TRAVEL TALES of ranaruby

Name: Kashmiri Wazwan: The Royal Feast
Cuisine: Kashmiri
Ingredients: Fresh minced mutton; Mutton fat; Cardamom; Dry Ginger powder; Fennel powder; Desi Ghee; Saffron

Cambodian Chimney Soup: Yao Hon

2026-09-07T21:09:51.988+05:30

Cambodian Chimney Soup

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It is known as Yao Hon (or Yaohon) in Cambodia and is a traditional communal hot pot served in a metal chimney pot over burning coals. Its signature mark is a rich, complex broth that balances creamy coconut milk, savoury Chinese BBQ sauce, tangy tamarind/tom yum paste, and fermented soybean curd. We savoured this at a traditional Cambodian Barbecue. Dipper platters stacked with varieties such as shreds of meat, fish, and shrimp were provided separately for grilling on the chimney pot. The authentic recipe for Chimney soup prepared locally in Cambodia is:

Ingredients

For the Broth

1 can (400ml) coconut milk
1 can Coco Rico (coconut soda) or 1 cup fresh coconut water
3–4 cups chicken broth or water
½ cup Bull Head Chinese Barbecue Sauce (sarsa/shacha)
3 tbsp red bean curd/soybean curd sauce (Sukiyaki sauce)
2 tbsp Tom Yum paste or tamarind paste (for tanginess)
1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
2 tbsp fish sauce
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2–3 Thai red chillies, smashed (optional, for heat)

For the Chimney Table Setup (Dipper Platter)

Proteins: Thinly sliced beef (shabu-shabu style), raw peeled shrimp, squid, or fish balls
Greens & Veggies: Water spinach (morning glory), napa cabbage, baby bok choy, and mushrooms (enoki or oyster)
Carbs: Pre-soaked glass noodles (cellophane noodles) or rice vermicelli

Instructions

Build the Broth Base: In a large pot over medium heat, add a splash of oil and sauté the crushed garlic and chillies until fragrant. Stir in the Chinese BBQ sauce, fermented soybean curd, and Tom Yum paste, stirring continuously for 1 minute.
Simmer the Liquid: Pour in the coconut milk, chicken broth, and coconut soda. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then lower the heat.
Season: Add the palm sugar and fish sauce. Stir well and simmer for 10 minutes so the flavours meld. Taste and adjust—it should be a rich blend of sweet, savoury, tangy, and nutty notes.
Transfer to Chimney Pot: Carefully pour the hot broth into a traditional chimney hot pot (with live hot charcoal placed in the centre stem) or a portable electric hot pot placed at the centre of the dining table.
Cook at the Table: Diners use wire skimmers or chopsticks to swish raw meats, seafood, and vegetables into the simmering broth until cooked through. Ladle broth over noodles in individual bowls to serve

If you enjoyed our traditional Cambodian Prawn Amok, this fiery and coconut-rich hot pot is another absolute must-try..

The recipe card is an adaptation of the soup as prepared in Ruby's Kitchen: 👇

Cambodian Chimney Soup (Yao Hon)

Ruby's Kitchen Special • Fire-Simmered Hot Pot & Dipping Sauce

Prep Time: 25 mins | Cook Time: 20 mins | Servings: 4–6 | Style: Hot Pot

1. Broth Ingredients

400ml Coconut Milk
330ml Coconut Soda (Coco Rico) or fresh coconut water
3 cups Chicken Broth
2 tbsp Satay Paste or Hoisin Sauce
3 tbsp Fermented Red Bean Curd sauce
2 tbsp Tom Yum or Tamarind paste
1 tbsp Palm sugar & 2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce or Mushroom Oyster Sauce
3 cloves Garlic & 2 Thai chillies (crushed)

2. Peanut-Tamarind Dipping Sauce

3 tbsp Creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp Hoisin sauce
1 tbsp Tamarind paste & 1 tbsp Light Soy Sauce or Mushroom Oyster Sauce
1 tbsp Lime juice & 1 tsp Chili oil or sriracha
2 tbsp Warm water (to thin out)
Garnish: Crushed roasted peanuts & minced garlic

3. Table Dippers

Thinly sliced beef (shabu-shabu style)
Raw tiger prawns & squid rings
Water spinach (morning glory) & Napa cabbage
Enoki mushrooms & pre-soaked glass noodles

4. Instructions & Chimney Pot Setup

Make Dipping Sauce: Whisk peanut butter, hoisin, tamarind, light soy sauce, lime juice, chilli oil, and warm water together until smooth. Top with crushed peanuts and minced garlic. Set aside.
Simmer Broth Base: Heat 1 tbsp oil in a deep pot over medium heat. Sauté crushed garlic and chillies until fragrant. Stir in Hoisin sauce, red bean curd, and tom yum paste for 1 minute. Pour in coconut milk, coconut soda, and chicken broth. Season with palm sugar and fish sauce. Simmer gently for 10 minutes.
Chimney Pot Setup: Carefully fill the central chimney chamber of your brass hot pot with lit charcoal embers (or set up a tabletop burner). Pour the hot broth into the outer moat.
Serve at the Table: Arrange raw meats, seafood, greens, and noodles around the pot. Guests cook ingredients directly in the bubbling broth using wire skimmers, then dip into the peanut sauce.

Crafted for Ruby's Kitchen • Enjoy hot with family and friends!

DERBY

2026-09-06T23:52:48.368+05:30

DERBY – the entrance to the stunning Peak District

As far as I could recollect, I first heard of the word ‘derby’ in connection with horse racing contests. That was quite a way back, perhaps during my college days in Calcutta, when at local tea stall 'addas', small groups of people interested in horse racing used to discuss derbies at the Calcutta Race course. In the new millennium, people have begun debating the rivalry between two major football clubs, East Bengal and Mohan Bagan. I have never taken any interest in horse derbies, but in the case of football, which I love, the phrase ‘derby’ stumped me when I first heard it during one of the post-COVID clashes between East Bengal and Mohan Bagan at the Salt Lake Stadium in Calcutta. Why Derby? The answer to this seemed to have been waiting for me when, along with my wife, I visited the town of Derby in England. Even the name of the city, Derby, stemmed from ‘Djura-by’, meaning 'the village of the deer'. I gathered that the term "local derby" initially evolved from traditional, fierce medieval "mob football" matches played annually in the county of Derbyshire (which includes the city of Derby) between rival parts of a town or neighbouring towns, sometimes dating back to the eleventh or twelfth century. The baton seemed to have passed down to a most direct origin for the word's current meaning, i.e., ‘The Derby’, an annual horse race founded in 1780 by Edward Smith-Stanley, the 12th Earl of Derby.

To explore more of the city of Derby, we took a bus number i4 from Beeston in Nottingham. The bus goes directly to Derby bus station and takes about an hour. As we stepped out of the modern bus station, we were greeted by the beautiful medieval look of the city. The Derby Cathedral, a beautiful and historically significant landmark in the city, can be easily sighted due to its tall and magnificent rectangular Gothic Tower. Although a church founded by King Edmund I in the mid-tenth century stood on this site, none of its Anglo-Saxon structure survives. The tower is the oldest surviving part, constructed in the early sixteenth century. The main body, constructed in the early eighteenth century, reflects Georgian (Neo-Classical) architecture. We found the interior quite bright and spacious in contrast to the high-Gothic style of many of the English Cathedrals. The church is also the final resting place of Bess of Hardwick, one of the most powerful women of the Elizabethan era, as well as the Cavendish family (Dukes of Devonshire). A memorial to Florence Nightingale is also located inside. The Cathedral also houses the oldest ring of ten bells in the world, with most dating back to the late 17th century. The largest bell is over 500 years old.

The shorter route to the Cathedral was climbing a few steps. But the steps were very old and slippery due to the rains. We decided to take a slightly longer route. On our way, we came across a strange yet beautiful timber-framed and half-timbered white building. The building houses a pub claimed to be the oldest surviving pub in Derby. The name of this fascinating historic pub is Ye Olde Dolphin Inne, founded sometime in the early 16th century. It was a well-known coaching inn serving as a rest stop for travellers or traders between London and the north. It is rumoured that the inn was a stopping point for highwaymen like the legendary Dick Turpin. In sharp contrast to the real Dick Turpin, the dashing highwayman riding a jet-black magnificent mare named Black Bess, and created by the author William Harrison Ainsworth in 1834, became attached to hundreds of old inns and roads across the country. Such a claim of Dick Turpin's attachment to the inn, therefore, appears to be part of the local folklore that grew up around the mythical, popular highwayman.

There are some eerie and murky stories surrounding the pub, such as the ‘Grey Lady’ who haunts the steak bar, a ghostly boy who sits on the stairs, the ‘Flying Scotsman' who runs up and down the corridor, and the murkiest of all, a girl in the cellar, whose horrified screams are occasionally heard. According to folklore, the 18th-century extension of the pub, which houses a cellar, used to be a doctor’s house, and he used his premises to dissect the bodies of executed criminals. These dark tales of the pub are inscribed outside the pub.

Derby Museum & Art Gallery

We visited the museum and the art gallery, which is about 150 years old. The museum has a remarkable collection of historic porcelain and ceramic ware from Derby and neighbouring areas; archaeological discoveries spanning from prehistory to the 18^th century; military collections including war heroes from Derby in both WWI & II, the siege of Lucknow during the Sepoy Mutiny, Sherwood Foresters and the Derbyshire Yeomanry; and galleries showcasing specimens from the natural world. The main attraction, where we spent most of our visit, was the Joseph Wright Art Gallery. This museum holds the world’s largest collection of the 18th-century internationally acclaimed painter Joseph Wright, popularly known as Joe in his hometown of Derby. Famously known as a ‘painter of light’, for his masterly use of artificial candlelight in creating dramatic effects for nighttime scenes. A technique known as tenebrism is the strongest representation of chiaroscuro. Some of the notable paintings were ‘The Widow of an Indian Chief watching the arms of her deceased husband’, ‘Landscape with a Rainbow', and ‘Glittering Moonlight on the Sea’. When he was in Italy, he saw Vesuvius erupting – which he depicted in his painting. After going round the museum and the gallery, we settled for coffee and chocolate-orange cake in the Coffee House on the ground floor.

Derby Market Hall

On our way back to the bus station, we spent some time in the 160-year-old Derby Market Hall. The building is a fine example of Victorian architecture. It is a large hall with a spectacular vaulted roof supported by iron arches. The exterior with a large paved space presents a stunningly beautiful sight. The interior, beneath a magnificent glass roof, buzzes with shops offering fresh local produce, vintage fashion, and unique gifts. The culinary journey was irresistibly enjoyable, savouring delicacies at food courts and bars offering a diverse range of cuisines.

Photo credit: Arundhati Sengupta

Derby Cathedral

Inside Derby Cathedral

The oldest pub in Derby

Spooky tales about Dolphin Inn

Dolphin inn

Another view of the inn

Derby City

Derby Museum & Art Gallery

Joseph Wright Gallery

Painting of Joseph Wright

Oil on canvas.Reason why Joseph was famously known as 'painter of light'

Joseph - the painter of light

Self Portrait - Joseph Wright

Soldier's story

Derby city

Derby Silk Mill

Derby Market

Food Court

Lunch-chicken platter

Food Court

I'd Love to Hear From You!

As a football fan, I still fail to make out as to why the word 'derby' is being used to refer to a football competition nowadays. Let’s discuss in the comments below!

Ethiopian Minchet Abesh: Adapting Spiced Mutton Keema & Injera at Home

2026-08-25T22:12:39.807+05:30

Ethiopian Cuisine: Great Tastes from Africa

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post has affiliate links. If you buy through one of these links, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Minchet Abesh & Injera: Memories of Columbus & Ethiopian Flavour at Home

There are some unmissable culinary experiences in our wandering days in India as well as abroad. One of them is Ethiopian cuisine, which left a lingering mark on my taste buds, at least for a gourmet like me.

During our stay in Columbus, the capital of Ohio, we frequented Ducem, an Ethiopian eatery. A piquant standalone single-story building with a ranch house look. Whenever we visited Ducem, our son Arjun used to drive across the river Olentangy (a strange name which quite often slips out of my mind). I only remember that the river ran close to the medical centre of Ohio State University.

The atmosphere inside used to be gay, warm and relaxed; a setting creating that indefinable something called ambience. Simple, no-fuss tables and diners, mainly settlers from distant Africa, used to throng the place. Run by an Ethiopian family, the restaurant served authentic, superb food. The dish I still long for, many years later, is Minchet Abesh and Injera.

Taking a cue from the original recipe, my wife prepared the Indian version by replacing minced ground beef stew with mutton or chicken keema. For the bread roll, injera, she has discovered an alternative to the traditional gluten-free teff flour used to make it.

Recipe for Minchet Abesh (Ethiopian spicy keema)

Ingredients

Mutton Keema: 500g (finely minced
Onions: 3 large red onions, finely chopped
Garlic: 1½ tbsp garlic paste; Ginger: 1 tbsp ginger paste

Spice: Kashmiri red chilli powder-2tbsp; paprika-1tsp; coriander powder-1 tsp; cumin powder ½ tsp 2 tbsp Kashmiri red chilli powder) methi ( fenugreek) seeds ground -¼ tsp; ground cinnamon & ground cloves blend-¼ tsp; ground black cardamom badi elaichi ground-½ tsp

Cooking oil-2tbsp + ghee ½ cup smooth tomato puree + 1½ cups mutton stock

Method:
Cook finely chopped onions over medium heat without oil for 8–10 minutes until soft and the moisture evaporates. Add cooking oil, ginger paste, and garlic paste; fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the spice mixture and tomato puree. Cook for 4–5 minutes, until the oil separates slightly. Add the minced mutton, stirring continuously to break up clumps until evenly browned and coated in spices. Pour in 1½ cups warm mutton stock/water. Cover and simmer on low heat for 35–40 minutes until mutton is tender and the rich gravy thickens. Stir in ghee and ground black cardamom. Adjust salt. Nestle hard-boiled egg halves into the gravy before serving.

Recipe for Injera: Rollable Ethiopian Bread

Ingredients:

1 cup Whole Wheat Flour (Atta)
1 cup All-Purpose Flour (Maida)
1 tsp active dry yeast
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 cups warm water
1 tbsp plain yoghurt or ½ tsp lemon juice (for the fermented sour note)

Method:

Whisk wheat flour, maida, yeast, salt, yoghurt/lemon juice, and warm water into a smooth, thin batter. Cover and leave in a warm spot for 45 minutes until light and bubbly. Stir in baking powder. Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat. Pour ¼ cup batter in a spiral from the outer edge inward. When small air pockets ("eyes") form across the top (about 1 minute), cover with a tight lid for 1–2 minutes to steam through. Do not flip. Transfer to a cloth, let cool slightly, and roll tightly like a scroll.

Ethiopian Minchet Abesh served at Ducem in Columbus

Another meat variety with Injera at Ducam

Meat with Injera roll at Ducem

1. Minchet Abesh: Spicy Ethiopian Keema

Ingredients

Mutton Keema: 500g (finely minced)
Onions: 3 large red onions, finely chopped
Garlic Paste: 1½ tbsp
Ginger Paste: 1 tbsp
Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder: 2 tbsp
Paprika: 1 tsp
Coriander Powder: 1 tsp
Cumin Powder: ½ tsp
Methi (Fenugreek) Seeds: ¼ tsp ground
Cinnamon & Cloves Blend: ¼ tsp ground
Badi Elaichi (Black Cardamom): ½ tsp ground
Fat & Base: 2 tbsp cooking oil + ghee
Liquids: ½ cup smooth tomato puree + 1½ cups mutton stock
Garnish: Hard-boiled egg halves

Method

Cook finely chopped onions over medium heat without oil for 8–10 minutes until soft and moisture evaporates.
Add cooking oil, ginger paste, and garlic paste; fry for 2 minutes.
Stir in the spice mixture and tomato puree. Cook for 4–5 minutes, until the oil separates slightly.
Add the minced mutton, stirring continuously to break up clumps until evenly browned and coated in spices.
Pour in 1½ cups warm mutton stock/water. Cover and simmer on low heat for 35–40 minutes until mutton is tender and the rich gravy thickens.
Stir in ghee and ground black cardamom. Adjust salt. Nestled hard-boiled egg halves into the gravy before serving.

2. Injera: Rollable Ethiopian Bread

Ingredients

Whole Wheat Flour (Atta): 1 cup
All-Purpose Flour (Maida): 1 cup
Active Dry Yeast: 1 tsp
Baking Powder: ½ tsp
Salt: ½ tsp
Warm Water: 2 cups
Yoghurt or Lemon Juice: 1 tbsp plain yoghurt or ½ tsp lemon juice (for fermented sour note)

Method

Whisk wheat flour, maida, yeast, salt, yoghurt/lemon juice, and warm water into a smooth, thin batter.
Cover and leave in a warm spot for 45 minutes until light and bubbly. Stir in baking powder.
Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat. Pour ¼ cup batter in a spiral from the outer edge inward.
When small air pockets ("eyes") form across the top (about 1 minute), cover with a tight lid for 1–2 minutes to steam through. Do not flip.
Transfer to a cloth, let cool slightly, and roll tightly like a scroll.

Cambodian Prawn Amok

2026-08-19T23:43:51.779+05:30

Ruby's Kitchen Special

Cambodian Prawn Amok

Amok Bongkang (Siem Reap Style)

Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 15 mins | Serves: 2–3

A classic heritage dish from Siem Reap, this aromatic Khmer curry infuses succulent king prawns with fresh homemade Kroeung (yellow lemongrass paste) and silky coconut cream. Perfectly balanced, fragrant, and comforting.

Ingredients

For the Fresh Yellow Kroeung Paste:

2 stalks Lemongrass (inner white part only, finely sliced)
2 Shallots, peeled & chopped
3 cloves Garlic, peeled
1-inch knob Fresh Ginger or Galangal
1 tsp Ground Turmeric
1 Fresh Red Chilli (deseeded for mild warmth)
Zest of 1 Kaffir Lime (or regular lime)

For the Prawn Curry:

300g Raw King Prawns (peeled, deveined, tail-on)
1 tbsp Cooking Oil (Peanut or Vegetable oil)
250ml Coconut Cream
1 tbsp Fish Sauce
1 tsp Palm Sugar (or light brown sugar)
1 cup Bok Choy or Baby Spinach (chopped)
Fresh Basil or Mint Leaves (for garnish)
Steamed Jasmine Rice (for serving)

Instructions

Blend the Kroeung Paste: Combine all curry paste ingredients in a mini food processor (or pound with a traditional mortar and pestle) until a smooth, vibrant yellow paste forms.
Sauté the Aromatics: Heat the cooking oil in a skillet or wok over medium heat. Add the freshly prepared Kroeung paste and stir-fry gently for 1 to 2 minutes until very aromatic.
Build the Coconut Sauce: Pour in the coconut cream, stirring continuously to merge it with the paste. Bring to a soft, gentle simmer for 5 minutes until the sauce slightly thickens.
Cook the Prawns: Stir in the fish sauce and palm sugar. Add the raw king prawns and chopped bok choy (or spinach). Simmer gently for 4–5 minutes until the prawns turn pink, tender, and fully cooked.
Garnish & Serve: Remove from heat and fold in fresh basil or mint leaves. Serve hot alongside a generous bowl of steamed Jasmine rice.

Featured in our travelogue: The Lost Kingdom: Exploring Siem Reap & Angkor Wat →

Secrets of Sherwood Forest: Outlaws to the Major Oak.

2026-06-29T20:38:14.519+05:30

SHERWOOD

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post has affiliate links. If you buy a book through one of these links, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Introduction: A Lifelong Dream of Robin Hood

There are certain niceties I cherish, which remain firmly fixed in memory. Particularly, some fleeting moments in the city where I grew up. In the early sixties, when TV and smartphones were unheard of, we developed a fondness for books. What I could recall was an attractive, hardcover, tabletop-sized book on Robin Hood, peeking out from a showcase at Universal Book Depot in Hazratgunj, Lucknow. As much as I could remember, my parents gifted me that book on my birthday. Then, after almost thirty years, Bryan Adams mesmerised me with his song ‘Everything I do, I do it for you’. The song was from Oscar-nominated Kevin Costner’s blockbuster movie ‘Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves’. After another three decades, on a bright sunny morning in November 2025, I landed at the legendary outlaw's den, which, till that day, had remained in my mind as the enigmatic Sherwood Forest.

🌳History: The Forest in Nottinghamshire

The protected forest area today covers roughly 1,000 acres, but historically, as recorded during the thirteenth century, it was over a hundred times larger and extended up to the wall of the medieval Nottingham Castle located close to Nottingham city centre. Robin Hood’s outlaw activities took place here when the Sheriff of Nottingham made it his stronghold, while King Richard the Lionheart was away on the Third Crusade. The original castle was built by William the Conqueror over a thousand years ago. The present building, which stands there, was built by William Cavendish, the Duke of Newcastle, in the mid-seventeenth century, after demolishing the medieval castle.

🚌How to Get to Sherwood Forest from Nottingham

There is only one bus, the Sherwood Arrow bus, which operates at an interval of around one hour from Victoria Bus Station, adjoining the Victoria Centre at Nottingham. I, along with my travel companion (my wife), opted for the morning bus so that we could spend the entire day at Sherwood Forest. An hour bus ride to Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre was a pleasant one—after leaving the highway, our bus hurtled down a narrower road almost void of any traffic through pristine English countryside.

The immediate space in the vicinity of the bus stop is indescribably pretty. Edwinstowe Village Forest Corner features a beautiful semi-open-air village square exhibiting souvenirs and a bustling café at the centre. At the entrance gate to the Visitor Centre, we were greeted by a man personating Friar Tuck. The basic layout of the Visitor Centre comprises a souvenir shop at the ground level and a café right below. A cute café, where we had breakfast.

🍂Encountering the Ancient Major Oak

The café opens out to the forest. There are several trails in the woodland dominated by native oaks. After strolling through the forest glades, we came across the most popular trail leading to the historical Major Oak. It is about 3 km from the Visitor Centre. The forest is rich in ground flora, and a major part is dominated by veteran oaks, of which the oldest one living is Parliament Oak, slated to be about 1100 years old. In India, the old trees are mostly banyan trees. We don’t remember coming across any oak trees in our country. So, seeing oak trees was something new, which held us awed, particularly the Major Oak, which had a trunk with a massive girth. My educated guess was that it could house about four standard rooms, each 100 square feet. The canopy was almost three times the circumference of the trunk. It is believed to be around 1000 years old, where the legendary Robin Hood and his merry men used to hide inside the hollow trunk from the Sheriff of Nottingham. Because of its massive canopy, the tree is cordoned off by the forest authorities, and sturdy structural props have been used to support the ancient, heavy branches. There were patches of common spotted orchids around the major oak. The entire view was inexplicably stunning. The forest habitats are home to a bewildering variety of birds, including woodpeckers; smaller mammals such as red squirrels and hedgehogs; larger mammals such as badgers, foxes and fallow deer; and beetles, spiders and common reptiles such as lizards. All quite harmless inhabitants, thereby eliminating the fear of accidentally trundling on a venomous reptile, an apprehension while walking into forest glades. But since our visit was during the fall, we trampled the copper leaves that had carpeted the trails.

Wandering to the fabled Sherwood Forest, the Major Oak that served as a hideout for Robin Hood, England's most captivating folklore hero, and the nearby romantic Edwinstowe village cast a captivating spell on me.

Photo and video credit: Arundhati Sengupta

Sherwood Forest

Friar Tuck greeted us at the entrance.

Visitor Centre Souvenir Shop

Paths covered by fallen leaves in the autumn

On legendary outlaw Robin Hood

Trail indicators in Sherwood Forest

Map of the Sherwood Forest

Copper leaves carpet the Sherwood Forest

The image shows the Major Oak with a full leafy canopy

The thousand year old Major Oak in Sherwood Forest

Investigating the Sherwood Forest ⁣

Cafe in the Greenwood

Friar Tuck near Nottingham Castle

Robin Hood, the renowned archer, near Nottingham Castle

Richard the Lionheart blesses Robin Hood and Marian.

Nottingham Castle

The image depicts the medieval Nottingham Castle.

The iconic Nottingham Castle Gate

The following videos were taken near the Nottingham Castle 👇

I've been using Travelpayouts to monetize my travel content and wanted to share it with you.

On the Wheel/AJANTA: A Guest Post by Debasis Roy - 2

2026-05-22T15:44:01.122+05:30

On the Wheel/AJANTA – Part 2 – by Debasis Roy

While Ellora stands as a monumental triumph of monolithic engineering, Ajanta whispers a different kind of ancient magic. In Part 2 of 'On the Wheel', Debasis Roy journeys deeper into the Sahyadri hills to uncover the serene world of the Ajanta Caves. Steps inside a 2,000-year-old time capsule where rock-cut monasteries meet the sublime, fluid beauty of India’s finest ancient murals and Buddhist frescoes.

If you missed the beginning of Debasis's journey through the monolithic marvels of Ellora, you can read it here 👉. [Part 1 ]

Photographs: Debasis Roy

AJANTA, Aurangabad, Maharashtra

If Ellora stands as a grand confluence of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism chiselled into volcanic rock, Ajanta unfolds like a silent monastic hymn devoted almost entirely to the Buddha. In this secluded sanctuary, stone, colour and contemplation merge into one timeless narrative. Hidden within a dramatic horseshoe-shaped gorge carved by the unassuming yet poetic Waghora (Baghora) River, the Ajanta caves rise nearly 250 feet above the ravine, forming one of the most luminous artistic legacies of ancient India.

The story of Ajanta spans nearly eight centuries. The earliest caves, dating to the 2nd–1st centuries BCE, belong to the Hinayana phase of Buddhism, flourishing under the Satavahana rulers. These early excavations — simple chaityas (prayer halls) and viharas (monastic dwellings) — reflected an austere spiritual ethos, with symbolic representations of the Buddha rather than anthropomorphic forms. A long hiatus followed until the 5th–6th centuries CE, when Ajanta witnessed a remarkable renaissance under the Vakataka dynasty, contemporaries and cultural allies of the Guptas. This later phase embraced the Mahayana tradition, introducing elaborate sculptures, celestial Bodhisattvas and some of the most exquisite mural paintings ever created in the ancient world — vivid depictions of Jataka tales, courtly life, compassion and transcendence.

For centuries, the caves lay abandoned and forgotten, swallowed by jungle and silence, until 1819, when a British cavalry officer, John Smith, stumbled upon Cave 10 during a tiger hunt — an accidental rediscovery that reopened a forgotten chapter of world heritage. Out of roughly 30 rock-cut caves, combining monasteries and prayer halls, about sixteen once contained mural paintings, though time, moisture and human neglect have erased many beyond recovery. Play. Ek Panowski. Several caves beyond certain points remain closed to visitors for preservation. The artists of Ajanta worked with remarkable ingenuity. The rough basalt surface was first layered with a base mixture of earth, sand, lime fibres, paddy husk and vegetal matter. A second coat of mud blended with rock powder refined the plane, and finally, a delicate limewash formed the canvas upon which natural pigments – bound with organic glue – brought stories to life. Even in their faded state, the paintings reveal extraordinary mastery of line, expression, perspective, and emotional depth. Ajanta today welcomes visitors from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm.

I left Aurangabad early in the morning, travelling through stretches of road bordered by colourful boulevards and wild pink blossoms nodding gently in the breeze – an unexpectedly lyrical prelude to the caves. Near the entrance, a couple of individuals halted my vehicle to collect an entry charge of Rs 15 per head, though it remained unclear whether the collection was official. After purchasing tickets, I began my exploration at Cave 1, widely considered the crown jewel of Ajanta’s murals.

Official guides charge around Rs 1800, while plaques at each cave provide basic descriptions. Yet, without familiarity with Jataka narratives, many stories remain cryptic – their outlines visible but their moral universe elusive. Much of the art has suffered defacement, rendering several scenes difficult to decipher. Carrying a small torch or spotlight proves helpful as the lighting within many caves remains subdued. Security personnel stationed at cave entrances occasionally offer informal explanations if encouraged politely. My own knowledge of Jataka tales being very limited, I, being only a traveller with curious eyes, chose instead to immerse and absorb myself in the astonishing dedication and artistic genius of those anonymous artists who devoted their lives with monk-like patience and surrendered their lives, breath by breath, to create these timeless masterpieces, these immortal visions on stone that later became living classrooms for generations of painters, and tried to grasp their quiet brilliance. Their works are not merely paintings; they are living lessons.

The legendary Nandalal Bose brought his pupils here, asking them to listen to the silence of Ajanta’s walls and learn directly from the silent yet eloquent brushstrokes of antiquity, from colours that refuse to fade with time. My mind drifted back nearly thirty-five years to my visit to the Bagh Caves in Madhya Pradesh, where paintings akin to Ajanta once adorned and bloomed across the cavern walls in resplendent glory. I had arrived there full of anticipation, only to learn on arrival—with a traveller’s sorrow and deep regret—that many of those fragile masterpieces had succumbed to the relentless seepage of water through the hills. After several valiant but unsuccessful attempts at on-site preservation, the authorities eventually chiselled out the rock surfaces bearing the surviving fragments and relocated them to the Bhopal Museum – a necessary rescue, though divorced from the living embrace of their caves, deprived of their original ambience. At Ajanta, in contrast, one still experiences the paintings in their natural setting and original ambience, where light, silence, and stone together recreate the world in which they were conceived, where the paintings converse with rock, shadow, and echo, exactly as their creators intended. After lingering in Cave 1 longer than planned, I boarded the e-bus—Rs 25 per head—and descended at Cave 8 to continue my exploration. Basic comforts—water dispensers and toilets—are thoughtfully placed near some entry points, a small mercy for weary wanderers. Shoes must be removed at the entrance to each cave, a ritual of humility before history—stricter here than at Ellora.

As the day waned, I retraced my steps with tired feet and boarded the e-AC bus again for Rs 25—after a long walk back to Cave 8, before embarking on a three-hour car journey covering 110 kilometres to return to Aurangabad. My spirit was overflowing—nourished by the extraordinary legacy of ancient Indian architecture, sculpture, and painting that had unfolded before me at Ellora and Ajanta. The stomach, however, demanded its own tribute, and I yielded gladly at Baraka, a celebrated restaurant at Connaught Place—the bustling heart of Aurangabad—renowned for its Middle Eastern and Arabic delicacies. The delectable dishes felt like a culinary adventure of their own, a welcome departure from the monotony of Pav Bhaji and Poha. The dinner was deeply satisfying—a fitting culinary epilogue to my Aurangabad sojourn. The following day, I returned to Manmad by train, enjoyed a wholesome lunch at the popular Kailash restaurant near the station, bowed to the statue of Shivaji, who established the foundation of a glorified Maratha confederacy with a formidable Maratha force to challenge the Mughals, and then endured the exasperating wait for the perpetually delayed Bengaluru-bound Karnataka Express. At last, as the train groaned into motion, I began the journey back to Bengaluru—only to prepare for another escape soon after, this time towards the mist-kissed hills of Coonoor and Ooty via Kotagiri.

The dramatic horseshoe bend of the Sahyadri hills houses the 30 rock-cut caves of Ajanta.

The stunning architectural symmetry and rock-cut carvings frame the entrance of an ancient Chaitya hall.

Cave 1- Bodhisattva Padmapani

Cave 26—Unique 2000-year-old sculpture of reclining Buddha

Cave 26 - Monumental sculptural façade

On the Wheel/Ajanta and Ellora:A Guest Post by Debasis Roy -1

2026-03-21T15:40:00.002+05:30

A WORD ON DEBASIS ROY

It’s always a treat to see a destination through a fresh pair of eyes—especially when those eyes belong to someone who lives for the open road as much as I do. Today, I am thrilled to hand over the storytelling to a fellow explorer and close friend who recently returned from the heart of Maharashtra. While many of us chase horizons, he has a knack for finding the stories etched into the stone. He’s traded his usual trails for the ancient, rock-cut wonders of the Deccan Plateau, bringing back a perspective on Ajanta and Ellora that is as vivid as the frescoes themselves. The man behind the compass is Debasis Roy. Eloquently penned, the author shares a first-hand account of the Deccan Plateau's greatest wonders: the Ajanta and Ellora caves. Ellora (Part 1), Ajanta ( Part 2).

On The Wheel/Ellora (Part 1) - by Debasis Roy

After a short pause following my trip to Giridih and Deoghar, the travel bug struck again. This time, I set out on a month-long journey through South India and Maharashtra, with Bangalore as my base and Aurangabad firmly on my radar.

Bangalore eased me into the journey with its everyday surprises. Zapota—sabeda The coaching of the field, as we Bengalis call it, was delightfully cheap at just Rs 40–50 a kilo. Strawberries from neighbouring Maharashtra were another pleasant shock, far more affordable than back home in Kolkata, though in Maharashtra, it is available at half the price. The only letdown for a fish-loving Bengali like me was the scarcity of fresh sweet-water fish. To make matters worse (or culturally interesting, depending on how you see it), most fish markets shut down on Mondays, the day devoted to Lord Shiva.

On the evening of 27 January, I boarded the Karnataka Express from Bangalore. The overnight journey was smooth, and by noon the next day, we rolled into Manmad. Somewhere along the way, the train crossed the Bhima River—the main tributary of the Krishna—, and I spotted the vast Ujani Dam stretching across it, one of Maharashtra’s largest. At Koregaon, the station just before Manmad, many passengers got down, headed for Shirdi, barely 25 km away, with plenty of onward transport available.

From Manmad, I hopped onto another train and reached Aurangabad in about an hour and a half. Two days later, on the 29th, I hired a car for a full day of sightseeing—Ellora and beyond. A four-seater costs around Rs 1,500–1,600, inclusive of tolls and parking, and covers a packed itinerary: Ghrushneswar Temple, Ellora Caves, Bhadra Maruti Temple, a Himroo silk factory, Daulatabad Fort, and the ever-photogenic Bibi-ka-Maqbara. (I’ve listed a few reliable car operators at the end for fellow travellers.)

Ancient Temples of Aurangabad

My first stop of the day was the Ghrushneswar Temple, about 30 km from Aurangabad—now officially renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Built from red volcanic stone, this ancient shrine has endured repeated End. ed destruction, first by the Delhi Sultanate in the 13th century and later during Mughal–Maratha conflicts. It was rebuilt by Maloji Bhosale, Shivaji’s grandfather, in the 16th century and later restored to its present form in 1729 by the remarkable Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore.

The temple opens at 5:30 a.m., and despite arriving early, I was greeted by a sea of devotees. A long queue was unavoidable. Even though I hadn’t come to perform a formal puja, it took nearly an hour to reach the sanctum. Entry required going shirtless—a practice still strictly followed, though photography is allowed outside. The temple’s five-tiered shikhara stands out distinctly against the sky. Before leaving, I sampled rajgira, a local delicacy made from the seeds of "notey shaak", sold just outside the temple complex.

The Bhadra Maruti Temple, however, didn’t quite make the cut for me—architecturally, it felt underwhelming—so I chose to skip it. Those with extra time can also explore the Aurangabad Caves, carved nearly 2,000 years ago by Buddhist monks and located about 8 km from the city on a different route. Another worthwhile detour is the Tomb of Malik Ambar, a fascinating historical figure who rose from slavery to become the de facto ruler and Prime Minister of the Ahmednagar Sultanate in the early 17th century. His tomb lies about 5 km off the road between Ellora and Daulatabad Fort.

With the blessings of Ghrishneswar behind me and the morning crowds still flowing in, I set off once more—Ellora awaited.

ELLORA

Barely a kilometre from the sacred hush of Grishneswar Temple, another world rises from the earth — Ellora. Not merely a monument, but a thunderclap of human imagination frozen in stone. Set against undulating volcanic hills brushed with green, this colossal complex feels less like a destination and more like a revelation waiting behind the ticket counter. The first encounter is Cave 16—and what an entrance it is. The moment a visitor enters, this cave casts a magical spell on him.

Entry costs a modest Rs 40 for Indian visitors, a sum that feels almost symbolic for stepping into a universe carved from rock. Official guides offer detailed storytelling of a couple of caves for about Rs 2500, though private guides linger nearby with softer quotes. Truth be told, even the plaques at the cave entrances—along with a curious mind and a bit of prior reading—can lead you into the depths of Ellora’s layered history. The site opens from 6 am to 6 pm and rests only on Tuesdays, as though even these eternal stones need a day of silence.

Cave 16, the legendary Kailash Temple, is the undisputed monarch of Ellora — a monolithic marvel unmatched anywhere on the planet. Standing there, I wondered why the world had not crowned it the eighth wonder. The caves—locally known as Verul Leni — bear the chiselled signatures of ancient Indian architectural and sculptural heyday across centuries, forming one of the largest rock-hewn monastic–temple complexes ever conceived. Sculpted from the ancient volcanic basalt of the Deccan Trap—a geological tapestry of stepped formations and flat-topped ridges — Ellora is as much a natural wonder as it is a human one. Buddhist and Jain architecture and sculpture also left an unforgettable impression on a few other caves.

Originally, around 100 caves were carved into these basalt cliffs; today, 34 remain open to visitors. Their creation unfolded in three sweeping historical movements. The earliest phase, Caves 1–12, belongs to Buddhism (5th–8th centuries), with serene chaityas and monk residences believed to be patronised by the Chalukyas. Caves 13–29 reflect the rise of Brahmanical devotion (7th–10th centuries), nurtured first by the Kalachuris and later by the mighty Rashtrakutas. Finally, the Jain caves (30–34), built between the 9th and 12th centuries under the patronage of the Yadavas, add their own austere elegance to the ensemble. Ellora never slipped into oblivion — its position along ancient trade routes ensured a steady stream of travellers and pilgrims across eras.

Stepping into Cave 16 felt like walking into a dream forged from stone dust and devotion. The Rashtrakutas did not carve a temple into the mountain—they liberated one from it, excavating millions of tonnes of basalt from the top downward, sculpting an immense rectangular trench that reveals a self-contained architectural universe. Walls bloom with friezes of astonishing precision, narrating epics and Puranic legends in silent yet vivid motion.

The Kailash Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva and begun under King Krishna I (c. 757–783 CE), appears as if borne on the backs of colossal elephants — a surreal vision of strength and grace. The two-storey complex gleams like a crown jewel amid the surrounding galleries, where massive deities echo the grandeur of Elephanta. Time and weather have softened some open-air sculptures, yet their presence still humbles the viewer. The tower on one side of the temple has been adopted as the motif of the Rs20 note — a quiet reminder of India’s artistic genius passing through countless hands. During the monsoon, water streams cascade from the cliff’s edge like veils of silver, turning the site into a living painting.

Leaving the magical trance of Cave 16 was no easy feat. For those wishing to explore farther corners without exhaustion, e-carts run for Rs40 per passenger, ferrying visitors between select caves. A wristband marks your entitled rides — a small token that must be returned at the end. The route typically drops the visitor near Cave 30 on one side, then takes him to the celebrated Viswakarma Cave (No. 10) on the other, and eventually returns the visitor to Cave 16 for departure. Among the other remarkable caves are Dumar Lena (29), Dasavatara (15), Rameshwara (21), and the three-story Teen Tal (12). Lighting inside many caves remains dim, so carrying a torch proves wise — shadows often conceal the finest details.

After Ellora’s overwhelming splendour, I set off for lunch before exploring Daulatabad fort. Food, however, failed to match the grandeur of the morning. Breakfast had already been underwhelming despite being pricier than in many other states. Local staples such as poha and pav dominated menus; a small cup of tea cost Rs20 — double what I had grown accustomed to elsewhere — while a simple veg thali ranged between Rs170–190. Lunch, too, left little impression on the palate. Yet Maharashtra’s bounty shone through its fruits. I picked up anjir (fig), its dried cross-sections reminiscent of the Afghan pavilion’s offerings, along with fresh strawberries, ramphal — a creamy fruit akin to custard apple — and guavas from the region’s orchards. The state’s fertile lands also nurture sugarcane, cotton, pulses, millet, rice, wheat and grapes in abundance.

Still, the hunger of the eyes for remaining sightseeing sites far outweighed the hunger of the stomach. As the car rolled onward towards the formidable Daulatabad Fort, the memory of a bland meal dissolved quickly beneath the promise of yet another chapter in stone and history.

Daulatabad

On my way to Daulatabad Fort, I made a brief stop at a Himroo weaving factory and showroom. Himroo—an exquisite blend of silk and cotton—traces its origins to the era of Muhammad bin Tughlaq, when the craft flourished under royal patronage. Watching the looms at work and admiring the intricate patterns offered a fascinating glimpse into a living textile tradition. Carrying the impressions of this delicate artistry with me, I resumed my journey towards the imposing fort.About 15 kilometres from Ellora, on the road to Aurangabad, rises the brooding, basalt citadel of Daulatabad—once Paithan in the Satavahana age and later Devagiri, the glittering capital of the Yadavas. Perched some 200 metres above the Deccan plateau, the fortress appears less built than carved from the very bones of volcanic rock. Its origins trace back to the 12th century, when Yadava ruler Bhillama V transformed this strategic hill into an impregnable stronghold and a thriving seat of power.

The rhythms of history soon converged upon Devagiri. In 1294, Alauddin Khilji swept down from the north, annexing the fort in one of the earliest major incursions into the Deccan by the Delhi Sultanate. By 1318, his general Malik Kafur had extinguished the last Yadava ruler, Harapal, sealing the fate of a dynasty that had once commanded this rugged land. Yet the fort’s most dramatic chapter unfolded under Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq, who in 1327 audaciously shifted his capital from Delhi to Devagiri, renaming it Daulatabad—“City of Fortune.” Centrally placed and shielded from Mongol and Afghanincursions, it was meant to be the empire’s beating heart. History, however, remembers the move as both visionary and ill-fated; revolts and administrative strain forced the Sultan’s return to Delhi, leaving Daulatabad with a lingering aura of imperial ambition and unfinished dreams.

Taking advantage of the vacuum, the Bahmani Sultanate captured the citadel, embellishing it with the soaring Chand Minar in 1445 under the inspiration of Kutub Minar—an elegant, red-hued tower erected by Ala-ud-din Bahmani to commemorate military triumphs. Later, the fort passed into the hands of the Nizam Shahis of Ahmadnagar, whose celebrated statesman Malik Ambar shifted his administrative centre to Khadki—later renamed Aurangabad when Mughal prince Aurangzeb served as viceroy of the Deccan. As the tides of empire changed, Daulatabad came under Mughal authority; Aurangzeb imprisoned the last Qutb Shahi ruler within the Chini Mahal here after the fall of Golconda in 1687. In time, Marathas and then the Nizams of Hyderabad claimed the fort, each leaving faint echoes of their dominion in its layered walls.

Architecturally, Daulatabad is a masterclass in medieval military ingenuity. Three concentric fortifications—Ambarkot, Mahakot, and Kalakot—wrap the hill in stone like armour. Attackers were forced to traverse a single, narrow bridge and navigate pitch-dark, zigzag passages hewn into rock. False gates, sudden turns, steep climbs, and iron-spiked doors—designed to thwart elephant charges—turned every step into a deadly gamble. Within these ramparts lie stepwells, reservoirs, royal baths, audience halls, and the ruins of palaces that once resonated with courtly life. Sufi influences also flourished here, carried along the trade and military routes that converged upon this crossroads of the Deccan.

The entry fee for this fort is Rs 25 per person. My own ascent—negotiating nearly 700 steep steps—felt like walking through centuries layered upon one another. The Chand Minar rose like a sentinel on the path; moats and rock-cut passages whispered tales of sieges long past, while a very ordinary Ganesh shrine stood as a quiet reminder of the fort’s plural past. At the summit, the remnants of royal quarters opened to sweeping views of the plateau—vast, sunburnt, and timeless.

And yet, despite its formidable history and ingenious design, I found myself reflecting that the three-tiered Golconda Fort of Hyderabad had impressed me more with its scale and grandeur. Daulatabad, however, remains unforgettable—not merely as a fortress, but as a palimpsest of ambition, conquest, and resilience etched into stone.

With the shadows lengthening, I left this hill of many empires and steered towards the final destination of my first day’s journey—Bibi ka Maqbara. (To be continued…)

Bibi ka Maqbara

Hardly 16 kilometres from the formidable ramparts of Daulatabad, in the historic heart of Aurangabad, stands Bibi ka Maqbara—a quiet yet poignant echo of Mughal splendour. Built in the late 17th century, this mausoleum was commissioned by Emperor Aurangzeb in memory of his beloved wife Dilras Banu Begum, though many historians note that its execution and completion were overseen by his son, Prince Azam Shah. Conceived in the image of the Taj Mahal, it has earned the affectionate epithet “Deccan’s Mini Taj,” yet its identity is distinctly its own.

Approaching through manicured gardens and symmetrical pathways, the monument reveals the familiar Mughal grammar of domes, minarets, and geometric harmony. But a closer gaze unveils subtle divergences from its Agra counterpart. While the Taj Mahal rises in an elegant octagonal plan—reflecting the symbolic resonance of the number eight in Islamic cosmology—Bibi ka Maqbara rests on a more grounded square base, giving it a restrained, almost contemplative character. The Taj dazzles with its expanse of luminous white marble; here, marble is used sparingly, with much of the structure rendered in finely polished plaster—an artistic compromise shaped by Aurangzeb’s austere tastes and the fiscal constraints of his reign.

The monument breathes a quieter grace, its beauty lying not in overwhelming opulence but in gentle symmetry and historical resonance. The central chamber houses the tomb, while delicate “jali” work and arched corridors allow filtered sunlight to play across the interior—a subtle dance of shadow and silence that invites reflection.

Entry to the monument costs Rs25 per person, and an online ticket purchased through QR code often brings a modest Rs5 concession—an encouraging step toward digital convenience across heritage sites. One welcome aspect for travellers in all sites so far visited was the freedom to photograph even within the inner precincts using mobile phones without additional charges, though professional cameras incur an extra fee.

As the brightness of the sun started fading across Aurangabad’s skyline, my visit to this evocative memorial marked the close of the first day’s journey. With memories steeped in stone, symmetry, and centuries-old whispers, I returned for rest—ready to rise again next morning with renewed vigour and anticipation. The next dawn would carry me towards yet another timeless marvel-- the amazing ancient caves of Ajanta.

(To be continued…)

List of Car service providers:

A few car service providers at Aurangabad - Quyyum of Aurangabad Taxi Service - 9420927786, Samuruddin- 9970110006, Raju Gaikwad- 8208566693. Contract for Ajanta and back- around Rs 3000, Ellora and other sightseeing spots in and around Aurangabad- Rs 1300- 1500.

History is best experienced in person, but it’s always better when shared. If you found this guide helpful for your future travels to Maharashtra, or if you have tips of your own to add to Debasis’s account, please share them in the comments section below. Your insights help make On the Wheel a better resource for fellow explorers

Photo credit: Debasis Roy

Grushneswar Temple Aurangabad

Biwi ka Maqbara Aurangabad

ELLORA—Temple cut out from the hill

ELLORA-the chiselled crown of Aurangabad

Ellora Cave 16, where the Kailash Temple is located

SEVILLE MUTTON STEW RECIPE CARD

2026-03-19T14:48:28.988+05:30

SPANISH LAMB STEW

View Recipe Details

Ruby's Kitchen: Seville Series

🇪🇸🍷🥘

Seville Mutton Stew

A rich, slow-cooked Andalusian estofado. Adapted from the Spanish Cordero stew, using mutton for its deep flavor, balanced by smoked paprika and red wine.

Ingredients

The Meat & Fat

500g Mutton (stewing meat, cubed)
3 tbsp Olive Oil or Lard

The Sofrito & Aromatics

2 Large Onions (chopped)
3 Red Bell Peppers (sliced)
15 Cloves Garlic (minced)

The Spice Blend

2 tbsp Smoked Spanish Paprika (*Pimentón* - Sweet)
1 tsp Cumin Powder
2 Bay Leaves & Fresh Thyme Sprigs

The Liquids & Vegetables

1 Cup Dry Red Wine (or Amontillado Sherry)
2 Cups Mutton Stock (or water)
2 Carrots (chunked)
2 Potatoes (large cubes)

Preparation Method

Sear the Mutton: Heat the oil/lard in a heavy-based pot. Sear the mutton cubes on high heat, in batches, until dark brown on all sides. Remove and set aside.
The Sofrito: Reduce heat to low. Add the onions and bell peppers to the same pot. Sauté slowly for 15 minutes until very soft. Add the garlic and sauté for another 5 minutes.
The Spice Bloom: Add the smoked paprika, cumin, and tomato puree (if using). Stir constantly for 2 minutes to cook out the raw taste.
The Simmer: Return the seared mutton and its juices to the pot. Pour in the red wine and mutton stock. Add the bay leaves and thyme.
Slow Cook: Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and simmer on your lowest heat for 1 to 1.5 hours. Mutton requires a longer, slower cook than lamb to achieve that 'melt-in-your-mouth' texture.
Add Vegetables: Stir in the carrots and potatoes. Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Salt and pepper to taste.

Ruby's Authenticity Tip: For the classic Spanish *Picada* thickener, blend fried almonds, stale bread, and garlic into a paste and stir it in 5 minutes before serving.

Munich-MUNCHEN, THE ROMANTIC BAVARIAN CAPITAL

2026-02-11T15:09:00.083+05:30

München – the Romantic Bavarian Capital

-"From the Autobahn to the Altstadt: A Journey Through Munich’s History and Culture"

First Encounter with the Autobahn

My first encounter with the Bundesautobahn, popularly known as the Autobahn, began in the new millennium. It was a real treat to observe the German highway system. Multiple lanes, disciplined lane driving, and no speed limit on the fastest lane as cars whizz past at unbelievable speeds. Arindam, my brother-in-law, decided to take me to Passau when I visited them in Germany. My sister Lopa packed up some sandwiches and titbits on the way, and we were off on an exciting journey. When we entered the Autobahn, Arindam raised the speed to over 200 km per hour. With windows rolled up, it was like sailing down the vast highway. There were no bumps, vibrations, or hiccups as our car glided down the immaculately smooth road surface. Above all, the speed thrilled me.

Passau and Upper Bavaria

Passau lies on Germany’s border with Austria and is known as the “Dreiflüssestadt” (City of Three Rivers). It is a picturesque German town in Lower Bavaria, situated at the confluence of three rivers: the Danube, the Inn, and the Ilz. Our motel overlooked the confluence. I gathered from local lore that the Führer spent his childhood days on the opposite bank from the one where our motel stood. A young man, who later became the priest of Passau, saved a little boy from drowning in the river. And that little boy was, incidentally, Hitler.

From Passau, we drove into Upper Bavaria towards Munich, the Bavarian capital. Munich was a short one-day trip. Arindam parked his car near a square, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz, named after siblings Sophie and Hans Scholl, who took an active part in the White Rose resistance group during World War II and were executed in 1943 for their resistance activities.
"Standing at Geschwister-Scholl-Platz, I felt the invisible weight of giants—Planck, Heisenberg, and Pauli—who once walked these very halls."
The most thrilling part of this location was the building of the Munich University Physics Department. Being a student of Physics, I have long harboured a special attraction for the subject. And especially the Physics Department of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, which not only boasts a long tradition of excellence in Physics but has been home to great names such as Rontgen, Max Planck, Heisenberg, Wolfgang Pauli, Hansch, and Krausz. As if to celebrate this finding, we entered a canteen adjoining the department to enjoy the famous Bavarian beer. Next, I saw the Munich Olympic Stadium. The vast canopy and strikingly modernist, imposing edifice, which went on to become a local landmark, stand in harmony with the surroundings of the Alps. Moreover, the stadium stands out in memory because of the terrorist attack on the Israeli contingent during the 1972 Summer Olympics. While walking towards our car, we passed a nudist club. Arindam told me that there were several such clubs in Munich.

After over two decades, I revisited Munich, but this time it was purely accidental. Ruby, my wandering companion, accompanied me on this visit. Strictly accidental, because we had planned Milan and not Munich before coming to Heidelberg. Our plan fizzled because Italy, though a Schengen country, had stricter entry regulations during the waning period of the terrible COVID pandemic that struck our planet. Since we were in Germany, we finally decided on Munich.
Munich, known as München in Germany, takes roughly five hours by FlixBus from Heidelberg. We boarded the FlixBus from Eppelheimer Strasse, the terminus located near Heidelberg Bahnhof. Munich is south of Heidelberg. Some major cities en route are Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Aalen, Augsburg, and Ulm. When our bus was about to enter Munich, we saw the road leading to Dachau, where the Concentration Camp memorial is located. This is perhaps the first and the longest-surviving camp built by the Nazis. Dachau Concentration Camp (KZ Gedenkstätte Dachau) was established in 1933 and was operational until World War II ended in 1945. It became a model for later camps and the SS training centre.

München - Returning to Munich

Daylight was still hovering but waning when our bus pulled up at ZOB Munchen. ZOB stands for Zentraler Omnibus Bahnhof, German for Central Bus Station. Since our hotel at Karlsplatz was about a kilometer from the bus station, we preferred walking it out. If the weather is good and the pavements are proper, we always prefer to walk. This way, we know the place better. Dusk crept in as we entered the main thoroughfare. For the first five hundred meters, we walked past some dignified and majestic buildings, brushed by light from sodium streetlights. GPS guided us properly up to a major T junction. Here it started fumbling as some construction work was in progress near the Munich Bahnhof, which was on our right. A helpful cabbie came to our rescue. A few meters on the right, cross a couple of tram tracks on the left, and then the portion of Karlsplatz or Stachus ( as the locals call it). A Coffee bar on the left was a refreshing sight. I frequented the bar during our entire stay in Munich. A young staff member became very friendly with me because he found many similarities between his father and me, including my looks. He said that he left his home in Syria much before the pandemic outbreak and had yet to go back to his troubled homeland to meet his parents. Since it was situated diagonally across the street from where I stayed, I’d regularly get my breakfast and coffee there. This youngster’s breakfast pampering made the experience both special and touching. Munich Central Rail Station is located at the end of Karlsplatz. The bustling station, where platforms meet at a spacious concourse, immediately brought to mind Churchgate Station in Bombay during the late 70s and early 80s. Stachus Passagen, a huge subway cum shopping mall, is located at the other end. After breakfast, we had chalked out a visit to the seventeenth-century Nymphenburg Palace, which was extremely popular as a summer residence with the Bavarian rulers. A bit of confusion at the mouth of the subway because of civil construction did not deter us from landing at the tram station. We used the subway every day of our stay in Munich. It houses a large underground shopping mall, U-Bahn (Untergrundbahn), and S-Bahn (Stadtschelbahn). Connected to public transport like trams and buses, the Altstadt and commercial areas of the city, the subway handles a large volume of daily foot traffic.

Schloss Nymphenburg

We boarded a tram to Nymphenburg Castle. It's about a half-hour ride from the city centre. I went through an embarrassing moment when I fumbled with the Ticket Machine. A young German lady, who was standing behind me, came to my rescue. Along with hers, she bought our tickets and refused to take the money, saying that we were her guests in Germany. Such a show of hospitality and love abounds in post-war Germany. It was not a singular or a rare instance. I have observed such beautiful inscapes in many people from that nation. We became quite friendly on the way, and my wife finally succeeded in paying the money to her. She rode with us to Nymphenburg, even though her stop was before that. We took a selfie with her at the tram stop to show our warmth.

As much as the palace's facade, the frontage also stole the show, with a small pond and white swans floating and flocking around the water body. Painted on a two-dimensional canvas, it would reflect a fairy tale image. Built in 1664, the architecture and the vast garden complex are apt examples of the synthesis of art in Europe. The palace belonged to the House of Wittelsbach, a Royal family from Wittelsbach near Aichach in Bavaria. The powerful Wittelbachs dynasty ruled Bavaria for nearly eight centuries, after rising to prominence in the twelfth century. Besides ruling Bavaria, they also played a crucial role in shaping the political landscape of Germany and Europe for centuries. They used titles such as Dukes, Electors, and Kings. As the palace complex underwent a lot of extensions, additions and modifications, the decoration styles reflect a wide variation from Baroque, Rococo, to Neoclassicism, particularly in the main palace. Each room in the palace had something to say over the centuries through exquisite paintings, types of furniture, ceiling paintings, lovely ceiling frescoes and stucco ornamentation in the Great Hall. For instance, one room held views of Bavarian Palaces and hunting lodges since the time of Elector Max Emanuel. Then, the famous Gallery of Beauties of King Ludwig I, decorated with paintings of 36 beautiful women from all sections of society. The Palace is now an important museum of court carriages, beautiful state coaches, the coronation coach of King Karl VII, travel and equestrian culture during the Bavarian rule. The Palace also features a unique museum showcasing porcelain art that was prevalent from the 18th to the 20th century. The vast Palace Park is modelled after the park we saw at Versailles in France. The influence of French style is found in the central building, whose facade was modernised by Joseph Effner. In winter, the palace authorities closed the Gondola ride on the central canal in the park, which we missed. After exiting the palace, we followed the right arm of the crescent and walked down to the tram stop ahead at Roman Platz.

Hofbräuhaus Beer Hall and the Spirit of Adda

Before entering Hofbräuhaus, I stood outside watching and wondering how this amazing 16th-century edifice stands rock-solid even after being ravaged during World War II. Duke Wilhelm V of Bavaria, a member of the Wittelsbach family, commissioned his own state brewery after growing an intense distaste for beer in Munich. Thus, the birth of Staatliches Hofbrauhaus. The world-renowned beer hall Hofbräuhaus was constructed in 1589 and served as a Royal Brewery for two centuries before transitioning into a public beer hall. The interior of the beer hall left us all the more awestruck. My first impression upon entering the vast hall was one of vast concourses reminiscent of Indian rail stations, such as Howrah (Calcutta), VT (Mumbai), or Chennai Central (Madras). The din of people crowding the 'Schwemme' (the main beer hall on the ground floor), and the clanging of 'Maß'(1-litre glass mug ), combined with the band playing lively traditional music, reminded me more of Neil Diamond's ' It's a beautiful noise, And it's a sound that I love’. Yes, I loved it as much as I loved the song. The cacophony was deep and rumbling as it echoed and re-echoed from the large windows, large walls and high ceiling. The best part of it was the strange harmony it created with the atmosphere and architecture, which reflected traditional Bavarian design. We took our place close to the band, almost at the centre of the well, as most of the tables near the entrance were marked ‘Stammtisch’. The tables marked ‘Stammtisch’ are for the regulars. The male staff, attired in traditional Bavarian dress of yesteryear, served Hofbräu beer and Bavarian delicacies upon order. The female staff, wearing 'tracht' (traditional Bavarian clothing), went around from table to table, sometimes breaking into rhythmic sways to the tune playing, while selling large-sized pretzels. Their movements, too, created a unique visual treat. I had ordered my favourite sausages with beer. What is most interesting about this beer hall is that it has been witness to the footprints of Mozart and Lenin. Even Hitler and Nazi officials held meetings in this hall.

As a student of Calcutta University during the seventies, I have seen and also participated in what is known as ‘Adda’. Over coffee, grilled fish, sandwiches at College Street Coffee House, or half a cup of tea and a strong Charminar cigarette at Batu da’s Canteen at Rajabazar Science College or a glass of special milk tea with cigarettes beneath an old banyan tree outside Parle’s Dhaba, a regular venue for some residents of nearby Calcutta University's famous PG Hostel 'Technology(Tech) Hall' on Ballygunge Circular Road.. Over the years, I developed a great liking for these informal chats, as they not only rejuvenated our minds but also infused us with a broad knowledge of diverse subjects. It is sad to find that with modernity, the beautiful ‘adda, which I believed originated from Bengal, has now shrivelled in Calcutta. But in the many countries I visited, the concept of ‘adda’ is very much in place. The ‘adda’ in Hofbräuhaus is something unique that I have not seen anywhere in the world. A vast gathering and ‘adda’ over Bavarian Beer. It is more than a beer hall, exuding and embodying the culture and spirit of Bavarian tradition.

Every day, as dusk set in, we realised the significance of Karlsplatz, referred to as Stachhaus by the locals. Opposite our hotel balcony was a building with a glass wall that housed a large ballroom dancing class. It was so refreshing to watch students performing fox trot, jive, cha cha cha, waltz, etc, more intently. The significance of Karlplatz became more pronounced when we discovered that through Stachus Passagen, it opens out to the charm of the old town. Stepping out of one of the exits of Stachhaus Passagen, crossing a major traffic junction towards the right, stood a remarkable building with ‘OSRAM’ signage. I stood there staring at it as if to pay reverence to the name that pioneered our lighting fraternity. Later, I learnt that the building was Osram’s headquarters a long time back. From here, we rambled towards the not-too-distant old town. The first sight of the old town was the 14th-century historic city gate, Karlstor, previously called “Neuhauser Tor” until 1791.

Karlsplatz - Stachus and the Old Town

There it was, the magical moments of wandering through surroundings frozen in a bygone era. A totally pedestrianised shopping centre, with tourists and locals milling around, Marienplatz had so much to offer. The architectural beauties of the Bavarian era, ensconced in a twenty-first-century scenario, are unique. At the centre of the square stands Mariensäule (Marian Column), a seventeenth-century column topped with a golden statue of the Virgin Mary. Four bronze angels battling creatures symbolising war, hunger, heresy, and plague form the base of the column. This iconic column was erected by Elector Maximilian 1 to express gratitude to the Virgin Mary for sparing Munich from destruction by the Swedish occupation in the 30-year war. The square also served as a marketplace during the Bavarian era. During the Middle Ages, a fountain located in the square was designed to facilitate fishmongers to keep their baskets of live fish in the fresh fountain water. Today, this historical fountain is known as Fischbrunnen. As we sauntered in and out of Marienplatz, we saw many more of the middle-aged architectural beauties adorning the space. The prominent among them were:

Justizpalast (Palace of Justice), a neo-baroque building that housed the Bavarian Ministry of Justice and a higher regional court of Munich.
Altes Rathaus (Old Town Hall), which now houses a Toy Museum, ostensibly flaunts a beautiful façade.
Neues Rathaus (New Town Hall) was erected in the mid-nineteenth century and now houses the mayor’s office as well as the offices of council members. Designed in Neo-Gothic style, it has a tower offering a panoramic view of Munich. I learnt that the Town Hall also hosted FC Bayern Munich and its fans whenever the club emerged as the winner in a tournament.
Glockenspiel, a historic mechanical clock.
Cathedrals, such as the oldest church in Munich, Peterskirche (St. Peter's Church) and Frauenkirche (Cathedral of Our Lady), have distinctive twin towers.

Photo credit: Arundhati Sengupta

Marian Column

Marienplatz

Tram in Munich

St. Peter's Church (Peterskirche or Alter Peter). Munich's oldest parish church, dating to the 12th century, with Gothic reconstruction after a 1327 fire

Another view of the Viktualien market

Old Munich

Karlsplatz from our hotel verandah

A meat platter

At Marianplatz

Another view of old Munich

Marianplatz

On the way to Marianplatz

The Global Spirit of Adda: From College Street to Hofbräuhaus.

Hofbräuhaus Beer Hall

Bavarian Beer served at the Beer Hall in Munich

Menu Card at Hofbräuhaus

Hofbräuhaus

Staircase at Nympenburg Palace

Nymphenburg Palace

Inside Nymphenburg Palace

Nymphenburg Palace

Inside Nymphenburg Palace

Inside the Nymphenburg Palace

Nymphenburg Palace

Schloss Nymphenburg

Nymphenburg Palace

ZOB Munchen

Column of St. Mary (Mariasäule) on Marienplatz in Munich, with the Frauenkirche towers visible behind. Erected in 1638 by Elector Maximilian I to commemorate the end of the Swedish occupation during the Thirty Years' War. The golden statue depicts the Virgin Mary trampling a serpent.

New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus) on Marienplatz

Entrance to the 15th-century Gothic building housing the Toy Museum (Spielzeugmuseum) in the Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus) tower on Marienplatz

Hirmer department store building on Kaufingerstraße.This structure was rebuilt as it was heavily damaged during World War II

16th-century Cathedral of Our Lady (Frauenkirche) with its iconic twin onion domes.

New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus) tower on Marienplatz

The Ludwig Beck department store building on Marienplatz

Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus) tower on Marienplatz

Tower of St Peter’s Church (Peterskirche)

I'd Love to Hear From You!

As a Physics student, walking the same halls as Heisenberg and Planck was a dream come true. If you could visit the workplace of any historical giant, who would it be? Let’s discuss in the comments below!

AUTUMN OF 2025 : Trysts with two famous bards

2025-12-30T20:24:00.077+05:30

Autumn of 2025—trysts with two famous bards

Bob & William

October and November 2025 brought some memorable moments in my life. Post Durga Puja, we were at our son’s place in Nottingham. There we experienced two lifetime journeys, both fortunately and coincidentally connected with famous litterateurs spaced vastly apart over five centuries in time. Visit one of the greatest English playwrights’ birthplaces, and be amidst the spectators in a live concert by a Nobel laureate in literature at Coventry.

AT COVENTRY

Bob Dylan

The Bob Dylan Show was a surprise birthday gift from my son Arjun. For me, it was a first-time mega show in an indoor concert hall (Coventry Building Society Arena, November 13 2025), packed with over a thousand spectators. The ‘Minstrel Boy’ performed for two hours at a stretch without any break. He began with ‘I’ll be your baby tonight’ and finished with ‘Every grain of sand’. Both are highly contrasting in nature. Dylan's poetry transitioned from a direct and transparent intention of comfort, closeness, and reassurance to a more intentionally cryptic nature, which developed with experience and age. The only transformation in his more than sixty-year singing career was that he began performing while seated at the piano and played the harmonica in four of his songs, while the guitars were handled by his band. There was no change in the tonal quality of his voice that sixty years back rendered his famous composition ‘Blowing in the Wind’. His voice is recognisably higher than a baritone, caused by his nasal resonance, which boosts his upper frequencies. And that is what he amazingly sustains today.

AT STRATFORD-UPON-AVON

William Shakespeare

This time, after a couple of unsuccessful attempts during our previous visit to England, we could finally make inroads on a place that was high on our desired list. Stratford-upon-Avon. In the morning, we drove into the town, which was cold and windy, with sometimes sprinkles of drizzle. Keeping the River Avon on the left, we walked towards Henley Street, where William Shakespeare was born in 1564. This marketplace, which came into being in the early twelfth century with the permission of King Richard I, developed into a buzzing market town by the early sixteenth century. The bard’s father, John Shakespeare, was a prosperous businessman who processed and sold leather gloves. During the Tudor era, gloves were a high-status fashion accessory. Alongside, he followed a steady career ladder in local government, eventually reaching the highest office, equivalent to mayor, from a humble beginning as an ale taster. A window in his half-timbered house, which faced the cobbled market street, was the selling outlet of the gloves. The house, with uneven stone floors and furniture, beds, and kitchen utensils, is the same as it was during Shakespeare’s time. We saw two bedrooms—one where Shakespeare was born and the other where William and his seven siblings huddled together on a small bed—and lofts carved out of the walls. In fact, the entire space in and around the house and marketplace has been so ingeniously curated since the nineteenth century that, together with the sun playing hide-and-seek with the clouds over the cobbled road, it created a surreal sense of wandering through sixteenth-century England. Inside, the air seemed to resound with Shakespeare’s famous lines from Macbeth: “Out, out, brief candle! ... Life’s but a walking shadow…” Outside, on street corners, various characters from Shakespeare’s plays, such as Portia and Shylock from 'The Merchant of Venice,' Lady Macbeth from 'Macbeth,' etc., were enacted with attire from respective periods—a lively attraction for visitors

For lunch, Arjun took us to a popular eatery, ‘Loxley’s Restaurant and Wine Bar’ on Sheep Street. Since I am fond of pork, I had ordered one of their signature dishes: barbecued pulled pork Benedict, poached hen egg, Hollandaise sauce, and English muffin, along with beer. After lunch, we hired a taxi to take us to the beautiful Anne Hathaway’s cottage in Shottery village, about 2 km from the town centre. The cottage is a 12-roomed farmhouse and the family home of the Hathways for almost thirteen generations. It continued as a working farm till the late 19th century. This half-timbered Tudor-style home with a thatched roof belonged to the Hathways, who were prosperous sheep farmers. Before letting us inside the cottage, an elderly lady dressed in 16th-century Shakespearean attire narrated to us a brief history of the cottage and how Shakespeare, about 8 years younger than Ann, used to walk down from the town centre to the cottage to court Ann before marrying her. Inside, the beds and furniture lay intact without any signs of decay over the centuries. Outside, the gardens and the orchards were very pretty sights.

From Hathways cottage, we hired a taxi for Stratford town centre. We got down at Shakespeare’s new house, which he bought and stayed for the final two decades of his life. He also wrote many of his later masterpieces. This house had 20 to 30 rooms and 10 fireplaces. Known as ‘New Place’, the house was a grand purchase in those days and reflects the wealth Shakespeare acquired at the height of his success in London. But, apart from a garden, Shakespeare’s writing desk and a chair, we could not see any other remains of the house. What we learnt was something of a tragic history of the house. One Francis Gastrell had bought the property in the 18th century. In 1756, Gastrell became so annoyed by tourists peeking over his wall to see a mulberry tree reportedly planted by Shakespeare that he chopped it down. In 1759, after a heated dispute with the town council over taxes, he demolished the entire house in a fit of rage. The local townsfolk got so infuriated with his dastardly acts that they literally chased him out of Stratford forever. Since 2016, the site has been transformed into a stunning memorial garden managed by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. The gardens are filled with contemporary artworks and sculptures representing his famous plays (like a bronze ship for The Tempest). We also saw some preserved 15th-century foundations of the house.

While walking down the old quarters, we came across a four-hundred-year-old hotel named 'The Shakespeare Hotel', almost diagonally opposite the 18th-century Town Hall. Though the hotel was closed, we later learnt that the hotel would reopen in 2026 after refurbishment.

Pics*: Arundhati Sengupta

*(A photo essay. However, no photos were allowed inside the Coventry Concert Hall.)

Bob Dylan Live Concert, Coventry, England, 13 November 2025

Stratford-upon-Avon

River Avon

Shops on the bank of the Avon

Henley Street

Henley Street, where Shakespeare was born

Henley Street

This is how Shakespeare's house looked in the 18th century

Exhibit at Shakespeare Museum

Display in Shakespeare's museum

Information on Shakespeare's father's trade

Artifacts in Shakespeare's museum

Display on famous pilgrims to William's birthplace

Some famous Literary Pilgrims

Bed and other artefacts

The window in Shakespeare's house that faced Henley Street and was used as a selling counter for gloves by Shakespeare's father

Gloves

Dining Table

Parlour in Shakespeare's house. Parlours used to be the most decorative area in a house in the 16th century

Stone floor in a 16th-century construction

Hearth in Shakespeare's house

William's Birthplace

Artefacts

More artefacts in the museum

Interior structure of the half-timbered house

Literary contemporaries

Dictionary during Shakespeare's time

Coins in 16th-century England

Loxleys Restaurant at Stratford

Anne Hatways Cottage

Interior of Hathways cottage

Anne Hathaway's farmhouse

The table and chair used by Shakespeare at New Place

This standalone metal globe, located in the New Place garden, symbolises the world as it was understood in 1600

A man of property

Hathways Orchard

Town Hall, Stratford-upon-Avon

Bakewell - Old Charm and Pudding

2025-12-09T19:13:00.017+05:30

Bakewell: Old Charm & Pudding

Moorlands in the English countryside always bring back to my memory Emily Brontë’s ‘Wuthering Heights'. There, she vividly described the nineteenth-century Yorkshire moorland as open, wild, and exposed, with untamed wind force and brooding character. The neighbouring Derbyshire moor, which we saw from Monsal Head, a Peak District viewpoint, was, in contrast, somewhat softer and more picturesque. Maybe because we saw it as tourists in the twenty-first century. On our way back, we took a brief halt at a small, charming town. It was a pleasant surprise, as I had no previous knowledge about the town and its breathtaking beauty. Nor had I come across the name of this town, which is so heavily wrapped with history right from the Anglo-Saxon era. Early settlement, dating back to the 9th–10th centuries, is associated with a cluster of warm springs along the River Wye. Archaeologists have even discovered traces of the Bronze Age in this medieval town. The name Bakewell is also deliciously tempting. The name, however, has nothing to do with baking, despite the town's reputation for its baked delicacies. One origin of the name I gathered is 'Badecanwelle', which means 'Badeca's spring/stream'. Badeca was an Anglo-Saxon chieftain.

The car park at Bakewell was located on one of the quaint courtyards along the elevated banks of the River Wye. From the top, the Wye looked more like a stream rippling down the hilly terrains. We had to cross a medieval arched bridge to enter the old town. A perfect blend of charm, heritage and natural beauty, the city is a delightful step back in time. Churches and buildings, some as old as the tenth and eleventh centuries, prettify the city. One of the streets, lined up with traditional bakeries offering cakes, tarts, pies and puddings, was a major attraction for a gastronome like me. I tried pork pie and also the famous Bakewell Pudding. This unique pudding was accidentally created in the mid-nineteenth century. It’s a crisp puff pastry base, outwardly similar to the look of Yorkshire pudding, but topped with raspberry or apricot jam and followed by a rich egg custard filling made with sugar, ground almonds, and almond extract.

What fascinated me, in particular, was that despite its urban transformation, the town exudes old-world charm.

Pics: Arundhati Sengupta

A Bakery in Bakewell

In the Peak District, UK. The stylised red poppy on the pole commemorates members of the armed forces who died in the First World War and in later conflicts, including the Second World War.

A portion of moorland as seen from a viewpoint in the Peak District

A typical English countryside

A hotel and cafe at Monsal Head viewpoint

A part of the museum where Anglo-Saxon artefacts are on display

Along the River Wye

A view of a bakery in Bakewell

Bakewell

Bakewell Pudding Factory

Waiting for a bus at Bakewell

Bakewell

River Wye

Global Gastronomy: Traditional Puddings

Global Gastronomy

The Authentic Bakewell Pudding

Origin: Derbyshire, England Prep: 20 mins | Bake: 30 mins

Unlike the tart, this original version features a flaky puff pastry base and a rich, custardy almond filling with a slight wobble.

Ingredients

250g Puff Pastry (all-butter)
3 tbsp Strawberry or Raspberry Jam
115g Unsalted Butter, melted
115g Caster Sugar
3 Large Eggs, beaten
1 tsp Pure Almond Extract
50g Ground Almonds

Preparation

Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Line an 8-inch shallow dish with puff pastry, trimming to leave a slight rim.
Spread an even layer of jam across the pastry base.
Whisk melted butter and sugar. Add eggs and almond extract, then fold in ground almonds. The mixture will be liquid.
Pour the mixture over the jam (do not stir).
Bake for 25–30 mins until the pastry is golden and the center has a slight wobble. Serve warm.

Traditional Caramel Custard

Technique: Pressure Cooker (Steamed) Prep: 15 mins | Cook: 15 mins

A nostalgic, buttery-colored pudding with a dark amber caramel syrup base that pools around the sides when inverted.

Ingredients

For Caramel: 100g Caster Sugar + 2 tbsp Water
For Custard: 500ml Whole Milk
3 Large Eggs + 2 Egg Yolks (for extra richness)
75g Caster Sugar
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

Preparation

Caramel: Melt sugar and water in a pan until dark amber. Pour into a heat-proof tin; tilt to coat the bottom. Let harden.
Custard: Whisk eggs, yolks, sugar, and vanilla. Gently stir in warm (not boiling) milk. Strain through a fine sieve into the tin.
Steam: Cover tin tightly with foil. Place on a trivet in a pressure cooker with 1.5 inches of water.
Cook: Close lid. Cook for 12–15 mins on low-medium heat. Allow pressure to release naturally.
Set: Chill for at least 4 hours. Invert onto a rimmed plate to serve.

Chef's Note: The "dark brown ring" is achieved by allowing the caramel to reach a deep amber color before pouring. Straining the custard is the secret to the professional, smooth finish.

I'd Love to Hear From You!

I love pudding and am always on the lookout for recipes of Pudding from different parts of the world

World Businesses for Sale

Lunch at the George Inn of Hathersage

2025-11-03T16:58:00.005+05:30

The George (Inn of Hathersage)Hathersage is about ten 9miles from Sheffield in England. Situated strategically in the Peak District National Park, this small, picturesque village offers much more than initially expected—something we only realised when our son Arjun took us to The George for lunch. This majestic 500-year-old hotel sits right on the T-junction of the road descending from the medieval town of Bakewell. It also boasts a literary history. When Charlotte Brontë, the eldest and most prolific of the three surviving Brontë sisters of the nineteenth century, visited Hathersage in 1845, she stayed at The George. The hotel is believed to have inspired Charlotte Brontë’s renowned novel, ‘Jane Eyre’. The fictional ‘George Inn’ appears in her story. Descriptions of the inn’s interiors, such as ‘mantelpiece ornaments, furnishings, prints of George III and the Prince of Wales’, are based on her observations during her stay. The building dates back to the early fifteenth century. Though it has undergone several restorations over the centuries, its façade and layout preserve the appearance of a medieval alehouse and coaching inn used by travellers through Hope Valley. The stone walls and timber beams are well preserved. It presents a fine mix of Elizabethan architecture, Georgian elements, and modern touches. The earliest recorded owner was William George Spencer Cavendish, the 6th Duke of Devonshire (the nineteenth-century ‘Bachelor Duke’). He was known for his innovations in architecture and horticulture at Chatsworth Hall, about 15 km from The George. Our favourite part of the visit was lunch at The George restaurant. Since it was a Sunday, we enjoyed a special Georgian roast. Arjun chose a roast lamb chop, while I opted for roast pork loin. All roasts came with braised red cabbage, maple-glazed root vegetables, duck-fat herb-roasted potatoes, cauliflower cheese, Yorkshire pudding, and proper gravy. My wife, a fish fan, decided to try a beer-battered cod dish. Unfortunately, they served her grilled fish by mistake. When we pointed out the error, they apologised repeatedly before replacing her dish with the correct order. Not only did they replace it promptly, but they also did not charge us for it. I have never seen such a noble gesture before. After lunch, we drove along the main road of Hathersage to Chatsworth Meadows in the Peak District, about 15 km from The George. Chatsworth House and its gardens were built by the first Duke of Devonshire in the sixteenth century. When we arrived, it was windy and drizzling. The grand building stood alone on a vast stretch of land. Both the icy wind and the drizzle felt different from those in India. It was like a fine sprinkle of talcum powder blown in uncontrolled directions. It was disturbing and irritating, even with an umbrella. We missed the gardens, but we managed to see the stables and the clock tower before heading back to our car.

Photo credit: Arundhati Sengupta (Ruby)

Facade of the George Hotel at Hassersage, Hope Valley, Peak District

At the entrance to the George Inn

Menu card

The interior of the George restaurant

Sunday special menu at the George restaurant

Outer view from the restaurant

Roast pork loin platter

The George facade

Legend has it that Little John, Robin Hood's companion, is buried in the churchyard of St.Michael Church in Hathersage. The hotel opposite the George is named as Little John Hotel

The George in Hathersage

Chatsworth House

Chatsworth stables

Wazwan: Authentic Kashmiri Recipes for Rogan Josh & Rista

2025-08-02T14:41:00.042+05:30

Kashmiri Mutton Rogan Josh | Ruby's Kitchen Kashmiri Mutton Rogan Josh | Ruby's Kitchen

Kashmiri recipes

Wazwan - Great Tastes

Where better to fall in love with Wazwan than in Kashmir? In October 2013, I visited this beautiful valley with my wife for the first time. Through all the breathtaking natural beauty, the rolling green mountains and valleys, and snow-peaked horizons, my focus, my greatest love, never wavered from the fantastic culinary tradition of this mountain state. Many things combined to create the mouthwatering Wazwan for which Kashmir is so rightly famed—from the Mughal past, where emperors commissioned some of the most romantic baghs (gardens) in the world, made as the earthly template of heaven, and were also incurable gourmands who searched far and wide for great chefs and gave them their one-point agenda: create exceptional dishes. Kashmir’s wonderful climate, which allows the growing of a mind-boggling variety of beautiful nuts, fruits, vegetables, and spices, including saffron, the world’s most expensive spice, played an equally crucial part. And of course, not least, the wonderful chefs who continue to carry the tradition forward with their immaculate mastery and love for wazwan. It is thanks to these chefs that this blog features recipes for some of the wazwan dishes we enjoyed during our stay (and later recreated and experimented with at home). Wow! Believe me, it was grand. The recipes are often long and involved, so you need a fair bit of time to make them, but every bit of that time and effort is worth it. All the recipes are based on 500 g of mutton, which can be substituted with 750-800 g of chicken

Mutton Rogan Josh

Recreating a traditional Kashmiri Wazwan outside the valley is a challenge of precision and patience. Having experienced the authentic flavours at iconic spots like Adhoos in Srinagar and Prince Restaurant in Pahalgam, I realised that the secret isn't just the spices—it’s the technique of 'beating' the meat and the use of Ratan Jot for that signature red hue. Below, I’ve simplified these royal recipes for the home kitchen without losing the heritage soul of the dish.

Ingredients

Mutton – 1/2 kg

Hing (Asafoetida) – 1/4 teaspoon

Cinnamon (darchini) – 2 pieces (1” each)

Clove (labanga) - 5 pieces

Black cardamom (boro elaich) - 3 pieces

Whole black pepper 1/2 teaspoon

Juice of one whole large onion

coriander powder – 1 teaspoon

Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon

Ratan Jote - 1 teaspoon

Kashmiri Mirch powder – 2/3 Tsp

Hung Curd 250gm

Fennel powder - 1teaspoon

Ginger powder - 2 teaspoons

Vegetable oil – 1 tablespoon

Method:

Boil 500 g of mutton in approximately 500 ml of water until soft, then set the stock and the mutton aside separately. Put a large pan on the gas and add oil. When the oil is hot (but not smoking), add the whole garam masalas and black pepper. When the spices start popping, add the meat and then slowly add the onion juice. Stir-fry on low heat. When the meat becomes almost dry, and the onion juice has been completely absorbed, add hung curd, coriander powder, cumin powder, fennel powder, asafetida, ginger powder, Kashmiri chilli powder, and ratanjote. Continue frying on low heat, and when the mutton becomes almost dry again, add salt to taste and two pinches of sugar. Pour in the entire mutton stock and let it simmer for 5-6 minutes.

Kashmir Chicken Curry

Delicious Chicken Curry in Kashmiri flavour. Available at the Prince Restaurant, Pahalgam

Ingredient:

750-800gm chicken

Chopped Onion – Finely chopped from 2 medium-sized onions.

Whole dry Red Chilli – 3-4

Kashmiri Chilli Powder – 2 Tsp

Garlic chopped - 6 /7 flakes

Coriander Powder – 1 Tsp

Cloves – 6/7 pcs

Cardamom – 6/7 pcs

Cinnamon – ½ pcs

Cashew nuts – 50 gm

Almonds – 25 gm

Hung Curd – 150/200 ml

Coriander leaves – approx. 1 sprig

Method :

Grind cashew nuts and almonds with the curd till it forms a paste. Marinate the chicken pieces for about half an hour in the paste. Fry the chopped onions in a kadhai till they start browning. Then add the dry red chilis, chilli powder, and all the other ingredients except the marinated chicken. Saute for 3-4 minutes and then add the chicken. Sauté till the chicken pieces take up a deep brownish hue. Then add around 2/3 cups of water, and add salt to taste. Simmer on low heat for about half an hour. Garnish with Coriander leaves.

Bon appetite!

Gustaba

Mutton Gustaba at the famous Adhoos Restaurant, Lal Chowk, Srinagar

Ingredients:

Finely minced mutton – 1/2kg

Kashmiri Garam Masala- 2/3 tsp

Kashmiri chilli powder – 2/3 Tsp

Fennel seed – 1tsp

Ginger powder – 1 Tsp

Whole black pepper – 2/3 tsp

Cardamom – 4/5 pcs

Coriander powder – 1tbsp

Khoya – half cup

Hung Curd – half cup

Milk – approx. one cup

Ghee – 2 tbsp

Method:

Make a smooth paste with the Kashmiri chilli powder, fennel powder, ginger powder, coriander powder, garam masala, minced meat, a little curd, and ghee. Then form balls of around 2 inches in diameter. Heat the ghee and add khoya, curd, garam masala and salt to taste. Pour the milk after some time, and then add the Koftas. Simmer on low heat till the liquid evaporates partly. Each Gustabha meatball is quite large in size and soft after it is cooked. Suggest slicing each ball into four equal segments to savour it with plain rice or tandoori roti, or naan.

Bon appetite!

Rista

Mutton Rista at Gulmarg. The size of each meatball is same as a standard Nargis Kofta

Ingredients:

Ratan Jote – 1 cup

Saffron soaked in water – approx. one cup

Kashmiri Chilli powder – ½ tsp

Ginger powder – 1 Tsp

Cardamom – 4/5 pcs

Fennel powder – 2tsp

Cinnamon sticks – 2/3 pcs

Cloves – 3/ 4 pcs

Hing – roughly a pinch

Bay leaves

Method:

Form approximately one-inch balls from the minced meat after mixing cardamom powder, a small amount of salt, and one teaspoon of ginger powder. When the oil gets heated, add all the ingredients except the koftas, saffron and ratan jote. After a few minutes, add the keema balls and stir-fry gently until the Koftas turn reddish-brown. Then add saffron soaked in water and a cup of Ratan jote. Add salt to taste and simmer on low heat for around ten minutes. The koftas, after cooking, should have a characteristic rubbery bite in contrast to gustabha, where the meatballs are soft and melt in the mouth. Best served with plain rice or roti.

class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">Bon appetite!

Ruby's Kitchen

Mutton Rogan Josh

A Royal Kashmiri Classic | Recreated from the Adhoos Tradition

Meat: 500g Mutton | Base: Onion Juice & Hung Curd | Color: Ratan Jote

Ingredients

500g Mutton (Boiled until soft)
250g Hung Curd
Whole Spices: 2 Cinnamon sticks, 5 Cloves, 3 Black Cardamom, ½ tsp Black Pepper
Liquid Base: Juice of 1 large Onion + Mutton Stock
Powders: 1 tsp Fennel, 2 tsp Ginger, 1 tsp Cumin, 1 tsp Coriander
The Red Hue: 1 tsp Ratan Jote + ⅔ tsp Kashmiri Mirch
Seasoning: ¼ tsp Hing, Salt to taste, 2 pinches of Sugar

The Method

Prep: Boil the mutton in 500ml water until soft. Keep the stock and meat separate.
Temper: Heat 1 tbsp oil. Add cinnamon, cloves, black cardamom, and black pepper.
Sear: Once spices pop, add the meat. Slowly pour in the onion juice, stir-frying on low heat until the liquid is absorbed and meat is dry.
The Spice Bloom: Add hung curd, all spice powders (Fennel, Ginger, Cumin, Coriander, Hing, Chilli), and the Ratan Jote.
Sauté: Continue frying on low heat until the mutton is dry again and spices are fragrant.
Simmer: Add salt, sugar, and the reserved mutton stock. Let it simmer for 5-6 minutes until the gravy is rich and aromatic.

Ruby's Kitchen: Heritage Series

❄️

Kashmiri Gushtaba

Experience the royal flavours of a traditional Kashmiri Wazwan at home. From the melt-in-the-mouth Gushtaba and spicy Rista meatballs to the iconic Mutton Rogan Josh, these authentic recipes are a tribute to the culinary heritage of Srinagar. Whether you're a food lover or planning a trip to Kashmir, save these heritage secrets for your next kitchen adventure! #KashmiriFood #WazwanRecipes #IndianCuisine #RubysKitchen #TravelTales"

The "King of Dishes"—silky mutton meatballs simmered in a rich, tempered yoghurt gravy with dried mint.

Ingredients

Meat: Mutton (hand-pounded to a fine paste with kidney fat)
Gravy: Fresh Yogurt (whisked), Ghee, Mutton Stock
Spices: Green Cardamom, Fennel Powder (Saunf), Ginger Powder (Sonth), Salt
Finish: Dried Mint Leaves (Pudina)

Method Highlights

Pound the meat with fat on a stone till it reaches a "velvety" consistency. Shape into large, smooth balls.
Slow-cook yogurt in ghee, stirring constantly to prevent curdling.
Simmer the meatballs in the yogurt gravy with spices until they swell and become airy.
Finish with a generous sprinkle of rubbed dried mint.

Ruby's Kitchen: Heritage Series

🔥

Kashmiri Rista

Finely pounded mutton meatballs cooked in a fiery, aromatic red gravy. A staple of the traditional Wazwan.

Ingredients

Meat: Mutton (pounded to a paste)
Color: Kashmiri Red Chili Paste or Ratan Jote (Alkanet root)
Spices: Saffron, Cloves, Black Cardamom, Fennel Powder
Base: Ghee and Mutton Broth

Method Highlights

Shape the pounded meat into smaller, firm rounds.
Prepare a rich red broth using chili paste and whole spices in ghee.
Allow the ristas to slow-cook in the gravy until they absorb the deep red hue and spicy aroma.

Ruby's Kitchen: Heritage Series

🥘

Kashmiri Chicken Curry

A fragrant, thin-gravy chicken curry prepared with mild aromatics—elegant and deeply comforting.

Ingredients

Main: Chicken pieces (on the bone)
Aromatics: Shalott/Onion paste (Pran), Garlic
Spices: Turmeric, Fennel powder, Ginger powder, Green Cardamom
Liquid: A touch of yoghurt or milk for a smooth finish

Method Highlights

Lightly sauté the chicken in ghee with whole spices.
Add the onion and ginger-garlic paste, cooking until the raw smell disappears.
Simmer with ground spices and water until the chicken is tender and the oil separates.

Seville

2025-05-17T12:55:00.044+05:30

Sevilla/Seville

After living up to some wonderful moments at Granada, the birthplace of the renowned Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca, we decided to further our coadventure through the heartland of the southern Iberian Peninsula, composed of lowlands, mountains and valleys. You’ve got it right. To arrive at Seville, we traversed the fascinating Spanish heartland. The landscape presented some vistas composed of rustic plains, lowlands, winding roads through the Sierra and then vast stretches of olive orchards. About 200 years back, a couple of decades after Napoleon’s army plundered and destroyed parts of Alhambra, an American diplomat and writer, Washington Irving, and his Russian counterpart traversed the path from Seville to Granada. It was highly adventurous then, because of the fact that the transport system at that time was horse-drawn carriages and muleteers. It was such that they could ‘wander among the romantic mountains of Andalusia’ (Tales of Alhambra). The author experienced a stern melancholy country with rugged mountains and long sweeping plain destitute of trees, and indescribably silent and lonesome partaking of the savage and solitary character of Africa.’ A lot of changes have taken place since then. Modern road networks and transportation systems, but the landscape has not undergone many metamorphic changes in its character. It still continues echoing similar feelings expressed by the traveller in the early nineteenth century.

Sevilla 'nos da la bienvenida'

Seville welcomed us with a sparklingly bright and sunny day. We checked in at Samay Hostal, located in the heart of the old city. In Spanish, ‘Hostel’ is known as ‘Hostal’, a very popular form of accommodation in Spain. Compared with a hotel, hostels are normally centrally located and at the same time budget-friendly. Apart from dorms, family rooms with en-suite bathrooms are also available in hostals. In addition, a boarder has access to amenities like a self-service kitchen and dining space where one can enjoy tea, coffee and snacks. What was great about this hostel was a team of extremely friendly and hospitable staff, always prepared to help the guests. Most of them were from Argentina and Brazil. Our room was on the ground floor with an ensuite bathroom. A comfortable room with windows facing a charming neighbourhood.

The first day was spent recceing the neighbourhood of the place we settled. Walking towards the old quarter in the company of a gentle evening breeze was sweet and refreshing. There were many cafes and pubs on the way. The pathway turned right at a partial T junction where trams are available. The peculiarity of the tramcars running on this stretch was instantly visible, as these trams operated without the overhead contact wire. At least I have not seen it in any other cities I have been to, including my city, Calcutta. Later, I learnt that the city administration was compelled to do away with catenaries in the neighbourhood of the Cathedral during the early part of this century to allow Easter processions to seamlessly pass through without any restrictions. The system in use now uses a technology called ACR (Acumulator de Carga Rapida). Developed and patented by CAF Spain, the trams equipped with ACR are fast-charged while at stops. The first such charging point we noticed was close to Seville University on one side and the Hard Rock Café on the opposite side.

The magnificent neoclassical building, which houses some departments including an administrative section, is freely accessible to students, staff and curious tourists (like us) throughout the day. The walkway from the main entrance leads through parallel layers of similar buildings. What a depth, which from the outside is difficult to even imagine. Classrooms, office, canteen, museum displaying some sculptures dating back to perhaps the first century, all abuzz since 1949 when the factory halls were taken over by the University of Seville. It now houses the university’s main administrative offices and several faculties such as Law, Science, and Philosophy and Letters. This splendid piece of industrial architecture is now a strange and beautiful blend of history with academia. This magnificent stone building was constructed between 1728 to 1771 by order of the Royal family for housing the Royal Tobacco Factory in Seville (headquarters of the first tobacco factory established in Europe). A plaque at the entrance shows that. It was a huge industrial set up. The complex had over 100 mills for grinding tobacco, the system powered by about 400 mules. Around 10,000 female employees were housed in the factory at its peak.

It is said that one of the employees had a unique skill of rolling cigars between her thighs. Her name was Carmen, a fiery gypsy woman. Inspired by real events, the famous nineteenth-century French composer Georges Bizet composed an opera on Carmen. Act 1 draws up ‘A square, in Seville. On the right, a door to the tobacco factory. At the back, a bridge. On the left, a guardhouse. A group of soldiers relax in the square, waiting for the changing of the guard….’ Next, as the factory bell rings, the cigarette girls emerge and exchange banter with young men in the crowd. Carmen enters and sings her provocative habanera on the untameable nature of love (L’amour est un oiseau rebelle’). The men plead with her to choose a lover, and after some teasing, she throws a flower to Don José, who thus far has been ignoring her but is now annoyed by her insolence.’ I share this fascinating journey through time because I am still obsessed with a feeling that we would have otherwise overlooked this magnificent stone building, had it not triggered my curiosity to explore this relatively unknown tourist site. The square, mentioned in Bizet’s opera, is now a wide road with tram tracks at the centre. A few yards from the building was a tram stop from where we had taken a tram up to the Cathedral terminus.

The Cathedral 'Catedral de Santa Maria de la Sede'

The magnificent Cathedral of Sevilla loom large at the square. The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See (Catedral de Santa Maria de la Sede) is the largest Gothic Cathedral and the third largest church in the world. In fact, after its completion in the early sixteenth century, it supplanted Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which till then held the record of being the largest for over a thousand years. The cathedral was built on the site of a former Almohad mosque. The construction started in 1402 and was completed after over a century in 1519(may be only after the Moors were totally vanquished at the Battle of Granada in 1492). In the same year, i.e. 1492, Queen Isabella sponsored Christopher Columbus on his historic voyage across the Atlantic. There were long queues for entrance tickets to the cathedral. Once inside, we saw a series of works by the famous painter Murillo, and the Renaissance sacristy featuring a dome depicting the Last Judgement. Stained glass windows; the Royal Chapel, which houses the resting places of Ferdinand III of Castile, his son Alfonso the Wise and their descendant King Peter the Cruel; a separate resting place for Christopher Columbus and his navigator son Diego adorn the interiors of the cathedral. A part of the cathedral is one of the most iconic landmarks of Seville, the Giralda Tower. One of the tallest structures in Seville, it stands at 341 ft (equivalent to a 34-story building). A symbol of Seville, the lower two-thirds retains its original Islamic structure, and the upper third, which was added in the sixteenth century, is in the Renaissance style. Originally a minaret for the Grand Mosque of Seville, it was converted into the Bell Tower for the new cathedral after the Reconquista in 1248. One of the fascinating parts of the construction was building a series of wide ramps in place of stairs. It was done to allow the muezzin to ride a horse to the top for calling to prayer. Visitors are allowed to go up to the top. Unfortunately, I was not in a position to climb as I had at that time developed a severe orthopaedic problem. My wife compensated by climbing to the top. I enjoyed seeing through her eyes and feelings the scenarios she later shared with me. Panoramic view of the city, her experience in walking up the ramps and hearing the bells chime while standing in the bell chamber, all built between 600 to 800 years back. The last part of the cathedral we visited was the ablutions courtyard for the Muslims. Now this beautiful courtyard has a fountain at the centre, surrounded by orange trees. Visitors are not allowed to pluck oranges, thereby making the place temptuous and more colourful with bright and fresh oranges populating the trees. The entire ecclesiastic complex has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, like its next-door neighbour, the Alcazar.

Alcazar

Samay Hostal, where we stayed, was located on Avenida Menendez Pelayo. The hostel staff helped us in exploring the shortest route to the Alcazar. The first right turn towards southwest, walk a little past various eateries emitting tempting smells, turn left at a point where the road meets a pedestrian pathway dating back to the Moorish reign. Despite proper traffic signals, one has to cross to the other side with utmost caution. The footpath literally merges with the motorable road. And as a result, vehicles, small or big, run over a large portion of the pavement. On either side of the pathways, which have evolved over centuries, are houses that may be from as early as the twelfth century. Visiting such areas during the first quarter of the twenty-first century generates a sort of frabjous feeling that the area has been traversed for over a thousand years.

This short journey through history led finally to a square where the stunning royal palace built by the Moorish rulers, and the Giralda tower at the rear of the cathedral greeted us. ‘Alcazar’ originally referred to a Moorish fort, which was expanded into a royal palace by successive Muslim rulers in Seville. From the time Christians took over from the Muslim rulers, it has served as a residence for Spanish royalty. Even today it serves as an official residence for the Spanish royal family when they visit Seville. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 in recognition of its cultural and historical importance, it is indeed an architectural marvel. A combination of Islamic and Christian artistic traditions, showcasing intricate tilework, wooden ceilings and beautiful arches, the architecture glorifies the Mudejar style. This unique style blends Islamic and Christian artistic traditions, i.e. Fusion of Islamic art with Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance architectural elements. Developed after the Christian Reconquista by the Muslims who stayed back in the Iberian Peninsula (known as Mudejar) continued to influence local art and architecture. Beautiful and decorative glazed tilework dominates the space. Most Mudejar and Neo-Mudejar styles are characterised by a combination of Mediterranean blue and shining white. Right from geometrical patterns, floral motifs reflecting the natural beauty of the region, arabesques inspired by Islamic art, historical scenes in narrative style, and religious icons are some of the traditional patterns found in Sevillian tiles. The Neo-Mudejar style was used during the late 19th and early 20th centuries primarily in Spain and Portugal. The style was influenced by the historical Mudejar architecture, which flourished in Spain from the 12th to the 16th centuries. I came across Neo-Mudejar style being widely used at various places in Spain- Gaudí’s Casa Vicens in Barcelona, the famous bull ring Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas in Madrid, and the tiled walls of the iconic São Bento railway station in Porto. The stunning azulejos, particularly in the Hall of Ambassadors and the Patio de las Doncellas in Real Alcazar, spanning various historical periods and reflecting a beautiful blend of Moorish and Christian influences, were enough to prompt my wife to prioritise our visit to the Sevillian tiles market in the Triana district.

TRIANA - the tiles market

The Triana district is located on the other side of the Guadalquivir River. Leave aside remembering, it’s more difficult to pronounce the name of the river. Even more difficult than the Olentangy River, which we saw in Columbus, Ohio. But this river in Seville is as big as its name. It’s Spain’s most significant river, emptying into the Atlantic Ocean at the Gulf of Cadiz. During the Roman era, it was a crucial waterway for trade and transportation. During the great Age of Exploration, Seville happened to be a key port city. Famous explorers like Christopher Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Seville port. We had taken a bus to Triana. It’s a bustling district famous for traditional as well as contemporary ceramic tiles and potteries. We were overly excited to explore this fascinating market. We also bought some magnificent tilework for carrying back home. Had a sumptuous lunch there before returning. Instead of taking a bus, we decided to cross the notable Triana Bridge, also known as the Isabel II Bridge, on foot. This iconic bridge spanning the Guadalquivir River from the Triana district to the El Arenal district is pretty wide. Built during mid mid-nineteenth century, this iron bridge has an elegant arched design. Buses and most vehicles do not seem to ply on this bridge. At least I don’t remember seeing one. The side rails were low, and the wind force was so strong that traversing the bridge seemed an uphill task. The feeling that the iron bridge was swaying under wind pressure was nauseating enough to abandon this walk. My wife, by her mountaineering training, remained totally nonchalant. Finally decided to recourse by extending our walk further to take the new bridge to cross. On the other end of the bridge, i.e. El Arenal district side, the thirteenth-century watch tower Torre del Orro greeted us. This tower once guarded the river entrance to the city. Across the road was La Maestranza, one of the oldest bullrings in Spain, dating back to the eighteenth century. The distinctive baroque façade splashed in chrome yellow and white presented a magnificent view, more so because of the sparkling evening sunlight embracing the façade on that day. In addition to the sweet river breeze, the entire space was so striking and captivating that it held us there for a while.

Flamenco - 'espectaculous'

The Moors who ruled the Andalusian parts of Spain for over 700 years had a significant influence on the music, dance and culture of Spain. Flamenco is a complex blend of various cultures, including the Moorish. The cultural intermingling over centuries, the musical elements such as the Arabic ‘Oud’, which gave birth to the Spanish guitar, contributed to the development of flamenco. It was while returning from Alcazar through the narrow lanes of the old city that we chanced upon Museo del Baile Flamenco (museum of Flamenco Dance). Housed in a centuries-old building, this unique museum is an interactive one where one can see, hear and feel flamenco as well as experience the Andalusian culture of southern Spain. Going back to my childhood days, I recall seeing an English movie, the name and content of which I don’t remember. But the visuals of a dancer performing a tap dance on a wooden table is still etched in my mind. Imagine the thrill and excitement of seeing this intricate performance right in front of my eyes during a flamenco show late in the evening. The guitar, the music, the songs, the cajon (a wooden box drum), the castanets, the palmas (hand claps), and the teamwork blend mesmerisingly with the jaleos (Andalusian dance). Percussive footwork features most of the time in a flamenco dance. Intricate rhythms are created by the dancers by tapping their heels, toes, and balls of their feet against the floor. A show that kept us spellbound for hours after that.

Culinary outings

Wherever I travel, an urge to explore and savour the emblematic dishes of the place is overwhelming. Across Spain, I savoured some of the country's delicacies like paella, tortilla, tapas, smoked mozzarella and bacon hamburger, and Iberian hamburger. During our stay in Seville, I stumbled upon a small Spanish eatery very close to our hotel. The traditional Spanish lamb stew was so delicious that I decided to dine out there for most of our stay in Seville. A thick and hearty stew prepared with meat cubes, carrots, red bell pepper, rosemary sprigs and red wine. I used to take it with bread and my favourite sangria. My wife prepared it with mutton after returning, the recipe of which I have shared here. Furthermore, as culinary exploration has always been a cherished part of our travel, we never stick to one place. Like, a few shops ahead of the Spanish eatery, we discovered a shop displaying boldly Indian à la carte. Run by a Pakistani gentleman, Ibrar Raja, who left us wondering how an eatery with such a huge à la carte menu could be run so efficiently and single-handedly. Be it ranging from coffee and hot chocolate to chicken biriyani. Unassuming, cordial and jovial, he treated us as his family members. He even made it a point to satiate our appetite, at home, away from home.

Adios Sevilla

From Seville, we headed to Portugal. Travelled by Flix bus this time. Takes around five hours to Lisbon. Started early in the morning to be in Lisbon by noon. As we had seats behind the driver’s enclosure, we could watch the driver closely. What was striking about that journey was that he drove at a steady speed, without batting an eye, and simultaneously continued chatting on his mobile, save for a stopover for refreshment. The approach to Lisbon catches one by surprise. The spectacular view of the Tagus River and the 25th April Bridge (Ponte 25 de Abril) spans approximately 3 km and is the longest suspension bridge in Europe. An iconic landmark of Lisbon, the bridge spans the Tejo estuary at its narrowest point, also referred to as Europe’s Golden Gate Humming Bridge. An amazing ghostly sound emanates from this bridge even with the slightest wind. We experienced this eerie sound when our bus was crossing this bridge.

Photo credit: Arundhati Sengupta

No catenary wire over the tram track

Inside 'Alcazar' Palace

Seville University

Olive orchard on way to Sevilla

Triana Bridge over Guadalquivir River

Ceramic market Triana

Our Spanish friends -Triana ceramic shop

An old narrow lane in Sevilla

Outside Alcazar

Alcazar Garden with orange orchard

Stunning tile work on Alcazar

Triana, the ceramic centre

Magnificent tile decoration in Alcazar

Moucharaby ( lattice window with unique and intricate geometric patterns) is an Islamic-influenced architectural feature that is familiar in residences in the cities of North Africa.

the

Stunning panoramic views of the Alcazar and Seville from the top of Giralda Tower

Inside Seville Cathedral

Tile work in Alcazar

Seville Cathedral

Seville University Art museum

Facade of Tobacco Factory (now Seville University)

Front of the Tobacco Factory (now Seville University)

My favourite Spanish lamb stew.

Park, Seville

Flamenco Show

Tapas bar at Seville's old quarter

Alcazar Garden

Sparkling Alcazar

Alcazar

Moucharabieh and tile work combination produces a stunning view of Alcazar

Interior beauty of Alcazar

Inside Sevilla Cathedral

Stunning tile work in Alcazar

Ruby with the reception staff of Samay Hostal - sweet, smiling friends

Sculptors displayed at Seville University

Seville University

Fruit Market in Triana Seville

A view of the tram track in Seville

View Recipe Details

Ruby's Kitchen: Seville Series

🇪🇸🍷🥘

Seville Mutton Stew

A rich, slow-cooked Andalusian estofado. Adapted from the Spanish Cordero stew, using mutton for its deep flavor, balanced by smoked paprika and red wine.

Ingredients

The Meat & Fat

500g Mutton (stewing meat, cubed)
3 tbsp Olive Oil or Lard

The Sofrito & Aromatics

2 Large Onions (chopped)
3 Red Bell Peppers (sliced)
15 Cloves Garlic (minced)

The Spice Blend

2 tbsp Smoked Spanish Paprika (*Pimentón* - Sweet)
1 tsp Cumin Powder
2 Bay Leaves & Fresh Thyme Sprigs

The Liquids & Vegetables

1 Cup Dry Red Wine (or Amontillado Sherry)
2 Cups Mutton Stock (or water)
2 Carrots (chunked)
2 Potatoes (large cubes)

Preparation Method

Sear the Mutton: Heat the oil/lard in a heavy-based pot. Sear the mutton cubes on high heat, in batches, until dark brown on all sides. Remove and set aside.
The Sofrito: Reduce heat to low. Add the onions and bell peppers to the same pot. Sauté slowly for 15 minutes until very soft. Add the garlic and sauté for another 5 minutes.
The Spice Bloom: Add the smoked paprika, cumin, and tomato puree (if using). Stir constantly for 2 minutes to cook out the raw taste.
The Simmer: Return the seared mutton and its juices to the pot. Pour in the red wine and mutton stock. Add the bay leaves and thyme.
Slow Cook: Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and simmer on your lowest heat for 1 to 1.5 hours. Mutton requires a longer, slower cook than lamb to achieve that 'melt-in-your-mouth' texture.
Add Vegetables: Stir in the carrots and potatoes. Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Salt and pepper to taste.

Ruby's Authenticity Tip: For the classic Spanish *Picada* thickener, blend fried almonds, stale bread, and garlic into a paste and stir it in 5 minutes before serving.

Four Beautiful Towns of France & Germany----a photo essay

2025-03-04T21:00:00.025+05:30

Four lovely neighbours of Heidelberg

A pictorial journey

Wyssembourg, France

Wyssembourg is a small town in France. It is on the border with Germany and not far from Heidelberg, Germany's university town. We had taken a train that touched Mannheim and Landau on the way. When the train pulled up at Wyssembourg station, an almost-empty platform, soaked by drizzle before our arrival, greeted us. An absolute beauty! Right from there, it was a comfortable saunter through a picturesque, pretty, clean and graceful little town. I was so awed that even this potpourri of adjectives is not enough to describe the photogenic French town. A little river, the Lauter, flows through the town. It is so small and so narrow that on first view it gives the impression of a narrow canal flowing through the town. Not far from its larger counterpart, Strasbourg, this cute town is rich in history. Born in the seventh century, the town grew up around an abbey. The abbey church of Saint Pierre et Paul came up in the 13th century. The town faced two battles and a great fire about two to three centuries ago. Despite such ravages, the vestiges of fortifications, old buildings, and survivors such as 15th- and 16th-century timber-framed houses, churches, and roads from the mediaeval era have been well preserved. For lunch, we took bites of some delicious French cuisine at La Mirabelle restaurant.

Lorsch, Germany

This historic town lies very close to Bensheim. For historical and architectural importance, the Imperial Abbey of Lorsch was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Although in ruins, this was one of the most important monasteries of the Carolingian Empire. The Lorsch Abbey came up during the rule of Charlemagne in the eighth century. Charlemagne (Charles the Great). Sometimes referred to as the 'father of Europe', he brought about a cultural and intellectual revival known as the Carolingian Renaissance during the mediaeval period. The remains are strewn over a lush green expanse of undulating land. The 9th-century Torhalle (gatehouse), part of the abbey church, some of the walls around the abbey, and a reconstructed granary are pieces that have stood the ravages of time. A few minutes' walk brought us to Lauresham, a reconstructed Iron Age village that displays life in the 8th century.

Bensheim, Germany

Bensheim lies very close to the city of Darmstadt in Germany, on the edge of the Odenwald mountains. This little town has a mediaeval origin, as its history stretches back to the early ages. This place's beauty lies in the way the old part of the town has been preserved despite significant damage during World War II. The architectural features reflected by the half-timbered houses, the pathways, the historic market square, the nearby Auerbach castle, and remnants of town walls and towers provide a mediaeval feel. While strolling down the paths, we stole glimpses of a German town as it was six to seven hundred years ago.

Walldorf, Germany

We had taken a bus from outside Heidelberg station to visit Walldorf. The very first sight presents an impression of a picture-postcard town, comfortably placed on an idyllic square. Established in the 8th century, the city suffered two wars: a thirty-year war in the 17th century and a French invasion in 1689, which wiped out the town. The town, however, gained a lot of importance and prominence when it became home to software giant SAP.

Photo Credit: Arundhati Sengupta

Wyssembourg 👇

Wyssembourg Town Centre

Wyssembourg train station

The pathway outside the station

The small bridge over River Lauter

Mirabelle Restaurant

Wyssembourg

Residential houses

Lorsch, Germany 👇

Lauresham -the reconstructed Iron Age Village

Lauresham

Lorsch Abbey

9th century Torhalle (Gate House) Lorsch Abbey

Granary, Lorsch

Lorsch Town

Bensheim, Germany 👇

Bensheim Town Square

Walldorf, Germany 👇

Walldorf Square

Walldorf

Great Tastes - Pineapple Crab

2024-10-08T21:26:00.013+05:30

From Ruby's Kitchen

-Tropical Fusion: Authentic Pineapple Crab Boat Recipe from Ruby's Kitchen

Pineapple Crab

Pineapple crab with rice

Recipe & Method of Preparation

Ingredients for Crab (dressed) – 500 g

Onion Paste – 2 tbsp
Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Ginger Paste – 1 tbsp
Green chilli paste (deseeded) 6 pcs
Tomato paste (deseeded): 3 tbsp
Coriander: 1 tsp, cumin: 1/2 tsp, fennel: 1 tsp, cloves: 1 tsp, black pepper: 1 tsp, sesame seed: 1 tsp – Sesame seeds provide a unique nutty undertone that balances the sweetness of the pineapple and coconut. (All spices to be dry roasted and powdered.)
Grated coconut, 4 tbsp (ground to powder form), basil leaves, 2 tbsp

Cooking method

Crabs are to be thoroughly washed and then mixed with turmeric and salt.
Sauté the onions and garlic-ginger paste using 2 tbsp of oil in a kadai till the onions turn light brown.
Next, place the crabs in for frying. After about 5 min, pour in the dry roasted masala and coconut-tomato paste. Keep frying till it's dry. Add salt to taste. This process should be carried out on a low flame.

Meanwhile, slit the pineapple lengthwise and scoop out the pineapple flesh. It takes the shape of a boat. Keep aside the boat.

Next, pour the scooped pineapple flesh and chopped basil into the kadai and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Then turn off the gas and let it settle for 5 minutes.

Place the cooked items in the pineapple boat and serve with corn pulao or plain rice.

Ruby's Kitchen

🦀🍍

Pineapple Crab Boat

A coastal masterpiece featuring dressed crab simmered in a hand-ground spice blend, served elegantly in a carved pineapple boat.

Ingredients

Main & Aromatics

500g Dressed Crab
1 Whole Pineapple (for scooping)
2 tbsp Onion Paste
1 tbsp Ginger & Garlic Paste
6 Green Chillies (Deseeded & Pasted)
3 tbsp Tomato Paste (Deseeded)

The Hand-Roasted Blend

1 tsp Coriander & 1 tsp Cloves
1 tsp Fennel & 1 tsp Black Pepper
½ tsp Cumin & 1 tsp Sesame Seeds
4 tbsp Grated Coconut (ground to powder)

Finishing

2 tbsp Basil Leaves (chopped)
Turmeric & Salt to taste
2 tbsp Cooking Oil

Method of Preparation

Prep the Crab: Thoroughly wash the dressed crabs. Rub with salt and turmeric; set aside.
Create the Spice Base: Dry roast the coriander, cumin, fennel, cloves, black pepper, and sesame seeds. Grind into a fine powder.
The Base Sauté: Heat 2 tbsp oil in a kadai. Sauté onion paste and ginger-garlic paste until the onions turn light brown and fragrant.
The Fry: Add the crabs to the kadai. Fry for 5 minutes, then stir in the roasted masala powder, coconut powder, and tomato paste. Fry on low flame until the mixture is dry.
The Pineapple Boat: While the crab fries, slit the pineapple lengthwise. Scoop out the flesh, creating a "boat" shape. Set the shell aside and chop the scooped flesh.
Simmer & Infuse: Add the chopped pineapple flesh and basil leaves to the kadai. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it settle for another 5 minutes to meld the flavors.
Presentation: Carefully spoon the crab mixture into the pineapple boat.

Best Served With: Corn Pulao or hot Steamed Rice.

Granada

2024-08-26T16:35:00.018+05:30

Granada - Andalusian Spain

The bus journey from Madrid to Andalusia was strangely inviting. Andalusia is the southernmost part of Spain, also known as the Iberian Peninsula. The bosky landscape around was wild and cultivated. Cultivated with fleeting patches of olive orchards, which at some places spread far into the horizon? Traversing through the heart of Spain and somewhere at the back of my mind the landscape triggered the swashbuckling identity of the historical country. In search of El Dorado maybe one of the reasons why the Moors from Africa invaded Andalusia after crossing the strait of Gibraltar in the early 8^th century. They ruled this part of Spain till the 15^th century. Spain’s heartland, known as the Meseta, is a large plateau with an average elevation of six hundred meter above sea level is located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula. Since Madrid lies on this plateau most of the journey up to Granada was through this fascinating and partly arid landscape. There are several interesting places along the way such as Aranjuez and Toledo. Granada is located in the southern region of Andalusia, mostly composed of lowlands, mountains and valleys. This charming town is situated at the foot of Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. There’s only one bus station in Granada, about three kilometres from the city center. It serves both long distance and city buses. At the bus station we boarded a city bus and got down at the Cathedral stop. Then walked down about three hundred metres to Hotel Atenas where we stayed. A warm and cozy hotel situated right at the centre of the old city. On both sides of the main thoroughfare were mazes of lanes, by lanes well laid out perhaps from the middle age resembling a sort of matrix formation. A few steps from our hotel led to a T junction. The narrow by lane bustled with tempting eateries, most of them Lebanese and Mediterranean cuisines, jostling at places with their Spanish counterparts and pubs.

From the Cathedral stop (Plaza Isabel la Catolica) to Alhambra the public transport system operates buses in miniature form so that negotiating steep curves while traversing uphill is easy. Perhaps these were some of the idiosyncrasies of the place I observed. Buses are quite frequent, bus number C30 if I remember correctly. I was terribly excited when we boarded the bus next morning. More so, because I had read a fascinating book ‘Tales of Alhambra’ by Washington Irving, an American writer, diplomat and wanderer in the early nineteenth century who also authored the iconic short story ‘Rip Van Winkle’.

As the bus traversed the hilly terrain, a fleeting glimpse of the snowcapped Sierra Nevada was mesmerising. It gradually dawned upon me why the Moors were associated with romanticism. Perhaps the Moors exuded a similar allure of wild and windswept landscapes that captured the imagination of some great literary names, such as writers Emily Brontë in her ‘Wuthering Heights’, Conan Doyle in ‘Hounds of the Baskervilles’ and poet Emily Dickinson. Even Washington Irving, about two hundred years back, found the flavour of a ‘dear old romantic Spain’ in this part of the ‘half-wild’ landscape of Granada. Recorded history identifies the Moors as ‘dark-skinned’ inhabitants of the southern portion of Europe as far back as the first century. But by the early fifteenth century, Europeans started referring to Moors as dark-skinned Arabs from North Africa, the Gulf, and the Mediterranean region. When the Moors crossed the Strait of Gibraltar from Morocco and Algeria and invaded the Iberian Peninsula in the first half of the eighth century, a European scholar wrote a vivid description of the invaders. ‘The reins of their (Moors) horses were as fire, their faces black as pitch, their eyes shone like burning candles, their horses were as swift as leopards, and the riders fiercer than a wolf in a sheepfold at night.’

Alhambra is derived from an Arabic term meaning ‘the red one’ and pronounced as ‘Al Hamra’. The Alhambra is yet another medieval city in Granada, built over centuries and covering an area of about 35 acres. The complex comprises medieval and Renaissance palaces, courtyards, gardens and fortresses. Today, the entire complex has been transformed into a UNESCO World Heritage site. The first king of the Nasid dynasty, King Mohammed Ibn Yusuf Ben (better known as Alhamar), founded the place where a military zone and fortress already existed. The place had also been home to earlier fortresses and the 11th-century palace of Samuel ibn Naghrillah. The fortresses were strategically located, overlooking the surrounding mountains, the Darro River, and the forests. Subsequent Nasrid rulers made significant modifications, particularly during the 14th century under the reigns of Yusuf I and Muhammad V.

Alcazaba (fortress), the oldest part of the complex, constructed in the 9^th century, was at the tail end of Alhambra and made us walk a few kilometres from the entrance gate. But it was worth walking. It was like moving through different eras of the city called Alhambra. Palaces, residences, courtyards, gardens, and fountains reflected centuries of cultural and religious influences. The corridor showcased beauty of Islamic architecture in Nasrid palaces; palaces with unique blend of Muslim, Christian and Jewish after the Christians took over and expanded and modified the Alhambra; the residence and a grand renaissance palace of Emperor Charles V (Carlos V), built in the early sixteenth century after the Moors left the complex; communal baths, gardens and reservoirs all within the medina. The Nasrid palaces displayed elements of Moorish beauty in frescoes adorning the walls, columns, arches, ornamented walls and Mashrabiya lattice windows. While moving around in this iconic complex, one sight that drew our attention was large cats, almost twice the size of the stray cats we see in our country. Unperturbed by the continual movement of tourists, these Royal Cats moved around freely in the open spaces, some settling down to relax at the poolside and in the courtyards, staring back at us with an air of majesty. Their great-grandparents must have been there since the Moorish era. The cats so impressed me that I started referring to them as the Alhambra cats.

One of the unique constructions we saw was the Patio of the Lions (or Courtyard of the Lions). This courtyard is so named because of a central fountain surrounded by twelve lions that spewed a jet of water. The Nasrid Palace complex that attracted me most was Generalife, located outside the old gate of the Alhambra. This independent palace complex was designed as a recreational zone for the Nasrid sultans. Surrounded by gardens, orchards, vegetable gardens, irrigation channels, fountains and paved pathways, the entire area exudes romanticism and looks like a piece of paradise on earth. Its charm is in its serenity. So well preserved that it is hard to believe this place was built some 600 years ago. Except for some ruins which resulted from destruction carried out by the invading army of Napoleon and strewn over the entire complex (particularly near the entry gate), there is absolutely no other mark to suggest damage to the palaces and royal residences. They still reflect the opulent opus of the Moorish sultanate.

The Battle of Granada was the final battle of the Reconquista, when King Ferdinand and his wife, Isabella of Castile, vanquished the Moorish regime and brought Christian rule to Granada. Isabella, in particular, is regarded and hero-worshipped in the southern part of Spain mainly because of her contribution to the fall of the last Muslim stronghold in the region, bringing in cultural changes after 800 years of Moorish rule and also laying the groundwork for modern Spain. Isabella’s tomb, alongside Ferdinand's, is now located in the crypt of the Royal Chapel. This sepulchral chapel, known as Capilla Real, was established by Ferdinand and Isabella on the site of the old mosque of the city. Till the completion of the chapel in 1517 the remains of the monarchs rested in the convent of San Francisco dela in Alhambra. After coming out from the Chapel, we took the walkway built of cobble stones, turned right and arrived at the courtyard and a flight of long steps leading to the magnificent Santa Maria Cathedral (known as Granada Cathedral). Renaissance and Baroque architecture combined to create a stunning façade facing a large courtyard surrounded by centuries-old buildings, some of which host small shops. It was our good fortune to listen to some classics and church songs belted out by a young singer with his own musical accompaniments. His voice echoed and re-echoed off the façade and the surrounding walls of the courtyard. The effect was stunningly beautiful under a clear sunny afternoon sky. What mesmerised me was his strong voice and his performance on the soprano, which was something out of the world.

A further walk through the old quarters from the cathedral, which wind through marketplaces, tapas bars and cafes took us to a thoroughfare where stood another beautiful church, the Basilica of San Juan de Dios. Built in mid-1700’s at the peak of Spanish Baroque period, it also holds the remains of St John of God (San Juan de Dios). A baroque-style church boasting of interiors where almost everything is covered in gold. My wife enjoyed the grand interiors. As dusk was setting in, and my energy started ebbing, I decided to skip the interiors and relax on a comfortable bench outside the church. I enjoyed observing the traffic movement, trying to feel the city's essence. The buildings blend romantic Muslim architecture, gracious Christian architecture, and modern Spanish architecture, most exuding a warm reddish hue to live up to the meaning of ‘Alhamra’.

Photo credit: Arundhati Sengupta (Ruby)👇

Inside the Basilica of San Juan de Dios

St John of God Basilica

The Royal Cats of Alhambra

Built in 9th century this is the oldest part of the complex.

Alhambra fortress

A view of the city from Alhambra

Courtyard of the Lions

Map of Alhambra

The Royal Chapel

The ancient gate of Alhambra

A garden of Alhambra

Artwork of Alhambra

One of the Nasrid palaces

Granada Cathedral

Cathedral premises

A beautiful view of the city from atop Alhambra

One of the Alhambra Palace

Alhambra façade

A fascinating garden

Cute little Granada Bus Station

From the balcony of our hotel

A Lebanese delicacy in Granada

These roads possibly date back to the 9th century

A view of Granada city

Florence

2022-07-01T20:39:00.039+05:30

Florence – the capital of the Tuscany region and the cradle of Renaissance

We opted for FlixBus while travelling from Venice to Florence. The road journey takes about three and a half-hour. In Florence, it terminates at the rear end of Santa Maria Novella (SMN) train station. One of Italy’s busiest stations, it got its name from Santa Maria Novella Church just across the plaza from the main entrance. We debarked at the station and refreshed ourselves at McDonald's before hiring a cab for our hotel. Florence, popularly known as ‘Firenze’ by the Italians, is located in central Italy. This dreamy city with a romantic name is the regional capital of the lovely Tuscany region.

Columbus Hotel, where we stayed, is located in Lugarno District. We always prefer to book our hotels through Booking.com as we always land up getting good hotels at good locations. Despite being a little away from the heart of the city and Santa Maria Novella station, our hotel can still vie for being situated at an ‘excellent’ location. It is in the proximity of the city’s historic center and a stone’s throw away from the historic river Arno. We were fortunate to get a room whose balcony overlooked the river. We could also enjoy the sunset over Arno from our hotel balcony. The river had more to offer. Eateries and pubs on the river banks, numerous bridges including medieval ones, and the oldest and the only surviving covered stone bridge ‘Ponto Vecchio’ from the Roman era. This bridge, free of any vehicular traffic hosts shops and a marketplace and spans the narrowest portion of the river. The most encouraging part of our stay was the bus stop which incidentally was about a couple of minutes' walk from our hotel. Though buses were more crowded compared to most of their European counterparts, the service and frequency ensured comfortable rides to all the places of interest. Another great thing about our hotel was the grand buffet breakfast. In addition, an ice cream parlor close to the bus stop made our stay more enjoyable. A family-run gelato shop that had a wide variety of tantalizing ice creams displayed at its counter. We frequented the parlor so much that we soon befriended the lovely lady who looked after it.

In the birthplace of the Renaissance and a city famous for museums, our first attempt was to see ‘David’ of Michelangelo. The entire Tuscany region is regarded as a cradle of the high Renaissance. The rebirth from the dark ages started in the 13th century and peaked in the 16th century. The movement encompassed areas in culture, political science, philosophy, and art in particular. It so happened that pioneering efforts to the movements emerged from the Tuscany region. Such as Niccolo Machiavelli, a historian who later came to be known as the father of modern political philosophy and political science; Leonardo da Vinci, a polymath who excelled in a vast range of subjects from paintings, paleontology, science, and engineering to astronomy; Michelangelo, a legendary sculptor, painter, and architect. Their art brought about remarkable changes such as a focus on naturalism and human emotion. The original David of Michelangelo is located in Accademia Gallery on Via Ricasole (near the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore). Pietro Leopoldo, the Grand Duke of Tuscany founded this Accademia in 1784 to initially serve as a place for students of art. Gradually it started housing important works of paintings and models from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century. Artists of the Renaissance period. Amongst them Giambologna, Botticelli, Monaco, Pantorus, Michelangelo. Michelangelo, the greatest Renaissance artist, sculpted David from a single white marble block. Originally it was placed at Palazzo Vecchio. This 17 feet tall Biblical sculpture was shifted to a covered area inside Accademia in 1873 for weatherization.

After purchasing the entry tickets in the morning we had to wait till the afternoon as per the visiting time allotted to us. Fortunately, the weather on that day was comfortable and sunny. We had enough time to loiter in the central square, visit the nearby marketplace, listen to a street band and try some munchies in between. When we entered the museum the first sculpture which caught our attention was a plaster model for the stunning marble sculpture of Giambologna’s Rape of the Sabine Women, placed in the center of the ‘Hall of Colossus’. The museum hosts a rich Renaissance collection. At the Galleria’s ‘Hall of the Prisoners’, I simply could not take my eyes off the tall sculpture of David that stood at the central pedestal right under a circular skylight. So unique that I am now unable to recall how long I stood in awed silence in front of the sculpture, struggling to comprehend how a sculptor could bring out details of human anatomy like arteries, veins, and muscles on a nude figure of David and that too from a single marble block. Indeed a mind-boggling situation. To add to this wondrous experience was the sheen displayed on the white marble sculpted about six hundred years back as the sunlight glinted off the statue. The statue was sculpted from a single marble block by Michelangelo when he was only twenty-four years old, and it took about three years to complete the masterpiece.

We saw some more works of Michelangelo such as unfinished “Slaves”, an unfinished statue of St. Matthew, etc., but it was ‘David’ who stole the show and kept us riveted for a long period. Several replicas have come up following the original, but I stubbornly believe that the intricate details and artistry in the original such as subtle veins and muscles are impossible to replicate. A full-sized replica of this statue now stands at Piazza Della Signoria, outside Palazzo Vecchio, the same spot from where the original statue was removed and moved to Accademia Galleria.

On the south of the Arno River, atop a hillock is Piazzale (Plaza) Michelangelo, a square dedicated to the great son of Florence. The square is connected to the city center by frequent buses, but the final stop is a little ahead of the spot where another full-sized replica of David is cast in bronze stands. When we reached there in the evening, the plaza was abuzz with revellers and tourists. They all thronged there to enjoy a band playing out some popular old melodies while waiting there to catch a view of the sunset. Unperturbed by the surrounding activities, an attractive young lady in Shakespearean attire was rehearsing a shot for a film.

To me the most exhilaratingly beautiful region in Florence is Fiesole. A quaint little place, it is at the same time cute and seemed far away from the madding crowd when we reached there in the morning hours. Initially, I thought it is an elevated part of Florence city. Later on, I learned that it is a small village tucked in the northern Tuscan Hills. Very well connected by bus it took about half an hour from the city center. The place was on a tableland, and the panoramic view of Florence city was simply spectacular. Here also the entire city including the Florence Duomo appears to be cradled in a well when viewed from the top.

The Duomo is the largest and most exquisite masonry work in the world. It is a prominent and iconic landmark of the Florentine skyline. The building of the grand cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore was conceived at the end of the 13th century and it took about 150 years to complete. The cathedral had been under construction for a century with no solution as to how the dome-shaped roof should be built. Filippo Brunelleschi, a young goldsmith who had no idea or exposure to architecture finally came up with a solution that produced one of the great masterpieces that to date has survived the ravages of time over centuries. The dome is so large that about four million bricks were used in its construction. The bus terminus is near a sweet courtyard embellished with some beautiful sculptures.

At the other end stands a chapel. A small walk to the left of the courtyard stands Bandini Museum built in mid 18th century by an erudite librarian Angiolo Maria Bandini. The museum displays Tuscan artworks from the medieval to the Renaissance period. Some Roman archaeological ruins and artifacts on the external grounds next to Bandini Museum are on view when the Romans conquered and inhabited the place in the 2nd century BC. However, the amphitheater built during that period remains intact. Since we had to take the afternoon bus to Florence and we still had an hour in hand, we had a delectable Tuscany lunch in a restaurant overlooking the city of Florence. While in Florence, we frequented the Santa Maria Novella Station as it lies right in the heart of the city. As I had mentioned earlier the symbol of Florence ‘the famous Duomo’ lies right across the square adjoining the frontal façade of the station. Right across are a bustling shopping complex and some attractive open-air restaurants. On the left looms the famous Cathedral-an edifice which boasts as a masterpiece of Florence. We too found it a real masterpiece from any perspective we looked at it. Apart from this most of Florence’s bus lines are located at the SMN station, including buses that took us to Fiesole. And finally, of course, the high-speed, regional, and intercity trains run by Trenitalia. The station is a terminal station and all conveniences are properly located, right from ticket counters, automatic ticketing machines manned by young girls and boys to help you get the tickets, snack bars, eateries, washrooms, etc. In other words, the layout and arrangement are so nice that a tourist feels at home and does not have to go about enquiring. From this station, we availed trains to other places in the Tuscan region, such as Pisa and Cinque Terre, and finally for travelling to Rome.

Photo Credit: Arundhati Sengupta (Ruby)

David at Accademia - the original David sculpted out of a single marble block by Michelangelo

David (bronze replica) at Michelangelo Plaza

Florence from Michelangelo Plaza

Outside Florence Duomo

Bandini Museum Fiesole

Florence

Fiesole

David at Accademia

Accademia Florence

David

Pieta by Michelangelo

Accademia Florence

Paintings at Accademia

Fiesole Courtyard

Fiesole

Bandini Museum

Fiesole

Roman amphitheater at Fiesole archaeological area

The following videos were taken at the Michelangelo Plaza before sunset.
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Now my favourite green Flixbus in India

Pisa

2022-03-07T20:16:00.017+05:30

Pisa - the Leaning Tower

There are several trains from Florence to Pisa Centrale. We took the morning train. We were at Pisa Centrale station in a little more than an hour. Pisa station is one of the major railway junctions of Tuscany. An old station, which opened in 1871, has a beautiful exterior.

We boarded a bus from just outside the station, which took us directly to the Leaning Tower. Located at the Piazza Dei Miracoli (Square of Miracles), this walled area is regarded as one of the finest architectural complexes in the world. The most astonishing monument at this UNESCO World Heritage site is a campanile (a free-standing bell tower) 186 ft 11 in tall on the higher side and weighing around 14.5 tonnes, which started tilting during its construction in the 12th century. It went on leaning through the centuries until remedial measures were taken about 25 years back to arrest further tilt. Finally, the tilt has been reduced to about 4 degrees. The construction of the tower took almost two centuries. Seven bells were installed in the belfry. Each bell represented a musical note in the major scale. The largest bell was installed in 1655. Galileo, who lived in Pisa between 1589 and 1592, dropped two cannonballs of different masses from the tower to demonstrate that their speed of descent was independent of their mass in keeping with the law of free fall. Though modern tools and tackles have been used to arrest the chances of the tower toppling over in another 200 years, the mystery remains as to how this most vulnerable bell tower remained intact even after four strong earthquakes since the year of its inception, i.e., 1200 AD. Besides the free-fall experiment of Galileo Galilei, the tower was used as an observation post by the German army during World War II. The Allies knew about it but refrained from any sort of artillery strike, which could inflict irreparable damage to the heritage site.

We spent almost half a day inside the complex, awestruck by the strange Romanesque and Gothic-style campanile, taking photographs from various angles of the Leaning Tower. What is remarkable is that a tilt of hardly 4 degrees, which would be an unobtrusive angle if drawn on a standard A4-sized paper, becomes a dizzying sight when blown up to the height of the tower. Yes, the leaning was so perceptible that I felt scared when I went close to the tower. We also went over to the other three religious edifices in the premises, such as the Pisa Cathedral, the Pisa Baptistery, and the Monumental Cemetery. When we came out, we bought some souvenirs of the Leaning Tower from a shop run by a lad from Bangladesh.

Photos by Arundhati Sengupta

Durga Puja in Stuttgart, Germany

2021-12-06T18:28:00.004+05:30

Durga Puja in Germany – from Calcutta to Stuttgart

Calcutta, India

Only after marriage did I take interest and started delving more deeply into the insights of the timeless social phenomenon of 'The Generation Gap'. My wife belongs to a family who hails from Choto Kalia in Bangladesh. The Sen family from this small village in Bangladesh is referred to as ‘Choto Kaliya Sen Parivar’, a distinction only because of families' unbounded stint in maintaining close-knit relations generation after generation. In fact, when I first visited my wife's ancestral house Harrison Road (near College Square) in Calcutta, I was surprised to see photographs/ painted portraits of forefathers of my father-in-law decorating the walls of the living room. Another reason which brought prominence to this family is Durga Puja, which, I understand is almost 200 years old. The Kalia Sen Bari Puja shifted its venue mid-1960s and ever since continues to be held at Mitra Institution (formerly Ripon College, where Swami Vivekananda was felicitated on his return from Chicago after delivering the historic address on World Religion), Mirzapur Street for over 50 years. It is a great show, a grand show- a reunion and get-together on a festive occasion. I enjoy the spirit and atmosphere so much that I prefer to stick around in the Puja premises all four days of Puja whenever I am in Calcutta.

Stuttgart, Germany

Saikat Sen, my wife's cousin, and an IT technologist joined his new job in Germany in 2018. Prior to that he was based in Calcutta, and actively participated in Kalia Sen Bari Puja. His attempt to retain the spirit and fervor of Durga Puja while in Germany resulted in a Pooja initiation near Stuttgart. Durga Idol made of fiberglass was flown in from Calcutta in 2020, but due to the Covid19 outbreak, the Puja could not be held. This year, ie. 2021, they performed it with all the warmth and jubilations associated with Durga Puja. By mere coincidence, we had come to our son's place in Heidelberg during the Puja season. Knowing that we had plans to come to Germany, Saikat had already invited us much in advance to the Pujo at Stuttgart. Eager and excited to see the first Puja outside India, that too Germany, we started off early. From our son's house in Kirchstrasse, Heidelberg central rail station is hardly a few minutes' walk. The train to Stuttgart took around 40 minutes. From Stuttgart, which is a terminal station, we took a local train to Boeblingen. From Boeblingen station we took a bus to the venue of Stuttgart Maitri Durga Puja. The final lap was a rejuvenating walk down a lane lined with maple trees radiating a blossoming beauty of red, green, yellow just before the Fall. The venue was nestled cozily and comfortably in the bounty of nature. The Pujo was held in a rented hall with covered tents placed on the lawn for lunch, dinner, and cultural functions in the evening. Saikat and his friends in and around Stuttgart put up a wonderful show on their very first venture. Their success lay in creating an aura similar to the ones one finds back in Calcutta. Right from Bhog offerings, Dhak beats, Anjali, Prashad distribution followed by lunch. Even dinner was arranged for those who stayed back till late evening. Since we had to return back to Heidelberg, we had to very reluctantly forgo the entertainment functions as well as dinner. We had been there on Nabami, and the lunch served was delectable, especially the 'Malpoa'. The most satiable and pleasant sight was a sizeable gathering of families from and around Stuttgart. The young purohit (priest) was one of the major attractions. An Engineer with the EV Department of Mercedes Benz, he was meticulous in performing the rites such as Anjali and Arati. Making of ‘Maitri eV’ & Stuttgart Durga Puja 2021 The Club ‘Maitree eV’ is registered at Stuttgart,Germany since November 2019. The founders of the Club had planned to hold a Durga Puja in 2020 but had to wait till 2021 due to pandemic restrictions. On its inaugural Puja in 2021, the total footfall recorded was over 500 for 3 days of Puja. This is a very impressive figure considering the first Puja of the club in Germany. The Crew for the first Sarbojanin Durga Puja comprises founding members from eight families located in Stuttgart, Esslingen, and Aalen areas in Germany.

The Maitree Crew 2021

Subhrajyoti Bose –President
Manas Ganguly - Vice President
Abhishek Dey - Secretary (also credited with meticulous handling of logistics, one of the most important assignments that contribute to the success of an event).
Soumanta Banerjee – Purohit (priest).An ex-student of Mitra Institution where Kalia Sen Bari Puja is held every year since 1967.
Rakesh Maji – Cashier
Aritra Ukil- Auditor
Anasuya Banerjee – Bhog
Priyanka Sahu – Bhog
Paromita Chakraborty – Bhog
Deepra Mukherjee – Bhog
Bani Banerjee – Bhog
Debopriya Deb – Bhog & Cultural
Abhijit Das – Cultural
Ankita Ghosh – PR & Cultural
Kuntal – Logistic
Saikat Sen – Food & Kitchen
Rushy Sen – Food & Kitchen

Photo courtesy: Arundhati Sengupta

Kalia Sen Bari Puja 2021, Mitra Institution, Calcutta (Pic courtesy: Anirban Sen)

Kalia Sen Bari Puja 2021,Mitra Institution,Calcutta

Stuttgart Maitree Durga Puja 2021,Stuttgart

Stuttgart Maitree Durga Puja, Stuttgart

The food offered for lunch on Nabami. On the bottom left is'Malpoa', a delicious Bengali sweet dish.

- (pic courtesy: Saikat Sen)

Booking.com

Madrid 2

2021-09-24T13:20:00.007+05:30

MADRID 2 – the Mecca of bullfighting

by Biswajit Sengupta

Images of Spain gravitate around football, bullfights, and flamenco. On the Iberian Peninsula and in Latin America, football remains the most popular spectator sport, followed by bullfighting even despite movements by some sections to ban it. Although the largest bullfighting ring is in Mexico followed by the one in Venezuela, Madrid is regarded as the Mecca of bullfighting because of its tradition. During the early part of the twentieth century, bullfighting had picked up tremendous momentum in Madrid. In order to accommodate more spectators, a monumental bullring was built. Las Ventas bullring with a capacity of around twenty-five thousand spectators has an imposing façade – the largest in Spain and the third largest in the world. From Sol Seville, Las Ventas is around ten minutes commute by underground metro from Sevilla station. Trains to Cuatro Caminos Las Rosas stop at Ventas. The famous bullring is just atop the exit Plaza de Toros. A lovely, breezy plaza interspersed with statues of matadors, bullfights, and bulls. The stadium located on the plaza is a charming red building, architecturally attractive because of its Moorish adornment and design. The only disappointment was that I missed watching a bullfight by a few days as the season normally runs up to the end of October. But it was amply compensated by an exciting and informative tour inside the amphitheatre. My wife, who is against any kind of sports involving cruelty to animals, did not join me on the audio tour. When I walked into the circular corridor of the stadium with my audio guide, it was like an exciting recce of events totally unknown to me. The spectacle opens with a bull ring march (Paso Doble). Paso doble is an attractive two-step dance form, and many paso dobles have been composed in honour of matadors. Paso Doble is played throughout the opening procession ('paseo' in Spanish) before the start of the bullfight. The most popular being a mix of Spanish Gipsy Dance/En “Er” Mundo/Espana Cani/Morante de la Puebla.

PLAZA DE LAS VENTAS—paso doble composed on the famous De Las Ventas Bullring in Madrid

Paso doble: Puerta Grande. Banda de Música de Las Ventas. 19-Mayo-2012

Bullfighting dates back as far as the Roman era. It started evoking interest as a major public sporting spectacle after Muslims from neighbouring Africa (the Moors) overran Andalusia in the early eighth century. Moors were great horsemen, which made them start bull lancing tournaments from horseback. The combats were held in open areas such as city squares, plazas, or even open fields outside a town. Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (known as El Cid because of his military prowess), a legendary knight, was perhaps the first horseman to have lanced a bull in an enclosed arena in the eleventh century. 'El Cid' means ‘the lord’ or ‘the master’ in Spanish Arabic. After the Moors were driven out by the Christian rulers in the sixteenth century, Queen Isabella strongly opposed bullfighting, and Pope Pius V imposed an outright ban on sports. But due to the growing popularity of corridas, sports had become a routine part of Spanish life. Bullfighting-related fiestas were looked upon as community events in Spain. These considerations compelled the church to lift the ban. Nowadays, bullfighting is in three stages. It starts with picadors who lance the bull from horseback, followed by foot assistants known as banderilleros, and finally the matadors on foot who work the bull and eventually kill it. While walking with the audio guide in the empty corridors of the stadium, I was in a trancelike state of mind, trying to visualise the acts. So much so that it did not allow me to think before stepping into a virtual corrida cubicle. I was handed over a crimson muleta to make passes on a virtual bull whose movement was controlled by the operator. After a few successful passes, I was caught in a shuddery moment when on looking behind me, I saw the fierce reddish eyes of the bull fixated at me. So sudden was the fear impact that the muleta dropped out of my hand involuntarily. As the real corrida spectacle was over only a few days back, intensive repair work was going on at the arena. As I stood watching the amphitheatre, the bullpen (gate of the toril) and the ring reminded me of hypogeums and the arena in the Colosseum where gladiator fights were held. With my audio guide on I could visualise the opening procession, the beginning of a tournament as the toril gate is opened to allow the bull to rush out to a glaring afternoon from a dark pen followed by the opening capework, lancing by the picadors, the flashy and graceful passes with a large cape, the placing of the banderillos and finally the dangerous passes performed by the matador with a muleta before making the kill. Somewhat similar to the fate of a lost gladiator, a bull performing bravely may be pardoned by the president if the crowd waves white handkerchiefs. Amid sneers and scoffs from large sections of ‘animal cruelty’ activists, the corridas have continued for years. Today, the entire spectacle is like a graceful ballet. A matador is like a highly skilled artist. Wearing a ‘traje de luces' or a suit of lights, like a short jacket, a waistcoat, knee-length skin-tight trousers of silk or satin richly beaded and embroidered in gold or silver, pink silk stockings, flat heelless black slippers and a ‘montera' (a knobbed hat), he fights the ferocious bull from a dangerously close distance. Even a minuscule mistake can lead to a matador’s death. That is why this artistic spectacle is often referred to as ‘dance with death'. Since the early nineteenth century, the spectacle has been swooned over by painters, musicians, writers, and filmmakers. Francesco Goya and Picasso recorded the spectacle artistically. Goya, who was an amateur torero himself, painted a fight in the Ventas bullring. Then there are books like ‘Blood & Sand’ by Vicente Blasco Ibanez, ‘Death in the Afternoon', ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ and ‘The Dangerous Summer’ (all by Ernest Hemingway).

In fact, the entire enchanting act lasts for about twenty minutes or so. It is like a highly intricate ballet movement culminating in a gory finish. The toughest capework in a corrida is the dangerous passes with the muleta before a kill. Las Ventas amphitheatre has an aesthetically designed ‘Royal Box’ is used for seating the president of the corrida. Exiting through underneath the gallery and the Royal Box leads to an infirmary well set up with operating and surgical equipment, including surgical tables for attending to grievous injuries caused by goring. Out in the open, the backyard holds a small chapel where the matadors and picadors pray before entering the arena for a fight. Adjacent to it is a museum that showcases the legendary matadors, both male and female, like Mariel Atierzar, Manuel Rodriguez, Pete Pastrana, Pale Camina, and Francisco Camina Sanchez. The exhibits and displays also include some famous bulls, matadors’ colourful embroidered attires, swords and lances, capes, and muletas. It is known that any cattle is colour blind. The capes and muletas are red so that the colour helps in camouflaging the blood spattered during the bout.

During this visit, I was not able to watch a real bullfight, but an audio tour in the famous bullring amply compensated for the missed opportunity. So famous is the bullring that a paso doble called ‘Plaza de las Ventas’, composed by Maestro Manuel Lillo, is dedicated to this arena.

Sculpture of matador

Las Ventas, Madrid

Ventas Stadium

Plaza Ventas

Facade of Las Ventas Bullring

List of legendary matadors who performed at Ventas stadium

Inside the Ventas stadium

Spanish bull exclusively reared and bred for bullfights

The ceremonial outfit called traje de luces or 'suit of lights' worn by matadors is designed to embrace the anatomy in such a way so as to provide safe and free movements during the performance. The above display details the costume vis-a-vis the anatomy of a human being.

The infirmary at the stadium is well equipped to perform treatment and operations for goring injuries suffered during a fight

The most convenient way to reach Las Ventas ⇩

For tourists, taking a metro from Sol Seville station is the best option. Sol is the heart of Madrid, where most of the sightseeing sites are located. Sol station is located right at the Puerta del Sol square. It happens to be the most central station on the metro and is on Line 1, Line 2, and Line 3 of the Madrid Metro (Zone A). Ventas station is on Line 2 and Line 5 of the Madrid Metro.

A Drop of Calm

2021-09-04T14:18:00.004+05:30

L'Oasis De L'ile at Quebec

by Madhumita Chakola

We were weary; we were tired. Long hours at work, hunched at the desk with minimal social interaction was taking a heavy toll on us. We needed a vacation oh so badly. Earlier in the year, with the lockdowns and stay-at-home restrictions, we had thought a ‘staycation’ would be the ideal answer to all our yearnings. We would relax at home, pursue our hobbies and excel in doing absolutely nothing.

At the onset of spring, just as the world exploded into different hues of green, we decided to book a whole week off for our vacation at home. In the itinerary were long walks in the trail, singing with the birds, connecting with friends and family across the globe, bingeing on Netflix, firing up the barbecue season, and of course, napping here and there. No routine, no restrictions, no structured life. On the first day of our ‘staycation’, all our dreams were blown away and scattered amidst the sprouting grass. My husband was drawn into fixing the leaky kitchen faucet, the washing machine demanded some attention, the windows had to be cleaned after the onslaught of months of snow, the IKEA desk had to be assembled. The list went on and on. I was adamant at lazing around, reading, and daydreaming. But life has its twists, and unknowingly, I got entangled in domestic work. My ever-pragmatic partner tried to comfort me. After all, he said, we should be happy for having completed so many chores instead of dealing with a pile of incomplete domestic tasks. Yes, I do get it, but why fool ourselves with the notion of ‘staycation’ when it should be nothing other than ‘workcation’!

Come the end of July, we were planning a small getaway during the long weekend. With the pandemic restrictions being somewhat relaxed, I made sure that we were going far from home. No more staycation for me! We’d booked two nights at L’Oasis De L’ile in Quebec. The drive from Toronto was not too bad – less than 6 hours. We sang our hearts out with John Denver, Andrea Bocelli, Engelbert, and Elvis. The weather was perfect- although there was a slight bite in the air, the sun did not disappoint us. Perhaps our out-of-tune rendering of 'Sunshine on my shoulders' was heard in the blue skies!

We made a detour in Montreal to grab lunch. Also, because the Tokyo Olympics brought back memories of the Montreal Olympics of 1976, we felt it would be just right to drive around the Olympic stadium. In Montreal, I cannot think beyond poutine. It’s a French-Canadian dish born in Quebec in the 1950s. Poutine is made of French fries and fresh cheese curds, covered with gravy. It’s crispy as well as gooey and something to die for! Since we were no longer watching our calories, we decided that a Beaver Tail for dessert would not be categorised as sinful. It is Canada’s most iconic food through its connection to the national animal. Disclaimer: It’s loaded with calories!

The city of Montreal occupies three-fourths of the Montreal Islands – the largest of the 234 islands off the Hochelaga Archipelago at the confluence of the Ottawa and St Lawrence River. Due to its location, Montreal was colonised by the French back in the 16th century. It is the 2nd largest French-speaking city in the world. (No guesses for the 1st French-speaking city!).

Montreal with its imposing cathedrals and grand monuments, attracts tourists from near and far. The Notre-Dame Basilica, St Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal, Jacques Cartier Bridge, Biosphere draw a lot of people from all around the world. But what tugs my heart is Old Montreal (Vieux Montreal) with its cobblestone streets, lively plazas, Parisian-style quaint cafes, and patios with live music. I love strolling through the streets of Old Montreal and refreshing my rusty French. Canadians are the most friendly and polite people in the world. It’s so easy to strike up a conversation. In Montreal, almost everyone speaks French. Even the road signs are in French. In no time, my husband picked up Nord (North), Sud (South), Rue (Road), and Arret (Stop). That’s a big achievement for him.

Our resort stay at L’Oasis De L’ile was about a half-hour drive away from downtown Montreal. It’s an urban refuge on an island in the Mille-Îles River. The river is 42 kilometres long but is shallow with an average depth of 1.5 meters and the water flows lazily. At times, peering into the river makes one feel that the water is at a standstill. Light penetrates down to the bottom of the riverbed, which is why aquatic plant communities are found in 53% of the river area. We had to cross over a narrow bridge to the island. The bridge was so narrow that just one car would fit in. As we drove over the calm green water, dusk was settling in, and the entire area was bathed in a hushed light with the chirping of thousands of birds as they made their way home. That ethereal moment, all the worldly baggage that we unnecessarily carry along with us, slid away as we felt a deep connection with the Creator. We stopped the car on crossing the bridge, ecstatic and euphoric, and drank in the beauty and serenity which no camera could ever capture. It was indeed an oasis – calm and serene, far away from the entanglements of life.

The property was sprawling- the hotel had a European aura with a wrap-around porch and rustic look to it, which softly merged with the environment. There was also a chalet which was mainly booked for weddings. The water lapped quietly all around and the tranquil environment tricked my mind to weave images of Tennyson’s Lady of Shallot who lived in an island castle flowing to Camelot. I could almost see her weaving her charmed web!

L’Oasis de L’ile is open only to adults looking for rest, recuperation, and health. The Nordic spa in the midst of the resort was a gem set in a picturesque location- a blue sparkling swimming pool with a waterfall, plunge pools for wading and just lounging, hot tubs, wet and dry sauna, and massage. When the lights came out at night, the area was transformed into a surreal beauty. Guests were encouraged to follow a cycle that consists of hot and cold immersions, followed by rest, and then repeat. The ground was scattered with several saunas and pools of various temperatures. We started at the hot tub, jumped to the steam sauna, and then braved a quick plunge in the cold pool. I did not dare to stand under the chilly fountain. By this time, I was bleating like a sheep and headed right back to the hot pool.

We spent our days exploring the tiny island and the neighbourhood. There were large homes with manicured lawns, but we hardly met any residents on the road. Appeared to be country homes where people would come in to breathe in the richness of the environment and head out to the city only to gather frown lines. All that we heard was the sound of our voices and the twitter of birds. As we sat at the riverbank munching on apples and peaches, we kept wondering whether this is the Garden of Eden. The peace made us feel guilty as we remembered our brethren across the world living in war-ravaged countries. We hope that this peace pervades all over the world and touches each heart.

Soon, the weekend vacation had evaporated, and it was time to hand over the keys at the reception. We set home with our hearts brimming with tranquillity and feeling so relaxed that we were ready to face all the curveballs that life would spin at us.

Merci beaucoup, L’Oasis de l’Île.

Booking.com

MADRID - 1

2021-08-19T16:44:00.008+05:30

Madrid—the Royal Spanish Capitalandbut she is impeccable as a hostess. Unfortunately, we could not meet her during our visit to Madrid. But she made it a point to coordinate our visit and stay through her WhatsApp handles. After receiving our arrival details, she sent a carefully worded text that included directions to the public transport terminus after alighting from the ALSA bus at its terminal station. Many a time, I fall prey to my impatient nature. In this case, I overlooked the word ‘escalators’ mentioned by Eva. We took the escalator, which connected the platform to the concourse. Once at the concourse, we felt lost, not knowing where to get our bus from. Since my wife knows Spanish, she got help from the locals. At the opposite end, there was a series of ‘escalators’ as well as a lift that takes you to the exit at level 5. The public transport terminus was just outside the exit gate. The bus line mentioned by Eva was waiting there as if it had drawn up at the terminus for us. The apartment was situated in a classy complex. We were ushered in by a young Argentinean couple who were also staying as guests in one of the rooms in Eva’s apartment. We were given a pretty room with an attached bath. Plus a well-equipped common kitchen adjoining our room and a beautiful garden. A beautiful note at the bedside table welcoming us. As Madrid remained quite chilly and windy in November, the coziness of the room brought a feeling of warmth to our hearts. Apart from a well-equipped kitchen and a nice garden adjoining it, the most exciting part of our stay was a highly efficient public transport operating from a bus stop located right outside the complex gate. Route no. 20 from Pavone to Sol-Seville plying almost at every ten minutes frequency was the most exciting part of our Madrid sojourn.

Sol-Seville is the heart of Madrid. Crowded, like Calcutta’s Esplanade. Over and above, a huge traffic snarl as the left flank of the road was blocked due to some massive construction work (a very common sight at most of the cities in India). We, therefore, used to get down near Seville metro station and walk down to the large square. On the right of the square, a road leads to the palace through a busy market. Palacio Real de Madrid is about 20 minutes walk from Sol via Calle del Arenal. We walked on with nonchalant abandon. Savoring the tempting displays at food counters, the sight of an old cinema hall with posters displaying the current movies shown there, the majestic façade of the nineteenth century Teatro Real Opera House, or otherwise desultory streetscape. When we finally arrived at the Royal Palace (Palacio Real de Madrid) a stunningly wide façade opened up. Bemused by the exterior architecture of the eighteenth-century palace, so vast that it put us on momentary doldrums as to where to start from. Later on, I learned that the palace is the largest in Europe and has about 3500 rooms. Instead of seeing the interiors, which would have taken the entire day, I preferred to stroll across the beautiful gardens outside the palace.

Prado Museum (Museo National del Prado in Spanish) Built in the early nineteenth century, it houses the world’s finest collections of European art chronicled from the twelfth century to the early twentieth century. The museum is a real treasure trove for aspiring artists. The museum spaces are shared by works of great European artists like Raphael’s ‘Sagrada Familia’, 'The Visitation’, ‘Christ Falls on the Route to Calvary', and ‘Portrait of a Cardinal’. I have seen his artwork in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican. His ability to paint people more real than they are was his forte. Tiziano’s oil on canvas, such as ‘Christ carrying the Cross' and ‘Adam & Eve’. ‘Adam trying to prevent Eve’s action’ by Ruben. Tintoretto’s famous canvas exalts humility and brotherly love through the scene of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet in the Last Supper. The galleries had an impressive display of paintings of Ribera, Dürer, Titian, Tiziana, Diego Velázquez, Goya, El Greco, Joven, and Verone. An exclusive space for the sixteenth-century Italian paintings by Titian, who was a great exponent of sensuality. Even paintings of two women painters of the sixteenth century, Sofonisba and Lavonia Fontana, have been displayed. Despite scepticism regarding female artists’ creative capacities during that period, they broke away from social stereotypes and produced great portraits and religious and even mythological compositions. The museum holds drawings by the early nineteenth-century artist Francisco de Goya. His themes were portraits of man’s usually violent nature, men’s violence to women, the misogynistic concept of women as solely existing for men’s pleasure.

Finally, we had a look at the gallery for sculptures. José Alvarez Cubero’s ‘The Defence of Zaragoza’ is worth mentioning. This celebrated sculptor was imprisoned in 1808 for refusing to accept Napoleon's brother Joseph Bonaparte as King of Spain after the siege of the city of Zaragoza by the French troops during the Peninsular War.

The museum also houses a well-stocked library where one can order a printout of a painting. We also had an order from Latika, our friend and neighbour back in Calcutta. She also learned Spanish with Ruby (my wife). The order was for ‘Las Meninas', a painting by Velázquez. A warm and cosy coffee break at Prado Café was another refreshing part of our museum visit.

Nico & Eva welcome us to their cosy00 room

Nico's apartment in Madrid

Madrid

Sol-Seville, the heart of Madrid

Cinema Hall Madrid

Royal Palace Madrid

Royal Palace, Madrid

Palacio

Palace Garden

Madrid Cafe

Fishy Affair

2021-07-26T16:30:00.026+05:30

A Delectable Tale for Fish Lovers

by Rajat Sarkar, Hamburg

A few days back, a friend told me that the ‘fish’ in the 'Some' restaurant was good. She got to know about it from her brother. She herself is not a fish eater.

I said to her, “Never say anything to a Bengali about fish and their quality. Leave the Bengali alone! Fish exists in the Bengali psyche from the womb to the tomb! Satyajit Ray even made use of fish scales in one of his movies. The world, including Hamburg, may boast about its fish, but none can match the Bengalis’ affairs, both licit and illicit, with fish. While the EU and Britain may continue to fight over fishing rights in the North Sea, Bengalis handle fish with care so that there is no real culture clash, domestic disharmony, marriage mistrust, relationship rupture, or sports strife. Fish exist in the everyday existence of a Bengali. Fishy politics ensure pride of Bengaliness. And a Bengali eats fish with his/her hands – not with cutlery or chopsticks. The path to fish-related sensation is through nerves connected to the soul.

Fish sold in the ‘suave’ world is without passion – the maacher tel (fish liver, fat, and intestines) are thrown away. I have also been witness to a Bengali in Germany discarding the fish head while buying carp. It was an insult to my conscience.

Fashion, sophistication, and style are devoid of emotions. Life is meaningless without emotions!

Possibly only the Japanese can match a Bengali’s appetite for fish. However, unlike the Japanese, a Bengali never eats raw fish (Sushi). For a Bengali, it has to be cooked. Bengalis’ fish cooking is a different subject altogether.

And in Germany fried fish in a batter and/or fried plain and served with garlic sauce, remoulade, or dill sauce (horrible) makes the Bengali feel like a beggar. Life is a tale of compromises.

The puffery of caviar is irritating to the Bengali atman. It is of no significance that caviar is served on mother-of-pearl spoons to prevent blighting of its taste. It is indeed weird that caviar is served as a garnish or as a spread. A Bengali grows up eating fish roe, fish head, fish liver, fat, and intestines (maacher tel). The taste of the roe of the hilsa (illish) can be matched by nothing, taking into consideration that caviar is the most expensive food in the world. Money cannot by taste!

One may argue that tastes are a matter of individual predilection. If that were true, why is there hype about caviar and salmon? While accepting that salmon tastes awesome, the Bengali cannot be bullied by any taste mafia in respect of fish! The humble pabda, chital, koi, topshe… can beat all fish from the great oceans and other water bodies on the planet. And then there is Ilish (Tenualosa ilisha). All discussions end there.

A sorshe (mustard) preparation of Hilsa Fish

Overfishing due to the rising population and greed is heartbreaking for the Bengali. Bengalis, as it is, are gradually losing their connection to the kitchen. Fish is crucial to Bengali civility, hospitality, and sensibility. It is the vivers of the beauty of Bengali women. That fish is gradually disappearing from the plate of the Bengali due to unaffordability and change of tastes, reflecting a civilisation in decline.

BUDAPEST 1

2021-07-23T19:23:00.006+05:30

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