Journeys and Jottings
People Make Places - Meet travel designer Shoba George as she talks passionately about her flagship tour, Pashmina Trail. A Made in Ladakh tour that supports local communities.
People Make Places. We start this issue of Journeys and Jottings with a mystical experience in Ladakh shared by Shoba George , travel designer, who is featured in this issue. When I began my newsletter last year, I knew it would always be more about people than places. Conversations have always been at the core of my storytelling. In my travels, I have met so many interesting people and I have always wanted to share their stories. I am inspired by the work they do, be they be travel designers or social entrepreneurs, naturalists, conservationists, artists, artisans, writers and more. And that’s how the section, People Make Places started. But I felt that these amazing men and women needed a space of their own and hence I felt that this newsletter could now be a weekly with a dedicated issue only for people stories.
Welcome to this very first issue where we are meeting a very charming travel designer and curator, Shoba George from Pune, who has some breathtaking experiences to share , from Ladakh to Kerala. Shoba , a graduate in Fine Arts grew up in Kerala and worked in the textile industry for a few years before starting her own travel company. Based in Pune, Shobha runs “The Extra Mile. “ and she believes in creating low impact on the environment and high impact on the local economy through her trips.
I met Shoba recently in Madhya Pradesh, when she was awarded by ICRT for creating an awareness on the Pashmina Economy in Ladakh through her tours, which have become powerful stories in themselves. And that is when we spoke about her personal journey. Her passion for people and social enterpreuners, the stories she weaves in her tours and her zest for sustainable and responsible tourism inspired me so much that we got talking. “As a travel designer, when I am truly moved and inspired by a story, that is the story I share with my clients . I dive deep into that story so that I can curate together the best experiences suited to my clients,” she says. Before I introduce her to you, here is a little clip from our conversation. Apologise for the audio quality but I think its so powerful, coming from her .
We spoke about her passion for supporting local communities through her tours. To her, the Pashmina Trail is all about discovering the living heritage of Ladakh. “Pashmina can become Ladakhs biggest “ Made in Ladakh “ idea , with Ladakhis creating their own Pashmina economy . “ she says. Here is her story.
People Make Places - Meet Shoba George
You grew up in Kerala, in God’s own country. Did that inspire you in any way to become a travel designer ?
I grew up in a large family in Kerala and I like to think thats why I am such a people’s person. Our holidays were spent with grandparents and the house would be full of cousins , uncles and aunts . Both my grandmoms were strong matriarchs who ran a most efficient plantation home. We all looked forward to being there , we didn’t need to travel anywhere else for a holiday . My family has been pioneers in responsible tourism in India alhough it took me a few years in the industry to really find my own calling .
What prompted you to start The Extra Mile ?
I started my travel company in the year 2001 and initially it was just me advising friends and family on travel to South India. Slowly it became a dream to build a unique travel company , creating tailor made special experiences . It was initially called Kerala with Us and later I changed it to The Extra Mile.
Two decades later, it has become more about meaningful engagements with people and culture. The joy of being a part of a purpose than just being a consumer , discovering real experinces brought together by locals and connecting with them as friends , the joy of knowing you were a wonderful guest in their land - this is what matters to me. As a business model it is all about equitable distribution and ensuring that the earnings stay within the local economy .
What was the first trip that you actually curated and where was it ?
The first trip I curated was for a Japanese professor who was visiting Pune University. It was a trip in Tamil Nadu . He had received a proposal from Tamil Nadu tourism department and had gone to meet a ticketing agent for his tickets . I was later referred to him. I recollect how my itinerary to him went to many pages , with stories and legends of the temples . I spoke about my experiences of visiting these temples as a student of Fine Arts . My proposal was expensive. I had organised specialists I knew personally who would take him to the temples and give discourses on the culture, the rituals , carnatic music and connection with the temples and more . Being my first tour I was not sure he would accept my proposal, especially at that cost, but he did. And that gave me the confidence to start curating trips.
Your flagship tour has been the Pashmina trail in Ladakh. How did that come about
I started with an empty canvas last year when travel was at a pause. I first heard about the Changpas ( the pastoral nomads of Ladakh) and the Pashmina goats from my friend Sidharth Pradhan. Pashmina remains as one of the most coveted fibres in the world and has its origin in this land of High Mountains.
I visited Ladakh last February in the freezing cold but Ladakh just embraced me . I connected with wonderful people from historians, anthropologist, textile experts, conservationists bureaucrats...why even the His Highness the King of Ladakh himself .
I went with my local partners, Mantra Himalaya to Changthang to meet the Changpas, the nomads at their temporary settlement by the Kar Tso and I knew I found that magic moment , when time stood still. It was surreal. We drove for hours passing the most stunning landscapes . It was at 16000 feet. I stepped out of the 4 wheel drive … it was -20 c and wind chill factor added on.
I could just feel the biting cold , and in front of me was the most stark and spectacular landscape and the herd of goats. I just knew THIS was the story I wanted to tell. You just feel for a minute that you are watching a documentary, except, that I was not in the periphery as a mere spectator - I was part of the scene. It was a certain vitality you experience in being present in that moment.
So what is this Pashmina tour about ?
The story of the Changapas or the herdsmen of Pashmina goat is forgotten and not told. I find it to be a compelling story of what ideally should have been Ladakh's largest economy.
The Pashmina Trail is an outcome of these stories told around fire places, over coffee , sitting by the river, or just simply on the long drives admiring the view.I would call my self a curator here as I have brought together the many storyteller together to create this itinerary . If, to travel means to connect with the people, culture and landscape, then this tour is for you.
In this tour we take the traveller beyond just a consumption, into a space of purpose that has a long lasting impression and provokes and inspires a deep sense of respect and responsibility to the land and the people. Already some of the travellers have come forward to fund ideas that will support Ladakh’s own “ Made in Ladakh “ Pashmina Economy.
What is the story behind the Pashmina ?
Legend has it that a Pashmina shawl that travelled from Kashmir to Iran reached the hands of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte in Egypt. He gifted this to his wife Empress Josephine , who initially rejected it and then took a great liking to this delicate warm fabric that she soon owned over 400 pashmina shawls at a cost of over 20000 gold francs. The Pashmina Shawl appeared in a French fashion magazine in 1790s and was by now a fashion icon in Paris and soon to be the priced possession of the ladies of the high society in Europe. Kings, adventurers, explorers all had to ensure that on return home, nothing less that the Pashmina Shawl or Kashmir Shawl could do. Well before Europe discovered Pashmina ,the Mughal courts already flaunted it. It has been an important commodity in the Caravans on the Silk route trade and was known as the “ Soft Gold” . Wars were fought and treaties signed to claim and control this pashmina trade routes.
The story however is set in Ladakh . Changthang region in Ladakh, an extension of the Tibetan Plateau, is home to pastoral nomads known as the Changpa, or “people from the North” and their livestock includes the Pashmina goat or the Changra. The Changpa community have learned to coexist with their animals, wherein both are dependent on one another for survival. “We are the people who move behind the goats is how a Changpa described his life. Changpas believe that their livestock are sacred animals bestowed upon them by the gods.
The most striking quality of pashmina fiber is that it is a very good insulator. The Ladakhis have a saying that if you keep butter wrapped in pashmina and keep it in the sun it won’t melt. This pashmina fiber is the reason that these goats are able to survive the winters of Changthang. Come spring, the fiber is naturally shed by the goats and the shepherds comb off the molted fiber from the goats. This fibre was eventually sent to Kashmir where the weaving was done and shipped to the rest of the world.
Your tour includes a lot of social enterprises and communities as well .
The movement to own the Pashmina from fibre to fabric and create an economy has been the inspiration for organisations like LENA Ladkah, Looms of Ladakh and many more such enterprises. Made by the skilled women artisans of Ladakh,LENA helps to create sustainable and dignified livelihood for women artisans of Ladakh using the local resource pashmina thus providing a window to the world of pure handmade pashmina textiles from Ladakh. We have partnered with them among many others to tell the story.
I also want to talk about Tashi, a wonderful person I met and who hosted me in Ladakh. And his story gives a glimpse into the challenging lives of the Changpas.
Whats your next tour about ?
I grew up in Kerala and I still think I havent seen enough of Kerala. My recent favourite discovery in Kerala was the butterfly migration in the Aralam sanctuary in North Kerala.
You can live a lifetime in a place and yet have so much more to discover and experience…thats the beauty of travel. Now, I am working on a fascinating tour called the Pursuit of Black Gold, based in Kerala. Hear more about it in this audio clip.
People Make Places. And I believe that we all meet fascinating and inspiring people in different walks of life, ordinary people living extraordinary lives . This is how I believe that travel goes beyind just trips and becomes journeys with powerful stories and storytellers. Shoba indeed has the last word on this.
You can contact Shoba through email - shobajosegeorge@gmail.com or shoba@theextramile.co.in. You can contact her on instagram as well @George.shoba
Feedback
I do hope that you enjoyed reading this issue. Looking forward to your feedback as always.
I would particularly like to know if you would like more audio/video clips in the interviews and if you have any other suggestions.
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See you soon! You can also read my travel stories on my blog and follow me on my social media.
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