Sunday 24 August 2014

Out Of My Head





Phew! Past couple of days have been turbulent; though not a bad turbulent. But you know, like a happy and chaotic one. I had been having some really diverse experiences and to put it plainly, a kick-ass Summer 2014! I travelled around a small fraction of Western Europe, and also made love to my bucket list in the process. (Which explains my sabbatical from writing.) 
*Time-to-rejoice-my-imaginary-loyal-readers!*

A heavily advertised airline hospitality brought me to my first destination, Paris. Everything about the city was so poetic. It was like an artist constantly at work. Creating and painting. Bringing to life every little detail. And the best part about Paris? It is so effortless! You just sit at the window of your ride and absorb the city. Paris will come to you on its own. And at that time, life will make perfect sense. The land of cheese and wine is dreamier than I had thought.

Next up, were three weeks of London, where instead of going touristy, I had a pure student life. Summer School, you see. I adapted to survive on the bare minimum amount of sleep and the London night scene was very encouraging in that respect! The classes were really proper and hunky-dory in the first week; but eventually those well- groomed hair gave way to bed-heads and those ever attentive eyes reeked of sleeplessness and last night's tales. I made some great new friends, and altogether it was the best time of my life in more ways than I can tell. Except the liver, all of me had a gala time in London!

What happens when some 20-year-old-Snapchat-and-Instagram-happy individuals go to ummm... TOMORROWLAND? Havoc. Pure social media havoc. Precisely. Up next on the itinerary was Belgium's crowning summer glory, Tomorrowland'14. Hands down, it was by far the craziest experience! It still feels surreal to be a part of world travellers, coming together to create one EDM haven. Tomorrowland was every bit as crazy as the hype is and even more! Designed like a fantasy, it literally owns you while you are there.
"It is your life. Make it legendary." Amen.

Belgium, otherwise, was a total surprise. I wonder why it is so understated here in India. Brussels's is an amazing city with an extreme aesthetic relevance and architectural prowess. And it had the warmest and the most helpful people that I came across on my entire trip.

My final destination was Amsterdam! Oh, Amsterdam! It is one of those few places which welcomes you with open arms and umm... open legs. I went there on a whim. I had no company and no reservations whatsoever. Got myself a ticket, and there I was! It was an adventure in the truest sense and I have some great stories from there. I ditched my phone's GPS for old-school paper maps. I realised that it is very important to stop a little and talk to people. Amsterdam has the most fascinating liberal culture and I still am completely in love with it!

Aren't we always pressed to think outside the box? You know, thinking of something out from the ordinary. Taking a cue, why can't we live out of our heads once in a while? Why do we spend so much time inside those things that we call skulls? We need to loosen up. We don't have to take life so seriously all the time. There is a lot to be discovered and the time is running out! As much as Hollywood-ish it may sound, we must travel to discover ourselves. Renew ourselves. Because sometimes, the greatest secrets lay within than without. Don't they?