Day 1

545PM, the local time in Netherlands. I'm on a train journey to Eindhoven, where an uncle of mine stays. It's an hour away, adding to the miles I've already clocked so far. The last month has been a race against time to lose weight in the bulk, to look presentable (by my standards) by the time this trip began. Every day I'd track the steps I had taken, as a result of the running and badminton I was so extensively involved in. For a change, today I'm making a mental note of the miles I've accrued, as I sat stationary in one place, for hours at a stretch. 

The immigration was easy today, unlike the drilling I'm so accustomed to in the place from which I'm traveling. It was quick too. No sooner had I stepped out of the flight at 445PM, that I started walking briskly, knowing well enough that if I don't complete the formalities that each nation has made us used to, in time, I'd have to take the train at 545, instead of 515. I don't even know why there was hope. Had these border checks ever gone as per expectation? But I paced along nonetheless, and was out and about in 10 minutes, to find myself at the train station at minute past 5. A lesson at efficiency, and more importantly kindness, that every other nation could learn.

It was rainy when I landed, but as I write this sitting along the window in this double-decker train, the Sun shines on me in all it's glory. Perhaps the meme I saw earlier today is true. They call it May for a reason. It may rain, it may snow, or well, it may be nice for a change?

I was slightly sad yesterday, as I was leaving home. It was a weird feeling. I don't necessarily love my life back in America, but over the last few months I had got into a routine of sorts. Weekends were busier than usual, and weekdays were filled to the brim with my dual-workout routine. Going away from all this, breaking this daily-ritual seemed like an emotional overload. To add to that, there was no one I was traveling for, or to, but for myself, so there was added uncertainty of what lay ahead of me. 

But today, I arrived to my uncle's place, and was greeted with Pav Bhaji. Well, that's one way to ease into the solo journey that lies ahead of me. It felt all too familiar, quiet streets, lush green fields, and the warmth of home. Perhaps my daily schedule will be disrupted, but what I'm trading in it's place, will leave it's own mark in the journey, that is my life.


train journey to Eindhoven



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ghee Shakkar

Image
I speak to the attendant at the counter. It's not the first time I'm there. I recognize her, in her spectacles, and despite the face-covering she wears. Covid was over long ago, so I'm not sure what she's worried about. I don't bother to ask, our interaction transcends into something more pivotal. I glance through the piece of paper in front of me. I know what it says, but I'm not sure what the mood is like today. I finally decide to go for the Ghee Masala Dosa, as I've done on so many occasions before this. I ask for a Filter Coffee as well. She repeats my order, asks my name, and then, I wait.  There is a constant chatter in the place, of the people sitting, and of those waiting. The walls are just about in place, the white paint tearing down in a few spots. The tables are not spread too far apart, and the chairs even closer. I recognize a few more faces, the ones who are transporting a stack of plates from the kitchen to the promised customers. These face
Read more

D से दिल्ली

Image
I leave for the States in less than a week — to pursue my second degree, a master’s in computer science at the University of California San Diego. The first one was a bachelor’s in biochemical engineering and biotechnology, from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Sounds like quite a dramatic shift, but it’s not quite as it seems, and this blog uncovers how that happened, and so much more — about how I, a boy who had just turned 18, moved to the national capital and made it my home. I decided to start off with the pretext of me leaving to pursue another degree, and I do that for a specific reason. I can’t help but compare the stark difference between my approach and mentality right now, to what it was four years ago when I was leaving for Delhi. The last time around, I had spent the major part of two years preparing for an entrance exam, and I would be lying if I said I hadn’t enjoyed that journey. But nevertheless it was a taxing process that had left its toll on me. In t
Read more

S से San Diego

Image
"How's Mihir?", my aunt asked my mother a day before I was scheduled to fly out to the States. My mother has been a creative creature for as long as my memory serves me, and her reply only reinforced that belief  — "He seems fine, but only once he writes his blog a year and a half later, will we know for sure." I remember this exchange distinctly, and moreover I wrote it down in my diary  — something I had decided to maintain over the course of the next foreseeable future. Just a couple of days back I had written about my undergraduate experience and while the memories had made the words flow naturally, I was almost certain that I had missed out on so called smaller incidents that must have been crucial to my growth during those four years. I did not want to repeat the same mistake, and I believed that noting down incidents, and emotions in real time would aid my memories when (not if)  I did decide to pen down my blog once I completed my master's. So here
Read more