It’s Time to Meet Venky Again — A Diary in Bullet Points

I had been waiting to meet Venky (Venkatachalapathy) again, and the day finally arrived. Here’s how it unfolded — a day of blessings, roads, and memories.

Early Morning Start

* Planned to sleep early since we had to leave home by 6:30 AM, but a stiff neck and headache kept me up until 3:30 AM.
* Managed to get just 2 hours of sleep, yet woke up at 5:30 AM and got ready.
* Bala arrived right at 6:30 AM in his car.
* Bala mentioned he had never driven on a highway before and asked me to take the wheel.
* Picked up Ravi, who lives just a street behind my house.
* Reached Nithya Amirtham, Tiruvallur, around 8 AM for a hearty breakfast.
* Started driving again at 8:30 AM, feeling recharged.

Temple Visits

* First stop: Tiruchanur Padmavathy Thayar Temple.
* Took the ₹200 darshan ticket and joined the line.
* Blessed to witness a Thiru Kalyanam as we moved through.
* Had darshan of Thayar and collected our quota of laddus.

Drive to Tirumala

* Drove to Alipiri Gate and completed the scanning.
* The rule: cannot cross the stretch in less than 28 minutes to avoid penalties — drove slowly and reached Tirumala in 35 minutes.
* Parked near the entry gate, completed ticket scanning and security checks.
* Waited in a hall for 2 hours 15 minutes until the gates opened at 3:30 PM.

Divine Darshan

* Entered the sanctum and finally had the beautiful darshan of Lord Venkateswara — truly a heart-filling moment.
* Made an offering in Hindi.
* Inside the praharam, it was push and pull with the heavy crowd, but we managed to come out by 4:30 PM.
* Collected more laddus from the laddu stall.

On the Way Back

* On the way to the parking lot, witnessed the oonjal seva and received blessings from two elephants.
* During the descent, we had to cross Alipiri exit only after 40 minutes.
* Even after driving slowly, reached in 38 minutes, so we waited 2 minutes at the gate before crossing without a penalty.

Return Journey

* Started driving back by 5:15 PM.
* Reached Nithya Amirtham, Tiruvallur, for dinner at 8:30 PM, and finished by 9:10 PM.

Reflections

* It was my first time driving to Tirumala in 12 years; the last two times were via TTDC packages.
* Shocked to see the entire route transformed — endless buildings replacing the peaceful farm lands and empty stretches.
* Even Tiruchanur, once a calm village, has grown into a bustling suburb of Tirupati.
* Despite all these changes, the journey felt blessed and deeply satisfying.
* Loved reconnecting with Bala after so long, and reconnecting with Venky after years felt like coming home.

Until next time, Venky — I’ll be back.