18.Pune Darshan (Part 1)

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Sunday,
6:30 am,
J.W.Mariott Lobby.

Meera entered the lobby looking around for any traces of Dev.
They had decided to go for Pune Darshan today and their first destination was Parvati.

( it's not Parvati ( Lord Shiva's wife) it's to be pronounced as प and not पा basically Parvati is a hill temple and hill means Parvat in Marathi hence Parvati).

Parvati is a hill which has temple and a museum. It was established by the Peshwas and for anyone visiting Pune for the first time, it's a must visit destination.

Meera called Dev.
"Dev, where are you?"
"Tumhare pichhe." Dev said in a mysterious tone.
"What? It's not the time for majak yaar".
Dev tapped on her shoulder from behind and she let out a scream.
Dev put a hand on her mouth as a reflex action and whispered "Chilla kyu rahi ho!!? It's me!".
She moved his hand "Dara diya mujhe!!".

They sat in a rickshaw and Dev asked Meera how she managed to get a rickshaw at 6:30 in the morning.
"Arre, he's our family rickshawale kaka. He comes at one phone call. I had told him yesterday itself".
They reached Parvati in 15 minutes and Dev saw a swarm of people at the gate.
"Bapre itni bheed!". Dev asked astonished.
"Aree abhi aur ayenge".

They started climbing the stairs and both were at the same pace in the beginning but after a few steps Meera started panting.
Dev looked behind to see Meera taking heavy breaths and teased, "Kya yaar you absolutely lack 'stamina' ".
Meera laughed and Dev slowed his pace to match it with Meera's.

The stairs were pretty steep so Meera took her good time reaching the top.
"I climbed Parvati after 3 years!!".She exclaimed.
"Now you'll see the breathtaking view of Pune from the hilltop". She added.
They proceeded to the open area and Dev saw the beautiful scene in front of him.

On a big landscape he could see buildings, trees, mountains and a river flowing below. It was very refreshing to the eyes.
People were walking on the bridge above the river and they looked like ants.
There were trees of gulmohar around them and the cool breeze made the branches dance with it.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Meera asked.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Meera asked

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"Absolutely". Dev replied.

Meera closed her eyes and Dev saw the cool breeze make her hair run wild. Sunrays falling on her sweat glistened face made her look like an angel.
They stood there for a few minutes and then clicked a selfie as a memory to cherish their time in Pune.

They reached the bottom of the hill and sat in a rickshaw.
"Dada, Vaishali la chala". Meera told him.
"Okay so now we have to be very very lucky to get a place in the hotel we're going to" She added.
They stopped at Vaishali and Dev could see maddening crowd outside. Literal queues of people.

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