Kymaia, her mother, and I went on a Heritage Walk (accompanied by Anita Limaye, an old friend and a travel writer), as a family, to see the ‘Manaache Ganapati‘ (there are 5 in Pune that have a sort of ranking of ‘honour’, which decides their chronology of immersion).
The whole program was just wonderfully conducted by Travia Outdoors with lots of fun, interesting trivia and information, loads of laughter and joy, and without any ‘gadbad-gondhal‘ (chaos and disorganised behaviour), itself an achievement on Day 5 of the Ganesh Festival (and on a Sunday to boot).
We covered the Kasba, Guruji Talim, Tambdi Jogeshwari, Babu Genu, Gundacha, Dagdusheth Halwai, and Bhau Rangari (my personal favourite) Ganapatis, amongst other, and also visited the beautiful stone temple of Trishundi Mayureshwar.
Kymaia, the atheist kid, had some problems early on until I explained how we could enjoy the creative, artistic, historical, and cultural aspects of her hometown without needing to believe in any myths. Then on, she had the most enjoyable time. Some of the work these ‘Mandals‘ (the associations/trusts/foundations that run the show) put in is simply incredible! The Ganapatis were both unique and beautiful. The walk started early morning at Shaniwarwada, and ended at the same spot with 2 ‘Ukdiche Modak‘ (absolutely yum!) per head. All-in-all, a morning well spent.
And now, on to Dohiti where a chess board (and breakfast) awaits. Let’s see how Kym performs today. Ganapati Bappa…Moraya!!!
