Itinerant Summer '21

I grew up in the hills- Himachal and then J&K. And with the myopic optimism of a child I had always assumed that my adult life would be a series of delicious adventures spanning continents, racing around the world. I never quite in these fantasies knew what my line of work was (nope I did actually- spy with independent means). The fantasy quickly turned mundane. You get an MBA, get a job doing stuff your parents can never quite describe to their friends and spend about 12 pretty alright hours each day doing the stuff you can't quite explain but which isn't without it's high points nonetheless. Of course no one will be making movies about your escapades but who cares about that anymore.

Except on days that you do and you look out of the window and before you know it you're leaving the familiar behind and getting out on an incredible quest a la Frodo Baggins. Or in the very least dropping off the face of the earth for a few months on a journey of self discovery- your very own Wild-Esque trip that leads to a momentous epiphany. And then one day I did just that. I spent 3 months living at Jagatsukh, Manali - working and tripping along meandering streams waiting to be hit by that life changing epiphany. It never came- except when it did. Non sequentially and in quiet, unobtrusive ways.

I was supposed to be gone a month- but days stretch into weeks and into months. The plan was pretty straight forward -spend weekdays focusing on work (remotely thanks to the pandemic induced WFH) followed by quiet summer evenings spent at my desk overlooking the hills in my upstairs bedroom the only sound the tap-tapping of my fingers on the keyboard as my long, neglected novel simply writes itself . Or I'd be working on my travel inspired slice of life vignettes - visceral and peppered with those elusive epiphanies that must only come to you when backpacking across the country. Weekends were for being outdoors and chasing those aforementioned epiphanies.

The first week itself clearly things weren't going as per plan. It took time falling into rhythm. Long summer days don't wait for you to finish up work and I wouldn't emerge out of my room until late in the evening just in time for dinner. There was joy there though. Dinner time was about a sense of community with all the other vacationers and travellers gathering around swapping stories with a sense of quick intimacy which I've begun to suspect is a natural corollary of the shared experience of getting away from it all. The home stay hosts I've long since come to regard as family. Anyway to cover lost ground that first weekend I went a bit overboard- jumped into an icy mountain spring (after a lot of dithering to be sure) , caught a cold and then lost my phone on the way back from an afternoon hike (in an incredible twist we actually tracked it down and it was returned to me a few hours later!). But that day I made a new friend to go onto unbelievable adventures with throughout my months in Himachal and quests for the best coffee in all the adjoining towns. Together and with an ever expanding group of friends we traversed wide - on Scootys no less. And in the course of the summer I guess I got a little braver. I've spent a life time being afraid of 2 wheelers including riding pillion and on one eventful weekend I actually did just that riding through Lahaul and parts of Spiti up to Baralacha La with a group of people I had only recently met. That's basically almost half way to Ladakh by road. Less than a month later we made the journey all over again, a #GypsyGirls adventure in a 4x4 pick up van.

So here's a list of my non dramatic epiphanies over the course of the workation.

Don't get hung up on what a workation must look like- this one was kind of a biggie for me. Travel is always uncertain and planning is great but there will be curve balls. It takes time to settle into a routine specially with all the sensory inputs or even just finding a place quiet enough to work. It helps to keep people you work with informed specially until routine takes over. If your work load is uncommonly high- and mine was for the most part- you may want to look at a workation at a place you're already familiar with. While I traveled and stayed in a number of places during weekends including hostels, for most weekdays I chose a homestay I'd already visited in the preceding winter. So I knew I'd have a room and workstation to myself, great internet connectivity, meals taken care of and extremely solicitous hosts. I did get lucky with work too in that I had many of my weekends off. And for the Ladakh leg I took 10 days off work entirely. You can't always have the best of both worlds and there will be days where work takes precedence over everything else. Yet that's also why it's slow travel. You don't have to be in a rush and travel and exploring becomes more seamless when you aren't trying to cram in too many things.

Define your boundaries- and then break the rules- when travelling and once you've made friends with fellow itinerants there's a lot competing for your attention. So discipline specially when you're working remotely becomes important. But it's imperative to let your plans be fluid and remain open to experiences. This summer was all about getting out of the comfort zone for me- from zip lining across a mountain stream to taking on mad terrains on a bike- I'm glad I did it all.

Get involved and jump right in- 2 years of a pandemic tend to make our worlds narrower. I found travel to be eye opening even more so this time after a period of being cloistered in. Old friends are always great but hey have you tried listening to stories of someone you just met who routinely takes on treacherous alpine climbs solo? Another way to really get to know a place is to get involved in the community. I wish I'd had time to do more of this but once you stay in a place long enough it's easy to find ways to support local stores, community initiatives all the while learning about the rich cultural heritage. Some of my best memories are of apple harvest season in late August with everyone hard at work brining in trucks laden with fruit and the scent of apples in the night air. here's the thing- it's all true what they say- the more you broaden your horizons the more it informs every other decision that you make in possibly every other sphere of life.

Take care of others and ask for help- Ironically I discovered solo travel is the least 'solo' experience you will ever undertake. And am I glad! Soon you find yourself a part of a group of fellow travellers. It's important to remain cautious and look after each other and shout out for help. I'm terrified of heights so descending mountains would often trigger low key panic. But I always found people willing to grab my hand and help me along the way.

Don't take yourself too seriously- this was important for me but hopefully y'all are more evolved than that. My greatest struggle in all of this was making it through 3 months in 15 kgs (airline limits) of clothes and 2 pairs of shoes- a pair of hiking boots and my long suffering running shoes that finally gave up on my last day in Manali and fell apart at the seams. On a particular night out in the fancy part of town (Old Manali) I almost wept in front of the mirror when I had to wear my fleece lined t-shirt dress (for the third time) paired with- hiking boots. Here's the thing though Decathlon doesn't make shoes for their looks but have you tried dancing the night away in a pair of their boots? Most comfortable I've ever been at a party that's for sure.

@those_gypsygirls

#solotravel #himachal #Workcation