Was chatting with an online friend about travelling solo and people we meet during our travels and that is when it struck me that more than once, have had strangers come to the rescue… It reminded me of this one instance during my Madhya Pradesh trip.. Here goes…
There we [Me & friend] were staying at the most gorgeous property on the tri[p- Kila Kothe in Chanderi. It was situated atop the hill, and right next to the Chanderi fort. After spending 2 fabulous days, it was time to head back and onto the next destination. We were off to Bhopal for a day and then to the final destination – Indore before flying back to our homes.
When we got to Chanderi, we took an auto to Jhansi station, then the train to Lalitpur [around 36 Kms from Chanderi] followed by a bus ride to Chanderi bus stand and then an auto up to the property. We had to pretty much the same thing, except our final destination was different. The day before, we had spent exploring Chanderi & had asked the auto guy if he could come take us to the bus stand. He agreed and arrived on time. We reached the bus stand, boarded and waited. Our train was at 1.15pm [acc to the schedule] and the bus ride was a good 2 hrs [it was one of those local buses], and clock the ticking away. The conductor assured us the bus would leave on time and we would make it with enough time to spare. We were nervous as hell but had no other choice. The only thing was to look for a later train in case we got late.
The bus made a move and we heaved a sigh of relief. But then, the bus stopped all along the way picking up people. One of the last to hop on was a group of women, all well dressed and looking like they were headed for a wedding or special occasion. They hopped in, and stood near us [they did not get a place to sit as the bus was packed]. We made eye contact, and as always I smiled, but they did not and in fact turned their face away.
Checked the time, it was 12.50pm and I was getting anxious. The bus rode along few more minutes before coming to a sudden halt. It was 1pm. We looked around trying to figure out where we were, if we could hop out and make it to the station when suddenly one of the women from the group asked us if we were headed to Lalitpur station. We nodded in agreement. They told us to get off here, and take an auto. What’s more, they helped us with out bags [friend had a largish suitcase] and even hailed an auto asking him to rush us to the station. Sent us off with a big wave and good luck!
Thanks to them, we reached the station & made it to our train.. Uff.. that was one nerve cracking journey alright!! It was truly heart warming to see strangers help us out!!
