Time seems to have stopped here. This patch of green in the heart of the city is contiguous with Bel Bagh. There were several gardens in the old city … Hirabagh, Vishrambagh, Ramanbagh, Tulshibagh etc., which now have only shops and buildings. The old houses in Jogeshwari Lane are mostly gone, and tall buildings now surround Hematai’s little hut, where she lives with her brother, Suhasji. Dr Hema Sane was the first woman lecturer of Botany in Garware College, in 1962. She retired in 2000, as Head of Dept of Botany. She is also an M Phil in Indology. She has authored several textbooks, monographs, scripts and popular articles on plants in and around Pune. They are gone now.” About her own life and her house, she says, “My life is rich not with things, but with my experiences and my friends these trees, Rangutai the cat, and the birds. Another thing I cannot live without is music which my radio brings me.”