A DAY OUT WITH MY FRIEND
There are days in life that pass by and quickly forgotten because there has been nothing different from the daily routine, and sometimes there are days which stand out like a red letter down the memory lane because they are different from the humdrum of every day life.
One such day was 14th of November when my friend had come from abroad. I was living in Delhi those days and we went sight seeing to a few places there.
The day, fixed for travelling around Delhi, dawned bright and beautiful. It was Saturday and I had taken off from my office. The sun was shining brightly, there was not a shine of clouds in the sky and the chill of winter was off-set by the warmth of the sunshine. We started out on my bike at 10 O’ clock in the morning. The two of us were very excited because we had planned to be out all day and particularly my friend was very enthusiastic about seeing Delhi as it was for the first time she was there.
We first went to Purana Quila. It was a massive structure of huge rock slabs built by the Mughals. We could imagine the immense labour it must have taken to build the fort especially at a time when the only mode of transport was the bullock-cart. We entered the fort to find a huge dark, narrow, winding staircase leading up to the various rooms of the emperor, his queens and various other members of the household. It was very awful inside and our voices echoed and re-echoed in the empty space. We climbed right on the top of the fort and we felt dizzy looking down from there.
We came out of the cold and dreary musty smelling atmosphere of the fort and breathed the fresh pure air. Nearby was Humayun’s tomb. We came to know from a guide that Humayun’s dear son had fallen ill and Humayun prayed to Allah to take away his life but save his son. After that he fell ill and wasted away whereas his son became better and better, till finally Humayun died, and his son survived.
After this we went to the boat club at India Gate and hired a boat. The weather was lovely and the two of us were together after a long time. There was a mild breeze blowing and the water was calm with faint ripples as the wind touched the surface. There were people sitting on the grass while we took turns to row the boat. The water was clean and transparent, and I could clearly see our faces in the water. My friend was smiling and seemed very happy. I could also see weeds and sometimes golden fishes swimming around the weeds. The lady sang songs while I joked and laughed and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. Then we went off to the children’s park nearby. We both sat on the grass and saw children playing all around till we felt hungry and decided to have our lunch. I had packed a picnic lunch from a restaurant near my place, all snacks and light food. My friend spread out the lunch for both of us. Both of us were really hungry and it was real fun having food out in the open. Little birds and sparrows hopped near by and my friend threw tiny bits of food to them which they would pick.
After resting for a while, I took her to the National Museum nearby. We saw a lot of antique statues hundreds of years old and appreciated the craftmanship of the artisans who worked centuries ago without any of the sophisticated instruments which we now have. We also saw a huge aquarium with all kinds of colourful fishes swimming in and out amongst the weeds and pebbles that had been arranged beautifully inside the huge glass cases. We had a lovely time looking around and the lady had a lot of questions to ask the guide. We finally moved out feeling enlightened but quite tired.
From there we went to the State Emporia Buildings to see the arts and the crafts of the different states of India. My friend bought incense sticks from the Tamilnadu emporium and honey for her mother from the Kashmir emporium while I bought her a Tussar dress material from the Madhya Pradesh emporium. The lady was very happy with her gift. We admired the handicrafts of the various other states and by the time we had a good look through all of them, we were quite exhausted. We took cold drinks at a near by fast food stall and felt quite refreshed.
The next item on our itinerary was chaat at the Bengali market. So we had a spicy treat and my friend really enjoyed it since she had never had it before. Almost all girls are very fond of such food - chaat, pani-puri etc. This girl too was no different. After finishing the chaat, we went to have South Indian food at a South Indian restaurant, and once again savoured the delicious food served there.
Finally, we made a move to go home. We had spent a lovely day sight-seeing. Together we had seen a lot, learnt a lot, enjoyed a lot and were now happy to go home and relax and talk about everything that we had seen. That evening, we did not take dinner any more as our stomachs were totally full. At about 10 O’ clock we again took a stroll out to have ice-cream. It is very common among Delhiites to walk out of their homes after dinner to enjoy ice-cream. After finishing our ice-cream we walked our way home. That night, we talked to each other for a long time, before going to bed at almost half past 3. Afterall, we had seen each other after five long years. The next morning it was exactly 10 O’ clock when we woke up. It was Sunday and we had no important work, we were very happy to have spent such a wonderful day together. It had indeed been a memorable day which will long remain in our memory.
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