Looking Back Detail Page

01 Apr

- Jerry Ezekiel. T. L.
Class of '52

On the 1st of August 1952 we went on the fourth hike of the year. All the boys first gathered at the School from where we went to Victoria Terminus. Here we took the Poona Janata Express. The jour¬ney was most enjoyable, specially so the scenery in the Ghats the deep val¬leys, the high mountain cliffs the clouds the rain and the greenery everywhere.
On reaching Poona we started by a bus of St. Vincent's Poona for Kadakvasla the Grand Indian Military Academy under construction that will shelter Several Thousand Officers, Trainers and Cadets. Unfortunately, or rather. I should say fortunately, the driver did not know the proper approach to the place where we were to go, and took us all over the camp before reaching our destination. The drive was enjoyable and as usual we had plenty of fun on the fun. On reaching the Inspection Bungalow which was our destination we quickly went to bed as we were so thoroughly tired and already had finished our dinner in the bus. Had we gone there straight we should have reached by 8 p.m. instead we landed there at 10 p.m. as we had gone three times to the wrong place; besides, we had actually got "stuck in the mud" about twice and traveled altogether 40 miles instead of just 12.
The next day, after completing our bath, etc., we had our breakfast and then moved on to another bungalow, which was not quite as comfortable as the previous one. Soon after we had settled down, the Camp Commander, in person came and took us to the model of the camp which he explained to us in detail. After this, a greater part of the troop went to the market where we bought some fruits and vegetables. Thereafter we went for a stroll around the camp and saw the Water Filtration Plant of the Camp. We saw the storage, tanks, the filtration plants, the chlorination and disinfection, It was a good lesson and a wonderful experience. We knew now something about water supply and purification.
On coming back, we had our lunch and then started again sightseeing in a truck. We halted to see the Majors' Bungalows, Officers' Quarters and the big Govern¬ment Office buildings. There are many buildings still under construction and, when completed, they will look grand. Back to our bungalow again, we re¬freshed ourselves with tea and then some boys were sent to the bazaar to buy pro¬visions, while others engaged themselves in cooking the dinner. After dinner we had our Camp meet¬ing - Camp Fire without the fire. The specialty of this meeting was that in addition to songs, etc., we had Patrol Plays which everyone enjoyed. And thus after a full day's activity, we went to bed.
The next morning, after breakfast, our Scout Master taught us some Tenderfoot Tests, and tested some of the Scouts who were already efficient in them. This over, we got busy preparing the lunch, and. after lunch, packed up and started back for Poona station which is about 12 miles from the Camp. The route passed through many villages with their tiny little huts, their little shops and their quiet life. Arriving at the station we were faced with a train already crowded with pas¬sengers, but we found our way in, and after some time, each one of us managed to get a seat. Though we were not seat¬ed in a bunch, we made the train quite noisy with our songs and laughter, and our fellow-passengers fully enjoyed the whole thing.