Vast lands.(16)

       We are here in Bikaner in Rajasthan. A semi desert. We are in the contonment area. Houses here are huge bungalows set in almost 6-8 grounds of land each . Behind are miles of sand dunes. In front is the grenadiers camel regimental  grounds. Just ten houses away is the botanical gardens and zoo. On the other side is a college. Mornings start with a parade of the majestic camels of the grenadiers regiment around the houses.

        We would love to explore every thing at once . Instead we are to be tortured by a steady flow of instructors. Maths, Hindi and Sanskrit. Here the academic year starts in June. We have already completed one term in Madras upto April , but have to start the year again.In effect I studied class 7 for a year and a half.

            We have fun with our Malayali algebra instructor. We ask him to repeat 10x which he always does in Malayalam to our merriment. We can be the devils.The Hindi teacher is curious why one of the brothers always has his bath at odd times, not knowing that bathroom is a euphemism for toilet. This word we never use , being gentlemen. Huh.

             My youngest brother and I get admitted to an English medium girls' school. The other two are to go to Central school which is almost a Hindi medium school here. Tough luck.

             My school uniform includes a head scarf. Protection from the sand and wind.

Here too we get a song .Differing  according to who is singing it. Sofia school Kamal ka Phool uske naukar doosre schools.

             Schools start and end early. We are at home to have a siesta. All openings and gaps have to be closed up or sand storms would get in through the cracks.

              Summer nights we pull out our charpoys and sleep in the open . Counting the stars. We can hear the lion roaring in the zoo.We dream of it escaping to make a meal of us. Nothing so dramatic happens.

             

              With their penchant for gardening both Appa and Amma start their projects. Amma has a patch for watermelon. Raw ones for sabji , and some left to ripe for the evening snack. Appa's schemes are on a grand scale. He gets a camel to level and plow the land. He sows til , dal mot and cluster beans /kothavarangai. With dalmot nothing,til he gets some result. Kothavarangai however becomes a nightmare. Six feet high plants , a veritable jungle.Every alternate day we have it in some form or other.No neighbour wants it. The servants laugh ,it is actually camel feed they say. This from a people who eat the beans from all sorts of thorny bushes.Then Appa calls in the camels and they have a field day. Years later we learn about gaur gum and its industrial uses. What an opportunity to become crorepatis missed.

           We become regular visitors at the zoo, gardens and theatre ( those magnificent men and their flying machine the movie we saw there)

           Now our quarterly results are to be announced. How have we fared?