Memories are Made of These

During my growing-up years, vacations had meant, visiting my grandparents. Come summer or Christmas, we'd pack our bags and head south to where the rest of the family lived. I had quite looked forward to these holidays. I'd get to meet my cousins, be pampered by my grandparents, aunts and uncles, and give in to some serious gluttony.

My notion of a vacation changed after I was married. The husband was quite the wanderer before we met, backpacking alone or with friends, to wherever his fancy led. He showed me just how exciting it was to travel to new places, garner fresh experiences and taste dishes with strange, exotic names. Now, he's got me for company, because wanderlust, I've discovered, is contagious, and far too enriching for the soul, to ignore.

This summer, we decided to head to the mountains...

Darjeeling in the winter is beautiful, I've heard. Darjeeling in the summer is colourful, I've seen! The wildflowers that dot the Himalayan mountainside and sway merrily in the breeze inspire the same kind of awe that Wordsworth must have felt when he gazed upon the sea of golden daffodils. There are shapes that captivate, colours that bring joy and faint fragrances that hold you spellbound.

Even better, was the fact that we stayed at a tea estate. Given that I'm a tea junkie, nothing could have been more perfect.

Although every earlier destination has been a wonderful experience, our time at the Glenburn Tea Estate was something truly special. Which is why I'm inclined to document it here, should you ever want to visit the place and experience it for yourself.

Watch this space!

The Colour of Joy

Nature is a constant reminder of all that is beautiful in this world. And Spring is, perhaps, the best time to revel in its myriad hues.

I have always been enchanted by nature. Flowers, especially. In almost all my childhood pictures, I see a precious bunch of wildflowers clutched in my hand or fragrant jasmines adorning my hair. Now, years later, I prefer to claim them by simply photographing them.

Older now, I yearn to travel to places where flowers grow in abundance. Like the Lavender routes in Provence, the woodlands in England, and Sunflower fields in Tuscany. The seas of Tulips in Holland, the rolling hills of Baby Blue-Eyes in Japan, the flower-filled streets in Spello, and the endless meadows of alpine flowers blanketing the Himalayan valleys and closer home, the  Kas Plateau. However, life and routine intervene, postponing dreams to a distant someday.

Maybe I'll visit some of these places in the coming years - and that's a lovely thought to hold on to - but life carries most meaning in the here and now. Which is why, on a whim this morning, I packed my camera and lenses and took a leisurely walk inside my apartment complex.

It was a crisp spring morning and I stopped to click pictures of the flowers I hurry past everyday, without a second glance. These aren't the exotic blooms of my wishlist, painted in the vibrant colours of my dreams; they're ordinary blossoms on an ordinary day, alluring, yet lacking the magic of distant, foreign lands. But they're charming in their own way, affording a sense of joy and harmony to those who take the time to stop, look and appreciate nature's bountiful gifts.

Maybe there's a message in all this somewhere. Perhaps nature itself shows us that the happiness we seek is right here, around us...within us. Not in a different place, a different time, or contingent on a different person. And that although some joys may be stored in the future, happiness tastes best when experienced in the present.

Maybe all we need to do is to look with fresh perspectives, make the most of this moment in time, and focus on the things that brings us a measure of peace in this complicated, hasty world.