Taiwan: Rainbow at Kenting

Taiwan: Rainbow at Kenting

We drove past a typhoon-torn fish farm, an oyster-embedded island and a highway lined with betel nut kiosks to reach the southernmost tip of Taiwan, Kenting National Park. By the time our car was skirting the coastline, it was midday and the sun kissed every cantle of the earth. As the car pressed onwards, my … Continued

To Cairo

My first glimpse of Egypt is from a dewy ship balcony at dawn. Sunlight peeks through lavender clouds and drizzles onto the blurry coast; a peaceful entrance into what is supposed to be a country suffering social upheaval. We dock in Port Said, which hosts what is by far the eeriest silence I’ve experienced in … Continued

Pondicherry: Memories of a College

JIPMER, my alma mater, is one of 3 Premier Institutes in India for Medicine. It is located in the quaint former French Colony of Pondicherry on the East coast of India. The acronym stands for Jawarhalal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research. I graduated from here in 1999 and throughout those five long years … Continued

Indiana: It Is Here

Suddenly I am there. My end destination lies less than a mile ahead, but this is the piece that will take me there, the piece that has gotten me this far. Without anxiety I move forward. Each movement welling a memory within me. Each passed feature cherished as an old friend. It is here that … Continued

India: Love Madurai

Whilst in Madurai, a heaving, working, shouting city of blackish earth streets and slow-moving buffalo, we take a rickshaw to Meenakshi Amman Temple. The thirty minute drive lasts for an eternity, and I disembark with a dam of unshed tears. Cycling through the slums, weaving in and out of sloppy wet mud and through rivulets … Continued

What The Kumbha Mela Taught Me

Curiosity, with certain scepticism, made me say yes, when asked if I would like to come along to the Kumbha Mela, the largest religious congregation of people in the world. Curious because over the years, I have seen innumerable photographs that have captured the Mela and wanted to see for myself its appeal. To see … Continued

Florida: Winter’s Tale

Winter, for some visitors to Clearwater Beach, Florida is a season to escape but for others, especially those in need of inspiration, she’s an animal to seek out. Named for the season in which she was rescued, Winter is an eight-year-old dolphin who inspires child amputees, Iraqi war vets and medical researchers interested in recent … Continued

Arigatō to Japan

Asante! xièxiè! Gracias! Tack så mycket! The first word any traveller learns in their new destination, Thank you! A phrase which shows humility, compassion, and a sincere gratitude used to acknowledge the new cultures, the diverse lifestyles, and the natural beauty of the place which you are exploring. The past few years have taken me … Continued

Iceland: Alone in the Lava

I recently took a trip to Iceland – my first to that country. It was also my first solo traveling venture, as all my previous trips had me visiting friends. I was alone in a foreign country; and with that came all the liberation and all the fear of being totally on my own. The … Continued

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