Cute Gods & Laid-Back Beaches

Mooooo…. how wonderful, can someone give me a massage, …...pleeez?

This is Puri on the east coast of India, in the state of Orissa, the closest ‘decent’ beach to Calcutta, and therefore a ‘must-go’ for someone who’s never in her life seen the sea before (you know who I’m talking about). Anyway, there’re absolutely no regrets. Puri is surprisingly ‘tout-free’ (not totally, after all this is India mate, but reasonably …for India), and has attractions and places to cater for people of different interests.
There’s the Sun Temple in Konark for history buffs and Indiana Jones enthusiasts (like me).

The Sun Temple, Konark, Orissa

There’s the thriving and packed Jagannath Temple in the centre of Puri, one of the main pilgrimage destinations for Hindus for the spiritualists and cultural nuts (also like me, …I dunno why but I like temples and religious places, whatever religion they’d be).

The Temple of Lord Jagannath, Puri, Orissa

There’re tons and loads of wildlife for the wildlife enthusiasts (of course, this is India, remember?), cows (what’s new), dogs, chickens, monkeys, etc apart from the not so common grand entourage of birds, dolphins (yeah, some riverine dolphins, don’t ask me what species, coz I don’t remember, anyway you see them only for about err… less than a second per time, smooth grey bald round objects that bob up and down in the Chilika lake).

Our boat, Chilika Lake, Orissa

There’re stretches of quiet, tree-shaded roads (unlike India…) for a nice stroll, or hassle-free ride on a cycle (very unlike India).

The favourite pastime in Orissa, …zzzzzz (Ram Temple, somewhere between Puri and Konark)

There’re thronging markets packed with all sorts of stuff from cheap ethnic clothes to religious paraphernalia for the die-hard bargain hunters (like the women, really, I’ll never understand them…).

Life around the Jagannath Temple, Puri

There’re cheap (but reasonably bright and airy) budget hotels lining the quieter beach front towards the east (the west is packed full of Indian revelers, mainly Bengali tourists from Calcutta), where backpackers chill-out, jam music, and have an occasional dose of ‘grass’ I suppose (no, dunno where I can get them, didn’t try, but I’m sure it exists, hint).
There’re lots of cheap and fresh seafood to gorge on and beer to wash it all down, wonderful…
There’re peaceful and hassle-free beachfronts where you can roam undisturbed (most of the time) – nope I’d not want to swim here, when it comes to beaches, nothing beats good ol’ South-East-Asia after all.

Dusk at Chilika Lake

And there’s of course the super-cute main deity of Orissa, Lord Jagannath, with huge round saucer eyes on a black and red round smiley face, short body and stumps for hands, adorning every altar, wall and portrait in town. And what’s more, he’s usually with his brother and sister, both also similarly ‘cute’, (sis has no hands by the way). Dunno how they look like? Just watch one of those South Park cartoons.


The Sun Temple, Konark

Shortcuts to keep your blog alive

Quizes, yeah, sometimes you have to resort to these just to keep your blog alive, ...especially if you're married...

I am The Moon

You are The Moon

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Moon is a card of magic and mystery - when prominent you know that nothing is as it seems, particularly when it concerns relationships. All logic is thrown out the window.

The Moon is all about visions and illusions, madness, genius and poetry. This is a card that has to do with sleep, and so with both dreams and nightmares. It is a scary card in that it warns that there might be hidden enemies, tricks and falsehoods. But it should also be remembered that this is a card of great creativity, of powerful magic, primal feelings and intuition. You may be going through a time of emotional and mental trial; if you have any past mental problems, you must be vigilant in taking your medication but avoid drugs or alcohol, as abuse of either will cause them irreparable damage. This time however, can also result in great creativity, psychic powers, visions and insight. You can and should trust your intuition.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

The Capital of Buddhism

Inside the compound of the Mahabodhi Temple, Bodhgaya, Bihar

Here’re some pics of Bodhgaya, the place where Buddha attained enlightenment, and where we nearly froze to death. No, it ain’t really that cold normally, but try doing a 12km auto-rickshaw (India’s equivalent of Thailand’s tuk-tuk) ride at 4am in the middle of a cold spell in winter, dressed in summer clothing. Anyway, somehow we survived despite falling sick right after that, with cold & flu. Maybe Buddha just wanted to show us his tree, his temples from all over the Buddhist world (it’s like the United Nations of the Buddhist world, there’re temples from every Buddhist country and region in the world), his devotees, and a horde of all other things related to Buddhism.


The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya, the main Buddhist temple in the world, where you can see Buddhist devotees of all creeds and colours on a pilgrimage, didn’t know that there’re so many ‘white’ Buddhists…


The Bodhi Tree where Buddha meditated below and attained enlightenment – actually this is only a descendant of the original tree, the original was killed ages ago by some jealous wife of a devout Indian Buddhist emperor who felt she had been neglected (…just like women huh, getting jealous over… a tree!?!?! for goodness sake… better not push my luck too far hehehe). Anyway, luckily for the Buddhist world, some smart chap before that brought a sapling of the original tree and planted it in Buddhist Sri Lanka, so the Indians had to just get a sapling back…


The 25m high Great Buddha (ala Japanese Daijokyo – I think), Bodhgaya, Bihar

The Great Trans-India Trek

What would you do if let’s say …you eloped with the girl of your dreams in a foreign country, and that girl actually had a boy who’s deeply in love with her and who would do anything to have her, and who in his mind thought the girl’s already his wife, …and the girl’s family actually supported the boy, and the entire marriage idea with the boy? And what if the girl had no documents whatsoever (meaning ‘Passport’) to get her out of the country?

Answer: You run like MAD, and hope nobody, and absolutely nobody knows your whereabouts just in case your location is leaked back to your would-be pursuers, imaginary or not. Luckily, India is a big country hehehe. And so started our grand trek across India by foot, horse, carriage, train, car, bus, rickshaw and anything imaginable, and available, through hills, plains, forest, desert and seaside.

Anyway, whether we actually had any so-called pursuers or not, or whether we imagined the whole darn suspense, it sure was a hell lot of fun hehehe. So what the heck, here’re some excerpts of our grand escapade, just for the sake of it!

And for those of you who’re wondering where we are now and where we’d be going next – only God knows… we thought we could stay put in Mumbai (Bombay) for at least a little while, looks like that’s not gonna be the case now, since the Project I was on, has just finished …very prematurely, short …but not really that sweet (the shortest project I’ve ever been involved in, an achievement huh?) Same old story, issues between the Client and the Contractor, blah, blah, blah, well, at least I’m still getting paid for hanging around until the Company decides on something hehehe, great life huh? Now if only they give me some place I’ve never been before …Chennai or Bangalore would be fun hahaha.

The Pink City

Hawa Mahal, the Wind Palace, Jaipur, Rajasthan

The Pink City, that’s what they call Jaipur, the capital of the state of Rajasthan in India. Story has it that once upon a time, the king of Jaipur (yes, Jaipur used to be an independent kingdom, with its own king, forts, castles, walls, palaces, and all other things royal), invited the King (or was it the Prince) of the UK for a visit to his beloved city, and to impress the royal visitor from the UK, he had the entire city painted, …Pink!, of all colours, the colour of Barbie! Luckily, for us guys, the shade of pink in the city ain’t really like the pink associated with cutesy girls, they’re more like dull red, like the red of red clay bricks if you catch what I mean. Anyway, it ain’t a city of Barbies, it ain’t a city of pink cutesy girls (how I sometimes wished it was, hehehe), and neither is it a city of gays or lesbians. It’s just a quaint ‘pink’ (or red) city surrounded, cut and partitioned by numerous city walls (all ‘pink’), palaces, hidden courtyards, alleys and lots of colourful shops.

Jantar Mantar, The Observatory, Jaipur

Actually, it’s a pretty interesting city, like something straight out of the 1000 & 1 Arabian Nights (although this is India you’re talking about). It’s located in a half-desert kinda place surrounded by arid rocky hills on 3 sides of the city with ramparts and watch towers, fantastical domed (Rajasthani-style) palaces and forts atop hills. There’re camels roaming around the city carrying goods (like some barter trade from the past). There’re turbaned, mustachioed & earring bedecked men, with baggy dhotis and pointed shoes smoking hookahs by the footpath. There’re veiled women dressed in the most bizarrely matched colours and the most imaginative jewellery you can find (like upper arm armour-like bracelets & metal breastplates, the men must be really ferocious people here).

View of Amber Palace, from Jaigarh Fort

Anyway, there’re lots of places to visit, lots of ethnic things to buy, lots of touts to drive you semi-mad, lots of guides to bug the hell outta you, and one corrupted police man to drive you outta the city (no, no, no don’t get me wrong, I love Jaipur, it’s a one in a million type case, and it only happened to me & Anu, and this is my third trip to Jaipur, and I have a feeling it’s not the last), so do visit if you have a chance, it’ll be a really enjoyable trip (if it’s in winter). In summer? …heaven help you.

Amber Palace, and Jaigarh Fort (on top of hill)

Mizoram's Taj Mahal

KV Paradise, Mizoram's Taj Mahal

Mizoram has its own version of a monument built for love, in this case, by a man for his wife who perished in an accident. If I’m not mistaken, it’s called KV Paradise, but all the locals just call it Mizoram Taj Mahal.


KV Paradise, Durtlang, Aizawl

The Flattest Place in Mizoram?

Thenzawl, is just about the flattest place I’ve come across in Mizoram, throughout my 1½ years stay. Nothing much here, or for the matter of fact, in Mizoram, except if you’re interested in natural beauty, such as hills, bamboo and more bamboo; and ethnic tribes and their culture. The Vantawng Waterfall’s here (refer earlier entry – “The Waterfall of The Leech”). Our Project’s nearby, which is fortunate since at least Thenzawl has some semblance of a decent tourist lodge, a good enough grocery shop (to cater for the police mainly), some health-care facilities, and the blessings of a river, Mat River, which fortunately brings BC boulders (very technical to explain here). Thenzawl’s also known to be the cowboy town of Mizoram, with farms and pastures (due to its comparative flatness) and a center for production of ethnic weave-work, besides the local liquor, oh I forgot… that’s illegal…




Weaving Workshop at Thenzawl

The Disadvantages of Drinking

...till you're dead drunk anyway.


Some local liquor – dirt cheap, maybe 100 rupees, depending on how many of your friends / colleagues you wanna treat
Some namkeen (tidbits Indian style) – 100 – 200 rupees, again depending on how many people you wanna treat
A photo in the internet, of you plastered on your bed, dead drunk, with your shorts and bed wet with pee, just because you’re too drunk to make a trip to the toilet or to even notice you need to go – Priceless!...

Memories of Mizoram

Mat River near Thenzawl, where our precious 'BC' stones come from. Wanna know more about BC stones of Mizoram? Send me a personal mail...

Farewell Mizoram! Yeah, sadly it’s goodbye, for the time being anyway. Till we meet again (and I’m sure we will, since it’s Anu’s home), here’re more pictures of a place which has given me a lot of friends, a lot of fond memories, a lot of experience and a place which I've already kinda considered home. Anyway, here’s to wishing everyone a Happy Happy Brand New Year! May 2007 bring abundant joy, peace, success, prosperity, luck, love and hope!


Rani, our lovely 'daughter', the hardest one to leave behind in Mizoram


Mausen Village, the village I and Anu were gearing to shift in (for work, it's on the Project Road) before we fell in love, etc, and changed everything...


Mucking around on the Kolodyne River Bridge (between Lawngtlai and Saiha); from left - Nela, Tony, yours truly


Aizawl's Bara Bazaar (meaning 'Big Market' in Hindi)


Serchhip, the biggest town between Aizawl and Haulawng, where we used to stop for lunch, dinner, supper..., depending on the time we reach this place while traveling


Angels of Haulawng at the Vantawng Falls; from left - Anu (with Rani), Rini, Amrita and Anny