The world is a playground (of possibilities)!
Test your limits and you will be surprised how you can write the rules of the game
Nov 2023 - It was the week of Diwali. As always, this festival in India is a time for families to come together, enjoy the festivities, with the lighting of lamps and bursting of crackers. I think Diwali is the only festival that truly brings out the warmth, and joy in families - a time when the energy, love and sheer joy is palpable. But the world is a mixed bag. For the first time in all the years, I was not looking forward to Diwali. I happened to be alone at home, and I missed my mom (whom I had lost that year)
A last minute decision to take on something challenging and I decided I would solo trek the Annapurna region in Nepal. I decided a week before Diwali, which did not leave me enough time to prepare for the arduous trek. I had spent the last 6 months working with different groups of friends for this trek, but never got anyone to sign up. So I decided I would stop waiting, and go ahead with the trek.
The Journey
My guide, my porter and me - our group of 3 trekked the Annapurna Base Camp during the week of Diwali. This was my first solo trek, in a new country, and a new terrain, and a new guide. The route to say the least is treacherous with miles and miles of just winding steps. I realised, that all the photographs I had seen of the route did not give me the real picture till I actually started the trek. In the world of Instagram, and facebook (which thankfully I am not part of), travel has been made to be that panache that will deliver us the ultimate happiness. No one tells you that trekking in the Himalayan region just ends up being long days of walking in rough terrain. Of course, I loved the local food, the small conversations with locals who are so adept at playing the perfect host. I loved the silence during the walks, the quiet evenings, and enjoyed conversations with other solo travellers.
When the rules feel the same!
Since I was solo trekking, it also gave me enough time to observe other fellow travellers - of all ages, all races, from all over the world. Nepal is a magnet to international travellers - and the country is geared to serve them. As you trek, you meet some struggling, some enjoying, some too engrossed in their own conversations to even notice the grandeur of nature, some trying to walk fast ahead of the group. But even in the mountains, you could see how everyone is trying to prove a point - either to themselves or to others - of their strength, their agility or their lust for nature. There were days that I was so aware of this arrogance of the human nature that it left me cold. The locals, I sensed are now used to this around them - of travellers come and go, as their lives continue to be the same. When you truly start to observe people in the mountains, you see the same dynamics at play which you would notice in a corporate job. The same need for recognition, the same challenges - except that it happens in a different setting. I was reminded of a friend who is into adventure travel, and the sheer superiority over friends who held city jobs. That superiority made one feel different, but are we really that different?
And that is when I realised - that the world is the same playground for all. Whether it is a job at a corporate, or a job in the mountains, we are all playing the same game. For me, this solo trek was life changing - realising the futility of trying to find the next best experience, if you have not found what really drives you or matters to you. Extracting and collecting experiences seems like the ultimate answer for all, but what are we extracting to learn? What are we giving to learn? If you observe deeply, you start to see the playground we are playing in.
Finally, there are no right answers. Only that the answer should be right for you.
PS: Writing after a long gap. But the memories rewind to a while back. A glimpse of the mountains that seems to be the best teacher one can have.
Beautifully penned Shanti. Keep writing.