Art in the Temples of Ninh Binh
A long drive out of Hanoi. A ride in a little row boat. Stopping and seeing temples hidden away in the wilderness. Temples that could have been reached by the … Continue reading
Terracotta Temples of Murshidabad
The beauty of the architecture, its unique style, the detail of the terracotta plaques on the walls that tell stories from the Hindu epics, the colors.. all fascinate me. The … Continue reading
Murshidabad Diaries
An adrenaline addict constantly needs to find new ways to create the Adrenalin rush. Fortunately this is internally generated. But …. the generation is most often dependent on external stimuli. … Continue reading
Festival Time – Mumbai Style
This week it’s Janmashtami that the city celebrates – the birth of Lord Krishna. Baby Krishna loved home-made butter and he’d help himself to all the butter pots in the … Continue reading
The Thanjavur Maratha Palace
Every now and then, I come across interesting people I yearn to meet. No – not Brad Pitt or George Clooney. But people like Dostoevsky. Lee Kuan Yew. Chanakya. The … Continue reading
Heritage Homes of Tanjore
Life is lived every minute of every day. And so, long ago, we decided to surround ourselves with beautiful things. In the choice between return on investment in financial terms … Continue reading
Pollution in the Ganga
They say the Ganga is polluted. Yes. After days of sitting on her banks with my feet in the water I can confirm that. Here are pictures of the pollution: … Continue reading
A Day in the Life of a Camel Herder
The diet of camel herders is heavily dependent on camel milk. Several times during the day, boiled camel milk was consumed. And at least 3 times I was offered tea … Continue reading
Floods of Ladakh
The mighty force of the Himlayas – its mountains, its glaciers & snows and its rivers – can be imagined just by seeing the scale and magnitude of its being. … Continue reading
Goatherding with Gutthu – Travelogue
Gutthu sat on my lap staring into my eyes. Was there love? Was there bonding? Was this unbroken stream of photons resulting in any emotional bonding from his side? Would … Continue reading
Himalayan Glimpses
View from the aircraft flying over the Himalayas. Awakens a thousand desires to go into each of those valleys on foot and knowing I shall never be able to do … Continue reading
Memories of Nagaland
The wealth of one’s life is the memories we collect – for only these can travel with us everywhere and be summoned at a moment’s notice to light up our … Continue reading
Sailing along the Mekong River Delta
On a hot summer’s day in a place called in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam, we went out to see daily life and the floating markets. In a place connected … Continue reading
A Phulkari Fan from the Olden Days
Here’s another cultural remnant of the olden days in Punjab – A ceiling fan decorated with Phulkari work: The rope is used to swing the fan and is held by … Continue reading
Wearing her mother’s Bridal Haalvan Phulkari
A “haalvan” phulkari is done on very fine cotton cloth that is similar to mul mul. This is the first time I held one in my hand! All bridal textiles … Continue reading
A Place of Darkness – A place of Light
Come with me to this place – so dark that I stumbled a bit as my eyes took a few minutes to adjust. Seeking nothing, I went there during a … Continue reading
Legacy of a Past Life
This post is not about art or culture… Once upon a time I had a little venture called IQ Club. The idea came from working with my own kids and … Continue reading
Nomadic Weavings of Chanthang
Seen in the Himalayas in the Chanthang desert in Eastern Ladakh. Their living spaces Let’s gp in … To see their home & their weavings (videa to follow later) Volunteers: … Continue reading
Mountain Art – Large Ancient Himalayan Buddhas – 4
The Yarma Gombo A set of natural rock formations revered and venerated by Buddhists as the appearance resembles the face of Buddha and other dieties. I would not have known … Continue reading
An Extraordinary Feat
So at the top of Khardungla pass in a small cafe I saw this other solo traveller. Since two of us were the only ones there I asked about his … Continue reading
Mountain Art – Large Ancient Himalayan Buddhas – 2
The Mulbeg Chamba Mulbeg is a small Buddhist village in Kargil that I’d first heard of while studying Perak headdress types. Never thought U’d visit it someday to see the … Continue reading
