This wonderful flotilla of words is not just a coincidence. Whatever you are going to read below, is coming from the journeys that I undertake all alone on my own. This is coming from different rooms from different places where I stayed alone and came across these little but wonderful observations.
But first an account from the room, where the desire to travel the whole world arose. The thirst and hunger for the unknown and beyond.
When somebody becomes aware of the lingering desire to travel the whole world, trust me, it just does not develop in a day. It takes days, months and sometimes years, when finally that desire comes on the surface after that deadly routine and monotonous life. When you realize, NO, I cannot wait any longer, not a single second of my life. I need to do something to change this.
I own a small single room in the suburb of Chennai city. My job pays me enough to survive, watch some movies in the weekend and save enough at the end of every month. This room has been a companion of my joys and sorrows in the muddy waters of struggle after graduation. It has been my refuge from the difficult outside world for three years now. It gives me comfort , makes me restless , listens me while I cry silently and above all , gives me a hope , that no matter what I achieve with my little talent in the outside world , I will be here to welcome you as long as you are here in my city.
So when I take my backpack and go out in the world , all on my own , I take with me the image of my small room , where I can return safely after taking the unknown journeys. When you go out in this big world with that dream of thrill and adventure, it gives you a little comfort to know, that you belong to some place. No matter how small or big your job or your house is, it certainly gives you some sort of identity. And to lose yourself in this huge world, you have to know first, who you are and where do you belong to. Isn't it.
TANJORE (TN)
Hotel Karthik
07th Dec, 2013
As I write these words in this new notepad, I am aware that I am staying alone in this hotel room in the small town of Tamil Nadu, India.
Coming to the point: Why Do I travel?
- To know that there are just so many people like you, looking for the slightest opportunity to share their experiences.
You have two choices. First, you can sit in front of TV and watch the Anchor telling you that our world is becoming difficult to live in and we as human beings have so many differences. Wars, riots, conflicts, crime.
Or, you can decide to take a closer look by yourself, the world which you inhabit.
I met this girl, who was ready to take out some time to show me the places in the town which she knows well. (Though I am still waiting for the pics captured by her with her smart phone). Then how can I forget that man (who was waiter in the Hotel where I stayed) who asked me so many times whether I need tea or not.
- To know how to become a little humble or bold as and when the circumstances require.
Some men easily see the vulnerability and helplessness of a woman travelling alone (or they figure it out) while others are easily offended by this audacity.
In first case you feel that emotion, gratitude and and in second you wish -better luck next time.
Kanyakumari
Hotel Gopi Nivas
14th Dec , 2013
- To be embarrassed -If you are travelling alone (and that too if you are a woman), ready to be embarrassed, there are huge chances that you will be every now and then. Travelling alone may sound adventurous and fun, but then it brings with it a lot of not-so-comfortable situations. You have to be ready for faces with raised-eyebrow expressions, you are wasting your time wala expression and above all the worst of them all is when they give you this look - why the hell you are travelling alone, whets so interesting in it.
- To forget yourself -any Travel is incomplete when you don’t forget yourself for a while.
Every single day, we carry the baggage of a whole lot of knowledge of who we are. And sometimes, we reach a point from where life seems just an endless series of days and nights. To get back the same zeal and enthu, it is better to forget yourself for a while so that you wish to return back to the normal self.
