A Tribute, A Memory to my Dearest Sister Amudha Devi

Hey all, once, a good hearted TB, Gejah, Rheden, Netherlands did mention of a possible Travel Blog I can specially create for her and I just did.

Hope you all will bear with me and allow me to dedicate this blog to fill in my visits to places that she would have wanted to go or take her two beautiful daughters with her as she always wanted to but cannot anymore as she passed away peacefully on the 12.12.2008. May God Bless Her Soul.

Hence, I will travel on her behalf having her in my thoughts and take opportunity to take her two beautiful daughters, my nieces on travels to come. First should be Australia, where she always mentioned of taking her two beautiful daughters. I know what she likes, dislikes sort of things and I would just pen down here, just the travels so I feel she would be remembered in a nice way.

So, please allow me and I will slowly put up pictures and write-ups.

Thank you all.

Dear TB's,

To all of you who helped me with my travel plans to Switzerland, I thank you especially Elisa.

On 12th. Dec 2008, I brought my sister and niece who came visiting me, from Kassel to Basel, unto to Bern, arriving around 7pm. We booked a hotel at the Bern train station, and checked into the hotel, a 9 minutes walk from train station. We entered the room, opened the food that my sister cooked and brought with us and started eating. As we travelled, my handphone did not have coverage and I switched it off. I switched it on and thought of calling my family in Malaysia and India, as 13th. Dec is my sister's birthday, the sister who is with me now in Bern. I know everyone in the family wanted to wish her Happy birthday.

Instead, we were told that our eldest sister who was getting treatment in India just passed away........WHAT A BIG SHOCK!!!!!!!!!!! we never expected. A birthday celebration to begin in Bern and to celebrate in the highest train station in Europe near Interlaken next day, just turned into a traumatic experience. We were shocked. I put away taking leave wanting to give my sister a Fantastic birthday experience in Switzerland, it is her birthday, for god sake, and now we can only cry and think of what to do next. Immediately, we checked out of the hotel (paid the money of course).

Now, meeting people whom you never knew, earlier, comes in handy when you really need them. I met an Indian family in Kassel, Mr. pradeep.s family while I walked back to Wilhelmshohe Bahnhof, Kassel few weeks back. Said hello, went for his 8 years old daughter's birthday on 16th. Nov, 2008 and brought my visiting sister and niece to their house weeks earlier. And so I called them, they called their friends in Basel, we took train to Basel and the friends helped with Internet booking for tickets to India next morning. I managed to book via Expedia.de for 3 of us. Rushed for train at 11.30pm. Basel to Frankfurt Flughafen, reached FRA airport around 4.30am. Waited till the counter opened, to realize that I have visa to India but my sister and niece do not have.

Mentioned emergency situation, showed my eldest sister's death certificate via Internet, nothing helped. The supervisor, Mrs. Gurdun from Air france cried along with us too,a nice lady. She also tried to help but only then I knew how bad India and it's immigration policies are, a sad story. Last 5 minutes, i decided to take the flight as I have to be there in India to do the rights and cremation ceremonies for my eldest sister as I am the only son. I practically run and left my sister and niece in a foreign country in the FRA airport just like that knowing my sister will call Mr. Pradeep and he will help. I run and run and managed to take the flight to Paris and then enroute to Chennai. I could not sleep, could not breathe or do anything. I asked an Air France Hostess for paracetamol and she asked me why and whether I have headaches. I just brokedown and cried. She hugged me and consoled me saying her own 9 and a half year old son died last year and she said everything will be ok. There are a lot of nice people and most of them have their own sorrows, i learnt. I arrived in India and to cut short, managed to assist my mother and others in the family to fulfill the rites and crematory needs for my eldest sister. My eldest sister, Mrs. Amudha Devi is such a wonderful woman, a mother of 2 daughters, of one whom I just left at FRA airport that morning. May peace be with my eldest sister and lots of love.

Mr. Pradeep and family helped my sister and niece a lot, kept them at their home, provided them with vegetarian food which otherwise would have been tough for them and finally helped to get them visa in Indian Embassy in Frankfurt and they joined us in Chennai, India the next week. The whole situation beed a sad one, a worst traumatic experience in our lives and somehow we kept ourselves together and now I am back in Kassel, Germany started my work. trying to make sense out of this life and purpose of this life.

Lessons learnt is basically good to know people, strangers, who will be of help when you need especially when you do not know if you need and when you need. Strangers who tehn become best friends of life.

Lessons learnt, do not put off travel plans as you never know what turns up in life.
It was sad, as my sister who came to visit me never had a brithday celebrated, all plans disrupted and I could have taken them weeks before so some places but I put off towards her birthday and wanted to celebrate Christmas in Paris and Eurodisney, especially for my niece. Saddest of all, losing my dearest eldest sister, who fought her kidney problems with so much of strength and with family's love and support, she wanted to get out of this but somehow we failed, i failed too.

So, TB's travel and meet people and despite any bad experiences, BE GOOD, DO GOOD.

This experience really makes me think, what is the meaning of life.

Hope others can have some lessons worthy out of our sad experience.

Ganes