Off to Europe

How excited can you get when something you have been planning for long finally comes near? This weekend I fly off to Europe on a much planned vacation and as I type these words, I can already feel the excitement pumping up. Since May I have been busy on finding the right spot to vacation and the numerous changes in plan have made me a Europe expert of sorts; initial plan was Greece but then it was ticked off, now it is west Europe and somewhere in between Britain was also on map until London erupted. There were hurdles innumerous too; never easy to plan with friends in another country as a result my buddy from Doha will not be joining and I will have to do it alone now

I am spending a bomb on this trip and this morning I was awake thinking if it is worth it to dole out so much which will leave nothing much apart from Facebook snaps. It is only last year after moving out of India that I have some dough with me and spending so much so soon may not be exactly prudent but then my excitement past few months was way too high to limit myself anywhere. Perhaps I should have reduced my days when I knew I would be alone but then Europe is too inviting to limit one’s plans with almost all places nearby and connected. So I land up in Brussels and from there take trips to Luxemburg and Paris before moving to Cologne and then Amsterdam (God save me from whores here, I will be alone at night) before returning back to catch return flight via Flanders in northern Belgium. Almost everyday of next week I will be in a new country (5 countries in 6 days) and will be spending a lot of time on trains or maybe even waiting for it

Since I will be alone I have been warned to be cautious especially in big, bad cities and also advised to turn back after dark which will sadly make me miss a bit of much desired bachelor fun but then no point in taking unnecessary risks. Also since I will be travelling a lot, either on foot or on rails I will have to do away with my lovely laziness for a while and be punctual for no one helps in angrez land if you miss your scheduled train and end up with no place to hide

So much for now doston, will surely update here first after return

Things I am looking forward to

There are things we look forward to in life and keep ardently praying for them to materialize but as it happens often in life, when one niggling thing belatedly settles down the other shortly raises its ugly head making the bucket list change constantly. However at present I do have some stuff on my plate keeping me on the edge

•Moving to new place: if you have read the below post you will know that shifting abode now is my least favorite activity. I had just begun to settle into this place when I have to again find a new one. I have looked a couple of places around and am also applying for a rent advance from my firm, but somewhere deep down I keep wondering: couldn’t I have stayed here for some time more?

•Europe trip: I had initially booked tickets for Greece but had to alter my plans going by the disturbances there. Now Brussels, Amsterdam and maybe some other cities stand on agenda but sad part is I may have to do this trip alone as my buddy was denied a Visa

•Driving license: getting a driving license in this country is akin to getting a PhD. I have never been a good driver but the miserable performance I have given in my two tests so far, it seems ages before I will get my ticket to drive. Getting a license is also an expensive process here and I am already bleeding with the high costs

•Planning India visit: for most, planning annual visit to India includes stuff like gifts for family, meeting friends, visit to local shrine etc. For me it includes all this and more as I will also be travelling down South on my long bridehunt. I don’t know why in this era also caste continues to play a vital role in Indian arranged marriages, I guess India actually lives in five centuries – there are those who raise the roof in male strip parties in Mehrauli and then there are also those who are still ruled by khap panchayats not so far away

So some of you guys think this is not enough? If so tell me I am ready to trade places here!