Expeditions..... and an experience I did not miss

While playing AOE, the most exciting thing for me is not to build or destroy civilizations, but just to explore. I like to know what lies in the black parts of the map. Same in real life. I generally feel uneasy, unless I go around on my own to see every path around the place where I am living. So, often I take a walk in the extended afternoons around 7pm. Google Earth showed a huge green patch in front of the MPIK. The meadow amidst the forests is really quite a sight. However, the grass is knee high, larger than I wished it were. And I walked through the forests and hills around, along stale trails, but new for me.

I walked to Boxberg once. From there you get a good view of the city from the side of the hill. Further south is Emmertsgrund. I found a departmental store there, bought some stuff, and realized the pains of carrying 5 kg uphill, -an uninterrupted walk that lasted an hour. Although I later came to know that there are such stores in Boxberg too.

Konigstuhl is at the top of the hill, 500 ft higher than the MPIK and 7 kms away. Yesterday I decided to go there walking, taking some food supplies with me. The whole of this area is covered with forests and pretty dense in some places. It is part of the Neckartal-Odenwald Nature Park. I took a trail that goes past the institute. Every 500 meters or so, the trail forked leaving me in a dilemma. For some time I tried using my intuition for directions, then I started to do the wiser thing, that of taking the route which goes up. But I did not meet a 2nd person on the whole stretch. At some places I cut through sticky cobwebs, shuddering at the thought of tarantulas. And the trees in one spot, reminded me vividly of The Blair Witch Project. I was not sure where the path would lead me, but suddenly I heard a car, and soon I found the trail leading me to the main road at Drei Eichen. From there I took a cyclists' trail, and walked along it for about half an hour, again through the forests, until I reached a glade. It was a 8-side crossing. There were directions carved on stones placed at the corners. The name of that place itself was also carved on one of them, -Leopoldstein. The forest ended with the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, and soon I reached the summit.

And oh, what a sight! The city of Heidelberg, and beyond, much much beyond, the Neckar meandering through.

In the next few hours that I spent there, I saw the play of the sun and the clouds. The rays penetrating through the holes in the clouds falling like numerous spotlights on the panoramic landscape. A few birds got into the act too, showing their skills of floating at any point in the air. They would fly to a spot and then balance themselves there for minutes at length.

I called Abhirup to come up as well. He did, but left before sunset. The crowd thinned till only photographers and new lovers were left. The sunset in itself wasn't as impressive as the rest of the show.

It was 10.15 pm, when I decided that it is high time I return. There was still some light in the sky. I guess they call this twilight. I didn't have the guts to take the route through the forest. So I walked along the main road. In 10 minutes, I realized that it was just me and the road and the forest. A car would whoosh past after long pauses of about 5 minutes, blinding me for a moment, if they were coming up the hill. Occasionally, some noises like the rustle of leaves,emanated from the forests on either side of the road. I stopped sometimes to listen carefully. Must be some small animal I thought and moved on. From time to time, the sky also threatened to open up, with its deep rumbles. Other than that, the background sound was so low that my movements made the most prominent noise for much of the time. The darkness increased considerably, and there was a slight sense of worry somewhere in me. And maybe a tinge of fear too.

I was nearing an U-turn in the road, when I heard something. About 15-20 metres ahead, from the jungle fringes on the other side of the road, came a short deep throated growl, or a grunt, that just froze me. I was frightened like hell. From the depth of the voice, I was certain that the animal, whatever it was, must be of moderately big size. After a few seconds, I heard a second similar hoarse growl from the same place. i just turned and ran back uphill, without a thought. Car lights brightened my hopes, as I waved frantically. It slowed down, but then as it neared me, it suddenly accelerated and was gone in a moment. I was all by myself again. I thought that the animal could catch me anytime if it had such an intention, whether I went forward or backward. So going further away from my destination, might not quite help. I decided I had to cross the spot, and that I would do so when a car is passing through. But even then I kept running uphill halfheartedly. With the bagful of supplies it wasn't too easy either.

After a minute or so, I saw lights. Lights coming downhill. I stopped. I reversed my direction, and again faced my destination. And then I ran. Some run it was. Like running for my life. I didn't dare to look at the side from where the sound came. God knows what the car driver might have been thinking seeing someone run along the highway at 11.15 pm in the night. As if I cared then!!! I continued the run and stopped only when I entered the institute premises. Yet another lifetime experience !