Earlier today Ivy and I drove from Mumbai to Kalaburagi. It was a long drive that we expected to take around 12 - 14 hrs.
We started from our Mumbai home in Powai around 5.30. Ivy and I were to share the driving. I hadn't driven a car in India for over 5 years. And hence told Ivy, I wanted to go first. Early morning, empty roads, I could afford a few mistakes and stops and starts and ... My biggest challenge was the stick drive. Having driven an Automatic and on the wrong side of the road in the US over the last 5 years, I was not very confident and a little nervous. However after around 10 minutes, my confidence came back and I was feeling good about it.
Ivy offered to take over. But I refused. I was in the drivers seat and told her she could takeover at the next stop. We decided to have breakfast after passing Pune. We entered Pune city around 7.30 and were out of it by 8.30. We got some traffic, but missed all of the famous Pune traffic jams.
We were now on the Pune-Solapur highway. Time for breakfast. I wanted to stop at a traditional Maharashtrian place for Misal Pav. At the same time, we did not want to wander off. We were on the lookout for our ideal place and the ones we saw were either closed or did not seem ideal. We finally settled for Vithal Kamats. A traditional South Indian place. I still wanted to have a local breakfast and so instead of the typical Masala Dosa, I ordered a Maharashtrian speciality, Misal Pav. And it was awesome. The best Misal Pav, I've eaten.
After breakfast, Ivy once again wanted to take over. I had started enjoying my new found skill of driving in India. And once again jumped in the drivers seat. And off we were. The roads were beautiful. There was minimal traffic and we were cruising. We finally halted for lunch just after Solapur around 1. This was once again a Vithal Kamat, but not as nice as the first stop. We shared a Thali and a PuranPoli variation.
The final leg of our journey had good roads, but were single lane. And so it was a little slow. We made it to Kalaburagi by around 3.45. We got lucky and got to our Kalaburagi home in just over 10 hrs. And the first thing we did was have Ivy's awesome homemade Chai. Interestingly enough I wasn't tired and was once again left in awe and thoroughly impressed by the progress that we had made in terms of infrastructure.
We started from our Mumbai home in Powai around 5.30. Ivy and I were to share the driving. I hadn't driven a car in India for over 5 years. And hence told Ivy, I wanted to go first. Early morning, empty roads, I could afford a few mistakes and stops and starts and ... My biggest challenge was the stick drive. Having driven an Automatic and on the wrong side of the road in the US over the last 5 years, I was not very confident and a little nervous. However after around 10 minutes, my confidence came back and I was feeling good about it.
Mumbai traffic was light since it was Sunday early morning. Our intention was to try and cross Pune city before 8 so we could beat the Pune city traffic, which makes Mumbai traffic seem like a highway. Our first stop for fuel was at the rest stop on the Mumbai - Pune expressway. While I was fueling, Ivy got us a cup of coffee. What stuck me was the size. It was less than 1/5th of the US coffee size. But quality beat quantity. It was super flavorful.
Ivy offered to take over. But I refused. I was in the drivers seat and told her she could takeover at the next stop. We decided to have breakfast after passing Pune. We entered Pune city around 7.30 and were out of it by 8.30. We got some traffic, but missed all of the famous Pune traffic jams.
We were now on the Pune-Solapur highway. Time for breakfast. I wanted to stop at a traditional Maharashtrian place for Misal Pav. At the same time, we did not want to wander off. We were on the lookout for our ideal place and the ones we saw were either closed or did not seem ideal. We finally settled for Vithal Kamats. A traditional South Indian place. I still wanted to have a local breakfast and so instead of the typical Masala Dosa, I ordered a Maharashtrian speciality, Misal Pav. And it was awesome. The best Misal Pav, I've eaten.
After breakfast, Ivy once again wanted to take over. I had started enjoying my new found skill of driving in India. And once again jumped in the drivers seat. And off we were. The roads were beautiful. There was minimal traffic and we were cruising. We finally halted for lunch just after Solapur around 1. This was once again a Vithal Kamat, but not as nice as the first stop. We shared a Thali and a PuranPoli variation.
The final leg of our journey had good roads, but were single lane. And so it was a little slow. We made it to Kalaburagi by around 3.45. We got lucky and got to our Kalaburagi home in just over 10 hrs. And the first thing we did was have Ivy's awesome homemade Chai. Interestingly enough I wasn't tired and was once again left in awe and thoroughly impressed by the progress that we had made in terms of infrastructure.
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