Phoebe looking out of the window, somewhere outside Vijaywada
So, how do you
relocate your pet to another state, from the east coast to the west coast of
the great Indian Peninsula.
Among domestic air carriers, only Air India
and Jet Airways allow pets but then snub nosed dogs are frowned upon and are seldom taken aboard as their
snub noses with nasal passages compacted by generations of breeding cause
congestion in their sinus cavities at 40,000 ft and Phoebe being a boxer was officially a pug nosed dogess.
Train travel meant, finding a train with a coupe, getting to the nearest possible station with the possibility of getting a confirmed berth and worrying about co - passengers who might not be comfortable travelling with a dog in the same couch, needless to say that the toilet routine of the dog was guaranteed to go haywire on a train.
Train was a no go….as was taking a flight.
Train travel meant, finding a train with a coupe, getting to the nearest possible station with the possibility of getting a confirmed berth and worrying about co - passengers who might not be comfortable travelling with a dog in the same couch, needless to say that the toilet routine of the dog was guaranteed to go haywire on a train.
Train was a no go….as was taking a flight.
The best option
was the road, some 2000 odd kilometers to my destination in the West Coast. The
road lay before me, inviting me. A road trip also meant, factors which were not in my control, the car could break down, Phoebe could get car sick, though that has never happened till now and she has always loved car trips, she loves looking out of the window, taking in the smells, the sounds and checking out everything passing by. But this was going to be an Epic one, if we manage to pull it off that is.
I started
preparing myself mentally for it. Spoke with people who do regular road trips, everyone suggested that I should get a buddy driver to share the wheel. And I started scouting for a buddy driver right away, someone with whom I would have to share the confines of my Chevy Beat, who would sleep with me, eat with me, will be my travel buddy, someone with whom I share a comfort level, most essential for any road trip.
Next, was ticking off my Trip Checklist:
Car Servicing.. Done.
Essential Items to be Taken Checklist... Done
Buddy Driver .. Done
Fridge emptied...
However, even with all the planning you do, the unknown always hits you. My buddy driver started making weird noises about postponing the trip, It took me a while to realize that he was chickening out and not ready to go with me, for reasons best known to him. The only option was hiring a Buddy Driver; my starting point was my work site at a remote corner in the East Coast of India, connected with the NH5 by a single lane 62 km road and understandably no driver was willing to undertake a trip to Kerala. It was just too far.
Day One - 7th July 2016 :
Search for Buddy Driver delayed my start, I decided to start for Bhubaneswar 230 km from Dhamra (my worksite), solo with Phoebe. Started late afternoon and reached Bhubanewar at about 10:30 PM.
Day Two - 8th July 2016:
Some more precious hours were wasted in searching for Buddy Driver in Bhubaneswar,
0900 Hrs :
All Ready to Go, Buddy Driver coming in 30 mins
1000 hrs :
Buddy Driver not picking up call
1100 hrs:
Buddy Driver still not picking up call, checked with fixer, fixer tells me "Buddy Driver might be driving, will call soon".
1200 hrs:
Pouring rain, enough time having been wasted, decided to set off by myself, when I got a call from the Buddy Driver, turned back to find a gangly kid with his buddy near my apartment.
Negotiated rates with him, explained trip after which he wanted me to talk to his elder brother (perhaps he wanted family to know about trip from me). Negotiated with the elder brother (was told that he would be able to go on the trip), soon I realized that both of them were confused and undecided on the trip. There was no point in taking someone who is so insecure. He wanted to take more friends (His Logic > Long Trip = The More people The Better). I realized that the best thing was to hit the road solo and not waste anymore time., Solo it was to be and Solo is always the Best, and I set off right there and then for NH5
Bhubaneswar is a unique city, the city grew itself around the NH5 connecting the two megapolises Chennai and Kolkata. NH5 the life line of the east coast of India, was to be my road down south. While driving long drives, I always take it easy at the start, building up the pace, that's how I have always done while riding, and while I had ridden a lot many Highways, starting from my university days, learning how to drive a car happened recently and once I learnt the moves, I was hooked. This trip was also going to be a welcome work break for me, something which I direly needed from my frantic work schedule. And like I said, my speedometer was not above 70kmph as I left Bhubaneswar, setting the pace, getting comfortable with the road was what I was doing as I left the city behind, where I had spent almost a decade.
1430 hrs:
Stopped at a Roadside Dhaba, had them make a simple meal for Phoebe (without salt and masala, simple chicken broth with rice), both us had skipped breakfast, waiting for the Buddy Driver. I had a fish thali, the last one I was to have for weeks. Even though I had asked them not to, too many chillies had been put in her meal, I had to pluck them out before giving it to Phoebe.
1700hrs :
Great smooth Road, many toll gates, Phoebe is in good spirit and loving the rain and the wind. She is hanging out of the window, I had spread her blanket on the backseat and she kept taking naps whenever she felt like it. The rains did lead to a lot of mud being brought into the car by Phoebe's paws whenever I stop and take her out for a walk (which was every 1.5 hrs or so), but that could always be cleaned up later on. My destination was Vishakapatnam (Vizag) and that's where we were going to spend the night. There was a hotel top listed on Trip Advisor as a Pet Friendly Hotel and I was looking forward to spending the night there.
2030hrs:
Stopped to make a call to check with this pet friendly hotel only to be flatly denied bringing in a pet. This got me worried, where was I to go, my well planned trip seemed to be falling apart. I spent about half an hour by the road side using my mobile internet to look for hotels and trying to check if there was any other pet friendly option. The realization that, I was using precious drive time looking at my phone dawned soon and I decided to seek the help of friends and got back behind the wheel once again, it was raining heavily and we both wanted to have a good night's sleep at a comfortable place.
2130 hrs :
One hotel had finally been convinced to take in both me and Phoebe, she would have to sleep in with the Hotel Security Staff, pets can't be taken to the hotel room. This was the best which could be managed, I felt sad for Phoebe ruing the fact that India's pet friendly hotels can be counted on one's finger tips.
Called up the Hotel Guy, ordered 3 plates of Biryani (treat for me and especially Phoebe for enduring the first leg of the trip without giving me any trouble)
2245 hrs: Vizag
Entered Vizag city, though not without taking a wrong turn which landed me into a posse of cops checking drunken driving, had the breathalyzer thrust into my face and I breathed into it, while simultaneously asking for directions to the city.
2330Hrs:
2030hrs:
Stopped to make a call to check with this pet friendly hotel only to be flatly denied bringing in a pet. This got me worried, where was I to go, my well planned trip seemed to be falling apart. I spent about half an hour by the road side using my mobile internet to look for hotels and trying to check if there was any other pet friendly option. The realization that, I was using precious drive time looking at my phone dawned soon and I decided to seek the help of friends and got back behind the wheel once again, it was raining heavily and we both wanted to have a good night's sleep at a comfortable place.
2130 hrs :
One hotel had finally been convinced to take in both me and Phoebe, she would have to sleep in with the Hotel Security Staff, pets can't be taken to the hotel room. This was the best which could be managed, I felt sad for Phoebe ruing the fact that India's pet friendly hotels can be counted on one's finger tips.
Called up the Hotel Guy, ordered 3 plates of Biryani (treat for me and especially Phoebe for enduring the first leg of the trip without giving me any trouble)
2245 hrs: Vizag
Entered Vizag city, though not without taking a wrong turn which landed me into a posse of cops checking drunken driving, had the breathalyzer thrust into my face and I breathed into it, while simultaneously asking for directions to the city.
2330Hrs:
Checked into Hotel, made sure Phoebe was comfy, took her out for a walk before taking a shower and settling in for the night. The biryani I had ordered was in huge portions,, the 3 biryanis, I had pre-ordered would have filled up the stomachs of 5 healthy ppl. It was not authentic biryani and was quite bad, but had it anyways, hotel food is unanimously bad everywhere, also the Hotel Staff Suptd was piss drunk and successfully solicited for a tip from me. Curled up on the soft bed, pulled up the covers after keeping aside the third biryani plate for breakfast, the next morning.
Day 3 - 9th July - 0800 hrs:
Woke up, went to check on Phoebe, she was sleeping on her blanket in the basement parking, woke up with a whimper on my touch, harnessed her for a walk, bought some soap (hotel mini bathing soaps never work for me) and a detergent soap bar to clean Phoebe's dish (for feed time stops on the road). Came back, had some of the last night's left over biryani for breakfast (dont like throwing food, and biryani, never ever) and set off at about 0900 hrs. The office crowd was out and made a mental note of starting earlier in the day from now. The road gave me magnificient views of the Vizag Harbour and the lush green hills as I exited the town. We went on NH 16 till noon when the Google Map took us on a two lane state highway pockmarked with pot holes and slow moving traffic. Progress was slow but steady. Next destination was Vijaywada, wanted to move beyond this city if the going was good. Nellore could be reached (if I drove past sundown) though it was a smaller town than Vijaywada, meaning chances of finding a hotel open to taking in pet would be slimmer in Nellore.
1420 hrs:
Stopped at a state highway joint for lunch, had the best jhatka biryani ever. The Pulao was too good, the chicken though fried separately was awesome in its own way. Packed some Chappatis (flat bread) and Aloo Curry for Phoebe, she didnt want to have any food then. Wanted to eat one more plate of that awesome biryani but stopped myself, reminding myself that eating light would keep me alert on the wheel.
Foot Note : By now, dear reader, you would have realized that I am crazy for biryani, and on this trip, I kept looking out for restaurants specializing in biryani.
1700hrs:
54 km from Vijaywada, back on NH 16 once again and the trees in the median road divider were so perfect for a stop, stopped and fed Phoebe her Chappatis and Potato curry.
1800 hrs: Vijaywada
Entered Vijaywada city and promptly got stuck in bumper to bumper peak hour office traffic. Tired and Done for the day, looking out for a hotel to stop and to be able to pursuade them to take me and Phoebe in. Took the first exit for the Service Lane on the Highway and got really lucky to be able to convince the Hotel Manager to take us both in (I think, he got won over by the fact that we just wanted to spend the night and shall be leaving early next morning, very discreet). Phoebe was set up in the Hotel renovation area after some debate about how she cant be left tied outside.
2000 Hrs:
Food arranged for Phoebe, walk done. Got some whiskey to relax my nerves, delighted to see booze freely available in Andhra Pradesh contrary to my assumption that it was a dry state. Got some noodles and pepper chicken for dinner and conked off by midnight.
0330 hrs:
Mobile Alarm is shrill and unrelenting, woke up even though back muscles are screaming for some more downtime in the soft hotel bed, but it's time to hit the road. Showered, made coffee, woke up Phoebe for her morning walk.
Day 4: 0445 hrs:
Leaving Vijaywada at the Crack of Dawn :
Turned on the car A/c for Phoebe who spent the night without even a fan in the hotel renovation. Heavy petting to rub off some of the guilt in making her spend the night alone, before I got back behind the wheel, and set off. Stopped for some amazing filter coffee in a service lane (the last good coffee I had, the whole trip, Kerala doesn't know how to make a good cup of tea or coffee, there I said it. Set off, recharged by the awesome coffee only to have Google Map send me off to a dead end (NH16 was being worked on) even as I was looking to exit the city, I should have made a mental note then, of not relying entirely on Google Map, but I didn't and I was going to regret this later today and this was a lesson hard learnt for me.
Phoebe curled up on the Front Seat
Anyways, with the Radio playing Morning Sanskrit Slokas, I felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the long road to Chennai, my stop. My old Port Blair school friend who lives right next to the beach in his sprawling bungalow along the ECR was waiting for me to join him for lunch, and I was going to spend the night at his place there. It was a Sunday, and I was looking forward to reaching in the afternoon as the Google Map predicted then
About one hour into the drive, while I enjoyed the landscape, I escaped a freak accident, there was a van ahead of me, visibly loaded with cooking vats, both me and Phoebe are enjoying the morning wind when I see two huge disks flying into the air, it looked like they were paper plates which had come loose off their bearings in the van ahead, till they crashed, one in the road 25 m in front of my car, while the other went off and crashed behind me. They were aluminium lids of cooking vats, about 1 m in diameter. Close shave it was.. kept thinking what if one of them had landed on my windscreen. Phew.... thanked my stars but didnt stop.
Breakfast Stop : Not inexpensive though 3 idlis and one onionless, one egg omelette set me back by Rs. 40. There were many such carts manned by only women selling breakfast along the highway.
The Tirupati diversion came some 150 odd km off Chennai sometime around noon, Tirupati was only some 70 km away. I was originally wanting to stop there and go via Bangalore (alternate route), Tirupati was where my best of friends had recently moved to from Bangalore, they have a handsome Husky named Veeran, and we were keen on a meet up of Phoebe and Veeran for quite a while. However, they were not in town and Chennai was the next stop for now. The sun was blazing and even though the GPS in the Google Map said I should be there by 1430hrs, it didn't seem likely as we bore down the road that we would be reaching by 1430hrs, I was hungry and Phoebe, I am sure was too, even though she kept her patience and didnt whine.
The Dead End : Chennai - 1530 Hrs or so ...
We entered Chennai and The GPS of Google Maps took us smack through the city and we trudged along for a while, recognized some of the places from my grad days in Chennai then into a narrow road and then emerged on a major road and soon again had us plunging us on a very narrow road which had a dead end. I saw an exit on the left and the road was dug up there too, it was a double dead end.
I had already driven some 10 hours straight, my nerves were on the edge, stomach craving for food (was supposed to join my Chennai friend for lunch and he was waiting), clutch leg was cramped. I turned off the ignition and got out of the car, my car had to reverse, dodging some paving work happening right at the rear. It was a narrow reverse with the vehicle having to back up making a tight reverse left turn to get off the dead end. I tried a couple of times but was too tired and angry at the road block and at Google Maps, Told the people who had gathered that I ended up here, thanks to my Google Map, they had one look at my licence plates and understood that I w as not from Chennai.
Got help from two gentlemen (who obviously were professional chauffeurs ), they graciously offered to do the tight left reverse turn and then direct the car to the nearest exit out of this maze of narrow roads. One of them got in the car and did it, even while one of the road workers, a grizzled old road worker berated me with classic Madras sarcasm, the way it can happen only in Tamil Nadu.
Him - "Ungala ka Licence Irka?"
Me - "Ama"
Him - "Licence Irkey, Experience Illeya ??!!"
Do you have a Drivers Licence ?
Yes,
Have Licence, but no have no Experience Eh??!!
I mumbled, "You have Experience Eh??!!"
Thanked the helpful Chauffeur and got moving again, had to physically shove Phoebe on the back seat, she has a habit of coming and sitting on the driver's seat whenever I get off the car and she is inside, waiting for me to get in, and goes back on my telling her to. But this time, she didn't, she was shaking (obviously stressed with the long travel and we hadn't taken a break in a while) cajoled her once back on the single road, telling her a few more miles to go.
I was given fresh directions and I set off once again, only to find myself facing a narrow bridge which was navigated by using the headlights in broad daylight, only one 4 wheeler could pass on this bridge at a time, and before I could breathe easy, I found myself going along the Adyar River Canal Road, a single lane road and soon I was face to face with a bus which graciously reversed to let me go. I finally found my way to the East Coast Road (I had made a big mistake, I should have mapped for ECR and then my friend's place and not relied on Google Map's AI, as his home was bang next to the ECR, ECR is the probably the best road in Tamil Nadu, connecting Tamil Nadu to Pondicherry, I should have plotted for this road early on, could have avoided those dead ends and narrow roads) it was a lesson hard learnt on an empty stomach.
1630hrs: Chennai Beach House
Finally reached my friend's place, all sweaty grimy and tired. Took out a change of clothes from the trunk, took a shower and a bottle of scotch was waiting to be opened. My old friend had made it a special Sunday afternoon with homemade chicken tikka, single malt and some gossip, lunch can wait.
We had a very late lunch around 1730 hrs and went for a nap, got up from the nap around 2015 hrs and took Phoebe to the beach, took her to the surf to find her running into me when the surf got too close. She was scared of the crashing surf!! She had seen surf for the first time ever!! The sea cooled off my tired feet and I promised myself to come back to this lovely city with the longest beach in the world and spend some more time here.
I was still in the East Coast. Tomorrow's journey will be cutting inside the peninsula towards Kerala, the longest trip yet, 650 odd km from Chennai to Thrissur (my friends from Tirupati were there and so was Veeran the Husky), they were to return the next day but the meet up between a boisterous husky and boxer was something we were looking up to.
Though, my Chennai friend had two german shepherds, it was clear early on that there was not going to be any buddy bonding between them and Phoebe, and we had no option but to keep them separate for the night. The scotch was brought out again, really smooth Indian single malt, good whiskey works wonders on tired and cramped muscles.
After a great home cooked dinner topped off by the sweetest mangoes I ever had (from my friend's own home orchard), it was time for bed.
Alarm set for 3:30 AM, I slept sound and deep, there is something about a home which cant be compared to the swankiest of hotels. My friend had to get up to lock up the gates after I leave and he never let out a remark of discomfort in having to wake up early to see me off. Back in school, we were not so close, not having the same circle of friends, we hardly spoke to each other except in passing. But as we grow up, we rediscover friendships and bonding we never had back then, I was really glad that I stopped at his place for the day and could spend sometime with him.
Day 5 : 0430 hrs - Leaving Chennai, next stop Thrissur (650 odd km away)
Its still dark as I get back on the ECR, my friend had given me a very helpful tip, I was to say "Straight" at the next toll gate, as they would give me a Zero Pass (free toll), oh what joy in being able to save some money in toll. The logic was that people taking only a short detour and going on to exit the city were exempt from toll tax, and are given a Zero Pass... Delightfull !!!.
Took the zero pass and went on, stopped at a tea stall with the tea vat invitingly steaming, the dawn was yet to light up the sky, it was still dark. Tamil Nadu is the rare state where you have people waking up before dawn, people without whom a city wont run, vegetable vendors, tea stalls, newspaper vendors, auto-rickshaw guys, the state bus transport staff, the road sweepers, all of them wake up much before us, they run the Chennai Megapolis.
---- to be contd -----
Stopped at a clearing in the thickets next to the highway for Phoebe, and unleashed her for her morning run. She loves running around helps her get the dump feeling :p running and dumping done, back on the road. Soon we hit one of the most congested toll gates in our trip. The sun is already up and we move on, determined to clock in the most kilometers before stopping for breakfast. Popped in a Saridon for a headache from last night's whiskey and little sleep. The caffein in the pill helps drive away my morning grogginess, the road is great and we stop for breakfast at a highway joint where they to my delight were serving in plantain leaves (plantain leaf breakfast meant, no needing to take out Phoebe's plate, no washing, saving precious water )
Plantain Leaves are the Best
This was going to be the longest leg in our journey of more than 650 km, we were now stopping only every 3 hours or so for bio breaks. Phoebe had also got used to the break timings. We went through Erode, Salem and the Coimbatore bypass. I wanted to pick up some booze before entering Kerala as it would not be easy buying booze in Kerala. But surprisingly couldn't see any Liquor joint on the highway (I was to learn later that the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister had removed all booze shops from the highway, touted as an electoral promise fulfilled after she returned triumphant as the Chief Minister, irony being this was a directive of the Indian Supreme Court which could not be ignored)
The landscape was littered with huge rock formations, and as I write this, I wish I had stopped to take some pictures of some of the more interesting rockscapes. But I had to enter Kerala by sundown. Thrissur was going to be my next stop, my Tirupathi friends had called and they were in Thrissur at their parents place, it was not far a deviation from my route and Veeran, the Husky would also be there and both my friends and me were keen on witnessing the meet up of Veeran and Phoebe. More importantly, the best thing about Thrissur was Phoebe would be able to spend the night indoors at their place.
I wanted to relish Tamil Nadu biryani before entering Kerala, and had an eye out for a good biryani joint where we could stop for lunch. Found one just before the Coimbatore Bypass (around 1400 hrs) and also managed to convince them to cook a masala less chicken rice for Phoebe. The biryani was good and I had one more plate of it, giving Phoebe the boiled egg. The restaurant owner was friendly and came up to chat. He didnt know Hindi or Tamil but he introduced me to his brother and sister-in-law who had come down from Bangalore to check out his newly set up biryani joint. I mentioned that even my brother and sister live in Bangalore, and so do many of my friends and confessed my love for Bangalore's cool climes.
My Odisha number plates have been a guaranteed conversation starter, every where I stopped, I was asked about my trip, and it amazed everyone that I was taking a solo trip with my doggo. Washing dishes done, we set off to Palakkad Gap, though I love the hills, but I havent yet driven on hill roads and wanted to avoid hair pin bend driving.
We finally entered Palakkad around 1600 hrs and the change in the weather was immediate and palpable, the breeze coming in was nice and cool and there was intermittent rains too. Phoebe was taking in all the new smells, I am sure she could smell in the greenery, we had left the rockscapes behind and everything was lush green
Stopped at Palakkad for a tea, my last good roadside tea, before entering Kerala, I have always found Kerala tea very tepid, very milky.
The late afternoon sun was glorious and I was hoping to reach my friends place latest by 1800 hrs.
National Highway here, was getting worked on by road crews and they were working on the entire stretch leaving only a single lane for the traffic slowed us down considerably, my google map accurately said that 33 km to destination and 1.5 hours to reach, this estimation was accurate because this existing lane was also riddled with potholes. It went dark soon, and I decided to roll up the windows and turn up the air conditioner, big mistake as the glasses started fogging up. This was bad, as I just couldnt see anything. Since, getting to know about cars and learning to drive, I had always thought that the window warmer button with [insert symbol here] meant there were heating coils in the glass panes itself which would heat the window (got to know only later that the best way is to turn up the A/c blower to >30 Deg to defog windscreen) Progress was slow, with me stopping to get out and physically clean up the glasses.
By now, I was tired and my clutch leg which was getting used the most in slow moving traffic in that beleaguered NH544 was crying for rest. I had rolled down the windows despite the hot humid night air to clear up the windscreen and we pressed on. Google Map played mischief as I was near my destination and I had to reroute a number of times near my destination.
We reached finally at 2030 hrs, totally exhausted and sweaty, and there was no welcome sight that evening than my friend who had stepped out. I let Phoebe out too, his home was in a quiet alley and I had parked a little away from his home (Google map is like that, it's accuracy is not pin pointy, there is always an error margin).
They had been waiting for me to get home and the first thing I took was a shower in their beautiful home designed by Laurie Baker. Veeran too had come out albeit on a leash, Veeran was quite intrigued to see a female visitor and their interaction kept us occupied throughout dinner and after. They kept play wrestling and getting to know each other. Phoebe has never had a male partner till now and both me and my friends (who too were looking for a female playmate for Veeran) were wishing we had more time in our hands. They were to leave the next morning back to Tirupati and we promised ourselves that we would definitely have a meet up with both of them. One thing, I got to know that night was that Phoebe was very possessive about her water bowl, her food dish. She had never growled at anyone, but whenever Veeran came close to her dining plate she growled at Veeran much to my embarrassment. Apart from that they were perfect playmates and we were looking at possible Busky puppies, Phoebe was going to go in heat any day now and she had really taken to Veeran. Both of them were about the same size, and both of them equally pampered by their human parents.
Phoebe had her fill of food, and for the first time in this trip, she spend her night indoors beside my bed (no climbing on bed - house rules had to be respected). They didnt have any air conditioners at their place, but it was so wonderfully designed that none was needed. The perfectly designed home, needs minimal artificial lighting and keeps cool by itself. I kept telling my friends that I hope to have a home just like that someday.
We all woke up before dawn, some more play wrestling happened and then we set off to our respective roads, my friends back to Tirupati and me to Trivandrum.
Trivandrum was reached by breakfast time, my friends had packed Phoebe's food too for breakfast and she wiped her plate clean, loving the new flavours.
The next stop was Mavelikkera where we spent the next two days and then it was back to Trivandrum, the road to Mavelikkera was through Alleppey (Alappuza) with very bad pot hole ridden roads, we reached Mavelikkera around lunch time.
Trivandrum was where I had planned to stay before getting a place to rent and we found the perfect pet friendly place at Pushpakam Homestay, at Poojappura run by Mr. Pradeep Kumar and his wife Neelima, this was the perfect place for us. Situated in the city but away from the city noise, Pushpakam was where we stayed for almost two weeks till we got a home for rent. I reported for work, at my new place where I had gotten transferred on my request.
This is how you can contact Pushpakam
Our trip was over and it was an epic one. But this is just the beginning, both me and Phoebe had been perfect travel buddies, we were good together. Only wished that there were more pet friendly hotels / homestays in our country, there are many like me, many who would like to travel with their pets.
Our journey had ended well and it was good. But there are so many more roads to travel, especially to the Himalayas and the North East. Some other day, some other time....
Bon Voyage :)
Day 3 - 9th July - 0800 hrs:
Woke up, went to check on Phoebe, she was sleeping on her blanket in the basement parking, woke up with a whimper on my touch, harnessed her for a walk, bought some soap (hotel mini bathing soaps never work for me) and a detergent soap bar to clean Phoebe's dish (for feed time stops on the road). Came back, had some of the last night's left over biryani for breakfast (dont like throwing food, and biryani, never ever) and set off at about 0900 hrs. The office crowd was out and made a mental note of starting earlier in the day from now. The road gave me magnificient views of the Vizag Harbour and the lush green hills as I exited the town. We went on NH 16 till noon when the Google Map took us on a two lane state highway pockmarked with pot holes and slow moving traffic. Progress was slow but steady. Next destination was Vijaywada, wanted to move beyond this city if the going was good. Nellore could be reached (if I drove past sundown) though it was a smaller town than Vijaywada, meaning chances of finding a hotel open to taking in pet would be slimmer in Nellore.
1420 hrs:
Stopped at a state highway joint for lunch, had the best jhatka biryani ever. The Pulao was too good, the chicken though fried separately was awesome in its own way. Packed some Chappatis (flat bread) and Aloo Curry for Phoebe, she didnt want to have any food then. Wanted to eat one more plate of that awesome biryani but stopped myself, reminding myself that eating light would keep me alert on the wheel.
Foot Note : By now, dear reader, you would have realized that I am crazy for biryani, and on this trip, I kept looking out for restaurants specializing in biryani.
1700hrs:
54 km from Vijaywada, back on NH 16 once again and the trees in the median road divider were so perfect for a stop, stopped and fed Phoebe her Chappatis and Potato curry.
1800 hrs: Vijaywada
Entered Vijaywada city and promptly got stuck in bumper to bumper peak hour office traffic. Tired and Done for the day, looking out for a hotel to stop and to be able to pursuade them to take me and Phoebe in. Took the first exit for the Service Lane on the Highway and got really lucky to be able to convince the Hotel Manager to take us both in (I think, he got won over by the fact that we just wanted to spend the night and shall be leaving early next morning, very discreet). Phoebe was set up in the Hotel renovation area after some debate about how she cant be left tied outside.
2000 Hrs:
Food arranged for Phoebe, walk done. Got some whiskey to relax my nerves, delighted to see booze freely available in Andhra Pradesh contrary to my assumption that it was a dry state. Got some noodles and pepper chicken for dinner and conked off by midnight.
0330 hrs:
Mobile Alarm is shrill and unrelenting, woke up even though back muscles are screaming for some more downtime in the soft hotel bed, but it's time to hit the road. Showered, made coffee, woke up Phoebe for her morning walk.
Day 4: 0445 hrs:
Leaving Vijaywada at the Crack of Dawn :
Turned on the car A/c for Phoebe who spent the night without even a fan in the hotel renovation. Heavy petting to rub off some of the guilt in making her spend the night alone, before I got back behind the wheel, and set off. Stopped for some amazing filter coffee in a service lane (the last good coffee I had, the whole trip, Kerala doesn't know how to make a good cup of tea or coffee, there I said it. Set off, recharged by the awesome coffee only to have Google Map send me off to a dead end (NH16 was being worked on) even as I was looking to exit the city, I should have made a mental note then, of not relying entirely on Google Map, but I didn't and I was going to regret this later today and this was a lesson hard learnt for me.
Anyways, with the Radio playing Morning Sanskrit Slokas, I felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the long road to Chennai, my stop. My old Port Blair school friend who lives right next to the beach in his sprawling bungalow along the ECR was waiting for me to join him for lunch, and I was going to spend the night at his place there. It was a Sunday, and I was looking forward to reaching in the afternoon as the Google Map predicted then
About one hour into the drive, while I enjoyed the landscape, I escaped a freak accident, there was a van ahead of me, visibly loaded with cooking vats, both me and Phoebe are enjoying the morning wind when I see two huge disks flying into the air, it looked like they were paper plates which had come loose off their bearings in the van ahead, till they crashed, one in the road 25 m in front of my car, while the other went off and crashed behind me. They were aluminium lids of cooking vats, about 1 m in diameter. Close shave it was.. kept thinking what if one of them had landed on my windscreen. Phew.... thanked my stars but didnt stop.
The Tirupati diversion came some 150 odd km off Chennai sometime around noon, Tirupati was only some 70 km away. I was originally wanting to stop there and go via Bangalore (alternate route), Tirupati was where my best of friends had recently moved to from Bangalore, they have a handsome Husky named Veeran, and we were keen on a meet up of Phoebe and Veeran for quite a while. However, they were not in town and Chennai was the next stop for now. The sun was blazing and even though the GPS in the Google Map said I should be there by 1430hrs, it didn't seem likely as we bore down the road that we would be reaching by 1430hrs, I was hungry and Phoebe, I am sure was too, even though she kept her patience and didnt whine.
The Dead End : Chennai - 1530 Hrs or so ...
We entered Chennai and The GPS of Google Maps took us smack through the city and we trudged along for a while, recognized some of the places from my grad days in Chennai then into a narrow road and then emerged on a major road and soon again had us plunging us on a very narrow road which had a dead end. I saw an exit on the left and the road was dug up there too, it was a double dead end.
I had already driven some 10 hours straight, my nerves were on the edge, stomach craving for food (was supposed to join my Chennai friend for lunch and he was waiting), clutch leg was cramped. I turned off the ignition and got out of the car, my car had to reverse, dodging some paving work happening right at the rear. It was a narrow reverse with the vehicle having to back up making a tight reverse left turn to get off the dead end. I tried a couple of times but was too tired and angry at the road block and at Google Maps, Told the people who had gathered that I ended up here, thanks to my Google Map, they had one look at my licence plates and understood that I w as not from Chennai.
Got help from two gentlemen (who obviously were professional chauffeurs ), they graciously offered to do the tight left reverse turn and then direct the car to the nearest exit out of this maze of narrow roads. One of them got in the car and did it, even while one of the road workers, a grizzled old road worker berated me with classic Madras sarcasm, the way it can happen only in Tamil Nadu.
Him - "Ungala ka Licence Irka?"
Me - "Ama"
Him - "Licence Irkey, Experience Illeya ??!!"
Do you have a Drivers Licence ?
Yes,
Have Licence, but no have no Experience Eh??!!
I mumbled, "You have Experience Eh??!!"
Thanked the helpful Chauffeur and got moving again, had to physically shove Phoebe on the back seat, she has a habit of coming and sitting on the driver's seat whenever I get off the car and she is inside, waiting for me to get in, and goes back on my telling her to. But this time, she didn't, she was shaking (obviously stressed with the long travel and we hadn't taken a break in a while) cajoled her once back on the single road, telling her a few more miles to go.
I was given fresh directions and I set off once again, only to find myself facing a narrow bridge which was navigated by using the headlights in broad daylight, only one 4 wheeler could pass on this bridge at a time, and before I could breathe easy, I found myself going along the Adyar River Canal Road, a single lane road and soon I was face to face with a bus which graciously reversed to let me go. I finally found my way to the East Coast Road (I had made a big mistake, I should have mapped for ECR and then my friend's place and not relied on Google Map's AI, as his home was bang next to the ECR, ECR is the probably the best road in Tamil Nadu, connecting Tamil Nadu to Pondicherry, I should have plotted for this road early on, could have avoided those dead ends and narrow roads) it was a lesson hard learnt on an empty stomach.
1630hrs: Chennai Beach House
Finally reached my friend's place, all sweaty grimy and tired. Took out a change of clothes from the trunk, took a shower and a bottle of scotch was waiting to be opened. My old friend had made it a special Sunday afternoon with homemade chicken tikka, single malt and some gossip, lunch can wait.
We had a very late lunch around 1730 hrs and went for a nap, got up from the nap around 2015 hrs and took Phoebe to the beach, took her to the surf to find her running into me when the surf got too close. She was scared of the crashing surf!! She had seen surf for the first time ever!! The sea cooled off my tired feet and I promised myself to come back to this lovely city with the longest beach in the world and spend some more time here.
I was still in the East Coast. Tomorrow's journey will be cutting inside the peninsula towards Kerala, the longest trip yet, 650 odd km from Chennai to Thrissur (my friends from Tirupati were there and so was Veeran the Husky), they were to return the next day but the meet up between a boisterous husky and boxer was something we were looking up to.
Though, my Chennai friend had two german shepherds, it was clear early on that there was not going to be any buddy bonding between them and Phoebe, and we had no option but to keep them separate for the night. The scotch was brought out again, really smooth Indian single malt, good whiskey works wonders on tired and cramped muscles.
After a great home cooked dinner topped off by the sweetest mangoes I ever had (from my friend's own home orchard), it was time for bed.
Alarm set for 3:30 AM, I slept sound and deep, there is something about a home which cant be compared to the swankiest of hotels. My friend had to get up to lock up the gates after I leave and he never let out a remark of discomfort in having to wake up early to see me off. Back in school, we were not so close, not having the same circle of friends, we hardly spoke to each other except in passing. But as we grow up, we rediscover friendships and bonding we never had back then, I was really glad that I stopped at his place for the day and could spend sometime with him.
Day 5 : 0430 hrs - Leaving Chennai, next stop Thrissur (650 odd km away)
Its still dark as I get back on the ECR, my friend had given me a very helpful tip, I was to say "Straight" at the next toll gate, as they would give me a Zero Pass (free toll), oh what joy in being able to save some money in toll. The logic was that people taking only a short detour and going on to exit the city were exempt from toll tax, and are given a Zero Pass... Delightfull !!!.
Took the zero pass and went on, stopped at a tea stall with the tea vat invitingly steaming, the dawn was yet to light up the sky, it was still dark. Tamil Nadu is the rare state where you have people waking up before dawn, people without whom a city wont run, vegetable vendors, tea stalls, newspaper vendors, auto-rickshaw guys, the state bus transport staff, the road sweepers, all of them wake up much before us, they run the Chennai Megapolis.
---- to be contd -----
Stopped at a clearing in the thickets next to the highway for Phoebe, and unleashed her for her morning run. She loves running around helps her get the dump feeling :p running and dumping done, back on the road. Soon we hit one of the most congested toll gates in our trip. The sun is already up and we move on, determined to clock in the most kilometers before stopping for breakfast. Popped in a Saridon for a headache from last night's whiskey and little sleep. The caffein in the pill helps drive away my morning grogginess, the road is great and we stop for breakfast at a highway joint where they to my delight were serving in plantain leaves (plantain leaf breakfast meant, no needing to take out Phoebe's plate, no washing, saving precious water )
This was going to be the longest leg in our journey of more than 650 km, we were now stopping only every 3 hours or so for bio breaks. Phoebe had also got used to the break timings. We went through Erode, Salem and the Coimbatore bypass. I wanted to pick up some booze before entering Kerala as it would not be easy buying booze in Kerala. But surprisingly couldn't see any Liquor joint on the highway (I was to learn later that the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister had removed all booze shops from the highway, touted as an electoral promise fulfilled after she returned triumphant as the Chief Minister, irony being this was a directive of the Indian Supreme Court which could not be ignored)
The landscape was littered with huge rock formations, and as I write this, I wish I had stopped to take some pictures of some of the more interesting rockscapes. But I had to enter Kerala by sundown. Thrissur was going to be my next stop, my Tirupathi friends had called and they were in Thrissur at their parents place, it was not far a deviation from my route and Veeran, the Husky would also be there and both my friends and me were keen on witnessing the meet up of Veeran and Phoebe. More importantly, the best thing about Thrissur was Phoebe would be able to spend the night indoors at their place.
I wanted to relish Tamil Nadu biryani before entering Kerala, and had an eye out for a good biryani joint where we could stop for lunch. Found one just before the Coimbatore Bypass (around 1400 hrs) and also managed to convince them to cook a masala less chicken rice for Phoebe. The biryani was good and I had one more plate of it, giving Phoebe the boiled egg. The restaurant owner was friendly and came up to chat. He didnt know Hindi or Tamil but he introduced me to his brother and sister-in-law who had come down from Bangalore to check out his newly set up biryani joint. I mentioned that even my brother and sister live in Bangalore, and so do many of my friends and confessed my love for Bangalore's cool climes.
My Odisha number plates have been a guaranteed conversation starter, every where I stopped, I was asked about my trip, and it amazed everyone that I was taking a solo trip with my doggo. Washing dishes done, we set off to Palakkad Gap, though I love the hills, but I havent yet driven on hill roads and wanted to avoid hair pin bend driving.
We finally entered Palakkad around 1600 hrs and the change in the weather was immediate and palpable, the breeze coming in was nice and cool and there was intermittent rains too. Phoebe was taking in all the new smells, I am sure she could smell in the greenery, we had left the rockscapes behind and everything was lush green
Stopped at Palakkad for a tea, my last good roadside tea, before entering Kerala, I have always found Kerala tea very tepid, very milky.
The late afternoon sun was glorious and I was hoping to reach my friends place latest by 1800 hrs.
National Highway here, was getting worked on by road crews and they were working on the entire stretch leaving only a single lane for the traffic slowed us down considerably, my google map accurately said that 33 km to destination and 1.5 hours to reach, this estimation was accurate because this existing lane was also riddled with potholes. It went dark soon, and I decided to roll up the windows and turn up the air conditioner, big mistake as the glasses started fogging up. This was bad, as I just couldnt see anything. Since, getting to know about cars and learning to drive, I had always thought that the window warmer button with [insert symbol here] meant there were heating coils in the glass panes itself which would heat the window (got to know only later that the best way is to turn up the A/c blower to >30 Deg to defog windscreen) Progress was slow, with me stopping to get out and physically clean up the glasses.
By now, I was tired and my clutch leg which was getting used the most in slow moving traffic in that beleaguered NH544 was crying for rest. I had rolled down the windows despite the hot humid night air to clear up the windscreen and we pressed on. Google Map played mischief as I was near my destination and I had to reroute a number of times near my destination.
We reached finally at 2030 hrs, totally exhausted and sweaty, and there was no welcome sight that evening than my friend who had stepped out. I let Phoebe out too, his home was in a quiet alley and I had parked a little away from his home (Google map is like that, it's accuracy is not pin pointy, there is always an error margin).
They had been waiting for me to get home and the first thing I took was a shower in their beautiful home designed by Laurie Baker. Veeran too had come out albeit on a leash, Veeran was quite intrigued to see a female visitor and their interaction kept us occupied throughout dinner and after. They kept play wrestling and getting to know each other. Phoebe has never had a male partner till now and both me and my friends (who too were looking for a female playmate for Veeran) were wishing we had more time in our hands. They were to leave the next morning back to Tirupati and we promised ourselves that we would definitely have a meet up with both of them. One thing, I got to know that night was that Phoebe was very possessive about her water bowl, her food dish. She had never growled at anyone, but whenever Veeran came close to her dining plate she growled at Veeran much to my embarrassment. Apart from that they were perfect playmates and we were looking at possible Busky puppies, Phoebe was going to go in heat any day now and she had really taken to Veeran. Both of them were about the same size, and both of them equally pampered by their human parents.
Phoebe had her fill of food, and for the first time in this trip, she spend her night indoors beside my bed (no climbing on bed - house rules had to be respected). They didnt have any air conditioners at their place, but it was so wonderfully designed that none was needed. The perfectly designed home, needs minimal artificial lighting and keeps cool by itself. I kept telling my friends that I hope to have a home just like that someday.
We all woke up before dawn, some more play wrestling happened and then we set off to our respective roads, my friends back to Tirupati and me to Trivandrum.
Trivandrum was reached by breakfast time, my friends had packed Phoebe's food too for breakfast and she wiped her plate clean, loving the new flavours.
The next stop was Mavelikkera where we spent the next two days and then it was back to Trivandrum, the road to Mavelikkera was through Alleppey (Alappuza) with very bad pot hole ridden roads, we reached Mavelikkera around lunch time.
Trivandrum was where I had planned to stay before getting a place to rent and we found the perfect pet friendly place at Pushpakam Homestay, at Poojappura run by Mr. Pradeep Kumar and his wife Neelima, this was the perfect place for us. Situated in the city but away from the city noise, Pushpakam was where we stayed for almost two weeks till we got a home for rent. I reported for work, at my new place where I had gotten transferred on my request.
Our trip was over and it was an epic one. But this is just the beginning, both me and Phoebe had been perfect travel buddies, we were good together. Only wished that there were more pet friendly hotels / homestays in our country, there are many like me, many who would like to travel with their pets.
Our journey had ended well and it was good. But there are so many more roads to travel, especially to the Himalayas and the North East. Some other day, some other time....
Bon Voyage :)
