She Answers

Two days ago near Hydrabad:

After a grueling meeting...where I got kicked out of an office and refused to leave without a peaceful, professional conclusion, in trying to move ahead with the day in a practical manner, I headed for the Secundrabad train station, hoping to find the AC'ed Tourist Reservation office to spoil myself in the few pluses of being labeled an outsider, while getting tickets.

...Alas, contrary to Lonely Planet and the Indian Railway website, there doesn't seem to be such an office at Secundrabad. The auto dropped me off on the direct opposite end of the station to where the general reservation desk was located. ...No surprise...such drops have happened time and time again...where I walk nearly as much as I rode on the auto in order to get to the right place.

Finally getting to the reservation desk, I was determined not to re-live the reservation desk experience I had had the day before at the Kanchekunj station, where I was put on the spot and forced to buy a ticket which I later found out was an RAC ticket (not confirmed). I also wanted to avoid the sardine sqeeze at the inquiry desk line. Hence, I waited patiently at an empty window that seemed to have an employee somewhere nearby.

While waiting, She answered. I was on the brink of one of those moments where I just didn't want to take anymore surprises...and it's always a chore to decide which train fits my schedule and still has space. She, the Divine, answered by sending a new friend along, Hridesh. Hridesh is a soft spoken PhD student at one finest molecular cell biology centers in the world...based in Hydrbad :).

Hridesh, being from Rajasthan, could relate to my obstacles of getting around Andhra and getting train tix. Since he had an open lunch break, he generously helped me tag team in order to get the right train numbers I needed to book the last minute ticket to Banglore...and to come up with a back up plan of booking a bus. AND he pushed me to get the next leg's ticket, to Delhi. Getting tickets for 2 trips in advance was a first for me!

After being done with my train ticket chores, I got a tour of the center he works at...I was completely impressed. After having spent so much time going to village sites the last few weeks, it was surprisingly refreshing to see India's top biologists at work. Regardless of the sightseeing of the center, I was so grateful for running into Hridesh...he couldn't have divinely connected at a better time.