“If I live through this, I will consider myself reborn” I thought, clinging to my 14 year old daughter’s shirt to avoid sliding off the Rajnee the elephant. We were riding the leathery gray giant as she swayed her way up a stone staircase. Bella and her 10 year old sister Sophia sat between the … Continued
We lean against the damp brick wall in the candlelit building, rushing water and chanted intonations echo around us. One by one, the candles are put out and our attention is guided inwards. We meditate together, standing in the silence. Cold waters gush up from the ground. Three knocks on the thick wooden door and … Continued
It was my last day in Varanasi – I would catch an east-bound train that night. I awoke early and headed into the twisting warrens of the old city to visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple. I was told that I should go early in the morning before it gets “crazy”. And to bring my passport … Continued
Landing in Egypt, the total tourist destination that was Sharm El Sheikh did not evoke a sense of bravery or boldness. In fact driving through Sharm El Sheikh was like an American dream of hotels and swimming parks. The sense that we were just passing through, this is what evoked that thing deeper inside of … Continued
What are the odds? This is my new favorite game. My friends introduced it on our recent road trip from Tennessee to Idaho. One person in the group thinks of a task for someone else to complete, and challenges that person by asking “what are the odds” that he/she will do it. If they are … Continued
I never much liked the word “vacation.” Sure… the implication is wonderful. Vacant. Devoid of the stress and worry of real life. It can be that way. When you’re lying on the right stretch of beach, doglegged just enough around a grove of exotic trees to obscure the other tourists and most of the … Continued
Don’t mess with Texas “Don’t mess with Texas”, that is the first thing I’ve learn before visiting Houston. But like what Chris Brogan said “ welcome to day one, you are the superhero you’ve been waiting for.” What I did not expect is to learn and say, “Don’t mess with me”. As a cabin crew, … Continued
They still come. They walk in silence and pay their respects to individuals they never knew. They hoist their toddlers and they focus their cameras. They shake their heads. It was a tragedy that reached every corner of the globe and today, one hundred and three years later, it has not been forgotten. … Continued
I suppose you know a place has impacted you when you return to the place that you’re supposed to call home, and find that, like a coat from your childhood, it no longer fits that ideal of home. The place that managed to shake me this hard was the east coast of the United States, … Continued
India is a traveler’s paradise. It is rich and diverse; there is variety in climate, vegetation, terrain and much more. So, lucky was I when I embarked on a journey from north to south via land transport. Principal part of this journey was completed in a train much to my delight. This way I caught … Continued