Rishikesh: A must go!

Something beyond peace and tranquil, my trip to Rishikesh was filled with adventures and happening affairs. In anticipation of your thoughts that what adventure I am talking about, it starts with the stereotype broken that we were only two girls traveling alone who did not just follow the way typical girls would. People call us “bros”, that's what we are. We just love quick plans about traveling which is quite impossible when you need approvals of every other friend in your group. But we (Nupur and me) are kind of personalities who religiously obey their hearts. Drop a plan just because of others never give a sound to us. This trip proved it all. Just a day beforehand, we did plan this little adventure and started next day at 9:30pm from Kashmiri gate to Rishikesh.

We talked endless funny stories en-route, definitely screwed the fellow travelers mind which was actually fun for us. Every moment as passed was exciting after all this is the first time we dared to make it on our own.

According to the bus scheduled timings, it should have reached around 6:00am in the morning but we reached quite early at 3:00am. Definitely cool and an add-on to the risk exploring diary of the potters.

At the Rishikesh bus stop, my  phone had a quick search of where to reside for a while. When an Auto-vala actually was giving words to the tourism attractions out there, we decided to go for rafting immediately. This is, of course, ridiculous and laughable. Unfortunately, it didn't start before 10am so these wandering feet and minds had to sleep in order to get ready for another good day. We asked for a hotel there at the bus stop for a one night stay but he could not accept the idea that these girls could alone be just two simple people, not terrorists as he looked us weirdly. He didn't show us any room before we gave him our IDs. We were quite fine with his behavior as we already set our minds that probably everything will be unexpected. So it was. After a while, we agreed to an auto driver, who was convincing us to show and drop us at few hotels near the rafting location. Fear in our hearts was going on as we sat in his big auto like we might end up doing biggest mistake of our life, but the funny part was we both were whispering, and thinking what we would do if he kidnapped us, (he was thin, we would be able to knock him down). And what if he has a gang!!? These horrifying imaginations were becoming large when he dropped us at a quite strange hotel. We couldn't fight or argue at a completely new place and at this time of the morning where nobody would like to listen to us. Skipping that part, we booked a night’s stay in the same hotel in just 300rs and were looking forward to adjusting ourselves in a small bedroom when we saw two drunken people in another room which were just in front of ours, were laughing weirdly. That led to our nightmare preparations even sharper. We are brave strong girls dude, let’s go. I will handle all, I Know Karate…..I chuckled. Shitt, we were talking crap to pretend confident. Well, we locked our door from inside and shifted the sofa chair close to it,  if someone just tries to open these rusted doors. Not just that, we were not able to sleep on these beds which were quite rough and unpleasant. How could you think about beds man, along with these nightmares just had to pass this night, so spread our legs and slept off! Next morning we got up at 8:00am and pulled in jeans and shirt to start the ongoing day. After checking out from the hotel, we starting walking and had a very simple breakfast from a street side shop, which was good in taste plus cheap for our pockets. 

On the way, walking a little further, from all the wonder of vague, happiness switched on when we saw the flowing water and a temple, we quickly made a way to go close to it. We the best singers of our world started singing loudly in excitement … Let me tell you the lines which were definitely ditto to the situation.

“ek nadi se maine puchha ithala ke chalti kaha, dur tere pi ka ghar hai balkhake chalti kaha,  thoda wo ghabrayi, thoda sa sharmayi, uchhli yaha se waha, sagar se milane ka uska jo sapna tha, meri hi tarah piya jiya dole hole hole, kyun yeh dole janu naa” Heehaw .

This was f***ing awesome to speak the whole out of your pitch.

After Spending a few hours near the ice-cold water we realized that the weather wasn't so cool but the water was freezing to death. Sitting on the stones, and keeping feet in the water took it all. Crystal clear water was beautified with the flowers (as Prasad) flowing over the water.

We were trying to catch a few, as a blessing to keep. Our idea was to flow with the water and reach a place where rafting was going on. Yes, almost an impossible idea. To give a shape to the idea we traveled by bus to Shivpuri and finalized our ride in 400rs per person for the rafting. We had lunch before going to flow in the water, suspense here!! Which was kadhai paneer and butter naan(exactly like we Indians usually prefer eating at every other restaurant)? Wear this raft outfit that is -life jacket &helmet and hold a paddle: the guide said.

And here we are ready to go. I was too excited and scared at the same time, we stepped in our raft boats and the guide told us what we have to do during the way. Just after a low tide passed I had no idea that in between of this journey, they will push you into the water to experience the coldness of the water and the waves flow. This experience was amazingly awesome, we were laughing hard like we couldn't even breathe properly.  I asked the guide to pull me back to the boat because I was literally shivering. Guide said OK come up, he gripped a hold of my raft jacket and threw me back to the water. I was thrilled, could not gather of what just happened to me. I would like to tell to all the travelers, get ready for this quick trip of underwater splashes. This thing they don't tell and they just do it. It was too hard to breathe; I almost thought that I was gone. I was thinking I would kill this person if saved. But the feeling I had after shifting back to the boat was worth the adventure.  Like, let's do it all again.

The waves of water when splashes on your body it touches you inside your bones. Just not that cliff jumping was another challenge. We could have sat in our raft boat and watch others to have all fun, but we choose to try our will...we stand at a 10ft above stone to jump in the water which was really scary for that time being. We took around 10 minutes discussing who will jump first and please push me please you push me struggle on the go. And here I said no, I can't if you by chance just die what would I do. But I couldn’t wait anymore standing there watching others showing much dare than any of us, so I pushed her. Yes, she was in the deep water.   My eyes couldn’t blink and my heart was in my mouth. She was back to the layer swimming in the water with her life Jacket. I felt so relieved. Now it was my turn and I was hopelessly looking at the water, questioning my desire how you gonna do it when a guy standing next to me asked to hold his hand and to believe him that he will make me jump. Biting my lips I knew that I couldn't do it so I glared at his hand then caught his eyes. I thought it’s just about now, let’s go for it and I dropped myself in water in just milliseconds, like leaving behind everything to dive into a whole new world.  Trust me I was benumbed for few seconds, couldn’t think beyond surviving. Thanks to Life Jacket that my face came up over the water.  I reached to my boat after struggling with water.  No, I didn't want to do it all anon, saying this because people were actually crazy about it doing it all again and again. Dauntlessness is just a word left looking at my situation. Shivering hands and feet weren't able to experience it over.

We had Maggie, which was quite expensive. We had no choice; warmth was so unavoidable right now so bought and ate it in the jeep. It was around 5:00pm and we had nothing in our minds about spending another night in a different city. We were all soaked and were feeling cold also. It was mandatory to change first.  So started walking on the roads to find a place where we could quickly change.

A kilometer away from Shivpuri‘s rafting endpoint, we entered in a restaurant asked to use the washrooms. As we stepped out of the hotel, we got a sharing auto from there to Ramjhula, where we supposed that we will get a cheap hotel as heard from the locals there. People out there told us that there is a Dharamshala nearby, which costs only 150rs per night stay. We found the same. Although it was good but not a single room left for us. After walking a while in the search for a few more places at around 7 in the evening we realized that there were nice hotels affordable to our accounts.  Do you can have a luxury better than our homes; we were not here to experience the smooth life. We had something else in mind from the starting. Hell tired now checked in an upstairs hotel. Which was good than the first one.  Just in front of our hotel, there were RamJhula and Laxman Jhula , a cross by over the river which was once made up of woods. It was an adventure to walk on that as it used to swing when you walk.  But now it had been constructed as a road for the safety concern and still swings not so heavily but it does. Throwing our bags on the bed, we ran towards the temple where Aarti was going on, which so Lovely, the view was pleasurable and the music were definitely touching these reckless hearts. People were lighting small oil diyas to float them in the shining water. Indian cultures have a beautiful way to touch the positivity in all heads.  After Aarti, we moved a little above the streets in the market to have dinner. In the Market there was amazing stuff to get into our bags; we bought cute little stuff for our friends and family as a piece of memory. We are taught like that, this is how you nurture relationships and save cultures by spreading it through gifts all around.  We moved back to the stay when I got a message from a friend that she saw us downstairs at Ramjhula, she was also here!! She said she saw us walking to our place and she was standing in front of our hotel.  It felt great to see her.  Met someone close at a new place, World is So Small.  We shared our stories with her, she did to us. We woke up fresh and ready to kick start an awesome day. Packed our bags and checked out at 10 in the morning,  Ruchika took us to Bhootnath templ- Mahadev temple to be precise that she asserted the  most beautiful and peaceful temple nearby and the best thing was you could capture the whole city from here. True!! You could see the whole ways from here, what I found about this temple is that it had become commercial as it was written that move to next floor for this specific god. Quite funny but learned to never mess with God matters so kept silent. The voice of bells was echoing as I touched it. Still, that kid in me to touch the bell and ring it as many of times as I could were alive. On the rooftop, alluring landscape was representing Rishikesh in a picture.

We went back to the Ramjhula and sat close to a beach. Did crazy stuff like laying on the stone, posing to the camera so comfortable that nobody is watching us.

You will be loved and adored with the beauty of hills, rivers and the people of Rishikesh.

I can't tell which part was the best but this one was quite awesome, like far from everything that can bother you, being yourself, doing crazy stuff, no one would tell what is wrong and right. Because this experience was louder than anyone, I could only hear that “this is you”. Although we can never get enough of this, we couldn't ditch the bus so reached before 4pm and settled in our bus with a bottle of water and memories. To come some another day we were moving back to Delhi. 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-TFXMT4ZZ8 

 (check how was this journey in a video)

Udaipur: The Lake City

This is not the first time that I thought of traveling and made it, I have been to places, I have been on trips with friends but never traveled alone on a train for a long way.., neither did the idea scare me nor did i feel resistant to go solo and it had only one reason, the destiny...

 Yes, I do believe in dreams, fantasy and it is taking  me to the best of the things. Scheduled in an office system it’s hard to take a leave to live the actual life, but for me, the job is less of priority although that's the only income source of fun. My dream job is to get paid for travel love. If I get one, no one can stop me ever. This journey is meant to be awesome as I have started at 7:40pm on Sarai Rohilla station Delhi to Udaipur city in Chetak express, so lucky that I got to sleep even after I had only sitting reservation.

The family I exchanged seat with had a baby, they could not sleep on the upper berth and they were not aware that the seat they have taken was of two people and eventually they had to give both of their berths to us. Wearing my formal outfit I pushed myself to the upper berth and after a while, I slept off. I kept on checking my phone all through the night, if I were close to my destination or not, and at 6am I finally woke up and adjusted myself to the lower berth. Brushed my hairs and looked around where I was, because the train took 30 minutes at the Chittorgarh station, worriedly I was trying to ask everybody if I was about to reach or where I was(fact was not having any internet to find it out) finally I asked a lady( aunty how much it will take to reach Udaipur city?)and she apparently replied that it would be 1 and a half an hour. For me, it was easy to pass as Rajasthan can't let you live by yourself, I kept sneaking out of the train window, even the essence of railway stations was pleasing to the eyes the way it  kept cultures intact all these years looked like a whole kingdom stayed here in the Nerves of nature.

 As soon I reached Rana Pratap Nagar railway station at 8:00am, the temperature was cool and I could see the beauty of culture being replaced by development, but somewhere it stayed on. The Air of Udaipur is so fresh to breathe that you can't resist opening your arms. One of my friends picked me up from the station to take me to his place. He lives there, and I was jealous how he could have just been born in this heaven. Even after it was the peak of the morning, I didn't want to grab a bed to sleep but my curiosity to explore the whole of the city was what Udaipur poured into me.

 Before it could go any longer, we pulled the engines and reached to the Ambrai Ghat at around 9:00am. Sitting beside it, with all of the patience in the world and so close to the deep water, watching the waves flowing restlessly in a calm speed.

Thoughts, that always ran in my mind just melted away, we were here just to be in peace. And from here, we drove around the hills, it was so perfect. I was being reluctant to leave a place for another which is definitely a must to go for.  But the effect of the place was nonresistant When u stay close to nature it makes u feel better about you, like the way air caresses your hairs, you feel gorgeously beautiful and like the water touches your skin, it makes you feel how young you are. Positivity in the environment is so fully filled that one can imagine infinity in the arms of the hills here. Where ever you go for exploring the city, what you will adore at the end is the ever calm environment. Udaipur, The lake city is one of the best visits of my life, where in just a few hours, so much happened and the time passed, I suggest kiss if you want to hold it whole, and grab the most of anything offered to you by this beautiful city.

After sitting hours around the lake city, we realized, we are badly hungry and we had kachori and Poha. Their traditional food "It's a very normal shop, but serves you the best breakfast," he said. It was true. I loved the Poha. It wasn't over, next place was Badi Lake where I could see the best of the scenery of nature( a tree, still water, hills at the back.. And their shadows were being the cherry on the ice cream. So human of us, that we couldn't see something in so peace, we started throwing stones in the water as we used to play when we were kids Who can throw long? Make this stone jump many times in water in just one throw. 

I know it was crazy but who said we do normal stuff..

After an hour we were at Kundeshwar mandir, we drove in the hills and parked our car near to the temple.

With our favorite toy(camera) we were walking any forward and couldn't decide which is the favorite view, and ended clicking endless pictures and videos. Here was the waterfall I wanted to tell you about from the starting. The moment I saw it, I was unable to shut my mouth which was wide open in an expression of WOW. I was always wanted to take a bath in the waterfall. 

 I was just a step away from the flowing water, and I saw a dead crap. So damn scared that I started scanning the water and somehow made it just under the shower and after now I was pushing my friends into the waterfall "quoted" how you could hold yourself "This is amazing". For hours we were using every possible way to have all fun.

We had lunch after we took a bath in home shower. Slept for an hour and then drove to Karni Mata temple, from here you can scan the entire city through your naked eyes. Although we never like to walk on stairs, no not more than 1 floor. Here we crossed almost 15 floors without any pain or I would say in pleasure, distraction was the cold air and perfection in the picture being made.

In the evening of the same day, we went to Fateh Sagar Lake, to sit near the water and watch the beauty of kingdoms. Pleasure will be just a word to the complimenting rain dropping all around. This moment was so amazing to hold on, I wanted to talk my whole out, I started feeling like if I had an imaginary boyfriend. This is where you need someone to walk with, to tell all the stories and to make one. Dreams and wishes are started to take a much sharp shape now. Those quite faded fantasies were crystal clear in real time. I could not sleep that night as if I won a prize or I should realize my own that it's damn true. Well, slept after talking to a friend, endless real stupid stories. Woke up late next morning, and an another beautiful place was ready in the list. Sajjan Garh was my last visit of the whole trip after that I had to move back to my office schedule. So I wanted to live it all before time passes any long. 

It was raining in such a way that the beauty of the place was getting green. This religious place had nothing to do with worships and religion. What I found about this place is, you can sit here for hours, it has the direct connection to the spiritual power or god. The whole place was covered by clouds due to the weather and what strange was is that raindrops were not following gravity. I was able to see them coming to me like air flows horizontally. 

Did you ever feel so much pain in your cheeks and that is just because you could not stop smiling, I had. There is nothing touchier than being adored by nature. Loads of happiness of getting high in your standards of the wish-list is what I was feeling, No I am not exaggerating my feelings from my heart out, it is just I don't know how to express my emotions to anybody of what exactly this is called, I would rather give a word bigger than awesome. You try hard to just stop your thoughts for a time but beside a lake, tell me if your heart can spell anything out.  It's like Something from your soul screams that baby, life is worth living so live it here and forget the world. This place have much more wonder and to say" be yourself" and travel, for that you were born.  But for another comeback, I had to go.

As soon I was passing out of the city, I put my face out of the window to grab the freshness to my skin pores to the deep of my soul.