Uptown Girl

I like to believe I am a very fit and active person: after all, I go jogging every day, I can walk for miles to save auto fares or for street shopping and I have always been a sporty girl: taking part in swimming competitions (even though I finish last most of the time) or athletics or playing cricket/football/badminton/squash for hours.

Even on Saturday, I visited the latest temple mall in town, and spent half the day exploring each new store with ample enthusiasm. People who are religious will totally identify with this fanaticism, where nothing, I repeat, nothing, can keep you away from God, or in my case, a retail outlet, tired feet notwithstanding. So, on Sunday, when we signed up for a MEDIUM DIFFICULTY trek to Sagargad, close to Alibagh, at a height of around 1350 feet, I was slightly contemptuous, thinking that it was too easy, and we should participate in a more challenging journey. True, I have never been a trekking person, but ever since I BOUGHT MY SHOES, I have turned over a new leaf.

At 6 a.m., I was all rearing to go, in my STRONG Reebok shoes, ready to conquer the world, or the fort. The yummy cheese sandwiches in the bus only made me more energetic. As we started the EASY walk, I was my cocky self, wondering why people made a big deal about trekking in the monsoons.

But then it began: the slopes, the stones, the mud, the rough stairs, the rains, the CLIMBING and the SLIPPING. I was back to my college days, trudging along, panting, struggling, falling repeatedly, cursing everybody. Yes, the valley was beautiful, the view was breathtaking, the waterfall was mindblowing and most importantly, the lunch served in the quaint old village was sumptuous, but I was still the spoilt urban girl, who would rather admire nature from a distance (or from google images). If going up was a Herculean task, coming down was only more treacherous, with the rain making it worse. And then the inevitable happened: I fell in the water, drenched myself completely and as I clumsily picked myself up, I was determined never to be so foolish again.

I am not made for trekking, I am not made to be in close proximity with nature, I am not made to be adventurous.

I am happy in my shallow concrete jungle, I can live with pollution and traffic jam and I am infinitely more comfortable in high heels in a suburban mall, rather than enjoying the fresh air at an ancient fort on top of a godforsaken hill.

I am an Uptown Girl…