I travel to feel alive and these 5 things help me do that!

5 things that I try during my travels that make me love traveling, feel refreshed and alive and create experiences that remain etched in my memory.

1. Try something new or something you are not very comfortable with:
   

   When Saurabh and I went to Australia, one of the places I was totally looking forward to was the great barrier reef. With a childhood spent on a heavy dose of Secrets of the Sea (morning show on Doordarshan), this was my chance to see it live. Back in 2008, I didn’t know what a snorkeling gear looked like, much less how to use it. My first time in Pacific ocean, with a snorkel in my mouth and no swimming practice in the preceding five years, the last thing I wanted to know was that I am going to go in there alone as Saurabh was not comfortable with snorkeling. I won’t lie, I did say my prayers when I jumped in the deep blue expanse and stuck to the surface at first. And then… I let go and gave it a shot… I kept going ahead and deeper and touched some of the most beautiful corals and saw some amazing marine life. That one moment, when I was one with water was one of the most beautiful moments of the entire trip for me…
   Something new is worth giving a try!

2. Keep a buffer day and just go where your heart tells you to, unplanned
   

   While researching and planning our Rajasthan road trip, Tannot never featured. Despite our combined interest in Bollywood and Border being a movie we both had watched a couple of times, the Indo Pak border was not one of the places I penned in my itinerary. The day when we were leaving Jaisalmer, our homestay (Srinathji haveli) owner asked us if we were headed for Tannot and we looked at eachother dumbfounded. He figured and told us all about it. We never discussed and just put it in the GPS and started driving; this had to be seen. And trust me, our trip would have been so incomplete without that drive.Flexibility in the plan often helps and I would strongly suggest having not completely packed schedule. This leaves space for interesting places and experiences that you hadn’t thought of. And if there is none, who minds a lazy day in the spa!

   

   The sand dunes enroute Tannot

3. Blend different experiences: It’s fun
   

   Stay like a local and book that luxury suite too sometimes. On our road trip to Rajasthan, we decided to stay in the havelis and homestays as much as possible. In Mt Abu, however we found this amazing hotel Welcom Heritage Connaught House which used to be the summer palace of the Jodhpur Rajputana (royal family). During our stay I observed my fast on Karwa Chauth and since we were the only family staying there that day, for us it was a royal feast in a royal palace prepared just for us… Quite an experience won’t you agree?

4. Spend some time with the locals
   

   We usually end up spending some time talking to the locals or enjoying breakfast with them whenever we choose homestays. The following incident though was a chance chit chat over chai with the locals. We were driving from Portree to Isle of Skye (in Scotland) and due to limited connectivity, both the sat-nav (satellite navigation) in the car and our mobile data stopped working. With a 3yr old and sunset due in the next one hour, limited habitation along the way was not a great sign for us. As soon as we saw series of houses we stopped our car and decided to knock on the door and ask for directions. It was a couple who used to spend their summers in this house and offered us tea. They regaled us with their stories from this land and it was a pleasurable experience.

5. Eat what the locals eat and where they eat

   If you can get a flavor of home food, nothing beats that. On the last day of our 2 day trek to Siddhagarh fort from Mumbai, we had lunch at one of the local’s house. We were served the food with such warmth, despite limited means, that sitting on the floor on jute mats that day and eating jau roti (barley) with kolhapuri red chilli chutney and some other pickles was one of the most humbling experiences of my travels so far.

In the comment section below, please do share why you travel and what makes you love it?