From Highlands to Himalayas

"why is it when the story ends, we begin to feel all of it" - Rupi Kaur

Look who’s back after a long hiatus.

Here I am at Delhi International Airport. A bit too early I might say (typical Yuv eh), waiting for my flight back home.

Home. Must I really leave? What’s up with these mixed emotions?

You must think - C’mon Yuv. Another vacation, another withdrawal. You will move on

True but you weren’t there. You did not see the things I saw and experienced the raw emotions the way I did, now did you?

Call me selfish but I wanted to keep the memory of this experience all to myself at first.

Firstly, because honestly you just had to be there to understand the beauty of it all. Secondly, as cliche as this may sound; I just can’t find the right words man. My mediocre blogging won’t do any of it justice.

I’m rusty.

But here it goes.

It all started with the reunion of 3 cuckoos at Delhi International Airport at 6am. I was overjoyed as they were one the very few gems I genuinely call friends (I’m legit cursed with long distance friendships with beautiful souls - why?).

Left to right: Cuckoo #1, Cuckoo #2 and Cuckoo #3

The thing is, we had a bus to catch to Bhuntar at 7pm. Yes, frigging 13 hours left to spend in one of the most polluted city in the world. What a treat for dem lungs. I won’t bore you with our mini exploration of Delhi but to summarize, it included amazing home cooked food, a new pair of sweatpants from H&M (genius forgot to pack her pj’s) and anxiety-fueling traffic. I wouldn’t miss you Delhi.

At exactly 7.15pm at Majnu Ka Tilla bus stand, we met “The God” or in layman's term can also be called Deep. It was 3 cuckoos first time meeting Deep in person after a month of liaising via Whatsapp. Here’s something you need to know about Deep, he’s not your average tour guide. I’ve come across many local guides in my travels and he’s unlike any other (Deep, if you are reading this, please don’t get higher than the Himalayas :P). He was more of a friend, a story-teller, full of zindagee (life), crazy, practically eat-sleeps-breathes mountains, and hands down a male version of Cuckoo #3 - pakka!

Dopple-minded individuals

12 hours of bus journey - you sleep off to the view of the city + traffic and wake up to the beautiful views of mountains.

At 9am the next day, we were in Kasol.

A whiff of cold air got us in a shiver as we got down from our cab and was guided to our room where we quickly donned our winter attire (which were safely kept in store since our return from Scotland). After a hearty breakfast of Aloo Cheese Parathas, we took a walk exploring Kasol which was beautifully nestled along the banks of Parvati river. Everywhere you turn, there was a picturesque view of the magnificent Himalayas. Vaah!

From car-chasing doggos (a heaven for #YuvTheDogStalker), to hot springs at Manikaran Sahib, to sitting on a random rock sharing life stories, to chilling by the river with a good cold beer in hand (or Mazaa in my case), to snacking on hot momos and finally catching the sun as it dips behind the mountains, painting it in the shades of peach and pink - I admired with an unwavering gaze. You stunner.

At night, we sat around the bonfire singing songs, forgetting and coming up with lyrics on our own and connecting with strangers in a way I didn’t know was possible till that night - couldn’t help but think to myself “can this get any better?”.

“Wise men say, only fools rush in. But I can’t help, falling in love with you”

Honey, that was only the beginning.

Sarnali & Myrtle - the only duo you need for a bonfire

Our trek to Grahan started at 10am the next day after breakfast - another round of parathas? Yes please!

The trek up to Grahan village was different for everyone. To me, the whole trekking experience hit me right in the feels - it was spellbinding. I don’t know if it was because of the spirited hoomans I had as company during my trek or the evolving beauty of mother nature I witnessed through every ascend or the complete absence of mobile network or the fact that it made me face certain realities of my personal life that I’ve kept submerged at the back of my mind. I’d like to think that it was all of it. I needed this.

"Sometime your heart needs more time to accept what your mind already knows"

Cutie we met along the trek

Despite the hunger due to the lack of snacks we carried along (pure genius eh), it was never a rush to reach the top. At least not for me. It was pure contentment - my mind didn’t race for once, my breath was calm and I felt alive with the mesmerizing onrush of the mountains, snow, fresh air and sense of freedom. You get me? (explains why I tend to run away to the embrace of Mother Nature every chance I get - she keeps me warm).

“Realizing all you ever wanted was right there in front of you”

khoobsurat

I was envious of the beautiful people at Grahan Village. At 7,700 feet, they live such a calm, simple life and imagine having to wake up to stunning views of the Himalayas every frigging day - Can we trade? (I don't think they would want to anyways)

Serving you stunning views from our homestay - Ghanshyam's Place

Chapped lips, leaky Rudolph nose, wet feet and I still never wanted to leave. When we went down to stargaze that night - goddamn the sky lit up like a Christmas tree! I couldn’t help to think that maybe, in another universe, I quit the city life and settled up in the mountains teaching English (I can do Maths or Science too lol) to kids in the village, surrounded by doggos and hey, perhaps I was even fluent in Hindi. Oh the way my mind wanders. But that doesn’t sound too bad now does it? (I can already hear the disapproving sighs from my Indian parents lol)

They. Just. Don’t. Get. It.

Leaving was the hardest. I now knew why Deep wished he had power over time. Sometimes all you want to do is pause, replay and/or rewind a certain moment. Dwell in it just a little longer, experience in it’s magic once more because you don’t know when you can have that again. If it was up to me, I would go back to the night I was under the stars. It felt as ease as knowing all the words to your own favorite song. It was something.

"Stay - she whispered"

The bus ride back to Delhi was faster than expected. Part of me wanted the journey to drag a lil longer (heck, I wasn’t even complaining when the bus broke down for a bit) - this is what in denial is all about guys.

Bid farewell to Cuckoo #2 first. Gave Delhi another chance, this time with Deep showing me and Cuckoo #3 around for a quick walking tour & breakfast before we said our adieus. Never a fan of bidding farewell, I mean who is right? Ugh.

Delhi, I’m still not missing you.

I’m in my flight back home now as I reach the end of this blog. The whole experience was so special & personal to me that it feels almost surreal. Damn.

The best things happen when you least expect it to.

So here’s to the Himalayas, to more hikes/treks, to the inside jokes, to all the firsts (legal and illegal), to friendships, to goodbyes, to see-you-soons, to love, to heartbreaks and to a fucking awesome trip!