Day 4: Cleanliness goes (but comes back by evening)

6. Bhuj

The image I saw in the morning of Day 4 was quite disturbing. Filth greeted the early morning eye, right at the entrance of the door in the train. The autowallahs mobbed us, as if we were film stars. After assuring that we only looked like them, they treated us as customers.

The bus stand at Bhuj is a paradox, besides being unclean. It should’ve been called “people stand”. At least 40% of the population of Bhuj just stand there. That’s the whole point, they just stand! How many ever buses come and go, they don’t board the bus. And the buses! They’re parked as if they’re in kindergarten. Here, there and everywhere. This way, that way and which way not. The horrifying stares we got while we were standing there suggested they were planning to con us. If ever in your life time you happen to visit Bhuj, keep this in mind. There wouldn’t be any English news paper available. (But we weren’t there to read newspapers okay)

We wandered around for breakfast and had oil dripping, but very tasty, pooris along with a super milky tea.

5 minutes into the bus journey to Koteshwar, Oneiro and I felt as if we were in a bus in Pakistan. Whatay people. Whatay journey. Un-ignorable stench. To add to that, rain. Boy. Four hours and thirty minutes spent in sitting in the same position, in such a pleasing ambience and sweet sweat.

We reach Narayan Sarovar. And just like that, we reach Koteshwar which is 2km away. It was love at first sight. No, not the women, silly, I’m talking about the beauty of rann (seabed / desert), the beauty of water, the beauty of the rann bisected by the tar road, the beauty of flamingos, the beauty of the view and so on (and so forth)

But wait! There’s no food available in Koteshwar. So we rush back to Narayan Sarovar hoping “some” food will be available. But no! What did we know! In Narayan Sarovar, there’s this Ashram, which serves food for free! Boy O Boy! We were moved by the generosity. It is at this point things began to get pleasant. The cleanliness which went away in the morning started to come back, at least in our minds.

We found a nice looking building and later discovered that it’s a Gujarat Tourism Yatri Nivas, for weary travelers like us. In my 26 years of “yatri nivas” visiting experience, I’ve never had the whole “yatri nivas” for just the team I’m traveling with! Clean, pleasant, and with Koteshwar so near! We thought we were dreaming.

We were woken up by the Indian Army officials who questioned our presence there, not just our presence especially with the cameras. As things always turned in, we got “friends” with them.

We decided to stay at the resort only after we learnt that there’s an early morning 4 am bus to Bhuj, which, if we had missed, would’ve upset the whole travel plan.

The evening was the most relaxing evenings we ever had in the whole trip. This comes in as the “unforgettable” moment. Especially the walk on the road connecting yatri nivas and Koteshwar has been etched into the mind. The walk witnessed Sleepyface singing all romantic kishore kumar numbers to himself, apparently thinking of her. Such becomes a travel, so far and so wide, that it leaves images………… so strong that………. Er……. Well…………, I have no words….

The sunset too, we just sat there, listening to the wind and water, watching the sun set, peace unfurled itself in our minds.