It was the month of May. My one and only dear sister had come down (or should I say come up?) to Delhi from Bangalore. She had come with her ‘team’ from office including her Team Lead(Codename: Cribber) and two other Team Members. The group also included the Team Lead’s sister (Codename: Cribber Reloaded!!. I had no idea into what we were heading into!) The group landed at Delhi Airport and I was forbidden to come to and receive the group (instruction executed as per High command (that’s my sister. Codename: Dee dee)) and instead wait at the ‘unique’ hotel at Karol Bagh (where a blast took place not so long ago for those who are unfamiliar).

Day 1: Fore warned

Dee dee: “She is a strange character. Kind of a cribber and irritating sometimes. I have warned you in advance”

Guy Team Member 1 (Code Name: TOWAIL {The One With  An Irritating Laugh}): (Laughing) “We have to make her agree to a plan according to your brother. Else she will stay indoors all day long”

Later

Cribber: “Oh, it is so hot here at Delhi.” ( I say you wanted to see a snowstorm in this time of the year?). ” We will stay indoors today in the air conditioned room of this hotel ” (A trip so far for THIS?!) ” Why don’t we postpone all plans for tomorrow?” (Amazing woman!)

Cribber Reloaded: ” Shut the door. I am trying to sleep in here” (Even more amazing sister!)

Finally I drag them to a Tourist Service and book a one day trip to Haridwar-Rishikesh (This again was Cribber’s choice! She is the Team Lead and this is her project: Making a trip miserable. And once the cribbing starts, it is horrifying!). A small suggestion on my part to go to Connaught place to see SOMETHING at the least on Day 1. We walk around CP. Every Delhiite walks in CP, you can’t expect to take an auto-rickshaw for just looking around can you?

The cribber sisters start their wail. “My legs are paining” “I wanna eat right now!!” ( The stomping of feet are missing). Finally after much deliberation I dragged them back to Karol Bagh in the metro (They insisted on a taxi but I firmly made them to travel by the metro. Anyways they didn’t know the place, to return on their own. Evil me!! I thought “good lesson for the cribbers!”)

Retiring for the night: Dee dee: ” This is just the beginning!”

Day 2: A day trip of Delhi.

All went fine. And the same Cribbing all through the day of dust, dirt, sweat, heat, magnified one hundred times by the wail of the Cribber Reloaded!

Day 3: The Haridwar Rishikesh Trip

Ah. Some peace at last with a guide on board who will tackle the cribbers. Oh how wrong was I.

Mr. Guide was the typical Indian guide. It was around 11 p.m, two hours after the bus started from Karol Bagh. The bus was almost full barring two seats. The bus stopped near the Akshardham temple to pick up the occupants of those two seats. People were snoring softly. Deep asleep. And suddenly we get the loud resonance of microphone feedback and Mr.Guide is blasting through it in a musical tone. “Hello Everybody. Welcome to #@!@ Tours. We have a one day trips to Haridwar Rishikesh. I request you to sleep early because we will be reaching there early in the morning around 5. So, Goooooooood Nighttt (Almost a parallel to Vidya Balan in LRMB. He actually woke up everybody to tell them to sleep off!!! Plain idiocy!)

The combination of heat, with the cribbers ,the guide and TOWAIL’s laugh made Day 3 more memorable. The previous days paled in comparison with this one, as we brother sister fought in irritation due to the afore mentioned reasons. Failed Camera batteries, the frequent cribbing, and the climate made it harder!

Day 4: Shopping

Cribbers found it hard. My sister had one up when it comes to shopping. She makes it interesting. They had no choice but to buy whatever she selected as her selections were always wonderful. Added to that were showers early in the morning so the cribbers didn’t touch upon the subject of heat. They had the flight back to Bangalore the same evening. At the end we brother-sister had fought more than spoke due to the irritants.  We took photos and made up for the lost time as departure time neared.

As for Cribber, my sister left that company to join another one and the last I heard of Cribber Reloaded was that she broke her hip! Wonder how that happened in spite of the “my-legs-pain-when-I-walk” ideal she has!