In a drunken stupor he said. "Go ahead, few more kilometers and the pilots will take you along" 

At this point we were enjoying just being there, the moment was extremely funny and totally unexpected. We were supposed to be watching wildlife in Dandeli but here we were in Goa. We were supposed to reach Dudhsagar Waterfalls and this man here says the pilots will take us.  It only amused us because so far everyone has been saying it is not possible to reach Dudhsagar Falls, the streams will be swelling and no vehicle can go near it. If I forgot to mention, it was pouring cats and dogs every few hours. It was peak monsoon.

I knew it had to be true because during my Cycling Trip in Goa, I cycled along that 10km stretch to reach the base of the waterfall. It is a beautiful track passing through the dense forest of the Bhagwan Mahavir WLS and we crossed streams one too many times. It must be true. Those streams must be raging torrents now. Jeeps wouldn't go through. So when he said the pilots will take us, we had a good laugh and went towards Colem anyway. We had nothing else to do after all. We were randomly driving across the streets of Goa.

Once we reached Colem, I started explaining with great pride, how we crossed the river here and entered the sanctuary to cycle across the dirt track. Before I could finish the story, they appeared! It was actually true, they did exist, the monsoon pilots of Goa! The man was sure enough drunk in broad day light but he knew what he was saying. We had to give that to the old man. 

They called themselves pilots but what they actually mean is they will drive you to Dudhsagar falls on their motorbikes. Each person sits behind each one of these so called pilots on their bikes. They said they have another way to go to the falls, the jeep track is flooded but they can take us.

Momentary lapse of judgment is what I call, the thing which happens to you when you travel. You put your trust in complete strangers hoping everything will work out fine. The bikes didn’t even have proper brakes and the route was something that would do for a good action chase sequence. After all, who in their right mind would go drive on the gravel next to the railway tracks? When I say next to railway tracks all we had for the tire to tread is about 30cms of gravel in water. Next to it, the land sloped down. Needless to say the fall will be fatal. There was no road. We were offroading in the rain, sitting behind riders whom we knew nothing about and bikes which seemed like were from another century.

I chose an elderly person assuming he wouldn’t pull off any stunts. He didn’t. But he asked me to sit still and no sudden movements as we might fall into the valley next to us. Everytime we passed between the poles next to the track I froze in fear.  When I say between the poles I actually mean between the poles. You know how the poles are supported, the inverted Y kinds? We were riding through that gap. Seriously, I am not joking, the rain, the tracks, the valley next to us and the series of bikes whizzing past – it would’ve been a great thing to see on screen. But of course since I was experiencing it first hand, it all looked not so glamorous. But deep inside the adventure had me thrilled greatly.

I thought I had seen the best, but the best was yet to come. They stopped at one point and asked us to cross the tracks and wait on the other side. We did. Only to find them ride out of the tunnel below the track which had raging water flowing knee deep! Oh My God! When did I enter a movie sequence I wondered! I have seen some crazy rides but this one tops everything I have seen and been through! 

It was as scary and as exciting as you imagined and more. I am not showing you any images because some things are best left to imagination. (Truth to be told, I didn't and couldn't take any pictures. ;)) Later we walked up a small hill through the slush to witness the monsoon glory of the milky white legendary DudhSagar Falls.  While coming back on the same track later, the novelty had worn off and I was now smiling at the incredulous yet extremely entertaining journey we just took. 

Next time around if you are there, meet the pilots. All you can do is to say your prayers and hold on to your dear life as the pilots take you on a ride of lifetime. Actually you are putting your life in their hands. But hey, there isn't a thing called a safe adventure.

Life teaches us lessons in many ways. But we choose to understand only when it is told in a way we like. Years of education and years of corporate life didn’t teach me what travel taught me in few years. Here’s what I learned.

It is okay to take risks. In fact it is a good thing to take risks. There can be only two outcomes. If it goes well you will have an amazing experience and if it doesn’t you’ll have a good learning to take back with you.  Everyone warned me against going to Sikkim in monsoons but I did anyway. That was probably one of the best trips of my life till date. It is okay to take risks. It pays off well half the time!

The thing about travel is it forces you out of your comfort zone. Travel makes you do things you never thought you could do. It shows you the strength you never thought you had. I never thought I could travel solo, until I did. So next time I find myself wondering if I can do something new, I’ll just go ahead and try it.

Again back to Sikkim, looks like that one trip taught me lots! Despite the bad weather we proceeded towards Gurudongmar Lake after many days of wait. The day looked no better. The roads were totally deserted and it rained all the time. But we went ahead anyway. Just as we reached the lake, the sky cleared, the sun shined and the lake dazzled. The army guys posted there said it hasn’t been sunny in days. Looks like lady luck smiles on those who dare. Oh wait, I think it is who dares wins! :)

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness” is what a very wise person said. I thought so many places were boring before I visited them. But every such place only managed to surprise me and change my opinion. What was I thinking anyway in forming ideas without knowing anything about those places? Having an open mind can not only make travel better but also it can make our lives easier and better. Appearances can be deceptive, next time I will try not to judge a book by its cover.

A smile can take you a long way. If you are traveling most of the time, being grumpy is not an option. Smile is the universal language, everyone can understand it and the best thing is, it is totally free! Next time around, smile at that lady in the store or that bus conductor. I promise you will feel good.

We have seen countless movies and million matches where the game turns around in the very last moment. That is the secret of success, never giving up, until the very end. In Sikkim, last year, most of the roads reported landslides. Our driver was happy to know that because he thought he could take us back to Gangtok and take leave. But we refused. We wanted to go see it ourselves. He and his friends mocked us for our ignorance. But once we reached the landslide area, the army had just opened the road. It was cleared. “In your face losers!” is what we thought.

Before I used to travel, I had the patience to last about a second. Every second I had to wait for the bus irritated me and anger was a constant companion. Then I started waiting at the airports to catch the flight. Today if I have to wait, I wouldn’t mind, I will write a post meanwhile or maybe just catch a nap but I certainly won’t go crazy like I used to earlier.

Because I am oh-so-patient now, I don’t mind waiting. Oh wait, I told you that already. So now-a-days I am in no hurry to rush somewhere. I take my time, like that weekend where few of us patiently waited for the sunset. We didn’t know something good would come, but we waited. And just as expected, a brilliant scene was unfolding in front of us. The rest, who left, missed the clouds, not us, because we waited.

After years, if you sit down and correlate all the events, in most cases it turns out everything that happened, happened for the best. I certainly don’t mean resign to your fate and do nothing. But when despite your best efforts things go wrong, wait it out, something good will come out of it. When I fell sick and had to miss the Stok Kangri Trek, I went to an unlikely destination. That was super fun and today I get my chance again to summit the missed mountain. Now that worked out well, didn’t it?

Truer words have not been spoken. We all are social beings after all. I come back and share my stories with you, with my friends, with my family. We have to share, share our love, experiences, knowledge, curiosities and happiness. Only then it makes our life worthwhile.

It is quite easy to take everything for granted without appreciating its value. When we travel, we see how fortunate we have been to have what we have. There are many people who don’t have access to half the conveniences we enjoy.

When you live out of a backpack for a month you’ll understand how less we actually need to live. And when you come back and try to clean your room, you’ll understand how much of rubbish we have accumulated under the illusion that we need so many things to live.

Being silly is the best way to have fun, seriously! When my friend said she wants to stand on the standing camel, we all had incredulous looks on our faces, both my friends and the camel owner. But she did stand on the 8 foot animal and then she fell down from that height too. Later I stood on it as well. It was so much fun!

You can’t plan your life. Heck, you can’t even plan a two week trip and expect everything to happen accordingly, let alone a plan that will stand good for a 100 years. Change is constant, embrace it. Without that surprise at the corner of the road, life will be quite drab, don’t you think?

There are so many times during travel when we feel scared. “Why didn’t I stay back at the hotel tonight?” “Why didn’t I choose a safer destination?” “Why didn’t I inform someone I am coming here?” “Why am I here instead of the comforts of my home?” But every mistake you do is a lesson learned. Every bad situation you got out of only made you stronger and wiser. But please, just don’t repeat the same mistake again! ;)

Because it is women’s day, I thought I’d let you in on my little secret! My little secret is about how to get started with travel. I get a lot of mails asking if I could take them on any trip along with me.  I get equal number of mails saying how they want to do what I do, travel like I do. The point of this post is not to brag, but to tell you how, read on.

Let’s take a trip down the memory lane, let’s go back to 2008. I had just come back from Ladakh and I was crazily obsessed with the idea of travel and adventure only with no means or resources to do so. I knew I wanted to travel and explore but I just didn’t know how. A turmoil, rather the size of a cyclone in my mind was keeping me restless, how I do I go to Himalayas, how do I camp in the wilderness, how do I be safe, when do I, how can I, what should I and so many more questions were killing me.  So how did I overcome these problems?

To tell you the truth, there’s no secret. Would it surprise you if I said, it was by trial and error? First I pestered my friends to come along. They couldn’t keep up or rather didn’t want to keep up with my voracious appetite for travel. Then I considered going for a trek with some adventure group but I didn’t know how safe it would be for a girl to go trek in the forest with strangers but I took the risk and it paid off well. Today I have so many wonderful friends who trek along with me. Then I decided to go however possible and it just so happened that I found company and when I didn’t, I went ahead anyway. 

Even after going to Ladakh and going for few treks in Western Ghats I still wasn’t sure I’d be able to go to Himalayas anytime soon. But when the Roopkund trek was announced, I registered. Believe me, it was such a big deal and there were butterflies in my stomach whenever I thought of the fact that I actually signed up for a trek in the mighty Himalayas and that too a high altitude one at that. But all that anticipation turned into admiration when I reached Himalayas, I had reached home after all. Before I took that step, it was a big deal to go to the Himalayas and once I took the first step, I wondered, what was the big deal at all?

Don’t tell me you weren’t scared to come to an unknown city and earn you living. Don’t tell me you weren’t scared by the thought that your family isn’t close by to take care of you. But you did survive alone in the big city, didn’t you?  When it comes to a crunch, we all find a way around the problem. Just go ahead and take that trip you’ve always dreamed of. Age is not an issue, money is not an issue, time is not an issue and above all, gender is not an issue. If we truly want to, we will find a way. If you don't believe me, see what Deepa Mallik did despite being paralyzed waist below..

There is a reason why we can’t understand what the other person means when he gives us a good piece of advice. His knowledge comes from his experience and until we experience it ourselves, we’ll never understand what he meant in first place. It is quite easy to assume that since we are traveling so much, we can guide you on the path to eternal wandering. But that is so not true! Frankly, I do not know the answer.  I cannot tell you how to travel. You have to find your answer. You will face problems and you will overcome them in your own way, it is not necessary that the same solution will work for both of us. It is not necessary that we will both face the same problem to begin with. But you already have crossed half the hurdle by making up your mind that you want to travel. Crossing the other half just requires you to take that first step. If you will never take that step, you will never know what could’ve been.

P.S – It’s nice to say all this but it doesn’t mean I am suggesting you throw caution to wind and set out.  Travel, but be safe. :)

Here’s few places where you can start.

Bangalore Ascenders – I go for treks around Western Ghats with them, good bunch of people.

Indiahikes – I go for Himalayan treks with them, good locations and good crowd.

Youth Hostels Association of India – I go with them for some interesting events like cycling, trekking across desert. Comfortable arrangements. A little old school but definitely worth the experience.

Chennai Trekking Club – Used to go with them for a lot of adventurous treks in South earlier. Not sure of the present condition and crowd.

Bangalore Bikers Club – I have never been with them but they do have a lot of events and crowd for folks interested in cycling

A heavy dose of inspiration to explore the unknown – BCMTouring

A Wikipedia of travel and trek information and travelers - Indiamike

As I heard the old man who was rowing the boat, I couldn't help but think, “What a paradox!” And later I again thought the same!

Varanasi has been photographed to death. There is no scenery, just a heavy dose of religion and culture that I couldn't care less about. Also I judge too quickly, like when I thought Rajasthan was boring and then Tamilnadu. As you guessed it already, at first I was not interested in Varanasi. But the only reason we all travel is the uncanny ability of these places to throw surprises at us when we least expect. We are left with eyes wide open as we see what we never thought we would find. Sometimes one needs to let go and let the place take you by surprise in its stride.

Here’s what I found out.

1. You’d think you can’t live freely but apparently you can’t die free either!

The river was gently flowing and the boat was going along with the flow. The old man had little to do other than keep the boat close to the ghats. At times he was merely reading the names of the ghats as we passed by. Occasionally some of his words would catch my attention. He said even death comes for a price here. I looked up interested, he continued. He went on to say that these ghats were owned by Dom Raja and he collects tax for each and every dead body that comes to the ghats to be cremated. Without wood from the Dom Raja, the cremation is not considered complete and one just doesn’t attain mukti or nirvana like that. Death taxes have to be paid and wood has to be bought. Here we stand at one of the oldest and holiest cities famous for releasing the soul from earthly existence and putting an end to reincarnation but it appears you can only buy freedom, even in death! The paradox heightens even more when we think of all those people who come to Varanasi just to die. They wait for their last breath at Mukti Bhavan and god save them if they have no money, for the journey would get them nowhere closer to escaping the eternal cycle of rebirth!

2. The holiest city is also the dirtiest city!

Since childhood we’ve all learnt it over and over again, cleanliness is next to godliness! But here at Varanasi, the age old learnings go for a toss. Or maybe it is this resilience to filth that makes Varanasi the oldest living city. The river is polluted to the maximum or maybe the holy Ganga can take a lot more. But the true paradox here is when people come here to wash away all their sins by taking a dip in the holy waters or is it a case of two negatives turning positive? The river takes anything and everything and dissolves in itself, anything from burnt bodies to dead cows to sewage to all the offerings in the name of prayer. It is not just the river but the entire city is mired in loads of garbage. I always imagined something holy to be insanely clean. I remember the festivals that we celebrated at home and how important it was for everything to be sparkling clean for the puja.  But here at Varanasi, it is a different world altogether!

3. You’ll encounter two kinds of people in a day – the sweet and the sour

I think you’ll agree with me, it is hard to empathize with hawkers and those ridiculously irritating autodrivers, anywhere! To many, a tourist is an easy prey to make some easy money. In the first instance, we got into a share auto along with a Buddhist monk. That was our first day in Varanasi and we really didn’t know our way around. We asked the autodriver if he could take us to the ghats and as expected he quoted an obnoxious amount. We were almost ready to pay as the monk took us by surprise. He was really old and his words were barely understandable but he spoke, he scolded the autodriver for trying to con us and he told the right way and the cheap way to reach the ghats. Few days later when an auto driver dropped us at our guesthouse, he was asking for more than we had agreed for initially, which is when the other man who was with us in the share auto, actually came back to tell the driver the agreed price. In all my travels, this has never happened to me before, definitely not twice at the same place. So turns out, in Varanasi not everyone is trying to con you!

4. Things get stolen in an instant yet the shopkeepers along Vishwanath gali are where your belonging are safe

The catch in visiting the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple is that no bags and belongings are allowed with you into the temple. The fact is that this temple sits in the heart of a tight maze of narrow cobblestoned passages lined with numerous shops. You never know when the shops end and where the temple starts. And the biggest surprise comes when everyone in Varanasi tells you to be safe and extremely watchful of your belonging as they have a tendency to find their way into the thieves’ hands (or is it the other way round?) but it is seemingly perfectly okay to leave your valuables with the shopkeepers here without any receipt. Things surely work in a different way around Varanasi, it is not just said but many people actually do leave their stuff with the shopkeepers. 

5. Birth and Death are just two sides of a coin, equally embraced and celebrated.

Nowhere have I seen death to be embraced as dearly as it has been here in Varanasi. In a day you’d pass by at least three processions of weddings and two processions carrying a dead body. Everywhere else there is such strong taboo surrounding death, cremation and burial grounds and ashes. Women aren’t even allowed to enter cremation grounds usually. But here death is an everyday affair and everything exists side by side, the holy river, the holy temples, the burning ghats and burning bodies. You can walk into Manikarnika Ghat where the bodies are burnt, have a cup of tea while you see bodies wrapped in white being brought to be burnt. Then you can probably head to Kachori wali gali and have a feast. Later you can go by your day. This is not possible elsewhere in India. 

Everything I saw puzzled me. It didn’t make much sense but that is how it is in Varanasi, the city has evolved for so long and so have its traditions, a class apart from anything I have seen or heard so far. There is something to Varanasi, I still do not know if the feeling is unsettling or is it of wonder! I call it the “Varanasi Paradox”.