8 Things I Miss About Travel During Stay At Home Due to COVID-19

Are you missing traveling as much as I do? The stay at home situation is teaching me not to take things for granted, including travel.

I have always loved traveling for as long as I can remember and I find that the best way to learn and grow yourself is to travel.

Photo clicked by me – Hong Islands- Krabi, Thailand.

Travel is something which helps you get out of your comfort zone and many a times I have had positive as well as negative experiences which have brought me out of my comfort zone, encouraged me to travel more and helped me to understand more about life.

“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.” -Gustav Flaubert

So here are 8 things I miss about travel:

1. The Anticipation

The feeling of anticipation I get, when I visit a new place for the first time, is something I am currently missing. It makes me hopeful and happy when I know I am going to visit a new place!

2. Last Minute Packing

This one is strange, since I NEVER have liked packing. Whether it is moving homes or countries or traveling, all of which I have done often, the one thing I absolutely don’t like is packing my stuff. Whenever I do travel, my packing is almost always done last minute, since I cannot make up my mind completely before that 😀 So I always am rushing to pack my bags, last moment, every single time, which annoys my husband very much since he is quite a meticulous planner. 😀

Strangely enough, ever since I am at home, I am missing packing my bags and going to discover some place new. I miss the last minute rush and craziness of it all!

3. The Culture & People

I am a people’s person and I love discovering new places and different cultures and I like to interact with the local people and observe them. I find each travel experience teaches me something new and helps me broaden my horizons. This is one of the primary reasons I love traveling, since it teaches me so much about the world!

4. Airports

I love airports and the sense of being in transit and the vibe of it all. I really enjoy having a cup of tea/coffee before I board the plane and I love to observe people as they rush through to different destinations.

In fact, I am one of the few people who loves a longer transit time in between flights. Of course, not all airports are that interesting or well developed, so it also depends on the airport whether I enjoy my time there or not.

My favourite airport is of course Singapore Airport. There is absolutely no competition there! I haven’t heard of or seen a more creative and interesting airport than Singapore Airport! The next one which I like is Mumbai International Airport!

5. Nature

Whenever I travel, I make it a point to visit some scenic place. I love connecting with nature. The lush green trees, the chirping birds and the ache I get when I walk too much. I feel calm and refreshed and energetic connecting with nature. I miss that feeling right now.

Also, I am a sea person and like they say, I need a dose of ‘vitamin sea’ when I travel. Watching the waves, feeling the sun and wind on your skin and the sand underneath my feet, is an incomparable feeling.

I miss my dose of nature & sea!

6. The excitement of being in a place for the first time

The thrill of going to a new place for the first time, being amazed at the new things I tumble upon and the feeling of wonder on discovering something new, I miss that.

7. Photos

How obvious is this one!! Every girl likes getting clicked and so do I. For me though, my love for photos extends beyond myself. I love to capture the food, the place, the people, nature and everything else that I can, in my photos. I love capturing photos since photos are memories for me. Memories I cherish and I wish to treasure.

I also love sorting out the unwanted photos on my phone and keeping the good ones. For me, travel and photography go hand in hand and any place I travel to, is incomplete without photos!

8. Coming Home

Although, I love traveling much more than an average person, I also love the feeling of coming back home. Home is like a safe space for most of us, isn’t it? I love coming back home enriched with wonderful experiences and a new perspective on life. Unwinding at home after travel is a great feeling and I miss it.

No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” – Lin Yutang

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These are a few things I miss about traveling. As I write this, I feel the urge to travel again!

I hope that we all overcome the Coronavirus Pandemic and are able to travel, make new friends, collect more memories and learn more about each other!

“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” – Anthony Bourdain

When was the last time you traveled & where?

What are things you miss about travel?

5 Interesting and Quirky Facts about Singapore

Heyya peeps! So I have been living in Singapore for more than a year and I have realised how little I have shared my experiences of living in Singapore as an Indian.

I had previously shared a post mentioning about the challenges I faced when I started living abroad. You can read about them Here.

I want to share more about living in Singapore.

Now, Singapore is a country mainly known for it’s tourism. However, the tourism part isn’t the only thing that defines the country. What many people don’t realize is that most people residing here, citizens or expats have a life apart from the touristy bit.

Today I shall share 5 unique things about Singapore that you may not have heard about.

• ‘Singlish’

The first thing I noticed when I came to Singapore is the language. While the official languages are English, Mandarin, Tamil and Malay, there is a unique language that locals speak here. It’s called ‘Singlish’ that is Colloquial Singaporean English.

Singlish has managed to capture a bit of all the languages that are official in Singapore as well as the original languages of the first migrants who came here, such as the Hokkien or Teochew languages. To top it all, it has also managed to get two words included in the Oxford English Dictionary, lah and sinseh.

Some of the Singlish elements are contagious and I have often ended up using them myself. For example, using Can instead of Yes, Cannot to say No and Lah to put emphasis at the end of a sentence. I love the lilt of saying lah and often end up saying ‘Can lah’ in a lot of my conversations.

Mastering the full range of Singlish expressions and way of speaking is very tough and difficult for expats.

Thus, Singlish is one of Singapore’s most unique facts and a clear sign of its identity and brings everyone together under a common language.

• Multiculturism

I am an Indian, so multiculturalism isn’t a new concept for me, but when I landed in Singapore, I wasn’t expecting it to be this multicultured. I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered the fact.

You can see Chinese Buddhists, Chinese Christians, Indians (South Indian Tamils are majority), Malaysians, Indonesians and Filippinos all living together in harmony in Singapore.

In Bugis, Singapore, there is a Lord Krishna Temple which is a Hindu temple and Kwan Im Thong Hood Chu Chinese temple adjacent to each other and one can see tourists as well as locals of all cultures visiting both temples to get a glimpse of the culture and grandeur they possess.

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  Krishna Temple

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  Adjacent Kwan Temple

Thus, Singapore is quite multicultured and I feel it is often not given enough credit for being so.

• Cats Paradise

Singapore is a paradise for cats! Cats are considered lucky in Chinese culture and most Singaporeans are kind and loving towards them.

Almost every residential area will have a few stray cats and few local dedicated persons will feed the cats on a regular basis. Hence, the stray cats here are quite healthy and great to play with, like I discovered. My fondness for these cats has only increased with passing time. Cats are mystical, full of wisdom and although may appear aloof intially, once they get to know you, they show you love in their own distinct way.

I am amazed at how well taken care of the cats are in Singapore. Of course there are people who have been cruel to these harmless creatures, especially in an area called Yishun, but other than that, most stray cats here are well-taken care of and loved by many.

Also, in many of the Chinese shops and homes, you can find the Maneki-Neko (beckoning) Cat figurines. Also, called the waving cat or lucky cat. Some of the sculptures are electric or battery-powered and have a slow-moving paw beckoning.

So if you are an animal lover or a cat lover, keep a look-out for these cute and gorgeous creatures!

• Hawker Centre Culture

Singapore has several hawker centres or ‘food courts’ which provide good quality food at afforable rates. As a result, most Singaporeans don’t really cook their meals at home but have it at these centres.

These hawker centres are not much known to the tourists who opt for the expensive restaurants. There is nothing wrong in that. We all love fancy restaurants, but the hawker centre culture is just too vibrant to be missed, even as a tourist. You can visit it just to be amazed by the variety of food and general atmosphere of these centres.

As a vegetarian, I always hunt for vegetarian hawkers and I do find vegetarian food at most centres, if not all.

The best part of these Hawker centres is that the government supports the thriving of these centres, hence they can afford to give the best food that they can.

Also, regular checks are made at these centres, which usually takes care of any hygiene concerns.

Did you know, Singapore is the only country where Hawker Stalls are awarded Michelin stars? so you can have the world’s cheapest michelin star food in Singapore! Few names- Outram Park Fried Kway Teow, J2 Famous Crispy Curry Puff, etc.

So the next time you visit Singapore, don’t miss out experiencing the Hawker culture!

• Car Parking

While buying a car in Singapore is extremely expensive and can make one go broke, those who do own cars and park them in Singapore, have a unique and systematic style of parking them.

Almost all Singaporean locals park their car in reverse, so that it’s convenient to take your car out, once your work is done.

They really do have amazing reverse parking skills I tell you!

So those were few interesting, fun and unique facts about Singapore. I do hope you visit the country soon and whenever you do, lookout for these quirks!

Poem- Life is a Journey

It’s been more than 2 months since I have posted on my blog and buooyy, have I missed writing!

I hope you have missed my content as much as I have missed writing here. 😀

Life happens and sometimes one isn’t in the right frame of mind to sit down and blog or sometimes there just isn’t enough time.

I have taken multiple small such breaks from writing only to realize each time how much it means to me and how much I long to get back to it as soon as I can.

I would go on about this all day :D, but today I am just going to share a simple poem for all of you.

I have been traveling quite a bit for the last one year and it’s been so much of a learning experience that I can’t even put it into words.

Nevertheless, here’s a poem for all of you, inspired by all my travel and experiences. It does have a spiritual touch to it as well. Read & enjoy!

This Life, it’s a journey

It surely is moving at a great pace

We experience wonderful times

as well as unpleasant times

We meet some fantastic co-passengers

as well as some horrendous ones

on this excursion of life….

Some stay with us till the end of our journey

Some simply drift apart

and alight to tread a different path…

Throughout it all,

Life teaches us to be a witness

to all that’s happening to us

to all that’s bothering us

Melancholy comes when we forget

that our soujourn is going to end

We all are going to alight somewhere, someplace

from this journey of life….

Where are we going, you ponder?

We are on a expedition towards the unknown

towards the infinite truth

that permeates the universe

Journey towards the unseen

Journey towards the inevitable

Journey towards the unfathomable

Our journeys surely have different paths,

But they do merge into the arms of the Divine

Who walks our paths and holds our hands

Who gives strength during tough times

and gifts us with happy times

helping us traverse this voyage of life….

I hope you all are having an amazing time enjoying this journey of your life and if you aren’t, do take a moment to appreciate your life and of course keep reading my blog!

Catch you all soon on the next post,

Till then,

Dream. Imagine. Be Crazy. Be You.

Bali Diaries 4: Is Bali Worth The Hype? An Honest Indian’s Perspective

Hello, welcome back to my blog. I hope you all have been following my Bali Diaries series on the blog.

Till now, I have written all about the wonderful places and the things I have liked about Bali.

I have mentioned which all places to visit in Bali and given an insight and overview of each place to you. It indeed is a unique place and I am going to cherish all the beautiful moments I have had in Bali. From lush green rice terraces to the mesmerizing beaches and cultural and picturesque temples, it indeed has tons of things which are worth seeing.

In case you have missed the previous parts, have a look-

Bali Diaries 1

Bali Diaries 2

Bali Diaries 3

However, just like any other city or island, Bali isn’t perfect. It has it’s pros and cons. In the Final Part of the series I will be talking about a few experiences we had in Bali which made it a mixed experience and I found certain things not so likeable during my stay in Bali. I would like to give an insight about the lesser known and not so good things about Bali as well.

• Place & People.

The roads in Ubud are quite narrow, foothpaths are not well maintained and one can trip while walking. We did meet good people in Bali, like the people who hosted our stay in the hotels or the good driver who drove us while touring, but in general, the hospitality of the people in Bali seems to be very forced. They couldn’t care less about you unless you pay money. The only thing they care about is money and how to extract this from you. I agree tourism is their livelihood, but I found Thailand (Krabi) to be more warm and hospitable.

Ubud Market

They also quote very high prices for selling anything and expect people to waste a lot of time in bargaining. Of course we Indians are the experts when it comes to bargaining 😀 , but nobody in India will quote 10-20 times the price of their product. They know the value of what they are selling and ask for a bit more, which one can baragain reasonably with. This is not the case in Bali. The ubud market is entirely overrated and we found only one fella who was nice enough and and quoted good prices to us and did not waste a lot of time of ours in bargaining. The people in Bali don’t have a good business sense when it comes to treating their customers right and selling their products aptly.

• 2. Costs and Culture

Is Bali really as cheap as they make it out to be? I think it’s a matter of perspective for everyone, but I would say both, yes and no.

It depends. If you are wise enough to eat at ‘Warungs’ which are traditional what we call in India- ‘dhabas’ (small restaurant or cafe) where the food is reasonably priced you save money.

If you book your lodgings and stay at reasonably priced hotels/villas, you will save money.

But like I mentioned above, I found this extraction of money from tourists a tad irritating.

Even the beaches you visit, most of them have an entrance fee, which irked us. Also, some of the free beaches like Nusa Dua have built private resorts, so the access of the beach to general public is limited and small. I have never in my life paid to ‘enter’ a beach, so it was weird. Of course the beaches are very beautiful and picturesque. But they aren’t as well maintained as they should be. There are no public toilets available, despite the cost.

Beautiful view @ Pandawa Beach (Yes we paid to enter this beach)

Every temple you visit in Bali has an entrance fee. When it comes to temples, the worst part is that they will not allow you inside the interiors of the temple and one has to admire the view from outside. Undoubtedly the view is beautiful, but we were disappointed to know we couldn’t enter the interior of the temple. How can one know more about Balinese culture if they do this?

The Hindu culture of Bali is inspired by Indian Hindu culture, Buddhist and Chinese culture with an Indonesian touch which is great and totally different from the rest of the world. The only problem is the culture lacks depth and soul. It all looks amazing from the outside, but it seems quite shallow and incomplete from the inside.

As an Indian, I can proudly say there are a large number of amazing temples in India which are much more beautiful and culturally richer than Balinese Temples. Also, the donation of money in these temples is optional and entry is free for all.

Overall, I would say Bali could make more efforts in perserving their culture and giving a ‘value for money’ feeling to tourists who pay.

• 3. Food

I heard a lot about Ubud being the cultural hub and heard that there are lots of vegetarian and vegan options. My husband is a lacto vegetarian (no fish or eggs) and I am too, currently tansitioning towards being a vegan because dairy doesn’t suit my gut very well. Anyway, so naturally we were excited to checkout the food in Bali.

In Bali, it is quite convenient to eat at ‘Warungs’ like I mentioned above. The food is cheaper, yet healthier. Upon reaching Bali, we found out that very few warungs in Ubud were actually vegetarian or vegan. Of course many warungs offered or served vegetarian dishes but the options are limited. We infact ate a lot more variety of food at Krabi in Thailand which isn’t supposed to be a veg friendly place, yet the people over there managed to make some great dishes for us. 🙂

So yes, not a lot of variety in the reasonable range for vegans and vegetarians like us. The standard cuisine of ‘Nasi Goreng’, ‘Mi Goreng’ etc are of course available but that’s about it.

Of course there are a few places I would like to recommend.

I would recommend warung Sun Sun for it’s great quality of food. It’s not a vegetarian warung but the limited dishes that they do serve are of great quality and good taste.

Another place I would recommend is- Sawobali The Daily Buffet. It’s like hitting the jackpot for vegans because there is a daily buffet over there which is vegan and gluten free.

Yummy Vegan
& Gluten-free buffet @ Sawobali

I also absolutely loved ‘Acai Queen’ in Ubud, which serves amazing Acai bowls. Super delicious, healthy and just a must have in Bali. It’s a small place but the decor is quite cute as well.

Yummy Acai Bowl at Acai Queen

There are few fancy restaurants where you will get vegan or vegetarian food. I will say ‘few’ again since I was expecting a lot more vegetarian and vegan friendly options in Bali. Also, these fancy restaurants are overpriced and not at all convenient for budget travelers.

So food options for vegans and vegetarians although definitely present in Bali, are limited. I was disappointed maybe because I really had high expectations on this one.

It’s just my take, but feel free to do your research and if you do find out many options, let me know!

• 4. Transport, Taxis and Getting around

Like I mentioned in my previous articles about Bali, you can either explore Bali by booking a private cab/driver or book a tour.

If you want to explore Ubud or other places around Bali, usually a scooter is the most popular mode of transport.

We hired a scooter and regretted it a lot later. Why? Because roads in Ubud are very narrow and most tourists who come there don’t know how to drive.

Also, due to the narrow roads, I hit my left foot while I was riding pillion and my left second toe was hurt badly. (It’s recovered 99% now. All fine)

So much so that we had to get an X-ray done to rule out any fractures or breaks in the bone. (There weren’t any, thankfully)

Now here comes the best part-

We booked a taxi via Uber to go to the hospital (since it is the only one place in Ubud has a X-ray machine).

While I was in pain and waiting for the Uber, the private taxi drivers started badgering us to use their service.

Not just that, as soon as our Uber driver arrived, they went to him and threatened him. Fearing their wrath, he simply drove away.

We had thus no choice except to ride via their private cab and this fellow charged us almost thrice the money for that short distance.

So yes, there is taxi mafia in Bali. They sit on roads and badger you to book their services, which is okay considering it is their livelihood, but threatening an Uber driver and shooing him away is not okay. It is scary. So I would warn you all to be careful with the local drivers in Bali.

Thus, these were my few unwanted experiences and observations about Bali.

I am not trying to put anyone off or hurt any feelings or dissuade people from going to Bali.

It is a beautiful place to visit. ❤

But, It is definitely over-hyped by a lot of people who paint a very rosy picture of Bali.

If one visits Bali with realistic expectations and keeps in mind it’s pluses and minuses both, it is most assuredly a great place to travel to and enjoy a vacation.

Thus, my Bali diaries has concluded. 🙂 🙂 I have tried my best to give you an honest outlook of Bali including the places to visit there as well as what I enjoyed and what I did not. I hope this helps people to decide and choose and get an insight about Bali.

Keep a lookout for new posts coming out soon.

Till the next post,

Dream. Imagine. Be Crazy. Be You.

Bali Diaries 3: Off-beat beaches & more. An Honest Indian’s Perspective

Hey friends! Continuing the Bali Series on my blog, I am sharing a few more places in Bali for which you can schedule a tour or book a driver.

If you have missed the previous posts in the Bali series, here are the links-

Part 1

Part 2

Moving on, in this post I am sharing the beachy side of Bali with all of you. We visited the off beat and lesser known beaches in Bali and I would love to share more with you.

Before visiting the beaches, we visited one last temple near Ubud and then head to the beach. Read on to know more…

1.Goa Gajah Temple Bali

Entrace of the Goa Gajah cave and Hubby posing in his sarong 😀

Now, of all the temples we saw in Bali, this one turned out to be my favourite in terms of actual sightseeing of the deities. It is a small temple located close to Ubud so you can hire a scooter and go there as well. It is also called the Elephant Cave.

Me at Goa Gajah Temple

Inside the cave are deities of Lord Ganesha and the Trimurti Shiva Ling of Lord Shiva. Both the deities exude very powerful vibes if one is sensitive enough and can feel them.

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  Lord Ganesha’s Idol

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  Lord Shiva’s Trimurti Shivling

So yes, this temple despite being lesser known, is definitely worth visiting.

Entrance Fees: IDR 15,000 ( $1.39 SGD, ₹ 71 INR)

2. Pandawa Beach

Beautiful Pandawa Beach

The Pandawa Beach is one of the lesser visited beaches in Bali. It is also called as the Hidden Beach.

Enjoying the calm at Pandawa Beach

It is an extremely beautiful, calm and soothing beach. We spent more than two hours at this beach.

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It is named after the ancient Indian and Hindu history of the Pandawas who were Indian warriors in the Mahabharata. One can see huge statues of theirs constructed as one enters the beach.

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The only thing we disliked here is that there was an entry fee to this beach as well.

I mean we understand temples etc, but who pays to go to a beach?

Nevertheless, it is surely a wonderful beach and I felt totally detoxified and calm after visiting this beach. So much of blue! Totally therapeutic! 🙂

Entrance Fees: IDR 15,000 ( $1.39 SGD, ₹ 71 INR)

3. Nusa Dua

After the above two places, we made a short visit to Nusa Dua beach. The tide was pretty low so we couldn’t enjoy the beach water per se, but nevertheless we had fun drinking Balinese Coffee at a Pirate themed beach cafe there. It has lovely Pirate themed structures and boats which one can climb and click photos with.

Yay I am sailing 😛 Pirate themed ship @ a cafe in Nusa Dua

Overall it is a hit or miss depending on your schedule.

4. Sanur Beach

Sanur Beach

This is again one of the lesser known beaches in Bali. We didn’t schedule a tour for this one since we were staying in Sanur itself for the last two days of our trip and the beach is walking distance from the hotel we stayed in. Sanur is located in the South of Bali and is closer to the airport than Ubud, which makes it convenient.

Sanur Beach

The sanur beach is again a really beautiful beach, although it’s beauty differs from the Pandawa Beach. It’s really fascinatiing to visit different types of beaches and enjoy them and appreciate the diversities of nature.

The Sanur beach has really cute boats as well alongside the beach, which make it a pretty sight.

Colourful boats @ sanur beach

We spent a lot of time at this beach, since it was the last day of our stay in Bali and we wanted to absorb all the goodness of the beach before we went back. We had some coconut water from a fresh coconut and some watermelon juice as well, from one of the cafes in Bali.

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  view

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  Even better view 😀

It definitely is a must visit if you just love to sit by the beach and admire the views.

Me posing @ Sanur Beach

We walked alongside the beach and waded a bit in the water as well. Quite fun.

Hubby Flying 😛 @ Sanur beach

So that’s it about the beaches in Bali that we visited. We purposely stayed away from the popular Kuta and Seminayak beaches since they are very touristy and crowded and hence we visited the above beaches.

Sanur beach

Beaches in Bali are beautiful no doubt, but I would say they are not good for those looking to swim in deep waters since the water is pretty rough. Overall they are just the perfect place to chill, relax and spend some time in the sun. (Don’t forget your sunscreen :D)

Read the final part of my Bali Series and decide for yourself whether Bali is really worth visiting for you.

Ending the post with a yummy breakfast spread we had in Sanur, before we headed for the beach 🙂

Breakfast at a Cafe in Sanur