Photo Travelogue :
Read first part - Here!
I have been to Surat twice ~ back to back visits.
Day One - I visited the haunted Dumas Beach, which I have already written about.
Day Two - I visited the police station, the very next day, near its Railway Station.
Why did I visit the police station? Read on...to know!
my auto ride in Surat...
traffic looks same in all major cities, no?
the roads around the city and its various vehicles...
( after the '94 plague outbreak, Surat is relatively a cleaner city now )
some landmarks ~ business center, official bldgs, malls and the airport...
some directions around the city...
road to Dumas Beach via Surat airport...
Dumas Beach circle...
evening view of the city...
outside the busy Station & Bus Stop...
trip to a restaurant after an eventful day...
#Authentic #Gujarati #Thali~ #foodie #travelblogger #foodporn #lp #ttot #travelphotography #roadtrip #foodandwine pic.twitter.com/VON3XlqVlC
— ? ? NandiniDéka ? ? (@NandiniDeka) December 8, 2015
The 'REAL' Adventure...
So, all was good. Satisfied, that I could cover Dumas Beach, with few spooky things happening too while there, I was all set to return. I got a general ticket again, but decided to enter a reserved compartment and get my ticket upgraded by the TC. The trains back to Bombay were full, and general tickets are valid for all trains. I waited in the platform, checking all the pictures I had clicked, till the train came. I was carrying two phones. One was attempted to be stolen earlier, remember? Anyhow, the train arrived, and I hurriedly put my phones in the outer pocket of my backpack, and got up to board. All these while, I was ignorant if anyone was keeping eyes on me. I got inside the train. It was packed like anything. I heard a zipper open behind my back. I wasn't sure it was mine, till I actually got a seat to sit on. Its when I noticed my bag zipper was open, and my new phone was missing. I checked and checked, yes, it was indeed gone. I alerted few people that my phone was stolen. The train had already started moving by then. I called frantically from my other phone. Someone picked up, but, cut it off hurriedly after saying 'hello'.
It was with someone, not missing! I got frantic and started asking people around if anyone had my phone. None did. I was told to report the theft in an upcoming station. Then suddenly, my phone rang. It was a call from my stolen phone. A man spoke. He said, he had got the phone lying somewhere; and asked me to go to the general compartment to get it from him. It was few coaches behind where I was - the reserved coach. When the train halted at a station, I got down and ran wildly to the general coach. The man called again, saying he was near the toilet door. There were many toilet doors, which one? I kept asking, but he would not say and kept the phone down. The train started moving again...and this time, I was in the crowded general compartment, wondering which of the many many faces had my phone. Everyone simply started back at me. It was like some horror movie. I asked another man to call up from his phone. This time, the man would not pick up. Later, after trying many times, he did pick...and started abusing, saying he had already got down in Vapi. Come get it - he challenged. By this time, I was convinced my phone was stolen. He called up on my phone and abused me as well. Phone chahiye #@*$ - aake le ja...
at dahanu station...12.53am...
reached Bombay at 2.40am...
I got down in Dahanu Road to file a report - that my phone was stolen. But, the RPF there said it was just an outpost, and that I should report it in Vapi where the man had got off. I couldn't do anything, so took a late night train back. It was almost 2.40 am when I finally reached Bombay. It was so late or rather so early in the morning ( 2.40 am ), in Dadar, that I was worried my building gates would be closed ( read ~ locked ) then. So, whole night I spent in the station itself, killing mosquitoes. A TC came by and asked me, what I was doing alone in the platform so late, and told me to go home; I related my incident. He listened sympathetically, but couldn't really do anything, and so went on with his duty. Sigh! With my fav phone stolen, my heart was broken that day...
The next day, early morning, I took a train to Surat ( from Borivali ) and got down in Vapi station to report. But, I was informed that I should report it in Surat, where the phone was stolen. Bombay-Surat is a busy route and there are frequent trains, so I hopped in another one and reached Surat. The RPF station is near the Railway station, just behind the bus-stop. To cut things short, they took information about my phone - its serial number and IMEI/MEID etc, also a written complaint. But till date, four years have passed, I haven't got my baby back. Weirdest thing I remember, is the person who wrote the report asking me to file the complaint as 'lost' and not stolen. This, after all the abuses and threats I had got from the thief himself ~ which I informed the police too. Makes me wonder if they are hands-in-gloves with them - the police and thieves! Phew!
Surat beside the Tapi River, is a city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It used to be a large seaport and is now a centre for diamond cutting and polishing. Once known for silk weaving, Surat remains a commercial center for textiles. Overlooking the river, Surat Castle was built in the 1500s to defend the city against Portuguese colonists. Nearby, the Dutch, Armenian and English cemeteries contain elaborate colonial-era tombs. ( wiki ).
Address : Surat, Gujarat.
Stay tuned for all my road, rail, flight, cruise & walk trips.
( Images - ©Mine. All rights reserved. )
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