This story goes back to 2018. I had never been on trips with friends. I had seen my friends planning out, and then going on vacations, but they never included me. Even if they wanted they knew that my parents wouldn't permit. So eventually they stopped asking. I felt bad but saying anything wouldn't had made any sense. But this one time I was at my aunt's place. So there a hush hush fighting was going on between my cousin and my aunt. And finally my cousin told me that how she wanted to go to Himanchal but her mother isn't agreeing. So jokingly she asked me if I wanna go with her? Obviously aware with what my parents would say I laughed off at the question. Later my aunt said if I agree to go on that trip with my cousin then only my aunt will also send her. I knew asking my father would take a lot of courage. So I asked my aunt to do the same. 

My father couldn't say ‘No’ to my aunt so now I was going on a trip with my cousin to Himanchal. Excited I packed my bags. We boarded the train to Delhi from Kathgodam, my cousin's friend also joined us and on reaching Delhi we straight away went to Mc Donald's. I wanted to enjoy every second of this newly found freedom. We had to catch our bus at 8PM on the next night. We stayed at our friend's home for the night. I was very excited. This was my first trip in 24 years. The next night when we boarded the bus people in the bus thought that we were some teenage girls trying to elope. We had to show them our IDs proving that we are not teenagers. (All three of us are very short, I being the shortest and we all have baby faces)

Everybody was singing, dancing in the bus. There were some couples too. And we were enjoying every bit of it. In the morning we reached Himanchal. Now I am from Nainital. Mountains are nothing new to me and so was the trekking. The next day we hiked to Triund top and that's when we got so ecstatic by the view. We literally started jumping and dancing. Also we were the first ones to reach the top. Later everybody there started calling us- “The Three Mountain Girls”.  I still cherish all those memories. That was my first trip ever and also the only one I have ever been onto. With these difficult times I pray everyday for things to go back to normal. I pray we be corona free soon.