Two years at the Capital...

Here I am back to what I considered the best relaxation 6 months earlier....On 2nd June 2010 I completed two years at the Escorts (Fortis) Heart Institute, New Delhi. This is the longest period I have worked anywhere since 2004.. When I reached Delhi on June 1st 2008, I never thought I will be here till 2010!!!!.. Something to cheer about .. or in my terms - A milestone !!!! I would not mind calling it an achievement..

Relocating to the capital was one of the decisions I made in less than a day..While I generally think a lot (too much at times) and discuss with people this decision was something I did on my own and surprised a few people around!!! Some felt this was coming while few were wondering what I would do in Delhi while few others felt I had a "undisclosed master plan"!!!!!!.. There were a few who were worried on how I would manage in hindi as all I knew was "Ek Gaon Mein ek kissan rehatha tha" and "Ek maar dho thukadaa"..

The blind over confidence that I had always carried with me never allowed me to worry about such genuine problems. A week in Mumbai in January 2008 and a week in north india in April 2008 meant I knew I could survive here, after all a lot of people from elsewhere survive in Chennai too...Food was never going to be a problem as I always liked north indian dishes.. the only concern I had was the cost of living here but the adventurous mind in me never wanted to let this opportunity go... Over and above all these I wasnt happy at Chennai anymore - an open secret...

Having travelled by the Tamil Nadu express a month earlier I had liked the train and its speed and hence decided to make my big trip by TN.. the journey like most of my other journeys is well etched in the mind.. Irritant co passengers, Ever cribbing elderly people travelling by free passes,adventurous youngsters all made my journey enjoyable.. special mention about Indian Railways here as the train was running late by 5 hours!!!!!!! I was probably the only soul in the whole train who was happy about it. Reasons - The time i had to spend at room in delhi would decrease and I could see the stations (Vijayawada, Balarshah, Gwalior and Jhansi) I missed in the previous trip while sleeping

Finally the train reached Hazrat Nizamuddin by 1 pm and I had a pleasant surprise... It was drizzling and being a huge fan of rain I instantly felt good.... Capital welcomed me with rain - as if it was just for me....On reaching Escorts I had to wait for my old friend Mr Bijender Singh Bali to guide me to the accommodation I was given... A special thanks here to Ms. Poonkodi Priya and Ms. Nivedita who had arranged for my accommodation...I could see the lotus temple from my room, a sight that often was refreshing...

Bali was instrumental in helping me acclimatise to the local market and shops, gettina a prepaid sim card - all within hours of arrival.. By evening I had already become comfortable about the place and a little about hospital too... Thanks to Bali... If not for his company I am not sure If I would have lasted here this long...

It was also the final of the first IPL and we watched it together till the midnight...Wasnt able to sleep then - new place, Delhi!!!!! and finally I was there at the very same hospital I wished to see way back in 2002!!!!!I was as usual confident (over) about getting used to the work place - after all I was joining a unit that had people who had trained/supervised me earlier and a few whom I had known already...

I had no problems with food - enjoyed north indian food provided by the hospital, wondering why people crib about the food quality (I didnt know all those items could be made better).. Instantly I felt comfortable with most of the colleagues if not all... Suddenly life appeared very easy... I felt handicapped only when i was in streets alone - communication problem...

Life had been hardly easier than the initial six months in delhi... Every month I had atleast 3-4 days off with minimum of 2 free weekends (something I had not known for 15 months before)... I traveled quite a bit - Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkatta, Jaipur and Saharanpur... I was feeling great that I had traveled to all the four metros in space of 2 months.....

I started enjoying work more than ever before partly because I was in a crowd of people who worked much harder than I do.....Had opportunity to work with few interesting people quite a lot of learning as well as fun..For most part there was a balance between work and fun... A few additions too - laptop and my little zen estilo all came because of escorts....

Delhi roads are something that amazed me since the first visit.. Time and again these roads provoke the thoughts of traveling more...

Delhi metro is something everyone mentions about. In my opinion Roads and Metro are the pride of the capital while there is nothing worthy to talk about the buses and trains (my favourite topic though)...Being here my dreams to visit more places have increased.....I hope to visit all those wonderful places and hopefully write a blog after another 365 days...