Alone At Gokarna – The Four Most Exciting Days Of My Life
Disconnected, I realised I really enjoy my own company.
A few days ago, I managed to lay my hands on the iconic – On The Road, by Jack Kerouac – and it took me back to the most exciting four days of my life, when I randomly upped and left for Gokarna.
I was in Bangalore at the time, working on a blog piece for work: “Six things to do to your car before a road trip.” It’s when I realized I didn’t have work for the next four days.
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Without much ado, I let my life imitate art, and began looking for places to go to on a road trip. This search was perfunctory because when the time came, I decidedly typed ‘Gokarna’ in the redBus ‘destination’ box and with that, in two days, I was on the road, unplanned, unprepared and solo.
My bus was leaving at 8 p.m. from Majestic Bus Terminus. At 7:55 p.m. As any traveller does, I reached panting and sweating. The conductor asked me to chill in Kannada because the bus was running late. I hopped on excitedly, only to realize, that I had not, after all, booked an A.C or a sleeper bus, but it was becoming sort of a trend with my solo endeavors so I decided “Well, what the hell!”
My friends from the bus
Finally, at 9:45, as the bus got ready to pull out of the terminus, a young couple got all comfortable behind me, and their friend plugged in headphones, as did I.
During dinner, I befriended the couple and their friend over our shared love for making buses wait to finish cigarettes and we kept each other company the rest of the way sharing music, stories and goodies.
We reached Kudle Bus Stand early next morning. The couple, their friend (I don’t remember anyone’s names or even if I ever asked what they were) and I shared an auto to Kudle to cut costs. I knew Kudle was on the northern-most part of Gokarna and one had to hike southwards to get to Om, Half-Moon and Paradise beaches.
Me in Kudle
After searching for an hour or so, I managed to find no rooms in Kudle. It seemed as if all of Bangalore had flocked to Gokarna that weekend. I decided to grab some breakfast when I ran into my friends again. The dejected looks on their faces gave them away and I knew they were as homeless as I was. Finally, one shack owner came to our rescue when he decided to let out two rooms that were still under construction for Rs.300 a day. The couple decided to take one and their friend was happy to share his room with me. Excited as I was to dump my luggage, I agreed.
Our rooms were sordid, dark, and infected with bed bugs; the sheets smelled moldy and the loo had no water supply. There was a well in the front yard from where we’d have to draw water out for all our needs. I realized I had forgotten to carry towels or a torch or flip flops. This trip was going to be an adventure.
I spent an hour or so with my roomies till I bid them adieu for the day to hike to Om beach. We decided to meet at the famous Namaste café for dinner. It took me an hour to get to Om. The stairs of a temple lead you down to the beach. I stood there for a minute looking at the beach from a high point. I realized why it’s called Om – it was shaped like that. Without pausing, I walked to the other end of Om and started hiking up the hillock that led to Half-Moon. I knew it had no shacks or habitation. I was dying to skinny dip.
View from Dolphin café
The trail to Half-Moon begins with Dolphin Café. Here I met a bunch of people coming back from Half-Moon. It was close to 4 p.m., the sky had taken on sultry tangerine tones, evening was approaching; I was advised to keep Half-Moon for another day, “There is no way you can walk back all alone through that jungle in the dark”, someone said to me. I resigned at Dolphin, took out my punch of rum and coke, my notebook, rolled myself a spliff and ordered something to eat.
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As I looked down at the waves crashing on the rocks at the shore, through teetering palm tree leaves, the beach looked far away. The sun was setting on the horizon, taking its own time. I realized I was getting drunk and stoned all by myself and that in the longest time, I was truly happy.
Om Beach
After a small dinner with my friends, we hiked back to our rooms in Kudle, but instead of taking the normal route we walked through the jungle. The three of them decided they wanted to go to the beach for a walk at night, I knew I had to start early next morning so I retired for the day. I also secretly decided to take the jungle route to Om next morning to see what it looks like in daylight.
I hiked up the hill to a certain point from where the trail to Om began; I knew the jungle was on the left so I deflected that way. Someone yelled out to me and said “not that way! not that way!” I smiled at him and continued walking any way. A while later, I was worried. Was I really walking in the right direction? I paused to see if anyone was coming my way. Someone was! I waved at him as if to gesture a “where now?” He asked me to wait. He was a localite, Krishna and was on his way to Om as well.
Me in Half Moon
Krishna wanted to wait in the jungle awhile to see the peacock crossing or something like that. I decided I could take a break but I began feeling uncomfortable. Few minutes later, and after the usual banter of “what I do” and “where I come from”, he started talking about himself. I knew the very instant he began talking that he was a con. He spoke about Chakras. Mantras, Mandalas and some more crap to woe me into thinking he was some sort of a mystic. He offered to give me some sort of a sexual massage to relieve me of my tensions. I told him I knew exactly how to get rid of it. I got up and started walking.
Forty minutes later, when I reached the destination, after crossing two beaches and several meandering pathways, over a couple of smoke breaks, against breathtaking views, anticipation, sweat, fear and some incidents of slipping on moss, I was finally, FINALLY, at Half Moon beach. I spent the entirety of my day there and for the most part I was the only soul on that little piece of heaven.
By the time I was ready to go back to Kudle again, the sky looked drowsy from being so coruscating all day. The sun was ready to set. I put my clothes back on over my wet and sandy bikini and picked my bag. I looked at the sea once again. I thought I saw Krishna there. I did see him, but somehow I didn’t care. I wasn’t mad because it wasn’t the first time someone had mistaken my choice to be alone as my vulnerability.
Me with friends
I went to Paradise the next day. Strangely, as opposed to common belief, Paradise was more crowded than Half Moon. I made some friends here. There was a British guy- I think his name was George- who is building a resort on the hillock overlooking Paradise. He had packed a lunch which he shared eagerly with all of us. It was perhaps the only day that I actually spent with people. My bus was leaving that evening. George had a cute German shepherd called Jackie. By now I realized, I was really comfortable staying alone, by myself, and I was yearning to snatch a few minutes to be alone before I left, so I took Jackie for a walk.
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Doggy and me in half moon
Back in Kudle, an hour before my departure, I sat on a rock quietly for a few minutes. As the sky changed its color into a dark wine-purple, I got subsumed in the beauty of the setting sun. Everything was just as it was; the people, the creeps, the stereotypes and the sea. It was all the same. It was everyday, and as I was lost in the absolution of this everyday, I realised I didn’t care about much, except being on the road…
“Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road.” ― Jack Kerouac, On the Road
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are independent views solely of the author(s) expressed in their private capacity and do not in any way represent or reflect the views of 101India.com.
By Suman Quazi
Photographs by Suman Quazi
