I got an opportunity to explore the wonderful spots in Europe and carry on with student life again for a while. Exciting thing was Europe itself and other one which was overwhelming initially was agony of voyaging alone. So the date of take-off is ready to invite me and I am standing on the airport with a backpack and a “partially” filled suitcase- partially? To collect and refill it with enchanting memories while returning! I was already nostalgic of sitting with nobody to converse initially – it’s a long span flight after all and I was already done with my rest mode and needed to act like a “talking person”.

Being on ‘solo’ trip, I land a conversation with my co-traveller. He was from Canada and was energetic of the visit to France (more than me). I asked him the reason and motivation behind his visit. He referenced that he’s been on a backpack venture for over a year now after quitting as a Yoga instructor last year and now exploring the world. He covered many continents and Europe was the next-to-see place in his bucket list. He mentioned about the astonishing moments, challenges he faced for instance; language boundaries, charged extra for being a foreigner (I was figuring intensely the risks I would soon be confronting). However at the end, his serene mind was content enough to make his body refilled for upcoming adventures! We discussed politics, economy, climatic sustainability, retail industry, innovation and a lot irregular themes- I wasn’t hoping for so much discussion-bombards but it was somehow manageable after the tiredness bounced out of me.

After getting my spinal cord nearly convoluted, I reached Paris and after a week, I felt myself to be a part of France- source city and not an outsider. I gelled up easily with the vibe since I picked up conversations frequently with anyone cruising by; got a chance to know about the history behind everything occurring around me. Few times, it was bit odd for me to process the rationale in which people operated their lives but it’s again not to be judged by anybody, right! I respected the various aspects and outlooks. I had enough time to visit the tourist places, Old-squares, cathedrals, palaces, feasting places/pubs often round the corner and hit up in late evening talks with the locals in most of the countries inside Europe. It just took few minutes to break the ice and after a while I was amazed to have been part of such an out-of-context conversation with people whom I never thought of meeting. Bizzare but that was fantastic as an overall itinerary where I intentionally unplugged myself from the materialistic supports so as to witness the ‘around-me things’! I carried on to live and catch the moments, sometimes welcoming and sometimes witnessed the cold behaviour towards the foreigners in few places. Frankly, I never cared about the last cold part because it’s all expected human conduct and individuals can’t control few things. Without any roadblocks, I invested my energy carrying the backpack now filled with ‘recall-the-time-we-met’.

I am back to my destination now but ‘that duration’ presented me with lessons and learning’s. Things occur and either teach you or change you! It’s all pre-chosen and you don’t need to scrutinize each aspect of life but sometimes just to sit back and take path of least resistance..

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