THE WHEELS THAT HEAL

Living in Mumbai city is stressful business. So to beat away the blues and the stress, my wife and I decided to take a vacation in the latter part of January. A ROAD TRIP. By many people’s standards, the idea of a road trip is not a vacation, its only adding to the stress, and they could be right on their part as well. But, in a road trip we found solace, comfort, space, fun, adventure and harmony ….. all the ingredients for a perfect holiday.

I have been a fan of road trips for as long as I can remember and I’m going to spill the beans on how to go from hating road travel to completely surrendering to it:-

In a road trip, the journey is the destination. It’s not a means to reach a destination.

BEFORE YOU START:-

1. Choose your vehicle wisely – Whether you choose to cruise in a SUV, zip around in a hatchback, take along the entire family in a van, be sure you have driven that type of vehicle before and that you are comfortable driving long hours in such a vehicle. Driving a vehicle you are not comfortable with is like participating in a marathon wearing the wrong kind of underwear and shoes. Factor in the luggage and the age and health of the people travelling with you. Also, your vehicle should be more than adequate for the terrain you wish to traverse. More than once I have seen people trying to capture mountain peaks in an 800CC car.

2. Check tyre treads and pressures (Including the spare tyre) – though there ain’t a official statistic to prove my point, I know scores of people who’ll get their engine oil, coolant etc checked, fill up on gas before a trip, but completely forget about the tyres.

3. Map it out – go through your route thoroughly to know where are the rest – places, food courts, emergency car services etc. Though asking the locals for directions works well in India, many locals will not understand where or what you need, especially down south. Also, helps to make it a habit, as you will definitely need the info when abroad. If necessary, get a GPS guide.

4. Motion Sickness – people suffer from motion sickness, more so on mountain roads, to reduce the feeling of sickness, DON’T OVEREAT. Also, there are medications available which help. It’s cooler to admit you have motion sickness n pop the pill than puke every 15 mins when on the road.

ONCE IN MOTION:-

The charm of a road trip lies in not getting from Point A to Point B the quickest, but in experiencing what I call “the flavor of the road” which includes the following …………

1. Starting early morning for your road trip is a must to avoid traffic – that everyone knows, but the added advantage of starting early is to experience the nip in the air, the glow of sunrise over the horizon, it’s a transition from darkness to light – which is best experienced on the road. It’s almost as if every aspect around you is attuned to the rays from the East… Still not convinced about waking up early. Well, the roads and the car heat up as the day progresses. You sure don’t want to start the journey feeling the heat!! from more than just the road and the car ... ;)

2. Another must do according to me when on a road trip, is to enjoy your breakfast at the road side chai (tea) stall. The menu never has more than 3-4 items on the list, but the diversity of people which descend upon the small stall is definitely more. I guarantee conversations will flow and so will the chai.

3. Take the longer road – sounds silly, well – that’s the idea. The lovely views, old monuments, quirky dining places, or anything bizarre is more likely to be discovered on the longer, smaller roads leading to the end of the journey rather than the express and national highways, i.e. if you wish to share interesting photo’s and stories once your back.

Our route encompassed the Konkan Coast of Maharashtra, covering 1300kms over 5 days starting from Mumbai à GanpatiPhule à Tarkarli à Mahableshwar à Mumbai.

The Konkan Coast is famed for having really gorgeous beaches, Tarkarli and Ganpatiphule being the best among them.