Shivya Nath's Blog: The Shooting Star, page 9
July 29, 2020
Ideas of Love and Life from the Tribes of Chhattisgarh.
Ideas I gathered on sexual freedom, relationships, food and sustainability, while spending time with the tribes of Chhattisgarh.
“Woh log peeche chhooth gaye (they got left behind).”
“They have a special status because [economic] development didn’t reach them.“
These were words I heard again and again in Chhattisgarh, referring to the many indigenous tribes in the state.
Many of them traditionally lived in mud and bamboo houses in the forest. Often cultivating a small patch of land,...
July 5, 2020
Can We Stay Safe Yet Reduce Single Use Plastic During the Pandemic?
Can we stay home and stay safe, yet reduce single use plastic during the pandemic? Choices, alternatives and demanding change.
The Covid-19 pandemic has penetrated every aspect of our lives.
As much as I hate to write or even admit it, it doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. We’re still far from a vaccine, and even when it does arrive, distribution around the world could take a long time.
In the meantime, we must continue to try keeping ourselves and our loved ones safe. That ...
Can We Reduce Single Use Plastic During the Pandemic?
Can we stay home and stay safe, yet reduce single use plastic during the pandemic? Choices, alternatives and demanding change.
The Covid-19 pandemic has penetrated every aspect of our lives.
As much as I hate to write or even admit it, it doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. We’re still far from a vaccine, and even when it does arrive, distribution around the world could take a long time.
In the meantime, we must continue to try keeping ourselves and our loved ones safe. That ...
June 19, 2020
Meet the Bhutanese Blogger and Solo Traveller Unearthing Bhutan’s Best Kept Secrets.
Meet Tshering Denkar, an intreprid solo female traveller and Bhutanese blogger, documenting her Bhutan solo travel adventures.
I was in awe of Tshering Denkar even before I met her.
I first read her travel blog – Denkar’s Getaway – after receiving an invitation to share the stage with her at the Mountain Echoes Literary Festival in Bhutan. She had spent the past couple of years travelling solo across the length and breath of her own country. Hiking, hitch-hiking and living with indigenous...
May 30, 2020
How We *Almost* Got Stranded at the South Africa – Lesotho Border.
Travelling to Lesotho from South Africa? We nearly got stranded while crossing the South Africa Lesotho border at Maseru’s Pioneer gate!
We rang in 2020 in a remote village in Lesotho, hanging out with its Basotho people and trying to pick up a few words in their Sesotho language!
I have to confess I knew so little about the country of Lesotho before spotting it on Google Maps. After nearly 2.5 months of being a digital nomad in Cape Town, the road was beckoning again. Besides, room prices an...
How We *Almost* Got Stranded in No Man’s Land at the South Africa – Lesotho Border.
Travelling to Lesotho from South Africa? We nearly got stranded while crossing the South Africa Lesotho border at Maseru’s Pioneer gate!
We rang in 2020 in a remote village in Lesotho, hanging out with its Basotho people and trying to pick up a few words in their Sesotho language!
I have to confess I knew so little about the country of Lesotho before spotting it on Google Maps. After nearly 2.5 months of being a digital nomad in Cape Town, the road was beckoning again. Besides, room prices an...
May 17, 2020
Sustainable Living Ideas to Embrace as we Emerge Into a New “Normal”.
In the midst of a pandemic, all roads seem to point towards a more sustainable lifestyle. My tips to embrace easy sustainable living ideas.
The past 50+ days of lockdown living have been an emotional roller coaster.
Ive felt a deep longing to be in the midst of nature. The forests, the mountains, the sea, Ive craved them all. This longing made me realize that I never fully appreciated the freedom (and privilege) to experience the incredible beauty of our world. It equally made me dwell on my...
May 6, 2020
Chhattisgarh: Tribal Life, Motorcycle Adventures and a Lingering Sadness.
Dreaming of Chhattisgarh travel in the distant, post-lockdown future? In my first Chhattisgarh travel blog post, a glimpse of my solo adventures and why I *almost* fell in love.
I bade goodbye to Chhattisgarh with bittersweet feelings. Over nearly two weeks in the state (well before the lockdown), I rode pillion through eerily quiet sal forests late at night, with barren white ghost trees shimmering under the moonlit sky. Took a poop under a jackfruit tree with a cobra in the vicinity! And...
April 29, 2020
Things To Do in Kasaragod to Refresh Your Connection With Nature.
Away from the crowds of South Kerala, pristine moments and things to do in Kasaragod in North Kerala. Featured image: Marieke Weller (Unsplash).
I landed up in Kasaragod on my quest to discover Kerala beyond the beaten path. As I swam in the Kasaragod backwaters (they are that clean!), kayaked amid pristine mangroves and learnt how terribly skilled I am at rowing a round coracle boat, I quickly fell in love.
If you make your way to North Kerala and you absolutely SHOULD set aside a few days...
April 25, 2020
Inspiring Women I Met in Bhutan – and What Happiness Means to Them.
The Bhutan happiness index has intrigued me for a long time. So I tried to figure out what happiness means to its people.
Is this indescribable feeling happiness? I wondered as my partner and I hiked through the blue pine forests of Bhutans Haa Valley. Up gentle hills we walked, alive with the scent of rain from the night before. Prayer flags fluttered in the wind. White and pink wildflowers dotted the landscape.
I had landed up in Bhutan last autumn to speak about my book at the Mountain...
