Although
you may have seen pictures and live-telecast of Obama in Delhi on
Tuesday, it was the body-double of Obama at his best. The ‘real’
Obama secretly traveled to Pune. His day passed along in an
uneventful manner, while he accomplished a lot of things.
To
begin with, he woke up early in the morning, wore a sweater, monkey
cap, hand gloves, Adidas shoes and went for a hike on Vetal Tekdi.
Michelle particularly took care of wearing a fake diamond necklace,
fake earrings, and glass bangles lest they run into a chain snatcher.
This was their special tribute to the 'common man'.
At
8 AM, the Obamas stopped by at Vaishali Restaurant for a hearty
breakfast. At 9:30, they were still seen loitering around Vaishali
Restaurant and FC Road.
At
10 AM, Obama’s entourage arrived at the University Circle to see
the engineering marvel that is the University flyover. He minutely
observed the traffic (mis)management as the Pune Traffic Commissioner
proudly showed him the dug up road, broken footpath and nonworking
traffic lights. His awe was evident as he asked the mayor of
Washington DC to study the traffic patterns and the role the pillars
played in diversion of the cars, and instructed him to implement
something similar in DC.
This
was followed by a meeting with the Road and Footpath Diggers
association, and the BRTS coordinator. He was particularly impressed
by the BRTS coordinator, and immediately offered him a position in
New York City to implement the system there.
At
12 noon, the Obamas had lunch at Durvankur Dinning Hall. They were
eligible for a Rs. 20/- off, for polishing off the plate clean.
At
1 PM, Obama took a nap. The secret service hung a sign ‘dukaan band
ahey’ outside his suite.
At
4 PM, Obama had a meeting with the Municipal Commissioner and workers
in-charge of waste management. He was presented with samples of a few
poisonous fumes coming from the burning of the inorganic waste. He
also inspected a few samples of contaminated water. He felt proud
about how the neighboring villagers suffered stoically for Pune.
At
5 PM, Barack took Michelle shopping on Laxmi Road. He deftly avoided
the traffic jam by crossing the Lakdi pul on a two-wheeler, and then
going in the wrong direction on Laxmi Road. This also allowed the
secret service a much needed break, as they were told by reliable
sources that the terrorists would not be able to spot him differently
from all other two wheelers traveling in the wrong direction.
He
bought some bakarwadi and amba-barfi for his daughters. He was denied
a plastic carry bag, and was derided for asking for one.
At
6 PM, the Obamas were seen taking a stroll in the Pu La Deshpande
garden.
Before
leaving Pune, Obama went to Kayani Bakery to buy some Shrewberry
Biscuits, but was refused, as he asked for one packet too many.
That,
on a lighter note, for you folks was a rundown of Obama’s day in
Pune.
