Ride to Roldih (and Back)

Me and my Bike

It's pouring rain in Bolpur. Quite unexpected. There was not a cloud in the sky when I was riding to this place. But this is India and nothing is predictable. As usual, they have disconnected the power supply to this town. So I'm grateful for the inverter. I'm looking at my motorcycle as I type. She's drenched. And I think she deserves the shower. I needed on badly when I got back this afternoon. I washed my face at a restaurant where I had lunch and when I wiped my face with my handkerchief, it became instantly black -- the handkerchief, not my face! I guess, for some people it's black anyway!

The road from Shantiniketan to Siuri

In contrast to my ride to Roldih yesterday, todays journey was a little tiring. Probably because of the heat. And also maybe because I had a pilion rider -- Bhola. In fact, he's the reason why I decided to rush back today. As you know, his wife has been ill and admitted to a nursing home in Siuri for treatment. It turned out that along with malaria and urinary infection, she also has jaundice. Though weak, she was apparently ok. But last night Bhola received a phone call from his father-in-law saying that he should reach Siuri as soon as possible because her condition had become very "serious". We couldn't leave last night, so we decided to leave for Siuri this morning. Siuri, by the way, is the district HQ of Birbhum and the first city on the way to Roldih from Bolpur. It's an hour's drive from here.

Lush green paddy fields

We left at 7:30 am this morning -- as soon as assembly was over. I dropped Bhola to the nursing home, saw his wife, who looked very weak and met his mother-in-law, who very apparently is a "drama queen". Bhola's wife is ill. But certainly not "seriously ill" or "dying". I do hope she responds to the medicines and gets well soon. I don't know when Bhola will go back to the project. But if he needs to stay back in Siuri, then I'll go to the project. Shanku, Suman and the three volunteers are doing fine and will be able to manage without Bhola or me. But I feel responsible, especially because the volunteers are there. Let's see.

So here I am in Bolpur. Feeling quite fresh and relaxed after a short nap and a shower. It's amazing that last evening at this time I was sitting on my veranda and watching the moon rise over the "hill". And this evening I am sitting under a fan writing a blog and smelling the scent of rain-soaked soil. Roldih is literally "round the corner". So I can simply jump on my iron steed and head for it any time I feel like it. It will certainly be fun to do the journey in winter.

The Masanjor Dam -- a nice place to rest

Everyone from Agiya Mor to Roldih couldn't believe their eyes when they saw me riding the bike! And even though the people at the ashram knew I was coming, they did not really expect me to make it. One friend had even assumed that I had probably turned back and gone home (Bolpur) after a few kilometers. To be fair to everyone, I had grave doubts myself. I'm a couple of years short of 60 and in India, that's OLD! I'm proud of myself and feeling very confident at the moment. Maybe I will invest in a better bike and go off on long drives. It's a cheap way of travelling great distances. It's also a great way of touching, feeling, breathing the environment of the places that you travel through. Go offroad if you wish. Stop and stare at a body of water, a forest covered hill or just switch off the bike and listen to the sound of the birds and trees when you are driving though tree-lined highways. And Bolpur to Roldih has all this and more to offer. It's really a picturesque journey.

I had breakfast here

I left Bolpur yesterday at 7:00 am. Sweat was dripping from my nose when I started my bike. It was that humid. But once I was on the road, the weather became pleasant. I had cloud cover all the way it that made such a difference. The first stretch from Shantiniketan to Siuri was through woods and lush green paddy fields. I was in Siuri by 8:00 and so was able to cut across town without encountering much traffice. It's a very busy city normally and prone to traffic jams and road blocks.

Colourful cables on the roadside

I kept on till I reached Shaorakuli police barrier. There I stopped for a breakfast of puffed rice, curried chickpeas and potato chops. Quite tasty really. I also had some lemon tea. Again very tasty even though I prefer milk tea. My next stop was Masanjor's Mayurakshi Dam. We always stop there and eat Jhal Muri (puffed rice mixed with an assortment of things -- chopped onions, green chillies and ginger, finely chopped coconut, chanachur, boiled chickpeas, pickles and lots of chilly powder! It's quite tasty. And a cup of hot tea afterwards tastes even better!

At the morning assembly before leaving

After that I rode non-stop through Dumka and stopped only at Karbinda, about 40 kms short of Roldih. Had a cup of tea and then headed for Roldih. When I entered the gate at the ashram, it was 12:00 noon! Hannah, Fran and Kaori greeted me in Bengali. Bhola had been teaching them a few phrases. Their pronounciation was excellent -- "Nomoshkar, aapni kemon achen"!

School has already been over for an hour and so I did not get to meet the children till assembly this morning. I don't know if they were disappointed that I was leaving immediately. But I did promise to spend more time with them in September when there would be no volunteers. I think they understood why both Bhola and I had to rush off. But I was happy to note that they were all still very disciplined. And surprise, surprise, some even spoke when I spoke to them! Great....

View of the cornfield from the well

They were all very happy to hear that Eri, Renee and Dani are coming back. I'm surprised how well they seem to remember the volunteers! I tend to forget people. But then I've always had a bad memory for names and people. Quite embarrassing really.

Unfortunately, I did not get to talk to the girls much. I did expect to spend time with them and get to know them. I did not expect circumstances to change so dramatically and drastically. They seemed happy to be on the project. They seemed very well adjusted. They didn't have any complaints! And the project staff had no complaints regarding them either! In fact, I was told that the nursery kids absolutely adore Fran. I do wish I could have stayed to see what is it she does that makes them feel that way....

But I'm really happy that I made this trip. The fact that I made it there and back on consecutive days also proves that I'm still fit. It's good to know that the project is a 5-hour bike ride away. It's do able. And I think it's good for people to be aware that Guruji can appear out of nowhere on any day!