Vacation for Free!!!

So I just went to Goa on my birthday week and spend 4 days and 3 nights stay at Grand Hyatt Goa and had so much adventure at a beach and a visit to a famous Doodhsagar waterfall, and enjoyed various water activities and had too much fun at theme parties all three nights with all food and drinks, music and performances. And the big thing is that all of this was just for free.🤩 Is there any other better way to celebrate your birthday!!!? How lucky I am !!!😍🧡 Free vacations are always a dream and when this dream comes true the level of your happiness has no limit, and for me, this free vacation was beyond my imagination so you can guess the level of my happiness and excitement.🕺🏿

So here is how this happened. My childhood friend Sameet Singh was awarded the highest award of his company for his best work, and their company held the award function at Grand Hyatt in Goa. All the winners were allowed to bring one guest with them and the whole trip expense of the winner and the guest was taken care of by the company only. The airfare, stay at a 5-star hotel, food, drinks, indoor parties, outdoor activities, everything was on them. So here I am, I went as a guest with my friend Sanmeet Singh to celebrate the winning that he truly deserves. So I think firstly I should say thanks to my friend for a free trip (LOL😜) and then congratulate him on winning the president club award for his dedication and hard work. He truly deserves it.

Big Congratulation to Sanmeet Singh

The company has provided all the winners and their guests a vacation of 4 days and 3 nights where they have organized beautiful events for all 3 nights that have a live singing show, a band show, and some folk dances from different cities and cultures of India, DJ night and of course an award ceremony and so much more. For the daytime, they have arranged some really fun outdoor activities that include a city tour and shopping, a heritage walk, a water sports adventure at the beach, a visit to the famous Doodhsagar waterfall, and more. They have arranged and organized everything so neatly and manageably that I don’t feel like anything missing or goes messy, and for that, I really appreciate the hard work of the whole management of this event.

We really enjoyed our time in Goa and absorbed the whole tropical vibes. We went for a Banana ride, a Jet ski ride, and some others and had a great time at the beach. We went to one of the biggest waterfalls and had fun in the water. Explored some shops in the market and bought some souvenirs. The parties in the evenings were so crazy. We sang along with the band and singers and danced so much. On our second last day of the trip, we met new friends Priyanka, Richa, and Varun and the fun multiplied manifold with them. They all were so fun-loving people, I wish we had met a little earlier. They really lift the fun.

Here are some great moments from this memorable vacation. For more fun moments please check my Instagram page here and watch this GOa highlight video here. I hope you will like it and enjoy them all.

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My experience of the Laka Glacier Trek

The best trekking experience I have yet is the trek to the Laka Glacier. I have been to Mcleodganj twice in past but was unable to go to Triund due to snow. Triund is a very famous hilltop among trekkers. The trek starts from beautiful McLeodganj. The total distance of the trek is approximately 7 km which goes through steep rocky and stairy trails. The Triund top is at the foot of the Dhauladhar ranges and is at a height of 2850 meters.

This time when I was planning, I heard for the first time about Snowline and Laka Glacier which is furthermore above Triund so I made up my mind to go beyond Triund.

Laka Glacier is another 5 to 6km of a trek from the Triund top and the trail to Laka is so adventurous. It passes by Snowline and goes through very steep rocky paths, some plain mountain edges covered in snow, and small ascends and descends when crossing mountains. Laka Glacier is at a height of 3231 meters. This trek goes above the Laka glacier to the Lahesh cave and then to Indrahar pass and further to the Moon peak.


A quiet evening

This was captured at Laka Glacier. We were the only 7 people there that night including our guide and caretaker. It was so quiet and felt amazing to be far far away from the regular busy life of cities.


Tibetan prayer flags

I have seen this Tibetan flag so many times before but never gave a thought about them that why they are hanging everywhere in mountain areas, especially in Himachal. So this time I found out the meaning of these flags.

These are the prayers flag with a Mantra written on them ‘Om Mani Padme Hun’. The prayer flags are meant to encourage compassion, peace, strength, and wisdom. Prayer flags are hung outside with the strong belief that the wind can carry the prayers to the world for the benefit of all sentient beings.

To know more about these Flags and Mantra please check my Instagram reel here: https://www.instagram.com/iamtamnjeet


Sunset on the horizon

The one thing we all get excited about in mountains is watching the sunset. This was captured from the top of Triund hill. It was the first time when I witnessed the sun disappear over the horizon, else all the other times I have seen the sun going down behind some buildings or mountains or any other objects.


A little more closer

It felt so exciting to know that we are so close to reaching the Laka Glacier. The moon peak that we saw from Mcleodganj market was just in front of us now.


Moon Peak

Moon Peak is one of three peaks of the Dhauladhar ranges that can be clearly seen from the Triund top. And it is the only peak that can be seen from the Mcleodganj market too. It is located at an altitude of 15200 ft. This 45 km long trek to Moon Peak starts from McLeodganj and passes through rocky ascends and steep traverses. The trek also passes through Triund, Ilaqa Got (Laka Glacier), Lahesh Caves, and Indrahar Pass.


A moment with mighty mountains

A feeling of accomplishment is a paid-off to your hard work. No matter how long and tiring your path was, reaching the destination vanishes all the pain. The first thing I did when we reached the top was admiring the beauty around me. The huge mountains, deep valleys, freshening air, and wider sky.


A wild night

It was 2 or 2:30 am when I woke up inside my camp shivering from the cold and found that I was not covered well with the blanket. I was fixing my blanket and then I heard the sound of some heavy footsteps beside my camp on my left side and like someone touched the camp also (I am not sure if it was the wind that made the tent sound like someone touching or someone really touched it) and also a local shepherd dog came along with us on the top was barking continuously from the distance on my right. I had some weird feelings and wanted to know what is outside but I had no guts to peek out so keep laying inside and fell asleep later. Then in the morning, a girl from another camp mentioned the same that she too heard the footsteps around the same time at night. And then we later found the footprint of a black bear near our camps. That was the bear who crossed us at night.


Group picture

A moderate trek with some wild adventure was perfectly made for me. But, above all of these, the company matters, and I got the best travel buddies on this adventure and a very passionate guide who makes sure of our comfort and needs.
I am on the first from the Left. Then Ankit with Aastha. Nischal (guide) is in the mid wearing a cap. Manjot with a snowball in his hand. Then Parvati and Shiv.


A trip highlights

Thanks to technology we can keep the memories with us for as long as possible and go back in time through pictures and videos. Here is the short highlight video of the trip. Must Watch and Enjoy!


Picture perfect frames

A photo dump to refresh the memory that how beautiful that place was.

A trip that changed my mindset about traveling!

My recent weekend trip to village Shangarh, located in the Sainj Valley in the beautiful Himachal, has changed my perspective on travel. The trip was filled with magical peaceful vibes and stunning views of mountains and green valleys. We spent 3 wonderful days in the lap of nature. But, this trip was a whole different experience for me that changed my mindset about traveling and exploring new places. This short trip was not just full of nature’s surprises but some great information too. I met a young YouTuber and travel vlogger Pamela Mukherjee on this trip and she shared some very valuable knowledge about all the places we visited. She shared some information about some rituals and beliefs of the people living there. Traveling with understanding the place and people and their values was a whole different experience than traveling just to relax and see the different places and their beauty. Adding up some context and knowledge about the places we visited, made this trip far more better than any of my previous trips. All thanks goes to Pamela Mukherjee. Sharing her youtube channel link below please do subscribe, full vlog of this trip will be out soon.

https://www.youtube.com/c/EveryCornerofWorld

Traveling and exploring is not just about seeing the places but it is also about collecting information about those places.

Also, I am working on writing the whole travel story and things I learned about the places we have been to. Please stay with me, will post the story really soon.

In the meantime, If you haven’t yet read my previous travel story please do read. (JIBHI – An Unforgettable Experience

And if you are on Instagram let’s connect there too. Follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iamtamanjeet/

Shangarh Meadow