Travel (Mis)adventures, Kitchen Tales and Inspiring Conversations; heartfelt stories from a girl out to achieve her simple dreams
My idea of packing has always been to create a huge pile of ‘things to carry’ in one corner of my bed. That pile invariably covers the whole bed leaving me a sliver of space to sleep in. And then, say half a day before I am to leave, I will start frantically dumping things into the bag, much to the exasperation of Maa who loves her things organised.
when summer came in this year, Kerala topped the list of ‘places to travel’ with the quaint Munnar giving a new meaning to ‘rolling hills’ and ‘winding roads’.
Kanyakumari is a postage-stamp sized town in comparison to other towns that you may have travelled to. You can easily cover the touristy and non-touristy bits of the city in a day.
Hot humid air that carries the smell of sea and scorching sun are two characteristics I will always associate with the town. Those were the two things that shook me when I hopped off the train at Kanyakumari station.
Its summer and everyone is planning their summer holiday! And I have been peppered with queries about Athens.
There is not much you cannot do in Athens primarily because tourism being among the main industries, there is a lot of freedom you will enjoy provided you are careful.
I strongly feel vulnerability is not specific to gender, age or region. A lone individual in a foreign country may be considered easy prey and rather than allow the fear of “What if!” inhibit our movement and the joy of travel, a few conscious measures could make the trip a memorable experience in the good way.
Can I go for another vacation please? I know, I know. You’ll say, “Girl, you just got back from a 10-day trip and you want to go off again?” But travelling is my tonic.
Did you know that real estate prices in the Isle of Skye have skyrocketed in recent times and homestay have a six month long waiting period? That is what our charming driver-cum-guide Sean Connery had to say when a fellow tourist asked him the loaded question ‘how has tourism helped locals’.
“Observe the buildings as you walk through the city. The urban landscape would have changed since 1989 but I am sure the character remains unchanged – it was an interesting combination of grit and culture,” my father told me over the phone. This was him persuading me to make a quick trip to Glasgow nearly 29 years after he had made the trip.
Do you remember where we left off in the last post? That bit about me having a near meltdown in the gift store of the Edinburgh Castle? Well…
I confess. I have a crush on Edinburgh. I have been in love with Amsterdam from when I first set foot on that gorgeous slice of heaven on earth. But now Edinburgh, with its cobbled streets, mix of old-new structures and a skyline that gives off a broody gothic vibe on a cloudy day, has found its way into my heart.
Now I could give you a rather romantic answer if you were to ask what made me choose Scotland for my solo travel debut. But to be honest, my visa to the United Kingdom was about to expire in four months and for once in my life, I wanted to use said visa to enter the Queen’s Land more than once. Strange? Nope. That’s me.