I always wanted to backpack while in college. I am glad it finally happened now and it was a different ball game altogether. There was a faint idea of where to go, how to go, where to stay or what to do. Most of the last three weeks were spent with people I never met in places I did not know existed. I have been to Delhi, Amritsar and Goa. I was wowed by temples covered in gold, and houses that were a century old. I visited forts, minarets, mausoleums, beaches which were all sights to behold. There was a lot of hustling, running around and a rush of adrenaline that accompanied them. There was also peace, serenity and serendipity that kept my sanity intact.
We have become so busy that travelling on a train seems like a waste of a lot of time. But, I think there is a certain romanticism attached to travelling in trains and buses. Every person has a trigger to slip into deep thoughts, and I think looking outside the locomotives did the trick for me. I love the wind ruffling through my hair when my eyes are glued to the lush green fields as the train chugs through. I got to meet a lot of different people who were enthusiastic enough to share anecdotes about my destinations. It felt like an appetizer before a meal heightening the excitement of the journey ahead.
The trip was more about exploring the food scene of the places I visited. Most of the eats were recommended to me by people on the streets some of which were lip-smacking, to say the least. I was on a budget this time and was Couchsurfing for a greater part of the trip. I never thought people could be so warm and hospitable even if they did not have to be. I don't know if I am too careful or if fellow travellers are really rude and careless or if it's just that the world is not as cruel as people want us to believe, there was never a moment that made me cringe like the worst thing in this world.
I perspired in the heat, ate on the streets, shivered in the cold, hitchhiked on the roads. I am not sure if the future would be as adventurous as the last three weeks were, but they left in me a feeling of "Hungry for More."
For more escapades and musings: An Indian's Travelogue