Suggestions for perfume purchases during year end sale

[Returning_Indian]

Agree with you on materialistic (be)longings. But experiences are different if they are not FB/Insta focused. I take only very few photos so they could jiggle my memory years later. Experiences are not only about the scenic destination or the end pursuit but it's more about the journey and the folks one meets along the way. Memories are the only things that no one can take away from you.

I don't know what you mean by journey. I traveled in economy for 30hrs among other grumpy passengers one way. Seats were extremely small and no leg space, dirty washroom, disgusting food, crying babies, inattentive air hostesses etc etc Was tired and miserable. Ate stupid food. Met other entitled passengers. While traveling I was mostly with my family. Encountering other tourists and only interacting with them if we wanted family picture. All places were crowded as hell. I didn't even meet one person during the entire trip that stayed with me, except for the ones that I don't want to remember for their rude/racist behavior. Simply managing logistics of carrying luggage, family from one place to another. I came back exhausted and money drained. Except for the time spent with cousins and their families nothing to remember (which is just as well done at home). I don't know what you are talking about when you say journey. It's miserable to be a tourist, go out of your comfort zone and visit places. As for destination it's the same buildings, same mountains, same trees, same rocks everywhere. Just like my friend once said about grand canyon. Kya dekhna hai, ek khadda hai (whats there to see, it's just a hole in the ground).

These tourist trips are nothing but a way for us to break our monotonous routine and seek some change. Even if we are miserable the whole time, it does give something different. And that's it. If one wants to learn culture and interact with people then one has to stay at a place for a very long time.

[SAPPORO]

Agree with you on materialistic (be)longings. But experiences are different if they are not FB/Insta focused. I take only very few photos so they could jiggle my memory years later. Experiences are not only about the scenic destination or the end pursuit but it's more about the journey and the folks one meets along the way. Memories are the only things that no one can take away from you.

I don't know what you mean by journey. I traveled in economy for 30hrs among other grumpy passengers one way. Seats were extremely small and no leg space, dirty washroom, disgusting food, crying babies, inattentive air hostesses etc etc Was tired and miserable. Ate stupid food. Met other entitled passengers. While traveling I was mostly with my family. Encountering other tourists and only interacting with them if we wanted family picture. All places were crowded as hell. I didn't even meet one person during the entire trip that stayed with me, except for the ones that I don't want to remember for their rude/racist behavior. Simply managing logistics of carrying luggage, family from one place to another. I came back exhausted and money drained. Except for the time spent with cousins and their families nothing to remember (which is just as well done at home). I don't know what you are talking about when you say journey. It's miserable to be a tourist, go out of your comfort zone and visit places. As for destination it's the same buildings, same mountains, same trees, same rocks everywhere. Just like my friend once said about grand canyon. Kya dekhna hai, ek khadda hai (whats there to see, it's just a hole in the ground).

These tourist trips are nothing but a way for us to break our monotonous routine and seek some change. Even if we are miserable the whole time, it does give something different. And that's it. If one wants to learn culture and interact with people then one has to stay at a place for a very long time.

Wow- you just explained the typical trips to India by American Desis!
I guess you're not the romantic type - "safar khoobsurat hai manzil se bhi"

By journey I didn't actually mean the transportation - it's the stories that you remember and share years down the line, other than just saying that you have seen/visited something.

Destination was 'Forbidden city", but the 'journey' was how countless people took selfies adoring us with chants of 'indie" and the very old couple that took us on the opposite direction from the destination under hot sun, fighting amongst them all along, but put us in cop cars and asking them to drop us at the right entrance, all without understanding each other.

Destination was Machu Pichu but the journey was the determined driver driving like crazy with deep valleys surrounding us in total darkness so we could make the train but having missed the train helped us to book us on the next train as opposed to leaving us in the lurch.

Destination was Cairo museum with mummies but the journey was a total stranger that held my hand to form a human chain to help us cross the crazy 8-lane roundabout in front of it and quickly disappear before I could thank him.

The destination was Victoria memorial in Calcutta, and the journey was a young kid from rural Bihar excited about getting into the military and had no one to share this good news and found me!
The list goes on with a lot of memorable (at least for me) anecdotes.

I get your point of staying in a place longer for connecting with the locals without becoming a local that starts worrying about local issues. But obviously it's practical and possible only for a few fortunate youths mostly Americans & Europeans that go backpacking for months.