Stories by Arpit

When I started this blog in 2015 to pen down my thoughts, little did I realise that it would grow to nearly 50 posts with a family of more than 1.2 lac readers (of which 35k readers were from the United States!). Although some have considered it to be a travel blog and some believe it to be a collection of write-ups on spirituality, I think it as a  haphazard diary - a medium to express my experiences. The Inspiration! While the above stats may seem minuscule, I feel that this blog has turned me into a storyteller- from penning a recollection of my spiritual experiences to my travel diaries, from voicing my opinions to writing amateur poetry, this online diary has seen it all. Thus it became imperative to go a step further by registering this webpage as www.storiesbyarpit.com ! From the post "Where Earth Breathes"- November 2015. Recollecting the journey from where it all began, I started writing about my thoughts, but gradually moved to my

Travelling to a foreign country is definitely an exciting experience but it can quickly turn into a financial disaster if not managed properly. There are a handful of tips that can help you save a whole lot of money while you make the most of your trip abroad. Hostels Hostels have garnered a lot of credibility via word-of-mouth among travelers over the recent years, and rightfully slow. Hostels work out to be 80% cheaper than hotels, especially in Europe. They also allow you to book in advance. Avoid tours Elaborate tours usually cost a lot of money. They are well planned but moving around with a huge crowd dampens the experience while slowing you down significantly and wasting your precious time. The cheaper and better alternative is to travel individually to popular tourist destinations and create your own experience. Fly economically There is an art to booking flight tickets to get the cheapest rates in the market. Many apps now lets you compare prices across travel

Surrounded by the exotic backwaters of Arabian Sea, lies a century old Jain tirth situated in the Mattacherry area of Kochi (Cochin) housing beautiful Jain temples which are not only renowned for their heritage but also for the hundreds of pigeons which have made this complex their home. The temple complex Jainism was spread in Kerala in the 3 rd century BC soon after the Mauryan King Chandragupta along with Acharya Bhadrabahu Swami travelled to Shravanabelagola in Karnataka. Disciples of Acharya Bhadrabahu Swami journeyed further south, into present day Kerala and Tamil Nadu to spread the message of Jainism. Later, however it declined and was revived only with the rapid influx of spice traders from Kutch and Gujarat in the 19 th century. As these Jain traders needed a place of worship, these temples were constructed by society stalwarts in the port city of Cochin. Temple dedicated to Shri Chandraprabhu Swami The first temple dedicated to Shri Dharmanath