A Trip Down Memory Lane

When we are kids, going on a trip with our families is the most exciting thing ever for us.

The joy of discovering a new place.

Trying out the local cuisine.
Staying in a hotel.

It all seems like fun.

I too went on these trips with my family in my childhood.

Most often, accompanied with my cousins and their family.

Other times, it was just the four of us.

My first trip was to Goa (unless my mom and dad took me elsewhere).

At a time when Goa wasn't the most happening place.

I don't even remember going on that trip.

I just know it from the pictures that I have seen.

I have also never been to an overseas trip.

I guess, I'll go when the opportunity comes up.

The places I did go to were mostly hill-stations.

Matheran, Khandala, Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar, etc. to name a few.

The southernmost place I've visited was Tirupati.

I don't exactly remember it, but again from the pics, I could see it wasn't my favorite place at all.

The northernmost place I've visited was Vaishnodevi.  

And I remember that trip vividly, going all the way to the top of the mountain the whole day, just to glimse the shrine for a few precious moments and then come down again.
Visiting the Taj Mahal was pretty much the highlight of all the trips I've taken.

I guess the last time I went on a trip with my family was to Rajasthan when I was in college.

After that, what all trips I've been to, were just for visiting relatives or attending marriages.

I guess that's what happens when you grow up.

As a kid, you feel thrilled at the mention of the word vacation and can't wait to go to one.

When you get older though, the trips with your family becomes less frequent.

It gets replaced by trips with your friends.

Which is even more fun, as there are no parents to tell you what not to eat and when to sleep.

But you do have to take the responsibility of your belongings and go easy on the money.

Well... it's all worth the risk.

The thing is, these trips are what fill our childhood with the experience of the outside world.
The bubble that we live in, expands once we visit a place we've never been too.
Filling our minds with curiosity about things like, 'why the statue is facing that way' or 'how did the monkey get in our backyard'.
When you visit the same place as an adult, you already know the answers to these questions and you don't even bother to ask some more.
That changes everything.
But that's also what makes it a memory worth remembering.