Rural india - plugged in !

Instead of our usual strategy of celebrating birthdays by hunting down well rated restaurants for dinner, we decided to go out for a day trip close to Bangalore. An added motivation was that it would also serve as an opportunity to load the 'beast' and test its roar. After some rounds of voting, we zoomed in an initiative called RuralZing which is an effort to increase and encourage rural tourism. They have day long trips on Saturdays and Sundays starting from Bangalore, and our destination was Hale Nijgal, a small village off NH4, 50 odd kms from Bangalore. The 'experience' started right from the time we reached the outskirts of the village as we were ferried on a tractor to the host's house ( Vishwa ). We were suddenly amidst ragi and corn fields, away from humdrum, into chirping of birds, and committed silence.

The day started off with a sumptuous breakfast at Vishwa's house and we began our eco-walk through the village. The highlight of the walk was our interactions with the villagers, the enthusiastic school children in the village school, and looking at their way of life at close quarters.

While Vishwa explained us the various crops and harvesting seasons, we helped ourselves to tender coconuts, and other village produces. Next was a walk to the village temple, incidentally a 600 year old one, followed by a trek to the village lake. The lake was the only source of water for the crops for the village and also was being used to wash clothes, etc. Soon, it was time for lunch, and we went back to our host's house with eager anticipation after the excellent breakfast that we had.

It was time now for us to indulge in some rest and relaxation, followed by some - lost in childhood - games, like spinning the top and marbles. Though most of our attempts at spinning the top ended up flat on their faces, nevertheless it was fun trying our hand at these. Special mention must be made for some folks ( Arav, Su , DJ ) who had this 'never-say-die' spirit of trying to spin the top for at least 2 rotations !!!!

The last part of the trip was a climb on Nijagallu betta to the Narasimha temple. Quite a arduous climb takes you to the top of the hill from where you get a spectacular view of the entire village, the shivaganga hill and other surrounding areas. Its also a rock climber's delight, given some of the very interesting structures there. The fun part for me was the way the beast handled the terrain halfway through the hill. Let me just say- Seeing, or rather experiencing is believing. An interesting day came to an end and we drove back to Bangalore.

This post is incomplete without thanking all the folks from RuralZing , Vishwa, his family and all the unnamed folks, the children at the school, which made this trip a memorable one. We wish the best to RuralZing in their quest for "an initiative to connect urban and rural economy".

Reclaiming our lives...

"No other man-made device since the shields and lances of the ancient knights fulfills a man's ego like an automobile." - Sir William (LATER LORD) ROOTES (1894-1964), British automobile manufacturer

The bigger the beast ( read - the number of horses it can pull ), the bigger the EGO I guess. We ( me and my better half ) would only stare in wonder after we brought home the 'beast'. Stately and regal in its looks, it appears lethargic when its standing. It can be very deceptive - as once you roar it into life, you can well just go ahead and reclaim your life !!

Well, I am talking about the new Safari VTT 2.2 that was launched few weeks back. We were almost ready to buy a Scorpio, when TATA decided to add the twist in the tale. One look and a test drive later we were hooked. After reading convincing road tests on the new beast, there was no looking back. Soon we were proud owners of a Cycus grey, Safari VTT 2.2 LX.

We did some serious off-roading this week ( details in the next post ) and we were more than convinced of the fact that we had taken the right decision. We have added some small knick-knacks to the LX - a reverse camera and sensors, keyless entry, etc. Up on the cards is a good music system to match the prowess of the beast !

I would like to end with some acknowledgements - team-bhp folks, bm-log - all the reviews and the queries were very helpful pre and post buy.