What I Wanted to be Growing Up

Let’s talk about all the jobs I have wanted to have today.

When I was 5 years old and anyone asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I always said, without skipping a beat, “A pilot!” I’d promise to take them around the world on the aeroplanes I flew, I was absolutely certain and I just knew I had made my decision. Then, one day, I watched a movie with my family in which, a plane crashed and the pilot died. The next morning, I knew only one thing: I did not want to become a pilot.

When I was 7 years old and I was asked, “What is your dream job?” I said, without a  thought, “A teacher!” I loved all my teachers, I loved pretending to teach all my stuffed toys(and my then, 2-year-old sister) and I just thought, this would be so fun. Soon I realised, however, how difficult it really is and how little respect is afforded to teachers(The biggest tragedy of our time, really) Thus, I drifted away from this dream of mine.

When I was 9 years old and someone asked, “What do you want to be when you’re an adult?” I answered, quite excitedly, “A scientist!” Science was my favourite subject in school(Apart from English, of course) and if you ask my parents, I was born far too curious and with the need to know everything there is to know about the world, which made this seem like the job for me.

When I was 11 years old and anyone asked, “What do you want to do when you grow up?” I said, as someone who had recently come to that decision, “An astronaut!” We had recently learnt about space and the universe in school. Traversing galaxies and planets, seemed like an upgrade from being a scientist, so astronaut it was. 

When I was 13 years old and I was asked, “What is your dream job?” I answered, a bit nervously, “An author!” I had always been someone who used words and writing to deal with situations but this was when I was realising that people thought my words were good and wanted to read them. As someone who read a lot myself, I saw nothing better to do. And then, I grew up.

When I was 16 years old and someone asked, “What do you wish to be when you’re an adult?” I said, as someone who had discovered something to be passionate about after years, “A blogger!” I had recently made this blog and I had been quite successful from the get-go thanks to the wonderful community here. It had saved me from the abyss I seemed to be falling into, with the last two years of high school being probably the toughest years of my admittedly, very short and barely lived life. And then, I grew up some more.

When I was 18 years old and everyone asked, “What do you plan to be in the future?” I said, in a resigned tone,” I don’t know.” I was finally the adult who all these plans had been made for, over the years, but when I actually got there, I couldn’t see any of them materialising, for they were too imaginative, too frivolous, too idealistic and just, too impossible.

Today, I am 21 years old and I still do not have the fixed, permanent answer to what I want to be when I grow up. Not in the way 5-year old I had it.As far as where I am? I am going to be a Computer Science engineer next year, in what I hope, will be a post COVID world, emerging after facing unprecedented circumstances.

I am at a place where I find myself going back to many of my dreams, like how I’m really interested in research, so being a scientist sounds great. Being a teacher, or more specifically, a college lecturer is something that I can be along with being a scientist so that interests me too. If someone gives me a chance to go to space, I promise you that there is no way I’m saying no. It is still one of my biggest dreams and a major item on my bucket list, to write a book and get it published. As far as being a blogger is concerned, it’s quite simple really, I’ve been doing writing on this blog for the last 4 years, which means I already am a blogger. (I just don’t make money off it, which I am okay with)

There are so many possibilities, so much I can do, just so much I want to be and I don’t want to limit myself to just the one I decide on. Pardon me because while I may have become more practical compared to my childhood self, I am still far more imaginative than the average adult so I can now, somewhat naively, find some pride in my answer of “I don’t know” because honestly, isn’t it just lovely, there’s just so many places I could go!

Yes, that was a Dr.Seuss reference, very much in line with this post’s theme of growing up.

THIS POST’S QUESTION: What all did you want to be when you grow up? Comment below with what you think about it,I’d love to hear from you!

 

 

 

Visiting World Wonders: The Trevi Fountain

Let’s talk about the Trevi Fountain today.

For the previous post in this series, click here.

Hi, everyone! Today’s monument is considered to be one of the most beautiful fountains in the world and I’m writing to tell you, from experience, of course, that that is most definitely the truth. Today, we are talking about my experience with the UNESCO World Heritage site, world wonder and one of the most famous fountains in the world the Fontana di Trevi, or the Trevi Fountain as it is more popularly known.

The Trevi Fountain was our first stop in the city of Rome itself, after having been to the Vatican. The Trevi fountain is one of the oldest water sources in the city of Rome, existing since at least 19 BC and has over the centuries developed into a symbol of the city of Rome itself.

While we were walking to the fountain on a hot summer’s day through a delicious smelling street (They had roadside pizza. Italy, people. Italy knows what’s up.) the first thing that I saw were the statues on the top of the Trevi fountain almost glowing under the sun. Once we reached the end of the street, the grandeur of the Trevi Fountain hit us with full force. The massive facade of the fountains, the shining white marble, the pristine blue waters tumbling over the stone, the Trevi Fountain is, in my most humble opinion, the beauty of Rome exemplified.

For me, the Trevi Fountain had a certain aura of myth and mystique, from what I read about it and saw in various movies and books and I feel like in person, that the fountain takes that aura and multiplies it manifold. From the statue of Oceanus standing in the middle in all his glory,to the two divergent horses pulling his chariot,to the arch above them,to Triton blowing his shell to signal Oceanus’ arrival,to the intricate detail on every single other sculpture that adorns the facade of the Trevi fountain the one word that comes to mind is majesty. The fact that these majestic, massive, beautiful fountains, an actual work of art have been around exactly as I see them for nearly 300 years was so mind-boggling to me; that this kind of beauty just exists and for someone, this is just something they pass every day. It is easy to say that I was completely dazzled by the shine of the white marble( and the water) at the Fontana Di Trevi.

Once, I broke a little out of my daze and looked down at the clear pool of water, the glint of the coins at the bottom of the fountain caught my eye. That’s when I remembered the coin throwing ritual associated with the Trevi fountain. I took out my Euro and turned my back and threw the coin over my left shoulder with my right hand just as I had read it should be done. Legend has it, that ensures my return to Rome. If you throw 2 coins, it means you will fall in love with a gorgeous Italian. Throw three and you’ll marry them. I threw just the one because I had other ideas about finding gorgeous Italians to fall in love with that I’ll just get to.

I threw my coin and opened my eyes and I’m disappointed to say that neither was I mistaken for an Italian pop star and nor did any Italian pop stars ask me to meet them at the Trevi fountain the next day for a magical day in Rome. With the newfound wisdom that What Dreams Are Made Of are Lies my Lizzie McGuire Movie based childhood expectations were smashed to bits and that was about as magical as my day with the Trevi fountain got.

With that, we left the fountain soon after to continue with our day out in Rome. There’s a lot I can say about the fountain, but the truth is, just about all of it has been said already. I just hope from the bottom of my heart, that the legend of the Trevi fountain is true and that the coin I threw brings me back to the beautiful city of Rome because my mythology fanatic self has not had enough of the city and I hope it happens soon.

THIS POST’S QUESTION: Have you ever been to the Trevi Fountain? Did you find your gorgeous Italian? If yes,was it the coin way or the Disney pop star doppelgänger way? Comment below with what you think about it,I’d love to hear from you!

Visiting World Wonders: The Eiffel Tower

Let’s talk about my experience with the Eiffel Tower today.

Hi! This is an introduction to help you understand the context of this post and why I suddenly have so much to say about the Eiffel tower. So, recently, I was really missing my vacation from last summer and decided to look through the pictures from it, to just reminisce and feel properly nostalgic. Somewhere during doing that I realised how extremely fortunate I am to have seen so many world wonders in my extremely short life. I also realised that these are memories I want to preserve forever and share with the world and thus, I throw at you this little blog post series where I talk about my experiences with world wonders, iconic sites and probably the best moments of my life. That’s all, here on out its all about la Tour Eiffel, as the French call it.

The very first time I saw the Eiffel Tower, technically, was from 12000 ft. high as our aeroplane began its descent into the Charles De Gaulle airport, Paris on 2nd June 2017. It was a tiny smidge, a minuscule A almost, shining to my hunting eyes through the fog and mist. It was almost fairytale, that little moment, the first time I saw the Eiffel Tower.

For your reference: Drop the straight line down the end of the wing and you should be able to spy the mini Eiffel Tower, as I saw it.

My next tryst with it was the very same evening when we, fresh and awake drove out of the hotel to the city and I realised why the Eiffel Tower is synonymous with Paris. It conquers the Parisian skyline and is visible from LITERALLY everywhere. No hyperbole here. (I later learnt that this is because there are no high rise constructions allowed in the city. Just some facts for the cynical.)

We were headed to our cruise down the river Seine and thus, here comes the whopper. I saw the Eiffel Tower from the sky, the road and the water all in one day. Makes you think of point of views, huh? The boat view though wins by far. I had the most majestic views of the Eiffel tower on our cruise and somewhere on the river Seine around the Statue of Liberty(Yes, like the one in New York but in Paris and smaller.)and gazing at the Eiffel tower it hit me. I was actually in Paris. The French capital. Abode to Aphrodite. The crowning jewel of romance, beauty and love.The one I read about in books and watched in movies. It was a very memorable feeling, one of a dream coming true. I like going back to that moment and just feeling little slivers of that feeling till. It was and remains, extremely precious.

I really like this picture I took while on the cruise. I feel like it captures the perfect blend of modernity and antiquity that Paris is.

The second day we got real up close and personal, me and the Eiffel. We were going to go up the Eiffel tower to see Paris from the point where its glory shone the brightest. The tower has two levels, one kinda midway and the second at the very top. I’m happy to report we went to both. It was a very nippy, windy day, and thus, we threw on our jackets, braved the wind and chill and marched on, for the view of the city spread out from of the highest vantage point in Paris (I am merely guessing here, so could be wrong please don’t throw baguettes at me) and more importantly, the pictures. (Just kidding. Those didn’t turn out too great though, the wind threw all hair haywire and the bundled jackets all aesthetics)  We only lasted so long, I mean I was wearing a skirt, cut me some slack, so that stay didn’t last long but we did get to see the chambers Gustav Eiffel entertained Albert Einstein in. (How COOL is that!) You know what the best part is? Now, I get to say that I was once in my life at the very top of the Eiffel tower.

The City of Paris as seen from the top of the Eiffel Tower.

 

My second encounter with the Iron Maiden was from afar,a famous photo point for the Eiffel Tower,the Trocadero Place(And one that I highly recommend, it was a great place to take pictures!) so we could take pictures that actually had the whole tower in one frame and importantly, the typical very important Paris pictures to announce that we indeed were in the French capital. This photo shoot, owing to the lack of wind, was a great success.

My last and favourite encounter with the Tower was at midnight on our last night in Paris. We made the spontaneous decision to just grab a cab and watch the 4 minute light show on the Eiffel tower that takes place at midnight because hey, you only live once. So, with our hotel cab ( A delightful Mercedes Benz, Y’all) we whizzed through the city at night and that in itself is an experience. We reached the Trocadero Place again and soon the stars were dancing on the Eiffel tower. The show was magical and despite the early morning departure the next day, the hour we spent on the Trocadero Place, watching the lights twinkle on the Eiffel tower and eventually just the yellow lights glow as the city of Paris shined it seemed, for me, is what I consider my ” Paris” moment. It is my fondest memory of the city and something I would love to do again and again.

(Just a disclaimer/PSA: The lights on the Eiffel Tower are considered a work of art and are protected under copyright law and thus, while I did take pictures and videos, I don’t have the rights to share them here. (And I’m a little bit mad because I’d love to show you, but the law is what it is.))

And that’s it, folks! That’s all my Eiffel tower stories, anecdotes and encounters. ( For now, I hope.)It makes me so happy to be able to write this because this was such a major bucket list item for me and a life goal coming true. I am very fortunate to have been in the presence of Madame Eiffel and I’m very grateful for it. Here’s to fulfilling more life goals and ticking off more bucket list items! Cheers!

THIS POST’S QUESTION: Have you ever been to Eiffel Tower? What do you consider your fondest memory of it? Comment below with what you think about it,I’d love to hear from you!

For the next post in this series, click here.

The Sad Truth About Going To Disneyland As An Adult.

Let’s talk about going to Disneyland as an adult and why that’s sad.

I went to Disneyland(Any Disneyland that is) for the first time on 4th June 2017 at the age of 18 years,2 months and 24 days. The one we went to was Disneyland Paris, the day was an unfortunate long weekend Sunday. I went on 5-6 rides in 10ish hours, saw the evening parade and 3 shows. It was disappointing.There, I said it.

So, now that you have your pitchforks out and mouse ears on ready to attack me, let me finish with my explanation of as to why. If after that, you still feel compelled to chase me around with digital pitchforks you’re more than welcome to do so. So let’s get on with it, shall we?

Now, shocking as I bet it is for some of you, I never went to a Disneyland before I was an adult. (Yes, some countries don’t have their own Disneyland, imagine that!) I had gone to a theme park before,i.e. Universal Studios, Singapore and had the best time ever. We all had fast passes and Universal was such a breeze that I had higher expectations for Disneyland simply because it’s Disneyland. It’s the OG theme park! It’s where wishes come true. C’mon.

Instead, I found huge crowds and desperately long lines and  rides I really looked forward to and waited an hour for shutting in front of my eyes as I finally reached the front of the line. It had been my childhood dream to go to a Disneyland. I wanted to feel the Disney magic and carry some pixie dust back with me to soar and fly in the world of my imagination. Instead, I was exhausted from waiting in line, went to barely any rides, had to stand on my toes to watch the shows, was jostled in the crowds and was melting in the sun. Of course, I was disappointed. Wouldn’t you be?

Now, I’ll state factors that I concurred led to this letdown. First off, it was a Sunday. Secondly, it was a long weekend. Thirdly, we did not have fast passes. Fourth, it was a hot day for Paris. Three of these were in my hand. I give you that. I will still feel disappointed because this was a childhood dream and I refuse to be fully logical here. Call me stubborn or call me a child.(How I wish for the latter!) The bottom line is, right now between Disney and Universal Studios, I choose Universal because me, the young adult , enjoyed Universal much much more.

Now, to clarify, I did not think Disney was horrible nor have I written it off for life. The magic in that place is so strong, it doesn’t die out this easy. It only diminishes with the number of people entering the park and the intensity with which the sun beats down on our heads. I liked the rides I went on. I liked the shows. I really really loved the parade. I also realised that I would have loved all the things so much more as a child. It was almost sad, realising I was too old to love things I would’ve once loved so much.

I would, for sure, come back to Disney, for a better, more magical experience. We all chase magic, I’m no exception. I feel sad merely because my first experience, my mythical changing is tainted by adult things like crowds and waiting too long for human beings to wait. It’s also the loss of my childhood innocence, of being able to see too far, not feeling wonder or curiosity as powerfully, knowing too much and losing sight of the magic that everything holds. That’s all.  Are your mouse ears still on? Can I put mine on too, to match?

I found this picture on Pinterest but couldn’t track the owner of the picture. Let me know if you know who it is.

THIS POST’S QUESTION: Have you ever been to Disneyland? How was your first Disneyland experience as an adult or otherwise? Comment below with what you think about it,I’d love to hear from you!