The journey through Vibrant Gujarat :)

Rumi says ...

~ Travel brings power and love back into your life ~



And the trip that concluded last evening with classmates from the academy was a fascinating discovery in many ways.

So here I am, a week gone by, a week experienced. It was an eventful one week filled with heat, dust and flaring tempers. But it was also a week of love, new friendships, laughter, truth, camaraderie and mesmerizing colour. It has been a week of fulfillment, of desires, promises and magic. We have come together, broken apart but most importantly we have met.

At the wild ass sanctuary in Little Rann of Kutch we cut across the muddy desert winds to see the animals, besides flamingo nests, birds and tasted salt crumbs; the multitude of shades and intonations brought about by the setting sun at Koteshwar and the White desert left me inspired making me realize just how a single hour can consist of thousands of different colours. The travel through the swanky roads of the state in our traveler lifted the spirits and the many ways in which we kept ourselves entertained through music, rounds of UNO, food and curious psychoanalytic games, I seek to etch in my memory forever. The architectural treasure trove, both of reliefs and etches of the stepwell at Patan and the Modhera Sun temple were a stark reminder of the sculptors' romance with the stone and the wonders true love can produce.

The vegetarian diet, kacchi dabeli, pendha, fafda-jalebi and dhokla's kept us satiated for almost most portion of the trip until our non vegetarian instincts roared out from within like a lion to consume us to hunt down our dietary preferences. The hospitality of the people - whether it be the young boy Murtuza's charming smile that made our day or our guide's family that brought down their entire kitchen to feed us some sumptuous gujarati cuisine or even devjibhai dhamecha's long winding stories of passion that filled our meal time conversations, felt warm and pleasant.

The used, rugged and knowing magical hands of the artisans we met and the mystical colours that we witnessed at the many handicraft villages we visited brought about vibrancy and cheer amidst all the dryness; making the product come alive.

The visit to the Harappan site Dholavira made history come alive while the Thaan monastry redefined perceptions of a holy place. The last village of the western subcontinent Lakhpat brought my attention to the changing pattern in attire and accent, serving as a reminder of the close proximity that we were in with our long severed neighbours.

Lastly, this trip was in many ways a window towards experiencing the quirkiness and madness contained amongst all my classmates and my teacher. It has left me mesmerized and continues to do so even now as I conclude this piece.
As they say-- "Travel is the only thing you buy, that makes you richer". I'm glad I made this purchase. Indeed the riches are bountiful!