Teddy Travels

Hello Reader,

I was travelling in a train, on my way back to home, and I happened to be in conversation with a co-passenger. We talked about random topics and then she asked me about my hobbies. I said I love travelling. But, she seemed a little dissatisfied with my short answer and asked “That’s all?” And I said yes.

Then I explained to her in the best possible way that what I summarised in one word, ‘travel’ is not just about travelling from one place to another, exploring new cities and countries, physically but, travelling could be reading a book, watching a movie, reading various blogs, writing, listening to some amazing music, playing a piano or talking to a stranger on a train journey. And after accomplishing any of such related task one does learn something new, always. One would gather a new kind of experience or wisdom after ‘travelling’ and some of the mentioned travels could have life-changing effect on many people. They would transcend to a whole universe listening to a piano recital or any music they love, reading books or watching movies takes you to places and situations which one may not even face in their real life but would be prepared to face it, reading blogs, talking to new people can be helpful in knowing different perspectives and opening up an insular mind-set and writing kindles creativity and imagination.

So, in short, travelling makes one learn new lessons and teaches one to not just survive but to live.

It is always enjoyable to travel with friends and family but if you are accompanied with some children, your experience would have a totally different perspective. Children look at things differently and they perceive everything with their innocent eyes. They learn a lot more than what their textbooks can ever teach them.

I remember my trip to North India with my Parents and relatives, which covered places like Jammu, Manali, Shimla and Chandigarh. I was an 8-year-old then and I still have many vague memories of that time. Donning a jute hat and holding a wooden stick, taller than me, to support, I refused to take any help of the bearers or the nags, to walk the 18 Kms of hilly roads to Vaishnav Devi Temple, all by myself.  It was my first experience as a child to be so close to the nature. I was observing new kind of people, their habits and the way they talked was all different from the usual lot I met otherwise. I watched the mountains for the first time ever. At Rohtang pass, I played in the snow and walked on the hanging bridge over the rapidly flowing river Beas. Even the taste of apples was different there. It also helps to understand the geography of what is where.

This is me.

So, if one is travelling with kids, there will be a lot of scope for one to learn from them and also teach them. Kids have a lot of enthusiasm to learn, while their mind is still in the growing ages.  You take them to new places, to the historic monuments, to the science museums and they will always pick up new things. Because, being at their home and their everyday journey to school and back to home, they may learn the theories of a few concepts but the actual taste of life and the more practical lessons and realizations can only be learnt with travelling and experiences.

I would like to share a quote by Mark Twain to sum up my say.

 Image Courtesy (link): http://southeastschnitzel.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/img_0024.jpg

Have you heard about Teddy Travelogues?

Click here:

#TravelWithKids

Thank You IndiBlogger

and Club Mahindra Teddy Travelogue
for this prompt.

-Ashish

One More Haiku - Set 1

                                                                                      I

Vivid shades on
Bags packed; outré trance on mind
en route, a road trip

II

Spirituality springs
Saints, Hippies and Sinners swarm
On the Ghats of Ganga

III

Robed in Maroon
Marooned, whirling Lakhor
In trail of Nirvana

IV

Frosty twilight killing
And, arid timber kindling
Comfortable warmth

V

Relished each frame
Eyes on the aft of the dark Alps
As the Moon ascended   


VI

In the quiet canopies
Tranquil slumber is shaken
By the sombre, howling Mountains

-Ashish

Overcoming Fear

Hello Reader,

I always had a fear of deep water bodies. I, most of the times, tried to avoid the outings which included boat rides. This realisation began, as I can remember, when in my early childhood days, we went to a sea beach at Vishakhapatnam. As I put my feet into the water and the sand beneath my feet started to move giving me a frightening feeling of being dragged by the waves into the deep blue sea, I knew that it was not my habitat.

I have another childhood memory of a boat ride at a pond in a botanical park and I can only remember myself crying all along the ride. I cried and cried until we reached the shore.

On top of that, Titanic was the first Hollywood movie I ever watched and each time I boarded a boat or a ferry, I visualized the ship wrecking scene and all I could think of was water getting filled into the boat’s body through a hole at the bottom and sinking the boat, drowning me into the water, where alligators would be waiting to feed upon me.

As I grew old, I tried my best to fight this fear out of me. I did little experiments by soaking my head into bucket full of water in the bathroomand holding my breath, taking various rides in water parks and visiting swimming pools. And my fear was slowly fading away.

Then began a series of outings where I would not think a moment to dive into the same water bodies I once thought were my enemies.

In our college trip to Goa, of all the other amazing activities, the one where I felt one hundred per cent alive was in the Dolphin ride, for which we took a Motor ferry. After going on for almost half an hour, into the sea, we reached a place from where all you could only see through your eye’s panorama was water. The engines were stopped for quite a long time and the ferry floated in that silent ambience and the turbulent waves kept hitting the ferry’s outer body. And at that moment, all the fear eloped. There was no escape anyways. I had moist eyes, not out of fright but for making it there, for playing with the same water I once feared and for finding peace within myself.

A similar, little more adventurous experience was on a trip to Shivanasamudra, a place near Bangalore, famous for the waterfalls. Here, to cross the river, circular, cup shaped boats called ‘coracle’ are available, which look really unsafe.  Thick ropes are placed along the route which the boat man takes, so that it can be held to avoid the rapids while rowing along the river Cauvery. It was an amazing experience, as the boat man rows over a depth of about 300 ft., very near to the waterfalls, surrounded by flora and fauna, lush green trees and rocky hills, where you feel very close to the nature as it is and where the water actually falls upon you.

And now, I can proudly say that I do not have fear of the water bodies or the boat rides. After many such experiences, you just want to keep adding more to your list. My recent travel to Rishikesh and camping there on the banks, by the river Ganges was another amazing venture. I would like to share a small video from this trip which was again a small tryst of mine with the fear and I guess it went pretty well.

And I would like to share a quote from Hermann Hesse’s book ‘Siddhartha’: The River is everywhere.

After reading this book, especially the part where the protagonist makes amicable relation with the river, which is a metaphor for life and tells us that no matter what, life keeps on flowing. Ever since, I have an urge to try out adventures like rafting, deep sea diving and they make it on to my bucket list. Overcoming fear in life is very important. It is one of the biggest hurdles in trying out anything new. And once you know how to face it and fight it out, you win.


Because Darr ke Aage jeet hai.

-Ashish

Thakyou IndiBlogger

and Mountain Dew India

for this prompt


Image Courtesy Link: http://travel.sulekha.com/shivanasamudra-falls_travelogue_2715

Poem: To the Valleys

Hello Reader,

For weeks, months or even years we wait to just escape from the average mechanical life where we are tied-up with the umpteen chores; go-to-market chores, listen-to-boss chores, pay-the-bill chores, fix-the-flush chores and fed-up of the nasty hubbubs; honking-in-traffic noise, neighbor-drilling-the-common-wall noise, infants-wailing-in-theater noise, buy-our-credit-card noise.

An idea of a perfect road trip with my loved one on a weekend might just erase all that. This is how i want my road trip to be:

Nobody around but just me and her,

little romantic drizzles and a crimson Mini Cooper.

Under a drowsy sun, still sleeping under a cloudy blanket

I would drive her, into the lush green basket

Of the countryside and to the silent valleys

away from the traffic and the cacophonous rallies.

Would sing along the timeless melodies

For her smile, counts for a thousand remedies.
Mislay the potholes as we drive into the fog

on the slippery, shiny road, banality we flog.

The angelic abstracts on the misty window

that the amicable showers shall bestow,

depicting euphoria that we share,

stimulated by the breezy, aromatic air

And on a ceaseless journey, a few pleasant halts

at some down-to-earth, sketchy, roadside tea stalls. 

Cherishing the Western Ghats,we take the hot sip; 

and that shall complete my Perfect Road Trip.

I wish my dream trip becomes a reality. Someday...

Written for 

"The Perfect Road Trip" contest 

Thank you Ambi Pur 

and IndiBlogger for this opportunity. 

-Ashish