Entries from July 2008 ↓

From a visit to Nandi Hills in April this year. We missed the sunrise, but the view of the hills cloaked in clouds more than made up for it. A thick, pale-blue line that ran along the length of the horizon was a bit spooky though. It felt like it was made up of residual radioactive waste.

A visit there is due again. These hills must be beautiful right now as it has been here raining incessantly.

I took this picture before I had started using Twitter, yet Twitter is what it reminds me of now. Taken on Christmas at the Dastkar Mela in Delhi. Same place as these dolls.

I am feeling very nostalgic at the moment. The feeling is mingled with a good deal of sadness. Sadness at things passing away. Sadness at being a mere helpless spectator. The Barista featured in the picture above used to be my favorite place in the world. The sunlit, tastefully-done, quaint building at St. Mark’s Road, is now a Hard Rock Café. It is dark, dingy (even on a bright Sunday morning) and soulless.

A Gulmohar tree – again on St. Mark’s road – was felled this weekend. It was huge – with its canopy reaching the other side of the road. I don’t know if it came down on the account of heavy rains here or was chopped down for yet another harebrained expansion of the road. It was a source of joy and strength.

All this makes me want to run away from Bangalore. Problem is, where will I go?

Taken somewhere in Hampi some 3 years ago. Most of these figurines are missing an arm, a hand,  a leg or a foot. I can’t help but marvel at how much more life-like they would’ve been, had they been left unmolested.

Clicked in the light off a Nokia 6070. I think the overall effect is somewhat interesting (disconcerting?).

At the Dastkar Mela again, but this time it was the Bangalore edition. Last year they came here in August at the Chitrakala Parishad lawns. I hope they swing by this year too!

As for these heads, they are rather crudely done. The turbans and the ohdni try to add some cheer, but their deer-before-the-headlights expression lends these heads a somewhat ghastly aura.

It’s still early days (this is no. 6 of the 100 I’ve promised myself), and I am resorting to flowers already! Given that I spent about 70% of my time with camera clicking flowers, it can’t be helped. I just hope that I don’t bore everyone here with too many of them. This one was taken at Coorg, though frankly it could’ve been anywhere. Anyone knows what these flowers are?

From a visit to Seattle last year. Of all the cities in the US that I’ve visited, I have fondest memories of Seattle. I suspect it has something to do with countless helpings of coffee at the Starbucks cafés downtown.

Minor technical details: I was stuck with just a 50 mm lens so I took two shots from my hotel’s window and stitched them together later in Photoshop. This picture has also been given a slight coffee tint.

To a first-time visitor to Lal Bagh, the monkeys near the lake can be intimidating. Yes they are sometimes a riotous lot and are readily excited if you happen to have food upon you, but they mean no harm. Often, they are just curious.

Taken last year at Lal Bagh. I am in the market for a new camera. Before I buy one, I’ve promised myself to clean up pictures taken with my current camera over last the 2.5 years, and post a hundred of them here. If I cannot, I probably don’t deserve a camera. These two count as one (just like the ones in the last post), taking my tally to 4. Wish me luck.

We woke up from our afternoon siesta to the pitter-patter of raindrops on our room’s roof. It was September, but the rains had still not left Coorg. Perhaps they were making up for their late arrival.