The Long Road to Boston
It was a warm sunny Sunday, and the pearl white Seven Seas Privateer charter boat gently cruised out of the Boston Harbor. Once they were on the open sea, the sunlight reflecting off the turbulent waters was blinding the eyes of everyone on board. Varsha settled herself on one of the benches inside and gently closed her eyes.
She had just arrived in Boston on Friday, driving in from her home near Philadelphia, an almost 6-hour journey. On reaching the Best Western hotel, she checked in at the front desk, went into her room, and plopped on the bed. She took a couple of deep breaths, stared at the popcorn ceiling for a while, and took in all the silence around. She had never been on her own before.
After a few minutes of trying to stay still and finding it unsettling, Varsha reached into her purse and pulled out the itinerary. Under Friday, there were two suggestions listed as optional, and on the corner, Amol’s scrawny handwriting read, “Preferably rest and recharge for Saturday.”
She put on her shoes again and headed out to visit the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. She strolled through the huge campuses, roamed around aimlessly, and took several pictures and selfies. After about an hour or so, she returned to her room and ordered a medium size Veggie Delight pizza from Domino’s. While waiting for her dinner to arrive, she sent a couple of pictures taken in front of MIT and Harvard to her Mom and Dad with the description, “Finally, I made it! Who knew! :D :P”.
The next morning, Varsha finished the complimentary breakfast at the hotel and wondered what to do for the day. The scrawny handwriting in the Saturday’s itinerary only read, “you decide. your day. check back tomorrow.” Feeling too confused and tired with the burden of an open-ended choice, she curled up in the bed, and caught another snooze.
She woke up with a start around noon, her stomach grumbling. Varsha searched for any places that delivered lunch, but she did not want to decide between the different cuisines and the locations. She felt she would know what to eat if she was actually at that place. After doing some digging, the name ‘Quincy Market’ caught her eye. Before overthinking that option, she booked a parking spot nearby, quickly dressed, and headed out.
Quincy Market is a market complex in downtown Boston. While driving downtown, she tried to ignore her nervousness and decided to focus on taking in the sights. Varsha reached the parking garage, held out her phone with the QR code at the booth, and the bar went up to let her through. She parked in a spot, breathed a sigh of relief, and walked towards the market.
The historical building did not seem like the ideal location for a crowded market. Her eyes followed the beautiful, elegant curves surrounding the tall structure as if wanting to memorize every detail. She went inside and found the place packed with restaurants and people. Though at first, it looked like an eclectic mix of ideas, it did have a great sense of appeal. Inching her way through the maze, she picked a Mexican restaurant, and ordered a bowl. Varsha then found a small table outside in the plaza, and settled down to have her lunch. After that, she did some shopping, bought some “Boston” t-shirts for herself and Amol, and some souvenirs for their parents back home.
By the end of it, it was already 4 in the evening, and deciding not to go back to her room just yet, she caught an Uber to the Boston Harbor. Varsha strolled the boardwalk nice and slow, enjoying the steady cold wind from the Atlantic.
The smell of salty air reminded her of the pungent aftertaste she felt after her fight with Amol on Thursday night. That evening, Amol had come home from work and given her an envelope. She couldn’t believe that anyone would send her a letter. Usually, all the letters or bills would come only in Amol’s name. The envelope felt a little thick, and she eagerly tore it open. Inside she saw a note “Happy Birthday.” She’s know his scrawny handwriting from anywhere. It is not until Wednesday, she thought. Behind the greeting, there was a car rental agreement from Enterprise for a mid-size SUV, a hotel reservation in Boston, and a couple of other receipts which her brain could not process at that time.
“We are going to Boston?”
“No, you are.”
Varsha stared at him blankly. She did not know what to say to that.
“You are just sending me away so you can enjoy alone at home??”
“Wow. You so rightly read my mind. Though true, that was not the main intent. I wanted to gift you your first solo trip for your birthday.”
“Oh My God… You are unbelievable! We have been married for four years, and it is like you do not know me at all. When have you ever known me to take a trip by myself, even to the shopping store?”
“True. That is why I am hoping this trip will be really fun. No need to get worked up. I have created an itinerary and have made all the reservations. All you got to do is go there, see and enjoy them all and get back home.”
“Why, all of a sudden? Why Boston?”
“You don’t remember? After our wedding, when you came to the US, and we were making our road trips to New York, DC, and Hershey, you said that some day you’d like to visit Boston.”
“I am not going to fall for your stupid romantic gesture again. You are trying to hide the real issue here. You are the one who has been hammering into my ears that we both have to make solo trips to keep our excitement alive, enjoy our lives, and that marriage shouldn’t change our desires. And every time I said No to your crazy notion, we ended up arguing for hours to no end. How many ways do I say this??? I do not want to make a trip alone while my family is at home and not with me!! Can you get that through your skull!??? And I just now got used to driving our Accord comfortably, and now you are sending me to Boston, which is 5 hours away by road. Just thinking about it makes me nervous!!! What will I do alone if the car breaks down? Huh!”
“You are covered under our insurance. I have written out the contact number and the insurance hotline details in one of these sheets you are holding.”
“I can’t do this, Amol!! I am sorry. It’s just not possible. You start canceling everything!”
Amol looked sheepishly at his feet and said nothing. After a few tense seconds, he just extended his hand, and in his palm, lay a key with a blue Ford icon.
“Oh My God! You already got the car here!? When is this thing supposed to start?”
“You are supposed to start tomorrow morning, and your hotel reservation is from tomorrow evening till checkout on Monday morning.”
“I need some air,” fumed Varsha, took her car keys near the door, and stormed out.
A sudden cold breeze brought her out of reminiscence, and she found herself by the harbor. It had become dark, and her watch showed it was 7 pm. She found a beautiful Indian place nearby on Yelp, finished her dinner, picked up her car and headed back to the hotel to call it a day.
Varsha woke up tired Sunday morning and checked her itinerary. “Boat tour and take it easy for your return trip tomorrow,” said the handwriting, and there was an address with a ticket number for the 11 am tour. She had her breakfast, got ready, and headed out.
A big wave shook up the boat, and Varsha woke up with a start and checked her watch. It was ten minutes since she had snoozed. The guide was droning on about the type of marine life in these waters. But as always with these tours, she never heard what he said. So, she wore her sunglasses and went out onto the deck to join the folks who were already there.
Suddenly, a whale shot up above the water. It twisted its body slowly in midair, until its fins breached the dazzling water surface. Time seemed to stand still as its towering shadow cast darkness on the tiny boat. But even in that darkness, Varsha sensed everyone was looking at the spectacle with gaping mouths. Only one or two who had the sudden presence of mind, pitifully pointed their teeny tiny phones at the majestic creature to click pictures. The whale then having shown us its sumptuous white speckled belly, fell flat on the water. The resounding thud reverberated the air around, and the water splash soaked everyone on the deck. It took a few minutes till we could hear ourselves again.
The boat slowed and started going in wide circles. They saw quite a few humpback whales there. Varsha saw them gliding along just a few feet away. Their towering stature and length did not seem to match their gentle souls in any way. It was very humbling to watch them up close and still at a safe distance. Looking at them, Varsha felt something, but for some weird reason, she couldn’t remember it.
They soon started circling back to the harbor, and she settled down in a seat inside. She heard a conversation between a father and a son behind her. “Dad, that whale did not seem to mind us at all. Why?”
“Maybe they might have gotten used to humans looking at them.”
“What do you think they will feel when they look at us.”
“What would Jupiter think of Earth? I think that’s how those whales must feel about us.”
That’s it, Varsha thought. Finally, she found the missing word that was gnawing her brain — Perspective. That’s what she felt when she stood humbled and small next to those gigantic whales. It was a very surreal experience, and she did not get over it until she reached her Ford Edge SUV and turned on the ignition.
She stared ahead into the parking lot in Gloucester, looking at the sign on the small storefront “7 Seas Whale Watch… A Spectacular Family Adventure”. Varsha realized she wanted to go home. It was 1:30 in the afternoon. She figured if she left by 2:30, then she could reach home before 9. Though she had the room till Monday, she decided to check out today itself.
Varsha stopped at the hotel, packed her bags, loaded them in the car, and checked out at the reception desk. She then drove to the nearby petrol pump and filled up her fuel tank. Once the orange needle in the dashboard hit the “F,” she tore the receipt hanging out from the pump station and went on her way.
She felt the sudden urge to talk to someone, and usually, that was always Sharada. Even though it was midnight there and she couldn’t call now, she bit her lip thinking about how she’d left her last conversation with her sister.
After she had stormed out of her apartment last Thursday night, Varsha had not known where she had to go, but only that she had to get out of there. She had driven for about 10 minutes, when she checked the clock, and it showed 9:30 pm in green. That meant it was 7 am in India. She connected her phone to the car’s Bluetooth system and called her sister.
“So what did you think of the latest Taylor video — The Man? I didn’t like it. All men are not assholes, and it is conveniently ignoring that we can be asses too” said Sharada while answering her call
“It was great…It beautifully showed how women are treated in this highly misogynistic world. But let’s talk about that later. You wouldn’t believe what Amol did!”
“Uh-Oh. What did he do now?”
Varsha then explained in great detail the events that had transpired.
“Let me get this straight. Amol booked a trip for you, and not just a car rental, but carefully prepared itinerary as well? Don’t piss me off early in the morning!” said Sharada and hung up.
Puzzled, Varsha immediately called her back.
“Look, leaving aside how I feel standing in this sweltering hot summer day in Chennai, in my in-laws’ place, having just seen my husband off to work and wondering what lunch to make, let me try to tell you differently. The way I see it, the money is gone either way. And you know how Amol will keep talking about money that gets wasted. So, you stay at home and listen to it till your birthday, or shut up and get out of your house tomorrow. Either way, you have nothing to lose…” said Sharada and then hung up again. Varsha felt that her sister was too self-absorbed to see what she meant and felt too angry to bother calling her back.
It was 8:30 pm when she pulled into her apartment parking lot. Varsha promptly placed her call.
“I just finished coffee. What’s up? Where are you?”
Once she heard Sharada’s voice, everything seemed all right with her world again. She ended up talking about her trip and what all she did.
“So now you want to know how to save your face while thanking Amol,” said Sharada. There was a long pause where Varsha didn’t say anything, and then she continued. “Ok. I cannot say what you have to tell him, but do try not to give him a hard time. I know that will be very hard for you, but do try . Rest all you will figure it out. All right, I got to go,” and she hung up.
Varsha took her bags from the back of the car and headed towards the elevator. On the first floor, she reached her apartment door and knocked three times. A few seconds passed before Amol opened the door and stared at her.
“What are you doing here?”
“Wow. That’s very romantic. If you don’t mind, I would like to come in.”
Amol opened the door fully, and Varsha stepped into their home. She set the bags down and poured herself a glass of water.
“You still haven’t answered my question.” prodded Amol.
“Well, I know this house must be falling apart in your competent hands, and so before you destroy my house and my kitchen beyond the point of recovery, I decided to cancel a one-day reservation and come back home. By the way, you check your credit card statement when you have time, as you should have gotten some credit back.”
Amol paused and looked at Varsha’s demeanor for a few seconds and figured something was different but couldn’t decide if that was good or bad. Before he could think any further, Varsha said, “It’s only 9:30 now. I suggest that you go and drop off the car now itself so that we can get some credit from the car rental too.”
“Fine,” said Amol and went into the room to get ready.
As he was heading out, Varsha asked, “Do you want me to drive our Accord and come with you so that we can come back after you drop it off?”
“No. You stay here and change. I will catch an Uber back,” replied Amol and then headed out.
He got into the Ford, and did a check if Varsha had left anything behind. Seeing the car clean, he settled into the driver seat and turned on the ignition. Then he noticed a note near the gearbox. He opened it and recognized Varsha’s neat handwriting at once.
I hate it when you are right. I loved this trip. It was very awkward in the beginning, but it got easier as I got out of my way. I would like to make another solo trip next year, but this time I will pick my destination and create my itinerary.
If you talk about this or if I see you smile smugly about how right you were, I will make sure that your food does not have salt for at least a month.
You are not off the hook, by the way, and you will never be. I will always keep busting your balls. It’s something you have to deal with since you signed up for it.
P.S. I still need a cake on my birthday.
Amol couldn’t help himself but smile, and then he looked up at their apartment window. Seeing Varsha standing there with the window open, he got out of the car with the driver’s door open. They stood looking at each other for a while. Then, Varsha blew him a kiss and went inside. Amol felt his cheeks turn red, saw her disappear, then got into the car and headed out.
© Arvindh Shyam 2020
