11:11:11 11-11-11

It’s been ages since I posted something on this blog, so I thought today would be a nice day to post some updates. It seems to be an auspicious day given that we have a string of 11′s in the day’s meta description. I’m sure you get what I am talking about because apparently, according to one of those website analysis software, the average reader of this blog has a university degree. So congratulations.

Anyway, in the midst of all this rambling, I do want reiterate what some folks might have missed few years back.

• You are reading Priyank’s personal blog.
• For travel stories, please go to Priyank’s travel blog (and update your bookmarks, RSS feeds, etc.)

Okay now that I’ve made it abundantly clear what this post, and by extension this blog, is about, I can start by giving you few updates from this year. Not that anyone necessarily cares about it but given that its my blog, I can write anything I want. It’s useful because I can guilt trip my friends by saying “What? You haven’t read my blog? I wrote it there!” Tee-Hee!

Wandering

So as you may know, I went on two major trips this year, the first one was a trip to Mexico in January and recently I travelled to Ecuador in September and October. I also intermittently taught myself Spanish, while biking to and fro from work, using those audio CD lessons, but my oratory skills were greatly improved only by travelling to Latin American countries. Now I can speak like a five year old child, almost. I like Spanish, I will learn more of that language for the simple reason that it makes travel to South America, easily reached from Toronto, an exciting affair. Let me throw in a picture or two from my trips.

Besides these long haul vacations, I took smaller excursions, such as going to Timmins by bus, my partner’s hometown about 800km from here, or to a place near Sault Ste. Marie, on the shores of Lake Huron 600km from here. Lots of bike trips too, to places like Port Credit.

Home

Something interesting happened to me earlier this year around February/March. It was a sunny day with clear blue sky and subzero temperature, one of those days when it looks deceptively summer-like until you step out and its -20ºC or so. I popped out of my gym and turned into a lane, my daily route, nothing special. But then there was this flash, this fraction of a second, a moment of revelation during which I looked up at the sky and saw a part of the CN tower hidden behind a building. Suddenly I had goosebumps and the first thought that occurred to me was “Ah, home.”

That’s how long it took, about 4.5 years, for Toronto to feel like it was home. No passports or citizenship cards can evoke a fuzzy, emotional feeling like that. I will stop rambling now else I’ll start sounding like a hippie.

“We have to buy a house!” I came home and declared to my partner, who is kinda used to ignoring my spontaneous outbursts like that. “Umm, sure.”

So eventually in July this year, we bought a house, it was a stressful process, but we did it. A place to call home. It’s a nice old Victorian house with lots of character located at the end of a quiet street. Backyard, high ceilings, downtown, good vibe and most importantly, it fit into the budget.

In another milestone, I turned 30 this August, and now I won’t frown if someone calls me old. I also spot myself saying things like “During our childhood, we had two TV channels” something that “today’s generation” will find difficult to comprehend. Or get this, I didn’t have a computer till I was 18.

Alright now you have caught up with the important things in my personal life. Now off you go.

¶ Blogged by Priyank Thatte