Duty-Free

Duty Leave is such a blessing, if only one knows the tricks to conjure a conference into a vacation. The last four days have confirmed how injury-prone I am, but the saving grace has been the living -- at home with the world. It felt living amongst the foothills, by virtue of getting a room with the valley-view. Academic fraternity was over-ruled by the overwhelming hospitality of the host college's students and faculty, extending to the hotel's attendants, ranging from the reception, bartender to sweeper. Duty free.

I found my friend, from Bhutan, the peepal tree at their campus. Have you heard its leaves? They sing. They paint an escalation in the rhythm of the rustle. They are mesmerizing, enchanting. We kept the sea at bay, there was too much of other things deserving more attention. The unending rise of the coconut trees, the moon, as faithfully as ever, following us, and of course, the time -- it flew, galloping with wings. Duty free. 

Responsibilities are so much relaxed and well-performed if left at one's will. Falls can become stepping stones to rise, higher and higher. Flights, falls, waves, academics -- I have defeated them all. The return flight had a tremendous turbulence, but well, I was air-concentrating on the movie. Later, I was air-writing, air-driving and basically battling the certainty of uncertainty. I tried to imagine the pilot, what would he be doing? Basically, it would be something like getting off Park Circus bridge! By the way, the world destination Goa has a sympathetically small airport, which means the queues for check-in are longer than serpentine and I learnt that flights too have to wait for a parking availability, post landing. I travelled to South Asian countries, China, Turkey, Dubai, Europe, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Pondi, but Goa's airport was a shocker. It brought me back to basics. Duties.

My takeaways? Whether or not your airport has a duty-free, it is always advisable, within India, to travel to Union Territories, oh, for the joy of duty free alcohol. Bud and Heineken at 80/-, Kingfisher at 30/-, and single malts at alarming low prices. But even better? You can have it all. You are after all Duty free.