A two hour trip to Nagpur

 

On the weekend of December 13, I decided to visit Bhimbetka, 50 km from Bhopal, on Saturday, and catch the train back to reach Hyderabad on Sunday. Bhimbetka has 10,000 year old rock paintings, predating the Indus Valley Civilization by thousands of year, and even the Indo Aryans by close to a millenium! The whirlwind plan began from Nampally Railway Station.



I caught the train to Bhopal via Nagpur from Nampally, Hyderabad on Friday night.


By the time I reached Nagpur, the train was already running 5 hours late, and my whirlwind plan of Bhimbetka over Saturday and back on Sunday was no longer possible. So I got down at Nagpur and roamed around the city for two hours before catching a bus back to Hyderabad. This is the Japanese Garden at Nagpur, now a run-down place for morning walkers, and afternoon college romances. I had to avert my eyes and walk fast to keep from disturbing necking couples.



The Futala Lake

College kids and secret lovers hanging out at Futala lake. Nagpur is the center of the ultra right wing RSS. The sight of these bold youngsters mingling or flaunting romance in the fortress city of the RSS gave me much cause for optimism for India!


Ambazari Lake, which is being developed into a tourist spot.




I was actually at the center of India as per the Great Trigonometrical Survey. This monument marks the point from which all distances in India were measured by the British.



There are other claims to the center of India too, but the most accepted one is Zero Milestone on National Highway No.7 because of the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India.



Enroute my bus journey back to Hyderabad. Buses don't have public toilets, and don't stop for several hours except at these roadside dhabas. Dirty toilets, pricey food, and unwashed plates all make it inconvenient for the clean, hygenic or fussy traveler. I don't drink much water, avoid eating heavily, and am very careful to urinate as much as possible whenever the bus stops.


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