My 101 Lifetime GOALS
1. SEE A HUNDRED NEW ANIMALS
--- D-O-N-E ---
100. Takin(the national animal of Bhutan, at the Motithang Preserve at Thimpu) 99. Red-eared slider(a native turtle of South America, house pet) 98. Sea Lions(natural habitat at Pier 39, San Francisco) 97. Siberian Husky(someone's pet at HK) 96. Asian Water Monitor Lizard(natural habitat, Malaysia) 95. Puffer fish(a dead one, at the fish market HK) 94. Sea cucumbers(live ones at the fish market, HK) 93. Oysters(fish market, HK) 92. Oriental magpie and Asian Azure-winged magpie(natural habitat, China) 91. Red-billed blue magpie (natural habitat, Uttarakhand) 90. Chipmunk(natural habitat, Niagara State Park) 89. Canadian geese(natural habitat, USA) 88. Seagulls(natural habitat, India, HK, USA) 87. Kalij pheasant(natural habitat in Uttarakhand) 86. Scaly breasted munia(a beautiful small bird of Bangalore) 85. Barn owl(natural habitat, Bangalore) 84. Shikra(natural habitat, Bangalore) 83. Barn swallow(natural habitat, Bangalore) 82. Purple Moorhen(a.k.a swamp hen, lakes of Bangalore) 81. wasp moths - Euchromia Polymena and Hubner's (natural habitat, Karnataka) 80. moth - Cyana perornata(natural habitat, Karnataka) 79. Giant Panda(Ocean Park Hong Kong) 78. Pygmy Marmoset(a palm-sized monkey, at the Singapore zoo) 77. Orangutan(Singapore zoo) 76. Common Starling(natural habitat, USA) 75. Starfish(aquarium) 74. Jellyfish and Sea Jellies(aquarium) 73. Manta Rays(aquarium) 72. Stingrays(aquarium) 71. Manatee and baby(aquarium enclosures) 70. Leafy Seadragon(aquarium) 69. Sharks and Hammerhead sharks(aquarium) 68. Guitarfish(aquarium) 67. Chambered Nautilus(aquarium) 66. Garden Eels and Electric Eels(aquarium) 65. Sawfish(aquarium, HK) 64. Seahorse(aquarium and fish markets) 63. Dolphins(enclosures in aquarium, HK) 62. Seals(enclosures in aquarium, HK) 61. Arctic Fox(enclosures) 60. Anaconda(enclosures in zoo) 59. Sturgeons(aquarium) 58. Otters(enclosures in zoo) 57. Koala(enclosures in zoo) 56. Golden snub-nosed monkey(zoo) 55. Mandrill(zoo) 54. Lemur(zoo) 53. Tamarins(zoo) 52. Proboscis monkey(zoo) 51. Sloth(zoo) 50. Slow Loris(zoo) 49. Komodo Dragons(zoo) 48. Babirusa(pig with tusks, zoo) 47. Capybara(zoo) 46. Iguana(Bannerghatta National park enclosure, Bangalore) 45. Mouse deer(zoo) 44. Tapir(zoo) 43. Giant Tortoise(zoo) 42. Possums(zoo) 41. Meerkat(zoo) 40. Nyala and Bongo(African antelopes, zoo) 39. Oryx(zoo) 38. Eland(zoo) 37. Ibex(zoo) 36. Hyena(zoo) 35. Tarantula(zoo) 34. Gecko and Salamanders(zoo) 33. Malayan Flying Fox(zoo, large herbivore bats) 32. Hornbills(bird enclosures) 31. Flamingo(bird enclosures) 30. Macaws, Parakeets, Cockatoos, Lories and Lorikeets(bird enclosures) 29. Wood duck(bird enclosures) 28. Toucans(bird enclosures) 27. Cassowary(bird enclosures) 26. Violet Turaco(bird enclosures) 25. Currawong(bird enclosures) 24. Kiwi(bird enclosures) 23. Nicobar Pigeon (bird enclosures) 22. Red-wattled lapwing(natural habitat, Corbett National Park) 21. Himalayan Monal(bird enclosure, Jurong bird park) 20. Malayan and Crested peacock pheasant(Jurong Bird park) 19. Helmeted Guinea fowl(bird enclosure) 18. Victoria Crowned pigeon(bird enclosure) 17. Ostriches(bird enclosure) 16. Emu(bird enclosure) 15. Laughingthrushes and doves(bird enclosure) 14. Chameleons(zoo) 13. Temminck's tragopan(bird enclosure) 12. Bird-of-paradise(bird enclosure) 11. Terrapins(zoo) 10. Falcons and Vultures(bird enclosure) 9. Oriole(bird enclosure) 8. Baboons and Chimpanzees(zoo) 7. Siamang(zoo) 6. White-faced Saki(zoo) 5. Cheetah(zoo) 4. Wallaby(zoo) 3. Pygmy Hippopotamus(zoo) 2. Saddle-billed storks(bird enclosure) 1. Sand boa(natural habitat, Karnataka)
Barking deer(Motithang Preserve, Bhutan), Piranha(aquarium, HK) Penguins(aquarium enclosures) White-capped Redstart(natural habitat, Uttarakhand and China) White-bellied treepie(natural habitat, Chamundi hills Mysore) Pelicans, painted storks, Ibis and cattle egrets(natural habitat, Kokkre Bellur), Alligator Gars and Tinfoil Barbs and Giant Gowrami fish(Lalithodyana aquarium at Dharmasthala), Malnad Gidda cow(natural habitat, Sagara), a pug at a friends house named Kanna, peacocks near the SSRCentre(natural habitat, Bengaluru), Siberian seagulls at Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj during the Mahakumbh mela
2. EAT 101 NEW FRUITS
101. Pomelo 100. Passion Fruit 99. Nectarine 98. Grapefruit 97. Dragon Fruit 96. Persimmon 95. Apricots and Peaches 94. Tree Tomato(Tamarillo) 93. Jujube(the Chinese variant) 92. Yellow Plum 91. Blackberries and Raspberries 90. Blueberries 89. Paneer Fruit(Syzygium Jambos) 88. Star fruits 87. Avocado 86. Rose apples - white, pink and red 85. Banana variants - red banana, karpooravalli, poovan, Nanjangud rasbalehannu, yelakki 84. The tiny almond inside peach seeds 83. Mangosteen 82. Ambarella(Indian Hog Plum) 81. Rambutan 80. Hazelnuts 79. Physalis 78. Yellow watermelon (the skin is yellow, the pulp is red) 77. Mango variant Kala Phad from Tamil Nadu, dark green-black skin and yellow pulp and tastes like Kesar/saffron 76. wild jackfruit a.k.a anjili chakka - a palm-sized, rather sour, jackfruit 75. Green peaches at Shillong - fully ripe fruits still have green peels 74. Soh namdong(yellow fruits) at Shillong 73. Sohiong('black fruit' - sweet and sour purplish-black berry) in Shillong 72. Pineapple variant, quite sweet, grown in Shillong and exported to Middle East 71. Kaji Nemu, the long and huge lemon from North East, weighing above 200 grams each 70. Boiled water chestnuts(Singhada) 69.
Wishlist:
Chestnuts, Carandas cherry or Karonda, Soursop, bread fruit, prickly pear, miracle fruit/berry, Aguaje fruit, Jabuticaba, cherimoya, salak, black sapota, Australian finger lime, Akebia, hala/screwpine fruit, Cupuacu, spanish lime, Ciruela, Feijoa, Mamey, Lulo, Monstera Deliciosa, kumquat, Kepel, gac/fuk(Momordica cochinchinensis), Lucuma(Peru), Pacay / Guama (Ice Cream Bean), Feijoa, Cempedak, Langsat, Loquat, Rollinia Deliciosa AKA Birbia, Santol, Yangmei, Longan, Pulasan, Platonia AKA Bacuri, Pitanga AKA Surinam Cherry, Safou, Salmonberry, Star apple, Arbutus unedo, Medlar, Cloudberry, Imbe, Honey berry, Barrel Cactus, Pepino Melon, Pandanus (from the Screw Pine tree), Akebi, Achiote AKA Bixa orellana, Jenipapo, PawPaw Fruit, Sampinit, marang, Babaco, white sapote, Mongongo nut, pine nuts, Melicoccus bijugatus, Phalsa berry, Egg Fruit(Canistel), chokecherry, cranberry, mayhaws, different coloured corn
3. EAT 101 NEW DISHES
1. Rhododendron(an edible flower, and the national flower of Nepal) 2. Ema Datshi (a chilli - cheese dish), the national dish of Bhutan 3. Kewa Datshi(potato - cheese dish) at Bhutan 4. Kaya(green-coloured jam made of eggs, coconut, pandan leaves and sugar, Singapore) 5. Tao Bao (steamed bun with sweet red bean filling, Malaysia) 6. Dim sum(multi-course meal of dumplings, Hong Kong) 7. Black rice porridge (China) 8. Amarula(South African liquor made of Marula fruits, cream and sugar, has a strong vanilla taste, quite expensive) 9. Suja(salted butter tea, Bhutan) 10. French Crepe(in USA) 11. Cendol(Malaysian ice-cream) 12. Plum Tea, Lotus tea, bubble(sago) tea of various flavours(HK) 13. Bean curd(tofu with sweet syrup of red-bean, HK) 14. Black bean soup in breadbowls(Panera, USA) 15. Pretzels - both sweet and savoury, donuts and bagels (USA) 16. Pan cakes with maple syrup(USA) 17. Kada prashad(wheat flour halwa at the golden temple in Amritsar and in Ulsoor gurudwara) 18. Hazelnut-flavoured creamer(thick sweetened milk to add to tea/coffee, USA) 19. Madeleine(shell-shaped, buttery tiny cakes, from France) 20. Butter from France 21. Malaysian flat noodles (vegetarian version) 22. White coffee of Ipoh at Ipoh 23. Teh Tarik(Malaysian pulled tea, made with condensed milk) 24. Fried Tofu in China 25. Sweet potato fries at a casino in Niagara, USA 26. A Buddhist meal in Po Lin monastery, Lantau Island, HK 27. Candied Hawthorne on stick, HK 28. Aubergine Parmigiana, at a restaurant in USA 29. Pineapple bun, HK 30. Turkish Delight, made by a colleague's wife 31. Banoffee cupcakes, baked by a star chef(a Le Cordon Bleu grad) who's also a friend's daughter 32. Croissant - plain and chocolate(pain au chocalat) - from Paris 33. Baguette from Paris 34. Nepali thali in Kathmandu and at tea-houses on the ABC trail, Nepal 35. Baklava, at a turkish baklava outlet in Bengaluru 36.
Indian:
1. Patishapta(Bengali sweet made only during festivals) 2. Pootharekulu(an Andhra sweet) from Hyderabad 3. Gulladaki Unde(a North Karnataka sweet made over 4 days) 4. Chhena Poda(an Oriya sweet) 5. Paan-flavoured petha(at Agra) and other flavours 6. Alu cha fadfada(made of colocasia leaves, Maharashtra) - a wedding(ours) specialty 7. Amrakhand and Anarsa(Maharashtra sweets) 8. Kokum - dried peels, sharbat9. Thoothukudi Macaroons from Thoothukudi 10. Tirunelveli halwa(dripping in ghee) from Tirunelveli 11. Onam sadya - the elaborate Kerala festival meal 12. Mangalore buns(soft, sweet puri made of banana and jaggery) and goli bajji 13. Sooji kakara pitha(festival sweet of Orissa) 14. Sattu paratha and chana-dal puri(dishes from Bihar) 15. Kotthu paratha(Tamil Nadu) 16. Dabeli, fafda and green papaya chutney(Gujrati snacks) 17. Phool makhana(a.k.a fox nuts or lotus seeds) 18. Nuchchina Unde from Karnataka 19. Jhal muri in Calcutta(on a train), with mustard oil, pickle and the works 20. Mawa Kachori, anjeer kalakand and Paneer jalebi (Rajasthani delicacies) 21. Betel-leaf flavoured wine from Coorg 22. Maddur vada from Maddur 23. Ooty varkey from Ooty 24. Hazelnut chocolate and dark chocolate 70% from Ooty(the cacao pods are grown in Ooty) 25. Kumbakonam degree(chicory) coffee in Kumbakonam 26. Mallige Idly in Bengaluru 27. Sabakki idli(sabudana and dill) in Bengaluru 28. Misal pav in Pune 29. Raagi halbai a.k.a raagi manni and rice manni/halbai, in Bengaluru 30. Chhurpi(hard nuggets made of yak milk) from Sikkim 31. Kanchipuram idli at Varadaraja Perumal temple, Kanchipuram 32. Khara sundal prasad at Udupi Sri Krishna temple - unusually delicious 33. Kadubu - the cylindrical, savoury idly 34. Khasi thali in Shillong - rice with bamboo pickle, peppered radishes and more, with everything being quite spicy 35. the famed Lal Chawal(red rice) of Uttarakhand with very high iron content 36. Fig pickle from Uttarakhand 37. Gujrati bhakri - wheat bhakri and bajra bhakri 38. Singhada chaat - boiled water chestnuts with spices 39. Rabdi in Haridwar 40. Salam pak from Gujarat - the winter dessert 41. Ghari, another popular dessert from Gujarat 42. Pundi in Shimoga 43. Awlakki mosru in Shimoga 44. GaNa homa prasada at Hattiangadi Siddhivinayaka temple 45. jackfruit papad 46. Malaiyo followed by badam milk in Varanasi 47. Malai lassi in Varanasi 48. Dry-fruit thandai in Banaras 49. Banaras paan in Varanasi 50. Kachori(a savoury breakfast poori) in Varanasi 51. Banarasi Laal peda in Varanasi 52. Kokum chutney in Pune 53. ALu vadi a.k.a patrode in Pune 54. Sol kadhi(kokum in coconut milk) 55. Dal bafla in Ujjain 56.
4. SEE 101 NATURAL WONDERS OF THE WORLD
101. The Himalayan mountain range - at Munsiyari, the mountains at Auli, the Annapurna range in Nepal 100. Beautiful waterfalls - Hogenakal waterfalls in Tamil Nadu, Gaganchukki and Bharachukki waterfalls near Bangalore, Niagara waterfalls in USA, De Tian waterfalls in China, Nuorilang Falls and Pearl Shoal waterfalls 99. Sinkholes - Belum caves in Andhra Pradesh, Patal Bhuvaneshwar limestone cave temple at Uttarakhand 98. Limestone caves - Batu cave, Gua Tempurang, Perak Tong cave, Ling Sen Tong cave temple(all in Malaysia) 97. Beautiful Lakes of Juizhaigou National Park - Five Colour Pond, Five Flower Lake, Tiger Lake, Panda Lake, Sleeping Dragon Lake, Mirror Lake 96. An estuary - in Pondicherry, connecting the Bay of Bengal to the Chunnambar backwaters 95. Rain columns - in Bangalore 94. Heavy snowfall in Uttarakhand, the first snowfall of the year and in Nepal 93. Hailstorms - in Bangalore and Jhansi 92. Squall - in Agra 91. White-outs - in Nepal 90. The aftermath of an avalanche in Nepal during the ABC trek 89. Mirages - during summer in Jhansi 88. Double rainbows 87. The smiley moon of Dec 1, 2008 86. Earthquakes, in Kittur and Jhansi 85. Meteor shower 84. Stratocumulus clouds 83. Starling murmurations 82. Stalagmites and stalactites in caves 81. Rainbows forming in waterfalls at eye-level and below 80. Hot-water spring at Tapovan near Joshimath in Uttarakhand 79. Algae causing water to appear blue, green and yellow at Juizhaiguo National Park in China 78. A 400-year old banyan tree sprawling over 3 acres, at Kethohalli in Bangalore 77. Hollow granite rocks at Mekedatu by Kaveri river, near Bangalore 76. Land-slides and mud-slides 75. Clear starry skies seen from a high altitude in Uttranchal 74. Beautiful and never-ending snow-covered mountain range all around at the Machchapuchre Base Camp, Nepal 73. seeing the sun and the moon at the same time 72. Living root bridges in Sohra - roots of rubber fig tree encouraged to grow aerially across and form a bridge to the other side of the stream flowing near the trees. the aerial roots are well-supported by other roots growing vertically downwards 71. Mawsmai caves with rain-fed water flowing in streams and collecting in pools all over 70. white rocks at Gangotri 69. sparkling white and very fine sand at Gangotri 68. super-cooled water, i.e water in liquid form when the temperatures dip below zero degree celsius... in Badrinath at minus seven degree celsius 67. Green and brown waters at the prayags in Uttarakhand that do not mix easily 66. water coming out of rocks in a steady stream at Nagateertha in Kodachadri and in Uttarakhand. it's called 'sarai' in Hindi and it is the source of drinking water up in the hills of Uttarakhand 65.
Wishlist: whirlpool in Japan, gorge in Japan, rocky arch in Tirumala, marble rocks of Jabalpur, Loktak lake in Manipur, Lonar crater, Deccan traps, Majuli island(river islands) in Assam, river island in Udupi, the hide-n-seek beach in Orissa, Rann of Kutch, Nelliteertha cave temple, geysers(fly geyser in nevada), Aurora Borealis, light pillars, volcanoes, Antarctica, rainbow coloured bark of trees in Malaysia, rafflesia in Malaysia, fumaroles at yellowstone national park, canyons at arizona, salt flats, dead sea, red wood trees, glaciers, crystal cave in mexico, marble caves, rainbow mountains, ice caves, glowworm caves in nz, giant causeway in ireland, black pink and white sands, lake hillier with blue and pink waters, gas crater in turmenistan, iguazu falls, water flowing under clear ice, waterfalls(Waterfall Island in paraguay), fjords, world's deepest gorge in Nepal, bioluminiscent beaches, black sand, Cone Volcano Paricutin in Michoacán, Mexico
https://nomadparadise.com/underrated-bucket-list-experiences/, La Huasteca Potosina in Mexico, Cenotes of Quintana Roo, Mexico, rain forests of Borneo, ice Cave, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska, USA, Ik-Kil Cenote near Chichen Itza, Mexico, Rainbow Mountain (Montana de Siete Colores), Vinicunca, Cusco Region, Peru, salt flats, Marble Caves in Patagonia, Chile, Petra landscape, Jordan
5. DO A KAILASH PARIKRAMA, TOUCH THE KAILASH PARBAT AND TAKE A DIP IN LAKE MANSAROVAR
6. SEE 21 MOST BEAUTIFUL WATERFALLS IN THE WORLD
1. Niagara Falls, USA 2. De Tian waterfalls, China 3. Hogenakal waterfalls, Tamil Nadu, India 4. Nuorilang Waterfall, Juizhaigou National Park, China 5. Shivanasamudra falls, Karnataka 6. Jog falls, Karnataka 7. Iruppu falls, Coorg, Karnataka 8. Pearl Shoal waterfalls, Juizhaigou National Park, China 9. an unnamed waterfall in Shimoga, Karnataka 10. Abbey falls, Coorg, Karnataka 11. Panda Falls, Juizhaigou National Park, China 12. rain-fed waterfalls everywhere in Meghalaya during monsoon 13. the multiple waterfalls in Garden of Caves in Meghalaya 14.
wishlist: plitvice lakes, iguazu falls, dudhsagar falls
7 - 24. VISIT ALL 18 MAHA SHAKTI PEETHAS
These places and goddesses are mentioned in the Shakthi Peetha Stotram by Adi Shankaracharya:
lankayam shankaridevi... kamakshi kanchikapure (done)
pradyumne shrinkhaladevi... chamunda krounchapattane (done)
alampure jogulamba... srishaile bhramarambika
kolhapure mahalakshmi... mahurye ekaveerika
ujjainyam mahakali(done)... peethikayam puruhutika
odhyane girijadevi... manikya dakshavatike
harikshetre kamarupi (done) ... prayage madhaveshwari
jwalayam vaishnavidevi... gaya mangalyagourika
varanasyam vishalakshi (done)... kashmiretu saraswati
ashtadasha shaktipeethani yoginamapi durlabham
sayankale pathe nityam, sarva-shatru vinashanam
sarvarogaharam divyam sarvasampatkaram shubham
Shaktipeeth:
Maa Sri Vaishnodevi temple on Trikoota hills in Katra J&K, Savadatti Yallamma temple, Badami Sri Banashankari temple, Horanadu Sri Annapoorneshwari temple, Sringeri Sri Sharadamba temple, Kateelu Sri Durga Parameshwari temple, Kolluru Sri Mookambika temple, Sri Mayadevi in Haridwar, Sri Surkanda Devi near Dhanaulti in Uttarakhand, Sri Dhari Devi in Srinagar Uttarakhand, Sri Lalita Mahatripura Sundari in Naimisharanya, Sri Vindhyavasini in Vindhyachal near Varanasi, Sri Harsiddhi Mata in Ujjain
25. VISIT ALL SEVEN CONTINENTS ON EARTH
1. Asia - (India, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Bhutan, Malaysia, Nepal)
2. North America - (USA)
3. South America
4. Europe
5. Australia
6. Africa
7. Antarctica
26. VISIT EVERY STATE AND UNION TERRITORY IN INDIA
1. Karnataka - Bengaluru, Mysore, Coorg, Avani, Dharmasthala, Kukke, Southadaka, Tumkuru, Shravan Belagola, Bandipur, Ramohalli, Srirangapatna, Belur, Kokkre Belluru, Kudala Sangama, Gajanur, Ramnagara, Ranganathittu, Tavarekoppa, Shivamogga, Aihole, Pattadakal, Badami, Udupi, Kateel, Hubli, Dharwad, Belgaum, Kittur, Savadatti, Kolluru, and many more.
2. Tamil Nadu - Chennai, Yercaud, Hogenakal, Kanchipuram, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam
3. West Bengal - Kolkata, Darjeeling, Kalimpong
4. Jammu Kashmir - Jammu, Katra
5. Maharashtra - Pune, Jejuri
6. Punjab - Amritsar
7. Andhra Pradesh - Lepakshi, Kurnool, Tirumala
8. Uttarakhand - Auli, Chitai, Karnaprayag, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Munsiyari, Nainital, Ranikhet, Joshimath, Almora, Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath, Mana, Dhanaulti, Srinagar, Guptkashi, Uttarkashi, Barkot, Dehradun and many more.
9. Delhi UT
10. Pondicherry UT
11. Uttar Pradesh - Jhansi, Agra, Lucknow, Neemsar, Varanasi, Prayagraj
12. Himachal Pradesh - Manali
13. Assam - Guwahati, Kamakhya
14. Telangana - Hyderabad
15. Meghalaya - Shillong, Sohra(cherrapunji), Tyrna, Mawryngkhang
16. Madhya Pradesh - Ujjain, Omkareshwar, Indore
17.
Pending: Goa, Gujarat, Odisha, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Kerala, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Ladakh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra-Nagar Haveli-Daman-Diu, Lakshadweep
27. EAT 21 LOCATION-SPECIFIC POPULAR FOODS WHILE BEING IN THAT LOCATION
-- DONE --
Other countries:
1. Ipoh white coffee at Ipoh(Malaysia) 2. Malaysian flat noodles in Malaysia 3. Ice kachang - a tall, multi-coloured shaved ice dessert with various toppings - in Malaysia 4. Teh tarik, Malaysian pulled tea made with condensed milk, in Malaysia 5. Ema datshi - the national dish of Bhutan - in Bhutan 6. Kewa datshi in Bhutan 7. Suja(salted butter tea) in Bhutan 8. Bean curd in Hong Kong 9. Dim sum in Hong Kong 10. Fried tofu and tomato dish in China. 11. Vegetarian chowmein in China 12. Chinese cucumber salad in China 13. Black rice porridge/congee in China at the airport on my last day there 14. Various noodles in China 15. Kaya jam and kaya toast in Singapore 16. Nepali thali in Nepal 17. Donuts in USA 18.
Indian:
1. Agra petha in Agra - during two separate visits. The pan petha is the very best, closely followed by the orange pumpkin one 2. Dharwad peda in Dharwad 3. Misal pav in Pune 4. Kanchipuram idly in Kanchipuram at the famed Varadaraj Perumal Temple 5. Coorg coffee in Coorg, on a trip with my girl-gang who were also my colleagues 6. degree(chicory) coffee in Kumbakonam at the Sri Mangalambika Vilas coffee house est.1914 attached to the Adi Kumbeshwarar temple 7. out-of-the-world Rosogulla at a very popular eatery in Kolkata 8. jhal muri in Kolkata - churmur with mango pickles in it and heavy with mustard flavour 9. Sugar-cane juice from a jaggery-vat in sugar-cane fields, in Mandya the second highest producer of sugarcane in Karnataka 10. aloo paratha and lassi in Amritsar at the popular Kesar da dhaba 11. Kadha prasad in gurudwaras(golden temple in Amritsar, Ulsoor gurudwara in Bengaluru) 12. The famed pineapples of Meghalaya, at Shillong 13. Assam milk tea and laal saa(red tea) in Guwahati 14. Khasi thali/meal in the khasi-land Meghalaya 15. Bamboo pickle and bamboo vegetable in Meghalaya 16. Paneer and curd in Lucknow(Uttar Pradesh is the largest producer of dairy products) 17. Uttarakhand apples in Uttarakhand. Harshil is a popular apple destination 18. Malaiyo followed by badam milk in Varanasi 19. Malai lassi in Varanasi 20. Banaras paan in Varanasi 21. Kachori(a savoury breakfast poori) in Varanasi 22. Banarasi Laal peda in Varanasi 23. Sol Kadhi in Pune 24. ALoo Vadi(patrode) in Pune 25. Poha in Indore
wishlist:
rava idli and chandrahara in MTR - these dishes were created here, mysuru bonda in mysuru, mysuru pak in mysuru, bisibele bath(dish created in the mysore palace) in mysuru, mysuru masala dosa, french toast in france, veg kolhapuri in kolhapur, davangere benne dose in davangere, mangaluru buns in mangaluru, darjeeling tea in darjeeling, momos in sikkim, bombay ice-halwa and bombay sandwich in bombay, lima beans in lima in peru, cocoa from the pods in south america, vodka in russia, bruschetta in italy, mathura peda in mathura, dhokla, fafda and all other snacks in gujrat, croissants macaroons and other pastries in france, pizzas and baked goods in italy, desserts and fruits and vegetables of different countries, eat multi-coloured corn, amritsari kulcha in amritsar, kashmiri naan and chai in kashmir, chiroti from konkan area, sweet pongal from tamil nadu
28. PET 21 ANIMALS
-- DONE --
1. Red-eared slider(turtle) - a beautfiul house pet 2. Mongoose - a rescue at Dharmasthala 3. An elephant and it's calf at Bandipur National Park 4. Shih Tzu - a friend's house pet 5. Neighbour's labrador puppy Brownie, and a blind, senior white labrador 6. cows and calves at the downstairs cattle-pen 7. goats and kids at an aunt's house 8. horses at my school 9. cats and kittens 10. the tiny/pygmy cows at Vadanbailu 11. feeding bananas to an elephant at Dharmasthala 12. Kanna, a friend's very heavy pug 13. a black mountain dog and a sweet black puppy during ABC trek in Nepal 14. a cat at the double-root bridge coffee shop that came to sit with me during a tea break 15. the three polite dogs at the double-root bridge that i hand-fed pooris to 16. the other dog on the double-root bridge trail who asked to be petted when i sat down for a while 17. a kid at kamakhya temple 18. the adorable dog at the Ananda Bhairava temple in Haridwar 19. the calf at Naimisharanya Lalita Devi temple 20. a black street dog outside my apartment 21. a beautiful black cow that walked up to me in Shimoga
29. EXPERIENCE 21 DIFFERENT TERRAINS
21. Snow-covered mountains(ABC trek, Nepal) - crunchy, powdery snow that's a delight to walk on, and hardened, slippery snow that's more of a nightmare.
20. Wet sandy beaches(Chennai) and sandy, shallow ocean floor
19. Wet clay soil on riverbanks and ponds in villages - sticky and your feet just sinks and your footwear gets stuck
18. hill cut and smoothened into a flat-land at the Jejuri temple. it felt very smooth and pleasantly cold to walk on
17. Moss-covered, slippery riverbanks
16. Rocky surface of hills, also when it gets wet and slippery and dangerous(savanadurga, avani)
15. hanging bridges made of steel(Nepal), of ropes, of bamboo, of wood, of living roots of trees(double root bridge in Meghalaya)
14. the bottoms of caves, smoothened by flowing water
13. (walking barefoot on)13kms of pavement for Vaishnodevi yatra... and suffering blisters afterwards..
12. White, glittery, soft and very fine sand on river banks in Uttarakhand especially at Gangotri
11. super soft and fine sand at the bottom of the river, at Prayagraj during the Mahakumbh mela 2025
10. rocky bottom of the clear Narmada river in Omkareshwar.. the rocks were all smoothened out
9.
wishlist: floating island of loktak, salt flats, white stairs in Italy, volcanic ash, black sand, pink and white sands, deserts
30. FAST FOR THREE DAYS, i.e FOR SEVENTY TWO HOURS
31. EXPERIENCE 21 DIFFERENT TRANSPORTATIONS
21. A double-decker airplane
20. Double-decker train, the Caltrain in USA
19. Double-decker trams for local-transportation in HK
18. Funicular trams - trams that go up a hill at a steep angle - The Peak Tram in HK to visit Victoria Peak and the Penang Hill Railway, Malaysia
17. Hop-on-hop-off tourist trams in Niagara State Park and Jurong Bird park
16. Battery-operated buggy at the Bangalore railway station
15. Rope-ways in HK Ocean Park, Auli Uttarakhand and the 5.7km long gondola-ride to Lantau Island in HK
14. Inflatable raft in Bangalore, at a lake
13. Barges in Singandoor, Dakshin Karnataka
12. Motorised boats and ferries in HK and Guwahati
11. coracles at Hogenakal falls TN and Shivasamudra falls in Karnataka
10. bamboo raft at the DeTian falls in China
9. Mono-rails between airports in Germany, local commute in Malaysia
8. Bullet Train a.k.a High Speed Trains in China
7. LRTs, the Light Rail Transit which is an automated single or twin car rails in Singapore. There's one that goes in a loop.
6. MRTs, the manned and unmanned Mass Rapid Transit(metro) in Singapore, HK, Delhi, Bangalore. In the unmanned ones in Singapore, you can stand right at the front or rear window.
5. Horse back from Katra town to Vaishnodevi ji darbar, and at Kedarnath
4. motorized cycle rickshaw at Guwahati
3. a beautiful wooden bus, the city bus of Shillong
2.
1.
Wishlist: water taxis, amphibian buses that go on land and in water, electric bikes, air boat, micro-light airplanes, seaplane, helicopter, submarine, blimp, satellite :), ice-breaker ships, ice-road trucks, sled, toytrains and narrow-gauge trains of India, yak and camel backs, hot air balloons, speed boats, gyrocopter
32. GO ON 21 BEAUTIFUL HIKES AND TREKS
1. Vaishnodevi Yatra - on foot and horse-back, 16kms each way
2. Annapurna Base Camp, Nepal over 8 days
3. Hike to Tiger's Nest Monastery, Paro, Bhutan. Took 5 hours.
4. Hike up the hill to Tango Monastery, Bhutan
5. Hike to the National Museum, Paro, Bhutan - a steep 3km uphill
6. Savandurga hill, near Bangalore, as part of office outing.
7. Day trip and hike up Avani hill with bobo, near Bangalore
8. Shravana Belagola, near Bangalore - climb up a hill face
9. Hike to Rayakottai, a fort on a hill near Bangalore
10. Hike to Skandagiri, near Bangalore
11. Hike up Ten Thousand Buddhas monastery, Pai Tau Village, HK
12. Hike to the double bridge made of living roots of trees, at Tyrna in Meghalaya - a whopping total of 6,500 stairs
13. Hike to the bamboo bridge in Mawryngkhang in Meghalaya
14. A short, beautiful hike to the Mahadev Khola dhaam, Shillong
15. A 6km round-trip, half-way hike to Yamunotri in Uttarakhand
16. The 3km uphill at Kodachadri to Sarvagnya peetha
17. The 7.5km hike during Omkareshwar Parikrama
18.
Wishlist: The Inca trail, desert walks, stairway to heaven in hawaii, walkway in switzerland, Mt.Bromo in Indonesia, Girnar Dattatreya temple, Taishan Mountain in China
33. SEE 21 DIFFERENT KINDS OF PLANTATIONS
21. Arecanut plantation in Chikmagalur 20. Coffee plantation in Coorg 19. Eucalyptus tree plantation in Kittur 18. marigold fields on the outskirts of Bengaluru 17. chickoo orchards in Bengaluru 16. Grape vineyards on the outskirts of Bengaluru 15. sugarcane fields in north karnataka 14. Lemon plantation on the outskirts of Chennai, owned by a colleague's family. The farm had plenty of snakes too. 13. rose plantation in e-ctiy 12. Apple orchards in Uttarakhand, at Harshil 11. a cabbage patch in Mana, Uttarakhand 10. mustard fields between Prayagraj and Varanasi 9. Tea plantation during Bhutan trip 8. Wheat fields in Ujjain and Omkareshwar, where the crop was about 1-1.5 feet tall 7. Spinach fields in Ujjain 6. Coriander fields in Ujjain 5.
34. GO ON 21 FUN TRIPS WITH BOBO
1. 3-day trip to Kanchipuram 2. 3-day trip to Vadanbailu and Jog falls 3. 5-day trip to Bhutan 4. weekend trip to Dharmasthala, Kukke and Southadaka 5. day trip/drive to Shravan Belagola 6. Weekend trip to Kudala Sangama, Aihole and Pattadakallu 7. day trip to Rayakottai, TN 8. day trip to Avani 9. weekend trip to Dharwad and Saudatti Yallamma temple 10. day trip to Khandoba Malhar Martand trip, Jejuri near Pune(jan 2024) 11. day trip to shirkoli mata temple on a hill on the outskirts of Pune 12. day trip to Tumkur matha 13. day trip to Yediyur Siddhalingeshwara temple(Jan 2025) 14.
35. WATCH 21 MOVIES WITH BOBO
1. John Wick 4 2. The Sea Beast 3. Soul 98. Ferdinand
4. Glass Onion 5. Extra Ordinary - putting the normal in paranormal.
6. Encanto 7. The Box - animated short movie 8. Logan Lucky
9. Sweet Cocoon - animated short movie 10. Godzilla minus one
11. Gnome - animated short movie 12. Thor - Love and Thunder
13. Shang Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings 14. Dr.Dolittle 2
15. The Lost City 16. Free Guy 17. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
18. Rings of Power - season 1 19. Leo - animated full length movie 20.
36. VISIT 21 COUNTRIES
1. Hong Kong(2009) 2. Singapore(2013) 3. USA(2013) 4. Malaysia(2014) 5. China(2015) 6. Bhutan(2016) 7. Nepal(2017) 8.
wishlist: thailand, bali in indonesia, japan, china again, tibet, nepal again, italy, sweden, australia, new zealand, canada, wadi rum and dead sea in jordan, switzerland, iceland, norway, croatia, argentina, iguazu falls in brazil
37. GO ON 21 LONG RIDES BY MYSELF ON MY BIKE
38. SPENT A YEAR PERFECTING ONE SKILL EACH MONTH
2025
wishlist: Python, Data Analytics, 2 whlr, roller blades, marathi, punjabi, full splits, perfect 100 dishes, write a book, write poems, progress on all the pending life goals, stitch clothes, paint faces, geometric rangoli
39. BE GRATEFUL FOR 21 LIFE-CHANGING PEOPLE AND EVENTS
1. grateful for dad's job that allowed us to travel all over the country, attend different schools, and learn so much more
2. grateful that my dad was so loving and kind
3. grateful that my mom has been so grounded and religious
4. grateful for getting hired soon after college, the year y2k bug had caused an upheaval in the IT industry
5. grateful for oracle and the opportunities it provided
6. grateful for a loving and a smart husband
7. grateful for non-intrusive in-laws
8. grateful for tinnu the turtle for all the emotional fulfillment
9. grateful for sandhya to keep me on track with my SriVidya practice
10. grateful for sharada didi for offering me a spot on the chandi homa in kollur, in 2024
11. grateful for being able to practise SriVidya sadhana
10. grateful for my friends from school who keep me socially active
11. grateful for supportive friends at different stages of life - neighbours, cousins, school friends, college friends, colleagues et al
12. grateful for two dear friends from school for being my pillar of strength during school-days - shilpa a.g and veena tuppad
13. grateful for the beautiful rented home bobo and i live in and have great neighbours, it's been so much fun
14. sharada di took me along on a weeklong trip to Shimoga, 2025
15. sandhya master-minded our trip to Mahakumbh 2025 and made all the arrangements. without her initiative, i would have never attended the Mahakumbh
16. the lone sadhu that appeared to help me climb a long flight of stairs during Omkareshwar parikrama
17. two sadhus from Maharashtra that walked me through the final stretch of the Omkareshwar parikrama
18. the young guy who gave me a ride to Karkeshwar Mahadev temple at Ujjain with the Tropic of Cancer marker, when I stopped him to ask for directions... the temple was quite far and the way to it didn't look inviting
19.
40. DONATE MONEY TO 101 CAUSES
1. Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra for building the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. Feb 2021 (my largest donation ever!)
2: Sewa Nyaya Utthan foundation for their ongoing social causes. Jan 2021. 3. Tumkur Sri Siddaganga Matha Dasoha. Mar 2021
4. Agniveer for setting up Vedic Aashrams. Apr 2021 5. Dasna Devi Mandir preservation. Apr 2021 6. Dakshin Vrindavan Trust, a cow shelter and retirement home. May 2021 7. Medical expenses of a needy boy from Melukote. May 2021 8. Koppal Jathre Dasoha, Jan 2022 9. Kamadhenu Gowshala and Foundation, for sustenance. Apr 2022 10. Bhooseva at Kateel Durga Parameshwari temple, May 2022 11. Gau Nandi Sewa Hospital, May 2022 12. Notebooks for school-going children of Tamil Nadu, Jun 2022 13. Kamadhenu Gowshala and Foundation, for sustenance. Jul 2022 14. Shri Navkar Sarvar Kendra, sponsored a few free medical kits for lumpy skin disease in cows, Sep 2022 15. Annadana Sewa, Sri Vadanbailu Padmavati Devi Temple. May 2023 16. Sri Vidya Learning Centre to setup SriVidya Jnaana Peetham in Kanchipuram. Jul 2023 17. Sewa Nyaya Utthan foundation for their ongoing social causes. Dec 2023. 18. Ugra Narasimha charitable trust for restoration of Avanamkulam Subrahmanya temple in Malappuram, Jan 2024 19. Annadana sewa to Mahamate Sri Vadanbailu Padmavati ammana temple, Jan 2024 20. Visamo Tiffin Seva by Rakesh Panchal, for feeding elderly people, Jan 2024 21. Dakshin Vrindavan Trust, for upkeep of cows Jan 2024 22. Koppal matha for resident students' welfare Jan 2024 23. Tumkur Sri Siddaganga Matha dasoha Jan 2024 24. Nidagundi Koppa Matha for Jatre, Jan 2024 25. Chaturshringi Devasthan jirnodhar Feb 2024 26. Temple restoration of Veerabhadra Swamy sametha Bhadrakali Amman at Uthiramerur, 20km from Kanchi Kamakshi Amman Temple. Feb 2024 27. Kamadhenu Gowshala and Foundation, Mar 2024 28. Anna-dana during opening ceremony of Veerabhadra Swamy sametha Bhadrakali Amman at Uthiramerur, 20km from Kanchi Kamakshi Amman Temple. Mar 2024 29. Mission Antyodaya Goraksha Charitable Trust, for fodder for cows. Mar 2024 30. Dakshin Vrindavan Trust and gowshala, Apr 2024 31. Annadana for devotees at Shantidham temple complex during Chaitra Navratri, Apr 2024 32. Gau Nandi Sewa Trust - sponspored medicine for skin-burns in cows, May 2024 33. Annadana Seva at ISKCON Bengaluru, June 2024 34. The Leprosy Mission Trust India, July 2024 35. Annadana Sewa at Saibaba temple Bannerghatta Road, Sep 2024 36. Swami Vivekananda orphanage Bengaluru, Oct 2024 37. Building Ram temple at Yamunotri foothills, Oct 2024 38. Dakshin Vrindavan Trust for looking after abandoned cows, Nov 2024 39. College fee assistance to a speech and hearing impaired girl in Bengaluru, Nov 2024 40. A priest's liver transplant operation, on Twitter. Dec 2024 41. Sewa Nyaya Utthan foundation for their ongoing social causes. Dec 2024 42. Annadana seva at Ayyappa Swamy temple, Bilekhalli. Dec 2024 43. Dakshin Vrindavan Trust for Lumpy Skin Disease medical assistance for cows, Jan 2025 44. Dasoha at Yediyuru Siddhalingeshwara temple, Jan 2025 45. Mahakumbh Annadana via Akshay Patra, Feb 2025 46. Prasada Bhojana, Sri Rama Durgamba Seva Samithi Varadahalli near Shimoga - a 1000 year old temple and Valmiki cave. Feb 2025 47.
41. LEARN 101 USEFUL THINGS FOR FREE
101. Certificate of Participation from Amnesty International in 'Digital Security and Human Rights' - to be showcased on my resume. 100. Made a variety of pickles by following YouTube videos. 99. Learnt to cut my hair in layers. Cut my own hair and Bobo's hair several times during Covid 98. Several dishes 97. AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner CLF-C01 via AWS SheDares program 96. Sri Devi Khadgamala deeksha from Sivapremananda Self-Realization Centre Bengaluru 95. Shiva mantra deeksha from Sivapremananda Self-Realization Centre Bengaluru 94. Mahakali Mahamantra deeksha from SSRC Bengaluru 93. Dattatreya mantra deeksha from SSRC Bengaluru 92. Digital Marketing by GUVI HCL Tech 93. Canva essentials from an online class by Zinmatt org 92.
42. READ THE BHAGAVAD GEETA
43. LEARN SRI VIDYA SADHANA
a. Complete practising levels 1 to 7 for two months each -- done
b. Learn all the advanced level sadhanas -- 1 pending
c. Learn Lalita Sahasranama -- pending
d. Learn Lalita Trishati -- pending
e. Learn Soundarya Lahari -- pending
44. DOCUMENT 21 LUNCH PRASADA AT TEMPLES
-- DONE --
1. Tumkur Siddaganga Matha 2. Dharmasthala Manjunatha temple 3. Kukke Subramanya Temple 4. Gorvanahalli Mahalakshmi temple 5. Kateelu Durga Parameshwari Temple 6. Golden temple at Amritsar(dinner and morning tea) 7. Koppal matha 8. Nidagundi Koppa Matha, with a baby deer hanging around. 9. Banashankari Ammana Temple in Bangalore 10. Vadanbailu Padmavati Ammana temple at Vadanbailu in Shimoga(breakfast, lunch and dinner, sweet milk tea in the morning and sweet milk tea in the evening) 11. Thirumeyachur Lalitambika temple 12. Sai baba temple on Post Office Road, Bannerghatta, Bangalore 13. Kamakhya Mata Mandir, Kamakhya near Guwahati in Assam 14. Lunch at the Sivapremananda Self-Realization Centre in Bengaluru 15. Shivaganga temple 16. Sri Mookambika temple in Kollur 17. Yediyur Siddhalingeshwara temple 18. Singandoor Sri Chowdeshwari temple 19. Hattiangadi Sri Siddhivinayaka Devasthana 20. Haranahalli Sri Siddhalingeshwara Matha 21. Ujjain Sri Mahakaal temple 22.
wholesome prasada after darshan at:
1. Venkateshwara temple at Tavarkere road, Bengaluru - a different dish each day 2. ISKCON temple in Bengaluru 3. Ganesha Temple in Koramangala, Bengaluru - piping hot halwa 4. Golden temple in Amritsar - kada prashad dripping with ghee served directly into your palms (also getting served glucon-d water instead of plain water in summer) 5. Bawe Wali Mata Mahakali Mandir in Jammu (halwa prasada by temple and lunch by devotees) 6. Sai baba temple at Bannerghatta road, Bengaluru 7. Thirumeyachur Lalitambika temple - sweet pongal dripping in ghee, and savoury rice 8. Udupi Sri Krishna temple - sundal with sugar 9. Sivapremananda Self-Realization Centre in Bengaluru 10. A wholesome birthday party treat at Mrs.Annapurna's home where Bala, bala Ganapati and bala Krishna live - 3 gulab jamuns, a piece of the birthday cake, popcorn, potato chips, masala buttermilk, laddu, sweet pongal 11. Ulsoor gurudwara - fruit bowl with ice-cream 12. Dhari devi temple in Uttarakhand - thick white poha with sweet bits in it 13. Hanumanji temple in Rishikesh - two motichoor laddu and tons of sweet boondi 14. Hanuman Chatti on the way to Badrinath - sweet boondi 15. Swamy Ayyappa temple in Vijaya Bank Layout, Bengaluru 16. Gad Kalika mandir in Ujjain 17.
45. EAT 21 WHOLE JACKFRUITS WITH BOBO
1. April 27th, 2024 2. May 12th, 2024 3. June 16th, 2024
4. July 6th, 2024 5. July 7th, 2024 6. July 13th, 2024 7.
46. VISIT 108 TEMPLES AND SHRINES THAT ARE MORE THAN A 100 YEARS OLD (2024 onwards)
1. Khandoba temple in Jejuri near Pune. Built in the 12th century.
-- Feb 2024
2. Shri Vitthal Rukmini Mandir a.k.a Prati Pandharpur in Vitthalwadi, Pune. Built in 1765. Every year, the Vaari, pilgrimage by foot by thousands of people to Pandharpur, starts from this temple. -- Feb 2024
3. Trishunda Mayureshwar Ganapati temple in Pune. Built in 1770.
-- Feb 2024
4. Kasbapeth Ganapati temple in Pune, built in 1630 by Jijabai, Shivaji Maharaj's mother -- Feb 2024
5. Shri Mookambika temple in Kollur. Built and established in the 8th century by Shri Adi Shankaracharya. -- May 2024
6. Ugratara Temple in Guwahati, built in 1725 by Ahom kings -- Jul 2024
7. Kamakhya temple in Guwahati, built earlier than 1565 -- Jul 2024
8. Mahadev Khola dham in Shillong, 150 years old, it has a cave that connects to Kamakhya temple in Guwahati. -- Aug 2024
9. Mayadevi temple and Ananda Bhairava mandir in Haridwar, build in the 11th century -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
10. Lakhamandal Shiva temple near Barkot and Yamunontri in Uttarakhand, 5,000 years old -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
10. Har Ki paudi and Ganga devi temple in Haridwar - Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
11. Daksha Mahadev temple in Haridwar - Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
12. Bharat Mandir, a.k.a Hrishikesh Narayan temple, in Rishikesh -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
13. Raghunath temple and pond in Rishikesh -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
14. Kedarnath temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
15. Badrinath temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
16. Guptkashi Vishwanath temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
17. Maa Gangotri temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
18. Hanuman Chatti temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
19. Dhari Devi temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
20. Surkanda devi temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
21. Spatik mahadev temple in Badrinath -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
22. Shri Mata Lalita Devi Shaktipeeth in Naimisharanya near Lucknow, UP -- Oct 2024
23. Hanuman Gadhi temple in Naimisharanya -- Oct 2024
24. Gaurikund temple in Kedarnath -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
25. TriyugiNarayan temple in Uttarakhand -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
26. GhantaKarna temple in Mana near Badrinath -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
27. Taposthali Sri Vishwakarma gufa in Mana near Badrinath -- Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
28. Vishnu Narayan mandir at Vishnu Prayag in Uttarakhand - Oct 2024 during YHAI Char dham yatra
29. Ikkeri Sri Aghoreshwara temple - Jan 2025 trip with Sharada di
30. Yediyuru Sri Siddhalingeshwara temple - Jan 2025
31. Varadahalli Sri Rama Durga temple and cave, about a 1000 yrs old - Jan 2025 trip with Sharada di
32. Singandooru Sri Chowdeshwari temple - Jan 2025 trip with Sharada di
33. Hattiangadi Sri Siddhivinayaka temple, 8th century - Jan 2025 trip with Sharada di
34. Kashi Vishwanath temple - Feb 2025 during Mahakumbh
35. Vishalakshi temple in Varanasi - Feb 2025 during Mahakumbh
36. Vindhyanchal Sri Vindyavasini temple - Feb 2025 during Mahakumbh
37. Gufa wali Kali mata temple in Vindhyanchal - Feb 2025, Mahakumbh
38. Someshwar Mahadev mandir in Prayagraj - Feb 2025, Mahakumbh
39. Sri Chakra Madhav mandir in Prayagraj - Feb 2025, Mahakumbh
40.
47. DO OMKARESHWAR PARIKRAMA
-- DONE --
13th Mar 2025 on Vasant Panchami Poornima
48. DO GOVARDHAN PARIKRAMA
49. TRAVEL THIRTY DAYS EACH YEAR TILL 2030
2024 -- EXCEEDED (Pune 3x, Kolluru, Guwahati, Meghalaya Monsoon trek, Chardham yatra, Haridwar and Naimisharanya)
2025 -- (20 days) 1 day to Yediyuru, 8 days to Shimoga, 5 days to Mahakumbh mela, 6 days to Ujjain and Omkareshwar,
50. TAKE MY NEPHEWS OUT ON 21 FUN PICNICS
51. DRINK BHAANG
52. WALK THE INCA TRAIL
53. VISIT IGUAZU FALLS
54. VISIT THE PLITVICE LAKES
55. SEE THE NORTHERN LIGHTS - AURORA BOREALIS
56. SEE A LIVE VOLCANO
57. FLOAT IN THE DEAD SEA
58. TAKE A DIP IN ICY WATERS
59. WALK ON FIRE
60. TOUCH LAVA
61. HOLD A BUSH BABY(JUMPING GALAGOS)
62. HOLD MEXICAN JUMPING BEANS
63. SOLVE THE RUBIK'S CUBE
64. SWIM IN AN OCEAN
65. WRITE BOOKS
66. SELL A 100 PRODUCTS
ideas: 1. a wooden hollow square to go behind sofas and beds to provide meaningful gap towards the wall, 2. protein bar for sprouted beans in chat form and sattu drinks 3. 3D sticker sheets on plain doors to look like carved ones 4.
67. HAVE A PERFECT SET OF TEETH
68. DO A FULL SPLIT
69. BINGE-READ 101 BOOKS IN A SINGLE YEAR
70. TAKE 101 MOST BEAUTIFUL PHOTOS
71. VISIT ANTARCTICA
72. LEARN AND DOCUMENT THREE ROLLER BLADE TRICKS
73. SPEND A YEAR DOCUMENTING EVERYTHING I EAT
74. SET UP A BEAUTIFUL, FOREVER HOME
75. DO A CHAPPAN BHOG(ANNAKOOT) WITH BOBO
76. GET A MASTER'S DEGREE IN A FUN, USEFUL SUBJECT
77. COMPLETE ONE 365-DAY CREATIVE CHALLENGE
78. SOAK IN A BUBBLE BATH TILL ALL FINGER-TIPS GO HORRIBLY WRINKLY, TAKE FUN PRINTS OF FINGER TIPS
79. GET CURLS IN MY HAIR
80. SPEND A YEAR TALKING TO A DIFFERENT PERSON EACH DAY FOR AN UPWARD OF FIVE MINUTES, ENDING WITH HAVING SPOKEN TO 365 DIFFERENT PEOPLE AT THE END OF THE YEAR.
start date: Jul 21, 2024. end date: Jul 20, 2025
1. Sivapremananda Guruji, my guru 2. Patel aunty from Gujarat at SSRC who was travelling with her son for the Guru Purnima meet 3. Vijayalakshmi, the artist lady, at SSRC 4. two ladies who've been sadhaks for more than a decade, met them at SSRC in Dec and had the good fortune to give them a ride 5. Sandhya, a dear friend 6. Sharada di, a dear friend and a school senior 7. Ambika Tanaya, the new office person at SSRC, the one who replaces Ananth 8. Dr. Varsha at the SSRC 9. Manjula's mom at SSRC 10. Dr. Prashant (Homeo doc) and his wife at SSRC
11. Krishnappa ji, our watchman 12. Smita, neighbour 13. Vaishnavi - Smita's daughter 14. Gopa, Smita's husband 15. Janita - neighbour 16. Manjula akka - neighbour 17. Sharada akka - neighbour 18. Manjula akka's elder sister who's name i am yet to find out even after 7 yrs here :( 19. Manjula akka's mom 20. Mani's mom 21. Sunanda aunty - neighbour 22. Sunanda aunty's mother who's always delighted to see me 23. Manjula akka's neice 24. Pal uncle 25. Radha aunty, when she came back from visiting her daughter's family in the US
26. mom 27. Sharakka, my cousin sister 28. kummu, my nephew 29. Vaibhav - my cute nephew 30. Deepakka, my sister-in-law and Vaibhav's mom
31. The couple on the boat going around Umananda in Guwahati 32. the elderly priest at the Ugra Tara temple in Guwahati, who saw me waiting for the evening aarti, got me a chair, put it under the fan, turned on the fan and talked to me for a while to make me comfortable 33. An old shopkeeper at Kamakhya, who i bought red sandal from, when asked gave me a bunch of information on rudrakshas. he went into a trance like state talking about it and we had a real guru-pupil moment 34. the kerala guy who was in the queue with me for Kamakhya darshan.. who lived and worked in Dispur, working on water treatment plants on contract 35. the group of men from Karnataka who were in the same queue... returning from a tour to north-east and visiting Kamakhya on their last day of the trip 36. the girl from Hyderabad at the Chinnamasta temple who was with me in the queue, and we talked like there was no tomorrow 37. the family at Mahadev Khola dham in Shillong, who guided me to the main gate and told me where to catch a taxi from
38. Mamta, a doctor from Bengluru, at the YHAI trip to Meghalaya.. hung out with her a bit on the first day 39. Poorna, Mamta's daughter and a doctor herself 40. Pragnya, Mamta's son 41. Geeta and her daughter Anupreetha from Pune, on the YHAI trip 42. Suraj, a film-maker from Mumbai, on the YHAI trip 43. Kiran, a freelance fitness coach from Bengaluru, on the YHAI trip 44. Sugandha from Gujrat, who works at LIC, at the YHAI trip 45. Rita from Gujrat, who also works at LIC, at the YHAI trip 46. Manoj from Kashi, at the YHAI trip 47. Maya, from Chennai who works with a company to reduce environmental impacts of modernisation 48. Trupti - a beautiful, brainy and fun girl from Mumbai - who runs a Chess coaching centre with her husband 49. Vidushi from Pune, a sweet software engineer with Accenture 50. Anmol and Anjali from North India on the YHAI trip 51. Debashish from YHAI, who organised the trip and rather poorly 52. Bhupendar Solanki uncle from Gujarat, ex-SBI and the oldest person at 74yrs, at the YHAI trip 53. Solanki uncle's friend from Gujarat, 72 yrs old, at the YHAI trip 54. Rakesh from Indore, a very confrontational person and his wife, at the YHAI trip 55. Shreyans from Gujrat, a coconut trader and our team leader. 56. Dapmain, the eternally cheerful guide#2 on the YHAI trek who counted us in his mother-tongue in an endearing manner 57. Bhaswati from Kolkata at the YHAI trip 58. Tasu, a 72-year old lady who was also from Kolkata and Bhaswati's friend 59. Shubhangi, a dental surgeon with a great sense of humour from Assam, I met on the trail to the double-decker bridge. we took photos together and shared numbers 60. Garo, our YHAI trek guide who introduced us to the Sol Nongam fruits on the tree, showed us how to eat them and left us to it 61. the girl in red and her girl-gang, at the double root-bridge.. she sold tupperware and got sent on a vacation along with some of her customers. she was in a group of girls who either sold tupperware or were the customers 62. two guys on the double root-bridges trail who were a part of 55 member group from an electric products company in Kolkata, on an office-sponsored trip.. who offered to carry my bagpack 63. Baskhem, the young owner of Goshen homestay.. very insightful and always ready to help 64. the energetic girl manager of Latei inn at Shillong.. very sweet 65. stephan rongpei, the sweet wizride driver from shillong to guwahati.. went out of his way to ensure i reached the airport on time 66. the two girls, my co-passengers from shillong to guwahati who were going to delhi and bagdogra respectively 67. a lady at the guwahati airport, quite worried as her flight got extremely delayed and it was her first time flying by herself.. she felt better after venting to me 68. the guide in the blue tee, who stayed by my side during the bamboo bridge trek in Meghalaya, and kept encouraging me to go further.. we shared a paratha i was carrying, at the view point
69. ashutosh - the spouse. 70. mother-in-law 3. father-in-law 71. Juee - my sister-in-law 72. Sudesh ji, Juee's husband 73. Harsh - Juee's son 74. FIL's first nurse, a spiritual lady at Pune 75. Neeta, FIL's second nurse, at Pune 76. Atharva, at Pune 77. Surekha aunty(astro aunt) at Pune 78. Vaidehi, Atharva's wife, at Pune 79. Nandu mama at Pune 80. Nandu mama's wife(mami) at Pune 81. Prajwal, Nandu mama's son 82. Shekhar mama at Pune 83. Shekhar mama's wife 84. Deeksha at Pune 85. Vitthal at Pune 86. Mushi at Pune 87. Supriya at Pune 88. Arnav, Supriya's older son 89. Ayansh, Supriya's younger son 90. Aai, Ashutosh's grandmother 91. Juee's physiotherapist friend who had earlier tended to Aai 92. Priest during FILs pooja 93. Priest of the Sai Baba temple at Ashutosh's apartment complex in Pune 94. Random relatives during FILs final rites 95. the very chatty pooja store-keeper at Pune 96. the very chatty pooja store-keeper#2 at Pune 97. Aai's sister-in-law 98. A snacks shopkeeper who Juee me introduced to 99. dr.Nisarga who visits Ashutosh's parents, in Pune 100. the photo studio guy who printed FILs photos
101. Chandana - sharada di's daughter in law, during the Satyanarayana pooja at their place 102. Mallesh ji - sharada di's husband 103. Sharada di's son Vikram who runs a furniture store 104. Chandana's mother 105. Chandana's father 106. Surekha - another guest at the pooja 107. Surekha ji's chatty husband 108. cab driver to yelahanka - discussing traffic-spots and the onboarding process for cab drivers 109. gururaj, Sharada di's brother 110. Soumya, gururaj's wife 111. Tanay and Ruhika, Sharada di's nephew and neice 112. Sagar, Soumya's brother 113. Sumangala akka, Sharada di's relative 114. Mallikarjun, Sumangala akka's son 115. Halamma, Sharada di's relative 116. Bindu, Sharada di's relative 117. Two women from Dudni at the Deepotsava 118. the lady at Hattiangadi lunch hour who told me the recipe of GaNa homa prasada 119. the well-muscled priest at Aghoreshwara temple 120. priest at Kodachadri temple 121. Kiran, the driver and guide at kodachadri 122. Prashant, the driver and guide to kodachadri and kollur 123. Asif, the driver at Haranahalli who also experienced the electric shock coming from my car 124. Nagesh, the artist who drew rangoli beautifully in front of the Haranhalli matha and we connected on instagram too
125. Revati, a school friend 126. Padma, a school friend 127. Rajeshwari, a school friend 128. Vinuta, a school friend 129. Smita D, a school friend 130. Lata, a school friend 131. Sucharita, a school friend 132. Akshata, a school friend 133. Sindhu, a school friend 134. Seema Patil - my best friend from school 135. Ashwini, a school friend visiting from Pune at a group breakfast meet
136. Anoop from the FB book exchange group 137. the girl I met at Decathlon during the fire drill there 138. Juee's baker friend in Pune 139. Sahana, an engg student I met at TiE event in IISc, Bengaluru 140. Shruti, founder of NutriCastle, at TiE event in IISc, Bengaluru 141. Prof.Varma at the TiE event 142. An elderly lady flower-vendor at Yediyur who cried telling me someone bought Rs.200 worth of flowers, made a UPI payment but that money didn't really reach her
143. Dina Trivedi during Chardham trip 144. Prashant Trivedi, Dina aunty's husband 145. Avinash from Mysuru during Chardham trip 146. Rakesh during Chardham trip 147. Nandan Jaiswal, our Chardham trip co-ordinator 148. Raju bhaiyya, the cook on the Chardham trip 149. Samiksha who works with FCI on the chardham trip 150. Deepa from shimoga, on Chardham trip 151. Ravindra ji, Deepa's husband 152. the lovely Kannada priest at the Mayadevi temple in Haridwar 153. the priests at the Ram temple in Yamunotri 154. Vicky Sharma, the cab driver to Triyuginarayan temple 155. Shashikant Sharma, the cab driver to Naimisharanya 156. the Delhi/Uttarakhand couple in the ropeway ride to Surkanda devi 157. Ketan(Modi) uncle during chardham trip 158. Neeraj from Mumbai, during Chardham trip 159. Ram More from Mumbai, during Chardham trip 160. shopkeepers in Uttarakhand 161. Dev Sharan Dubey ji - the touring-pandit who was enroute to Triyuginarayan and shared number of Naimisharanya Lalita Devi temple pandit ji 162. the Haridwar cab-driver who ferried me to Surkanda devi 163. the girl I shared my train coupe cabin with, on the train from Haridwar to Lucknow
164. Tara, Manjula's aunt at Mahakumbh 165. Subbu ji, the Indian Yoga Association head of Karnataka during Mahakumbh 166. Rajesh from Mangalore, fellow traveller Mahakumbh 167. Sandhya, Rajesh's sister and fellow traveller, Mahakumbh 168. Ratna from Alandi and Bangalore and works with Oracle, fellow traveller Mahakumbh 169. Ashok, fellow traveller Mahakumbh 170. Annapurna, an old lady and yoga enthusiast at Mahakumbh 171. Soharab, driver at Mahakumbh 172. Shantala, colleague from Tata Infotech 173. a sadhu at the Juna Akhada, Mahakumbh 174. Priyanka, fellow traveller at Mahakumbh 175. a couple at Varanasi airport who graciously accepted my water-bottle to carry Ganga jal 176. Veena, the dermatologist 177. Shanti, the dermatologist's assistant 178. Keerthi, the dentist 179. a fellow traveller girl at Mahakumbh to who I talked about braces 180. Ashish, the guide at Varanasi 181. the driver from Varanasi to Prayagraj 182. Padmaja, a fellow traveller from JP nagar at Mahakumbh
183. Shiva Shambu, our new watchman 184. New watchman #2
185. Tanya - the Indore girl I met on the way to airport during my Ujjain trip 186. the guy beside me in the flight who helped take a pic of a very unique sunset 187. the taxi driver from Indore to Ujjain 188. the hotel guy at hotel #1 in Ujjain 189. the hotel guy at hotel #2 in Ujjain 190. three hotel guys at hotel #3 in Ujjain 191. Gopal - the rick boy in Ujjain who ferried me everywhere 192. three folks from a family who travelled with me in the bus from Ujjain to Omkareshwar 193. hotel guys at Omkareshwar who directed me everywhere and shared their evening tea 194. Uma, the lady who was travelling as the two couples from Bengaluru and were put up in the next room at Omkareshwar 195. the restaurant guy who kept a tab on me, since I ate dinner and lunch at the place 196. the big family from Maharashtra with who I shared the boat ride for Omkareshwar Parikrama 197. the lady from Maharashtra who was doing Narmada Parikrama and chatted up in Omkareshwar temple 198. the Delhi couple at Ujjain who shared the auto ride from Gad Kalika mata to back to our respective hotels 199. the kind auto guy who told me a bit about the Ganpati temple I was about to enter 200. the guy at the Vikramditya sthal, who told me in great detail about the specialty of the place 201. the auto guy in Indore who took me on a trip to hunt for food on Holi since shops were mostly closed 202. the two sadhus from Maharashtra who I fortunately met during the last stretch of the Omkareshwar Parikrama. they were doing the Narmada Parikrama 203. the boat guy who explained stuff during the boat-ride Omkareshwar Parikrama
204. uber driver from airport to home.. who offered some rock sugar as it was quite hot 205.
81. EAT A RAW RUDRAKSHA FRUIT
highly-recommended by an old shopkeeper at kamakhya... raw rudraksha fruits, dried and powdered, have a bunch of nutrients
82. SPEND A YEAR WRITING EVERY SINGLE DAY
83. DANCE IN A BHAJAN DRESSED TO THE NINES
-- preferably in Vrindavan
84. VISIT MYSURU PALACE WITH BOBO ON A DAY WHEN IT IS LIT UP
85. CLIMB 10 FLOORS A DAY FOR A MONTH
and see what changes
86. EAT ONLY TWICE A DAY FOR A MONTH
and see what changes
87. SPEND A YEAR EATING A DIFFERENT DISH EACH DAY, i.e EAT 365 UNIQUE DISHES THAT YEAR
88. SIT CROSS-LEGGED ON THE FLOOR FOR AN HOUR... OR TWO
89. WALK 10KMS EVERYDAY FOR A MONTH
and document what changes
90. DOCUMENT A THOUSAND AND ONE UNIQUE EXPERIENCES
Documented here.
91. VISIT A THOUSAND REALLY BEAUTIFUL PLACES
Listed here.
92. GROW 21 EDIBLE PLANTS IN OUR BALCONY GARDEN
-- D-O-N-E --
1. Tulsi - a staple plant of all households 2. lemongrass - an antimicrobial, to be used to flavour/infuse water and make tea or add to tea.. quite tasty 3. aloe vera - anti-inflammatory, used for sunburns, healthy skin, wounds and for adding to drinks.. quite easy to eat it too 4. insulin plant - lowers blood glucose levels, a leaf to be eaten everyday... grows like weed 5. ajwain patta - for stomach ache and cough, great to flavour buttermilk and make pakodas.. grows like weed too 6. giloy - antimicrobial and anti-ageing, the leaf is edible.. ate the leaves many times during covid, though the roots are said to have medicinal properties 7. curry leaf - a daily staple 8. Pirandai a.k.a Asthisamharaka or Hadjod - for bone density and bone strength.. yet to use it. grows easily 9. capsicum - got a bunch of tiny fruits, very sweet 10. sweet potato - a surprise.. the leaves were edible too 11. ash gourd - go a single ash-gourd for a dozen flowers.. learnt much later that these need to be pollinated by hand 12. fennel(saunf) - an amazing plant.. couldn't get enough of eating it's leaves 13. spinach 14. gongura(roselle) from seeds 15. fenugreek (methi) 16. sweet corn 17. red amaranth, from cuttings 18. yellow cherry tomato - from the batch given to us by our neighbours 19. betel leaf - great for it's iron content.. did not grow well 20. mustard greens - from store-bought mustard seeds 21. jalapeno chillies - from a store-bought batch of chillies 22. dill leaves 23. coriander
wishlist: sugar cane, pandanus(biriyani patta), bamboo, a healthy betel leaf vine, banana
93. SEE THE HIMALAYAS
--- D-O-N-E ---
1. the Panchachuli peaks at Munsiyari, Uttarakhand(India)
2. the Annapurna range via ABC trek(Nepal)
3. view of Kedarnath, Nanda Devi and Bandarpunch peaks of Himalayan ranges from Surkanda Devi temple in Dhanaulti, Uttarakhand(India)
94. DOCUMENT 21 BEAUTIFUL WALKS
-- D-O-N-E --
1. The 16km uphill walk to Vaishnodevi darbar, in the middle of night.
2. Walking on the Great Wall of China, especially on a very steep section with beautiful views and turning back from there. Buying a golden medal on the wall to commemorate the visit.
3. Early morning temple trails with Bobo in Kanchipuram, before it got too hot to be out.
4. Walking 10kms with Pallavi in Bangalore on a casual weekend
5. Beautiful board walks at the Juizhaigou National Park
6. Board walk to Sentosa Island in Singapore, watching the tiny twinkling lights embedded in the wooden walkway
7. Walk from Thamel to the Darbar Square and back, in Nepal, through a busy market place dodging vehicular and foot traffic.
8. Walk around in Niagara State Park, instead of taking the tourist tram and seeing a Canadian geese family
9. Walk around the IIM Bangalore campus, full of trees and beautiful roads
10. Evening walks with Bobo around a walking loop near our home
11. waking uphill with bobo to visit the museum at Paro in Bhutan and stopping on the way to take photos of snow-covered mountains at a distance, and stopping every few minutes to catch our breath.
12. walking around the lanes of HK eating and drinking from tiny shops esp. the boba tea, lotus tea etc, and around a fishing island i visited there
13. walking barefoot with bobo on the hillocks of shivaganga and deeply regretting not bringing our shoes along. the sharp pebbles hurt our feet at every step
14. walking 2kms by myself on a deserted, winding road from the Nandi statue to the main road at Chamundi hill in Mysuru.
15. walking down from the hilltop temple of Bhuvaneshwari ji in Kamakhya to the main temple, on beautiful roads checking out the various spots along... river in the valley on one side and the hill on the other
16. walking by myself from Mahadev Khola dham over a small bridge over a stream in rain. Later from the temple steeply upwards at first first then flatlands to the main gate, in Shillong.
17. walking the trail of the very beautiful Garden of Caves, Meghalaya, with clearly marked spots that follow the trail back to the entrance. Lots of stone steps. Delightful!
18. walking the short trail to the watery and amazing Mawsmai caves and walking in ankle-deep water inside the cave, in Meghalaya
19. walking the beautiful trail to Arwah caves, watching a few waterfalls at a distance, wooden handrails covered in moss et al
20. walking late-evening from a restaurant to the home-stay in Sohra/Cherrapunji.. it was very quiet, very dark, sparse streetlights and heavy mist. surprising, there were no insects chirping too. it was that quiet. the most peaceful walk ever!
21. a long walk with bobo on a very pleasant morning to the kudala sangama temple, from the hotel
22. walking around Haridwar - along the market road to the Ganga river for the evening aarti, to the Mayadevi temple in the morning, halfway up to the Devi temple, photographing old buildings and looking at the several akhadas
23. climbing down very narrow stairs between houses to get to the Vishwanath temple in Guptkashi. These stairs turned tiresome on the way back.
24. walking through the narrow lanes in Mana near Badrinath, visiting two amazing temples - the Ghantakarna kshetrapal temple and the Vishwakarma Taposthal
25. walking through the colourful market near Triveni Sangam in Rishikesh
26. walking along the riverside on both sides of the river and in the pavilions in Prayagraj during the Mahakumbh
27. walking on the pontoon bridges during the Mahakumbh
28. walk around the Mahalok(Mahakaleshwar temple) corridor in Ujjain, during the day and again in the evening
29. walking along the Shipra river in Ujjain, from Bhooki mata temple to the Karkeshwar Mahadev temple to the ashram with many temples.. to the Shipra ghat where the evening aarti is performed.
30. walking from Harsiddhi mata temple to the hotel through a marketplace
31.
95. VISIT KEDARNATH
-- DONE --
96. SMOKE POT
--- DONE ---
97. DE-ADDICT FROM TEA, COFFEE, WHEAT, RICE AND SUGAR
de-addict is to go without a craving
-- DONE --
98. SEE A RUDRAKSHA TREE
-- DONE --
saw a rudraksha tree with green fruits at Harihar Ashram temple complex in Haridwar. The original goal was to SEE A RUDRAKSHA TREE WITH PURPLE FRUITS... birds eat the fruit as soon as it turns purple and ripe, as the fruit turns sweet at this stage. it's rare and very difficult to see a purple rudraksha fruit
99. SEE 21 DIFFERENT FRUIT TREES
-- DONE --
1. Tamarillo(tree tomato) tree in Nepal 2. Pomelo tree in Indiranagar Bengaluru 3. Avocado tree in Bengaluru 4. Grapefruit trees in Uttaranchal 5. Cashew trees in Joga near Shimoga 6. Pineapple shrubs on the hiking trails in Meghalaya 7. Sol Nongam(yellow fruit) trees in Meghalaya 8. Pear trees laden with fruits, all over Meghalaya 9. Star fruit tree in Guwahati 10. Coconut palms everywhere 11. Mango trees 12. Guava trees 13. Chickoo trees 14. Jackfruit trees 15. Papaya 16. Banana 17. Pomegranate trees 18 Custard apple trees 19. Jamun trees 20. Ber trees 21. Fig trees 22. Gooseberry trees 23. Date palms 24. Palmyra palms 25. Lemon trees 26. Tamarind trees 27. Sugarcane(more of a grass than a fruit) 28. Bel trees 29. Grape vines 30. Apple trees in Uttarakhand 31. Almond trees
100. DO A 100-KETTLEBELL-SWINGS IN ONE DAY
-- DONE --
101. SEE GOD
-- DONE --
The final and the most important goal of my life.
Instance #1: This happened during the Char-dham yatra in October 2024 when we visited the 5,000 year old Lakhamandir Shiva temple on the way to Barkot. After a wholesome darshan, as we were preparing to leave, a small boy - a toddler - singled me out and ran towards me with outstretched arms. I picked him up, found his dad, and entertained the child for a while. We took a bunch of selfies together. He was light-weight, fair skinned with light-brown curly and wispy hair, very loving, and snuggled comfortably in my arms. It was the most comfortable, no-fuss encounter I have ever had with a child.
After the trip, I checked with Guruji and he confirmed that the boy was indeed Lord Shiva blessing me with His divine darshan! Guruji added that my pilgrimage had been successful! Blessed!
Instance #2: During Omkareshwar parikrama on 13th March 2025. Turned out I was the only person doing the parikrama instead of many people. I had started late in the evening and was eager to cover as much ground as I could before the sun went down. The stairs every now and then were slowing me down significantly. Then I came across a really big flight of stairs, and felt my heart cry out at the amount of time it would take, given I would stop every now and then to catch my breath.
Out of nowhere, a young fair sadhu passed me by and climbed the stairs ahead of me. He had a short stick in his right hand, he wore white dhoti, had tied half his hair up and had rudraksha mala around his neck. I had no doubt in my mind. I just focussed on his feet climbing the stairs and followed him. In record time, I was on top of the stairs without having stopped and I wasn't even out of breath. I forgot to look for the sadhu.
Goals Completed: 15
Goals Pending: 86
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