Vacations

Enjoying holidays, for me nowadays, is just limited to sleeping for most of time, and wacthing movies for rest of the time. The quality of vacation time has been steadily decreasing with age, and I can safely say it has hit the rock bottom this time around. Next time I will have to start digging :). Staying in a foreign land, with no relations to go to, or friends who are free enough to see me around..., it really feels as if vacations had better never come.

The best of times were those when I visited my grandparents for the summer vacations. Two months of heaven. I used to turn into this pampered brat for that period, nobody to scold me there :). Getting up at ungodly hours, hearing a mild complaint from grandma about how late it is, run around some, have lunch, run around some more. Sit beside the radio and hear to the same songs repeated everyday in that peculiar tone which only the indian radio speakers can produce in the world. Take a walk around the compound, saying hi to the plants around, plucking lemons, mangoes. Getting chided for picking a lemon when it has not riped yet.. then consoled in the same breath saying she needed it at that moment anyway.

Go to the market in the evenings with my grandfather. Listen to him talk about politics with other friends of his on that bench which had become the meeting place. Roam around, make some purchases for the next day with him, get some chocolates for accompanying and then back. Now its time for Mamas to take their turns. After their work day, they still used to find time to play. Playing cricket in the dark with those plastic bat and balls. Getting teased around dinner time for not getting the best dishes. Which I used to get eventually :).

As I grew up, there was always someone younger to take that place every year (some younger cousin, my mama's kids). Did I feel jealous? Maybe a little. But I had got a lot of time in the limelight. And with age, there was this ego growing also of wanting to be treated like an equal (Bah!!! what a waste of time, why would I want that? :) ).

Those were the vacations. The real vacations. These seem caricatures. Just reasons to be at home getting bored than being at work and getting bored.