Ten day you Challenge - Post 5. Six places.

Six places is the fifth post in the 10 Day you Challenge.

Before I start with my favourite six places or the places on my wishlist, I want to confess that I have not travelled much. When I see people around me heading out possibly every other weekend, I feel a little lost out. It is because I am always saying that I would like to see the world but have not done anything about it. Sometimes I also feel the urge to leave everything and go on to a trip where I don’t know anyone and there is no madness. Could be hills, beaches, islands or a no man’s land. All this when my bank account is duly credited with a pay cheque for which I am not working , how that will happen well, we will figure out the logistics for that.

I want to travel and see lot of places before I bid adieu. Lot of them. And now that I have wasted better part of my life just thinking and fantasizing about them, I don’t want to waste whatever little time is left.

Also, an interesting part is though I may think of retiring to hills for a few days or whatever time, ultimately I want to come back to the city life, the chaos, the traffic jams, the rat race, the smog and ya…the pollution. I have always been a city girl and I can’t think of living anywhere except a big metropolitan city, like a Mumbai or a Manhattan. I won’t mind any of these…  :)

So my list of six places goes as:

1.       Home. Wherever my family will go, that will be my most favourite place under the sun. Ok I know I am sounding very idealistic right now, but that’s true. Delhi, Mumbai, Sydney or Toronto. Any city, any country.

Deport us on a different planet and that will be my favourite place. All of this because I come home to them. They are home to me.

I believe, you travel the world only to come back home to find peace.

2.       Delhi is very dear to me. So what if I complain about the auto-wallahs, the sick civic sense of people, the weather. But this is the most amazing city. Being born and brought up here, I have grown with this city and have been a witness to all that it is now. From travelling in awful blue line buses to the swanky metro. From relishing a 20 bucks thali at a roadside dhaba near CA institute at ITO to sipping a frappe in super cool Taj CCD.

I am a true blue Delhiite and very proud of it. Whenever I am heading back to the city from a trip, the very sight of tobacco stains on the street corners, garbage heaps, cattle walking on roads in sync with the human population…all this just makes me feel comfortable and at home. It’s the feeling of being back to home safely.  :)

My favourite part of Delhi is Connaught Place. I absolutely breathe that place and I can roam there all day aimlessly all by myself exploring it. I have done that zillion times and I get withdrawal symptoms if I have not been to CP for may be 10-15 days. 

A picture I took from my office in CP on a very cloudy evening...

 I know the place by heart and everytime it takes my breath away…and CP will be the only place I will miss if I move to some other city or country. 

3.       I have been to the city of dreams a few times and it continues to fascinate me. Mumbai is sure a city where dreams are made and shattered all in the same day. It’s the city which thrives on opulence on one hand and extreme poverty on the other. But nobody here loses the steam of living life. The city is said to be hard on those who are new as well as who do not know what they exactly want. But it embraces all, the heroes and the strugglers.

Two things I love about the city and I wish Delhi also had them : Sidhivinayak Temple and Marine Drive. Ofocurse Mumbai monsoons are really awesome but now Delhi has also started getting some really good, roads-logging and traffic-coming-to-a-halt-for-hours type rains.  :)

A view of Marine Drive with Queen's necklace...

After Delhi, if any city I want to settle down in India, it will be Mumbai. Super-paced life, non-poking neighbours/relatives, Jumbo vadapav @ Rs. 10, Carter Road CCD…too much to resist!!

4.       Taj Mahal, Agra. Oh man, I love visiting this place. And actually there are no words to describe it.

All my life I thought this place is over-hyped and all that international recognition on being one of the seven wonders is like a little too much. But one quick plan made by a friend a couple of years back took me to this place. I had no idea what to expect till I reached that gate sort of thing from where I could see Taj in the background. And that sight!! Breathtaking. Beautiful. Period

The picture I took on my second, and a very recent trip...

That visit changed my perceptions and I wanted to make more trips to explore it. Another trip happened after about two years from the first one. But the excitement and love for that was the same. I can’t get enoughof it and I recommend everyone to visit Taj Mahal once in their lifetime. Its not that far from Delhi, great food all the way on the highway, a midway stoppage at Vrindavan and all this leading you to the experience you will not forget. Trust me it is very beautiful and worth it!

5.       Singapore. I will choose it as my first international destination for a vacation and will really not think twice to settle down there. It is a very cosmopolitan country, multi-cultural and good career opportunities.

I have also read that Singapore is one of the safest places to visit by a single female traveller. So here we go…

6.       Europe. Western Europe to be precise. Countries like Italy, Spain, France, Germany, UK and Switzerland and specific cities like Venice, Rome, Paris, Frankfurt, Madrid, London. I want to visit them all. This is so going to be a part of my bucket list…(sigh)

I found this quote by Saint Augustine very apt to end my travel wishlist…

“The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page”

Tomorrow, five foods. Ahem...ahem...:)