...suspended animation, a state of bliss...

But Bugs, Gokarna definitely deserves a separate post doesn't it? And I can't think of a better way to spend a day off from work than go back to Gokarna...in the spirit of course! :-)

Well, where did it start? Where did it all really start?Water all around...water, pouring down from the high heavens, water below, roaring, separated from us only by the skill of the instructor and his rubber contraption called a raft (it is rubber right?)...was it the crystal clarity of feeling alive in those moments? Or was it the more mundane yet esoteric combo of Blue Riband Tango orange-flavored gin, Khoday's rum and home-made wine? Or could it have been the delightfully absurd conversation...(I still believe in capsicum!!) Let me just call it the 'Barrapole effect' - by the end of the little-less-than-48 hours we spent together at Barrapole, all we could think of was 'when's the next trip'.

The place of choice - Gokarna. The planets contrived in our favor and we found 9 souls willing to bunk a day at work to go on a trip, hold on to your seats, for Four Full Days! Before you could say 'Scooby Doby Dooo', Siva had sent a mail about 'Cow's Ears'. With all the damage that the rafting had done to our wallets, 'low-budget' was the buzzword. And off we went on a Rajahamsa one fine night to the enchanted li'l town. Someone's single-handed efforts @ snoring and the spine-crunching potholes ensured we all got litle sleep. The very delayed cant-remember-the-name Express meant bemused travelers (and a cat) at Udupi station got a chance to witness us 'city-slickers' (!!) playing Uno right there on the platform. And it was close to 6 in the evening when our down-but-definitely-not-out bunch toppled down into Gokarna railway station.

Legend has it that Lord Ganesha tricked Ravana into putting the Atmalingam on the shores of Gokarna. Well, as we drove down the gently curvaceous roads to the beach, we understood exactly why Shiva chose to stay rooted right there. :) Suffice to say the place Is Beauty. And we sensitive souls certainly didn't want to disturb the peace! So our daily schedule ran something like this:

Activities on Day 1: Reach Gokarna. With the pit stop at Udupi, it was quite an activity in itself.
Activities on Day 2: Walk on the beach/cliffs. Jump into the sea. Drink apple milkshake/tea. Eat. Talk. Crash.
Activities on Day 3: Walk on the beach/cliffs. Jump into the sea. Drink banana milkshake/tea. Eat. Talk. Crash.
Activities on Day 4: Walk on the beach/cliffs. Jump into the sea. Drink ginger-honey tea (yeah, you guessed right, they'd run out of milkshake) Eat. Talk. And bid adieu :-((

And of course, there was the fish. World-class low-fat(?) cuisine to complement our not-too-active existence! All this eating and drinking interspersed with frisbee on the beach with some more friendly tourists, football, tube rides (and a boat ride) into the deep sea, dolphin sightings, walks by the light of our cellphones, and of course the gangs second game of choice - Chain Cut! (The first is indeed, Truth-or-Dare :-D) And to round it all off, a generous dash of vodka and beer! :)

For Siva, it was 'tube madness' and a mudpack.
For Dan, the dance and music of the waves and the fish, of course.
For Sharad, it was about the photo-ops and a secret tryst with the temple priest's daughter.
For Bugs, it was about 'hearing your mind in the roar of the waves'.
For KK, trademark random one-liners, his camera and the sea.
For Rachna, a return to innocence with hopscotch and magic castles.

For Harini, milkshake mania.
For Anisha, sweet smiles and chocolate pudding.
For moi, well, some things are best left unsaid... ok ok, the truth is I've 'thunked' and 'thunked' so much to write all this I can't think noh-moh! :)

So what if we didn't see a sunset, did we have the time of our lives or what! And after an encounter with a friendly calf that adopted us as its extended family at the Gokarna bus stand, a long bus ride with a stopover for some regular 'meals', delicious omelette and fish curry (again!), we were back in good ol' Bangalore.

I have but one thing left to say: 'Can we puh-lee-ze go back sometime?' :)