Pondicherry Travel Blog: Chapters 3 and 4

Chapter 3: Bro leave me alone please!

The guy looked rough and shaggy, wearing a grey shirt and pants, an unkempt beard, and, I hate to use the phrase, but he looked poor. He came to me and started speaking in Tamil. I said I do not speak Tamil, so he spoke in English “Do you have money, do you have 50 rupees,” I constantly kept saying no, and he kept insisting. After my repeated refusal, he finally gave up. Perhaps he wanted to buy a ticket but, man, I was not in a position to help him.

Finally, he gave up on me and sat down. But he was constantly looking at me. It made me uncomfortable. I ignored him.

Some time later, a father daughter duo climbed on board. They spoke Marathi. I felt such a sigh of relief. Anolkhi pradeshat olkhichi bhasha. I made small talk with them. They were going to visit Aurobindo’s Ashtam, and they were from Pune. Nice.

Four hours go by, and it’s 10 PM. I am hungry. I got off at Auroville bus stop. After that, I did not know how to get to the homestay. I called the owner. I asked him regarding the rickshaws and stuff, for I did not see any. Plus I do not think I would be able to tell them where. The homestay owner told me to just wait. He came to pick me up. Him, his friend, and me, drove triple seat through a really dark road. Auroville, apparently, does not believe in street lights.

He asked me where I am from. Now generally when I say “Oh I am from Silvassa” people react with confusion, for they do not know this place. So I usually just say “Gujarat” to save time and energy. It’s basically akin to Thanekars saying they’re from Mumbai and people from Pimpri Chinchwad or Talegaon saying that they’re from ‘Pune’. Neither is technically true, but it’s convenient. When he heard that, he said “Oh Gujarat means prime minister’s place.” It’s funny how that’s what he knows Gujarat by. Since I live close to it, if someone says Gujarat to me, the first thought would not be ‘Oh our prime minister is from there.’ I know a deal lot more about that place which would come to my mind first. But this man who has lived his life 1000s of kilometres away, knows Gujarat as only ‘The place our prime minister is from.’ A neat little insight into another worldview.

We reached the homestay, he showed me around, and I was going to fall asleep. But, as they say, pehle pet pooja, fir kaam dooja. Now going anywhere outside was impossible. So I had to order. Yeah. Sad. I ordered some roll from Zomato. It took more than an hour to reach me. I was angry like anything. But, finally I ate the roll, and slept.

DAY. 1. OVER.

[Footnote: From morning to night I had travelled via 7 distinct modes of transport (Rickshaw, Train, Taxi, Plane, Metro, Bus, and even a two wheeler)]

Chapter 4: Sacrebleu!

14th December, 2023

Got up at around 8 or 9 AM. I was pretty tired from all the Pravaas yesterday. I got up, freshened up, and met the homestay owner regarding the possibility of renting a scooter or bike to get to Pondicherry. Only after reaching there did I get to know that Auroville is not in Pondicherry but in Tamil Nadu.

The owner happily gave me his own bicycle, which was my constant companion for the next 3 days.

The homestay itself is beautiful. The property has a house with 3 rooms, and an external kitchen where you can yourself cook if you want something. It is surrounded by trees and farms, and there’s a botanical garden nearby. The only approach to this homestay from any metalled road is a narrow path only wide enough for one vehicle which is made of soil. Unmetalled road. A quiet place, very relaxing, where you can also just sit outside and relax with a cup of tea, if you are the kind of person who likes to take life slowly and sit at one place for a long time. I, however, am a man who requires either absolute boredom with the outside world, or a literal sickness, to keep me inside a home instead of going out.

The first place I went to was Aurovilly Bakery. It was a beautiful place, surrounded by trees. The bakery also had a restaurant.

I had a plate of an idli, a wada, sambar, and 3 chutneys. Tomato, coconut, and another I cannot quite remember what it was made out of, but was tasty nonetheless.

I then started on my journey to Pondicherry. Now, Auroville, the bakery, and the homestay, all of this was only accessible by narrow roads. And the way to Pondicherry (at least the way that I know) was by going to the coastal highway. The road to the coastal highway from the bakery was one-and-a-half kilometres. However, due to the very same stretch going directly in the direction of the coast, it was a bit of a descent. For almost a kilometre until you reach the highway, pedalling was not at all a necessity. So I let go of the pedals, and let gravity take the wheel. Now, from that point on the highway to Pondicherry white town, it was another 7 kilometres. So, off cycling I went through the not so hot but humid and salty air. It was December, yet it had rained, but that might just be the weather pattern there.

It took me around 20 minutes to reach there, in which time I encountered: highway, internal road after a certain point which plunges you into bustling civilisation, buses with kids waving at me, cows (an Indian specialty on roads), and everything else. My favourite were the Rajinikanth posters however.

Once I reached the Sardar Vallabbhai Patel Salai (I learned that Salai in Tamil meant Road) I proceeded to the Promenade in White town. I found a neat little spot to park the bike, and off to the beach I went, alone, clicking photographs. I did not plan to talk to anybody, being the loner I am. But…