We go flying.

Sunday, February 27, 2022

We go flying.

Ready to fly.

This week, we worked out in the evening for the first time, used the treadmill for the first time, picked strawberries, swam in a heated pool, saw a juggler, slept in a hammock for the first time, learnt to wear a seatbelt, managed to do a standing jump onto a (small) wall from a step, won a wheelbarrow race (with Baba bear holding our legs) for the first time, learnt how to shift gears in a car and pronounce 'accelerator' for the first time, and discovered binomial nomenclature and Yuval Noah Harari (who we are currently devouring) for the first time. The week started on last Saturday, finally ended. But not before extending itself to today, Sunday.

And guess what we did for the first time again? We went flying. Yes, that's right. F-L-Y-I-N-G. Like, actually flying. Like a bird. We went paragliding.

It so happened that Baba bear knew an old friend from his school days, and she and her husband run this world-class paragliding school in Kamshet, near Talegaon. Back in 2004, Baba bear learnt the basics of paragliding from them, and always wanted us to experience the thrill. So, he got in touch with this lovely lady called Anita, and her very handsome husband (we think we may have a crush), Avi, who is a professional paraglider, an internationally recognised instructor, and just such a centred, good-natured, and generous human being. Funny thing: Anita is a darling, and we think they make a lovely couple because good people attract good people. Anyway, compliments aside, they run a rather kickass flying school in Kamshet and have been featured in Indian and international magazines and websites as part of various lists of 'things to do'. So, without further ado, we were booked for a Sunday tandem with Avi himself, the weather Gods played along, and we woke up to a perfect day for flying this side of Bir Billing.

Reveille was at 0445h (15 minutes before our usual time), Baba bear already haven woken up an hour in advance, and after we had a bowl of strawberries, we had a hot water bath, got dressed for the day (khaki cargos, comfortable shoes and jacket, with our 'Ninja Kym' collared tee-shirt; Baba bear wore his 'Ninja Dad' one and we twinned, just in case you were wondering), and picking up the basket Mamma bear had packed for us last night itself, made ourselves comfortable in the front seat of the car for a long ride to Kamshet. Of course, we did not know it then and Baba bear had been teasing us about the surprise that he said began with a 'p' and ended in an 'ing', with us guessing everything from picnicking to pillow fighting (we later insisted we thought of paragliding in our mind but didn't say it, a claim Baba bear refused to entertain), to the amusement of everyone who knew what it was. But the unveiling of the surprise was still far away. We first stopped for a bite at our favourite Diamond Bakery, where we got ourselves a mawa cake and Baba bear got a veg patty, which was so hot that it burnt his tongue. LOL. Of course, we both laughed it off, because he was making funny faces. Did we mention we love funny faces?

An hour later, just moments before we reached the base camp, Baba bear told us what we were going to be doing, and we were excited at the thought of flying. Abhi chacha and Ajoba were both pilots, and frankly, I don't think there is anything to be scared of; instead, it promised to be a fun thing. However, Baba bear kept saying, 'Remember Kym, fear is your friend', thinking we would be petrified of stepping off a cliff, even with the best pilot in the world, which he assured us Avi was. We asked him why he thought we'd be scared because when we reached the take-off point, after a very long and rather bumpy ride, we were as calm as a cucumber. We ran around enjoying the atmosphere and soaking in the early morning cool mountain breeze (with the grass moving like it is dancing the ballet) as the sun came up from behind the horizon to shine on us like a giant torchlight.

There were 20 windmills around us, and we could actually touch them! Baba bear told us about how they generate electricity (we remembered Maxwell and his electromagnetism taught to us long ago by him) and how their blades are the shape of an aerofoil (he said something about Bernoulli, but we can't recollect what), with winglets at the end (just like piglets are small pigs, winglets are small wings) for more stability and a transformer connected to it at its base to send the electricity they make all the way across the country.

We also learnt that ladybugs don't bite and that while the study of how winglets got their name is called 'etymology', the study of bugs is called 'entomology'. English, as we have said in the past, is a funny language.

At the take-off site, we were very curious to see how pilots get ready in their harnesses and helmets and prepare their wings to fly, talking to each other and the instructors on their walkie-talkies, and raising their wings high up in the wind before turning around and running off into the wind.

We also collected stones. Lots of pretty, shiny stones. We even ran back to the car, emptied our picnic basket and filled it up with the stones, much to Baba bear's consternation as he waved from afar and kept calling to us. Finally, when we went to see what he was so excited about, and it turns out that we had to get harnessed and helmeted up for our flight. So, we did. We were told how to hold the camera and what to expect when we take off and land, and then, we were attached to the pilot (Avi), who, before we could spell p-a-r-a-g-l-i-d-i-n-g, took two hops and jumped into the air. And then, as the mountain top cleared behind us, we just hung there, like a dream, with nothing underneath. We giggled. It was a giddy feeling. Avi was constantly speaking to us, and we were looking at the stuff he was pointing at: a village here, a temple there, a lake, a road, green fields, and a swallow who decided to join us in flight. We shouted hello at Baba bear, who was standing at the mountain top filming us. He looked really tiny! And then, we landed.

Looking at our disappointment, Avi asked us if we want to go up again, and we said yes. So, once again, off we went. Yay! We got two for the price of one. Ain't we lucky?

Later, after landing, we got a certificate that proved we had flown (just in case our friends don't believe us), which we kept along with the book gifted to us by Anita and Avi back at the base (it is about a seagull, it seems, who loved to fly).

Though we came back home, dropping off Avi on the way, we are constantly thinking of going back and doing it again. Baba bear promised to take us back next Sunday, or maybe the next to next. Soon. It won't be a surprise. But we'd be as thrilled as our first time.

The 'week of firsts' finally ended and our new schedule, with more studies and more activities, starts tomorrow. We love studying. So, no problem there. As long as we get to play chess, speak Mandarin, learn the piano, and run, we don't mind a bit of mathematics and social studies. Who thought not going to school would be so much fun! We think we are indeed the luckiest girl in the world. And Baba bear keeps telling us not to forget that. How can we, when our life is so exciting?