.....my first new years outa d normal dilliwala celebration comprising parties nd loadsa TV watching.... fuelled d sumo to a kick start at 7:30 in d evening, estimated to be a four hr long journey.... d merrymakers: me , my sis: kritika, lavanya , shruti , edgar , sameer , saifi , tejas ,lovelet and masuma with her college friends in another gaddi...

night drive has always been one of my major leisure fantasies...just drive down d best lanes with the best music and forget what the world is upto!!!...this one though no muzic..was a pleasant drive on d curvy hill roads...

each turn reminded me of 'i know what ya did last summer' if ya rem d place where d guys met with an accident, all dark nd only dippers nd headlights!!!

fud:: had chikkis nd mommy made maddu(south indian as shruti puts it) stuff to munch....muzic:: krits nd me fadofyd r vocal chords nd left everyone dumbstuck to utter frustration!!!! both of us were high...dint know what we were screaming...but nevertheless it made d journey less dan 'non-musical'...

teja dahling as usual fell victim to d stunts of the leg puller-eddd....but d fun part is, he never realises dat!!!!!

halted for dinner at some road side dhaba...set up in d conventional dhaba way where ppl sit on cots with wooden planks to serve the food....d perfect ambience made us xpect too much outta edibles too but to our dismay, d fud was just edible nd nothing more dan dat..everything tasted similar......thanking god for d stomach fill we moved forwrd nd finally reached the hilly destination at rnd 11:59;)))....

just when the clock struck 12 , we were at venna lake to welcome d cliche new year....hugs , gifts and lotsa photos marked d 'd' hour bw 12 nd 1.......nd wen d realisation set in, we needed a shelter...hotels all bukd...we set out to hunt for a night halt point...nd managed one priced at 900 bucks per room.....which would have been worth nothing more dan 200 bucks on any other day....

as they say 'beggers cant be chosers'..we settled for it and ppl from infy/TCS joined us.....xpected an all nite chat and loads of fun but d sweet slumber called everyone and the next hour we had to hit the bed to realise dat dis was what v wanted d most...

i get up in d middle of d nite to find myself shivering like an eskimo without his defining attire...felt as if ill die...cudnt imagine myself getting outa d porous blanket...but on second thoughts, life needed little courage..!! managed to grab a sweater and again slid inside the blanket hoping to get up alive in d morning..

d morning begins with ppl thumping nd knocking at the door....few pics v click, dcide to check out of d place....

d day begins with points to see...scenic beauty catches d eye..but dint know d expedition will continue d whole day.....

nothing can take away the visual treat echo point offered....

breakfast : raddish , cucumber , neembu pani , chaas , kokum juice..

hungry dogs end up in an eating joint finally at rnd 3....d faces with tongue virtually hanging out could have made d ppl serve food free of cost....the next hour it was nothing but grabbing , eating and again eatiing.....as d inaudible burp came..we pushed off for another unending tour of point visits...

at rnd 7, v agin end up at venna lake for boating....dint know rowing a boat could be cho much fun!!! sam ,eddd, lavanya , shruti , me nd krits..each one us had r time learning and r owing d boat..sam as usual being d guide and d teacher....

capturing the venna lake view at nite with a brush cud b an artistes' fantasy...the picture formed by a dying saffron hill covering d black-green hill range bhind and fencing a water body.,, with d best artistic inclinations one cud ve, this was unthought of!!!!

v go dining with lotsa patties and frankies..delicious and specific to maharashtra..me n krits had a stomach fill with d stuff..some more chat nd few choco drinks and our part of hogging was over...

lotsa talking with sis..nd d day seemed perrfect...

inspite of dciding otherwise, we ended up wanting a shelter again..so we get cosy in another hotel, priced less but lukd better only to find d sanitation pathetic!! my sis ends up feeling puky!!

v get up d next morning, planning to see d sunrise but d moment v step outta d darkness of d hotel..its all bright already...so v finally head towards pune...a silent ride to our abode!!!!