I meet me

Destination Anywhere....

In Dubai, I met a person who had lost his touch with his roots.

All his life, he’s been travelling to new lands in search of life, love and livelihood and left behind his land, lore and legacy. But in Dubai, he met people who conversed in a language that he had long forgotten called Malayalam. In Dubai , he found tastes that he had tasted a long time back in his hometown. In Dubai, he uncovered a part in his heart that was always in love with his home Kerala. The most interesting person that I met in Dubai was a person who discovered that he still loved Kerala food, still loved Kerala people and that he still loved that little place called Kerala. And that too, amidst the visual spectacle that is Dubai. And interestingly, after Dubai, he decided to reconnect with his roots and today makes time to go back to his home town, every now and then.

In Dubai, I met a person who rediscovered a part of himself.

That person is me.

In Bangkok, I met a person who suddenly discovered that he had always loved bright blue beaches.

All his life, he thought that the sea would spoil his designer shoes, leather belt and expensive watch; and hence he never went to the beach. But in Bangkok, he remembered that he had once loved going to the beach as a child, with his dad. In Bangkok, he realized how much he missed it all and tried to make up for it by spending fabulous days in a shack on the beach, waking up to the sunrise, skinny dip in the bright blue waters all afternoon, and finally toast a bottle of chilled beer to the glorious sunset. The most interesting person that I met in Bangkok was a person who discovered that he still loved the sea, the sun and the sands. And interestingly, today, he goes to the beaches by Bangkok every year leaving behind his leather, his laptop and his limitations.

In Bangkok, I met a person who rediscovered a part of himself.

That person is me.

In Singapore, I met a person who found that he had always loved orderly structure.

Singapore keeps a tidy reputation of being obsessed with orderliness and cleanliness – it is a place where chewing gum was banned for several years, where high penalties exist for littering, with no beggars on the street, with strict rules against jaywalking and a popular people’s award even exists for keeping public restrooms sparkling clean – it’s a place where order prevails and is one of the most beautiful and cleanest places in the world. The most interesting person that I met in Singapore was a person who found that he loved such order and structure in life. And interestingly, today, he is trying to streamline his life by making a plan for it; and he now believes that one can appreciate spontaneity better, when one already has a plan.

In Singapore, I met a person who rediscovered a part of himself.

That person is me.

In Las Vegas, I met a person who realized that he had always loved to dress well.

In a place that is known as the world’s biggest party, Vegas has certain unwritten rules about dressing, dressing up and dressing well: while people in sneakers are usually never allowed inside the most happening clubs, the people who dress well are always shown the best table in the house; a simple black jacket over one’s attire is one’s passport to complimentary limousine rides, free drinks and the best of attention from the ladies. The most interesting person that I met in Vegas was a person who discovered that he had always loved to dress well, accessorize his wardrobe and to mix and match. And interestingly, today, he almost always wears a waistcoat, that he thinks adds an element of elegance to his attire and strives to be the most overdressed person in the room.

In Vegas, I met a person who rediscovered a part of himself.

That person is me.

In Chicago, I met a person who liked to travel the world.

He realized that the ingenuity of Man has historically been to build shapes and structures that daze, amaze and spell bound. Besides the seven wonders of the world, there are other wondrous marvels all around the world that defy logic, belief and reasoning. The good God’s good world is much more than what we see day-to-day and we need to truly “see” the world to have truly “lived”. The most interesting person that I met in Chicago was a person who found that there is a whole lot of difference between being a traveler and being a tourist. And interestingly, today, he tries to put aside a little money every year for an annual vacation to destination anywhere.

In Chicago, I met a person who rediscovered a part of himself.

That person is me.

The more I travel, the more unknown pieces I chip off from my persona and in the process, discover more about me and connect more to myself; I realized that layers of my personality, hidden deep inside me, come to surface in strange new lands and in strange new situations.

And the more I travel, the more I find. And the more I find, the more I discover…...

That I could probably be the most interesting person I know.

Taarif karun kya uski jisne humhe banaya hai…..

J

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J