Beating About Bush

Brainstorming over the next picnic

And everybody remains confused as ever

Looks like we have run out of options for a one-day picnic. So when Santosh Tyagi and Harbans Kaur today came up with the idea, Shekhawat was hard-pressed at identifying a suitable spot, except repeating the same tried-and-tested places we have already been to – Chhota Kashmir, Royal Hills, Silent Valley resort, etc.
Of these, a repeat trip to Royal Hills found majority support – if only for the sumptuous food on offer – until Dilip Babani suggested Alibaug. That sounded more like a new destination and a welcome diversion, but nobody was quite sure about the travel time by road. Both Kiran Prakash and Arun Patil said that it should be a minimum four-hour journey each way, which would leave us very little time to soak up the sights and sounds of the picturesque beach resort – unless of course, we extend our visit by an overnight stay. In other words, what was being proposed was a two-day out-station picnic.
That being the case, the long-pending plan of going to Matheran was revived. It would also entail an overnight stay and like Alibaug, would be off the Club’s beaten track. Besides, two years back, Arun and Srichand Arora had been deputed by the Club to make a recce of the hill station and work out the logistics. Nothing however, came of it.
The proposal found instant acceptance, even as there were issues of booking the hotel in advance and keeping the picnic bus in waiting at Neral, etc. all of which would doubtless hike up costs. And it did not look as though we would stand to benefit by way of bulk bookings. After all, the talk was to go in February – during peak tourist season. It would therefore make more sense to reserve Matheran for off-season time, maybe later in the year.
That was only to get us back to square one – to a local, one-day picnic. And so round and round the discussions went with no clear consensus in sight.
Kiran Prakash:
Matheran is an excellent choice. The weather at the mini hills will just be ideal to enjoy the overnight picnic. Incidentally, February is not the peak season. We can get a good discount if we plan to go on weekdays. Some hotels provide transportation from Mumbai to Matheran and back on additional payment.