Tripping in Gujarat : Part Two

The chagda was wobbling in the gale. Every external orifice on our bodies was being pierced by grains of sand. Before we knew it, we were inside the storm. With our eyes closed, we began to remember our loved ones.

Only Rehman bhai and Neil protected by the windshield could see where we were headed. Of course Rehman bhai would know the route by rote considering the number of innocents he’s driven to a sepulchral life of violence, we thought. We were riding through the storm when suddenly Jenson makes an untimely yet valid observation, “Yaar, we’ll have to go back and take a bath.” Ya think! 

As we crossed the storm and opened our eyes, nervous laughter was replaced by shouts of ‘woah’! Across a barrier that only prevents vehicles from entering and two tents for the ‘jawaans’ was kilometers of empty vastness. Rehman bhai stopped the ‘chagda’ and the four of us went walking towards nothing. We walked until the tents were barely visible and the brown and white mixture of sand and salt became completely white. 

Black soil was visible where presumably the army jeeps had left tyre marks. Apart from a few blemishes, the desert is white. We were at the Rann at around 12:30 pm. Salt glistens under the sunlight. They say it looks spectacular under the moonlight. However, Locals informed us it looks special only under the full moon and that tourists aren’t allowed beyond the check post after 8:30 pm.   

There’s something calming about a desert when you know you can leave anytime. Standing in the middle of nowhere has a strange appeal when ‘somewhere’ is close by. We were there. The white sand beneath our feet, a strong wind blowing, the gentle Sun and a horizon that went on forever were for those 20 minutes, comforting. But then we got kinda bored.

We ran around, threw salt, put some in our pockets and made our way back to the ‘chagda’ to thank Rehman bhai for bringing us here. For everything that was going on in our heads, Rehman bhai turned out to be a pretty good guide. Neil and his friends….pfft.

We did go back onto the road and straight ahead to where the road ends. It’s the point where tourists stop. Camel rides and ‘mojris’ can be bought there. 

Jenson picked up something he liked while Neil and I climbed up a camel. 

It’s a bumpy ride, especially when the camel stands up and sits back down. 50 bucks per person is the charge to sit on a hump.

Oh! There was also some sort of shooting happening. The line I caught the anchor saying was, ‘an oasis of fashion in the desert.’ I’m guessing it was for a show on fashion. Now I don’t want to objectify or invade anyone’s privacy but look how HOT! 

It was at that moment my heart tweeted #Nowplaying Sting – Desert Rose ee yea ee yeaaaa. Neither of us could muster up the camel-sized balls to talk to her but with her image in our heads we skipped upon ‘cloud 9’ and straight into the ‘chagda.’ We drove back to Bhirandiyara with a calm sense of friendliness for Rehman bhai. Again…Neil and his friends…pfft. The signs of extortion and a family with small businesses told us only one thing i.e he was a ‘pakka’ Gujarati. (I mean that in the best possible way.)

Soon we were on the path to Kala Dungar – the highest point in Kutch, from where you can see the Rann, the Rann of Kutch Lake and not the Indo-Pak border. 

We passed by Khevada village and the ‘Probable Magnetic Field Zone’ again. But this time we didn’t stop to check if the chagda would move on its own. By now we had realized, Neil and…..pfft.

While atop, we met the Indian Army regiment from Himachal Pradesh who were there on a vacation. They were there to witness the amazing view from the top. 

It was definitely worth the trip. If Heaven and Earth ever decided to throw a party, it would be the perfect venue. The Rann of Kutch was reflecting the setting sun. A camera can never do justice to such a view but we tried, quite a few times.

We also found some time to play with a few puppies. Get your mind out of the gutter. I meant the young ones of a dog. 

It was then time for our drive back to Bhuj. By the time we reached Khevada, lunch time was over. Try telling that to our stomachs, we said. Thankfully, there was a restaurant open which served us hot chapatis with ghee, dal, one veg dish and chaas. YUM. At that point though, nearly anything would’ve been YUM.

We reached Bhuj in time for dinner, a bath and a good night’s sleep. Our dinner was non-veg food, by the way. Yes, it’s available in Bhuj. There are a few hotels near the Bhuj Smashan.   

That was our Day 2 in Gujarat, which ended with us planning to wake up by 7 am the next day. We all agreed but so did our thoughts which sounded like this - ‘Poda patti. You get up and then wake me up by 9.’ Surely enough we woke up by 8 the next morning. We were out of the house and into Rehman bhai’s chagda by 10 am. He took us to Hospital Road.

Our plan was to head to Mandvi on a bike. Apparently giving bikes out on rent is not allowed in Bhuj. So I shouldn’t be telling you this but there is a ‘friend’ who rents mopeds and bikes at Rs 500 for 24 hours on Hospital Road.  

We hired it. Rehman bhai was a great guide and everything but riding a bike along NH08A is something that we simply had to do. 

Thank you, Rehman bhai

The highway that leads from Bhuj to Mandvi is as smooth as a baby's skin. Of course, like when the baby grows up, there were a few tough to negotiate areas on the road as well, due to construction. Other than that, the wind in your hair makes you realize what Bryan Adams was singing. Life IS an open road.

Mandvi is about 60 kms away from Bhuj. Naturally, we stopped on the way to grab ourselves some ‘fafdas’ and ‘gatiyas’ with a side helping of ‘jalebis.’ It was after this heavy brunch that my bike started giving us trouble. I wouldn’t want to blame Jenson’s obesity for it but there was a considerable amount of energy pulling the bike backwards. However, I must admit his paunch did provide a comfortable backrest.

There wasn’t much to see in Mandvi. It has a nice beach on which windmills had been erected.

There were a few camels being taken around and a few just simply sitting. We tried to take close-ups of one of the lazy ones. Turns out, he wasn’t that lazy. As soon as he began to stand up, the 4 of us ran as fast as only a guy about to be chased by a camel could. Thankfully, it didn’t chase us.   

The port was quite fascinating as you could see where the ships were being built. Some of them were gigantic.

We left and made our way to Vijay Vilas Palace which is around 15 kms outside Mandvi. On the road there is a left turn with a signboard that reads ‘airway.’ That’s the road that leads to Vijay Vilas. On the left of the road, there actually is a small runway of sorts. Again, the road itself seemed like a runway.

Once we reached the palace, we learnt that the ticket costs Rs 30 and an additional Rs 25 for taking a camera phone inside. For a proper camera, Rs 50 has to be paid on top of the ticket price. The palace had better be worth it, we thought. It was. See for yourself.

We spent quite a lot of time on the palace grounds, chasing a peacock. Every time we got close, it ran away. Apparently there are at least a dozen of them on the grounds. 

By the time we decided to give up it was almost sundown.  

Our ride began calmly enough. We had just managed to cross Mandvi before it was completely dark. That’s when we realized the brake lights of my bike weren’t working. Common sense dictated Neil and Nelson be at the back while Jenson and I lead the way. In the cold of the night, it became tough to see. Without helmets, (because no one there wears helmets) our eyes had to brave the wind and our uncovered hands faced the chill.

We were riding along when suddenly a pothole appeared out of nowhere. A vehicle was approaching from the opposite side and with no divider on the road I had to ride into the pothole. As the front wheel thudded into it our headlights went out. We still had a good 50 kms to go but now, both the back brake lights and our headlights weren’t working. None of us were mechanics nor did we know a lot about bikes. We were running out of options when suddenly…