After Months of Probing, We Finally Decided to Take the Risk!

If there is one activity my family and I absolutely enjoy doing together, it is travelling and exploring new places. If someone asks me tomorrow what is that one thing that makes me feel alive and gives me the highest form of joy and self-satisfaction, this would probably be it. So, it is very typical to assume that a person who loves to be out there would not have taken the news of an impending lockdown very well. Honestly, it struck me rather badly because we hadn’t been able to go for a full-fledged family vacation for a long time due to my sister’s board exam and other school-related activities. Additionally, we stayed at home for 6 long months with little or no contact with the outside world. With increasing stress of my online classes, my parent’s work from home and my sister’s college entrance exams, we thought we had had enough and wanted to go for a vacation. The Dussehra break seemed the most apt time for it. So, we shortlisted some exotic destinations near us and decided to go on a trip to Gokarna and Murdeshwar. To start with, we looked for resorts and hotels and confirmed with them in advance about the safety measures being implemented for COVID. We inquired about the approximate crowding at the properties and finally booked our stay. 

Trip to Gokarna

We packed our bags and headed out for an incredible road trip to our first destination, Gokarna. We travelled in our own car and practiced social distancing every time we stepped out of it. We happened to visit during an off season, hence the tourist crowd had reduced considerably.

We stopped at two other places in between, the first was Jog falls at Shimoga. Watching the waterfall from a distance was a breath-taking experience.

The next spot, Honnavar view point was not very far away from Jog falls. Although we didn’t stop there for too long, the view was nothing like we had seen before; it was quiet awe-inspiring.

The view was not the only take away from the place, it also held a wide variety of spectacular lifeforms for us to observe – like butterflies and other insects. We had come across a glorious specimen of a butterfly called ‘Tamil lacewing’.

We continued our journey to Gokarna without a halt, and as we drove past, we could see the serene view of the sea overlooking the beach. My sister and I, sitting on the backseat of the car, shared an overwhelming glance that clearly meant we didn’t know what emotions to express.

We reached our resort, ‘Hotel Gokarna International’ and it was nothing like we had expected. It had many admirable amenities, but the best part about it was that it directly opened up to the Kudle beach where we could enjoy a private beach experience.

The following day, we decided to trek up a hill and stumbled upon a place called Jatayu Teertha to catch an outstanding view of the Arabian sea. At some point, it looked like there was no boundary between the water and the sky and it seemed to merge perfectly. All the good things one can imagine about the sea had adorned our eyes.

The same evening, we took a long and relaxing stroll on the beach until it became dark. We felt lucky to have witnessed one of the most beautiful sunsets ever with a pink sky and the dazzling reflections of the hills in the water.

Journey to Murdeshwar

The next day we advanced to Murdeshwar, famous for its beaches and temples. We spent hours in the water just splashing and letting the waves carry us away. It was such a picturesque location considering the tall statue of Lord Shiva in the background.

We stayed till dark to experience a sheer delight of colourful lights illuminating the statue and the temple from all directions and creating a glistening reflection on the sea. It made a fabulous destination for photography enthusiasts to capture light-related long exposure and nightscape shots.

Our last and final spot before we headed back home was ‘Agumbe Sunset view point’ that came on our way. The scenery was splendid with blue sky, dense forests, tall hills and a waterfall to compliment the scene.

I’m so mesmerised with this trip that I recommend every fellow traveller to visit these places for some unforgettable moments of pure bliss. This was indeed the finest escape from lockdown and our hectic lives. I am so grateful to my parents for having organised this much needed getaway.