Post 1: Travelarge, The Journey begins
It has been somewhat different. Different dreams, different expectations, and different realities. All I was taught from childhood was to study hard, get the best degree, get your dream job, buy a home, get married, have kids, work even harder, retire with dignity. After that…. use your savings, enjoy your retired life,then…. BLANK. All over.
Yes true, this is reality. You got to do this for survival, for your 3 times food, for your shelter and clothing. Anything not fitting into this is sheer stupidity, impractical and worthless. You grow in life, you earn more and more money and see your dreams fizz out in front of your eyes. This is reality. Dad says, son, save for your future. Mom says, my dear, don’t waste money, elders say, you need to get married, colleagues says, you gotta have your own home. Relatives say, you need to invest money for tax savings,etc.etc. … but my heart and mind says …just forget what others says, you do what I say.
And what does you say my dear heart and mind ? – Enjoy these days, spend money on yourself, do things those make you happy, enjoy with friends, chill a bit and experience the world, Travel a lot since you have dreamt a lot to travel. Rest will fall in place automatically.
Really? Shall I believe in that? Shall I really believe in you my heart? Shall I really do what you say my mind? The world said NO. All used to say, these dreams can only be fulfilled if you earn well. I agreed, kept dreams aside and moved on. Gave my best during my studies, secured a post graduate degree, joined a multi-national company, made my parents proud and relatives jealous, worked hard, climbed the ladder and secured a platform in life (as generally defined).
Then I got married.
Wait…. These years weren’t as boring as it sounds. It was true, to fulfil my dreams it was essential to earn. I earned and traveled. Occasionally, as in a corporate life you can hardly dream of stretching your wings. I started with Uttarakhand, then Darjeeling, Rajasthan, Kanha, Ranthambore, Hyderabad, Kashmir, Ladakh, Goa, Sikkim….. Phew.. Somewhat a decent list, isn’t it?
For me, this wasn’t enough, rather it was just the beginning. Every time I traveled, it pulled me in. As if it is a trap. The more I travel, the more I wanted to travel. Very odd but yes, this is what it is. Dad said, you are wasting your money. Friends said, you are leading a life which will spoil you, colleagues said, get married and everything will come to an end. And I kept saying myself –“No it never will”. I told dad, let it be, its making me happy. I told nothing to my friends and colleagues, as they weren’t worth explaining. But then, I finally got married. Yes, the plug was pulled and I got happily hitched. Increased responsibilities, and the world expecting to see a matured and settled person in me. Hola, I told myself you have enjoyed your life, now you need to buck up. OK fine… I moved on. The same year I booked my house as well. Responsibility doubled as now I am a home loan EMI payer. Wow… I have everything that a person can dream off. A good job, a loving wife, new home, mom dad, car, etc.etc… But … am I really happy? The answer from the heart always said a big NO. Yes, he is true. I haven’t really got that thing that makes me happy. I have side-lined that thing that defines me. Yes, it’s what my biggest passion is. To travel hard and experience the world. With my eyes and with my camera. So sad!!
“Don’t be mad. Don’t be stupid” The practical person in me shouts again and again. It yells saying “Your travels cannot earn you salary, it cannot pay your EMIs, it cannot feed you and your family …” etc. etc.And my reply:“Blah blah …Just shut up for god’s sake”. Yes, this is what I used feel- sometimes. There has been something in me which always used to shout with all its strength and say “For god’s sake,ignore the world for once and follow your passion. Everything opposing it isn’t worth at all. A passion is something that defines a human being”. And now I can feel it. I have kept myself away from what I love the most and I felt it had taken away my soul. I have become a robot. But on the other side it has also pushed me to think hard. It pushed me to find out ways by which I can be myself and keep in touch with my original form. One day it worked. I realized what used to make me happy and decided to do that .I flipped through those memories captured by my camera while traveling and realized how joyful I used to become when people around me used to admire the beauty of those pics or the place. Hola! I got it…I know what I can do. I can open up my collection to the world. I can write down my experiences and proudly say I am not wasting money by traveling, and by no ways traveling will spoil me. Yes! I exclaimed, I know what I wanna do with this underutilized side of mine.
Ideas flew here and there then I decided to start with my first blog site. I named it Travelarge simply because Traveling is larger than life for me. It really makes me complete. Tried a lot in last few years, thought of various options, discussed immensely with friends and family, so, it was long due. And now here I am … writing my first post about the beginning. And all thanks to my lovely wife Adrita who understood and motivated me and ignited the belief in me to start my journey down this lane. And now with a self-belief in myself to make everyone and specially my Mishtu (I call her with this name) more and more proud… I start the journey down the travel lane … I open my closed book named Travelarge with a promise to travel more, experience more, write and share more.
Let the journey begin…TRAVELARGE