Trips could be romantic. Trips could be inspirational. Trips could be hilarious. Trips could be hazardous… This is a story about a bizarre trip that Chaitanya will never forget… it left him bewildered and wondering if he had seen a dream. Let us see what happened when he went on a trip and maybe analyse the outcome and ponder over the possibilities…
Chaitanya had been working day in and day out, burning midnight oil and all he could do was toil and only toil… He had no choice. His boss looking at his efficiency poured more and more onto his lap and he yearned for a peaceful holiday…
He was bidding time for the end of the quarter so that he could have some breathing space and may be – get a holiday sanctioned – away from the hustle and bustle of Mumbai and his hectic job.
Finally, the quarter ended and he looked at his achievement satisfactorily. He was sure his boss would appreciate and sanction a holiday he had been looking forward to and yearning for it.
He drafted a leave application and presented it to his boss who looked at him and pondered whether he should let him go on a leave or reject his application. He glanced at the status which Chaitanya had posted. It said ‘All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.’
He smiled at the wit and sanctioned his application for leave. He wanted 10 days for himself…
“Where are you planning to visit during this hard earned holiday?”
“Actually, I am in two minds but most probably I might take the option to visit the sanctity and peace of Spiti Valley. I heard it is a mysterious and a mystic place. The scenery is breath taking and the air is clean and pure. The valley is lush green with lot of open spaces and lakes and rivulets. I simply want to enjoy the peace alone and explore the nature there…”
“Good choice. Even I have heard about the place and wanted to visit there with my family. When do you plan to leave for Spiti Valley?”
“Now that you have sanctioned my leave, I will start inquiring for a place to stay and something that’s in my budget. I will let you know the dates as soon as my plan is ready…”
“Good. I will wait for your update and I hope you are able to enjoy the peace you seek…” with this short conversation with his boss, Chaitanya left the office in a hurry to meet his travel agent for inquiring about the trip he planned.
He was happy that his agent was able to find a perfect spot for his secluded peaceful trip. It was a resort at the edge of a remote town. From there onwards there was no village or any resort till your eyes could see… He booked a cottage at the far end of the resort so that he would not see people but he would see the beautiful nature around him. The resort didn’t have any fencing and was open to nature and there weren’t any wild animals around in the valley. So in a way it was a paradise which was open for anyone to explore. The rooms in the cottage seemed well maintained and cosy making him feel invited for the exploration.
He inquired and found that mobiles didn’t have any range there for it was deep into the valley and service providers had not bothered to put up any reception towers there for the population was absolutely scanty. The resort had a telephone line connected to internal intercom network and that was the only way to remain in touch with the world outside the resort.
He packed the things he would want on the trip along with a high power digital camera he owned for he wanted to capture the serene beauty of the place. He was excited at the prospect of this trip and eagerly wanted to be on this trip. A high power flash light in case electricity fails… and his regular items.
He had to travel almost two days to reach the destination. It already was dark by the time he reached. All he could do was to have his dinner and go to sleep. He felt a bit disappointed as he couldn’t get a glimpse of the scenery for which he was visiting the place.
He woke up to the chirping of birds and smiled at himself as he opened his eyes. He walked out to the veranda of the cottage and happily looked at the scenery around. It was more blissful and beautiful than he had imagined. He drew a deep breath of fresh, unpolluted air in his lungs and calmly looked around.
He quickly freshened up and made his way to the cafeteria for his complimentary breakfast. After that, he went to the reception to understand what could be seen around and how he could travel to those places, if they were far away. He was joyous when he was told that he could rent a bike from the resort to travel around and he quickly made his way to the bike rent stand and selected an off-road bike he was comfortable to ride. He rode it around the resort to test it and hired the bike for rest of his stay.
He rode to couple of points the reception had informed him about and happily clicked the photos of those places and then sat there taking his time to set those views in his photographic memory which he would cherish lifelong.
He rode back to the resort, making time and way for off-roading and exploring a bit more scenery around. He could feel the bliss one experiences in arms of Himalayas. He met few passer-by’s, they were local shepherds who were tending to their sheep grazing in the greenery around and asked them the directions to Chandra Taal, a place he had heard about and definitely wanted to visit. They were friendly people and not only gave him directions but also related many stories and folklores about the place. They insisted that he spends maximum time over there… he may be able to witness some kind of miracle as often the miracles seemed to happen around the place. He was thrilled at the thought, though he didn’t believe in miracles.
He returned thinking about what he would have to plan to visit the place to spend maximum time of the day over there. The place was about 10 odd kilometres from the resort he stayed at… he had heard about the place many times from many people as well he knew there was nothing or no restaurant nearby that could offer some food.
He woke up and before he started, he gobbled up a heavy breakfast and packed his lunch and was on his way to Chandra Taal. He had to cross few rivulets which flowed over the road making it a bit difficult and hazardous for crossing but he managed… he was a good rider of a bike.
He reached the base where the lake of Chandra Taal was located. He parked the bike and looked around at the scenery and was awed at the grandeur of Mother Nature. He had a long trek ahead to reach the lake of Chandra Taal. He looked at the climb in front of him and heaved himself enthusiastically to see the place he had travelled to see…
He reached the lake and blew a whistle to acknowledge the grandeur and set his camera on the tripod he carried in his sack and started to click the photos of the place. It was afternoon when he was satisfied with the numerous photos he had clicked. He spent some time to check through the photos he had captured in his camera and smiled. He then looked for a spot to sit comfortably and enjoy the serene peace of the place and never realized he slipped into a deep meditation in the quiet surrounding of the place.
When he opened his eyes, it almost was dusk and it was starting to get darker. He realized that he not only had to trek back to his bike, but also had to travel back 10 odd kilometres, back to the warmth of the cottage he had hired. He looked around the serene scenery around him and decided that he will return to this place before he leaves back to the hustle and bustle of life…
He had reached for his bike and it really was getting darker faster than he had anticipated when he saw a bright light that glowed in the direction where the lake was… he couldn’t understand the bright light that glowed and he could faintly understand that the light was circular in shape and brilliant. He had heard of miracles around the place and wanted to see what had caused this bright light to glow. But he also realized that he had to return to his cottage and ride back in the dark was going to be hazardous. He decided to rent a tent next time and stay put around Chandra Taal to experience the miracle which happened around.
He revved the bike and started his ride back to the cottage looking backwards from time to time for the glowing brilliant light to reappear again. He found that the light glowed for about 5 minutes and then disappeared. After that the light didn’t glow again. He carefully rode back to the cottage and heaved a sigh of relief as soon as he sighted the resort. It was a good trip for the day. Now, he was sure to rent a tent for a night and put it up near the lake of Chandra Taal to see the unexplained brilliant light that had shown near the lake.
He had his dinner still thinking about the brilliant light that had shown near to the lake and was intrigued about it – what could that have been? He couldn’t stop thinking about that light. He wasn’t sleepy for the thoughts kept him awake. He knew that there was nothing or no equipment which could have thrown up that brilliant light and then started imagining – could it be some alien ship like an UFO? Could it be some miracle that the locals had mentioned? Or were some scientists up to some kind of experiment? Could it be that nymphs gathered around the lake when it started to grow dark? Was the light supernatural or something created by humans? Or was the light some reflection on the lake – something that was Nature’s wonder? He was thinking of wild things…
With great difficulty he was now getting sleepy and the thoughts of the brilliant light were fading away in his sleepiness, when an urgent knock on the main door to the cottage he occupied brought him out of his sleepiness. He looked at the watch – it showed about 11pm and he wondered why someone would knock on the door at this unearthly hour.
Wearily, he opened the main door ready to show his anger on any staff who was knocking on the door for some silly reason. It was dark outside and he could faintly see a figure that was the same build as he was standing nervously at the door…
“Please let me in. I am in great danger and I can explain what has happened…” the figure standing outside pleaded.
“Why don’t you go to a police station I am sure they will be able to help you.”
“What is a police station? I am sure nobody else but you will be able to help me.”
Chaitanya was taken aback a bit by his words – the guy didn’t know what a police station meant?
“Please – believe me. Only you can help me. Let me in before they find me and kill me. I can explain and I don’t mean any harm to you…” he nervously pleaded again.
“Ok… come in, but one word of untruth, you are going out. I will personally throw you out.”
The figure thankfully entered the cottage and Chaitanya couldn’t believe his eyes – the figure was a man, who looked exactly like him. He could pass off as his twin. Same build, same face, same stature and same gait…
“Don’t look at me like this – I can explain. I am you and you are me…” he said confusing Chaitanya even more, “put off the light – it may attract them and then with me, you also will be in danger of getting killed.”
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