[This page contains links to the 90 or so posts tagged India or Sri Lanka plus a description and photo for most of them.. New photos & descriptions arrive regularly.]
India
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| India |
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| Early Morning on the Kerala Backwaters (2009) |
I wanted to go to India from early childhood. I am unsure what the initial appeal was but the attraction was strong and lasted more than 50 years. In my youth, India seemed impossibly far away and could only be a dream. As a young adult, the dream might have become reality, but I could not afford it. Time passed, travel became cheaper, money became less tight, but still I did not go. I was a teacher with a long summer holiday, but our summer is India's monsoon season. Easter would have been fine, but I felt India needed time and a first visit should not be crammed into a short break. When Lynne and I retired in 2008, I was determined that our first post retirement jaunt would be to India. In February 2009 we flew to Chennai and travelled across southern India to Kochi in the company of a young driver who did everything he could to make the trip memorable.
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| Fish market, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu (2009) |
And did India live up to 50 years of anticipation? Yes it did, every single minute of it. The crowded markets, the magnificent temples, the wonderful food, the crazy traffic, the noise, the bustle, the colours, the heat, the dust, the quiet of the daytime countryside, the tropical noises of the night, and the friendliness of the people - all of them exceeded expectations.
That first trip was before I started this blog, as was our second a year later but four more have since been recorded in full and a fifth is underway. There is much more of India to see, but time has moved on and visit t number 8 may never happen.
Kerala and More (2024)
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| Karnataka |
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| Tamil Nadu |
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| Kerala |
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26/02/2024 |
Birmingham to Kochi. Fingerprints at Airport. Airport to Fort Kochi, the Kochi Metro. The Tea Bungalow. ATM problems and their solution. Jeanett's Cooking. Cooking okra to make it enjoyable, cooking a fish curry. A fine dinner. | |
27/02/2024 |
Masala Omelette and a routine breakfast. The Kerala Folklore Museum: Durga, Garuda and more, exhibits from Kerla’s ancient Christian tradition. The LuLu Mall, an empty place for the affluent. Introducing Thomas Matthew our friend and former driver, Lunch with Thomas. Our current driver Sasi. A visit Chez Thomas in 2016. Liquor store. Pakoras as the centrepiece to a mildly bizarre evening. | |
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29/02/2024 |
Mandi restaurants, Harivihar Ayurvedic retreat. Tali Shiva Temple. Student Police Cadets. Tasara Arts Festival, Mopilla Mosques. Coconut graders and packers. Calicut Cathedral. An excellent Vegan dinner. | |
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More Coming Later |
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Several more posts will appear here in due course |
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12/03/2016 |
We revisited our hotel from 2016 eight years later to the day. We found much had changed - mainly for the better. New and/or updated information has been added to the 2016 post |
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| Jeanett's Cooking |
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| Durga, Kerala Folklore Museum |
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| Grading coconuts in the street, Kozhikode |
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| Indian classical dance, Marari Beach |
Maharashtra (2019)
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| Maharashtra |
We spent a couple of nights in Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra after our tour of Gujarat.
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Mumbai (1) Dharavi, the World's Biggest Slum
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13/03/2019 |
Arriving in
Mumbai, History, Some thoughts and concerns on Slum Tourism. Dharavi Tour. Thanks to the local guide it was a positive
experience. Workshops recycling plastic, making pottery & leather goods
snd producing food. The tip of the Mumbai Peninsula, Dinner in the Leopold Café. |
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14/03/2019 |
Mahatma Gandhi
Road: Elphinstone College, The story of the Sassoons, Sassoon Library,
Watson's Hotel, Kala Ghoda, Rajabai Clock Tower. Marine Drive. Gandhi Museum.
Hanging Gardens. Tiffin boxes and Dabbawallas. Laundry, Railway Station, the
2008 terrorist attack. Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. The Gateway of India |
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| Pottery, Dharavi |
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| Play equipment and goat, Dharavi |
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| Chowpatty Beach and Malabar Hill, Mumbai |
Maharashtra is also tagged in
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A Collection of Arches de Triomphe (None of them in Paris)
Part 2, Post-1900 2020
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20/08/2020 |
A collection of 20th and 21st century Arcs de Triomph.
Mumbai’s contribution is the Gateway of India, intended to be built for the
first visit of King George V and Queen Mary to their Indian empire in 1911. They
actually entered through a cardboard gateway as building work had not yet started. |
Gujarat (2019)
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| Gujarat |
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27/02/2019 |
Arriving in Ahmedabad, The House of MG Heritage Hotel, Obtaining a tourist Liquor Licence in a dry state. Sarkhej Rosa; the Saint Ganj Baksh, the ruler Sultan Mahmud Begada, many tombs and a mosque and a tank.. The Old City, market, feeding the hungry, Friday Mosque, more tombs and old havelis. Crushed sugar cane. | |
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28/02/2019 |
Adalaj stepwell and the story of Queen Rudabai. Hutheesing Jain Temple and prayers for peace with Pakistan. Gandhi’s Sabamarti Ashram, his life. Congress Party and the Salt March. A Gujarat Thali. The Sidi Saiyyed Mosque and the Tree of Life jali. The evening food market, stuffed dosas and buttermilk. |
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01/03/2019 |
North from Ahmedabad. The small Princely state of Idar, Lt-Gen Sir Pratap Singh. Meeting the locals, Wildwinds resort, Jambudi. Meeting more local families in their homes. A unusual and briefly worry problem with my liquor licence | |
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02/06/2019 |
To Siddhpur, The Dawoodi Bohras, their origins, architecture & dress. Bank Minas.The Rudra Mahalaya Temple disputed between Hindus and Muslims. Patan, the Ran Ki Vav step well. Modhera and its Sun Temple | |
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03/03/2019 |
The village of Bajana. A Salt Factory in the Little Rann of Kutch. Patdi Market and buying pictures of gods. Searching for Wild Asses, finding flamingos, a short-eared owl. and an imperial eagle. A cup of tea and pearl millet bread with a salt farmer and his wife. | |
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04/03/2019 |
Village Festival, stalls, amusements & temple. Blackbuck Resort and vegetarian thali. Blackbuck National Park, Nilgai, Cranes, Montagu's Harrier, Wild pig and More. | |
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05/03/2019 |
The Bhavnagar Princely State. Nilambag Palace and heritage hotel. Barton Library Museum. Bhavnagar Bazaar, the Vrindavan Hotel and Durbar Gate. The Takhteshwar Temple. | |
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06/03/2019 |
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07/03/2019 |
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08/03/2019 |
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09/03/2019 |
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10/03/2019 |
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To the Great Rann of Kutch, Craft Villages and a Salt Desert |
11/03/2019 |
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Going to School and Other Entertainments in the Great Rann of Kutch |
12/03/2019 |
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| Photos on request, Sarkhej Roza |
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| Gujarati thali, Ahmedabad |
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| Meeting the locals |
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| Dawoodi Bohra houses, Siddhpur |
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| Imperial Eagle, Little Rann of Kutch |
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| Male blackbuck & harem |
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| Bazaar, Bhavnagar |
Gujarat is also labelled in
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Lost and Forgotten: Things Big and Little that Disappeared for
Centuries
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27/02/2020 |
A round up of things that were lost and now are found. Gujarat’s contribution is the enormous and elaborate Ran Ki Vav stepwell at Patan. Built in the 11th century it was lost sometime in the middle-ages when it was filled with silt from the flooding Saraswati River. Rediscovered in 1940 it was restored to its former glory in the 1980s |
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The Churning of the Ocean of
Milk
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19/01/2017 |
This post tells the story of The Churning of the Ocean of Milk from the Mahabharata, first written down around 600 BCE. It also contains a collection of depictions of the story. Gujarat's contribution is an ancient carving on the Sun Temple at Modhera. |
Rajasthan, Land of Princes (2018)
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| Rajasthan |
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25/01/201/8 |
Delhi to Jaipur. Jas Vilas, Jaipur, the Pink City. The Hawa Mahal, Sawai Jai Singh II. To Amber, elephant ride up to Amber Palace. Amber Palace. Back to Jaipur. Stone polishing & block printing. Jaipur Palace, the Jantar Mantar Observatory. Man Sagar Lake | |
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26/01/2018 |
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27/01/2018 |
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28/01/2018 |
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29/01/2018 |
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31/01/2018 |
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01/02/2018 |
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02/02/2018 |
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03/02/2018 |
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04/02/2018 |
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05/02/2018 |
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06/02/2018 |
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06/02/2018 |
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08/02/2018 |
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| Karnataka |
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| Tamil Nadu |
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| Kerala |
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24/02/2016 |
Arriving Bangalore, fingerprints problems. Meet Thomas again. Driving to Mysore, sugarcane and coconuts. Lunch in Coffee Day. Mysore: Maharajah's Palace, Chamundi Hill, Nandi, Devaraja Market, St Philomena's Cathedral |
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25/02/2016 |
Somnathpur and its unique Hoysala Temple. Jaggery. Srirangapatnam, Haider Ali, Tipu Sultan, Palace, the Anglo-Mysore Wars and the Gombaz Mausoleum. Wellington House, Rangacharlu Hall, Freemasons, Chamaraja X Statue, Mysore University, Jagan Mohan palace. | |
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27/02/2016 |
Mysore to Kabini and the Kabini River Lodge. Nagarhole National Park Lake Safari: Mongoose. Elephant, Crocodile, Gaur, Deer. Ayurvedic Massage at Kabini Lodge. Land Safari: Peacocks, Racket-Tailed Drongo, Monkeys, Giant Squirrel, Mongoose, Serpent Eagle, Wild Pigs, Tiger paw print. | |
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27/02/2016 |
Kabini to Ooty, National Parks but only a monkey to see. Jacaranda. Into the Nilgiri Hills. Hairpins up to Ooty. Enter Tamil Nadu. Ooty, Charing Cross, St Stephen's Church, Colonial Quarter. A guesthouse stuck in time, Ooty Botanical Gardens. Palm Nuts. |
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28/02/2016 |
On the Nilgiri Blue Train to Coonoor, Sims Park botanical garden. Lambs Rock, Chocolate and a Monkey attack, Tea, Dolphins Nose, Eucalyptus, Biryani. Back to Ooty via Wellington, Doddabetta Peak, Dinner at the Savoy Hotel |
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29/02/2016 |
Descending the Nilgiri Hills, Ooty-Wellington-Mettupalayam, Across the plain to Coimbatore. Lunch at Udumalaipettai. Through Indira Gandhi National Park, Anamalai Hills. Into Kerala and the Chinnar Wildlife Refuge. Into Kannan Devan Hills, Jacarandas in full flower. Road climbs to Munnar. Intro to Munnar. | |
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01/03/2016 |
Kannan Devan Hills, Politics in Kerala, Tea Museum, Mattupetty Dam, Echo Point, Family of Elephants, Kundale (Setuparvatipuram) Dam, Under-ripe mango, chilli & salt, Christianity in Kerala and the ‘English’ Church in Munnar | |
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02/03/2016 |
Descending Kannon Devan Hills from Munnar. Across the plain to Madurai. Gandhi Museum. Nayak Palace. Markets and Brahmins on the way to the Meenakshi Amman Temple. The temple and the Meenakshi Procession. Vandiyur Mariamman Tank. | |
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03/03/2016 |
Driving Madurai to Rameswaram, Coconut stop. Over the Indira Gandhi Bridge to Rameswaram. A Thali Lunch. Ramanathaswamy Temple. A walk through the town among the pilgrims and to the beach. The Gandhamadana Parvata with the footprint Rama made on his return from Lanka. Rama's resting place. Some reflections on being the only Europeans on the island. |
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04/03/2016 |
From Rameswaram back across the bridge to the mainland. Toddy tapper. Tea Break. Fetching water. Tidying the roadside, Salt pans. The NH-44, India’s longest highway. Kanyakumari, India’s southernmost town. The Promenade. ‘Wine’ shop visit, A Failed sunset. A fine Prawn Veruval | |
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05/03/2016 |
Kanyakumari, Ferry to the Vivekananda Memorial Rock, Whos was Vivekananda. 2004 Tsunami. Suchindram Temple. Padmanabhapuram Palace, Kingdom of Travancore. Lunch in Nagercoil, Back to Kanyakumari, the Gandhi Mandapam and another failed sunset. | |
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06/03/2016 |
NH-66 north from Kanyakumari. Churches on Sunday. .Maha Shivaratri (Great Night of Shiva). Trivandrum, capital of Kerala. The Horse Palace, weird bananas, Maharajah Swathi Thirunal Ramavara. Padmanabha Temple. Napier Museum, Government Buildings. Palayam Juma Mosque. North to Fragrant Nature Resort. Kerala’s partial prohibition | |
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07/03/2016 |
Kollam, and a night time ant attack. The death of Kalabhavan Mani and a memorable newspaper headine. Varkala beach, North Helipad Beach Road, Altars & bathers on Papanasam Beach. Jack Fruit, Lunch - pearl spots fish, the Kerala State Fish! | |
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09/03/2016 |
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11/03/2016 |
Relaxing on the Malabar Coast. The Xandari Pearl resort. Dealing with mosquitos. The beach and changes 2016-24. Wildlife (crabs, birds and butterflies). Fishing, changes in boats. Swimming. Eating and drinking | |
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12/03/2016 |
Kochi, Church of St Francis and the Graves of Vasco da Gama. Fish market and fishing nets, Basilica of Santa Cruz. The Laundry. Thirumala Devaswom temple. Mattancherry and the Palace. The Pardesi Synagogue. Willingdon Island, Biryani and home. |
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| With Thomas, Bangalore Airport |
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| Village India, near Somnathpur |
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| Elephant, Nagarhole National Park |
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| Ooty, Colonial Quarter |
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| The Nilgiri Blue Train, Ooty Station |
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| Jacaranda, Kannan Devan Hills |
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| Tea plantation, Munnar |
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| North gopura, Meenakshi Amman Temple |
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| Pilgrims, Rameswaram |
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| Tea break at the Happy Hotel |
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| Gandhi Mandapam, Kanyakumari |
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| Napier Museum, Trivandrum |
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| Priests on the beach, Varkala |
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| Ghost crab, Marari Beach |
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| Plastic bucket salesman, Kochi |
Karnataka is also labelled in
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| Karnataka |
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Tibetan Buddhism: Part 6 of Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha
Images |
13/01/2021 |
Buddhism has all but died out in the land of its birth, but 10,000
Tibetan refugees have been settled in southern Karnataka. This post features
the magnificent Namdroling Monastery near the town of Kushalnagar. |
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26/06/2020 |
Karnataka’s contribution is the mosque in the small town of
Madikeri, once the capital of the Kingdom of Kodagu (or Coorg). See also
Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi below |
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The Gomateshvara Statue at
Shravanabelgola and other Jain Temples |
30/09/2014 |
Introduction to Jain Dharma. Climbing the steps cut in the sun-baked
rock at Shravanabelgola to the magnificent Statue of Gomateshvara voted by
Times of India readers as the No 1 Wonder of India. Also included are the The
Badami Cave Temples to the north and the Temples of Karkala near the coast. |
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29/08/2013 |
A small collection of supremely useless objects. Karntaka’s
contribution is the stone chariot in the ruined Vittala Temple of the once
important city of Vijayanagara – more usually known now as Hampi. It is a
chariot that was built to go nowhere |
Kerala is also labelled in
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| Kerala |
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26/06/2020 |
Kerala’s
contribution is the Moppila Mosques of Kozhikode (formerly Calicut).
Unusual, as their design is entirely Keralan, without the slightest nod to the
Arabic origins of Islam. See also Karnataka (above) and Uttar Pradesh and
Delhi (below) | |
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Churches
that Tell Stories in Russia, India, Vietnam, Portugal and the UK |
05/05/2012 |
Kerala’s
contribution is the Church of St Mary on the coast at Thalassery (formerly Tellicherry) |
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Three
Favourite Synagogues: Krakow, Kochi (Cochin) and Sofia
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10/02/2012 |
Kerala’s
contribution is the Pardesi Synagogue in Kochi, Kerala. Kochi no longer has a
Jewish community, but the synagogue is looked after as a historical monument. |
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Breakfast
in Kerala, Lunch in Libya, Dinner in Chengdu
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04/01/2012 |
Idlis and chutney
at the Sree Saraswaihy Tea Stall, Ramassery, near Palakkad with the
redoubtable ‘Bhags’. |
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Kochi
and Lisbon: The Two Graves of Vasco da Gama
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07/12/2011 |
Unravelling why
Vasco da Gama seems to have two graves, one in Kochi in Kerala and one in
Belem, a suburb of Lisbon. |
Tamil Nadu is also labelled in
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| Tamil Nadu |
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19/01/2017 |
This post tells the story of The Churning of the Ocean of Milk from the Mahabharata, first
written down around 600 BCE. It also contains a collection of depictions of
the story. Tamil Nadu’s contribution is a recent 3D depiction on top of the
wall surrounding a charitable organisation is Rameswaram. See also, Gujarat
(above) and Sri Lanka (below) | |
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31/01/2013 |
A collection of
pictures Banyan trees. The Tamil Nadu contribution is a small deity sitting
among the twisted and bird-lime bespattered roots of a tree in a rural
location near Dindigul. | |
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05/10/2012 |
Tamil Nadu’s
contribution comes from a chance encounter with a memorial in the small
coastal town of Tharamgambadi (formerly Tranquebar). It took us a while to
work out what it was, Tamil is one of many languages we cannot read, but then
we spotted the date 26/12/2004. It was a memorial to those local people who
lost their lives in the Boxing Day Tsunami. | |
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29/02/2012 |
Three excellent if
otherwise unconnected lunches. The Tamil Nadu contribution is a vegetarian Thali in the temple town in Thanjevur |
Delhi and Uttar Pradesh (2013)
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| Delhi |
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| Uttar Pradesh |
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16/02/2013 |
Old Delhi: Jama Masjid, the Bazaar by Rickshaw, Chandni Chowk, The Red Fort, Raj Ghat, India Gate. New Delhi, India Gate, The Rajpath, Parliament and the Presidential Palace. Garlic Chicken at the Chowra Chick-Inn | |
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17/02/2013 |
Morning papers
and Indian English. The Tomb of Humayun the 2nd Mughal emperor. The
Qutb Minar, Alaudin Khilji, the Iron Pillar. Connaught Place & lunch in
central Delhi. Connaught Park. Delhi Metro. Delhi Station and the Magadh Express. | |
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18/02/2013 |
Magadh Express Sleeper Delhi to Mughal Serai, chai wallah. Mughal Serai. Fleeting visit to Varanasi. Drive to Sarnath, the Damekh Stupa where the Buddha gave his First Sermon, Ashokas Pillar, the Lion Capital & wheel and their significance to India. | |
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19/02/2013 |
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20/02/2013 |
Driving Varanasi to Allahabad. We are left in a field of ‘Swiss Cottage’ tents. A fortuitous meeting with Seema. To the Kumbh Mela with Seema. Bathing in Mother Ganges & other blessings. Allahabad and the Nehru Family homes, Anand Bhavan (birthplace of Indira Gandhi) and Swaraj Bhavan. | |
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23/02/2013 |
Return to the Kumbh Mela, Traffic jams and walking. Two walks by the Ganges. A walk round the local village and meeting the friendly locals. Driving to Lucknow, Tea shops and tree fellers. | |
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24/02/2013 |
Awadh (aka the Kingdom of Oudh) and its Nawabs. The Bara Imambara and Asai Mosque. Rumi Darwaza, Chhota Imambara, River Gomti, Laundry and Gully Cricket. Lucknow market, Nimish, Shami Kebab and many stores. The Qaiser Bagh. Lunch at Coffee Day. St Joseph’s Cathedral. An excellent Gosht Mughlai at the Royal Café. | |
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26/02/2013 |
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27/02/2013 |
Taj Mahal, Diana's Seat, calligraphy, carving, pietra dura work, the mosque. Baby Taj (tomb of I'timad-ud-Daulah). Agra Fort, Royal apartments, Chain of Justice. Pietra Dura craftsmen. Outdoor barber, Hanuman shrine, Bicycles in a banyan tree. A very poor Murgh Badami | |
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28/02/2013 |
Agra to Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar's purpose-built Capital. Elephants and executions. The Hall of Private Audience, Panch Mahal, Pool and Pachisi Board, the Tower of Tusks, The Great Gate Return to Delhi, entertainment at a level-crossing. A fine butter chicken to complete a trip of often modest food. |
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| Jama Masjid, Old Delhi |
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| Humayun's Tomb |
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| A monk meditates, Sarnath |
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| Frying puris for Mother Ganga |
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| Beside the Ganges, near Allahabad |
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| Dhobi Wallahs, River Gomti |
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| The Taj Mahal from Agra Fort |
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| The Great Gate, Fatehpur Sikri |
Delhi is also tagged in
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25/06/2020 |
A collection of mosques from Iran, India, China and Malaysia, all lands east of Mecca. The Delhi contribution is the Jama Masjid, the Friday Mosque. Built,
like the Taj Mahal, in the reign of the Moghul Emperor Shah Jahan it was completed
in 1650 (three years before the Taj) | |
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A Collection of Arcs de Triomphe (None of them in Paris) Part 2, Post-1900
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20/08/2020 |
A collection of 20th and 21st century Arcs de Triomph. Delhi’s contribution is Lutyens India Gate built at the end of the Kingsway (now
Rajpath) in 1931 as a memorial to those Indian soldiers who died in the First
World War (not to be confused with the Gateway of India – see Maharashtra above.) |
India is also tagged in
Sri Lanka
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| Sri Lanka |
I never felt the same pressing need to visit Sri Lanka, but we enjoyed our time there in 2015. It is a relatively small island with much to offer.
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18/01/2015 |
Colombo to
Anaradhapura. Lion Lager. Nuwara Wewa. Mihintale where Buddhism arrived in Sri
Lanka. Monitor lizard. The Riddle of the Mango Tree. Meditation Rock,
Mahaseya Dagoba. Kaludiya Pokuna and the Cave Building. Rice and Curry | |
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19/01/2015 |
Anuradhapura Massacre. Sri Maya Bodhi tree. The ancient City. Jetvana Monastery, Mahavira monastery, Thuperama dagoba, The Citadel, Mahapali Temple and Monastery. Mahasen Palace. Moonstones. The Samadhi Buddha. The Twin pools. Modern Anaradhapura. | |
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Polonnaruwa and Kandalama, An
Ancient City and a Modern Hotel |
20/01/2015 |
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21/01/2015 |
The Heritance
Hotel. Tufted Grey langur. Egg hoppers. Why a palace was built in a 200m high
rock. Climbing Sigiriya Rock: the gallery, mirror wall and lion steps. Summit
Palace. Descend to audience chamber. Ayurvedic massage, | |
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22/01/2015 |
Toque Macaque on out balcony, Heritance Hotel. Dambulla and the Dambulla Rock Temples. Continue south, visiting a Spice Garden. Diversity in Sri Lanka Matale, the Sri Muthumariamman Kovil Temple. Kandy, The Temple of the Tooth. White throated kingfisher. Dinner of devilled chicken. | |
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23/01/2015 |
Wedding dancers. Gem mining and jewellery selling. Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, Bamboos, water lilies, orchids, coco-de-mer. Temple loop: Galadeniya Temple, Lankatilake Temple and Embekke Devale Temple. Lunch with the Navy. | |
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24/01/2015 |
The Bahiravakanda Buddha overlooking Kandy. Commonwealth War Graves. Peradeniya Station. The train to Nuwara Eliya. The Hill Club, (former) Ladies Entrance, Dressing for dinner, coffee by a roaring fire and 1950s photos of the Queen and Prince Philip. | |
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25/01/2015 |
The Hill Club. A walk on the Horton Plains, through the Cloud Forest to Little World’s End, Great World’s End and the Baker Falls. Exploring Nuwara Eliya. The Pedro Tea Estate | |
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26/01/2015 |
Hindu Temples in the Highlands. Bandarawela and the Mlesna Tea Centre. Dowa Cave Temple a massive key and an ancient Buddha carving. Rambutans. Ella. Lamprais. The Ella Gap. The Ravana Falls | |
27/01/2015 |
The Ella Gap. Climbing Little Adam's Peak, Tea Picking, the Summit, Elephant Ginger Beer. Demodara Bridge, Ella, Lunch at Chill Café. Search for why Ella has been called the most English-style village in Sri Lanka. Guesthouse dinner, Arrack | |
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29/01/2015 |
Down the Ella Gap. Udawalawe National Park, nibbling cloves straight from the tree. Blue Magpie Lodge Sinharaja. Paradise flycatcher. A walk in the rainforest: green garden lizards, giant wood spider, giant millipede, green pit viper, inadvertently feeding a leach, blue magpie. | |
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30/01/2015 |
Across the south, Sinharaja-Tissa. The Katargama shrine. Grey Langurs, buying and donating flowers. Puja at Kataragma, egg curry and noodles. Yala National Park, jackals, wild pigs, mongoose, peacock, green bee-eaters. The coast. | |
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01/02/2015 |
Hambantota and Ex-Pres Rajapaksa – the airport, cricket stadium and container port. Seaside coconuts break. Dondra Head Lighthouse. Mirissa and the pleasures of the beach. ‘Aldi’ Squid & prawns in a beach restaurant. The 2004 Tsunami. | |
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02/02/2015 |
The coast road to Galle. Stilt fishermen. Galle fish market. Fortifications, the Sun & Moon Bastion with the cricket ground beyond. Utrecht Point, the Meeran Jumma Mosque. Anglican and Dutch churches. On to Colombo. | |
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03/02/2015 |
Arrival, dinner in an Indian Restaurant. Rehearsal for the National Day Parade. Gangaramaya Temple. Beira Lake. Galle Face Green. The Clock tower/lighthouse. Presidents Office. Pettah. The Captain’s Garden Hindu, Temple, Independence Memorial, Lunch at the Colombo Hotel. The end of a memorable trip. |
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| Rice and Curry, Anuradhapura |
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| Samadhi Buddha, Anuradhapura |
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| The Royal Baths, Polonnaruwa |
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| Sigiriya Rock |
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| Golden Temple, Dambulla |
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| Water Lilies, Peradeniya, Kandy |
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| The Hill Club, Nuwara Eliya |
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| Across the Horton Plains |
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| Sri Batkha Hanuman Temple |
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| Little Adam's Peak, Ella |
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| Giant millipede, Sinharaja |
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| Mongoose, Yala National Park |
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| Fisherman & cormorant, Mirissa beach |
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| The Fish market, Galle |
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| Parade rehearsal, Colombo |
Sri Lanka is also tagged in
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A Fine Drinking Man's
Country?
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26/06/2017 |
In which I assess the pleasures of the table, both eating and drinking, in 10 countries across 3 continents. Sri Lankan food lacks the
variety and subtlety of India, but it is a better country for drinking. Also
considered are China, France, India, Iran, Mongolia, Morocco, North
Macedonia, Portugal, and Thailand. |
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The Churning of the Ocean of
Milk
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19/01/2017 |
This post tells the story of The Churning of the Ocean of Milk from the Mahabharata, first written down around 600 BCE. It also contains a collection of depictions of the story. Sri Lanka’s contributions if from the Captain’s Garden Temple in Colombo. See also Gujarat and Tamil Nadu (above). |
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