I woke up at 6:15 A.M today, after only five hours of sleep, thanks to a wake-up call from B.K. My initial plan was to make the maiden trip to Bhongir in Nalgonda District but after checking the routes, I decided to head in the direction of Sanga Reddy instead. I took a bit of time getting ready for the trip and it was 7:05 A.M by the time I decided to leave the house. Getting the bike out of the parking lot was a hassle and it was 7:15 A.M before I finally got to leave. I took the Punjagutta – Ameerpet – SR Nagar – Kukatpally Main Road route to the NH9. The weather was fantastic with just the right amount of cloud cover and a light breeze. The traffic wasn’t that bad and the ride until Kukatpally was very smooth. After that there was a bit of traffic with a smattering of idiotic drivers and morons running across roads. From Chandanagar onwards, however, the road was traffic free and after Patancheru riding was a delight. My bike is still in the run-period so I was careful to keep the speeds in check at every gear and I made sure that I cruised in the 60-65 kph range. Riding the bike was effortless and there weren’t any niggles that bothered me. The bike was solid on the road and the ride was mostly comfortable. I have a tendency to grip the accelerator too tight and this cuts blood circulation to my index and middle finger so I had to flex them ever so often to get the feeling back, but that was the most discomfort I felt during the trip.
After Patancheru the scenery is filled with lush green fields and plant nurseries, and the overcast sky just added to the beauty of all of this. There were innumerable dhabas along with the road bearing the most interesting names; the likes of ‘zim zam’, ‘rim zim’ etc. I reached Nandi Kandi at 8:20 A.M and asked for directions to the temple. The villagers looked at me very incredulously and chose simply to point in the direction of the temple which was at the end of the village. Riding a 220 through such rustic surroundings felt odd and I ignored all the unabashed staring and made for the temple. From outside, it looked to be in a dilapidated condition and I was slightly disappointed. I still decided to take some pictures anyway and when I went in, I got to witness the real deal. The temple was apparently built during the Kalyana Chalukyan period and the architecture is splendid to behold. I’m not a religious person, but I love visiting old temples and this one didn’t disappoint me. It is star-shaped according to the description I got of it online. I couldn’t really fathom how it was supposed to be a star but the shape and the style was certainly unique. The sanctum featured a statue of Nandi and two of Lord Shiva in his Nataraja and Bhairava (correct me if I’m wrong) forms. There are also a few small shrines dedicated to Ganesha, Hanuman, Satya Sai Baba, and the Navagrahas. I found the temple to be ill-maintained and this was just a sad realization. We really need to take better care of the symbols of our heritage.
After checking out the temple to my satisfaction I decided to head back at 9:00 A.M. I ate breakfast at Sanga Reddy in a small tiffin center and then left for Hyderabad. The trip back was equally fun until Patancheru and then the traffic hit. After cruising all this while, riding in city traffic irritated me highly and the sun beginning to shine didn’t help matters any. I chose to be stoic about the whole thing and made my way back home at 10:30 A.M after riding a total of 128.7 kilometres for three and a half hours. In conclusion, the ride was a perfect maiden trip and the Pulsar 220 F proved its mettle. I’m looking forward to longer trips the next time around. Looking at all the places along the way to Nandi Kandi I realized that we always aspire to travel far away and discover new places but we almost compulsively ignore the places that are relatively close to us. I’m going to try and remedy this and visit every place I can in the surrounding areas of Hyderabad. Next time I plan to go to Bhongir Fort. Until then, cheers!
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