My Rajasthan Tour - Visit to Udaipur
1. Brief Information about Udaipur
2. Fateh Sagar Lake
3. Saheliyon Ki Bari

Rajasthan is the largest state of India and is also known as the "Land of Maharajas". Rajasthan is known for its majestic palaces, forts and monuments. The State is geographically dominated by stretches of Thar Desert and Aravalli Range. The state was formed on March 30, 1949, when Rajputana was merged into the dominion of India. This time we planned our tour to Rajasthan for 10 days starting from December 23, 2023. We started our tour by first visiting to Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan and is also known as Pink City. Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II was the founder of the city of Jaipur who ruled from 1699 to 1744. He planned Jaipur City in six blocks separated by broad avenues based on the principals of Vastushastra and another similar classical treatise under the architectural guidance of Vidyadhar Bhattacharya, Architect from the present day Naihati, West Bengal, India. He was initially an accounts-clerk in the Amber Treasury and later promoted to the Chief Architect by the King. I would like to share my experiences and brief information about the places in Jaipur that I visited with my family. We were in Jaipur for two days.
2. Self-talk is
having many advantages if used properly. Self-talk helps an individual
to introspect which ultimately helps in self-rectification. A person is
completely frank and open during self-talk. Every individual is most frank with
self than with any other person, however close that person may be. During self-talk,
a person generally talks about the things from his or her memory. During self-talk
a person feed some thoughts in his or her subconscious mind which later on
become his or her belief. Therefore, be careful while doing self-talk as any
self-talk doing repeatedly for 21 days and more can feed your subconscious mind
with the thoughts that you are repeating during self-talk. Positive self-talk
affects our ability to control emotions and mental health.
3. One can cherish
memorable moments through self-talk which helps in refreshing both mind
and body. Self-talk helps in building personality by raising our
self-esteem provided how we use self-talk. Self-talk can also inject
negativity in our mind if one talks negative during self-talk. Repetition of
same sentences during self-talk consistently for several days feed our
sub-conscious mind with those thoughts which may be reflected in our
action.
4. One can make
self-talk very effective for the achievement of goals. Make it a habit to do
self-talk in the morning after waking up and before going to sleep. Your
self-talk should be linked to your goal. During self-talk you should ask what
you want in your life. Never complain during self-talk. During self-talk you
should ask what you want in your life. Never tell anything which you don't
want. Self-talk should be always in affirmative and should be focused on what
you want. It should not be focused on what you don't want. For example, if
someone is facing financial problems, then what should be his or her self-talk?
It should be focused on financial abundance instead getting out of
financial crisis.
5. Before starting a
day in the morning, one should do self-talk. Before asking anything from the
universe, first express your gratitude to the universe for whatever you are
having. For example, you may thank the universe for having good health, compatible
spouse, lovely children, good parents, good house to live in, etc. Then you ask
for what you want further in your life. Before asking for yourself ask for the
world, mankind, society and family in which you are living. Then you ask for
yourself. Expressing gratitude during self-talk is the acknowledgement for what
you are already having. You may ask for the achievement of your both short term
and long-term goal during self-talk. Always talk with yourself about the things
that you want to have in future. Whenever you talk with yourself regarding your
personality, talk about your desired personality which you want to have. Talk
with yourself about your desired personality, desired health, desired house and
other belongings, desired relationship, desired futures, etc.
6. Our self-talks
may be positive self-talk or negative self-talk. Positive self-talk is having
many benefits. Positive self-talk may impact our daily life by improving our
emotions, behaviours and general wellbeing. Positive Self-talk helps in
forgetting bad memories or at least help in reducing the intensity of bad
memories. Positive self-talk helps in increasing our confidence as we affirm
our talents and skills during self-talk. Positive self-talk helps in reducing
stress and anxiety, whereas negative self-talk is a cause for tension and
anxiety. Positive self-talk helps in improving our mood which makes us feel
happier even during crisis situations. It also helps in developing resilience
and capacity to endure in difficult situation. It also helps in improving
relationships with others.
7. On the other
hand, negative self-talk is having adverse effect on our mood and thought
process. It increases our stress and anxiety. Negative self-talk leads to low
self-esteem which may adversely affects the quality of an individual's life
leading to persistent feelings of sadness, depression, anger and guilt.
Negative self-talk reduces the confidence of a person which is detrimental to
the overall performance of an individual. Negative self-talk feeds negativity
in our sub-conscious mind which may act as a deterrent in finding out solutions
to a problem. Whereas positivity helps an individual in finding out solution to
every problem while on the other hand negativity makes an individual to find
problems in every solution. Therefore, positive self-talk enables an individual
to improve problem solving abilities. Negative self-talk deteriorates problem
solving ability of an individual.
8. Optimistic
persons always think positive and talk positive while pessimistic persons
always think negative as well as talk negative. Doing positive self-talk
consistently for a long period can make a person optimistic. Let us cultivate
the habit of doing positive self-talk and encourage others to develop this
habit to create an atmosphere of positivity in our locality and society to make
it a better place to live.
2. Best Timing for Cycling: You can do cycling anytime of the day as per your convenience and comfort. But in Tropical Countries it is better to do cycling in the early morning because morning whether is comfortable and sun is less intense compared to other part of the day. Cycling in the morning is preferable because one can breathe fresh natural air and the traffic is less on the road compared to other part of the day. Riding is safer during morning. Morning ride increases your blood circulation which makes you feel fresher. Morning ride also improves your work efficiency. If you are having busy schedules during morning, then you can prefer to do cycling during evening hours when the intensity of the Sun is low.
3. Safety measures to be taken during cycling: Risk of accident is there in cycling which may cause injury. Therefore it is essential to take certain safety measures while riding a bicycle. Following safety measures are suggested for safe cycling.
(i) Wear a properly fitted helmet while riding bicycle as helmet can protect your head from injury if you fall from bicycle due to accident.
(ii) Install a rearview mirrors on handlebars of bicycle to see the movement of traffic behind you. While changing your lane or direction please observe the movement of traffic behind you so that you can change the lane or direction safely. Before changing lane give indication well in advance to alert the traffic behind you.
(iii) Never ride with headphones. Never talk on mobile phone while riding bicycle as it may divert your attention from road traffic which may cause accident.
(iv) Ride your bicycle on lane earmarked for riding bicycle. If bicycle lane is not earmarked, then prefer to ride bicycle on the side of the road where traffic is less without disturbing the pedestrians.
(v) Wear reflective materials while riding bicycle on road so as to increase your visibility to the drivers of other vehicles on the road. This will reduce the risk of accidents on road.
(vi) Before riding the bicycle check the various parts and equipment of your bicycle. Ensure that your tires are properly inflated and breaks are in proper conditions. Also ensure that your chains and gears are in proper conditions and without any defect.
(vii) Always keep your hands on handlebars of your bicycle so that you can have full control over the movement of your bicycle while riding.
(viii) While riding bicycle on the road follow the traffic rules and make use of hand signals whenever and wherever necessary.
4. Benefits of Cycling: Cycling is a low-cost vehicle which is pollution free as well as can be used as a physical fitness tool. Cycling is good for maintaining physical fitness. The benefits of cycling are detailed hereunder.
(i) We all know that the risk of heart disease increases with the increase in age. Cycling is a low-impact aerobic exercise that improves our cardiovascular fitness and strengthen heart muscle.
(ii) Cycling enhances blood circulation. It also reduces the risk of cancer , diabetes and kidney disease.
(iii) Cycling helps in burning fats and building muscle especially in our legs and hips. It helps in improving our stamina.
(iv) Regular cycling helps in preserving balance and coordination. It also improve lower-body function which prevent us from falling.
(v) Cycling helps in strengthening and protecting our joints. Regular cycling helps in preventing knee joint pain which is very common in old age.
(vi) Cycling helps in boosting our mental health. The risk of cognitive degenerative deceases increases with age which can lead to depression and anxiety. Riding bicycle outside in an open air during morning refresh your mind and also give you fresh air and good dose of vitamin D which helps in improving your mood and reducing stress level. Vitamin D is required for absorption of calcium which helps in improving bone density.
(vii) Cycling helps in strengthening our immune system that reduces the chances of getting sick.
(viii) During pandemic due to spread of corona virus, bicycle was the safest mode of transport due to lesser risk of infection as compared to public transport.
5. The General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) has come out with a resolution in Favour of cycling and urged countries to promote everyday cycling. European Parliament has taken a policy decision to promote cycling within the countries in Europe and aims to double cycling in Europe by 2030. They are going to increase investment in safe, separated cycling infrastructure and integrate cycling into urban framework. Copenhagen, Denmark is known as the best city in Europe for cycling. For making Germany more bike friendly, the National cycling Plan (NCP) 3.0 was launched in 2021 to boost cycling and making it more attractive and safer. The first National Cycling Plan (NCP) was launched in 2002.In some European Union countries, there is a system of placing bicycle inside public transport i.e., trains, regional buses and trams so as to enable people to travel from door -to -door over longer distances by combining public transport with cycling. Such measures reduce the use of car to travel long distances in Europe which helps in reducing carbon emission. In some European countries backside racks on buses have been introduced so that a greater number of bicycles can be carried in such buses.6. Cycling is good for all age groups starting from the age of five. Our activities get reduced after retirement as we do not have nine to five schedules that we had during working life. To live a long and healthy life it is necessary to have some physical as well as mental activities. Bicycle riding is a good option for both physical activity and mental pleasure. If you have any severe medical problem, then take the advice of your doctor before starting bicycle riding. Chose bicycle which will suit your physique and comfort. Bicycle riding is not only good for our physical and mental health but also good for our environment.
Why many persons are not happy during their post-retirement life despite having financial freedom and having no liability towards their children. Even after achieving most of the things in life and free from financial problems, persons are not happy. Let us find out the reasons why many persons are not happy during their post-retirement life.
Let us find out the reasons for happiness:
Before
finding out the reasons for unhappiness let us find out the reasons why
the persons should be happier during their post-retirement life.
(i) The foremost reason for happiness is not having any Boss during post-retirement life. You are your own boss. You have all the 24 hours at your disposal which you can utilise as per your desires and convenience.
(ii) Another reason for happiness is reduction in stress level after
retirement as you are free from job related stress during post-retirement
life.
(iii) You are not answerable to anyone except yourself. During
working life, you were answerable to your boss for your performance. You were
even answerable to your client.
(iv) During working life your plan for going to vacation tour was
subjected to sanction of leave by your boss. You are now free to plan your
vacation tour any time during the year as per your convenience.
(v) You can
choose to do any work as per your interest and liking which was not the case
before retirement.
Reasons for Unhappiness During Post Retirement life:
Despite
having strong reasons for happiness why some persons are unhappy during post-retirement
life? Generally,
most of the unhappiness are mental and not due to external factors. Let us discuss the reasons why many persons are unhappy
during their post-retirement life.
(i) Having regret for non-achievement or under achievement during the past life is one of the main reasons for unhappiness. Many persons are having regret for not getting promotion, not getting reward for their performance, etc. Living in the past and continuously remembering the failures during past life makes a person unhappy in the present.
(ii) Expectation of recognition and respects from ex-colleagues and other persons is another reason for unhappiness. Many persons expects that they should continue to get respect from their colleagues even after retirement. But that is not the reality. When a person does not get respect as per expectation, they become unhappy.
(iii) Many retired persons are in the habit of giving free advices to family members and friends. A person become unhappy when nobody listens to his or her advice. Habit of giving free advices invites unhappiness in one's life.
(iv) Spending most of the time in watching television also invites unhappiness. Watching news in television for long duration feeds negativity in our sub-conscious mind which ultimately creates unhappiness.
(v) Excessive talking also leads to unhappiness. Many persons at this stage talk more about their own achievements during their student and working life which nobody want to listen. This creates frustration and unhappiness.
(vi) Non utilisation or improper utilisation of free time due to lack of engagement is another reason for unhappiness. Lack of engagement creates negative thoughts in the mind which create unhappiness.
How to make your retirement life happy and fruitful?
If
you have to make your retirement life happy and fruitful then you have to
follow certain dos and don’ts. Let us first discuss about Do's and thereafter
we will discuss about Don’ts.
What you should do to make your retirement life happy and fruitful?
(i) Take
Care of Your Health: It's very important to take care of your health.
You can enjoy your post-retirement life if your health is in good condition.
Health means not only your physical health but also your mental as well as
spiritual health. Maintenance of your physical health is very much essential to
do your day-to-day activities without any difficulties. It will reduce your
dependency on other person and will help you in enjoying your vacation tour. As
regards maintenance of good physical health, I have explained in details in my
previous blog the link of which is given hereunder. You may click the link the following
link to have details on maintaining good physical health during post-retirement
life.
https://post-retirementlife.blogspot.com/2022/04/physical-health-during-second-innings.html
It is also very important to take care of your mental as well as spiritual health. Need for taking care of one's mental and spiritual health has been explained in my previous blogs the link of which are given hereunder.
(i) https://post-retirementlife.blogspot.com/2022/04/mental-health-during-second-innings-of.html
(ii) https://post-retirementlife.blogspot.com/2022/03/spiritual-health-during-second-innings.html
(ii) Develop Good Friend circle: It is very important to develop good friend circle near your surroundings. It is better to start developing friend circle well before your retirement so that you can have some friends after retirement for your socialisation. Friend Circle's composition should be diversified, both in terms of professional and cultural backgrounds so that you can enrich yourself with their wide experiences. Have a regular meeting and get together with them.
(iii) Have a vacation tour, picnic and other amusement: Plan for vacation tour at reasonable frequency with your spouse. Have both short tour and long tour at certain interval which is comfortable to you. At least once in a year you should go for picnic with your friends and family members. Have a visit to nearby museum, park and other amusement centres for your recreation.
(iv) Make daily contribution to your life: Please make an endeavour to make value addition to your life. Please remember one thing that your scope for progress doesn’t stop on retirement date. There is a scope for progress even after retirement. There is always a scope for progress till you are alive. Ensure daily contribution to your life for making it meaningful. Extend your helping hand to your spouse in day-to-day routine household work. If you have a long-term plan for making some value addition to your life, ensure to make daily progress in that direction. For example, if you have decided to author a book which may take one- or two-years’ time to finish, then make a strategy to have a quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily target to ensure consistent efforts in the direction of your goal.
(v) Pursue your hobby: Every person is having at least one hobby which one could not pursue during working or professional life. It is better to pursue your hobby during post-retirement life which will make your life happy and meaningful. It will also give you meaningful engagement.
(vi) Pay back to Society: From childhood to adult stage most of the investments were made for our personal development. During our working and professional life, we worked for our livelihood for the development and welfare of our family. This is the time to pay back to society when we don't have any liability towards our children and passive income is sufficient to take care of our expenditure. You may pay back to society by doing some charity or philanthropical work which will give you peace of mind.
(i)
Never give free advices to anyone even to your family members. If you are in
the habit of giving free advices then you will be ignored and avoided by other
persons including your family members. Such situation will bring unhappiness in
your life. Never give advice to anyone unless someone seeks your
advice.
By following certain dos and don’ts as explained above one can make post-retirement life happy and fruitful.
The above photograph is the inside of house of one artist family displaying various paintings and other artistic works. There is another photograph of chittapatra paintings displayed by the artist in his house.
#Happiness and Peace Is there anyone in our world who wants neither peace nor happiness? I have not found such a person in my life. Please...