Reaching Howrah from Jasidih
Having reached Howrah a little before two pm, it was time to chalk out plans for that day and following days. Pretty confident that i would secure accommodation in and around Chittaranjan Avenue, i began the Kolkata proceedings with a meal at Foodplaza in howrah station. The meal on a previous occasion and that too during night when i was supposed to board a train for Deogarh (Jasidih) from the same outlet saw a huge rush multiplying every minute. That day i had come from Delhi by air with a reasonable-and-not-that ruminating fare, with Dakshineshwar the first halt from airport and taking a local from Bally Halt to reach Howrah station fort.
This time round during afternoon the collection at the meal centre was a fraction but still no less significant. The point from where the queue starts and ending point that nobody knows is a space as little and inconvenient. The food outlet is good but everything looks to be compressed and for those trying non veg preparations the first floor with ample space comes handy. Well the veg preparations you can have on the first floor but the accent is on non veg. First the line on the ground floor is sometimes long and those who are in the line are still to make up their mind on what to eat and what not to greet. So by the time they reach the counter they are in a dilemma over their preference and those behind them with their share of patience. So as i collected the veg thali, in the South they call it meals, during Monday afternoon one with a black outfit could be seen trying to collect from the same i intentionally forgetting to get the name.
As i moved to the first floor with the thali, two boys who too were at the same counter were helpful enough to look after my baggage as i could not carry the thali and the baggage at the same time. Once i had kept the thali upstairs, i returned to collect baggage and thanking the boys for looking after the same. When i had left the thali there was one about to finish his meals and there were none on that table. When i began to take my meals, two entities joined. One looked to be middle aged and another a young with a liking for non veg brunch. It would have taken half an hour to finish the meals and feel free, pretty confident that accommodation is on the way.
Finishing meals, taking curd
After finishing meals i took curd from downstairs. Here in the food outlet they have curd (misthi doi) but not non sweet curd. And from the counter that dishes out curd, they have a range of sweets with some picking up a huge lot spread in 250 gms, 500 gms and 1 kg running huge bills and with no concern the sweets that they and their members are going to have and what non desirable remnants it is going to leave on their health. Probably i took two cups of sweet curd (non sweet curd not available), each coming for 16rs.
AC Lodges and return to Howrah station
Soon after tea took a taxi for chittaranjan avenue. First i tried City Heart followed by Avenue hotel, both coming with a rider that rooms are there but they are ac types. Stress on non ac simple room with attached bath yielded nothing. I moved to Lipika Inn (here i have stayed for a pretty good time in December 2011) with another taxi driver showing his helplessness to part with the change. First i had to get the change and then move to Lipika Inn. Here the wait was for a hotel personnel who could elaborate the rooms they have and the guests who could not tap. Again the accent was on AC and for all other rooms the situation was akin to RAC. Then i moved to Calcutta Lodge which is within a complex; the authenticity to supply AC rooms here too had depleted in view of guests who had begun to bloom. Four places tried , non ac simple room that could not thrive, i decided to head towards Satish Mukherjee Road/Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road in Kalighat Area to seek a simple room with a cafeteria. Some four to five minutes later i decided to drop the idea and told the taxiwallah to take me to Howrah station.
AC Rooms 750 and above; taking Puri ticket
All four places were coming with AC rooms, 750rs and above, i failed to understand that in a simple city like Kolkata non ac rooms could not be found. As i reached Howrah station, the taxiwallah had to be given above 120rs, all waste of money since for long i had not participated in a tourney. The taxis i took that day included one from Howrah to Chittaranjan Avenue, second from Chittaranjan Avenue to Surya Sen Street, third from Surya Sen Street to Calcutta Lodge (probably in A J C Bose Road), and the same taxi from Calcutta Lodge to Howrah station. As i reached Rail Yatri Niwas, the man at the desk insisted i need to have a ticket of the train on which i have arrived and a return train ticket. I told him the inability to have the second one and this too reduced the chances to have a dormitory from which one has to check out by 9 the next morning. Now i ventured to the computerised railway reservation centre; for those who have strayed for long can deposit themselves in a corner in this AC hall which though proclaims to be an area under CCTV surveillance, some can park themselves to get a sense. I filled a form for some and took a Puri ticket.
Train number 12837, distance 502 km. Since the train was supposed to depart at 10.35 pm, there were five hours left which could be utilised for going to Kalighat. I made inquiries and took a bus. Going past howrah bridge, strand road, areas adjoining green lungs, judge court and alipore. The bus unnecessarily stops for fuel. It was probably around 6.30 when the bus reaches Alipore and parks next to a petrol station. i deboard and take an auto for Kalighat. It was convenient as it dropped me at the gates of the temple. There was no rush inside. It looks as resplendent as ever and a new construction has been added to the Hanuman place.
The best part about Kalighat is even a fleeting glimpse would be ok as sometimes the rush gets huge. If dogs could be kept away from temple premises one would feel safe.
Again in the Kalighat temple, if one does not get inside the queue and gains glimpse from outside, any offering should be duly put in the box.
I take the road opposite the temple, about 500 metres away, and from here take a bus for Howrah station. Reach Howrah by 8.15, the information coming out that train number 12837 would depart from platforms between 21 and 23, something like that. These set of platforms that begin from 16 or 18 onwards is some half a km away from the old terminal. THe waiting was done in the old terminal where among others was a group hailing from the northeast going to attend a workshop on physiotherapy in Mumbai. Again got a chance to interact with B Das, the soap strips vendor. Adjacent to his box which he utilises to display his collections there is a tea vendor with a stall who dishes out tea, not unfamiliar with deep sugary affection. As the train pulls in and i take seat 54 in B3 coach, all i have to look forward to is a journey that would complete in the morning. In the morning about forty minutes before we reach Puri, rains have lashed the area.
A little before eight we are in Puri.
Having reached Howrah a little before two pm, it was time to chalk out plans for that day and following days. Pretty confident that i would secure accommodation in and around Chittaranjan Avenue, i began the Kolkata proceedings with a meal at Foodplaza in howrah station. The meal on a previous occasion and that too during night when i was supposed to board a train for Deogarh (Jasidih) from the same outlet saw a huge rush multiplying every minute. That day i had come from Delhi by air with a reasonable-and-not-that ruminating fare, with Dakshineshwar the first halt from airport and taking a local from Bally Halt to reach Howrah station fort.
This time round during afternoon the collection at the meal centre was a fraction but still no less significant. The point from where the queue starts and ending point that nobody knows is a space as little and inconvenient. The food outlet is good but everything looks to be compressed and for those trying non veg preparations the first floor with ample space comes handy. Well the veg preparations you can have on the first floor but the accent is on non veg. First the line on the ground floor is sometimes long and those who are in the line are still to make up their mind on what to eat and what not to greet. So by the time they reach the counter they are in a dilemma over their preference and those behind them with their share of patience. So as i collected the veg thali, in the South they call it meals, during Monday afternoon one with a black outfit could be seen trying to collect from the same i intentionally forgetting to get the name.
As i moved to the first floor with the thali, two boys who too were at the same counter were helpful enough to look after my baggage as i could not carry the thali and the baggage at the same time. Once i had kept the thali upstairs, i returned to collect baggage and thanking the boys for looking after the same. When i had left the thali there was one about to finish his meals and there were none on that table. When i began to take my meals, two entities joined. One looked to be middle aged and another a young with a liking for non veg brunch. It would have taken half an hour to finish the meals and feel free, pretty confident that accommodation is on the way.
Finishing meals, taking curd
After finishing meals i took curd from downstairs. Here in the food outlet they have curd (misthi doi) but not non sweet curd. And from the counter that dishes out curd, they have a range of sweets with some picking up a huge lot spread in 250 gms, 500 gms and 1 kg running huge bills and with no concern the sweets that they and their members are going to have and what non desirable remnants it is going to leave on their health. Probably i took two cups of sweet curd (non sweet curd not available), each coming for 16rs.
AC Lodges and return to Howrah station
Soon after tea took a taxi for chittaranjan avenue. First i tried City Heart followed by Avenue hotel, both coming with a rider that rooms are there but they are ac types. Stress on non ac simple room with attached bath yielded nothing. I moved to Lipika Inn (here i have stayed for a pretty good time in December 2011) with another taxi driver showing his helplessness to part with the change. First i had to get the change and then move to Lipika Inn. Here the wait was for a hotel personnel who could elaborate the rooms they have and the guests who could not tap. Again the accent was on AC and for all other rooms the situation was akin to RAC. Then i moved to Calcutta Lodge which is within a complex; the authenticity to supply AC rooms here too had depleted in view of guests who had begun to bloom. Four places tried , non ac simple room that could not thrive, i decided to head towards Satish Mukherjee Road/Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road in Kalighat Area to seek a simple room with a cafeteria. Some four to five minutes later i decided to drop the idea and told the taxiwallah to take me to Howrah station.
AC Rooms 750 and above; taking Puri ticket
All four places were coming with AC rooms, 750rs and above, i failed to understand that in a simple city like Kolkata non ac rooms could not be found. As i reached Howrah station, the taxiwallah had to be given above 120rs, all waste of money since for long i had not participated in a tourney. The taxis i took that day included one from Howrah to Chittaranjan Avenue, second from Chittaranjan Avenue to Surya Sen Street, third from Surya Sen Street to Calcutta Lodge (probably in A J C Bose Road), and the same taxi from Calcutta Lodge to Howrah station. As i reached Rail Yatri Niwas, the man at the desk insisted i need to have a ticket of the train on which i have arrived and a return train ticket. I told him the inability to have the second one and this too reduced the chances to have a dormitory from which one has to check out by 9 the next morning. Now i ventured to the computerised railway reservation centre; for those who have strayed for long can deposit themselves in a corner in this AC hall which though proclaims to be an area under CCTV surveillance, some can park themselves to get a sense. I filled a form for some and took a Puri ticket.
Train number 12837, distance 502 km. Since the train was supposed to depart at 10.35 pm, there were five hours left which could be utilised for going to Kalighat. I made inquiries and took a bus. Going past howrah bridge, strand road, areas adjoining green lungs, judge court and alipore. The bus unnecessarily stops for fuel. It was probably around 6.30 when the bus reaches Alipore and parks next to a petrol station. i deboard and take an auto for Kalighat. It was convenient as it dropped me at the gates of the temple. There was no rush inside. It looks as resplendent as ever and a new construction has been added to the Hanuman place.
The best part about Kalighat is even a fleeting glimpse would be ok as sometimes the rush gets huge. If dogs could be kept away from temple premises one would feel safe.
Again in the Kalighat temple, if one does not get inside the queue and gains glimpse from outside, any offering should be duly put in the box.
I take the road opposite the temple, about 500 metres away, and from here take a bus for Howrah station. Reach Howrah by 8.15, the information coming out that train number 12837 would depart from platforms between 21 and 23, something like that. These set of platforms that begin from 16 or 18 onwards is some half a km away from the old terminal. THe waiting was done in the old terminal where among others was a group hailing from the northeast going to attend a workshop on physiotherapy in Mumbai. Again got a chance to interact with B Das, the soap strips vendor. Adjacent to his box which he utilises to display his collections there is a tea vendor with a stall who dishes out tea, not unfamiliar with deep sugary affection. As the train pulls in and i take seat 54 in B3 coach, all i have to look forward to is a journey that would complete in the morning. In the morning about forty minutes before we reach Puri, rains have lashed the area.
A little before eight we are in Puri.
No comments:
Post a Comment