Tendulkar memories

" Cricket is my religion , tendulkar is my god " is a good old quote which I have come across for almost two decades.. So what makes people call him god when there are 1000 s of other talented players occupied in professional cricket ? In our generation for example, there were players like lara, the waugh brothers, ponting, inzamam, dravid who were extremely good batsmen and were lauded by all as great players of their time but none were proclaimed unanimously as " god " . What makes this man tendulkar special ? Of course his numbers are phenomenal but i dont take too much into numbers and beyond the numbers, there is so much this man has given to the game, Indian cricket and to his fans, that anyone who questions tendulkar's credentials as the modern day game's greatest ever batsman can only be termed " cricket illiterate"
                           My tendulkar memories date back to the 1992 worldcup and the subsequent hero cup when I first got to catch him on tv as an enthusiastic curly haired school boy who batted aggressively,also bowled medium pace ( then ) and also came up with kapil dev in boost ads in doordharshan.My understanding of cricket was very low at that time that i couldnt even decipher the greatness in him.All i knew about him was that he was the "boost boy". Soon my deep love for this great game grew, and the more i saw of tendulkar, the more i loved him.So much that i started drinking boost instead of the usual complan - "the complete planned food" that my mother used to give those days, i was happy to get hurt while playing so that i got the " band aid" endorsed by tendulkar and i would happily act in the same manner in which he had acted in the band aid advertisement.
                              I began reading The Hindu in class 3 only to follow cricket, and as my understanding and knowledge of the game grew, i began realising how good a player tendulkar was. I can infact vividly recall almost all the memorable knocks of tendulkar in early 90s, be it the hero cup or the singer cup or the australasia cup. His assaults against warne, notably the desert storm innings and subsequent finals, his innumerable brutal attacks on the likes of qadar, akram , younis and aaqib javed at sharjah, him telling people like caddick,gough, brandes,akhtar and olanga to "shut their mouth" in his own style, tearing apart quality bowlers in mcgrath, donald, walsh, ambrose, bishop,lee, pollock, steyn in their own den will always bring back evergreen memories of the game and their childhood memories to every indian cricket fan.
                              Tendulkar has achieved so much with the bat that even a modern day legend like waqar younis will be better known as " the guy who made his debut in the same match , along with tendulkar", a quality umpire like bucknor will be known as " the guy who gave a shocker when he ruled tendulkar out when the bat was hitting the helmet". Rahul Dravid , for everything he has given to indian cricket, one of modern day cricket's best batsman will always be known as second best, to tendulkar.Sourav Ganguly's odi record of 13000 odd runs wont look massive enough before tendulkar's numbers.
                               Having accomplished so much and having played a pivotal role in helping india become a cricketing superpower and also accomplishing his childhood dream of a worldcup win in the process, tendulkar did not have anything more to prove to anybody, nor anything more to achieve in the cricketing domain.As a faithful follower of Indian cricket for 2 decades, i always felt that when he retires, he should retire from both the formats at once or keep playing both formats as much as he wanted to (As he is someone who knows what he is doing and need not be told by others to look at his future), without picking and chosing games (which unfortunately he has been doing since the worldcup win, for whatever reason).That approach didnt help him at all, as he lost his rhythm which was quite evident in the last few series and it didnt help the team as well as it didnt allow the team to get a settled combination.
                                As much as it is heartbreaking to see tendulkar leave the odi arena it should also be remembered that the game will go on with or without tendulkar. The game has always been bigger than the Individuals and it will continue to be so. Now what next for tendulkar ? Having fulfilled the wishes of all the Indian cricket fans for 23 years, one last wish from a greedy indian fan like me would be wishing for tendulkar to stay connected to indian cricket as long as possible. He can make the kohli s and raina s much better players than they are now with his inputs and can still play a role in taking India to no.1 in tests again
                                 In the meantime, i can only thank tendulkar for whatever he has given to the game, to the team and the cricket lovers all over the world. Thanks a lot SRT for inspiring a whole generation. Blessed Iam to have a met you in person twice for autographs, Even more blessed iam to have born in the same era as you were  !!!

BHARAT DARSHAN

Mussoorie was gloomy. Both because of the December  weather  and because of the fact that our IPS and IFS friends had left us. Half the gang was gone – so was half the fun. We, the IAS probationers of the 2011 batch needed a high, infact badly needed one. The notice boards of the academy showed that there was this WINTER STUDY TOUR  scheduled in the next few days. Before we could realise, those few days were over as well and here i was sitting in the bus to Saharanpur on December 17,2011. Putting the things in common room, packing my stuff for the next 2 months made me all the more tired and dull.

                                                               Somehow managed to keep the smiles on the face thanks to  a few chats with my friends on the way, and when the Shalimar express bound for jammu started from sahranpur , my BHARAT DARSHAN well and truly began. I was put up in Group 9, which contained a few friends, few known people, few people whom i’ve seen but didn’t know names and a horrendous last categories of my batchmates whom i haven’t even seen ! (they didn’t attend FC). What s the use of this bharat darshan ?  will this group be good ? couldn’t i have just gone with my friends ? more questions struck me as i went into deep sleep in the train.

JAMMU

A whiff of fresh air hit me right on the face, as i got down in Jammu railway station the next morning. Heard  and Seen a lot about Jammu in papers, television and youtube but this was the first time i was setting foot on it. The journey across the massive, massive mountains with snow clad peaks ,infused the sense of “high” i was short of, for the last few days. As it was the army attachment-  we saw, breathed  and lived the “military” life , which gave me the much needed adrenaline i was looking for.  Seeing the jawans in close quarters,looking at the conditions in which they live, routine that they go through gave me mixed feelings – i saw many of them suffer a lot. But they were doing it for the country after all. So, as many of my friends were pitying the jawans, i was envying them – they were closer in protecting my country than i was.. iam possessive about my country as much as I’m  very possessive about my parents and my girl friend and it was quite evident from what i felt that day.

                                                              Staying in bunkers that were so close to LOC with Pakistan  , firing weapons, the iron man competition ,ambush patrol were all really mentally , physically and emotionally tough but thoroughly enjoyable  experiences. And i needn’t have to describe the weather in jammu in December – my fingers were so numb that everyday when i opened the tap, i couldn’t guess if it was hot or cold water that was coming from it !!!  And of course playing in snow was a really unique experience for someone who was born and brought up in a place like Madurai.  Our group in the meantime was beginning to gel well as a unit. Soon our time at jammu was up and we proceeded to punjab

PUNJAB

Landed in jalandhar at midnight and shifted gears from “attention” in the army to “stand at ease” of the civil administration. But the armed forces effect was still on as we had our airforce attachment scheduled at adampur near jalandhar. The tom cruises of “top gun” movie and shahid kapoors of “mausam” came to my mind as i entered the air force premises. The attachment per se was good , except the fact that they only let us watch the Mig 29 s land , take off ( a big favour indeed) and after  considerable persuasion from our group leader the “kind” hearted people there allowed us to sit in the cockpits of Mig29 s and take snaps.But nonetheless watching Mig29 s from such close proximity was an amazing sight indeed.

                                                       Tandoori chicken and lassi were on the top of my “to do “ list in punjab. Had them heartily enough and apart from it, I  also managed to visit the golden temple , jallianwallabagh  and finally the famous  flag ceremony at the wagah border with the Indian crowd shouting “bharat mata ki jai “ on one side, and Pakistani crowd shouting “Pakistan zindabad on the otherside. It was a really really emotional experience and i felt proud to be born in this great country. My pride was justified in the welcome boards both the countries placed. Our board read “WELCOME TO THE LARGEST DEMOCRACY AND THE LAND OF FRIENDSHIP” where as the Pakistani board read “WELCOME TO THE MUSLIM LAND” !!! how funny ? i chuckled as i boarded the train to lucknow

LUCKNOW

Amritsar – howrah mail was our location for the new year’s eve- fortunately or unfortunately. Phones rang all over the train at the stroke of midnight – upper berths, middle berths, lower berths, the loos. Cheers going all around me. Of course i missed being at home, but wasn’t this the true bharat darshan ? being with an army of my  fellow countrymen in a train in north india for the newyear.

                                   We were put up in the VIP guesthouse in lucknow, the state of which was “pathetic” to say the least. Right from the time we entered the room there was a strange stink in the room.We tried calling the reception for an hour without realising the fact that the phone was dead.Then we decided to spray our perfumes to mask the stink. If tandoori chicken was on top of my agenda in Punjab, The famous lucknowi  kebabs were at the top in UP. And trust me, they were heavenly.  Among the monuments in lucknow, “bhoolbulaaya” or the maze was really interesting. Getting into the maze was easy but getting out of the maze was not possible without the guide. I like riddles and puzzles a lot, and this maze kept me occupied for quite some time.

                                                    As we returned to the guesthouse, my roommate who had gone in and opened the door ahead of me , came running . He looked aghast when he told that “there was a dead dog in our room’s balcony “ and hence the stink ! After clearing the mess we proceeded to our actual attachment in lucknow – Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. What happened there for 2 days was Chinese torture with a typical engineering “industrial visit “ like machine side lectures !!! i’v seen people sleep in class but this was the first time i saw people standing near the machines and sleeping while HAL guys were desperately trying to explain us about the aerodynamics of the accessories that they were manufacturing. After it was finally over, i had one last bite of the tunday kebabs as we boarded the train and bid farewell to Lucknow

MADHYA PRADESH

Khandwa was our next place of halt. It was the first week of jan, and we were out of the typical north Indian winter for the first time. Wearing just the shirt without thermals or pull overs, walking bare foot on the floor were all the luxuries that i enjoyed in Khandwa. Finally the hot sun was hitting my face hard !  The group was now “formed” and there were roughly two kind s of people in the group– the keen types on the attachment and the keen types on things other than attachments. I unfortunately  couldn’t fall strictly into either category. But despite two categories of people existing, there was this sense of togetherness that somehow developed within the group.

                                                                    The luxurious guest house that we stayed in, Omkareshwar temple, Indrasagar dam, The time stipulated certificate issual system in the collectorate were the highlights of our khandwa visit. Meanwhile the buzz about the release of our Cadres started in our group.

MAHARASHTRA

“Into the land of tendulkar” i tweeted,  as we arrived in Aurangabad from khandwa and were put up in the cozy  Ajanta house, next to the collector’s bungalow.  Generous helpings of vada pav and poha made me enter the Ajanta caves in an utterly sleepy state. The loud hawking made by our tourist guide shook me out of the sleep and got me back to the world. The greatness of Ajanta has already been described by great scholars and need not be certified me ! Our group got together big time and  started taking photos, photos and more photos by now, of everything – photos of Ajanta (understandable),  people around (understandable),entry tickets, transformers (???), bus tyres !!!  By the time its evening, most camera memories are full. “thank god” i’ll feel relieved, but what do they do next ?  delete photos that were taken in morning, and take more photos, much to my astonishment.

                                              It was 8^th of January and my birthday. Replying to wishes , roaming around the ellora caves, daulatabad fort, bibi ki maqbara made my birthday. The lunch and dinner though, were pathetic that day, much to the disappointment of the birthday boy and made him miss home much more that day. The group meanwhile kept clicking more pictures(  even had cameras snatched at a few places  were photography was prohibited).After Aurangabad, it was Mumbai, and if there was one word to describe Mumbai, it is AWESOME.  Everything was awesome about Mumbai – the city, the people, the food ( Bombay duck at Mahesh lunch home near colaba),the weather( considering the season),the malls (  gary Neville crossed by in one of them !) but more than all these, Mumbai will always be close to my heart because, our cadres came out when we were in Mumbai- upon just boarding a taxi from gateway of India to be precise. “tamilnadu” i jumped in joy to my father on phone. The talk of all india services, serving the country is all fine, heroic to talk but at the end of the day, when you realise that you are going to do your dream job at your own place, in front of all your kith and kin , its a really special feeling indeed. After a get a valid reason (home cadre), ate down more Bombay ducks that night, as we started preparing to leave for pune.

                                                Pune was short and sweet. Visit to Tata motors, venkys, NDA were our requisites there and all the places kept us interested enough. With that our tour to Maharashtra was over and at an unearthly hour of 1.50 am, we departed for dharwad

KARNATAKA

                         “one state many worlds” is the tagline of the Karnataka tourism , but unfortunately  we only got to see “one world” – the monuments. Aihole, badami,pattadkal, sravanabelagola, halebid, belur – All Architectural marvels. If someone asks me which monument was my favourite in the country, i can easily reply “Belur, halebid” . For someone like me who is interested more in multiplexes than monuments, belur  and  halebid were a real slap in the face, for i learnt to appreciate monuments better  after visiting them. Post cadre allocation, our group didn’t have much to gossip about, so we decided to deeply engage ourselves in what i would call THE BEST entertainment in the history of mankind – Cards !!!  Initially 3-4 people started , thanks to yours truly and soon everyone one pitched in and finally our group leader ( notorious enough to be called the biggest KTP in the whole batch) joined in and soon became the biggest addict ! Ha Ha.. Fun days, those were...

TAMILNADU

                        One doesn’t have to look into the milestones or signboards to find out tamilnadu. There were  Rajnikanth posters  all over ( 1 month post his birthday ! ) – Hurray we were in tamilnadu ! Yet another emotional high for me, as i officially entered my “cadre”. Luckily i first entered satyamangalam and had the opportunity to visit Bannari amman temple ( The goddess whom i seriously believe is responsible for what iam now ) which was really fulfilling. The special task force attachment was really Special as we did River crossing, rock climbing , trekking and had refreshing dip in the moyar river. I was also privileged to witness the republic day function in Coimbatore. Ooty was always going to be very special for me – at a place where i was a little school boy wearing a monkey cap and running around with a cricket bat , i was now standing as an IAS probationer – wow !  thats some journey that i’ve gone through !

                                                           Seeragasamba rice mutton biriyani, Idly, pongal sambhar, tamil movie posters , karakaattam , oyilaattam (at republic day function) , Chennai superkings hoardings, auto rickshawwalas thinking they are king ashoka in chariots, “parotta” stalls, temple car festivals, political gossips, the friendliest people on earth – enjoyed typical tamilnadu for  6 days !

ANDAMANS

The most desired destination among all probationers, the most expected place, the most hyped about place.  The verdict ? Paradise it was !  and very much worth the hype.  Havelock Islands will easily be remembered as the best place of the entire tour both for the exotic beauty it possessed, and for the wonderful times we had as a group. We were completely aquatic through out ! we were with the fish all the time – in the sea ,on our dining tables and even on our dreams ! my idea of a perfect holiday is always by a seaside and Government India  and my academy just gave me that. Even before our visit to andamans was over, i had thought about atleast 2 different tours to andamans in the future (with family and friends ). We also happened to meet and chat around  with a very nice person at andamans who also happens to be the chief secretary of andamans !

 KOLKATA

“The land of Didi and Dada” i updated in facebook as we entered the city of joy. The best thing i liked about it was that , fish was widely regarded as vegetarian in Kolkata and was served plenty of it during my stay – from the port trust guest house to the rajdhani which i travelled in.I was really thrilled to see Trams still in operation (was nearly run over by one) in Kolkata. The attachment in Kolkata was with the municipal corporation , they were so cool that when our KTP group leader asked if we could report at 10am, they replied “ come at 11.30 and leave by 2 , no problem “ The biggest disappointment was sunderbans, which along with andamans were my top priority places but unfortunately we ended up seeing only domesticated goats, pigs on our 8 hour long boat ride. I finally fulfilled my dream of seeing a tiger in sunderbans through Youtube !

                                                     Kolkata kali, the “happening” park street , Victoria memorial, murshidabad silk sarees ,the sweet curd and of course the fish dishes really impressed me.  After all the highs that we now experienced as a group, we suddenly felt that the tour was getting over – almost frown nokia phone smileys on all our faces as we boarded the rajdhani express to delhi

DELHI

Trains, buses, cars, flights, boats, ships, foot – travelled by all and finally we reached Delhi. We were put up at hotel samrat , a star hotel for our final part of the tour. All my other group friends also arrived at delhi and it was one big gang at hotel samrat. There were hugs, high fives, friendly banters that were going all over the hotel. Cadres, cricket, marriage, memos, our faculty  - buzzes and gossips galored big time. The attachment at NSG was also very enjoyable , scary at times though with LED explosion demos at unexpected moments.

                                                                      Finally it was time to go. All good things in life come to an end, so did our bharat darshan. Our group got together for one final huddle and i proudly started  a big round of applause to our group leader – he really deserves much more accolades for doing such a wonderful job ,leading our team for 2 months.  Bade farewell to all other friends and left for the airport. Closed my eyes as the flight took off.  Shivering Himalayan winds, the scuba diving in andamans,  bannari amman temple, the majestic mysore palace, the ever bustling Mumbai and Kolkata, cave paintings of Ajanta and all other scenes of bharat darshan kept running through my mind. Suddenly someone woke me up, saying  that we had arrived in Madurai. Got down from the flight with an “empty “ feeling , but soon saw two figures waving at me. I felt happier than ever as i ran towards them, and hugged them . After all they were my father and mother..

                      

              

                                                           

       

                                

                                                        

                                                                 

                                                             

THROUGH HEAVEN,HELL AND BACK !

The 9 day himalayan trek - the mother of all LBSNAA treks started on october 1.. Our entire batch was divided into 15 groups ( with groups 11 and 12 being "usain bolt" groups and 15 being " the bhajan mandal " group ie. injured guys who travel in bus all over the pilgrim places and create mischief). I was "placed" in group 3 which had quite a few attractive destinations. We loitered all over mussoorie in the name of "trek shopping" and purchased everything from gloves to monkey caps to all toileteries. I decided beforehand that i wasnt going to bath for the next 10 days and bought myself a very strong DEO. We were also given sleeping mats and bags from the academy. So with all the fun of "trek shopping", we were all set to leave on Oct 1st morning.
                                                                     It was 5.30 am and the loud PT whistle shook me off my bed. As usual, the previous day, i played the fool when all others were busy packing and finally now it was time to go and my things were lying all over my room. I dumped everything into the bag and ran out of the room as fast i could to " karmshila" building where the buses were stationed. "Hindustani" sung by shankar mahadevan welcomed me there (in the loud speakers)  as most people were busy clicking photographs, some were delivering last minute "advices" to people ( as if they do the himalayan trek every month), some tech geeks were busy meddling with their GPS gadgets,Some romeos were still cribbing that they could get into their juliets' group, few members of "usain bolt" group were still talking about their gym workouts - overall it was a festive and a busy atmosphere. Soon the final whistle blew and all the buses started (groupwise) , all of us were literally PUMPED UP for the occasion.
                                                                      The bus hardly moved 20kms and most of my "pumped up" friends puked up !, the uneven terrain being the primary reason. I sat beside my friend, listening to music, munching namkeen and enjoying the holiness possessed by the hills. We were supposed to travel about 260km by bus that day - It meant more puking, sleeping for some,but meant more snacks and music for me. I also used up this time to get acquainted with new people who were in my group. Along the way, we crossed picturesque places like Dhanolti, Tehri dam, some wonderful apple farms, ravaging ganges past uttarkashi and finally landed in gangotri ( our destination for the day) amidst rainfall and very cold conditions. I got down from the bus cribbing about the weather, not knowing that the best and the worst were yet to come...
( To be continued)

LBSNAA Times

PT times ( "painful" walk to polo ground contd)

At the blow of the whistle, all of us are expected to arrange ourselves according to our groups and roll numbers. Then our physical instructor goes "kamar ke upar hath"( hands on your hips) and there begins my massacre, where iam stretched,washed and wrung. I try my best to evade as many steps as possible,as do most of my friends, barring a few Usain bolt wannabes. we do the exercises for half an hour and then begins the -JOG. I'v been bunking the jogs eversince LKG and here iam at 6000 feet above sea level at 6.30 am in the morning, jogging at the polo ground (shame on my legacy !). the joggers again are divided into 3 groups - The "usain bolt" group, the 'walkwala group" consisting of the injured,niggle carrying people and then finally the 'vijayakarthikeyan" group -who are coerced to run. Initially it was 3 rounds, then increased to 5 rounds and now its half an hour of uninterrupted jog and god knows what they are going to do next. On some days, after the drill, instead of jogging, we have "conditioning " treks ( wonder why they are so obsessed with treks)                                                                After the session is over, 'centre close' calls our instructor we all buzz, bump into each other and get closer to him.Then he starts his "rawatisms" ( his version of the sidhuisms) Absentees are called out after that ( with memos and show cause notices promptly despatched to their lockers), then people who'v come without shaving ( we are expected to shave everyday, that too before coming to PT- again damaging my legacy) are called up and made to do punishment push ups. There ends the PT and off we go.. On the way back, i usually chat and giggle with my friends and that makes the uphill task a lot easier. The sun comes out brightly in mussoorie by then, and I have to admit that at the end of it all, when i get back to my room, iam more brisk than being tired.

P.S - The 'usain bolts" dont get back to rooms after the PT. They go to GYM !

'PAINFUL' WALK TO THE POLO GROUND

Life here begins at 5 am for most people, leaving literally no room for a night life. My day begins at 4.45 everyday( i set an alarm for 5 am but wake up before it rings), and by the time i get ready i hear alarms go all around the hostel - regular tring, trings ,bolly ringtones,koundamani ring tones in tamil guys' rooms, some strange animal coos - you can hear it all at 5- 5.15. I start walking out of my room at 5.30 with hands in pocket ,with mother mussoorie's coldness at its pinnacle.Our PT everyday is at the Polo ground, which is 2km downhill from our hostel.When i come out of the hostel, i see 3 kinds of animals usually - the sleeping dogs ( which iam very conscious of not stepping onto), sleeping cows by the roadside( i always wonder how relevant our mother's words are "maadu madhiri thoonguran paaru") and there are the monkeys which are very active and jump across the trees( post PLANET OF THE APES, they all seem violent to me ). Usually there are only 5-6 people ahead of me, but i walk very slowly that many people catch up in due course of time. And i get to hear so many conversations among my mates-people who curse the PT, people who discuss the "supply and demand curve" of economics at that hour ! , Guys talking about girls, girls gossiping about the faculty - you can hear it all during the walk downhill to the polo ground And there are people who are still in "sleep" and talk the wrong road and walk straight to the tibetian school. There are some brilliant views of the mountains on the way, and i find the sky to be marvelously changing colours everyday ( i'v seen colours from violet to red) and inspite of all the above mentioned entertainment i get, it is indeed a pretty tough job to walk downhill at such cold conditons.
                                                  But having said that,by the time i reach the polo ground, my body is warmed up and all sleep in my eyes are gone. I sit there for sometime admiring the beauty of mother mussoorie. By then everybody else join in, Our PT instructor marches in, and up goes the whistle....

A SIMPLETON LOOKS AT AEROBICS

As if all other activities at the academy are not enough, we also have an aerobics class every week. "aerobics" class rung a bell in my head - reminding all pretty women who do aerobics in movies. Since i'v never tried it before, i went in eagerly, after all the last time i heard of this term was in microbiology class. The class was already full by the time i entered. After a briefing in hindi(of which i understood nothing) they started playing the music and we followed what our instructor did. Girls were very elegant and stylish and to be honest most of the boys were awkward and i was the "awkwardest" of all. There were range of steps from simple marching to swinging the hands along with feet movements, to formimg a "t". We had to do the steps slowly initially and then pick up pace. my favourite one was the "tikilonaa" step where u bend forward and walk backward- how i wished i were koundamani.Though initially out of sorts, i slowly picked pace and did a decent enough job. Our class lasted an hour, but was pretty light and funny( especially when u look at your/others steps in the nearby mirror and laugh). Aerobics - developed by Dr.kenneth cooper is thus very  interesting indeed and when u weigh the added advantages(apart from the obvious cardio workout, calorie breaks) like improving neuromuscular functioning, hand-leg- eye co -ordination, it definitely gets a tick in the box of a health freak's "to do " list. For those of you who are not health freaks, i still suggest you to do aerobics , just for sheer fun,music and the pretty girls ! 

lal tibba

Felt blessed to wake up at 7 as there was no morning PT today because of the trek. following my customary of not taking bath on trek days, went straight to mess and filled up my stomach. Trek started at 8.45 and seemed "picnicy" and harmless entirely.My friend devender wanted me to walk fast in the beginning and get an "early advantage" over the pack.And we had it.. we were among the first few to come out of the academy.. But Lots of chatter, photography in between left us at the tail as usual.. plus we followed a wrong trial and were "officially" the last among 264 people who took the trek. Still laughing around, i looked at a nearby mountain and found that our people were almost on top of the next hill ! now i had to finish this hill then go there, and climb that one. I huffed, puffed and reached the place in the next hill where i had earlier seen my colleagues. With immense pride i looked up - i hadnt even climbed 25 % of that hill ! I climbed, climbed and climbed.. Our PT instructor kept reassuring me for almost 2 hours, that it was the last 15mins of the trek. Finally after 4 hours of struggle i was on the top of the hill - at 6600 feet and clouds just passing by me. I proudly trotted out into the open field, to find that most of my colleagues had finished the trek and were having their lunch..
                                 At lunch, i was the champion as usual.. after another round of bullying with my friends and photography, i returned to the academy. I also happened to see a place called "charbagh" which i heard, sachin tendulkar visits often. So thats the end of "conditioning trek " 3 and i can see the upcoming himalayan trek smiling at me sarcastically ! planning to have a quiet evening and a heavy dinner.. and a heavier sleep !