2015 is all set to go.... 2016 will soon be in the midst of our days. As yet another year prepares to make a move... yet again a few reminders warm my heart. Pausing just a bit to, to appreciate all the good that was, to offer my sincere thanks for all that it brought and to look forward with hope, optimism and curiosity towards all that will be.

For last year's words belong to last year's language,
and next year's words await another voice.
To make an end is to make a beginning." ~ T.S. Eliot.

Before saying my goodbye, however, just turning back pages of My Yatra Diary... to celebrate the words that echoed in it. Arts, temples, festivals, food, places etc. there was quite a mix this year round. Have pulled out 12 posts, my favourites, each from one month highlighting it as a special year-end calendar post for all of us here. Hope you'll like it. Please do let me know which is your favourite among these or which looks the most eye-catching of all or anything else that you'd like to say. Here goes!

JANUARY



Tulsibaug, for me, with its tapered lanes, bustling market and heritage temples; will always remain a fragrant memory... the place where cultural roots continue to burgeon in the garden of history and traditions.

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FEBRUARY



I got a taste of the traditional as well as the non-regional and ended up spending a highly appetizing day in Pune. Based on what I liked and where, here’s presenting my Food guide in Pune! 

Come along, dig in, take your pick and be prepared to forget about all your diet regimes because with the insanely tasty flavors of Pune, the craving just never ends! Let’s go!!
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MARCH


She danced aesthetically, softly and gently. Unmindful of the rough rocks and bumpy stones that seemed to obstruct, unmindful of the interlinked chains that seemed to restrict - She gushed forth playfully, like a little girl in sheer delight. Every breath of Hers, impregnated in love, kindness, compassion and blessings. Love that was coming directly from Lord Shiva. The Supreme.
I heard no words, there weren't any and yet I could hear every wave of Hers,

giving me a song for life.
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APRIL



And so, I ask:
Who is DIRTY, really?
SHE or THEY?
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MAY



During a few of my recent visits to Delhi, I decided to break in a few of these long-standing street chaat shops in the Chandni Chowk area and test the pride that they take in their ‘old and famous’ repute. 

So, how did the shops fare? Did they pass the test or did they fail? 

Read on, you’ll soon find out!
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JUNE



I arrived in Melbourne with no map and itinerary in hand. My planning at home had been raw - just a rough roadmap with no fixed schedule. Soon after arriving though, I decided to mend my ways. I picked up a city map and a couple of other reference booklets from the hotel lobby and got down to work. I plotted on the map all the places from my Melbourne bucketlist, so now I had a fair bit of an idea on the places that could be clustered based on their proximity.
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JULY


I am the River Godavari –

Mother of my children

A soulful celebration

A manifestation of the Divine Feminine
– AND –
A reflection of THAT which glows within YOU,
Gleaming Diya, Godavari River Ghat, Nashik

WHO ARE YOU?
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AUGUST


Location: Chhatrapati Shivaji Domestic Airport, Mumbai.
Terminal: 1A.
On-bound: Sanganer Airport, Jaipur.
Flight: Air India.
Check-in status: Self check-in completed.


Now what? Grab one of those benches. And, sleep?

Or, stare at your fellow passengers? Read a book?

Surf your smartphone? 

All these things are okay and honestly, I have been all over them at some point in my yatras but this time, I decided to indulge in something better (and artistic and creative and fascinating) while eagerly waiting for hopping onto my flight.
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SEPTEMBER



It's 10th day of the Ganesh Chaturthi festival,
the day is Saturday, date is 26th September and the time is early morning:
The morning sun is peeping fiercely from the light blue window of the skies
when I step out onto the streets from the Lower Parel Station -
My walk to the Lalbaugcha Raja Ganesh Pandal 2015 begins!
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OCTOBER
To bow your head to them is often not only an act of reverence  
or a customized ritual
but it is also to seek Mother’s blessingsto empower us and give us strength,to help us become 'whole' -Her child again.
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NOVEMBER

Today ... I have long left the shores of Agni Theertham but the luminous wave of immense blessedness continues to revolutionize the sullied shores of my heart. And every time that happens, I am reminded of the incredible joy and the infinite privilege that was... to have encountered, conversed and been positively touched by the sheer dedication and passion of these great men by the sacred shores of Rameshwaram - the sweeping healers of the sea!
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DECEMBER



While my yatras took me to new places even as a child moving and discovering newer destinations, it was blogging that provided a medium of transition turning my attention from the outer world to an unmapped space within. It pushed me to dig deeper and see my experiences from a quieter space, in a new light, that light that came from nowhere else but my own being.

Thank you much for reading My Yatra Diary in 2015, and for gracing my yatra with your kind footprints. I wish you peace, love and laughter in all the days that are to come. May the coming year fill your heart with the all the things - magic, madness and goodness of doing and believing. Look forward to having a wonderful time together in 2016 as well: Keep smiling and keep blogging! :-)