A hospital in the morning, a cake in the evening

Sunday 4 October 2026

After a lovely long lie-in my mood was back on track and I was ready to go again. But first another visit to the hospital, to go over the results of Yasha's blood tests with the doctor. Not much came out of that either, apart from a few possibilities and the advice to have it looked into further at the big state hospital. We didn't do that straight away. Tomorrow we'll see if it can be done without queueing for hours.

The rest of the day was nice and relaxed. We wandered around the streets near our Airbnb and then talked through our plans for the start of the Narmada Parikrama. We had actually wanted to start today, but on the family's advice we've postponed it to 11 October.

And of course I knew perfectly well what day it was today, but I calmly waited for the penny to drop for Yasha. And finally: "Ohhhh… it's our wedding anniversary!" We were both in stitches, and then just carried on with our day.

Late in the afternoon we went to her youngest uncle, who also lives in Bhopal and has just bought a new flat. There too we were welcomed with treats, and even more treats. As a lovely finish we celebrated our anniversary with the family, with a beautiful and delicious cake.

A hospital in the morning, a cake in the evening. That's how a day in India can go in every direction. It motivates me to be even more active tomorrow and do more in Bhopal.