Varanasi

My first experience as solo traveler, when I found a companion in myself

I have been traveling in groups until now. Primary purpose of traveling was usually photography. But this was the first time I planned to go out on my own. I recently completed my first solo trip to Varanasi, India. So I am going to share my first experience as a solo traveler. At first, it was a little scary to plan alone. A lot of things came to mind; what if I get into any trouble, what if I feel bored, what if it fails? But I was fed up of making plans with groups, last minute cancellation of plans, changes in itinerary. Decisions are more collaborative, you share the responsibilities. You’ll do this, I’ll do that. If anything goes wrong, somebody always got your back. This time, there was a lot more to it than just photography or even the place.

Evening aarti in Varanasi dashashwamedh ghat

Evening aarti in Varanasi dashashwamedh ghat

The Freedom

There are times in everybody’s life where the person struggles with finding significance to his life. A lot of questions starts confusing the mind. Such thing happens when you don’t want to be bound by limits of human life. You don’t want to live life in the way most of the people around are living, that is the time you start searching for answers from different sources especially books. But nothing really gives you the answers, because you want to figure out answers to your own relevance. A similar thing was happening with me from the last couple of months, where I was feeling restless all the time. The monotony of the life has begun to bug me slowly.

It is about discovering who you are when nobody is looking.

I understand, more you travel, more clarity you get with your life with the experiences of traveling. So to break the monotony of the life, I planned to travel. I was not in a mood to convince anybody else to go out with me. Moreover, I was interested in trying something new, not the usual traveling, so I thought, let’s travel solo. As a solo traveler, being totally responsible for yourself, it’s inevitable that you will discover how capable you are.

Without the presence of family and friends who expect you to act in a certain way, you can be yourself more than what you are at any other time. In other words, it is about discovering who you are when nobody is looking at you.

The Experience

The experience was just awesome. More than anything else, I won’t be wrong if I call this a self-realization kind of experience. Traveling alone was not about the loneliness, it was more about finding out how good you are with your own company. I didn’t choose to stay in a hotel. There was one hostel I found in Varanasi, a place called Zostel. I stayed there for three days. It was my first experience in a hostel. Never knew how it would be, but honestly, if you are not looking for a luxurious trip, a hostel is the best way to experience things. You get to meet a lot of new people there.

Zostel Cafe

Zostel Cafe

It was a welcoming experience when I stepped in the hostel. Quite different. In just a few hours, I started getting to know people. And then, we had long conversations on different topics all night long. Conversations full of laughter and mindfulness. In those conversations, eventually, there are answers hidden to your questions. Sometimes, we call those as experiences as well. The second thing, you start realizing things you are good at or the things you lack at. You’ll start realising how you stand out in the world. After all, that is the beauty of meeting new people from different cultures and countries.

Then comes exploring the place/city alone. When you travel with a group of friends, the agenda of the group gets more priority than your own. But when you are a solo traveler, even if you make new friends, your personal agenda is still a priority. Even with those friends, you are still independent. So here, choose to explore the place alone, but it also feels nice if you explore some part of the place along with the new friends as well. Exploring the place alone will result in you talking to local guys more deeply when you connect with them, you’ll realize how many misconceptions you had about other cultures. So there is a lot of scope to understand how things work in different places.

Boating in Varanasi

Boating in Varanasi

Varanasi Boating

Boating in Varanasi

 

In a nutshell…

For me, it was a lovely experience. I can’t wait to travel solo again soon.

I’d say, to those who never traveled alone, They should give it a chance. You never know what you will find out about yourself and reveal the hidden self-confidence unintentionally. You never know what beautiful experiences you’ll take back. However, you start getting answers to the questions you struggle with. So there are hundreds of opportunities. This is something which can get you what you are looking for.

Moreover, you’ll have at least one more life story to share with your children 😉

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12 Places, 12 Months – My 2014 Travelogue in a glimpse

Year 2014 was one of the most interesting years of my life till date. From January to December, I visited a lot of different places around India. From some metro cities to some rare and lifeless lands, some malls of big cities to ruined forts and some cities like Kargil, history to which have become an unforgotten part for every Indian. I used best of my senses to capture these places which can represent the best sense of that place. While writing this blog and choosing best of the pictures, I was wondering whether I was really lucky to visit these beautiful places and witness these from dawn to dusk, or it was just a dream. That is the best part I like in photography.

So here I present my “2014 Travelogue”, the 12 most beautiful places I visited in last 12 months:

1. Auli, Uttarakhand

Nature at its best

Auli, Uttarakhand

On the banks of River Ganges

2. Jaipur, Rajasthan

Jaipur, one of my favorite cities in India, which I never get bored of. This place has always something new to offer in every season.

Night view of Jal Mahal, Jaipur

Night view of Jal Mahal, Jaipur

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

3. Srinagar and Kargil, Jammu & Kashmir

Dal Lake, Srinagar

Dal Lake, Srinagar

Kargil

Kargil

4. Leh-Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir

Ladakh

Ladakh

Pangong Tso, Ladakh

Pangong Tso, Ladakh

5. Mandawa and Fatehpuri, Rajasthan

Portrait of a Indian Lady

Portrait of an Indian Lady

An abandoned stepwell

6. Mumbai, Maharashtra

Gateway of India, Mumbai

Gateway of India, Mumbai

Street view, Mumbai

Street view, Mumbai

7. Bhangarh, Rajasthan

A fort, or rather we should say “The Fort” is located around 70km from Jaipur, but no direct route. This place has certain superstitions attached to it. It is still a mystery what lies on this place for which this is  also known as one of the world’s most haunted places.

Ruins of Bhangarh Fort

Ruins of Bhangarh Fort

Ruins of Bhangarh Fort

Ruins of Bhangarh Fort

8. Delhi

Delhi, the capital city of India.It has a long history attached to it. We have almost endless opportunities for capturing photographs and knowing it better. You’ll always find something new. I’ve spent most of my time in Delhi, and I found it to be more interesting with Old Delhi area like Chandni Chowk. That place has a feeling left of a typical India, so much, as you can smell it while entering it 🙂
So if you are interested in street photography, It will be worthy to checkout Delhi at least once a lifetime.

Humayun tomb, Delhi

Humayun tomb, Delhi

Jama Masjid on Eid, Delhi

Jama Masjid on Eid, Delhi

9. Udaipur, Rajasthan

A simple and small, yet a wonderful place. I was very much impressed by its beauty. Udaipur is known for its lakes, and its cultural offerings.

Lake view at morning, Udaipur

Lake view at morning, Udaipur

Night view, Udaipur

Night view, Udaipur

10. Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Lucknow, the city of nawabs. It was quite Interesting to explore this city, especially because of its food taste. Apart from photography, I loved the city for the food it offered, and of course, the hospitality.

Ambedkar Memorial, Lucknow

Ambedkar Memorial, Lucknow

Bada Imambara, Lucknow

Bada Imambara, Lucknow

11. Kila Raipur, Punjab

A lesser known place to many of us. Rural Olympics are organized in Kila Raipur in February every year. Just hold your breath while visiting this place because this place has something to offer which you might have not seen in your lifetime.

Rural olympics, Kila Raipur

Rural olympics, Kila Raipur

12. Nainital, Uttarakhand

Night view of Nainital

Night view of Nainital

A city in clouds, Nainital

A city in clouds, Nainital

 

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