Wanderlust Diaries - 2018

So, the other day I started counting the number of trips, I had encountered  this year and it raised to an astounding toll of 10+ !! Not that, I am a lazy traveler sorts, glued to the Op chair or the operating theatre table; I have always been an enthusiastic traveler right from my college days, where organizing various trips around the state earned me a nickname “Jattz Tours and Travels”, which still stick to me like an indelible ink. 

Thats a rare picture of me, smiling..

I am a firm believer in travel and its magical charm, although it had been commercialized off late, like never before. We have fallen prey, successfully, to the markets of capitalism for they choose to sell us memories and experiences as commodities.

 A similar kind of movement arose in the 1960s, when traveling and experiencing things were the new norm by wearing bright colored clothes and long hairs and beards. And they had followers all over the globe and yet they were looked down with suspicious and ugly eyes. They were called “Hippies”. And now I don't see much a difference in what we are being sold as dreams as an excerpt from their lifestyles.

(Currently reading Hippie by Paulo Coelho; Hence the insight into their lives)

Now coming into my hippie story, the year started culturally and heritably with a trip to Tanjore in january. With my mind afresh from reading Kalki’s epic Ponniyin Selvan, I plotted this voyage to experience the rich culture of chola dynasty and the marvel of Tanjore big temple. 

Tanjore Big Temple

Then after the marvelous Surgifest CME conducted by our department of Surgery in TKMCH, we immediately ventured to the Ambanad hills, near Thenmala, the very next day in late january. It was a break from the monotonous work, all of a sudden. The glorious picturesque sunset we witnessed and the late night camp fire would speak volumes of fun, we had  that day. This had to one of the best trips of this year, easily.

The Gang to Ambanad..

The Sunset at Ambanad Hill

The Department, off-shore.

February was an already short month and I didn't wanna give any prejudice to that fact. Thankfully, a friend’s marriage came up in Mettur and We, the thirteens of my UG batch mates readily pounced upon it as an readymade excuse to run away from our respective families, for a biennial get together in Yercaud hills. Well, when old friends meet, one doesn't have to explain how the time was spent. 

Yercaud and its layers

Some of my fellow crazy people..

The next three months ran on a different track, exploring different kinds of people rather than places; writing poetry rather than an itinerary; Living and conversing in virtually rather than in real; 

So, where do you wanna go?

This period also saw me traveling solo. What started as drive to a restaurant for a lunch, soon escalated as a short picnic to the beautiful coastal hamlet of Manapad. Situated barely a 50 km from my native hometown, it had taken 30 years for me to notice its splendid beaches. 

The Manapad

As I returned, the signboard read Kanyakumari - 60 kms. And my heart raced to watch yet another sunset from possibly the best location in south India. And my car raced to its destination automatically. En-route, I did lose myself in an conversation with the windmills about my obsession with sun-rises and sunsets and the vibrant sky patterns, they both paint with ease. So I reached the spot and waited for the sun to kiss the sea. And then the most unthinkable thing happened. I drove back without watching the sunset. You wanna know the reason? It was getting too crowded!! Such was the level of craziness, I was on those days.

Sometimes even the Rocky Mountains need a cloudy blanket and the gigantic fans and the lullaby of a passing train to sleep off.

I, indeed, planned on a cross country expedition like the sorts of Che, to add meaning to my life. It just didn't materialize, fortunately or unfortunately, I will never know!

But the month of june was kind enough to inculcate a mandatory trip to the Nilgiris (courtesy - my wedding anniversary). We (the family of three) climbed up via Kothagiri and explored the famous kodanad hills and ended up in a very remote resort, lost and abandoned somewhere in the blue mountains. I also managed to take a plunge in the chill pool of ice, at some 2250 meters above sea level! Such is my love towards cold and chillness. And more is my love towards hills and mountains. I deciphered and attributed my love towards hills as being a capricorn(the sign of capricorn is the mountain goat. Yes! I am obsessed with Sunsigns!)

The pool atop the hills

The unconditional love for mountains

Kothagiri

The anniversary faces..

To be continued.. as part II.. please bear with me for the long post.. :P

P.S. Well I had to break this into two halves, to avoid being a very lengthy post. So I am in a compulsion to publish the second part within this year. sighs. An year's experience cannot be condensed into a post, indeed. What was I thinking?