More of the green grass and blue skies -Malshej

Just when we thought the monsoon clouds had packed their bags to let the sun out to play, the city was lashed with rains again. So we decided to squeeze in one last monsoon trip this year. More trips for sure, but the rains aren't likely. And Malshej, picked out of our usual Outlook Traveller Weekend Getaway book(well researched and written)seemed like a good choice with the promise of rains, mist and more. The drive did turn out really interesting despite the fact that it took rather long to get there. The curvy roads and the green hills looked thoroughly inviting. A particulary interesting sight was a waterfall right on the road, you just had to drive through it. What did turn out to be a disappointment was the fact that it never rained! Our usual ingredient for fun was missing. Hot though it was, the place has a serene beauty to it. Malshej is definitely worth a visit in the rains.




The drive to Malshej with the road snaking through the picturesque hills.


A hint of sunshine lends a golden hue to the surroundings.


The magnificent green stretch. Green, green, all the way!


And there we are, quite comfortable. Only till the next vehicle sent us all scampering.

If its Saturday, it must be a trek!

Monsoon mania. It's raining and what better way to soak in the rains than driving out of town, walking up the hills and exploring the greens! Strongly recommend the Mumbai-Pune belt during this time. Pick a place, pack some sandwiches and you're off.

June-Lohgad. The rains, maniacal winds that made me feel like I was space walking, a pleasant walk up the fort and finally, ending it all with a dip in a glorious waterfall. A unique experience was the gusty winds blowing heavy droplets of water from the waterfall vertically upwards! And it came lashing at us like a thousand needles. Crazy.



July- An office trip to Kondane Caves. The walk up the caves was muddy and splishy splashy; completely of the enjoyable variety. Some funny moments with people slipping along the way.






Kondane Caves-the destination of the trip but our interests were automatically diverted to the waterfalls at the mouth of the caves. Though there were waterfalls on all our trips, this was the only place where I completely let go, getting drenched from top to toe. And the best way to experience it I guess.

July- Peb Fort. This one was hardcore hiking and thrilling. We walked up the mountains and down the valley, along slippery routes with some strong winds.
Puddle splashing, pebble throwing, or just posing for pics along the railway line- had a lot of fun here.

July- Nilshi. The most activity oriented trip. Kayaking! Definitely the best activity of all the trips. That and just floating and trying to swim. Oh, pure fun. And then the rapelling and group games were interesting too. Thanks Ipshi, next time you should head for one like this.

The calm and beautiful lake Gibbs; cloaked by the green hills and cloudy skies.

August-
Fishing village at Murud. A trip where we spent more time travelling to the place than being there. An overnight trip would be better for this destination.

The Janjira fort, in the middle of the sea. Taking a boat from the shore to the fort was high on our list. Unfortunately bad weather played spoilsport. But the adventures at the 100 ft high Garambi falls almost made up for it. Another washout was sadly the oil slick at Kashid beach though we did hang around there a bit, playing games. (and had a tough time getting rid of the muck later :)


Chai time! No trip big or small is complete without a chai break- off the highway, up the mountains. And its even better with the rain droplets dripping into your cuppa.

Work Woes!

A financial company is not the most thrilling place to be, at least for a non financial person like me. What began as financial editing has now temporarily (or so they claim) shifted gear to editing transcripts.

Let me explain the process a bit. All big(for lack of a better technical sounding word) companies have a conference call every quarter to discuss its performance/lack of it and field questions from business analysts. Anybody who thinks this sounds interesting, read no further. So what some of my unfortunate collegues and I have been doing for some days now, is to put on our headphones and check such conference call transcripts for errors. Fascinating?

To keep myself from turning insane, I've taken to writing some more random verses. Most of the inspiration usually occurs at noon, post lunch when the brain starts hibernating anyway.

---

Eating too much lunch is bad,
I confess now I’m not too glad;
Feeling sleepy and ready to doze,
And you agree on that, I suppose.

But lunch is not the real cause,
It’s just the thought of picking flaws
From a transcript that interests me,
As much as a dancing flea.


---

They whisper sweet nothings into my ear,
But romantic words those aren’t I fear;
All their talk on CapEx and GAAP,
Makes me want to shut their trap.

---

O pray tell me why I’ve landed here,
Just to torture my sensitive ear?
Life’s purpose is surely not this,
Or to edit a faulty synopsis!

Random verses

Of rhymes
I’ve struck a fancy for the rhyme,
Even if only to pass some time.
A line or two,
Will simply do,
Though the bard might call it a crime.


Finance
In the world of finance I find,
Words and jargon of a funny kind;
Stocks and shares,
And business affairs,
Not ideal for one’s peace of mind!

For more on limericks, check out Aparna Ray's blog. There are some interesting ones.