How I Found Myself Addicted to Travel

I was having lunch with a colleague in office and scrolling through the news feed on Facebook. My friend, Nikhil, observed that I looked carefully at the pictures of people who had gone to a vacation. I was not interested in the poses they had made or the cute faces of their babies. I was more absorbed in the places in the background. I noticed each and every detail of the buildings or woods that lay behind the people. Nikhil was trying to have a conversation with me, but when he realized that I was more interested in Facebook, he quietly left after eating.

I apologized to him for not paying attention to him after I reached my seat.

He asked, “Are you getting itchy feet again?”

I nodded and started thinking of arranging my bike and clothes for my upcoming road trip.

“But you have just come from Africa?” he said.

“I know but I have already booked my tickets for Thailand” I said and smiled at him. I told him that I cannot live without traveling to a new place every month. I did not know this truth earlier, but I realized it a few months ago when I could not concentrate on anything in office.

I had become tired of getting restless after every trip, and then I observed that I am addicted to travel. As soon as I finish one trip, I come home thinking that I would sleep for at least a week out of tiredness. However, as soon as two days pass post the trip, I begin feeling irritated with everything. People with narrow mindedness frustrate me, I don’t like being around people with hermit-like tendencies, and I just cannot eat same food every day. I have tried so many recipes around the world that I try to make them at home as well, which in practice has made me a good chef.

One day, I found myself sleeping on a bench in a park near my home. I had come to the park with a family of toddlers. It was fun watching to toddlers for some time, but I was already tired from my month-long vacation in Bhutan. I was scrolling through the MyChoize Car Booking App to get an idea of the prices of the Car Rentals in Delhi. I did not realize when I fell asleep on the bench itself for an hour. When my friends returned from the garden after tending to their toddlers, they clicked photos of me and laughed over me for being a sleeping potato.

Incidents like this make me grasp that I have become a true traveler who does not need the luxuries anymore. There is a huge difference in the interior of my house before and now. Every room in my home used to be chaotic with loads of stuff, which I now understand that I don’t need anymore. I live a minimalistic life and I don’t need to buy expensive things to live a comfortable life.

I am happy to be a traveler at heart. And I intend to be like this for many more years to come!

How I Quit Homeschooling My Toddler

When I started homeschooling my 2.5 year old baby boy, Shaurya, I had never thought that teaching would be such a tough job. Since I was living in the USA at that time after visiting 26 countries with my husband, I thought of settling down there for a few years until Shaurya grows up. Since pre-school is very expensive in the USA, I decided to homeschool my kid until he is ready to enter the kindergarten, which would give me time to enhance my income.

The first few months of teaching him the alphabet were really awesome. I would often spend an hour or two on the internet learning how to teach the alphabet to my toddler. I didn’t mind spending the extra hours on my laptop to learn becoming a teacher myself, but the process became tough as Shaurya grew older. I had to spend more time in learning the teaching process myself, which started becoming frustrating. Moreover, I realized that I am not capable to homeschool him forever. I would have to either enroll him for online classes or send him to a regular school in the years to come.

Since I knew that the USA was not affordable at all in terms of buying a house, paying the school fees, and paying other bills, I decided to move to my home country, India. I have grown up in India and I know that there is a wide range of affordable schools here that I can afford for my kid. Even though I want to visit various countries and cities while bringing up a family, I want to be in a country where I can afford all my expenses.

Since my language interpretation work pays good money, I don’t have to worry about joining a regular office. However, Shaurya needs regular schooling at least for a few years in his early education.

We moved to India two years ago, and I decided to settle down in Delhi near my parents’ home. They are happy to have us here and I am content to know that I have someone when I need them to take care of my baby. I can leave Shaurya with them for a few days as I travel with my husband to different places for work and leisure. The setting makes it easier for Shaurya to not miss his school and we don’t have to miss travel either. We often use a car booking app to drive to and from their home and then go for a weekend trip.

The best part about regular schooling is that the kid gets to interact with other kids of his age, which contributes to his language development and social skills expansion. Since the day he has started going to kindergarten, he has shown tremendous growth in communicating with other kids in the neighborhood, even though the first few weeks were really tough for him.

I know that my travel dreams may remain slightly unfulfilled, but I don’t mind forgoing them for a few years for the sake of a better future of a baby that I have brought to this world. Until Shaurya grows up, we don’t mind becoming the weekend travelers, and we can resume our fulltime traveling when it is the right time.

Buy Diamonds in Delhi with Just a Few Bucks in Pocket

What is the definition of a diamond? It is something that you can wear on your hands or neck once in a while and be happy that it shines brightly in a party. It is meant to make you happy at the end, which I suppose anything else can do as well. In my opinion, food is something that gives me equal happiness as diamonds. I am a big-time foodie, and l like to experiment with foods all around Delhi. Rather than spending one lakh bucks on a piece of tiny stone, I would rather be happy with bare hands and spend that money on life experiences.

Food travel rather than anything else is my cup of tea, and I can spend any amount of money on it. Travel, at least in India, costs much less than diamonds, and it suits my current state of earning. I would surely buy a diamond for myself rather than expect it from my guy, but I want to win many more experiences before that. Let me share a few instances when I had the best time of my life, in addition to delicious food, in Delhi.

The Qila  

The Qila is situated in Qutub Institutional Area in a quaint region in Delhi. I just love this area because of the peace it provides. Being there with my spouse before marriage for a romantic candlelight dinner was one of the most breathtaking feelings ever. It was the time when I did not know him much, and we talked for an hour on the terrace of the restaurant under the full moon. The best thing about the place is that no one disturbed our piece as we stood there in each other’s arms watching the moon. Nowhere in Delhi or India have I experienced such a place where I can sit with my partner for an endless time without any interruption. 

When we returned, we were welcomed with complimentary snacks, to begin our wine. The bread, I must say, tasted delectable with the sauces. The quantity of food is not what you look for at such places, but the experience of being with someone you love with all your heart. The time spent at a restaurant like The Qila is much more precious than anything in the world. I still look at the lone picture we got clicked from a person, and the smile on our faces is priceless. No diamond in the world can give me that smile when I wear it, but looking back at those memories can. After we got married this December, we still rent a car without driver every time we wish to have a fantastic drive and have a great time together. Again, the feeling of being in each other's company is the most precious feeling for me. Yes, I would like to have many more diamond-like candle-light dinners in future with my bae in all corners of the world.

How It Was Worth Every Penny to Take a Self-Drive Car

Sometimes, little decisions of life consume a lot of brain and thoughts. When I used to work in Mumbai for a Japanese MNC, I always thought of flying to places like Bali, Mauritius, or London. However, I was always pressed for time when it came to making actual plans. Many of my friends would go to exotic destinations in India and abroad. They would come to office talking about the breathtaking adventures they participated in, the mesmerizing sights of the hills and beaches they saw, and the delectable food they tried. Every bit of their talk would pound my heart like I was about to die in a minute or so. 

Even though I was not jealous of none of my friends, I would still shy away from them because their talks would make me feel bad again about my helplessness. My work profile never allowed me more than a day off in a week. Even if I got free for some time, I would look for some freelance work online and keep myself engrossed in work. However, it was not too late when I realized that with the pace that I am working, I might earn a lot of money, but I will definitely lose the precious memories that I could make on vacations with friends or by spending some free time with my family.  

I was desperate to take a break from my busy life and just leave for a place where I could not receive the mobile network. Without thinking much one day, I looked up for a random date in the month of October and booked the hotel in Lavasa. Since I had already scheduled my dates to leave, now the only work left was to figure out the mode of travel. I did not want to go by bus or train as I had used them for a significant part of my life to travel to my hometown for the last seven years. After the mind-boggling search for car rentals on the Self Drive Car Rental Apps installed on my phone, I finally settled for a sedan. 

The thought of going to such a beautiful place like Lavasa was not so tempting, so the last issue that I had to sort was to find company for this trip. I asked a few friends from college and a couple of colleagues from office. Against my expectations, it was so easy to convince people for this getaway because the major things were already booked. They only had the choice to say Yes or No since I had already devoid them of adding to the confusion of deciding a destination and way of travel. If they were comfortable with both the things, they would hop in for the vacation. A few of my friends did not find the bookings according to their expectations, so they would just refuse to join. Nonetheless, three people were ready to join me on my first road trip to Lavasa. 

I would not say that I had done something unique in taking a road trip, but this getaway is close to my heart because I could manage to have the peace of mind after a long span of time. A vacation does not become special because of the destination or the exotic things we do; it becomes exceptional on account of the memories we make with our friends and family. The events and occurrences make the time special rather than the money we spend on a trip. I would never regret that I took the decision to go to Lavasa in a moment of impulse.

How My Travel Box Helps Me Recall Memories

Blogging about travel experiences is a great intangible way to remember everything. Whenever I go to a new place or experience a new thing at the pre-visited place, I try to write about it. It helps me relive the events all over again when I read my blogs. Even so, sometimes I do not get the time to write a blog or an article, but I feel incomplete about my travel if I do not write a word. Nevertheless, in the last five years of constant travel, I had to find a solution for this, and I discovered it in the form of my Travel Box. Before I had created a Travel Box, my souvenirs would lie around the house here and there, and even I would find it difficult to recall the exact place of belonging of each article. But since the day I started depositing all my keepsakes in that chest, I find it remarkable to go back to all those memories whenever I want.

The emotions 

Each of the mementos I buy or collect from tourist places have some or the other emotion attached to it. When I meet new people, and I try to have a picture clicked with them. When I visit a new place, I try to buy something that reminds me of it. If I find something originating from a region, I make sure I keep at least one little reminder of it. The famous tourist attractions hardly entice me, but I go to these places just for the sake of it. I cannot forget to mention that more than 90% of the celebrated tourist icons of every place in India and abroad disappoint me just because of the crowd that rushes there. I cannot like a place just because everyone does. I have no shame to admit that I will never revisit Taj Mahal, just because of the mismanagement of tourists that goes on in Agra. Even though the monument is counted among the Seven Wonders of the World, and it is beyond question stunning, it is a pain to reach there. I have been there once, clicked a picture, bought a souvenir, and I am done forever, at least until the situation in Agra improves.

Anyway, coming back to my gorgeous Travel Box, it comprises of all the unforgettable memories. My emotions attached to places can be funny, sad, scary, pleasant, or unexpected, but I do want to remember all of them. I have an issue with my memory that I cannot recollect many of my memories if someone does not narrate it to me or I do not have something to relate to it. That is why; I love my Travel Box so much. I will not trade it for anything in the world. 

The achievements 

Every place I travel is an achievement for me, be it big or small. I do not need to show off my triumphs to anyone; they are just for the contentment of my soul. I have traveled so much in all these years and experienced so many things that I can write a book about it, but I suffice myself with my blogs and relics. Sharing my endurance with a Pen Name gives me more satisfaction than flaunting them in front of naïve people who may not even want to listen to me. My first trek to Triund in McLeod Ganj was a great feat for me, so I kept a Tibetan flag that I had bought from the place. The first time I had used the Self-Drive Car Rental App to book a sedan for my Jodhpur trip, I took a screenshot of the bill and kept it in the Memories folder on my laptop.

I have made many such similar memories while traveling with or without my friends and family, and I love each of them. God knows what destiny has planned for me, but I would like to take up the responsibility and plan my own travel. I want to make stories and memories at the maximum places possible. I want to attempt, I want to succeed, I even want to fail, but I never want to stop.