Category: Places of Interest

Bird Watching

Bird watching is a hobby that involves observing and identifying different kinds of birds in their natural habitats. Bird watchers can enjoy the beauty and diversity of birds, learn about their behavior and ecology, and contribute to their conservation.

Bird watching is said to be like meditation and mindfulness. A bird watcher gets drifted away from the day to day stresses. This break of mindfulness refreshes the mind and generates positive thoughts.

Bird watching can be done anywhere, from one’s own backyard to remote wilderness areas.

To start bird watching, one needs some basic equipment and skills. The most important tool is a pair of binoculars that can magnify and focus on distant birds. Binoculars come in different sizes and specifications, so it is important to choose one that fits one’s budget, preference and comfort. Some bird watchers also use spotting scopes, cameras or field guides to enhance their experience.

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The next step is to find a good place to watch birds. This can be as simple as setting up a bird feeder or a birdbath in one’s garden or balcony. Alternatively, one can visit local parks, nature reserves or wildlife sanctuaries that have diverse habitats and species. Some bird watchers also travel to different regions or countries to see rare or endemic birds.

The final step is to enjoy the thrill of spotting and identifying birds. This can be done by using visual cues such as size, shape, color, pattern, posture and flight style. It can also be done by using auditory cues such as songs, calls or drumming. Some bird watchers keep a list of the birds they have seen or heard for personal satisfaction or for scientific purposes.

Bird watching is a rewarding hobby that can enrich one’s life in many ways. It can provide relaxation, education, entertainment and inspiration. It can also foster a sense of wonder, curiosity and respect for nature. Bird watching is a hobby that anyone can enjoy at any age and any place.

Joshimath: Sinking??

Joshimath is a town in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is located in the Chamoli district and serves as the headquarters of the Garhwal division of the state. It is an important religious and educational center, and is home to several ashrams and temples, including the Sri Badrinath Temple. It is also a popular base for trekking and mountaineering in the surrounding Himalayan mountain ranges.

Town

Many houses have developed cracks in the walls, floor and some are tilted. This is due to sinking which is taking place. ISRO NRSC report said that subsidence was slow between April and November 2022, during which Joshimath had sunk by 8.9 cm. But between December 27, 2022 and January 8, 2023, the intensity of land subsidence increased and the town sank by 5.4 cm in these 12 days. The report has been withdrawn from the public domain.

Although report is of interest to those with scientific knowledge , Uttrakhand government must have done it to avoid panic among the residents. But ISRO NRSC is not the only agency studying this phenomenon there are other agencies like NASA who are studying it through satellite.As we know that Himalayas are young mountains geologically and lots of seismic activity goes on. Is the subsidence the result of natural phenomena or man made disaster?

Mostly it seems to be the result of setting up a electricity plant, rapid uninhibited proliferation of houses, and hotels to cater to the tourists.

Whatever the reasons, the excessive interference in the designs of Nature is bound to be harmful to the humans. Subsidence refers to the sinking or settling of the ground surface. In Joshimath, subsidence can occur due to a variety of natural and human-induced factors. One possible cause is the withdrawal of groundwater, which can lead to compaction and settling of the soil.

Another potential cause is tectonic activity, such as the movement of faults or the uplift or erosion of adjacent land. Additionally, the construction of buildings and infrastructure on unstable or saturated soils can also lead to subsidence. Subsidence can cause damage to buildings and infrastructure, and can also increase the risk of landslides and flooding. It is important to identify the cause of subsidence in order to develop appropriate management strategies.

Another reason which is cited by the local residents is that some radioactive material had been buried in the area by Americans in 1960 for snooping on the Chinese military activities on the other side of the Himalayas.

Blarney Stone

What is Blarney? Dictionary defines it as “a talk which aims to charm, flatter, or persuade (often considered typical of Irish people)”. For example
“it took all my Irish blarney to keep us out of court“.

Blarney is a village in Cork Ireland. There is a castle by the same name Blarney Castle. In this castle, on one battlement is a stone made of limestone. The stone is said to have magical powers and anyone kissing it is supposed to get powers of eloquence.

Blarney Castle

Every year thousands of people visit the place from all over the world to kiss the stone and get those powers. Powers to charm others by sweet charismatic talk.

Kissing the stone is in itself a very hard task. Since the stone is set in the battlement wall separated from the main land by a deep chasm or moat.

Kissing the stone

During earlier times, when safety was not considered paramount, it is said that the person was hand head down from heels by a rope and lowered to the stone.

Nowadays it is not so. Since the stone is still at the same place, a railing has been placed on both sides of the stone. Person sits on the edge with his back towards the wall and two people hold his legs while he bends his torso backwards and reaches the stone.

History of the stone:

Although the castle was constructed in 1446, the story of the stone is about 200 years older than that. As with the ancient legends, its origin is also shrouded in the mystery and hypothesis. One legend is that this is the stone which Moses hit with his staff and water came gushing from it. Another legend is that it was Jacob’s pillow which Jeremiah brought to Ireland and since was used as the royal stone by Irish kings. In 1446, King Dermot McCarthy then installed the stone in an enlarged castle he constructed.

How the stone gained magical powers, a local legend claims that an old women, saved from drowning by a king of Munster, rewarded him with a spell, that if he would kiss a stone on the castle’s top, he would gain a speech that would win all to him.

There is even a poem singing the praises of the powers of the stone:

There is a stone there, that whoever kisses,

Oh! He never misses to grow eloquent:

'Tis he may clamber to a lady's chamber,

Or become a member of Parliament.

Mallet Ferry Wharf

Mallet Ferry Wharf! I visited the place. It is a ferry terminus and fish trawlers unloading port in Bombay. Whole area smells of fish even from a distance. Hundreds of fish traders stand on the platform and fish baskets are conveyed to top from boats by ropes and mesh nets.

There are mounds of fish of every kind. Every single inch is covered with sea  fish. There are porters towing it away on the carts. Water drips from the  baskets made of the bamboo carrying the fish. Trucks and tempos  are loaded with the fish for taking it to the different parts of the city. Every boat has a flag and while standing in the parking area these boats  bob up and down in the waters.

Bhaucha Dhakka

A very popular variety of fish called “Bombay Duck” also dries on the ropes in the boats. This fish is cooked both as  fresh or dried and does not have bones. The rows of hanging fish on the ropes look like buntings.

There were fisher women, very fat and strong. The boats which have emptied their catch were parked to one side. The fishermen on them were preparing the food: lentils, rice and of course fresh fish.

Crows pecked at the fish filled in the baskets waiting to be put into the trucks. These seemed to have become bored by eating and eating in plenty. Seagulls caught the floating dead fish thrown out of the boats.

On the right side is the ferry wharf station from where ferries ply to Mora Bunder in Uran and Alibaug, and to Elephanta caves. People wait there on the benches.

Most of them are inhabitants of fishing villages. There are shops selling refreshments in the waiting area. They come here on buses from Mumbai and take ferry for crossing the sea and to avoid the torturous road journey.

The journey is thus reduced from many hours by the land route to an hour or so. In the earlier times, when British were here most of the work force belonged to people from Konkan Ghats and used the sea route for coming to Bombay. Still many people working at the docks belong to this area.

Versoli Beach

The coastline of India on the West side seems like the pages of book which have been chewed randomly by the termite. The water wedges deep inside the land in the form of creeks at so many places across the coast. Alongside the road to Alibaug from Panvel, one treads parallel to seacoast. There are small hillocks and the vista is full of features. The road is simply zigzag at many place. There are dense patches of vegetation on both sides of the road. Many small rivers which drain into the sea come across and there are bridges to cross them.

Monkeys can be seen right on the roadside near Karnala where a bird sanctuary exists. It is almost in the neglected state of maintenance. Only the woods are beautiful and have survived the human encroachment. Versoli beach is two three kilometers before reaching the Ali Baug town. You have to take a detour towards right hand to reach the village jutting the beach. There is a person standing at a crossing of the village charging money for entry into the town. On reaching the beach, another party of money collectors is standing. They explained that this money goes into the upkeep of the beach.

All the beaches seem alike to me except the difference in the cleanliness. People in India has typical attitude towards the enjoyment. It can be stated as “enjoy today and enjoy for yourself only”. Whosoever goes there thinks it as their right to litter the beach with polythene bags and water bottles. The aborigines are better than most city dwellers because they are not curious about the nature and think it as a part of their lives. They are not excited like the city people who start jumping and kicking and littering the place thinking that it is the authorities or other people whose duty it is to clean the house.

Anyway, we reached the beach. We took our lunch which we had packed from our home with us. We were particular about collecting the refuse into a bag and bring it back to properly dispose it. There are trees with coniferous leaves on the shore. These also are found on every beach near Mumbai. There was almost no clean place to sit. There are no benches erected on the shores to sit on and enjoy the spectacle of the sea.

It was a low tide and water has receded deep into the sea. The area exposed was almost blackish sand with clay. It is a beach formed by low energy tides. So you will see less sand more clay. The waves which were breaking at that time we went inside the sea were of very low height. They broke without causing any hissing sound. There were clumps of stones and pebbles hidden underneath the water. They are so sharp that they will cut your feet like knives. There are no warning signs. In fact, no attempts have been made to make the visit of tourist a pleasant experience.

Within half an hour, you will feel like going back. Many people because of lack any novelties resort to playing the cricket on the beach to while away the time. In my opinion, if you have visited one beach you need not to visit another one. All are same. Yes there are some interesting places like a Fort on the island near Murud Janjira beach. You have to take a boat to reach it.

It looks out of this world

Forest Research Institute (FRI) in Dehradun is about one and half kilometer from the place I live. I regularly go up to the gate of the institute during my morning walk. Many a times, I extend my walk to the inside the Institute. It was established in the year 1906.

Nowadays it conducts trainings for the candidates selected for Indian Forest Service, for the forest rangers, M.Sc courses. The institute itself is situated in a very big campus which have trees of every kind found in India.

Institute is situated in the middle and building is majestic. Despite being so old it mesmerizes the beholder. It houses the laboratories, museum which contains specimen of wood of trees, non woody products, the bugs which thrive on the trees and is divided into 5 modules. Guides are also available if one wants.

This is about the buildings but the real beauty is outside where sprawling green grass lawns, water brooks, the mighty trees, bamboos of umpteen variety can be seen. As everyone knows, the work of growing the trees is a very painstaking one, it must have taken years for many trees to reach their majestic heights and beauty.

As you walk through the jungles and woods, you feel transported to an altogether different world. A world that is so peaceful and serene and you are compelled to praise the God who has created it all.

The varieties of the trees are numerous ranging in size from few centimeters to hundreds of feet. In the morning time one forgets that he is in this world but feels that he is in heaven. There is no pollution. The air is fresh. Yonder the blue Mussoorie hills form the backdrop. When sky is not overcast, it is so blue.

I remember the dialogues between two brothers in the movie Slumdog Millionaire after being thrown from the train near Agra. When dust thins before them and the visage of Taj Mahal looms before them. Younger one says “is this the heaven? ” Elder one tells that No, we are not dead it is real. Similar experience is felt if you leave your thoughts that encumber you behind. If you get a chance visit this place and feel for yourself.

I visited the place after many days and took some snaps. Due to the clouds and early morning, the pictures are a bit hazy as if one is seeing them in the dream.

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It was a Sunny Morning in Dehradun

I am a regular morning walker and usually out at around 15 minutes to Six in the morning. Usually I am alone for most of the time when out but sometimes some of my colleagues come across and we talk about the olden times.

It is the early September. The monsoon rains which usually abate in this month have not receded. The monsoon has played truant in its regular months of July and August but has picked up now in September when it was time to go away. The children shall sing now “rain rain go away”.

Usually after mid September there are scattered showers and season begins to cool here in contrast to Mumbai where rains extend till the end of September followed by the torrid months of heat, called second summer, till December.

Generally, the sky is overcast here these days. Although clouds are not threatening of black sort. So the mornings are generally cloudy. But today, it was all clear and blue skies began showing up in the West.

In the East, when I was just out, Sun was not up yet but had begun knocking at the door of night. In the dawn, the things have begun to take shape as if precipitating from the pitch black solution of the night which erases all the distinctions between things. While the day separates the entities into different individuals, night merges them all into one black thick solution.

Silhouettes looked beautiful like the drawings of a painter. And why not, the greatest of all painters is at work. But with a difference albeit. He never cares for praise or criticism. He does not stand any scrutiny.

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The contours of the things have begun to take shape. There is a tinge of crimson in the East. Then the sun has risen. After many days, it is the bright morning resplendent in the glory of sun. The sun light has first dawned on the pinnacle branches of mighty trees and darkness which was spread over there has jumped down to make way and welcomed the Sun. The scene was stunning. I can say that still this place is very beautiful.

More Photos

Hi, friends. Here are some more pictures taken at different places. Hope you will enjoy them. Places featured in pictures are Chandigarh, Mumbai, Goa and Ratnagiri.

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A Glimpse of Punjab in Winter

The advent of winter in the North India brings in its wake many things. The biting cold requires us to fend off the winter with lots of warm clothes. But all are not so lucky.

There are poor who let alone the warm clothing are not able to procure the sufficient food to survive. They face the hunger pangs perpetually. Many of them cannot withstand the bitter cold wave and perish.

Then there is fog. Many a times it is so thick that there is no visibility beyond a few meters. This creates many problems for the transportation. So many flights are cancelled and trains crawl late. Many a times, unfortunate accidents happen. Fog creates a thick veil of white color. Sun is barely visible and its energy is very feeble.

Yet, there are good things also in the winter. You can enjoy many kinds of food like carrot’s halwa. There is a glut of vegetables in the market. Truck loads of these vegetables arrive in the vegetables market and sell dirt cheap.

There are cauliflower, carrots, radishes, turnips, green peas. Potatoes are forming below surface under the plants. The wheat stalks in the fields are persistently trying to ward off the winter and grow rapidly.

Here are some pictures of the Punjab in the winters.

Beginnings
A path between fields
Potatoes
Potato Crops
Radishes
Radishes
Sarson
Harvesting the crop
Washing the radishes
Beautiful White Radishes
Radishes
Ready for the market
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Marathi literary festival in Ghuman Punjab

88th Marathi Literary Festival was celebrated in 2015 thousand mile away from Maharashtra in a non descript village called Ghuman in Gurdaspur district of Punjab. Looks surprising why? The reason is that this village has an important link with Maharashtra. Great saint Namdeo came here during his wanderings and remained here for 18 years.

He is said to have born in Naras-Vamani village of Satara district in Maharashtra, Bhagat Namdeo. It was during 12 to 13 century but there are doubts. Anyway it was before the founder of Sikh religion Guru Nanak was born. Imagine about 800 years ago how the saint must have travelled nearly 2000 kilometers when the means of transportation were few and far between. And also why he chose this place only. During these years saint preached here about the one god and leave the bad customs like casteism plaguing the society here. 

Saint Namdev

In one of his compositions , he tells the God, how he was thrown out from the temple as he belonged to lower caste. He himself beseeches the God why He had ordained him to be born in the family of cloth dyers which is considered low caste. He tells God that he has returned out from your temple and sitting at the backside of the temple. Full poem in Gurumukhi with English meaning is reproduced below.

People here still revere him. His teachings were so pious that 61 of his Shabads were included in Adi Granth , the holy book of Sikhs by Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth guru of Sikhs.

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