From 10 years of experience

It wouldn’t be a lie if I call myself a traveler. I mean, at the beginning I never wanted to become one but now I can’t restrict myself from it. Now my only desire is to complete what I started 10years ago, that is to complete my world tour.

Yes you heard it right I am on a mission to explore the entire world. A question might have aroused in your minds that if I was on world tour why it took me 10years, and still I hadn’t completed it. Well, the answer is, try to try what I am doing, once in your life, without any mode of transportation.

Yes, without any transportation just by walking on the road with your feet, you can even run sometime if you like to, because I also do it, sometimes!

And one more thing, don’t bring anything with yourselves, except for two pairs of clothes. I wouldn’t have advice that also but thought of giving you some grace. Nothing also includes food, money or anything else.

The reason why I am saying all this to you is because if you ever made your mind to do what I am doing, alongwith following my conditions, then you will realize why doing this is so difficult and is such a long process.

Your food which you brought won’t last forever and same goes for the money, if you aren’t a millionaire. And they will never go for things like this because it’s sounds crazy, a lot. You can bring containers for storing them because you will find enough food outside.

Confused again that I said you mustn’t carry any money and now I am saying that you will get enough food in the outside world. Well there are people who will give it for free and some may also kick you out but it’s really going to be adventurous. Believe me! I am saying all this based on my experience.

So let me share all the experience I had till now so that you all could get some idea about it. First of all as I begun I was also carrying a bag with me with lots of food and enough water because at that time I didn’t think of world tour. It was just to go…some place far from my home.

But that place was so far that all my resources worn out while I was on the midway. Actually I thought that it was midway but later came to know that it was not even close to midway. I grew up in the mountains and there we have a lot of vegetation loaded with fruits and berries. But as I came down everything was decreasing. 

I soon realized that the things which I had brought with me will be over very soon. I can’t completely rely on them so I thought of saving them, utilizing as less as possible but I had to walk and for that I required energy.

I had two ways in front of me; either return or keep on moving till the next town arrives. With the hope that I may find something in the next town I moved on. I took lift from one of the cars passing by. Yes in the beginning it was tough for me so I took lift. Now also I take lift few times but mostly I am dependent on my legs.

The driver never knew that I was in the car because I knew that they will not give me a lift as it was a lonely way with very few people and I had even heard at my place that people will not give you a ride because at places like that people become a bit alert on whom they should believe.

It was totally different from my place. Too much hurry, risk of life and quite less spaces. There were wide spaces but I expected a bit much like, we have open fields in the mountains. Leaving it all aside my first concentration was to get something to eat, but the question was how and from where? I had money but the prices were too high.

I knew the money I brought will not be accepted by the people to satisfy my hunger. I began searching for some place where they could offer meal at lesser prices but couldn’t find any. On my way I found few people who were sitting by the road.

Their clothes were torn from most of the places and they were also very unhygienic. I never wanted to go near but then saw that they were feeding stray dogs. The food looked fresh! I thought they might have something for me also, though it will be unhygienic but I was so hungry then that I didn’t think of that.

As I went closer the dogs began barking at me. I stopped and was holding at my position. The dogs came near me and began smelling me, probably trying to get my scent. To this the people came forward and moved the stray dogs. They even gave me to eat. The taste was different but I had to eat. I ate until my stomach was satisfied and then ate again to have some, reserved in the stock. I had no place to stay so I slept there just like those men had.

It was a cold night and I had rolled myself to get some heat. I dreamed of an earthquake but it were some children who were kicking me and the other men; might be for some fun but that broke my sleep, the rest were still sleeping.

Their parents soon came and took them away and even scolded them! I looked up and the Sun was shining bright which my eyes couldn’t tolerate. The city had become much more crowded than at the night. For me I had to find food again. Luckily water was free at the city. I drank from a fountain and washed my face from it. I ate the things which I brought with myself and went for some exploration.

The animals of the city were very nasty. They always surrounded me and observed me as a refugee. I agree that I was not from your town but I didn’t come to cause any harm to your city, I was a tourist.

The city was really a big one; I had miscalculated it due to the darkness. I knew that I was surely not going to get food at less cost in that city so I went back to the men with the hope that they will give me some of their food.

I again took a lift and this time also I didn’t pay for it because I was not having much with me. They were still asleep and I didn’t wake them with the fear that they might get angry on me. They were actually awake but were still lying by the road.

I heard what they were actually talking. It was about the next city which was close to this one. They were planning to move to that one but were too lazy to move but I wasn’t. I was ready to leave this place and move anywhere.

I took the information from them how to reach there and applied my basic plan to hide in someone’s vehicle and go there. However this time the driver caught me and threw me out of his car. I lied on the road for sometime but then again got up and moved to one side.

I kept on moving in the direction where I had to go. I might have travelled a lot but all I could see was continuous rows of trees and curved roads. It was getting darker and I didn’t have any place to stay. For precaution I thought of taking the help of a tree. There were a lot trees but I had to find a big and tough one. I climbed up to the top.

I hadn’t eaten anything since the afternoon and so was feeling extremely hungry. My tree was also not a fruit bearing tree. My stomach was complaining with every passing second but what I could do then?

I tried to distract my mind to forget about hunger and the forest helped me to do so. It made me remember of my home but my stomach’s alarm wanted only one thing which I couldn’t arrange.

Then I noticed a flash in front of me. There were too many actually. I waited till one of them came too close to me and while trying to catch them I fell and landed on my back. I was alright; without any injury

I chased them to the deep forest where I found they were in huge numbers and had gathered around a tree, like it was some kind of festival they were celebrating. Miraculously the tree was one which I was looking for; a fruit bearing one, in deep inside the forest.

I ate till my alarm didn’t cutoff and while I was at one of the branch I saw the next city where I had to go. It was close as per seen from the branch because it was down the valley. I jumped from the tree; this time landed safely and went down, where there were roads.

Like this I kept on moving down road by road and reached the city, at afternoon! This one was also the same as previous one just a less expensive but I knew where I had to go and sleep. I had my connection with the forest since my birth and at a strange place also it proved to be my best companion.

From this to that I kept on moving from city to city, town to town. Some were big and expensive like the first one while some reminded me of my own town. During my journey I have experienced the struggle for food at an unknown place, has even slept without eating; have faced almost every weather; some tough, some being pleasant. The only thing which I might have missed is the food of that particular city.

Today it’s been 10 years since I began and I don’t think I told you why I thought of something crazy like that. Well it was because of the friends of my town who used to tease me by saying that, “Shanky snail is so slow that he will never able to see the world. The maximum he could see is his entire town.”

Today I have almost completed one and half continent. Been to places where my friends have never gone and if they have even seen these places they never wouldn’t have experienced these places like I did. Now my only desire is to complete my world tour.