Aakash Mishra, a 20-year-old boy has conquered many fears and has left his footprints on the sands of time for people to follow.
He is just like any other guy but with what I call- superpowers! The man is a story in himself. Once you get to meet him, you realize all that you have been missing in life. An exclusive chat with WittyFeed, this guy who loves to write his quotes and the man who is up for the craziest adventures- Aakash Mishra.
So, the idea germinated with the news of a close friend’s wedding at Agra, the city of the Taj. That’s when it hit him. He always wanted to hitch hike. “I have this philosophy that I want to fulfill my every dream. No matter how shitty it sounds”, says Aakash. So, why not get to Agra this way. And this thought turned into an itinerary of 19 days and 18 surreal nights. A story of 15 beautiful cities of India and an unbelievable journey. There is fear, there are people who have forgotten everything about humanity, there are moments that would restore your faith in humanity, there are challenges and then there is the success.
So he left the city of Indore on the 29th May on foot. On reaching the highway, he asked for a lift and was turned down by many. But, he was prepared that the journey was never going to be easy. Nothing lowered his spirits. With everything would he ever need on this journey in his backpack and GPS at ease, he was all set.
This is his story.
You can connect with Aakash On Facebook| Twitter. Here is a link to his blog.
The same day, he reaches Biaora and in the journey he meets many. He discovered a lot of things about people. He met a student who was just his age but was giving up on life. He met a primary school teacher who had intentions that made him worry about the children he teaches. On the very same day he meets another man who is a teacher but understands his responsibility. “Talking to people and knowing their stories is the best perk of this kind of travel.”
He would stop every night to rest and find places and people who would support his journey. He went to many temples asking if there was a place he could stay the night, but they denied. After a while he discovered a Dharamshala that let him sleep in a huge dormitory for Rs. 20. The next morning he started afresh for his journey to Gwalior. On a truck, on a tractor, on a bike. With everyone who was kind enough to let him in.
Aakash describes Gwalior as a beautiful city. And the reason he wanted to stay the next day was to enjoy the local site seeing. A Gurudwara took him in last night. On the morning of 30th May he set out to visit the fort and he was mesmerized. He called it a night after having the most awesome food at the langar!
These are some of the guys Aakash met on Day 1 on his trip to biaora.
From his most enjoyable stay at Gwalior, he left for Agra for he never wanted to be late for his friend’s wedding. So he took the next train to Agra. Got into the general compartment and sat between loads of people he never met. On the top berth sat a man who was covered in orange clothes with Om and Ram written all over them- what we call Baba in our country. He was smoking, and the smoke was troubling in the compartment that was brimming with people. Aakash requested him not to smoke, but he denied. Aakash was full of rage, he was furious on people who just dress up all godly and on the inside are nothing but just unholy jerks.
When he reached Agra, the station was crowded with local people of Agra who offered cheap accommodation. And you know how cheap sometimes, can just never be cheap. So he walked from the railway station and saw the Nagar Nigam Truck that picks up trash from every dump yard. He told him about his purpose and asked for a lift. Sonu, the driver did not deny. Aakash went with him on duty to pick up some trash and got to know more about the guy. And realized that the caste difference in our country is just a lame excuse.
Next stop, the Agra fort!
Aakash stayed for a while to enjoy her friend’s wedding who helped her make the trip possible. It was because of her that this trip worked out.
“The most awaited selfie,” says Aakash. The reason that he made the trip.
Though Vrindavan was a beautiful place. He visited the Krishna Mandir and the Masjid located only a few meters from there. On reaching Mathura, it was tough to find a place to stay. Every “Dharamshala” or “Ashram” demanded a fortune for staying the night. And the next experience that he retold, he says was, “one of the worst memories of his life.”
It was past 10 when he reached Mathura and the struggle to find a place to stay was endless. Then he saw a few people who were walking through a door. He asked the Baba, who sat at the entrance, if he could stay the night. The Baba denied, and he was not pleasant. It was late and at this hour, it almost seemed impossible. Then he met a kid who asked him if there is something he could do for him. “Well, he was just a kid,” Aakash said no and started to walk away. But the kid insisted. So he told him everything. He asked him to talk to a man who sat in the house and luckily he got the room. But the bad news was he had to share it with the stingy baba. In the morning, he set out to visit the rest of Mathura.
He set out for the journey to Delhi. There were friends and many wonderful experiences waiting for him. Aligarh was a town that was special for Aakash. This is where his grandmother used to live. He loves the ambience of the place. Though he never stopped.
Days well spent with friends. Meeting after a long time is always pleasant and that is one reason to fall in love with travelling. You can always meet the people you love as often as you want.
He visits Gurgaon that very day.
He reached Jaipur this day and enjoyed the local site seeing. Every night he would pen down his thoughts.
So he set out from Jaipur the next day. As it happens, Jaipur to Bhopal was the most unfortunate path for hitchhikers. The export-import business between the two cities is not much. He wouldn’t find trucks or vehicles to travel. And that’s when it happened. This guy who offered him a lift on a stormy day, asked him to get down, abruptly. “It was scary”, says Aakash. There were forests and not a single soul on the road. It was already dusk and he had to find some place or some people who would drop him to his destination.
He was now dropped off to Kota.
Somehow he managed to take help and reached Bhopal. He stayed the night and the next morning set on his journey home. Indore.
And it was a ride to remember. In the end Aakash says, “I was a different person when I came back, I learned a lot on my way that I would never have known if I never left the house.” He sends a message to the world. Aakash tells wittyfeed, “The time you took to read my story, 10 minutes of your life are never coming back. On your death bed when you realize that you need just one more second to kiss your loved ones goodbye, I would never be able to give you even one milli-second back. Realise that time is important, very important. Fear it.”