This, That and Some More

There are many bugs going around these days, some grounding people for days—or even months. But there's one bug that breathes life into us: wanderlust . This German word captures the deep desire to travel—often sparked by a movie, a friend’s story, or that personal dream to visit Paris for a honeymoon, New York for the city buzz, Portugal for its beaches, or Rome for its ruins. Thanks to flexible work setups and remote jobs, spontaneous travel has become more doable than ever. But traditional visa timelines can still be a roadblock. Enter the expedited tourist visa process —your new best friend when adventure calls and time is short. Here’s a roundup of countries that embrace last-minute plans with simplified visa options for Indian passport holders. Thailand: Quick Getaways Just Hours Away Thailand continues to be a favorite for Indian travelers—be it for bustling street markets, serene beaches, or temple or island hopping. The Visa on Arrival (VOA) and eVOA options...

While this is not a dystopian post, it may seem like one so apologies in advance for that! I am no expert on what I write about, these are just my observations on what has been going on and what could happen next. Remember those days when phones became smart or semi smart and when cameras were added to phones about 25 years back? This was so novel, we did not need bulky cameras or film anymore, we could just click away on our phones and as the cameras were ever so handy and always in our hands, we started clicking and recording every inconsequential moment in our lives, if some of you have taken photographs on film, then you would remember that they were taken on mostly special occasions, the frame and shot was decided and then the shutter would be clicked. Then came the storage problem, where would all these digital photos be stored? Perhaps on an external hard drive, but who would see that? Or a cloud – remember Flickr and other such platforms? That way, we along with others could ...

My childhood is mostly a blur, or perhaps it is carefully veiled to hide some painful incidents that my younger self didn't want to confront. There are layers and layers of dense fog, and penetrating these layers, even now, is difficult. Often, I am waylaid by my own thoughts and never really approach The Fog.   Lately, I often think back to a specific incident that seems to have emerged from that fog, presenting itself to me. I keep thinking that I must delve into it and articulate my thoughts, as it may be the seed for one of my current behaviour patterns. As usual, life gets in the way, and I keep putting it off.   However, here I am, trying to get back to writing and other creative projects when I am not hijacked by distractions. It's funny how I miss "those days" when I did something creative (for example, the previous articles written in this very blog) and don't do anything to get back to that space. Instead, I blame myself for spending time ...

I am not sure if the heading does justice to the content of the post but it’s what first came to mind and so it is titled Guided Glue, while it has nothing to do with actual glue, but this post is about the guides who take us around in places we visit and how they remain with us as a memory of that place. I have travelled solo and with family to many places and that place was made special by the guides who took us around walking tours or city guided tours, the guides are mostly local and know the city inside out, they walk (fast) and talk confidently and are passionate about their city, usually they are history students or graduates and will often have funny tales to tell about local history and culture and food. They will help you with directions, what to eat, where to eat, where to shop, how to bargain and a whole lot more. They are literally a mine of information and in general very resourceful. I have fond recollections of many of them, for example Chris who would come across a...

Image Courtesy: https://www.anamoralesblog.com/en/sarnath-and-the-wheel-of-dharma/ Sarnath is said to be the place where Gautama The Buddha gave his first sermon, it is approximately 10 KM from Varanasi and it takes about thirty to forty five minutes to reach there, depending on the traffic. It is a place of pilgrimage for all Buddhists from all over the world and on itinerary of all travelers who come to Varanasi. Thanks to all the pilgrims and travelers from the east, Varanasi had a thriving south east Asian food scene, there were many Japanese, Vietnamese and Korean restaurants (now shut) here and the famous 'Blue Lassi' shop was named by a Korean lady as the story goes. However due to the many travel restrictions during the ongoing pandemic, the pilgrims and tourists from the east are not yet able to travel to India, I hope they can come back soon to uplift their spirit and put the pandemic behind them. Buddhism originated in India so we all know about Siddharta's journ...

Picture Courtesy: Bongeats Kolkata is where home and heart both are, Gunter Grass had a love hate relationship with Kolkata and Dominique LaPierre labelled it as 'City of Joy' and it truly is a joy to be home ensconced in the warm welcome of family and friends. Here, the people are harried yet politically aware with a vague sense of dissatisfaction around them, phrases like "eyi chole jachche" (it's going on) or "benche aachi" (I am alive) are common responses when asked "How are you?" I have always been saying that France resembles Bengal and before I could articulate that thought, it was written by someone else , anyway people like to complain about the politics, weather, transport, rising prices and whatever else is worth complaining about. The city is culturally aware, progressive in thoughts and actions, has an exuberant expression of art and creativity during festivals, it has a street dedicated to book shops and a road dedicated to worsh...

Image Courtesy: TripAdvisor Kashi, The Ganges flows North here  Creating a whole world here Shiva is the Chief Deity  here Parvati dropped her earrings here Kashi, People come to die here In the hope of attaining Mukti here By breathing their last here And to be committed to the pyre here Manikarnika, the funeral pyres burn here A person is nothing but a body here Placed on a pile of logs here To be set alight by a person once dear Manikarnika, the Doms rule here Their kitchen fires lit by the pyres burning here Doms are the sacred keepers of the flame here Being an 'Untouchable' and a 'King' is the greatest paradox here Manikarnika, the skull of the body is cracked here Bodies turn to ashes here Ashes sieved for valuables and immersed in The Ganga here May I also have the fortune to ascend the cycles of life and death and burn here An ode to my recent visit to Kashi

Image Courtesy: Times of India A few cities have a food or a snack which defines the city and what it stands for, for example if one was playing guessing games and if 'Vada Pav" was mentioned, nine out of 10 times the person guessing would say 'Mumbai' as is 'Croissant' for 'Paris' and perhaps 'Roll' for 'Kolkata'. There may be others as well like 'Idly' for 'Chennai', 'Bagel' for 'New York' and so on. Mumbai is an ever-growing city which is bursting at it's seams and has about twenty million people, the city has a frenetic pace and people are always spending time traveling from here to there. Local trains are the lifeline of this city and people (seven million daily) spend a significant amount of time on trains, they form friendships, save seats for special people (if they can), do their vegetable shopping and cutting in the train to save time so that when they reach home, what was chopped can be wa...

Image  Courtesy : Wikipedia Whatever is written here comes from an assimilation of personal experiences, readings, viewings, conversations and discussions and I don't claim to have any knowledge of my own and I am not factually correct. It is an attempt to write about my experiences which almost edges between dream and reality, so don't believe a word of what I write, go experience for yourself... What does one do on a long weekend? Now that's no dilemma really, because the answers are now quite standard, bingeing online streaming content, revenge retail therapy, meet friends and family or a short break to a resort nearby. From somewhere Kashi / Varanasi / Benares popped up and it was planned and booked, while being knowingly unknowing about the heat, the flocks of people, the temples (I am not religious) and my diet which forbade me to eat anything which tasted good. As the day came closer, the destination was much questioned and debated but finally the cancellation w...

Picture Courtesy - TripAdvisor   I have a Varanasi hangover and it refuses to leave me - I have recently returned from an amazing trip to Varanasi - an ancient, complex and unique city with so much of vibrant energy and positivity. while this city has a lot of temples which are on most travelers "to do" lists, the city is equally known  for its vast selection of street food. Every nook, corner and alleyway has food outlets tucked into a tiny niche, effortlessly dishing out their creations. Varanasi has many flavors, in mornings there is kachori-sabzi-jalebi - the holy grail of all breakfasts, chai and butter toast, choti kachori and you could have a few more variations around the same. These are primarily sold in the mornings after which the shops shut for a snooze and preparations for the evening menus. Most of these shops reopen in the evenings where they sell samosas, tikkis, bread pakaoras, bhajias and of course there are more shops specializing in various kinds of chaats...

I have a repository of around 8000 photographs from last ten years when mobiles started with cameras and I could afford to buy them. A vacation anywhere must have good clicks and they must be posted on social media with the help of some filters where a gray rainy day looks like it was the most perfect (if not sunny) day where we did not look as bedraggled as we felt. This seemed like a huge task which is mostly done by kids who want to look fab on Instagram but too tiresome for me.  Recently I have been told that I am a 'perfectionist' by a psychometric test - I never really thought myself to be one but yes now that I reflect over it, I may be one as that may be the only way I look at a thing / a task or a reflection in the mirror or a photograph. Speaking of which I always cringe when I see any of my photographs - in my opinion my facial expressions are always zombie like, spaced out, frowning or just not interested to be photographed. I officially have only 4 go...