AMRI OPD experience

We went to AMRI OPD around 1.30pm to see a doctor for my mother. She is 74 years old. On reaching, we came to know that, though the doctor's visiting time starts at 1p but today he will start at 2p due to an OT (I guess it was unplanned) which eventually started arround 3p. However, we paid the money upfront and kept on waiting in a overcrowded lobby. The doctor saw my mother and asked for an xray. Another queue started for advance payment for xray(Rs.800/-). Another round of waiting started infront of the xray room since there is a long queue for that as well. After waiting for nearly 30mins, she was called in the xray room. So she felt so exited on her turn but after a while she was sent out (around 4.50pm) since it took more time for her remove her ornament(only 2 ear rings). Meanwhile another patient entered the room. Another round of waiting started and end around 5.10pm. Another call from the xray room, I said to her, let's take another turn and see what happens 😊 . Fortunately, this time we made it and she came out of the room at 5.14p. So it was a 4mins job. However, we were asked to wait (not sure for how long) to collect the xray plate, so that, doctor could see it. We got the xray plate at 5.17p (3 mins). A new queue started again infront of the Doctor's room 😊. Finally the doctor called us, saw the xray and wrote a prescription around 5.35p. So this is my story to see doctor in AMRI OPD. A day well spent 😊

Our Sikkim trip: A comedy of mishaps (Part 9)

30th May 2010 – Home home sweet home

Luckily the bus ran smoothly and entered Kolkata by 8.30am on the next morning (30th May 2010). It was the day of corporation election in Kolkata. The bus runners were afraid of stopping the bus at my home stop (i.e. Sribhumi) due to probable political turbulences. So there were two options – either getting down near the Damdam Airport or at Ultadanga and catch a cab from there. I opted for the former one since it’s a challenge getting a taxi for a short distance from Ultadanga.

On the way to home (finally relaxed in the bus :)

Opportunely, we got a taxi asking for Rs. 150/- for a drop to home.
Home home, sweet home!! I realized the truth once more on that day. I am looking for another pleasure trip to get a relief from the stress earned from this tour. Please suggest ;)

Our Sikkim trip: A comedy of mishaps (Part 8)

29th May 2010 – Back to the roller coaster

On the day of departure (i.e. 29th May 2010) we were at the gate of the hotel by 9am. I noticed a Maruti Wagon R car was waiting to pick us up. Getting shocked with this I asked the car rental lady “who is this car for?” She replied since the Sumo met with an accident last night, she replaced it with this Wagon R (Thank God!! She did not go for a rickshaw). Wangon R is too small to carry 4 adults, 1 kid and our luggage on a long drive of 5 hours, so I denied going with it. The driver got angry and left immediately. The lady started calling different drivers to arrange for another car. Ultimately she could manage a Maruti Omni van (not again!!). This time it’s not a 1993 model, a little newer than that and well decorated. The driver was nearly 17/18 years old. Time was running out and we had to catch the bus from Siliguri at 7.15pm. Being compelled by the situation we started our journey with the Maruti Omni (collected one more pearl on our necklace of mishaps J. I noticed that the hotel manager and associates were standing there expecting for a concluding tip but I did not entertain them this time (the Mullah Nasiruddin idea :).

We halted in Jorthang for our lunch after two hours of drive. I went to an ATM to refill my pocket. The Union bank ATM was out of order. Finally I went to Axis bank. The security guard asked me to withdraw not more than Rs. 1000/- since all the other ATMs in that area were down and everyone was targeting this ATM (ATM rationing J). Anyway, we got a decent restaurant there. This is the first time we could taste a dish of fried rice during the trip. I got excited and ordered for a chilly chicken as. The chickens were not very friendly for our teeth (l realized later that it was not even safe for the stomach :) . So we finished our lunch very carefully and pushed off for the rest of our journey.

View from Rinchenpong Monastery

After a couple of minutes I heard a noise near the wheels of the car. When I asked the driver he replied the silencer pipe is broken (hmm! a new twist in the story!). Rests of the passengers were pretty relaxed after the lunch and trying for a little slumber with the nice cool breeze. I resisted the idea of passing the twist to them consuming the excitement myself J. The journey went on. After a while I noticed that our driver was not using the horn even at the sharp turns of the hilly road. Eventually the left mirror of our car got touched up by a truck while we were trying to overtake it silently. Everyone got anxious on why the horn was not blown. On asking the driver replied that the horn is not working ;), the trip was getting more and more piquant. I consumed this surprise also and smiled at my co-travelers. I took the role of driver’s helper J. My job was to pull out me head at the turns and alert the driver in case a car was coming from the other side. I was counting the minutes and the kilometers desperately toward the end of the journey; we were approximately 30 kilometers away from Siliguri. Ultimately the hilly road ended. We crossed the Sevok Bridge around 3pm and stated on the plain road heading toward Siliguri through the army camps on both sides.

Traditional instruments used at the farm for agriculture and field work

Usually vehicles run at the speed of more than 70/80 kilometers per hour on this smooth strip. I got a little relaxed looking at a milestone that indicated Siliguri was only 10 km away. Suddenly we came to a complete halt with a jerk and a sound; it was a tire puncture (wow!!). Fortunately, the truck following us had an expert driver who was able to stop instantly otherwise I wouldn’t have been left here to publish this story ;). We got off from the car in the middle of the road. I asked the driver for his plan forward. There was a tire lying on the back of the car which came out to a punctured one too J. I started waving my hands for a lift (just like in the movies :), finally found a big auto rickshaw that shuttles to the railway station (it did not have permit to Siliguri though) and captured that. The auto demanded for Rs. 200/- (too less for us at that moment). So we shifted from the car to the auto with all luggages. Within 4.30pm we reached a placed called Salugara. The auto driver connected us with another auto to Siliguri, so we shifted over once more. Finally around 5pm we were dropped at the main road of Siliguri on the opposite side of the bus terminus.

Being tired physically and mentally we were looking for a place to take some rest and food. I hired three cycle rickshaws to carry us to a nearest food corner and ended up in a rice eating place (with no other snacks options). At 5pm none of us were feeling like having rice once more, so we pulled our luggages to another food corner near by. We were all tired and sweating with a usual high temperature and humidity of the plain land. Some delicious food items like paratha / palak panir etc. were ordered (ahh!! After long days). Meanwhile I called up the bus service and came to know that the departure time of the bus was delayed to 8pm (instead of 7.15pm). Ladies were excited to find some extra time and utilized it properly in shopping. Finally around 7.30pm we hired two autos (Rs. 50/- each for a drive of couple of meters) to have us boarded on the bus. Six sleepers and four sits were booked for us so we occupied our seats comfortably. This is the first time I got rid of the frustration that was hunting me all the way.