Sunday, July 14, 2013

Trapped in a Chopper!


With thirst of Adventure
I climbed on a twenty-seated chopper
and buckled up; patching dreams
in the poet's imagination
Click… click… murmured the cameras around me
Shrieks of delight blew away all fears...

The pilot latched the door
Handing over wads of cotton 
To stuff into our ears
Breathing the blue smoke
The behemoth chopper
Lumbered into thin air....

Soon, we were kissing peacock-necked clouds,
the shy mists, rainbows…unknown n unknowables
The land below was breath taking
The low, blazing, ruby sun
Melting into the shadow pools
Created an ethereal appearance...

Each miniature house and tree
hamlets, hills and waterways,
 Paddies, bridges....
Stretching long on dewy ground
Was panoramic maze…!
Oh dear! ...this was too good to last...

Locked in the shadows of perfection -and
Limitless possibilities of fate
My mind took hold; thoughts exploded
Exposing me to the trivialities… scared me now
Ah, my dream prematurely died at inhuman height
Enough..enough for me, I sighed.

Today, I don't envy the frequent fliers..!


 Some years back, I took this chopper ride to reach Shillong from Guwahati and discovered that flying in a helicopter is quite scary and uncomfortable, than flying in normal aircraft. Or, maybe, it is for people like me who are scared of heights...

43 comments:

  1. I love heights. Traveled in planes but never in a copter. When the plane took off from Port Blair the scene below was too beautiful to describe.

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    1. Oh, landing on Port blair was another tricky experience, Kalpana. It's a narrow and if the pilot misses the center line during landing it can go out of the runway....but, its such a scenic place!! Glad you enjoyed :)
      Thanks!

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  2. Helicopter ride is really scary. I once travelled in a helicopter.It was a five seater. It was a very scary.

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    1. Thanks Usha for being here. A five-seater must have been even more scary...!!! I was extremely uncomfortable and scared!! My daughter was small and she started feeling giddy...oh, that was quite an experience.

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  3. smiles...amazing what a little perspective change will do isnt it? have been up in a chopper, its scary and exciting...it def will change the way you view things...smiles...

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    1. Smiles...Brian, This is a true recount of my painful journey. The journey actually changed my perspective. The seats in the front row have great views as the chopper has large windows. The two seats in the middle of the back are the worst to sit in. And oh, I was there...and could feel the strong crosswind and tail wind..:((
      Thanks a lot!

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  4. Its indeed a great experience to fly. I have only taken a flight twice. And I still remember being really enchanted by the experience. Though your poem made me remember an occasion when I had a flight on a glider. My heart was literally beating in my mouth. An exhilarating experience indeed is flight. :)

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    1. I have traveled only ONCE...and have promised never to board a chopper again, Unni. Thanks for the visit... :))))

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  5. Panchali, this is ONE experience I have always refused to have. Going up in a chopper would scare the heck out of me. I can defiitely understand why you had cotton in your ears. Yes, the views would be wonderful indeed (I could have traveled close to an erupting volcano), but I have decided it is safer to live without the views. LOL. It sounds like you enjoyed the experience for a while, but then eventually decided it was 'enough.' It is 'enough' for me to observe a chopper from afar. Ha!!

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    1. Mary, I'd been fantasizing about this trip, and the release of emotions that accompanied it, would stay with me forever!!! The turbulence kept increasing because of the tail wind and strong crosswind. It was like traveling on a conveyor belt!! Oh, and the noise made it worse!!
      ...You've been wise. Stay away from these little monsters. Smiles..
      Many thanks..

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  6. Oh my! I DO relate to this quite well.

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    1. Your comment has delighted me completely..., Liz. I am happy to find someone who feels the same. :))
      Thanks a bunch :))

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  7. What a ride! Thank you for sharing it!

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  8. What a ride! Thank you for sharing it!

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    1. Thank you for such a lovely comment... and for coming by, Naba...:)))

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  10. By the way how did you like Shillong? I grew up there

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    1. Naba....That was perhaps my last trip to Shillong. My husband was posted in Guwahati and my mama-bari was in Kench's trace. So....apart from 'mama-bari bhari mauja'--- that's the place where we went for our honey-moon. It has a spl place in my heart♥
      Ahh...so you are from Shillong??
      How can one not like 'The Scotland of the East'. It is just too beautiful. I would love to go back to Shillong-Cherapunji once again ...sometime. :)))

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  11. Very nice Panchali. I would love to take a ride in a helicopter, sounds exciting.

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    1. Lisa, It sounds exciting alright, but it's frankly NOT as exciting as it sounds :P So, take necessary precaution before you hop into that chopper!! :))
      Thanks a lot for the feedback.

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  12. A strong account of your helicopter ride, I thought it quite good. Thanks for sharing it.

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    1. Ah, nissa...
      One thing to watch from the edge ....
      another to fly over....:((
      Thanks for reading this...:)

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  13. remember the helicopter that crashed in Uttarakhand while rescuing the trapped pilgrims? this reminded me of that.
    p.s. thanks for the comments.

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    1. Yes, Abin, The soldiers and rescue workers who died while flying back from Kedarnath, took the worst beating in the flash floods and landslide. They were fighting against the extreme weather conditions and harsh terrain and the accident occurred. It was honestly sad.
      Every time I see such helicopter service, I feel uncomfortable and jittery..
      Thanks you for your visit and feedback... :))
      ps--It is always a pleasure to read your literary pieces :)

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  14. What a wonderful view! Sounds fun...and yes a bit scary too. Very cool capture!

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    1. Thank you.... glad you liked this, Poet Laundry... :)Always good to have you here!!

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  15. I imagine that crimson sky at sunset, seen from above.......lovely. I well relate to the nerves around flying though.

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    1. Oh, Sherry, I am glad you found this beautiful... and that you can see what I wanted you to see... but then I knew you would... :D
      Thanks for the visit...:))

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  16. That was a truly poetic helo ride Panchali! Imagine, I traveled in a helo from aircraft carrier deck where only 4 people could sit with the gates open and deep blue sea below:)

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    1. Ooooh, that must have been a chilling ride!!!! Where was this?? Please tell us more about the trip. Please do write a blog...And if you have already blogged about it, please pass on the link.
      Thanks a lot for being here, Rahul.

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    2. Not written about it as yet, Panchali but this was on INS Vikrant the aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy!You can have a glimpse of life in my latest post:)

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  17. Ah! finding the scary elements when gliding in a new found joyful adventure. Quite a human mind isn't it Di? Nervous when joy knows heights! :)

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    1. " Nervous when joy knows height"--liked that poet :)) Thank you.... glad you liked this, Akila... :)))

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  18. Claustrophobia?!

    Glad it inspired you to wax poetic!

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  19. Only you can make Helicopter flights, poetic. That was beautiful. Apologize for my long absence from your blog Ma'am, will try to keep up in future. :)

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  20. I never had a chopper ride, but I would surely like to experience it :-)

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  21. I am not very scared of heights my mother in law is. But I have no clue what I would do if I end up in a chopper :)

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  22. I liked the way you described everything in such a poetic way. For me plane journey is always fun watching the clouds, the mountains, the ocean, everything about plane journey is good except the seats and the tiny toilets, and the vegetarian food that they dish out in International flights.
    I have been to Shillong many years ago, from Guwahati, but in bus.

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