Hi, I am Arch and welcome to Trips and Trip-ups!
So to set the record straight, this is not just another travel blog. There are plenty of those on the inter-web to peruse.
You might want to read my blog if…
- You are working professional and love to travel
- You are on the go but want to feel more grounded and connected
- You realize there is more to travel than just insta-posts; you have a desire for more authentic and conscious travel
- You have a desire to understand the world through understanding yourself better, and vice versa
- You want to live more mindfully and consciously
Some of my content is intended to give you ideas on where and how to explore; most of my content is about making meaning of the world, its infinite beauty in places and people, and how you fit into it.
My desire to write is inspired first and foremost in finding stories around me, and within me. Making meaning of experiences, my own and those around me.
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So what does travel have to do with it?
It’s a question I have been trying to answer myself. I have been traveling from long before I had any interest in it. And then I spent most of my 20s using travel as the vehicle for self-discovery. It’s helped me build my confidence in a way a graduate degree and years of work experience couldn’t. It taught me about self-reliance and courage, two important dimensions for every women to develop. It also taught me there is good and bad everywhere in the world, so keep your eyes wide open wherever you go. And be curious. Because there is so freaking much you don’t know.
I traveled in the age of Facebook where the entire contents of your camera made it onto an online album, not in the age of Instagram where specific moments are curated to show only a certain perspective. I have a love hate relationship with Instagram, enough said.
But I also think, contrary to popular belief, that travel is not the answer to everything. It can open you up but it can become a check-in-the-box activity and breeding grounds for ignorance just as fast. We all travel more today, but do we travel better? I am not sure…
We are all chasing the insta-famous spots trying to recreate the same insta-famous experiences, so what are we really building along the way?
I don’t believe traveling the world has all the answers. I believe YOU have all the answers, traveling helps you understand them in a new way or unearths a piece you didn’t know was there. Who are we when we are in unfamiliar places surrounded by unfamiliar people? And how we go about making the unfamiliar more familiar?
These are the types of questions I attempt to answer, and if these are questions that interest you, drop me a line. I want to hear from you!
At the end of the day, I believe travel is crucial, but the journey you are taking outward and inward is what really matters. Some of my stories will transport you to gorgeous places around the world, others will take you to the place you might have forgotten about along the way, within yourself.
Make your journey the destination….because that’s most of the fun.
Some fun facts about me:
I am a lifelong vegetarian and on a mission to prove you can be vegetarian and still travel and eat well around the world!
I love to dance and among other things I teach a dance fitness class set to fun Bollywood music.
I have been to every continent other than Antartica (I passed that goal in 2011!)
I lived in 5 countries growing up. My middle school years were spent in 3 countries. If you want to know which ones, ask me!
I study human behavior and help companies figure out how to bring out the best in humans in the workplace. And do it using data analytics and artificial intelligence. Yes, all the buzz words fit neatly into my job description, but hey I love it! 😀
I prefer Airbnbs over hostels or hotels.
Turkey and Sri Lanka left me breathless; these 2 countries are absolutely stunning and I left unsatiated.
I lived and worked in Russia for 6 months because I thought it was the scariest sounding idea and therefore the biggest adventure.
In another life, I would have been a journalist telling stories from the sidelines of war zones. You get to live more than 1 life right, Buddha?
Here is what 10 years and 50 countries worth of traveling has taught me…
