Slow Travel for Soul Travel

The dust and dreary of everyday life in a rushed ruthless city where my lungs inhale more smoke than a habitual chain smoker.
How can I go on living without connecting with nature in between?
So I dream of running away to the hills and wash myself anew under the cold falling waters.
But I choose to slow travel for I choose to travel for my soul.

What is slow travel?

It is moving away from the usual trending hotspots already burdened with relentless tourism. It is going deeper into not-so-popular remote villages and fully embracing the essence of that local community. The result is a unique humbling enriching experience that will leave you with memories and lessons for a lifetime.

It may sound counterproductive to few as the idea of a vacation but it is beautiful to return to basics.
I have been slow tripping with my husband across remote villages in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand with local hosts and communities. We don’t post on social media to prevent over-tourism and recommend only like-minded individuals to such places.

A transformative travel experience

Being a mild adventure seeker couple (sum total of both ) we were looking for the nearest place to trek up to the entry point of GHNP, Great Himalayan National Park.
The famed Tirthan Valley with its tastefully done luxury guest houses and resorts across the river with their city owners couldn’t lure us.
We chose to stay with Dhulaji and his family. Luxmi homestay is a beautiful traditional Himachali home, atop a hill in Tindar village with picturesque view at every sight and comfortable rooms.
Despite its height, the homestay has been exquisitely designed and offers comfortable stay across seasons, proof of top-notch local craftsmanship. It is at a distance from Gushaini but had such an incredibly warm experience to offer that we, the mild adventure seekers were happy to be trekking and off-roading for some distance.
The caretakers are simple, hard-working, and intelligent folks. They are not wearing shirts and trousers, they are in their local attire. But they are all the history, knowledge, and experience. They know how to be hospitable in the most authentic way.
The host and his son both are certified guides with permits to take travellers to GHNP and show them around. The women of the house cook up delicious fare using their limited local produce and bartering essentials grown by other villagers. We savoured the local cuisine and authentic tastes not once minding the limited menu. The women are very laborious despite their age. They look young and have great skin despite toiling in the sun. They break wood logs and inherently light a bonfire like a child’s play.

We soaked ourselves in the wonderment of our surroundings - the incredible views, the seemingly idyllic but meticulous village life, the chirping of birds, and the sounds of the river.
We enjoyed listening to our hosts. Their stories were interesting, real, and unheard of. They gave us so much insight into the changing village life, dynamics of the family, and aspirations of the young and old. We can truly empower and support the local village ecosystem dependent upon tourism with this form of slow travel to encourage them and boost their incomes.

Swati is a slow-living enthusiast who is trying to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle.
Her venture promotes natural aromatic toxin-free products to elevate personal living spaces.
Connect with her on vedome@gmail.com