London

London : September 2008 - Now

London - a city I first set my foot in, with a mind full of questions, a mind full of doubts, a mind full of fears and a heart full of memories of people I'd left behind.

LHR: Those who fly frequently would be well versed with this acronym for one of the busiest airports in the world. The airport that's welcomed me on most of my journeys with showers and the occasional snowfall.  

I still remember the Saturday evening in September, when I first set my foot in this city - a lad with a very uncertain future, with a burden on his shoulders, with fears in his heart and very little confidence in his steps. 

London, welcomes people from all over the world and in doing so, has retained very little of itself. My first views of London was East London - a predominantly Tamil area of the great city. Didn't feel much different to where I'd come from - was I disappointed? No, the only feeling I had, was doubt and uncertainty. Did these feelings long last? 

Yes & No - Yes because they lasted 3 years and No because those 3 years passed quite fast, not without their share of moments of utter despair and extreme highs. Today, everytime I walk in London, I feel so successful, a very different man from the guy who first landed in this city on a Saturday evening in September.

What did you see in London as a tourist? The regular stuff. Apart from offering the regular tourist's stuff, London has a lot to offer. I feel relaxed after a hectic day - walking through Oxford Circus (one of London's busiest areas). There are quite a few places like this, which help me unwind, The Southbank, The Raddison Rooftop bar (opp. St.Paul's), a stroll in Canary Wharf, The Greenwich Gardens...and the list goes on.

Rome

26-August-2011 Rome
My first international holiday, quite proud about it. 
After a long night at the airport, it was finally time to fly to Rome - the city famous for not being built in a day ;)
The journey wasn't very different to some of the journeys i'd experienced in the past on crowded buses in India, but this time, I was on a flight and not in a bus.
Approximately two and a half hours later, we land in Rome, in an aiport outside the city. It was fairly easy getting from the airport to the hotel, with minor challenges in explaning to the cab driver where the hotel was. Easy check-in, quick shower and then we're off, to see the sights this former power centre of the world, had to offer.

The stuggle with language became real at our first stop - to buy some lunch. Having lived in a bubble that English was spoken all over the West, was a bit surprised to realise that something as common (or atleast I thought) as 'chicken' wasn't understood by our Italian waitress. Had to coo like one to make her realise what I was asking for. The challenges of not knowing the local language only got better(sic) with time.

The first jaw-hits-floor moment came, as we climbed up the stairs of the Colosseo metro station to catch a view of the mighty Colosseum. The mighty monument, not only stood the assault of time, fire and nature on its exterior, but also the assaults, the curses and the cries of slaves on its interior. Was a shame to see tour operators rushing people through this magnificent structure rather than letting them immerse themselves in this monument that was the final breathing place of the brave and the timid, the free and the slave, the mighty and the meek, alike.

Across the Colosseum, is the Roman Forum. What would have once been the power-centre of culture, religion and entertainment, is today a ruin - a magnificent one at that. Shut your eyes to the motor vehicles passing around the walls of this and your eyes will be opened to the dusty roads tread upon by carriages and hooves. The birth place of the Roman senate, the residences of the Roman emperor, offices of the High Priest, temples to planets, a long list of Roman Gods and in later centuries, of Christians, triumph archs, built to welcome victorious roman regiments, all lie in a ruin - a testament to the abuse of power.

A lot to see in Rome, getting lost, not knowing the language, the food, everything opened my eyes to what travelling means - to live the culture, to fall in love with the place, to appreciate the past that has given the present city its place in this ever changing, ever growing world.

One day, if the legend of the Trevi Fountain is true..my coin will pull me back.

Why Now?

This blog has been a long time coming. I've  travelling a bit over the last 3 years and have visited quite a few exciting, enthralling places - cities mostly (i'm a city guy). 

The best thing about travelling is - you don't just travel to a different place, city - you travel through time to an era that heralded the present on, to an era that shaped the world as, we know it today.

In all my travels, I've never traveled alone - something I'd like to do - to lose myself in a place unknown - not that I've not got lost on my travels so far.

Why Now? Well, I've fond memories of the places I visited, good photographs to remind me of the awesomeness of the places I've been to - but, will the impressions on my mind be forever? Well, if something's not imprinted in your mind - maybe it wasn't great, right?? Wrong, in a world where career takes precedence, where money needs to be earned, your memories might be pushed and what were once, your fondest memories may end up in the bylanes of your memory. Hence, this blog, to put in print, to prevent from being sidelined, what my fondest memories are.

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