The Great Escape!!

Sales, Distribution, Retailing,Branding, Capital markets, supply chain, presentations, assignments,... a 24 hrs holiday for all of them ...and 9 propective managers embark on a trip to Kashid and Murud-Janjira, on the Konakan coast, @ 30 kms from Alibaug in Maharashtra.

The gang consists of Amit(a Bangalorite,loves to be referred to be as the devil), Anish( Malu born in Delhi,lovingly called Unni-Cola, for he worked in Coke before joining B-School),Chirodeep(aka Chiro, an IIT-Kgp architect, his brain is faster than most others in the batch),Dileep(lovingly called "kanna" by his malu friends and an ace striker with the football),Dinesh(aka Hawkeye, loves being photographed, can crack some heavy doses of "masala" jokes),Subin (an agricuture grad from kerala, can easily pass on as a gentle giant),Sunil(Electrical engineer from Manipal, never ever seen a guy with as great a sense of humour as him), Surekh(a proud malu computer engineer, who can talk on just about anything ranging from prawns to astronomy),and myself.

Thus the gang of 9, settled into a qualis at midnight, on a 180 kms trip, from Hinjewadi on the outskirts of Pune.The low temperatures ensured everyone was protected to the core in their warm clothes and the prospect of travelling through the night was quite thrilling. This also meant that we sure will cut on boarding expenses and instead spent the money somewhere else if not save it!!

Guys who sat with the driver on the front seat had the tough task of staying up all night to make sure that we are on the right track and dont loose our way. The way to kashid off the expressway was almost deserted and our vehicle was the lone ranger along the way.The moonlight road, coupled with guys cracking jokes along with the usual leg pulling and vibrant music playing ensured we were awake till quite long. Just as it looked a few of them were almost about to sleep, it was time to stop by the highway for a quick cup of tea. The wind was chilly and the passing trucks ensured that we are subjected to some cold blows of wind along the highway.

After the tea stop our qualis just raced away and before we could realise the sea was in sight along the road. The sea formed the periphery of the roads for quite a stretch which prompted us to stop our vehicle and catch a glimpse of the shores. Nature had blessed the place with serenity and the only sound was that of the waves with a tinge of cool breeze around. This was the last stretch of our journey before we reached Kashid beach at 5 in the morning...and this was some sight, white and fine sand, rising waves lashing the shores with no evidence of human beings around the vicinity ......

The cold within tolerable limits, we made ourselves comfortable on the beach gazing at the sky decorated with stars. As we were left admiring the scenes, few members of the gang preferred to catch up with some sleep while it seemed the sun was slowly making its entry and light was piercing its way through the night sky.

The morning saw us play beach football which saw me give away perhaps the fastest ever goal to the opposition in the history of the game.

As the sun shone brightly, the sea water got a bit warmer and all of us ventured into the sea, with everyone trying to dip the other . I too became a victim and got the taste of the salty water.
The session was followed by a clamour for food, but it was decided to skip breakfast and rather proceed to Murud about 15 kms from the place for lunch. Murud had been featured on lonely planet and we booked a room at a place called Bamboo nest along the sea shore. The place had hammocks tied to the coconut trees and this served us a welcome siesta after the heavy and delicious lunch.

In the afternnon, we were on our way to the local fort situated on an island off the coast in a sail boat. The journey was mesmirising and so was the fort whose history dates back to some 900 odd years.

The digital camera ensured we clicked pictures at all landmark locations untill we return back to our room to pack off.

The sun was about to descent and our journey too was about to end. A bicycle ride along the shore coupled with cold breeze mildly blowing made it a perfect evening.

The journey back to my B-School ensured that it was among the fastest and most enjoyable 24 hrs I had ever spent and will probably rank among the top getaways from the fast and hectic life at scmhrd