Dharwad Peda... delicious !!!!
Towards the last days of October-2010, I planned a visit to the twin cities of Hubli & Dharwad in Northern Karnataka along with a short visit to Goa. The trip went as per plan and it was yet another memorable solo trip. I went on to cover Hubli, Dharwad in Karnataka, Madgaon, Panaji, Ponda and Vasco in Goa. In the morning hours of October 31st, 2010 I kept my foot in Goan soil, to mark my first visit to the state and Goa was the 9th Indian state I would see in India. Travelling can be – some say it should be – a very personal experience, but that's no reason not to share the joy I experienced on seeing new places in India.
People could be classified broadly into two categories. One who like to grow roots and stay in one place. Sometimes I belong to this category. I am happy and content with what I am and I like the comfort of familiarity sometimes. In free time I would rather enjoy some quiet moments at home rather than venture out. This is the story in most weekends of my life. The second kinds of people are the ones bitten by wanderlust. Their aim in life is to see places. Sometimes I belong to this category as well. Given a couple of free days time or a public holiday on Friday, I would pack my bags and head to explore a village 400km away from hustles of modern life. I have been finding out more and more each day that I belong to the second category and sometimes in first category.
October 30th, 2010 was the day I visited Hubli & Dharwad and I travelled by the 2079 Jan Shatabdi. Catching the train was not an easy task as it was schedule to depart SBC at 6AM, but I lived nearly 20 km away from Majestic at Bommanahalli. I went to bed only at 1AM the previous day and I could grab only 2.5hrs of sleep before I got up for another day. Bangalore weather was cold but I found it tolerable and by 4:30AM I was ready and standing at Bommanhalli Junction. Luckily I got a cab to Majestic for Rs.20/- and within 40 minutes I was at Bangalore Railway station. I purchased a few biscuit packets for breakfast and walked to the platform where I was expecting the coaches of my train to be shunted. I was carrying clothes only for two days and I was to return by Monday afternoon directly from Madgaon to Bangalore by train (waitlisted ticket). Since Monday being Kannada Rajyotsava and a Government holiday, I planned to take rest before reporting back to work on Tuesday.
My journey began as per schedule and I sat by my window seat gazing out at the world outside. I love train journeys. Perhaps, it is one of the best ways to enjoy life. It is a real stress buster too. It could be even more enticing if you are travelling in ordinary second class as you get a chance to be a part of the surroundings and even get a better view of the outside world. I sat listening to MP3 in my mobile and enjoyed viewing the outside scenery-that’s something I do often during my train journeys.
Sidharoodha Mutt-Entrance
The first halt was Yesvantpur. My train had all seats filled and luckily there weren’t anyone standing in the middle or sitting in the aisle or clinging to the doors. Overall, I felt the atmosphere to be friendly, spacious with lots of air and joy. The next stopping was Tumkur and it was a good 1 hour away from my present position. The landscape was a bit rusted and dry. As the journey progressed I was also feeling a bit sleepy due to lack of sleep. I held my bags tightly to avoid getting robbed and dozed off. I woke up when my train was nearing Arsikere at 8:30AM, but I went to sleep again. It was only after Chikjajur I was awake properly. Devangere, Harihar, Ranibennur, Haveri were some of the stopping’s in which my train halted and it reached Hubli bang on time at 1330hrs.
My first task was to find a lodge. I would be staying in Hubli only for 8 hours as I was to leave for Goa the same day night at 2300hrs. I found a lodge just for Rs.130/- per day near the railway station itself and refreshed myself. My first task was to visit Sidharoodha Mutt, 4km away from Hubli Railway station. I boarded a local city bus which took me to a place near the mutt and from there I walked for nearly 1km to reach the mutt.
The entire complex was located amidst peaceful surroundings with a big tank nearby. This place was ideal for mental rejuvenation. The mutt had a museum too with old items, various images related to Hinduism. My favourite was the Linga temple in the mutt. The eyes of the linga looked real and I did feel as if Lord Shiva’s gaze was at me. Not many people were around and I walked to the pond nearby and sat for some time alone. And just for fun picked up a few stones and threw on the pond. I wish I could do trips like this often to remote places, but sometimes it never clicks due to many other commitments in life. After spending a good 2 hours at the complex, I started my way back to Hubli Railway station.
From there, I called up my friend Sridhar Joshi in Chennai who was actually a native of Hubli. The conversation turned out to be humorous as usual. Joshi guided me through phone to the nearest shop, nearby railway station which sells good “Dharwad Pedha”. I believe Joshi knew the shop owner quite well! I purchased a good ½ kilo of pedha and then boarded bus to Dharwad. The bus was empty and the speed was good and I reached Dharwad comfortably. I purchased some more pedha (sweet) and other sweets in the shops of Dharwad and had tiffin at Dharwad itself. By the time I returned to Hubli it was dark.
As I entered my room, I received a call from my friend, Sampath Kumar, a Loco-Pilot who works in Konkan Railways. He suggested that I should return by bus and not in unreserved compartments in my return journey. Taking his words, I cancelled my tickets which were waitlisted and rushed to Hubli old bus stand to find a good travels to book my return trip from Madgaon to Bangalore in bus. I managed to get a confirmed booking in Vijay Anand travels and the ticket cost me a good Rs.750/- for a distance of 700km. I appreciated my friend Sampath Kumar’s advice that travelling with a confirmed booking is always better and safe compared to unhygienic travels in unreserved journeys. His words and timely advice saved a lot of troubles which could have disturbed me if I had journeyed back 700km in unreserved compartments.
Front view of Sidharoodha mutt
Hubli impressed me very much. Though it was small compared to Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore- overall I liked the atmosphere, energy and vibrancy of the city. The Masala dosas sold in hotels in Hubli were delicious. They weren’t spicy compared to Tamilnadu and it was a bit sweet too, but I still liked it. After having a bath, I grabbed 2 hours of sleep and checked out at 10PM and walked to the railway station. I prepared myself for the second phase of the trip. DESTINATION GOA!!
Though I was in Hubli only for 8 or 9 hours, the city impressed me at first sight. I liked the energy, enthusiasm, activeness which I saw amongst the people of Northern Karnataka. My life has become similar to that of a nomad. Though Tamilnadu bears the title of being my home state, I want to consider West Bengal and Karnataka as my home state on par with my mother state of Tamilnadu as I spent some part of my life in other states too. I am a Bengali when I am Bengal, Marathi when I am in Maharashtra, a Malayalee when I am in Kerala, a Bihari when I am in Bihar & Jharkhand and a Kannadiga when I am in Karnataka. Nanna dhvanige ninna dhvaniya seridante namma dhvaniya.
-Krishna Kumar.S
Travel Writer, IRFCA-SBC, Bangalore
Karnataka, India.
www.irfca.org
