I travel frequently. Though I plan most of the things, there is always a spontaneous moment here and there. Plans fail or surprises divert them. Here are some crazy travel anecdotes that I share over campfire chats.

Lost In Desert

Heading for a 3km run in the desert was not the best of ideas to start with.

We were in Jaisalmer, sleeping under the stars in a desert. No tent, no resort. Just sand, a bamboo bed, a blanket, and us. 7 girls on a Rajasthan backpacking trip. A couple of camels were waiting nearby to take us back to the city in the morning. The camel supervisor was sleeping next to the camels.

In the morning, when I saw the sunrise, I couldn’t resist trying a small morning jog in the vacant desert. There was no one as far as the eyes could see. Our trip lead decided to join me and we head off. After running for about 1.5 km, we realized that our footmarks are being blown away by the wind. There is no way to know where we exactly came from. We tried following a set of camel footprints but that mislead us too. After 15 minutes of being lost, my friend suggested to head to a high point and look for clues. And there it was, the smoke from the burning wood near our minicamp. It must have been the camel rider making tea for the group. We followed the smoke thereafter, to rejoin our group.

Covered In Red Ants

This travel anecdote is from a beach trek in Kumta. We were walking through thorny bushes and rocky hills near the beaches of Kumta. We were to cross a fort on the way. This one staircase in the fort led us to something that looked like an old well with no water. But quite a lot of ants there. Walking through the stairs and standing inside the well, we found ourselves surrounded by ants.

Red ants were on my hair and my hands. I was wearing shorts, so I could get rid of the ones on my leg fairly easily. I can’t say the same about the ones on my hair. Many were scared. I feel I dealt with it calmly. It was fun though. We had good laughs at those who found ants inside their clothes.

Chasing Turtles In The Sea

At a snorkeling expedition near the Maldives islands, we were to spot some huge turtles. Our group had jumped right next to a beautiful turtle that was sitting on rocks under the water about 20 feet deep. We were told to swim as fast as we could when the turtle comes to the surface. Then we would have our turn taking pictures with it. I was all for it. I saw the beautiful mosaic shell of the turtle heading to the surface. The turtle was moving very fast. I had my snorkeling kit on. But swimming fast in the waves of the sea is not that easy. I was fairly fast but I lost my direction. There were a couple of other groups around us. After following the wrong group for some time I swam very far away from this turtle and my group.

I realized I was wrong when I saw this group getting into a different boat. I asked their leader to help me out. Thankfully, he swam back with me through the sea and helped me find my group. I must have been swimming for over an hour and was really exhausted. At this point, my lead wanted to take me back to show me the turtle up close. I put up a brave face and joined him in the hunt. But after another 20 minutes of swim, I gave up. We swam back to the boat. A lovely twist to this story is that I happened to come across another turtle the next day, swimming at the surface right next to me. This time I didn’t even have to chase it.

Free Flight In A Private Jet

I kept my favorite travel anecdote for the end. This one time, a friend of mine was invited to his house owner’s farmhouse in Giverny, near Paris. I joined him. Back then, I was working in Paris, France. I was very open to new experiences. My friends and I spent all weekends out, traveling and exploring. This was going to be a laid back outing. We were to see the countryside and do some cheese tasting at lunch.

The surprising aspect turned out to be that this farmhouse owner happened to own a private jet. A small 2 man jet to spray pesticide on his vast farms. It was illegal to fly the jet over Paris. But we could fly over Giverny. I joined the jet owner as a co-pilot. I even took over the steering for a short time when we were in the air. Before we took flight, I was talking about the painter Monet whose home was in Giverny. So, when we were on the plane, we flew above Monet’s house and looked at the doors, balconies, and gardens of his bungalow. Once back, I asked him to adopt me. Why not? He hosted lunches, cheese tasting, and those amazing flights for his guests. Who wouldn’t want a father like that?

I hope these stories brought a smile to your face. Please subscribe if my writing resonated with you.