Olfactorily Yours - When Sara met Doug - short story - fiction

image Google Gemini

Sara walked down the street near her apartment to go to the tram stop. It was a hot, sunny day for once in Bruxelles, and her apartment near Place Stephanie was ideally located to reach anywhere in the city quickly. She glanced up at the blue sky as she reached her stop and felt the sun burn her face as she did so. She was about to rejoice in the feeling of this long-awaited moment when the smell of dry urine hit her nostrils. She scrunched her nose in disgust as the waft first hit her and glanced at the lamp post and the seats near the tram stop. Yes, there were dried up lines all around the lamppost. Her immediate thought was that the city had gone to the dogs and she uttered a silent curse. She moved away from the zone as quickly as she could and focused on herself and the date she was heading to.

Yes, today was her first date with Doug the expat, whom her colleague from work, Kimi, had set her up with. Doug was Kimi's friend from the music academy Kimi frequented twice a week. Kimi had thought that Sara and Doug would be a good match. Kimi had shown them each other's photos and had given each of them a general idea of the other's lives, and both had agreed to meet. It was true, now that she'd been single for over three years, Sara felt she was ready to meet people. And she knew that such organic ways of meeting or being introduced to people never happened anymore. Sara fidgeted in her handbag and brought out the deodorant that she always carried with her. She rubbed it discreetly on her underarms, and while she did so, she noticed the seemingly homeless person enter the tram at the same time as her as the doors closed. She could smell her fragrant deodorant immediately being overpowered and drowned by this man's body odour that had caked on him, along with his dried-up sweat and the grime of several days or weeks of not having showered. She quickly scrunched up her nose and walked to the other side of the tram to avoid having to breathe next to the man. She rolled her eyes and thought about how the city was getting from bad to worse.

Doug was waiting for Sara at the Ma Campagne tram stop. He had received an SMS from her saying she would be arriving in about ten minutes according to the ETA on the STIB, the public transport app in Brussels. He was looking forward to meeting Sara, as Kimi had said that she felt they would have many things in common. They both spoke English most of the time. They both had travelled from other countries to come and settle in Brussels, and they both liked the idea of travelling in the future. This seemed like a perfect starting point for Doug. He hadn't been on a date for about a year now, though he did chat with some girls occasionally on a popular dating app. But meeting a woman in real life hadn't happened in some time. He walked up and down nervously at the stop. It was a Saturday afternoon, and the stop was pretty crowded, so he stopped as he realised he was being stared at.

The people at the stop started to get up, and Doug realised that a tram was pulling into the station. He was sure it was the one Sara was in. As the people got out and the others at the stop got in, Doug moved out of the way. He waved as he saw Sara reach up to where he was, and they both looked at each other as the crowd seemed to scatter around them. For a moment, time seemed to stop. Doug saw the dark hair and olive eyes peer at him, squinting in the sun. Sara saw Doug with the sun directly behind him. His silhouette seemed surrounded by a lining of light. She noticed him smile, and she let out a sigh. She seemed to like what she saw.

They nervously shook hands, neither sure if they should kiss on the cheek as most Brussels people did. They giggled as Sara moved ahead to land a kiss, and Doug looked unsure. Finally, they just said "Hi" and "Hello" and walked towards the street, moving away from the tram stop. Sara had noticed she liked the odour that hit her when she'd leaned towards Doug. It had been musky and had an undertone of coffee, she thought to herself as they walked on the thin footpath. Doug said he'd parked his scooter near the park, which was two minutes away. When they reached his scooter, he took out a small backpack from the baggage carrier. It seemed to be stuffed. Putting it onto his back, Doug suggested that they go for a walk in the park.

The park had a gated entrance, and Doug and Sara walked in, making small talk. Doug asked her about her day and what she'd had for breakfast. Sara heard her tummy rumble as she thought about food and told him that she'd just had a piece of bread some hours ago. She told him about how Kimi had been excited at work the day before when she'd told her that they would finally meet the next day. Sara noticed the strong scent of the white flowers as they walked on the cobblestoned path leading to the little pond at the centre of the park. There were several benches there. She was happy to see that there was one free, and just as she thought that, Doug asked her if she'd like to sit. She was pleased as he seemed to have read her mind. She sat next to him, and for a few minutes they just took in the pretty view of the pond and the wildflowers scattered around it in the grass and the magnificent willow tree sweeping the water as it towered over the edge. The beautiful architecture of the buildings beyond the park's walls on the other side created a picture-postcard scene. They both smiled at what they were seeing and faced each other.

"I thought you would like to drink and eat something as we get to know each other," Doug said as he opened the backpack and took out a couple of plastic glasses he'd brought with him from his kitchen. He had a small bottle of red wine or apple juice as choices, as he didn't know what Sara would like to drink. Sara looked incredulously at Doug as he offered her the choices. While she was still deciding, he took out a plastic box that seemed to contain some sort of muffin-looking goodies in it. Sara said, "We can have the red wine, and it's so sweet of..." but was cut off by the strong smell of fish that rushed to her nostrils as Doug opened the box. She looked at him, and he said, "I love cooking my mother's recipe for fish cakes. I hope you like them."

Sara was still reeling from the suddenness of the odour. She looked at the fish cakes and remained absolutely still for a fraction of a moment. She could imagine Doug making the fish cakes for this moment together. She could imagine his kitchen and the effort he'd have put in.

She thought about what she would say next and broke into a huge sincere smile. "You know I'm a very difficult person for most foods, but how in the world did you know I love fish!?"

Doug smiled as Sara enthusiastically picked out the first cake from the box and bit into it.

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How my Daddy met my Mummy - Ramchandra & Ammini - The Chronicles of the Youngest Child

    

Ramchandra was travelling to Kerala from Bombay because he had fixed his marriage.  He was going to his village first and then he would travel to his future wife's village. Yes, he smiled, even as the wind blew onto his face through the train windows, when he thought about how smart he had been. 

He had met his to-be-wife's older brother Appukuttan through a common acquaintance. The person had given Ramchandra the details of the family and had fixed a meeting for them. It had been a humid September day when he met Appukuttan at the tea stall under Appukuttan's office building in Mumbai. It was 1963 after all and they weren't in Naadu* anymore. He and Appukuttan were the heads of their respective families and they would make all decisions. Even that of their own marriages. Both of them were already in their thirties and it was high time they settled down. As they spoke to each other, both men were acutely aware that more than arranging their own marriages, they were fixing a deal that would benefit both families. 

It was decided. Appukuttan would marry the oldest unmarried sister in Ramchandra's home. Ramchandra in exchange asked to be presented to the oldest unmarried sister who was younger than him. He did not need her to be educated or to have a job. 

Satisfied with their discussion and decision and knowing that both their fairly impoverished families, would be benefitted by this. Ramchandra and Appukuttan shook hands to seal the deal. They both now knew the names of their future wives. Ramchandra prepared to go to Kerala in October and get married to Ammini.

As he entered the village home of Ammini, Ramchandra was greeted by the older family members. Appukuttan hadn't been able to travel back for this meeting because of his job in Mumbai but had informed the family by letter. He would travel in a few days as things would move fast now. In a week, both these men would marry the other's sister in a temple wedding. 

Ammini's mother was a woman who had lived a hard life. She spoke little and Ramchandra being a social butterfly offered them a lot of information about the city and the life there. Ammini brought him a glass of water and a cup of 'chaya' or tea while he sat on the wall of the porch of the ancestral home. The porch was large and bright and seemed extremely large to the couple as they acknowledged the other's presence. Neither of them looked directly at the other. No one did that sort of thing. Ramchandra saw Ammini wearing a simple saree. In reality he just saw her feet move towards him and a glimpse of her face as he lifted his gaze to take the glasses from her outstretched hands in front of him. She was quickly gone. He should have waited for her to place the glasses on the wall next to him instead of grabbing them, thought Ramchandra just after he'd done so.

His practical side had already accepted the match and so to him it was a done deal. He sipped on the chaya and the thought that she looked good enough for him, crossed his mind. This was not something he had thought about actively until he saw his bride-to-be for the first time.

Ammini on the other hand could hide in the dark shadows of the inner room and look at Ramchandra. The brightness outside made the dark rooms inside look darker when looked at from where he was sitting.  She tried her best to be discreet as her older married sisters went about doing their rounds. The younger sisters had been sent to the field behind the house to keep them out of sight of the prospective groom. Many a planned match had been upset by a potential groom choosing a younger sister to marry. Ammini was very happy that she was not going to have any of those problems today.

She was happy that she was soon to go elsewhere. Her house was full of rules and discipline and simmering frustration and anger that was caused by decades of poverty. She looked at the man she was going to marry and besides the delight of seeing a strikingly handsome man in front of her she also saw in him a door to another world, a door away from the village and its superstitions and the punishments of being a woman of no means. She was now 28 and was ready to run away if needed to achieve her freedom she thought. But without an education, she had nowhere to go and no options of a safe life elsewhere. She saw that her future husband always had a small smile on his face. She'd observed him for at least ten minutes and the smile hadn't left his face. He carried in him something she'd not seen often and had not experienced before this.

He wasn't rich, is what she'd gathered. He had siblings already settled in Bombay is what she'd heard. Nothing mattered. She felt in her gut that her life was about to change forever as Ramchandra left and her mother returned wearing the satisfied air of a done deal as she came back inside the house.

chaya - tea with milk

*naadu - village 

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Ammini Amma - Chapter 1 - The Chronicles of the Youngest Child

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Ammini Amma - Chapter 2 - The Chronicles of the Youngest Child

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Ammini Amma - Chapter 3 - The Chronicles of the Youngest Child

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Ammini Amma - Chapter 4 - The Chronicles of the Youngest Child

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Brussels City of Traces - Cinquantenaire Park, Salsa - my entry

 

Photo courtesy Thierry Dumont

A few months back I was told by a sweet lady about a chance to write for the Muntpunt & Passaporta. They were collecting stories about Brussels from anyone who wished to share a story. I thought of what a symbolic moment it was for me, writing about a city where I'd now lived for the same number of years as I'd lived in Mumbai.

You can find the text of the article in the link attached which also has other stories by doing a Ctrl+F for Lekha.

Your Traces | An initiative of Muntpunt and Passa Porta

You can also hear me read out the story at the event that was recently organised where the authors of these stories were invited.

You can also read about Cinquantenaire Park among other places in Brussels, Belgium in this article on my blog

Urban Walk Brussels 7th Dec 2025 - Johan De Vits - #urbanwalk #walkingtours

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From Man to Machine- how Parmeshwar Birajdar glides forward breaking Personal Bests while running

 

With his TMM 2026 Personal Best pace in Full Marathon

While I wake up every morning and decide what route I shall take for my small walk or whether I shall work out with dumbbells or find a scenic route for a long and leisurely walk, I realise many people all over the world are doing the same. It's a great group activity if one comes to think of it. Everyone, ok let's be honest, a minority of people everywhere are waking up daily with new physical goals. But, these small groups of people in each of their neighbourhoods, schools, colleges and office spaces make a difference in inspiring people around them who have next to no motivation. The fact that the subject of sport is the most read one in my blog proves that even people who don't do regular sport seek motivation. Others who do sport need new motivation and perhaps the super achievers may be the only ones spared of this external push.

I always manage to find amazing people to write about and that's a great signal to the world. Motivation can be found everywhere; we just need to keep our eyes open and ears ready to listen. Parmeshwar Birajdar, when you speak to him, is the humblest athlete you will meet. I know him through my sister and I've heard from her how Parmeshwar did this or that trek or that he recently ran so and so events. So, it seemed obvious that I reached out to him. Most of the runners or athletes I write about live in Mumbai or Brussels, but you could also catch my Yoga teacher Rasika, who lives in Hyderabad and who loves trekking in the Himalayas.

Rasika and Muthu climbing and conquering mountains together #couplegoals

Parmeshwar is the first runner I'm writing about who lives in Pune. He grew up in a small village called Dhanegaon in Latur district in Maharashtra. His early days surprisingly never involved sports, he says. However, since he lived in a village, walking was part of everyday physical activity. Later on, he shifted to Pune for his higher education and completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English Literature from Fergusson college. When he started living in the city, he realised that many of his peers used to take off for the weekends in the surrounding hills. 

Pune has extensive hilly terrains that are characterized by a rugged, scenic landscape. These transition from rolling hills to the dramatic Western Ghats. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Ghats

It is normal then to find several areas very close to the city that offer beautiful walking trails. These areas also are dotted with several forts that form the absolute backbone of Maratha history. 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Maratha-Empire

Parmeshwar started going on these treks with friends and soon realised that he was hooked. Being out in nature, surrounded by green valleys & mountains, he knew this was a sport he could do for the rest of his life. Also, everyone else noticed that he was extremely fit and his body seemed predisposed to the activity. Since the passion lasted more than just a couple of months, one of his friends suggested that he do a course in Mountaineering. 

In 2012, Parmeshwar travelled to Manali to complete a Basic Mountaineering course with A.B.V Institute of Mountaineering & Allied Sports (https://abvimas.org/). He then started working with an established unit in Pune called Explorers, Treks & Tours (Since 2001) (https://explorersgroup.in/) as he was now a Certified Outdoor Instructor.

For several years this was his job on the weekends while during the week he worked at Symbiosis International University as an English language facilitator.

As an Outdoor Instructor, he specialises in Rock climbing, Rappelling and Valley crossing (also known as Flying fox). He worked with groups of individuals and corporate professionals who went for easy to tough treks and some that even needed the whole weekend to be covered. Parmeshwar was happy doing these activities till COVID came along. The year was also positive for him as he got married that year. But, because of his work at that time which required him to travel despite the restrictions and a sedentary lifestyle, he had minimal physical fitness for about two years.

the list of marathons in India is always in his sight

On his birthday in 2022, Parmeshwar had had enough of being heavier than he ever had been and getting bored sitting at a desk. He decided to go out for a run. He realised, once again, that running came easy to him and soon developed great physical endurance. His years of walking up & down mountains were recorded in his body and his legs and that rewarded him with quicker form and strength. He loved running for longer distances and running faster each time. He ran his first half marathon 3 months later in November 2022 and completed it in 1 hr 49 mins. The high he got from that event and his daily training made him hunger for more. He joined a local running group. Distance was his thing and so he trained towards a goal of completing a full marathon. He ran his first ever full marathon with a Sub 4, which means he accomplished it in less than 4 hours. Honestly guys, I feel like I have discovered a man who's a machine because these are his timings in all 5 Full Marathons he has done so far:

January 2024 Tata Mumbai Marathon 3 hr 59 mins
August 2024 Hyderabad Full Marathon 3 hr 49 mins
January 2025 Tata Mumbai Marathon 3 hr 43 mins
August 2025 Hyderabad Full Marathon 3 hr 39 mins
January 2026 Tata Mumbai Marathon 3 hr 22 mins

If you notice his pace gets better and he gets faster!

Procamslam 2025 1yr-4 races-4 cities-4distances 

The Procamslam 2025 was Mumbai 42kms, Bengaluru 10kms, Delhi 21kms and Kolkota 25kms.

Parmeshwar is planning to run his next full marathon in August 2026 in Hyderabad. 

He also aspires to participate in the prestigious World Marathon Majors (https://www.worldmarathonmajors.com/), the iconic Comrades Marathon in South Africa (https://comrades.com/), and renowned trail ultramarathons across the world, all of which feature prominently on his running bucket list. 

He is currently training virtually under Mr. Jagdish Shinde, Head Coach of Elite Running Academy, Khanapur, Belgaum, Karnataka a place that has been inspiring and transforming runners especially from the rural parts of India through its disciplined training culture, personalised coaching and unwavering commitment to helping athletes discover their true potential both on and off the track.

Runs & Miles Half Marathon 2026 receiving prize from Milind Soman

   

running the Runs & Miles Half Marathon

with his prize - Runs & Miles Half Marathon

His typical training schedule is running 6 days a week with 3 easy runs, 1 long run on Sundays and 1 to 2 speed runs. He also trains using the Fartlek method, which is a Swedish training method that's gained popularity. 

Interval training  and tempo runs  are also a standard for Parmeshwar. On the easy run days, he combines strength training for about an hour. Strength training specific for runners. He says that a runner needs strength training to avoid injuries.

I can see someone clearly running towards his goals that are getting bigger and meatier each year. We must take a moment to specify that Parmeshwar does all this while managing a full-time job as an English language teaching and assessment professional and family responsibilities. He has now also started training his friends who surely got motivated by him and have taken their health in their hands. I wish him the best and you make sure to follow my blog to get updates on Parmeshwar's journey.

You can also follow him on his handles on Strava and Instagram under

https://strava.app.link/zgnxE8JXm3b

https://www.instagram.com/param_the_wanderer?igsh=MWNxbjJwN3dpNDJseQ==

What I love about running is that most sports need you to be super young to do well, whereas in running, being experienced and having determination and a strong mind means you can get better with age.

On top of that, it's as much a sport for us girls! Women are leading the 'long, long races ' of the world today.

 Rachel Entrekin (34) made history by becoming the first woman to win the grueling Cocodona 250 ultramarathon outright! 

Her insta https://www.instagram.com/rachel__entrekin/?hl=fr

or read about her exploit on 

https://www.bbc.com/sport/athletics/articles/ceqpjdgge2zo

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