Bon Voyage

Ask me if I enjoy travelling and exploring new places, I would say world is my home. I don’t like to compare myself with those cool people who would have travelled more than I have and would have experienced the word “culture” beyond what I could think of. Because I don’t like comparison. My rule is simple – breaking my records and exceeding my expectations.

Do you know what I enjoy about travel? Apart from the initial fear of venturing into unknown, of course, is observing people and understanding their culture. Sometimes, I learn few words from the local language and try to include them in my day-to-day conversation. Needless to say, I love to click some breathtaking pictures and sometimes random ones.

Most of the times, I have travelled with myself and still enjoyed the company of the fellow travelers; most of them have been strangers though. Some have been old couples who still didn’t get bored of holding hands. Few others were young couple who didn’t shy away from some quick smooches and cute cuddles. Of course, there were young fathers who carried the child on their arms and young mothers feeding the infant. And there would be groups of people, presumably friends or couples, where the men carry backpacks with water and snacks. Ladies carry sleek handbags! Of course, there are girls only and boys only gangs who look pretty cool. These people would have come from different culture and backgrounds. But, wanderlust was common!

The more I observed the more I note that selfies are indeed a bad idea. It kills the joy of requesting a random fellow traveler, a complete stranger, to click your picture. They will be delighted to do that for you. And, you smile at the smiling face behind your camera lens!

As I mentioned in the beginning, all my travels start with panic. I feel like someone is choking me so much that I can’t breathe anymore. Regardless of whether I am idle or not, my mind continues to be a devil’s workshop. The creative part of me starts making up all the possible dangerous situations that I could face in an unknown land. On the top of it, I have always been told that world is not a safe place; certainly not for a solo woman traveler. Having said that, I shrug aside those dangerous and unsettling thoughts. I do a Shift+Ctrl+Delete and permanently erase them from my mind. Come on, I have faith in the goodness of humanity and have learnt to trust my instincts to sense danger. Sometimes, feeling positive matters the most, I tell myself – more than often. Chuck the fear. Trash it. Flush it and let it get missed with dirt and lose its essence. People are good. Believe me.

Think about it, there is nothing more fulfilling than exploring a new place! Fear should not kill the divine joy that only travel can give. The walls and lanes would have millions of stories to share with us. They demand nothing but our time and ears to listen to them. As I walk alongside some random people, I notice that excitement in their eyes binds us together – that twinkle in their eyes are familiar because they are similar to mine! Sometimes I think that the desire to explore the unknown and gather little memories is the only mission in my life. Some say that the journey is more important than the destination itself. I am not sure what they meant when they said that. But, I like to interpret the journey as life and the destination as death; death being the inevitable and the only truth. Death – the only friend who would never let us down. The distance between life and death is not much. Therefore, it is important to let our soul experience the vastness of the universe.

And hey! If you thought I have been only referring to the journey across the planet we live in; hang on. I also meant journey within oneself. And such travels are important too to retain our sanity and rebuild the lost faith. Yes, I said lost faith. Several factors like routine and predictable life, work, change and what not could break our heart. It could stress us and demotivate us. It makes us blame everyone around us and when there is no one, blame ourselves. So, it is imperative that we spend some time with ourselves; to understand us better. To become a better version of ourselves. Such trips to inner-self could become easier when we are away; possibly away from the familiarity and comfort zones. It not only takes us away from routine but also let us live a life we have always loved. Yes, it could be for short time. But that’s okay because the experience would last at least a lifetime. Every journey is unique. It gives us hope and makes us understand how small we are and how little we know.

Off late, I am a fan of this quote – “Not all who wander are lost”. So let’s wander in thoughts… across the mountains and waters... above the sea and land… Let us get lost only to be found by ourselves. There is nothing more exhilarating than self-revelation, I think!!!

So, happy journey folks!!! J