I visited Srinagar in May/June and walked around the old part of the city. This is where most of the famous shrines and mosques of Srinagar are located, but from what I saw on the day I was there (in the middle of tourist season), it’s not much visited by outsiders. This post though focuses on the houses and streetscapes of the old city. Continue reading
I had visited Jageshwar around 10 years ago for a short while on the way to Pataal-Bhuvaneshwar, and always wanted to get back there because I remembered the setting and temples to be beautiful. The main Jageshwar temple complex consists of a collection of large temples and smaller shrines all in close proximity, and it’s really nice to walk and sit around the temples. Continue reading
I had heard a lot over the years about the temples at Chamba and Bharmour in their mountainous Himalayan settings, so went in May to see them for myself … Continue reading
While at Sravasti I came across this interesting monastery, which I’m assuming was built around the 1950s/60s, and started by people from Korea or Japan. The architecture is a fascinating mix of colonial bungalow, typical residential embellishments from the 50s – which include a mix of watered-down art deco and watered-down modernism, Hindu temple elements, early-Buddhist elements, ‘East Asian’ pagodas and torans etc etc. I especially love the pagoda made of brick and concrete with an octagonal base that could be part of a government or residential building anywhere in India from that time. The ‘temple’ at the back is very interesting as well! Continue reading
I got a chance to visit Sravasti, an important site pertaining to the life of Gautam Buddha. Of the ancient remains, there are mostly just plinths and foundations of stupas, temples and monasteries, set up in the centuries following the Buddha’s life. He is said to have lived and preached here for over two decades. Continue reading
Early in October I traveled to Jodhpur (in Rajasthan state) for a couple of days to take in the RIFF – the Rajasthan International Folk Festival, a yearly five-day long music festival that brings together Rajasthan’s storied folk musicians with musicians from around India and the world. Continue reading
Mandu is one of those places that I’d been planning to visit for many many years, and till now for one reason or another hadn’t managed to get to. So on my way back from Bangalore in August, I thought I’d make a detour and finally get to see the site. Despite a lack of reasonably-clean budget hotels, I wasn’t disappointed. :) Continue reading
When I wrote the post about my trip to the Himalayas earlier this year, I didn’t put up the video I took of a procession taking the Tungnath temple idol up from it’s winter “seat” to the temple itself, which was “opening” for the spring while I was there. I’ve finally put up the video, though it’s really grainy. Click here or on the image below to view the video, or go to the original post about my Tungnath trip. Keep the volume on your speakers up to hear the women’s wonderful singing! Continue reading
Back in August I visited a friend in Bangalore, and while I did not have much time to explore the city, I took some on-the-fly photos of the places we drove by, through his car window. I wanted to get a sense of “contemporary” and “changing” Bangalore, i.e. the high-tech city that is supposed to be India’s answer to silicon valley. Continue reading
In the first half of April I went to spend a few days with a friend at Agra, and also visited some sites in Agra that I hadn’t been to before, especially Agra Fort. Agra Fort (as it stands now) is a Mughal fort built during the 16th and 17th centuries. Successive Mughal Emperors built different palaces within the fort. The Jahangiri Mahal, built by Akbar (and not by Jahangir as the name would suggest) is an absolutely awesome structure. The decorations on red sandstone are just amazing. Continue reading
Sarson ke Khet 