my corolla diaries....Part II
it was thursday , the fourth of august 2005. i woke up facing the vast american midwest, the miles and miles of unending fields, the orange glow of a rising sun, and the horizon at the end of the world....i took a deep breath at this sight, but i admit it, this sight spooked me. I started thinking, if driving through an uninhabited region scared me this much, what would have been goin thru the minds of the first explorers who came this way....ya i know i could never be an explorer, not even a re-explorer.
Just a vetti guy driving a corolla.
Sometimes i wonder what job would I have been doing if i were born in the middle of the 19th or the 20th centuries. Was the freedom struggle something that I would have been a part of, or would i have been better off being a part of the Indian Civil services, or even better own a tea kadai in Varanasi. I still romanticize about the last one, cos thats still attainable. In fact if this job doesnt work for me, thats what im gonna do exactly.
Anyway I found myself suddenly mumbling," Hey dude get going! u have to reach Bombay before nightfall." It was somewhere in those moments that i realised im goin to denver, not bombay. But then it struck me that the reason im goin to denver is because the only way i can get to bombay, is if i reach denver. Means to the ends? Pretty convoluted thinking, but its all the reassurance i needed to get started.
So after a quick breakfast which the hotel offers, i was out there on the I-135s and the I-70s. The map that i brought along spelled that I had to travel 93 miles on the 135 and 434 miles on the 70.....now i dont mind travelling a lot, but on the same road...pls...gimme a break.....
These mile tags are an awesome piece of invention. By mile tags i mean the green stick that shows what mile number u r on. See, usually u dont care, cos there is something around u to look at and enjoi. All i enjoied were the mile tags and the number count decreasing. And suddenly it happened.
Colorado is probably rite in the middle of the continental divide, and you actually see the difference with the tall mountains on one side and the flat plans just a couple of tens of miles away. The altitude difference grows on u, and ure ears. And suddenly u actually see the clouds a few feet above the ground. I was just awestruck at this sight and the fact that so much had changed in just a few miles that i took every opportunity to stop and gaze at the clouds. It was raining midway and the cool breeze that you can feel on an open ground with nothing at all for hundreds of miles....wow now that was amazing.
I reached denver at around 7, stopping for coffee along the way and gas for my corolla. She needed the gas just like i needed the drip. And I think Limon in Colorado has a starbucks in the gast station along i-70...:) picked up my mocha...
The city is just amazing. i know most ppl from texas would find even any place on earth more visually appealing than the lonestar state, but serious ppl....this place is nice.
Bright sunlight, cool air, roads that go up and down like you were in SFO or B'lore, plenty of golf courses, thousands of parks, and the divine feeling of watching the snow-capped peaks of the rockies just ahead of you. I just drove around for hours together, completely mesmerized by the city. Prob winters are harsh, but right now it looks really beautiful.
and guess what, i have already seen at least 10 Panera Breads in the city and have had two meals here. Panera Bread would be number 2 after Starbucks on my list of most visited places. :)) thats how happy i am about this.
Will start work Monday. So will say adieus...and peace out!
But before that just a passing thought.
What is it that we all are looking for? I mean when you travel so far, away from home, move at the drop of a hat, start all over again, what is it that drives us?
is it the thought of a better life?
is it the dream of an achievement?
is it the chance to prove ure worth?
or r we explorers in our own right?
Let me know what u think....
bye...
5 Comments:
dude.. good that u reached there safe and sound.. from ur description of clouds and rain, I remembered my visit to Vaishno devi.. I walked thru the cloud which extended in the valley and was pouring heavily..
good luck for ur first day..!!
q: what is it that drives us?
a: you gotta do what YOU wanna do :) individual choice;
denver awaits you, truckie :p
"What is it that we all are looking for?"
Probably, what you seem to be looking for is already with you. (Think about it,Shiva)
Just enjoy this new beginning.
Don't ponder over things too much when life's going great :)
Told u na, the place is amazing.The sunlight and the crisp cool air is an awesome combination. Winters are a little harsh, but you can go skiing :-)
To be brutally frank, all i am looking for are the benjamins, lincolns on the green bill and a hot chick :-)) . Now, that piece of truth is out, it does not sound too bad right?
And, all the best for your first day at work.
Shiva..changes in life are inevitable..even I think the way you do? WHY?...rememeber when you came to Houston ..why...for a want..a higher education. Job boils down to the term called 'want'. Needs and Wants drive our lives more than we could imagine and control.
Best of Luck for a New Beginning. :)
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