day trip to mamallapuram

Mahabalipuram is just an hour's drive from home, but i was surprised that we had not gone there more often. It is a pleasant drive along east coast road and not many bottlenecks in traffic. With friends for company this time, one hour actually just whizzed past.

I remembered an earlier occasion when we had gone there in the morning and had difficult time locating a place to have lunch. I think it was a sunday and peak holiday season. We had to come half way to chennai to finally land a good vegetarian restaurant.

I was wiser this time, so planned for a trip after lunch. The weather was mild and near the shore temple we just could not keep our dupattas in place.Suddenly the wind used to drop and it was surprising to be in and out of heavy bouts of breeze, as if somebody was switching it on and off.The climb up the entire range of rocks in and around light house proved to be exciting. We discovered new rock temples of mahishasuramardini where mahendra varma pallava used to pray. After a while we had truly lost our way and asked one of the men who was overseeing the cleanliness of the winding pathways. He pointed to both the directions of the pathway and said we could go either way, we would reach the main road. He really believed that the earth is round! We trudged a long distance before our driver spotted us and waved frantically to catch our attention. But then as it turned out, this unexpected trekking was the best part of the trip.Paul coelho would greatly approve of going out of the comfort of the tried and trusted path and attempting something totally different.

There are lots of shops selling figurines, handicraft items and souveneirs. Somehow bags of varied shapes, sizes and textures seemed to catch our attention. I guess one cant go wrong with bags as a gift item.We zoomed in on a shop selling brass/brone stautes and my friend found the ganpathi idol sitting and swinging comfortably in a jhoola.She was particularly looking for such a piece she said and closed the deal.Her bag was weighing two and a half kilos more as a result of this purchase!

The crowd was just right without being intrusive and uncomfortable. Yes one noticed a distinct lack of 'foreigners' this time.The shop keepers were lamenting thin tourist arrivals after the mumbai terror attack. In a week's time the annual dance festival and peak tourist season will start.

I plan to be there with a different crowd

roses in december

I see roses everywhere.It is like a rainbow of roses, but with a difference.They have such unbelievable colours.

I saw a green rose. Yes I almost went past the bush and saw all the buds in various stages and did not give it a second look. But I stopped by the next bush which had roses in doubt shades;deep violet with white streaks. When I was examining the beauty of these roses I gave a second glance at the earlier bush just to second guess what colour of roses did it have hidden in those buds. It was then that I noticed that the roses were already in bloom and they looked an extension of the leaves! Wonder why it needed such a camouflage!

The next bush was full of white roses and the whole bush was buzzing with bees; every one of the flowers were inhabited with tiny bees and they were deep inside or hovering about in queue for their turn to suck the nectar.I did not see bees in any other bush other than white.They seem to prefer white only. I could almost hear them say “give us any colour of rose provided they are white!”.

I am an avid walker but I could not move away from the rose garden.I had the time and the inclination to enjoy their beauty, what we typically see as moghul badsha’s regular pastime. The badshas seemed to have spent their entire life in the rose gardens, singing to their beloved with a beautiful rose in their outstretched hand. I don’t blame them, now.

There was a bush which had beautiful well shaped yellow roses on one branch and off white roses on another branch. No, they were not the two day old roses about to drop off. I thought the same and checked it out.

It is a beauty to see the roses in various stages of bloom. It is as though we are seeing god/s creation unfold before our eyes. I was not able to make out if I liked the roses just before bloom, they had a faint blush and held some mystery about them; or the roses which have just fully bloomed which in close view had such symmetrical and exquisite array of petals of such utter tenderness.I remain unsure!

I reluctantly went to the next bush and then the next which had such wonderful deep red, crimson, dark orange, light orange, a real red, pink rose and so many various shades for which I am not able to cite correct colours. My friend was as excited as I was and we had a game of identifying new colours of roses.It was a pleasant early winter morning with dew drops still on the rose petals and leaves and the sun was coming out through the palm trees in the walkway.The scene enveloped me; the entire scene was soothing to the eyes and the mind.
Time stood still.
Roses in December.