We just turned One!

“Follow Your Passion; it will lead you to your PURPOSE”

– Oprah Winfrey

My uncle started his apprenticeship when he was 17 to earn a living.  Before my cousin and I could understand the importance of this, he had already completed 25 years of service.  This is just one of the many sacrifices that my family went through. When I read my fathers blog – https://kaveripak.wordpress.com/ which follows the adventures of him and his brother, it makes me wonder what more they would have done if they had all the resources we have now combined with their passion.

The sacrifices made by our family back then has given us the greatest gift – the privilege to follow our ‘Passion.’ 

The first in our house (and our generation) to persistently follow his passion was my cousin Vijay. At 15, he knew that he belonged to the culinary world.

What a blessing it is to have him as a role model. I grew up watching him prove to us time and again that passion coupled with hard work results in nothing less than extraordinary.

Chef Vijay (Left) – Mentor, Friend, Confidant, Coolest Brother

A decade later, following his footsteps…..

Being the oldest among the cousins, Vijay has set such a high benchmark for the rest of us that it has triggered us to do better. He taught me that despite what society says or thinks, if you believe in it, if you see something big happening for yourself, just go for it! Its one thing to read about people who have chased their dreams, but to have someone show you everyday is a phenomena in itself.

In May, last year I was telling him about how I really wanted to become a host on Airbnb. Little did I know that it would take place within a month.

June 24th 2017 – marked a year of hosting on Airbnb! And like I said in my previous posts, its important to celebrate yourself.

Being a host on Airbnb has been an absolute delight! The excitement that comes with opening your doors to fellow travelers is incredible. A happy guest is a testament that I am doing justice to my passion. I wish every time a guest entered the house, I could capture their very first reaction. Nevertheless, I wait for each of their calls like I would from my biggest critique.

The very first booking from Aparna – I cannot begin to describe how it felt when I received her enquiry! Thank You Aparna, for believing in KMR Villa and helping kickstart my hosting! 

So whats the best part about hosting?

It is the joy of helping others create memories in a place that is so dear to you!

Just like the picture depicts, Mr.Kripakaran (Property Manager) who helped buy the property, has been associated with KMR Villa right from the construction stage. Today, he looks after the everyday activities which go into keeping the bed and breakfast up and running.

Sekar Anna… The Real Star behind KMR Villa

Sekar and his family were looking after the property much before the Villa was even built. His wife, Chandra is responsible for the tea leaves making its way to the tea factories.

Sekar, has a much bigger role to play. Sekar’s first activity every morning is to ensure that the entire town receives water. Thats right, he has to hike 2 km each way on a steep incline to open the water pump that connects the entire village. This is followed by getting breakfast for the guests, and finally putting his heart and soul into maintaining the house. When we initially started we felt that Sekar might find a hard time communicating with guests who do not know Tamil. What has come as a pleasant surprise is how often guests tell me Sekar was the highlight of the trip. The reason behind this being the love and passion he puts into looking after each guest.

And with the help of this wonderful team who turn my dream into reality each day, I am happy to share the one year completion of hosting on Airbnb.

On that note, I want to add that anyone who has received the privilege of following their passion – use it wisely.

Use it to spread a message that goes beyond your own purpose. Use it to help people who need it. It is a rare and expensive gift, and must not be taken for granted. Be Grateful and spread as much joy and kindness as you can. The world could definitely use more of it.

This post is dedicated to all those working hard on chasing their dreams. This is a shout out to everyone who stood up for themselves and chose to take the road not taken. Thank you for believing in yourself and for giving the world so much to look forward to!

A tribute to my dear Grandpa, in the memory of whom we started hosting on Airbnb!

To book a holiday with KMR Villa, log on to Airbnb: https://goo.gl/2Mpf3k and use code https://www.airbnb.co.in/c/rachnar13 to sign up and earn travel credit on your very first booking!

Look forward to hosting you!