Our midterm exams were over and we were eagerly looking forward for Diwali holidays. We were going to our native place Karwar!! Woo-hoo!! Karwar is situated at coastal side of Uttar Karnataka and shares border of Karnataka and Goa. My parents were busy in cleaning, packing and some last-minute shopping. I like to visit my native; sand, sea, beaches, trees, flowers and my cutie pie Mr. Meow, that’s my cat. I like to watch sunset, sailing ships, endless sky and the horizon. Sometimes we get treat like Gobi Manchurian, Pavbhaji and kulfi. My brother always wonders ‘how sun hides inside the sea? What will happen to the fishes?’ We collect shells or throw little rocks in sea, we swim and sometime we make sand castle and tunnels. We were counting days and planning for our activities. And finally, the day came!!
We started early morning as we decided to take a stay at Davangere to explore some places there. Davangere is famous for Benne Dosa and it is also known for its cotton mills. We visited the ancient Harihareshwara temple and the glasshouse; tasted Benne dosa. My mother did some shopping there. Next morning we left for Karwar.
It takes 5 hours to reach Karwar. I love road trips because our little lady bug (our red car) goes through lush green mountains, farms full of flowers, sugarcane and corns. Sometimes we could see smiling sunflowers, running sheep or get a chance to see naughty monkeys and bathing cattle. As we were nearing to festivities the farms were blooming with Marigolds. Such a peaceful delight!! After few hours of ride, we were climbing the mountain and within no hours we welcomed by the morning mist. It was drizzling in mountains; the road was narrow and steep at the other side. It was chilling cold. Misty mountains are mesmerizing and sometimes thrilling. By the time my mother assisting my father in driving as it was a foggy road, me and my brother fell asleep. We woke up when we just about to reach our destination, our home sweet home!!
My grandparents were waiting for us. We got freshen up and had tour of our home and backyard. To our surprise, a hen was sitting on eggs. It normally takes 20-22 days to hatch the eggs till those many days the mother hen will keep seating on it to protect them and keep them warm. The house was neat and clean but my eyes were looking for mister meow, he was not there. After few hours of search we found, hidden under the bed. Maybe he got scared by seeing new members in his territory, poor kitty. My grandfather bought him home when he was just two month old kitten, now he grew like handsome cat.
I like Diwali, the festivals of lights! And you can enjoy it with family only, so every year we come to native to celebrate it. My grandfather was super excited. We helped him making sky lantern. My mother and grandma made Chakali, Karanji, Shakkarpare, Shev and my favourite Besan laddu. We put decorative lights, lit diyas, me my mother made beautiful rangolis and bursted fire cracker . We visited our relatives; it was all fun filling. We did Lakshmi puja to seek blessings of devi Lakshmi; we also did Udak puja, its worshiping our Well to show our gratitude for providing us water. Our Indian festivals are full of joy, happiness, rituals, family gatherings and yummy Diwali treats.
As the days were passing Mister cat becomes comfortable with us. He used to sit beside us or will ask for fish or milk when he got hungry. By the time eggs also got hatched and we got a chance to play with three tiny chickens. Most of the planned things were done, now it was a time to return back. With the refreshed mind and beautiful memories, we started our journey back to Bengaluru, our home.
January, 2026
