Well..here i am...boarded the bus..... asking for a ticket Malsej Ghats and the conductor says where.... Am a little puzzled, for the i did check if the bus was going in to Malsej Ghats... Seeing me puzzled, one of the co-passenger chipped in...He said, 'arey bhai.. u want to go and stay there? You are referring to the holiday camp'..' Oh yeah' - i said.. of course, i was referring to the MTDC resort which is there....Of course i did plan to stay over night there...Then the co-passenger explained to me ' You see, this bus goes through the jungle and the Ghat section and there is nothing in Malsejh but for the MTDC resort. Btb- have you done the booking he asked'. Well, i said ' sir, not yet..but am not worrying'... He retorted ' Beta - there is nothing around. You will not find any other place there. What will you do? Is there anyone along with you?'. 'Hmmmm...Not to worry sir. I am alone and i will find a way out...Worst come basis, i would have to return in night and i dont mind doing that as the last resort'.... Though i boldly said that, there was indeed a slight feeling, 'whats gonna be my alternative arrangement?'.... Now the conductor was back after his rounds and asked me 'ticket for where' and i said clearly 'MTDC Camp - Malsej Ghats'... He said ' 62 Rs'... I pulled my wallet and passed on a 100 re note, and the conductor asked for change. Now, when i started looking deeply into my wallet, what i saw next was a complete bouncer, that threw me out of my mind.... I was shell shocked when i discovered that i had only 320rs in all in my wallet and here I am shelling out 62 rs to go to Malsej... I am completely taken aback on sensing this reality.....Here i am, now have only 250 rs + few chillar.... I need to have my dinner, need to stay over night, need to have break fast and lunch and finally more importantly need to return back to Mumbai.... I immediately check with my co-passenger 'Is there an ATM there?'... 'Beta - there is one 60kms in the other side of the hill'. I am completely thrown over. I cant get down, for we are already in NH 222 entering the Ghats......
There are two options that are striking me - One is to just get down immediately and secondly - lets see what lies ahead.... Kuch tho hoyega..... There will be a way out.... With this 'nervous' thought in mind, i cajole myself 'advenuture time underway'..... so i just calm myself down and peep outside the window...
As i saw the rustic villages out of the window, i was just recollecting the sequence of events that unfolded through the day which actually influenced me to stay back in the bus and proceed towards Malsej.
The Malsej trip over the weekend started out as a fallout of a team outing which was planned to go for Matheran. But since Matheran was a place where a couple of us had been, Malsej was a new find which one of my collegue found out and let me knew. I was a little kicked when i read through in the Maharashtra tourism web site. So we were trying to mobilize a small group for the trip, but that was in vain. But some how, the reading in the site and my personal interest to go in for a nature expedition dint dampen my spirit. So i did put in some efforts in mobilizing certain kind of crowd for the trip from my friends circle, but that too went in vain. Some how, i made up my mind and went upto CST station and decided to board the train to Kalyan, so that i can sit comfortably and go. As I boarded the train, there were continous calls coming in.
Calls from my PMIR batchmates, SW friends, school mate and my sister.... Each of these calls i have been telling them that I am going to Malsej Ghats - all alone (yes, it is a concious decision which just happened).....
So now that I had told each and all with whom I have been saying am off to Malsej, how can I just back down ... And that too - giving a reason that I am in dearth of money.... i have 250 rs in my pocket.... I knew, that yeah... thats sufficient enough if you work you way out properly... So giving the explanation to myself, i started gazing around the beauty which was just becoming evident...
The bus takes up sharp turns and the village scene disappears and the scenes of hilly landscapes prop u.... The bus has started moving upwards... There is beauty emerging in style.... Each time the buses turns and the road opens itself to the other side of the hill, one gets to see the tall huge moutain ranges wwith clouds clearly covering the peaks and the scene in itself brings a great amount of joy.... There are also small little waterfalls which can not only be seen from the windowns of the bus, but interestingly there sare small waterfalls such that the buses ply through the waterfalls in the road. This is indee quite an new experience that waterfalls fall on the road, and people just park their car on the road and just enjoy the falls on the road freely.....As i experience these sights, time also flies by... well its about two and half hours already travelled in the bus that suddenly my co-passenger tells me 'Arey - get down here. This is where you got to go.' Point me to the building he shows that it is the MTDC resort....
Am all excited that I have actually made to up to the place where i wanted to be... But what next...... 
With rejuvenated energy and zeal, i get down from the bus and head straight towards the resort... Its a wonderfuly located resort at the edge of the cliff giving a panoromic view of the landscape..... There are abt 17 self contained blocks in the resort and i headed straight to the reception and checked out if there were any room. There were a couple available but each were charged over 450 rs. This is when that reality bites... I asked if there were cheaper alternatives. And the receptionist said there were none and this could not be negotiated, for this is a govt resort. I pleaded showing my sorry state of affairs and was asking him for alternatives. But my effort was futile, he just blatantly refused to listen to my plea. I headed towards the security person. Showed him my wallet and told him of my story of lack of money and asked for help. That security gaurd, Santosh, said that 2 km down the road there is a small village and there there is a possibility of cheaper options and i could get one for 100 odd rupees. I thanked him for his suggestion, but also told him that in case i dint get one, i would be heading straight to his place and i would be staying with him over night.
I followed the advise of the security guard of MTDC and headed for stroll at 7 30 PM in the night towards the Village. There i spotted 'Nisarg Lodge'. It was indeed one sada hua lodge and the most expensive room costed 250 rs. However, i asked for other alternatives. The owner showed me a room in the first floor and said it would cost me 15o rs. BUt i negotiated saying that i will pay only 100 rs. We struck the deal/I pay him the 100 rs and i now have a place to stay over night. I was in the wonderful place - Nisarg loge, with a 100 rs/night room, which has one straw mat with cushion and pillow on top of it. The room also houses a water puddle in the corner and has a small light buld though there is no fan.... However, must say, that i was extremely glad ... i heaved a big sigh of relief.... i just kept my bag in the corner, locked my room and stepped out at 8 pm......
It now started drizzling quite heavily... It has to - shouldnt it, after all it is monsoon time and that too am in the hills.... However, the ill prepared crack that iam, wasnt carrying any weather protection yantra.. however, with the pleasant talking skills (probably, the gift of the gap which just saves me all the time - Thank you God), i lend a umbrella from the lodge owner and go out for a walk in the rains in the night... It was indeed a wonderful experience to walk in the rain in the hills with mind you 150 rs in the pocket..... As it was quite windy and was raining too, the umbrella was of little use in protecting me, for eventullay, the lower half of my body was indeed getting wet... So after a short stoll i headed back to the 'room' - if i may call it... With 150 rs left, what can i even afford to have.. Skip my dinner (again - Thank you God, my stomuch has in general not posed much problems in most times my will power over comes the power of stomuch calls)... I doze of after listeing to some nice classical devotional music from my mobile....Its 5 AM in the morning and after a very long time heard the cock's wake up call...however, after a short wakep up, doze back again and get up all fresh after some time... I knew some time back it was 5, but i now dint know what was the time.... Becuase, i dint wear a watch and i was using my mobile as a clock, but since the battery in my mobile had conked off, had no clue what was the time... . I head straight to the loo... Well must say, did spend quite a considerable amount of time to ensure that the internal sceptic tank is clean for the last 18 hours, I have just not done it... And also, not sure what lies ahead. So had to make the most of the opportunity and thus put in all force and energy to do the needful. Having done that, just cleaned up myself and prepared my self to start off for the day... Said a bye to the lodge owner for the 'comfortable stay' overnight, asked for what the time was - 7 30 am it was and i left... I also made up my mind that i will not ask anyone what the time is... There was no watches a few centurie back and people still had a comfortable living... So i decided to not know the time till i reach Kalyan.. Just gauge with the sun movements (if i at all i can spot the sun, for its monsoon time and am in the hills)...... So here I am, all set to explore the Ghats with nature guiding me...
Start off where...? That was indeed the question which came up..Logically also.... I of course did have the net prinouts which said, what all to be seen in Malsej Ghats... So ask the near by villagers.. How do i go to Harishchandragarh, Kshireshwar, Shivneri Fort, Bhimashankar etc etc...... What will i do is never a question, for any new place always brings about excitement... But the question was how will i go and all the more importanly how much will it cost for me to go there...... With 150 rs in pocket, i cant have the cake and eat it too.... I had made up my mind, that i shall reserve 100 rs for my return trip and i will not touch that money at any cost, for the only thing certain was that i had to go back by evneing.... On finding out the only certain things that came out was that... all these places where quite distant from each other...and people in general commute by thier personal mode, else poor ppl like me resort to the hiring jeeps, which costs not less that 400 rs... And where wil that money come from, given that i have only 50 rs that i can afford to where ever i need to go....
So after clear delibrations and understaing made up my mind to go to Shivneri fort which is a good place for trekking and hiking.... So i came on to the road and asked for guidance and route/commute assistance. Thankfully, one lorry driver accepted to give me lift. He asked me to pay 25 rs for the trip and i negotiated to him saying that he is asked me too much. He retorted 'Saheb, aapko pata hai, Shivneri kahaan hai? Raasta Kaisa hai? '.. I put my head down and said no.... Then i said..' Teekh hai - i shall give you 20 rs'.... It was a one hour journey in the lorry, passing through 3 hills and passing through the ghats... It was a thoroughly enjoyable ride with a few villagers joining me as co-passengers in the lorry. After an hour, the lorry halted in a village called Junnar.... Junnar was at the basement of Shivneri. Now i had to walk up for 3 kms before i reached the foothills of Shivneri.... Now the early morning blues were also troubling my parched throat and belly... Thankfully, the one sane thing i did while i left was to ensure that i carry a bottle of water, which i had refilled in my 'place of stay - Nisarg lodge'. But to fill in my stomuch, i went into a kirana shop and asked for two packets of Parle G biscuits. After all that is the cheapest source of energy. When the shop keeper gave me asking for 8 rs. I was a little taken aback. For now i have only 130 rs left of which 100 i had reserved it for my return journey. .. So 30 is all i have and i cant afford to spend out 8 rs... So i return back one of the packets of Parle and 'shell out' 4 rs...... The value of each penny counts.....
Taking in the biscuit, i walk along, there were vehicles plying by. I was posing my hands seeking lift... Finally, there was a private auto which was heading upwards... I boarded and asked him to take... I happily was going that he suddenly stopped and said -'Aap right mein jaaiye and 5 re dijiye'...Well, he was actually charging me for his drop..... So did part off my 5 rs ot him and started walking upwards....
In high spirits, with bag on my back, started trodding on the path along slide the road.... It was a small trek for a km till the foot hills of the shivneri fort. Shivneri fort is the birth place of Chatrapathi Shivaji Maharaj, the great Maratha warrior. The fort also houses all his childhood times. With an historical bent and nature at its best, began to walk along the various gates of the ancient fort.... .Walk a while, stop, click a few pictures, take rest and again walk.... this continued for the next couple of hours, till i went to the place where is the exact location of Shivaji's birth place. The place hosts the cradle the Mother Jijamata used for her child alongside the statue of Shivaji and a potrait of Jijamata....
I had always seen buses in Mumbai with nameboard as Jijamata Udyan, but never did i know that Jijamata was actually the mother for Shivaji... So that was GK news for me... There were quite a few visitors from near by villages coming in there and paying respect to thier erstwhile leader/protector - Shivaji Maharaj. Well the respect for him is just so evident once you visit this place...
After spending some time and clicking pictures, decided to move back.... Kep walking back till the foothill and now decided that i should have some intake, else its not good.. But now i have only 121 rs left (including the 100 which i reserved for my return travel). So with 21rs of spendable money, i decided to have a Neembu Sharbat worth rs. 5. This Sharbat was the like elixr for life. After that, walked back till the base of the bill. Since i cannot afford for another paid ride, was asking for lift and thankfully, one local villager was going in his moped towards Junnar and he gladly obliged to drop me to the central point in the village.
The moped kaka himself advised me that i should be taking a jeep to Bankar Pada which would be a good ride through the hilly village and from there I could catch a bus to Kalyan which would go through Malsej Ghats.... As soon i reached the central point, looked around what was available to gobble.. Spotted a road side shop and had a vada pav for Rs 3. It was one of the best 'dishes' i have ever had... It was so fulfilling that could not be replaced by the best of the restaurants in Mumbai.Having the vada paw in my right had, and water bottle in the left hand, i was asking for lift to BankarPada (was still trying if i could get a free ride)... However,no one obliged... Finally i had to shed out 10 rs for the Jeep ride which went past the rustic villages ... On finally reaching Bankar Pada, had to give out 10 rs for the ride..... Parting away 10 rs could just prove to be expensive... But then I had to.. Now i had 112 rs left in all.... Decided that i just cant afford to spend on any further travel, but for getting back to Mumbai....So kept waiting in Bankar Pada for quite some time, that a bus from Ahmed Nagar to Kalyan came in... Boarded in and went to the last seat and finally when the conductor came in, i opened up my wallet and showed to the conductor and said ' Bhaiyaa - this is al i have (had 112rs)... Now tell me how much does a ticket to Kalyan cost?'. He said well, its 95 rs only.... Heaved a sign of relief, happily parted the money, got the tickets, took up the window seat and gazed all the wonderful sights as i made my way down to the foohills and then to Kalyan..... Finally, when I reached Kalyan Station, found out that the time was 3 10 PM...
Indeed a wonderful and a memorable trip... Thousand thanks to Vilwadri Perippa, for beyond doubt he was the inspiration for me during my night stay at Nisarg lodge...... Ever eager for experiences which always brings in new and diverse perspectives.....
