Climbing the Mountain Meadows

Last month, I spent a good couple of weeks in Himachal Pradesh. On one of the mornings, we hiked up to an ancient temple called Giri Ganga and stopped by the neighbouring meadows for lunch. I was with my homestay’s host and a couple of his friends. The four of lunch sat on the open…

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Travelling to the Unknown Mountains

Very many hours of my waking life are spent staring at India’s map. I think it comes closest to meditation for me! On a serious note, every Spring I spend some time picking my mountain region of the year. Last year, I was basking in Uttarakhand’s chrome sunshine. But where will the roads take me…

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The Kashmir I Met

Seldom do we realise the power of our own words. A casual remark can often make or change decisions. In September 2009, when I was travelling to Kashmir for work, I had encountered certain stereotypical words used for the state. Unsafe, conservative and dangerous were just the popular ones. Even though it was an official…

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What the 2004 Tsunami taught me

Awoken by the buzzing sounds of my mobile phone, I read the numerous text messages from my friends. I was at a relative’s place in Chennai and woozily walked across the house asking everyone if they had felt the earthquake. Most of us were clueless. I put my mobile aside and continued with my morning….

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