Journey to Italy

This was my first trip alone abroad, and especially to a country where I am not acquainted to their national language. New people to know, new culture to familiarize with, new food to taste, new places to see, it was over all a challenge indeed. All I had in mind is to explore!!

All this started from the huge Mumbai International airport, were I met the first stranger of my trip who was from Iran. Hmmm..I am bad in recalling names & especially of foreigners. Even he took a while to pronounce my long name.
As he visited India for the first time; he showed me few of his pictures in front of the Taj Hotel. He was a civil engineer by profession. We talked about the expensive cup of coffee he just got than, the ‘mehndi’ (temporary heena tattoo) on my hand, about my journey and so on.
I am sorry my general knowledge is pathetic and so when he was talking about the world map and few places, I seemed to be blank. In fact I had a different picture of Iran, juggling it with Iraq. Our conversation broke with the interruption of his friend, who seemed to be enquiring about the flight. And that is when I realized that I was sitting in the wrong lobby as per my flight, and so I left. It was an abrupt ending.

Getting seated to the right place, I gotta know that my flight was delayed. I was busy observing & listening other’s conversation that were entirely different in backgrounds from each other as I assumed.

Further just roaming about to check the luxurious duty free shopping area, coffee shops & eateries. The separation of business class & economic class was so clearly felt.

While checking in, all I prayed is for a good partner to chat for my long journey, but unfortunately the opposite happened. Nevertheless I reached Istanbul (Turkey), and went gaga seeing the airport. Although I was literally running to catch my continuing flight, which was about to take off. And on my way I met an old friend from Bhopal whom I last met in School. Coincidences happen.

Alright! This time my partners couldn’t speak or understand English, the news papers were too not in English and so being numb was the only alternative. I started feeling the place. The Wine & Pasta in the menu card added the flavor.

When I was about to reach, the map of that island from that height was so beautiful to observe.

On reaching Venice, I waited long for my luggage and that is when an Indian approached me. Frankly I was in no mood to talk. I actually wanted to help myself. So I left.

I saw my friends waiting for me and felt relaxed. I lodged a complaint about my lost luggage which I got back in a day.

Everything was fresh for me, the roads, the traffic, in fact even the pets there, which I found way civilized than here. To be more precise the outer picture of that place to me was blank, where I heard no honks, no kids crying, no dogs barking, no one yelling…..way to extreme peace for me!

As per my motive to learn, find, observe & adopt, there were many things to ponder over. The passion to follow your heart, the beauty of love and romance in air, the genuine matured commitments in a relationship & the depth which could be seen in youngster's knowledge as well as in a fit aged was simply incredible. The welcoming smile with an icing of politeness, erased the barrier of language.

And all this made me way too far guilty as a 23 year old adult.

Honestly I learnt to live.