I had decided that I would leave the next day so I was just chilling by the hammock when I heard two guys converse in Punjabi. I couldn't help but go to them and smile. I asked them to keep on talking in Punjabi, so I could hear more of it.
Surely, they must've thought who this creep was, but Bhavya surely had her own ways to break the ice - This, being one of it. They were two college friends Anmol and Karan, both from Punjab, but working in Bangalore and soon after a very formal introduction session, we were a group of six chilling by the hammock, catching up with life, Bangalore city and our trip.
Alok left the next morning and Tanisha, Varsha, Anmol were supposed to leave in the evening. So we embarked upon yet another morning walk to Kudle Beach to grab breakfast. Our mini Zostel Tribe went to The Tribe (the restaurant), and ate some amazing Chole Bhature, and ginger chai (I can still go back to Gokarna for those Chole Bhature). From four people yesterday morning, to six people at night, to four people again, the next morning, people were different, but the vibe stayed and so did I. I somewhere wanted to stay in this nice town for more time - after all, this is what a solo trip is about.
I was okay with spending the left over time all alone, but Gokarna had different plans for me. That very afternoon, while I was in between my work, I met two more solo souls, both again, from Bangalore - Priyank and Pranit. While I went and invited Priyank to join us for lunch, Pranit already knew Karan and Anmol from earlier, so we were quite a big group that day, for Lunch. We went to Prema Restaurant, a really good place near Zostel. Later, as the sun was about to set for the day, I along with a few other Zostellers went to the hilltop to get a glimpse of the ocean and the sunset, after bidding the goodest of the byes to Varsha, Tanisha and Anmol.
The hilltop
Let's talk about Hilltop and the sunset. It's a very short walk from Zostel, up hill. While I was there, I knew I would not have my people when I go back to my dorm room. But again, what is "My people"? I decided to focus on the sunset, looked around me and found a few people who could be "My people" again. I let my anxiety go chase the sunset whilst I stared at the sky, change from blue to hues of orange. I took a deep breath, and let all of it go. I started talking to Priyank and Karan, who were sitting next to me and we discussed about this very sunset which was right in front of us. This whole feeling was a different one! I did not know what was in store for me, but I knew it wouldn't be bad because Gokarna knew how to make me feel at home.
I spent quite some time here, with just my thoughts and fellow zostellers. The view from here is to die for, and why am I saying this? Take a look at this.
As the night neared, I didn't feel like I was alone at all. I guess I still had my people? I was already 4 days old in Gokarna and I pretty much explored everything that I wanted to. I did not go on beach treks to Paradise and Half-moon beach because I was here for peace and not to exhaust myself. Although, troops from Zostel did go on beach treks and ferry rides, I wanted to explore Gokarna my way, and I did.
A new day in Gokarna, with new friends and I didn't want to spend it indoors, so we decided of going to Vibhuti Falls again, this time, early in the morning so I could have a good look at the falls and not blue superman boxers. Pranit took to the beach trek all alone, Priyank, Karan and I rented two scooties and embarked upon yet another adventure. The roads leading to Vibhuti Falls are so nice, you've got to go there to feel it. We spent some time in the falls but ended up with me bruising my right foot which slipped between two stones inside the falls. Karan too, had his share of bruises and since it was getting hot, we decided of getting our asses out, carefully and stopping for breakfast somewhere nearby.
There is no network in Vibhuti Falls and this extends to 16 kms around it, so when you decide of stopping by at a restaurant or some shop, make sure you have cash.
We stopped at this place called Hotel Vibhuti. They only had poori and saaghu, and it was so good. For the price that it came in, I wanted to pack some of it for later, but we had limited cash.
I came back from the falls, took some time off and worked for sometime. While I was at it, I could feel a void that I wasn't sure of. I loved Gokarna, but I wanted to go somewhere else, but where could I go? I had my booking till Sunday and it was only Wednesday! I confided in Priyank and Karan and before I could believe any of it, I could see us planning of going to Goa the next day. We didn't decide of how to go, where to go, but just knew we were going!
Pranit was leaving the next day too, so we all decided of spending the last night in the most amazing way possible. Pranit and I went to the main market, got lost in between because I took a wrong road but at the end of the night, I bought some amazing things from the market that you can get if you have mad bargaining skills. I bought a hemp backpack for only Rs 450 whose original cost was told to be around 950. We also got our hands on some yummy jalebis that we took for our friends back in the hostel. Out of everyone who ate it, I was the only one got a tad bit unwell in the night because I was too fancy to eat outside Jalebis (not my words).
So what was it, that I did at Zostel? How did I manage to work? What did I do to pass my time?
I didn't plan any of this, but I just went with the flow. I worked late at night, early in the morning and took my meetings/calls from sitting at cafes or the hammock. Sometimes, I used the common room or my own dorm room to catch up on important tasks but I did not take an off really! I felt I was even more productive. Having a beach-view while working was therapeutic and I can vouch for it, first-hand.
I was always told how one should be very careful about talking to strangers, especially males because this is a very creepy world and I agree with it but in this trip, the people around me didn't make me feel one bit of uncomfortable at all. Majority of my friends were guys and maybe, it was for the best? Not even once did I feel scared around any of the males I had around me. If anything at all, they were super nice to me and very friendly.
My last morning in Gokarna wasn't any sort of a dull start at all. I walked up to the beach, played in the sand, made a sand castle and walked to the Tribe, to eat food. It was the first time in my solo trip that I had come to a beach, all alone. Well, what a trip. I spent around two hours staring at the beach, the waves while Fix you played behind me. Coldplay and Gokarna did it for me, today, I felt the lightest in ages and I guess, I fulfilled my purpose of this solo trip.
Serendipity was back, it never left me. It was here waiting for me to smile and feel on top of the world. I was, because why not? I was going to GOAAAA y'all!!!!
Read Part 2 here - https://www.legallyherself.com/post/part-2-serendipity
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