Summers in India - south to north... to hell and back!

unoczar · 17th May 2010, 16:26

Hi Teammates,

Back at 3 pm today after my 17 day trip to the northern parts of india. The trip was enchanting in parts, but whatever could go wrong to us, and our car did go wrong, i was reflecting on the past 17 days, i and i was saying to myself.. "Kya aur kuch hamare saath galat ho sakta tha?". Well, i will take a part of the blame.. but our driver said that "bhai, somebody is doing choo chaa on us and our car", i said, "pagal ho gaya hai kya?", but now when i do reflect on the entire trip , i am also forced to think likewise..

well, kala jaadu or not, i'm back in one piece after visiting heaven and hell both in 2 weeks, will post more details and pictures (2-3GB) soon.

stay tuned...

MX6 · 17th May 2010, 16:48

choo chaa!

Well unroll it. We are too eager to know about your great 17 days!

ranjith.rajaram · 17th May 2010, 16:53

WOW

waiting for logs and pics....

LongDrive lover · 17th May 2010, 17:07

People use fabulous pics as teasers, but, your mysterious 'choo chaa' looks more promising. Come on with details.

srikanthpotluri · 17th May 2010, 17:29

Cant wait to hear the story buddy

aargee · 17th May 2010, 18:19

Somehow I feel the title is little disturbing to me. It gives me a feeling of "Summers in south = hell". Anyway, looks like you'd some bad experiences with the car & let's see how it went, keep your travelogue coming.

unoczar · 18th May 2010, 09:34

thank you all for your comments...

i just got up after 15 hours of continuous slumber.. phew! i dont think i have slept that long in ages!

seems like i have got up after 17 days of dreams.. some bad some very beautiful.

To start off, i would say that borrowing my dad's scorpio was the biggest mistake of this trip! His driver (also the driver for our trip) drove it like a go kart for the last two years, which i discovered thru our journey, in parts.

I really missed my swift, for i have maintained it well. The mighty scorpio, thank god, had no problem with its engine.. it was revving well under severe pressure too!

The problem started off with the battery.. PHATAAAK!... off it went! The hood was dented, acid all over, smoke coming out from under the hood. We were all pretty scared! Where did this happen? On the hills, about 17 KMS from shimla! But thanks to the numerous automotive shops in those areas, we dint feel much pain, although we did have to park it on slopes, and also push the 2.5 tonne elephant a number of times!!

other problems on the way.. brake pads-totally worn out, metal on metal mechanic said ; clutch plates, clutch cylinder both had to be replaced! ; and one more horrific thing happened, that will come later!

Well, details later as we go on! i know some of you will say that it was our fault that we pushed it so far, but i had no idea boss, i am no car expert! But i maintain my vehicle well.
I dint know about this car, as it was handed over to me 2 hours before departure!

Before flag off: me to driver-

servicing toh karva li thi?
haan bhai sab kuch karva liya!
oil wagareh?
haan bhai, sab kuch. wheel alignment, balancing.. (shows me the bill)
ok, oils, tyres, battery, brakes, clutch.. in sabka kya?
chalo na bhai... jayenge, sab theek hai... mai ye gaadi 2 saal se chalaru, kuch nahi hoga, koi fikr ki baat nahi hai!
(now, all you non-hyderabadis make note.. when a hyderabadi says, fikr ki baat nahi hai.. start chewing your nails!)

A couple of "sad" pictures from the journey.

The first two were taken when we were stranded in the middle of nowhere, somplace in MP! Actually we spent a lot of time in MP, seeing places and repairing cars.. i vow never to go to MP again. I'd rather go all the way to Mumbai and then to north, if i were ever to go again.

The third picture is of a sunset when another punctured tyre was being mended, in Seoni, MP.

Summers in India - south to north... to hell and back!-picture-078.jpg

Summers in India - south to north... to hell and back!-picture-079.jpg

Summers in India - south to north... to hell and back!-picture-092.jpg

Please pardon me for picture quality... These were taken from my Canon IXUS 7.0 mp.
60% size of original.

I hope to start the blog in the evening.. please have patience, some things to set right in the day!

c ya!

unoczar · 18th May 2010, 09:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by aargee

Somehow I feel the title is little disturbing to me. It gives me a feeling of "Summers in south = hell". Anyway, looks like you'd some bad experiences with the car & let's see how it went, keep your travelogue coming.

nahi brother, i consider myself in south india itself, and i love it here... hot weather or cold..
waise bhi.. summers are worse in MP, Haryana, Delhi etc..

check the first two pics above.. and you'll know what i mean by hell. The car broke down several times.. PHEW!

SS-Traveller · 18th May 2010, 10:19

A chauffeur-driven travelogue, no less! Looking forward to the rest of it - both the pleasant and unpleasant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by unoczar

...the battery.. PHATAAAK!... off it went! The hood was dented, acid all over, smoke coming out from under the hood.

You actually had your battery casing burst while driving? This is something I've not heard of in ages. Remember those cars on the highways 30 years ago, with headlights on in the daytime because battery overcharge ho gaya? I thought alternators ended that chapter of motoring...

musicmanaman · 18th May 2010, 10:52

This is going to be one good read, waiting for more of the good and the bad.

Fordmanchau · 18th May 2010, 11:03

Hey Unoczar,
You are back with a phataak!!! ( I meant BANG!!), good start.
Waiting to hear your story and about the Choo cha of the car.
Certainly it would have been a ordeal , dealing with car breakdowns when on the trip.

MX6 · 18th May 2010, 11:09

It takes a lot of skill to express frustration with humour. Satire and self directed sarcasm are part of a dying art.
I see that in you with that statement of yours "When a hyderabadi says koi fikr nahin start chewing your nails".
Seems like we have another smart cat here!

LongDrive lover · 18th May 2010, 11:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by MX6

It takes a lot of skill to express frustration with humour. Satire and self directed sarcasm are part of a dying art.
I see that in you with that statement of yours "When a hyderabadi says koi fikr nahin start chewing your nails".

. This thread is sure going to be followed by many. Waiting for more.

unoczar · 18th May 2010, 11:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

A chauffeur-driven travelogue, no less! Looking forward to the rest of it - both the pleasant and unpleasant.

You actually had your battery casing burst while driving? This is something I've not heard of in ages. Remember those cars on the highways 30 years ago, with headlights on in the daytime because battery overcharge ho gaya? I thought alternators ended that chapter of motoring...

even the exide fellow we went to, in shimla said, "maine apni zindagi mein aisi battery nahi dekhi?!"

now, i think t-bhp experts can shed some light... i can just provide few details...
this happened early morning at kufri.
the battery was giving problems since MP to HP...
i had no clue about batteries so a friend who was travelling with us and our driver sahab kept pouring "bisleri" into the battery.. they also sealed the openings with small plastic things to keep the water from coming out every now and then....
i feel this is the reason of the blast.. i had even asked them not to do that...

and, it was not completely chauffeur driven, he did 60% of the driving, i did 30%, and two other friends 5%.

lsp · 18th May 2010, 11:43

@unoczarWaiting to read about the things in detail and the Choo Chaa part.

In the first pic the taillights are held together by cellotape. That should've given u a hint?

17th May 2010, 16:26	#1
unoczar BHPian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 536 Thanked: 224 Times	Summers in India - south to north... to hell and back! Hi Teammates, Back at 3 pm today after my 17 day trip to the northern parts of india. The trip was enchanting in parts, but whatever could go wrong to us, and our car did go wrong, i was reflecting on the past 17 days, i and i was saying to myself.. "Kya aur kuch hamare saath galat ho sakta tha?". Well, i will take a part of the blame.. but our driver said that "bhai, somebody is doing choo chaa on us and our car", i said, "pagal ho gaya hai kya?", but now when i do reflect on the entire trip , i am also forced to think likewise.. well, kala jaadu or not, i'm back in one piece after visiting heaven and hell both in 2 weeks, will post more details and pictures (2-3GB) soon. stay tuned...
	(2) Thanks

17th May 2010, 16:48	#2
MX6 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: City of seven islands. Posts: 2,877 Thanked: 231 Times	choo chaa! Well unroll it. We are too eager to know about your great 17 days!
	() Thanks

17th May 2010, 16:53	#3
ranjith.rajaram BHPian Join Date: May 2008 Location: Pune >> Bangalore Posts: 356 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	WOW waiting for logs and pics....
	() Thanks

17th May 2010, 17:07	#4
LongDrive lover BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Lucknow Posts: 782 Thanked: 114 Times	People use fabulous pics as teasers, but, your mysterious 'choo chaa' looks more promising. Come on with details.
	() Thanks

17th May 2010, 17:29	#5
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Cant wait to hear the story buddy
	() Thanks

17th May 2010, 18:19	#6
aargee Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: TSTN Posts: 6,236 Thanked: 9,643 Times	Somehow I feel the title is little disturbing to me. It gives me a feeling of "Summers in south = hell". Anyway, looks like you'd some bad experiences with the car & let's see how it went, keep your travelogue coming.
	() Thanks

18th May 2010, 09:34	#7
unoczar BHPian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 536 Thanked: 224 Times	thanks guys thank you all for your comments... i just got up after 15 hours of continuous slumber.. phew! i dont think i have slept that long in ages! seems like i have got up after 17 days of dreams.. some bad some very beautiful. To start off, i would say that borrowing my dad's scorpio was the biggest mistake of this trip! His driver (also the driver for our trip) drove it like a go kart for the last two years, which i discovered thru our journey, in parts. I really missed my swift, for i have maintained it well. The mighty scorpio, thank god, had no problem with its engine.. it was revving well under severe pressure too! The problem started off with the battery.. PHATAAAK!... off it went! The hood was dented, acid all over, smoke coming out from under the hood. We were all pretty scared! Where did this happen? On the hills, about 17 KMS from shimla! But thanks to the numerous automotive shops in those areas, we dint feel much pain, although we did have to park it on slopes, and also push the 2.5 tonne elephant a number of times!! other problems on the way.. brake pads-totally worn out, metal on metal mechanic said ; clutch plates, clutch cylinder both had to be replaced! ; and one more horrific thing happened, that will come later! Well, details later as we go on! i know some of you will say that it was our fault that we pushed it so far, but i had no idea boss, i am no car expert! But i maintain my vehicle well. I dint know about this car, as it was handed over to me 2 hours before departure! Before flag off: me to driver- servicing toh karva li thi? haan bhai sab kuch karva liya! oil wagareh? haan bhai, sab kuch. wheel alignment, balancing.. (shows me the bill) ok, oils, tyres, battery, brakes, clutch.. in sabka kya? chalo na bhai... jayenge, sab theek hai... mai ye gaadi 2 saal se chalaru, kuch nahi hoga, koi fikr ki baat nahi hai! (now, all you non-hyderabadis make note.. when a hyderabadi says, fikr ki baat nahi hai.. start chewing your nails!) A couple of "sad" pictures from the journey. The first two were taken when we were stranded in the middle of nowhere, somplace in MP! Actually we spent a lot of time in MP, seeing places and repairing cars.. i vow never to go to MP again. I'd rather go all the way to Mumbai and then to north, if i were ever to go again. The third picture is of a sunset when another punctured tyre was being mended, in Seoni, MP. Please pardon me for picture quality... These were taken from my Canon IXUS 7.0 mp. 60% size of original. I hope to start the blog in the evening.. please have patience, some things to set right in the day! c ya!
	(1) Thanks

18th May 2010, 10:52	#10
musicmanaman BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: kolkata Posts: 927 Thanked: 25 Times	This is going to be one good read, waiting for more of the good and the bad.
	() Thanks

18th May 2010, 11:03	#11
Fordmanchau Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 1,666 Thanked: 340 Times	Hey Unoczar, You are back with a phataak!!! ( I meant BANG!!), good start. Waiting to hear your story and about the Choo cha of the car. Certainly it would have been a ordeal , dealing with car breakdowns when on the trip.
	() Thanks

18th May 2010, 11:09	#12
MX6 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: City of seven islands. Posts: 2,877 Thanked: 231 Times	It takes a lot of skill to express frustration with humour. Satire and self directed sarcasm are part of a dying art. I see that in you with that statement of yours "When a hyderabadi says koi fikr nahin start chewing your nails". Seems like we have another smart cat here!
	() Thanks

18th May 2010, 11:43	#15
lsp BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: New Delhi Posts: 381 Thanked: 188 Times	@unoczarWaiting to read about the things in detail and the Choo Chaa part. In the first pic the taillights are held together by cellotape. That should've given u a hint?
	() Thanks