I saw a picture in the internet of a house located on a lake
located. The house was surrounded by water on all sides and the house looked
lavish and stylish from outside.
The picture had simply mesmerized me.
I showed the picture to my Baba (father) and he too
appreciated its beauty and so did Ma.
For a few minutes we all were floating in small air bubble
which consisted of “how beautiful the house was.” Any natural person who isn’t
defective in his mind would have liked that picture of the house instantly in a
moment.
But my Baba broke that bubble soon enough.
He said-“My friend Mr. XYZ had seen such a photo on internet
and was so attracted by the place that he decided to travel to that place with
his whole family. Soon enough they found out all the about the place through
their travel agent and they came to know that place was a tourist destination
in some foreign country. The travel agent had told them that it was a “very famous
tourist destination”.
Like delighted travellers they packed their bags and went
for a holiday to that place where the house was located. After reaching to that
they all were very excited and two days later they were supposed to visit that house
on a lake and meanwhile they toured other places in that town. The morning when
they were slated to visit that house, that man wore a suit and looked very
classy.
After getting down from the taxi, the man was so excited by
looking at the house on the lake in front of his eyes that he not only tipped
the taxi driver but he even tipped the tour guide who was waiting for him beforehand.
He had to get in a boat to reach the place and that man was trembling with happiness.
The tour guide began to speak about that house and of its
history, but the man was half listening to him as they neared the house. His
wife and children were also with him.
They reached the house. He corrected his tie before entering
the house. That’s when the real game began. They entered the house and his face
fell. The inside of the house was completely shabby. The paint had fallen off
at many places. As glossy and good looking the exterior was, the interior was
completely the opposite. He looked back at his wife to express his displeasure,
but to his utter disbelief he found his wife’s eyes smiling. His wife on seeing
his face said-“See, how wonderful this place is. Much better than Switzerland
or Disney land”.
The man realized that there was no escaping from his wife
now as she had asked him for a vacation in Switzerland or in the States. But he
was adamant on visiting that place.
That man told my father that,the wind came in from all the
sides in that house and with it, it brought splashes of water too. He had felt
chilly and oddly cold. After spending a few minutes there he abruptly left the
house, leaving the tour guide astonished.
The next day they flew back to their home and spent the rest
of the days bickering about the vacation and after a few days he gave the
travel agent a piece of his mind and decided never to use his services again.”
So, Baba warned us about getting attracted by any beautiful
picture of any tourist destination especially the ones found on internet.
After listening to this story the house in the picture which
we had appreciated looked alright to us and the “ooh, ooh, aah,aah” of it was a
distant memory.
Be careful and choose your vacations wisely and don’t keep
much expectations from anything.
That places’ name dad couldn’t remember, but when he would meet his friend again, he would ask him about it. His friend is now out of the country. But that place was in Europe, but definitely not in Switzerland.
Adios!
Before You Travel. 