WHY do you love traveling? Why can’t you stay at one place? What is it that makes you plan your next get away while you have not even completed one? What do you get by climbing mountains? What do you get by diving down the sea? Why can’t you like what other girls like? Why do you hate home?
Such are few of the questions I get from people at work, friends, relatives and even my dad. I have done a lot of soul searching on this matter and here are my findings.
First of all, Travelling is not a hobby for me. NO! It cannot be. No, it is not an interest that I am pursuing. These two findings are true because a hobby is something you like to do when you have free time; an interest is something you pursue along with your profession or your main work stream. Travel to me is more than that. What? I will find out.
When travelling comes to my mind, I do not picture myself in touristy destinations or a high budget destination like America, Australia, Switzerland, etc. Neither do I think about the cheap and best substitutes for travelling abroad like Thailand, Sri Lanka and Dubai. No, I do not want to travel simply because someone from my family or a facebook friend has gone to a particular destination and I have not. I do not travel to participate in travel like discussions to show my superiority or my knowledge to others.
When I want to travel, it is simply the urge to go out to explore a new world waiting to be known. I want to get out there and know all about the place. What does the streets of the place look like? What does the food taste like? What are the people there like? What is their culture? What practices do they follow? How do the sunset and the sunrise look there? How does the wind feel? How does the water taste? I am haunted by these questions when I think of a new place. Of course, I can get all the information online but I cannot feel it. Internet is a great source and must be utilized to enhance ones knowledge but sadly it cannot transport you to the place you want to be in. The experience quotient is always missing. Hence, this urges me to travel and see it for myself. A lot of places; known and unknown are waiting to be discovered and rediscovered.
Well, as for me, I have travelled quite extensively. I have seen most part of Europe and other countries with my dad. I have been in the Himalayas for weeks, dived deep into the sea to look at the hidden treasures. I have done a group travel as it goes in the conventional sense. I have done a demanding physical course in the mountains and I have been relaxing on beaches while on chilled out diving trips. All of this has given me a sense of relief, a sense of confidence and a sense of achievement.
I can say that I am what I am because of my travels.
Travelling has made me more conscious towards myself and towards the environment. On the other hand, it has made me free! Free to feel whatever I want to.
Travelling has given me my “me” time. I have read books while travelling. I have listened to my favorite numbers again and again. At times I have just sat and thought about a lot of things like the political situation of my country, what went wrong and what people have done to themselves and others. All these thoughts have shaped my perspective on life. Travelling has also given me a sense of discipline. I know that in order to view a sunrise, I have to get up at 4 in the morning, be ready and out there in the open; ready with my camera (in case I want to capture it) and equipment. I know that while hiking, I have to maintain a continuous speed so that I am able to reach my destination on or before the allocated time. I know that to fully enjoy travelling I have to be fit and on my toes all the time. This requires a continuous routine of daily workout which again requires a lot of discipline. I have attended quite a few photography photowalks in which I have to be at the destination at 7 on a Sunday morning and yes! I have achieved that. All this can never be possible without discipline.
So, yes! Travelling for me has to be more than an interest or a hobby.
Next comes adventure travel. As you might have observed that my travels are more into adventure sports. Travelling itself is considered as a big problem in our country and when you add the adventure quotient, it becomes a taboo.
Almost all the people in India think that adventure travel is like the show “Khatron Ke Khiladi”. They also consider it unnecessary and waste of energy. Apart from all these notions, they think that such travelers are lunatic, irresponsible and lack wisdom. Well, to be very honest, I have met a lot of people while undertaking such sports. There is an ocean of a difference in the quality of people that I have met in such sports and the people outside. The people in such sports are often rational, caring and strong minded. If nothing, they have an open mind and try to understand the other person’s point of view and are always open to learning new things. Some people have actually helped me while I was uncomfortable in sea while diving, also while hiking and in many other activities. No, I do not mean that people outside these kinds of sports do not have these qualities. But it is seldom seen. I feel sad when I say that very few people in the world have the ability to think!
Whenever a person ventures into adventure sports, the first thing he/she is taught is the value of a human life. The basic principle of any adventure sport is safety. I have heard my instructors say time and again that you can replace any expensive equipment but you can never replace a human life. We are also taught basic survival techniques in case of emergencies. In fact, while diving we also have to perform the survival and emergency situations in order to qualify for the certification. All the risks in all these sports are carefully taken care of in excruciating details. The chance of something unfortunate happening is less likely to happen than a car accident on highways.
Also, the notion of Adventure is wrongly perceived as physical performance like climbing or hiking. It is not true for all the sports! One just needs a spirit and the rest is done. You do not need to be extra fit to undertake such things. As for example, scuba diving is considered as a lazy man’s sport. It has nothing to do with physical performance. Just be in the moment and enjoy.
What I have learnt and experienced from Adventure Sports?
As I have interacted with a few people who live in mountains, I have seen a part of their side of life. I have led a nomadic life where I pack up all my stuff and my tent and start towards the next destination. While living out of a rucksack, I have learnt how to live with just two set of clothes and with minimum comforts. While hiking in the Garhwal mountains, I have come to cherish the absolute simple pleasures in life. I have met some fantastic people who always encourage the other while he/she is just on the verge of a physical or a mental break out. I have come to know the importance of the sun as when there was none; we shivered with cold and looked over the horizon with the anticipation to see a sunrise. I have come to know the importance of a clear sky as star gazing is like seeing a wide, whole new world of shimmering little dots of white fire. I have come to know the importance of forests. The songs of the birds and the rustling of leaves on trees give one nothing but peace of mind.
While diving, I have often encountered moments of pure joy and tears of bliss. The world under the sea is unimaginable. It is superb to be able to breathe under the sea and follow the fishes and other aquatic animals. I don’t know what happens but as soon as you hit the water and descend down the sea, your head is just empty. You are free of thoughts like held in trance. You do not notice time at all and it is frustrating when your gauge shows that you are reaching low on air point. When you come up and relax and look at your watch, it seems impossible that you have been diving for 40-60 minutes. It is like Narnia where time moves so quickly than the outer world.
Adventure is a habit to venture out of the regular, to challenge oneself out of their own comfort zone. It is exciting and yet peaceful. It teaches you to be humble and help others in need. It gives you an opportunity to evaluate your physical strengths and for developing various other skills. It helps you to grow as an individual. It helps you understand a lot of things about life and about yourself. It keeps you young at heart and mind.
My Thoughts
What I feel for the mountains and the sea is something very hard for me to put on paper. It is a feeling of oneness and of joy that I feel when I am in the lap of Himalayas or on the bed of the sea. When I am not with any one of these, I feel a sense of tortured longing for just one good sight of it. When I am not in the midst of the ocean or a meadow or a glacier, I imagine myself swimming and following the fishes in the sea, the sweet fragrance of the trees, the rhododendron flowers and the chuckling sound of my ice axe hitting the ice. I just want to do this once more and all over again. It is the only thought and my only desire left. I want to witness that moment again when I climbed the Dokrani Bamak glacier at 15,500 ft and all I could see was snow capped peaks. I want to dive again just for that one moment of thrill when you hit the water and in a matter of a few seconds descends down the sea. I want to make friends with the turtle again, want to listen to the sound of nature again and again and again.
When I am in the lap of nature, I feel an intimate bond between us like we have had a good soulful talk. Then I feel that no secrets have remained unsaid and I have achieved to form the most pure relationship in the world. This is the relationship between me and nature or even a new relationship with my own living soul.
For achieving this feat, I am ready to stay fit all the time. I am ready to sacrifice the delicious butter chicken, chocolate truffle cake, cheese burst pizza and chicken burger. I am ready to go out, be ready for action and experience a new feeling all together.
I can now conclude that traveling and adventure sports are not a hobby, an interest or even passion. It is a way of life. It is my calling. It is what I see myself doing and one day professionally venturing into.
Also to answer the other question as to Why I hate home? Frankly and honestly.. I do not! I am not a homely person but I do not hate home. I like to be around my friends and family while I am home. I like being in my room all by myself and relaxing, having lunch while watching TV shows. I love to have a good conversation with my dad and my aunts about how things in life and work are. No matter how much I love to travel, I do like home and to be with my family! I do not understand why people tend to think that you have to pick one thing, i.e., either travelling or home. Both can go together.
But…..
If you still have the question in mind as to why do you climb a mountain or why do you dive? I can say that you will never know. In order to find the answer to this question, you will have to climb the mountain for yourself and see.
I know that most people can never understand nor realize what I have written in this blog. Neither do I expect them to. The purpose of this blog is not to change or challenge the way you look at things. Every person has his/her own perspective and has a full right to exercise it. We realize this and simply and humbly expect the same from you. Everyone here is on their own journey in life. Nobody has any right to question or demean the other.
I live in the hope to see a day when adventure travel is not considered a taboo. The travelers are not thought of a lesser human being. I know that slowly, times are changing and people are now a little more accepting towards these sports. I would love to see each and every person on this earth to follow their dreams, to break their barriers which they have set themselves, remove the mental block and see clearly what they love the most. Life will be very simple and uncomplicated.
I have always had a phobia of heights and water. I have overcome them successfully and can rate them as my biggest achievement. I also look forward to overcoming more of such barriers and achieving higher mental feats.
To put in a poetic way
“Bahut see baatein sochi hai mainne, bahut see sochni baaki hai,
Bahut se bandhan todhe hai mainne, bahut se bandhan baaki hai,
Kitni Girhain kholi hai mainne, Kitni Girhain Baaki Hai”
I am now closing my blog with a few quotes.
“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” – Carl Sagan
“The sea’s only gifts are harsh blows, and occasionally the chance to feel strong. Now I don’t know much about the sea, but I do know that that’s the way it is here. And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong. To measure yourself at least once. To find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions. Facing the blind deaf stone alone, with nothing to help you but your hands and your own head.” – Christopher McCandless
“It is better to travel well than to arrive.” – Buddha
“People who don’t travel cannot have a global view, all they see is what’s in front of them. Those people cannot accept new things because all they know is where they live.”- Martin Yan
“We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
“To travel is to take a journey into yourself.” – Danny Kaye
“A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for”- John A. Shedd
Thanks for reading through the blog. You can also read about more of my experiences and thoughts at the below links…. 🙂
WHY? 