Aug 03, 2009 08:42 PM
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After spending 3 cool months in India, my better half knew that I would show very little interest in returning back to USA. So, he bribed me with a thought of showing New York instead of directly landing at St. Louis. Nurturing my dream of visiting the city which was fuelled after watching Kal Ho Na ho and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehena (MY SRK!!!!!!!!!!!), I could not but fall in to the temptation.
The sorrow of leaving my family was quickly replaced by the excitement of seeing a place which I had longed to see as soon as I landed at JFK airport early morning. The rainy weather joined my husband and in-laws (who had come for sometime to USA) to greet me and within two hours of my arrival, we had already started for Niagara Falls which was a good nine hours drive.
It was a drive which would never be erased from our memories. All nine hours, it was raining heavily and visibility was low. The GPS failed to catch signals and was unable to guide many a times. And the last thing you do when you are lost is rolling down your car window and asking "bhai sahaab, raasta bataayenge". After some struggle, some guesswork for the direction, and finally GPS, we landed at the chosen destination in the late evening.
What did I first notice about Mighty falls? The force with which crystal clear water falls is so intense that it seems to rise and merge with the clouds. It is at this particular moment when you decide that you are yet to see anything as magnificent as this and are to tempted to see the marvel closely. This wish is immediately fulfilled when we take a ferry ride. We were given a plastic blue raincoat since it is likely that we would get wet easily. The nearer you go, the more you are awestruck not just with the sound, view but even those white beautiful swans which tease water and look as if they are emerging from the falls. The falls is actually at the border of USA and Canada and the Canadian side is even more beautiful.
If you are ready for more adventure, Caves of the Winds awaits you. Here, you ride an elevator which is 53 meters deep into Niagara Gorge. We were given special slippers and wind sheet after which we reached the Hurricane Deck. The railing in which one stood has a very liberal dosage of water sprayed from the falls (mind you, its just a very small part of the falls and yet it seems to be quite ferocious that you are unable to open your eyes more than a few seconds) and however hard you try to hug the wind sheet, you still get wet. We also spotted a rainbow and before seconds it vanished too. Drenched with water, and soaked in joy, we realized why it is so famous.
The next day was spent in returning back to New York. New York reminds you of a Hollywood movie where you have yellow cabs, huge buildings (empire state building , Statue of Liberty and Times Square). Of course, it has been popularized in a song of the movie Dilli 6. If you take a sight seeing bus, you cannot miss the famous areas. I saw Empire state building, Statue of liberty, Times Square Building. There are many things which make you like New York.
For a change you would see more of people and less of cars. People are always in a hurry. If they are not in a hurry, then they must be like us visitors- clicking photos, watching buildings with fascination. Though it isn't a good place to walk, yet you want to walk, be a part of the crowd, you find everyone walking by with a purpose. And yeah, Karan Johar did not glorify New York without a reason. It really looks beautiful. The traffic here is plenty, yet you would always find them prioritizing the pedestrians instead of the other way round. Roadside vendors especially those selling fruits would fascinate you. The Chinese who have been here for long have built China town. That is the best thing about sightseeing bus in which you are explained about the places, the history behind them and what makes them popular. And then, you almost decide that you must stay here, work for a while here, and feel the life here. Even if you take a quick walk at Times square, you still enjoy it. That is the way city is being built. Perhaps had I got more days, I may have gone to Times Square and wall street all the days.
But every good thing must come to an end. Our trip also did. But it left the feeling of satisfaction - satisfaction of seeing one of the 'must see' places ;)
