Tag: travel
Why I go when no one else is
That time I was chalking out my itinerary for western Canada, I chose Saturna island because I didn’t know anyone — not a single person — who had been there. Later, when I landed in Canada, I met this person who’d been there twenty years ago, on work.
Ninety per cent of the people I know who are going or have visited or are planning to visit Australia, go to the Gold Coast, Uluru and Tasmania. I wondered why not many explore Western Australia extensively because when I looked it up, it sounded incredible. Continue reading Why I go when no one else is
Why you should say “yes” more often
Before I go into why “yes” is so important, let me clarify that there are instances when the best thing you can say is a “no”. This post does not undermine “no” but stresses on the importance of “yes”.
“Yes” is a powerful word and when used right and intelligently, it has the power to open doors of opportunities and possibilities. In this post, I will talk about some instances when saying “yes” to an idea turned out awesome for me. Hopefully, it will inspire you to say yes more often. Continue reading Why you should say “yes” more often
Why I travel (and don’t intend to stop)
I don’t know why so many people appear surprised by the amount of travelling I do. If you ask me, I think I don’t travel enough. Well, certainly not as much as I’d want to!
These people come in two categories. The first group imagines I make pots of money (How else does he fund his travels?!). The rest of them, who have an idea about the sad kind of salaries journalists get, cannot for their life fathom why I would spend that big a chunk of my money to, well, travel.
I decided to write this post because lately, I have been interacting with quite a few such people. Here’s why I travel. Continue reading Why I travel (and don’t intend to stop)
Travel better with these two language apps
You have landed in this new place and you don’t have a clue of what anybody is saying around you because you don’t know the local language. What’s more, you don’t even understand those all-important signs!
Has that ever happened to you? It has happened to me. Many times. Continue reading Travel better with these two language apps
Ten reasons to go to Western Australia
Western Australia amazed me, detoxed me and inspired me.
It is difficult to put into words the kind of experience this place has to offer. All I can say is, if you are thinking of going to Australia, think beyond the Gold Coast. And do consider the amazing west. It will blow your mind away.
Here are ten reasons to go to Western Australia. Continue reading Ten reasons to go to Western Australia
Two kangaroos & some countryside hospitality
By the afternoon of my ninth day in Australia, I had seen six dead kangaroos by the road (apparently killed by cars) and eaten a seventh. I was starting to wonder if I’d actually see any live ones.
We had had a nice day exploring Kalbarri National Park and its incredible gorges and there were still a few hours to go before the sun set when we were driving out of the national park to a rest area by the Northwest Coastal Highway, where we intended to stay the night. Continue reading Two kangaroos & some countryside hospitality
When I landed in Kolkata but my bag didn’t
When I have a plane to catch, I make every effort to ensure that I reach the airport well in time.
My flight from Delhi to Kolkata was originally supposed to depart at 9.20am, but I got a message airline couple of days before saying it would now fly at 10.40am. Continue reading When I landed in Kolkata but my bag didn’t
That narcotic call of the road
This is the second of a two-part series by Jayeeta Ghorai on books inspiring budget travel
The word “narcotic” jumps up at me about ten pages into Vagabonding. There was no doubt from this point on that this book would be finished. A nasty flu, ensuring bed rest and paracetamol-induced crazy wake-up cycles, made continuous reading possible. For once, I am thankful to a virus because the book was, to repeat a cliché, simply unputdownable. Continue reading That narcotic call of the road
How low can you go and why you should
This is the first of a two-part series by Jayeeta Ghorai on books inspiring budget travel
I recently read Tom Chesshyre’s How Low Can You Go? Round Europe for 1p Each Way (Plus Tax). The title leaves the reader in no ambiguity what the book is about. Tom has been a travel correspondent with The Times since 1997. Besides writing posh columns on amazingly luxurious (and heartbreaking expensive) hotels in the UK and Europe, the kind we shoe-stringers wouldn’t bother giving second glances to, he takes himself off on quirky journeys. Continue reading How low can you go and why you should
Flashback 2014: My Instagram journey
I had joined Instagram in the middle of 2014, shortly before my trip to Japan. Consequently, it was no surprise that I did some extensive picture posting during that particular trip.
This post is a flashback of the year gone by through some of the pictures I had shared on Instagram.
No gyan here, just reliving some memories. Continue reading Flashback 2014: My Instagram journey
Hostels add to your travel stories
A hostel is a wonderful thing for travellers. They add to the travel stories.
One thing I find interesting about hostels is that, good or bad, each is unique with its own set of traditions and weird rules. Continue reading Hostels add to your travel stories
10 lessons from 3 years of travel sans travel agents
It was in the middle of 2011 when I got on that plane to Thailand all by myself. There wasn’t anyone I know around me to share my excitement.
To be honest, I was more scared than excited because it was my first trip alone and I hadn’t taken help from any kind of travel agent. I had booked the flight tickets, contacted people on Couchsurfing and planned everything on my own.
At the end of the trip, I was glad that I had been able to take that plunge because not only was the trip a big success, but it was the first of many bigger and better trips, all of them without the help of travel agents, of course! Here are 10 lessons from my more-than-three-years of travels without travel agents. Continue reading 10 lessons from 3 years of travel sans travel agents