THE YEAR FOR LOST TIME (PART 3 - TO FOOLS WHO DREAM)
Written by Misha Paul, marketing professional, founder of sustainable fashion label Love Again and sustainability advocate. She loves stories- the more vintage or rooted, the better- and always looks for them in her mother's old saris, while reading or even while travelling.
Dreamers dare to quit because quitting can be the beginning of an incredible new journey.
When I first landed in Kaza, after punctuating my journey with quite a few breaks that ranged from gasps of awe at the mighty Kinnaur Kailash to throwing up my intestines, the first thing that hit me was the sheer nothingness of the mountains. After checking my tired body into my tiny hostel room, when I first looked out of my window, instead of the sea, art deco buildings and traffic jams of Mumbai, there was a contrasting landscape of snow-capped mountains, no greens, no people.
Everything from vegetables, everyday supplies, people and even oxygen, was scarce there. Over time the scarcity piled up. I remember a day when the market ran out of chocolate and bread. Yet when I spoke with the people of Spiti, they seemed happy. And as against the belief of city folks like me, quite content. The more I spoke with them, the more I tried to unlearn our stereotypes around consumerism, and the more I realised that in rough terrains like Spiti, living a decent life was a luxury in itself. Possessing things featured nowhere in their list of priorities. The community worked together, even with the least amount of resources. I learnt about how the biggest Spiti families spent their winters sleeping in the common kitchen area because that was the warmest room of the house; of men and women who distributed work equally because they wanted to give their kids the best education and quality of life; of a village in Spiti called Rangrik where homes on either side of the road took turns to host homestayers instead of hogging all tourists; of villages like Chicham where people took turns to use water for their fields. It was inspiring to see the distribution of work because down in the plains, on most days, we can’t even make the odd-even traffic scheme work.
IT’S TIME TO GIVE BACK TO THE MOUNTAINS
I write this as I’m back in Mumbai. But my determination to live a low-waste and sustainable life has only strengthened. Spiti has changed my perspective for good. Recognising the potential of mountain tourism for driving the socioeconomic growth and development of local communities is a must. But in the process of doing so, if we make the mountains into the garbage dump that our cities have become, we are failing as human beings! Spiti wasn’t an exception. It was heartbreaking to see tourists, even children, litter throughout Spiti; to see them take loud group selfies in front of the Buddha in Langza without the least bit of respect for local cultures and people. In making mountains a cathartic escape for our tired city souls, did we forget to respect them?
Earth's average surface air temperature has increased by about 1 °C. A new UN report says we're on track for 2.5 degrees of warming (The goal of the Paris Agreement was to limit global warming to below 2, preferably to 1.5 °C compared to pre-industrial levels). I saw the most adverse effects of global warming in Spiti. May has always marked the inception of summers in Spiti. The normal temperature during the day has traditionally ranged between 15-20 degrees Celsius. But I experienced snow and minus temperatures in peak summers in Kaza! If that’s not a glaring reminder of climate change, then what is?
While governments and policymakers work towards driving change at bigger levels, I truly believe each one of us has the power to bring change by making conscious choices every single day. And we can take a big leap towards giving back to the mountains by becoming conscious travellers in 3 extremely easy steps.
BE A CONSCIOUS PACKER AND DO NOT LITTER: Packing light has a major impact on your carbon footprint. A heavy plane needs more fuel to fly. So when you make your luggage lighter, you actually reduce the weight of the plane. Also, when you pack items like reusable drink bottles, coffee mugs, reusable straws, tote bags and carry your own toiletry (like soaps instead of shower gel bottles), you massively reduce plastic waste. Why would you want to litter a gorgeous place like this?
2. STOP GEO-TAGGING: Yes, we all geo-tag. Travel influencers are always busy showing ‘hidden gems’. But geotagging can fuel overtourism which leads to overcrowding in these hidden gems which can not only put a strain on local resources but displace wildlife as well. Also, the mountains taught me that geotagging can actually be abused by poachers to hunt exotic wildlife.
In pic: We were lucky to spot a herd of ibex grazing.3. GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY: Responsible travelling means finding out ways of giving back to the community and investing in the economy of the destination you’re visiting. This means that when you eat local, support local entrepreneurs or local sustainable tourism operators, or find out volunteering opportunities like I did with Sol Cafe, you help empower members of the community.
DREAM GREEN. DREAM BIG
I never thought a day would come when I would quit my cushy corporate job to pursue my passion projects in sustainability. I had never even dreamt of travelling far away to run a cafe in the mountains. But change happens only when you are ready to get your hands dirty. Of course, I was questioned about quitting my job to ‘waitress’. Of course, I had to unlearn a lot about myself and the mountains. Of course, people scared me about travelling alone. But well, because I overcame those fears, a beautiful world of stories opened up for me. I believe fools dream without limits. They aim beyond their weight. They fight because they have nothing to lose. Spiti was that big dream. And I know it’s just the beginning. But please don’t call me lucky. I'm just a girl who dared to pull up her warm socks and climb up the mountains to reach for the stars! A fool who dared to dream.
This 3 part Spiti series is dedicated to fools who dream💕. You got this.