Distinctiveness - Travel and Lifestyle Blog

Mother Nature's masterpieces (including the two young fellows) The second day of a trip can be either really exciting or deeply depressing depending on the circumstances. Even in Meghalaya , the abode of the clouds.  For instance, the second day of a week-long vacation is likely to keep everyone in an upbeat mood. However, the second day of a weekend trip can be quite melancholy. There's always sadness looming at the culmination of good times.  That was how I felt on a Sunday morning at Quinton Enclave, a quaint little homestay right in the heart of Shillong . We were all a little sore from our ten-hour drive around North East India the previous day. [ Also Read:  A Drive to Krang Suri Falls, Meghalaya ]  There was another six-hour drive ahead of us. The thought of holidays coming to an end only added to the gloom. I sat at the small desk, working on my laptop, but mostly lost in thought. The tea turned cold. It was a lazy morning. That was of course, until Messi wo...

The delights of finding a pocket of heaven on Earth Have you ever stumbled upon something unexpectedly good when it was least likely to happen? I’m sure you have. It’s beautiful how life works out sometimes. Hope and despair work hand in hand to churn up a magnum opus. That was what happened when we set out to visit Krang Suri Falls one July morning (Read: A drive to Krang Suri Falls ). After a seven-hour trip, we found only despair. Life gave us a shot of hope in the form of Kibo Restaurant and urged us to look up and seek the brighter side of things. Find the rainbow in the clouded sky. This is the story of what happened next. Drive to Shillong from Amlarem Krang Suri Falls to Shillong is a scenic drive Buoyed by a fulfilling meal, we continued our journey through rural Meghalaya, heading towards Shillong. The disappointments of missing out on Krang Suri Falls was immediately forgotten as we indulged in Meghalaya's picturesque landscape. There was a sight to behold at every...

  We were a gang, a tribe before this day arrived 24 years ago Few dates have a sense of grief attached to them. They arrive every year, a new day, a new morning, yet the old sadness that lingers in their window curtains never ceases to exist. Time is but a spectator at their doorstep, incapable of exercising her power of regeneration. Unable to heal. Unable to cure. Unable to dismiss tragedies in her waves. I often think about how all of us know of such dates in our lives. Some old, some raw. Days when the lights went out, darkness prevailed and hope seemed like a distant dream. Days when life came to a stuttering stop, time slowed down and the rain refused to end. All that remained was grief. This 10th day of January is one such date. A day from a distant past, yet one which reminds me of an ageless pain. This day whispers to me in a slow sad tone now, speaking of the one who left us more than two decades ago. Reminding me of all the conversations we never had, the movies a...

They are never gone as long as you never stop remembering. Is death really the end? The place of no return? Perhaps. Or maybe, there’s something worse than death. For instance, the end of remembrance. Perhaps forgetting someone is more painful than death.   I have often wondered how different people are afforded contrasting times in this world. We grow up immune to the notion of death until she hits us right where it hurts the most. We expect some special people in our lives to hold our hands forever, through the darkness and the light. But isn’t forever an illusion, a vague, misleading concept created by man? Because sometimes people are forced to abandon you in the middle of the road when you expect them to stay. Sometimes their journey ends abruptly when you were hoping to cross the bridge together. And you are left behind, at the edge of the river, all on your own. On this day, decades ago, my cousin sister was born. I remember her kindness and warmth. I remember meal...

  Durga Ma is on her way, and Messi cannot contain his excitement. Sometimes, the wait for an event is almost as enticing as the actual occasion. The hours before a crucial football match. The final days ahead of a long-pending vacation. The morning of an eagerly awaited arrival. Quite similar to the drumroll - rapid beats on a drum, increasing in intensity by the second - before the extravagant ending. This drumroll is supposed to build up to the main event and often gets sidelined in the dazzling lights of the main event. However, I often find this anticipation, this wait, to be an endearing adventure as well.  I have been indulging in such thoughts of late. Perhaps there’s something in the air, or maybe it’s the season itself. Because, folks, it’s that time of the year again. The buildup to the grand occasion that gets Bengalis world over supercharged.  Durga Puja is less than a month away.  While others may indulge in the religious intricacies of the oc...

  What's life without fun and games? “Are you joking?” Messi froze in his tracks and narrowed his eyes. Minute creases of worry formed on his little forehead. I had just told him that I was contemplating making an omelette on his head. It was a warm, humid noon; the sun was glaring down on us with vengeance. I was picking up my six-year-old son from school. As usual, Messi rushed out of the gate, handed me his bag and water bottle, and proceeded to play with his friends.  When the fun time finally ended, I got hold of my exhausted son, who was now sweating from head to toe.  “It’s so hot,” he declared.  “Shouldn’t have run so much,” I pointed out. He simply shrugged. On the way home, I suggested that since his head was so hot, I could crack an egg to get my protein intake for the day. “Are you joking?” My son has a very clear understanding of a proper joke, and the intricate details associated with it, and for that, perhaps, I should take full res...

Laxmi Puja Prasad You might be tempted to question the source of motivation in a post about Festivals and Gorging, but in my opinion, there is no motivation greater than good food in this world. At least for me there isn't. I have gone to great lengths for good food in my life, but I shall not delve into that now. Let me start with a disclaimer: the rites and rituals of a traditional Puja has never interested me. But that doesn't mean I have never prayed in my life. Even though I embraced the ideologies of my strictly atheist Father at a very young age, I was taught the value of respecting others' views and opinions. And so, I remember praying when my first dog fell ill. Unfortunately, no one listened to a little boy crouching at a corner of his room, with tears in his eyes. From then on, the only times I prayed was to ask the Almighty not to take away a loved one, however, it seldom worked. Bitter and dejected, in my later years, I started praying to my own God...