retirement plan ready yet?

People make their retirement plans pretty extensively….  

Doing some savings- keeping some unfulfilled dreams- making a bucket list- hoping for them to come true in the final stages of their lives.

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I am no different… I have made ’em too.. Although I am too young to make retirement plans- but hard to control one’s mind. 

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In fact, my career has not even taken off yet, but I have made some plans… (Who doesn’t) 😉

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I want to settle down at a peaceful place- far away from the noises of the city- far away from pollution- far away from senseless chatter of people..

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A place where I am woken up by rays of sun and chirping of birds…..

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A place where only healthy fresh pure air fills up my lungs…..

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A home surrounded by trees and not sky scrapers….

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Where people live midst nature, enjoying its gift….

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No country specifically- It may be a small town in Norway or Australia… in the Black Hills or in The Alps….

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So…do you have a retirement plan yet..?? 

#P.S – these pictures are taken in Simla (otherwise also known as Shimla) – INDIA.

Squirrels talk too :D

After Monkeys and Geese….now I imagine my squirrels talk 😉

1

Can you smell them….?? I can smell them…. Can you smell them yet?

2

Yea man… I can smell them too.. But I don’t see them… Do you see them?? 

3

No… I don’t see them… But I can feel they’re fast approaching………

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O my GOD ! They’re HERE…!!! Alert everyone!

P.S :

In near future (April end) I am writing a series of “un-posted letters” on my blog and inviting guest posts for the same.

The compilation of this would have letters you never posted…the ones you wrote/wanted to write to your mother/teacher/neighbor/boss/husband/friend/ex but did not.. There is no need for names, you can address them to “an inspiring soul” or “a long lost friend” or “love of my life”..

Leave a comment in case you’re interested to be a part of this.

When it snows in India..

India is crowded place.

We have a crowd of natives which has now crossed a billion plus we also cater a million tourists every year.

tourists, himalayas

Undoubtedly, it is difficult to maintain world-class standards when a certain handful of population still lives below poverty line.

But nobody seems to mind it now-a-days. Everyone enjoys a hill station for a week and pack their bags and go off. Only the indigenous people of such places can complain about the crowd or the living standard because they see everyday – year after year.

Tourists

The northern states of India are snow-clad for the months November-February but generally have tourist inflow all throughout the year. During winters the main attraction is the snow. And in summer when rest of the country is suffering from soaring temperature these tourist spots provide a perfect get-away.

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Not only do these states attract high number of Indians on a summer vacation but tons of foreigners. I assume watching snow fall is an experience people like me crave to have in this same life time.

India, snow, Himalayas, Shimla

If in India, there are a certain places one must definitely visit.

snow, India, Shimla, Simla

Month of March : “In Print”

Month of March

Week 1

Cover Page :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Cover Story :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Week 2

Cover Page :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Cover Story :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Week 3

Cover Page :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Cover Story :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Week 4

Cover Page :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Cover Story :

Sakshi Vashist, Gulf Times

Overwhelming joy of seeing my name IN PRINT.

Thank you MONTH OF MARCH.

Reaching out through blogs : My article in the leading newspaper of Middle-East

Since I started working as a part-time free-lance writer for Gulf Times, life seems to have taken an exciting new turn..

After the article for working women in Qatar, I have now written about bloggers in Qatar. In this country, blogging is still not considered as a “cool” or beneficial way of social interaction and with my article I try to clear those myths and misconceptions.

Read it here –

http://www.gulf-times.com/technology/233/details/344940/reaching-out-through-blogs

Although Gulf Times did not include photos of all the amazing bloggers I got in touch with, I will attach their photos here as a token of thanks for their contribution.

Alex Klim Andre Snoxall Colleen Morgan Constance Citalan (2) Constance Citalan Dan Adams Gustav Hooriya Hussain Irena Nailya Bentley SteffAJERachelRaquel Citalan Photo by Alex Klim 1 Photo by Alex Klim 2 Photo by Alex Klim photo by Andre Snoxall 1 photo by Andre Snoxall 2 photo by Colleen Morgan 1 photo by Colleen Morgan 2 photo by Colleen Morgan photo by Constance Citalan photo by Dan Adams photo by Irena photo by Nailya Bentley Photo by Rachel - Lamps The Souq

# all photos belong to the rightful owners

Connecting with Nature

How often do you take a stroll in a garden?

How often do you prefer walking than taking a vehicle?

How often you breathe in fresh air?

How often you read a novel under the shade of a sun?

How often do you notice nature’s beauty?

**

Are the above-mentioned things even important to you?

**

To me, it is…

Snaps from my recent visit to Lodhi Gardens – DelhiIMG_0259Lodi Garden is one of Delhi’s most beautiful and popular parks. Here monuments are located amidst landscaped gardens. The most prominent are the 15th and 16th century tombs and a beautifully decorated mosque. There are smaller structures belonging to the late-Mughal period as well.

Nature, Fort, Garden, Delhi

The Lodi dynasty in India arose around 1451 after the Sayyid dynasty. The Lodhi Empire was established by the Ghizlai tribe of the Afghans. They formed the last phase of the Delhi Sultanate.

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As there is little architecture from these two periods remaining in India, Lodi Gardens is an important place of preservation. A favorite picnic spot and a joy for morning walkers with lots of greenery and trees.

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Benefits of morning walk –

• helps to lose weight    • reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke

• reduces type 2 diabetes risk    • improves lung’s breathing capacity

• helps in the management of stress    • helps to treat hypertension

• protection against miscarriages

• very beneficial for the people suffering from insomnia. 20-30 minutes’ walk after the meals in the night can help to reduce the stress levels and can also helps in the digestion of the food which in turn gives you a sound sleep.

• supplies fresh oxygen and blood to each and every cell of the body which is required for the transport of every nutrient in the body

• reduce the risk of cancer and if someone is already suffering from cancer then it helps in the fast recovery and survival of the person

• improves the brain power    • add years to your life

Nature

Most common excuses for not going on a morning walk :

1. I am too busy    2. There are pet-walkers and the stray animals

3. The virtues of sleep    4. Walking is for the old, I work out

5. I play sports – that’s enough    6. Garden/Park is too far

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I think we owe it to ourselves – to be connected to nature – make the best use of its gift. We may be too busy today, but won’t we be too late if we don’t take an action soon?

The wonderful childhood

Kids are cute.

Swings are fun.

You combine both-you get a perfect carefree scenario with laughter all around.

One such incident I was lucky to capture in my camera.

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You really should zoom in and check out the expressions of the kids. So excited and keen they got seeing someone click their pics 😀

Well I had an attachment to a particular swing in my childhood. I have written about it too. See here.

Other clicks of the same kids : they were called Nanu and Kaachu 😉

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# such cuties 😀 😀 😀

# Venue – Alwar‘s (Siliserh Lake) Rajasthan, India

# December 2012 – the one we survived (LOL)