Travel

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover – Mark Twain

Growing up, travel meant visiting our grandparents or relatives and spending time with them. Sight-seeing was only an afterthought and was always done in a by-the-way manner in the cities they were based in.

By the time I started working, both sets of grandparents had passed away, relatives had been scattered all over the globe, and my older brothers were married with families of their own. My parents didn’t travel as much as they used to and were quite content visiting my brothers or relatives living close by.

1998. Murudeshwar, Karnataka

As for me, I was ready to begin a new phase of life. One that involved travel. One where experiencing, exploring and enjoying new places took precedence over visiting relatives. Travel began taking an entirely new meaning.

The first non-family trip I went on was to Vellore, Mahabalipuram, Pondicherry and Chennai in May 1996 with a friend and a Kodak point-and-click film camera.

The next trip  was travelling down India’s West Coast from Honnavar (Karnataka) to Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) in 1998. It was a trip that was partly solo, and partly done with a friend. It was a trip that saw the itinerary evolving as I / we travelled.

This was followed by a trip to Santiniketan and Kolkata in 1999.

I haven’t stopped travelling since then. Over the years, travel has become a fun break from routine, a stress-buster, a history lesson, an opportunity to meet new people, a way of learning, a spiritual experience, and much more than can be put in simple words. Travel has been a re-affirmation of life itself as each trip and travel experience have revealed. Travel has also made me think about the whole concept of travel itself as in the case of my post on “Travel, travellers and travel blogging… Some thoughts“.

This blog is part recording of memories and part sharing my experiences with a larger audience like you. For your convenience, I have grouped and created sub-categories of my all travel posts, which you can find in any one or more of these pages: India, International, Museum Treasure, Travel Shot, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites (both inscribed & tentative) that I have visited. You can access these pages by clicking on them here or from the tab given just above the header image.

PS: I write because I travel. I do not travel to write. Just saying. 🙂

Join me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as I explore the world around me and share “My Favourite Things” with you.

29 thoughts on “Travel”

  4. It is really wonderful that you have traveled so many places. Nice description of the places. As you love to travel, here is a website http://www.mygreatstay.com which is a travel portal listing homestays across India. It is a very good guide to mostly unexplored locations in India with a very good information on sightseeing places.

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  6. I cannot believe I have never come across your blog before. Bookmarking your page. You are living my dream. 🙂

    I would love to write like you.

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    1. Hello Chitra, welcome to “My Favourite Things” and thank you for stopping by and commenting. Lovely to meet a fellow traveller here. But unlike you, I have a full-time job and not really free in that sense. My travels, though not always spur of the moment, are also not planned too much in advance. I will keep in mind your offer to join me. Would you also like me to recommend some really good travel groups?

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  8. Hi sudhagee, I am really excited to get yr response. As suggested, please recommend me to some travel groups. I would love to join them . As and you plan to south india, please do inform me. I will definetly be of some use and helpful to you. thanks a lot for replying me, I am honoured.

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  9. Hiya i spend a few hours a week reading about fellow travelers, but after stumbling onto your blog i think i’m going to need to invest a lot more time 😉 i love your interpretation of the experiences you have had during your travels, the photographs taken are very expressive too, something i constantly strive to achieve in my clicks, thank your for sharing your experiences.
    Regards,
    http://www.markgomes.in

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    1. Thank you very much, Sairah. It’s nice to know that my blog and travel stories are inspiring. I’m planning to visit the Shekhawati region in Rajasthan and the Jaipur Literature Festival later this month. What about you? Where are you travelling to next?

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  12. Hi there,
    I live aboard was born aboard, but for some reason I just love india a lot. There’s something about it that keeps pulling me back. I have been to india 4 times and each time I find it difficult leaving the country. I get to explore my culture here and I get to see the amazing landscapes. I really want a year to vist India and explore the temples and the scenery. One place I really want to go back to is rishikesh. Thanks for your great post.

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    1. Hi Tina,

      Welcome to my blog and thank you for taking the time to comment. I really appreciate it. I haven’t been to Rishikesh or that part of the country, the closest I have been to the Himalayas has been Himachal Pradesh. Have you travelled in the Western Ghats, especially in Karnataka? They are beautiful, especially the Agumbe region and Kudremukh National Park.

      Here’s wishing you happy, fulfilling and safe travels in India, always.

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  17. I too love travelling inside and outside of India.I have done quite a bit.Looking forward to do more after covid vanishes.Mark Twain’s words are appropriate Write-up is good

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  18. I too love travelling inside and outside of India.I have done quite a bit.Looking forward to do more after covid vanishes.Mark Twain’s words are appropriate Write-up is good

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