When I travel, I usually have a list.
Places to see. Food to try. Photos to take.
But some of my favourite travel moments happen before I’ve done any of those things.
They happen when I leave the hotel early, walk down a street I don’t know, and go looking for coffee.
Bangalore gave me one of those mornings.
A coffee shop I wanted to find again
The day before, my close friend Sandhya had taken me to Hunkal coffee shop.
I liked the coffee. Obviously.
But I also liked having a place in an unfamiliar city that I could now recognise. A small point on the map that meant something to me because a friend had shown it to me.
So the next morning, I walked back there on my own.
That was the plan. No grand itinerary. Just find the coffee shop and see what happened along the way.
I like walking through a city while it is getting ready for the day. Shops opening. People going about their routines. The sound of traffic slowly taking over. There is always something to notice when you are not rushing to the next attraction.
And yes, if there are street dogs around, I will probably stop for them too. My walking plans tend to become less efficient at that point.
Just another person in Bangalore
At home, I’m usually going somewhere for a reason. There is work to do, somebody to meet, something waiting for an answer.
In Bangalore, nobody needed anything from me on that walk.
I could stop, look around, have a conversation, sit with my coffee and watch people live their ordinary morning.
That might sound like a strange thing to travel for.
But I’ve learned that the ordinary parts of a place often stay with me longer than the famous ones.
The way a street sounds. The way a coffee shop fills up. The person who points you in the right direction. A brief chat that turns a stranger into someone you remember.
Sometimes I make a new friend. Sometimes I just exchange a smile and keep walking.
Either way, I feel a little more connected to the place than I did when I arrived.
What I bring home
I still love a good view. I still take far too many photographs.
But if you ask me what I remember about a city, I might tell you about a morning walk instead.
About getting coffee with nowhere else I needed to be.
About Sandhya showing me a shop one day, and me finding my way back the next.
That is one of my favourite things about travelling. Someone shares a small part of their world with you, and suddenly the city feels a little less unfamiliar.
And if Sandhya has already shown me where the good coffee is?
Even better.
Leave a comment