houses every 2 km. The way the State administration is taking care of pilgrims is above par. The efforts they have put in in terms of ensuring hygenic basic facilities are made available is to be appreciated atleast a hundred times!

Just out of Gaurikund town after 1 km, we get to pass through the pony station - it was literally empty by the time we went there. It was time for the army of ponies and horses that had started from Kedarnath in the morning to reach Gaurikund by late afternoon. The pathway has one characteristic that cannot miss being noticed - the ubiquitous odour of horse dung all through. The ascent was a bit less pronounced for the first few km. When we have crossed the 2 km mark, suddenly people started screaming and running for shelter - we later learned from our companions that stones and boulders are falling from top on the path ahead. Even a small stone, when falling from top of a high rise mountain will have enough momentum to break a person's head. This phenomenon halted us for 10 minutes and then we resumed our walk. But it brought in back the fear that was hiding till then - will we be able to make it up there? Did we take a wrong decision to walk?

After 3 km mark, it was very clear that we are struggling to walk and at this rate, it will take past midnight to reach the temple (as per our guide). Vaibhav was increasingly worried sitting facing back on the kandi... he started to demand that he will better walk than sit there. A course correction was blooming as inevitable. We tried (through guide) to check with empty ponies coming downhill - but none of them accepted our offers. Finally, at a point near 4 km mark there were 4 ponies available. For a hefty sum in black, over and above the government rates, I sent Appa, Amma, Vidhya and Vaibhav in them to the hotel booked in Kedarnath (Hotel Punjab and Sind Awas). I had sent bags with them after retaining a few vital items for my use enroute. We also had to settle and retire one of our guides there and retained only one of them to travel along with me (as he had to carry baggage or Vaibhav while returning downhill the next day).

Rambada zig zags:

Rambada is quaint little village at 7 km mark on the right bank. The old route that went further along the right bank uphill was washed away during the flash floods. The new route diverges at Rambada, crosses the Mandakini and goes along the left bank. My nappaasai to get another pony didn't materialize at all. I was exhausted too by the time I reached Rambada. The climb became more and more steeper and the very sight of the zig zag route to climb vertically drained all my energy - and on top of it, I got a lower back ache that made my walk even more challenging. I was on one side relieved that the other four atleast should make it to the top without much trouble. My only thought was even if takes the entire night for me for my slow walk, I will be able to manage to reach hill top say by 4 AM and can join the darshan directly.

I had started crawling inch by inch by the time we reached 8 km mark. I didn't have sufficient cash to get any pony on black market rates - even if I had it hypothetically, none of them were available. Finally, He answered my prayers after giving me enough of His testing... one man in his 30s offered to carry me in the kandi for a hefty sum, which I agreed to pay only after reaching the hotel as I had very little money with me. The guide came walking along for some time. I pushed him off to proceed not waiting for me after he dropped the second bomb shell. The pony station at the temple end is 1 km away from the temple and in any case the other four should have to walk in the snow mountain at the top to reach the hotel. They knew 'thoda thoda' Hindi with which it would be very difficult to manage - all they know was the hotel name and nothing else! I asked my guide to climb as fast as he could, reach the pony station, inform them that I am safe here and take them to the hotel.

Lincholi agreement:

I was able to clearly visualise why Vaibhav was frightened initially to sit on the kandi - I was walking along with him holding his hand as he sat on the kandi. The scare on his face was unmistakable. This flashback perfectly matched the very scene of myself being carried backwards, with the mammoth gorge of Mandakini on one side with no protection against fall, and the never-ending army of ponies and horses occupying the entire pathway on the other side and was enough to send chills through every nerve in the body.

We finally reached Lincholi - a bigger size rest area for pilgrims. My kandi friend took rest and had his dinner. I was not feeling hungry as I was imagining all sorts of hypothetical scary scenarios. It soon became dark and we were about to resume our journey. I offered to my friend that I will walk along as much as I could and he can carry me when I am unable to - he agreed happily. One has to really experience it to see how tough it is to carry a person on one's back uphill in that terrain, even if it is for a good reward. Still 7 - 8 km was in front of us... as agreed, I walked uphill on flat terrains and less pronounced steep slopes and he carried me on his back for steep slopes. He felt it a lot comfortable with this approach.

Rudra Point disconnect:

We reached a resting place near Rudra Point around 9 PM. My friend wanted to call it a day there and resume around 3 AM. I was worried about the rest of the gang and their whereabouts. This disconnect was resolved after we both agreed for a 1 hour break. The trek from that point till I reached the temple was beyond words, beyond worlds. The temperature dipped a lot and should have been hovering around 3 deg C then to 0 deg C by the time we reached the temple.

The sky was clear, with millions of stars visible to my eye as it was a new moon day. I was able to spot the regular naked eye planets in all their full glory. With hop on and hop off, we reached the snow filled part of the mountain by around 10 PM. We crossed the pony station - the only thing I could tell myself was, "not to worry - if they are not here, they should have reached hotel safe". Finally, the temple came into view - minimum artificial lights, with only light emitted by the night stars, and with the snow capped mountains in all the sides, the temple was glittering. This made me forget all material things in life for a few minutes...

We finally reached our hotel around 11 PM. My back ache was at an aggravated stage. I hugged my companion and said, you are the Kedarnath swamy Himself for me! We checked with a person who was hanging in the kitchen-cum-office about a madrasi family with a kid who might have checked in that night. He said yes they are in the ground floor rooms - no words could express that moment of relief.

A knock on one of the doors and out came Vidhya with an equal amount of relief in seeing me... Vaibhav and appa were sleeping. Amma and Vidhya had problems with high altitude and were unable to get a good sleep. Oxygen cylinders gave some relief as the air was very thin. I paid my kandi friend and he took leave. I was also able to spot my baggage kandi companion and he was happy to see me back. The hotel guy brought in a swamiji of the temple and offered a direct darshan for a premium. Given the ordeal we faced climbing up, we accepted the offer after some negotiation. He asked us to be ready at 5.30 AM sharp.

I then listened to the other side of the story: the four who took the horses felt that walking was manageable compared to sitting on the horse, with how we say in Tamil - 'usura kaila pidichindu'... once Amma's horse was about to skid along the path, twice it happened that Appa's horse went off the path into the mountains to eat grass without listening to the horse owner's calls. Twice Amma and Vidhya were almost about to fall from the horse because they were not holding the ropes tightly. Vaibhav actually had enjoyed the ride. They were informed about the location of the hotel and how to reach it by some kind-hearted government officials who were there in the pony station. They managed to walk as it was almost a flat terrain (although in snow) for 1 km to reach the hotel and the temple vicinity.

The darshan:

That night happened to be a maasa sivarathiri and three of us literally had a sleepless night at this Jyothirlinga sthalam. It was soon 3 AM - the sun was getting ready to come up - the first rays have hit the town. Loud noise outside the hotel and we saw pilgrims standing in the queue at that hour itself. All the shops were open and it was a busy business in the main street.

The hotel guy managed to bring us a few buckets of hot water - fuming with steam at the sight but luke warm by the time one takes a mug and pour on our body. It was the first time I witnessed vapour coming out when I spit water after brushing my teeth or even when I had to relieve myself to attend nature's call. Totally different experience for us from Madras!!!

We were taken through the 'out' gate through the temple and joined the crowd just before the gate for the grabhagraham. It was a different experience altogether for us entering the grabhagraham of a temple, touching the vigraham and offering a poojai ourselves. We had bought a full fledged poojai plate and did a satisfactory poojai with our own hands. It was crowded and the same 'jargandi' process was followed inside. Nevertheless, we had the best darshan one can have at the temple. Once we were out, the pujari took us near the Sankara brindavanam and did a detailed sankalpa poojai. Temperature was hovering around 1 or 2 deg C - but it was not biting cold.

The descent:

Accuweather had already warned us of 'mild to strong afternoon showers' for that day - so I wanted to start as early as possible. We came back to the hotel; had delicious aloo paratha with aachaar and packed our bags. Our baggage kandi friend took all our bags and we made our move.

Refreshingly enough, the first km was thrilling - walking inside snow clad mountains was a different experience altogether. As it was a downhill path for almost 80 to 90%, we were able to walk with brisk strides. A couple of photo sessions on the way, we walked along looking at the morning batch of helicopters flying in from Phata and Gupt Kashi. The echo was heard in all the directions.

After a few km, Appa's chappal started giving problems and he was not able to walk in his normal way. Vaibhav was unable to walk continuously as he had disturbed sleep last night and seemed to have picked up altitude sickness to a slight extent. He was pestering me to lift and carry him over my waist and shoulders. The split was again inevitable - if I had to carry Vaibhav, I cannot afford to walk slow and should minimise my actual walking time by gaining speed, to avoid getting a backache again. So we decided to split - Vaibhav, guide and I will walk fast and be in a rest house while Vidhya will take care of Amma and Appa and will follow us.

I walked fast, took a lot of shortcuts that the guide showed us and reached Lincholi. It started to drizzle. But luckily enough, we got a place inside the rest house. I bought Vaibhav noodles as he did not have anything to eat in the morning. We then slept there after informing our guide to have a look out for the other three. We got up after an hour or two and just then we were able to spot the other gang. We all had an aloo paratha each for early lunch and decided to start before it rains again. The agreed meeting point was Rambada on the other bank. I started to walk fast carrying Vaibhav and along came the guide. 2 km before Rambada, there was a new additional path that was laid to facilitate smooth movement of ponies and pedestrians, however it was 1.5 km longer than the zig zag route - the only advantage is that you dont have to compete with horses for space in the pathway. I asked my guide to stay there and inform the other gang to take the longer route as it is not steep as the other one.

Vaibhav agreed to walk for some distance, I started narrating him some interesting stories to keep him motivated to walk! We reached Rambada around 2 PM. We waited there for sometime and started to walk to the next rest house at Bhimbali (5 km mark from Gaurikund) and sleep there for sometime - it would be easy to spot us there as there was lesser crowd at that place. After a few hours, the gang united again. It started to rain heavily on and off. I also found it difficult to lift Vaibhav when wearing my woolen jerkin on - so I handed over my jerkin to Vidhya; wore the plastic overall raincover and started with Vaibhav. The plan was to meet again at Gaurikund. I walked fast again; however, it started to rain very heavily en route. I spotted the guide along with the bags at 2 km mark waiting for rain to subside. I finally managed to enter Gaurikund town around 5.30 PM.

Hotel entry:

Vaibhav had energy but was visibly tired. It was getting colder by each minute. I saw my wallet and was shocked to see only 50 Rs. in it. Some good sense prevailed and I bought two dairy milk chocolates for 30 Rs. as a just in case to give instant energy. We reached Gaurikund welcome arch at 6 PM. We both were not able to sit outside in the benches in the pathway as there was a heavy drizzle and it was cold. To avoid inviting a 'shivering', I decided to get into a hotel just adjacent to the welcome arch. It was crowded there, I had money enough to buy two cups of tea and nothing more. I requested Vaibhav to have one chocolate bar and a tea - he was not in a mood to listen to anything and refused to eat anything. I had a tea for myself and resigned to the fact that I have to wait for the bags to arrive to do anything more. In the meanwhile, the pathway was getting more and more congested due to the crowd and the rush hour. I was worried that the guide should be able to locate me inside the hotel (although it was wide open in the entrance).

I removed Vaibhav's shoes as they were fully drenched. Did some rubbing on the toes to bring in some heat in his legs. He was tired and started to sleep with a request that I should not leave him and go anywhere.

The Tamil family:

I heard some voices in Tamil - good enough to tickle curiosity in me to raise my neck and see who they were. After an initial introduction, I got to understand that they were a group of 32 people on a trip to Kedarnath and Badrinath. It was day 2 of their journey... they all had taken helicopters that morning and were stranded at Kedarnath as all return helicopters were cancelled due to bad weather. While a 16 of them decided to stay overnight to take helicopter the next day morning, another 16 decided to descend the trek path. Apparently 8 of them have already reached and started to go to Phata where their hotel was. Out of the remaining 8, 7 have reached that Gaurikund hotel and 1 lady was missing/ yet to arrive. Her sisters have left for Phata in the first bunch of 8 that left then.

One thing that travellers to remote areas in India should remember is that in a good majority of such areas, the only mobile network that we get is BSNL. That group did not have any BSNL numbers and I incidentally was carrying my cousin's BSNL sim as a just-in-case. I offered my phone to them and asked them to call the other two sisters who had left earlier and inform them that their sister is yet to arrive. I gave my phone to them and had to return to my seat as Vaibhav woke up feeling hungry... the first thing he did was to drop a bomb shell... "appa, enakku romba pasikkardhu, chappathi vaangi kudu". One of the best lessons a person could learn in life, when your dear child asks for food and you don't have money to buy it. I told him in a low voice, "appakitta 10 rupees dhaan irukku, tea and chocolate sapdu, bag vandhadum chappathi vangi tharren".

"Thambi, kozhandhaikku pasi varum bodhu panam illenaa pakkathula irukkaravanga kitta kekka koodaadha... ivarum enoda peyran madiri thaaney, naan vaangi kudukka maatenaa?", I heard this from the lady sitting next to us and felt a shock of my life. She was an elderly lady, should be nearing 60, and was kind enough to offer buying chapathis for Vaibhav. She ordered two chapathis for Vaibhav and fed him with her own hands. I sat there speechless witnessing a random act of kindness. In a few minutes, the boy who took my phone for placing the call came to return the phone to me - it so happened that this elderly lady was his mother! She got to hear from him that I helped him by sharing my phone to a stranger (him) and told that God has made her to help me unknowingly in return! 

They decided to go back to their hotel with the available 7 members as there were three ladies in that group and it is not advisable for them to wait in a random place for long. Atleast they can be with the rest of the group, safe in their hotel at Phata. Here comes the best part,: this lady, before she started, gave another 100 Rs. to me and said, "thambi neengalum enakku paiyan madiri dhaan, idha vechikkanga, neengalum eppo saapteengalo, rendu chapathi vangi sapdunga pasiyaarum". She looked like Goddess Annapurani in person at that moment!

The group started around 6.30 PM, I had two chapathis for dinner then. Soon, the rains stopped and my guide and I spotted each other. A relief for me as I was able to change clothes for Vaibhav and cover him with one more woolen blanket. It made him feel comfortable and he decided to retire for the day, given the fact that he would have walked atleast 7 km down hill. The guide told me that he had spotted the other three at 2 km mark some time ago just before the heavy rains and at the speed at which Appa is walking it will take atleast 9.30 PM for them to arrive. I settled the guide as all the bags were now with me. He signed off. The hotel owner was kind enough to allow me to sit there with my baggage and a sleeping-on-the-table Vaibhav inspite of the crowd.

One-by-one:

I was not having any worry till the clock ticked 9.30. But after that, each minute started to increase my levels of worry. I could not move as Vaibhav would be left alone... the hotel owner saw the panic struck face of mine and inquired... I told him a gist of the story and he asked me to go to the next building, which is a police check post that has a public announcement system. The announcement I make there will be aired all along the Gaurikund town pathway till the pony station. If the three have reached the town, they will be able to hear it and reach the hotel. I made a round of announcements in Tamil and came back.

10.15 PM and no signs of anyone yet. Finally at 10.30 PM, I was able to spot Vidhya and Amma frantically looking for me. Two of the missing three were now united. Over to their part of the story in brief...

The disconnect and the split:

After we parted ways at 4.5 km mark just after Bhimbali, they have walked together for some distance. As there were signs of a heavy downpour, apparently Amma has requested Appa to walk fast, which he could not. An argument ensued and Amma had decided to walk alone fast as she had contracted backpain and could not spend more time walking. She will reach Gaurikund and wait for others, while Vidhya will walk along with Appa and join us. While Amma had got caught in the drizzle when she was just near the welcome arch... a 100 m more and she could have spotted me. However, she was worried whether she may get shivering... so, having remembered seeing a medical post a 100 m back on the way, she decided to turn back and go to the medical centre to get tablets and if required an injection. Vidhya has spotted her running towards her, while actually she was running to the medical centre. She had to actually block her on the way and make her realize that it was herself. Vidhya had a story to share...

The Halt:

Apparently Vidhya and Appa had walked for 1 km together. At the 2.5 km mark, Appa had a minor slip and misplaced his step leading to a minor sprain. He was unable to walk further. Hence he halted, and got inside a small way-side naturally formed crevice in the mountain to take rest. He had requested Vidhya to walk to Gaurikund and send me to that place so that I can arrange for something to bring him back to Gaurikund. Vidhya did a very thoughtful thing of asking Appa to wear my jerkin as well so that the biting cold will not affect him meanwhile.

Back to the hotel at Gaurikund... I asked Amma to take care of Vaibhav and started along with Vidhya to fetch Appa back from that 2.5 km mark. At this stage, the hotel owner intervened and mentioned that I can inform this situation to Police and request them to arrange a courtesy kandi or doli to bring Appa back, and that it would be free of cost. The constable in the information counter mentioned that this facility will be available only in the Police Station which is 0.5 km uphill on the pathway.

Surprise at the Police Station:

Vidhya and I started walking uphill again. She was tired to the core and I was a bit ok to walk after the rest for 4 hours. She was unable to match my speed and when we spotted a lane that went steep uphill, she offered to  stay in the pathway while I actually climb and confirm that the Police Station actually exists there. I went up the hill and was able to locate the Police Station. I was surprised to see the father and son duo of the Tamil family group whom I met at the hotel, waiting at the Police Station. I assumed that they would have come to file a similar complaint for the missing lady. I went ahead and informed the constable on duty that he had to arrange a courtesy doli for Appa. He mentioned that he has to confirm this with the nearest police booth and then arrange. I had to wait as unfortunately, his wireless had some signal problems and the other end did not pick his mobile calls.

In the meantime, the Inspector came out and was having a discussion with the father and son. I could observe that he could not follow Tamil, they could not follow Hindi and both could not follow the other's English. I stepped in as a all-language basic translator - apparently, when the 7 went down hill to Son Prayag, they received a phone call that the missing lady had a medical emergency. The 3 gents in the group of 6 had left the 3 ladies in the group at Son Prayag bus stand and came back to Gaurikund to take the missing lady along with them. While 1 of them could not walk further, they had left him to wait at Gaurikund welcome arch and these two have walked to the Police Station. I saw that the inspector was telling the constable to give them blankets and pillow for them to stay overnight. When I told them this is what the Inspector was planning, the son insisted that he would walk to that camp and help the lady walk back to Gaurikund.

Then the inspector dropped a bomb shell. He told me, "arrey, unko bolo, wo lady mar gayaa". They were shell shocked to hear it when I translated to them. They were random neighbours who have planned for this yatra and their tour captain is still in Kedarnath town waiting for the next day's helicopter service to return. I suddenly remembered that Appa was sitting alone in the pathway - I was about to faint when I remembered that. I turned to the constable and to my relief he told me that my Appa was spotted and he was safe without any problems. They were trying to arrange for a doli for him.

Then I got another shock - I had left Vidhya all alone in the pathway at 12 midnight, while all this was happening in a rapid sequence of events. I told the constable that I will be back shortly and rushed to the pathway.

Then I got another (pleasant shock) - I saw Appa standing along with Vidhya in the pathway when I went there to fetch her - a huge sign of relief. A brief inquiry revealed that two Tamil speaking gentlemen have spotted him enroute and have volunteered to have him put his hands on their shoulders and slowly walk down hill to Gaurikund. I then asked Appa and Vidhya to go back to the hotel, while I inform Police that Appa has already arrived. I went back to the Police Station and asked them to cancel the doli, and thanked them profusely for all the help that they have extended at that crucial juncture.

The Inspector came out and inquired how we will be going back as jeeps are not available after 1 AM - I told him, "Sir, frankly I have not thought of it yet". He gave an idea. He will call Son Prayag outpost, give special permission to allow my Innova car along with driver to drive upto Gaurikund. I have to take the three gentlemen of that Tamil group to Son Prayag, have my driver fetch them a car to go to Phata and inform the news to the dead lady's sisters as they have to come the next day morning to the mortuary at Gaurikund for identification procedures. The deal was agreed. The inspector spoke to my driver (who was by the time worried as we have not turned up yet) and arranged everything.

The 2 AM wrap-up:

We all went back to the Gaurikund hotel at 1 AM, by the time which the owner was kind enough to have prepared chapathis and curd rice for Appa, Amma and Vidhya. Our car came to Gaurikund and we all started to Son Prayag. The three ladies in the group were literally about to cry when they saw these three gentlemen back. The cold weather coupled with the fact that they were alone in a 'baashai-theriyaadha-oor' had taken a toll on their mental strength. The father narrated the story to the mother... she came up, held my hands and told, "thambi, rombavey bayandhu poyirundhom, kadavul dhaan ungala anuppi ivungala engakitta marubadiyum serthu vittaaru". I replied, "illainga, neenga yaaru ennanu theriyaama senja andha anna dhaanam dhaan kaarnam, neenga senja helpukku badhila enna eppidi eppo seyya poromunu nenachirundha enaku innikey badhil udhavi seyya vechittaru andha Kedarnath swamy".

Our driver arranged a cab for them to go back to Phata, while we returned to Gupt Kashi. With just 50 or 100 in our hand, everything that we took having been spent, I checked with the driver, "Sir ji, idhar ATM kahaan hai?". He said, "Sir ji, no problem. Aapke cab ka travel advance mere paas hai. Aap use kijiye. Baadh mein haridwar jaaney ke baadh dheejiye!".

I brought down the windows and let the fresh air blow on my face.

I learned a lot during those 7 hours of that wonderful evening than in my entire life put together. Now, please read the first sentence of this post again - you will get the underlying context.