The Much Needed Dust Storm in Gurgaon

I first got the inkling of the heat wave in Delhi/Gurgaon/NCR when I was in Thailand. 42 degree Celsius itself gave me shivers. Then I read about 48 degrees, all the while when I was in a col 22 degrees in the Khao Yai region of Thailand. I also knew that a dust storm in Gurgaon was predicted for 12th June. I am am glad it kept its date with us common denizens.

I prayed that it might cool down before I came back from Thailand but no such luck. After a wonderful trip to Thailand, when the Thai Airways crew announced that the outside temperature at Delhi was 40 degrees Celsius at 8.30 in the night, the mind boggled and the heart sank.

I realized that I had no drinking water with me thanks to the policy of most airports to make you throw away the bottled water before security check. By the time this realization dawned on me, I was already in the parking lot of IGI. They sold flowers there but no water. On a normal day it makes sense but on a night of 40 degrees at 9.00 pm it didn’t make any sense. Anyway we reached home quickly and I had all the water I wanted to drink. But the shower was working on the hot mode without a geyser!

The ensuing days have been a torture of various degrees. I am quite good at dealing with summers, so is my father. But both of us were almost raising up our hands and planning to throw in the towels. Contrary to what everyone has been saying, the power situation was not too bad in my corner of Gurgaon. And then came the much needed dust storm today, along with the rain, which such ferocity that it made a building disappear!

When I started walking outside the security guard was not too thrilled. He asked me, “ma’am toofan aa raha hai, aap bahar kyon jaa rahi hain?” (ma’am there is a storm blowing why are you going outside)?” I told him I wanted to click pictures. He also walked out with me then. Initially I took still pictures with my super phone (gifted to me by Nokia) the Lumia 1020. They looked quite flat. Then I switched to the video and it made the building in front disappear!