One Day Trips

Tushar Nankani

Context

The advice I kept recieving when I left JPMC is — Spend time in college, spend time with your friends. Enjoy while it "lasts".

Job is for next many years. College only for few days more.

Darshan Jani, JPMC (My first manager)

Consciously I often remind myself about the same, in my final semester of college.

For some reason, my instinct/feeling for a potential plan, for most of the times, was — hesitation. I never questioned it.

However, now I have been asking myself — What is there to lose? Money? Time?

But aren't these the things we have to give in to make an experience worth it? For life to be worth living?

If not now, then when?

Detour

As much as the "fun" part of friendships sound shiny, I want to invest in deeper relations and conversations that makes one think on an intellectual and emotional level.

To discuss observations and perspectives, with whom one can delve into a soul-like dimension. Thinking and speaking passionately about ideas with logic, acknowledged flawed emotions and irrational biases.

I call these people intellectual sparring partners. (The term is borrowed from Sahil Bloom.)

I have been investing my time, my final few days in college with people. Speaking with people. Understanding them and their perspectives. And potentially influencing their opinions or/and shaping my judgements.

This mutual ideology have led a bunch of us to spend more time together and go on these — One Day Trips. (The "one day trips" ideology comes from the fact of not going on a long, far, multiple days' trip. Instead, exploring local nearby places, food and people.)

Observations

Everytime we go to a friend's house, I feel so warm. As if I already knew them. Speaking to them felt like there is already a pre-exisiting relationship.

Made me think — Why did I feel pressured for people to come to my house or meet my parents? Turns out the pressure is just in the head.

It is not about the destination, it is about the journey. Yes, but more than that — it is not about the place, it is about the people.

People are kind. Kinder than I thought the world to be. (This comes from the observation about some acts of kindness and I thought I might have never done something like that or I might have hesitated to do so.)

Travelling gives you a lot of perspectives. Our day to day "problems" tend to revolve completely around us. Me, my projects, my experience, my way, my résumé, my job, my family.

We become so engulfed in it, the problems start looking bigger. Wandering around makes me zoom out. Seeing different people, different ways of living, different way of looking at things.

The horizon starts to expand. We get a lot of exposure. Which paradoxically and unintuitively, makes either your problems smaller or gives strength to make your way through.

One Day Trips

The overflow of the different kind of places, thoughts, observations, food and people have pushed me to log it. (For me to keep a track frankly.)

Here's an ongoing list from the past few weeks:

  • Bandra (Pizza Hut)
  • Khar (The Serial Griller, Vrindavan's Chole Bhature)
  • Dadar (Misal)
  • Andheri (Jimis)
  • Colaba, Churchgate, Marine Lines (A day out)
  • Ghatkopar (After movie)
  • Seawoods (Trek Detour)
  • Kalyan, Ulhasnagar (Felt like home)
  • Mumbai Central (Haji-ali, Sardar, Palladium)
  • Virar (Rustomjee)
  • Dadar (Dhaba)
  • King's Circle (Mani's Dosa)
  • Andheri (Joey's)
  • Dalal street, Churchgate (Post meetup)
  • Dadar (Aswaad)
  • Borivali - Virar Thrill
  • Ghatkopar Detour (Surprise)
  • Kalyan (Fracture)