The People I Met On My Travels

Travel is all about experiences. And, one of the experiences that really enrich your travels is meeting new people – whether it’s a quick exchange of pleasantries or a slow conversation over a meal, shaking hands with a new culture makes travel beautiful and meaningful.

I have to admit that when I started traveling, I was more of a reserved traveler, who’s always engaged in wandering alone, admiring places and taking photos. Although I enjoyed small chit-chat with strangers, I was not really inclined towards mingling with people. I consider it one of my travel mistakes.

But now things are totally different. I have evolved as a traveler over the years. Today meeting new people on the road is one of the top things that I look forward to. Be it my fellow travelers, my great hosts, super amazing drivers, local guides, friendly café owners, or lovely waiters…I create fond reminiscences with all of them.

The people I meet on my travels are precious to me.

“Mingle often with good people to keep your soul nourished.” – Anthony Douglas Williams

The best part about meeting new people during a trip is that there’s no judgement, preconceived notion or expectation of any sort. The strangers that you bump into on your travels allow you to be the person that you are. On the contrary, in your everyday life, you try to please at least somebody or the other if not everybody. People around you stifle the real you.

Thus, it’s good to lose yourself free once in a while and mingle with the strangers, enjoy their company, and come back refreshed.

I’m grateful for the fact that I met so many people in different places that I explored. If I begin writing about each one of them, it would take pages of a book! So, I’m going to squeeze my ‘most favorite people’ in this post.

Are you excited to meet the people that I met on the road? Each of them has added something beautiful to make my travels a little more memorable!

The People I Met On My Travels

Those warm hearts and great camaraderie – Sikkim 

I met Karma and his family at The Shire Guest House in Gangtok – they were not just great hosts, but great friends, too. I remember it so fondly for the conversations I had with the family and the bond I built with them, especially the lady of the house, Norkey. It was so sweet of her to shed a few tears for me while I was leaving.

In the later part of my trip, I met great hosts at a homestay in Yuksom. The part I want to talk about is when I fell sick in Yuksom, which dampened my spirits and made me want to go back home. But, I was so well taken care of by my hosts that I recovered pretty soon and got my mojo back to continue my adventure.

Sikkim was also a lot about bonding with amazing fellow travelers – the one that I’d like to talk about is the mother-son duo from Germany. I met them at Yuksom Homestay. We would meet every day at dinner in our homestay, and would get along talking about our travel experiences. What amazed me and also inspired me was the spirit the 69-year-old woman exuded! She would be even more energetic and walk way ahead of me whenever we went for a trek.  

Almost felt like a ‘Monpa’ – Arunachal Pradesh.

Just like Sikkim, I met quite a few people while exploring Arunachal Pradesh. I have to say that if it wasn’t for its lovely people, I wouldn’t remember it much. It was perhaps my roughest and the most mismanaged travel. I hadn’t planned my trip. I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go…and how I wanted to explore.

It was when I happened to spend two days in Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal, that I met some fabulous people – I spent one entire day in a café and consumed lots of coffee. The café had a pleasant vibe, as it was managed by a gang of lovely girls. They were so nice to me.

Also, I shared some moments of laughter, warmth and a homey dinner with my homestay owners. It was one of the rare meals that reminded me of my mom’s food. It was definitely a bonus as a solo traveler.

The most memorable part of the trip was at Kalden Homestay in Dirang Valley, where I stayed with a Monpa family. It didn’t start on a great note, though. I reached the homestay with a bad headache only to find that homestay was on a highway, and that it did not have a separate washroom for guests. Anyway, I was able to brush aside all of that, and blended into the home pretty quickly.

I bonded exceedingly well with everybody in the family – the mom-dad, and the siblings. I had several tea conversations with them, our evenings used to be about enjoying Bangchang, the local beverage, noshing, singing and dancing. I still can’t believe that I sang and danced in a stranger’s home! Well, that’s the beauty of travel.

The land of beautiful souls – Kashmir.

Getting to know the Kashmiris is one of the most valuable experiences of my travels. Why? Because they are the most misunderstood people. I just can’t express in words how content I feel about spending 13 days in Kashmir on a solo trip.

Whether it was Tareekh (the owner of the first guest house where I stayed in Srinagar) and his family, the shikara guys, or the random strangers I chatted with on the streets of Srinagar, I’m eternally grateful to everyone I met in Kashmir.

There are so many moments to look back at…that melt my heart. The concern of the old chap for me when I was leaving Gurez Valley while it was rainy and the roads were not smooth; the driver’s assurance to me that we would reach Srinagar safely, the ‘surprise’ breakfast at a village home, and the J&K Tourism’s super hospitality.

The smile and the twinkle in her eyes – Darjeeling.  

I have to thank my great hosts at Kettle Valley Homestay for showing me the true beauty of Darjeeling. To say that they took care of me like family is to say the least. It was a home of three brothers and their mom, who spoke only Nepali. 

I shared a quiet relationship with the lady of the house, who would extend so much of warmth with the way she served food to me and looked at me with a beautiful glow in her eyes. Who needs language?

Pirkko and Savio’s Goa.

Meet Pirkko and Savio! Olaulim Backyards, North Goa is one of the highlights of Goa. There’s no other property where I have been twice. Great hospitality is one thing, but these guys have something ‘more’ for you! They become your friends, and conversations around the dining table become one of the things to look forward to. You get to discover a different Goa through their eyes.

The camel owners of Thar Desert, Rajasthan.

Perhaps my most fascinating story on the road came out of the desert of Rajasthan. I had an unexpected time of conversations with the folks who rode me on their camel. My edgy solo desert safari turned into a heart-warming afternoon when we sat down on the sand for a recess before traveling ahead.

Talking to these people who make your travels so memorable was awe-inspiring.     

Two men, a village trail and me – Kumaon.

I have to talk about this tale of treading through the villages of Almora with two men – my host Devendra and another young chap from a village. Besides carrying my luggage all through the trek, they made sure that I was comfortable.

They didn’t speak much, but they did so much for me – cooked delicious meals, kindled the bonfire and gave extra quilts for me to sleep well. Such rustic hospitality is far superior to any world-class luxury.

When I think of it now, it feels so strange… I was all alone with two men, who were strangers to me, and I stayed in a village homestay in the middle of nowhere. Travel makes you trust people, their goodness.

Meeting Mr Krutarthsinh Jadeja – Kutch.  

It was my close brush with royalty. The best part about staying at Devpur Homestay was the flow of conversations with Mr Krutarthsinh Jadeja. He would share so many interesting insights about Kutch. I found him to be so close to his land, and therefore, talking to him was like unraveling Kutch.

Narayan and the super hospitable staff – Gwalior.

I felt like a queen. I have stayed at so many hotels, homestays and resorts, and have experienced great hospitality at most of the places, but my stay at Deo Bagh was a little extra special. Each and every staff at the property did their best to make my stay a royal one.

Narayan, the manager of the property, helped me out with my photography as well. As a solo traveller and a blogger, taking my own photos along with the location is a challenging job. I have nobody to assist me. But Narayan was so kind to take my pictures just the way I wanted. I can’t thank him enough for that!

I also wanted to mention that Narayan is from Uttarakhand, which is my land, my birth place. It’s such an amazing coincidence that wherever I go, I end up meeting someone or the other from Uttarakhand. I guess Uttarakhand produced a lot of wandering souls.

The hospitable team at Pench Tree Lodge.

The concept of Pench Tree Lodge is to conserve nature and environment, which is a noble concept. And, the staff lives and breathes the ideology to the core, which is quite impressive. They are so passionate about their jobs!

I had a great time with manager Harish and the naturalists, who had left everything to follow their passion for wildlife. And, I have to mention that Harish was another one who’s from Uttarakhand.

Two strangers on the streets – Adelaide.

The joy of bumping into strangers on the streets! One of the things I love doing is wandering on the streets, and as I was marveling the grandeur of Adelaide (South Australia), I met these two lovely people who just smiled at me and exuded so much of warmth. I was looking for something and they helped me out with it. We had a brief chat before we bade adieu to each other.

The guide, Sana and her gang of trippers – Hampi.

Sana was the first ever woman tourist guide that I had met and so closely interacted with. We hit it off instantly! She was so gracious to invite me for dinner along with her tourists. It was a great evening of crackling tête-à-tête with different people from different parts of the world – Australia, Scotland, England, Russia and Germany. They were a fun bunch and so kind.

So grateful for the generous hospitality – Dandeli.

I can never forget the hospitality that I received at Pradhani Jungle Camp in Dandeli. Although the property was basic and my room was not too comfy, the service and the care given by the staff was amazing. The way each staff member was diligent about serving me tea/coffee and making sure that I was comfortable is what makes me so grateful.

It’s the small people who really make your trip great – the waiters, the kitchen staff and the drivers.  

Lovely Italian hospitality – Ostuni.

When you receive great hospitality in a foreign land, it’s even more valuable. My hosts at Masseria l’Ovile, Ostuni (Southern Italy) were super friendly, kind and generous. They would drop and receive us from the train station every day, as we used to take trains every day to visit different towns of Puglia. And of course, they rubbed off a bit of Italian on us! We learnt a few lovely words in Italy, which stayed with us.

Aayi, Dhananjay and Raksha – Dehna.

Dehna (rural Maharashtra) wouldn’t have been so beautiful without these three lovely people – Raksha, Dhananjay and his Aayi. I stayed at Raksha’s home, was chaperoned by Dhananjay and all my meals were prepared by Aayi.

I travel for such unbelievable experiences – when people open their homes and hearts for you.

Do you like meeting people on your travels?

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