Welcome to this new edition of Journeys and Jottings . Nostalgia seems to be the flavour of the season. If a traveller collects something, it is memories . A sight, a sound, a familiar touch strikes a chord. Memories can be many things for a traveller – a post card, a conversation, an experience, a photograph, a souvenir, an evening with a stranger, a warm bowl of soup, a piece of chocolate, the sound of laughter..

Journeys and Jottings

I have been lost in a world of memories all of August, with very little travel on the cards except for a trip back home to Chennai after a couple of months to celebrate Madras Day, a day apparently the settlement Madras was born, courtesy the British on a small fishing hamlet.

I decided to celebrate with food  – legendary, old eateries, some of which had been part of my childhood . Along with a foodie friend, Vasudevan who had curated the list, we visited ten eateries in a day, braving the sun and the rain, eating to our heart’s content and licking our fingers with glee. And as I blogged about it, I realized two things – One the universal appeal of food . And two, the power of nostalgia.

People flocked to my blog like birds , remembering the first morsel of food they had tasted there, their personal favourites, their cherished memories . Some of these people had left Madras years ago and the post, they said brought back flavours of the city. Comments poured in, on facebook, on twitter and on the blog. Some told me about places I had missed. Others told me about their stories. My father’s friend called, remembering conversations with strangers he had in these eateries on the best chutneys . I was overwhelmed. And overpowered by nostalgia.

In case you missed the post, here it is – Ten old eateries in Chennai that you must not miss

But then, one cannot live on nostalgia alone. So here is a peek on how September looks like. I am still firming up my travel plans while there are a couple of projects in the pipeline.  September is the beginning of the festive season in India – Gokul ashtami and Ganesh chaturthi,  two very colourful vibrant festivals while Dussehra is around the corner. There will be as always a mix of heritage, nature, people stories besides food and lifestyle. Watch out for the monthly feature on Bangalore, the Destination of the Month and the Tips special.

Signing off for now..catch up with you with more travels this month