A Wandering Mind

Book Review: Balasaraswati - Her Art and Life

2012-01-24T14:13:00.000+05:30

A question I was regularly asked at one time was:”So, you are a Tamilian. You must have learnt classical music and Bharatanatyam, right?” It was a question which always succeeded in irritating me, for I had nothing to do with either music or dance, despite being a Tamilian. Yes, my mom had, true to tradition, tried to get me interested in music. I had endured the classes for a year, and soon after, telling my mom that the classes intruded into my reading time, had refused to go anymore. She would have loved to send me to Bharatanatyam classes, but that was something I had no interest in even trying! Having two left feet, I stayed away from dance of all kinds, and she soon gave up, leaving me to my literary pursuits. Living in a place where there were hardly any cultural events, and even fewer related to our South Indian background, I grew up blissfully ignorant of Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam. Then, I got married and shifted to a predominantly South Indian neighbourhood – one which could actually be called a miniature Madras, complete with temple and all! Here were more people surprised that I wasn’t remotely interested in the classical arts, except as a spectator, all the more so since my sister-in-law herself was an accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer! Years passed and I began enjoying Bharatanatyam performances, now that I was actually attending more of them, and besides, my sister joined the dancing brigade too. However, I still maintained my distance, being just remotely interested in the performance and the talent of the dancers. All that changed when my sister-in-law asked me for help in translating some documents for her Masters degree in the dance, and I discovered what a wealth of history and literature was available behind the ancient dance form. I began reading my sister-in-law’s books, eager to learn more about those who had shaped the dance and brought it to the form in which it is known today.

Among the many dancers I read about, one name stood out – Balasaraswati. She was said to be the first to perform the dance outside south India, but I was intrigued even more when I read an article which mentioned that she often sang as she danced! And then, a couple of weeks back, I saw that the book ‘Balasaraswati – Her Art and Life’ was up for review on Blogadda. I had been a part of the Blogadda Book Review programme for quite a while, but I had yet to receive a book for reviewing, so it was with some indifference that I applied for this one, thinking that I had nothing to lose. Besides, I was leaving for Samhith’s thread ceremony, and didn’t really have time to do a review! Imagine my surprise when I got a mail from them, saying that I had been among the lucky ones chosen!! For a while, I wondered if I should refuse, since I hardly had time to read such a book and review it in the short time I had, but then the temptation proved too strong, and I agreed! So here at last (though a bit belated) is the review of ‘Balasaraswati – Her Art and Life’, by Douglas M. Knight, Jr.

Any biography of Balasaraswati was bound to be interesting. However, this book is even more so, because of the author. He is not only an accomplished musician, who has appeared in performances with Balasaraswati, her brothers, her daughter, as well as her grandson, but he also has the privilege of being her son-in-law! He thus brings in his intimate knowledge of the family, which gives the book a personal feel – a feel of a story told by a member of the family.

The book takes us through Balasaraswati’s life as well as her dance, beginning with her ancestors as well as the history of dance in South India. We learn of the evolution of the dance form, as well as the changing circumstances of Balasaraswati’s family and their moving to Madras from Thanjavur. Knight has painstakingly put together the family history, from the times of Thanjavur Papammal, Balasaraswati’s great-great-great-great-grandmother, who was a dancer and musician in the Thanjavur court, to Veena Dhanammal, Balaraswati’s grandmother and exceptional musician, whose prefix ‘Veena’ indicated her mastery of the instrument! Jayammal, Balasaraswati’s mother may not herself have been as famous as her mother, or later, her daughter, but we learn from Knight that it was at her insistence that Balasaraswati was trained as a dancer, despite strong family opposition. Reading the book, for the first time, I appreciated and understood the situation at the time, which made people shy away from teaching their daughters dance, preferring them to learn music instead! Jayammal must indeed have been an unconventional and strong woman to have insisted that her daughter learn not just music, but dance too! So it was that Balasaraswati began her education in music and dance at the tender age of 4!

Reading the book further, about Balasaraswati’s education, and her first public performance or Arangetram, I couldn’t help but contrast the situation with that today. I live in an area where every other young girl learns Bharatanatyam, and even performs her Arangetram, but the idea is not to master the art, but to add another accomplishment to their repertory of ‘extra-curricular activities’. Reading about Balasaraswati being branded by hot coal for a mistake in performing a particular gesture, or about being tested every single day, made me think about her dedication and single mindedness, which helped her accept such harsh conditions, and also made me wonder if any of the young students today were even aware of the colossal effort that went into making a young girl a perfect dancer! Reading about the Arangetram itself was interesting – today, it involves performing for three hours in front of an audience which mostly consists of friends and relatives who know nothing about the dance, and just a few special guests who are experts, and who, no matter how good or bad the performance, repeat the same congratulatory remarks. Imagine then, an Arangetram, which involved the entire community – a performance which had to be evaluated, reviewed and tested by the elders! She first performed for the women in the morning, then the next day for the experts in the field, and then again in the evening for a mixed group of men and women, and then finally, in the presence of the deity, a culmination of the performance. At every stage, she was questioned and tested, a continuous test of skills, so to speak! And all this at the age of seven!!! Can any of you even imagine such dedication or commitment in any field today?

As we travel further in time, reading about her journey in dance, about her struggles and her achievements, singing her dancing her way across difficult times, coping with the stigma of being called a ‘devadasi’, as well as ill health, it is impossible not to feel admiration and awe for the woman who took Bharatanatyam across the world! At the rate at which I am going, I will probably go on and on and tell you the entire story as well as my thoughts, but unfortunately, I am now running short of time, so I shall stop myself here, leaving you to go ahead and read the book yourself to know more about such a remarkable dancer. But, before I sign off, just a couple more things need to be said....

The book is meant to be a detailed biography, and it stays true to Balasaraswati, but an admirable fact is the detailed history which helps us understand her better. At every stage, Knight makes sure we understand the situation at the time, with detailed historical events as well as descriptions of the locations involved. I could almost imagine Madras as it was then, his descriptions bringing back memories of my grandfather talking about the old city. The old photographs Knight has unearthed help too, in bringing the people we are reading about to life. As I turned the pages, I found myself wishing that I could have attended at least one of her performances!!

This book is a useful one for dancers and those interested in learning more about the dance, for sure, but the book is also an easy read – one anyone even remotely interested can read, and enjoy!

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

Photos Courtesy: Internet

Guest Post - Kutch Diaries Part 2

2012-01-19T14:54:00.003+05:30

In this, his second guest post, Niranjan continues his reminiscences of his Kutch trip, with a more detailed report of the fifth day spent on the Rann of Kutch. To read his earlier post, click here.

We started from Zainabad to Moti Virani, Kutch district on the morning of the fourth day of our trip – 28^th December. We reached our destination by evening and had ample time to cool our heels and take some rest before embarking on another adventure into the wild. We were greeted with a terrific lunch. Whoever says that Gujarati food is sweet, should try out Kutchi food. It is very spicy and reminds of Andhra J

29, December, 2011

The morning began with a journey to the Banni grasslands Reserve. One sight of this place will remind anyone of the Savannah grasslands.

The day began with our capturing the brilliant sunrise and being treated with the sightings of many Montagu’s and Pallid harriers looking out for their early breakfast.

Pallid Harrier:

Montagu’s Harrier holding its prey in her legs

On the way, we also spotted Chestnet-bellied Sandgrouses:

After capturing many more Harriers, Common cranes and Indian Nightjars on the way, we made a stop in the open for having a breakfast. There we were greeted with a Red-tailed Wheatear on the rocks next to our car.

After having a breakfast, we started moving again and exploring the landscapes for more birds.

On the way, we saw Nomads passing...

by. I was told by the Naturalist, Mr.Jugal Tiwari travelling with us, that these nomads go on for days in this desert surviving only on Camel’s milk!

On the way, we were greeted by the Desert Wheatears:

We were ably guided by Mr.Jugal who runs an NGO in Moti Virani called CEDO(Centre for Desert and Ocean). We then went to an open area, where we saw Stoliczka's Bushchat.

On the way, we were lucky to catch a glimpse of the Common quail which is amazingly swift :

We also sighted an amazing number of Common cranes on the way back.

After an hour at lunch, we started again for the Banni grasslands for more of bird-watching.

We were lucky enough to capture Sociable Lapwings.

Grey Francolin:

We saw the MacQueen's Bustard at a distance, running from our jeep J

The 5th day of the trip of Kutch finally finished with a lovely sunset…

And before I sign off, here is one last pic...one with my friend, Nirvita in the frame....

The trip was not yet over, and more was to come. Look out for my next post about the final days of our trip!

Related Post:

Kutch Diaries Part 1

Guest Post - Kutch Diaries Part 1

2012-01-16T11:03:00.000+05:30

This is a guest post, written by my cousin, Niranjan Chandrashekar. Niranjan is based in Delhi, and loves to travel and explore. His latest passion is for photography, a hobby which began with a brand new DSLR, but is soon becoming an obsession, as we keep telling him!!!! After much persuasion, he agreed to write a guest post for me. My family has always loved travelling, but I am the only one who has been documenting my travels so far. As I keep telling my uncles and cousins, they travel to a lot more interesting places than I do, so it is high time they began writing about it too! With Niranjan's foray into writing, I hope the others too begin supplying me with guest posts :D

He was recently part of a trip to Kutch, organized by Darter Photography Pvt. Ltd. in the last week of December, 2011 (from Dec 24, 2011 to Jan 1st, 2012). This is the first in a series of posts describing his experiences during the trip. This post is about the first half of the trip, where they explored the Little Rann of Kutch (LRK).

“The tour of Kutch” is where I discovered what photography is all about. Photography is not only about capturing landscapes, birds, animals... It is about capturing the moment as you see it, as you imagine it.
Sometimes, it involves just clicking continuously and praying you got the flight shots perfectly and sometimes, it is all about having a whole lot of patience and waiting for the right moment before you make a move. This being my first tour in an open uninhabited wildlife sanctuary, I had the opportunity to understand the preparations required, such as wearing camouflaged clothes, trying to stay as low and in as much hiding as you can, carrying camera cleaning kits and torch ALWAYS, and so on....

Our journey started from Ahmedabad on 24th Dec,2011. A cab had been arranged by the organizer of the trip - Shreeram MV of Darter. We were on the move from Ahmedabad to Zainabad where we were to stay in a resort called Desert Coursers. On the way, we were amazed to see so many varieties of birds on both sides of the road perched on electric cable lines. There were Black Shouldered Kites, Green Bee-eaters, Collared Doves, etc. The day we reached Zainabad, we set out for our first safari to the open lands of Khari.

As an amateur in the fields of Travelling and Wildlife Photography, I had no idea of what was going to come or how my perceptions of everything I saw was going to change after this trip concluded!

The first evening began with a trip to Khari minus our star photographer Shreeram. Here we got a glimpse of the Glossy Ibis, Indian Wild Ass and Common Cranes to begin with. We were also able to sight plenty of harriers, kestrels and buzzards on the way.

Day 2, 25th December, 2011 started with an early morning trip to capture the Lesser Flamingos in the Creek near Bajana. Our trip began early in morning at 5:30 AM after having a quick tea and heading for the field. On the way, we spotted many Common Cranes feeding in the fields. We had some great people in our group for helping us do the spotting - Shreeram MV from Darter, a fellow participant Anuroop Krishnan and our jeep driver Yunus.

After coming back to the resort, we got a 1 hour lunch break, before we set out again to Khari. We were lucky to capture the mongoose, Common Hoopoe, Baya weaver and as usual, the Harriers.

Plus, we get good shots of the Sunset :)

Day 3 morning began with our deciding to try and look for the MacQueen’s bustard in Zinzuada. Although we were able to spot only one which flew before we could click, we were able to spot plenty of other creatures like the Nilgai, Buzzards, Bee eaters, etc.

On the third evening, we went to a place called Nava talab. There, we were able to capture lots of birds like the White wagtails, Purple swamphens, Black-tailed godwits, spotted redshanks, Cormorants and Kingfishers. Later, after sunset, we went for a night safari, where we saw Desert Cats, nightjars (Sykes’s and Indian), Thicknee, and a Fox at a distance.

We returned to our resorts late in the night at 10 PM, so contented with our safari that we had a good night’s sleep.

The next and the final day in LRK started with a trip to see the lesser flamingos beyond Zinzuada. We captured a flock full of lesser flamingos and spent a good few hours in the area relaxing a bit and enjoying the serene surroundings. While we were returning from the flamingo place, we got lucky and were able to sight the Desert fox at a very close range. Generally, foxes are known to be very shy animals, but this particular fox let us almost come near it. The behaviour of the fox was very peculiar in the way that it started running as soon as our jeep stopped but gave us a good look repeatedly before it started running.

We spent the final evening at the LRK with a trip again to Khari. This time we got lucky as we were able to sight the Indian coursers as well as Chestnut bellied sandgrouses. By the time we ended the trip we had almost 130 different bird sightings only in the LRK!

Overall, by the time we were only half-way through our Kutch trip, I was already contented, and felt that the money spent on the trip was worth it! The place is so serene and so uninhabited, that I had no qualms about there being no network or no access to the internet.

Also the main reason for the LRK trip’s success is to be attributed to a few people like Dhanraj Mallick who was the owner of the Desert Coursers resort. In spite of being the owner of a resort which is in huge demand, this guy was down to earth, taking daily updates on what all we were able to spot and trying to make sure that every one had good sightings. In fact, he personally drove the jeep for the Night safari after he noticed that we had not been that lucky in sightings in previous safaris. The other guys who helped make this trip wonderful were people like Yunus who was more than a driver of the jeep. He was an excellent spotter. And of course, last but not the least, Shreeram MV for being an excellent spotter, naturalist and a terrific organizer. This was the trip worth remembering and worth going again and again with Darter.

The journey was not yet over, for the next morning we started for GRK. - the Great Rann of Kutch!

Niranjan has recently started his own webpage, where he plans to put up his photographs as well as his travelogues. Go over to Nomadic Travellers to see more of his photos!

Celebrating Pongal with books

2012-01-15T09:34:00.000+05:30

Any festival is a reason to celebrate, and Pongal happens to be one of the important ones. Here is the kolam welcoming you to our home....

This year, the festival has brought along an unexpected deluge of books, and what better way to celebrate than read!! It all began with a temple visit which got so delayed that the temple closed! With nothing better to do, we ended up at a book store, and ended up coming home with a bagful of books for Samhith!!

With so many books for him, could I be far behind? Here are mine.... two different genres, two completely different kinds of books, but I am eager to read both!

The first book Bala Saraswati, is part of Blogadda's book review program, and I need to read it soon so that I can review it. The second, The Reluctant Detective, is the first novel of Blogger Kiran Manral, whom I met during the Lavasa Women's Rally. I am eager to read it, for this is the first time I am getting to read a book by a person I actually know!!!

So now you know what I am going to be doing for the next few days, so if you don't see any posts here, please excuse me, for my nose will be buried deep inside one of these books!

Meanwhile, wish you all a Happy Pongal!!!

5 Things To Do in Udaipur

2012-01-13T08:28:00.000+05:30

Udaipur is the lake city of Rajasthan. Most of the state might be a desert, but Udaipur, with its five huge interconnected lakes is blessed with not just a perennial water supply, but the lakes also keep the city and its environment cool, even in the sweltering heat of summer! The city draws not just crowds of tourists coming from across the world for a glimpse of its magnificent palaces, but also droves of migratory birds drawn by the lakes! The city is thus an interesting blend of history and nature, well worth a leisurely visit.

To read the full article, click here.

This article was published on the Club Mahindra Blog. To read my other articles on the blog, click here.

Achalgarh - of a Fort and Temple, Bulls and Demons....

2012-01-12T15:27:00.000+05:30

A bull which drove away invaders, three buffaloes said to be demons, a lake once said to have been filled with ghee and a temple once covered in lime to protect it – we couldn’t help but smile as we listened to these stories about Achalgarh. We had a day free at Mount Abu and were in the mood to explore, so we headed out for the tourist circuit, trusting our driver to take us to some interesting places.

Achalgarh turned out to be the first on his list, and as we headed along roads with farms interspersed between the mountains, with scarcely a person to be seen anywhere, I wondered about the place we were going to. I had heard a bit about Achalgarh before we started, and knew that it had once been the capital of the area. The name indicated the presence of a fort, but our driver told me that there was no fort there. “Bas, mandir hai, Madam” he said. ”There is only a temple there.” I felt my enthusiasm droop at the idea of visiting yet another temple, but we had already turned on the road to Achalgarh, so there was no turning back.

To read the full article, click here.

This article was published on Spice Flair. To read all my articles on the site, click here.

Rajabai Tower

2012-01-10T15:27:00.000+05:30

As a student of Mumbai University, I always regretted the fact that I never had to visit the beautiful campus at Fort, commuting to the Kalina campus instead. Every time I was in town, I walked along the Fort Campus, looking up at the clock tower, slowing down to take a closer look at the convocation hall. At one time, I remember hoping that I would enter that beautiful hall for receiving my degree, but that hope too came to naught, since the premises were too small, and we were handed our degrees by a harassed clerk who couldn't care less about the momentous occasion! I digress, however, for this post is not about my degree, but about the majestic clock tower of Mumbai University - Rajabai Tower, which I recently photographed on a visit to the University.

The Rajabai Tower is our very own version of the Big Ben. It was modeled on the famous clock tower by its architect, Sir George Gilbert Scott. It was built over a period of over 9 years, from 1868-1879, at a cost of about 2 lakh rupees, the entire cost borne by the one of the founders of the Bombay Stock Exchange, Premchand Roychand, under the condition that the tower be named after his mother, Rajabai.

It is said that Rajabai was blind, and, as a staunch Jain, she had to eat her dinner before sunset. The chimes of the clock helped her do so without anyone's help!

During the British Rule, the clock played a total of 16 tunes, which were changed 4 times a day. According to Wikipedia, today, the clock chimes only one tune, every 15 minutes, something I haven't noticed! So, the next time you find yourself in town near the Fort Campus, see if you can hear it!

Rocks, Minerals and Fossils Exhibition... and a new geology enthusiast!

2012-01-06T15:13:00.004+05:30

Returning home after a ten day break, completely offline and unreachable, it was a pleasure to get back to my computer, to open my mailbox and see what all I had missed! Yes, I am still catching up, so those of you to whom I have not replied, please bear with me! Logging on to Facebook, what do I notice first? Sudha mentioning a visit to the Rocks and Minerals Exhibition at Mumbai University Fort Campus!

I vaguely remembered reading something about it before I left, and hunted out a mail giving me details, and Sudha also gave me further details, assuring me that Samhith would love it! With just two days left for the exhibition, and no time to lose, I decided to head out immediately, of course, with Samhith in tow, as soon as he returned from school, never mind that the poor chap was tired after a full day of practicing for their sports day! One thing to be said for Samhith is that he is as eager as me to get out of the house and go anywhere, so off we went to catch the train to VT to reach the Convocation hall before the exhibition closed for the day! Thankfully, Central Railway co-operated, and we reached well in time..... and proceeded to enjoy the next two hours to the utmost! Join me as I take you along with me through my lens...

The University's convocation hall is impressive, but less so than this huge chunk of Amethyst!!
Samhith's attention was captured by this strategically placed exhibit, and never wavered again!!

My camera doesn't even capture a tenth of the beauty of this one!

I wish I had seen these when I was studying crystallography!

So many shapes, sizes and colours! we were awed!!

We were so thrilled to see that we own a small piece of a similar stone!!!!

This looks so beautiful!!!

And these are the special pieces - the precious stones and fossils!

We hadnt imagined eggs and starfish here!!!

and neither did we expect teeth and claws! a pleasant surprise, though!!

Samhith made a friend at once! Arnold gave him a couple of stones and absolutely made his day!!! That little bag Samhith is holding is now his prized possession!! Thanks Arnold!!

And we loved this one!! Though it has been made artificially!
Samhith now wants to do something similar with the stones he has!!!

The polished ones were a treat to watch!!

And we have a tiny piece of a similar stone too!!!

Watching the polished spheres.... Samhith says they are like the different planets!!

This one was our favourite!!

Moving to the fossil section, we met Prateek, a Ph.D student of paleontology, who patiently and enthusiastically explained to Samhith the whole story of evolution, the movement of landmasses, and how fossils are formed, how they are found, how they are studied and preserved!!

Fascinated by the ammonite fossils.... after all, snails are his favourites... and these would have been HUGE ones!!

Fish fossils of all sizes!!

Reptile teeth!!

The story of evolution and the extinction of dinosaurs

Rhino fossils....

And eggs... the one on the left is a fossilised dinosaur egg..
the centre ones are fossilized ostrich eggs, and the ones on the top right are recent emu eggs..
giving a perspective of time and fossilization!!

The emu eggs

awed by the sight of the fossilized dino egg shell pieces!

More stones!

This was the focal point of the exhibition!

Taking another look at the fossils

I loved this one!!

And the last exhibit..

A last look..

As we left the hall, well past the closing time of 7 PM, Samhith bidding goodbye to each one of his new friends, feeling extremely gratified by being asked to come again on Friday and Saturday, he remained awed by the exhibits he had seen. We had recently been talking about different professions and different courses to be pursued after school (a discussion initiated by some workshops in school), and he found himself realizing that this was yet another option for him. As he put it , "Amma, if I become a geologist, I can travel all over the world..... and collect everything I want. I dont even have to look for a place to keep all that I collect.I think I should become a geologist or a paleo.. whatever that Prateek bhaiyya is. He explained it so well, and I think I would like to become one too!! I can study history, geography, nature and stones, all of which I like!!!"

Unfortunately, with so many things happening at once, it is impossible for us to attend the exhibition on friday or saturday, but we have already resolved to keep up with the events happening in the Department of Extra-Mural Studies, and attend the exhibition again next year... and in any case, keep in touch with the people we met! He now wants to take his stone collection over and get it classified!!! So, geologists, watch out! You are soon going to be bombarded with questions and stones galore to classify!!! Special thanks to Sudha for encouraging me to take Samhith to the exhibition!!

Sky Watch Friday - Random Clicks from Cars and Train

2012-01-06T11:00:00.002+05:30

Welcome back, and Wish you all a wonderful New Year!!

I am back at last from my trip - the last one of 2011 and also the first one of 2012. I was accompanied throughout by some wonderful weather, the cyclone Thane throwing no hurdles in my path, just a lot of clouds and some rain to enliven our travel! For Skywatch Friday today, here are some random scenes from my trip!

I clicked this pic from the train, fascinated by the flaming colours of the sky.
I clicked lots of pics, and this one turned up with a ghostly image of a tree!

For more beautiful images from around the world, go to Sky Watch Friday!

Seasons Greetings

2011-12-25T09:30:00.000+05:30

Wishing you all, all the very best for the coming year... and indeed all the years ahead!

P.S. That's our very first christmas tree... one Samhith and I decorated with much enthusiasm!

And this is Samhith's own work... with some of the ornaments we bought...... its a snowflake, in case some of you couldn't recognize it :D

P.P.S: And this is how the tree looked once it was all set up and ready... with the gifts under it, of course!!!!!

2011 - A Retrospective

2011-12-23T14:36:00.002+05:30

2011 has been a memorable year in more ways than one. It brought me not just more opportunities for travel, but also brought me some much needed boost in the form of recognition as a travel blogger!

I brought in the new year with a visit to Hampi, Badami and Pattadakal......

Our preoccupation with World Heritage Sites continued with a visit to Ajanta and Ellora, and soon after, to the Elephanta caves.

April brought an unexpected trip to Delhi, and May a veritable deluge of travel.... Coimbatore, our home-town Nainar Kovil, Madurai, Pondicherry, Kanchipuram, and then Mount Abu, Udaipur and Chittorgarh!

The next few months I was busy with festivals at home - Varalakshmi Vratham, Ganesh Chaturthi and Navaratri.

And then came the trip of the year - an invitation to the Club Mahindra Bloggers Trip to Corbett. Over 4 days at the Club Mahindra Safari resort at Corbett, i got to interact with fellow bloggers Lakshmi, Shivya, Neelima , Deepak and Karthikeyan, and also Akshat, Sourabh and Arun Nair, while taking in the sights and sound of Corbett National Park and its environs.

I had scarcely returned from Corbett that it was time for another trip - this time to Karnataka - Sringeri, Udupi and Kollur, followed by a couple of days of complete bliss at the Jungle Lodges' River Tern Resort at Bhadra.

Back home once more, we made a short trip to Bhimashankar, a much planned trip which finally happened!

This year also marked another first - Samhith's first 4 day trip from school - the Shivaji Trail, where they visited Raigad, Pratapgad, Panhala and Lohagad. En-route, they also visited Mahabaleshwar, Kolhapur and Bhaja Caves.

So much travel has also brought along with it, the consequences, such as work at home never getting completed, and lagging behind with my posts on this blog! It took me months to complete my Hampi series, but I am yet to complete writing about the trip.... Pattadakal is still not done, and I have yet to begin writing about Delhi and Rajasthan!

On the other hand, this year also brought me my first guest posts, and also paid articles on other sites!

I wrote about Pondicherry and Corbett for the Club Mahindra Blog....

about Chittorgarh for Travel thru History....

Munnar for the Mahindra Homestays Blog...

and Bhimashankar for Spice Flair

I also became a contributor for Pocket Cultures,

and wrote a couple of articles for Urban Leaves.

and finally, my tips about travelling in Mumbai with kids was published in the form of an interview on Women's Web!

It has been an eventful and exciting year, and I can only hope that the new year turns out to be as good or better! Meanwhile, the year promises to begin on a hectic note. Even as you read this, I am packing my bags for my annual trip to Tiruppur to visit my sister in law. Usually, the trip is to give Samhith some time with his athai (aunt) but this year, I have work in store. We are planning Samhith's Upanayanam (Thread ceremony) at Sringeri in Jan, and much work needs to be done! Those of you who are wondering what this is all about, you can read about it soon enough right here on the blog!

I will be back only in the first week of the new year, and hope to get back to writing as soon as possible. Meanwhile, you can read all my posts of this year.... Simply click on the locations in this post, and you can read all the posts tagged with it....

Creativity with stirrers and straws...

2011-12-13T19:09:00.000+05:30

This one is for all those of you who had been asking me about Samhith and what he is up to. I am still caught up with umpteen things happening at once, and unable to write, so meanwhile, you can hop over to his space on the www to see what he has been up to! Click on the link below..

http://juniorwanderer.blogspot.com/2011/12/creativity-with-stirrers-and-straws.html

Karthikai - Its Time to Light the lamps!

2011-12-09T13:34:00.001+05:30

Karthikai could possibly be called the South Indian equivalent for Diwali. While Diwali for us means Ganga-snanam (purifying bath), new clothes and of course, crackers, it is Karthikai for which all the lamps come out in full force... especially the earthen ones! The festival is celebrated over 3 days - the first day is called Bharani Deepam, the second is called Annamalai Deepam, and the third is Sarvalaya Deepam. The second is the main day, when a huge lamp is lit on the holy mountain of Thiruvannamalai, symbolising the form of Shiva as a never ending pillar of light (Yes, that's another long story, one I dont have time to write right now!).

In our south-Indian dominated colony, Karthikai arrives with much fanfare, with special pujas in the temple, which I have never attended, thanks to having to celebrate the festival at home, and stay guard over the lamps, which have to be constantly replenished with oil! But more interesting are the beautiful red and white kolams decorating every house and the beautiful lamps which light up the usually dark passages. I have earlier written posts on Karthikai, mentioning different types of lamps, as well as my own celebrations, and this year, here are some photographs once again from the celebrations at my house.....

Welcoming you to my home on the first day.....

A free hand kolam...

Now all lit up!

Those aren't the only lamps....

Some more lamps in the corner.

One of my favourites.. this one lasts for hours and hours!

Another pretty one...

The most important part of the festival - the prasadam! Pori urundai!!! Samhith must have eaten a dozen of these!!

And now for the second day....

Another free hand effort!

All lit and ready!

Kept inside on a plate...

Another set

Samhith bought this one at his school fair!

And finally, this was how the approach to our house looked!

As you can see from these pics, we effectively blocked the path to not just our house, but also the neighbouring ones with our lamps! And this was just the beginning, for even the others lit their lamps a little later....though not as many as these!!! Apologies too all who had to navigate this flaming stairway for two whole days! Now to pack up all these lamps (more than 65 of them, yes, i counted!) for next year! Sigh!

Related Posts:

Temple Procession

2011-12-01T11:10:00.001+05:30

Yesterday was Kumara Sasthi, a day special for Lord Karthikeya, who is also known as Kumara, Muruga or Subramanya.

Muruga at Enkann Temple near Thiruvarur

Among the legends of Karthikeya is the story of how he, as a child, asked Lord Brahma the meaning of the word 'Om'. Brahma, affronted at the idea of such a question from a small child, ignored him. The young Subramanya imprisoned the creator, and creation came to a stand still. The Gods were aghast, and searched for the cause, which led them to the abode of Shiva. Shiva reprimanded Muruga, and asked him to release Brahma at once. Muruga refused, explaining that Brahma did not know the meaning of the word Om, and thus did not deserve to be the creator. Shiva was stunned, and asked the child if he knew the meaning himself. Muruga replied that he did know, but if Shiva wanted him to explain, he would have to take the place of a student, and give him (Muruga) the place of a teacher. Shiva agreed, and Muruga explained to him, the meaning of Om. Shiva and Brahma humbly accepted that the child was right, and blessed him. This legend is associated with the temple at Swamimalai, near Thanjavur, and is the story I grew up hearing.

However, there is another version of the same story, one where Brahma is imprisoned, and then released at the instigation of the Gods. However, Muruga has to pay a price for imprisoning the creator. He is transformed into a snake, and disappears from Kailas. Parvati is upset at her son's disappearance, and prays for her son to be restored to his former glory. After weeks of dedicated prayers, her efforts bear fruit and Muruga appears before her in the form of a snake. The other gods appear too, invoked by the power of Parvati's prayer, and in front of them all, Muruga is restored to his original form. This story is associated with the temple of Kukke Subramanya near Mangalore, and this day is celebrated as Kumara Sashthi with great pomp and splendor.

Next door to our house is a temple managed by the Kukke Subramanya Mutt, and every year, this festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The celebrations begin almost a week in advance, but for 3 whole days (including the days before and after Kumara Sashti) we wake up to the sound of Panchavadhyams and go to bed amidst the clanging of the temple bells! Year before last, I had posted about the Lord taking a tour of our colony during the Kumara Sashti procession, and today, I bring you a video of the procession as well as a few photos....

Firecrackers lit up the night!

These were certainly the highlight of the procession!

Posing.....

More posing.....

And some more!

More Temples at Pattadakal

2011-11-30T13:11:00.001+05:30

The World Heritage Site of Pattadakal deserves more than just a cursory glance. There is so much to see and appreciate, and even during our short visit to the place, I clicked so many photos that I found it impossible to put all of them together in one post! Here are my first two posts on the temple complex at Pattadakal -

Continuing with our walk through the temple complex, we next arrived at the Chandrashekhara Temple. The plain and simple structure is the one which attracts least number of visitors, and consequently, is empty and easy to photograph!

The next temple is a striking one, the first here with the dravida vimana, the southern type of temple spire.

This is the Sangameshwara Temple, originally known as the Vijayeshwara temple, since it was built by the Chalukya king, Vijayaditya.

Look at the intricate lattices on the walls! No pattern is repeated! Some of the niches are empty, while some have figures of different forms of Shiva as well as Vishnu.Unfortunately, some of the niches are also empty, and some of the figures are incomplete.

Detail of the vimana

The saga of incomplete work is evident all over this temple. Such as these on the base platform. It shows us how the artisans would have begun their work, and also tells us that the work was abandoned due to some reason.

Another incomplete set of work

Outside this temple was a broken pillar, set at a lower level, in a depression. I wondered if it was a dhwajasthambam or temple pillar, but our guide wasn't able to shed much light on it.

Samhith standing next to the broken pillar...
he is about 4 ft tall, so that depression is at least 3 ft in depth!

Detail at the bottom of the pillar

Considering the rate at which I am going, I wonder when I am going to finish this series, but I can't help wanting to post almost every single photo I have taken!

Coming up next: Some of the most beautiful temples at Pattadakal!

Pattadakal Quick Facts

Getting there:

Nearest Airport: Hubli (about 120 Km )

Nearest Railway Station: Badami (29 Km)

Pattadakal is well connected by road to Badami (29 Km) and Aihole (24 Km).

Where to stay: There is practically no accommodation available at Pattadakal. The nearest city is Badami, where the KSRTC Mayura Chalukya is the best option. There are also other hotels and lodges in Badami.

Pattadakal - Getting Started with the Temple tour

2011-11-28T19:07:00.001+05:30

Our trip to Pattadakal was a hurried one, and we had time only to visit some of the main temples. Come along with me as I go over the same path once more..... We started at the northern end of the temple complex, and this was the board which greeted us...

The Kadasiddheshwara Temple is the first temple we come to, and it is believed to have been built in the middle of the seventh century.

The temple is quite a simple structure, with the front mandapa having a flat, closed roof and no pillars.

The ornate doorway is flanked by the Dwarapalakas - or gatekeepers...

But there is a wealth of detail even in this 'simple' temple... just take a look!

Ardhanareeshwara

Detail on the shikara

Window-holes or works of art?

The main sanctum - Atop the doorway, at the centre is Shiva with Parvati,
on the left is Vishnu and on the right is Brahma!

The second temple is the Jambulinga temple, which is almost exactly the same as the first one....

The Galaganatha Temple is the third one, and it must have been a much bigger temple when it was built around the year 750AD.

Built on a raised platform, the imposing shikara stands tall even today, while part of the outer walls have succumbed to weather, disuse and neglect.

The doorway to the sanctum has this beautiful figure of a dancing Shiva

I wonder which figure once stood here. must have been a form of Shiva, for the Ganas are depicted at the bottom!

There is a beautiful figure of Shiva slaying Andhakasura in this temple, but though I remember seeing it, it seems to be missing among my pics :( All the pics I took inside the temple seem to be missing! Meanwhile, here are the few which I do have.... such as this intricate detailing of a kalsam.....

These pillars are probably part of the original temple, and they are lying around while the ASI tries to put them together... Meanwhile, we are able to take a closer look at the beautiful work....

and we are also able to get an idea of how the artisans managed to put such a beautiful temple together! See the way the stone has been cut? These will fit perfectly into another section! And to think, all this was done completely by handheld tools, bereft of any machines!

This section shows us how the stones have been fixed on to each other.... Our guide seemed an enthusiastic person, and he told us all the technical terms for these things, but its been almost a year since I returned, and unfortunately, the technical terms elude me. So please make do with just admiring the beauty and the resourcefulness of these talented architects and craftsmen!

A beautiful piece of work... wonder where it fit originally!

This was once part of the ceiling. Today, it lies on the ground...

With so many stones lying around, how could he resist clambering up a couple?

If you have managed to come this far, and are wondering how many more photos I am going to subject you to, well, let me tell you that this is just the beginning! These are just the first three temples in the complex, and are among the simpler ones! There is lots more to come, so look out for my next post!!!

Pattadakal Quick Facts

Getting there:

Nearest Airport: Hubli (about 120 Km )

Nearest Railway Station: Badami (29 Km)

Pattadakal is well connected by road to Badami (29 Km) and Aihole (24 Km).

Skywatch Friday - Silhouettes of Temples at Pattadakal

2011-11-25T13:32:00.001+05:30

Pattadakal is on my mind...Its been almost a year since I visited the World Heritage Site, but the memories of the consummate artistic talent are as fresh as if it were yesterday!

Our first glimpse of the temples at Pattadakal .. the temple towers stand out tall against the clear sky..

Pattadakal is the third in the triad of Chalukyan temple architecture. Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal together show the development of temple architecture and building methods between the 6^th and 8^th centuries AD. While Badami was the capital of the Chalukyan kings, and Aihole drew the scholars, it was Pattadakal which is believed to have been chosen site for the coronation of the royals. The temples at Pattadakal are also among the finest among the three, and no wonder it is today classified as an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Even to my untrained eye, it was apparent that here were two completely different styles of temples – some built in the northern style and some in the southern. In the language of architecture, these are the Rekha Nagara Prasada and Dravida Vimanas respectively.

One only has to look to see the difference, yet, one has to look closer to see the similarities - in the work involved, in the intricacy and attention paid to the details, the talent and creativity of the artisans who built such works of art, and finally, in the Gods these temples were built for!

We spent just a few hours at Pattadakal, something I sorely regret! These temples deserve a day or more, and I could just sit and look at these temples for ever! Look out for more detailed posts coming up!

Fore more beautiful skies from around the world, go to SkyWatch Friday!

Pattadakal Quick Facts

Getting there:

Nearest Airport: Hubli (about 120 Km )

Nearest Railway Station: Badami (29 Km)

Pattadakal is well connected by road to Badami (29 Km) and Aihole (24 Km).

Memories from Corbett Safari Resort

2011-11-24T13:43:00.001+05:30

While on a vacation, I usually don't like to stay in a resort, preferring instead to wander and discover the area I am visiting. On my recent visit to Corbett, there were so many things planned that we spent very little time in our rooms, which is just the way I liked it! However, there are some things about the Club Mahindra Safari Resort which I shall always remember.... such as the towel art.....

And my first sighting of a Pied Kingfisher, and that too just outside our room!

Oh, and there were lots of other birds, too. But the only ones I managed to capture on camera were the Pond Heron and the White Browed Wagtail...

We were treated to a Kumaoni dinner one night, accompanied by folk songs and dances... and can you believe that the item I liked the most was one similar to the Khichdi???

Yes, that does look like a bagpiper...
apparently, the Kumaonis play a similar instrument!!!

On our last evening there, we had some spare time, which the others used to try and photograph the birds, while I simply wandered away (as usual) trying to see the parts of the resort I hadn't seen as yet!

This is how our rooms looked like from the front...

And here is the back- view.... facing the river...

This wide expanse of green with a path for walking was so so inviting...

And the gazebo-like structure was the perfect place to relax and enjoy the cool breeze from the river...

What I shall always remember about the place, however, is the river... the Kosi, and the mountains on the other side...

I could just sit and look at the water for hours on end......

While I have this burning desire to visit Corbett again, I have been wondering what has been pulling me more - the jungle, the tigers, or the river? and I have begun to think that maybe it is the river which calls out to me....

Related Posts:

Sunrise and Sunset for Skywatch Friday

2011-11-18T12:48:00.001+05:30

Considering that Samhith's school is extremely miserly about holidays, we had completely forgotten that Guru Nanak Jayanti would bring us a day off. By the time we realised it, it was too late to plan something properly. But some frantic googling and lots of phone calls later, we finally headed out, before sunrise, on our unplanned, last-minute-holiday to Bhimshankar! The trip was special because it had been a long time since we had headed out of town on an impulse, but even more because, Bhimshankar, home to one of the 12 Jyotirlingams (of which I have now seen 10) had been on my radar for a long long time, but it had eluded me for so many years! The Lord seemed to want to make up for all the times my trip had been postponed, because the trip was memorable, not just because of the temple, but because of so many other experiences... You will have to wait to read about them, though, till I manage to sit down long enough to write all of them down.... Meanwhile, here are some photos for you to enjoy, as my contribution to Sky Watch Friday....

The sun rises over a small, sleepy town on the road to Bhimashankar

Peeping from behind the only tree I can see standing tall in the area!

The view from the hills on the way to Bhimashankar...

The sun prepares to set behind the mountains as we wind our way back home on the expressway

For more beautiful skies from around the world, go to Sky Watch Friday!

Guest Post - India, the Coastal Delight

2011-11-15T10:19:00.001+05:30

Given that India is the largest peninsular country in the world, there is a vast coast line with the Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea sweeping in on three sides of the nation.

When Goa found itself on the travel map of the world as a fervent hippie beach-joint in the 1960s it wasn’t long before the rest of the coastal territories were explored and India became a go to place for getting a long lasting tan, unexplored private stretches and of course delectable sea food.

Starting from the Western edge of the country, we skirt all the way through to the east, exploring the best beach destinations in India

1. Goa - As mentioned before, Goa is the ultimate international destination with a promise of plenty of sun, great food and an easy going culture. Apart from the most popular haunts of Baga and Calangute, try the northern sandiest stretches of Arambol, Morjem and Ashwem for a less crowded beach scene.

Baga Beach, Goa

Palolem beach in the south is one of the most popular of the lot. Flea markets, quaint restaurants, a clandestine rave party and some great architecture accompany the large coastal stretch, and accommodate hoardes of visitors during the months of October through March.

2. The Karnataka coast, below Goa is relatively unexplored! Instead of the overly westernised Goan culture Karnataka is more understated. Karwar on the northernmost tip, followed by Gokarna are the two most frequented beaches in the state. Om beach in Gokarna is often quoted as the ‘poor man’s Goa’ but there is nothing lack lustre about it.

Gokarna

3. Varkala – Another destination, fast catching up on the International travel scenario is the small town of Varkala in Kerala. Tucked away into oblivion, far from the more popular destinations of Kerala this beach spot is a tad different. A high cliff which houses a flea market and some restaurants looks down upon an impressive stretch of sand below. The scenery is quite dramatic and is even more extraordinary with a small stretch of black sand.

Varkala

4. Kovalam – Rapidly becoming a beach frequented by locals, the Kovalam beach of Kerala is lined by a number of top end resorts and hotels and lacks that natural charm, so essential for a beach. Once regarded as one of the top beach destinations of the country, Kovalam is now quite crowded.

5. Kanyakumari – The southernmost tip of India is not for those looking for a sunbathing experience, but certainly for those with a religious inclination. Watch three large oceans mingle at the tip of the country. Rameshwaram, the town from where Lord Rama is said to have built a bridge to Srilanka, is good to pair with Kanyakumari.

Kanyakumari

6. Moving up to the eastern edge of the country, Pondicherry strikes you with its quiet, unassuming yet exclusive demeanour with its colonial charm. The small town lies south of Chennai and is an erstwhile French colony which still imbibes a strong mix of Tamil and French socio-culture. Here, you can find some lovely undiscovered private sandy spots.

7. Moving northwards, Mahabalipuram and then finally Chennai make an impressive contribution to the coastline. Infact the longest beach stretch in Asia happens to be the vibrant Marina beach in Chennai. Go here for some local flavour – be it a football game, some fried squid by the road or persistent peddlers trying to push their wares on seasoned locals or embarrassed travellers.

8. Further on the North East, Orissa is still relatively undiscovered by travellers. These beaches are known more for the turtle hatching and are extremely important from sustaining the bio-diversity point of view.

If looking for some surfing action, get in touch with the Ashram Retreat for courses in Mulki, just off Mangalore on the west coast. If talking about beaches, don’t cannot miss the pristine surroundings and aqua blue waters of the Andamans. With an array of choices, plan ahead and make a discovery of your own!

This article was written by Mahindra Homestays (http://www.mahindrahomestays.com) who have a range of homestay accommodation throughout India. There are a range of destination guides available on the website including beach destinations such as Goa (http://www.mahindrahomestays.com/destinations/goa) and hill stations such as Coorg (http://www.mahindrahomestays.com/destinations/coorg)

Jim Corbett Museum

2011-11-14T19:14:00.001+05:30

The association between Jim Corbett and Corbett National Park is much deeper than just the name. For anyone familiar with Corbett’s books, it is impossible to think of the area without remembering his encounters with man eaters. Even as we wander around the forest, hoping we come across the tiger, we cannot but imagine how it would have been, a hundred years ago, when tigers roamed free, and they were hunted by one and all! The efforts of Jim Corbett and those of his ilk are all the more important and relevant when we realize that in spite of the official count of 164 tigers in the reserve, it is so difficult to see a single one! On my recent visit to Corbett as part of the Club Mahindra Bloggers Trip, we set out in search of Jim Corbett, and what better place to begin that at his erstwhile home, now turned into a museum?

The museum is situated at Kaladhungi, a place which Corbett’s readers would surely be familiar with! Entering the compound, situated right off the highway, we found ourselves in a sprawling garden, in the middle of which we could see the old house….. This is where Corbett spent his winters… sort of a home for the holidays, while he spent the summers at his house in Nainital.. Imagine living in a place like this every winter!

Walking in, we were welcomed by one of Corbett’s well known quotes…

And a bust of the man himself…..

The house has been preserved almost exactly as it must have been when Corbett lived here…

The house is filled with paintings depicting Corbett’s life… and his parents. We learn about his mother, Mary Jane – her first marriage to a Mr. Doyle, who passed away during the revolt of 1857, her escape to Mussoorie from Agra fort with her three children, her subsequent marriage to Christopher Corbett, the new life they started at Nainital, and finally, her resourcefulness in managing a household consisting of 13 children, as well as setting up and running a house rental agency! We also learn about his father, Christopher Corbett, who was himself born in India, at Meerut, began his career as an apothecary in the army, and later joined the Postal service.

There is lots of information about Corbett too, but nothing out of the ordinary. Most readers of his books would be familiar with his life story. There are maps showing the locations of the man-eaters he exterminated, and statistics about how many men each animal had managed to kill…

And there is also a piece of paper with Corbett’s notes about one of his books, with his signature.

I liked the fact that the museum had information not just about Corbett, but also the men who went hunting with him, and I also liked seeing some of the things left behind by Corbett when he moved to Kenya – such as furniture he had made and the things he used during his life in the army as well as in the railways.

However, most interesting was the village of Choti Haldwani….. Read more about this village on this board from the museum…

Today, the village is home to an eco-tourism initiative by the Corbett Gram Vikas Samiti. So now, you can stay at a homestay in the village, eat authentic rural cuisine of the Kumaon, go on a Corbett Heritage trail, visiting his haunts in the area, and go birdwatching, or even simply trekking inside the jungle! We wanted to go on the Heritage trail, but unfortunately, time did not permit! If any of you have been here, please let me know how it was. If you want to go on such a trip, check out their website – http://www.corbettvillage.in

Our final stop at the museum was the souvenir shop. My eyes of course went straight to the book rack from which I returned with books for both, Samhith and myself. But there was more… such as T shirts and jackets….

Caps…

Pen stands with tigers on them,

Or shaped like the foot of an elephant!

And sundry wooden articles…..

I loved these…. Stuffed toys, made not just of fur, but also jute, and hats made from leaves!

The museum is simple, though the house is well preserved, giving us a peep into the life and times of Jim Corbett. For the duration of our visit, I was transported into one of his books, remembering references to his parents, his friends, his tenants, but above all, the ‘large- hearted gentleman’ who features so predominantly in his books – the tiger!

A Special Get-Together on a Special Date...

2011-11-12T19:33:00.001+05:30

The magic of numbers or the significance of dates has never held any fascination for me. As far as I am concerned, a date is special, not for the combination of digits, but the events which make it memorable. It was thus, not the date but the event and the location that attracted me – the Postcrossing Meet at the G.P.O. Mumbai on 11.11.2011!

Postcrossing is a site for Postcard and Philately enthusiasts, through which we send and receive postcards from across the world. I came across the site while searching for something interesting for Samhith to get into, but ended up becoming a postcard enthusiast instead! I joined the site almost a year ago, but it took me quite a while to get started, and my postcard collection is just picking up, as is my awareness about the different facets of postcard collection as well as philately. While I have grown up in a family of numismatists and philatelists, I had never been very keen on either till I began collecting to teach Samhith about coins and stamps. Joining Postcrossing was also an attempt to make him aware of our postal system, and we have now begun sending postcards to not just Postcrossing members, but to many friends as well! But above all, joining Postcrossing has helped me make so many new friends, especially through the Postcrossing India Page on Facebook! It was to meet these very people that I rushed out early in the morning of 11/11/2011 to participate in the annual Postcrossing Meet, in spite of the fact that I was tired and weary, having returned from a day long trip to Bhimashankar the day before!

The location was as much of a lure as the prospect of meeting fellow Postcrossers, for the General Post Office (GPO) at Mumbai is a beautiful building in itself, and certainly one of the best post offices to visit too! Unfortunately, photography is prohibited, and I could just manage a few clicks as we waited outside for a while…. The building, opened in 1913, is built in the Indo Saracenic style of architecture, and took about 9 years to build!

Incidentally, the Mumbai General Post Office is the second oldest in India – set up in the year 1794 (the oldest is the one at Calcutta, opened in 1774!) and today, this is the biggest Post Office in the country, catering to over 50,000 address sites, most of which are recipients of voluminous mail (information as per the Maharashtra Post Website).

Inside, the building is a hub of activity – which always makes me want to take photos, but here, photography is a strict no-no! We all met at the philately section of the GPO and spent the first hour happily browsing through First Day Covers, new stamps issued, collectors’ sets, Max Cards, and of course, picture postcards issued by India Post! The last were easily the highlight of the trip, since they were inexpensive as well as beautiful, depicting stamps of different categories! Needless to say, all of returned with many of these!

The highlight of the meet was the special cancellation designed for the special date – 11/11/11.

We all queued up with our envelopes and postcards stamped and addressed, waiting for our turn to get our stamps cancelled. The process itself was an interesting one, with the lady first placing the stamp set in a wooden holder on our stamp, and then hitting it with a mallet or hammer like thing, to make sure that the entire cancellation was clearly visible.

Soon, everyone was busy – addressing postcards, stamping them, writing messages, signing, and of course, getting them cancelled! And we weren’t the only ones. Members of the Philately Association were there too, as were numerous other individuals, most of them drawn by the special date!

One of our Postcrossing members had come prepared with handmade postcards to send out to friends, all decorated with the special date….

While some others were even more obsessed with the combination, making up special envelopes with stamps released on similar dates, tickets with the same digits in the timings or even banknotes with special serial numbers! While I can admire their enthusiasm as well as their resourcefulness, I can never see myself indulging in any such activity – a fact which made this meet all the more memorable. After all, where else would I meet such people?

Time flew past as we prepared the postcards to be sent off to other members as a memento of the meet, and before I knew it, it was time for me to leave.

The others were not through, however, and the meet went on till late in the evening, members sharing their experiences as well as showing off their collections. Here are some more photos of the meet….

Busy signing postcards!

A collectible, but from another postoffice!

A pile of stamped postcards!!
It looked as if people were competing for the number of
postcards they were getting cancelled!!!!

Showing off each others' postcards!

All set to be on their way!

Another pile of postcards getting ready!

The meet continued on the day after too, for those who couldn’t make it on 11/11, but I wasn’t one of them. I hope someone else writes up about that meet too! Meanwhile, I am eagerly looking forward to our next meet-up.

In Search of the Elusive Tiger at Corbett

2011-11-07T12:38:00.000+05:30

In the year 1936, under the influence of the then governor of the United Provinces, Sir Malcom Hailey, India got its first national park. Aptly, the new sanctuary was named after its founder as Hailey National Park, and so it remained for the next twenty years. There were others involved in the formation of the sanctuary, but none more so than Edward James Corbett, or Jim Corbett, as he was more popularly known. Born and raised in the area, Corbett had an intimate relationship with the reserve and its animals. A keen naturalist and photographer, Corbett knew the forest as well or even better than the locals, and he is most well known for ridding the area of some of its most notorious man eaters. It was through his efforts that the national park took shape, and after his death in 1955, the park was renamed after him as Corbett National Park. Corbett was well aware, and extremely concerned about the need to safeguard the tiger population, and fittingly, it was here that Project Tiger was launched in 1973.

At present, the reserve extends over more than 1300 square kilometers, including about 500 sq Km of core area, and about 800 sq Km of buffer area. The dense moist deciduous forest mainly consists of sal, haldu, pipal, rohini and mango trees, and these trees cover almost 73 per cent of the park. 10 per cent of the area consists of grasslands. The sanctuary is home to around 110 tree species, 50 species of mammals, 580 bird species and 25 reptile species. However, the main attraction here remains the elusive and endangered Bengal Tiger.

Crowds of tourists throng the sanctuary throughout the year, hoping for a glimpse of the elusive animal, and I was one of them when I visited Corbett as part of the Club Mahindra Bloggers Trip. We ventured twice into the sanctuary, once for a full day safari, and the second time a morning one, both in different areas of the park, but the tiger remained as elusive as ever, as did the elephants and other inhabitants of the forest. The only mammals we managed to spot were deer – spotted as well as barking deer.

Not seeing a tiger was certainly disappointing, but it was impossible not to be impressed by the sight of the forest. From the meandering streams to the rolling grasslands, and the hills scattered all over, there is so much to see. We stopped frequently, either to see some birds or take a photograph of the sun streaming through the trees….

There was ample evidence that there were indeed animals around..... Pugmarks of tigers were seen all over, and I wondered if the tigers knew the tourist schedule and had learnt to stay away from the intruding crowds!

We also saw pugmarks of bears, but the animals were nowhere to be seen!

A troop of monkeys came down to drink water at the stream. While the older ones quenched their thirst, the younger ones gambolled happily! Looks like young ones of all species are just the same!

Among the birds, the only ones I managed a decent capture of, were these two....

A pygmy woodpecker....

and a chestnut headed bee eater!

On the first day of our safari, we stopped at a macchan or tree house overlooking the stream. The banyan tree was filled with birds (this is where I saw the woodpecker) and far far away, we could see a couple of Sambhar deer. Unfortunately, they were too far off to get a decent pic!

As we made our way deeper into the jungle, a pride of peafowl were happily sunbathing in the middle of the path. We waited for them, and after a while, they got up reluctantly, and moved away...

Herds of Chital (Spotted deer) were visible now and then....

Apart from the animals, there was also something else which interested me... the forest rest house...

For something which is over a hundred years old, the rest house is well maintained. And why not? After all, this is where the visiting officials are entertained. In fact, while we were waiting at the rest house for our lunch to arrive, a forest official was visiting, and we watched them lay out the red carpet for him! The whole place, though clean already, was cleaned once more, food was brought in huge hampers, the rooms were opened up and aired..... wonder why he was visiting and if he managed to spot any animals, though!

Our own lunch arrived in a picnic hamper, courtesy Club Mahindra... and I was transported into the land of Enid Blyton and all the other English authors who described such elaborate picnic lunches!

On our way back, a terrapin crossed our path, and our driver halted the vehicle, picked up the little chap and placed him in the safety of the grass on the side of the path...

The setting sun played magic with the tall grass growing by the path, and we clicked and clicked and clicked!

The landscape was amazing.... with the mountains forming the backdrop, with leafless trees at intervals amidst the tall shrubs in the distance, with the tall grass growing wild in the foreground! We saw some deer amidst these grasses, but they soon rushed off, and we found ourselves wishing it was a tiger which had scared them away! Unfortunately, it wasn't yet time for our tryst with the tiger!

We were happy enough to spot a peacock sitting over a shrub!

The next morning, we headed out towards another gate, the Bijrani gate which was opening after the monsoons, and were greeted by a crowd of about 20 jeeps!

But that was not all..... a TV channel had arrived to cover the opening of the gate, and we had to wait till the reporters had finished talking to all the officials before the gate opened!

The only animal in evidence was an elephant - a tame one, probably used for the elephant safari. As I watched it munch on its food, I wondered what it was thinking.... what would it think about the humans who had gathered here, intruding into its area, just for a peek at the tiger - an animal it would much rather avoid!

Again, the sun seemed to light up the entire forest soon...

And the paths were clothed in green and gold....

And we found ourselves at another forest rest house, this time for breakfast!

The rest house itself seemed deserted... probably no official was expected!

This one seemed to be a few years younger than the other one, but much bigger!

We munched on pakodas and tea, photographed a few birds, and waited for the rest of the tourist crowd to disappear..... and soon, the place looked much more beautiful...

The animals seemed to know of our arrival, so there was no sign of tigers or bears or elephants. As if making up for their absence, a barking deer, normally a shy animal, ventured across our path, allowing me a decent pic!

and another monkey, this time a langur, appeared briefly....

We halted at another macchan.....

and the view was again amazing! The grass, though you cant make it out in this pic, is once again quite tall, and as I stood there taking pics, I wondered what it would be like, if a tiger suddenly appeared amidst those tall grasses! The scene was perfect for a tiger to appear, and I could almost imagine one there!

However, there was no use imagining a tiger where it wasn't, so I turned to photographing what I could... such as these huge fungi on a tree.....

and these tiny weeds,.....

A day and a half inside the sanctuary, and no tigers! While all of us had enjoyed the views, the birds and the beauty of the jungle, and had a memorable time, there was surely a bit of disappointment at not having seen a tiger. We philosophized over it, wondering when it would be the right time for our tryst with the tiger, but there was just one person who was happy that we hadn't seen the tiger. And that was Samhith! Every night when I talked to him, he had just one question - "Did you see the Tiger?" When I finally told him that no, I hadn't seen a tiger, he replied, "Good, because then, we can go and see a tiger together! Then it will be the first time for both of us!"

Sunset at Nainital

2011-11-04T12:30:00.000+05:30

On my recent visit to Corbett as part of the Club Mahindra Bloggers Trip, we spent some time at Nainital. After roaming around the streets for a while, we took the ropeway to get a glimpse of the snow covered peaks of the Himalayas. The ropeway idea was just a lark, to spend some extra time at Nainital, but it turned out to be full of surprises - from the beautiful aerial view of the Naini Lake.....

To the snow capped mountains visible even to the naked eye!

A board announced the availability of "powerful binoculars" to get a better view of the snow clad peaks....

But the binocs turned out to be a pair of normal ones encased in an impressive - looking case, making them look much bigger, and I guess, more 'powerful'! And the long queue waiting for a peep proved their popularity!

The ropeway seemed to be quite popular, since we had to wait more than half an hour for our turn, and the whole place was filled with tourists having fun, which meant that there was quite a lot of noise! We moved away from the crowd, seeking some peace. Anyway, most of us had our own binoculars, certainly more 'powerful', and we were rewarded by the sight of many birds too - Verditer Flycatchers, Rufous Sibias, and Himalayan Whistling Thrush, among others.

As each of us got busy with our cameras, clicking away at either the landscape or the birds, time flew past, and it was time for us to resume our journey down the ropeway. As we began our downward journey in the cable car, the sun began its descent too……

A ropeway is no longer a novelty in India. There are many tourist spots which now boast of cable cars. But this journey reminded me of the simple thrills of a ropeway – the feeling of being high up and looking down at the ground through a new perspective. But above all, our ropeway ride served to help me filter out the noise and crowd and make the most of a beautiful place!

I decided to use this post for Sky Watch Friday instead of a single picture as usual. Hope you liked it! For more beautiful skies from around the world, visit the Sky Watch Page.

Finding beauty in unexpected places...

2011-11-03T13:50:00.000+05:30

October is over and November is here. Before I know it, the year will be over! And I am nowhere near catching up with all the posts I have to write. October brought in so much travel, from the unexpected Club Mahindra Bloggers Meet to another unexpected Diwali trip to Sringeri. There is so much I want to write, but the words will take some time to come. Meanwhile, I just realised that the blog has been left alone for too long without a post, so I will be posting some random images from my trips.....

We were on our way to Nainital, when we stopped to take pics of the wonderful view of the hills and valleys. But as we clicked and posed for others, these weeds by the roadside caught my eye.

They are just weeds - unwanted and un-cared for. Yet, they grow profusely wherever they get the chance! If we see them in our garden, we pluck them and throw them off, but look closer and see the innate beauty, the perfect geometrical shapes. Remember drawing flowers with a compass in school? Doesnt this remind you of that? And yet, this is so much more beautiful, for it is small - the diameter would be less than a centimeter - and besides, it is alive!