Tajikistan: A Country That’s Not on Your Travel Radar but Should Be.
With its awe-inspiring mountainous landscapes, warm-hearted people and “off the beaten path” status, Tajikistan beckons.
All posts tagged: offbeat travel
Finding home in Vietnam.
It’s the winter of 2010, and I’m embarking on my most adventurous journey to date, in Northwest Vietnam. Only I don’t know it yet. After failing to beat the crowds in the Mekong Delta, we have pledged not to take the ‘touristy’ circuit again. Instead of taking the train from Hanoi to Sapa (a popular hill station), we’ve set out along the Northwestern hinterlands of Vietnam, and our conviction to make it to Sapa on land via this route rests on the blog of one guy who said the journey is possible. There is no more information to be found online; no bus timings, no trains, no places to stay, not even the names of the smaller towns & villages we may pass by. This is the story of one such village. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if …
India Untravelled.
If you’ve ever fantasized about living in a remote village in the high Himalayas, experiencing the colonial charm of a hill station minus the tourists, savoring the country hospitality of India’s most hospitable culture, waking up to birds chirping on a farm, or finding the beauty of Europe’s alpine countryside in India, this post is for you. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
5 Offbeat Romantic Weekends in India.
As much as I’m repelled by the Hallmark holiday that is Valentine’s Day, it seems like an opportune time to collect a list of romantic weekend getaways near Delhi. These aren’t your run-of-the-mill getaways with a million and one other couples, nor do they offer a luxurious stay in a fancy hotel that’ll burn a deep hole in your pocket. These trip ideas are romantic in the artistic sense of the word, ones that make you realize how beautiful life is, and often transport you back in time. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
Raison: Kullu Manali’s Well-Kept Secret.
Away from the hill station crowds, Raison Kullu (or Raison Manali) is a secret Bollywood haunt waiting to be discovered! As the bus jerks to a stop on the Manali highway and the driver yells Raison Kullu, I pick up my sleepy self and alight. On my left, a pebbly path winds uphill, away from the paved highway. The absence of a road is a sign that there won’t be many visitors here. I climb past small village clusters, with red, purple and blue flowers intermittently dotting the edge of the path. The River Beas babbles harmoniously in the silence of the mountains. On a plateau in the middle of this wilderness in Raison Kullu, I am welcomed into an 83-year-old bungalow built during the British era. Surrounding me are apple orchards and kiwi plantations. The trees have shed all their leaves in the cold December weather, but their bare branches lend a rustic charm. The apple barons of the region have opened up this precious inheritance to travellers seeking a taste of royalty without …
From Punjab, With Love.
This article was originally published in The Hindu. As a kid, I’ve often heard my grandmother talk about growing up in our native Punjab. I pictured little boys and girls running across big fields, plucking sour fruits and wild flowers, returning home at noon to the aroma of curries made with veggies fresh off the farm and paranthas laden with home-made white butter. I never imagined waking up to these images someday, given how they seemed only to be romanticized in the memories of people I knew. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
2011 in Travel: The Year That Was.
Flipping through my travel archives of 2011, I am overcome with a strange sense of nostalgia. The world suddenly feels as small as that plastic globe you can buy off a children’s store. I’m strolling on the beaches of Southeast Asia one day, and hiking on the countryside of Europe the next. One minute, I’m warming myself with a gelato in Italy, the next I’m sampling momos in the Himalayan desert of India. I’m going solo, over land and on water, unearthing travel secrets that conceal themselves from a large part of the world. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
An Unexpected Introduction to Spiti Travel.
Spiti travel on your mind? A quick introduction to what awaits in this incredible part of the world. My first tryst with Spiti, Ladakh’s lesser-known cousin, was an act of online serendipity. I stumbled upon Spiti Ecosphere, a social enterprise pioneering sustainable tourism in the Trans-Himalayan region of India. As it called out to me, I impulsively decided to take a sabbatical from work to volunteer travel in this cold mountain desert. Nothing I read online could have prepared me for the 20-hour breathtaking, back-breaking journey from Shimla. We winded up along roads dug from the base of the mountains, with rocks hanging above our four-wheel drive, creating the illusion that the Himalayas were watching over us. Also read: I Love Spiti: A Campaign to Save Spiti Valley from Single Use Plastic First impressions of Spiti I’m fascinated as Tenzing describes a mystery mountain close to his hometown in Spiti. It changes color every time you go back, he says, convincingly. He’s my first local friend, and the expert driver who we’ve entrusted with our lives, …
On the Countryside in Punjab.
Through the thin white barks of Eucalyptus trees, the first rays of sunrise promise to brighten a chilly morning. I walk through a small clearing in the field, amid dark green shrubs dotted with white, and extend my hand towards what look like snow-flakes, only they don’t melt at my touch. If you haven’t yet guessed, I’m strolling amid cotton fields. The seeds have burst, and the cotton is blooming. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
The Silk Men & Women of India.
If someone tried to make folk music out of wooden sounds, it would probably sound like the soft clickety-clack that resonates through the village of Pranpur. Men and women are bent over their looms, squinting their eyes on their intricate sari designs, their hands automatically trailing a motion they learnt decades ago. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.