Delhi Memoirs - Part I
Now that I know that I won't be living in Delhi any more, I am getting all nostalgic and sentimental. There are so many things I am going to miss about this mad, crazy city. So many things which had become a part of my life, and knowingly or unknowingly, so many things I had become a part of. The thought of moving to a completely new place and city - it is exhilarating and frightening at the same time. I cannot wait to sample the cuisine and culture of an altogether different state, somewhere I have never been before. And I know I will integrate and assimilate because I am basically a very adjusting person. No hassles with me (though I might complain about them on the surface!) But frightening because it will a new environment with new people. I have heard time and again that people are the same everywhere. But its just that it will take sometime to stop missing all of those things I had started taking for granted during my three years here. Nothing great or wonderful. Just the tiny and banal things of life which one does not even think about usually, only when life is changing that one takes a rest and stops to think about them. So is the case with me. Over these years, I had grown so accustomed to these things that I did not even think about what would happen if I had to leave, or if those things would be taken away from me. Every year it was like, "Oh! But there's another year to go here! Why worry now?" But now, when the time to move away has come, I do think and worry and get anxious.
The Guru Nanak Market, more commonly (rather, fondly!) known as "The Back Market". A place where all I needed was found. Grocery items - coffee, Tang, chocolate, Lay's (all the flavours), Maaza, Surf Excel, shampoo, bathing soap, conditioner, etc etc. The Chemists - where we bought napkins, loofahs, shower gels, nail filer, nail cutter, deodarant, body lotion, face wash, face cream, face mask (not to forget medicines, that is what basically one goes to a chemist for!) Chaudhary Communications - whereupon my arrival, the first dialogue would be, "Uncle, please Airtel ka 100 ka top-up kar deejiye!" I visited that shop every alternate day (having a boyfriend does lead to a sudden and unexplainable jump in phone bills). Chaudhary Uncle and both his sons by now know very well that my presence there means that they have to get an "Airtel ka top-up for 100 rupees" done!
Then there was the old, dilapidated cafe, unlike any other cafe in the vicinity. We used to frequent it because it was cheap. And situated nearby. The Sify cafe is situated in Amar Colony and one has to walk for a good 20-25 minutes to reach the place. Plus our good old Back Market cafe only charges 10 bucks for an hour of internet surfing, five bucks per page for a black and white printout, and 15 bucks for a coloured one. So it proved to be highly economical for all us college girls who used it almost everyday. Even the tacky crowd from the hotel management college and girls from Polytechnic used to be a common sight. Uday Bhaiya was the guy who managed everything and after I had become a regular visitor, he would make sure I did not have to wait long even when there was a serpentine line of people queueing up to surf the net.
Then there was the Mother Dairy stall (where we used to buy Lick Lolleez during the summer evenings and where the Uncle manning the store was really sour and cranky!). And the Dry Cleaners (though I never had to pay them a visit). And the shop where girls used to have chaat and samosas. And the photography shop where we got all our camera films from. And the stationery shop. And the small multipurpose shop which doubled up as a small stationery and a courier centre, employing Blazeflash services (though my packet never reached Bangalore when I tried them once!).
And oh! How can I forget our ever-present Juice Uncle. It was a thela where we used to have fresh fruit juice, mainly oranges or pineapple or musammi. 10 bucks a glass and oh-so-refreshing and delicious. That juice was a staple everyday feature during the summer months. Nutritious and healthy. Plus the guy who used to make the juice was so polite to everybody, a kind of person who never picks up a fight with someone. And he always filled up our glasses with more juice! :)
Oh man, so many things...just about the market! The one constant refrain every evening would be, "Koi back market jaa raha hai kya?" And then a long list would be compiled about who needed what - maggi, recharge, coffee, chips, biscuits, pens, refills, etc etc. And the person going to the market would set out to get all the necessary requirements for every member of the pg. I will miss every tiny thing................
The Guru Nanak Market, more commonly (rather, fondly!) known as "The Back Market". A place where all I needed was found. Grocery items - coffee, Tang, chocolate, Lay's (all the flavours), Maaza, Surf Excel, shampoo, bathing soap, conditioner, etc etc. The Chemists - where we bought napkins, loofahs, shower gels, nail filer, nail cutter, deodarant, body lotion, face wash, face cream, face mask (not to forget medicines, that is what basically one goes to a chemist for!) Chaudhary Communications - whereupon my arrival, the first dialogue would be, "Uncle, please Airtel ka 100 ka top-up kar deejiye!" I visited that shop every alternate day (having a boyfriend does lead to a sudden and unexplainable jump in phone bills). Chaudhary Uncle and both his sons by now know very well that my presence there means that they have to get an "Airtel ka top-up for 100 rupees" done!
Then there was the old, dilapidated cafe, unlike any other cafe in the vicinity. We used to frequent it because it was cheap. And situated nearby. The Sify cafe is situated in Amar Colony and one has to walk for a good 20-25 minutes to reach the place. Plus our good old Back Market cafe only charges 10 bucks for an hour of internet surfing, five bucks per page for a black and white printout, and 15 bucks for a coloured one. So it proved to be highly economical for all us college girls who used it almost everyday. Even the tacky crowd from the hotel management college and girls from Polytechnic used to be a common sight. Uday Bhaiya was the guy who managed everything and after I had become a regular visitor, he would make sure I did not have to wait long even when there was a serpentine line of people queueing up to surf the net.
Then there was the Mother Dairy stall (where we used to buy Lick Lolleez during the summer evenings and where the Uncle manning the store was really sour and cranky!). And the Dry Cleaners (though I never had to pay them a visit). And the shop where girls used to have chaat and samosas. And the photography shop where we got all our camera films from. And the stationery shop. And the small multipurpose shop which doubled up as a small stationery and a courier centre, employing Blazeflash services (though my packet never reached Bangalore when I tried them once!).
And oh! How can I forget our ever-present Juice Uncle. It was a thela where we used to have fresh fruit juice, mainly oranges or pineapple or musammi. 10 bucks a glass and oh-so-refreshing and delicious. That juice was a staple everyday feature during the summer months. Nutritious and healthy. Plus the guy who used to make the juice was so polite to everybody, a kind of person who never picks up a fight with someone. And he always filled up our glasses with more juice! :)
Oh man, so many things...just about the market! The one constant refrain every evening would be, "Koi back market jaa raha hai kya?" And then a long list would be compiled about who needed what - maggi, recharge, coffee, chips, biscuits, pens, refills, etc etc. And the person going to the market would set out to get all the necessary requirements for every member of the pg. I will miss every tiny thing................
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