(Filip)
In the middle of 2019, Lakshmi and I started thinking and talking about if the idea of coming to India was good. In the beginning, we have been a bit stressed as well as excited. I have never been outside of Europe. Imagine a comfy person coming alone to some virtual female friend to a developing country like India. Huge risk, seriously. Lakshmi completely changed my view of India during these three years online. At first, I imagined India usually like that train full of people travelling somewhere and me, some guy from Europe with them. (On photo) 😄 But still, something inside was telling me that I should go and try this kind of adventure.

The first approximate date of the trip was July/August 2019. From my side, it all depended on money and work. As I mentioned before: 2019 was a very stressful year for me to make money for a living. As the date of the trip was getting closer and closer, we started talking about our first meeting. What to expect, how to behave. We were thinking about it too much sometimes. Firstly, we needed to clear up some time for each other, plan some trips across India. So, work and responsibilities had to come before the trip to India.

As time goes by in life, not everything works out according to plan, especially for the first time. So, the original date failed because I did not have enough money in my bank account and still had a fair amount of work. After I realised that I would not be able to go yet, fear started to take over. I was afraid that Lakshmi would not trust me anymore. I did not want her to think that I am playing with her. Or that I am not taking it seriously enough because I didn’t keep the promise/deal we had. When I told her that we had to postpone the trip, I knew she would take it badly for few days. But I couldn’t do too much about it those days. I didn’t have many options. Thank God Lakshmi did not have a problem with it. So, the plan now was to postpone the trip until the start of 2020. Lakshmi really trusted me and still trusts me nowadays with her full heart. I would never make her disappointed in this. So we just waited another half year till 2020.

But at the end of 2019, another obstacle came along – the coronavirus. Having everything prepared by the end of 2019, coronavirus was slowly taking over China. So, Lakshmi and I discussed if I should go or not. She told me not to go. Of course, I had a different opinion. We were planning this trip for a very long time, so I was not about to let some coronavirus get in my way. Honestly, at the time, I did not take coronavirus seriously. Why panic from something we can’t change or influence. I would say that restrictions and governments scared me more than coronavirus itself.

At the beginning of 2020, I bought my flight ticket. Lakshmi helped me book a good hotel near her PG and made an eVISA to India. On the 7th of March, everything was ready to go. And guess what… 4 days before the flight I went to jump arena with my friends – I almost broke my leg. 🤦‍♂️ I thought it was the end of my trip and that I had to cancel my booking and flight. I went to a doctor and asked him about the flight, he said – it will be ok. He gave me injections to make blood sparser, so my leg could heal it quicker.

So before flight I couldn’t almost walk. I had to put injections in me.
And for the first time in my life, I am going outside of Europe to India to meet with someone I have never met in person before. HELL YEAH 😄

I accepted this life challenge, because I felt,
there is something beautiful behind it.

We were both super worried and stressed. Lakshmi was always like – please, arrive safely. Yeeeees, don’t worry, I will “safely” arrive. 😅 But I remember her big facepalm when I damaged my leg. I will never forget that face. 😄