The Pancakes tasted like a blessing, the chai further fueled me for one of the most uncertain days of my life. I didn't know whether I'd make friends at all, I didn't know what to do now that I was in Gokarna.
I could see the main beach from Mantra Cafe, and I ate as I stared at the waves grappling my anxiety bit by bit! I could see a lot of people but I felt as if I was invisible. I could see groups of people discuss where they'd go next, and there I was, hoping someone would just see me and talk to me. I wanted to talk, but I was scared, like any other socially awkward human being.
I was about to finish my pancakes just when I heard a voice next to me. She was talking to a friend of hers and by what I could hear, I was sure that she was a solo traveler too. I wanted to talk to her but I didn't know how to start off a conversation, so I let it be and focussed on finishing the pancakes (which I couldn't because they were so filling). Within 5 minutes, I again heard the same voice, only this time, asking me if I were a solo traveler! We had a short conversation and dispersed to the common room, where I had a short work meeting (WFH not so fun anymore!).
The room allotment
After a long wait, I got my room allotment and I rushed to take a quick shower, get changed and sleep. The room was cold yet warm, with 6 bunk beds and a clean setting. Zostel Gokarna indeed has the best AC dorm rooms, along with the cleanest washrooms and beds. The House rules were stuck to the wall and their pet dog, Hailey was sleeping just outside my room that catered to my adrenaline rush. I had already forgotten about my heart-break, my anxiety was nowhere in sight and the only thing in my rucksack now were a pile of folded clothes along with gazillion hopes to become better. I was just a couple of hours old there, but I felt so light mentally, I cannot even begin to state.
Inside the room, I saw the same solo traveler I had first talked to, in the morning. Her name was Varsha and she had to come solo since her friends had some last minute commitments. A four-girls trip turned into her first solo trip, and I could resonate with her feeling aloof as a solo traveler. When I started talking to her, it did not feel like we met a few hours ago. It felt like we were the same kind of crazy.
Gokarna Main Beach
Within the first 3 hours itself, I managed to make a friend and we decided of hitting the main beach in the evening. Until then, we were having random conversations over our respective bunk beds. It felt like I was in hostel again (which I was) with my roommate (which she was at that point). When the clock struck 5, we got ready and left for the beach. Zostel has a shortcut for getting to the main beach and within 5 minutes and oh boy! I was there.
I was at the beach after 6 years. My excitement was at another level. I finally shook hands with the waves after years and nirvana that people talk about? I think I got that, that very instant. Varsha and I forgot all about our solo trip and rushed towards the sea, jumping, hopping and screaming with happiness. We managed to click a few photos together and of each other. We also managed to get identical beach hats from a shop by the beach.
As we neared sunset, we were hungry, so we dropped by at a restaurant which had a very nice view of the beach and the sunset. An important thing to note while catering to hunger pangs in the beach is not to expect a lavish spread on the menu. Infact, one should always prepare for the worst before entering any of these restaurants.
We wanted the sunset view but the view we got was rather disgusting. The kitchen was exactly opposite to where I sat so while waiting for food, I decided of looking around. The thing that I saw next was the chef who had lifted his shirt and was scratching his belly non-stop for a few minutes. He then got to making the sandwich. I wanted to un-look and run away but before I could do it, I saw Varsha cringe at the same thing and the next thing we knew, we did not want that sandwich.
We told the chef to cancel the order but he said he was ready with it. The sandwich costed around Rupees 160 but I guess the Chef saw us looking at him, so we instantly got a "Khujli discount" and paid only Rs 100 for it. Not something to be proud of but we took that sandwich and left the premises. And no, we did not eat that sandwich. We later left the veggies for the dogs and discarded the bread.
Our "Khujli" escapade pretty much proved why you should never look in side restaurant kitchens ever. The sunset was already happening so I forgot about the hunger and just sat on the sand overlooking at the sun bidding me a bye and telling me to have a nice evening ahead. And well, that worked. We again took gazillion photos and headed for dinner at an Italian Restaurant called "ILMIO" where I ate Butter Naan and Shahi Paneer. (Yes, Indian food in an Italian restaurant, but trust me, the view and food was worth it!)
Day one in Gokarna pretty much ended with a long and tiring trek back to Zostel and a long shower. The community manager called all of us to the common room and all the travelers had an intro session, where I got to know that Varsha and I were not the only solo travelers. Almost every second person was traveling solo and every story I heard, further made me thank myself for coming here, all by myself.
Days passing by
Days after this pretty much were very smooth for me. Varsha and I used to wake up early in the morning just to take a stroll through the Kudle beach. We spent hours by the beach, went to a lot of cafes out of which I loved Tribe, Sunrise, La Pizzeria, Shangri La Cafe at the Kudle Beach. Tribe had amazing choices of food with a lavish taste, Sunrise had amazing breakfast spreads, La Pizzeria had the best Pizza and Shangri La cafe had the best vibes with beer and food. I spent a lot of hours only staring at the beach, sometimes even in the evening. I used to take a dip-dip (shorter and safer version of a Dip) in the ocean because I didn't know how to swim and hours would go by with me getting sunburnt (not tan) because I didn't apply a lot of sunscreen.
Pro tip - Carry a lot of sunscreen and shades and a hat to save your face from getting sunburnt or tan. My skin is getting back at me now, after a week by being the most painful bitch to me. My lips have also burnt (I don't really know, how! Haha)
The next morning, I received a message from someone on Instagram who said he was in Gokarna too. I had never met him, but we only used to share Haikus and poems through HAIKUJAM, an app that lets you write Haikus with people around the globe. Gokarna had already been very very generous to me and now, I got a chance to meet one of my haiku partners. Internet is a funny world, but what is even funnier is the fact that you think you might never meet a few people ever!
More people in the house
I met a girl named Tanisha and Alok on the second day, who were both solo travelers from different cities. But I guess we were destined to meet this way, that we ended up spending all our time in Zostel, together. We explored more of Kudle Beach together, trekked to Om Beach, watched Sunsets from amazing locations and hopped a lot of cafes to find the best of food around Gokarna.
One such cafe was the Bhagwan Cafe which lay in the extreme corner of the Gokarna Beach and is nestled between small Israeli, Russian and foreign settlements. You may not find a lot of people here and could be difficult to find if you're on foot, but we had rented bikes so Google Maps made it easier for us to get here. The minute we got here, I got very excited to see not even one soul on the beach. Just sand and the ocean, and this quaint little place which serves King Fishes, Wood-fired Pizzas and good Israeli food - This was what we needed after a long 92 kilometre ride to and from, Vibhuti Falls.
Vibhuti Falls is a waterfall attraction which is 46 kms away from Gokarna and can be reached by renting a two wheeler very easily that costs around 350 rupees for 24 hours. I got lucky because I found people who could ride while I sat behind them! Haha.
Aryadurga Bike Rental (can find the contact number on Google) was one place that made it very easy for us to commute within Gokarna. Although we weren't able to go inside the falls, owing to a lot of crowd in the middle of the day (and one man in his blue superman boxers sitting exactly under the waterfalls), one can always set an early morning ride to Vibhuti Falls and have the waterfalls only for themselves and not for the boxer views!
The four of us were pretty much together for the next three days and we had a ball of a time, really. It was after years that I felt I was not socially awkward anymore, and that, I too could make friends. The three of us were from Bangalore so we made a deal that we would definitely meet after getting back home. Alok, Tanisha and Varsha were supposed to leave the next day, so the last night that I spent with them, was the best, really!
We also star gazed and the result? ^^^^ See it for yourself.
I was certain that I too was leaving for Bangalore along with Varsha, because I thought I couldn't survive Zostel without these three. I once again started having thoughts about whether I could really make it on my own, all over again without Varsha, Tanisha and Alok. I met a lot of people but I gelled the best, with these three till now. I didn't want to stay and I had prepped my mind for the same.
Serendipity that I found on the first day, wanted to leave on the fourth and I couldn't really blame it. Serendipity is what got me here, so if it wanted to leave, who was I stop it? In the first, I began to wonder whether it really existed.
Read Part 3 - https://www.legallyherself.com/post/part-3-serendipity
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