A Journey Beyond Roads

By Aishwarya S

Travel is said to be a gift of life. Traveling expands the array of perception. The world is an exploration and life is a journey. Each time the sun rises and the orange ball of fire sets there is a journey lived in the traverse of time. Here I begin my story that proves that travel is a longing for those who cherish living life to the fullest.

James sighed looking out of the window. He wondered what his group of friends were up to. They were a group of four. Their biggest drive was to go places, meet new people, eat diverse food and examine scads of cultures. It was now the pandemic and none of them could move anywhere out of the confines of their homes but was rather just a house. He lived alone in a two bedroom apartment with a kitchen and a store room. His family lived in Jaipur and he had to come all the way to Chennai to make a living. He was an automobile engineer by profession. He earned a decent living and saved enough not for his future but just to travel! That was heaven! That was Paradise!

He suddenly forced himself out of his thoughts. He decided to clean his house. He began with the store room, of course the smallest part of the house scattered with old grocery, chips, snacks,grains and of course a typical Indian store room cannot be complete without gunny bags and rats scampering around. With no particular plan he began reaching his hand to the top most rack. He found random photo albums and began to leaf through them.

There he found the pictures of his childhood. He had that beautiful curve on his face as he sat between his mother and father. Behind him was seated his brother. It was in front of The Se Cathedral Church in Goa. He was reminded of the days when they had been on a vacation to Goa. The amazing beaches they visited, the colonial architecture they saw in Panaji and all the wonderful adventures his parents ventured into.

He flipped the page and looked at a picture of an excursion he had gone to with his school friends. It was The Fun Kingdom theme park. He saw his pictures with his friends they were all swinging on the monkey bars followed by the ferrous wheel and not to forget the roller coaster ride and the pirate ship. Then he saw a picture of himself gliding from the water slides. He remembered those days when he was afraid of water and heights as well, and then thought of the heroic moment of shedding his fear. He laughed at his own innocence when he realized he was missing his best friend Tharik who had travelled throughout his life: from the days of his school until he finished college. Hot tears trickled from his eyes and touched his cheek.

Not long, he dozed off seated on the kitchen counter. He suddenly woke up and found that it was 3PM already. He decided to order Biriyani from SS Hyderabad situated at Royapetta . He suddenly remembered how he and his four friends had gone to Hyderabad just to taste the exotic Biriyani. He also recollected how they faced so many misadventures just because of their language barrier. In spite of that they were able to visit the Charminar, Salar Jung museum, Golkonda Fort, NTR gardens and Birla Mandir. They were indeed astounded by the architectural marvel of each of these beautiful buildings. The food was delivered and he began to eat. His thoughts began to drift like the turbulent ocean and he was unable to finish his lunch.

He washed his hands and sat on his couch. He picked his cell phone and made a call to Anita one of his four friends who was a journalist. The conversation began:

James: Hey Ani! How are you? What are you up to?

Anita: Hey Jam, nothing much I am just writing an article about The Best Places to visit in North East India.

James: Wow! That sounds impressive! Remember you took all three of us on your business visit to Sikkim?

Anita: Oh ya! It was our best trip ever and I remember getting almost fired by my boss for all that we did.

James: Haha true. Nothing can be more beautiful than to go places with friends, isn’t it? You, Ahamed, Shilpa and I make the best travel buddies dude.

Anita: Not always. It is fun and you get to learn a lot when you take a journey alone. It will actually take you more inward and show you who you truly are. You should give it a try. I think for engineers like you, IT employees like Shilpa and of course a HR like Ahamed, it is impossible to get such opportunities. But you guys should give it a try yaar.

James: Maybe you are right! Continue writing. Catch up later.

James kept recollecting all that Ani had told him. He suddenly felt a calm, a quiet. He knew he has never had such a feeling since really long. He was traveling yes, traveling indeed in his journey inward!

By Aishwarya S