the ride home...

...what a hell of a ride? It started pouring late in the afternoon and didn't stop till late evening. Sitting late in the office, I got reports of water logging in many parts of the city causing a havoc in the traffic. The route that I take back home was reportedly very badly affected and the traffic was backed up for long distances. We decided to start a little later and let the traffic and the water subside. But our late was not late enough. On a regular day, it takes us about half an hour to reach back home. Today, it took more than 1.5 hours! Every dip on road was filled with water - there were puddles everywhere and long queues of vehicles. Being on the motorbike, we were on advantage as we could maneuver our way through the tiny spaces between the cars and the pavements and muddy stretches by the road. But we were not alone. There were probably 5 bikes fighting for a few inches of wheel-space. It was a battle of bikes today and nobody was ready to yield even an inch of space to others. I also jumped in and joined the race. More than saving time, it was about the thrill of driving in such conditions. In the middle of all that, the horn of my bike suddenly started screaming at the top of its voice. Probably some rain water had seeped in and triggered off some electric circuit. Surprised and confused and I started meddling with the switch but couldn't shut it down. Helplessly, I let it scream and continued to make my way through the traffic. The constant honking did invite a lot of unwanted attention. People (stuck in thick traffic and rain) looked at me with irritation, many on the verge of mouthing curses. But on seeing my condition, the irritation gave way to smile and then a laughter, louder than the horn from both sides. When it totally got on my nerves and I could take no more, I pulled over and started pulling the wires and cables connecting to the horn switch. That worked and it silenced it. I just checked it for normal functioning and everything seemed to be in order.

The long ride home today was probably the toughest I've seen in Hyderabad. As I was making my way through the mud and the tiny spaces, I pitied the ones driving the big sedans on those roads. They have a long drive tonight! :)