Before the COVID crisis took over, I took the privilege of travel for granted. Looking back, I was lucky to have opportunites to travel both domestically (within the US) and internationally, solo or with family.
And coming from LA, it didn’t take too long to master these cities 😉
As much as my solo trip to Sweden in the summer of 2019 was indeed lonely, I am still awestruck by the fact that I completed a 10-day trip-for-one, despite the many moments of ennui I experienced.
My trip started in Stockholm, followed by stops in Gothenburg, Malmo, and Copenhagen. Although the latter of the cities is technically in Denmark, it happened to be my most favorite part of the trip.
I documented my Swedish & Copenhagen adventures on a former blog before I decided to close it down for Second Gen Desi. But with COVID still around and with it still influencing our current travel policies, I decided to dig through my archives and find my old travel posts so that I could try to relive the memories.
Since I was unable to copy over the text, we’ll have to settle for these screenshots, and you’ll have to forgive me for the small, poor photo quality 😅.
Still, I’m glad I took the time to type out a recap of my trip, even if it was three months after I returned 😅😅.
Hard to believe there was a time of crowds and flurry at the peak of summer. I can only imagine what Italy was like in the summer of 2019, and I wonder if we can ever get back to that type of traveling lifestyle ever again…
As for Sweden, I don’t have much of a desire to return for leisure, but I have heard amazing things about Norway and Finland…but to be honest, I’d be happy just to make it out of Lombardia for my travel plans this year 😉
Once I was out of my self-quarantine, things began to take shape. I was able to socialize, meet new people, and get back to filling out my bucket list of all the places I wanted to visit now that I was living in Italy (of course looking back at it now, this seemed like a wishful thing to do as we are now trying to survive a second wave of COVID…).
My birthday was coming up in August, and my original plan was to visit Cinque Terre—but life had other plans that I was unwilling to pass on.
So on my 28th birthday, I wasn’t on a tourist bus snapping pics of coastal towns and the sea—I was several miles north, deep in the Canton of Ticino, Valle Verzasca.
From Northern Italy (Como), it takes about 1 hour by car and 3 hours by train to arrive here, and it’s difficult to miss.
Despite Italy being a sweaty mess that August afternoon, the weather in the valley was mild, cool, and cloudy—the definition of a perfect escape from the horrors of summer weather. So many others had the same idea that day…
Even though a lot of time was spent commuting, getting through one of the trails that was linked to a parking area took no more than an hour! And within that hour, there were so many picture-worthy sights to take in and return home with:
Does a Hobbit live here??
Honestly, my most favorite sight of the entire trek was this building—the blue window shutters against a white backdrop and flowers on the window sill? It just screamed classic Swiss/European design 😍.
Ultimately, I was glad I was able to celebrate my first day of being 28 years old in the middle of lush, Swiss greenery.
This was my last “trip” of the summer, right around the time others in Italy were preparing for their August getaways. I didn’t feel comfortable asking for an extended amount of time off at the time, since I had just started a new position, and I’m relieved I didn’t. At least I can say I didn’t put myself or others at risk for the sake of lounging on a beach…
Of course, I’d love to explore more of Italy and its neighboring countries when the time allows for it. Verzasca was a lovely teaser for what is still out there waiting for me…
❤
2021, I hope you have more lush green landscapes in store for me...
After almost a month in Milan, I was itching to explore. Quarantine-ing for two weeks made me feel restless, and starting work soon after made me feel a bit overwhelmed, but I went into this experience telling myself these things –
A) Don’t feel pressure to go out “exploring” every single weekend if you don’t feel like it. Italy and surrounding countries will still be there, and you’ll get to them eventually.
B) Weekends are yours and yours only. Work is always going to have its demands, but keep it at work. Do your best and give it your all during the week, but the weekend is there to relax, recharge, and rest. Those PhD weekends working on quantifying images from microscopy even with Netflix in the background were not exactly “fun”, admit it 😂!
Despite starting my new job at a time when people were planning their grand vacations for Ferragosto, I didn’t feel comfortable asking for time off within a week of starting. Looking back, it would have been nice to plan a more leisurely, longer stay in a city outside of the Lombardy region, but I felt most comfortable staying local and going out on weekends when I could.
When my labmates inquured what I would be doing in my next “free weekend from quarantine”, I turned the question on them and asked where they would recommend I travel. One of them immediately spit out “Como!”, and I thought why not?
It sounded beautiful, wasn’t too far by train, and was near one of the supposedly most beautiful lakes in the country. The word for lake in Italian, lago, even sounds more regal than just plain ol’ “lake‘.
When I think of ‘lake’, I think of this stagnant body of water (Folsom Lake, CA, 2005)
I started my half-day “adventure” with a lazy wake-up call (8am for me, lol) and proceeded to take the green line to the closest transfer point for inter-regional trains.
I ended up getting off at Sesto San Giovanni station and made sure to get myself a take-away cappuccino before boarding my train.
I also had my mask!
From there, it was about a 1 hour train ride to Como Lago station, one of the most beautiful train stops I’d ever seen—perhaps it was the summer flora that did the trick:
Como Lago Station
From there, I followed the crowd of passengers from my train towards the city center…since I made the mistake of not downloading Google Maps for the area (I didn’t have data yet because I still had my US number…had to wait at least one more week before getting my Italian one 😂).
As I walked on through, I realized this was the beauty people talked about when they referred to Italy.
The narrow roads, the faded, but beautiful-in-its-own-right architecture. It made sense to take pictures here.
Once I got to the center, I wasn’t sure what to do first—eat? Wasn’t too hungry yet. Shop? Didn’t feel like it. Walk some more?
I opted for walking, and felt the need to inch away from the crowds. Even during pre-COVID times, I tried to keep a distance from crowds 😂.
I ended up walking up an incline into what seemed to be a private neighborhood. It was a long, winding road, and I could definitely see it being used by the locals for their daily cardio.
I love seeing funky buildings like these and wondering what it would be like to live on the top floor.
Bikers passed by me, as well as cars and their annoying honks, as I made my way up. I didn’t want to walk too far without knowing where I was headed, so I made the wise choice to walk back down and orient myself towards the lake instead.
Before turning back however, I had to document the fact that yes, I had stumbled upon something beautiful.
As I made my way back down, it looked as if the crowds had doubled. Orienting myself so the lake was in front and the city center was to the back of me, I decided to walk north starting from the right side of the lake.
I realized about 20 min in that the “better” side of the lake was the left one—after seeing what all was there from my current viewpoint.
As I got further away from the center (and the crowds, again) I was starting to feel hungry and agitated. There were scattered groups of teenagers chatting animatedly and elderly folk walking hand-in-hand, but I soon found an isolated place to rest for a bit.
My walk back to the center was slower in pace, but at least I was ready to eat something. I ventured back to where the shops were, and found a cute bakery:
Ripamonti Bakery
I wanted to use the opportunity to practice my Italian, but two things happened: 1) I happened to be in line right after a pushy Englishman who put no effort whatsoever to speak un po’ italiano. He demanded still water and extra forks. I was embarrassed for him, but mostly irritated by his behavior since the ladies behind the counter assumed I was a tourist who only chose to speak English as well, and 2) I pronounced olive wrong (I should have said “oh-lee-vuh”).
At least I had my (unpictured) foccacia olive alongside some gorgeous views.
After my lunch, I headed towards the left of the lake and the most exciting:
I didn’t care to hop onto a boat or go on a fancy lake tour—-taking my time by foot and soaking in the views on my own was enough for me.
Since it was a day in mid-July, the weather was starting to get unbearable. I had to take another break, but at least it was at an adorable stopping point.
For me, 4 hours was enough, especially going solo. Before leaving back to the station, I got myself a cup of mint gelato. I admired the front of the station before hopping back on the next train to Milan.
Little did I know that I’d be back very soon.
Since that first day in Como, things have taken wild turns on all accounts. Things that I never would have expected, but made me rethink what my priorities were for the time being in regards to travel.
View from the dock
I knew for sure that I wanted to try new activities, have novel experiences, and meet amazing people, so in that sense, I may have sacrificed the chance to explore more of Italy earlier in my journey. I’ve stayed “close to home” for the past (almost) six months in Italy out of choice due to work demands, my personal energy levels, and as already stated my new priorities, but I don’t regret this at all.
My (half) day in Como has led me to where I am right now.
India, is a massive country, no secret there. It’s the second most-populous country in the world, and literally defined as a sub-continent.
A behemoth beauty Bharat be…
Unfortunately, I’ve only been to one area of India in my entire life (Tamil Nadu—South Indians where you at?!), although multiple times in my life. That is the tradition of a SGD: you go to the motherland with your parents and siblings, perhaps every two years or so, and stay with grandparents for a couple weeks—months if you are young enough and can afford to miss school for that long…
A quick look at (part of) the sub-continent…
Traveling to India is also a strenuous ordeal. Many SGDs and their families live in countries on the other side of the globe…unless you’re in Europe, or so lucky enough to be “nearby” in Singapore…
Even my Dad, who is a pretty tough guy, has recently found his yearly trips to India to be a source of sheer exhaustion and stress. A lot of that is centered around trying to fit seeing 20+ extended relatives and friends within a time frame of days. Trying to avoid hurt feelings, missed shopping items (can’t forget to bring back Grand Snacks to the States!!), and getting sick…it all adds up. No wonder trips to India are rarely seen as a vacation for many desi families🤷🏽♀️ .
In a recent trip however to India in late 2019, my Dad, sis, and I discussed that maybe it was time—now that we were all older, and the number of people to visit has grown smaller over time (due to life, to put it gently…)—it would be worth trying to visit other parts of the country.
Unfortunately, time wasn’t in our favor yet again. We found ourselves with many commitments as usual, and not too much time to fit in extra excursions. But unlike in the past, we did step beyond the households of perimas and peripas. Even though we were still restricted to an area close to our “home base” (Chennai), we made an effort to have our “mini” vacations with stops at the following:
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Marina Beach
Beaches in Southern India are unlike beaches in Cali…for one thing, something called humidity dictates everything.
—Marina Beach, morning of December 31st, 2019–
For the three weeks I was in Chennai for Dec. 2019/Jan. 2020, running wasn’t a huge priority for me, but when I did get the chance to run, I tried to race with it 😉.
Unfortunately, humidity levels close to 100% and temps of 80 degrees Fahrenheit by 8am just doesn’t sit well with me. And being one out of three women running that morning out of like, hundreds of men? It felt super awkward, not gonna lie.
Although, I did see a significant speed increase in my pace! I was hesitant to look around me because desi men (and women) are known for their stare-downs, so I just ran until my legs gave out and the humidity was too much 😅.
The famous Gandhi statue
The best time to visit is in the early morning, of course. Given that Chennai’s population is 7.088 million (2011, Google), the likelihood of having a “normal”-sized crowd is only likely to happen before 7:00am strikes.
But not everyone is so keen to wake up that early…
Sleepy pariah dog
Beach pariahs, looking foxy
Boy, would I have loved to see how Marina Beach looks now in the time of corona lockdowns…
Tirupati
Tirupati is another city in Southern India, located in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh (so, not Tamil Nadu, but we drove here from Chennai!). The drive there and back is a little over 6 hours roundtrip. The reason we visited was to pay our respects at the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple. In Tamil, my family’s language, temple = Kōyil (கோயில்).
A lot of devotees come from all over India (and the globe) to visit the auspicious கோயில். So much so, that there are dedicated travel bus and van services that are designed with a full-day itinerary package. I traveled with my Dad, sister, cousin, her husband, and uncle, so we were able to book a decent-sized van.
Our driver was a mad man. We left at 6am, and nearly shed a full hour from our morning half of travels 😐. Meaning, there was no doubt that he was speeding at *many* points during the trip.
We were lucky to have made it one piece, and our first stop was at a local “canteen” for breakfast. It was simple, carb-packed fare of idli, sambar, rasam, chutney, vada, etc. but no protein meant I would definitely get hungry later…
We were warned of the high altitudes as we made our ascent into the mountains. The கோயில் is located in the Tirumala Hills, which is part of the Seshachalam Hills range ~2,800 feet above sea level 😱. The hills have seven peaks, representing the seven heads of Adisesha, ” King of all Nāgas and one of the primal beings of creation” (Wikipedia).
The secenery is absolutely gorgeous. We spotted all sorts of wildlife—including monkeys and warthogs!
Tirupati
When we got to the top, we were dropped off at a meeting zone away from the கோயில். We could see that even at 9am, it was packed. Because everything in India usually takes place 30 min+ after the call time, we really didn’t assemble and head over to the கோயில் until around 10am or so.
The “guide” gave instructions on what you were allowed to bring (no video cameras, etc.) and dress etiquette in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu. Then we had to fight for our place in line to enter.
Things got crazy soon after.
I never thought I’d experience the feeling of being crushed against hundreds of bodies in a holy place, yet here we were. I am so glad we went before the covid outbreak…and I’m also glad they temporarily closed the கோயில் to the public, because those crowds mixed with a virus….nah 🙅🏽♀️.
It reached the 90’s (Fahrenheit) by the time afternoon rolled around. My sister and I were exhausted—too sleepy to eat at the canteen even! We thought that after our second meal stop we would head straight home, but alas, the driver wanted to stop for coffee at another roadside canteen. I however, had the appetite for more sleep, not coffee!
The drive back was also slower compared to the morning, due to increased traffic flowing in and out of Chennai. Needless to say, sleep was enjoyed that night once we got back!
Mahabalipuram
Our “semi-relaxing” stop on this trip was a vacation-from-a-vacation-like detour to Mahabalipuram, a coastal town approximately 1 hr south from Chennai, in the Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu.
We stayed in a beach resort that had direct access to a private section of beach, and it was meant to serve as our getaway from the city life of Chennai.
Chariot Beach Resort
The entire resort on the inside was air-conditioned, so it was extremely refreshing compared to the hot, humid weather in JANUARY! Funny thing was, the temperature difference was so extreme that every time we came back from outside, our phone screens would immediately fog up!
Mahabalipuram was definitely not immune to crowds. My sister spent most of the weekend of our visit indoors, while my Dad and I made the brave trek outdoors in the late afternoons. The crowds were unbearable for us too, so we decided just to “hike” near Roya Gopuram, but in reality, we wandered off somewhere and tried not to fall over great boulders!
In the evenings, the weather would cool down significantly, making it an awesome time to go to the beach. Compared to Marina Beach, it was quiet, serene, clean, and not cluttered by people! There were the frequent pariah dog visitors, however 😉
Beach dog
Oh, speaking of dogs, there were plenty all around! Pariah dogs are an indigenous breed in India, and prowl the streets in search of food. They are hungry, cautious souls that I wish I could hug, but they can get pretty vicious when they feel threatened.
Still, even when watched from afar, they made sure to make my heart melt 💔
Mahabalipuram puppy with mange.
Pariah dogs at my uncle’s compound.
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The good ol’ TN will always hold a sacred place in my heart, as it is the home of my family and ancestors, as well as the roots of my culture, but I don’t want to limit myself on future trips to only visit Tamil Nadu out of obligation. I don’t restrict myself in the same way when I visit other countries, so why should it be any different in this case?
If you ask me if a little over 24 hours is enough to spend in Dubai, I’d say, plenty. Especially if you’re traveling with a dad who reached his point of exhaustion before even making it to our final destination (India) and a sister sensitive to overwhelming crowds after being sleep-deprived for 14 hours…
Dubai, tryna be all impressive 😹
When it comes to artificial landscapes and hellacious weather, I’d be the first one to find a fast excuse to hightail on out of spending more time than necessary in the place of question. But given that a cousin we hadn’t seen in 13 years was living in “Brown People Vegas” with her husband and two grade-school twin kids, that was our rationale for making a Dubai Detour.
I once overheard some Europeans raving about visiting Vegas, Arizona, and Southwest USA in general because of the desert landscape—something nonexistent in the fresh countries of Europe. But if you ask me, I’d rather spend time in the artic, rainforest, or ocean before choosing the desert. I can never wrap my head around the idea of wanting to spend time being hot. I don’t care about sand dunes, if my skin is at risk of being fried, I’ll pass.
My cousin did ask us beforehand if we had any ideas of what
we’d like to do in Dubai within our short period of time visiting. She brought
up a desert safari in which we could crash into sand dunes and dine in the
desert, but my dad, knowing he was going to feel exhausted AF even before we
departed the US, shot that idea down. If India wasn’t on our agenda, I would
have been on-board with the idea, but I was hoping that she would toss in some
more ideas that were, erhmmm, less physically taxing?
We never came to a real consensus on our “itinerary”, and so
we left things up to chance when we arrived in Dubai. At least we arrived at a
decent time, around noon local time, and not at 2am, which would unfortunately
be our arrival time in India in a few short days…
My cousin’s husband, S, picked us up from the airport, outfitted in a polo shirt and cargo shorts. It was December 28th, and lo and behold, it was at least 80 degrees Fahrenheit outside 🙄. This was cold weather for Dubai, meaning that I knew I would never be able to live here and be happy!
Tried to appreciate the blue, but all I could notice was the brown tinge on almost all of these buildings 😹
S helped us load our suitcases into his car, and gave us a little “tour” on our way to the flat. The shops were lined up similar to what I’ve seen in India, but the roads were more clean, quiet, and less crowded…at least during the day. Despite all this, everything seemed to have a “tinge of brown” surrounding it. I guess that’s something you can’t escape if the city you’ve built is literally atop a desert.
So far, I wasn’t impressed. I wasn’t convinced as to why Dubai has been considered THE vacation/party/travel destination of late. What was I NOT seeing?
We soon arrived at a complex of flats where my cousin’s family lived. It reminded me of what I would see in India, except less dusty (much to my surprise). We settled in pretty quickly, and honestly, it was hard to keep my eyes open because jet-lag was hitting me hard. Good thing we didn’t plan on doing the desert safari after all…
When my cousin M arrived, my sis and I lept up and gave her a hug to make up for 13 years of lost contact 🥰. We met her kids soon after that, and after freshening up, we thought it would help our body clocks to get some steps in around the city.
I will admit, the sunset views are top-notch!
Our stop was The Dubai Mall, where my cousin said we could see a fountain show as well as go to the top of the Burj Khalifa. The mall was large no doubt, but besides some unique shops I haven’t seen in the States (oh, and the Borders that seemed to be revived from the dead lol), I wasn’t blown away.
I thought this flying (or diving?) men art piece was pretty cool…
In fact, I was exhausted by the crowds and wishing I could rest my eyes and lie down on a soft pillow…my sister was also mentally and physically checked out. She was not having it with the overzealous tourists swarming everywhere…especially at the top of level of da Burj.
Burj Khalifa
We pretty much had our own reality checks once we got to the top: it would take a substantial load of (nonexistent) energy for us to enjoy ourselves enough to be Instagram-pic level happy 😆. As much as I wanted to take in the moment and appreciate the views, I also had to be mindful of my body. My sister was on the verge of tears because of the emotional exhaustion she was feeling, and I had to be empathetic.
As much as travel is thrilling and exciting, it is depleting and tiring. That’s the truth that most people tend to brush under the rug when they return from a long vacation and are asked about how their trip was.
But I like to keep it real, and to be honest, despite the lovely views of the city from above, I was feeling like c-r-a-p.
I can now look at this picture and at least appreciate and respect the work it took to build something like this, but when I was peering through the glass at 7pm Dubai time after 14 hours of economy-class plane travel? 🤢🤢🤢
Fortunately, our cousin was very understanding of our emotional situations and we drove back home after descending from the Burj. We picked up some food court Lebanese food and shared family-style. At least the night ended well 🤷.
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The next day, we contemplated if we would have enough time to check out Abu Dhabi. It would have been a little over an hour in the car, and my mind toyed with the idea of how cool it would have been to check off two cities in the UAE, but there were other people to consider in my travel company ( a dad who just woke up from his first night of normal sleep in days, and my sister who was just starting to recover from her sleep deprivation)…
We played it safe, and visited another attraction that just astounded me—Dubai Miracle Garden.
Don’t get me wrong. The displays were beautiful, artistic, and a feast for the eyes, but I just could not get over the fact that—
Hold up, we’re in the middle of a freaking desert. This ain’t natural!
Dubai Miracle Garden
Hence the name miracle garden, I get that, but how is this sustainable? It just seemed to be the opposite of eco-friendly to me, and I couldn’t shake off this thought as we continued throughout the park.
Emirates, always be pluggin’ 🤣
I also couldn’t shake off the stench of fertilizer (lol), but I was distracted enough at some points to admire some pretty displays:
A gorgeous umbrella display 💕
Gorgeous hues of flowers—really appreciated this for some reason. Maybe because it was a nice source of shade 😂
Eventually, the heat got to us and we moved on. I must have been pretty beat because after grabbing a scoop of Biscoff ice cream as we left the park, I fell into a sweet nap, along with the kids! #NoShame
It felt like a long drive to our next destination, but when I woke up we were in Al Seef, which I soon fell in love with because it had that desert charm I was expecting to see throughout Dubai…at least it was located in one place here!
Hello Al Seef 👋
At the end of the day, it was just another shopping and dining area, but I felt like once I was inside, it gave off the vibe of stepping into a world of an older time. Window-shopping was a pleasant experience…
Hi Dubai, you finally showin’ me your cute side?
My inner nerd loved this display at a perfume store 😀
Dinner was a casual affair: a stop at a sub-par Italian place that served up piadinas, and a place I wouldn’t recommend visiting—especially if your stay in Dubai was as short as ours.
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I do wish we spent another day or two, when our energy levels picked up, with my cousin and her family. Leaving for India at 9pm soon after our first full day in Dubai seemed like a hasty move, but the fact that we were even able to make room for Dubai was a remarkable feat for us 😂
Would I ever choose to live in Dubai? Nah.
Would I ever come back to vacation in Dubai? Most likely no, unless someone else paid for it!
But at the top of the Burj, my Dad shared his thoughts on how Dubai is probably the prime entertainment and recreation destination for many South Asians and Middle Easterners…probably the farthest one would venture “out west” in a lifetime!
So at least it’s there for someone—it’s just not my cup of tea 🤷
Have you ever visited Dubai? What was your experience like?
