It was during my visit to the UK that I also made sure I visited the city of my dreams(no pun intended!!) .. Paris. My love for the city is more than what words can describe, so maybe I'd just do that sometime else!! But... what did come back to me in my dream was the elegant, romantic and beautiful street-side cafes and restaurants of Paris.
I loved to see lovers, artistes,tramps,families(at times) and other wandering souls sitting on the chairs and tables laid out on the streets, sipping a cup of hot coffee and biting into a croissant and showing their love for each other without any inhibitions.
I wished Pune would be like that some day.
My Dream..
Scene 1:
I am on a visit of what looks like an old, dilapidated remains of a fort. I see three of my friends from office , who are visiting along with me. I recognize only 2 of them, I guess the last one's identity is lost in the thick of the night:) . The fort is built in a mountanious region and from where are standing, we can see the ground below us curve and dip and run into an open channel of water, at about a 25 feet below our current elevation. This particular picture in front of me reminds me of some of the palaces and castles we visited in Scotland. We are apparently playing a game... to run down at full speed down the slope and come up again.. whoever comes back first.. wins!
And there we go.. all four of us, running at full speed down the slope.. its impossible to curtail our momentum as we run further and further down.... I see all of my friends, one by one, reach the lowest level, turn back effortlessly and run back up. Its my turn now... I am about to reach the end of the slope when I find it impossible to put brakes on my feet and I crash into the open channel of water. I manage to get up somehow, but my momentum is lost and as much as I try, I find it impossible to scale the uphill terrain. I slip at times, I tire at times and give up... It looks like I am caught there forever, unable to reach up... These unscuccesful attempts of mine keep playing in a loop ..
Scene 2:
This is where Pune meets Paris. (In real life, I keep hearing of Bombay being transformed into Bangkok and all other false promises... at least in dreams, its possible to achieve the impossible!) .
I see the two quiet lanes behind my office. Its called Shivaji housing society and its situated at a stone's throw away from the bustling Senapati Bapat road, which houses many big IT companies in Pune). I love the houses built in these lanes as they are so approachable from the main road, yet so quiet and peaceful , almost cocooning themselves from the outside traffic and noise. They look unusually clean ... very very clean indeed. No stray dog in sight, no litter strewn around, no one's spit splashed across the tar, no street children's faeces dumped across the corners... The bushes and grass adorning the sides of the lanes are well manicured, the maple trees lining the sides are straight out of a beautiful painting. All the houses are built similarly and painted in pristine white. The wind is soothing to the ears, the leaves falling off trees makes it all look surreal.
There are rows of tables and chairs laid out on the lanes, along one side. I see myself seated at one of the tables, sipping on a cup of hot coffee. There's no one else around, as I take in the beauty around me and enjoy me cuppa'.
How I wish this turns into reality someday. I think we all deserve a much cleaner, a much better city to live in.
Scene 3:
Swine flu's made life hell for everyone in Pune. Unfortunately, the city of the Peshwas had to play host to a virus that has jumped from pigs!
I am in my office, where I see a couple of guys ( I recognize them, but no revealing names!) walking around looking quite sick. I see kerchiefs and towels tied around their noses and necks... I see one of the guys draped from head to toe in a winter woollen shawl.
Don't remember anything else from this part.. I guess this part of my dream was just the result of the fear pyschosis that's gripped the city.
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